Agent X

xx| 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚃𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎 |xx

On the outskirts of Washington DC was a thirty-floor, high-rise building. The red brick façade was covered in windows, though specialty glass barred anyone from seeing what was inside. To most, it was a generic office building. But the International Intelligence Agency was anything but a run-of-the-mill business. No, what went on inside that building was of international importance. For in their hands lay the safety and security of the entire free world.

From training to briefings, anything and everything having to do with the IIA happened inside that building. But the heart of the agency rested on the topmost floor with the Unit Leaders or U.L.

Director Rokmond and the six other Unit Leaders sat around an oval, glass table. The director glanced down at his watch again. It was ten minutes past 9 o'clock am. This was one of the rare, unfortunate occasions that one of the leaders was late. Director Rokmond glanced at Forest Oclen, who sat perfectly still with his hands neatly folded on the table, then moved on to look at the empty seat beside the old spy.

Finally, the echo of rapid footsteps made its way through the hallway. The door opened and in stepped Juno Oclen, the last member of the entourage. She looked shorter than usual—perhaps due to her unusually poor posture and the fact that she wasn't wearing heels for once. Her face also seemed to be redder than usual. In a few quick movements, she slunk to her seat next to her husband. Forest smiled down at his wife and gave her hand a tiny squeeze before refocusing on the task at hand.

Ordinarily, being late to a U.L. meeting was highly frowned upon. However, given the present circumstances, few held it against Juno. The whole group decided not to mention the fact, to move on from it. There was no need to dwell on the past. Besides, Director Rokmond was sure that it wouldn't happen again.

"Good morning," he greeted. "I hope we are all ready to start the meeting."

Normally, he would have said 'I hope we are all having a pleasant day, so far,' but given the circumstances, that needed to be adjusted.

"Today, we have an important decision in front of us," the director proceeded. "After the unfortunate capture of Agent 24, we need to figure out how to proceed with the mission at hand."

The Director always used the professional numbers of the Agents in situations like this. It was a way to detach from the personal aspect involved, to remain objective in the face of a trying experience. The Agency has and always would come first. Right now, Xara was just another Agent who happened to be captured by WAOIC.

If Xara's parents had been anyone else, they would have flinched at the reference. But Forest and Juno were strong. They'd both been captured by the enemy in their spy careers. They'd been tortured and starved, but made it out stronger. If they could survive, surely Xara would too.

If, and only if, WAOIC wasn't planning on killing her.

"Only Agent 24 possessed the necessary skills to be successful in Mission WLM500. For one thing, she is the only agent to have met every single person attending the World Leader's Convention. She has talked with them all and remembers every single word, every last detail. She can also pick up on the actions people do that aren't normal. For example, she notices how a person holds a fork and knife. Do they look natural and relaxed while cutting a steak, or does it look more forced. She notices facial expressions, the slightest differentiations in the way a person smiles or frowns. She remembers every order that she has ever heard a person say. If someone who normally orders salads suddenly orders a steak, she takes note of it."

Director Rokmond paused as he scanned those at the table. The Unit Leaders frowned in concentration, slowly but surely processing what was being said.