Episode 01

I looked above at the sky as the cocktail-blue shades were beginning to darken into gravel-grey. The clouds form a mass of cotton that envelops the golden sun. As the wind became chilly, it brushed against my skin, leaving a lingering sensation. So I quickened my walking pace as the people flowed by like a river. Noises gathered around me, from vehicles to huge billboard screens and even the voices of people who were selling products or gossiping. It is dull in my sight as there is a secret that the world doesn't know. When I arrived at the subway station on Calili Street, I waited patiently for my chance to ride in. Unaware, I stood near the telephone pole, and in the blink of an eye, the telephone rang without notice. There was no one else there, so it seemed like it was meant for me...

"Hello?"

The caller at the other end of the phone didn't answer, instead a beeping frequency answered me.

"C.O.D.E. N.A.M.E."

"Nine..."

"G.R.A.N.T.E.D... M.E.S.S.A.G.E....W.I.L.L... R.E.C.E.I.V.E...S.H.O.R.T.L.Y..."

And so after that, I hung up the telephone, waiting for the subway again like nothing had happened. The train arrived shortly as I went inside. Sitting near the exit door, at just the right time, my phone chimed. I slide my hand into my pocket and pull out my phone. It was a location destined for me to go to. My next stop was the Black Crown Hotel. I sighed deeply as I let my mind soar for awhile, making myself feel what freedom is.

4:35 p.m.

I halt at the Nova Avenue station, and from there I take a taxi to reach the Black Crown Hotel. It took me 10 minutes to step out of the taxi. I was wearing my formal clothes, a beige turtleneck with a leather jacket, along with my tight pants and boots. Which kind of hit my guilt as I saw how glamorous the hotel was. Anyway, there was no time to turn around and change. I went inside the lobby as my eyes roamed around. An elegant woman wearing an employee uniform came towards me, bowing her head politely, and said, "Good afternoon, ma'am. Please follow me to your reservation room. "

I smiled and tried my best to be as enthusiastic as possible and replied. "Thank you."

She led me into the elevator, pushing the button for the sixteenth floor. The room was devoured by

silence as the chime on the elevator could only be heard from every floor. Then she spoke with her monotone voice, saying, "Agent nine, everything was prepared for you... Go to room 165. "

I nodded silently as she didn't budge an inch to look at me. Well, it's a part of the job after all. We're not supposed to make friends, nor could having a lover be involved. We risk our lives under the secrecy of the government, or their so-called peace. We're trained like dogs, we suffer for others' sake. And lastly, we're bonded in everything, as if there was a chain holding on to my hands and feet, in short we're just simply a prisoners. As if the assignation of "death" were the only form of liberty. With all that dirt under my feet, I lived a luxurious life... Well, at least I can say I'll just worry if someone assassinates me or dies on the mission. Finally, the suffocating silence fell into pieces as the elevator's steel door opened. Before I got out of the elevator, she gave me the keycard to the room, as her last word was,

"Good luck."

Walking down the hallway, I stood in front of the door of room 165. There I silently slid my card, then twisted the doorknob to get inside. As I continued to forward myself, a bed greeted me with the rose fragrance that tickles my nose. I sneezed. "Ahhh... I hate roses."

Then my eyes fell on the black suit case, and I opened it, seeing an entry card from the cruise. A party invitation, Other than that, guns were found. They were a Smith & Wesson Model 29 and a Beretta Model 9, along with a dagger and a flash bomb. I pushed the secret compartment of the suit. There, I saw a money that almost cost five hundred thousand dollars, along with a file. The telephone on the side of the bed rang once again, picking up the phone. Then a rough tone, tinted with coldness, whispered in my ear.

"Did you receive it?"

"Yes, I did. Thank you.

Have you looked into it? I will tell you more details. "

"I'm actually about to open it."

I opened the file as it was a biography file of a man named Mosalev Tsezar Ilyich. He was a Russian man, not just like any other person, but also a multimillionaire. His money came from smuggling and selling guns without legal paper. "Oh hoo?" I whistle as my eyes are fired up with motivation.

"Everything is in the information I sent you... his likes, his behaviour, and even his business construction."

"I've got it."

"More importantly, we gave you a new identity as Vanessa Williams, as a media favorite writer of news and other entertainment."

"Alright.."

"Now I must bid you farewell and wish your mission the best of luck, Agent nine." Then he hung up the phone.

"Now let's see..." I exhale deeply, Reading every page and making a clear strategy to make my way in and out.

6:00 pm

I decided to relax and give myself a makeover. I scrolled on my phone, looking for the nearest mall in my area, which was the Phoenix Mall. I took the money and put it in the bag, and grabbed the key car in the suit that was prepared for me. I went down to basement two, where the car was waiting for me. As I arrived, I pushed the button on my car key, giving me a sign of where it was located. I followed the signal until my eyes gleamed, seeing a black-painted sports car, a Lamborghini. In my excitement, I hopped in as I drove myself to the mall. Afterwards, as I was walking in the mall's parking lot, a man in a rush bumped into me. 

"Watch out!" I called for him, but the man seemed not to be himself as he kept dashing out as if he was being chased by something. I quickly became suspicious of his movement and instinctively followed the man's heading too. He glimpsed a sight towards my location as his eyes filled with terror as he continued charging himself up with his adrenaline. I almost didn't catch up with him, as I did use a quick route for him to counter in the alley. He fell on his feet and stood up again, with his hands shaking, then he shouted. 

"Ne t'approche pas de moi! "

(Don't come near me!)

He said those words again and again until I realized he wasn't originally from this country. He was horrified and nervous. "Ne t'approche pas de moi..." I repeated those words in my head, then an idea came to my mind, but I am not entirely sure.

"Êtes-vous français? "

(Are you french?)

"Oui! "

(Yes!)

"N'ayez pas peur, je suis là pour vous aider."

(Don't be afraid, i'm here to help you)

"La Menteuse! "

(Liar?!)

Then he pulled out a knife and waved it carelessly. He was a non-combat person also, so I gently pursued him, then grabbed his hand, twisting it as I put it behind his back, kicking the back of his knee also. He kneeled down on the ground.

"Shush…. you have to calm down first. Now, breath ... exhale... inhale..." As he calmed down, That's the time I slowly let him go as he began to cry putting his head on the ground. .

"je veux vivre, s'il te plait aide moi..."

(i want to live, please help me)"

"How did this happen to you, and who did this?"

But before he opened his mouth to spill the beans, a disturbing sound made me jump back. A ticking clock on his chest.

"Sh*t..."

I ripped his clothes off and discovered a bomb with only 5 seconds before it exploded.

 as the tick of the bomb, I was running for my life and jumping on a wall to cover myself. 

"Boom!"

I looked back again, and everything was blown away, along with the innocent man who was begging for his life to live. Not only that, some people suffered minor injuries in that horrible incident, along with the shattered glasses of the nearby stores. My insides were turning upside-down as I slid away from the area. Thirty kilometers away from the incident, I bought a cigarette in the store and stood near the telephone booth. I puffed my cigarette a few times before throwing it away as I went inside the booth to dial a number. Again, a beeping frequency answered me, and I gave my access to it.

What can I do for you, Nine? "

I'm looking for information about a bombing on St. Louis Street, about ten minutes from the Phoenix Mall.

"Alright, give me a sec."

"...."

"I'm back and here we go. "

There is, in fact, a bombing event on St. Louis Street, and the other was in the Phoenix mall—but at a precise time of 6:35? " 

"That doesn't sound like a coincidence to me." I mumbled, then sighed deeply.

 "Alright, send me that information later after my mission." I added, before hanging up the phone.

"Roger that, nine"

For now, I have to focus on one thing, my mission… it's almost 7pm i still have more time to prepare myself.