Despite the looming start of the clock, everyone fell asleep like innocent children. In the morning, without any grumbling, they prepared for the mission as if it were a family outing. Before departing, Nakane offered her blessings and gave final instructions. Then, at irregular intervals, each of them climbed into an inconspicuous car and was driven to the designated meeting point chosen by Busterrix.
As Kelly gazed out at the passing views of the dreary streets in the Third Zone, she couldn't help but wonder whether they would receive bullets to the head right away or perhaps after a cordial welcome tea. Did Ace truly suspect nothing? On the other hand, her team, despite two weeks of working together, remained strangers to one another, lacking any real connection. Did Ace genuinely believe in them? Callean had assured them that no other applications had been received; the office's IT genius had seen to that. The next crucial question revolved around why Busterrix had opted for newcomers when he already had his own gang of repeat offenders. Would he truly entrust such a critical mission to a group of strangers?
A whirlwind of thoughts swirled in her head as she disembarked at an entirely random location, standing alone amidst the pungent fumes from the taxi's exhaust. She surveyed the sluggish, desolate part of the Third Zone, primarily inhabited by industrial facilities that remained closed on Sundays. It was quiet, serene, and gloomy—perfect for a meeting with Busterrix's contact.
She activated her "business" phone since their personal ones had been confiscated by the Bureau. She opened the message containing the meeting location that had been assigned to her. Each of them had received different places and circumstances for meeting someone from Ace. They assumed that Busterrix's envoys would screen them first before leading them to the boss, minimizing the risk.
From under the phone booth she walked along the street, slowly wandering her feet. She couldn't deny that adrenaline was coursing through her veins, causing her ears to buzz and her breath to quicken. She scolded herself for casting nervous glances around; it hardly made her look inconspicuous. Busterrix had to believe that she knew exactly what she was doing and that she was the best at it. After all, she had a decade of experience in kidnapping kids—this was a piece of cake. Totally kidding.
After a quarter of an hour, she reached a somewhat uninviting tenement building near the factories. The desolate neighborhood began to arouse suspicion. She had only encountered two people on her way there, both pretending not to notice her, just as she pretended not to notice them. The building itself appeared abandoned.
She entered the building, ascending the creaky staircase to the third floor and apartment eleven. This was where she was supposed to meet her contact, and she couldn't help but wonder who it would be. Would it be Mantis, or someone built like a fortress—Busterrix's bodyguard? Or a woman with wild green hair and tattoos even on her forehead?
However, upon opening the door, she was greeted by emptiness. In the next moment, she felt a prick in her neck, an uncomfortable warmth, and then darkness.
It all felt eerily familiar.
•••
A gentle voice attempted to penetrate her consciousness, but her brain slammed the door shut. Her eyelids felt heavy, refusing to rise and reveal her surroundings, while her senses remained too dulled to make out the words. Reality began to trickle in ever so slowly, as if emerging from deep water. The gentle voice transformed into an annoying one, and a harsh light assaulted her pupils.
As her vision sharpened, she saw an unfamiliar face leaning over her. She screamed and instinctively tried to rise, but instead delivered a powerful knee to the stranger's chin.
This time she recovered very quickly, bumping into reality. She was sitting in a soft leather armchair in a spacious windowless room with one door that was locked. Her heart went to her throat when she saw only unfamiliar faces, neither belonging to her Troubles nor to Busterrix's gang. In the next moment, she focused her eyes on the person she had knocked out; she recognized Walker in the boy lying on the ground. When she once again looked at the group, she spotted her team among the gathered, sitting separately, without suspicion.
She breathed a sigh of relief and leaned over Jay.
"Never wake a sleeping woman," she said helping him get up.
"I'll remember," he smiled crookedly, massaging his sore jaw. During the brief contact, they read from their faces what they could not say.
They were not alone.
In addition to them, there were five random people in the room that they had never seen before. Busterrix also recruited others. She didn’t think that the first troubles would start so quickly.
She barely had time to settle back into her chair when the door in front of her swung open. All eyes turned toward the tall blond boy with his hair tied haphazardly in a ponytail. He stood in the doorway, hands on hips, a cheerful grin adorning his face. Perhaps too cheerful.
"It's wonderful to see that everyone has arrived safe and sound!" he exclaimed enthusiastically, clapping his hands and stepping into the room.
He glanced around at the expressions in the crowd, searching for any signs of shared excitement. Even when he didn't find it, he continued with the same chipper tone, reminiscent of a school trip leader.
"My name is Urs, and it's a pleasure to meet you all." He offered a deep bow. "I'll be overseeing your assimilation as new recruits for the foreseeable future. We have some exciting times ahead, during which I hope to get to know all of you from the ground up—or," he paused dramatically, curling his lips into a playful pout and directing his light gray eyes squarely at the only girl in the group, "perhaps renew some old acquaintances. Hello, Kelly, how have you been?"
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