I stop at what looks like a hole in the sand. When I circle around it, I find a massive concrete entrance.
Inside, the tunnel is dark and cold. Out here, in the middle of the desert, it should've been dry as bone, but it isn't. It's damp, clammy, freezing. Water drips from the ceiling and patters onto the concrete floor. Probably a result of rushed construction. Then again, the fact they got plumbing working out here at all is kind of insane. I guess that's what money does. Gets you anything. Even a giant concrete bunker with working pipes in the middle of nowhere.
At the end of the tunnel, there's a huge metal door with EMBERS spray painted across it in bright colors. I knock. Nothing. I knock again.
"Nara is here!"
Nothing.
"Open up already, you stupid faggots!"
"Code?"
The voice comes from the other side of the door.
"How am I supposed to know your stupid codes? Open the fucking door right now or I'll tear it down myself!"
The tunnel goes dead quiet.
Then I hear it.
Click.
The door swings open.
There's a table inside. A man sits across from it in a plain shirt and tie. He's built thick, not muscular exactly, just solid and blocky. A pair of glasses rests on top of his shaved head. He looks like the kind of guy you could mistake for an army officer. He's our boss.
Behind him stands another man, tall, average build, in a dark spotted suit with matching pants. Long, curly dark hair hangs over his eyes. I have no idea who he is, but he often hangs around boss man.
I step into the room, and an old man who looks like a butler shuts the door behind me.
I glance around. The room is dim, full of cheap LED lighting. Christmas lights hang from the ceiling. Neon signs glow on the walls. The only bright source of light is a large, almost orange bulb in the corner, though even that is dimmed. There's a bar off to the left. A pretty woman in a dark bunny outfit stands behind it, wiping a glass.
I walk over to the table. The boss rests his forearms on it and folds his hands.
"Sit down."
He says it quietly, but there's no mistaking it for anything but an order.
I sit. Obviously, I put my legs up on the table.
"I see. You are as ill mannered as ever, but that's not why I summoned you here tonight."
I love messing with the boss man. Sure, if I pushed too far, he'd probably have me killed. So I don't. I stick to the little things. Feet on the table. Dirty shoes on his floor. Dressing inappropriately for the occasion on purpose. Shit like that. He always acts calm, always looks completely in control, but I know it bothers him. And he knows that I know. That's what makes it fun.
"I presume you already know why you are here?"
Same hard look. Same cold voice.
Mmm. I can think of a few reasons. Maybe because we screwed the job up again. Maybe because he's tired of my attitude. Honestly, there are so many possibilities I could sit here guessing all night.
"I dunno."
I answer without really thinking. My eyes drift to the woman at the bar, still working the same glass over and over while my mind wanders.
"It's about your partners."
I look back at him.
"Am I finally getting someone useful for once?"
His face tightens. I don't care. Why would I? Some old guy getting mad at me doesn't exactly ruin my day. If anything, it makes me want to push more. Maybe this time I can actually make him crack.
"We've been through this already."
"We indeed have."
I nod.
"And I still keep getting useless fucks for partners. So this sounds like a management problem. Aka, you."
He just keeps staring at me. Not much reaction on his face, but I catch his hands tensing.
I smile.
Yeah. I'm getting to him.
"While it's true you've had some lackluster partners in the beginning, your last partner was one of our best field agents."
"If that's our best, we are fucked."
I answer without missing a beat.
The boss slams both hands onto the table, startling everyone except the suited man behind him. The bartender nearly drops her glass, and I have to catch myself before I tip backward in the chair.
Then he speaks again, calm as ever.
"Stephan hasn't failed a single mission since he started working with us, and he's considered on par with the vice captain of Miracle Inc. security forces. If that's still not good enough for you, then I'm afraid we have nothing else to offer you."
The second I realize where this is going, I jump to my feet.
"W wait!"
I throw a hand out.
The suited man pulls a silenced pistol and fires.
Nara's body hits the bunker floor. Blood runs from the hole in the center of her forehead. A dark pool spreads over the concrete.
The boss looks at the mess and says, flat and stern,
"Clean it up."
The butler walks over without a word, grabs Nara by the arms, and drags her away. The bartender takes a mop and starts cleaning the blood off the floor.
The boss keeps staring at the same spot, like Nara is still sitting there. Then he speaks to the man in the suit.
"We just lost two of our best agents over a simple job. She wasn't entirely wrong. If this is the best we've got, then we're in worse shape than I thought. Word will spread through the right circles by morning. We need something big before then, or people are going to start seeing us as a joke."
"Sir?" the suited man asks.
"Call Ivy."
"Ivy? Are you sure, sir? There could be complications..."
"Doesn't matter. We need to salvage our reputation at all costs. We have to put someone competent on this, or we risk digging ourselves an even bigger hole."
Boss man looks up at him.
"Besides, you know how Ivy is. Throw him a bone and he'll go a mile to fetch it."
"How big of a bone are we talking about, sir?"
"Remember that thing I told you to keep quiet about?"
"The files?"
"Yes. Send those to Ivy."
The man shifts uncomfortably.
"But sir, that's the only leverage we have on Ivy. If we give it up now, we lose any control we have over him."
"Doesn't matter," the boss says, without a hint of concern.
"Knowing what he's about to do, he's unlikely to make it till morning. If he somehow pulls through, we'll promote him."
"Are you sure about it, sir?"
"Yes. He's one of the best, if not the best, we've got. If he proves himself tonight, we'll bring him onto the board."
The suited man nods.
"I'll contact Ivy immediately."
He gathers some papers and leaves.
A nasty smile spreads across the boss man's face.
"Miracle Inc. is next. And that's just a taste of what's to come."
The bartender shivers at the sight of his smile. The butler is back by the door, his face blank, as if nothing ever happened.
A hooded man lies on top of a car in the middle of the forest. Trees surround him on all sides. The car sits in a small clearing, and the sky above is open and clear. Moonlight spills over the car, making it gleam in the dark.
A phone rings, cutting through the silence.
The man sits up and pulls back his hood. Where a human face should be, he has a mass of alien looking gills or tentacles.
He lifts the phone to his face.
"Hello."
A voice answers from the other end.
"Hey, Ivy, remember that thing..."
The freakish looking man nods.
"Still working on it. At this rate, should be done in a few months."
"No, no, no, forget about it. The boss man is very satisfied with your performance. So satisfied, in fact, that he has decided to grant you your reward ahead of time."
The freakish man leans in.
His phone pings with a notification.
"I had sent you the files. I hope that..."
Click.
Ivy hangs up. He looks down at the phone, then at the message. Miracle Inc. employee files. He scrolls through them, and at the bottom there's one more message.
Angel Street 54.23. 6 a.m. Executive promotion party.
The freakish man pulls his hood back up and walks off.
Moonlight spills into the car, lighting up the burned out interior. There's a charred body slumped in every seat.