Darts Fly Heavy - Ch. 1
*****
The Spire had picked the perfect night. Tonight was a new moon; it was as dark as it possibly could be. Of course, it was impossible to escape the light in Synthi City. Skyscrapers pierced the night sky like daggers. The business of Synthi City didn’t cease at 5pm. Any poor bastard that stumbled into the city could immerse himself in 24 straight hours of gambling, prostitution, smuggling, underground fight clubs and any other lawless activity before sleeping it off and starting all over again.
A westerly wind blew across the roof of the Evolux Tower. Vesper checked her watch. It was almost midnight.
“Have you heard from the Spire?” she asked.
“Not since we got up here,” Harper answered.
The two operatives knelt on the roof to avoid the gusts of wind. As they did before any mission, the girls double checked their bags and their utility belts, ensuring they had all the tools necessary.
Vesper ejected the magazine from her tranquilizer gun and checked the witness holes. She counted 15 darts. She pulled the slide of the gun rearward to confirm there was no dart in the chamber. Finding it empty, she reinserted the magazine and racked the slide to chamber a dart. She pulled out her suppressor and aligned its threads with those of the threaded barrel, ensuring a snug fit. She twisted it carefully but firmly, feeling the suppressor lock into place with a satisfying click. She slipped the tranquilizer gun into the holster that sat on her right hip.
Vesper patted down her skintight black lycra suit. It covered every inch of her body from her neck downwards, save for her hands, which wore matching black gloves, and her feet, which wore lightweight black combat boots. Her long blue hair was tied in a single French braid that fell down the length of her back.
“We need to go soon,” Harper warned.
Vesper looked over at her partner. Harper wore the same lycra suit with matching black gloves and combat boots. Her pink curly hair fell just past her chin. Her amber colored eyes showed no signs of concern.
“I’m ready,” said Vesper.
“Let’s get the hang gliders out.”
The operatives walked over and picked up the two long tubes that sat a few yards away. Vesper opened the top of the tube and pulled out the contraption. Once it was out of the tube, Vesper went to work assembling the hang glider, stretching out the polyester wing to its full extent and confirming the rigging and control bar were secure. Once her hang glider was assembled, she began strapping herself into its harness.
“The Spire never told you who we’re going after tonight?” asked Vesper.
“All I have are the coordinates of the building and its blueprints. It’s three miles to the east.”
“Strange.”
“They did say it would be heavily guarded,” said Harper, tightening her harness.
“Of course.”
Vesper tightened her own harness and glanced over at Harper. “Shall we?”
“Let’s go.”
The operatives climbed onto the ledge of the roof. The Evolux Tower was the tallest skyscraper in Synthi City at just over 2,500 feet. Their orders were to leap from the top of the tower and glide three miles east to the roof of their target, sailing over any perimeter fencing and ground-based guards. It was clever but dangerous; there were several skyscrapers standing between them and the target. It would take a lot of skill to maneuver their way around them while keeping their bearings.
Vesper tried to add some levity to situation. “I bet I land on the roof before you.”
“No way.” Harper smiled.
“See you on the other side.” And with that, Vesper leapt off the ledge.
The neon-lit cityscape sprawled out beneath her as she caught the updraft, gliding eastward. The skyscrapers of Synthi City loomed like behemoths in the night. Vesper’s first obstacle was Cybervault Heights. She was approaching the tower much faster than she had anticipated. She adjusted her angle of attack and shifted her weight to the left, aiming towards the north side of the skyscraper. She managed to clear it with only a few feet of space. She tried to look back to see Harper, but couldn’t make her out against the bright lights of the tower.
She faced forward and skimmed the skyline of the dystopian city, her focus alternating between the urban labyrinth below and the towers in front of her. As the wind howled through the city’s skyscrapers, she checked her heading on her watch.
Her gloved finger hovered over her watch, and her eyes widened as she read the numbers. They clearly indicated a northeast heading. Panic gripped her for a split second. Remember your training. Fear is immaterial.
She quickly adjusted her body, shifting her weight to the right and slightly altering the angle of her glider’s wings. Her new heading put the imposing Neon Plaza directly in her path. This time she would go around the south side of the building. She shifted her weight hard to the right.
Just as she did so, Harper flew past her. She was only about ten feet below Vesper and moving fast. Her black wing blended in well with the dark night.
Even with her roll to the right, Vesper would be cutting it close. The building loomed larger every second. She angled to the right even further, pushing her control to the limit and threatening a spiral dive. She could feel the structure of her glider groan under the stress.
She was so close she could see her reflection in the windows of the building. She hung onto the glider for dear life as her body was almost perpendicular to the ground. Vesper held her breath as she approached the sharp corner of the tower.
She passed it within inches, narrowly avoiding a collision. If she had wanted to, she could have reached out and touched the glass with her hand.
Her challenge now was to get the glider back under control. She slowly shifted her weight to her left and began turning back to the east. The glider’s structure continued to groan, but it obeyed nonetheless.
The rest of the flight would be relatively smooth. Vesper was now out of the downtown district of Synthi City and she could fly over the remaining buildings fairly easily. She confirmed her heading and adjusted the angle of attack, increasing her speed.
She squinted her eyes. In the distance, the target gleamed like a faraway star. She sped up. She had lost sight of Harper long ago, but Vesper was pretty sure her near-death maneuver had given her a solid lead.
Approximately a mile out, Vesper realized that the light emanating from the target building was a little too bright. Not only was it too bright, but it appeared to be moving.
It’s a searchlight. Vesper cursed underneath her breath. Do they know we’re coming? Impossible.
The powerful beam of the searchlight swept over the night sky. With her momentum, it would be almost impossible to time her landing. If she slowed down and flew circles around the target, she would risk be spotted by the guards. Speed was a necessity. This next part would require a mixture of skill and luck. In what proportions, Vesper didn’t hazard a guess.
She was half a mile out now and approaching fast. A voice spoke into her ear.
“Heroine to Vixen. You’re going in too hot. You’ll win the bet but you might lose your life in the process.”
Vesper held her right hand up to her ear and yelled into the wind. “Vixen to Heroine. No other choice. You see the searchlight?”
“Affirmative. Once you land, I won’t have your back for another minute. Good luck.”
“Copy. Vixen out.”
Vesper was a quarter of a mile out now. She could make out 10, maybe 15 guards patrolling the grounds. The perimeter fencing was tall and peppered with guard towers. The target building was about ten stories high. She squinted. She thought she saw two guards on the roof. Two’s not bad. I can handle two.
Just as she had feared, the searchlight began to swing towards her as she glided over the fence. She quickly weighed her options. I need to come in fast to dodge the searchlight. And I can’t take my sweet time getting out of this harness either. I’ll need to get as low as I can over the roof and then bail.
She angled her wing downwards and flew underneath the piercing light, unstrapping herself from the harness at the same time. Within the next couple of seconds, the roof would be beneath her. She tried to get the glider as low as possible and prepared to bail. She wasn’t sure whether the guards on the roof had seen her yet, and she wasn’t going to take her time to find out. She positioned her body as low as possible on the hang glider’s frame. There would be about 10 feet of elevation between her and the roof.
Then she was over the building. She released herself from the glider and fell towards the roof. Vesper tucked her chin to her chest, arched her back, and began flipping diagonally forward and to the side in midair. Meanwhile, the glider soared over her head off into the distance. Vesper landed hard on her shoulder and continued the roll over her back, hips, and legs. She rolled for several feet before crashing into the side of an HVAC unit.
Pain surged through Vesper’s body. Not exactly the soft landing I was hoping for. Not the quietest either. The two guards had to have heard her crash, she was sure of it. Fear is immaterial. Pain is immaterial. She crawled around to the other side of the HVAC unit, putting the large, boxy machine between her and the direction she expected the guards to come from.
She rested her back against the HVAC unit and checked her bags. Her utility belt was still in good shape, as was her backpack. She reached down to her right hip and breathed a sigh of relief when her fingers felt the cool polymer of her tranquilizer gun. She quickly unholstered it, held it up to the right side of her head, and listened.
At first, she heard nothing. Then she heard footsteps. Vesper gripped her gun tight and tried not to think of the pain radiating through her body.
“You heard that too, right?” a female voice said.
“Yeah, I heard it,” answered another female voice. “I thought I saw someth—holy shit! Do you see that?”
“Something crashed into it!”
“Be quiet!”
Then the voices hushed. They know someone’s up here. Her element of surprise was weakened, but not totally gone. She listened closely, trying to hear which direction the guards were walking. She calmed her breathing and closed her eyes. She heard two pairs of footsteps. She smiled. They had split up; the guards were walking around the HVAC unit from two different directions.
Vesper knew what she had to do. She took one last deep breath, opened her eyes, turned around, and rolled quickly to her right.
As she rolled, she processed her vision in slow motion. As she cleared the edge of the HVAC unit, one of the female guards came into view. She was skinny and blonde, wearing a baggy black uniform, and she had been crouching along the side of unit. The guard froze when she saw movement, which gave Vesper just enough time. As she rolled, Vesper fired two darts into the blonde guard, hitting her square in the chest.
The guard’s eyes widened and her face contorted briefly with pain as the darts pierced her clothes and lodged themselves in her flesh. Vesper finished her roll with her gun raised, ready to shoot another dart into the blonde if needed.
The guard dropped her weapon and used one arm to brace herself against the HVAC unit. She looked like she wanted to say something, but couldn’t get her mouth to form the words. Then her blue eyes dulled and her mouth fell open. Finally, her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she slumped forward.
Vesper turned around quickly to face the direction she rolled from and prepared for the inevitable, gun raised. Within two seconds, a brunette guard turned the corner and raised her gun. Before the guard could fire, Vesper got off two shots, a dart for each of the brunette’s breasts. The brunette fired her weapon too, but her aim was way off and the darts came nowhere close to Vesper.
The brunette guard remained standing for a few more seconds, then she began swaying. A soft moan escaped from her lips before she collapsed to the ground.
Vesper breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. It wasn’t her cleanest entry, that was for certain, but it seemed like she got away with it regardless. She paused for a brief moment to listen for coming footsteps and, hearing none, holstered her gun.
Letting curiosity get the best of her, Vesper knelt over the sleeping blonde guard and examined her uniform, searching for clues as to what organization the Spire had picked a fight with this time. She rolled the blonde onto her back and gently lifted her eyelid up. Her blue eye stared up into nothingness and didn’t react at all to Vesper’s presence, indicating the guard was completely knocked out. Vesper closed the guard’s eye and scanned her nondescript black uniform, searching for any hint of her employer. Then she heard footsteps behind her.
“Freeze!”
The girl’s voiced startled Vesper. Fuck! I only saw two guards!
“Drop your weapon to the ground! Now!”
Vesper took a second to weigh her options. No way I can turn around and fire a shot before she gets one off on me.
“I said drop your fucking gun!”
“Okay, okay,” Vesper said, reaching for her holster.
“Slowly! No sudden movements!”
I’m fucked. Vesper slowly unholstered her tranquilizer gun and tossed it to the side.
“Now place your hands behind your head, stand up and turn around. Slowly!”
Vesper did as she was told, interlocking her fingers behind her head, gradually standing up, and slowly turning around.
Vesper was surprised to see the guard’s face. Yes, her bright purple hair was unexpected, but her face was too. The guard looked confused. She was staring above Vesper’s head. Vesper would have turned around to see what the guard was looking at if she wasn’t worried about being shot.
“Are—are you okay?” Vesper asked, hands still behind her head.
The guard didn’t respond. Instead, she took one step forward, swayed, and took a small step back. Then the guard’s eyes rolled into the back of her head and she fell to the ground face first.
“What the hell?!” Vesper exclaimed. Then she saw it.
Sticking out of the guard’s ass was a red tranquilizer dart.
Vesper saw Harper’s pink hair emerge from behind another HVAC unit 20 feet away. That bitch!
“Couldn’t let you have all the fun,” Harper said as she walked over.
“I thought I was finished.”
“You would have been, if it weren’t for me. I saw your crash, by the way. How’re you feeling?”
“Oh, you know. Pain is immaterial.”
Harper smiled briefly before the emotion melted from her face. “Shall we get these girls stripped and tied up?”
Vesper grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.”
*****
Ch,2
*****
Vesper walked over to where the purple-haired security guard lay. She was still on her stomach, the red tranquilizer dart sticking out of her supple ass. At least, Vesper assumed it was supple. Whatever this organization is, they don’t invest in very flattering uniforms. The sleeping guard’s polyester black pants were baggy, as was her button down shirt.
Vesper knelt down and pulled the dart out of the security guard’s butt. Sorry, you might feel that one in the morning. She tossed the dart to the side before bending down and hoisting the guard over her shoulder. The guard’s long purple hair cascaded over her face as Vesper flipped her body over her shoulder. Vesper stood up. She wasn’t too heavy. With one hand on the sleeping girl’s ass, Vesper secured her firmly as she walked over to where Harper was working on the blonde guard.
Vesper gave the guard’s ass a healthy squeeze through her loose polyester pants. Yep, definitely supple.
As Vesper walked over, Harper was in the process of lifting the blonde guard up. Vesper waited patiently as Harper draped the blonde over her shoulder and then stood up. The two operatives now faced each other. As was their custom, they each reached out and gave the guard opposite them a firm slap on the ass. Vesper felt the glutes of the blonde guard ripple underneath her hand.
Vesper smiled. “Never gets old.”
“I put the brunette behind the HVAC unit all the way over there.” Harper pointed to a rooftop unit laying about 30 feet away.
The two girls walked over in the direction she had pointed.
“The sedatives in the tranquilizer darts are fast acting,” Harper noted. “We need to give them something to help them sleep through the night.”
“I’ve got plenty of options in my utility belt.”
“Good,” said Harper. “What was your enemy count on the ground?”
“Somewhere between 10 and 15.”
Harper shook her head. “There were 13. I’m guessing you never saw the third guard on the roof either?”
“I was coming in pretty hot,” Vesper protested.
“The Spire doesn’t accept excuses.”
“You sound like Seraphina. Hey, maybe you should train incoming recruits?”
Harper shrugged. “Just looking out for you.”
The two girls approached the last HVAC unit on the roof, went around the left side, and rounded the corner to the right. There the brunette guard lay on her back, two red darts sticking out of her breasts.
Vesper and Harper laid their guards on their backs next to the brunette, with about three feet between each girl.
“Here comes my favorite part,” Vesper grinned.
“Don’t get too excited.” Harper shook her head. “We need to move quickly.”
Vesper went to work on the purple-haired guard while Harper started on the brunette.
Vesper unlaced her black combat boots, pulling off the left and then the right. Next came her long black socks. She reached underneath the hem of her right pant leg until she found the cuff of her socks, about midway up the guard’s calf. Sneaking her fingers underneath the elastic, Vesper pulled down until the sock came clean off, revealing a surprisingly dainty pale foot. Vesper smiled when she saw the purple nail polish on her cute little toes.
Vesper repeated the process with her left sock, revealing her left foot. Vesper ran both of her hands over the girl’s feet, rubbing her soles and briefly playing with her cute toes. Then she bent forward and reached for the guard’s waist, unbuckling her belt and pulling it off with a single move.
Laying the belt to the side, Vesper unbuttoned the guard’s pants, reached under the guard’s waistband, and began pulling down. She caught a peek of the guard’s white panties underneath before she met resistance from the part of the waistband that was still under the girl’s ass. Vesper briefly let go of the waistband and slid both of her hands, palms up, underneath her ass. She took advantage of the moment to give her relaxed buttocks a good squeeze before grabbing the waistband and pulling it past her asscheeks. Once her pants had made it past her ass, Vesper was able to pull them down off her thighs, calves, and ankles in a swift movement, leaving the guard in just her white panties.
Vesper placed the guard’s pants with her socks and boots and then slid up towards her torso. She went to work undoing all eight buttons on the guard’s cotton shirt. Once the shirt was completely unbuttoned, Vesper tossed the left and right plackets to the side, revealing the guard’s toned stomach and well-endowed chest. A matching white bra kept the unconscious girl’s breasts restrained. We’ll take care of that soon.
Vesper rolled the guard over onto her stomach, pulling the girl’s pale arms out of the sleeves of the unbuttoned black shirt. Once the shirt was off, Vesper tossed it over with the girl’s other clothes. She made quick work of the sleeping guard’s clasp, undoing it with a satisfying snap. She tossed the wings of the bra to the left and right side, finally baring the girl’s toned back.
Vesper smiled as she slid down towards the girl’s ass. Now that she was on her stomach, Vesper could see that the guard was wearing some granny panties that nearly covered her whole ass. That won’t do. Vesper snuck both of her hands underneath the waistband of the unconscious girl’s white panties and pulled down quickly. Damn! Unlike the rest of her toned body, the girl’s ass was nice and fat. Her pale white cheeks jiggled as Vesper pulled her panties down. If only I had more time.
Vesper slid the girl’s white granny panties down her thighs and calves before pulling them off her ankles. Vesper decided to keep the girl’s panties as a trophy and slyly slipped them into one of the pouches on her utility belt. Something tells me she won’t mind.
Vesper slid her hands under the sleeping guard’s body and rolled her back onto her stomach. She slid back up to the girl’s torso and slipped her limp arms through the straps of the white bra before pulling it off and tossing it with the other clothes. The girl’s tits were just as supple as her ass. Vesper grabbed each of her breasts in her hands. What a handful! Vesper flicked each of her pink nipples, causing them to harden quickly.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Harper chided. “But can you help me with the blonde?”
“Oh. Yeah. Sure,” said Vesper, releasing the sleeping guard’s tits. They jiggled slightly as she let go.
Vesper stepped over the guard she had just stripped and knelt near the blonde guard’s feet. She got to work unlacing the blonde’s boots while Harper pulled the two red darts from her tits and tossed them to the side. Once her boots were off, Vesper reached into her pants and pulled her black calf-length socks off her feet. Vesper was disappointed that the blonde’s toenails weren’t painted, but she found solace in the fact that the blonde still had cute feet.
While Harper unbuttoned her blonde’s shirt, Vesper unbuckled her belt. With her belt removed and her pants unbuttoned, Vesper began pulling the loose polyester pants off the blonde. She was surprised to find that the blonde was much more petite than the purple-haired guard. She was even more surprised to find that the blonde was wearing almost the exact same white granny panties as the purple-haired girl.
“What, does this secret organization have standard issue panties?”
Harper didn’t look up. “Why the hell does that matter?”
“Just a question. Damn.”
Vesper pulled the blonde’s pants all the way off and then waited while Harper pulled the girl’s arms out of her sleeves. When they both were ready, they rolled the girl onto her stomach. Harper pulled her shirt off and then unclasped her (yes, white) bra with a snap while Vesper snuck her fingers under the blonde’s waistband and pulled her panties down. She had a tight little ass, much smaller than the purple-haired girl’s.
Vesper pulled the blonde’s panties down her thighs and calves and then off her ankles, throwing the underwear on top of the growing pile of the girl’s clothes. The operatives rolled the blonde onto her back again before Harper pulled her white bra off, revealing a nice pair of tiny, perky tits.
“Let’s roll them all onto their stomachs again. We need to sedate them, tie them up, and get moving.”
Vesper saluted. “Yes, ma’am.”
The two girls rolled the three girls onto their stomachs. Harper pulled out six zip ties while Vesper reached into her utility belt and pulled out three hypodermic needles. She knelt next to the brunette guard and flicked the needle, ensuring there weren’t any air bubbles in the syringe. Then she reached down, jabbed the brunette in the ass and depressed the plunger. This’ll keep you out all night. Not a bad way to pass a shift, if you ask me.
Vesper slid over to the blonde and prepared the second hypodermic needle. Now that the purple-haired girl’s hands and ankles were tied, Harper knelt next to Vesper and got to work tying the blonde’s hands. Vesper held the needle up to her eye and, confirming it was good to go, jabbed it into the blonde’s ass. You don’t have as much meat on your bones. Hope it doesn’t hurt! Fortunately, the blonde didn’t react at all to the sudden prick in her butt. Vesper gave the injection site a little rub before sliding over to the purple-haired girl. At the same time, Harper finished zip tying the blonde’s ankles and moved on to the brunette.
This was the moment Vesper was waiting for. The purple-haired girl’s fat ass was just begging for a nice injection. Vesper held the syringe up to her eye, gave it a quick tap, and swiftly jabbed it into the girl’s left asscheek.
Vesper was surprised when the girl began to stir. The girl’s brow furrowed under her purple hair and she let out a soft moan. Vesper bent down close to the girl’s face and watched as her brown eyes fluttered open.
The guard was clearly surprised to see Vesper’s face so close to hers.
The guard jerked her head back. “Who… are you?”
“I was about to ask you the same question.”
It was then that the girl began to realize she was tied up. She started to squirm. “What’s going on?”
“Don’t worry,” said Vesper, reaching over to pat the girl’s ass. “There’s already a strong sedative flowing through your system. You’ll be out in a few seconds. Then you’ll get to sleep through the rest of your shift.”
“What?” The girl’s brown eyes began to open wide. “No! Let me go!” Her squirming intensified.
“While we’re here,” said Vesper, leaning in close to her ear. “I figured I’d ask: who do you work for?”
“I’m not going to… tell… you…” The girl’s brown eyes began to flutter. Her squirming slowed.
“No. You’re probably not. Enjoy your nap.”
“Whaaa…” The girl’s eyes slowly closed and she fell limp once more.
“Nice talking to you.” Vesper stood up and surveyed their handiwork.
The three naked, napping guards lay on their stomachs, arms tied behind their back. Just as Vesper stood up, Harper finished tying the brunette’s ankles. Then Harper finished the job by placing duct tape over each of the girl’s mouths.
“Let’s get rid of their clothes,” she said.
“Get rid of them where?”
“Throw them off the roof?” Harper suggested.
Vesper shrugged. “Works for me.”
The two operatives began gathering up the remaining clothes. Vesper grabbed two pairs of black boots and peered over the edge of the roof, making sure there were no guards on the ground nearby. She had trouble seeing the ground in the darkness, so she placed the boots on the ground and pulled out her night vision goggles. With the goggles securely in place, Vesper leaned back over the edge of the roof.
She adjusted her night vision goggles, allowing the inky darkness below to transform into a landscape of green-hued clarity. Ten stories below, the facility's courtyard lay silent and foreboding, an expanse of concrete and security fencing. Vesper steadied herself and activated the powerful zoom feature on her goggles, scanning the ground for any signs of guards. She looked back and forth and, seeing no one, said, “Clear.”
With that, she tossed the boots over the edge. Harper came over and let three shirts fly off into the wind. Vesper returned to the pile of clothes and grabbed a mishmash of pants, socks, and underwear. As she was walking back over to the ledge, she heard something metallic drop onto the ground. Paying it no mind, Vesper continued to the ledge and tossed the clothes into the void.
When she turned around, she found Harper kneeling on the ground, away from both the sleeping guards and the remaining clothes. She appeared to have something in her hand.
“What’s up?” Vesper asked, walking over to Harper.
“This thing… dropped out of the clothes you were carrying.”
“What thing?” Vesper bent over, trying to get a glimpse of what Harper was looking at.
“This pin,” Harper whispered.
Vesper looked closer. It was a small silver pin, inlaid with small black jewels in the shape of winged key.
“One of the girls had a weird pin on them. So what?”
“You don’t recognize the symbol?” Harper asked, wide eyed. “You’ve never seen this image before?”
Vesper racked her brain. “A key with wings on it? Not ringing any bells.”
“This isn’t good,” Harper whispered, standing up. “That’s why they didn’t want to tell us who we’re infiltrating tonight.”
“You’ve lost me,” said Vesper. “What’s going on?”
“This pin… the winged key… I think it’s the insignia of the Phantom Group.”
Vesper felt herself get woozy for a second. “You’re joking.”
“No,” Harper whispered, still staring at the pin in her hand.
Just then, static started coming in over Vesper’s ear piece. From the look on Harper’s face, Vesper guessed the same thing was happening to hers.
A harsh female voice came in over the static. “Spire to Vixen and Heroine.”
Vesper reached up to her ear piece automatically. “Vixen to Spire.”
Harper did the same. “Heroine to Spire.”
“Our intel indicates you two are still on the roof of the complex.” Vesper and Harper exchanged glances. “Your orders are to descend the stairwell immediately and begin clearing floors. Understood?”
“Roger that,” Vesper and Harper said simultaneously.
“Spire out.”
The two girls dropped their hands from their ears, although Harper seemed to do it in slow motion. Vesper walked over placed her hands on Harper’s shoulders.
“Hey, look at me.”
Harper looked up, her amber-colored eyes seeming to look right through Vesper.
“Remember our training. Fear is immaterial.”
“Right…” Harper trailed off.
“Say it back,” said Vesper, her blue eyes staring into Harper’s.
“Fear is immaterial.”
“Good.” Vesper smiled. “Now let’s go kick the Phantom Group’s ass.”
*****
Ch. 3
*****
The last of the knocked-out guards’ clothes remained in a small pile next to their tied-up bodies. Vesper walked over and picked up the remaining clothes and prepared to toss them over the ledge. As she did so, she heard something small drop from the clothes onto the floor of the roof.
Vesper immediately knelt down to inspect the item, suspecting another Phantom Group pin. She grabbed it off the floor and held it up to her eye. What she saw shocked her.
“Holy shit!”
“What?” Harper looked over.
“You’re not going to believe this.” Vesper held up what looked like a tiny piece of gray plastic attached to a small keychain.
Harper’s eyes lit up. “You’re kidding. Is that a key fob?”
“This is going to be easier than I thought,” Vesper smiled.
“We should have searched their clothes from the beginning.” Harper shook her head. “I never would have guessed they would keep key fobs on them.”
“Maybe the one with the thick ass is new,” said Vesper, staring over at the sleeping guard with purple hair.
“How do you even know it was in her pants? Why not the blonde or the brunette?”
“Just a feeling.”
The two operatives searched the remaining clothes but came up empty. Once Vesper threw the clothes over the roof, she walked over to where Harper was kneeling down. She had pulled out blueprints and laid them on the ground.
“These are the blueprints the Spire gave us during our briefing,” said Harper, pointing at one of the sheets. “This is the tenth floor here. My guess is that key fob should give us access to the stairwell to get down there.
“The Spire stressed that these blueprints are at least five years old. We can’t be certain that this is still the exact layout. But the bones of the building should still be roughly the same.”
Vesper rubbed her forehead. “So you’re saying we’re only going in half blind?”
“Pretty much,” said Harper. “We also don’t know whether the higher or lower floors contain the more sensitive documents, so we’ll need to clear each floor systematically.”
“We should get moving, then,” Vesper noted. “Who knows how often these sleeping beauties are supposed to report back to their command.”
“Agreed,” said Harper, standing up. “Reload your gun if you haven’t already. Let’s get moving.”
The two operatives reloaded their weapons, checked their utility belts, and packed up their materials. When they were ready, they walked silently to the roof tower on the opposite side of the building. It was a small, box-shaped room with a metal door. Harper confirmed that the stairwell down to the main building was only accessible through this roof tower. Next to the door handle was a card reader.
Vesper pulled the key fob out of her pocket. “Here goes nothing.”
She tapped the key fob to the card reader and held her breath. Luckily, the card reader beeped and the little light on it flashed green. Vesper grabbed the door handle and pulled softly. It swung open easily.
Vesper and Harper exchanged a quick smile. But their smiles quickly melted away as they prepared for the next part of their mission. They had made easy work of the guards on the roof, but they had no idea what awaited them inside the building. They weren’t even sure whether they still had the element of surprise.
Vesper held the door open as Harper, tranquilizer gun raised, moved silently through the entrance. When Harper was in the stairwell, Vesper closed the door to the roof softly behind her and raised her own gun. The stairwell was lit by soft yellow lights. At the bottom was another door.
The two stepped silently down the stairs. When they reached the bottom, Harper held her ear to the door. After listening for a moment, she glanced at Vesper and shook her head. She can’t hear anything.
Vesper tightened her grip on her gun as she used her left hand to pass Harper the key fob. The card reader’s beep and the sound of the door opening would alert anyone waiting on the other side. As Harper prepared to open the door, Vesper took a step back and aimed over Harper’s shoulder, ready to take out anyone who appeared.
Harper looked back at Vesper, nodded silently, and then softly pressed the key fob to the card reader. Vesper winced as the card reader beeped loudly, signaling the door was now unlocked. Harper holstered her gun and then lifted her right hand.
Harper held up three fingers. Then two. Then one.
She swung the door open quickly, moving out of the way as she did so. Synchronizing her movements, Vesper stepped forward into the entrance at the same time. The light that flooded the stairwell temporarily blinded her, but she was poised and ready to shoot anything that moved.
But nothing moved. The hallway was silent. Vesper breathed a sigh of relief as Harper came up behind her.
The corridor in front of them was lit with flickering fluorescent lights. It proceeded for about 30 feet before it terminated at T-junction with another hallway that stretched perpendicular to it. The two operatives moved with calculated precision down the narrow passage. The faint hum of mechanical equipment resonated in the air as they approached the end of the hallway. Their footsteps were muffled against the seamless floor.
As they came to the end of the corridor, they knelt by the corner where it intersected the second hallway. Vesper’s eyes widened as she heard muted voices around the bend. It was two females. Vesper estimated they were about twenty feet away. She closed her eyes and focused on their voices.
“They’re late. They were supposed to come down five minutes ago,” said one of the guards.
“Take it easy,” said another. “They’re new. I’m sure they’re just chatting and lost track of time.”
“You know there’s to be no idle chit chat. I’ve got half a mind to report them to Central.”
“Come on. Don’t be a snitch. I’ll go check on them.”
Vesper and Harper exchanged a brief, silent glance as the sound of approaching footstep grew louder. The atmosphere was tense. Harper reached into her utility belt and pulled out a small plastic cylinder. Vesper recognized it as one of the Spire’s pressurized syringes, ideal for neutralizing enemies in close proximity. By pulling out the syringe, Harper was silently conveying her plan of attack. Vesper held her gun at the ready.
The two remained crouched as the footsteps approached. Vesper moved soundlessly behind Harper.
Then the guard rounded the corner. She had straight black hair tied in a ponytail. Her uniform was black just like the guards’ on the roof, but Vesper noticed her uniform was more form fitting and flattering than those she had stripped off of the girls earlier.
The guard’s eyes widened as she nearly collided with Harper. “Wha—?”
In an instant, Harper leaped up and grabbed the guard’s shoulders with both hands. She used her strength to quickly turn around the guard so that Harper now stood behind her. She placed her left hand over the guard’s mouth and used her right hand to inject the guard’s neck with the pressured syringe.
At the same time, Vesper dove through the legs of Harper and the struggling guard. She slid on her stomach past the corner and into the intersecting hallway. She turned to her right to face the second guard, who was running down the hall towards her. She had short red hair and had her gun raised. Fortunately, the guard was surprised by Vesper sliding across the floor, which caused her to hesitate.
Vesper got two shots off. One of the tranquilizer darts hit the guard’s thigh while the other one lodged itself in her stomach. The guard—still running on adrenaline—raised her own gun and shot twice as well, but they flew over Vesper’s head with a few feet to spare.
The redhead’s blue eyes started to droop as she dropped her gun and braced herself on the wall. She was quickly losing her balance, taking a half step back and then another one forward. She let out of a soft moan as her eyes rolled up and her body slid slowly down the wall until she lay on the ground in a small heap.
Meanwhile, the black-haired guard was still struggling in Harper’s arms. Harper still held a gloved hand over her mouth, but Vesper could see the guard’s brown eyes were already half-lidded. Her increasingly slow and jerky movements indicated the sedative from the pressurized syringe was making its way through her bloodstream. Then the guard’s legs gave out and Harper let her fall slowly to the ground. The guard let out one last groan before her brown eyes rolled up and she fell unconscious.
“Good job,” said Harper through heavy breaths.
Vesper stood up and brushed herself off. “You too.”
“You know the drill,” Harper said, bending over to pick up the sleeping guard. “I’ll take mine into this room, you take yours into that one. Search for and scan any intel files.”
“I was just about to tell you to do the same,” said Vesper, rolling her eyes.
She walked over to where the redhead lay, picked the sleeping girl up off the ground and slung her over her shoulder. She reached up and gave her a nice pat on the rear, enjoying the feeling of her round ass under her fingers. Vesper opened the nearest door and glanced in. No one—the coast was clear.
Vesper carried the guard into the room and got to work. She quickly unlaced the guard’s boots, pulling off each shoe and tossing them to the side. The guard was left in white socks, which Vesper began pulling off from the toes. She met resistance at first, and had to pull harder before the tips of the white socks began to slip off. The rest of the calf-length socks slid off easily after that. Vesper was disappointed to find that the guard’s toes had no nail polish on them. She gave her pale feet a quick rub before moving up to the guard’s torso.
After pulling out the darts lodged in the redhead’s thigh and stomach, Vesper quickly unbuttoned the guard’s blouse, revealing a lacy red bra. Not the most utilitarian choice for a guard, but I dig it. With her left hand, Vesper held the guard’s limp arms above her head while pulling the shirt up over her torso and off her arms. The redhead slept peacefully during the whole ordeal, completely unaware she was being stripped against her will.
Moving down to her pants, Vesper slipped her belt of quickly before unbuttoning and unzipping her pants. She then slid her hands under the sleeping guard’s ass until she reached her waistband, then began pulling her pants down. It was tough work, as the guards on this floor wore much tighter pants than the guards on the roof. Finally, Vesper was able to get her pants to just below her crotch. The sleeping guard was wearing lacy red panties that matched her bra. Surely a guard working nightshift wouldn’t be planning on getting lucky? Whatever. I’m just glad the Phantom Group doesn’t have company-issued underwear.
Vesper continued pulling hard on the pants, peeling them off of the guard’s toned legs. She had nice porcelain skin, and her athletic form made the skintight pants all the more difficult to peel off. Unfortunately for the unconscious redhead, Vesper had an incredible work ethic when it came to stripping her enemies. She continued to pull until they pants came all the way off her ankles and the guard was left in just her red underwear.
Vesper reached up and grabbed the waistband of the redhead’s lacy panties. She pulled them down her thighs and calves before gently lifting them off her pale feet. If Vesper was ever concerned the guard wasn’t a real redhead, pulling her panties off removed any doubt.
She moved up the guard’s body and slipped her pale arms out of her bra straps before rolling the redhead unceremoniously onto her stomach. Vesper caught a good glimpse of the guard’s sleeping ass jiggle and then come to rest as she rolled her over. She leaned over and unclasped her bra with a quick snap.
The guard now stripped, Vesper went to work tying her up. She grabbed both of the redhead’s limp arms and placed them on her pale back. She took a zip tie out of her utility belt and quickly tied the guard’s wrists together before moving down her body. On her way to the redhead’s feet, she gave the unconscious guard’s juicy white ass a quick squeeze. She loved the way the redhead’s ass gave way under her fingers.
Breaking out of her momentary trance, Vesper slid down to the guard’s feet and pulled out another zip tie. Vesper rubbed the unconscious redhead’s feet from her heels down her soles to her delicate white toes. Then she quickly zip tied her ankles together.
She pulled out a roll of duct tape, ripped off a small piece, and stuck it over the guard’s mouth.
Vesper leaned back and allowed herself to relax for a brief moment. It was only now that she took in the details of the room. She scanned the dimly lit space, observing the gray walls and the muted overhead lights. Then her eye caught something strange.
Of all the cabinets in the room, only one had a padlock on it.
Vesper stood up slowly, her senses heightened as she navigated the desks and compartments of the room. When she reached the locked cabinet, she knelt down and pulled out her lockpicking tools. She took out her tension wrench and hook pick and got to work, inserting the tension wrench into the bottom of the keyway. While she applied rotational pressure with the tension wrench, she inserted the hook pick into the top of the keyway to lift each pin in the padlock. After a few seconds, it clicked open.
Hell yeah! I’ve still got it.
She quickly pulled the lock off the door and opened the cabinet. In it, she found several manila folders stacked one upon the other. She grabbed the top folder and pulled it out. It was labeled with the word “SIREN” written in dark ink on the tab of the folder. Vesper hastily opened the folder, allowing several of its contents to spill out onto the floor.
“What the hell?”
The folder contained what appeared to be a series of before-and-after photos in black and white. Each piece of paper featured a name, occupation, and address. The “before” images showcased diverse faces full of personality, while the “after” shots portrayed a haunting uniformity. The spark of individuality extinguished, replaced by a blank, emotionless stare. Under each pair of photos were the words “Siren: Success”.
Vesper flipped through the pages in horror. Engineers, artists, doctors—ordinary people from all walks of life were now mere shells of their former selves, their individuality erased. I’ve gotta show Harper this.
Then, without warning, a blaring alarm started going off. Vesper quickly held her hands up to her ears, trying to muffle the alarm’s intensity. Then the white lights went out and were quickly replaced by a blinking red light.
Fuck! We’re blown!
After a moment of hesitation, Vesper pulled her right hand from her ear in order to grab one of the documents. She tried to focus on her task, although the deafening alarm made it difficult. Her fingers closed around one of the sheets of paper, which she quickly folded up and stuffed into her utility belt.
Vesper stood up, turned around, and sprinted out of the room. As she did so, she thought she saw the redhead struggling against her restraints. Damn! I forgot to dose her! Too late now!
Without looking back, Vesper flung the door open and sprinted into the dark red corridor.
*****