There may be a follow-up. Or maybe not. Consider this something of a test.Little precision: This story takes place roughly 15 years after the end of Vigilante.
Glimpse of the Future
**************
It was a day like any other day at the zoo.
The weather was sunny and warm. There was no wind. The smell of flowers and leaves was in the air. Many families were enjoying an outing. Children were in awe in front of the exotic beasts and birds.
However, not everyone was sharing their enthusiasm.
Indeed, Talia wasn’t interested in the animals. And if she was carefully observing her surroundings, it was only to locate guards, employees, and potential witnesses.
For in truth, Talia was a mercenary infiltrator – one of the few still active in the Federation.
There aren’t many security cameras… the woman thought to herself. And their positioning is far from optimized...
Talia was dressed in innocuous-looking clothes: plain sneakers, blue denim trousers, a white t-shirt, and a beige light jacket. She looked like any other visitor.
The mercenary-for-hire was a tall slim woman with reddish brown hair, a light skin, and cold blue eyes. Her facial features were angular, with an aquiline nose, a pointy chin, and sharp cheekbones. Her haircut was a shoulder-long ponytail.
There are too many people in this part of the zoo. she thought to herself. Too many witnesses. Can’t get to work here.
She had already pinpointed the place in which she had to sneak. However, the access was restricted. She needed a change of clothes.
Talia approached an administrative building, next to the many bird aviaries. The place was out of the way. Inside, there were offices… but also a changing room used by the employees. There wasn’t any device to prevent visitors from entering, not even a security camera. Only a simple ‘Employee Only’ sign on the door. Apparently, nobody was fearing a break-in. And in a way, they were right. Who would want to rob a zoo? There wasn’t much money in cash – most of the transactions were done with credit cards – nor was there valuable information. The owners didn’t think they needed a high-level protection.
While the Federation’s government and several private security companies had imagined many strategies to counter uniform stealing tactics during the past two decades, they didn’t have enough money or resources to use them everywhere in the country. Most of their efforts were focused on government buildings, banks, deluxe hotels, and other places in which there was a lot of money. Places like zoos didn’t get as much attention – unless there was an official visit. Professional infiltrators rarely targeted such places – there simply wasn’t something interesting enough to make the risk worth it.
Even now, Talia was only trying to infiltrate the place because her job was particularly odd and peculiar. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t even have bothered with that job. She thought it was too dumb. However, her clients were offering a handsome reward...
The mercenary infiltrator shook her head. She had to remain focused on the task at hand.
The woman leaned back against a wall, and pretended to look at the latest news on her phone. It was a favorite technique of hers, one which was very useful. She had trained to be able to read and to discreetly watch her surroundings at the same time.
The end of the special combatants corps. Six months after councilman Hieron retired, his most famous creation is dissolved today. A government spokesman has declared: “Our country needs to move on. The special combatants corps is a remnant of the civil war. Its disappearance is necessary to inaugurate a new era.”
Talia rolled her eyes.
Does anyone believe this crap? As if the government would give their precious black ops up...
Still, she didn’t care much about what she was reading. Talia was simply waiting for the right moment to enter the building. She had earlier studied the day’s program, and learned that a spectacle was supposed to begin at 2 pm. She assumed most people would want to see it. Said spectacle was taking place at the other side of the zoo, so there wouldn’t be many people left in the area Talia was hoping to infiltrate. Plus, a good chunk of the employees would be at the spectacle too, and she would take action right during the shift break. Yes, the more Talia thought about it, the more she was certain she had found the best window of opportunity.
Around 1:50 pm, people left the area in which Talia was standing. Satisfied, the mercenary smiled. After checking one final time nobody could see her, she discreetly entered the building.
The infiltrator arrived in a corridor. Tiled floor and white artificial light. She quickly located the women’s changing room, first door on the right. Before anyone could spot her, she entered it.
Talia didn’t regret her decision.
She was rewarded by the sight of a lone woman who had just begun her shift. The employee was putting her civilian clothes inside her locker. Unfortunately, she was already wearing her uniform.
Well, unfortunately for her…
Talia immediately scanned the room. There were a wooden bench and a series of big metallic lockers. She also noticed two employee-only restrooms, each being a separate small room concealed behind a door.
Perfect.
Her original intent had been to steal a uniform in one of the lockers, but she didn’t mind swiping the clothes of a woman who was still wearing them. Opening each locker would be much more hazardous.
The zoo employee was one of the caretakers of the animals, most likely some sort of vet or trainer. The exact kind of uniform Talia was aiming to acquire.
The other woman was wearing a dark green collared shirt that had the logo of the zoo, alongside a lanyard that had her ID badge attached to it. According to it, she was named ‘Anna BlueFields’. She was also wearing cream-colored shorts, as well as long white socks, and yellow and brown boots.
The zoo employee noticed the newcomer’s arrival before Talia could jump her.
The infiltrator immediately started to talk, to not give the other woman the time to think. “Hello! I’ve just arrived.” At the same time, she proudly flashed a fake ID badge imitating the ones used by the zoo, on which there was a picture of her with the word ‘Temp’ written on it.
Anna looked at the ID badge, then nodded. “I see. Nobody told me anything, but… It doesn’t matter. Well, then, welcome aboard!”
Talia resisted the urge to smile. It was amazing how many people could get fooled by that trick. Put on the ‘Temp’ badge, and pretend you’re a newbie who’s been hired today. You’ll be surprised by how many times it works.
“Name’s Anna.” the zoo employee said while extending her hand to shake Talia’s.
“A pleasure to meet you.” Talia answered. She moved forward to grab Anna’s offered hand. At the same time, she discreetly eyed the other woman’s body proportions.
Anna’s family name was a dead giveaway of the Province of Ares, but her physical appearance proved she most likely had ancestors from the Province of Korê. She had a slender build with long limbs, a light brown skin, a round-shaped face, and bushy auburn hair. Her eyes were dark brown. Her hair were tied into a high bushy ponytail with a light green scrunchie with leaves embroidered on it. Compared to Talia, Anna was a bit less curvy, so the shorts were going to be tight around the pelvis. However, the shirt looked loose enough. It would fit her. All in all, Anna’s proportions were close enough to Talia’s.
The infiltrator smiled. She was a professional. The time to walk toward Anna and to shake her hand, she had completed her analysis of the situation.
Therefore, she didn’t let go of the other woman’s hand.
Anna’s smile narrowed a little, betraying her embarrassment. It wasn’t polite to grab a hand for so long during a handshake. “Is there a trouble?”
Talia suddenly pulled Anna towards her. Unbalanced, the auburn-haired woman yelped, and fell forward. Her attacker didn’t give her the time to recover. In one swift motion, Talia grabbed the small stun gun she was concealing under her shirt, pressed it against Anna’s neck, and gave a quick jolt that knocked the zoo employee out instantly. Anna had only the time to let out a quick shriek, before becoming silent. The auburn-haired woman’s limp slender body fell against Talia, who caught her victim under the shoulders.
The infiltrator moved Anna’s motionless body so that her back would rest against her, then she dragged the unconscious woman by the undershoulders into one of the two employee-only restrooms. She seated the unresponsive zoo employee onto the toilet seat with her legs spread, her back resting against the pipe, and her head lolled forward. She closed and locked the door, then got down to work.
First, Talia swiped the lanyard with the ID badge.
Next, she lifted Anna’s slender left leg to take off her boot, then dropped it and did the same with the right motionless leg. The auburn-haired zoo employee was wearing calf-long white socks. Given their state, Anna had probably been wearing them for quite some time. A couple of days, at the very least. Talia refused to remove them, even to use them as a gag. She took pride in being cold and efficient at her job, but she wasn’t THAT cruel – unless of course you ticked her off. Plus, she didn’t want to touch these socks… They were probably yucky...
The infiltrator shook her head. “Take better care of your footwear, girl.” she commented.
Talia then unbuttoned Anna’s cream-coloured shorts, and slid them down the woman’s long slender legs. The removed garments revealed the zoo employee’s forest green boxer briefs, adorned with black little leaves and with a black waistband strap.
Finally, Talia lifted Anna’s upper body and arms, and pulled off the woman’s dark green collared shirt. Underneath, the zoo employee was wearing a thin white short-sleeved t-shirt. Talia removed it as well. She didn’t need that garment for herself, as her collared shirt would be enough to pass herself for an employee. However, since she couldn’t use the socks, she’d use strips of the t-shirt as gagging material instead. Once she had taken everything she needed, Talia let go of Anna’s motionless upper-body, which went resting against the toilet pipe again. The zoo employee was wearing an emerald green cami bra, with a pattern of black leaves and black shoulder straps adorned with embroidered leaves.
Talia pulled out a few zip-ties. She bound Anna’s wrists behind the toilet pipe, next she zip-tied the woman’s calves, and then she bound the ankles together. The infiltrator took a roll of thick brown duct tape, and used the tape to secure the underwear-clad woman on the toilet seat, in a seated position. She wrapped several layers of tape around Anna’s thighs and the toilet bowl, then wrapped tape around her torso and the pipe. Finally, just to be safe, she wrapped a few layers of tape around the auburn-haired woman’s zip-tied wrists and around her hands. Talia grabbed Anna’s discarded t-shirt, cut a few strips from it, and shoved them into the zoo employee’s mouth. She stuck a dozen of strips of tape over Anna’s lips to seal her mouth, forming an X pattern, and smoothened them with her palm. As an extra precaution, she cut a long strip of Anna’s t-shirt, and tied it over her mouth. She knotted the cloth OTM gag behind the neck.
Talia took a step back, observed her handiwork, and decided she was satisfied. Anna was thoroughly silenced and restrained.
The infiltrator took off her own clothes, until she was down to her plain and comfortable blue undergarments: socks, boyshorts, a sports bra, and a tank top. She slipped into Anna’s collared dark green shirt and cream shorts. When the time came to put on the boots though, she sighed a little. Sadly, contrary to the socks, she couldn’t avoid wearing them. Therefore, she put them on.
And now for the final touch…
Talia removed Anna’s ID badge from the lanyard. In its stead, she attached the fake badge with her picture, and the word ‘Temp’ written on it.
The infiltrator checked one last time the gag and bonds restraining her victim. Anna was still unconscious, breathing slowly through her nose, with her head lolled forward. She would wake up soon, but Talia was confident she couldn’t escape on her own or call for help. Next change of shift wouldn’t happen before the end of the day. Talia had at least a few hours to accomplish her job. Though she took a mental note to be wary of janitors.
The disguised mercenary turned off the light, exited the employee restroom, and closed the door. With a small pick, she locked the door from the outside, moving the lock to the red position.
Satisfied, Talia briefly patted the door concealing her bound-and-gagged underwear-clad victim. Then she left. She had a job to do...
**************
Sasha was a woman of tall height, with a fit slim build. She had a white skin, and almond-shaped blue eyes. Her chin was pointy, her head was oval-shaped, and she had a beauty mark underneath her left eye. She had blond hair tied in a high neck-long ponytail with a long bang parted to the right side of her head. A few hair locks of said bang, and the tip of her ponytail, were dyed red.
The security guard was wearing thick orange brown work shoes with yellow velcro straps, forest brown trousers, a black belt, a sand brown button-up shirt with chest pockets and rolled up sleeves, and a khaki green cap. She was also wearing small gold hoop earrings, but obviously these ones weren’t part of the uniform.
Though ‘guard’ was maybe too big a word. For all intent and purpose, her job as one of the zoo wardens was more a mix between a park warden and a museum guard. She had to make sure the visitors followed the rules, and to give a hand to the trainers or vets from time to time. She didn’t have any weapon, only a set of keys and a walkie-talkie strapped onto her belt.
She was walking in the picnic area, the less crowded part of the zoo at the moment since it was the time of the 2 pm spectacle. It was an agreeable place, with many trees, grass, and bushes. The shift there were always the best ones. The zoo wardens actually drew sticks to get them.
Sasha was often the lucky winner...
However, suddenly, she noticed a trail of detritus on the grass.
Sasha groaned in annoyance.
From time to time, there were some jerks who thought they could picnic on the grass without any care. They were the worst!
The trail was leading behind some bushes. The blonde could hear faint noises coming from there.
The culprits were still here!
Sasha wasted no time, and quickly followed the trail. The guard intended to catch them red-handed, and to give them a scolding they would never forget.
She approached the bush.
“Alright! Come out of your hideout this instant!” Sasha exclaimed, trying her best to sound official and intimidating – like a real security guard.
“If you insist.” a female voice answered with a playful tone of voice.
A woman jumped out of the bushes, like some sort of jack in the box, startling Sasha.
The newcomer was a woman slightly shorter than average, with soft round facial features. Her limbs and waist were chubby, in a way that made her look instantly adorable. She had curly chin-long black hair, hazel brown eyes, and thick black eyebrows. Her skin was lightly tanned, and there was a visibly dark shade of freckles on her nose and cheeks.
Sasha was left a little dumbfounded. “Uh… Who-”
The unknown woman winked, chuckled, and grabbed the guard by the arms. With a giggle, she pulled the blonde behind the bushes.
“Yoink!” the attacker happily exclaimed.
Sasha let out a high-pitched “Yeeep!”, one that definitely did NOT suit a real security guard, and was swallowed by the vegetation.
**************
While the blond zoo warden was officially a security guard, it was pretty clear she had no real combat training. A professional infiltrator could make short work of her.
Maribel used a martial arts move to unbalance the guard, and to make her fall on her back. The blonde grunted when she fell onto the ground. Maribel didn’t give her the time to process what was happening to her, or to call for help. She pinned the blonde onto the ground, and hit a very precise spot of the woman’s temple. The zoo guard grunted. Her blue eyes rolled back in her head, then her body went as limp as a rag-doll and she slumped into the grass. Her eyelids closed, and her head lolled to the side. She was completely out cold.
Maribel looked at the woman’s badge. “Nighty night, Sasha.” she commented with a wink.
Maribel dragged the motionless zoo warden by the legs further behind the bushes.
Once they were concealed by the foliage, the infiltrator got down to work. She started by taking off the thick orange brown work shoes. As she was unscratching the velcro straps, she mentally thanked the person who invented them. The removed shoes revealed cute sky blue socks adorned with white sheeps. Maribel cooed a little. They were adorable!
Next, Maribel unclipped the forest brown trousers’ belt, and slid them down the blonde’s legs. She swiped the khaki green cap and immediately put it on her head, then unbuttoned Sasha’s sand brown shirt and pulled it off.
As undergarments, the blonde was wearing dark blue cheeky panties with a black waistband strap, and a white push-up bra with blue stripes and black straps and borders.
Maribel rolled the motionless unconscious woman onto her stomach, with the intention of binding her. However, she couldn’t help but pause to admire the blonde’s well-shaped tushy. “Wow!” she commented. “Who needs a big chest, when one has such a perfect backside?” She gave said backside a light playful slap.
The unconscious Sasha moaned faintly. Maribel blushed, and put a hand on her right cheek.
“Oh my! I’m flattered, but I’m on a mission right now…” she joked. Maribel grabbed the blonde’s left wrist. “Now, let’s tuck you in…”
She took a rope, and cross-tied the zoo warden’s wrists behind her back. She wrapped an other coil of rope around Sasha’s legs to bind them together. She immobilized the blonde’s upper-arms with a complex rope harness binding the upper-arms and shoulders. She shoved a balled up piece of cloth into the guard’s mouth, then tightly tied a rag over her mouth, knotting it behind the neck.
Maribel took off her clothes, and slipped into the guard uniform. Once she was fully disguised, she glanced at the trussed up zoo warden. In her current state, Sasha was looking both adorable and vulnerable at the same time.
“I’d kiss you good-bye on the forehead, but I’m afraid it’d look weird…” Maribel joked.
Next, she walked out of the bushes, leaving the bound-and-gagged Sasha hidden under them. She moved a few branches, and was careful to make sure the foliage completely concealed the unconscious blonde.
Then, she approached the group of buildings near the aviaries.
**************
With her uniform, Talia was hoping she could reach her target without any hindrance.
However, when she attempted to pass through an office room to reach the part of the zoo complex which was her destination, she came across an other employee.
The woman in front of Talia was tall and slim. She had an olive skin, short shiny black hair, a round-shaped face, and dark brown oval eyes.
The black-haired woman was wearing the same dark green collared shirt that had the logo of the zoo as Anna, and the same yellow-and-brown boots. She was also wearing shorts, though hers were dark beige instead of cream-coloured. Her ID badge, attached to a lanyard, was reading ‘Marnie Hus’. Talia assumed the woman was a colleague of the unlucky auburn-haired zoo employee she had mugged.
Marnie glanced at Talia’s uniform, and was fooled by her fake ‘Temp ID badge’.
“Hello! Are you new? I don’t think we’ve met already…”
Talia nodded, and lied on the spot: “I just started today. It was a bit of a last-minute decision of the direction.”
Marnie shrugged. “Figures…” She glanced a second time at Talia’s uniform, especially at her shorts. “It’s actually a little funny. For one second, I thought you were Anna. Your uniform looks just like hers.” she commented.
Talia’s fake smile didn’t falter. “They probably gave me some spare shorts. That’s the beauty of uniforms. They all look the same.” she improvised.
Put at ease, the black-haired woman nodded, and took a jug of coffee on the table nearby. At the same time, Talia scanned the room. She and the zoo employee were alone. There were three desks, and a few metallic cupboards (unfortunately with built-in shelves, therefore they couldn’t be used to stash someone). Luckily, there was also a closet room. Now, the only question was: Did she need to get rid of the zoo employee?
“You drink coffee?” Marnie suddenly asked Talia.
“Why do you ask?”
“I couldn’t help but notice the small coffee stain on your collar.” Marnie poured herself a mug of coffee. “Actually, Anna made the same this morning-”
The woman briefly paused. During one fraction of time, Talia saw a glimmer of understanding in Marnie’s eyes. A few beads of sweat formed on the black-haired zoo employee’s forehead.
Well, this one has quick thinking. Talia thought to herself. Though, given how common uniform stealings had been in her country’s history, it wasn’t that surprising either… Some women were bound to be savvy when it came to that topic. Still, now the infiltrator had the answer to her previous question…
She needed Marnie out of the picture.
Said zoo employee chuckled awkwardly, and put the coffee jug on the table. She pretended to look at her wrist. “Oh, but look at the time. I really must go now!” she exclaimed.
“You’re not wearing a watch.” Talia remarked. She ominously approached the black-haired woman.
Marnie took a few steps back. “I-uh… forgot something on the stove!” she lied.
Talia jumped forward and grabbed the woman’s arm. “Oh, but don’t leave so soon!”
She pressed something against the employee’s side.
Marnie had watched enough gangster flicks to know the shape of a gun. She gulped nervously.
Of course, the gun was merely Talia’s stun gun, but she didn’t correct Marnie on her assumption it was a real one.
“Now, unless you want a bullet in the brain, you’ll stay quiet and do everything I say.”
Frightened, the other woman nodded frantically. “O- Of course…”
“Perfect. At least you know what’s good for you…”
Talia glanced at Marnie’s dark green collared shirt. She noticed it was perfectly clean. Then she saw that her shorts would be less tight than Anna’s, and her boots were pristine-looking.
“You’ll start by taking off your clothes.” the infiltrator added.
**************
Since Anna’s outfit had proved to be too troublesome, Talia chose to take the clothes of the other zoo employee.
The infiltrator had put on all of Marnie’s zoo uniform, including the shorts, socks, and boots.
“My apologies for taking your clothes.” Talia dryly commented. (It was of course a lie, a mere figure of speech.) She lifted Anna’s discarded dark green shirt, looking at the small coffee stain. “But apparently, my former ones aren’t innocuous enough…” Patronizingly, she patted Marnie’s head. “You should have kept your mouth shut.”
The black-haired woman had considerable trouble answering her. Currently, seven layers of thick black tape wrapped around her lower face were making sure she would remain quiet.
Seated on an office chair, Marnie squirmed and moaned. However, she couldn’t do much else. The same thick tape which was silencing her was also binding her arms and hands to the armrests, was wrapped around her torso and the chair’s back and around her thighs and the seat to force her to remain seated, and was mummifying her legs from the knees to the feet. One rope was tied around her legs, and was connected to the chair’s cylinder. It was meant to prevent her from using her bound feet to try and push on the ground to make the chair roll.
Marnie had been stripped down to her undergarments. The black-haired woman was wearing white knickers with a light pink waistband and a pattern of pink hearts and pink-and-white cats, light grey socks with light pink polka dots, a light pink t-shirt bra with a pattern of black cats, and a white tank top. On each breast area of said tank top, there was the word ‘Meow!’ written in hot pink letters.
“I see you’re a cat person.” Talia remarked as she was smoothening the uniform she had stolen from Marnie. The infiltrator was blessing her stroke of luck: these new shorts felt less tight around her hips, and the socks were fresh from this morning.
The black-haired woman mewled a little louder in her gag.
Talia rolled her eyes. “So noisy… I have to do something about that. Can’t have you make a fuss, right?”
Marnie’s eyes widened in fear. She was still thinking her mugger had a gun.
Talia pinched to woman’s right cheek as if she was a child. “Oh poor thing, nothing as permanent. I’ll just ask you to…” She suddenly used her stun gun to knock out the unsuspecting Marnie. “… take a nap...” The zoo employee yelped briefly, then her eyes rolled back, and her unconscious body slumped onto the chair. The back of her head rested on the headrest. Talia eyed the nearby closet room. “… and to stay out of the way for a few hours…” she concluded.
Talia rolled the office chair inside the closet room, and also threw Anna’s discarded uniform onto Marnie’s lap, to hide the clothes with her. She kicked the door closed to conceal the underwear-clad bound-and-gagged woman.
“Poor girl. I think you traumatized her.” a voice suddenly commented.
Talia quickly turned, ready to fight, but she relaxed immediately when she saw the newcomer.
It was her partner Maribel, dressed as a zoo warden. She was playfully fidgeting with her stolen keys.
Talia shrugged. “Do I look like a girl scout to you?”
“I thought you used to be one.”
“It was a long time ago. And I’ll have you know I actually learned how to steal uniforms during that period. Rivalries between scout camps are nasty…” Talia retorted.
The reddish-brown-haired woman still remembered all the pranks and punitive expeditions. She had memories of cabins in which trussed up scout girls were stashed. Most of the times, there was only one or two. However, sometimes it was an entire group. Their wrists and ankles were bound with ropes of which the knots were perfect. They were gagged and sometimes blindfolded with spare scout girl scarves. And of course, they were stripped down to their bras and knickers, as well as their reglementary white socks and tank tops. From time to time, there was one girl who was wearing raunchy underwear. She could expect a lot of teasings... The whole point of these abductions was to sneak into the other camp to steal their mascot, to write graffiti or to sabotage their equipment… Therefore, the captors were stealing their prisoners’ clothes. Of course, sometimes Talia had been part of the bound-and-gagged half-naked poor saps… helplessly watching an other girl put on her clothes with a smirk. But more often than not, she had been among the winners – she had been among the smirking girls who were rubbing their victory in the face of the trussed up underwear-clad girls they had mugged. She had learned the ropes of being an infiltrator during that part of her life – both figuratively and very literally. Scout girls were very good at knots! The instructors knew everything, of course. But as long as the captured girls were released unharmed afterwards, they didn’t intervene. They considered it part of the learning, some sort of hazing ritual. And indeed, it had been quite the learning! These rivalries were very codified. Sororities even encouraged their members to pick a rival among the other scout camps – a girl close to your age and size who would become your preferential target – and who also would consider you their preferential target. Strangely enough, spending time binding each other could sometimes helped create real bonds. When Talia was wondering whether she preferred boys or girls, her first romantic relationship had been with a girl who was her current ‘rival’.
Maribel looked pensive. “Now, you’re making me regret I didn’t join the scouts when I was young…” she commented.
“Please stay focused.”
Maribel used her stolen keys to lock the closet room concealing the hapless Marnie, then she and her accomplice left the office.
**************
The two women needed to go to the part of the building in which there were the care rooms for the animals and the incubators.
They quickly went through several corridors. The infiltrators were careful. They were maybe in disguise, but they knew better than to tempt fate.
On their way, they quickly took cover to avoid the gaze of a janitress who was cleaning the floor. Luckily, the woman was too busy listening to the music blaring in her earpieces to pay attention to her surroundings.
They reached a part of the building in which there were several small aviaries. These rooms were used to shelter birds, either because they were sick and being treated or for some routine check-up. Maribel’s stolen keys allowed them to open all the doors they needed. (It was actually the reason why she had mugged a zoo warden specifically.)
While her accomplice was watching the area, Talia checked all the aviaries. On her way, she noticed a storage room. (There wasn’t anyone to mug here, but it was professional deformation at this point.) Finally, she found the one she was looking for.
“There it is.”
Inside the small room, there was some sort of hawk. It had recently been given to the zoo, and therefore had been put into the aviary the time to vaccinate and to ring it.
Talia sighed.
“Is there a problem?” Maribel asked her accomplice.
Yes, there was one in her eyes. Though the reddish-brown-haired woman had a hard time putting words on it. Stealing a bird just felt… both stupid and trite.
“Let’s get this over with.” she simply said.
Talia and Maribel searched the storage room nearby, and found a bunch of boxes made to transport live birds. They grabbed one.
Maribel then tranquilized the hawk with a small dart gun. They carefully put the bird inside the box.
Talia closed the lid.
“We’ll need something to hide the box. We can’t just leave the building with it under our arms…” Maribel remarked.
The two mercenaries briefly pondered about their options.
Then, Talia remembered the janitress, and her cart. Hung on it, there was a big black trash bag.
“I have an idea.” she answered.
**************
Maggie had reddish brown hair and hazel green eyes. Her skin was light, with a few freckles on her cheeks. She was lanky, with an oval-shaped face, sunken cheeks, and loose shoulder-long hair. There were several iron rings on each of her ears.
The janitress was clad in a dull grey work jumpsuit with a front zipper, which she was wearing over a dull white t-shirt. Dull brown sneakers and dull white socks were her footwear. Even though she was in-doors, the woman was still wearing a bright blue baseball cap – which obviously wasn’t part of the uniform.
Maggie was cleaning the floor without any enthusiasm, mentally counting the time she had left before the end of her shift. She was listening to some music on her i-pod.
Suddenly, a loud voice shrieked: “MAGGIE!”
The janitress winced. Only one person had such a grating voice, so shrill it could be heard even with earpieces. The zoo manager. Her superior.
Maggie removed her earpieces. “Yes, ma’am?”
“I thought I told you to clean the employee restrooms!” the woman barked.
“I was about to do it.” Maggie lied.
“Then get down to it! Asap! And what did I say about wearing hats inside?” the manager added.
Maggie kept her head low, and bit on her lower lip to remain quiet. Dealing with the boss’ outbursts was part of the job… She took off her baseball cap.
Satisfied, her manager walked away.
The janitress pushed her cart, and headed towards the employee changing room.
As soon as her boss was out of sight, Maggie put the cap back on her head.
“I hate this friggin’ job.” she muttered to herself.
Maggie entered the employee changing room. It was empty. She approached the doors of the restrooms.
One of them was still occupied.
“Alright… Come on… I saw this door earlier, and it was already occupied!” Maggie complained to herself. She knocked on the door. “Anna! I’m sure it’s you!” she said out loud. “Come on! I told you to find an other place to read your book!”
No answer. (Well, Maggie thought she had heard a few muffled moans – but she decided it was her imagination.)
“Giving me the silent treatment, uh?” The janitress grabbed her set of keys. “Alright, you asked for it! Don’t complain if I see you with your pants down...” She started to unlock the door from the outside. “I know it’s you Anna, and I bet you’re still reading your silly romance novel!” the janitress exclaimed.
“Well, you got it half-right…” a female voice commented behind Maggie.
“Uh?”
**************
Talia assaulted the janitress from behind. She clamped one hand over the woman’s mouth, and squeezed her cheeks to prevent her from screaming. With the other hand, she pressed her stun gun against the side of Maggie’s neck, and released it’s knock out jolt.
The janitress let out a short muffled cry and briefly struggled, then slumped into Talia’s arms.
“Just in time. Talk about killing two birds with one stone…” the latter commented as she was holding the unconscious body under the shoulders.
The infiltrator took advantage of the fact that Maggie’s keys were still in the hole, and unlocked the door.
The muffled moans which Maggie had heard weren’t a product of her imagination. The captive Anna had indeed woken up, and was trying to catch someone's attention. When Talia opened the door, the moans for help became louder.
Anna’s eyes widened and she let out a muffled shriek of distress when she recognized Talia and saw the latter was dragging the unconscious Maggie inside the restroom.
“Don’t mind me.” the infiltrator commented. “I won’t take long.”
She closed and locked the door, and laid Maggie onto the floor.
First, she unlaced and removed Maggie’s sneakers. Next, she unzipped the woman’s work jumpsuit, and took it off her upper-body and arms.
At the same time, Anna was eyeing Talia’s uniform – and realized the latter weren’t wearing her clothes anymore. She let out a “Mfff?!”
“Yeah. I borrowed your colleague’s uniform. Yours wasn’t clean enough.” Talia commented. At the same time, she was shimmying the jumpsuit’s lower half down Maggie’s legs.
Her statement elicited several indignant muffled shrieks. The zoo caretaker on the toilet seat struggled harder.
“What? You know it’s true!” Talia retorted. “Now, keep quiet, or I zap you again with my stun gun.”
Anna stopped struggling, and lowered her head. “Mh mh…” she nodded.
“Good girl. Just bear it with me. It’ll be over in a few hours.”
Talia also pulled off Maggie’s white t-shirt. Once she was done, the reddish-brown-haired janitress was left wearing a dull grey t-shirt bra, dull light grey granny panties with a black waistband, and dull white socks. The undergarments were meant to be comfortable, not pretty. Talia didn’t care for the cap however. It wasn’t part of the uniform. She left it in a corner.
The infiltrator used some ropes and strings she had found in the aviaries’ storage room to restrain Maggie’s legs and arms. She bound the woman’s ankles, then her knees, then her wrists, and finally her shoulders. Thanks to her days as a scout girl, Talia’s knots were perfect. She stuffed a clean rag into the woman’s mouth, and wrap-gagged her with tape.
Talia dragged the bound-and-gagged Maggie, and seated her up against the wall in a corner of the room.
She noticed that Anna was staring at her.
“What? You wanted me to put her on your lap? You were hoping to snag a little romantic moment?” Talia commented. “Well, sorry to disappoint you. I’m not that kind of infiltrator.”
The other woman shook her head, but Talia ignored her. Instead, she removed Marnie’s uniform, not caring that an other woman could see her half-naked. Then, she grabbed the discarded janitress uniform, and slipped into the t-shirt, the jumpsuit, and the sneakers.
“Finally seeing the end of this mission…” she muttered to herself. “It can’t happen soon enough...”
**************
Maribel smiled when she saw her accomplice come back dressed as a janitress, pushing the cart in front of her.
They hid the box containing the stolen bird in the garbage bag. Talia left the cart behind, and only took the bag.
“How do we leave?” Maribel asked her accomplice.
“We’ll use one of the zoo’s vans.”
“Nice. You thought of everything.”
“Of course.”
“So... you already have the van’s key?”
There was a brief silence.
“Just a moment.”
**************
Maggie was still unconscious but, of course, Anna struggled on her toilet seat and attempted to scream through her gag when the door of the restroom was opened. When she recognized Talia, her face betrayed fear… but also a mixture of incomprehension and annoyance.
Talia didn’t blame her. Usually, the uniform stealer didn’t visit her victim several times. It was a bit of a tacit agreement:
I jump you, I take your clothes, I stash you somewhere, and I don’t bother you afterwards. You spend a bad day, and then you get rescued.
Usually, when the door was opened again, it was a rescuer who entered the room.
The whole situation was a little embarrassing. Talia didn’t really care about her victims’ feelings, but she prided herself in being good at her work. She hated to look unprofessional. An other reason to despise this mission...
“Where are the keys of the vans?”
Anna answered, but of course she could only let out muffled moans.
Talia sighed. She took off the cloth-gag, then grabbed the tape on Anna’s mouth. “It will hurt you more than me.” she warned.
The captive winced in anticipation.
Several muffled ‘Ow!’s later, all the strips of tape were removed. Talia asked her question again.
Anna grimaced. “And if I refuse to answer?” Apparently, the pain of the tape removal was giving her the anger necessary to be defiant.
Talia didn’t bat an eye. “I’ll put the tape back on, and peel it off. Again and again. Until you talk.”
Anna bit her lower lip. “You’re driving a hard bargain. Search locker number 4.”
“See? That wasn’t so hard?”
“Just steal whatever you came for and leave, please.”
Anna was now clearly fed up with the whole situation. She wasn’t even scared anymore.
“Of course.”
Talia grabbed an other roll of duct tape.
Anna eyed the tape. “Is this really necessary? I promise I’ll keep quiet.”
Talia rolled her eyes. “Do I really need to retort something to that?”
Anna looked embarrassed, as she realized how out of place her request was. “I suppose not...”
One minute later, the zoo employee was tape-gagged again.
“Mhhhh…” she complained.
Talia left the restroom – hopefully for the last time. Maribel was tactful enough to not make any comment. Talia silently opened the locker in which the keys were, and grabbed one set. Then she and her accomplice exited the building. For any witness, they were simply taking out the trash.
They went to the employee-only parking area, and climbed into their van. Then they drove away with nobody the wiser.
**************
Once they were safely out of the zoo, on the road, Talia felt free to complain:
“This has got to be our stupidest mission yet! I looked liked an amateur in front of that woman! And for what?! Kidnapping a bird. What kind of weirdo pay so much for that?!”
Maribel shrugged. “I read it’s the symbol of Constantin Basileus, or something like that. It has a lot of value for our clients...”
Talia let out a grunt of disgust. “Olympian Supremacists…” she spat. “I hate these nutjobs. If they didn’t pay us so handsomely…” She shook her head.
Maribel smiled sheepishly. “Well… Then you probably won’t be happy to hear the news…”
“What news?”
“Aurelia called me just before the mission started.”
“Maribel…” Talia warned her.
“The Supremacists… They kinda proposed us an other job, provided we succeeded in this one-”
“Maribel, for Goodness sake, don’t tell me you-”
“- … and I kinda accepted it.”
Talia groaned. “I thought we agreed you do not take missions without asking me first!”
“But…”
“I’m pretty sure it’ll be something dumb.”
“It looked exciting!” Maribel objected.
“I don’t care about the thrills!”
“And they offer ten times the usual sum.”
“I don’t c-” Talia paused. “Wait. Ten times?”
“Yep.”
The sum was hefty. Enough to make her consider the proposition.
“Okay… What’s the catch? If they offer that much, the mission must be truly dumb…”
“It’s not!”
Talia rolled her eyes. “A riveting argument… Care to elaborate?”
“It’s a classic mission, I swear! Criminal, but classic!”
“Ugh… There’s no arguing with you when you’re like that... Fine. But let me make one thing perfectly clear: I’m only doing it for the money.”
Maribel shrugged. “Fine by me.”
Talia took a deep breath, and breathed out. Why did she have a bad feeling about this?
I wasn't expecting comments so soon after the post. Thanks a lot everyone! 
) And I don't have the same amount of free time I used to have, nor do I have the same passion and energy for that matter... Though I wouldn't have dropped so many hints in other comments if I didn't have a trick up my sleeve... 