synopsis: Alexandra Ryder—a.k.a. Agent 47-D—is back and this time it’s personal.
Corruption Games
(By S.B.)
13 — Revelations
The ride took less than a minute but it felt longer. The air inside the elevator was thick as if it hadn’t been used in ages despite all evidence to the contrary. When it stopped and the doors opened again, Alexandra and Simms found themselves confronted by a familiar sight.
“What the hell? This looks just like the...” He blurted.
“Yes, it does...” She peeked outside.
The new environment was in almost all regards, a perfect replica of the underground base, down to the latest renovations she had supervised. The exception laid in the number painted in red across the corridor, the smeared ink relatively fresh.
“I take it you don’t have an Underground level 31.2 down there.” The FBI Agent scoffed.
“No, we don’t.”
“Another numeric clue then? It’s a weird one though. What’s up with the decimals?”
“Your guess is as good as mine right now.” Alexandra stepped out of the prismatic contraption and looked around. There were four doors on the left side and two more on the right. All of them were closed and protected by state-of-the-art keypads with the exception of the farthest one from the elevator. A faint glimmer escaped from underneath the frame. Simms readied his gun and took point.
“Stay behind me.”
“Thanks, but I don’t need your protection.” Alexandra pushed him aside. “Besides, I don’t think we’re in real danger. Not right now, at least.”
“Why do you say that?”
“This whole recreation has a purpose. It’s part of the game, a demonstration of patience and control. Somebody went to a lot of trouble to make this happen to remind me once again that they’re always one step ahead. They want me to appreciate their work, the great lengths they went to make their vision come true. Putting my life on the line at the same time would contradict that narcissistic purpose. You can lower that. I’m pretty sure we’re the only living creatures here, today.”
“Is that just a hunch or are you certain of what you’re saying? Because I’d rather not risk it either way.”
“Like I said earlier, this is all for me. I’ve been the unwilling player from the start. You’re just collateral.”
The door at the end of the corridor opened just wide enough for a small motorized vehicle to roll out. It was like a mini-probe, similar to the ones NASA had sent to Jupiter the year before. It was equipped with a retractable metal arm, a motion detector and a rotating camera mounted atop a metal cylindrical case. A serial number was etched on it. It read: 217564. Welded to the front, another liquid crystals display had a message for her.
“THE LADY IS RIGHT, SPECIAL AGENT SIMMS.” it said. “NOT THAT YOUR PRESENCE ISN’T APPRECIATED, BUT 47-D IS THE GUEST OF HONOR, NOT YOU.”
“That makes me feel so much better...” He looked at the robotic envoy with a mix of curiosity and disdain. “Now, since you seem to know who I am and all, why don’t you repay the courtesy by telling me who the fuck are you?”
“YOUR TOUR GUIDE. FORGIVE ME FOR NOT BEING HERE TO GREET YOU IN PERSON BUT I’M SURE YOU CAN UNDERSTAND IT’S SAFER THIS WAY.”
“Safer for who?” Alexandra tapped the camera. “Don’t tell me psychotic mastermind is afraid of poor old me.”
“GOOD TO SEE YOU HAVEN’T CHANGED AT ALL, ALEXANDRA. LUCKILY, YOU CAN’T MANIPULATE A MACHINE. THIS WAY, PLEASE.” The contraption rode back inside the room.
Alexandra was the first to follow it. Simms trailed three steps behind, still ready to take the lead if need be.
The division was sterile, a grey square with a highly reflective sheen on the walls and ceiling. At its center, stood an ergonomic chair with silver alloy embedded into the seat. Its main support was bolted to the floor but a secondary shaft allowed it to rotate in every direction and even elevate it at least ten feet high. An array of holographic buttons hovered above it as well as a translucent screen straight out of a sci-fi movie. Black speakers adorned each corner of the room, four on the floor, and eight more above, the first set parallel to its nether counterparts and the other four criss-crossing the space where the chair was located.
“What is this place?” Simms gawked at the uncanny sight.
“LOOK FAMILIAR, ALEXANDRA?” the little drone queried.
“Should it?” The secret agent caressed the seat. A vague impression of cologne kissed her nostrils. It was the Colonel’s, no doubt about it.
“I WOULD HOPE SO. THE ORIGINAL DESIGN CAME FROM YOUR DIVISION. HAS GENERAL HAYES BEEN KEEPING YOU IN THE DARK? I FIND THAT HARD TO BELIEVE CONSIDERING THE HARD-ON HE HAD FOR YOU SINCE THE START.”
“Is there anyone in the organization you don’t know or are you just spewing nonsense to see what sticks and what doesn’t?” She examined the futuristic interface.
“I KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU AND THE PEOPLE YOU WORK FOR.”
“Because you were one of them at some point, right?” Simms hugged the farthest wall. It was warm to the touch. Static electricity made the hairs on the back of his hands curl.
“AND IF I WAS?”
“That would explain a lot about how you’ve been running this gig of yours.”
“IT’S NOT A ‘GIG’, AGENT SIMMS.”
“You’re right. More like a sick joke, am I right?”
“I SEE YOU’VE BEEN TEACHING YOUR NEW LAP DOG SOME OF YOUR BEDSIDE MANNERS, ALEXANDRA.”
“Who are you calling ‘lap dog’, you vile piece of...?”
“Simms, cut it out, please. I’m trying to have a normal conversation with our little ‘friend’ here.”
“There’s nothing normal about this, Alexandra, and you know it.”
“Just calm down. The more riled up you get, the less progress we make.”
“THE LADY IS RIGHT AGAIN.”
Alexandra’s fingernails slid down the interface, activating two or three buttons at random. The entire room hummed as the chair sprung to life.
“I take it this is some elaborate brainwashing device. This is where you held the Colonel and rewrote his mind, isn’t it?”
“CORRECT. HE WAS QUITE EASY TO BREAK, PARTIALLY THANKS TO YOUR CONSTANT MEDDLING WITH HIS MIND. THANK YOU, ALEXANDRA.”
“Please don’t blame your insanity on me.”
“INSANITY IS A PERFECTLY RATIONAL ADJUSTMENT TO AN INSANE WORLD BUT I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT’S NOT THE CASE. I WON’T INSULT YOU IF YOU DON’T INSULT ME.”
“Okay. No bullshit then. It’s obvious you wanted me here and here I am. Since you don’t seem willing to reveal yourself for real, at least tell me what you want.”
“ISN’T IT OBVIOUS?”
“Not really.” Alexandra leaned against the chair and crossed her arms.
“I WANT YOU TO REMEMBER WHAT I DID. I WANT YOU TO REMEMBER ME...” there was a small pause in the display refresh. “... AND THEN I WANT YOU TO SUFFER AS EVERYTHING YOU HOLD DEAR BURNS TO FLAMES.”
“Typical psychotic speech, I see.” She yawned. “And here I thought you were way more interesting than that.”
“NOT MY FAULT YOU STILL HAVEN’T LEARNED HOW TO PROPERLY PLAY THIS GAME. HOW IS THE COLONEL DOING BY THE WAY?”
“I doubt he’ll ever be the same again after this.”
“HOW MAD ARE YOU?”
“If you really know me like you say you do, you already know the answer to that question.” Her eyes sparkled with uncontained fury.
“GOOD. YOU ALWAYS LOOKED LOVELIER WHEN YOU WERE ANGRY.”
“Is this going somewhere, asshole?” Simms kneeled next to the robot. “My patience is wearing thin.”
“YOU STILL HAVEN’T FIGURED OUT WHO I AM, ALEXANDRA?”
“Even if I did, I wouldn’t give you that satisfaction. If you have anything to say, just say it already.”
“VERY WELL. BUT FIRST... MR. SIMMS, PLEASE, TAKE A LOOK AT THIS.”
The drone’s arm twirled and reached for the chair’s controls. There was a beep and the humming sound intensified. All around, the color of the wall began to change, from grey to blue, blue to green, green to red, and red to yellow, all in quick succession. The veins on Simms’ forehead immediately throbbed.
“What the hell?”
“Close your eyes!”
Too late. The chromatic onslaught infiltrated his pupils, caused his entire body to spasm. He collapsed on the floor, white foam bubbling from his mouth, vitreous eyes fixated on the dark speakers above. He was alive, yet unable to move or articulate any sort of coherent thought. Just as quickly as it had appeared, the mind-numbing spectacle receded into darkness. Alexandra kicked the mechanical emissary, its camera spinning in place.
“MUCH BETTER.”
“What was that for?”
“WE DESERVE SOME PRIVACY, 47-D. WOULD YOU RATHER I HAD KILLED HIM, INSTEAD?”
“I’d rather you put an end to this charade once and for all.”
“THE CLUES I HAVEN’T GIVEN YOU YET ARE ALL CLOSE BY. SOLVE THE PUZZLE AND I MAY EVEN BE KIND ENOUGH TO LET YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE IN FOR.”
“And if I refuse to continue to play?”
“ARRANGEMENTS HAVE BEEN MADE FOR THAT CONTINGENCY AS WELL.”
The robot moved away from her. As it did, a small panel underneath detached from the main body, revealing a translucent timer.
“I’VE PLANTED A SERIES OF EXPLOSIVES INSIDE THE GYM ABOVE US. DISCOVERING WHO I AM IS THE ONLY WAY FOR YOU TO STOP THEM FROM GOING OFF. AND DON’T EVEN THINK OF TRYING TO CALL FOR HELP. YOU DON’T WANT ALL THAT INNOCENT BLOOD IN YOUR HANDS, RIGHT?” The monitor said, almost as if it were smiling.
“When I find you...”
“THE CLOCK IS TICKING. HURRY UP!”
“Fuck!” She sighed. Less than ten minutes to go. “Think, Alexandra. Think!”
The numbers had to be the key. They had to! But what did they mean? Case files were out of the question for Melvin’s algorithms would have cracked the code already. However, the connection to the Division was evident. Some sort of code then? But to what end? 49... 53... and now 31.2. None of it made any sense. 49... 53... 31.2... Damn it!
“Wait!” She suddenly thought of something. “What if...? No, it couldn’t be that easy, right?”
She grabbed her phone and opened the GPS. In fiction, X marked the spot but if you wanted to find anything in this world for real, you could never go wrong with...
“Coordinates!”
“WELL, WELL... LOOK WHO’S FINALLY DECIDED TO THINK.”
Coordinates. Latitude or longitude? Most likely the first. Frantically, she typed all possible sequences hoping one of the results triggered her memory somehow. Maps faded in and out of existence as she fumbled the first few attempts. She only had half of the equation. The rest was...
“Close by.” she concluded, the robot’s serial number staring her right in the face. “Oh, you son of a bitch!”
“WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE, MA CHÉRIE.”
She tapped her phone again and froze. Only one combination made sense, the location of the one place she had vowed never to visit again. 49° 53′ 31.2″ N, 2° 17′ 56.4″ E... the city of Amiens, France.
“It can’t be!”
“NOW DO YOU UNDERSTAND?”
“No! He... you...” she babbled. “You’re dead.”
“AND YET HERE I AM, BACK FROM THE GRAVE. IT’S BEEN TOO LONG, ALEXANDRA. I’M DISAPPOINTED THOUGH. AFTER ALL WE’VE BEEN THROUGH, HOW CAN YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN ME SO EASILY?”
She was speechless. “Shocked” was too simple of a word to describe the turmoil of emotions she was going through. A solitary tear ran down her left cheek.
“But how?”
“THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WILL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL WE’RE FACE TO FACE, MY DEAR. DON’T WORRY, IT WON’T BE LONG NOW. I WOULD TELL YOU TO SAY ‘HI’ TO THE GENERAL FOR ME BUT I’LL DO IT MYSELF. SEE YOU SOON!”
“Wait! What about the bombs?”
“THE TIMER, YOU MEAN? I JUST FIGURED YOU NEEDED AN EXTRA INCENTIVE, THAT’S ALL. LIKE YOU ALWAYS SAY, CONFUSING PEOPLE IS FUN. BYE!”
The little drone spun one last time and stopped working, its electronic puppet strings cut. At about the same time, Simms blinked and tried to stand up, every muscle in his body sore.
“What... just happened?” He cleared his throat.
She didn’t respond, too busy trying to reach the General on the line. When he finally answered, his voice was as frantic as her heartbeat, both spiraling out of control.
“Alexandra? Is everything all right? We lost your signal for a while.”
“No, Sir. It’s not. In fact, it’s even worse than expected.”
“What do you mean?”
“I just found out who’s behind all this. I can’t believe he’s still alive after all these years but he has given me reasons to believe you’re his next target. Sir, you need to double the security measures. Now!”
“Calm down. Who are you talking about?”
“General... It’s Paolo.”
Her superior officer went silent as the impossibility of a long buried past sank in.