Chapter 1 (1/1)

Nichkhun stared warily at the large box of manila folders in front him. His eyes flickered up questioningly, only to be met with a firm nod. With a sigh, he lifted out the folder nearest to the top, flicking it open to the pale blue briefing page. Scanning the page quickly, his eyes widened. He looked up again, slowly sinking into his chair.“I was expecting something troublesome, but this…are you sure I’m the right person for this job?” Nichkhun ran a hand through his impeccable hair, mussing it slightly but still leaving it somehow perfect. It was the only sign of his agitation. “And choice of mission commander aside, is this the right move to be making right now? Are we even ready for this? It’s been five years already, but I’d say the Center hasn’t yet fully recovered from the last biff. Do we have enough manpower for this large of an operation?” He folded his hands on the desk, his gaze piercing as he voiced his concerns.“First off, I’m not the one making the big decisions here, so if you want to analyze the Center’s decision making procedures I suggest you stop by the Base instead of interrogating me,” the man in front of him snapped. “Secondly, are you seriously questioning why you’ve been chosen? Your ranking is number one right now for god’s sake!”Nichkhun looked slightly sheepish. “Sorry Key. But…is this an official order? Or is it just preparatory –”“Oh my god Khun, how are you even ranked number one? READ for god’s sake! What does the briefing page say about this mission? Jesus.”Nichkhun sighed, resigned. “Oh be quiet, I was just making sure.” He flipped through the other pages in the folder absently before shutting it and leaning back in his chair.“Ok, so what can you tell me?”Key rolled his eyes. “Finally ready to listen? Like I said, it’s not like I had any voting power, but here’s the reasoning. You know JYP is currently the third largest terrorist organization, but in the past year, their activity and number of attacks have increased greatly, way surpassing their previous trends. While in terms of total cost of damage they’re still third, if you only look at the number of small scale attacks that are more of a nuisance than threatening, they’ve launched more of those than YG and SM have together combined. And while that doesn’t seem to be very threatening at all –”“It means they’re testing their power and new boundaries,” Nichkhun mused, “which also means they could be testing their limits and capabilities in preparation for a larger scaled operation already in the works.”“That’s exactly what the Center’s worried about.” Key confirmed. “As for manpower, you will have the entire Special Operations Corps (SOC) at your disposal. You know they’ve been building it up like mad the past ten years, even more so after the screw up five years ago.”“With questionable methods as well,” Nichkhun muttered, distaste evident in his voice.“Yes, with questionable methods and time will tell how that will all turn out, but no use crying over spilt milk,” Key said briskly. “We have no control over that, and you know I’m just as opposed to their methods as you are. But the fact of the matter is that you will have more than enough brute force.”“But brute force isn’t what we lack right now, and brute force was definitely not our biggest loss five years ago,” Nichkhun snapped.Key stiffened, almost flinching. “Trust me, I know that better than anyone Horvejkul.” His eyes were steely as he glared at Nichkhun. “You should know better than that.”This time it was Nichkhun’s turn to flinch. “I’m sorry, I –” he shook his head, deflating in his seat. “I know you know, Kibum. I shouldn’t have snapped. I’m sorry.” He closed his eyes, brow furrowed as he kneaded his temples with two fingers. “I’m just frustrated with the situation I’ve been handed with but it’s not your fault, I shouldn’t be acting this way.”Key’s eyes softened at the apology, but his posture remained stiff. “I know. But the Center seemed pretty adamant about this operation, so if you want to back out your only option is to resign.”“Which isn’t even an option to begin with,” Nichkhun shook his head.Key shrugged, the tension finally leaving his frame. “Look at the second folder.”Nichkhun raised an eyebrow but quickly complied, lifting the second manila folder from the box. It was significantly heavier than the first, and it was clear it contained multiple folders inside it. Pulling one out at random, he flipped it open, revealing a profile.“Jang Wooyoung,” he read aloud. His eyes traveled slowly down the page and back up, comprehension slowly dawning on him. He flipped through a couple other folders, skimming quickly. “Potential new recruits,” Key said, confirming Nichkhun’s thoughts. “All of these have been okayed by the Center and were chosen after a careful examination of past accomplishments, background, specialties, known alliances, blah blah blah. These are all specialists, from weaponry to infiltration to tech. You can choose whoever you want to attempt to recruit, all or none, though I wouldn’t suggest none.”“Attempt to recruit? So none of these candidates have been contacted yet?”“Nope. You know how the Center works, no need to inform the uninvolved. And yes, attempt, because despite the fact that they’ve passed the Center’s security standards, it doesn’t mean they’re safe. If you look at their profiles, most of them are quite unpredictable.”“If they weren’t I’d be concerned about their capabilities,” Nichkhun conceded. “But what’s the Center thinking, recruiting a bunch of rogues for such a critical mission? We won’t be able to fully trust any of these lawbreakers.”“Well, we function outside of the law too.”“That’s not the point.”“I don’t know what the Center is thinking. You’re just gonna have to use your best judgment, Khun. And like you said yourself…we don’t currently have the resources we did five years ago.”Nichkhun groaned. “I was afraid you were gonna say that. Is that all I need to know for now?”Key nodded. “The rest of the box is vital data concerning JYP and basic operational details set by the Center. The Center hasn’t gone completely batshit insane you know, they’ve got new intelligence the past year that convinced them now’s the best time to act. I’d say skim those just so you have an enough of a grasp of the scope and necessities for the operation, then focus on recruits. You can find suggested contact methods for each of the candidates in their folders. Oh, and there’s also a folder concerning the various SOC units and their areas of expertise, as well as notable members that you may want to pull for certain tasks. The Center wants the list of committed recruits in two weeks and a mission plan within a month. As for current specialists, the only one we can spare you is Suzy, though the Center probably knows you’d throw a fit if you didn’t get her anyways.”Nichkhun stretched, cracking his knuckles. “Well, it looks I’m not gonna be getting any sleep for the next month.” ~+~The loud, blaring bass of the club seemed to resonate in Jun. K’s bones and he forced himself to not grit his teeth. He hated clubs, he hated the crappy excuse for music they blasted from the speakers, and he hated the mass of grinding, sweaty bodies. “Why do we always have to choose this as the meeting location,” he complained, fingers toying with his headset wires absently.Junho shot him an exasperated look. “We’ve been over this. Because it makes us inconspicuous. Because a bunch of idiot drunk people aren’t gonna remember anything about their surroundings the day after.”“And because our clients prefer such a setting,” Chansung smirked flirtatiously at a girl that giggled as she walked past him, brushing his arm suggestively. But as he turned back to face them, the smirk was gone, replaced by a serious expression. “Come on, let’s go back, he’ll be here any minute.”Junho’s eyes narrowed slightly at Chansung’s quick change in expression, but Jun. K was already walking off briskly and he quickly turned to follow.They entered a back room, privately reserved. Jun. K let out a sigh of relief at the beautiful silence of the room; the walls were soundproofed, and although you could still hear the dull bass of the club thrumming against the walls, it was blissful.The room itself was simple. A long, black couch was situated against one wall and a rectangular table with six chairs surrounding it sat in the middle of the room. Chansung and Junho collapsed onto the couch while Jun. K leaned against the table.“So what kind of a request do you think this is gonna be?” Junho asked. “He’s offering quite the nice sum of money. Probably another break-in-and-steal-these-important-documents kinda mission, huh?”“Or a bugging job,” Chansung mused and Junho groaned.“God no. Usually those aren’t that bad, but the last guy that offered that much money for a job like that had like a hundred different phones he wanted us to tap. That took forever!”“But it wasn’t hard, just a lot work and tedious. It was good money,” Chansung reminded him.“But it was boringgg,” Junho whined.“Shut up you two, he’s coming. Get your masks on.” Jun. K instructed, fixing the black mask that already covered his entire face.Junho grumbled, but complied. He despised the masks; they were itchy and hot and just all around uncomfortable, but it was necessary. What they did often required stealth, and it wouldn’t do for others to know what they looked like. Especially since a sizable number of their clients were bitter enemies of each other, and they didn’t need to know they were playing for both teams. Or all teams, to be more accurate. Junho like to think they didn’t discriminate.Just as Junho secured his mask, three sharp knocks were heard.“Come in,” Jun. K said, standing up. Chansung and Junho followed.A man wearing a suit carrying a briefcase entered, carefully shutting the door behind him. He looked rather unremarkable, just a typical businessman wearing a rather expensive looking suit in Junho’s opinion.“Ah, Il Terzetto, it’s an honor to meet you. I’ve heard much about your skills and –”“Enough with the bullshit flattery. What do you want us to do?” Junho asked bluntly. Jun. K shot him a disapproving look while Chansung sniggered at the surprised look on the businessman’s face.“Oh, well, uh, shall we sit?” he chuckled nervously.Once they were all seated, the man began again, appearing more composed.“Ok, I’ll begin again. I’m Mr. Park, and I’m here on behalf of the CEO of Hyoshin Corporation. We were hoping you could get some information and possible incriminating evidence against a rival corporation’s Chairman. Chairman Lee of Arrow Inc. We are almost completely positive that Chairman Lee was visiting brothels and buying prostitutes regularly, but he covered his tracks well and he’s stopped as far as we know this past year. We’d like you guys to dig up past evidence for us, as revealing this information to the public would be devastating for their company. Is that possible?”Jun. K was thankful for the mask he was wearing so he didn’t have to hide his grin. He didn’t even have to look at Junho and Chansung to know they were smirking as well.“Maybe…” Jun. K feigned reluctance. “Can we see what information you have already collected on this Chairman Lee?”“Of course.” Mr. Park opened his briefcase and handed Jun. K a file. Without opening it, he handed it off to Chansung, who scanned it quickly.“So?”“I believe it’s doable…but how much was it that you offered, Mr. Park?” Chansung also faked hesitancy, but his eyes were grinning.Mr. Park’s face brightened when he heard it was doable.“7,000,000 won, cash of course.”“Hmmm,” Chansung pretended to consider, sliding a finger up and down the edge of the folder. “How about this. Make it 10,000,000 won, and we’ll take this on. That should be nothing for a company like yours, and it’ll be only a rounding error for the gains made from this scandal breaking.”Mr. Park didn’t even hesitate. “Done. I have 5,000,000 with me now, and I’ll give you the rest once the job is complete. I believe this is how you operate?”

“That would be very acceptable.” Jun. K agreed as Mr. Park handed over his briefcase. Chansung opened it, took a glance, then closed it with a satisfied expression.“I believe that is all we require of you, Mr. Park. We will contact you as soon as we have the evidence you require. Expect a response within the week.”“Thank you.” The man bowed, exiting the room.As soon as the trio was sure the man had left for sure, they removed their masks, sharing high fives.“Man, that guy was as dumb as a rock. And even more gullible. 10,000,000 won for a job like this? Boy did we get lucky today!” Chansung hooted.“I can’t believe people are still calling us Il Terzetto. We came up with that as a joke when we were joking about Chansung being Italian.” Jun. K laughed.“And isn’t Chairman Lee the client we had like three months ago? We still have all his current information, don’t we?” Junho asked.“You bet we do. And,” Jun. K had a glint in this eye, “if I remember correctly, he’s gay, too. Seriously, all we have to do is have Junho go seduce him and BAM 10,000,000 won. No need hack his phone or anything.”Junho wrinkled his nose. “Ew. That old fart? Why do I have to do all the work? Whatever, 10,000,000 is worth it. But ewww.”Chansung looked as equally disgusted as Junho, if not more so. “No one said you have to sleep with the guy, just drug him or something. Sheesh. And who even said anything about seducing, we could do a conventional break in too.”Jun. K rolled his eyes. “You know having Junho do it would be the easiest since we already have all of this guy’s info.”“Whatever. Let’s get outa here,” Chansung grumbled, grabbing the briefcase of money and stalking out of the room.Junho stared after Chansung, brow furrowed. “What’s up with him? Not happy with the practically free 10,000,000 won or what?”Jun. K sighed exasperatedly. “You’re both idiots. Let’s go.” ~+~Fifteen minutes away on the other side of town was another bar, but the atmosphere was very different. The music was noninvasive and there was no one out on the dance floor. Instead, most sat calmly at a table or a stool, carefully nursing a drink. It was still pretty early in the night so no one was drunk quite yet. Min smiled contentedly as she carefully dried a glass, placing it back on the shelf.“Wooyoung-ah! Hurry up and grab me another crate of vodka!”“Mmm. In a minute,” Wooyoung said distractedly, fingers tapping away at his keyboard. “I’m almost done with this…just give me a sec.”Min rolled her eyes, drying off her hands with a towel. She poured a drink for another customer, but Wooyoung still sat unmoving in front of his bulky laptop. Finally, she had enough.“Yah! Jang Wooyoung!” She stalked over, whacking him on the head with her dishrag. “Get up!”“Oww, what was that for?” Wooyoung pouted. “I said I’ll be there in a sec! Listen,” he paused, lowering his voice to a whisper. “I’m almost done hacking into this guy’s email, do you know much I’m getting for this?”Min pursed her lips, then smacked him again. “I’ll give you two minutes. You’re getting rusty if it’s taking you so long.”“Yah! Do you know how many extra security mea–”“Two minutes.” Min said firmly, then turned back to her counter. Wooyoung rubbed his head resentfully as he glared at her back.“Meanie. Who was it that even bought her this bar to begin with?” he muttered under this breath.“Excuse me?” Min turned sharply, raising an eyebrow at Wooyoung.“N-Nothing!” Wooyoung denied, frantically waving his hands in denial in front of his face. “Did you hear anything? I didn’t hear anything!”“That’s what I thought.” Min said contentedly, giggling slightly as she headed back to help a new customer. ~+~“What the hell did he eat for breakfast this morning? Dynamite? God I thought I was gonna die there!” Jia wheezed as she collapsed on the ground where Taecyeon and Fei soon joined her.“I know right?” Taecyeon agreed. “The Sergeant has been really harsh these past few days. Two-hundred laps is way too much after combat practice.”“Gahhhh I’m gonna be even more sore tomorrow.” Jia moaned, flopping onto her stomach.“He’s also been unnaturally uptight, but these few days have been insane. He seems even more on edge than usual. You guys think maybe something’s happening or something?” Fei mused.“He probably just ate something bad and is constipated or something,” Jia muttered, earning a half-hearted slap on the back from Taecyeon.“Hey, don’t say that!” Fei scolded as Jia rolled back onto her back.“You know, Fei, I think you might be right. Not the constipated part, but seriously, not just Sergeant Oh, the other commanders have been acting especially tense lately too.” Taecyeon agreed.Jia’s eyes widened. “You think we might actually get to see some real action soon?”“Yah, we’ve been on plenty of real missions already!” Fei disagreed.“Pshhh, pulling people out of burning subway stations and stuff is great and all, but that we’ve never fought before!” Jia shot back.Taecyeon shook his head in amusement. “No matter what, I’m sure we’ll see soon enough. Come on, lights out will be soon.” He stood, pulling Fei to her feet as well. Jia pushed herself up into a sitting position then held out her arms to be hoisted up.“Still Mr. Goody-two-shoes after all these years, huh? We’ve got another half an hour at the very least,” Jia teased as Taecyeon pulled her upright.“Well it thanks to Mr. Goody-two-shoes here that you two didn’t get beat up your first days here,” Taecyeon responded in the same teasing tone, earning a jab to ribs courtesy of Jia.“Well then, I guess we should thank you for being so righteous and taking care of us, huh? But, oh wait!” Jia feigned surprise as she pretended to try to remember something. “I still remember someone getting beat up that day…a skinny boy who thought rattling off the rules was enough to survive…oh was that you?”“Yah!” Taecyeon jabbed Jia back, his voice indignant but the corner of his mouth twitching upwards. Fei didn’t even try to hide her amusement as she burst out into laughter.“Come on guys, let’s go wash up,” Fei laughed as she grabbed each of her friends by an arm, pulling them back towards the dorms.           ~+~Suzy stared down at the engagement notice in her hands, two familiar faces grinning up at her with pure joy. She could feel the tears beginning to well up in her eyes, but she swallowed, firmly pushing down the sobs. She was strong. She would be strong. She would be ok.Setting the card down gingerly, she picked up another sheet, this one baby blue, a color that was equally as familiar to her as those two faces. Biting her lip, she reread the directions for her new mission, committing them to memory before shredding it.A finger traced the face of the groom gently, sadly. “See you soon,” she whispered.The door shut silently behind her as she left the room, face set with determination.‘I need to be strong.’  A/N: Please comment! ^^