The helicopter landed sharply on CALIGO’s hidden helipad among the hills, the wind from the rotors bending the tall grass. I jumped out before even getting the clearance. I then followed a narrow trail leading to a rocky slope with no sign of construction. I touched a specific spot on the moss-covered wall. A click. The metal door opened, revealing a dark passage.

Inside, after the retina scan, concrete gave way to steel. Brightly lit hallways, digital panels, voices moving quickly in constant communication. An analyst waved, but I only nodded back, heading straight for the briefing room. Commander Turner was waiting for me there, with that humorless smile he always wore when he had bad news.

“Sit down,” he said, gesturing to the chair in front of the holographic screen.

“Who died this time?” I asked, removing my tactical gloves and crossing my legs.

“This time, no one… yet. You’ll have company on the next mission.”

I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. This again.

“Tell me the name of the future corpse.”

“Guest.”

Her image appeared on the display: clean record, high marks in theoretical training, zero field missions. Great. Another rookie out of the cradle.

“She’ll accompany you on the sabotage operation at Veridian Core. They’re weeks away from launching a satellite system designed to disrupt global surveillance networks. Our goal is to quietly disable their main server room and delay the launch indefinitely. No combat is expected—get in, plant the charges, and get out. Guest will be your support.”

“And I’m the babysitter?” I asked with dry sarcasm.

“You’re the best agent we have. And she needs to learn from someone.”

---

Later, dressed in the infiltration uniform and adjusting the holster on my thigh, I entered the special equipment lab to grab the rest of my arsenal. It was quiet… until she entered.

“Do you always use this kind of knife? Or do you prefer automatic pistols? I read that more experienced agents usually have a weapon of choice, like a signature. Yours is that SIG Sauer, right? Do you have a name for it?”

She followed me like an eager puppy, chattering nonstop while I tried to sync my communicator with the mission system.

“I’ve set up a private channel between us if you want to test it… oh, and I also updated the internal maps based on the latest Veridian reports. I thought—”

“Guest,” I interrupted, my voice low, firm, and cold, “Do you want to be useful? Then shut up and pay attention. Out there, people die. And the sound of your voice will be the last thing I hear if you keep distracting me. Now, check the external cameras and tell me if the surveillance system has reset.”

She swallowed hard, finally going silent. I returned to what I did best: preparing for a mission where a single mistake could make me a statistic. She had no idea what awaited her. And me? I was already calculating her chances of making it out alive.