Finally, the Pentagon came into view, an unbreakable fortress of concrete and steel, just like it was described to me. Government workers and officers pass in and out, like a waterway filled to the brim with ramrod, straight-back, anally retentive jacketed men passing into the star banner-covered building. We continued up the road, beyond the Pentagon, to a series of office buildings, with fresh paint in bland gray, dreary windows, and empty guard posts.
We finally pulled up to one of these gray structures on the fringes of the Pentagon's vast sprawl. Marked with no sign, and no star banner flag waving above its entrance. Just a single guard post stands outside, manned by one lone MP. A thick-jawed sergeant watches as our car pulls up and stops before the building. James guided me into the building, the entire way the MP watched us, never taking his eyes off us.
The lobby was empty with fresh furniture and nothing else, no grand reception desk, no decorative elements. Just polished waxed floorboards that reflected the cold fluorescent lights overhead and a hum of steady typewriters and distant voices, no one greeted us as we walked down one of the halls.
We came to a small check-in desk, manned by a young lady in a military uniform backed by a wall bearing a simple, framed crest of the Department of Defence, with no mention of the DIA on it. A few hard-backed chairs lined one side, where we waited as the receptionist continued some work, finally she finished, before she took the paper out and put it into a thick folder, and passed it to Robert as he walked past.
"Thanks for the write-up, Jane."
"No problem honey. Happy to help." She smiled sweetly at us as she went back to starting a new page of work.
We walked on and down a hallway, lined with frosted-glass doors, some with labels of Operations, Analysis, and Personnel, but many were simply numbered. A man in a dark suit stepped out from one of the doors and glanced at James and Robert before his eyes fell on me.
His grin infected his face as he settled on me. "Wow James, I mean when I heard that you were bring back a kid to join the Agency, I didn't think it was true. You that useless that you now need kids to do your work for you."
James smiled, "Richard, remind me again what you have accomplished whilst stuck in the US." Richard scowled before trying to speak. "Stop, I just remembered I don't care; I would love to stay and chat, but I have some actual important work to be doing." James patted him on the shoulder as walked past giving him a big grin.
"Just remember that strays are strays for a reason and you know all about that James. Haha." Richard's feet echoed in the hallway as he left.
Robert sighed. "Ignore him you two, he is not worth any amount of effort. Come on we need to see the General."
I gave one last look to Richards back before I followed them towards the General. At the end of the hall, a door stood out, with its new door frame, polished brass handle, and simple plaque reading:
LIEUTENANT GENERAL JOSEPH F. CARROLL
DIRECTOR OF DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Inside the room it was larger than expected with walls in a neutral shade, broken only by a large world map, dotted with pins and red markings, stretching across one side of the room. A wooden bookshelf, stacked with many different books from The Craft of Intelligence to Brave New World.
At the centre, a heavy oak desk sits beneath the soft glow of a green glass-shaded ceiling lamp backed onto the fresh morning sun. An ashtray, already filled with a few cigarettes and one put out just a moment ago. Papers are stacked neatly, but not obsessively so, close to a locked blue filing cabinet.
Filling his chair comfortably and behind the desk was General Joseph Carroll.
His gray-blue Air Force uniform is crisp, with ribbons and stars reflecting the soft light complementing his light complexion with a calm smile. As we walk in his eyes boar straight into me as he settles on me still keeping his light smile.
"Sit." He gestured to the seats. "This is the Kid that you brought back from Germany." The General gave me a look over. "You know I trust your judgment James but even this is quite a bit." He turned towards James.
"I know Sir, but I think that Kid has potential, not only does he speak three languages, but he managed to get a message to me without anyone noticing whilst completely on his own. He is smart, mixed with everyone underestimating a Kid, that can be a great asset to the team, by the time he has grown up he will have been in this work for long enough that he can hold his own."
The General gave James a look before he looked to Robert who simply shrugged. He shook his head raised his eyebrows and sighed.
"Alright then, but your ass is on the line for this James, you lead this team, if it succeeded congrats, I'll even give you a pat on the back and a nice pay boost, but if it falls apart then you're on the line for punishment. Do I make myself clear?"
James straightened out as he gave a grin. "Cristal clear Sir."
The General shook his head. "I'm not joking James my ass is already on the line having to hold back the ONI, CGI and don't even get me started on the fucking CIA, if they found out we brought in a kid to fill in our personal we would get our funding slashed, and the President himself would shut us down. You know we are still trying to figure out what we are trying to be, and I don't want this blowing back and I have to have to spend more time keeping vultures back."
Robert cleared his throat. "We understand Sir. We want this to work just as much as you, it won't look good if we fail but if we can succeed and do well then we can start to prove ourselves to the president, his staff, and every other intelligence agency out there."
The general smiled. "That's the only real reason I am even willing to allow this to happen. Look, I can see this agency working both at home and abroad, we need to defend our nation from all threats, and they can come from inside and outside. I have wanted this team for a while but was unsure of the execution and now you are going to be the test team. And fate would have it that I have just the thing for you."
He moved over to his cabinet whilst fetching a key from his inside jacket pocket and brought out a thin folder. "We just got this a few days ago and I was going to pass it on to another agency, but you called me up not five minutes later. Fortune always seems to smile on you, James."
James smiled cheekily. "Thank you, Sir."
"Don't sassy me James." He passed the document to Robert who opened it up. "We don't have much to go on. We got tipped off by a mole in the Soviets that someone was interested in selling some stolen Stark Industries tech, word is that it was stolen from their research department and is a new and advanced machine called a 'microcomputer' that is like our current computers but much smaller. It got the Soviets all up in arms about acquiring."
Robert whistled as he read the document. "This looks like some serious stuff. Why has this stuff not come out yet."
"Too experimental apparently, still years off production but if the Soviets get it could help them catch up or even beat us to these microcomputers. The guy who stole is looking to sell it to the highest bidder, so your job is to get there first, steal back the documents, and bring it back for us"
James was practically bouncing in his seat. "Sounds simple enough, come on we got some back guys to catch."
Robert rolled his eyes as he continued to read through the document. I smiled as our first Mission was set to be underway.
"Calm your horses, James." The General sternly said. "I believe you two to be competent, so you need to show me that on this mission. If we can succeed in this mission not only do we look good for the president but if we can get into the good books with Stark Industries we can get a big backer for ourselves. This could be hige for us, don't let me or the agency down." He turned towards me making me straight up. "As for you, you need to live up to everyone's expectations. James has talked highly about you, and I expect to see that in this mission, do I make myself clear."
"Yes Sir. I won't let any of you down."
The General narrowed his eyes at me before he reached into his cabinet.
"This is all the documentation and details you need now that you are in America. It includes your passport, your new residence, and your bank account. You are under conditional US residency; it is only if you can prove your worth, that you can get fast-tracked to US citizenship." He continued to stare me down.
"Thank you, Sir." I took the folder and found that it contained the same details I currently had for my cover.
"Well then you three, I expect to be kept up to date with your workings, you are to stop this Black Dosier from falling into enemy hands and returning to us. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes Sir." We all said.
"You are dismissed." We walked away all very pleased with our assignment and our first mission.
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