"That's a lot  of information to take in at once. Can we go over the mission one more time?" Katie asked.

"Vidia and Sarah are going to sneak in, Max will tinker with the wiring to take out the electricity so it'll be easier to get past security, Alice is going to guide everyone through where they need to go and what they need to do, in case they forget, and your job Katie, is to get everyone back safely," Coulson said.

"I get to like, drive everyone everywhere?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes, we thought that would be the best job for you since you don't like getting your hands dirty."

"I won't be there to watch out for you guys. It's completely up to each of you to do your part and if something does go wrong, improvise," Commander Howlett reminded us, but he was looking directly at me. It was hard for him to let me go off into the field, given our history together.

"For the third time this morning, does everyone understand their role in this mission and why it's important for us to succeed?" Coulson double checked. This time, everyone looked like they knew what they were doing. My favorite idea of capturing an alien for interrogation was sadly, turned down by everyone except Commander Howlett and Vidia, but majority ruled it out.

"I hope you're not too upset with our decision," Max tried to talk it out with me.

"Why would I be upset? I know the rules and this is one that I'm not breaking," I told them.

"It really was an extraordinary idea," Vidia complimented me.

"There will be other chances I'm sure," I said as we went our separate ways in Unit Training. I wanted to try out the punching bags, since Commander Howlett took so much interest in them. I found some boxing gloves and ditched my shirt. Don't worry, I was wearing a tank top. I pulled my hair up, got into a ready stance, and started punching away. It felt good, but I couldn't help but think that this exercise was more for channeling anger.

"What are you doing?" Commander Howlett asked me a few minutes later, trying not to laugh.

"I wanted to try this out, especially since I have my first S.H.I.E.L.D. mission tomorrow," I said.

"You're stance is off," he remarked as he cocked his head to see my reaction.

"Ok, if you're so smart, why don't you show me how to do it?" I suggested as I kept punching.

"You're leaning too far forward," he said. I gasped as he shifted my hips forward. "Then you need to widen your legs so your weight is equally distributed," he instructed as he gently moved my right foot back an inch or two, "and finally, your arms need to be up here, protecting your face," Howlett said as he adjusted my arms. "When you punch, you want your body to slightly turn to actually 'pack the punch.' At the same time time, your back foot also needs to turn," Howlett explained. I went to punch the bag and Commander Howlett guided my arm with one hand and my body with the other.

"I'm ready to try it," I told him.

"Give it your best shot," he encouraged. I did and the bag flew almost all the way back and was going to hit my face when my reflexes kicked in and I punched it again, clear off the hook! I stood there with my mouth wide open in complete shock.

"Did I  really do that?" I asked, turning to look up at Commander Howlett. He put his hand on my shoulders and replied,

"Sarah, you are going to go places." Coulson came in and ruined our moment.

"Is someone going to pick that up?" he asked.

"Yes Sir," Howlett hurried to put it back on it's hook.

"Your always doing something incredible Cadet Adams, how is that?" Coulson wanted to know.

"I like to keep myself busy and one of the motto's I live by is to never stop improving," I answered.

"Don't push too hard," Coulson warned. "And you, Commander Howlett, you shouldn't be encouraging this kind of behavior."

"With all due respect, Agent Coulson, I see a Cadet that, with the right encouragement, could make it high on the ladder," Howlett argued.

"Oh, but you're forgetting that Cadet Adams is one of us now," Coulson said haughtily.

"Actually, I'm still partial to Commander Howlett. He was, after all, the one that helped me through my basic training," I reminded him. Coulson glanced between the two of us and briskly walked off. Once he was long gone, Commander Howlett and I shared our own silent laughter.

"After careful consideration, we've come to an agreement that we should  capture one of these aliens," Coulson announced at our debrief.

"Coulson, I hope this wasn't about what happened earlier," Commander Howlett said.

"No, not at all," Coulson answered with a pointed look.

"Who's going to get the alien? I don't think Sarah and I could handle that," Vidia asked.

"We'll be sending in one of our best to do the dirty work. All you have to do is bring it back," Coulson reassured us. I looked confused when Commander Howlett nervously shifted his weight. Why was he so nervous about that? It's not like he's going to be the one to do the dirty work.

"You mean that big grody thing will be in the trunk while I have to focus on driving safely?" Katie asked disgustedly.

"It won't be a long drive, maybe forty five minutes at the most," Max tried to calm her down.

"Here's the flash drive," Coulson slid it across the table to me.

"Why's it so sophisticated?" I asked curiously, noticing the bulky design.

"It's coded with protective stuff that will allow us to view it without a problem," Alice explained. With that, Coulson dismissed us. Before Commander Howlett could get away, I had something to say.

"Hey, I don't want you worrying about me and trying to be overprotective out there tomorrow," I said.

"Why would I be overprotective? You obviously proved to me that you can take care of yourself."

"I know how you are. By the way, do you think Coulson knows what I am?" I asked quietly.

"If he does, I'll take care of it, but it's not Coulson you've got to worry about, it's Director Fury."

"If Fury finds out, what do I do?" I asked, trying to stay calm.

"You already told me your plan for if and when that happens," he reminded me. "Your smart Sarah, you'll come up with something, but don't let it go to your head right before a big mission."

Vidia and I were downloading the files we needed. Alien runes were traveling a mile a minute across the screen. "I hope S.H.I.E.L.D. has someone that knows how to read all of this," Vidia said.

"So do I cuz it looks impossible to figure out," I agreed. We both jumped at the sudden commotion in the hallway. "We need to go now," I whispered.

"Where? We have nowhere to hide," Vidia whispered back.

"That's what you think," I said as I jumped up and quietly opened the air vent. "Come on, we don't have all day," I rushed her.

"But the files aren't done yet," Vidia protested.

"We can come back down once they leave, it's probably just a patrol," I said. She leaped up and closed the vent not 2 seconds before an alien opened the door. The alien checked on everything, sniffing around as it did so. It stopped right beneath us and sniffed like nothing I had ever seen before. It looked up at us with huge, monstrous eyes and we knew for sure that we had been caught. I poked Vidia to get her attention and counted to 3 with my fingers. I leaped down and shot the alien in the head, but it's skin was too thick for my bullets. It cried out with a shriek and pushed a button on it's armband.

"Oh no your not," Vidia said as she leaped down, shoved her gun up it's mouth, and fired. It flailed around as it fell to the ground. Vidia put the flash drive back in and downloaded more files. I could hear heavy footsteps and the sound of more aliens coming our way.

"We don't have much time, how long is this going to take?" I asked.

"It still has over half way to go. They're different from ours, as in very complex and highly detailed."

"Then we'll do whatever it takes to get those files back to S.H.I.E.L.D," I stated, "Even if we die." Vidia and I could hear the aliens shriek as they came closer. I locked the door and attempted to push heavy things in front of it. We positioned ourselves a safe distance from the door and prepared to fight; I flinched as they beat horrendously against the door. We raised our guns to fire at whatever came through that door, but then something amazing happened; The aliens shrieks turned to shrieks of hurt and terror as something sliced their thick skins. The shrieks died down, the flash drive beeped that it was done, and the hallway sounded silent, but whatever was out there kept trying to get through the door.

I woke up to a sweaty bed. "Our mission must've gone wrong somehow and we can't let that alien live long enough to call his friends," I thought as I got ready for the day. "Man, those aliens sure looked creepy! I hope they don't turn my dreams into nightmares. Crap! If only there was a way to tell Commander Howlett before the mission," I thought.