The Real Xara. WAOIC Headquarters. Location Unknown.

The ground beneath me was cold and hard. The air was frigid, accompanied by the putrid scent of mold and decaying flesh. My entire body throbbed, especially my wrists. Something is not right. My eyelids opened to reveal a dimly lit cell. It was about the size of a small bedroom, though it was unfurnished, explaining why I sat on the grimy floor. The four walls were composed of coarse rock, which dug into my back as I lay against it.

To the left was the door to the prison cell. Outside was the only source of light: a single, dingy lightbulb that hung from the ceiling. The bars were just small enough so I couldn't fit through them, taunting me with my lack of freedom.

As my gaze turned to my wrists, I discovered that the abrasive ache on my skin was caused by metal chains that dug into my veins. I could vaguely make out the brownish-red contours of dried blood that had streamed down my hands.

I hope that isn't infected.

The chains attached to the floor, leaving very little space for arm movement. Nevertheless, I tried to shift my position to get more comfortable. Even the tiniest movement sent pain shooting through the muscles in my legs, and pressed the metal further into my skin. But I was successfully able to shift from having my legs stretched out in front of me to the butterfly position.

Cross, cross, applesauce. Those childish thoughts would be the most entertainment I'd likely get until I was rescued.

If I was rescued. One must always consider all of the possibilities.

The sound of a door closing resounded in the room outside. Slowly, footsteps approached. I sat up a little straighter. I had a feeling this newcomer had arrived to visit me.

Game face on, I stared at the door, waiting. Presently, a figure appeared in the doorway. I could tell that my assertive stance had caught him off guard, for he paused a moment when his brown eyes met mine. But he soon covered it up, throwing on a sickening sweet smile.

"And so we meet again, Agent X," Smog said.

"So it appears."

The keys in Smog's hand chimed as he placed the key in the cell door's lock.

"Do you like the present we gave you?" he asked.

"I'm sure I did," I replied.

Smog arched an eyebrow. "Excellent! We'll have to play again sometime."

I remained silent as I watched him awkwardly struggle to turn the key in the lock on the cell door.

"Old door?" I asked.

"Yes, very old. It's probably seen at least two centuries worth of prisoners."

Finally, the door creaked open. Smog didn't rush his entrance into my cell, nor his closure of the door. For one thing, I was chained to the floor. For another, I wasn't naive enough to believe that I could escape past all of the guards if I made a break for it.

"Are you ready to go on a field trip?" Smog said.

"It'll be more interesting than sitting here. I've been bored for hours."

Despite the low lighting, Smog's teeth gleamed as he grinned. "Lies. You've been unconscious for the past two days."

"Ah, clever. You decided to drug me."

"Of course. That's when we threw the welcoming party for you. We had a few of our best Agents put you in your place."

I understood the pain I felt all over. They had decided to beat me up while I was comatosed.

"Wouldn't you have preferred to fight me while I was conscious? Then your victory would actually mean something."

Smog chuckled. "Come this way, Agent X."

I didn't move a muscle. He had forgotten a very important detail, and I had no intention of reminding him of it.

Annoyance twisted his expression for a brief moment, until his eyes noticed what he had forgotten.

"Forgive me, Queen X. I must release your chains before you may do as I have commanded."

He inserted a miniature key into the opposite end of the chains. Instead of releasing my hands, the bonds became detached from the floor.

"Now, you may follow me."

My legs wobbled as I stood, pain shooting through them. I raised my hand to the wall to support myself, gritting my teeth as the weight of the chains sunk the metal deeper into my skin.

Smog watched with mocking eyes. "Do you need help, your Highness?"

"No."

"Suit yourself," Smog shrugged. "But for the love of all that is good and evil, hurry up!"

I ignored him completely, focusing on pulling myself up. After a moment had passed, I managed to stabilize myself. I lifted my head and marched past Smog and into a large, empty room, the weighted iron clanging behind me. Smog turned and headed to a door on the right side of the room, walking just fast enough so that I struggled to keep up. My breaths came in short, labored pulses, not only from the struggle of supporting my body, but also from inhaling the caustic air.

Down the dark, dank hallway we walked, always an arms length from Smog. He never bothered to glance at me to make sure things were in order. Guards in black jumpsuits secured every doorway passed through as we walked through a labyrinth of tunnels. At long last, I saw a looming door, with blinding light peeking from the crack underneath the entrance. My limbs subconsciously decided to slow their pace. I panted, winded from only ten minutes of walking.

This is absolutely absurd! I was the foremost long distance runner in my graduating class at spy school.

I would have to get back into shape once I was freed.

If I was freed.

"Since you were asleep for the first welcoming party, we decided to throw you another one." Smog waited a moment for me to respond. Once it was clear that I had no intention of humoring him, he flung open the door. I squinted against the white, fluorescent light. One shove sent me stumbling into the room in front of me. I fell to my knees with a thud, bone on stone.

"Well, if it isn't Agent X," a voice mocked. "So nice of you to drop in."

"And to whom do I owe this pleasure?" I sounded surprisingly confident given the circumstances.

Always calm, always cool, always collected. Emotionless.

"Oh, but telling you that would spoil all the fun, wouldn't it?"

My eyes began to focus on a blond-haired man in a formal, black suit, seated on the cheapest gold throne I'd ever seen.

They must be low on funding.

The man nodded to two agents who stood on the sidelines. Each grabbed one of my arms and hoisted me into the air. I wanted to scream as pain shot through my body, but I clamped my mouth shut.

I was dumped onto a chair. Quickly, the agents attacked my chains to the floor. Once again, I was pinned in place.

"I'm going to cut straight to the chase," the man on the cheap throne said. He narrowed his beady eyes as his gaze bore into mine. "We originally kidnapped you for one reason, and one reason alone, and that is to stop you from completing your mission. But that doesn't mean we can't gain more information while we're at it. After all, we're WAOIC. It's in the name, it's in the game. With that being said, tell me, what leads do you have on the case?"

"Me."

The man raised an eyebrow. "You?"

"Me."

He leaned back in his chair, a smile on his lips. "And what makes you think that you are the only lead in this case?"

"I have all the information to complete the case."

"I see. Who else will continue to work on this case if you are replaced?"

I shrugged.

"No one?" He leaned forward in his seat.

I shrugged again.

"You think they will just drop everything?"

"Perhaps."

Annoyance flashed in his eyes. His head flicked to the left side, and a guard stepped forward.

Pain exploded in my left cheek as fist made contact with bone.

"Care to change your answer? I am asking who is going to replace you on the mission?"

"I don't know."

Another blow hit my lip, sending blood spurting onto the floor.

I realized why it had been necessary to physically beat me up while I was unconscious. Their blows wouldn't have hurt as much if I wasn't already weak and bruised. Nevertheless, I willed myself to ignore it.

Once a spy, always a spy.

"Xara." I didn't lift my gaze from the floor.

"Xara?"

My face hardened. He was trying to befriend me, and I wouldn't let him.

"Call me by my name," I declared, gritting my teeth.

"Agent X."

I looked at my captor.

"That's better," he said. "Now, tell me, who is going to replace you on your mission?"

"Even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you."

"Oh, I don't know about that."

The guard's foot kicked me in the stomach. I doubled over in pain, but not a sound escaped my lips.

"Any reply Agent X?" He placed pointed emphasis on my name.

"No." That one word was about the only response I could give.

"Suit yourself, Agent X. But just know, this will only get more painful the longer this drags on." He nodded to Smog, who had been watching from the corner of the room nearest the door.

"Don't think that you have won the war, Agent X," the man continued. "Tomorrow, we are sending our impersonator to Brussels. And believe, she will be able to trick anyone, even you."

My brow twitched. Did I just hear him sip up?

The man laughed. "Oops, did I say 'she?' Oh well, it doesn't matter anyways. Since the information is of absolutely no use to you."

I was glad that Smog was practically dragging me from the room, for it meant that I didn't have to see the rule of the cheap throne gloat.