CHAPTER ONE
should you choose to accept it
　

　
　
Virginia Beach, VA　
March 2006　

WHEN IMF AGENT ANITA LEVINE WASN'T WORKING A MISSION OR AT HOME CATCHING UP ON SOME SLEEP, she could usually be found sitting at a little dive bar a block away from her apartment building, nursing a bottle of Budweiser — or even a glass of whiskey if her day had been especially rough — and watching whatever sports game was playing on the television screen above the counter. She really didn't have anywhere else to go when she was off duty. At least, not anymore.

Three years ago, back when her life hadn't gone to absolute shit, she would have had a place to go, a person to spend time with when she was off duty. But Ethan Hunt had made his choice all those years ago, and she had to live with the fact that the bar stool beside her would always remain empty now.

As the woman looked away from that empty space beside her with a familiar longing aching in her chest, she glanced up at the television screen hanging above the bartender's head with a heavy sigh, not very invested in the football game that was currently on like everyone else in the room seemed to be. She raised her bottle to her lips after a moment and downed the last sip in an entire gulp.

With nothing else to do, as she didn't like to drink much so her head was always clear for any unexpected mission that was bound to come her way, Anita rose from the bar stool and grabbed her leather jacket, pulling it on over her buttoned up shirt. Fishing out her wallet from the front pocket of her jeans, she slapped some money down on the counter and then left, the bartender that knew her by name bidding her a farewell as he watched her leave for the night.

"Have a good night, Anita," he had said while drying an empty glass with a dish rag, and she acknowledged him with a nod of her head and a wave of her hand before walking out the door and into the crisp night air.

There was a slight chill in the air, though Anita didn't really mind. She honestly preferred this sort of weather over the heat that came with the summer. Tucking her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket, she began mindlessly walking down the sidewalk toward her apartment building located only a block away.

It was late and the streets were baron, hardly a person in sight. Normally, it wouldn't be such a good idea to pass by so many dark alleys all alone at this hour. But Anita had never been worried about such things. She dared someone to try and rob her. To pull a switchblade or gun on her and demand for her wallet and jewelry. For it wouldn't end very well for them.

Having gone to the bar straight after work, Anita made her way over to the wall of mailboxes when she arrived at her apartment building. She pulled out her keys and opened up her mailbox, reaching inside and grabbing the few letters that were in there, along with a small box with an address she easily recognized as one of the cover-up businesses the IMF used for occasions such as this one.

Knowing that the box undoubtedly contained her next mission, Anita immediately closed and locked her mailbox before heading up the three flights of stairs where her apartment was located. She looked from one end of the hallway to the other, ensuring that she hadn't been followed by anyone before entering and locking the door behind her.

Anita went into the kitchen to open up the box, using a box cutter from one of the drawers in the room to break the seal. She looked inside, finding a pair of dark-lense sunglasses and nothing else. She reached in and grabbed them, placing them on the bridge of her nose as she pulled out a chair and sat down at the table.

Instantly, the glasses scanned for retinol identification. Once it had confirmed that she was the correct agent, her name appeared and then she heard the familiar AI voice of the IMF technological systems say, "Identity confirmed. Good evening, Agent Levine."

The image changed from her name to the familiar face of IMF Operative John Musgrave. They knew each other well, as he was the one who usually sent her out on missions and was there when she gave a full report to Director of Operatations Theodore Brassal after the mission was complete.

"Anita," John greeted from what appeared to be his office before beginning to brief her on the mission. "Three days ago, Agent Lindsey Farris was captured while on a surveillance operation." An image appeared of a woman. Anita didn't recognize her. But as she quickly glanced over the file Agent Musgrave provided, she noticed that it was one of the new recruits that had been trained by none other than Ethan Hunt himself in the last year. She wondered if Ethan knew that his former protégé was missing. Then again, he probably didn't. He didn't work in the field anymore so why would they tell him?

"This is the man she was tracking," John continued, pulling the woman from her thoughts. A new image appeared of a man who looked to be in his mid-late thirties. Average height, freckled skin, a little thick around the waist. From the looks of him, he was bad news. "His name is Owen Davian. The details are unfortunately eyes-only, so I'm unable to divulge much. But I can tell you that Davian's a black-market trafficker. Extremely dangerous and a priority for us."

The images changed again, showing a series of vehicles and license plates. "At 1400 hours today, a recon satellite ID'd a caravan of vehicles with plates matching those known to have been used by Davian's operatives. They stopped at a derelict factory outside Berlin." There was another image of said factory. "It appears they have a hostage." The next image zoomed in on what appeared to be a woman, her hands bound behind her back and a bag over her head. "We believe it's Agent Farris."

The images were replaced by the face of Agent John Musgrave once more as he continued briefing her on the mission. "Normally we would disavow, but we believe that Lindsey may be the key to getting us closer to Davian, and that's a risk we need to take. Fortunately, you have an outstanding record when it comes to search and rescues. That's why I have personally chosen you for this mission. There's no one that I trust more to bring Agent Farris home."

That was true. Anita had succeeded in all eleven rescue missions she had previously worked. She had a feeling that was the reason why John was putting her on this team, and now that had been confirmed.

"Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find Lindsey and bring her home," John said before images of three agents — two men and a woman — appeared along with their names. "I've already assembled a team of which I hope you will be part of. You'll be meeting them on the airstrip tomorrow morning. Wheels up at sunrise. That is, if you choose to accept."

Anita looked at each of their faces, but she didn't recognize the younger man or the woman. She did, however, recognize the third person as Luther Stickwell, someone who used to work closely with her and Ethan when they were still partners. She hadn't worked a mission with him since Ethan's retirement from the field. It would be nice to work with him again, though. She had missed his company.

"As always, we appreciate your service and hope that you will consider this mission," John said. "This message will self-destruct in five seconds. Good luck, Agent Levine."

Anita reached up, removing the sunglasses from her face and tossing them back inside the box. Five seconds later, there was a small noise that sounded like a circuit breaking, closely followed by a stream of smoke. She quickly took care of that so the fire alarm in her kitchen wouldn't go off and cause an unnecessary alert to the local fire department.

Once she had rinsed the camera off in the sink and tossed it inside the garbage, she headed down the hall toward her bedroom. She kicked off her shoes and tossed her leather jacket onto the back of the chair in the corner of the room. Not even bothering to change out of her clothes, Anita laid down and got comfortable, knowing she would need all the rest she could get if the plane was wheels up at sunrise.

For she had, indeed, accepted.

She was going to do everything in her power to bring Agent Lindsey Farris home, and then she wasn't going to stop until she found Owen Davian and brought him in.

a/n: apologizes for how short and probably boring this chapter was, i just didn't want to add anything else aside from anita getting assigned the rescue mission. next chapter you will get to see her and ethan reunite AND the both of them reunite with their old pal luthor!

but anyways, anita knows john through mission assignments. that'll be something later. also, the fact that anita has never failed a single rescue mission in her entire carrer until she is tasked with rescuing agent farris is gonna absolutely RUIN her omg 🥺

oh and the gorgeous new gif banner (which i've decided to use as a sign-off banner bc i wanna showcase it every chapter hehe) was by made by the incredibly sweet rosie! thanks again, i love it so so so much!