16 years Ago
Buffalo- NY
Highly Classified Building
Winter
Parker walked in into the conference room already occupied with people. The room was invitingly warm and comfy. Compare to the chilly weather outside. It had snowed the previous night with a very much decrease in temperature. Typical December morning. The conference hall was bathed in a dim, amber glow, its polished mahogany walls lined with framed insignias of classified operations past.
A long, oval table stretched through the center, surrounded by some of the most brilliant minds in cyber defense. Security clearance badges glinted under the overhead lights, marking each attendee as someone who had proven their worth to the government.
He soon found his assigned seat. He barely had time to settle in before a voice called him out.
"Good morning, Parker", someone greeted. He glanced at the person and was surprised to see who it was.
"Don't tell me this is Blake",he screamed "when did you get back"?
"Well,not long before you left; the operation was successful enough so we ran a little ahead of time",he grinned,"so here we are".
Parker let out a low whistle.
"Ahead of schedule? You are telling me you completed a cyber infiltration in enemy territory faster than protected"? He said as he stood up to hang his winter coat. A plump short woman who looked beautiful walked in with two cups of coffee. Parker walked back to the table where Blake was talking to a mate that greeted him by.
"Parker, please take your coffee while it is hot", she smiled as she walked past him.
He smiled and offered a hurried thank you. He took a sip and sat back beside Blake. With twenty minutes left until the briefing ,the hall was already packed . He was surprised and at the same time glad; glad for seeing Blake here at the very least expected time. Blake was a senior to him- a gap of two years at office. Despite their rank difference, they had formed an unshakable bond—one that often puzzled their colleagues.
"It has been long", he tapped Blake's leg,"I guess it's been three months"
Blake shooked his head. "It was two months. The original stipulated period was three", he said.
" Hmmm".
" What"?
" You know I always get jealous of you".Parker said. He stood up as he strolled to where he hang his coat by the window. Blake smiled as he go after him.
"Why did you say that?",he asked.
He took his tab and went back to the table.
"That operation took a whole 5 months the last time we had a one of his kind".
Blake only smiled
Parker wasn't exaggerating—Blake's last operation in Southern Lithuania had been grueling, lasting five long months and resulting in a few casualties. There was no doubt—Blake was exceptionally talented at his job. He is flawless when it comes to do his part. He led his team to the operation and came back even before the time; which was so surprising. No one had ever accomplished such a feat—not under 'The Red Mars,' their elite operations unit.
The Red Mars wasn't just any company—it was a ghost in the world of cyber warfare. Their operations never made the news, and their successes were buried under layers of classified reports.
Blake wasn't just another operative. He was the kind of man who could walk into a cyber battlefield and leave without a trace—except for the digital wreckage he left behind. His last mission? Still classified, but Parker knew Blake would not made any mistake as resulting to any digital damage. He so much trust Blake.
"It's funny," Parker muttered, swirling his untouched coffee. "Your last mission... it was in the same region where this new proposal is coming from, wasn't it?"
Blake didn't answer immediately. Instead, he leaned back, crossing his arms. "Maybe," he said at last. "But this time, I think we are doing something huge".
That made Parker pause. Blake never exaggerated, and he certainly never called an operation huge unless it was something beyond ordinary cyber warfare. What exactly had the government asked of them this time?
Parker looked agitated. " And do you think it is the government this time around,not a private sector?
" And look who's here", came a voice from a cross the table.
Parker turned to see Sofia Carson,a cyber warfare specialist, smirking as she strolled to their side with a cup of coffee in hand. She was one of the sharpest minds in cryptography, and her ability to crack encrypted systems was unmatched.
Beside her, Nathan Cross, a former intelligence officer turned cyber strategist, smiled as he shook hands with both Blake and Parker. The men seems delighted to see one another.
"I was just telling Blake how surprised I was about the previous operation you guys carried out," Parker began.
"Blake gets all the glory," Lena said, crossing her arms. "But I was the one stuck in the safe house for two months, bypassing firewalls while he played field agent." She giggled.
Blake chuckled. "And here I thought you enjoyed the quiet."
Lena pouted. "Blah, blah, blah."
Everyone laughed.
She suddenly turned to Parker, eyes gleaming mischievously.
Parker, knowing what was coming, hurriedly said, "Look, I know you're the best—" Blake grunted—"and yes, you listen to me," he added, glancing at Blake with a smirk. "Though I was impressed with you guys' work, I have to say I admire my dear friend Lena even more."
Lena beamed and ran to hug Parker, who looked equally pleased.
Blake shook his head, laughing. "This is cheating." He turned to Nathan. "Nathan, back me up here."
"Nah, spare me, bro. I don't want to get involved in a family feud," Nathan said, raising his hands in surrender.
Parker smirked but then turned to Rebecca Voss, the second woman at the table, who had been unusually quiet. She was a network infiltration expert—someone who could slip into any system undetected.
"And you?" Parker asked. "What do you think? What could they have called us in for this time?"
Rebecca leaned back, her eyes scanning the room as if assessing everyone's security clearance. "Let's just say," she murmured, "if they're calling all of us in for this, it's not just another mission. This is bigger than anything we've handled before."
Parker nodded in agreement. The thought had already crossed his mind—probably everyone's—but hearing Rebecca say it made it feel real.
"Let's just hope for the best," Nathan said reassuringly, as he always did.
Blake, calm and confident as ever, glanced around the room, about to say something—
But before he could speak, the conference room door eased open, and the room fell silent. Footsteps echoed against the polished floors as the man at the helm of The Red Mars entered.
Everyone straightened, settling into their seats.
The conference had begun.