The Tokyo skyline shimmered in the distance, neon lights flickering like the pulse of a sleeping beast. Alexandra Vale crouched on a steel beam sixteen floors above ground, eyes locked through the scope of her sniper rifle. She wasn’t breathing. She never did during missions. Too risky. Too human.

“Target moving,” came a voice in her earpiece. Calm. Male. Slightly annoyed.

“Thank you, Captain Obvious,” she muttered.

“You’re welcome, Lieutenant Ice Queen.”

She clenched her jaw. Not because of the nickname—she’d heard worse—but because of who said it.

Agent Ash Rivera. Code name: Shadowbird. Known for defying orders, dodging bullets like they were mere suggestions, and charming entire villages into surrendering... including their goats.

She hated him.

Correction—she wished she hated him. It would make things a hell of a lot simpler.

“Focus,” she whispered, adjusting the scope. Her crosshairs centered on the man in the crimson suit entering the penthouse.

Mission: Intercept a high-profile arms dealer.

Secondary Mission: Keep Agent Shadowbird from screwing it up.

The wind shifted slightly. Alexandra recalibrated. Her trigger finger itched.

“You gonna shoot him or write him a letter?” Ash teased.

She fired.

Glass exploded.

Chaos erupted.

And then, everything went to hell.

Ten minutes later, they were sprinting down a hallway, sirens howling behind them.

“I told you not to detonate the briefcase!” she shouted over the alarm.

“I disarmed it! It wasn't my fault his security system was paranoid!”

“You disarmed it by kicking it out the window!”

“It worked, didn’t it?”

Alexandra swore under her breath and stopped beside a locked steel door.

“Cover me.”

Ash nodded, drawing twin pistols. He leaned casually against the wall as she typed in override codes faster than most people blink.

“You know,” he said casually, “you never did thank me for saving your life in Paris.”

She froze. Just for a split second.

“That’s because you didn’t.”

“I tackled you away from an exploding car.”

“You shoved me into a river.”

“You’re welcome.”

Click. The door hissed open.

“I swear, if we survive this,” she muttered, “I’m going to strangle you.”

“Dinner first?”

She shoved him inside.

Back at headquarters, their superior, General Maddox, stared at them like he was trying to decide between court-martialing or killing them with his bare hands.

“You destroyed a penthouse,” he said slowly.

“It was going to be destroyed anyway,” Ash said while chewing a gum.

“You triggered the entire floor’s security grid.”

“It was bound to go off,” Alexandra added coolly.

Maddox rubbed his temples.

“And somehow… somehow… you still managed to retrieve the data drive and escape alive.”

Alexandra tossed the encrypted chip onto his desk. “You’re welcome.”

“Good,” he said with a sigh. “Because your next assignment starts in 72 hours. Joint mission. You’ll be working together.”

“What?!” both agents snapped at once.

Maddox grinned. It was not a comforting sight.

“Code name: Operation Inheritance.”

Alexandra blinked.

Ash arched a brow.

“What kind of mission is that?” she asked.

He leaned back in his chair. “Oh, you’ll find out. Hope you’re good at pretending.”

“Pretending what?” Ash asked, voice wary.

Maddox smiled wider.

“Pretending to fall in love.”

⚠️ Suspicion Lingers…

Who really is Ash Rivera? What exactly is Operation Inheritance? Why is Alexandra being watched not just by enemies—but by her own people?

The problem with masquerade balls wasn’t the lace masks, the suspicious champagne, or even the tuxedos hiding glocks—it was that Alexandra Vale hated pretending.

And tonight, she had to pretend she was in love.

“Try not to look like you're planning my death,” Ash Rivera whispered, offering his arm as they approached the grand staircase of the gala. His black tuxedo was tailored to perfection, his jaw sharp enough to cut glass. He looked like danger wrapped in charm. It made her uncomfortable. Not because he was handsome—but because it almost looked natural.

“We’re supposed to be engaged,” he added, when she didn’t respond.

She took his arm begrudgingly, fingers resting on his sleeve like a woman trying not to leave fingerprints on a murder weapon. “We’re supposed to get in, get the intel, and get out. Don’t over perform.”

Their heels clicked against the marble floor as they entered the ballroom—a sea of elegance, lies, and encrypted secrets. Politicians. Black market investors. Arms dealers. Anyone with enough money to hide their sins in velvet-lined pockets.

And tonight, Alexandra and Ash were Alexis and Ashton Black, elite heirs from an imaginary dynasty. The perfect cover.

Or so they thought.

An elderly man with too-white teeth clinked his glass onstage, microphone in hand. “Ladies and gentlemen! We have among us tonight a very special couple—Alexis and Ashton Black. True heirs. Be sure to make them feel welcome.”

Alexandra’s entire spine stiffened.

Ash leaned closer. “True heirs?”

“I never gave them that intel,” she hissed.

“I didn’t either.”

They locked eyes.

This wasn’t just a mission anymore. Someone had laid this cover story for them—down to the names. And that meant someone knew.

The host, a corpulent billionaire named Aldric Kass, approached with a grin and two flutes of champagne.

“To legacy,” he said, handing one to Alexandra.

She smiled tightly. “To secrets.”

“Indeed,” he chuckled. “You’ll find tonight… full of them.”

Ash reached for the flute, subtly switching it with his own as Alexandra pretended to sip. She caught the move. Slick. Almost… caring.

Kass clapped Ash on the shoulder. “If I were you, young man, I’d hold on tight to this one. That family name—powerful, dangerous.”

“Trust me,” Ash said smoothly, “I’m very attached.”

Behind her mask, Alexandra fought a frown. There was something in Kass’s tone. Like he knew exactly who she was. Not the fake cover. But the real Alexandra Vale.

He couldn’t know. Right?

They had a mission to complete.

And a guest list to infiltrate.

The ledger they needed—a digital record of Chimera's buyers—was said to be stored in Kass’s private office. Surveillance showed a retinal scan, a fingerprint lock, and a failsafe: a pressure-plate-triggered alarm.

So naturally, Ash smiled when they reached the hallway.

“This is where the fun begins.”

“You mean the part where you make noise and I clean up after you?” Alexandra muttered.

“Exactly.”

The hallway was clear. She reached for the security panel while Ash kept as look out. Her fingers danced over the device, bypassing codes.

“Fifteen seconds before the laser grid resets,” she warned.

Ash slipped inside the office first. She followed.

The room was exactly what you'd expect from a man who built an empire selling war: gaudy, over-decorated, filled with relics of destruction. Alexandra spotted the safe immediately—hidden behind a painting of Napoleon. How original.

She was mid-hack when her earpiece buzzed.

“Multiple hostiles,” Noah’s voice crackled. “They’re heading for you. Someone tipped them off.”

“I’m almost there,” she muttered.

“Forget ‘almost’—they’re on the stairs.”

Suddenly, Ash grabbed her arm. “Time’s up.”

She had just enough time to extract the data drive before the door burst open.

Ash fired first—rubber bullets, non-lethal. Alexandra kicked a guard into the wall, then flipped over the desk.

“There’s too many!” she yelled.

“We go out the window,” Ash shouted, already aiming at the glass.

“You’re insane!”

“Compliment accepted.”

He shot the window. Glass rained down like crystal snow. Without waiting, he pulled her close and leapt.

They fell two stories into a fountain, water exploding around them.

For a moment, everything was still.

Then Alexandra opened her eyes underwater—and saw Ash’s hand still tightly gripping hers.

Back in the getaway car, soaked and furious, Alexandra glared at him.

“I had that under control.”

“Oh, totally,” he said, wringing out his jacket. “You and your charming personality would’ve talked them into surrender.”

She shoved the data drive into her clutch. “Let’s just get back to HQ.”

As the car sped away, Ash finally broke the silence.

“You think Kass knows who you are?”

Alexandra didn’t answer right away.

“I think we’ve been compromised.”

Ash nodded. “Then we better figure out who’s playing with our names.”

And why the name “Black” felt just a little too familiar.

-

Back at Black Echo HQ, the atmosphere was unusually tense.

General Maddox sat behind his desk, staring at the drive like it was a live grenade. Alexandra and Ash stood side by side, still dripping slightly from the fountain dive.

Maddox finally spoke. “The ledger confirms what we feared—Chimera is dealing with more than weapons. They’re after old bloodlines. Legacies.”

“Why?” Alexandra asked.

“We don’t know,” Maddox said. “Yet.”

Ash stepped forward. “And what the hell was with the names ‘Alexis and Ashton Black’? That wasn’t our cover story.”

Maddox leaned back, hands steepled. “Funny thing. That invitation came from my desk.”

Both agents blinked.

“I didn’t send it,” he added. “Someone hacked the system and planted your names.”

Alexandra's blood ran cold. “Someone inside?”

“Maybe.”

Ash glanced at Alexandra. “That means someone knew who we really were. Or thought they did.”

She stiffened. “My identity is protected at the highest level.”

“Mine too,” Ash said quietly.

Maddox’s eyes glinted. “Which begs the question… what does Kass know that I don’t?”

--

Later, in the locker room, Alexandra sat alone. Her reflection in the mirror looked the same. Cold. Composed. Capable.

But her hands wouldn’t stop shaking.

“Hey,” Ash said from the doorway. “You okay?”

She looked up. “Do I look okay?”

He sat beside her. “You look like someone who just realized her past might not be as buried as she thought.”

“Do you ever wonder,” she said slowly, “if we’re just chess pieces? Moved by people who already wrote the ending?”

Ash was quiet for a moment.

Then: “Maybe. But if I’m a pawn, I plan on flipping the board before they crown the king.”

She didn’t smile.

But she didn’t leave either.

--

They both knew something had changed.

The mission was still on.

But now, they weren’t just hunting Chimera.

They were unraveling themselves.

---

🌟 Main Characters (So Far)

1. Alexandra Vale – A brilliant, no-nonsense top military agent with a hidden ᒪᓰᖴᘿ ᗩS ᖶᕼᘿ Sᓍᒪᘿ ᕼᘿᓰᖇ ᖶᓍ ᖶᕼᘿ ᐺᗩᒪᘿ ᑢᓍᘉᘜᒪᓍᘻᘿᖇᗩᖶᘿ, ᓍᘉᘿ ᓍᖴ ᖶᕼᘿ ᘺᓍᖇᒪᕲ'S ᘻᓍSᖶ ᕵᓍᘺᘿᖇᖴᑘᒪ corporations.

2. Ash Rivera – A cocky, unpredictable agent with a roguish charm and Sᘿᑢᖇᘿᖶ ᖶᓰᘿS ᖶᓍ ᗩ ᕵᓍᘺᘿᖇᖴᑘᒪ ᖴᗩᘻᓰᒪᖻ ᗷᑘSᓰᘉᘿSS empire.

3. General Maddox – The cunning, iron-fisted head of the elite military agency “Black Echo,” who knows far more than he lets on.

4. Serena Vale – Alexandra’s aunt and a sharp-tongued socialite who secretly pulls strings in both the corporate and intelligence worlds.

5. Noah DeLeon – Ash’s best friend and field tech specialist who’s loyal, sarcastic, and probably knows too much for his own good.

6. "Chimera" – A mysterious arms dealer with a network across continents, now targeting something beyond weapons—he’s after legacies.

7. Director Lang – Head of an allied intelligence unit with ambiguous loyalty, often appearing when things go sideways.

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𝘏𝘪, 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘮𝘦. 𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘯 𝘴𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘳? 𝘐'𝘮 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘐'𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘏𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺. 𝘈𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴. 𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘯!!!

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