Chapter 1: New Challenges

	January 21, 2016:
   *Agent Paperback, please report to Commander Stevens' office, thank you.*
   Agent Paperback wasn't entirely sure why Commander Stevens asked for a visit. He
never usually wants to see anyone, especially people with less authority. So why did he
call now? Is he going to assign a new mission? Hopefully so; it's been months since the
last one. But what if something is wrong?
   Now hold on, let's find out who these people are we go on. Agent Paperback is
the greatest secret agent in the United States of America. She used to be in the writing
business, under the pseudonym "Erica Slate". But after the mysterious murder of her uncle
at the hands of an anonymous foreign spy, she dedicated her life to hunting down the
criminal monster and giving him the punishment he deserves. She's put over 200 criminals
and terrorists behind bars in the past 3 years since she graduated form the Academy and
became an agent, but she still hasn't found the man she's looking for.
   Her childhood friend, Timothy Stevens, is the only living person on Earth who
knows her real name. The two have been friends since Elementary School, and after they
graduated from high school, they went their separate ways, her becoming a writer, and
thanks to an amendment to the Constitution, him becoming head of the Federal Bereau of
Investigation. He's also the only living person who knows about Paperback's uncle's
murder, other than Paperback and the murderer himself. He's been helping her search
for the killer ever since he learned.
   Agent Paper back opened the door to the office without bothering to knock. "You
wanted to see me, sir?"
   The Asian man swiveled his chair round, with a serious look in his eyes, matched
by a half smile. "Ah, there you are, Bryn," he said, calling her by her real first name.
"I've got good news. Remember the man that killed your uncle? I think we found him."
   Paperback's eyes widened as he went on. "We found a dead body holding Five Hundred
bucks in his hand, with a note written in kanji on his chest. After I deciphered it,
it read: 'I killed Slate's uncle, and with what I got from this sucker, I've got her
in my sights next. I'll be waiting in my cavern, but I warn you, it'll take a good
blinkin' bit of effort to find it.'"
   "Blinkin'? Isn't that British slang?" Paperback didn't understand any of this.
English slang terms written in kanji? A dead guy holding Five Hundred big ones?
Some guy claiming to be her uncle's killer sending her a death threat?
   "That's right," Tim said. "Which is why we think your uncle's killer is in
hiding here." Suddenly, a large map appeared on the screen, with a big blinking
dot on one of the buildings. "The Cavern Club, in Liverpool, Britain."
   Paperback quickly jumped up and said, "Well, let's get a move on!" She almost
took off, but Tim stopped her.
   "Hold on, I'm not done," he said. "We just got this boy from the Academy, and he's
eager to get his first assignment. Come on out here, kid."
   On cue, a boy came into the office from the door opposite the one Paperback came in.
He was a few months younger than Paperback, and looked as though he wass in a band rather
than in the FBI; his hair was long and curled upward in the back, bangs drooping over his
eyebrows, and he wore a t-shirt and blue jeans. In his left hand, he held a black book with
nothing on the cover, and inbetween his middle and index fingers was a guitar pick, and
strapped to his back was a violin-style bass guitar. As soon as he saw Paperback, his face
got red and he turned away, glancing back at her. He was incredibly embarassed by his casual
appearance in comparison to her appropriate attire for an FBI agent
   "... I guess he's just nervous about meeting you for the first time, I'm sure he'll get
used to it," Tim said. "Anyways, Paperback, this is Agent McCartney..."
   "Call me Bobby," the boy said, interrupting. Immediately, hid face grew redder, and his
eyes shot to the floor again, occasionally looking up at her. "At least, if you don't mind..."
   "... Okay then," Tim said, confused. "Well, Bobby, this is our country's best agent,
Agent Paperback..."
   Paperback gave Bobby a friendly smile. "You can call me Bryn, if you want." This put Tim
into a state of total astonishment. Never before had Paperback told anyone but him her real
name, and here she was, telling it to some complete stranger. Bobby, on the other hand,
managed to lift his head up and look at her for a moment, even managing a smile, but quickly
losing his nerve and looking back down to the floor.
   "Oh, come on, no need to be nervous," Paperback said, laughing. She walked up to him and
took his chin, raising his head up to look at her. "It's not like I'm gonna push you out of
a plane if you say something stupid." Bobby's face turned a dark shade of violet as he nodded
to her.
   "Alright, alright, stop embarassin' the poor guy!" Tim said, laughing. "Now you two, get
yourselves to Liverpool, ASAP!" And with that, Commander Stevens waved goodbye to the two
agents as they made their way to the jet to Liverpool...