Chapter 0 - The Jump

Author's note: Another prequel chapter! Events here take place after Chapter 3 (and before Chapter 1).

"You're up.", a voice called out, accompanied by a knock on the door.

Valerie snapped out of her sleep and acknowledged the message. After all her training, this was it - the final test. If he passed, she would become a field agent.

She looked around, inspecting the small cabin inside the military aircraft transporting her. Aside from her equipment bag and the bunk bed where she had been asleep, there wasn't much else in the room. From the tiny window, she could see the sun rising, meaning that it was time.

She decided to get dressed. She took off her camo shirt and cargo pants, neatly folding them and putting them aside. Clad in her bra and panties, she opened her equipment bag and pulled out her skydiving gear - a one piece jumpsuit with straps all over for tightly securing it to her body. Even without the straps fastened, it was an extremely tight fit. She had to squeeze and jiggle her butt to fit inside, an exercise that took quite some effort. Finally, she managed to bring the suit to her waist and squeezed her arms in the sleeves. The zipper in front proved to be an even bigger obstacle than the last, as she just couldn't get it to close. Afraid of being late, she sighed as she realized it was her chest that was the problem. She lowered the zipper, reached behind her back and unhooked her bra, throwing it on top of the pile of her clothes.

With this impediment gone, she was able to close the zipper and finish putting on her suit - much to her relief. Luckily, the fabric of the suit was thick, so nobody would notice her lack of a bra. Finally, she put on her boots, goggles and tied her hair in a bun before putting on her helmet.

Satisfied with her preparations, she left her room towards the cargo bay. Once there, a crew member checked her gear and helped fasten her parachute to her back. On the far side of the room, she noticed Hawk was among the crew present. The memory of their last encounter was still fresh in her mind, and she couldn't help but blush as some rather embarrassing sensations came rushing back to her.

She shook herself - this wasn't the time to dwell on the past. To suppress the memory, she decided to go over her objectives. At the break of dawn, she would jump down and land in the jungle. Without any external help, she had to reach her destination before nightfall to pass her test.

The sound of the doors opening interrupted her thoughts. She looked at the crew, who gave her the thumbs up.

It was time.