The shuffling of the program from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to the Department of Intelligence Agency (DIA) and then back to the CIA was essentially a “try to follow the bouncing ball” measure before the documents were declassified in 1995. After the scandal that rocked the government world, they were publicly shelved.
Officially the project was kaput. In reality, that just meant they went underground and really got creative. The former team was now buried deeply within the Special Activities Division (SAD) of the CIA, and coordinated by team members from the Intelligence and Analysis, the Clandestine Service, and the Science and Technology divisions.
“A true group effort,” Frank thought with a snort. And then to top off the cluster, they chose the brainy she-bot Marisol with uncanny “intuition” to lead them all. Frank rolled his eyes.
Marisol was the off-the-wall choice to lead the Mesmeristic Normative Mindvision team, or “MnMs” as they liked to call it. Well, Frank didn’t like to call it that, particularly since he was the “n” in the equation, solidly sandwiched between Marisol and Macy.
“Somebody either had too much caffeine or too many Wheaties that day when they minted that stupid name,” Frank grumbled silently. Why they chose him to be the “normative” part of the equation was a mystery to him.
Nah, what Frank wanted to call his team was something that started with the first letter of his name and was profanity, which he reluctantly agreed to stop using when Macy “agreed” to be paired with him. At first blush, Frank was totally taken with Macy. He’d felt like for once he’d finally gotten a normal partner; a partner he could put up with long-term.
Then he went on a stake-out with her and the weird just got deeper. It also gave him too much time to think. And right now, he was thinking about how he could sneak out and drain his lizard without irking either of the Ms.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To read the first three parts of the story, check out these links:
~~~~~~~~~~~~
It’s week 22 of Trifecta’s writing challenge.
This week we’re back to just one word but it’s the third definition we’re looking for and we’re asking that you use it exactly as it appears below.
As always, we wish you well.
scan·dal noun \ˈskan-dəl\
1 a: discredit brought upon religion by unseemly conduct in a religious person
Please remember:
- Your response must be between 33 and 333 words.
- You must use the 3rd definition of the given word in your post.
- The word itself needs to be included in your response.
- You may not use a variation of the word; it needs to be exactly as stated above.
- Your post must include a link back to Trifecta.
- Please submit your post’s permalink, not the main page of your blog. For example: http://www.trifectawritingchallenge.com/2012/03/trifextra-week-eight.html not http://www.trifectawritingchallenge.com.
This week’s word is ‘scandal’.
This story just keeps getting better and better. MnMs indeed.
Great entry, extra points for continuing the same tale!
Thanks! I’m still giggling over that one. Kind of like ‘chips and salsa” but definitely double edged.
When Hunny and his good friend used to work together, they were a really good team, and dubbed themselve “chips and salsa”- depending on which task they had would determine who was chips and who was salsa. Funny.
In this case, we have a bit more going on………. 😆
I hope you finish the story before the challenge is over! I need to know, will they get their man? Or save the world or whatever the stakeout is about?!
I have no idea how long this challenge is going to go on……….. I should probably ask someone, lol. At some point, the story will wrap itself up, and if the challenge ends before that happens, I’ll be sure to finish it out.
I am just warming up! 😆
PS- those details are, of course, coming soon………. 😉
I like this! Definitely looking forward to reading more! Also, had to go back & hunt for the challenge word, which makes it even more interesting.
Thanks! Glad I snuck that one in there! 😆
PS- I left you a few comments with links, but afaik, there is no way for me to see a response….. fwiw.
Every time I come to this story, I fall into it backwards. It’s like each new section tackles Frank from a completely new angle, and it’s always at the halfway point that I have that ‘aha! him!’ moment. I love that experience. And I also love that he’s had to pee for like three weeks now!!
I think Frank’s bladder is made of steel. 😆 I’m pretty sure next week, he’ll empty it, seeing as he’s actually making his escape plans now. Frank is like that loose bolt- always rattling around; never quite sure why he’s there or where he’s going. He doesn’t seem to fit the mould of the traditional CIA operative, but that’s part of what makes the unit tick. (and if there’s anyone out there who has some CIA special ops information on board, they might actually recognize a little bit of what’s going on……. 😉 ),
I’m so glad you’re reading along and enjoying! 😀
A running storyline, great!
Thanks! I’m trying to toe the line between the running story while yet having a post that makes some kind of sense, even if a person hasn’t read the rest…….. 🙂
Nicely done – I can’t wait to read more.
Thanks for stopping by! I have a feeling this could well be a never-ending story……… 😉
I’m impressed – the run continues. I think he needs a new job! I cracked up at the ‘drain his lizard’ line…I hadn’t heard that before. I can’t tell my husband or he’d start using it 😉
😆 I prolly shoulda asked hunny if he had a better one, but that one just seemed like Frank…… and he struggles with his job, but for some reason, he just keeps getting stuck with the weird stuff. 😉
I can’t believe I just started reading it now. I love the story. Really creative and the characters are very well developed.
Thanks! I have to confess to now looking forward to Mondays….. 😆
Don’t worry, the challenge goes on until this story finishes….and beyond! Thanks for linking up. Hope you can join us for the weekend prompt which is already up on the site. It’s community judging this weekend, so get your entry in and get voting!
Oh yay! Entry has been entered- thanks for the reminder! Maybe this week I’ll remember to vote! 😆
[…] Scandal- Part 4 […]
[…] Scandal- Part 4 […]