January 19, 1993 Bladensburg, Maryland 7:42 AM Local Time A sunny sky shone over the landscape, a rare gem of the typical January weather in the capital’s outskirts, as the roads into the District of Columbia became packed with vehicles headed to the capital. One of these was a black 1991 Camaro driven by one Michael Gildtalon, making his way along the main street of this glorified village; a veteran of the Pacific War, Michael had been in the Office of Strategic Services for over twenty years now and had seen his fair share of missions and assignments. Once a field agent, he was now in charge of overseeing the operations of agents around the world, a mid-level player in the OSS with some well-earned respect. He and his wife Sofia were even invited to the impending inauguration of Paul Tsongas as President, which was sure to be all fine and dandy. Since 1985, the Gildtalons had lived in Landover, east of the District of Columbia, in a quiet suburb neighborhood where their four