Page 1
Inside the simulation, Unit 17 stands in the middle of the street in the dark abandoned neighborhood, similar to the setting from their simulation in chapter 8.
Elliot confidently takes a step forward.
Elliot: "Alright, so who's first? I'm ready to show y'all how far I've come with controlling my power."
Wendy: "I look forward to it but remember; this is a team effort."
Devlon turns his head and notices a group of silhouettes walking toward them from behind.
Devlon: "Looks like we've got company."
Elliot and Wendy look behind as well. Wendy and Devlon are beside each other while Elliot is a few steps behind them.
Wendy: "I got your back, D."
The group of silhouettes that's approaching the gang is revealed as they get closer. They're bots with torn clothing.
Devlon: "Ah, I remember these guys from our first simulation together."
Devlon pulls out his blade and takes a stance, ready for battle.
Devlon: "Things are gonna go a lot differently than last time."
Page 2
Devlon dashes towards the group of bots. One of them reaches out a hand towards Devlon.
Devlon: "Oh no you don't!"
Devlon slashes outward with his right hand, cutting the bot's arm off. The bot's severed arm falls toward the ground.
Before the severed arm could land, Devlon catches the severed arm with his left hand and slaps the bot away with its own arm. Slapping the bot away revealed two more bots that were right behind that first bot. Both bots come in at Devlon quickly.
Wendy leapfrogs over Devlon's shoulder from behind to kick both bots away.
As Wendy lands in front of Devlon, she pulls out a pistol.
Wendy: "Team effort, remember?"
Devlon: "Oh, I know."
The group of bots circle around the two. At the same time, Devlon and Wendy prepare themselves, back-to-back. Wendy smirks, ready for action.
Devlon: "I knew you'd be right behind me."
Wendy: "I said I had your back, didn't I?"
Page 3
The following panel displays multiple shots of Wendy firing off at bots, bullet holes forming as they fall to the ground.
Devlon is in the background cutting down some bots.
From Devlon's perspective (as he looks over at Wendy), one bot comes at Wendy from behind.
Devlon: "Wendy, look ou-!"
Devlon couldn't finish his verbal warning before a beam of energy contacts the bot that was behind Wendy. The beam sends the bot off screen; the bot explodes as the beam detonates.
Elliot runs over to his team, firing off blasts from his right hand.
Elliot: "I told you I got a lot more control nowadays."
Devlon: "I see!"
Wendy: "Ya know, this is actually pretty fun."
Zooming out of their perspective, the three stand near each other. They're surrounded by dead bots, smoke emitting from their bodies. Oil leaks everywhere. Before they knew it, they'd defeated all of the bots.
Wendy: "Or…it was fun."
Elliot: "Dang, I guess our teamwork was too much for em."
Page 4
Perspective shift. In the room on the bottom floor, Forte and Unit 16 (Jasmine, Chase, and Terry) watch Unit 17 on the big screen.
Jasmine: "Y'all see that? That's my boo right there!"
Chase: "Elliot's improved a lot since the last time he was in the simulation."
Terry: "Man, I'm ready to go next! How about it, Master Forte?"
Terry looks over at Forte, who's staring at the screen.
Terry: "Master Forte? You alright?"
Forte appears more serious than his usual laidback self.
Forte: "It's not over yet, Terry. Let's see how they deal with the rest of the mission."
Page 5
Perspective shift. Back to Unit 17. The gang walks down the street. Fog grows thicker.
Elliot: "Okay, we scraped those guys back there, so why is the mission still going?"
Devlon: "There's more, remember?"
Wendy: "Elliot wouldn't remember all of it. He blew his own face off last time, remember?"
They abruptly turn to the left toward a dark alley in between two tall apartment buildings.
Wendy: "Did you hear that? It sounds like someone's crying."
Elliot: "In a setting like this? I don't trust it. But lemme guess; y'all wanna go check it out?"
Devlon and Wendy walk ahead toward the alleyway.
Elliot follows behind them.
Elliot: "Okay. But y'all gonna get enough of not listening to me."
At the other end of the alley is a silhouette. It appears to be a woman walking towards them.
Page 6
In front of the gang is a woman in tattered clothing and long hair. Also, she has long claws, about 10 inches in length. She's crying as she walks toward them.
Elliot: "Watch out. I got this."
Elliot walks in front of Wendy and Devlon, stretching a hand out towards the woman. His hand begins to glow.
Elliot: "Not this time, lady."
A blast exits Elliot's palm. The blast makes contact with the woman, forcing her back to the other end of the alley.
The woman lay lifeless on the ground (at a distance) with smoke rising from her body. Elliot turns around, hunching his shoulders.
Elliot: "See? Piece of cake. But there was one other thing, right?"
Off screen voice: "Dada?"
The gang turns around and looks down. There's a familiar baby near them. It appears to have crawled to them.
Wendy: "Step aside, boys."
Wendy steps in front of the guys, cocking her pistol. The baby reaches out to Wendy with both arms, smiling.
Baby: "Mama. Mama! Hahahaha!"
Wendy: "Fool me once, shame on you."
Page 7
Close up on Wendy's face; heavily inked shadows are cast on her face as she looks down at the off-screen baby.
Wendy: "Fool me twice…"
Close up on Wendy's left hand, aiming the pistol downward at the off-screen baby. Light flashes from her pistol as she empties the magazine.
Perspective shift to Unit 16 and Forte. They've just witnessed the final finishing move on the big screen.
Chase: "Woah. That finishing move was brutal."
Jasmine: "Wendy just made fresh Swiss cheese outta that baby."
To their left is a door. The door is kicked open with Elliot's foot sticking out.
Unit 17 walks in. All three of them walk in with sunglasses and gold chains. Elliot walks in with both arms raised.
Elliot: "Yeah, you see us."
Devlon has both hands in his pocket and his neck slightly cocked to the side and a toothpick in his mouth.
Devlon: "Gotta admit, it feels good to be number one."
Wendy walks in, talking on her phone.
Wendy: "Yeah. And tell my agent it's no longer Unit 17. It's Unit G for GANGSTA from now on. Yeah, I know the G sounds better in front of the word 'unit,' but we don't wanna get sued."
Forte: "Welcome back, team."
Wendy covers her phone.
Wendy: "Hold on. Forte, baby. I'm busy right now, so let's schedule our next chat. Brunch tomorrow?"
Elliot: "Yeah, we bout to star in our own movie about our come up. Titled Mission Complete."
Devlon: "Started from the bottom, now we're on top."
Page 8
Forte darts his eyes at the three.
Forte: "I don't understand why you three are celebrating at failing another D rank simulation."
Unit 17 freezes. Wendy whispers into her phone.
Wendy: "Hold on, let me call you back."
Elliot: "Say what?"
Devlon: "What do you mean?"
Forte: "I mean you FAILED!"
The sunglasses on Unit 17 shatter. The three of them look like little children being admonished by a parent.
Devlon: "But…but…we defeated the enemies!"
Forte: "NO YOU DIDN'T. YOU MURDERED INNOCENT PEOPLE!"
Elliot: "The eff you mean? Those people approached us!"
Forte: "THEY WERE APPROACHING TO ASK YOU FOR HELP! NOTICE NOBODY ATTACKED YOU!"
Devlon raises his hand.
Devlon: "What about the lady in the alley?"
Forte: "SHE WAS CRYING AT THE CARNAGE YOU CAUSED! SHE CAME TO YOU TO BEG FOR MERCY!"
Devlon: "But she had claws!"
Forte: "IT WAS HER DREAM TO SET A WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST NAILS. BUT YOU CUT THOSE DREAMS SHORT!"
Forte addresses Wendy.
Forte: "And YOU!"
Page 9
Forte's eyes water. Wendy's stares with a blank expression.
Forte: "How could you? That poor baby just wanted the love of a mommy after Elliot blew his mom away. And you annihilated him."
Wendy: "Wait, that wasn't an evil robot baby? S-so you mean to tell me…"
Forte: "Yes. If this were real life, you would have killed innocent people and a baby."
Wendy freezes, her forehead turning blue. She's beginning to look ill.
Jasmine: "You guys did the killer a favor. Hahaha!"
Terry: "Man. Y'all still haven't beaten a D rank simulation yet."
Chase: "Better luck next time, Ms. Wendy. So, what's next?"
Forte: "Well, aside from that big failure, let's cover what the next few months will entail."
Page 10
The tone is more serious. Forte speaks to Units 16 and 17, who're lined up in front of Forte.
Forte: "In four and a half months, you'll be traveling to the west to compete in the Assessment Games. During those months, you'll be training to hone your skills and strengthen your weaknesses."
Forte: "I've observed you for some time and will highlight what needs improvement. I'd like you to help each other out as much as possible."
He points at Terry.
Forte: "Terry. You're powerful, energetic, and fast. But your mix-up game needs work. If you don't finish the fight soon, you start to get a little predictable. I'd like you to work with Wendy in combat when it comes to mind games."
Wendy: "Hm? Wouldn't he benefit from an irregular who can match his strength?"
Forte: "He won't be training with you only, but I want him to learn mix-ups from you. You fought him twice and caught on to his direct approach and worked around it, even though you're at a disadvantage."
Forte: "Also Terry, I'd like you to work on endurance. Try fighting with active flames for as long as possible and grow from there."
Terry: "Got it."
Page 11
Forte: "As for you, Wendy. You excel in close combat and have great aim with a gun. Your battle IQ is worthy of much praise, as well. If this were a tournament consisting of humans, I have no doubt you'd come out on top. But the reality is that it isn't."
He looks down for a moment, then back at Wendy.
Forte: "You'll be facing off against irregulars, so you'll need to build up your endurance and strength. Also, I want you to learn from everyone and get a feel of what it really means to fight opponents that defy what some may consider 'logic.'"
Wendy: "Understood."
Forte: "Chase, you're a distance fighter with reconnaissance skills. But I worry about how easily you can fall if an opponent is able to get within fighting range."
Chase: "It's hard to use my power at close range- "
Forte: "I understand. You don't fight to kill. And so, you cancel your powers at close range out of fear of totally ending your opponent. GGs."
Chase: "If that's the way you want to put it."
Forte: "If that's the case, it's crucial for you to improve your close combat skills. I'll have both Wendy and Devlon be your biggest help. Devlon will serve great target practice since he's fast. Speaking of…"
Page 12
Forte: "Devlon, you pretty much excel in most areas. But you tend to underestimate your opponent. I want you to work with your team to battle Unit 16 at times. I'm sure battling Jasmine will push you to your limits and make you think twice about underestimation."
Devlon: "You make it seem like Jasmine's stronger than I am."
Jasmine: "Don't get so defensive, Devie. Though, it is true that you've never beaten me."
Devlon: "You've never beaten me either."
Forte: "Elliot. I want you to work with everyone. The irregulars can give you tips on stamina with activating your abilities. Wendy can further assist you with close combat. Chase especially can help you with distance attacks."
Wendy: "What about Iris?"
Forte: "She's much too young to participate in the games. Though, if allowed by Franciscus, she can still go as a spectator."
Forte stretches his arm forth.
Forte: "Alright. If there are no further questions, let's get this training going!"
Page 13
And so, the gang begins their training. Wendy will narrate the following scenes.
Panel #1: Shot of Devlon and Chase outdoors. Chase is shooting blasts at Devlon. Devlon is dodging at high speed.
Wendy (off screen): And so, everybody began preparing for the Assessment Games.
Panel #2: Side shot of Elliot firing off a blast towards a distant tree. Chase is next to him as he coaches.
Chase: "Almost. More focus, but less explosive power."
Elliot: "Okay. Focus. Less power. Got it!"
Wendy (off screen):Everyone's giving it their all to boost their knowledge of their abilities…
Panel #3: Shot of Wendy bringing a kick down towards Elliot's head. Elliot blocks with both arms crossed over his head.
Wendy: "Good reflexes, El. Don't let up!"
Page 14
Panel #1: Next scene displays Elliot standing straight up, face up to the sky. Eyes closed, he stands next to Terry, who's in the same position as Elliot. Arms down, their palms are facing outward. Terry holds a flame in each hand. Elliot's palms are covered in energy orbs.
Terry: "Hold that energy as steady as you can. Don't increase or decrease. Steady for two minutes, then gather more."
Elliot: "G-got it." Who knew holding energy for two minutes would be so hard?
Panel #2: Jasmine is on her back in the back yard training ground. She's in bad shape. Not damaged, but exhausted. She looks over at Devlon, who stands a few feet from her. Devlon's blade is active in his hand, though the energy from his blade looks a little distorted.
Jasmine: "Well well. I can't liquify anymore. Looks like we'll finally have an actual win between us." I literally can't move.
Devlon: "Heh. T-too bad I'm out of stamina…"
Panel #3: Devlon's blade dissipates as he falls face first onto the ground, unconscious. Jasmine chuckles.
Jasmine: "Heh. New ru-rule, Devie. L-last one to pass out…wins."
Panel #4: Jasmine closes her eyes. It appears that whatever match they had, it ended in yet another draw.
Wendy (off screen): Improving our skills and working to push our limits.
Page 15
Scene change. Wendy stands across from Devlon in her room. They're alone. Wendy's looking down and to the side, leaning against the wall. Devlon stands awkwardly.
Devlon: "You wanted to talk to me about something?"
Wendy: "Everyone's doing their best to get stronger, huh?"
Devlon: "Yeah."
Wendy closes her eyes.
Wendy: "I can see improvement in everyone, especially Elliot."
Devlon: "Yeah, he's come a long way. But what about you?"
Wendy looks straight at Devlon. Flaming passion in her eyes, burning with determination.
Wendy: "Train with me, Devlon. I want to train. Just you and me. One on one."
Devlon blushes.
Devlon: "Uh-why? I don't mind, but why me?"
Wendy: "You're strong. You're fast. Plus, we're in the same unit together. I'm learning Elliot's capabilities as he grows, but I want to get to know you and how you fight."
Devlon:Wendy…
Wendy: "Also, I need to get stronger. I'm far too weak."
Devlon: "WEAK!? Wendy…what on earth gave you that idea? For a human, you're amazing!"
Wendy: "That's just it. For a human, yes. But I'm going to be pit against irregulars. I held my own against bots. I defeated the merged faceless, but I almost died in that fight!"
Devlon: "Wendy…"
Page 16
Wendy steps closer to Devlon, only a couple inches away from him. Devlon looks uneasy being this close to Wendy.
Wendy: "I need to get stronger. I need to build my endurance to be able to handle taking a hit from supernatural impacts or…whatever else I may face."
Wendy's strong determined look becomes sweet and vulnerable. She holds her hand out.
Wendy: "So…will you be my training partner?"
Devlon looks into Wendy's eyes.
Devlon: "Wendy…"
Devlon grips Wendy's hand and nods his head.
Devlon: "Yeah. Of course I'll train with you. But we'll both get stronger…together!"
Wendy smiles.
Wendy: "Alright! Then it's on! And don't go easy, kay?"
Wendy (narrating): And so, we all continued to do our best. But I can't help but have this feeling…
Page 17
Wendy: …that things are going to be different from here on out.