Twenty-four. Twenty-three. Twenty-two.

I stared at the glowing floor numbers in the elevator. We had returned to IIA headquarters late yesterday night. The adrenaline that had been pumping me forward stopped the moment I had entered my living quarters, and I fell asleep instantly. When I woke up at noon, Professor Nyryn told me that Director Rokmond wanted to meet with me.

I reached up to scratch my cheek, but was met with the stretchy mask Professor Nyryn had made me put on. Now that the real Xara was back, I couldn't be seen in public with my real face. The itch burned on my skin, but I ignored it, just like Xara would.

The elevator doors parted, and I walked to Team Summit's meeting room. Inside, Rokmond sat at the large, glass desk with Xara to his left, back in her usual spot.

He glanced up from an open file in front of him. He smiled, a rare sight to see.

"Ah, come in, Xara."

I sat on the other side of the table, across from the real Xara, and slid the mask off my face. My cheek still itched, but I laced my fingers in my lap.

Control, Xara. Stay calm and in control.

My gaze fell on Xara. Her blue eyes were glazed over as she stared into empty space. She was even smaller than I had realized back in the WAOIC prison. The sleeves of her black leather jacket hung loosely around her bony arms. Her back was slightly hunched forward, frozen like a statue.

The Director glanced at the clock on the other side of the wall, then picked up a plastic bag from the floor and placed it on the table.

"Xara, it's one o'clock. You need to eat again."

Xara's head turned to the Director, her blank face staring at him for a moment. Slowly, her hand reached into the bag and retrieved a granola bar. Her bony fingers pulled at the top of the wrapper, but merely slipped off the plastic. I opened my mouth to offer help, but shut it.

Xara wouldn't want help, especially from a clone.

Without a word, the Director took the granola bar from her hands, opened it, then gave it back. Xara blinked at it for a moment before nibbling the top.

"I have a few things to discuss with the two of you," Rokmond said. "This meeting is a CUD. You know what that means."

The information goes with you to the grave.

"First of all, it's too confusing to call you both Xara. So the real Xara will be returning to her usual agent number, Agent 24. Clone Xara will be known as Agent 24 sub one. Second, I've filled in the real Xara on all of the details on your mission in Belgium. However, what I need right is a briefing on this last mission. Agent 24 sub one, please tell me the highlights of your mission. We can get a detailed report later on."

For a moment, I didn't even know where to begin, or what the Director would consider a highlight. But I suddenly realized that he wanted to know.

"Well, we followed Agent Fox to WAOIC headquarters. You probably know of our first attempt, where we tunneled under the fence and tried to go in through the roof of the building."

I glanced at Xara. Her face was expressionless. I wasn't sure if she knew of our first attempt, or that Dawn was a traitor.

"Dawn set it up so that when we cut through the roof, we landed in a prison cell. Apparently, the whole meeting to retrieve the mission file was set up by WAOIC to kidnap Xara. The list of WAOIC agents and their locations was a trap to lead us to headquarters in order to capture us.

"After we, uh, didn't succeed in breaking into headquarters, we retreated to Gwinn, Michigan. Agents Smog, Fox, and Bone followed us there. We managed to knock them out, and I got the idea to dress up as them and enter WAOIC headquarters."

Rokmond nodded. "That was a very risky move, but it paid off. I have to say, Agent 24 sub one, I'm quite impressed with the job you did."

"Really?"

"Yes. You managed to navigate very dire situations. Under normal circumstances, we wouldn't dream of giving such a delicate mission to a novice. Not that you're a novice, but you haven't had the formal, on-the-job experience as other agents."

"Thank you," I said.

"One question, what happened to Agent Fox?"

Agent Fox. The one part of this mission that didn't workout optimally.

"We had to leave her behind in WAOIC headquarters," I said. "Greer wanted the WAOIC agents to kill all of Team Summit except me. They wanted to do some experiments on me or something in order to figure out how to clone their own agents. We had to bring someone dressed as me, and given the quick escape that we would have to make from headquarters, we couldn't let Agent Fox get in the way. In my eyes, it was a necessary trade."

"I see your point," Rokmond sighed. "It would have been too difficult to carry an unconscious Agent Fox from the building. You did the right thing.

"However, going forward, we are going to have to create a plan as to what to do regarding your job. In my opinion, it doesn't make sense to have two of you around. We need to keep a secret weapon."

"WAOIC already knows about the clone," the real Xara stated.

"That is true, however, that doesn't mean that we should let all our eggs crack. We can still keep one of you as a back-up agent, in case the other is captured again."

I knew what he was alluding to. He wanted me to return to my little room upstairs. He wanted to lock me away from the world again. It was understandable. I was far less experienced than the real Xara, and I was younger. I would last longer than Xara would.

"Agent 24 sub one."

My head snapped towards the Director. It was still strange to be called that again. I was so used to being Xara, the only Agent X. Giving back that title would take time.

"We have decided that the original Xara will be our main agent."

I suppressed any surprise from creeping into my expression. More importantly, I guarded myself from disappointment.

It's better this way. You need time to adjust back to your normal routine. You need to remember what it is like to be Xara, not whatever you became on the mission.

I nodded.

"I know this is probably difficult for you..."

"It's no problem," I said. "I'm happy to give the real Xara her position back." I met her gaze for an awkward moment. She was completely stoic.

"I'm glad you're taking this so well."

"Well it was kind of implied from the start of the mission. My job was only to get her back."

"I'm glad we didn't give any false impressions."

I nodded. Saying the words aloud felt good. It was a way of solidifying my own beliefs inside my head.

"And you, Xara?"

The real Xara nodded her head slightly. "That's fine."

"Good. Now, Xara and, uh, Xara, you've both been on the go. I think you both ought to take some time to relax and recuperate. Today is a vacation day for both of you and all of Team Summit."

"I don't need a vacation day," Xara stated.

"What you need is different than what your body needs," Rokmond said. "You've been through a lot of trauma, considering all that you told me. You can't strain yourself. The body will naturally heal, especially with our lab treatments. You should be back to normal within a few days."

"Normal?" Xara said. "Back to normal?"

"Well, relatively."

"Relatively? Am I being compared with an ant?"

"No, of course not. I'm just saying—"

"Your treatments will only heal the broken bones and bruised flesh."

"I know, the trauma—"

"It took me years to reach my physical apex. I was in peak health, 90% muscle. I could run a mile in five minutes. My balance was so good, I could run a marathon on a tightrope. You think I'm going to get that back in a few days?"

Her voice was completely serene, like a calmed river. But her words tore Rokmond's assurances apart. She was in worse condition than I imagined.

"Xara, we have been over this. You will get all of that back with time."

"Time is not something I have if I'm taking break days."

"I will not discuss this with you anymore," Rokmond said. "Your training can resume in one to two weeks, but no sooner."

Xara didn't reply, only stared at him with resolve and control, as if to say, 'I will resume my training the moment you leave my presence.'

"As for right now," the Director continued. "You can chat in the Team Summit lounge. Unfortunately, we can't tell the rest of the agency about the clone for the sake of security. It's an extremely delicate situation. Everything would have been fine if Dawn hadn't been a traitor, but she told our secret to WAOIC. We're still trying to figure out how to navigate that mess. Regardless, secrecy is our best option. Both of you can go to the Team Summit lounge for a bit while I summon the others."

I didn't budge from my seat, mainly because Xara wasn't getting up, but also because I didn't know where the lounge was.

Rokmond sighed. "You are basically the same person. You might as well speak with each other some point.

Still no movement. Rokmond narrowed his eyes.

"Go. This is a direct order from me, your Director. If you do not leave this room and go to the lounge, you will be in violation of code 45B."

That pushed Xara to her feet as well as me. Section 45B clearly outlines that anyone who fails to execute duty will be removed from active duty for a minimum of six months to a permanent dismissal.

I followed her into a connecting room. The space was wide open, a sitting area on one side, and a kitchen on the other.

Plants were everywhere—on tables, on the floor, hanging from the ceiling fan, growing against the wooden walls. If I recalled correctly, Ty had insisted on bringing in a collection of plants to take care of. Usually, the responsibility fell on lower level agents since Ty was often away on missions.

Xara walked towards one of the bamboo couches in the center of the room. She stood in front of it instead of sitting down. I joined her, but didn't speak or look at her. I didn't want to seem too eager to talk to her.

"So you're my clone?" she said.

"Yes."

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"Hm."

I swallowed. She had no interest in speaking to me. I didn't measure up to her.

"Do you want to sit down?" she asked. "I believe there is usually food kept in the mini fridge."

"Sure." I had to suppress the relief in my voice. I sunk into the white cushions while Xara walked across the room. She returned with two cans of coconut water.

"Ty was in charge of decorating this place. Not sure which idiot gave him permission." She slipped her finger under the tab of the can and tried to open it.

"Do you..." I paused, not sure if I should actually offer her help. She shoved the can towards me. The can snapped open, and I gave it back to her before opening my own.

Xara took a long sip before continuing. "He wanted to make this place have a tropical vacation vibe. Whenever he and Finn come here, they wear Hawaiin shirts and khaki shorts, even if it's December. At least they don't try to get me or Dari or Jax to change anymore."

I nodded. I already knew all of this from Xara's memory bank. Xara paused mid sip, looking at me.

"Did you already know that?" she asked.

I paused. It was kind of awkward to admit that you can see all of another person's memories. But I had a feeling she would find out sooner or later.

"Yeah," I said.

"The Director told you?"

"I, uh, have access to all of your memories."

Xara froze. She faced forward, pouring the coconut water down her throat. I took a sip of the cold, sweet liquid. It was light and refreshing with chunks of coconut meat. So this is what coconut tastes like. I had never had it before, but I knew it was a favorite of Xara's, though she only had it on special occasions.

"How?" Xara demanded.

"The scientists know how to download your brain into a computer."

"Really? I didn't know that."

"They probably didn't want to overwhelm you with too much information," I said.

"They could have told me before," Xara stated.

"It was classified information. I am classified information."

She glanced skeptically at me in her peripheral vision, but didn't press the issue.

"So you know all about me," Xara said. "You know me as well as I do."

I shook my head. Xara quirked an eyebrow.

"No? You don't?"

"How could I? I only know you from memories and brief thoughts. That information only goes so far."

Silence again. She tilted her head to get the last few drops of the coconut water.

"The Director said that you're me," she stated at last.

"Yes, he did say that."

"And?"

"And what?"

"What's your take on it? Are you me?"

"Clearly I am not. I mean, the matter making up you is different than the matter making up me."

Xara nodded approvingly. "Good answer. I agree." I was about to say thank you, but she added, "You're nothing like me. You're too...happy."

"What do you mean?"

"You think I'm happy? Have you seen it in my mind?"

"I don't know your emotions. As I already said, I'm not you."

Xara shook her head. "Figures."

"Are you okay?"

That took Xara off guard. Her head snapped to me. Her eyes glazed over, stone cold.

"Sure. I'm whatever."

I didn't say anything more. I was almost afraid of what she might do to me. It was hard to believe that she and I were the same DNA. She was everything and nothing I expected at the exact same time.

Before she could say any more, the door swung open. Sure enough, Ty and Finn entered in matching, red and yellow Hawaiin shirts. Dari and Jax trailed behind.

"Guys, really," Dari said. "It looks like you got ketchup and mustard on your shirts."

"No it doesn't," Ty said. "It's supposed to be like lava and sunshine."

I cracked a smile. Ty jumped over the side of the couch, landing in between Xara and me.

"Xara, isn't my shirt awesome?" Ty asked, turning to me.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever."

Ty shifted, turning to the other Xara. "And Xara, welcome back!" He threw his arms around her before she could say anything.

"Yeah, sis, welcome back!" Finn said, joining the hug.

Xara's face remained somber.

"Well this is weird and awkward," Dari said, sitting down on the opposite couch. "But glad you're back, X. We missed you."

"Why?" Xara said.

Ty and Finn pulled away from Xara, their brows knitted together.

"What do you mean 'why?'" Ty asked. "You were gone."

Xara's icy gaze rested on Ty for a moment before turning into the distance.

Finn cleared his throat. "So, what do you want to do today, Xara?"

Xara didn't answer. I knew what she wanted to do, she wanted to go downstairs and get back to training. She never took days off, at least not in the typical sense.

Part of me wanted to stay and have fun with the rest of the team. But deep down, I knew that wasn't what Xara would do. That wasn't what she needed.

"I think I'm going back to my room," I said. "I need to catch up on some reading."

"What do you mean?" Dari said. "You have the day off."

"All the more reason to not waste it," I said. "I'll have my wristwatch on if you need to contact me for some reason."

"I'm going to my room, too," Xara said.

"But—" Ty started.

The two of us had already stood from our seats and were making our way to the door.

Now you're thinking like Xara! Finally, I was being who I was supposed to be.

But my heart ached. I wanted to laugh and talk with my newfound friends. Part of my brain screamed, it's not too late! You can still join them!

I didn't turn back.