A couple of hours later, Suuzki, lying on the ground, groaned as warm sunlight flooded the room from his open blinds. The young man sat up and stretched, loosening muscles that had tightened from sleeping on the cold floor. Suppressing a lazy yawn, he picked the pillow off the floor and gently placed it on the bed where Jade was curled up like a hamster ball.

The edge of Suzuki's lips curled ever so slightly as he recalled the previous night. At some point, Jade ran to her room and returned with a bottle of vodka, claiming it would help 'stoke the fires of determination and friendship.' She tried to get Suzuki to drink with her, but he adamantly refused, leaving her to drink to the fires by herself. Suzuki would never admit it, but he enjoyed her little rant afterwards. Jade cursed everything from the aliens to a bus driver who refused to wait for her four years ago. Having lost her inhibitions to the alcohol, she complained about her father, who got himself caught, and her aloof grandfather, who was doing god-knows-what for Genaco. Her complaint continued for over an hour until she ultimately tired herself out.

Shaking his head, Suzuki started his morning exercise routine. Roughly thirty minutes later, a sweaty Suzuki looked at the still-sleeping Jade with mirth. Evil glowing in his eyes, Suzuki ordered an item on his phone before entering the shower.

Shortly after he emerged from the shower, towel draped over his shoulders, Suzuki answered a call and made his way to the entrance, where he met a courier. He thanked her, took the package and returned to his room. Seeing that Jade was still fast asleep, Suzuki opened the box, taking out the bright red air horn. Leaning over Jade, he unceremoniously squeezed the horn.

A loud screech, like a nuclear alarm, blasted around the room. Unsurprisingly, Jade shot up like a rocket, shocked silly by the loud noise. She instinctively reached under her pillow but then, realizing this wasn't her bed, raised her fists in search of the assailant. Only then did she see Suzuki holding the red horn. Putting two and two together, Jade's cheeks turned beet-red, partly from embarrassment and anger. Fists clenched, she looked like she wanted to punch Suzuki, but she suddenly doubled over, clutching her head. "Fuck! Damn you, Suzuki. My head hurts!"

"That makes sense. You finished an entire bottle by yourself," countered Suzuki with the faintest of smiles. "Get up. It's already 8. The other teams want to have a meeting before the game starts. You need to take a shower." Exaggeratedly scrunching up his nose, he teased, "You reek."

"Hm?" Jade blew into her hand, promptly recoiling at the rancid smell. "Yeah, no, that's bad." She shuffled off the bed and made to leave the room but briefly stopped next to Suzuki. Devilish smile curling up her lips, she hooked her hand around his waist and blew into his nose before he could escape.

"Ugh, fuck." Suzuki angrily cursed as he grabbed her arms. He almost tossed her to the side, but as he looked at her smug 'fuck you' grin, a strange emotion surged alongside his disgust. It was raw, powerful, and primal. It momentarily consumed him, causing his eyes to burn as his grip tightened around Jade's arms.

"Ow!"

Jade's yelp shocked Suzuki back to his senses. "I'm sorry." He apologized, immediately let go and took two steps back. "Think I'm still a little tired from last night."

"No, it's fine. I overreacted." Jade's eyes dimmed as she watched Suzuki's lose that fire, returning to their neutral state. But then, she smiled as she walked to the door. "I'll be out in a few. Go make breakfast for us, team leader."

"Sure, why not." Suzuki raised the bed after Jade left. Glancing at the picture on the wall, he murmured, "Can't do this one on my own, can I?"

'Nope. But that's why you've got the rest of us. By the way, when are you going to ask Jade out? A blind man can tell she likes you.'

Suzuki's brow twitched. "We need to have a new talk about boundaries."

'No, we do not. Keeping our lives separate can't work anymore. You've got to help me beat Razznik, and I need to help you beat the expert pilots on your end. Just accept it.'

"Doesn't mean I need a running commentary in my life."

'True. But you need to take the bad with the good. You're stuck with me now. Only way to get rid of me is to kill me. You wouldn't do that over me making a bit of noise, would you?'

"..."

'Hold on. Did you just consider it?'

"...No?"

'I'm in your head! Ugh, whatever. Besides, more communication will improve our cooperation in the field. You can't argue with efficiency, can you?'

"No, I cannot." Suzuki sighed as he grabbed his phone and walked out of the room. Some doors were difficult to close once opened.

Half an hour later, Suzuki sent a message on his phone while serving breakfast on the counter.

"Oh, are you cooking full-time now?" Ayumi stepped out of her room, wearing a small smile as she proceeded to help Suzuki set the table.

"Depends," Suzuki muttered noncommittally. "More importantly, how are you doing? Regretting your choice yet?"

"What? And miss an opportunity to meet an actual alien?"

"I'm serious." Suzuki looked at Ayumi, his gaze grave. "You wanted to find me, and that's fine. But I doubt you signed up to risk your actual life. That doesn't go with your life plan, does it?"

Ayumi snorted. "My 'plan' has no meaning if aliens render us extinct. I would rather be part of those with a chance to steer our future than sit behind and pray."

"It's annoying. I can't even refute that since I'm the same way." Suzuki set the final plate and asked, "But why did you come in the first place? You would've known there was no going back any time soon."

Ayumi smiled as she sat on a stool by the counter. "Don't know. I guess life suddenly felt empty. You were something different in my monotonous life. I wanted that back. Gaming's not enough."

Suzuki drew a cup of coffee and slid it over to Ayumi. "Listen to you. If I didn't know better, I would think you had a crush on me. I told you: you just need to do what you like and stop living by your dad's rules all the time."

Ayumi took a grateful sip from the cup. "You wouldn't know a crush if it struck you in the face. But your advice only works for those without responsibilities. I owe my father too much to just 'do as I like.' Life is all about sacrifices. Sometimes for ourselves, for others, and for society as a whole. It's the only way the world can function."

Suzuki snorted. "Yeah, well, I'll never agree with that. I'll just keep doing what I want to do. Sometimes, that will be helping others, and sometimes it will be for me. Life's too short to be sacrificing my sanity for 'society.'"

"That, right there—that selfishness is why I came," Ayumi confessed. "My entire life is already planned out. These few years are all I have left to act a little willful, to be a little more selfish. I cannot do that at home. Well, that and I was worried you would do something to harm yourself. I'm glad Kashi seems to have influenced you a lot more in this regard compared to Razznik." Her eyes dimmed as her lips spread in a bitter smile. "Perhaps if we gave him a reason to live. He might have sought a different way like Kashi."

Suzuki's brows furrowed. "Don't beat yourself up. I don't think that would have changed anything. Razz was... He was different. For what it's worth, he was glad you were there at the end. He never said anything, but a part of him was grateful for you, Niye, Lulu and the others. His 'mission' never changed from the moment he gained sentience, but he was glad to have known a group of people who believed in the best parts of himself despite evidence to the contrary."

"That is what I'm most scared of." Ayumi's eyes trembled, her hands wrapped around her coffee as if seeking comfort from the heat. "Razznik had people who believed in him, but he still chose to die for his 'mission.' Razznik's conviction came from you. If friends could not deter Razznik, can they deter you?" The young woman reached out and held Suzuki's hand. "I can't lose you, Suzuki. I would lie to say it's for your good or you deserve to live, but the truth is, I'm just being selfish. Everyone else puts on a fake smile, pretends, or tries their best to get in my good graces, either because of my family name, wealth, or looks. And yes, I know, the world's smallest violin weeps for the pampered rich nepo baby girl. But I cannot help the way they make me feel. All of them: their disgusting smiles, the endless expectations they have of me, the baseless beliefs that I must turn out to be some influential pillar of society. I never asked for any of that, but I know: That is my duty by virtue of birth. Everything I have, I gained from my parents. The freedom to game, complain about expectations and even be here. It's all privileges others would kill to have. So, I am prepared to fulfil my duty. But I need you. To keep me sane, to prevent me from losing myself in all the bureaucracy and backroom dealings. I need you to remind me that there's always another path. I need your selfish but pure honesty to keep me firmly grounded so I do not lose myself. Do you understand?"

Suzuki looked at Ayumi, her slightly trembling eyes revealing her vulnerable state. He had never seen the ice queen like this. He had to be careful in his response. Taking a moment, Suzuki breathed and asked, "Are you trying to set up your death flag?"

"What!?" Ayumi was so stunned she nearly choked on her spit.

While the young woman desperately drank water, Suzuki nonchalantly replied, "I mean, when a person like you suddenly changes character, it usually means they're about to die."

"Suzuki!" Ayumi flared up but burst out laughing moments later when she saw Suzuki's tiny smirk. "Can you not take this seriously? It took a lot to open up!"

"I am taking it seriously," replied Suzuki. "You've got nothing to worry about. So what if you've got people placing their expectations on you... fuck them! But I know you're too uptight to not care, so I promise I'll try to find another way. But, no guarantees. That good enough?"

Ayumi chuckled. "From someone else, I'll need that in writing. You though, from you, that's more than enough."

"Good. And maybe I'll find you a girlfriend, too, so you get off my back."

Ayumi spluttered, nearly choking on her coffee. Casting an aggrieved look at Suzuki, she hurriedly swiped a napkin to clean up the mess. "That... is a matter that can wait until I've completed my duties."

"Mm-hm." Suzuki refrained from saying more. As it happened, the rest of the gang began entering the living area, with Jade predictably coming in last. After completing their morning meal, Jade helped Suzuki set the plates in the dishwasher and gathered with the others.

"The meeting's virtual," said Suzuki as he sent the invitation link to everyone. Soon after, the Crazy Heads put on their Virtual Drive Helmets and entered a familiar boardroom. The few empty seats left in the room quickly filled up as the stragglers entered, allowing the meeting to start in full.

Unlike the previous meeting, this one was much more hasty in nature. Ayumi laid out the missions, all of which took place in and around Switzerland. The 'story' was that Terra's forces chose to go on the offensive to prevent the aliens from fixing and rebuilding the orbital elevator. In response, the aliens transferred troops from all over the world to help the repair effort.

The missions thus ranged from disrupting supply routes to eliminating key officers among the aliens and even delivering essential war items to some areas. But most eye-catching was the top-rated mission that required a team to stall a regiment led by two alien Expert Pilots. According to the details, holding back these pilots would allow some sabotage teams to utterly destroy the orbital elevator's underground foundations, making repairs impossible.

Suzuki did not remember everyone's mission. But, seeing as he was the only expert pilot, he had no choice but to take the most challenging assignment. Then, due to Genaco's conditions, he took Jade alongside. Between Jade, Usman and Ayumi, it made more sense to take Jade. Usman did not fit direct combat, and Ayumi was better served to lead a large group in other missions. Jade's hacker role, on the other hand, may or may not prove helpful.

There was only one way to find out.

After concluding the meeting, Suzuki made a pact to meet once daily to discuss strategies and returned to his room. Looking at the clock, only a few minutes remained until 12pm.

Taking a deep breath, Suzuki climbed into the Full-Body Drive.

****

An Unknown Island.

Several birds hovered over a town, frozen in place by an unknown force. A few seconds passed, and a slight rustling echoed across the still landscape as the beginnings of a breeze began blowing through. The birds chirped as they flapped their wings, nonchalantly chirping as if ignorant of their previous terrifying state.

Several meters below, a black draconian opened his eyes, and a deadly toothy grin splayed across his face as he observed the dense huts surrounding him. Taking a deep breath of the cool salty air, Kashi exclaimed, "Finally, I'm back!"