Mingi and Jongho take their focus to the area of the kitchen where Byul and San are currently in front of the stove, after her fourth attempt of trying to switch on the gas fails. She would put her hand on the knob, eyes trained on the burner but as she sees the spark, her hand is automatically retracted. She curls her fingers when she notices the others looking at her, anticipating that maybe, she could find the courage to let the fire burn for once.

"You don't have to do it if you still can't," San mentions. "We're not forcing you or anything."

"San," she manages, throwing a look back to Jongho and Mingi, who are giving her encouraging smiles and thumbs-up. She turns to look at San who looks placid; the events on the rooftop where Han Byul had revealed herself desperately buried back as he tried to get back on his own two feet. "We promised that we would somehow learn to cook together, and I wanted to do that before we don't get a chance. At least one edible dish."

San puts his palms together, then tightens the knot of his apron before nodding. "Right, we can do this. What about trying to cook some fried rice? We can use the leftover rice, and it's one simple dish where you can try to throw in every ingredient you can think of. The first step is to get on with the fire."

"You can do this, Byul!"

Mingi shakes his arms in the air, looking very supportive as his glasses slide down and he pushes it back up with his shoulder. Beside him, Jongho is more of a silent spectator, and he looks less believing in her effort to cook, but he stays there nonetheless. Both of them are allowing themselves to be the guinea pigs to taste her cooking, Mingi more willing while Jongho more reluctant. It seems the latter is starting to question his decision, as Byul couldn't even get past the stage to ignite the fire.

Putting her head down, she steps a little bit away from the stove, gesturing for San to come close to it. Without questioning it, he understands what she's asking him to do, so he twists the knob, hearing the familiar ticking as the sparks catch on fire.

Nodding with determination, based on the cooking video San showed her that she might or might not have repeated for a thousand times this morning, she picks up the non-stick frying pan first, throwing the utensil on top of the burner as the fire seems to be dancing to lick her skin. It falls with a clang, but surprisingly, it lands perfectly on the centre of the burner.

"Show-off," he teases, but there's a decreased enthusiasm behind it, as he's trying to draw the line between them. "That's a good improvement. Now next, the cooking oil."

He hands over the bottle of cooking oil to her, which almost slips out of his hand but she catches it, pouring in an amount that would clog their arteries. It seems that she's trying to kill them in the long-run, but he doesn't comment on it. She's only starting to gain her confidence; ignoring the fire but focusing more on what's on top of it. In fact, the fire might even be invisible to her now.

The ingredients are spread around on the kitchen counter, and in they go, the chucking of the first few uncertain, but it grows to become more confident as she throws in the rice. She cracks two eggs into the pan, beating them up with her spatula as they sizzle. She stirs the fried rice, making sure it doesn't spill out as the final amount of rice together with the rest of the ingredients rose to the rim of the pan. A few dashes of salt go in as San looks at the contents of the pan, amazement etched on his face. She plates them into three different ones, the last having the most as she wipes her brow. He goes to switch off the fire, and immediately takes up a spoon to taste it.

He stays quiet as he swallows, his expression unreadable as Mingi and Jongho approach them carefully. With anticipation he peeks at them, as they take a bite one by one. Like San, both of them remain speechless.

"The stomachache must be coming," she sighs, already picking up the dishes to be thrown away. "Until all of you are left speechless?"

"I'll be honest with you," Jongho is the one to speak up first as he stops her from taking the dishes away. "I had zero confidence in you and I was sure I was going to throw up the moment I chewed it. No offence."

"None taken."

"But this was way better than what I expected from someone who never cooked in her life."

"Really?" Her eyes light up as she puts back down the plates and they dig in without asked. Mingi and San nod to supplement his sort-of compliment, and she takes a seat, as if trying to compose herself. "I have always watched cooking videos but I never tried it. I was trying to imitate whatever I saw them doing."

"You did a great job," Mingi chips in, looking as excited as Byul herself. He looks proud, even, as he claps his hands and return to the dish that's almost finishing up. "You should cook for us more often, so you can brush up your skills! In no time you could be the best cook in our house; don't tell Seonghwa though."

"Yeah, you should," San helps to add, but him and Byul exchange cryptic looks that the two don't catch. "The problem's the fire, not you. You're getting there." He finishes up the whole dish, clasping his hands over the empty plate. He looks at her, and she seems to want to talk about something as she ponders on it. "You look like you're about to say something, Han Byul."

The corners of her lips tug upwards as she looks at the hacker and the field agent, as if sizing them up before saying, "I feel like I haven't heard about both of you as much as I do for the others. I mean, we don't talk much and we're pretty distant. Just thought that I'd like to know more about both of you."

San scoffs, then communicates with her through their eyes: Are you trying to get background information on everyone before we go away?, but she ignores him.

"You mean, like where we come from and stuff like that?" Mingi enquires, moving over to the sink to wash the plates.

"When all of you involved me in the mission at the hotel, I didn't really get to know about where both of you came from or how you got recruited. I know about the rest, but I don't seem like I know you guys. I mean, if you're uncomfortable then it's fine. Just thought it'd be a good conversation starter for a Friday night."

Two nights before the showdown.

"Really? But there's nothing interesting about our background though. I wasn't a street fighter like San was or a gang member like Seonghwa was, or were best friends stuck like Wooyoung and Yeosang." Jongho takes an orange and starts peeling it, his mouth moving as he tells stories about himself. "I was taken from an orphanage from Sunrise district," his face breaks into something akin to a smile, "bet you've never heard of the district. It's a small district, much smaller than Light. It's called that because that's where the sun rises from."

Byul lapses into silence, because it's true that she has barely heard of the district, but finds no point in telling that.

When he realizes that he's straying from the topic, he pops one segment into his mouth and chews on it, face unchanged even though he possibly picked up the sourest one. As the juice floods his tongue, he says through a mouthful, "Not sure who my parents were, because apparently they died on the day I was born and I was sent to the orphanage."

They shift in their seats, palpable silence continuing.

He keeps on chewing, and shrugs. "No memories to miss, so I don't feel affected by it. Nothing to miss when I've never experienced it in the first place." He takes another segment of the orange. "Stop looking like that, I don't need pity from any of you. I hate drowning in self-pity, so don't expect me to be crying about it. But-" he grins as he plucks one and gives it to Byul, "-I'm sure you would be amused when you hear Mingi's story. Despite looking intimidating at first because of his height, you wouldn't believe how he got recruited in the first place."

Mingi rolls his eyes as Jongho and San snort. "Right, make fun of Song Mingi right here because my past is not as cool as any of you." He clasps his hands and he mumbles his words, that the three of them crane their necks to hear him talking clearly. "I was from Sunrise district too, lived with my grandmother and got scouted because of my hacking skills. The rest was history."

"Exactly," San presses his lips together, looking like laughter would escape past the moment he opens them. "And what were you hacking?"

Mingi looks done with them that his mouth is left slightly parted, unsure of whether he's going to shoot them down or continue the story. "A game," he says shortly, narrowing his eyes as he knows what's going to come next out of Jongho's mouth.

"He was caught trying to hack the Sims because he wanted to get more Simoleons!" Jongho relays, and she has never seen him more animated, more lively. Looks like they're enjoying it even though they've heard the story countless times. "Song Mingi was about to be brought to the police but Bifidensis held them back and scouted him. Pfft, all because of him trying to hack into the Sims and get more virtual money."

"I was trying to buy a mansion, but I was short of money and working my Sims' glutes off takes a lot of time so I wanted a short cut. So that's what I did. I guess my mistake was doing it at the computer cafe, the police sniffed it and I was brought away. Since I was only 14 and there's only my grandmother, the Bifidensis somehow got a hold of me and brought me to the island."

"Your grandmother?" she finds herself asking.

He purses his lips before shaking his head. "I don't know how she's doing right now, but I'm not looking to visit her anytime soon. Too much uncertainty, too much danger. I'd rather not risk it."

"So," Jongho leans forward. "What are your thoughts about us? Still feeling distant from us?"

"Nope." She does a motion like she's checking something off her list. "That's 8 out 8 men in this house whom I've known about." She almost adds, it feels like home, but goes against it when she reminds herself that she doesn't know what 'home' feels like and this dorm is not a permanent one for her.

Home, that's what Yunho was to me. Still is.

After their small talk Jongho and Mingi return to their bedrooms, looking to retire for the night. It's still early, but it seems that they want to spend time on their own. As Byul and San are together at the kitchen, he cleans up the mess, albeit noisily as if he's trying to make a point. But it's a point she cannot pick up.

"Minion wants to see us tonight, after the rest have slept or at least gone to their bedrooms," he says casually, but the usage of Hongjoong's codename makes her know how serious it is. Not that it never was. "A lot to be filled up on, a lot to practice before we go." He doesn't explain on where they're going, but it's clear to her.

She picks up the wet cloth to wipe the counters. "A lot to pick up on."

"Of course." He leans against the counter, watches as she moves from one counter to the other, and holds out one hand to stop her from moving. He doesn't touch her, but it's enough to make her stop and look at him questioningly. "I'm sorry."

"The last thing I want to hear from you is that. You did nothing wrong."

"No. I did, when I underestimated you and said that you're only doing the impossible. I didn't respect you, not like how Yunho could. I understand why you would pick him over me, no matter how many times. Learnt that the hard way, but I hope that for this we can start over. As team members. That day on the rooftop, I would like it if you pretended that it never happened," he pauses. "No time for feelings to get in the way."

She puts away the dirty cloth and leans against the kitchen island, facing him. "You're right, no... time."

---

With the shooting glasses, earplugs and ear muffs for double protection, Seonghwa fires the bullets one after another, his brows knitting and mouth twisting as they hit the target at the shooting range. Not one misses.

When he's out of bullets he slots in another magazine, the firing never stopping until he runs out of them again, and the bang, bang resonates through the area but he never intends to stop. It's almost his seventh set of bullets, but his arms stay stretched, pulling the trigger like his finger is glued on it.

"He's been going at it since 8 p.m.," Yeosang comments to Hongjoong beside him as they observe the oldest from behind the safety glass. "Didn't stop moving one bit. One moment he was working out, the next he was assaulting a punching bag, then running on the treadmill like he was in a marathon before picking up the gun and firing nonstop."

"Was he like this as soon as he went back from his trip with Akira?"

Yeosang nods, sighing. "He's not taking their parting too well."

"Nobody would, Yeosang."

There is a another bang from inside the shooting range before Seonghwa tries to find another magazine to slot in, but when he fails to find more he slams down the gun on the table, shouting in frustration. He fists his hand, intending to drive a punch into the wall but stops when he sees two of them watching him, and he drops his hand, looking almost as if he's embarrassed he is caught in the situation. He takes off his protective gear and places them back, stepping in front of the automatic doors as they part for him to go outside.

"Hongjoong, Yeosang," he acknowledges them as he fixes the collar of his shirt. He unbuttons the top part of his shirt, fanning himself when in fact the temperature in the shooting range is much higher than where they are.

"San and Byul will be joining us soon," Hongjoong informs as they walk to one of their meeting rooms.

The said two people are already waiting inside of the room, who immediately stand up as they see the rest, which completes the team they're going to form. Now that all of them have gathered here, it does seem funny - how only 5 people are determined to bring down the whole of Bifidensis and KTC.

Hongjoong eyes his team members one by one, his emotions a mixture that cannot be picked out as individual ones; they're like a mess brewed in a cauldron while he looks on, unsure of how he can fix it. As he observes them, what he feels hanging in the air are both resolution and reluctance. Their bodies are there, their mouths giving agreement to what they are about to do but their hearts are somewhere else, being tied to where they are now.

"Is it really only the 5 of us?" San asks, drumming his fingers on the table.

"The remaining members of Dyskaryo, Kim Danbi and Remy will join us on the day of the event. They'll be taking care of these 6 people; the hidden big players who keep KTC rolling. I have no problem in trusting them and their skills, I suppose?" All eyes lay on Han Byul.

She doesn't miss a beat. "Of course, Kim Danbi can take down a lot of opponents at one time." There's a small smile as she adds, "In high heels."

"I won't question it," San offers. "She was very skilled, and I wasn't surprised that you told me she used to be a trainee at KTC. She has that aura."

"Uncle Remy is very good with guns and rifles, he may be way older than all of us but his skills are irrefutable. With the two of them, going against 6 unsuspecting guests should be a simple and straightforward procedure."

"Excellent. We'll be moving on to the Bifidensis board members next, with the help of my uncle. Mr. Kim Hodong. I'm truly sorry as it came as a surprise to all of you; I never meant to hide the fact that I'm related to one of the board members, nor did I have the intention to deceive you."

"I played a part too. The reason Hongjoong had to keep it from all of you was because I broke Dyskaryo up, putting a halt to our original mission. He couldn't tell anything to any of you as there was no development, and it became a secret that snowballed into something bigger."

"So if you didn't come across our cafe that night, and if Hongjoong didn't announce to the whole cafe..." Yeosang trails off.

"We wouldn't even be here, and we would still be living our lives in a lie." Seonghwa's tone makes it sound like he's upset, but to whom is unclear. "We would live on thinking that we would be free after the 10-year contract, which seemed ridiculous now that you think about it. Has the Bifidensis ever been remotely nice to us?"

No one dares to answer, because it's going to end up being bad anyway.

"Our plan to wipe out the Bifidensis should be clean; we'd have to take a lot into consideration. The meeting's going to be held on a boat, so routes of escape may be harder than if we were to be on land. On this ship we're not going to see a single drop of blood spilled; what we want is to is something that they'll get at the same time, and only them."

"Poison," San supplements as Yeosang widens his eyes and nods slowly. "The board members always do a toast before they eat, and they'll take a sip of the wine. One drop of poison and one sip of the wine are all it takes to watch them go."

Hongjoong agrees. "Leave the rest of those on the ship alone. Who we're aiming for are only the Bifidensis board members. And... Dr. Kei was kind enough to provide us some stock." He takes out one vial with a clear liquid - no label bearing the name, precautions or volume. At first glance it could be mistaken as water. "He didn't tell me what it is, but he says one drop into the drink and-" he drags a finger across his neck. "I trust him enough with this, because if all fails I'm going to haunt that man with my lame jokes."

"Who's going to deal with the board members?"

"My uncle will." Hongjoong looks aggrieved with the answer that Byul looks at him while shaking her head.

"No, tell me that's not what you're suggesting."

"I'm afraid it is, and it's my uncle's choice. The poison will be ingested by all of them, including him."

"But Kim Hongjoong-"

"No buts; he has made up his mind. He says this is a punishment for him, because he was a part of it too and he can't deny that he had his hands in the fair share of the tortures on the trainees. He'll be the one to pull up the bottle in front of them, pour in the glass for each and join in the toast. Once it happens, no one is to be blamed except for him. And that, he says, is also useless because by then, he'll be long gone together with the other Bifidensis board members. All 5, wiped out. The job on the boat done clean, with no one to point the fingers to."

Yeosang massages his temples, a lot to process in one shot. So Kim Hodong; one of the board members are willing to sacrifice his life too, because he feels that he deserves it... punishment for the wicked.

What a cruel and unfair world we live in, but that's exactly what we made it become.

"These are our locations: Kim Danbi and Remy at Moonlight Restaurant near the shore where they'll be having dinner with Lee Minhyuk. My uncle with the rest of the Bifidensis board members. The five of us," the leader motions to them, "will be well on our way to Wonderland Island. Back to where we were shaped and moulded. As the communication from the outside world is very limited, I doubt the news about the assassination of the investors and board members will reach them before we do. Lee Minhyuk has offered us to send us off in a helicopter, but I think it would be better if we approach the island on a boat; less distracting and more time for us to arrive without being detected first. All of you know how the security there is like."

He takes out a map, each important section of the training centre indicated with red, bold letters. The map still looks the same as to when Byul was there 6 years ago, but she wouldn't rely too much on her memory when she's been locked up. They study the map, picking out every place where they'll attack.

"Yeosang, your job is to shut down the whole system KTC runs on, destroying every information they have on the trainees, previous and current. Make sure that the files will no longer be accessible and information is wiped out. The problem that's making our mission complicated is that the information can only be accessed on the island; that is why we need to return there. KTC relies heavily on the system, and once it's rocked, that's one foundation less to think about. After that, sound the alarm throughout the complex to give the warnings to the trainees so that they'll leave the complex. That is when we want our presence to be known."

"But then the directors and trainers; they'll leave the complex too. What we want is for them to stay in the compound."

"Protocol," Hongjoong replies. "Trainees are not taught this, but the protocol when there is a breach in security is to stay in the complex. Once the trainees are out of the complex, there will be a total lockdown. No one can come in, and-" he breathes out slowly, "-out."

"So by right, the directors and trainers will stay inside the complex," Seonghwa decides. "Because that is their protocol."

The leader nods. "Their first instruction is to maintain the safety of the complex itself, not the trainees. The complex is of bigger value than the thousands of trainees they have under their roof. They are believed to think that the lives of the trainees are less valuable than the standing of the training centre. If they must, they'll have to protect the building first. Trainees come second, if not, not at all."

"Monsters," Byul utters. "This was what you meant about those people behind the camera. Even in situations like this they don't care about the trainees' lives."

"Only the truth. When the directors and trainers are all conveniently gathered in that place, we will start to show ourselves. San, this is where you come in play; we're about to take down the whole building, literally. What we need is coverage, for the world to know that an island like that exists. In order for a coverage, we need to make a statement. With that," he shrugs, "we need to blow up the place. Of course, before we do that we'll have to face the directors and trainers first. We mustn't forget that they were the ones who trained us, so we're really going against someone who's as strong, if not stronger than us."

"We fight them, make sure they're really wiped out before-"

"-we blow up the place. Any questions?"

"Do we... really have no chance of making out of this alive?" Seonghwa asks, his eyes radiating hopefulness that maybe this mission wouldn't see a fatality rate of 100% from both sides.

"If we manage to knock down the directors and trainers within that time frame and find a way to get out of the complex before the place blows up; sure, that's not something impossible. But once you arrive on that island, you know that you're about to receive a death sentence. It's not wrong to believe that we'll be able to walk out of this alive, but it's better to think that we'll not, because that's the most likely option."

"We are giving our lives back to the Bifidensis, but not in the way they want. If that's what they're looking for, then we'll give it to them, with a little bit of a twist."