Chapter 11: You Know Who You Are

It was lunch time on MoonBase Zero. But neither the six members of Sector V, nor Patton felt like eating anything, right now.

And really, how could they? The little group was still in Rachel's office, waiting with baited breath for their friend to awaken from her deep slumber.

About ten minutes had gone by since that whole "Citizombie Patton" scare, and they were finally starting to let that incident go.

If you didn't count her transformed arm and neck, Rachel was still herself, so she was probably okay, for now.

And if anything, this group of friends was starting to either get bored or impatient.

At least Patton had something to do; he was (still) kneeling next to Rachel, still cradling her uninfected hand in his own. His fellow operatives weren't so lucky, however.

Kuki, Abigail and Alex were leaning against the wall, while both Hoagie and Nigel took to pacing the room. Wally, on the other hand, found himself sitting in his Supreme Leader's desk chair. His face was buried in his hands, and his eyes conveyed nothing but boredom. So much so, the boy finally let out a groan.

"I can't take it, anymore!" he screamed. "We've been sitting' around here, for ZERO knows how long, waitin' for Numbuh 362 ta' wake up, while that jerk is probably laughing it up!"

"Boy, wouldn't I like ta' get in there and kick his butt, myself!"

"You've been saying that for the past ten minutes," Hoagie pointed out. "We have no way back in, so you're just gonna have to lighten up."

"I know, Numbuh 2," the blonde replied. "But that doesn't mean I have ta' like it!"

"Just relax, Numbuh 4," Nigel replied. "I'm sure Rachel's doing fine."

Though, even he sounded like he was trying to convince himself of that fact. Not that anyone could blame him, at this point. Their friend had been in there for so long, it felt like an eternity since she first went in.

"I hope so," replied Kuki as all eyes turned to her. "Grandfather's really scary, and really powerful. She might fall for one of his tricks again."

"I know," Alex chimed in. "At this point, her situation is starting to remind me of Utena and Akio's final confrontation…Good grief, I hope that doesn't mean she'll get impaled by-"

"Hey, wait, don't spoil the ending!" Hoagie cried out.

Alex turned to face her plump friend with a confused expression on her face.

"Huh?" she asked. "Oh, right. I forgot; you haven't watched the last arc, yet. Have you?"

"Well, I would've finished it already if Muffy Jenkins would just give it back to you -"

"Anyway!" replied (an irritated) Nigel. "I'm sure that if we wait for a little longer, Rachel will come out, happy and perky."

"Let's hope, Boss," Abigail replied. "Her chances of beatin' him are still pretty slim."

"She'll be fine," Patton said.

This caught the attention of the entire sector as they turned to face their superior and comrade.

"What makes you so sure of that, mate?" Wally asked.

"Because it's Rachel; she won't give up, not without a fight," he answered.

While most of Sector V was surprised by his sudden response, only Abigail flashed a gentle smile towards the raven haired boy.

The look in his eyes told her all she needed to know; he was scared, they all were. But just like the rest of them, he still wanted to believe that Rachel would come back to them in one piece. Or more specifically, back to him in one piece.

….

The battlefield had gone silent, again, Rachel noticed. And not without reason, either; Grandfather was still angry.

Oh sure, he didn't look angry. After all, that recognizable smirk still grazed his face. But for some reason, she could tell that he was keeping his temper at bay. As if he may erupt in a fit of anger any second, now, but was choosing to restrain his outburst. Probably for the purpose of taking her out, himself.

"You are quite resistant, My Dear," Grandfather commented. "But perhaps I can give you once last chance for deliverance."

And just like a chivalrous gentlemen, he held out his hand to her.

"I promise it won't hurt," he politely replied while a sinister smile adorned his face.

"Okay," she answered. "But if that's what you really want, then you'll have to kill me, first."

And as a smirk adorned her face, Rachel watched as her elderly foe began twitching in anger, looking like the blood vessels in his head were going to burst in a matter of seconds. Instead, he breathed in a deep, disappointed sigh and looked up to face her, yet again.

"Very well, then. It seems I have no choice, now," the demonic man stated. "I did not want to resort to brute force with you."

"That's a lie, isn't it?" she asked.

"Consider it a loophole," the old man answered while an evil smirk formed on his face.

He held out his hand, again, to form a small fireball. The fireball then took the form of a sword handle, and a guard. The satanic man then grabbed the handle with his other hand and pulled it upward as a long, fire blade emerged from his palm.

When the tip of the blade finally came out of his hand, the fire surrounding his sword dispersed, revealing the objects true form.

The blade was a darker shade of grey compared to his opponent's staff, and the handle itself was black and adorned with a gorgeous, looking ruby. And the handle? It took the shape of a malicious, scaly snake with its poisonous teeth and tongue sticking out.

Needless to say, Rachel was quite stunned by what her opponent quite literally whipped up with his hand.

And Grandfather? Well, that same, cocky grin was plastered on his face while he pointed said sword at the little girl.

"Sword play?" she asked.

"Of course," he replied. "Surely, you're not afraid to match your little staff with my swordsmanship, are you?'

Rachel didn't know what to say, at first. She was still a little stunned, to be sure. But that

didn't last long, though. After giving it some thought, the young blonde returned to her usual, stern composure.

"I'll give it a try. It shouldn't be too hard," the young blonde replied.

"That's what I thought," he replied. "But don't get too cocky. I was voted Britain's greatest fencer for several years running."

"Were your colleagues allowed to vote, or did you just brainwash them into voting for

you?" she asked, sarcastically.

The old man, on the other hand, cringed with anger.

"I don't use my powers for EVERYTHING, you know!" he growled.

"Whatever you say," she casually replied.

With a twirl of her staff, Rachel now had her boxing glove aimed right at her elderly foe, and a determined grimace on her face.

Then both she and Grandfather began staring each other down, first walking closer, then sprinting towards the other until their weapons clashed.

Both opponents wrestled over their lock for a second or two, until Rachel broke free and began attacking Grandfather's blade directly with the steel of her staff. Even so, he continued to block her every attempt to strike at him.

The young blonde could see this strategy wasn't working, so she went for her next move and sent a round house kick to her opponent's wrist, aiming to knock the sword out of his hand. But the satanic demon was much faster than her as he moved away from the little girl, much to her surprise. So much, in fact, she nearly lost her balance as her foot kicked the air and clumsily fell to the ground.

With an amused chuckle, the old man twirled the sword in his hand for a moment, or two, before he aimed the blade in her direction. He then lunged towards the young girl, ready to strike her forehead.

Rachel yelped before dodging the blade, but that wasn't the end of it. He kept aiming for her forehead, and she kept moving her head from left to right in a vain attempt to keep herself from being stabbed.

"Well, your skills are impressive. I'll give you that," Rachel managed to get out while she kept dodging the sharp object.

"But, of course; I graduated at the top of my class," he proudly proclaimed. "I do find it odd, though; I haven't fenced in quite some time, and yet you seem even rustier than I do."

Rachel shot him a death glare.

"Oh, really?" she asked him before ducking down to dodge his next strike.

This surprised Grandfather, but not as much as the unexpected kick she sent to his stomach, making him bend over in pain for a brief moment.

"Tell me, did that feel rusty, to you?" she asked.

He looked up to see the smug looking Rachel.

"Well…Perhaps you're a lot more diligent than I gave you credit for," Grandfather commented as he stood himself up again.

A scant second later, though, that they went back to clashing their weapons against each other. They even locked "blades" again, and stared the other down, intensely.

"Still, I am disappointed," he admitted, confusing the young girl as he went to strike her again. "You are a being of high intelligence and skill, and yet you stay locked in your childish pursuits, never to know the true horror of what you brats would consider a game."

"I know this is no longer a game!" she sternly replied. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be risking my own life if I didn't."

"I doubt that," he said. "You're still intent on saving your whiny excuse for an age bracket, as if you actually stand a chance of defeating me."

"If Numbuh 0 could find a way to defeat you, so can I!" the young girl declared.

"Don't forget; you are NOTHING compared to my son!" he reminded her. "And there is no comparing me to little Ben."

With a quick slash of his sword, he sliced open her left shoulder, making her yelp in the process. Rachel held her wound tightly, for a second. She winced for a second, but knew she had no time for such luxuries. For the rest of the time, she ignored the pain in her shoulder, and stood up to face her old foe, once more.

"So? Who cares about that!?" she declared. "I'm not Numbuh 0, and I never will be! I'll find a way to beat you on my own!"

That fierce, relentless fire shawn brightly in her chocolate eyes, once again. And in all honesty, it only made the old man even angrier than he'd been before.

"Foolish Child!" Grandfather growled as he threw his sword up once more.

Tightly gripping her staff in both hands, Rachel ran towards her opponent until they were close enough to clash their weapons again in a fierce, even more intense dance of swordplay.

"You really think you have what it takes to beat me?" he asked.

"I just said so, didn't I? Odds are pretty good the answer is yes," the girl replied.

"You still think that after everything you've been through?" the old man asked.

Confused, the young blonde looked up from her weapon to face him.

"Whether you'd like to admit it or not, your mind is changing; though it was brief, you considered my offer from earlier," he pointed out

"That doesn't mean anything!" she retorted.

"Really? You nearly let yourself be swept away by your beloved, didn't you?" he asked.

Rachel's eyes widened when she heard that, she even let out a gasp. And in her shocked state, she barely noticed the smirk on Grandfather's face as he grabbed her wrist and yanked her closer towards him.

And while this surprised Rachel, it didn't faze her enough that she couldn't see a black fist coming her way. She quickly pulled up her staff to block the punch as she kept herself away from the demonic man.

Once the young girl (gracefully) landed to the ground, she turned around in time to see a set of eye beams closing in on her, and fast. Rachel started twirling her staff as fast as she could, turning her trusty weapon into a shield, of sorts, to protect her from the flames.

Unfortunately, not only did the flames becomes stronger, their intensity grew with every passing second. She did her best at standing her ground against the increasingly powerful beams, but it was no use. Pretty soon, the flames threw her back to the ground while she let out a frightful scream.

Now, Rachel found herself collapsed on the dead ground. She felt weak, her muscles were sore, and she couldn't help but moan in continual pain whenever she moved.

And Grandfather? Why the demonic old man merely let out a hearty, evil laugh as he watched his opponent's continual suffering.

"Oh, My Dear. If that's your best, I'd hate to see you at your worst," he said mockingly, continuing to laugh evilly in her wake.

Rachel, meanwhile, chose to ignore him as she sat herself up on her knees; she was too busy trying to figure out a good counterattack. But what could she try, exactly? She'd already employed every trick in her arsenal, and weapons were useless against him. What could she use

that he wouldn't be expecting?

Then, she took a passing glance at her cursed hand and something clicked inside her head. Something she could use, something she should have thought of earlier.

Grandfather said it, himself, earlier; a Citizombie was far more strong and agile, physically, than any kid, much less a normal human being. And she certainly felt an increased surge of strength in her infected arm. It was perfect.

With that in mind, Rachel raised her staff and used it as a crutch to slowly pull herself back up onto her feet, much to the amusement of the foe right in front of her.

"Well, look at you; all straightened up, and ready to fight," Grandfather commented. "And here I was, believing that were determining the words to your surrender."

"Haven't you figured it out yet? I never back down from a fight…not until I'm beaten," she replied as a confident smile formed on her face.

Having said her piece, the young girl ran towards her opponent while letting out a fierce, battle cry. Grandfather didn't think much of it, however. He continued smirking as he held his sword up, ready to attack, if necessary.

The instant Rachel was only a few feet away from him, that was when things took a turn for the strange. Instead of using her weapon to try and strike him, she planted it into the ground, making his eyes widen with surprise.

Using her staff as a pole vault, the young girl flew up into the air, and curled her cursed hand into a fist. And the second she came close to him, she punched him so hard in the face that sent him flying into the air.

Colliding with the ground, the satanic demon finally felt his body cease to move, continuing to wince at the slight pain he felt surging throughout multiples parts of his lanky body.

Upon opening his demonic looking eyes, he came to find Rachel standing on top of him; the Yield part of her staff held tightly against his throat while a stern yet authoritative look adorned her face, one which Grandfather could not help but stare in utter disbelief.

Now, you'd think that the more smug part of Rachel would actually be gloating with satisfaction at her enemy's demise, but you would be mistaken.

Wanting to get this over with, she raised her staff high above his head, and aimed the punching bag right for his chest.

"Have a nice trip," she said, quickly.

But before she could, the young blonde dropped her staff and began twitching

uncomfortably, something the old man took note of. Of course, Rachel didn't have time to notice this little detail while she grit her teeth. It was the only thing to keep herself from screaming her head off from the unbearable pain.

It was only when she collapsed to her knees and opened her eyes that she noticed something very familiar; a slimy, toxic green glow. And to make matters worse, it was slowly working its way across her torso, and towards her left arm. Realizing what was happening made the young girls' eyes widen in horror. She did her best to resist the transformation, but it was hopeless; there was simply nothing else she could do.

Not surprisingly, the sight of her pain and anguish was pleasing to Grandfather. Why, another creepy smile even managed to slither onto his old face as he picked himself up to float

over his little Herald, once more.

"Well, it looks like the curse it finally beginning to take full affect like I had hoped it would," the satanic demon commented.

"What do you mean?" asked Rachel.

She groaned in pain once again, much to his amusement.

"You're still afraid, aren't you?" he asked. "You've been trying so hard ever since you got here to be brave and fearless, pretending that you have a chance at defeating me. And yet, your fear of failure is still imminent…and you know it."

She stared at him in stunned silence.

"But…But I beat you fair and square!" she pointed out.

"True. But even if you were to banish me, you still have no idea how to break the spell I've cast on you," he explained. "The curse knows this, and now that you have enough fear built up inside you, you'll become nothing more than my wilted puppet."

Rachel stared frightfully into those gold eyes of his, but instead of seeing the satisfactory look of a villain who had gotten his way, all she could see was her own reflection. Her own fearful, terrified reflection as her breathing became quick, heavy, and uneven.

All that work, all that time spent trying to actively banish this God like being from her mind, resisting his increasingly pleasing offers for self-improvement, and she'd failed. In her attempts to gain control once again, she'd forgotten to even consider what would break the curse on her. Was this really the end for her?

"No…," she whispered. "No! I refuse to believe that! NO!"

Her screams were no use. The transformation was still there, slowly working its way up her body. Even worse, the more she struggled, the more painful it became.

…..

Things weren't any better back in the real world, either; whatever was happening to Rachel's conscious in her dreamworld was beginning to take a physical toll on her body, as well.

She screamed in agony, her body twitched and spazed every which way, like she was having a seizure, or something. This would've been bad enough, but this wasn't be the end of it. No, to make matters worse, her tiny body was being consumed by the silky, green glow of the Citizombie.

Patton stood there, silent, his eyes reflected fear. It was happening again. And this time, she appeared to be struggling even harder to resist the turn. It wasn't much, but it was a sure sign to

him that Rachel was still in there, somewhere. Still fighting. So Patton did the only thing he could do; he grasped her hand again, and prayed (more like begged) that she'd pull through.

His comrades reactions, however, didn't seem to share his optimism. Nigel, in particular, had that same, stoic look that usually grazed his face, as if he were planning something, something he knew none of them would want to do; they would have to abandon their leader.

Sure, she was suffering. But the curse was consuming her body, and it showed no sign of stopping. If they were going to flee with the Book in safe hands, now was as good a time as any. It's what she'd want them to do.

Luckily, Abigail's thoughts weren't too far off from his.

"We gotta get out of here, Boss!" yelled Abigail.

"Right!" he replied. "Numbuh 2, grab the book!"

"Roger that!" Hoagie replied.

Not wasting any time, he scooped up the Book of KND into his skinny arms and backed away from Rachel as fast as he could. It wasn't long before he ran for the door, the rest of his Sector following suit.

"Two-Seventy-Three, you stay here and keep her at bay if she wakes up!" Nigel commanded.

"Got it!" retorted Alex.

"Wait! Aren't you gonna need back-up?" Abigail asked.

"I'll be fine, just go!" her mutant friend replied.

With that understanding in mind, the motherly girl gave her friend a wink and left the room. Nigel was right behind her, until he noticed something.

It was Patton; he was still kneeling by Rachel's bed, his hands were still wrapped (tightly) around her uninfected hand, even with the zombification moving towards it. Seeing this, the boy ran back towards his friend and grabbed hold of his gloved hands, snapping the raven haired boy out of his prayers.

"Numbuh 60, we have to go!" he cried.

"No! I'm not leaving!" the Drill Sergeant cried back.

"You don't have a choice! Now let go!" Nigel cried.

"No!" he screamed. "A good soldier never leaves a man behind!"

"She might not BE one of us anymore, Patton! Now let go!" he ordered.

"No!" the raven haired boy cried back.

"Patton!…Let…Go!" Nigel screamed as he finally loosened Patton's grip on Rachel's hand right before the green glow absorbed it.

That was the easy part. But now Nigel had something even worse to contend with; a screaming, hysterical Patton fighting him every step of the way out into the corridor.

Sure, the Brit had a firm grip on his friends' torso, but that was easier said than done. Especially when he had to contend with someone who was struggling to break free, fighting him every step of the way out into the corridor.

"No! No, Rachel! RACHEL!" he screamed

"Patton, there's nothing we can do, right now!" his friend screamed back.

"NO! I won't let her die!" the boy screamed at the top of his lungs.

He tried desperately to fight back, doing his absolute best as he grabbed his comrade's hands and tried to pull them apart, but Nigel's own strength kept him at bay. At least, temporarily. After awhile, Patton's strength became so overwhelming it was actually starting to loosen the grip the British boy had over him.

And in all honesty, Nigel didn't know what to do at this point; he'd seen the young Drill Sergeant hysterical, before, but nothing like this. This was desperation on Patton's part; he was so determined to stay that it seemed like nothing could stop him.

In fact, what finally got Patton to stop was Alex sucker punching him in the stomach. It didn't render him unconscious, per say, but it certainly got the job done; now the young boy was bent over, wincing in pain.

"Thanks, Two-Seventy-Three," said Nigel.

"You can thank me, later," she replied. "Now get out of here!"

The boy didn't have to say anything, he simply nodded his head in agreement and dragged his fellow comrade out of the office.

When he was gone, Alex turned to face her friend regrettably before her eyes turned a menacing shade of pink.

"Gomen ne, Rachel-san," the girl said while she held out her hand.

Pretty soon, it became wrapped in pink, telekinetic energy, just in case.

….

Things hadn't improved over in Rachel's dreamworld, either. By now, the curse had succeeded in absorbing most of her upper body, and was (now) starting to work its way down to

her waist.

Her will was still continuing to hold out, but something was different. Now, she was on the ground and groaning. As if she were barely holding on at this point.

Needless to say, Grandfather was quite pleased with the results. Not only was his feisty little opponent close to becoming his minion, but she was suffering. A sight so delightful, it brought a smile to his face.

"Your resistance is impressive, but pointless," Grandfather sinisterly said. "Within minutes, the person you are will cease to exist, and you will become mine to own."

"Never!" she weakly said, trying her best to remain strong despite the pain she was in.

Her response only made him laugh in amusement.

"Do not say such foolish things, child," he replied. "You know that resistance is futile, now. No matter what you do, you'll only be delaying the inevitable."

She held her head up weakly to face him.

"But this isn't what I want," she replied.

"You don't really have a choice, anymore, My Dear," the old man declared. "You're going to be a Citizombie, and like it!"

Upon opening her chocolate brown eyes again, the young blonde saw Grandfather making his way towards her at demon speed, and an evil smirk adorned his old face.

Seeing this, Rachel slowly rose to her knees; even if time wasn't on her side, she still felt like looking presentable.

But that's just it, she realized; time wasn't on her side, anymore. Her fate was already sealed, so to speak. So why?

"Why am I still fighting?" Rachel asked herself.

Her eyes glazed over and she kept staring at the ground, completely lost in thought now.

"I've already lost…," she thought to herself. "Everyone's going to suffer because of me…I'm going to suffer..."

She could see her hand quiver at the thought. Though really, how could she not? All she could think of were the people she'd let down, how she let herself down.

"Maybe I should just give up," she continued. "Maybe things would be better if I was perfect."

Even as she thought that, a small, visible tear ran down her face.

"You know who you are…You're stronger than this…"

Her eyes flashed with surprise; there was Patton's voice, again. Was he really here? Not likely. Was she going mad with grief? Probably. But this words, that got her attention; "You know who you are."

"Do I really?" she asked herself.

She thought about it for a bit. It didn't seem that way, at first. But the more she reflected on her experiences from the past few days, the more it made sense to her.

"Of course," she thought as she slowly stood on her feet."I know who I am…I know why I came here."

And with that in mind, the young girl closed her eyes and held out her arms to her on coming foe, as if to say "come and get me."

A mere second later, she felt his old hand tightly grip her neck, completing the transformation with a quick, blinding flash of light.

…..

Back in Rachel's office, Alex was staring at her friend in horrified silence. Gone was the adorable, petite figure of a young, twelve year old girl, and in its place was that of an old, disgusting hag.

Thankfully, she wasn't awake at this time. But now, it required all the mental preparation the mutant girl had to hold back the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She bit down (hard) on her lip, and aimed her hand wrapped in pink, telekinetic energy with a cold stare to match.

The rest of Sector V's reactions weren't anything different from hers. If anything, they stood by the open door, frozen in terror while staring at the transformed body of their treasured friend and leader.

And Patton's reaction? He couldn't continually stare in awe as his comrades did. Instead, the boy tore his head away from the room, and allowed the tears forming in his eyes to start flowing. He kept his wails quiet, but how could he possibly not scream in agony as his he felt his own heart breaking?

Rachel McKenzie, his Rachel, was gone.

Or was she?

…..

The bright light that once engulfed the battlefield had dispersed, and in its place was a dark, foreboding silence.

And Grandfather? Why, a triumphant smile adorned his face as he released her neck from his grip, ready to face his new (and permanent) minion.

And yet, something still felt off to him. Her physical being was transformed, but something was off about her eyes.

They weren't pale yellow, as they had been the last time. No. Her eyes remained that same, bright chocolate eye colour they always were. And if that wasn't bad enough, her eyes had that same passionate, determined flame to them. A flame which burned brightly, and was staring him down.

Grandfather's expression said it all; the moment he saw that passionate fire in her eyes that bore itself into his own, darkened soul, his sinister smile faded from his face.

"What?" the old villain asked as he back away from the girl. "But…But how can this be? How could you possibly-"

"Because this is my dream! My mind!" she replied. "And I don't want to become like you!"

Hearing that, his eyes widened in pure shock. She couldn't have possibly discovered the

curse's weakness, could she?

"Now let tell you something, "Master"," Rachel began. " I am not your puppet."

Grandfather continued floating there in stunned silence, not sure of what to do. And for some reason, his old ears were picking up the sound of breaking glass. Curious, he turned his head to see a small, yet noticeable crack in the sky, much to his surprise.

"I am not your slave, I am not your object, and most importantly, I am not your possession," the young girl declared.

Unbeknownst to either party, the crack got bigger.

"You're wrong to think that you can conform people to your standards for your own selfish desires. And you're wrong to think you can change me, because I know who I am!" she declared.

"My friends, my loved ones, my passions and beliefs, even my reasons for fighting adult tyranny, they're all a part of my identity! As Numbuh 362, AND Rachel McKenzie!"

Now Grandfather was horrified; slowly, yet surely, the cracks in the sky were growing, and much faster than he anticipated.

"This is my life, not yours! I decide what I do and don't do, not you!" she continued. "And do you know why!?"

"No…No, don't say it!" Grandfather replied while he covered his ears.

"Because you have no power over me!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

And with that one sentence, Rachel had severed the strings of his control; she was free. In turn, her body slowly returned to its normal, twelve year old form.

Grandfather, on the other hand, was completely distraught. As soon as he heard that sentence, the demonic man screamed and tugged at his hair. He could literally feel himself cracking up, along with his vision of tranquility.

With one swift pitch, both Grandfather, and the desolate dreamland broke into shiny pieces of glass and shattered as they fell to the ground.

Once again, Rachel was free to gaze upon the field of lush flowers, deep blue sky, and fluffy clouds that was her dream realm. Her true ideal of tranquility.

Now, the young blonde felt tired. She was panting heavily, and she could feel her eyelids were dropping shut from drowsiness.

Well, there was no arguing with that. And besides; she just had a huge victory, the least she deserved was a little nap.

So, the little girl collapsed into the lush field of lilac flowers, letting out a happy, relieved sigh before she let her eyes droop shut.

A few moments later, Rachel found herself waking up, again. There was just one, slight difference, she observed; she was no longer surrounded by fields of freshly grown flora.

Now, she was back in her dimly lit office. Wearing the same old, tiger striped sweater she always wore, and her right arm was (noticeably) back to normal.

Seeing this, Rachel breathed a sigh of relief. Well, until something else caught her attention, anyway; the Book of KND was no longer in her arms.

"That's odd. Where did it go?" she asked herself. Her mind began racing, analyzing every plausible explanation (she could think of) for what happened to it.

"Maybe it fell out of my-"

"Welcome back, Rachel."

Upon hearing those familiar set of voices, she turned around to find a special surprise awaiting her; it was Sector V, and Patton. They were all sitting at her bedside, and all of them appeared to be on the verge of tears despite the smiles plastered on their faces.

"Guys…you've been waiting for me this whole time, haven't you?" she asked.

Then her eyes caught something, it was Patton. His cheeks were red, and his eyes were puffy, like he'd been crying for quite some time. In fact, he seemed like he would burst into tears any second now.

Seeing this made Rachel's eyes light up with concern, and her heart break. She scooted closer to him, ready to place a hand on his shoulder.

"Patton, what's wrong?"

But the Drill Sergeant said nothing. In fact, he surprised the young girl by embracing her in a tight, loving hug.

"Welcome back, Rachel…,"the young boy whispered to the surprised looking girl.

It didn't take long before she melted into his warm embrace and hugged him back, happy to see him, most of all.

Unbeknownst to either of them, Nigel and friends were staring at the couple, and looking quite happy for them. Well, expect for Wally; he was pretending to gag.

"Thank you, Patton…," Rachel said softly as she continued to embrace Patton.

Be it ever so humble, she was glad to be home; surrounded by her friends and her beloved Drill Sergeant.

End Chap. 11