Chapter 40

"Today, we are doing something a little different…."

Dr Zan stood content next to his self-made device as he typed into the blue holographic keyboard in front of the Central Unit. It connected to the various headsets around the room that circled the device. The simulator had taken the doctor and Floyd a few days to set up again, but finally, the program was wired and running with a few new modifications.

Yesterday some of the members of the team practised a couple of individual run throughs on the simulator. For the likes of Sammy and Axel, it took some convincing at first to persuade them to use it as a training tool, but once they gave it a try, it was easy to recognise the benefits of the invention that Zan had carefully created.

"Not only have we updated the environments you will face, but this training on this will ensure your reflexes, decision making skills and team strategies are up to scratch!" Floyd briefed the group.

"Alright, let's get started!" Adam ordered, keen to see what was new.

Whilst the group walked forward to take their seats in each simulation chair, Zan unexpectedly halted them.

"No, wait!"

"What is it?" Adam turned to the doctor, puzzled.

"I have a suggestion if I may?" He asked, gently running his thumb and index finger through his long white beard. Zan understood that Adam and Blaze were in charge of the training regime the rest of the group were doing, but he had a different idea for today.

"Okay," Adam nodded back.

"Do you all remember the board I wrote displaying all of your weaknesses?"

"Who could forget?" Blaze rolled her eyes, muttering with annoyance under her breath.

Zan ignored her as he continued. "Well, today's exercise on the simulator is designed to expose those weaknesses and to overcome them by using another person's strengths…"

"What does that even mean?" Cherry queried.

"It means, I'm pairing you together today to each take turns on the simulator to see how far you can get. Not only will it be your job to survive and protect yourself, but you must also intervene and protect your partner against the enemy when you recognise their weakness, even if they can't see what that is. Understood?"

"Yeah," the teenager nodded with optimism.

Zan then gestured over towards the large monitor setup on the wall. "The rest of you will watch and analyse everything the pair do as a team whilst they are under simulation."

Zan then handed two headsets to Floyd and Cherry, "you two are first pair," he insisted.

Both of them enthusiastically took to the exercise at hand as the remainder of the group watched them fight a tough cohort of enemies. This included Mr X himself, Jet and an array of robots throughout different levels. Zan had specifically chosen these enemies for the pair to fight as they were the only two in the group who had never come across them before. This helped the rest of the team understand how these two fighters adapted against their own former enemies and the types of decisions they were making in comparison to how they had fought in the past.

The rest of the group stood there for a good 30 minutes, encouraging Floyd and Cherry whilst giving the two of them pointers. Floyd and Cherry could barely hear them though and their brains and senses were now oblivious to the real world around them.

"I can see why he's paired them together," Shiva remarked to Blaze standing next to him.

"Yeah. She has agility and he has strength. They make a good team of fighters and can easily ambush an enemy with those traits."

"Agreed".

The pair made it through 18 levels before they were killed on the simulator.

"Well done Cherry! You did good!" Adam smiled at his daughter as she removed her headset. Her and Floyd appeared worn out and slightly dazed from the simulation.

"So, what feedback do you have then for your teammates?" Zan probed the rest of the group.

Axel was the first to answer. "Cherry, you need to trust yourself more and have more trust in your partner. I know you two haven't fought together before, but Floyd is like a killing machine. You can outrun any enemy and lead them his way. Floyd, you have to make the most of your power from here on…"

The others agreed. The pair needed more experience fighting together along with strategies to make the most of the skills, combining Floyd's power and strength with Cherry's speed and agility.

"Good, next pair now." Zan then handed the two headsets over to Max and Sammy.

"I'm guessing you put us two together for the same reason?... Am I right?" Sammy asked, irritated as he took his seat.

"Not exactly," Zan answered.

"Let's go then! You and I are already used to fighting together, big man!" The skateboarder impatiently gestured to Max to take his seat.

This time, instead of facing old enemies, the two faced new challenges on the simulator. This included the likes of entities similar to Diva, Mr Y and Sugar. But, unlike the last pair, this time they were failing to work efficiently as a team. Sammy had started over confident, but as time lapsed, he became unsure and concerned as to what role Max was playing.

The wrestler appeared tireder than usual, deflated and much slower in his approach.

"Think somethings wrong?" Blaze asked Floyd.

"I don't know…"

Adam replied, "I know my brother can be an arrogant little shit at times, but he's still fighting his strengths and doing most of the work here! What the hell is Thunder doing?!"

"Shit! What the fuck is wrong with you man?!" Sammy finally lost his patience with Max after dying on the simulator on the 7th round, where the situation they were in could have been avoided.

"Sorry, I err…." the wrestler removed his headset, dazed and confused.

"Hey, are you ok?" Sammy asked, feeling concerned.

Max heavily breathed "I got a really bad headache,"

"Go and get some rest." Blaze ordered.

"Ok," Max sheepishly nodded before leaving the group.

"Great, can I get another go then?" Sammy asked.

Adam sternly answered. "No! Almost a week ago, you didn't even wanna try this thing. Besides, you're not fighting this time on the streets with us!"

"Yeah but what if the Syndicate finds us here with Kaiden and Mira?"

"He has a point…" Blaze argued.

Eventually, Sammy swallowed his pride and handed his headset back to Zan.

Blaze confidently turned to Shiva standing next to her. "Ready partner? We got this!" She smiled as the two of them fist pumped. To their disappointment however, Zan only passed one of the headsets onto Shiva, walking past Blaze then giving the other one to Adam.

"Great!" Adam sarcastically huffed.

"You two need to learn to fight side by side now. You said you placed your differences aside and are ready to work together. Now is your chance to prove it."

The two former enemies gave each other a polite nod before each of them took to the simulator.

This time however, they were pitted against holograms of their teammates in the room as well as a mixture of former and brand new enemies who were now part of the Syndicate.

Surprisingly however, Shiva and Adam took to the exercise better than the others expected. It was only a week ago when the two of them were fighting in the street against one other, yet now they were beginning to look like a team. What was great was that they were both balanced as fighters in terms of strength, speed and power and they had completely different techniques that complemented each other.

This felt exciting for the others in the room to watch and to finally witness these two men fighting side by side. They made it through a staggering 60 rounds until they were beaten, surpassing any record held so far on the simulator.

"Nice work man!" Adam held one hand out.

"Thanks, you too!" Shiva smiled. Instead of shaking his hand, he reached out to hug him. During that moment, the two fighters felt proud at how far they had come during the past hour. They were both in a sweat, exhausted, but happy.

"That was sick, daddy!" Cherry shouted with excitement.

"I still got it, you know!" He winked back.

Zan nodded with approval, also impressed by the pair. "On the contrary, you're an even better fighter than you used to be. That goes for both of you!" He continued. "So, what advice would you give to your teammates here?"

Blaze turned towards Shiva first. "That was really something! But I know you got more power stored up! Why are you afraid to use it and unlock your full potential? I've seen it, so don't hold back on your enemies…"

Shiva briefly glanced with guilt towards Adam's direction. "I guess, I'm still walking on eggshells a bit. But today was a better day and we both achieved something."

"I agree. And I don't want you to be afraid or wary if one of us walks in your cross fire. We can each handle ourselves, so don't hold back next time!" Adam advised.

"And what advice would you give to your oldest friend here?" Zan probed Axel.

"You need to let go, take more risks and trust him. I know Shiva is our old enemy, but he's an honourable fighter and he's changed. You're also holding back too, Adam. Both of you could have made it at least 10 rounds further and faster than you did."

"Alright, point taken." Adam agreed. "Now let's see how far you two can get then?" He challenged Axel, handing over his headset to him for the final round. "The pair that loses are on breakfast duty and dishes tomorrow." Adam confidently smirked, displaying shades of his light hearted competitive side.

"Are you sure you wanna do this? I never lose, Hunter!" Blaze confidently grinned at her old colleague as she took Shiva's headset.

"This is gonna be worth watching…" Sammy nudged Cherry as they stood back, blissfully observing the others.

Up until this point, each pair had given one another a pep talk before taking to the simulator. Whether that was words of encouragement as Floyd and Cherry had, or establishing boundaries like Adam and Shiva did.

But Blaze and Axel said nothing to one another, they just simply nodded at each other before tackling the challenge at hand.

With ease and with minimal injury, the pair of fighters battled through several rounds against both old and new enemies on the simulator. Even though Axel and Blaze had developed more fighting skills and techniques over the years, they still had a deep understanding of each other's strengths and weaknesses. It was inspiring for the others to watch, witnessing the couple thriving as a team of equal fighters. When one person was down, the other quickly resolved the situation. Blaze used her strengths with her pace and agility to speed up the fight when the enemies tried to avoid them, whilst Axel weakened them using his strength and power in his moves. Their use of weaponry was also something that inspired the rest of their team, where they both had experience in combinations and even knowing when to exchange their weapons with one another when it was needed. This was before they had even addressed the matter of their own powers.

By round 70, Blaze's stubbornness not to lose or give up had kept them going at the worst of times, whilst Axel's anticipation and calculation of the enemy led to good decision making amongst the pair. The pair were thriving as fighters and were unstoppable. At this stage in the simulation, they were more than outnumbered and both fighters knew that now was the time to unleash their powers in order to survive. Without communicating with words, they both read the situation and took a deep, sharp breath.

Even though the others could see what was happening on the screen, in their chairs, Axel and Blaze had their fists tightly clenched. Their heart rate had now increased and the energy around each of them felt like an intense vortex.

Finally, the two of them released a deadly mixture of fire and electricity that obliterated every single enemy on the monitor.

"Daammmm…!" Floyd watched what was unfolding on the simulator in awe.

Suddenly, the whole screen went a bright white colour. Then came a static grey and white background where the signal was no longer coming out. Zan's masterpiece had crashed and the pair of fighters had won against the machine.

"What's going' on?" Adam shrugged at Floyd, waiting patiently for an answer.

"There are only 80 rounds so far. The doc and I are in the process of adding more…"

By then, Zan had run over to the central unit which was now emitting black smoke. "It's ok, just a technicality that can be fixed…" the doctor calmly addressed their concerns.

"What happened?" Axel was the first to take off his headset, slightly confused and disappointed to not get to finish the fight. All he could see under the headset were the enemies they were battling standing around frozen. By now, they had been on the simulator for almost 2 hours and had lost track of the number of rounds or enemies they had fought.

"Looks like you two lasted all the rounds…" Cherry commented.

Axel quickly jumped out of his seat then ran over to Blaze, carefully removing her headset.

"What happened just now?" She asked him confused. She felt slightly dazed as her brain adjusted back to the reality around her.

"We busted the simulator!"

"Are you serious?" Blaze looked up at him surprised, before she started to form a proud smirk on her face.

"Yep! Take a look…" He pointed over towards the glass pyramid emitting smoke at the centre of the room.

"Shitttt! How many rounds did we get through?"

"79!" Axel excitedly grinned.

"Whaaaat?! That's amazing!" Blaze instantly jumped up out of her seat, elated as she threw her arms around him.

"I know! Well done partner!" Axel smiled hard from ear to ear, hugging her close to the point where he was lifting her slightly off the ground whilst they celebrated their victory together. It was a happy moment between the two of them and an exciting one that they hadn't had in a long time.

"And that is how the rest of you should aim to fight as a team!" Zan instructed.

"That was pretty impressive, I have to say," Floyd nodded.

"Yeah! I havn't seen those two fight like that in a long time," Adam replied.

Axel and Blaze gradually pulled away from each other, still smiling at one another.

"I have to admit, you've gotten better with age", he winked at her.

"You're not so bad yourself, old guy!" Blaze teased.

"Do you think he's talking about her fighting skills?" Floyd quietly whispered to Sammy.

"Hell no!" The skater laughed.

Unexpectedly, their happy ending to training was interrupted when Amira ran through the door. She had worry and fear painted all over her face.

"What's wrong?" Blaze calmly asked her sister, taking her hand.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your training, but there's been an emergency. You need to turn on the news channel right now!"

The group glanced at each other with concern as Adam switched on the small TV monitor hanging down from one of the corners of the ceiling.

On it was the evening bulletin, full of red alerts with Breaking News emerging from Wood Oak City.

Several bombs had detonated during the past two hours in each district of the city including the harbour, the beach, the old theme park and City Hall. And now, to make matters worse, Wood Oak Central Hospital was now under siege.

The next person to appear on the screen was an all too familiar presence to the group.

"Officer Murphy, what can you tell us about the on-going situation at Wood Oak City Hospital and the bombings that have taken place tonight across the city?" A reporter held a microphone close to Tim's face.

He immediately spoke, giving the camera his full focus and eye contact. "I can tell you that these explosions were no accident and the situation at Wood Oak City Hospital is severe. The group of vigilantes responsible for these attacks must come forward and face the consequences of what they have done!"

"Officer Murphy, are you referring to the officers who were previously part of your precinct, who saved this city on three previous occasions?"

"Yes." He bluntly answered. "My own officers have released photographs and information regarding this team of vigilantes. They are highly dangerous and must not be approached. If a member of the public sees any one of them, you must report their whereabouts to the police immediately!"

"Shit, they're trying to frame us!" Floyd shook his head, perplexed.

"They can try their best, but the city still remembers everything we all did to save it!" Adam replied.

"You don't know Murphy like I do. He might not be as great of a fighter as us, but he's still dangerous and will go to any lengths to get what he wants." Blaze answered with worry in her tone. Her and Axel briefly exchanged worried glances as they continued to listen to the briefing.

"We don't have much time and we do not have the power or knowledge to disarm these bombs or any others that might be hidden around the city as we speak. The authorities are trying their best, but unless these vigilantes come forward, the situation may be beyond our control. There are no other places near enough to move the most vulnerable patients at the hospital and we are running out of time. I urge those responsible to come forward and help us to avoid any more blood shed."

"This is crazy!" Cherry tightly clenched her fists, expressing her anger.

"And what do you urge the public to do at this time, Officer Murphy?"

"Stay home and avoid the streets. Keep your televisions and radios on so that you can hear updates throughout the night. God help Wood Oak City!"

Tim then abruptly ended the interview, holding up one hand before walking away from the reporter.

"Radios? TV's? They got every fucking station now under their control and I know what they're planning to do! I should have seen this coming!" Adam was the next person to vent his anger.

"Do you think we're all ready to return back home?" Floyd asked him.

"I don't think we have a choice right now!" Adam shook his head. "I'll call the old Chief to ready the chopper on standby. Apart from Sammy, Zan, Kaiden and Amira, the rest of you have half an hour to get yourselves and any supplies ready. Floyd, prepare any medical equipment you can find, Cherry go and tell Max the news and make sure he's ready! The rest of us will gather any weapons and fighting gear we can take with us."

"Wait, are you sure Max should come with us? He's sick!" Blaze replied.

"We need all the help we can get. I'll meet you all outside in 30 minutes."

Author's Note

So for those of you that love the DLC, this chapter is for you! I wanted to incorporate something different from it into this section of the story, right before a major chapter coming next. All I can promise is, ALOT will go down in the next chapter in terms of action and the fight (I don't want to give too much away), but I am already in the process of writing it.

At this point in the story, I wanted to write something that would reflect the dynamics of the group and the struggles and achievements they have working together. Hope you enjoyed this one!