*SCREAMS AND GUNFIRE*

"MAMAAA! MAAMAA!"

"SHIT! HE'S BEEN TORN OPEN!"

"MAN DOWN! MAN DOWN! WE NEED SUPPORT NOW! SOMEONE STITCH HIM UP! CORPSMAN!"

"HELP ME!"

-0300 HRS. Room 1027, Alex's room, Day 44, Two weeks later –

"No… No! NO!"

*Heavy Panting*

Alex woke up out of a nightmare, with his hand extended, as if he is reaching for someone in desperate need of saving. The look on his eyes, the way he gasps for air as if his lungs were completely crushed. As he starts to calm down, he lowers his head, burying it to his hands.

"God-damn it… another nightmare… Why do they scream at me? Why do they keep calling at me for help?! Th-They're gone! I'm still here!" He ranted. He got out of bed and went to the bathroom.

He looked at himself in the mirror, his stubble unshaven, the bandage still wrapped on his arm, eyes were red and puffy, but not just from waking up, he had this distinct look that carried so much pain and regret.

"It's been a few years since those incidents… The nightmares… One after another…" He said to himself as he looked at his reflection for a few minutes.

He sighed and removed the blood-soaked bandage, revealing only a healed wound. He growled as he felt another migraine engulfing his head. It made him dose a few more painkillers to numb the pain. He adds a refreshing shower.

After putting on the long-sleeved version of his uniform, he went to the balcony to catch at least a peaceful glimpse of the landscape, before grabbing his sidearm and leaving his room for a morning patrol.

-0445 HRS. Academy grounds-

Alex patrolled the school in and out for almost four to five times since he left his room. For him, it wasn't much of a big deal walking around an area for countless of times for hours on foot patrol—especially on graveyard shifts. As he starts another roam in and out the school, someone took notice and called his attention.

"You know you have class in about two hours." She said.

Alex was startled and quickly turned around with his gun in hand, only to have his sights aimed at Chifuyu. She was smirking, even if Alex had the business end of a .45 pointed at her.

"Am I under arrest, Officer?" She smirked.

He sighed deeply as he holsters his piece.

"…It's only you." He muttered.

"Damn it… God-fucking-damn it… Sensei, with all due respect, but don't startle me like that. The last thing I want to report is a homicide where you're the victim, and that's not gonna be a pretty sight." He said.

"Is that the way you speak to your teacher?" She jokingly asked.

"Sensei, I know you're my teacher and all. And evidently I couldn't say I outrank you, but at some aspects, I think I do. Mind that I'm not just your student. I'm a Police Officer. A public servant." He reasoned.

Chifuyu silently chuckled, while understanding Alex's reason. But in her thoughts, at some point Alex was right. Aside from the fact that he's her student, Alex Fields is a Police Officer. Two days before he came to the academy, she was surprised that one of her incoming students, specifically him, is a person behind the badge.

"Well then, Officer Fields. Is the morning patrol necessary at this time?" She asked as she approaches the officer.

"Yes. I need to make sure that nothing unusual is happening. If there was, it's my job to respond." He reasoned.

"There you are again. You've been doing this for almost a week. It's new for me to see you start your duties as a Police Officer so early. Usually you'd have a morning jog." Chifuyu sighed at his reason.

He sighed.

"Sensei… Haven't you heard of the commotion weeks ago? After Phantom Task's attack?" He asked.

"Hm?"

Alex was surprised that a commotion that had the IS involved couldn't be heard, it was in the open and in the dead of night!

"God-damn it… That night, after the investigation… Someone almost murdered your brother." Alex said, remembering the fight two and a half weeks ago. Chifuyu's smile started to fade to an angry expression.

"What?! How could someone—"

"Sensei, I know damn well you heard it. Attempted murder on Ichika Orimura two and a half weeks ago. Luckily Laura and I were there to stop the murderer from spilling Ichika's blood. You were with Laura a couple of days after that, so she must have told it to you first."

From that point on, her mood changed as she wasn't laughing.

"Sensei, what's been done is done. What matters is that he's still alive, and we're doing everything we can to nail these bastards down." He assured.

She paused for a few moments.

"So I've heard. You were right when you said that Bodewig reported this to me first. Tell me. Did you get any look on the suspect?" She asked.

"Not a full view. Her face was blocked because of her IS. The only description I could see is her petite build. Complexion kinda looked pale." He answered.

"What did her unit look like?" She asked.

"Purple, kinda looked like a butterfly. Lower base almost looked like Cecilia's Blue Tears. It was also the same IS unit that attacked the academy during the festival." Alex described the IS from the time the attacks happened.

Chifuyu was silent as she hears what Alex had to say. It took almost several seconds to let it sink in her mind. An attempt at Ichika's life. It was the last thing that she wanted to happen to her brother, but then again, no one in their right mind would want that to happen.

"Sensei, do you know anything about that IS?" Alex asked. She was still silent.

"You're not telling me something, are you? Sensei? Sensei!"

Chifuyu had that distinct look on her face. No one, if there are any, had seen this look on her face. It had this message of protecting Ichika with all she has got, but at the same time, she wanted to hurt Ichika's supposed-to-be-murderer, it made her wish that she'd never done the deed.

"Hey! Say something!" Alex called, trying to keep his voice low as to not wake up the whole academy. His teacher shifts her eyes on the concerned officer.

"It was a 3rd generation IS that was developed in England, named the Silent Zephyrs. Months ago it was stolen by a syndicate, Six SAS Operatives were killed. It was the fourth IS that they stole after the Silver Gospel." Chifuyu started.

"Huh… Before all of this, an incident like that happened just about a month ago, though no IS units were snatched. No K.I.A.s, but eight army rangers were wounded. Three of them are IS pilots… Something that Natasha's not telling me? After all, she's a pilot herself." He thought.

"About five months since the unit went missing, a British-American Joint Operation was commenced and as a result, they identified that Phantom Task were the ones who did the deed. Everything was supposed to be declassified after, but the news didn't spread throughout. They left no traces, as if the whole thing never happened at all." She narrated.

Alex wasn't surprised on what did he heard from Chifuyu. He was only surprised how she got that kind of information. Given the dangerous potential of the IS, such information like the one he heard is just too sensitive.

"So they swept the incident under the rug. How the hell did you get ahold on such Intel?" He asked.

Chifuyu smirked a bit. "You're talking to a Mondo Grosso Champion. I've known the IS Academy like the back of my hand. Other than that, I had clearance with such sensitive information relating with the IS. So you tell me, Fields." She answered.

"No wonder…"

"That aside, as I said before, they left no traces. I believe that is what they called "Clandestine Operations." There's another term for it…" She added.

"Black Ops."

"If you put it that way, yeah."

"A Black Ops operation, huh? I'm not surprised that they pull this kind of ops. Even the Alaska treaty can have a rotten underbelly for Clandestine Operations, I'll give you that much. But then again, there's nothing in this world that doesn't have an underbelly, let alone a rotten one." Alex said, crossing his arms.

He muttered in sheer disgust, emphasizing on how "Ironic" the cause of the treaty was.

No… "Ironic" didn't sound good.

"Hypocritical" seemed to fit the picture.

"…Restriction of the Infinite Stratos from Military Conflicts, my ass. No one couldn't say that they ain't hypocrites. Even I fall victim to it at some point. That aside, it's called Black Ops for a fucking reason." He added.

"…Go on." Said an intrigued Chifuyu.

"They go in, do the deed, they go out without a trace. It's all a secret until the brass renders it de-classified."

"And like all things, there's a downside to it." Chifuyu added.

"Bet your ass, it has. If they fuck up, no one knows, because the brass denied that they even exist and turn a blind eye. Take the British-American Op for instance. Even if they fuck up or not, they didn't want the news to spread. Either way if it leaks, it's gonna put the injured country on a disadvantageous position to rival countries, it'll be a heavy loss to their national defense, and if it escalates… Boom! World War Three."

Chifuyu's mood somehow soured at the last part.

"…Seems as though you've seen action yourself before your career as a policeman… and at such a young age too. Have you seen action before, Fields?" She guessed. She was surprised that a policeman such as Alex knows and had such knowledge and perspective in Clandestine Operations.

"Have I seen action, Chifuyu? Have I? Now you tell me." He asked back.

"The thing about all this is that they restrict the bad thing—in this case the military conflicts, but it's still there. It's just behind everyone's backs and under everyone's feet. No one could spot it out."

She shrugged the comeback before a long pause between the two started.

"…Anyway, That's all I could give you on the stolen IS. Talk to Alcott about this, since she was the supposed pilot." She instructed.

"Thanks for the intel." Alex thanked before the two part ways.

"Fields." She called, making him stop on his tracks. He didn't turn his head back to her.

"You'd better keep my brother from harm." She said sternly.

Alex heard her, but at the same time, it somehow offended him. He slightly turns his head.

"Just your brother? I know that Ichika's important and all to you, but it'll be a low blow if you forget his friends."

Chifuyu raised eyebrows. "What are you trying to say?"

"Besides the whole academy, Chifuyu, your brother has friends that are worth protecting too. I know the kid is as dense as a sack of bricks, but he has that drive to protect his friends… Like I do when I do my job—Protecting people, knowing that I could die at any moment when I perform my duties and risking my life to keep the ones I care safe. I see that in him. Ichika's a good kid. I have full respect of him because of that." He commended Ichika.

"With all due respect, but I don't need to be told on how to do my duty right. I'm human too. I make mistakes. I give much of a damn about it and learn from them. And I can be offended at some point."

She was surprised how she was told by Alex. But like he said, he was human. I mean… No one was perfect. Nevertheless she shrugged.

"I see... Continue with your duties. And another thing…" She had her clipboard ready as it bopped at the back of Alex's head.

"It's Orimura-Sensei. Now finish up and I'll see you in class." She said before going their separate ways.

"You have guts, Alex… I'll commend you for that." She thought.

Alex changed his route and heads back to the dormitories. Minutes later, he carries a medium-sized gun bag. Minutes pass, the sound of footsteps and chattering of the girls followed.

Little did he know, someone heard the conversation.

-0500 HRS. Arena 2-

The break of dawn approaches and the light of the rising sun bring light to the arena. Alex changed from his police uniform to SWAT.

Several feet away from Alex were six metal targets—the one used by SWAT back in Los Angeles, that were lined horizontally, a few feet away from the other. But he manages to get the foldable ones. It was easy to store in the locker because it didn't take up much space.

On his side was a folding table, big enough to put the bag on. The bag that he used held approximately two-three guns including ammunition; His UMP45, and aside from his service pistol, there was the Kimber .45, the standard issue sidearm of SWAT.

He grabbed the UMP and loaded three .45 bullets in the clip. The weight and the feeling of holding a gun didn't bother him as he renders holding one as his "Second Nature." With that, he takes stance, and takes aim…

*Gunshot*

"Igh!"

Alex grunted as he felt the recoil from the first shot stinging his healed wound. The first shot was fired at the front target, knocking it down, running to the second target. Another shot was fired, knocking another target.

"Aahh! Come on… You're better than this!" He grunted.

He rushes to the third target, crouching and fires the last bullet, dropping the UMP as he rushes to the fourth and un-holsters his sidearm. He slows down to walking speed with his arms extended to his aim and his finger pulls the trigger on the fourth target sending four shots to knock it down.

"Okay, you're getting there…" He muttered.

He rushes to the fifth target and empties the bullets from the pistol's clip, but this time, the bullets landed on the "head" of the target, knocking it down. It all goes down to the sixth target.

The familiar sound of a fresh clip loading into the pistol is heard as Alex goes to the final target. He takes aim and opens fire. The bullets land on the target one by one until it goes to its head. As Alex saw the shots land on the target, he takes deep breaths. Heart pounding, adrenaline flowing, a hint of sweat on his forehead…

"Welcome back, you Son-of-a-bitch… another round, before the break of dawn calls…" He muttered, smirking as he puts his piece on safe after loading a fresh sets up the targets again and goes for another shooting run.

After an hour later as he packs up his things, heading to the exit, he stops, looking at the flight deck as if someone or something was watching him, but no one was there. He shrugs it off and continues onward.

-0605 HRS. Locker Room-

The sound of clothes rustling as it uncovers Alex's body, as he was changing back to his police uniform. He was hearing footsteps before putting on the shirt.

"Hm? Anyone there?" He called out.

"Must be the girls outside…" He muttered as he passes it off as the girls, other than the representatives going to class… or so he thought.

"Hey…"

He turns his head calmly to see who it was this time.

"Oh… Houki. Good morning." He greeted. It wasn't a surprise because before Ichika, all locker rooms were supposed to be for the girls.

"Good morning."

A long pause occurred between Alex and Houki before one of them spoke.

"…your stuff's in this locker room?" He asked.

"Well... This used to be for the girls only. But since you and Ichika arrived, they had to make do with what they have."

"I know, I know… they had to separate our lockers from the girls."

A long silence was between Alex and Houki. He rummaged his locker for his uniform and gear, while Houki was staring blankly.

"…you feeling all right? You're a bit quiet today." He started. She snaps out of it as he asks her.

"…huh? Oh, I'm all right. What about you? How's the arm?" She asked.

As he showed the arm, he pointed at where the bullet pierced in, only to show a clean spot on the bullet's entry point. Houki was reassured.

"All better. Look, let me finish putting on my uniform. Want to walk with me after?" He offered.

Houki stammered as she realized that she saw him shirtless. "O-Oh! Right! I'm sorry! Sure, I guess that would be nice. I'll be right out." She accepted, showing a small, sincere smile.

-0607 HRS. Hallways-

"So… how are things with you and Ichika? Did you train up and early?" He asked as they walk along the hallways, breaking the ice.

"…Oh. I… um… I didn't wake him up this time." She answered, kind of in a blue mood today.

"Huh. That's new. Usually you'd wake up so early in the morning. Often times, I hear Ichika scream." Alex pointed.

"You heard all that?"

"Yeah, I hear him screaming like hell. Perhaps you and Ichika are gonna replace my alarm clock eventually. " Alex said, pointing out the number of times Ichika was screaming in the early morning.

Houki chuckled as she heard his joke. "Yeah… I'm not going to talk about why he's screaming. Well usually I wake him up because I was training him, but this time… well… I sort of passed it off." She added.

"…That's not the usual stuff you'd say, Houki. Something's up, isn't there?" Alex asked. She was silent as he asked that.

"N-Nothing…"

"No use lying, Shinonono. Come on and say what's up. I won't get mad, I promise."

Houki sighed as she was reassured. A part of her says "Tell it," But another part says "Don't do it, because he'll get mad again."

"Houki?"

Houki's choice was made.

"Alex… please don't get mad, but… I've heard your conversation with Chifuyu-san." She started. Alex became silent.

"Oh… you've heard all of it?" He asked, somewhat having that cold stare in his eyes. It wasn't as cold and steely as the first time, but it still intimidated the Japanese woman.

Houki quickly defended as Alex turns his stare at her. "N-No No! I didn't hear all of it! I just heard you talking about Ichika. Tell me, Alex. Did you really mean all that?" She asked.

"Ichika? What? About him being dense as a sack of bricks?" He assumed, tilting his head.

Houki answered. "Well… No. Though I will admit that's kind of true. Probably denser than a sack of bricks anyway." She muttered.

"Houki, you and the girls told me about that when I first arrived." He cleared out.

"True… Anyway… I've heard how you compare him to you… How you defended both Ichika and yourself." She specified. The look in his eyes started to ease Houki.

"…That, huh? Yeah. I meant that." He started out, nodding.

"What do you see in him that made you say that?"

"Let's just say that I know dedication when I see one. That strive to protect the ones he care… I see that in him. I still have that strive. You know that he tried to keep the three of you breathing after the attack."

Houki's nerves ran cold as Alex tells what happened during the attack. "Wh-What happened?"

"Oh boy…Where do I start...? Ichika told this to me before I left to Los Angeles…"

-2215 HRS. Room 1027-Alex's room, Day 15—A few weeks ago-

*Knocking*

"Alex? You in there?" Ichika asked through the door.

"Yeah, just having a cup of decaf. Come on in, door's open." Alex said. He opened the door and saw him having a cup of coffee, as he said.

"So, what's up?" He asked.

"…I was going to say that Houki, Laura and Charlotte are all right now." Ichika said.

"Oh, that's nice… They made a full recovery, huh?" Alex asked.

"Pretty much. Listen, they want me to say thanks to you on their behalf." Ichika pointed out.

"…I'm not going to take full credit. I was just doing my job."

"Well… I did make some part after the attack." Ichika said, making Alex intrigued.

"Huh… That's new… What did you do?"

"When you were unconscious… I dragged the girls out of the blast zone… that's when their IS units dematerialized." He started.

"So that they won't inhale the smoke from the blast?"

"Yeah… I couldn't just stand there and do nothing, Alex…"

"Where are you going with all of this?" Alex asked.

"Alex… I swear to protect all of them, if possible, including you."

Alex's eyes slightly widened at Ichika's reason. Then it changed, giving a look of understanding. "Protecting, huh?" He muttered.

"That's commendable, Ichika… Really commendable. If you were on the force, you would have been given a medal." He said, with sincerity being evident in his tone.

"Thanks…"

"Wait! When I woke up, I was out of the blast zone. How did I get out? Who dragged me?"

"Tatenashi-san… She said that you were still in your IS when she found you, despite that it was almost totaled by the explosion." He answered.

"…oh boy… I best make my apologies tomorrow."

-Present time-

"…And As I was supposed to say such to Kaichou, Transfer orders happened." Alex finished.

"Oh… I see." Houki reacted.

"Yeah… good kid. To think he'd lend a hand like that. That's something new that I'd see in him. Tell me Houki… Are there any times that the guy had such strive?"

Houki started to recollect her thoughts of Ichika being like that.

"Well… I have a lot of explaining to do—No, we have a lot of explaining to do. But it'll take some time." She reasoned.

"Ah, is that so? Please. Take the time you need. I won't pressure you." He assured.

"Thank you, Alex… Now, let's get ourselves some breakfast. I'm pretty sure you're hungry as well." She said, hearing Alex's stomach grumble.

"Yeah, I could use some chow, now that you mentioned it."

-0645 HRS – Room 1-1-

"Good God, I just can't believe that's your fifth cup!" Houki exclaimed as she saw Alex drinking a tall cup of Coffee.

"Look, aside from this morning's specials, the Mochaccino in the cafeteria's pretty good. I can't put it down!" Alex reasoned.

"More than Five cups are usually unhealthy for most people, Fields." Laura added.

"Hey, I know a good cup of coffee when I taste one. Besides, several cups kept me awake during graveyard shifts."

"Name one time, Alex." Cecilia inquired.

"Well, there's this one graveyard shift when my partner bought the two of us some brewed Americano in the tallest cup the café had to offer. I was assigned near Rampart that time." He added.

"Man… The things you put up with at work." Cecilia reacted before whistling.

"You tell me, Cecilia."

As the girls have a conversation, Alex noticed Charlotte a bit in a blue mood. She was sitting at her desk, but he couldn't tell if she was asleep or not. He separates from the group as they were distracted.

"Charlotte?" He called. So far, she was "asleep", but with a worried look on her face. He heard her mutter his name in her sleep.

"Oh boy…" He sighed. He went out the room. About 10 minutes later, He went back, with the warm smell of coffee that lingered in the classroom. He approached Charlotte once more.

"Charlotte?" He called once more, with a cup of coffee in each hand.

"…Huh? Alex?" Charlotte asked, waking up as she puts her attention to Alex.

"Here… You could use the pick-me-up. Sounds like you've had a rough night. Other than that, you've been muttering my name in your sleep." Alex answered as he placed the cup on her desk.

"D-Did I?" She stammered, her face slightly turned red.

"Yeah, I've been seeing you like that since we came back. I was… Oh… how should I put it?" Alex muttered as he was completely flustered. Charlotte noticed this and slightly widened her eyes as the American Officer showed such face. As he was flustered, he showed another emotion—Guilt.

"Was what? Come on, Alex. Stop giving hints and say it." Charlotte pouted.

"I was worried, okay? I was worried that I might have scared the hell out of everyone and I was worried that I might have driven everyone off." He said, trying not to raise his voice to startle the others.

She smiled a bit as she understands what Alex was saying.

"L-Listen, Charlotte… If it's about two weeks ago, again I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—well… scare you." He apologized by the way he acted before. She placed her finger on his lips just to silence him.

She sighed. "Here you are again, Alex. Apologizing. It's okay… I understand. Just let it go, okay?"

He nods. "How are you feeling?" She added.

"All better." He answered as he slowly moved his arm. "Now drink up while it's still warm. You know it's best when coffee's that way."

"Right, right…" She chuckled before taking a sip. "Latté?" She asked after she tasted the warmth of coffee.

"Yeah, why?"

"It's good. It's one of my favorites." She said.

"See? I told them the coffee here is great."

"Who knew that would be true. Anyway, how were the two weeks for you?" She asked.

"Good. I kinda needed the rest. Though I did walk around the academy. I could use the exercise."

She pouted as she heard that he was roaming around the academy. "You know that you're supposed to stay at your room. It's because of the girls that will try to swarm at you." She reasoned.

Alex became embarrassed from what he said next. "Actually… they swarmed when I was at my room. I swear to God, a handful of girls wanted to play nurse." He added.

Charlotte's eyes widened and she giggled. "Really? Was it that awful?" She asked.

"Believe me, Charlotte. You don't want to know the full story. One time I was trying to grab a bite, and I was surprised that they brought some food to feed me with. I appreciate all the gestures but… it wasn't that necessary."

She laughed for a short while and lightly rubbed her hand on his head. "You poor thing…" She joked before she spotted something on his face. "Umm… Alex…"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Did you cut yourself while shaving?" She asked. Ichika and the girls noticed how the two interact with each other.

"Huh? Where? I didn't feel any stinging after I shaved. " Alex reasoned out as he patted his face.

"Right… there." She said, poking at the left jawline.

He yelped as he felt a sting on his jawline. "Ow! I must have forgotten the aftershave."

"Mon Dieu, it's bleeding. Here… I'll get a band-aid." She sighed as she placed the coffee at her desk, grabbing the Band-aid at the nearest first-aid kit in the room. He wipes the cut with a wet wipe from the pack in his left chest pocket, cleaning it.

"All right, Alex. Hold still… There." She said as she placed the band-aid herself. She couldn't help but feel that something's off about the American Officer.

"Let me fix that too… all right?" She added as she fixed his collar and tie.

"H-Huh?"

Alex watched as she fixed his collar, how she adjusted his tie. He couldn't help but to have a mix of emotions at Charlotte. He couldn't help but look at such concern from the French Representative, which was being evident from her purple eyes to the pout on her lips. He could smell the sweet scent of lilies as Charlotte was close to her as she fixes him.

As for Charlotte, She had mixed emotions as well, but concern and worry for the Police Officer was prevailing. She could barely look at his cold-blue eyes. She could smell the soothing scent of his cologne from his uniform.

"Um… Charlotte…" He tries to speak out.

"O-Oui, Alex?" She asks, such feelings still evident. He touched her hands and gently took them away from his tie. They were flustered, faces slightly turning red as they avert their gaze.

"Th-Thanks… Is it obvious?"

"No, Not at all." She answered, giggling nervously. "Please be careful next time, okay?"

"Yeah… I will."

Houki and the girls stared at the two, smirking. "Those two are getting chummy with each other." Houki said.

"It's kind of fun to watch. And it's kind of nice to see Alex getting all soft with Charlotte." Cecilia supported.

"If that keeps up, that will eventually be one competition down…" Houki muttered to herself.

"Hey, don't you think that… Well…" Laura started.

"Well what?"

"They have feelings for each other? If not, at least one of them has." Laura assumes. Everyone's eyebrows raised by her assumptions. "I mean… Alex gets soft when it's Charlotte talking to him. It happened a few times more than I could count, so it can't be a coincidence."

"Could be possible. I'm having the feeling that she got under his skin… or it's the other way around." Cecilia somewhat agreed.

"But then again, Maybe it's a bit too soon. It's been over a month since we met Alex. But knowing her nature, Charlotte's really kind. And Alex, as a policeman, getting shot, all of that stress, I think he's finding the time to loosen up despite the burden he's putting up with. Who knows." Houki analyzed.

"Maybe you're right." Laura sighed. "But I have to agree on one thing though, Cecilia."

"What's that?"

"They are kind of cute to watch." She specified, making everyone have a giggle.

Little did Alex and Charlotte know that they are being eyed on by a handful of students, including the second-year student who entered the room. It was Mayuzumi Kauroko the vice-president of the school's paper.

"Ah! I think I'm seeing an issue for our next paper! Hot Couple in the Academy! I can see it now!" She exclaimed, with the two taking notice.

"M-Mayuzumi?!" Charlotte stammered as the two looked at each other and away, completely flustered.

"Aww, why did you two stopped?! It's fun to look at such!" Mayuzumi teased.

"We-well… She was just fixing my tie, Mayuzumi! Damn!" Alex defended.

"Sure, she did… Sure she did…" She snickered.

"…Anyway, what brings the vice-president of the school paper here?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm glad you asked! I was asked to invite Ichika and Houki for my sister's interview on the magazine they're publishing." She answered.

"Magazine? For IS?"

"Specifically, IS Pilots. Don't tell me you two haven't done such things before!" She exclaimed, pointing at Ichika and Houki.

"Well… No. We haven't." Ichika and Houki said in unison.

"Alex?"

"Nope, and much as I like to read my kind of magazines, I haven't done any modeling or interviews." Alex answered.

"Speaking of which, my sister wants to have an interview with you, Alex!" Mayuzumi said enthusiastically.

"…Me? Okay, maybe the "Second Guy in the Academy" thing is a big deal. My profile's high enough as it is." He analyzed.

"It's not just that, Alex. It's because of this too…" Mayuzumi said, pointing at his badge. "It's because that you're a policeman. The Second Male Pilot is also a Police Officer! That got my sister going!"

"Oh… right. First cop in the big-shot academy." Alex said.

They peered to the magazine. To their surprise, it was all IS pilots, posing and modeling and it was jam-packed with articles about them. Mayuzumi was right, but Alex had probable cause to raise suspicion.

"Remembering Autumn's infiltration tactics, this could be another one of them… I better peer in to make sure." He thought.

"Mayuzumi, can I see that for a moment?" He requested. Mayuzumi handed the magazine.

Reading the fine print at the bottom part of the back of the magazine, Alex raised his eyebrows as he recognized the name of the company, ringing a bell.

"Hey, I recognize this company… They published some of my favorite magazines like Law Enforcement Weekly! They also have a couple of branches in LA and San Francisco. If I could remember, their main office is in New York City!" He exclaimed.

"Oh, you're well-informed!" Mayuzumi exclaimed.

"Alex, are you certain of this?" Cecilia asked.

"Don't worry, they're Legit. Though I was surprised at all that they made a magazine out of all this, to be honest. This company's a big-shot, but I didn't know it went this big." He added.

"You see, Representatives, Personal IS Pilots are treated like celebrities. They're kind of like idols, so sometimes, they have a lot of modeling work." Mayuzumi exclaimed.

"Kind of like Hollywood." Alex muttered.

"…Hey Houki, is this true?" Ichika asked, unsure.

Houki was unsure as well. She never encountered a thing like that as a representative. "D-Don't ask me! How would I know that?!"

"All right, All right. Calm do—Oof!"

"If you want, I can show you my modeling photos!" A certain petite girl stepped in as she bumped Mayuzumi, and Alex, who was having a sip of coffee.

"Rin!" Ichika and Alex exclaimed.

"Thanks, but no thanks..." Ichika said, turning down Rin's offer.

"What's your problem?!" She asked, irritated.

"I mean, it might just be you striking silly poses again." He reasoned.

"Jeez! Would it kill you to look?! Here, Right here! Right this second!" She demanded.

"Okay, okay… calm down, Rin. And a little warning next time. Almost spilled my coffee." He stepped in.

"O-Oh! Sorry, Alex."

"All right, Ichika. Just do what the lady wants." He instructed to Ichika, with the latter following. Rin had some cute poses when Ichika saw them.

"Hey! These are pretty cute!" He complemented.

"See? I told you you'd like it!" She exclaimed with pride. "Oh, here's one from last summer. You know I was going for a cute pose there but…" She kept on talking, completely occupied.

"Um… Rin?" Alex called, but she was still occupied. He sighed and finished his coffee with Charlotte until the bell rang.

"Right, I'll guess I'll see you guys later!" Mayuzumi said before leaving.

"Yeah… And Rin? Rin!"

"What? What is it, Alex?! I have a lot more of—" Rin was cut off when someone's knuckles hit her head.

"Ow…"

"Okay, never mind." Alex sighed.

"Go back to Class 2 Already." Chifuyu instructed. Everyone went back to their seats. An interface popped up on the front screen, intriguing Alex as it read…

"IS COMBAT THEORIES"

"Combat theories?" Alex thought.

"All right, we'll be going over various combat theories, such as effective evasive maneuvers in close combat." She started before calling. "Fields!"

"Yes, sensei?"

"Some of the combat theories here are adapted from other tactics such as your field of expertise." She added, showing a few photos and diagrams; it was all too familiar for Alex.

"Point being?"

"You should be able to give valuable insights from your knowledge and first-hand experience." Chifuyu said. He started out as he saw some photos and diagrams from his field of expertise, completely intrigued.

"Convincing. It's true that I've done some of these maneuvers and tactics first-hand back in the force. Some of these were devised from SWAT… But then again, Tactics is still tactics. It's the perspective that defines it."

"That's why I'm expecting you to give some insights on these lessons. It's up to you if you want to give some insights or not, but I can assure you, it'll help on the long run." She said.

Charlotte had that concerned look on her face again. "Alex…" She thought.

"All right... I'll give my insights with the best of my knowledge and experiences from my years of service." Alex said, with the reassuring tone in his voice.

She smiled, nodding. "Good man."

-1155 HRS. Academy Grounds-

Alex was watching Ichika and the Girls from a distance. The look on his eye tells that the gears in his mind were spinning.

"Fields, it's break time. Try to ease up a bit." Chifuyu said, noticing how Alex looked.

"She's right, Alex. It's not healthy for you to be stressed." Maya supported.

"Wish I could, but the gears in my head are running." He said.

"About?"

"It's Ichika…"

"All right, Do tell." Chifuyu said, Intrigued.

"When I was recovering from the bullet wound, I roamed at the arena. Almost every morning I see Ichika train with one of the girls." He started, recalling what he saw. One morning Ichika was training with Houki, another morning with Cecilia, and so on.

"So you have been snooping around during your recovery." Chifuyu said.

"And I couldn't believe how sloppy Ichika could get on the long run. If he keeps on fighting like that, he ain't gonna last long in an actual fight." Alex analyzed.

She concurs, but what intrigues her is that why would Alex bring Ichika's performance to her. "I couldn't agree more. But what compelled you to bring this up?" Chifuyu asked.

"He's been almost killed a couple of times. Hell, if they were given the opportunity, he might end up ten feet under before he knows it. God knows when we'll be digging our own damn graves if we're unlucky." Alex observed.

"Isn't that a bit too morbid, Alex?" Maya asked, shuddering at Alex's observations.

"I tell what I see, and I've seen and said worse, Sensei." Alex said.

"Why are you telling us all of this?" Maya asked him.

Alex remembers the morning's lectures, how Chifuyu cross-referenced the IS combat maneuvers and tactics with the ones that Alex done first-hand. For him, some of the details were too familiar. "Sensei… some of those tactics adapted for the IS are beyond SWAT standards." He started.

"Is that so, Fields? Are you sure?" She tested him.

"I know those stuff all too well. Some of the tactics, CQCs, evasive maneuvers… I know where they came from…" Alex said before giving out the answer.

"MARSOC…"

Chifuyu was impressed on how Alex found it out. "Well played, Fields. Not even Bodewig could identify that it was from the USMC's Special Ops."

Alex's mood completely went bitter on the last part, letting out a frustrated sigh as he controls his anger. "No wonder how fast you could run, the past will always catch up."

"I have some explaining to do, Fields. I know." Chifuyu said, intending to make amends.

Alex quickly gets back to the first matter at hand—Ichika. "It can wait. For now we need to do something about Ichika." He said.

"Are you… saying that you have something to propose, Fields?" She asked.

"I think I have a few. We need to step up our game. Because of what we're up against, it's either they bleed out, or we do." Alex said, looking at them in crossed arms. Chifuyu was lured by Alex's intentions.

"What do you have in mind?"