By the time they came to their senses she'd vanished.
"Ella!" Milton called.
"Let her go," Jack advised.
"But…" Eddie was ready to protest as well.
"She needs to cool off," Jack explained. "If Ella's not a traitor, she'll come back once she's regained her senses."
"Why?" Jerry asked.
"Because we're her best shot of finding Juliana," Jack outlined.
Jerry hesitated. "Then…what if she is a traitor?"
"Then we take her down. " Jack's voice was thunderous. The others nodded in agreement.
"So," Eddie raised an eyebrow. "Where are we supposed to go?"

Milton received directions on the app and the gang tracked it to an empty shop. Debris and tarps cut mysterious silhouettes, but strong support beams ensured nothing fell down.
"This is where the video is filmed," Jack confirmed. "But there's no sign of Kim."
"Au contraire," a familiar voice spoke. "I believe she's right here."
Miss Mohindra was dressed in practical clothing and right beside her was…
"Guys!"
"Kim!"
The blonde ran into Jack's arms, then hugged the others. She was overjoyed to see Eddie, and the gang babbled over each other as they shared each other's news.
"Ahem!" The inspector, forgotten for the moment, caught their attention.
"Miss Mohindra's in on this?" Jerry gawked. "Please tell me I'm seeing things."
"You're seeing things," Jack spoke sarcastically.
Milton was perplexed. "So is she on our side…or theirs?"
"You seem to have made the wrong assumption," Miss Mohindra laughed softly. "I'm sorry I had to borrow Eddie. I required his aid in a certain manner."
Everyone froze. "Eddie, what is she talking about?" Jack whispered. "It's…" Eddie met Miss Mohindra's eyes and faltered. "Nothing."
"It doesn't sound like nothing—" Kim's probing trailed off as the woman stepped forward.
"I rescued your friend from the abductors, and I have to warn you, they're not who you think," she warned.
The Wasabi Warriors shifted uneasily.
"Guys listen to her," Kim encouraged. "She's got proof."
More confused than ever, they watched Miss Mohindra as removed a silver disc from her pocket. After pressing the centre an image of Ella was projected against the wall.
"This is Subject E," she reported. "A few months ago she went rogue and has been avoiding capture."
Another image of Ella popped up, but with black hair.
"Subject A." Miss Mohindra intoned.
Kim snorted. "Cliche much? Ella has an evil twin?"
"More than that." She corrected. "Ella has fourteen identical sisters."

The inspector clicked through multiple images, confirming the presence of many, many different Ellas with different hair styles and outfits. Labels identified them as Subjects A through O.
"That has to be photoshop!" Jerry protested.
Jack hesitated as a short video clip played where the subjects interacted. "It seems pretty real."
Milton scoffed. "The probability of this being a naturally biological occurrence is quite low."
"Quite right, Mr. Krupnick." Miss Mohindra tapped her fingernails. "You see, Ella Wong is a clone."
They barely processed this before she turned to leave.
"Follow me. I can give you some answers, but in exchange, I'll be in need of your assistance."
"To do what?" Jack challenged.
She smirked coldly. "To find Ella Wong, of course. Why else?"

Miss Mohindra had a limousine waiting for them with an unexpected passenger inside.
"Rudy!" Kim hugged him enthusiastically.
"Watch the ribs, ow—the ribs!" he yelped weakly.
He was still bruised and sore but obviously much better.
"Rudy, it wasn't Ella who attacked you it was her clone!" Jerry shared excitedly.
The man gasped. "Oh my gosh…clones?! Is this the Clone Wars?! Are we about to be launched into intergalactic battle?!"
"Did Miss Mohindra bring you here?" Milton ignored his rambling.
"Oh yeah," the sensei winced. "She got the hospital to release me into her custody. I don't think she's just an inspector, she flashed a card or badge and I was out in seconds…Eddie?! Thank God!" Rudy gasped with relief. "We were so worried about you!"
"Somehow I doubt that," Eddie muttered pessimistically.
A prolonged pause followed.
"That's it!" Jerry exploded. "What's with you man?!"
"I told you I'm fine."
"Then why are you acting like this?" Kim implored. "Eddie, please…"
He hunched his shoulders and remained silent.
Jack assumed he needed some time, so he turned to her.
"Kim, can you tell us anything useful from the kidnapping?"
She frowned. "It wasn't Ella who grabbed me. She tried to save me, but she was outnumbered. Afterwards one of the ninjas revealed her face. She looked like Ella, but she wasn't…"
"Definitely a clone," Jack muttered, his sense of guilt growing. He wished he hadn't been so harsh on Ella.
Milton patted his arm. "It's okay, Jack, you didn't know."
Jerry noticed Kim's confusion. "He accused her of betraying us, so she took off."
"You idiots," Kim rolled her eyes. "Anyway, Miss Mohindra arrived and knocked them out, but by the time you guys arrived they'd vanished."
"Miss Mohindra disabled them herself?" Milton doubted.
"She had a dart gun," Kim explained wryly. "She told me about the clones before you guys came."
"I'm officially declaring my brain is dead. My brain is dead!" Jerry sighed and held his head. "What do clones have to do with Cryptographers and Eddie's ex-girlfriend?"
Milton coughed. "I have some information pertinent to that—"
"Save it," Jack ordered, his eyes focused forward. "We're here."

The Wasabi gang entered a bright scientific facility, where people in suits and lab coats bustled and yelled. Technology and equipment were placed everywhere, neatly spaced, with chemicals bubbling and beakers bursting. There was an overall atmosphere of loud chaos as people moved with purpose, each with their own goal.
Miss Mohindra greeted them as they exited the limo.
"Welcome to Branca Corp," she informed them. "I believe it's time you learned a bit more about Ella."

They were ushered to an office with orange walls. The space was furnished with dark, straight chairs and a matching desk, located opposite from the main door. There were floor length windows on either side of the room, one facing outside and the other facing in. A black couch and armchair sat in front of a low table. Beside the work desk was a small counter with various drinks.
Miss Mohindra moved to the side.
"Will you like tea?" She offered.
All of them shook their heads, watching as she busied herself at a hot water dispenser.
"You're not just an inspector," Jack noted suspiciously.
The woman laughed. "Of course not. Your dojo just so happened to be the location of a supply box, one the clones could access. I visited so often to ensure it was undisturbed."
Jerry held his hands in the air. "Back up. I'm a simple guy. Start at the beginning."
Miss Mohindra finished making her chai and sipped before replying.
"Very well."

Project Klon was a program with the goal of creating copies of organs, tissues, and other important cells to provide for those who required them. It was a worthy aspiration, and that goal was soon achieved.
However, the scientists discovered how to take it a step further: they were able to create a copy of a human being.
It was pure scientific curiosity that led to the creation of the zygote. Then an accident occurred. The original zygote split fifteen times. Branca cared and tended for each one until their official "birth," and realized the potential of this undertaking.
The project hadn't gone unnoticed. The law would've swept Branca away with convictions and sanctions but they were able to convince them to do business instead.
That's when the objective of the program officially changed: to study the clones as they matured and see if they could be developed into valuable assets.
Each were trained in a multitude of skills. Branca was careful in establishing routines and raising them in different environments. Their personalities and preferences were found to be similar, though with slight contrasts, as were their mannerisms.
Of course, there are variables in any experiment. The subjects rebelled during puberty. They escaped our custody, scattering around the world. We chased each of them down, but they kept slipping through our fingers.
However, our enemies were also after our Klon children. As a preventive measure we'd conditioned the clones to forget their origins if they ever left our premises. However, if they were captured, even studying their cells could lead to…unorthodox places.
Branca Corp was able to reclaim all our clones except for Subject E, also known as Ella Wong. She was trained in visual and innovative arts, thus we were shocked that she evaded our people the best. She began to recover some of her memories, but not all of them. Ella became paranoid and avoided our reach. To recapture her required a more…creative strategy.
We enacted the Cryptographer Operation with multiple intentions in mind, but retrieving Subject E was our chief priority.

Miss Mohindra savoured the last of her tea.
"So who are you, exactly?" Jack inquired.
The woman smiled devilishly. "I'm a specialist in infiltration and assimilation. Mohindra is simply one of my many names."
Rudy's voice squeaked. "Great…just great."
"And you're part of a private corporation?" Milton was skeptical.
She sighed. "No. My current employer is the government. I'm here as part of our strategic alliance."
"Great. So why are we here?" Jerry got straight to the point.
"The Cryptographers' puzzle was created to initially relocate and retrieve the subjects," Miss Mohindra explained. "We also used it to recruit agents and complete other necessary tasks."
Kim blinked. "So Ella was right! You guys were making teenage spies!"
Eddie crossed his arms. "Then what happened to Juliana? Did you take her?"
The woman raised her eyebrows. "I'm afraid that's classified."
"Wait," Jack was skeptical. "So if you control the other Ellas, then why did they kidnap Kim? For that matter, why do you need us to help you find Ella?"
Miss Mohindra sighed heavily. "I mentioned we reclaimed the clones…I did not say we were able to keep them."