Madame Riker was glaring at Violet Senior.
"Uh…Madame Riker?" Jack spoke cautiously. "With all due respect, without her, it seems we would've died."
"It's true," Eddie confirmed. "Without Violet I would've never succeeded."
"Why are you really here?" The woman kept her words clipped.
Violet paused. "I was ordered to shut down Branca's home base."
"So you got us to do the work for you?" Ella appeared at the door, eying her suspiciously. The other clones were right behind her, standing in an orderly group.
"I couldn't do it alone," Violet shrugged. "That's why I enlisted Eddie. I was impressed with his work."
Jerry moaned. "You sound like my math teacher. Were you giving us a test?"
The woman smiled. "Yes."
Everyone groaned and Kim snapped. "Jerry!"
"I was kidding!" Jerry raised his hands defensively.
"Eddie Jones, Juliana Riker, and the Klon sisters all proved themselves more than capable to my assessment standards," Violet continued airily. "I was quite glad you succeeded. If you hadn't, it wouldn't have been…pleasant."
A chill settled in the atmosphere.
"What were you assessing us for?" Ella had folded her arms.
Her eyes narrowed. "Why doesn't Mr. Krupnick enlighten you to the greater threat?"
Milton swallowed nervously as all eyes turned on him.
"Wait, wait, wait, I didn't know it was true!" He protested.
"What was true?" Rudy hit his shoulder. "Spill it!"
The boy swallowed. "According to some trash files I saw, Branca was in the process of transferring out of the country."
"Where?" Eddie demanded.
"I don't know!" He sputtered.
"Europe," Violet's clear voice. "Branca's worldwide."
"Great," Ella rolled her eyes. "So they're going to come after us again?"
"Perhaps," She said calmly. "But I'm here to make an offer."
Madame Riker silenced Violet and sent everyone to rest, despite the curious teens' protests. It had been a hard battle for all of them, especially since they'd been losing sleep these past few days in preparation for the mission.
They focused on resting for two days, and there was no official talk about Violet's offer as Madame Riker tended to her daughter's bedside.
Meanwhile, Violet caught whoever was awake between the hours and told them her proposal, including the Wasabi Warriors.
"Can you believe this?!" Kim was angry.
It was Day 2 in the afternoon and the whole gang was chilling/relaxing after lunch.
"I know! The stock price of Branca just jumped three points!" Jerry had been staring at his cell phone.
Everyone froze.
"You're into stocks?" Milton emphasized each word in disbelief.
Jerry shrugged. "What? It's not the weirdest thing about me."
"That's true," Rudy interrupted. "Don't ask for details." Jack had been lying flat on the couch, but raised his head to blearily stare at the blonde. "What?"
"I don't want to move!" Kim ranted.
Violet's offer was a mixture of persuasion and real facts. She'd explained as long as Branca was active, they were all in danger. Violet belonged to a secret organization that focused on neutralizing global threats. They'd formed recently and were in need of agents for covert ops. If they joined Violet's organization, they'd not only be protected, they'd be able to take an active part in destroying the company that was hunting them.
"Then we don't have to," Rudy reassured her.
Eddie looked at her but said nothing.
"You're sure?"
In a couple days, the Klon sisters and the Rikers would be leaving for London with Violet. The Wasabi Warriors had elected to stay behind, but—
"I was involved in this much more than any of you," Eddie explained, his eyes lowered. "I want to protect you—"
"That doesn't mean you'll be able to from another continent," Jack protested.
"But that's only part of it," Eddie met his gaze. "Jack…I'm tired of being just one of the gang. I need to find out who I am and if I stay here, I don't know if I ever will."
"Eddie, it's not like that!" Kim tried to argue.
"It is," He replied, gently smiling. "You all have strong personalities, and I get overshadowed by them. It's not your fault. Besides sometimes change is good for you." His expression changed. "And…I should be there when Juliana wakes up."
Milton hesitated. "What if she doesn't remember you?" "Then we'll make new memories," Eddie stated firmly. "Together."
He felt tears prickling his eyelids.
"I wish I didn't have to leave, but it's safer." Eddie rattled on. "I'll be able to make a difference and make sure my family's okay. Meanwhile…for once I'll be saving you." Eddie smiled sadly. "I'm not the same person anymore, guys, I'm…I'm growing up."
A heavy silence filled the air. "You may not be the same person, but you'll always be our friend," Rudy spoke solemnly. "You'll always be a Wasabi Warrior."
Jerry swiped his eyes.
"No one cry!" He sniffled. "It's not cool!"
They were left to say goodbye to the rest of the Klon girls. They promised to stay in contact as much as possible as Violet's plane waited on the runway. Juliana had already been put on board, leaving the rest to say their farewells. "Well, it's been fun," Bella gave Milton a handshake. "Remember, we still need to finish discussing that theorem!"
Hilla threw Jack over her hip as a goodbye, while Ila, Kela, and Jilla simultaneously talked over each other to Kim, all sad to leave their new friend. Lela laughed as a bunch of the Klon sisters buried Rudy under a doggie pile.
"Hey."
Jerry found himself facing Aella. "Uh…hi."
"I guess it's goodbye," Aella was unlike herself, fidgeting.
"I guess."
"Remember to keep in touch," Aella rambled a little. "And…yeah."
The boy felt like he was moving through syrup. "Uh-huh. We'll all stay in touch."
Aella smiled, calming her nerves. "Good."
The clone squeezed him in an embrace and kissed his cheek, leaving Jerry too shocked to react.
"For the record, I think you're very cool," she whispered into his ear before pulling away.
Jack found himself facing Ella.
"Thanks for being nice," she said curtly, then turned to the others. "All of you. It was nice working together."
Milton snorted. "For what, two days?"
"It was fun," Ella reemphasized, glaring at him. She then met each of the Wasabi Warriors' eyes, smiling slightly. "Maybe we'll do it again sometime."
"I'll look forward to it," Kim hugged her, causing Ella to freeze. The tough girl hesitantly hugged her back while the others giggled behind her.
"Likewise," Madame Riker smiled genially. "If I never see any of you again, I hope you have happy lives."
"I'll say the same," Rudy saluted.
Last came the most difficult farewell, the parting between best friends and comrades,who'd had many adventures together and solidified their bond.
For awhile, the gang all stared at each other awkwardly.
"You won't be allowed to mention me," Eddie broke the silence first, another change from his previous self. "At all. It's too dangerous."
"We know," Jerry was despondent. "Just…take care of yourself, okay?"
One more group hug was triggered with Eddie Jones stuck in the middle.
"Guys," he begged helplessly. "Can't breathe…"
The Wasabi Warriors released him, their eyes shining as they laughed.
"Ready for one last time?" Rudy held out his arm.
The others grinned and did the same.
"Eddie, why don't you start us off," Kim suggested.
The boy coughed and cleared his throat.
"We swear by the light of the dragon's eye—"
His friends joined in on the second line.
"To be loyal and honest and never say die. Wasabi!"
As they threw their hands into the air one last time, they all realized something.
The moment might be fleeting…but their friendship would be forever.