Ultima Ratio

Chapter 25: Disassembly Required

"Did someone call for me?" a familiar voice said from the opposite end of the lab.

Akira frowned at the door at the back wall. On it was a placard labeled "LAB LAV," along with a red dot displayed on the lock. "Sammy?"

"And the dog finally barks," Danya murmured, taking a seat on the counter closest to her.

As they waited for Sammy to finish his "official business," whatever that entailed, the rest of the Aegis Squad explained how they saw Sam heading towards Izzy's lab and decided to tag along. Or rather, Jivan invited themselves, Navin and Elodie followed, and Quyen spotted them in passing and decided to keep them out of trouble.

A few minutes later, Sam emerged in a full combat uniform, grimacing as tugged at the collar and unusually tight sleeves.

Akira couldn't help but do a double-take. Sam was officially an army sergeant, but he never had to go into combat. His "uniform" was a costume version of the military's formal wear: a sharp-looking double-breasted black suit with radiant gold buttons. Was the UN now desperate enough to send their propaganda tool to the front lines?

"It was supposed to be a secret!" Izzy exclaimed. He threw off his glasses and jumped off his chair to block everyone's view of Sam, hiding him about as well as twig concealing an actual Saint Bernard. "This is a blatant disregard for operational security!"

"After those troops almost came to Kolkata, the UN wanted to upgrade my uniform so it can, you know, actually protect me," Sam explained as he peered from behind Izzy's lanky frame. "They wanted to have a big event to reveal the redesign to some higher-ups."

With that, Akira released the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding.

"But honestly, I don't know how well that's going to go," Sam continued, now concerned with adjusting his fitted pants. "I need my whole body to exude my natural charm, except I can't do that with how uncomfortable this thing is. How do you guys even move?"

"With a lot less whining," Akira said.

"None of you have authorization to see this!" Izzy insisted, now waving his arms. "Leave now!"

"What if we're like your focus group?" Akira asked, not sure if Izzy would buy her haphazard excuse.

Surprisingly, he paused to consider it, but he still appeared skeptical.

"You were told to make him look tough but handsome, right?" Danya chimed in as she unwrapped a granola bar she magically procured—at least, that's what Akira thought until she realized her pockets were missing the snack she grabbed from the cafeteria. "Be realistic. What do you or Bernard know about being tough?"

Izzy and Sam responded by exchanging meek glances.

"Exactly," Danya said, pointing her granola bar at them. "It's in your best interest to get an outside opinion. You can't have the higher-ups thinking you're not worthy of your toys anymore, can you?"

As if to emphasize her threat, she ran a finger along a machine that held a dozen test tubes; Izzy shuddered.

It didn't take much longer for Izzy to retreat, his notebook and pen at the ready while everyone's attention turned to Sam.

"So?" Sam asked, running through a few model poses. "How do I look?"

"Ridiculous," Akira said, the default answer required by sibling protocol.

"Bloody brilliant!" Jivan exclaimed at the same time. "If everyone in the Army looks like this, then sign me up!"

Quyen scoffed. "How do you think you got here?"