“Hey, Hyerin! What’s up?”

The said girl pried her attention away from the textbook she was reading and looked up. She raised a brow as she came face to face with the tall boy. “Sehun? Again? What are you doing here?”

“What? Am I not allowed in the school library?” He pouted. “I was just going to borrow something for class.”

She rolled her eyes. “I never said you weren't allowed,” she scoffed, turning back to the book again. “Now go do whatever you have to do. No offense, but I need to study for an exam and you’re kind of a distraction.”

“Huh. I didn’t know there was going to be a big test to study for.”

An arm dropped on her shoulder, making her jump in surprise. Thinking it was Sehun, she shrugged the hand away. “Sehun, go aw–Chanyeol?”

“That’s because you never pay attention in class, Yeol. Why are you even surprised?” Kai sat beside Hyerin, winking at her. “Hello, beautiful.”

“Says the one who failed his English test.” Lay, along with Suho, appeared behind her.

“What are you studying?” the president asked, smiling brightly at Hyerin.

“Uh, Alge-”

“Screw Algebra! We should all go party tonight!” Xiumin sauntered towards their table. “What’s up, Hyerin?”

“What in the world is happening-”

“Or maybe no, don’t screw Algebra. I know how deadly Mr. Hwang’s tests are and you better study,” Chen said, looking at her pointedly.

“Yeah, he gives the worst exams ever,” Luhan added, plopping down on a chair.

“Psh. I don’t think anyone has ever passed that idiot teacher’s exams. It’s like he makes sure each and every one of his students fail,” Kyungsoo snorted, grumpily making his way next to Chen.

“Can anyone please explain to me why D.O. always seems to act like a little ? I mean, no offense, bro.” Tao raised his arms in defense as he approached their table. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes.

Kris’ tall stature towered over their seated positions. “I still don’t get why we have to come out one by one when we can just-”

“ing Kris! Shut up! You’re ruining it!” Xiumin exclaimed. The boy rolled his eyes.

Silence.

“Oh. Is it my turn already?” Baekhyun’s innocent face peeked behind one of the tall shelves as the others groaned. He shrugged, seeing that there was no point in going along with their plan. He sat himself next to Kyungsoo.

Hyerin had open in shock the whole time. “Uh, what is this supposed to be?”

“They have something very important to tell you, Hyerin. They hope that you would listen to what they have to say,” Sehun explained, looking at the boys pointedly. “Well?”

Chanyeol cleared his throat. “We’re here to say that…say that we’re, you, we-” he stammered, rubbing the back of his neck. “We’re, you know, that, well-”

“Oh for 's sake,” Tao groaned, burying his head in his hands.

“What? I’m not good at these things, okay!?” Chanyeol hissed in defense.

“Yeah, ‘cause all you’re ever good at is being a pretty boy,” Kai teased, propping his head on top of his knuckles.

“Oh, shut up.”

“Just do it.”

“Can we get this over with!?”

“Jesus, can’t we all just get something done peacefully for once?” Luhan murmured, leaning back on his seat wearily.

“That's it. You all shut your mouths,” Kris ordered, turning towards the girl. “What Chanyeol is trying to say is that we’re sorry,” he started. “We’re sorry for getting angry at you when it wasn’t your fault in the first place.”

“Yeah. We never really looked at the situation in your point of view,” Suho said, taking her hand and making her flinch in discomfort. “We’re the ones who are selfish for thinking only about what will happen to our lives, when you’re also having a hard time dealing with this, too.”

“We felt really guilty about what we did back then to you,” Chen mumbled, fidgeting with his hands. “So I hope you forgive us.”

Hyerin felt as if a big thorn had been plucked out of her chest. It was not only because they were apologizing for their actions, but it was also because they weren’t mad at her anymore. At least, most of them weren’t.

Her eyes were downcast the whole time, not really wanting to show any kind of emotion. This was about M-LX, and M-LX was an organization to take seriously, which means she needed to be professional about anything related to it.

Her cheeks warmed, struggling to spit out the words she wanted to say. “Thank you.”

“So you’re forgiving us?” Xiumin asked. She meekly nodded.

Some cheered while some smiled contentedly. A few had no reaction, but inside, they knew they were a little happy that she was okay. 

“Yes! You’re awesome, Haejin!” Chanyeol exclaimed, hugging the girl tightly.

“First of all, it’s Hyerin. And will you quit it with the random hugs?” she complained, squirming out of Chanyeol’s grip. Is this really the basketball team’s captain? He acts like a dumb eight year-old. He childishly frowned, his hold on her loosening.                                                                                                                                                    

Once everyone finally calmed down—which took a while—Luhan cleared his throat to gather their attention. “Now that this is settled, shall we talk about the plan?”

Tao waved him off. “Didn’t we already talk about it? We’re pretty much decided now.”

“Decided on what?” Hyerin asked curiously.

The boys gave each other knowing looks, confusing her even more. “We’re planning to go to the M-LX headquarters after school,” Kris said, placing his elbows on top of the table. “Would you like to join us?”

It took her less than a second to realize what he was talking about. She blinked rapidly in bewilderment. “You mean you’re going to do it? All of you?” she asked with wide eyes.

“Yeah,” Suho answered, eyes glistening with something she couldn’t point out what.

Before she could even say anything about the matter, a petite old woman with graying hair and a slightly hunched back approached their table—it was the school’s librarian.

“I do not know if this is an act of rebellion or you simply are just ignorant, but shall I remind you that this is a library and it is one of the rules to keep quiet at all times,” she said in a firm tone, wrinkled cheeks turning into a shade of bright crimson. “How I see the situation I believe it is the former, since no high school student would ever disobey such simple instructions. Such a shame to see that even President Suho is involved in this. And both of you who have been disrupting the peace in here since last week!” the librarian hissed, pointing an accusatory finger at Kris and Chanyeol.

“All of you! Detention!”

- - -

Agent Zero helplessly stood before the thirteen teenagers sitting inside one of the many waiting rooms within M-LX. He impatiently tapped his foot, giving them a pointed look. “Well. I certainly did not expect any of you to be back so…soon.”

“The decision was thoroughly discussed between us, sir. We made up our minds now,” Kris said in a tone that meant business. Zero didn’t bother to take it seriously.

“As you wish. If you think this is the best for you then go ahead,” he sighed heavily. “Although if you ask me it is just a mere act of teenage impulsiveness,” Zero mumbled under his breath.

Hyerin was about to shoot a snarky retort when her father emerged from the sliding glass door, clad in a white lab coat and holding a glass of white wine. “I got a call from the front desk to go here and–oh! What a pleasant surprise!” Myungjae exclaimed, grinning.

“Good afternoon, sir. It's a pleasure to see you again.” Suho bowed, ushering the others to do so as well.

“Same here, same here. So by seeing you here does this mean you have decided to work with us, then?”

“Positive, sir.”

Myungjae nodded, satisfied. “Excellent. I’m glad you are all willing to give your full cooperation to M-LX. I will no longer waste any time, though, since I know you all have homework to do,” he chuckled, motioning for them to stand up.

“Now let’s get out of here.” He guided everyone outside and was about to follow, when suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.

Myungjae turned around slightly to give Agent Zero a smug smile. “Cheers.” He raised his glass, nodding at him playfully before leaving the room.

- - -

“So this is how everything works,” Kim Myungjae started as he led them through a series of smartly designed corridors with LED screens on the steel walls. It helped the employees keep track of the latest updates within M-LX. “Aside from your powers, you will most definitely need to train your physical combat abilities which includes several kinds of martial arts. You will also be trained with your weapon handling, fraud detection, codes and cipher ability, disguise, speech—the works. This will be during Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays,” he said, sharply turning a corner.

“Isn’t that a little too much for us?” Kai asked, arching an eyebrow.

“In your current state, yes. But once we get you through the 2X700-3XO then there should be no problem,” Myungjae said a matter-of-factly.

“And what exactly is this 2X700-watchamacallit?” Xiumin asked.

“You’ll see.”

After a few more minutes of endless walking, they finally came upon a dead-end. They arrived in front of a heavy metal door that had an Authorized Personnel Only sign with two armed security guards on each side. If Agent M wasn’t there to accompany them, they would have probably been kicked out a long time ago if ever they intended to enter.

With a slight nod from Myungjae, the guards opened the doors for them and like other sections within the building, it was a long process before they could obtain access inside.

A hissing sound was heard as the metal aperture opened, cool smoke seeping out of the small creeks. Myungjae unhesitatingly stepped inside while the others quietly followed behind.

As if sensing their presence, the fluorescent lights automatically , and there before them in all its glory was Agent M’s personal laboratory.

“Welcome to my second home, kids,” he proudly announced. “Aside from M Corporation, this is where I usually spend my time. Inventing stuff and all that.”

He walked towards the operating section of the room, which was a U-shaped long table that consisted of monitors, keyboards and different colored buttons. He typed something on one of the keypads and in an instant, the center of the room detached itself into a circle shaped platform. It descended, making the rest of them back away in fear of falling into the hole.

What used to be an empty walking space in the middle of the lab turned into something more. Materializing from underneath were twelve large tube-like metal compartments with cylindrical glass surfaces and heavy-duty wires that were securely attached from the back to the inside of the apparatus. They watched in awe as it ascended to floor level.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the 2X700-3XO,” Myungjae boasted, folding his arms in front of him as he admired his latest completed invention with a smile.

“As I was saying, this will help you cope with the aggression of your training. How?” He walked towards them, taking a sip from his glass. “2X700-3XO, or what I like to call 3XO, has been a long-time project of mine for over a decade already. Forming this piece of beauty took quite a long time and had only been completed five months ago with the right compounds and elements that will be beneficial for you.”

“How is it beneficial for us?” Chen asked.

“It enhances your power,” Myungjae said. “The elements inside you will be triggered and you will gain complete control over it. This will bring out your individual powers. Not only that, but it will also make you stronger, faster, and you’ll find yourself able to do things you didn’t even know you could do.”

He walked to the control section again and placed his wine on the table. “That’s why training will not be as hard. You will be able to adapt faster to the specific field you are trying to learn.”

Baekhyun let out a frustrated huff and adjusted his glasses. “So this 3XO…was this–is this–” he stammered. “Are these machines especially made for us?”

Myungjae smiled at the boy and leaned back on the table. “Yes it is. Since you were all young, you have been under observation. We researched the appropriate chemicals to activate your powers and now that we have it, there was no time to waste. We had to gather you all here and perform this experiment.”

“So this experiment,” Kyungsoo started, looking warily between the 3XO machines and Agent M. “Are we going to do it now?”

Sensing the boy’s nervousness, he gave him a reassuring grin. “Yes.”

Myungjae turned to the monitor behind him and typed rapidly on the keyboard. Then with one press of a button, the 3XO machines lit up into a blue lucid color. “I apologize for not mentioning it to you but I thought I shall explain when we get here. So are you all ready?”

The boys looked at one another. Were they prepared to finally discover their powers?

“It's now or never,” Tao said while the others nodded firmly.

“Very well then. Please step inside the 3XO's and I will shut the doors for you.”

Slowly, they walked towards the apparatuses and stepped inside quietly, avoiding eye contact with each other knowing full well how all of them were feeling at that moment.

Agent M made his way to the center of the room, going through all the machines and locking the doors securely. He gave a thumbs-up to each of them before heading back to the control system.

Meanwhile, Hyerin situated herself next to her father, eyeing the boys behind the glass surfaces of the 3XO's. She gave Myungjae a skeptic eye as he busied himself with the hundreds of buttons laid before him.

“Are you sure about this? They aren’t going to turn into three-legged gorillas, right? ‘Cause that'll be a big problem, dad.”

Myungjae chuckled silently, not giving his daughter a glance. “I know what I’m doing, Hyerin. If I didn’t, then I wouldn’t be here. None of us would be here.” He pushed a big shiny red button before ruffling her hair. “Just relax and watch as your dad’s awesomeness insures.”

He walked over to the other side of the table where a gigantic lever was situated. “Ready!?” he shouted. The boys answered with nervous nods.

Carefully, he pulled the lever down in a slow fashion. “This will only hurt a little bit,” he murmured. As he lowered the bar, the small screen on its left showed the percentage of how much it was progressing. It was currently on 46% and was going higher and higher by the second.

Hyerin looked on as the glass on the machineries fogged, cringing at the awful cries of the boys due to extreme pain. She didn’t blame them, though. Once her father started to pull the lever, a large canister of blue liquid materialized beside the machines and injected into their biceps, thighs and stomach. It didn’t help that the needles were thick and as long as her hand.

A shiver ran down her spine at the thought of it. “Dad, they sound like they’re being tortured.” She walked towards the man who was slowly pulling down the lever.

“Perfectly normal!” he exclaimed over the noisy hum of the machines. “It is not exactly comfortable in there!” he chuckled, watching the percentage go up to 84.

“They’re not going to die right!? ‘Cause they sure do sound like it!” she shouted, looking towards the twelve contraptions. “Is it rea–oh god. Dad, there are sparks coming out of the machines.”

“Just a bit more, sweetie! It’s okay!” he said, pulling the bar further down.

“What do you mean it's okay? It might explode!” she screeched, watching horridly as the machines shook violently, smoke seeping through the nooks. The screams got louder which unsettled her even more.

“Almost done!” he shouted. 90%, 91%, 92%...

“Dad, stop it!”

93%...94%...95%...96%...

“We should get them out of there, dad!”

“No, it’s done! Trust me!”

97%...

“Dad, you have to stop it!”

98%...

“Dad!”

99%...

“DAD!”