A/N: Early chapter in commemoration of 1300+ subs! Thank you for everyone who reads this, I really, truly appreciate it. For those of you Joyri fanatics, this one is for you! Well, actually, this is quite the heart-to-heart chapter in general (for once). Haha. I'm recovering at a pretty quick rate, so for those of you who expressed your concerns, you don't have to worry about me! As always, if you enjoy, let me know in the comments and leave an upvote! It helps in the motivation aspect of things. Until next time! Cheetolord out!

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Yeri knew it was a lost fight as soon as she saw them. Her team was good. She knew Joy could put up a good fight and Krystal was on par with Seulgi in terms of power and skill and Yeri knew how to put her own two cents in. But they were better. Irene and Seulgi together were a duo that couldn’t be matched, especially not with the additional guy there who looked like some wrestler for the WWE. Irene and Seulgi wouldn’t have a choice but to wipe them out and Superman wouldn’t have a problem with wiping them out and that would be it.

They’d expected it, the meeting, but not so early in the game. But they couldn’t back down now and they had their pride as agents.

“Stick behind me and follow my lead.”

That was Krystal. She was the only Field agent here so she took the lead. Yeri had seen her capability and she wasn’t going to complain. It was only natural and even Joy stood quietly behind her. The snow wasn’t letting up, but it wasn’t windy so visual wasn’t a problem. The truck was big and probably looked a lot better on the inside than the shell for inconspicuousness. The lights on the inside were on and Irene was fiddling with the radio while Superman leaned on the hood. He didn’t seem disturbed by the cold. In fact, he looked comfortable. Seulgi was in the passenger seat with a Glock in her left hand resting on the center console, presumably to make sure the driver wouldn’t make any dumb moves.

It was only getting colder by the minute and they had to move fast. The suits were designed to retain their body heat but they weren’t good enough to keep at it in negative degree weather. Their hands were freezing up and their brains would start focusing on the cold and soon they wouldn’t be able to think straight. It was now or never.

Krystal seemed to realize it, too. They started to move. They went deeper into the forest then they curved out so they were right by Superman. They didn’t want firearm combat. They wanted good old fashioned hand-to-hand.

“Well, let’s hope they go a little easy on us,” she said.

“I don’t know, I feel like I shouldn’t have mouthed off to Seulgi as much as I did. But yeah. Good luck.”

Wendy commed in. “Be careful.”

It didn’t take a signal to get them moving. They were like a well-oiled machine, moving at exactly the same time at the exact same momentum knowing exactly where they needed to go and what to do. It took them by surprise, but surprise with people like them wasn’t a big upperhand. They were used to surprises, and depending on how good you were, that element would be totally lost, or it could keep the opponent one step behind.

Yeri went straight for the driver’s side and yanked the door open and managed to drag Irene out. There was surprise, then there was an apology and Irene was twisting out of her grip and swinging her elbow back and nearly breaking her face. She twisted her head to the side and jerked back just in time so it hit her cheek instead and stumbled. Joy was dealing with Seulgi and Krystal was dancing with Superman. It would all end soon with the three of them on the ground and an extra driver to boot.

Krystal was the first to go. Yeri heard a dull thump and then the sound of a body hitting the ground. While she was distracted, Irene put her in a headlock and kicked her feet out from under her. She scrabbled for a foothold. She got one.

Irene yelled, “Don’t kill her! Toss her to the side!”

Yeri used her body weight to yank her off balance then grabbed a hold of her arms and threw them off of her. They crouched face to face with their arms outstretched and sizing each other up. Irene was unscathed, she wasn’t as lucky.

She heard Joy go down for the count, a simple grunt and a thud. Yeri knew it was over, then. She was the last one standing, the weakest link in the chain, and facing SM’s Ice Angel. There was a flash of regret, then a quick movement, and then, there was nothing.

The med-care room was packed. It had four agents in it. Three unconscious, one still kicking. After she’d determined that the team had been taken out, Wendy had called Lee and told him what had happened and the med-care van had been deployed and they’d been hauled back to the agency. It had been done quickly and quietly. Just as it was always done. No one else the wiser.

Wendy couldn’t help but feel guilty. Krystal was the worst off of the three of them. She’d suffered a fractured arm and a blow to the head and a whole bunch of cuts and bruises. Joy and Yeri had simply been knocked unconscious with minor cuts and a couple of contusions here and there. Nothing big. And through all that, Wendy had been sitting in a comfortable chair staring at a monitor in a heated van like she was watching some scene from a movie.

Amber had left a few minutes prior to retrieve the data from the van and relay it to Lee. She’d insisted that Wendy stay back.

“Well, it looks like Hellfire got her payback.”

Joy was sitting up in her bed. She looked disgusted, but her expression changed when she caught sight of Yeri. Always her soft spot. And she always would be. Her expression shifted again and Wendy watched as she ripped out the IV from her arm. At this point, she knew it was futile to try and stop her. Joy was stubborn and she was independent and she would do as she wished.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“Like a monster truck rolled over me. How’s Yeri? Is she okay?”

“Of course. Irene wouldn’t put her in mortal peril.”

“Wouldn’t she? The Ice Angel of the most prestigious agency of Korea? Anyway, what about her?”

“Krystal’s worse off than the both of you combined, but she’ll be okay.”

“That’s nice.” Joy took a bottle of water from one of the tables. She drained it and crushed it in her hand then chucked it across the room and scored. “And once again, I’m in a hospital. At least I’m not wearing one of those stupid gowns this time. Did I mention how much I hate hospitals?”

Wendy laughed. “Of course that’s what you’d been worried about.”

“If I didn’t have my looks, what would I be left with?”

Wendy took a seat on one of the chairs. Joy sat down on her bed. It was silent. Not unbearable, but uncomfortable, and no one said anything for a good minute.

Then,