The doors to the mech engineering department broke into a portal, and out of it came a bright young man. In the room were six figures. The room was rough and unkempt, with parts of mechs scattered around. Clearly, the absence of Alto had returned it to its terrible state.
As Alto appeared, he drew the attention of the six figures. Those he recognized were the professor, who was busy with a clipboard in hand; the second was Charles Vans, who was tinkering with the arm of a mech on a table with a screwdriver; and there was Eleven, who sat by a workbench stuffing his face with treats. Their faces were filled with surprise at his presence.
The other three were a mix of faces both old and new. There was Marie Hanswith and Kendell Brist, the two cadets he had met days earlier and directed to the training room. Marie smiled and blew him a kiss, while Kendell winked at him. The final figure was a huge man looking to be in his fifties; he wore a thick black uniform similar to theirs.
