The snow outside the hotel window was no longer falling; it was vibrating.
Sonia stood at her transmitter, her fingers dancing across the frequencies. The "Amber" alert had turned into a solid, rhythmic pulse that made the water in her glass ripple in concentric circles. She keyed the channel to Oscar, her voice tight with a sudden, cold realization.
"Oscar, don't try to force the van through the perimeter," Sonia commanded. "Look at the flakes. They aren't melting on the hood. They're locking together. It's a physical lattice—a stasis field disguised as a storm. The snow is the barrier to ability users."
On the other end, Oscar looked out from the bakery van, his breath hitching. He reached out a hand, and as a snowflake touched his glove, it didn't dissolve. It clicked into place like a piece of a puzzle, turning the air itself into a wall of semi-solid glass. "We're pinned," Oscar hissed. "If we move, we'll be shredded by the friction. Sonia, I don't think I can make any move."
Back at the bakery, the air suddenly warped.
Vincent didn't wait for a reply. He stood in the center of the kitchen, his eyes glowing with a dull, ethereal light. He reached into the empty air near the door, his fingers hooking into the fabric of reality. With a violent tug, he peeled back a shimmering, rectangular void—his signature ability: Door Dimension.
Unlike before where he needed to hold a physical door to activate the ability, he now needed to be near the door to activate it and this was as a result from his recent training which was pretty much unexpected.
The "door" didn't lead to the street. It tore a hole directly into Sonia's hotel room across the city.
Vincent stepped through, flour still dusting his shoulders. Sonia didn't even flinch; she was already grabbing her tactical gear and a heavy-duty signal jammer.
"The lighthouse is the anchor," Vincent said, his voice strained. The effort of holding a portal open through a growing stasis field was clearly draining him. "But I can get us to the AXILE service entrance. The field is weakest at the ground level where the heat vents are."
"Do it," Sonia said, checking the slide on her sidearm. "Yunli is expecting a pickup."
Inside the AXILE Smoking Lounge
Yunli stood by the door, the heavy silence of the room punctuated only by the distant, muffled sound of the auction's end. She looked at Mahito, who was still watching the pseudo frozen world outside. She knew the perimeter was crawling with Klaus's men, and she knew her "scared student" act was paper-thin.
But she also knew Mahito was the only reason she was still breathing.
"My friends are at the southern service gate," Yunli said, her voice dropping the artificial tremor. She looked him in the eye, her expression now hard and professional. "But the corridors are locked down. I won't make it ten feet without a high-level clearance."
She paused, then added with a touch of calculated audacity, "Would you be so kind as to escort me? A guest of your stature wouldn't be questioned."
Mahito turned, the reflective pools of his spectacles catching the dim light. He let out a soft, melodic laugh. "You truly are a shameless creature, MACE operative. You blow your cover, burn a signal, use my phone, and now you ask for a royal escort through a lion's den."
He walked toward her, his presence expanding until the room felt small. He stopped just inches away, looking down at her.
"I will take you to the door," Mahito said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "But let us be clear. This is not a gift. By the time you step over that threshold, you will owe me three favors. And I assure you, I am the type of creditor who collects with interest. Do we have an agreement?"
Yunli didn't hesitate. "Agreed."
Mahito gestured to the door. "Then let us go. I should hate to keep your 'delivery' waiting."
The walk through the compound was a masterclass in psychological warfare. Mahito walked with Yunli at his side, his hand resting lightly on her shoulder like a possessive patron. Every time a security team led by Rose or Tess approached, Mahito simply stared them down. The air around him shimmered with such raw, unspoken threat that the guards instinctively stepped back, their fingers twitching on their triggers but never pulling.
They reached the heavy, reinforced southern gate. The snow outside was now a solid white wall.
Mahito stepped back, releasing her shoulder. "We are at the end of our stroll. Remember our deal, little bird. I will be seeing you very soon."
He turned and vanished into the shadows of the corridor before she could even say goodbye.
***
The Southern Gate
The heavy door hissed open, and Yunli stepped into the freezing night. Vincent, Sonia, and Oscar were waiting in the shadow of a concrete pillar, their faces hidden by hoods.
"Yunli! Move!" Vincent shouted, extending his hand. He began to manifest a portal, his fingers clawing at the air to create a gateway back to the safety of the hotel where she resided.
But as the void began to open, it suddenly **shattered**.
A sound like breaking crystal echoed through the courtyard. The portal collapsed into sparks, the feedback sending Vincent stumbling back, his nose bleeding.
Vincent looked at his hands, his face pale with shock. "I can't... I can't tear the space. There's a restriction. Something is anchoring the manifesting of my ability."
Sonia looked up at the perimeter walls. Hidden behind the decorative gargoyles and security cameras, small, humming devices were beginning to glow with a sickly violet light.
"Stasis anchors," Sonia whispered, her horror mounting. "They aren't just hardening the snow around here. They're freezing the laws of physics. They've placed the entire gate in a state of high-density stasis."
"We're boxed in," yunlin realized, drawing his weapon as the sound of heavy boots began to approach from the inner courtyard.
From the shadows of the mezzanine above them, Klaus's voice boomed over the speakers, cold and triumphant.
"I told you, Ian had a plan. Welcome to the cage, MACE. You aren't going anywhere."
His voice very much shocked the three rather than it to bea surprise.