With this new goal in mind, the two checked the neighborhood directory and headed straight to Flow's house.
They knocked, but there was no answer. So they tried again, and that's when a uniformed man called out to them, saying,
"Hey! She's not home. What do you need?"
Mirror looked him over and noticed he was wearing the same uniform as the guards on the plane when they were flying over here.
"We... just wanted to see if we could get a status report on Fenix," she answered. The man looked surprised, then a look of realization crossed his face.
"You must be Aura's sister." It was her turn to be shocked now. Caster took Mirror's hands and led her from Flow's porch so they wouldn't have to shout.
"How do you know, Aura?" Caster asked, and the man then turned to him and tapped his chin with a furrowed brow.
"She's Fenix's fiancée; he barely mentioned anyone else," the man answered. "Oh, my name is Coal by the way," he added with a polite bow.
"He mentioned Mirror, though?" Caster asked coolly.
Coal laughed and replied,
"Yeah, he mentioned her." After speaking, he laughed more as if enjoying an inside joke.
Once he composed himself, he cleared his throat and said,
"I can show you a copy of his latest status report." They both perked up excitedly when given this news.
Coal led them to a corporate-looking building. There was a sign outside that read "Lightning Rod: Pierce Corp."
As soon as they entered, Coal pointed to a waiting area,
"Wait there, I'll be back soon," he instructed. The two nodded, then sat down in the comfy black leather seats, hand in hand, hoping for good news.
Several minutes later, he returned with a small stack of papers.
"You can take this with you, but I can also give you a quick summary." Coal said while extending the papers towards Mirror. She quickly skimmed over them while Caster leaned forward, saying,
"I'd like the summary, please."
"Okie dokie—he just landed near the prison recently, no casualties. If everything continues to go well, he should be home in three days." Coal answered with a nonchalant shrug. Mirror's hands trembled as she held the papers.
Even though it seemed like a spur-of-the-moment decision, everything was meticulously planned. Floor plans, blueprints, communication jamming devices, and even a trained infiltration team.
As she looked through everything, a thought she'd never dared consider surfaced, and she mumbled it out loud,
"He might actually pull this off..."
This wasn't reckless at all...
Her parents could actually be rescued.
Tears dripped down onto the papers, so she thrust them towards Caster.
"Hold these, I don't want to smear the ink," she muttered. He nodded, carefully folded them, and put them into his pocket.
"I was allowed to give this information to you, because you're family. If you want to know about any updates, feel free to come here again. Anyone who works here will gladly assist you." Coal closed his eyes and bowed slightly while saying this. Then he waved goodbye and made his way to the elevator.
"Hey! Coco, you're late!" a woman said. Her heels clacked loudly as she rushed onto the elevator with him. He chuckled and ruffled her hair.
"I'm sorry, I got held up," he explained as the door closed behind them.
Mirror sat, deep in thought over everything. So Caster intertwined their fingers and waited until she stood up before leaving together.
They didn't go back to Aura's house because she needed to rest, and Mirror didn't want to disturb her, even with such wonderful news.
So instead, they stopped by a street vendor, ate a spicy local dish called Torch-Style Chicken andRice, and returned home.
Caster placed the documents on the living room table. He then flopped down on the couch, sighing, while Mirror sat beside him and exhaled heavily.
"I feel... like a weight I didn't realize was there, just got lifted off of me," she mumbled. He smiled at her and said,
"That's good. We made some progress today," he commented in response. Mirror scooted closer to him and lay her head on his shoulder.
"Yeah... my mouth is still stinging from dinner, though," she grumbled with a frown. Caster laughed.
"Same here," he agreed.
She was quiet for a second before looking up at him with hungry eyes and saying,
"I think a kiss would make it better."
Caster's face turned red, and he put his hands over it to hide.
"I don't think my spicy lips can help," he whispered shyly. Mirror pecked his neck, kissing her way up to his jawline.
"We won't know for sure without trying," she replied coyly.
In that moment, he threw his hands down, pinned her shoulders to the couch cushions, and pressed his lips to hers. The kisses deepened, growing more passionate every second, and neither of them showed any intention of stopping.
They hurried to Aura's place first thing in the morning.
She answered quickly this time, and Caster stepped back so Mirror could hand over the paperwork. Aura gave them a confused look, then began reading through what Mirror had given her. A little while later, she froze mid-page.
That's when Mirror spoke.
"He's safe. The prison's far away, so they only just got there yesterday. They have a plan… and backups if anything goes wrong. And… because you're family, they'll update you whenever you ask." Aura looked up at her and tilted her head.
"Who?" she asked. Mirror flailed slightly, embarrassed, and said,
"The people who work for Pierce." Caster stroked her shoulder to calm her.
Aura smiled softly and sank to her knees, hugging the documents against her chest.
"Thank you so much... let's go get an update together, if that's okay." Aura's voice shook as she spoke.
Mirror immediately squatted down in front of her, pulling her into a hug.
"Yes, of course. Let's go now."
Aura went back inside for a moment to change and wash her face before joining the others to make her way to Lightning Rod.
Meanwhile, many miles away—
Fenix adjusted his hood and face mask before removing the seal that limited his powers and handing it over to his teammate. She clutched it in her palm and said,
"We're here for support. Are you sure you want to go in alone?" He pulled on a pair of leather gloves and replied,
"I need to break through the gates on my own. Cut off their internet and radio signals from here. I'll send a flare when I'm ready for assistance or if something goes wrong." She nodded and stepped aside, and he entered the woods alone, walking steadily towards the Prison of the Bedevilled.
He took a deep breath, taking in the fresh air and looking at the leaves above.
"This place... reminds me of her." He mumbled. A mixture of emotions flooded his heart.
His chest tightened.
He pushed the feeling down.
Now he looked straight ahead, standing in a clearing outside the prison gates.
There was only one entrance flanked by two guard towers. Searchlights swept the perimeter while cameras tracked in sync.
He raised his hand slightly, and a thick fog swept the area.
The lights couldn't penetrate it, so the cameras picked up nothing as Fenix strolled up to the metal gates, pressed his hands against them, melted the bars, then stepped inside.
The motion sensors triggered—but before they could sound an alarm, the system overheated and burst into flames.
The guards were disturbed by the sudden fog, and one of them left his station to investigate. He kept his gun cocked and ready while advancing slowly and looking around for anything he needed to report.
Suddenly, he couldn't take another step.
He looked down, and his feet were encased in ice. The man gasped and blurted,
"Someone's here," while reaching for his walkie-talkie.
A blow hit him from behind, decisively. His body slumped over instantly.
Fenix looked down at the limp body on the ground and knelt to search the man's pockets until he found a key card.
The walkie-talkie lit up, and a voice crackled through,
"Hey John, is everything okay? See anything down there?" Fenix sighed and lifted the device, deepening his voice slightly before replying,
"Everything's clear so far."
There was a moment of silence before the man on the other end responded.
"Okay, let me know if you need backup—or if I should activate lockdown." Fenix stared at the walkie-talkie in his hand and thought for a moment.
"No, it's a pain to deactivate, and I want to go home on time tonight." He replied, and the man on the other end chuckled and replied,
"You're right, just keep a lookout."
"Will do," Fenix said before tossing the device aside and using the keycard to enter the main building.
Before he even walked in, a surge of heat swept through the building, shorting out all the electronics and overhead lights. There were murmurs and gasps from the nearby guards.
"What the heck is going on?" one of them muttered, stepping out of the office to look around, his eyes struggling to adjust to the darkness.
Fenix moved behind him, catching the officer in a chokehold and holding him there until the struggle faded.
He then rummaged through the man's clothes to see if he had a key card with higher clearance than the outside guard's.
"Phil, the phones aren't working. I'm going to check the breaker," a female voice yelled. She didn't wait for a response, stumbling away, hugging the wall, and speaking into her walkie-talkie to say,
"The power went out. I need maintenance here ASAP." Fenix trailed after her, keeping a slight distance as she opened the door ahead.
"We can't get a signal through to call anyone, even with our cellphones," an officer responded.
"Oh great," She replied sarcastically and grumbled under her breath. "This crazy crap would happen on my shift," she continued while unlocking another door in their path.
This is where their paths diverged. She made her way into the basement while he used the key card he swiped from Phil to enter the prisoner hold.
Faint blue lights lined the walkway of the many cell doors. The doors only had one small window, and many prisoners peeked through as Fenix passed. Eyes followed him from every cell—but no one dared speak.
Soon, he reached his destination, Aura's mother's cell. Sera Anima. He placed his hand against the door and shouted,
"Ms. Anima, please move away from the door." There was a gasp and shuffling from inside, then Fenix applied some pressure, and the door went flying, crashing into the back wall.
The lady inside screamed, shuffling back into the corner of her cell, with her eyes fixed on the crumbled, sizzling door in front of her.
"Are you alright? I didn't hit you, right?" Fenix asked. He began thoroughly checking over the woman in front of him.
"I'm fine," she whimpered. He sighed in relief. "Who are you? What's going on?" she asked shakily. Fenix opened his mouth to speak, with a big grin at first, then his smile vanished, and he turned his back to her.
"I'm a friend of your daughter... It's time to take you back to them." It took Sera a moment to process the information. She sat with a blank stare.
"... We're breaking out?" she mumbled. Fenix laughed softly,
"Yes... everyone, including your husband, in the Men's Sector." Sera's eyes lit up then, and she rose to her feet.
"Thank you... But why? Why are you doing this?"
"... The quick answer is, I love your daughter, and she loves you. So you matter to me, too." He spoke with so much certainty that Sera was moved.
"All the doors on the way to the exit are open. Walk out there and wait for me. I'll release the other prisoners." He instructed. That's when Sera frowned and said,
"There are a few people who should stay." Fenix laughed,
"Tell me their prisoner numbers, and I'll make sure they don't come with us," he offered. She smiled then and replied,
"I'll point them out after all this is over."
He handed her a flashlight and said,
"You're going to need this," she nodded, then left the room, hurrying to the exit. He left a little afterward and began breaking each prisoner's door down, one by one, repeating only one thing:
"Now's your chance, head to the exit before it's too late." A few hesitated, but most of them rushed out toward freedom.
Several minutes passed, and he had released everyone before he made his way back outside. Some of the prisoners were still cluttered in the dark hallway, afraid to say anything, so Fenix pulled out another mini flashlight and gestured for them to follow him.
The fog was still clinging to the air when they reached the outside. At that moment, Fenix set off the signal flare.
It didn't take long for his teammates to show up.
One of them was a luminescent man who motioned for the women to follow him. They formed a line. Meanwhile, his other teammates slipped into both guard towers, silently incapacitating the remaining personnel and opening the gate completely.