the air went tight.
Nox swallowed hard and moved fast — not sloppy — precise — like he'd practised this moment alone for weeks.
he ran to the back wall panel.
Kai held the crowbar like a blade now, body low, one foot slightly backwards — ready to intercept from the staircase direction.
Alva didn't moved yet.
she didn't need to.
that pressure behind her ribs… was no longer pressure.
it was a direction.
she stepped toward the vault panel — just one slow step — and the metal shifted like it recognized her.
silver flicker.
the seams appeared — only to her eyes — faint like chalk outlines.
Nox pressed his palm to the wall.
> "touch here — next to mine."
Alva placed her hand beside his.
she expected pain.
it wasn't pain.
it was clarity — like cold air hitting hot lungs — a clean snap.
CLICK—–
the panel hissed open by a centimetre.
Kai looked back once — like he wanted to say "holy sh*t" but didn't have time.
because—
metal footsteps — fast — closer — coming up the stairs.
Kai whispered under his breath:
> "Alva."
she answered without turning:
> "I hear them."
Nox stepped back.
Alva kept her hand pressed — the vault door sliding wider — 3 cm — 5 — 7 —
Kai growled:
> "I'm stalling them — but if they breach that landing—"
Alva turned her head now — slowly — eyes silver bright like liquid mercury.
they didn't shimmer — they glowed.
and she said something she never said with confidence before:
> "I don't need protection."
Kai blinked like she had slapped him with the sentence.
"…okay princess — then show me."
he said it as a challenge.
not sarcastic this time.
she stepped away from the vault.
Nox panicked:
> "wait— if you let go, the vault will stop—"
Alva didn't look at him.
she lifted one hand.
the world folded —
— not big
not visible to human eyes
it was a distortion like air bending around heat
she vanished out of line and reappeared one meter forward — in FRONT of Kai — between him and the stairwell.
Kai's breath left his chest.
> "you—"
Alva opened her fingers.
lightning coiled.
not loud.
not showy.
just aimed.
the first scavenger appeared — jaw split — spine bent — sprinting like an animal —
she didn't wait.
she stepped INTO the strike — like she was cutting through air with her entire body.
white flash — contact — dead.
no scream.
no sound.
just body collapse.
Kai lowered his crowbar slowly.
> "…okay."
his voice shook once.
> "now that's terrifyingly attractive."
Alva exhaled one breath — steady — smoke-like silver mist fading off her fingertips.
> "finish opening the vault," she said.
"and I'll handle the rest."
the first few seconds hung tight in the air — even Kai felt it.
Alva shifted her weight slightly and broke the silence first.
"you guys keep staring at me like I'm going to explode," she muttered.
Kai smirked — casually leaning his shoulder against the metal locker.
"well we did just watch you fry a generator with your thoughts," he said, shrug shrugging like it was normal.
Arden didn't move.
"you're destabilized," he corrected firmly. "your readings went off the chart. that means you're changing again, and we need control before you burn out."
Alva's jaw clenched. she hated him, sounding like a lab report.
she stepped closer.
"maybe I don't want control tonight."
Kai raised his eyebrows — amused.
he whispered very quietly to Arden:
"she's in that phase again."
Arden's eye twitched — irritated but also… impressed.
"phase?" Alva snapped. "I can hear both of you— you know that."
Kai laughed. it came out warm.
"I was testing if your telepathic range increased," he said. "it did."
she exhaled — sharp — but her lips curved slightly.
she liked his teasing more than she'd ever admit.
Arden noticed.
and that bothered him more than any anomaly in the apocalypse.
"focus," he said — like a command.
Alva tilted her head — lightning flickered faint inside her irises — faint but alive.
"make me."
Kai's expression broke — surprise + admiration at the same time.
Arden's heartbeat actually skipped — he felt it.
but before any of them said another word —
a metal clang echoed from the corridor outside.
Kai immediately motioned Alva behind the steel table.
Arden was already reaching for his pistol.
voices.
rough.
laughing.
scavengers.
the kind that strip survivors like cars.
Kai mouthed silently:
"three."
Alva closed her eyes.
there was no fear in her pulse.
she called her power — quick — cleaner than before.
Arden saw the shift in her posture.
Kai whispered only one thing — voice low:
"don't overdo it."
her reply was quiet.
"I'm tired of holding back."
the air charged.
the lockers rattled.
and her lightning came — not accidental — but chosen.
controlled.
deliberate.