Troy couldn't stop thinking about her.
It had been days since the dance.
Days since the music died and agents walked away with Cassie like she belonged to another world.
Yet somehow…
He still loved her.
Even now.
Wesley tossed a basketball toward him.
"You gonna tell us what's going on in that head of yours?"
Troy caught it without looking.
"I told you already. Cassie… and Baker too. They're not normal."
M.J. lowered his voice.
"Do you think they're dangerous?"
Troy hesitated.
"I don't know," he admitted.
"But when they took her… she didn't look dangerous."
He stared at the ground.
"She looked alone."
Wesley crossed his arms.
"Then why can't you just forget her?"
Troy let out a humorless laugh.
"I've tried."
He glanced toward the empty street.
"…Where do people even take someone like her?"
No one had an answer.
---
The Ride Toward War
Inside the dark vehicle cutting silently through back roads, Baker groaned.
"They ruined our dance."
Marisa snorted. "You are unbelievable."
Madam Davina chuckled softly from the front seat.
Andrea even managed a faint laugh.
"Of all the tragedies, Baker mourns the dance."
"It was aesthetically important," Baker replied seriously.
Andrea's eyes lifted toward the massive structure appearing ahead.
Steel.
Glass.
Power humming beneath the ground.
Madam Davina whispered—
"SpectraCore."
Andrea's jaw tightened.
"…Kingston."
Her voice carried history.
"I finally came back."
Lincoln tapped his tablet.
"Entry channel opens in twelve seconds."
The security grid flickered.
"Now."
They slipped inside.
---
First Contact
Footsteps echoed down a dim corridor.
Then—
"Stop!"
Two armed guards rounded the corner.
Weapons raised.
Baker sighed dramatically.
"Ugh. Gentlemen, this is terrible timing."
The guards frowned.
"…What?"
Baker's eyes glowed gold.
"You should really be on vacation right now."
The hallway shimmered.
Suddenly—
Waves crashed.
Sunlight burned overhead.
The guards blinked wildly.
One lowered his weapon.
"…Why am I holding a rifle on a beach?"
The other kicked off his boots.
"Bro… I smell saltwater."
Marisa grabbed Baker's sleeve.
"Show-off later — MOVE!"
They rushed past as the guards argued about sunscreen.
---
The Fight
Further in—
Alarms chirped.
More guards.
"No illusions this time," Lincoln warned.
Weapons lifted.
Andrea stepped forward.
"Stay behind me."
A guard lunged.
Lincoln shifted instantly — his body folding into the towering form of one of the facility's own officers.
"Stand down!" he barked.
The hesitation bought seconds.
Baker whispered—
"Now!"
She multiplied the corridor into five identical paths.
Guards slammed into walls chasing ghosts.
One nearly grabbed Marisa.
She pivoted — striking his wrist exactly as trained.
"Martial arts finally paying off!" she shouted.
Davina moved like controlled lightning.
A blade flashed — not lethal, but precise.
Guard weapons clattered away.
Andrea blocked another strike.
"We are not here to kill!" she commanded.
Lincoln morphed again — this time into a rolling steel cart that crashed into two guards.
"Apologies!" he called mid-shift.
They ran.
Closer.
Closer.
Then—
The corridor sealed.
Steel doors slammed front and back.
Trapped.
Lights flared on.
Slow clapping echoed.
Dr. Channing stepped forward.
Kingston beside her.
Andrea's voice broke through the silence.
"Give me my daughter!"
Kingston tilted his head thoughtfully.
"You want your daughter here…"
A faint smile touched his lips.
"…Is she?"
He and Channing stepped aside.
Footsteps approached.
Cassie turned the corner.
Andrea's breath caught.
"Cassie…"
But something was wrong.
Her daughter did not run to her.
Did not smile.
She stood tall.
Controlled.
Eyes calm.
And cold.
"Mum," Cassie said quietly.
Andrea stepped forward.
"We came for you."
Cassie's gaze hardened.
"Did you?"
Confusion rippled through the team.
Lincoln whispered, "Something's not right…"
Cassie's voice trembled — not with fear.
With hurt.
"They told me about the curse."
Andrea froze.
"…Cassie—"
"You were waiting for me to die first before telling me?" she demanded.
"That's not true!" Andrea cried. "It wasn't time!"
"It was MY life!"
Blue light flickered behind Cassie's eyes.
Baker stepped forward carefully.
"Cass… listen—"
"Guess what?" Cassie interrupted.
"They taught me control."
The electricity erupted outward.
A shockwave slammed into them.
Lincoln crashed into the sealed door.
Marisa hit the floor.
Davina staggered but stayed upright.
Andrea fell to one knee.
"Cassie… please…"
Channing leaned close to Cassie and whispered—
"Too much emotion invites chaos."
Cassie steadied.
Then looked back at her family.
"Go," she said quietly.
"Before you get hurt."
Andrea reached toward her.
"I am not leaving without you!"
Kingston's voice cut through like ice.
"She asked you to go."
Armed guards flooded in.
"Leave," Kingston repeated.
"And never break into my facility again."
He gestured.
The guards seized them — dragging them toward the exit corridors.
Andrea screamed—
"CASSIE!"
Cassie didn't move.
Didn't run.
Didn't cry.
The doors shut between them.
Silence fell.
---
Aftermath
Andrea collapsed against the transport vehicle outside.
"She… chose them…"
Davina rested a steady hand on her shoulder.
"No," she said quietly.
"She chose what she believes is safety."
Marisa wiped tears angrily.
"We are not giving up."
Lincoln nodded.
"She's being manipulated."
Baker's eyes burned gold with fury.
"Then we break the illusion."
Andrea inhaled slowly.
Grief sharpening into something far more dangerous.
Resolve.
"We get her back," she whispered.
"No matter what it takes."
---
Inside SpectraCore
Kingston watched Cassie carefully.
"You're growing stronger."
Cassie looked away shyly.
A faint blush touched her cheeks.
"…Am I?"
"Every day," he replied.
Pride warmed his voice.
That night, Elara Voss found Cassie unusually quiet.
"Tough day?" she asked gently.
Cassie nodded.
"They came for me."
"And you protected them," Elara said.
Cassie looked surprised.
"I did?"
"You sent them away before anyone escalated."
Elara pulled out a game board.
"Come on. One match before sleep."
Hours later, laughter returned to the room.
For a little while…
Cassie forgot the look on her mother's face.
Elara tucked her in once more.
"You are allowed to be happy, Cassie."
As the lights dimmed, far below the facility hummed steadily — powered in part by the girl sleeping peacefully above it.
The Queen was inside the castle now.
And the war for her heart…
Had only just begun.