Magi scrolled through the contract details on his communicator while the rest of Echo Squad prepared their gear.

  The mission parameters indicated a standard C-rank task, dimensional intrusion in the commercial district requiring containment and neutralization. Nothing unusual, no special warnings. Just work.

  "What's the payout on this one?" Layla asked, testing the edge of her new greatsword. Guild-issued replacement after the bone dragon incident.

  "Standard," Magi answered. "Five hundred per head, plus bonuses for material collection."

  Jax groaned. "Barely covers equipment maintenance."

  "It's steady," Marc said, checking his utility belt. "Better than chasing higher ranks and ending up in medical for a week."

  "Or dealing with the Science Division again," Eli added, securing wind-attuned focus crystals to her wrists. She glanced at Magi. "Unless someone wants to show off today?"

  Magi zipped his hoodie. "I'd prefer not to."

  The team had established an uneasy truce since their argument. They didn't press Magi about his abilities, and he tried to appear more conventional during operations. It worked, mostly.

  "Observer drone's waiting outside," Marc said, shouldering his pack. "Let's move. Faster we finish, faster we get paid."

  The Guild-assigned transport dropped them at Riverside Plaza, a shopping center that had been hastily evacuated when sensors detected dimensional instability.

  The rift itself was small, no more than three meters across hovering near the central fountain.

  "Looks contained so far," Eli noted, checking her scanner.

  Marc nodded. "Standard formation. Layla front, Jax and Eli flanking, I'll coordinate from behind. Magi, stay central but hang back. Observer drone will record from above."

  The silvery drone hovering over their position blinked its confirmation lights.

  "Just once," Layla said, rolling her shoulders, "I'd like to do a mission without feeling like I'm on some reality show."

  "Guild policy," Marc reminded her. "Can't avoid it unless you want to drop back to D-rank."

  Magi examined the rift. Blue-white energy crackled around its edges, the interior shifting between darkness and flashes of what appeared to be a forest landscape. Typical low-level intrusion pattern. Nothing special.

  "Bio-signatures present," Eli announced, reading from her scanner. "Moving this way."

  Layla stepped forward, greatsword raised. "Showtime."

  The first creature emerged moments later, wolf-like but with scales instead of fur, its eyes glowing amber in the dim light of the plaza. Behind it came others, six in total, forming a hunting pack.

  "Scale wolves," Marc called out. "Vulnerable to lightning, resistant to physical trauma. Jax, focus on flanking maneuvers. Layla, keep them contained. Eli, hit them with wind to slow their movements, then I'll follow with lightning."

  The battle unfolded according to plan. Layla engaged the lead wolf, her greatsword creating a barrier between the creatures and her teammates.

  Jax darted between columns, keeping the pack's attention divided.

  Eli generated gusts of wind that disrupted their formation, while Marc's precisely aimed lightning bolts weakened their defenses.

  Magi stood back, observing. This was exactly the kind of operation Echo Squad excelled at coordinated, methodical, and effective against predictable threats. He'd only need to step in if something went wrong.

  Five minutes into the fight, three wolves had been dispatched, their bodies dissolving into blue particles as dimensional energy reclaimed them.

  "Half down," Marc called. "Keep pressure on the alpha, the bigger one with the red markings."

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Layla pressed forward, driving her sword toward the alpha wolf. The creature snarled and leapt backward, gathering its remaining pack mates in a defensive formation.

  That's when Magi noticed something odd.

  The wolves' movements became sluggish. Not from Eli's wind manipulation or Marc's lightning, this was different. Their forms seemed less solid, edges blurring slightly.

  "Are they... retreating?" Jax called, pausing his flanking maneuver.

  The alpha wolf shook its head violently, as if trying to clear its vision. Its snarl faltered, becoming a whimper.

  "What's happening?" Layla held her attack position but didn't advance.

  Eli checked her scanner. "Energy signatures are fluctuating. They're losing cohesion."

  Magi stepped forward, studying the creatures more closely. The wolves weren't injured beyond what Echo Squad had inflicted. They weren't showing fear or tactical retreat behavior. They were simply... fading.

  "It's the rift," Magi said quietly.

  The dimensional tear behind the creatures was changing. Its erratic pulsing had stabilized, the edges no longer crackling with excess energy. The interior view of the forest was clearer now, more defined.

  "Marc," Magi called. "Check your readings."

  Marc consulted his device. "Dimensional pressure dropping across the board. Stability index rising." He looked up, confusion evident. "That's not normal. Rifts don't self-stabilize."

  "This one is," Magi replied.

  The remaining wolves were barely holding their forms now, bodies translucent and movements disjointed.

  The alpha made one final attempt to growl before its structure collapsed entirely, dissolving not into the usual blue particles but simply fading like mist under sunlight.

  Within moments, all traces of the creatures had vanished.

  Layla lowered her sword. "Did we... win?"

  "I don't think we did anything," Eli said, checking her scanner again. "The rift is... healing itself."

  The tear was indeed changing before their eyes. Rather than the violent collapse typical of neutralized rifts, this one was simply... closing. The edges drew together smoothly, the view of the forest receding until only a faint outline remained, then nothing at all.

  Echo Squad stood in silence, watching empty air where a dimensional intrusion had been moments before.

  "I've never seen that before," Marc finally said.

  The Observer drone drifted lower, its sensors trained on the space where the rift had been.

  "No loot drop," Jax noted, looking around the fountain area. "No cores, no materials. Nothing."

  Layla frowned. "That's not right. Even natural collapses leave something behind."

  "This wasn't a collapse," Magi said. "It was a resolution."

  "A what?" Jax turned to him.

  "The rift resolved its dimensional inconsistency," Magi explained, keeping his voice neutral. "Instead of breaking apart, it reintegrated with its origin point."

  Marc studied him carefully. "And how exactly do you know that?"

  Magi shrugged. "Observation."

  Before anyone could press further, the Observer drone emitted a series of rapid beeps. Its lights flashed from blue to yellow, the Guild's signal for data anomaly.

  "Great," Eli muttered. "More paperwork."

  "I'll handle it," Marc said, already reaching for his communicator. "Standard report: dimensional intrusion neutralized, minimal combat engagement, no casualties, no material recovery."

  "Won't they question the lack of loot?" Layla asked.

  Marc glanced at the drone. "Let them question it. We did our job. The rift is gone."

  The team began collecting their gear, the routine of post-operation cleanup providing a welcome distraction from the unusual conclusion to their mission.

  Magi knelt by the fountain, examining the water. No residual energy, no dimensional particles. Nothing to indicate a rift had ever existed here. Complete restoration of normal space-time parameters.

  Just like the micro-rifts he'd neutralized for the Office of Dimensional Management.

  "Magi," Marc called, breaking his contemplation. "Transport's on the way. Five minutes."

  Magi nodded and stood. As he moved to join the others, his communicator vibrated in his pocket. Not the Guild-issued one, the personal device he rarely used.

  The message displayed a single line of text:

  "Third occurrence this week. We should talk. - D.C."

  Diana Chen from the Syndicate. She was tracking these anomalies.

  Magi deleted the message and rejoined his team. The Observer drone hovered nearby, its sensors still focused on the empty space where the rift had been.

  "Something wrong?" Eli asked, noticing his expression.

  "Just thinking about the paperwork," Magi replied.

  Layla snorted. "Always the bureaucrat."

  "Someone has to be," he said.

  The transport arrived exactly on schedule. As Echo Squad boarded, Magi glanced back at the fountain. Nothing remained of the dimensional intrusion, no scorch marks, no displaced matter, no residual energy.

  Just a shopping plaza, pristine and ordinary, as if nothing had ever happened.

  The perfect resolution. No mess. No complications.

  Magi couldn't help but appreciate the efficiency.

  The transport doors closed, and the Observer drone uploaded its data to Guild headquarters.

  Somewhere in the Science Division, analysts would review the footage, note the anomaly, add it to their growing file on unexplained dimensional phenomena.

  And somewhere in the Obsidian Syndicate, Diana Chen would compare it to her own data and draw her conclusions.

  Magi leaned back in his seat as the transport pulled away. Another easy job completed. Another paycheck earned. Another step closer to whatever was coming next.

  He checked his account balance on his communicator. With today's payment, he'd have enough for the security deposit on that apartment in the eastern sector. Something to look forward to.

  "Anyone else hungry?" Jax asked as the transport merged into traffic.

  "Starving," Layla agreed. "Griffith's Grill?"

  "Works for me," Eli said.

  Marc looked at Magi. "You joining us?"

  Magi considered the invitation. The apartment could wait another day. "Sure."

  As the transport carried them toward dinner, Magi's thoughts returned to the rift and its unusual resolution.

  No collapse.

  No violence.

  Just balance restoring itself.

  Exactly the way things should be.