Magi arrived at the small conference room fifteen minutes early. He preferred the quiet before meetings, a habit from his office days when empty rooms meant a few precious moments of peace. The Guild's standard-issue chairs were uncomfortable, designed to keep meetings brief. He adjusted his position, staring at the blank wall.

  Twenty-four hours. Nineteen remained.

  The door opened, and Marc stepped in. He nodded to Magi without speaking, took a seat across the table, and placed a tablet in front of him. His usual calm efficiency seemed strained today, his movements too precise.

  "You called everyone?" Magi asked.

  "Yes." Marc didn't look up from his tablet.

  Eli arrived next, silver hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. She carried a cup of tea that smelled of ginger and something sharper. Her eyes met Magi's briefly before she took the seat beside Marc.

  Layla and Jax entered together, mid-argument.

  "—don't care what they said, it's complete bullshit," Jax was saying, his voice tight with anger.

  "Keep your voice down," Layla hissed, closing the door behind them.

  The room felt smaller with all of them in it. Magi noticed Marc had engaged the privacy protocols, the small light above the door glowed red, and the windows had darkened slightly.

  No one spoke for several seconds. The silence stretched uncomfortably.

  "So," Layla finally said, dropping into a chair. "They're trying to lock you up."

  Magi nodded. "They're calling it a job offer."

  "North Ridge Preserve," Marc said, reading from his tablet. "Restricted movement. Permanent observation. Five-year minimum contract."

  "Prison," Jax corrected, pacing behind the chairs. "They're calling a prison a job."

  "It's a very nice prison," Magi said. "The compensation package is excellent."

  Jax stopped pacing. "Are you seriously considering it?"

  "I'm considering all my options."

  "What options?" Layla leaned forward. "Either you take their 'job' or they force you into containment anyway. That's not options. That's the same thing with different packaging."

  Eli set her tea down. "The Guild is scared," she said quietly. "Your ability threatens their entire operational model."

  "That's what Whitehall said," Magi confirmed.

  "Of course she did." Eli's voice remained calm, but her fingers tightened around her cup. "The Guild built its power on managing dimensional instability. If you can stabilize rifts just by existing near them, what do they have left?"

  The door opened again, and Senior Administrator Rhea Kendall stepped in. Marc immediately stood.

  "Ma'am, this is a private—"

  "Sit down, Venn." Rhea closed the door behind her. "I know exactly what this is."

  She surveyed the room, her gaze lingering on Magi. "The committee made their decision this morning. I was outvoted."

  "You're on the Dimensional Stability Committee?" Eli asked.

  "Junior member." Rhea's mouth twisted. "Not that it matters. The senior members had their minds made up before we even convened."

  She took the last empty chair. "They're making a mistake. Locking you away won't solve anything, Necros. It'll just delay the inevitable."

  "Which is?" Magi asked.

  "Adaptation." Rhea shook her head. "The dimensional landscape is changing. Has been since the first rifts appeared. Your ability is just another change we need to incorporate, not isolate."

  "Try telling that to the committee," Marc said.

  "I did. For three hours." Rhea's frustration was evident. "They're too invested in the current system. Too many powerful people making too much money."

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Jax slammed his palm against the wall. "This is such bullshit! They can't just lock someone up because they're inconvenient."

  "They can and they will," Rhea said. "The Emergency Powers Act gives them broad authority over 'dimensional resources.' That's what they're classifying you as, Necros. Not a person, a resource."

  Magi nodded. "Whitehall was clear about that part."

  "So what do we do?" Layla asked. "There has to be something."

  Marc looked up from his tablet. "Legally, our options are limited. The Guild has jurisdiction over all dimensional matters within city limits. Outside the city..." He trailed off.

  "What?" Jax demanded.

  "Outside the city, jurisdiction gets complicated. The regional coalitions have their own policies regarding dimensional management. Some might be more... accommodating."

  "You're suggesting he run?" Eli asked.

  "I'm presenting options," Marc said carefully.

  Rhea shook her head. "The Guild would track him. His stabilization effect leaves a clear signature. They'd find him within days."

  "Not if we hide the signature," Jax said.

  Everyone turned to look at him.

  "What?" he said defensively. "I know people who know people. There are ways to mask dimensional signatures. The Syndicate does it all the time."

  "The Syndicate," Rhea repeated. "You're suggesting he align with criminals."

  "I'm suggesting he not get locked in a fancy cage for the rest of his life!"

  Magi watched the argument unfold around him. They were all so animated, so invested in his situation. It was strange having people care this much about what happened to him.

  "What about legal challenges?" Eli asked. "The classification of a person as a 'resource' can't possibly stand up to scrutiny."

  "It would take months to work through the courts," Marc said. "By then, he'd already be at North Ridge."

  "So we break him out," Layla suggested.

  "And become fugitives ourselves?" Marc shook his head. "That's not a viable long-term solution."

  The argument continued, growing more heated. Magi felt the dimensional shimmer pulse nearby, responding to the emotional energy in the room. It had followed him from the Science Division, staying just at the edge of his awareness.

  "What about you, Magi?" Eli's voice cut through the noise. "You haven't said what you want to do."

  The room fell silent. All eyes turned to him.

  "They gave me twenty-four hours to decide," Magi said. "I have nineteen left."

  "That's not an answer," Jax said.

  "I'm still thinking."

  "About what?" Layla demanded. "About whether you want to be locked up or not? That shouldn't take nineteen seconds, let alone nineteen hours."

  Magi looked at each of them in turn. Marc's calculated calm. Eli's quiet concern. Layla's fierce protectiveness. Jax's barely contained rage. Rhea's frustrated resignation.

  "They think they understand what I am," Magi said finally. "They don't."

  "What does that mean?" Marc asked.

  "It means I'm still considering my options."

  Jax threw up his hands. "What options? They're going to lock you up!"

  "Are you okay with that?" Eli asked quietly. "With refusing their offer and facing whatever comes next?"

  Magi thought about the question. Was he okay with it? With defying the Guild, with whatever consequences might follow? He'd spent his life avoiding conflict, taking the path of least resistance. The easy route.

  But there was nothing easy about this situation.

  "I don't want to stay in one place," he said finally.

  The simplicity of the statement hung in the air. Not a declaration of defiance. Not a grand stand against injustice. Just a quiet preference for freedom.

  No one argued. No one offered counterpoints or strategic alternatives. They just looked at him, accepting his decision as final.

  That silence told Magi more than any words could have. They understood. Whatever came next, they would support his choice.

  "So what's the plan?" Layla asked eventually.

  "I don't have one yet," Magi admitted.

  "We have nineteen hours to make one," Marc said, his tactical mind already working. "We should consider all angles. Legal, logistical, and... alternative."

  "I know some people in the eastern districts," Jax offered. "Off-grid types. They might be able to help."

  "I have contacts in the regional coalition," Rhea said. "Not official channels, but people who might be sympathetic."

  "My family has a property outside city limits," Eli added. "It's not much, but it's private."

  Magi looked at them, these people who had somehow become more than teammates. "You don't have to get involved. This could have consequences for all of you."

  "We're already involved," Layla said firmly.

  "Echo Squad sticks together," Jax added.

  Marc nodded, his expression unreadable. "We should split up, gather resources. Meet back here in four hours with whatever we've found."

  As they filed out of the room, Marc lingered behind. Magi expected questions, demands for more information, a tactical assessment.

  Instead, Marc simply said, "I've never heard you express a preference that clearly before."

  Magi shrugged. "It seemed relevant."

  "It was." Marc paused at the door. "Just... unexpected."

  After Marc left, Magi sat alone in the conference room. The dimensional shimmer pulsed in the corner, brighter now, more defined. It seemed to be waiting for something.

  "Not yet," Magi told it quietly. "But soon."

  ***

  Marc walked quickly through the Guild Hall, his mind racing through contingencies and risk assessments. Echo Squad was about to defy the Guild's Dimensional Stability Committee, one of the most powerful bodies in the post-Awakening world. The consequences could be severe.

  But what troubled Marc most wasn't the risk. It was Magi's response.

  "I don't want to stay in one place."

  Six simple words, spoken without emphasis or emotion. Not anger, not defiance, not fear. Just a calm statement of preference.

  And no one had argued. Not even Marc, who prided himself on seeing all angles, considering all options. They had all simply accepted Magi's decision as final.

  That quiet certainty scared Marc more than any display of anger would have. Because it meant Magi had made up his mind completely. And Marc had seen what happened when Magi decided something was necessary.

  Buildings fell. Monsters died. Problems disappeared.

  All with the same calm efficiency as those six words.

  "I don't want to stay in one place."

  The Guild had no idea what they were about to face.