[whispers]...I can fit through here. The cold stone walls of the underground cell. Faint neon light filtering in. Victor looked up at the ventilation shaft in the ceiling. Their shoulder-length black hair clung to their cheeks. [excited]Huh? Fit through what? Jinx's pink eyes went wide. Scratching at their short blue hair, they followed Victor's gaze. "The ventilation shaft. It's forty-two centimeters wide. My old shoulder width couldn't clear it. But." They placed a hand on their own shoulder. Narrow. The bone structure was different. [cold]The me of now can fit through. [laughing]No way! I measured it—no dice. A guy's shoulders get stuck. Jinx patted their own shoulders with a thump. [serious]Wait, Vic. You're going alone? Jayce stood up. Brown hair mussed from sleep. Golden eyes wavering with worry. "Yes. This passage is only wide enough for one. I'll find a way to open the door from outside." [serious]But— "Theoretically, it's the optimal solution. The data supports it." Victor set their foot on a protrusion in the wall. "Vic." They turned back. Their eyes met. Jayce's gaze. Something unspoken lived in those eyes. (—Come back.) The words never voiced hit Victor with painful clarity. [whispers]...It's fine. Victor gave a small nod. Something tightened deep in their chest. (This is just an aftereffect of the accident.) They gripped the ventilation shaft. The cold of the metal. The narrow passage. They pulled their shoulders in and pushed their body through. Crawling. Crawling. Darkness. The smell of machine oil. The distant groan of pipes. Crawling. Crawling. A path their former self could never have taken—their current self was passing through now. (How ironic.) (This body finally proved useful for something.) Light appeared. The outer corridor. Victor pushed open the vent grate and dropped down into the hallway. —That moment. [angry]Don't move! Multiple footsteps from deep in the corridor. Men in black. Pursuers from the Shimmer Syndicate. Victor dove behind a pillar. Held their breath. [angry]Bring the inventor bastard. The boss wants a word. "Understood." The sound of an iron door opening. Toward the underground cell. [angry]Let go! Vic! Where's Victor! Jayce's voice. Then, a dull thud. [angry]Shut up. The boss took a liking to your device. Says it can be used as a weapon. [angry]Don't screw with me! My invention is— A dull thud. A second blow. The sound of dragging. The far end of the corridor. Being taken to another room. A door closing. Victor slumped against the pillar, back pressed to it, and collapsed to the ground. Voices from inside. Muffled through the wall. [cold]I'll ask again. Reproduce the device. A low voice. Cold. [angry]I refuse. A dull thud. [cold]Technology that can manipulate sex. A genius like you understands what this means. [angry]For something like that, I— A dull thud. A third blow. Victor pressed both hands against the wall. (I—) Their fingers trembled. (If only I had checked the data sooner.) Their breathing grew ragged. (If only I had noticed the tampering.) A dull thud. A fourth blow. [crying]...ngh. Tears spilled over. They wouldn't stop. A failure as a scientist. Theory, data—they couldn't protect any of it. Beyond the wall, their best friend was being hurt. Because of their own failure. [crying]...I'm sorry. They put their hands on the floor. Tears fell. —A voice dropped from above. [angry]The hell are you crying for? Victor's head snapped up. The ceiling grate was kicked away, and Jinx landed in the corridor. Short blue hair swaying. The tattoos covering their body stained red by the emergency lights. "How did you—" "My vent. After you went through, I widened it with an explosion." Jinx grinned. [angry]If a genius has time to mope around, make a bomb. [surprised]...What? [excited]You've got materials right now, don't you! Scrap parts lying in the hallway, the gunpowder in my pocket— Jinx pulled a small pouch from their pocket. [excited]Instead of thinking with that empty head of yours, move your hands! Victor wiped their tears. Jinx's words were rough. But—they hit the mark. (I am a scientist.) [serious]...What's the composition of the gunpowder? [excited]Oh, now you're motivated! Victor stood up. Looked around. Metal fragments scattered on the floor. Pipe shards. Wiring. Calculations raced through their head. (A flash smoke screen and a heat round. I can make two with these materials.) Their fingers moved. They took the gunpowder from Jinx, combined the metal fragments. Used wiring as a substitute for fuses. [serious]Jinx. Can you draw the pursuers away? [excited]Hell yeah! That's my specialty! Jinx grabbed one of the bombs and sprinted toward the opposite end of the corridor. [laughing]Hey, over here, you small fry! The sound of explosions. The pursuers' angry shouts. Jinx's laughter. Smoke bomb in hand, Victor headed for another cell. An iron door. They peered through the viewing window. Two figures. "Caitlyn! Vi!" [surprised]Victor!? How did you— "Explanation later!" Victor hurled the smoke bomb at the guards. Fwoooosh—! The corridor filled with white smoke. [angry]What the—!? [scared]My eyes—I can't see! In that gap, Victor pressed the heat round against the iron door's hinges. Tssssss— The hinges glowed red-hot, groaning. Vi slammed into the door. CRASH! The door blew off. [excited]Nice one, Vic! Knew you were a genius! Vi thrust a fist into the air. Shocking pink hair swayed. The scar on their left cheek twisted with their grin. [serious]I'll be conducting a full debriefing later. Caitlyn stood up, hands still bound. Navy blue short hair. A deep, husky voice, yet speaking with the poise of a lady. "Jayce is—" BOOOOOOM!!! An explosion from down the corridor. Jinx blew through a wall and rejoined them. [excited]Took out three! How many more? "The room where Jayce is! Hurry!" The four of them ran. The iron door at the far end. Vi kicked it down. Inside the room—. Jayce, tied to a chair. His cheek red and swollen, lip split and oozing blood. His clothes were torn. A man standing before him. Black coat. Silver rings. [angry]You bastards—! The boss spun around. "Jayce!" Victor ran. The boss clicked his tongue and threw himself against the window. CRASH! Glass shattered, and the boss leaped outside. Vanished into the darkness. [angry]Wait! "—Don't pursue him." Victor rushed to Jayce's side. Untied the ropes. Jayce slowly lifted his head. Swollen cheek. Split lip. A battered figure. But—. [gentle]...Vic. Jayce smiled. [gentle]You're okay. Those words. That face. Inside Victor, something—settled into place. (This isn't an aftereffect.) (Data, theory—none of that matters.) (This is—) Deep in their chest, a warmth. Victor couldn't find the words. They just—held Jayce's hand in both of theirs. Just for a moment. Warm. They quickly turned their face away. Their ears burned hot. [whispers]...An escape route. Their voice trembled. [laughing]Whoa there, your ears are bright red. [angry]N-No, they're not! Jayce said nothing. He just—gazed at Victor's averted face, at those bright red ears, and narrowed his eyes. [serious]...The boss got away, didn't he. Caitlyn spoke as she finally freed her bound hands. [serious]The evidence documents, the copies of the blueprints—that man took everything. We have nothing left in hand. [serious]As an Enforcer, I cannot report to the Council without both physical evidence and the suspect in custody. [angry]We going after him tonight?! "No. Jayce is injured. Jinx is out of bombs. I've used up all my components." [serious]...Then what do we do? Victor lifted their head. "The boss must have a server somewhere in this hideout. The evidence will still be there." Light returned to their gray eyes. "We lost the device. But—" They clenched their fist. "A scientist can think, even without tools." [gentle]...Yeah. Jayce, swollen cheek and all, smiled. "If anyone can, you can." Victor looked down. Their ears still burned. But—they would no longer call this an aftereffect. They knew the name of this feeling. A cold wind blew through the underground cell. The battle was over. But only so they could begin preparing for the next one.