Chapter 50
The return flight home was conducted in complete silence.
Three states rolled past in the dark, and inside the cabin, no one spoke.
In the rear bay, Evelyn Cross lay asleep. Wrapped in a thick wool blanket that Chloe had gently tucked around her shoulders, she looked strikingly small.
Without the hum of her dark-matter aura bending light around her, she looked undeniably human. Her face was pale and drained of color. Every steady rise and fall of her chest was a reminder of her fragility.
Chloe sat on the bench beside her. Across the aisle, Sienna remained curled in her chair; her floating camera rig lay powered down on the floorboards, its lens capped, and the livestream chat that had captivated millions was forgotten.
I sat in the command seat and stared straight ahead into the dark glass, jaw set. The urge to turn the transport around and tear Director Henderson’s office apart still burned in my chest. But looking back at the sleeping girl, my anger turned cold.
She hadn't wanted us to fight. Her last whisper before collapsing into my arms had been a plea for peace.
"Approaching mountain coordinates," G.I.D.E.O.N.,” said. "Initiating landing sequence. Retracting garden doors."
The ship descended smoothly into the hangar vault beneath the lawn. As the heavy hydraulic lift locked into place and the ramp lowered onto the floorboards, I unbuckled my harness. I stood up, boots thudding against the deck as I stepped over to lift Evelyn.
I reached out with my heavy, gauntleted hands, sliding my fingers beneath the wool blanket to scoop her up into my arms.
And then, I froze.
My fingers hovered inches from her ribs as the reality hit me. The woman lying before me no longer possessed an S-tier body. She had no dark matter to absorb pressure, no superhuman resilience left.
She was a normal human woman with ordinary bones, delicate skin, and zero protection. My gauntleted hands suddenly felt monstrous. A single miscalculation or sudden jerk could snap her bones or shatter her wrists.
I pulled my hands back and took a step away, my heart hammering against my ribs. I couldn't risk touching her.
"Master Carlos," G.I.D.E.O.N. said, gliding down the cabin aisle on his tread-wheels. "Allow me."
The droid’s mechanical claws extended, pressure gauges adjusting with a series of subtle clicks. With precise gentleness, G.I.D.E.O.N. slid his arms beneath Evelyn’s shivering frame. He lifted her effortlessly, sensors calibrating to prevent any strain. Evelyn let out a tiny sigh in her sleep.
Chloe and Sienna watched in silent understanding as G.I.D.E.O.N. carried her down the ramp and toward the East Wing. I stood frozen on the deck, hands heavy at my sides, watching them leave like a spectator in my own home.
Twenty minutes later, Evelyn was settled into Guest Suite 2. G.I.D.E.O.N. had drawn the drapes to shut out the bright glare, leaving the room in soft light. He pulled the thick quilts over her shoulders and carefully adjusted the pillows before stepping back.
I stood rigid in the doorway with my visor retracted, holding onto the frame with one heavy gauntlet. I didn't step past the threshold. I just watched her pale face from twelve feet away, my chest tight with fear and protective care.
G.I.D.E.O.N. glided out of the bedroom, and I left too, as he quietly pulled the door shut.
"Her physical vitals are stable," G.I.D.E.O.N. said. "Her metabolic burn rate has dropped to standard human baseline levels. She will require extensive rest to recover from the biological trauma of the procedure."
Chloe and Sienna walked up the corridor, having removed their gauntlets and helmets. "Is she... is she okay, Gid?" Chloe asked, her voice cracking.
"A complete medical and biological diagnostic is required to assess the full extent of her anatomical alterations," G.I.D.E.O.N.
replied. "Master Carlos, Miss Sterling, Miss Drake...
I request your presence down in the subterranean command workshop.
It is advisable that we conduct this technical briefing in a location where Miss Cross cannot inadvertently overhear our analysis. "
We didn't argue. We followed the droid down the spiral stairs, past the primary living quarters, and deep into the vault of the basement workshop. The heavy doors sealed behind us, cutting off all sound from the upper lodge.
G.I.D.E.O.N. glided to the central terminal, tapping his claws against the glass interface.
A series of complex three-dimensional scans, cellular maps, and neurological cross-sections ignited in mid-air, casting a cool light over the workshop.
In the center of the hologram was a detailed anatomical rendering of Evelyn’s body.
"Before I present the hard empirical data," G.I.D.E.O.N.
began, his synthesized voice carrying a rare gravity that made us all pause, "I must emphasize an essential parameter.
What Evelyn Cross experienced inside Sub-Sector Zero was not merely a medical procedure.
It was an absolute violation of her physical autonomy, her identity, and her dignity. "
Chloe swallowed hard, her hand instinctively reaching out to grip Sienna's fingers. Sienna squeezed back tightly, her hazel eyes shining with unshed tears.
"When she wakes," G.I.D.E.O.N. continued, optical sensors pulsing gently, "she will not only be dealing with physical weakness; she will be processing grief and vulnerability. It is imperative that we treat her with the utmost gentleness and respect, ensuring she never feels pitied or discarded."
Hearing Gid say that touched me to the core. Chloe wiped a tear from her cheek, while Sienna nodded vigorously, her lips pressed into a tight line.
"You're right, Gid," I said, voice thick with emotion. "Thank you. We'll make sure she knows she's cherished here, no matter what."
"Now, regarding the physiological diagnostic," G.I.D.E.O.N. said, tapping the terminal to highlight the central core of the hologram. The glowing violet energy hub that usually resided near Evelyn’s sternum was completely black, replaced by empty gray tissue.
"I can confirm scientifically what you already observed in the arrival bay. Director Henderson’s statement was accurate.
The Bureau utilized a high-frequency quantum excision array to target her localized dark-matter organ.
Her dark-matter core has been completely excised.
It has not been suppressed, dampened, or sealed; it has been eradicated at the cellular level.
She is biologically, permanently human."
A heavy silence settled over the workshop. The finality of the words hung in the air. There would be no training back her power, no breakthrough moment where her violet gravity wells returned to protect her. Evelyn Cross was a normal woman now, forever.
G.I.D.E.O.N. paused. His optical sensors dimmed, shifting to an unusually solemn amber hue. He looked up from the console, gaze sweeping over the three of us.
"Master Carlos, Miss Sterling, Miss Drake," the droid said, "I must request permission to share a secondary truth regarding your future cohabitation with Guest Cross. It is a harsh anatomical reality, and it may upset you deeply."
I felt my chest tighten as dread shot down my spine. "Permission granted, Gid. Tell us."
G.I.D.E.O.N. tapped the console, changing the holographic projection.
The image of Evelyn remained, but now, three secondary figures materialized beside her—renderings of my juggernaut power, Chloe’s solar power, and Sienna’s hyper-reactive kinetic power.
Red vectors flared between our models and Evelyn’s fragile frame.
"You must immediately understand and modify your physical behavior," G.I.D.E.O.N.
warned. "Previously, when Guest Cross possessed her dark-matter core, her body automatically deployed a passive sub-quantum spatial dampening field. That field absorbed your physical contact, allowing her to handle your solar heat, survive your high-speed reflexes, and endure Master Carlos’s unmitigated density without injury. "
He zoomed the hologram in on Evelyn’s chest and arms, displaying red stress points along her skeletal structure.
"That dampening field no longer exists," G.I.D.E.O.N. stated. "Her bones, muscle tissue, and skin are now entirely mortal. Therefore, strict physical distance must be maintained, and all physical movements in her presence must be consciously recalculated."
I felt my blood go cold. The room seemed to spin as the brutal reality of what I had feared on the ship was confirmed by cold data.
"Sienna," G.I.D.E.O.N. continued, turning toward her. "An accidental high-five executed with your hyper-speed reflexes will shatter her hand. An impulsive, high-speed tackle will cause lethal internal trauma."
Sienna gasped, clutching her hands to her chest as if her own fingers had suddenly turned into deadly weapons. Her face went pale.
"Chloe," G.I.D.E.O.N. concluded, "an involuntary thermal pulse during an emotional moment, if permitted to reach two hundred degrees in her proximity, will cause severe burns across her skin."
Chloe stood frozen, her hands trembling violently. The golden warmth that usually hummed comfortably beneath her skin vanished completely as she suppressed every thermal trace within her body.
"In summary," G.I.D.E.O.N. said, closing the hologram. "You are three S-tier heroes living alongside a glass vessel. If you forget what she is for a single microsecond... you will kill her."
The weight of his words settled over the four of us. We had built Heroes Landing as a sanctuary. And now, in a cruel twist, our sanctuary had become a minefield.
I looked at Chloe, whose eyes were wide with heartbroken fear, and at Sienna, who was holding her own hands tightly against her chest to keep them from moving.
I looked down at my own heavy hands.
They were monstrous.