The Fall of Mangiatorvi

24: Seven Minutes

"She is on a rampage, iced her neighborhood. I need you to pull all the connections you have in the Brigade to keep this situation local."

"I can do that," Haruhi said, hanging up.

Luca slipped his halophone into his back pocket and took off in a sprint beside Gemma's conspicuous trail of breadcrumbs. The height of the buildings paled in comparison to Passamont but proved to be in no better shape than the towers of Vicenza. Luca encountered his first car as it missed hitting him by inches, and he opted to continue his journey on the sidewalk. He forgot that people used those metal death traps for transportation.

Two police officers brought him to an abrupt stop, closing off the block with caution tape as he rounded the corner.

"I'm sorry, this area is under investigation."

Luca frowned. "Take a closer look."

"What?" The officer frowned. He leapt as his shoes caught on fire, his eyes growing wide with recognition. "Prince Luca!"

The Bridge Brigade handled all supernatural disasters, tasked with returning threats to the Magic Realm without the knowledge of the Mortal Realm. Their first priority was protecting the secret of the Magic Realm, followed closely by preventing civilian deaths. The world leaders of both realms worked closely to keep situations under the radar, operating on a need to know basis. Luca sincerely doubted that the Brigade would allow local police in on this action.

"We sincerely apologize, we were not expecting you," the second officer quickly stepped in as his partner nursed his scorched foot.

"Take me to the defender in charge of this operation," Luca demanded with more confidence than he felt. The men were in their mid-twenties, obviously recruited straight out of Mangiatorvi University.

The second officer led Luca to a large surveillance trailer a few blocks past the caution tape. Luca's heart threatened to thump out of his chest with every step he took. He had no plan, and absolutely no idea what he was doing. However, the ice grew more jagged, indicating that he was heading in the right direction.

"Defender Ibraham, Prince Luca is here to see you."

Luca swallowed roughly, entering the spacious trailer. A team of nine, ages ranging from early twenties to mid-thirties occupied the workspace. Three men sat at their prospective laptops, hooked to advanced technology embedded on the inside of the trailer walls. Four teammates were borderline naked, in the middle of equipping for combat. His eyes fell to the only person standing and fully dressed. The older man stood with a firm frown and crossed arms.

Luca cleared his throat, "Uh, Defen-"

The man shook his head, pointing to the petite woman sitting at the table.

Easily the smallest person in the room, and only one of three women present, she rose to her feet. "I'm Defender Basma Ibrahim." A navy blue hijab covered her hair but revealed a set of piercing brown eyes and a stern scowl.

"Uh, okay, sorry," Luca quickly said, inwardly wincing. "Defen-"

"What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"The ice is coming from my T1E mentee. I have come to retrieve her."

Defender Ibrahim's eyes narrowed as she took another step closer to him. "Your mentee has iced three streets, four buildings, and six members of the local gang in the past fifteen minutes. She is still at large and I have been instructed to end her spree at all costs."

"Is anyone dead?" Luca asked.

The man who was not Defender Ibrahim shook his head. "No, a team of healers is working on the hypothermia of the victims now."

"No one's dead, just let me take her home."

"The target is heading towards the bar on second street, Holgar's," a soldier at a laptop announced. "Thirteen civilians upstairs, thirty-four downstairs."

"Are you four ready?" Defender Ibrahim called.

"Almost, Defender."

"Listen to me," Luca pleaded. "I can stop her."

Defender Ibrahim frowned. "You have no authority here. The Brigade reports directly to the Concord."

Luca pulled out his Halophone, texting Haruhi. "One of those connections would be good right about now..." He expanded his phone and placed it on the ground. Olivia could pull the coordinates from his phone and open a portal directly above it, and without missing a beat, to Luca's relief, she did.

"Basma," Hyun Min greeted as he stepped out, holding his arms open for a hug.

The woman narrowed her eyes. "Still no."

"Basma, come on, cut the man a break," Hyun Min said. "Consider it a favor, for me?"

"If you're good at your job, you don't need favors," Defender Ibraham scoffed, knowing full well that Hyun Min's family ties to the Brigade went all the way to the top.

"We shared our first Knight operation together, you were at my secondary graduation. Does that mean nothing to you?" Hyun Min said, feigning offense with a pout. "Ten minutes, I already got approval from my father. If Prince Luca's not out in 10 minutes, you can send the whole squad after him."

Luca shot Hyun Min a look of disbelief.

Ibrahim paused.

"The target has breached Holgar's," the soldier updated.

"Technopaths have successfully erased all data pertaining to the event on social media," a second soldier confirmed.

"See, Basma? I would be concerned, but I know you run a tight ship, I trust you," Hyun Min said. "You're our best defender, I don't know how you haven't been promoted to Knight yet."

"Media is releasing information regarding a nitrogen oxide spill, detailing nausea, headaches, and syncope," the third soldier reported. "A team of dullers has been discharged to local hospitals to intercept witnesses and hypochondriacs alike."

"Ready, Defender," the team of four announced.

Defender Basma looked to her team, then back to Hyun Min. She let out an aggravated sigh, turning to Luca. "7 minutes." She turned back to Hyun Min. "And for the record, I prefer being a defender."

"Thank you," Luca said, shaking Hyun Min's hand.

"Anything for Haruhi."

"Still, I owe you one."

"Then I'll collect when you're king," Hyun Min smirked, giving him an amicable pat on the back.

"Six minutes, fifty-four seconds," Defender Ibrahim announced from her seat back at the table.

"Be fair, give him your teleporter," Hyun Min said.

Defender Ibrahim rolled her eyes, motioning for one of the four to accompany Luca.

"Don't fuck up," Hyun Min whispered, then chuckled. "I didn't get authorization from my father."

"What," Luca hissed.

But Hyun Min had already joined Defender Ibrahim at the table. "You know, if I were ten years older-"

The teleporter placed a hand on Luca's shoulder, and in an instant, their feet slid on the icy floors of Holgar's. The burst pipes must have shorted the electrical system because the only light available originated from the street lamps outside the large windows. Luca rubbed his arms to keep warm but the steam dissipated from his fingertips. The frigid chill in the room clawed at his bare skin and made it near impossible for him to spark a fire. His face felt crunchy as his nasal cavities began to freeze, and it became more difficult to breathe.

"Six minutes, forty-one seconds," the soldier said before retreating in a blink of the eye.

Luca turned and saw a shadow in the dark, mere meters away. "Gemma!"