The air was thick with tension as Blood Night plummeted toward the sharp metal structures. Death seemed inevitable - hundreds of iron points awaited his unconscious body like spears thirsty for blood.
Within inches of hitting the deadly metal, something appeared with absurd and surprising speed. A figure flying with intense vibration radiated rainbow brightness as she dove toward the falling body.
Shine grabbed Blood Night by the arm at the last possible moment, her small hands managing to sustain his weight through pure willpower and concentrated energy. She shot upward at high speed, pulling him away from the deadly points by a margin of just a few inches.
The wind cut across her face as she flew toward the underground laboratory, carrying her unconscious companion's inert body. Each beat of her energetic wings required maximum concentration to keep them both in the air.
While Blood Night remained unconscious in Shine's arms, a memory invaded his mind like an electric current through his dormant consciousness.
Inside a completely dark room, only one breath could be heard in the oppressive silence. When the door was opened with a metallic click, a gentleman with completely white hair and equally white clothes entered and turned on the single lamp hanging from the ceiling.
The room lit up revealing bare concrete walls and an environment that smelled of hospital disinfectant. The solitary breathing became two - the second belonged to A00, who stood in the center of the room, shirtless, muscles tense like piano strings.
When he saw the gentleman enter, A00 bowed before him with automatic reverence, as if the gesture had been programmed into his most basic reflexes.
The man in white threw a photograph on the floor in front of A00. The image showed a woman with short black hair, penetrating eyes, serious expression. There was something familiar about that face, though A00 couldn't identify exactly what.
"Mateo," the gentleman said with coldness and calmness that cut through the air like ice.
A00 responded immediately, his voice devoid of emotion: "And his daughter, sir."
The man in white, who was already heading to leave the room, stopped at the doorway without turning: "Bring her to me. Intact."
Returning to reality, Blood Night took a deep breath as if emerging from deep waters. His clothes were completely soaked with cold sweat, and he found himself lying on one of the medical beds in Kel's underground laboratory.
"What just happened?" he murmured, trying to focus his blurred vision.
Shine was sitting in a nearby chair, still catching her breath from the rescue flight: "What happened was this: we got our asses kicked."
A00 smiled with disdain: "What a joke! That must be an effect of your weird hair. I didn't get my ass kicked at all. The bald guy did, I admit that."
Shine rolled her eyes and decided not to argue with his stubbornness.
Kel approached carrying several tablets and analysis devices: "Guys, I discovered some things about the guy."
Shine got up from the chair, assuming a more serious posture: "Before you talk about that, first tell me why you were supervising the prison cameras."
Her voice carried accumulated frustration - this question had gone unanswered for too long.
Meanwhile, Blood Night was completely oblivious to the conversation. His thoughts, his desires, were focused on only one thing: being able to relive that moment once more with Leila. Her face, those eyes, that white dress - everything remained engraved in his mind with photographic clarity.
Kel looked at Shine, then lowered his eyes and sat heavily on the high-tech sofa. His shoulders fell as if an invisible weight had been placed on them.
"I wasn't supervising the prison," he said in a low, sad voice. "I was trying to free my brother."
Tears began rolling down his young face as he continued: "Jack... my older brother. He was sentenced to death."
Shine felt her stomach contract. "What are you talking about?"
"My parents said he doesn't matter to them anymore," Kel said, now openly crying, tears dripping onto the laboratory floor. "They completely abandoned him."
Shine immediately approached and sat beside him: "Hey, calm down. It's okay. You don't need to cry."
Blood Night just stared at the scene, but his thoughts weren't there. His mind continued replaying every second of that encounter with Leila, every detail of her beauty, every word she had said.
Kel whispered between sobs: "He matters a lot to me. My parents won't even let me visit him. I just want to see him one more time."
Shine gently placed her hand on his shoulder: "You don't need to blame yourself for anything, okay? And I'm sorry for asking that way."
Kel wiped the tears with the back of his hand, still with sobs interspersing his words: "When you were fighting that man, I created a desire analysis application."
Blood Night snapped out of his reverie: "Don't make things up, kid."
Kel completely ignored the interruption: "I analyzed the guy's desire. His desire was to kill you, A00."
Shine frowned: "You're saying you can analyze a person's desires?"
Kel nodded, wiping the last traces of tears.
Blood Night got up from the medical bed: "If the guy really wants to kill me, he'll have to face me with my new powers. In a few minutes MLP will solve this for me."
No one responded to the comment. Blood Night continued: "You said you created a desire analyzer. I want you to test it on her."
He pointed at Shine: "I want to make sure it's not a hoax of yours just to get praise from me, like me calling you a genius."
Shine crossed her arms: "I also want to make sure it works."
Kel grabbed a specially modified tablet and extended it to Shine: "Place your finger here."
She touched the screen. The device hummed for a few seconds, LED lights blinking in complex patterns as it processed biometric and neurological data.
"Desire found," announced the device's synthetic voice. "The individual desires to find her mother."
Shine remained quiet and held her strange hair, clearly uncomfortable with the public revelation of something so personal.
Blood Night laughed: "This is a hoax. See?"
Without waiting for permission, he placed his own finger on the tablet. The processing took a bit longer this time.
"Desires found," announced the device. "Result: The individual desires to have new powers. Second desire: To obtain the woman of his drea—"
Before it could finish, A00 hit the tablet, making it fall to the floor with a crash.
"Let's focus on our target," he said quickly, trying to change the subject.
Kel bent down to pick up the tablet, checking if it still worked: "The man's name is Nolan Jackson."
He brought the device back to life and began showing data on the screen: "My evaluation of his powers indicates they're literally compatible with Shine's."
Kel looked directly at her: "I did some power analyses. It's a type of ability that evolves according to the person's growth. In summary: the more years he lives, the more the powers evolve."
He paused to let the information be absorbed: "Shine is only fourteen years old and is already incredibly strong. This guy is fifty years old."
The implication hung in the air like a death sentence.
"Shine wouldn't have the slightest chance against him. And that means you wouldn't either, A00."
Blood Night held his own face, processing the information: "What a pathetic power."
**[M.L.P - Multiverse: Forbidden Legacy]**