Echo Squad finished their final sweep of the recovery zone as afternoon shadows lengthened across Sector 17.

  The Observer drone hovered silently beside them, its recording light still active despite the corrupted environmental data.

  Magi watched Eli take one last sample from a section of asphalt that had somehow reconstituted itself from scattered fragments. The material looked almost new. No cracks, no uneven settling. Just smooth, functional surface.

  "This isn't just healing," Eli murmured, sealing the sample. "It's optimization."

  Marc checked his wrist display. "We need to move. Sector 8 assignment starts in forty minutes."

  They gathered their equipment and moved toward the perimeter. Layla pulled back the temporary barrier as they exited, the Observer drone following last.

  "So we're just going to pretend those analysts weren't suspicious as hell?" Jax asked once they were clear of the zone.

  "What would you prefer?" Marc replied. "They had questions. We answered them."

  "They had accusations," Eli corrected. "Just not direct ones."

  Layla slapped Magi on the shoulder. "Next time try looking less mysterious. Maybe smile more."

  Magi glanced at her. "I'll practice."

  The team made their way through the narrow streets toward the main road where their transport waited.

  Most buildings here stood empty, evacuated after the pyroclastic elemental had torn through three days earlier. The silence felt heavy, broken only by their footsteps and the quiet hum of the drone.

  They turned the final corner onto Meridian Avenue, where Marc had parked their Guild-issued vehicle. Magi stopped first.

  A sleek black sedan with tinted windows had parked directly behind their transport, effectively blocking its exit. The car bore no markings, but its polished surface reflected the afternoon sun with an almost deliberate intensity.

  "That's not Guild," Jax said immediately.

  "No," Marc agreed, his voice tight. "Private. High-end."

  The Observer drone's lights shifted from blue to yellow, indicating it had registered a potential security concern.

  As they approached, the sedan's rear door opened smoothly. A man in a tailored gray suit emerged, his posture casual but precise. Magi recognized him instantly. Calvin Reeves, the Syndicate representative who had offered him ten million credits for the artifacts.

  "Echo Squad," Reeves called, his voice pleasant. "Excellent timing."

  Marc stepped forward. "This is an active Guild operation zone. Civilian vehicles shouldn't be here."

  "My apologies for the inconvenience," Reeves replied, his smile never wavering. "We simply require a brief consultation with one of your members." His eyes shifted to Magi. "Mr. Necros, if you could spare five minutes?"

  The drone's lights pulsed, recording the interaction.

  "We have another assignment," Marc said firmly. "Whatever consultation you need can be scheduled through proper channels."

  "Under normal circumstances, absolutely," Reeves nodded. "However, this matter pertains to dimensional stability in this sector. Which I believe intersects with your current investigation." He gestured toward the recovery zone behind them.

  Jax shifted his weight, hand drifting toward his weapon. "Who's 'we'?"

  The front passenger door opened, and a woman stepped out.

  She wore a similar suit but with subtle silver threading. Her movements were controlled, deliberate. The kind that suggested extensive combat training beneath the professional exterior.

  "Obsidian Syndicate," she stated simply. "Resource Management Division."

  The Observer drone's lights flashed red momentarily before returning to yellow.

  Eli stepped closer to Magi. "Guild protocol doesn't require cooperation with private organizations during active assignments."

  Reeves spread his hands. "We're not requesting Guild cooperation. Just a brief word with Mr. Necros." His eyes found Magi again. "Five minutes. In our vehicle. Then you can proceed to your next assignment without delay."

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  Marc turned to Magi, keeping his voice low. "You don't have to do this."

  Magi assessed the situation with practiced neutrality. The Syndicate wouldn't approach them openly, with a Guild drone recording, unless they had significant leverage or genuinely needed information. Either way, refusing would only delay the inevitable.

  "It's fine," he told Marc. "I'll speak with them."

  "We'll wait here," Marc said, making it clear this wasn't negotiable.

  Magi nodded and walked toward the sedan. The woman opened the rear door, revealing a spacious interior with facing seats. Reeves gestured for him to enter first.

  The door closed with a soft, expensive click once they were both inside. The interior smelled of leather and something faintly herbal. Not ostentatious, but unmistakably high-end. Privacy glass separated them from the driver's compartment.

  "Thank you for agreeing to this conversation," Reeves said, settling into his seat. "I recognize the inconvenience."

  Magi said nothing, waiting.

  Reeves tapped something on the armrest console. A soft hum indicated some kind of privacy field activating.

  "The Guild's Observer drone can still see us," he explained, "but audio recording has been temporarily disrupted. Standard privacy measures."

  "What do you want?" Magi asked directly.

  "Clarification," Reeves replied, equally direct. "About what happened in Sector 17 following the elemental incursion."

  "I already explained everything to Guild analysts."

  "Yes, and your explanation was admirably vague." Reeves smiled thinly. "You told them you observed 'balance being restored.' A curious choice of words."

  Magi kept his expression neutral. "It was an observation."

  "Indeed." Reeves leaned forward slightly. "Mr. Necros, we've been tracking anomalous dimensional events across the city. The micro-rifts you helped neutralize for the Office of Dimensional Management were part of a pattern."

  Magi's eyes narrowed slightly, the first visible reaction he'd shown.

  "Yes, we're aware of your extracurricular activities," Reeves continued. "The ODM operates in shadows, but the Syndicate has been established much longer. Very little escapes our notice."

  "Then you already know what happened in Sector 17."

  "We know what occurred. We're less certain about how." Reeves studied him. "Our instruments detected unusual energy patterns in the area. Specifically, flattened balance gradients across multiple dimensional planes."

  Magi frowned slightly. "The terrain was damaged by the elemental. Some areas collapsed."

  Reeves paused, a fleeting expression of surprise crossing his face before settling into something more calculating.

  "No... that's not what I meant." He leaned back in his seat. "I'm not referring to physical topography, Mr. Necros. I'm talking about dimensional energy gradients, the natural flow patterns between our reality and others."

  Magi said nothing, waiting for him to continue.

  "These gradients are what allow rifts to form in the first place," Reeves explained. "High to low pressure, creating tears between worlds. They should be chaotic after an elemental incursion especially a pyroclastic event."

  He tapped the console again, and a holographic display appeared between them, showing overlapping wave patterns.

  "But what we recorded was this." He pointed to an area where the waves had smoothed out, becoming almost unnaturally even. "Perfect equilibrium. No highs, no lows. Just... flat."

  Magi studied the display without comment.

  "This isn't possible through any known Guild technique," Reeves continued. "Even A-rank teams with specialized equipment can only redirect energy gradients, not flatten them entirely."

  He dismissed the hologram and fixed his gaze directly on Magi.

  "You shouldn't be able to do that."

  The statement hung in the air between them. A simple assertion of impossibility.

  Magi met his gaze evenly. "I didn't."

  "No?" Reeves raised an eyebrow. "Then how do you explain being in the epicenter of three separate dimensional anomalies in the past month? The bone construct, the self-resolving rift, and now this?"

  "Coincidence," Magi said, using the same explanation the Guild analysts had settled on.

  Reeves' laugh was brief and genuine. "The Syndicate doesn't believe in coincidences, Mr. Necros. Especially not when they follow patterns."

  He straightened his already immaculate sleeve. "We believe you're a Resonant, someone who can interact with dimensional energies directly. But your particular manifestation doesn't match any documented case."

  "I'm just a C-rank Raider with basic attributes," Magi replied.

  "Yes, you keep saying that." Reeves sighed. "The artifacts you acquired… the void seed and the necromantic focus, they should have rejected you or corrupted you. Instead, they stabilized in your presence."

  He leaned forward again, his voice dropping. "And now we find you at the center of dimensional normalization events that shouldn't be possible without specialized equipment or years of theoretical training."

  "I walk. I observe. I use basic attributes efficiently," Magi said, repeating what he'd told the Guild analysts. "Nothing more."

  Reeves studied him for a long moment. "The Syndicate is prepared to offer resources and protection. Whatever you are… whoever you are… there are entities beyond the rifts that will take notice eventually. Some already have."

  "Is that a threat?"

  "No, Mr. Necros. It's a warning." Reeves handed him a small silver card. "When you decide you need allies who understand what you're capable of, contact us."

  The privacy field hummed as it deactivated. The door beside Magi unlocked with a subtle click.

  "Thank you for your time," Reeves said, his tone returning to professional courtesy. "Your team is waiting."

  Magi pocketed the card and stepped out of the vehicle. The woman in the silver-threaded suit had already returned to the passenger seat. She gave him a single, evaluating nod before closing her door.

  Echo Squad stood exactly where he'd left them, the Observer drone still hovering with its yellow warning lights active.

  "Everything okay?" Marc asked as Magi rejoined them.

  "Fine," Magi replied.

  The black sedan pulled away smoothly, disappearing around the corner with barely a sound.

  "What did they want?" Layla demanded.

  Magi watched the space where the vehicle had been. "They think I'm responsible for what happened in the recovery zone."

  "And are you?" Jax asked bluntly.

  "No." Magi turned toward their transport. "But they think I should be."

  As they boarded their vehicle for Sector 8, Magi felt the weight of the silver card in his pocket. The Syndicate representative's final words echoed in his mind.

  You shouldn't be able to do that.

  The problem was, he still didn't know what "that" was supposed to be.