The interior passageway of the research facility seemed to be made of the same stone material as the door. Larger metallic impurities scattered throughout the passageway illuminated the area with a soft green light.
The group was on high alert, ready for any threat. Their preparation paid off as they reached the halfway point of the passageway, where each member suddenly stopped dead in their tracks.
The remaining portion of the passageway was covered in mirrors from floor to ceiling. Curie began analyzing the mirrors for a moment before moving cautiously to their edge with the assistance of Coraline.
Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out two coins—one made of bronze with the denomination of five stamped on it, the other silver with the denomination of ten. Wishing to conserve her strength, she handed the coins to Coraline, saying, "Would you mind throwing these down the passageway? I need to check something." She added the last part with a cough she tried to stifle.
Coraline nodded, a concerned expression crossing her face. Taking the coins, she tossed them down the passageway with moderate force. The coins traveled halfway down the mirrored corridor; however, due to their difference in weight, the silver coin traveled slightly farther.
Before either of the coins could hit the ground, they were intercepted. Floating glass prisms emerged from hidden compartments at the far end of the passageway. The tips of the prisms began to glow intensely. The light concentrated into beams no thicker than a human hair. Instead of targeting the coins directly, the beams fired at the mirrors along the passageway.
The beams ricocheted rapidly, creating an uneven geometric pattern that formed a glowing grid, rapidly closing in on the two coins. The concentrated beams of light sent the coins flying back toward the group at high speed.
Both Lioness and Jackson stepped in front of the incoming coins. While Jackson simply swatted one away, Lioness caught the other in her teeth. She growled at the two prisms before biting the coin in half and spitting it out.
Just then, two mechanical voices emanated from the prisms—one masculine, one feminine: "Unauthorized personnel detected! Vacate the facility immediately. Failure to comply will result in the usage of lethal force from this point forward!"
The medal Lioness held began to ripple as she changed its form. She created a shield and two spears, keeping the shield for herself and handing one of the spears to Jackson. Despite his fatigued expression, he was ready to follow her lead.
The two of them were about to engage the prisms when Coraline's voice stopped them:
"Don't cross into the mirror pathway! Those things will kill you."
This shocked both Lioness and Jackson, as Curie had never before expressed doubts about their abilities. Jackson turned back to her with a concerned expression, while Lioness shot her a look that demanded an explanation.
Staring past them at the prisms, Curie began to explain:
"Those beams are made of soul energy and have properties similar to light. While they aren't as fast as light itself, the danger lies elsewhere. To take them down, you would need perfect synchronization in your movements, as the beams target two different individuals. If you move within that area at different distances or times, you'll end up putting each other in the path of the other's beam."
Hearing her words, both Jackson and Lioness appeared frustrated. If what Curie said was true, it meant they had no way to get her past this point.
Coraline, however, interjected, turning slightly toward Curie: "If that's the case, then Ebony and I are perfectly suited for this." Curie gave Coraline a questioning look as she began to think. I know she and her beast work well together, but is she really claiming she has perfect synchronicity with it?
It was now Coraline's turned to provide an explanation, "My Soul Incantation allows me to take on aspects of my Ascended Beast, but it also allows me to form a mental bond which allows us to work in tandem. Both me and Ebony can get past the grid and take the prisms out.''
Coraline then addressed both Jackson and Lioness: "Lioness, come here and support Curie. Jackson, try to rest a little—you've been working really hard."
With that, she and Ebony stepped forward to the edge of the glass passageway. Coraline activated her Soul Incantation, taking on catlike attributes while simultaneously forming a mental link with Ebony. Ebony remained in its smaller form to better maneuver through the grid.
As they stepped onto the glass platform, the prisms opened fire. Moving in perfect synchronicity, Coraline and Ebony faced the approaching grid of beams. They first evaded the beams by diving into an open space within the geometric pattern. Then, they quickly rolled in opposite directions to the edge of the wall, running along it while dodging beams that adjusted to track their positions.
Next, they dove through another opening in the pattern toward one another, using each other as springboards to launch themselves back at the wall. Pushing off the wall with precision, they struck the prisms simultaneously—Coraline slashed one prism into four sections with her claws, while Ebony shattered the other with its powerful jaws.
With the prisms destroyed, the group was able to continue down the passageway.
Descending stone steps, they arrived at a large metal door. The keyhole required to open it appeared highly complex. Lioness scoffed at the sight, confident in her ability to pick the lock.
Utilizing her Soul Incantation, which allowed her to manipulate the form of metal, she began working on the lock. While her ability let her reshape metal, it didn't alter its weight. Although she often carried her metal in the form of small trinkets, its true weight was considerable. However, her strength allowed her to handle it without significantly impacting her mobility.
The metal in Lioness's hand rippled as she held it up to the keyhole. It flowed into the various spaces within the lock before solidifying. She then twisted the improvised key, producing a series of clicks as the door unlocked.
They proceeded into a laboratory filled with all kinds of advanced medical Soul Tech equipment. Along one wall was large glass containers housing Spirit Materials.
Coraline glanced around the room with a puzzled expression and asked in a concerned tone, "I don't see the antidote anywhere... Don't tell me it's on the higher levels."
Curie, now leaning on Jackson for support instead of Lioness, began gathering lab equipment. She explained casually, "There is no antidote in this facility. I simply needed access to its resources."
The Alliance members were taken aback. Jackson, with a worried expression, asked, "So you just wanted us to get you in here so you could use the equipment and materials to make a cure for yourself? If that's the case, why didn't you tell us?"
It wasn't Curie's motives that concerned them; it was the fact that she had hidden her intentions. They had been starting to form a bond of trust, and her secrecy felt like a betrayal.
Curie didn't stop her work, using her remaining strength to gather equipment as she explained, "You're partially correct, but you lack the full picture. While I do intend to use the lab equipment, I won't be using the Spirit Materials. Even though Ascended individuals are granted a fair amount of freedom during tests like this, using those materials without authorization would come at a price I'm not willing to pay."
Curie understood their concern and knew they were looking for a deeper explanation. She elaborated on her motivations and her plan to cure herself: "I intend to use the poison in my system against itself." As she spoke, she began taking a blood sample from herself.
"My reasoning for not telling you, my allies, is partially selfish. I didn't want to inform you because I knew you'd force me to change my plans to avoid putting myself at risk. I also enjoy testing my intellect, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do so. Lastly, I wanted to ensure that my allies had the best chance of succeeding in this trial, regardless of the risk to me."
With that, Curie blocked out all other distractions, focusing entirely on creating a cure for herself.