he next morning, Josh was called to Admiral Russo's office along with Kyla and Captain Rodriguez. When they arrived, they found the admiral looking at satellite imagery with a concerned expression.
"We have a situation," Russo said without preamble. "Multiple weak points are appearing simultaneously across Europe. London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Madrid. Five major cities, all within the last hour."
"That's coordinated," Rodriguez observed. "The King is testing our response capabilities."
"Exactly. And we don't have enough teams to cover all five locations." Russo pulled up deployment maps. "We've got teams en route to London and Berlin, but Paris, Rome, and Madrid are going to have to wait unless we split up our experienced personnel."
"Split us up how?" Kyla asked.
"Martinez, you take a team to Paris. Rodriguez, you're on Rome. Reeves, you'll coordinate from here with Dr. Walsh, using your dimensional sensing abilities to prioritize which weak points need immediate attention." Russo looked at them. "I know you two work best together, but we need your expertise in multiple locations simultaneously."
Kyla and Josh exchanged glances. They hadn't been separated on a mission since this all started. The idea made Kyla's stomach twist with anxiety.
"With respect, Admiral," Josh said, "Kyla's the better field commander. Shouldn't I be the one going to Paris?"
"Under normal circumstances, yes. But you're our early warning system now, Reeves. Your ability to sense dimensional energy from a distance is too valuable to risk in the field. We need you here, coordinating." Russo's tone left no room for argument. "This is how it has to be."
An hour later, Kyla was on a military transport heading to Paris with Stevens, Delgado, and three specialists she'd worked with once before. Josh stood on the tarmac, watching her plane take off, feeling useless and worried.
"She'll be fine," Dr. Walsh said, walking up beside him. "Martinez is one of the best field operatives we have."
"I know. But we've always had each other's backs. It feels wrong not being there."
"Welcome to command. You make the hard calls and trust your people to execute them." Walsh handed him a tablet. "Come on. We've got work to do. Those weak points aren't going to monitor themselves."
The DDI command center was impressive—a room full of screens showing real-time data from sensors all over the globe. Josh took his position at the central console, where he could see feeds from all five European cities.
"Okay, Reeves," Walsh said, pulling up the dimensional energy readings. "Tell me what you're feeling. Which weak point is the biggest threat?"
Josh closed his eyes, reaching out with that cold sense inside him. He could feel all five weak points, like cold spots on his mental map. London felt stable, relatively weak. Berlin was stronger but contained. Paris was—
"Paris," Josh said immediately. "The weak point there is growing. It's trying to expand."
"Paris team, this is command," Walsh spoke into her radio. "Be advised, your weak point is actively expanding. Priority one threat."
Kyla's voice came back, slightly static from the distance. "Copy that, command. We're approaching the location now. It's in the catacombs beneath the city. Old tunnels, lots of places for creatures to hide."
Josh pulled up the video feed from Kyla's helmet camera. He could see the team descending into the famous Paris catacombs—narrow tunnels lined with skulls and bones, now covered in ice.
"This is creepy even without ice monsters," Stevens commented over the radio.
"Stay focused," Kyla ordered. "Walsh, do we have a fix on the weak point's exact location?"
"Half a kilometer ahead, bearing northeast," Walsh confirmed, checking her instruments. "Josh, anything else you're sensing?"
Josh concentrated harder. "There are creatures. Maybe twenty of them, spread throughout the tunnels. And something else. Something big, like the commander in Siberia. The King sent another one."
"Great," Stevens muttered. "Why can't we ever fight the small ones?"
"Because we're good at our jobs," Delgado replied. "Stop complaining."
Josh watched anxiously as the team moved through the catacombs. Every shadow made his heart jump, every sound of movement made him tense. This was worse than being in the field—at least there he could do something. Here he was just watching, helpless.
"Contact!" Kyla's voice was sharp. "Multiple creatures, closing from both sides!"
The helmet cam showed chaos—ice creatures emerging from side tunnels, the team forming a defensive circle, flame units lighting up the darkness. Josh's hands gripped the console so hard his knuckles turned white.
"They're trying to push you toward the weak point," Josh warned. "It's a trap!"
"Copy that. Team, fall back to the last intersection!" Kyla was in full command mode, voice steady despite the danger. "Stevens, cover our six!"
"On it!" Stevens' flame unit swept behind them, melting two creatures that had been trying to flank.
They fought their way back, step by step, until they had better positioning. Josh could feel his powers wanting to help, to reach across the distance and freeze the creatures attacking his partner. But he was too far away. All he could do was watch and coordinate.
"The commander is moving," Josh reported, tracking the larger energy signature. "It's coming from the east tunnel, trying to cut off your retreat."
"Delgado, Martinez, set up at the east intersection," Kyla ordered, using the other Martinez's last name since they shared a first name. "Everyone else, with me. We're making a push for the weak point."
"That's suicide!" Dr. Kim protested from her position in Rome, listening to the radio chatter. "There are too many creatures!"
"We don't have a choice," Kyla said. "If that weak point fully opens, the entire city could be at risk. We're going in."
Josh felt sick watching them charge forward. The helmet cam bounced as Kyla ran, flame unit firing, creatures falling but more taking their places. Then she reached the chamber where the weak point hung in the air, pulsing with blue energy.
And standing guard in front of it was the commander.
It was similar to the one from Siberia but different—sleeker, faster-looking. And when it spoke, its voice was almost... refined.
"Humans. Always so predictable." The commander's eyes glowed. "The King said you would come. Especially you, vessel."
"Vessel?" Kyla repeated, confused.
"The one who carries the King's gift. Joshua Reeves. Where is he?"
"Not here," Kyla said, raising her weapon. "Just us."
"Pity. The King wished to test him. To see if the power has taken root." The commander moved with surprising grace. "But you will do. Defeating you will send a message."
The fight was brutal. The commander was faster and smarter than the Siberian one, anticipating their tactics and countering them. Stevens went down with a frozen shoulder. Delgado took a hit that sent her crashing into the wall. The specialists fought bravely but were clearly outmatched.
Josh watched in horror, feeling completely useless. "Kyla, you need to retreat! You can't win this fight!"
"We have to close the weak point!" Kyla fired point-blank at the commander, barely slowing it down. "If we don't, more creatures will pour through!"
"Then find another way! You're going to get killed!"
But Kyla wasn't listening. She was doing what she always did—putting the mission first, putting other people's safety above her own. Josh felt his powers surge in response to his fear, ice forming on the console in front of him.
"Reeves, calm down!" Walsh grabbed his arm. "You're manifesting here! You need to control it!"
But Josh couldn't control it. He was watching Kyla fight for her life, watching his team get torn apart, and he was stuck here, useless, while the woman he loved was in danger.
The commander grabbed Kyla, lifting her off her feet. "You fight well, human. But not well enough. When you die, your partner will feel it. The King wants him to feel loss. To understand that resisting is futile."
Something inside Josh snapped. The cold inside him exploded outward, not here in the command center, but there, in Paris. He felt himself reach across the distance, through the dimensional connection, and into the catacombs.
Ice erupted from the ground beneath the commander's feet, sharp and vicious, forcing it to drop Kyla. But this was Josh's ice, poisoned ice, and where it touched the commander, the creature screamed in pain.
"What—impossible!" The commander staggered back. "He's not even here!"
"No," Kyla said, recognizing what had happened. "But he's with us."
Josh, still in the command center but also somehow present in Paris, created more ice. Barriers to protect his team, spikes to attack the commander, platforms to give them better positioning. Dr. Walsh and Rodriguez stared in shock as Josh stood there, eyes glowing brilliant blue, physically in DC but fighting in Paris.
"This is incredible," Walsh breathed. "He's projecting his power across dimensional space!"
The commander, wounded and confused, made a last desperate attack. But Josh was ready. He created a cage of ice around the creature, then filled it with his poisoned ice. The commander shrieked as it was destroyed, dissolving into particles of light that were pulled back through the weak point.
"Device activated!" One of the specialists announced, having placed the resonance device while everyone was distracted.
The weak point collapsed, sealing shut with a thunderclap. The remaining creatures dissolved, pulled back to their realm. The Paris catacombs fell silent except for the team's heavy breathing.
"Command, this is Paris team," Kyla reported, her voice shaky. "Weak point closed. All hostiles eliminated. And... thank you, Josh."
In the command center, Josh collapsed into his chair, the blue glow fading from his eyes. He felt completely drained, like he'd run a marathon while carrying a car.
"That was amazing and terrifying," Rodriguez said, staring at him. "You just fought in Paris from DC."
"Is that even possible?" Josh asked weakly.
"Apparently yes," Walsh said, already taking readings. "The dimensional energy inside you—it doesn't just let you sense across distance. It lets you act across distance. You can project your powers anywhere there's dimensional energy present. Josh, do you understand what this means?"
"That I'm going to have a massive headache?"
"That you can be in multiple places at once. Support any team, anywhere in the world, as long as there's a weak point or dimensional energy nearby." Walsh looked excited and concerned in equal measure. "But it clearly takes a massive toll. You nearly passed out."
"Worth it," Josh said. "Kyla's safe. The team's safe. That's what matters."
The other weak points were closed over the next few hours—London and Berlin by their respective teams, Rome by Rodriguez's group. Madrid's weak point actually sealed itself when the King apparently decided he'd tested them enough for one day.
When Kyla's team returned to DC eight hours later, she found Josh in the medical wing, hooked up to an IV to combat exhaustion. She sat down beside his bed, taking his hand.
"You saved us," she said quietly. "That commander would have killed me if you hadn't intervened."
"I couldn't just watch," Josh said. "I know Russo wants me coordinating from safety, but when you're in danger, I can't just sit back. I won't."
"I know. And I love you for it. But Josh, you scared me. Watching you in the command center, glowing like that, completely drained afterward... what if using your powers like that hurts you?"
"Then it hurts me. But you're alive. The team's alive. That's all that matters."
Kyla wanted to argue but knew it was pointless. Josh would always put himself at risk to protect others. It's what made him a good cop and a good person. It's also what terrified her.
"Dr. Walsh says you can project your powers anywhere there's dimensional energy," Kyla said, changing the subject. "That's pretty incredible."
"It's also exhausting. I don't think I could do it again for a while." Josh shifted in the bed, trying to get comfortable. "But it got me thinking. If I can project my powers, can the King? Can he reach through the weak points and affect things here even without crossing over?"
"That's a terrifying thought."
"It's also why we need to understand him better. Which means..." Josh hesitated. "Tonight's the second night. The King said he'd show me more truths. I need to see them."
"I'll be here," Kyla promised. "Whatever he shows you, we'll face it together."
That night, Josh fell asleep with Kyla sitting beside his hospital bed, holding his hand. The cold came quickly, pulling him back to the Frozen Realm.
The King was waiting, but his form was different—more solid, more present.
"You used my power across dimensions today," the King said, sounding almost proud. "You protected your partner, your team. You're learning what you're capable of."
"I'm not doing this for you," Josh said firmly.
"I know. You do it for love. For loyalty. For the same reasons I do what I do." The King gestured, and the scene around them changed. "Come. Let me show you the second truth. Let me show you why I became what I am."
The vision shifted, and Josh found himself watching the young man from before—the one who'd been beaten. But now he was different. Transformed. Standing in the Frozen Realm for the first time, terrified and alone.
"This is where my story truly begins," the King's voice narrated. "This is where I learned what it meant to survive. To adapt. To become something more than human."
Josh watched, unable to look away, as the King's past unfolded before him. And with each moment, each memory, he understood a little more about the being he was fighting.
And that understanding terrified him more than anything else.
End of Chapter 26