I made it back to the penthouse in under fifteen minutes. Would have been faster if I'd used Liminal Step, but burning reserves before whatever came next seemed like a bad play. The elevator ride up felt like it took three years.
The door was already open when I reached my floor.
Mera stood in the entrance. Her tail was rigid behind her, the way it got when she was ready to fight something and hadn't found a target yet. She pulled me inside without a word and locked the door behind us.
Noel sat on the couch. Her violet hair had come loose from its severe ponytail, strands falling across her face in a way that made her look younger. More vulnerable. The corporate armor was cracked. Not broken, but showing stress fractures I'd never seen before.
