Notice: This chapter mentions violence, injuries, blood, and death.

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June 6, 33 AE

Mack knew he was being an idiot. He knew that he had work the next morning, and he was going to seriously regret it if he didn't get enough sleep. And he knew he was spending way too much time on something so trivial, but it was important to him.

Truth be told, he had no idea that a "22-days anniversary" was even a thing until a few days ago, when he was conducting very thorough and extensive research on the dating norms in Korean culture. And now that their twenty-second day was in two days--well, one day, now that it was after midnight--Mack was very, very stressed.

He was mainly concerned because they hadn't actually done much since that whirlwind of a day nearly a month ago when they officially agreed to be "undercover partners". Mack found the title comforting; when pairs of guardians were sent on missions, they called each other partners too, and Mack liked the idea of entrusting Jordan with his life. And since that day, Mack has always felt at ease when he and Jordan were together.

It didn't take much to bring about that feeling either. Even during their failed first date, or their interrupted second date, Mack felt completely content. Comfortable. Happy.

Maybe this is what a relationship was supposed to be like. Mack wasn't a stranger to dating, and he didn't shy away from the advances of the various people that caught his eye. But even after multiple dates, countless conversations, and several nights spent with them, none of them ever felt like more than just friends. (Very physical friends.)

It probably didn't help that about half of those people asked Mack out simply because they admired his looks. Those relationships never lasted long.

But what he had with Jordan was different, and Mack loved it. And he would do whatever it took to keep it.

However, there wasn't much they could do at the moment. Jordan's schedule was packed with his album promotions, and Mack was ending his shifts almost completely drained. Not only that, but Jordan was as hesitant as ever about his public image, so any celebration ideas would have to be private. But no matter what Mack thought up, nothing seemed special enough.

Fortunately, or not, his dating-related stress was cut short by his phone obnoxiously blaring. And in that split second, all of his stress turned to one thing only: work. Because the only thing that would make that specific sound was a guardian emergency.

"Emergency alert! Emergency alert!" a computerized voice pierced through his apartment. "All guardians in the Los Angeles vicinity report to stations. Repeat, all guardians in the Los Angeles vicinity report to stations."

His years at the Academy had Mack running to his closet before he even realized it. It took him fifty seconds to change into his guardian uniform--five seconds longer than the requirement, unfortunately--and he was running out his door soon after with nothing else but his phone and keys.

"Guardian Mackenzie Olomana," Mack said to his phone as he leaped down his building's stairs. "Number Lima-Alpha-X-ray-zero-two-two-eight-zero-eight. Status: en route."

His phone chimed in confirmation, then spoke in a computerized voice. "Olomana, Mackenzie. Report to Los Angeles APO Housing immediately for emergency medical assistance. Repeat, report to Los Angeles APO Housing immediately. Confirm receipt."

Mack almost forgot to answer through his shock. "Confirmed," he said belatedly, then quickly pocketed his phone.

The housing in question was more commonly referred to as the Barracks, a forty-floor apartment building near Base that served as the residence for a substantial number of guardians and, in some cases, their families. Mack had moved out years ago, but he knew it was still chock full with younger guardians who had yet to make enough money to move elsewhere. He couldn't keep his mind from jumping to the attack on the Academy a decade ago and the aftermath that he saw, and his heart sank instantly. That couldn't happen again. He wouldn't let it.

Once in the parking garage, he jumped into his car and thanked it for starting without a hitch this time. It would've been the perfect opportunity to use his motorcycle if he hadn't sold it, but he had seen much too many motorcycle accidents to ride it anymore. As such, the best he could do was activate his government-issued emergency lights and hoped other drivers would actually notice them.

His phone rang a couple times while he drove, but he didn't trust himself to answer it while he raced through the dark streets at speeds he was just barely comfortable with. Through the Los Angeles cityscape, he couldn't see the Barracks just yet, but he could hear the blaring sirens that were intermittently interrupted by ongoing explosions.

And when the Barracks finally came into view, or what was left of it, all he could see was the Academy.

Back then, he was a few days away from being 22 years old; those were the days he could change into uniform in forty seconds max. He was still living in the Barracks at the time, and everyone there received the emergency alert on their phones simultaneously, creating an ear-splitting choir of sirens that was impossible to ignore. The notification had been similar too: report to Los Angeles Base for emergency transportation to APO West Academy.

He remembered sitting on the transport plane, silently stewing in nerves. Some people acted similarly, some acted like it was just another boring mission, and some couldn't wait to show off their power against a real threat.

None of them expected what they saw as the Academy came into view. Mack remembered the still silence that filled the plane as they made their approach, occasionally broken by a muffled cough or small sniff. Nearly all of them had spent their entire teenage life in the typically pristine complex below them, where one building was reduced to nothing more than a simmering pile of concrete.

The Academy hadn't stood a chance. It was located in almost the middle of nowhere, and while the closest major city was Fresno, the nearest Org base was in San Francisco. Out of the faculty, some could hold their ground, but others weren't even metas. And then there were the students, the kids that didn't know how to use their abilities yet, or the kids that didn't even know what their abilities were in the first place.

It was thinking about the kids that hurt Mack the most. It was remembering the sight of a partially crumbled classroom littered with broken desks and bloodstains streaked across the white linoleum floor. It was recalling how he was sent to assist with excavations, and how a slab of concrete would be lifted to reveal a student underneath, their skin pale from more than just dust.

Mack gasped at the sudden memory, and every time he blinked, the images seared into his mind flickered before his eyes instead of the dark streets before him.

No, no, no...

In his panic, he swerved his car over to the side of the road, braking just as he hit the curb. As soon as he felt the car jerk, self-awareness came over him, and he could feel how his chest felt tight as he gasped for air, and how his eyes were wide as they watched his memories like a movie. He knew he was in his car in the middle of the night, surrounded by darkness; at the same time, he couldn't see anything else around him except for the heaps of broken concrete and rebar, sprinkled with desks and chairs and backpacks and pencils and blood.

Another explosion pierced his nightmare, and the next time Mack looked towards the Barracks, a vibrant globe of flame was charging towards the building, then crashed into it like a bowling ball, sending debris flying into the air. And even after the fire died down, the bright light continued to burn in his eyes, and Mack focused on it as he pulled back onto the road, forcing himself to keep moving.

When he was three blocks away from the Barracks, the streets were already blocked by abandoned and emergency vehicles, and Mack haphazardly parked his car on the side before proceeding on foot. As he sprinted the remaining distance, he could feel his lungs burning again, and he focused on that feeling to keep his thoughts from straying at the sight of the smoldering building before him.

The Barracks took up almost an entire city block, and that area was filled with chaos. Rubble was scattered throughout the street, mostly concentrated on the north side of the building, and dust rained from the sky. Guardians ran in every direction possible, all of them scrambling around the debris in their way. While normal procedure was to maintain clear routes, all guardians with the necessary abilities were collected around the base of the Barracks, each straining with their hands on the building as they struggled to keep it upright and intact. Dozens of guardians zipped through the air, about half of them focused on directing water to extinguish fires, while the other half carried people out from the higher floors of the building.

With all the commotion, it took Mack a moment to realize what was wrong: they were extremely short in numbers.

From the looks on the faces he saw, he wasn't alone in his panic. No one had expected an attack against their own building, and there wasn't a plan in place for a situation where a good portion of their forces were potential victims. This frustration was clearly seen in the higher ranking guardians as they barked out orders and verbally took their anger out on subordinates.

Mack grit his teeth and hurried in the direction where all the other healers were gathered at the south end of the building, the red crosses on their sleeves easily distinguishable in the darkness.

"Officer Olomana!" a sharp voice rang out over the chaos.

Mack froze in his tracks, his arm already moving to salute as he turned. Behind him was Amira, but something was very wrong. While she wore her typical stern expression, it was also slightly pinched, as if she was straining to hold it in place. Not only that, but she was wearing a tank top, sweatpants, and slippers, all of them black and speckled with dust, and a trickle of dried blood was painted down the side of her face.

"Ami--Captain Pala, are you okay?" Mack asked, taking a worried step closer.

Amira immediately held out a hand to halt his approach. "I'm fine. Report to the west end of the block. They're gathering injured civilians there for treatment and transfer to local hospitals."

"Understood," Mack said, still eyeing Amira for any other signs of injuries.

"And..." Amira hesitated. "Do you know the status of Miss Bates?"

Amira's uncharacteristic concern turned Mack cold, and he had to let a million worst case scenarios play out in his head before responding. "I'm not sure, but I can find out."

Amira nodded, her worry even more noticeable as she chewed on her lip briefly before responding. "Good. Go."

So Mack went, running through the crowds to the west side of the Barracks as instructed. He pulled his phone out as he did so, and was momentarily surprised at all of the notifications he had. At least five missed calls were from Jordan, but one was from Elsie, and with a slight pang of guilt, he tapped Elsie's notification.

With each ring that went by without an answer, Mack felt his chest grow colder. And when the ringing stopped for a moment with no other sound, Mack almost froze in his tracks.

"Hello?" Elsie's voice finally sounded, and while it was much more quiet and timid than her usual energy, it was better than nothing.

"Elsie?" Mack asked breathlessly. "Are you okay?"

"Mack?" Elsie answered after a pause. "Is that you? You're--you're okay?"

"I'm fine," Mack assured. "But Elsie, are you okay? Where are you?"

"I--I'm fine," Elsie said.

Suddenly, another explosion echoed throughout the area, the loudest one yet, and Mack winced as the sound slammed into his ears. For a moment, the entire area looked to be filled with daylight, as if the sun was about to crash into them. When the noise died down and the scene reverted to darkness, an increase in shouted orders took its place, and Elsie's voice quickly joined in.

"Mack?!" she exclaimed hysterically. "Mack, are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Elsie," Mack insisted.

He detoured slightly and ran towards a smaller building that looked like a storage shed, sheltering behind it. The small structure was enough to cut down some of the noise, and he took the chance to catch his breath.

"Elsie, I need you to calm down," he said, trying to make his own voice sound more relaxed than he felt. "Can you do that?"

A long pause followed his question. "I--I can do that," Elsie eventually replied, although not very confidently.

"Good," Mack said anyway. "Alright, where are you?"

"In my condo," Elsie replied, her voice still slightly shaky. "Just at the edge of downtown. Mack, I--I can see the fire from here."

"I know, we're working on that," Mack assured. "Has anything happened over there?"

"No," Elsie said. "At least, not that I know of."

"Okay, well stay inside, okay?" he instructed. "Is there a meta still stationed outside?"

There was some rustling in the background before Elsie answered. "Yeah. Two of them. One of them is on the phone."

"They're probably being told to stay where they are," Mack explained. "If anything happens, just follow their lead, okay?"

"Okay," Elsie promised. "But Mack, have you heard from Camilla? I tried calling her but she didn't answer. Amira and Quentin didn't either."

Mack froze. He had heard Camilla still lived in the Barracks, and was one of the few senior guardians who still did so. He hadn't seen or heard about her since he arrived on scene, but from what he knew of her, she was probably one of the first to jump into action. Either that, or...

No, no, no...

Immediately, Mack changed targets and began to sprint in the opposite direction, heading towards the building's main entrance on the east side.

"She doesn't live there, does she?" Elsie's desperate question interrupted his thoughts.

The hurt in her voice was painful for Mack to hear, and he couldn't bring himself to answer, instead focusing on navigating through the rubble and the yelling guardians around him.

"Mack, tell me!" Elsie pleaded.

"She--she does," Mack forced himself to say. "You said she didn't answer?"

"I've been trying since I first heard the news," Elsie replied, her voice breaking ever so slightly. "She's alright, isn't she?"

"I--," Mack began, then let out a shaky breath. He couldn't lie to her. Not about this. But he couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth either. "I'll find her, Elsie. I'll find her."

There was a long pause, and in the silence, the only thing Mack could hear was a quiet sob.

"Thank you," Elsie whispered, her broken voice filled with tears. "Stay safe."

"You too," Mack replied before hanging up and continuing on his mission.

But when the streets were filled with artificial daylight again, Mack froze, and looked up to the sky along with everyone else.

It really did look like the sun was barreling towards them, like a scene straight out of the apocalypse. There were at least seven giant balls of flame charging through the air, each of them easily the size of a semi truck. As if that wasn't bad enough, the one in the middle emitted a piercing white light. Mack had no idea what it was, but judging by the panicked shouts around him, it definitely wasn't good.

A small army of air guardians swarmed the first and last three fireballs, slowly extinguishing them, but all of them, especially the blinding white one in the center, continued their relentless approach towards the Barracks.

Mack held his breath. They weren't going to make it. The attack would make the Barracks crumble to the ground, sending flaming debris plummeting to the city below. There was no time for all of them to make it out of the blast zone in time. That building was going to fall, and they were all going to die beneath it.

One of Mack's hands felt his phone in his pocket, and he clenched it tightly. He had to call Jordan. He wouldn't get another chance--

The first fireball reached the edge of the Barracks... then went out with hardly a whimper, leaving nothing but a harmless campfire falling towards the ground. Just as Mack thought he was hallucinating, the same thing happened to the second and third balls of flame. In the midst of his confusion and near-death experience, it took a moment for Mack to hear the shouts of the guardians around him explaining what just happened.

Camilla Wyatt single handedly made a goddamn vacuum shield for the building. It shouldn't have been possible, but she did it. And they were still alive.

So far, at least, because the remaining four fireballs were still coming in hot, led by the blazing ball of white.

Mack held his breath as the flames neared the building, but he managed to let out a sigh of relief when the light began to dim and its trajectory began to fall. Unfortunately, his relief was premature, and it wasn't long before the fire brightened again, this time on a crash course towards the base of the Barracks.

"MG's, hold the attack!" a voice bellowed throughout the scene. "MS's, CT's: brace for impact!"

Mack tore his eyes away from the attack to search for the ordered guardians. It didn't take him long to see a small group of air guardians clustered around the base of the building, directly in the line of fire, with their arms outstretched in front of them and eyes wide with strained fear. Against the walls of the Barracks, the guardians stabilizing the structure held their positions as ordered, but the worried glances they exchanged spoke more than last words ever could.

Suddenly, the white ball of flames began to slow, and slow, and slow... and then it stopped, hovering at level with the third floor of the Barracks as if it was a small sun on display at a planetarium. And for a few seconds it stayed there, floating mere yards above the ground, allowing all of the guardians in the vicinity to stargaze in awed silence. One glance at the air guardians directly below the white flame showed they were just as stunned as everyone else, gazing wide-eyed at the fire as if it were a higher power that was deciding their fate.

Then it left even quicker than it arrived, shooting up like a rocket blasting off into space. In fact, as the small sun climbed higher and higher into the air, space seemed to be exactly where it was going. And eventually, it disappeared into the night.

"They got them!" someone exclaimed, and Mack dragged his gaze down to follow everyone else's.

There was another light against the dark sky, this one a bright green flare shot from the mountains north of the Barracks, the very direction the attacks came from.

The culprits were apprehended. It was over.

But Mack's relief was short-lived. Because if Camilla was the one that stopped that monstrosity of an attack, she needed help, fast. So he continued to run.

Out of the residents in the Barracks, Camilla would be the first to jump into battle, but Amira would be the first to take control of the overall situation and would know the exact status of their star player. Thankfully, Amira hadn't gone too far from where Mack last saw her, and she was in the midst of talking to another guardian when Mack approached them, breathless.

"Amira!" Mack exclaimed without thinking. "Sorry, Pala. Captain. Have you seen Camilla? Wyatt."

"I did!" the guardian next to Amira chimed in, and Mack belatedly realized they were basically a younger, taller, and scrawnier version of Amira. "On the roof! She was protecting the building from getting hit."

"When was this?" Mack asked, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

"Before the magnesium fires," the guardian said, looking just as worried as Mack felt. "She sent us back down before that, and there's no one else with her." They turned to Amira, desperate. "Mimi, please! We have to help her!"

Mack stared wide-eyed at Amira, bracing himself for her reaction towards her detested nickname. But he was more shocked when Amira merely grimaced.

"That's Captain Pala, Nakia," Amira said firmly. "And we have MG's searching for her, but their priority is to put out the fires. You just need to go to medical and let us handle it."

"That's Trainee Pala, Captain," Nakia snapped back. "And if that's the case, you need to be checked out too! I saw you! You were out cold on the kitchen floor for a good couple of seconds."

Amira spared Mack a glance before glaring at Nakia, arms crossed. "I'm fine. And so is Officer Wyatt. She can take care of herself."

Nakia mirrored Amira's posture. "And I'm saying she can't, and the least I can do is help her. She saved our lives, Mimi, so I'm going to look for her. And if you want to send me to Farallon for disobeying orders, then go ahead."

For a brief second, Mack swore he saw Amira falter at Nakia's threat. And while she quickly recovered from her moment of weakness, Mack couldn't standby any longer.

"I'll go," he volunteered. "I can find her, and help her on the spot if needed."

Both of the Palas spun around to face him, as if they both forgot he was there.

"That building could come down any minute," Amira warned. "It's too dangerous."

"Then I'll borrow someone's strength," Mack reasoned.

"And pull them away from structural support?" Amira argued. "No captain would buy off on that. Not for one guardian."

"We all know she's not just any guardian," Mack said. He paused briefly to let Amira contradict him, and when she couldn't, he continued. "She's probably one of the strongest in the country, and the Org needs her. And if she needs help, I want to give it to her. Besides, it's what Elsie wanted--who's fine, by the way. But if we don't find Camilla, it won't take long before Elsie puts herself in danger by coming over here to try and find her herself."

For a while, Amira simply stood in silence, thinking to herself. As she did, Mack and Nakia exchanged glances. Even though Nakia looked exhausted and was clearly favoring one leg, their eyes showed how true they were to their words.

"You said you just needed strength?" Amira suddenly asked, her eyes watching the guardians running around them.

"Yeah," Mack answered, slightly delayed. "And I can go by myself."

"Good," Amira said, ignoring the nonverbal bickering that ensued between Mack and Nakia. "Officer Abayon!"

One of the guardians running past them suddenly stopped and spun around with a salute. Only when he jogged up to them did Mack recognize him as Bobo.

"Give Olomana here some strength," Amira ordered.

"Yes, ma'am!" Bobo agreed much too eagerly, and he quickly held out a hand to Mack. "What, these muscles aren't good enough for you?"

Mack was definitely not in a joking mood, but he managed a feeble smile for the sake of playing along as he held out a hand for Bobo to hold onto.

When he felt Bobo's energy rushing into his body, Mack had to discipline himself to not send it back to where it came from. That restraint only needed to last a moment because shortly after, he felt a heat surge through each of his muscles, feeling a couple degrees shy of a raging fire. The sensation left stars flickering in his vision, and he let out a shaky breath once the warmth eventually subsided.

"It's a real rush, isn't it?" Bobo grinned.

"Thank you, Officer Abayon," Amira dismissed him curtly, and didn't continue until after Bobo shrugged and continued on his way. "You still want to do this?"

Mack nodded firmly, steeling himself. "Yes, ma'am."

"Then use the emergency stairwell in the southwest corner," Amira advised. "It should be the most intact, and you shouldn't encounter as many questions on the way. We turned off the electricity and gas, so your biggest concern should be structural stability. And whatever you do, do not take a bigger risk than you have to. If it comes to that, call down and wait. Understood?"

Mack glanced at Nakia's pleading eyes, then back to Amira's relying gaze.

"Yes, ma'am," Mack repeated, then took off towards the Barracks, bracing himself for whatever he might find.

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NOTES

Background information:
MG: metas with the matter (M) control ability over gases (G)
MS: metas with the matter (M) control ability over solids (S)
CT: metas with the cellular (C) control ability over transformation (T), also referred to as manipulation

Additionally, a new character has appeared! Nakia is Amira's sibling, a young guardian fresh out of the Academy. We won't be seeing anymore of them in this story for now (unfortunately, since they are one of my favorites), but see Triple Point for more scenes, starting from Chapter 18!

I finally finished writing up to a good stopping point in this story! Ultraviolet will end with Chapter 14 for now. We're almost done!

Thanks for reading, voting, and commenting! If you're interested in other POVs of the events in this chapter, check out Triple Point Chapters 15 (Elsie) and 16 (Camilla).