Inside the sealed lab, Vesper and Aurelio stood in the low hum of security lockdown lighting.
Outside the door, something—or someone—had definitely just slammed into the corridor wall.
Aurelio's hand hovered instinctively near the door override.
"Don't," Vesper said.
He glanced back at her. "If that's another attack—"
"If that's Lyra," she finished, "opening the door is the worst possible thing we can do."
The intercom crackled faintly.
Then Lyra's voice burst through like a firework.
"OKAY, UPDATE—"
Vesper closed her eyes. "It's Lyra."
Aurelio sighed.
Lyra continued breathlessly, "So the rescue plan is going slightly differently than anticipated."
Aurelio pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Rescue plan?"
"Yes," Lyra said brightly. "Because if you two are locked in a lab, the obvious solution is dramatic intervention."
"Lyra," Vesper said slowly, "we did not need intervention."
"Well now you definitely do," Lyra replied.
A heavy thud sounded outside the lab.
Then Dorian's voice:
"LYRA THIS IS A SECURITY DOOR."
Lyra answered immediately.
"Yes but I believe in myself."
Cassian's voice followed, clipped and furious.
"You are attempting to pry open a reinforced Academy containment system with a cafeteria tray."
Valentina spoke next, sounding far too calm.
"In fairness, it's a very sturdy tray."
Aurelio stared at the speaker.
"This is happening in a school."
Kael's voice joined in.
"Yes."
Vesper rubbed her temples.
Outside, something metallic screeched.
Dorian again:
"LYRA STOP LEVERAGING THE DOOR HINGE."
"I'm creating pressure!" Lyra protested.
Cassian snapped, "You're creating structural damage!"
Then a loud clang echoed.
Aurelio turned toward the door instinctively.
"Did they just—"
Vesper nodded slowly.
"Yes."
"They just broke something."
The Corridor
Outside the lab door, chaos had reached a beautiful new level.
Lyra stood with a tray wedged into the door seam like she'd invented engineering.
Valentina held a small refracted light beam steady on the locking mechanism.
Kael leaned against the wall watching the entire scene with detached curiosity.
Dorian was laughing.
Cassian was having what looked like a controlled internal meltdown.
"This," Cassian said through his teeth, "is why we are banned from multiple engineering labs."
Lyra pushed harder on the tray.
"Teamwork!"
The tray snapped in half.
Everyone paused.
Lyra stared at the two pieces.
"…That was a test tray."
Valentina cleared her throat.
"I believe the locking system has now entered secondary security mode."
Cassian's head dropped back toward the ceiling.
"Of course it has."
Kael finally pushed off the wall.
"You've made the situation worse."
Lyra brightened.
"That means we need a bigger rescue."
Back Inside the Lab
The lab lights flickered again.
Aurelio checked the security panel.
"The door has upgraded to full lockdown."
Vesper leaned beside him.
"That sounds bad."
"It is."
"And whose fault is that?"
They both looked toward the intercom.
Lyra's voice returned.
"GOOD NEWS!"
Aurelio muttered, "There is absolutely no good news."
"We've escalated."
Vesper sighed.
"What does that mean."
Lyra answered proudly.
"We pulled the emergency override."
Cassian shouted in the background.
"LYRA THAT CALLS SECURITY."
Aurelio closed his eyes.
"Yes. Yes it does."
Vesper looked at him.
"You realize the Academy security team is going to arrive and find us trapped in a lab."
"Yes."
"With your sister trying to break the door open."
"Yes."
"And your brother laughing."
"Yes."
Aurelio exhaled slowly.
"None of this will look dignified."
Vesper shrugged slightly.
"Dignity is overrated."
He looked at her again.
And despite everything—
He smiled.
The Door Finally Opens
When the door finally slid open, it wasn't because of Lyra's heroic engineering.
It was because Academy security arrived.
Three guards stood there staring at the scene.
Cassian immediately stepped forward.
"I would like to clarify that we attempted to stop this."
Lyra waved enthusiastically.
"Hi!"
One guard blinked slowly.
"What exactly happened here."
Vesper stepped out of the lab calmly.
"Group research project."
Aurelio nodded with perfect Orsini composure.
"Very collaborative."
The guard stared at the broken tray.
The damaged hinge.
The entire assembled family cluster.
"…I'm writing a report."
Lyra whispered to Vesper as they walked away,
"Worth it."