A Date You Say?

Adrian was hunched in his makeshift laboratory, surrounded by test tubes, holographic screens, and cables that seemed to stretch like veins into every corner of the space. His eyes gleamed with a mix of concentration and excitement as he completed the final calculation.

"This is the last step," he murmured to himself, adjusting a tiny dial on a complex machine. Adrian, known in the scientific world as Ronald Borges, was a unique prodigy. Unlike the other members of his team, who used their abilities to manipulate metals or communicate with technology, he possessed an extraordinary connection to the global network. He could access any information, process it, and use it to solve problems within seconds. Thanks to this ability, he earned several university degrees and three doctorates before turning twenty. From a young age, Adrian was the group's "official fixer," transforming the useless into the innovative and creating technological breakthroughs that left everyone in awe.

"What if we place this here?" he said aloud, tweaking the final variable in his formula. Then, with a triumphant gesture, he exclaimed, "Voilà!"

Carefully, he extracted the solution into a syringe and injected it into the arm of one of the controlled boys lying unconscious on a medical bed. The nearby monitor, which had been displaying a black, viscous substance invading the boy's brain, began to change slowly. The dark shadows receded, giving way to a healthy glow in the brain images.

"It's excellent!" Adrian shouted, jumping with joy. "After more than thirty failed attempts, number 31 is the winner! Done! I have the cure!"

Without wasting a second, he grabbed his communication device and contacted Marie.

"Marie, I have the cure!" he announced excitedly as soon as she answered.

The news was met with a sigh of relief. Without delay, Marie activated her link with the rest of the team. "Attention, everyone! Adrian has managed to neutralize the toxin controlling the abducted children. Report your positions; once Team O manages to mass-produce the vaccine, it will be sent out for distribution."

However, something wasn't adding up. After several attempts, the chief's team still hadn't responded.

"It can't be!" Marie muttered, pacing back and forth as she thought about what to do. "There's so little time left before the deadline with the general expires... What do I do? What do I do?"

Suddenly, an idea crossed her mind. "Azulema! I'll call her!"

With a tap on her device, she established the connection. Almost immediately, Ezequiel's teasing voice echoed from the other side.

"Hello, Marie. What's up? Seems like you can't live without me. You're calling me again," he said in a tone that was both annoying and playful.

"That's not it," Marie snapped impatiently. "Put me through to Azulema right now."

"I'm sure you're blushing on the other end," Ezequiel continued, ignoring her urgency.

"Don't be foolish and put me through to Azulema!" Marie ordered, her patience wearing thin.

A moment later, Azulema's calm and confident voice interrupted the conversation.

"Azulema here. I see that fool was bothering you. Luckily, I have good hearing and caught it," she said with an audible smile.

"You used your ability, didn't you?" Marie asked, relieved to finally reach the heart of the matter.

"Yes, I did," Azulema confirmed.

"Well, good. I couldn't stand another word from Ezequiel. Now I see why Gat is the way he is," Marie remarked with a brief but serious laugh before returning to the main topic. "I need you to contact someone on your team who's with Drake and inform them that the vaccine is ready."

"Got it, I'll handle it," Azulema responded without hesitation.

Without wasting a second, Azulema activated her psychic link—a connection that functioned like a mental chat between her team. At the other end, Ada and Rachel responded quickly.

"We're busy with a fight, but we'll tell Drake," they said in unison.

"Hold on… are you two with Drake?" Azulema asked, surprised. "I thought Leila was with him."

"Yes, ma'am, but we don't know where she went," the girls replied.

"Alright, I'll leave you to it. I'll try to contact her," Azulema said before cutting the connection.

She tried reaching Leila several times but received no response.

"So she must be in a deeper layer," Azulema murmured to herself. "I'll have to use the other method of contact: the Astral form."

She sat cross-legged on the floor, closed her eyes, and began to concentrate. Slowly, her consciousness slipped into the astral plane, searching for Leila's trace amidst the vast mental expanse.

"Leila, Leila! Where are you, little one?" a distant voice echoed in the mental space.

Leila, who was focused on protecting Lingo under a telekinetic field glowing with a faint bluish shimmer, heard the call clearly. She furrowed her brow, trying to identify the source of the voice.

"Leila? Leila?" she heard again.

"This voice seems familiar," the girl muttered to herself. "Hey, answer me, girl!" she shouted, turning toward where she perceived the presence.

Suddenly, a holographic-like figure appeared before her: it was Azulema, her boss, whose calm expression contrasted with the tension of their surroundings.

"Azulema! How did you get here?" Leila asked, surprised.

"Thanks to my astral movement ability," Azulema replied with a gentle smile. "Interesting, isn't it? Someday I'll teach you how to do it."

"Incredible, Boss! Of course, I want to learn, but everything in due time," Leila replied, excited but aware of their situation.

"So this is where you are, girl. And this gloomy place… what exactly is it?" Azulema asked, observing the dark and shadowy environment around them.

"I'm inside the mind of a boy who's been controlled. He has a higher dose of the toxin, so I decided to enter and fight it alongside a knight I found here," Leila explained quickly.

"You always manage to get yourself into the strangest places, my girl," Azulema commented with a mix of admiration and concern. "The good news is that you're still alive. The bad news is that you're trapped inside a mind."

Azulema turned her gaze toward Lingo, who remained protected within the energy field. "And that boy with you… Is he a mental projection of the person whose mind you're in? He's quite handsome. Is he your boyfriend?" she teased with a mischievous smile.

"Boss! How can you say that at such a dangerous moment like this!" Leila protested, blushing slightly.

"Alright, alright, don't get upset. I was just curious about where you were. Besides, I have important news: we've found the cure," Azulema announced with renewed seriousness.

"Really? That's great, Boss! When will it arrive here?" Leila asked, her tone full of hope.

"We're busy at the moment, but once we're done, we'll head to your location in the ocean," Azulema replied.

"Then, can you do me a favor? Tell Mr. Adrian if he can use or improve the cure, so it helps this poor guy. The situation is critical," Leila pleaded urgently.

"Alright, I'll do it. In fact, I'll make sure he goes as soon as possible," Azulema assured her before slowly fading away.

Meanwhile, in the makeshift laboratory, Adrian worked tirelessly, adjusting machines and reviewing data on his holographic screens. Just as he thought he had a moment of peace, his communication device vibrated. It was Azulema.

"Hello, this is Azulema," she said without preamble.

"I'm busy, Azulema. Preparing a large batch of the vaccine for the cadets here to distribute across this continent," Adrian replied, not taking his eyes off his work.

"I have a bigger challenge for you. And you, being a man of science, wouldn't be able to overlook something like this," Azulema said slyly.

"What kind of challenge?" Adrian asked, intrigued.

"Got your attention," Azulema thought to herself, satisfied.

"It turns out there's someone infected with that control, but it seems they've been given a much higher dose of the toxin. I need you to go to the enemy base and help my little Leila. If you do…" Azulema paused dramatically, swallowing before continuing, "…we'll have that date you've been wanting."

"Alright, I'll do it right away. I'll build a personal ship as soon as possible, but first, I'll explain the process to one of the cadets," Adrian responded, accepting the challenge with enthusiasm. Without wasting time, he began working on his new objective.

"It worked. I knew he still had feelings for me," Azulema thought, though inside she felt uncomfortable having to flirt like a lovesick schoolgirl. "Oh well, girl, you owe me big time."

Back in Lingo's mind, Azulema briefly reappeared.

"Leila, are you still there?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am, but I don't have much time. We're being attacked from all sides," the girl replied, her voice tense.

"I got Adrian himself to go help you, but you owe me a very, very big favor, girl. Good luck, and don't waste too much of your mana shielding yourself," Azulema warned before vanishing completely.

Leila took a deep breath, knowing help was on the way. But she was also aware that every second counted. With renewed determination, she strengthened the protective field and prepared to face the next wave of attacks.

The young Leila paused for a moment, wondering how her boss had managed to convince Adrian so quickly. However, something told her that the "big favor" she'd have to repay would be epic. She imagined Azulema as a devilish figure with a tail and horns, cracking a whip while she pushed a cart uphill on an impossible mountain.

"Oh no!" Leila exclaimed, shaking her head to clear her thoughts.

"Focus, girl, or they'll kill you!" Aragon shouted from the battlefield, his voice resonating with urgency in the mental space. However, once the words left his mouth, he paused, as if doubting his own statement. "I don't know if that applies here," he added, frowning as he blocked an attack from one of Larot's copies with his golden AURA, which shone brightly like a beacon in the darkness.

The copies kept advancing relentlessly, their movements fast and coordinated, like an unstoppable tide threatening to drown them all. Each blow Aragon deflected echoed like thunder, briefly illuminating the shadowy surroundings with golden flashes.

"W-Well, you're right," Leila murmured in a shaky voice, glancing toward where Aragon fought with determination. "If we die here... we'll also die in the real world."

The young woman swallowed hard, feeling the weight of that truth settle on her shoulders like a heavy stone. Her breathing quickened, and for a moment, her concentration faltered. The telekinetic field protecting Lingo began to flicker, as if it were about to vanish.

"No, no, no," she scolded herself, squeezing her eyes shut tightly. "I need to stay focused. If I lose this, we're all dead."

She opened her eyes again, this time with a spark of resolve in her gaze. She strengthened the protective field around Lingo, stabilizing the bluish glow once more. She knew she couldn't afford to doubt, not when every second counted.

Meanwhile, Aragon continued to face the copies with relentless ferocity. His body was enveloped in a golden AURA halo, shining like a beacon in the darkness as he confronted the endless waves of Larot's duplicates.

Far away, Adrian received an urgent call.

"Mr. Adrian," a voice at the other end of the line said.

"Tron, send me the exact coordinates. I'm heading there as soon as possible," Adrian replied quickly. "But first, I want you to locate where Leila is and report back to me. Analyze anything that seems unusual or related to that virus, like the controlled ones. Immediately!"

In the sky, something quickly streaked past the ship carrying Rafael and his team, leaving a trail of bright light in its wake.

"Was that Adrian?" Rafael wondered aloud, watching the trail in astonishment. "I'd better speed up to catch him. We'll continue this conversation later, spoiled child," he said, addressing Akira with a serious smile.

"What was that?" Melisa and her team, who were following behind, asked each other, gazing at the sky with curiosity.

Meanwhile, Tron, the robot created by Adrian, begins his search. He transformed his body into a more human-like form to move more easily and slipped through dark, narrow ducts. Finally, he reached a prison chamber, where he encountered an extremely hard wall made of what appeared to be Luxteno, a nearly indestructible material.

"The target, Leila, is further ahead. I can't pass through, sir," Tron reported to his creator.

"How about using your new laser hand? It's capable of breaking anything man-made... although I hope this Luxteno isn't an exception. I just hope it's a cheap copy," Adrian responded, his tone a mix of confidence and concern.

Tron positioned his arm against the wall, and it began to heat up intensely. However, the structure didn't even budge. A dialogue box appeared on his wrist: "Would you like to increase power? Yes/No. Authorization required."

"Sir," Tron called. "I need your authorization."

"Sequence approved," Adrian said, pressing a button on his wrist.

The robot's fist transformed into a blazing furnace, glowing like molten lava. A massive beam erupted from its arm, piercing the wall with a deafening roar. The resulting hole was exactly the size of the robot.

"Good, sir, your new upgrade helped me break through that," Tron reported, satisfied.

"Did you doubt me, Tron?" Adrian asked with an arrogant smile.

"No, sir," the robot replied without hesitation.

"Good. Go and retrieve what I asked for. I'll be there in five minutes," Adrian ordered.

"As you wish, sir," Tron responded before stepping into the hole.

Upon entering, the robot detected three figures: two men facing each other and a girl positioned almost in the center, her hands touching their heads.

"Leila isn't moving, sir," Tron informed him, analyzing the scene. "But she's stable."

"Good, that's good. But find what I told you to already," Adrian insisted.

Tron quickly scanned the three individuals. "The one in brown has nothing. Leila doesn't either. But..." He paused as he analyzed Larot. "Warning: large quantities of the controlling virus were detected in this subject. Discretion is advised; otherwise, the subject may die."

"I hear you, sir. Sir?" Tron repeated, seeking confirmation.

"There's no need, my friend. I'm already here," Adrian said, entering the room with a determined expression.