As Santos'' crew marched towards Mirabe with the meds, a deafening st rang out from outside, rattling the house to its core. Everyone''s faces shifted in sync with the shock.


    Amid the chaos, Mirabe sprang into action. She smoothly kicked a gunman behind her to the ground, then spun around to snatch a gun from another who was too slow to react. A quick twist, and the weapon was in her grip.


    Santos and his crew were caught off guard. As gunfire erupted, more of his guards hit the floor. Santos himself barely dodged a bullet, diving out of harm''s way.


    "Damn it!" he cursed under his breath, awkwardly ducking further shots. He grabbed ze by the neck, yanking him forward as a human shield. "Try anything, and he''s done for," Santos threatened.


    Mirabe had just taken down another gunman. At Santos'' threat, she turned her head casually.


    ze, caught in a chokehold, was flushed and far from his usual charming self. Mirabe''s eyes, usually calm and misty, narrowed sharply.


    She strode towards Santos.


    Santos, seeing her approach, tightened his grip on ze and took a couple of steps back. He knew Mirabe was a force to reckon with; a hostage might not be enough to stop her.


    But it didn''t matter. He figured it was all about to wrap up.


    As Mirabe closed in, Santos smirked and suddenly released ze, shoving him hard towards the railing. With a swift kick, he sent ze Stumbling. The decaying rail couldn''t hold, and ze teetered on the edge. A fall from the second floor, over ten feet, could be lethal or at least cripplingly painful.


    Mirabe didn''t see thising. She lunged forward, grabbing ze''s shirt just in time. Now he dangled dangerously in mid-air.


    Shey t on the floor, her arms scraping against the stone and leaving bloody streaks on her pale skin.


    "Mirabe..." ze gasped, ghostly pale. "Is this it for me?"


    "If it is, make sure you grab that prize from the Professor for our friend. It''s all yours..." ze


    muttered, trembling with hihet


    shut.


    "Shut up," Mirabe snapped, gritting her teeth as she pulled him up with all her strength.


    But Santos wasn''t done. As


    Mirabe hauled ze up, he flicked a hand releasing a cloud of white powder into the air. It settled on Mirabe''s hair, arms, and face.


    The powder seemed to vanish quickly, absorbed into her skin.


    Mirabe''s body tensed, her grip on ze slipping momentarily. But she quickly shook it off, refocusing her strength to pull him up again.


    Still, if you looked closely, you''d see her strength was noticeably fadingpared to moments before.