Trigon was still locked in close combat with them—and she was visibly shaken.
Not by the fact that someone had beaten her to the server room… but by who those intruders were.
Two girls.
Barely even adults.
"They can't be older than twenty…" Trigon thought, stunned. "Children, almost…"
Despite standing at just 168 cm herself—shorter than Jody and only slightly taller than Roxxy—Trigon was already twenty-six.
She was a seasoned operative. These two? Practically kids.
But clearly not normal ones.
After she'd dropped Jody with a bullet, her full focus shifted to the smaller of the two—Roxxy.
This girl was dangerous. Really dangerous.
"Nnngh!"
A sudden chill shot up Trigon's arm.
Roxxy's body glowed with a red aura. Ice—thin and creeping—was beginning to crystallize up Trigon's arm.
She refused to let it take hold.
Fwoop!
She launched another portal.
A purple oval burst into the air beside Roxxy's head.
Then came the second shot—this time, a blue one against the nearby wall.
With both portals activated, her ability triggered.
The two ovals linked.
In an instant, both Trigon and Roxxy dropped through the purple portal—only to reappear bursting from the blue one on the wall.
What had been a tangled scuffle on the ground turned into a sudden upright collision.
Roxxy was slugged square in the face.
But Trigon didn't come out unscathed—the skin across her palm cracked from the force of the blow.
At that moment, Jody, groaning from where she lay wounded, dragged herself upright and shouted out:
"Roxxy! Her power—it's a portal!"
"What?! …She's been shot twice and she's still standing?!"
Trigon stared in disbelief. That girl had taken two solid shots to the chest—how was she even conscious?
She didn't have time to find out.
Jody charged.
A full-body tackle.
She slammed into Trigon, wrapping her arms around her midsection, and drove her back into the wall with a heavy thud.
But of course, it was Jody. She wasn't done.
Mid-tackle, she raised her hand—and fired a full blast of air bullets at Trigon, point-blank.
WHAM!
The shock was bone-shattering.
Blood sprayed from Trigon's mouth.
Only the hidden body armor beneath her dress had saved her from instant death.
Grab!
Trigon lashed out, locking Jody in a tight chokehold. Her arm coiled around Jody's neck, holding her low and tight against her body.
But before she could tighten her grip—
WHAM!
Roxxy struck.
She launched herself with a flying kick—both feet slamming into Trigon's neck and jaw.
The impact hurled Trigon backward.
Straight into a portal.
Roxxy's eyes widened.
Behind Trigon—unbeknownst to her—was another purple portal.
It connected to inside the server room.
That kick had launched Trigon into it.
And just like that—the portal closed.
Trigon was gone.
But not before something terrifying happened.
SNIP.
A strand of Jody's hair had been caught in the portal's edge.
And it was cut clean off.
"...These portals…" Jody whispered, stunned, touching the ends of her hair.
She didn't even want to imagine it. What if her head had been there?
It'd be gone too.
That moment of realization turned to panic.
"Shit… shit!!" Roxxy screamed. "She's in the server room! She's inside!!"
She bolted for the door—but before she could twist the handle—
Grab.
Jody seized her arm.
"Hey—HEY!! What the hell are you doing!?" Roxxy barked, trying to yank herself free.
"Calm down! That thing is waiting for you! She wants you to charge in!"
"THE LAPTOP IS IN THERE!! SHE'S GOT EVERYTHING!!"
Everything about Thrak. Everything they couldn't afford to let leak. If that data got out—they were done.
And yet Jody was still holding her back?
Roxxy thrashed—but Jody held tighter.
"FUCK!!"
"Roxxy!! Get a grip!! THINK!!!"
But Roxxy snapped. She swung and punched Jody in the chest, then shoved her backward.
"You piece of—!"
SLAP!
Roxxy's head whipped to the side.
Jody had slapped her. Hard.
The sound cracked through the air like a gunshot.
Despite both of them being reinforced with Syd's steel buff, the slap landed. Not as a wound—but a reset button.
Roxxy blinked. Her mind stalled.
Jody stood in front of her, heaving, eyes blazing.
"You're right! I am a piece of shit! You hate me! Fine! But use your goddamn head!"
"Do you wanna die!? DO YOU!?"
Roxxy heard nothing but Jody's voice. The rage. The desperation. The command.
And somehow... it hit her harder than any slap ever could.
"You're acting insane!" Jody shouted. "THINK, Roxxy! THINK!! She's baiting you! That's what she wants!"
Jody's voice cracked. Her face twisted in fury and fear.
Roxxy just stared.
And Jody kept going.
"Maybe you don't care what I think—but ask yourself—what would Syd do, huh?"
That made her flinch.
Jody took a step closer.
"You know him better than anyone. If he were here—would he just barge in and get himself killed?"
"..."
Slowly, something shifted in Roxxy.
The slap. The scream. The name of her brother.
It rebooted her brain like a hard reset.
She didn't say anything. Just stared at Jody.
But Jody saw it. The gears were turning.
"He wouldn't go in," Roxxy murmured. "Syd… wouldn't go in like this…"
"Exactly!!"
"But the laptop—!"
"So what!?"
Grab.
Jody seized both of Roxxy's shoulders and locked eyes with her.
Her voice dropped low.
"What's done is done. She saw the files. Fine. But she hasn't told anyone yet. Right?"
"...?"
"So we keep it that way. We make damn sure she never gets the chance."
Jody's words were like a cold slap of logic.
Roxxy blinked.
Jody stepped closer. Her tone softened, but her grip didn't.
"You're just like Syd. Strong. Tactical. You can do this. But only if you stay calm."
That last line—it hit something deep.
Something Roxxy had never told anyone.
She wanted to be like her brother.
Ever since they were kids, Syd had always been the strong one. The shield. He fought her bullies. He protected her. He shaped her world—even when he hurt her, it taught her something.
He was cruel. He was reckless. He was dangerous.
But he was hers.
And she admired him.
Then came Jody.
The girl who changed Syd.
The girl who softened him.
Roxxy had always hated her for that. Not because of jealousy—but because Jody had influence over him. Real influence.
And now—here she was. Holding Roxxy by the shoulders. Slapping her back to her senses. Seeing through her completely.
How did she know?
How could she see her so clearly?
Roxxy had never opened up about this to anyone. Not even Syd.
And yet... Jody knew.
Maybe Jody wasn't who she thought.
Maybe Jody had changed.
"...If I don't go in… then what?" Roxxy asked, still breathing hard. "She's already seen the data."
Jody didn't blink.
"I have a plan," she said, voice steady. "But you'll have to trust me."