Ziros grumbles something under his breath as he steps back, folding his arms as he frowns at the doors like he’s about one second from ignoring you and prying them open anyway.
“Fine. If you insist. But I’ve got a bad feeling, human, and I don’t like this. I say we bust outta this death trap ASAP.”
Maybe it’s something about how irritated he is, but you actually feel a strange and surprising sense of calm. After all, someone’s got to be the sane one in a situation like this.
You step in front of him and scan the control panel. This one happens to have a red button with an icon of a phone on it, so you press that.
After a moment, a gruff voice answers.
“Security,” says the voice. “Lemme guess. Damn thing got stuck again?”
Again?! You glance at Ziros, who’s looking at the lit elevator call button with an unreadable mix of emotions. He looks…amused? No, that’s not it. Annoyed? It’s hard to say.
Maybeuneasy.
“Uh, yes,” you say to the call operator. “It seems we’re trapped. There’s two of us, and the elevator just sorta stopped.”
“Do me a favor?” The security guy on the other end asks. “Hit that door open/close button for me. Sometimes the damn doors get stuck and jam up the whole works.”
You dutifully tap that button, and the doors make awhirringsound, then a terriblecrunchlike something inside has just broken even more.
You wince.
Meanwhile, Ziros mutters another swear under his breath as he stands there grumpily glaring at the jammed doors like he still wants to force them open.
But you could be between floors. And everything you’ve learned about elevator safety explicitly says not to try climbing out when between floors.
Not because you could fall—more because if the elevator starts again while you’re trying to exit, you’ll be smashed. Or other unpleasant things.
“Yeah, that didn’t seem to help,” you say to the security guy on the call.
He grumbles a few more choice words you’re pretty sure his boss probably wouldn’t be cool with him saying in front of a guest.
“Alright,” he says, and something opens and closes in the background. Maybe a locker? “Lemme grab a few tools.”
Wait, shouldn’t they have a professional come out, not just the security guy?! Maybe that’s why this elevator keeps breaking.
“You just hang tight,” the security guy says as the line goes dead.
Hang tight. Ironically, just after he hangs up, the elevator lurches.
You gasp as the floor drops out from under your feet.
Is this it? Are you going to die?
“Anzelika,” Ziros growls, grabbing you around the waist.
But the elevator comes to a stop a few feet below where it originally was.
You’re fine.
You didn’t plummet to your death.
And…Ziros is holding your back against his chest, pinning you against him as you levitate a few inches above the floor.
Yeah.Levitate.
Air rushes around the elevator, energy sizzling from his skin.
