The Academy was not where the meeting took place.

It was in a simple building in a quiet part of Cinderfall City, a place with no name outside. It was the kind of place made to be forgotten as soon as you left. The room they were in was just as plain. It had one metal table, four simple chairs, and no windows. The air was cool and still.

The Headmaster sat at the table, his fingers pressed together. He looked very calm but his mind was racing. He was about to make a move in a very dangerous game and he was not sure if it would work. He was used to being the most powerful person in any room. Today, that was not the case.

The door slid opened.

A man walked in. He was tall and big, with short, gray hair. He wore the clean uniform of a high-ranking army officer with medals that showed he had worked a long and hard time. He looked at the room, saw the Headmaster and showed no emotion.

This was General Titus Ironwood, the commander of the nation's Special Operations forces. He was a man known for his honor and his complete lack of patience for politics.

He and the Headmaster had known each other for a long time. It was a history built on a strange mix of respect and rivalry. They were two of the most powerful men in the nation, each the master of his own world.

"Headmaster," Ironwood said, his voice gritty. He did not offer a handshake. He just took a seat across the table.

"General," the Headmaster replied with a slight nod. "Thank you for coming on such short notice."

"Your message said it was a matter of national security," Ironwood said flatly. "I am here. Now, explain."

The Headmaster took a moment, choosing his words carefully. He knew the General was a practical man. He did not care for magic or mystery. He cared for facts, threats, and solutions.

" As you know," the Headmaster began, "the Bureau of Elite Development has caused me trouble for a long time. We have often disagreed on how best to protect this nation."

Ironwood's expression did not change but a brief hint of irritation showed in his eyes. "I am not here to listen to you complain about your rivals, Headmaster. If this is just another one of your political games, then this meeting is over."

"This is not a game," the Headmaster said, his voice sharp and cold. "I have discovered that a rogue group within the Bureau has gone far beyond simple politics. They are secretly developing an illegal and highly unstable new class of bio-weapon."

He leaned forward, his eyes locked on the General's. "They have taken the work of a disgraced and exiled scientist, a man named Dr. Aris Thorne. They have given him unlimited funding and resources. And he has created something... monstrous."

He told Ironwood about the lab in the Dragon's Tooth mountains. He described the living prototype, Subject Alpha. He explained how it was made from dozens of beasts and powered by a stolen sample of a student's blood.

The General heard it all without a word, looking serious. He didn't break in. He just sat there, his strong hands on the table. After the Headmaster finished, Ironwood was silent for a long time.

"A monster in a lab," the General finally said. "And your students destroyed it. It sounds like the problem is solved."

"The prototype was destroyed," the Headmaster corrected him. "But the research was not. Thorne's team has already moved to a new, primary facility. And they are working on the next version, Subject Beta."

Ironwood leaned back in his chair, the metal creaking under his weight. "So, the Bureau is doing something risky and hidden. Forgive me, Headmaster, but that's not exactly new. My files are full of reports about your 'special projects' and theirs. Why are you telling me this now? Why should I believe this isn't just you trying to get me to fight your wars for you?"

The Headmaster knew this was the critical moment. The General didn't believe him easily. He thought this was just a small fight between two strong, secret groups. He wasn't going to put his soldiers in danger just because an old enemy said so.

"Because this is no longer a political battle," the Headmaster said, his voice low and intense. "This is a problem about too many weapons being made. A group that acts on its own, with a clever but mad scientist, is making living weapons that can't be stopped. They are not following any laws, and they have already tried to kill one of my students to cover their bad deeds. Today, it's my student. Tomorrow, it could be your soldier. Or a city full of citizens."

"You have no proof," Ironwood stated. "You have a story. A good one, I admit. But you expect me to move my forces based on your word alone? You and I have been on opposite sides of the board too many times for that."

The Headmaster kept looking at the General. The air in the room was filled with tension. He had one last card to play. He had hoped he wouldn't need it, but the General's stubborn honor demanded more than just words.

"You are right, General," the Headmaster said calmly. "You should not have to take my word for it."

He raised his voice slightly, speaking toward the closed door. "That is why I have brought my primary evidence. And my expert witness."

He gave a slight nod.

The door behind General Ironwood hissed open.

The General turned in his chair, looking both surprised and annoyed. He thought another one of the Headmaster's top agents would come in, or maybe a serious-looking professor.

Instead, two students walked into the room.

One was a young woman with sharp, intelligent eyes, her hands holding a datapad. The other was a young man who looked too young to be involved in something so serious. He faced the General's tough look with a calm, firm determination.

It was Vanessa and Jonah.

General Ironwood stared at them, his eyes growing smaller. He looked from the two students back to the Headmaster, a worried frown showing on his face.

"Headmaster," the General said angrily. "What is the meaning of this?"