CONTAINS CONTENT:
Brief language, violence, death, grief.
{{Unedited}}
Austin hadn’t heard his own voice crying out her name. Nor would he remember rushing to her, and firing at the assailant with his arm gun long enough to take hold of Kirra’s wrist and pull her around the back of the fountain. He wouldn’t remember that he used his jacket to prop her head up, either. In the middle of moving her something hit him in the lower part of his left arm; he knew instantly that he’d been shot and that she’d also taken a second bullet.
He was only a little bit aware that he was screaming for Wei Ling, but he was also only vaguely aware that guns were going off inside the party as well.
Kirra’s eyes found his, pleading, but there was nothing that he could do.
He paused from shouting for Wei Ling long enough to note her lifting her hand and caressing his face, leaving a warm, red print there. Her hand dropped to his, and she took it, squeezing. As she did, he felt the bullet in his arm work its way out of his skin and his flesh sew itself back up. He looked down at the area where the wound had just been, eyes wide, and met his gaze with hers again. She did not just use the last bit of her strength to heal him, did she? No! He could see the life leaving her gorgeous green eyes, and they were saying so much to him before they started to roll back.
Time blurred for a moment and the next thing that he remembered was doing compressions on her chest, and bending, breathing his air into her mouth. “Come on, Kirra. Come on,” he was growling between breaths and listening to her chest. “Come on!” Press, press, press, press, press, breath. This wasn’t the kiss that she’d wanted, it wasn’t the one that she deserved. “Kirra, don’t do this…” Breath. He still tasted the punch she’d drank not ten minutes ago. “Kirra!” Breath… press, press, press, press. He tasted the blood, too. “Kirra, please.” He continued to try CPR to no avail.
The assailant was back, and firing at them again. Austin lifted his arm pistol, using the fountain rim as cover and aimed in the dark. All he saw was a shadow, there was no way of telling who it was that he was shooting at.
After a short back and forth, he hit the man – it was definitely a man – and took a moment to look down at Kirra after pulling his gun back into his arm. Kirra couldn’t heal herself… that’s all that Austin kept thinking- Kirra couldn’t heal herself.
He squeezed her against him for a moment, lifting her like a bride in his arms and cried out into the darkness; a low, animalistic scream of desperation. Then he stood, holding her against his chest and rushing into the party room.
It was a disaster; pandemonium was in full swing on all sides. Gunfire rang out left and right, and Austin was shocked that he was able to slip in with her body practically unnoticed. He went to a nearby table, and lay Kirra’s body under it so she was as protected as he could make her. He scanned the room for Wei Ling and Marielle. Where was Marielle? He couldn’t see her, and he was slowly starting to feel the panic set in.
His eyes fell on a black clad figure wreathed in shimmering gold with a stark white skull painted over his face; Cory, who was obviously orchestrating this whole debacle. Next to him was his sister painted like some kind of doll with a white face, ruby cherub lips, and big red spots on her cheeks. She also had the golden ring around her. Both were standing at the front of the room where Austin and Han had entered earlier and they were watching the hurricane taking place before them with glee.
Occasionally abilities and powers were being thrown around from both sides of the battle, which told Austin that there were doppelgangers in the mix, but he had no time to take stock of who they were or how many. Most of the people in the chaos seemed to be Kingdom goons, covered in black and masked.
Austin reminded himself not to get carried away and start throwing his abilities around, they’d drain him the same way they’d drain everyone in the room eventually, and if he used one of them poorly or ineffectively, he’d be spent for tactical, or planning melee.
Flicking his gaze around the room and trying to take stock of the situation, he pressed himself to focus. The sheer amount of uproar and insanity taking place before him made it difficult to assess.
Okay, what was the first important piece of information? Were people dead? Yes. He had no time to register or feel for the fact that Freddy was laying in the middle of the dance floor, eyes wide and locked, a hole in his chest, a tray and broken glass all around him. Austin had to dismiss this for now.
Larson! Larson had a healing ability. Where was Larson? He whirled and spotted the blond man taking cover near the bar and darted to him, gun drawn again.
Kneeling next to him, they met eyes. “I need your abilities,” he explained panic stricken.
“Where? Everyone’s bleeding,” Larson scoffed with a heavy sigh as he gestured around the room to the calamity on all sides.
“She’s under the table.” He grabbed Larson’s arm and yanked him across the floor, through the bullets and back to Kirra, where ducked in to examine her. Larson put two fingers to the side of her neck and let out a brief sigh. “Austin…” he said, gravely. Austin shook his head blocking out the inevitable words. “Rancor,-” Larson licked his lips, “-she’d dead.” He swallowed and looked around although they couldn’t see anything from under the table. “I can’t raise the dead, you know this,” Larson said matter of factly.
“Try anyways!” Austin cried, gesturing to her wildly. Larson paused, nodded, and put his hands to the sides of her face… nothing. Austin let out a guttural growl and pushed Larson aside, once again putting his hands to her chest and trying to do compressions and breaths into her mouth to revive her. Larson gently took hold of his arm. “Austin… Austin…” Austin slowed, then hung his head, biting back tears, all of his dark hair falling into his face. He was wringing Kirra’s long red hair as if trying to squeeze life out from it that he could somehow scoop back up and pour back into her mouth. “No, come on!” He wailed, doing compressions, and breathing again into her mouth. When he pulled back, he lifted his fist, and slammed it down into her heart area once, then again. He paused, panting, and then leaned in, listening to her heart. There was nothing.
He looked up at Larson, face red as a beet, veins bulging. “It’s done,” Larson said taking his wrist, and trying to move him away.
Austin crumpled in on himself, becoming a tight ball for a moment as he silently sobbed. “N-no.”
“It’s done,” Larson whispered. “She’s gone.” Larson gave him another five or six seconds but there was no time. “Now, let’s go get back in this fight.” Austin lifted his head, trying to remind himself to focus and let this go for now. “Come on, your girl’s out there, isn’t she?” He eyed Austin.
Austin sniffed once, and nodded succinctly. Right.
Austin forced every emotion to the back of his head and met eyes with Larson. “What’s the next move?”
“Assess,” Larson reminded. A bullet struck the table, but missed both and for a moment, they glared at one another in shock.
Austin nodded, and pinched the end of his nose, clearing it of any drip. “Can you be involved in this fight?”
“I don’t really care at this point? You’re here, Chamber’s here… I have to do something.”
Marielle. Where was she? Was she okay?
Both men peeked from under the table and took a glance around the room.
Sabine and John were nearest to them and they were engaging in hand to hand with three of what Austin and Larson could only guess were Kingdom thugs working with Cory. They were black clad and masked; it was impossible to tell if they were goons or doppelgangers. Although considering that they appeared to not be using any abilities, Austin took them for goons. John teleported behind one, and Sabine has just dropped some of her gas. They both look like they’d have things under control in a moment.
There was a swarm of hooded and masked thugs in a standoff with Han, Jamie, Mateo, and Wei Ling; who Austin wouldn’t be able to get to. It was too late, anyway. Austin watched her take a bullet to the upper arm, and duck behind a table. Growling, she used her ability to raise a wall, blocking them from their attackers. Austin couldn’t see them now.
The rest of the room was in chaos and twinkling gold from the wreaths sparkling around any unmasked enemies. If it hadn’t been a blood bath, it would have been beautiful.
There were bullets flying, and everyone was involved or hiding. Austin couldn’t account for at least half of Valorant, Marielle included, even though it was evident that many of them were taking cover and actively engaged in shooting at what was at least fifteen different men – sprinkled with a few women – from Kingdom.
It would be dangerous for either Austin or Larson to move from their spot, but as the fight became more intense and others moved toward them, it was becoming evident that they were going to have to.
Finola – who Austin had never actually seen before this moment – stepped down the stairs that led into the dance floor, her red curls bouncing. She lifted her hands and shot stars of electricity across the room, one of them striking Han in the back, causing her to drop and spasm, she was down for what seemed like forever.
Finola spun, pulling her lightning whips from her body, and beginning to use them on various people in the room. A flick of her wrist, and she grabbed Kiritani, who was dressed as Mr. Miyagi. But when she wrapped her electric whip around his ankle, he whirled, and disappeared. Austin nodded, he’d teleported, good.
When the electric stars had struck Han, Hazal fell away from her and momentarily crawled behind the dessert table, but once the flickers of electricity dissipated in the air, she jerked away from her hiding spot and stood, ready.
At first, she moved through the crowd, unafraid, then she came to Cory and grabbed hold of his forearms. “Dreams are a funny thing,” she hissed, whirling him around to face her. His eyes grew wide. “One little twist, and it all turns dark.” She placed her black nails on the sides of his face and locked gaze with him, and for a moment, he looked terrified, then his expression slowly melted from terrified to calm, to a smile that spread across his thin mouth. Hazal’s two-toned eyes filled with fear as Cory lifted his hands and pulled hers off his face.
He chuckled cruelly as a look of pride flickered across his expression, “I’m sorry. Your powers don’t work on me,” he said as if speaking to a small child. “I’m not afraid of anything,” he explained, proudly. “But I know what you’re afraid of.” Hazal glanced away, then bravely met eyes with him again. “More than anything on the planet. You’re afraid of dying before you find him… You will.” Then Hazal heard a loud pop. She didn’t feel the warm pain spreading through her core until she looked down between them and saw the smoking pistol.
“No!” Marielle cried tearing away from the man that she was fighting after taking him out with a quick shot to the chest from one of her tattoo guns.
Chamber grabbed her wrist and stopped her from rushing in, as Vincent was engaged in a fight near her, using his powerful arms to deliver a fatal blow to the side of a lackey’s face. Marielle jerked back into Chamber and for a moment he held her before he let go. “No, mon amie, it’s too dangerous, stay back,” he whispered.
She glared at him unsure of how to respond for a moment, but obeying as her eyes filled with tears for Hazal.
Austin sighed with relief, there was Marielle. But then his gaze jerked back to Cory and Hazal as Hazal smashed to her knees, the life draining from her eyes. “And just so you know… your double did too.” Hazal fell forward, crashing into the ground face first. It was clear that she was dead.
“We have to move in, cover me,” Austin said, and he began from behind the table. Larson followed closely behind.
Wei Ling – with blood trickling down the front of her face – broke from the fight that she was engaged in with Han and Jamie at her side, took a moment to heal herself, and dashed down the steps to the dancefloor, resurrecting a second wall, separating her from Cory for a moment. Finola grabbed his wrist and yanked him back from the wall when Jamie shot his ability that created lava on the ground at them both. “Your duty is not over!” Wei Ling wailed, and spiritual energy erupted from the ground, lifting Hazal from the dead.
Hazal sat up, glaring at Wei Ling and gripping her side. “I’m up, I’m up! Shit!” At this, she ran off, flinging one of her fear abilities at a group of enemies to the left. They all went to their backs screaming and clawing at their faces.
Wei Ling whirled when Liam went down, and was instantly to his side as he rested behind a wall near the elevator. “No!” she screamed, kneeling beside him with tears filling her eyes.
Liam grabbed hold of her face with the arm that wasn’t bleeding, “You listen to me, soldier,” he said tearing some of the bottom of the Santa coat and wrapping it around the wound. “Whatever happens, you did not do this…don’t carry the weight. You saved Hazal, you were supposed to save her. If I die- and I’m not going to by the way,” he snarled, glaring at her, “you had nothing to do with it. Do not blame yourself, understand?” he asked. “Tell me you understand.” She nodded, clenching her eyes shut. He drew her against him. She was so small against the big man, and his huge arms. She buried her face into his chest. “Don’t you cry for me, anyways,” he growled. “Now, on your feet!” And he pulled her up to standing beside him. “Wall there,” he gestured, and she obeyed, dividing part of the room for a few minutes to round some of the goons up into one area.
Liam reached into his Santa bag with a snicker, and pulled out his grenade launcher. He aimed, and fired. “Molly!” And the thugs that had been walled off as well as pieces of them went flying in all directions.
“Enough fun,” Cory hissed. This was when four masked figures came to Cory and Finola’s sides and removed their masks; Gekko, Breach, Deadlock, and… Austin blinked… ISO. Not the ISO from this world; like Deadlock and some of the others, Cory and Kingdom must have brought them in from other dimensions. He felt his blood go icy as he exchanged knowing looks with Larson.
Austin and Larson were about to rush down to their aid, but a quick survey the room and Larson noted the Kingdom lackey’s who’d spotted the two of them and were headed their way. “Time to call in reinforcements,” Larson growled, and his shoulders jerked left, then right as two exact copies pulled themselves from Larson’s body like a rubber band being stretched to capacity. Healing was one of Larson’s lesser abilities; this one was his ultimate. He could create two copies of himself that lasted about ten seconds. Both doubles fought the goons – shadows streaking back to his original form, standing still – taking them both down with knives before they flickered, and rubber banded back into Larson’s body, vanishing completely.
Larson fell back on his butt, took in a ragged breath, and heaved for a moment before turning and giving Austin a strong nod, signaling that he was okay before jumping back up.
Finola swayed with her hands behind her back like a little girl, and bent forward with a childish grin.
Everyone lost their sight, as the room went black.
There were gasps and cries all around, Austin grabbed Larson’s arm and yanked him down as he heard a cacophony of gunfire spray across the room. “Stay down, stay down!” He screamed over the ear-piercing hail of bullets.
After a period that seemed like forever, vision came back to everyone and Austin noted that Larson was winged in his right shoulder. “Can you wait on that?” he asked, gesturing with his head as he bent to his comrade. “We might need your abilities, here.”
Larson nodded, “Yeah, I’ll just bleed out slowly,” he growled, standing again with Austin’s help.
When both were up, they quickly caught wind of the situation. Valorant was low or out of bullets or abilities, and guns were all pointed at key members; Liam, and Wei Ling, John obviously couldn’t teleport anymore.
Breach had Vincent in a hold with his metal arms up under Vincent’s arm pits, and his hands laced behind Vincent’s head; he wasn’t letting go.
ISO stepped forward and threw his arena creation device to the ground, taking Chamber, maid costume and all, into his pocket dimension. Both vanished, the room paused, and gasped.
Vincent’s eyes became saucers for a moment and Austin remembered that Vincent said that he’d met ISO in Cambodia and nearly died to him. Austin prayed that Vincent had shared the entire ordeal repeatedly with Chamber, so Chamber had a sporting chance.
Cory tipped his head back a little, and smirked, waiting. The room held their breath.
Moments later, the private arena fell away and Chamber reappeared from the spot he’d vanished. “Do better,” Chamber growled, pulling Headhunter back into his arm. He crossed himself as ISO’s pocket arena dissipated entirely and another Sova – the same one that Austin suspected killed Sasha – caught him in a similar hold as Breach had Vincent.
Finola had Marielle and was dragging her to the center of the room, then giving her a violent shove toward Cory. Marielle lifted her right-hand tattoo gun and fired into Cory’s face. There was a click. The chamber was empty.
Finola caressed his forearm, leaning against him.
Cory grinned wildly and took a step toward Marielle while simultaneously lifting his hand and swiping her gun away. Both of her pistols disappeared back into her body, both guns spent of their bullets.
Cory grabbed her around the middle, whirled her around and put a blade to her neck taking a deep breath of her rose scented hair.
“Don’t touch her! I will kill you!” Vincent wailed, jerking, and struggling against Breach’s tight hold.
Austin rushed in with rage in his eyes, but was stopped as he was surrounded from all sides. Raising his hands behind his head – which drew his own tattoo gun back into his arm – he flicked his gaze to Larson who was clearly telling Austin to pretend that he didn’t exist.
Austin looked away, and glanced around the room. Everyone was caught, and had weapons trained on them. They were dragging Tayane to the side of the room as well as Liam and Wei Ling. Where was Klara? Austin didn’t know. Where was Amir or Zayana? Efia or Sabine? Austin didn’t know. Several of them were being lined up against the far wall and most of them were obviously spent of their abilities and their bullets.
Chamber met eyes with Vincent and with a flick of his wrist; despite being restrained, he threw down his teleporter. Vincent snapped his fingers, vanishing and reappearing over Chamber’s device – thus slipping Breach’s grasp – and rushed toward Cory, pulling Headhunter from his arm.
Cory pressed the knife in to Marielle’s throat. “If you keep coming, I’ll make sure this not only hurts, but she dies slowly!”
Vincent froze, seething, and slowly pulled his weapon back up into his arm, raising his hands. “You won’t kill her, Cory,” he growled through clenched teeth and a set jaw. “You still need her.”
“Aye, that much is true. But just like you, I’ll just find another one,” he said with a daunting grin full of sparkling white teeth. “In some ways, that’d be the icing on the cake for me. You love this one,” Cory said looking at Marielle’s profile. Marielle met eyes with Vincent, he was obviously pleading with her to stay still, but he winced at Cory’s words. “Stay quiet, I don’t want to hear a single word from you,” Cory added. “Or I will finish what Austin started.” He meant Tundra that night that he tried to kill Marielle and nearly killed Austin. Cory gave Vincent a possessed smirk, “and you’ll watch,” he whispered loud enough for Vincent to hear.
Vincent bit his tongue; he didn’t dare say a word. Both he and Chamber’s teleporters were on cool down. He glanced to his left, sweeping the area. Austin followed his gaze. In the distance Austin could see a flicker of green under a table. Klara. He could just barely see her moving from this angle. He knew what she was gearing up to do, and was praying that she’d do it before Marielle was dead.
Austin swallowed and met eyes with Marielle. They were big, and glassy, but she turned her spine to steel, determined to handle whatever came next without devolving into a stammering, whimpering mess. -Marielle, don’t move. I’m with you.
Marielle met her gaze with Austin and gave him the smallest nod, almost undetectable.
Cory careened his head to look at her face, then glanced at Austin. He gestured with his head for the others to bring Austin forward. One of them pierced him with a needle, he assumed it was the ability suppressant. If the Kingdom lackies had suppressant, this explained why so few were using their powers.
He willingly took several steps, in part to be closer to Marielle; inwardly, he was wishing that Larson hadn’t spent his ultimate. He knew that it would be useful in a moment if there was no plan and all hell broke loose again.
Cory’s gaze consumed Austin in a way that made him almost feel violated. “It’s crazy,” Cory whispered, keeping Marielle taut against him. “I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting another me. Or Finola. For some reason we don’t exist anywhere but where we’re from,” he explained with an ironic chuckle.
There was a pause and he grinned sardonically at Austin, pressing the blade tighter against Marielle’s neck. She swallowed hard and shut her eyes.
Austin said, -I won’t let him hurt you.
-I’m okay. Don’t panic. I’m with you, too.
“What are you doing here, Cory?” Austin asked.
Cory wrapped his strong arm around Marielle’s neck for a moment, shifting as if thinking. “I just thought we’d crash the party. Vincent and Marielle met on a night that wasn’t unlike this one. It’s funny how roles get reversed sometimes, though.” He grinned at Marielle like she knew what he was talking about. There was a pause. “Do you love him?” he asked, gesturing with the tip of the blade to Austin. She was silent. “Answer me!” He began to pierce her skin. “Do…you…love…him…?” Cory bit out through clenched teeth.
Vincent bent at the knee, wincing, and instinctively lifting his hand to retrieve Headhunter again. Cory flashed him a look that said do it and she dies right now.
Marielle swallowed hard, knowing that Cory only wanted one answer and lying wouldn’t work. “Yes,” she whispered, tears silently streaming down her cheeks.
Austin bit back another wave of tears. -I love you, too. He looked down, knowing that depending on how this went this might be the last time he could tell her, he squeezed the ring that was around his finger so she couldn’t see it. –So, so much, you have no idea, Marielle. I’m so in love with you.
Cory chuckled cruelly. “You love this piece of shit?” He shook his head, his eyes watering a little as he muttered something in Gaelic. “I shouldn’t say that… I loved him, too,” he explained. He looked away. “He was my people,” he added distantly. Then he glared at Austin, looking him over. His white shirt was stained with big spots of thick, syrupy red. Cory sniffed, “So, who died?”
Austin closed his eyes briefly, “Kirra,” he whispered.
He watched as Marielle squeezed her eyes shut and silently sobbed, shaking with this realization in Cory’s arms. He could hear the gasps and the “no’s,” and cries from everyone at the wall.
“You tried to save her, then so…” Cory said. Then he seemed to disassociate a bit.
For a moment, Austin wondered where Skye was. She was surely in the midst of the masked figures. He spotted a few women, but couldn’t be sure. Kirra was on the taller side, and one of them looked like they could be her. “I lost my best friend,” Cory said distantly. Then he looked Austin’s over. “You could be him,” he suggested. His glassy blue eyes gestured to Marielle. “I’ll give her to you.” Austin was sickened by the fact that for a moment, this idea took hold in his mind. Go with Cory… keep Marielle. He gagged at how much the thought enticed him for a tenth of a second. Cory looked like he was enjoying his as his upper lip lifted a little revealing growing, glistening fangs. “I told him that I’d give her to him… I’ll just give her to you.” And with that, Cory sunk his fangs into Marielle’s neck and drank. Austin winced, reaching out, but it was too late. Cory pulled back, blade and all and Marielle’s eyes went black; she was completely under Cory’s control now. “Go kiss him,” he whispered, flicking his gaze to Austin. “Now.”
Austin glanced at Vincent. It was obvious that he looked like he wanted to intervene, but there were too many guns pointed at him, and Marielle.
Cory gestured for Breach to come down and hold Vincent again. The giant Swede pulled him back a little as well. “You’ll watch,” he growled at Vincent.
With silent tears rolling down her face, Marielle robotically staggered away from Cory, and toward Austin.
He put a hand up between them, stopping her from advancing. “Oh, she’ll hurt you, now. She’s too heavily compelled, she has to do what I told her to,” Cory chided, this was all a game to him. Austin darted back, frantically trying to keep distance between them and watch Cory at the same time.
Marielle came at him ferociously. Her eyes were black, but the longing on her face was difficult to ignore. She wanted him… she was told to want him, but she wanted him more than anything in the world at this moment, and she’d kill to get him. He was never going to forget that look; even though it was compelled, what made it real was that it was truth, and she couldn’t hide it with all her walls down.
Vincent looked away, but Breach jerked his face back to the scene, “you’ll watch, or the last thing you’ll see will be her bleed out in front of you.”
Vincent bit back tears as he stared at his beloved furiously try to grab any part of Austin to make him come to her.
“What are you going to do?” Cory taunted, throwing Vincent a devilish, knowing smile.“Marielle, please, no…” Austin said gently. “Fight it, fight his control over you.”
Cory laughed in his throat watching the weird game of ring of around the rosy taking place between Austin and Marielle. “She can’t,” he taunted. “It’s my ultimate, there is no breaking free from this,” he chortled.
“Fight it, darling, fight it,” Austin pressed despite Cory’s words.
Cory rolled his eyes and flicked a glance to Finola who was stifling a laugh. “They are fun dolls, aren’t they?”
Cory nodded. “Oh… oh… time’s almost up,” Cory’s voice echoed above them. “Ten… nine…” Austin dodged one way, then the other. Marielle clawed at him, desperate; crying needfully. “Eight… seven…”
Austin followed Vincent’s gaze as he tried not to look at where Klara was busying herself with Efia and Zayana under the table.
Cory’s voice echoed. “six… five…” Zayana briefly met eyes with Vincent, and Vincent met eyes with Chamber. Chamber nodded; I got this all over his face.
“New plan,” Cory chided, “kiss me,” he ordered, the skull painted over his face seeming to glow, and Marielle broke away from Austin, and whirled. “And do it like you would kiss him,” he added.
“No!” Vincent wailed, clawing to get away, “keep your hands off of her!”
Corky flicked his icy, childlike eyes – full of irate despair – at Vincent. “Did you forget? I told you not to speak?” Cory barked, and he lowered his pistol and shot Marielle in the right arm. She stumbled, still trying to crawl to the Irish bastard, but Cory lifted the barrel to her face, so Vincent stopped struggling and froze again clamping his trembling mouth shut.
Cory laughed, heartily. “How interesting, Vincent,” Cory jeered with a smirk slowly crossing his mouth. “You’re more upset about Marielle kissing me than Austin…” Marielle paused, her eyes slowly returning to normal as she stopped moving and stared up at Cory, then glanced back at Austin with her mouth ajar. A tear ran down her face as she recalled everything that had just occurred; the pain from the bullet finally settling in.
Austin closed his eyes -Are you okay?
-Doesn’t hurt too much.
-You’re not a good liar.
“Is it possible that it’s because you know that she wants to kiss Austin…?” Cory wondered. Austin looked down with a heavy sigh, feeling every bit like the puppet that he was right now. Marielle did the same, watching the blood pour from her arm in rivulets and drip to the floor. She flashed Wei Ling a look, it was clear that she wanted to help, but the gun pressed to her side wouldn’t allow it. “But if I do it- then it’s really a violation.” Vincent sneered at Cory, knowing that in moments he’d be able to suck his teleporter back into his arm and use it again to get away. “Awwww,” Cory clucked looking at his magazine before he put the weapon back together. His gaze went to Austin. “You really are a good guy,” he said straightening his back and with a heavy sigh. “It’s a pity, really. You were so much more. You were a god… and I hate good guys,” he explained, aiming the pistol straight between Austin’s eyes. Austin met Cory’s gaze; ready for it. He didn’t want to live anymore, not after tonight. “So damn noble,” Cory hissed preparing to fire.
Efia had come out from under the table and she lifted off the ground. Her abilities involved harnessing the power of the stars, themselves, and as she floated she activated the ones she’d hidden around the room, under tables, and set her Nova Pulse ability off.
A small blast occurred in the middle of the dance floor, concussing everyone just as Zayana went intangible so she remained free from the concussive effects.
Cory was knocked back against the ground before he could fire, as were Marielle and Austin. Everyone else in the room was stunned for a moment, dropping everything that they were doing and grabbing at their throbbing heads.
Despite the pain, Vincent and Chamber both pulled their teleporters into their arms, then flung them both back out to opposite sides of the dance floor. Vincent snapped, and appeared behind a lackey, broke their neck, and lifted the corpse’s arm to activate the watch teleporter that was on the corpse’s wrist- the one that brought all of them here.
He was clearly praying that the big one on the other end was complete and could handle the group. He pointed it at the center of Efia’s star in the middle of the dance floor, and the portal opened there. With a nod, Vincent snapped again, appearing at Chamber’s teleporter out of the radius that was going to suck the others into the star with Efia’s Gravity Well ability, which forcibly drew everyone in the radius into it; they had no choice in the matter.
Simultaneously, Zayana swooped in – nearly invisible – and picked Marielle up in her arms, gliding her across the room to safety, where she put her under the table with Kirra’s body. “Stay quiet, I know this is hard.” Then she pulled back out and moved again, to grab Austin’s wrist, pulling him back.
Marielle spotted Kirra – long gone at this point, and flung herself over her body. “No, no,” she sobbed.
As everyone was coming to from Efia’s concussion star, Efia blasted the second star – Gravity Well – and Cory, Breach, and several of the other masked assailants began to get pulled into the swirling purple and gold.
Everyone went into work together mode and Klara slammed her lockdown device into the ground. “Initiated!” She cried, getting back, and a familiar hexagonal dome began to cover the area, disabling everyone who was dazed and still on the dancefloor. All of them began to slide towards the black hole star that was pulling them in, unable to use their abilities, move, or defend themselves.
Wei Ling put up her wall – keeping the others grouped with her – away from the unstoppable force that was sucking everything to the middle of the dancefloor. They all braced against the barrier, praying that it would last long enough to keep them from being drawn in.
Just to be sure, Varun – who was dressed as Aladdin – stepped around the wall and threw a wave at the opposing side shouting, “time to turn the tides!” The blast of water pushed them all back and further toward the brilliant, pulsing light in the middle of the room.
All the opposing side, wreathed in gold disappeared into the purple and swirling gold, and vanished as the dust settled and everyone was left collapsing to the ground in agony or despair. Someone clapped, but there was no joy.
Relief was present, too, but now they knew what they’d lost from this sudden attack.
Austin glanced down at Freddy’s body, and he went to him, bent at the knee, and using the palm of his hand, he gently pushed Freddy’s fixed eyes shut.
Wei Ling dashed to Marielle, and healed her, but both collapsed on top of Kirra, crying as Wei Ling tried, helplessly to bring her back. Their wails pierced the space, and echoed like prayers in a cathedral.
Hazal put a hand over her lips realizing that she was the lucky one this time.
Austin helped Larson up from behind the table that he’d been resting against, and took him to Liam. Larson healed the man, and moved on, disappearing from the scene entirely.
Sabine fell at Marielle and Wei Ling’s side, looking down at Kirra’s broken body. Her green eyes were fixed on something beyond, her lovely lips were parted having spoken her last words. If your heart is ever in a different spot, you know where to find me.
Tala also darted over, looking down and putting her little hands over her mouth. Mateo hid her face into his chest, Jamie was doing something similar with Han as was Tayane with Klara.
Vincent came to Marielle and pulled her up against him, where she buried her face and cried. He let her break for a moment, then Vincent pulled back and whispered, “let’s go home…” Marielle was too stunned to think. She nodded, and that was all. They began to leave.
Sabine’s cheeks grew hot with rage. “Is any of this real for you, Vincent!” Sabine wailed. “We’re all your puppets, aren’t we? Is this world nothing but a stage to you?” John held her back. “Who are you performing for?” she demanded.
Vincent paused as if thinking, then straightened his back, and leaned forward over his right arm giving her and the entire room a long, sarcastic bow before he straightened again. His eyes never broke or blinked from Sabine’s during the dramatic gesture. Then he left, trailing Marielle behind himself.
Marielle gave her an apologetic look before she wandered after him. Varun and Amir stepped into the circle shaking their heads in despair.
Austin squeezed his eyes shut, wishing that she’d say anything to him. -Marielle…
She didn’t answer. She was somewhere else; Austin could see her mind breaking like shattered glass as she walked out behind Vincent.