Stubbornly Solo (Odion)

[Lani Hunter]

Lani looked down at his hands. Odion was going to hate him for this. But this was something he had to do on his own. Or rather, it was his responsibility to do what he couldn’t do so many months ago and he needed to get Odion off of the hook. He had used his ten minutes to carefully plan and examine and meditate. He was dressed in black. Head to toe. He wasn’t looking to blend into the shadows, not tonight. Tonight he was a harbinger of destruction. A feud had been declared when someone had gone after Odion. As he meditated his mind burned with these thoughts and he could feel his power thrashing like a dragon in chains waiting for that moment when Lani would just let go. Not yet, he found himself thinking at it. He would need all of his strength today. He was still on the floor when he heard a knock at the door. He rose to his feet moving like a ghost his intent intense in his eyes. Lani was counting on Odion not expecting what he was about to do and he figured he had a good chance considering the redhead’s avoidance of the future.

Lani took a deep breath his face falling under a mask as he opened the door and pulled Odion into a hug. He had been so worried he didn’t have to fake any of the concern running over his face. “Why on earth were you out and about when you had information like that?” He asked pulled Odion by his hands into the room. Lani was doing his very best to appear as if he wasn’t planning something. But hopefully Odion could just take it as normal. Lani was relying on Odion’s assumption that he was always planning something to make this work. If Odion suspected what Lani was thinking he would be doomed. He was counting on the surprise being too quick for Odion's power to react. “I need to tell you, that guy you said, if you’re right, that he has a tattoo on his collar.” Lani gestured to his own collar, “would make him an individual with a lot of power and a lot of influence.” Lani’s plan with Dr. Neville was taking far too long and now that this had happened Lani needed to take matters into his own hands and do what he should have done months ago.

While he was talking he was using that as a distraction to move so that Odion and he were standing in front of his open closet. I’m sorry. It was a quick motion. He just hoped it was quick enough to keep Odion from using his power. One minute Odion would be in Lani’s arms and the next he would be flung away into the open closet. Lani used his power to both push and keep Odion from being hurt as he did so. With a swipe of his hand he slammed the door shut on the redhead. Lani kept hold of Odion’s clothing from outside the closet and then focused on the door knob taking both ends and crushing them inward. He closed his eyes with strain and finally the metal bent and stuck. There was no knob to turn and no lock to pick. He really had no idea if this would work. He was really only hoping that it at least slowed the redhead down enough, or pissed him off enough for him to leave this to Lani. Lani needed Odion not to get hurt and so with that taken care of Lani made for the door fast as a fiend putting as much distance between himself and Odion while he could.

[Odion Martins]

(OOC: Aranthriel has given me permission to use Jared Bell in this thread)

Odion hadn’t rushed to get back to the school. He said ten minutes and he would stay true to that. He wasn’t happy about all of the things they had spoke of over the phone, but it was much easier to just say what needed to be said when all one could depend upon was conversation. That was the whole point. There was something devastatingly wrong with the plot involving Lani’s boss. Odion thought he had things under control, and had kept his bi-weekly visits a secret from Lani. Odi didn’t expect the man would go down without a fight, not when he had lost one of his best employees. But Odion was a man of his word, making sure they knew that he was going to keep it. They came after Lani again, there would be seven of layers of hell to pay. So they came up with a new game plan, and Odion was trying to keep up with the punches.

Embracing Lani in return, Odion shut the door behind them, under the impression that they were now under constant surveillance. “Because then they think I’m ignorant,” he said, rolling his shoulders back and stretching his neck side to side, “and the cats needed food.” It all made sense to him, and really gave them more time to sort things out, which was what Odion thought Lani wanted to do. Lani was always planning something, always thinking, and he had a desperate look in his eye that concerned Odion. His blue eyes trailed over where Lani was indicating, and he nodded a couple times. He knew what he was getting into the moment he decided to affiliate with Lani at all. He had made himself a target by choice, but he never thought he would be so… visible. It was just another pick at the wound, because Odion knew had Lani told him sooner, maybe this old crime boss of his never would’ve known who he was to begin with.

Odion remember he was about to say something, but everything went black. Something inside of him panicked, what if he was being kidnapped again? What if Lani was being kidnapped? But who would know to strike him that way so suddenly? He had closed the door behind him, no one else could’ve gotten in and Lani had been there long enough for no one else to be lingering in shadows. This state, it was like swimming in darkness. It felt like he had been tucked away somewhere, just as dark as his mind was now. This wasn’t sleep, it was half-awareness. That desperate look on Lani’s eyes… That’s what Odion was left with as he felt time slip through his fingers like sand through the cracks. Lani’s presence was fleeing, and Odi could only get a good sense of the general direction.

Groaning, Odi grasped his head in his hands. “What the fuck…” he said to himself, his hands feeling around on the floor. Shoes. He was in a closet, and it distinctly belonged to Lani. Odion cringed as shooting pain erupted through his skull. It was like someone had jammed a metal rod into the gears of the clockwork. It took a moment for Odion to stand, and he had no idea that two hours had gone by since he last saw Lani. Grappling with the doorknob, Odion didn’t try to open it for more than a few seconds. He tried, but he knew better. Someone wanted him in here.

His phone still on him, Odion decided the cat food could stay in the closet for now, he had more pressing matters at hand. “Jared? Yes, it’s Odion,” he paused, then groaned, “no. You need to come to room five o three immediately. I’m stuck in the closet.” “Oh, I thought you came out last year?” Odion snarled. “You owe me.” And with that, he clicked his phone off and pressed his hands to his temples.

Stupid as Bell was, he was in fact, reliable. Maybe it paid to have friends after all. “Oi mate, who turned the knob into rubbish?” Jared asked, clapping Odion on the shoulder in greeting. “I have no idea, that happened after I was put into the closet,” Odion said, his patience having run out. “Alright alright, no need to get your knickers in a knot,” Jared said, pulling them both through the closet. Odion sighed in relief, glad to be out of such a small space. Jared was talking away as usual, wondering what was going on, followed by when the next time they were getting drunk would take place, but Odi’s mind was unfocused. He could feel his pulse in his head, and his eyes scanned Lani’s room.

“Nice room here,” Jared said sarcastically, his hands on his hips. “Shut up,” Odion said while Jared retorted. Lani’s pills were missing. He didn’t go anywhere without them. The redhead’s fists balled up and Jared was looking him up and down. “Anythin’ else?” Jared asked, offering only because he wanted to get more out of his friend, but that didn’t matter to Odion at the moment. “Yeah,” he said, his mind piecing things together faster than he could articulate them, “How fast can you drive to Boston?”

[Lani Hunter]

Lani hadn’t been trying to hurt Odion and he didn’t even think for a moment that Odion would think it could have been anyone but him. Lani was just glad Odion was safe and as he hotwired a car he started his race to Boston. He was careful watching his mirrors for following cars and the sides of the road for cops. It was a quick and smooth drive. He checked his phone and attempted to ignore the throbbing in his head. His anger was fueling his adrenaline and his head wasn’t hurting nearly as much as he expected. Nonetheless he took a few pills as he drove, more in preparation for the intense pain he was sure he would experience. Lani was going to be a shadow, like they taught him so well to be. He would slip in but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t meet a gun barrel. Lani was out for blood and he was determined to be heard and if he needed to he would use his power to get that done.

Boston’s skyline rose in the distance and Lani dumped the car in the outskirts leaving a blank thank you note on the dashboard. He was quick and as he made his way across familiar rooftops he kept his eyes peeled for other moving shadows. His boss wasn’t an idiot he knew that sooner or later if he got an assassin involved Lani would catch wind or Odion would and one of them would be stupid enough to come back to Boston. Little did his boss know that his idiot had a power that made him practically untouchable. He didn’t know how far behind Odion was but he dumped his burner phone into a canal as he passed by. He’d get a new one and give that number to Odion, if he still wanted it. Lani’s eyes were sharp and he stood out in his black garb. He stood on the roof of the adjacent building to the one his boss called home. Careful planning. Lani was moving slow deliberate. Every move planned.

He saw red as his boss crossed the window and he stood rigid as his boss looked out the window. And making sure the man saw just a glimpse of him Lani was gone. He ducked under the ledge of the building and he felt the window open. Good. His boss had seen him. Let him send people out after him. Lani crept into the interior of the building and once inside went from a window to the one in his boss’s building. He knew every crevice in the building and the buildings around it. Problem was, so did everyone else he used to work with. It was easy to slip into his boss’s office after that. Lani flicked the lights off with his power and as his boss started to move suspicion arisen. Lani separated from the shadows by the window and as his boss flicked the light back on he turned to face Lani. “I was wondering when you’d come crawling back.” Then the man took in Lani and glared at him. “Unless that’s not what you’re here for.”

“Call the hit off my friend.” Lani said without preamble. “Why would I do that? He shot me in the foot. Took me a good while to be able to walk again.” His boss paced toward him and Lani matched him moving when his boss moved. He knew this trick but he hadn’t the means to avoid it. Soon enough his back was to the door and his boss was between him and his only other exit. The man sat easily and folded his hands over the desk. “This looks familiar. Now your friend deserves to be punished for what he did,” the man continued, “But, I’m willing to make an exception this one time. For a price.” Lani narrowed his eyes and ground his teeth. He felt the door start to open behind him and he shoved it back shut with his power. “Forget it.” Lani replied with a snarl.

“What happened to you, Hunter?” His boss asked his eyes taking on that soft look that used to comfort when Lani was younger. Lani barked out a laugh. “What happened to you?” He spat back all of the emotions came pouring out. “You were like a father to me. I trusted you. How could you do that to me? I paid my debt and you beat me. You held a gun to my girlfriend’s head.” Tears were prickling at Lani’s eyes but he refused to let them fall and instead Lani lifted his hands and brought his boss’s desk up. Flinging his hands the furniture shattered itself against the wall. “I trusted you!” His boss rose and backed up against the wall at the display of Lani’s power. “Don’t you understand?” His boss said his voice soft but noticeably shaky, “I do care about you, you can trust me. You would never survive on your own. That’s why I can’t let you go.”

Lani’s eyes flashed with red as those lies fell on his ears. Worse than the lies themselves was the nagging feeling that he wanted to believe it. “Take this hit off of Odion.” Lani said again. Again his boss asked him simply ‘why?’ “Because I shot you. I pulled the trigger.” The shock was clear on his boss’s face as Lani solidified his mask. “You didn’t… you couldn’t. Lani released his hold on the door and people, friends, faces he used to know flanked him and held their guns trained on Lani. Lani’s power reached out. He was in control, no one else. He turned his eyes and stared down the barrel to the cold eyes of a friend he used to know with a tattoo on his collar. Odion would be safe. Lani let out a small prayer that Odion was still safe and stuck in his closet far from what he was going to do now. “I can prove it.”

[Odion Martins]

“Can you pick up the pace a little? I thought you said you knew how to drive Bell,” Odion said, staring out the passenger window. Something awful was forming on the side of his head. And just when he was beginning to get over that lump from Christmas... “At least I can drive,” Jared replied, reaching into his pocket and throwing a pack of cigarettes at Odion. “Relax, we’ll get your friend back.” Odion’s nimble fingers took out a cigarette and put it to his lips, and then he caught the lighter being tossed at him almost out of reflex. He took a drag. That was all he had told Jared, and it was all he needed to know for now. Maybe Bell was the type of person to tell his life story to everyone, but not Odion. And he especially didn’t need to hear Jared harp on about the redhead’s boyfriend. Odion was the type of person to get people out of tough situations, or so Jared thought.

Once they arrived, there was no telling what Odion was going to do. What was Lani thinking, going into his boss’s trap like this? This was exactly what they wanted, for Lani to be alone. He still thought he could do everything by himself and once Odion knew Lani was safe again, he was going to kick his ass. Even though Jared was driving quickly, Odion had plenty of time to think about what was going on. He knew he was in danger, but he didn’t seem to care that much. Yes it was frightening to be in such a spotlight, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. This was his kind of game. It was why he had stolen Lani’s hat back before leaving with Jared. The brunet didn’t know it, but he was being used in this game. He was a new wild card that would lead Odi’s hit away from him. It was strange to feel safe in the presence of someone who had such a large prize over their head.

Boston came up fast, and Odion pushed his worry aside as he gave Jared directions. Odi had done a little exploring of his own when he had flown out here. The building he had come to know was large and confusing, if you didn’t have a wonderful steel trap of a mind. Jared opened his mouth to speak as Odion got out of the car. “I’ll tell you when we go back,” he said, shutting the car door and making his way towards the back of the building. Jared would be waiting a few blocks down as they had agreed upon. If one hour went by he would come back to check, call it accident insurance.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani was certainly going to feel bad about the bump on Odion head. Again. Lani stared at his boss and his boss stared back. His boss made a gesture and Lani felt the guns around him try to go off. Triggers were pulled but bullets were stuck. Lani reached down and out centering himself and controlling his power like an expert. His eyes were sharp and dangerous. His power was dancing waiting to be let loose. Glancing around the room the guns started to unmake themselves. Pieces snapped and ammunition fell out and Lani grabbed hold of them as people dropped them in shock and Lani put them well out of reach. A few people fled apparently deciding that his boss’s wrath was nothing compared to the telekinetic’s power. Lani paid them no mind but he was locking eyes with the person who hadn’t yet pulled the trigger. “I can prove it.” Lani repeated turning his eyes to his boss. “If you still need proof.”

“So you’ve been a meta all along. Clever Hunter keeping it a secret.” His boss said bitterly. Lani just nodded and waited for something to happen. For him to say anything. “I pulled the trigger. He was holding the gun, but I pulled the trigger. If you need revenge take it out on me.” His boss had the best mask of everyone. Lani’s masks were near flawless but his boss’s were perfect. Lani could never tell what he was thinking. And the man was always thinking. Lani could guess he was trying to think of a way out of this for himself but he could also be thinking of a way to use this to his advantage. “I don’t believe you. You Lani Hunter who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Pull the trigger of a gun. I don’t believe you. Besides why would you keep sending your friend here to check up on me?” Lani paled and his concentration lapsed in shock. “What?”

What did he mean Odion was coming to check on him? “So you don’t know. You see he’s been almost as big a nuisance as you are. The world will be a better place.” Lani grabbed hold of the only gun still in one piece. He moved it and he saw the shock on the face of the man when it moved against his own will to point toward his boss. “Take the hit off.” Lani was beyond surprised when his boss started to laugh. “You don’t have the guts.” Lani’s vision wavered as agony flashed through his head. This ended now. Lani let go of his power and it swept over him fitting like a glove. There was that slight glow in his eyes. A tight hold of the gun and the bullet. And the gun went off. His boss’s eyes were wide as the bullet rested against his forehead. No, he was right. Lani didn’t want to hurt anyone but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t. Lani was actually just as surprised as his boss was. He wasn’t actually sure he would be able to stop it. The power hadn’t wanted it to stop but the human in Lani did. “You were saying?” Lani asked in a faraway voice and the gun cocked again. He had five more bullets.

[Odion Martins]

Not many lights were on in the building, and Odion would have to take his time. He didn’t dare go inside and make himself a sitting duck. After tonight, the redhead was very on guard. What if there were metas inside who could turn Lani’s power off? Odion felt something drop in his gut while he scaled the walls of the building. The windows didn’t budge and he didn’t bother pushing them further lest he set off any alarms. He wasn’t even sure if Lani was here, he hadn’t gone after the blond immediately. For all he knew, Lani could be dead. Refusing to believe his own thoughts, he carried on with his pursuit for Lani. Why else would Lani come here other than to visit family, and the redhead knew that the Hunters liked him and Lani wouldn’t have disposed of him so quickly if he wanted to be followed.

Rushing and ducking under various windows, Odion carefully peeled away at the building. There were rooms for just about everything in here. There was a weapons room, a filing room, and a computer/work room. There was even a place for people to sleep, and Odion wondered if Lani had ever spent the night here. The redhead gulped. He didn’t exactly have the time to be looking at all these things, but if he was going to find Lani he needed to know more about this place. Before it was just making an appearance, making himself known, obvious. No one on the inside was expecting Lani’s friend, Odion Martins, to be another thief. They thought he was the trigger, blunt and afraid of shadows. Tonight he was going to have to prove them wrong.

Odion was going to tell Lani about his trips here, right before Lani decided to knock his lights out. He thought he was doing the blond a favour, but when someone was keeping an eye on him, well, that couldn’t just be hidden. Lani knew these people better than anyone and they weren’t going to be scared into hiding anymore. He didn’t think Lani was going to do this without him though, and he was furious. Maybe he should’ve told Lani to be an extremely meticulous planner, making sure all the details were correct and nothing was left hanging. Odion had no idea that his trips were back firing on Lani at this very moment. He willed time to slow down as he could find Lani, begging and bargaining with his own power to work. He wasn’t sure if it was as his fingers slid along the walls and his eyes kept searching, but he needed to find Lani, regardless of what the outcome would be.

Feeling something cascade over him, Odion stopped himself. He turned sharply to the left and jumped to the next window. No, this wasn’t it, but the force, that well known power was getting stronger. Odi kept going, using all his strength just to stand, ignoring the pulsating in his head. He’d only felt Lani’s power like this once before, but it was still Lani, only this time it was much, much stronger. Odion heard a gunshot just as he found who he was looking for. Lani and his old boss, the old man looking like he was about to pass out. He played a very good game, but it was all in the eyes, and nothing could hide that, not even the best bluff. Daring to step closer to the window, Odion could see Lani’s boss perfectly, Lani’s back was to him, and still others crowded the room. He couldn’t hear what was being said, but he could see who was holding the gun.

This was why Odion had the backbone he did, and watching Lani prove himself just to prove himself, that was amazing. Odi smiled in spite of himself, the cold Boston air playing with his hair. He wasn’t even sure he could help, but Lani didn’t seem to need him. That made Odi’s heart drop a little. Looking at a clock on the inside, Odion noticed that Jared was going to be back here in ten minutes. Time really did fly when they were having fun. Lights began to turn on in the other rooms, and he could hear voices loud and clear. He crept closer to them, looking anxiously back at Lani while he moved.

“Hunter’s a meta,” someone was saying. Odi’s eyes landed on the open window, and a smirk crept across his face. “Meta what?” Someone else said in a thick, Boston accent. “You know, some freak with powers. Like X-Men.” There was a hum of acknowledgement as the group began tinkering with new toys since their old ones had been dismantled moments ago. “Hey, who’s the new guy?” One of them was asking as a pale boy with dark blue eyes picked up a gun. “New guy?” The man with the tattoo on his collarbone turned around just in time to see his hit smile, before landing on the ground unconscious. Confused and deranged from the news about Lani, and the possibility of this redhead being another telekinetic, the cowards fled the room without any weaponry. Odion smiled to himself, slipping two pistols into his belt and manouvering into the inside of the building, closer to Lani.

Six minutes.

[Lani Hunter]

The winds of fate were blowing and it seemed that they had twined Lani’s tread to intersect with Odion’s and it almost seemed that since then the winds had been blowing alternatively tearing them apart and shoving them together. But then Lani had decided he was going to stop listening to fate. Perhaps it didn’t like that idea but Lani figured that if this trap worked in his favor then he could deal with the sins that stained his hands. The fact of the matter was that he had meant every word he had said on the rooftops Christmas Eve and hearing that Odion was in danger brought a much stronger feeling of anger than Lani had ever felt. His need to protect Odion to keep him from the horrors that were possible suddenly seemed extremely important. Lani knew this was a trap and so far he had the upper hand because his boss didn’t expect him to be so powerful. At least that was what Lani was thinking.

But Lani had been out of the loop for a long time. No one was giving him information anymore. No one compared notes or told him a slip of gossip about someone new. Lani was counting on it being unknown that he was meta. But his boss knew Odion was meta. How else would they explain how he got himself loose the first time? He wondered if he had started to try to employ meta humans as well. Lani knew it wouldn’t be hard to get a few of them to the wrong side of the law. Meta humans tended to underestimate everyone save another meta human. But meta was just a word and they were just as baseline as any other person in this building. Power could be beaten by cleverness. Lani was just counting on being clever and powerful enough to come out a victor. But Lani had no other skills past intimidation. He didn’t know what to do once he had what he wanted. It was proof now that his boss wasn’t going to let this go.

“Come back and work for me and I’ll call the hit off of your friend.” His boss said as Lani let the bullet fall into the man’s lap. It was a tempting offer but Lani knew that that would never be a long term solution. He was here to get out not get back in. There was no solution. Lani was holding onto the gun with his power and swallowed. Solution. There was no solution. Lani felt despair grab onto his shoulders and start to drag him down. The only way out he could see was sending all of them to prison which he had tried. It was taking far too long. The only other side he saw was killing his boss. Which would either make the whole thing exponentially worse or set someone else in charge who could be both better and worse than his boss.

Lani was so focused on what he was doing that he didn’t notice someone peaking in the window behind him. Nor that more people had slipped out. Lani was only aware of himself, his power and the man who used to his boss. No one moved for a long time, no one spoke following Lani’s question. Time seemed to move strangely. Fast and slow at the same time. As time crossed into Lani’s thoughts his power recognized something. It was familiar and it took Lani no more than ten seconds to realize who it was. Odion was here. Lani ground his teeth in frustration. He had gotten more time than he thought but he needed more time. He needed to focus. Almost as soon as he had the thought he lost himslef into the power again. He could still finish this before Odion showed up and things got more complicated. Lani was going to have to see what his boss meant by Odion coming in for visits. Apparently he wasn’t the only liar.

The silence stretched on and Lani’s power stretched out and built up. It was more power than he had ever used and his vision was starting to blur and he had to blink hard to clear it. This thing didn’t just need to end quickly because of Odion it needed to end quickly or Lani was just going to pass out. Then to Lani’s surprise his boss’s lips tipped up into a smile. Trap set and closed. Lani couldn’t understand. He was far gone and at the present time he was his power. He had never felt more powerful nor more in control. Emotions were running wild and yet they did nothing but fuel his power. The door opened and he turned his eyes hopeful for Odion. There was no time to think as whoever it was hit him with the barrel of a gun in the face. Pain flashed in his head and stars exploded behind his eyes. Lani went down from the hard blow and his power shattered into pieces. And it was lights out for Lani.

[Odion Martins]

Odion could’ve spent his time in the car on the way to Boston, thinking of ways to tear into Lani. But worry had consumed him, or maybe it was love. Whatever the case, Odion was concerned only with making sure Lani was good and well, and getting him out of Boston in one piece. Maybe he could think of the fun things, like how he was going to ignore Lani for a very long time to come, once Lani was back at Hammel with him. Usually Odion wouldn’t have involved anyone else, but it seemed Jared’s being here was a blessing in disguise. He had someone to drive him to Boston, who wouldn’t ask a hundred and one questions until Odion’s adrenaline wasn’t rushing through his ears, and what was more, Jared owed him. At least, he thought he did. Even if he could drive, it was awfully hard to do so when one had a headache.

After slipping through the building, Odion knew now that no one had known before that Lani was a meta. They knew he was, the only piece which was missing was what kind of meta was he. They wouldn’t know if he had more than one power, or what his first power was to begin with. When words and taking were your specialty, you learned a lot with what little was being said. As it was, no one knew he was meant to be here, Lani had flown in solo. And no one knew that he was experiencing a terrible headache and decided to come anyways. He knew it was a terrible idea to come here hindered, in and of itself, but if Lani was here it didn’t really matter what state of mind Odion was in. He needed to be here too, no matter what the side details were. And Jared, he was here too, ready to make a getaway. He could phase through anything, and one thing was certain in Odion’s mind: Maybe neither of them could do this alone. If Lani’s boss was going to have such a force to reckon with, maybe they needed on too. Or better yet, the illusion of one.

Slipping into the room, Odion’s eyes connected with those of Lani’s boss. The older man simply ignored him, a smile on expectation on his face. Odion couldn’t feel any dirtier the more steps he took in the room. Lani had noticed him belatedly as Odi’s time powers skipped around, and judging by the nearly blinding glow in Lani’s eyes, Odion knew the blond would never know it was Odion who hit him in the temple. There was no need to hide the anger he was feeling as Odion stood stalk still in the room, breathing hard.

“Well done my little time turner,” the older man said, standing up from his spot. Odion was glad to have shut the door behind him. The urge to look at Lani had to be ignored as the redhead faced the crime boss. Lani had no idea of the sacrifices Odion had made. “He really had no idea of this, of you and I,” the old man was saying as Odion huffed, “hand delivered. Just like you said.” And to think, Lani had almost ruined the whole thing. Mind games, Odion was the master of them, just as he promised. This man’s undying obsession with Lani had filled most of the conversations they’d had about the telekinetic behind Lani’s back. Odion had fed false information, pretending to be interested in the ‘bigger plans’ this man had. The ginger only stepped back to let the older man examine the blond, now even more intriguing because he was a telekinetic.

“I knew I could trust you,” he was saying, a ripple of time passing over Odion. He was starting to feel better, but Jared was going to be here in about twenty seconds. He might as well do it the old fashioned way. The man was touching Lani’s face, as though a lost son had come home, and Odion practically growled. It took only a fraction of a second for Odion to kick the man in the face, blood trickling out as he screamed in pain. “Never trust a thief,” Odi was saying, training the pistol he had stolen on the older man. He heard some commotion and laughing just outside the door, before Jared came in. Odion didn’t turn to see his reaction, and Jared wasn’t hesitating to approach. “Oi, this is a right mess,” he said a little too excitedly, and Odion passed him the other pistol, motioning for Jared to keep his trained on the older man, sitting rather defeated on the floor. Odion didn’t take his eyes off the older man as he reached for Lani, glad now that he was a little stronger than the blond – it made lifting him up under the shoulders a little easier. But not by much, considering her was right passed out.

The older man was chuckling now, and Odion glanced to Jared. Apparently a broken nose was hilarious. They needed to get out of here. Now.

[Lani Hunter]

It was a good thing Lani was not conscious to hear the exchange between Odion and his boss. He would have immediately jumped to conclusions and been furious. But as it was Lani was out cold. The blow alone probably would have been enough to knock him out for a few moments but in combination with the power he was using the jarring effect and the chain reaction and moments turned easily to minutes. It was the most pain free Lani had been since he had gotten him power. Completely shut down. Lani wasn’t aware of anything but the pleasant darkness that was acting like a cushion to the world around him. Dreams of the unconscious were strange things indeed. The strangest part of floating in the darkness was that he was aware of absolutely nothing. Not his power, not the world, not even himself. It was like he just was. And wasn’t.

Lani was vaguely aware that he was being moved. He faded in and out the only evidence was his groan of displeasure at being pulled back to consciousness and pain. When he faded out he was glad. As glad as someone who couldn’t make heads or tails of his own existence at the moment could be. One thing he was sure of was that he was going to find whoever had pistol whipped him and thrash them. He would have had a terrible reaction headache already from overuse of his power and the blow to his head would only make it that much worse. Honestly Lani was not looking forward to waking up. But wake up he did. He became aware not in pieces but all at once. All awful pieces falling into place at once. He hissed in pain and if he were given the option to remove his head he would. So much for any hope he had of faking unconscious.

His ears rung like bells were being struck right in his eardrums. Lani leaned heavily on someone. He didn’t know who and when he tried to open his eyes he couldn’t make sense of anything he saw. His boss laughing with blood streaming down his face. Who was carrying him? And who the hell was the other guy holding the gun at his boss? The fact of the matter was Lani came out of unconsciousness expecting to be in a situation much worse than when he was knocked out. Lani didn’t wait to check who was carrying him he only knew that if it was the person who had hit him he didn’t want to go anywhere with them. He grabbed at the hands around him and tried to pry them off. Pulling on his power, Lani’s head screamed in protest. But Lani did not want to be carried away. A wave of black overtook him. No, he had used his power too much if he used it anymore he probably knock himself out again. When he opened his eyes again he wasn’t actually confident that he hadn’t already done so.

He closed his eyes against the pain fighting against unconsciousness and agony. He felt something dripping from his nose and down into his eye. Was that from where he had been hit? Was he bleeding? Lani had no idea. “Let me go!” Lani screamed as his hands weren’t doing as his brain was commanding them too and he couldn’t quite get a grip. But he could certainly make himself hard to hold onto. Lani’s head protested the movement but Lani had to see who it was since his power was laying rather exhausted, sprawled painfully in his head. It was like he had run a marathon without training a day for it. The muscles were still there because he could feel their agony but he couldn’t make them move. Lani was having trouble making his eyes focus and he really wanted to just fall back asleep to be away from the pain but he had enough sense to know that this was not the place for that. Turning his head only brought more agony and confusion but seeing the red hair and the face of the man he loved Lani visibly relaxed overcome with relief. He was never going to lock Odion in a closet again. Lani certainly wasn’t going to be any use to the escape plan. He stopped struggling against Odion and started trying to use him to get his feet under him.

[Odion Martins]

A groan could be heard from Lani as his boss continued to cackle. A look of concern was cast on the blond but only for a moment. He struggled for a second, but Odion’s grip held fast. There was no way that he was going to let go of Lani unless he was pried out of his hands, and judging by the look on his old boss’s face, they weren’t going to leave here without a fight. As Lani put up more of a fight and yelled, the older man only laughed louder. Odion struggled against Lani, frowning now at the sight. He had perhaps taken away the best asset they had, and that was Lani himself. And to think, he had done that with his bare hands. Lani was bleeding pretty badly, and in Odi’s defense, he hadn’t meant to hit Lani that hard.

“Come on, we gotta get out of here.” It was Jared speaking now, and suddenly Odion was eternally grateful for his presence. Two metas without powers were useless, but three metas could be unstoppable. Nodding once, Jared moved closer and took Lani’s weight while Odion kept a close eye on the older man. He gave Lani’s hand a gentle squeeze, something that didn’t go unnoticed, but Lani needed to trust him, and he needed to trust that Jared wasn’t going to hurt him. That was something he hadn’t seen coming, but Lani needed to roll with the punches. Jared hesitated as he made for the wall, looking over at Lani. “Just go,” Odi said, closing his eyes for a moment. He just needed a second, one second...

“Do you have any idea the trouble you’ve caused?” The man was asking now, his hands covered in dried blood just below his nose. Odion shrugged. “I said I’d bring him here, I didn’t say I would leave him.” To that, the older man laughed again and shook his head. He should’ve known better. And the sweetest part, was that he hadn’t informed anyone else of the ginger company he was keeping. “I know where his family lives,” he carried on, vengeance in his eyes, and Odion didn’t hesitate to cock the pistol. “You do so much as look at them, you die,” he said, unaware of what Lani had been talking to his boss about before. The older man laughed. Maybe he had lost this second battle, making it two zero, but he looked determined enough to win the war. So Odion had to take this a step further. A shot was heard throughout the building, and the ringing hadn’t stopped before the screaming started. The man now had two spots to hold, the second wound a little more severe as a chunk of flesh was now missing from just below his shoulder near his bicep.

“I won’t miss next time,” Odion said as he ran for the wall, a hand sticking through. Jared grabbed him and they were out in a flash. Lani was waiting in the stolen vehicle two buildings away. “You should’ve told me how exciting your life had gotten!” Jared was saying as they ran for their lives towards the car after jumping from the third floor. He had left Lani laying in the backseat to rest, and stay out of sight. The brunet’s hand went through the ignition and the car sparked to life, Odion just barely getting in on time before they drove off. “Did you seriously shoot that guy?” Jared was asking now, his eyes remained glued to the street as Odion watched for anyone following them. He still didn’t think they would get away so easily. “It’s not the first time,” Odion said, glancing at his old friend. Jared had a look of surprise on his face. Obviously this hadn’t been expected of shy little Odion. “Holy shit.” Jared looked back ahead of him, and Odion looked into the backseat.

[Lani Hunter]

Admittedly if Lani hadn’t used his power so much he wouldn’t have gone down so easily. At least he liked to think so. He wasn’t fragile but that had hurt. Lani felt a little ridiculous fighting against the only friend he had in the building because he thought he was the person that swatted him. Like a fly. Lani hadn’t even seen that coming. Lani’s eyes were slowly getting back into focus as consciousness finally stopped trying to evade him. Problem was that everything hurt. In all fairness Lani had knocked Odion senseless, Odion had knocked Lani senseless they were pretty much even at this point. Though Lani was still looking out for the person that had hit him. Lani was still working on getting his feet to work but they seemed rather far away. He didn’t like that he didn’t know who he was handed off to. But at least he was on his feet. Well, that was a relative term. He was leaning heavily on this mystery guy. He dropped his head into his free hand and groaned unable to find any words sufficient for what he was feeling. The only reason he knew this was consciousness was because he could feel all of the pain. He almost wished that he would have at least stayed out a little while longer. Until the pain died down but apparently the universe still hated him.

He pulled his hand away. Ok there was definitely blood. He knew some of it was from his nose, was that from when he was hit or was that from his power. He reached up doing a quick inventory of his wounds. There was definitely more blood at his temple. Whoever it was had expert aim hitting him right where his skull had the least defense. He turned back to Odion not wanting to let him go. “What?” Lani asked his mind going slow and he realized he was being pulled back away from Odion. “No.” He said and his control over his limbs returned from pure adrenaline and he reached out for Odion. He was not going to leave Odion here to fight his battles. He reached out with his power and only succeeded in blocking the world out with more pain.

Though the wall. Now Lani was sure he had completely lost his marbles. He was in Wonderland. Where people could walk through walls, had conversations backward, and asked riddles with no answer. He heard the gunshot and he was finally able to focus on something for more than ten seconds. “No, take me back!” He pushed the unknown man away but didn’t get very far before the world tipped and he was easily pulled away from the building. He was going to throttle Odion. What was he thinking? Lani had had it under control. Until that person hit him. He could have done it on his own. Lani didn’t protest as he was vaguely aware that he was put in a car and as soon as he was comfortable on the cushions he wasn’t going to move. No one could pay him enough to move. He closed his eyes and put a hand to his head trying to sort it out. His power was slowly recovering. Pulling itself back together. It was a slow and painful process. Reaction headaches were nothing to joke about. But added to the throbbing that was surging through his skull with every heartbeat and Lani wasn’t going to be making sense of things for a while.

Lani roused himself as he heard voices and his hand reached out in the vague direction of the one he recognized as Odion’s. He hissed and his head fell back as a wave of agony hit him. He was muddle headed. More muddle headed than he had ever been when he was drunk. When he recovered he opened his eyes and forced them to focus on Odion. “Why did you?” Lani asked the question making perfect sense in his mind. Why everything? Why was he here, why did he shoot his boss, why didn’t he let Lani handle it? And more importantly. Why was he going to visit his boss in the first place? Lani’s pain wasn’t dying away but at least it was helping to clear his head. Clear it from the threat of passing out again at least it was still working on the making sense part.

[Odion Martins]

Odion just rolled his eyes. Lani was asking a very broad question, and Odi didn’t have the patience to answer it right now. Especially when Jared was around and he only knew half the story. “You’re welcome,” he said instead, a hand going to his head as he groaned in pain. That last little bit of trying to use his power had really done a number on his brain cells. But it was nowhere near as bad as the state Lani currently found himself in. He was slurring his words, as though he were drunk.

“Why don’t you just go back there mate? I got this,” Jared said reassuringly. Odion cast a thankful look at Bell before crawling into the back.

Lani wasn’t even buckled in, but Odion didn’t care. That was the least of their worries. But at least, thankfully, no one seemed to be following them yet. Yet. Being very gentle, he lifted Lani’s head slightly so the blond could rest his head on Odi’s lap. Hesitantly, Odion touched Lani’s head, trying to inspect any injuries. “Sorry,” he said, hoping he wasn’t hurting his boyfriend. Odi smirked a bit to himself despite the situation – at least he still had good aim. What had happened with the gunshot was that Odion couldn’t do it. He couldn’t kill Lani’s old boss, but he didn’t want to know what it would take for him to do just that.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani swallowed a retort realizing that he should be thanking Odion. He would have been a goner without Odion. Lani was slowly piecing together the situation. Odion’s head was hurting as well. That must have been why Lani had had so much time. Lani felt a wave a guilt he hadn’t exactly been gentle when he shoved Odion into the closet but he hadn’t meant to make Odion hit his head. Or use his power. He hadn’t meant for Odion to come here. This guy driving. Odion trusted him enough to bring him here. He could phase. Not in Wonderland just another meta. It made sense. Odion could have gotten out the same way that Lani had been pulled out. Lani’s mind was moving slow and carefully picking its way around the splotchy memories and the pieces that were mixing together.

Pain laced through his head as he tried to lift himself up into a sitting position to make room for Odion. But Odion had different ideas and honestly Lani liked his more. Lani closed his eyes trying to get himself to a place where he could minimize the pain. It wasn’t working. But at least he was comfortable. Lani hissed like a viper and jerked his head away as Odion’s hand found a tender spot. God that hurt. The world swam before his eyes and he blinked slowly to get it back into focus. No more quick movements for Lani. It was after that that Lani realized he was probably still bleeding. He raised a hand trying to cover and wound. “I’m bleeding?” Lani meant it as a statement but his voice drawled the statement into a questioning tone. Lani was suddenly very concerned about getting blood on Odion. Eyes finding Odion Lani lifted a hand to touch Odion’s head. “I’m sorry. Is that my fault?” He asked worried and feeling guiltier by the minute. Then after a moment of serious thought Lani added. “Could you hold off hitting me for a little while?” He didn’t think at the moment his head could take another hit. Perhaps he was delirious, but he was absolutely sure that Odion’s first course of action would be to smack him.

Emotions were running haywire in his mind; it was a damn good thing his power was literally spend. Lani felt the terrible sensation of tears starting to well up in his eyes. His throat formed a loop. He had locked Odion in a closet. Apparently knocked him pretty well in the process. And Odion still had come all the way to Boston and gotten him out of the mess he had gotten himself into. Lani brought a hand covering his eyes and most of his face as he in took a sharp breath. “Please don’t say ‘I told you so’,” Lani pleaded his voice shaking as hot tears slipped out and he couldn’t stop them. The pain was too much, the strain was too much. And worse he was dragging Odion down with him. He was getting a good look at himself in the mirror again. He was no hero. Jacelynn was right; he was the last person that should be protecting people. He was a coward and he was pulling everyone he knew down with him.

[Odion Martins]

This hadn’t gone exactly as planned. What Odion wanted to do, was explain everything to Lani once he got back to Hammel. Then, the plan would’ve been flawless. Odi had been trying to take a page out of Lani’s books and not always wing everything. Ever since he had been making trips back to Boston, the story was nicely unfolding. No one knew the wiser, and Odion had to keep Lani in the dark for the story to be legitimate for as long as possible. Odion had to gain an old crime boss’s trust and Lani was most believable when raw emotions were involved. It was the only thing that had saved them tonight. If things would’ve gone as planned, Odion would’ve had full control of his power, and Lani as well.

Laughing a bit, Odion nodded and then decided he should say something. Lani seemed to be having trouble focusing. “I promise not to hit you right now.” Odi took Lani’s hand in his and lowered it. Lani needed to rest now, and for the moment Odion was happy nobody important had died. “You knocked me out for two hours.” And Lani had only been out for a couple minutes. Maybe all the blood coming from Lani wasn’t from Odion’s strike after all. “That’s Jared,” Odion said, and upon hearing his name, the driver gave a little wave. “Nice to meet you,” he said, that famous crooked smile on his face. Some would say it made Jared look goofy, but Odi had always thought it was rather dashing. Bell didn’t need to know that.

Something akin to what Odion felt when Lani had first betrayed him was gnawing at his mind and stomach. He had trusted Lani, and continued to put his life on the line and Lani continued to refuse. At this rate, Odion really was going to have to die trying to prove himself. It wasn’t fair and he wanted to say something but now was not the time. Lani was seriously out of commission and it would be completely unfair, though completely in character for Odion to interrogate him now. Lani wasn’t the only one in the wrong either though, both were too pigheaded to really work together. Odion took his eyes off the few stars in the sky as Lani spoke again.

Seeing Lani cry made Odion bite his bottom lip. He wasn’t going to say that, not even close. It just went to show how little Lani really knew about love. Swallowing hard, Odion just let his eyes trail over the whole of Lani’s face.”Don’t ever, ever leave me behind again,” he said strongly. This was completely insane, and now he was beginning to doubt how Lani really felt about him. Odion released Lani’s hand as his thoughts continued. “They’re going to come after us now,” he said after a moment, all business. They needed to make a new plan from scratch, and there was no telling how much real time they had. As soon as his power returned, he was going to put it to good use.

[Lani Hunter]

Pointing out how his plan had gone haywire would only give Lani reason to throw Odion’s words back at him about planning. And consequently Odion could reiterate how he was right. It was a lose-lose situation. That wasn’t promising that Lani would go along with the plan. He would have probably wasted a good hour or so ranting and raving about how bad an idea talking to his boss was. This was a terrible situation. Lani couldn’t even imagine how he would handle hearing that his family might be in danger. It very well might sent the telekinetic rushing off to war again with no more sense than he had now and no more power. A strange thing had happened when he had been struck. The careful control he had had was broken and the focus that was keeping the pain broke down like a floodgate and all that existed in his power was pain.

Lani breathed a sigh of relief not taking a moment to wonder about the ‘right now’. Lani’s eyes were on Odion’s head and his brow creased with worry. “I’m so sorry Odion, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” He just couldn’t control his power, but what else was new? Lani was about to ask more about Odion’s head when the redhead distracted him by pointing out their driver. Lani’s mind didn’t connect the dots. It would later and he would probably demand to know why Odion thought it was a good idea to bring someone with money on their head with him. “Lani,” he replied glancing toward the figure and waving his free hand where he thought it could be seen in the mirror. “You’ll have to forgive me; I’m not feeling very well.” Lani didn’t know why he apologized for that, but he was vaguely aware that that could easily be seen as the understatement of the century. Not feeling very well mean one had a cold, not a headache large enough to split Africa. Africa was warm. There was also a desert, no water in sight. Perhaps he would move to Africa.

While Lani’s thoughts digressed in a strange pattern and he looked back at Odion his eyes narrowing at his head. “That’s a nasty bump,” he said as if just realizing it was there. He turned his head and pain laced through his head and he took a hand and put it against his temple. He groaned unable to hold back the sound as he closed his eyes and waited for the wave of pain to pass. “I’m going to have to return the favor. Is it very bad? ” He asked about his own wound. “Sorry,” Lani said again realizing he had gotten blood on Odion’s shirt. Why couldn’t he do anything right? For some reason getting blood on Odion was the last straw and Lani lost it. Lani tried to turn his head again seeming to forget that the motion was not a good one. He gritted his teeth against the pain and when he opened his eyes again he was looking at Odion through his fingers and his hand was wet with more than blood now. He couldn’t stop them. He hated feeling this weak. He hated to cry in front of people. And somehow this was making him cry more.

The last time Lani had broken down like this feeling as if he had been stripped of his pride and of his shields. Last time Lani had shed more than a tear was when Odion was gone. Odion didn’t have to see how broken Lani was the last time. Now he had a front row seat. Lani closed his eyes swallowing hart struggling to make the tears stop. They listened but he wasn’t sure his voice would work. So he nodded and a few moments later his voice followed with a promise of, “I won’t.” When Odion released his other hand Lani just used it to cover the rest of his face. He wanted nothing more than to hide. “I never should have tried to leave.” Lani said harshly of himself. It was a stupid idea and it had brought more pain than he had ever imagined. It had gotten himself hurt and worse his friends in danger, his friends hurt. “None of this would have happened. I could go back…” Lani was definitely in the more delusional part of his mind thinking that he might even have a chance if he went back to work there. He couldn’t. The bridges had been burned.