Defied Reality - 12. Chapter 12: Rage

Brighton grunted and moaned as he thrusted two more times, finishing himself off. Heavy breaths escaped as he looked down at Tess. As for Johnny and Eli? This probably looked awful, and it was, but his intentions were far greater than it appeared. He got off the bed, fastening his jeans and then he looked up at the closet and a small grin appeared.

Johnny's eyes widened as they saw the whole thing and he watched Brighton walk around the bed. He pushed his feet against the floor of the closet to distance himself further from the door.

Eli was almost a statue in shock, and didn't even move until he felt Johnny tug him on the arm and he tumbled back and pushed away from the door, watching as Brighton headed right for the closet.

Brighton stopped right at the closet door and then he lowered down to eye level and looked right through the crack in the door and he stared straight at Johnny and Eli, that was when his naturally blue eyes glowed a bright shade of white, but it was like an overlay, the details could still be seen, and the black pupils of his eyes were left as they normally were. That grin returned and he lifted a single index finger to his lips.

"Shh..." Brighton uttered that single sound and then stood up and turned around, quiet foot steps fading as he left the room and headed down the hall.

"We're in deep shit." Eli looked at Johnny.

"Lets just get the box and go." Johnny turned and crawled towards The Arc.

"What if he's still out there?!" Eli whispered, alarmed.

"He's not going to wait for Tess to wake up, but if we do, shes going to think we did it!"

"She was with him, he was the one that knocked her out!" Eli argued.

"Yeah, and she will think we were part of it, making it even worse." Johnny frowned and grabbed one of the handles. "Get the other and lets get out of here."

Eli shook his head and grabbed the other handle and they lifted the box up, both grunting at the weight of it and they carried it out of the closet and Johnny used a foot to quietly shut the closet door. Eli looked at Tess with wide eyes. "At least throw a sheet over her."

"Damn it." Johnny walked with Eli, carrying the heavy box and he snatched the sheets and carelessly threw them over Tess, covering her up at least half decent, the important parts anyway. "Lets go..." He said through gritted teeth.

Eli tugged on the box and the two made it out of the room and headed for the escape of the front door to get out of the condo.

Everyone had gotten away with their crimes by the time Tess began to stir only moments later. Her eyes fluttered open and a hand went to her head where she felt the pain, she brought her hand up and saw blood on her fingers from where her head hit the wall, the next thing she noticed was that her clothes were gone. She looked confused, afraid, and altogether troubled. She pushed herself up on her elbows and looked down at herself.

"Oh no..." She looked around the room, she remembered very well who she had been with before this happened. Her eyes started to water up and she began to cry as she clutched the sheets around her and she looked down, her clothes scattered all over the floor and she reached down, fumbling around for her phone.

Gasps of air were drawn in, like a near panic attack between cries of despair and shock. She scrolled her finger over the screen and leaned forward, the sobbing growing louder as her vision blurred from the tears. She scrolled through her contacts and hit Cole's name.

"Pick up..." She brought the phone to her ear. "Pick up..." She rocked back and forth and then fell onto her side on the bed.

"Tess? Hey." Cole answered.

"Cole!" She screamed frantically into the phone. "He did it! I...I....I can't talk...I just...He..." She cried harder.

"Woah...what happened?! Please!" Cole's eyes widened with concern.

"Not over the phone." She gasped, trying to calm herself. "Come to my house." She managed to utter before her body wanted her to break down again.

"I'll be there, as soon as possible, I'm going for my car right now. I'll see you soon. Just stay calm, stay where you are and...god don't do anything." Cole said, his voice breaking up towards the end.

"I...I'm not...just get here!" She cried.

"Okay." Cole nodded and hung up.

Avery stepped into the guidance office in that skin tight leopard print halter styled dress of hers and those black stiletto's. She grinned and leaned back against the door, causing it to click shut.

Gage's eyebrows lifted up as he looked at Avery. "What can I do for you?"

She grinned and walked over, sitting in the chair and crossing one leg over the other. "I'm a lost girl....and I need some guidance."

A grin appeared on his face and he laughed. "Kind of need a little more to go on." Gage said, not even slightly moved by her demeanor.

"Well, as you may or may not know, my daddy has planned a dinner where he wishes to meet the boy I am taking to the senior prom." Avery claimed.

Gage's eyebrows lifted. "That's like...months away, and would he really like it that you...want to take the guidance counselor?"

Avery grinned, and then a laugh followed. "He doesn't need to know that, and besides, you don't look old enough to be one. How you landed the job is beyond me."

"Records...identification, credentials, those sort of things help." Gage leaned back. "Still, why so early? And why does he have to meet this person?"

"Because..." Avery sighed. "He wants to approve of them, but you wouldn't understand what it's like to be a daddy's girl. I don't have anyone else, you just have to come, play nice, eat some food and that's it..." She lifted her hands and stretched out her lower arms. "Simple."

"What about Trent? You two seemed to be getting along so well." Gage's eyes widened briefly and then a smile formed.

"Yeah, but we met with him stealing from a pay phone, you know he's a bad boy, just my type, but daddy won't like that, and I'm pretty sure he's not one to play pretend." Avery frowned.

"Well, unfortunately for you, I'm involved... with Taylor, and I would only attend such an event in the role of a student for him. In fact he had a hard time even getting me to come here at all, but I did, in a position I am more comfortable in."

Avery's eyes shifted to the side. "Right."

Gage's eyes narrowed in an interrogative way. "Why don't we get to the point of why you're really here? I mean, I'm not stupid, I've asked other students about you. A beautiful girl like yourself, so much potential, yet you're the lone wolf. The mysterious one that walks the halls, then you see what Trent does to the phone and suddenly you mesh yourself into our lives."

Avery looked up. "And I guess giving you the old, I don't want to be a cliche, thing won't work? Despite the fact that it's true, because I was here before any of you."

"It works, but now that we are here, what is your business with us?" Gage asked.

Avery looked up at Gage. "My father has an interest in you, no, he isn't the government, and no he isn't looking to...do anything bad to you, I don't think." Her eyes shut tight. "I think he wants to help you. Could you just come to the dinner? Hear him out? I mean, given your power, the man is nothing to you."

Gage slowly nodded. "Taylor comes with me, dinner, a public place of our choosing which we will let you know at the very last minute, no time to set anything up."

Avery nodded. "Fine." She looked in her bag and pulled out a card and laid it on the desk and smiled. "My father made it especially for you, in case I won. It has the house address since that was his plan, but whatever, the number is on there too." She stood up and then turned and walked out of the office.

Gage picked up the card and looked at it and sighed.

Trent stared at the door that went to the visitation area and grinned. "By the way....I'm not Taylor."

Johnny's eyes widened and he looked at him from the drivers seat. "What?! We need Taylor's freezing power to get Joby out!"

Eli's eyebrows lifted and he sat in the back, looking between them.

"Oh, come on, I'm not chop liver, I got powers too." Trent shook his head. "Taylor had a last minute engagement call his name. So work with me, yeah?"

"Okay, what's the plan? I don't exactly know your power." Johnny said.

"Well, we walk in...I'll liquefy those windows, they splash and soak the floor. Better than shattered glass, right?" Trent grinned. "It's the guards we have to figure out, how many do you think are in there?"

"You can do that? Liquefy glass?" Johnny asked, fascinated.

"We have powers, as in plural." Trent said. "And yes I can."

"Well, there is always an officer on the inmate side, usually by the door where they come in at." Eli said.

"Smart." Trent pointed at Eli with his thumb over his shoulder. "Then there is sure to be one on the visitors side, maybe two tops. It's not like maximum security."

"So, how are you going to take care of them?" Johnny asked.

"Hmm..." Trent stared off in thought. "I'll figure it out." He got out of the car.

"Winging it, should of figured with this brother." Johnny shook his head and got out, Eli following him as the three headed for the door and walked inside.

As Trent headed inside, he noticed an officer just inside the door and spun around, he punched the officer across the face and then sent a knee into his stomach. He grabbed him by the back collar of his uniform and the waist band of his pants and picked him up and threw him in the air in such a way that his legs flew up and then he shattered into electrical particles that flew across the room and collided with the other officer and as he hit, he solidified back into himself, both officers getting shocked, enough to send them to the floor unconscious.

Trent then noticed the officer on the inmate side had drawn her gun and went to shoot and as soon as she did, water was the only thing that came out. She looked at her gun, confused, pointing the barrel at herself. Trent grinned and telekinetic energy yanked the trigger again and a red paint ball flew out and hit her in the forehead. He lifted his hands and all the glass windows between the inmates and the visitors would liquefy.

Johnny's eyes widened and he shared a look with Eli and then watched what was going on.

The water walls would then give way to gravity and spill free, allowing the inmates to escape if they so wished. "There you go." Trent turned around and headed back outside.

"Come on!" Johnny screamed as Joby climbed over the table and jumped onto the visitors side and ran for his brother and their friend and the three ran out after Trent, who by this point had settled himself back in the passenger seat, as they scrambled to get into the car.

Johnny started the car and slammed his foot on the gas, speeding away. "Now what are we going to do?!"

"I'm going to jack an ATM for you, change the tag number on this car, change the color, and you...run for Mexico." Trent closed his eyes, settling back as he placed his feet up on the dash.

"We have to give up our home?!" Johnny frowned.

"He's a fugitive, you could always just wait for them to come and arrest him again." Trent's clasped hands settled on his stomach.

"Can't you just protect me?!" Joby asked in panic.

"I'm not a hired bodyguard, not interested in being one. I only did this for Taylor, otherwise I don't give two fucks." Trent pulled out a cigarette and lit it up.

"See what I said?" Johnny frowned. "They're all 'me me me' all about themselves."

Trent blew out smoke and flicked ashes out the window as his eyes opened and narrowed. "I think you have that backwards." He looked over at Johnny. "Because we can do a few more things than you can...we have to be at your beck and call?" He brought his cigarette to his mouth. "Slave drivers." He mumbled and took another drag.

"Trent...there is something you should know." Johnny mumbled.

"What?" He asked.

"Do you know Cole's friend...Brighton?" Johnny asked.

Trent nodded. "He was at the beach party."

"Well, we went to steal that gold box and we had to hide in the closet because Tess and Brighton came in and...he threw Tess at the wall and knocked her out and then threw her on the bed and..."

Trent's eyes went wide and he looked at Johnny with a death stare. "Don't even finish that sentence."

"I'm sorry...but there's more." Johnny said, nervously.

"Like what?" Trent asked, the rage building.

"Well, he knew we were there. When he finished, he walked right to the closet and looked through the crack in the door, he looked right at us and his eyes glowed white." Johnny explained.

Trent's eyes closed and suddenly the cars break slammed and the car immediately stopped. "You didn't even try to help." He pushed the passenger side door open and got out and walked away from the car, when Johnny tried to get out, his door wouldn't open.

"I guess you won't have to worry about being fugitives after all." Trent turned around and stuck a hand out and suddenly the accelerator pressed down along with the break and the tires began to spin, smoke rising and then the tires set fire and they would explode, the back of the car was then lifted with telekinetic energy and pushed forward towards the ground, beginning to crush the front end while it cracked the cement.

The three guys in the car were freaking out, trying to break the windows and each time they managed to crack the windows, the cracks would merely seal shut again, none of the doors would open. His hand balled up into a fist and suddenly the car crushed in on it's self before levitating in the air and smashing into the ground in a big explosion.

"That's just for not helping..." Trent turned and headed down the road on foot.

Tess pulled the black silk robe around her and tied the belt, making sure everything was secure, her hair was still damp from the shower, despite her attempt to dry it. She walked to the mirror and wiped it off and looked at herself, wanting to burst into tears again, the only thing that stopped her was a knock on the door. She eventually moved through her room and out into the hall way, slowly and hesitantly walking down the hall way.

She got mid-way to the door before calling out. "Who is it?" She asked with a shaky voice.

"It's Cole." He said from the other side of the door.

Tess sighed and walked to the door, noticing that it was unlocked, she opened the door, staying behind it as she opened it for him. "Hey..." She said, looking down.

Cole looked at her and stepped inside, shoving the door shut and he locked it. "I don't know what to say."

Tess looked up at him. "I don't even feel like me...I just feel like a person going through the motions and...I'm just along for the ride." She walked around him and sat down on the couch, shifting side ways to lean against the back of it.

He followed after her and sat down. "Can't say I know the feeling." He looked down and lightly took one of her hands. "I can't believe this happened to you."

Tess looked up. "Told you...I wasn't a super girl, he just grabbed my arm and next thing I know...I hit the wall and then...nothing. It all happened so fast."

"I'm going to make him sorry, I'll make him pay." He nodded and leaned his head against the back of the couch, staring directly at her.

"Why bother? It's done." She looked down. "Revenge doesn't change anything...and all I feel, I just want to cry...but I know if I do, I won't stop."

"Are you going to tell your parents?" He asked.

Tess shook her head. "Hell no, I can't deal with them and all their interrogating, that's what they do about everything, it's like thirty million questions. I can't deal with that."

"You look exhausted." Cole took a deep breath. "Do you want to watch a movie? Get your mind off of it? I know that sounds a little..."

Tess shook her head. "I know you're trying to be helpful." She looked down. "I'm emotionally exhausted, you know...you cry and then...there's just nothing left in you."

"What time does your mom come home?" Cole asked.

"Shes the typical nine to five, gets home, cooks dinner and then my dad gets home shortly after, she has the table set just in time and we have a lovely dinner, good enough for a photograph." Tess looked at the cable box, seeing the time.

"Why don't you go and get dressed and...we could go somewhere. Not my place or anything...just maybe the food court at the mall, or a movie, somewhere to get your mind off things."

"Okay." Tess stood up and just as she did, her eyes widened as the television flashed on and there Trent was on a desolate high way. "Trent?"

Trent stared at them.

"How did you do that?!" She screamed at him.

"It's one of the powers I was supposed to learn. I mentally project myself into devices, televisions, computers, anything." Trent then stuck his arm out, followed by the other, his hands touched the floor as he crawled out and stood up, appearing holographic.

Cole's eyes widened. "That's a little Star Trek."

"I can do better." Trent closed his eyes, using his energy manipulation power to solidify himself, creating a duplicate. "Because I can manipulate energy, I can create a duplicate of myself." His eyes opened and he looked at Cole and walked towards him and yanked him up from the couch by the shirt. "Where the fuck is he?!"

Tess stared at him in shock and then stepped forward when he grabbed Cole. "Trent, stop!" She moved forward and shoved Trent away, causing him to let go of Cole.

Cole sucked in a breath, but once he was released, he sighed. "I don't know! Don't you think if I did, I wouldn't be out there kicking his ass?! He might be at his house!"

"You'd get your ass killed." Trent looked at Tess. "He's not human, Johnny and this other guy were hiding in your closet, they wanted to steal The Arc as leverage to make Taylor help them break Johnny's brother Joby out of jail, since Gage possessed him and had him run over Mia. He knew they were there and he walked up to the cracked closet door and his eyes glowed white."

Tess' eyes widened. "His eyes glowed white?! What if he's another Angel?!"

Trent turned around. "Possibility, but you'd think he would be struck down for rape."

"Maybe he's an elemental? Not so far out there in comparison? A snow elemental? Of course...maybe ice is a given." Cole drew in a breath.

Trent's eyes narrowed with rage. "Tell me...where does he live?" He looked at Cole.

"You know where Tess' old house used to be? Well five blocks down there is a subdivision, it's where the houses end and it begins a cycle of circles and attached two story apartments, four per building. There are five circles, he lives in the fifth circle, very back apartment complex in the second apartment going from left to right." Cole explained.

"Good boy." Trent then faded into a hologram again before flickering into a static black and white, like an old movie with a bright white outline, he kept flickering several quick times until he flashed out altogether.

"There is going to be a fight." Tess shook her head. "I'm in no mood or condition to...do anything." Tess started to cry again as she looked around. "My cell phone is in my bedroom, I need to let Taylor and Gage know..."

"I'll get it." Cole said as he moved off down the hall.

"Chinese, why?" Avery sat at the table and grinned.

"Well, it's public...but private enough. Most people want take out, but the employees are here. And...Taylor wanted it." Gage said.

Taylor grinned.

"Daddy, you're cheating." Avery snatched the fork from Milo. "I want to see you use your chop sticks."

Milo looked annoyed with his daughter. "Then I won't get my food eat." He looked over at her.

"Just practice." Avery laughed.

"Everyone else is using forks." Milo said.

"Yes, but you have to use chopsticks, because I said so." She sat Milo's fork way on the other side of the table.

Gage crossed his arms. "Shall we get down to business?"

"Might as well, I can't eat with sticks." Milo threw the chop sticks on his plate of food.

Avery covered her mouth to try to hold back her laughter.

"We are...simply put...the Illuminati." Milo sat upright and half way spread his arms as if this was supposed to be impressive.

Gage's eyebrows lifted.

"Oh." Taylor's eyebrows lifted. "That means...they are a secret society that conspiracy theorists love to gossip about. They are supposedly very powerful and popular..."

"If people talk about them..." Gage looked at Taylor. "Then how are they secret?"

"Because...they don't confirm their existence to the public." Taylor said.

"Then how did conspiracy theorists come up with the concept and pick the correct name?" Gage continued to question.

Taylor's eyebrows lifted. "Uh...I guess because someone spilled a few beans and leaked a little info." He lifted a hand to Gage's cheek and lightly pushed his head to face Milo.

Avery grinned at Gage and sipped her drink from her straw.

Milo's arms fell by this point and he stared at Gage.

"My apologies, he wasn't Earth born as we were..." Taylor smiled.

"Right." Milo nodded. "My point is that...with you guys on our side...we would have what we needed to fulfill our mission and with our influence here on Earth, we would have what you needed to survive here."

"And what exactly is your goal?" Gage asked.

"One world government. I'm going to explain this and I...hope you understand." Milo leaned closer. "As you may or may not notice, the middle east is in shambles, fighting, bitching, warring. Why? Because land is marked, separated, and ultimately controlled by individual powers and presidents who want more money, more power, more land...or the worst of it all, more control over the people, especially in a religious aspect."

Gage slowly nodded. "And a one world government would fix that?"

Milo grinned and sat back. "Of course, because all land would be one land, split by oceans and what not, but what does it matter? There would be one government, not multiples to fight for power and money, we would be one and we would have the power and money, and as one world country, we would have all the land, and as America, land of the free, no more trying to enforce religion or any other concept, free will and freedom of choice."

Gage looked at Taylor. "That is kind of what we are all about, between good and evil, we are the neutral, like the yin and the yang, we are the balance, free to stay in the middle or to be swayed one way or the other."

Taylor nodded and looked at Milo. "Sounds like a nice plan, but one in the long making, it would take time to bend everyone into what you make sound like a utopia of sorts. I want to know what you could offer us now."

Avery looked down, eating her food, not really saying much of anything.

"Well, I know that girls house blew up, she is one of you. That is the only reason I know, all those years ago, I saw two of your kind drop her off in the cradle on the door step, I've had my daughter keeping an eye on her, of course rather than befriending her, Avery chose to watch from afar." Milo picked up a chop stick and poked at his rice. "Firstly, I can offer you shelter, a home." He looked up. "One that would belong to you...and it wouldn't be a dump either. Tell me what you'd want."

Gage looked at Milo and then at Taylor. "I think it would be a best bet to have a condo, same floor as Tess, near hers. Then we would have a similar set up, we would all be close again, yet she would have the privacy she wants, so long as we left her alone."

Taylor felt his phone vibrate in his pocket but decided to ignore it for now. "I think that's a good idea."

Milo grinned. "Then it's done. Now...how about showing me these powers of yours? Show me something impressive."

Gage grinned and then shifted a finger and Milo's plate flew off the table and into the air just as Taylor's hands stretched out from their balled up position and the plate shattered, without a sound, due to Gage's sound manipulation power, however in the second that the plate shattered, the whole thing froze, the food and the pieces of plate it's self. Gage grinned and then the whole thing disintegrated into nothingness.

Taylor and Gage looked at Milo. "Impressive enough?" Taylor asked.

Milo sat there in amazement. "How many powers was that?"

Gage looked thoughtful. "Five powers, two of Taylors and three of mine, we work well together." He smiled at Taylor.

"That is damn pretty good."

"You're just happy now that you don't have to use the chop sticks." Avery rolled her eyes.

"How close do you want that condo to Tess'?" Milo asked.

"Do we get that kind of choice? I mean...with people living there?" Taylor asked.

Milo looked down. "Yes, you're in luck, they had just finished construction on that floor, Tess and her family were one of the first ones to move in."

Taylor nodded. "I guess across the hall..." He closed his eyes. "Damn I want a corner one."

"A corner one would mean either right across the hall from Tess or either all the way down the hall, choice number one means to close to Tess but you get the ocean view, choice two is to far away and only a city view." Gage said.

"I should tell you, all the condo's except the corner ones, are two stories, that is what the construction was about, they took the ones above and took the floor out and remodeled them, removed the second kitchen and living room, as well as the front door. The second floor is basically a huge master suite with features you could only dream of while the regular master, the mini master and the guest room remain in the original condo down stairs, that is four rooms, one public bathroom and three private bathrooms, in the regular master, the mini master and the super master." Milo stared at his phone.

"We should take one of the two stories, about middle ways down, Trent gets a lot of privacy and...we'll be close to Tess but not to close." Gage said.

Avery grabbed Milo's phone and looked at the pictures. "Oh, Trent would get huge amounts of privacy, that super master, aside from needing to use the kitchen, you'd barely ever have to leave it." She laughed. "The washer and dryer are in a small closet off to the side of the kitchen, they are the stackable kind." She ran her finger over the screen. "The super master has a wash room off the bathroom, also stackable."

Milo grabbed his phone from Avery. "I'll have that condo by next week, if not sooner. It comes with furniture, totally furnished, so all you will have to do is move right in with your luggage."

Gage nodded. "And then what are your plans?"

Milo delayed in his answer. "I'm not sure yet, I'll have to hold a meeting with the other members, we will decide how to proceed, one thing is for sure, we don't want society to know that any actions you take come from our society, we would be viewed as a threat."

Taylor's cell phone vibrated again and he yanked it out of his pocket and looked at the text. "It's from Tess, it says Trent, emergency." He looked up. "That's all it says."

Gage looked at Taylor. "Well, sorry we have to cut this short, but we put ourselves and each other first, you can understand that?"

Milo nodded. "Of course." He then looked down and suddenly found his plate of food back in front of him. "Wha..."

Gage grinned. "We never destroyed it...that is time and event manipulation." He stood up and placed his hand on Taylor's back and rushed out of the restaurant with him.

The door to Brighton's house was kicked open with such a force that it was half way torn off it's hinges and he stepped inside and looked around.

"Hmm...you really entered and...broke." Brighton walked into the living room from the hallway and looked at his door, a bag of gummy worms in his hand, eating one of them.

"That's the least thing that will get broke in here." Trent walked further inside. "I know what you did...and more importantly...I know you aren't human."

Brighton tossed another gummy worm in his mouth and tossed the bag on the couch and suckled on the gummy worm, making smacking sounds as he enjoyed the flavor. "Really? What am I?"

"Well, lets see, white glowing eyes? I'd of assumed an Angel..." Trent mockingly grinned and then laughed sarcastically. "But then...I would think God would strike you dead for what you did to Tess."

"Well, he didn't strike me dead." Brighton swallowed the candy. "But I did fall from grace."

Trent stared at him. "A Fallen Angel." He said.

"Yep, and I plan to make him pay for it too...once..." Brighton trailed off. "Well, I'll let you see soon enough." He grinned.

"You won't live that long." Trent said as he lifted his hand up, a blue energy ball forming and he shot his arm forward, sending the ball of energy in Brighton's direction.

Brighton grinned and instantaneously, the two would trade locations, causing the energy ball to hit Trent instead. He watched as Trent screamed and flew back into the hall way, hitting the wall before landing on the ground. "Are you sure about that? You kind of just mutilated yourself, a little disturbing."

Trent stood up and narrowed his eyes at Brighton and then suddenly ran forward and jumped into the air, swinging around, kicking Brighton across the face, sending him to the floor, as his arm extended out and blue particles suddenly appeared and swirled about until a sword formed in his hand and he grinned. "A little old school."

Brighton rolled over and pushed himself up on his hands and he looked up at Trent.

Trent looked down at him and then he raised the sword with both hands and plunged it into Brighton, however, his eyes widened and he looked down to find that he had also been stabbed by the bladed weapon. He let go of the hilt of the sword and stumbled back, blood flowing down his stomach.

Brighton cringed and yanked the sword out and his wound immediately sealed as he transferred it completely to Trent and he stood up. "Blind rage." He shook his head.

Gage and Taylor ran into the house to see Trent laying on the floor, a hand over his wound, shaking his head. "Everything you do to him...it happens to you..." He grunted in pain.

"Oh, really? We'll see about that." Gage stepped forward and waved a hand, sending Brighton flying towards the wall, it knocked the wind out of him as he fell to the floor.

Brighton looked up, knowing very well who Gage was, knowing he was the most powerful of the foursome, and while Trent had the more active powers, Taylor and Gage together made a power team.

Taylor ran forward and jerked his hands up, aiming for Brighton who ran into the kitchen, instead causing a lamp to blow up as he lost aim on his target. Gage ran after Brighton only to be blinded by a flash of bright white light. He screamed and brought an arm over his eyes.

Taylor came over soon after to see Brighton gone and he frowned. "We'll get him." He moved over to Trent and looked down at the wounds and placed his hands over each one, using his age acceleration process in a different way, instead manipulating it into a time acceleration on the wounds, causing a rapid heal.

Trent sighed as he felt the pain fade away as the wounds healed. "He raped Tess, the son of a bitch!"

"We know, she...told us." Taylor said.

Gage cried out, lowering his arm to reveal red blood shot eyes, his vision was blurry and he saw dots every where, as if he had stared straight into the sun. "Unless he runs...we'll find him."

"He won't run." Trent shook his head. "He said something was going to happen."

Taylor pulled Trent up and then moved and lowered to the floor next to Gage and he pulled him close, wrapping his arms around him in a protective nature.

Tess stared out of her window and then looked at her bed. "I got my dream condo...and I don't even want to stay in it."

Cole leaned a shoulder against the corner where the window met the wall and he looked at the bed. "Maybe get a new bed?"

Tess turned away and walked over to her closet and opened it. "First...we have to get The Arc back...and I have no idea where to find it. Do you know Johnny and Joby?"

"They were in the thug crowd, not exactly our type." Cole frowned.

"Great, what if their mom finds it? Decides to cash in? Or maybe they decide to cash in on it themselves. I can only imagine how much gold that thing is made out of." She started laughing. "They won't even care about the gold, all they will have to do is identify it and the money for the gold will be like pocket change compared to what they get for what the thing is."

"Why do you need it anymore, anyway? Didn't you say Gage knew what the tablets said?" Cole asked.

"Yes, but the crystal pyramid was kept in it, which we still need, and Gage still hasn't told us why. Not to mention that The Arc it's self is a power base, why it didn't fry them for even putting their grubby hands on it, I don't even know. Point is...if we ever needed that source of power, we won't have it." Tess started to shut the door.

"Do you have any powers that could...help? What about your door thing?" Cole asked.

"I have to know where I'm opening to, or at least have some idea..." Her eyes widened. "Head rush." Her hand moved to her head just as she closed the closet door and then her eyes suddenly burst into a faded white glow around the ring and she began to see a vision in her mind.

She saw Johnny and Eli as they drove, noticing the street signs, then the vision flashed as they turned onto a street and pulled up to a house. Her eyes faded and her sight came back from her mind's eye and she looked over at Cole. "I...think I have a new power."

Cole had rushed over to her by the time she came back. "What happened?!"

"I saw where they went, I know where the house is...I bet that is where The Arc has to be." She looked down and realized how tightly she was gripping the door knob to the closet and slowly let go as her arm fell to her side.

"Then we should go." Cole said.

Tess walked away from the closet and sat on the bed, her hands running through her hair. "I don't know if I want to go, I just feel exhausted...I've felt exhausted ever since..."

Cole looked at Tess, concerned. "You don't think he did something to you, do you?"

"Could of." She looked up at him. "If he was an Angel, as fucked up of a way as it would be, I'm sure he wouldn't be struck down if that was some twisted way of slowly killing me."

"Wait, wouldn't he get infected? Like that STD metaphor you made?" Cole asked, his eyes squinted.

Tess lightly laughed. "I don't know if that applies to them, ask Gage."

"Well, we have to go get the box, it's obviously important for some reason."

Tess sighed. "I don't even know if I could carry it." She stood up and grabbed her purse off the hanger on the wall by her door. "Lets go." She said, walking out of her bedroom with Cole right after her.

Milo, Avery, Gage and the twins, all walked into the new condo. The entrance was normal with a hallway that lead to the back three bed rooms and an opening on the right that lead out to a spacious living room. The group walked in to find that the ceiling above the living room and dining area was another story high from where the condo the floor to the condo above had been knocked out.

To the left, straight across from the couch was a huge window that almost covered the entire wall and overlooked the city with a mild view of the ocean if one looked just right, this window used to reach the ceiling, but instead what was above it now was another window made of several large panels that formed a triangle made of several shades of blue stained glass, the top of the triangle reached the tall ceiling.

Straight across and to the far side of the room was the metal stairs with the shatter proof glass tube shaped railings with two flights of stairs, one that lead straight up and then a right turn that lead up and over the ceiling of the kitchen which remained as level as the original, the only difference is that the stairs gave access to half of the condo above and the wall was pushed back to allow for a wall to wall hallway that stopped just before the hallway downstairs and in the middle the clear glass shatter proof railings extended out in a large semi circle to create a balcony to over look the living room.

White walls, shiny and spotless black marble floor through out, the kitchen had granite counter tops with a sandy beach texture and burgundy cabinets and a black top stove with all the other appliances top of the line to match and off to the far side was a closet where the stackable washer and dryer was kept.

"This is it." Milo turned around and grinned as he waved his arms out.

"Not bad." Gage looked around, his sunglasses on. "Though I wish I could fully enjoy it...my eyes are still rather irritated."

"Well, I told you to let me heal them, stubborn ass." Taylor grinned and looked at Milo. "I love it, leave the key on the counter."

Milo grinned. "Oh, kicking me out so soon?"

Trent frowned and turned to look at Avery. "Illuminati..." He shook his head and reached into his pocket and pulled out the tiny microphone. "By the way, when was this slipped in? During the janitors closet black out?"

Avery sighed and looked on while the others looked around the place, thankfully distracted. "I had no choice, would you rather I interrogated you?"

"Better than pretending to give a damn about me when all you cared about were my powers. Or maybe you don't care at all, maybe only daddy cares and you just do what he says." Trent threw the microphone on the floor at her feet.

"Hey, look. My dad witnessed them when they delivered Tess in the cradle, we were the same age, it was convenient for me to watch her. Really, he wanted me to befriend her. I didn't want a friendship based on that...so for all these years, I've just watched from the distance because really, I didn't even know what the plan was. Find out who she is? Where she came from? Then what? And then I find out there are two more just like her that mysteriously show up, and you were the one I approached."

"Because of what? You saw something about me that you liked? Aside from my powers? Tell me one thing that you liked about me, before knowing me, aside from my powers." Trent crossed his arms.

"Well, that's kind of hard, when you don't know anything about anyone except that one thing." Avery looked at him.

"Well you spied on us...so tell me one thing." Trent frowned.

"All I can tell you is what I like since I've known you, so if you can't get past the fact that your...gifts were the initial attraction...then I'm sorry."

Trent turned around and his eyes narrowed on Milo and suddenly out of a burst of anger, he swung an arm as if he were throwing a baseball and sent the man flying through the air towards the large window.

Milo screamed and Taylor's eyes widened. "Woah!" He ran forward and jerked a hand out and Milo froze in the middle of the air and he looked over at Trent. "The hell?! Okay, going to fight Brighton, I get it! But why did you do that?! The man got us a place to live, he is saving our asses! Do you realize how valuable it would be for us to belong to such a society?!" Taylor walked over to Trent.

"Valuable?" Trent looked over at Taylor. "You want to talk about valuable? How valuable do you think we would be to him if we didn't have powers to further this secret societies agenda, one of which we really don't know if it is or is not a good one? How do we know what is going to happen once it's executed? And how do we know they won't turn into the new government and try to execute us when they are done using us just so we don't try to over throw them? After all, we have our own agenda, one thrown at us when we were just dropped on strangers porches!"

Taylor sighed and placed his hands on Trent's cheeks. "Look, I know you're angry about Tess...and I know that is where all this is coming from...but you can't rage at everyone. I know we didn't grow up together..but I don't want to lose a brother before barely even having one."

Trent was quiet for several moments and then he reached up and grabbed Taylor by the wrists. "And what do you want? Some fucking twincest?" He grinned sarcastically and yanked Taylor's wrists down, pulling his hands away and then he turned around and saw Avery still standing there.

Avery stared at Trent but didn't bother to say anything.

Trent stared at Avery and then he looked over at Gage. "On second thought, lets test a power and take a trip." He walked over to Taylor and grabbed him by the shirt, yanking him close and then he closed his eyes, the room suddenly filled with blue, purple and pink energy that swirled around them and began to expand out in rapid motion before thickening and becoming a fog, so thick that nothing could be seen, high wind filling the room and by the time it cleared, the twins were gone.