Grant Jeong placed his briefcase in the passenger seat of his self-driving monstrosity as he slipped inside. He never got to start the engine. An arm shot out from the darkness of the back seat, hooking around his throat and crushing his windpipe. Marcus leaned forward, eyes meeting his ex-boss' in the rearview while his hand clamped down on the headrest to lock in the tight grip. Grant thrashed, laying into the horn and filling the night with the harsh, blaring sound.
"Stop, or you go to sleep." Marcus snarled out the warning, slowly tightening the grip until the thrashing stopped. "I'm going to ease up, and you're going to take your lips off the Arcanex teat for long enough to tell me what I want to know."
Grant just nodded, frantic and fighting for every breath.
Marcus relaxed his hand to give the man enough space to breathe without hinderance. "Where do they keep the contracts?"
"I don't know." Grant gasped out only to start thrashing again when Marcus tightened his grip.
"Try again."
"My office!" Grant coughed out.
He sighed, the choke getting tighter even as the intensity on his face loosened. "You don't think that's the first place I checked, Grant?" Try again." It was a bluff, but there was no chance Arcanex trusted this little peon with those kinds of documents.
"They'll kill me..." he whined, fingers digging into the flesh of Marcus' forearm as he tried, and failed, to pull him away.
An eerie chuckle escaped Marcus' throat as he loosened his grip and stared Grant in the eye through the mirror. "If the next words out of your mouth aren't what I want to know, Arcanex won't have time to kill you."
Grant, in all his wisdom, took the opportunity of his loosened grip to yank down hard enough on his arm to get his chin down. Teeth dug into his arm as the middle manager bit down hard on the meat below his elbow.
Marcus hissed out a curse and immediately tightened his grip, crushing his arm into the man's face and holding it there even as blood leaked between their skin. Grant held out longer than he'd expected, but eventually the jaw went slack and he readjusted his grip on his neck.
"Talk before I snap it."
"Yuri keeps them." Grant let out a half-sob, half-plea. "That's all I know. Probably in his office at the research facility."
Marcus glared at him through the glass, but his mind drifted to the contract breaking ritual. When he was in that guard's body, he'd followed Yuri into his office with James' paperwork. Jaw shifting back and forth a couple times, he finally nodded. If they weren't with Walter himself, it made sense that's where they'd be.
"Good. One more thing." Marcus yanked hard, gripping the headrest again with the arm around Grant's neck. He waited, watching the fair-skinned man slowly turn a mottled red, before speaking. "Tomorrow, when you go into work," Marcus spoke calmly, "you're going to walk into your office, promote Victoria to your position, and immediately resign. Then you're going to get on a plane and fly as far away from here as you can." Marcus released him and gave his cheek a light slap.
"Promote Victoria?" he wheezed, trying to catch his breath. "No way, higher ups will never...never go for it."
Marcus had opened the back door and was already halfway out when the argument was made. He stopped and poked his head back between the two front seats. "I know where you live, Grant. Don't make me come back here."
He slid the rest of the way out of the car, patted the roof a couple times before taking off into the woods he'd emerged from. Snatching a bag he'd hidden in the treeline, Marcus quickly changed clothes, then continued his run.
The crisp night air eased smacks of branches as he tore through the trees. It had been several days since Kane had arrived with the note from Victoria. While he'd yet to muster the courage to get in contact with any of his family, he did stop by his apartment to grab a few things. In fact, the only person he'd spoken to since being back was Morris.
He wasn't fool enough to think the man wouldn't go straight to his parents to tell them he was alright, so he didn't bother asking him not to. It was a gamble whether he'd tell them that he was crashing on the stockroom floor of McGinty's, but when he had two good night's sleep in a row with a roof over his head, he figured he'd won that one.
He just wasn't sure he could face them yet. Recovery was always a tricky thing. He felt...mostly back to himself, but the doubts and insecurities that had been brought to life before his eyes in that fire had done a real number on him. He'd probably need some serious therapy to sort that out, but there was no time for that now.
The night crew at the reserve had always loved him. Hopefully, this little stunt wasn't about to ruin all that. Marcus had been watching the place every night since he'd returned, taking note of Arcanex guard patrol patterns, schedules, what cars they drove. Anything he thought might be useful. His best estimate was this time of night there would be five guards on site. Three inside, two out.
He waited in the bushes south of the parking lot for the guard to patrol past the entrance before throwing up his hood and casually walking through the door. Once inside, he made a beeline for the quartermaster. He was going to need gear, and almost like he'd thought this all the way through, good old Shirley was behind the glass to greet him.
"Marcus?" Her excited voice came out hushed as she dipped her head to look under his hoodie. "Look at the beard on you, boy. Where you been?"
"Hey, Gorgeous." Marcus gave her a little wink. "I need some help."
"Oh, I bet you do, Red." She grinned, cheeks and nose blooming. "You're gonna get me fired."
"Nobody is ever going to know. Besides, you'll have a new boss this time tomorrow." He waved his hand in the air as if to waft away her worry. "Can you buzz me back?" He jerked his head to the door.
The door to his left gave a quiet buzz, and he slipped through.
"What do you mean, I'm going to have a new boss tomorrow? What happened to Grant?"
Marcus pulled the hood back and smiled at the older woman. "He's had a change of heart. I think you'll like your new boss much better." He said as he grabbed a black duffel and headed toward the shelves.
"Stars above, they bringing you back?" She said with a little too much excitement.
"Definitely not." Marcus chuckled, tossing a pair of stun gauntlets and a jumpsuit into the duffle.
"Wait...if you're not coming back, why are you getting gear?"
"That..." He froze and turned to look at her. "That's a fair question. Alright." He took a deep breath and shrugged. "Truth is, I'm going to break into the Arcanex research facility, probably hurt a bunch of people, and get back some magical contracts so my mother can break their hold over some friends of mine," he said like it was another day's errand. When it became clear that the blank stare was the only response he was going to get from her, he went back to packing the bag. "If anybody gives you a hard time, just tell them I didn't give you any choice."
"Boy, I'm not worried about me." She snatched his hand as he was reaching for a shelf and spun him to look at her, concern painted the deep lines near her eyes and mouth. "I'm no fan of our corporate overlords, but this sounds dangerous."
Marcus squeezed her hand for a moment and gave her a warm smile before gently pulling free. His eyes flicked back to the shelf at his final item. It didn't actually burn when he touched it, but it may as well have.
"Wyvernbane?" Somehow, more concern flooded her tone. "Marcus..."
He tucked the vial into the bag and tilted his head to look into her eyes as he threw the bag over his shoulder. "I've loved knowing you, Shirley." He took a couple steps to close the distance and leaned down to kiss her cheek. "You be good, you hear?" You know these kids can't handle you."
Marcus slipped by the inside guards easy enough. Outside, the guard had returned to his post, but he just gave the man an idle wave as he walked by and he let him right past. It wasn't until he was midway through the parking lot that the guard called out to him, but by that time he was too far gone.
His feet ached with each step, but Marcus arrived at McGinty's just before sunrise. Morris having already gone home, he pulled the key he'd been given and slipped inside, locking the doors behind him. The smell of stale beer and cigarettes never really left the bar. It didn't matter how deeply it was cleaned, it was a part of the building after nearly fifty years of business.
After stowing the duffel away in his stockroom abode, he stepped back out into the bar to grab himself a beer then made his way to the jukebox, fingers grazing along the freshly cleaned bar and tables. The next time he left this bar was likely to be rough, and there was a decent shot he wasn't coming out unscathed. So, before he slept, he just wanted one more good memory.
Fingering the buttons, he skipped through the tracks until he found it. Ain't Nothing 'Bout You kicked to life, much louder now that the bar was empty. His feet took him to the pool table, and he hopped up to sit on the edge of the one they'd played at. The one she'd kissed him beside on the first date she was adamant was not, in fact, a date.
He could feel her there, with the music filling his ears. The cool glare that failed to hide her amusement. The flat indifference in her tone, he was certain, she used to disguise any vulnerability. Muscles shifting in her arms and shoulders as she took each pool shot. The intensity in her eyes when she grabbed his face. The kiss that wrecked him.
Marcus smiled through a sigh as phantom smells of sandalwood and burning cigarettes invaded his senses. For a moment, it was like he was alive again. Alive with passion, joy, and electrified anticipation. For one fleeting beat, he let those feelings in.
The song ended, and the smell faded. It had never been there to begin with, he knew that. It didn't stop the frown from forming on his lips. He glanced over at the jukebox, considered playing it again, but decided against it. It was going to be a long night. He needed rest.
###
Timing was everything here. Marcus walked down the road Calliope's house sat on, waiting for the perfect moment. He needed James, but if Callie caught him, it ended the whole thing before it started. He knew the grip his sister could get him in, and he wasn't about to risk that. Waiting until just after one, when it was least likely Calliope would abandon her shop for lunch, he texted James from a burner.
It's Marcus. I need your help.
The reply was instant.
Where are you?
Your house.
Give me five.
Marcus sat on the front step of his sister's house, hood over his head. James pulled into the drive three minutes later. Killing the engine, he jumped out of the car and sprinted at him, wrapping Marcus up in a tight hug.
"We've been worried sick about you, man. Where have you been?"
He squeezed his brother-in-law, slightly surprised by the strength the lanky man put forward as he struggled to fill his lungs. "It's a long story. I need your help, though."
"That's it? That's all I get?" James breathed out an emotionally exhausted laugh. "You're M.I.A. for weeks and I get it's a long story?"
Marcus looked down at the ground when James released him. The visions, or memories, whatever they were had been gone for days now, but looking the man in the eye brought back the echoes of his pain. Quiet apparitions in his mind that reminded him of his failures. "I'm sorry." He looked up with a deep breath and pulled his collar down to reveal the jumpsuit. "It's important."
James shook his head, just staring at him for a long time in disbelief. Finally, he shrugged and turned to open the door. "Come on, then. What enchantment do you need?" James led him into the house.
"Agility." Marcus followed most of the way there, but stopped short of the kitchen.
It had been a long time since he'd been in his sister's house. The last time must have been about a year ago. He turned into the room right before the kitchen. It hadn't changed a bit from when he'd finished helping James set it up. Sky blue walls, changing table in the corner, his parents' old rocking chair sitting beside it. He walked over to the crib they had handmade, fingers sliding over the giraffe on the mobile hanging above.
"Haven't had the heart to clear it out yet," James murmured from the doorway.
Marcus nodded, not daring to look over at him just yet. "You guys didn't deserve that." He matched James' tone, a sinking feeling coming to his gut. "Nobody does, but definitely not you two."
They stood there in mourning silence for a long time before James wiped at his face and cleared his throat. "Come on, let's get you fixed up."
James drew out the runic circle on the kitchen floor in silence. He chanted something Marcus had never bothered to learn before he stepped into the circle and the runes lit up. The jumpsuit sucked the light from the floor and lit up, starting at his chest and pulsing through his limbs.
"Thanks..." Marcus gave a half-hearted smile.
"You gonna tell me what's going on?" James asked as he sat at the table, looking up at him expectantly.
"If I did, you'd try to stop me," Marcus admitted.
"Then maybe you shouldn't be doing it?" James grinned, knowing full well that wasn't going to stop him. He stood and held out his arms. "You need anything else?"
Marcus pursed his lips for a second, then frowned. "You remember the antimagic lamps from the Arcanex facility?"
"Sure." James shrugged. "Hard to forget."
Nodding, Marcus scratched at his overgrown ginger beard. "Could you make something like that portable? Wearable maybe?"
James' brows scrunched together in that way they did when he was thinking before he shrugged. "I can give it a shot."
Marcus just chuckled, walking over to his brother-in-law and wrapping him in a tight hug. "I love you, brother." He let the hug linger, just holding his brother, his best friend, to his chest. "Don't tell Callie I was here." He said as he lifted away from him.
"Oh, don't worry. If she knew you were here and I let you leave, I'd be a dead man." James shook his head. "Whatever you're doing...Be careful."