Star Beings

Arson?

"Wait, are DJ and Lane in the same room?" I hear Caleb say. "Uh.... no?" "Lane I can literally hear you in the background of DJ's audio." Nat says in an unamused tone. I snicker. "That explains the messy hair..." Hade smirks. I feel my cheeks go beet red. "HADE." "What? It's kinda obvious they were fu-" "Enough." Nat snaps. Hade just grins. They still revel in chaos. "So... why the meeting?" Karson asks. He and Mateo look like they're in the same room. But no one wants to talk about that, I guess. "I'm tired of hiding. Hera and Elian keep saying to wait for when it's safe but it won't ever BE safe at this point. At this rate, we'll be hiding for the rest of our lives." "Remember what happened last time we went against orders?" I ask, easing an eyebrow. "DJ, do I really look like I have the energy to care?" Nat growls."Point taken, small scary lady." I squeak. Nat is barely able to hold back a triumphant grin.
"What's the plan then?" Maxine pipes up. "The plan is to show up at Hera and Elian's door step and try to get them on our side. If they refuse, then we rebuild the rebellion from the ground up." Everyone considers this. Finally, I hear Caleb sigh. "Natalie, we can't do this on our own. We're just ten young adults-" "with extraordinary powers." "That won't make up for charisma and leadership which, may I remind you, only one of us truly has. And that's you." Nat thinks on this for a bit. "If I can lead you ten maniacs, how hard can a rebellion be? I mean, more miraculous things have happened." "Like what?" Damien asks. "Like all of us somehow surviving on our own. You all have a week to get ready." Nat says. Her voice is strong and general like. She's really grown up. And Caleb is right. She is the only one of us with the kind of quality it takes to be a leader.
"We're really doing this." Lane says after we hang up. "Yeah. We are." I should be excited. I know that.... But I'm scared. Really scared.

When I first arrived in this city, I was a soldier among criminals and murderers. Then I was a Raven amongst the rats. And now... now I'll be a criminal among soldiers. A rat amongst ravens. I'm not who I used to be. I keep thinking, though it's more like hoping, that girl is dead. But some part of me hopes she's only buried.... that way, I might be able to dig her back up.
"DJ? You awake?" Lane whispers. "Yeah." I click on the light. "What is it?" I ask, rubbing my eyes. "I'm nervous. It's been so long since we've been on a true battlefield. A lot has changed. We've changed." Lane sighs. I grab her hand. A rat amongst ravens. Well... it's comforting to know I'm not the only one worrying. "Listen, it'll all be fine. We'll get back into the swing of things in no time." I smile. Lane flashes me a lopsided grin. "I hope so.... I wonder how Hera and Elian are doing." I think back to the last time we saw them. Elian's hair had little wisps of red, a sign that, somehow, he had been healing. Hera looked the same. Older, but the same. We always meet once a year. And always on the day we first arrived in Worlomands. "I bet they're doing fine."

I open my eyes. Lane's gone. FUCK LANE IS GONE. I scramble up, panic rising inside me. Did she leave me behind? Did she do something stupid? She's never been in this city before, what if she went out and got lost? Fuck. FUCK. F U C K. I race out into the hallway. My heart sinks. Maybe she left because she thought it was best. Or maybe because she just didn't want to deal with me.
The strong smell of bacon hits me head on. I peek into the kitchen. My anxiety dissipates. Lane's making breakfast. "Oh. Morning!" She smiles at me. I walk over and embrace her, resting my chin on her head. "DJ-" "you scared the shit outta me, darlin." I say, letting her go. Why did I say that??? Realization dawns on Lane's face. "SHIT. DJ, I am so sorry. I didn't-" "It's ok." WHY DID I SAY THAT???? We stand in silence for a while. WHY AM I SUCH A DUMBASS???? "D'ya want to go take a walk? I can show you around the city." I say, finally breaking the silence. Lane grabs a plate and piles bacon and eggs onto it. She smiles at me. "Sounds wonderful."

We walk through the city, an umbrella over our heads. It started raining but Lane insisted on seeing the city. Her hand is intertwined in mine, a smile on her face. Her long pink hair is in a thick braid. I glance behind us. Wasn't that dude following us two blocks ago? "Oh shit." "What is it-" I drag Lane into a side alley. The guy follows. Shit! Well... good thing we're in the warehouse district. I duck inside the nearest building, taking Lane with me. "DJ, what the-" "SHH!!!" I push her behind a pole, hiding opposite to her. The dude walks in. I glance over at Lane and wink. "Watch this." I mouth to her. An illusion of me steps out with its hands up. "What do you want?" It asks."Your head." The dude growls, lunging. Illusion me goes down easy. The bounty hunter... or L.O. Officer... or whatever... stands over the body smirking. I focus on the water on my boots, shifting it into my hands and freezing it into knives. I teleport behind the L.O. Officer. "You missed."
The officer howls before falling to the ground with one last shudder. My knives melt, blood and water splashing onto the ground. I turn to Lane. She looks terrified. "What? It ain't that-" "they have a tracker. We need to leave. Now." Lane snatches my hand and we disappear in a flash of purple light. I blink. We're back in my apartment. "How did you know they had a tracker?" "A little trick I learned." Lane says. Except her mouth doesn't move. And her voice is kinda echo-y. Wait... is she in my head? "Lane, what the fuck?" "Mind magic." She says, aloud this time, with jazz hands. "Have you been...?" "No. I rarely use it. Mainly because it's exhausting." For the first time, I notice the slight sheen of sweat on her forehead. "Now... if ya don't mind..." she collapses into a heap on the floor. "I'm gonna take a nap."

I scoop Lane up and walk into my room, laying her down on the bed. Then I start to pack up. Because I killed a guy, the L.O. is probably gonna be on my ass within the hour. Looks like I might have to meet up with Nat earlier than I thought. I toss my Raven gear, some extra clothes, and food for Button into my backpack. I check my phone for the time. 2:30. Well... a nap couldn't hurt....
I flop down next to Lane. She cuddles up next to me. A wave of exhaustion hits me. "God I'm so.... tired..."