"The Mogs got Henri?" Marina asked for the fifth time.
John sighed from his place in the passenger's seat. "Yeah, there was a video online that showed me getting Three's scar. It had to be erased where it originated."
"So in other words, it was a trap." Marina shook her head. "He should know better."
Sam cleared his throat from the driver's seat. "If we're really going to this place, shouldn't you have stayed back, Marina?"
"I don't know if Henri knows about me or not," Marina countered. "But I know everything that he's done for John. I'd do the same for any of the NCIS team."
"What was that emergency thing about?" John asked, turning to look at her.
Marina looked down. "It was just an update on finding the Mogs."
John didn't look like he believed her.
Truthfully, Marina didn't believe herself, either. Because that was not what they had talked about at all.
***
Three Hours Earlier
"What's the big deal?" Marina asked as she closed the door behind her.
"Why, were you making out with John or something?" Tony joked.
"I was probably about to had my phone not rung," Marina snapped, dropping her backpack. "What's up?"
"It's about what we found out at the mill where Malcolm worked," Gibbs told her, smirking a little at her comeback. "Savannah, pull the pictures up."
Savannah tapped a few keys on her board, and pictures flew across the screen. All of them had one thing in common. "What in the name of Pittacus Lore?" Marina murmured in shock. "Are these all - ?"
"All Loric numbers," Gibbs confirmed, standing up. "Somehow in some way Malcolm knew about Lorien."
"How would he have known?" Marina wondered, turning to look at them.
"There hasn't been a number in Paradise besides Marina now, right?" Kate asked, looking at Gibbs.
"Not that I've been aware of," Gibbs replied, shaking his head. "Marina?"
"No," Marina lied through her teeth easily. "I haven't found anything that says another Garde is here."
"Then we're stuck," McGee groaned, leaning back in his chair. "Why on Earth would Malcolm know this stuff?"
There was silence for a few minutes, then Gibbs sighed, standing from his chair. "We all need a break. Everyone's done extremely well. Come back tomorrow, OK?"
There was muttered words of agreement from everyone, and Marina walked with Savannah down to the food court. It was a while before Savannah finally spoke. "You know, don't you?" she asked.
"John's Number Four," Marina replied. "Yes, I know. You have too, haven't you?"
Savannah sighed. "Yes, I do. I was there to help him through his first Legacy."
"Good job."
Savannah shrugged. "Some good it would do. He's next to be killed."
"Savannah, think for a few seconds. What have I told you about the Lorien Garde?"
"You have to be killed in order. Unless - " Savannah's eyes widened in sudden understanding.
"Yup," Marina replied darkly as they kept walking. "John and I are together now. Any one of us can be killed next."
Her phone rang at exactly that moment. She held up a finger and picked up. "Hello?" she asked at almost the exact time Sam said it.
"Sam, Marina," John's panicked voice told them. "I need your help."
"I'm on my way," Marina replied instantly, not even hesitating. She hung up and looked at Savannah. "Cover for me?"
"Don't I always?" her friend joked, and Marina took off for the doors.
***
Present Time
"This appears to be it," Sam commented, stopping the truck.
Marina held up a pair of binoculars, looking ahead. She frowned at the two story house. "No lights are on."
"We can fix that," John replied, getting out of the car, followed by Marina. Sam reached into the trunk and pulled something out, and John yelped. "Sam, you brought a gun? Really?"
"The one you tried to kill us with?" Marina added, raising an eyebrow.
"If these were the creeps that took my father, I'm going with you," Sam replied, completely stubborn. "Don't doubt it."
Marina sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Then come on."
She stepped lightly over the grass, going at a run for the broken window she had seen. She arrived first, dropping nimbly into a crouch right by it. John stopped right next to her, Sam a little ways behind. She took a flashlight from her jacket and stood up at the same time as John. His hands lit up, and he aimed them into the house, scanning for anyone inside.
Nothing. "Alright, Sam, you're on guard," John told his friend. "Anyone who looks normal, shout down to us. Any guy with pale skin in trench coats, shoot them up."
Sam nodded nervously. "Got it."
John climbed up and through the window, and he turned to help Marina in. They swung their lights around the room, whispering Henri's name over and over. When they didn't get a response, the delved deeper into the house.
Marina was the first one to see it. "John," she whispered, pointing her flashlight to a trapdoor in the floor. Together, they pushed it up and open, seeing a staircase go downstairs.
John was about to go down, but Marina held out a hand. She dug into her boot and took out her Loric knife and handed it to John hilt first. "Don't go down there unarmed."
John smiled and took it. Marina took out the SIG-Sauer gun she was the most comfortable with, and they both went down the stairs. Marina adjusted so both her gun and flashlight were raised, then she heard John's whispered voice. "Henri."
She turned to see John running towards a figure in the dark. Marina ran over as well, then saw that Henri was hanging limply from chains on the ceiling. She raised her gun and with a sharp bang, she fired at the links, releasing the chains and also Henri.
"John," Henri whispered, clinging to his charge as if it was his life. "You shouldn't . . . "
"You're kidding me, right?" John snapped. "I'd never - "
"It was a trap," Henri told him, a little bit louder, straightening up. "It was a trap."
The trapdoor opened again, and the lights in the room flared on. Marina swung around, her gun raised to point straight at Sam, who was being held at gunpoint by the man holding him. "You fire, he's dead," the man hissed.
John sighed. "So glad you brought the gun," he told Sam sarcastically.
Sam swallowed, and Marina looked over at John. "What do I do?" she whispered.
Henri looked at Sam, raising an eyebrow. "You're Malcolm's boy."
Sam nodded grimly.
Henri gave a look of consideration, then turned to John. "Hit the lights."
John raised a hand, but Marina got quicker. She clenched her hand, and blasts of electricity rocketed around the room. The lights not only flickered off. They exploded.
She heard Henri yelp in surprise, but she ignored it. "John!" she shouted.
She saw the flare of the knife's blue light, and she saw it hurl towards her. She caught it, then swung it down on the rifle, cracking it so it wouldn't fire at all. The guy was ripped away from Sam by John's telekinesis, and he swung up into the air.
Marina smirked, seeing the man hovering there looking like he was about to pee his pants. She twirled the Loric knife and handed it back to John. "There you go."
John smirked right back, activating his Lumen and shining it right in the guy's face. "Who told you about us?"
"They said you were coming," the guy gasped out. "They said you would try to take over the world!"
"They say the same thing about Al Qaeda, too, and where has that gotten them?" Marina muttered. She grinned at Henri, who was watching the exchange with interest.
John's gaze narrowed. "Who said that?" When the guy didn't answer, he yelled this time. "WHO?"
"John, that's enough," Henri told him, grabbing John's arm. "We need to get out of here. Now."
Marina didn't argue. She took the two snapped ends of the rifle and tossed them by the guy as John let him go. Henri stepped over to a work table nearby and got a Loric knife of his own and a rock that glowed blue. "Is that Loralite?" John asked curiously.
"Yeah," Henri replied, tossing it into the air and turning. "It's from - " He cut off, eyes widening. "John!"
Marina turned, seeing shadows block the doorway. She ran to John, grabbing him and hoping to get him to cover, but the knife aimed straight for them would get to him first. Just as her fingers wrapped around his wrist, she felt a wave of vertigo wash over her. She barely even comprehended the knife that flew right through John as if he was a ghost.
John's jaw dropped even as Marina pulled him back into the darkness of the room. "How - ?" he gasped.
Marina looked at her hand in surprise, then took her knife and brought it down on her wrist. The knife went right through her. "New Legacy," she replied, sounding surprised. "Wow. That's new."
The sound of metal clashing brought their attention to the other side of the room. Sam was crouched under the table, looking to the center of the room. Henri and a Mogadorian were fighting, knife to knife, and it was hard to tell who was winning. "John, go!" Henri shouted at them. "Get out of here!"
***
John took Marina's hand and pulled her towards the stairs. Sam noticed and took the run as well. They made it up the stairs to see more Mogadorians were swarming towards them. Marina squeezed her trigger more than once, and soon they were running past piles of ash.
She dove into the truck into the back, and Sam and John piled into their respective seats. Sam reached for his pockets, then his eyes widened. "Crap."
"What?" John asked, looking at him. "I don't like that."
"I lost the keys."
Marina groaned, and then the front door flung open. John crawled in back to be with Marina as Henri got in, panting heavily. He tossed the Loralite stone in back, and Marina caught it. He frowned, looking at all of them. "Why aren't we going?"
"I lost the damned keys!" Sam replied, banging his head on the wheel.
Henri turned to John. "You should be able to get it to work."
John blinked, then crawled back up and held out his hand to the front. The engine rumbled briefly, but then cut out. "Concentrate, John!" Henri barked.
"Trying," he replied, his voice strained.
Sam looked up into the rearview mirror, and his eyes widened. "Hurry it up!" he shouted, sounding worried.
Marina twisted, and whatever she saw made her eyes widen. It made John want to look back, too. As it turned out, he didn't have to.
A crunch made the top of the car cave in, and John had to duck to avoid being crushed. He looked up to see the Mogadorian from the basement on the hood, a wicked-looking sword held in his hand.
He couldn't react. All that he saw was the sword crashing right through the windshield. "John!" Marina screamed, and John automatically tried to get away. He knew he wouldn't.
Then Henri leaned across in front of him, pushing him back. The sword went right through his Cêpan's abdomen.
Marina's scream was louder this time, and that was what made John furious. He reached out and used his telekinesis to shove the Mogadorian away. His other hand came up and clenched. The engine to the car roared to life, and Sam slammed his foot onto the accelerator.
Marina leaned over, putting her hand on Henri's shoulder, but his own hand came up and stopped her. "Which . . . number?" he asked.
Marina visibly swallowed. "Number Seven. Gibbs is my protector."
Henri nodded slightly. "Gibbs . . . he took over when we landed," he told her hoarsely. "I had completely forgotten. Your original Cêpan, Adelina . . . she died trying to get you out of Lorien. I tried to help. When we got here . . . I didn't know who would protect you." He looked her right in the eye. "She would've been proud of you." Marina choked down a sob at that and turned away.
Henri nodded as if this brought back a painful memory, then winced as John applied more pressure to the stab wound. Blood rushed over his fingers, and he shook his head, trying to clear out the tears he was sure would fall.
He just hoped that he'd stay alive.
***
Marina and Sam were chatting softly by the truck with the occasional glance as John laid Henri down in the grass by the old railroad tracks by their house. "You can't die now," John whispered, trying hard not to cry.
Henri gave a strained smile. "John, everything has an end. This is mine." He winced as a rush of pain came over him. "Adelina's was a long time ago. I see her in Marina."
John shook his head, sniffing. "I try to think about leaving her. I can't."
Henri nodded weakly. "Like my wife, back on Lorien." He winced again, this time gasping out the words. "A Loric only loves once, John." He leaned back as if he could sink further into the grass, and gave a shuddering sigh. "I promised Adelina that if I saw her charge again, I would keep her safe." He looked up at John and swallowed. "Promise me that, John. And find the others. Promise!"
John nodded. "I promise."
Henri gave a weaker smile. "The power of six," he murmured. "The power . . . of six . . . " He took one last breath, and then he was gone.
John looked down at his dead father figure and swallowed, turning away and putting his face in his hands. Barely a second later and Marina was there, her arm around him, and with the other, she grasped one of John's. She was crying, too. He knew it without looking at her. "I could've healed him," she whispered, and she leaned into John, who wrapped one arm around her as well. "I could've, but he stopped me. Why?"
John hugged her firmly, and both of them let their tears go. A rustling in the wind made them look back at Henri. His body turned to stone, then into a glittering powder, and he was swept away in the wind. They looked up in the sky, then heard Sam turn on the radio behind them. Finally, John turned her to look at him. "He promised Adelina that he would protect you. That's mine now." He made her look up at him. "I'm not letting you go."
"And I'm not letting you go, either," she replied firmly, no waver in her voice.
The next seconds, their lips attacked each other's, letting out feelings they didn't dare say out loud.
***
Savannah had her chin in her hands, looking at the TV in Marina's old apartment, watching the news. There was nothing new ever on. But something came on that had her sit up straight. "We're at a house on the border between Ohio and Indiana where we have found the bodies of two conspiracy theorists from 'They Walk Among Us,' horribly disfigured and dead. It has been rumored that terrorists Henri Smith and his son, John, have been responsible, and the police are looking for them as we speak," a reporter announced.
Savannah scrambled for her phone, picking it up and dialing Marina. "Pick up, pick up," she silently begged.
She didn't. "Damn it," Savannah muttered. She went to her room and tossed a few things into her backpack and took one of the Loric guns Gibbs had given her, tucking it into the waistband of her jeans. She took another of the knives and slid it into her boot, swinging her backpack over her shoulder when her phone rang again. She picked it up. "Starlight."
"Did you see the news?" Gibbs demanded.
"Hell yeah," Savannah replied. "What're we doing?"
"Finding them before something worse happens."
"Got it."
Savannah hung up and exited, tossing the keys to the floor. Somehow she had the feeling she wasn't going to be seeing Paradise for a very long time.