The Custodes

Chapter 24 - Conference Room

Neo
Neo rapidly climbed the stairs of Kelsie's apartment complex. He'd tried to get there as fast as he could, but the distance between it and Hector's place was fairly decent. His phone buzzed in his pocket, again, but he figured he was close enough that he didn't need to answer it. Synthia's apparent disappearance had cause his anxiety to spiral into levels of almost hysteria, but he was actively forcing himself to stay calm for her sake. With Zuro in hiding it was impossible to judge what he was planning to do next; picking them off one by one seemed like an extremely plausible option. Hoping for the best was all he could do, but he'd be lying if he said his stomach wasn't in knots at the thought of any harm coming to Synthia. He blitzed it up the stairs, eventually making it to Kelsie's door but pausing as he saw what was undoubtedly blood stains on the carpet right outside it. His mind spiralled at the implications, but theorising was pointless when the answers likely lay right in front of him. He tried to open the door, finding it locked as it did automatically and quickly knocking on it instead. When it opened to reveal a man he'd never seen before in his life he was slightly stunned, merely blinking at his features as the guy examined him curiously "Hey." Neo pushed past the complete stranger, rudely ignoring their greeting - he felt bad, but he had more pressing matters to attend to - and had to double take at the sight he saw. A girl as still as death was laying on the floor, her face so pale it looked like she'd been shoved in a freezer overnight, and Kelsie was kneeling over her - her face contorted in strain and concentration as her healing magic surrounded the girl's head. Nexus was sat on the couch staring blankly at the girl, who Neo assumed was Quinn, as Kelsie worked on her, though his body language revealed the anxiety deep inside him. It was then Neo realised just how weak his brother looked, as well as noticing his injuries for the first time. An all but obliterated foot, a blood-infused bandage that had been wrapped loosely around his knee, and what appeared to be a bullet wound in his shoulder, not to mention the god awful state his face was in. It seemed impossible that the man was still conscious, yet here he was. Neo was almost too stunned to move, or ask what had happened, but then his gaze fell on Synthia. She was injured too, he could tell that immediately, although nowhere near as badly as Nexus. Her gaze fell on him right as his did her, and without hesitation Neo ran over and wrapped his arms tightly around her. The two embraced, with Synthia placing her head on Neo's shoulder, but she suddenly winced as his hand brushed against her ribs. He pulled back quickly, examining where he'd touched her before looking back at her face "What happened to you?" She managed a weak-looking smile, but his face stayed firm with concern. "I was jumped." She said quietly to him, brushing a strand of hair out of her face "A group of thugs. It...wasn't nice. But then Milo showed up." As she motioned to him, Milo gave a small wave to Neo, who looked at him in slight puzzlement before slowly nodding to him. "He's the ice one Neo. The missing piece." Synthia whispered, causing Neo's eyes to widen slightly before he turned to Milo properly "I see. It's nice to meet you. Neo." "Nice to meet you too." He said with a friendly smile, leaning over to shake his hand before looking at Kelsie as she helped Quinn on the floor. Neo looked back at Synthia, then quickly pecked her forehead and flashed her a small smile "I'm just glad you're okay." She returned his smile, then looked over his shoulder right as Axel emerged from the kitchen. "Here." He said, handing a tub of pills over to Nexus, who said nothing as he opened it and tossed a few in his mouth. Axel looked over at Neo, giving him a small nod hello, before walking over to Kelsie and kneeling beside her "Neo, it's good to see you aren't horrifically injured like our other guests." Neo managed a quick smile at that but was unable to put away the feeling of distrust in Axel that was now prominent in his mind. He moved over to stand a little bit in front of the couch, examining Nexus as his brother didn't so much as meet his gaze "What happened to you? An hour ago you were perfectly fine." "None of your business." The man muttered, clearly vain about whatever happened to him, or maybe just the fact he was stuck in a living room with Neo and his friends. "Hey, we're being hospitable to you. The least you can do is tell us what the fuck happened." Neo said as unthreateningly as he could muster. If Nexus were here it was likely because he needed help, and judging by Quinn's state that's exactly what it was. Despite their scuffle at his home, Nexus wasn't exactly looking for a fight at the moment. In fact more than anything he just seemed...defeated. It didn't surprise Neo that Kelsie and Axel had helped him either. Regardless of what had happened, attacking Nexus on sight when he's been beaten this badly and is clutching his half-dead girlfriend wasn't the way the group operated. Maybe that's what would be their downfall, Neo suddenly thought. Nexus let out a heavy sigh, closing his eyes and leaning back against the couch as the pills, assumedly painkillers, began to do their thing "An associate turned on me. Took Quinn hostage and used what was essentially an army of thugs to try capture me. Fucking almost had them all as well, but the slimy runt used her to get the better of me. He had his fun enacting a good old bit of torture before I gave up all my bank accounts. We managed to get free but...he shot Quinn in the head. Your lady friend was the only person I knew who had the ability to save her." When Nexus stopped speaking the room descended into silence. Every head had turned to look at him, except Kelsie as she remained doing her best to heal Quinn. He peaked one eye open, catching the incredulous look on more than one face, then even managed a slight chuckle. It seemed everyone in the room, bar Milo who had no association with the man, had pegged Nexus to be a heartless sociopath who cared for nothing but himself. Hearing about the lengths he went to, and the obvious pain he endured, just to save someone else had obviously perplexed them to an extent. Neo was the first to speak, clearing his throat as he glanced down at Quinn and noticed the very prominent bullet sized hole just below her chin "What happened to the associate? And the 'army of thugs'?" "Dead." Nexus stated bluntly, clearly not having a single care for the fate of those who went against him "All of them. Lying in puddles of their own blood back in that warehouse." Neo swallowed slightly, then set his jaw as he looked at Nexus "Your disregard for human life is despicable." "You seem to be mistaking me for someone who values your opinion." Nexus looked straight at Neo now, allowing the boy to see the same fire in his eyes that had no doubt burned in his own many times before "You don't take hostages Neo. That's something you don't do. And especially not when it's the only thing on this planet I give a shit about." His gaze fell down to Quinn now, as Neo inhaled deeply before moving back over to Synthia's side. "How is it going...? Will she live?" Nexus asked Kelsie, who's face twitched slightly at the disturbance in her concentration. "Y-yes but...this is the...h-hardest thing I've ever done." The girl said quickly, trying her best to tell Nexus what he needs to hear so she can go back to her work "Let me keep going." The man simply nodded and sat back in his seat, grunting at the pain in his legs as he did so. "So this group of thugs just attacked you? Out of the blue?" Neo said to Synthia, brow furrowing in confusion as she nodded her head "Pretty much. I don't have a clue why, but as soon as I stabbed a few of them I guess they saw me as more of a threat and done me in pretty badly." Neo thought about this, then looked over at Nexus and narrowed his eyes suspiciously "Nexus, did you send those guys to attack her?" He spoke accusingly, trying not to get overly emotional at the thought of it, but Nexus' next words would be the deciding factor on that. The man leaned an elbow over the back of the couch, turning to look at Neo and flashing him a look like he was stupid "No. You really think every single thing these pricks get up to is orchestrated by me? They probably saw a pretty young girl walking alone down a street at night and took their chance to do whatever they wanted to her." "You're fucking scum." Axel suddenly spoke up, seriously not a fan of the notion of what might have happened to his sister. "I just told you I never had anything to do with it." Nexus said calmly, more like he was bored than trying to quell Axel's anger "And it's not like I train these guys up into what they are. I offer them a chance to make cash, not join a fucking sex trafficking business." "Anyway, it's over and done with." Synthia spoke up, trying to diffuse the situation and move past any more mention of the thugs' motives "Did I mention the fact that I'm perfectly fine?" "Broken ribs and a fractured arm do not qualify for 'fine'." Axel stated, but Synthia was quick to brush him off with her hand. "Speaking of, I never thanked you for that." Neo said, turning to Milo now "If it weren't for you then-...I don't wanna think about what might've happened. Just know we're grateful." "Don't mention it. Even without the powers I would've stepped in; this city's crawling with crime and villainy. I hate it." Milo said, scrunching his face up slightly in disgust as Neo let out a sour chuckle "Well, you got problems with that I'd stay away from him." He pointed his thumb at Nexus, who flipped him off over his shoulder "He's practically the ruler of scum in this city." "Ah, right..." Milo said, eyeing Nexus cautiously before clearing his throat "Who...actually is he again?" "Nexus Ahriman. Pleasure to make your acquaintance whoever the fuck you are." Nexus said without turning around, slowly reverting into his regular antagonising, cocky persona due to Kelsie's reassurance that Quinn would be okay. "He's my brother. Unfortunately." Neo explained, eliciting a small chuckle from Milo. "Well, I certainly never imagined going to buy a late night snack from the store would lead to this." He said in slight amusement, motion to the room as a whole. It seemed everyone's spirits had been slightly lifted, despite the fact Quinn was still out cold. Though her face did appear to have a lot more colour and the bullet wounds had been entirely healed. "Have you decided yet?" Neo heard Synthia say beside him, looking at Milo with a slightly pleading look in her eyes. Just as he opened his mouth to reply however, Kelsie sucked in a huge, loud gasp of air and crumpled over, only to be caught by Axel as her healing slowly diminished. "Is that her? Is she back to normal?" Nexus asked quickly, looking at Kelsie, but she looked far too tired to even reply. He pushed himself up from the couch, trying to move closer to Quinn any way he could, but only resulted in tumbling off the edge, his legs unable to support him as he thudded against the ground. No one looked too concerned - they all still disliked Nexus very much despite having just helped him. He stayed on the floor, watching Quinn with waited breath, until finally her eyelids peeled open and her chest moved up and down in a regular rhythm once again. "Nexus...?" She said, quieter than a whisper, her eyes locking on to him before she turned and wrapped her arms tightly around him. "You're alive. Thank God..." He muttered into her hair, but his voice held a strange, unreadable undertone that showed he was feeling something alongside relief at that moment. It was gone the next instant however, as he pulled slightly away only to press his lips against hers in a kiss. Everyone else in the room stood around awkwardly, but they all had to admit there was something pure about their affection. "That was horrible..." Quinn whispered as she broke the kiss, her hands holding the sides of his head as she pressed her forehead against his "I was terrified." "I know. Nothing like that will happen again. I'm making sure." There it was again, that almost grim lining to his words despite the fact he wore a smile on his face. Quinn didn't seem to notice it however, kissing him again before suddenly realising they had an audience. She looked at all the people around them, focusing on their faces before stopping on Milo. Nexus spoke to her in a hushed voice that no one else could pick up, though they all assumed he was explaining what they were doing there, as Quinn's gaze slowly turned away from Milo to focus on Kelsie "You helped me?" Kelsie gave a small nod, still leaning heavily on Axel but slowly regaining her energy. "Why?" Quinn asked, unable to comprehend any reason why the complete stranger would put so much effort into helping her. "You were dying...practically dead, actually." Kelsie spoke quietly, still breathing slightly heavier than normal as she looked at Quinn "I wasn't just going to say no." "Thank you." Nexus and Quinn said at the same time, causing Kelsie to look away in slight embarrassment before Quinn started to push herself up - her injured foot having been healed in Kelsie's overload of healing. She realised quickly that Nexus was unable to do so, but when she tried to help him back onto the couch he suddenly cried out as the mesh of flesh that used to be his foot bumped against the table leg. "Stay there." Kelsie said, moving towards Nexus, only for Axel to grab her hand "Kelse you're about to pass out. You need to rest or else you'll hurt yourself." "Look at him Axel!" Kelsie said, raising her voice only to make a point as she motioned to Nexus' injuries "I know he's pretending it doesn't hurt as much as it does, so I'm not just sitting and getting my energy back while he's like this." Axel didn't try to hold her back when she tugged away, but he still didn't approve of what she was doing "He wouldn't do the same for you. He's our enemy Kelse, if you help him it'll be a huge hindrance to us." There was a small pause as everyone silently watched to see what the girl would do, before she moved over in front of Nexus and raised her hands. "I know." She said with a hint of finality, before her hands started to shine brightly as she healed Nexus' foot. "Is he right?" Synthia whispered quietly to Neo, watching as Nexus stayed silent while he received healing from Kelsie "Is he still our enemy?" Neo bit his lip, considering it for a second, before sighing and shaking his head "I don't know. If you'd asked me an hour ago I would've said no - the meeting at his place didn't go too well - but seeing him here...I don't know, maybe he'll have a change of heart." "Or maybe not." Synthia muttered coldly, her dislike for Nexus being made clear through her tone. She remembered the way he stopped her from getting to Neo when Zuro was planting the memories in his head. In her mind Nexus was at fault for what happened after just as much as Zuro was. "What's your name?" Quinn asked as she stared at Kelsie, kneeling beside Nexus while he simply lay there. "Kelsie." She replied simply, strain in her voice as she moved from healing Nexus' foot to his kneecap. "Why the fuck are you this nice?" Quinn said bluntly, genuinely asking due to her inability to understand any valid reason for her compassion. "This is really...difficult to do...while talking." Kelsie muttered, her face scrunching up very slightly with the amount of effort she was putting in. Normally healing didn't require even a fraction of this sort of focus and concentration, but since she was practically running entirely on fumes it was like drawing blood from a rock. "My bad." Quinn said, growing quiet again, only for Kelsie to let out a sigh as she reached the final hurdle on Nexus' knee. "I just...want to...help people...however I can...always have...always will." She said through gritted teeth, as Quinn looked at her in what almost seemed like awe. "I was wondering while I'm here..." Milo spoke up, looking at Neo and Synthia who turned to him curiously "...this weapon you wanted me to help craft. Should we do that just now?" "What weapon?" Nexus said quickly, turning to look at the trio with puzzled, narrowed eyes as Synthia swallowed quietly. Kelsie hurriedly distracted him however, finishing with his leg and rapidly grabbing his face, turning him back to look at her. "You don't have to-" He was cut off in the middle of rejecting Kelsie as her hands shone brightly again, starting to heal the bruises and cuts on his face as well as his lost tooth. "We can't right now." Synthia said as she looked at Milo, smiling a little apologetically "The two others we need aren't here. And we don't...actually know what we're doing. We'll need to see Hector to do it." "My uncle?" Quinn spoke up, her interest piqued as she looked over at Neo and Synthia. "Right. I almost forgot you were his niece." Neo said, nodding to Quinn in confirmation. "She's his niece?" Axel said loudly, voicing his surprise only for Synthia to shut him up by placing a finger against her lips. "Only by blood. We're not exactly close." Quinn said with a shrug, still talking to Neo despite Axel's outburst. "Seriously?" It was Neo's turn to sound surprised now, raising his eyebrows as he looked at Quinn's confused features "He told us you were the most precious thing to him in the world." Quinn suddenly looked as though she'd been slapped, staring at Neo like she was waiting for him to burst out laughing "He said that?" "Yeah, he did." Synthia confirmed, smiling a little as she said it. Quinn continued to look stunned, before she slowly regained her composure and shook her head "It doesn't matter anyway...if he cared half as much as he pretends he'd tell me what I want to know." Neo and Synthia exchanged a glance. Hector has referenced something like a falling out, and Neo couldn't help but let his curiosity get the better of him. "He mentioned an argument between you two." He said almost hesitantly, watching Quinn listen intently to anything her uncle might've said "Said something would break your heart if he told you." Quinn scoffed at that, looking extremely irked by his words "Yeah. He's told me that too. Although I tend to think one deserves to keep the memories of their entire family's destruction." Neo grew quiet at that, entirely unsure how to respond. Hearing the deeper details of what was being withheld from Quinn put an entirely different spin on what Hector had told him, but he still trusted that the man had his reasoning. "At least you have memories of any sort of family. Their deaths must've been a troubling time, maybe Hector just wants you to keep the fonder memories of them." Neo suggested, but Quinn merely snorted, now on the offensive in the conversation "He's outright denying me something he stole. Don't try to justify it." Neo raised his hands in surrender, thankfully saved from the conversation by Kelsie pulling away from Nexus, leaving his face entirely unscathed as he looked at her gratefully. "Kelse." Axel said worriedly, watching as she placed a hand against the couch and caught her breath. She waved him off for what felt like the third time, then pushed herself up to a standing position. "Don't...worry...I'm fi-" As soon as she tried to take a step her body shut down, causing her to black out as she fell to the floor. Axel tried get to her in time but it was Nexus who stopped her from smashing her face off the ground, quickly catching her with his powers before lowering her gently. Synthia and Neo looked on in concern but Axel was quick to lift her into his arms, cradling her against his chest as he moved silently and exasperatedly over to her bedroom. "We should go." Nexus said to Quinn, standing up and taking her hand only for Neo to immediately interrupt "Wait. There's things we need to talk about." "Yes, I think so too." Quinn said in agreement, stepping away from Nexus and crossing her arms over her chest. Nexus silently looked between them, chewing his tongue, before he set his jaw. "We're doing this now?" He asked, looking at Quinn, who nodded her head firmly "We put it on hold for my sake. Now I need an answer, Nex. It's decision time." Milo moved quietly over and sat down on a seat, watching the exchange without saying a word right as Axel re-entered the room and Synthia went to stand by his side. Neo watched Nexus' expression silently, waiting to see what he would say, only to feel his stomach churn as his brother's face drained of emotion and turn firm and serious. It was as though the room had become slightly colder, with Nexus slipping his hands into his pockets and looking Quinn right in the eye before speaking. "We're done." Neo had almost expected it, but Quinn looked like she'd taken a shotgun shell to the chest, actively stepping backwards as she stared at her now ex-lover. "What?" She said, angrily demanding an explanation with a simple gaze. "Twice in one night my feelings for you have been used against me. It was the soul reason I never wanted to get into this in the first place but here I am. I'm putting a stop to it, now." Nexus said bluntly, wearing the most blank expression anyone could muster as Quinn clenched her fists. "You fucking asshole!" She shouted, trying to punch him right in the face only for her hand to freeze in mid-air. Nexus' hands were concealed in his pockets, but the movement from them could still be vaguely seen. "Don't you dare try and tell me you don't care about me! About us!" She continued to yell, with Nexus freeing her fist and causing her to stumble forward slightly. "I didn't say that. It's precisely the reason why I'm ending things. Attachment is weakness, you saw that first hand." He stated, watching emotionlessly as Quinn tried to hit him again, only for Neo to grab her arms and pull her back hurriedly. "I thought after everything we did together that you'd understand how twisted that sort of mindset was. I was counting on it. How could you not have changed?" She sounded devastated, which of course she was, but all she elicited from him was a faint twitch of his features. Every single barrier she had broken down was back up again. The thought was surreal to her, but it only served to make her even angrier despite the realisation of her defeat slowly settling in. "I don't know what to tell you. I never lied to you once - I made it as clear as I ever could that this was still a possible outcome after everything." Quinn began simple yelling curse words at him, struggling in Neo's grasp to try and go for him. "So that's it then?" Neo shouted over Quinn, looking past her to glare at Nexus "You end things with her and then leave to go back to Zuro." "I'm afraid so kid." Nexus stared simply, as Quinn ceased her shouting and stared up at him in stunned disbelief "So that's what you're doing. Ending things with me so you can go join him and feel less guilty about it." "Yes. In a sense, at least." Nexus spoke like he was having the most casual conversation in the world - not breaking a girl's heart and admitting himself to be an enemy to everyone in the room. "The choice narrowed down to whether I cared more about you or myself, Quinn." He said, meeting her gaze directly as she looked traumatically back at him "I choose myself. Once you're all out of the way it'll be Zuro next, I'll find power my own way." "Power. Power? That's what you fucking want?" Neo said to his brother, growing increasingly infuriated despite still trying to keep Quinn at bay "You'll be dead Nexus. And you'll be alone up until then." "You're threatening me right here?" Nexus pondered, only for Axel to suddenly be standing right behind him "Yes, he is." Nexus let out a laugh. It was cruel and grim; everyone in the room seemed to tense uncomfortably. "I only have one word of advice. Run. And hide. Leaving the city and never using your powers again is the best thing I can tell you to do...but I've got a feeling you aren't going to listen." Nexus stared down Neo, then turned to look at Synthia, then Axel as well, as though to get his point across. "Give me one good reason why we shouldn't put you down right now." Neo said, his eyes never leaving Nexus as Quinn stood perfectly still in front of him. "That's simple." Nexus said, a tiny smirk making its way to his face as he shrugged "Cause you can't. I shouldn't need to explain that to you." "Oh yeah?" Axel said, as his arm began to charge up with red energy. "Axel!" Neo shouted, holding up a hand as he gritted his teeth with reluctance "We can't. Whether he's right or not...it would get too messy." Axel didn't seem happy about that, but slowly let the energy dissipate into nothing "Fine. But he better leave in the next five seconds." "Agreed." Neo said, though watched as Quinn took a shaky step forward, gripping Nexus' torso as she looked desperately into his eyes, her own pair red and puffy as tears streamed down her face. "I love you." She whispered, though her voice was weak, measly; like she knew her attempt would serve no purpose at all yet she was trying nonetheless. Nexus looked down at her, letting his smirk drift smoothly into a thin, cold line "I know. I'll say it once more - leave town and everything else behind. I don't want to watch you die, Quinn." The way he said it made it sound like it would be nothing more than a mere inconvenience to him, and that broke her heart more than she'd thought possible. She sobbed into her hand, then slowly slid down to the floor as Nexus stood solemnly in place. "Can't you see what you're doing? I know you can, seeing her like this is killing you on the inside." Neo said accusingly to Nexus, who turned his gaze uncaringly on him despite his words striking true "Emotions don't make you weak Nexus. I know you don't believe what you're doing is right - and you fucking know it too. Look at her Nexus. Look at her!" "You don't know shit Neo!" Nexus suddenly snapped, moving past Quinn to step towards his younger brother yet still not looking at her "Nothing about me, or her, or anything in this fucked up world! You here me?" Instead of stepping back Neo moved forward to get right in Nexus' face, grabbing his shirt and pulling him down so they clashed foreheads "I'm not a fucking child anymore Nexus. No matter how you try to act I can see the person underneath. Now look at her and try tell me you want to leave her like this." Neo suddenly released Nexus, but his gaze stayed firmly on him despite Quinn's quiet sobs filling the room. "You don't know me. At all." Nexus stuck by his previous statement, but the hands now held by his sides were quivering noticeably. "I do. Deny it all you want - it took me a while, but I know you exactly like I used to." Neo said firmly, refusing to back down even at Nexus' increasingly threatening body language "I know about the night in the alleyway. How guilty you feel. And I know how much this is hurting you right now. You love her Nexus! Just tell her!" Nexus suddenly lashed out by sending a punch right at Neo's face, the move so impulsive that he didn't even use the assist of his powers. Neo, with Zuro's memories at his back, was almost unnaturally quick to dodge, ducking back then pushing Nexus' elbow to cause his own momentum to spin him entirely around. The next instant Neo had grabbed Nexus in a headlock, much to everyone else in the room's amazement, then forced his head downwards towards Quinn's crumpled form "Look! Tell me I'm wrong." Nexus briefly attempted to shake Neo off him, but then Quinn glanced up and their eyes met. Nexus froze, looking into her grieving eyes, and suddenly his face became filled with regret and sorrow. His eyes started to water, and as his emotions bled through his solid-as-steel heartless demeanour Nexus began to panic, and did the only thing he could think of doing. He ran away.