The Undoing Of Villains | ✓

twenty nine

(a/n: today's chapter is dedicated to  alanarosemarie  for the lovely votes and comments! and without further ado, here's the chapter! enjoy ;p ) 

twenty nine

MANIPULATING MY POWERS with one part of my mind, the other focused solely on Xandra's plan, I narrowly dodged the edge of a towering high-rise, catching my surprised look in the window-filled exterior as I dodged to the right. 

Keep your focus intact, Charlie. 

And I tried, the plan reverberating through my head as I shot through the night, keeping my distance from the skyscrapers dotting the central parts of Dynamo City. There was a low shelf of clouds brushing up against the taller of the buildings, dark and eerie, covering the few glimpses of the moon I had as I pushed myself to speed up. 

I could see my destination ahead - spearing straight for it, I shot through a cover of clouds. A cold, wet feeling slithered along my cheek as I surfaced on the other side, water droplets clinging to my face as my eyes set on one place in particular - The Valerian Gardens. 

The plan was not for me to stay there the entire night. Instead, I merely headed for it, landing quietly as I dropped to my haunches, cautiously glancing around me. What I really needed the Valerian Gardens for was so that I could navigate myself to a certain spot. Knowing the rough area of where I needed to go, I stepped up to the glass railing - the one which Vector had kicked me through a few weeks ago - and glanced out over the skyline. 

As usual, the river slithered calm and dark through the town, while the bridges crossing it were alive with cars and buses giving off blue-tinted lights. The other parts of the city, low-rise buildings edging into the suburbs, were still glowing softly, a golden glow covering some of the starlight dusting the night sky. 

If I had a minute, I would take it just to stare. Just stare and preserve the moment for what it was. After this night, I wasn't sure how many more moments Charlie would be able to have - at least for herself. 

I fisted my hands, nails digging into my palms. There was a knot of fear, of anxiety and worry lodged in my throat. I seemed to breathe through a small slit. 

You're Synapse. You can do this. 

And then I forced my hands to relax. If I couldn't go through with this after the hours I'd practiced with my powers, after my fights and scuffles and victories in Dynamo ... I deserved to be hit with a plastic blue hairbrush. Hard. In the eye. 

With that, I shoved the uncertainty aside, forcing it deep, deep down in the dark corners of my mind where I kept obscure childhood memories and pictures from Google-searches gone wrong. My eyes rested on the skyline, while my heart thumped madly in my chest. And there, right as my eyes swept across the haze of blocks upon blocks of buildings - 

The rooftop I'd been looking for. I straightened, brushed dust off of my clothes. I was still wearing the clothes I'd gone to bed in - luckily, a pair of leggings and a sweater - but I felt naked without my suit. I hoped Xandra would get on with her part of the plan soon enough, or I'd have to fight the great showdown with my nemesis wearing a sweater, most likely stained with coffee. 

Lifting off the roof again, the flow of power came easily. A red light enveloped me, and like a comet I shot off again, for that specific rooftop. I landed what felt like moments later, hands still glowing with that red. Narrowing my eyes, I peered at the rooftop, whose gravel made it hard to discern any particular shapes.