Chapter 22: Faculty Clash
Dean Shetty's office smelled of fresh ink and calculated ambition, the kind of space designed to intimidate through understated power. Landon perched on the edge of his chair, maintaining the careful balance between defiance and deference that had kept him alive this long at Godolkin. Afternoon sunlight slanted through floor-to-ceiling windows, casting sharp shadows across mahogany furniture that probably cost more than most people's cars.
The dean herself sat behind her desk like a spider in a web of institutional authority, her smile as warm and genuine as a corporate press release. Everything about her screamed careful cultivation—from the precisely arranged family photos to the strategic placement of awards that reminded visitors exactly who held the power here.
"Landon," she said, voice carrying the honeyed authority of someone accustomed to being obeyed. "Thank you for coming. I hope you understand this conversation is purely precautionary."
The lie settled between them like smoke, acrid with implications. Landon's enhanced senses picked up the tension radiating from her carefully controlled posture, the way her fingers drummed a silent rhythm against the desk's polished surface. This wasn't precautionary. This was an interrogation disguised as concern.
"Of course, Dean Shetty." Landon manufactured a nervous smile, letting a tremor creep into his voice. "Is everything okay? I haven't done anything wrong, have I?"
The performance was automatic by now—the slight stutter, the wide-eyed innocence, the way he made himself smaller in the chair. But beneath the act, his mind raced through possibilities and contingencies. How much did she know? How much did she suspect? And more importantly, how far was she willing to go to protect whatever secrets Vought was hiding?
"These riots," Shetty continued, her tone suggesting casual conversation about the weather rather than campus-wide violence. "They're concerning. Students getting hurt, property being damaged. I'm sure you can understand why the administration needs to take a closer look at potential... catalysts."
Catalysts. The word landed like a punch to the solar plexus, wrapped in corporate doublespeak but sharp with accusation. Landon felt the system's presence lurking at the edge of his consciousness, a familiar weight that had become as natural as breathing.
"I don't really understand what you're getting at," Landon said, adding just enough confusion to his voice to sell the innocence. "I mean, I try to stay out of trouble. Keep my head down, you know?"
Shetty's smile never wavered, but something predatory flickered behind her eyes. "Of course. Though it's interesting how often trouble seems to find you anyway. The incidents with other students, the unusual... recovery patterns. Some might call that suspicious."
[SYSTEM: Shetty's watching. Lie better, coward.]
The system's commentary scraped across his consciousness like fingernails on glass, but for once its mockery felt less like self-hatred and more like strategic reminder. This was a game he could play—had been playing since his first death on the quad. The trick was knowing when to fold and when to double down.
"I guess I'm just unlucky," Landon said, letting genuine exhaustion leak through the words. "Wrong place, wrong time. Story of my life, really."
Before Shetty could respond, the office door swung open with enough force to rattle the framed diplomas on the wall. Marie Moreau entered like an avenging angel wrapped in righteous fury, her blood powers sending iron-scented tendrils through the carefully controlled atmosphere.
"Dean Shetty," Marie said, her Midwest accent sharpening with barely contained anger. "I heard you called Landon in for questioning. About the riots."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. Landon watched the dean's composure crack slightly, professional warmth giving way to something colder and more calculating. This wasn't how the conversation was supposed to go. Shetty had expected to isolate and intimidate. She hadn't counted on Marie's fierce loyalty.
"Miss Moreau," Shetty said, her voice carrying the edge of administrative authority. "This is a private conversation. Perhaps you could—"
"Actually," Marie interrupted, moving to stand beside Landon's chair, "I think I should stay. As a witness. You know, for transparency."
The word hung in the air like a challenge. Landon felt something warm and unexpected settle in his chest—the realization that Marie wasn't just defending him strategically. She was protecting him because she cared, because their friendship had evolved beyond mere alliance into something that resembled family.
"That's really not necessary," Shetty said, but her tone had lost its honeyed authority. "I'm simply trying to understand the sequence of events that led to—"
"Led to students finally standing up for themselves?" Marie's voice carried the kind of quiet intensity that made smart people step back. "Maybe the question isn't why there were riots. Maybe it's why they took so long to happen."
[SYSTEM: Marie's your shield. Don't waste it.]
The system's approval felt like benediction and warning rolled into one. Marie's defense was a gift, but it was also putting her in Shetty's crosshairs. Every protection she offered was currency Landon might have to spend later, another person whose safety became entangled with his increasingly complex web of lies.
"I appreciate Miss Moreau's... perspective," Shetty said, her smile returning but lacking any warmth. "But I think we're getting off track. Landon, these incidents you've been involved in—they're starting to form a pattern. And patterns suggest intention rather than coincidence."
The accusation hit closer to home than Landon wanted to admit. Because she was right, of course. Every death, every confrontation, every carefully orchestrated "accident" was part of a larger strategy. The fact that he had noble reasons—survival, protection, rebellion—didn't change the fundamental truth that he was manipulating events and people to serve his agenda.
"Sometimes patterns are just bad luck," Landon said, but even to his own ears the words sounded hollow.
"Perhaps." Shetty leaned back in her chair, her gaze moving between Landon and Marie like a chess master contemplating her next move. "But in my experience, there's very little that happens at Godolkin without reason. Every student here has potential. The question is whether that potential serves the greater good... or merely selfish interests."
The threat was wrapped in philosophical language, but its implications were crystal clear. Get in line, or face consequences. Play by their rules, or discover exactly how far those rules could bend when it came to maintaining control.
"I think we're done here," Marie said, her hand settling on Landon's shoulder with protective weight. "Unless you have specific accusations to make, Dean Shetty. In which case, I'm sure the student advocacy committee would be very interested in hearing about administrative harassment."
The standoff stretched between them like a taut wire, loaded with potential violence and unspoken threats. Finally, Shetty's smile returned—cold, calculating, and sharp enough to cut glass.
"Of course not," she said. "Just a friendly conversation between concerned educators and students. Though I do hope you'll both remember that Godolkin's strength comes from unity. Division serves no one's interests."
Except yours, Landon thought, but kept the observation to himself.
As they left the office, Marie's blood powers left faint traces on the door handle—crimson fingerprints that spoke of barely contained fury. The hallway felt different after the dean's suffocating authority, larger and somehow more honest in its institutional menace.
"Thanks," Landon said once they were out of earshot. "That was..."
"Necessary," Marie finished. "She was fishing, trying to isolate you. People like her—they're predators. They count on you being alone."
The words carried weight beyond their immediate context. Because Marie was right, of course. Shetty was a predator, and isolation was her preferred hunting method. But the deeper truth was that Landon had been alone for so long—first in Ohio, then in this strange new world—that he'd forgotten what it felt like to have someone willing to stand between him and danger.
"Still," he said, letting genuine gratitude leak through the carefully constructed walls. "You didn't have to do that."
Marie's smile could have melted steel. "Yeah, I did. That's what friends do."
Friends. The word settled in his chest like a seed taking root, promising growth he wasn't sure he deserved but desperately wanted to nurture.
Later that evening, Landon found himself in Andre's dorm room, surrounded by the comfortable chaos of someone who'd never learned to clean up after himself. Magnetic pulls had organized the metal objects into impossible sculptures that defied gravity and good sense, while papers and textbooks formed precarious towers that should have collapsed hours ago.
"So," Andre said, spinning a paperclip through the air with casual magnetism, "heard you had a fun chat with our beloved dean today."
News traveled fast at Godolkin, especially when it involved potential administrative overreach. Landon wasn't surprised that word had spread, but he was curious about Andre's reaction. The magnetism supe had been walking a careful line between rebellion and self-preservation, his natural charisma at war with institutional pressure.
"Depends on your definition of fun," Landon replied, settling into a chair that immediately adjusted itself to accommodate his presence—Andre's unconscious magnetism making even furniture respond to his moods.
"Marie said you handled it well." Andre's grin carried mischief and approval in equal measure. "Course, she also said Shetty looked like she wanted to throw you out a window by the end."
"The feeling was mutual."
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, the kind of easy camaraderie that had developed over weeks of shared pranks and growing trust. It was Andre who'd first suggested that Landon's carefully orchestrated chaos might serve a larger purpose, who'd recognized the pattern beneath the seeming randomness.
"You know what would really mess with her?" Andre said, his voice carrying the particular tone that preceded either brilliance or disaster. "If we showed her exactly how little control she actually has."
The suggestion hung in the air like ozone before a lightning strike. Landon felt a familiar thrill of possibility, the same electric anticipation that had driven him to more and more audacious pranks. But this time, the stakes felt different. Higher. More dangerous.
"What did you have in mind?" Landon asked, though part of him already knew the answer would involve chaos, magnetism, and a healthy disrespect for authority.
Andre's smile was pure predator. "Ever wonder what happens when someone accidentally rearranges all the files in the dean's office? You know, hypothetically speaking."
[SYSTEM: Prank success incoming. Crew's hyped.]
The plan was simple in the way that only the most dangerous ideas could be—elegant, audacious, and guaranteed to send a message that would echo through Godolkin's carefully controlled halls. It was also exactly the kind of escalation that would put them all in Shetty's crosshairs.
But as Landon looked at Andre's expectant face, saw the excitement and trust there, he realized that perhaps being in someone's crosshairs was less important than proving you weren't afraid to be there.
"Hypothetically," Landon said, "that sounds like exactly the kind of accident that happens when students get careless around magnetic fields."
Andre's laughter filled the room like music, magnetic fields dancing in sympathy with his joy. And for the first time since his confrontation with Shetty, Landon felt like he could breathe again.
The game was escalating, but at least now he wasn't playing it alone.
MORE POWER STONES == MORE CHAPTERS
To supporting Me in Pateron .
Love [ Friends and HIMYM Crossover ]? Unlock More Chapters and Support the Story!
Dive deeper into the world of [ Friends and HIMYM Crossover ] with exclusive access to 25+ chapters on my Patreon, plus new fanfic every week! Your support starting at just $5/month helps me keep crafting the stories you love across epic universes like [ Game Of Throne ,MCU and Arrowverse, Breaking Bad , The Walking dead ,The Hobbit,Wednesday].
By joining, you're not just getting more chapters—you're helping me bring new worlds, twists, and adventures to life. Every pledge makes a huge difference!
👉 Join now at patreon.com/TheFinex5 and start reading today!