Kyle:

We climbed out of the basement, I was the first one up. I felt myself lifted out by a pair of hands I did not know and a gun was put to my head as I was thrown against the wall. I did not see the man who was holding me but heard him shout, "Alright, whoever is with this boy, get up here nice and slow unless you want his brain shot out. I can hear you still down there." I cursed the fact that blowing up the wall in the basement meant I had used an attack that spent my powers. I was as helpless in that moment.

Jessica came up the ladder, showing her hands as two more men pulled her out of the hole in the floor. The men holding her were well built, European, and dressed in business suits. "There's just me," Jessica said.

"What was that blast?!" the man holding me demanded.

"I don't know, we got curious we just wanted to see ourselves." Jessica began.

"I don't believe that for a minute!" one of the men holding Jessica shouted, he threw her against the wall too. I started trying to summon my powers, wanting more than anything to teach that man how not to treat girls... especially Jessica.

I had to stop these two somehow, even though I couldn't fight them, and Jessica wouldn't so long as that meant putting me in danger. "We were setting off fireworks in the basement, just for fun. We didn't want anyone to know... we're sorry."

A man behind the two thugs holding Jessica and I spoke up. "He's probably telling the truth. C'mon, they're just two kids, how much damage could they do?"

I heard a siren off in the distance. I felt the grip on my back relax. "Cops!" shouted the man holding me. "What do we do with them? Do we just take them?"

'Just try it,' I thought. 'Guarantee we'll put up more of a fight than kidnappers like you are use to.'

"With that missing little boy on everyone's radar? They're just coming to see about the explosion." said the man behind us all. "Just leave them and let's get moving." I felt myself thrown to the ground as Jessica was thrown down too. I then rolled over to watch the three men run out of the building and jump into a car parked next to Allen's. They quickly drove off.

I slowly got back to my feet breathing a sigh of relief, my heart starting to decide it didn't want to jump out of my chest after all. Just then I was again grabbed.

This time I was able to send a powerful electric shock into my attacker knocking him on his hindquarters... just to realize it was only Allen trying to rush me out of the building. "OW!" he shouted at me. "I guess your powers are back."

"Sorry..." I said with a sheepish grin.

"Don't worry about it, just get to the car," he said, getting back up quickly. "Jessica left the DNA scanner with me when she went up in case things went awry. I opened it up and realized something. The car those creeps who attacked you two just sped away in; Thomas was in it at some point!"

"We've got to follow them!" I shouted. Allen ran to the doors, not replying as Jessica grabbed my hand.

"Congratulations on stating the obvious, now let's move!" Jess yelled.

(***)

As we sped away from the building that housed young Tommy's former prison, Allen placed the DNA scanner on the dashboard of the rambler. Allen didn't know how to use our device very well, only being able to guess his earlier deduction, so Jessica advised him on which directions to take to keep up with our enemies.

Jessica took the device after a time and I had Allen slow down the vehicle, reminding him that we actually had a two-mile range on the device and thus didn't need to follow the thugs very closely.

After we had traveled a good ten miles, I peeked my head forward and checked the scanner. I realized something and quickly spoke up. "Jessica look at the scanner again. Look at the far west region."

"Hmm?" she asked, looking at her device again. "Oh, I see. There are more traces of the boy over there... they look more recent too. Allen, change direction, we're gonna head towards these traces."

"You sure you want to let these guys go?" I asked.

"They're just a couple thugs, they don't matter," she replied. "We're trying to save Tommy not fight crime. He's more important."

"What makes you say that?" I asked. "I mean those men might have killed us both, Jess." Reason enough for me to want to go after them, but what stopped them from doing all this again?

"There are very few things more important than a child's life Kyle. Petty revenge is not one of them," Jessica replied.

"It's not revenge that I wanted Jess." I'd be lying if I said it wasn't relevant. "I just wanted to confront them... maybe have the authorities take them ya know? Just so they can't hurt any more kids. We're pretty sure those three are in on this."

"The CHANCE those two are involved and planning on doing this again is not as important as finding a very real boy who needs us right now," Jessica replied. "We're heading to investigate the more recent signs of the boy. Besides, the cops will see the boy's prison and I'll bet you any smart crime syndicate in this area will cease operation for a good while until folks calm down, which trust me, that's gonna be a while." Jessica pointed west as Allen turned down a westward street.

"Will your fingerprints be found at the scene of the prison?" I asked. "Because that will be awkward."

"Would be if it mattered," Allen said back. "We've got connections in the police like I already said. They'll clean up any evidence that we were at the scene... well, explaining the blast might be difficult." Had to hand it to the wolves on one thing, they were prepared.

A few minutes later, I started noticing as the buildings in the area got smaller and fewer in number. I wondered why that might be.

A loud rumbling could be heard above the car as I shouted, "What the heck was that?"

"That was a 747... We're coming up on the airport." Allen replied

Jessica tapped the glass on her window saying, "That building we're coming up on, right up there, that's where Thomas was last... what's wrong?"

"As I said, Jessica, that's an airport," said Allen, giving her a concerned look. "Actually an international one."

(***)

I was able to slowly put together what the others were concerned about- hey I'd never been to earth. We didn't call flying vehicles planes, we just called them vehicles. As everything fell into place, however, a knot started to form in my stomach.

Jessica was panicking. Before we even hit the parking lot I could almost hear her heart racing. I didn't know why she wanted so bad to find this one boy we had never met, but the prospect of him being now almost anywhere in the world was terrifying her.

Allen parked the car and Jessica climbed out. She then shot forward. All we saw was a purple streak and she appeared down the parking lot just in earshot to yell at me to hurry up. "You better keep up... I think she's gonna need you," said Allen, nudging my shoulder. I activated my powers and went into a jump after her.

There was security in the building, a pretty large amount actually considering this was nothing more than a mass transit hub. Really they were a synch to get past though. It seems that as long as they don't get a good look at you, humans pass off your existence, thus by zipping through the airport, many a man, woman, and child turned a head to notice us, but few questioned who or what we were, simply moving on after being hit by spontaneous gusts of wind indoors, or watching blue streaks suddenly become children. How normal humans became the dominant species of an entire planet, I will never know.

In a large concourse of some kind, like a giant open hallway, Jessica finally stopped using her powers to jump, simply running forward, throwing our tracer into her pocket. She tore across a group of empty seats, people around us turning heads, many looking concerned as she stopped just short of slamming into a large metal door. She rattled the handle desperately as I ran up behind her.

Finally, she stopped. Out of her pocket, she retrieved our tracer checking it again, a look of desperation in her eyes, like it provided some last hope. She shook her head. "No..." She dropped the tracer. It didn't have far to fall, so it didn't break, but her just dropping it like a useless trinket made an impact on me.

That device was so instrumental to us this entire time and now... I looked up at the door. Our technology, our experience, everything we had... was she really giving up at this door?

I walked over to a window a few feet away. "What's this thing behind the door? It's like a long extending external hallway, but it doesn't lead anywhere." I asked.

"I don't really know," she said, slowly sitting down by the door. "But I'll bet you anything it's for boarding planes."

Honestly, there was always a way to get things done. You just had to open your eyes, I knew it. "So let's just go ask where planes go from this spot."

"Kyle use some sense," she said. "Allen said this was an international airport. He said the place services thousands of airports around the world using planes that could shake his whole car. Do you really think they could have enough boarding ports to have each one devoted to a single destination?"

I shrugged. "Well, surely they have records. I mean you saw the size of those planes, you think they don't keep track of them? Give these people a little credit. I mean, we know when the plane left since our tracker tells us the last time the kid was in that extended hall, so let's just go up to the counter and ask where the plane that was at this gate at that time was headed."

Jessica rolled her eyes. "Despite what you think, these people aren't stupid, Kyle. Why would anyone go through the records of an international airport at the request of a couple little kids?"

"I'm sorry," came a voice to the right of us, "but what's wrong?" I turned to see a man standing over us.

I was about to try improvising an explanation when Allen finally caught up to us. He picked up Jessica and held her head as if to comfort her. She cried into his shoulder. Personally, I still wasn't convinced things were as hopeless as she was making them out to be. If the records of where he went existed, then it was just a matter of getting my hands on them.

This was breaking my friend's heart, so it was personal. There had to be a way to go on from here.

Allen turned to the man who was asking about Jessica's condition. "This is a family matter," he said. "I'm grateful for your concern, but please move along." The other nodded and left us. Allen looked down at me. "Perhaps we should be discussing what's happening now in the car so as to stop attracting attention."

(***)

When Allen first started speaking, he seemed more furious with us than piteous. He went on for a few minutes about the difficulties of getting into an airport without any means to just zip past everyone like us, nor a form that just made everyone assume he wasn't important. I heard him, but at the moment I really didn't care what he had to say. In fact, when he had finished his admittedly short rant, I moved to check Jessica in the front seat. She hadn't said a word since we left the terminal, and for her, that was unnerving.

I had to figure out a solution, I could just sense she was giving up hope. "They have records, I know it. There is a way to find out where that plane went."

"And just who is going to give us those records? We can't just say we have a hunch that a missing child was on that plane, no one will believe that, we'll have to prove it." Jessica handed me the scanner. "And this is all the proof we have. Something we can't talk about."

"Can't we just say we saw him take off? We technically didn't, but how do they know that?"

"That doesn't matter Kyle. We'd be off the case from there anyway. If they think a missing kid was just flown out of state they're not gonna waste time telling a couple brats where he went. Best case scenario, if they believe us, they just ignore us and go on to try to find him themselves with the information."

"Got to admit that's better than nothing for Tommy's sake," I pointed out.

"Not for ours," Allen said. "You don't know how this world works, so I'll try to break it down for you. Worst case scenario, you two say you saw little Thomas get on a plane, you'll be considered at-risk material witnesses to kidnapping and placed under surveillance. Under no circumstance will either of you be told where Thomas was flown unless you find out second hand. The police are also going to want to know everything they can about you. Likely if you go forward with that particular plan, it is very possible that you will be seen as two-time eyewitnesses, since you went ahead and told the officers at the school you witnessed the original kidnapping."

"Think we already established that wasn't a great idea," I commented. Needless to say, I was slowly realizing our attitudes, in this case, were working against us. I especially kept acting and thinking humans were stupid... they weren't, they just had a culture I didn't understand. "But in any case, what stops us from leaving a tip and then just disappearing? I mean, if you look at the wanted posters all over town they specify that information is all they want. They make it clear that those presenting information can remain anonymous."

"Anonymous maybe," Allen said back. "But I've had dealings with the police before. They mean anonymous as in they won't tell the media or the family of Tommy who you are if you request, but especially in the case of kids witnessing a kidnapping, they're going to be watching you two like hawks."

"Why?" I asked.

"Cause they're going to see a rather obvious connection. You're kids, the kidnappers grabbed a kid and so if they find out that two kids ratted them out, they're obviously not going to have any problems coming after you two as well. The police are going to do what they can to protect you."

"Like we can't evade them anyway," I said in response. "I mean sure, that all makes sense, but c'mon, we're talking about normal humans here. They're not going to shoot or hurt me and Jessica and there's no way they can keep up with us once we get in the open... course... no." I had to start pacing myself, the arrogance was creeping back in, but this time I saw it. "That will just get them on a three-person manhunt rather than just the one for Tommy won't it?" Allen nodded.

"And don't think that will be the end of it either," said Allen. "You two go missing after witnessing a crime the police will likely assume you've been nabbed by the bad guys. You two will have your pictures on street posts and milk cartons for next the few years at least, and it doesn't matter if no one claims you either... in fact, that will probably just make the police just look harder."

"Why don't we just leave an anonymous note at the police department?" asked Jessica.

Allen was quiet for a moment. He then spoke up. "Simple yet genius. I mean, make sure they don't see you, but it's not like anyone has your handwriting on file. You write that Thomas got on a plane when and where and they won't ignore a note like that." He gave a nervous short hum. "Heck, if you have good handwriting they won't suspect you're a kid yourself."

I nodded. "At least it gets the authorities on the right track. Then we can just ask them where they're going to find Thomas."

"HUH!" Allen laughed. "I mean you can ask, but they're not going to tell you."

"You think not?" I asked. Okay, this wasn't arrogance, cops apparently did talk to children pretty easily. "All I had to do was ask and the officer at the playground revealed the number and positions of his fellow patrolmen to me. He even told me there was a witness."

"It wasn't black ops kid," Allen replied. "You could have wandered around the playground and found out where the other cops were, I'll bet you anything they weren't hiding. And as far as knowing about their witness, what did he look like? Was it a he or she? How old was said witness? Where does it live? Where is it now?"

"Um... no idea." Okay- so maybe moreover, a culture I didn't understand that was smarter than I gave it credit for.

"Kyle, the man showed you a sketch that had to be drawn from an eyewitness, telling you they had a witness was a matter of stating the obvious. You two really think the police are working at such a disadvantage to you don't you?" I shifted uncomfortably. We did think so. "All you have is that tracker and a couple miracle drugs. You have no connections, no idea how this entire planet works let alone how a police investigation works... you two don't even have a reliable means of transportation. You think you're the first two who thought they could solve crime better than the cops? Ever since Sherlock Holmes was written back in the eighteen hundreds and before folks have thought they had something the police didn't."

"But we do have something they don't," I said, taking the scanner up again. "We can use this to track down the goons who attacked us near Tommy's prison. Might take a little convincing, but give me some time and they'll eagerly spill their guts about where Tommy is... heck maybe we can squeeze them for more than that and see if they've taken anyone else."

"You two are not crime fighters," Allen replied to this, an air of seriousness in his tone this time, not reassurance.

"I think technically that's what we've been doing," I remarked.

"No. The idea of what you were doing up until now was search and rescue and I figured it would be a good distraction. I'm not locking you two up in the clock tower if I don't have to, but don't doubt I will do what I have to to protect the son of the president of all Triad. Even if I have to protect you from yourself I will do it. We're going back to the tower and that's the end of it. You can drop off the note if you really want, but I'm warning you if you try to openly attack a human trafficking ring I will lock you up like prisoners until you both come to your senses." Allen put the car in gear and started to pull out.

"It's just a few normal guys," I said. "We can take-"

"No," Jessica interrupted. "They can kill or hurt you easily Kyle. We're not invincible. I won't put you in danger like that. Just stop talking about it." The vehicle continued to travel out of the parking lot as Jessica stared out the window.

As we pulled out, I looked at the tracker in my hands. It did its job, there was nothing wrong with it. In the right hands, maybe it would have been what was needed. I wanted to say it was pathetic, insufficient... it wasn't. I was the one who was pathetic. I was failing my friend.