003
— where in the world —

THROUGH THE SOFT BREEZE, HIS POWERS SEARCHED FOR THE PART OF HIM CONNECTED TO TERRAN. It did also force Cole to stand on top of Dick's precious Porsche, which he was sure Dick would yell at him for, but it didn't really matter in the moment. Cole's eyes were bright red, his powers desperately trying to reach out and find Terran, but it was like they got lost in the wind, forever searching for her.

"Yeah, Bernard, yes! I get the photos are fairly recent, but I need real-time video," Tim ordered, still pacing circles around the car. He switched between huffs and puffs and yells, trying to stress the importance to Bernard but he just couldn't quite seem to understand. "Yes! A satellite Bernard, Thank you!" Tim shouted before quickly ending the call with a curse.

Tim finally stopped walking and rested his arm against the roof of the car before dropping his head into his arm. "I don't understand how this happened," Cole complained, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I should be able to feel Terran, her presence, but it's just— gone."

Tim stared at Cole as he looked out at nothing, his eyes jumping over the thick forest trees. Cole looked down at Tim shrugging softly. Cole twisted and sat down, facing Tim. "What did Bernard say about the satellite?" Cole asked, hanging one leg off the roof.

Tim scoffed and pushed himself off the car, beginning to pace again. "He has to go through some security bullshit, but I tried to remind him Conner did the same fucking thing," Tim cursed, throwing his arms out, his yells disturbing a few birds sitting high in the trees.

Cole laughed softly, finding nothing all that funny about their situation, but it's all he could do. He looked over his shoulder at the hill the RV vanished over and huffed. He slid off the counter and knocked Tim's chest softly, "Let's get out of here."

Tim whipped around to face Cole, his eyebrows high in shock, "Were just gonna leave?" Tim scoffed.

Cole turned to face Tim, taking a deep breath as he did. "I can't search for them if I'm exhausted and it's gonna take forever for Bernard to get clearance, and even longer for him to send the images through," Cole listed off, his voice growing agitated with each word. Tim sighed and he turned to look over his shoulder, staring up at the hill as well. "I don't wanna just leave it Tim," Cole argued, his voice calming, "But what other choice do we have?"

Tim turned to Cole again and nodded softly. "Well come back in the morning," Cole promised.

It was well past midnight when Cole finally tracked down a motel with available rooms. It was nearly entirely off the grid, the motel's Wi-Fi being the only reason they had a signal at all. Cole stepped out of the Porsche wincing at the motel's odd choice of blinding red neon lights.

Tim walked to Cole's side wincing as well. "Well. . . at least they're noticeable," Tim comments.

Cole hummed softly, that makes sense. "Yeah, I guess."

Tim kicked his feet and looked up at Cole. "I don't know about this man," Tim said, his voice soft as Cole looked at him. "It just doesn't feel right to stop looking."

"We're not—" Tim scoffed and turned away, but Cole grabbed his bicep gently and turned him back to face him. "We're not stopping. We're just taking a break," Cole insisted with a strong voice, trying to convince them both. "Bernard will send through the satellite, and we'll know what we're actually dealing with."

Tim sighed but reluctantly nodded and followed Cole through the front doors. Cole smiled at the boy sitting at the counter; he was only a few years older than the boys, but he shared a lot of the same modern alternative style. "Hey man," Cole greeted, leaning on the counter, tapping his rings against the wood.

"Checking in?" He asked with a tired, but sweet smile.

Cole nodded quickly, "Yeah, please."

The boy nodded and started to press all the correct buttons. "Uh, travelling for business or pleasure today?" He asked and the question made the ticking of his rings stop.

"Does it matter?" Tim asked, leaning closer to Cole.

The boy chuckled softly, "They make me ask you that."

"Tim," Cole called softly. Tim looked up at Cole, shrugging softly. Cole motioned him away with a look and Tim stepped away, still keeping his close stance with Cole. Cole turned back to the boy with a shrug. "Just, pleasure. And two rooms please."

He looked at the computer and nodded, "I, uh, I only have an adjoining," He admitted pulling out two identical keys with tags that read 7a and 7b.

"That works," Cole said with a nod. He took one of the keys and turned back to Tim, "Go up, I'll pay for everything." Tim nodded and took the key, turning for the door. Cole turned back to the boy and settled the payment, standing there awkwardly as the slow Wi-Fi processed the payment.

"So uh, the door between the two rooms has two locks," the boy explained, filling the silence. "In case you wanted to make the first move."

Cole's eye snapped up to the boy, "First move?"

"He's got the hots for you," the boy laughed. The eftpos machine beeped successfully and the boy slumped back into his seat. "Have a good night."

Cole snatched his key and walked out the door to room 7b. He unlocked the door and slipped inside the room, dumping his things on the bedside table. He spun and sat on the side of the bed before slumping back onto the bed, the yellow covers twisting around him.

He stared up at the ceiling, his hands on his stomach. He couldn't get Tim out of his head, and he had seemed to completely take over his brain when he had upset him. Although he didn't quite understand why it had upset him so badly.

He pushed himself up onto his elbows and stared at the door connecting their rooms. It was a dark oak like most of the room's furniture, and just as old looking at the yellow wallpaper, but his eyes were more focussed on the metal lock just above the door handle. He pushed himself off of the bed and walked over to the door, staring at the push lock on his side of the room, the door handle locked from the other side.

It's just to talk, Cole reasoned with himself. He quickly unlocked the door without a second thought, but he did continue to stare at it for a few moments. The metal lock was old and made a very noticeable clunking sound that Tim would have to have heard. It made his palms sweat and stomach churn. It's just to talk.

He couldn't stare at the lock any longer. He whipped his hands down his chest and took a shallow breath as he turned away. He turned around and sat on the bed again, bouncing his leg softly as he stared at the oddly patterned carpet. He dragged his hands down his face; the silence in the room felt suffocating, the still air gave him goosebumps and his terrible mind ran in a thousand different ways that he couldn't keep up with.

Then, like the sharp bang of a bullet, the other lock snapped open.

Tim had unlocked the door.

He stood and walked back to the adjoining door, his eyes staring at the unlocked lock, the butterflies in his stomach had turned into an entire zoo, and instead of reaching for the handle he dropped his head against the door. He winced, very aware of the small thud it made on the thin wood.

He paused for a moment, a flash of guilt running through him, but he let his mind wander and his power spread. Ever since absorbing the storm and being with his sisters, his power had expanded, grown. He had never been explicitly linked to Tim, but maybe he could reach out to him, dig through his mind for what Tim might be thinking, give him an idea on what to do. But it was such an invasion of privacy, he already felt guilty.

He did it anyway.

His eyes sparked red and searched through Tim's head, past the worry and self-doubt, the one thought plaguing his mind in that very moment; Cole, open the goddamn door.

Cole yanked the door open, coming face to face with Tim; his hair brushed slightly, grey t-shirt ruffled and wide eyes. It made Cole swallow hard, but he forced his voice to the surface and asked, "Why do you hate that I have Bernard's number?"

Tim huffed and shrugged, "Because—" Tim stared up at Cole and shook his head. "Because I hate that you find him cute." His words made Cole's stomach jump but he didn't say anything. "I don't want to be just friends, or just a fling Cole."

Cole took a deep breath, and it made Tim nauseous, but this time he stayed silent. Cole then nodded softly, before a small smile began to creep its way onto his face. "Well, I'm glad we're on the same page," Cole said with a grin.

Tim broke out into a soft laugh and a wide grin, just as giddy as Cole's. As soon as Tim took a moment to breathe, Cole rushed forward, his hands cupping Tim's face and pulling him into a hard kiss. He moved so quickly, Tim barely had a moment to register what was happening, but not even a second later his hands were pulling at Cole's shirt, trying to pull him impossibly closer.

One of Cole's hands dropped from the side of Tim's face and traced down his neck, across his collar bones and to the very edge of his shirt, all while continuing to steal Tim's breath away with the kiss. Cole backed away an inch, just for a moment to let Tim catch his breath but it didn't stop him from pulling Tim closer and letting kisses travel. He kissed down his throat, his teeth grazing Tim's skin.

Tim shuddered, a broken whisper escaping his lips, "Cole. . . wait." Cole pulled himself back and looked down at Tim who wouldn't let him look away. "Are you going to delete Bernard's number?"

Cole couldn't help but chuckle, grinning as he pulled Tim into his room, closing the door behind him and pressing him against the wood. "Do not talk about Bernard right now," Cole hissed, dipping his head closer to Tim but still refusing to kiss him again.

Tim laughed softly as he draped his arms around Cole's neck, "Sorry." Cole shook his head softly and pulled Tim into another kiss.

❁

IT WAS DEATHLY QUIET, THE BARN SO FAR FROM TOWN NO SOUND COULD REACH THEM. Rachel stared at Terran, watching her closely as her eyes stared out the window, looking over the green hills. Terran could feel her staring at her, but she didn't look at her, instead trying to find any sign of sound but there was nothing. She had whipped the blood from her hair and skin, and thankfully the cut had healed before she had woken up.

Rachel took a quick breath and sat next to Terran, looping their arms together. Terran turned to her, and she couldn't help but smile at Rachel. "Hello there," Terran said softly. Rachel just smiled and dropped her head onto her arm, keeping her close. She closed her eyes, content to fall asleep there, but she shook her head and pushed herself to sit.

"It's alright if you're tired," Terran promised, her hand tracing Rachel's cheek and brushing the white wisps of hair back. "We've had a week."

Rachel looked up at Terran, her face suddenly very serious. Terran's eyebrows shot up in surprise as she stared at Rachel. "I think the white hair is going to stay," Rachel said, staring into Terran's eyes. "Do you like it?"

Terran's eyebrows suddenly creased, "What?" Rache shrugged softly and Terran laughed softly. "Rache, it doesn't matter what I like. But for what it is worth. . ." Terran trailed off as she ran her hand through Rachel's white hair. "I do quite like it."

"Like it?" Rachel pushed Terran back onto the bed and trapped her against the bed, laughing as she pinched and tickled Terran's side. "You gotta do better than that."

Terran laughed and pushed her backward, this time trapping Rachel against the bed. Rachel laughed and squirmed, but Terran held her firmly in place. "I love your hair," Terran insisted but all Rachel did was pout. Terran leaned down and pressed a kiss to the side of her head. "I love your hair."

"Do you?" Rachel said, raising an eyebrow, her smile still there.

Terran smiled and drew her hands back, "I do."

Rachel dropped her hands to Terran's legs that were boxed around her hips. "Do you really?" Rachel asked again, her voice dropping slightly, her disappearing as well. "I thought with getting my powers back, I thought I would be. . . my normal."

Terran laughed softly and shook her head. "Rachel, you've never been normal," Terran pointed out, smiling softly. "Why can't this be your normal for a while?" Rachel hummed and nodded, but her eyes drifted away, her head turned to the window.

Terran leaned down again and kissed Rachel's cheek. "I love the hair," she mumbled against Rachel's skin. Rachel turned to Terran and smiled at her. "You're perfect the way you are Rache." Rachel reached for Terran's face, hesitating for a moment, their noses brushing ever so slightly, before she pulled Terran down into a kiss.

Terran's eyes widened, but she kissed her back, her hands running up her sides. Terran's hand found its way to Rachel's cheek, holding her in place slightly as she tilted her head and pressed her lips harder to Rachel's, stealing whatever breath she had left.

Rachel smiled, breaking the kiss as she panted, chasing to catch her breath. Terran dropped her head to the pillow beside Rachel's head, kissing her cheek. "If I say you're perfect, can I kiss you again?" Terran mumbled, her words lost in the pillow, but Rachel still heard her, powers or not.

"Mm, if you're lucky Claire," Rachel teased, her breathing still uneven.

Terran groaned softly before pressing a kiss just below her ear. "You're perfect Rachel," Terran mumbled. "Now give me another kiss." Rachel Laughed at her and pressed her hands to Terran cheeks and kissed again, as best as she could through her giddy smile.

Terran was smiling as well, entirely swept up by Rachel she didn't notice the footsteps. But they did hear the creak of the barn's stairs. Terran's head snapped up toward the door, freezing in place. "What is it?" Rachel questioned, her hands moving to squeeze Terran's arms in worry.

Terran carefully pushed herself off of Rachel and stood, her eyes never leaving the barn door. There was a terrible screech of grinding metal that made Rachel jumped from the bed and hide behind Terran. Terran glanced at Rachel and took an uneasy breath, "Stay here."

"What?" Rachel grabbed Terran's hand and made her face her. "You want me to wait here?"

"Rachel, your powers aren't working," Terran reminded. Rachel just shrugged at Terran, making her huff again. "I'm just gonna check it out, you stay here." Terran paused and placed her hands on her shoulders. "I'll be right back." Terran smiled at Rachel, mostly trying to disguise her own growing nerves before she turned for the door.

She closed the door behind her, making sure it was shut tight. The sound of footsteps and metal had stopped and all that was left in the air was the still cold air of the farm barn. She walked along the top floor of the barn, her boots making a soft thud against the wooden floor. She walked to the edge and looked down at the ground level below; half a dozen police officers were running around, checking in and under and through everything that wasn't attached to the floor, and if they could tear it from the floor, they did.

Terran stared at them for a few moments, confusion filling her completely as she watched the men move around like headless chickens. Just as she stepped back the old wood creaked underneath her. They couldn't see her, she was hidden behind the wooden fence railing, but all the men had spun to stare at her spot, guns pointed and raised.

"Get upstairs now," The Sheriff ordered. "Take the Heretic, kill the girl."

In a panic Terran used her power and tore apart the wooden stairs; they knew where she was, a little extra sound wouldn't hurt. A few shots went off, bullets hitting the wooden roof and getting lodged in place. She was through the barn door in an instance, ignoring Rachel's questions as she slowly worked to weave vines across the door to lock it in place, her vines refusing to move much faster.

"Terran!" Rachel shouted, but still kept it to a loud whisper. Terran turned to her, her eyes wide in panic. "What's happening?"

"They know we're here," Terran said quickly, rushing to Rachel and grabbing her hand, pulling her towards the barn widow. "I can't fight them in here, I'll take the building down." She let go of Rachel's hand and started to search the window for a latch. "We have to get outside."

Terran gave up searching for a latch and just used her sound to break the already rusting locks. The window fell out and shattered as it hit the ground, but Terran didn't even spare a glance as she hopped out the window the vines growing up the side of the barn spread and grew as they formed the shape of a slide.

The sounds of the police had moved high through the barn, only stopping as they reached the door. Terran shuddered and let her left hand move off of the barn window and reach out to the vines, finally getting them to move faster as the panic continued to swell in her chest.

Finally, just the Sheriff started to kick at the door, the vines connected to the grassy ground. "Rachel, c'mon," Terran ushered, holding her hand up to Rachel. Rachel looked over the edge, the height making her stomach swirl. "Right now, Rache."

Rachel looked back at the barn door once more before taking Terran's hand and let her help her over the window. Rachel kept a tight grip on Terran's hand until she stepped onto the vines and slid down. She landed on the floor with a thud, maybe a little bruised but nothing major. Terran slid after her just seconds later nearly landing on her knees, but she quickly caught herself. As Terran focussed on Rachel again the vines started to wither back, making sure there was no way to chase them.

"Okay, okay, okay," Terran rambled, spinning around looking around the grassy farm. "Okay. Let's go."

"Where?" Rachel asked, following Terran anyway.

Terran looked over her shoulder, "I don't know but we can't stay here."

SUN PORED OVER THE PARKING LOT; THE ROADS MUCH BUSIER THAN THEY WERE THE NIGHT BEFORE. Cole pushed the door open, smiling to himself as he looked at Tim still face down on the bed with the curtain pulled tight to not let the sun through. Cole set the tray of coffees and sandwiches on the counter and closed the door. Cole walked to the bed and knelt beside Tim, who still refused to wake up. Cole leaned down and pressed a kiss to Tim's temple, the only part of his head that wasn't buried beneath the pillows. "Tim," Cole called, getting a small hum in response. "As devilishly handsome as you are while you drool into the pillows. We've got things to do."

Tim rolled over and stared up at Cole. "But what if we stayed here?" Tim asked, a drowsy smile forming on his face.

"Sure. . . if you wanna give up your dream of being Robin," Cole teased before pushing himself off the bed. Tim reluctantly pushed himself onto his elbows and watched as Cole strode across the room to open the curtains. Cole called a warning before ripping them open and letting the sun light room, the rays dancing over the bare skin of Tim's chest and torso.

"Okay so, Bernard sent through the satellite images, and I was able to pinpoint where Terran's energy is coming from," Cole relayed his smile growing as he took his chai latte and began to drink.

"How'd you do that?" Tim asked, still fighting to stay awake.

Cole set his coffee on the small coffee table before taking a seat on a small stool. "So, I thought Terran was too far away for me to locate her, but it was actually that her energy was spread to far over the town," Cole explained, moving his arms around like a madman. "So, using the satellite and my powers I was able to get a reading on her geomagnetic pulse and got a hit a few miles up the road."

"What's up there?"

Cole shrugged softly, "Caul's Folly, a little mining down, but some fire burnt it down like a decade ago. So—" Cole pushed himself from the stool and grabbed Tim's clothes he had tossed around the room the night before. He tossed them toward Tim who just let them fall into his lap. "Put your clothes on. Let's go find out what Caul's Folly is."

"Okay, okay. . ." Tim quickly shuffled, rushing to pull on his clothes. He stood and fumbled with his belt for a moment before looking up at Cole. "Good morning, by the way."

Cole turned to Tim and smiled. "Morning. I got you coffee and breakfast as well," Cole added with a smile.

It didn't take very long for Cole to drive out to the coordinates on the map, parking in front of an abandoned radio station, the white walls were turning grey and covered in graffiti. Cole and Tim stepped out of the car and looked around; the hill they were on overlooking the trees and surrounding land. It was eerie and cold, not a single sign of life in sight, not even the highway could be seen through the thick trees.

Cole started to walk towards the radio station and Tim was quick to follow him. "This hills' pretty high up, the fire mustn't have made it up here," Cole mumbled, trying to explain it to himself and Tim at the same time. They reached the door, and Tim ran his hand over the spray painting. "I can still feel Terran's energy."

Tim nodded and opened the door, letting the sunlight into the dark hall. Cole stepped through first, using the flashlight on his phone to see better, the small orange lights doing little to actually light the hall. They reached the centre of the radio station, old equipment still in its original place. Cole walked to the centre cable where most of the buttons and switches were. "It looks like the old Rural Radio Network. . . stuff," Cole trailed off, continuing to walk around and search the equipment. "It's got 670-L crystal relay receivers. They could have reached people 100 miles away."

"How do you just know that?" Tim asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Uh. . . I dated a guy that was captain of AV club," Cole explained, his eyes still looking over the dusty equipment, but when Tim didn't say anything, Cole turned towards him. Tim raised an eyebrow and Cole, and he just shrugged, "I like hot nerds. I deleted Bernard's number, just so you know."

Cole turned around again, missing the way Tim smiled at the floor. But then Tim's head snapped up, hearing something echo off in the distance. "Wait, Cole," Tim called softly, and Cole paused. "Do you hear that?" As they fell into silence the muffled echo of the song Never Been To Spain floated through the air. They glanced at each other before quickly making their way back through the hall and out onto the grass. They paused for a moment before following the song around the side of the radio station.

They came to a stop just as the building ended, staring at the source of the song; a small radio stacked on top of a pile of books, all owned by the boy sitting in the lawn chair in a dark blue and purple flannel, his brown hair caught in the wind. The bushes around him had fading pictures tied to the sticks, the faces on the photos barely recognizable now.

Tim and Cole walked further ahead, and the boy looked up as he heard their footsteps. "Hey man," Tim called, waving softly. The boy reached over and turned the music down before turning and smiling at the two. Tim smiled in turn, "What's going on?"

"Not much," the boy said with a shrug.

Cole glanced over his shoulder before looking at the boy again. "What are you doing out here?" he asked, sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Waiting for my dad," the boy said.

Cole stepped closer, still keeping his distance from the boy as he looked over the trees and fields that stretched on and on. "What's your name?"

The boy looked up and smiled again, "William."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Cole, this is Tim," Cole introduced, making Tim wave again. William waved at Tim again and Cole let his eyes wander over the bushes again. "What are all the photos for? What happened here?"

William paused as his eyes spaced out as they wandered the greenery. "A fire bout 10 years ago," William said softly, "burnt the whole town. I was away at camp when the fire happened. Drum and Bugle Corps camp. The radio station is—" William shuddered, his eyes shooting down to his shoes. "Is the only thing that survived."

Tim knelt down, setting his bag beside him. "You come out here a lot?" Tim asked, looking over the cliff before back to William.

William nodded softly, "Every day."

"For ten years?"

William looked down at the floor, almost ashamed at what he admitted. "Uh. . . It sounds crazy, but I— I can feel my dad and sister here," William said, unable to look at Tim or Cole.

"You don't sound crazy," Cole assured. William looked up at Cole and he flashed his eyes red. William jumped a little, staring at Cole with wide eyes. "I'm looking for my sister too. And— and you know your way around the place, why don't you help us out?"

— legacies —