Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures
"Total Loss" PART 1
[At the Quest Compound]
"Hey, Jess! What's taking you so long?" Jonny growled. He was worried that they would be tardy on their first day of school.
"Just chill out, Jonny. We're not going to be late," Jessie growled back. Then, a few minutes later, she emerged fully dressed, ready to go to school. They hurried down the stairs ignoring Race until he called them in a stern voice.
"Just a minute, you two." Race said and paused before continuing. "Never mind. It's a school day, right. I hate embarrassing myself. Go on ahead. And be careful."
"Don't tell me you forgot their first day of school, Race," Benton asked in a teasing tone.
"Don't remind me," Race replied within a split-second timing.
Just then, Hadji came back from the lighthouse lab with a look of worry written on his face.
"Where are Jonny and Jessie?" Hadji asked. Benton suddenly felt uneasiness with that question since Hadji was the one who informed the rest of the family about the changes in the school's reopening date.
"They went to school, Hadji. Why do you ask?" Benton questioned his oldest son.
"AND What's with that look, Hadj?" Race asked seriously knowing that something was wrong. Very wrong indeed.
"This is not good, Dr. Quest. Race." Hadji replied.
Benton looked at Race and then at Hadji and finally asked, "Ok, Hadji, what's the matter?" He looked slightly worried unlike Race.
After a long pause, Hadji began. "Dr. Jeremiah Surd has escaped from AMA (Agna Mental Asylum). This morning, when I was running IRIS' and Questworld's routine systems check, I..." he hesitated before continuing, "I found a bug in IRIS' database. It was in form of a file that specifically said......it said......."
"Hadji, spill it," Race yelled at him with impatience.
"The bug was a file that was e-mailed to us from school. It was the one with the change in date regarding school reopening," Hadji quickly replied. He didn't want to get on Race's bad side, especially when he was as angry as he was now.
****
[At Rockport Senior High School]
"See you later, Jess!" Jonny said as he headed back to his first hour class. Jessie's locker was stuck. By the time she got it opened, she was all alone. The hallway was a little darker than usual. She sensed another presence behind her. And it was not Jonathon Quest. Her father had taught her well and she recognized the presence as Julia, Surd's right-hand woman. But before she could react, Julia conked her over the head with the butt of her gun and everything went black.
Seeing no one in the classrooms or the other parts of the school, Jonny hurried back to Jessie's locker but she was nowhere in sight. *SHE IS GONE.* thought Jonny.
Just then, his cell phone rang. "Hello," he said in a tearful voice.
"Jonny, Where is Jessie?" came Race's worried voice from the other end.
"Race! She is gone, Race. I can't find her anywhere. When we got to school--" Race interrupted before Jonny could finish his sentence.
"It was a trap, Jonny. It was masterminded by Surd," Race calmly said. Jonny could feel Race hurt. He wasn't feeling very well either. *How could I have been so stupid?* questioned Jonny Quest himself.
"I am heading back. Then we can go look for Jessie," Jonny angrily told Race who was listening quietly on the other end. "We can track Jessie's location with the homing beacon inside her watch. All the equipment we need is in the lighthouse computer lab."
****
