The morning sky dawned on Perdido Beach. Sam, Astrid, and Little Pete woke at the first light of the sun. Sam made his way to Town Hall without a word, and Little Pete played on his Game Boy, as usual. "It's funny how we continue on with our lives even though we are short on food, we defeated an evil force just a month ago, and we've gone through 'Freaks versus Normals' arguments. New kids have been appearing though. It's as if there is still something out of place, but instead of people disappearing, kids appear out of nowhere. Most of them appear in the Town Square, but they come from all around the world. Tina & Tony, the twins from Tokyo, appeared on Tuesday, and they both are sort of identical." Astrid typed into her laptop. Then she pulled up a list of the kids who had arrived since Caine had joined forces with them:
Noosh Barden
Shanghai, China
Illusionist
Naida Baidu
Jhadpur, India
Duplication
Jacques Vernon
Paris, France
Telepathic
Farah Goudas
Hamburg, Germany
Nature Connection
Alexia Birding
London, England
Illusionist
Marah Fajut
Dallas, Texas
Water/Freeze
Andrew Johnson
Cairo, Egypt
Shape-Shifter
Tiny & Tony
Tokyo, Japan
Look-Alike (can copy your appearance)
The power had been turned back on, and everyone was doing work, except the littles, who could do nothing other than make wreaths from the crafts Tiny and Tony had brought with them when they poofed into the FAYZ. The other eligible children worked in the fields picking cabbage, watermelon, or any other edible fruit. Jack had got the cellphones working, and was working on the internet. Nobody was really in charge, except for the Temporary Council, and everybody followed the rules. "Astrid! There's another!" Mary Terrafino came rushing in, pointing outside. Caine was helping the girl to her feet, and the girl cursed. "There's yogurt on my shirt!" Then she looked around. "Oh, is this Perdido Beach?" Mary, Caine, and Astrid nodded. "Perfect. It's surrounded by a wall right?" She questioned further. Astrid said, "Yes. We've been blocked off to the rest of the world." The girl nodded as if she truly understood. "The scientists aren't happy about the cone; they've tried everything from bombs to uranium, and that didn't help either." Astrid was amazed. "Really?" The girl made it seem believable. "No, I fibbed. You've been wiped off the maps. It was like you'd never existed." Astrid was horrified. "One minute, you were there, and now you're gone." Gone. That word had meant so much to the residents of the small little town for a long time now. "By the way," The girl extended her arm out. "I'm Illissa Steeple." Caine outstretched his hand eagerly. "Caine Soren." She smiled at him as she shook his hand. The girl stepped back slowly and said, "Hold on." Electricity jumped from her fingers, and shocked the pavement. "Sorry, that happens from time to time. It's like I cannot control it." Astrid rushed to her laptop, and recorded her data. "It's time to see Sam." She muttered.