Chapter 2:Missing

Mathis cautiously slid the cover off to the side and peered around. Once he was satisfied that no witnesses were present, he climbed out and replaced the lid. He glanced at the thermal satellite image on his PDA, looking for any mischievous students, or patrolling staff. Seeing that his path was clear for the moment he proceeded towards the dormitory, at quick but silent pace. Her school records had indicated that her room was on the south of third floor six doors down from the stairway that he was currently climbing. He located her door and tested the handle taking special care not to make any sound. He was surprised that Grégoire had asked him to handle his assignment; in fact he was glad. He was the only agent in their office with five years of deep cover experience. To put it simply, he was overqualified. He picked the lock without incident and slowly swung the door open. If he hadn't read her file, he never would have suspected that this room belonged to a fugitive. One word described the room, and it's occupant: pink. He made his way toward the bed and withdrew a small cloth and a bottle. He applied the chloroform, returned the bottle to it's pocket, and in one swift and well practiced maneuver he grab the back of her head and pressed the cloth over her nose and mouth. Her eyes shot open, and she struggled for a few seconds before falling unconscious. Now that she was subdued, he made his way to her desktop and removed the cover. He quickly disconnected the power supply and removed the hard-drive. He placed the drive in a protective case and reassembled the computer in place of the original drive he connected a replacement, so that a preliminary inspection would not raise suspicion. He grabbed her room key off of the desk, and as he turned to grab the girl and leave, he noticed a pink laptop bag leaning against the closet door. He walked over and slung the bag over his shoulder. He then returned to the bed, and moved the unconscious girl onto the floor. He then made her bed, and placed the doll that she had been holding on top of the sheets. When he was satisfied that the room looked innocently tidy, he lifted the girl up, and walked back into the hallway. He closed the door and used the the key he had found on her desk to set the lock. He was glad that he had noticed the laptop, it's absence it would make her disappearance seem as though it had occurred out side of the dorms. It may also contain information that was not on her desktop computer's hard-drive. As he opened the stairwell door he heard footsteps approaching from below, quickly he turned and sprinted toward the opposite stairwell, and disappeared inside just as a man wearing a red jacket opened the door Mathis had just fled and began his last pass of the morning. Mathis dashed across the courtyard, racing against the approaching dawn. Mathis glanced up and quickened his pace when he saw that the previously black horizon now had an ominous red hue. Dawn was only a few minutes away, and he needed to be gone before the cover of darkness that had aided his mission vanished in the brilliance of the morning sun. He reached the manhole, and lowered the girl to the ground. He removed the cover and climbed down to his waist and lifted his captive on his shoulder an began his descent. He placed at the bottom of the ladder, and returned the lid to it's original resting place. He scooped the girl up and proceeded toward the car.

Jeremie stared at his breakfast. Aelita was over an hour late for breakfast, and the cafeteria was now empty except for the little group that sat around him.

"Are you okay, Jeremie? You haven't touched your food.", asked Ulrich.

"I'm fine. I'm just concerned about Aelita. She usually doesn't miss breakfast.", replied Jeremie.

"Well since you're obviously not going to..."

"Yes, Odd. you can have it." Jeremie shoved his tray at Odd, and stood up. "I'm going to check on Aelita," Jeremie said as he walked towards the dorm.

"Wow, Odd. Way to care," Yumi, commented once Jeremie was out of hearing. "I mean she is your cousin, after all."

"I call it 'though love'," Odd retorted as he started devouring Jeremie's cold breakfast. "Besides, if something is wrong wouldn't she rather talk to him."

Jeremie knocked on the door in front of him. When he received no answer, he went to open the door, but found that it was locked. He took out his phone and called her number. He heard the connection go through, but in addition to the expected ring that he heard through his phone, there was also a clear, unmistakable ring coming from inside the room. Her phone rang the full eight times and went to her voice. He hung up, and knocked on her door again, in an attempt to wake her up. When he received no response, not even a request to leave her alone. He picked the lock and opened the door, only to find an empty room. It wasn't the emptiness that bothered him; no, it was the pink cell phone lying on the floor half hidden under the bed that worried him, her laptop bag was missing, and the screen saver on her computer's monitor was not the one that she had proudly shown him the day before. He decided, though, that before he told the others he should check the Hermitage and the factory, just in case he was overreacting or misinterpreting the situation.

The lift in a long abandoned factory whirred to life, the door slid open, and a blond teenager stepped forward bearing a worried expression. He had spent the last two hours searching the Hermitage, the woods, and the factory, only to have his search end with no sight or even the slightest indication that Aelita had even been out of her room that day. His suspicions reinforced, Jeremie set off to inform his friends. "After all," he thought, "maybe I just missed her, and she's hanging with the others."