Chapter 4

The team pulled up in the car park adjacent to where the anomaly was situated. Jack was still revelling in the fact he had been allowed to sit in the front seat of Connor's car, he hadn't realised that the only reason he was allowed that privilege was because Connor and Crystal weren't speaking to each other.

The team walked out of the car park, heading to the anomaly, guns and detectors held in a less visible place so as they passed people they didn't look to suspicious. On the people aspect, the team where quite relieved to find the anomaly in a well secluded area, away from the prying eyes of onlookers who knew nothing of the dangerous element to the situation.

Jack felt awkward between Connor and Crystal, he tried to make conversation but neither of them where speaking so it faded into nothing.

They reached the anomaly, it didn't look so out of place in the sunny afternoon, in amiss the grass and bushes. Jack couldn't help but notice that there was no sign of a creature.

"What happens if there's no creature to catch?" he asked Crystal.

"Sit." She replied.

"What, just sit and wait?" Jack asked bemused. She nodded.

Abi and Steven plonked themselves on the grass, Cutter contemplated it but felt it was his duty to be ready for anything that might come out of the anomaly and stayed standing, Connor joined him.

"Oh I hate these types of anomalies! When are we going to get something that shuts them automatically?" Abi complained, looking at Connor as she spoke. He had been working on this project for quite some time now.

"Abi give him a chance, inventing technology isn't easy you know!" Cutter came to Connor's rescue.

"Yeah but he's been working on it for months and we haven't had any updates recently!"

"We've been through an anomaly and everything changed, you actually don't know if Connor can find the equipment or whether or not he had even started it in this dimension!" Steven scolded her.

Meanwhile Jack was wandering around the anomaly; he was intrigued by its colours and was attempting to touch what looked like shards of glass. Crystal, who had been staring of in the opposite direction, turned round to find her brother placing his hand through the anomaly.

"Jack!" she exclaimed, making him jump and miss his footing, sending him tumbling through the very thing she had tried to prevent him going through.

Crystal began running towards the anomaly.

"Crystal, Crystal…" Cutter warned her, before she did anything drastic. Abi started to run towards it too.

"NO!" Cutter shouted as Abi disappeared into the anomaly, Steven was following her.

"Steven don't even… arg!" Cutter had mentioned it too late, for Steven had already disappeared into the glittering mass of colour followed very shortly by Crystal.

"Crystal!" Connor exclaimed, Cutter tried to hold him back but lost his grip. Having lost most of his team he saw no point in staying on the other side while they were all in the either the prehistoric time or somewhere in the future unless he went in through the anomaly he would never know which it was.

Cutter sighed and stepped calmly through the glowing anomaly to another time altogether.

Jack landed on his back, winding himself, he groaned as he attempted to lift himself of the ground. It hurt really badly and he scolded himself for allowing himself to get so close to the anomaly. He looked around him trying to figure out where he was, there where houses so he guessed he was in the future but it looked so dark and dreary, that he could hardly believe that this was the inevitable future of his home town, his home planet.

Something made a scratchy noise that turned into a low moan. Jack forced himself off the ground; he looked around properly, his heart racing. What was it? Where was it? He felt to open in the middle of the deserted street, so still keeping his eyes roving round the area, Jack found himself a hiding place between two old boxes and watched in shock as the grotesque creature came into view. Jack held his breath as the creature came nearer and then finally passed by. He relaxed but didn't come out from his hiding place that was until he saw Abi.

Abi entered through the anomaly, she paused to glance around her, take in the area and the situation. It looked a bit deserted but she didn't see any immediate danger, she then looked purposefully for Jack. She had seen him fall, she knew that he was here and he couldn't have got that far as it had been a matter of less than 2 minutes between his entry and hers.

"ABI!" Jack shouted, having noticed that there was something coming closer to her. Abi whipped her body round following the voice, she casually walked towards Jack's hiding place (although she was unaware this was where he was hiding).

"ABI! BEHIND YOU!" Jack shouted again, Abi looked round; she spotted what Jack was on about. A large creature about 3 times her size, incredibly ugly and scary at the same time. Luckily it seemed to be preoccupied with something else (or it was extremely deaf, for Jack's shouts where not ones to be called quiet.) and hadn't paid any attention to Abi so she continued towards Jack in the similar manner that she had been just a little quieter.

She had almost reached Jack when Steven entered the anomaly. He spotted Abi immediately and started to run to catch up with her. The creature apparently was not as deaf as he made out to be for he clearly heard Steven and began following him at an almost equal pace. Jack noticed the creature and pulled Abi up they sprinted away from Steven and the creature.

"Hey! Wait up!" Steven shouted taking extra steps to try and keep up with their pace.

"Creature alert!" Jack shouted back, making Steven glance back and realise what he was on about and run a little faster.

Out of the anomaly Crystal emerged, looking anxiously around for her brother or Abi or Steven who had gone before her. No one was in view, nothing but rows of deserted houses which looked vaguely familiar. Crystal was vaguely aware of someone else coming through the anomaly behind her, she ignored it and started to walk down the empty street.

Connor caught Crystal's arm, she couldn't just go running off without anyone with her. She turned round glaring at Connor.

"Wait for Cutter." Connor told her, not letting go of her arm for fear that she wouldn't listen to him.

They only had a moment to wait before Cutter had joined them.

"Where is everyone?" he asked but it was pretty clear that neither Connor nor Crystal had an answer to that question either.

"Well we can start looking over there can't we?" Cutter said heading off in the opposite direction to the three colleges who had come before them. Reluctantly Crystal followed Cutter and Connor as they began walking down the desolate street, their footsteps echoing in the dead silence.

They had been walking for a while, in silence, Crystal on one side of Cutter and Connor on the other. Cutter was beginning to feel agitated, it was clear that they had lost Abi, Steven and Jack but it didn't help when neither of the two people he was with weren't saying a word to anyone it did not help his flow of ideas as he was consciously worried about their relationship and why they weren't talking to each other.

"Look, whatever happened between you two can't you just forget about it… it's not going to help the situation, we can't go about trying to find people when we can't work as a team because you two won't talk!" Cutter exclaimed getting a little annoyed with them both.

Only Crystal seemed to be affected by Cutter's little speech. She looked up at Cutter and then across to Connor, who looked the other way, avoiding her gaze. He still hadn't forgiven her and it would take a long time before he would.

Cutter sighed. In general he was proud of his colleges but on occasions like this he wished they would grow up and accept the fact that one of them was wrong and forgive each other. But that was the consequences of hiring people straight out of school. Connor and Crystal had joined Cutter as soon as they left school, Abi joined later after working in a zoo for a few months; Steven had been abroad for a year or so when Cutter had decided to involve him in his investigations.

Jack, Abi and Steven had found refuge in a deserted building and all sighed with relief as the creature sailed by them in pursuit of three invisible people. After all three had finally caught their breath they began to take in their surroundings. The building was dark, damp and cold, yet they all felt it somewhat familiar.

Abi began searching around, trying to get a clue of what the building used to be. She turned over several boxes but they were so old that the writing had faded and the boxes where almost falling apart as she touched them.

Steven began searching in the higher shelves and cupboards; they were relatively empty apart from the odd spoon or mug. Whoever left this place must have taken their belongings all with them to another place.

Jack was looking everywhere else that either Abi or Steven hadn't checked: Corners, lower cupboards, any other nook and cranny the other two hadn't covered. No one found anything that showed them what the building used for before the owners deserted.

Abi was bent over a drawer when she came across some paperwork; removing it from the drawer she began to study it. It was computer written and looked very similar to the sort of paperwork she found lying around in the ARC.

"Hey! Steven… come look at this!" Abi called, knowing Steven would be better at deciphering what the document was trying to tell her. She felt someone behind her and immediately thought it was Steven but then she heard Steven's footsteps coming to the door, Abi then thought of Jack but she could hear Steven talking to him telling him to come with him. Abi's heart began to pound, who was behind her and what were they doing there? Abi began to turn her head but found she was knocked out unconscious, she fell to the floor. Someone bent down next to Abi and clicked a device over her, the figure then got up and left the room.

Steven arrived at the door.

"What is it Abi? Abi!" Steven spotted Abi's limp form on the floor and immediately ran over to her. Jack arrived just as Steven knelt down on the floor.

"What happened?" Jack asked, rushing to Steven's side.

"I don't know." Steven said honestly, he knew Jack liked answers given to him straight and because he was new to everything he kind of expected that someone would be able to explain it to him, but Steven had no answer for him.

"Look, go and see if you can find a first aid kit or something." Steven told Jack, it would keep him off his back for a while as he tried to revive Abi and then he could bandage up anything that she had injured without having to spend time looking for it.

Jack got up obediently and left the room in search of something that looked similar to a first aid box. It was slightly dark outside the room and he never noticed who the strange figure was who render him unconscious and click something over him.

"Hey Jack, have you found it yet?" Steven shouted from where he was, still crouched beside Abi. No answer.

"Jack?" Steven shouted again this time he was more cautious and listened carefully for Jack's voice to answer him. Still nothing.

Beginning to worry, Steven stood up and walked slowly to the door and called Jack's name once more. By this time Steven wasn't expecting an answer, it just came out, just in case. Very carefully Steven began walking through the hallway, then he found Jack's body on the floor. Steven's heart skipped a beat. What was going on, how come two people were now unconscious yet no sign of anything that could have caused it? Steven crouched down next to Jack, he felt that somebody else was in the hallway. It most certainly couldn't have been Jack because he was right in front of him out cold, it couldn't have been Abi for there was no chance she could have recovered that quickly or quietly. Steven stood up again and walked ever so slowly down the hall.

He stopped. He was getting the sensation that, whoever it was, was very close to him, behind him in fact. Steven slowly turned his head, then his body and then his legs followed.

"Oh my god! What are you doing here?" Steven was shocked at who he saw, but only for a while as he too found himself on the cold stone floor, conscious of something clicking and then blank.

Ok pretty please some reviews, I know that there have been people reading this!