AN: Okay, that was concerning. Nobody had anything to say about the last chapter? I hope everyone was okay with the Trish-Photo storyline... Well, here's the next chapter anyway. As of the first of November, the world has officially crossed over. Population of the earth is now over seven billion. I would have loved to work that in somehow, but I set the story in the near future, so that would be old news to these characters.

Thus concludes today's public service announcement, we now return you to your regularly scheduled fanfic!


The sun was high in the sky, and made a great photo of the Reclaimer facility in upstate New York. Far from Manhattan, there was plenty of farm country and small houses here and there. In a fairly isolated spot, framed by natural lands and a river that would eventually lead into the Hudson, was the Reclaimer.

Their first impression of it, was that it was a beautiful building. It didn't seem like a factory. Factories weren't so... bright and gleaming, like it had been made from marble and ivory. It was surrounded by trees and gardens. There were water features out the front, and it reached at least twenty stories high.

"No smokestacks." Gi observed. "That's encouraging."

"Hmm." Kwame said to himself. "Doesn't look like a factory."

"It looks like a summer retreat for wealthy executives." Linka said.

"Naw, no tennis court." Wheeler quipped.

"It's probably on the roof."

"Nope. According to the Press Packet, the roof is covered by a community garden for all employees, as well as a tree farm. It's said that the factory has a partnership deal with the local communities for tree saplings. They get started on the roof of this building, the warmth of the factory is good for growing them apparently, and then the trees get sold for planting to local areas." Wheeler recited from the packet they had been sent. "I wonder if JJ knows about that. Planeteer Hall does a lot of that sort of thing..."

"Ever get the feeling something can be too good to be true?" Linka quipped.

"Sure, when I met you." Wheeler shot back. "Then you started talking and I knew you were."

"Oh yeah?" Linka pounced. "Well what about your..."

"Back you two! Back to your corners!" Kwame interrupted. "Wheeler, tell us about the process."

"Well, that's the thing. I have no idea." Wheeler admitted. "The Press releases say that it's a new method, and they're keeping it secret, for internal security. Patent protection."

"That's the Press Release." Gi offered. "VIP Tour is on the schedule for today. We might get an answer then."


As the car pulled in, they were met at the door, and shown into the building by a perky blonde who smiled too much. "Hi, My name is Gina, and I'll be your guide this afternoon. I gotta say, it's really exciting to have you here! We're all huge fans of your work. We're still expecting a few other guests to join us for our special grand opening day, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask, though most of them will probably be answered on the Tour. We've got a great room set up for you, until the others get here, and-STOP!"

The five of them froze. Gina's way of talking without pausing for breath had them all caught up in the pace she set, and the sudden halt was jarring, to say the least.

Gina had a huge ditzy smile on her face. "Sorry, I don't know where my empty head is at most days. For the sake of internal security, I'm afraid we must insist that you not use any mobile devices. If you'll turn them over to our Reception staff, they'll keep them here."

The five of them traded a look, but didn't really have much of a reason to argue with it, so they handed over their phones.

"Our Recycling technology is a closely guarded secret. We're the only ones that have it, you see." Gina explained. "All recording devices are to be kept away from our production line during the tour. Now if you'll follow me, I'll show you to your waiting room."


They were not kept waiting long. The Tour was made up of the Planeteers, several members of the Press, and a few people that Gi recognized as heads of various industrial companies.

They recognized the Planeteers of course. One or two of them even had some advice for Wheeler on how to handle his press issues.

Gi was right at home, happily talking innovation and business with the Industrial guests, Wheeler sat by himself as much as possible.

Eventually though, the Tour began. The large group of people was met by Bligh, who was dressed in her usual jumpsuit again, with a white lab coat over the top, and her two-tones blonde hair worn in a loose ponytail.

"Good morning. On behalf of Mr Stumm and the Corporation, I'd like to welcome you to the Opening Tour of the Reclaimer facility. As the factory begins production, we're planning on making it open to the general public, but today was by invitation only. The question of Battery recycling is one of the less talked about environmental concerns before us today, but is no less serious that a lot of waste disposal. In a lot of ways, it's the most serious. It's our hope that the Reclaimer technology will prove successful for us, and for all of you. Gathered with us here today are captains of industry, honored members of the press, and the leading figures in the Green Technology Revolution. Today you're going to see something that's never been seen before, and with any luck, something that will change the way we do business for the better."

Polite applause answered her. Bligh's face was not exactly scowling, but it was clear that she didn't enjoy public speaking. She didn't play to the audience; her speech was pre-written for her. But the point was made, and the carefully selected audience were excited to hear about this matter, so they barely noticed.

"Now then, we have much to do today, so if you'll indulge us, we will break up the tour into groups." Bligh announced. "If you'll check your ID's, you'll notice that they are color coded. We've got a tight tour schedule so that each group can see everything in rotation." She gestured over toward the door. "These will be your guides for the day, so if you'll find your groups quickly, we can get started."

Everyone checked their tags. The Planeteers were split into two groups. Kwame, Linka, Gi and Ma-Ti were in one group; Wheeler in the second; plus a third group made up of people they didn't know.


The Tour was almost interesting. Except that they weren't learning anything. The Press had their recorders and their notepads out the entire time, scribbling down notes as fast as the Tour guides could talk. The industrial types were paying attention, but their guide was only talking about the construction of the building, and the incidental divisions of the place.

"Over twelve thousand workers were involved in the construction of the Reclaimer, making it a major source of revenue for-"

Wheeler tuned it out after a while. The Reclaimer Tour had taken them through the office space, the roof gardens, the Office Gym, the Lunch Rooms… The Industrial Center had been neatly avoided. The production line had been glimpsed through a viewing window from an above corridor, but Wheeler didn't have a clue what he was looking at. The machines that did the world of this place were huge but incomprehensible.

The Fire Planeteer sent a look at his tour companions. Some of them were wealthy industrialists, and had been building and running factories like this themselves. They all looked frankly envious, recognizing the wealth behind this factory, and the potential profit it could yield. But none of them seemed to know how it worked either.

Wheeler hung back a but. "So." He said to one of his companions at random. "You have any idea how the battery sludge gets recycled?"

The man in question shook his head. "None. There's some serious money going into it, based on that factory floor, but how it's done… They're playing the cards close to the chest."

"Who can blame them?" Volunteered another. "Rumor is that there's going to be a shake-up in the business world soon. Rumor is that State law is about to vote on a bill that will require all businesses to recycle batteries. By law. This is the only place in existence that knows how to recycle batteries."

"Another monopoly for the Corporation." Wheeler said grimly.

Their Tour Guide piped up brightly. "Excuse me folks, but we're a little behind schedule, the second group will be through here shortly."

They all started to follow her when Wheeler noticed a quick movement out of the corner of his eye. It was the way someone moved when they were hoping not to be seen. He turned to the viewing window, trying to follow it, and saw a tall blonde woman with a white lab coat slipping through the factory, trying to go unnoticed.

Bligh.

Wheeler glanced at his tour group. They were moving on quickly, apparently being rushed out.

Suspicious, Wheeler glanced around. No sign of the others. He reached for his phone automatically before remembering it had been checked at the door.

Bligh was through the door with a glance over her shoulder. There was nobody in the factory room. It wasn't running yet, but she still checked. But she didn't look the next level up, above her head at the viewing window, where Wheeler watched her.

Biting his lip, Wheeler slipped away from his group as they walked, and checked the evacuation plan on the wall, trying to figure out how to catch up to Bligh quickly.


Watching on the security screens, Stumm smirked.

I told you that he would be the one to break.

"You did." Stumm admitted. "The others?"

All is proceeding according to plan.

Stumm was aware of Bligh's assistant Mal watching him sideways. He didn't feel any need to call him on it. Mal was like Bligh: They preferred to do their work without anyone watching. And Mal would only hear one half of the conversation, which made anything he saw hard to explain. Stumm was several levels above Mal's paygrade, and that would have made anyone a little nervous. "Mal?

Mal turned to face him fully, pretending he hadn't been staring. "Sir?"

Stumm waved at the security monitors. "You will of course make sure that the footage of this is destroyed."

"Not a problem sir, we're not even recording it right now."


Wheeler had dodged hall monitors, teachers, gangs, ex-girlfriends and various officials for most of his life. Staying hidden was relatively easy for him. Bligh was doing something. At every room she came to, she was keying the pass-codes into all the electronic locks; being careful not to let the door shut behind her.

Wheeler was getting worried. It made it easy for him to follow her, but there was only one reason he could think of for her to want the doors unlocked as she went... Because she was going to be in a hurry on the return trip.

He tailed her as she made her way from the production line, to somewhere deeper in the factory. Wheeler didn't know what any of the equipment was for, but he could tell that this was the core of the facility. And there was nobody there. A point that worried him. This was a factory, about to be opened, so where was everyone?

They came into another large room, and this was full of things that Wheeler recognized. Having worked to build skyscrapers and factories, he recognized this. This room was for heat, power, and water distribution. Fuses for the building's electrics, generators for an uninterrupted power supply, water pipes that would lead to every washroom and faucet in the factory… Effectively the nerve center for the building.

Bligh went over to the far wall, where a row of lockers were lined up. Wheeler had worked on construction sites for most of his adult life and knew the sorts of things that were kept in lockers like that. The duffel bag that Bligh pulled out was not standard issue.

The way she carried it showed how heavy it was. Wheeler pressed himself against the side of one of the generators, keeping an eye on her as he peeked around the corner. The sound of the running generator drowned out any sounds she was making, but he was glad, because it would have kept any noises he made hidden in return. She set the duffel bag on a table, and unzipped it.

Wheeler couldn't get a good look at it, but he could see bright red LED numbers. Bligh was fiddling with something inside the bag, and after a moment she zipped it shut again, and slid the duffel bag in between two of the automated Machines.

Wheeler felt his eyes widen. It couldn't be what it looked like. Why would Bligh be trying to blow up a factory that The Corporation built?

Bligh was working a small remote. It had two blinking lights on it. The intention of the device was clear.

Wheeler's instincts were screaming as Bligh turned back the way she came, walking faster now.

It was enough for him. If he could even delay her, she would have to talk, stop what she was doing, or be blown up with them. "What are you doing?" He demanded of her.

Bligh spun smoothly, wasting no time on surprise. Before Wheeler could blink, she had her gun drawn and pointed.

Wheeler swung his Ring up fast.

Too late.


"...and now if you'll follow us." The Tour Guide was calling. "We have a short presentation for you to-"

BOOM!

People screamed and ducked instinctively. The room rolled like an earthquake was happening, but it lasted only a second.

"Everyone! Please remain calm! I don't know what-"

BOOM!

More screaming. The lights went out instantly and windows shattered. Sound of things crashing came through the whole building.

"Would everyone clear the room please?"Their guide shouted, staying professional. "If you'll follow me, we'll proceed to the emergency exits…"

Kwame turned to the guide. "Let us stay. We can help."

"Sir, I don't know what the problem is yet. Any help you can provide will be up to the emergency services when they get here, right now you are not employees, and we need to get all visitors out of the facility!"


Wheeler woke up, gasping for air. The last thing he remembered was Bligh lunging at him before he could conjure a flame…

Wheeler coughed again, and he suddenly realized why he couldn't breathe.

The room was on fire.

Wheeler ducked low and raised his Ring. "…f…" The smoke was bad, the heat was worse. The flames had consumed all the air in the room and what little was left was filled with thick, black smoke. Wheeler was in nine kinds of pain and couldn't breathe, let alone speak. It took everything he had to get the magic word out. "…fire."

His ring glimmered, and the flames around him responded. They opened for him like a curtain had been pulled back. Wheeler shook his head hard. He was seeing three of everything; he was weaving a bit…

He saw what looked like the door and made his way toward it, trusting the fire to let him pass without burning him.


The Planeteers had been hustled out to the courtyard, well away from the building. The rest of the staff was there too. They looked panicked. Ma-Ti confirmed that their feelings were genuine.

That little piece of the truth made the rest of them nervous. If this was a real emergency…

"Where is he?" Linka demanded. "He's not with the tour group; he's not in the evacuation, where the hell is he?"

"Calm down." Kwame turned to Ma-Ti. "Can you find Wheeler?"

The boy looked at the walls of the building, apparently seeing through them.

"He'll be okay Linka." Gi said gently. "It's a fire. There's no fire made that Wheeler can't control. You know that."

Linka spun on her. "Then where is he?"

Ma-Ti pointed to the side of the Reclaimer facility. "He is there. He is... confused... angry?"

"He's in trouble!" Linka said sharply. "Ma-Ti, how do I get to him?"

Another blast of flame erupted from somewhere in the building, making everyone jump.

"Wheeler, what the hell are you doing in there?" Gi hissed to herself.


Wheeler could feel his head clearing as he moved. Enough that he took a look at the evacuation plan on the wall. The smoke was pouring through thick and fast, and Wheeler ducked down below the smoke, the flames moving away from him.

He was still more than a little punch drunk, barely aware of where he was. With the room black with smoke, and him miserably short of breath as a result, his head was pounding horribly, his lungs and throat were burning, and he couldn't even remember which way the door was.

Finally, he couldn't take it any more. "Fi… cough… FIRE!"

The flames exploded away from him toward every corner of the room, and twisted in the air at his command. Wheeler pushed his hand out like he was throwing a punch, and the flame snaked across the production line like a battering ram made of solid flames.

Wheeler chased after it as he blasted a door straight through the wall, into the next room, which quickly caught alight as the flame moved through it like a living snake of heat and destruction.

And Wheeler, still trying to breathe, just kept moving, safe in the center of a tornado of flame that ripped through the walls and rooms like a wave.


The other Planeteers were still trying to get back into the building when the wall exploded, thankfully away from the crowd. A blast of flame erupted out from the wall, and kept moving forward, a few feet off the ground.

Wheeler emerged from the building an instant later, and the flame wall vanished as he dropped to his knees in the daylight.

"Wind!" Linka called, and the breeze kicked up sharply, sending all the smoke away from his heaving body. The Planeteers ran forward before the emergency services could stop them, and they ran toward him.

Wheeler was completely out of it as the four of them carried his body over to the paramedics. One of them quickly put an oxygen mask over his face and cranked it up. The condensation on the face mask meant he was breathing, and his eyelids moved as he thrashed somewhat in his near delirium.

Relieved, the Planeteers sagged, as the emergency crews moved in quickly. Kwame noticed a few reporters and press were pointing cameras in their direction and felt a chill. Whatever had gone on in there, it was going to be public knowledge soon enough.

The Reclaimer, a huge investment on behalf of the most powerful businessmen in the world, was burning.


Wheeler came back to himself slowly, his lungs burning cold and his throat in agony. He was wrapped in something warm, but he could feel chills running through his whole body. The beeping sounds of the machines in the ambulance made his headache seem sharper, but the more he breathed, the easier it seemed to go.

The more he was aware of himself, the more the picture came together. He could still smell smoke, though it seemed to be coming from him more than anything else. He could hear the hiss of hoses, the crackle of flames, and the indistinct shouting of people. A few voices he thought he recognized.

His vision cleared, and he managed to make out Ma-Ti, holding the oxygen mask over his face. "Ma-Ti?"

Do not speak. We're alone for now, as I convinced the paramedic to leave us for a while, but you're injured. Ma-Ti's voice rolled through him. I can hear you, but rest your throat.

What happened?

We were hoping you could tell us. Ma-Ti said lightly. All we know is that we were on a Tour of the Reclaimer, and then things started blowing up.

Wheeler's memory of the whole thing was foggy. I remember waking up in the middle of a burning room… He suddenly broke down coughing into his oxygen mask.

Ma-Ti bit his lip. "Wheeler... You can sense fires burning... but you can create flame too. By manipulating things than can burn, including the air itself... Linka can manipulate air movement, Gi can manipulate water... None of you create these things, you just... command them." He swallowed. "I haven't done this before, but I have to know if..."

Wheeler felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as Ma-Ti took his hands gently. The boy closed his eyes, and the golden jewel on his Ring shone brightly.

Wheeler shivered, and felt his skin prickle, like he had just climbed into a hot bath. The glow from Ma-Ti's ring seemed to wrap around him. He gasped in a big breath, and realized to his shock that it was coming much easier than it had a moment ago. The shivers and chills in his skin stopped. The strangest feeling of his skin crawling came over him, and he threw back the blanket in shock to see his burns were fading, his vision getting sharper...

Ma-Ti released him and slumped. "That's enough." he said quietly. "I don't want to... push this too far."

Wheeler sat up, feeling stronger, though his throat still hurt. "That was... amazing."

Ma-Ti nodded. "Life is... complex. The more I learn about what I can do... the more I realize I have a lot left to learn."

Wheeler was silent a moment, and got up. "You think that's true of all of us? All our powers?"

"I do." Ma-Ti agreed.

Wheeler clambered out of the ambulance. "Let's see if we can help."


The Reclaimer was burning, but the fire seemed contained. Two trucks worth of firemen were battling the flames with their hoses, and Gi was ahead of the charge, Ring glowing. The spray of water from the fire hoses was floating in the air, turning this way and that like a ribbon, drawing itself through every open flame, through the windows and doors, until the fire retreated.

Linka was right there with them. "Let's go!" She yelled, and the fire-teams went running into the building, Linka leading the charge, Ring-First, and the smoke billowed out as she pushed fresh air in with them; Gi backing them all the way in.

Kwame was well away from the building, helping out with the crowd as best he could. The police had apparently arrived, and were doing their best to keep the crowds and the press under control.

"K-" Wheeler tried to shout over to his team mate, and broke down coughing. He sounded like a frog with a head cold.

Kwame had noticed him anyway, and came running over. "Wheeler. I'm… a little surprised to see you up and around. At last count, it was going to take some serious recovery time to get you back on your feet."

"Ma-Ti." Wheeler explained hoarsely. "He did a thing."

Kwame didn't have a clue what that meant, but he understood. "How are you feeling?"

"Grilled." Wheeler whispered. "Ironic, huh?"

Kwame smirked a little when they heard the nearest fireman's radio start to squawk. The fireman answered, before breaking into huge smiles.

Kwame and Wheeler went back over to them. "What are they telling you officer?"

The Fire Marshall smiled. "Looks like your friends got the job done fast. The fire is out inside. You guys have any idea what caused the explosion?"

Kwame glanced at Wheeler, and shook his head quickly. "Not yet. What are the chances you can tell us?"

"Hard to say. It's a new facility, and apparently has secrets of it's own. We won't know if this was an accident or equipment failure, or human error for a while. Problem with investigating fires is… Anything the fire doesn't destroy, the firemen usually do."

"WHEELER!"

The American turned, and saw Gi and Linka coming out of the building. Linka was running toward him quickly, almost tackling him. "God, are you okay?"

"Why Linka, this-" Wheeler broke down hacking and coughing.

She broke the hug and gave him a look. "I don't know what the end of that sentence was going to be, but if you couldn't make it there, you should probably be sitting down."


The Planeteers returned to the ambulance, and Wheeler obediently took the oxygen mask back over his face again. Several minutes passed as Wheeler breathed deeply, letting his lungs settle. Kwame spoke with the paramedics, revising their plans to take Wheeler to the hospital, and Ma-Ti explained to the others what he had done.

"There's still so much we don't know about these powers." Kwame murmured.

"That's to be expected though." Gi said. "Our powers are elemental. We're still figuring out how such things interact in nature. Why should these be any different?"

There was a knock at the side of the ambulance, and a paramedic stuck his head in. "Excuse me folks, but if your friend isn't going with us, then we could really use this ambulance for others. Plus, there are some questions to an answered. A couple of cops are waiting for you."

The Planeteers got out of the ambulance, and made their way over to a police car. Two uniformed officers were waiting for them.

"Good afternoon. Mr Deka, we'd like to take you back to the precinct. We have a few questions about what happened in there."

"Are we under arrest?" Wheeler asked.

"No sir, we're just trying to establish the timeline of what happened. It's a routine part of any investigation. If you're not needed her urgently, we'd like for you to come with us please."

The Planeteers were about to answer, when a voice flowed gently through them, sounding like the river as it raced, or the earth when it trembled. Don't go with them Young Ones. They are not there to help you.

Kwame glanced over. The Planeteers had heard it, but the people surrounding them hadn't.

Ma-Ti's voice came a moment later. Gaia's never warned us directly like this before. What has changed?

I don't know, but a police officer tried to kill us the other day. I'm prepared to accept there's more to this than we know.

If we get killed, we never find out. I'd prefer not to replay the mistakes of the week.

All this went between them swiftly, and Kwame broke into an easy smile. "Officer, we'll be done helping with the cleanup in a few minutes. Wait here, we'll be right back."

"Actually, I'll meet you back at your car." The policeman said, just as easily. "Take your time, we can wait."

The Planeteers never went back to the cars. They instead made their way over to the edge of the property. Ma-Ti made a guard look the other way, Wheeler shut down a few cameras; and they slipped past the fence line without anyone noticing.


"They were waiting at our car to make sure we couldn't slip back. We should stay off the roads." Wheeler croaked.

"Don't talk." Linka told him. "Your throat is damaged."

"If we stay off the roads, how do we get back to the city?" Gi asked.

Ma-Ti nodded. "The same way I got from my village to America when we got together. I can find us some transport. The problem is what to do when we get there? We're well known enough that a lot of people are going to notice that we've vanished."

"I know that I'm willing to take Gaia's word for it when she says we're in danger." Kwame said.

"Me too." Wheeler croaked.

"Don't talk!" Linka repeated.

Wheeler glared at her. "Enjoying this much?"

"Don't talk!" Linka fussed. "Let your throat heal."

Ma-Ti peeled off. "I'll find a ride for us."

"I have a bad feeling about this. People we can't figure out are following us around, and there are dead bodies showing up." Linka said.

Wheeler shook his head. "I know. It's getting thick real quick. I should have called JJ the second we found out about the hit list. I gotta go back and get him out of the apartment."

"Don't talk!" Three Planeteers shouted at him.

Kwame nodded. "All right. We don't go anywhere alone. Call him, have him meet us somewhere. We'll get the Geo-Cruiser heated up, and we'll head for Hope Island."

"How are you going to call him?" Gi asked. "They took our phones for the Tour."

Wheeler's mouth became a very thin flat line. His Ring was glowing from the force of his contained frustration. Gi stepped back and threaded her fingers through his. He gave her a quick nod.

Ma-Ti came back a moment later. "I have transport for us." He said. "It's a Moving Van, so we'll have to ride in the back, but the driver can be convinced that he never so much as slowed down, so he won't be able to tell anyone. He's on his way to New York."

"Then we should hurry, before someone wonders why he's pulled over." Kwame said.


The ride took several hours. Once they got into the city, the traffic and the stoplights forced the truck to stop a number of times. Wheeler put his eye to the side of the truck, looking for landmarks, and told them when they were close enough to anything they recognized.

Wheeler told him everything he remembered about rhe blast during the trip.

"Why would Bligh sabotage the Reclaimer?" Linka asked. "To frame Wheeler?"

"The Reclaimer is a huge deal. They've been talking it up all week; they poured millions of dollars into it. If they wanted to ruin us, there's plenty of other ways. Cheaper ways."

"What if Bligh was working alone? It wouldn't be the first time she screwed her superiors to get ahead."

"Get ahead how?" Kwame offered. "She reports directly to Stumm, where is there for her to go? She'll never take Stumm without going down with him."

Gi bit her lip. "I know I've said this before, but I'll say it again. Everything is connected... What's the connection between a blast at the Reclaimer, and the murder of Elias Levinson?"

"And those two cops." Wheeler put in, his voice clearing. "Whoever they are, they know we've given them the slip. If they're still looking for us, they'll head for New York to find us again. JJ's a connection to us. I have to get him out of there."

"Agreed." Kwame said. "The Geo-Cruiser's a connection too. We'll have to hide it."

Ma-Ti rubbed his forehead irritably. "We're there."


New Yorkers as a whole were pretty jaded, so when a moving van pulled to a stop on the Bridge, and the door rolled up to release five young people, nobody so much as blinked. The moved carefully to make sure the driver didn't notice, and traffic started moving again soon after, so anyone who cared to notice quickly diverted their attention elsewhere.

"They took our phones." Wheeler headed toward the nearest payphone. "When I reach JJ, what do I tell him?"

Kwame shrugged. "Tell him everything you know. Maybe he or your father has something else to go on."

"Maybe. I'll tell him to get out and meet us somewhere." Wheeler reached for the phone…

…and it started ringing an instant before he touched it.

They all froze, worried. Just to play it safe, Wheeler left it alone. There were three payphones lined up. He went to the next one…

…and it started ringing too.

"You know, this could go on for a while." Linka said seriously.

"There." Ma-Ti said finally, and they all turned to follow his gaze. A traffic camera had turned away from the street and was now pointed squarely at them.

Wheeler answered the ringing harshly. "Who is this?"

A voice he didn't recognize answered. The voice had a hoarse sulfuric quality to it, as though the man speaking was trying to catch his breath every second. "Don't go home. Your apartment is being watched."

"By who?"

"I don't know for sure, which is why I'm warning you. If I knew what they wanted, I could take care of it myself."

"Who is this?" Wheeler demanded.

"I'm the one who called Linka's parents to warn them you were all targets." The voice responded. "Things are happening very quickly now, and I don't know if I can get you all out of it. Get to Hope Island as fast as you can."

And with that, the phone disconnected.

Wheeler put the phone down and stared at it like a hated enemy.

"What happened?" Linka demanded. "Who was it?"

"He didn't say. He did say however that my home is being watched, and that he doesn't know who or why. He said that he was the one who tipped off your parents, and that we have to get to Hope Island."

Beat.

"I am really getting sick of not knowing who's screwing with us." Linka snarled.

Wheeler took off running. Kwame grabbed him quickly and put him against the nearest wall. "If your home is being watched, then going in there will just make a bad situation worse."

"I can't leave without JJ!" Wheeler snapped.

"I know." Kwame said, in his face. "But Wheeler, the one place he won't be is your apartment."

Long staring contest.

"Okay." Wheeler said finally. "You're right."

Kwame released him, and stayed close enough to catch him again if he was faking reasonableness. "Now." Kwame said. "Once we figure out what we're doing; we'll need to escape. So we'll need an escape route."

Wheeler nodded. "The Geo-Cruiser."


"Well this is just perfect." Linka hissed. "This is so perfect I might just throw up."

The dock where the Geo-Cruiser was parked was full of people. Ma-Ti was pointing at them one by one, locating the ones that were there legitimately, and the ones that had nefarious intention. Some of them were just standing around; some of them were in uniforms.

"The uniforms are Dock Security and Harbor Patrol." Wheeler whispered. "They fit here. They can stay around the clock."

"The man picking up rubbish with a spike has been stabbing the ground over and over without putting anything into his bag." Ma-Ti said quietly. "I think the homeless guy is wearing a pair of binoculars around his neck, and the woman with the dog has been walking back and forth in front of the dock for the fourth time now..."

"We're surrounded." Gi summed up. "They've already got the Geo-Cruiser locked down, and they're no doubt in the City. If Wheeler's place is being watched..."

Wheeler looked more worried than angry. "What if they've got JJ already?"

"Whoever they are."

Kwame put his hand up. "Okay, listen. We know that someone is after us, and is willing to blow things up. Maybe the tip is genuine, maybe not. Either way, does it seem like a smart move to go where we can be found right now?"

Silence.

"What about a hotel?" Gi suggested.

"The kind of places we can afford without using a credit card, or accessing our accounts… are the kind of places that can't possibly be trusted." Ma-Ti said. "And I can't convince everyone to look the other way."

Wheeler looked slightly sick. "I know the last place in New York that anybody will think to look for us."


BREAKING NEWS:

In a Statement just released, Vernan Stumm announced that the investigations into the explosion at the Reclaimer Grand Opening is underway, but has not yet released any findings. The Facilities' internal security footage is currently being studied for clues as to the cause of the blast.

Mr Stumm assured shareholders that their schedule has not been changed at all. Government and Industrial customers have announced that their investments are not in any way under reconsideration. The Reclaimer will still open on schedule. Business analysts suggest that despite high fees for use of the Recycling technology, it may become the legal standard for all industrial or commercial businesses to make use of the Reclaimer facilities by years end."


Trish Allen was amazed when she opened her apartment door to find Wheeler on her doorstep. The shock on her face gave way to open terror and she tried to slam the door quickly; though Wheeler was faster and managed to get there first, sticking his foot in before it closed. "Trish, I'm not here to set you on fire, I promise!"

Trish shoved hard once more, failed to get the door shut, and jumped away quickly from the door, and he slipped in, closing it behind them. She backed away from him in panic. "Wheeler, I know you're mad, but I can explain."

Wheeler didn't seem at all angry. "Okay. Go ahead and explain."

Trish licked her lips. "Fifty thousand dollars."

Wheeler let out a low whistle. "I'd sell dirty photos of you for that."

Trish nodded. "I know."

"No I wouldn't! Of course not! Jeez Trish!" Wheeler snapped. "Listen, I'm not here about that."

"Why are you here?" Trish demanded. "According to Twitter, you should be in hospital."

"You follow my Twitter feed?"

"Sure."

Wheeler paused. "I have a Twitter feed?"

"Actually, it's a bunch of people who put up news alerts and stuff about you."

Wheeler shook his head firmly. "Whatever. Trish… I know that we're not on the best of terms. I don't blame you for hating me…"

"Hate you? Wheeler, don't think for a second that I was in here scribbling 'Mrs Trish Johnston' in my diary. I knew what it was. I don't hate you. I don't even dislike you. Not at all."

Wheeler blinked. "Then why?"

"Fifty thousand dollars." Trish said, as though that explained everything. "Things haven't changed Wheels, I still got the bank hounding my mom about her debts, and the rent on this place went up..."

Wheeler held up his hands. "Hey! Hey, you don't have to tell me how useful fifty grand is. I know the score. I did when we went out too."

"We never went out, we stayed in all weekend." Trish shot back. "So, why are you here now?"

"I need someone who can do a stupid thing and not worry about it."

Trish smirked. "Never turned that down that offer from you before."

Wheeler smiled a little grimly. "Ditto."


"This. Is. A Bad. Idea." Linka said. "This… girl can't be trusted."

"Wheeler's not wrong though. It's the last place anyone would look for us." Gi offered.

"There is a reason for that!"

Above them, a window opened. "Come on in guys."

Kwame jumped up enough to grab the fire-escape. "Ma-Ti, make sure nobody thinks to look out their windows."

Ma-Ti's ring glimmered, and they climbed their way up.


Trish held the curtains back meekly as four more worldwide superstars came into her home through the window.

"We appreciate you doing this." Kwame said shortly. Ma-Ti nodded at her as though he couldn't see her, and Linka gave her a look that made her want to beg forgiveness for breathing.

Gi came in last. "Can I use your computer?"


Gi tore apart her cell phone details, and then did the same with all of theirs, via an online site that logged their apps and usages. "Okay, here's what I know. Someone has activated our phones in the last five hours. All I know is that they were switched on; and it was after the blast at the Reclaimer plant."

"If someone got to our phones, then they've got our address books, our speed dial lists… everyone we talk to. Everyone we trust." Wheeler growled.

"Gi, is there any way to make sure they can't use our phones?"

"I'm using a phone app through their website Kwame, this is a household PC, not the CIA." Gi complained. "Besides, if they've turned them on, they've already got everything on our phones."

Wheeler had gone straight to Trish's phone, blocked the caller ID, and called home. The phone rang twice before someone picked it up. "Hello?"

Wheeler froze. He didn't recognize the voice. "Who is this?"

"Is this Wheeler Johnston?"

Wheeler hung up instantly. Then picked up the phone again and called Polly. The phone rang nine times before Wheeler gave up and put the phone down. "Somebody's in my house and it's not my family." He growled. His ring was glowing brightly.

Linka was at his side in seconds. "Wheeler, be smart about this."

"I know." Wheeler growled. "But if they've got my brother…"

"You don't know that. If they had him, they'd find a way to let you know. If they don't, then you going home will be a disaster."

"Whoever they are." Wheeler growled. "I would give my right hand to know who was pulling the strings on this one."

"JJ's okay. If they had him, they'd find a way to tell us so they could use him as bait." She told him quietly.

The phone rang. Everyone stared at it as though it was dangerous. Trish stepped forward when Linka clapped a hand on her shoulder. "No."

"Linka, it's her house." Wheeler told her. "She isn't our prisoner."

"I can put it on speaker." Trish offered.

The Planeteers looked to Kwame, who nodded. Linka released her and Trish hit the speakerphone. "Hello?"

"Trish? This is Gary over at the London Daily." Answered a voice in a British Accent, and everyone tensed and relaxed simultaneously. "You've probably seen the news."

Everyone looked uncomfortable. Wheeler didn't seem to care, Linka's glare got fiercer.

Trish swallowed. "I saw. Now's not a good time…"

"The Reclaimer headlines alone have driven up the circulation of the latest Issue. We're planning to extend our run. There are a few websites offering big money for the rest of the photos. The ones we couldn't publish ourselves. Nobody will know that they came from yo-"

"Really, not a good time!" Trish insisted, mortified. "Can I call you back later?"

"Sure, you've got the number." Gary said brightly. "Talk to you later."

He hung up. Long silence.

Longer silence.

Trish spoke finally. "Coffee anyone?"


Getting coffee took about ten minutes. Trish came out of her kitchen and found Gi sitting alone in her living room at her laptop.

"Where are the others?" Trish asked.

"They're in the next room, trying to decide if trusting you enough to come here was a ghastly mistake."

Trish didn't seem surprised. "What do you think?"

"I think you'd do things from a distance for money that you wouldn't do our faces." Gi said lightly. "I think it's easier to just let someone else..."

"Don't." Trish said plainly. "Let me ask you something... where'd you go to school?"

Gi blinked. "Tokyo Tech."

"Prestigious school?"

"Yeah."

Trish nodded, like that was expected. "When you graduated, you get job offers?"

"Sure."

"Take any of them?"

Gi shrugged. "Actually... I stayed home for a while. Just wanted to take some time off, took up surfing..."

"How long?"

"A year or two. Three." Gi conceded. "But I skipped a few grades..."

Trish nodded slowly. "Mm-hm. So, a brilliant, pretty girl with a good home life, a family willing to support you while you took a few years off so you could surf, after blitzing your way through a prestigious school and having her future offered from every quarter..." Trish glared. "You don't get to judge. My family was in pieces before I was born. I dropped out of a high school full of gangs and metal detectors, before I ever got to take my exams; because I had to support my mom, and I had to beg for a job serving coffee and pie. You don't get to judge. Wheeler can. Wheeler's like me. I could tell you horror stories about what him and his old group of friends used to get up to. He made it through armed with talent and hard work. He was going to get out of here and make something of himself, and then his mom died, and he got kicked out of Yale because his roommate was a sleaze, and his dad got new orders. He was old before he was twenty, like me. How old are you? I bet you still get emotional over sad scenes in animated movies."

Gi didn't have an answer to that.

Trish nodded, authority restored. "Little girl, you don't belong in our world. Wheeler has every right to be pissed, but he's like me. People like him and me... all we got, is what we got. I look after myself and my family, because nobody else will. Just like Wheeler. If I got the magic powers and he didn't, he would have sold the story too. You can't eat pride and dignity don't pay the rent. If I'm not trustworthy; then neither is Wheeler. We live in the real world, surfer girl. Do we understand each other?"

Feeling three feet tall, Gi nodded.


In the next room, the same conversation was playing out.

"We can't stay here. It's not safe here."

"I could take care of it." Ma-Ti offered. "I could make it so that she doesn't even know we're here. I could convince her to help us wholeheartedly."

"Like you did with your parents?" Wheeler said, low and calm.

Everyone paused, looking back and forth from Ma-Ti to Wheeler.

Ma-Ti looked down.

Wheeler sighed hard. "Sorry. That was cold. But… no, we're not brainwashing Trish."

Linka nodded. "I agree. It would be better if we just got away from here. I say we get back to the Geo-Cruiser, head back to Hope Island, figure things out there."

"I'm not leaving without finding my brother." Wheeler said hotly.

"We don't get to the Geo-Cruiser, and it might not matter." Linka argued. "What about all our families? What about Gi's family, or Ma-Ti's, or mine? If we don't get out of this city, then we'll never find any of them in time."

"Then go!" Wheeler snapped. "I'm staying!"

"Hey! Calm Down!" Kwame said. "Now look, whatever we do, it's best we stick together either way."

"Whatever we do?" Linka echoed. "We know what we have to do. We're under siege: We Get Out, then we come back in a time and place of our choosing."

Wheeler glared hotly at her. "The Geo-Cruiser is under lock-down, and our faces are now on a wanted list somewhere."

"You don't know that." Kwame interrupted. "We're pretty sure those two police officers were phoney."

"We're pretty sure one of them was phony. The other was the real deal, we saw the funeral; and the grieving family, on the news. Kwame, Elias Levinson is dead. The hit-list is real. If we're not on a Police Wanted List, there are still people surrounding my family home, and our transport. We just steal it back and run, we'll just convince everyone else that we're guilty and we'll never come back again."

"So what do you want to do?"

"We're celebrities, we've got some capital. People are gonna listen when we talk! I say we stay here, and settle this before we all get thrown in jail."

"We're not here to settle a fight." Linka snapped. "We're here to win it!"

Kwame looked down. "I don't know. Linka, that's a line we can't uncross."

"So we don't uncross it. We've been touring the world trying to convince people. What? Recycle your cans? Forests are being torn down. Whole chunks of the world are unlivable. I get why you want to do this peacefully, but if that were possible, the Planeteers wouldn't exist as a group and we wouldn't be here!"

And then they both turned to Kwame, waiting for a direction.

Kwame sighed. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Wheeler echoed.

Kwame shrugged. "I don't know. We're being manipulated here from six different directions. We have to do something, but what is there to do? What can we do that won't make things worse? Linka, if we attack someone, what happens then? Wheeler, if we try to fight these charges, what can we offer as proof?"

Nobody had any answers.

"Fine." Linka said. "Finefinefine. But we can't stay here for long."

They left with that, and Gi came in a few moments later. "Everything okay?"

Kwame gestured. "I choked."

"I'm sure you didn't-"

"The others were waiting for a smart clear direction, and I don't have one." Kwame sighed. "Gi… I couldn't tell this to anyone but you, but… I don't know what to do." He almost seemed to laugh for a second. "In fact, I almost never have. You guys come up with these brilliant ideas… all I had to do was pick one that seemed like a good idea. During the 'Power is Yours' Tour, we all had good ideas, and we could split up and do them all… Something like this… Back on the Rig, we knew what we had to do. Now… I don't know."

Gi gave him a quick hug. "None of us expect you to be perfect."

"If I'm not perfect… We'll all get killed."

Gi swatted him. "Oh well, thank you so much for the vote of confidence." She joshed him. "Don't lay it all on your own shoulders Kwame. That's what Wheeler's doing in there right now; like everything bad happening to us is because of him, and it's not! You think that if you make a mistake, we'll never recover? Kwame, back at Tokyo Tech, the stakes on our projects were so high, we barely slept for three weeks. And if we only screwed up twice before breakfast, it was a very good day."

Kwame smiled softly at Gi, when Linka's voice called from the next room. "Uhh, you two might want to see this."


BREAKING NEWS:

"The first series of hearings into the Reclaimer Grand Opening Disaster began today, starting with a shocking development. Repeating our earlier bulletin, we now bring you footage of the hearing itself, now in recess. This was the scene two hours ago."


Kwame felt his jaw drop as the picture on the screen changed to show the hearing. "Is that Holland? He's leading the investigation?"

"Who's Holland?" Linka asked.

"He's our assistant DA." Trish put in. "He's been in the news lately, 'cause he's running for congress."

"He came to me before the Congo mission." Kwame explained. "He was running on an Eco-tech platform, and he wanted an endorsement. I told him we didn't take part in anything political."

Gi nodded. "If he was backing the Eco-technology as his campaign platform, and he's the DA looking to raise his profile for an election; the Reclaimer was green-Tech and it blew up in his district... It makes sense he'd be all over this."

Wheeler shushed them as on the screen, the public hearing was held, and Holland began grilling the witness.


"Mr Ryerson, you are the head of the Reclaimer Project, are you not? Effectively the Manager of the facility."

"I am sir."

"And for the record, can you let us know how long you have held that position?"

"Since the project began last year."

"And before that?"

"Head of Construction for the Reclaimer facility." Ryerson said formally.

Holland was brutal. "All right then let's get right to the guts of it: What Went Wrong?"

Silence.

"Mr Ryerson?" Holland prodded. "Would you like me to repeat the question?"

Ryerson caved. "Honestly, we don't know."

"Do you suspect sabotage?"

"We're… still working on that. I will let Ms Bligh, the head of Corporation Security speak to that topic. She has gathered all the surveillance data."

"Fair enough. Can you tell us about the equipment then?"

Ryerson took in a breath. "Not a whole lot I'm afraid. The Reclaimer prototype is a proprietary technology, under very strict intellectual property and patent laws. I cannot reveal the information in an open court, and at this time we are pretty sure that the explosion wasn't an industrial accident."

"We cannot be certain of that without knowing how the process works."

"And I cannot reveal that to you."

"Well let me help you out then!" Holland growled with some heat. "I have in my hand Exhibit 4a. This is the patent on that proprietary technology."

Ryerson looked horrified, though he tried to cover it. "You… You have what?"

"Yes, this is the patent itself."

"That is a document gained illegally!" Ryerson tried to cover.

"Well let me worry about that will you?" Holland brushed that off. "This patent… is fraudulent. There is no new prototype, no brilliant innovation. I've had four experts on it, and they all agree that there's nothing useful here!"

The room rumbled in shock. Ryerson was sweating.

"Mr Ryerson, the public was promised a new innovation that would provide relief to a number of environmental problems, and we discover to our amazement that it was all a con. If the explosion had never happened, the Reclaimer still would have offered nothing at all to anyone."

"That's not true!' Ryerson shouted.

"Then Explain This!"

"The…" Ryerson seemed to cave in. "The technology works, but it is not a Corporation patent."

The room burst into murmurs again. Holland seemed mollified, but didn't let up on the attack. "Mr Ryerson, you are aware of the penalties involved in copyright and patent infringement."

"Yes sir."

"You are aware that you've just confessed to a crime."

"Yes sir."

"Who did invent the Reclaimer Technology?"

"Well, technically, we did. The prototype was not patented, only the concept. It was an idea that never would have gotten off the ground without the resources and the production capital of The Corporation. But the man who came up with it refused to work for us. We were told to find a solution. Well… we found one. That's why we kept the technology such a tightly guarded secret. We're the only ones who have ever made it work."

"Mr Ryerson, this inquiry has to establish what caused the explosion. Without a clear understanding of the technology, we cannot be sure if it was just equipment failure. Can you give us just such a certainty?"

Ryerson was beaten. "No sir. I only oversaw the construction teams... and took the credit."

"Well then perhaps we should locate the actual inventor, and ask him how the technology works. Who was this man, whom you have left with nothing?"

Ryserson sighed. "His name is Elias Levinson. He's a graduate of Yale University."


The Planeteers were on their feet instantly.

"That's a lie!" Gi said instantly. "I read his dissertation! He didn't have any grand solution for recycling battery sludge! He just didn't know how!"

"Then why would they steal it from him?" Linka demanded. "Did he figure it out after he left school?"

"I've got a very bad feeling about this." Wheeler said. "They just gave him full credit for the Reclaimer. Just like Stumm gave us full credit for taking out the Rig. He's up to something."


BREAKING NEWS:

"That was the scene two hours ago, soon after which the inquiry called a recess, so that Mr Ryerson could consult with his legal team. Corporation CEO Vernan Stumm issued a statement soon after saying that he was shocked and saddened by the news that The Corporation had unwittingly been involved in illegal activities by the actions of one trusted employee. The statement goes on to assure the public that at no time was the Corporation, or himself aware of the irregularities of Mr Ryerson's actions, and they were eager to make full payment and give full credit to Elias Levinson for the use of his technology, while the consider what to do with Mr Ryerson."

"The story however does not end there." The newscaster continued. "Yale Graduate, Elias Levinson, inventor of the Reclaimer Technology, was recently found murdered in his home. Chicago PD has confirmed that as yet no arrests have been made, but sources close to the investigation have confirmed that two other men were also killed, at least one of which was a Chicago Police officer. These unnamed sources have also confirmed that three of the Planeteers were taken into custody and questioned in connection with the killings, being held for a period of several days. As yet there has been no word on what connection The Planeteers have to the murder of a police officer or the murder of the Reclaimer Technology's creator…"


"Well Gi, you were looking for a connection between the Reclaimer blast and Elias's murder. There it is." Kwame turned from the television. "Okay, what do we know?"

"We know that The Corporation is making a big deal about the destruction of something that we don't think worked." Wheeler said for one.

"We know that we're being tipped off about dangers to ourselves personally by someone we don't know." Linka added.

"We know that someone else is playing the media, playing the police, playing the government hearings… and they all seem to be looking for us now. And not in the good way." Gi added.

"And Stumm now has access to something." Ma-Ti put in, his voice distant. "Something I cannot see. Which is strange, because I didn't think that there was anything left that I could not see. And whatever it is, it gives him knowledge about us, our Rings and Gaia."

Kwame nodded. "So where does that leave us?"

Nobody had an answer to that one.


AN: So, the mystery continues. If you have any theories on how it may be solved, I would like to draw your attention to the Review button.