A/N Hello, dears! Sorry it's been so long! I knew I had written a majority of this chapter in the school year. During the break I went to finish it, but couldn't find it on the computer. Then I thought it might be on the spare computer that had crashed. So I started to rewrite it, but finally found it on my iPad. But here it is! At long last! I really enjoyed writing this chapter. There will be at least one more, and either another or an epilogue of sorts. Anyhoodles, I hope you enjoy!

Oh! Also, a guest user reviewed my last chapter and had a question, but I can't reply to guest reviews so I'll answer it here. He or she asked why Kara hadn't told Rex earlier about being an EVO, and, of course, having him cure her. Firstly, and the most valid reason, there wasn't guarantee that Kara was curable. So if she had removed her bracelets, she was risking permanently being in Odiata's form. Secondly, she was just embarrassed about it. That's why she never as much as mentioned it. Sure, Rex and Bobo are EVOs, but her EVO form is terrifying and she loses control of herself. Plus, she's already an insecure, genius teenager. Add being a super scary EVO, is just, like, too much eww. I hope that answers your question sufficiently, dear reader! Please, if any of you have questions about anything, drop me a line! I might be something I should include in the story. Seriously, because I have it all in my head and sometimes don't realize what should be included to clarify things for the reader. After all, I'm still learning and we're all in this together! *cue dancing and HSM flashbacks*

For real, now, I hope you enjoy!


Kara sat alone in the kitchen of the Keep and stared at her bare arms, gently gliding her finger across the smooth skin. It had been years since she had seen her forearms without the encasing bracelets that had become a security blanket. She had not been able to stomach the thought of life without them for fear of becoming a rampaging monster. She fought tears of gratitude that welled every time she realized she was truly free from the hidden terror that had consumed her life for so long.

She heard footsteps down the corridor and rubbed away the tears, clearing her throat so her emotion would not affect her voice. Rex stalked in, which, if she had been paying attention, she would have known from his characteristic stomps.

He tried to speak but was interrupted by a yawn that consumed his face. Both had crashed into cots once aboard, but Kara could hardly sleep for her excitement. Rex, however, had not had that problem. He tried again. "Here there, minotaur-a," he said without looking at her, going straight for the cabinets. He grunted when he opened the doors, displeased with the Keep's limited selection. He settled for a granola bars, yanking out the box and cramming in his arm up to his elbow. "What's next, chica?" he asked, tossing her a bar.

She caught it effortlessly, and was surprised to realize how hungry she was. The last time she had eaten was before she had left Providence for Shant's warehouse. Since then she had been tasered, turned into a homicidal EVO, and permanently cured. All in all, quite taxing on the appetite.

Smiling at her assumed nickname, she answered, "I told Agent Six to take us to the police station once you woke up."

"Why?"

She raised a brow. "To execute justice. Don't you want Shant to get what he deserves?"

"Oohhh." He drew out the word much longer than necessary, tearing off a huge chunk of the granola and letting it roll around in his mouth as he spoke. "You want to take on Shant the legal way this time."

Her expression shifted from a smile to a fierce frown. "Are you insinuating that what I did was illegal?"

"Well, I'm no law professor," he began around another mouthful of granola, "but I think what you did would be considered breaking and entering, assault, and general rudeness."

"General rudeness?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, professor-" she began, then realized full the absurdity of his statement. "Shant bombed your base! Bombed it! He could have killed all of us. And he seriously injured Holiday."

She could see in his face that his intent had only been to pick on her. Fury flashed in his dark eyes and his chewing became much more intense. "Holiday better be all right..." he muttered, then refocused on her. "So. . . I guess Shant used a. . . to, you know,. . ."

Kara nodded. "He bombed our home. I wasn't at there or I would be. . ." She cleared her throat, smiling sadly. "I went out with my cousin. We had planned on watching a movie, but it was sold out. We settled for ice cream."

"Your cousin the orphan?" Rex asked hesitantly.

She chuckled. "Yes-"

Rex shot up from the chair. "Don't tell me! I don't want to know! I can't take any more of your sob stories!"

Kara laughed, knowing he was joking. Because neither of them wanted anymore awkward situations between them, joking was the only option.

No sooner than they had finished their makeshift breakfast, they felt the Keep land. They tripped over each other running to the cockpit where Six stood waiting. They skidded to a stop.

The agent raised an eyebrow. "Ready to do this?"

Rex and Kara glanced at each other, both seeing a look eager for revenge, making them chuckle. Six rolled his eyes (they did not see it), and was already exiting the aircraft before they said in unison, "Totally."


Rex jogged to keep up with Kara as she strode with the familiarity and confidence of a lieutenant through the police station. All the way to the back, she marched to the captain's office, often greeting officers she passed, who recognized her with surprised smiles. The door to the office was open, and Rex figured she would barge on in, but she stopped and rapped her knuckles against the wooden doorframe. The captain was seated, head in his hands, elbows on a desk covered in papers. He quickly straightened at the sound. His eyes leaving the documents and landing on Kara, his face lit up in shock. "My word! Kara!" He was up in an instant, taking both her hands in his. "It's been years! Please sit!" He ushered them to the two chairs and casually sat on the corner of his desk.

"It's nice to see you again, captain," Kara said smiling genuinely, causing Rex to do the same. "This is my friend Rex."

Rex shook the captain's hand, inwardly musing that Kara had introduced him as a friend. "Nice to meet you, sir."

"Likewise." The captain glanced suspiciously from one teenager to the other. "What brings you two here? After years off the grid, Kara, I know you didn't stop by for a chat."

"Indeed," Kara murmured as she straightened in her chair. Rex wondered if he had ever heard another teenager use that word. "Rex and I ran into some trouble last night."

The captain's face showed interest, but not much surprise. "Eh?"

"Shant," Rex said, wanting to make sure he was involved in the conversation. "I was lucky enough to be introduced last night."

The captain's face became concerned. "What happened?"

Rex opened his mouth to relay the tale, but Kara lifted her hand, halting him. "Let me."

Rolling his eyes good-naturedly, Rex threw up his hands in surrender. "By all means..."

Kara smirked at him before turning to the captain. "I have been working with Rex at Providence. Yesterday," she began hesitantly, trying to figure if only a day had passed, "Shant bombed Providence's base. I followed their aircraft to an abandoned airfield outside the city. Shant's lackeys led me to a warehouse in the city. When Rex and I entered to investigate further, we were ambushed, knocked unconscious, and restrained for most of the evening. We escaped just this morning."

The captain leaned forward, eyes intense. "You know the location of one of his operations?"

The teenagers nodded, and Rex said, "So you can get him on kidnapping and assault and all sorts of stuff, right?"

The captain gave an amused smile. "Well, I'm no DA, but probably not, considering it came after you all trespassed." Rex's face fell in disappointment, but Kara's was confident. The captain exchanged a proud look with Kara, and quickly added, "Luckily, Rex, that doesn't matter. I've lost count of the outstanding warrants we have on Shantly. But he stays so low underground we've never been able to arrest him." The captain stood and moved to the window, looking out at the bustling city eagerly. "And I'll be darned, if you haven't solved the biggest problem our department ever faced on the streets."

Rex was beginning to get hyped when Kara said, "Not quite." Both men turned to her, mouths pursed. "When my father was alive, he told me Shant can't be apprehended due to his EVO transformation. If we took the warehouse now we could subdue his henchman, but Shant himself is bulletproof. Guns are no threat to him."

"So what can we do?" asked the captain.

Rex nearly hopped out of his chair. "I can cure him!"

Kara looked him in the eyes, doubtful but gentle. "Perhaps. But he may be incurable."

This exchange went over the captain's head, but he assumed they were talking EVO science and remained silent.

Rex motioned toward her arms. "But what about your bracelets? You have the tech to stop him."

She shook her head. "Why do you think Shant killed my father? Dad was on the cusp of bringing his completed designs to Providence. Shant stole the blueprints and bombed my home."

Rex nodded with sad understanding. "That's what the brace he put around my neck was."

The captain walked around his desk and collapsed in his chair. "So how do we stop him?"

"We could break into his warehouse and steal his inhibitor collars to use on him," Rex suggested, then cringed when he realized he was in the room with the police captain. He hesitantly glanced that way, and saw the captain grinning wildly.

Kara shook her head, her face solemn. "Holiday and I were working on replicating my dad's technology. We had only barely begun on our work. If we return to Providence, I can try to finish it." Her shoulders slumped and she pursed her lips. "It will take a few days at the least. Likely more."

The captain looked regretful, but understanding. "I know you'll do it, Kara." She met his eyes and his smile was a contagious. "Just tell me where Shantly's hideout is before you go. I'll double patrols in that area so they don't try to crawl out of that rat hole."


Rex and Kara sat in silence on the journey back to Providence. Rex munched on whatever snacks he could find, but Kara stared out the window in intense contemplation. Rex knew she was doubting herself, and he had to put a stop to that.

"You know, I can't really help you with the sciencey stuff, but I can carry trays and look through the microscope and pretend I know what I'm looking at." He sat beside her and he drew her gaze from the sky outside.

"Thank you, Rex. I will need all the help available." He saw sadness fill her eyes before she refocused out the window. "My father was a genius. I have always felt inferior. Often I have to think so much on a problem that my father would have solved in an instant."

Rex's brows were high, crinkled like thick french fries. "Are you kidding me, Kara?"

She turned and stared at him.

"You're a genius!"

Her eyes left him and he knew she did not believe him. "How old was your dad when you were born?"

"Twenty-eight."

"And how old were you before you could understand this advanced EVO sciencey stuff?"

"Around ten, I suppose."

"Okay, first of all, that's ridiculous. But my point is that the dad you remember had over twenty more years of experience than you do right now."

Her face lit up. "Huh, I hadn't considered that."

"You know, for a smart person, you can be pretty dumb."

She cocked her arm and drove her fist into his shoulder.


When the Keep landed and the door opened, Rex and Kara tumbled over each other as they exited. Six strolled past them as they laughed and shoved each other.

"Hey, Six, you wanna help me carry trays and do sciencey stuff?"

"No."

Rex laughed and looked at Kara. "Forgive my companion, he doesn't care for the art of sciencey stuff."

"Really?," Kara laughed. "Seriously, though, would Bobo help?"

Rex scratched his freshly stubbled chin as they made their way through the winding hallways toward the lab. "I feel like he would end up hurting more than helping."

Kara nodded a bit solemnly. "It's up to you and me, then." From then, she remained silent as they walked, and Rex assumed she was already focusing on the problem she had to solve. The problem must have been more complex than Rex thought, because the activity in her brain soon migrated down to her legs. Before long, she was speed walking at a pace so quick Rex had to jog to keep up. Kara reached the lab first and plowed through the automatic door, but stopped so abruptly Rex did not notice until he crashed into her, smacking his face against the back of her head. Stumbling back, he grabbed his throbbing nose. "Kara! What the heck-" His words were halted by what he saw through his welling tears, past Kara, hunched over a microscope.

Doctor Holiday turned to them, smiling and looking more lovely then ever, despite her black eye. "It's about time you showed up." She grinned almost mischievously toward Kara. "I think I've got something here."

Both teens ran to embrace her, but Kara remembered her injuries and stopped herself and Rex. Rex settled for a wink and light punch to Holiday's shoulder, while Kara grabbed one of her hands in both of hers.

"We're so relieved you're okay, Doctor!" Kara said, which resulted in an eye roll from Holiday.

"What did I tell you about calling me 'doctor'? You're practically one yourself."

Kara chuckled and raised one eyebrow. "Yes, the girl who didn't technically finish high school is practically a doctor."

Rex let out a whoop. "Aw, yeah, high school dropout high five!" He eagerly lifted his hand toward his friend. Both she and the doctor gave him quizzical looks. Kara simply shook her head, and, dejected, Rex slowly lowered his hand

"Anyway," Holiday began, "while you all were off gallivanting around-"

"Whoa, whoa, hold up," Rex interrupted, "We were-"

Holiday silenced him with a wave of her hand, and Rex crossed his arms and pouted. Would he ever be able to tell the story? After all, Kara had stolen his thunder in the police station and turned the whole mission into a snooze fest. Maybe he would have the chance to tell Bobo. Then again, who knows if that monkey would be able to appreciate what a great heroic story it was?

The eagerness in Holiday's voice snapped him out of his funk. "I'll have you look at this, Kara. But I think I'm really close!"

Just as Kara moved to look, Rex jumped in front of her, puffing out his chest and lowering his voice. "Please step aside, ma'am. This is my designated job." He leaned and pressed his eyes against the microscope. "Uh-huh, yep, yep, uh-huh, yessiree. No idea what I'm looking at."

Kara chuckled and shoved him out of the way. She bent and peered at the doctor's work. "Oh my!" Her moving arms a blur, Kara dug her phone out of her pocket, and after a few quick taps on the screen, projected a hologram of a nanite configuration. Squinting, she tried to commit the structure to memory, then peered again into the microscope. She lifted to her tiptoes and began to bounce up and down excitedly. "You might have it, Doctor!" She lifted her arms and began to adjust the microscope, when Holiday gasped.

"Kara! Your inhibitors!"

Startled, Kara jumped back and spun to the doctor. "No one told you?!"

Holiday's face was twisted in confusion, but she was smiling eagerly. "No one told me what?"

Rex bolted in front of Kara. "I get to tell it this time!"