Jimmy made his way through the city carrying Kami; she had her own thoughts going through her mind; this was her chance to prove she could be more than just the girl in the chair she was going to help.

"Kami, I meant to ask you, where's your necklace?"

"I have it. I'm just keeping it hidden while I wear Marian's voice modulator,"

"voice modulator?"

"she gave it to me, said I should hide my voice; when I turn it on, it distorts my voice,"

Jimmy & Kami continued until they reached the building across from the hospital where Billy was watching.

"well, you two took your time and decided to go on a romantic stroll,"

"shut up!" said Jimmy as he set Kami down

"by the way, Kami, nice look?"

"Actually, when I'm dressed like this, call me megabyte," she said, turning on her voice modulator, distorting her voice.

"not bad."

"can we get to work,"

"Okay, bro, from what the others told us, the right side is where injured gang members are treated.

"they wanted to keep regular people safe, so half the hospital was sectioned off for gang members." Informed Kami

"So, it's safe to assume that whoever helped Lash take the goblins is in that section," said Jimmy.

"so should we check the security monitors?" asked Billy.

"No, all past data, including security data, is stored for only a few days before it is uploaded to the server room; that's where we'll find the footage," informed Kami.

"where is that?"

It's probably stored on the bottom floor since server rooms need to remain air-conditioned so the servers don't overheat,"

"okay, chances are the server room is in the section where they treat regular patients, so Billy, you & Kami should head there,"

"me & Billy?" asked Kami.

"what are you going to do?"

"once you find who we're looking for, then I'll find out what they know,"

"Okay, just don't go overboard with the interrogation,"

"I'll be fine; besides, you know I'm better at reading people than you,"

"Okay, but before we go, we should put these on,"

Holding out his hand, Billy reveals three rings, each with a tiny gemstone.

"concealment rings?" asked Jimmy.

"stopped by the dojo & told sensei what we were doing, so he gave me these rings,"

"What are these rings?" asked Kami.

"these are C-class relics that grant temporary invisibility," explained Billy.

"temporary?"

"the gemstone shows how much power it has; once the stone loses its color, the user becomes visible,"

Handing each a ring, billy prepared to put his on while Kami was doing the same; Jimmy didn't put his ring on. Deciding to wait until they were done with their part before he started his. In a flash, they were gone, with Jimmy seemingly standing alone on the roof.

"Okay, Kami, you ready to go?"

"wait, I can still see you,"

"oh, right side note, since we're both wearing the rings, we still see each other,"

"but Jimmy can't?"

"Yup,"

"I can still hear you both; get going!"

The two prepared to leave not before Kami placed a kiss on Jimmy's cheek, making him blush & Billy snicker. Scooping Kami up, Billy jumped across to the hospital, landing on the roof the two managed to enter by climbing into a patient's open window.

"Okay, we're in now. Let's find the server room," whispered Billy.

"it's gotta be in the basement,"

The two were moving fast, trying to quickly get to the server room. However, things were a little complicated due to the hospital being on lockdown & the security staff was on high alert. Somehow they made it to the basement & to the door leading to the servers, but it was locked by a keypad.

"Okay, any ideas on how to get past the door?"

"give me a sec,"

After pulling out her phone, kami activated an app before using it, confusing Billy as he watched her.

"Kami, what are you doing,"

"when the corps. modified our phones, I added a particular app that I made to mine that allows me to remote hack digital locks via Bluetooth signal & this door has one,"

Taking a few moments, Kami managed to find the code to open the door. Once inside, the two removed their rings to conserve the remaining power, only half.

"That was awesome,"

"Thanks," she said but sounded a little disappointed

Billy noticed this, but Kami saw a computer in the room; sitting down at the terminal, she began hacking into the servers to find the footage needed. Ignoring the coldness of the freezing room, she started working through all footage of the day in question. At the exact time when the goblins were taken, she watched the footage along with Billy. To both their shock, the footage showed the door opening & moments later, goblins leaving on their own.

"damn, this means they did leave on their own,"

"Not necessarily,"

"what do you mean?"

"fun fact about security footage it's a lot easier to manipulate than people know,"

"it is?"

"yes, but data is constantly backed up & even if this footage was altered, the original should still be here; give me a second. I think I can find it. Give me a second,"

Kami viewed the original footage drastically differently; the unaltered footage showed a doctor walking up to the door opening before leaving, trying to hide his face. The camera, however, got a good look at his name tag, revealing his name as Dr. Cross. This is followed by Lash's men entering & moments later escorting the goblins out of the building & Cross returning to lock the door.

"We found what we were looking for," said Kami.

"wait, we should find out if that guy is here & where he is,"

"Good point,"

"hitting a few keys, both discovered that Dr. Cross was on duty tonight & where his office was,"

"Okay,

Going back the way they came, Billy & Kami managed to get out of the hospital before their rings ran out of power, finding Jimmy waiting for them.

"how'd it go?"

"We got the information; the one we're looking for is a man named Cross; his office is on the top floor of the other section," informed Billy.

Jimmy placed his ring on disappearing to do his part, leaving Kami & Billy behind with a nod though they couldn't see it.

"not bad, for your first in the field mission," complimented Billy.

"thank you…Billy, can I ask you something about Jimmy?"

"sure,"

"do you think he'll ever like me back,"

"in my opinion, he already does?"

"really?"

"Yeah, I also know you wanted to work with Jimmy on this to impress him, but I think you already did,"

"I did?"

"he's told me that you're making progress with his lessons. Plus, I know he's very concerned for your safety,"

"really?"

Hearing all the positive things Jimmy says about Kami lifted her mood, finding out she is progressing with Jimmy.

"Whatever you're doing to get that knucklehead out of his shell, keep doing it,"

…Later…

Moving along the corridors was a man in his late 60s or early 70s. Walking along, dressed in a suit with a doctor's coat. This man was Dr. Albert Cross, the head of this department, checking each room. He was thankful that all his patients were asleep, not for their safety but for the protection of him & his staff. His job was to treat the multiple gang members who came, along with his team, a task he did not enjoy. Still, he was grateful most of the time that the injuries he had to treat left them in a state that prevented them from causing trouble. After finishing his rounds & checking on his team, Cross returned to his office to wait out the rest of the night. Upon entering, his office door opened, and he realized he must have forgotten to lock his window.

"I must be getting old," he said, closing the window; he sat at his desk, taking a deep breath as he settled in for the night.

"Dr. Cross?" said a voice from nowhere.

"WHAT, WHO'S THERE!?" yelled the startled man,"

"who I am is of no importance to you yet, but you may call me Kamidake,"

The man's tension eased a little; having heard that name on news reports, he knew exactly who this person was.

"you're one of the Double Dragons, aren't you ?"

"that I am & I know you allowed Linda Lash & her men access to the hospital to abduct the goblin gang,"

Cross's eyes widen, wondering in shock as to how he knew he helped Lash.

"How did you know I altered the footage!?" he said, standing up, a look of guilt forming on his face.

"you forgot to erase the backup,"

Realizing what he had forgotten to do, all he could do was slump back into his chair, seeing no point in denying anything.

"what do you want from me?"

"information. I need to know how Lash contacted you? What does she plan to do with the goblins? & why'd you help her?"

"as to the 1st & 2nd questions, I wasn't contacted directly. One of Lash's associates was already here being treated somehow he was contacted & relayed her message to me, what plans they had for those monsters I have no idea, I did what they demanded & that was it,"

"you still haven't answered my 3rd question," Said Jimmy before Cross took a deep breath.

"did you know that this part of the building used to be both the maternity & pediatric ward? It was my job to not only deliver children into this world but also make sure they stay healthy and have a bright future. I took pride in my work & so did my staff, but all that was taken away. Now I treat monsters. Patching them up to send them back out to hurt more innocent people, while the people who need me have to rely on clinics, those goblins were some of the worst; I've seen the damage they've caused the city. The victims are left in."

"so you let Lash have them out of revenge?"

"no, to protect the ones that need protecting,"

"what?"

"I initially refused. Despite my contempt for these monsters, I still have the oath to standby. However, I was given two options either hand over the goblins, or they would take them anyway & my staff could be hurt in the process. Knowing the police wouldn't come, I made my decision. So that night, I told everyone to wait for me in the meeting room on the floor below this one for a staff meeting, then I let them in, they got what they wanted & left."

Jimmy listened to the doctor's story, following every word but realized his ring was running out of power.

"I suppose you think I'm a monster like them & think I should be punished,"

Suddenly the window opened again, confusing Dr. Cross as he couldn't see Jimmy leaving.

"thank you for your help," said Jimmy

"you believe me?"

"I can tell you weren't lying & as far as your actions, I can see you were put in a position where you had to make a choice, but if retribution for your actions is what you want, then I suggest you speak to your staff & let them decide…goodbye Dr. Cross I will be keeping an eye on you & one more thing though you see all the gangs in your care as monsters you should remember that some of them were once children you once treated here, help those who aren't too far gone to get back on that path you wanted for them,"

"wait, I need to know something,"

"what?"

"in the past, there were people like you; they watched over this city. I never saw them, but that symbol I remember seeing years ago, I know there's a connection between you & them. I need to know what happened to them,"

"they died," said Jimmy as he left.

Halfway back to the others, Jimmy's ring ran out of power mid-landing as he returned. Informing the others of his findings, all three looked stumped on what to do next.

"the only other option I can think of is to find Lash, but she & her crew went underground," said Billy.

"not to mention, since the shadow warriors haven't been keeping all the lesser gangs in their territories in check for the last few weeks. They've been upping the level of destruction," said Jimmy.

"Since we've been busy putting them in place every night. It's getting harder to stop them & track down the shadow warriors' operations simultaneously," replied Jimmy.

"I think there's little we can do about this dead-end; for now, I say we head back for the night & hope whatever Lash is planning, we're ready for it," said Billy.

"agreed," Jimmy said.

With no leads, everyone headed back to the complex to drop off Kami; but not before Kami found an area to change out of her costume. Despite hitting a dead-end, they knew they couldn't dwell on it as the city needed them.

"Okay, Kami, we'll see you later once the sun begins to rise," said Billy as he took off into the city.

Jimmy was about to leave, too, until he noticed the look of disappointment on Kami's face.

"Kami, are you okay?"

"I feel like I didn't do much; for all we did tonight, we didn't get any leads. We just hit a wall,"

"It happens; no need to dwell on it,"

"I wish I could have done more, but maybe I'm not cut out,"

"Hey!" scolded Jimmy.

Kami immediately straighten up, hearing Jimmy's scolding tone. Looking up, she saw how upset with her.

"look, I get you wanted to do more & you tried to prove your worth, but don't you dare start doubting yourself!"

"But I,"

"no buts!" said Jimmy. "look, you did well, okay, despite how it ended, you still did well; you proved you can go out in the field," said Jimmy

Hearing Jimmy assure her lifted Kami's mood as she smiled at him, causing him to blush.

"thank you, Jimmy,"

"you're welcome. Honestly, I'm a little glad that your first mission wasn't all that dangerous. I was afraid you might have gotten,"

Jimmy immediately caught himself, but it was too late as Kami knew what he would say.

"was that last word going to be "hurt?"" Kami asked as she only smiled & petted Jimmy's cheek.

"I,"

"I already know Billy told me; I really appreciate knowing how much you care," she said, kissing him on the cheek. "now go look after the city,"

Jimmy nodded before taking off in another direction; Kami quickly headed to her apartment with both gone. Tommy's door opened before she could enter, peeking out & seeing Kami before rushing to her.

"Kami, what the hell are you doing out? Did you just get home?"

"I'm sorry, Tommy, I lost track of time while I was at the restaurant."

"I thought you were at your group meeting,"

"I was, but then Marian & I headed over to Billy & Jimmy's restaurant to help out, but I lost track of time,"

"you should have stayed where you were instead of risking coming back at this hour, especially with the gangs acting up; even more, it's only a matter of time before they bring trouble in this area,"

"I know, but I remembered I had school tomorrow & Jimmy offered to escort me home,"

"where is Jimmy?"

"oh, he said he was heading back to the restaurant for the night to watch over it with Billy,"

"Brave boy," thought Tommy, "wait, what were you doing there in the first place?"

"oh, I wanted to tell you in the morning, but Marian & I were hired to work at the restaurant,"

"you were?"

"yeah, their grandfather wanted to thank me for helping his grandsons & Marian well since her mom used to work there,"

Tommy sighed deeply; she wanted to talk more, but it was too late to speak.

"go get some sleep; we'll talk more about your new job later,"

"Okay, goodnight,"

Heading inside, Kami felt nothing but guilt, not just for lying to Tommy but also for dragging Marian into it.

"Sorry, Marian, I really hope Sensei is hiring,"

The Shadow master's throne room

Walking in, Duke was ready to make his reports to the Shadow master. Kneeling in front of the black flame, he waited until the demonic face appeared.

"Master, I am here,"

"report,"

"Since we've moved our operations to more secure locations, production of oblivion & RPM have been on time & this month's shipment is ready to be sent out,

"excellent; contact Shuko & have his men ready to transport it out of the city immediately after it's dropped off,"

"at once,"

"anymore to report?"

"yes, master, Willy reported that the project you assigned him is nearly finished,"

"excellent,"

"with all due respect, master, considering that our operations have been uninterrupted so far, is this project still needed?"

"I leave nothing to chance, Duke, I allowed the lesser gangs to rampage without the shadow warriors' supervision as a means of distracting the dragons, but I do not expect them to be sidetracked forever; this will ensure we will be ready for them should they find our new factories,"

"Yes, Master,"

"speaking of the lesser gangs, report,"

"It seems they're becoming more & more bold with action as my spies reported gangs attempting to take over areas that belong to us. And several members of the Clowns heading to the suburbs. However, they were driven back by one of the double dragons,"

"anything else?"

"another one of my spies claimed he saw the other dragon outside the hospital; he might be investigating the goblins,"

"interesting. I thought they'd be too distracted dealing with the gangs to worry about that,"

Suddenly the doors to the throne opened up, with the doctor walked in with both an excited & sadistic grin.

"it doesn't matter if they were because I've done it. Once again, my genius has surpassed expectations!" said the doctor holding up a vile of red & black ooze that glowed both black & green.

"What is that?" asked Duke

"This is my latest, most incredible creation; thanks to the black flame, I was able to merge my red sand & RPM into this beauty. Unfortunately, all my "volunteers" are no longer available due to their inability to handle the formula."

"then you failed me!?" said the Shadow master as the black flame surged.

"on the contrary, I discovered by adding oblivion to the mix, the pain is mitigated, now my formula enhances their body to its maximum capabilities Abobo, "

"I see," said the Shadow master as he stepped out of the flames. "Duke, I have another job for you tonight; once you are done with Shuko, remind all of the gang leaders who still own this city,"

"at once," said Duke leaving.

"as for you, doctor, I wish to test your new formula out in the field,"

"as you wish, but I will need a field tester,"

Activating the shadow mural, one face came forward before falling to the floor; it was the Moblin.

"get this piece of garbage ready for his mission,"

"what might that be?"

"This city is starting to develop hope. It needs to be snuffed out & I know where to snuff it out,"

"Just tell me what night & he will be ready,"

"why wait that long,"

The doctor smiled sadistically, knowing his master's intentions, as he began to laugh at the thought of what would happen.

"at once, master, by the way, there is a side-effect that I discovered that I believe you will find most interesting, "

End Of Ch. 13