Mei wasn't happy. She heard from Clamp that Professor Benson wanted to become a member of the Resonance Research Team, but they didn't want to make that choice without Sonny. Without Sonny home, she handled the correspondence.
And now D'Jok was gone.
She tried to call him again. No reply. She was getting anxious. She decided to call Tia for help.

Micro Ice felt guilty for neglecting Zoeline for so long.
He felt a soft hand on his shoulder. Callie was behind him.
"I'm so sorry for all this." Micro Ice stammered.
Callie smiled.
"Don't be. You didn't do anything wrong." She assured him.
Micro Ice sighed, rubbing his arm.
"I just feel like such a screw-up sometimes. I know I can be a clown, but there's more to me than that." He admitted.
Callie put an arm around his shoulders.
"Everyone has different sides to them. That doesn't mean you're just one of those sides." She said.
Micro Ice looked at her.
"I just want to stop failing the people I love." He admitted.
"I don't think you failed anyone. What you discovered actually helped us find all of this out. Your mother and Zoeline are proud of you for doing this, and I 'm sure D'Jok is too." Callie said.
That made Micro Ice smile for a second, before he got serious again.
"Is there any news on D'Jok yet?" Micro Ice wondered.
Callie smiled.
"For now, Sonny and Corso have to focus on tonight's mission. Sonny and Bennett will stay here, while the others go in." She said.
"Why isn't Bennett coming along?" Micro Ice asked.
Callie smiled.
"Because of his big brother, Bertrand. He wants to keep him safe." She smiled as she got up to do some other things.
Micro Ice felt a lot better as he waved goodbye to Callie.

Professor Benson checked his progress reports. Things were going well for him. No one suspected a thing.
The Flux Masters, did need to be dealt with. This group was an unknown.
But now, with this new, and modified mix of Life Force, he only needed to be approved to join the group, before he could initiate the next step; to destroy the Resonance cure, and frame Sonny and Clamp.
They had never been so close to the ultimate victory. All that remained, was for a few details to be put into place.

Clamp looked at the gauges again, comparing it to his and Sonny's invention, The Metaflux.
It was a match!
How could that be? Sonny assured him there was no trace left of the cursed thing.
No sample had been taken back then, at least, not one that they knew of. Could Bleylock have done that?
He needed to contact Sonny.

Zoeline made her way to Tia's restaurant, to meet with Tia and Mei.
As she walked in the door, she noticed Mei had her daughter with her today. That was new, but there were other things on her mind. Lately, Micro Ice had acted very distant. She didn't know why, but something had changed with her Mice. The few times they spent time together, Micro Ice appeared more anxious, and she didn't know why. All she knew was that Corso, had shown up at Planet Akillian, looking for him, bringing him to Genesis. She hoped she'd see him soon. She missed him. Tia put a cup of tea in front of Mei, and gently placed a hand on her arm.
"Don't worry, Mei, I'm sure he's just late." Tia said.
Zoëline was a bit confused.
Mei turned to her.
"It's not like him, not to answer my calls. Something is wrong, I can feel it." Mei said, struggling to hold back tears.
It was strange to see Mei fall apart like this.
Mei and Tia noticed her, and Mei used a small handkerchief to wipe her eyes.
"Don't worry, Zoeline, Micro Ice is still on Abraxor. They'll be making their way back home tomorrow." Tia said.
Mei managed a small smile.
"D'Jok went to check up on their house while Corso and Callie went to Abraxor. His tracker has gone blank. And the last data says he's not on Genesis. I don't know where he is." She said.
Zoeline felt utterly confused.
"It will be alright. D'Jok can take care of himself." She said, and took Meis hands.
"You're both right, I'm glad I have the best friends a girl can have." Mei said, as the three of them hugged.

D'Jok managed to turn, so he could see what the source of light in the room was. A gaping hole, allowing for the moon to shine in. This was not the Obia moon, it had three rings, one with a peculiar, greenish color to it.
Was it Hectonia? Yes, Hectonia had a moon like that. That meant his transmitter would be out of reach for Genesis. Why was he all the way out here? He felt cold chills down his back when it dawned on him, who his abductors were. These were the group of missing scientists that went rouge. But why did they abduct him? Insurance? Had to be. So Sonny couldn't do anything.
This was bad…

Corso was ready to make the jump, using the Darkness, into the chamber that hid the doomsday weapon.
D'Joks distress signal only made things more stressful. But until they knew more, there wasn't much they could do.
The mission was simple enough. Get in, destroy the control panel of the weapon, if not the weapon itself. Having checked his gear, he nodded to Bertrand, who removed his inhibitor bracelet. Bertrand handed Corso a small respirator.
"You might feel a little sick after I've used the Darkness. I usually don't use its Teleportation skills with more than one person. But trust me, I know how to navigate this place." Bertrand informed him.
Corso nodded.
"Let's just get this over with." He said.
"There's the Corso I know." Came from the Comlink.
Corso grinned.
"Hey, it's why you married me." He joked back.
"Let's just focus, darling." Sonny reminded him.
"Stand by for contact, I might need your help on dismantling the thing." Corso said.
With that, He took hold of Bertrand, who walked them both into the shadows, and into the power of The Darkness.

AN There is a lot happening right now.
Will the Pirates be able to rescue D'Jok?
Will Bertrand and Corso succeed?
And what exactly is Callie up to?
All this and more to come in the next chapters.
Thank you, Paranoidgirl, for helping me keep this going.
Happy reading!