As soon as he closed his eyes, Arthur felt a jolt of electricity shoot through him unlike any he'd ever felt before.

And just as soon as it hit him, he was propelled backward, as though a huge gust of air had rushed towards him.

And that was when he heard the voice: "OMG….Arthur!?"

Arthur's eyes popped open. "...SUPERIAN?!" he croaked, and immediately sat up. His head was suddenly feeling strangely clear, but his vision was incredibly blurry. When he managed to put his glasses back on, he looked around: and suddenly the unusual squawks and whistles made sense: he was sitting on top of….

…..a PYRAMID…..

….in Guatemala-!?

"Holy shit!" Arthur stumbled awkwardly to his feet (or tried to)- but it was like they were rubber, and he could hardly move; his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when he saw Superian catch him from falling right to his death (saving him yet again). "SUPERIAN!" he gulped, eyes wide with astonishment, "I can't believe it's YOU!"

For a moment Arthur could only stare. "But—b-b-but How!?—Y-you're here, you're okay—and—and you're here—but—why—why are we—here—together!? I-I-I—I just don't understand—" Arthur gingerly sat back down. His head was swimming, and he feared the migraine was coming back.

"Arthur…" Superian was staring at him strangely. He looked like the same old Superian he knew—a little scruffier around the edges, maybe—dressed in his average citizen's clothes, a plaid shirt and blue jeans—which made it seem even more bizarre that they were here, on top of this pyramid in the middle of nowhere. (Arthur would never get used to this.) "How did you do it?"

"Do…what?" Arthur mumbled. "I- " He blinked, staring blankly in a daze, "I don't even understand what I'm doing!"

"You're inside my subconscious, Arthur…." Superian was gazing at him with a mixture of admiration and disbelief. "You must have somehow cracked their code—because you managed to break down their Bismuth!" Before Arthur could demand an explanation of how this was even possible, he was sidetracked by Superian giving his hair a playful tousle. The act made him dizzy, leaving Arthur even more dazed and confused. "You're coming to save me," Superian nodded at him with sober acknowledgment. "I'm very impressed! I mean…as impressed as I can be," he added grimly, "as my body's currently wasting itself away…"

"Holy shit," Arthur muttered, his eyes widening, "Superian…you're still in the jail cell on the ship—aren't you?"

"Yep," Superian grunted with an almost indifferent shrug.

"But they're killing you!"

"They're trying," Superian nodded grimly. "I'm pretty impervious to death, however," he confessed. "Not exactly immortal…but…close to it, I guess you'd say? Sick as a dog, right now, to be sure, but…" He smiled and gave Arthur a congratulatory pat on the shoulder. "I think I can hold out until you guys come and rescue me."

"Superian," Arthur stammered, "Who are these people—I mean—aliens?! I mean if they—if they captured you they've got to be pretty dangerous!"

"They're no picnic, Arthur," Superian nodded, wincing as though he had a crick in his neck. "I don't know where they originated from but—but I think they're with the Galactic government. They—they want to punish me for my crimes—"

"Crimes'?" Arthur felt his blood run cold. "What crimes?"

"See that's the thing. I'm actually innocent. Only they refuse to believe me." Superian stood and began to pace. "You see Arthur—I have something to confess….I never wanted my DNA to be spread amongst humans. I would have gladly remained as the One and Only Superian! But unfortunately, I was coerced into seeding your planet by forces beyond even my own control—by some crazy man named Karamazov!"

"Oh my God," Arthur murmured, even as his head was beginning to throb, "that's—that's the same scientist who actually created the Tick–!"

"He created a lot of chaos, Arthur," Superian shook his head with dismay. "You've got to come here and help me convince these aliens that I didn't intend to mingle with the human species."

"B-b-b-but," Arthur stammered in shock, "H-how do you expect me to do that!? I-I'm just Arthur. I-I don't know how to communicate with aliens—"

"You're communicating with me, aren't you?" Superian corrected him. "I mean—I know we're inside my subconscious mind but—that's nothing to sniff at, Arthur." He clapped a hand on Arthur's back, nearly sending him flying off the pyramid in the process—but Arthur caught himself just in time. "You're alright, Kid," Superian nodded at him. "Just get your butt on over here because—they're leaking bismuth into my brain—!"

"They're what?" Arthur stiffened, as Superian's face suddenly began to distort before his very eyes. "SUPERIAN?" Arthur reached out, but suddenly Superian was so blurry he was unrecognizable. "Superian–!" Arthur practically yelled, "what's happening—!?"

Suddenly Superian began to howl with pain, so loudly that Arthur's mind felt zapped as though he had just been electrocuted—and suddenly, with a sharp jolt, he found himself transported, in the blink of an eye, back to his living room floor.

"ARTHUR!" The Tick rushed to his side, as Arthur lay gasping for breath. "What's going on? Talk to us!"

"I-I-I'm OK," Arthur stammered, still shaking in spite of himself as he remained on the floor. "I-I-I don't know what just happened—" He shivered as he looked around the room, realizing where he was. "I-I was on a pyramid in—in Guatemala—"

"You astral projected." Destiny was standing over him. "You were talking with Superian inside his subconscious!"

"How…." Arthur sat up slowly; his head was spinning. "How did you know—?" He shivered again, remembering The Gift. "Right," he answered himself dumbly. "The Gift….I keep on forgetting…." He shuddered, realizing now how accurate that was. "Wait!" He glanced up at Destiny in shock. "You're saying that I—I just actually astral projected—?" He was dumbfounded by the notion. "But—" He shook his head. "I've never been able to do that—before—"

"You're evolving, Arthur," Destiny was beaming at him, her eyes shining brightly as though with unshed tears. "You're transforming into the person you were always meant to be!"

"Arthur…" The Tick extended his hand, helping Arthur to his feet. "What happened in Guatemala…?"

"Superian…" Arthur shuddered. "think—I think they're torturing him," he murmured, turning to Destiny. "They're—they're killing him, Destiny." He covered his face with his hands; even the candles were too bright for him. "I-I don't know how much longer he'll be able to last up there," he stammered, trying to suppress his panic, "we—we have to act fast—there—there's not any time to waste!"

The Tick was beaming at him proudly. "Good on you Arthur," he grinned, "Now you're talking like a superhero!"

"This is serious Tick!" Arthur pleaded, "I—I don't know how we're gonna get to space—I—I've never even BEEN to space—I've never even been to NASA—"

"Woa, woa, there, Chum!" The Tick steadied Arthur with both hands. "Easy does it! We've got Destiny on our side."

"And Destiny's got a plan," declared Destiny with conviction.

"I hope it's good, Destiny," muttered Arthur, "because I think we're at an impasse—"

"Never question Destiny, Arthur," the Tick scolded, although with amusement. "She's an old pro at weaseling her way out of conundrums!"

"Of course it's a good plan, Arthur!" Destiny was smiling at him (a little too self-assuredly for his taste). "I made contact tonight—WE made CONTACT!"

"We did?" Arthur echoed, dumbfounded.

"We did," Destiny smiled. "She's still alive, Arthur! And now I've got the coordinates." She grinned broadly. "Now—the next step is: get ourselves to the moon."

"The MOON?" Arthur replied incredulously. "Are you KIDDING me!? Superian isn't even ON the moon, Destiny—!"

"I know that Arthur. But I also KNOW that we're supposed to go there first," replied Destiny, as calmly as if they were talking about the weather, "The moon is the first step for us—like it was the first step for humankind."

"But WHY?" Arthur demanded, "It—it doesn't make sense—" He collapsed with exhaustion on the living room couch. "WHY on EARTH do we have to go to the MOON?" he groaned into his hands, "HOW will we even GET to the moon in the FIRST place—!?"

"Arthur…" Destiny was suddenly quiet. "Do you know anyone that can teleport?"

Arthur was silent for a moment. Then his eyes grew wide as he remembered: "Yeah—actually, yeah, I do!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Sage, the Supernumerary! Remember, Tick? He helped us teleport outside of AEGIS—" He paused as he realized where Destiny was headed. "You think," Arthur blurted, "that Sage will be able to teleport us to Superian—?"

"That's my hope," nodded Destiny. "We'll have to contact him first thing tomorrow. But first—I have to speak with Overkill….about his boat!"

"What—NO!" Arthur was livid. "We are NOT using Dangerboat on this mission! He'd never agree to it."

"Why wouldn't he?" Destiny asked patiently. "He IS part flying machine, is he not?"

"He is," Arthur mumbled, "but—he doesn't fly."

"He doesn't fly?" Destiny echoed with disbelief.

Arthur looked sharply away. "He can't."

"Why on Earth not?"

"It's….complicated," Arthur groaned. "Look—I'll go with you and we'll both talk to Overkill tomorrow. He'll explain it all to you then. But I—I have NO idea how we're supposed to do this on our own. We—we're going to have to involve AEGIS," he mumbled. "Maybe—maybe they've got a ship we can use—" He shook his head. "What am I saying? I've never even FLOWN a spaceship—"

"I have." Destiny proclaimed so furtively that Arthur nearly fell out of his seat.

"You…you've actually FLOWN in outer SPACE?" Arthur stared at her, dumbfounded.

"And I've got more news for you Arthur," Destiny proclaimed without explanation, "we are NOT involving AEGIS on this mission!"

Her words were like a slap to the face, that sent Arthur reeling and he had to sit back in his seat. "You're kidding," he muttered with disbelief, "...right? We're members of the Flag FIVE, Destiny….we're a PART of AEGIS! We're BOUND to it—"

"So you didn't quit?" Destiny allowed a wry smile, but it just made him want to scream.

"OK I—" Arthur groaned. "I was GOING to tell Rathbone about leaving but—I DIDN'T, OK? But in my mind I—I already quit but—clearly—now's not a good time," he added, grimacing when he noticed the Tick staring at him, but the Tick was smiling.

"You're a sneaky one, Chum," the Tick chuckled a little. "You had me thinking I was going to have to go the extra mile myself!" He gave Arthur's shoulder a proud pat. "But see? You're answering the CALL, Chum! You're going the extra mile! You're—"

"Scared shitless." Arthur groaned. "I don't have a clue where to begin. We're supposed to go into outer space Tick….and WHY can't we involve AEGIS?" he demanded, "how are we going to get there without them? Didn't you say they're connected to NASA or something? It even says in the Flagbook that we've got access to ships and special equipment and technology—"

"I'm a fugitive, Arthur." Destiny cut him off sharply. "They've been looking for me for years—but I won't let them find me. We can't let them know about the mission," she added decisively, "We've got to do this covertly—"

"I can't believe this!" Arthur scrambled to his feet in a daze. "You're saying—you want us to LIE to AEGIS?" he blurted out, in shock. "And—oh God—!" He held his head in his hands, "that means—we can't tell Walter or Mom, Tick—because no way Mom is gonna keep the truth away from Walter!"

"Well that's not right, Arthur," The Tick shook his head. "She's your mother! And Walter cares about you–"

"Walter works with AEGIS, Tick!" Arthur snapped. "He-he's a veteran agent that just got back in the game! But somehow," Arthur found himself rambling, "we—we're going to have to do this in SECRET from both of them? Seriously Destiny," he barked, "you actually expect us to get under their radar?!" He was close to blind panic, practically pulling out strands of hair as he began to pace madly back and forth. "They've got state-of-the-art control systems! They're always watching the skies—"

"Arthur—calm down!" Destiny gripped him by the shoulder, swinging him around; her touch sent a shock of electric waves down his spine, and Arthur jumped as though she'd burned him. "Arthur," Destiny drew him back to the couch, "sit down."

Arthur sat, suddenly remembering how he felt as a child: small, frightened, and alone.

"You have to have more faith, Arthur." Destiny sat on the arm of the couch and gazed down at him through deep brown eyes, and he felt a shiver go up and down his spine again, followed by a strange wave of warmth, a sensation he'd never felt before. "You have to trust that everything will be okay."

"I…" Arthur shivered in spite of himself. "I don't know…." he confessed, haltingly, and looked to the Tick for guidance. "Tick," he murmured softly, "...what do you think?"

"I think we should follow the call of Destiny," the Tick replied, and took a seat next to Arthur, as Destiny took a seat on the opposite side of him. He felt like he was in the middle of a human sandwich, but strangely, it felt more comforting than anything he'd ever felt before. "Destiny is a master of planning the right course for us, Arthur," the Tick reminded him in a voice that was strangely contemplative and sobering. "And she's never once led me astray."