Trying something weird with this chapter... if the transitions are not clear, let me know and I'll put little breaks in to make it clearer that the scene is jumping around... otherwise, enjoy~

Setting: After series
Genre: General/Angst
Rating: PG (may or may not change)
Summary: Four years is a long time to be missing, but it doesn't stop Barnaby from trying to find his partner, Wild Tiger, who went MIA those four years ago. By chance, a man of strikingly similar warmth crosses his path; he is everything that Kotetsu was, but at the same time everything about him is wrong.

Once Lost Yet to Return

"How's the wind?"

"2kns at most – so pretty much non-existence; your visual clear?"

"Clear as a crystal," Akira smirked. William looked out the window through a pair of binoculars in his hand, eyeing the dimly lit warehouse across the street from them. They had set up in one of the few abandoned buildings surrounding the area, having come to the spot an hour earlier than the meeting planned for tonight. Akira knelt by the next window, checking through the telescope mounted on his rifle to make sure he had a clear view of the wide open area, adjusting the tripod as necessary for the ease of shooting.

They were waiting for three certain young teenagers tonight, while a seemingly innocent target, these three had been part of a big shot gang that's been lurking about the city. Apparently their boss had got wind of their "treason" to sell out important information to another rival gang; of course, rather than take care of the traitors themselves, they paid to have killers do it for them. Akira and William just happened to be the best they wanted, and now were waiting to flush them out.

Sneaking around in the shadows, the Heroes were waiting to hear from the director for their signal to move in; they had received an anonymous tip that some members of two different gangs would be gathering here tonight. Although it was just lower ranking lackeys, it would be a step closer to finding the people in charge.

"Bonjour, Heroes~" Agnes' voice greeted over their communication lines. "As you've all been informed – there's going to be an exchange of some sorts happening in that warehouse!" She reviewed. The Heroes had long since set up around the area, paired off in small groups to surround the worn-down building. Barnaby sighed to himself, hoping they would be able to move in soon; thanks to this he had to skip out getting a head start on his searching tonight.

"Now remember – most of these guys are probably still teenagers, so try not to hurt them too badly," Agnes warned. They all answered with a firm 'yes', before she gave the cue to move in.

"Fuck! Heroes are here too!" William cursed, noticing one of the familiar armor-clad Heroes slowly stalking their way towards the warehouse.

"We calculated them in the plan anyways, so it doesn't make much difference," Akira only responded, planting himself firmly against the window.

"Yeah, but it would've made things a whole lot easier," Will grumbled. He let the binoculars hang around his neck, reaching into the pouch slung around his waist. "The bombs are all set in place, right?"

"Yeah – once set, there's only one exit those punks will be able to run out from."

"And right into your little death trap…ready?" Will grinned, pulling out a long, thin remote control. Akira held his hand steady, finger on the trigger as a nasty smirk played on his lips.

"Do it, I'm more than ready!"

"And snap one: bang!"

"What was that?" Agnes' voice shouted through the lines.

"There was some kind of explosion!" Dragon Kid explained. The Heroes barely had a second to comprehend the loud explosion as a thick, heavy cloud of smoke rose from the roof, amber flames engulfing the back end of the building. Without thinking, Sky High, Blue Rose and Origami Cyclone were already rushing in, Sky High using his wind to knock the large doors open; a second explosion caught them by surprise, forcing them back as the heat and suffocating smoke rushed out.

"Someone tell me what the hell is going on?" the usually composed producer was sounding panicked. Granted they weren't broadcasting this live, since it was only some small fry, but anything that could waver the popularity of the show was a threat to Agnes.

"Seems like someone else was expecting this meeting," Fire Emblem's calm and steady voice echoed through their open channels. Blue Rose used her ice to clear a path through the flames, she and Origami running in to see who they could help and try to stop the fire before it got any worse. The group was near the center of the warehouse, which was left mostly untouched save for the fallen debris from the explosions, leaving most of the members they were meant to capture unharmed. They could hear them cursing at them, firing off at the two Heroes with handheld guns.

Blue Rose simply used her ice to skate gracefully out of the line of fire, Origami jumping to the side to avoid their aim. The icy idol came right up to two of them, easily knocking them off their feet before turning her attention to the flames surrounding them, shooting out a rain of ice in hopes of taming it. She didn't notice one guy standing behind her, gun aimed with both hands for her head; she turned her head at the sound of the shot, only to see a quick flash of blue and red as Origami drew his swords to deflect the bullet. He pulled out a small shuriken star and threw it to knock the gun of the guy's hands.

"Thanks, Origami," Blue Rose smiled over her shoulder at him.

"But of course," he answered, shamed that his helmet hid his own soft smile. Another loud explosion adverted their attention, a beam having lost its support falling directly above them. Blue Rose let out a scream, while Origami lunged himself to cover her.

"Oi, oi you two! Less flirting, more saving!" Rock Bison yelled at them, holding up the fallen beam with some effort. The two only blinked, before pulling away in an instant, a blush covering both their faces – though Origami's was hidden thanks to his armor. Sky High was trying to redirect the wind away from the fires in an effort to smolder it out. No one had noticed the three, unarmed teenagers shuffling in the corner, eyes wide and a fear so intense you would've thought they were starting at ghosts. Not wanting to stick around any longer than they have, they quickly scanned for a way out that wasn't blocked by fire, debris or Heroes, seeing an small door on the side that had been left unscathed.

"That's right – follow the bait, little mice," Akira grinned, taking his first aim.

The only girl of the group suddenly jerked forward, letting out a gurgled noise before she collapsed to the ground, her two companions stopping dead in their tracks as they stared at the blood slowly seeping from her body.

"M-Mari… MARI!"

"Leave it! We don't have time!"

"But –!" the words barely left his mouth before his head jerked back from the force, his body falling backwards in slow motion. The last survivor stood there petrified, eyes wide in terror staring at the still bodies of his two friends. Dragon Kid and Fire Emblem had remained outside just in case someone tried to sneak out in the chaos, but neither were expecting to see two teenagers being shot to the ground.

"What is happening now?" Agnes stressed; apparently she caught the startled gasp Dragon Kid let out.

"Two of the members have just been shot," Fire Emblem answered. It never amazed the woman how calm and collective this man could be in situations like this. The two Heroes looked to the last remaining member standing, still alive but terrified to move.

"Hey there, Honey," the fiery Hero soothed. "We won't hurt you, I promise, so if you could just quietly come with us…" The young teen let out a scream, before scrambling on his feet, near tripping over them as he turned his back to them and ran. He didn't get very far when a hand grabbed him by the forearm, forcefully turning him around to face the red-armored Hero. He struggled against the grip, letting out an incoherent string of screams and words; Barnaby didn't release his hold, lifting his face plate to stare eye to eye with this young man.

"Calm down! No one is going to kill you!"

"N-NO! You don't get it! I'm dead… I'm as good as dead! I… oh god… Mari…Steve…" tears were beginning to stream down his cheeks as the reality of his dead friends set in. Barnaby grabbed him by the other arm, forcing the teen to face him as he stood in front of him.

"Shit… the Hero's in the way…" Akira grumbled, adjusting the angle of his rifle again.

"Then shoot through him too," William suggested.

"Can't – his power is active; the bullet would just bounce right off him," the auburn haired man explained. William cursed under his breath, looking back to the situation with the warehouse; the Heroes were slowly starting to get the fires under control – there wouldn't be much time left at this rate.

"Come on, kid – give me a nice shot."

"Please calm down! There is a system to make sure you'll be absolutely protected!" Barnaby assured, trying to get frightened teary eyes to look at him. "If you just cooperate with us and the police and tell us everything you know, we'll be able to keep you safe." But the boy only shook his head, still struggling against the grip.

"Y-you don't know these p-people… not-not even jail will keep me safe!" he wasn't screaming anymore, but he wasn't any more calmer; if anything, he seemed even more panicked. He managed to wriggle one arm free from the Hero's grasp, trying to side step to pull the other one free; Barnaby turned along with him, tightening his hold on the teen. "T-these guys aren't human!"

"Thank~ you~" Akira sing-songed, pulling the trigger without second thought.

A whole flurry of images flooded Barnaby's mind as blood suddenly splattered from the side of the boy's head; he withdrew his hand on reflex watching the body fall to the ground in painful slow motion. Memories of fire sprouted before his eyes, the flames dancing about a carefully decorated tree, the Persian rug that grace their living floor, engulfing his parents' lifeless bodies. His parents? No – something was different about this image; it was still the exact same room he saw Maverick standing in the night he killed them, but neither the man nor his parents were there. The image he saw, the person lying on the floor…

"BARNABY!" the voice shouting in his ear snapped him back to reality, Barnaby shaking his head to get rid of the after image lingering in his head. He didn't think he was still this heavily affect by that night, but apparently a stray bullet was enough to replay the trauma. Stray…? No, that bullet had come from somewhere; with his head starting to clear up a little, he was able to think rationally about it, trying to remember from which general direction the shot may have come from. Forest green eyes turned to look across the street, eyeing the row of abandoned buildings, staring at one small, narrow structure in the middle.

"Shit! He's knows we're here!" Akira cursed, pulling back from the window in a flash. Will only gaped at him, watching as quick hands worked to dismantle the parts of his rifle.

"Wait – you serious? Fuck!" he began scouring the room, making sure any single piece of evidence that life had been here was picked up and pocketed away for later disposal – including the empty cartridges. Once the case clicked shut, Akira slung it across his back and the two headed to the door, taking one last careful sweep of the room to make sure nothing was left behind. William took his coat off, waving the long material to scatter the dust around the room before the two took off.

It wouldn't be till five minutes after their departure that Barnaby would be climbing up the stairs. His power had run out half-way crossing the street, but it got him far enough that he should be able to catch anyone leaving the building. There was only one way in and out, treading up the dusty, broken stairs checking all the rooms that faced the warehouse; it wasn't until he got to about the tenth floor that he could clearly see the field where the three suspects had been shot. He continued up another three floors, keeping alert for any sign of movement in the shadows – there wasn't a single sound, or even any evidence that any of the rooms had been used at all.

He stared out the window, trying to gauge the distance from here to where the bodies laid. Dragon Kid and Fire Emblem were seeing over the bodies, the fires finally under control. He glanced around the room again, deciding to take one last sweep of the building in case the snipers were still here. Unless they were NEXTs with speed or invisibility powers, he couldn't think of any other they would've escaped, unless they belayed out the window or something; but then, he would've seen them escaping, right?

He rejoined the others back at the warehouse, shaking his head when asked if he found anything. The Heroes that had rushed in to tame the fire soon emerged, Sky High dragging with him one of the gang members they were supposed to catch. The guy couldn't have been more than seventeen years old; he kept saying over and over again he had no idea there were bombs set up, or that the group they were meeting with was going to be shot dead. It was decided he was telling the truth, and explained to him that if he cooperated with the police, then his punishment might not be so harsh.

Barnaby looked to the building across the street one last time, wondering just who had been up there and why. Other than the dust disturbed by his presence, it was almost as if no one had entered the building at all before he did; he was certain, however, that the shot had come from there. Whoever had been there earlier was good – frighteningly good.

-Chapter Six/End-