Well, look who's back after forever. Yes, I have returned, and I will finally update this story! Hopefully some other ones will be updated soon, but after a month of novel writing, I'm mostly focused on reading and reviewing. However, I am on winter break, so I've got time. Don't let me give you excuses for not doing things. ;)

Guys, though, if my ANs seem off at all . . . it's because I went to see Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens this morning. I won't give any spoilers, but gosh . . . that movie made me cry five times. That's the most any movie has made me cry. Ever. I'm still crying, ten hours later. X'D I'm an emotional roller coaster, so bear with me.

So where'd we leave off last time? Oh yeah, Krane threatening to kill billions of people and Marcus possibly being a love interest for Bree. Well, let's see where those go. This chapter has a lot of planning, but it's important build-up, so pay close attention. Also, just so you know, in this universe an asterisk is the same as a hashtag on social media. And any grammar mistakes on StarChat conversations are intentional.

Also, one of my betas hasn't read this chapter yet, so I might go back and update some parts of it later. Just in case you ever read this again and find something is different. :)

I don't own Lab Rats, Disney does, and I love them for making an awesome seventh Star Wars movie. I only own my OCs and this story, so don't steal it! Enjoy, precious readers. (It's so good to be back.)

Chapter 4 soundtrack: "Frozen Synapse" by Audiomachine

* * * Chapter 4: Tag Team * * *

Malcolm Dengre readjusted his microphone and said, "Hello? Can you all hear me?" Once he was satisfied that we could, he continued: "Look, uh, we're not entirely sure what just happened, but we need all of you to stay where you are and remain calm. Don't panic. We'll, uh, we'll figure this out."

He turned aside to some of the security guards who had joined him onstage. Everyone in the crowd began to whisper to their neighbors. No one stood up or screamed or fainted, but we all still felt the fear and worry building up inside. Something had just happened; something bad.

"I think we're already panicking," Adam said, glancing around. "But those girls a few rows down are doing it very cutely." He flashed a flirtatious smile, even though the girls' backs were turned.

"Adam," Chase said, "it would be better to say that they're panicking in a cute way, not cutely. Technically it's a word, but it makes the sentence clunkier, especially with the word very, which is already an adverb."

"Really? You're doing this now?"

"I'm sorry! It's the best way for me to calm down."

"I think you mean the goodest way."

"Gah!"

"Boys," Davenport snapped. "We have a serious problem on our hands! Some of my biggest investors live on Plenus."

"Seriously?" I groaned. "That's what you're upset about?"

"It was just some prankster," Chase said. "Right? It had to be. I mean, there's no way that Krane could actually be alive. Weren't you there that day, Mr. Davenport? You saw him die, right?"

"I saw the explosion," Davenport muttered. "I felt it too; got thrown back into the wall and everything. We all thought for sure that no one could've survived that. But then again, we never found the bodies . . ."

The lights flashed again, and a picture appeared on the screens. It had an image of a nuclear bomb sitting in a window. Outside the window was a view of Galatrix, the capital of Plenus. At the bottom read the words: "I have six hundred more of these. You've got twenty-five hours before they all go off. Come quickly to see the show."

Everyone in the crowd gasped, and Malcolm paled even further, which I didn't think was possible. He whispered to the guards and high-ranking officials who stood onstage with him. It almost looked like he was arguing with them. Finally he spun around.

"Anyone with an Alpha-level security pass, up on stage, now," he hissed into his microphone. Never in my life had I heard Malcolm Dengre so serious. When there was a hesitation in the crowd, he added, "Forget about secrecy! This is a galactic emergency. Up here, now!"

Mr. Davenport bowed his head, stood up, and moved past me and my brothers.

"Wait!" Chase said, grabbing his arm as he walked past. "You have an Alpha-level security pass?"

Davenport nodded numbly and ripped his arm out of Chase's grip. "I'm one of the original scientists. Does it really shock you?" He got out of our row and hurried down to the stage without another word.

"He's got an Alpha-level security pass," Chase murmured. "How could he not tell me he has an Alpha-level security pass?"

I shrugged. "Well, it's supposed to be a secret. But he's right; it's not really shocking that he has one."

"Think of all the places he could've gotten me into with that! The labs, the training areas—every off limits place, and he never let me go!"

"At least, it's not a shock to most of us," Adam said, looking at me. "Seriously, even I get why he has one."

"It's not that shocking." Chase squinted, staring at where Mr. Davenport stood on stage. "I just wish he'd told me."

All fourteen of the original scientists stood on stage, talking with Malcolm and other guards and trainers in high positions.

"What are they saying?" I asked Chase.

"You want me to eavesdrop? Not happening, Bree."

"Aw, come on! We've got to find out eventually anyway."

Chase rolled his eyes and brushed away his hair, activating his super-hearing. After a few seconds he shrugged and leaned back in his seat. "I can't hear them over everyone else in here."

"For real?" I folded my arms across my chest.

"Yes, 'for real.' Just be patient, Bree."

I huffed and leaned back in my seat. Adam started going through the same conversation, asking Chase to eavesdrop on the meeting onstage. I ignored them and pulled out my holophone. I went into StarChat to see if anyone else had posted about Krane. Surprisingly, there was nothing. I felt a little glee thinking I would be the first one, but before I could post the status, I realized that there might be a reason no one had posted.

If it turned out someone pretended to be Krane as a prank, there was no point in worrying the entire galaxy. Heck, even if it was really Krane, there still wasn't a point in setting everyone on edge. Bionics could hold it together, but normal people would go into a frenzy.

So instead I wrote, "Can safely say that this is the most intense bionic convention I've ever been to. *bigannouncements *holdingmybreath"

Within a few seconds, I got some replies.

cocoyoyo: i'm here to and wow this is nuuts

strongerthanubigguy: On the edge of my seat and not in a good way.

Natie-the-Catie: Ya. Why do I have a feeling the next one will be a little late? Please let this all be a joke. *worried *secrets

I put down my phone and looked up on stage. The whole group—around thirty or forty people—seemed to finally have come to some sort of decision. Malcolm walked to the edge of the stage and turned on his microphone again.

"Listen, everyone," he said. The crowd quieted to hear him speak. "We understand how serious this is. Right now, we're not entirely sure what we're dealing with: the real Krane, or some prankster. However, we all feel like we should handle this carefully. The convention will continue, but we'll be sending our best bionics to Plenus to find out more about this situation. If you've been selected for this mission, we'll let you know. Otherwise, keep going about your business.

"I know a lot of you are worried. So are we. But we've dealt with Krane once before, and we'll do it again. So if you're not on the mission, remain calm, and we'll keep you updated."

Malcolm appeared to be finished but suddenly looked out over all of us again and added, "One more thing: don't tell anyone else about this. Perhaps you can alert your family if you're on the mission, but otherwise, we see no reason to worry the rest of the galaxy. If Krane does turn out to be a major threat, then we'll sound the alarms. Apparently we have twenty-five hours, and we're going to use every single second to find out what he's planning and stop it. If we can't . . ." Malcolm swallowed. None of us wanted to think that failure was a possibility. "If we can't, then we'll warn everyone. Until then, please, keep this to yourselves. Consider it a mission of the utmost secrecy.

"The seminars will begin in fifteen minutes. Feel free to attend if you're not going on the Plenus mission. And thank you all for staying so calm while we sort this out. We know how hard it is." Malcolm bowed his head and muttered, but we still heard him. "Trust me, we know all too well."

Some people stood and began to move out of the hall. The doors had opened and people were free to leave. I looked at my brothers, wondering what our next move would be. As if he read my mind, Chase suggested that we go down and meet Mr. Davenport. So we moved down toward the stage, against the flow of people trying to leave. We got closer, calling our father's name. He walked up to us and nodded. With no words, we knew.

We were on the mission.

Fifty bionics crowded into the room, filling up ever chair and leaving some to stand against the walls. Up at the front stood Nathan Sway, Director of Bionic Missions. He was the one whose job it was to give us our assignments and missions, and this time was no exception. Mr. Davenport and a few of the other experts on bionic training stood to his left.

"We'll be sending you out in groups of around five," Sway said in his raspy voice. "You will each receive your group assignments in just a moment. Right now, I want you to understand what you are doing.

"Each group will go to a different part of Plenus to scout it out and see if Krane or any other suspicious characters are there. Krane's army was destroyed long ago, but we have no idea if he's rebuilt it or not. If so, we may be in for a real fight." He looked over at Davenport and the others before saying, "Some of you will attend large events that are being held. We'll send you out to crowded places to find Krane and report what you see. If you find any place that has a bomb or the like, you are to report it to the local authorities immediately and then contact us.

"None of us have any clue what we're up against. Exercise great caution, and if even the slightest thing goes wrong, contact us right away. We don't want to take more risks than necessary.

"Mission leaders, come get your assignments. If you are not in a mission group, come down and get them as well, and I'll show you which group you'll be joining."

Chase headed up to get our orders while Adam and I watched.

"So, when we get to Plenus," Adam said, leaning back in his chair, "I say we check out this cool new place called Atomic Tom's Steakhouse. They have a burger with five different kinds of meat!"

I raised my eyebrows. "And what makes you think Krane's going to be at a steakhouse?"

"I never said Krane would be there. I just want meat."

Luckily, Chase walked up at that moment, interrupting our weird conversation. Behind him trailed someone else—someone I recognized.

"Okay, got our orders," Chase said, holding up the piece of paper. "Oh, and this is Marcus. He'll be on the mission with us."

I grinned. "Good to see you again, Marcus."

He smiled too. "Hi, Bree."

Chase looked between us. "You know each other?"

"We met earlier," I said.

"Wait, that's the android you were flirting with?" Adam asked.

"Flirting?" Marcus lifted his eyebrow.

I coughed into my hand. "Anyway, Chase, what are we doing?"

"We're heading to Galatrix, to some fancy ball in the middle of the city. I'll explain the rest on the way. Davenport's letting us take his ship."

"He's not coming?"

"He's staying behind to track Krane's signal to see if they can locate him. Can you get us to the hanger bay, Bree?"

I sighed. "Always the mule. Okay, everyone, hop on!"

"Would you stop that!" Marcus shouted, pushing Adam's finger away from his face.

Adam grinned. "I found his annoyance button."

"Yeah, but you can find anyone's annoyance button, android or not," I pointed out. "You know, Adam, why don't we switch? You come sit next to Chase and I'll sit next to Marcus."

"Sure thing." We got up to switch, and Adam made kissing faces at me when we passed. I shoved his arm and sat down, buckling myself in.

"Hey, Chase," Marcus asked, putting a hand on the back of the seat in front of him. "Aren't you a little young to be piloting this thing?"

Chase scoffed. "Please, I'm one of the smartest—if not the smartest—people in the galaxy. I've got this."

"Plus it's on autopilot," Adam said.

Chase's face turned red. "There's that too."

"Okay, mission leader," I said, "what's our game plan?"

Chase turned so he could face all of us at once. "We're heading to the annual Galatrix Glamour Ball, held in one of those really fancy hotels downtown; the same hotel in the picture with the bomb. We're supposed to keep an eye out for Krane or anyone who could be working for him, as well as find the bomb and see if there're more. A lot of people attend; blowing that place up would be a great way to grab attention."

I frowned. "Great, a ball, and I didn't bring any of my dresses!"

"We've got that covered." Chase grinned and pulled out a wad of lusters, which, lucky for us, would pay for anything anywhere. There looked to be a couple hundred, enough for a nice dress and probably a few tuxes for the boys. "Back up cash in case we need anything, and I have a feeling we'll need some things. Our hotel reservations have already been made, and we also have tickets to the ball. We're all set."

"Wow, they work fast," Marcus said.

"That's the life of a bionic," I said. "When you're headed undercover, you don't have time to wait around. That's one of the reasons I like working with them."

"We're there to observe," Chase continued, "so don't make a show of yourself. We're supposed to blend in."

"That'll be easy for me. I don't know about you boys."

"Are you kidding? I can pull off sophisticated." Chase sat up so his back was erect. "And Marcus seems pretty well-put-together. The one you'd have to worry about is . . ."

We all looked at Adam, who was in the middle of rubbing his finger on his shoe and then sniffing it. "What?" he said once he noticed our stares.

Chase clapped a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Adam, we need you to be a refined gentleman tonight."

"Sure thing. You need a fancy accent to go with that too? 'Ello there, gov'nor, I'm just out for some tea, I am!"

We all sighed. "Maybe we should just leave him at the hotel," I said.

"No, I can do this!" Adam said. "I can help, I promise. Okay, Chasey?"

"Fine, I guess we have to anyway. And don't call me Chasey!"

My brothers continued to bicker over Chase's nickname, and I turned to Marcus. "They're a little . . ." I trailed off, hoping he got it.

"Yeah," he said with a grin and one eyebrow raised. It was kinda adorable. "Don't worry, though, I've been around worse."

I chuckled. "I find that hard to believe."

Marcus nodded. "So . . . you think we can pull this off?"

"We're gonna have to. How familiar are you with Krane?"

Marcus's smile fell. He leaned forward and put his chin in his hands. For a few seconds he sat like that, then: "Too familiar."

Something about his tone told me not to push it. He turned and looked out the viewport to his left, so I did the same on my side. I watched as the stars raced past us, bringing us closer and closer to our destination; closer and closer to uncertainty.

Yay! So, nothing action-packed, but definitely important for what happens in the next chapter. This wasn't something I could skip over. I hope you guys enjoyed it! Thanks for all the reviews so far, by the way. They mean a lot to me. :)

By the way, if anyone has seen The Force Awakens yet and wants to message me so we can cry/laugh/cheer/downright sob together . . . I'm fine with that. I think some ranting would do me good after that beautiful, two-hour emotion-destroyer. XD

But anyway, reviews are much appreciated! However, I should let you guys know: Any guest reviews with short, pointless phrases ("Love it!" "Wha..?" "UPDATE SOON!") will be deleted. Especially ones demanding me to update. I've been mulling this over for a while, and I've already deleted similar reviews on other stories. Thing is, I don't want useless phrases (again, especially "Update soon!") exaggerating my review count. Demanding that I update doesn't help anyone, least of all me, and honestly I'm tired of opening emails only to be disappointed that all I get is some anon acting like I'm not a human being with a life and feelings. So.

Done with the vent. Don't get me wrong; I love reviews! And they don't have to be six paragraphs long with notes on every bit of my story, but something a little more than acting like you have the power to snap your fingers and make me post a new chapter is appreciated. I hope I'm not coming across as mean-spirited; I'm more worn-out than anything. But yeah. Review (thoughtfully) anyway, and if I'm being a jerk, let me know. Props for honesty. XD

I hope you guys enjoyed that one, and hopefully I'll be able to update soon with the next chapter: "Chapter 5: May I Have This Dance?" Bye! :D

* * * Glossary/Pronunciation Key * * *

Galatrix (gal-uh-ticks) - The capital city of Plenus; population of around 25 million.

Galatrix Glamour Ball - An annual ball hosted by the rich of Plenus as a socializing event to bring the city together.

Luster - The most accepted form of currency in the galaxy. Is used on hundreds of planets and is the official currency of the Galactic Alliance of Planets. Physical appearance is that of a thin sheet of gold paper. (Real life equivalent: the dollar. Special thanks to ProcrastinationMajor, formerly soccermonkey413, for the idea.)

* (star) - Used on social media as a sort of tag by which other readers can find posts. (Real life equivalent: #, or hashtag.)