�Ken,� Ran called, startling the younger man out of his reverie. Without waiting to see if Ken was listening, he asked, �Would you get the spider plant from the other room?�
Hidaka turned away from the large shop windows and nodded. �Sure, Ran,� he said, blinking as his eyes tried to adjust to the drastic change in lighting. He hadn�t realized how bright it was outside until just now.
Hopping off his stool, Ken headed for the backroom and tripped, nearly falling, over a watering can that Youji had left by the doorway. �Youji,� he complained, green eyes narrowing. �Why don�t you put things back where they belong?�
He didn�t wait for an answer, as he knew that the older man wasn�t listening. Instead, he grabbed the spider plant and brought it to Ran. �It doesn�t look so good,� he said softly, rubbing his eyes.
�Hn,� Ran grunted. Frowning, he asked, �Is something wrong with your eyes?�
Ken shook his head. �No,� he answered softly. �It�s just� it�s bright in here today,� he said quietly.
�Okay,� Ran answered, turning his attention to the sickly plant.
**
Several hours later, Shinta peered around the door of the flower shop and smiled at the members of his team. �Hello,� he called, stepping inside.
�Hi Shinta,� Ken answered. Since the others were busy with the last few customers, Hidaka walked across the room to welcome the older man. �What�s up?� he whispered.
�Mission,� Shinta replied softly, nodded at the woman standing behind him. �Ayemi will be here shortly.�
Ken nodded and turned to the woman. �Hello, Manx,� he said politely. �We�re just closing, so we�ll be down in just a minute.�
Manx nodded and led the way as she and Shinta headed down to the basement. Unlike the other intelligence teams, the Delta Team was given their assignments in the cover of the flower shop�s basement. Technically they were still enforcers and, as such, they�re assignments usually came from Persia rather than Director Blackstone.
A short while later, the five men and Ayemi were settled in the basement awaiting their orders. Manx surveyed the group and then, when she was sure they were ready, turned on the television-like communication device.
A moment later, a shadowy figure appeared on the screen. �Good evening,� Persia said gently. �We�ve received word that a powerful wizard is attempting to obtain the only remaining Star channel in existence. Your mission is to locate the Channel and prevent it from falling into the wizard�s hands.�
Persia seemed to glance over a Ken for a moment, before turning toward Shinta. �Manx has the details,� he said. When Persia closed the connection and the screen turned blue, Youji reached over to turn on the lights.
�What is a Star channel?� Omi asked softly, his wings fluttering with curiosity.
Manx opened a file she was holding and said, �A Star channel is a special type of mage. They have the ability to access a special part of the weave and can be used by other mages as a channel.�
�Interesting,� Ran stated.
Youji scowled in consternation. �How are supposed to find it in the first place?� he asked, shaking his head. �Do we have anything to go on?�
�Well,� Manx said. �There are certain things about them that make them easier to pick out in a crowd.�
Shinta nodded. �For example,� he said. �They�re eyes don�t react to light as quickly as most people�s, so they tend to be either photosensitive or seem clumsy.�
�Huh?� Youji asked.
�He�s right,� Manx agreed. �When they move from brightly lit areas into dimly lit ones, they can�t see any obstacles and tend to trip over them,� she explained.
Youji chuckled. �That sounds like Kenken,� he teased.
�Hey,� Ken grumbled, green eyes flashing. �I�m not clumsy.� Glaring, he added, �And don�t call me that.�
�Anyway,� Manx said, interrupting the argument before it began. �They also have the ability to change certain aspects of their appearance � most noticeably their eyes, which change without their control and reflect their emotions.�
�So,� Ran said softly. �We have to look for a clumsy, photosensitive person with eyes that change color?�
�Shouldn�t be a problem,� Shinta stated, smiling warmly. Turning to Manx, he asked, �What can you tell us about this wizard who wants to have him?�
Manx scowled. �Not very much, I�m afraid,� she said. �His name is Reiji Takatori and he controls a large computer firm centered in Southbar.� Shaking her head, she added, �What he could want with the Star channel, we don�t know. However, once you locate the Channel, you must convince them to come with you so that we can hide them in a safe location.�
Ken scowled. �What if � what if the Channel doesn�t want to� leave?� he asked, his brown eyes locking on hers. �What if he�s got friends where he is and doesn�t want to leave them?�
Manx frowned and shrugged. Shaking her head, she said, �Convince him that it would be in his own best interests to allow himself to be placed in a safe house.�
Ken sighed and Youji asked, �Why �he�?�
�Hmm?�
�Why are you calling the Star channel a he,� Kudou clarified. �I thought we didn�t know who it was?�
�We don�t,� Manx answered.
Ken scowled and stood up. �It�s a person we�re talking about here, Youji,� he snapped, locking hazel eyes on the other man. �You don�t call people �it�, you call them either �he� or �she�!�
�Sorry,� Youji said, holding his hands up defensively. �Take it easy, Kenken.�
Ken sighed. Turning to Manx, he said, �Can � can I sit this one out, Manx? I � I�m kind of tired. That last case was��
�That�s fine,� Manx answered, as the younger man trailed off. Turning to the others, she said, �What about the rest of you?�
�I�m in,� Omi answered.
�Me too,� Youji agreed. �If nothing else, I�d like to see what all the fuss is about.�
Ran and Ayemi merely nodded, while Shinta shook his head. �Sorry, Manx,� he stated softly. �I have a lot on my plate as it is and I don�t anticipate that they will have any difficulty finding the Channel.� Smiling, he turned to Omi and said, �Convincing him to enter a safe house may well be another matter. You�ll be acting as the team leader on this mission, okay?�
�Okay,� Omi agreed. Before they had joined with Shinta and Ayemi, he�d been the Mission Coordinator, so the job wasn�t new to him.
Manx frowned speculatively at Shinta and then handed the case file to Omi. �Any other information we have is in this folder, including all our information on Star channels,� she said. �We�ll let you know if we learn anything more.�
�Alright,� Omi said. Smiling, he added, �Thank you, Manx-san.�
�You�re welcome, Omi,� Manx said. Then she turned and disappeared up the steps.
Ran turned to Shinta as soon as she was gone and asked, �What, exactly, do you have on your �plate� that�s keeping you off this mission, Shinta?�
The smaller redhead smiled gently and said, �I have to track down some leads on someone who�s recently gone missing.� He stood and headed for the stairs. �Anything more than that, you don�t need to know yet,� he called back, before following Manx outside.
Youji smiled at Ayemi and asked, �Shall we get started?�
Ayemi rolled her eyes, but settled down on the couch beside the playboy. �Behave,� she warned.
Youji chuckled and turned to Ken. Before he could say anything, the younger man sighed and said, �I�ll be in my room if you need me.�
As he headed out of the room, he brushed by Omi and paused. He looked into his teammate�s round blue eyes and said, �Sorry, Omi� it�s just ��
�It�s alright, Ken-kun,� Omi said softly. �Get some rest?�
Ken nodded and bounded up the steps. Meanwhile, Omi turned to the other three people in the room. He opened the folder and began scanning its contents as he moved to sit in an empty chair. �According to the Agency�s information, there are five types of Star channels, but the only one known to still exist is a Darkstar channel.�
�If they don�t know who it is,� Youji started. �How do they know what type it is?�
�And what is a Darkstar channel?� Ayemi added.
Omi smiled slightly. �Well,� he started. �It says that about six years ago a Darkstar channel died at the Northlake Clinic. The last thing she said was that she�d already chosen someone to hand her gift to.� Looking up at Youji, he finished, �That means she was the last Star channel that was known to be able to hand her gift off to a successor, so��
�The person we�re looking for is a Darkstar channel,� Ran finished. �Her successor.�
�That doesn�t answer my question,� Ayemi pointed out. �What is a Darkstar channel?�
Omi scanned through the information in the file. �A Star channel that draws on the part of the weave connected to the life force of people in the area,� he said. Looking up, he added, �That�s where they got the name. Drawing life force is considered dark magic, isn�t it Ran-kun?�
Ran nodded. �Does that mean that the Channel is evil?� he asked.
�No,� Omi replied. �Although someone using him� or her to tap into that portion of the weave would draw on the life force of people around them, that�s not true of the Channels themselves. They have the ability to draw the energy directly out of the weave, before it enters people or after it�s already left them.�
�Interesting,� Ran stated softly. �Anything else?�
�No,� Omi said quietly. �Nothing that would help us, anyway.� Looking around at the group, he said, �I�m going to start checking the Internet. We know who the previous Darkstar was and the one she handed her gifts off to is the person we�re looking for. I might be able to figure out who that was.�
Youji rose and said, �I�ll see if I can find out anything about Takatori or who he might have working for him.� Turning to Ayemi, he asked, �Would you care to help me?�
�Sure,� the girl answered. �Any mischief and I�ll skewer you.�
As Ayemi headed out, Youji whispered, �Such a nice sweet girl we work with, eh?�
Omi chuckled and turned to Ran. �What are you planning to do?� he asked.
Ran smiled and asked, �Was there something you had in mind?�
�Now that you mention it,� Omi said, grinning. �Would you go to the Royal Library and see if you can find some more information about Star channels? There�re sure to be some good resources there and they only let mages in.�
Ran nodded and headed out. �Don�t stay up too late,� he called as he left the room.
�Mm-hmm,� Omi replied, already turning his attention to the computer.
