"I can't go any further," gasped Terry.

Sherry studied her sister carefully. She was sweating & breathing very heavily. Her complexion looked pale & her eyes looked to barely stay open. In fact, Terry looked like she was about to collapse of exhaustion. She must've carried them this far on pure adrenaline alone.

Sherry took stock of herself. She felt a few aches from where mystery man's sword struck, & a burning sensation on her leg where a laser grazed her. Other than that, she felt fine. She wasn't tired, wasn't hungry, & wasn't really breathing hard.

"I think I pushed myself too far…& I'm starving," Terry barely sputtered out. Sherry glanced around and noticed that there was some activity starting to show. People were waking up & starting to make their way to their lives. But why, it was Saturday.

"We think its Saturday, but we could've been in those tubes longer than that."

Sherry glared over at her sister, "I thought you were exhausted?"

"Yeah," Terry mumbled.

"Then how are you in my head!"

"You are broadcasting so loudly, I could hear you on the other side of the city," Terry barely got out in a low tone.

Sherry looked around & saw a McDonald's just up the block. They were probably just opening up. Terry needed food, but they also didn't have any money. Well, desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Sit here," Sherry ordered, "I'll be back in a minute."

Terry weakly looked up at her, "You're not going to do something stupid?"

Sherry flashed a big smile, "You know me."

All Terry could manage was a groan as Sherry ran off.

"May I help you," started a young man in a McDonald's employee shirt, with the nametag that said Larry.

"Hi! I would like a scrambled eggs value meal & two bagels."

"Will that be all," he said as he punched the order into his register's keypad.

"Yep!"

"For here or to go?"

"Definitely go."

"Alright, your total will be $5.38," as he pulled out a bag & went to fetch the order.

Sherry glanced around the place, but it was totally empty except for a gruff looking man reading the paper while drinking his coffee. Good, the less crowded the better if this is to work. She looked at Larry, the McDonald's guy. He looked to be college age, probably a job for extra money while he went to school. He seemed to be in pretty good shape, but after last night's events, she had no worry that she could take him if worse came to worse. But it shouldn't come that.

"Here you go, that will be…"

Sherry didn't let him finished as she grabbed the bag & dashed for the door.

"Hey!" shouted Larry as he tried to grab her & missed.

Sherry darted down the clear aisle, not a person in her way. Then, the door opened as two police officers entered, chatting with each other. They hadn't noticed her…

"Thief!" shouted Larry.

The police officers looked up to see her running their way. She could go through them & possibly injure them or…

Sherry dodged a grab by one of the police officers as she launched herself through the outside window. She went into a roll as she hit the sidewalk outside and leapt to her feet, quickly getting up to a full sprint. She darted down the street, heading right back to Terry.

Terry sat against a wall, eyes closed & enjoying the sun against her skin. It felt really nice & soothing. She was feeling a little better, but could really use some food. Sherry said she would take care of it, but it will probably mean her getting them in more trouble. But she didn't have the strength to stop her. Flying them this far had taken everything she had. And they weren't out of the woods…

The sound of glass smashing jolted her from her thoughts. She looked where the sound came from, & wasn't surprised that it came from the same direction Sherry took off in. Looking up the street, she could see Sherry running right for her. Behind Sherry, there were two police officers running out of a McDonald's chasing after her. Terry sighed, as she knew she was right once again.

Sherry leapt over the street, over a couple cars driving on the street, to land right in front of Terry. Sherry dropped the bag of food in Terry's lap & darted down the street saying, "Eat up, I'll meet up with you later."

Sherry bolted down the street at an incredible speed, heading off towards Pier 39. The two police officers dodged their way around traffic, trying to get across the street. They passed in front of Terry without giving her another look. They'll never catch Sherry, she thought as she pulled out the bag & looked in it. Scrambled eggs and two bagels. Well, at least she got food.

"What a mess," uttered Detective Jason Stormaton as he surveyed the damage caused by the Macys explosion. Glass was all over the place, as support beams barely held up the weight that was above them. The walls were all blackened & charred, with battered mannequins with shredded clothes that were once on sale littering the place.

"We were fortunate it happened at such an early hour," started a police officer on the scene, "so there was hardly anyone in the store. Just the night watchman."

Detective Stormaton shuddered at the mention of the one casualty of the night. Such a tragic loss. While he understood such losses happen, & accepts that, it doesn't make it easier when confronted with it. Still, he had a job to do.

"Why was the bomb set off at such an hour, when there wouldn't be witnesses or victims?" Detective Stormaton muttered under his breath.

"Excuse me, sir?" the police officer responded, with a puzzled look. "I thought we were fortunate that there was only one person lost."

Detective Stormaton nodded as he continued, "We are, which is why I'm puzzled. Usually a bombing, when it happens, is a political statement, & it's supposed to draw a lot of attention. Yet, we get a bomb threat in the wee hours of the morning, & it goes off just before we get here. No statements, no victims except the one. Just a lot of property damage."

Stormaton reached into his pocket & took out a pack of cigarettes. He popped one out & flicked into his mouth. He lit it & took a long drag before continuing.

"Another thing, it's my understanding we got a break-in alarm from this place about a half-hour before the explosion."

The police officer glanced through his notes before muttering, "Yes sir. But the guard called it in as a false alarm & that he would take care of it. Something about a short in the system."

Stormaton nodded as he absorbed this information. He took another drag off his cigarette.

"So, you think the guard may be on it?"

The police officer grinned, "It's a theory I was thinking about."

"You hope to make Detective someday," Stormaton asked more as a statement of fact than a question.

"Yes, sir," beamed the young officer.

"Well, class is in session. First, if he was in on it, why was he caught in the blast."

The officer's bright hope faded as he started to think about it.

"He was betrayed?"

Stormaton raised his eyebrow at that.

"Could be. There may be hope for you yet," he stated as he moved about in what was left of Macys. The why still bothered him. It didn't make sense, as there was no reason for this. So why would someone go through all the trouble to blow up a department store?

He looked about at the scene around him, seeing if there was anything that could give him a clue. Unfortunately, most everything in this store was to be sold, and had no attachment to people. No aura that would rub off onto the belongings. And what existed was not in great shape.

He looked up at a hole made when part of the ceiling decided to fall off. Nothing unusual there, except that there was a garment, a jumpsuit it looked like, hanging off the edge. And it looked to be in good shape.

Stormaton looked around to see if there was an escalator nearby & saw one just up a ways. This was probably stupid, but he had a feeling & his feelings rarely led him wrong. Trusting one's feelings was the name of the game in his business. And so was risk.

He darted up the escalator & made his way back to the hole. There was a black jumpsuit of some sort lying on the ground, & in very good shape, particularly when other garments around it were in tatters. He looked around at where he was. The men's department. Interesting,

He made his way around the hole, being careful as to not lose his footing. He reached down & grabbed the jumpsuit & made his way back to the escalator & off this floor before anymore of it decided to go. As he reached the bottom of the escalator, he noticed that everyone was busy elsewhere, so he decided to try a quick scan.

He closed his eyes & focused in on the jumpsuit he held, & noticed it had a slight aura. It had been worn significantly recently, long enough that an imprint had been left on the garment. He focused harder & saw that a girl, a teenager, had been wearing it. She had short blond hair, average build for a girl her age, & an innocent aura. He could sense that she was trying to do the right thing, but felt she was in over her head. Interesting, she had a very strong psychic presence that seems to have rubbed off onto the suit.

"Detective…"

Stormaton opened his eyes to see the young police officer in front of him again.

"May I ask what you are holding?"

Stormaton looked at him & with gruff, stated, "a possible clue."

He walked off leaving a very confused & baffled police officer.

Matsuhura Hidoshi was a powerful man, who was sleeping peacefully in the arms of a beautiful brunette he brought home the night before. He could feel her bare chest rising up & down next to him. He had made an excellent choice last night, as she had pushed him further than he had ever been before, and he had felt ecstasy the like he had never felt before. She was definitely worth the money he paid for her last night.

His reverie was broken by the crash of his door breaking down as two men dressed in black wielding rifles came through. He reached for the gun he kept under his pillow, but was stopped by the nuzzle of a rifle pressed to his head. The other man grabbed the naked woman out of the bed, which woke her up & her screaming filled the air. Her captor slapped her once & she shut up as she was led from the room. The man with the rifle pointed at Hidoshi's head pulled Hidoshi up & pushed him through the door.

Hidoshi was forced into his plush living room, where a well-dressed blond hair man sat in Hidoshi's favorite chair. He was drinking a cup of coffee while he waited patiently. Next to him, standing at full attention, was a woman with a violet glow over one eye that cracked like fire, her other eye shrouded in obsidian with an angry red glow. Neither one of them looked too pleased.

"Hidoshi, I'm disappointed in you," the blond man stated matter of factly.

Hidoshi, shaken by the appearance of these people in his home, who walked in as if they owned the place. Where were his guards? Why wasn't he woken at the first sign of trouble? And, he was standing before them naked as the day he was brought into the world.

"Lancaster-san, this is an unexpected pleasure. What do I owe this visit?" Hidoshi said, regaining some of his composure.

"You can tell me why your people hit one of my trucks, & who told you how to hit it?" Lancaster stated coldly.

Hidoshi, despite his awkward predicament, kept his composure. Never show fear to your adversary.

"I have no idea what you are talking about & why…"

He stopped mid-sentence as the violet glow around the woman's eyes erupted & lanced out right at him. His head was enshrouded in the violet fire, as he felt a presence in his head. He tried to fight it, but it was too strong & ripped into him right down to the soul. It picked at his memories, digging up anything it wanted & reading his life like a book. And a badly written one at that. Finally, it was finished & stabbed at him one more time, causing him great pain before he fell unconscious.

"I got what he knew Scott," she spoke calmly.

"And…"

"He got instructions for the hit over the phone. His or her voice was masked, but it was an individual he had heard from before, who had guided him to successful hits in the past. He gave our unconscious friend here complete instructions on how to circumvent the truck's security."

"Any military ops personal is capable of knowing how to do that…"Lancaster began to speak.

"I wasn't finished, Scott. There is one more thing that should help narrow your search."

Lancaster smiled as he responded, "And that is?"

"Their conversation was in Japanese."

Lancaster got up and started for the door.

"That certainly narrows the list of possible traitors. Have your people perform the standard clean-up job…"

Lancaster's communicator beeped from inside of his suit pocket. He reached in & opened it.

"Report."

"We have a possible sighting of one of our targets in the Fisherman's Wharf area. San Francisco PD is on her trail."

Lancaster raised an eyebrow before speaking, "What did she do?"

"She stole food from a McDonald's."

Lancaster chuckled, as he spoke, "No accounting for taste. Dispatch a Covert Ops team to the area for capture. If the have a problem with SFPD, they are to say she is an escaped Federal fugitive."

"Understood", as the comm channel clicked off.

Lancaster shook his head in disbelief. Stealing food from a McDonald's. He thought he had seen it all.

A tap on his shoulder interrupted Lancaster's thought.

"What should we do with him?" Elizabeth asked.

Lancaster smiled.

"Leave him. I have an idea on how to teach him a lesson."

Sherry looked behind her and saw that she had lost her pursuers. She looked around at where she was. She was down in a new development of the Waterfront just south of Fisherman's Wharf. Some of the old piers that were not being used had been replaced by an office building that straddled the waterfront. It was about three stories high, in accordance with San Francisco building ordinances. She looked at the sign on the building. Deerdon Technologies.

Sherry decided to head back to Terry in a roundabout way. Less chance of running into her pursuers that way. As if the cops could catch her. As she started to walk across the street, a black Dodge Viper pulled out of the Deerdon Garage & turned right towards Sherry as if to head to Fisherman's Wharf. It stopped as Sherry turned towards it to give it a disgusted pedestrian look. Her disgust turned to horror as she saw two individuals wearing black shades sitting in the front seat. The one in the passenger seat lowered his shades, to reveal the violet glowing eyes. Sherry started to run, but violet beams of energy lanced out & struck her in the head, causing her to fall unconscious in the sidewalk.

The men got of their car, one of them directing traffic around them, the other picking Sherry up & carrying her to the car.

"This was easier than I expected", one of the men stated.

The other one nodded in agreement as they got back into their car & drove back into the garage they had just exited.