The Hunt Begins
912 Words
Back at the Technical Department, the atmosphere had become tense.
The younger heroes had already left to deal with the bank robbery, leaving only Merson, Mirabel, Schizzel, Kaiden, and William inside the meeting room.
Nobody sat down.
Nobody relaxed.
Total was still missing.
And Scarlet Fox was moving faster than ever.
Merson paced back and forth across the room.
"We need to find T.L."
"We're already behind."
Mirabel nodded.
"I can locate her."
Everyone immediately looked at her.
Merson stopped pacing.
"You can?"
Mirabel sighed.
"Not exactly."
Kaiden frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Mirabel folded her arms.
"I can locate the general area she's in."
"The circumference."
"But not the exact building."
Merson nodded immediately.
"That's all we need."
Schizzel stepped forward.
"Then stop talking and do it."
Mirabel smiled slightly.
"Straight to the point as always."
Schizzel crossed her arms.
"You know me."
Mirabel walked toward the center of the room.
"Alright."
The room became silent.
She slowly closed her eyes.
Seconds passed.
Nothing happened.
Then—
A faint purple glow appeared beneath her eyelids.
William straightened.
"There it is."
The lights flickered.
Papers began sliding across tables.
A strange wind suddenly swept through the room.
Kaiden took a step back.
The breeze grew stronger.
Mirabel's eyes snapped open.
Her eye lenses had become completely purple.
Purple energy swirled around her body.
The room trembled slightly.
Images flashed through her mind.
Roads.
Mountains.
Forests.
Cities.
Territories.
People.
Distances.
Then—
A signal.
A trace.
A presence.
Total.
Mirabel gasped.
The purple energy instantly vanished.
The wind died.
The room returned to normal.
Her eye lenses turned back to normal.
Merson immediately stepped forward.
"What did you see?"
"Did you find anything?"
Mirabel nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Everyone waited.
"I found where she might be."
William frowned.
"Where?"
Mirabel looked directly at them.
"She's far away."
Kaiden folded his arms.
"How far?"
Mirabel answered.
"Very far."
Schizzel folded her arms tightly.
"A long way where?"
Mirabel finally spoke.
"Skizzite Territory."
The room exploded.
"What?!" William shouted.
"Skizzite Territory?" Kaiden repeated.
"How did she even get there?"
Schizzel frowned deeply.
"What is Total doing in Skizzite Territory?"
Mirabel shook her head.
"I don't know."
Merson immediately began pacing again.
"We need to get there."
His voice had become urgent.
"Before they find out what she is."
Mirabel nodded immediately.
"Exactly."
She looked around the room.
"Because right now..."
"I highly doubt they know what she is."
William frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Mirabel folded her arms.
"The Full Total behaves differently from every other Total."
Everyone listened carefully.
"The Full Total is like a fox."
Kaiden raised an eyebrow.
"A fox?"
Mirabel nodded.
"Cunning."
"A trickster."
"A master of hiding."
Merson suddenly froze.
Then realization hit him.
"Wait."
He looked directly at her.
"You're talking about my division tests."
Mirabel pointed at him.
"Exactly."
Merson's eyes widened.
"That's why I couldn't detect anything in T.L."
Mirabel nodded.
"The foxhood hides itself."
"For reasons even I don't fully understand."
William looked intrigued.
"So all this time..."
Mirabel continued.
"You were scanning powers."
"You were sorting students."
"You were testing abilities."
She pointed toward Merson.
"And somehow..."
"You couldn't properly read Total."
Merson slowly nodded.
"I always thought something was wrong."
Mirabel shook her head.
"Nothing was wrong."
"The Full Total simply didn't want to be found."
The room became silent.
Even Kaiden looked impressed.
"That's terrifying."
Mirabel nodded.
"And fascinating."
Suddenly—
BAM!
Schizzel slammed her hand against the table.
Everyone turned toward her.
"Please."
"Enough talking."
She pointed toward the door.
"The more time we spend discussing Total..."
"The farther away she gets."
Nobody argued.
Because Schizzel was right.
Every second mattered.
William looked toward Merson.
"What about your heroes?"
Merson looked at him.
"What about them?"
"The group handling the burglars."
"Derek."
"Lena."
"Clarence."
"The others."
William paused.
"Are they coming with us?"
Merson thought for a moment.
Then shook his head.
"No."
Kaiden looked surprised.
"No?"
Merson folded his arms.
"No."
His voice was firm.
"I don't want them involved."
William frowned.
"Why?"
Merson answered immediately.
"Because we don't know what we're walking into."
The room became quiet.
"We don't know who's in Skizzite Territory."
"We don't know who's protecting Total."
"We don't know who's hunting her."
His eyes darkened.
"And we don't know what Scarlet is planning next."
Nobody spoke.
Merson continued.
"They've already done enough."
"I'm not risking them."
William slowly nodded.
"Fair enough."
Mirabel clapped her hands once.
"Then let's move."
Everyone looked at her.
Schizzel raised an eyebrow.
"What now?"
Mirabel looked genuinely confused.
"What do you mean?"
Schizzel gestured toward the door.
"Are we taking a jet?"
Mirabel laughed.
"A jet?"
She shook her head.
"Why use a car, plane, or jet to get there..."
A smile spread across her face.
"...when I can teleport us?"
Kaiden laughed.
"Good point."
William shook his head.
"I keep forgetting you can do that."
Merson extended his hand.
"Let's go."
One by one they joined hands.
Merson.
William.
Kaiden.
Schizzel.
Mirabel.
The circle was complete.
Mirabel closed her eyes.
Immediately her eye lenses flashed purple.
A violent gust exploded through the room.
WHOOOOOSH!
Papers flew everywhere.
Chairs toppled over.
Purple smoke spiraled around them.
The floor trembled.
The energy became stronger.
Stronger.
Stronger.
Then—
BOOOOOM!
The purple storm swallowed them completely.
And in the next instant—
They vanished.
Leaving behind an empty room.
And heading straight toward Skizzite Territory.
Toward Total.
And whatever was waiting for them there.
- Writer
