Sparks Fly [Book Two in the "Fire And Lighting" Series]

Chapter Thirty-Two- Lab Rats

I raised an eyebrow, remembering the stone M'gann had uncovered in my memories and Emma's.

"And?" I could tell he was hiding something.

He sighed, as if he regretted bringing me in to all of this.

"Apparently, Tammy and Terra also received their powers from the stone. That's why the two of them and Emma were separated from everyone else."

I stopped. Tammy and Terra had elemental powers too? Like me and Emma? I wasn't sure what to think of that.

"Black Canary said that she tried to talk to them about their powers, but they weren't very talkative. Do you think you and Emma could get over to S.T.A.R Labs and try talking to them?" Nightwing asked, going back to his computer.

"Wai- who- me!?" If Dinah couldn't get them to talk, what made Richard think that I, of all people, could convince them otherwise?

"Nightwing!" Emma stuck her head out the door, and he quickly turned off his computer.

"Just got an alert from S.T.A.R. Labs. Two of the Runaways have, well...run away."

-------

Nightingale and I headed for Taos ASAP.

"Willow!" Strange welcomed us with a comforting smile, as if he knew I'd be one of the team members to come and investigate.

Doctor Dorado nodded, looking rather flustered. Having his rebellious teenage son nearby wasn't very comforting, and I knew the two didn't get along very well.

"Hello again, Doctor," Emma shook my teacher's hand. "We got the alert about Tammy and Terra missing?"

Strange nodded, "Doctor Wilcox was working with them. He says- well, I'll let him tell you."

He hesitated for a moment, but Adam hastily led us to a part of S.T.A.R. Labs that I'd never been to before.

He had his hand on a door marked "Authorized Personnel Only." and turned to me with a sad glance.

"I'm sorry." He threw open the door.

I was shocked. I stood in a room similar to one that sound technicians would sit in while adjusting lights and sound for a play. I would know, I'd been in one of these rooms multiple times helping with Gotham Academy's production of "The Little Mermaid." And on the other side of a window running the length of an entire wall, were the runaways. Being directed about like extras in a movie, attached to probes and monitors like mere science experiments.

"What are you doing?" My voice cracked at the horror before my eyes.

Another S.T.A.R. Labs scientist, one I'd seen only in passing, spun in his chair and spotted me and Emma, in full Hero Uniform.

He smiled, mistaking my horror for impression.

"Doctor Wilcox, you must be-"

I swatted away his extended hand, leaning over him imposingly. "What are you doing to these children?" I gasped.

Memories of my childhood in a glass test tube washed over me, blood pounding in my ears.

A cool hand touched my arm, and I looked at Emma. The same pain was in her eyes, but the message was clear.

"Let me handle this."

Not wanting another Pyro episode, I backed up to let her procedure.

Nightingale looked at the Doctor with a perfect poker face; stern, but not unkind.

"Apologies, Doctor Wilcox. You know who we are. The Justice League sent us to investigate the disappearance of two runaways. Tammy Agua and Terra Markov?"

"Yes, we do believe that they left of their own free will, and not kidnapping. No one besides the League and trusted S.T.A.R. Labs staff knows these meta-human-teens are here." Wilcox explained, still avoiding looking at me.

I pulled back into the corner, and caught sight of one of the runaways in the other room.

It was Ed Jr, giving me a look that I couldn't place. It certainly wasn't a kind one, though. He was positively jealous that I was a bigger part of his father's life than he was.

"Any idea where they could be?"

"They couldn't have gone far. As they are the only two who are remotely able to control their powers, we felt it best that others like them handle this."

As I continued my silent interaction with Ed, Nightingale and Doctor Wilcox continued their conversation regarding Tammy and Terra.

"Alright, thank you, Doctor."

I looked away from Ed and followed Emma out of the lab to the front door of the building.

"Why are we doing this?" I snapped at her as the glass doors slid shut. "Why are we saving two kids off the street just so we can put them back in a test tube?"

Emma sighed, stretching her wings as she looked towards the city of Taos.

"I completely agree with you. I know what you've been through, remember?"

I bit my lip, staring at the ground ashamedly.

"Which is why Tammy and Terra are not coming back to S.T.A.R. Labs."

"They aren't?" My head shot up as Emma took off.

She didn't fly too high, and kept a slow enough speed so that I could run beneath her.

"We can't help them all escape the Labs, Wilcox has a reason for wanting to keep the kids under control that will probably hold up in court, keeping them from doing harm to themselves and wherever they happen to be. But if Tammy and Terra can somehow control their powers..."

I realized what she was saying. "If we can find them, you want them to join the team?"

Emma nodded. "I trust those two. They helped me survive being captured. I owe them, big time."

I smirked. Wilcox wouldn't know what hit him when two of his "Lab Rats" became two of the League's Heroes.

-------

It was two more days before Emma and I picked up their trail.

"Small earthquake in New Mexico. Not too big, but big enough to be unnatural." Emma turned from the holo-screen, "They discovered that Terra's power was to control the earth, right?"

I took a brief glance at the copies of notes Doctor Wilcox had given us to "aid our search", even though I had them all memorized.

"Yeah."

"Let's go."

April 5, 2016. 22:00.
Santa Fe.

We zeta'd to Taos, and then Emma carried me the rest of the way to Santa Fe, where the earthquake had been reported.

"Chances are, they'll stick together. They know each other, and they're smart, they'll know that they'll need each other." Emma theorized as we landed in an ally to avoid the lights.

I rolled my shoulders to get them out of the uncomfortable hitch they'd been in while being carried.

"Where do we start?" I asked.

Emma kicked a heap of trash to the side, "Your guess is as good as mine. Hopefully they haven't moved on yet. No one's reported any more of Terra's earthquakes and what was Tammy's power again?"

There was a small, badly stifled gasp from behind us. We whirled around, and I didn't need night-vision to see the blue-eyed blonde girl sitting on top of a pile of trash next to a girl with her hair dyed blue, a hand over the first girl's mouth.

Emma's shoulders slumped with relief as she recognized the two from her days trapped aboard the Reach ship.

"Terra? Tammy?"

And that's when the wave of water crashed out of nowhere.