Through The Rift

Chapter Sixteen: Unwanted Company

"Jack, that's a war."

"Dang it!" The oldest teen put down five cards, and Miko followed suit. On the count of three, they both flipped over their fifth one and the results made Jack groan, "Aw man, Miko! I had a stinking three!"

The medic-in-training smirked and waved her card in the air, "King of Hearts, Jackrabbit." She happily took his lost cards and observed them. Miko's eyebrows flew up in triumphant surprise, "Oh, you poor fool." The girl mocked and slapped the face-up cards on the table, "Read 'em and weep!"

Jack sat slack-jawed at the table. He had lost a two and a ten, which wasn't much. However, he stared in silent fury at the joker. He had lost the most powerful card in the game of war. Its little face laughed at him, teasing him, mocking him.

The teen growled under his breath and continued the game. There came a point where the excitement came to a lull.

Miko glanced over to the side where Naia and Raf played another game on the couch, "You know, it's kind of embarrassing."

"What?" Jack wasn't really paying attention until she placed down the joker he had lost, gaining his ace as well. This game really wasn't working out for him.

"The younger ones are over there playing a hundreds-of-years old strategic game of chess and we're over here playing cards."

Jack grunted in response, then added, "Speaking of which guys, who's winning?" He had turned his head in their direction.

"Raf." Naia answered simply, moving a pawn up another space.

Raf smiled, "Actually, you are." He then began to explain how she would get him into a check in five spaces, whereas he would have to take ten. They went through with a long, complex explanation so Jack didn't really process any of it.

"Jack, are you alright?"

The teen looked up from his cards, "Yeah, what's up?"

Miko gave him a concerned expression, "You seem out of it today. What's wrong?"

He shrugged, "Nothing, just the fact that Kai could be in a whole other dimension and we have no idea how to get there." Bitterness filled his voice as he put down another card, "Not to mention the fact that we're sitting around playing cards instead of helping out somehow."

"You are helping out by staying out of the team's way." She reasoned, "We can't have you getting stuck in another cave-in."

Determined to do something, anything, Jack stood up and walked up to a rail closest to a nearby computer screen.

"Jack, what are you-?"

He raised a hand to quiet him, "Hold on, Raf." Jack cupped his hands around his mouth, "Hey, Nemesis!"

There was no reply.

"Ne-me-sis!"

Miko sighed loudly, "Jack, you know he isn't going to answer you!"

The teen ignored her, "C'mon, Nem'!" His voice echoed throughout the control bridge, "I just need to know what on earth we can do about Kai!"

A panel in the wall slid open, startling Jack. It revealed a small, blue screen about the size of an I-pad. Cybertronian glyphs flowed across the screen. They vanished after a moment and were replaced with English words.

'There is something you can do, Jack.'

Huh, so no talking today.

"What is it?" He was interested to see what the ship had for him.