The Wicked One

Chapter Twelve | Hostage, Part Two

"So unreal," See-More said in a far away voice as we walked along the streets of Jump City.

My 'partner in crime' had been preoccupied with his new body for the last hour and I was constantly tempted to somehow convince him to help me search. Certainly another eye—well, another pair of eyes would help tracking down any Titans much faster. Yet, it felt wrong to pull him away from what might very well be his ultimate fantasy come true.

Still, I had terrible eye sight during the day. It was so bad that I had to risk walking through the streets of the city. I did so knowing that all I had to worry about was the occasional odd stare. No one in this city besides a Titan seemed to know I was a crook. Whether it was dumb luck or skill, I was a mystery to them all.

We walked by all the major teen hangouts that I knew of. The pizza place, the bookstore, the arcade. While there were plenty of regular teenaged humans, none of them wore tight, multicolored spandex.

"You think maybe all the Titans left?" See-More spoke up after awhile, briefly leaving his fantasy world. "Maybe they think that with all the villains gone they don't need to defend this city anymore."

I shrugged in reply, though I had wondered the same thing myself some hours ago. While seeing none of the new additions to the team was a possibility, I always assumed the original Titan's were out in the city at least once a day. But it was getting close to evening, and still nothing.

I began to consider getting the hard part over with and just sneak over to Titan's Tower when we turned a corner and I saw her.

It was one of those outdoor restaurant type places. The ones where I would always see couples eating together at night at the multiple small tables situated under giant umbrellas. It was there that I saw her, sitting alone at one of the tables.

Jinx.

I froze in place when I saw her, afraid that any sudden movement would alert her to my presence. See-More, once again lost in the examination of his eyes, walked past me and closer towards the tables. Without wasting a moment, I placed a halting hand on his shoulder.

"Huh? What's up, Kyd?" See-More asked, looking back at me. I didn't share his glance, only staring directly at the teen sitting at the table.

Slowly, See-More followed my gaze until he saw who I was seeing. He let out a small gasp. "No way...it's Jinx!"

Then, to my horror, he began waving his arms and suddenly called out: "Hey, Jinx! Over here! It's—!"

In a flash, I gripped See-More at the back of his collar and pulled him into me, and into my cloak. Vanishing into the darkness, we reappeared on the roof of the restaurant.

"Hey! What's the big—?" See-More tried to question, but I clamped a hand over his mouth and held him still before peering over the side. From our angle, I could just make out Jinx's pink hair. She had turned to see who had called, but it didn't appear that she had caught sight of us.

See-More's struggling quickly brought my confused captive to my attention. Using my free hand, I placed a finger over my lips, indicating that he should keep quiet. See-More stared at me for a moment before nodding his head.

"What's going on? Why are we hiding?" See-More whispered as I removed my hand from his mouth. I could only shake my head in response, placing a finger over my mouth again as I stared down at the young teen sitting at the table.

See-More looked from me to Jinx. He stared down at her for a few moments before relaxing his body in a sitting position. Agreeing with my plan to sit and wait to see what happens.