The Heroes of Little Springs

"That's right, we have two new honorary superheroes walking these streets." Jet remarked with a nod, although not loud enough so that the other children could hear. It was only within ear shot for Tyler and Susan, Quiver, and possibly the detective or the children's parents.

"They're Info-Lad and Strong Arm Susan." He quickly thought up two new super hero identities for them. Although he wasn't entirely wild about the names, because he was thinking on the spot, he was at least hoping this would help the two of them stay on-board long enough for them to get something useful.

"So what do we do now?" Jet asked Quiver through an almost whisper, so no one else could hear. "Find them matching costumes?" His last remark was sarcastic, and he hoped Quiver wouldn't take it seriously. He just didn't know what else to do from here. Were they going to find a empty room to brain storm with kids?

"We can work on the superhero names later," Quiver said as she saw Tyler and Susan's distasteful looks. The parents still didn't look too pleased but were at least willing to listen.

Quiver had no idea what to do next. She simply knew that Tyler might have important information regarding the missing children even if he potentially had a wild imagination. And they needed a way to end this little party and get to the real facts.

"Look, the point is, we really need your kids' help with this investigation."

"Just ask what you want to ask and then be done with it. I want to take my son home," Tyler's mother said.

Although Quiver was able to keep the parents and detectives from wearing their patience to thin, it would seem that they wouldn't be able to discuss matters with the two kids in privacy. They would have to ask questions and give answers with everyone present, including their classmates and all the adults.

This would probably make Tyler and Susan feel even more rushed, which would hinder any credible information. At least that's how most kids feel, even adults, when they have a group of people impatiently lingering behind and rushing them.

"We won't waste too much of anyone's time." Jet remarked, trying to make this sound professional. Although, this whole situation was tiring him out, in more ways than one.

"So what were you saying before buddy?" Jet asked kindly, as he directed his attention to Tyler. "Would you like to start at the beginning?"

The police at this point were now taking over the game the kids were playing in the hopes that the kids wouldn't interrupt the super heroes from their work.

Seeming satisfied, the parents of both Tyler and Susan stepped back to give their children some space. At least, that's what it seemed like until Quiver noticed them bickering amongst one another, trying to figure out if they were doing the 'right thing', probably questioning their parenting skills, etc.

"Well...Zach left my house to go find the Thin Man. I told him not to do it and after he left I saw the Thin Man in my room," Tyler explained.

Jet didn't pay the parents any mind. At least not for now. Sure he might've been worried about the many possibilities of children, detectives, or parents interrupting them previously, but things seemed to be going underway now. Hopefully...

When Tyler started off his story about how his friend was kidnapped, he was sure that he was going to claim that Zach was taken by the thin man. Either that he saw the thin man steal Zach or that he somehow recognized some pattern that linked him to Zach's disappearance.

However he wasn't expecting Tyler to claim that he had found the thin man in his room. This bit of 'information' was just too hard for him to digest properly. Immediately he rose a brow, when he heard some boogey man was hiding in the kid's room. Great, there goes all hope of information out of the window. He was probably just some child who was paranoid and seeing things.

He didn't let his mind show through his expression though. Especially because it wasn't in his nature to be rude to people, especially kids. "Wait a minute...in your room?" Is how Jet summed up his thought and question.

"Yeah," Tyler said, recalling the night as he sat in his bedroom unable to sleep with a dark figure hovering over him in the corner of his room. It was tall and thin, its face hard to make out and Tyler was sure if he did make out its face, he would surely be taken. "He was in my room after Zach left. Then I saw the lights from the cop car outside my room."

Quiver wasn't sure what to say at first. Whether or not it was true, Tyler seemed to thoroughly believe this Thin Man existed. Even if there was no evidence other than his testament pointing to this fact.

"Aside from Zach, did you two know any others that went missing?" Quiver asked.

"Only a little. They were jerks. They'd always come up to us and try to take our lunch money!" Susan complained. "So I started bringing my lunch and then they started taking my lunch! I wanted to put peanut butter in a sandwich because I know Pete's allergic but my dad said not to. So I punched him instead. Then he went missing."

Whether Tyler believed what he saw was true or not, the fact that his friend went missing immediately after and on top of a police investigation seemed unlikely of a coincidence...or not.

It sounded like one of those fabricated ghost stories kids would often spawn after a scary campfire or walk through some 'haunted' place. So Jet wasn't really sure what to make of it. Though he did crack a smile at Susan's schemes. "Oh, I like her."

Susan smiled at Jet's comment.

"What were you and Zach doing before he left your house?" Quiver asked. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate Susan and her anti-bullying efforts but she knew they could be running out of valuable time.

Tyler's face dropped at the question.

"We were...we were playing the Thin Man game." He spoke lowly to the point where it was hard to even hear him. He knew exactly what this looked like: that this had all been a figment of his imagination. "But he was really there, I'm sure of it."

Once Jet heard what Zach and Tyler were doing during their slumber party, he felt his optimism quickly waning. Of course they were doing something like that. This didn't do wonders for their already slim information gathering.

"So you saw a real person and not just the thin man on the computer screen?" Jet asked, because that was exactly how Quiver found the apparition every time she failed at the game. Which was quite a few times until he intervened.

Placing a hand on his forehead, Jet rubbed it gently. "Alright, so let's say what you saw was real. Why would the kidnapper decide to take your friend over you?"

Tyler rolled his eyes.

"I know the difference between what's on a computer screen and what's real. And how should I know?!"

Quiver remained silent. Although she was listening, she didn't seem all too interested in the way the conversation was going. She seemed to have a new idea.

She looked back at the parents. They were getting impatient.

"Well, I think I'm all out of questions." She looked towards Jet to see if he had anything else he wanted to ask.

Once again, things seemed to be going nowhere. Having spent a good portion of his time and money on this project, Jet was displeased that he was coming out with nothing to show. Nothing at all. Maybe some of the kids like the idea of ice-cream and a few rounds of sport related games, but most, especially the adults, didn't seem to like anything at all.

What was he even doing protecting a bunch of whiny worthless brats like this? "No, I think I'm good." Especially when I have the first opportunity to zip out of here and buy myself a chili-dog.

"Now, remember, we'll need to count on you if we need anymore help," Quiver said.

"Yeah, okay," Tyler replied. He still seemed bummed by the doubt that had come from the superheros but was still willing to cooperate.

"Don't worry, you can count on us," Susan added before they parted ways with the superheros.

It wasn't until the kids had left that Detective Hendricks approached the two superheros.

"Well?" he asked.

Before Jet could say anything, Quiver answered, "Just someone having nightmares. I don't think there's anything worth looking into." She then looked over to Jet, expecting him to agree with her.

While the plan and most of the day was a bust, at least Jet was able to brighten the afternoon of a few kids with sports and ice cream. Sure the parents might not had liked it too much, but he really didn't care what they wanted.

Tyler didn't really seem to be much help in shedding any light, and really why would he? If it was that easy for a kid to figure out the mystery behind all these problems, then the police shouldn't be having as much trouble as they were. Unless that was to say the police force was more ineffective than a child.

"Yeah we couldn't get less information if we tried." Jet remarked, once he was sure no one was around to hear his response, besides Quiver and the detective. At least a public and good appearance might help them in a different way then they had planned.

Detective Hendricks didn't seem too thrilled by the responses. But, at the same time, he knew that what they had planned was merely a primarily and he couldn't expect things to go without a hitch.

"All right, well I'll let you know if anything turns up," he said. "In the meantime, we've doubled the amount of officers on the streets at night. Some of them are involved in the case. Some aren't. The ones that are shouldn't give you a problem but...just be cautious."

"Yeah...and we'll let you know if anything comes our way." Jet replied to the detective's comment, because he honestly couldn't think of anything else to say. And even if he could, they didn't seem to be getting anywhere with this case. So what could they hope to inform the police about anyway?

Once their conversation was out of the way, the police seemed to be dispersing along with the parents and their children. Casually Jet returned to his cooler and lifted it upright. Suddenly something seemed off, and so he inspected the contents inside. To his dismay, all the extra ice-cream sandwiches were gone, including the icepacks that had kept the cooler chilled.

Figures...he thought, placing the cooler onto the ground. It was probably one or a group of the older kids who were giving them a hard time earlier, or the ones who didn't seem interested in the surprise visit from super heroes.

"Well I think I'm going to heat some TV dinners and call it a day." Jet remarked, as these fruitless days were starting to take a toll on his positive attitude. Yet, it wasn't enough to become evidently clear.

Quiver didn't say much as they parted ways with the detective. She also didn't say anything about the ice cream or the contents of the cooler.

"So, I'll see you at Tyler's house tonight?" she finally said.

Quiver's question caused Jet to raise a brow. Why did she want to go over to the kid's house anyway? Did she truly hope to find some missing clue in his room or maybe listen further to his creepy ghost stories? There was also the fact about the parents. They'd have a thing or two to say about their visit and he was pretty sure she didn't have their approval either.

All these different questions and more ran through his mind, but he decided to ask a more broad question. "What for? Haven't we already learned all there is?" Or wasn't in this case.

"I don't know. Maybe. But, if there was something in Tyler's room, we need to take a look before the evidence is gone," Quiver explained. "And I'd rather be safe than sorry."

A growling roar echoed through the pit of Jet's stomach, but it wasn't loud enough for most to hear. It impatiently beckoned him, to which he quickly addressed it then Quiver. "Yeah, sure I'll see you tonight." He remarked before he dashed off, so that he could get his grocery shopping done before it became too late.

Night eventually settled in amongst the city of Little Springs. Most of the children from the day were now home, safe and sound.

Except one.

Tyler sat in his room, the computer screen illuminating his face. He fumbled through the forest area of the Thin Man game, trying to find a note. Out of the corner of his screen, he saw the figure, waiting for him. Tyler tried to maneuver his way around, to lose his stalker at all costs.

He saw the figure again. Tyler was desperately pushing his computer keys. Come on, come on.

There was a sudden tap at the window. Tyler jumped from his seat as the Thin Man caught him and the screen went to the main menu.

Through the window, he could see Susan's head poking out. Tyler opened it.

"What are you doing here?" Tyler asked.

"What do you mean? I came to get you so we can go find the Thin Man," Susan said.

"What?!"

"Listen, we're superheros now so it's up to us to help anyway we can. We know Zach went missing while leaving your house, so we should try and look for evidence. Now come on."

"Are you crazy? What if he comes and gets us?"

"Then we kick his butt!" Susan frowned. "Look, if you want to come that's fine but I'm going to do my job."

There was a stare down between the two. It didn't last very long as Tyler could see Susan would never waiver. And it seemed wrong to let her go alone considering what had happened last time.

"Okay fine."

Tyler climbed through the window and followed Susan.

________________________

Quiver waited quietly in the shadows for Jet to arrive. She could see Tyler's house from her spot but she didn't want to approach the house and end up waiting out in the open for Jet to show. Or hiding in a ridiculous place like a bush or under a window.

After their thorough grocery shopping, which almost cleaned out entire shelving space, Jet returned to store and prepare their dinner. It was unfortunate that he only had one microwave, because a speedster like him needed to eat at least three or four TV dinners to recharge. Especially if Quiver was putting him through another pointless stakeout mission, or something more serious.

After all their unlucky streaks, he was hoping for the more serious route this time. After everything was packed away, and he had a full stomach, Jet donned his costume, and sped towards Quiver's meeting spot.

It didn't take him long to catch up to his partner, nor did he have any trouble from anyone. There must had been some kind of curfew because of the kidnapper, because he didn't see anyone outdoors. Or maybe he was just over-analyzing and the route he chose was just coincidentally dead.

Suddenly a gust of wind blew from behind Quiver, as Jet arrived. "So, what's the plan?"

As Quiver's hair blew, she knew to turn around.

"We find Tyler's room, tell him we need his help as a superhero, see if we find anything, and go from there," Quiver answered.

Quiver checked the streets before proceeding. She knew she's have to be extra cautious due to Jet's potential gusts of wind.

On the side of the house there was a window opened. The computer screen was glowing different colors as the screen saver was on. Looking through the window, there was a bed with a blue comforter and a desk was covered in action figures. Unless Tyler had brothers, this was probably his room. And it was currently empty.

Quiver didn't like the sign of an open window. But still, at least it was a way in. She didn't wait for Jet before crawling through the window.

Jet decided to allow Quiver to take the lead this time, because he was leading every other time. He had to beat that one video game for her, steal information from the police, and stage some after school activity. He figured it was her turn to take the mantle anyway.

Plus, he really didn't want to be the first one sneaking into some stranger's house. What if one of the neighbors caught them jumping through the window? That would surely help their reputation, especially if they got proof, and would be plastered through all kinds of newspapers and media.

He didn't really question her when she did jump inside, but his movement and expression were pretty clear on his standing of this newest operation of theirs. Once she was inside and had the time to inspect the room, Jet slowly and calmly let himself in.

This had to be Tyler's room because most of the toy figures he had on his desk were of super heroes, and he seemed to be really into that kind of genre. Plus, there was also the sign on his door, which read 'Tyler's Room'

"Looks like no one is here..."

"Yeah," Quiver replied worriedly as she began her search.

The first thing she noticed was the computer screen still on. She walked towards it and clicked the mouse. It was that game on the main screen. Maybe Tyler was on his way back. Still, for someone so terrified of the Thin Man, why leave the window open?

Quiver looked over to the side where a game log was shown. "Hey Jet," she called, not sure what he was doing.


There were only two bare corners in the room: one by the door and the other directly across from it, by the window. The corner by the window had a foreign, dark substance. As if a shadow had been there and left a residue.

Once Quiver started to inspect the room thoroughly, there was no turning back. Super heroes reduced to what appeared to be petty thieves nosily rummaging through other peoples belongings. Jet really didn't like the feeling, especially when they didn't have permission. And even if they did have Tyler's approval, he was just a kid, and if his parents found out all hell would break loose.

When the computer's screen saver switched back to the active browser, Jet realized an almost too familiar site and menu page. Of course he was playing that game. If this is where his interest had been recently, and not just at this hour, another mystery was solved. The overactive imagination of a kid had taken effect, when he had crammed a night full of scary movies and stories, or in this case games.

"Great," Jet remarked raising his arms in disappointment, but not quickly or dramatically. "Well I think it's safe to say, we all know where he got his story."