The plane screeched to a stop, spitting sand and debris towards the windows. No wonder they were as murky as dirty pond water. "This is as far as I can take ya," the aviator said from the dingy cockpit. If someone told Thirteen this plan was built from scratch, he'd be inclined to believe it. "Still a long way off from anything, but you know how it is."

Thirteen nodded, not finding the energy to say anything comprehensible or anything that might lead to more conversation. The whole flight over was composed of nothing but the man's monologues. With him being the only one in the cargo hold wearing the headset, he heard all of it. Every sickening detail. Polluting his mind with useless things from mundane people was the last thing he wanted, so he didn't bother masking the relief that flooded his system as his boot hit the silt.

"Thank you so much for your help, Sir," Jocasta said on her way out of the aircraft.

The man, whose name was Joe or something along those lines, waved a dismissive hand in the air. "Think nothing of it, lass," he said. "Declan and I go way back. He helped me family out. 'Course I'll help 'im when he asks."

When all of them had dropped out of the plane, Joe gave them a quick thumbs up. "Cover yer ears now, fellas. If ya don't wanna lose 'em hearing," he said. "See ya around."

They followed the advice as Joe started the engine. The propeller up front sprung to life. By the time the plane was back in the sky, they had retreated to the thin line of trees giving way to a large playground of some sort. Thirteen exchanged glances with everyone and walked forward. A hand rubbed his ears, the propeller's sound still heavy in his memories.

"As you know, Paris is huge." He whirled to face everyone. His unbelievably large trousers still bothered the hell out of him. The thing made it three times harder to run. He needed another change. Fast. "What's the plan?"

Kevan raised a hand. "I can scour the immediate radius for anyone who thought of Jacqueline's appearance," he said. "I can do it within three kilometers."

Thirteen narrowed his eyes. "Would that not drain you?" he asked. "Using it at full power is not good. Stressing a muscle breaks it. Same thing with abilities."

"Then, what other choice do we have?" Kevan fired.

Good point.

Thirteen scowled. "Fine."

Without any opposition left, they stood in a protective circle around Kevan who closed his eyes and placed two fingers in each temple. Minutes passed by. Thirteen didn't dare take his eyes off the horizon. Those troops might be present in Paris as well, especially when France was Jacques' homebase. If his association with Primeva ran deeper as Declan hinted, he might be alarmed at Thirteen showing up in the city.

They had to find Jacqueline. Now.

"Found a trace!" Kevan exclaimed.

Everyone whirled to him at the same time. "Where?" Thirteen demanded.

"At the edge of the maximum range," Kevan answered. He wiped the back of his hand under his nose, frowning when he didn't find what he looked for. Was he hoping for a hitch? "It was brief, almost a passing thought. But the thought of her exists. It's fairly recent too."

Thirteen clenched his jaw. "Lead the way," he said.

Kevan took to the job instantly, weaving across lanes of traffic, pavements, and throngs of people. How he was able to sift through all the overlapping inner monologues in this city alone was something Thirteen couldn't fathom.

After half an hour of brisk-walking, they arrived at a building painted orange and dark brown. Another cafe, it seemed. Pendant lights lit the whole place amber. A few people lounged in cushioned chairs and elegant tables. Kevan pointed at the third window from the building's left. "There," he said. "She's thinking about Jacqueline now, so it's clearer."

"Okay," Thirteen breathed out, bracing his hips. "Let's figure out how to approach her as a united body. We don't want to spook her, but we want to get her answer about Jacqueline's whereabouts."

He was met with silence. Kevan pushed the cafe's door open and strode inside. That little—

Jocasta gripped Thirteen's arm. "Let's just go, Markel," she said. "We don't have time to lose."

A frown settled in Thirteen's lips as he let himself be pulled into the shop. Kevan tramped closer to the girl sipping from a white cup. A similar gadget as the one Thirteen stole in Geneva sat in front of her. Only a white screen with strange buttons blinked back. She grabbed her phone and scrolled briefly. After a while, she groaned and threw it back on the table with a clatter, obviously disappointed at something.

"Do you know anyone named Jacqueline Shaw?" Kevan interjected. Thirteen's gut coiled into tight nuts. What was that boy thinking?!

The girl whirled towards Kevan, her dark eyes wide. "You're doing it again," Kevan continued, wagging a finger in front of her face. "You're thinking of her."

She chuckled. She was taking this rather well. Must have seen things in her lifetime too. They hadn't shown their power towards normal people up close. He warned everyone to proceed with caution. They didn't want random people being able to tell Primeva and its goons anything. He ought to drill that into Kevan's head later on.

The girl set her cup down. Amazing how she hasn't spilled its contents over herself in shock. Thirteen lounged a few seats away, watching the entire exchange and checking the street outside for any sign of Primeva's soldiers.

"Kid, don't make it sound so romantic," the girl said, her eyes glued into Kevan's clothes. A sweater over a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of dark trousers. Wherever he got those was out of Thirteen's knowledge. "I don't do that kind of thing."

Thirteen peeled off the counter and stalked towards them. The girl made it harder for all of them. "Kevan, did you find something?" he asked, more to tell the boy to dig deep into the girl's mind and fish out Jacqueline's whereabouts.

Jocasta's presence appeared behind him. "Markel, what are you doing?" she asked. Ji-yeon and Alon followed, taking the nearest table from the counter. Why was there a headphone around his neck? Did they raid an electronics shop on the way?

"I told you to wait outside." Thirteen jerked his chin at Jocasta. "Take those two with you."

Alon looked up, hearing himself being referred to. Ji-yeon cursed as she raked her fingers down her tangled strands. Her scorched jacket sleeve betrayed the burn she received from being hit with a spark.

"We should stick together," Jocasta replied. "We don't know what they planned for us in this city. It's too risky to split up."

Thirteen's gaze flicked towards the girl whose head swiveled here and there in an attempt to follow their conversation. Finally, she reached out and grabbed her teacup. "Do you need something?" she said after a quick sip. "This banter is hurting my head."

"You're jet-lagged," Jocasta interjected from the nearby table. "You shouldn't be drinking coffee."

The girl's eyebrows crept closer to her hairline. "Oh, this?" She held the cup up. "This is une noisette. Hardly coffee. If you want real coffee, kape barako should do. This thing is too creamy."

At that, Alon perked up. "You're from there?"

The girl flashed the boy a quick smile. "Born and raised in Manila," she said.

Thirteen sighed and slammed his hand on the table. The girl flinched. The aproned girl from behind the counter glanced at the commotion, her fingers pausing from wiping the surface. "Where's Jacqueline Shaw?" he growled. "We know you know her."

Her throat bobbed, eyes flitting here and there. She was desperate to get out of this situation for some other reason. "She's Denny's girlfriend," Kevan blurted, his fingers pressed to his temples and his eyes closed in concentration. Thirteen could have rolled his eyes. Great. They might as well reveal they have inhuman abilities now.

Kevan opened his eyes and blinked at the girl. "Who's Denny?"

Ji-yeon slapped Kevan's hands off his face, her fixation temporarily off her hair. "Oppa warned us not to use our powers on normals."

"Powers? Innocents? What are you, people?" The girl demanded, catching on to the drift of the conversation. This was going well, sure. Why couldn't Kevan just mine this girl's head for information? What stopped him? Here Thirteen was providing all the distraction he could think of.

Thirteen met everyone's eyes. Jocasta mouthed something, her meaning lost on him. He scratched his head, never removing the frown on his face. Finally, he sighed. Whatever happened with Kevan's ability, he needed to get the girl to trust him enough to spill her secrets.

"Look, we are...complicated." He pulled the nearest stool and propped himself on it. "All I can say is that Jacqueline Shaw can probably save our lives...or what was left of it."

She took another quick sip. "Why do you think she could save you?" She shut her gadget with a resigned sigh. Her eyes drooped dangerously low.

Thirteen crossed his arms over his chest. "She's the only link that would get us to stop what happened to us from happening to other children."

"Which is?" the girl prompted.

Jocasta's seat clacked against the polymer tiles. "Human experimentation," she said. "She's the only lead we have since we escaped her father's lab."

Something flickered across Coffee Girl's features. Was it recognition? Familiarity? What was this girl doing to end up all the way to Paris from wherever Jacqueline was? "Are you planning to hurt her? How would she fit into your scheme?" she asked. "I have to make sure I'm not putting her in any danger."

"We just wanted her to tell us what she knew about her father's involvement in things." Ji-yeon tapped her finger on the table to some rhythm.

"As for the danger, we can't promise you anything." Jocasta added. "But we'll do our best to keep her alive."

A beat. Two. The girl groaned and rubbed her face. "I don't know, guys. She kinda has her own life there. I don't want to intrude on that."

"We have no choice," Thirteen said. "Her father is planning more than we know."

The girl took a deep breath, closing her eyes. "New York," she said. "She's in New York."

That was it. They would be out of here. Thirteen scrambled away from the stool, aiming for the cafe's doors. Jocasta and the others filed out soon after. Alon came out last after exchanging a quick word with the girl. Some strange sentimentality, perhaps. Thirteen didn't understand that, nor would he try to.

They peeled into the street. What was next? Find a way to New York from Paris, if that was even possible. They would need to find another plane or something. But first, a way to get more money and a working gadget that could access the internet, no matter how risky that was. Maybe find a place to crash, to spend the night in.

Thirteen rounded a corner along with the others. A swirl of blue flashed in his periphery. He ducked, barely avoiding a baton swinging his way. What in the world—

Jocasta's scream ripped through the pavement. Thirteen turned to find her cradling her arm, a burn mark not from the baton's ammo scratched down her skin. She fell against a metal shutter with a loud bang. The soldier stalked towards her, a lace of flames circling their arm. No way...

"They have abilities!" Thirteen yelled, backing away as his opponent charged towards him. So, Geneva has pawns, Venice has special ops, and now, Paris—Jacques' homeland—has freaking superhuman soldiers. Damn. He missed Karrel's chip.

He ducked, the baton's fiery tip lashing past the ends of his curls. His eyes traced all over the soldier's padded body. Unlike the uncontrolled variants in the Game, most of the abilities were subtle. Unseen. If not for the slashes of flames in his periphery, he wouldn't have guessed they have once been part of the Game. And from the looks of it, they seemed to be the past winners.

Well, this has just gotten better.

Thirteen continued backing away, until his back hit a tree. He crouched, getting the baton stuck in a half-burned trunk. With a scream, he tackled the soldier in the gut and shoved them back. He kicked the baton away, sending it clattering into the highway. It crumbled under repeated assault of car wheels against asphalt.

That was when Kevan's distressed cry tore through the battle. The boy flopped to his side, bleeding from both nostrils. Thirteen's eyes widened. The hitch. He wondered why it didn't appear earlier, when Kevan maxed his ability out. Now, after continuous use with heavier applications, it finally gave in.

Thirteen rushed into the fray, digging his heel into the soldier's foot. He whirled to push them into the highway when a wave of pain and shock rippled into his system. His knees hit the ground, and the last thing he saw before the darkness ate the midday sun was a boot rushing towards his face.