"I'm worried about sending you kids on supply runs," Dr. Newman said. "What if people recognize you?"

"Eh, the footage is pretty blurry," Spencer said.

"Not the news broadcast," Ivy reminded him. "All of us were in the oval office."

Ivy, Claire, Spencer and Ace stood in the lab. Supply runs had been difficult lately. It was best to send the most experienced Supers, but most of them had been caught on video at some point or another in D.C. by security cameras, shaky civilian footage, and the news broadcast.

"So we can't go out in public?" Spencer asked.

"It's just not safe," Dr. Newman said. "I really wish you hadn't gotten food after your last raid."

"Sorry about that," Spencer said. "It's just nice to have a break from the ship every once in awhile. Pretend to be normal teenagers for a little bit."

"Well," Claire said. "What if we went somewhere there were no people?"

"That doesn't solve the supply run issue," Dr. Newman said. He sighed. "And there's a lot we need for the upcoming mission. Plus we have so many more kids to feed..."

"We could disguise ourselves," Spencer suggested. "Wear baseball caps and sunglasses and hoodies."

"Pretty sure that would make us look more suspicious," Ivy said.

"I think going into town is a bad idea, but there is something you three can do. We need more fuel for the jetchoppers, and the guy who gets us that is located far enough from the closest town that I think you'll be okay."

"Awesome," Spencer said. He reached out and scratched Ace behind his ear while Dr. Newman wrote down some directions.

The door to the lab swung open. To Ivy's surprise it was Victoria who walked in, clutching a bottle in one hand and a stethoscope in the other.

"I got the—oh." Victoria sounded startled. "Hey... guys."

"Hey Victoria," Spencer said. "We're going to get some fuel. Wanna come?"

Ivy tensed. Victoria glanced at Dr. Newman. "Uh, thanks for the offer, but I was gonna help Dr. Newman with something."

Ivy frowned, but she didn't get a chance to ask for clarification.

"All right, see ya then." Spencer turned to Ivy and Claire. "Let's go."

Ace let out a joyful bark. At least he somehow knew how to control his powers.

They walked out to the deck and boarded one of the jetchoppers. Ivy and Claire followed Spencer into the cockpit to take a look at the map. The fuel supplier was located in a small building not too far from Boulder, Colorado. And... 

"My old boarding school," Ivy said, frowning as she looked at the map. She pointed at a spot a few miles from the fuel supply.

"Hmm." Spencer placed a finger on the location of their fuel supplier. "We will have to fly near the town. Well, we shouldn't be too long. I doubt anyone will notice us."

Ivy nodded, but anxiety crept in. People probably knew by now that jets passing by could carry either them or Scorpion.

She tried to reassure herself that everything would be fine as they made the flight to Colorado. Before long, Spencer put them in chopper mode and they began their descent.

They touched down, and Ivy crossed the chopper to the door.

Like her old school, the building was surrounded by trees. This building was much smaller though. The outer walls were a pale gray, and there were no windows. The place was apparently a storage center run by a friend of Newman's.

Spencer ran up to the lone door at the front and knocked.

Within a few minutes, they were loading up the jetchopper. Ivy grunted and set down one of the tanks the fuel was stored in. Scorpion had engineered the jetchoppers well. They were fuel-efficient, and could carry a fair amount of weight.

Spencer picked up the crate and lifted it into the chopper. Claire stood by the building, bringing over the tanks that the building employees brought out.

A rustling sound came from the other side of the helicopter. Frowning, Ivy jogged around to the front of the aircraft to investigate.

More rustling, and voices. Familiar voices. Ivy clenched her fists.

It was Seth who came out of the trees first. Right behind him was Ash, shouting at him to stay with the group. Hestia was at the back, accompanied by two soldiers.

"What are you doing here?" Ivy asked. She held out her hand and hesitated. She could easily put up a wall of fire between her and Scorpion, but she doubted she had the control needed to keep it from spreading. This was the same forest she'd almost burned down a few months earlier.

Seth stopped, allowing Ash to catch up to him.

"You really should be more careful," Ash said. "The whole internet is buzzing about seeing your jet. I mean, they do that every time a jet flies by, but this time they were right." He pulled a phone out of his pocket and held it up. A shaky video of their jet crossing over Denver played. "Thankfully, we were able to recognize our own aircraft."

"Spencer, Claire!" Ivy shouted. "We've got company."

Seth leaned over, trying to get a look at the other side of the jetchopper. "What are you guys stocking up on?" he asked. "Fuel? We could use some of that."

"Hey, this our supplier," Spencer said as he came over from the other side of the chopper to join Ivy. "Get your own."

"We have our own." Seth retorted. "It's called stealing from yours."

Claire jogged over, out of breath. "Are you guys—oh." She scanned Scorpion's forces.

Seth took a step forward. "Five against three," he remarked. "I like those odds."

"More like five against four," Spencer said. He whistled, and there was a heartbeat of silence. A shadow moved over the ground in front of Ivy. She looked up as Ace flew over the top of the chopper and landed on the ground in front of them.

Ace let out a loud bark. Ash, Seth, Hestia and the soldiers were thrown backwards a good ten feet. Ivy smiled. "Nice."

Ash was the first one back up. His gaze darted between the Supers. Then, to Ivy's surprise, he sprinted to the right.

Seth sat up. "Hey, where are you going?" he asked.

Ivy broke into a run and followed Ash. They circled the jetchopper and to Ivy's alarm, Ash jumped inside. Was he going to fly off with it?

Ivy leaped through the open doorway, stumbling as she landed inside. Ash was in the cockpit. She reached for the door, but it swung open before she could grab it. Ivy took a step back as Ash emerged from the doorway, holding something in his hand.

"Good luck flying without this," he said. He held up a weird object Ivy had never seen before. It looked like an oversized battery. She caught a glimpse of an open control panel next to the pilot's seat.

Ash flew past her and jumped out of the chopper. Ivy groaned and turned to follow him. As she hopped out, Spencer ran over to her.

"Where'd he go?" Spencer asked.

"Not sure," Ivy said. "But he took something from the cockpit. It was kind battery-shaped, but it was red."

"Oh, crap," Spencer said. "Yeah, it's something Scorpion designed for the chopper."

"Is it important?"

"If we want to fly? Yes."

Claire and Ace came around the side of the chopper.

"Did you see which way Ash went?" Ivy asked.

Claire nodded and pointed into the trees nearby. "The others went after him, too."

"Crap," Spencer said. "Well, we have to get the thing back. The employees will finish loading up the fuel. Let's go."

They ran into the trees. The others weren't too far ahead, thankfully. Ivy could hear them in the distance. They were probably heading back toward their own jetchopper. Ivy wondered where they parked. Surely she would have seen them if they were flying nearby.

The ground became steeper. Ivy almost lost her footing a few times. Her mind kept returning to the boarding house fire, and her escape through the trees. This time, she was the one doing the chasing.

Ivy stumbled and hit the ground hard. A rock sliced through her jeans, drawing blood from her knee. Wincing, Ivy pulled herself to her feet.

A clicking sound came from somewhere to her right. Ivy frowned. "Did you guys hear that?" she asked. Looking around, she realized she'd lost Spencer and Claire.

A heavy silence set in, sending a chill down Ivy's spine.

"Shoot," she muttered. She set off running again. The clicking sound came again, this time louder.

Or whatever was making it was getting closer.

Ivy shook her head and sped up. Relief flooded her when she caught a glimpse of the others up ahead. Her legs burned, but she managed to catch up.

The dirt beneath them turned to pavement as they burst out of the trees. Ivy stumbled to a stop and took a few steps backward as a car whizzed by.

"Where'd they go?" Spencer asked.

Ace bent down and sniffed the ground. He looked to the right, down the road, and barked. Ivy, Claire and Spencer exchanged a glance.

"You think he knows which way they went?" Ivy asked.

Claire closed her eyes. "I can sense their minds. I think Ace is right. They're headed down the road."

"All right then," Spencer said. "Ace, lead the way."

Ace ran down the road, and the others followed. Ivy's boots thudded against the pavement and her heart hammered in her chest.

Buildings began appearing next to the road. Ivy's heart lurched when she recognized the town up ahead. She'd passed through here on her way to the boarding school. The woman driving her had stopped for gas.

As the road straightened out Ivy could see Ash and the others. They'd come to a stop on the sidewalk. What were they doing? The soldiers, with their bright red armor and guns, were sure to draw attention.

Ivy's chest ached as she gasped for air. She just needed to go a little farther.

Ash looked over at them and said something to the others. Crap. They were going to run again.

A wall of ice rose up from the ground in front of the Altered. Ash turned around and shot Spencer a glare. He turned to the right, but another wall stopped him. Spencer flicked his wrist and a third wall rose up, trapping the Altered and the soldiers inside.

Ivy hurried over to them, the others right behind her. As she reached the ice wall, a gunshot rang out. The ice wall to her right exploded, sending a spray of frozen crystals into the air. Ash stepped out first, and Ivy moved. She grabbed his arm and send a shock through his body. Ash's hand opened and the chopper part fell out.

The object didn't hit the ground. Instead, it flew into Claire's hand. Ivy released Ash and moved backwards as the other walls collapsed. One of the soldiers held up his gun and aimed at Ivy.

The soldiers' guns flew out of their hands. Then, the soldiers themselves were thrown backwards. They crashed into the brick wall of a nearby building. Claire lowered her arm.

A bang echoed in the air as another gun went off nearby. Ivy frowned. The Supers didn't have any guns with them, and no one from Scorpion had fired. Who was shooting?

Another gunshot. They were coming from the building next to them. Ivy turned and realized they were standing outside a bank. And as alarms went off and sirens sounded in the distance, she realized a robbery was taking place.