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During a break in the table talk at lunch Colin takes TJ a little ways off to talk with him in private.

"Look, T.J., it's probably me seeing things and nothing, but if it isn't, you'd better know. I wouldn't have bothered you with this, but the thing about you sleepwalking had me worried. i don't think you're sleepwalking at all."

He pauses, looking for the words to go one.

"You'll have to follow me for a moment, even if you don't believe me, ok. I want you to think at the party. When the snake man first appeared. Try to remember, where were you? What were you doing? What did you do when people began running away?"

"I was in the gazebo standing next to Kel and listening to Seth's music. Then I heard a sound like thunder, which I assume was when you released the spirit. By the time I had turned round Kel was already running to the spirit. I followed and tried to get through all the people who were running away. But when I realised that I couldn't get through, I just panicked and fell to the floor. Then I kind of felt sick and I guess my body somehow crawled through until I was a few feet from the scene."

He holds up his hands. “That’s what happened, well what I could see.”

"Then I saw you when you stood up after that, and your body seemed... to flow up from the ground. I didn't think much of it, after all, you're not the only one with... uncommon abilities around here, but then I remembered something."

Colin fidgets a bt.

"Your last name is Jacobs, isn't it? When we went to the Lawson Labs, we met a doctor, named Jacobs. He told us of the wonders and imperfections of human genome and how with retroviruses or something It could be possible to make people live up to 200 years. Any chance you are related?"

Colin raises his eyebrows in expectation, hoping the answer will be a no.

T.J smiles at Colin. "Just seeing me flow up from the ground doesn’t prove much, it could of been an illusion the spirit could of been warping reality. You met Dad? Yeah, he's a great scientist he's working on some big stuff. Shame, he hasn't been home lately he's working really hard at the labs."

He stops and looks at Colin suspiciously. "Why?"

"He's your dad?"

Colin takes off his glasses and rubs his eyes trying to gather the courage to go on.

"T.J. you don't have to believe me at all. I really hope I'm wrong.

Your father had just fiished telling us this thing, and the guide began to carry us away. Only so many of us could go in the elevator, and Megan, the cheerleader, Calvin, Sarah and I ended up last. When the elevator came up, the door opened and a spray of water knocked us all down. There was water all over the ground, and... it flowed up to make this ... man made of water. He wasn't after us. He pointed to your father and said 'You did this to me you bastard'. Then the guards arrived, they brought your dad away and the water man took Megan as a hostage."

Colin sighs.

"When I saw you do... what you did at the party, it reminded me of the water man. Well I didn't think of it straight away, but later, when I thought of all those that helped me. There was this, there was the name Jacobs, there was the time you burst into bubbles... it made me think. And today you told us you found yourself on the floor, but you have no bruises at all, and I thought 'what if he has flowed down the bed to the ground?' It would mean that it happens when you can't control it, and it made me worry. I think you should talk with your dad. Maybe... I dunno... he got exposed to some chemicals of sorts, and it carried over to you. Maybe I just had a bad night, and tomorrow we will laugh together about this and about how dumb I am. But you should tell him about it, just to be sure. I'd never want you to end up like the water man."

T.J looks at Colin strangely for the moment then puts a hand into his pocket and pulls out a small, round blue circle with a tiny red button on the back. He looks at it and says sadly. "I don't know what to think about all that stuff. I'll try to talk to dad, or if not him then mum. I'm not sure what Dad does at work, all I know is that he invents new chemicals that will change the world."

He sighs and offers the circle to Colin. "This is a commlink. I made it, if you ever need any help from me just press the button and speak into it. I carry mine around at all times. Oh and can you give me your glasses?"

Colin takes the device and flips it in his hand.

"Is this like a... walkie talkie? How far does it work?"

He takes off his glasses and squints.

"You know, I kinda need them. I have backup contacts, but they're just that, backup. What do you need them for?"

He sighs.

"I'm so getting a laser job when I turn eighteen."

"About a mile so depending where you are it may not reach me." T.J pulls another, even smaller, circle from his pocket. "I want you to put this on your glasses, between the lenses. I'm afraid those witches will try to capture you. The comm is in case you get away and need help. This tracer is in case they get you."

"Oh."

Colin thinks about it for a moment.

"Well, I don't really know what those witches could want from me, but I guess it won't hurt. Thank you."

He smiles, and shake his head.

"I guess we're too busy worrying about other people to worry about ourselves, aren't we?"

T.J gives Colin the tracer and sighs. "Thanks for telling me about this. I don't think my dad has super-powers, he hasn't ever displayed anything like them and he's never suddenly disappeared , but I guess it never hurts to ask.” He looks at his watch then looks curiously at Colin. “Is their any other way to get super-powers, apart from being born with it?”

"Well, Matt is really the person you should ask,  but, as far as I know, sometimes the R-factor activates on his own, at birth, or with puberty, or in a moment of great stress, and sometimes it remains hidden and is activated by radiations or chemicals... I don't really know anything more about it. I don't even know if what is happened to me is because of a R-factor or not. I've been said that... there was no one else. Or that it's some kind of cosmic joke. I can't really tell yet."

"It probably is the R-factor just being activated in a slightly unpleasant way that runs in your family.” He shrugs and slings his bag over his shoulder. “I haven’t tried any chemicals unless an attempt at a fizzy drink counts.” He chuckles and starts to leave. “Thanks Colin, good luck getting used to your powers, hopefully I’ll find mine.”