The next morning, Noah, Emma, and Amy rushed downstairs after hearing loud noises.
When they reached the ground floor, they stopped.
Harris was being tied up by guards.
"Uncle Harris!" Amy shouted. "What are you doing?! Let him go!"
One guard stepped toward her. "Move, girl. This man is under arrest—"
He reached out to push her, but Noah grabbed his wrist before he could touch her.
"What do you think you're doing?"
The guard snatched his hand back, scared.
"D-Don't interfere!"
Emma stepped beside Noah. "Why are you arresting him?"
"For helping strangers," another guard said. "The mayor wants him brought in for questioning."
"Helping strangers? That's not a crime!" Amy yelled.
"It is if the mayor says so," the scarred guard replied coldly.
Amy looked like she was about to cry. "Please! He didn't do anything!"
Harris forced a small smile. "Amy… it's fine. Don't worry."
But he didn't sound fine at all.
The guards began pulling him toward the door.
"Stop!" Amy screamed. "Uncle Harris!"
Noah took a step forward, Emma grabbed his sleeve quickly.
"Noah… not here," she whispered. "Not yet."
The guards shoved Harris outside and slammed the door.
The inn went quiet.
Amy dropped to her knees, shaking. Emma hugged her tightly.
Noah stood still, fists clenched, staring at the door.
Emma looked up at him. "Noah… what do we do now?"
"We go get him."
Amy looked up, eyes full of tear. "You'll help him… really?"
Noah nodded.
Emma helped Amy stand. "We'll get him back. Together."
Noah walked to the door with a calm but angry look.
"The mayor did this on purpose," he said.
"looks like someone been spying on us."
"What?!" Emma shouted. "Someone's been spying on us."
"That's the only thing that makes sense," Noah said. "We got attacked by pirates out of the blue. Captain Grudge never met us, not once, and suddenly he's after us? And how does the mayor know your uncle gave us a place to stay?"
Noah(Thinking) l-[Is Harris involved? Is he the one behind all this? …No. Why would he kidnap his own daughter? Something's wrong. None of this adds up]
Amy wiped her eyes and looked at him. "Noah, you okay?"
"I'm fine," Noah said softly. "Just thinking about something."
"Fire! Fire!" someone shouted from outside.
Noah, Emma, and Amy rushed out of the inn. Smoke was rising into the sky.
"That location…" Emma whispered. "Oh no."
Amy's eyes widened, and she took off running.
Amy(Thoughts)-[Dad… please be alright]
She sprinted through the street until she reached her house.
Her house was completely covered in flames.
Noah and Emma caught up to her.
"Dad! Dad! Dad!" Amy cried.
She tried to run inside the burning house, but a burning board crashed down right in front of her.
Emma grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "Amy, be careful!"
"My dad is in there!" Amy screamed, tears pouring down her face.
"Step aside," Noah said.
He took a breath.
Noah(Thinking)-[Focus, Noah… focus. Imagine the vectors in the air turning into water]
Vector Manipulation — Ocean Tide.
A massive burst of water erupted from thin air, crashing into the house and smothering the flames.
"Stay here," Noah said, already walking into the smoking doorway.
Minutes passed.
Then Noah stepped out, alone.
Amy's heart stopped. Her body trembled. "I-Is he…" she choked, tears blurring her vision, "i-is he dead?"
Noah sighed. "Stop crying. Your dad isn't here. They probably took him."
Emma exhaled. "This is getting interesting…"
She pulled Amy into a tight hug.
"It'll be alright," Emma whispered, gently rubbing Amy's back as she sobbed into her shoulder.
"Let's get out of here," Noah said as people began gathering around the burned house.
Meanwhile — in a cave near the shoreline.
Haru slowly opened his eyes. He was inside a cold, dungeon-like cell.
A voice came from the shadows.
"Haru… it's been a while."
Haru froze. He knew that voice.
"It's you," Haru said.
Back at Harris Inn.
"Do you have any clothes here?" Noah asked, turning to Amy.
"Yes, but they're in my cousin's room."
"Then go get it," Noah replied.
"The room is locked," Amy said.
"Just show me the room," Noah replied in a hurry.
Amy pointed to the last door at the end of the hallway.
Noah walked up to it.
Vector Manipulation-Ghost Step.
Noah phased through the door and twisted the knob from the inside.
Click.
The locked door cracked open.
Noah peeked his head out. "You two won't believe what's in here."
Emma and Amy exchanged a confused look, then walked toward the room.
When they stepped inside, they froze.
The walls were covered with pictures of Amy—some recent, some old, some taken from strange angles. Dozens of them.
Noah turned to Amy slowly. "What's your cousin's name again?"
"It's… Lena," Amy said quietly.
Noah nodded. "Well, either Lena is a really good photographer… or your uncle is a really, really creepy guy."