The Phase Distorter appeared on top of the Monotroli building, on the helicopter pad. When Gustav and Lou stepped out the Phase Distorter, it disappeared and returned to Dr. Andonuts' lab. For at least two minutes Lou and Gustav simply looked around at the city around them. They had never been to a city before, and since they had simply appeared in the middle of it, the sheer size of the buildings was overwhelming. Eventually, they turned around reluctantly and went into the Monotroli Building. They went through a short, dark hallway before coming to a dead end.
"What is going on here?" Lou yelled. "If Dr. Andonuts is really on our side, then why did he trap us up here on a skyscraper?" Lou and Gustav pounded on the "tacky" wallpaper until they heard a voice on the other side.
"Huh?" A muffled voice came through the wall. "Is someone in there?"
"Yes!" Gustav yelled into the wall. "We're in here!"
"Did *ping!* oh! I just got some of the new-fangled e-mail that people have been talking about!" The person on the other side of the wall began reading. "Who are you guys? And how did you get in there?"
"I am Gustav, and this is my friend, Lou. Dr. Andonuts sent us here!"
"Isn't there something you're supposed to say?" The person asked.
"Fine! Please. NOW LET IS IN!!!" Lou screamed.
"Okay then." The wall split in half, horizontally, and the top half went up as the bottom half went down. An old man with white hair was standing the doorway. The doorway led to a luxurious room that shined like gold because of it's yellow wallpaper and gilded pillars. A large, wooden desk was set against the wall across from the door and a clumsy robot was dusting it furiously.
"I am Geldegarde Monotroli, the 'mayor' of this fair city. Welcome to Fourside. What brings you here?"
"We are looking for-" Gustav started but Lou elbowed him in the ribs.
"We are looking for uh… entertainment! Yeah! Entertainment! You see, we are music uh… judges! We heard of some nice music going on here in Fourside at the Topalla Theater and we wanted to hear some of it!"
"Music judges?" Monotroli didn't look too convinced. "Well, if you say so. Our current attraction is a child prodigy named Alline. She plays the piano quite beautifully. I can get you some backstage passes so you can actually meet her." Monotroli waddled over to his desk and settled into his chair. He turned on his computer and picked at a few keys in hopes he could get something done, but the computer was either slow or just stubborn. Just when Gustav was about to offer to help, the computer began emitting extremely loud and painful screeches and smoke poured from the monitor. The screen displayed a flashing, green message:

SYSTEM CRASH

REBOOT?

"Hm? Did I do something wrong?" Monotroli looked confused. "I can just give you some of the old backstage passes instead." Monotroli reached into his desk and gave Gustav two pieces of paper. "These are from the good old days when the Runaway Five was here. I am the only one who actually owns these, so they should let you in anyway. Tell me what you think of our Alline." Monotroli led Gustav and Lou to his personal elevator and told the operator to bring them down to the first floor, since they were important people who could boost the city's image.
"Don't stare at my hips!" The operator said, despite Monotroli's warnings. When they reached the first floor Lou hurried as fast as he could out the elevator, out the door, and (accidentally) right into the hands of a waiting police officer. The policeman quickly pulled a gag over Lou's mouth and dragged him away. Just as Gustav reached the sidewalk, both of them were already long gone.

Lou was definitely in trouble now. He was sure that Monotroli had discovered that he wasn't a music judge by now and had sent a cop out to catch him. But the officer wasn't taking him to Monotroli, instead he was taking him to the department store. The officer ignored the "Congratulations, we're closed!" sign and glided right in. As hard as Lou tried, he couldn’t free himself from the grips of this weirdo. The cop practically flew up all the escalators and into a darkened room that had a large desk with a built-in intercom system. The policeman threw Lou onto a chair and tied him up with a thick rope. Then the policeman grabbed a strange, silver object on top of his head and pulled the object like a zipper. The zipper went down the front of the policeman's face and down to his waist. The disguise fell away to reveal by far the strangest creature Lou had ever seen! It was green and had a huge number of tentacles. It also had two red eyes that rested on two green stalks on top of his head.
The creature bowed. "I am Mook, and I was sent here to detain you for trespassing, lying to an official, and attempting to stop our plans. You will stay here until we have accomplished our tasks, which could take some time, so get comfortable. Goodbye and good riddance, kid." Mook turned around and glided out the door. Lou heard an audible *click* as the door locked.
"(What now?)" Lou thought to himself.
The door suddenly unlocked and the Mook waltzed back in.
"Oh, yes. I forget to do this!" The Mook concentrated and used PSI Paralysis to make sure Lou wouldn't be able to escape. "Now I can say goodbye and good riddance, Lou." The Mook went out the door and with another *click* the door was locked.

"Did you see a kid with red hair somewhere around here?" Gustav asked a woman who was carrying some shopping bags.
"Haven't seen him." She strolled away.
"Lou! Loooooooooooooo! Where did you go?" Gustav thought hard of were Lou could be, but nothing came to mind. Suddenly, he was struck by the thought that Lou was probably already at the Topalla Theater in hopes that he would get to meet the girl Alline. Gustav hurried to the Topalla Theater but Lou wasn't there. Gustav was about to look somewhere else when he heard a soft melody coming from the Topalla Theater. He looked inside and saw that the show had already started but people were still being let in. Gustav showed his Runaway Five backstage pass and the man laughed.
"Do you actually think you can get in with that old junk? You need to buy a ticket."
"But Monotroli said that you would let me in anyway, since no one has these anymore." Gustav pleaded.
"Good point." The man grabbed the backstage pass and ripped it into tiny pieces. "NOW no one has a Runaway Five backstage pass."
"But my friend, Lou, has one. Monotroli gave it to me and then I gave it to him."
"What? I can't let him go around with something like that!" The man ran out the exit and began looking for Lou. Gustav tried to get to the show but another man stopped him.
"Buy a ticket first." Gustav bought a ticket. "Now give it to me." Gustav handed it back. "Now you can go in." Gustav's eyebrow twitched for a moment, then he walked in to watch the show.
And he was amazed.
The room was filled with people, but not a person was making even the slightest sound. All the sounds were perfect, clear music, which were coming from the stage. On stage, a girl who was about the same age as Gustav was playing a great, grand piano. She had long blonde hair, and was wearing a schoolgirl uniform. Her hands hovered over the keys, while her fingers swooped down and struck each key with great elegance and perfect accuracy. Her arms were swinging left and right faster than scissors while the rest of her was entirely still.
After just one song, the show ended. The girl stood up and curtsied as the audience applauded. Then the girl went to the backstage room to change into something more relaxed. Gustav, being the courteous person he was, didn't try to knock so he waited for Alline to come out. When she did, Gustav was almost speechless. She was wearing a pale yellow blouse with a short, sky blue skirt to match. Gustav stared for a moment, but he snapped out of it and cleared his throat.
"Huh? Oh! Um-great show… (Maybe I should introduce myself?) I'm Gustav."
"Gustav?" Gustav suddenly had her attention. "Your name is, Gustav right? Are you sure?"
"Of course! Why shouldn't I know my own name?"
"Well, come in. I can't talk about it out here." Alline led Gustav into her dressing room and closed the door slowly, making sure no one was watching. Then she sat down on a large, plush chair. "I know this will sound very strange, but I've heard voices lately. Not voices from people around here, but voices from somewhere else. In fact, it's a single voice from another girl in a faraway place. She said that I had to meet someone named Gustav, because he is supposed to be my destiny. I didn't believe that strange voice until now. But I don't know how I can be of service to you, or anyone else."
"That doesn't matter. Everyone has a special little something, and your piano playing is definitely a special something." Gustav said encouragingly.
"Sure. I'll try helping you as much as I can, even though it might not be too much." Alline said. Gustav and Alline quickly went outside and Gustav explained that he was looking for Lou. It turned out Alline had lived in Fourside all her life so she knew all the places where someone like Lou would hang out. They checked the hospital, the hotel, the café, Monotroli's building and the bakery. When they came by the department store, Alline stopped at the door.
"Something's wrong. It's closed, and they had a big sale planned for today!" Alline walked over to the door and tried to open it. "Locked. This might be a problem." Alline frowned.
"Let me try." Gustav closed his eyes and put one hand over the lock. He remembered how to use PSI Fire Alpha and blasted the door with a flash of flame. The door melted into a mess of watery glass and molten metal that released intense amounts heat. "Oops. I guess I need some more practice." Gustav cooled the remains of the door with a PSI Freeze.
Alline's jaw fell to the ground with a thud.
"You knew how to do that all along? And you didn't tell me?"
"You never asked." Gustav chuckled.
"I really, really hate that joke." The two friends walked inside and they noticed that cups of coffee and old records were strewn around the floor. "This is really weird." Alline whispered.
Suddenly, two cups of coffee "saw" Gustav and Alline and rushed at them. They tossed their scalding coffee at Gustav and scooted back to watch. Gustav was hit on the arm by the coffee and he clenched his teeth. He pulled out his Bionic Slingshot and fired a series of stones that broke one of the cups apart. Alline put her arms up to protect herself when the remaining coffee cup approached her and began to spill. Just before it attacked, Gustav shattered the last coffee cup with a well-placed rock.
Gustav definitely felt much stronger, and although Alline felt the same way she tried to ignore the feeling. She didn't feel much like fighting. More cups of coffee and records began to gather on the first floor when, suddenly, the intercom squawked. But no one said anything on the intercom. Gustav and Alline retreated outside and went to the hotel to rest.
"That was tough. I need a new weapon." Gustav sighed.
"You can get stuff like that in shops?" Alline was surprised.
"After we rest, let's go to the drug store--"
"The drug store is on the third floor of the department store." Alline looked resigned. "We can't fight without stronger weapons, but we can't get stronger weapons because we can't fight!"
"My Mom said that I should just 'Go for it!' when things aren't going right. Let's just make a run for it through the department store and hope for the best." Gustav said. Alline simply nodded. They walked out of the hotel and started on their way to the department store. When they walked behind the hotel, a man with a yellow sign quickly approached them.
"Hello! You two seem ready to take a great risk without knowing the consquences. So, I think I will give you a little hint. It will cost you though." The hint guy said.
"We could use all the help that we can get." Alline said. Gustav paid the hint guy.
"Here it is: everyone has a special power. Even the most unlikely people! You just have to take advantage of your talents. That's all for now!" The hint guy ran off to his post under a tree that was nearby.
"Talents?" Alline started thinking. "I can play the piano. But how can that help?"
"How do you learn to play a song?" Gustav asked.
"Well, I first look at the music sheet until I become familiar with it. Then I practice one little part at a time until I can play the whole thing."
"So you learn by watching and reading, right?"
"You can say that."
"That means that you can use any of the attacks that you have seen so far!" Gustav was really excited.
"Are you sure?"
"Try using PSI Fire Alpha. That is what I used to melt the door." Alline concentrated and thought of what she saw before.
Then she held her hand over the ground and said "PSI Fire Alpha!" A column of fire flew from her fingertips and melted the asphalt until it actually caught on fire.
This time it was Gustav's turn to have his jaw drop to the ground.

Continued in Chapter 8