****
Passage in the Humvee from Brooklyn to Manhattan over the Stone-Coat remodeled Brooklyn Bridge was a surreal experience for Ed. The Bridge glowed and sparkled from the presence of dozens of smallish spider-like Stone-Coats that climbed all over it, renewing and fusing together stone and steel that had been weakened from a century and a half of use and weather. Ed wasn't surprised to notice that the bridge was also being widened by the Stone-Coats. For decades the creatures had been widening and repairing roadways world-wide. After a century of pathetic inadequacy, New York City interstate highways and parkways were finally proportionate with the size of the City. Even more astounding: they lacked potholes!
Ahead of them the gigantic constantly changing skyline of the South Manhattan Financial District rose; countless dozens of vertical buildings that stretched skyward like the trees of a forest, with windows brightly glowing in seeming defiance of ever-strengthening edicts for energy conservation. High above them the new Sky Rail train system glowed and hummed with energy, carrying thousands of New Yorkers through the glowing forest of skyscrapers and reminding Ed and all of humanity that the human spirit could be sometimes muted but never fully contained.
Ed was tired; it had been a long, emotionally exhausting day. He would have dozed off in the Humvee, but for the aching nagging fear for Tracy and Mouse that hadn't left him since morning. Where were they? More important, were they safe and well? Trivia about the girls filled his mind endlessly: mostly good memories of Tracy growing up. Frustratingly, some memories eluded him. What were the last words between them, and when did they last exchange a hug?
Worst of all was the growing dread that the girls were dead and all the searchers were merely being played by Egborg and company. The quest that he led to save the girls was failing miserably, he could feel it.
****