It’s good to see that Rusty is not so easily swayed by Mark’s patronizing paternalism. He’s thinking through the situation, even if his premise is questionable. Considering the mask as a possible diversion, for example, is impressive thinking for a pre-teen. Or even a teenager.

How Rusty expects to find answers online is problematic. It’s not likely that actual Vulcans, for example, are going to put up a web site; and the Internet is filled with trolls, conspiracists, and just plain nutters. The main point here is that, from a plot standpoint, Rivera gives us a little more complexity in the storyline. So, there is the possibility that this story will not just quickly descend into another bagatelle of Mark coming across yet another goofball lately escaped from the asylum.