C&C Welcome!

-----------------------------------
     Voices, seemingly coming from far away.

     "We've located the rogue personality, sir."

     #LaCombe, they must be talking about LaCombe.#
     #Kill them!#
     #We can't.  They've immobilized us, and it'll be at least a couple of
hours before we regain control.#
     #So you're just going to sit here and let them take me?#
     #We can fight.  I can take on whatever they send in.#
     #No!  Don't you understand, this is our chance!  We can get rid of him
once and for all!  Then we won't have to kill all those people!  Then we
can make friends again!#
     #I _like_ killing people.#

     "Can we safely remove it?  Is it possible?"

     #I must admit, I would feel more secure in myself if the LaCombe 
personality was removed.  He has overridden my advice time and again.  He
can only be considered a detriment.#
     #I don't know...What do you think?#
     #Huh?  Oh, let him go.  I can never get laid when he's on the run.  And
even if I do, I gotta let the bitch here kill them right after.#
     #Who's a bitch?!#

     "Should be able to.  That is, if she doesn't try to fight us."

     #That's enough!  I'm thinking, don't distract me...#
     #I can't believe you're listening to them.  Think of all that we've
accomplished!  The money we've made, the deals we've won, the crimes we've
pulled off!#

     "All right, go in."

     #Think of Deirdre, who LaCombe made you kill.  Your best friend.  Your
only friend.#

     "All right, going in now..."

     #Oh my God, here they come!  You've got to help me.  Shasti!  Shasti!
Goddammit, help me!#

     "Any sign of her fighting you?"

     #Goodbye, LaCombe.#

     "Got him!  Now the rest should be a snap."


     As LaCombe was removed, Shasti felt her Central Mind going into an 
unconscious state.  She was mildly disturbed by what she heard just before
she passed out.

     "Good.  Now for the second step..."



I Am One

by Sean Gaffney

The Dirty Pair and the WWWA are (c) Haruka Takachiho, Shasti and Cory 
Emerson are (c) Adam Warren and Toren Smith, a bunch of stuff is based
on Experiment-101 by Larry Mann and Reunions by Larry Mann and Ryan 
Mathews, it was inspired by Bryan Stone, etc.  I don't have permission
to use any of it.  Despite that, there is *some* originality in here.

NOTE:  This story takes place between the Dark Horse stories _Sim Hell_
and _Fatal But Not Serious_.


Part One:  Behind Blue Eyes

     Shasti slowly felt herself come back to consciousness.  She had no
idea how long she'd been out.  The last thing she remembered was seeing
the LaCombe personality being removed from her head.  She probed her mind
to see if she felt any guilt.  She didn't.  Now that LaCombe was gone, she
might actually be able to think on her own, without being constantly 
overridden.  It had been fun for a while, but LaCombe had finally become 
tiresome.
     *Now, to find out where the hell I am.*  She went to activate the
detective part of her mind, to try and work out as much as possible before
she alerted anyone to her being awake.
     She couldn't do it.  The detective part of her had disappeared.  She
tried looking all over, but it was gone.  Shocked, she tried to access
the social and seductress personalities, but they were gone, too.  She
desperately called for the warrior, but to no avail.  All she could find
was herself, alone in her own head.
     Her eyes snapped open as she began to panic.  What had they done to
her?  This was obviously meant to incapacitate her, but was it permanent?
Her mind was confused, rattling around between possibilities.
     "Sir, she's awake."  The voice came from across the room, and Shasti
angrily tried to get to it.  But they'd strapped her down tightly, 
preventing any movement.  *Well, of course.  If they're trying to 
incapacitate me, they'd be foolish to shut off the mind and leave the
body to run around.*
     Shasti jerked in shock.  That had sounded like the detective!  She
made a quick search of her mind, but once again only found herself.  But
if she was alone, where had that observation come from?  She'd always
counted on the detective to do that sort of thinking for her.
     While this was running through her mind, a door hissed open and a
man entered.  He was tall and burly, and Shasti mused that he was not a 
fellow to be intimidated.  He looked down at her, actually having the gall 
to smile.  She struggled against her bonds and made an attempt to snarl, 
though with the way her mind was working it probably came out as a whimper.
     "Hello, Shasti.  My name is DeFeo, and I'm the head of the department
here.  I imagine you've got a lot of questions."
     "You bet I have!  Where the fuck am I?  What the hell have you done 
to me?  How could you do this to me?"
     "Are you saying that you didn't want the LaCombe personality 
removed?"  DeFeo frowned momentarily.
     "I don't give a shit about LaCombe!  You've taken my other 
personalities.  Left me with nothing!  What excuse could you possibly
have -- "
     She was cut off by DeFeo.  "The excuse, Shasti, is that you were the 
most wanted criminal in this entire system.  You killed 10 of our best 
TC's before we could capture you, and you don't seem to show the least bit 
of gratitude!"
     "Gratitude!  For practically lobotomizing me?!"
     "Oh, your personalities aren't gone.  Not really.  If you'd just
shut up and listen, I can tell you what happened."
     Shasti relented.  It was obvious she was getting nowhere.  She'd
listen to what he had to say, carefully weigh all of it, and then beat
him bloody.  "All right, I'm listening."
     DeFeo smiled.  "Thank you.  By the way, you're at WWWA headquarters."
     Her eyes widened.  "I see.  Well, thank god I was saved by those
who truly care about me."
     "Good, you've still got your sense of humor.  As I was saying, we've
been trying to capture you for over three years now, and you were very
good at stopping us.  If it hadn't been for Kanuka and Taeko sacrificing
themselves, you'd still be on the run.
     "Now, the heads of 3WA simply wanted to kill you, but the CC overrode
them.  It knew you were still the best TC out there, even despite your...
character flaws.  It wanted to see if the rogue personality could safely
be removed from you, and if so, whether you'd still be homicidal.  So
you were brought here, where the LaCombe personality was safely removed."
     "Where is it now?"
     "In its component atoms."
     Shasti smiled.  "Good."
     After that, we determined that, although still violent, bitchy, and
slightly insane, you weren't criminally homicidal.  In other words, back
to normal.  Then we took the second step..."
     "Removing my other personalities." Shasti said bitterly.
     "I told you they weren't removed.  We combined them.  The CC 
admitted that your schizophrenia was causing more harm than good, so it
decided to amalgamate your personalities into one.  They're still in 
there, you can still be a warrior, detective, or seductress.  I dare
say you could even be social, though the idea terrifies me.  But they
aren't sentient anymore, they're built into your core personality."
     The reality of his words was beginning to hit Shasti.  "What are 
you saying here?"
     "I'm saying that you are Shasti.  Not the warrior, not the 
detective, or the seductress, or the social personality.  Shasti.  All
one person."
     Shasti stared at him in shock.  "What right did you have to do 
that to me?"
     "Shasti, if you'll recall, you gave us that right.  A few months
before the LaCombe incident, you were in Ayoob's office, ranting and
screaming about how you were tired of all these failed experiments and
schizophrenic freak-outs, and you wanted to know whether there was a 
way to make you 'sane'.  Those are your exact words, if you'll recall."
     Shasti now looked puzzled.  "I did?  When?"
     DeFeo began to look concerned.  "I hope we haven't succeeded in
trashing your memories.  Shasti, this was before the LaCombe incident.
When you were part of the best team in the 3WA, the Ultimas.  Does
any of this mean anything to you?"
     Shasti lay back, desperately trying to remember.  "Aargh...the
3WA, of course.  But...the Ultimas?"
     DeFeo looked into her eyes.  "Yes.  For two years, you and 
Deirdre were the best there was."
     Shasti's eyes glazed over.  Deirdre.
     Her partner.
     Her best friend.
     Her only friend.
     The friend she'd...
     At the edge of her hearing, she could make out DeFeo yelling
something about trauma and shock.  It didn't register with her at
all.  All she kept thinking were the same five words, over and over.
     *mygodikilleddeirdremygodikilleddeirdremygod...*

***

     Cory Emerson was livid.  She'd been this close to pulling off the
story that could make her career, only to be ambushed by two 3WA goons
and spirited off.  She attempted to mention something about kidnapping
and assault, but the goons simply said that the Central Computer had 
authorized them to use any means necessary to bring her to Pacifica.
     Realizing that there was nothing she could do, she decided to amuse
herself by making life a living hell for her two guards.  By the time
they arrived at the spaceport, they almost threw her off the ship, not
even bothering to escort her to the 3WA's head offices.
     *I could try to take off,* she thought, *but they'd just find me
again.  Might as well find out what is so important that they need _me_
to solve it.*  She frowned as a thought came to her head.  *I hope that
Kei and Yuri are all right.*
     Following signs, she came into a breezy, calming reception area,
which seemed to lose much of its atmosphere as she walked in.  A bimbo
receptionist attempted to stop her, saying "But Miss Emerson, you'll
have to wait until you're called in."  Cory didn't even break stride.
"They've already called me in, honey, and I'll be damned if I'll stay
here any longer than necessary."  And with that, she burst through the
doors into the director's office.
     They seemed surprised to see her get past all the security, but
she'd learned that the easiest way to do that was to keep moving, no 
matter what.  Thus she kept going right up to the guy in the center,
grabbed him by the lapels, and murmured, "You are going to tell me why
you kidnapped me and brought me here, and then I am going to leave.
And if your explanation isn't good enough, I'll have you plastered 
on every paper in the sector, whether you're 3WA or not."
     The man on the left was chuckling.  "Pleasant as always, Miss
Emerson.  Nice to see you haven't lost your touch."
     She turned, recognizing the voice.  "Goulet.  Great, just what I
needed to really spruce up my day.  What have those two gotten themselves
into now, and why am _I_ the only one who can help?"
     Goulet smiled the sort of smile that Cory had always wanted to hit.
"Actually, Miss Emerson, this has nothing to do with the Angels, at least
not directly.  Frankly, we're just as surprised as you are, but the 
Central Computer was adamant."
     Cory's eyes narrowed.  She'd never quite been able to accept the
fact that the agents sent off to die for the 3WA were chosen by a 
computer instead of a human.  Sure, she used computers every day, and had 
her cyberplug, but when the chips were down, she wanted the decisions to
be made by someone with experience, rather than a machine sifting through
probabilities.
     Reluctantly, she let go of the lapels of the man in the center and
sat down.  It looked as if this wasn't going to be resolved anytime soon.
"So, the CC has decided you need someone with my particular skills.  
You'd think, after the last two missions I accompanied the Angels on, the
CC would want to see the back of me as quickly as possible."
     Goulet's expression turned serious.  "I agree, frankly.  We weren't
exactly thrilled with the prospect, considering what you, Kei, and Yuri
pulled on Tertius -- "
     Cory stood up, eyes blazing.  "IT WASN'T OUR FAULT!!" she found 
herself screaming, and then sat down again quickly, realizing who she 
sounded like.
     Goulet soldiered on.  "Nevertheless, this particular assignment has 
nothing to do with the Angels.  The CC has suggested that someone of
your abilities would be most likely to sur--"
     The man on the right cut in coolly.  "Director Goulet, if you don't 
mind, can we just tell her the background, without any bias?"
     Goulet frowned momentarily.  "Of course, sir.  Cory, this is Joseph
DeFeo," he pointed to the center man, a rather large swarthy looking man
in his 30s, "a research head here at 3WA, specializing in psychological
difficulties."
     Cory moaned.  "Agents that go snap.  Great."
     Goulet was getting tired of being interrupted.  "And we also have 
Doctor Jim Daltrey, an expert in the field of bio-organic constructs.
He'll be helping you with our little...problem."
     Daltrey's eyes bored into Cory.  "Ms. Emerson."
     DeFeo raised his hand.  "I'd like to move on, if nobody minds.  Ms. 
Emerson, I presume you're aware of the exploits of one of our rogue 
agents...Shasti."
     Cory cocked her head.  "The 3WA has rogue agents?  Do tell.  Why 
have we never heard about these people?  Confined themselves to not paying
taxes, crossing against the red light?"  Her eyes narrowed.  "Or could it
possibly be the 3WA's lovely habit of _covering up everything_?"  Cory
was still annoyed at the 3WA for allowing Kuan Yin to get away with their
behavior on Kalevala.
     DeFeo listened to all this with a resigned expression.  "Shasti
turned rogue about 5 years ago.  Since then, the 3WA has put a great deal 
of its time and energy towards retrieving her.  Recently, after 
sustaining heavy losses, our agents were finally able to capture Shasti.  
She's in our custody now."
     Cory narrowed her eyes.  "And you want me to record her final moments
before the execution?"
     "We're not executing her," DeFeo snapped.  "There's something you
should know.  This isn't even common knowledge in the 3WA."
     Cory had long since ceased to be angry at these developments.  "What
a surprise."
     "Shasti turned rogue in the first place as a result of attempting to
upload the personality of a psychotic criminal, LaCombe, in order to bring
him to justice.  Unfortunately, the LaCombe personality reacted to her
own, and fused.  This had the effect of turning her rogue.  However, 
thanks to several of our agents giving their own lives, she has been 
brought back, and the criminal personality has been destroyed.  Shasti is
back to norm...is herself once more."
     Cory was beginning to feel confused.  "Why in God's name did she 
upload the personality in the first place?  Everyone knows the danger that
can result!  I saw it myself on Kalevala!  She should never have been 
asked to implant the guy in the first place!"
     DeFeo looked at Goulet, who nodded, and Daltrey, who merely narrowed
his eyes.  "We have to tell her."
     Daltrey spoke in almost a monotone.  "You already know my feelings on 
this matter.  To be trusting such delicate information with a reporter, 
particularly this one, is incredibly dangerous.  I cannot predict what sort
of effect she'll have on Shasti."
     DeFeo smiled.  "Precisely."
     Goulet took it upon himself to respond.  "The same reporter has been
instrumental in the solution to two extremely difficult cases, and her 
reputation is impeccable.  The Angels have nothing but good things to say
about her."
     Daltrey looked slightly amused.  "Somehow I do not take that as a 
wholehearted recommendation."
     Cory was sick of this.  "_Getting_ back to the point...?"
     DeFeo frowned at the two men.  "In any case, if you are to be of
assistance, you'd better know all of the facts.  Shasti's story begins
thirteen years ago..."
     DeFeo quickly summarized Shasti's "birth" and development, leaving
nothing out.  Cory's expression grew horrified as she heard about what had
been done to this woman by her own employers.  She was amazed that Shasti
had turned out as well as she did.
     As DeFeo finished, Cory regained her senses once again.  "So, cutting
all the bullshit, what is the _problem_ here?"
     DeFeo sighed.  "Three days ago, we woke Shasti up, the computer 
having determined that she was no longer psychotic.  She awoke confused
and with short-term memory loss.  Unfortunately, once she regained her
memory, she recalled what she had done to her partner.  She promptly
entered a state of trauma, from which none of our doctors have been able
to break her.  We finally decided to ask the Central Computer for 
recommendations.  It said that you were the best person to help Shasti.
It did not elaborate.  Having exhausted our other options, we arranged
for you to be brought here."
     "Kidnapped me," Cory said bluntly.
     "If you wish," DeFeo said.  "Nevertheless, Miss Emerson, here is 
what we are asking you to do.  We want you to get Shasti back to normal.
Talk to her, reason with her, do anything you like, but break her out of
this shock.  We need her, and you are our last hope."
     Cory rattled her head around to make sure her ears were working.
"Let me see if I've got this straight.  You want me to be alone in a
room with a woman who killed thousands of innocents -- "
     "LaCombe did that, " DeFeo interrupted.
     "You have no way of proving that.  You want me to go into this room
and try to talk this woman back to sanity, and get her to work for an
organization that has treated her like shit for her entire life?  What 
in the name of all the hells possessed you to think I would agree to
this?"
     Goulet was the one who answered that.  "Because you sympathize 
with her.  I saw the look on your face when we told you her history.  
The alternative is to leave her here to let our scientists deal with her, 
the same ones who've arranged her entire life.  And you'll never be able
to live with yourself if that happens."
     Cory was silent for a few minutes.  Then, calmly, she got up, 
strolled up to Goulet, and belted him across the chops, knocking him to 
the floor, unconscious.
     Having thus calmed herself, she turned to DeFeo.  "Fine, I'll do
it.  Where is she?"
     DeFeo smiled.  "I'll have you taken to her.  Mr. Daltrey will be
your contact for the duration."
     Cory gave Daltrey a malevolent look, which he mirrored.  "Why?"
     "Because I am the expert in the Agency on Shasti.  Most of the
original team was let go after the LaCombe incident.  I'm one of the 
few who can tell you what to do."
     "I don't need to be told to do anything.  Just let me get out of
here, and you two can go back to your Machiavellian schemes."
     She was stopped just before the door.  "Ms. Emerson?"
     "Yes?"
     She saw DeFeo's face momentarily soften.  "Thank you for doing this.
Even if it is the 3WA's intent to merely see her restored as an active
agent, it is _my_ intent to see her sane.  That is your priority."
     She nodded, gaining a measure of respect for the man.  "Thank you.
It's nice to know that the management aren't all cold, unfeeling 
weasels."  And with that she left.
     Daltrey peered after her.  "How touching."
     DeFeo grinned.  "Would you rather I had her running around like a
loose cannon?  Someone needs to keep an eye on her.  We need Shasti back
to normal, and she's our best hope."
     Daltrey frowned.  "I still think this is dumb."
     "You're probably right," DeFeo said.  "I have been known to do a
few dumb things in my time."
     "I notice you didn't mention that the Computer said she only had
a six out of ten chance of getting through this alive," Daltrey wryly
mentioned.
     DeFeo smiled.  "I may be dumb, but I'm not stupid.  We need her.
She can do it.  I have faith in her."
     Still on the floor, Goulet merely groaned.

***

     Cory groaned.  She still had a slight headache from the dataplug
that had given her all the information on Shasti.  She made sure three
times over that nothing was being held back, letting them know that any
snippet of information they had could be the key to breaking Shasti out
of her shell.
     Privately, however, Cory was much less sure of herself.  The 3WA
had understated Shasti's background.  The woman hadn't had a childhood,
a social life, anything.  They had developed her as the ultimate agent,
and that was precisely what she had been.  Unfortunately, that made her
job of getting through to the "real" Shasti that much more difficult.
     Daltrey was walking with her towards Shasti's room, giving her 
last minute instructions.  "Now, we'll be monitoring the room at all
times.  When she wakes up, do your best to calm her down, to the point
where we can get in the room.  After that, you're free to go."
     Cory turned towards him, stunned.  "I don't believe this.  You 
think I'm gonna do this just so you can brainwash her again?"  She 
grabbed Daltrey's lapels, forcing him up against the wall.  "Now listen
up.  I am doing this out of the goodness of my heart.  You should know
that that doesn't go very far.  You are going to let me talk with 
Shasti, and you will let me bring her to a point where she can decide
for herself whether or not to go with your scalpel jockies.  And if you
don't agree to these qualifications, then I will walk out of here and
she can stay in there to rot for all I care."
     Daltrey sighed, and seemed to change tactics.  "Look, Ms. Emerson,
we want this to happen just as much as you do.  We _are_ concerned for 
Shasti.  That's why we're doing this.  But you just can't predict what
shape this woman will be in.  It's an unproven case, there's never been
a recovery like hers before."
     Cory looked surprised.  This was a change from the cold soldier she'd
seen in the office.  "Yeah, well thanks.  But the Central Computer, for
some reason, thinks I can do this.  Therefore I'm going to do it my way,
and not be second-guessed by any of you.  Is that clear?"
     To her amazement, Daltrey grinned.  "Crystal.  I suppose I should wish
you luck, then, Ms. Emerson."
     "Cory," she responded before she could stop herself.
     He smiled back.  "Jimmy."
     Cory was still trying to get to grips with this 180 degree turn
when he said, "Here we are.  From now on, you're on your own.  Be careful,
Cory.  We want this to be quick and painless."
     Cory glared at him again.  "And you're supposed to be the expert?
Trust me, _Jimmy_, this will not be quick or painless."  And with that, she
stepped inside.

***

     As she entered the room, Cory noted that it had been tailored to 
its occupant's new mindset.  White, sterile, no signs that anyone had 
ever been in here.  And in the center lay Shasti, staring at the ceiling 
and whispering in low tones.  Cory couldn't make out what she was saying.
     Cory began to feel her doubts rise to the surface.  What the hell 
did they expect her to do?  She'd never handled hostage situations or 
anything like that, and she was certainly no psychologist.  She was just 
a reporter with a history of bad luck, who'd had the unique opportunity 
of trailing the Dirty Pair on two of their cases.  Cory had absolutely 
no idea what to do.
     Luckily, not knowing what to do was a situation she _had_ been in 
before, so she just decided to wing it.  She picked out a chair, the 
only other piece of furniture in the room besides the bed, and sat down.
     She stared at Shasti for a moment.  No doubt about it, the woman 
was a knockout.  Cory had read that one of her personalities was a 
seductress, and that was easily believable.  For a moment Cory felt a 
twinge of jealousy, as she recalled all the numerous times men had told 
her she was too harsh looking for their tastes.
     The jealousy was leeched out of her as she remembered what sort of 
life had brought Shasti to this point.  This was not the case of a child 
who'd grown up to be a beautiful woman, this was a body that had been 
grown in vitro, and subjected to a two month childhood where most would 
have fifteen to sixteen years.  Cory was amazed that they had assumed 
that Shasti would be able to cope with the strain, it would have broken 
anyone.
     That was the key, though, she thought to herself.  The 3WA had never 
thought of Shasti as a person.  They saw her as a tool, to experiment on 
and play games with, trying to coax an agent out of an empty shell.
     Except that Shasti wasn't an empty shell.  The CC had given her 
several of its private files, recorded secretly.  Normally, this would 
have angered Cory, but the files provided a fascinating look at her 
"other" life.  Her partner, Deirdre, had developed her own training 
program with Shasti, but this was a far more human one.  Cory had 
watched the tapes in shock as she saw Shasti laughing happily.  This was 
a side of the woman that no one had been able to see except for her 
partner.
     The problem was that Deirdre had been dead for five years now, shot 
in the back by Shasti after the rogue personality had corrupted her mind.  
3WA still maintained that it had "taken her over" in some way, but Cory 
didn't quite believe that.  Shasti had to have been in some control 
during this rampage, as LaCombe simply did not have the intelligence to 
pull off her crimes.
     The question now was whether Shasti could be trusted to come back 
to society.  Had she truly been purged of the sinister side of her mind, 
or had it been combined along with the rest of her personalities into 
one mind, Shasti herself?
     That was the final thing that worried Cory.  Shasti had no experience 
of coping with a single personality.  She had, according to the tapes, 
always delegated her tasks to the four main personalities:  Warrior, 
Detective, Seductress, and Social.  There had also been a central mind 
built, where Cory supposed Shasti "really" existed, but it had never 
actually been seen.  Shasti had _always_ existed in her four distinct 
personalities.  Now, according to what the medtechs had told her, the four
had been melded into one individual, with the central mind the only thing 
remaining untouched.
     Cory sighed.  Enough of this inner monologue, it was time to see if 
she could bring Shasti out of her stupor.  "Shasti?  Can you hear me?  My 
name is Cory Emerson.  I've been assigned to try and help you out.  Um...
I don't suppose I understand how you feel, but I'm sure we could talk 
about it..."  Cory sighed.  God, she sounded stupid.
     "Shasti?  Can you hear me?"  Cory decided that perhaps something else 
was in order.  As gently as possible, she reached out and tapped Shasti 
on the shoulder.

***

     Shasti came out of her stupor to find a woman lying on the floor 
clutching at her hand.  Immediately, her 3WA training kicked in, and she 
walked over and tried to help her up.  "Are you all right?"
     The woman backed away violently, looking daggers at Shasti.  "What
the hell do you think?  You nearly broke my hand!!"
     Shasti's brow knit, as she tried to remember her previous actions.  
Unfortunately, the last thing she remembered was DeFeo trying to jog her
memory.  Fat lot of good that did her now.  She glanced at the woman 
across from her.  Judging from her stance, she was not a 3WA agent.  What
disturbed Shasti was the injury.  "I don't believe it!"
     The woman attempted, rather poorly in Shasti's opinion, to be blas�
about it.  "Don't worry about it, I shouldn't have grabbed your shoulder
like that."
     "Not that!"  Shasti was beginning to get very annoyed with herself.
"You grabbed my shoulder and all you've got is a bruised hand?!  Your arm
should be lying on the ground next to you!  What the hell did they do to
me?  That used to be automatic!"
     The woman went from apologetic to flaming mad in an instant.  "Now
look here.  I came here out of the goodness of my heart to try and help
you.  If all you can say is that you're upset you didn't hurt me more,
then maybe I should just leave!"
     Shasti rounded on her.  "And who asked for your help?  I don't need
another of 3WA's psychobabblers to tell me that it's going to be all right."
     The woman got angrier, if that was possible.  "I am _not_ with 3WA,"
she whispered.  "I wanted nothing to do with this."
     Now Shasti was puzzled.  "Then why are they..."  Suddenly it hit her.
The Central Computer, of course.  It had calculated every course of
action, and found that this woman was the best way for Shasti to...to what?
That gap in her memory still bothered her.  She turned to face the woman.
     "I apologize.  If you're not with 3WA, we'll get along much better.
Shasti, 3WA Agent, Ultimas."
     The woman's anger abated somewhat.  "Cory Emerson, reporter, High 
Sense.  Do you want my ID number, too?"
     Shasti grinned.  "Now that's that's out of the way, maybe you can tell
me why I have a gap in my memory.  The last thing I remember is DeFeo 
telling me about my past."
     Cory blinked.  "You're remarkably direct."
     "Sorry, but I've just been lobotomized after spending four years as
a paranoid psychotic.  It tends to sharpen the focus."
     Cory winced.  "So you do remember.  Well, you're taking it better
than I thought..."
     Shasti frowned.  Remember what?  Inside her mind, where her social
personality used to be, she thought she could hear something.  A little
wail, coming from inside her head.
     *DON'T REMEMBER!*
     Shasti cut it off.  If her social personality was coming back, well,
she'd been used to overriding it anyway.  "Taking what better?"
     Cory looked puzzled.  "Deirdre, of course."
     
***

     Her mind cascaded under the force of memory.  She felt herself slipping
away under the agony.  Images of herself, shooting Deirdre over and over
again, coursed through her mind.  There was only one way to deal with it.
Shasti let her conscious mind shut down, hoping to escape from the pain.
     However, this time something was blocking it.  There was a hand at her 
wrist.  Shouldn't she be stopping it?  But no, this time the pain was even 
greater.  Nothing mattered anymore, just get away, hide, don't think about
what you did...
     *SMACK*
     Shasti immediately came back to consciousness.  Her mind immediately
went to defense mode, looking for her attacker.  She scanned the room, and
finally noticed Cory hiding beneath the table, shaking.
     "I'm sorry!" she cried out.  She seemed to be terrified.  "You were
going back into catatonia, and I just hit you before I knew what I was doing!
Please don't rip my arm off!"
     Shasti slipped out of attack mode; Cory wasn't a threat.  Unfortunately,
this meant that she was thinking again, and she had all her memories this
time.
     It started in the back of the throat, barely a sound at all, more of a 
subsonic vibration.  It gradually rose in volume until Shasti realized it was
a cry, a deep wail of grief and loss.  Astounded, she suddenly realized that
it came from her own throat.
     She crashed to the ground, sobs wracking her body.  Her one conscious
thought besides her grief was of someone taking her up into a hug.  Deirdre
had been the only one who'd ever hugged her.  It still felt good.  Shasti
reached out and grabbed Cory, taking solace in her embrace.

***

     *Great, I've finally broke through, and she's gonna crush me to death.
I hate this.  Why'd I hug her, anyway?*  Cory knew the answer to that one,
but preferred not to answer it.  This was getting to be much more complicated 
than she thought.
     She had to admit that slapping Shasti would definitely go down in her
books as one of the stupidest things she'd ever done.  Unfortunately, she
couldn't think of a way she'd have done it differently.  Shasti was beginning
to go back into a comatose state, the exact state that they'd brought Cory
in to avoid.  And besides, it was sort of her fault for mentioning Deirdre
in the first place.  She had assumed that once Shasti remembered her criminal
past, that she'd remember Deirdre as well.  Well, it was too late now. Shasti 
was going to have to deal with it, that's what this was all about.
     Shasti was still clinging tenaciously to Cory, though her sobbing had
slowed down.  She opened her eyes, and there was a haunted look to them.
     "Oh god, tell me that I didn't.  Please.  Tell me I didn't do that.
That I didn't shoot her.  _Please._"
     The look in her eyes was painful.  Cory felt a lump in her throat, and
once again cursed the people who'd made her this way, who tried to create 
the perfect agent and then couldn't handle the consequences.  Cory wanted
nothing more than to tell Shasti that it was all right, that she hadn't 
done it, that it was the LaCombe personality in her head.  Unfortunately,
she couldn't bring herself to do it.  Cory had read all the reports from
the doctors who'd 'cured' her after her capture.  LaCombe hadn't taken her
over, he'd merely joined with her.  The responsibility was still Shasti's,
no matter how much she wanted to deny it.  And accepting that would be the
first step in recovery.
     Of course, Cory still felt awful about it.  "I'm sorry, Shasti, but I
can't do that.  You may not have been completely sane, but you did kill
her.  I'm...I'm sorry."
     Shasti's face was the picture of grief.  If she hadn't already sobbed 
her eyes out, she would have broken down again.  As it was, she merely 
slumped down, falling to the floor.  Her voice, when it came, was tinged
with sorrow, but Cory was also relieved to see a bit of acceptance in there.
     "She was the only friend I ever had.  She never treated me as anything
less than a human being.  Not even when we first met.  There was a time...
when the 3WA tried to make me forget her.  They thought she was becoming
a bad influence on me."  Shasti laughed bitterly.  "They were right, of
course.  But that wasn't important.  Deirdre found me, helped me regain my
memories.  I always loved her for that.  Yes, that was it.  I loved Deirdre.
More than anything in the world.  She was my soulmate, Cory.  And I killed
her.  There is no way I'll ever be able to make up for that."
     Cory frowned.  She didn't want Shasti to deny her actions, but this
was getting to be a bit much.  "Look, Shasti, I know it hurts to know what
happened.  But you've got to let go.  She'd want you to do that?  Can you 
really see her letting you go on like this about yourself?"
     Shasti smiled wanly.  "She'd probably have me out in the gym, training
hard.  That's what we did whenever the 3WA screwed us over."
     Cory got up.  "Well, let's try that.  Come on, we'll go work out!"
     Shasti looked at Cory with a wry grin on her face.  "You expect to 
keep up with me?"
     Cory was vaguely annoyed.  *Hey, not all of us were designed to be
sexpots, y'know!*  She kept that to herself, though, instead saying "Hey,
I work out a lot.  How do you think I keep this figure?"
     Shasti grinned.  "Very easily, I expect.  A few cookies, some ice
cream..."
     Cory was burning mad now.  "Right, that's it.  _Out_.  I'll show you
who's out of shape.  You've been getting soft, sitting in this hospital."
     Shasti grinned again, and began to leave with Cory.  Cory smiled, too.
This was going pretty well so far.  Not one hundred percent, though, as she
looked at Shasti's eyes.  Unlike her grinning face, her eyes told of the 
true extent of the pain within her.  Cory had to think of something that
would help Shasti to get over Deirdre's death.
     Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your point of view), help
was on the way...

***

     They were walking down the hall towards the gym facilities when Shasti 
suddenly froze.  Cory stopped to look at her, and saw that Shasti was 
fading out again.  From her lips, there escaped a quiet whine.
     *What the hell,* thought Cory, as she looked around trying to find out
what had sent Shasti back into her catatonia.  And then she heard it.
     "...all _your_ fault, as usual!"
     "_My_ fault?!  And what the hell did you expect me to do?  He shot my
hair, goddammit!"
     "Well, if you didn't wear it up like that, you wouldn't have to worry
about it!  Anyway, it'll grow back, which is more than I can say for that
planet."
     "Ex-_cuse_ me?!  Who was it who put that shot into the generator?  If
I recall, you were going totally ballistic at the time!"
     "Well, that was your fault, too!  He called me flat-chested!"
     "I refuse to let my big breasts take responsibility for your temper!"
     "Why you -- "
     This fascinating conversation was cut short as the pride of the 3WA,
Kei and Yuri, the Lovely Angels, came around the corner and stopped dead.
     For all of two-fifths of a second.  Then they whipped out their guns
and trained them on Shasti, ready to pull the trigger.  They were blocked, 
however, by Cory throwing herself in the path of the weapons.
     *This is really stupid,* Cory thought.  *But it seems to be my day for
doing really stupid things, so...*
     "Stop!" she cried.  "You don't know what's happened!"
     Kei's voice was curt.  "Cory, get away.  We'll take care of it."
     "Oh, I bet you will.  If you two trigger-happy morons could listen for
a second, I'd tell you what was going on!"
     "We know what's going on," said Yuri, grabbing Cory's arm and trying 
to pull her out of the way.  "You're obviously being held hostage -- "
     Cory refused to budge.  "Do you two even _bother_ to listen to the
reports from the 3WA you'd know that Shasti was captured and cured!  
LaCombe isn't in her mind anymore!  And I'm here to _try_ to help her get 
back to somewhere near her normal self, and you two aren't exactly helping!"
     Yuri's face remained stony.  "I do listen to 3WA reports, and there
was no mention of Shasti's capture.  I think she's done something to you,
personally, but even if we assume this is true, does this absolve her of
all the guilt?  She killed hundreds of thousands of people!  She killed
her partner!  Are you saying we should just ignore that?"
     "No."  The three of them were startled by Shasti suddenly coming back
to herself.  She looked up, and her eyes were full of tears.  "They're
right.  There's no way I can ever make up for what I've done.  There's too
much blood on my hands.  3WA should have killed me while they had the 
chance."  And with that, she tore off down the corridor, faster than either
Kei or Yuri could track.
     Yuri turned back to Cory, ready to yell at her again.  She was taken
aback by the fury in Cory's eyes.
     "Thanks a whole lot.  Hopefully I can stop her from doing something
rash.  I guess I shouldn't have expected anything better than rash decisions
from you two."  And with a look of disgust, she ran off after Shasti.
     Kei and Yuri stared after them, lowering their guns.  "What the hell 
was _that_ all about?" mused Kei.
     Yuri smiled.  "I don't know, but we're going to find out.  There is no
way that Shasti is getting away this time."
     Kei gave Yuri a look.  "Assuming Cory's not telling the truth."
     Yuri just continued to smile.  "Well, that's easy to find out..."

***

     Shasti stumbled back into the room they'd given her, attempting to hold
herself together.  It wasn't easy.  DeFeo had told her that her personalities
weren't removed, but made a part of her.  Shasti certainly believed that
right now.  Part of her was yelling to put herself together, another was 
still bawling over Deirdre's death and her part in it, still another was 
wondering why Kei and Yuri hadn't heard about her capture, and there was a
small part that noticed that the 3WA uniforms had gotten a lot skimpier
recently.
     Put together in a mind that wasn't ready to deal with it, all Shasti
could do was huddle in a corner and hope they'd shut up.
     She heard the door slam and tensed, thinking that the Pair had followed
her here.  But it was only Cory.  Shasti sighed in relief.  Cory may not
have been the best psychologist in the world, but she was the one person 
here that seemed to consider what Shasti was feeling.  Cory was on her side,
and that was something that Shasti appreciated very much.
     Cory was looking at her worriedly.  "Are you all right?  I tried to
tell them that you weren't the same, but they wouldn't listen -- "
     "Why should they?  The last time they saw me, I tried to kill them.  
In fact, the last five times they've seen me, I've tried to kill them.  I
think that's reason enough to hold a grudge."
     Cory still grumbled.  "They should have been more sympathetic."
     Shasti looked at her.  "No, they shouldn't have.  The 3WA doesn't even
know if I'm all right yet.  That''s why you're here.  _I_ don't even know
if I'm all right yet.  Until that's determined, it is much safer to keep
thinking of me as a dangerous threat.  Especially since they hadn't even
heard that I was captured."
     Cory frowned.  "You noticed that too, huh?  I need to have a talk with
DeFeo and Daltrey and find out why they weren't informed."
     "Daltrey?"
     "Yeah, the number two here.  Weird guy, but I think he's warming up to
me."  She turned towards Deirdre.  "Will you be okay if I leave you here?
I'll only be a bit, I just want to get this cleared up."
     Shasti wasn't listening much anymore.  "Yeah, I'll be fine.  Don't
worry."  Her mind was racing however.
     *Daltrey.*
     *Why is that name so familiar?*

***

     "All right, I want to know why Kei and Yuri were never informed about
Shasti's recovery.  I want to know this because they just tried to kill her,
which I think is important if I'm to help Shasti recover.  Having people
not trying to shoot her would be number one on that list."
     Cory looked at their faces.  DeFeo looked apologetic, Daltrey looked
stoic.  *So much for Jimmy,* she thought.
     "Miss Emerson, you have to understand how much of an embarrasment Shasti
had become to the 3WA.  The operation to capture her was done in complete
secrecy, and the agents conscripted in complete confidence.  Kei and Yuri
were not among those informed.  Their history with Shasti was a little too
personal to make them objective."
     "I still feel that I should have been informed of this."
     "It was not sufficiently important to warrant telling you.  We had
no idea the Angels would be finished with their case so soon."  Daltrey's
eyes bored into hers, and she shivered.  "You didn't have the need to know,
Miss Emerson."
     "I see."  Cory was trying with difficulty to keep a lid on her temper,
but Daltrey's two-facedness was making it difficult.  "Is there anything
else I 'don't need to know'?"
     Daltrey allowed himself a cold smile.  "If you find anything else, Miss
Emerson, I'm sure you'll inform us."
     Cory snarled and started to go.  She was stopped at the door.  "Cory,
wait!"
     She turned in amazement.  That was Daltrey's voice.  She saw that he
was grinning again, that same asinine grin she had seen in the hall earlier.
"Changing the subject, how is Shasti doing?  We are worried about her, even
though it doesn't seem like that."
     Thouroughly confused by this point, Cory replied, "It's going okay.
She's admitted her guilt in killing her partner, but can't seem to let go
of it.  It'll be a while," she paused and tried another tactic, "_Jimmy_."
     Daltrey merely grinned.  "That's good to hear, Cory.  Take all the time
you need.  I'm beginning to realize why the CC chose you to help us."
     Cory's eyes narrowed.  This was getting really strange.  "Then if 
you'll excuse me, I'll go back to her now."  She turned to DeFeo, who hadn't
batted an eye during this whole exchange.  "Good day," she said, and stalked
out.
     As she left, she heard DeFeo's voice.  "Jim, can I talk to you for a
minute?"

***

     Cory slipped back into Shasti's room, dazed.  "I just can't get a 
handle on that guy.  He is _weird_."
     Shasti looked up.  She hadn't moved since Cory left, still deep in
thought.  "Are you talking about Daltrey?"  The name filled her with
foreboding, but Shasti's memories were in such turmoil that she couldn't
place him.  "Why does he bother you?"
     "Well, one minute he hates me, and wants me out as soon as possible,
the next he's saying 'call me Jimmy' and being all buddy-buddy.  I swear,
the guy's schizophrenic or something.
     Shasti stopped dead.  Memories that had been buried burst into her mind,
overwhelming her...

     #Another one?  What, this one isn't enough?#
     #The CC wants to try another, since Shasti was such a success.  Only
two personalities in this one, though, so it should be easier.  And male this
time.#
     #Male, huh?  We gotta call him Jim, then#
     #Why?#
     #Don't you listen to old music?  ~Doctor Jimmy and Mister Jim!~#
     #All right.  Don't be too off-the-wall, though.  This one's meant for
covert operations...#
     #Heh.  We haven't even gotten Shasti out of the tank, and the 3WA wants 
another one.  It'll all end in tears, I know it...#
     #You always say that.#

More memories, accidentally overheard....

     #Cut it?  Why?#
     #The CC changed its mind.  After Shasti's first mission, it decided not
to risk having prefab agents doing covert ops.  Too much could go wrong.#
     #I suppose.  Seems a shame to just waste him, though...#

     Cory was shaking her, asking what was the matter.  Shasti got up, her
mind suddenly focused on this new problem.  "Cory, we have to get out of 
here."
     "What?  What's the matter?  You're in no shape to go anywhere at the
moment?"
     "True, but there's not a lot I can do about that.  Daltrey is another
multiple-personality construct.  Your mentioning of his name reminded me.
He was supposed to have been abandoned early on.  The fact that he wasn't
means that something is very, very wrong.  I suspect we may be in a lot of
danger."
     Cory frowned.  "Are you sure this isn't just paranoia?  How can we be
sure?"
     Shasti grabbed Cory and dragged her out the door.  "We run.  If they 
start shooting to kill, then there's a good chance I'm correct.  I do not
want to stay here and test that theory, however, as I suspect my room is 
bugged.  Therefore, we run."
     Cory looked rather harried.  "Y'know, I get enough of this from the
Angels without you ordering me around."
     Shasti flinched.  When she turned to face Cory, there was a world of
pain in her eyes.  "Cory, please.  Trust me.  I would not do anything to
endanger you deliberately."
     And with that, she took a right turn where a right turn had no right
to be, and plunged into darkness.  Cory followed as best she could, 
plummeting and screaming like a banshee.

***

     DeFeo and Daltrey were watching the monitor as Shasti and Cory
disappeared.  "Can we track her?" asked DeFeo.
     "There's no possible way that she could have gone that way.  There's
nothing there but a wall."  Daltrey looked uncharacteristically flustered.
     "I'll take that as a 'no', then."  DeFeo turned to face Daltrey.
"Well, congratulations, Jim.  Thanks to your inability to control yourself,
we now have Shasti running around loose on the base.  We should have given
Cory all the information up front."
     Daltrey sneered.  "There was far too much there, it would have been
dangerous.  As it is, she can't ever leave here again.
     DeFeo rose.  "WHAT?"
     Daltrey turned.  "She's a security risk.  She knows far more about
Shasti than we ever planned to give the press.  She's become a detriment."
     DeFeo was livid.  "Now you listen here, Mister.  You are going to find 
Shasti and Cory, and then we are going to finish the job that we set out to
do.  Then we will let her go.  There will be no arguments."
     "She is a security risk, Mr. DeFeo.  She's a risk to the 3WA.  Are you
willing to endanger the organization all for the sake of one rogue agent?"
     DeFeo suddenly looked very tired.  "Yes.  Yes, I am."
     Suddenly Daltrey smiled.  "Thank you, Mr. DeFeo, that's all I wanted
to hear."  There was a movement to the side, and when DeFeo turned, he was
blown apart by a plasma rifle at close range.  His body evaporated.
     "A little bit of overkill there, don't you think?"
     The agent holding the gun snarled.  "Better safe than sorry."
     Daltrey turned.  She was still hidden in the shadows at the edge of the
room.  "You have your orders?"
     The agent nodded.  "Find Shasti and Emerson, and eliminate them.  No
other options."
     "Good.  Get on with it, then, she's sneaky.  I've no idea how she 
got out of that corridor."
     The other agent smiled.  "Shasti was awoken with the 3WA plans in her
head.  She knows every nook and cranny of this building.  Luckily, so do I."
     "Good."  Suddenly Daltrey changed expressions, and grinned broadly.
"Hey, do good, kid.  I'm counting on you."
     "Thank you, Jimmy, but don't worry." said the other agent.  She turned,
letting her face come out of the shadows.
     "There's no way I'm going to let that bitch get away again," said 
Deirdre.


End of Part 1


Notes:  Fear not, all shall be revealed.  Shasti's not better yet, and seeing
Deirdre isn't going to help.  And we still have our Lovely Angels to deal
with...

Thanks to:

Larry Mann and Ryan Mathews, whose fanfics provided the inspiration for me to
write this.  Most of the background I used is actually theirs, not Warren's.

Bryan Stone, whose fanfic Missing Angels was the starting point, even though
it went in another direction.

James 'Zen' Bateman, Richard Lawson, Nicholas Leifker, and Sebastian 
Weinberg, "Da Guyz", for their wonderful prereading abilities.

Jeanne Hedge and Fred Herriot, who also gave me help.  Jeanne, I apologize 
for the 80 or 90 continuity errors contained here.

Travis Butler, for unknowingly forcing me to finish this.

The Who, whose Quadrophenia and Who's Next albums are *major* influences.
You may notice refs throughout.

And you, the viewers.

--Sean Gaffney
--yes, there's an explanation for Deirdre's behavior in Part 2... :-)
--no, Part 2 isn't written yet...