Skywise was starting to feel lonely. This wasn't a new situation, in fact it was one in which he increasingly found himself since the accident. Sure he was surrounded by people, but he didn't really know them. His friends were confused and those who didn't know what happened treated him like dirt. His only reprieve came from talking with the one person who understood, but now he had gone away. The one person who he knew was gone and he couldn't take the pitying looks any longer. His mind made up he concentrated, after a few moments he felt the familiar presence of Kami-sama wash over his mind, and through his soul as the connection was made. Of all the beings he had met only he truly understood Skywise, all his wants, his needs, his feelings. Compassion came with contact and he searched through Skywise's mind, past the painfully reconstructed arias and into the foreboding broken zone. Looking carefully through the shattered memories he found what he had forgotten: The location of Fred. With a ripple of space Skywise was gone. A great distance away, or just next door, the pattern of a universe was altered subtly, one more thread added to the tapestry contributing to the beauty of the world. In a ripple of space a short elf appeared from nothing. Clad in casual cloths he looked around slightly confused. After a moment he walked off. Padding down the hill he blended in with the sparse plants and bushes almost instinctually. The forest green of his doeskin pants and the silk shist blended in naturally to his surroundings. Walking quietly towards the complex before him, Skywise paused to look around carefully. After a moment he threw off the caution that had become ingrained from past hardship and walked confidently forward. A slight chuckle escaped his lips as he noticed LPAC's rather unique idea of an emblem. Staring back at him from the front of a large dorm was a lifelike griffin emblazoned upon a shield, with various tools laying about the foreground of a high tech city. He walked forward into the courtyard formed by the building's wings. Looking through various windows and seeing nothing but exposed circuitry and experiments in progress he shruggged. His pondering is interrupted as he realized that he had come up to a door leading down into the building. A slight push and four steps later he felt as though he had walked into a Mexican standoff. He could feel the tension in the air growing by the moment. Only when he realized that everyone was staring at him did he realize why. Skywise turned to face the LARGE man approaching him "Um, Hi. Have you seen Stargazer around lately?" "Sure but he doesn't have time for annoying visitors right now. Especially not some useless person like you." Even though Skywise could tell where this is all going he resolved to stick it out. "Well could I leave a message for him then?" Seeing the five other gorillas approaching he decided that maybe leaving was a better plan and started to edge towards the door. "I don't know about that. He's awfully busy right now, hm maybe he would if it came from a girl." *splash* Dripping wet Skywise stood her ground. Unfortunately Skywise didn't always listen to herself. "You're right he must only listen to girls", under her breath she muttered perhaps the stupidest thing to pass her lips in years. "You must be able to call him anytime." "THAT'S IT, YOU BASTARD YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!!" However David (or would it be Dana in this situation?) had one advantage on Goliath. _Speed_. Ducking under a quick sidekick and dodging the follow up sweep Skywise stepped in and decided to put him down, _hard_. A knee to the stomach, and a jab to the neck followed by a shadow step and a trio of blows to the kidneys put him down. Unfortunately for Skywise, she forgot five other things. Seven blows, three broken bones, three bad bruises and a slight concussion later the fight ended. *** Nightelf withdrew her fingers from Prime's temple and wiped the perspiration from her brow. Most people didn't realize how much energy telepathy could eat up. In twenty minutes of intense telepathic probing she had probably burned more calories than an aerobics workout twice that long. She thought. "Anything?" Kyone-chan asked, worried. Nightelf had let the Magic Knight stay, in case she needed more questions answered. "Not yet." Nightelf replied. She put her fingertips against Prime's forehead once more. A confused, scared voice replied. He was very, very deep. Nightelf reached down, trying to contact him. Prime replied. He withdrew a little for Nicola, tantilizingly out of reach She tried to reach him again. Prime had retreated down to a primal level, abandoning most of his rational faculties to escape some horrible pain. He had regressed to a childlike state. The Prime-child cried out, shrinking away further. Nightelf sent soothing thoughts, finding her experience with her own unborn child helpful. Nightelf didn't know for sure who this 'her' was, but she was obviously important to him. The Prime-child was silent for a moment, then tentatively reached out to her, taking her metaphorical hand. Gently, slowly so the child didn't get frightened Nightelf slowly ascended. She accelerated a little, feeling the Prime-child's 'hand' tighten. He wouldn't let go now. Nightelf broke to the surface, coming back to herself abruptly. She waited for the slight dizziness associated with a deep telepathic probe to pass. She had never gone that deep before. "Are you okay?" Kyone-chan asked, now crouched beside her. "I tried to wake you, but you were completely gone!" "How long was I under?" Nightelf asked. She felt exhausted, like she had just run a marathon. "About fifteen minutes. Is Prime okay? Did you get him?" Nightelf touched Prime's forehead again, this time conducting only a light scan. She could feel the gentle flow of his sleeping mind. "Yeah, I got him." She replied, relieved. "He's just sleeping now." Kyone-chan yawned. Nightelf chuckled "Sounds like you could use some sleep yourself." Kyone-chan rubbed her eyes. "Spellcasting takes a lot out of a body. I'll be okay." "You'll be asleep in a minute." Nightelf replied. "Here, go and tell the others that Prime will be fine, so they can all go home and stop crowding my waiting room, then I'll fix up your arm." Kyone-chan nodded and stepped outside. Priss had already taken her hardsuit back to the armory and she and Nene had switched to civvies. Wyrm was asleep sitting up on the couch, with Wyrm-chan nestled against his shoulder. Kei and Yuri were draped over a couple of chairs looking bored. Zen was fiddling with his captured Pfhor staff and Ukyou was practicing a slow kata in the middle of the room. Webdragon was sitting in another chair, studying Ukyou's movement's intently, like he was memorizing it. Kyone-chan cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. Everyone paused in what they were doing, and Wyrm snorted and opened one eye sleepily. Wyrm-chan didn't wake up. "Any news?" Zen asked hopefully. "He's going to be fine." Kyone-chan said happily. "Can we see him?" Nene asked hopefully. "What, you planning on playing Florence Nightengale?" Priss asked, poking Nene in the ribs. Nene blushed deep scarlet. "It's not like that! I'm just worried about him!" "Riiiight." "What about Eric?" Wyrm asked sleepily. He still hadn't noticed Dee-chan snuggled up against him. "I haven't heard anything." Kyone replied. "Actually, Nightelf asked me to tell you guys that you should head back to the dorm now." "Go home!" Nicola shouted from Prime's room down the hall. "I don't like leaving Adam here alone." Wyrm said. "You just don't want Dee-chan to move." Kei said, smirking. "Huh?" Wyrm replied. Then he noticed Wyrm-chan curled up against him. "I... it's not what you think...!" The entire group exchanged a look. "Riiight!" They said in unison. Wyrm-chan groaned and opened her eyes reluctantly. "Mmmm... whazzup?" "Prime's going to be okay." Wyrm said. He gently eased her up off his shoulder. She looked as though she would rather have stayed where she was, but she didn't protest. "One of us should stay here until he wakes up." To everyone's surprise, Kei raised her hand. "I'll stay." Everyone stared at her. Kei flushed. "I just want to make sure I set his arm right, okay? I wasn't sure if I got it right. It's a matter of professional pride." "Riiiight." Yuri said. Kei slugged her on the arm. Kyone-chan sighed and returned to Prime's room. Nightelf was waiting for her. She slowly cut off the bandage, carefully avoiding the burned area. She examined the wound carefully, both visually and with a mediscanner. "Zen did a good job of bandaging this." Nightelf said, putting away the scanner and selecting a dermal regenerator. "This will repair most of the damage, but it might still be tender for a few days." She activated the device, playing a wide red beam across the burn. When she was done all that was left was a slightly reddened patch of skin. Nightelf put away the device. "Would you like some hot water before you go back?" "Hot water?" Kyone-chan asked, confused before her mind made the connection. She was still female, and she hadn't even noticed. No, that was wrong. She HAD noticed, but it hadn't felt wrong like it used to. Kyone shivered a little. "No, I'll be fine. I'll take a hot shower when I get back to the dorm." Kyone thanked Nightelf and got up to leave. Before she could walk out, though, Nightelf caught her good arm. "Kyone, if you need someone to talk to, there are people who understand what you're going through." Nightelf said. "Yeah." Kyone replied unenthusiastically, gently freeing her arm. "Sure. I'll keep that in mind." She walked out without another word. *** The blue flare that surrounded them as they teleported left David disorientated for a moment. The first thing he noticed was that Iczer-2 was still holding him in her arms, even though they'd arrived. The second was the godawful din emanating from the nearest building. The sign over the door read "White Wolf's Crosstime Saloon" and was hanging a little lopsided. As David watched a burly man hurtled through one of the windows to sprawl motionless on the ground. The sound of a full scale brawl could be heard quite clearly through the broken glass. He looked at the man, then at Iczer-2, who was watching with an air of detached amusement, and sighed with resignation. Why did _he_ have to be duty officer today, hadn't he already got enough to do? His first instinct was to let the idiots brawl away while he and Iczer-2 went home, but there was the little matter of needing the personnel actually working tomorrow rather than clogging up Tofu's infirmary, so he had to do something. He considered his options; The AD Police muscle he had requistioned hadn't arrived yet, but the bar fight seemed to be rapidly getting out of control. Assuming, of course, that it had ever been in control to start with! If he tried to stop it now, it would be just him and Iczer 2. he though wryly. He looked at Iczer-2, who was still watching the scene with interest, then unholstered his sidearm and pushed open the doors. He barely avoided having his head taken off by a stray pool cue. Iczer 2 caught the projectile three inches from his face, then raised an eyebrow at him. he 'heard' her say. David looked around the tangled, fighting mob that filled the room, calmly raised his sidearm, pointed it at the ceiling and squeezed off three quick rounds. Immediately everyone in the bar stopped to look at him, some of them in mid-punch. "Now that I have your attention, I think we've had quite enough of this." David said, reholstering his weapon. A number of the rougher individuals at the front of the crowd looked as if they were about to argue about that flat statement, but a gentle cough from Iczer-2, still standing relaxed beside him, seemed to change their feelings with remarkable efficiency. "Security. I want to know who started this." There was a pause, then a young man wearing a FDF fighter squadron cadet's uniform stepped forward. "I did, sir." Before David could react, another person stepped forward. It was Nabiki, wearing a similar uiform but sporting Lieutenant's pips. "No, I did, sir." Immediately an LPAC foot soldier with a bloodied nose stepped forward. He was badly inebriated, but managed to keep his feet. "No, I did!" The bar was suddenly filled with voices as everyone in the bar confessed to the crime, suddenly in the grip of rampant Spartacus Syndrome. David looked up at the ceiling in disgust. "Why me, lord?" Beside him he heard a small noise from Iczer-2 that he could only describe as a snicker; however when he cocked an eye in her direction she was gazing at him calmly, looking innocent. Far too innocent, but he could hardly complain about it. She looked around the room, then shrugged. she replied. David looked back at the mob. He turned his head as a number of his AD Police henchmen arrived; as usual, too late. "QUIET!!" the sheer unexpected volume of his bellow shut them up. For the moment, anyway. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Iczer-2 wincing slightly at the volume he'd projected, and grinned. Then he looked back at the mob, smiling coldly. "Since you don't seem to be taking this seriously, you are all confined to quarters for the rest of the night. You will report here at 0600 _sharp_, ready to clean up this mess! Anyone who doesn't turn up, sober and prompt..." He left the rest of the threat unvoiced. "Dismissed." David moved out of the way to allow the crowd to leave, motioning his muscle to take those that were too drunk to leave under their own power back to the stockade to dry out. He stood aside, watching for a moment, then winked at Iczer-2, motioning her out with a small tilt of his head. She grinned back, then leant close to whisper in his ear. "Now can we get home? I want to get to bed!" He blinked for a second. "You're sleepy?" She grinned widely, and he suddenlt got worried. "That wasn't what I said at all!" David gulped. *** The hordes of Rabid Otaku Engineers were going through FRED like an unlimited grade fusion Boomer on amphetamines. Partially rebuilt subsystems were being cannibalized to finish more critical systems, cables were re-routed down corridors; Basically the careful plan was being ripped to shreds in order to do a quick and dirty cut and shunt job to get things operational as fast as humanly possible. The clothing replicators were working overtime on overalls as the Engies had gotten into the habit of conscripting any warm bodies not moving fast enough for essential duties such as left- handed-grommitwacker-passing, Is-that-cable-live?, coffee- need-coffee, put-your-finger-there-and-pass-the-duct-tape, hold-that-torch-steady, here's-the-chewing-gum, etc. etc. Mackie was jogging along to the next crisis when he saw two sets of overalls poking out of an access hatch. One set was very interestingly filled and admirably taut. He stood transfixed for a moment. "Don't even _think_ about it kiddo." Came a familiar voice from inside the port. Kate Madigan hauled herself out and looked warningly at the teenager. Her hair was done up out of the way under a cap, and there was a smudge of grease by her nose, but she was still striking. She continued "Shouldn't you be installing that flux converter I see you clutching?" Mackie gave her a cheesy grin and continued on his way while Kate clambered back into the access port while Barry mumbled something about passing the duct tape and where the torch had gone. Of course, you cannot make scrambled eggs or FREDs without breaking a few shells... Later, in the commissary... Barry had collapsed in a heap in front of a large pile of 'fuel' i.e. something unidentifiable, bland and filling, three mugs of strong tea and his laptop. Kate Madigan stalked in, making a beeline for the red head engineer "Hi Mads, you're off shift aren't y..." he saw her expression and stopped She spoke in a quiet penetrating voice "Barry. Today I have worked for twelve hours straight. I am tired. My hair is dirty. My feet ache. I am covered in grease. My fingernails will never be the same again. But I am willing to make these sacrifices for the common good." Barry smiled tremulously, as if to avert the storm he could sense coming. "All this I can accept. However, When I returned to that broom cupboard I call my domicile, I found that someone had been there and taken several critical components from the hot water unit... for a Plasma Cannon Preheat circuit I believe. I was Really looking forward to a bath. And when I checked who had signed the work order, what name do you think I found? I'll give you Three guesses and the first two _don't_ _Count!_" Her voice had gotten gradually sharper, the last words were like a Damascus blade. She leaned forward as if to whisper in his ear... and screamed at the top of her lungs. "AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGG!" @_@ "Itte..." Barry slumped down, hitting the floor with a thump. "And don't call me Mads." She walked out to applause from all the females in the room. *** Kyone closed the dorm door quietly, aware that at least some of the others were probably sleeping. She walked quietly past the living room, noticing that not even Webdragon was up. She tiptoed up the stairs, making her way to the common bathroom. She slipped inside and closed the door. She waited a moment before switching on the light. When she did she was immediately greeted by her reflection in the mirror. She stared at the green-haired girl looking out at her through the glass and wondered when she had accepted that face as her own. She stripped off her unisex jumpsuit (she had powered down soon after leaving the infirmary) and stepped into the shower, cranking up the water as hot as she could stand. The searing water washed away her womanhood, returning him to his 'natural' form. He didn't find the comfort in it that he used to. He mechanically washed away the day's dirt and grime, trying to ignore how strange it felt to be male after being female for so long. Josh stepped out of the shower, wrapped himself in a large towel and examined himself in the mirror. He stared at his own face. *** Nightelf collapsed into one of the plush chairs in the waiting room and sighed heavily. Coaxing Prime back had taken more of her than she'd dare admit. It had been a near thing; whatever trauma the Sagittarian had endured was intimately painful, almost along the lines of losing a loved one. Tofu came down the hall, looking almost as tired as she felt. "How's Eric?" Nightelf asked. Tofu smiled. "He should be okay, thanks to that 'bacta' substance that Erin provided. His body armor absorbed the worst of it. Wyrm said he would arrange for quarters for him." "That's good," Nightelf said, allowing herself to relax. Tofu sat down in a nearby chair, looking a little pensive. "Nick? I think I'm going to need your help with something." Nightelf cocked her head, a strange glow in her eyes. Tofu rubbed his eyes. "Nick, do you know about that girl that SpecOps brought back with them?" Nightelf frowned, her hopes at playing matchmaker dashed. "I heard about it. Wasn't there some question as to her identity?" Tofu shook his head. "Not anymore. When is Prime going to wake up?" "I would guess twenty minutes to an hour. Why? What does he have to do with the girl?" "Quite a bit," Tofu replied. "It's a lot easier if I just show you. Come on." He got up, helped Nick to her feet and led her down the hall to the girl's room. Inside, a slight, red-haired girl lay sleeping on one of the beds. By the look of her, she was probably about ten or twelve, but was small for her age at any rate. The bio-monitors beeped out a reassuring rhythmic pulse. "She's sedated for now," Tofu said. He unhooked the chart from the end of the bed. "Here's a comparative genetic workup we did of her, at Wyrm's request. Tell me what you think." Nightelf scanned the charts quickly, until she reached the genetic comparison between the girl and Prime. She blinked, then read it again, to make sure she was reading it right. That done, she gave it another look, still unable to accept the findings. "This...this isn't possible," Nightelf said, flipping through the chart, trying to find something to refute what the comparison said. "I'm surprised to hear you say that," Tofu replied. "Even if I didn't know what had happened from Wyrm's report, I can think of several possibilities off the top of my head. Prime DOES associate with a Time Lord, you know." Nightelf shot a wary glance at her colleague. "So what do you want me to do?" she asked without mirth, before flipping to Wyrm's report appended to the back. Tofu looked a little embarrassed. "Well, you are an expecting parent yourself. I thought it might be best if you were the one to tell Prime. He has some big decisions to make." "No kidding!" She looked over to the child. "When are you going to wake her?" "Belldandy will be here in a few minutes. I'll wake her up then. Hopefully by then Prime will have decided what he's going to do about this." *** Ranchan approached her dorm after a long day. Five hours in the simulator working with Nabiki. Three hours training with Ryouga. 20 minutes chasing Happousai after he had splashed her. Another two hours working on chi attacks. All she wanted to do right now was get back to her room, take a quick shower and hit the sack. Life was not going to be so good to her this evening. As she approached her room she saw someone waiting at the door. Upon closer inspection she saw that it was Wyrm. "Hey Wyrm. What's up?" Ranchan asked cheerfully. Wyrm extended his hand and Ranchan shook it. "Not much." replied Wyrm. Not much to Wyrm meant battle planning, SO training, running MON and MON-force etc. etc. "So to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, oh high and mighty Wyrm-sama?" asked Ranchan seductively with a Kawaii expression on her face as she batted her eyes at him. Wyrm turned red and began to sweat. "Don't do that to me." he protested. He shook his head to clear it. "You know how I am about all these cursed people around here. Besides I get enough of that stuff from Dee-chan. And cut it out with the kawaii stuff. It's scary." "I figure you deserve whatever I give you after making sure Azusa got put in my room." Wyrm was about to protest when Ranchan held up her hand. "Don't try to deny it. I know Frosty was in charge of room assignments, but I'm sure that you had some hand in putting Azusa with me. And you think I'm scary? Try waking up to find Azusa has dressed you in something frilly every day for the past two months, that's scary. Any sanity I had when I came in is long since gone. It's a good thing I have Ryouga and Akari in my room too. At least Azusa picks on P-chan sometimes." Ranchan got a sudden evil gleam in her eye as she looked at Wyrm. He shrank back slightly. "Hey Martin. How's about you come over for dinner tonight. I'm sure Azusa'd love to see you." Wyrm paled and started sweating. "Ah...sorry...can't make it. uhm...Dee-chan's...uhm... making dinner tonight...yeah...She'd be disappointed if I didn't show...yeah that's it...can't make it...sorry." he was about to bolt. "Aw shucks. Oh well, maybe another time. So why are you here?" Wyrm composed himself and began. "I just came to tell you that you have a new roomie as of today. And before you ask, it's not another animate. He's a real live author. Actually you know him." Off in the distance someone was running up to them. "...hey Wyrm. Sorry I'm late..." As the figure got closer, Ranchan took a good look at him..Short, blonde hair-flopping down to his eyes.. Dark trenchcoat.. Oh, no... The approaching figure stopped, and eyed Ranchan back. "Hey, Lucas, I didn't know we were going to be roomies!" Said Eric cheerfully, "Now that you're all calmed down, you'll properly thank me for rescuing you, ne?" no response. "...Ranchan?" Eric peered at Lucas curiously. For some reason, her eyes were glowing... He then turned and gave Wyrm a questioning look. Wyrm smiled evilly. "Sorry, his was the only room available. BTW, you better back up a bit. Your pants are about to catch fire." "Huh?" Eric asked bewildered until he felt his leg getting warm. He looked down to see that his pants were indeed getting singed. He then looked to the source and stepped back when he saw what it was. Ranchan was glowing red. Flames were rippling over her body and her eyes were glowing. Eric immediately turned to Wyrm and gave him an 'I'll get you for this' look before he backpedaled, spun, and ran like hell. This pulled Ranchan from her anger induced stupor and she looked after the retreating figure. She turned to Wyrm, who only smiled at her. "JONES!" she growled ferally. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!" She took off after the fleeing author. Wyrm stood and watched for a second before he turned to head back to the portal building. "That oughta keep Jones in line for a while." he said as he walked away. ..Several explosions could be heard behind him, punctuated by Eric's cries, "What kind of gratitude is this?! Wait Lucas... Stop!! It's not my fault.... Completely...!" Several more explosions were heard, a further distance away now. "Stand still, Jones!!" Wyrm frowned. Mayhaps this had not been the best of ideas after all... *** The girl struggled to consciousness. She had the feeling that something horrible had happened, but she didn't know what. Unfortunately for her, the feeling wasn't assuaged any by the unfamiliar surroundings. Smiling down at her was a man with a ponytail and glasses, wearing a doctor's outfit, and a very pretty young woman with odd markings on her face. There was something oddly familiar about them, but she couldn't remember ever meeting them. In fact...she couldn't really remember *anything*. "Where am I?" she asked nervously. "You're in a hospital," Tofu replied. "I'm Dr. Tofu. How are you feeling?" "Dizzy." She fixed a wary gaze on the pair. "Do... do I know you?" The doctor shook his head. "I... don't think we've ever met." "Hello. My name's Belldandy," the woman said, smiling warmly. The girl immediately felt a little better, as though the woman's smile was a salve on her nerves. "What's your name?" "I'm... I'm..." The girl's eyes went wide with fear. "I... I don't know! I can't remember!" Belldandy realized her mistake and tried to soothe the child. "It's alright," she said, stroking the child's forehead. "You'll remember in time. You've just had a bad experience." The girl calmed noticeably, but still seemed agitated about something. "Where are my Mom and Dad?" *** Prime awoke to find the entire Boston Pops orchestra playing percussion on the inside of his skull, with a few cannon blasts a la '1812' thrown in for good measure. Gingerly he opened one eye. Nothing bad happened, so he opened the other. There were spots racing across his vision which took a moment to clear. It took a moment for him to recognize his surroundings. He was lying in some kind of hospital room. Nearby, the steady rhythm of a bio-bed monitor droned away. Sitting next to the bed was an attractive young woman in the later stages of pregnancy. For some reason he had expected her to be here. This was a hospital room, after all. "Nightelf?" Prime asked hoarsely. His throat was incredibly dry. "Welcome back." He looked around. "Where's Washuu?" Nightelf shook her head. "We don't know. She contacted us some time ago, but we haven't heard from her since. By the way she returned Alpha." "Lucky us." Prime coughed, trying to clear the dried phlegm from the back of his throat. Nicola sensed his thirst, and poured a glass of water from a nearby pitcher. "Water?" "Yeah," Prime whispered. He moved to sit up. "I wouldn't do that just yet," Nightelf cautioned. "I'm okay," Prime growled, forcing himself into a sitting position. Immediately his temples exploded with white hot pain, prompting him to slowly sink back onto the pillow. "No, I'm not. Oww... y'know, I seem to be doing that a lot today." He tried again, more slowly. This time he made it, although his head protested all the way. Once stable, Nightelf handed him the glass. He grabbed it in his left hand without thinking, and quickly slammed down half the glass. After a moment, Prime blinked, and rotated his shoulder experimentally. "Hey! You fixed my shoulder!" Nightelf shook her head. "No, we didn't. You did." "Huh?" Prime looked confused, then worried. "How long was I out?" "About three hours." "Then how...?" Nightelf sighed. "I can explain it later, but suffice it to say that you've developed some new psionic abilities. But right now there's something more important you need to know about." Nightelf pulled down a TV screen mounted on a counterbalanced swing arm. She turned it on and tuned it to the security camera system, finally narrowing it down to the girl's room. She turned the screen so that Prime could see. On the screen was a young red-haired girl sitting on a bed in a room nearly identical to his. Belldandy had her arm around the girl's shoulders, evidently trying to comfort her. Prime cocked his head curiously. "Who's that? She looks a little like Washuu. A relative?" "She's Washuu's daughter," Nightelf replied, without emotion. "Really?" Prime asked. "Do you know who the father is?" "Yes." She never was good at delivering news of this nature. "Really? Who?" Nick bit her lip. No sense avoiding it now... "You are, Prime." "Oh, well in that case..." Prime began, then he stiffened. "Could... you repeat that, please? I must have misheard." Nightelf handed him Wyrm's report. "There was a transporter accident, involving you and Washuu and two separate transport fields. Washuu's transport as aborted, and you were pulled away by the second beam. However, both you and Washuu left ghost signatures in the first transporter's buffer. Somehow your Jusenkyo curse got thrown into the mix. We don't know exactly what happened, but that girl was the result. Genetically speaking, she is your daughter." She flashed a wry grin. "Congratulations, Prime. It's a girl." "This isn't possible," Prime said, flipping through the report. "That's what I said." She pointed at the screen. "Nevertheless... there she is." Prime finally gave up on the report and slumped back onto the pillows. He stared up at the screen, at the child that was, for all intents and purposes, his. "Oh...shit." "Now you've got a decision to make," Nightelf said, looking him squarely in the eye. "Like it or not, you now have a daughter to worry about." "What the hell do I do, Nick?" Prime asked, waving at the screen. "I can't take care of a little girl! I'm only 21 for Chrissakes! I can barely take care of myself." "Well, then, you're going to have to decide what you're going to do about that, aren't you?" She reached over to a nearby chair and picked up the morphsuit draped across it. "Here, put this on. I think it's time you went to meet your daughter." Prime's eyes widened with fear. "What? No, Nick, I can't! I mean, it's not like I can take care of her, and if she does... if I... if she's adopted, then maybe it's better she doesn't... I mean..." Nicola shook her head, amused at Prime's naivetŽ. "You don't have to tell her who you are. But before you make a decision like giving her up for adoption, shouldn't you see her first, with your own eyes?" Prime looked uncertain, but finally nodded. "Okay, I suppose. What she doesn't know won't hurt her, right?" Nick smiled inwardly. "If you say so..." *** Prime thought to himself nervously. He felt horrible about what he was about to do (truth to tell, he felt like throwing up), but had convinced himself that it was the right thing to do...the only thing to do. He couldn't admit that he was afraid. Nightelf led him into the small room. At first she blocked his view, so he wasn't able to get a clear view of the girl until he was all the way in. In retrospect he realized that this was probably intentional, to keep him from backing out. When Nightelf did move, something caught in his throat. There is a significant difference between seeing someone on a 14' television screen, and seeing them in real life. Prime realized that the security camera hadn't even come close. She was very small, and he couldn't help but think that she seemed very... vulnerable. Her red hair was in disarray, although nowhere near approaching the wildness of her mother's. But it was her eyes that stopped the breath in his throat when she looked up at him. They were _his_ eyes. He was almost tempted to reach up and check to make sure his own were still present. Even through the redness and puffiness, he could see that they were the exact same shade of blue as his own. The girl looked at him for a moment, desperate hope filling her eyes, washing away all the words Prime had carefully planned with a single sentence. "Are you my father?" Prime's mouth went dry. Part of him reminded him of his plan, of the fact that he couldn't be a father and to not even think about it. "Yes, I am," He said quietly. It was impossible to lie to her, especially about this. That same part of his mind was screaming at him that he was insane, but he wasn't listening anymore. The girl's eyes filled with tears, and after a moment's hesitation, threw herself at her father. She latched onto him, sobbing into his chest. "I was so scared! I didn't know where I was... I couldn't remember anything! Not you, not Mom, not even my own name!" Prime awkwardly tried to comfort the bawling girl. He looked at Nightelf, his eyes pleading for help, then noticed her knowing little smile. He accused her telepathically. Prime looked down at the girl... at his daughter, as she hugged him fiercely, afraid to let go. Tentatively he stroked her hair, an expression of wonderment spreading across his face. The girl's sobs eased, and she leaned against him, exhausted. He knelt down so he could look her in the eyes. "Are you alright now?" "Y... yes. I'm sorry..." "Shh. Don't apologize. After what you've been through, anybody would be upset." He brushed a stray lock of crimson hair out of her eyes. "Dad... I... what's my name? I still don't remember." Prime paused for a moment, but only for a moment. The name was right there, like he had decided on it a long time ago. "Proxima," he replied. "Your name is Proxima." Nightelf smiled. Prime wasn't listening. Instead he continued to hold his daughter, any thought of giving her up long gone. *** Barry sat at the edge of Lake Tezuka, as small lake near the main Fred compound. He would have rather been back in his offices, working, doing _something_, but Frosty-usa had discovered that he had been working triple shifts, and had insisted that he take a break. Actually, she had threatened to put him under house arrest in his own quarters if he didn't take a break of his own free will... or sedation.... Not that Barry needed sleep, but he wasn't about to tell Frosty that. True, _mental_ fatigue was still possible for him, but the work kept him from dwelling on certain things. Like Linna. He skipped a stone across the mirror-smooth lake surface. He had arrived just in time for the wake for all the people who had died in the first Pfhor attack. It had been a nasty reception for him, and all he really remembered were his first words. The rest of the wake was simply a haze of shock and grief. Someone had told him afterwards he had been like a corpse himself. Someone standing behind him skipped another stone. He knew they were there, he had known for awhile. "I didn't think you were much for quiet reflection." Katherine Madigan said softly. "Not if I can help it." Barry replied, skipping another stone. The throw was perfect, the spin and trajectory designed to produce the maximum number of skips possible. Despite his best efforts, he hadn't managed to get anything to skip less than ten times. "You're thinking about her, aren't you?" Katherine said, leaning against a large stone nearby. Barry nodded. "When they told me, when I first arrived in Fred, I had no idea it would hit me that hard. The part of me that created Fenris..." He shook his head. "No. Inaccurate. The part of me that IS Fenris loved her more than life itself." He skipped another stone. "Please, I just want to be alone for awhile. Just leave me alone." Kate was about to protest, but decided against it. She respected his wishes and walked away, knowing full well that being left alone was the last thing Barry wanted, but she was not one he would, he could talk to. Barry was silent for some time after Kate left. After what could have been minutes or hours, he quietly began to sing... saying goodbye. "Greensleeves was all my joy. Greensleeves was my delight, Greensleeves was my heart of gold And who but Lady Greensleeves." He skipped one final stone. This time it's trajectory was completely wrong, it's spin far too slow. It skipped only once and sank to the bottom. Barry smiled sadly, and got up to return to Fred, to drown his memories in the only wine left to him, his work. The ripples spread across the lake, catching the moonlight, gradually dying away. *** The glow from the small computer screen threw ghostly flickers across Wyrm's face in the darkened room. The door to his quarters slid open, silhouetting a figure in the light of the hallway, then closed again. "Still up, Wyrm-sama?" Dee-chan asked, slipping into a chair next to him. Wyrm merely nodded his head, eyes fixed on the screen "How bad is it?" She asked, looking over his shoulder. "Pretty bad. Frosty-usa called a meeting tomorrow morning as soon as she saw this. We're looking at a fleet of at least four- hundred ships. Pfhor cruisers, Invid warships, Zentradi battlecruisers, you name it. But this is easily the worst." Wyrm called a schematic up on the screen. It looked like two ragged umbrellas stuck together to form an incomplete egg-shaped craft. "The Evoluder Battle Planet, Zohma. About a quarter of the moon's mass, heavily shielded and damned well armed. Watch this." Wyrm entered a command and the battle planet began changing shape, the front 'umbrella' inverting, and the other closing down, until the structure looked disturbingly like a large cannon. "The whole thing is essentially a huge antimatter particle gun. It can target anything from a mid-sized fleet to a planet. The range is limited somewhat, but once it has reached lunar orbit, that's it." "Is there a way to stop it?" Dee-chan asked. "Washuu's notes mention several possibilities, but the best so far is the 'Death Star' approach. Once the shield is breached, it would be relatively simple for a group of small fighters to fly into the superstructure and blow the antimatter storage tanks. The problem is getting past the shield." "Not to mention finding a way for the pilots to survive the explosion once they hit the core." Dee-chan said. She reached over and switched the monitor off, and turned his chair to face her. "Staring at it won't help, Wyrm-sama. You should get some sleep so you can think straight." Wyrm looked like he was going to protest, but she placed a finger on his lips. "Shh. Sleep. Worry about it tomorrow." She realized that her face was only inches from his. Briefly she considered giving him a quick kiss, but worried that he would pull away. She noticed that Wyrm's face seemed a little closer. Tentatively he reached up a hand and touched her cheek. Dee-chan closed her eyes and leaned into the touch a little, wondering how long before the spell would be broken. She opened her eyes, and slowly closed the gap between them. It was a slight shock when their lips finally met. The kiss started tentatively, both sides waiting for the other to jerk away. When that didn't happen the kiss became more passionate. Dee-chan quickly tapped out a sequence on the keyboard of the Mac, activating several Fkeys that would place triple security locks on the doors. In cyberspace Leela was trying to revive a badly de-rezzed Alpha Centauri. She sensed the privacy locks going up in Wyrm's quarters. A quick check confirmed that Wyrm-chan was indeed last reported in there. She thought. *** Kei yawned and stretched. The infirmary waiting room chairs were just too comfortable, and Kei was in serious danger of falling asleep. "Kei?" Kei looked up to see Nightelf standing in the doorway. She groggily got to her feet. "Mmm, yeah?" "Prime's awake." "Oh. S'nice." Kei mumbled, sinking back into the chair. "Tell him I said 'hi'." Nightelf stepped aside. Behind her was Prime, looking tired but whole. "Hi, Kei." Kei blinked. Standing next to him was a young girl with crimson hair. He had his hand on her shoulder protectively. "Uhh, forgive me for asking," Kei said, perplexed. "But who's that girl?" It took an act of superhuman willpower for Prime to resist the urge to take up the song cue. Instead he took a deep breath. "Kei, I'd like you to meet Proxima..." "Oh, nice to meet you..." "... My daughter." Kei's jaw dropped. "D-d-da...dau..." Proxima cocked her head as if considering something. She squinted hard at Kei's red hair, which was nearly the same shade as her own. Finally she asked. "Are you my Mom?" Kei did something she had promised herself she would never, EVER do. She fainted. ***