Gilded Cage

by wajag

The Watchers create a more pleasant Sanctuary but the ‘volunteers’ don’t want to be there! Character death

Author: wajag

Title:Gilded Cage

Feedback Listing:M, DM, JD, Dr Zoll, OFC

Summary:The Watchers create a more pleasant Sanctuary but the 'volunteers' don't want to be there! Character death

Disclaimer: I don't own Highlander but I'm sure the ones that do have lost them or they'd have been back on TV by now. I won't be making a profit off of this (or I would own Highlander.)

This is an Alternate Universe.

Summary: The Watchers decide to renovate their 'Sanctuary' concept. The last one was judged inhumane by the Tribunal, so a secret group in the Watcher organization figured out a way to collar an Immortal and keep them within a confined area. (Picture a dog 'Invisible Fence' where the dog wearing the collar can't near the boundaries without receiving an electric shock.)

The Watchers worked on this special project for several years and have readied five of the Watcher Headquarters in different parts of the world to receive an Immortal prisoner. Carefully Watching, they've selected a few newer Immortals and plan on abducting them as they leave their teachers to go out into the world on their own.

Mistakenly thinking that Adam Pierson is a new Immortal, they include him as an intended prisoner in their new Sanctuary. Because of his background with the Watchers and possible use as a translator, Adam Pierson will be taken to the 'Sanctuary' at the Watcher Academy in Paris. He'll be collared and set up in a guest cottage.

Methos walked silently on the cobbled street leading from Mac's barge after an enjoyable late evening of dinner, drinks and chess. It had been a while since they'd been able to do this; shades of the Horsemen, Byron and Ahriman had colored their friendship the past few years and kept them distant and less relaxed with each other. Methos had missed that closeness.

As Methos walked along the moderately lit street, he kept an eye out for his new Watcher. Instead, he spotted several men in dark clothing following him. The first clear opportunity he got, Methos ducked into an alley escape route he'd used in the past. He watched from the shadows as the men saw they'd lost him and turned back the way they'd come. He kept in the shadows as he continued towards his flat. When he was nearly there, men pointing guns with silencers suddenly surrounded him.

"Don't resist or we will shoot you," one of the men warned.

A slight shift of one of the men under the streetlights revealed a Watcher tattoo. Renegades! Methos thought and ducked to the side as he pulled his own gun. He moved towards the man in the group that looked the least prepared, thinking that if he could make it to the cover of a dumpster, he could shoot back at them until he caught the attention of the neighbors. At least then he wouldn't be totally exposed in the street like he was at the moment.

Methos pointed his gun at the targeted man hoping he'd back off without Methos having to kill him. The man was surprised, but the others weren't. They fired off several rounds and dropped Methos before he reached the dumpster. Curling in pain, the gun was pulled from Methos' clenched hand. Before he died, Methos heard, "We're not going to kill you Pierson. You're the next volunteer for Sanctuary."

"Call in the van," one of the men ordered. "Make sure no one saw us." A man knelt next to Pierson and searched him for weapons, removing the sword, and the miscellaneous guns and daggers he found.

A dark van with the headlights off pulled up quickly and the Immortal's body was loaded. The van moved off onto the main street before turning on its lights and speeding up. Inside the van, Pierson was secured with duct tape, his weapons put into a large nylon carryall. Less than ten minutes later the van stopped and two more men got into the van. One opened a medical bag and hooked up an IV, while the other attached electrodes and a monitor. They nodded at each other. If the Immortal revived from death on the way to their base, they would know. The IV was to keep him sedated for his trip.

Ten minutes later the Immortal showed signs of reviving. The man by the IV released a clamp and a sedative began to drip in the tube. Minutes later, the Immortal's revival was a slight gasp to fill empty lungs but no other reaction from the deeply sedated Pierson.

The van continued on into the night, its destination a large estate outside Paris and owned by the Watchers. Used as the Watcher Academy, it had state of the art security.

The van passed through the tight security at the gate and headed to a fenced building without windows. When the van stopped, Pierson was lifted onto a gurney and rolled across an empty loading area and into a medical lab. While carefully monitored for signs of revival, he was x-rayed, cat-scanned, then tissue and fluid samples were taken. Videos and photos are taken of the naked Immortal on the examination bed.

A group of four men came into the room with a rolling cart. Equipment was double and triple checked before a sturdy band of metal was placed around Pierson's neck. The group checked the readings on their monitors one last time before nodding in satisfaction. They left the room and another group entered with another gurney. The Immortal was moved to the new gurney and covered with a sheet. The nearly empty IV was replaced with a new one, and they moved the Immortal from the room.

Down a corridor to an elevator, down several floors to the lowest level of the sublevels; the squeaky wheel of the gurney was the only sound in the sterile corridor to a room at the end. The gurney was pushed past an observation room that overlooked two walls of a 16 x 16 room. The two back walls were built of solid concrete; the two front walls were half walls of concrete blocks sealed with one-way glass. The observation room could see into room, the room couldn't see out. Several video cameras were set up outside the cell, facing into the spartanly furnished room. The purpose of the cameras was to record the soon-to-be occupant of the room.

The room itself was plainly furnished; a bolted down bunk, a small plastic table and chair. A toilet, sink, and a shower stall without doors. The door of the cell was open and ready for the gurney as it was pushed in. The Immortal was efficiently moved to the bed and covered with blankets. The gurney was rolled out of the room, and a dark suited man brought in a few items. A bright red coverall and soft-soled slippers were placed on the nearby table. A few toiletries are added to the bathroom area. Lastly, the IV was removed and the last of the men left the room.

The observers outside the room made themselves comfortable and settled in for a long wait for the Immortal to revive. They were surprised when half an hour later, the Immortal stirred.

"Make a note of the recovery time." One of the men in suits said. "This is sooner than expected. Any data we're able to collect before the Immortal is moved will be information we didn't have before."

Methos slowly drifted back to consciousness. Remembering what had happened, he kept his eyes shut and controlled his breathing. He let his sense tell him more about his environment. He lay for some time collecting data before he shifted his body as if just waking. When he finally opened his eyes, he knew he was in a cold room by himself, that it had recently been painted, it had plumbing and that his clothes had been removed. He could feel phantom pain from injuries that had healed. His Immortal memory remembered every injury and every death.

Like the nauseating feel of another Immortal's 'buzz', every young Immortal learned to push the remembered pain aside or they went insane. He couldn't remember when he'd learned to catalog the pains. In addition to the five gun shot wounds he'd died from, he felt the slight sting from IV's or where they'd drawn blood. He could feel the burns where they'd cut his skin, deeply in several places, probably tissue samples, he thought. Judging by the feeling in his prostate they'd taken fluid samples as well, he realized in irritation. He thought about what his reaction should be to remain in character with Adam Pierson.

'Death' would tear the room apart piece by piece until they came in to stop him, then he'd start on them. 'Methos' would take the tried and true method perfected over millennia – nothing. 'Adam Pierson' would be afraid, not know what to do or to expect. He'd have to play Adam until they dropped their guard.

Methos put on his acting skills and played 'Adam Pierson'. He breathed deep and opened his eyes wide. He moved his hands to his chest where he'd been shot, as if checking to see if the wounds had closed. New Immortals tended to do this as if it still surprised them that the magic worked. He already knew he was naked but sat up as if to confirm it. He confirmed his surroundings while looking dazed and surprised to be imprisoned. His eyes confirmed what his senses had already told him, concrete walls made colder with two walls of mirrored windows.

His gut twisted at the thought of what that might mean was on the other side of the glass; cameras, video and scientists. He spotted the clothing on the table; his captors apparently had some sense of propriety. Keeping with 'Adam's' likely reactions, Methos wrapped the blanket around his naked body and hurried to retrieve the clothes. Keeping himself as covered as he could, he quickly dressed.

The next step was to find out what kind of a prisoner he was. He went innocently to the door and tried the knob, locked. No surprise there, these people – Watchers, had gone to some trouble to make this cell. He tugged harder.

He knocked, "hello?" He said loudly. He repeated his greeting before cupping his hands around his eyes and peering into the glass as if to try and see through the glass. "Hello?"

When no one answered after several attempts, Methos wandered the room checking things out. He saw nothing to hide behind, use as a weapon, or for entertainment. He wandered back to the bed, and with an exaggerated sigh, plopped down onto it.

From the observation room, the four men watched the Immortal closely. In a hushed voice one of the men said, "Do you think he's dangerous?"

"Not to us, this is Pierson! He'd be killed in the first challenge he took. We're doing him a favor."

"He was trained by MacLeod. MacLeod's last student Ryan took on some pretty tough Immortals."

"Ryan was a street punk. He already knew how to hold his own. MacLeod just taught him how to use a sword. Pierson is a scholar. Cross country running was his sport of choice." The man said arrogantly. "He has no weapons I think it's safe for us to go in."

It was perhaps half an hour after Methos had slumped onto the bed before the door opened. He recognized the Watcher Tribunal and the Paris Regional Director as they entered. Two big guards with drawn guns posted themselves just inside the door, standing ready for trouble.

"Why have you brought me here?" Adam asked timidly.

"You don't need to be afraid; we've brought you here for your own good. Now that you're Immortal, others will be after your head. The Watchers have had a system in place called 'Sanctuary'. Sanctuary supplies Immortals that want to get out of the Game a safe place to live. Holy ground. For hundreds of years volunteers supported Sanctuary. Recently we've had to re-evaluate our guidelines. In order to prevent the Gathering, we've decided to take five new Immortals just leaving their teachers and keep them safe from other Immortals. We've chosen you because of the low statistical likelihood that you'll last very long. And since we don't know how much is transferred during a Quickening, there is a danger of an Immortal that doesn't know about the Watchers taking your head."

"Don't I get a say in this?" Adam asked indignantly.

"No, neither do the other four Immortals we've taken into custody. Each of you will be set up at a secure site, kept from each other and the Game. Because of your background, we've established a cottage for you at the Watcher academy here in Paris. As time goes by, we'll see if we can't grant you more freedoms to the academy facilities. For the time being though, you'll be confined to a cottage and watched around the clock. By the way, the collar on your neck is similar to those worn by prisoners under house arrest. Instead of a beep warning you when you near the parameter, this one issues a lethal jolt of electricity."

Methos was enraged, but his face only reflected shock. "No, you don't need to do that. You can trust me to stay on Watcher grounds!" NOT!

"As I've said, we'll decide that later. The cottage we'll be moving you to is wired for the collar. If all goes well, we have plans to wire the Academy parameter fence so that you'll have the run of the estate. For obvious security reasons, you aren't allowed to speak to anyone but your guards and caretakers."

"Can't I even talk to Joe Dawson?" Methos asked.

"No, Dawson would tell MacLeod and we'd have trouble. It's better if MacLeod and Dawson think that you're off exploring the world on your own. Just go with the program Pierson. The other Immortals aren't getting the allowances you are."

The Tribunal turned and walked from the cell. Methos slumped back onto the bed, trying to project despair. He didn't like his new situation, but he could be patient. He'd play along as meek Adam Pierson, keeping his claws sheathed until they got sloppy. Then he'd be the tiger in the sheep pen. He re-directed his rage into a snitty shout at the closed door, "Could I at least have something to read?"

Several days passed, a guard brought Methos' food three times a day. He was given fresh clothes every day. He showered in the curtain-less shower, remembering to act embarrassed and uncomfortable at the possibility of being watched. They'd heard his request for something to read, and he'd been given a small stack of paperbacks. The books looked like they'd come from the Watcher break room. There was a mixture of mysteries, romances and science fictions. The cell lights went off in the evening, and came on when he woke; telling Methos that there was indeed someone on the other side of the glass. When he'd finished reading the books, new ones were brought.

At the end of a week, Methos looked up from reading on the bed when the door opened outside of the routine they'd stuck to. Six guards entered. Methos stood, remembering to look nervous.

"We're ready to move you to the cottage. Don't give us any trouble and we won't hurt you." A guard warned.

Methos extended his arms for the handcuffs the guard held. Methos was efficiently handcuffed and surrounded by the armed guards. They kept close enough to react, but out of his reach.

"Follow me." The lead guard said and led him out of the room and up a corridor.

A man in a lab coat joined them, pushing a cart with an electronic box on it. The man followed them to a garage where a van waited with doors open. The guards stopped and let the man and cart go first. The cart was lifted into the van and secured, before Methos was directed forward. He sat on a bolted down bench and was secured by his ankles to the bench frame. He relaxed his hands into his lap and examined the box on the cart.

Noticing the Immortal's interest, the lead guard said, "That black box is your keeper. Stray outside its range and it'll kill you and keep you dead until we drag you back."

Methos scowled at the guard. He certainly planned on testing the guard's claim, as often and as long as it took!

Methos was taken to a crofter's cottage on the far side of the Watcher estate. It was cozy and small, only one bedroom, an updated kitchen and bathroom, with comfortable furnishings with a television and computer. Methos was uncuffed under guard. As he rubbed his wrist, the lead guard spoke.

"Here are the rules. The black box is being installed outside in a tamperproof container. Leaving this cottage and going ten feet from it will trigger a fatal shock and send an alarm to the guards stationed next door. You'll be given free roam of the cottage as long as you mind your manners. You'll have a personal assistant. If you need anything, just let her know. She'll run it by the Tribunal and if they agree, she'll get it for you. Don't threaten her in any way or we'll lock you back in a cell. You may use the computer, but you'll only have access to the Watcher internet. No email or chat rooms. Your usage will be monitored, and your access terminated if you miss-use it."

Methos nodded reluctantly when he could tell that the guard was serious about his 'rules'.

He was introduced to his assistant, a homely young woman with a quiet demeanor. "This is Ms. LaFabre."

Ms. LaFabre pulled a day-planner out of her shoulder bag and opened it, pencil in hand. She read off a proposed schedule covering the times he woke, had breakfast, lunch, dinner, and went to bed.

The guards moved to leave.

"Why are you doing this? I'm one of you." Methos asked, already knowing the answer.

"But now you're one of 'Them'." The lead guard said.

And that probably said it all, Methos thought. 'Us' against 'Them' and if they couldn't stop the Gathering, they'd control the outcome. Methos watched them out the window as they left, his back to his assistant who was still standing in the room. He cultivated his lost boy voice, "But I still feel like me." He said, barely loud enough for his assistant to hear. He turned around to look at her reaction. She looked at him with a sad pity on her face. She quickly looked down at her notes, but he'd seen it. He knew she'd follow the rules set by the Tribunal, but he could use her sympathy against her. He could manipulate her so that she championed him to the limits of her ability. He continued his role by sitting down in the nearby chair and rubbing his face with his hands. In a moment, he looked up acting startled as if he'd forgotten that Ms. LaFabre was still there. "Oh, I'm sorry." He acted like he was at a loss for what to do or say. "Is there any books in the cottage?" He asked as if grasping at the first thing he could think of.

Ms LaFabre nodded and showed him where a small bookshelf was in the corner of his bedroom.

Weeks later

Methos had been playing it cool, quietly filling his boring days. He kept his requests simple, exercise clothes, a hair cut, a shaver, reading material and other easily approved things. When he figured they'd gotten used to his routine, he put his test of the collar into play. He waited until Ms. LaFabre had stepped out of the cottage door and acted as if he'd just remembered something. He walked beside her as he made his request. "Oh Ms. LaFabre one more thing. If I could get the field notes from the Watchers that were assigned to the site, I could translate them and cross-reference them against …" He paid special attention to where the collar kicked in with the electric shock. His entire body arched at the electric jolt hit. He dropped to the ground, convulsing as the jolt continued.

The guards heard the early warning buzz go off in their nearby quarters, and hurried out putting on their high voltage gloves.

"Don't touch him!" They shouted to Ms. LaFabre as she bent as if to touch him.

She wrung her hands in worry as four guards took a limb each and carried the Immortal back inside the cottage. They placed him gently on the couch and stepped back.

"We weren't paying attention, will he be alright?" She asked worriedly.

"He's Immortal; it'll wear off in a few minutes." One of the guards said, more to reassure LaFabre than Methos who was curled up and holding his neck. Methos sat up a few minutes later.

"We told you ten feet." The guard said a bit too smugly for Methos' taste. Methos glared at the guard.

"We weren't watching it wasn't his fault." Ms. LaFabre said in his defense.

"So now he pays attention." The guard said.

Ms. LaFabre sat beside Methos. "Are you alright?"

Methos nodded and patted the hand that she had on his arm. "Thank you for your concern." He added, pointedly looking at the guards.

The guards left, but Ms. LaFabre only left after she'd fixed him a cup of tea.

Methos watched his assistant walk to her car. He'd found out what he needed for now. The parameter was just inside ten feet of the cottage, and the electric shock was continuous until he was back inside the parameter. He'd have to figure out a way around the shock. It had disabled him, faster than his body could overcome it. A Quickening was actually more powerful, but his body reacted to a Quickening differently than to electricity. A Quickening over-stimulated every cell as if to energize it for the power that would be following. Electricity suspended his body until the power was removed. Methos had received a large jolt of electricity when he'd fought Morgan Walker. But without the continued shock he and Walker had recovered almost immediately. He'd have to think of a way to disperse or disconnect the electric shock. Until then, the next part of his plan was to pout for a week or so. That would work on Ms. LaFabre's sympathies and force the Tribunal to get involved.

As he predicted, Ms. LaFabre's mothering instincts quickly kicked in when she found the Immortal shut away in his darkened room, depressed and detached. He only nibbled at the food she fixed for him and wasn't interested in the books she brought. After two days of this, she went to the Tribunal.

"You have to do something!" She declared from her chair across the large table where the Tribunal sat.

"He's just dealing with his new captivity. It just hadn't set in yet." One of the members said, dismissing the woman's concern.

"He's not eating or sleeping, I'm worried about him." Ms. LaFabre insisted.

"Just give him some time. He'll accept it eventually."

"I won't watch him starve himself. This isn't right!"

One of the Tribunal spoke up, "The others have accepted their new lives."

"The others had all done time in Juvie, or Jail. Pierson was a gently reared scholar." The others nodded, seeing the point. "We'll look into the matter and get back with you in few days Ms. LaFabre."

When Ms. LaFabre had left, they continued the conversation. "So what can we do? We're being very generous with him. TV, intranet, books…"

"He's used to research and study. Isn't Dr. Zoll still going on about needing a qualified linguist?"

"Can she be trusted to keep silent?"

"We can convince her to be, with the right incentives."

Dr Amy Zoll was called before the Tribunal the next day.

"Dr. Zoll, please be seated."

Amy sat down nervously in the chair across from the large table. Were they going to close the Methos chronicles and reassign her?

"We've decided to approve your request for a research assistant but there are some conditions."

"That's wonderful! I've identified several candidates currently completing their doctorates at the university…"

"We've selected a former Watcher, that's where the special conditions come into play."

Dr. Zoll got a sinking feeling in her stomach. There were no qualified ex-Watchers, except…

"Dr. Adam Pierson, your Methos chronicle predecessor."

"But he's an Immortal!"

"That's why you must be sworn to secrecy about what we're about to tell you." The Tribunal got Amy's vow of secrecy, and proceeded to tell her about their new version of Sanctuary.

"So you can see why this must remain a secret. He's not dealing with his confinement well. We need to get him distracted and involved in something. You need a researcher; he's one of the world's experts. You'll be assigned as his Watcher, keep his chronicles. He'll assist you with translations and your search for Methos."

"I don't know…"

"It's this or nothing. If you decline, we reassign you to an isolated post so that you won't be tempted to break your oath."

Amy shivered at the threat. They'd do it too! She nodded reluctantly.

"What do I have to do?"

The next day Ms. LaFabre escorted Dr. Zoll to the cottage. She brought her a cup of tea and had her sit on the couch while she went to get Pierson from his room. Ms. LaFabre knocked on the bedroom door and entered the darkened room. "Dr. Pierson, there's a visitor out here for you." She said coaxingly.

Methos had listened to the footsteps and voices as they entered the cottage. He suspected who his visitor was, but it was important to continue playing his role. He hurried out of the bed and entered the living room with a hopeful look on his face, "Joe!" He stopped abruptly and his face fell when he spotted Dr. Zoll.

Amy was shocked at her first glimpse of Pierson. She'd never cared for the arrogant researcher, but she couldn't help the shock she felt when she saw him. His hair and clothes were unkempt, he had a few days growth of beard, and dark shadows under his eyes. His eyes had been so hopeful, only to be desolate after seeing that Dawson wasn't his visitor.

"Oh. Have you come to gloat Dr. Zoll?"

Ouch. Did he really think she'd do that? "No, actually I asked for a special dispensation to talk with you and ask for your help on translations."

"I don't need your pity." Methos growled for effect.

"Good, because I'm not asking out of pity. I need your help and you need something to do."

"You'll understand if I don't feel like doing any favors for the Watchers."

Amy was glad she'd brought several project packets with her. She quickly changed to plan B. "Not the Watchers, the Museum. We've had this tablet but no time to translate it. We have one person other than myself that could, but they're tied up with some Iranian religious texts. The Watchers have several researchers that could translate it, but Watchers only translate Watcher documents. You're one of the world's experts, but because you're Immortal, I couldn't ask you until now."

Dr. Zoll put the packet on the coffee table in front of her. Pierson had a closed look on his face. Arrogance usually meant stubborn, she thought. "But you can have a couple of days to think about it. I'll leave the packet here and you can send it back with Ms. LaFabre if you don't want to do it."

Amy put down her tea and stood. "I hope you do, the Museum could use your help."

Amy nodded at Ms. LaFabre and left.

Amy hurried to her car parked down the block and after she was safely inside, she put her arms on the steering wheel, and head on her arms. That had been very hard! When she'd first heard that Pierson was Immortal, she'd been slightly jealous. Pierson had more university degrees than she, got more opportunities, had more languages skills, and now he had Immortality to learn more. He had MacLeod as a teacher, so now he had the chance of someday meeting Methos in person. And it had all been taken away when the Watcher's decided that he was going to be a captive in their sanctuary.

If they stayed as adamant about this project as they were now, Pierson would never have another degree, get to see the world, or get to see his friends again. He'd get the same four walls for centuries until he went crazy or the Gathering came.

She did really hope that he'd take the translation job. That way, she could give him a focus or a distraction, whatever was needed. She could be his eyes and ears in the outside world and keep him current with what was going on outside the Watcher walls.

Methos paced, all the while keeping the packet in sight as if torn by a decision.

Ms. LaFabre hid her smile. "I'm going to walk over to the Watcher dorm and pick up some toiletries for you at the Watcher store. Any thing in particular you'd like for breakfast?" She asked.

"No, I'm fine. Thank you." Methos said, keeping up with his act.

When she'd left, Methos moved the packet to the dining table and opened it. He could use the tablets as an excuse to tap into the Watcher's research database, and send out inquiries. They were sure to be filtered and monitored but if he were careful, he might sneak something out. He glanced at the photographs of the tablets, the site they'd been excavated at, and the notes from the archeological team. It would be interesting to see what it said, he thought.

When Ms. LaFabre returned, she was pleased to see Adam had dragged the dining table over to his computer desk. He had photos from the packet taped to the wall by the table. Notes and papers were spread out over the tabletop, while he bent over them with an intense concentration.

Ms. LaFabre didn't disturb him. She went into the kitchen and fixed him some breakfast. She placed it beside him on the table and began to straighten up around the cottage. Adam was very neat, but she liked to make sure he had fresh linens and plenty of toiletries. As the afternoon wore on, she unobtrusively kept Adam supplied with refreshments. When Adam was still focused on the translations, Ms. LaFabre made sure he had everything he needed before she left for the night.

She called Dr. Zoll as soon as she reached her car where she kept her cell phone, a rule of the Tribunal.

"Dr. Zoll, its working. He's had his nose buried in the papers you left all day."

"I'm glad. I'll have the tablets sent over in the morning. Would it be alright if I stopped by in a day to speak with him?"

"I'll leave word with the guards; just let me know when you'd like to come by. Dr. Zoll thanks for doing this. I hated to see him so lost."

"I'm glad I could help. I'll call as soon as I can adjust my schedule."

Ms. LaFabre called the Tribunal after she ended the call with Dr. Zoll.

Ms. LaFabre entered the cottage the next morning just as they were preparing to deliver the crates with the tablets. She nodded to the guards that were inspecting the inside of the crates thoroughly as she walked by. She opened the door and looked at the area where Adam had been working the night before. He'd obviously stayed up very late. There were many more notes scattered over the tabletop than there had been. She heard the shower going and was even more pleased. It looked like this was just what Adam had needed. She looked again at the work area he'd set up. She knew better than to neaten up anything he was working on, but she did want to see what types of office supplies he was using so that she could make sure he had plenty on hand.

The next day, Ms. LaFabre brought Dr. Zoll with her. When she heard the shower going, Ms. LaFabre smiled at Dr. Zoll. "He's up, please make yourself comfortable. I'll fix us some tea." She went into the kitchen.

Dr. Zoll walked to Adam's cluttered work area and reviewed his notes. She heard the shower running but still glanced towards the open door of his bedroom, not wanting him to catch her prying into his research and make him angry. His notes were abbreviated but concise. He was listing the questions and sources he wanted to check out for each point in the papers. When the shower shut off, she glanced into the open door of the bedroom. She had a clear view of the room from where she stood. Her jaw dropped when Adam walked across his room to the dresser with only a towel wrapped around his trim waist. Her conscience told her she should look away; her woman's curiosity kept her in place and silent. Undressed, Adam looked more like an Immortal. He was lean and muscular, no longer hidden under loose clothing. She gasped when he pulled the towel off and began to dry his hair with it. She was hypnotized by the flow of his muscles. He had such broad shoulders flowing down to a trim waist, firm buttocks and muscular legs. How could she have never suspected what he looked like under his normally casual jeans and oversized sweaters?

He tossed the towel over the back of a chair and bent over slightly to pick up his boxer shorts. A leg at a time he slipped them on, reaching for his jeans next. After he'd slipped on a loose tee shirt, she pulled herself together and hurried into the kitchen before he finished dressing.

Methos had heard the sound of two sets of heeled shoes enter his cottage. He recognized Ms. LaFabre's tread, and guessed that the other could only be Dr. Zoll. When they didn't announce themselves, he listened to his assistant fussing around in the kitchen, on the other side of the wall from his shower. With an amused grin, Methos decided to test the waters with a little show of skin. He finished his shower and dried off. He wrapped the towel around his waist and moved into his room where he was sure to be seen. From his time as a personal body slave, Methos knew how to pose his body. He stood with his back to the open door and braced his legs slightly apart and began his sensual tease. When he heard the gasp he knew he'd caught someone staring. When they didn't move away, he acted as if he hadn't heard anything. 'I'm so easily amused', Methos told himself. He knew just how to flex, to move his muscles and body to present an appealing image without appearing like he were doing it on purpose. It wasn't until he was nearly dressed, that his audience finally moved away from the open door.

The footsteps retreated to the kitchen area where he could hear the teakettle starting to boil. He heard soft female voices talking quietly as he pulled on his shoes. He grabbed his sweater and headed for the living room. He schooled his face and made a show of pulling the sweater over his head as if unaware that he wasn't alone.

Amy Zoll hurried to help Ms. LaFabre in the kitchen, anxious that Adam not see her blush. It was so easy to remain aloft with co-workers if you didn't see them as any gender, keep them sterile colleagues. Seeing Adam gloriously naked had not only put him into the 'Male' category, and made her tingle in places that she'd forgotten she had; but seeing the collar on his neck had also reminded her of what he'd become. He wasn't just a very intelligent man with a terrific body, he was a trained fighter. An Immortal that could live beyond her lifetime! He was one of the mysterious and mythical beings that she'd spent decades studying. Despite what he'd been before, he was now magical like Methos.

She helped Ms. LaFabre set up tea on a tray and carried it into the sitting room while Ms. LaFabre finished putting the cut fruit and some muffins onto another tray. She walked out of the kitchen to face a surprised Adam.

Methos quickly looked back at the bedroom as if checking to see if she could have seen anything. "I didn't know you were here, how long have you been in the kitchen?" He lied smoothly, fixing his expression into one of embarrassment and worry.

Dr. Zoll blushed and glanced away, proving her next words were a change of subject. "We came in and heard you in the shower so we went into fix a light breakfast. Ms. LaFabre will be right out with the muffins and fruit. We can go over the translations while we eat."

Methos let Dr. Zoll change the subject. When Ms. LaFabre came out of the kitchen, they spent the next several hours talking about the tablets. It would be a slow task because of the erosion of most of the characters. He'd have to translate what he could and fill in the gaps with suppositions. He'd been able to pick up a few words and phrases that led him to believe that the tablets may be another account of what an eye witness had seen in Pompeii when Vesuvius had erupted in 79 AD.

Amy was very excited at Adam's news. This would be a big boon for the museum. She promised herself to come by frequently to see how Adam was doing.

Days turned into weeks, weeks into months. Amy began to stop by every day on her way home from work. Ms. La Fabre began to leave dinner for the two of them, since Dr. Zoll and Adam would work late. They'd been working on this translation for months and Amy realized that it had become the high point of her day. What she'd once considered arrogance she now realized was Adam's confidence in the subject matter. She'd never realized that Adam had a photographic memory. He was able to recall the most obscure facts from anything he'd read.

They made an impressive team, he'd reference something he'd read, and she'd use her Internet access to pull it up. Every time he'd been right about the source and the contents. They'd been able to substantiate every one of their assumptions.

Amy looked over to where Adam had fallen asleep on the couch, while reading one of the reference books that she'd brought with her this evening. His long, lean legs stretched casually and comfortably the length of the couch. His quiet hands rested relaxed on the book that lay on his chest, the binding up to save the page he'd been on. His head lay slightly canted in her direction, his face relaxed and calm. His breathing was deep and slow, indicating that he was deeply asleep.

Amy smiled and logged off the computer. She picked up her jacket and walked over to a decorative blanket that was placed over the back of a chair. She'd picked it up and taken a few steps towards Adam, with the intent of placing it over him to keep him warm while he slept. She stopped in surprise at the suddenly opened eyes drilling a hole into her. Those weren't the sparkling eyes of the Adam Pierson she was used to seeing! These eyes were intense, dangerous, and wary. They practically glowed with an inner fire!

"I'm sorry to have disturbed you. I was just going to head home but thought I'd cover you with the blanket. You seemed so comfortable; I didn't want you to get cold." She stuttered, hoping to see the recognition return to Adam's eyes.

In an instant the dangerous look was gone and Adam's eyes returned. "Thank you but I'll just see you to the door and head off to bed."

Amy nodded slowly. She tossed the blanket back onto the chair it had come from and headed for the door. She hesitated in the open doorway, her desire to know overcoming her fear of the answer. "Adam?"

Adam cocked his head at the question in the speaking of his name.

"When you woke up, you looked different. Did you think that I would hurt you? That any of us here would hurt you?" She asked in a rush.

Adam stared at her, his eyes becoming dangerous again. She shivered and shifted slightly to be ready to flee out the door.

"Aren't you already hurting me? I'm being held prisoner here by captors that know the one way to truly kill me." He shifted closer, seeming to grow taller and broader while his voice dropped to a deep whisper. "I'm leashed like chattel and given no means to protect myself." He nodded stiffly. "Oh I'm quite sure that the Watchers are capable of hurting me."

Amy's eyes widened in alarm, "I wouldn't hurt you Adam. Neither would Ms. LaFabre. We don't like what they've done to you, but we can't do any more than we're doing now. We've both been threatened if we act outside their instructions." Amy felt like crying at the disbelief on Adam's face. She hurried from the cottage before the tears could manifest themselves in front of him.

After Amy left, Methos hurried to the computer and logged on. Using the spy ware code he'd written, he pulled up Amy's password and clicked into her email. He'd send out a message and hope it was subtle enough to get by the sensors but obvious enough to get the attention he wanted.

To: Shakespeare and Company

Attn: Seacouver and Paris offices

From: International Export Asset Corporation

Subject: Pompeii and Herculaneum

Dear Sirs, I am researching some tablets excavated at Pompeii. Please check your inventory and communicate to me any titles dealing with Pompeii or Herculaneum. Your prompt response would be greatly appreciated.

Methos owned the Paris branch of Shakespeare and Company and had carefully chosen his manager. Every request for communication would send the manager to a special file to look for code words. Since he'd told Joe several years back that he was looking at a summer villa in Herculaneum, that was the code word he'd given to Joe Dawson. Pompeii was just thrown in to fool the sensor. Amy had been sending out dozens of requests like this to accredited bookstores all over the world. Hopefully this one wouldn't be noticed in the crowd. After the email was sent, Methos logged out. Amy had only just left his cottage so perhaps no one would be suspicious of the time of the email. Methos shut off the lights and went to bed.

Over the months, Amy and Marie LaFabre had become friends. After leaving Adam and his disturbing revelations, Amy had gone home and thought about what Adam had said. It had still bothered her that Adam thought what he did, but it bothered her more that she believed it. She remembered what happened when Shapiro had declared war on Duncan MacLeod. It had been scary and ugly. She and the other researchers had huddled in the archives, speaking only in hushed voices. Good thing Shapiro hadn't known about Adam then. The other researchers had heard after the fact that Adam had snuck in and spoken before the Tribunal that had convicted Joe Dawson with treason. The researchers had thought Adam foolish, yet admired his dedication to his friends, now that they knew he was Immortal; it seemed like he'd been incredibly brave as well!

Amy's muse brought her to the Watcher lunchroom. As if Fate had guided her feet, Amy saw Marie leaving the lunchroom with a carry out meal. "Marie!" Amy shouted and hurried to catch her friend.

"Is that for Adam?" Amy asked when Marie stopped and waited for her.

Marie nodded with a smile. "I had them add extra. I'm so grateful that he's been eating, he's too skinny!"

Amy blushed, remembering her view of the fit and healthy Immortal body. "Um, I had a conversation with him last night that's been bothering me."

"Oh? What is it?" Marie asked in concern.

"Adam had fallen asleep on the couch and I went to cover him with a blanket, but woke him up instead. It wouldn't have been a big deal, but when he opened his eyes he looked…well, dangerous is the only way I can think to describe it. I asked him if he thought the Watchers or I would hurt him, and he said yes!"

Marie looked worried.

"I don't agree with what the Tribunal is doing, but do you think they'd really hurt him?" Amy asked.

Marie looked around anxiously and pulled Amy off to a private corner. "When Adam first arrived, there was a lead guard named Stefano. He kept referring to Adam as 'Him' or one of 'Them'. One day when Adam and I were talking and not paying attention to what we were doing, we walked outside of the cottage and out of the collar's parameter. I thought Stefano was a little too pleased that Adam had been hurt. When I kept hearing things, I asked the Tribunal to replace Stefano. I was afraid he had hunter tendencies. There would be no way Adam could defend himself if hunters came to the cottage some night when he was alone. The guards in the cottage next door would never know unless the collar was broken!" Marie looked around again nervously. "I'm still afraid for Adam. I constantly talk with the guards but you can never know what is in a man's heart. I've asked that Adam be given a panic button for an alarm that he can activate, just in case."

"And what did they say?" Amy asked.

"They're still thinking about it."

"I'll see what I can do." Amy said firmly, determined to see that Adam was protected if she had to move into the cottage herself!

Shakespeare and Company Bookstore - Paris

Kevin yawned and slumped into the desk chair. He sipped his drink as he waited for the computer to boot up. The owner of the shop was quite adamant that he checked the store's email frequently during work hours. Since he was well paid and liked Mr. Pierson, it wasn't a problem. The first strings of emails were simple requests for some of the more recent releases. It only took him a moment to put those into a folder so he could check the inventory and create order forms. Towards the middle of the inbox he saw a request that asked for historical cities. This was one of the ones he was told to look for! Excited, he unlocked the file cabinet and pulled out the special file. The file contained a list of ancient cities and cross-referenced them to current phone and email addresses. There wasn't anything for Pompeii, but Herculaneum had a contact listed. Kevin re-read the instructions and forwarded the email. He also picked up the phone and dialed a local number.

"Le Blues," said a harried voice.

"Yes, I am looking for Joe Dawson."

"Just a minute," after a slight pause, a silky voice came on the phone with an American accent to his French. "Dawson here."

"Yes Mr. Dawson, I received an email this morning and my instructions were to contact you."

"Oh? Who was it from?"

"The email itself was from the International Export Asset Corporation but I believe it to have originated from my employer Mr. Pierson."

"Pierson, what did it say?" Joe asked. He and Mac had both wondered where the old man had disappeared. He'd just disappeared a year ago.

"It was only requesting information on any books we might have on Pompeii or Herculaneum. I was instructed by Mr. Pierson to contact you when I got any request like this. I have no other instructions. I've forwarded the email to the personal email address I have on file for you. Perhaps it will mean more to you."

Joe thanked the caller and hung up. He went into his office and closed the door. In a moment he had his email up and was looking at the email. Why would Methos send an email like this? Joe read it over repeatedly, even saying it out loud to see if he could get anything from it. Was Methos where Pompeii or Herculaneum had once been in Greece? Why did Methos' contact know to call him if those words were used? Joe could only remember Methos mentioning Herculaneum once; they'd been talking about Watchers lying in their dead Immortal's chronicles. Was that it? Joe repeated the key words, 'Watchers' and 'dead Immortals'. What Watchers? What dead Immortals?

Joe made a mental note to ask Mac about it when he talked to him next but in the mean time, a little careful checking of the Watcher records for recently killed or missing Immortals might uncover another renegade cell.

Several days later, Marie heard the good news. Not only had the Tribunal ordered an alarm system put in for Adam, they'd also ordered a private and enclosed garden put around the cottage. It would be set at the maximum parameter of the collar so that Adam could enjoy the outdoors without worry of a painful death if he miss-guessed the range of the collar. Marie and Amy's efforts were rewarded tenfold at the smile that appeared on Adam's face. He gave both of them an enthusiastic hug and spent the rest of the day watching the technician measuring his new garden.

Methos didn't have to fake enthusiasm when Marie and Amy told him that he was going to get a panic alarm and a garden. He'd been worried about protecting himself, and over the months he'd rearranged the furniture to give him things to throw or break into weapons. Marie had just believed that he was bored and arranging his small living space was something to do. The garden would be nice. He'd get outside, have a private place to exercise, meditate, or just be alone. He would also know the extent of the collar's range. He could subtly test for fluctuations or power failures. His manipulations of both Marie and Amy were paying off handsomely!

Stefano moved his black-garbed men into position. His contacts in the upper levels of the Watchers had told him that they had to act quickly if they wanted to eliminate the pet Immortals. Alarms were going to be installed at all of the Sanctuary sites and they'd lose their chance. Stefano and his men surrounded the Parris cottage and at the allotted time, they moved in.

For the past few days Methos had been restless. Perhaps it was the idea that he needed a panic alarm to protect him, or the planned garden with walls was making him feel like the walls were closing in on him. He was sitting in the dark and letting the moonlight from his bedroom window bathe over him. Because it was winter, he'd slipped into sweat pants and a tee shirt. He was absorbing the dark silence when he heard the crunch of several footsteps on the frozen grass outside. He stood and moved to a position just outside his room where he could see several windows, yet still be in shadow himself.

When another shadow placed itself outside his bedroom window, he decided the shadows were a danger. He moved toward the kitchen, where some time ago he'd found a small vent crawl space he could hide in. He hurried to the narrow broom closet and opened the door. On his tiptoes he slid the crawl space hatch cover aside. He took a last look to make sure the shadow men weren't in the cottage yet, before he closed the broom closet door behind him. With a hop, he grabbed the lip of the hatch and pulled himself up. The ceiling crawl space was only a few feet tall so he had to immediately angle his body. He pulled himself further into the space.

He crawled a little further into the vent and using his toes, he pushed the hatch cover back over the opening. Being as quiet as he could, he moved to the end of the crawlspace. When he knew Marie would be gone for some time, he'd investigated it and dusted it out as much as he could. He'd even used a spoon to unscrew the vent cover at the end. If the intruders found him here, he could force his body out through the end. It opened out onto the steep roof but it was better than waiting to be killed!

At the end of the shaft, he made himself comfortable and listened, down below and outside.

He knew when the invaders made their move. He heard the front and back doors slam open. He heard their frenzied search when he wasn't found inside. If he were lucky, none of his attackers would have the homing device for his collar. He could hear some of their conversations as they moved about the cottage. There was an argument before he heard them leaving. Methos settled in prepared to spend the rest of the night hidden; just to be sure they were gone.

Marie was in a good mood. Amy was coming by this evening and bringing another project for Adam to work on, the gardener would be by in the afternoon to work with Adam on the garden he'd plant in the spring, and the technicians would be by in a week to install the alarm.

She carefully made her way up the icy walkway, watching where she stepped. The smile disappeared from her face when she looked up to see that the front door had been damaged.

"Adam!" She shouted and recklessly hurried the last few yards. She pushed open the door and frantically looked around at the messed up sitting room. The furniture had been moved.

"Adam!" She shouted again as she ran to the bedroom. Adam's bed was overturned, the clothes from his wardrobe and dresser strewn about the room. A quick look confirmed that the bathroom was empty. She hurried to the kitchen, the closet and cupboard doors were all askew but she still didn't see Adam.

"Adam!" Was the disarray the result of a fight or a search? Where was Adam, he couldn't get far from the cottage. She hurried out the back and saw that the back door had been broken as well. She hurried outside and circled the cottage. No Adam, but also no body.

She ran across the frozen grass towards the guard cottage nearby. She burst into their front door and startled the two guards in the sitting room. "The cottage has been broken into and Adam's gone!"

In moments the guards were pulling on their coats. The head guard yelled into a cell phone as he raced across the grass to the Immortal's cottage.

"The homing device says he's still there." Shouted the tech after he'd run a diagnostic on his handheld device.

The guards were searching the house when Marie caught up to them. She overheard the head guard ask into his radio, "any signs of blood or a body?"

His group radioed back their negatives. Marie was relieved but still worried.

"Gene, get in here." The head guard called over the radio for his tech with the homing device. They were distracted by the sound of a car sliding to a stop outside. "Marie!" A voice shouted.

Marie and the head guard hurried to the door and spotted Amy Zoll slipping and sliding towards them. "Oh God, please tell me he's alright!" Amy begged.

Marie stepped out and helped an unsteady Amy into the sitting room. "Amy what's the matter?" Marie asked, as Amy looked frantically around.

"Where is he?" Amy said in a frightened voice when she saw the messy room.

"Adam's missing." Marie said sadly, noticing Amy's hands were shaking. Amy slumped down into a nearby chair. "What is it Amy?"

"We just heard that the other Immortals in the Sanctuary program were killed during the night. Each of the Safe houses was attacked. I came over as soon as I heard."

Marie sat down beside Amy and covered her mouth with her hands.

"What happened?" The head guard asked.

Amy took a ragged breath. "He's not here?"

Marie shook her head no. "I'd only just arrived and saw that the cottage had been broken into. I searched the house but couldn't find him."

"His homing device shows that he or the collar is still in the cottage. No signs of blood. Either they dragged him off or he's still here."

"They didn't drag him off. We spotted six sets of footprints besides Ms. LaFabre's and our own. Nothing that indicates that they dragged him off." One of the returning guards said. The tech stood right behind him.

"Don't just stand there Gene, track him down!" The head guard said in irritation.

Oh, mouthed the tech before he turned on the handheld device and moved to the doorway. Slowly he began sweeping the cottage homing in on the signal.

Methos' extremities were numb from the below freezing temperatures. He waited the rest of the night just to make sure that the intruders were gone. The sound of Marie's frantic shouts had wakened him from his hypothermic sleep. With clumsy movements, he tried to slide himself back to the hatch. When he saw his coordination wasn't up to it, he pushed at the vent cover in front of him. It easily pushed out and dropped onto the roof. Struggling to maneuver out of the narrow opening, it took him some time to wiggle his way out onto the roof. He was catching his breath when he spotted the Watcher guards returning from their search of the fields around the cottage. When he heard the beeps of the homing device, he pushed himself towards the edge of the roof. His body weight accelerated his slide down the roof and unable to catch himself, he slid off the edge and landed hard on his side on the frozen ground.

Methos groaned in pain as he felt his shoulder dislocate and his hip break. He was normally a fast healer, but in the near frozen state that he was in, he wasn't going to jump up and run from this one. He gave himself a minute for the pain to dull a little before he rolled to his good side and struggled to his feet. He staggered to the side of the cottage and let it support him. He was fighting off unconsciousness when a running crowd of guards surrounded him.

Amy and Marie pushed their way through the guards and hurried to Adam's side. He was practically blue from the cold, and pale from exhaustion. One of his arms hung useless at his side, as he leaned against the side of the cottage, letting it support his weight.

"Oh my God Adam, I'm so glad to see you!" Amy said and moved in to wrap an arm around him. Adam groaned.

"Careful! I fell off the roof and dislocated my arm; I think I broke my hip too." Adam said with gritted teeth.

Taking control of the situation the head guard stepped in. "I can put your arm back and then we can help you inside where it's warmer." He said. "With your permission?" He added at the suspicious look from the Immortal and the two ferocious looking women.

Methos looked into the face of the guard and judged him. "I'd appreciate that Sir."

The head guard stepped forward telegraphing his movements. He helped the Immortal lean against the cottage and positioned his dislocated arm. With an abrupt movement, he popped it back into place. "Do you want to try and walk inside or can we give you a lift?" He asked the Immortal who was still in great pain.

"Either will hurt like hell, but can I have a lift?" Methos said after thinking about it for a moment.

The head guard nodded and signaled a few of his men forward. He clasped the hands of another guard and said, "Okay put your weight here and when they get behind you, lean back and let them take the weight of your shoulders." When the Immortal moved into position, he continued. "Gene, you and Peter clasp hands and get his legs, keep them together or you'll hurt his hip."

When they had the Immortal secured he asked, "Okay to move?" The Immortal nodded. "Lets go, slowly now. Around to the front and into his room. Gerard, go set his bed back up. Ms. LaFabre, can you put linens on it before we get there?"

Marie and Amy hurried after Gerard. They'd just finished when the group came into the cottage. Gerard moved to start a fire in the fireplace while Amy hurried to the kitchen to start a kettle of water boiling and to fix some hot soup.

Methos let them lay him down on the bed and Marie covered him up with every blanket in the cottage. "What happened, Adam?" She asked.

The guards gathered around to hear what he had to say. Amy heard the question and with a quick check of the kettle and the pot on the stove, she hurried in to hear the answer.

"It was early this morning when I heard noises outside. When I figured out there was more than one, I hurried to the roof to hide. When they broke in and couldn't find me, they tore apart the cottage looking. They finally left when it started to get close to dawn. By then, I was so cold I think I fell asleep on the roof. When I heard you I moved and slid off." Methos said, keeping it simple.

"Did you see who they were?" The head guard asked.

Methos shook his head and shifted his position, trying to get comfortable. He heard the kettle start to whistle and Amy hurried from the room.

Amy came back into the room with a tray.

She sat down on the edge of the bed and handed Adam a mug of hot soup. He took it with hands still trembling from the cold.

Amy offered her opinion. "It had to have been renegade Watchers. We got news at headquarters this morning that the other Immortals were found beheaded this morning." She told Adam, afraid to meet his eyes.

Methos didn't say anything. He kept his expression blank as he looked at the expressions in the room.

The head guard was apparently feeling some guilt. He'd apparently never considered the danger Methos was in, concentrating instead on the danger of a 'dangerous' Immortal escaping. The head guard's face firmed with an internal resolution and he straightened his shoulders, no doubt vowing to protect his assignment against all attackers.

The other guards were sneaking glances at each other and the head guard. They were primarily interested in whether or not anyone was going to be held responsible for the attack. They were only concerned with their jobs, not their assignment.

Methos observed that Marie and Amy looked worried about him, and relieved that he'd been found with head still intact. Both had a gleam in their eyes that promised that the head guard and the Tribunal would be hearing from them about their failure to provide him with a safe environment. Methos finished off the soup and took the hot cup of tea that Amy immediately handed him.

"Gerard and Gene, you stay in the house and stand guard. Peter and Rene, you come with me," the head guard ordered. His men nodded at his orders and moved to follow his instructions.

Now that Methos' hip and shoulder had repaired themselves and he was warmed up, Methos pushed aside the blankets to get up.

"What are you doing?" Asked Amy, worried that their patient was getting up too soon.

Methos looked around until he'd found a pair of sweat pants and a shirt from the things scattered from the wardrobe.

"The shower, I've been roughing it." Methos shut the door after he'd gone into the bathroom. He set the clothes on the counter and leaned against it, closing his eyes. He'd been lucky last night. The renegades had killed the other hostage Immortals! Would this convince the Tribunal that this had been a foolish idea? If they persisted with their plan, Methos was done with being patient!

With Amy and Marie's help, Methos was granted an audience with the Tribunal. He argued for two hours with the three senior Watchers, even with Amy and Marie championing his reasons the Tribunal stood firm. Methos watched the Tribunal leave his cottage as firm in their resolve as they'd been when they'd arrived. With his own resolve, Methos set about escaping from the estate.

Part of the Tribunal's promise of safety, the panic alarm was installed that day. The guard's duty rotation now involved a rove of the grounds around the cottage. When Spring came, the garden around the cottage would be put in, and the range of the collar would increased four times what it had been, with a promise that the electronic fence around the Watcher estate was nearly complete and would be ready by the end of summer.

After being sure that he'd established that he was still concerned about his safety and being held against his will, Methos began to plan his escape.

Methos' first escape attempt was to tie himself underneath a garbage truck that came past his cottage once a week. He knew the collar would kill him when he went beyond the range of the collar, but by tying himself underneath, he hoped to be carried far enough away that the collar would lose its signal and he'd revive. As anticipated, he'd been incapacitated by the continued shock of electricity, but the guards had quickly reacted when the alarm went off in their cottage. They'd locked down the gates and kept the garbage truck inside until they'd found him with the homing device. He was returned to his cottage with a firm reprimand.

Methos took on another translation project for Amy Zoll, and used his research as an alibi to practice some ancient alchemy. He simulated a rubber-like material and coated several bed sheets he'd hidden and sewn together. Using more common ingredients, he filled it up with gases and strapped himself into a harness, hoping to float over the parameter fence and to safety. He'd studied the wind patterns and waited until the wind was going in the right direction before attempting this escape. This would have worked if Amy Zoll hadn't been so excited by the work he was doing and taken a chance and driven by to see if his lights were on. She saw the homemade balloon rising up and had been confused, thinking it was coming down. She'd alerted the guards to a possible attack on Adam. Methos had glared at her and refused to speak with her for over a month when they took away his household cleaning products!

The hand glider he was building was discovered before he completed its construction. The vehicles that parked near his cottage were all customized to prevent him from hotwiring them. Even after they activated the parameter fence and he had the freedom of the estate, he couldn't get close enough to the parameter to catapult himself over. The staff at the Academy had all been warned to avoid contact with him. He was followed and tracked so he wasn't able to use the public phones around the academy. All networked phones went through a Watcher switchboard and he was quickly disconnected. His attempts to steal cell phones were useless because the collar had a jamming signal on it that interfered with the phone's reception.

Desperate, Methos resorted to trying to get former Watcher friends to take a message out for him. They'd been firmly ordered to refuse any of his offers, pleas or threats. Anyone caught relaying a message would be detained without trial. Since Adam's movements were followed and videotaped, his former Watcher comrades were very afraid to disobey their orders. Some of his former 'friends' were even afraid to be seen talking to him, not wanting to risk being questioned or having suspicion directed towards them.

Disappointed but not defeated, Methos settled in and prepared to outwait the Watcher policy. He figured that the other Sanctuary had lasted for centuries, but that was with the Immortals drugged out of their minds and hidden away from even the higher levels of the Watcher organization. His presence at the European Headquarters would be a thorn in their side. The Sanctuary program would eventually be cancelled due to funds, policy changes, or inconvenience. He just had to wait it out. He regretted the time he would be losing with Joe, but there wasn't anything he could do about it right now. In irritation, he thought it probably served Dawson right, he'd sent several messages and there was no sign that Dawson or the Highlander were even looking for him!

Joe was getting nowhere with his research. He'd found no sign of any foul play with the Immortal deaths until four young ones were beheaded on the same night. They'd been in different countries, but it was suspicious that they'd been killed on the same night and without any record of the Immortal that had taken their heads. He'd uncovered a blackout of information in Paris a week after the new Immortal deaths, but even using his resources, he couldn't get any information. He was met with nervous denials and his friends in Paris were refusing to return his calls.

When he'd talked to Mac about it, they'd decided to return to Paris and do some snooping. Robert and Gina's return from their long honeymoon distracted Mac from the investigation. Then Michelle Webber ran into some trouble while traveling so Amanda recruited Mac's help and the Immortals spent over three months in Mexico.

Months later

Amy Zoll left the administration building and saw Adam walking towards the main Watcher building, followed closely by his two armed guards. She watched as he turned the corner of the building and disappeared from her sight. Most every day he made an appearance in the Archives to read. It was easy for her to watch for his arrival.

Amy watched Adam from behind an archive stack. When he'd made himself comfortable in his favorite leather, overstuffed chair that was tucked away in one of the quiet corners, she fixed a cup of coffee the way she knew he liked it and approached him. When he'd been a researcher he could always be found in the same chair he was sitting in. Amy had assumed that he chose it because he'd be undisturbed in the corner. Now that she knew he was an Immortal, she decided that he chose it because it was a defendable position. His back was to the wall, but he was still close enough to windows large enough for him to get out of, and close enough to a fire exit. She shook her head at her vivid imagination. He was surely sitting in the chair that he'd always sat in because it was comfortable. Pierson couldn't have changed that much in the few years he'd been Immortal.

Methos felt someone enter his sensory range and looked up, grumbling to himself as he recognized Dr. Zoll approaching. Seeing the extra cup of coffee in her hand, he realized that she meant to disturb him. He was still angry with her for thwarting his several escape attempts.

When she sat down in the chair closest to him, Methos spoke softly so that only she could hear what he said. "You do realize that they make a note of everyone I speak to, everyone will be afraid to speak with you for fear of the fallout. That might not be good for your career."

Amy smiled at his remark, pleased that he was at least speaking to her now. "I'm in research, how much of a career is there in that?" Amy joked.

Methos snorted. "Especially when one is already the head researcher."

Amy nearly reacted with anger at his sarcasm. Why the hell was she bothering? Pierson was the same arrogant smart ass that he'd always been! Then she realized that they'd been talking in Ancient Greek. She smiled instead. "Especially when it's one head researcher to another."

Methos smiled and they spent the next few hours arguing history in the Ancient languages that Dr. Zoll knew. Methos could tell that Amy loved every minute of it. She was very gifted at research, but had no social skills to speak of. Methos and Marcus had often discussed her when the Roman Immortal had still lived. Amy only respected those few individuals that could keep up with her. In Methos' case, he was leaps and bounds ahead of her, and she hated that knowledge.

It was less than a year later that Joe Dawson became very sick. Amy broke the news to Adam while they were having tea at his cottage. Joe had received a minor injury in a fall that had become septic. He'd been hospitalized and was in critical condition. Methos immediately requested an audience with the Tribunal.

"I want to see Joe. I'm told he's in the hospital, they don't expect him to last the week." Methos said calmly but firmly.

"We can't let you do that. The success of Sanctuary demands that no one knows you're here."

Methos almost challenged that there could be no Sanctuary with only one prisoner, but he hated to have the Watcher go and collect more Immortals to spite him. So far, Amy Zoll assured him that he was the only Immortal in Sanctuary. "No one has to know, just let me say goodbye to Joe."

"Joe would tell MacLeod and he'd ruin what we've worked for. We can't have that."

"A postcard, a note, anything!"

"I'm sorry, we can't risk it."

"This is wrong and you know it! You can't control the Prize by controlling the last Immortals. There IS NO PRIZE!" Methos shouted.

"We won't authorize a visit. You will not leave."

Angry, Methos glared at the three and silently vowed the Watchers would be left powerless. Methos left the room followed by Amy, running to catch up to his purposeful stride.

"Adam! Wait!"

Methos continued without stopping, mind full of plots and possibilities.

Amy stopped when it was clear that Adam didn't want her company or platitudes.

Amy carefully waited until MacLeod had left the hospital after visiting Dawson. She'd checked in with the new Watcher assigned to MacLeod now that Dawson was at death's door. MacLeod was aware of the change in his Watcher but had ignored him. Amy thought it might be an act of defiance on MacLeod's part. The replacement Watcher hadn't been selected by Dawson and didn't follow the undisciplined behavior that Dawson exhibited.

Amy stepped out of the elevator and headed towards Dawson's room. She opened it a crack and peeked in. She wasn't prepared for the once vibrant man lying listlessly on the hospital bed. Dawson was hooked up to a multitude of machines that beeped to the beat of his heart. Amy slipped into the room and shut the door behind her.

She'd insisted that she be allowed this visit. She argued that since Adam couldn't visit Dawson, she'd visit so at least she could say that she had taken Adam's feelings into account. Suspicious, the Tribunal had insisted that she wear a wire, so that they could monitor what she said to Dawson. Reluctantly, Amy had agreed. She had intended on telling Dawson that Adam was fine, but not where he was. She'd just have to be more creative now.

Amy stopped beside the bed and chewed her lower lip as she looked at the pale man on the bed. She'd seen Dawson around the Watcher halls, a standout presence even with his cane and limp. His disability hadn't held him back when he'd fought for a field assignment. He'd risen through the ranks and been appointed regional supervisor, then regional director. It had been thought that he would have been a member of the Tribunal if he hadn't continued his relationship with his Immortal friends.

She didn't realize that she'd mentally drifted until Dawson spoke. "Dr. Zoll?" He said it like he was repeating himself.

"Oh, sorry. I don't do well in hospitals." Amy stuttered.

Joe wondered why Amy Zoll was here. She'd never taken the time to speak with him before now. Could Methos have been exposed? Was that why she was here? Was that why Methos had disappeared and she was only here to get confirmation on his identity? Joe heard the heart monitor speed up and consciously forced himself to calm down. "Pull up a chair and have a seat." Joe offered. He wanted to hear what Amy had come to say.

Amy did as instructed and moved a chair close to the bed where Dawson could see her clearly.

"So what brings you here if you don't do hospitals well?" Joe asked wanting to get right to the point.

Amy cleared her throat. She couldn't lie, but she had to be credible. "The doctors are insisting on only a few visitors. I'd offered to come with the Watcher Academy's best wishes for you."

"Lost the bet?" Joe said with a smile.

Amy smiled back. "No, I won the bet."

Amy relaxed and shared the Watcher gossip with Dawson for the next half hour. She was pleased to see Dawson relax and enjoy her company. When she heard the morphine machine beep as it dispensed its quarter hour medication, it occurred to her that she understood why Immortals were attracted to Dawson's company. He was real. Dawson allowed her to feel like one of the 'gang' and welcome. Immortals needed this more than anyone. Their long lives kept them isolated from the mortals that surrounded them. Dawson's personality allowed them to connect with that part of their lives they'd had torn from them. It allowed them to feel like they belonged again. It became more important than ever to tell Dawson that Adam had wanted to come to see him.

Joe felt the morphine numbing the pain that was almost a constant. The doctors had told him that his organs were failing because of the infection. They'd tried the strongest antibiotic available and several other regiments, but Joe's mortal body was finally failing him. And determination and willpower by themselves wouldn't save him. Mac and Amanda had come to be with him in his final days. Even his daughter Amy Thomas had made arrangements to be in town after hearing he was ill. The only one missing was Methos.

Joe felt himself growing tired. In another quarter hour he'd be fast asleep from the pain killers. He needed to know why Amy Zoll was really here.

"Why are you here Dr. Zoll?"

Amy Zoll had the grace to look guilty. She looked up and when she saw Joe watching her intently, she carefully lifted the tails of her blouse to show the bug they'd taped onto her stomach. She pointed to her wrist to show her Watcher tattoo. "I told you why I was here."

Joe nodded. He decided to question Dr. Zoll to see what he could find out. "Did you think I'd tell you where to find Methos because I was on my death bed?"

Dr. Zoll looked as if she hadn't thought of that. That relieved Joe somewhat. "It hadn't occurred to me to ask, but if you want to tell me, I'd be happy to listen."

"I don't know where he is right now. He disappears and reappears when he wants to. If I told anyone, I'd tell Adam." Joe said.

Amy nodded emphatically and gestured with her hands as if she wanted him to continue the thought.

"Adam?" Joe said and at Amy's nod he continued. "I'd tell Adam so that he'd get credit for finding Methos."

"Adam's not a Watcher anymore. He's Immortal. Aren't you afraid he'd take Methos' head?"

"Not a chance." Joe said. "Besides, I haven't seen Adam in a long time." Joe watched Amy carefully.

Amy nodded and pointed to her wrist. She held her hands together as if they were handcuffed together.

Adam. Watchers. Adam with the Watchers? He continued to pump Amy carefully for answers. "If you could tell me where Adam was, I might consider telling him what I know." Joe said.

"We don't know where Adam went. His Watcher lost him." Amy pointed to her wrist again and held them like they were cuffed again.

"Do you at least know if he's still alive?"

Amy nodded emphatically.

"Because I was very worried when I'd heard there were four young Immortals beheaded a while back and they didn't know who'd taken their heads."

Amy rolled her eyes that she wasn't getting her message across to Joe. She looked at the clock and knew the nurse would be here at any time to ask her to leave. "I'm sure if Adam could come, he would. He really cares about you Joe."

Joe looked at Amy intensely. Amy acted as if she knew where 'Adam' was. But why was she afraid to talk? Why were the Watchers listening on their conversation?

"I have to get back to the Academy." Amy emphasized. "If I see Adam, I'll tell him that I saw you and that you asked after him." Amy added.

"He would come if he could?" Joe asked trying to sound confused. Amy nodded at him with a wink.

"But he can't come." Amy shook her head sadly and pointed to her wrist.

Joe felt his heartbeat increase. The Watchers had Methos prisoner. They didn't know he was Methos. The Watchers had no idea of the danger they were playing with! Joe looked Amy in the eye and warned her. "Mac is worried about Adam. He knows Adam would be here if he could. You don't want to make Mac angry."

Amy nodded. She knew MacLeod would declare war on the Watchers if he knew his student was being held prisoner. "The Watchers don't want MacLeod to be angry." She confirmed. Amy stood when the nurse pushed open the door.

"Dr. Zoll, your time's up." The nurse said as she came in and scanned Joe's monitors to see how he was doing.

"Joe, I enjoyed my visit. I'll come by later if I can get permission from the doctors." Amy promised.

"Thank you for stopping by Dr. Zoll." Joe said and squeezed her hand in thanks. He knew that she'd invited trouble for herself by coming here.

Amy patted Joe's hand and quickly left the room.

Joe waited until the nurse left the room before he reached to the cart next to his bed and picked up his cell phone. He dialed Mac's number and waited the few rings for it to be answered. "Mac, you need to come down here. I think I know where Adam is."

Joe put the phone aside and closed his eyes wearily. This was bad, very bad. Mac would storm through the Watchers until he found Methos and then they'd disappear. Mac would tell his friends, who'd tell their friends, and the Watchers would be left with nothing. The good Immortals will all have gone underground. Joe had never felt as lost as he did now. He'd given most of his life to the Watchers and they continuously did stupid things like this to make him doubt his involvement with them.

He opened his eyes when an orderly came into his room. The orderly moved around the bed and stopped at the medication dispenser. "Hey! What are you doing?" Joe said in alarm as the orderly inserted a needle into the tube that fed into Joe's arm.

"You're too dangerous to be conscious. Sadly, you're going to slip into a coma, nothing we could have done of course."

Joe felt the narcotic overwhelm his system. He reached for the phone again, but the orderly's strong grip stopped him. "Go to sleep Dawson."

Joe lost the energy to resist and slipped into a deep sleep.

"What do you mean he's in a coma? I just talked to him on the phone less than half an hour ago." Duncan said loudly, trying to remain calm. He and Amanda had rushed to the hospital after Joe's phone call, only to be told that Joe had slipped into a coma.

"These things happen rather quickly and unexpectedly. One moment the patient is cognizant, the next, they are not. I'm sorry Mr. MacLeod. We don't hold much hope that Mr. Dawson will revive from this. He's very weak. His body is failing him." The doctor said from the other side of the nurses' desk. He was nervous about the large and angry looking man across the counter from him. "There is nothing we can do."

Amanda pulled Duncan away from the nurse's station and towards Joe's room. "There's something fishy about this. Let's go read his charts."

Amanda picked up the clipboard at the foot of Joe's bed as soon as they'd closed the door to Joe's room. "Everything looks in order." She said and handed the clipboard to Mac who read it.

"I still don't like it. Joe calls to tell me he might know where Adam is, and then he slips into a coma."

Amanda pulled two chairs over to Joe's bedside and pushed Duncan down into one of them. "Then we don't leave his side. That way, nothing else happens 'unexpectedly'." She said knowingly.

Joe didn't survive the night. The drug the orderly had given him was intended to destroy his weakened organs. Joe slipped quietly into death just after midnight, taking his secret suspicions with him.

A day later Methos was meditating in the backyard of his cottage when he sensed someone approaching. He opened his eyes and recognized Amy coming his way. He saw by her haggard look and slumped shoulders, that she didn't have good news.

Joe. Methos closed his eyes and took a deep breath to still the heaviness in his heart.

"I will never forgive the Watchers for this." Methos said softly.

"I'm sorry Adam, I tried."

"Joe was one of you. He didn't deserve to die thinking that I'd deserted him."

"The Tribunal was sure that he'd tell MacLeod."

"Heaven forbid that the Highlander find out that the Watchers are violating their own Oaths, trying to influence the Game and the Prize by any means possible." Methos growled. He stood and returned to his cottage, pointedly closing the door on Amy.

Amy stood before the Tribunal. "I'm afraid that we've passed the point of Adam's patience. He's angry, really angry and frankly, so am I. I've never believed that this version of Sanctuary was a good decision."

"Dr. Zoll, you've obviously gotten too involved with your assignment. You're not being rational. If the last few Immortals can't get to each other, there will be no Gathering and no Prize. What we're doing is in the best interest of all Mortals and the Immortals. The Immortals we took into protective custody would never have lasted to the Gathering. They were too new to the Game."

"They didn't last very long in Sanctuary either!" Amy bit her tongue. She'd get nowhere if she provoked a fight. "We don't know that. For all we know, the Game and the Gathering are just myths."

"Dr. Zoll, you yourself believe in myths, you're convinced that Methos lives."

"We have evidence that Methos has been seen over the centuries. MacLeod has even met him!"

"Rumors, but you choose to believe it, just as we believe that the Gathering and the Prize are real. Our decision stands. Pierson will not leave Sanctuary."

Occasionally suffering from insomnia, Randy Taylor had been walking the Watcher halls to try and ease some of his pre-test anxieties. Unusual sounds coming from the gymnasium drew his attention from his 'what ifs' and he headed in that direction. Quietly he looked into the gym and saw a young man working out with a staff. Lean and limber, the young man swirled the staff as if it were an extension of his body. Randy believed that this man was even better than the weapons instructor!

Even dripping with sweat, the man moved as if he were doing no more than a slow walk. His breathing was controlled and steady despite his rapid and fierce movements. The man finished his exercise and flowed into a rest position.

"Do you know the staff?" The young man asked, surprising Randy.

The man had given no indication that he'd noticed that he was being spied on. "No. The instructor said I was a klutz and told me to stick to jogging." Randy replied and stepped into the room. "You're very good." Randy said. He was curious about this man, suspecting that he might be a field agent visiting the academy. Field agents were required to do all manner of things to blend into their Immortal assignment's environment; including being proficient at weapons if that brought them into the sphere of their Immortal. Perhaps he'd get to hear something about the life of a field Watcher.

The man sent an amused look his way before putting the staff back in its place and going to a gym bag tossed against the wall. The man pulled out a bottle of water and a towel. After wiping his sweaty brow, the man wrapped the towel around his neck. "You're up rather late."

"I have trouble sleeping before exams." Randy said in explanation. He didn't want the man to think he was purposely spying on him.

"A first year then." The man said with a smile. "The second years are more relaxed. It takes recruits a year to figure out that all they have to do is not be seen by their assignment, and stay back if there's a Quickening."

Randy chuckled and shook his head. "I wished I'd learned that before now! How long have you been in the field?" He asked fishing for information.

"Actually I'm stuck in research." The man said.

"My mentor says that a year in the field will age you ten years."

"And ten years in here will age you a thousand." The man said mysteriously. The man slid the sleeves of his sweatshirt up to his elbows and picked up his gym bag. "Relax. Even if you get a field assignment, most Immortals just want to live and let live. Only the senior Watchers get the really dangerous Immortals. You'll do fine."

Randy nodded in thanks as the man patted his shoulder in reassurance. Randy couldn't help but notice that the man had no Watcher tattoo! What was he doing in the Watcher Academy if he wasn't a Watcher?

The man left the room and as he started down the stairs, he was joined by two armed guards who kept a respectful but alert distance from him. Armed guards?

Randy returned to the room he shared with two other guys and crawled into bed. He fell right to sleep, but his dreams were filled with the strange man giving him bits and pieces of wisdom. He found himself hearing what he'd heard from his other instructors, but from the stranger's young but wise face, it became truth and believable.

Methos jogged on the trail that he'd made over the year he'd been allowed the freedom of the Watcher estate. With the excuse of staying physically fit and working out his frustrations, he'd begun jogging the perimeter of the estate to test the boundaries of the invisible fence. He kept just inside the range of the fence, just enough to feel it as a tingle in the collar. He hoped to someday find a section of the fence that had failed or was weakened.

As he jogged, he concentrated on the feel of the collar, and the sound of the ATV that carried his two armed Watchers. Concentrating on those things, he missed the sound of a bicycle coming up from behind him very fast.

Randy was looking down at his right bike pedal. The damn Velcro foot strap had released again and was flapping as he pedaled. He shifted his right foot to the position closest to his hand and leaned over to re-secure the Velcro. Since he'd never seen anyone on this trail in the year he'd been at the Watcher Academy, he didn't look forward as he sped along. He was just shifting back up when he caught a shape out of the corner of his eye. Too late, he realized that there was a man jogging on the trail in front of him. He hit him with the front tire before he could turn aside or shout a warning.

Randy yelped in panic as the man lost his balance and staggered off the trail and went end over end down the incline that bordered the trail. The man came to a limp and crumpled stop against the wrought iron fence that bordered the entire Watcher Academy. Randy slid to a stop and let the bike drop to the ground. He looked for the easiest way down the incline, horrified by the awkward slump of the man, knowing he'd been hurt.

Shouts from behind him made Randy stop and look back, hoping it was someone who'd seen the accident and had come to help.

"Don't touch him!" Two men shouted as they raced up in an ATV and slid to a stop near him.

Seeing that they were Watcher Security and wearing side arms, Randy froze in place. He watched as they struggled down the hill. Putting on thick gloves, they grabbed the man by the underarms and dragged him back up the hill. They laid him down next to their ATV and settled him comfortably.

"What's happening? Is he okay?" Randy asked, wondering why they'd put on gloves. He recognized the young man he'd seen in the gym. Randy leaned over closer to the man, thinking that he looked more than unconscious. He looked dead! Had he broken his neck in the fall? Had Randy been responsible for his death?

Before the guards answered Randy's questions, the man on the ground gasped and curled up in pain. "Ouch!" He moaned.

It took Methos a few minutes to shake off the tingling from the electrocution he'd just revived from. He felt the aches and pains from his strained muscles. He uncurled himself and shifted into a sitting position. When he moved as if to rise, one of his guards offered him a hand up.

"There you go, Dr. Pierson." The guard said as he assisted the Immortal off the ground and watched him brush the dirt and bracken off his sweats.

Methos smiled a friendly smile at his Watcher guards and looked over at the shocked young man dressed in bicycle gear.

"You were dead!" Randy said to the man he'd seen working out in the gym a few days before.

Methos' eyes twinkled in amusement. Shocked surprise from a Watcher recruit? Where were they getting their recruits from these days? "Well, slightly bruised and bent, but I'll be fine in a bit."

"You're one of 'Them', an Immortal! What are you doing here?" Randy asked stupidly, still struggling to believe he was looking at an actual Immortal.

Methos grinned knowing it would do no harm to confirm his Immortality. News of his presence would never get off Watcher grounds. "Then you shouldn't be talking to me, but I'm sure the boys will overlook it this time."

Methos turned to his guards and mock growled. "Next time give me warning, guys." He turned to continue his interrupted jog. "I'm off then." Methos continued down the trail knowing that the guards would follow.

"Wait!" Randy said as the Immortal went off down the trail.

"You don't have the security clearance to know about him. Forget this happened and never mention it to anyone." One of the guards growled. They hurried to their ATV and after the Immortal that had already disappeared around a stand of trees.

An Immortal here at the Watcher Academy! And the Watchers knew of it and even provided him with security. Randy walked to where he'd dropped his bike. He continued on the trail in the hopes of catching up to the Immortal again. When he saw the men on the ATV watching him, he took a fork in the trail and headed back to the academy. After a quick shower, Randy hurried to the research area and logged onto a computer. The security men had called the Immortal "Dr. P" something so he'd start there.

Pearson, Peerson, Pierson. On his third try of spelling Pierson he got three hits in the Immortal files. He opened the first file.

Pierson, Samuel. Immortal two hundred and fifty years and had his first death in his mid forties. The picture matched the description, a middle-aged man of unspectacular appearance and bearing. This wasn't the Immortal he'd seen. He opened the next file and saw a picture of a black woman. This certainly wasn't him, no need to look here.

The third file opened and he stared into the face of the Immortal man he'd seen earlier. The fields of data were blank leaving only his name: Dr. Adam Pierson. He closed the file and reopened it, thinking it was an interrupted upload. It took longer to load, but this time the file was complete. He read his file quickly, intrigued by this man's history. He'd been a Watcher in research before his first death just over ten years ago. His current location was listed as unknown. They were lying in his chronicles! Randy read more. The Immortal's teacher was listed as Duncan MacLeod. Randy recognized that name. The Highlander was famous for being possibly the most powerful Immortal. Pierson had a very good teacher, so why was he here?

Now that he knew he was here, Randy kept watch for Adam Pierson hoping to see him again, maybe actually have a conversation with him. Pierson hadn't been Immortal that long, but he was bound to have a different perspective on the world. Randy was curious about what life as an Immortal was like and how it had changed the young looking man.

Randy adjusted his life to accommodate his obsession with talking to the Immortal again. He chose chairs by the windows in his Watcher classes, and spent his free time outside or by a window watching for him. Now that he knew what to look for, Randy began to see him everyday. At different times of the day Pierson would be jogging the perimeter trail or walking to or from the buildings of the estate. He seemed to have the freedom to move at will, only being followed discretely by his guards. Randy realized that Pierson had been here the entire time he'd been at the academy, seemingly able to disappear at will. Upon arriving in a room, the Immortal stooped his shoulders and became one of the many. Nothing about him made him stand out. He moved freely and silently around the common areas, libraries and even the classrooms. One day Randy had glanced around the room in a rather dry lecture on Crime Scene Investigations to see Pierson sitting silently in the back row. He had an amused glint in his eyes as he noticed Randy's eyes widen in surprise. Randy anxiously waited for the class to end so that he could talk to him, but as quick as it ended and he turned, Pierson was disappearing with the first group of students out the door.

By snooping around, Randy was able to determine that Pierson was living in one of the Holder cottages, usually reserved for important guests visiting the academy. A cleaning woman came to straighten up his lodgings, and another woman, professionally dressed if in an old fashioned way, stayed several hours a day.

Randy had been spying on Pierson's cottage for several hours when he saw him come out and head for the main building of the estate. Randy ducked low to avoid being seen by Pierson's two guards as they followed him at a discrete distance. Randy followed and was surprised to see Pierson head for the Watcher Chronicle archives. Surely he didn't have access to those!

Methos walked into the archives and fixed a cup of coffee before looking around for Dr. Zoll. Since he'd begun speaking to her again, they'd meet here a few times a week for coffee rather than at his cottage.

Amy watched Adam walking towards her table and smiled. She had wrinkles around her eyes and streaks of gray in her hair and he was as young as he'd been when he'd been the head Methos researcher before her.

Before he'd been abducted and forced into this variation of Sanctuary, Adam and Amy hadn't gotten along. She'd been his replacement on the Methos chronicles and they'd argued about what he'd done versus what she wanted to see. When Amy had been told to keep him occupied and help with his transition to captivity, she'd come to consider him a friend.

Suddenly the intrusiveness of the Watchers seemed more real now that it was someone she knew. She could see his side of the argument where she hadn't been able to see it before. It had taken a long time, but she'd finally been able to convince him that she was sincere. Amy knew Adam still didn't confide in her as he had Joe Dawson, but he was comfortable enough to tease her occasionally. It made her feel special to be known by an Immortal. If only he'd found Methos, his former assignment! Rumor had it that Adam's teacher Duncan MacLeod knew where Methos was and protected him. Amy sighed, if wishes were horses everyone would ride!

Methos sat down in his favorite chair and slid into a comfortable sprawl. "You must have given the Tribunal your notice of intent to return to the States."

Amy smiled and nodded. Pierson had always been able to hear things before the grapevine got wind of it! "How did you know?"

"I created the Watcher database, I may not be able to get a connection out, but I have no trouble moving around the internal network. They let one of their recruits hack into my files. Letting their hopeful audition for the job of being my Watcher?"

Amy looked at Adam to see what he thought of the manipulations of the Tribunal. She'd been nominated to be his Watcher with the added hope that they could continue to work on the Methos files together. He'd refused to do any translating that was Watcher related. Grudgingly Amy had to admit that Adam was the best researcher they'd ever had. She's suspected he knew of her dual assignment, but it hadn't seemed to bother him too much. Right now his face was its usual calm. Since she couldn't see the answer on his face, Amy came out and asked, hoping that he'd really tell her something.

"And how do you feel about that?" She asked.

"I want out of here Amy. I'm not ready to kill my way out, but I don't want to be 'Protected'. You're stealing my life and I want it back." Adam said softly but firmly.

Amy had no doubts that he felt it strongly. "I've been trying to convince them since I found out you were here Adam. But they're convinced that they're doing the right thing. There can be no Gathering as long as enough of you are safe."

"Bloody Hell!" Adam said emphatically. "They're playing God! They're doing what they accuse Immortals of trying to do. The last Immortal rules mankind." Adam snarled. "That was a load of crap when the rumors got started. They believe that it's true and that if they control the last Immortal, they'll get to rule by proxy. That's why they grabbed new Immortals just leaving their teachers. They knew no one would miss us, but did they believe we'd be malleable? They knew they couldn't control the strong Immortals like MacLeod so they shifted the odds to the weaker ones they can control."

Amy watched Adam's posture go rigid with honest anger. It reminded her that he'd been trained by one of the strongest Immortals and best swordsmen. Adam may be fairly new to Immortality, but he was still a trained killer. "I'll speak to them again." Knowing as she said it, that it was an empty promise, they hadn't listened to her before, and they wouldn't listen now.

Adam just shook his head and left the archives.

Amy rubbed her eyes wearily and stood, planning on demanding an audience with the Tribunal. Adam was right; the Tribunal was playing God. She'd harbored similar beliefs after hearing some of the excuses the Tribunal gave for having abducted and imprisoning five young Immortals years ago. There was only Adam left, after renegade Watchers had killed the other four captives. Amy had been threatened to silence just like the other Watchers that knew who Adam was. It had cut like a knife when Joe Dawson had died wondering where his friend Pierson was. Dawson had looked into her eyes and knew that she knew something she wasn't saying. Amy had read MacLeod's chronicles later, and was saddened to find out that MacLeod had been bitterly disappointed in Pierson's absence.

Amy felt an ache in her bones. Oh to be forever young! Amy headed towards the chambers where the Tribunal held court. She knew they'd make a few minutes to talk to her. They were always interested in what their 'pet' Immortal was doing.

Methos tossed his coffee into the garbage on his way out of the archives. He'd staged that little temper tantrum for the benefit of the Tribunal. He walked out of the building and started along the perimeter trail. He immediately spotted the young man who'd been tapped as his next potential Watcher. Methos was sure that his guards had spotted the young man too. He wandered slowly along the trail and let the kid work up the courage to come out of hiding and talk to him.

Randy moved from tree to tree as the Immortal walked on the path parallel to him. The other day he'd seen Pierson sitting in on the Watcher group meeting. The Tribunal had discussed the status of the Watchers. The Tribunal reported that there were 4800 known Immortals. There'd been twelve new Immortals discovered, with only eight beheadings. The numbers of new Immortals were up from last year, with the beheadings down.

Randy had watched Pierson get up and leave the meeting; his flashing eyes the only hint of his anger. Randy followed but lost him in the busy hallways.

When he'd seen Pierson leaving the Archives after speaking with Dr. Zoll, Randy had followed. Seeing Pierson headed towards the perimeter trail, Randy took a short cut and waited. Soon Pierson appeared behind him. Randy slowed until he was beside the Immortal.

"Not very subtle," Pierson said.

"I'm too curious to be subtle. Who are you? Why were you angry at what they said in the meeting the other day?"

"They're lying and all you meek little sheep are blindly following. So very proud of your imagined importance and special mission that you're missing the point." The man said quietly.

"And what's the point?" Randy asked.

The Immortal looked at him for a long moment, his eyes searing through Randy as if looking deep into his thoughts. Suddenly he asked, "You're at a scary movie. What kind of movie is it? One, a vengeance-crazed man hunting down and destroying the people he hates. Two, a big-budget disaster flick with passengers trapped below decks aboard a sinking ocean liner. Three, a sinister serial killer selecting his victims at random or Four, an unstoppable alien life form wreaking havoc on earth."

Randy stared at the man, seeing by his posture that he was waiting for an answer. Randy rubbed his brow nervously. "The alien I guess. What's the right answer?"

The man cocked his head. "Each answer is its own answer. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to be alone."

Randy nodded, disappointed but understanding. He had invaded the man's privacy. "I'm Randy Taylor."

Methos turned and walked away, hands in his pockets and shoulders slumped as if the weight of the entire world rested on them.

Randy thought about his answer and what Adam had said about it. Each answer was its own answer? He'd chosen the answer where an Alien was attacking earth. Randy leaned against a tree and banged his head against it a few times. Aliens-Immortals! Attacking earth-the Game and the Prize! What the hell was he doing learning to become a Watcher if he was afraid of Immortals taking over the earth? His curiosity and desire to be a part of the secret society had pushed him towards joining the Watchers after he'd learned of the existence of Immortals. Now that he saw the rest of the picture, was he afraid of Immortals? Instead of thinking they were special and important to observe and record, had he become afraid of them?

Randy wandered slowly back to his room and reflected on his answer and what it meant to him.

Methos walked away from the young Watcher and tried to think of some way to get out of here before he lost his temper and killed his way through the Watchers in his desperation to escape.

The Tribunal nodded at Amy Zoll after she'd finished her latest plea to release Adam Pierson from Sanctuary.

"We expected resistance and frustration from the Sanctuary Immortals; we'd even taken that into account. That's why they were secured in locations that they could find a gradual acceptance of. Pierson is just being contrary. We could hardly get him to go home at nights when he was the Methos Researcher. Speaking of which, how is the new recruit doing?"

"Taylor's checked into his Watcher files and knows he's Immortal. He's Watching Adam on his own time."

"That's a good sign. The man can be damned invisible when he wants to be!" Said one of the Tribunal.

"Adam's noticed him, he just doesn't care. Can't you see what you're doing to him?" Amy tried again.

"That Pierson's spotted him and is still letting him follow is a good sign. He needs to be interested in something; in this case we can let him pick his own Watchers."

"He's interested enough in Taylor to let him talk to him." Another Tribunal member declared.

"Or he's lonely or getting desperate. I don't think you want him desperate. Remember, he's been trained by MacLeod." Amy tried again to get them to listen. She didn't want to come out and say that Pierson had mentioned that he wasn't quite ready to kill his way out, yet!

"He'll adjust. We'll get him a young Watcher to keep him occupied and he'll get over his pout"

"I think it's more than that." Amy said.

"Enough, Dr. Zoll. We'll take your comments into consideration. Were you able to get anywhere on the Syrian tablet?"

"We finished it…" Amy said and allowed them to change the subject.

Methos drank the cup of tea that Ms. LaFabre gave him. His quiet but efficient personal assistant came everyday to get his schedule from him. He could do things spontaneously, such as go for walks and wander through the classrooms, but Ms. LaFabre was good at her job and seemed to know which classes or events he might be interested in. Today there would be a class in weapon recognition. Methos smiled at the entertainment value in that.

Randy sat at his usual place by the windows when he filed in with the rest of the class for the lecture. Today's boring required class was on weapons recognition. It was believed that you could write a better chronicle if you could recognize and knew something about the weapons your Immortal was using. Randy just knew that any weapon in the hands of an Immortal could be dangerous. After all, look how they stayed alive!

When he saw Adam Pierson come in and seat himself in the back of the lecture hall, Randy changed seats until he was as close to him as he could get without getting the attention of his two security guards, who had dressed in casual clothes for the lecture. Randy watched Pierson closely as the lecture began. The instructor started out with some of the obvious weapons, the katana, rapier and broadsword. Then he branched out into the less well-known weapons and features. The hand-and-a-half sword, Brazil nut pommels, wheel pommels, two-handed, knuckle bows and finger rings. Swords for cutting and thrusting, slashing, stabbing.

Randy was indifferent to the lecture, but quite fascinated by the Immortal's interest. Surely his teacher MacLeod had taught him all about weapons!

When the lecture was over, Pierson drifted to the front of the room with the other interested students. They milled around the weapons and asked questions of the instructor. Randy watched as the Immortal leaned close to a pretty woman and said something to her. She smiled back and they struck up a conversation.

Methos put an interested but amused smile on his face and sat through the lecture. It wasn't very informative, after all the concept was just a novelty for the Watchers. Their lives didn't depend on knowing their blades and how to defend against them. After the lecture he scanned the crowd and made his way up closer to the weapons. He picked out his target and slipped in by her side.

"It's all very dangerous and exciting isn't it? The thought of someone coming after you with something the size of that Broadsword over there?" Methos said his voice deep but soft. He'd perfected a tone of voice long ago that was guaranteed to make a woman tingle in places she didn't know she had. He'd squared his shoulders and put aside 'Adam Pierson' for the moment.

The young woman looked up to see who'd spoken and he knew he'd gotten her attention. Another Immortal junkie. He turned on the charm and let her fall like a ton of bricks.

She smiled and gave him her full attention. She didn't even notice as he slipped one of the daggers off the table and into her backpack. He palmed another one and slipped it up his sleeve.

"I saw an Immortal challenge once, I was terrified! That's how I was introduced to the Watchers. It was Stephen Keane; he's very famous in Paris. Almost as famous as Duncan MacLeod," she bragged.

"You saw Keane? That's fascinating! Can we meet for coffee? Perhaps at two o'clock? I'd love to hear more about it." Methos said putting five thousand years worth of sex appeal into his softly worded plea.

She fell for it, blushing and pleased. "Of course! Shall we meet in the library? They have comfortable couches there; of course we'll have to whisper." She said as she batted her eyes.

Methos leaned closer and let her feel the full force of his charm. "I can do comfortable. Will you hold my hand for the scary parts?"

With the date arranged, Methos let her step to the instructor and ask her question. He faded out of the crowd and left the room. He hadn't gone very far before he heard the military cadence walk of his guards. "Dr. Pierson, could you step into one of the empty rooms for a moment, we'll need to search you."

Methos rolled his eyes in pretended frustration. He stepped into a side room and in moments they'd found the palmed dagger up his sleeve. Bait and distraction. "You can't blame a guy for trying."

The guard glared at him indicating that Yes, they could blame a guy!

Methos shrugged and stepped around them leaving the room. He'd made the library one of his routine stops, so they wouldn't suspect anything when he met the young woman there.

In less than an hour, Methos had the dagger he'd slipped into the woman's backpack. The guards had already searched him, so it was unlikely that they'd search him again. He turned on the charm for the young woman again and arranged to meet with her the next day for more coffee. It was fine with him if the guards and his Watchers thought he was courting the woman. She'd make a lovely alibi!

Methos returned to his cottage that night and forced himself to keep his routine, despite his anxiousness to try the dagger on his collar. It wasn't as good a dagger as the Watchers had taken from him years ago, but it was better than anything he could find in his cottage.

At last it was time for him to get ready for bed. He went into the bathroom and shut the door. He checked the cottage everyday for cameras and listening devices, but never found any. The Watchers were confident in the collar and didn't bother with other devices. He stuck the tip of the dagger into the locking mechanism of the neck collar and got to work.

It took over an hour of frustrating picking, but he breathed an excited sigh of relief when the collar clicked open. Worried that it had an alarm if contact was broken, he'd made sure he'd kept the two halves of the collar linked by the use of a piece of buss wire he'd securely tied to each half. As long as the connection wasn't any more advanced than a simple contact, he'd be okay. He prayed to a series of Gods that the things Amanda had taught him would do the trick.

He slipped the collar over his head and laid the offending collar on the counter. He rubbed at his neck and quickly moved to make good his escape. He'd leave the collar in the bathroom and lock the door behind him. If anyone came to snoop, they'd assume he was 'occupied' and further delay discovery of his escape. He didn't want to risk any tracking devices in his clothes, so he stripped out of his regular clothes and put on the dark sweats he wore to jog. In a few short minutes, he slipped out of his bedroom and into the darkened living room. After listening and looking, he slipped out of a window he'd purposely left open. He slipped from shadow to shadow until he was on the trail that would lead him away from the buildings and into the trees. Once in the trees, he ran as fast as he could, millennia of experience without modern lights giving him the edge he needed to move rapidly and silently through the woods. In twenty minutes he was at the far boundary of the estate. Not wanting to touch the fence, he'd chosen a spot to cross that would allow him to climb a nearby tree and drop over the fence. Once done, he ran as fast as he could for the train tracks. There was a regular night train that would be coming through in about fifteen minutes and his freedom depended on him catching it!

Methos pulled himself out of the Seine and up onto the barge. He slipped from shadow to shadow until he was in the wheelhouse. He scanned the banks on both sides to see if anyone had followed him. He was taking a chance that the Watchers didn't have someone watching for him here. He'd hoped that the Watchers hadn't noticed his escape yet. He wanted to warn the Highlander before he disappeared again.

Just as he recognized the Highlander's Immortal buzz, he knew Mac recognized his. He felt the barge shift as the Highlander moved to the door. Not wanting him to turn on any lights, Methos hurried to the door and slipped in.

He saw the Highlander's solid form silhouetted against the still glowing embers in the fireplace.

"What are you doing here?" Mac growled, still holding the katana in his hands in a ready position. He was angry with Methos for disappearing years ago without sending word of any kind. The old Immortal hadn't even shown up when Joe was in the hospital, or later, at his funeral.

"I've come to warn you."

"Warn me of what? That someone from your past has shown up and is hunting for you? Well this time you're on your own."

"No that's not it, listen Mac…"

"No you listen, Methos! You left without a word to anyone. Joe needed you! He held on as long as he could just to see you again." Mac turned his back on Methos. Methos always thought of himself as the ultimate survivor. Avoiding the Watchers had been more important than Joe, and that was unforgivable! "But you gave up your conscience and compassion centuries ago didn't you?" Mac spat out.

"It wasn't like that Mac. I tried to see Joe but the Watchers…"

Mac interrupted Methos again. "Excuses, just more excuses Methos. I don't want to hear them. You're not welcome here anymore."

Methos' jaw hung open in shock. He'd known Mac would be disappointed in his long absence, but he'd never imagined that the Highlander would be this upset. "Mac…"

"Get out Methos, and don't come back." Mac said angrily. Methos had been selfish one too many times. Maybe in a few decades he'd be ready to talk to the ancient Immortal again.

Methos closed his mouth and clenched his fists. He could slam the Highlander up against the wall and force him to listen, but why bother? The Watchers weren't a threat to Mac right now. If Methos left, the Watchers would never know he'd been here. He'd find some way to stop the Watchers without MacLeod's help.

"Watch your head MacLeod, and your back. The Watchers are operating under their own agenda and it isn't in the best interest of Immortals." Methos said softly as he moved to the door. He slipped out into the dark and slipped back into the Seine.

Mac angrily tossed his katana onto his bed. He was disturbed at Methos' warning, but shrugged it off. Methos was always looking for danger in everything. The Watchers were doing what Watchers did. And it certainly didn't give the old man an excuse to abandon Joe like he had. Even Amanda hadn't been able to locate Methos when Joe had been in the hospital, and Amanda's sources were definitely on the fringes of society.

Mac went to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a scotch.

Methos moved out of the shadows and slipped down an alley, heading towards his bookstore. Several hours later he was hidden in the living space he'd set up long ago. He'd showered and changed to dry clothes in the hidden basement under the bookstore. He hadn't worried that it would have been sold or closed; his assets were all set up to run without his attention. He got onto his computer and checked the Watcher database. There was no evidence that the Watchers were looking for him here. They probably assumed he'd fled France. The Watcher Estate he'd been imprisoned at had gone to full alert in the early hours on the day he'd escaped. He reviewed the log of security activities and notices sent out to the field. They were looking for Adam Pierson now.

Methos studied their activities to determine what their next steps would be. When he felt he could anticipate their actions, he checked on the locations of a few Immortals. After a few hours sleep, he'd put his plans into action.

Amanda tapped her long, enameled nail idly on the stem of her wine glass. She was bored with running the bar. It was self-sufficient and her presence here was unnecessary. She wanted something to distract her; otherwise she'd go and get those lovely jewels that were just sitting around doing nothing at the Jewelry gallery across town.

She was distracted from her thoughts by the brush of an Immortal buzz. She straightened and looked around the crowded bar when the buzz remained. The bar was set up on holy ground so she didn't feel threatened, but she was curious. Mac rarely came to Toronto, perhaps it was just an Immortal passing by who'd felt another Immortal and been curious.

She didn't see anyone looking around with that interested posture that Immortals assumed when they were scanning for another of their kind. The buzz didn't recede so Amanda stood to get a better view of the room. She jumped in alarm when she felt a hand on her shoulder and a familiar voice spoke softly from behind her.

"Manda, I need your help."

Amanda turned towards the voice, excited to hear Methos' voice after his disappearance. "Meth…"

Methos quickly put a finger on her lips to silence her. "Not here Manda. Can we go someplace private?" He said quietly.

Amanda narrowed her eyes and really looked at Methos. He was dressed in a suit and expensive coat. The collars of the coat were pushed up to hide most of his face; a tasteful hat covered his head. He looked fit, but his eyes were warily looking everywhere. Something had the ancient Immortal nervous. She nodded and he removed his finger.

She took his hand and led him through the bar to the back. She unlocked the back door and led him up the stairs to her private quarters. She noticed that he kept looking behind them as if he was worried about being followed. "What is it?" She asked, carefully not saying his name. If he were that nervous, she was willing to believe that there was a real danger.

Methos walked around the apartment, checking for any bugs or cameras.

"What's wrong? You won't find any bugs here." Amanda said before crossing the room and gently holding Methos' arm.

Methos tipped his head down and took a deep breath. Of course Amanda would have checked her apartment for bugs; she was nearly as paranoid as he was. He nodded and went to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer, missing the irritated look Amanda gave him. Amanda pointedly walked to the liquor cabinet and poured herself a drink. She led Methos to the couch and pushed him down.

"What's going on Methos? Where have you been? Duncan and Joe were frantic." Amanda said as she sat down beside him.

"Yeah, I saw how frantic Mac was; he nearly chased me off the barge." Methos grumbled.

"What? I can't believe…" Amanda started but stopped when Methos squeezed her arm gently.

"Never mind, I need your help Manda. I want you to help me break into Watcher Headquarters."

"Whatever for? What have those vultures stolen now?" Amanda asked feeling more relaxed.

"Immortals." Methos said coldly. "They took five Immortals and held them prisoner at different Watcher estates in Europe, the other four were killed by renegade Watchers. I only just escaped. They're trying to hold off the Gathering and if that fails, control the last Immortal."

Amanda gasped. "They…you…those Bastards!" Amanda jumped up and began pacing angrily. "I'll call Duncan and we'll teach those Watchers a lesson once and for all!"

"Amanda." Methos said firmly. "I tried talking to Mac. He didn't want to hear where I'd been. I'm afraid we need to do this without his help."

Amanda heard the injured tone in Methos' words. "Oh sweetie, I'm sure he'll listen. You know how he is when his feelings are hurt. And he was hurt that you disappeared and he couldn't find you."

"No Amanda. The Watchers will be watching him. If he comes here, they'll know I've surfaced again. Right now we have the element of surprise. They'll expect me to run as far away as possible, or run directly to Mac."

Amanda sat down on the couch. "Methos…" Amanda couldn't finish her sentence; she didn't know what to say. Methos was right about the Watchers. "I'm so sorry sweetie." She said placing a gentle hand on his cheek. She knew the Ancient didn't trust many and it must hurt him to have been rejected by the judgmental Scot once again. It had taken some time for Duncan to get over that thing with the Horsemen. She was honored and touched that Methos trusted her enough to come to her. "I'll help, what do you need me to do?" She asked.

Strategy, tactics, operation, and implementation planning was what Methos did very well. With the help of Amanda's friend Nick Wolfe, and Wolf's colleagues, Methos was able to collect information and plan for every contingency. Truly money could buy anything, and Methos had more than enough money. Six months after his escape from the Watcher Academy, he initiated his plan.

First, it was plumbing problems, nothing too elaborate, but enough that the Director of each archive made the independent decision to move the archives to safe, temporary storage until the plumbing could be repaired. The archived chronicles were too valuable to risk water damage to them. Because each Director was ignorant of the not so coincidental plumbing problems at the other archives, no alarms or questions were raised at this unusual but simultaneous plumbing problem.

On route, each of the special climate controlled semi trucks was hijacked. Taken by Methos' drivers, the semi trucks carrying the complete hardcopy chronicles of each archive were hidden in Methos' specially designed vaults all over the world.

As the drivers were hijacking the trucks, Methos was downloading data in the guise of routine maintenance performed by the centralized Watcher database. When he'd downloaded all of the data, he introduced a virus that deleted or corrupted files at an accelerated rate.

When his Trojan virus alerted him that the destruction of the Watcher database was complete, Methos got a call from each of his agents confirming that the semi trucks and their precious cargo were safe and secure.

Methos sent off an email to the Tribunal's personal addresses, and then destroyed his laptop computer's hard drive. He left the office he'd rented under an assumed name and disappeared into the New York pedestrian traffic.

"This is a catastrophe! How could this have happened?" One of the Tribunal shouted at the Directors they'd brought in from all over the world. "Every chronicle, every file!"

"We had no way of knowing what was happening; it just looked like a minor plumbing problem. Protocol says the chronicles are to be evacuated at the first threat of water or fire."

The Tribunal vented their anger and frustration at the Directors for hours. Finally the group recessed so that the Directors could return to their regions and try to see what could be salvaged.

"Who did this?" The European regional director whispered to the North American regional director.

"I heard from an executive secretary that shall be nameless, that Methos came out of hiding. He sent an email to the Tribunal telling them that he'd taken the chronicles and the database because the Watchers couldn't be trusted with it anymore. He said he'd be watching the Watchers. If we got out of line again he'd see to it that every Immortal knew about us."

"He might not have to, without the database; we don't know where half the Immortals are. We only had Watchers assigned to the ones that head hunted or were contenders for the Prize."

"We have to start over again. No database, only a few of the chronicles that were checked out or that hadn't been turned in to the archives yet. This is a dark age for the Watchers."

"What caused this? What brought Methos out of hiding?"

"Sanctuary," was whispered ominously. "Someone Methos knew was taken for the Watcher Sanctuary." The directors looked at each other knowingly. The Watchers had probably gotten off easy; a powerful Immortal like Methos could have caused much more damage by telling the worst of the Immortals about the secret organization. They'd gotten off lucky with only the loss of the chronicles and database.

"I don't know what possessed them to be so stupid a second time." The European regional director whispered alluding to the Sanctuary that Kell had destroyed years before.

Amanda stepped from the cab and smiled as she felt Mac's buzz. She picked up her garment bag and walked up the gang plank, laughing when Mac appeared on deck and hurried to greet her. He took her bag from her and guided her into the barge. After he'd poured her a glass of wine he kissed her slowly and attentively.

After the warm greeting Amanda took Mac's face in her hands. "Duncan, I have something you need to see."

Mac looked at Amanda in amused tolerance. Did the comely thief want to show him a fabulous jewel that 'belonged' to her? She'd tried this act before when she'd wanted his help.

Amanda sashayed to the DVD and put the disc into the machine. She wanted to keep Duncan's attention. She moved to the couch and patted the spot beside her. When he sighed and came to sit down beside her, she snuggled in close to him.

"What is it Amanda?" Duncan asked tolerantly.

"Just watch." Amanda said and pushed the Play button. She'd made this disc from the recordings she and Methos had taken from the Watchers.

Duncan watched idly as the disc started. His interest picked up when he saw the young man on the screen get shot and picked up by a dark van. Several more young men he didn't recognize were shot in different locations and put into similar dark vans. He sat up alertly when he recognized Methos' face. Methos' image was shot down just outside of his flat. "What's this Amanda?"

"Hush Duncan just watch."

Duncan saw each of the young men who'd been shot and taken, along with Methos restrained in separate cells. He could tell the disc was a compilation of several works; different locations, Immortals and Watchers, but all of them showed the Immortals as prisoners."

"What's this?" Duncan repeated loudly.

"The Watchers decided to start up Sanctuary again. They went out and got what they thought were new Immortals just leaving their teachers. After all, who'd miss the new ones? No one really expected the new ones to last long; they just don't have the killer instinct that you need to last in the Game." Amanda said coldly. "They took them to different Watcher locations, put electronic collars on them that killed them if they tried to escape, and threatened anyone that saw them. Renegade Watchers killed four of the five Immortals. Last year, Methos escaped. Together we crippled the Watchers by taking their chronicles and destroying the database."

Mac stood up and paced to the porthole. He was silent for a few moments. "Methos couldn't come to Joe." He said gruffly, his voice deep with the emotions he was feeling.

Amanda got up and wrapped her arms comfortingly around Duncan. "No. He heard that Joe was sick and begged them to let him see him. They refused. Duncan, he's clever but it still took him a long time to escape."

"Methos tried to send out a couple of messages hidden in other transmissions. It looked like Joe had gotten at least one of them and started to ask questions."

Mac wiped a hand across his face. He'd blamed Methos for not seeing Joe before the Watcher had died. And when Methos had finally escaped, he'd come to Duncan for help only to be turned away in anger. Methos had turned to Amanda to get the help he should have gotten from him. "Where is he now?" Mac asked, wanting to apologize and ease his conscience.

Amanda shook her head. "I tried; he doesn't want to see you."

Mac looked at Amanda, his eyes reflecting his pain.

Amanda hugged him. "He will forgive you Duncan, he just needs some time. He doesn't want the Watchers to find him again." She kissed his cheek. "You are a celebrity in both the Immortal and Watcher circles." She said trying to ease the hurt she saw on Duncan's face.

"I still need to see him, to tell him…"

"When he's ready Duncan," Amanda said soothingly.

Methos looked around the graveyard to make sure that no one was around. Continuing to look around, he walked up behind Amy Zoll as she sat by Joe's grave.

Amy Zoll had visited Joe Dawson's grave twice since the Watcher's death. She felt guilty about denying him his last request. She'd seen in his dying eyes that he knew she was hiding something. She'd wanted to tell him, but the Tribunal had insisted that she wear a wire before she was allowed to even visit him. They wanted to make sure that she didn't let anything slip about the new Sanctuary.

"Trying to soothe your guilty conscience Dr. Zoll? It won't work, I've tried it. When they're dead, they can't forgive you." Methos said sarcastically.

Dr. Zoll started to rise in surprise but Methos put a firm hand on her shoulder pushing her back down. "No, I insist. What better place to have a nice quiet, private talk than by the grave of the man you betrayed?"

"You found Methos. You helped him take the Chronicles and destroy the database." Amy said breathlessly remembering the email that had been broadcast over the Watcher network after the chronicles were stolen and the database wiped clean.

Methos nodded, his eyes flashing cold fire despite the smile on his face. "The Watchers had become a danger to Immortals." He continued to scan the area to make sure that no one was coming. "I've known where Methos was for a long time." Methos said wickedly. "But I knew better than to trust the Watchers with that information."

Amy was afraid of the cold look in Adam's eyes. Had the ill-considered actions of the Watchers made him into this? "What are you going to do now?" She asked nervously. She didn't fear for her safety, but she did want to know if he was going to exact more revenge upon the Watchers.

Methos looked at Amy and saw the fear in her eyes. He was going to disappear, and Amy had tried to convince the Tribunal on his behalf. "I'm going to disappear again. I only stuck around for Joe and MacLeod." Methos stood and walked to Joe's grave, running a hand over the tall tombstone. "Joe was a good friend, one you only come across once in a hundred lifetimes. And he died thinking that I had abandoned him." Methos sighed and looked at Amy to watch her reactions. "And MacLeod is too young, prone to judging without knowing all the facts." Methos snorted, "I don't have the patience for the foolish git right now. I'll check on him in a century or two, if he's still around."

Methos straightened his shoulders and looked fully at Amy, letting his millennia rise to the surface of his eyes. "Oh and THAT you can keep out of my chronicle."

Amy saw Adam become something powerful, dangerous, and elusive in the blink of an eye.

Methos' mind recorded the shocked, knowing look on Amy's face as she recognized 'what' he was, even if she hadn't realized 'who' he was.

Methos put his hands into his pockets and sauntered off.

There wouldn't be a Gathering of the last of the Immortals unless the Mortals killed them all. For every Immortal lost, another was created. Methos had the statistics going back for centuries; the Tribunal had known it too. Methos felt no guilt at stealing all of the Watchers records. Millennia ago, he'd manipulated the Watcher's creation as a way of keeping track of the other Immortals. But the Watchers had lost their value to him. Now there were computer networks he could use to keep track of the others, and he didn't need a secret organization to do that for him anymore.

This was the age of technology. The man or Immortal that mastered this technology could remain in hiding indefinitely. An armed guard held the limo door open for Methos. He climbed into the back of the armored limo and poured himself a drink. The guard got into the front passenger seat and the limo pulled away from the cemetery. The CEO of the worldwide technology conglomerate had a business lunch to attend.

The End