Hidden Danger

Sighing, Dmitri Yuriev adjusted himself in the furthest corner of his host body's thoughts; he hadn't anticipated Nigredo taking back control so quickly. It would be a while before he could try to possess him again, in fact, he couldn't. Nigredo had been able to make it back to his friends, to Rubedo; before his body gave out from the strain of fighting off his father on the mental plane. But Dmitri was perfectly content to wait, while he had control of Nigredo's body, he had gone through the younger man's thoughts, and several things of interest had come up…with the primary one focusing on a companion of Rubedo's.

Shion Uzuki. Dmitri felt Nigredo 'stir', his mind slowly coming out of the enforced slumber his body had forced on it. The older man kept himself still, best to let his son think that he'd been successful in fighting him off. He was now awake, he could see what Nigredo saw, hear what he heard. And he had to give way to curiosity, Nigredo was very concerned over this young woman, and Dmitri wished to see her for himself.

The information the others were able to get on her was very limited…

"This is it?"

"That was all we were able to find." Thoughtfully, Dmitri brought up the e-mail on the Connection Gear, Shion's file appearing on the screen in front of him.

"She was placed in Vector's First RD Division at 18?"

"That's a mystery in and out of itself. And after the archtype KOS-MOS was scrapped, she became the head of the current project."

"Hmm." On the outside, she looks normal. Yet Nigredo's picked up on something about her, enough so to worry him greatly. Dmitri thought. He pressed the Gear's direction button, scrolling down through the information. "She's from Miltia?"

"Yes. Her mother was hospitalized in Mizrahi's neural institute, and her father was a high-ranking official in the Federation…it's rumored that he worked with Mizrahi as well. She has one older brother, a former captain in the Federation miltrary."

"No more family?"

"No. One grandfather, but he died when she was 16. It looks like she lived with him and her older brother after the events of Old Miltia. The only other contact we found was a Kevin Winnicot, head of the original KOS-MOS project. He was one of the archtype's victims, and was listed as her fiancée." The blond-haired man nodded, turning off the Gear's screen.

"I see."

Dmitri was suddenly jolted from his musings as Nigredo turned his head, hearing the door hiss open. Following close on the heels of this was a jolt of awareness mixed with caution; she had just come into the room.

"How are you feeling?" As Nigredo fought to sit up, Dmitri got his first "look" at Shion. She was small and slender, and at first glance, she didn't seem to be all that important…until you reached out on the mental plane, looking for her 'aura'.

What the… Quickly, the older man drew back, staring at the banked inner flame of Shion's power. Sure enough, there it was…what Nigredo had picked up on almost instantly, and what Rubedo had failed to notice until the Song of Nephilim had sung its deadly melody…great power.

"What are you doing here?" Nigredo asked, his voice raspy.

"Jr. asked me to look after you while he was on the Durandal." Blissfully unaware that she was being surveyed by a second pair of eyes, Shion stepped into the room, walking over to Nigredo with a tray in her hands. "He's pretty mad at you for going off to Fifth Jerusalem without telling him."

"I had to take care of something…" Nigredo murmured, putting a hand to his forehead. Dmitri felt him reach out, trying to find him. Confident that his son would be unable to locate him, he returned his attention to Shion.

He and Rubedo both heard her say that she could hear the Song, yet she was unaffected. He's positive that she picked up on their powers the minute she met them, and he has a memory of Rubedo telling him about Albedo and how he looked at her… The feel of a hand on Nigredo's head startled him; Shion was leaning over his son, casting a healing Ether.

"Does this feel any better?" Dmitri felt guilt and fear beat at Nigredo, he couldn't dare tell her about what had really happened, and fear that he might lose control…what if his father had found out his thoughts about Shion!

It's a little too late to worry about that, don't you think? Nigredo's loyalty to his older brother surprised Dmitri; he was going to have a fight on his hands if he tried to make the black-haired man complete his mission. And then there was the interesting puzzle in front of him… I'm surprised that he hasn't entertained the idea of using his abilities on her. This thought gave him pause. In the position he was in right now, he could gently 'prod' Nigredo into catching Shion in his hypnotic spell and twist it so that Nigredo was unaware of what he was doing, giving Dmitri a medium of control.

He is still exhausted from the first time, which should make things much easier… His mind made up, Dmitri moved cautiously, sending out a subtle mental 'push' to his son's mind. Instead of trapping Nigredo in his own hypnosis, it would be better to put his mind in mental stasis, that way he had access to the younger man's powers, not to mention he would know when Nigredo started to fight back.

Gaignun struggled to stay awake, Shion's Medica spell had done wonders for his headache, and now his body was screaming at him for more sleep…but he couldn't go to sleep, not with her around, what if he came back…

I need to get her away from me. Licking his lips, he tried to speak, but his tongue was heavy in his mouth, he was just so tired…he had beaten Dmitri, hadn't he? Surely he had gained a little reprieve…wait a minute, what had he been thinking about earlier? He couldn't remember…and the idea of sinking into several hours of blissful unconsciousness was looking better and better. Shion was a big girl; she was more than capable of defending herself…

Wait, why am I thinking like that? Alarm bells started to ring in Gaignun's mind, this wasn't right…his heart thudded with horror as the only logical explanation came to mind but before he could realize it fully, it was floating away as if it were a soap bubble, and he was so damn tired… His eyelids drooped, and he could actually feel himself starting to drift away. A small part of him raged, he shouldn't go to sleep, something was wrong…but the raven-haired U.R.T.V. paid no heed, he'd figure out what it was after he'd slept for a couple of hours…Oblivious of what had just transpired, Shion had her back turned to the figure in the bed, pouring a glass of water. As Dmitri gained control over Gaignun's body, he sat up, pushing the covers off of him. His feet pressing silently into the thick green carpet, he stood up and moved closer to the brunette, intending to grab her from behind.

"Representative Helmer said he'd come by later to see how you we…" Green eyes looked up into the mirror, and met not another set of green irises, but blue…blond hair instead of jet-black locks, realization slammed into Shion and she whipped around, the glass falling, her lungs drawing in air to scream. At the same time, Dmitri lunged forward, one hand grabbing Shion's left wrist while the other flew upwards to press against her mouth. The younger woman retaliated by bringing her knee upwards, slamming it into his midsection. Dmitri grunted in pain and released his grip, then found himself sprawling on the floor as Shion karate-chopped him hard on the nape of his neck. As she moved to run away, the blond-haired man grabbed her right ankle and pulled, sending Shion down to the ground. Her training coming out in full force, Shion turned so that she hit the floor backside first, left foot lashing out and connecting with Dmitri's cheek. This resulted in the older man's grip loosening just a bit, and the brunette broke free…

No! Snarling, Dmitri did the only thing he could do, which was to throw himself on top of Shion, pinning her arms by her head and straddling her legs. Before Shion could arch to throw him off, the older man caught her in his gaze, forcing all of Gaignun's power into her mind. Almost immediately Shion quieted, her eyes glazing over as Dmitri cast Gaignun's hypnotic spell on her. Sighing, the older man shifted position, moving so that the younger woman was cradled in his arms.

"Damnit." He growled underneath his breath. Who would have known this slip of a woman would have turned into a virtual tigress? Nigredo would be bound to notice the injuries his body had suffered. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" Sighing, he lifted a hand to Shion's forehead. "Now, let's see what you're hiding…and why Nigredo's so worried about you."

Ding

"Shion?" Dmitri's head whipped up as he registered the voice. Representative Helmer…damn it, he thought he'd had more time! Cursing the other man's timing, he tapped into his power, making sure that Shion thought she'd fallen down and hit her head, then slid quickly underneath the sheets on the bed, casting a healing Ether and retreating back to his corner of Nigredo's mind just as the door hissed open.

"Shi…Shion! Are you alright?" Groaning, the brunette let Helmer help her up.

"Y…yes. I'm sorry, I slipped in that puddle of water and fell down, and I must have hit my head." Wincing, she rubbed at her forehead. "I'm such a klutz today…"

"It's alright. How is Nigredo?"

"Sleeping again. He had a pretty bad headache earlier…ow!" Hissing softly, Shion grabbed at her left wrist. "What on…"

"Perhaps you should get that checked out." Helmer offered. "I'll accompany you to the medical lab."

"Thank you." Shion said. Smiling, the older man escorted Shion out, leaving Dmitri alone with his thoughts.

I see why Nigredo's so concerned with her now. Even though his contact had been limited, it had been enough to spark his curiosity. Perhaps it would be wise to…acquire her for a while. It would not be a hard thing to accomplish; he now knew he could use Nigredo's body while he slept, all he had to do was give the order and it would be done.

Yes, that seems wise. He chuckled to himself as he gave into the now familiar lethargy that overcame him after he had possessed his son. Nigredo, it seems I have much to thank you for.