In Search of the Truth
by tag


Earth: Final Conflict is copyright © Tribune Entertainment and Roddenberry/Kirschner. No infringement of that copyright is intended by this story.
In Search of the Truth is copyright © 2000, tag.
Author's Notes: Thanks to Robyn from "The Sentinel" fandom for helping me with the medical issues; and thanks to my betas Loui, Molly, and Michelle for all their help.
Dedicated to Loui and Molly and the members of the PhilosophySphere FanFiction Forum in 2000 for all their support and encouragement.


Prologue


Liam sighed softly as he sat back in his chair and listened with half an ear as Sandoval continued to go over Zo'or's schedule for the next two weeks.

It wasn't that he was unhappy that Sandoval was going on vacation. In fact, he'd been delighted - for his father's sake - when Da'an had broached the idea. Sandoval needed a vacation, needed to get away from the Taelons - all of them - for a bit. No, he wasn't the slightest bit unhappy about that.

What he was unhappy about was the fact that Sandoval's going on vacation left him in charge. Left him dealing with Zo'or, with the Volunteers, and with a number of duties he would much rather not assume. The only other time this had happened before was when Sandoval had been in the hospital. It had left him with a deep and abiding dislike for the job of Acting Chief Protector to the Taelon Delegation, and a much deeper respect for his father's patience.

Dealing with Zo'or had definitely been the worst part of that.

"Major!" Sandoval said sharply, interrupting Liam's preoccupation. "Are you listening to me?"

"Yes, Sandoval," Liam replied, keeping his voice calm. "You were saying that Zo'or has that dedication at the new Seattle Children's Hospital with Da'an on Wednesday, and then he will be attending the meeting between Si'al and the African premier later that afternoon..."

"Well, it's good to know that you're paying some attention, at least," Sandoval muttered. "Remember, Major, I don't want you improvising..."

"Don't worry, Sandoval, I'll be good," Liam returned, giving his father a sardonic grin. "No improvising, do your job exactly as you would do it... I do remember."

"Good. Now, on Thursday..."


Chapter 1


Liam gritted his teeth as he landed the shuttle carefully in front of the Seattle Children's Hospital and looked out over the lawn, already set up for the dedication ceremony. Sandoval had only been on vacation for two days, and already Liam was more than ready to hand him back his job.

To be fair, the worst problem wasn't dealing with Zo'or, as he'd thought it would be. In fact, Zo'or had been surprisingly... well, not exactly pleasant, but at least... reasonable. It wasn't Da'an, the Volunteers - or even the rest of the Synod, which had been another of Liam's fears.

It had been Renee Palmer.

Renee apparently saw Sandoval's vacation as the perfect opportunity for the Resistance - what they'd managed to re-build after the attack Da'an had instigated - to make some moves that Sandoval would find hard to counter when he came back. The fact that Liam was in charge would, in her opinion, simply make it easier.

Liam didn't object to the idea of making a few, subtle moves; but what Renee was proposing wasn't exactly subtle. She was proposing that they set up a series of raids on selected Taelon labs - labs that contained bits and pieces of information relating to certain of Zo'or's 'special projects'. The fact that this information existed - along with its locations - was top-secret, accessible only to certain personnel. If Sandoval was there, he would pick up on the pattern of the raids immediately - and he would expect Liam to pick up on it as well, and deal with it. And with Zo'or and Sandoval already suspicious of him, the last thing Liam needed was to provide them with more ammunition.

Heaving a silent sigh, Liam returned his attention to the here and now, opening the shuttle. A Volunteer - Lieutenant Dietz, the head of the squad he'd sent to help the Seattle police with security - was waiting for him just outside.

"Any problems, Lieutenant?" he asked, getting out of the pilot's seat.

"No, sir," Dietz replied. "The police are on the alert for any sign of trouble, and I've got my squad positioned around the area, with two of them in the security station."

"Good," Liam replied, as he exited the shuttle, followed a moment later by Zo'or and Da'an.

Lt. Dietz bowed to the two Taelons, then handed Liam an earpiece. "I'll be in the security station if you need me, Major."

Liam had just enough time to nod to her in acknowledgement before Dr. Warren Hutchinson, the new hospital's administrator, hurried over to greet them. He grimaced slightly; he'd met Dr. Hutchinson a few weeks ago when Da'an had visited to arrange today's ceremony, and hadn't been overly impressed.

"Welcome to Seattle, Zo'or, Da'an... Major Kincaid. I'm so glad you could make it today."

"As are we, Dr. Hutchinson," Zo'or said, in a charming tone.

Liam shot a suspicious glance at the Synod leader. Zo'or was generally only that charming when he had something up his sleeve. Wonderful... So Zo'or's got plans for the hospital, does he? I'll have to check through Sandoval's files, see if I can find out what...

"If you'll follow me," Hutchinson continued, "we're all set up and almost ready to start."

Good, Liam thought, as he trailed after Hutchinson and the two Taelons. The sooner we get done and out of here, the better...

He stopped abruptly. What the hell...? Why do I suddenly want to leave?

"Liam?"

Liam glanced up to see Da'an looking at him. Dr. Hutchinson and Zo'or had stopped a few feet away, both of them looking impatient.

"Is something wrong, Liam?"

"Wrong?" Liam repeated. He gave an innocent shrug, only then noticing that he'd been rubbing the palm of his hand - a nervous habit he thought he'd managed to get rid of. "No, nothing's wrong. I was just..." he shrugged again, "just thinking."

Da'an nodded, but Liam wasn't sure whether or not the Taelon believed him.

"Come on," Dr. Hutchinson urged, his tone a bit impatient.

Da'an continued to look at him for another moment or two, and then turned back to Hutchinson and Zo'or.

Liam continued trailing after them, absently scanning the area for potential problems or threats, but the majority of his attention was occupied with the question of why he felt it so important for them to leave as soon as possible.

It wasn't a vision - that would have been fairly obvious. And yet, at the same time, it felt stronger than a hunch; almost like a powerful presentiment that wasn't defined enough for a vision.

Which meant that it would probably be a wise idea to strengthen security.

Slipping his earpiece in, Liam listened for a moment to the chatter on the security channel - regular, calm, nothing unusual being reported - before interrupting.

"This is Major Kincaid. I want a full security sweep of the area. Report any anomalies to me," he ordered - quietly, so as not to be overheard by Hutchinson and the Taelons. He didn't want any questions about his sudden concern over the security arrangements.

"Yes, sir," came the prompt reply. "Starting security sweep now."

By this time they'd reached the dais, which had been set up just outside the hospital's main doors for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Liam winced slightly as he took in the broad expanse of lawn, where hundreds of chairs - most of them already filled - had been placed for the audience. The large open space hadn't been much of a security concern before, when Liam had thought that this was just going to be another 'publicity stunt', as Hayley Simmons called them; but now...

Dr. Hutchinson quickly introduced the other dignitaries gathered on the dais - among whom were the Governor of Washington State and the Mayor of Seattle - before moving to the speaker's podium to get things started.

As he began speaking, Liam sighed and leaned against the wall of the hospital. Speeches, he thought in disgust as he continued his visual scan of the crowd. This world would probably be a much better place if people didn't feel the need to make so many speeches.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Dr. Hutchinson started, "I would like to welcome you all to the opening and dedication of the new Seattle Children's Hospital. I am Dr. Warren Hutchinson, the hospital's administrator.

"Thanks to the compassion of our Taelon friends..."

Liam managed to tune out the speech as his earpiece beeped for his attention.

"Yes?" he asked quietly.

"Security sweep complete, Major. No sign of any problems," the Volunteer declared.

"Good," Liam replied, feeling exceedingly relieved. "Thank you... Roberts, isn't it?" he added, recognizing the Volunteer's voice. Cpl. Roberts, he vaguely remembered, had been one of Lili's prize piloting students.

"Yes, sir," the Volunteer answered, sounding surprised - and pleased - by the fact that Liam knew his name. "Is there anything else, Major?"

"No," Liam said. "Nothing else. Just... keep your eyes open." He shifted his weight, relaxing slightly, and prepared himself for yet another hour or so of long speeches and boredom.


Putting the scope up to his eye, he looked out over the crowd, and smiled as he focused in on his target.

The speakers set up at strategic locations around the large lawn carried Dr. Hutchinson's speech very clearly to where he was set up. From the sound of it, the good doctor was finally winding down.

Centering his target in the scope, he placed a finger on the trigger and waited.

"...And now," the doctor was saying, "I would like to introduce the one whose beneficence and generosity has given us this wonderful new, up-to-date hospital. Please join me in welcoming Zo'or, the leader of the Taelon Synod."

Beneficence and generosity... right, he thought sardonically, keeping his weapon ready as his target started to walk toward the speaker's podium.

Now! he thought, as his finger tightened on the trigger.


As Zo'or began walking toward the speaker's podium, Liam felt a sudden surge of dread and foreboding go through him. Alarmed, he pushed away from the wall and started after Zo'or, looking around carefully as he did so. What was-

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash, like sunlight on glass. Beckett's memories of dealing with terrorists appeared in front of his eyes for a moment, providing an instant explanation - a rifle scope.

Without even thinking about what he was doing, Liam launched himself forward, pushing Zo'or out of the way as he pulled his gun and shouted, "Sniper!"

A moment later, agony exploded in his right arm and shoulder, and he staggered back. He was distantly aware of the shouts of panic and terror, but the pain was making it hard to think, and he found himself giving in gratefully to the blackness that surrounded him.


Sandoval sighed softly as he slouched down in his chair. His eyes went to the two framed photographs sitting on his desk, and he sighed again, unhappily.

The photos were of his unknown son. And he'd spent the past two days, as well as bits and pieces of time over the previous week, examining them for any clue as to his son's identity and location.

There were some clues. For instance, the photo of the boy as a four or five year old had him playing with a Taelon puzzle - one that had been put on the market two and a half years ago. Which meant that his son could be any age between four and eight.

It also meant that his son's identity was known by someone he himself knew, somebody who had access to his office on board the mothership - there was no other way in which the photos could have gotten there.

Unfortunately, there were also some problems with those facts that he'd established.

First of all, he'd been married to DeeDee eight years ago, and he'd been faithful to her - physically, at least - until her death two years ago. During that time, she had never once gotten pregnant, although they'd tried. They'd both wanted children.

Which meant that the boy had to be at least eight, if not older - or else he was missing something.

Then there was the matter of the access to his office.

The only ones who could access his office while he wasn't there were the Taelons, Major Kincaid, and Volunteer Captain Jardine - his aide since he'd sent Marquette to the Jaridians.

He thought it unlikely that it was any of the Taelons - except perhaps Da'an - would do something like this, even if they knew about his son. They would be much more likely to use him as a bargaining tool. Which left Kincaid and Captain Jardine-

His thoughts were interrupted as his screen suddenly switched on, showing a newscast. He'd set it to do that whenever it picked up anything about the Taelons.

"This is Natalie Durant with the news from the coast," the anchor was saying. "In startling news today, there was an attempted assassination in Seattle, Washington, where Zo'or, leader of the Taelon Synod, and our North American Companion, Da'an, were attending the opening ceremony of the new Seattle Children's Hospital. The following scene was recorded by our cameraman, who was there to cover the ceremony."

Assassination?

The screen changed to show the front of the hospital. Dr. Hutchinson - who was, in Sandoval's opinion, more arrogant than his medical skills warranted, as well as being a long-winded bore - was at the speaker's podium; Sandoval picked out Da'an, Zo'or and Major Kincaid behind him, along with a few other human dignitaries.

"...whose beneficence and generosity has given us this new, wonderful, up-to-date hospital," Hutchinson was saying. Sandoval couldn't help smiling, despite the seriousness of the news; judging from the expression on Kincaid's face, the doctor had been droning on for a while at this point. "Please join me in welcoming Zo'or, the leader of the Taelon Synod."

Sandoval watched as Zo'or started to approach the podium, followed by Major Kincaid. Then, suddenly, his attention focused on Kincaid as he saw the Major stiffen abruptly. A moment later, Kincaid was flinging himself at Zo'or, and shouting something.

Then as Sandoval continued to watch, shocked, a bright red blotch blossomed on Kincaid's shoulder, and the Protector staggered back, collapsing.

Then the scene switched back to the studio. "The only casualty in the attack was Companion-Protector Major Liam Kincaid, as he saved Zo'or from the sniper's attack. We have been told that the injury is not serious, and that Major Kincaid will be returning to duty as soon as possible.

"At the moment, information is sparse regarding the identity of the assassin, although speculations suggest that it may have been a Resistance-arranged attack..."

Sandoval shut the set off and pulled out his global. Kincaid had said that he would be taking Lieutenant Dietz's squad with him to provide security; one of them should be able to tell him precisely what had been discovered so far.

A moment later, Lt. Dietz's face appeared in his global.

"Lieutenant," Sandoval said coolly.

"Agent Sandoval? I thought you were-"

"I am," Sandoval interrupted. "However, I just saw the newscast of the incident in Seattle. What exactly happened, Lieutenant?"

Dietz looked uncomfortable. Good, Sandoval thought grimly. A Taelon martyr was the last thing he needed right now - and that would have been exactly what would have happened if Zo'or had been killed at today's ceremony.

"The sniper was on the rooftop of the west wing of the hospital, sir," Dietz said. "He or she must have gotten into place after the second security sweep-"

"Wait a minute..." Sandoval interrupted. "Second security sweep?"

"Yes, sir. The one Major Kincaid ordered."

Sandoval sighed mentally, careful to keep his impatience and irritation off his face - a skill that had always served him quite well. "Why don't you tell me exactly what happened, from the beginning?" he suggested.

"Yes, sir," Lt. Dietz replied. She took a deep breath. "Major Kincaid requested that my team help the Seattle police provide security for the ceremony," she explained. "We arrived at 0800 local time, and helped Dr. Hutchinson's people set up for the ceremony, so that we had a good idea of where everything was located. I then sent most of my team to do a physical inspection of the area, while two of my people directed a sensor sweep from the security station. I inspected the rooftops myself, sir, and there was no one there at that time.

"Once the physical inspection was finished, I had my people - except for Roberts and Tsue, who were assigned to the security station - start helping the police with crowd control, with orders to be on the lookout for any possible Resistance members or sympathizers. Everything was in order when Major Kincaid arrived with Zo'or and Da'an, which was when the Major ordered another last-minute security sweep. The sweep was completed just as Dr. Hutchinson began his speech."

"And the results of that sweep?"

"Negative, sir. No problems were detected. Major Kincaid seemed to be very relieved about that."

Which could mean that either this was a Resistance operation he was aware of, and he didn't want the assassin discovered; or that for some reason, he was afraid that something might happen, Sandoval reflected. I hope, for his sake, that it was the latter. "Then what happened, Lieutenant?" he asked out loud.

"Dr. Hutchinson's speech went on for a while, and then he introduced Zo'or. Zo'or was just starting for the speaker's podium when Major Kincaid pushed him away and started yelling that there was a sniper. The next thing I know, the Major's unconscious on the dais and the audience is running around in an absolute panic.

"By the time my people managed to get through the crowd, Major Kincaid had regained consciousness, though he still didn't look too well. He was able to tell us that he'd seen a flash of sunlight reflected off a scope, and that it was what had warned him. That's when we found out where the gunman was."

"But whoever it was escaped?" Sandoval demanded.

"Yes, sir. When we got up there, there was no one around. Seattle Forensics and some of my people are still examining the area."

"And Major Kincaid?"

"The Major was saying that he would be fine, but Da'an insisted that he be taken to Washington General," Lt. Dietz replied. "He said something about a Dr. Park. I sent half my squad with them, to provide security."

"Thank you," Sandoval said. He paused for a moment, and then added grimly, "Inform me as soon as you receive any further information regarding the shooter... and how he was able to evade a full security sweep."

For a moment, Dietz looked as though she were about to protest. Then she stopped herself, and merely asked, "You will be taking charge of the investigation, sir?"

"For the moment," Sandoval replied, and then shut his global. It was what would be expected of him by the Synod, that he cut short his vacation and resume his duties until Kincaid was better.

Let's hope the news report was right and it isn't as serious an injury as it looked, he thought grimly as he pulled on a jacket and headed out the door. The sooner Kincaid is back on duty, the sooner I can go back to finding my son.


He arrived at Washington General twenty minutes later. He was pleased to see that there were no reporters hanging around; whatever else had gone wrong, at least Kincaid's whereabouts had been kept secret.

One of Lt. Dietz's squad was in the main Emergency reception area. Walking up to him, Sandoval demanded to know where Major Kincaid was.

"Sir," the Volunteer said, saluting sharply. "He's on the second floor, south wing. Corporals Bruneau and Roberts are stationed outside his room."

"Good," Sandoval replied. He glanced around. "And what about the rest of your squad, Private?"

"Sergeant Nicholls is in the hospital's security station; Private Anderson is in Main Reception. The rest of the squad is still with Lt. Dietz in Seattle, sir."

"And what about Zo'or and Da'an?" Sandoval demanded.

"Zo'or has returned to the mothership, sir. Da'an is with Major Kincaid."

Sandoval nodded. "If any reporters get word that Major Kincaid is here and show up, I want you to let me know immediately," he ordered, and then started for the elevators.

Once on the second floor, it wasn't difficult to figure out which room Kincaid was in - the two Volunteers standing guard were rather obvious. Nodding to them as he approached, Sandoval opened the door and stepped in, right into the middle of an argument.

Kincaid, his right arm in a sling and his face pale, was standing next to a bed, his customary leather jacket half on. Dr. Park, her expression furious, was facing him with her hands on her hips, and Da'an was off to one side, his eyes going from one to the other as they argued, almost like a spectator at a tennis match.

"I'm fine!" Kincaid was shouting as Sandoval quietly closed the door behind him. None of the three appeared to have noticed his entrance.

"You are not fine!" Dr. Park snapped. "Your collarbone is broken, there's a great deal of soft tissue damage in your shoulder, and you've lost way too much blood! I don't exactly have an unlimited supply of your type, Liam!"

"I'm fine," Kincaid reiterated. "I'll take it easy for a day or two - but I need to find out who the sniper was. We can't have someone running around taking potshots at the Taelons."

"Might I remind you that bullets can't harm Taelons? For once in your life, worry a bit about yourself, Liam! I'm sure that Sandoval is perfectly capable of conducting this investigation. You, on the other hand, need to stay put and take it easy for more than just a day or two!"

"Dr. Park is correct, Liam," Da'an added. "You were wounded; you require time to recover. Agent Sandoval will-"

"Sandoval's on a well-deserved vacation," Kincaid snapped back. "You are not going to disturb him for this, Da'an! If I haven't managed to solve it by the time he comes back, fine, he can take over the investigation then. But you are not interrupting his vacation!"

Puzzled by Kincaid's insistence, Sandoval nonetheless decided it was time to interrupt, before the Major exploded. He stepped forward, the movement drawing everyone's eyes.

"Da'an, Doctor Park, Major," he said, nodding to them.

Kincaid looked a bit flustered. "What are you doing here, Sandoval? You're supposed to be on vacation!"

"I heard the news report, Major," Sandoval replied. "My duty to the Taelons is more important than a vacation." He was lying through his teeth - this particular vacation was very important - but he'd been doing quite a bit of that lately. "Until you are recovered, I will handle the investigation into this incident."

Kincaid looked upset at that. "But..." he started. "But it's just a broken collarbone, Sandoval. It might slow me down a bit physically, but it won't impede my ability to handle this."

Sandoval studied him for a moment, trying to understand what he was thinking. If it was a Resistance-organized attack, it was more than possible that Kincaid wanted to handle the investigation in order to re-direct it. On the other hand... all Sandoval's instincts were telling him that Kincaid hadn't known about this, and was being honest when he claimed that he wanted it solved. So what should I do?

"Liam," Dr. Park began. Her tone was both surprisingly patient and almost maternal - as though she were talking to a child - which puzzled Sandoval. However, he didn't have the time or the inclination to figure out why she was behaving that way at the moment. "It isn't just a broken collarbone. I told you, you've lost a lot of blood - you look as though you're about to collapse right now - and the bullet did a great deal of soft tissue and nerve damage. You're extremely lucky that it didn't puncture your lung as well. Your arm and shoulder need to be immobilized for at least two weeks, preferably three, if you're going to have full use back. You cannot handle a full investigation with those restrictions."

"I have to agree with Dr. Park," Da'an added. "If necessary, I will make it an order, Liam. Agent Sandoval will handle the investigation into this incident either until it is solved, or you are capable of resuming your full duties."

Kincaid looked pleadingly at Sandoval, obviously wanting him to help.

"I will require some assistance, Major," Sandoval said finally. With Da'an threatening to make Kincaid's non-involvement an order, it was the best he could do.

Judging from Kincaid's expression, he knew it too, though he wasn't happy about it. "All right."

Dr. Park's mouth tightened as she looked at the two of them. "Liam..."

Kincaid stared her down. "We need to find out who is responsible. I need to find out who is responsible."

"You are staying here for another two days, at the very least, until I'm satisfied that your body has managed to replace the blood you've lost," Dr. Park insisted.

"Sorry, Doctor, but I've got a job to do," Kincaid countered. "Come on, Da'an. We've got to get you up to the mothership, and then Sandoval and I have to get back to Seattle."

"Liam, you are not-"

Kincaid just looked at her for a moment, and Sandoval was surprised to see Dr. Park give in. "All right," she said, with obvious reluctance. "But you aren't going to be piloting a shuttle, Liam. Not until you're completely healed. In fact, I don't want you using your right arm or hand at all. And Agent Sandoval," she turned to him, "I'm making you personally responsible for Major Kincaid. If he aggravates his wound, you're going to hear from me."

Kincaid flushed bright red. "Doctor-"

"Take it or leave it."

Sandoval looked at the two of them. There was something going on here, between them, something that he didn't know about. Something that involved him in some way. But he didn't have time to worry about that right now. He nodded in acknowledgement. "Very well, Doctor, I agree. I believe both Corporal Roberts and Sergeant Nicholls are shuttle pilots; the Sergeant can take Da'an back to the mothership, and Corporal Roberts will take us to Seattle."


Liam frowned as he studied the rooftop. When they'd arrived back in Seattle, before she and her squad had returned to their base, Lt. Dietz had informed them that the Seattle PD hadn't found anything to explain how the sniper had evaded security - something that Liam definitely wanted to know. If his presentiment was any guide, then the sniper had been in position before the second sweep. But the only thing they'd found was a scrap of cloth caught in the door - obviously the gunman had left in a hurry.

He glanced over to where Sandoval was talking to Captain Kelman of the Seattle PD Major Crime unit.

He really hadn't wanted Sandoval called away from his vacation. His father needed the time away - he hadn't had a vacation in all the time he'd been serving the Taelons. Now, because of some gunman, he'd been pulled back after only two days - the equivalent to a weekend. Certainly not the longer vacation Liam felt he needed. He could only hope that Zo'or would agree to letting Sandoval continue the vacation once this was over.

He frowned thoughtfully. A gunman who doesn't seem to realize that bullets can't hurt Taelons - which is strange, because I thought everyone knew about the Rho'ha trial. It was certainly publicized enough.

And then there was Dr. Park...

What was that all about? She doesn't like Sandoval in the first place - why would she make him responsible for me?

And since when do I need someone else to be responsible for my actions?

Or... does she suspect what I'm trying to do? And if she does... will she tell Doors? Liam didn't really think so. Dr. Park had gone to bat with Doors for him before. Perhaps, if she does know, that was her way of telling me she approves...

I hope so.

"Major."

Turning around, Liam saw Sandoval standing there, looking at him. "What is it? Did the police find something?" he asked, suddenly realizing that they were alone. Captain Kelman had obviously headed back down.

"No, nothing else," Sandoval replied. He looked over the roof, and then returned his attention to Liam. "You ordered a second security sweep after you arrived. Why?"

Liam hid a grimace. Looks like it's my turn for the interrogation. At least Sandoval had saved the question until they were alone.

Unfortunately, he couldn't exactly tell the other man the truth - not the entire truth, at least.

"I started to feel uneasy as soon as we left the shuttle," he explained. "I figured that another security sweep might not be a bad idea. Better to be safe than sorry."

Sandoval nodded thoughtfully. "Lt. Dietz told me that you saw the scope," he continued. "Can you tell me exactly what happened?"

Liam took a deep breath. "Volunteer Roberts let me know that the sweep had turned up no problems just after Hutchinson's speech started. I was relieved, since it meant that I had probably just been imagining things - doing your job is really stressful, Sandoval," he added pointedly.

"Anyway, Hutchinson's speech was boring, so I was concentrating on the crowd, trying to get a sense of what they thought of the ceremony. Then, when Zo'or started for the podium, I caught sight of something out of the corner of my eye. I moved to get a better vantage point, and that's when I saw the flash of reflected sunlight. I went to push Zo'or out of the way, and then the bullet must have hit my shoulder, because I felt this sudden, sharp pain and then blacked out for a moment."

Sandoval studied him for a moment, and then turned his attention to the view from the roof. Relieved that his father's attention was off him, Liam leaned surreptitiously against the wall. He was feeling dizzy, but he didn't want Sandoval to notice and send him back to Washington as if he was a disobedient child - although he had the uncomfortable feeling that a child was exactly what Dr. Park considered him at the moment.

He was a fast healer - a gift from the Kimera side of his heritage; it shouldn't take much more than another hour or two before he recovered from the blood loss.

"And he used a rifle..." Sandoval muttered, and Liam was about to answer before he realized that Sandoval was just thinking out loud. "Why would someone use a rifle to assassinate a Taelon?"

"A warning?" Liam suggested, before he thought about what he was saying.

Sandoval turned around, and Liam could see the sudden interest in his expression. "What makes you say that, Major?"

"I'm not sure," Liam said slowly, shifting uncomfortably. The analgesic Dr. Park had given him was starting to wear off, and the pain in his shoulder was making itself known. Between that and trying not to pass out... his mouth was obviously moving faster than his brain right now.

"I was just... thinking. Everyone knows that bullets won't hurt Taelons, so why would someone shoot at a Taelon with bullets if they meant to kill them? So what I thinking was: what if the intention wasn't to kill Zo'or? What if it was meant to act as a warning? 'Pay attention or the next time it'll be an energy blast'?"

"An interesting theory, Major. It does make a certain amount of sense... but if it is a warning, what is it warning about?"

Liam started to shrug, and then thought better of it. Moving his shoulder was not something he wanted to do at the moment. "I haven't a clue. You know I'm not exactly privy to Zo'or's pet projects."

The look Sandoval gave him at that was an irritated one. Liam ignored it. "You'd be a lot more inclined to know what Zo'or might be doing that would merit this kind of warning."

In turn, Sandoval chose to ignore the hint. "I would expect that someone who would go to so much trouble to arrange a warning such as this would leave some form of message so that the target would know what the warning was about."

"Who can tell? This guy shot at Zo'or, Sandoval," Liam countered. "That's not exactly the sign of a balanced mind. Not when there's security everywhere."

"He did manage to get away," Sandoval pointed out. Then he frowned. "Major... you're too pale," he said, his tone surprisingly concerned. "I think we had better return to Washington; there's nothing else we can find out here - not at the moment, at least."

Liam took a deep breath. He'd have argued, but Sandoval was right about there being nothing left here. Forensics and the Volunteers had been all over the place. They weren't going to find anything else. "All right," he said, pushing himself away from the wall with his left hand. Then he staggered, another wave of dizziness sweeping over him for a moment. When he recovered, Sandoval was standing next to him, holding his arm.

"Come on, Major, let's get back to the shuttle. I think you need to sit down for a bit."


Sandoval studied Kincaid carefully as they took the elevator down to ground level. The younger man was as pale as a ghost, and he hadn't argued after his near-collapse up on the roof - obviously, he wasn't feeling quite as up to this as he'd thought he would.

He himself was feeling surprised at the amount of concern he felt for Kincaid. Yes, they'd gotten closer since his time in the hospital, had even become friends - sort of - particularly after Kincaid had arranged that surprise party for him.

But at the same time, they were - as far as Kincaid knew - diametrically opposed on their views about the Taelons, no matter what opinions the Major embraced publicly. Kincaid had ties to the Resistance - was, in fact, fairly highly placed in the Resistance, something he'd learned just recently from Sister Elizabeth's diary. And, as far as Kincaid knew, he was still a loyal Taelon agent.

And yet, he reflected, since his sojourn in the hospital...

Sandoval took a deep breath. A lot of things had changed for him since the time he'd spent in the hospital, including his relationship with Liam Kincaid.

None of that explained this concern for him, though.

Getting into the shuttle, they strapped themselves in.

"Where to now, sirs?" the Volunteer pilot asked.

"Back to Washington," Sandoval ordered. As the shuttle rose from the ground, he turned to face Kincaid. "I think you had better go home and get some rest once we arrive, Major," he said. "You can't help find this attacker if you end up back in hospital."

Kincaid shifted in his seat, looking uncomfortable. "I am feeling a bit... tired," he admitted with obvious reluctance.

"In that case, we'll get some rest and start fresh in the morning. Hopefully Seattle PD Forensics should have something for us by then on that scrap of cloth they found."

Kincaid turned at looked at him thoughtfully. "That reminds me... What's with letting the police forensics unit handle this? I thought you would have insisted on bringing in the Bureau. Since Zo'or was the target, you have every right to do so..."

Sandoval shrugged. "Seattle PD has equipment equal to that of the FBI, and even our forensics people respect the Chief of Forensics there. I've been told she's something of a wizard at getting a great deal of information from very little. They suggested I leave it in her hands for the moment."

There was a bit of jolt as they entered ID space, but Sandoval hardly noticed it, he was so used to it by now. Kincaid's face paled slightly, though, and Sandoval guessed that it had jarred his wounded shoulder.

"Did Dr. Park give you any painkillers?" he asked.

"Yeah," Kincaid replied shortly. "But I'm not allowed to take any for another two hours. She wants the drugs they gave me at the hospital to be completely out of my system before I introduce any others.

"So, assuming they don't find anything, what's next?" Kincaid continued. It was obvious that he wasn't interested in discussing his injury.

"We have someone do a thorough diagnostic of the security sensors," Sandoval replied, going along with the change of subject. "There shouldn't have been any way for someone to evade those."

Kincaid nodded in agreement as they exited ID space. "Yes, that's been bothering me too. I can't see how someone could have managed to get up there and set up between the security sweep and the end of Dr. Hutchinson's speech. It was only about a ten-minute window."

"And then evaded the sensors after the shooting. Even if they didn't know exactly where the shot came from, whoever was in the security station should have been scanning the area for anything suspicious the moment it happened."

The shuttle landed smoothly, and the Volunteer unstrapped himself. "We've arrived at the Embassy, sir."

"Good," Sandoval said, getting up. "Major, we'll meet back here at 0900 hours tomorrow morning."

Kincaid nodded in agreement as he stood up and started out of the shuttle. "9 o'clock, right. I'll see you then, Sandoval."

Once he was gone, Sandoval turned to the pilot. "Very smooth ride, Corporal."

"Thank you, sir," the Volunteer replied.

Sandoval nodded to him, and then headed out. He wanted to get a bit of rest before tomorrow - he had the feeling that he was going to need it.


He stared at the television, dismayed. Damn it! Not only had he missed, which should have been impossible, but he hadn't even seriously injured the damned Taelon's Protector! How had that happened?

And how had the Protector known he was there?

Well, he'd just have to come up with something else. Something better. Something the target wouldn't be able to escape or evade.


Chapter 2


Liam jerked awake with a gasp of shock that quickly changed to one of pain as agony flared up in his shoulder. Sitting up, he took a slow, deep breath, followed by another, trying to control the pain enough to allow him to get up.

After a few minutes, the agony had been reduced to a dull throbbing, and he managed to relax a bit.

Looking at his bedside clock, he groaned. It was 5 a.m. - he had four full hours before he was supposed to meet Sandoval at the Embassy. And while he'd intended to go and check some things with Augur before that meeting, he couldn't do that yet either - Augur would kill him if he woke him up before seven-thirty.

Which meant that he had at least two hours with nothing to do. There was no way he was going to be able to get back to sleep - not after that last dream.

Remembering it, he shivered.

It hadn't been anything really defined, nothing that could explain why he had been so terrified. Just a shape in a blackness - a human shape - and a sense of dread; a sense that was reminiscent of what he'd felt yesterday, just before the sniper had taken aim at Zo'or.

Slowly unwinding the gauze he'd used to immobilize his arm while he slept, Liam shook his head as he made his decision. Let Augur complain. He wasn't going to stay here right now with the memory of that dream haunting him.

Finished with the gauze, he put it down on his bedside table and picked up the clean shirt he'd left there last night. He slipped it on very carefully, and then put the sling Dr. Park had ordered him to wear back on.

He stood up carefully, and was relieved to find that the dizziness that had been plaguing him yesterday was gone. Between the blood Dr. Park had given him yesterday and his body's recuperative powers, it appeared that he was no longer suffering from the effects of blood loss.

Rubbing absently at an itchy spot on his right palm, Liam headed downstairs to the Flat Planet's kitchen. Grabbing three of the painkillers, along with a few granola bars from the cupboard for breakfast, he carefully pulled on his jacket and slipped out to the church.


Augur stumbled wearily out of his bedroom and glared as he saw who had disturbed him.

"Liam, I don't know if you realize this, but I do need my sleep," he grumbled. "It's only 5:30 in the morning, for crissakes."

Liam turned to face him. "I need your help, Augur."

"My help?" Augur repeated in disbelief. Sometimes he wasn't sure whether or not he should give the kid a good swift kick in the butt. When he tried to save the kid's life, it was, 'Augur, you betrayed me'; but as soon as a problem came up, Liam was asking for his help. "And just what do you expect me to do this-"

He cut himself off suddenly as he got a good look at the kid.

Liam had just slipped his jacket off, and Augur was stunned to see that his right arm was in a sling. "What happened?" he demanded.

Liam's eyes widened in surprise. "Don't tell me you didn't see the news yesterday!"

Augur shrugged. "I was busy. What happened?"

"Zo'or and Da'an were at the opening ceremony for that new Children's Hospital in Seattle," Liam replied. "Someone took a shot at Zo'or from the roof of the hospital, and got me instead when I pushed him out of the way. The bullet went through my shoulder and broke my collarbone; Dr. Park's given me orders to keep my shoulder and arm immobilized for a few weeks, until it heals."

"Okay... so, why did you push Zo'or out of the way?" Augur demanded.

Liam rolled his eyes. "What was I supposed to do - let him become a martyr? At the time I did it, I didn't realize that the gunman was using bullets, not an energy weapon."

Augur heaved a sigh. And an energy weapon would have been better for you? "So, did you catch whoever was responsible?"

Liam shook his head as he sat down on the couch. "No; that's the problem. Because I'm 'walking wounded', Da'an insisted that Sandoval give up his vacation for the moment and head up the investigation into the incident. I managed to convince him not to sideline me completely, but the sooner we find out who did this and catch them, the sooner Sandoval can go back to his vacation."

Augur studied the kid for a moment, frowning. Liam was up to something, something that had to do with Sandoval. He had been for a while, Augur thought, but it had become more obvious over the past week, ever since that surprise birthday party he'd arranged. For some reason, Sandoval's vacation seemed to be an integral part of whatever it was Liam had in mind. And Augur suspected that it had nothing to do with wanting the Resistance free to make a few unhindered advances.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked, deciding that he would keep a close eye on the kid for a while. Keep him out of trouble... and make sure that whatever he was planning that involved Sandoval, it wouldn't jump up and bite him in the ass.

Liam looked relieved; it appeared that he hadn't been sure Augur would agree. "Somehow, the gunman managed to evade a full security sweep. Sandoval's going to have someone do a diagnostic on the sensors, but I'd also like you to see what you can find out; check the sensor logs and see if a full sweep was actually done, that sort of thing. The sweep was only about ten minutes before the shooting."

Augur's eyebrows went up in surprise. "That short a time? I would have thought that whoever was handling security would have done a sweep before you even arrived."

"They did," Liam replied. He fidgeted for a moment. "I ordered another one."

"Why?" Augur asked.

Liam squirmed. "I had a... feeling that something was going to happen."

"A feeling," Augur repeated. He looked carefully at Liam.

He was fully aware just how much Liam's alien heritage scared the kid at times. It was, he suspected, caused by a combination of the Taelons' - Da'an's - fear of the Kimera, Doors' distrust of Liam's heritage, and what had happened when he'd traveled through Ma'el's gateway.

What Liam had told Palmer when he had revealed his secret to her had been quite telling: that he was becoming more human the longer he spent on Earth.

That, Augur knew, was absolute nonsense. Yes, Liam spent most of his time among humans - had essentially been raised by humans, with some help from Da'an; but that didn't mean that he was becoming 'more' human. He was who he was - a Human/Kimera hybrid.

Yes, he hadn't used his shaqarava since that incident with the Jaridian probe and Operation Dark Knight, but despite what Liam obviously wanted to believe, it didn't mean that they were gone. It just meant that either he had gained conscious control of them, or that they were currently dormant and he hadn't been in a situation where they had activated instinctively.

In Augur's opinion, Liam was just hiding from himself. And he dreaded what would happen when the kid was forced to see that.

"Yes, a feeling," Liam returned irritably, drawing Augur out of his thoughts. "It wasn't as strong as a vision... but I knew something was going to happen. I just wasn't sure what."

"All right," Augur said after a moment. "I'll do what I can. I can't promise you anything, though."

"Anything you can get will help," Liam assured him, a smile crossing his face. "Thanks, Augur."

"You're welcome," Augur replied. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get dressed. I'll give you a call as soon as I find anything."

"Okay," Liam replied. He gave Augur another smile, and then headed out.


Sandoval rubbed his eyes tiredly as he leaned back in his chair. He'd managed to get a few hours of sleep, and then he'd gotten up to see if he could make any progress on the search for his son before he had to meet Kincaid at the Embassy.

He hadn't really had all that much luck. His intention had been to see if anyone had accessed his office on the mothership on his birthday between the time Kincaid had gotten him out of there and when he'd come back in the next morning, but according to the mothership's access log, no one had. So either someone had gotten in, and then erased the log, or else the package had been left there sometime during the day, and he hadn't noticed it; in which case, his list of suspects had just expanded to include half the Volunteers on the ship

So many questions... he thought sourly. His eyes went to the photos again.

"Where are you?" he murmured, brushing one finger against the picture of the four-year-old. Such a solemn expression... "Who looks after you?"

He sighed. Everything pointed inescapably toward one fact: whoever had his son, they knew that the boy was his son. How else could he have gotten the blood that had saved him? How else could the photos have appeared in his office?

But whoever had him, they didn't want Sandoval to know who they were, and they didn't want him to meet the boy. They had gone to a great deal of trouble to ensure that, even making sure that his son's DNA wasn't registered - they'd most likely created a false record for him.

More questions. Why? Because I'm an Implant? Because I work for the Taelons? Is that it? Or is it something else?

And yet, the boy knew precisely who he was. The birthday card had been addressed to him by name, and written in the same handwriting as the message inside the card.

Picking the card up, he looked at it again.

It was a very simple card, one that could have been bought almost anywhere in North America or Europe. Anywhere in the English-speaking world, in fact. Trying to trace it would be futile. But he wanted to.

Sighing, he let his head drop down to his chest. The task seemed hopeless - but it was something he had to do. He had to find his son. He was the only person Sandoval had left.

Time to take a different tack, he decided abruptly. Dr. Curzon had mentioned something when she'd told him about the blood - something that he wanted to follow up on. And he had an appointment with her later this morning; he'd speak to her about it then.

That decision made, Sandoval felt himself relax a bit.

Now, on to the other problem he had to deal with. The gunman.

It was six o'clock here - much too early to call Seattle. He'd have to wait until after the meeting with Kincaid.

But what he could do was get a hold of his contacts, see if any of them had any ideas about the identity of whoever had been responsible. It might take a while, but it should help narrow things down.


Liam winced as he stopped walking a block away from the Embassy. There was a crowd of reporters gathered by the entrance, and it didn't take much thought to realize that they probably wanted to speak to Da'an about the attack - but he had no doubt that they would be more than happy to interview him if they could. This was not something he wanted to face, not right now. Not ever, actually, but considering that he was Da'an's Protector, avoiding the press was something that he couldn't normally get away with.

However, this time... he was definitely going to try. The last thing he wanted to do at the moment was discuss his injury, especially with reporters.

What are they doing here this early, anyway? Don't they know that Da'an's not there? And even if he was, he wouldn't be available this early...

Luckily, none of the reporters knew about the subterranean tunnels that led to the Embassy; the same tunnels he'd faced the Jaridian replicant in when he was barely two days old. If he slipped into the Embassy that way, he should be able to avoid them completely.


Fifteen minutes later, Liam sat down at his desk and did his best to relax. Da'an was currently on the mothership - it was safer for him to remain there for the moment - so he was alone. For a few minutes, anyway, there was no tension in the air, no need to put up a façade of normality while keeping his thoughts and feelings to himself...

All right, Liam, enough with the brooding, he scolded himself. Do yourself a favour for once and concentrate on something other than the mess between you and Da'an.

Glancing down, he grimaced at the paperwork that had been piling up since Monday. Most of the time, he managed to get any paperwork he needed to do finished at night, after his work hours were officially over. But since he'd been subbing in for Sandoval, as well as doing his own work...

Heaving a sigh, he tugged the pile a bit closer to him and scanned the top sheet. Well, that one was easy, it just needed his...

...Signature. Which was impossible at the moment, since his right arm was completely immobilized, and had to remain that way.

His expression darkened, becoming a scowl. This wasn't fair...

Well, maybe there was something here that didn't need his signature... or, at least, needed more than just his signature. He could write well enough with his left hand - he'd proved that to his satisfaction a week and a half ago - and if it looked a bit childish, well, he didn't really care about that.

He started to skim through the papers. Signature, signature, signature... FYI memo about the pilot training program - that can wait... signature, signature... Ah, here's one-

"Major," came Sandoval's voice from the door, and Liam glanced up to see him standing there, looking a bit surprised. "I didn't expect you to be in so early."

"It's almost..." Liam shot a quick look at the small clock on his desk, and winced. It was only six forty-five. He'd thought it was later than that. "Oh." He shrugged his left shoulder, then winced again - in pain this time. "I woke up early and decided to come in and try to clear my desk a bit. When do you ever find time to do your paperwork?"

He got the hint of a smile out of Sandoval with that one. "Whenever I get a spare moment," came the reply. "Which is almost never... It's going to be a bit hard to do with your arm like that, though."

"Tell me about it," Liam muttered. He leaned back in his seat, pushing the papers away, and looked up at Sandoval. "Have you managed to find anything?"

Sandoval sighed as he leaned against the doorway. "Well, I've put some feelers out; hopefully I'll get some responses fairly soon. I did have Volunteer Sergeant Bracer go over the scanner equipment; there was nothing wrong with it."

Liam nodded. "Wonderful..." he said sourly. "And I assume we haven't spoken to Seattle yet..."

"No; it's still too early there."

Liam sighed and slumped a bit. "So, any more ideas on what was up with this guy?"

Sandoval shook his head as he entered the room. "I'm afraid not. So far your theory that it was a warning is better than any of the ones I've come up with."

"Have you asked Zo'or about that?" Liam asked, sitting up straight.

"He can't think of anything that might be a reason for this sort of reaction," Sandoval replied.

Liam snorted in disbelief. "Right," he muttered, just as Sandoval's global beeped.

Opening it, Sandoval blinked in surprise. "Yes?"

"Agent Sandoval, I've found something interesting that I think you and Major Kincaid should see," Liam heard a female voice say. He looked at Sandoval questioningly, wondering who it was.

"We'll be there within the hour," Sandoval replied. "Thank you."

"Who was that?" Liam asked, as his father closed the global.

"The Seattle PD's Chief of Forensics," Sandoval said.

Liam stood up, eager to get going. If she had found something... "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Sandoval looked at him in clear exasperation. "I seem to remember that Dr. Park made mention of the fact that you weren't to do any piloting for a few weeks," he replied. "Which means that we've got to get a pilot from the mothership."

Liam dropped back down into his seat. "Right." He really didn't like the idea of letting someone else pilot him around - in his opinion, one of the best perks of being a Companion-Protector was that he got to fly a shuttle whenever he wanted - but Sandoval was right. Even if the pain didn't get him, Dr. Park would. And Liam didn't want to make her angry - her temper was even worse than Doors' when a patient did something she had forbidden.

"Is there anyone that you would prefer?" Sandoval asked. "We might as well get someone who can be assigned to you for the next several weeks."

Liam shook his head. "No, no real preference. I don't know enough about the Volunteer pilots' skills to be able to choose anyone in particular."

Sandoval studied him for a moment, and then nodded. "All right... How about Corporal Roberts?"

Roberts was the Volunteer who had piloted them yesterday, the one Lili had taught. Based on what Liam had seen of him so far, she'd been right to consider him a prize pupil. "Sounds fine to me," he replied.

"I'll call up to the mothership and arrange for his re-assignment," Sandoval said. "It will probably take about half an hour to get him down here."

Liam nodded in agreement, sighing. "In that case, I might as well see if I can actually get any of this done," he muttered, glaring at the paperwork on his desk.


Sandoval re-opened his global and called up to the mothership, ordering Captain Jardine to see about sending Roberts down with the shuttle and making the arrangements to assign him to the Major.

He'd been a bit surprised when Kincaid had mentioned that he didn't really know much about the skills of the other pilots. Of course, Kincaid had been trained directly by Captain Marquette, and didn't have very much to do with the Volunteers in the first place, but still... perhaps getting him more involved in that part of the Volunteer program would be useful. He'd have to think about it a bit, see how Kincaid interacted with Roberts, but it was definitely an idea to consider.

Am I thinking what I think I'm thinking? Sandoval asked himself abruptly. He'd never really considered it before, even after figuring out that Kincaid was a member of the Resistance. But now...

This might just work. I'll have to broach it carefully, of course, but bringing Kincaid in might be exactly what we need...

Shutting his global, Sandoval studied Kincaid thoughtfully. The younger man was concentrating on what appeared to be an incident report form, a frown crossing his face as he read through it.

He didn't really know all that much about Kincaid, not really. He knew that the Major was good at protecting Da'an, was in the Resistance, and enjoyed hanging out at the Flat Planet Café, and that was about it. Nothing about his personal life, about what he liked to do in what spare time he had, between the Taelons and the Resistance. Sandoval didn't even know anything about the Major's family.

That would have to change if he was going to bring Kincaid in... but it would have to wait for later. They had a gunman to find first.

Which reminds me... "Major, have you any theories as to why not only the sensors but the Volunteers themselves missed the gunman during the second sweep?"

Kincaid looked up from his paperwork with a thoughtful frown. "No; I hadn't really thought about that part of it," he admitted. His frown deepened. "It's possible..." he began slowly.

"What?" Sandoval demanded.

"It's possible that they didn't actually do a physical search on the second sweep," Kincaid replied after a moment. "I asked for it after we left the shuttle, and I got the report just after Dr. Hutchinson started speaking. It couldn't have been more than five to ten minutes; plenty of time to conduct a full sensor sweep, but not enough for a thorough physical search."

Sandoval's frown echoed Kincaid's. "You're right, Major; that definitely isn't enough time." If one - or some - of the Volunteers were in on this... "We're going to have to ask some questions, and get started on some digging. Once we speak to Forensics, we'll go on from there."

Kincaid nodded in agreement.

Abruptly, Sandoval's global beeped.

"Sandoval."

"It's Corporal Roberts, sir. I'm just about to land the shuttle in front of the Embassy."

"Good. We'll meet you out there," Sandoval replied, and shut his global again, turning to Kincaid, who was already standing up.

"What about the reporters?" Kincaid asked anxiously.

Sandoval smiled faintly. "I managed to get rid of them on the way in," he answered. They hadn't been all that happy about it, but Sandoval had long since learned how to insist.

Kincaid looked relieved. "Thank you," he said fervently, as they started out. "I really didn't feel up to dealing with them right now."

"You and me both, Major," Sandoval returned. "You and me both."


Half an hour later, they walked into the Seattle PD Forensics Lab. Lieutenant Sally Tanner, the Chief of Forensics, was waiting for them.

"Glad you could make it, gentlemen," she said. "I have something very interesting to show you."

"Oh?" Sandoval inquired.

She held up an evidence bag which held what Sandoval recognized as the scrap of cloth they'd found yesterday.

"I spent all yesterday afternoon working on analysing this," Tanner said. "It's made of some fabric that I've never seen before - fabric with a rather unusual property."

"What?" Kincaid asked from beside him.

"It can apparently block Taelon sensor scans."

Sandoval and Kincaid looked at each other with identical expressions of comprehension on their faces. Well, Sandoval thought, I guess that explains how he or she evaded the sensor scans.

"Were you able to pick up anything off it? DNA fragments or the like?" Kincaid asked.

Tanner shook her head. "Nope. Nothing except dirt from the roof itself. I'd guess that your gunman was wearing gloves and was carrying this material in a bag. Probably took it out when he arrived on the roof. It's likely that as soon as he made the shot, he draped himself in it and took off, but didn't realize that a small corner got caught in the door as he was leaving."

"In other words, a professional, but possibly not very experienced," Sandoval muttered. "Have you been able to trace the material?"

"I'm afraid not, Agent Sandoval. As I said, I've never seen anything like it before. I've asked around, but I doubt that we'll have much luck."

Sandoval nodded slowly. "Did your people or the police manage to discover anything else?"

"No," she replied. "The audience was too panicked for anyone to notice someone slipping out of the building near them, and if your guy is as professional as we think he is, I doubt that he exited through the front anyway. If there's one thing I've learned after five years as Chief of Forensics, it's that someone this good at hiding their tracks is almost impossible to catch."

"Well, we'll see about that," Sandoval declared. "I'll take your analysis to FBI Headquarters, find out if anyone there knows about this fabric. If you discover anything else, please let me know as soon as possible."

"All right, I'll do that," Tanner replied. She picked a folder up off the counter and handed it to Sandoval. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Sandoval said, nodding to her. Then he led Kincaid out.

As they got back into the shuttle, Corporal Roberts turned to face them. "While you were in there, we received a message from the mothership, Major, Agent Sandoval. Zo'or wants to see you."

Sandoval glanced at Kincaid for a moment, and then turned back to the Volunteer. "All right," he said. "In that case, let's go."

"Yes, sir," Roberts replied, as they strapped in. Closing the shuttle, he took off smoothly.


Zo'or and Da'an were waiting for them on the bridge of the mothership. From long experience, Sandoval was able to tell that they'd apparently been arguing about something.

"Agent Sandoval, Major Kincaid," Zo'or greeted them. "Have you discovered anything?"

Sandoval nodded. "Yes, Zo'or," he replied. He held up the report Tanner had given him. "According to Seattle's Chief of Forensics, the scrap of cloth that was found on the scene was made from a fabric that is impenetrable to Taelon sensors. The reason the security sweep didn't pick the gunman up was quite likely because he was wrapped in this fabric." We won't mention the fact that when Kincaid called for the second security sweep, they should have searched the area physically as well, he decided. That bit of information could wait until after he and Kincaid had questioned the Volunteers involved.

Zo'or looked alarmed at that. "You are certain that this is correct?" he demanded. "That our sensors cannot penetrate this fabric?"

"Yes. Their Chief of Forensics is excellent, Zo'or. If she says that Taelon sensors won't penetrate it, they won't."

"I have never heard of any material with this quality," Da'an commented quietly.

"Neither have we," Kincaid said. "Lt. Tanner said that she was going to look into it for us, see if she could find out where it came from."

"And I will have the FBI look into it as well," Sandoval added.

"Good," Zo'or replied. He walked over to the command chair and sat down.

"Is there anything else, Zo'or?" Sandoval asked.

"Yes," Zo'or replied, "there is. I have re-scheduled my meeting with Si'al and the African premier; it is to take place in one hour. Major Kincaid will accompany me. Agent Sandoval, you will continue to work on this investigation."

Catching the look Da'an gave Zo'or, Sandoval realized that this was what the two Taelons had been arguing about. That wasn't much of a surprise; Kincaid was injured, and - strictly speaking - shouldn't really be on duty, much less acting as Protector, until he was healed.

"Are you sure, Zo'or?" he asked. "Perhaps it might be better if I were to accompany you. Major Kincaid could remain here and concentrate on the investigation." He could re-schedule his appointment with Dr. Curzon to this afternoon. She'd understand.

"Major Kincaid will accompany me," Zo'or said flatly.

Sandoval looked between the two of them. Ever since that near-disastrous interview two weeks ago, Zo'or appeared to be trusting Kincaid more and more. A good thing for the Resistance, he supposed, but Sandoval wasn't sure that he liked it that much. The way Zo'or was behaving, it was almost as though he was thinking of taking Kincaid away from Da'an, and making the Major his own Protector instead.

I wonder if this was why he was so agreeable about granting me a vacation...

"Of course, Zo'or," Kincaid replied obediently. "I have already been assigned a pilot until I heal, so we can leave as soon as I do a security review. I don't believe it will take more than ten to fifteen minutes."

"Excellent," Zo'or said, sounding quite pleased. "I will meet you at your shuttle then, Major."

Kincaid nodded and left the bridge. Sandoval stayed where he was, in the hopes of hearing a bit about whatever Zo'or was planning for the Major.

Leaning back in the command chair, Zo'or turned to face him. "That will be all, Agent Sandoval," he said firmly.

Knowing a dismissal when he heard one, Sandoval gritted his teeth and nodded. "I will be in my office if you need me," he said, and walked out.

I might as well get started on doing some digging into the Volunteers' personnel files. If any of them do have a connection to the gunman, we really need to find out as soon as possible.

And while I'm at it, I think I'll also do a bit more checking around... see if I can find out a few other things.


Liam paused in the middle of the corridor as his global beeped, and then slipped into one of the many alcoves in that part of the ship. Opening the global, he nodded as Augur's face appeared.

"Have you found anything?" he asked.

"Yes," came Augur's reply. "Nothing that'll help you find out who this guy is, though. According to the sensor logs, both sweeps were done, and done very thoroughly. I can't see how anyone could have gotten past them."

Liam opened his mouth to respond, and then stopped as he heard another voice. "Is someone there with you, Augur?"

"Yeah... Renee's here," the computer wizard replied. "Why?"

"I've got some information I'd like the two of you to check out," Liam replied.

A moment later, Renee appeared next to Augur on the screen. "What is it?"

"We've found out why the gunman didn't appear on the sensors," he said.

Augur blinked. "You did? Why? How did he do it?"

"We found a scrap of fabric at the scene," Liam explained. "Lieutenant Tanner, the Chief of Forensics for the Seattle PD, says that she's never seen anything like it before. Apparently, it's absolutely impenetrable to Taelon scans."

Renee's eyes widened in shock. "What? How the hell could someone get hold of that? It's under security so tight that not even a mouse should be able to get in without the alarms going off!"

Liam froze.

All right... I know Doors doesn't trust me - he's never trusted me, not since before I was born... and I know that Renee's been uncomfortable around me since I told her about my parents...

But if Doors International has come up with some sort of material that blocks Taelon sensor scans, they should have let me know! I am the leader of the Resistance - what's left of it, anyway - and this fabric could be a godsend for us!

I can't believe they didn't let me know!

"Are you telling me," he said carefully, "that you know what this fabric is?"

"It's a new project that Doors International has been working on," Renee replied, either not hearing or - more likely - ignoring the anger in his voice. "But it's under such tight security that no one should have been able to get at it. Maybe someone else has developed something that works the same way," she added hopefully.

"Tell you what," Liam said, trying very hard to control his temper. "I've got to accompany Zo'or to Africa; when I get back, I'll bring you a copy of the forensics analysis, and you can tell me whether or not it is the material Doors has been working on. Then, if it is, you can go find out exactly how someone who took a shot at Zo'or got his hands on it." And then, after that, you can explain to me exactly how many other projects you and Doors are keeping from me.

Hearing footsteps getting closer to the alcove he was in, he gave Renee a frown and then turned his attention back to Augur. "Thanks for the info, Augur; at the very least, it'll help us eliminate some lines of investigation. I've got to go now; like I said, I'll see you after I get back from Africa."

Closing his global, he slipped out of the alcove and continued toward the security office.