Ajax appeared near the small settlement that had been set up for the care of the dragons, and he began walking towards the center of the pseudo-village.

"Ajax, it's good to see that you…is that black file?" Aragon asked, eyes narrowed at the folder Ajax carried.

"Yeah, 'fraid so." Ajax replied resignedly. "I'm sorry, but my first duty calls."

"I'll take a look." Aragon said, snatching the file away from Ajax.

"I wouldn't." Ajax warned. "Not if you remember what happened last time."

Aragon, who had just opened the file, slowly and deliberately closed it again, without looking at it. "Unlock it." he said quietly. "Now."

"No." Ajax replied, equally quiet. "I will not. Even if I wanted to, I'd need to have it in hand to be able to do so."

Aragon handed over the file, as Thelduin arrived to see what was going on. Her eyes narrowed as she beheld the jackal seal on the front of the black manila folder, and she coiled nearby, ready to respond as she thought appropriate.

Ajax opened the file, and took out a single piece of paper, which he then copied with a spell. The original was returned to the file, and Ajax handed over the duplicate.

"Bill re-worked the security spells a bit. If I willingly hand you the file, or parts of the file, then you can actually see what is there, otherwise…well, I'm sure you remember. That piece of paper is safe for you to read." he said, closing the file.

Aragon's eyes flicked over the paper for several seconds. "Hmm, looks like you need my help again." he said. "And I was just settling down here."

"You aren't coming." Ajax replied. "At least, not with me."

"What do you mean?" Aragon shot back. "Right there on the paper, 'Warhammer 40k' as your destination universe. You need my expertise!"

"I can't restrict your movements from one 'verse to another, Aragon. I can say for a certainty that you aren't coming with me, or by my choice."

"And just what is this that you're involved in, this 'Project Betrayal'? What does Death mean by that?" Aragon asked loudly.

Ajax backed up a few steps, intimidated by the older Rider. "I can't say, okay? It's classified, and way above your pay grade. Amaranth will be staying here, if that tells you anything. I would dearly love to not part with her company, but I have my orders. You want to come along? Fine, get your own transport. For this mission, you are not in my party. I'm sorry, but that's how it is."

"Fine." Aragon ground out at last. "Be that way. Do you have to leave right away?"

"No, I've a week's worth of leave before I am to turn my attention back to the mission. It's supposed to give me time to 'center' myself after what happened with that warp incident. Oh, and Aragon?"

"Hm?"

"Cold, darkness, and evil don't exist." Ajax walked towards the edge of the settlement and pitched a tent while Aragon tried to think about that one.

""he said.

"Cold is merely the absence of heat, Aragon." Ajax explained. "Darkness is the same thing, with lumens rather than degrees. Evil is the same thing again, just the absence of good. Therefore, removing all that is evil doesn't destroy the balance, as there is no balance to destroy. Chaos being the absence of order, if I removed Chaos, then order would exist everywhere, and the so-called chaos theory is just order on a higher level. It just looks chaotic." Ajax smirked as he finished putting up the tent. "it's really quite simple when you think about it."

Ajax surreptitiously placed several warding stones that would safeguard the tent from rampaging dragons or Inquisitors, though he suspected that they would only hold against the dedicated senior Rider for half and hour or so at best.

The next week or so was spent idyllically. At least, Ajax thought it was idyllic, but realized that having gone up against Chaos might have skewed his perception slightly. All too soon, it was time for Ajax to take his leave. He packed a trunk, but left the tent up for Amaranth, as she had obtained several items for her use while in human form.

"I'll see you around, Aragon." Ajax said. "Max is arriving in three hours, so at least you'll have the same number of people on the ground as you have before I left." Ajax grinned slightly at his own words, but then sobered up. "I really do wish I could have had your help on this one, Aragon. If it weren't for my orders, I would bring you along. Take care of yourself, and don't get eaten by one of those stupid overgrown slugs." so saying, Ajax and his trunk flashed blue for a moment before disappearing.

"Rhünon." Ajax stated from just outside the boundaries of her forge. "I'm on a mission of extreme importance, and I was wondering if you could help me."

"I could." she said. "depending on the nature of the help you need rendered."

"I need a weapon." Ajax replied.

"You do not need another weapon." Rhünon scoffed.

"Yes, I do." Ajax replied. "My current weapon will fail me against the enemies I am soon to fight."

"And why is that?" she croaked. "Have you gone and destroyed every enchantment I laid on your blades, and then bent them, just for spite?"

The was a slithering sound of a long knife sliding out of it's scabbard, followed by it's twin a moment later.

"You may inspect them if you wish." Ajax stated.

Rhünon accepted the weapon, and examined the blades with great care, murmuring in the ancient language as she did so. "It is in perfect condition." she rasped at last. "So why would it fail you?"

"What do you know of the walkers of the night, vampires and lycans?" Ajax asked.

"Why would you be meeting such abominations?" Rhünon shot back venomously.

"It is my job to kill yet another madman." Ajax replied. "And I believe that those two types of…things would be in the way. It never hurts to make sure."

"Yes, this blade, much as it pains me to admit it, would be considerably ill-suited for the task. Not entirely impossible, mind you, but not the perfect tool for the job. Very well, we shall forge a new one."

"I have a blueprint of the weapon." Ajax supplied, opening the file. He extracted several papers, detailing several different pieces of a chainsword.

Rhünon accepted the papers with an odd look on her face. "Plans for a weapon. What are we coming to?" she muttered.

"Plans are so that the weapon can be easily duplicated, regardless of who is standing at the forge. Will your oath allow you to forge bits and pieces of a weapon?" Ajax asked.

"A clever interpretation." she said. "Yes."

"I have with me the finest weapons-grade silver for the alloy, and a goodly quantity of holy water for quenching with." Ajax said, presenting the metal and water.

Rhünon nodded. "Very well. I will want recompense for this. This is a cursed design, and I feel ill at ease with even forging the parts for it. However, I know what you are, and the entity you work for."

"You know Bill?" Ajax asking surprise.

"I do." the ancient smith replied. "I forged a Reaper's Blade for him three years ago when he tried to reap Jack Harkness. I can't believe he never noticed anything was wrong until the moment Harkness was supposed to die. I'm still trying to reforge the blades, but shadow is the trickiest thing to work with…" the smith trailed off, evidently lost in the memories of her craft.

"Right, I'll leave you to it then." Ajax said. "I must see about certain other arrangements."

So saying, Ajax vanished, stopping briefly at the border to pass through the wards, then flashed again, finding himself back at the dragon-raising camp.

"Back so soon?" Aragon asked. "That was quick, I thought your ship takes four hours between reality jumps."

"Carter whittled it down to half an hour." Ajax said. "But I haven't left yet. Rhünon is working with the silver and holy water to create a powered chainsword while I work on other things."

"A Frostblade?" Aragon asked. "Why?"

"I prefer the term Nightblade, seeing as how it is expressly designed to deal with vampires and werewolves." Ajax said. "However, that's not why I came back." Ajax looked up for effect, and after a few moments, Aragon looked up as well.

"What are we looking for?" Aragon asked.

"Wait for it…" Ajax replied. A moment later, the entire sky flashed blue as the planetary shield disengaged.

"What the devil was that?" Aragon asked in shock.

'The shield covering this world just dropped." Ajax said. "It will be engaged again in about ten seconds or so. Atlantis has arrived."

A moment later, the sky flashed with a blue light, turning the color a slightly deeper blue as the shields came back into existence. A moment later, Ajax pointed towards the horizon. "Behold, Atlantis!" he said dramatically.

Aragon cuffed him about the back of the head, and moments later, the city flew overhead, a slight trail of smoke following the city's course.

"I gave Angel the coordinates of your camp, and Atlantis is going to land near the shore, as close as they can without actually touching ground. This means you'll be able to sleep on Atlantis, rather than here!" Ajax finished brightly. He sobered again. "I need to go upstairs. See you later."

A moment later, the transport systems aboard Phoenix locked onto Ajax, depositing him on the bridge.

"Send me over to Voyager's bridge, please." Ajax said, barely pausing to look around.

"Right away, sir." came the reply.

A moment later, he was standing on the only Federation bridge in the universe Ajax currently occupied.

"And what brings you here?" Captain Janeway asked, standing up. "Stationary orbit over Atlantis please, Mr. Paris."

"Business." Ajax replied. "May we continue in your ready room?"

The captain gave him an appraising look, which Ajax held steadily until she looked away. "Very well."

The two entered the spacious ready room, and Janeway paused by the replicator. "Can I get you anything, Mr. Tone?"

"I don't suppose your computers know what firewhiskey looks like, does it?" Ajax asked with a hint of a smile.

"Firewater?" Janeway asked, bemused.

"No, firewhiskey." Ajax corrected, grinning. "It the beverage of choice if someone like myself is looking to drown their sorrows…liberally."

"I'm afraid not." Janeway said, smiling as well. "Coffee, black, hot."

The computer bleeped and hummed for a moment before the requested cup of coffee materialized in a swirl of energy.

She took a sip and grimaced. As usual, the coffee was not as hot as she would have liked. Ajax grinned and leaned over the replicator. "Hot coffee." he said. The requested beverage appeared like the previous one, and Ajax passed to the captain. "I think this may be more to your liking."

An eyebrow went up slightly, but she accepted the proffered cup, and took a sip. She then set the cup down and sighed. "That's hot coffee." she said.

"Should I give the other one back?" Ajax asked.

Janeway made a dismissive waving gesture, and Ajax put the cup back in the replicator and cleared it.

"Now, what was it you wanted?" Janeway asked.

"It would take too long to explain." Ajax replied. He held out the black file towards Janeway, who accepted it and examined the seal on the front.

"Isn't that the mark of Anubis?" Janeway asked.

"Sort of." Ajax replied, after several seconds of debating how to explain it. "At the higher level, it is one of the many recognized marks used as identifiers for Death or the property of Death. At the lower level, yes, the mark was associated with Anubis."

"You having that sort of information means that you come from Death, assuming you haven't stolen this. Have you come to reap my soul?" Janeway asked. She seemed rather calm about the idea.

"No, rather to ask for your help. All the information pertaining to the mission is inside." Ajax said quietly.

Janeway opened the file, and began reading while Ajax conjured a PADD and began to read, barely paying attention to the words, focused on Janeway's facial reactions instead. She did not look pleased to be reading what was before her. Still, a grim curiosity seemed to drive her hand as she flipped to the next page. Finally, she finished, and Ajax stood up from where he was seated in the lounge half of the ready room.

"I assume you have finished the file?" Ajax asked somberly.

Janeway nodded. "Yes, unfortunately. To say I was disgusted by some of what I read in there would be the understatement of the century. Do you have to go in there?"

"According to the contract, yes." Ajax replied. I'm working on obtaining a new weapon to help me with my task, since the target is some sort of werewolf and vampire hybrid. It's not as vulnerable to silver and sunlight as ordinary versions of either race, but they certainly help. Add to that a chainsaw mated to the hilt of a sword, and you have a serious weapon. Will you help me?"

Janeway thought about it for several moments. "Yes." she said at last.

"Thank you." Ajax said. "I'll be bringing over a bunch of stuff so that it can be consumed by the replicator system, I wouldn't want to depend on other sources for food once we get there."

Janeway grimaced. "I agree wholeheartedly. I wouldn't be surprised if even the food was tainted with the foul muck of the Imperium and Chaos."

"Not that bad." Ajax laughed. "But very close. I wouldn't be surprised if the Chaos forces give us a bit of a berth, but the Imperium might not be intellectual enough to realize that I am bad news. If such a situation arises, I'll use my abilities to replace your shields and you can send all that spare power to weapons."

"You can do that?" Janeway asked, amazed.

"I'm holding the ship up." Ajax grinned. At Janeway's look, he relented. "Yes, I can do that, regardless of whether or not I'm holding the ship up. I'll have the Phoenix start sending stuff over to your cargo bays in cubes so that you can easily stick them into the replicator for consumption."

"Thank you." Janeway replied.

"Thank you." Ajax replied. "I'm not entirely sure this would be possible without your help."

They exited the ready room, and Ajax activated his beacon while captain Janeway set about getting her ship ready for the arduous mission it was about to endure.

Another one done, somehow I feel like my heart wasn't in this one, despite the speed with which I cranked this puppy out. Anyway, good or bad, leave a review, and try not to hate on me in a stupid fashion. Tell me what I did wrong and how to fix it rather than simple things like 'this sucks'. Thankyou, and goodnight.