When Myka had leaped at the falling artifact, Pete hadn't really thought anything of it, he would have simply let the thing fall but he assumed that Myka had a reason. Just before the little rock thingy hit Myka's hand, as though it was happening in slow motion, a vibe over powered Pete. It wasn't a formless unspecified warning, or a subtle nudge.

Myka knew that things was dangerous; she knew it was going to harm her if she touched it, she also knew that she didn't catch it they would all die.

Pete had never lost a partner, he had known agents that had put them selves between a protectee and harm, and he had known men and women who had been injured during investigations. But he had never had to stand by and do nothing as the one person in the entire world that he trusted above all else, endangered herself on his behalf.

And it was terrifying to watch, Myka caught the black stone thingy just before she hit the ground, the moment it touched her skin it started to glow and soon after and flash of weird ass gold light run across Myka and she was screaming.

Pete had at first thought that it had been the pain that had cause Myka to roll on to her back but he notice that she was doing so to keep that stupid stone thing safe.

Pete step forward with the intention of ripping that vile rock out of his partner hands, only to have Arties hand on his arm hold him back

"Don't touch her!" Artie's stern voice did nothing to calm Pete, he simply pulled out of grip, but he did obey, he knelt beside his fallen friend. Wanting to do nothing more the comfort Myka, Pete knelt beside unable to do anything but listen to her pained whimpers and wish that she would open her eyes so that she could at lest see that he was there with her.

When he briefly took his eyes off her to look up he saw Artie pulling on gloves, and cursed himself for not thinking of it. He was digging in his pockets trying madly to pull out the pair of gloves that he knew was in there but his jeans, the ones he had worn because ever time he did he caught Myka looking at his ass, were too tight to allow easy access. Pete heard Artie say some thing to Claudia but he didn't know or care what.

By the time Artie had the rock out of her hands Pete had the gloves on and was holding one of her hands in both of his. He could feel her pulse tapping softly against his fingers.

"What is that thing and what did it do to her?"

"It the 'Mindstone', it was found amongst a convoy of art and occult objects on it way it Hitler, and was sent to the Vatican until they sent it to us after the VE Day. The Vatican kept most of the other pieces but they were afraid of the stone, anyone who touches it is slowly driven mad."

"How do we stop it," Pete lifted Myka's upper body against him, her lower back against his thighs her shoulders on his stomach and her head resting above his heart.

"I'll think of something," Artie assured the younger man.

"Can't you goop the rock?" Pete knew that it wasn't going to be that easy, but he hoped anyway. Goop the rock, Myka wakes up, yells at him for touching her, they all live happily ever after.

"I intend to, but the harms already done. It will not help Myka; I will find something that will, Pete I promise you. I will find something," Claudia ran up to them with and goo bucket from the neutralizing station. "This will give a big reaction, cover Myka." The last was directed toward Pete, he quickly curled up protectively over Myka. The position left him with his nose berried in Myka dark curls; the smell was so intense that Pete could taste it. Pete closed his eyes tightly and placed and hand over Myka's eyes. Even through his closed eyes he saw the flash of the rock hitting the neutralizer, he waited just another second before he straightened up and release his hold over Myka's eyes.

As he looked her over to see if she was hurt by the discharge, her eyes opened. What he saw there wasn't the pain that he could feel in the tension of her body and it wasn't the fear that was differently justified, it was relief.

"You ok?" It didn't occur to ether of them that she was echoing the same thing that had annoyed and elated her after his brush with the Saracen's spine

"How 'bout you?" Pete questioned while nodding in response.

Myka wanted to lie she wanted to say the she was fine, but as the pain started to recede the first voices started to trickle in to her mind. The voices were confused and all talking at once. They weren't really voices; she knew that because she had heard them, they just somehow forced their way in to her head. It was similar to listening to something through headphones, instead of coming through one ear or the other they seem to meet in the middle. Almost as though they were her own thoughts, but somehow with more substance. Her confusion at what she was experiencing was clear in her expression, and the strain as she tried to push away the 'not hers' thoughts. Myka whimpered lifted her hands to her head as though trying to shield it from the voices that weren't voices pushing in on her.

Myka could hear Pete voice, but it was like a whisper at a rock show, she could hear it but the words were drowned out. She looked up at him, in the vain hope that it would help, but there was no change. Then Myka saw an expression come over him that she knew very well, she didn't connect it with the odd sensation in her chest, it was Pete's Vibe look. He quickly removed his hands form her, Myka feared briefly that his Vibe was tell him the she was dangerous to him somehow, he pulled off his gloves and took her hand back in his and place his other on her cheek, and looked in to her eyes.

"No," Myka announced "No, I can't hear you, but yes, I can."