Summary: A 'Misadventure.' A mysterious woman has arrived in New York. Sid feels he's met her somewhere before, but he can't remember where. Who is she, and how is she connected to a series of vicious attacks?

Disclaimer: I own Dr. Monroe and Dr. Carter. Anyone else belongs to Square.

Author's Note: Final chapter, folks! I'm sorry it was put up at the same time as chapter two; thanks to a problem in the computer lab when I tried to upload it earlier, wouldn't accept it, and then the computer couldn't even open it. I thought that the disk had reformatted and that I'd lost it, along with my Christmas fics. I almost cried… Now I need to get to work on the next one to have it up for Christmas, and then… then I promise I'm going to give myself a break! I've been working very hard these past few months. Oh, and I promise that, one day, this series actually will have Phantoms in it. I've just kinda gone off the subject, haven't I?

The Ancient One

The Misadventures of Dr. Sid, Aging Werewolf

Three – Angel of Death

She was waiting for him that night, a dark shape sprawled luxuriously across his bed. Hein blinked wearily, glancing at the clock. It was 3 AM; had Alison been here since he'd left her so many hours ago? He stumbled to his bed and was about to turn on the lamp on his nightstand when her hand darted out

She tugged on his hand, and he fell backwards onto his bed. Before he could do anything, she was on top of him, pinning him down. Hein looked up at her face, her pale features visible in the darkness. There was a spot of darkness on her jaw, and he strained to see what it was. In the light that leaked through, the spot looked almost wet, with a pale line that looked almost like bone. His imagination must be going overtime… He didn't have time to wonder about it because she said heavily, "I wanted to wait; but I need this," and suddenly her mouth was at his throat. He had the impression of two glowing red spots, and then everything faded to black.

XXX

Dr. Sid didn't get any sleep that night, despite what he'd told Aki. He'd left the radio on, and he spent the night listening to the reports from Atlanta. The situation worsened as the night dragged on, with fewer and fewer survivors being recovered. Of the three million who had lived in Atlanta, only a thousand had been recovered and were being evacuated to New York.

He finally gave up trying to sleep; every time he closed his eyes he saw red eyes, staring into him. Was it a dream, or had he met her? And how was such a thing possible? He remembered returning home as a wolf and finding his wife's body… and returning home as a man and finding someone, a woman, standing over Elizabeth's body, blood streaming down her chin. It had to be a dream inspired by his paranoia of Dr. Monroe.

Or it was a resurfacing memory, one that had been hidden by the same abilities that had swayed the Council with nonsense words.

Impossible! That was twenty years ago! It couldn't be the same woman! She hasn't changed! It couldn't be…

There was a knock on his door. If not for his enhanced hearing, he never would have heard it. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was five in the morning. Who would be visiting at this hour? Or what? Sid hastily donned his customary lab smock and went to the door, peering through the peephole before opening it. "Corporal Fleming? What are you doing here? And why this early?"

Neil looked exhausted, but there was a look to his eyes that Sid had seen before: a haunted look, as if he could see terrible things whenever he closed his eyes. He'd obviously just gotten back from the Atlanta evacuation – his clothing still bore impressions from his armor – and he looked about ready to collapse. "Coffee?" Dr. Sid asked, and when Neil nodded jerkily, he went into his small to prepare some. Neil followed, and seemed to crumple into one of the chairs around the table.

He wondered why the corporal had come to him. They barely knew each other; he wouldn't come to Sid for comfort, would he? Perhaps he felt he needed someone non-military to listen to him, someone who wouldn't analyze his every action and hold him accountable for them. Sid set a steaming cup of coffee in front of the corporal, and was about to offer him cream or sugar when the corporal picked it up and took a deep swig.

"Thank you," Neil said. "I'm sorry I'm here so early, but… well, I figured no one was getting any sleep tonight, so I took a chance you'd be up. I was running a new search on Dr. Monroe when the alert was called, and when I came back, I found the results."

Sid blinked. He hadn't expected that to be the reason Neil had come so early. He admired the younger man's dedication. "And?"

"I was able to find the San Francisco records." At Sid's shocked look, he said, "All barrier cities still active ten years ago were fitted with a sort of data core that stored everything. It was linked to an independent power source so that, if the city falls, the information is still accessible for those who know where to look. It's difficult to hack into, but I worked it out last night and ran a search for anything dealing with Dr. Monroe. And mysterious deaths."

Dr. Sid waited. Whatever the corporal had to say, it had to be important. "There were five deaths in the two months preceding San Francisco's fall. Two of them were confirmed to have been drained of blood. And, once again, I couldn't find any scientific work that Dr. Monroe has done. Doctor… what is she?" There was no longer any doubt in Neil's mind that Dr. Monroe was behind this, and that she was something unnatural.

"I don't know," Dr. Sid admitted.

"Bloodless corpses, mass hypnosis… She almost sounds like a vampire," Neil joked weakly.

A… vampire? Sid had a sudden flash of a woman with blood-red hair, blood streaming down her chin, standing over the body of his beloved Elizabeth. That had been twenty years ago, if his memory truly was a memory. Vampires were immortal…

"You were supposed to laugh, Doc," Neil said, the beginnings of alarm on his face. "Vampires don't exist, do they?"

"You're a wererat; is a vampire so hard to believe?" Dr. Sid whispered.

Neil gaped. "You're serious!"

"I think I met her before, twenty years ago. I think she killed my wife. I… I remember her, but I remember something else happening… Vampires are known to be able to alter memories, to play with the mind. It would explain a lot."

"You met her?"

"In Toronto, shortly before… shortly before its fall…" Sid trailed off as something occurred to him. "Toronto, San Francisco, Atlanta… Every city she's been in has fallen after she left. Did they find out the cause of Atlanta's fall?"

"A computer malfunction," Neil said, his voice a whisper.

"She's covering her tracks," Sid said. "When she leaves, her influence starts to fade, so, to keep anyone from figuring out something's wrong, she destroys the evidence. She destroys the city."

Neil opened his mouth soundlessly for a few moments, then recovered. "She can't be a vampire," he said. "I mean, we've all seen her during the day. That wasn't a mass hallucination. And those bodies weren't just drained, they were shredded. Unless she's trying to pin the deaths on us werecreatures, then it doesn't make sense." He twitched. "She wouldn't be trying to pin it on us, would she?"

"I don't know… Legends don't always get it right. Vampires could be immune to daylight for all we know. We have to find a way to destroy her, or New York City will fall next."

Neil pursed his lips thoughtfully. "There're only a few more days until the full moon; maybe we could ambush her then. I mean, she usually stays somewhere for a few years, right? We should have time…"

"Maybe I'll just take that bastard son of yours."

"She's already killed," Sid whispered. "In the other cities, she waited awhile before killing, right? So why is she starting now? She isn't here to establish a new home; she's here for General Hein."

"What! What are you talking about? Why? How do you know?" Neil couldn't figure out what to ask.

"Maybe I'll just take that bastard son of yours." Dr. Sid couldn't explain. "Think about it. She latched on to him the moment she got here. He wasn't in his office today when he should have been investigating the murder. According to the people I've talked to, the few times he has been seen, he acted like he was in some sort of daze. She wants him, and we might not have those few days until the full moon."

"Should I start sharpening stakes? Collecting vials of holy water? Gather garlic?" Neil wondered.

Dr. Sid felt helpless. "I wish I knew for sure what killed a vampire. For now, I think following legends is our best bet, even though legend was wrong about the sunlight thing. We need to kill her before anything else happens."

There was a knock on Sid's door.

Dr. Sid and Neil exchanged glances. "Were you expecting anyone?" Neil asked.

"Not this early," Sid said. Neil got up and crept to the door. He wasn't armed, but he'd be better equipped than Sid to take on an intruder. Unless it was Dr. Monroe… He peeked through the peephole, then gave Dr. Sid a puzzled look. "I don't know who it is," he said.

Sid got up and took a look, then frowned. He opened the door to reveal Dr. Carter. Before Dr. Sid could react, the young scientist slumped forward, and Neil hurried to catch him. "Dr. Carter? What's wrong?" Sid asked as Carter pushed away from Neil, struggling to remain upright. There was an ashen tone to his golden skin, and his eyes were grey with pain. Neil helped him to the couch.

"What happened?" Sid asked again, as Neil went to the kitchen, presumably to fetch another cup of coffee.

"I was attacked…" he whispered, and Dr. Sid stiffened. No… "I'm… all right… it's just a scratch." Carter didn't look all right, and he kept one hand pressed to his abdomen.

"Let me see," Sid said, ignoring Carter's hands as he weakly tried to bat Sid away. Dr. Sid pulled his shirt open, but stopped when he realized his abdomen had been expertly swathed in bandages. Very little blood seeped through. Sid realized he'd probably do more damage undoing the bandage than if he just left it alone. Sid let it slide for now. "What attacked you?" he asked. "Did you see it?"

Dr. Carter was silent for a long moment, and Sid feared at first that he'd lost consciousness. But then he said finally, "This sounds ridiculous, but… I think it was a werewolf." Sid was too startled to notice the intensity of Carter's gaze as he took in the older scientist's reaction. He certainly missed the knowing smile when he turned to Neil, who had returned in time to hear Carter's proclamation.

"A werewolf?" Neil asked. Sid winced; Neil's disbelief sounded far too forced to be believable. "What are you, nuts?"

"I know what I saw," Carter insisted. "And I have proof." He pulled a container out of a pocket and offered it to Sid. The scientist opened the lid, and his eyes widened. Inside was what looked like a hunk of flesh, covered with blood-red fur. And… mushrooms? The course fur certainly looked like it came from a wolf's pelt, and the color was a match for Dr. Monroe's crimson locks.

"Werewolves don't exist," Neil insisted.

"Don't they?" Dr. Carter countered, and suddenly Dr. Sid was aware of the man's keen gaze boring into him. Sid met his eyes, wondering how much the younger man suspected. A moment of searching and he realized the younger man didn't just suspect, he knew. Sid closed the container and handed it to Carter.

"How long have you known?" Sid asked quietly, and Neil's eyes widened.

"It was only a suspicion, when I found some curious blood samples in my lab," Dr. Carter said, his eyes narrowed. He didn't explain the circumstances; he didn't need to. "I did some experiments on it, and found your DNA all over it. But I didn't quite believe the anomaly I found was lycanthropy until I was attacked last night. I got a good look at the thing when it wanted to carve out my heart with its claws."

"So…" Neil said, struggling desperately to continue his charade of ignorance, "werewolves really do exist?"

Dr. Sid gave him an annoyed look. "Shut up, Corporal." He turned back to Carter. "We'll discuss this later. For now, I need to know how certain you are that she is a werewolf. The moon wasn't full last night, and the powers she exhibits are…" Sid trailed off as something occurred to him. Oh my God…

"It looked like a giant wolf. What else could it be?" Carter sounded frustrated. "If I had known that werewolves could control the Council, I'd have transferred to another city months ago."

"We can't," Sid said quietly. "No werewolf can. She's not a werewolf – or, rather, she's not just a werewolf. I think she's a vampire/werewolf hybrid."

XXX

Dr. Monroe pulled away from Hein's neck, one hand brushing the smooth, healed flesh on her cheek. It'd been a long time since she'd been hurt that badly; she hadn't wanted to push Hein this soon, but she'd needed blood to help her regenerate, and after what had happened in the lab, she was wary to go back.

Of course, she was going to have to hunt down that damned scientist if he'd managed to survive. She couldn't have him telling anyone what he'd seen. While she was certain he'd been too mortally wounded to live, there was always the chance… She'd stop by the hospital later to see.. But for now, she had something to attend to…

She drew one sharp fang across her palm, and blood welled from the cut. Hein was still dazed from her feeding, but he'd be able to respond to her orders. "Drink," she commanded, holding her palm out in front of him. He stared at her blankly, then delicately put his lips to her palm. "Yes," she murmured. "I've been waiting a long time to do this, ever since your father spurned me… You'll be just like I am: invulnerable, immortal… and all mine."

Hein was oblivious to this. All he knew was that his mistress was pleased with him, and he'd do anything to make her happy.

XXX

"A hybrid?" Both Neil and Dr. Carter asked at the same time.

"Is that possible?" Neil demanded. Dr. Carter just looked intrigued.

"I don't know," Dr. Sid admitted. "But it explains a lot. Such as how she's able to walk around in daylight. And it might explain why she changed without the full moon." And his memories… He remembered seeing her on the verge of a change, after she'd drained the blood of his wife.

"Does that mean she has the immunities of both?" Dr. Carter asked.

Dr. Sid considered. He didn't like the implications of that… "Immune to sunlight because werewolves can walk in it. Silver supposedly hurts vampires as well as werewolves, according to some legends, but I don't exactly have a large stock of silver. By the time we get some… it could be too late."

"Too late for what?" Carter asked.

Sid explained the link between the fall of the barrier cities and Dr. Monroe's presence there. Carter's eyes widened. "Worse, she's trying to get General Hein under her influence. And now that I know she's a hybrid, I know it's possible." He hadn't thought Monroe would be able to do more than control Hein – he'd assumed the curses didn't mix – but now… now he realized that she could be doing more than controlling him. She could be trying to change him… Like she wanted to change me! Sid realized, as another flash of memory hit him.

"Don't touch my son! He's too young! And he doesn't know what he is!" Sid protested weakly.

"I can wait… I am unimaginably old… I have seen empires rise and fall, seen centuries-old dynasties lost to the ravages of time… I have witnessed the birth of technology, survived the world's deadliest wars…" She stood over him, close enough to smell the blood on her breath. "I have grown lonely in my old age. You are wolf; you can survive the transformation to become my mate. He is only an unchanging half-breed; my gift would kill him."

"Leave us alone," Sid whispered.

"You have no one, now that your wife is dead. Come with me. This city is going to fall, severing the last of your ties with the mortal world. I will give you until midnight to decide. I will wait for you in the city's heart."

He didn't even see her go. One moment she was there, and the next, she was gone, giving him a clear view of his wife's drained body. There was a look of terror frozen on her face.

He'd wanted to bury her, but he couldn't. To delay would give HER time to find him. So the moment the change overcame him, he fled. He left behind the falling city, his wife, and the angel of death who had destroyed an entire city. His one hope was that she'd assume he'd been killed by the Phantoms. And with him dead, his son would be worthless to her even as leverage. He hoped.

And he had been worthless… until Dr. Sid's saliva had made Hein fully a werewolf. And now Dr. Monroe had come to make good on her threat.

"Doctor? Are you all right?" Neil asked.

"She's ancient; I don't know how old, but she's been alive for longer than we can comprehend," Sid said. "If she's lasted this long, I don't know if she can be killed."

"I hurt her," Dr. Carter reminded them, holding up the container. "If she can be hurt, then she can be killed."

"How did you do it?" Dr. Sid asked.

"I was working on a fungus colony in the lab, experimenting with a growth accelerator. She… well, she pinned me to the table so she could dissect me, and the only thing within reach was the petrie dish with the colony. I threw it at her… and then the fungi began to grow on her face, and she had to claw it off…" Dr. Carter shrugged weakly. "I know it sounds weird, but…"

"Some mushrooms act as decomposers," Dr. Sid said, his eyes widening. "They thrive in areas where there's a lot of dead vegetation. A vampire is the walking dead. Let me see that piece again," he said, taking the container from Carter. Yes, the flesh looked decayed where the mushrooms were growing. "I think you found a way to defeat a vampire that isn't in any of the old tales."

"Death by mushroom." Neil whistled. "So much for the romanticism of being a vampire."

Sid rolled his eyes. "Can you make another batch of this stuff?" he asked Carter.

"Yeah – in fact, I have more in my lab. What's the plan?" Dr. Carter leaned forward, wincing slightly.

"I'll try to corner Monroe, and then splash it in her face, or something," Sid faltered. It wasn't the best of ideas.

"And what about me?" Neil demanded. "You're not going to leave me out of this, are you? If she messes with Hein, she messes with me."

Carter raised his eyebrows. "Don't ask," Sid muttered. "All right, you and I –"

"And me. I owe the bitch," Carter snarled.

Sid frowned. He wanted to protest that Carter was injured, but he looked better than he had when he came in. And the more people to help, the better.

"All right; the three of us, then. And we'll have to do it tonight. Will the two of you be ready to put the plan into action whenever I give word?" The other two nodded. "All right; I have an idea…"

XXX

"Excuse me," Dr. Monroe gave the nurse on duty her brightest smile, being careful not to flash fang. The nurse smiled in response, without really knowing why. After all, she'd been on duty all night, helping the Atlanta evacuees. The last thing she needed was some scientist barging in and asking nosy questions. Yet, she didn't mind…

"I heard there was another attack last night," Monroe continued. "A scientist named Joseph Carter. Do you know if he survived?"

The nurse wasn't supposed to give out information like this, but she checked anyway. "I'm sorry, Dr. Monroe. We don't have a Joseph Carter on record."

"He died, then," Monroe said sadly. The nurse checked the morgue records.

"No… no Carter listed here."

"What?" Dr. Monroe started, and her hold on the nurse's mind slipped. "He must be… has a John Doe come in? One with a great bloody hole in his chest?"

"Do you know something?" the nurse asked suspiciously. Dr. Monroe grimaced, then tightened her control on the nurse, a bit more forcefully than she should have. The woman's face went suddenly blank.

"Now, check and see if a disemboweled John Doe was brought in this morning, either alive or as a corpse."

The nurse obediently checked the records. "Nothing," she said tonelessly. Oh, dear… I think I damaged her. Dammit, where is Carter? Did I get his name wrong?

"Thank you," Dr. Monroe smiled, leaving the nurse to stare off into space. After a while, a line of drool tricked down her chin, but that was the only change in her.

XXX

Neil wasn't sure he wanted to be doing this. Even though his rats assured him that there was only one person in the room, Neil was nervous. What if she was in there, hiding? But someone had to warn General Hein to stay away from Dr. Monroe. If he knew what she was, Dr. Sid had reasoned, it might help him fight her hold on him. Neil still had no idea why she was after Hein, or how Sid knew he was her target, but he trusted the older man.

Taking a deep breath, and half expecting to have his throat ripped out when the door opened, Neil rapped his knuckles on the entrance to General Hein's quarters. He calmed slightly when the door didn't immediately open and reveal Dr. Monroe, but when he continued to get no response, he began to worry.

"Are you sure he's in there?" Neil asked Jenner, who was sitting by his feet.

"Black dog in there," Jenner said. The rat got up and began to pace. "Leave now?" the scout pleaded.

"Go on," Neil told him, and the rat skittered away. He didn't want any of them near Dr. Monroe, not after Fratley's mysterious disappearance.

Neil glanced around to make sure the corridor was empty, then quickly overrode the lock to the general's room. Neil hurriedly went inside and shut the door behind him.

A glance around the small living room revealed nothing out of the ordinary, until an unusual scent hit him. Blood. Neil followed the smell to its source, a dark smear on one of Hein's chairs. Although Neil didn't have enough experience as a lycanthrope to discriminate between the scents of different kinds of blood, he knew the smell of his rats. And Fratley's fading scent was all around the floor under the chair.

Neil gritted his teeth. She'd killed one of the creatures under his protection. For that alone, she'd have to pay…

But not now. Now, he had to find Hein. He went into the general's bedroom and stopped dead at the sight that greeted him. Hein was sprawled out on his bed, lying face down. His naturally pale skin looked even whiter than normal, except for a dark blot on his neck… a spot that looked horribly like the smear on Hein's chair.

We're too late… she's already bitten him!

XXX

Dr. Sid and Dr. Carter were busy dealing with Problem Number Two: Finding a way to actually use the fungal spores and growth accelerant as a weapon. They'd tried darts, but the moment the spores and chemicals came together, the spores began to grow into mushrooms, and it didn't take long before they were big enough to clog the needles of the darts. Throwing petrie dishes was a waste of dishes, and there was no guarantee enough would splash onto the hybrid to take her down. Besides, Sid wanted to get the mixture inside of her, where she wouldn't be able to rip it off as she had the flesh of her cheek. Which meant injecting it, somehow.

"One of us could have a dart gun full of the accelerant, and the other could have one full of spores," Carter said doubtfully.

"We'd both have to hit the same place to make it work. I'm not a good enough aim for that, are you?" Carter shook his head. "Besides, I want all of us armed with the mixture in case… in case she takes down one or more of us." Dr. Sid didn't like to think about that, but it was a real possibility.

Dr. Carter looked grim, but not frightened. He'd already been attacked; he was well aware of what they were facing. Working with the young scientist was fascinating; he was highly intelligent, and listened to Dr. Sid's suggestions even when they contradicted his own. And he was very, very careful not to mention the Halloween incident and Sid's lycanthropy, even though he knew Dr. Sid would confront him about it sooner or later.

The com in Sid's lab bleeped, and Sid answered it. It was Neil, as he'd expected, but the expression on the young corporal's face wasn't expected. He looked… terrified. "What's wrong?" Dr. Sid asked.

"I found General Hein. She's already bitten him," he said tonelessly.

Shit! That ruined their plan; they'd been hoping that Hein, away from Monroe's influence, would listen to them and allow them to set up an ambush in his apartment as bait. If he didn't listen, well… they'd tie him up, and set up an ambush in his apartment, after having Neil send a false message from Hein asking to meet her there. Now, though… "How bad is it?"

"He was barely alive," Neil continued in that same monotone. "He's so pale… and he's lost so much blood… I'm at the hospital now. He's getting a transfusion – heh, did you know he and Dr. Ross have the same blood type? He's going to hate finding out she saved his life. The doctors don't understand how he survived such a major blood loss, and they want to know how he was injured. I keep telling them I don't know, but they keep pestering me."

This was bad; very bad. It meant the vampiric virus was already in Hein's system. While most legends insisted that multiple feedings were required, Dr. Sid wasn't putting much faith in those legends.

"That's not the only thing," Neil continued after a moment. "One of the nurses who was on duty seems to have suffered some sort of brain damage, and no one knows how or why. But another nurse says she saw this woman earlier talking to a redhead asking about a Dr. Carter."

Carter looked up, his face pale. "She's looking for me?"

"You saw her. You hurt her. She wanted to know if you had lived to tell anyone. And since she didn't find you at the hospital…" Dr. Sid trailed off as a thought occurred to him. "She's going to come after you," he smiled.

"I don't find that very reassuring," Dr. Carter said, backing away.

"Change of plans, Corporal," Sid told Neil. "Come to the lab this evening." He shut off the com, then turned to Carter. "So tell me, Dr. Carter. How do you feel about being bait?"

XXX

They ended up rigging a dual-chamber dart, with Neil's help. The tech's weapon experience was invaluable in this; if anyone was going to get a successful shot at Monroe, it would be the soldier. The dart was divided down its length, with half containing a fluid with spores, the other containing the accelerant. On impact, both would inject through the needle and immediately begin to multiply.

Their plan was simple: Dr. Carter would pretend to work alone in his lab at night, as he had on so many occasions. Neil and Dr. Sid would wait in the next lab over, with two of Neil's rats to guard in case they fell under Monroe's spell. Neil didn't think their simple minds would fall to her influence, and a rat bite was painful enough to jerk them out of whatever Monroe did to them. Four other rats would hide at different points in the lab complex, watching for Monroe's entrance. The moment one of them saw or scented her, they'd run to alert Neil.

It was the best plan they could come up in such a short time and with so few people. Sid just considered them lucky that he'd been able to find three dart guns – 'borrowed' from the zoo – and about two dozen darts. It took them two hours to fill the darts, and then they had an hour until sunset.

Naturally, of course, that's when everything went wrong.

Their general's unexpected injuries combined with the brutality of the attack on Dr. Murphy made the MP frantic to find whatever had done this. Only the warning of the rats gave the three the time to hide what they were working on before four of the Military Police barged in unannounced.

"Dr. Sid. And Dr. Carter; good, you're both here. We'd like you to come with us." The leader of the MP spoke in a tone that brooked no argument.

"Why?" Dr. Sid challenged.

"You're wanted for questioning; both of you were seen working in the lab area the night of Dr. Murphy's death."

"I didn't see anything," Dr. Sid said firmly. "If I had, I would have reported it."

"Same here," Dr. Carter said.

"We still need you both to come down for questioning." The four soldiers made it very clear that Sid could come willingly, or they could drag the two scientists kicking and screaming. Sid chose the former.

"We'll be back as soon as we can," Dr. Sid told Neil.

Unfortunately, 'soon' was a concept lost on the MP. Desperate to find out who had harmed their general, they grilled Dr. Sid and Dr. Carter mercilessly, often asking the same question three or four times, and glowering when the scientists gave the same answer every time. They questioned Carter first, taking him off into a little room and leaving Sid to fidget. Finally, they sent Carter to wait and questioned Sid. All the while, the hour grew later. At least Dr. Carter is safe here. And General Hein is in the hospital. Monroe has only attacked when the victim was alone; perhaps she can't maintain control of others when she's feeding, or if those others witness something violent. If either is the case, then both Hein and Carter are safe for now. And hopefully, Neil hid himself somewhere.

Still, he wished they'd hurry. Dr. Sid didn't want to put off killing Dr. Monroe any longer.

After thoroughly quizzing Sid, they put him and Dr. Carter in the same room together. Dr. Sid wondered if they were going to ask the same questions again, or maybe they were going to do something creative and threaten to hurt one of them if the other didn't talk. Sid wouldn't be too upset if Dr. Carter was taught a little lesson.

But there was something strange about the MP who ushered them into the room. When Dr. Sid looked at him questioningly, the man said in a strange monotone, "Dr. Monroe would like to ask you a few questions, too."

Dr. Carter's face went white. Dr. Sid rose to his feet to protest, when she entered. Dr. Monroe gave them that sweet smile she used on the Council, but Dr. Sid wasn't falling for it. He stared straight ahead, mentally preparing himself for an assault on his mind.

Dr. Monroe had no interest in formalities, however. "Hello, Sid," she said coolly. "May I assume that my arrival here has jogged your memory?"

"If you mean about Toronto, then yes," he said.

"And you, Dr. Carter, I have no idea how you survived last night, but I can't let you live to tell anyone else what you saw. You understand that, don't you?"

"Yes." Carter's voice was nearly inaudible.

She turned her attention back to Sid. There was a spark in the depths of her dark eyes, then they suddenly seemed to burn a brilliant scarlet. "Do you regret not taking me up on my offer?" she asked him, her voice a purr.

"No," Sid snarled.

"Even though it's your child who suffers? It's so sweet; he doesn't even know, does he?"

Sid clenched his fists. "You will be killed, and then he will-"

"Be saved? Don't tell me you believe everything your read!" she scoffed. "A vampire is dead. If you kill me, that doesn't magically bring him back from the dead. Resurrection isn't possible. Killing me will only relinquish my control over him; it won't free him from the blood lust."

"But you haven't fully changed him yet." Dr. Sid wasn't sure what he could accomplish by keeping her talking. He was only delaying his death. He was under no illusions that he'd be able to escape being trapped in a small room with her.

She smiled, revealing pointed teeth. "You're right; that's one thing vampire lore has correct. I think one more feeding, and he'll be mine forever." Her skin rippled; blood-colored fur began to push its way out of her skin. "And there's nothing you can do to stop me." And then she was wolf, and lunging, not for Sid, as he'd expected, but for Dr. Carter. Carter responded by leaping backwards out of his chair, a surprisingly agile move for an injured man.

Sid threw himself to the floor and rolled under the desk, momentarily out of reach of those slashing claws. Dr. Carter executed another surprising evasion that made Sid wonder, distantly, if perhaps Dr. Monroe had bitten him, after all… But he wasn't going to think about that now. Claws suddenly thrusts themselves under the desk, grazing Sid's ribs. He had to get out of here… He had no idea what to do next, though. The door was locked from the outside… there was no way out…

And then, impossibly, the door opened. "Hey, Doc, you were taking so long I had to come and look for you-" came Neil's familiar voice.

"Get out of here!" Dr. Sid called from under the desk. He hadn't seen Monroe yet, because the desk was between them. He still had time to run… Monroe rose to her hind feet, grinning wolfishly at Neil. The corporal could only stare in horror as she sprang over the desk, leaping towards him… Neil threw up his hands to shield himself… Claws raked his chest and he fell backwards… And then the screaming began…

But it wasn't Neil who was screaming. Sid peeked out from under the desk to see Neil rolling out of the way of Dr. Monroe's flashing form. He grinned at the two scientists and held up his hands, revealing the two darts he'd been holding that had injected themselves into her on impact.

Sid and Carter came around the desk, cautiously, as Neil took two more of t he darts from his pocket and, with lycanthropic speed, jammed one into her throat and the other into her heart. Monroe's screams became a woman's as she changed back, and she glared murderously at the three of them as mushrooms sprang up around the four injection points, reproducing with surprising speed and spreading across her neck, chest, arms… The MP arrived just in time to see her body completely deteriorate, leaving behind only a pile of mushrooms.

"Cool," Carter commented, grinning.

The four Military Police who had joined them stared stupidly for a moment as they tried to grasp what they had just seen, then one of them finally asked, "What the hell just happened?"

XXX

Their wounds had mostly healed by the time Neil and Dr. Sid got to the infirmary, but they still let the medical doctors stitch up the deepest ones. When they were left alone, Sid asked Neil what had happened.

"When you didn't return right away, I had a couple of my rats keep an eye on you. They warned me that Monroe was coming after you. I knew I wouldn't be able to bring a dart gun into the interrogation area without getting held up, so I grabbed as many of the darts as I could and came after you, hoping I could get close enough to actually use them."

"Well, thank you, Corporal," Sid said gratefully.

"No problem. Of course, I'm adding this to your bill for services rendered," Neil said cheerfully. Then his humor faded. "What's going on with the general?"

"I don't know. He'll live, thanks to the transfusion, but… Something Dr. Monroe said is bothering me. She said you don't cure vampires by killing the one that made them, because you can't bring the dead back to life. I'm worried that whatever effects this has on him, they may be permanent." Sid sighed. They'd taken care of one monster, but now they had many more problems to take care of, such as explaining what had happened to Monroe, and finding out if Carter really had been bitten – as well as taking care of any other problems involving the young scientist. "I think our problems are only just beginning," Sid said dully.

"I was afraid you'd say that," Neil sighed. "Just once, I'd like something to be easy!"

The End.

Stay tuned for the next 'Misadventure,' the holiday tale "Old-Fashioned Christmas" which will, hopefully, actually be ready by Christmas. My holiday track record hasn't been all that great these past few years, so don't hold your breath. If it comes out late, try to hold on to your Christmas spirit until then…