THE ISLAND

Diego had not slept yet, and the sun was rising. El monstruos would want an answer from him, and he didn't believe that they would just let him go. He could hear the male screaming throughout the night, and it sounded like he was retching violently at one point. Perhaps the male was sick, or even dying? Could that be it? Had the monster come here to die in peace, and found it's island crawling with an unwanted infestation of humans? That put a different spin on things, and it meant that his brother had earned his death twice over. He had violated the sanctuary, and then attacked the rightful owners. If that were so, it meant that his family owed the creature a debt of honor. The male had tried to get Julio to leave peacefully, after all.

As the only male member of the family left alive, Diego decided that the debt fell to him. He could not let go of that. The monsters would not have come here if they didn't have prior claim to the island, and the fact that they offered him a way to work off the debt showed that they understood honor. He was a man, and would act as a man. He went to knock on the door of his new hosts.

Kali was just coming out of the bedroom when Diego came up to her. She held up a finger to her lips, and led him away from the door. She could see that he fought not to shy away from her touch, and drew her hand away from him.

"You've decided to stay, right?"

The boy's eyes widened.

"How did you know?"

She smiled gently, and whispered "Because if you really meant to leave us, you would have left last night in the other boat, or maybe in that helicopter out back. Either way, I'm glad you stayed. We really will need your help."

"My family owes you a debt. I will pay that debt. I will stay and help you."

"I'm glad to hear it. For starters, let's let my mate get some rest. He had nightmares all night, and I finally had to have Kyla bring up some of that booze from downstairs to knock him out. It took a lot of that to get him drunk enough to put him out. His other filters out a lot of stuff."

Diego understood enough to know what she meant by "other." He'd seen Taylor's transformation, and really didn't want to see it again. Considering that the male was already a monster, Diego shuddered to think of what he might have nightmares about. What would scare a monster that badly? Diego was certain that he didn't want to know. He lowered his voice, and said "What do you need me to do?"

Kali rubbed her temples tiredly. She hadn't slept well either. Taylor's thrashing about and screaming could have woken a corpse.

"I'm not really sure what his plans for you are. Mostly gathering things on the main island. He said there's a U. S. Army presence on the main island, and we'd rather not take the chance of being recognized. That's where you and Kyla come in. You two are going to be our hands, eyes, and ears. Taylor could probably do a lot of it himself, but he's not wanting to take any chances."

Diego could see the sense in that, and nodded sagely.

"I don't think we'll need you today, but try to stick close. When Taylor wakes up, he'll probably have a list of things he'll want you to pick up. A lot of electronics stuff, some basic hardware, and possibly another computer. He gave our laptop to Kyla to help her learn English. Neither of us speak Portuguese. Well, that's pretty much it for now, so I guess you can go enjoy the rest of the day."

Two hours later, Taylor was screaming himself awake once more. He sat up, shaking, and ran to the bathroom. A few minutes of dry heaving, and he sat back on the floor. Kali came in quietly, kneeling down next to him.

"If I never drink alcohol again, it will be too soon. You would not believe how much more vivid the nightmares get when you're drunk."

Kali groaned.

"Sorry, baby. It was all I could think of."

Taylor shook his head, and tried to stand up on legs that were shaking badly. Retrieving their bag, he pulled out his toothbrush, toothpaste, and mouthwash. After glancing at the alcohol content in the mouthwash, he set it aside, looking a bit green.

"I don't care if I'm dying of thirst. No more alcohol."

Kali nodded, and then said "Diego decided to stick around. I think he genuinely wants to help out. He didn't seem angry, at any rate. Kind of surprising, considering."

"As long as does what I ask of him, he can be as angry as he wants. I'm not looking to coddle him. I need a servant, and I need one I can trust. If he proves that I can trust him, then great. If not, I'll dump him in Grenada, and just get the stuff I need myself."

As he began to brush his teeth, Kali asked a question that had occurred to her.

"About that. How do you plan on getting all this stuff you say we're going to need? We're broke again, remember?"

Taylor spit out what was in his mouth, and looked in the mirror with a ghost of a smile.

"I take it you haven't checked out the basement yet."

"No. Why?"

Finishing up, he took her by the hand, and led her to the basement door.

"I know it's ill gotten gains, but when I saw just what was down here, I couldn't just get rid of it. There's too much to get rid of easily anyway."

Kali's eyes widened as she realized what he meant.

"How much money are we talking about?"

He shrugged, and said quietly "I'm not really sure. It's a big basement, and the money is stacked on big pallets. A lot of pallets. My best guess? At least a few billion."

"Billion? As in a thousand times a million?"

"I'm willing to bet on several thousand times a million. Math ain't my strong point, but I'm guessing there's about a hundred million dollars on each pallet."

"And how many pallets are there?"

He opened the door, and gestured her in. As she went carefully down the darkened steps, Taylor clicked the lights on. She stopped on the last step, her mouth gaping. Taylor came down behind her, shutting the door and locking it behind him.

"Taylor?"

"Yeah?"

"This is more than we could spend in ten lifetimes."

"Yup. I'll tell you something else, too. I don't think drugs was all our boy Julio was into, either. There's a few crates at the back with enough firepower in them to level half of New York. Maybe even all of it. They've got freaking plasma rifles in one of those crates. It ain't Stark technology either. Something called AIM. Whatever that is."

Kali shook her head slowly.

"Why wouldn't he put all this in a bank or something? The Cayman Islands aren't that far from here, are they?"

Taylor shook his head.

"I don't think he even wanted that much scrutiny. Now that I think about it, isn't AIM the name of that techno-terrorist group? Advanced Insane Mechanics, or something to that effect? Besides, having cash on hand is easier to hide than a transaction through the banks. Makes it a little easier to vanish when you need to, as well."

They spent the next few minutes discussing the in and outs of having a warehouse sized basement filled with cash, and then went back upstairs. In Taylor's case, he went outside to meditate through his martial arts. Kali, on the other hand, went in search of some paper and a pencil. She made a list of things she wanted to add to Taylor's shopping list.

By the end of the day, Taylor was certain that the list was as finished as it was going to get. Between indulging Kali's desires for snacks and decorations, and Taylor's list of technological components, the need for a cargo raft was a necessity. Taylor decided to accompany Kyla and Diego to Grenada the next day, in disguise, to ensure that everything they needed would be seen to. As he and Kali settled down to sleep that night, he felt a great swell of unease over his decision. As he drifted to sleep, he prayed that the nightmares would stay away.

Taylor?

Yeah?

Why do you hurt yourself like this?

What do you mean?

You know that what you're doing is necessary, but you guilt and agonize over doing it. Why don't you just accept it, and let it go?

Forgive me for my respect for life.

Taylor, I respect life too, but those men needed to die. Hurting yourself over it is not only pointless, but counterproductive. You did the right thing. Those men would have harmed countless others. By destroying them, you saved lives.

Maybe, but several men are dead. They lost their lives, and I'm the one who took them. I'm not a murderer. We've had this discussion before.

And we're having it again because you refuse to accept that you did what was needed. Let it go, Taylor. Your dreams were horrific enough after dealing with Plague.

Speaking of which... You want to tell me what happened there? I'm still a little fuzzy around the edges concerning that day. I was out cold for Plague's escape.

I do have a theory about that.

Do tell. Fury seems to think that I'm responsible for that lunatic escaping. I'd like to think of a way to prove my innocence.

I think he got out through that vent that we came in the first time. He was sitting right under it, if you recall.

Oh hell. You're right. He was sitting right there. He probably climbed right out the second he realized that things were about to really go south. One good jump would have gotten him right to the tree line. Just one problem. Fury will never believe me.

So? We don't need to worry about him anymore. We left the country. This is our home now, and while we're on the subject, I'm going to be spawning within the next couple of weeks. Have you decided on a host for our child?

Kali, if she'll accept it. If not, I was going to ask Goat Eyes. That's out of the question now, though. If Kali says no, what can we do?

I can cocoon my offspring until we find a willing host. That isn't a concern. I have another question, though. What about the spawn Kali wishes to have with you? Any children you have would be a perfect host for one of my kind.

I'll deal with that when the time comes. Kali and I aren't using any kind of birth control, and she still hasn't gotten pregnant yet. We may not be able to have children together.

We might be able to solve two problems at once, you know.

How do you figure that?

My spawn could join with your child, and they could grow together. I can make certain that Kali gets pregnant that way.

That's certainly an interesting idea, but it's something I'll have to discuss with Kali. Besides, how do we know we won't be creating another Venom or worse. Another Carnage? Maybe even another Plague? I'm not sure I want to take that risk.

I'd hardly call it a risk, Taylor. You may not be aware of this, but we symbiotes can share memory and knowledge by touch. It's part of what allows us to share a group mind. Our offspring can grow with all of our knowledge and experience at it's disposal, and we can teach it the ways that we try to live. Your law says "Love, an that thou harm none, do as thou will."

That's the Wiccan Rede, yes. A law which I've already broken more than once.

To defend yourself and others. I fail to see a problem here. Not to mention the fact that bonding with a symbiote at such an early age will mean that they will lack a problem that we share.

And that is?

They will grow into one mind, whereas we will always be two. I share your body, your memories, and even your love for others, but we are still two separate minds. Our offspring will literally become a single being. Whole, and strong. I rather like the idea.

I have to admit that I do too, but I still need to talk this over with Kali.

Fair enough. Have you chosen a name for us yet? I would like to have one, whether you decide to be a superhero or not.

Actually, I have been giving that some thought. How about Pagan?

Pagan? Hmm. I like that. Pagan. We are Pagan.

Taylor found himself being shaken awake by a worried looking Kali.

"Baby? Wake up, please! You're starting to scare me."

Sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Taylor saw it was nearly sunrise. He felt rested and refreshed, and he was fairly certain that he was ready to face the day. He turned back to Kali, a slight smile on his face.

"Good morning, sweetheart."

"Good morning? Good morning?! You wake me up at the crack of dawn, talking in your sleep, in your other voice, and all you have to say is good morning?"

Deciding to act on instinct, he replied "I love you, too. I'm sorry I woke you up. What did I say?"

"You said 'We are Pagan.' I didn't know what to think."

Taking her in his arms, he lay them both back down.

"Sorry Kali. My other and I walking talking some things over. One of those things was my symbiotic name. We are Pagan. Seemed like a suitable name to me."

"Mmm. Well, I'm glad you two got that sorted out. What else did you talk about?"

"Children. Symbiotic, and otherwise."

"Huh?"

"My other is going to be spawning soon, and that spawn is going to need a host. I was going to ask you, but Pagan suggested another idea. I wanted to discuss it with you first, though."

"Okay. Shoot."

"Well, I noticed that, even though we haven't been using protection, you haven't caught yet. Pagan told me that it could help with that. It also said that if it's offspring bonds with our child while still in the womb, that child would become one being. Strong, fast, and with only one mind, as opposed to two, like I have. It would be able to learn everything that I know just by touching me, and it would probably be smarter than all of us put together. I like the idea, but I wanted to hear your input. If you don't like it, we can find another way to do things."

"So what you're saying is that I would be carrying two babies instead of one?"

"For the first few days of your pregnancy, yes. After that, the bonding would be complete, and it would be just one baby. One baby with all of my abilities, and quite possibly some of yours. Your strength is nearly equal to mine if you're ticked off or scared enough. Our child would have that enhanced by the symbiote half of it's biology. It might be better adapted than mine, since it would be born here, which means it might have fewer vulnerabilities. Carnage is Venom's offspring, and he seems stronger by a good bit. Also, by doing things this way, there's almost no chance whatsoever that we'd be raising another one of those monsters. What do you think?"

Kali was silent for a while. Taylor watched the room brighten as he waited for her answer.

"You said it would be a couple of weeks before your other spawned?"

"Yeah."

She rolled on top of him, and said "Well, we might as well get some practice in while we wait."

Taylor's smile was soon smothered with kisses.

GRENADA

The smile Taylor started the day with did not entirely leave him, but the man he was currently dealing with was testing that. Diego, picking up on his master's irritation, took a step back, and motioned for Kyla to do the same. He felt a bit of a thrill when she took his hand, but kept silent.

"Look, Mr. Dupre, I fail to see the problem. You sell boats, and I want to buy one. I also want to buy a barge. Where's the problem here?"

The rat-like boat salesman sneered at the two behind Taylor, and then at Taylor himself.

"Truthfully, you don't look like you could afford to buy the least of my boats. You look like a tourist who wants to waste my time."

Taylor's smile was gone. The expression on his face was cold and hard. He held out his hand, into which Diego put the briefcase.

"I want a decent boat, with enough power to pull the barge and it's cargo. I'm not arguing with you any more."

Opening the latches, he displayed the contents to Dupre, who's eyes bulged in disbelief.

"Do we have a bargain, Mr. Dupre, or do I need to take my money somewhere else?"

Dupre drew his eyes up to meet Taylor's, and gulped at what he saw.

"Sir, I think that answers all my questions satisfactorily. If you could follow me?"

Soon, the trio were on their way into the city to pick up the rest of their supply list. Taylor's good mood seemed to be returning, causing Diego and Kyla to relax. At the electronics store, he managed to buy all he needed for his next project, as well as a set of laptops, and a wireless network base station. After that, it was off to the hardware store for tools, steel support beams, a welding set, a load of bricks, and several bags of cement. Taylor ensured that it would all be delivered to the barge, and then they headed back to the boat. The new boat, which was already fitted to tow the barge, was a fairly new tug boat. The barge was already tied to it, and the cabin cruiser that they had arrived in was tied up behind that. Diego was sent into the city again for food, and soon returned with lunch, which they ate while waiting for the deliveries.

It was not until an hour after lunch that the deliveries started to arrive, and that kept Taylor pretty busy. Once everything had arrived and been stowed away on the barge, they went back out to get the rest of their shopping done. Kali had asked for a somewhat modest wardrobe, and a few more personal items, and Taylor meant to see that she got what she wanted. His smile returned full force, and he couldn't help but feel that he was finally getting things where he wanted them to be.