The operative was a problem. She was young, but well-trained and relentless. She had followed him to a dozen worlds, taken steps most of their people would never consider logical. And, with each new world, she got closer to him.
If she caught him, his life as he knew it would be over. A rehabilitation center, and then likely charges to be answered and renumerations to be made. He had amassed a considerable amount of resources and power on several worlds. He had no desire to relinquish any of this.
Logic had only as much to do with this as could be used to eliminate the threat this young woman presented.
Her pursuit had disrupted his business on seven occasions, already. The diversion to Risa was pleasant enough, and he'd met another Vulcan eluding capture, a young man called Jossen who now considered him a partner and a friend.
But Menos could afford no friends or partners. If he was going to remain free to live as he chose, he could logically only view others in three ways: useful, neutral, or threats.
The question before him was the young woman. She would not cease until she had taken him into custody, or until one of them was dead.
But which of them? He had no desire to die; he had no wish to kill a being with the degree of passion this young woman's commitment suggested. If anything, he'd choose to bring her to his way of thinking, perhaps take her for his own before pon farr surged once more within him.
Such passion as she possessed could have pleasing uses, turned to the proper direction.
Menos released the thought. Nothing about this young woman suggested she could be turned to see his perspective in this. She would, therefore, at best, be neutralized.
Jossen was undoubtedly useful. He had no understanding of the telepathic arts, and Menos now had him trained to be a fine tool for any purpose he chose. It was an optimal circumstance; the man would do as instructed, and think the thoughts were his own. It would work even at a considerable distance.
Menos had all his contacts, and the ability to convince them that it was Jossen's will that he took over the arrangements.
Jossen was therefore a useful but expendable tool.
Menos smiled.
The answer had been there since he met Jossen and began to fit him to a new purpose.
Now he had only to lure the young woman to Risa and bait the trap.
"She was spotted at the Welcome Center this morning." Jossen's voice betrayed only mild annoyance; he thought only that she would once again disturb his operations and drive them to another world. He had no suspicion that, for him, the hunt was over, or nearly so.
Menos gave no clue of that. "Then we run."
And run they did. Menos gave no clue that he had paid the Tellarite well to reveal their exact location in the jungles. He gave no indication that his outpacing of the younger Jossen was intentional; he simply said, "I know a path to safety; follow me."
Jossen didn't need to know that he himself was that path.
She was faster than he had expected, and he barely had time to send the directions to Jossen. Barely enough, and less efficiently than he wanted – but then he was crouching behind ground cover, taking aim, awaiting the moment – and firing before the young woman had the chance to do so, if she had intended to.
At the sound, the clearly fatal impact, she froze, still holding her weapon not-quite-yet trained on Jossen's corpse, where he had thrown himself to the ground. Menos circled to a place beside her while she began to process the events, then seized her. Before her training could engage, he removed the weapon and threw it into jungle with one hand while using the other to find the contact points on her face.
"No –"
"My mind to your mind. My thoughts become your thoughts. We are merging. We are becoming one."
Perhaps she hadn't known that he, too, was relentless. He could feel that she knew it now, as her mind, still in shock, began to build imperfect, inexperienced barriers to this invasion she hadn't known possible.
Menos thanked the High Command for taking the knowledge of this skill from the general populace, and his own childhood for so perfectly preparing him to use this ignorance to his advantage now. Her mind was strong, but pliable, and the moment provided the perfect opening.
"You killed him."
"No. I didn't fire."
"You killed him. You killed Jossen."
"No. I did not fire." She was strong; but he was stronger. Her conviction was beginning to lessen as he removed the barriers.
"You killed him. You killed Jossen. He didn't deserve to die."
"No… did I fire?"
Yes, she was strong. But her strength derived from emotions that were unusually intense and close to her surface. She had struggled to find the control many of their people found natural, and the internal effort to maintain that control was continual.
He could use her own emotions against her with ease. She would soon be neutralized.
"You killed him. You killed Jossen. He didn't deserve to die. He wasn't even armed. And you killed him."
"I killed him…?" Her body began to tremble. Her internal barriers slipped.
It was the opening Menos needed. He surged into her mind, reshaping memories, planting seeds of ideas that would grow and take root as she moved forward. "Yes. You killed Jossen, and he wasn't armed. There was no reason to kill him – and you killed him. His death is your responsibility."
"I killed him, and he was not armed. His death is my responsibility."
Menos pushed further. Perhaps too far – but he had to be certain that she would be neutralized. Not simply for today, or a matter of a few weeks, while she sought aid to deal with the emotional impact of her supposed action. "Yes. His death is your responsibility. You must stop this, before you kill again. Before you kill Menos."
"I must stop this. I killed Jossen. His death is my responsibility. He was unarmed. I must stop this before I kill Menos."
"Yes." She was taking the memories for her own, reshaping them, beginning to build as strong a conviction around them as she had around pursuing her assigned targets. Once he'd crossed her barriers, it had been a simple matter.
But was it enough? The High Command would not easily release its hold upon her.
He must be certain.
"If you pursue Menos, you will kill him. If you kill Menos, it will destroy you. You must stop this."
"I must not kill Menos. I must not pursue Menos. If I pursue him, I will kill him. I cannot kill another; it will destroy me. Logically, I must stop this."
Menos dropped the meld and watched as she staggered and fell. Then he turned and walked away, slowly, in plain sight of the young woman.
And she made no move to follow.