Orphans Beloved: "Attack of the Fifty-foot Clones…"

Summary: Like my Immortal Beloved and Sheldon Swifties bits in my Buffyverse and Sheldonverse, these are fragments and short bits, some longer…Just to fiddle with ideas, possibly forming longer tales later.

Disclaimer: No copy write infringement intended…

Note-There are always these minor consequences to any great advances in Science.

(PS-Some divergence from S-3 in that Aldous did not…Yet…while in mine Cal left without Kyra and engaged to Sarah, to resolve the pesky problem of a murdered police officer, and Ally is not going in for breaking somewhat bad. (And of course the ladies are not yet18-50 feet tall…Yet). And Seth is not…Yet…Dead. But we need Seth. The Castors deserved their own road trip, right?)

Part XX…

Donnie frowning as he listened to Gracie's radio, now on speaker…Crackling with reports from Paul's forces in their latest tangle with Helena…"Target" by their jargon.

Apparently a little army converging on her up there…He rubbed forehead.

"I think they've found her…" Grace looked up at him.

"Sounds like it." Mark agreed, keeping his eyes on the road. "But they haven't got her yet."

"Holding position, we are attempting to keep a lock on the target…" the radio blared. "Hold fire until further orders…" a fainter voice. Static crackling.

"There's nothing we can do except hope she can handle them, Mr. Hendrix." Grace to Donnie's worried face.

"I guess…" sigh. "Dyad, eh?"

"I think it's the only option, sir." Mark nodded to the rear view mirror.

…

"Helena…" Paul's voice from the copters' loudspeakers, the helicopters holding just a few hundred feet above the forest valley where she, Rudy, and Seth hid under bent trees and snow in a sort of snow cavern. "This is your last warning. I don't want to risk harming you or your children but you must come out…Now. Or I will give the order to fire."

"He wants you alive, he won't risk ammo even if he thinks you could be bulletproof. It'll be the gas." Rudy, confidently.

"You don't know that…" Seth frowned. "How the hell do you know that?"

"I think he is partly right, brother Seth." Helena noted. "But the little Paul will fire on you two and he may decide it's safe to do that. Let me try brother's plan and we'll see. Step farther back under the branches whiles I get up…" she began rising.

"Just do like I tole you…" Rudy urged.

"I know what to do, little brother. Just keep your brother safe for now and none of the funny business." She eyed him, her huge face focused on his. She pushed up at the branches as Seth and Rudy hid in the farthest, safest recesses.

"Careful, sis!" Seth called. "Don't trust any of them."

"Finally…A sane word outta your mouth." Rudy sneered as Helena rose, pushing trees up and back…

"Shut up!" Seth glared. "And don't trust Rudy either…" he noted to Rudy's angry frown.

"All right, Colonels…I'm here. Hold back your fire while my friends leave us!" Helena called, starting to rise cautiously, slowly raising hands into the sky.

"Tell the crews to fire the gas grenades…A full spread all around her." Paul calmly ordered Corporal Meisner. "Everything they've got gaswise, we may not get another chance."

…

Dyad former vehicle garage now temporary High Containment Residence…

"Sarah, I really want to thank you for allowing us some trust in all this." Aldous Leekie beamed as Cosima, pausing to frown slightly at him, took blood carefully from a huge arm on the bed. A specialized extra-long thin needle that made just about everyone beholding it quiver, though Sarah felt nothing but disquiet. "I hope once we resolve this, it can be the start of a new and better relationship."

"Dr. Leekie, lets can the soft-soap routine. Is there anything on Ally or Helena or a cure? And is Rachel under sedation?" she eyed him, turning head on the bed to view him.

"No, no, no, and yes…" he smiled. "But surely you know we have another guest, whom you've met on your own."

"Tony? Is he here?"

"Antoinette? Oh, no…Not yet anyway. Which is interesting in of itself." He nodded. "Since no reports have come in on her…Him."

"Crystal?"

"Hmmn-hmm…Didn't Delphine…?" he glanced at a somewhat subdued Delphine.

"She did not." Sarah glared. "But don't try to drive wedges, Doctor."

"Nothing of the sort intended. Dr. Cormier is Dyad Director and remains so. The last thing I want is to lose the trust she at least has earned with you all."

"She's riskin' it when she doesn't tell us everything…" Sarah frowned. "Does Crys know everything or what did you tell her?"

"We thought it best to proceed slowly. She knows she's getting the best care but…"

"She wants to know what the hell's goin' on?" Sarah nodded.

"Got it…" Cosima noted, wiping the site with an alcohol pad. "Just lie still a moment, Sarah."

"Yes, she does. She's become increasingly self-aware, on her own, as you know…" Aldous smiled. "Though I wonder you never felt it necessary to bring her up to speed."

"I wanted to protect her from all this…" Sarah, carefully sitting up, looking down at him with frown. "Probably wasn't a good idea. So, you need us to talk to her…?"

"Exactly…And on your own terms…" he put up a hand. "Tell her whatever you feel she should know, we won't interfere."

"She must be getting' antsy…" faint smile. "What, she start smashing through the walls…?"

"No, but we think she might be reaching the end of her patience with us. And if she does choose to leave us…We probably can't risk stopping her but…"

"But Topside or the military boys might." Nod. "All right, we'll talk to her. Cos?" she looked over. "You're probably the best suited for this one, is that ok by you?"

"Hmmn? Me? Well…" Cosima hesitated. "If you think Crystal will hear me out…"

"I don't think I can go have coffee with her, right now. And a computer video link won't cut it. You'll like her, she's a sweet kid."

"Very sweet." Aldous nodded.

"Could you straighten out just a bit, Ms. Manning? Forty five point six feet…" a technician who'd been measuring Sarah discreetly beaming laser to mark the length.

"I see I'm Ms. Manning now…" Sarah, rueful smile. "I'll give you that much, Leekie, you're politer than Rachel and that Mengele, Nealon."

"I appreciate that, Sarah. And I will see you're all treated respectfully."

"Crystal…" Cosima hesitated. "She's not all…Angry or anything?"

"Not at all…" Aldous shook head. "Just getting a bit frustrated. She knows we have more of you here. She just wants more information."

"Just don't geek her out, Cos. She's a smart kid, she just doesn't know the jargon. Keep it clear, and you'll be fine." Sarah, warmly. Then hard stare to Leekie. "Now as to Helena and the soldier boys…?"

"I'm doing…And Delphine, and Marion at her end, are doing…All we can. So far she seems to be eluding them." Aldous shrugged.

"Paul oughta be glad she's choosing to 'elude' and not charging them all down." Sarah noted.

…

Northern Canada…

"Copter four is down!…Repeat!…Copter four is down! And target is throwing grenades ba…"

The radio went dead as Paul stared at Corporal Meisner.

"Nothing, sir…" she turned to the radar. "The remaining two copters are landing, the crews must've been hit by the gas."

"Doesn't anyone in this outfit follow regs?! Parker, don't your people wear their gas masks these days?!" Paul turned to Sergeant Parker. He rubbed forehead. "Meisner, send in the ground forces on foot…With gas masks! Have them sweep the area before she can escape. Lets try and do something right, people."

"She won't be stopped by our guys…" Parker sighed. "Unless you let us use heavy ordinance and keep it up with the tanks…It's the only way, Sir." He paused at Paul's look.

"No. We're not trying to turn her into pig slop here." Dierden sighed. "She probably will break out but we know at least where she'll be heading, eventually."

"What about our AWOLs, sir?" Parker eyed him.

"Expendable. They knew the risks and what they were doing…But…" Paul hesitated. "If we can use them to get her to surrender. She seemed concerned for them…" he noted.

"If she is sending them away and we can grab them…" Parker suggested.

"It's them or it's her sisters…" Paul nodded. "Fine…Do what you can, take them alive if you can." Parker saluting and heading off.

"Dyad won't give up the sisters…Sir…" Meisner eyed him.

"No…" Paul nodded. "But Sarah might give herself up…To save Helena…"

He eyed Meisner's look. "Yeah…I am a son of a bitch, corporal. But I have my duty and my orders…"