Chapter 15

DOME: Believe Everything You See

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Jim blinked as the telescreen finally went black. He glanced down at Lucy with a raised eyebrow as she slid her hand over the panel.

"And you have to watch that every time?"

"Every time we come home." She responded cheerfully. "I recite it sometimes in my sleep apparently. It creeps Zayne out."

"I can see why." Taylor muttered to the boy beside him. Zayne met his eyes for a moment, but made no response.

"It's not so bad." Lucy said with a shrug as the hexagonal gate slid upwards. "Reminds us to be glad of what we've got, I guess. Especially coming in from out here. Come on."

Jim cast a last glance outside as they entered the dome. The sun was just starting to go down - not that you could see it. On a good day, when you could make it out at all, it was little more than an orange smudge against the brown sky. Oftentimes it was only the dimming of the holographic screens that gave any indication that night had fallen. The screens were set to lower their brightness automatically when it hit 7:00 o'clock. It was the city's way of being "thoughtful".

They had only been walking for a few hours, but the distance had felt enormous. The events of that morning seemed like long ago, almost as though they had been walking for days. During that time, they had gotten to know the children quite well, had learned all about their former lives with their own parents, heard about Lucy's pet eel that had lived in the water main, and the way Zayne had screamed when he had had his first haircut. Lucy did most of the talking. The closer they had gotten to home, the more silent the older boy had become, retreating back into the sullen teenager he had been when they had first encountered him.

As the first dome came into sight, they had paused by a wall of numbered boxes, opening the bottom ones to stash their weapons inside. They were post boxes, Lucy explained as her cousin secured the outer lock, but no one used them anymore. Only the rich could afford to send parcels, and of course, they didn't use the public mail system.

She stopped them just inside the gate, instructing them to take off their shoes and socks and wash their feet. The floors were cleaned daily inside the domes, as contaminants were most often dragged in underfoot. It was the neighborhood policy to 'leave their shoes at the door', so to speak. One could walk around in slippers, socks, or even barefoot, provided you were clean, but shoes and rebreathers could go no further than the gatehouse. They looked each other up and down quizzically as Lucy led off again. This was probably the one thing that could make them appear more homeless than they already did. Surely the rule wouldn't make any difference whatsoever if every entrant was as dirty as their small ensemble. But then, rules weren't rules because they made sense. When in Rome ..

The huge dome was set out like a village. Houses lined the round walls, stationed in such a way that they all faced inwards. Directly in the centre of the community was a large circular pond, currently being filled into by four fountains around its edge. Jim was struck by the opaque grey water. It almost had a tinge of greenish-blue to it. The liquid that flowed out of the fountains' mouths seemed unusually thick and sluggish. It certainly wasn't clear and sparkling like the water back home, but the children pointed it out with pride.

"The water starts out gluggy brown and goes through three different filters to come out here. It's about as clean as any public water system!" Lucy danced up to it gleefully, putting her hand under the stream and flicking it back towards them.

"It's the Children's Fountain! It's magic."

Her cousin lowered his eyelids at her, but said nothing. The others took the bait.

"Why do you think it's magic?"

"Because .." The girl replied, her eyes sparkling. ".. only children can drink from it. Adults try and they get really sick. But kids are perfectly fine! See?"

To their horror, she cupped her hands and reached out under the grey-green stream, bringing it to her lips and taking a long drink. She turned back to her unimpressed cousin defiantly.

"See? Still alive!"

"We'll see." He murmured carelessly, the black smudges around his eyes making him seem even more detached from his surroundings. "The results don't show straight away. If you don't wake up tomorrow morning, we'll know for sure."

She poked a tongue at him.

"Anyway, on with the tour."

As they continued to walk down the pathway through the middle of the village, the adults stared from left to right in wonder. Each town house on either side was isolated by a clear plastic screen, and they sat separated from each other like different sections of a honeycomb. It almost felt as though they had been shrunk and were exploring a tiny town inside of a snow globe. The tall white houses even had tiny fake green lawns surrounding them, making the village resemble some futuristic take on a 1980s suburb, and adding to the toy-like quality.

They were led straight through the dome and into a small hallway made of the same clear synthetic material, but much nearer their heads than the high roof they had just abandoned. This short tunnel connected the previous dome to another one, distinctly different from the last. As the hallway opened up again, they stopped in surprise. The second dome, though nearly as large as the first one, didn't repeat the same village layout. Instead, the entire structure seemed to be centred around the one house.

"And we're here."

"Here?"

"Here." Lucy repeated with a grin. "Welcome home."

Taylor blinked at the mansion in front of them. It appeared to be designed after a cluster of soap bubbles, but it was enormous nonetheless.

"You live here?"

"Well, not here on the walkway." The girl threw back wryly. "But in there .." she pointed to the double-door entrance ".. yeah."

Jim leaned closer to Mira as the doors slid open.

"This isn't a house, this is a small colony!"

She met his eye and nodded in response. Lucy led them through the entrance and into the foyer, peering around tentatively as the doors slid shut behind them. She seemed a little nervous now that she was actually home.

"Aunt Erika .. Aunt Erika, we're back. Sorry we're late, but we brought .. company .." Her voice trailed off as a figure emerged from the back of the house. Dressed in sparkling navy blue overalls and white slippers, the woman rapidly approached, striding forward quickly to meet them.

"Hello! Welcome. My name is Erika Nakayami. I'm the aunt of these two troublemakers."

Jim stepped away from the others, appointing himself the unofficial spokesperson of the group. Taylor and Mira allowed it without complaint.

"We're sorry to barge in on you like this. I know we must look like guests nobody wants to find on their doorstep." He paused for a moment, his brow creasing slightly as the woman laughed. "Hey .. do I .. know you from somewhere?"

Her eyes widened a little as she stared back at him, then frowned thoughtfully at Lucy. She was shorter in stature than she had first appeared - the girl beside her was nearly as tall as she was - but the way she held herself gave the impression that she was used to wearing heels in every location except the home.

"Perhaps you have. I've recently been promoted to public relations representative at the company I work for. I'm afraid many of our staff have been having accidents lately .." She cast a meaningful glance at them. "I'm having it looked into."

Mira nodded slowly, looking the glittering woman up and down.

"Nice .. clothes."

Erika brightened.

"Do you like it? I actually designed it myself."

She turned to display the two peach-coloured frills attached to her back, rippling like the fins of a fish. Zayne groaned under his breath, putting a hand over his face as though he couldn't bear to see the sight in front of him any longer.

"So." Erika had finished her miniature fashion demonstration and was now looking keenly at the three intruders. "How can I help you?"

Jim hesitated for a moment, not really sure how to approach the subject.

"Well .. in all honesty, I'm not really sure. See, we're not actually from around here. We've been roaming the streets for weeks searching for my daughter-"

He was interrupted by a sudden scream as Erika caught sight of the Kaprosuchus, who had decided to put his large head between Taylor's legs at that particular moment and peer out at their host. He surveyed the panicking woman calmly as Taylor tried unsuccessfully to disentangle himself. The older man held a hand out to Erika, who had gone a peculiar shade of grey.

"No, please, don't panic, ma'am, he's .. not as vicious as he .. seems .." He shot Jim a look, his eyes flashing as they attempted to convey the cry for help. Jim shook his head briefly at the former commander, then turned to Erika with a reassuring smile as she looked back at him.

"He's a pet really. It isn't common to have them around here anymore, but some people still do." Jim hesitated. "In all honesty, ma'am, he's a dinosaur."

"He is?" The children's aunt stared back at the creature, tilting her head a little. "How interesting. He really is quite unique."

Lucy grinned at Jim, who returned the look with a short laugh.

"That's .. one way to look at it. I'm sorry he scared you. We should have forewarned you."

"Oh, it's alright. Don't think anything of it." Erika waved her hand as though the event had been nothing more than a brief hiccup in the conversation. "I'm sorry, you were saying something about your daughter. Please, tell me everything. Start from the beginning. I won't interrupt this time."

Jim looked as though he wanted to laugh again, but instead, he recited the tale, leaving out unimportant details and glossing over any mention of Terra Nova where he could help it, though of course it was impossible to avoid the fact completely. She eyed him with interest as he finished his story.

"You're really from the past? All of you?"

The three nodded simultaneously.

"And you believe your daughter is still being held somewhere in this city?"

"I have to believe she is." Jim responded gravely. "We have some evidence, but not a lot. We were hoping your kids could help us dig up some more leads."

"I don't know .." Erika bit her lip, glancing at Zayne and Lucy. "I'm terribly sorry to hear about your daughter, of course, but these people you're up against .. it sounds like a dangerous business .."

"It is." Jim murmured. "And I understand if you don't want your children anywhere near it. I certainly wouldn't."

"Having said that .." Erika studied his face for a few seconds, and then turned back to meet the eager eyes of her own charges. "I've been trying to teach you to respect the greater good. It seems unfair of me not to allow you to put it into practice when the opportunity presents itself. Can you promise me you'll be careful?"

"Yes!" The two children agreed enthusiastically. Even Zayne's eyes had lit up at the prospect, his aunt noticed. The fact reassured her that she had made the right choice. The boy hardly ever showed an interest in anything.

"Very well." She sighed a little, making a show of giving in to their demands. "I'll allow it. On one condition."

Zayne and Lucy froze at the tone of voice, but Erika had turned to Jim instead.

".. that you stay here. I won't have you out on the street any longer. You need some rest and - pardon me for being so impudent, but - a nice hot shower would also be a good idea. As soon as possible."

Jim smiled at her gratefully, despite looking a little humiliated at the inference.

"Thank you. Really, we can't thank you enough. Please, let us know if we can do anything for you in return. Anything at all."

"Eh." She waved his remonstrations away airily. "Time enough for that later. For now, make yourselves at home."

"Thank you." Jim repeated, then found himself dragged away by the children to see the wonders of their aunt's sculptures - a tour that might have given him nightmares under different circumstances.

Erika watched them from across the room, a wistful expression clouding her face.

"You know .. there was a part of me that always believed it was a myth .." She murmured quietly to the remaining two beside her. "Terra Nova .. the past, the future .."

"Yeah." The corner of Taylor's mouth curled up as he smiled at her. "Me too."

He looked away then, staring up at the walls and ceiling, trying to absorb the immense scope of the building. She followed his gaze, admiring the room anew through the eyes of someone that was seeing it for the first time.

"It sure is something, isn't it?"

"Psht, carbon copies of a rich man's igloo." Taylor muttered, sounding like more of a snob than the wealthy woman nearby. "Nothing you won't see a million times over if you look hard enough. No individuality, no character."

"Unlike you, Mr. Taylor."

The small woman turned back to him, a smile playing on her lips. Taylor cleared his throat.

"That's Commander Taylor, ma'am."

"My mistake." She replied smoothly, and turned away.

Mira, who had remained happily silent throughout this exchange, rolled her own eyes, then fell to gazing around in wonder. To think her and Sienna could have lived in a home like this. On a smaller scale, of course, but it was something else. Shining white floors and pristine furniture, blue veins of colours rippling throughout the walls like tiny sapphire rivers, and a curved staircase stretching all the way around the edge of the wide globe before continuing its ascent upward throughout any additional stories. She held out a hand to touch the gold-plated edge of the stair railing, but pulled it back before she reached it. Somehow, she felt too dirty to be worthy of the privilege. The thought sent a flame of indignation through her and she forced her hand out and touched it anyway. The sensation was less spectacular than it might have been. The railing felt like any other metal-plated object. Mira shook her head at herself and looked around for Taylor. The former commander had recently joined the tour group and was now watching the scruffy street urchins beside him with a quizzical expression.

"Tell me. If you two live in a house like this, why do you run about the street looking like pickpockets and preteen bums?"

Jim just about choked.

"Taylor-"

Zayne didn't seem to have any reaction to the comment, but his younger cousin grinned.

"We didn't always live here. You can't expect us to grow into snobs overnight."

"No, but I might expect you to grow clean overnight." Taylor retorted, causing the girl's grin to widen. Their aunt, who was adjusting the angle of an abstract picture on the wall, hadn't appeared to be listening to the conversation, but now she cast another glance back.

"It's a losing battle. Trust me."

Lucy shrugged.

"Who are we trying to impress? You never tell anyone we exist, so why should we bother .. prettying .." At a hard look from her aunt, her voice fell away.

Mira was staring at the painting that Erika had just set right. The other woman caught her looking and folded her arms, smiling proudly.

"Do you like it? I finished it last week."

"It's .. surreal." Mira responded, casting another glance around the room. "All of it really. Feels like we could be on a different planet."

Erika smiled, appearing to be satisfied with the response. Her smile faded as her niece's voice joined the conversation.

"You're right though." Lucy agreed unexpectedly, pausing to rest her hand against the marbled blue and white wall. "Sometimes it feels so safe and homey in here that it's easy to forget what's happening out there. It's almost impossible to believe that the world is dying right on our doorstep."

She suddenly balled her hand into a fist and thumped the wall angrily.

"But it's lies, all of it."

"Lucy!" Her aunt barked sharply, causing the girl to jump. "How many times do I have to tell you? Be gentle. You're not a wild animal, no matter how hard you might try to act like one."

Lucy exchanged a look with her cousin, but received no support from that quadrant. Zayne shrugged in a manner which clearly said, "You got yourself into it, you can jolly well get yourself out of it." The girl turned back to her aunt meekly.

"Sorry."

"It's alright." Erika expelled a deep sigh, then shook her head as she turned back to her guests. "My apologies. I'm trying to teach her not to charge about like a bull in a china shop, but I honestly can't tell sometimes if I'm making any progress at all. Sometimes I think she might actually be getting worse!"

Lucy squirmed with embarrassment as her aunt raised her hands to the sky in defeat.

"So much anger in such a small girl!" She didn't seem to notice the fact that she herself was barely any taller than Lucy. "Sometimes I worry more than I let on."

She smiled as she resumed her efforts to draw Mira into a conversation.

"Do any of you have children?"

"Yeah."

Erika seemed a little relieved.

"Oh, so you must know the challenges then. I must admit, I never thought I was cut out for raising children myself, but .." She held an arm out to Lucy, who came to rest under her wing dutifully. Erika picked a few pieces of dust out of her niece's hair as she continued, in a way that reminded Jim very much of a focused monkey.

"Well, we can't choose our families, can we?"

Leaving Lucy to stand in front of them alone, she strode over to a nearby trash can and dropped the collected dander into it, dusting her hands off briskly. She returned to the group with an apologetic expression.

"I'm so sorry, just look at you, you must all be exhausted. Lucy .." She put an arm around the girl again. ".. take these poor people upstairs and get them settled in the guest bedroom."

She threw Jim another apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, I wish I could offer you all separate rooms, but we just don't have the space I'm afraid."

Lucy and Zayne exchanged another look at this, but neither said anything. Taylor nodded to the woman, smiling gruffly through the weeks of unshaven beard.

"That will be just fine, thank you. You've done more than enough."

She eyed him for a moment, seeming almost cool in her manner. Then the polite smile found its way to the surface again.

"My pleasure. Go get yourselves settled. Dinner will be in half an hour."

With this, she disappeared into the back of the building, where she presumably had a workspace waiting. Lucy turned and made her way to the stairs, leading them up and away from the bottom floor in silence. Zayne, in an almost identical manner to their first journey, took up the rear. With no rifle to hold onto this time, he seemed decidedly more unsure of himself.

The further up the stairs they ventured, the more they doubted the lack of space problem. There seemed to be room after room of empty furniture and glistening floors - three levels in all. The mid-storey was a living area, a wide open circular space dedicated to chairs and bean bags of various shapes and sizes, though all corresponding to the same colour scheme, of course. A kitchen section was situated at the far side of the room, with bar stools under a long bench that curved around the wall. There seemed to be an opening to some sort of balcony on the opposite end of the kitchen, but they only caught a brief glimpse of this as they were led upwards.

The bathrooms and bedrooms were on the top floor. Lucy paused by one particular doorway and gestured inside.

"Here's your stop. There's a bathroom in there. Give Aiva your clothes and she'll wash and dry them for you. You can wear the robes in the meantime. They're behind the door. See you in an hour. Oh!" She had spun around in preparation to desert them, but now she came back hurriedly. "Keep the dinosaur off the bed and try not to make too much noise. She likes quiet when she's working."

She smiled at them. The three adults were milling near the centre of the room like homeless pigeons.

"You'll feel better after a shower. Make yourselves comfortable. We'll talk battle strategies when you come down for dinner. Have fun!"

With that, she darted away down the hall. Mira took off her coat and hung it over her arm, looking back up at the doorway. Zayne was still hovering there like a shadow. Jim followed her gaze.

"Zayne? Something wrong?"

".. no." The boy answered finally, gesturing to the wall with one hand. "The air settings are on the panel over there. Turn the heating up if you get cold. Mine and Lucy's rooms are just up the hall. Call us if something goes wrong."

Taylor, sitting on one of the beds, looked up at Jim with a laugh, then peered over at Zayne.

"What do you expect to go wrong?"

He stared back at Taylor for a moment, dark eyes unreadable. Then he shrugged a little.

"Never know. See you downstairs. Don't get too comfortable."

He disappeared. Jim turned to raise an eyebrow at the Kap.

"Think he was trying to make a joke? .. yeah, me either."

"Jim."

The voice had come from the next room over. Jim leaned around the corner, then, finding no one, followed the trail into the bathroom. Taylor had stood immediately and was right behind him. Mira turned to the two as they drew up beside her. She offered no further explanation. She didn't have to. They were both staring at the mirror already.

Watch your backs.

The words were written in soap, smudged onto the face of the glass as though the transcriber had been in a hurry. Jim's mouth twisted into a grim line as he surveyed the scrawl.

"Someone rolled out the welcome wagon."

"What do you think it means?"

"Not sure .." Jim studied the other two in the mirror. "But something tells me it can't be good. Better do as it says. Keep an eye out for trouble."

"Roger that."

A few minutes later, Erika opened the door to her studio to find two children standing before her. She smiled a little and let them in, closing the door behind them.

"I wondered when you two would show up."

Without a word, Lucy perched on a nearby stool while Zayne leaned on the bench beside her. Their aunt watched them for a moment and then shook her head lightly.

"What a sad story, I could hardly believe my ears. And the absolute air of destitution about those three." She held them to the spot with her gaze for a moment. "I mean, I know this whole thing was my idea, but you even managed to stun me for a good three minutes."

Lucy blinked at her.

"You didn't look shocked at all."

Erika tilted her head, throwing her niece a knowing look.

"Of course I didn't. I'd been watching you for ages on-"

".. the security cameras. Right." Lucy finished, mentally kicking herself. Erika watched her for a second or two.

"That's right. Now, remember our agreement. These people are your responsibility. That means you look after them, you see that they're fed and comfortable, and you-"

"You make 'em sound like pets."

Zayne's aunt glared at him, waiting for him to drop his gaze before continuing.

"-and you help them find that little girl. Alright?" She approached them affectionately, laying a hand on each of their shoulders. "Remember our family motto. "In vain if not for good". Now, remind me what it means."

Lucy suppressed a sigh and answered robotically on behalf of both of them.

"That doing things is pointless unless it's for good, not evil."

"That's right." Erika nodded. "Atrocious grammar, but I'll allow it. And the other side of it, Zayne? Zayne?"

Zayne rolled his eyes toward the roof. His aunt, seeing the movement, brought a hand down onto his head and rubbed his hair in a manner that she was fully aware he hated. He shuddered, mumbling the answer he knew she wanted.

"Alright, alright. It's also pointless if it's not permanent."

"That's right." She grinned as he pulled back in annoyance. "Good work, you two. I knew you could succeed if you really tried. And that comment about not telling anyone you exist - that was smart. Don't appear too perfect. Every family has their troubles, so we ought to as well. That's the kind of thinking I like to see. Keep it up."

She paused for a moment.

"Oh, and Aiva made pies earlier. You can bring the leftovers for your lunches tomorrow as a sort of .. congratulations on job well done."

She smiled again as the children exchanged a joyful expression.

"Just remember, your assignment's not over yet. Why don't you run along and check on your house guests? Tell them that dinner's almost ready."

"Yes, ma'am!" They chorused as they fled out of the room and raced each other upstairs. Erika, still recovering from the recent hurricane, didn't even hear her tablet phone until the third ring. She picked it up slowly, all trace of emotion fading from her face as she answered.

"Hello."

..

"Perfect timing, I was just about to call you. No, you'll never believe who the kids have just brought home with them."

..

"No, staying here."

..

"Well, coming from you, that means a lot."

..

"I wasn't serious, you idiot."

..

"I'll call you if we have any problems, just make sure you hold up your end."

..

"Yeah, you better."

She had just hung up when a footstep from behind made her jump. She turned to see her housekeeper eyeing her warily.

"Aiva, don't sneak up on me." Erika ran a hand through her hair in annoyance. "I thought we agreed you'd stop loitering in the halls."

"You agreed." The housekeeper muttered, drawing a warning look from her employer. She ventured a different comment. "You're brave, talking to him like that."

Erika scoffed, throwing her tablet carelessly onto the bench.

"Why? He's a stick insect pretending to be an oak tree. He's not the one we have to worry about."

Her housekeeper studied her.

"Then .. who is?"

Erika watched her for a moment, then nodded upward, her gaze gradually rising to centre on the ceiling above.

"Them."

It was just past midnight.

Taylor sat on his bed, leaning against the wall as he stared around the dark room. Everything was perfect. The temperature was ideal. The room was spacious and well-lit - just not now, though, obviously, as everyone else was asleep .. or rather, they were supposed to be. His eyes flicked downward to where Jim lay on the floor, tossing and turning. Due to the suspicious lack of space - honestly, what could the inhabitants of the massive house possibly be doing in all the extra rooms? - the guest bedroom had only been set out for two people, so they had had to put an extra mattress down. He had practically begged to take the floor himself, but Jim had known the appeal was half-hearted. Taylor's old bones weren't what they used to be.

"Elisabeth .. Elisabeth .."

Taylor watched the exhausted man soberly for a few minutes. He had spent more time watching Jim sleep than he could remember even spending with his own wife, he realized with a jerk of regret. Surely he and Ayani had spent more happy days together than he could recall .. He had loved her. That much was certain. But then life had got in the way. Surely she hadn't always taken second place ..

He looked up to find himself being scrutinized as well.

"Mira .." He chided softly. "I thought we agreed I was taking first watch."

"Couldn't sleep." She muttered, her eyes flicking back to Jim as he began murmuring again, his tone changing to one of annoyance.

"Elisabeth .. Malcolm!"

"Malcolm?" Taylor grinned, exchanging a look with Mira. "Of all the people missing Malcolm, I didn't expect Jim to be at the top of the list."

"Who did you expect to be at the top of the list?" The Sixer chief returned, her voice a little too kind.

"Nobody." He returned abruptly. "Go to sleep."

"Something isn't right about all this."

Taylor snorted.

"A lot of things aren't right. I'm afraid you're going to have to be a little more specific."

"Take the house the kids showed us this morning." Mira continued over the top of him. "Did you notice the sign on the door? It was half burnt off, but you could still make out three letters .. A-N-D .."

Taylor scoffed.

"And?"

Mira shot him a withering look.

"And .. it was too close to Hope Plaza for my liking, that's all."

"Yeah, well, anywhere on earth is too close to that wretched place for my liking." Taylor grunted.

"Maybe."

"Malcolm, you have to .. It's the only way .."

As Mira rolled her eyes down at Jim, Taylor grinned.

"There he goes again .."

"One more time and I'm gonna kick him."

"Nah, leave him be. He's had a long .. life."

"All the more reason for it to end now."

"Mira .."

"Malcolm .."

"Jim .. I wish you weren't doing this."

"I know."

"It's almost certainly a trap. They're probably waiting for you already."

"I know." Jim's face set in hard lines as he met the researcher's gaze. "But I have to go, no matter what happens. I have to bring her back."

"I know you do." Malcolm reached into his vest pocket. "That's why I brought this."

A smooth item was pressed into his hand. Jim looked down at it, running a thumb over the cool surface.

".. you know I have a knife of my own, right?"

"You never know when you could use a spare knife. Trust me."

Jim chuckled, opening and closing the blade distractedly.

"Hey .. take care of Elisabeth and the kids while I'm gone."

"Of course."

"But not too well."

".. right."

Jim looked up quickly.

"I mean it, Malcolm. I don't want to come home and find you wearing my shirts and lounging around on my sofa."

"I'd rather you come home to find my rotting corpse impaled on a stake." The researcher retorted. "Just .. come home, will you?"

"I'll try my best."

Malcolm folded his arms, clicking his tongue disapprovingly.

"As a wise man once said, do or do not, there is no try. And personally, I think the former option is preferable, don't you?"

Jim smiled to himself, clicking the blade shut and putting it into his pocket with a sigh.

"It's a good knife." He looked up at his friend soberly. "Thanks, Malcolmus."

"It is and you're welcome." The scientist smiled back. Jim turned to look around at the gathered crowd, seeming to shake himself a little.

"Well, I guess it's showtime."

Malcolm nodded.

"Take care of yourself. And if you die .. don't bother coming back."

Jim chuckled again as he walked away.

"Where are you, Jim? Come back to us, you lazy sod."

"Knock knock."

Malcolm looked up abruptly as an outline fell across his door. The visitor didn't ask for an invitation to enter.

"Lucas? What time is it?"

Lucas paused in his step, frowned at the man on the couch, then wandered over to the window, reaching up to open the blinds.

"It's .. 9:00 o'clock." He peered out between the shades and turned back to Malcolm, eyeing him with curiosity. "Are you still in your pajamas?"

"No." The head researcher retorted immediately, then mumbled the next phrase into his chin. "I never got into my pajamas."

Lucas moved over to sit in front of him, perching on the edge of the coffee table. He stared at Malcolm, persisting with the exercise until the scientist got sick of it and met his gaze antagonistically.

"What?!"

"Are you okay?"

"Course I'm okay. I just .. it's hard to do anything with this." Malcolm raised his strapped arm in irritation.

"You need some help?"

"If by that you mean 'do I need you to undress me and feed me with a spoon', the answer would have to be a definite and absolutely conclusive .. 'no'."

Lucas shrugged.

"Suit yourself." He got up, wandering over to the little fridge that resided in the corner of Malcolm's kitchen. As the researcher watched, he swung the door open, bent down, and looked inside.

"Got anything to eat in here .. hm .." He extracted a wrinkled meat patty from a middle shelf and stood up to inspect it. "Slim pickings, Malcolm."

"Make yourself at home." His employer commented dryly. "If you insist on eating the specimens, who am I to stop you?"

Lucas paused a moment before taking a bite, pulling the meat away from his face and examining it with distaste.

"This is a sample .."

Malcolm nodded.

".. no. That's yesterday's leftovers from dinner." He smiled and leaned back on the couch as his younger team member hesitated. "But I made you look."

Lucas grunted in response. He was tempted to put the meat back into the fridge, having recently lost his appetite, but Malcolm was now watching him closely. Rather than conceding defeat, he returned to the couch, cold meat patty in tow. He then sat across from the head researcher and proceeded to eat it, nodding to the sling.

"How is the arm anyway?"

"Is this how you survive?" Malcolm questioned cheerfully, ignoring the question. "Just jumping from house to house and hoping someone will feed you?"

"Not usually." Lucas responded, pausing to grimace as he used his tongue to negotiate a string of meat out from between his teeth. "Not a bad idea though. Are you sure you cooked this?"

He eyed the remainder of the piece with ill will, but shrugged and threw it into his mouth anyway. Malcolm watched him chew, eyelids lowered a little.

"I presume you enjoyed what was going to be my midday meal?"

Lucas swallowed, casting a doubtful look the other man.

"You were going to eat that? I think you owe me one."

"I think you owe me lunch." Malcolm complained. Nevertheless, he seemed brighter, Lucas noted to himself, then he froze where he sat. Malcolm watched the physicist with enjoyment as he moved to look nervously upward. The roof was creaking. Was it unstable? Had it been hit?

"Relax." Malcolm scoffed, resting his functional arm across the back of the couch. "It's just him."

"Him?" Lucas needn't have be bothered with the question. As the word left his mouth, a long head appeared outside the window, poking down from the roof. The Pterosaur hung upside down, looking in curiously.

"Oh. Him."

"Him." Malcolm repeated, shaking his head at Max - Anaximander for long. Ever since he had recently discovered this particular window, which provided a wide view of much of the inside of Malcolm's house, he had dropped by periodically to check in. The first time he had done so, Malcolm had run outside and painstakingly inspected the building for any signs of damage before he had realized who the culprit was .. but Lucas didn't need to know that.

Lucas watched as the creature turned his head to peer in with one big eye.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was worried about you."

"Well, he needn't be, silly animal." The researcher scoffed affectionately. "I'll be back to work tomorrow."

Lucas' gaze returned to him quickly.

"I thought the doc said at least three days. It's barely been one."

"That was just a suggestion." Malcolm dismissed his concerns with a blithe wave of his hand. "Besides, I need to come back to help direct the teams. They run around blind without my guidance."

Lucas raised an eyebrow. It wasn't just a lame excuse, it was true. The Lab assistants didn't seem to be able to function without a definite instruction every five minutes.

"Don't worry about the scientific teams, I can direct them."

"You can't, that's the problem." Malcolm reasoned. "You're already responsible for the EMID deployment and maintenance team. You can't run both teams."

"I can try."

"And you'll end up wrecking the both of them, trust me." Malcolm's mouth twisted humorlessly. "I can organize them without my arm, don't worry. You concentrate on what you do best."

"Stealing food from people's fridges?"

"Okay, maybe not." Malcolm laughed a little. "Tell you what, let Maddy run the scientific teams, she's about the only person there with the right head for it, and she's been wanting more responsibility, though goodness knows why."

"She's trying to outdo me." Lucas muttered, and Malcolm threw him a look.

"Somehow, I doubt that's the only reason."

He fell silent as Lucas watched him seriously, venturing a gentle comment after a second or two.

"It could have been a lot worse for you, you know."

His boss scoffed.

"Yeah, I know."

"You need to rest up. Take a couple days at least. They said you took a pretty bad bump to the head."

"Not that bad."

"Still. We have everything under control. So just .. try relax, alright?"

Malcolm sighed deeply.

"Why does everyone keep treating me like an invalid?"

"Don't know .." Lucas mused sympathetically. "Maybe it has something to do with the fact that your upper body is half crippled."

Malcolm glared at him.

"Alright, get out. I'm tired. I've had enough visitors for one day."

"That's the spirit." Lucas stood up with a grin, patting his employer on the shoulder a little too heavily. "Get some rest .. or not."

Malcolm groaned loudly as the knock on the door repeated its rhythm.

"Who is it? Tell them to go away. Oh, never mind, I'll tell them myself." He went to stand up, but Lucas held a hand out to stop him.

"Don't strain yourself. I'll get it."

"So nice to have a butler after all these years." Malcolm quipped as Lucas made for the door. "You really are quite good. We should change your role description."

Throwing a look back at the couch-bound researcher, Lucas swung open the door.

"Welcome to the storage facility for the elderly and declined. May I take your order?"

The two on the doorstep blinked at him as an indignant voice squeaked out from the back of the house.

"Oh, it's you. Perfect." Josh folded his arms. "In that case, I'll have one physicist to go please."

Lucas grinned as he stepped aside to let them in.

"Funny."

Malcolm peered over the back of the couch as they approached.

"Hello, to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Skye and Josh exchanged an uncertain look.

"We .. thought you knew we were coming."

"No .." Malcolm frowned. "I assume this is associated with your little expedition the other night. But I didn't-"

He suddenly broke off and turned, pinning Lucas to the floor with a hard look.

"You. You brought them here."

Lucas shrugged, forcing Skye and Josh down into the seat opposite Malcolm.

"I would have asked you first, but I didn't think you'd want company."

"And so, naturally, you decided to invite a group of people into my house."

"Thought you'd be in here feeling sorry for yourself. I was right, wasn't I?" He perched on the arm of Malcolm's chair, but immediately found himself swiped with the researcher's good arm.

"Get down! What, you've ruined my reputation with these people, now you want to ruin the skeletal structure of my furniture as well?"

Lucas chuckled a little, but obliged, sliding sideways to drop down beside Malcolm on the couch. The head scientist held his arm gingerly as he bounced.

"Not so hard! Are you trying to break me completely?" He turned back to the two across from him with an air of resignation. "Very well, I resent the interference of particular parties in this matter, but I suppose seeing as you're here already, you might as well fill me in."

Lucas looked back at the two on the opposite couch.

"Comfortable?"

Josh looked rather the opposite of comfortable, but Skye smiled and shook her head, taking on a businesslike manner.

"Let's just get on with it."

"If you like." Lucas folded his hands in his lap and leaned forward. "Now that we're all finally seated, I-"

A snort from beside him made him pause and turn to Malcolm indignantly.

"Something you'd like to add, Malcolmus?"

As Malcolm remained silent, Lucas turned back to them.

"As I was trying to say .. I've gathered you here today to join this man and this woman-"

"Lucas .."

"Fine, fine." He grinned. "Just .. start from the beginning. When you were running through the forest."

"Which time?" Josh muttered sarcastically.

Nevertheless, he began, and Malcolm listened with interest as they relayed the entire tale, jumping back and forth between each other and sometimes retracing their steps to add forgotten bits of information. When they reached the small dinosaurs at the end, Malcolm halted them abruptly, reaching for his Plex.

"Wait a minute .. those things you're describing - did they look like this?"

He held up the tablet to show them an image displayed on the screen. Josh and Skye jumped to the edge of their seat in surprise.

"Yeah! That's it! What is it?!"

"Those are Psittacosaurus." Malcolm informed them with a knowing air. "They're little herbivores that like dark places. If they were in your cave, they probably went there looking for food and stayed because they felt safe. They're right at the bottom of the food chain. With the abundance of predators outside, it's probably the only reason they've managed to avoid extinction at all."

"What do they eat?"

"Oh, the usual. Mushrooms, grasses. You might not have seen any on your way through, but those things can crop up in various places."

Skye leaned on her chin thoughtfully, casting a glance at Josh.

"There was a lot of moss."

"There you go." Malcolm put his Plex away as though the matter was settled. "Maybe they eat the moss. Maybe they use it to make burrows in the walls. I wouldn't be surprised if they have a whole tunnel system of their own down there. I actually wouldn't mind going and having a good look myself. We don't know much about the creatures really."

Josh grinned.

"Other than that they look pretty stupid?"

"Stupid they may look .." Malcolm commented, eyeing the eldest of the Shannon children wryly. ".. but I don't mind betting they seemed a lot more menacing in the wee hours of the morning, am I right?"

Josh didn't reply.

"That what I thought."

Skye and Lucas exchanged a suppressed smile as Josh quickly changed the subject.

"So what are we gonna do about the ruins anyway? And that shining, spinny ball thing."

"You are not going to do anything." Malcolm returned. "I don't want either of you touching it, understand? I will go down there myself and have a look."

"But .. your arm .." Skye began to point out, but allowed her voice to drop off as a sharp glance from Lucas warned her against pursuing the subject. Malcolm pursed his lips and eyed her with an eagle-like glare.

"Yes. Well. That's only temporary. But thank you for the concern." The dripping sarcasm in his voice was unmistakeable. Skye chose to say nothing further.

Evidently that was the end of the conversation as well. After a brief period of silence, Lucas stood, escorting the younger two towards the door.

"Let's leave our esteemed scientist to his thoughts now, shall we? Thank you for coming to visit."

"Wait- where are you going?" Malcolm turned to Lucas pointedly as the physicist attempted to escape with the others.

"Back to the Lab!" The voice came from the doorway.

"I'll come with you!"

"No. You rest, or I'll lock you in."

"You can't! Alright, fine, fine!" as Lucas moved to step outside "But make sure Harris is still remembering to put the plants in the sun in the mornings!"

"Roger that."

"And don't let Maddy get so engrossed in her work that she forgets to eat." He was practically shouting his orders now. "You know what she's like!"

"I know, Malcolm."

"And-"

"Malcolm." Lucas, fully outside the house by this point, poked his head back in patiently. "I will bring you lunch in a couple of hours. Try not to completely lose your sanity before then, alright?"

The head researcher glared at him from the couch.

"As if you can talk!"

All he received in reply was a cheerful wave as his protégé made his way off the doorstep and down the street.

"Lucas. Oi! Come back here, I wasn't finished."

Malcolm's brows furrowed like angry caterpillars as he realized he'd finally been deserted.

"Lucas? LUCAS!"