It was another two weeks before Herc turned, and another six weeks after that before they finally got Kan to listen to reason. It was actually the Alliance that precipitated his defection, as usual. They ordered both him and Herc executed on sight. The same order had been given for the other three, but for some reason the Alliance had hesitated with the last two. The order both relieved and troubled Rina - relieved because she had been expecting it for some time and was glad that they had proved her right, and troubled because she didn't know why they had waited so long. As she had told Hiro earlier, their general policy was to shoot first and ask questions later. It seemed that someone at the Alliance had finally grown a brain stem, and that was cause for alarm.

In the intervening weeks things had been going well. Her inner circle, the leaders among the Rebels were beginning to accept the boys. Heero's complete lack of emotion and the boys' deadly efficiency still made them rather uneasy, but Rina was confident that the Rebels would learn in time. After all, they'd learned to accept her - it couldn't possibly be as bad of a shock the second time around. They certainly weren't complaining about the results the boys had. They'd made a strike at the weapons depot, and had come away with a large supply of weapons and ammunition, and many less enemies among the Alliance. They also went on a number of solo missions, or with other Rebels, to strike at the Alliance. This Rina insisted on - they couldn't remain an independent group, separate from the Rebels - they had to become Rebels. That was the only way they would be listened to.

With Heero and Michael's help, the Rebels managed to create a simulation of the chamber. Building one themselves would not only have been expensive and maybe impossible because of the space required, it would have been a waste since Rina would never allow anyone to question even Alliance soldiers that way. The idea of training the Rebels to resist that sort of torture had merit, so they created a simulator that fed impulses directly into the brain. If a person kept their eyes closed, they experienced the images, sounds, and feelings they would experience in the chamber without pause. All they had to do to leave the simulation was open their eyes. It was a good safety devise, and Rina was the first to try it. As soon as she closed her eyes, she saw lights flashing, and sound blared so loud that she actually clapped her hands to her ears in a vain attempt to shut it out. Through an act of will she kept her eyes closed for a full five minutes, experiencing the simulation.

When she opened her eyes, Arthur stared at her, spasmodically clenching and unclenching his fists. His face was completely expressionless. She knew he had already tested the simulator, for accuracy. And they used to stick him in that thing for hours? Rina couldn't imagine how he had survived. She looked down at her hands and realized they were shaking, and then she realized that her entire body was trembling.

She determinedly trained herself up to the level of the others, where she could stay in the simulation for well over an hour, and insisted that the other Rebels take their turns learning how to beat the device. None of the boys ever came near the thing.

Arthur's 'weakness' caused no problems on any of his missions. He tended to leave more people alive, but it didn't seem to impair his efficiency. A few broken bones were usually sufficient to convince those in his way that they really didn't want to be in that position anymore. He also held several lectures, sharing what he knew about methods of interrogation, and especially how to resist the psychological aspects of it.

Once he turned, Herc was the most interesting member of their group. Sometimes he really did seem like a normal kid, but then without warning he would cheerfully say something that shocked you back to reality. He really did seem to enjoy himself, though all of that cheerfulness disappeared from his face when the Alliance was mentioned. Arthur had told her that it was his, Michael's, and finally Hiro's arguments that convinced him that the Alliance might have been what they said it was. It wasn't as if all of them were shallow fools.

Kan finally turned when the order came out for his execution. He'd been hovering for several days, and when the order finally came he came crashing down on the Rebel side. The first thing he did after they let him out was to prove his devotion by killing a large number of Alliance soldiers. His methodology was simple - he killed one of them, then stayed with the body and killed the soldiers who were sent to investigate. In that manner he killed well over three-dozen soldiers before the Alliance headquarters got smart and started sending the soldiers in groups of twelve. That number was too many even for Kan, and he returned to the base where he sat off by himself for a long time. Rina was hesitant to approach him - of all of them, he had been the only one who tried to fake turning, so that they would release him and he could return to the Alliance. Luckily Arthur's claim that he could always tell when the others were lying turned out to be true, or else there could have been real trouble. Even though Arthur had said he had truly turned this time, even though he'd obviously alienated himself beyond repair with the Alliance with the killings - which had to have been his purpose - Rina still had a hard time trusting him.

There were no real problems, though, and he was also slowly integrated into the Rebels. He always had a slightly different way of looking at things, though. It was something that Rina didn't even begin to understand until several months later.

--------------

A few weeks after her fifteenth birthday - it was actually all of their birthdays - Rina saw Kan again. Things were different for her now - she was rediscovering what a joy and pleasure a little bit of free time for herself could be. There hadn't been any for so long... By then the boys had taken over most of the tactical problems and day-to-day running of this base, leaving Rina free to work on what she considered to be a much more important and interesting task - creating propaganda to put the Rebels in the best light, and to make the colonists hate the Alliance. It wasn't a very hard task - most of the colonists already hated the Alliance, and the only reason they had hated the Rebels so much was because of the crimes the Alliance had committed in their name. The tough thing was to get messages through to Earth, to sway the Earthlings. When it came down to it, the Earthlings were the only ones who had any power over the Alliance politically - it was important to get their support.

She also started concentrating on how Refuge was governed, the people in charge. At some point, perhaps years from now, the Rebels were going to have to try to truly take over the colony, and when that happened, they needed skilled people to take over the day-to-day governing of the colony, to replace the Alliance's soldiers and bureaucrats whose loyalties definitely lay with Earth. Luckily, there were a number of exiled government workers among the refugees, people who'd protested the treatment of the colonies too strongly and who'd been thrown out of office by the Alliance. Rina started having meetings with them, to discuss what they could do if the Alliance fell in Alpha colony, how quickly and smoothly they could take over.

The Rebels were preparing for a meeting, a huge one between the Rebels of this colony and the Rebels of other colonies, from all over Centari. It had taken months to arrange and plan, mostly because the Alliance severely restricted communication and movement between the colonies. But they'd managed, and the leaders of eight different Rebel groups would be arriving in the next week. All of them were as high in their respective organizations as she was, so she felt relatively safe meeting with them. Only the leaders would meet with her, and if one of them was captured, they knew enough about all of the organizations to destroy all of the Rebels, so it wouldn't matter if her secret was exposed. The chances of any of them getting caught were slim to none - they were all as well-guarded as she was, probably better because they didn't have alternate lives. She wondered what their reaction would be when she revealed herself, although she knew the most probable ones - outrage that the Phoenix would try to hide behind a child, then disbelief, then a sort of stunned shock followed by curiosity. Then they could possibly get some business done.

Kan came looking for her late one night, just before she was about to head back to her home. "Miss Rina?" he asked hesitantly. It had been weeks before he stopped calling her 'Phoenix'. Then for a while it was 'Lady' as if it was some sort of title. He was getting closer to her name, though. One of these days she'd get him to call her 'Rina.'

"Yes, Kan?" Rina asked, a little warily. She could never quite put herself at ease around him, no matter how much loyalty he showed to the Rebels. At some level she always looked at him as the Alliance agent who tried to kill her father and consequently shot her.
"May I speak with you for a moment?"

Rina sighed. Kan was always so formal in his speech, especially to her. "Sure, but I've got to be getting back to my house soon. I have to be there in the morning to go to school."

"I understand." He seated himself in the other chair in the office and looked at her. "I've never thanked you for what you did for me. And I understand how difficult it is for you to be around me, the things that I make you remember." There was a hint of discomfort in his voice, which was probably as much of an apology as she would ever get for him having shot her. It was more, actually, than she would have gotten from Hiro under the same circumstances.

Rina regarded him silently. She wouldn't demean them both by saying it was forgotten, because it wasn't. "Thank you," she said, wondering if that was all he had to say.

"I do want to thank you," he continued. "I never did, but without you I still would have been working for the Alliance. They never dealt fairly with us. It wasn't... honorable."

With that one word, Rina's understanding of Kan expanded exponentially. Honor... How would a boy like Kan, raised by the Alliance, have a concept of honor? Hiro certainly had none - there was no such thing as honor, he had once told her, only efficiency.
"Where... did you learn about honor?" she asked.

"One of the books I read was an ancient Earthling text on different methods of torture, from a region of Earth known as Japan. They described... a warrior's honor, that he is demeaned by only fighting against those who are weaker than he. I never thought that I would be able to achieve any honor, because everyone was weaker than me. Then I finally found an enemy who was not weaker than me. You were not, and I was defeated by you. But even when you defeated me, even when you were my enemy, you treated me with more respect, with more honesty and honor, than the Alliance ever did. That was why, once the Alliance truly turned its back on me, I wanted to join you. You have found without even trying something that I sought and failed to gain."

Rina realized with some shock that he hadn't really joined the Rebels because he wanted to get revenge on the Alliance, or because he wanted to help the colonists. He had joined them because he was following her. The thought sent a shiver down her spine, but she forced herself to remain calm. "You've been with us for several months, now. What have you found?"

He hesitated, then stiffened, his eyes pointing straight forward, not blinking. Rina recognized the posture - it was what all the boys did when they were being called on to give an official report. It made them sound like computers, but so far they still did it, no matter how uncomfortable it made them. The Alliance had spent a lot of time teaching them that mannerism, had hammered it in well. "Your concept of honor is different than any I've read about. Your strength stems not from the enemies you defeat or the battles you win, but from something else.'

"Do you know what that something else is?" she asked softly. She had to make him understand that a battle fought for nothing more than honor was meaningless and worthless.
He shook his head.

"It's protecting people," she said, and his eyes opened wide with surprise, then understanding.

"I see," he said slowly. "You gain strength from the knowledge that your fighting will protect lives. There is honor in that."

"Yes, there is." Rina had never looked at it that way, but it was true. She'd never thought of herself as honorable - honor seemed like such a petty thing, useless in her work and meaningless to a person who was, for all intents and purposes, an assassin. Honor as she thought of it was a luxury - give a warning to your enemies before you strike, never stab someone in the back - that was for people who were already winning, who could afford to lose. Her situation was nothing like that: only, as Hiro said, efficiency was important. She had to kill her enemies by whatever means necessary. How could there be anything honorable about that? There was nothing heroic or beautiful in death, in walking up to someone and blowing their head apart.

But she had limits. The Alliance had blown up schools, destroyed colonies with hundreds of men, women, and children inside, ordered the assassination of civilian targets in order to achieve their goals. These things she would not do, would not allow her subordinates to do. Once someone had taken the initiative and used a bomb to destroy the home of an Alliance officer, killing him, his family and his servants. That was never repeated. In her propaganda, Rina never resorted to outright lies the way the Alliance did. They only struck at military targets, and when they did strike against officers in their homes, they did it in a way so that there were no other casualties. Yes, she did have some sense of honor, even if it might be twisted beyond recognition. But Kan had seen it.

Rina felt a wash of gratitude towards him. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For explaining things to me."

He smiled a little, and stood up. Then he actually executed a sort of half-bow to her, bending at the waist and inclining his head. "My pleasure, M'lady." His voice had abruptly changed to a different accent as he switched to a different form of address. His eyes sparkled with amusement, and she actually laughed a little at how ridiculous the situation seemed. Two people, products of an advanced technology, soldiers fighting a government with whatever means they had available to them, sitting around talking about an ancient concept of honor and bowing to each other. She stood up and bowed back.

------------

{{TRANSCRIPT OF DIALOGUE FROM BASE 001
STATUS: SECURITY LEVEL 1
DATE: 24.6.21
TOPIC: ATTACK ON ALLIANCE BASE


A: The identification has been confirmed by the security cameras. It was the subjects of Project Titan who led that Rebel raid on the armory two days ago.


B: Why was I not notified immediately?!


A: We were waiting for confirmation. I hope you're pleased with yourself, Director. Your creations are performing just the way you wanted them to. Here's the list of the dead and wounded.


B: Impressive.


A: Impressive?! I have another word for it! They've turned on you! Earth Command wants to know what you can do about it.


B: Me? Nothing, I've been reassigned.


A: What?!


B: Once the subjects were taken from us, Project Titan ceased to exist. Until they are recaptured, I am not the Director of that project. I am currently assigned to Intelligence, interrogation division.


A: I bet that suits you just fine. Now it really is your job to hurt people all day, now that you don't have Four to pick on anymore.


B: If you're insinuating that my actions were for any other reason than to force it to perform to its specifications...


A: I am. Your treatment of that boy, genetically engineered or otherwise, was nothing short of sadistic. There was no reason to do to him what you did - he never needed any 'encouragement' to be loyal to the Alliance, and your actions may very well have given the Rebels a way to win his confidence. I couldn't protest as long as they, and you, were completing your missions, but now that you've lost them, you can expect a full report from me to my superiors. I suspect that the only thing that's kept you alive so long is that you're so good at torturing people and getting information out of them. I wish it were otherwise, but I believe that you will continue to live, even though I've urged otherwise in the past and will do so now. But that will only last as long as you continue to be of use to the Alliance - I'd advise you to keep that in mind. Because once you aren't of any use, I will take personal pleasure in prying every secret you have out of your head, and I will use that chamber of yours to do it.


B: You...


A: Yes? Me what? You weren't going to threaten me, were you, Yirtz, because that's insubordination and I'll have you shot. That's within my power, you know.


B: No sir. I wish you the best of luck capturing them, but it won't be easy.


A: Is that a hint of satisfaction I hear in your voice? It better not be, because they're enemies of the Alliance now. The only good news about all of this is that I don't have to deal with you any more.


B: And what do you mean by that?


A: I was liaison between Earth Command and Project Titan. If Titan no longer exists, then I don't have to deal with you anymore, and that is entirely to my liking.


B: What if I have data to transmit?


A: Then you'll do it through normal channels and leave me alone.


B: And if I recapture some of the subjects?


A: I don't think there's a chance in hell of that happening. Good day and goodbye, Doctor.


------------

Rina took a deep breath and let it out. She was waiting for the leaders of the Rebels of the eight other major colonies to arrive. This was the first meeting of the Rebels from all over the planet ever, and it was a sign of how well she was doing against the Alliance that they'd chosen to have the meeting in Alpha. It had been a long and hazardous trip for the other leaders simply to get here, and now she was waiting in a large conference room she'd prepared specifically for them. Less than an hour ago she'd sent agents out to guide them here from the various places that they were staying all over the colony. Each leader had brought only a single aide to accompany them, and only those sixteen people would see her face. It was a risk, but no greater than ones she had taken already.

"Calm yourself," Heero muttered.

She glanced at him. "How did you know?"

"That," he said, pointing at where she was nervously drumming her fingers on her own thigh.

"Damn," she muttered, forcing herself to be absolutely still. Heero was acting as her aide until Mike could get here. He'd been held up by a 'demonstration' of the Alliance's power; it was a common enough occurrence where the Alliance marched a bunch of their soldiers out into the streets, rounded up anyone they could find, and explained to them why they were so much luckier to be under the control of the Alliance than free. At least he hadn't been caught in a sweep. Rina shuddered at the thought. That was why her top aides didn't travel the streets often. It was just too dangerous.

She was planning on having the boys come in and speak, on the various parts of the Rebels' business that they were handling. There was no reason for her to limit herself to one aide, as long as she didn't make it seem as if she were trying to overwhelm her guests, which was why she'd chosen to start with just one.

"That's a bad habit to get into."

"I know. I've been trying to break myself of it for years." Rina clenched her hand in a fist. "This is not going to be fun."

"Why not?"

"They won't believe I'm the Phoenix."

"That's what that is for," Heero nodded his head towards the steel bar lying on the ground.

"I know, it's just... Does it ever bother you, the way normal humans look at us sometimes?"

"Sometimes," he admitted, surprising her. It wasn't like Heero to admit that something as transient as other people's opinions mattered to him. "I ignore it." Now that was more normal, for Heero.

"Sure," she muttered. "Just ignore it."

A light flashed on the com unit. "Phoenix, the other leaders are here."

"All of them?"

"Yes sir."

"Then send them up."

Heero took one step back from her chair, standing a few feet to the side, and raised his head into an attentive position, eyes fixed forward, face immobile. He might have well have been carved of stone, he stood so still. Even after all this time, he still did that whenever giving a report, and obviously at 'formal' occasions as well. Damn it. Seeing him like that reminded her of how far they had to go to rid the boys of the damage the Alliance had done to them, if it was possible to remove it at all. Arthur was much better, and they all seemed more at ease, but aside from Herc and occasionally Arthur, they rarely smiled and almost never laughed. They might be free, but they didn't act very human, at least not yet.

Rina remained seated until the door opened and people started filing in. Then she got to her feet and stood at a rough approximation of Heero's discipline as the leaders filed in. Seven of them were male, and five of the aides were also male. It was clear that the Alliance wasn't the only one with prejudices about females. "Welcome to Alpha colony, and to our main base," she told them with a smile and a formal nod. "Please, take your seats."

"What is this?" demanded Brenden Fraisen, the head of the Rebels in Bertin colony. "Who are you? Where is the Phoenix?" Some of the other heads used fake names, like herself, while others used their own names and simply never left their bases.

"If you will permit me to explain, Mr. Fraisen," she said calmly. This was exactly what she'd expected. "I will explain everything."

"I'd appreciate an explanation as to why the Phoenix is too cowardly to show his face after we went through all the danger of coming here," said another head, a young man who'd earned the nickname 'Snake' due to his ability to slip through traps the Alliance set for him. "And why he chooses to hide behind a child." There was deep disapproval in his voice.

"As I just said, if you will permit me to explain, you will understand," Rina repeated, then picked up the steel. "There are a number of things that the Phoenix was not willing to discuss over lines of communication between the colonies. I have to protect my other identity, and any word of what I am about to tell you could have jeopardized that."

"Your other identity?" asked the lone woman, known as the Demon in her own colony.

"Wait a second," her aide said. "I recognize her. She's the daughter of the Alliance's ambassador!"

"I assure you, my father holds no more allegiance to the Alliance than I do," Rina said before they could jump up to protest that. "He continues to hold his position in order to protect me."

"Who are you?!"

"I am the Phoenix."

Vincent Gail let out a bark of laughter. "You? The Phoenix?"

Rina held out the steel, then bent it between her palms. It screeched loudly as she bent it, and then tossed it onto the table in front of her. It thudded loudly on the table. There was a shocked silence, then Peter Grafton reached out and touched it. "God, that's solid steel." He stared at her. "All right girl, you have our attention. What's going on here?"

"I am the Phoenix. I am the result of an experiment in genetic engineering, which has made me stronger, faster, and more intelligent than normal humans. I need very little sleep, and because of my apparent youth no one suspects me."

They looked at her as if she'd just announced that she worked for the Alliance.

"I'm sorry I was unable to tell you the truth before you arrived, but if any hint of what I am is heard by the Alliance, they would immediately be able to deduce my other identity."

"And why is that?"

"Because the Alliance created me."

At that they did jump to their feet, several reaching for hidden weapons. "It's a trap!" someone yelled. An uncomfortable number of guns were pointed in her direction, and Rina had to force herself not to react. When, after several seconds, she made no move, they calmed down slightly.

"I said I was created by the Alliance, not that I work for them. They were experimenting, trying to create the perfect solider. I wasn't what they wanted, however, so they got rid of me. I was adopted by the ambassador and was raised as a colonist. I soon realized that I was different, and started hacking into the Alliance's computer, trying to figure out what I was. When I found out, I joined the Rebels. Because of what I am, I soon became the Phoenix. I am responsible for the successes the Rebels have had here, and I wish to share what knowledge I have of the Alliance with you." There were a number of lies in there, but it was close enough to the truth for now. The entire truth would ensure that they'd never trust her or listen to her, and they didn't have time for that.

They stared at her, and settled uneasily back down into their seats. "You hacked into the Alliance's computer?" asked Brenden's aide. "How? That should be impossible."

"My reaction time is almost as good as a computer, otherwise it wouldn't be possible. I will, of course, open all of the files we've stolen from the Alliance for your observation." That was another lie, she wasn't going to show them the files on Project Titan. She had a feeling that Heero's past would cause more problems, and it had done plenty of that already.

"And you are the Phoenix?"

"Yes, I am."

"For how long?"

"Since I was twelve, but I've been with the Rebels two years longer than that."

"And him?" the Snake asked, nodding towards Hiro.

"He is a result of the same genetic engineering. He has extensive knowledge of Alliance training methods for their grunt soldiers, and if you allow it, will explain some of the fundamental weaknesses in that training that can be exploited in battle."

"If we'll allow it?!" the Demon asked. "I was going to ask you myself. There were rumors, a few weeks back, that you had one person kill a few dozen foot soldiers. I was wondering how that was done."

Rina hid a smile. The person they were talking about had to be Kan, but that technique wasn't going to work for normal humans. "I know of the incident, but that was another genetically engineered fighter. I doubt his methods would appeal to any normal human. But we have methods that do work, and would be glad to share them with you."

------------

"So you're saying that you can actually swing the public's view towards us with this?" Brenden asked doubtfully, while Rina firmly held onto her temper. Brenden was the oldest of the leaders, and the least likely to change his ways, no matter how much success she'd had against the Alliance. Despite all the evidence and the belief of the others, he still looked at her as a kid, just barely worthy of his notice. Herc had already completely lost patience with this old doubter, to the point where Rina didn't call him to meetings where Brenden would be present. He was irritating all of the boys, none of whom were very good at controlling the new emotions they were experiencing. Michael fell absolutely silent when faced with Brenden's obstinacy, Kan frowned furiously, and Arthur became expressionless, which he did only when he was very upset. With Heero, it was impossible to tell, but he didn't speak to Brenden unless he absolutely had to.

"Yes, Brenden," Rina replied. In the last few days she'd started referring to them by their first names, to establish herself on equal footing with them. Some of the others used that familiarity, some didn't, but for her it was a necessity, otherwise she'd never get anywhere with Brenden and a few of the others. "I keep up a constant flow of the propaganda, and I have people in the media who will report for me. One of the keys is to beat the Alliance to the punch. When they commit atrocities and try to blame them on us, it's vital that our message - and the truth - gets out to the public first."

"It's the only way we can fight them," Peter told Brenden, while Rina kept a patient expression on her face. Maybe Brenden would listen to someone besides her. "Besides, look at these numbers the Phoenix gave us. Once we start getting to the public first, and ruining their opportunity to hurt our image, the number of strikes decrease. It's a process that saves lives."

Rina had already made these points. Numerous times. But this time, Brenden nodded, a frown on his face. "I can see that part, but the rest of this, the constant messages..." he frowned in distaste. "It seems like something the Alliance would do."

Rina had already explained this as well, but she remained silent. Maybe he would listen to one of the others if they told them. This conference was turning out to be more frustrating than she ever could have dreamed. At least she'd reached a few of them on the points that were most important to her, public opinion and the methods by which they could trick the Alliance into sparing lives. A few others now had doubts about long-held prejudices concerning women, and that was good as well. But faced with Brenden's thick-headedness, she wondered how the Rebels in his colony had survived as long as they had. Adaptation had always been key to her survival - she was able to anticipate and react to changes faster than almost anyone, and that was the only reason that she'd survived and kept hidden as long as she had. But then, she tended to take many more risks then Brenden did, which exposed her more, but also hurt the Alliance more. It was all a matter of preference, but right now Brenden was close to driving her to distraction.

A half-hour later the daily meeting broke up and the other leaders left to their rooms. Rina sat and stared at the empty room for several minutes, reviewing her plans. The Rebels had been here for four days, and had to leave in three more. For this week Rina had been living entirely on the base, having scheduled the meeting during a school vacation; her continual presence made it possible to hold late and early meetings, accommodating those who had traveled from colonies in different time zones. Despite all the time she spent in the Rebel bases, she rarely slept there, and was not comfortable in her room here. The ever-present security camera in the corner did nothing to improve her mood. She knew it was for her safety, and that there were people she trusted watching - actually tonight Herc was taking a turn, because he wasn't helping as much with the meetings as he'd like and felt guilty - but she was used to privacy as she slept, and so was uneasy. The entire situation was more trying than she'd thought it would be.

So little time was left, and she still hadn't come to a decision regarding Refuge. Every person that knew about Refuge added to the danger, but there could be great benefits, as well. The sight of a place that the Alliance didn't control, a place that was in fact what all the Rebels were striving for could bring the other leaders hope, and give them ideas for their own domes. Or it might make them angry or jealous. Most she would have taken without hesitation, but Brenden and one or two others made her uneasy. Brenden was already obvious enough about the fact that he barely trusted her because of her tenuous relationship to the Alliance - she didn't want to push him too hard.

After a while she gave it up and went back to her room. She could get some business finished before she went to sleep. Rina had barely gotten a third of the way through the file when there was a discreet knock at the door. Automatically she checked to see that her spare gun was handy, then called, "Who is it?"

"It's the Snake."

"Come in," Rina said, standing up and opening the door. Despite the unpleasant connotations connected with his name, Rina had found him to be a refreshing change from Brenden, and got along with him the best of all the others, perhaps because he was a young man, only twenty-five, and understood some of the problems she was having because of her age. He was not attractive physically - sort of mousy-looking, with a pointed nose and angular face, but it was the sort of face that wasn't at all memorable, which had to be an advantage for him. "What can I do for you?"

"I came to get some answers."

That immediately put her on guard. "What about?"

"May I?" he asked, indicating the second chair, and Rina nodded permission, but didn't sit herself. The entire situation had just taken a dangerous turn. He watched her for a moment, but when it became clear that she wasn't going to sit, he continued, "Now I've known all along that you wouldn't be telling us everything. None of us would ever do that, and to expect the same out of you would be blatantly unfair. But still... there are a lot of questions that we would like to ask. You've told us so little about yourself, but the little we know is not reassuring."

"We?" she asked, noting his phrasing.

He inclined his head towards her, acknowledging her observation. "Myself, the Demon, Peter, and Vincent."

"You're not including Brenden or the Judge," Rina said in a perfectly neutral voice. He'd just named the people she would take to Refuge if she could. Brenden and the Judge were the ones who she was afraid of upsetting.

"Brenden's an old fool, long overdue to be replaced," the Snake said with considerable ferocity. "He's lost his edge, and the people in his colony are beginning to suffer for it. I don't know what the Judge's problem is, but I think he's resisting your ideas just out of stubbornness. At least Brenden's aide has some sense, but I don't know about the Judge's..."

Rina nodded. "I agree, but there isn't much we can do about that situation. The only real areas in which those two differ from the rest of you is that they don't trust me and don't make any secret of it. I know that you trust me, and will listen to what I say, the same way I've been listening to you... That was all I ever intended this meeting to accomplish. What is the problem?"

"Phoenix, you know that all of us - even Brenden - are very intelligent. Stupid or slow people don't survive against the Alliance, and they certainly don't raise to positions of power. You know that I am smarter than most, to rise so young," he said, truthfully but without any modesty. Now wasn't the time for false modesty, anyway. "But you..." he shook his head. "You're something else entirely. You're..."

"Not human," she supplied with a sigh. "Inhuman is the term you're looking for."

"That's what I'm here to determine. You can have my apologies in advance, but I always keep the welfare of my colony first in my mind. Your ideas seem good, but I won't steer my colony onto a course set by someone... or something... with no morality, no conscience. We already have the Alliance for that."

Rina held herself motionless. His apology did nothing to soften the blow of the accusation. She'd thought that after all she'd shown them, everything she'd done for her colony, that they would at least believe that she had the people's interests first in mind. "Very well," she said without any expression on her face or emotion in her voice. She couldn't afford to show any weakness in a situation like this. Or... was that what he was looking for? Some hint of human weakness? Doubts? Would that convince him? Rina could feign all of those easily enough, but she'd already decided not to try to manipulate the other Rebels, who were allies. He'd have to be satisfied with logical answers to his questions.

He had been studying her face. "Just give me some proof... anything... that tells me that you are more than some creation of the Alliance." At this she stiffened angrily - there was never any doubt in her mind that she was more than something the Alliance created. "Show me why I should pursue the tactics you've been teaching us."

"You mean keeping people alive and freeing them isn't reason enough?" Rina asked, allowing some of her anger to show.

"Not if it sacrifices our humanity in the process. Even beating the Alliance isn't worth losing our basic humanity. Once we begin to follow you, I believe it would be very difficult to stop, and I won't have you leading us away from what sets us apart from the Alliance."

"And the others feel the same way?"

"They do now. They would have followed you without question, as long as the ideas were good, which they are, but now they're waiting for my word."

"You have to make this difficult, don't you?"

"If you are truly human, if you really care for people, you should be glad that we aren't blind followers."

"Unless I fail to convince you, not because I'm not human, but because there is no way of truly proving such a thing. Then I would not be glad, because what I've learned will go to waste in all the colonies because of your actions, instead of just yours," she reminded him.

"So convince me," he said, sitting back.

"How?" Rina asked him. "Any example I give, any time that I've acted with compassion or followed moral rules, all of that can be feigned. The Alliance does that often enough. Humanity is a hard quality to define, and harder still to prove. What would make me human?"

Whatever he might have said, it was interrupted when Herc burst through the door, anger plain on his face. It was the most emotion Rina had ever seen on his face, and for a second she was frightened by his changed appearance. She'd never seen such rage before, and automatically her mind began to analyze it. None of them were used to emotions - the closest thing they'd experienced was a cold anger at the enemies of the Alliance. That was all the Alliance had allowed them to feel. Now Herc was developing emotions, and had no experience in dealing with them, in controlling them. Normally that sort of control was learned in the growing up process, but he hadn't had that, and that could make him very dangerous now.

"You asshole," Herc began, and his terms became less complimentary from there. Herc had quite a vocabulary, and seemed intent on using all of it on the Snake to express what he thought of his questioning Rina's humanity. It seemed that her continuous repetition of the fact has erased any doubts in his mind as to whether or not they were human.

"Herc," she said sharply, trying to end this before she completely alienated the Snake. She agreed - in principle - with everything Herc was saying, but she hadn't gotten where she was now by saying everything that came to mind.

He ignored her, and she swiftly got to her feet and placed herself between Herc and the Snake. "Herc!" she shouted at him, allowing anger to color her voice. He finally broke off mid-curse, still bristling with anger, but he raised his head into the 'attention' position the Alliance had taught him, his anger fading from his face, if not actually going away. The Snake stared at him in horror and disbelief.

There was a stunned silence which was broken when Arthur suddenly appeared in the doorway. It was clear from his expression - or lack of one - that he knew what had happened. Herc must have observed the discussion between Rina and the Snake on the cameras, read their lips, and... well, Rina knew what had happened next. What she didn't know was how Arthur had gotten involved. "Herc," Arthur instructed in a cold voice. "Come with me."

Herc didn't move, and Rina saw the muscles in his jaw clench. "Herc," she said quietly. "This is an order. I want you to take yourself back to your room and stay there. Consider yourself confined to quarters until the delegates from the other colonies leave."

"Wait," the Snake said, eyeing Herc nervously. "You're... like the Phoenix?" his question was directed at both boys. Arthur nodded, not taking his eyes off Herc. "You inspire considerable loyalty in your subordinates. Maybe there's an answer to my question here. Do you mind if I ask them a few questions?"

Rina indicated it was all right. She knew that she could trust them not to reveal anything she'd been hiding, and she did want this situation dealt with. Maybe if he got a chance to defend her he could work through this anger. "Why do you feel so strongly about the question of the Phoenix's humanity? Unless, of course, it's because it's also a question of your own humanity, because you are the same."

Once he was given a definite target for his anger, Herc got control of himself quickly, and thought up an answer to the Snake's question. What was really surprising was that the next statement came out in a casual voice, as if he was having a normal conversation. There was no indication - outwardly - that he'd been screaming obscenities a few seconds earlier. "That is always an issue, of course. It would be unrealistic to say that has no part in my... emotion. But that's not the main reason I'm so... angry." There was a hint of surprise in his voice as he realized what was happening to him, and Rina wondered if the Snake caught any of that. "We... always believed that we weren't human, and Rina's worked long and hard to teach us otherwise. She's... she's voluntarily given up more of herself than almost anyone I've ever seen. And she... she cares. We were always told that we weren't human, and she was the only one who ever told us otherwise, for the longest time..." he trailed off as he realized he might have given away more than he intended.

The Snake might be arrogant, but he hadn't been bragging about his intelligence, and caught the slip. "You were told you weren't human..." he said thoughtfully. "And you all act completely differently than the Phoenix, leading me to believe that you were not raised in the same situation as she was. Add to that the fact that no one wants to talk about what you were doing more than a year ago, and it seems that you're hiding something about your past - the five of you. I wonder what it is?" He looked to them for confirmation, but got no clue from their faces, which remained as calm as ever, even though Rina could practically hear Herc berating himself for making that slip.

When their faces told him nothing, the Snake continued, "And I wonder... what could be bad enough that you would try to hide it? We know that you were created by the Alliance, but none of use hold that against you, and after all you've done to fight the Alliance, it would have to be a pretty serious crime to hide. What is it?"

Rina studied the young man, less experienced than her in the ways of intrigue and politics, but he showed great promise, and if he did take her ideas back to his colony, the potential benefit would be great. But would he be able to work past their past? She decided to temporize for a minute. "It's connected with Mike Turston, my aide... what is your policy on Alliance personnel who join us?"

He frowned, confused by the sudden change in topic. "We keep them under much closer scrutiny than normal recruits, but as long as they remain loyal to us, we try to forget whatever crimes they committed while they were working for the Alliance. It isn't always easy."

"Mike worked for the Alliance," Rina said, relieved that his policy was the same as hers. Now she would see whether he would be able to forget the boys crimes. "He worked on the project that created us, but left because of ethical issues with the way the Alliance treated their creations."

"But... that would mean... the Alliance held you for... how long, several years?" the Snake asked, confused, and Rina glanced at the boys. Herc had started this, he might as well finish it.

"No," Herc said grimly, sounding like a grizzled war veteran. "They didn't hold us. They... owned us. We were their slaves, and we worked for them. As planners and assassins. The Phoenix was fighting against us for years, because we didn't know any better. We thought... we allowed ourselves to be told that the Alliance truly served the people. But when she finally caught us, instead of killing us, the Phoenix spent months teaching us the truth, that the Alliance did not serve the people, and that we were people. For the first fourteen years of my life, so-called true humans lied to me," he said in disgust. "The Phoenix was the first to tell us the truth. She could have killed us... we all know that none of us will ever be 'good' people, not normal humans, not after living under the Alliance for fourteen years. Heero... he's still cold-blooded, and probably always will be," Herc said with a philosophical shrug. "It would be easy to look at us all and see us as a lost cause. But she didn't. Which is why it is almost unbearable for any of us to hear someone accuse her of being inhuman. Save those accusations for the Alliance, because they have no place here." Herc finally ran out of words, and already seemed much calmer. Rina hadn't known that he felt this strongly about her, and she wasn't the only one staring in shock.

"You... were... Alliance... assassins?" the Snake asked weakly.

"Our policy is the same as yours - we try to forget past crimes. But we thought that you and the others might be uncomfortable if you knew how deeply involved in the Alliance they were."

"That idiot Brenden would have tried to kill us himself, that's sure," Herc said with a hint of a smile, showing that he was returning to his normal good humor. It seemed that this one venting of emotion had been very good for him. Rina made a mental note of that if this ever happened again. "Try being the operative word."

"And you, Snake?" Rina asked. "How forgiving can you be?"

"I like to think I'm as forgiving as the next man, but there are limits!" he exclaimed, then turned bright red. "I can see why you'd like to hide it, though."

"If you want," Arthur said quietly. "I can give you some other reasons to trust the Phoenix."

The Snake pulled back slightly, then nodded shortly. "You have given me a lot to think about already, and not much of it is encouraging."

Arthur smiled slightly. "We haven't begun yet."