Highlander Moon
by
Bill Harris
Soton@aol.com
Chapter 2 - Unholy Alliance, Take Two
Sailor Moon's sudden appearance was distracting, but MacLeod tried
to keep on eye on Mornay nevertheless. "Glad to know you're not lumping
me in with him," he muttered, glancing back quickly at Sailor Moon. She
might have been the girl Mornay had been menacing when MacLeod had come
on the scene, but he couldn't prove it by looking at her. Of course, it
had been the same with Mina back in London, so it wasn't surprising. He
turned back to face Mornay, but still directed his next statement to
Sailor Moon. "Just keep out of the way. I'll handle him."
"Are you nuts?" she replied. "I don't know who you are, but this
clown is definitely bad news. If you're one of the good guys, you should
let me help you!" To emphasize her point, she jumped beside MacLeod,
facing Mornay.
MacLeod took her by one arm and tried to drag her behind him,
which proved to be tougher than he thought. "Do me a favor and stay out
of it. This is just something I have to do myself."
Mornay watched with interest as Sailor Moon objected vocally to MacLeod's treatment of her. While there wasn't an opportunity for him
to strike during this altercation, he did have other options. And with
MacLeod's unexpected involvement, he decided it was time to exercise
them.
MacLeod took a deep breath and tried to put a rein in his temper.
This was threatening to get as out of control as his argument with Lita
that morning, which was something he could ill afford at the moment. He
wished he could explain to her about the Rules of the Game; specifically
in this case that all Immortal conflicts were one on one affairs; but
this was definitely not the time nor the place. Not now, when he was toe
to toe with another Immortal. "Look, I'll explain everything later. For
now, just let me do this myself. If you want to watch, fine, but stay
out of it. There's no need for you to get involved."
Sailor Moon failed to be mollified by his words. "As if! I was
involved the mome..." She paused in midsentence and her eyes went wide.
"YIKES!"
Immediately upon her startled yelp, MacLeod spun about, returning
his full attention to Mornay. His jaw dropped, as did his sword, as he
found himself taken aback. "What the hell...?" He had seen many things
in his lifetime, but never in four hundred years had he seen anything
like this. Mornay's form was flowing and shifting, increasing his
height by at least six inches. His skin started taking on a reptilian
tone as well, complete with scales and it gleamed like armor. MacLeod
had the sinking feeling that Mornay's transformation went far more than
skin deep. "Then again, maybe I could use a hand."
"Mina!"
The blonde whirled about immediately upon hearing her name being
called. But she didn't need to see the source to know who it was.
"Artemis! What's wrong?" A smile came to her face. "Is Luna after
your hide again?"
Artemis' face wrinkled in distaste at her timing. "Give me a
break, Mina. This is serious!"
"OK, OK. So what's up?"
"Duncan MacLeod's in town, for one. I bumped into him at the
park."
"Duncan? But what's he..."
"That's not the important thing right now," Artemis interrupted
her hurriedly. "There's some sort of trouble going on in the park, and
we think Serena might be in the middle of it. There could also..."
"What?!?" Mina exclaimed, interrupting him in turn. "Why didn't
you say so?" With a flourish, she produced her transformation wand and
raised it skyward. "VENUS POWER!"
Mornay attacked first, charging headlong at MacLeod. He was able
to evade Mornay's wild swing and tried to return the blow, but Mornay
was far faster than he anticipated. The mutated Immortal easily blocked
his counter, parrying with such force that MacLeod's katana went flying.
The next thing MacLeod knew, Mornay had picked him up bodily and then
threw him with enough force that he slammed hard against a tree, shaking
it violently. A sharp pain in MacLeod's side caused him to gasp and he
knew that at least two of his ribs were broken. He tried to stagger to
his feet, glancing to see where his katana had gone.
Satisfied that MacLeod was out of the way for the moment, Mornay
turned his attention to Sailor Moon. "Now, Sailor Moon, just give me
the Silver Crystal and I'll make this easy for you."
"The Silver Crystal is right here!" she replied, brandishing the
Moon Wand. "But there's no way I'm giving it to you."
"Then I'll take it!"
"I've got a better idea -- we can use it to get rid of those
bad Negaverse influences in you." She lifted the Moon Wand upwards and
began, "MOON HEALING..."
Mornay made a rather prodigious leap and grabbed the Moon Wand
before she could finish. "I don't think so. I *like* being this way!
It gives me power... power enough that I can win the Game and be the
last Immortal. Now give me that crystal!" As he said the last, he
tried to wrest the Moon Wand from Sailor Moon's grasp.
To her credit, Sailor Moon hung on to the wand for all she was
worth. "Forget it!"
Mornay dropped his sword and used his free hand to grab Sailor
Moon by the throat. "Let it go or die!" he snarled.
"Are you sure there isn't some middle ground here?"
Mornay snarled, but before he could reply... "VENUS CRESCENT
BEAM SMASH!"
A brilliant beam of light shot over Sailor Moon's shoulder and
struck Mornay full in the chest. He stumbled backwards, fell to the
ground and lay there unmoving.
Sailor Venus ran up to Sailor Moon. "Are you OK, Sailor Moon?"
"Yep," she answered. "Thanks for the save, Venus."
Venus just smiled in answer and flashed her the "V for Victory"
sign. Then, satisfied that Sailor Moon was in good shape, she glanced
over at MacLeod. "You OK, Duncan?"
MacLeod was still shaky, but he had managed to stagger over to
where his sword had landed. "I'll live, but... BEHIND YOU!"
Reacting to MacLeod's warning purely on instinct, Sailor Moon and
Sailor Venus both dodged left, managing to avoid Mornay's charge.
Instead of striking either of the Scouts, his blade hit a tree instead
and clove right through the foot thick trunk.
"Great, he must be an Immortal too," Venus said as they watched the
tree crash to the ground.
"Immortal?" asked a very confused Sailor Moon.
"More than an Immortal," Mornay sneered. With a flamboyant
gesture, he swept his free hand in their direction. Two dark energy
globes leapt from his hand and struck them both, effectively restraining
them. "As I've just demonstrated."
MacLeod grabbed his sword and moved as best he could towards
Mornay, even as the other Immortal stalked over to the two Scouts. He
wouldn't be able to do much in his current condition, but he only knew
he had to try.
"Time to end this," Mornay said, standing by Sailor Moon. He
raised his sword high, ready to strike the final blow...
"MARS FIRE IGNITE!"
...and was struck full in the face by a ball of flame. Stunned,
Mornay staggered backwards from the blast.
Sailor Moon looked up and was elated. Sailor Mars had arrived,
Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Mercury flanking her. "You're here!" Then
she added in mock annoyance, "It's about time, too!"
"Look who's talking about other people being late," Mars retorted.
"Later, you two," Mercury said. "Right now we've got other
worries."
"You can say that again," Mornay sneered. Though scorched in
the face, he seemed otherwise unfazed. He gathered himself to charge at
the Scouts.
"Quick, use the Moon Wand, Sailor Moon!" Mars said.
"I'd like to do that, Mars, but I'm a little tied up at the
moment."
"Not for long," Mars noted. A spirit ward appeared in her hand.
"I'll have you both out of those in a jiffy."
"And we'll keep him occupied until you do," Mercury said.
"Right, Jupiter?"
The tall Scout nodded as she readied herself. "Right!"
"MERCURY BUBBLES BLAST!"
In an instant, the battlefield was enshrouded in a thick layer
of fog. His targets suddenly hidden in the mist, Mornay looked about to
find them in confusion. MacLeod was quick to take advantage of this
opportunity. Ignoring the pain from his still-healing ribs, he stepped
just behind the other Immortal and swung his sword as hard as he could,
aiming for Mornay's neck. The blade struck home, but the results was
anything other than what he expected. Instead of cleaving clean through
Mornay's neck, somehow the toughness of his altered form prevented the
blade from penetrating more than a centimeter. Still, he howled in pain
from the blow.
In the same instant that he struck, MacLeod heard "JUPITER
THUNDER... CRASH!" In the next instant, he felt a surge of electricity
throughout his body as the electricity of Jupiter's attack was conducted
right through the katana and into him. The Highlander jerked
spasmodically then fell lifelessly to the ground.
Mornay held a hand to his neck, hissing at the pain of his
various wounds. Given his injuries and the fatigue he was now feeling
from the combat, retreat seemed to be the better part of valor at the
moment. "We'll finish this later, Sailor Moon," he said, vanishing into
a puff of smoke. The fog vanished seconds later, leaving only MacLeod's
still form on the ground.
The Scouts ran up to him, four of them showing expressions of
grave concern. "Is he badly hurt?" Sailor Moon asked anxiously while
Mercury scanned him to determine the extent of his injuries.
"I doubt it," Venus answered. "After all, his head is still
attached to the rest of him."
"What do you mean by that?" a puzzled Sailor Moon asked.
"You see, he's..."
"Dead." Four sets of eyes turned to look at Mercury at this, three
of them with varying degrees of shock in them while Venus looked annoyed
at being interrupted. "I'm not detecting any signs of life within him.
No heartbeat, respiration or even any brainwave activity at all." She
closed her computer slowly. "I'm afraid he's dead."
"I killed him?" Jupiter asked quietly, looking as if she were about
to burst into tears.
"It was an accident, Jupiter," Mars said. "You couldn't know that
he was going to use that sword right then."
"Besides, you didn't kill him," Venus insisted. "Give him a
couple of minutes and he'll be fine."
Mercury knew that Venus could be flighty at times, but this was
pushing it even for her. "Venus, the man is dead. Despite what you
may think, he's not going to start breathing and sit right up."
At that moment, MacLeod gasped for breath and sat up.
Four of the Scouts gasped and jumped backwards several paces.
However, Venus simply displayed a knowing smile. "He does." She reached
out to give MacLeod a hand up. "Welcome back from the dead, Duncan
MacLeod of the clan MacLeod."
"Thanks," he answered. He looked around, but saw no sign of
Mornay anywhere. "Did I miss much?"
"Not really," Venus said. The others were still too busy staring
at MacLeod in open-mouthed shock to say anything. "Just the bad guy
pulling a vanishing act. You didn't tell me you guys could do that."
A note of irritation crept into her last statement.
"That's because we can't," MacLeod answered. He got back to his
feet, flexing his hands as he did so. With the exception of a slight
tingling in his fingers, it seemed that the various injuries he had
received during the battle had healed themselves. "Just like we can't
change into half man, half lizard forms."
"This is impossible!" Mercury had finally managed to gather enough
of her wits to speak. "There were no life signs whatsoever! None!
I'd stake my computer on it!"
"You weren't wrong," MacLeod answered her. "I was dead."
Mercury seemed even more confused now. "But how...?"
"I'd be happy to answer your questions, but I don't think we
should do it here." MacLeod looked around. Nobody had come around yet,
but with all the noise the battle had generated, there were bound to be
onlookers soon enough. If there wasn't one already, he thought. "Do you
have someplace we can talk privately?"
"No problem," Venus answered. "Just follow us."
"You're four hundred years old?" Lita asked. MacLeod wasn't
surprised to hear the skepticism in her voice. He encountered that every
time he told someone about his immortality.
"Just turned four hundred this year," he said casually.
"Wow, that must have been some birthday cake," Serena observed,
prompting an irritated glare from Raye.
From his position in the temple courtyard, MacLeod watched the
squabble Serena's comment had provoked with some amusement, idly
wondering just what he had gotten himself into.
It had been a bit of a struggle getting to this point. With the
exception of Mina, the girls had been understandably reluctant to reveal
their identities to MacLeod. However, Mina pointed out that MacLeod had
known of her identity as Sailor V for several months and hadn't revealed
it to anyone, and he had come to Sailor Moon's aid.
Serena had been the first to agree with Mina, reversing the
transformation process and the others soon followed suit. From there
they went back to the temple, where MacLeod began his explanations of
what Immortals were... And what it was that brought him to Japan.
Luna had been silently listening to all of MacLeod's explanations.
She had already known about Immortals, but it was a good idea to make
sure her memory in this area was still accurate. As a lull in the nearby
commotion developed, she shook her head. "I should have known it the
moment I saw him," Luna muttered before glaring accusingly at Artemis.
"You never told me you had encountered Immortals since we revived."
"Um.... well, you never asked," he replied lamely.
Luna's potential tirade was interrupted by Serena. "Wait a
second, Luna. You mean you two have met Immortals before?"
"Of course, Serena. Immortals have been around for thousands of
years, long before the fall of the Moon Kingdom... perhaps even before
it began. One in particular traveled there on many occasions. I
understand that he and Queen Serenity were good friends."
The Silver Millennium - shortly before Queen Beryl's attack
Luna grumbled as she continued through the palace hallway. "Ask a
simple question of them, get an enigma for an answer. 'Excuse me, do
you know where Methos is?' 'He has always been here.' Vorlons!" She
glanced over at a nearby alcove and, seeing nothing there, continued on
her way.
"Hello, Luna," said a calm voice. Startled, she stopped suddenly;
then looked sharply at the alcove she had just passed. Sure enough, he
was standing in the shadows. "Looking for someone?"
"Don't do that!" she snapped irritably. "You nearly gave me a
heart attack!"
Methos stepped out from concealing shadows of the alcove. "Sorry.
But I am trying to go about unseen."
"I know," she said with a sigh. "It wouldn't do for you to be
found. Not with the order..."
"I know about the order," the Immortal said, interrupting her.
"And I can understand why all Terrans are to be expelled. But, even
though I intend to go back, I had to remain here long enough to say
goodbye."
"I know," Luna said again. "And so does Queen Serenity. She sent
me to find you, Methos."
The Immortal chuckled softly. "You two know me too damned well.
Very well, Luna, lead on."
Luna turned around and led him the Queen's chambers, careful to
avoid the guard patrols. Eventually, they came to the doors and
entered. Serenity was on the balcony, gazing at the full Earth above.
"Your Majesty?" Luna spoke up. Serenity turned at the sound of her
voice. "I found him."
"Thank you, Luna," the Queen answered. "Please, stay," she added
when the cat started to leave. Luna instead sat down by the door.
"I'm glad to see you again, old friend," Serenity said.
"Old is a relative term for me," Methos answered. He looked
worriedly up at the Earth. "Will she attack soon?"
"Very likely," Serenity replied. "And the timing couldn't be
worse. I've had a report from the Outer Scouts that the Shadows have
mounted an attack on the perimeter defenses."
"Somehow I doubt that it's a coincidence," Methos observed.
"I agree. For the sake of morale, we're trying to keep up the
appearance of normality. But with all that's going on, I'm afraid
there'll be much tension at tomorrow's ball."
"Not for everyone," Methos replied obliquely. Serenity looked
sharply at him, but he kept his face as bland as ever.
"What do you mean by that?" Methos only chose to reply by
shrugging. "Methos!"
"I don't tell you *all* my secrets," he said defensively.
She eyed him speculatively. "Sometimes I think you are made of
secrets. For example, I've known you for centuries and I still don't
know how old you really are."
Methos smiled. "Don't you lie about your age sometimes?"
"Maybe. But I have the white hair to belie an obvious lie."
She smiled herself, answering his. "That's one worry you'll never have."
His expression turned more serious. "At least you can have
children."
Her own smiled vanished, and she gently touched his face. "I'm
sorry, old friend. I didn't mean to touch on an old wound."
"It's something I've gotten used to," he replied offhandedly. He
took her hand and held it gently in his own. "I'd better be going.
Your guards are understandably touchy these days... and I believe the
last ship back to Earth is leaving soon."
"Yes. Yes, it is." Serenity look to the doorway. "Luna..?"
The black cat came out of the shadows. "I'll make sure he get
there, You Majesty."
""Thank you , Luna."
Methos walked to the door, then stopped and turned back to her.
"Goodbye Serenity."
"Goodbye, Methos. I hope we will meet again." A sad smile came
to her face. "If not here... then in the place where no shadows fall."
Tokyo, present day.
"Luna? Earth to Luna, come in Luna." Serena waved a hand in
front of the cat's eyes.
Startled back to reality, the cat blinked. "I'm sorry, Serena.
I was just... remembering."
Serena raised one eyebrow. "Anything you'd care to share with
the rest of us?"
"Maybe later," Luna said. "For now, we have other things to
talk about."
"Yeah, like what we're gonna do about this Mornay character," Lita
put in.
"Well, we know he's after the Silver Crystal," Amy observed.
"Maybe we can set a trap for him?"
"Our last one didn't work so well," Raye said. "Face it,
Malachite sets so many traps that he's able to spot one coming a mile
away."
"So what do we do?" Mina asked. "Wait for him to try and come
after Serena again?"
"No, thank you," Serena said. "Having him try and make sushi out
of me once was enough."
"I've never been one to wait for an enemy to attack either,"
MacLeod agreed. "I'd rather get to him first and strike on ground of
my own choosing."
Lita nodded. "I like that. The only problem is finding him. With
that vanishing act he pulled, he could be anywhere."
Amy nodded. "Even the Negaverse."
"I wonder how he pulled that off," MacLeod mused quietly.
"Pulled what off?" Mina asked.
"That disappearing act of his. Mornay, that is. Along with
that transforming trick of his."
"He probably gained that ability when he was infused with
Negapower," Luna replied.
"Possible, but I doubt it," Amy said. "It's more likely that he
gained that ability, plus the others he demonstrated, because he was
infused with a youma. However, unlike the previous cases we've seen,
his personality seems to be dominant over the youma's." She looked at
her computer. "If that's the case, I might be able to locate him by
scanning the city."
Curious, MacLeod glanced over her shoulder at the computer
display. "What have you been scanning? Me?"
Amy reddened slightly. "I.. I was seeing if I can tell what it is
that makes you Immortal."
MacLeod suppressed a small flash of irritation. "Any luck?"
"Not yet," she confessed, "but..."
"Just keep in mind that I'm not a lab specimen, hmm?" After she
nodded, he continued, "OK, back to the problem at hand. Let's assume
Mornay's somewhere in Tokyo," MacLeod said. "After all, he's not going
to give up after one skirmish. We know what he looks like, so if we
split up into teams, we might be able to find him first."
"Finding one guy in a city this big is going to take a miracle,"
Raye noted.
MacLeod shrugged. "I don't know. I was able to find you without
much information to go on. Besides, I can sense when he's nearby."
"You can?" Serena asked.
"Yep. And I believe Luna and Artemis can do something similar."
He looked to the two cats. "Am I right?"
"It's not as automatic as it is for you, but yes, we should be
able sense when he's nearby," Luna replied.
"So we should divide up into three teams. Luna on one, Artemis on
another and you for the third," Amy said.
"Sounds good to me," MacLeod replied. "But you should keep alert.
He can sense when *you* are nearby as well," he indicated the Scouts.
Mina stomped her foot in anger. "So *that's* how you were able to
know when I was sneaking up on you! I thought you just had good
hearing!"
MacLeod smiled. "Surprise."
"You mean you can sense our presence even when we're not
transformed?" Amy asked.
MacLeod nodded. "If you try to keep moving or stick with larger
groups of people, he won't be able to tell who it is he's sensing."
"Like he did with me," Serena noted.
"Which means you're going to have to be extra careful, Serena,"
Luna told her.
"Great. Raye was right. It's gonna take a miracle to find him
before he can find us," Lita noted.
"Serena can use the Disguise Pen when we're out searching," Amy
suggested. "That should keep him guessing."
"That's a good idea, Amy," Luna said. "It might not be a bad
idea for her to disguise herself when she goes home from here."
"That cuts down the odds of him finding us first, but it's still
a longshot," Lita noted.
"Maybe we can cuts the odds further. I might be able to call in
some extra help," MacLeod said.
"Help? Who from?" Mina asked.
"The Watchers."
"Watchers?"
"They're an organization that watches and records the affairs of
Immortals. They've been keeping records on us since modern
civilization began."
"They watch everything you guys do?" Mina asked. After MacLeod
nodded, "Then they saw me transform back in London. They... they know
I was Sailor V."
"And my contact with them worked it out that you were also Sailor
Venus," MacLeod said. "But only he and one other Watcher know about
your secret. They decided to keep that information from the rest of
the Watcher network."
"You trust him?" Raye asked.
"I don't think we have any choice right now. But he is the
reason I found out your enemies were using an Immortal to strike at
you." MacLeod paused to let them think that over. "So are we decided?
We meet here tomorrow morning, say at seven, and then fan out to
search for Mornay."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Seven in the morning?!? On a Saturday?!?"
Mornay stepped out of the bathroom, still toweling himself off.
"I hope you enjoyed the shower," a voice asked him. "Because it may be
the last thing you enjoy for quite a while."
Mornay cast a disparaging glare at the figure on the couch, then
went into the bedroom to get dressed. "What the hell is that supposed
to mean?" he asked.
"It means your performance was less than exemplary," the other
answered but paused.
The next voice revealed the reason for the pause. "What it means
is that you *failed*!" Mornay spun around to see Malachite glaring at
him. The Negaverse General looked decidedly unhappy. "You were supposed
to obtain the Silver Crystal AND kill Sailor Moon by now. But the only
thing you did today was run at the first sign of trouble!"
Mornay felt a surge of fear deep within the core of his being. But
if there was one thing he was not, it was a coward. He stepped forward
and stared evenly at Malachite. "I didn't run at the first sign of
trouble. I fought them all, but I was outnumbered and wounded." He
rubbed the side of his neck; the scar from the wound MacLeod had
inflicted plain to see. "I had no choice but retreat and fight another
day."
"You could have kept on fighting," Malachite retorted.
Mornay threw up his hands in frustration. "I couldn't even see
them! There was that damnable fog!"
"Next time I suggest you make sure Mercury is neutralized before
you battle them again." Both Malachite and Mornay looked to the doorway
as the third member of their alliance, James Horton, entered the room.
Mornay pointed an accusing finger at him. "You never said
anything about MacLeod being there! The only ones you told me about
where those Scouts!"
"His presence was not a certainty," Horton replied.
Malachite saw that Horton was being less than forthright. "But
not entirely unexpected," he observed.
"He does tend to show up where he's not wanted." Horton smiled
sardonically. "The white knight riding to the rescue."
"You should have warned me he might show up, so I'd be ready,"
Mornay reiterated. "If I knew he'd be there, I would have moved faster."
He glared at Malachite. "And you. You said I would be invulnerable with
the power you gave me. But an ordinary blade did this!" He gestured to
the scar on his neck. "I was almost killed!"
"You survived," Malachite noted dryly, almost sorry that fact.
"A katana is far from an ordinary blade. It's among the strongest
and sharpest blades ever made." Horton paused and allowed his words to
sink in. "You took their best shots and came away barely scratched.
If your strategy had been better laid out to begin with, you might
have prevailed."
Mornay took a deep breath and start pacing. "I see what you're
saying. Very well, I'll be ready for them all next time."
"Who says you'll get another chance?" An energy sword
materialized in Malachite's hand, and Mornay's eyes widened in fear.
"Perhaps we should just cut our losses off at your neck and use our
other Immortal in your place."
"Now, now, Malachite," Horton stepped in. "Let's not be hasty.
While Kane may be more adept that Mornay in certain areas," Mornay
snorted in contempt despite his fear, "He isn't exactly sympathetic to
your cause."
"Irrelevant," Malachite snarled. "I've controlled other humans
before. I can control Kane just as easily."
"As I recall, your previous uses of controlled humans have ended
in failure. Can you afford to take the chance this time? Would your
monarch be so understanding about yet another failure?" Horton waited
for an answer but Malachite's silence told him far more than anything
the General could have said. "I thought as much. Now, I do agree with
you that a slight change in our strategy is warranted. MacLeod must be
dealt with first. With him eliminated, Mornay should find his battle
against the Scouts much easier."
"I assume you have some thoughts on this?" Malachite asked.
Horton nodded. "I know MacLeod and how he thinks. The stratagem
I have in mind should be sufficient to through him off balance enough
for our purposes. The only question is, do you have the power and
ability to pull it off?"
"I have power and ability to spare," Malachite told him, his
disdain for Horton evident in his tone. "What do you propose?"
"...don't have to put me up for the night. I can find a hotel
room," MacLeod was saying as he followed Lita into her apartment.
"Without a reservation, you might that's easier said than done on
a Friday night," she told him. MacLeod grimaced at the truth in her
statement. At this point, he'd be lucky if he found a hotel room closer
than Taitoku. "Besides, I sorta owe you for... well, killing you."
MacLeod chuckled. "For the last time, no harm was done."
"You act like you die all the time."
"I've done it a few times before," he understated. Now that he
was inside, he took a look around the apartment. While it was not
luxurious, it was still well furnished and it looked like Lita kept it
meticulously neat. "You've got a nice place here. You sure your parent
won't mind you bringing an older man home?"
"I... live alone," Lita replied in a quiet voice. After
MacLeod's disbelieving look, "My parents were killed in a plane crash."
"Don't you have other family you can live with?"
"A few cousins, but nobody close. And I refuse to do the foster
child route!" For emphasis, she slammed her fist down on the countertop.
"I believe you," MacLeod agreed with her earnestly. He eyed the countertop, but there was no sign of it cracking. Either it was made of
very strong stuff, or Lita hadn't put her full strength into the blow.
"I'm sorry about your parents."
Lita shrugged. "It was a while ago. I've gotten used to not
having them around."
"But the pain never entirely goes away." Now it was Lita's turn
to look in disbelief. "I've been alive for four hundred years, Lita.
I know a little something about loss. Old losses..." A variety of
emotions echoed through his soul as he recalled Tessa's death. "...and
recent ones."
Lita took a good look at MacLeod's face. He was concealing his
feelings well, but she could read the sorrow behind the mask. "You
lost someone special recently." She phrased it so that it wasn't a
question.
He nodded. "A few months ago... and she was very special."
The awkward moment lingered for a bit. Finally Lita shook herself,
"You want something to drink? I could make some tea."
"Sounds good to me. Thanks." Lita smiled and went into the
kitchen. While he waited, MacLeod walked around the living room. As he
passed by the couch, a wave of tiredness washed over him. The day's
exertions must finally be catching up to him, he mused. Perhaps he
just needed to sit down for a minute.
"Do you want anything in your tea?" Lita called out from the
kitchen a few minutes later. When no response was forthcoming, she
stepped back out into the living room. "Duncan?" What she saw brought
her up short. MacLeod was seated on the couch, his head tilted back,
his eyes closed... and he was snoring softly. Lita shook her head and
went back into the kitchen. "I guess the tea is going to have to wait."
Next time: The Scouts go on the prowl looking for Mornay, while MacLeod
finds out what happened to his friend Marcus Kane.
by
Bill Harris
Soton@aol.com
Chapter 2 - Unholy Alliance, Take Two
Sailor Moon's sudden appearance was distracting, but MacLeod tried
to keep on eye on Mornay nevertheless. "Glad to know you're not lumping
me in with him," he muttered, glancing back quickly at Sailor Moon. She
might have been the girl Mornay had been menacing when MacLeod had come
on the scene, but he couldn't prove it by looking at her. Of course, it
had been the same with Mina back in London, so it wasn't surprising. He
turned back to face Mornay, but still directed his next statement to
Sailor Moon. "Just keep out of the way. I'll handle him."
"Are you nuts?" she replied. "I don't know who you are, but this
clown is definitely bad news. If you're one of the good guys, you should
let me help you!" To emphasize her point, she jumped beside MacLeod,
facing Mornay.
MacLeod took her by one arm and tried to drag her behind him,
which proved to be tougher than he thought. "Do me a favor and stay out
of it. This is just something I have to do myself."
Mornay watched with interest as Sailor Moon objected vocally to MacLeod's treatment of her. While there wasn't an opportunity for him
to strike during this altercation, he did have other options. And with
MacLeod's unexpected involvement, he decided it was time to exercise
them.
MacLeod took a deep breath and tried to put a rein in his temper.
This was threatening to get as out of control as his argument with Lita
that morning, which was something he could ill afford at the moment. He
wished he could explain to her about the Rules of the Game; specifically
in this case that all Immortal conflicts were one on one affairs; but
this was definitely not the time nor the place. Not now, when he was toe
to toe with another Immortal. "Look, I'll explain everything later. For
now, just let me do this myself. If you want to watch, fine, but stay
out of it. There's no need for you to get involved."
Sailor Moon failed to be mollified by his words. "As if! I was
involved the mome..." She paused in midsentence and her eyes went wide.
"YIKES!"
Immediately upon her startled yelp, MacLeod spun about, returning
his full attention to Mornay. His jaw dropped, as did his sword, as he
found himself taken aback. "What the hell...?" He had seen many things
in his lifetime, but never in four hundred years had he seen anything
like this. Mornay's form was flowing and shifting, increasing his
height by at least six inches. His skin started taking on a reptilian
tone as well, complete with scales and it gleamed like armor. MacLeod
had the sinking feeling that Mornay's transformation went far more than
skin deep. "Then again, maybe I could use a hand."
"Mina!"
The blonde whirled about immediately upon hearing her name being
called. But she didn't need to see the source to know who it was.
"Artemis! What's wrong?" A smile came to her face. "Is Luna after
your hide again?"
Artemis' face wrinkled in distaste at her timing. "Give me a
break, Mina. This is serious!"
"OK, OK. So what's up?"
"Duncan MacLeod's in town, for one. I bumped into him at the
park."
"Duncan? But what's he..."
"That's not the important thing right now," Artemis interrupted
her hurriedly. "There's some sort of trouble going on in the park, and
we think Serena might be in the middle of it. There could also..."
"What?!?" Mina exclaimed, interrupting him in turn. "Why didn't
you say so?" With a flourish, she produced her transformation wand and
raised it skyward. "VENUS POWER!"
Mornay attacked first, charging headlong at MacLeod. He was able
to evade Mornay's wild swing and tried to return the blow, but Mornay
was far faster than he anticipated. The mutated Immortal easily blocked
his counter, parrying with such force that MacLeod's katana went flying.
The next thing MacLeod knew, Mornay had picked him up bodily and then
threw him with enough force that he slammed hard against a tree, shaking
it violently. A sharp pain in MacLeod's side caused him to gasp and he
knew that at least two of his ribs were broken. He tried to stagger to
his feet, glancing to see where his katana had gone.
Satisfied that MacLeod was out of the way for the moment, Mornay
turned his attention to Sailor Moon. "Now, Sailor Moon, just give me
the Silver Crystal and I'll make this easy for you."
"The Silver Crystal is right here!" she replied, brandishing the
Moon Wand. "But there's no way I'm giving it to you."
"Then I'll take it!"
"I've got a better idea -- we can use it to get rid of those
bad Negaverse influences in you." She lifted the Moon Wand upwards and
began, "MOON HEALING..."
Mornay made a rather prodigious leap and grabbed the Moon Wand
before she could finish. "I don't think so. I *like* being this way!
It gives me power... power enough that I can win the Game and be the
last Immortal. Now give me that crystal!" As he said the last, he
tried to wrest the Moon Wand from Sailor Moon's grasp.
To her credit, Sailor Moon hung on to the wand for all she was
worth. "Forget it!"
Mornay dropped his sword and used his free hand to grab Sailor
Moon by the throat. "Let it go or die!" he snarled.
"Are you sure there isn't some middle ground here?"
Mornay snarled, but before he could reply... "VENUS CRESCENT
BEAM SMASH!"
A brilliant beam of light shot over Sailor Moon's shoulder and
struck Mornay full in the chest. He stumbled backwards, fell to the
ground and lay there unmoving.
Sailor Venus ran up to Sailor Moon. "Are you OK, Sailor Moon?"
"Yep," she answered. "Thanks for the save, Venus."
Venus just smiled in answer and flashed her the "V for Victory"
sign. Then, satisfied that Sailor Moon was in good shape, she glanced
over at MacLeod. "You OK, Duncan?"
MacLeod was still shaky, but he had managed to stagger over to
where his sword had landed. "I'll live, but... BEHIND YOU!"
Reacting to MacLeod's warning purely on instinct, Sailor Moon and
Sailor Venus both dodged left, managing to avoid Mornay's charge.
Instead of striking either of the Scouts, his blade hit a tree instead
and clove right through the foot thick trunk.
"Great, he must be an Immortal too," Venus said as they watched the
tree crash to the ground.
"Immortal?" asked a very confused Sailor Moon.
"More than an Immortal," Mornay sneered. With a flamboyant
gesture, he swept his free hand in their direction. Two dark energy
globes leapt from his hand and struck them both, effectively restraining
them. "As I've just demonstrated."
MacLeod grabbed his sword and moved as best he could towards
Mornay, even as the other Immortal stalked over to the two Scouts. He
wouldn't be able to do much in his current condition, but he only knew
he had to try.
"Time to end this," Mornay said, standing by Sailor Moon. He
raised his sword high, ready to strike the final blow...
"MARS FIRE IGNITE!"
...and was struck full in the face by a ball of flame. Stunned,
Mornay staggered backwards from the blast.
Sailor Moon looked up and was elated. Sailor Mars had arrived,
Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Mercury flanking her. "You're here!" Then
she added in mock annoyance, "It's about time, too!"
"Look who's talking about other people being late," Mars retorted.
"Later, you two," Mercury said. "Right now we've got other
worries."
"You can say that again," Mornay sneered. Though scorched in
the face, he seemed otherwise unfazed. He gathered himself to charge at
the Scouts.
"Quick, use the Moon Wand, Sailor Moon!" Mars said.
"I'd like to do that, Mars, but I'm a little tied up at the
moment."
"Not for long," Mars noted. A spirit ward appeared in her hand.
"I'll have you both out of those in a jiffy."
"And we'll keep him occupied until you do," Mercury said.
"Right, Jupiter?"
The tall Scout nodded as she readied herself. "Right!"
"MERCURY BUBBLES BLAST!"
In an instant, the battlefield was enshrouded in a thick layer
of fog. His targets suddenly hidden in the mist, Mornay looked about to
find them in confusion. MacLeod was quick to take advantage of this
opportunity. Ignoring the pain from his still-healing ribs, he stepped
just behind the other Immortal and swung his sword as hard as he could,
aiming for Mornay's neck. The blade struck home, but the results was
anything other than what he expected. Instead of cleaving clean through
Mornay's neck, somehow the toughness of his altered form prevented the
blade from penetrating more than a centimeter. Still, he howled in pain
from the blow.
In the same instant that he struck, MacLeod heard "JUPITER
THUNDER... CRASH!" In the next instant, he felt a surge of electricity
throughout his body as the electricity of Jupiter's attack was conducted
right through the katana and into him. The Highlander jerked
spasmodically then fell lifelessly to the ground.
Mornay held a hand to his neck, hissing at the pain of his
various wounds. Given his injuries and the fatigue he was now feeling
from the combat, retreat seemed to be the better part of valor at the
moment. "We'll finish this later, Sailor Moon," he said, vanishing into
a puff of smoke. The fog vanished seconds later, leaving only MacLeod's
still form on the ground.
The Scouts ran up to him, four of them showing expressions of
grave concern. "Is he badly hurt?" Sailor Moon asked anxiously while
Mercury scanned him to determine the extent of his injuries.
"I doubt it," Venus answered. "After all, his head is still
attached to the rest of him."
"What do you mean by that?" a puzzled Sailor Moon asked.
"You see, he's..."
"Dead." Four sets of eyes turned to look at Mercury at this, three
of them with varying degrees of shock in them while Venus looked annoyed
at being interrupted. "I'm not detecting any signs of life within him.
No heartbeat, respiration or even any brainwave activity at all." She
closed her computer slowly. "I'm afraid he's dead."
"I killed him?" Jupiter asked quietly, looking as if she were about
to burst into tears.
"It was an accident, Jupiter," Mars said. "You couldn't know that
he was going to use that sword right then."
"Besides, you didn't kill him," Venus insisted. "Give him a
couple of minutes and he'll be fine."
Mercury knew that Venus could be flighty at times, but this was
pushing it even for her. "Venus, the man is dead. Despite what you
may think, he's not going to start breathing and sit right up."
At that moment, MacLeod gasped for breath and sat up.
Four of the Scouts gasped and jumped backwards several paces.
However, Venus simply displayed a knowing smile. "He does." She reached
out to give MacLeod a hand up. "Welcome back from the dead, Duncan
MacLeod of the clan MacLeod."
"Thanks," he answered. He looked around, but saw no sign of
Mornay anywhere. "Did I miss much?"
"Not really," Venus said. The others were still too busy staring
at MacLeod in open-mouthed shock to say anything. "Just the bad guy
pulling a vanishing act. You didn't tell me you guys could do that."
A note of irritation crept into her last statement.
"That's because we can't," MacLeod answered. He got back to his
feet, flexing his hands as he did so. With the exception of a slight
tingling in his fingers, it seemed that the various injuries he had
received during the battle had healed themselves. "Just like we can't
change into half man, half lizard forms."
"This is impossible!" Mercury had finally managed to gather enough
of her wits to speak. "There were no life signs whatsoever! None!
I'd stake my computer on it!"
"You weren't wrong," MacLeod answered her. "I was dead."
Mercury seemed even more confused now. "But how...?"
"I'd be happy to answer your questions, but I don't think we
should do it here." MacLeod looked around. Nobody had come around yet,
but with all the noise the battle had generated, there were bound to be
onlookers soon enough. If there wasn't one already, he thought. "Do you
have someplace we can talk privately?"
"No problem," Venus answered. "Just follow us."
"You're four hundred years old?" Lita asked. MacLeod wasn't
surprised to hear the skepticism in her voice. He encountered that every
time he told someone about his immortality.
"Just turned four hundred this year," he said casually.
"Wow, that must have been some birthday cake," Serena observed,
prompting an irritated glare from Raye.
From his position in the temple courtyard, MacLeod watched the
squabble Serena's comment had provoked with some amusement, idly
wondering just what he had gotten himself into.
It had been a bit of a struggle getting to this point. With the
exception of Mina, the girls had been understandably reluctant to reveal
their identities to MacLeod. However, Mina pointed out that MacLeod had
known of her identity as Sailor V for several months and hadn't revealed
it to anyone, and he had come to Sailor Moon's aid.
Serena had been the first to agree with Mina, reversing the
transformation process and the others soon followed suit. From there
they went back to the temple, where MacLeod began his explanations of
what Immortals were... And what it was that brought him to Japan.
Luna had been silently listening to all of MacLeod's explanations.
She had already known about Immortals, but it was a good idea to make
sure her memory in this area was still accurate. As a lull in the nearby
commotion developed, she shook her head. "I should have known it the
moment I saw him," Luna muttered before glaring accusingly at Artemis.
"You never told me you had encountered Immortals since we revived."
"Um.... well, you never asked," he replied lamely.
Luna's potential tirade was interrupted by Serena. "Wait a
second, Luna. You mean you two have met Immortals before?"
"Of course, Serena. Immortals have been around for thousands of
years, long before the fall of the Moon Kingdom... perhaps even before
it began. One in particular traveled there on many occasions. I
understand that he and Queen Serenity were good friends."
The Silver Millennium - shortly before Queen Beryl's attack
Luna grumbled as she continued through the palace hallway. "Ask a
simple question of them, get an enigma for an answer. 'Excuse me, do
you know where Methos is?' 'He has always been here.' Vorlons!" She
glanced over at a nearby alcove and, seeing nothing there, continued on
her way.
"Hello, Luna," said a calm voice. Startled, she stopped suddenly;
then looked sharply at the alcove she had just passed. Sure enough, he
was standing in the shadows. "Looking for someone?"
"Don't do that!" she snapped irritably. "You nearly gave me a
heart attack!"
Methos stepped out from concealing shadows of the alcove. "Sorry.
But I am trying to go about unseen."
"I know," she said with a sigh. "It wouldn't do for you to be
found. Not with the order..."
"I know about the order," the Immortal said, interrupting her.
"And I can understand why all Terrans are to be expelled. But, even
though I intend to go back, I had to remain here long enough to say
goodbye."
"I know," Luna said again. "And so does Queen Serenity. She sent
me to find you, Methos."
The Immortal chuckled softly. "You two know me too damned well.
Very well, Luna, lead on."
Luna turned around and led him the Queen's chambers, careful to
avoid the guard patrols. Eventually, they came to the doors and
entered. Serenity was on the balcony, gazing at the full Earth above.
"Your Majesty?" Luna spoke up. Serenity turned at the sound of her
voice. "I found him."
"Thank you, Luna," the Queen answered. "Please, stay," she added
when the cat started to leave. Luna instead sat down by the door.
"I'm glad to see you again, old friend," Serenity said.
"Old is a relative term for me," Methos answered. He looked
worriedly up at the Earth. "Will she attack soon?"
"Very likely," Serenity replied. "And the timing couldn't be
worse. I've had a report from the Outer Scouts that the Shadows have
mounted an attack on the perimeter defenses."
"Somehow I doubt that it's a coincidence," Methos observed.
"I agree. For the sake of morale, we're trying to keep up the
appearance of normality. But with all that's going on, I'm afraid
there'll be much tension at tomorrow's ball."
"Not for everyone," Methos replied obliquely. Serenity looked
sharply at him, but he kept his face as bland as ever.
"What do you mean by that?" Methos only chose to reply by
shrugging. "Methos!"
"I don't tell you *all* my secrets," he said defensively.
She eyed him speculatively. "Sometimes I think you are made of
secrets. For example, I've known you for centuries and I still don't
know how old you really are."
Methos smiled. "Don't you lie about your age sometimes?"
"Maybe. But I have the white hair to belie an obvious lie."
She smiled herself, answering his. "That's one worry you'll never have."
His expression turned more serious. "At least you can have
children."
Her own smiled vanished, and she gently touched his face. "I'm
sorry, old friend. I didn't mean to touch on an old wound."
"It's something I've gotten used to," he replied offhandedly. He
took her hand and held it gently in his own. "I'd better be going.
Your guards are understandably touchy these days... and I believe the
last ship back to Earth is leaving soon."
"Yes. Yes, it is." Serenity look to the doorway. "Luna..?"
The black cat came out of the shadows. "I'll make sure he get
there, You Majesty."
""Thank you , Luna."
Methos walked to the door, then stopped and turned back to her.
"Goodbye Serenity."
"Goodbye, Methos. I hope we will meet again." A sad smile came
to her face. "If not here... then in the place where no shadows fall."
Tokyo, present day.
"Luna? Earth to Luna, come in Luna." Serena waved a hand in
front of the cat's eyes.
Startled back to reality, the cat blinked. "I'm sorry, Serena.
I was just... remembering."
Serena raised one eyebrow. "Anything you'd care to share with
the rest of us?"
"Maybe later," Luna said. "For now, we have other things to
talk about."
"Yeah, like what we're gonna do about this Mornay character," Lita
put in.
"Well, we know he's after the Silver Crystal," Amy observed.
"Maybe we can set a trap for him?"
"Our last one didn't work so well," Raye said. "Face it,
Malachite sets so many traps that he's able to spot one coming a mile
away."
"So what do we do?" Mina asked. "Wait for him to try and come
after Serena again?"
"No, thank you," Serena said. "Having him try and make sushi out
of me once was enough."
"I've never been one to wait for an enemy to attack either,"
MacLeod agreed. "I'd rather get to him first and strike on ground of
my own choosing."
Lita nodded. "I like that. The only problem is finding him. With
that vanishing act he pulled, he could be anywhere."
Amy nodded. "Even the Negaverse."
"I wonder how he pulled that off," MacLeod mused quietly.
"Pulled what off?" Mina asked.
"That disappearing act of his. Mornay, that is. Along with
that transforming trick of his."
"He probably gained that ability when he was infused with
Negapower," Luna replied.
"Possible, but I doubt it," Amy said. "It's more likely that he
gained that ability, plus the others he demonstrated, because he was
infused with a youma. However, unlike the previous cases we've seen,
his personality seems to be dominant over the youma's." She looked at
her computer. "If that's the case, I might be able to locate him by
scanning the city."
Curious, MacLeod glanced over her shoulder at the computer
display. "What have you been scanning? Me?"
Amy reddened slightly. "I.. I was seeing if I can tell what it is
that makes you Immortal."
MacLeod suppressed a small flash of irritation. "Any luck?"
"Not yet," she confessed, "but..."
"Just keep in mind that I'm not a lab specimen, hmm?" After she
nodded, he continued, "OK, back to the problem at hand. Let's assume
Mornay's somewhere in Tokyo," MacLeod said. "After all, he's not going
to give up after one skirmish. We know what he looks like, so if we
split up into teams, we might be able to find him first."
"Finding one guy in a city this big is going to take a miracle,"
Raye noted.
MacLeod shrugged. "I don't know. I was able to find you without
much information to go on. Besides, I can sense when he's nearby."
"You can?" Serena asked.
"Yep. And I believe Luna and Artemis can do something similar."
He looked to the two cats. "Am I right?"
"It's not as automatic as it is for you, but yes, we should be
able sense when he's nearby," Luna replied.
"So we should divide up into three teams. Luna on one, Artemis on
another and you for the third," Amy said.
"Sounds good to me," MacLeod replied. "But you should keep alert.
He can sense when *you* are nearby as well," he indicated the Scouts.
Mina stomped her foot in anger. "So *that's* how you were able to
know when I was sneaking up on you! I thought you just had good
hearing!"
MacLeod smiled. "Surprise."
"You mean you can sense our presence even when we're not
transformed?" Amy asked.
MacLeod nodded. "If you try to keep moving or stick with larger
groups of people, he won't be able to tell who it is he's sensing."
"Like he did with me," Serena noted.
"Which means you're going to have to be extra careful, Serena,"
Luna told her.
"Great. Raye was right. It's gonna take a miracle to find him
before he can find us," Lita noted.
"Serena can use the Disguise Pen when we're out searching," Amy
suggested. "That should keep him guessing."
"That's a good idea, Amy," Luna said. "It might not be a bad
idea for her to disguise herself when she goes home from here."
"That cuts down the odds of him finding us first, but it's still
a longshot," Lita noted.
"Maybe we can cuts the odds further. I might be able to call in
some extra help," MacLeod said.
"Help? Who from?" Mina asked.
"The Watchers."
"Watchers?"
"They're an organization that watches and records the affairs of
Immortals. They've been keeping records on us since modern
civilization began."
"They watch everything you guys do?" Mina asked. After MacLeod
nodded, "Then they saw me transform back in London. They... they know
I was Sailor V."
"And my contact with them worked it out that you were also Sailor
Venus," MacLeod said. "But only he and one other Watcher know about
your secret. They decided to keep that information from the rest of
the Watcher network."
"You trust him?" Raye asked.
"I don't think we have any choice right now. But he is the
reason I found out your enemies were using an Immortal to strike at
you." MacLeod paused to let them think that over. "So are we decided?
We meet here tomorrow morning, say at seven, and then fan out to
search for Mornay."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Sure."
"Seven in the morning?!? On a Saturday?!?"
Mornay stepped out of the bathroom, still toweling himself off.
"I hope you enjoyed the shower," a voice asked him. "Because it may be
the last thing you enjoy for quite a while."
Mornay cast a disparaging glare at the figure on the couch, then
went into the bedroom to get dressed. "What the hell is that supposed
to mean?" he asked.
"It means your performance was less than exemplary," the other
answered but paused.
The next voice revealed the reason for the pause. "What it means
is that you *failed*!" Mornay spun around to see Malachite glaring at
him. The Negaverse General looked decidedly unhappy. "You were supposed
to obtain the Silver Crystal AND kill Sailor Moon by now. But the only
thing you did today was run at the first sign of trouble!"
Mornay felt a surge of fear deep within the core of his being. But
if there was one thing he was not, it was a coward. He stepped forward
and stared evenly at Malachite. "I didn't run at the first sign of
trouble. I fought them all, but I was outnumbered and wounded." He
rubbed the side of his neck; the scar from the wound MacLeod had
inflicted plain to see. "I had no choice but retreat and fight another
day."
"You could have kept on fighting," Malachite retorted.
Mornay threw up his hands in frustration. "I couldn't even see
them! There was that damnable fog!"
"Next time I suggest you make sure Mercury is neutralized before
you battle them again." Both Malachite and Mornay looked to the doorway
as the third member of their alliance, James Horton, entered the room.
Mornay pointed an accusing finger at him. "You never said
anything about MacLeod being there! The only ones you told me about
where those Scouts!"
"His presence was not a certainty," Horton replied.
Malachite saw that Horton was being less than forthright. "But
not entirely unexpected," he observed.
"He does tend to show up where he's not wanted." Horton smiled
sardonically. "The white knight riding to the rescue."
"You should have warned me he might show up, so I'd be ready,"
Mornay reiterated. "If I knew he'd be there, I would have moved faster."
He glared at Malachite. "And you. You said I would be invulnerable with
the power you gave me. But an ordinary blade did this!" He gestured to
the scar on his neck. "I was almost killed!"
"You survived," Malachite noted dryly, almost sorry that fact.
"A katana is far from an ordinary blade. It's among the strongest
and sharpest blades ever made." Horton paused and allowed his words to
sink in. "You took their best shots and came away barely scratched.
If your strategy had been better laid out to begin with, you might
have prevailed."
Mornay took a deep breath and start pacing. "I see what you're
saying. Very well, I'll be ready for them all next time."
"Who says you'll get another chance?" An energy sword
materialized in Malachite's hand, and Mornay's eyes widened in fear.
"Perhaps we should just cut our losses off at your neck and use our
other Immortal in your place."
"Now, now, Malachite," Horton stepped in. "Let's not be hasty.
While Kane may be more adept that Mornay in certain areas," Mornay
snorted in contempt despite his fear, "He isn't exactly sympathetic to
your cause."
"Irrelevant," Malachite snarled. "I've controlled other humans
before. I can control Kane just as easily."
"As I recall, your previous uses of controlled humans have ended
in failure. Can you afford to take the chance this time? Would your
monarch be so understanding about yet another failure?" Horton waited
for an answer but Malachite's silence told him far more than anything
the General could have said. "I thought as much. Now, I do agree with
you that a slight change in our strategy is warranted. MacLeod must be
dealt with first. With him eliminated, Mornay should find his battle
against the Scouts much easier."
"I assume you have some thoughts on this?" Malachite asked.
Horton nodded. "I know MacLeod and how he thinks. The stratagem
I have in mind should be sufficient to through him off balance enough
for our purposes. The only question is, do you have the power and
ability to pull it off?"
"I have power and ability to spare," Malachite told him, his
disdain for Horton evident in his tone. "What do you propose?"
"...don't have to put me up for the night. I can find a hotel
room," MacLeod was saying as he followed Lita into her apartment.
"Without a reservation, you might that's easier said than done on
a Friday night," she told him. MacLeod grimaced at the truth in her
statement. At this point, he'd be lucky if he found a hotel room closer
than Taitoku. "Besides, I sorta owe you for... well, killing you."
MacLeod chuckled. "For the last time, no harm was done."
"You act like you die all the time."
"I've done it a few times before," he understated. Now that he
was inside, he took a look around the apartment. While it was not
luxurious, it was still well furnished and it looked like Lita kept it
meticulously neat. "You've got a nice place here. You sure your parent
won't mind you bringing an older man home?"
"I... live alone," Lita replied in a quiet voice. After
MacLeod's disbelieving look, "My parents were killed in a plane crash."
"Don't you have other family you can live with?"
"A few cousins, but nobody close. And I refuse to do the foster
child route!" For emphasis, she slammed her fist down on the countertop.
"I believe you," MacLeod agreed with her earnestly. He eyed the countertop, but there was no sign of it cracking. Either it was made of
very strong stuff, or Lita hadn't put her full strength into the blow.
"I'm sorry about your parents."
Lita shrugged. "It was a while ago. I've gotten used to not
having them around."
"But the pain never entirely goes away." Now it was Lita's turn
to look in disbelief. "I've been alive for four hundred years, Lita.
I know a little something about loss. Old losses..." A variety of
emotions echoed through his soul as he recalled Tessa's death. "...and
recent ones."
Lita took a good look at MacLeod's face. He was concealing his
feelings well, but she could read the sorrow behind the mask. "You
lost someone special recently." She phrased it so that it wasn't a
question.
He nodded. "A few months ago... and she was very special."
The awkward moment lingered for a bit. Finally Lita shook herself,
"You want something to drink? I could make some tea."
"Sounds good to me. Thanks." Lita smiled and went into the
kitchen. While he waited, MacLeod walked around the living room. As he
passed by the couch, a wave of tiredness washed over him. The day's
exertions must finally be catching up to him, he mused. Perhaps he
just needed to sit down for a minute.
"Do you want anything in your tea?" Lita called out from the
kitchen a few minutes later. When no response was forthcoming, she
stepped back out into the living room. "Duncan?" What she saw brought
her up short. MacLeod was seated on the couch, his head tilted back,
his eyes closed... and he was snoring softly. Lita shook her head and
went back into the kitchen. "I guess the tea is going to have to wait."
Next time: The Scouts go on the prowl looking for Mornay, while MacLeod
finds out what happened to his friend Marcus Kane.