Chapter 3 -- Class Reunion

Mel came to with a groan.

"Mel?" Cole's anxious voice asked.

"Cole?" Mel asked, only faintly aware of her surroundings. Her stomach and chest hurt, her arms were behind her back, and her wrists were bound, tightly and painfully. "What happened?" She opened her eyes, but the light hurt her head, so she closed them quickly, groaning.

"Are you hurt?" Cole asked anxiously.

"No..." Mel shook her head and tried to open her eyes again. The pain was not as bad this time, but she found herself wishing that she had not opened them. They were in a large, empty warehouse, bound standing to metal support-beams. Cole stood more or less opposite her, his face bleak. Lontoria was nearby, still looking dazed, as if she was not entirely aware of her surroundings. "Is she okay?"

"I don't know..." Cole admitted with a sigh. "They used liquid nitrogen pellets against us. I think they must have affected her more strongly."

He suppressed his own confusion at the fact for the time being. Since she was no longer possessed of a fully Cirronian life-force, it was odd that they had affected her at all. Of course, getting shot in the chest with liquid nitrogen, no matter how small the amount, could easily have been fatal to a human. Perhaps there was just enough Cirronian in her to protect her from that fate without allowing her to recover as quickly as another Cirronian would have.

Mel sighed and nodded. "Um, can you use your powers to get us out of here?"

He shook his head, frustrated. "I think the warehouse is built on loadstone. My powers are useless here."

She sighed and shook her head. "Right, loadstone. Cirronian Kryptonite."

A low chuckle from the other end of the warehouse caught their attention. "That's very good, Miss Porter. Very funny."

"Zin..." Mel replied in a low, angry voice, shaking her head.

"You sound surprised, my dear." He smiled at Mel and moved closer to her, eyeing her thoughtfully. "Hmm..." he murmured, looking her over.

Cole frowned, not liking the close scrutiny that Zin was paying Mel. It made him nervous for no good reason that he could identify. "Leave her alone, Zin."

Zin turned, now regarding Cole thoughtfully. "Why? What is she to you? Not your mate, I see, in spite of what I thought." He looked at the Cirronian, genuinely curious. "What is she to you, Daggon?"

"She's my friend. You remember that, don't you, Zin? Friendship?"

Zin smiled and shook his head, clearly amused. "Thought you might have learned your lesson on that, old friend. Even when your friends stay true..." He pointed to Lontoria. "They still get you into trouble." He chuckled softly, shaking his head.

"Let them go, Zin. You have no use for them, so just let them go." Cole's voice took on a pleading edge.

"Ah, but you're wrong, Daggon. I do, in fact, have plans for Lontoria." He beamed at the Cirronian woman who was finally beginning to come around. "Great plans..." he purred, savoring the words and the ideas behind them. With Lontoria by his side anything was possible.

Cole shook his head. "She'll never cooperate."

Zin smiled broadly at Cole. "Oh, but she will."

Mel found herself wanting nothing more than to get loose and wipe that smug grin from his face. He was the bad guy. He had no right to be so... charming. If her first meeting with him had not involved her own murder, she would have taken one look at him and summed him up as a great guy. She would have been hard-pressed to accept him as the evil jerk she knew him to be.

"I won't..." Lontoria managed. She was still feeling weak, but she was strong enough to refute Zin's assertion. "I didn't last time, I won't this time."

Zin walked over to her, standing less than six inches from her face. "We'll see. You might when you find out what I'm willing to offer in return."

"Last time you offered me the world and I said no..." Lontoria pointed out. "Find something worth more?"

"Actually, yes." Zin smiled and nodded. "Thanks in no small part to Daggon here."

Lontoria frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I know what you gave up to save his life, Lontoria." Zin nodded knowingly. "I can give you your powers back."

"Only time can do that..." Lontoria muttered, shaking her head. She felt her determination wavering and shook her head firmly. Not only was it impossible, it was a deal with the devil. "No." She shook her head again. "No."

Zin reached out to touch her cheek, but she jerked her head away. He shrugged and shook his head. "The offer stands, my dear. I'll arrange a demonstration later, if you'd like. Proof that I can give you what I offer."

Mel watched nervously, wondering how far Lontoria might be willing to go to regain the powers that she had sacrificed to save Cole's life. Life for a Cirronian who had once been a respected scientist, stuck in the body of a teenager, without even her old powers as an offset, must have been hellish. Cole watched, too, curious about Zin's claim, but not at all worried that Lontoria might accept. She had always been ambitious and was occasionally selfish, it was true, but she would never stoop to dealing with Zin in something like this. Especially not under coercion.

Zin turned his back on Lontoria and started towards Cole again, addressing Lontoria as he walked. "Think about it. You aren't the only Cirronian in my employ, you know, and the other wouldn't hesitate to do what I ask of you."

"Yet you haven't asked him to, yet..." Lontoria pointed out, shaking her head. An ironic smile stole across her face. "Because you can't. He doesn't have what I have, the beauty and innocent quality that this body gives me, the miraculous recovery from cancer, the spotless background. You need me, Zin, or I wouldn't be here and we both know it."

Zin paused and turned to stare at her, smiling again. "You always did think like a Vardian..." he told her with obvious approval. "Can't see why your own government didn't see it until it was too late." He shook his head and shrugged. "Where were we, Daggon? You were asking me to let the human go, right?"

Cole nodded tersely. "Please, Zin..." he said softly. "You have no use for her. She's never done you any harm... Her only crime is caring for me."

Zin nodded, conceding each point. "True enough, but she might be valuable in securing your good behavior." He smiled and shrugged. "I have plans for you as well..." He glanced at Mel again. "Of course, those plans just might include her. Hard to say just yet."

Mel blinked, startled and confused. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Zin walked over to her, his smile taking on a whimsical look. "All will be revealed in the fullness of time, my dear. Patience."

Mel struggled against her bindings, lunging at Zin.

"And a fighter." He nodded approvingly at Cole. "I always did admire your taste in women." He indicated Mel and then Lontoria, smiling widely. He walked over to Cole again. "Rather like a class reunion, isn't it? Lontoria and I are the only two people you used to call friend. And you and Lontoria are the only two people who ever really understood me." He sighed. "Well, Lontoria understood me... Sorry it had to be this way, you know."

Cole nodded impassively. "I... I know you are, Zin." He sighed, wishing that he could have understood his old friend half as well before, when it would have made a difference. Instead, he had allowed Zin to play on all of his weaknesses. Zin had used Rhee to test the wormhole knowing that Cole would feel compelled to follow the man who had killed his family, which would give the others a chance to escape as well. He had even offered Cole the chance to leave once he had recaptured Rhee, going so far as to secure Mel as a hostage and offering her life in return for Cole's departure. When he had refused to go, Zin had made good on his threat to kill Mel, but, having spent as much time with Cirronians as he had, Zin had to have known that Cole would be able to reverse the drain. "I understand..."

"Do you?" Zin regarded him, no mirth in his expression, only curiosity.

Cole stared at the floor as he spoke. "You gave me a chance to leave after I had Rhee, and an incentive. You killed Mel in such a way that you knew I would be able to bring her back. You were buying time. Then you fled. All to avoid confronting me." He looked up at Zin. "You didn't want to kill me..."

Zin nodded shortly. "A moment of weakness which has cost me dearly."

"Let Mel and Lontoria go, Zin. Please."

He shook his head. "You turned down the last favor I offered you. That moment was the last of our friendship. I owe you nothing."

"And, of course, any chance of you displaying anything resembling decency is out..." Mel spat.

Zin regarded her thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded matter-of-factly. "Ask him to explain Vardian nature to you some time. We're not exactly known for being trustworthy or compassionate."

"For a long time, though, you were different..." Cole told him gently.

Zin turned, startled. He frowned and shook his head. "I was young and foolish then."

"You were an idealist, Zin, but never a fool. Not until much later." Cole looked into his old friend's eyes and was sure he saw shame there. "It's not too late, Zin."

Zin blinked, startled that he had actually allowed regret to begin to creep into his mind. "Yes, Daggon, it is too late. For all of us." He shook his head and turned his back on his old friend.

"Let Mel and Lontoria go, Zin..." Cole repeated. "You take whatever reprisals you think need to be taken, but you take them on me. Let them go. Please..." He shook his head, his eyes shining with unshed tears at the thought of being the cause of death of the only two women he had cared about since the death of his wife. "This is between us. They're innocent."

"She may be." Zin jerked his head at Mel. "But Lontoria is as guilty as I am, just another rogue scientist turned traitor."

He turned and smiled at the brilliant scientist who had, in a moment of anger over the withdraw of her funding and suppression of her research, turned around and sold that research to the Vardian government. Every government in the Migar alliance had agreed that it was dangerous technology, too readily convertible into military technology. Lontoria had insisted that her discovery could only be used in the development of a new propulsion system, had ignored the combined voices of the Council and the scientific community. When the Vardians had shown an interest, she had jumped at the chance to prove herself while retaliating against her own people.

"She was young and foolish." Cole sighed and shook his head. "Your people misled her."

"We misled her?" Zin scoffed, shaking his head and turning to face Cole again. "Daggon, Daggon, Daggon. No..." he laughed softly. "She misled herself."

"He's right, Daggon..." Lontoria said softly, shaking her head. "I knew what the Vardians were capable of, just as well as any of us. I deluded myself because I was angry." She sighed, feeling horribly empty and alone.

Zin nodded in agreement. "See, Daggon? She knew exactly what she was doing. I was frankly surprised that you had spared her, but, then, you always did have a soft spot in your heart for beautiful females." After a brief pause, he added mildly, "Of any species, it would seem."

Mel was getting sick of Zin's ramblings. "So let me get this straight, Zin. Your diabolical plan this time is to... talk us to death?"

Zin chuckled and nodded approvingly. "I really like this one, Daggon." He looked at Cole, momentarily thoughtful. "And she makes you happy. Damn shame neither of you is walking out of this."

"Zin, let her go..." Cole pled quietly. "Let them both go. Now that you have me, you don't need them. Not Lontoria, definitely not Mel."

"Cole, reasoning with this madman is not going to work!" Mel told him, shaking her head in disbelief.

Zin glanced at her. "You wound me..." he said in a flat, emotionless voice.

"Oh, I'd like to wound you..." Mel snarled.

"Mel, this isn't helping..." Cole said gently.

"Neither is you trying to reason with him!"

"Zin, let the human go..." Lontoria said softly. "Whatever you want from the two of us, she is not a part of that."

Cole spared her a grateful glance. "Let Mel go, Zin. Her only crime is caring about me."

"You could be right, Lontoria..." Zin said, ignoring Cole. "You I can use. Her?" He shook his head. "Not someone I can easily control. Still... As I said, to insure Daggon's good behavior, she may have some worth to me." He walked over to Mel, leaning close. "How do you think he'd react if I cut your throat right now?" he breathed in her ear.

Mel jerked her head away, glaring. "I am not afraid of you!"

Zin shrugged. "You should be."

"I can't believe I ever considered you intimidating!" Mel snapped, shaking her head furiously. "Why the hell are all the fugitives so scared of you?"

Zin leaned close again. "Do you remember when I sucked the life-force out of your chest?" his voice was chilling as he recalled the memory with obvious pleasure. "Do you remember the pain? Do you remember struggling to hold on to yourself, or even to hold on to the pain as it was gradually, moment by moment, replaced by oblivion? By the knowledge that you were dying?"

Mel could not suppress the shudder that tore through her frame at the memory. She looked up and saw tears in Cole's eyes.

"That might be why you considered me intimidating, hmm?" Zin asked gently, patting her cheek in an almost fatherly gesture. He lowered his voice until only Mel could hear him. "Miss Porter, I am not a nice man. I am a ruthless, evil man who does not hesitate to take what I want, how I want it. You are only alive today because I needed time to escape. Nothing resembling mercy has ever stayed my hand. Yes, I can be very pleasant company when I so desire, but I am not a nice person. Do we understand each other?"

Mel nodded, not looking him in the eyes. His voice as he had casually admitted that he was an evil bastard had left her feeling weak in the knees and more than a little scared for Cole's safety.

"Good." Zin nodded, his smile returning. "I'm glad."

"Did you really consider him your friend once?" she muttered, looking at the Vardian.

Zin nodded shortly. "Yes."

"Then how could you betray him like that?" Mel shook her head, confused. Zin was a cold, ruthless killer. He was also the kind of man that Cole had been able to grow attached to. Could he really be both? A good friend and an evil bastard?

"Simple. He never would have allowed the escape to occur if he had been at Sar-Top." Zin shrugged. "I suppose I should have known better than to expect him to return once he had Rhee, but I did try."

Mel frowned. "You evil, unprincipled son of a bitch. He was your friend!"

"Yes. On both counts." Zin shrugged again. "He understands, though. Don't you, Daggon?"

"Yes." Cole nodded sadly. "I understand."

"In fact, I'm willing to bet that he even feels sorry for me..." Zin continued.

"Yes." Cole nodded again. "You never did see the Light."

Zin's smile faded. "And you were blinded by it..." he spat. "Years of planning went into the escape! I planned it right under your nose, and you only saw what you wanted to!" he half-shouted.

Cole nodded, his sorrow giving way to shame. "Yes." He did not bother trying to control the tears this time. Angry and ashamed, he admitted, "I should have known better."

Zin nodded, frowning and turning away, unwilling to see the Cirronian cry. "I warned you more than once. Never trust a Vardian! If you had listened..." he trailed off, shaking his head. "You brought all of this on yourself, Daggon."

Cole bowed his head. "I know, Zin. I do."

The Vardian glared at him for a moment, then swept wordlessly from the warehouse.

Mel stared at Cole, amazed. She had never realized before that he actually blamed himself for the escape, although, looking back, he had done many things to indicate that this might be the case. Mel had simply never made the connection.

"Cole, the escape was not your fault..." she told him, gently but firmly, guilty for not having known that he felt that way before.

He looked up at her, shame clearly written in his eyes. He shook his head. "It was, Mel, in so many ways. It happened on my watch. The first to escape was a prisoner under my direct supervision. If I had sent another Tracker instead of following myself... that was a breach of protocol, Mel. Stupid, a mistake. Not the only one, either. Believing Zin, going through the wormhole myself... The escape should never have happened, Mel. I allowed it."

He dropped his eyes and stared at the ground, unwilling to look at her. She had been so angry in the past over the actions of the fugitives and he was sure that, knowing the truth, she would place the blame for all of those actions on him.

"Cole, no..." Mel muttered, shaking her head. "You trusted Zin and he tricked you. That is not your fault."

Cole looked up at her, struggling to compose himself. "And every time he's tricked me since, Mel? London? The seminar? Are those my fault?"

She shook her head. "Of course not."

"They are, Mel. It isn't just that I'm too trusting." All Cirronians were trusting creatures. Other species called it a flaw, contended that it made them bad at certain jobs. Jobs like being a Tracker or a prison Warden. Still, Cirronians were often drawn to such jobs, which seemed a natural extension of their innate sense of justice and order. And, trusting or not, they were smart enough to learn from their mistakes. Or, at least, most were. Cole was starting to wonder about himself. "That might explain the first time, but not the others." He sighed and looked up at her. "I walk into traps all the time. I bring you into traps! Time after time, and I never learn..." While walking into traps himself might only have been gullible, putting Mel in such danger was just short of unforgivable. He shook his head and quietly repeated, almost to himself, "I never learn." He shook his head again and lapsed into silence.

Mel sighed softly. She had never realized how much guilt Cole carried around with him. He always knew when she was upset, always tried to be there for her, and she had never even realized how much pain he was in, let alone been able to help in any way.

"Cole..." Mel began gently. He did not even react. "Cole, please..." she said. "You can't blame yourself for all the problems of the universe. You've done so much good." When that did not produce a response either, Mel kept trying, listing off the names of all the people that Cole had saved, the good he had done, talking about how sweet and gentle and kind he was, how intelligent and insightful...

Lontoria watched without contributing as Mel tried to rouse the Cirronian from his depression. He had been right, she did like Mel. A lot. She was impressed by the human's ability to put aside her own fear and concerns to try to help her friend. From her tone and manner, it was obvious that she cared for him very much indeed, would have done anything for him. Unfortunately, though, he seemed to be beyond caring, not even noticing Mel's increasingly distraught tone. And, clearly, Mel was getting frustrated with herself over her continued inability to move him. Still, Lontoria knew that if there was one thing that could get his attention, it was Mel.

She spoke, then, in Cirronian. "Hwa an, Daggon, etten. Ni ah-ahhh." Daggon, you're scaring her. Stop it. Her tone was firm, her inflection turning a request into a command.

Cole's head snapped up at the sound of the first Cirronian words he had heard in months. They were awkward and breathy coming out of her human vocal equipment, vocal equipment simply not suited to the language. The effect was not unlike the overly simplistic tones and phrases that Cirronian parents used when dealing with their newborns. Under other circumstances, it would have been almost laughable to hear it coming from a woman of Lontoria's intelligence and stature. She was right though, of course, and he nodded wearily.

"I'm sorry..." he said simply, meaning it for both Mel and Lontoria. "So sorry for all of this." He looked at Lontoria. "I've failed as your guard and as your friend. If I had succeeded at either, you would not be here now. Forgive me."

"Forgive me for putting you in this position..." Lontoria replied simply, sadly.

Mel frowned. These were starting to sound like final good-byes. She wondered fleetingly what Lontoria had said to Cole that had gotten so much more of a reaction than her own pleas. She was not entirely sure that she wanted to know. Obviously it had not been meant for her ears, or Lontoria would have spoken in English. Whether it was a declaration of love or of the certainty that they were going to die here, it was not Mel's business.

"Can we stop playing the blame-game?" she suggested, renewing her struggles against the restraints.

Cole seemed not to have heard. "Mel, I know that all you ever wanted was a normal, happy life. You have had to face so much evil since I came into your life." He closed his eyes. "You were dead in my arms and I told you that I was sorry... I knew that it wasn't enough. It isn't enough now, either, but it's all I can do." He opened his eyes, looking at her. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "Don't, Cole."

"Mel..." he breathed, looking into her eyes with so much love and despair that it was almost heartbreaking to see. The look conveyed everything he held in his heart, things that he could not even articulate in his own mind.

She shook her head again. "Everything that has happened to me... none of it is your fault. I agreed to help you, knowing what could happen. Do not blame yourself!" She shook her head again, staring into his eyes, hoping that he could see in hers how much she loved him. "We're in this together, Cole. Friends. Partners."

Cole smiled uncertainly, heartened by Mel's words. It was not that he blamed himself any less for everything that Mel had suffered. It was simply that the knowledge that Mel considered them partners and friends was very uplifting, very hopeful. He smiled with a little more certainty and nodded, adoring his passionate, stubborn human friend more than ever.

Mel smiled back, nodding firmly. "Now, let's talk about how the hell we're going to get out of here..." she suggested.