Will and Fate
By Jeremy

Chapter 10

August 14, 1997

It was evening in Limerick. The people living in the city were now mostly enjoying the comforts of home, whether it was a small appartment or a great manor. Few passerbies were sen on the streets, except a few teenagers hanging out, a couple or two doing a love stroll. Not that people weren't present - Those whom one could see were having conversations sitting on terrasses on in a backyards. All in all, it was a quiet evening, and darkness was fast envelloping the city in a blanket of calm and satisfaction.

That was the kind of setup two men - seemingly in their twenties - were counting on. Had one looked at them, he would have seen two men of acerage height, fine built and strong gait, wearing simple street clothes. Nothing unusual. One was slightly larger than the other, sporting long black hair tied in a ponytail, with dull green eyes that seemed to stare right through people. Arrayed in a black shirt, coat, shoes and pants, he was a somber and somewhat impressive sight.

But it was the other one that always gave onlookers a strange impression.

Not that that person was dressed more spectacularly. In fact, with his yellow t-shirt and blue jeans, he was more ordinary-looking by far. His hair was extremely short and a dull brown, with brown eyes. None of this seemed out of the ordinary, either.

But there was something. An impression of danger and menace seemed to permeate every movement the man made, impressions that were heightened by the searching, hard looks he always seemed to be giving. His eyes, althought not special in their sheer expression, also gave one who looked at them the impression one was staring into a covered well, containing unfathomable things that few could ever explain. One thing was certain for all concerned: this was a dangerous man. And a man who knew it well. His true name, no one knew except the High Master. The only name he answered to was Kale.

Kale was enjoying the evening, although he never showed it in his expression. Such delicate balance of heat and moisture, this day was, with a pleasant wind cooling the temperature just enough that it was perfect. No one on the street, no obstacle, and silence all around except faint sounds he cared nothing about. This was a perfect evening to be alive.

Also, to him, the best kind of evening to be killing. After all, if one had to kill someone, why not do it comfortably?

"Ahhh, " he sighed contentedly. "What a magnificient evening. Don't you think so, Everick? Don't you think its nice to be walking under the star-lit sky with not a care in the world?" No answer. Nor had he expected one. Everick wasn't the most talkative of fellow. No matter, he preffered his own conversation, anyway. "You're right, beautiful breeze. Really makes you wish for a comfortable chair on a comfortable lawn, sipping some iced tea and listening on and on..."

"The potential recruit lives on the fifth house to our left." stated his pony-tailed companion simply, not heeding what Kale had said one bit.

Kale flared the nostrils of his thin but somewhat hawkish nose. "You always do that to me, my friend! Always right when I start imagining nice things, you have to come in and maul my thoughts." he sniffed.

Green eyes looked over at him and a smile flickered - but not for long. "I truly apologise for cuttting off your imagination, but I must remind you we are here on a very delicate retrieval mission. The Circle wouldn't like us to fail because we are inatentive to details. I, for one, do not intend it."

"Oh. come on! " Kale huffed "The old guys of the Circle always complain for something, so if we failed, we'd be in deep water no matter what we did. And we've never failed anyway, so lay off, will ya?"

"Of course. Of course." another small smile. "Just remember that its important, you know."

Kale huffed and mumbled until the targetted fifth house. He gave one look at it. Two-storied. Grey. Nothing special, no spice, no flavour. How boring. He saw a few small trees and clumps of flowers hugging the path that led to the house, some toys that hadn't been picked. Really standard of so many families that lived all around the damn dirtball the human race proudly called the Earth. That kind of thing made him want to sleep. Then he saw the car. Blue, japanese make, no dirt, well-maintained. His eyes lit. Well at least something was interesting here.

Everick strolled up the short path casually, Kale following close behind, still flinging some looks at the blue car like another man would to a pretty girl. It was only when the fron door opened in answer to Everick's firm knock that he brought his attention to the mission. A man in his early thirties - obviously irritated at some interruption - poked his round physique through and regarded the two with the look of someone who had every intention of slamming the door in their face.

"What is it?" snapped the man in thick irelander accent.

"Are you Dennis Curney?" asked Everick pleasantly. The man blinked.

"Well, yes, that's me alright. What...?"

Kale clapped his hands. "Great! Then let's do it!" he stated cheerfully.

The man named Dennis looked at him in irritation and confusion. It was the last act he made as living man. Faster than lightning, Everich pulled a dagger from his coat and stabbed upward with a strength that was worth that of someone twice his size. The razor-sharp blade went from the chinright throught the brain of the victim. The man gurgled something then fell backward, dead already. Everick and Kale hopped inside, closing the door behind them.

"Clean and quick. Bravo!"

"Thank you."

At that moment a thin woman of about the same age the man was - obviously the wife - came from the living room towards them.

"Honey, were those...?" she stopped and stared at her dead hurband's body, then at the two young men who stood next to it. Her eyes widened. Before she could do anything - scream, faint, run, whatever came to her mind, Kale stepped forward with a cheerful smile that came nowhere near to hiding the coldness that had sprung in his eyes. His hand extended.

"Powers that be around me, strike swiftly and true." he intoned. "Take life where I lay the path."

With this, power crackled and flowed from his hand in eery blue light, envelloping the woman. She screamed for moment as it touched her, then doubled over and died within moments. The mirth returning to his eyes, he made a victory dign at his dark-haired partner.

"Well done, as always." was the praise he received.

"Yeah, I'm the best at this!" he smiled. "So, where's the kid?"

"Up there! They have two children. The boy is expendable. The girl is the one that we want" was the calm answer. "You go. I'll take care of things here."

"Sure! Be right back!" with that, Kale hopped up the stairs, humming a tune that he had heard earlier that day. On the top of the stairs, he encountered the boy Everick had told about. Small, no more than three, he was trudging to look if he had heard someone scream. He blinked in surprise as he saw what was to him an unknown person.

"Hi, kid!" said the brown-haired man cheerfully, with a wide smile.

The little child smiled in his turn. "Hi."

Never loosing his pleasant look and smile, Kale grabbed the boy by the front of the head and flung him into the nearest wall. There was a crunch, and the dead boy's small body spasmed before becoming still. The man let go, still smiling, resuming the tune that didn't want to let go. He then skipped into the room next to the boy's. Bingo! A cradle. And his target. He chuckled when he saw it. Marvelous day!

The baby was no older than six months, still sleeping despite the bits of noises that had gone on in the house. It was blissfully aware that anything had happened, and was just as unaware of Kale's presence. The man frowned. If the brat really had the Gift, she should have sensed his presence. But maybe she was too young yet to differenciate. There was only one way to find out if this mission was worthwhile or not. Muttering to himself about the total waste of time, Kale reached out and shook the baby carefully. It awoke, displeased and surprised, and blinked at him. Immediately, the cheerful man reached out with the force of his gaze, searching the aura of the child.

What he felt made his eyes widen in surprise. This brat had the Gift indeed! He felt vast abilities to tap Outer Powers, and a substantial Inner Power. This child, if trained properly, would grow into a very powerful woman. And the circle would make sure she received that training.

He relinquished his gaze, satisfied with what he had just seen. "Well, child, it seems we're going to get to know each other in time." he whispered with a wolfish grin. The baby, free of the gaze, only understood that it had been rudely awakened and started to cry loudly.

Kale put two fingers on the child's forehead. "Powers that be around me, give slumber to that which I deem true." A spark of blue energy lanced out, striking the babe on the forehead. In barely a few seconds, it had stopped crying and was fast asleep. Kale picked it up and went back to the stairs.

"Heheh. Good night, kid." he sneered as he passed the little boy's body. He then descended the stairs. Everick was waiting for him at the bottom, looking as patient and detached as ever. Never had Kale seen him otherwise except once. He hoped no one would be foolish enought to try to make the event happen a second time.

"I see you are as gentle with children as ever." the black-haired man stated flatly.

"What can I say?" was the jovial answer. "I always had a soft spot for such little darlings. Is everything ready?"

"Yes, this house will blow up in...two hundred and eighty seconds."

Kale nodded. "Fine. Let's goooo!" And they exited the house casually, closing the door behind them.

They hadn't gotten more than ten houses out that they heard a fantastic boom. They both turned to observe the debris that were flying in all directions. People were coming out of the nearby houses, some screaming, some gaping at the site, others running to see if they could help. As if they could do anything to stop the little inferno the house had become. Kale felt a pang of regret that the explosion had scrapped that nice blue car, but that was life. He held up the child, which was still slumbering.

"From now on your old life does not exit. You are part of the Circle now, like I am. Dessara will be your name from now on." he smiled widely. "Welcome, Sister!"

And they resumed their journey, away from the burning house. The neighbourhood was becoming noisy anyway.

* * * * * * * * * *

Three days later...

Major William Brisby was revising some very vague details on a report he had been given - what did they teach in school to kids these days, anyway? - when a knock on the door diverted his attention. He had been expecting it at about this time. He looked at his watch and smiled his grave but warm smile. nine hundred hours exactly. They were right on schedule. But then, these two officers were both known for their punctuality, among other things.

"Come in." he said firmly. Immediately the office door opened, and both Jeremy Storm and Cammy White entered, stiffly and rigid. Brisby took a moment to study the two rising stars of London's SCD Team.

Jeremy was looking mild yet serious, his eyes shining with curiosity and just a little hint of wariness. He was dressed in the black t-shirt and khaki pants of England's military, but hadn't put on his SCD coat, instead holding it slung out over his shoulder. Brisby would normally have frown at this breach of discipline if he hadn't reminded himself of the fact that Jeremy Storm, while an officer of the SCD, wasn't a real soldier. He was attached to the military for his job, that was all. Cammy, for her part, was a soldier, and was looking extremely military like, stiff and at attention while there was slight relaxation on her partner's part. Her long blond braids were the only thing out of place with her show of soldiery perfection. The older man would have enjoyed such a sight, if he had seen anything more than vague determination in her gaze. There was so little emotions there. She was keeping all of it bottled up and carefully sealed, according to Joan. Yet Jeremy had taken a liking to her, and had asked to be paired to her. Although Brisby had been a little suspicious of that, he soon found it was the best thing he could have done.

The two were remarquable together. Both extraordinary fighters, they had brains to match that strength. More than that they seemed to know what the other would do just before he or she did, which allowed an instant reaction time. Added to Jeremy's knack for finding information and Cammy's excellent military procedures,they made a superb team. A strange one, but an excellent one all the same.

"You called for us, sir?" the young man inquired.

He nodded and gestured for them to sit. Jeremy did so immediately, while the blond officer waited for just a single moment before doing so. As she did, he caught a look the young man gave her. A look of faint affection, with strong imprints of sadness and frustration. Brisby sighed inwardly. He knew, as did every member of London's team, that the young Storm had a thing for White. Why he did, when she showed him no such feelings, was a mystery. But he did. Children were becoming so complicated these days. Shaking himself out of his momentary lapse, he went straight to the point.

"I'm glad you two are here. First, let me ask you something: do you know anything about a group called the Circle?"

They hesitated. "I...there are some rumors about them on the streets." ventured Jeremy, reluctantly. "They have the reputation of being the modern equivalent of mages. Most people dismiss them as fairy tales." There was a strange tone to his voice.

"But do YOU believe the tales, Storm?" asked Brisby.

A speculative frown, than a very tentative nod. "I...I think I have no choice but to believe that it is POSSIBLE. After all, my techniques draw a good deal of power from chi, which could easily be taken as a fairy tale as well. At least I keep my mind open about it."

"And what about you, White?"

He wasn't expecting a very lively answer, and, as such, he wasn't disappointed. Cammy just stared at him with her near-lifeless eyes, giving no indication of what was going through her mind. It unnerved him, unnerved them all. Although they all knew she had been through enough to shatter lesser people's sanity, the team had started to grumble behind her back. Even Joan and even Jeremy were almost ready to call it quits. Brisby admitted that he had to do something to help her out of this near-catatonia, but hadn't found what yet.

Despite her mental and emotional problems, she was still efficient. That would have to do for now.

"After Bison, one would believe anything." she stated tonelessly. Brisby recognized the sentence for what it really was: "After what Bison did to me, I would believe anything." From the slight darkening of his grey eyes, Brisby saw that Jeremy had concluded the same.

"Very good. I'm glad you're open-minded about this." he said sternly. "Because the fact is that the group we are presently talking about exists, and has existed for far longer than we were first led to believe. Let me tell you the little we know about them." he passed folders to the two. "The Circle is directly based in Europe, and is strongest in France, Spain, Portugal and Ireland. We don't know about much of their main hideouts and headquarters, because they are extremely secretive and have had more than enough time to burrow themselves so well they don't usually leave traces anymore."

"Sir, if I may." Jeremy interrupted. "Is that of the SCD's ressort? I mean, we are an anti- terrorist group, no? What do they have to do with us?

Brisby shook his head. "We had our eyes on this group for a while, and we don't like the signs that are appearing, especially in Ireland: attacks, murders, unexplained incident abound there and we believe they are to blame for the greater part. Now, the last 'incident' took place three days ago, in Limerick. Note that Limerick is a town where the Circle is suspected to have a lair. Now here is what I want you to do: you and another member of the team will go to Limerick and meet with an undercover agent there. Once you've received his report, you will investigate the town and and find the so-called lair. You are not to act on your own. Call backup as soon as you are certain of its location." he stopped, then looked at them. "This is a very dangerous mission - this isn't Shadowlaw with its more conventional means. These are secretive and manipulative people that harnest a strange power. So be extremely careful when you are there. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" They both stated firmly.

"Good. That's all then. All of thge details are in the folders I just handed you. Dismissed."

They stood gave a salute, then started forr the door. Storm, however, stopped at the door, hesitating.

"Sir?"

"Yes?"

"Who's the other member of the investigative team.?"

"Ahh, yes." he gave a slight smile. "Cindy Herman will be your and Cammy's partner."

Storm's face took on a vaguely mortified expression. Knowing at least part of the reasons behind it, it took the commander of the SCD a deal of effort not to chuckle at his young officer's discomfiture. He knew Cindy, and knew how she liked to relate to people. He also knew how much she liked to 'patch things up' or 'spur things along'. She had made herself quite a reputation that way. However...

"I know, Jeremy. I know she's quite the character. I've seen some of that myself." his smile faded. "But she knows more about that group than you do, and she has the kind of deductive skills you and Cammy lack. She'll be extremely useful."

"Yes sir." was the only reply he had. Still displeased but accepting the situation, Jeremy closed the door.

Brisby finally gave a chuckle, as he thought about what Cindy could do with these two unique people. Oh well, they'd have to deal with her.

He just hoped she wouldn't go too far.

* * * * * * * * * *

One hour later...

"Can you believe it? I'm finally going on a mission!" Cindy squealed, acting more like a girl of fourteen rather than a woman of twenty-eight.

Cornered, Mark Culhen only nodded his head, his eyes remaining glued to his computer console as he typed in numerical sequences, reviewed scans and implanted new programs all at the same time. He liked Cindy. Everybody liked Cindy. But he knew better than to give her more than minimal attention when she was excited. To do so only invited the kind of uncomfortable conversations that he presently neither wanted nor needed.

Cindy, however, wasn't finished. She sighed. "Its been months since I've had anything more than solo missions!"

Mark kept typing with a grunt. No way was he getting into this. He had enough personal problems as it is.

"Jeremy and Cammy...they're a good team, right?" he grunted assent. "You know, Jeremy likes Cammy a lot...do you think that she does too? I can't tell." The question was sharply asked, there was nothing he could do but answer truthfully.

He coughed and shrugged hesitantly. "I...cough...I'm not into that much. She seems to be SLIGHTLY closer to him than the rest of us. Joan does say the possibility is very present. I don't know! How can I? I'm not in her mind." he continued typing stubbornly.

"Hmmm...they'd make such a nice couple..." Then her tone changed, becoming softer, almost conspirational. "I've got an idea."

It was upon hearing this that Mark stopped typing, stopped thinking and almost stopped breathing. Anyone who knew Cindy dreaded the sentence 'I've got an idea'. Not because she was stupid or anything, but because her ideas always revolved over romance and had the very bad tendency to make things worse. Hearing this sentence made anyone in the SCD want to run for their lives. Mark didn't have that option. Knowing that it was a very dangerous action for him to undertake, he swiveled his chair to turn and meet her extactic and contemplative green eyes.

"Cindy, I think ye shouldn't." He said "If the lass and the lad want to become friends or anything more, its their business. I'm not about to do anything to change the way they've been going about each other and neither should ye."

She frowned slightly. Perhaps miffed about the fact he had just asked her to basically lay off, or for some other reason he did not know about. God knew he didn't understand her sometimes. But the last time she had had 'an idea' had been just as Giorgio had returned from his vendetta. Although many were feeling queasy about what he had done, they understood him, and things had gone back the way it always was after only a few days. Except for Julia. Julia hadn't accepted his actions. Had vehemently disagreed with them. That's when Cindy had come in, to 'patch things up'. Consequently, they hadn't talked to each other for almost a month. But she never seemed to notice it was her meddling that made things the way they were now.

"Jeremy doesn't like the cold way she's treating him." she pointed out.

He didn't deny it. Didn't see a reason to, when it was clear that she was right. "Maybe, but its up to him to tell her that. Its not my problem, but HIS." He emphasized 'his' in the hopes it would be received well by his teammate. One look at her, however, showed that he might as well never have bothered. She had that type of look on her face, the look on had when things were already decided.

She nodded to him. "Right, right. " she remarqued vaguely. "However, I'm going to help him push things along." She patted his shoulder. "Thanks a bunch, Mark!"

Mark watched her leave, speechless. "B-b-but I'm SURE that..." he sputtered. By then she was long gone. He turned back to his computer with a sigh.

"...I'm sure he really doesn't need your kind of help." he muttered. He prayed Jeremy wouldn't kill her before the end of the mission.

* * * * * * * * * *

Two days later...

Cammy could easily feel that Jer was about to go crazy. But then, he had been stuck next to Cindy during the entire airtrip, and had been forced to listen to one story after another, some strange, some laughable and some absolutely incoherent. Cindy wasn't a nice storyteller, Cammy could well tell, and it did not surprise her one bit that her partner had nearly wanted to jump off the plane with no parachute. The image of Jeremy doing something this unnecessary made her smile, but only inwardly. Always only inwardly. And these events were always quelched fast.

They had just arrived at the town of Limerick, a small city of fifty thousand souls, more or less. She studied what she could see. It was an old town, obviously, although efforts had been undertaken to modernise it. Not a poor city, but not a terribly rich one. On a hill near the town, she could see what appeared to be a castle of some kind. All in all, it looked rather like so many suburban cities of england, only the people here were christians and didn't have the same accent. A typical place. But one that may be more than meets the eye.

Next to her, Jeremy sighed. "Ah, quaint town. Very quaint. I like the atmosphere. Don't you, Cammy?"

"No." was all she said. No intonation. No emotion. Never show emotion. Too painful, brings back too many memories. But she couldn't help but feel a small twinge of sadness when he looked at her in frustration, hurt again that she seemed not to care about what he said. She was so taken by the look that she barely heard Cindy's cheerful voice.

"Come on, kids! We've got to go to our motel first!" was the joyous shout.

Jeremy sighed next to her, turning his attention to the redhead. "Right. Let's do that. Then I'm gonna stroll around the backstreets to meet people."

To Jeremy, 'meeting people' on the backstreets meant getting acquainted with the local social workers, good-natured gangs and tough but honourable street fighters and garnering information. Of course, for the street fighters, sometimes he had to prove he was one of them - by holding his own in a fight. Jeremy had no problem with that. In fact, he yearned for those fights. "Even a weak fighter can win if he knows something you don't. These fights help me learn." he always said. She understood the comment and could see the result - Jeremy's dramatic and constant increase in street fighting skills were readily apparent - but she usually chose not to go, despite his prodding. To her, fighting was training. One does it to accomplish a mission or to defend oneself from hostiles, not for the fun of it.

"And then we're going out to eat." Cindy corrected. "I want some good stuff inside me instead of what they served us on the plane."

"Go with Cammy then. I've got to check it out now to make sure I can meet a few people." was the retort. A rather frantic one - obviously the man wanted to be as far as the red-haired woman as he could be for a while. Cindy seemed to recognize that, for she scowled for a moment, before resuming a cheerfulness that now seemed forced.

"Fine! Suit yourself, its your loss!" she stated airily. "What are you going to eat then."

"Oh, I'll grab a hot-dog or something. Don't worry about it. Now let's get this over with."

They made their way to the motel - walking, because it wasn't that far, and checked in. There they discovered that there were two rooms for them - one for two people and the other only for one person. Upon knowing that, her partner turned a grey-eyed glare towards innocent looking green ones, and asked Cammy if she had a problem with him. She had responded by a negative, although she felt a little wary deep inside. But she knew there was no chance his presence would incur her fear and her nightmares. Ethical about many things, Jeremy was nearly a monk when it came to intimacy and women. No, there was no danger from him.

Why then did she feel so restless? She couldn't say.

They had unpacked their bags quickly both feeling obvious relief at knowing there were two beds. All the while Jeremy lamented.

"I eat all my vegetables at dinner, I don't drink, I don't smoke. I'm MOSTLY honest. I work hard, Hell, I even helped old people cross the street a few times. So why me?!" He shook his fist upward. "Someone's having fun up there, and the day I get up, we're gonna have a talk about putting me with someone like Cindy on a mission!" He stopped, let out a sigh. "There. Settled. Now, time for a bit of fun. Have fun with the red menace, Cammy." He stopped. "Unless you want to come along with me?" There was a trace of hope on his face now, mingled with resignation and the knowledge of what her answer would be.

And something within her wanted desperately to soothe that resignation, that sadness. She wanted to say 'yes, why not, let's go', because then there would be joy on his face, he'd smile at her like he had, those first few days, when she had locked herself off from everything and everyone. She would like to tell him how she loved that smile then, how she loved it still right now.

But she couldn't. The barriers she had erected to protect herself from the hurt prevented her from expressing these wishes. So she shook her head, knowing her face and posture showed nothing and, deep down, she hated herself for it. And so his eyes showed sadness again. Frustration and resignation too. It was a face she made him wear often, not because she wanted to, but because she couldn't do anything.

His face cleared, although the sad disappointment remained in the background of his eyes. "Okay. See you soon, then!" he exclaimed half-heartedly. He walked to the door and opened it, coming face-to-face with Cindy, who had raised her hand to knock. "Hey, Cinderella. Have fun tonight. I'll tell you about everything when I get back from the streets."

"I already got the police reports but..thanks." said the redhead hesitantly, seing his troubled expression. He nodded and disappeared from the doorstep. Cammy listened to his fading footsteps, unable to know how she should feel.

Cindy turned back to her. She didn't seem happy "All right. We meet our contact tomorrow, so tonight we can settle some things." she looked in the direction Jeremy had taken, then right back at her. "And believe me, some things have gone on long enough."

* * * * * * * * * *

At the same moment...

The first part of the compound had been built four hundred years ago by bandits who sought to hide what their bounty away from prying eyes. Unfortunately, a member of that band was a member of the Circle, and had found the place quite striking. Therefore, he had killed off the rest of the band and contacted others of his own kind. That had been the beginning of the Limerick lair. Four hundred years later, it had become a magnificient work of carpeted and panneled passageways, linking rooms of all sorts, from an high-tech power center and computer room to rustic, victorian-type rooms of luxury. It was in one of these old rooms that Kale lazed, reading Les Misérables of the great French author Victor Hugo.

He could have chosen another book. After all, this was the library of the lair. Over two stories, with luxurious idian carpets, fine english chair and round duskwood tables, the place was one of comfort. And of rows upon rows of books. There probably was more books in the place than in many a national library, in fact. But the book Kale was reading had always captivated him. Such was his attention that he almost missed the lower Aclyte that approached him. Almost.

"What is it?" he asked pleasantly, not taking his eyes off the book.

"My lord, the SCD investigators have just arrived." was the dutiful answer.

Now Kale's eyes left the book, settled on the acolyte with a gaze that managed to be both joyous and commanding at the same time. "Tell me about them."

"Three of them, milord. One of them has the outlook of a fool, but there is steel underneath, so it is clear it is a facade. The other two show no facade. They carry themselves like warriors, and have a much colder outlook - especially the blond woman, who appears so cold she may as well be dead."

"Powers?"

"The first has no Outer Powers, while her Inner Powers are only slightly over the norm. The other two are different: no real Outer Powers, but extremely high Inner Powers."

Kale still fixed the man. Upon hearing two of the investigators were strong, he smiled widely. "And their names."

"According to sources, Cindy Herman, Jeremy Storm and Cammy White."

Kale,s eyes widened for a moment, his mouth opening in shock. Then he threw back his head and laughed merrily. Cindy! Cindy was here! The damn bitch has come back to meddle in his affairs, heh? They'd see about that! He managed to contain his laughter and looked back at the apparently unflappable Acolyte. "Tell your men to watch out for this 'fool'. Believe me, she can be even worse than you think! As fot the others...fighters, you think?"

The acolyte barely nodded. "It would appear so, milord."

Another laugh. "Then arrange a little test for the first one to leave the motel. I want to know how strong they are!"

"At once, milord." And just with that, the Acolyte left sdoundlessly, leaving Kale to laugh by himself, joyous at the fact that he now had something to occupy himself, and that he could do very deadly things indeed. Fools to think they never had known there was an informant. And laughed again.

Things were about to get very, very interesting.

* * * * * * * * * *

Twenty minutes later...

Okay, she had the girl in front of her. Now all that remained was to find the right way to help her and that poor bloke Storm. Cindy considered while sipping her coffee, her attention on the glassy-eyed, braided woman who was now gracefully but still somewhat mechanically pouring some cream into her own cup of coffee.

She had to frame her thoughts well for, unlike what her teammates thought, she knew her shortcomings in any true matters of counselling, no matter how well-meaning she was. Her last little talk had worsened Castillo and Simmons' already strained friendship considerably, a fact that she hadn't been able to forgive herself. So Cammy's case, such as it was, she intended to be turning point of her bad luck - this time she truly intended to help as best as she could, using the many mistakes she ahd made and what - she hoped - she had learned in all the previous mishaps.

She stared at Cammy intensely, but the woman was seemingly completely unaffected by it at all. Not that she had seemed affected by ANYTHING ever since Cindy had first met her. Like people like Giorgio, Jeremy and Joan, however, she was convinced that Shadowlaw's conditioning hadn't destroyed Cammy's true personnality. It was her experiences that had somehow forced her to lock it away, even though she was free from Bison. But so far nothing had been able to crack her shell of unemotionality. Cindy intended to do her part to help in that respect.

"So, what happened back there?" she asked.

A level look was all she received for a moment. "What do you mean?"

Cindy sighed. All right, she thought, I didn't think it was gonna be easy now, did I? "I mean in the room. Why did Jer look so down all of a sudden?" She thought she knew the answer to that, but still she had to ask.

Cammy merely shook her head. "I can't say. He simply asked me if I wanted to come with him to seek and meet social workers and street fighters. I refused."

"You refused? But why?" Cindy was genuinely surprised about the news. "Its not like you can't handle yourself in a fight, if it comes to that!" Far from it, in fact.

"True, however, to seek such people is a waste of time and energy."

The red-haired agent was baffled. A waste of time? She thought Jeremy's work was a waste of time? How could she not know that people like Jeremy, Steve and Giorgio, by making these sometimes rowdy contacts with the people of the street, often gained insight and information that the SCD probably wouldn't have gotten otherwise? The red-haired woman simply couldn't believe Cammy couldn't see that.

Or was it not at least possible there was another reson to the blonde's disinterest? Then, how to know what it was?

"Hum...do you always tell him that?" she asked at last. "That you think its useless, I mean?"

"Of course. Most of the time." was the static reply.

Cindy couldn't help but groan upon hearing that last sentence. That certainly could explain why Jeremy looked so depressed - having your own partner telling you that what you do is inconsequential would tend to depress and frustrate anyone. What a clueless girl that blonde was! Or was she? Egad, what an enigma! Cindy had to find clues as to how the younger agent in front of her really thought if she was going to help at anything.

"You do know that you're hurting him by what you're doing, don't you?" she asked pointedly.

There was no reaction. The blond woman's face still remained blank, uncaring. "I fail to see how my disagreeing with Storm's methods could influence him such.

And it was then that Cindy finally lost patience She'd tried to beat around the bush, tried to be comprehensive and polite but it was clear it wasn't having any effect. She knew, deep down, that it was when she lost patience that she made her worst mistakes, but right then she absolutely didn't care anymore. Cammy's icy attitude was just getting on her nerves.

"Dammit, White, can't you at least see that he likes you?!?" she spat recklessly.

And even though it was only for a moment, there actually was a reaction then. The braided woman stiffened, her posture showing shock and... something else, something that flickered too quickly for the older woman to identify. Then the facade was back on.

"He..likes me?" there was a slight catch in the voice that asked the question.

"Yeah." Cindy answered, knowing full well she had no business getting into such private stuff but willing to play along with it. "We all have been seeing it for a while. But you're losing him. Its plain he's tired of waiting for you to at least showing him some kind of consideration. He isn't asking much, I think."

"I was unaware that my disposition was provoking such displeasure."

Cindy shook her head. "It doesn't really matter to the rest of us how you act. Its only Jer who's hurting."

Cammy looked at the older agent blandly, with barely a hint of curiosity. "So, what would you propose?"

Relieved that the conversation was turning out well - for once - the redhead considered carefully. "I'd either tell him I don't feel anything for him or I'd give something of myself to him. That way things'll be clear!" she had said it so triumphantly that she noticed Cammy's face only after she had finished speaking. When she did see it, she couldn't help but cringe inwardly.

The blond girl had gone utterly white-faced, her eyes wide and staring at the table cloth as if someone had hit her in the stomach. It was so unlike her that all the older agent could do was to stare, mouth slightly agape.

"G-give s-s-something of...? she stuttered, her voice cracking. She closed her eyes tightly, her fingers gripping the table in a terrified grip. "I...I can't. I CAN'T!!!" she screamed at last, drawing stares from just about everyone in and around the café, staring, whispering.She heaved herself up and, without even excusing herself, left. Hasty. Frightened.

Cindy stared at her back, wanting to help her somehow, but thinking that she had done enough. No need for her to make things worse than they now were. She cursed herself. Jer would likely kill her when he found out about this latest fiasco. And she was sure the others from the SCD would lend a hand to do it, too. Worse, she had just somehow deeply hurt a still-fragile young woman, and there was no way to know how the distraught agent might react now.

Thinking about all, this, she didn't feel hungry at all anymore.

* * * * * * * * * *

Thirty minutes later...

Jeremy was strolling one of Limerick's main street, dressed in the black t-shirt, khaki pants, sneakers and black fighting gloves he wore as his 'fighting' garb when patrolling the back streets of a city. Right now he wasn't doing so, occupied as he was in wolfing down three hot dogs with a solid appetite. He was trying to chase away the depressed thoughts that had been flitting through his mind since Cammy had - once again - rejected his offer of a stroll.

Damn it why can't I get her out of my damn head?!? he thought furiously. He didn't really know the answer, only that, each time she told him 'no' when he proposed something, he felt a little colder inside. Why was her opnion so important, he couldn't tell either.

Shaking his head furiously, Jeremy gobbled up the last hot-dog, threw the wrapping paper into the nearest trash can he saw, and entered the first back street he had ever set foot in Limerick, his mind confused and brooding. Such was his private mental whirl that he didn't notice he wasn't alone before he saw his way ahead was blocked. He stopped. Three men. Tall, athletic, graceful. No weapons, only fists. Fighters. He then felt that there were three more blocking the way behind him. They'd gotten far too close. Damn!

He was losing his edge or what?

He took on a more defensive stance, refusing to go into it fully yet. He knew, however, that these weren't friendly fighters who'd come to check out what they felt was a kindred spirit. These men had hostility written all over their bodies. One of the man in front of him strode forward a pace, not very different from the others except from the more practiced movements he showed. This one was the most skilled. So, logically, this was the leader.

"Hiya, there." said the fighter. "So, a new though kid from who knows where. What's your name?"

"Who knows? Maybe my name's Jack or Robert. Who cares about that?" Jeremy's voice became sterner. "Now get out of the way."

The leader seemed to find it amusing, and he chuckled. "A funny guy. Too bad you won't be telling jokes too much after this."

Now it was Jeremy who chuckled. "Don't you think you guys shouldn't be here? Street fighting isn't for losers like you six. Now get outta my way before I decide to kick your collective butts hard." He cracked his knuckles, adjusting his stance to full defensive, silently looking over his adversaries for gaps and potential holes, scanning to make sure he missed nothing. He smirked. "Bunch of whimpy puppets."

Angry growls from the fighters. Even the leader seemed pissed by his comments. But that guy had self-control, Jer had to give him that. He was angry, but his voice barely told that.

"That wasn't a bright thing to say when your outnumbered."

"Shut the fuck up! I'm not talking to a bunch of wannabes, and certainly not to a monkey like you."

The leader glared. "If that's the way you want things, you da-"

"I SAID SHUT UP AND FIGHT!! Or are you scared?" Jeremy sneered.

This time even the leader growled. "Kill him!" he said, and the five others rushed the lone fighter. Jeremy smiled as he saw this. Six against one. Close quarters. No backup. This would be one hell of a fight.

He was going to make sure these six remembered him well after this day.

* * * * * * * * * *

At the same time...

From a meditation room, Kale looked at the image he had conjured. So the boy was the one who would be tested, he? Fine by him! Only six? Would that be enough for a real test? He hoped so. After all, there had to be a certain degree of challenge, or it wouldn't be worth his attention at all.

He laughed at the confident jibes the lone fighter made. Not someone who was used to backing down, this one. Six fighters wouldn't make him do that, not at all. No, there'd have to be something more drastic. Kale would see him humbled. Yes, it would be hard.

But SOOOOOO fun! He laughed heartilly, almost losing his vision, tears streaming from his eyes. He looked at the fighter.

"So, SCD! Show me your power, your strength, your pride. I will no those so that I may break them. And let the games begin again!"

And he laughed again, his manic tone echoing throught the hall ways of the Limerick Lair.

_________________________________________________________________

A new chapter up! As you may see, I've introduced a new kind of villains, which you'll learn a lot about in the rest of the story. I hope you like what I decided! :)

Next: Things become more complicated for the investigators as the Circle makes a move to eliminate them before they start digging. Be ready for Chapter 11 of Will and Fate!

As always, I crave IDEAS and FEEDBACK! :)

Jeremy