Taelon Mothership
Saturday, 12:34 EST

We will of course conduct a full forensic evaluation of everything we have available, Sandoval was saying. Zo'or was silent, watching the human carefully. But that is in Colonel Osobato's purview.

Find him, Agent Sandoval, Zo'or said flatly. I will not accept failure of this magnitude again. He shut off the datastream, fortunate that his facade was not at the moment capable of transmitting his anger at the near miss.

And may I assume that this news does not alter your plans at all?

Zo'or did not move, choosing not to acknowledge Da'an's presence with body language. You would be correct in that assumption.

Zo'or, I object to this course of action, Da'an said. From the manner of his escape, we now know that Lubata has access to Taelon technology, and it has already been proven that we cannot track this saboteur. You are placing yourself in grave danger.

I will not be intimidated, Da'an, Zo'or insisted. Agent Sandoval will find the saboteur before the ceremony.

You seem remarkably sure of this fact, Da'an pressed. If the saboteur proves more elusive than you expect, then shall you alter your plans accordingly? Or shall your pride then compel you to continue nonetheless? Zo'or was silent, and Da'an continued. Pride, Zo'or, is a failing which I had hoped we had evolved beyond some time ago.

It is not an issue of pride, Da'an, Zo'or snapped, glaring at Da'an. The issue must be our standing with humanity. If we appear weak or frightened in their eyes, their trust and respect in us shall be lessened. This can only harm our progress on this world.

Da'an scrutinized him for a moment, and Zo'or could feel his parent reaching out, probing him. You seem to know a great deal of the nature of this species, he observed. While you have avoided contact with them at every opportunity.

Zo'or, unwilling to continue the psychic contact, Zo'or turned away and stared out the viewport. He did not realize at first that he was looking directly at Earth. I am uncertain what you mean.

You have deliberately distanced yourself from the people of Earth since your appointment as leader of the Synod, Zo'or. Your unwillingness to attend the Portal Grid ceremony is an example of this.

Then I would expect you to be pleased that I have adjusted my attitude on this matter.

But you have not, Zo'or. You have only chosen to attend the ceremony so as not to risk your pride after the attempt on Ni'ram's life, not in an attempt to connect with the humans.

Zo'or repeated. You use that word a great deal, Da'an. Perhaps it is not I who is fixated on the concept. His strength of will restored, he turned back to Da'an. When he led the Synod, Quo'on nearly doomed our race by focusing too much on this insignificant species and not enough on defeating the Jaridian threat. This is an error that I must now correct.

Quo'on led the Synod for millennia, Da'an exclaimed, since before Ma'el came to this world!

And what has occurred in these millennia? Zo'or retorted. The Taelons have fallen from a strong, civilized force to a group of frightened refugees, searching desperately for a means to simply survive.

That is not the case!

It is, Da'an, Zo'or insisted. And you are certainly as aware of this as I.


Da'an paused for a moment to reassemble his thoughts. He had never sensed any such feelings in Zo'or before, and the Taelon's statement came as a complete surprise. He had of course, noted Zo'or's repeated objections to Quo'on's priorities, but this belief that he was responsible for the Taelons' plight was something Da'an had never expected.

For a year now, he had maintained a weakened link to the Commonality in order to protect Liam. During that time, it was possible that Zo'or had adjusted his opinion of his former mentor.

But had he weakened the link that much, that he could not sense such a change in Zo'or? He let his form slip for a moment, as he tested his link to the Commonality.

Quiet. Subdued. The sensation he had expected did not overcome him; he was not engulfed in the collective essence of the Taelons. Dead. His link was not to blame, the Commonality itself was no longer there, in the sense that he remembered it.

Alarmed, Da'an barely managed to assemble his facade. In only a year...This explained the erratic behavior he had observed of late. The Commonality was no longer strong enough to link all Taelons; in fact, the Taelons on the Mothership and Earth now existed in their own sort of island. Da'an could not sense anything beyond.

I believe that you, too, are misplacing your priorities, Da'an said shakily. While we must fight the Jaridians, you seem to forget that they are not the source of our greatest peril.

I decide what is our greatest peril, Da'an, said Zo'or sharply. The Jaridians are depriving us of resources and intend to destroy us. They must be dealt with. And may I remind you that I do have the Synod's support?

Da'an simply turned and left. He had to consider what he had discovered. In only a year, the Commonality had all but disappeared. Why? What had changed?

How could the damage be reversed before it was too late?


Doors Building
12:52 EST

Hello, Aman, Renee said cordially. How long has it been?

Miss Palmer, Lubata replied simply. He, Liam, and Renee were in the belly of the Doors building, only a few floors from where Doors stored the results of its projects with the Taelons. And the slightly altered versions made for Resistance use. The offices on this floor were never used for business, had no security cameras, no guards, and were not listed on the elevator. The floor was written off on the blueprint as extraneous.

In short, it was the perfect meeting place for Resistance business.

Let's get right down to it, shall we? Renee crossed her fingers and leaned across the desk toward Lubata. Not as comfortable as hers, but she'd manage. You've been going behind our backs, Aman. I wont to know for how long, with who, and why.

I'm beginning to wish I had been found by the Taelons, Lubata muttered.

We can arrange that, Renee said. For once, she was not in the mood for games. No tell me what you've been doing.

Lubata closed his eyes. About a month ago, I was contacted by someone who wanted information on interdimensional technology. He didn't give me his name, but his Taelon clearance checked out, so I gave him the data. I honestly had no idea what he was going to do with it, or that he was not legitimate.

And that was it? Renee said, narrowing her eyes at the man.

No. He contacted me again a couple weeks later, wanting more information. Again, he checked out, so I gave him the data. Lubata sighed. Then, the day before all this started, we actually met. He told me that he was with the Resistance, and that he knew of my connections to you. He told me that the Taelons would soon discover me, and that it was imperative that I return to Earth as soon as possible. He instructed me to gain all the information I could on the Portal Grid, return to Lagos as soon as I arrived on Earth, and told me that we would meet again in a few days.

Did you? Renee asked.

Yes. Yesterday. He took the information and told me that my task was complete. I was given no explanation, Miss Palmer, and I don't know who he was. I'm sorry.

You were working on the Moonbase, Liam spoke up. Didn't they give you a positioning tag?

Lubata reflexively fingered his right arm. Yes, they did. It's still in there, in fact.

Renee quickly suppressed her first reaction to the knowledge that Lubata had a Taelon homing device in his arm. Then why didn't the Taelons use that to locate you?

My...contact altered the signal so that the Taelons could not detect it, Lubata replied. Or so he told me.

Renee nodded, but noticed Liam was frowning. she asked.

Doctor Belman found a modified global positioning tag in Clarke's skrill, Liam explained.

What-you think the tags were what caused the accidents? Renee asked incredulously.

It is possible, Lubata said. An interdimensional slipstream is vulnerable to certain transmission frequencies. It was one of the major concerns when the technology was introduced to Earth; we had to be certain that all the communications traffic would not interfere with the slipstreams.

Renee was no scientist. All right, she said. Is there any way we can prove this?

Taelon Security's already examining the tag Doctor Belman found, Liam replied. We should probably take a look at yours, too, Doctor.

You'll get no argument from me, said Lubata. I never wanted the infernal device in my arm to begin with.

Renee nodded. I'll have my people take a look at it, see jost how your contact modified the signal.

I'll see about getting you the results for the other one, Liam offered.

Hopefully, this information would allow them to find any more altered positioning tags and prevent any further bombings.

Then Renee would have to decide whether this was something she truly wanted to do. After all, the saboteur had so far only targeted Taelons and their lackeys, not exactly an attitude Renee disapproved of. So long as his actions couldn't be traced back to the Resistance, she didn't see the harm.

But then, if the Taelons couldn't find the saboteur, then they would undoubtedly turn on the Resistance as a scapegoat. At best, this would mean a PR disaster for the Resistance. At worst, it would mean another crackdown.

In any case, she wouldn't have to make that decision just yet. she said, standing.

And what is going to become of me? Lubata asked quietly.

You'll be transferred to a Resistance safehouse, Renee said. We might be able to remove your identity from the Taelon database and restore you to society, but I wouldn't count on it. In any case, you should be able to live out your life in safety. She paused, letting the doctor take in this information. Or you could decide to work for us. We could certainly use your help.

Lubata closed his eyes. Either way, my life as I know it is over. Sighing, he looked at Renee. May I have a little time to think about this?

Of course. Renee motioned to a woman who was standing silently at the doorway. She'll take care of you.

Lubata nodded and stood. When he had left, Liam looked at Renee. So what do we do now?

You always assume there's a here, Liam. We really don't have anything more than we did yesterday, Liam. I still can't see a solution to this.

But now we have a way to detect when he strikes again, Liam insisted. We might be able to stop him next time.

Renee said, beginning to pace around the room. But that doesn't tell us who he is, or why he's doing this. All we know is that he's probably going to be targeting the Portal grid ceremony, and that so far the Taelons can't even detect him until a portal blows up. She looked pointedly at Liam. That's a few too many unknowns for me.

Liam nodded. So we keep looking.

Renee sighed. And hope we can turn something up before it's too late.


Western African Taelon Embassy, Abuja, Nigeria
19:06 Local (13:06 EST)

The preliminary forensics report, Agent Sandoval. The Volunteer held out a disk. As you requested.

Thank you. Sandoval took the small disk and slipped it into his Global—the temporary office he had been assigned didn't seem to have a human computer interface. Quickly, he scanned over the data, but it simply confirmed what Sandoval had known by the blast mark on the hotel lock—that either Lubata or his accomplice had been using a highly focused particle gun.

Of course, this in itself raised some interesting questions. First, energy weapons in general were more than a little difficult to come by, especially outside the United States. And the degree of focusing that was apparent from the blast mark should not be available at all to civilians; the Taelons had not released the technology. Which left the pistols issued to Volunteers.

Sandoval had suspected such an involvement ever since he was nearly run down by what was obviously a Taelon shuttle. He had already begun a check for all shuttles that were active during Lubata's escape, but it would take some time to finish. And now, it looked like he would have to start another check, for pilots who had been unaccounted for.

Keeping in mind that it wasn't just any pilot who could pull off a maneuver such as Sandoval had seen. In fact, he had only observed such flying skill in one human.

And Lili Marquette was hardly on option in this case.

Deciding it was about time to call in his other source, Sandoval flipped his Global over to vidphone. A moment later, Doctor Finn's face was staring back at him. Do you have what I asked you for? Sandoval asked, double-checking that the line was secure.

Sort of. Finn was looking around nervously. But I really don't like talking about this over the phone, secure line or not, you know? I mean, I can't even count how many protocols I'm breaking by even talking to you—

You're not talking to me, Finn, Sandoval interrupted. This conversation never took place. Now, I don't want the details on how you got the information, I only want the information, all right?

Finn looked unsure, but he nodded. Yeah. All right. We got— he fumbled with something offscreen, that made a loud rattling noise. We got your two guys on the run, all right. Really exciting to watch, too. That part with the shuttle was great—



Right. Well, the first guy was definitely Doc...the same guy we saw last night. The second guy, though, was new.

What did he look like? Sandoval demanded.

Pretty tall...least six feet, and not that heavy. Light brown hair, or dark blonde, or whatever that's called. Couldn't get a shot of his face, though.

All that fit the descriptions Osobato had gained from the old woman at the hotel. Thank you, Doctor Finn.

Hey, just doing my duty. Finn's image disappeared from the screen.

Sandoval considered for a moment the description he had, now from two different sources. He didn't like to jump to conclusions, but the man who had been described sounded very familiar. Sandoval had long suspected Major Kincaid of having sympathies with the Resistance. And, as the one Taelon protector not to be issued a skrill, Kincaid did carry a modified energy pistol. And he was an excellent shuttle pilot.

And there was his tendency to always show up right before something went wrong.

Sandoval shook his head. He was speculating. He could not think to accuse a Taelon protector of treason with only a vague description and a host of circumstantial evidence. He needed more.

Well, he would see what the full forensics report turned up.

And perhaps he would run Kincaid's picture by the two women at the hotel.

Well, Taelon protector or no, Lubata's accomplice had stolen the doctor almost literally from under Sandoval's nose. If he didn't get a lead soon, he would be the one to suffer in Lubata's place.


Taelon Moonbase
14:20 EST

After what seemed like an eternity, his commands were accepted, and the datastream came to life. Quickly, he punched another series of commands into his Global, and the datastream acknowledged the beginning of the download.

Volunteer Corporal Michael Trang had served on the Moonbase for four months, during which the high point of his duty had been escorting Zo'or to the virtual homeworld. He had very quickly become disillusioned of both the myth that the Volunteers were some ultra-secret strike team, and the myth that life as a Volunteer was in any way interesting.

In the last three days, however, he had changed his mind.

A warning on his Global told him that he was being subjected to another security check. Nervously, he made sure that the uplink was stable, and that none of the layers of his hacker code had been broken. Glancing nervously out of his alcove and into the corridor, he continued the download.

This was not his first time hacking into the Moonbase's data network; every month, Trang picked information up from the Mainframe and passed it on to the Resistance. But this information was usually limited to security arrangements, assignment listings, and the like. This time he had been instructed to retrieve all the information he could on the Portal Grid and the bombings. This data was, of course, highly classified, but so far he hadn't had any trouble.

A pair of voices appeared at the end of the hallway. Quickly, Trang ran through his options and decided that, as the download was not complete and he would likely not get anywhere if he ran, he decided to simply act normal. A Volunteer accessing a datastream was hardly reason for a security alert. As long as they didn't look too closely at what he was accessing, he should be fine.

The two voices—Volunteers—passed without incident, and Trang proceeded with the download. He was very surprised by how effective the codes that the Resistance had provided him had proven. Whoever they had working for them was quite good. He just had one more file to go—

The datastream suddenly snapped off, and alarms began to sound. Knowing only that he had just been found out somehow, Trang snapped his Global shut and burst out of the alcove, hoping to put as much distance between him and the datastream as possible.

A distant shout from behind reminded him of the two Volunteers who had passed by a bit earlier. Before he could react, a searing heat between his shoulders immobilized him, and he crashed to the deck.

As a number of armed Volunteers closed in on him, Trang decided that he liked the Moonbase a lot better when it was boring.