Mars Colony Clinic

Duo went in the opposite direction towards a stream that ran along the road. Stryfe shrugged and followed his sister, and knowing that he would calm Quynn down, Trynity marched after Duo. By the time she reached him, he had pulled off his bloodied tunic and was washing it out in the water.

"We have to talk," she announced.

He didn't turn around from his task. "We have nothing to say." He paused to look more closely at the garment and she noticed a splotch of green mingling with the blood. "What is this odor? That monster must have dripped something on my clothing."

"You are not going to distract me!" She grabbed his arm and tried to force him to turn around, but he resisted. He was like an unmovable tree. With exasperation she snapped, "Look at me when I am speaking to you!"

He tossed aside the tunic and straightened. Now he towered over her and she wondered if she had made a mistake. He blocked out the sun with his height. "You cannot change my mind about Malik Winner. The next time I see him here, it will be the last time he draws a breath."

"How do you expect to have a relationship with Quynn if you treat her like a Calabrian female who must be protected from her own decisions?" Trynity laughed. "What was all that business about the honor of your house? What house do you have, Duo Maxwell? A son you did not even claim?"

Duo clenched his fist, but he did not raise it. "I have worked hard to earn respect. I'm not the same foolish boy that you remember. Quynn needs guidance that you do not, or cannot, give her."

"How dare you…" Trynity was so furious she couldn't even draw a breath.

"Sneaking around and lying was your specialty, isn't it?" He raised a brow. "I'm not surprised that you would hand that skill down to your daughter."

She stared at him in shock.

He returned her gaze with absolutely no feeling in his eyes.

Trynity felt tears building and her throat tightening, but she managed to say, "You have gotten what you came for. I think it is time that you leave." Then she turned and hurried back to the clinic.

The sight of the ailing people waiting for her help was almost overwhelming, and she pushed her way through without looking at them. When she was finally in the clinic, she dropped to her knees and pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes. She didn't have time to cry!

"Mom?" Stryfe had followed her inside. "Are you all right?"

She nodded and was thankful that the urge to cry had passed. "I have a headache."

"So does Quynn. I think both of you caught it from Duo Maxwell." Stryfe shoved his hands in his pockets. "Mom, you don't think Maxwell is right about Malik, do you?"

She looked at him as she stood and smoothed out her lab coat. "How can you ask such a question?"

Stryfe looked down at his feet and shrugged. "I heard some rumors at the Academy, but I didn't believe any of it. A lot of guys were jealous of his money."

"What kind of rumors?" asked Trynity fearfully. She would die of shame if Duo proved to be right.

"We had better talk about this later. There's at least five sick children among the patients."

She nodded. "You're right. I want to see the children first."

The door opened and Shamara slipped inside. "Do you want any help, Dr. Nelson?"

Trynity went to her. "I'm sure witnessing the death of Elder Hardane must be quite shocking to you, but such occurrences are a way of life here. You were not hurt in the boreworm attack?"

"I was not harmed. My mother is going to be upset about his death. She was hoping he could shed some light on the history of our people." Shamara sighed and gave Trynity a sympathetic look. "As for Lord Duo's behavior, well, I am Calabrian. I have heard the same speech many times delivered to my sisters and me. Lord Duo is only trying to protect her."

"She doesn't need protection," stated Trynity emphatically. She nodded to Stryfe who left and returned quickly with a sick little girl. She was coughing and wheezing, and listening to her chest, she found it filled with fluid, so Trynity decided to dose her with an antibiotic.

"Where is your mother?" she asked the wide-eyed child who looked as though she hadn't bathed in weeks.

"Mama is gone," she said.

Sighing, Trynity turned away to prepare. The child's mother was likely another victim of the forced labor in the mines. After her child's father had been dragged to the mines, she had probably turned to prostitution to survive and was killed by some brigand that had no respect for human life. What future did this little girl have to look forward to? Hearing the child whimpering now, frightened and sick, Trynity had to push back her own feelings. She couldn't become emotionally involved with her patients. That phrase been repeated over and over again to her, first by her teachers at medical school, then by the supervisors at the hospitals where she had completed her training.

"You have very pretty eyes," she heard Shamara say. "If you cry, they will become red and puffy. Let me wipe your tears away."

Trynity turned around with the hypodermic needle in her hand. Shamara had squatted before the little girl and was gently wiping away the tears from her soiled face. Immediately the child stopped whimpering and she stared in awe at Shamara. Shamara took her face between her hands, and Trynity watched as a faint white glow outlined Shamara, then encompassed the little girl. After a moment, she released her and patted her head.

The little girl flashed her a toothless smile, and Trynity waited a moment for her to cough or wheeze when taking a breath. When she didn't, Trynity took her stethoscope and listened to her lungs and found them clear. "You feel better?" she asked her.

The little girl nodded, and Trynity lead her back out to the woman who had brought her to the clinic. The woman had been feeding the child scraps from her table and decided to bring her to the clinic when she started to sound like a dying animal. Trynity told her that the child hadn't been as sick as they thought. She had to say something to explain her miraculous recovery or people seeking Shamara's cure would overrun the clinic. She told Stryfe to hold off the next patient until she had a chance to talk to Shamara.

Shamara was standing at the window with her arms raised to the sky, her eyes closed. Trynity knew she was praying, so she waited until she finished before speaking. "If I hadn't heard the story of your uncle resurrecting your mother and read Duo's medical report, I wouldn't believe what I just saw."

Shamara appeared to be worried. "I couldn't let her suffer, Dr. Nelson."

"I understand." She stared at Shamara for a moment, then said, "To see a sick child is heart-breaking. If you are certain you will not be harmed, I will allow you to heal them, but only if you allow me to observe how you do it."

Shamara smiled. "I have been given the power by the gods."

Trynity thought there was a more logical reason, so after fixing wireless sensors to collect data beneath Shamara's hair where they couldn't be seen, she settled at her scope and watched the changes in Shamara's brain waves as she cared for the half dozen children. As Trynity suspected, there was a change in a part of the brain that was not utilized by humans. Had the Guerani people learned to control the pulses of their brains? Could a human also learn to do it?

After the children had been cared for, Trynity insisted that Shamara wear gloves when touching the patients so that she would not be tempted to heal them. Shamara agreed because she was feeling drained from using her powers. Trynity decided to attach the sensors to her own head, then went about caring for her patients. The sun had already disappeared under the horizon before she was able to turn back to the scope. She printed the results of both tests, then accompanied Shamara back to the house.

Master Nazzar expressed his sympathy to Shamara over the death of Elder Hardane. The two men had struck up a friendship, so he genuinely regretted the death. Duo was sitting in the chair that Lars used to sit in to rest after a day at the spaceport where he managed flight schedules when not piloting his own transport. Whereas Lars would come to kiss her and bring her a cold drink after such a grueling day at the clinic, Duo sat watching her, drumming his fingers on the arms of the padded chair. Trynity felt disoriented and sad, and she desperately wished she could feel Lars' comforting arms around her.

Stryfe popped his head out from the kitchen. "I'll have the meal on the table in a jiffy. So don't worry, Mom."

Remembering his remark earlier, she set aside her papers and joined him. He had a special dish set aside for Shamara and Taeron, and Trynity cringed as she imagined him digging under rocks to find a meal the Calabrian princess could stomach.

"I want to discuss what you said earlier today," she said, leaning against the counter and looking at his face.

Stryfe was stirring soup, and he didn't look at her. "There were some girls who claimed he did some things to them…"

"What kinds of things?" asked Trynity.

Stryfe shrugged. "You know girls."

Trynity frowned at him. "Apparently, I don't know girls. Maybe you should explain yourself."

Her son stopped stirring and turned to look at her. "They all knew Malik could pay to shut them up, so they started making up stories."

"Is that his version?" Trynity squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, then looked at him again. "What did they say?"

"It's ridiculous, Mom! You wouldn't believe it! I didn't believe it!"

"I'd like to be given the chance to hear what was said and I will judge for myself."

He looked away from her. "They said he liked to cut them and suck their blood when they…well…you know."

Trynity stared at him in disbelief. "How many woman made the same claim?"

"I don't know. Five or six that Malik told me about."

"Malik told you!" Trynity wondered if Malik just casually brought up his bizarre blood-sucking fetish. How would such a thing come up in a conversation? "Five or six?!"

Stryfe shifted uncomfortably and rubbed his neck. "Malik just wanted me to know that it wasn't true, that these women were making up stories to get money. His father paid them all generously to stop slandering him."

"Did any of these women have a link to each other?" When Stryfe didn't respond, Trynity slammed her hand on the counter.

"Why didn't you tell me? Does Quynn know about any of this?"

"If she does, she has never mentioned it to me."

Somehow Malik had managed to keep his disgusting secret from Quynn. "I think we had better tell her the truth, don't you?"

"Well, she's so pissed that she's locked her door. When I tried to talk to her, she only had some choice words about Duo Maxwell."

"I suppose it's better to let her cool off."

As she suspected, Quynn did not come to the table to eat, but neither did Taeron, so Trynity wondered if the two had an argument. Taeron took his duties seriously, both as imperial guard and as brother. He and Quynn had seemed to get along very well until today. Quynn just didn't understand the highly patriarchal Calabrian society. Trynity had learned that although women were given greater respect since Trey's ascent to the imperial throne, men still sheltered and protected them in order to maintain the honor of their house. When had Duo become a Calabrian? He acted every bit as primitive as any Calabrian despite his human blood and upbringing.

The meal was a quiet affair. The death of Elder Hardane could be blamed as much as the outburst between Duo and Quynn. Duo didn't seem to notice the empty chair beside Shamara or beside him where Quynn had put herself for every meal. Between spoonfuls of soup, he reached in to Shamara's bowl for more traditional Calabrian fare. Trynity kept her eyes away from them.

"Did you try these?" she heard Shamara ask, breaking the silence. "They are particularly tasty."

Trynity heard some crunching, then Duo said, "You are right. Where did you get them, Stryfe?"

"You don't want to know."

Trynity sighed with relief.

"Well, now that Hardane is gone," remarked Duo, "how are the scripts going to be translated. Master Nazzar, I believe you have some knowledge in Guerani writing."

"I have not studied it extensively," the old man told him.

"I would be willing to look at them," offered Stryfe. "Elder Hardane had taught me some elements of the symbols. I think if I tried, I might be able to decipher more."

"Stryfe has mastered several languages," pointed out Trynity, quite proud of her son's accomplishments. She had only been able to learn Calabrian, and then only out of necessity. "He spent a summer in Alexandria studying ancient hieroglyphs."

Duo glanced at Trynity. "In that case, we may have to delay our departure to give Stryfe time to study the scrolls."

She felt her cheeks heat, and she looked quickly at her food. Trynity was ashamed that Duo's intuition was proving to be more correct than her logical conclusions about Malik. Her mistake proved she was an awful judge of human character.

After the meal concluded, Trynity separated herself from the group to sit at her desk with the stack of papers she had brought from the clinic. She found it difficult to concentrate on the graphs and diagrams and the information printed from the scope. Her brain patterns were so different from Shamara's that she began to lose hope that a human could use the portion of the brain that Shamara had tapped to heal those children.

Then she noticed one particular report showed a trace of activity in her own brain. She looked at the name of the patient and sighed. The young woman was pregnant with her first child, her husband had disappeared, and now she was suffering from pain in her head. Upon examination, Trynity discovered she had an inoperable tumor and would die before the child could be born. The distress she felt for the woman was agonizing until she remembered the warnings of her teachers. Had she not distanced herself, she was sure she couldn't have seen any more patients that day. Although she made arrangements to have the woman transported to L12 for care, Trynity knew it was useless. The woman and her unborn child were going to die.

Shamara came to sit near her. "I feel your sadness, even across the room."

Trynity looked at her. "Sometimes I don't think I can bear the suffering of others."

"Yet you continue to ease their pain."

Trynity looked back at her papers. "How did you learn to heal?"

"I watched my mother's brother. When I showed an interest, Apolo helped me to learn the skill. His gift is very strong."

"He taught you?" Trynity sat back in her chair to look at her. "Do you think you could teach me?"

Shamara shook her head. "Our ability is a gift from the gods."

Although she knew Shamara wouldn't understand, Trynity showed her the printouts and explained them in simple terms she could understand. She concluded by saying, "You have no additional part of your brain that I do not. What you have is the ability to channel healing energy from within."

"It is very difficult," said Shamara. "At first I would become very sick and depressed."

"You must give me lessons, as Apolo did with you."

Shamara sighed. "How can I do so when you do not show our gods the reverence to which they are entitled? You speak of physical abilities, and yet the healing power comes from the heart and from the gods. After I heal, I give thanks to the gods for allowing me to be a humble servant of their mercy. Would you do the same?"

Trynity had no response. She did not believe in supernatural powers. If there were higher beings, then why had they allowed her life to tangle so badly? What had she done to lose her mother, and why had they closed the wormhole, separating her from the first person to give her life meaning.

Now a ripple of calm washed through Trynity, and she realized that Shamara had laid her hand over hers. "The gods have heard your cries. Did they not bring Lord Duo back to you?"

Drawing her hand away from the princess, she said, "I don't think anyone understands the workings of space. But I highly doubt some mystical beings are responsible for the rips and tears that form wormholes."

"Even knowing the story of my father and mother, you still cannot believe?" Innocent, trusting Shamara could not fathom Trynity's skepticism. Perhaps it was useless to argue with her.

"I know what I saw, Shamara. Your father did not enter that wormhole because the gods had preordained it. He was in a drug-induced state and was attempting suicide."

"He told me," argued Shamara, "that hearing my cries saved his life. Surely the gods had allowed him to hear what another would not."

"Shamara, what saved his life was that the energy surge from the wormhole temporarily shorted out the self-detonation sequence in his gundam."

The young princess sighed. "Some day, Dr. Nelson, you will need to call upon the gods for help."

"And they will not be there because I have scorned them?" Trynity raised a brow. They hadn't been there for her up to now.

"The gods are more forgiving that we mortals. If you believe in them, they will come to you."

Trynity looked away. That was not likely to happen in the near future.

"Master Nazzar," spoke up Stryfe, looking up from his examination of a scroll. Trynity noted that it was the scroll that was splattered with blood, the scroll that had cost the Calabrian scholar his life. "I see this symbol repeatedly throughout the text. Do you understand the significance?"

The old man looked at the scroll, and Trynity was sure his eyes had widened in surprise before he looked away. "That symbol represents the demi-god, Camridaeus, guardian of the underworld."

"Why do you suppose Hardane copied it so many times? Could this be a story about Camridaeus?"

Master Nazzar shrugged, then steepled his fingers and sat back. But he said no more.

Shamara looked at the scroll. "I remember seeing those symbols in the cave." She looked directly at the Bayman teacher. "Is there something you do not wish us to know? Perhaps it may explain the elder's death."

Trynity sighed. "Shamara, the elder was consumed by a boreworm. Usually they hide underground, but occasionally they come up for nourishment. I doubt the beast stopped to read the writing on wall before deciding to kill the elder."

Shamara ignored her. "Please, master, will you tell us something?"

He still hesitated, then with a deep sigh, he said, "There is a cult following of Camridaeus, which began thousands of years ago, before the age of recorded time. There have always been small sects on Calabria, but within the last decade it has spread to Bayman where it has flourished."

Stryfe dug through other scrolls. "I remember now that I had seen reference to a god of the underworld who was considered protector of all that was rejected during creation. Was it Camridaeus?"

"Well," commented Trynity, "at least the gods aren't perfect."

Duo snorted. "So the Calabrians have a god protecting losers? And there are people on Bayman worshipping such a god? What does that say about those dogs?"

Master Nazzar contemplated Stryfe in silence for a moment before saying, "Dagmaeus became lord of the underworld and all those that inhabit it," said Master Nazzar. "His minions are those that we might consider monsters and beasts."

"God of monsters! How did he get so lucky?" Duo laughed and Trynity was beginning to think his views on the gods mirrored her own. Then why did she hear him invoke them? Was it just a figure of speech?

"He was cursed by the high god Iator himself, for worshipping another above him. That would be his beloved Ulfyna." Master Nazzar turned to look at Shamara.

"Ulfyna!" she exclaimed. "I have heard that name only recently in my dreams!"

"You assuredly did not hear it on Calabria. Her name was struck from the sacred writings, as well as the names of Camrin and Dagmaeus."

"Who is Camrin?" asked Trynity when Shamara covered her mouth with her hand as her eyes widened. Did the mention of forbidden deities have the power to frighten the Calabrians?

Stryfe answered before Nazzar could speak. "My guess is that Camridaeus was known as Camrin before he was elevated to status of demi-god. Based on the addition of the letters…"

"Go on," urged Trynity before Stryfe rushed headlong in a grammatical lesson on the ancient language of Calabria.

"Indeed, the young man is correct. When Camrin was given the immortality of a god, his name was altered to reflect his new status. In his case, though, immortality was to be his curse because he was forced to spend it without the woman he loved."

"He loved Ulfyna very much," murmured Shamara dreamily.

"So who was this woman whose attraction was powerful enough to inspire blasphemy?" asked Duo with a raised brow. "I think I'd like to meet her."

Stryfe chuckled. "I think I have met her in a few of my dreams. There was one particular night…"

Trynity cleared her throat. "Please continue, master."

Nazzar wriggled his shaggy brows at the two men and Trynity wanted to kick them all. Even the old man had his mind in the gutter. He took a breath. "One day, Dagmaeus, most favored son of Iator, went on a hunt in the forest with his foster brother, Camrin. They spotted a rare silver wolf and chased the magnificent animal for days."

"I would have given up after a few hours," commented Duo.

"I'd rather read about hunts." remarked Stryfe.

Trynity didn't look at Duo's reaction to that statement.

Nazzar coughed in a sorry attempt to cover his chuckle. "As I was saying, they hunted the silver wolf for days and finally ran it down beneath an ancient, sacred tree. But before Dagmaeus could make the kill, a beautiful woman dropped from a tree and begged him to spare the animal's life."

Duo grunted. "I don't need to see the writing on the wall to know what happened next. Dagmaeus agreed if she would allow him to use his sword on her instead."

Stryfe laughed, then bit his lip when Trynity and Shamara frowned at him.

Master Nazzar also snickered.

"The stories don't change, only the names," remarked Duo. "I seem to recall a few Greek myths that are similar. Beautiful nymph plus powerful god – I think I know what the result is."

"I wasn't aware you paid attention in Mrs. Drivel's class," remarked Trynity with a raised brow.

"Babe, I got better grades than you."

"Hush!" snapped Shamara with a glare at him. "If you don't want to hear the story, then go polish your own sword."

Trynity smiled and looked away as Stryfe guffawed with laughter. The princess was obviously too innocent to understand the implication of what she had said.

Duo chuckled, then stood. "Not a bad suggestion, Shamara. You can fill me in with the details of this love and betrayal nonsense later."

Trynity watched him go. If she had any sense, she would go to bed. It had been an exhausting day and she suspected that tomorrow would be worse. There seemed to be an epidemic of debilitating lung infections, so she knew the sick would be camping out at the clinic doors in the morning. Yet she couldn't leave. Deep inside she had a romantic streak and wanted to hear the Calabrian tale.

"Go on," urged Shamara.

Master Nazzar continued. "The legend goes that both Dagmaeus and Camrin fell deeply in love with the female. She was called Ulfyna in honor of the wolf she protected. While Camrin's affections for Ulfyna were as deep as the feelings Dagmaeus had, Dagmaeus was the god of fire, earth and the winds. He laid prior claim to her."

"Did she have any say in the matter?" wondered Trynity aloud.

"In a way," answered Nazzar. "She ultimately made her choice. But at the time, she agreed to take the place of the silver wolf, so Dagmaeus returned her to the palace of his father where the mighty Iator ordered her to marry his besotted son. She agreed to do so in exchange for his eternal protection of the wolves she had left behind."

"I have never seen a wolf on Calabria," said Shamara. "Although I have read that they lived there, and I have seen drawings of them, I had not seen a real wolf until…until..."

"Your trances?" supplied Master Nazzar.

She nodded.

"I sense a dramatic twist," said Stryfe.

Master Nazzar nodded. "The wedding was celebrated with a great ceremony and much rejoicing because Dagmaeus was powerful among the gods. During the feast, Ulfyna left to prepare for her bridal bed."

"What happened next?" asked Shamara breathlessly when Nazzar paused to take a drink of water. She was leaning closer to the man from Bayman.

"When Dagmaeus finally left the feast to join in his beautiful bride, he found that she had already taken Camrin into her arms."

"I guess she made her choice loud and clear," said Stryfe.

"Oh!" Shamara was shocked and dismayed.

Trynity was not. Forest nymphs were not usually known for their virtue. She was rather disappointed with the outcome of the story. Yet another romance tarnished by sex.

"What happened next?" asked Stryfe. "Did Dagmaeus kill Camrin and that is why he is cursed?"

"What became of Ulfyna?" demanded Shamara.

Master Nazzar held up his hand. "Hold your questions. I can only tell you what I know."

"You seem to know quite a bit about a forbidden tale," commented Trynity dryly.

"Hush!" Shamara turned on her now. "You are no better than Lord Duo!"

"This tale is quite predictable." But Trynity said no more. She decided to stay to hear the conclusion of the tale."

"The legend tells of Dagmaeus' anger, that he drove his sword through the heart of Ulfyna. She died in Camrin's arms."

"Oh!" sobbed Shamara. "Poor Camrin!"

"What did Dagmaeus do next? End his own life?" asked Trynity.

"No one knows what became of Dagmaeus. He fled the palace and was never seen again."

"I guess even the gods can feel guilty," commented Trynity. "He must have been very distraught."

Master Nazzar smiled at her. "I assure you that he was."

How could he assure her when Dagmaeus was never seen again? Trynity wondered what the old man wasn't saying.

"So Camrin began to worship the dead Ulfyna and the high god cast him into the underworld for his blasphemy." Stryfe sighed as he finished the story. "Such tragedy."

"Why was Elder Hardane frightened by what he read in the cave?" asked Shamara. "He was terrified!"

"What Elder Hardane read is a mystery to us that perhaps this young man might be able to solve." Master Nazzar rose. "I am sorry that I must retire to my bed. I am old and need my rest."

After he had gone, Stryfe said, "I don't think he told us everything."

"I agree," said Trynity as she also stood. "But I do not care. It is merely a myth." She noticed that Shamara was wiping tears from her eyes. Of course she would be deeply affected by the sad tale of her gods.

Stryfe unrolled a scroll. "I'm going to give this a look and then talk to Quynn before I go to bed."

Trynity kissed his cheek. "Don't stay up too late trying to make sense of those scribbles."

As she made her way to the room she had moved into while the Calabrians occupied her own master suite, she noticed that Shamara had slipped outside and that Stryfe set aside his work to follow. Taeron was strangely in dereliction of his sworn duty.

Knowing that Duo was alone, Trynity decided to speak to him, and to tell him that she was now in full agreement about Malik Winner. She hated to admit that he had been right all along, but she hoped her admission might prove to Duo that she was a more responsible parent than he thought.

She raised her hand to knock on the door, but he called for her to enter before she could. Shrugging, she stepped inside. "How did you know I was there?"

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, the sword across his lap. For a moment she thought of Lars sitting in just that spot waiting for her to come to bed. And when she did, he would pulled her onto his lap and…

"I heard your approach. What do you want?"

She shook her head to clear her thoughts of Lars. Trynity didn't want to go to her lonely bed with those images on her mind. Seeing Duo was bad enough…

"Do you need something?" asked Duo impatiently.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"I didn't think you came here for any other reason." Duo set aside his sword. "Are you going to talk or shout at me?"

She shifted uneasily. "I…I wanted to say that I was wrong about Malik Winner."

Duo raised his brows and folded his arms over his chest. "This is interesting. Trynity Stryfe Nelson admits that she has made a mistake."

"I've made a lot of mistakes," she retorted, clenching her fists. "Not the least of which was getting involved with you!"

"You've recovered pretty damn well from that debacle." He stood. "Is that all you came to tell me? I knew you were wrong about Winner all along, and although I knew about all your other faults, I never told anyone else."

"You are impossible!"

Duo chuckled as he took a step closer to her. "And you are finding it too damn hard to be humble." He thought she was quite beautiful when she was angry. Her cheeks were pink, her eyes were dark, and as she stood before him rigidly making fists at her side, he wanted to find a way to soften her up despite herself. She was a prickly thistle again. Would he get the chance to see her blossom, or was it too? She hadn't fled yet, so Duo was encouraged. She was trying to think of some rejoinder that would thoroughly deflate his ego. Trynity didn't realize he had no ego where she was concerned.

She seemed to realize how foolish she might look although Duo thought she was rather adorable, because she relaxed her stance. "Stryfe gave me some information concerning Malik's relations with women that puts me in total agreement with you."

Duo reached out to touch her hair. He couldn't resist, and he was glad that she didn't step away. Trynity looked up at him, her eyes wide, her lips moist and parted. He thought of the day in the clinic when she had gotten carried away with her massage. Should he kiss her? She so clearly wanted it. What else did she want?

She swallowed nervously and swayed toward him. "I guess I should have a talk with Quynn."

"If you think she'll listen." He pushed his fingers further into her hair. He liked her tangled locks and was glad she had not cut it.

"You do realize that you can't come in and change things overnight?" she asked softly.

Duo smiled at her. "I can try." Trynity seemed rather pliable, so he reached out to undo the top button of her blouse.

She lifted a hand and he thought she might stop him, but instead she unbuttoned the second button. He didn't know which of them did the rest. Rational thought was starting to drain out of his head as she shrugged off her blouse. She kept her eyes on him as she reached behind to unhook the silly lacy pink bra she was wearing. A gift from Relena? Her brows drew together after a moment, and she started to yank on it. Duo realized she couldn't get it off, and before he could stop himself, he jerked the dagger from his belt.

Trynity gasped as he raised it. "What…what are you going to do with that?"

He slipped the blade beneath the flimsy lace that held the stubborn undergarment together at the front. This was a fantasy he hadn't had the imagination to have. Her chest was rising and falling so fast that he was surprised she didn't fall out of her lingerie. Duo was enjoying the sight so much that he waited before turning the blade to slice through the lace.

She moaned and fell toward him, and the dagger clattered to the floor.

But just as he brought her to him and was about to kiss her, the door flung open. "Lord Duo, Quynn is gone!" Stryfe was standing in the doorway clutching a note. When he saw what he had interrupted, his face turned several shades of red similar to those in his mother's hair, then spun around as Trynity scrambled to look for her blouse. Now where had that gone to?

"Mom, are you decent yet?" demanded Stryfe as he shifted anxiously.

Trynity looked on the bed, under the bed, and Duo enjoyed watching her until she shot him a glare and snatched the severed ends of her bra to hold together. "Where's my shirt?" she finally whispered furiously to him.

Duo shrugged. "I think you got rid of it."

Stryfe made a sound the conveyed both his impatience and his embarrassment.

Trynity found her blouse hanging over a lamp and quickly put it on.

"Do you need any help?" Duo could not resist asking.

She shot him a glare then had to turn her attention to the problem of her destroyed bra. Unfortunately she caught Duo watching, so she turned her back on him, pulled the shirt off and jerked off the bra before slipping the blouse back on. Duo turned back to Stryfe, not because he wasn't still interested in Trynity, but because he had a sudden attack of conscience. Their son was standing in the room and Duo was watching her like a randy goat.

"What did you say about Quynn?" Trynity asked before he could speak.

Although he was still embarrassed, Stryfe turned around and handed her the note. Trynity unfolded it, and then gasped. "She's gone to be with Malik!"

Stryfe turned to Duo. "You have to help!"

"Now suddenly you want my help?" Duo understood their fear. Although he didn't know exactly what Stryfe had revealed about Malik, he guessed it was something so obscene that they didn't want Quynn near him. Why hadn't Stryfe spoken up sooner? The boy's behavior was so moronically erratic that Duo was painfully reminded of himself.

"You have to go there and get her back now!" cried Trynity, grabbing his arm.

"That won't be necessary," he told them.

She dropped his arm and stepped away. "I heard you threaten him! Didn't you mean it? Or are you all talk?"

"I told you that it won't be necessary. Taeron will keep her safe."

"Taeron!?" She put her hands on her hips. Duo doubted they would be getting back to what Stryfe interrupted any time soon. "He is just a boy!"

"Older than I was when I stepped into the Deathscythe. Taeron knows his duty. He will not shame me."

"Who gives a damn about you and your honor?" demanded Trynity. "My daughter is in danger and you trust a boy to keep her safe from a blood-sucking pervert."

Blood-sucking pervert? What kind of upbringing did he get from Lars, Trynity, Quatre and Dorothy? He couldn't resist looking at the woman who claimed to know Malik so well, and she immediately went on the offensive again.

"Are you going to do something or not?"

"No." Duo reached out to her, but she slapped his hand away. "I cannot do anything, not while Taeron is protecting her. If I interfere, he will be shamed."

"Shamed? Do you think I care about his shame or yours?" She turned to Stryfe. "We are going there to get her now!"

Before she could reach the door, Duo grabbed her arm. "You are not going anywhere. Winner would like nothing more than to have you walk right into his lair."

He saw by the look in her eyes that he had hit home. But she jerked her arm away. "I will never forgive you if anything happens to my daughter."

"I must trust Taeron."

Trynity pushed past Stryfe and left the room.

Duo looked at Stryfe. "Can I trust you to keep your mother here?"

Stryfe shoved his hands in his pocket. "It's the least I can do. Are you afraid for Taeron?"

"Taeron is a Calabrian imperial guard." Duo sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I wouldn't be human if I didn't fear for him. But as I told your mother, I must trust him. You cannot possibly understand how much this means to him."

"I think I do," said Stryfe, putting a hand on his arm. "Taeron is proving his worthiness to be called your son." The hand dropped away, and Stryfe turned to leave. "I only wish I could somehow do the same."

Before Duo could respond, Stryfe walked out. Duo shut the door behind him and stared at it for a moment. He hadn't thought that Stryfe wanted anything to do with him. Well, he couldn't worry about that problem now. He bent down to retrieve his dagger, and smiled to himself as he thought of its most recent use. Too bad Stryfe had interrupted when he did and with the news he had. Then again, it was probably just as well. He wasn't certain of Trynity's feelings for him, and Duo didn't want to leave Mars Colony with another crack in his heart.

The door opened and Shamara walked in.

Duo didn't really have any privacy anyway. He tucked the dagger in his belt and picked up his sword.

"Are you going somewhere?" asked Shamara as he pushed open the window.

He swung a leg out the window. "If anyone asks, I was here all night."

Shamara came to the window after he was all the way out. "I won't tell Taeron you were watching out for him."

Duo waved to her as he hurried away from the house into the darkness of the night.