~~~

Emma knew full well that in order for him to make the decision he and Shalimar would have to be face to face. Brennan started to back way as if he was going to run again but Emma stopped him "you can't run Brennan. I will simply bring you back here"

"I can't do this. Please don't ask me to do this" he yelled and Emma realized he wasn't pleading with her but rather Shalimar.

"It's ok Emma you can leave"

"Shal?" asked Emma

"It's ok" she said again. Emma looked from her to Brennan and back to her before nodding in agreement. She turned to leave when Shalimar called out to her "remember your promise Emma"

Turning to her friend one last time Emma replied "I won't" and then disappeared

~~~

[Sanctuary]

"Emma?" asked Jesse when he noticed she had broken the link

"Adam you can begin" she said ignoring Jesse. She couldn't bear to look him in the eye. She knew how close he and Shalimar were and to acknowledge that now would cause her to lose whatever nerve she had of going through with Shalimar's request.

Adam didn't say a word he simply aimed and turned on the machine

~~~

[Brennan and Shalimar's mind]

They stood staring into each other's eyes for what felt like an eternity. Brennan wanted nothing more than grab and hold onto her forever but as he looked into her eyes his resolve began to break.

Suddenly their surroundings began to fade and two white tunnels appeared: one behind Brennan and one behind Shalimar. Knowing that this was the moment of truth Shalimar pleaded one last time with the man she loved

"Just let go" quietly she said letting a lone tear roll down her cheek

The emotional flood gates burst open as Brennan began to cry uncontrollably. Slowly nodding his head he hugged and kissed her before allowing her to back away from him and towards her tunnel of light.

After a moment Brennan turned and headed towards his own door, all the while praying that when he awoke it would be to her smiling face.

~~~

[Sanctuary]

The silence was so thick Emma was sure it could be cut with a knife. Adam had turned off the machine a minute ago to find that the physical separation was a success. He was now in the process of healing Shalimar's injuries while the rest of them waited to see if Brennan allowed Shalimar's mind to return to her own body.

After several moments of nothing Emma decided to go through with Shalimar's wishes and she began to charge a mental blast

"Emma what are you doing?" asked a shocked Jesse

She ignored him but as she made ready to release the blast Brennan began to stir. Retracting the blast she leaned in and placed a hand on his shoulder "Brennan can you hear me?"

He slowly opened his eyes and looked at her "Emma how is Shal?" he asked in a hoarse tone

Emma was about to answer when another female voice did it for her "she has the worst headache but other than that she is fine"

Brennan quickly whipped his head towards the voice and had to struggle to hold back the tears when he saw Shalimar's smiling face looking at him. Without saying a word he reached and took her hand in his, tightly entwining their fingers. Her smile grew wider as she tightened her fingers around his before losing consciousness.

A rush of panic spread through Brennan like nothing he had ever felt before and he started to rise off the table. But Adam quickly silenced his fear "She is fine Brennan. She is just weak and needs to rest as do you"

Brennan nodded and put his head back down on the pillow and only removed his gaze from her when sleep overtook him

"Let's let them rest" suggested Adam

"Are they really going to be ok?" inquired Emma

"Physically their scans say yes, mentally I don't know" Adam replied

~~~

TBC...Almost there guys just hang in a little longer b/c there is only one chapter left!! Keep them reviews coming too..I love reading them.