OKAY GUYS JUST READ THIS BEFORE GETTING INTO THE CHAPTER!! Just wanted to warn you ahead of time that there's a bit of detail in this chapter that might make some people feel uncomfortable...coz I know I felt weird just writing it, so I had to say something ahead of time. The rest of this story will stay with the PG-13 Rating I gave it, but this part I'm gonna say is Rated R, to be on the safe side. Alright then, consider yourselves warned!

X3, Flame21, Sparkyone & Simone: Thank you guys so much for your replies! It makes this so much more fun to write!

********

Harper stared up at the Neitzschean for a moment, disbelievingly.

"Whatever they did to you it's obviously worse than I thought," he began, warily.

"It's the truth," Gaheris replied, still smirking.

"It can't be," Harper insisted. "It's impossible...Gaheris Rhade's been dead for over 300 years! Hell I've seen his corpse! I was closer to it than you're standing to me right now...and you're definitely much more animated than it was..."

"Yes, I've heard about that," Gaheris said ignoring Harper's comments, his tone deadly quiet. "I want very much to speak with my old friend, Dylan Hunt, again..."

"You heard about that?" Harper asked pointedly. "If you're who you say you are wouldn't you have been there?"

"Your understanding of the situation is not important," Gaheris said, his manner becoming serious rather quickly. "You're here for a reason."

"Alright look, this is too creepy," Harper said, shaking his head. "If you're Gaheris Rhade you shouldn't be breathing! Neitzscheans may be genetically engineered but I know they don't come back from the dead..."

"I didn't come back from the dead, that was avoided," the Neitzschean stated quickly.

"What are you talking-"

"That's enough!" Gaheris interrupted, icily. "I've told you, your understanding is not important. You're going to do what we want-"

"We? Who's we?" Harper cut in, then shrinking back into his chair as best he could, as Gaheris stepped right up next to him, leaning down until their faces were inches apart.

"Let us be certain we have an understanding between us, kludge," he said with an air of disgust. "There will be no more questions from you. You don't need to know anything more about me...you should be more concerned about yourself, and the task before you."

"The task before me?" Harper repeated, a wry grin spreading across his face. "Has anyone ever mentioned that you might have some kinda bipolar disorder?" he asked, derisively. "Maybe you should have someone check that out, I'm sure there's some sort of medica-" he was cut off roughly as the Neitzschean's large hand clamped down on his throat.

"What was that?" Gaheris asked, his eyes flashing lividly.

"Sorry..." Harper choked out, and the grip loosened slightly, allowing him a bit more air to continue on in a strained voice. "Maybe that word was too tough for you...how about you have really bad mood swings, better?"

"We don't have time for this, mutt," Gaheris spat, tightening his grip at once, as Harper's eyes rolled upwards, and he struggled to take in oxygen.

"Are you going to listen now?" Gaheris asked after a long moment. The blonde engineer could barely nod his reply, as dark spots started to blot out his vision. The Neitzschean hesitated briefly, before releasing the grip on the small human's neck.

Harper immediately slumped in his chair, gulping in air with relief, while the larger man took a step back, watching him.

"What do you want from me?" Harper managed to ask when he was breathing somewhat normally again.

"I've already told you," Gaheris said evenly. "The Andromeda."

"What?" Harper half-laughed, his expression showing exactly how absurd he considered that statement. "You're kidding, right?"

The smirk quickly left his face as Gaheris moved to advance on him again.

"Alright, alright, you're not kidding," Harper said quickly, scrunching his head to his shoulders as it was all he could do to defend his neck. "Why do you need me for this though?"

"Because I've been told that you know the workings of that ship better than anyone else, better even, then Dylan Hunt himself."

"You've been told, huh?" Harper remarked flatly, biting his tongue against his natural impulse to confirm the Neitzschean's statement. "Care to share your sources?"

"It's of no importance."

"Then how do you know it's a reliable one?" Harper shot back quickly.

"It is," Gaheris replied curtly. "And you are wasting my time again with your questions."

"No you're wasting your time," Harper stated, heatedly. "And mine! What makes you think I'd ever do this for you? You bring me here, pretending to be someone else, make me sit in a sub-zero room for hours and then tell me that you want me to betray my friends and more than likely send them to their deaths and you think I'll agree to help you...? Whoever brought you back obviously didn't worry about the damage it would do to your brain..."

Rhade stared darkly at him for a long moment, his expression unreadable, before he turned away from the smaller man, and strode wordlessly to the door. The resonating sound of the heavy lock sliding into place could be heard once more, leaving only silence in its wake.

Letting his guard drop a little now that he was alone again, Harper exhaled loudly, and slumped back into the chair, uncomfortably. He attempted to move his arms again, twisting against the cords, and only grimaced in pain as the ropes cut further into his skin. It was no use, and his body was still too worn out from his stay in the freezer.

Giving up his struggle as even if he could move he couldn't get out of this room, he began to wait, feeling the growing sense of dread continue to build within him...

********

The man on the view screen was starting to visibly sweat. He was somewhere in his forties, possibly fifties. His silver-speckled, red hair, was combed neatly away from his pale, thin face, which was adorned with a well- kept goatee. His brown eyes were anxiously flitting back and forth between the people with whom he was speaking, and he continually raised his left hand, wiping the ever-increasing perspiration from his brow. If the man had been wearing a tie, Dylan imagined he would have loosened it several times by now.

"Now that you're aware of the situation," the captain continued speaking, after informing Delacroix of the recent incident, "can we expect your cooperation in our investigation? We'll want to begin searching immediately, of course..."

"Yes, yes of course," Delacroix nodded quickly. "You must do whatever is necessary..." he trailed off, his eyes seeming to focus briefly on something off screen, before he quickly seemed to come back to himself. "I will have some of my people assist you with your search as well, as many as you need."

Dylan and Beka exchanged curious glances, before turning back to the image.

"Any help you can give will be appreciated, thank you," Dylan replied. "But there's one more issue. I'll be bringing two of my crew members who may not be received well on your planet. I'll need your assurance that they will be treated with the same respect by your people as we are."

"You must realize though," Delacroix began quickly, "I cannot guarantee that the people on the streets will do the same...I do not control them..."

"Understood," Dylan nodded evenly. "I was simply asking for your assurance regarding those that do work for you, we don't need another problem to add to the current situation, and the sooner we find our engineer, the sooner we'll be on our way."

"I give you my word, my employees will not cause any trouble for you or your crew," Delacroix said with forced sincerity. "We'll do everything in our power to help you in your search, so you can be on your way."

"Thank you," Dylan nodded. "Then I'm sure you'll have no objections to us beginning immediately."

Roman hesitated for half a moment, his mouth opening slightly, but no sound coming out. He glanced in the same direction he had earlier, before returning his gaze to the screen.

"Yes I agree you should start right away," the thin man stated, a strained grin crossing his lips. "We'll be awaiting your arrival in docking bay 17."

"We'll be there very shortly," Dylan replied. "Hunt out."

"He is definitely hiding something," Rhade remarked quietly as the screen went dark.

"Yeah, you noticed that?" Beka retorted dryly. "I told you he has Harper," she continued, turning her gaze to Dylan.

"Then that should make him easier to find," Dylan replied, lightly. "Though we still don't know what Delacroix could want with Harper."

"He seemed quite nervous," Trance spoke up then.

"And he kept looking off screen at something," said Rhade.

"Or someone," Trance added.

"You think Delacroix has a partner?" Beka asked, before continuing quickly. "Well that could make sense actually, the man didn't exactly give off an air of intelligence...he'd probably welcome the help."

"If he has one, we'll know soon enough," Dylan stated, evenly as he stepped away from his console on the bridge. "Alright, let's get down there...and get Mr. Harper back."

********

As the image before him faded out, Roman Delacroix exhaled shakily, wiping his brow yet again, before turning to the man in the office with him.

"This isn't going to work!" he hissed, nervously.

"Calm yourself," the man replied, in his usual composed manner. "We expected this, you knew it was coming. Everything is proceeding according to plan."

"Is it?" Delacroix replied, smartly. "Because that kid you grabbed hasn't even begun yet from what I've been told...what are you waiting for? They have an android coming down here! They can track things, they can-"

"I'm quite aware of an android's capabilities," came the reply, from a voice that demanded attention. "Especially this android. She won't find the boy unless your people mess up, so just do your job and let me worry about mine."

"I don't need you telling me how to do my job," Roman shot back, irately. "And I've yet to see any of the money you promised me..."

"That is because your part in this is not yet finished. You'll have your reward when this is over, I give you my word."

"Yeah sure, for what the word of an uber is worth-" Roman cut off abruptly, his eyes widening in fear, as the man took a step towards him.

"You will do well to remember that if you ever utter that word again where my ears can detect it, it will be the last sound you ever make."

"I'm sorry," the auburn-haired man said immediately, averting his gaze from the larger man's. "It was...I...I slipped..."

"Take care it doesn't happen again," he stated, forebodingly. "Now I suggest you prepare those men whom you promised the good captain would help with their search."

"Yes, you're right," Roman nodded. "I'll be sure to have them stay clear of the west side-"

"No," the man interrupted calmly, "if they suspect you're trying to keep them away from a certain area, they'll center their search around that vicinity. Your men are there merely so that they can report back to you, and you will tell me everything they find out concerning the crew. Anything they overhear or witness, no matter how common or unusual it may seem, I want to know."

"Fine, of course," Roman nodded, eager for the man to leave. "Whatever you think is best."

The dark eyes staring at the smaller man narrowed, before he nodded briefly, and turned away. As the sweet sound of the door closing hit his ears, Roman sat back in his chair, feeling his heart beating in his chest. Why had he agreed to this?

"Not much longer, then you'll have your money...soon now," he reminded himself quickly. He needed this; there was no way to skirt around that.if it meant hurting people...well...so long as it didn't come from him directly... He sighed loudly, trying to push the guilty feeling in his gut away.

Standing up abruptly, he collected his thoughts, and started towards the exit. He didn't have much time to prepare his men for the crew's arrival.

********

As the door opened again at last, Harper looked up to see the man who claimed to be Gaheris Rhade walking towards him yet again. He steeled himself for whatever was coming, knowing it could not be good. Though he was surprised to see the larger man's hands were empty...he'd half expected him to be carrying certain instruments that most of his kind resorted to in order to get their way...

"Back so soon?" he asked with mock sweetness, as the Neitzschean grew closer.

"I will give you one last chance," Gaheris began, ignoring the comment, "and only one to make your decision freely."

"You call this freely?" Harper remarked, incredulously. "I think you need to look that word up..."

Again, Gaheris paid no attention, and continued speaking as though he hadn't been interrupted.

"You are going to help us disable the Andromeda's A.I. and weapons, so the ship will be defenseless and we will have free access to all her systems. From there we will wipe the memory of the current A.I., and I will have it reprogrammed as I see fit. If you do this quickly, you may be allowed to live."

Harper's expression had become one of growing bewilderment and disbelief as the Neitzschean had made his demands known, and he barely hesitated half a second to reply.

"You don't get it, do you?" he asked, defiantly. "I'd fly a slipfighter into the Magog World Ship before I'd help you do that!"

"Maybe I'll have that arranged for you," Gaheris remarked icily.

"Fine," Harper dismissed the threat, "Do what you want, I'm not gonna betray my friends."

"I see I didn't make myself clear," Gaheris stated calmly. "You will do as we ask, whether by choice or force."

"Well maybe I didn't make myself clear," Harper shot back, his blue eyes flashing stubbornly as he leaned forward in his seat. "I'm not doing it."

Gaheris' expression became thoughtful for a moment, as a smirk crossed his lips.

"You will regret your decision," he said, almost pleasantly.

"Yeah, yeah, I know this drill," Harper stated, seeming almost bored, though underneath, his heart was hammering in his chest. "Maybe your all- knowing source forgot to tell you I used to live on Earth...there's nothing you can do to me that hasn't been done already."

"No he mentioned that," Gaheris smiled, finally reaching into his black vest and pulling out a metallic, cylindrical object that Harper didn't recognize. It didn't look like much, maybe about six inches long with one wide end and one flat end. The engineer only looked at it apprehensively, not wanting to imagine what its purpose was.

The Neitzschean moved forward slowly, walking purposefully around the chair as Harper shifted uneasily. He was trying not to let the larger man out of his sight, while at the same time, attempting to hide the fear that was threatening to consume him.

"What about this..." Gaheris spoke again finally, coming to a stop just to the engineer's right side, his dark, leering eyes fixed on one thing only, "you didn't have this on Earth, did you?" he asked knowingly.

Harper instinctively shrank back, as best he could, realizing at once that the Neitzschean was referring to his data port.

"I didn't think so," Gaheris said, his tone laced with malice. He brought the metal device up so it was clearly in the human's view, before lightly tapping the wide end. In an instant, a long, thick needle slid out from the center of the instrument's flat head. It was glowing a bright orange- yellow, indicating that if you were to touch it, you'd end up with a sweltering, painful welt for your efforts.

Harper was more than aware now, of just how tight the cords were on his wrists, and he began trying to twist free once more. He forced himself to focus through the initial onset of panic that had threatened to overtake him, attempting to slow his suddenly rapid breathing. He ignored the sweat that was stinging his eyes, which were glued to the instrument in front of him, and knew with dreaded certainty, how hopeless this situation truly was.

"Don't," he whispered pleadingly, shaking his head faintly as Gaheris stepped once again to his side.

"Is that all?" Gaheris asked, his eyes gleaming with eagerness. "Where's the quick remark? The sarcastic comment? Not so talkative now, are you kludge?"

Harper felt sick as he continued to look at the scalding needle in the Neitzschean's hand, having no idea what it would do to him, to his port. He remembered the last time someone had tried to put something like that inside him by force, and could only remember horrible pain. Add to that the scorching heat that was so fierce Harper could smell it...

Snapping back to himself for a brief second, the small engineer turned his hateful glare onto the looming Neitzschean.

"Screw you, uber!" he spat vehemently, knowing nothing he said or did would avoid him the pain that was coming, so he had no intentions of going quietly. "I'll never betray my friends!"

Gaheris' eager expression didn't falter as his left hand shot forward, roughly grasping a handful of the human's blonde hair and forcing his head back harshly; the smaller man winced in pain.

"We'll see," the Neitzschean quipped carelessly. Harper didn't reply as he slammed his eyes shut, his heart pounding so fiercely he felt it in his throat.

Feeling the intense heat nearing his neck, the engineer swallowed hard, his mind racing frantically for a way out of this, but none presented itself, and he was out of time.

Gaheris hesitated, seemingly enjoying the human's reaction for another moment more, before he viciously jabbed the needle into the sensitive port.

Harper's face contorted with anguish, and there was no hope of holding back the tortured screams. The pain was fierce and relentless, more severe than anything he could remember feeling before in his life.

Immediately upon the needle's insertion, a white-hot flash of agony seared through Harper, traveling directly from his port into the circuitry that connected it to his delicate neurons. They exploded in seconds, as their protective outer sheathing melted away, leaving nothing but raw nerves for the pain to dance upon. It continued on ruthlessly, deeper and deeper into his brain.

As the pain quickly reached his optical center, a blinding white light was sent to replace Harper's already blurred vision; his ears were ringing with the sound of his own screams, and the sound was magnified ten fold as those nerves, as well, were attacked by the razor like agony.

When the sweltering pain finally hit and began to travel down into his spinal column, Harper hadn't thought he could scream any louder, but the pain reached excruciating heights as the very fluid that lubricated his brain felt as if it were on fire. The muscles in his arms and legs began to contract involuntarily, as his body was plunged into the throws of a seizure. Feeling his chest start to tighten, and having trouble drawing in his next breath, Harper gritted his teeth, wishing for death, praying to the Devine for it, in fact, when without warning, he felt the needle being pulled out.

There was relief, but not much, as his body continued to convulse harshly. He was vaguely aware of angry voices around him, when he felt the cords being loosened from his wrists. The second he was free, he fell forward in the chair, having nothing now to hold him up, and no strength of his own left. Large hands grabbed him before he came into what would undoubtedly have been painful contact with the floor; though his vision had yet to return, and he had no idea who now held him.

Shaking violently, feeling consciousness slipping away like water, Harper groaned in anguish as he felt himself being lifted by this person, before he was set down gently on the room's only table. He was fading fast, and his eyelids were drooping heavily, when he heard a voice that struck immediate recognition in his tortured mind.

"Harper, can you hear me?" came the familiar deep voice, which was currently filled with concern. Harper tried to reply, but his body refused to cooperate, as he only slipped further away from consciousness.

As the darkness finally welcomed him to join itself in feeling nothing, Harper gladly followed, with only one name going through his mind...

Tyr...