"I'm going to be straight with you Dr. Michaels. I believe that the man you saw today may be the father of my daughter's child. I want a paternity test done," she said. The doctor sighed loudly.
"I cannot do that without Sydney's consent..." he began.
"Who's in charge here doctor? Me or you?" she asked, interrupting him. He sighed.
"Always a pleasure Irina. I'll have the results soon," he said, rubbing his forehead.
"Thank you," she said, ending the call.
*****
Days later, Julian emerged from carrying Sydney off to bed. The poor woman had been exhausted, though from what, he wasn't quite sure. He could only hope that Irina hadn't put Sydney to work during the time he had been undercover at the Covenant. He strolled down the hallway to Irina's offices, approached it apprehensively and knocked on it softly.
"Come in," Irina's voice answered. When Julian answered, he couldn't help but notice that Irina seemed distracted, even while she was busy filling out paperwork. She looked up at him, motioning him to be seated.
"Hello Julian," she said, smiling, "What can I do for you?"
"I just wanted to check on you. Is everything alright?"
"Of course. Where is Sydney?"
"I just put her in bed. She's exhausted, Irina. You weren't overworking her were you?" he asked, his eyes searing her own. Irina laughed.
"Quite the contrary, Julian. Sydney has been very comfortable during her stay here," she said, glancing back down at the papers on her desk. She sighed, looking back up at him.
"You have not talked about how you got that wound, Julian," she said, "Sydney and I are concerned."
"So you're an expert on how Sydney feels now?" he snapped, then immediately regretted the action. Irina frowned, her fingers tapping on her desk.
"I may have missed most of her life, Julian, but I know my daughter," she said quietly, unable to meet his eyes.
"What's going on with her Irina?" he asked, earning a panicked gaze from Irina.
"Nothing? Why would you ask me that?" she asked.
"She's been distant these past few days. Snappy, like before. Edgy. I don't know what to make of it," he said.
"If Sydney has anything to tell you, she will be the one to do so," Irina said, looking down at her desk. She picked up a pen, glancing at Julian, "Could you please excuse me Julian?" Julian sighed, nodding. He stood up slowly, and stopped when he reached the door.
"Irina?" he said, earning a look from her.
"Yes?" she asked.
"It's only a matter of time until I figure out what's going with her. You know that," he said. Irina nodded. Julian sighed, and stepped out of the room, making his way to Sydney's room.
*****
"Sydney, you have to listen to me," Sark insisted, trying to calm her.
"Are you insane? Why would I listen to you? You'll kill me!" she said. Sark snorted.
"I've had many opportunities before now, Sydney. Don't you think if I was going to kill you I would have done so already?" he asked. Sydney had to admit, the man was right. She shook her head. That didn't mean she trusted him.
"Why were you kissing me? Why was I kissing you?" she demanded, her finger in his face. He grabbed it, holding her hand.
"I'm told it's nothing new," he said, smirking. She removed her hand from his grasp.
"Excuse me? Why would I kiss a viper like you?" she spat. With that, she glanced around, not recognizing her surroundings. Her eyes found his again.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"The Covenant's offices," he said, and her eyes widened.
"The Covenant? They took me from my apartment...they tortured me," she said.
"Right," he said, nodding his head. She cocked her head to the side, taking in his appearance. She had to admit, once again, that he looked good.
"What are you doing here? You're part of the Covenant aren't you?" she demanded. He sighed.
"Technically, yes..." he said. She moved to slap him, but he grabbed her arm again.
"What? You..." she began, her eyes narrowing.
"There's no need for name-calling, love," he said, smirking, then his face grew serious, "You're a part of the Covenant as well."
"Like hell," she spat.
"It's true. They brainwashed us Sydney," he said.
"Shut up! You're crazy! Why would they brainwash us? What value do we have to them?" she asked, her hand still in his own. He motioned for her to calm down, pointing to a camera in the corner of the hallway. She nodded in understanding.
"Look, they've taken other agents. But we are the two they're most concerned about," he said, his eyes fixed on her own.
"Why?" she asked, tracing his eyes for honesty.
It was there.
He sighed, glancing around.
"Sydney," he said, "they've taken things from us..." he trailed off.
"Like what?" she whispered, her face close to his own.
"They've used us to create a child..." he trailed off.
"What?" she yelled, and he placed a finger over her lips. She rolled her eyes, but did not remove his hand. He moved in the side of her face, gazing at her intently.
"How did they..." she began. He rolled his eyes.
"They've stolen our DNA, and have been busily creating a child...our child," he said. Her eyes widened.
"Why?"
"It's in the prophecy, Sydney," he said.
"Rambaldi?" she asked.
"Yes. Apparently, the key to the prophecy is you and I," he said. She looked at him questioningly.
"Well, I know my face is on an ancient piece of paper, but how are you connected to all of this?" she asked.
"I'm the only living ancestor of Milo Rambaldi," he said. She gasped.
"But you're British..." she began.
"My mother was Italian," he answered, glancing down at his feet. When his eyes returned to her own, she noted the fear that dwelled in his eyes.
"Sydney, we have to stop them," he said.
"How?" she asked. He shook his head, releasing her from his arms.
"I don't know. We have to stop them," he said again, and she nodded. Wordlessly, her grabbed her hand, squeezed it tightly, and led her out of the corridor.
*****
Sydney's eyes snapped open, and she struggled to make out her surroundings.
Another dream.
Had she and Sark...Julian, stopped the Covenant? Had they retrieved their DNA, and put a halt to whatever they were creating? Was it even real?
She glanced around the room, suddenly noticing Julian's presence. His chin was propped up by his hand, and he was gazing at her intently. He smiled when she glanced in his direction, and stood up, moving to sit by her side.
"How long have you been there?" she asked, yawning and stretching.
"Not long," he said, looking at her face, "What's wrong?" She shook her head.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," she said, smirking, sitting up, her face inches from his own.
"Try me," he said, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear. She hesitated, then sighed loudly.
"I had another dream," she said, and he nodded.
"I figured that was the case," he said, "Go on."
"I was arguing with you, in the same hallway. You told me that the Covenant had our DNA..." she trailed off, her eyes darting to the floor.
"You remember that?" he asked.
"Yes," she said, and she pulled up on his chin, forcing him to look at her.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
