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PART SIXTEEN - EPILOGUE

Sydney hurried down the hallway with determined strides, a Rambaldi artifact tucked safely in a pocket in her black leather vest.

"Sydney, we have confirmation of another team entering the building..." Weis' voice crackled over comms.

"Covenant?"

"Unconfirmed..."

"Alright, I'll be careful... So this artifact is a key to unlock the one we're after...?"

"Something like that, Syd, please be careful..."

She smiled wickedly. "Always. Okay, I'm going radio silent."

She could sense something as she headed toward the vault, a peculiar feeling that she hadn't experienced since... since Sark had died saving her life so many months ago.

She turned and looked behind her but the long hall was empty.

Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that he was with her, watching her, protecting her.

She slipped the old key into the archaic vault and it grunted in protest as it reluctantly opened.

It smelled like old cheese inside the vault and Sydney wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Oh my God, it is old cheese!"

She recognised his voice instantly, and turned, her breath becoming frantic.

"Sark!"

Sark looked over her shoulder at the barrels of rotting cheese and narrowed his eyes. "I left Bali for this?"

A team of soldiers in black camouflage stood in wait behind him.

Sydney couldn't move and she could barely speak. When finally she attempted to, her voice rasped out a greeting.

"We thought you were dead..."

"If we don't get rid of this decomposing cheese, I might be soon..."

He gagged again as he looked at it's green, decaying flesh.

Tears begin to well in Sydney's eyes and Sark suddenly pulled her closer to him, holding her, their faces only inches from each others.

His voice grew low as he looked into her eyes.

"I'm sorry Syd, I didn't want to hurt you. I survived the fall, surprising a patch of unusually springy bushes saved me. But I had to make you think I was... gone..."

"Why?"

He searched her eyes for understanding. "So I could be free, and so could you..."

"I am free..." She narrowed her eyes at him, pushing him away.

"I didn't want you to have to live knowing that you took me back there, that it was you who brought me in. They would have given me the death sentence, or worse, you know it."

The tears began to flow more freely down her cheeks, and Sark fought back his own.

"But I though you were DEAD!" Sydney wept and Sark reached for her again, cradling her to him.

His own tears streaked his face silently.

After a few moments he lifted her head up to face him, brushing her hair form her face.

"But I'm alright. And I'm starting my own organization up. Still recruiting, actually..."

He walked into the vault.

"You know, whatever the CIA pays you, it can't be enough..."

Sydney smiled at him and shoved him gently. "We've been through this already."

Sark scraped some of the cheese, placing it into a Petri dish in disgust.

"What are you doing?"

"This bacteria Rambaldi was cultivating - unlimited potential for biological warfare."

Sydney narrowed her eyes. "You know I can't just let you walk outta here with that..."

Sark smiled victoriously. "And you know that you're not gonna be able to stop me..."

Sydney looked past him to his team and grunted.

"You're cheating."

"No, I'm winning..." His grin spread across his young face.

Sydney folded her arms. "You know I'm going to come after you, and I'll get you..."

Sark's smile never faulted as he grabbed her and kissed her, before heading down the hall, turning back quickly to yell his challenge.

"Then let the chase begin!"

Sydney stood watching him leave, a smile of her own creeping across her petite face.

THE END