The return to consciousness was as painful as she had left it. She still felt the two wounds in her stomach, but thankfully the terrible burning sensation that had so quickly incapacitated her before was gone. Left behind was the sharp, penetrating pain that she remembered first experiencing just after Prophet had stabbed her with her spiked tail. Either pain was unbearable, and it seemed to have paralyzed her again. Or...had it?

"Greetings, Mrs. Natiyr," a cold voice said beside her. She didn't recognize it, and after struggling to open her eyes, she looked up at a spiky blond-haired man with sharp, bony features. His eyes were flat and expressionless, as though they were immune to emotion. While she began watching him, he filled a hypodermic injector with a pale green liquid, and just as he finished, she realized why she couldn't move: she was strapped to the table at her wrists, ankles, and waist.

"Pleasure to finally meet you," he continued plainly, looking down at her with a blank face. "But I'm sure the pleasure is all mine. Do you know who I am?"

Still recovering and still in pain, Mand could hardly think, much less answer him. Instead, he went on without her response.

"I'm Dr. Jack Tzymo. I was one of your father's most dangerous enemies. But don't worry; I loathed him as much as you did. He's gone, thanks to you, and I've put that enmity far behind me. All I want from you is information on what he did to you, the experiments his scientists so systematically carried out on you and the forty others."

Mand stared at him blankly, unsure of how to react. "I...don't remember anything."

Dr. Tzymo looked undeterred. "Of course you do. You've been having vivid flashbacks in the past few days, have you not?"

Her expression was answer enough, bringing a strange grin to Dr. Tzymo's face. "All thanks to a substance I placed on Prophet's tail. When she wounded you, it entered your bloodstream and began forcing your mind into a frenzy, trying to uncover those memories. They surfaced in the form of haphazard flashbacks, which I'm told had an incapacitating effect on you. Since your mind hadn't tried to process them before, they halted your other thoughts and forced you to relive them." He brought the injector to her arm and pressed it under her skin, pushing its contents into her. It burned as it spread up her arm, and as it reached the rest of her body, it stole her breath, momentarily immobilizing her. "This," Dr. Tzymo continued, "will keep you lucid enough to tell me what you're seeing. It will induce more memories, and you'll notice more details, as well. I will guide you through what you remember, so hopefully I won't have to keep you here very long to find out what I want to know."

Mand could only blink. She was being subjected to more experimentation...to share what had been done to her years ago? A body-wide tremor took hold of her, and though she tried, she couldn't subdue it. Was it her fear taking over her, or was whatever concoction Dr. Tzymo had just given her wreaking havoc on her system? She was already weakened enough, and not just because of her flashbacks...

Though Dr. Tzymo's voice had been calm, she could sense a deeper malice under his tone, worrying her even more. His motives weren't entirely plain; she could tell he was withholding more, and if he had been an adversary of her father's, he had to be dangerously intelligent, resourceful, powerful...

Mand was only conscious for a few more moments, and despite trying to fight it, an overwhelming recollection threw her back into the days she spent under the Dark Lord Tzan Kaeloth's control, sealing out her present thoughts and locking her inside her fifteen-year-old terrified mind.

"No, dear, we haven't heard from her at all," Untra Natiyr's worried voice filtered in over the Celestia's comm system. Elena had first contacted the Jedi Temple in search of Mand, but they hadn't seen her, either. Rech's parents were the next place she expected her friend to go. If she wasn't there, either, Elena was running out of ideas.

"Please let me know immediately if she does contact you or if you see her, Mrs. Natiyr," Elena continued cordially. "She might be a little confused. She's had a rough few weeks, like we all have, and it's taken its toll on her."

Rech's mother sounded sad, even though Elena had tried to keep specific details out of Mand's condition out of what she told her. "Yes yes, I'll let you know. Please, is there anything Kahl and I can do to help?"

Glad to have only reached her with audio and not a holo feed, Elena winced, regretting having to deny the Natiyrs the chance to aid in the search for their daughter-in-law. "I'm afraid not, at least, not right now. Once we get more information, we can more readily get others involved. I'm hoping this doesn't become a repeat of six years ago..." Sighing lightly, she finished, anxious to begin the search. "I'll keep you informed, Mrs. Natiyr. Take care."

Switching the comm off, she paused only briefly to consider a thought that had crossed her mind while talking with Untra. A repeat of six years ago... While Mand was talking with Koril earlier, Veon had told Elena of the difficulty she had faced in the past few days with recurring flashbacks. He said they had even been real enough to her that she physically felt the pain she had suffered in the past. If her memories were strong enough to incapacitate her so easily...what was stopping them from taking over her consciousness entirely? Would she return to the places she had suddenly remembered, either out of habit or out of curiosity?

But how would Elena know where Mand could have gone? Any information about her disappearance, where she had been experimented on during the four years she was gone, who had been behind the experiments, had all died with Jedi Master Aalon Noor months ago. And Mand herself had felled her father, who had financially supported the illegal project, leaving her and her daughter Cordira as the sole surviving witnesses to what had been done. At least, she hoped they were the only ones left... Anyone else still alive that had been connected to the experiments might fear exposure were Mand to remember even the slightest details: a face, a name, the sound of someone's voice...

Even though her murderous, treacherous father and his dark apprentices had all been killed or incarcerated, someone could still be out there hunting for Mand, and they may have just capitalized on her current weakened state.

Returning quickly to the med center with Kaydee at her heels, Elena made her way through the crowd of Paneau that had grown in the hour or so she had been gone. She smiled at them all politely as they bowed to her while she passed by, and thankful they hadn't accosted her with questions, she proceeded on into Koril's room, inviting Veon and Brent Jax in with her.

The Edgepoints inside saluted the three as they entered, relaxing only after Elena took her seat beside Koril's bed. She gently picked up Koril's hand, looking to the nurse tending to him for an update.

"Vitals are stable," she reported quietly, then concluded with a smile. "He's just sleeping."

Nodding to dismiss the nurse, Elena returned her attention to Koril, lightly squeezing his hand as she brushed her fingers over his cheek to slowly bring him out of his slumber. Though otherwise still, he drew in a long, deep breath, but he finally awoke as his eyes fluttered open and immediately focused on her, ignoring Veon and Brent beside her. A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and she returned it as she rested her hand at the base of his neck, softly running her thumb along his jaw.

"Hey," he breathed, still only looking at her. She studied his face as she spoke.

"How are you feeling?"

He seemed to honestly consider her question, glancing aside in thought before returning to her. "The same," he answered sadly, "tired." Though she tried to maintain her smile for him, worry quickly dissolved it. Finally noticing the other two beside her with similar expressions, Koril looked back to her with concern. "What is it?" As his eyes scanned the room, he became even more upset. "Where's Derek? Is he okay--"

"Koril, he's fine," Elena reassured him quickly as she gently turned his head to her with her palm at his jaw. "He's fine. He's sleeping just outside in the hall. Kollie and Raen are taking good care of him, I promise."

Again Koril glanced at Veon and Brent, worry still in his eyes. "Then what's wrong?"

Releasing a slow breath, Elena hesitated, briefly unsure if she wanted to trouble him. His earnest concern forced her decision, though, and she answered softly. "It's Mand, she's gone. After she talked with you, she just left...didn't say anything to anyone outside, didn't leave a message, nothing, and no one knows where she's gone. I've tried all the places I could think of, but none of them have seen her, either. I'm worried something may have happened to her. Since that animal attacked her in the Jedi Temple a few days ago, she hasn't been herself. She's been having trouble with flashbacks to her disappearance, and Veon said one even made her black out." Sighing sadly, she quieted her voice even more. "We need to find her."

Koril searched her eyes with the most expression in his she'd seen so far, serious concern somehow adding depth to his solid black irises. "What are you going to do?"

"The med center's security cameras recorded her leaving the grounds alone, but they could only follow her so far. Once she got past the edge of the gardens, they lost her, so we only have a direction to go off of. We'll start there, and maybe we'll find some clues." Again hesitating, she squeezed his hand, softening her expression as best she could. "But...I won't leave if you don't want me to. I can ask the Jedi for a team to--"

"No," he interrupted strongly, "you need to go. And take some of the Edgepoints with you; they can help. Take Leikam and Swip."

After smiling briefly at Koril, she nodded and glanced back at Commander Jax, who also nodded dutifully. As she returned to Koril, she breathed lightly with relief. "Veon and Brent will stay here with you until I get back. Now, I don't want you to worry yourself about this. There's nothing you can do from here. You need to rest, understand?"

Getting a nod from him, she glanced back at Veon and Brent beside her to get their agreement, too. Before she could turn back to him, though, he spoke up quietly.

"I want Derek to stay in here, too."

Though she immediately began to disagree, she stopped herself, biting her lower lip. She didn't want Derek's intermittent crying to halt or even reverse Koril's recovering strength, but perhaps keeping his son close to him would improve his mood and his health. Giving in to the pleading look in his eyes, she nodded, smiling a little as she continued.

"Is there anything else you need before I leave?"

Koril shook his head, and after she looked back to Veon and Brent for their answers, she stood from her seat and leaned over Koril, kissing him lightly on the forehead. Before she could move back from him, though, his gentle hand on the side of her neck caught her by surprise. Locking gazes with him again, she smiled and leaned in further to accommodate him, meeting his lips in a soft kiss he had once denied from her. Though he was weak, she could tell he wanted more, but as she released him, he didn't protest. Instead he remained motionless with his eyes closed, as though rendered breathless by her kiss. As she brushed her fingers over his cheek, he released a shaky breath and looked up at her, his eyes pleading once more.

"Be careful."

She nodded, carefully resting her forehead against his briefly. Though his hand dropped from her neck, she took hold of it, folding her fingers in his. As much as she hated to leave him after getting him back, she had to. Thankful that he understood and that he had other friends to stay with him, she relaxed, kissing him again gently before she stood back from him. His eyes followed her, but he was silent as she squeezed his hand and turned to leave. Though anxious to find her friend, an odd calm took her over as she left the room, tugging her lightsaber off her belt as the two Edgepoints kept close behind her.

Though he hung back in a small, darkened room beside the larger one, he left the door open, allowing him to hear the two inside. He watched Dr. Tzymo with Mand through the wide window, faintly hoping the doctor wouldn't be opposed to his presence there. So far he hadn't drawn attention to himself, and as long as Mand was immobilized and facing the other way, he probably would remain unnoticed. Focused on what Dr. Tzymo was coaxing out of Mand, Horatio listened intently.

"Nevermind the others," Tzymo continued coolly. "The procedure, Mand. Tell me what they did to begin."

Strapped to a table and drugged with sedatives and memory enhancers, Mand hadn't moved for a long time, except for a small, brief twitch that shook her entire body at random intervals. Her voice was low and distant, but as if compelled by some strange obedience, she answered every question and elaborated on every detail Tzymo had asked of her.

"They wanted pure DNA," she breathed, her gaze firmly fixed on nothing. "They started drawing marrow from us. Samples from legs and arms. No pain medication, lots of screaming..."

"Yes, they took marrow," Tzymo repeated with a slight air of annoyance, "I understand. What did they use it for?"

"Template for clones."

"How?"

A sudden twitch slowed Mand's response. "Isolated select genes. They wanted..."

"Yes?"

"They...no...no! Leave me alone! I don't..." Before Dr. Tzymo could redirect her, she released a chilling, painful scream, her body twisting and pulling against the restraints. As quickly as it had started, though, she fell still on the table, and Horatio found himself holding his breath until he saw her move, breathing again herself. Tzymo had only watched her blankly, waiting out her reaction as though he had expected it. He studied her a few more moments before he injected another dose of a memory enhancer he had designed, glancing uninterestedly at the vital sign monitors he had set up beside her. Her pulse was impossibly fast, but as the drugs Tzymo had just given her took effect, her heart slowed and she returned to a semi-lucid state. Tzymo didn't waste any time, resuming his merciless questioning.

"What genes were they after?"

Mand continued to moan as if in pain. "I don't know..."

A foreign surprised expression rolled over Tzymo's face. "You were just about to say."

"I don't know. They took marrow, stopped my heart, stopped everything... Then the implantations began."

Tzymo's brow furrowed in frustration. "You said they isolated select genes for the clones. What were those genes?"

Another tremor shook her, stalling her words before she answered, and again she floated in and out of coherence. Even from across the room, Horatio could see Dr. Tzymo's jaw tightening in frustration, and just as he began filling another hypodermic injector, Mand began speaking in between sharp breaths.

"Didn't matter. The clones...were flawed. They didn't account for...the changes with...unaccelerated growth. The clones...starved the subjects...to death..." Though it seemed as though Mand had stopped breathing, she flinched as she gasped suddenly, continuing from where she had left off. "They never took the same. Some took calcium, some sodium, others iron... They could never isolate...the reason... Over...and over...and over...every month for four years. Everyone...died."

Tzymo's expression relaxed into disappointment. Apparently he didn't like what he was hearing. "You survived."

Mand's simple answer was haunting. "We shouldn't have."

But Tzymo only blinked. "'We'? To whom else are you referring?"

Horatio could hardly believe it himself. Even he knew Mand's daughter Cordira was born too soon after her rescue to have been her husband Rech's biological child. How was it that Tzymo, a man so well connected to the entire galaxy with an army of informants and spies at his command at all times, hadn't pieced it together about the Natiyr girl?

Mand's voice, though, seemed to be getting even more distant and weak, and her intermittent twitching had ceased, as well. "She almost...killed me, too," she breathed, "then she saved me..." But with her last words, her voice faded and her eyes began to close, as though her mind was shutting itself down from the stress. "She...saved me..."

Though Tzymo again brought the injector up to Mand's arm to administer another dose, he stopped, instead placing it on the table behind him. After sweeping a cold gaze over her unconscious form, he stood from her quietly, tugging his white lab coat taut over his shoulders. Seemingly undaunted by her state, he returned to his equipment beside her, casually reprogramming it with a few quick taps, and satisfied with its display, he sighed, not even turning to face Horatio in the room behind him.

"Her mind is a little...overworked, Mr. Sheridan, but don't worry. It just needs a chance to restart itself."

Horatio swallowed nervously, stepping around the corner to face Tzymo who still had his back to him. He looked at Mand, fighting to quell a strange feeling he had suddenly developed, having heard and watched her suffering through her memories. Was it pity he felt, or guilt for essentially having strapped her to the table himself? Barely able to find his voice, he maintained his gaze on Mand.

"You said you wouldn't hurt her."

At that, Tzymo turned around, leveling a curious expression at him. "I said nothing of the sort, Mr. Sheridan. I merely stated that I sought information from her. I never made any mention of how much I would "hurt" her to get it." Tzymo slightly cocked his head, calmly considering another thought. "Hm. You do not want her harmed. Why?"

Stunned, Horatio struggled to come up with an answer. "Habit."

Tzymo continued with relentless calculation. "Explain."

"She was my partner for four years, and..." Horatio hesitated, "...she deserves better."

"What brings you to that conclusion?"

Again looking down on her, unconscious with her mind in complete disarray, he had to force out his words. "She's a good person."

Tzymo laughed lightly, easily dismissing Horatio's answer. "I don't believe that." Horatio blinked, but Tzymo continued with hardly a moment's pause. "People are not inherently good or evil, Mr. Sheridan. Their day to day choices are guided simply by the parameters of the situation with which they are faced and the promise of their best possible outcome. Even if an "evil" choice presented itself, yet provided a result that was more beneficial to the person making the choice, it would be exceptionally foolish of the person to not take the "evil" choice. As a rule, this galaxy operates on the assumption that anyone will make decisions based on what is most desirable for themselves. Even the mighty, noble New Republic is not immune to this, as we have seen on countless occasions.

"Now, you perceive my actions against Mrs. Natiyr as bad, but I see them simply as a means to an end. I deal in truths, and truth is neither good nor bad; it simply is. So in venturing to attain a truth, I do what I must. Your opinion of my choices does not matter to me. What matters to me is what you choose to do from this point forward. Your "good" choice would be to continue to follow my orders. Any other choice...well, let's just say, I'll be monitoring your interactions with her very carefully."

Again left in a daze, Horatio maintained a neutral expression, watching Tzymo leave without another word. His head was spinning, but determined to withhold any further weakness from Tzymo, he glanced about the room furtively. Two cameras hung in opposite corners of the room, and each was slowly scanning back and forth, covering the room well with wide, sweeping angles. Tzymo hadn't been lying; there was no space in the room where his cameras couldn't see. Despite Tzymo's warning, something kept Horatio from abandoning Mand. Left with his thoughts, he stepped back to the wall he had watched her through and leaned against it, his eyes focused on her as a conflicted expression took over his face.