Michael stared in shock at the computer screen. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Memories from the past flooded him, and he felt overwhelmed. It was Victor Han; a man who he believed was dead. It had been Nikita's first mission. He remembered it well because it had been the cause of their first "fight". She questioned Division, and Michael, who, back then was the ever loyal soldier, stood up for Percy, and stood up for Division. He reflected on the irony of the situation now. Soon afterwards, they had moved on with their lives – Nikita falling into the clutches of Percy, believing what they did to be necessary. Michael blamed himself entirely for that. They were on opposite sides because of him. He was the one that drove her to Percy. As Michael's eyes were opened to the horror that was Division, Nikita became blind to the atrocity it was becoming. Michael sighed. He knew it was all his fault and no one else could dig him out of the hole he had dug for himself. He thought back to how it all started.

It was four years earlier. Michael was working deep undercover on a mission when he met Danielle. It was innocent at first, and even Michael himself was surprised at the way he felt. He would pass her in the hall, and feel his heart skip a beat. She would smile at him, and he would feel flustered. He hadn't felt that way since his wife... It made him feel uneasy, but also very happy. It felt different with Nikita – with her, he was just Michael from Division, and she liked him for the man he had become. With Danielle, he was Michael from before. She liked him for the man he was. She made him feel as if it was still possible to be the man he was before Division. He was caught up in the dream. It was just a crush (or so he told himself). She lived the floor above him, in his undercover-apartment, and one day he invited her over for dinner. He'd never felt so nervous about a date in his entire life. He made sure everything was immaculate. He cleaned, he cooked, they wined, they dined. It was the best date Michael had ever been on. She was so easy to talk to, so smart about so many things, and he enjoyed her company immensely. Dinner turned into a whirlwind romance, and within 6 months, Michael found himself proposing to her. He was foolish enough to think that, being second-in-command at Division, his apartment would not be under surveillance. He thought wrong. Percy had seen the whole thing on video, and remarked jealously, "She seems like a distraction for Michael. Have Roan take care of her." And that was that. Amanda had agreed with Percy that Michael did seem oddly smitten with the civilian, and neither one liked it. Nikita was in the dark about the whole situation, having been working her own mission. Michael was near hysterical when he found out. He'd fallen in love with her, and she'd been killed for it. He realized that Division would never allow him to leave, and he severed all ties immediately. He swore he would take them down. Division will burn, thought Michael. He desperately wanted Nikita to switch sides with him. He missed her terribly, but he realized that as long as she was in Percy's grasp, she would be stuck there. It's not like he could just go and have a conversation with her and persuade her to join him. He also knew that she had taken over his job as mentor and protector of the new recruits, and while he felt guilty for leaving the "kids" on their own, he knew that this was the right thing to do. The first time Michael had seen Nikita, after Danielle, he felt an intense rush of feelings. He felt sorrow, relief, and guilt. Though they weren't in a relationship, seeing Nikita made him feel as if by being with Danielle, he had somehow "cheated" on her. He knew she felt confused and perhaps even angry that he had gone and gotten himself engaged. Moreover, she felt betrayed. The man who had trained her, taught her "right" from "wrong", was now changing the whole game. He knew she had every right to be angry with him for leaving, going "rogue". He thought back to that crucial moment.

*** 4 Years Earlier ***

"Michael! You can't leave. Please, don't go." Nikita practically pleaded with him, half angry, half sad. They spoke in hushed voices in Nikita's apartment. Michael had already left Division, and had stopped by her place to either try and convince her to come with him, or say goodbye.

"Nikita, they killed Dani. Don't you see, Division is out of control! I can't stay here anymore. I'm leaving... Come with me?" He half asked her, half commanded her.

"Come with you? To where, Michael? Division will find us, and they will kill us. What about the recruits? We can't leave them." Nikita's eyes pierced right through his. He knew she was right about the recruits, but he also knew he couldn't stay. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

"I found a way to take our trackers out, Nikita. But we'd have to leave now. We can take Division down. We can save all the recruits, and let Percy burn for all his sins. Come with me." This time he said it as a command. Nikita looked on the verge of tears. His heart sank, and he knew she had made up her mind.

"Michael... I... can't." Nikita held back a sob, but a tear ran down her cheek. They locked eyes. He raised a hand and wiped away her tear. He brushed her cheek softly, and instinctively and impulsively, his hand went behind her head, and pulled her in for a kiss. It started off as a gentle goodbye kiss, but quickly deepened into a steamy, heart-wrenching goodbye. After an eternity, they finally broke apart from each other. No words needed to be said. She fell back against the wall, and he made his way to the door, looking back one last time at her.

Following his exodus from Division, he promptly had his tracker removed, and went underground. He worked tirelessly, trying to find a way to take down Division. Plotting, planning, revising, and keeping tabs on Percy. Michael left no trail wherever he went. Finally, one day, he had found his protégé, and he felt ready to set his plan in motion.

Now that he had Thom on the inside, he felt as if things were finally looking up. Michael wanted to right all the wrongs he had committed, and he wanted to start with Nikita. He had been chasing lead after lead for quite some time, until he came face to face with the ghost of Victor Han.

"Michael..? I should have known. My men told me some psycho white man burned down my factory. You're going to pay for this." Victor taunted Michael over the computer.

"Oh, really? I think you're going to be the one who pays," Michael said coolly to him, as he tracked Han's location. Hong Kong, eh? Well Victor, I hope you're ready for me, Michael thought to himself. Victor was still rambling on about what a mistake Michael had made by coming after him, but Michael had stopped listening. He yawned, waved goodbye to Victor with his gun, then shot the computer. Michael smiled to himself. He knew he had about 20 seconds before Division and Han's men would be all over him. He made his way to the back entrance of the building, and turned a corner, bumping swiftly into Nikita. Both raised their guns at the other immediately.

"Michael! What are you doing here?" Nikita barked at him.

"Oh, just conversing with our old friend, Victor Han." Michael said urgently.

Nikita dropped her gun slightly with surprise. "What are you talking about, Michael?" She trained her gun back on him.

"Victor Han is alive, Nikita. I just talked to him on webcam. Percy played both sides, again." Michael lowered his gun.

"I.. " Nikita was speechless, ".. Are you sure?"

Michael wanted to laugh. "Nikita, I just saw and spoke with Han. He's in Hong Kong, and I'm going after him." He knew it was risky telling her his next move, but he wanted to trust her. He knew that the score was just as personal for her as it was to him. He could see the wheels in her mind spinning quickly, trying to process all this information. She lowered her gun after a moment. He heard the agents coming in, and took that as his cue to leave. She stepped aside to let him past, signifying a momentary truce. As he brushed past her, he said, "This one's for you. And I hope your shoulder is better." Nikita allowed herself a small smile. She ran in the opposite direction to hold off her lackeys, and give Michael a better chance to escape. She sincerely hoped that he'd make his way to Hong Kong, and take out Victor.

"You let him escape, again?" Percy raised his eyebrow at Nikita. She felt oddly angry that he was questioning her – even though she did, in fact, let him escape.

"Michael was already gone by the time I got there, sir." She said, matter-of-factly. Percy eyed her for a moment before speaking again. "I'm sure you know by now, Victor Han is alive." He paused to see her reaction. "I'm sending you to Hong Kong. Han thinks Michael will try to find him there, so I want you to set a trap for him, if he shows." Nikita nodded and headed towards the door. As she opened it, Percy called out after her, "And, Nikita, see if you can finally confirm the kill on Michael this time..." Nikita closed the door behind her, and let out a small sigh.

Meanwhile, from his room, Thom had been listening in on the whole conversation. Earlier in the month, he had snuck into Percy's office, and planted a listening device. He had hooked it up to his radio, so he could tune in and listen whenever he pleased. He scrambled the station, and headed to the computer lab. Thom smirked to himself, as he eased down into his seat. He opened the shell program, which was, amazingly enough, created by Nikita. Michael had told him all about the "secret" program that Nikita had created as a recruit. She had thought it was a secret, but Michael of course knew about it. The mere fact that he never did anything to destroy or report it, spoke volumes about his trust in her, and his lack thereof in Division. He also knew that using it was risky, since Nikita could log in anytime and discover that it was being used.

Hey boss, you there?

Headed to Hong Kong to take down Han, be gone for at least a week. What's happening on your end?

Percy's sending Nikita to kill you in HK, so watch out.

Don't worry, we have an understanding.

And what might that be?

Don't push your luck... We have an understanding. Han is personal for her too. Gotta go. Stay safe.

Michael logged off. He didn't like it when Thom pried about Nikita. It was complicated enough, without trying to explain it. Thom rolled his eyes. Michael always avoided the topic of Nikita. He wondered how, for someone who was supposedly engaged to another woman, could have such a deep "fondness" for another woman. He shrugged it off. One of these days, I'll find out what went down between them, Thom said to himself.

"Working hard?" Alex surprised Thom. He turned to see Alex standing next to him, grinning.

"Not really..." he replied. Alex's eyes sparked.

"Great! I need someone to spar with. C'mon." She nudged him. He smiled and logged off the computer.

They headed to the training room together, talking and laughing.