Chapter 3: - Trash Trawl

A.N: - Hey everybody. Thanks for all the reviews, please keep it up, it really does help me keep going

"Why the hell are you willing to risk injuring yourself even more over this? It's just a stupid dead drop!" said Shalimar her voice raised despite her attempts to whisper.

"Because I don't want you going out there on your own. It could be a trap" Brennan yelled back

"That's crap and you know it. Lexa and Jamie are both going to be there. This is so like you!" Shalimar began pacing as she yelled.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" said Brennan angrily.

"You have to do this macho posing crap. You know I'm perfectly capable of doing this myself and…." She ran out of steam "you know what, screw you! I'm going whether you like it or not!" she ran towards the Lark tears streaming silently down her face.

"I didn't say you couldn't do it. I just wanted to help you do it." Brennan said quietly to the now empty room.

Aboard the Lark

"Are you O.K?" said Lexa to Shalimar noting her tear strewn face.

"I'm fine" said Shalimar succinctly, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Let's just get going shall we"

"Here we go" said Jamie steering the plane from the hangar, looking back in the mirror at Shalimar who starred unblinking out of a window.

Back in Saveria

Baby turned away from the computer screen towards Brennan and said in a mocking voice "You really don't get women do you, particularly feral women! Man is she pissed at you and justifiably so!"

"Not that it's any of your business but all I want to do is protect her. Is that so wrong?" He went from angry to bemused in a swift change of emotion.

"Of course its my business she's my sister!" Baby's retort was interrupted by Jesse.

"You really don't understand what you did wrong, do you?" he said.

Brennan looked at Baby's glaring face "If I say no are you going to try and beat me up?"

Baby stopped glaring and smiled "Nope. Your kinda sweet when you're confused, I can see why she likes you" Both Brennan and Jesse looked slightly uncomfortable at this topic "Let me give you some advice here; you need to stop being so over protective. You're allowed to care, but stifling a feral is like putting a tiger in a card board box, it breaks right out and your in deep trouble! You can't fight her battles for her or she'll run from you"

"You sound like you speak from experience" Jesse commented

"Yeah, Devon never did get that I didn't want protecting, that I'm stronger than he'll ever be. It put a huge strain on us one that I couldn't deal with not with all the other stuff." Baby explained.

"I don't want to make the same mistakes as my brother. I'll try to avoid what you said but I can't help wanting to keep her safe I love her" said Brennan.

"There's the difference between you and your brother, He didn't love me and I don't think I really loved him either, we were too young, too different." She said.

"How is it you sound so wise your only eighteen now?" Jesse asked thinking of his own relationships at that age.

"We all grew up to quickly, we had to circumstances dictated it but I guess I just know because what I have with Jamie is so different, so much better."

"I get that. I don't feel totally different about Shal than any other girl I've ever dated" Brennan admitted.

"Just tell her those things you just told me and you'll be fine" Baby said.

"You think?" Brennan questioned.

"I know. Remember I'm the wise one" she said giggling slightly.

At the dead drop point

"D.D must be long gone" said Jamie "Let's get us some D.N.A" he said hitting the button to open the doors.

"It's in the bin right?" said Lexa heading towards the garbage can.

"That's what D.D said" Shalimar responded grumpily.

"Eww this is gross" said Lexa beginning to rummage through the trash. "Why couldn't he pick a cleaner place to drop this off" she said pulling the vial from the bin.

"That's just nasty" said Jamie observing the festering food stuck to both the vial of blood and Lexa's hand.

"I'm going to need some serious disinfecting after this" Lexa mumbled cleaning the vial on her trouser leg.

Jamie took the now mostly clean vial from Lexa and put it in a protective metal case that was lined with foam. "You guys ready to go?"

"Hell yeah" said Shalimar.

"Let's head……" Lexa stopped talking and walking abruptly.

"Are you alright?" asked Shalimar concernedly.

"Lex, you look like a statue" stated Jamie. Lexa made no response.

"Lexa? Lexa?" Shalimar yelled as Lexa's eyes rolled back into her head and she collapsed to the floor in a heap.

"What the hell is happening to her?" said Jamie.

Lexa began panting trying to speak. "Shh, shh, well take you back to Saveria, it'll be O.K" said Shalimar soothingly

"Shal," Lexa gulped dramatically. "This is it! You know that, I'm done"

"Don't say that, it'll be fine, Jesse and Baby will find the cure" Shalimar said.

"There's a stretcher in the Lark, I'll get it" Jamie yelled running back towards the Lark.

"Shalimar, look at my hand" she struggled to get the words out.

"Shit" said Shalimar watching as Lexa's skin was changing colour in part and the skin looked to be splitting apart. Shalimar recognised the symptoms; this was the same thing that had happened to Gabriel Ashlocke shortly before his powers had caused him to spontaneously combust.

"Exactly, that about sums it up. We both know I'm not coming back from this" Lexa said her breathing was sharp and rapid.

Jamie ran back to the Lark, he grabbed a long board stretcher and the considered that they were going to need some help. He ran to the Lark's communication and opened channel to Saveria on the comm. Link frequency. "Guys can you hear me?" said Jamie.

"Yeah what's up?" said Brennan coming through loud and clear.

"Prep the lab, Lexa collapsed, she doesn't look good. Well be back as soon as possible" Jamie said rapidly.

"What's wrong with her?" Jesse yelled to no-one as Jamie had closed the channel and rushed off the Lark to help Shalimar with Lexa.

"Jamie's back with the stretcher. We're going to get you out of this. I promise" Shalimar said to Lexa trying to keep her conscious.

"I got through to Saveria from the Lark their preping the lab" Jamie said as he skidded to a halt in front of Lexa.

"See its going to be fine" said Shalimar gently moving Lexa on to the stretcher. Lexa groaned loudly.

Jamie and Shalimar began carrying her towards the Lark. "Shalimar tell Jesse that…." But Lexa never got to tell Shalimar what she wanted to say because at that moment Lexa's powers overcame her, erupting cataclysmically into a huge surge of light energy.