Hello again thrill seekers and enjoyers of fine writing, I say fine because I consider my writing to be……just fine. I realize that the first chapter was too short but hopefully this will make up for that. Also I have a lot of people to thank for their reviews so let's get to it; Bella-Rose, Cartoonfire, With Closed Eyes, Danielle, Crimson Black, Skyler-A-Teloiv, Tennisgal456, The Joker (you were amazing by the way), Cageandshun, True-Blackfire, Lordominoo, Tefren, Tremiumn, Kilpe the lazy man, Arkham Boy, Mikelsans, Elik, Noriea, Masarien, Gepsman, Fatal-Lord.

Thanks a lot all of you. Your reviews only encourage me. Sit back, relax, and Enjoy!

Chapter Two

A Visitor

Toni carefully poked her head into Victor's room, mostly to ensure that Richard was no longer present. She saw that only Rachael was there and that it was safe to do her job.

"He is……going to be okay isn't he?" asked Rachael.

Toni tried to avoid looking her in the eye. "Well I've already brought Richard up to speed-"

"I'm sure you have," said Rachael in a low tone. "But I would like you to tell me." Toni clutched the chart she was holding ever tighter.

"You want me to be honest with you, right?" Rachael folded her arms. "Shrapnel has perforated a section of his right lung. We managed to stop his internal bleeding but if his heart rate jumps to anything above the norm it could start again." Rachael gradually returned her gaze to Victor. "He's going to need surgery, a lot of surgery. I really wish I could honestly give you better news, but at the moment it just looks bleak." Rachael closed her eyes, they were beginning to water.

Toni whispered, "I'm sorry."

By the time Richard was out of hearing range from anyone, he was already pressing the speed dial on his cell. His destination was a parking garage and it was the only spot he was sure not to meet anyone anytime soon. The one he was calling picked up after only a single ring.

"This is probably very important, for you to call that is."

"That is a very good guess Bruce," replied Richard dryly. "Well I did get my super awesome detective skills from you, I got everything from you." He thought for a moment. "Except my sense of humor……that I got from my mother. Everything else is all you. My personality on loan from you, and I hope to return it someday."
"This is important isn't it?" Richard put away his comedic self.

"Yeah. You've heard about Victor, right?"

"Before you did I'm afraid, his condition is critical." Richard closed his eyes. "I can be there in three hours."

"No, I just needed to ask you something-" Turning in place, he saw that Kory had followed him and was now coming closer.

"What is it?"

Richard watched Kory get closer and closer. "Is 'Arcturus' up and running?" There was a short pause in Bruce's speech.

"I'll see what I can do." Just as Richard snapped his phone shut Kory finally reached him.

"Richard….."

"Kory, everything I do has a reason behind it."

"Must that reason always be to belittle your friends?" He let his eyes wander away from her. "Look at me, please." He turned back to her and she softly embraced him. In his ear she then whispered; "Shannon passed on a date to work on that case." He parted with her. Up until Kory came into his life, Rachael had been the only who could make Richard feel any kind of remorse over his, for lack of a better term, shenanigans.

"Boo-hoo, this is her job, and yours. Speaking of which, aren't the two of you supposed to be doing it right now?" The discouraged red head nodded. "Kory, even you have to know I can't change over night."

"But it has not been 'over night', an entire year has passed."

Richard raised an eyebrow. "Well it's been five years since Barb, so I guess you have some catching up to do." Kory lowered her head and laced her fingers together.

"I suppose I do." With a slight jump, Kory took the air and quickly made her way into the cover of some low hanging clouds.

The elevator doors parted, allowing Logan to step out onto the floor labeled Sub Basement 2A. He passed through a series of double swinging doors until he finally arrived in Danielle's department. Her dutiful subordinates were currently working tirelessly over various pieces of evidence. One of them currently used a handheld saw, making the room a bit noisy. Logan bent down and spoke to one of them.

"Excuse me, I'm-I'm looking for Danielle!" He nodded off toward an enclosure in the far corner. Upon reaching the door Logan saw a sign which read; Do Not Enter, Important work being done. "Righhhhht." He pushed open the door and to his great lack of surprise he found Danielle fast asleep in her chair, a pair of headphones loosely clasped over her ears. The complete lack of sound from the activities outside told him that she had had the walls made specifically to block it out. He smiled and unplugged her headphones. She woke with a start, almost knocking over a stack of long finished reports. As soon as her eyes refocused on a smiling Logan she fully sat up.

"So rude…."

Logan folded his arms. "You're peons are working pretty hard, it just didn't seem fair."

"Uh huh, were you sent down here for something?"

"Dick mentioned something about shrapnel from the mall bombing."

"Ah! Over here," said Danielle rising to her feet. She led him out of her office and back into the noise filled workshop. They walked past the lines upon lines of metal tables covered with numerous and varying pieces of evidence. Their short walk took them far across the room away from the strident sounds of machinery. "As you can see there's really not much left over." Logan picked up a charred and terribly bent piece of metal tubing. After carefully rubbing his fingers over the inside of the casing he set it back down.

"Pipe bomb."

"That's what I thought," agreed Danielle. "She wore some kind of vest which allowed her to carry four of them around her person. Within each tube was an inner casing which held the explosive, the outer lining held a generous supply of nuts and bolts. They were all wired with a remote trigger and as soon as she clamped down on it…"

"She became a human claymore," Logan finished grimly.

"Grim, I know…" mumbled Danielle. "Speaking of grim, I heard things between you and Rachael hasn't necessarily been hunky-dory."

Logan nodded while he still examined bits of the shrapnel. "Yeah well, telling your girlfriend that you were the accomplice to a psycho can have that effect on a relationship."

"It wasn't as though you signed up for that though," protested Danielle.

"Oh come on," exclaimed Logan. "You're the same species as Rachael, when has something like that ever mattered?" She lowered her eyes. "Just forget it." Logan's hand then roamed over a blackened object. Picking it up, he saw that it was a charred remains of a piece of jewelry. "What's this?" Danielle squint her eyes at it and shrugged.

"Some kind of class ring I think." Logan mentally agreed. Even though it had been burned and twisted, there could be no mistaking its ornate design. He vaguely heard Danielle ask him if he could smuggle something for him.

"Wha..?"

"This USB key," said Danielle waving it before him. "I would really appreciate it if you could just take this back upstairs-" Logan immediately began shaking his head.

"Uh uh, no way-you and Dick going at it is fun to watch but bad to get involved in." She protruded lower lip and whimpered.

"All you have to do is plug into his computer, pleeeeeeaaaassseee?"

"No." While he still had the opportunity, Logan turned and took his leave. She let her shoulders sagged and pocketed the cyber bomb. As he walked, Logan kept half of his attention on the burned ring. He soon began to get some idea how of Richard felt as he looked upon a new clue. A picture was said to be worth a thousand words……well, the same could be said for a ring.

WITHIN THE VACUUM OF SPACE……………..

It was difficult to find someplace more quiet and tranquil than outer space. The absence of anything right down to gravity itself gave way to absolute silence. Yet there was something that broke that silence. An oval object, more closely resembling an egg, streaked toward the moon like a screaming torpedo. A blanket of bluish purple energy flowed around it and formed a long tail which trailed behind. It would not strike the moon, but nothing was stopping it from inevitably crashing down upon Earth.

DAEDALUS U.S. AIR FORCE BASE, Afghanistan………………..

Any and all officers within the communications and satellite center worked diligently and quietly. It was during the time of day when activates such as local radio chatter and long range communications were at a standstill, namely, well into the twilight hours of the night. A lone radar operator sat at his station keeping his concentration in his work. Off to the side two other officers were able to catch a free moment and were filling cups of coffee for those still hard at work. The radar operator received his mug, thanking the private and took a sip. As he drank his eyes fell on a small photo of his family back home. He grinned as he recalled how frosty the summers of Texas were compared to this place. Everyone in that photo never missed an opportunity to say 'hi' or 'thank you' to him and his fellow officers. Just as he began to concentrate on the jubilantly laughing face of his wife, a red light behind the photo began blinking behind her face followed closely by a successive beeping. Immediately he removed the picture, answered the call, and looked over at the fax machine. The printer spit out a single printed page and went silent. He tore the page out of the machine and gave it a quick read. It only took him half a second to register its contents and quickly made for an office across the hall. He knocked his knuckles against the door and entered.

"Colonel."

"At ease Sergeant," replied the sergeant's superior. "What can I do for you?"

"Sir, we just received a priority one communiqué from ." He directed his eyes to the page and read aloud. "Have detected unidentified anomaly with definite bearing of planet fall….Trajectory is ballistic…..Estimated coordinates of re-entry approximately seven clicks west of your position, original message sent 643 Zulu. Good Luck."

The colonel considered this for a moment. "We talk'n a meteorite….an asteroid?"

"We don't know yet, sir." His superior nodded and he rose from his desk. The two walked back into the control room, where a buzz of excitement and talk had broken out. The C.O. walked up behind another comm. Officer.

"Status."

"Sir the anomaly will breach our atmosphere in just under three minutes."

"Colonel," said another officer. "NASA confirms it's neither a meteorite nor an asteroid." He handed the colonel a series of photos. "These are solar images taken from the Hubble ten minutes ago." The colonel held them up and stared at them in wonder. "They show the object is elliptical in shape and roughly the same size as a Volkswagen beetle."

His superior looked away from the photos and at him with a serious grimace. "Then it's a craft of some sort."

"Chief of Staff of the Air Force just got off the phone with the President; orders are to commence recovery as soon as touchdown is confirmed." The officer received a nod and he returned to his post. The colonel let the photos rest in the folder they came in and set it off to the side.

"Anomaly has entered the atmosphere," announced the officer, staring into his screen. They all gathered around him as he spoke. "Bogey is falling, dropping below normal radar coverage….." He paused. The object's tail would have long disappeared as soon as it entered the atmosphere. He followed its path on his screen. "Falling…….falling…falling………..anomaly is down." From across the room the comm. Officer held a phone to his head and looked over at the colonel.

"Confirm, bogey is down, 6.3 clicks west."

"What about our neighbors?" asked the C.O.

"This time of year both Russian and Chinese satellites are on the dark side of the moon. We're sure the anomaly passed on the other side and therefore remained invisible to anyone but us."

The colonel nodded and quickly turned to a group of Marines. "Alright, I assume you know of the President's order." A few of them nodded.

"Bring that thing back here ASAP, but I want you all to take every hazmat precaution. There's no telling what kind of energy that bit of space junk brought wit hit. Is that understood?"

"Yes Sir," they chorused.

"Alright, get to it." One after the other, the marines filed out.

--

Not long after they departed, the Marines, accompanied by several other recovery personnel arrived at the crash site. As per their C.O.'s orders, they were dressed head to toe in full hazmat gear. The brigade of trucks stopped about a hundred feet from a still smoking crater. Like a small army closing in on a would be enemy, the platoon and a host of scientists approached the crater. A few of them led the way with measuring devices, scanning for any amount of radiation. Their instruments gave off a series of rapid clicks as they drew nearer.

"Well doc, is this thing safe to move or what?" The lead marine asked. His voice was echoed from being inside his hazmat suit.

"There is some amount of residual radiation, but it's unlike any I've ever seen before." The scientist carefully stepped down into the crater to get a closer look at its occupant. "It's still unclear as to whether or not it's deadly….." His mouth gradually opened as his closer inspection showed him the object's surface. There was a strong breeze, and every time it blew it appeared to make ripples on the object's outer surface…..almost as though it was made of liquid.

"Doc?"

He snapped out of it. "Oh yes, it's some sort mimetic alloy." Looking down he noticed bits of it were beginning to drip down into a puddle. "And it doesn't look as though it's going to stay that way for long."

"Can it be moved?"

He nodded. "Yes, I believe so."

"Alright, well let's not waste any more time. Load it up!" He called. Like a well oiled machine, the team backed two large trucks bearing cranes and began attaching a harness around the object.

BACK IN WASHINGTON………………

Richard stared deeply into the eyes of the girl pictured in an 8x10 photo. He moved the ring Logan had brought back in his fingers, as though he might gain insight just by holding it. Kory and Shannon had returned from the mall with their arms full of material. They carried with them DVD's containing surveillance footage, statements from anyone they could come across, and information on the girl herself. Naturally when they handed all of this to Richard he returned it with a quick and rushed "nice".

"Her name is, or….was, Emily Regan. Twenty-two years old and a sophomore at Howard University," said Shannon as she read off the girl's profile. "Majored in mathematics and for extra circular activates she was addicted to gymnastics and tumbling."

"It would account for her unusual agility," said Kory. She furrowed her brow in perplexity. "But….friend Logan has reported that the apparatus she carried would have added twenty extra pounds to her person, so-"

"How did she jump around like that?" finished Shannon. She looked over at their team leader and cleared her throat. "I know it's probably out of season but are you going to contribute anything?"

"I'm still working on my first ever question," said Richard dryly. "Twenty-two year old college student blows herself up…….what-up-with-that?" The two girls glanced at one another. "Why did she do that?"

Shannon shrugged. "Hezbollah?"

"You're jumping right to 'terrorist? You and I need to see Harold and Kumar."

"It says here that she had no passport," said Kory as she read from another page. "Without such a document I doubt she would have been able to travel overseas."

Richard shifted his eyes about. "Can't argue with that." He stood up, trying to relieve the pain in his leg by walking about. "Besides, kids today may rebel against 'the man' but they're not soon to go blowing up bystanders…..unless they're particularly annoying."

"Perhaps she did not participate willingly," suggested Kory.

"You're thinking she was coerced in some way," said Shannon.

"Wouldn't be the first time we've seen it," said Richard. "What about parents?"

Shannon checked the file again. "Emily's an adopted orphan; her legal guardians are Oliver and Martha Regan. Says here they have a home in upstate New York."

"Anyone feel like taking a road trip?" asked Richard.

"What about friend Rachael?" asked Kory. "Should we not invite her as well?"

"She's busy, classes to teach…Victors to keep company. We'll be doing her a favor by staying out of her way. Take what files and info we need, let's get going."

--, NEW YORK--

Kory placed a steaming cup of tea into the shaking hand of Martha Regan. Her husband sat close by her with an arm draped around her shoulders. She sent a kindly awkward smile up at Kory.

"Thank you, its….not often I get served tea in my own home by a complete stranger."

Kory giggled. "Well, admittedly I have found the activity to be most enjoyable."

"We understand this is very difficult for both of you," said Shannon. "But whatever you could tell us would be helpful." The adoptive father, Oliver, merely shrugged.

"Honestly, we don't know what to say. Emily's never said or done anything to make us think she would or could ever do something like this," he said somberly.

"Then you didn't know her as well as you thought you did," said Richard. "Kind of a fallout of not actually giving birth to her."

"She lived with us for over fifteen years," replied Oliver tersely. "We knew her well enough."

"Oh really?!" snapped Richard, coming closer. Kory moved to intercept him but second guessed herself. While she did not approve of his brusque methodology, it did have the benefit of focusing priorities. "You've snooped under her bed, been through her dresser, read her diary? How can you honestly say you knew what was going on in her head?"

"How can you say something like that?!" pleaded Emily's mother. "We know because we were her parents. What does it really matter that I didn't give birth to her? Prior to our adopting Emily, Oliver and I had been trying for over two years; even in-vitro didn't take-"

"Yeah okay, that really doesn't matter right now," interrupted Richard.

Oliver eyed Richard oddly. "As I understand it, she was surrounded by security and one of your own. Are you telling me that no one tried to do anything to stop her?" Richard shrugged and sputtered a chuckle.

"Well I'm sure they would have told her to pull herself together, but that would've taken awhile." Martha's mouth fell open. Shannon slowly twisted around and sent Richard a look of utter amazement.

She softly mouthed, 'Oh-my-God'. Oliver stood up and began looking dangerous.

"I want you to get out, now."

"It's just my way of asking if you really want us to catch the bad guys or not. I know she wasn't insane, not because you believe you know everything about her. I always assume the illogical, none of this adds up in any way. Now, would you like me to find out who's responsible for this…….or should I go home and pop in a few seasons of MASH?"

Martha turned to Kory. "Is he always like this?"

"Worse….at times," replied Kory coyly. Shannon felt it was best not to add her two cents about Richard. "But he is rarely wrong, and the smallest detail may be of great assistance. Did she have any friends?"

"S-Several," replied Martha. "In fact, she was a member of one of their more prestigious sororities. There was a Parent's Day coming-I have the invitation here somewhere….." Her voice trailed off as she disappeared into the kitchen. Oliver placed his hands in his pockets and sighed.

"I can't imagine anything at school had something to do with this. All we ever heard were stories about excellent grades, awards, extra circulars……I never would have seen this coming."

"That's normally how it is," said Richard. Martha returned to the living room clutching a white envelope. She handed to Richard and sat back from a feeling weak at the knees. Kory took his cane from him and Richard pulled out the card and read aloud;

"It's that time of year again……you are graciously invited to attend an open house at our esteemed society known as Geisha House."

"What?!" exclaimed Shannon. All eyes snapped to her and she held her tongue before another word could escape. Richard eyed her with mirthful curiosity. Still watching her, Richard stowed the invitation and retrieved his cane from Kory.

"Rigghhhht. Let's go." The two hesitated as Richard began walking out. The two mourning parents gaped at him quizzically.

"T-That's it?" sputtered Oliver. Richard looked back at him and shrugged.

"Pretty much, at least for now."

"Wait! You will tell us if you find out anything, right?" asked Martha.

Without turning back Richard muttered, "Oh yeah, you will definitely hear from me." The task of thanking the parents for their time fell to Kory, after which she quickly joined Richard and Shannon outside. The Regans failed to notice that as Kory left the house she hovered slightly off the ground in order to catch up. When they finally reached the car Shannon began to enter the driver's side.

"Oh no, Kory's turn."

Kory darted an opened mouth stare between him and Shannon. "But….I still have not yet mastered this vehicle."

"Best way to learn is to do; it's not that hard Kory. And as the saying goes 'if Logan can do it, so can you'." Nervously, Kory took Shannon place beside Richard. She sat utterly motionless for a full ten seconds. "You're going to be fine," assured Richard. The red head nodded, started the car, and started off. Trouble is she shifted into reverse and instead of rolling forward, the car jerked backward into the Regans' mailbox. Richard pressed his face against the window in order to see. Kory barred her teeth with the realization that something unwanted had happened.

"Just go," said Shannon.

"Yeah do that," agreed Richard. Before they could be discovered, Kory took them down the road and out of sight. After a short silence Shannon spoke up.

"We're going to have visit that sorority aren't we?"

"Yes indeed," said Richard. "And you're going in particular."

"What?! Why?"
"You were one of them weren't you?" Kory quickly glanced at Shannon in her mirror. The former secret service agent folded her arms in defeat.

"It was my outburst back when you read the name, wasn't it?"

"Among other things," said Richard.

"It's complicated," she said.

Richard rested his head back against the seat. "Well, we've got a four hour drive ahead of us, un-complicate it."

The last few nights had become restless for Kory. Sure, she had nightmares before. It was not exactly easy to forget images of her home being besieged and her guardian being surrounded as she was dragged away. Yet with Rachael's help Kory found that she was able to cope. However something else was bothering her this night, beginning with the most innocent of charms.

Koriand'r, no older than six, played on the floor with toys native to her home world. Her hair was just past her shoulders and it was only now beginning to take on its vibrant shine.

"Psst! Sister…" Koriand'r turned her head upward and there, hovering above her, was another young girl. Her hair was a stunning black and her eyes a dark shade of purple.

"Komand'r?" asked a puzzled Koriand'r. "Sister, why are you out of your room?"

Komand'r giggled and landed beside her sister. "I hate it in there, come on-let's leave. Let's have some real fun." Koriand'r looked away uneasily.

"But….you have been confined to your quarters. Galfore would be very angr-"

"What Galfore does not know….." She sat before Koriand'r and stared directly into her eyes. "….Will not anger him." She said so in an increasingly tempting tone of voice. The pull to go with her sister was getting and harder to resist.

"I am unsure…."

"Oh sister, you do not really wish to penned within your own room do you?" Koriand'r turned a cross expression onto Komand'r.

"I am not the one who is in trouble; I am here because I wish to be." Komand'r turned away from her sister. Koriand'r sighed. "But, I would like you stay to with me, Koma." The dark haired girl was unresponsive. "Please sister, please do not be angry."

"Will you come with me?" asked Komand'r. It was a sad and pathetic tone, one which she knew her younger sister could not defy. Koriand'r's young and fearful eyes looked to the door and thought of the guard keeping careful watch outside.

"We will…..not be caught?"

Komand'r stretched out her hand and smiled. "I promise." With yet another moment of hesitation Koriand'r took her sister's hand and allowed herself to be led out of her open window.

Kory opened her eyes and found herself back in her bed on earth. She found it strange that she simply opened her eyes, with no memory of what had just transpired within her slumbering mind.

"Koriand'r…." She gasped. "Koriand'r………." A voice softly droned her name. She rose from under her covers and stepped out of her room. The hallway, normally laden with several doors, was bare but for one door at the end of the hall. "Koriand'r…" Her heart thumped within her chest unceasingly. The walk toward the single door looked like it might take hours, yet within moments she was stopped just before it. It was cracked open and she noticed there was a dim stream of light at the bottom. "Koriand'r……" She placed her hand on the wood barrier and pushed. Inside was the bathroom, looking as normal to her as ever. Yet the mirror was not only showing her reflection but also a dense billowing cloud behind her. The alien moved closer to it, trying to see past herself and at the dark fog. Soon Kory began to see something. It looked like a pair of eyes, similar to her own, was coming into focus.

"Koriand'r…………………don't tell me you don't REMEMBER ME!!" The eyes she was watching suddenly shown with a terrible brilliance and her vision was blinded by purple light.

--

"Kory! KORY!" Kory's widened and glassy eyes fluttered and when she finally awoke she found that she was in Richard's arm and that she was shaking all over. Her eyes darted in every direction, they were in the bathroom. "Kory?"

"W-W-Where am I?"

"You're here with me, in the bathroom." He eased her down to the floor. "I came in for Tums and found just staring at yourself in the mirror. I asked what you were doing but didn't say anything. Then all of a sudden you launched yourself back with a scream and….you know the rest-" She surprised him yet again that night by suddenly tightly wrapping herself up in his embrace. He wound his other arm around her. "Alright…come on." Somehow Richard managed to bring them both to their feet and he took her back to her room, not knowing if he would permitted to leave any time soon.

THE NEXT DAY……………

Kory sat before Rachael in the therapist's comfortably sun lit office. "Kory, you know you don't have to say anything right now, right?"

"I know, but I just did not know what to make of it," she replied. Rachael nodded.

"It's called somnambulism." Kory arched a brow. "Oh sorry, uhh..sleepwalking." Kory seemed even more confused by Rachael's explanation.

"Sleep….walking?"

"Yes it's actually quite common. Someone who is severely affected, after they fall asleep; they get up and go about doing all sorts of things. They go driving, call people, cook entire meals; I had one patient who got all her spring cleaning done one night. When they wake up they have no memory of what they did."

"I remember every detail," said Kory. "It is clear that is not what happened to me."

"No I think it is," said Rachael. She scooted closer to Kory. "You said you got the feeling that you were being watched, right?" Kory now began to wish she had said nothing.

"It was only a feeling."

"Who was it?" asked Rachael regardless. "Who do you think was watching you?"

Kory answered with barely a whisper. "My sister." Rachael was taken aback. Kory had never once mentioned that she had a sister. The dark haired shrink moved back slightly.

"Your sister?"

"Yes."

"Are you both twins?" Kory nodded. A strange and wondrous thought then occurred to Rachael. "Kory, it's been theorized that identical twins share a bond of some sort. There are those, albeit less respected, who believe the bond could even be cosmic and stretch over extreme distances."

"I have never felt this way before though," said Kory. "I wish I knew what it meant."

"Well Kory, a lot of people have been working for a long time trying to decipher dreams. But maybe what you experienced wasn't a dream at all." Kory now looked at Rachael intently.

"What then could it have been?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure we'll find out." As always, Kory appreciated any help that Rachael could offer her. Truthfully, she had come to rely greatly on her ever since she came to earth. Without a doubt Richard was the one who mainly tutored her in Terran culture, however there were times when he could not and Rachael was always there to help. And yet, despite Rachael's best efforts, Kory could not get rid of the feeling that someone was watching her, or worse…….here with her on earth.

AFGHANISTAN…………………

Deep below the surface of the, an elevator came to a halt and a young man stepped off, accompanied by two airmen. They brought him to an officer who was waiting for him at the end of the hall, where stood a security checkpoint. He held out his hand and shook the young man's.

"Dr. Bell, welcome to Daedalus Base. I'm Lt. Colonel Davis."

"Thank you Sir," said Bell. He had a natural Australian accent. "They weren't all that forthcoming back at Peterson, can you tell me why I'm here."

"Not just yet sir." The Lt. Colonel then produced a packet and a pen. "Before you can go any further you're required to sign a nondisclosure agreement; wherein it also stipulates that for the duration of your stay here your mail ingoing and outgoing will be screened, you will be required to undergo radiation tests twice a day without fail, you're quarters will be subject to random inspections, and disclosure of anything regarding this facility or your work here will be considered an act of treason. If you agree to these terms please sign your name, and we can proceed."

Bell moved his eyes between Davis and the packet in his hands. "So, you won't tell me why I'm here unless I sign that?"

"I'm afraid that's correct sir," replied Davis as politely as possible. "Your only other choice is to return to the Pentagon."

"Well," said Bell with a nervous smile. He took the packet and began signing his name. "Must be…pretty important to merit all this security." He handed the agreement, as well as, for all intents and purposes, his life, to Davis.

"Please follow me." He led the curious scientist down the hall and around the corner to a conference room; inside waited a bald man with many many decorations on his uniform. "Dr. Malcolm Bell, Major General George Hammond."

"It's an honor to meet you, sir," said Bell.

"Thank you, I'm glad to meet you too," replied the General. "What I'm about to tell you has been declared classified at the highest level." Bell nodded. "Approximately thirty-two hours ago, an unidentified object crashed landed about six miles from this facility."

"Crash landed," repeated Bell. "You mean to say…..extraterrestrial?"

"At the moment Dr. we're not sure what to believe. Despite the stories and rumors over the years, the United States government has never encountered anything from an alien world. For the moment we're classifying this assignment as 'Project Chimera'."

"Well I haven't either, why did you ask for me?"

"Your dossier says that for the past five years you've been heading up the Pentagon's RND department, that correct?" Bell nodded.

"Uhh….yes sir."

"It wasn't just that; your knowledge in the fields of astrophysics, spatial anomalies, and theoretical elements made you jump off the page." Bell tried not to glow humbly. "The object is composed of a material we have yet to identify and we were hoping that you and our lead researcher could give us some insight."

Bell looked about curiously. "Uhh, lead researcher?"

"Yes I…" General Hammond paused as he saw the aforementioned scientist entering the room. "Dr. Bell, I'd like to introduce you to Professor Chang." Bell turned to come face to face with a far middle aged Asian man.

"Ahhh, my new lab assistant."

"Your what?" said Bell.

"Dr. Bell is here to assist in Chimera," said Hammond. "I trust you'll show him the same respect and courtesy you've shown me and the rest of the base personnel." Chang studied Bell for a moment then sent the General an odd grin.

"Of course."

"General Hammond nodded definitively. "Good, get to work." He and his advisors left the two alone. Bell wanted nothing more than be in a completely separate room from Chang.

"So," said Chang through a hiss. "What do you think of our little hole in the ground?"

Bell shifted himself nervously. "It's….fine."

"Yes, indeed. Well I suppose your just itching to see what I have been slaving over the past two days."

'Only two', Bell thought. The two of them rode yet another lift down to a containment area where the so called 'craft' was held. Bell forgot about his awkward feelings the moment he laid eyes on it. Its outer surface shimmered and rippled like water.

"Wow…." He began to take a step toward the chamber but stopped. "Radiation?"

"We've detected only minimal amounts, the effects of which are negligible." Bell took off in a trot and entered the chamber; which itself was quite large, being the size of a small house. Once he was inside he slowly walked up to the egg shaped craft and marveled at it. Chang slowly approached behind him.

"Magnificent, isn't it?"

Bell resisted the urge to reach out and touch it. "How are you able to keep it intact like this?"

"Concentrated electromagnetic fields keep the craft's mimetic alloy from loosing cohesion; however it is a struggling effort. If the power were to fail within this chamber, it would begin to collapse within minutes."

"That's remarkable," whispered Bell as he held his glasses out toward the surface of the craft. "Have you been able to see inside it?"

"We haven't tried yet," said Chang with a slight huff. "So far our efforts have been concentrated on naming the alloy."

"I'm not sure it can be," said Bell finally turning away from the craft. "…At least not with any charts or the periodic table. If it is extraterrestrial then we're not likely to find a match with any elements found here on earth." Chang placed a pensive finger beneath his chin. "Our best bet will be to compare it to what we do have and hopefully draw a conclusion from that." He hopped down off the platform. "Besides, I'm more interested in to who is in there." They left the chamber and the lights dimmed but remained on, a low hum indicated that power was indeed still running.

Within the craft, suspended in metabolic stasis, a slender hand twitched and almost sprang to life.

Oh be still my adrenaline. Who could it be inside our space egg? I bet you guys only need one guess, I would hope so. The Air force base is completely made up; I couldn't find an actual spot to use. Also, fans of Stargate SG-1 will recognize Major General George Hammond. The reason for this is, I recently found out that Don S. Davis, the actor who portrayed Hammond, has passed away due to a….I think it was a heart attack. Anyway, the man was loved profoundly by all who knew him and he was such a great actor. So this was my way of giving a nod to him and the good work he did.

Back again with more of this mystery/sci-fi soon. Later Folks!