"I was there first. He ran into me." Gregory really needed the others. "'Sides, you don't know anything. You just want war." He contemplating telling her about the Comet and its threat to all of them.

Gregory looks at Ash and her friend. They needed to know.

Gregory undorms in case she goes crazy on him before he speaks again. "I lied earlier."

"What did you say?!"

He had her full attention now.

"Did you say -I- wanted war? Listen, you genetic freak, WE didn't start this! They came to US. They attacked US. They broke the defenses, came in, took everyone they didn't kill prisoner and brought them here to be slaves! You think I -like- trying to fight supermen with...with spitballs and rocks? We're doing this because it's this, or be...do you even KNOW what they do to their slaves? Huh? We're risking our lives fighting, because there are things worse than death, Gregory. So do not EVEN try to moralize to me, or say I'm a warmonger because the second there's peace, real peace, not the...the domestication they're trying to push, I'll be the first one at the party!"

Then his last sentence registers and her eyes narrow.

"About what?"

Whoa! It was not the response he had either wanted or expected. The abbies of this city had wronged her people, like they wronged KB and the people of Newborough. Maybe that was the link he needed.

"The people here do bad things to me and friends. We fight them too. Except....now..."

Come on, spit it out His mind reeled.

"I not here to scavenge. I came with friends to help stop comet that kill everyone. Kill you even."

James laughs, "Brother no need to be so coy. My cybermancers have been aware that somebody was acessing the computer systems in this building. I hadn't figured it was you but given the knowledge you seem to already have I can put one and one together. As you well know we intend to launch several of our number into space. I belive that I can activate one of the orbital weapons platforms and use it to shoot down the comet when it approaches.

"In the mean time several of our hardiest members will embark to the object itself and do what they can to break it apart into more manageable chunks. " James is silent for a moment, a thoughful expression on his face. "Father told you I was working on a ship to gain control of the nuclear devices in orbit didn't he? He failed to mention why I was doing it, instead letting you assume I was going to hold the planet hostage."

James sighs and shakes his head, "Brother, our father is mad, he believes that human and nova both deserved to die during the burn and that this comet will finish what the burn failed to complete, the utter extinction of our races."

Charlie has his hand wrapped around his battered weapon but Ashley keep him from raising it toward Gregory. "Why don't we just kill him and get it over with. The only reason I dropped that grenade is because Mr. Invisible here was playing with me. I lost my footing and the grenade fell from my hands. Not my finest moment I know but he was toying with me. How can we know if anything he says is even truthful?" The anger in Charlie's voice is clear and his finger is already on the trigger of his weapon.

Outside, beyond the ruined walls the fighting had stopped and now the three of them could hear orders being given. "Tend to the wounded, kill the humans, check those buildings for any more troublemakers." The three of them could hear foot steps crunching through the rubble around their position, and the steps were getting louder and closer.

"I tried," Ash replies shortly. "He's bulletproof. Fortunately he didn't take it personal...wait..."

She frowns, tilting her head as new sounds impinge. Her lips form a curse, but she doesn't utter a sound. Meeting Charlie's eyes, she gestures towards a copse of trees, then takes cover herself...crouching behind some tall bushes growing out from a pile of rubble.

She takes hold of her grenade with her right hand, then winces and rubs her forehead with her left. Lousy past-street-date aspirin just didn't work when you were this stressed every day...

Raider looked thoughtful. "Yes that is what father told me..." He allowed himself to show a little doubt on his face, but inside he knows that James would do exactly that if given the opportunity. He wouldn't be at all surprised if he planned to launch only part of the platforms arsenal at the comet and hold the rest in reserve.

"It is a good thought to send those capable to the comet and do what they can there. But..., we can't wait until it is closer. We need to launch the missiles as soon as possible. If we wait till the last possible moment all of the chunks will hit and do devastating damage, almost as much together it would for the entire comet to hit as one mass. If we hit it quickly there is a large chance at least some of the pieces will be scattered and miss us. I would suggest a staggered hit launching the missiles 2 at a time. That is assuming the ability to correct their trajectory in flight. If they don't have that capability, it is something I can add, but I would still say to launch the first barrage immediately. If you have enough, make it 5 at a time to be safe."

Doug sends to Raider,

*Wow he's good. Could sell sand to people living in a desert. Why missiles? Why not just teleport or warp a nuke or three up there?*

Raider returns, *I strongly suspect he doesn't intend to launch them all, but to use whatever is left over to hold the world hostage. And I think he is wanting to wait until the last minute so that he can conserve as many missiles as possible hoping the novas will take care of the comet without the need of 'his' missiles.*

Doug sends to Raider,

*There have to be other novas involved in this thing.*

Anna wished she was back again home where the world had just been as large as the farm of her father reached. She loved the stories of her grandfather especially the one about the old oaken tree he had planted himself in the backyard of their farm. She never saw it but in her world it was the most beautiful place on earth she could imagine.

Right now she was at the worst place she could imagine. Trapped by machines and machineloving Aberrants. Everything around was the root of the evil that has been brought over the world. At least that was how she thought of it. She understood what her new found friends tried to accomplish though and she felt she had to help them.

*Maybe I should volunteer to go with the others and try to reduce the size of the comet? I think I can control parts of it if it has an earthsoul.*

Doug forwards that message to Raider along with the comment,

*Of course James would need a Warper to get her up there.*

Even though Gregory had saved his life, the man still wanted to kill him. Gregory started to think that Ash, and her people, might be as bad as the abbies of New New York. When he remembered that her people were wronged as they were, he understood the hatred. He just wished it was at the ones in this city and not him.

Gregory was alerted to danger by voices, followed by the grating sound of rubble being walked upon. Ash and her hurt friend immediately took cover, and began to slowly move away from their spot. Even though they had tried to hurt him, and still did, he didn't want them to get caught.

Gregory blended into the suroundings and began shadowing the two of them. If they got into trouble, or were in danger of being caught, he would provide a diversion. Then, maybe, they would trust him.

Ashley and Charlie perform a good impression of an orderly fallback shadowed by Gregory the whole way. After a few blocks they are about a third of a mile away from the Tower. "I think we're clear boss, and that crazy freakshow seems to have left as well." Charlie checks the sun noting it's position in the sky has already lowered significantly. "We should get back before they seal up for the night, if anybody else survived they'll have fallen back on their own."

Gregory meanwhile overhears all of this from his concealed location above and behind Ashley and Charlie. He too is convinced that the remaining aberrants have given up the chase and that they are no longer being followed.

*****

The remainder of the short elevator ride was quiet, James refused further comment to his brother's words until they reached the top. With a soft "ding" the elevator doors slide open revealing a huge control center lined with banks of computers and other equipment. Raider had seen this before but it did not fail to impress. For the others this was the most technology they had seen gathered in a single place and functioning ever.

James walked out of the elevator, his odd gait on his tentacle "leg" making him appear to both limp and strut at once. "Come along, I'll allow you full access to the database, study up as much as you wish and then you can make your suggestions. The two of you, we can bring food if you wish, or if you prefer you can study the data we have with Jordan."

Half an hour later Raider is still scanning through the database, James having apparently been truthful about allowing full access.

"Yeah, get going. I'll bring up the rear."

She then looks out over the scene and says, "Hey, Gregory. If you can hear me, you have to stop following us." She rubs her eyes and slips her goggles back on. "Assuming you even are..."

"Anyway, you seem all right so far. Sorry about the gun and everything. If you'd seen half what I have...you'd understand. Seriously though...you have to stop here. Some of these guys have been slaves for...a long time. I said it once, I'll say it again. If you really like human beings and want to help them...best thing to do is just keep your distance. That goes here, and it goes where you live too."

She pauses, and adds with a sudden grin. "And find some pants, man."

With that, she turns and trots off after Charlie.

Gregory shrugged. Pants? Why do I need pants? He knew why others wore clothing. It was to keep them warm. A month or so before, he realized that he didn't need any clothes. Eventually his friends wouldn't feel cold and remove their clothes. Besides, it was alot harder stay hidden when you could see someone's pants.

He would continued to shadow them, staying out of sight of both them and the aberrants in York. He didn't understand why they worried about him. He meant them no harm. But first, he had to tell this 'Ash' about the danger to everyone.

Yelling from somewhere unseen. "Have you seen bright light in sky at night? It is a comet. It going to hit us. We all die. You all die." He only wanted to get her attention, so he could explain more.

Hearing his voice, Ashley swore under her breath and turned around. Her memory tickled slightly. Hadn't he mentioned that before? She'd been kind of distracted, and this 'Gregory' aberrant, as sunny-dispositioned as he seemed to be, was too nutty to hang on his every word...

"The sky's full of bright lights at night, Greg," she says, waving in the direction his voice comes from. "They're just stars, unless they're moving. Those are probably satellites. Nothing to panic about!"

Ash was frustrating Gregory. Did she not looked into the sky? Why was she dismissive of everything he said? "It not a star or the moon. I know what those are. It new in sky. It is much bigger. It going to hit us. That's why they making a rocketship. They are trying to stop comet thing." Gregory pointed back toward the building his friends went into.

He wished it was nightime, so he could show her. If she still refused to believe it, he would wait until then and show her.

That brings Ash up short. There HAD been a rocket, actually. Before that big storm. The slave pens had been rife with rumors. Everything from an ICBM to a trip to one of the orbital guns. Had she heard it was to shoot down an incoming comet? She thought maybe she had. But it was just one more wild story out of a seething maggoty mass of them.

"Is it going to hit HERE?" she asks.

He nods in affirmation. "Everyone die."

She was finally listening. Now he could explain to her what was happening.

"Last year a friend was taken by them" Once again he points to the structure. "I sneak into city and follow them to place where she kept. There was a big rocket she being made to build. Me and my friends rescue her and destroy rocket."

Gregory looks ashamed. "We didn't know the rocket was going to save the planet until yesterday."

Ashley stands still, trying to decide what percentage of this was trustworthy, what was ignorance and what was psychosis. The ooga-booga caveman speech wasn't helping his case...but he seemed earnest, and didn't seem to have a motive for lying. What did it get him?

Ah ha, there was the problem. He hadn't yet told her what he wanted. Okay...play along for now. See what he'll tell me to try to get my trust. Go from there.

"Okay, so what do you want me to do about it?" Ashley asks Greg. "You guys are the ones with super powers. We're just trying to survive here."

Well, that and bust the other slaves loose while getting access to the armory they looted from West Point, but that's 'need to know,' sorry Greg.

That was not the question he expected or that he knew how to answer. He was sure that the others would know. For now, though, he could ask her to stay away from the city so that they could stop the comet.

"Don't attack city." He finally said. "They mean and will hurt us if they think we attacking them. If we die, then all die."

He grinned. "When we are safe from comet thing, you can attack abbies in city."

Well that's gotta be the easiest truce settlement ever. Don't attack the guys you won't be in any shape to attack again for awhile anyway.

Ashley is silent for a moment, apparently weighing his words, then says, "Tell you what. If you can get them to release the humans they've got, I think I can promise we won't attack them. Sound like a deal?"

*!!!*

Doug looks around at the people in this room, and asks Raider,

*Do you have access to personal records? If so, what does it say about KB and your father?*

Raider blinked. He hadn't tried that, or even thought to try. He sent back *Make yourself at home and get comfy. This could take a while. I'll check on those after I'm done with the my primary research. I want to make sure I have everything I can as soon as possible. If this goes south somehow, I want to be ready to do what I can on my own.*

Anna stepped carefully into the room half in awe and half afraid of breaking anything. She was still nervous and remained close to Doug and Raider watching everything suspiciously.