Mijas, Spain

Meridian walked along the dusty mountain trail with his father. Down below he could see the town of Mijas and beyond that the Mediterranean. The view was gorgeous. He could see the Shrine of the Virgin of the Rock below and the twisting streets filled with their daily load of people.

His father was walking up the steep slope behind him. It was nice to see that he was not out of breath. Since Shadowstar restored his youth he had become much more active.

"So did you learn anything from your time working with Narcosis, Rob?" His father asked him when they paused to admire the view. An onlooker might have thought them to be brothers.

Meridian was silent for a bit. "Yeah. I did dad. I've seen first hand some tricks that a social nova can use and I'm going to be more on guard against them. I'm looking harder for the possible hidden motives behind strange coincidents. The differences between lust and love have been brought home pretty well to me. And ... most of all I've realized how much I love Triyama, dad."

"Good. I'm especially glad to hear that about Triyama. Your mother and I have talked. We approve of her Rob. She is a good woman. We were a bit worried about her not being a Christian at first, but we've gotten used to it. We've seen how dedicated she is to helping others and doing the right things. Make sure that you treat her right." His dad told him.

"Dad, there's another thing too." Meridian said hesitantly

"Yes?" His father prompted him.

"You've heard the Teragen rumors that Utopia is using the Rashoud Clinics to sterilize novas?" He asked. When his father nodded he continued. "It's true dad. Triyama found some pretty damning evidence. I don't know that it would stand up in a court of law, but along with some medical tests we've had done on ourselves, it has convinced us. Unless Triyama learns a way to heal us we, like so many other novas, will never have children."

It was his father's turn to be silent for a time. "Those are serious allegations Rob. Do you know why Utopia is doing this?"

"No, not yet. But I already have several guesses. We don't think that many people within Utopia know about this or several other dark secrets. Most of them are just good people doing their best. But I think that these others act out of fear that novas would soon replace non-novas if they had lots of children." He said.

His father sighed. "Rob I can tell that you and Triyama will be looking into this more. The people doing the sterilizations aren't going to appreciate having any of their secrets uncovered and are likely to be very dangerous. You two will need to be very careful."

"I will, dad. I've been shown the hard way too many times what can happen if I'm not." Meridian told him.

*********

Bhawan, India

Shadowstar and her mother sat together in simply furnished room sipping tea together. In spite of all the wealth that Shadowstar had given them her parents still lived simply. Money changed some people, but not her parents.

She had been dreading this conversation but it had to take place. Things were slowly changing but many young women still had marriages arranged for them by their parents. As far as she knew they had never explicitly planned anything for her and even if they had those plans would have been rendered null by her eruption ... but she did not know for certain.

"Mother, we need to talk about Rob." She began.

Her mother smiled. "I like him. He is strong and his attributes match yours well. If you have chosen him you have chosen well."

Shadowstar's mouth worked soundless for a moment as she was rendered speechless by shock. "Mother!" She finally exclaimed.

Her mother laughed. "What did you expect? I know that you are still my daughter and I love you well but you are also more than that now. The divine has touched you and changed you forever. For that reason it is for
you to choose your companions not us. As your mother I might approve or
disapprove of your choice, but it is not my decision to make."

Shadowstar understood. In addition to the obvious her mother was reminding her that she was human as well as divine and might make mistakes. Her mother still believed that being a nova meant that her daughter was both divine and human at the same time but that, being divine, she had certain rights and responsibilities that a normal woman would not. It was both liberating and disappointing in a way.

"What I expected mother was for you to be horrified. I am choosing a man for myself. Rob is outside of our faith. I expected you to dislike him." Shadowstar replied honestly.

Her mother smiled and shook her head. "Your father and I quarreled several times over whether or not to give your hand in marriage ourselves or to let you choose. We never did come to agreement. I am not as upset as you might think about you choosing for yourself. I do admit that I wish that Rob believed as we do but his honesty and integrity will serve. He is a good man and I do like both him and his parents. So are you getting married?"

"Not yet. He has not asked and I think that the time is not quite right yet, but I hope so. There might be some problems with Utopia if we do but I will cross that bridge when I get to it. He has told me that he loves me and I too love him with all my heart." She told her mother.

Her mother clucked. "Be careful then. You can still get pregnant and that might be complicated."

Shadowstar took her mothers hands, her eyes brimming with tears. "Mother I cannot become pregnant. Evil men have stolen my ability to have children of my own. I am looking for them and seeking a way to undo what they have done, but until I do Rob and I will bear no children." She still sometimes felt like crying when she thought about it. She had always assumed that she would have children and had looked forward to raising them. She felt like she had lost part of her womanhood.

Her mother shook her head and said with calm faith. "That was a grave transgression. I am sure that you will root them out and fix their mischief. If this is something you truly want believe in your spirit and you can make it so."

It was simple wisdom but perhaps very true. So far no one had found a limit to that which a nova could do. It was something to hope for.

*********

Silicon Valley, USA

Insider selfconsciously straightened his lab coat. He couldn't get used to wearing the damn thing and that would never do. He was impersonating a scientist who would have been wearing one for years. He would have to act natural in it no matter how he felt.

He had never been much of a science kind of guy. Oh, it was interesting enough and he loved intellectual challenges, but he had been raised to deal with money, politics, and business instead. He saw the fields of science and engineering as growth industries and it paid to understand what your businesses did. However understanding in theory what a scientist did and actually doing it were two very different things as he was fast discovering.

He had had to adopt this particular charade because the Silicon Valley Triton lab was apparently processing the greatest amount of the research based on the original information that had been stolen by Utopia from his own labs.

Insider sighed and sat down at his desk. It was time to touch base with Overload and since this particular body would die if it were not in life support or animated by one such as he Insider simply reached out with his mind to directly touch hers instead of transferring over to a nearby body to speak with her.

"Hi Overload." He thought at her.

"Insider?" He could feel her surprise. "Oh. I see." She understood immediately why he had contacted her this way.

"Things are progressing apace here. I've already installed your transfer program on two systems and manipulated the scientist into actions that will cause their expirments to fail and them to abandon the research. However I still have three to look into. Where are you, I can tell you are not in Mexico?" He communicated with her.

He could sense some of her irritation and shame when she replied. "I'm in Tokyo. I'm taking care of the taint protein trials per your instructions."

"Yes, but I didn't expect you to go yourself and I can tell that you are hiding something. As long as it doesn't have to do with our business dealings you don't have to tell me but if it impacts me then why are you holding back?" He mentally told her.

He felt the rapid mental calculation that lead her to her next statement. "Oh, hell. I should have expected you to find out sooner or later. One of the problems when working with a telepath. I'm starting to have quantum buildup problems."

Insider let his shock resonate across the link. "You? I had no idea."

"Yeah, and it would have stayed that way if not for this little psychic chat. I'll go ahead and answer you next question. It all started a few months ago when I wasn't feeling fully satisfied after meals no matter how much I ate. In time I realized that I could absorb juice directly from a wall socket using my electromagnetic powers and when I did this and ate I was fine. I could deal with that. I didn't' even mind when the plants at home started to die due to the constant high end electromagnetic energy that I had started to release constantly. I thought that I could just let it slide. It wasn't until the seizures started that I realized that I needed to do something. I'm enrolling myself as part of the trial. Even if it doesn't get rid of all the problems I have now it's OK as long as it slows down the rate at which the quantum buildup seems to be happening." She confessed to him.

"OK. You just be careful. I have every confidence that you will take care of the trail results and we can follow with the buyout. However this is only a trail and one that would never be sanctioned in most industrialized nations and that it looks really promising but this kind of research really has gone wrong before. I don't want anything to happen to you." He told her.

"OK." She thought back at him.

He broke the contact. She probably had this all planned out including a rehearsed speech to get him to accept her decision but he still worried. That much quantum buildup in such a short time was a bad sign.

*********

Denver, USA

"I couldn't believe how calmly my folks took the news. I think that they had suspected that something like this was coming for a while." He told her still marveling at how well it had gone.

Shadowstar smiled back at him. "My mother surprised me with her easy acceptance as well."

"Tri, I would like for you to move in with, but I'm not sure that it will be doable with the investigating that you need to do." He told her heart in his throat.

She sighed. "Rob I would like nothing better however there is another problem as well. I am already starting to have my close association with you questioned by several important people within Utopia. Most people still think that you were Narcosis' lover and even if not then you have been publicly associated with a suspected member of the Teragen. That makes you a potential suspect as well. So now I am being watched a little more closely than is comfortable given my other activities and if I moved in that might be the final straw as far as those people are concerned."

Meridian nodded. "I understand. I should have anticipated that. I apologize Triyama. We need to find a way for me to allay their fears. I'll try to think of something and if you have any ideas please let me know. You have a better feel for Utopia than I do."

"Hmm. You could publicly endorse them somehow." Shadowstar suggested.

"I'm not sure that a N! interview would play well right now. It would probably devolve into a QA session about my supposed liaison with you know who. Even a prepared speech might be problematic. But that said maybe there is another way. Argus Agency occasionally does some high profile work with Utopia. I'll ask John if anything is up. He owes me a favor." Meridian thought out loud.

"That would be perfect!" Shadowstar exclaimed and rewarded him with a kiss.

Meridian sighed when the kiss ended. "Well I know that you have to get back. I'll pick you up tonight around 10:00 PM your time. I can't believe how nervous I am about this meeting!"

Shadowstar shivered. "I am too, Rob. I am too...."

*********

Moscow, Russia

Special Agent Ilia Zinovy ground her teeth in frustration. Her investigation of the nova 'Insider' was going nowhere fast. She was not accustomed to failure of any sort and the degree to which Insider had been able to elude her every probe grated at her badly.

She considered what she knew again. That Insider was a nova was beyond doubt. The actions he had taken in New York could not have been anything other than nova based manipulation. There were also the traces of telepathic manipulation that she had detected in several minds in Rome. Those were proof positive. That Insider was a man she had no doubt. Something about the feel of his touch in those minds made her sure. Insider was wealthy. They had frozen some assets that they suspected as belonging to him, but had been unable to learn anything from them. They were also monitoring several accounts that they believed he used. Again they had learned little from them.

What she was left with were questions.

Was Insider just a telepath who used willing couriers whom he reached out to communicate with periodically? She felt that this was the most unlikely option. It failed to adequately explain Miles Gray's suicide in her mind. Even loyal couriers were unlikely to kill themselves ... unless their fate would be even worse if they failed and lived or hostages were being held against them. She marked this as her number three option.

Could Insider change shape? It was possible and would explain a lot, but her gut told her it was unlikely. This she marked as option number four.

That left two darker possibilities. Domination and Possession. It was possible that Insider had been physically present several times but simply mind controlled another to do his bidding. It was also possible that he actually possessed his targets. Either way it would be difficult to pin him down. She put Domination as option number one and Possession as number two since outright possession was so rare.

What she really needed was to understand his motivations. Once she did she could build a trap. If she knew exactly when and where he would be at a given time in the future then she could create a situation that would guarantee his capture.

To that end she went over all the earlier reports and collected data again and again.

*********

Sapporo, Japan

Meridian shook his coat off before hanging it in the Dojo entranceway. It was snowing big wet flakes outside. Then he removed his shoes and headed in.

Today he was going to spend most of his lesson meditating. It was interesting work. In addition to the normal techniques he had spoken with his instructor about adding some of the elements from the 'Project Utopia: Mental and Social Resistance Techniques' book that he had borrowed from Shadowstar. He had wanted the book primarily to look for ways to undo what Narcosis had done to him and to be able to better resist such manipulation in the future but he had found other interesting tidbits in there as well. Today he would be working on building up a modified version of what the book called 'Psychic Shielding.' In theory once he mastered it the ability would make him more resistant to telepathic and other mental assaults.

Meridian appreciated many of the things Insider had been able to do for him but having been possessed voluntarily twice by the man had given him a healthy respect for what a psychic nova could do. He was as vulnerable or more so to that kind of influence than he had been to Narcosis' tricks at first. The way he would have to twist his mind to develop this was tricky though. It made him glad that the masters in this place were so skilled in what they did and adaptable to new techniques. Without their help it would undoubtedly taken him much more time and effort to get where he was currently.

Reaching the room that was his destination Meridian entered, sat, and quieted his mind.

*********

Varanasi, India

Shadowstar held Meridian's hand as the two followed Ashish through the winding streets. In this most holy of cities it was not unusual to see a god walking.

He eventually lead them into a small temple and from there to a hidden basement. The only light in the room came from the permanent golden white glow of his halo but that was more than enough for even a normal to see by.

"So you two wish to join the Aberrants?" Ashish finally asked.

Shadowstar was just about to say yes when Meridian spoke first. "Ashish, I think that we do, but to be fair you know a whole lot more about us than we know about your organization. What can you tell us about the Aberrants? I've learned the hard way to look before I leap into something this big."

Shadowstar thought that the question was fair and was relieved to see that Ashish apparently did as well. He said, "There are some things that I cannot tell you either because they would endanger someone else or because we simply do not know, but here is what I can tell you."

"Our movement was created after Slider's death. You will not see it in the news but shortly before she was killed Slider had found what she believed to be evidence of a conspiracy within the ranks of Utopia. She believed that there was a hidden group of men and women who acted to control and comprehend novas in ways that were unethical at best and murderous at worst. She called this group Proteus. We still don't know if that is the group's real name which she uncovered or if it is something she made up for them. We don't even have all the evidence that she discovered. She may have been the only one who knew certain things before she died. Among other things she found that sterility causing drugs were being put in the food and drugs that Utopia uses. She had found evidence liking several Utopian executives to funding pro-Kashmir causes, in effect fueling the conflict that has caused more nova deaths than any other to date. We suspect that she had similar information for Africa based conflicts. However the exact nature of her proof is unknown. What we've seen since has only increased our suspicions. We have found several 'camps' where novas were being sedated, vivisected, and having their nodes drained of fluids. From what we have been able to tell these 'camps' were all funded indirectly by Triton, Aeon, or Utopia itself and the novas were being used to create illegal pharmaceuticals that were then sold to fund other operations. We've seen a lot of circumstantial evidence that questionable things are going on at Bahrain, but we don't have any hard proof yet. I personally know of several novas who were sent their because of physical or mental problems that seemed to be related to quantum buildup or 'taint' and they have yet to come out."

Meridian nodded. "So you have more suspicion than you have hard facts, at least when it comes to proving that all this ties back to Utopia?"

Ashish sighed. "It is so. We have more than enough to convince others or to slander Utopia in the press if that is what we desired, but not enough for a court of law. Not yet anyway."

"So when you do have your proof, what then?" Meridian asked.

"That is a matter of some debate even within our factious little group. Some wish to merely reform Utopia. Corbin and Rousseau's factions contain most of these. Exact remedies desired vary from individual to individual. Some want more UN oversight while others want more extreme measures. There are others who simply want the Utopia Project ended. They argue that it's mere existence is a problem and even if we clean it up now that the project will inevitably be used in ways that are detrimental to novas. Dr. Worm leads a large group who feel this way. So now it is my turn. What do you two desire for Utopia?" Ashish asked looking at them pointedly.

Shadowstar took the lead. "This conspiracy needs to be purged. I do not care if it is done publicly or privately but this 'Proteus' has no business being a part of Utopia. It taints all the good deeds done by the rest of us. Utopia then needs to devote efforts to undoing the harm that has been done."

Ashish smiled at her. "We see things similarly cousin. However I see that you do not seem to have specific remedies in mind. No doubt you will have more ideas about that the longer you are with us. What about you Rob?"

Shadowstar was shocked by what he said next. "I'm not sure, Ashish. I can see why Triyama feels as she does. Utopia has done a lot of good things. Maybe I've been listening to the Teragen propaganda for too long but I do see some very problematic issues with Utopia even without Proteus."

"Like what?" Ashish prompted. Shadowstar wanted to know the answer to that question as well.

Meridian sighed. "Look Utopia was created by normals for normals. As far as I can tell Utopia does two things. It does a lot of work to make the lives of normal men and women better, which I support, and it works to control the outlets that nova powers and ideas go. I have more of a problem with the latter. Utopia restricts nova inventions and manifestations of power in order to protect the baseline society. However, with the exception of Pax who seems to have some pull at the top, all the decisions are made by normals. I think that the Teragen is partially right. Utopia is preventing novas from growing as our own people. However I do see their position as extreme as well. They would just discard tens of thousands of years of societal growth for their current anarchy or the possibility of an all nova society. I would prefer to tread a middle road. I think that the reins do need to be loosened some and the only way to do that would be to vastly weaken Utopia’s enforcement powers. I don't think that the organization needs to be done away with, I just would like to see it's regulatory powers weakened or perhaps given over to another body with more nova control. I would also have to see more novas in positions of power within the organization to truly feel comfortable with it. I don't want to see baselines and novas separated, what I would like is a real partnership."

She was shocked. Meridian had never told her he felt this way. She was going to have to think about what he had said. Maybe she had been with the project too long to have an objective view, but she had thought that by and large the project was doing the all the right things with the exception of the shadowy activities of a few individuals.

Ashish nodded. "I had thought of it in different terms. Utopia will need novas in obvious positions of power if it is to regain nova trust after it is cleaned up. I was not aware that you had thought much about this, Rob."

"I've had to do a lot of soul searching lately." Meridian replied. "You were right that staying near Narcosis might imperil my essence. She tried to change some of my fundamental views and I've had to do a lot of contemplation to find out where I really stand. It has not been easy but then facing yourself isn't always easy is it?"

Ashish bowed his head. "No it is not. If it were the stress of doing so would not have lead to my own eruption."

"Rob, why did you not tell me?" She asked somewhat hurt that he had not shared this with her.

"Because a lot of it had to do with you. Narcosis had used her abilities to focus much of my desire to her. One of the things I had to do was rechannel those desires back to their original focuses." Meridian looked down at his feet. "I told myself that I wasn't telling you because I just wanted you to act naturally and that that would help the most or that I did not want to distract you from your investigations of Utopia. However the truth was that I was afraid to tell you. I was afraid that you wouldn't understand or would not accept what had happened to me. I still have work to do but the worst is over now." He finally looked up and into her eyes.

"Oh, Rob." She hugged him. She still felt hurt but more than that she knew how much this must have cost him. She hurt for him too.

Ashish smiled at the two of them. "I am glad to see that you to do genuinely love one another."

"So what now?" Meridian asked trying to turn the topic of the meeting back to its original purpose. "Is there a formal swearing in ceremony or something to join?"

Ashish laughed. "No. Nothing so drastic. In fact little will change. I will be your contact unless you feel dissatisfied with me for some reason in which case we will find another. We are trying to protect each other from discovery, especially our members still within Utopia like you Trimara, so we try to keep hidden even from one another. If one of our other members is captured they will not be able to expose you and you could not expose them."

Shadowstar nodded. It made sense though she would have liked to know of one or two others within Utopia so that she could talk with them.

"Well we do have something for you. You already know about the tainted disease research but here is something that I uncovered not long ago." She handed him a copy of the email she had found behind the picture in Tommy Hu's office. "It is confirmation of the sterilizations."

Ashish read the note excitedly. "You have done well! This will help us. However take care in your investigations. Proteus is dangerous. They killed Slider and who knows how many more of us. They would not hesitate to do so to you or Rob."

From there the moved on to discuss specific things that Meridian and Shadowstar should keep their eyes out for and ways in which the Aberrants could help them if things got messy.

*********

Silicon Valley, USA

Insider looked over the report that one of his lab technicians had left. Having several subordinates allowed him to shift much of the work he was supposed to be doing to them. The work got done and it made him look like he knew what he was doing to the other scientist. A little probing had reveled that this practice was not uncommon. So much for the purity of science he thought. Even smart people could be lazy and abuse the system.

Satisfied that he understood the paper enough to talk about it later he reached out with his mind. It was time to contact Overload again.

He let awareness of his contact spread through her giving her the opportunity to tell him to contact her again later.

"Well the trial has started. No real news on my end. I've already compromised their computers and our other two ringers are in place. It is only a matter of time before the official trial goes down in flames." She told him tersely.

"Got it." He replied. "I've taken care of taken care of one of the remaining three projects but the last two are going to be the hardest to crack and take out. I may need some of your more specialized talents down the road a bit. Let me know if there are any side effects in your trail.

"Wico." She thought back impatiently.

"See you." He thought as he left her mind.

Overload really was going into the unknown here. One of the reasons his own subsidiary had started with taint research on bacteria was because it was so difficult to regularly subject fully grown animals to the quantities of taint needed. Only novas produced the amount needed on a continuous basis and only some of them at that. Apparently Triton had the same issues. They had skipped the animal trails altogether and gone straight to nova research. The trial that Overload was participating in was truly bleeding edge. He would never have subjected himself to something so risky. Overload had to be truly disturbed by her swiftly growing quantum buildup to have volunteered. Insider had liked her for a long time and she held many of his secrets. If anything happened too her it would be difficult for him to find a way to replace what she did. For all these reasons and more he worried for her.

On a practical level though he had to take precautions that she was not. A few mental touches later and vast quantities of money were on the move again. When Overload was done she would be able to quickly catch up and get back in the game. If something happened to her though enough of his assets were now covered that he could move on.

Sometimes he hated being a paranoid bastard but it had kept him alive so far.

*********

Bogotá, Columbia

The heat and humidity were stifling but Meridian tried not to let that bother him. When he had contacted John about the possibilities of a Argus Agency project with Utopia in the near future he had learned that John had just turned one down. It apparently had involved a pro-bono effort to relieve hunger in southeastern Columbia. He hadn't felt secure enough in his finances yet to commit to it. So Meridian had called in a favor and offered to cover the nova support angle for free if John would call Utopia and get things moving again. He had and now Meridian and a dozen other intrepid Argus people were here.

Utopia had sent three novas and some support personnel but, unlike the Argus contingent, their support staff was unarmed and could not assist in any firefights. It was a shame since it was fairly likely that some rebel group or drug lord was bound to start something sooner or later during this mission.

The novas on the other hand looked to be well suited for the task ahead. One was a strongman named Mastodon who looked tough and ready. The second was and egghead named Babel who had phenomenal linguistic talents and few other talents that could be useful in combat. Meridian envied him his command of languages. The final nova was Delta-H from T2M Europe. Shadowstar had told him a bit about her and Meridian was looking forward to having her along. She was suppose to be a powerful teleporter and had good combat abilities so she fit the bill needed for this expedition perfectly but most of all he was interested in meeting someone that Shadowstar considered a friend.

First though he had to deal with the N! reporter who was going to be there for the sendoff and perhaps a bit of the trip as well.

"So how do you feel now that you are no longer Narcosis' companion?" Melissa Veracruz asked.

Meridian wanted to answer 'Relieved' but instead he told her. "I'm doing my best to move on. There is no one in the world like her and anyone who has the fortune to catch her eye is in for the experience of a lifetime."

Melissa eagerly jumped to her next question, "Francis 'Pulsation' Xu her longest running fling and Fred 'Knightfall' Jones who followed you as Narcosis' lover both had vivid tales to tell our N! viewers about their experiences with her, do you have anything you can add?"

He couldn't help grimacing just a tiny bit but managed to turn his smile back on quickly. "Melissa I believe that a gentleman never tells. I may have my flaws but if you want the details of our moments behind the scenes you will need to ask the lady herself. I am sure that she could share our stories much more eloquently than I ever could anyway. If she cared to, that is."

Melissa pouted at him and went on gamely. "Angela 'Narcosis' de la Cruz has been widely rumored to have Teragen sympathies. What about you Meridian?"

He sighed. "I'm going to be honest with you Melissa. I can’t help but be attracted by some of what they say. The idea of freedom is a powerful one. I like the idea of novas having a bit more freedom to find our way both for individual growth and as a species. However I find the actions of the Teragen in pursuit of this freedom hopelessly extreme in many cases and I'm not convinced that an all nova government or individual nova anarchy is the way to go. So no I don't really sympathize with them. I see a need for balance between the unfettered right to evolution and individual growth that they seem to espouse and the duties that we inherit from our parents and our shared past."

"So is that why you are working with Utopia on this joint venture? You support their vision of a brighter tomorrow for baselines and novas?" She asked.

He laughed. "Now that is a leading question. I've seriously considered joining Utopia several times. I strongly support their environmental cleanup program and outreach missions like this one. This is my third major volunteer mission for Argus Agency and I can't tell you how glad I am to be able to use my nova abilities to help people the way we will be doing on this trip. As you know we will be...."

He shifted the interview over to the safe track of what their hunger relief mission was all about. He wasn't sure that he could have danced around many more questions. He hoped that what he had said would help Shadowstar do what she needed to in the coming weeks without association with him making it harder now.

*********

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Shadowstar looked up in awe as she approached the Utopia Central headquarters building. The building was the single most impressive man made structure she had ever seen. She was tempted to fly up and get a better view but thought better of the idea. She didn't want to bring too much attention to herself right now.

Ostensibly she was here to visit Michael 'Piledriver' Smith the Canuck who had been with her and Meridian in the Manhattan Rashoud Clinic during their early training. She had called ahead and set up a lunch meeting with him too but her real purpose today was to try to get a look at two women.

She had managed to get to the security terminal and bring up the names of all Utopia Asia visitors from the day when she had met with the director and two strangers. After going through the list she had been able to narrow the possibilities down to two names, Edith Shoemaker and Victoria Johnson. Shadowstar had been afraid to try to look up either one on the computer for fear that she might trigger some hidden alarm so instead she had made this trip.

She had done her best to memorize the sections of the building that she would be waking though. Edith Shoemaker's office was just slightly off the quickest way to Michael's office so she went past it on her way in
pretending to be lost if anyone asked her. No one did though and the
office door was closed. So she just went on past and on to Michael.

Lunch with Michael went well. It was good to catch up with an old friend. What surprised her though was his bitterness. He was very sarcastic several times when referring to Utopia. Just to be safe she pretended not to notice. It wouldn't do for her to be found out so soon if he had been sent to test her and if not then no harm done she though.

Afterwards they went back to his office.

"....and this damn terafroming is driving me nuts. We get all kinds of novas coming through each day and it is nearly impossible to keep up with them. Half the time NSI 'forgets' to tell us that they have gotten a hold of nova 'x' at the last minute and that he is going to be helping for the next week. It's a nightmare to keep our security logs up to date." He was saying.

Shadowstar shook her head. "I had never thought that you would be on this end of things Michael. I suspected that you would be with T2M or doing other combat oriented jobs when you first joined Utopia with me."

He gave her a tired smile. "There aren't very many of us novas you know. Fewer and fewer of the new ones are joining us too. It is easy to teach a nova how to fight but it's much tougher to teach them to think like a security professional or proper investigator. I was trained for both before my eruption. I might have ended up on T2M or in Kashmir or any of the other combat zones if not for that. There are days I wish that I could pound someone good. You have no idea how sick I am of some of the crap they put me though here."

Shadowstar shuddered. "You would not want to be in Kashmir no matter how many heads you might be able to pound. Rob and I have been there and it is not a pretty sight."

"Speaking of Rob what is up with you two? I heard that he had shacked up with Narcosis or something. I thought it sounded fishy. He never seemed the Teragen type to me."

She hesitated still unsure how to answer when the door burst open with a slam that nearly ripped it off it's hinges.

Cestus Pax himself stood there with a huge frown on his face looking down at the two of them....

*********

Moscow, Russia

The technician's face loomed on the screen in front of Special Agent Ilia Zinovy.

"Special Agent Flemming's report indicates that you were searching for medical records involving Miles Gray, yet I do not see that report included in the main case file. Where is it?" She asked him with a hard edge in her voice.

The technician made a sour face. "I put that damn report on his desk the weekend before last! He gave me the fucking days to get it. There was no way I could meet that request and keep it within normal protocols. As it was my fucking girlfriend left me when I didn't show up for the date with her that Friday."

Ilia schooled her anger. "I am sorry to hear that. Could I ask you to take a few minutes of your time and see if it is still there and if so could you please send it here?" Sometimes asking nicely got you better results than giving curt orders, though she was more than ready to order him around if he resisted.

The tech sighed. "Oh, all right. I'll do it just to get the damn thing off my hands for good. Do you want me to call you back or do you want to wait?"

"I will hold." She told him. She wanted that report.

Nearly 20 minutes later the tech's face was back on the screen. "It's not there. His supervisor and I looked everywhere. If it's not in the case file then Agent Flemming probably has it."

Ilia schooled her features again. She was beginning to dislike Special Agent Cory Flemming. He had had all the breaks on this investigation while she was having to work twice as hard only to get fewer results. At least no agents had died under her command she thought maliciously.

"Thank you for looking. I'll put in the paperwork to have the report run again." She told him sweetly. "You said it took three days last time?"

The tech sighed deeply. "Yeah, three days. Three fuckin' days."

Smiled at him and decided to ignore his last remark. "Thank you again. You have been very helpful."

*********

Southeast of Bogotá, Columbia

Meridian was listening to Shadowstar's delighted chattering on the phone. It had been a long exhausting day of moving men, food, and equipment from one area to the next. They had done well bypassing the roadblocks and getting the food and farm supplies to people who really needed it.

"...and for a minute I thought that the two would come to blows. Pax kept ordering Michael to waive procedures and let Microwatt join staff. Michael was already angry but tried to reason with Pax. Finally I felt Michael use a load of Quantum, I think he was increasing his density, and Pax flared in return. Then Michael just threw down the folder in disgust and said 'Shelby you're not worth it. You talk a big game about being the police force for the world but you wouldn't know good police work if it bit you in the ass. If Utopia is going to really follow through on it's propaganda then things need to change. But you can do it without me dickhead. I quit!' As he stormed out I thought that Pax was going to attack him anyway but at the last second he held back." She told him.

"Good thing for Michael!" Meridian added.

"Yes it was fortunate. Then Pax turned to me and said, 'And just who the hell are you?' and I got to tell him that I was an old friend of Michael's who worked for Utopia Asia. He looked sourly at me and then stormed out himself." She grinned at him. "The PR department here is already beating down my door to set up an appointment to talk about the whole thing. Michael sent me an email telling me that he was sorry and had decided to join the XWF so he could finally pound a few skulls in!"

Meridian laughed. "Well good for him. I'm sure that he will have fun and be good at it. Maybe having an ex-cop around will keep them honest. I'm glad Pax didn't go off on you too."

Shadowstar shuddered. "Rob he is so powerful. I could just feel it. I have not ever felt anyone with an aura like his. It would be one thing to feel such power from a calm and centered person but it is another thing entirely to feel it from someone who is angry. I just hope that he is never angry with me."

Meridian nodded. "Me too Tri. Me too. Well I've got to run. Delta-H is coming over this way. You want to say 'hi' to her first?"

Shadowstar nodded. The two women chatted for a few seconds and after they hung up Delta-H turned to Meridian.

"She still cares about you, you know." Delta-H told him.

Meridian smiled gently. "I know."

"Then why the hell did you shack up with Narcosis the way you did? You couldn't have hurt her more if you had tried." Delta-H demanded.

Meridian's face went blank. "I know that you and Triyama are friends and I will not begrudge her a bit if she decides to talk to you about that whole mess. In fact it would probably be good for her to do just that. However I owe you no explanations. All I am going to say to that is that we did not 'shack up' and that I am just glad that I made it through without becoming one of her pets."

With that he turned his back on her and walked off. He probably should have explained he thought but he was still sensitive about the whole thing. The incident was still to raw in his mind to be stepped on by people he didn't know.

He didn't see the look of surprise in her eyes at his response.

*********

Talaud Island, Indonesia

Shadowstar smiled to herself. She was glad that Meridian and Delta-H were working together. She had wanted to introduce them but this saved her the trouble. With any luck they would hit it off and then she and Meridian could start expanding their circle of mutual friends.

She had also wanted to tell him about the other results of her trip but she had not wanted to do so by phone. It was just too chancy given what they were involved in. If someone intercepted that phone conversation it would be trouble for both of them.

After her little run in with Pax she had been too frightened to make the long detour necessary to find Victoria Johnson's office so she had tried walking past Edith Shoemaker's again. This time luck had been with her and the door had been open. The woman sitting behind the desk bore no resemblance to the one who had been in the meeting that day. That meant that it was almost certainly Victoria Johnson who had been there.

Now it was time to find out more information about Victoria. She just had to figure out how to do it. It had been one thing investigating things here at the Asia office. It was going to be a whole different matter to look into the someone stationed at the Central office like Victoria was or 'Control' was likely to be.

She sat on the floor of her room and started to think.

*********

Silicon Valley, USA

Insider was worried. Overload had asked him to try her again today when he had contacted her telepathically yesterday. The problem was that her thought processes had seemed very erratic at the time. Insider didn't know if it might be that she had felt a seizure coming on, was taking additional drugs as part of the trial, if it might have been a negative side effect of the trial already showing up, or if her taint problems were getting worse in spite of the treatment she was getting. He really hoped that she was better today.

As he had done before he reached out to her but did not 'say' anything. He just let her be aware that he was ready to talk if she was. He could still feel the chaotic jumble of thoughts like he had felt yesterday. It was a bad sign.

After a few moments when she did not respond he 'spoke,' "Overload, it's Insider. How are you?"

He had an overwhelming feeling of shock and terror so strong that it threatened to break his contact with her. He had already decided to let it go if it came to that when she finally spoke back to him. "Insider?"

"Yes, it's me. Are you OK?" He asked anxiously.

"Yes ... no, not really." Her first response had been a lie but the second had felt true and more coherent.

"I think that I might be going crazy. I keep hearing voices in my head. At first I thought it was you but it never was. I wasn't sure this was really you either." She told him.

He could tell that she still wasn't really sure. That along with 'hearing other voices' was ominous.

"Overload you just wait where you are. I'm going to get you out of this trial. I'll be over to Japan soon. You just stay put." He told her forcefully. Not for the first time he wished that he could have controlled people without having to posses them.

"OK. I will." She told him.

Insider broke the contact. Both of them were in deep shit. If Overload was really going crazy and this wasn't just some sort of side effect then he needed to find help for her fast. He also was going to need to protect himself. Overloads planning, computer programs, and day to day operational control had been vital to his business success to date. If she went down it was possible that everything could come undone. He had protected much of the money previously. Now it was time to break apart the parent company. He could found another.

It was time to abandon this post too. He had taken care of 4 of the 5 projects here. He could follow up on number 5 later.

He stood up in his borrowed body and walked out of the building. He drove his car back to the apartment he was living in and then went inside to make some preparations. A short time later he walked out of the building and over to a nearby crematory. Once there he telepathically altered the memories of the attendant there and lay down in an empty coffin. As the wooden box moved towards the fire he jumped to another waiting body.

*********

Southeast of Bogotá, Columbia

They had taken up a pattern where Delta-H would teleport Meridian and herself ahead to bypass trouble spots and then if the area looked promising then Meridian would make a Disk Portal and the others would drive through to their new location. The need for constant vigilance when they jumped was wearing and the constant use of their powers took a toll as well.

Delta-H hadn't had much to say to him since his last outburst the previous day so the outbound trips had been pretty quiet. That afternoon he resolved to try to patch things up between them before the trip was over. Shadowstar would not be thrilled if he pissed off one of her friends.

Apparently Delta-H had decided something of the same sort. After they popped into yet another deserted clearing five miles past a guarded road crossing and ascertained that the area was safe they both started to speak.

"Delta-H I'm sorry...." He began.
"Meridian I shouldn't...." She started.

They both laughed.

"Ladies first." he insisted after a moment.

"OK, I'll start." She agreed. "I shouldn't have barged in yesterday. I obviously don't know all the facts. All I can say is that I was worried about Shadowstar."

Meridian nodded. "Forgiven. I should have expected you to watch out for her and I'm sorry I snapped at you. I'm still a little touchy about the whole thing and I shouldn't be. I'm glad that you are watching out for her. It shows that you are a true friend."

"You know I didn't really expect it to go like this when I set up the idea of this joint expedition with Argus Agency. I had some sort of idea that you would come along and that I would get to threaten you about your little media performance." She admitted shamefaced.

Meridian laughed. "You set this up just to meet me? That is too funny! I walked right into it. Argus Agency had declined the offer to work together and I called in a favor for them to put it back on again."

"Oh. I had no idea." She said in surprise.

"It might have been easier to just let Triyama introduce us. Then we wouldn't have had to slog through all this jungle." He said with light irony.

She giggled. "It is a lot of work isn't it. At least we are doing something good even if our motives might not have been perfect."

"That is very true." He said deadpan while making a face. It set her off again. On a more serious note he began, "Let's talk more about this tonight. I think that if we wait much longer the others might start to worry. Oh and if you still want to threaten me I'm sure we can work something out. I'll make sure to cower very convincingly if it will make you feel better."

Her gales of laughter got more than one odd look as their companions came though his Portal.

*********

Talaud Island, Indonesia

Shadowstar was smiling after she got off the phone with Meridian and Delta-H. Apparently they were getting along well, not that she had ever had doubts that they would. And in another day or tow their relief mission would be over and she and Rob could spend some quality time together.

If only her other problems were solved as easily. She had come to the conclusion in the days following her visit with Michael that they only way that she could move forward with investigating the current mess was to move to Addis Ababa. Oh she might get a bit further by snooping around Tommy Hu some more but she suspected that his knowledge and influence were limited. Since his daughter was a nova he was probably shut out of some of the more important stuff going on in this 'Proteus' group. That meant that she was going to have to look for more clues at Central HQ if she wanted to get anywhere.

The problem was that there was no easy way to make that happen. She had been lucky to be stationed here in Asia to begin with and luckier still to have not been transferred once already. Nova staffing was strictly controlled by the bureaucracy. They would not move her to Addis Ababa unless there was a reason to do so. She had to think of some plan that would further Utopia's goals while requiring her to be there or find some existing niche that needed to be filled by a nova with her talents. Then she would have to do sine convincing.

No matter how she looked at it this was going to be hard.

*********

Tokyo, Japan

It was taking more time than Insider had planned on both to extract Overload from the drug trial and to finish dismantling his holding company.

In the case of Overload he had faced two options. The first had been to simply barge in and whisk her away. It would have been messy and have potentially alerted the Directive to his whereabouts but quick. In the end though he had chosen the second way. He was quietly trying to manipulat the doctors into letting her go. The problem was that they were fascinated by the results in her case. More so than the others she was displaying odd symptoms. As time dragged on he wished more and more that he had followed his first instinct and just gotten her out.

It was taking time to find buyers for his holding company as well and he was trying to keep certain people free so that he could snap them up when he launched his next venture. However dealing with personnel matters always took time and that was when he was on hand to deal with it. Doing it remotely as he was only multiplied the delays.

"Doctor Futaji I have the form you requested." Insider said handing it to him with both hands along with a proper bow.

"Yes. Yes." The doctor told him. "I am afraid though that things have changed since your last visit. We will have to keep subject number 3 for further observation. Her medical problems are so severe that she cannot be allowed out of the hospital yet."

"Doctor Futaji, as I have explained she is to be transferred to a Utopia clinic that specializes in Nova medicine. I believe that you are not a specialist in that area. No?"

The doctor just shook his head. "Even so, we are the experts regarding the drug that subject number 3 has been taking. She could come to serious harm while others were being made aware of the specifics of our research."

And that was that. Insider was going to have to do this the messy way but first he wanted to contact Meridian just in case he needed backup.

*********

Denver, USA

The party was in full swing. He had invited the men and women who had been on the relief expedition to a little task completion party at his place. It wasn't as wild as many he had been too but the Argus Agency folks and Utopia members were mixing well. Nothing like a few days of slogging though the jungle together to encourage friendships he thought.

Meridian sipped at the drink in his hand as Shadowstar, Delta-H, and he listened to yet another of Melt Masters outrageous stories. This one was about how he had ended up seducing the three female DeVries elites who had been ordered to guard a compound that he was under contract to take. The women were skeptical.

"So how did you manage the stamina to keep all three of them 'entertained?' Skinny as you are I'm not sure that you have what it takes to outlast even one of us." Delta-H said nodding at Shadowstar.

Melt Master did his suggestive little tail wiggle and wagged his tongue suggestively before saying, "Sure some parts might get a bit tired after a while but I used more than one...."

Shadowstar and Delta-H laughed. It was impossible not to like the boastful lizard man.

"But I've got nothing on Mer-man here. I don't think that even I could have handled Narcosis for 5 days! Boy he sure knows how to up me one. I'm going to have to work really hard to top that!" Melt Master said unaware of the effects of his words.

Meridian tensed but saw that Shadowstar looked more annoyed than angry and he managed to relax a bit.

"Hrmph!" Shadowstar grumped. "Maybe there is a reason that I am here and Narcosis is not. Maybe Meridian found Narcosis' charms ... lacking."

Melt Master's eyes widened as Meridian nodded in response to Shadowstar's words.

"My friend I wouldn't trade a single night with Shadowstar for a month of Narcosis. It wouldn't even be close." Meridian said as he moved over and put his arm around her.

Delta-H grinned evilly and chimed in, "I wonder of any of your three elites would be willing to say the same about you? I don't see them here with you now..."

Meridian was enjoying seeing Melt Master sputter when his portable phone went off. It was the distinctive vibration that meant that Insider was calling. He signaled to the others to continue without him and wandered into an empty room to take the call.

"Hey man. What's up?" He greeted Insider.

"Meridian I have a problem. A young woman who works for me is in serious trouble. I'm about to go in to try to get her out but I have a bad feeling about this. I want you to be on standby in case things go wrong. I'm in Tokyo right now. I've sent you a data package with photos and maps of the hospital. Will you be able to help?" Insider said in rapid fire fashion.

"I'm not going to BS you. I'm willing to back you up but I've been burning juice all day. I'm not sure that I'll be able to give you everything you need. I have five other novas here right now including Shadowstar. Some of them might be willing to help but most of them are on the Utopia payroll. Melt Master will come for cash. What do you think?" Meridian said.

"I'll take any help I can get if this goes sour, but I would really prefer that Utopia types not be involved. Shadowstar is OK and Melt Master can count on his cash. I'll double whatever his standard contract is. But try to not involve the others. Hopefully I'll be able to get in and out myself. Even if I do that, though, I might want a Portal to a safe location. I'll be in touch. And ... thank you." Insider told him.

Meridian sighed. So much for the party mood he thought as he took Shadowstar aside and told her what was happening. "Our unique little friend is in trouble. He is trying to rescue a woman who works for him and may need us to be the Calvary if things go wrong. I haven't heard him this tense before so I think it is serious. I'm not sure that he would be interested in all our Utopian friends crashing his little party but he has asked for you and me to be ready. Melt Master too if it comes to that, though I can pull him in at the last minute with the right offer of cash."

*****

Shadowstar had never been this irked with Insider before. His timing was terrible. She had been having a lot of fun and it had been far too long since either she or Meridian had been able to relax like this. Well it could not be helped and it sounded like Insider was really worried about this other woman according to Meridian. "I will be ready, Rob."

As long as they were both tense she might as well break the other news she thought.

"Rob, while we are waiting I have something else I want to tell you. I'm going to try to get transferred to the Central Arena. I think that I'll be able to do more there." She didn't have to tell him exactly what she meant. He knew what she was looking into.

His response was about what she had expected too. "Hmm. I'm not sure that I like the idea. After your little run in with Pax I'm surprised you're even suggesting it, however I can see why you would want to do it. If things get too crazy don't forget my offer from earlier in the week."

She just smiled at him. His willingness to trust her and back her was part of the reason she loved him. "Thank you, Rob. I shall tell you all about it when we have a bit of time alone. I am just relieved that you understand."

He looked at her tenderly. "I just wish that there was more I could do for you to make it all easier."

*****

Delta-H didn't have the unreal hearing that she had seen some novas demonstrate but her hearing was much sharper than any non-nova she had ever met. As a result she heard every word Meridian and Shadowstar said.

The more she saw them together the more relaxed she became about Meridian. Shadowstar did appear to have gotten lucky and made a good catch the whole Narcosis incident notwithstanding. She silently wished them luck.

What was more interesting though was the mention that someone they knew needed help. Delta-H knew that she and Meridian had burned a lot of juice already today. If they were going to be riding to this person's rescue then they were just going to have to put up with a fourth nova tagging along to keep everyone safe she thought to herself.

*********

Tokyo, Japan

Special Agent Ilia Zinovy nodded silently to the two agents with her. They were across the street from a very upscale hospital in a room that had a clear view of three very important windows. The last day and a half had yielded her first big break in the Insider case.

The woman in one of those hospital rooms across from them had posted some very interesting information about someone named 'Insider' on one of their tip boards. They were still checking out some of the things posted but the most interesting allegation was that Insider was going to try take her away from the hospital. Special Agent Zinovy had checked the records the woman was apparently suffering from tremendous quantum buildup problems and the doctors were questioning just how sane she currently was so nothing was a given with this current operation. It had been tempting to scan the woman to verify that Insider would be here but it was likely that as a telepath he would be able to spot her tampering.

So they waited. The doctors came and went and nothing was out of the ordinary so far. Waiting could be such a chore but she had been schooled to patience long ago.

*****

Insider had chosen to possess one of the senior doctors but not the lead physician. The man he had chosen had enough authority to move patient number 3 as part of the trial but not so much that his doing so perso