"I agree with you, we must stop her." Joani came to a halt.

"Can Lorean keep her at bay in a body? I mean secure - imprisoned to be precise." She was looking straight into Ulrics eyes.

"I am unclear on the technical matters. I imagine we can keep her current human host sedated and her quarantened for some time. Lorean?"

Keeing Joani's gaze,
"What do you have in mind?"

Joani gave him a little smirk and waited for Loreans response.

Lorean's hologram appears and you hear both over the link and aloud, *There are ways to keep her imprisoned, but she would always be a threat. We could put her in a body that is brain dead and keep it sedated, or I could keep her imprisoned in a room shielded, but then she would eventually develop teleportation or some other way of escape. I don't know if it would be possible but given Joani's condition I think it would be appropriate." An image appears of a courtroom in a futuristic setting and the Judge pronounces sentence on the criminal, declaring that he has been sentenced to 'death of the personality'. "That is from a show called Babylon 5, which was from our original timeline. In it criminals who were unrepentent
or who commited very serious crimes had their personalities wiped out by a telepath, then they would spend the rest of their days serving the community that they had harmed."

Joani was shocked as she saw the images. "That is murder. They could have sentenced them to death and it wouldn't make much difference. That is not what I had in mind. I was hoping that we could keep her imprisoned in a body which has the means of keeping her at bay."

Lorean's image looks at Joani, "Would that not be the same thing? Being confined and unable to act to even so much as scratch the nose on the face of the body you are in. That would be the same as what she did to you only in reverse."

"Only if revenge was the motiv. From what I've concluded by now is, that she may as much be dependent on a host like a real parasite. She could switch bodies anytime she wanted to, but with your average human the host would seem to fragile - thats the reason she chose me. If we can convince her to be part of our vision..." she hesitated to go on with her thought.

"then I would volunteer to be her host - like a symbiont - equal rights. I can forgive her what she has done, if she agrees to play by the rules we set up."
She wasn't sure if her idea didn't sound too crazy but she was honest about her intentions.

Lorean looks thoughtfully at Joani, *That is very forgiving of you, but I think it will be up to a consensus of the crew what happens to the Sphinx and whether or not they believe they can trust her not to abuse a host, whoever that host is."

"She has had a whole year to treat you like an equal, to have a symbiotic relationship. She has shown no inclination to see you as anything but a pretty, favored suit."

"The marytr's path is," Ulric hesitates, "... easier than facing up to the realization that justice must be done. Do this now - sacrifice yourself, and what do you do next time? And the next, for I garuntee you that we have a world full of criminally minded Specials who will see the ungifted as victims waiting to be abused. Every future outlook shows us that."

"We need to decide her fate, not because we have the power, but because we are the ones at this moment in history with that burden. It isn't easy. It isn't something we should rush into, but it isnt' something we should push off for another day, hoping the problem will somehow solve itself."

"Your intentions are noble, Joani, but what you ask not only endangers you, but endangers everyone the two of you would encounter from this moment forward. That is because she CAN control you when she desires to. You can't stop her."

Joani looked disappointed to the floor knowing that Ulrics words were right. She didn't give an answer but her eyes spoke for herself. She wished so much she could make a difference.

Steve looks shocked at Omars and "The Maid's" out bursts and says,

"Whoa, WHOA, let's all calm down here. I think everyone has more or less the same long term goals in mind, and we all think we're wearing white hats."

"I think we all bring something to the table here. I've seen our healer in action and I think supplying bodies isn't going to be a problem. I don't know if there are any mindless novas out there, it's not exactly a dinner topic if you know what I mean. And the fact of the matter is that we are supplying technology to various people, one more wouldn't be an issue from that stand point."

"On the other side of the table, I haven't mentioned it yet but I have to say she's right. She really is smarter than me. She had me fooled, like, totally. It was only shear luck that she's in this room now. We were on the way out the door, if she'd walked in 30 seconds later we'd never have gotten her."

"She's smarter than me, and it wouldn't shock me in the slightest if she's the smartest person in this room. And she has this network she's mentioned."

Steve seems very much like a junior salesman at the moment. It's times like these were just how young he is comes across.

*Omar, that's your cue to laugh about her possible network.*

*Cody, it occures to me that Joani's body might have buried memories about this.*

*Lorean, would you please contact Michael and inform him of the current situation. I think we need his insight and advice.*

*Andrew, would you please make sure the quantum nullifier is in working condition. We may need it.*[/quote]

Ulric reaches out and puts his hand underneath Joani's chin, lifting it up until they are eye to eye once more.

"We are what we do, not what we can not do. Don't forget your strengths in this moment of moral crisis. Use them to make the right decision - the decision you can live with."

Ulric seems grim and resolute. His bearing of confidence is inspiring. He doesn't claim to have the answer, but his essence promises that such an answer will soon be at hand.

She looks up at Steve with a look of commiseration on her face, "It's alright. You see, that is the reason I have been doing this. My own eruption gave me a superior intellect, it has been a curse really, understanding things no one around me even sees, but I have put it to use and it has brought us here. I can help you if you let me. I'm not asking to rule the world here(lie), just to assist you with my own gift of insight. With your knowledge and my intellect we can make everything turn out for the best." She has just the right mixture of hope and concern for your feelings on her face.

"Network!.. Hah ha ha ha!" Omar started laughing. "You mean Matthew, Harold and the others?"

Omar stopped laughing and planted himself right in front of the maid. "Now, what to do with you?"

She tries her best to ignore Omar and Cody, focusing instead on Steve who she believes she is swaying. "Do with me? I thought we had settled that. I will accept your offer and inhabit the bodies you provide as long as they are not substandard. I will vacate this one as soon as another is presented, but we were discussing more important issues like how I can help you."

In the wake of his failure to penetrate her mind, Cody had remained silent, his own mind grappling furiously with the problems at hand.

*Good job playing her game Steve. Might be a good idea to find out how much time we have before her "deadman switch" activates.*

*In the meantime, perhaps I should focus on finding Harold, or searching for clues in our supergirl? I'm not doing as much good here as I wanted to...*

*Whatever you do, we can't let her free. It is in her nature to dominate and it will only get worse...especially since she now knows even more about us.*

*Lorean...do you have enough energy to 'port me out of the cell? I must apologize for the demands we have placed on you lately.*

*I can do it Cody, since we have her there isn't much point in maintain the other shields anyway, unless you think Harold is as big a risk as the Sphinx.*

After a few seconds Cody is transported out and to the transporter room. *Sorry, you will have to walk to the bridge or to your rooms since I'm low on energy. Is there anything else I can do to help Cody?*

Lorean's voice responds in Cody's mind *Ms Walters is on the bridge now. I will place the call to Michael and have him aboard by the time you are finished with Joani.*

Over the link *I have dropped the shield on the bridge, I will maintain the one on Matthew for the moment, at least until Cody locates him. I should have enough energy for another two days at with the bridge shield dropped. After this is over I will see about developing more energy efficient methods of shielding. This has been the most taxing day in a very long time.*

Steve replies,

"Well, basically, yeah, that's the idea. I can think of several situations I'd like to go over with you... wait, how much time am I working with here? I was pretty rough with that body, do you need any food, sleep, that sort of thing? I got to warn you, I can go on for hours, maybe even days."

*OK Omar, I think it's time for you to storm off and leave the two of us together. Maybe say something about her being useless.*

*Lorean, do we have any bodies around that would work? Maybe Morgan would be a better person to ask?*

"You are right." she sighed. "It's just that I need something to hold on to, something that keeps me going and I need to believe that she can be saved. How am I supposed to uphold Justice and Virtue if I know that in the case of an uncomfortable encounter you tend to say that the means justify the ends? I don't mean to critizise your efforts because I know how your true intentions are. But you may understand that it is more than double important to me in the face of the public opinion."

Joani was bristling with ambition and the urge to take action and just barely touched the surface of the possiblities at her disposal.

*Steve, I think the search for a body is going to take some time, the current medical technology is such that people are not being kept alive while brain dead. We will have to catch a fresh one so to speak. Also, Michael will be here shortly, I am in the process of bringing him up to speed. He seems very concerned.*

"What are you trying to do!?" Omar says to Steve. "She's nothing but a taint ridden nova. Worthless to our cause. We should put her down like the rabid animal she is! Instead, you want play pattycake with her! Bah!" Omar stalks off, feigning rage."

To Lorien: *Ok Lorien, you can get me out of here.

To Steve: Find out what you can and get out. I will keep a close eye on things. I don't want to have to knock you out, if she takes over.

Lorean teleports Omar to the transporter room. *It looks like everyone is gathering on the bridge. Michael is on his way and Cody is going to scan Joani to see if he can learn anything about the sphinx's associates and plans.*

"I did not mean to imply that I feel the Ends justify the Means, Fraulien Walters. I think we see the situation differently. I feel we are confronted with a clear menace to not only our goals - which her clear goal of global domination is - but also a threat to the public good. She is an unrepentant bodysnatcher after all."

"I do not believe either one of us could live with the decision to let her go. She would seek to harm others as soon as she could. What vexes us is how we should contain her? What constitutes justice and what becomes cruel and unusual punishment? I hope we are still seeking that answer."

"Joani, if we let her go, what do we do when she harms her next victim? What do you say to the next woman who wakes up one day feeling like you did this morning?"

"No, I don't know how you felt. I haven't gone through what you have gone through. I can only imagine, but ... but I can say that you are not acting out of a sense of vengence ... or guilt. Sometime you must act because you are the only person who can act at that given time and place. We are each that person in the here and now. We must decide."

"I said I believe in you and I do. I believe you will know when and what justice must be metted out. You have a good head on your shoulders and a Great Heart. All that I ask is that you marry these two great gifts - your logic and your moral directive - together so that you will know the Right thing to do when the time comes."

Joani let the Presidents words sink in. He was a truly gifted man with unrivaled foresight. She was still too emotionally involved to give good advice and it cost her much to concentrate on the facts. Her heart told her that she needed to close this chapter to go on, else she would always be in doubt... doubting herself.

"I need your help Mr. President, right now I can't think of any way to solve this. Every step I take seems to reveal even more questions instead of giving answers. You said, that unlike the others you are from this timeline? There must be some records that hint at this parasite. If she is that evil then there must be a connection - a clue somewhere that could explain how she came to be." she was looking to Lorean but continued to speak

"I refuse to take for granted that she is evil just because. Something must've happened to her." her mind was racing with possibilities.

"If her intellect ist that superior, then she must recognize the truth of your intentions - only someone who was out of his mind - detached from being human could be corrupted by power and turn to evil acts. A superior intellect couldn't possibly be overruled by emotions like jealousy or greed."

"You sound just like your Superman. His arch-nemisis is a man called Lex Luthor. They never understand one another. Lex is a man, a wealthy man, driven by a lust for power and domination, but also by his hatred for the Man of Steel."

"Superman can't really understand the motivations of Lex Luthor, even as he must confront Lex's schemes over and over again. When defeated, Lex Luthor just keeps coming back with yet more schemes to defeat and destroy Superman. Lex is unrepentant. He must dominate. There is no other way for him to exit."

"There has been a small amount of investigation into what the world would be like of Lex turned his massive intellect to Good. It is an interesting study, but one marred by what role Superman must play. Some say they are forever destined to oppose one another, just as Good must oppose Evil ... or perish."

"Without Darkness there is no Light..." replied Joani thoughtfully and drew a deep breath. "I need some time to clear my mind but I already know which part is mine. You've been very inspirational and supportive - I thank you very much."

Steve says to "The Maid",

"Ah, sorry about that. Omar is... (pause) Omar is very strong and he's was with us in the beginning. 'Enlightned' however is not a word that comes to mind. He can be... difficult." (Steve looks like he could go on but he doesn't).

"You were saying?"

After The Maid indicates how long she can go on, Steve attempts to start a conversation about world politics and what both of them have been up to. This isn't going to be a lecture but rather a collaborative effort, i.e. hopefully with both people sharing what they have done and what they think could and should be done. It's going to be pretty near impossible to have this conversation without revealing a lot about the strengths, weaknesses, and capabilities of one's own organization. This kind of thing could go on for hours or days, and Steve is looking forward to dealing with someone who is his mental superior with this.

(When Appropriate I'd like to make a Rapport Roll on the Maid.)

*Cody, another option is to leave a message with Matt and then monitor him when it's picked up. Let's not tell Matt that we have the Maid. And if the Maid is correct in her people thinking they have white hats, then Matt thinking we do as well might be a good thing.*

Omar arrives on the bridge to see the others assembled. He sees Walter and walks over to him. "How is you research into history going? I hope it doesn't drive you crazy." Omar tilts his head back, laughs, and moves over to the others. He was relaxed now that he was out of that room with that mad creature. Omar would have another go at her later. For now, it was time to mingle, eat and relax.

Ulric was talking with Joani, and Omar wanted to catch up briefly with them. "Good evening Mr. President." He turns to Joani. "I hope Ulric here, is not boring you to death. Those Europeans can be so droll." Omar gives Ulric a friendly slap on the back and then continues. "But in all seriousness, Joani, I hope you are adjusting to everything."

"I suppose you have heard some of the interrogation. She is obviously a sociopath. Because of that, it will be hard to break her. Right now, Steve is betting that he can catch more flies with honey. I wish him luck."

"Anyways, I am going to grab a bite to eat, see how Steve is doing, and take a short nap. Then, if all is well, I will head to Azerbaijan. I have to meet with the editors of Al Ziggurat, about spinning news report in our favor, should our body-thief succeed in revealing our presence. Not to mention the political fallout. My hope is that some of us will not be identified as conspirators. The turmoil she could cause." Omar shook his head as if the idea was profoundly sad.

"We'll need a bit more luck before this mess is over," Ulric responds. "I think I will have to be ready in case this isn't a bluff. I am proud of what I've done while a member of this Cabal. I will survive this."

"Joani, you should review the interrogation to date to get a better idea what kind of woman - if she is a woman - that we are dealing with."

"I wish Steve skill as well as luck. He will need both."