Chapter 1 2 3 4 5

Chapter 1

SUMMARY:

CAST: (in order of importance in the story)

ALEC SU, VICKI CHIU, KRISTY YEUNG, LOUIS KOO, VIVIAN LEUNG, JULIAN CHEUNG, RUBY LIN, FELIX WONG, FAN BING BING (of *HZGG*), NICKY WU, GALLEN LO

Alec, the leader of the FBI secret investigation unit for the government consisting of Kristy, Louis, Vivian, Ruby and Nicky is living in a nightmare. A strange illness hits him hard after a criminal escapes from prison and as the secrets and conspiracies of his past comes to light, Alec will undercover the truth about the horrors of his unnatural powers and the enemies that he had thought were his friends. Life is complicating, often cruel and Alec and his fleet of loyal investigation agents will struggle to save him from a fate worse than Death before chaos destroys all of their lives. This is a story about love, friendship, family ties, conspiracy, and most all, the importance of human life. Please read on if you are interested. Thank you!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But the discipline of blessings is to taste
each moment, the bitter, the sour, the sweet
and the salty, and be glad for what does not
hurt. The art is in compressing attention
to each little and big blossom of the tree
of life, to let the tongue sing each fruit,
its savor, its aroma and its use.

Attention is love, what we must give
children, mothers, fathers, pets,
our friends, the news, the woes of others.
What we want to change we curse and then
pick up a tool. Bless whatever you can
with eyes and hands and tongue. If you
can't bless it, get ready to make it new.

-- Marge Piercy

~~~~~~~~~

*Now I lay me down to Sleep*-Chapter One

Writtten by: *Whistler*
Edited by: Shannon

WEDNESDAY, MAY 12th, 1989

Dear Diary,

I remember a time back, there were rabbits.

Out in the back of the main house sat a fairly sizable hutch was built and it was full of bunnies. All different colors and shapes, sizes and breeds. They belonged to my first girlfriend, Anne. She was a sweet little girl, so full of energy and life who loved animals. I love her so. She'd carry them around stroking and stroking them, their little noses twitching and quivering, their eyes wild and frightened. Always frightened.

Rabbits are scared of everything.

There was that book, that rabbit book. They made us read it in school. Watership Down. I only read the first part of it, it was dumb. As if rabbits had their own society. But the thing of it was, in the first part of that book it talked about how the entire world was the enemy of the rabbit. Every last living thing that walked the earth was the rabbit's enemy.

And it was true...and somehow important. In the mind of that soft, shaking creature, even *I* was dangerous.

I would think about that whenever I looked at my girlfriend's rabbits. It made me feel bigger somehow. Even if they were just dumb animals. I would think of it at night when my dad would creep into my room and I would think of it as I pressed my face into my pillow to keep from crying out.

Rabbits were scared of me.

*Mr. Ears* was one of those massive, lop-eared rabbits. The kind with the ears that droop to the sides. He was big and gray with white patches. He was my girlfriend's favorite. That made me hate the rabbit.

I wanted Anne's love to be only mine and mine alone.

I really wanted her love to be mine. Somehow *Mr. Ears* got out of his hutch one night and when I came over to her house the next day to visit her as always, he lay dead in the middle of yard. His neck was broken.

No one could figure out how he had gotten out of the hutch so my girlfriend took the blame for forgetting to put him back at night. She sobbed and wept and stroked his dead fur, but her dad just shrugged and the mystery became a non-issue.

I stood over my sweet Anne for a long time, looking at *Mr. Ears*. His little black eyes were cold and hard, his nose no longer twitched, and he no longer looked at me with fear. His head sat at an odd angle on his body.

It was an accident.

It really was.

++++++++++++++

Alec Su pushed through drifts that reached his knees, new and heavy and wet. It still fell, collecting in his hair, his eyelashes, kissing the sides of his cold-flushed cheeks with spots of icy wetness. The pack was heavy on his back, pressing into his collarbone and rubbing raw spots against his shoulders. Tired muscles ached unrelentingly with each new lift of his snowshoes. It was getting dark, he thought. Hard to tell in the unrelenting gray of the storm, but the uniform lack of color seemed to be dimming.

He stopped for a moment, catching his breath and leaning against the frozen, ice-crusted bark of a large Douglas fir. Thickly gloved hands found the canteen at his waist and he spared himself a long drink of water so cold it made his teeth ache. Old habit sent his gaze back along the tracks he had left behind him, part of him wincing at the obvious spoor of his passing. It couldn't be helped. Hopefully the rising storm would cover all trace of his route. Otherwise he was leaving a neon sign for anyone with eyes and the inclination to follow. He hated the Canadian weather; no wonder Americans always thought that Canadians lived in iglooes. Alec certainly felt like he did.

Damn his bosses for transferring his FBI fleet all to Canada. Alec loved the people, the places, the friendliness of the public but the weather. He was a fan of sunshine at heart, not snow or ice or frostbitten toes. What was worse was that he had to drag his girlfriend and his best friend, Vicki, half way across the world to live in a country with similiar weather patterns like Antartica for the past 4 years of so. He had begged Vicki to stay in California, but she had adamently wanted to go with him to his new job. His poor stubborn Vicki, the sunshine in all of his cold and bitter days. God, how cold weather could make him so danm grumpy. Not a good thing.

Shut up your grumbling, Alec chatised himself. He was just being a jerk that day. Too tired from work and feeling like truck had ran him over. He loved his job, he was getting used to the cold. He just hated feeling so....weak and out of control, as though his body wasn't his.

Alec tugged his woolen cap down tighter over dark hair starting to fleck with streaks of brown from the fading summer sun, and pushed himself away from the tree, continuing up the mountain. Over and done with. If only it could be. If only this could all be a nightmare they could simply wake from. He would get up out of bed, head for the FBI and chastise himself for eating spicy Thai food at 3:00am ...and he would laugh off the whole thing.

No.

You can't really laugh off the end of the world. Can you?

Alec could smell the sharp tang of woodsmoke in the cold air and he picked up his weary legs with a surge of renewed energy, ignoring the extra resistance of the snowshoes as they dragged him through the soft, new drifts. Only a little farther. Definitely darker now. The trees were mere shapes of darker gray in the mist of the thick white snowfall by the time he topped the little rise that overlooked a motley collection of rough cabins. He paused over the tiny vale for a long moment, his breath chuffing steam into the frigid twilight chill as he surveyed the place that had become a refuge of sorts.

A tiny smile cracked the cold skin of his lips. No metropolis this. No take-out Chinese, no 24-hour cable TV, no multi-million dollar sports organizations, nor a cheap basketball to bounce around on the weekends. Not even weekends anymore. Nothing really, that he might have once considered part of his life.

But things changed.

Didn't they? Wasn't that a Universal Constant? But who knew they could change this much?

He let himself start moving again, the slope of the vale falling away under his feet, leaving him to slip and slide his way down through the snow, struggling to keep his balance under the heavy load of the pack he wore. It would not do to fall now, not when he was so close.

It had snowed considerably since he'd last stood outside this cabin, he thought. He found himself paused once more, staring at the rough-hewn door, seeing the warm yellow light stretching welcomingly from the cramped little windows. He and Vicki had decided to live out in the wilderness for a change before Alec went crazy in the city. He hated crowds, hated confusion. All he wanted was his time alone with his most cherished woman in the world, his Vicki, and she had agreed earnestly. Living with her in such seclusion made him more happy than he'd ever been and Alec loved this cabin.

But already 2 months had gone by since they'd moved in. He'd left in fall and now it was winter. It was with no surprise that he found himself a bit reluctant, even nervou to enter the tiny makeshift dwelling. He had lived the past month with ever-present gnawing worms of worry, but he'd forced them down deep. And there they festered still. There was no denying now that he stood here at the threshold of the present. So many terrible things could happen in the span of 4 years since he had moved to Canada.

He should know, he'd lived through days that had lasted years.

In the end it was not he who opened the door, but she.

He stared at her, backlit by the soft glow of the fire that both illuminated and heated the room, and told himself she was no wraith of his imagination. She was tired, he could see that right away...soft lines of worry and struggle had etched themselves onto the gentle curves of her face, lines that he knew he carried as well...lines that made them both real. But there was also an almost timid relief there, as if the emotion were afraid of exposing itself. Afraid of expressing itself in any way lest it be noticed and hunted down by its stronger brothers of despair and fear. Her small, lithe frame was more sensual than it had been when he had left, her sharp lines and edges blurred and gentled. A sheen glowed on her hair, lending her the look of a surreal postcard. A photographer's illusion of exaggerated color and beauty. Her large, sparkling eyes lit up at the sight of him, warming the coldness in his heart.

But she *was* real, and she was waiting for him to come home to her. These small things were enough to make him shiver slightly with the unfamiliar sensation of joy.

Vicki lifted a hand and he took it, letting her pull him into the warmth of the tiny hovel, the door shutting behind him on the falling twilight and the ever-darkening snowfall.

++++

A shifting wind in what was shaping up to be an unseasonably early snow storm sent icy crystals plinking against the window pane. The power, having succumbed to the weight of snow on electrical lines, had gone out hours ago. It took with it all light for blocks and most ambient sounds save the crackles of ice-laden tree branches and the spats of snow on glass.

Thank God, the heater was electric and no longer worked. The chill from the outside had long since seeped through brick and sheetrock to cool her bedroom. Vicki had seen the pallor in Alec's face after he had driven for over an hour on the freeway to get home to her after a long and tiresome day at work. She wanted the cabin to be warm for her love, inviting and full of comfort. The instant he'd taken off his heavy winter coat, they had dinner and then spent the night in each other's arms. Vicki felt his body close to hers, warm and tender, and she fell asleep dreaming of Alec, as always in blissful slumber.

Now, it was dawn and Vicki, always the light sleeper, was awake.

Vicki hefted the bulk of two blankets, three quilts, and a bedspread and tossed them back off her body. Alec's only response to the added weight was to burrow deeper beneath the covers. He sought shelter, she feared, not from the bitter cold, but from the horrors he couldn't -- or wouldn't -- remember during the day, and from which he couldn't escape even under the cover of night. His job as a secret agent for the FBI always wrung him dry, making his head spin in disillusionment and the pressure often almost killed him. But Alec's spirit was never broken, even though his santiy was a bit tipsy-turvy, he always joked with her.

Lying with him spooned up behind her, Vicki welcomed the prickles of goosebumps spreading down her bare arms and legs, across the flatness of her stomach. . She wanted to reach over to hold Alec and inhale the fresh scent of his natural body scent, to just feel the weight of him in her arms. But she was loathe to wake him. Restless though he was, at least he was sleeping. That, along with the physical therapy regimen he underwent during the day, would help him regain the strength he lost during his months on his arduous missions.

At the thought of Alec's job as an FBI, Vicki remembered what Alec's boss, Felix Wong, had told her the night before Alec had come home.

The call had come in abruptly, interrupting Vicki's feeding of their dog, Max. Felix rarely contacted Alec unless it was an emergency and this call certainly sounded urgent. Felix had wanted to speak to Alec personally but he was not home. Naturally, Vicki offered to give Alec the message that Felix would be stopping by soon the next morning, but now she regretted to haven forgotten to give Alec the message. Danm her stupidity! But hopefully, by the time Felix arrived at the airport, things would be resolved. Felix had warned her of danger but the connection of the phone lines were full of static so all that Vicki heard was Felix's warning for Alec to be careful.

"Take care of him, Vicki," Felix had told her repeatedly. "He will be needing you."

"But he's been feeling well these past months. I don't think that you should--"

"Alec is still fragile, Vicki. You know that. I just know that there are more dangers lurking ahead for him. ‘As a precaution, I want you to keep extra care of him. We both love him too much to lose him."

Dressing as quickly as Vicki could now, she took from the closet one of two packed bags, both already packed with some of hers and Alec's belongings. Felix had insisted that she do so incase there was an emergency escape from the country. Vicki had not understood a thing that Felix had said, but even through the bad connection lines, she had heard the tremor in Felix's voice. Something was frightening him and his only concern was for her and Alec to be safe. Both Alec and Vicki loved Felix like a father, and to know that he was upset made Vicki's insides ache.

Ever since Alec's near-death accident one year ago, Vicki had been closer to those in his lives than ever before. Alec was an orphan from birth and he had been adopted by Felix Wong. Felix, who was the man behind the FBI division of the government, never pressured Alec to join his team. But Alec had always wanted to follow his father's footsteps and he had soon risen to the top to become the leader of his fleet of men and women to protect the safety of the country. Kristy Yeung, Nicky Wu, Vivian Leung and Louis Koo were all under Alec's care. This move to Canada had been hard on both Alec and Felix, for they were both close. But since Alec had a car accident one year ago, tragedy had brought everyone closer together. Especially Vicki, who learned how to grow up and realize how fragile life was in just those months of having to watch her love almost slip from her grasp.

For a few moments, upon walking into what passed for an Intensive Care Unit, she didn't care about the hows or whys. Unprepared for the extend of his condition,he found Alec not in a coma, but in a deep sleep. Strangely, there was no identification on him, nothing.

And it was indeed Alec. Every inch of him. She knew because she checked, mapping every inch of his skin, every scar, every freckle and mole that she'd uncovered and tasted at some point in the years they had been together.

There were tests of the more conclusive variety, too. Alec was slipping into unconsciousness but no doctor could figure out what the cause was. Vicki didn't care about a diagnosis. She didn't need a confirmation.

All she'd needed then was for him to wake.

It would have made a more pleasant, happier story if his passage into the conscious world had been a gentle one, but she'd found happy stories are rarely very realistic.

No, there was wild-eyed screaming, restraints, threats by medical personnel of powerful sedatives and by one furious pregnant woman if they used them. Alec had returned to the
living -- if not the lucid --- without any sort of medical treatment. All the doctors were amazed at his startling recovery and Vicki knew that it was the power of prayer.

In the end, Vicki and the comfortable dose of reality she wished for came true. Alec was now healthy again and they were together. Everything was normal. Perfeclty normal. Wasn't it?

~~~~~~~~~~~

A volley of gunfire jolted Vicki from her reverie. Her heartbeat stutter-stepped into a sprint as she pressed herself against Alec and tried to determine the origin of the shooting. She chanced a look over her shoulder.

Still asleep, his head pulled in turtle-like under the covers.

The shots rang out again, only this time she recognized them for what they really were. Someone knocking on her door in the dead of night during a snowstorm did nothing to slow the
pounding in her chest.

Easing from under the leadened weight of Alec's arm, Vicki slipped her hand under her pillow and pulled out her gun. That was the benefit of being a girlfriend of an FBI agent--she had learned how to use a gun like the back of her hand at Alec's prompting. The cold steel had been a better security blanket these last few months than anything soft and stuffed. Quickly she donned the terry-cloth robe that used to swallow her but now barely met across her expansive girth. The shadows retreated slightly as she moved toward the living room, where the blinding white of the snow through window blinds left open sent a little light to illuminate her path. Still, she stopped to fumble at the table behind the couch, striking a match. A soft glow and a whiff of vanilla came from the candle she lit.

Vicki shook out the match and moved to the door, wincing as another series of knocks sounded right in front of her. At this point, she didn't give a damn who it was -- if they woke Alec, she was going to kill them. He needed his rest, he needed this solitude time to mend his sorrows. Damn! Who knew of her and Alec's cabin if not for his FBI fleet? But she doubt that they would be shooting like crazy to wake her up instead of just using a simple phone call or an alarm clock.

Vicki balanced her slight frame on the balls of her feet as she peered through the door's peephole. The familiar face of Alec's father by adoption reflected back at her.

Felix.

Her paranoia too far gone to reign in now, Vicki kept her gun in her hand as she unlocked the door and opened it.

"Sir?"

Felix glanced down the driveway and then smiled slowly at her, shutting and locking the door behind him. He turned to look down at her. Standing in bare feet and wearing only a robe, she felt smaller next to him than she ever had before. He was dressed for warmth and stealth in black jeans and Gortex and melting snow trickled down the waterproof material, dripping onto her non-waterproof carpet. He registered no shock to see her weapon by her side as he unzipped his jacket just enough to reholster his own gun.

"Sir, what are you doing here? It's the middle of the night. The roads must be covered with ice...I thought you would be on a plane by now..not already here...." By the glow of the candle flickering in the lens of his glasses, Vicki saw his creased brow, the clench of his jaw as his mouth opened and closed as if he didn't know how to begin. "What's wrong?"

Even as the question tumbled from her mouth, she knew.

"I need to see Alec. Something will happen to him..something terrible."

Vicki took a step back. "What are you talking about?"

"I think you know." Felix voice was low and hard, the best indication of fear for this man with solid courage.

Seven years of allusions, of scraps of hints, of riddles and dancing around the obvious were quite enough, thank you. She could get that line from Alec anytime, but she didn't have to be strung along by his father. "Please sir, tell me the truth."

"I received word a short time ago that an abnormal even will happen to Alec. I came to warn both of you about it."

"What? Wait a min--"

"-- Alec will be subjected to the worse kind of torture by an unseen force."

"Sir, please stop a second." She stepped closer and raised her hand, grabbed for his sleeve to stop the rush of words. He ran roughshod over her demands and rummaged in his bulky jacket rather than look her in the eye.

"You and Alec have to leave now. I've already arranged everything -- transportation to a safe house--"

"Stop."

"--supplies, and here... these are your new I.D.s." His voice shook a little, the hoarseness of his loud whisper cracking. Pulling a clear Ziplock bag filled with papers and cards from inside his sweater, he turned it over and over in his hands. "There's even money if you should need it---"

"I said STOP!"

He looked at her then, panic striken. "Vicki, there's no time to waste."

"I'm not going anywhere or doing anything until you answer some questions." Satisfied that she had his attention, she demanded, "How do you know all of this? I don't understand."

Felix pushed his glasses up to pinch the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I don't know...I can't explain it all now. I need to see my son, that's all."

"Alec is everything to me," Vicki whispered, tears starting to form in her eyes. Felix's abrupt arrival and his strange behaviour was frightening her. "Please, tell me."

Felix's slipped, coming to rest on her most prominent feature--her large beautiful eyes.. The chill of the room couldn't have matched the ice running through her veins at that moment, and she shivered.

"Vicki...." He reached for her but she stepped back again.

"Tell me." She insited, pleaded.

"'Alec will die in less than a month.'"

"What? What kind of twisted joke is this?"

"No joke. It's true. All true."

"How?"

"I don't know how. But I do know that he will be cursed by a poweful source beyond all of our imagiantions."

"God...."

No! Not Alec! Not her Alec! No!

Human life was so fragile, so fleeting. Why Alec? Vicki's eyes burned at the intrusion of salty tears. She put her hand to her brow, trying to make sense of it all, to somehow massage her brain into accepting what Felix was saying. Was it true?

It would have to be.

And that made her want to cry all the more. Felix would never lie to her, to Alec. He loved Alec more than anyone, more than his own life, even though Alec wasn't his son in flesh and blood.

This could not be true...only a nightmare...only a nightmare...when would she wake up from it? Not Alec...please not Alec...

"There was no definite timetable, so we have to assume every minute counts. You've got to pack a few things and get out of here." His voice had turned gentle, as careful as the hands he rested on her shoulders. He began to turn her toward the bedroom. "Go wake up Alec."

"Alec's already awake."

They both jumped at Alec's introduction.

Vicki didn't need to ask how long he'd been standing there. He looked rumpled and weary, his pajama bottoms wrinkled and barely clinging to hips still far too lean, his hair spiking this way and that. One side of his face bore creases from his pillow. Tired though his body appeared, his eyes flashed with fear as he looked from Vicki to his father and back again.

His eyelids clenched shut and his head bowed, looking to her like a defeated man. She whispered his name. He came to her, even as Felixr stepped away, his expression one of understanding as Alec wrapped his arms around her from behind.

Vicki supposed it should bother her that their superior was seeing them in such a state of undress, her hands locked around Alec's forearms as they rested against her chest. Her sense of professionalism probably should have risen up and demanded that Alec stop pressing kisses in her hair, and certainly her dignity ought to have protested the way he nuzzled her ear and rocked her from side to side. But she was tired of playing by someone else's rules. Maybe it all came down to that. Felix knew that.

Tilting her head back, Vicki smiled softly into those sad eyes she knew so well, and then she faced Felix again. She waited for Felix to say something to his son but the older stood still in tense silence.

Finally Vicki knew she had to speak to explain to Alec. "Alec......your father---"

But Alec interrupted her gently. "I know, I heard. I'm living on borrowed time for a month. What a great way to start the morning." And even with such dark words, his lips were smiling in acceptance.

Chapter 2

Dead in one month. What a way to go.

It wasn't something that he particulary felt overjoyed about. It wasn't everyday that he learned that he had one month to live. It seemed more of an episode from a movie, surreal and a part of a writer's imagination. Not real. Not real. But those very words had just slipped from his own father's mouth. Felix, his surrogate father, who would never lie.

Alec wanted answers.

Tilting his head back, Alec smiled softly into those sad eyes of his father's that he knew so well, and then he faced Vicki and his gentle gaze swept over her stricken face. "Vicki, Dad and I have to talk alone. Please."

He knew she would have protested had he given her the chance, so Alec turned aburptly and indicated the message to Felix that he wanted them to be alone with his eyes. Alec caught Vicki's intent gaze on him, her eyes full of concern and every so briefly, he caught her hand and squeezed it in reassurance before leading his father into the bedroom.

No worries, Alec's eyes told Vicki although he spoke no words to her. He knew that she would understand. Don't worry. I'll be fine.

The door clicked shut behind them. As Felix stood at the foot of the bed, Alec moved to the bedside table and lit the trio of candles there. The yellow flames casted a golden glow upon his face and onto Felix's weathered complexion, dim and fleeting. Alec's stiff gait next took him to the closet where he tugged at the red satchel sitting in the corner. His flickered over the items in the bag curiously, surprised to find his clothes and Vicki's clothes stashed away in the bag.

"I told Vicki to pack your things," His father spoke up, haven seen the puzzled look on his face. "She listened to me. That was good of her."

Alec's eyes swung away from the bag and he turned to face his father squarely in the face. It was a face that he had loved all his life, the man who wanted a little orphan boy who had been shunned out by everyone else. Dark eyes full of warmth stared back at him, but there were wrinkles around the corners that were prominent now, wrinkles around a mouth that had been accustomed to smiling more than anything else. It was the face of his father, Felix, who had just told his girlfriend that he was living on borrowed time.

"Is it true that I only have one month to live?" Alec broke the silence first.

"Yes."

"Dad, what is going on?" Strange how distant his voice sounded to his own ears. Surreal, echoing in his mind. "I don't understand."

"Alec, there is no time for questions. Just trust me on this, son." Dark eyes pleaded to him to try to contemplate the matter. "We're wasting time just by standing here discussing this. He will be here anytime now, he'll find you. We have to hide you from him."

"Who is *he*?"

"I can't tell you."

He swung his eyes to meet with his father's eyes in defiant stubborness. "If I'm the one dying, shouldn't I know who or what it is that is trying to eliminate me? I want the facts, not the hidden lies. You taught me that as a first rule of being an FBI agent. Why the secrets now? Why?"

He was surprised by the hurt in his voice, and felt guilty when he saw a flash of pain flicker through Felix's eyes. As a small child, Felix had been Alec's idol. Orphanages had the worse reputation for child abuse; Alec's ordeal there had scarred him for life. But then in came Agent Felix Wong, the man who took him home and cradled him bed and made him feel almost human again with his love. The love of a father to a son. That was why, besides Vicki, Alec loved Felix the most. They were equally important in his life and he'd die in their place if he were given the chance. Love was something Alec never took for granted, because he had been born into this world as an unloved child. But now that he had love, Alec never forgot those who were important to him.

His father, the board of directors for the Federal Bureau of Investigations, was placed on a pedastal of worship. Alec had strived to be the best son he could be to make Felix proud, succeeding in everything that he did. They were as close as any child and parent could be, joking, laughing, crying and sharing each other's pain and joy. But now, there was a barrier placed between them. Felix had purposely placed it between them. Alec wanted to destroy that wall that was their barrier and have the father he had grown up to worship back again.

"I'm sorry, son," His father murmured, and he looked shocked and bewildered now, watching Alec react in turmoil at the news.

"Dad..please..." There was a edge of desperation in his voice now that he could no longer hide. Damn him for being scared. Not of dying, but of conspirisies. He hated the hooded look in Felix's eyes, hated the "you'll die but I'll take care of everything" false reassurance. "Tell me the truth, please. What the hell is going on?"

"I-I can't, " The haunted look in Felix's eyes only deepened. "It's state orders, Alec. This doesn't involve only you and me. The entire FBI department's wellbeing is at stake here."

"I deserve to know!"

"In time, son, I'll tell you everything."

"Will I be alive by then to hear your words? "

"Alec, don't torture me like this." The pain was unbearable to look in Felix's eyes.

"I'm sorry Dad." It was the truth. He never meant to hurt his father. The frusteration was eating away at him.

Alec began to pace, his head whirling in disbelief, shock and paranoia. One step, two steps. He had to keep moving or else he'd go nuts. There was something his father wasn't telling him. But why? Why not tell him? Alec had never been afraid of dying. Being an FBI as always placing him in immediate dangers where he knew that he could survive or be killed in a heartbeat. But death was something that he always believed to be a part of his everyday job, not his everyday life. It was senseless how now, his father would tell him that

"It's a good thing you've already packed this bag for the hospital. Do you want to add a few more changes of clothes for yourself, just in case?" Felix began pulling open dresser drawers.

"Why do I have to go to the hospital?" Confusion clouded Alec's mind. He hated hospitals. Ever since the accident that he had one year ago and childhood illnesses that constantly plauged him, he had feared hospitals. Its off-white floors, syringes, and smell of alcohol and medication suffocated him. He had been tested, probed and given such high doses of medication that he had literally gaged himself through most of his childhood. But now, after a strict regiment for weight lifting and eating a balanced diet, Alec looked and felt like a picture of good health. It made no sense to him why he would have to go to a hospital if he felt well.

"We have to test you for illnesses..." Felix's voice trailed off, trampled by his frantic searching through stacks of underwear and socks. "Where's that bla--" He was back digging in the closet again, this time pulling out Alec's rolling black suitcase that he often used on business trips. "Here it is. I'll shove some stuff in here." Pausing to look at Alec, he asked, "What about your sweaters? It might be cold by the time you come back. You have more clothes besides what's in the hospital bag?"

Alec's head was beginning to spin. Too many questions for this time of night. Why did death threats about his only having one month to live have to come in wee hours of the morning? Felix was purposely avoiding him, that much was certain. His father didn't want to answer his questions and preoccupying himself with Alec's clothes.

"I...I haven't... Vicki brought me some sweaters but I haven't worn them yet...." As Alec gestured toward the paper bag in the corner, Felix brushed past him and began to rummage through its contents. "Dad, stop!"

The order came out more harshly than he meant, but it had the desired effect. Felix dropped the stack of onesies back in the bag and turned to face his son. Confusion colored his features.

"We need to discuss this." Alec's chin jutted out in a trait of assertion. "I need to know the truth, Dad, or else I'm not going anywhere with you. I deserve the right to know what is happening to my body and what is happening with the FBI files. Why is the FBI involved in this and why does it affect me? Am--am I dying of an incurable disease that will become contagious and you're afraid for the public's safety and that's why it's going to become a national issue? What, Dad? I'm floundering around in the dark about all of this, and I need answers. I can't just be a puppet and be dumb and let people controle me without knowing the truth. Dad, I need some answers from you."

There, he'd said it, with as much conviction and pleading in his voice as possible. God, why wasn't his father understanding from his point of view?

Felix released a long sigh and finally dropped the clothes that were in his hands. He approached Alec and reached out to put his hands on his son's broad shoulders. His eyes were kind, gentle, full of pain. "Son, I can't tell you anything, but I can tell you this. This case is a *Pandora's Box*. It's top-secret and being the director on the FBI board, I can't tell a soul about this, not even to you. Just please trust me on this, will you?"

Alec's eyes searched his father's face. It was the same face who had always bestowed nothing but love upon a poor orphan boy with no family and no future. Felix had given him a future, and given him a father figure to grow up with and to love. How could he not trust his father?

"I trust you, Dad."

"Now that's my boy," A smile tugged at Felix's lips, but it never met his eyes. "Everything will be alright, you'll see, Alec."

Alec saw his father lean over to hold him and then he felt Felix's arms around his shoulders. What he did not see was the syringe that Felix had taken out of his blazer and what he didn't expect to feel was the sting of the needle pricking the tender skin at the back of his neck. The needle sank deep into his skin as liquid was seepted into his bloodstream, warm liquid that made his whole body tremble. A strangled sound of utter surprise and shock escaped from Alec's mouth as his eyes bulged in horror at what his father just did to him.

"Da--Dad!" That was all that he could manage to cry out.

Then the room began to spin. His blood rushed hotly in his veins and flickers of warmth raced over his now flushed skin, seemingly burning his flesh. God, what had Felix just injected him with? The pain was blinding. For a moment, Alec swayed on his feet but his father rushed over and caught him in his arms before he hit the floor.

"Don't come near!" Alec cried, struggling to wrench free from Felix's arms. He staggered onto his feet but only to stumble and fall down to his knees again. Strong arms supported him up and soothing words whispered in his ears.

"Forgive me, Alec. I had no choice. Just relax. The medication will be painful at first but soon, you'll be out like a light. Just rest and I'll take care of everything."

Alec wanted to protest, to force Felix to tell him what the hell was going on. His father, his own father, had just drugged him! This was unreal, but frighteningly real! Oh God, Vicki! Alec suddenly remembered her. She didn't know what was going on. She was probably still in the kitchen, worrying about his conversation with his father. She was innocent in all of this. Damn Felix for lying to him and drugging him like this, but if he ever lay a hand on Vicki, Alec would rise from the dead and kill the him!

"Vicki..." The words were caught in his throat as pain sliced through his throat. Even that attempt to speak cost him. "Vicki..."

"She'll be in good hands," Felix's words sent chills down his back.

Alec felt strong arms lift him up, and he felt as though he were floating. He was aware that Felix held him in his arms, as though he were a mere child, and he heard voices but they sounded far away, like a dream. Alec wanted to speak again, but the sense of weariness was overwhelming him so that all he could do was keep his eyes from drooping to prevent himself from slipping into unconsciousness.

"Oh God! Felix, what happened to him?" It was Vicki's voice, full of fear and shock.

"He collapsed. I'm bringing him with me to the hospital before it's too late."

"How could this have happened? Alec was doing fine!"

"The virus is spreading fast, I have to hurry or else there won't be any more time."

"I'm coming with you. I have to be with him!" Vehenment absolution shook her voice.

"Fine. Grab his bags of clothes and we'll go."

For a moment, Alec's eyes closed. But he forced them open again, he saw Vicki's face gazing down at him, her eyes full of unshed tears. Her lips were trembling as she placed a cool hand on his forehead. Her touch comforted him, though he knew that he was too weak to comfort her. He wanted to speak, to hold her and tell he that he loved her. But his strength was gone, leaving nothing but a searing sensation of helplessness behind.

There was a motion, as though he was placed on his back in a moving vehicle. Felix as driving them both to the hospital in the city, Alec realized. He would be in a hospital again, trapped in an institution where his body would be examined and probed like an animal experiment. *Pandora's Box*. What kind of secret was his father and the FBI was hiding from him? Alec vowed to find out once the mediation wore off.

"I love you, Alec," Vicki's mouthed those words to him, her gentle hands smoothing away the hair that had fallen over his forehead boyishly. Then the tears began to fall, silently, softly against her face. His beloved Vicki. He didn't want her to cry because of him.

"Love..you...too..." Alec's mind echoed, though Vicki could never have heard.

His heartbeat slowed, seemingly to drag in his chest, and he had to struggle to catch his breath. Before he slipped away into darkness, he suddenly saw a vision of a young man dressed in a simple blue shirt and dark pants caught behind iron bars that looked like a prison cell.

The man's eyes were dark brown, shining with fury and conviction, eyes that looked so familiar to Alec. A white blidning light suddenly emitted from the man's eyes, like a ray of bursting sunlight that overpowered Alec's senses. Alec felt as though the light were touching him, from within his mind, but strangely the thought of it comforted him.

"We are Pandora's Box," The young man whispered. "We are the mystery that they want the key to unlock. They will stop at nothing to find our secrets. Never let them take your key."

Alec had no understanding of the man's words, but he sensed that the young man was speaking of the truth. Hadn't Felix mentioned Pandora's Box as well? That exactly was this conspiracy and why was he being used as a catalyst in this nightmare?

The image of the man wavered and then blurred and Alec drifted off to sleep as the feeling of Vicki's hands on his skin comforted him from deep within his soul as darkness engulfed his world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vivian Leung awoke to find a man's body next to hers.

Now, like any young woman who lived alone, she might have found this turn of events a trifle alarming, especially given the recent state of her love life. But not the *current* state of her love life. Not for the past several months. Not since she and her FBI partner, Julian Cheung, had decided to finally do something about the attraction each of them had sensed simmering just below the surface of their professional relationship. Had, in fact, been maddeningly aware of ever since the first moment they had met.

She still remebered their first moment upon meeting so clearly in her mind; she could never forget. Julian Cheung had looked up from his desktop full of slides upon her initial entrance into the FBI sanctuary, taken her outstretched hand in greeting, given her his very best mocking smile and murmured, "Well, isn't it nice to be suddenly so highly regarded."

Isn't it nice, indeed? She and Julain were now steadily dating, loving each other's presence and enjoying the beautiful moments of being in love. That was how it worked, didn't it? Blissful happiness in a relationship first before the *real* obstacles came their way. But for now, Vivian felt blessed to have such a wonderful man in her arms.

Their job as FBI's on Alec Su's investiagation fleet consisting of herself, Julian, Ruby Lin, Kristy Yang, and Nicky Wu, was a challenging but rewarding job. It was their job that had intially linked Julian with her--love almost first sight with a co-worker. But now, of course, they were no longer in the office but at home, in her home, after spending the night together. Life was good.

Vivian stirred ever so slightly, arching her back, offering herself up to the hand that continued to glide teasingly over her. Circling fingertips tracing her gently rounded curves with a frankly proprietary relish. Warming her through the cotton jersey she had pulled on the night before in deference to the slight draft that had prevailed, the shirt that now lay bunched on the swell of her hip. The one that bore the insignia of Julian's beloved Knicks. The one she had donned because it belonged to him, smelled of him, and settled over her as softly as did his arms, his hands.

They were lying in her bed, she and Julian, on their sides, her back to his chest, his arm tossed possessively over her slender form, indulging in a bit of the taboo. Juian had spent the night. With her. For the first time since they had consummated their relationship. Now, for most couples this would not be considered particularly unusual, let alone daring.

And yet, for them, it was both.

After all, they were not supposed to be doing this. Any of it. They were partners. Their profession strictly prohibited any sort of fraternization. Especially of the sort in which she and the man who was at present pressing soft wet kisses in a line from just below her ear to the juncture of her neck and shoulder were reveling. Not only did they risk the displeasure of their superiors, and the very real danger of separation. But, should their liaison be made known, they both faced the threat of having each of them used against the other. To control them. To distract them from their work, their respective quests.
.
If the shadowy forces they struggled against had opted to be that cruel, that heartless when they had believed she and Julian to be merely good friends, what more would they dare if they knew she and the man who laid curled around her, his breath blowing warmly and evenly through her tousled hair, to be intimately involved? The question sent a shiver shimmering through her. Not the pleasant kind. The wonderfully thrilling kind. The kind Julian could induce with merely a long lingering look and the promise of passion shining heatedly in his hazel eyes. No. This sort brought to mind the old saying "Someone just walked across my grave."

Not something she particularly wanted to contemplate right at the moment. Not when it was early on a Saturday morning in March, and she lie wrapped in her lover's arms, lazy and replete after a night spent pleasing and being pleased. And knowing with almost smug satisfaction, that should she so desire, they could spend the entire day in just this fashion. In bed. Together. Refusing to be lured away from their cozy haven by anything so mundane as what the world might have to offer. Knowing that all they were looking for, all that they really needed was right there beside them.

"Hey there," Julian's playful teasing voice tickled her skin as he bent over to talk against her cheek. "What a way to wake up in the morning."

"Yea," Vivian smiled at him, blissfully happy. Even in the morning, Julain was a hunk. No morning breath, no grouchiness. He looked handsome, even with a few sharp quills from the stubble on his chin making his ruggedness only more appealing. "I'm really happy that you stayed for the night. I'm very happy."

"I'm happier than you'll ever know," Julian admitted to her with a shy smile that made his brown eyes glow with love. "It was incredible, lying in your arms like this. God, Vivian, I never knew just how much I wanted you. I'm just so grateful that you chose me. I--"

The sharp ring from the phone cut off his sentence and Vivian laughed aloud at the murderous glare that Julian shot at the phone.

"Just in the middle of my proposal speech and I'm interrupted by a phone!" He pretended to snarl. "Damn Bell for making telephones."

Vivian shook her head in exasperation at Julian's humor and smiling, she picked up the phone on the third ring before her answering machine picked up the message. She glanced at the alarm clock on her dresser briefly. 11:30, it was late enough for a phone call. But on a Saturday?

"Hello."

"Hi, Vivian."

"Ruby!" Vivian laughed. "Morning to you. Why so early, girl?"

Everyone on their FBI fleet were close friends, not just merely co-workers. Vivian, Ruby and Kristy were more like sisters than simple friends and they would often hang out after work to go shopping or eat out on the town to moan about their dull love lives. It wasn't a surprise for Ruby to call her at home---they had exchanged phone numbers almost at the start, promising to call if they needed anything. Vivian always felt lucky to have such wonderful people in her life.

"Vivian, I--"

"Just a minute, Ruby. Hang on. Julian is annoying me."

And he was, but in a sweet way. He was nuzzling her neck with soft kisses that delighted her but distracted her from Ruby's call. Vivian shot a look to Julian to indicate to him to brush his teeth, shooing him away until she was done talking. He had bought all of his personal things with him last night and he rose now, clad in nothing but his boxers as his bare lean frame disappeared into her bathroom. The sound was water rushing from the sink could be heard along with gurgling and Julian's off-key humming of a Beach Boys tune. Vivian turned back to her phone call, supressing her laughter at his careless abandon.

"Okay, shoot. I sent the mischivoius boy to the *Time Out* corner where he can sulk Hello, Ruby? You still there?"

"Vivian...oh god!" Ruby could barely choke out the words."Something has happened."

"What?" A chill instantly ran down her spin and her humor faded. Something was terribly wrong.

"Alec..he's sick," Ruby was crying now, on the other end of the line. Her voice sounded muffled, as though she had her hand clapsed against her mouth in effort to choke back the tears. "Felix just called me to tell me that Alec was really sick. Vivian, he might die!"

Considering the fact that it was an early Saturday morning and that she had spent the night with her lover in her arms, Vivian could not have been more shocked to know that the leader of her FBI fleet, Alec Su, was dying. Her mind whirled at the memory of the kind young man who never had anything but a smile on his face. He was kind, considerate, and a valuded member of her team. Even at his young age, Alec possessed the skills to be a leader and everyone on their fleet admired and respected him for his gentle heart and his keen knowledge of leadership. But he was only twenty seven years old...too young to die....

"Wait a minute!" Vivian's mind ached at the thought of Alec in pain, Alec in torment in a fatal illness. He was her supervisor but he was more than that---he was her friend. "Ruby, this doesn't make sense. He's healthy. After that freak accident, he's been doing so well. Why---why the relapse?"

"I don't know," Ruby's voice trembled. "Felix wouldn't say more. But he doesn't want any of us to visit Alec because he's in isolation in ICU. Felix assigned to us a case. A new case, Vivian. He wants us to go into the office today. There's been a jail break out. A criminal has escaped and he's been labled as a National Security threat. Even the SWAT team is on this. I don't know. I just can't stop thinking about Alec."

"Hey, it's okay," Vivian understood Ruby's fears, but the girl was so sensitive that even a wind could blow her away. She wanted to comfort Ruby, even though her own insides were in knots. "I"ll be right there at the office. Just---hang on okay? Where are you now?"

"I'm getting ready to go into the office."

"Okay, have you told Nicky about this? Or Kristy?"

"Nicky is on his way, but Kristy is on her vacation remember?"

"Oh yea," Vivian had forgotten about Kristy's two week vacation time. The poor girl worked her butt off all year long; she deserved her break. "Alright then, I'll see you in the office. And Ruby?"

"Yes?"

"Chin up. Alec is a fighter and we're all rooting for him. He's going to be okay."

"I'm praying."

When Vivian hung up the phone, she just sat there, on the bed in her nightgown. Oh God, was this for real? How could a healthy man like Alec be so ill? What had brought upon this sudden illness? She didn't care about Felix's case, or about going to work. She just wanted to go visit Alec to see for herself that he was living, breathing and real. Death was cruel but it would be too cruel if it took Alec away from all of his friends and his lovely girlfriend, Vicki, who must be devastated now.

"What's wrong?" Julian was done his shower and brushing his teeth. He looked crisp and fresh in a navy rugby shirt and faded jeans. He saw her pale face and knew that Ruby's call was not merey about girlish talk.

"Alec's dying."

"What the hell--?"

"Felix wants us to come into the office to work on a case. Alec has been hospitalized but is in isolation so we can't see him yet. We have to go." How hollow her voice sounded, so calm even though her heart was racing a mile a minute.

Julian nodded quickly, also as shocked and bewildered as she was. "Alright, I'll drive you." He choked back his own sorrowful grief and saw that Vivian was struggling to suppress her tears.

Recovering quickly, Julian took Vivian by the shoulders and held her close so that her tears could soak his shirt. Soothing her hair away from her forhead, Julian held her until the tears subsided and Vivian nodded to him that she was feeling better. She had always been strong but now with Julian, she knew that she could pour out her soul to him and still not feel exposed or vulnerable in front of him. That was what true love felt like.

"He's going to alright," Julian assured her with forced conviction in his voice. "You'll see."

"I know." What a lie.

Vivian dressed quickly and the two of them left her apartment, hand in hand, as they prayed for Alec.

Chapter 3

Salvation

Beyond the door of your perception
There lies the secret of your salvation
Behind the curtain of deception
There lies the secret of your salvation
First you create then you destroy all in God's name
Then you look for someone else to take the blame
You are the saint, you are the sinner and a beast
You are the chosen few, to hell with all the rest
And the trees bend and whisper in the wind
We are the falling leaves that overturn
There is a light that shines so bright for you and me
But we see night where only sleeping should be
We close our eyes, we close our bodies and our minds
We've closed the doors of freedom oh so many times
If I could take your hand and you could take mine
We'd walk together until the end of time
And we could laugh together walking hand in hand
We could go on forever, every woman and man
And the trees bend and whisper in the wind
We are the falling leaves that overturn
Beyond the door of your perception
There lies the secret of your salvation
Behind a curtain of deception
There lies the secret of your salvation
a Pandora's Box of secrets meant for no one to find.

Poem written by: my friend Welwyn Lee

~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*

This chapter written by: *Whistler* & Shannon

The laboratory in the government agency was a hollow place, where nothing stirred but the warm breeze off the ocean and the ghosts of the mouldering dead. That was how Louis Koo felt all of his fifteen years of haven been locked up in the cage like an animal, forever shunned from the world of the living. At sunrise, though, the spirits were laid to rest for another day, leaving only the wind behind, or at least that was what Louis believed to be true. The wind was strong enough, at times, to ring the three bells that sat in their whitewashed arches, one straddling the others, on the stony cliff overlooking the ocean where the Bentham FBI laboratory lay.

Sometimes, like this morning, the bells were enough to rouse the attention of the presence that Louis knew haunted the lab built into the cliff side. Louis heard the voices in his head, hushed and whispered voices that echoed in his mind. Within the grey stone walls of the cell, Louis's mind whispered to life. He heard the bells, and the wind rattling the rotting, empty window frames fenced by iron bars, and the surf pounding the cliff far below. What there was of him–not much more than a spirit, really, but far greater than those memories of that haunted his mind at night. They were more of nightmares, really, than just dreams. Nightmares of gloved hands probing, needles pricking his skin, the endless invasion of machines hooked up to his body and of course, the testing and re-testing of his organs and his brain. But now, after his escape from the laboratory, these nightmares drifted amid the walls of his confinement and out toward the doors, shattering the memories of torture forever.

Louis had waited so long to see the sun, to witness its magnificent beauty. Bound to the laboratory for over fifteen years, he had never seen how the outside world had changed and how he himself had changed. There were no mirrors in the cage where they kept him locked under heavy surveillance supervision, under lock and key; but then again, he would probably not recognize himself if he did look at his reflection.

But this morning, this final morning, Louis saw his first sunrise in fifteen years of imprisonment. Seeing its brilliance and its golden beauty was precious to him, a novelty that he had yearned to see for so long. The sun rose high up in the blue horizon, clear and radiant and he was surprised to feel the moisture of tears slipping down his face, stingingly cool. He was crying? Funny how he had never cried before, ever since the death of his parents and the abduction of his younger brother. Louis relished the sparkle of the sun on the sea and the way the very air shimmered above the him, lingering in his hair, sighing against his bare skin. Ah freedom. Who would have thought that it would feel this good?

His confinement was coming to an end. Now it was his turn to pay back all of those who had wronged him all of these years. With all of the omens coming to pass, the stars told the tale: it was time for him to walk upon the Earth again. Louis would bring doom upon the world, unleashing his vengeance upon the humans who had tortured his mind, his body, and his soul all of these years. They had taken everything from him—his loved ones, his life, his very existence as a human being. But then again, he wasn't entirely a normal human being, was he? Oh yes, Louis knew how unique he was, how unique his younger brother was. They had the same blood running through their veins–the blood of a creature of the night blessed with powers beyond imagination. They would be reunited soon and together, he and Alec would baptize the world in the blood of their victims, in the name of the Triumvirate. He and Alec would feast until they could not bear another drop of blood.

Alec, I will find you, my brother. We will be together again, you'll see.

It was time now; Louis had many things to do, so many things he had to do to make up for lost time. The world was a large place and it was his to devour and claim. When Louis turned his back and left the cliff side, he did not miss the sun. Not when there was so much pleasure to be had by moonlight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FBI DEPARTMENT OF INVESTIGATIONS
WASHINGTON, DC
9:50 am

"We are in for a war," Felix Wong spoke solemnly, his eyes full of weary fatigue, though his voice was strong. "Please watch this video caught by a surveillance camera at one of our laboratories. Watch closely for a close-up of the criminal and we will discuss the issues of it afterward."

In front of him, behind the oak table, three of the FBI members of Alec Su's fleet sat staring at the screen above them, projected from an AV machine. Vivian turned to steal at glance at Julian, whose eyes were focussed on the images displayed in front of him and he did not see her giving him a look. On her other side, Ruby, timid and quiet as always, caught her eye and they exchanged silent comforting glances. It had been already two hours since they had been at work and yet–nothing was working out. Felix was with them now, but for the absence of Nicky Wu and their leader, Alec, things were falling apart. Nicky had not shown up for the meeting like he should have done, while Alec....just thinking about him made Vivian's insides ache. Felix had told them that Alec was in critical condition at a specialized hospital and that his diagnosis was still unclear as to why he had collapsed. God, how could that have happened to Alec?

Don't think about it, Vivian chastised herself. Concentrate on the video.

She swung her eyes back to the screen in time to see a young man dressed in the white laboratory uniform punching a doctor in the face. He had been chained to an examination table but with one swift kick toward the doctor, he had somehow gotten the chains free. The camera image was a blurred one and his face was unrecognisable. He ran down the empty corridor and decked two more security guards and stole their guns. A team of soldiers rushed toward the young man, but swiftly, he unleashed the weapon and the solider's bodies fell dead one by one on the floor. There was an interruption of static and then the video ended.

"Woah," Julian breathed under his breath after Felix turned off the video. "That was a spontaneous get away."

"Not spontaneous," Felix corrected him, facing them again sternly. "This criminal is a very dangerous man. He has been under the government's protection for approximately fifteen years now, but he has escaped just last night. There are other fleets looking into his whereabouts but it is solely our job to find him and imprison him again."

"Who is he?" Ruby spoke up curiously.

"I can't give you any more details other than the fact that finding him is crucial," Felix shook his head sadly. "His name, however, I can give you. Louis Koo, an Asian male, around 30 years old."

Louis Koo...the name rang through Vivian's mind. Why was it that it sounded so familiar to her, as though she had heard someone speak of such a name before, and yet, no image of such a man came to her mind? Louis Koo....

"We will start investigating him now," Felix continued sternly, flipping through a folder in examination under critical eyes of the rules that they had to adhere to. "He is a man that has just regained his freedom after so long, so he has no financial support, no job, no family and no friends. We believe that Louis would be hiding out in the city somewhere, possibly in an alley or a cheap motel. Ruby, Vivian," Felix turned to the young women, "I want both of you to stake out these areas and be alert for suspicious looking men who fit his description. Julian and Nicky," Felix's eyes flitted over toward where Julian sat and his eyebrows rose at the sight of an empty seat where Nicky was assigned to sit. "Where is Nicky?"

"Don't know," Julian shrugged carelessly. "Must've slept in, the lazy bum." Nicky was known for his lateness in rising for work, and it was often the joke of the day to see whether or not Nicky would come to the office at noon or at three pm. Often it was the later time when he would rise and shine to come to work.

"But I called him in the morning," Ruby pointed out. "I told him about Alec and he was awake then. I told him that there was a meeting today too. Maybe he forgot?"

Vivian sat silently in her seat, her mind whirling at the strangeness of the day's events. First, there was Alec's mysterious ailment, now Nicky was not at work. Yes, the possibility of Nicky sleeping in was probable, considering his history of lateness in the past. But Nicky cared too much about Alec to let the news of his illness go by him without concern. Suddenly, Vivian knew where Nicky was. It was so obvious; why had she not thought of that before?

"Well, let Mr. Wu come to work when he feels like it," Felix said dryly, slamming the over of the folder closed. He sighed heavily and turned to the others, "I must leave now. I hope that we crack this case soon."

"What about Alec? May we see him?" Vivian blurted out before Felix had the chance to slip out of the door.

Felix turned to her, his eyes seemingly dark with sadness and pain that he didn't want to share with anyone. Vivian knew of Alec's close-knit bond with his father and she felt pity for Felix. She had never personally liked Felix as her boss but she knew how deep his love for his adopted son went, and she appreciated that kind of parental love in the man. "My son will get better," Felix's words sliced at her heart. "But for now, we will keep on hoping for the best, shall we?"

Vivian watched his back as he left the meeting room, her nerves caught in a jumble. From behind, Julian's strong arms laced around her waist and his touch comforted her. It was always good to have the comfort of a man when things were looking down. She laced her own hands around his arm and turned to face Ruby, who was busily packing up her backpack to get ready to investigate. Vivian's mind was working overtime and she could not help but wonder about the FBI's motives on this "Louis Koo" case.

"I wonder why this case is so important," Vivian mused aloud thoughtfully, chewing her bottom lip. "Why us? There could be other fleets on this project. Now, with Alec gone, we don't have a leader." The mention of Alec's absence hurt again.

"Beats me," Julian put in, holding her closer to him in his sluggish playful manner. "But you heard the man, Viv. Alec is gonna beat this thing, whatever it is."

"I hope so too," Ruby said, her brow furrowing in worry. They were all friends and co-workers who cared deeply about one another. Their relationship was like a stack of dominoes—one domino falls, the others will fall along, like a chain reaction of destruction. They needed Alec with them, as their leader and their friend. But who knows if he will recover from yet another bout of illness?

"Funny how Nicky isn't here though," Julian pointed out with a mirthless laugh. "That guy can sleep through WW III. Maybe he just doesn't want to do the dirty work of investigating any more. He can retire to be Rip Van Winkle in the future, since snoozing is what he does best."

Vivian could not help but interject, "He has a good reason why he's not here."

"Oh?" Julian's eyebrows rose in surprise at her. "How so?"

"Think about it," Vivian met his gaze with quiet absolution. "Alec is sick and Vicki is all alone, needing comfort. Where else would Nicky go if not to be with Vicki when she needs a friend the most?"

Ruby and Julian exchanged knowing glances, nodding their heads at Vivian's perceptiveness. They all knew about the love that Nicky shared for Vicki Chiu, Alec's girlfriend. It was a love that he kept private to himself, though with just one look at him, the whole world knew who his heart belonged to. Nicky and Alec, two best friends, who loved the same girl and yet, Vicki's heart had always belonged with Alec from the start. It was a wonder how Nicky could still love Vicki even after so long, but then again, love was a complicated thing. Vivian turned to Julian and held his hand in hers, loving the feel of warmth of his flesh. Yes, love was indeed complicated.

"I hope Alec will be okay," Julian told them softly, his usual glint of mischievousness fading away to one of desolate sadness. "But at least Nicky is with Vicki, as Alec would have wanted."

"Yes, at least Vicki isn't alone," Vivian agreed. "I hope that Alec isn't alone either."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vicki felt dead, unfeeling and all alone.

It wasn't a feeling that she was accustomed to feeling. Alec had always been there for her, a part of her, making her feel safe and secure, chasing away the shadows that always haunted her mind. But he was gone now, torn from her embrace and flung into somewhere that she could not reach him.

He looked dead on the hospital bed, connected to machines that protruded from every part of his body. His eyes were closed, softly closed against a waxen face that she had memorized every line and every curve from her years of touching and loving him. His lips were pale, closed together beneath an oxygen mask that breathed for him. He lay still on the white hospital bed with its rails raised up, locking him in and out of her reach. She wanted to hold him but the doctors were not letting her in.

"Very ill," They had repeated to her each time she begged them to let her see him. "He is in isolation. Go home now."

"But what if he wakes up and he doesn't see me?"

"He won't wake up."

"Why all the secrecy? What exactly is wrong with him?"

"There are no conclusions as of yet. Just be patient with us. We'll take care of him for you."

But Vicki had stayed as close to Alec as possible, looking in at him through a glass panel that separated the hospital room to the third ICU floor of the hospital. She had trained her eyes to watch the EKG screen that monitored his breathing in case there was any change in his condition. But throughout the night, Alec has slept peacefully while Vicki had waited for him to open his eyes. She wished that all of this was a big joke. Surely, Alec would rise from the bed, flinging the covers off of his body and jump out at her. "Surprise!" he would say. "This is all a big joke! I'm really not sick! I'm fine, just fine!" They would embrace and she would laugh at him for making her worry so much and then they would go home, to their cozy cabin awaiting them in the mountains. But a mind with less than two hours of sleep often dreamt of impossible dreams.

"How is he?"

Vicki turned at the sound of the voice. She wasn't surprised to see the face of Nicky Wu leaning above her, his hair wet as though he has just showered and driven to the hospital instantly. For some reason, having him there with her touched a chord within her, and she flung herself into his arms, allowing her tears to flow onto his jacket without shame. They had known each other for too long, she and Nicky. She trusted him.

He held her close, stroking her hair. He did not offer her words of comfort that were lies to console her. Silence filled the space between them except for the sound of her wracking sobs as her torrents of tears began to subside finally. But still, she clung to him, using him as an anchor before she slipped into the world of insanity. But his arms were not Alec's arms and his love was not Alec's love. Vicki knew that Nicky understood this and still, he loved her all the same. She treasured their bond of friendship and she loved him in her own way, though not the way that a woman loved a man.

"He'll pull through," Nicky squeezed her hand gently, offering her a tentative smile. "He'll be okay."

"I have a bad feeling about this. I just feel as though something isn't right."

"Oh?" He raised his eyebrows in concern.

"Why Alec? Why the sudden illness? No one is telling me anything and all I want is just to hold him and they won't let me near him! I want to take him home with me, because I feel that I can care for him better than this. He's all alone in that room, battling his own tortured mind. I want to be with him, Nicky, but how can I reach him? What can I do but sit here and wait and pray and hope for a recovery that I don't think will happen?"

The rage in her words made her tremble and she began to cry again, softly. Nicky's arms embraced her and she searched his face through her tears, looking for something that would make all of this mess disappear. She needed answers and she needed hope. Nicky was offering that for her and Vicki was grateful to him for it.

"I understand." He smiled at her his gentle smile, and Vicki believed that he did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Floating. In darkness. Falling through a limitless black void with no sense of movement or direction, without so much a sensation of air pushing over his skin.

I'm alive.

Alec didn't know the hour, the day or even them month, where he was or how he got there, but he knew he was alive. Or was he? In this formless darkness in which he could feel nothing, hear nothing, could he call this being alive?

*Cogito, ergo sum*

Okay. According to Descartes, he was alive. But was he awake or simply dreaming? He seemed to be awake and he was becoming aware of faint noises around him, of movement, of an antiseptic odour. He tried to open his eyes, but they wouldn't budge. And then he realized that he didn't know if he was lying on his back or his belly. God, he couldn't feel anything at all!

Where the hell was he?

And then Alec remembered...the night that his father, Felix, had come knocking on the door...Felix's warning to him to be careful...and then...the sharp sting of the needle pricking his skin....from Felix's own hand...his father's own hand pulling the plunger until the liquid flowed deep into Alec's veins....the face of his beloved Vicki crying and crying....her tears like an arrow that shot into his heart....no, don't cry for me, Vicki....I'll be alright...I love you, Vicki.....

God, what had his father done to him? Suddenly, Alec wanted to shout out his rage, his flustration at the strangeness of the whole ordeal. But how could he? He couldn't even open his mouth.

Okay, Alec, keep your cool. Get your eyes open; star from there. The eyes.

He concentrated on the lids, forcing them to move. Light began to filter through. Alec kept at it, and the light brightened slowly, like the morning sun burning through fog. But it wasn't sunlight. This was paler. Artificial light. Flourescent. Sharp forms took shape. White shapes. Then, he saw himself, or at least his torso, lying on the bed on his right side, under a sheet. There, that's more like it. He can see now.

Alec tried to roll over, to move, but his body wouldn't respond. Why not? If he could just—Wait. His right arm and even his legs were bounded by a strap, a thick strap, almost as though he were being tied to the bed. Like what? An animal? Maybe he was dreaming still. That had to be it. Because although he could see his torso and his arms, he couldn't feel them–couldn't feel anything—not the weight of the strap on his limbs, not even his body lying on the bed. Almost like having no body at all.

Alec's eyes squinted in anger at his helplessness. It was then that he saw the transparent tube running into his arm from an IVAC 560 on a pole beside the bed. An IV. He was on IV's! Jesus, that meant that he was in a hospital!

Alec dropped his gaze from the IV bag and moved his eyes a millimetre to take in his surroundings. He was all alone, in an isolate white room, silent and still. Alec's attention turned back to his body. A mask was placed over his mouth, one that hissed oxygen into his lungs, dry and stale air. No wonder he couldn't talk! Farther down, he saw the gentle tidal rise and fall of his chest and beyond that, he saw the neon EKG screen that monitored his respiration. What was going on? He didn't feel sick, he didn't even feel nauseated or feverish or even a stuffy nose! Why was he placed in a hospital surrounded by all of these machines and caught in a prison of a bed as though he were an invalid?

Suddenly, Alec caught sight of a movement by a window to his right. Someone was standing there, looking in at him. His eyes focussed slowly as he tried to make out the face.

God, it was Vicki! Vicki, looking down at him, her palms pressed against the glass window that was a barrier between them. Even from a distance, Alec saw the trail of tears that stained her cheek, and the redness of her eyes from lack of sleep. She looked worn, tired and bewildered standing there, gazing at him with forlorn eyes. Abruptly, another figure came up from behind her and Alec's heart soared at the sight of Nicky Wu. His eyes were sadly gazing back at him, as though he wanted to tell Alec that he would take care of Vicki.

Alec knew that Nicky would. There was no one else in the world that Alec would want Vicki to be with if not Nicky. He was a good man–one of the best men there was—and even now, Alec did not know why Vicki had chosen him over a wonderful person like Nicky. They were friends, all three of them, since university, and they had both fallen in love with Vicki, the sweet and passionate girl who shared their Art class together. Typical love triangle and yet, there was no animosity between Alec and Nicky. Nothing had changed between them even after these years—they were still good friends as always. They accepted Vicki's choice and she had chosen Alec. But Alec knew that if anything were to happen to him, Nicky would be there to look after Vicki. It was a blessing to have a guardian angel caring for the one he loved.

Suddenly, Alec's eyes caught sight of another figure entering the hospital room. It was a man in a white lab coat, his nose and face hind a surgical mask. Alec's eyes fixed upon the man's brown eyes, so bright, almost luminous and a shock of recognition came to him. He knew those eyes! They were the eyes of his doctor from childhood, Dr. Carstares— the doctor Felix took him too each time he was ill, which was often because he was a sickly child with fragile health. From behind, Alec saw Felix's face looming above him, the familiar lines of concern and love around those aging eyes. It was the face of the man who had loved him all throughout childhood; the man who had drugged him and now imprisoned him in a state that seemed to be worse than death.

"Alec, it will be alright," Dr. Carstares told him in his usual calm and professional voice He held up a syringe filled with clear liquid. "We'll take care of you. Don't be afraid." He poked the needle in the rubber tip of the Y-adaptor on the intravenous line and emptied the syringe into the flow.

NO! Alec's mind screamed. He wanted to scream but his larynx was dead, as was the rest of him. Oh God, what are you doing to me? What is in that syringe? What kind of medication are you injecting into me?

His eyes narrowed to look over at Felix, begging him to do something. Dad, don't let them do this, Dad! DAD! But Felix was paying no attention to him.

Alec battled the panic that overtook him, bludgeoned it down. Panic wouldn't help him now. He tried to think, he had to think. His eyes swung to the image of Vicki and Nicky standing by the window, looking in on him. Help me! His eyes begged them. He tried to shout, struggled to make his hands move to indicate to him of his turmoil, but his voice remained silent, his limbs remained inert. Fear, frustration, terror and rage swam around him, choking him. Helpless, Alec was utterly helpless.

Vicki and Nicky turned away from the window and walked on.

This was a nightmare, Alec realized. When would he wake up from this? His vision blurred as the medication took effect. Alec saw the room darken and he was in complete darkness again. He knew that a tear was running down his cheek, but he couldn't feel it. Then he saw an image of a young man walking toward him in the dark, though his eyes radiated with a blinding white light.

"My brother, I will find you. You must survive...."

The words comforted him, though he was unsure of the identity of the man who spoke the words to him. The man's presence was familiar to Alec and his words gave him a fleeting sense of hope for salvation. Maybe there was a chance for him to come into the light afterall.

Chapter 4

IN THE BEGINNING: TWENTY SIX YEARS AGO:

The child was born on a night of moon and thunder and a wind that sang high, sweet and clear, naming this night of miracles. The clouds rumbled with rain that never fell, an the grasses whispered the secrets of the night, the sighing, singing secrets of the darkness and the stars above.

The young woman lay propped on her elbows, waiting, her hair a blue-black fall of water on the straw mat. She was young fragile, though oddly unafraid as she felt the uncanny stillness that had settled where the magic flowed--the spirit's breath withheld, as if they too were waiting. The fear, which had shadowed and made dim, the sun since she had learned of the child growing within her, had left when the first pain ripped through her body. Now nothing moved but the baby, flailing in the darkness, fighting its way toward the soft, beguiling light.

In the cave that was their haven away from the corruptions of the world, her precious child Louis lay fast asleep on a mat in the corner, unaware that his sibling would soon be joining him into this world. Her husband, her lover, her life, the father to both her children, was an impalpable presence drifting above her shoulders, his head bent in prayer to the sunrise, the beginning of all beauty, light and life. His lips moved int he darkness, pleading for the prosper of his wife and for the unborn child, so that they both would be strong and safe. Only the light of the burning fire by her side flickered light onto his determined features, illuminating his eyes and the softness of his smile as he reached out to hold her hand in silent comfort when the pain was blinding.

The young woman turned in the golden light of the fire, one hand on her swollen belly, one held in an iron-grip in her husband's grasp, weary from the ebb and the flow of pain of the labor. When the time grew near, her husband began to mutter words of power from the Triviante, initiating his forces into her body to help ease the child into the world. It was he who stroked her belly and crooned softly,

"Come easy into this world, little one,
Come from the secret waters of your exile
and into our loving arms, blessed and warm,
Rise to meet the powers of the Triviante and
Form your existence into this world...."

The young woman felt her husband's inner powers flow through her--sharp, raging and strong. It seemed to sweep through her veins, into her blood and easing the pain so that she could be released from the pain. She crouched, poised and ready when the child began to come. Outside, among the tall and fragrant trees, the air stirred with a promise while a shadow fell upon the moon and the thunder raged. A storm blew over the world, tearing the peaceful natural beauty and erupting in its rage.

The boy child came so quickly and effortlessly that the young woman and her husband were without speech. Before her husband could splash his newborn son with scared water to wake his sleeping, unborn soul, the child opened his mouth and faint smoke came from between his lips to fill the cave with a soft, ethereal blue light.

Her husband's eyes lit up as he smiled joyously at his wife. "Our child has the Triviante forces within him. Already he has such profound power within his spirit!"

Sweat-soaked and astonished, the young woman's eyes widened as she saw the blue smoke disperse into the air. Indeed, her child would be a powerful being, perhaps the most powerful of all the Triviante creatures that was left upon this world. Suddenly, she froze and her husband did the same, for they head the sighing of the earth and the singing of waters which before should have been stilled and silent. Both parents saw the child, who should have been frail and unable to hold himself upright, turn on his stomach, lift his head, and look at his parents with eyes the color of black onyx--clear, ageless and wise.

"I want to name him Alec," The young woman's fingers laced around the child's body, laughing at the innocence that she saw in his eyes, the beauty of his soul already evident even now. Such innocence would soon be destroyed in this harsh and cruel world but for now, let her baby embellish in that world of purity and peace. How she yearned for such a world to exist for her children, a place where they would not be outcasts for being who they are, for possessing such divine powers that the mortals on this world did not understand and will never understand.

Her husband's soft gaze and silent joy mirrored her own. "Our son, Alec," The baby was cradled in his arms lovingly and tenderly. He spoke sacred words of wisdom to the child, though he knew it was much too early for a newborn to comprehend the deepness of its meaning. "Alec, you and your brother, Louis, will be the hope of the Trivante, my child. Grow and become all that you can be and remember to never succumb to the darkness."

The woman smiled as her husband handed the baby over to her so that she could cradle him against her heart. Bending over, she kissed the baby gently upon the forehead, marking him with her tears of joy as her lips touched his delicate skin. "Alec, you will be endowed with all of the powers of the Triviante. These powers I give to you to become the Prophet to guide all of us into the light, my child."

Both parents were so engrossed in the arrival of their child that when they heard the impending footsteps of soldiers invading the cave, it was much too late. The figures of the men in the military uniforms with their guns and their technological machines surrounded the young woman and her husband, circling them menacingly, weapons thrust out. The young woman's heart lurched painfully, though she felt no fear. She knew that this day would come--the day when the enemies would find her family. But she had no knowledge that the timing would be so soon.

"So you found us afterall," Her husband spat out the words, his eyes challening those of a solider who stood before them, taking a step ahead of the rest of the army.

"You both shall burn in Hell," The solider declared, his eyes full of loathe as he swept over their faces. "That is the word of God. You are the mutants that only Satan could have created and you must be terminated!"

"Based on what proof?" Her husband shot back at him. "The Triviantes have harmed no one and yet, you mortals want us dead, extinct. Why is that? Is that for fear that your race is less superior, less powerful?"

This was an old argument, one that mortals were unwilling to listen to. Irrationality and fear of the unknown made their minds closed, their hearts cold and unfeeling. Suddenly, the solider's eyes drifted past the young woman and her husband and his eyes lit up in a strange light when his gaze fell upon the newborn child cradled in the young woman's arms.

The first thought that came to her were the safety of her children and she knew that her husband would risk all for Louis and Alec. She knew that he would attack their predators for the safety of her and the children. Without hesitation, her husband's eyes lit up with a yellow force and the rays emitted out at the enemies. But the weapons were unleashed and the young woman screamed in horror when the bullets sliced through her husband's skin. No..how was it possible? Mortal weapons had never penetrated through a Triviante's body before. Her husband's body collapsed on the ground, lifeless and still as the blood of his life force seeped out from his wounds. Her husband...dead.....no..NO! Not her love....

Clinging onto the baby, the young woman cried out in pain as the bullets sliced through her own skin, searing her flesh and she fell onto her knees, her fingers groping the child so hard that Alec began to cry. Strangely, the baby's voice, which should have been harsh and full of fury at his birth, flowed like water, like the silvery music of birds that eased his mother's spirit before she died. With the last of her strength, the woman took one last look at her child as her tears fell before she took her final breath.

Her life and her husband's life forces were gone. Somehow the enemies had found a way to break through their defenses, but for her children, it would be different. Louis and Alec were survivors, the only two Triviantes survivors to walk upon the face of the earth. Outside the cave, away from the bloodshed and the death, the earth spoke in a rush of gilded waters, the sky in the clouds of thunder rimmed with moonlight, and the night air was still. Thus a new beginning had settled upon the lives of Alec and Louis, the Prophets, who would bring the existence of all mortals into peace or extinction, as it was their road to take. This was reality, as spoken from the powers of the Triviante in the light of the misted sun, spoken by the words of God.

So it was promised, so it had come to be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WASHINGTON STATE, 2000
1:45 pm, Olive Garden Restaurant

Though Vicki refused several times, Nicky insisted on getting her something to eat before he drove her home. After seeing Alec lying so withdrawn and helpless in the ICU of the hospital, Vicki truly wanted nothing more than to run away from that image of her love lying as if dead in a hospital bed, caged and fenced in by the rails, unable to touch him and be with him. She wanted to hide out in the comforts of their cabin, surrounded by the sheets where Alec's balmy fragrance lingered in the sheets, where she could wallow in her grief alone. But Nicky would have no such thing and they stopped at an Italian restaurant on the way. Now, Vicki stared moodily at the menu as Nicky chatted briefly with the waiter, and then he ordered them both linguine with a side order of Caesar salad. Vicki objected when he pressed her to order more food.

"I really can't eat anything," Vicki forced a smile for his sake, in effort to convince him that she was fine. Oh yes, things were just peachy, weren't they? Her boyfriend was ill with some strange disease while the authorities hovered over him like vultures, unwilling to even let her see him. Secrets loomed over this strange case like a thick veil of mysticism that Vicki was positive that Alec's surrogate father, Felix Wong, knew about. But Felix was not talking and neither was anyone else. Yes, life was just peachy keen.

"Vicki," Nicky sighed heavily as he casted her a concerned look. "You have to eat something or else you won't be able to help Alec. I don't want you getting ill from malnourishment and neither would Alec." His eyes held nothing but worried, loving concern for her.

Vicki nodded silently, blinking back tears that threatened to spill as she thought about Alec. Nicky was right, and it touched her in a place in her heart that he would care about her so unconditionally even after all of these years. The look of concern in his eyes, his forehead creasing with anxiety was genuine. He reminded her of Alec, of Alec' s love for her. Sweet Nicky, she didn't deserve his love and yet, now when she needed him most, he was there for her. Alec had often asked her during their years together why she had not chosen to love Nicky instead. Vicki knew why. Love was something that she always knew belonged to Alec. She had loved him from university, wanting and knowing that she was his. It had been six years since then, and her love for him only grew, blossomed like a flower basking in the warm sunlight that was the beauty of Alec. Her love for Nicky was a love based on friendship, not passion. How could she love another after haven loved a wonderful man like Alec? But all the same, Vicki loved Nicky in her own way, if not in a way that a woman loved a man. Life was strange that way, wasn't it? It was unpredictable, unfortunately short and yet, the pain of loving and losing a loved one was endless.
What was the explanation for what has happened to Alec?

"Do you believe in God?" Vicki suddenly blurted out. She jumped at her words, feeling heat rushing to her face. It was not the time and the place for a sermon. It had been a long time since Vicki had been to church, though she was religious enough. But she had no explanations, no source of comfort for the senselessness of the situation. "Do you have faith in his miracles? If so, then...then why is this happening to Alec? Or to anyone who is sick and ill and possibly...dying..." Her voice faltered at her last remark, her throat constricting with pain.

"Have I lost all faith in God, you mean?" Nicky asked, the question not only directed at her, but at himself. They both knew that religion was on a decline in this day and age where material wealth and promotions were high regarded in importance in comparions to morality. His eyes clouded over as he pondered about her question. "Maybe I have... Or maybe I've just learned that mankind doesn't live under the traditions or rules of God, and that in order to survive in this world, we have to disregard those rules and adopt our own."

"Yes, but in doing so, do we damn ourselves to a fate identical to those who forced us to abandon the word of God?" Vicki argued, wanting answers, needing answers that she knew no one could give to her.

Nicky's eyes softened when he saw her frusterated frown. "The word of God... We do not abandon the word of God; we interpret them in different ways. Times change, and so do the meanings of words. Centuries ago, people found meanings in the Bible to indicate the Apocalypse. Unless we truly do live in a netherworld of our own creations, then those interpretations were incorrect. Now, a millenium later, we are once again predicting Armaggedon and the coming of the Anti-Christ. We have never abandoned the word of God, Vicki, but found different ways to twist His words to our advantages."

The food came, hot and mouth watering dishes that were displayed before her, but Vicki's fingers did not reach for her fork. She was too engrossed in this discussion; anything to give her some light onto this bizzare case. Speaking about morality and about faith kept her mind preoccupied from thinking about Alec. And strangely enough, Vicki had the gut feeling that God did have a hand in what was happening now to Alec."But do incorrect interpretations mean more or less of eternal damnation?" she pointed out, and Nicky nodded at her in encouragement, allowing her time to elaborate. "Mistakes have proven fatal before, and you've implicated that these are not even mistakes, but intentional false translations in order to bend even the word of God to our use."

Tilting his head to the side, he drank from the coffee, the warm setting sun beating down on his face. "God created man in his image..." He mused. "Do you ever wonder about that one?"

Taken aback, Vicki swallowed hard, struggling to accept his puzzling answer. "What do you mean by that?"

With that endless abundance of patience in his eye, Nicky continued on, chewing on pasta, the tomatoc sauce delicious and wonderfully thick to his blue-plate tastebuds. "After all of the various forms of scum I've seen as an FBI agent, I can't help but wonder if we reflect God in our rights and wrongs, or if we abused that priviledge to be God's children, and now reflect only ourselves. Has God given up hope and abandoned us, therefore giving us the freedom to abandon Him and His teachings?"

Vicki was not convinced. "Seriously, I think that we are created in the image of God, but we have our own set potential of good and evil. It is this decision that gives us our destinies, and whether or not we rest in the kingdom of God after judgment. As for God abandoning us, after He destroyed the world by flooding it, He promised never to do so again, promising that He would never abandon us."

Nicky considered her rebuttal thoughtfully. "The question is, since we have strayed so far from His teachings and His touch, have we given God no cause to care to watch over us? Not abandonment or betrayal, but mere detachment from His own creations?" He pondered.

Vicki bit her knuckles in thought, and he tilted his head at her, awaiting her opinion. She had always been good at defending her opinions, even in University, as she was the captain of the debating squad. He sensed her helplessness about Alec's plight and he knew that she was reaching out, to any belief, in order to find solace. Nicky didn't blame her one bit. Vicki was independant and strong minded, but she was also a girlfriend who loved her boyfriend with more than the usual loyalty and concern. Vicki's life was Alec and it was the strength of her love and devotion that Nicky loved and admired. He wanted to test her beliefs wth opossing questions of his own. He wanted answers too, to what was Alec's invisible enemy. Life was not fair but why was it not fair? These questions about God and the existence of God were interesting for him to think about.

"There is supposed to be an unquestionable trust between God and man," Vicki murmured, propping her chin up with her hand, gazing past him at the magnolia trees, and at the fragile white blooms. "We place our faith, our worries, our fears and our beliefs in Him, and allow him to do with as He desires. We trust Him because He controls our destinies, if one believes in such a thing. If God detached himself from us, He would leave us to our fates, and there would be no progression. There would be a downspiral into nothingness and darkness. Evil would reign supreme, which is, at least to me, a terrifying idea. The threat of not having God to keep some semblance of order is unfathomable."

Leaning forward, propping his own chin up with both hands in a gentle mockery of her, Nicky had a faint smile on his face from the debate. He wanted to hold her, to have her cry on his shoulder, to verbally express her grief but he knew that Vicki was much stronger than that. She would cry alone, but he wanted to comfort her nevertheless in his own way, though he had his own conflicting feelings about where this discussion was heading toward. Vicki wanted to believe in miracles, while Nicky was trained to believe in scientific proof. Alec's predicament was not God's torture or injustice treatment. It was man's mistake, man's own fault. Either that, it was just a tragedy waiting to happen. Life and death was always at man's own fault, Nicky believed, not one or the other.

"But are we slipping into the darkness?" Nicky pointed out, and Vicki had no other response now except to stare helplessly into his eyes, cursing her only weakness and wishing that she could tear herself from the depths of those calm and peaceful brown eyes.

Finding the nerve to rip herself from his intense gaze, she began to remove her hands from the tables, but found herself caught by his slender, gently persistent fingers encircling her slim wrist, the fingertips caressing her small bones and her soft skin. His thumb moved to rest in her palm, and the pleading in his eyes asked silent questions, while his lips spoke.

"Are we?" Nicky repeated, raising his eyebrows questioningly at her.

Vicki found that she did not have an answer for him, his fingers running over her pulse, which was heavy in her wrist and quickened by his touch. She wanted to pull away but his touch comforted her somehow, made her feel less alone.

If he were slipping anywhere, Nicky wondered if it was into the living realm of his desire for her.

Chapter 5

WASHINGTON STATE,
3:30 pm, Sanctuary

Kristy Yang hummed softly to herself the tune from Backstreet Boys "Shape of my Heart" as she drove along the deserted road. The radio was on full blast, as she liked it to be, and she mouthed the familiar lyrics to herself as herself. The road across this lonely town of Sanctuary was dull. There was absolutely nothing but dust and the occasional car speeding past her every four hours or so. She was alone, but that was no surprise to her. Had she not always been alone?

Officially on vacation for a week from her work at the FBI firm two days ago, Kristy had nowhere to go but exploring the city, driving along the highways that stretched for miles around for the hell of it. She had no family here in Washington, and after living many years on her own after graduation, Kristy finally realized that her life was boring. And worse, she was still single. Not that this brand of singlehood made her insecure; in fact, she enjoyed her freedom, her sense of self accomplishment at having to survive without a man's touch in a while. But still, there was a sense of yearning, a sense of isolation that she hated for being alone.

Vivian and Julian were a couple, Alec and Vicki were a couple, Ruby has endless dates while Nicky pined away for Vicki's love. But good old Kristy was still alone, watching as the years rolled by, wanting to join in the gushy, "I am in love" festitivities but never feeling completely whole since of course, she had never been in love before. Also, reading romance books did not help and soap operas were of no help. Everyone was either in love or soon to be in love, whereas in real life, single women brooded over their plight. But not Kristy, oh no, she just sulked and drove miles and miles in areas where there was nothing but dust balls on the roads just to waste time so that her self pity didn't eat away at her from within. God, she needed a life!

Suddenly, before her very eyes, a man appeared directly in front of her windshield. It was such a sudden movement that Kristy thought that it was all an apprarition until she heard the sickening thud of her car slamming into his body. There he was, and down he went. There was no time to swerve over, to time to stop the car. Everything had happened in a blink of an eye. Kristy could not scream; this kind of fear was beyond screaming. It was the type of fear that stopped her heart, her brain and all she could think was that she had killed a man....she had killed a person.....

"Omigod," Kristy swore under her breath, barely belieiving what had just happened. "Omigod..."

She instantly slammed down on her brakes and then bolted out of the car. Her heart pounding in her ears, she rushed toward the man but she stopped in her tracks when she realized that his body was not lying down on the ground as she would have thought. But where could he be? She had seen him collapse on the ground and had heard the metal crush against his flesh.

"You move, you die."

Kristy's eyes widened when a hand yanked her head back and strong arms pinned her against the car. She struggled against her assailant's attacks but her arms were strapped behind her back, constraining her movements. Kristy's first thought was to kick him out of the way and then use her gun to.....Damn! She'd forgotten her gun at home. Here she was a FBI agent and no gun? Wait till her co-workers hear about this or worse, read it in the headlines. "FBI Agent who forgot her rifle killed on a highway by insane attacker." She'd die a laughing stock of the board.

"If you're going to kill me then just do it," Kristy cried out at him as he yanked her toward him. She grunted in pain by his swift, forceful movements but when she faced him, she was caught by surprise by the pain that she in those dark brown eyes. He was handsome, this man whose highlight of the day was to murder single, lonely women on deserted highways, but nevertheless, Kristy knew a handsome hunk when she saw one. It was her luck to meet either men who were already involved with other women to give her the time of the day or men who were murderers. Just her luck.

"I'm not going to kill you," The man rasped in her ear, those eyes turning cold and hard in just a blink of an eye. His grip on her tightened until she was certain that his hands had left a mark on her skin. He moved close to her until she could smell him--the scent of heather and something else...something like burning wood....His eyes bore deep into hers, the power within it catching her off guard, leaving her almost breathless. "I need your help. I need to find my brother. Help me or else.... you don't have a choice. Do it or you'll die." He squeezed her arm even harder, his grip like iron against her flesh. There was quiet desperation about him, but she knew that he would go through with his threat.

Kristy could only nod dumbly at him, fear gnawing at her insides. He was right, she had no choice. As an FBI agent, she was now reduced to finding missing persons...... So much for the day being dull....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trinity Medical Center Minot, Washington State
Tuesday, May 30, 8:01 pm

Wendy Marder took a few minutes to stretch out on an unused gurney outside the emergency room. It had been a long night of tending to patient after patient in the speciality ward. And now her shift was over and she was ready to go home. She was so tired and feeling sluggish from weariness.

"Dr. Marder?" Wendy opened her eyes, to see the dayshift charge nurse standing next to the litter. "The radiologist just called about Mr. Alec Su's head CT. He said to tell you it was negative."

"Great," she replied, swinging herself to a sitting position and then jumping down off the cart. "That's the first good news I've heard in hours." That meant that there was no strange activity in the patient's brain.

Ah, Alec Su. He was a new patient just brought to the hospital only last night. The adopted son of FBI agent Felix Wong and also exhibitiing traits of the power of the Triviante. Good thing he was here now held in the hospital or else he would be a dangerous opponent. She knew that his brother, Louis Koo, had escaped from the hospital only last night as well and most certainly, he would be looking for Alec. But who would have guessed that his own brother was now being held hostage by the government? Louis would no doubt never find Alec; he would not even think about returning here to the hell that he had been locked up in for the past twenty six years. But now it was Alec's turn...

She strode rapidly past the nurse and down the hall towards Trauma 3, stopping only long enough to grab the patient's chart off the carousel at the nurses' station. She pushed the door to the exam room open, and stepped through the doorway into the trauma room. The patient was strapped to the bed, connected to machines that would no doubt keep a record of his every heartbeat, his every movement. He was conscious, his eyes focused on her. She would have felt pity for him if only he were a normal human being....but then again, he wasn't even a human being to be precise. A child of the Triviante, a young man who could bring chaos into the world if he were not dealt with properly.

Wendy moved efficiently toward the bed and caught his gaze. In spite of the realization of his powers, Alec looked like a normal young man, appearing almost fragile and frightened connected to those wires and tubes and protruded from every part of his body. She leaned down and started to peel back his right eyelid. He flinched at her probbing and then she realized that he could move. Ah, the sedatives must have worn off. She had to sedate him after her examination of him.

Alec glared at the doctor, just as shocked as she was that he finally had movement in his limbs. God, finally! He struggled to remain as motionless as he could so that she would not suspect that the sedatives they had injected into him had worn off but her touch had caused him pain and he could not help but grimace. Now, with the knowledge that he could finally move, Alec plotted to escape.

Yes, he had to escape. One night in this private Hell was enough. He had to get home to Vicki and to make sure that she was safe. He wanted to find his father, Felix, and demand answers. He was being held in custody against his will and treated to medical testing without his permission. This was a nightmare that was ending this very instant. He had to escape and fast.

Suddenly, a surge of a warm sensation flowed through him, like liquid fire and Alec began to thrash about on the bed. Wendy screamed at his violent reaction and her arms struggled to pin him down upon the bed. But abruptly, his body jerked upright and his hand flew outward to strike out her. Alec's sockets burned and he cried out from the pain. The pain seared deep into his soul, burning and burning, slicing through his mind. He wanted to close his eyes but he could not. In an instant, all that he could see was a yellow, bright light and it seemed to shoot out from his sockets directly at his target---the doctor named Wendy.

He watched in mute horror as the doctor stumbled backward after the ray of light hit her to find herself hanging onto the sink for dear life, trying to maintain her balance. Her ears were roaring, her heart was pounding, and suddenly she couldn't catch her breath. She tried to speak, but her throat was closing up. She lost her grip on the sink and started to fall -- Everything went black.

"No..."

Alec could barely recognize his own astounded voice. He blinked, barely believing what had happened and...what he had just done...He had harmed her, this doctor. Though he had not wanted to harm her, his body had radiated with a eerie power source that caused him to unleash such profound power.

Triviante.......

His mind jerked at the memory. A young woman was delivering a child as a man bent over her to soothe her pain. They were both praying for a miracle to the Triviante. Then there was blood, so much blood and the anguishes cries of a baby echoing in the night. A bloodbath in a cave.....a child crying...a little boy with sorrowful eyes having to watch the murder of his parents....an injustice done by the hands of mortal beings......

Suddenly, a warning bell rang throughout the medical institution and Alec found himself surroundedm by an army of military agents with rifles aimed at him. His gaze swung over to them, pleading for an explanation, his mind whirling with confusion and dread. God, what was happening? He was a human being now treated as though he were a lab rat to be probbed and tested and imprisoned? Now he was being ambushed and hunted down like he was a killer.

Suddenly, that strange sense of power overcame him again and Alec screamed. A gunshot was fired and the bullet sliced through his left thigh. Alec felt himself falling but strong arms caught him. Gasping in pain, he lifted his head to find the man whom he had considered to be his father all his life helping him to his feet. Felix Wong's eyes were full of sororw and a deep sense of grief as Alec wanted to demand an answer. But Felix beat him to it.

"You are the son of the Triviante, Alec, and because of that, we must eliminate you."

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