Kevin did one final stretch to end his warm-up, and then focused his attention on the punching bag that hung in front of him. He took a deep breath, then brushed the red crystal of his amulet. His skin tingled, the sensation foreign to him now. Moments later he stood in his red uniform, once again Power Lord.

Eight years had gone by. He wasn’t the same man. Would he still be as powerful? He brought his fists up and swung at the bag with less than half of his full strength.

The bag nearly broke from its supports. He took a few more half-strength swings, the chains groaning with every hit.

“So that’s what it’s going to be?” a voice hissed from the doorway. “Half an effort?”

Kevin turned to see a scowling AJ.

“I’m busy,” he said, not caring how sharp it sounded.

“You think that a few days’ worth of training is going to bring you up to useful speed? Dream on. Eight years’ absence isn't something you can just dismiss."

"Did you want something, other than to bother me?" Kevin asked, steadying the still-swaying bag.

"I just wonder how much good you can actually do," he said. "I mean, you're supposed to be the almighty Power Lord, and I bet Nick could perform better than you in here."

"It's not a contest," Kevin countered. "I'm here to train, not demolish the room."

AJ marched over to him. "And you actually believe you can rescue Brian? After doing nothing for years, you can just leap in and save the day? Play the hero?"

Kevin spun, and before he realized what he was doing, grabbed AJ by his shirt and lifted him off the floor. "Despite what you'd like to believe, I'm not totally useless. Yes, I believe I can help rescue Brian. The key word is 'help'. I have no intention of ‘playing the hero’ here; this isn't about my ego. It's about Brian. Period."

He dropped his estranged friend back to his feet. "Now, unless you have something to actually contribute, leave. I have work to do."

AJ stood there for a second, a mix of emotions passing behind his eyes. Finally, he turned away and stomped across the floor, slamming the door shut behind him. Kevin sighed and went back to the punching bag, this time with more force than before. It took five swings before he broke it apart.

Another hour went by as he worked on exercises, and by the time he was finished, he was thoroughly exhausted. He needed a shower, some food, and some decent rest before he could begin the training cycle again. Halfway to his quarters, he met Zanell in the hallway. She must have seen something in his face that made her pause.

"Are you okay, Kevin?" she asked.

"I'm fine," he said dismissively.

"How did the training go?"

"It went. I'm going to fit training in three times a day until you need me elsewhere."

"Don't overdo it," she cautioned.

"The training is going to go fine," Kevin remarked. "It's the distractions I could live without."

"Distractions..."

"Let's just say that AJ needs to have something to do other than supervise my every move."

She nodded. He didn't have to spell it out for her; she'd seen the open hostility earlier. Kevin wasted no time getting to his quarters, and the much-needed solitude it offered. It was going to be a very long journey.

The corridor was black, and it seemed to stretch forever. Although he was alone, he felt a sense of dread and tried to make as little noise as he could. Something about the place scared him. The air was tense and chilled. The silence was oppressive, and he felt the need to move. So he began walking forward, not knowing what he would find. Suddenly there was a sound, coming from far ahead in the blackness. Kevin stopped and listened... and very faintly, heard it again. It was a plaintive cry, as if someone needed help. He quickened his pace and soon found himself running, panic touching at the edges of his mind. The sounds became clearer. He knew that voice…

Brian.

There was an edge of anguish to his cries that clenched at Kevin’s heart. He passed door after door, frantically trying to track the sound. Then he saw it: a single barred door, light pouring out from within. He ran to it, hearing Brian clearly now. His cries suddenly stopped, replaced by a bone-chilling scream. Kevin leapt the final distance, grabbing on to the bars with all his strength. Brian was strapped to a chair, unable to move or even turn his head. He was being tortured.

Kevin wrenched at the bars, but they didn't budge. He yelled Brian’s name, but he wasn’t heard. Kevin activated his amulet, but, to his horror, nothing happened. Frantically he kicked at the door, but again, nothing. He yelled again, but it was as if he wasn't making any sound. A thin trickle of blood began tracking down from Brian’s nostril as he screamed once more, his back arching in unbearable agony.

Then some kind of force began pulling Kevin back, away from the door. He tried to hang on to the bars, but he didn't have the strength to overcome whatever it was. He was flung back down the corridor like a rag doll. He tried to make his way back to the cell, but no matter how much he ran, he wasn't moving. Brian's cries echoed in his ears as he fought to move even an inch. As he was pulled backward, Kevin heard a scream much louder than the rest. Suddenly Brian fell silent.

Then the corridor disappeared, and Kevin found himself standing on grass. The sky was a strange green color, but everything else was familiar. Home. He was home. He turned towards the house, and Kristin appeared on the front porch, smiling, with Spencer in her arms and Natalie by her side. Kevin opened his mouth to call to her, when all of a sudden a huge rumbling noise shook the ground. He looked up and his blood froze. A huge alien ship hovered over the house; he could hear the hum of power building rapidly. He shouted at Kristin to run, but she was staring up at the ship. He tried to move, but it was like his feet were made of lead. Suddenly, a blinding flash of red light erupted in front of him. He screamed Kristin's name... But the house, his family, was gone... incinerated...

Kevin woke up with a strangled cry. He must have lain there shaking for a good solid five minutes; it took even longer for his pulse to calm. He'd had nightmares before, but this one... he didn't bother to go back to sleep after that.

The next two days passed in much the same way. He put in the three training cycles a day like he wanted and made a point of avoiding AJ when possible. But each night he was plagued once again by nightmares of Brian being tortured and his family destroyed, each time worse than the last.

When Zanell made a breakthrough, announcing she had a definitive ion-trail to follow from the ship most likely to have held Brian, Kevin inwardly rejoiced. They launched immediately. Zanell had the first piloting shift, and then it would be Kevin’s turn. He wasn't so sure about jumping into the driver's seat right away, but he was expected to do his job, and that was part of it.

He was relieved to discover that while his outer mind had its doubts, his inner mind had no trouble remembering how to pilot the ship. By the end of shift, he was exhausted. Next was Howie's turn, and when he came, all Kevin wanted to do was go to bed.

"Everything go okay?" Howie asked, studying the current navigational data and ship's readings.

"Fine," Kevin said, getting up from the chair. "She's all yours."

Howie paused, giving his old friend a long look. "You look like you need some sleep, Kev."

"Exactly what I have planned. Later, D."

He wanted to say more, Kevin knew, but he hurried out of there before there could be questions he didn't want to get into. He was just passing the kitchen when the one person he least wanted to see stepped out into the corridor.

"Well, I have to say I'm surprised we aren't shipwrecked on some asteroid. Eight years..."

"AJ, I don't have time for this," Kevin muttered, trying to push past him.

“So much for teamwork," he snapped. "We are supposed to be working on strategy and plans, but you never bother to hang around for that. Typical."

"Our first strategy session is in six hours, and I intend on being right there. And as far as teamwork... you have no room to talk."

"What does that mean?" he said sharply.

"Do you usually harass the members of your team? Put them down at every turn; make them feel like they're unwanted excess baggage? Trash?"

He opened his mouth to protest, but Kevin cut him off. "That's exactly what you've been doing to me, AJ, and it's going to stop. Either get off my back or we'll settle this in the training room. And this time I won't hold back."

For a split second, Kevin thought he saw fear. But resentment replaced it a moment later. "I still say you aren't part of this team. Waltzing in at the eleventh hour doesn't make you a team player."

"Fine. Think what you want. I'm not in this for you; I'm in it for Brian. And if you get in my way, well... consider yourself warned."

He brushed past AJ and soon reached his cabin. He entered and hit the wall, giving a shout at the sudden pain. He dropped on his bunk, trying to calm his emotions. Why was AJ so dead set against having him here? Kevin only wanted to help and he’d only received venom from the man.

Not more than three minutes later there was a knock on the door. He raised his head off the pillow in surprise. Up until that moment, no one had bothered seeking him out.

Hoping it wasn't AJ, he called out. "Who is it?"

"Um, it's Nick. Can I come in?"

"I'm trying to get some rest."

"Please."

Kevin sighed. When Nick used that voice, he really couldn't say no. It had been that way ever since they'd met, although Kevin would never admit it to him.

"It's unlocked.”

Nick entered, and then just stood there in front of the bed. Kevin noticed, then, just how much he'd changed over the years. Gone was the scrawny, gawky teenager he'd practically raised on the road. He'd matured physically, all the awkwardness gone.

"So, um, I heard you talking to AJ..."

Ah. Some things never changed. His talent for understatement, for example.

"Arguing, yeah," Kevin replied, sitting up.

"He's pretty ticked at you coming back, you know."

"I know." Boy, do I know.

"Not everyone feels the same," he said. "I think... it's just for AJ, it's harder."

"Did you come in here just to say what I am already fully aware of, or did you have an actual point to make, Nicky?"

His eyebrows arched a bit, and amazingly, he smiled. "Nicky... no one ever calls me that anymore." He shook his head. "No, I know you knew that. I was just... well, worried."

"I can take care of myself," Kevin said.

"Yeah, but... you shouldn't have to fight all that before we... um, fight."

Kevin just looked at him and waited. Sometimes that was the only thing you could do when dealing with Nick.

"Okay, that sounded weird. It's just confusing, is all."

"Sit down," Kevin offered, giving the kid a break. Nick sank onto the bed beside him. "Now, tell me what you want to tell me."

"I don't think AJ is really angry at you... you're just the most convenient target. He's scared for Brian... we all are... and the fact that we need you, really need you, this time just underlines how bad it all is."

"Maybe.” He considered something for a long moment. "Can you... would you tell me what it was like? After I left?" He pointed at the scar on Nick’s hand.

Nick glanced at it, and a serious look settled on his face. "Sure.”

Still, he seemed to hesitate before he began. “For the first couple of months after you left, it seemed like we were doing fine with just the four of us working together. But I realized that it was actually getting more difficult. Zanell said that my amulet made me the strongest of us all, but I really think it was you that held us together. We... we weren't as coordinated, although we sure tried. We never gave up, especially Brian. Whenever we fought, he just threw himself into it, like he was fighting for two people instead of one.” Nick looked up from the floor. "You know, I probably shouldn't tell you this, but if you hadn't been the one to give up your amulet eight years ago, he would have done it."

Kevin stared. "What?"

“I think he was going to, but you beat him to it. Once you were out, well... he knew we'd never make it with just three. So, he stayed."

Kevin’s ears were ringing and, just for a moment, a press of darkness seemed to cloud his vision. He shook his head, which helped.

"But... why didn't he say anything? Why didn't any of you?"

Nick shrugged. "Would it have brought you back?" He looked down and traced the ridge of his scar. "He said it was your choice, and we had to respect that.”

"I'd made my decision," Kevin affirmed. "At the time... no, I don't think I would have come back."

"Then Brian was right." Nick looked directly at him. "Once we realized that we were going to have to work harder, things got a little crazy. We had to revise all our strategies, and we made mistakes. Lots of them. But I guess we learned."

"At a big cost, I think." Kevin felt suddenly sick to his stomach.

"It wasn't easy," Nick admitted. "Even when we learned the new strategies and made better plans, it still got harder. That's when Brian..."

When he fell silent, Kevin leaned forward. "Brian what?"

"It wasn't enough that he was doing his job, and… and yours. He even went beyond that."

"What do you mean?"

Nick licked his lips. "Sometimes it seemed like he was fighting for all five of us. Zanell began to have to heal him after every mission. Sometimes, she almost couldn't. But he wouldn't stop, he just kept saying that the evil had to be met and overcome. That too much depended on us, and we couldn't do less."

A wave of cold swept over Kevin. All that time, he'd been safe, enjoying family life, while Brian...

"Stop, Kev."

He looked at Nick in confusion. "What?"

"Stop feeling guilty over that. Brian said you'd react just like you are now... that's why none of us ever told you."

"But-"

"You made a choice, and none of us had a right to question that. Although," he added softly, "most of us did, anyway." He sighed. "Brian understood about family, and he was always defending your choice. But to me, and Howie and AJ..."

"You never really agreed with it."

"No.”

Kevin sat back, trying to absorb what he'd been told.

"You asked about this scar," Nick said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Yeah... you said you barely escaped with your life the day you got it."

"I did," Nick replied. "We were caught by surprise that day. We were still pretty weak from the last battle, but we used what strength we could muster. I'd just finished taking out a group of soldiers when another one came up behind me and caught me off-guard. I barely managed to parry his sword stroke... luckily, he only cut my hand. I dropped my sword, and was bleeding pretty badly, but AJ came up and took him out before he could kill me.”

"Sounds like a really close call," Kevin remarked, swallowing against the visual in his mind.

"It was," Nick agreed. "But like I said, there were lots of them. This one just happened to leave a permanent mark."

He said it so matter-of-factly; Kevin realized there were probably much worse injuries he didn't know about.

"And the others?" he managed.

Nick drew in a deep breath. "We all had our moments. Howie was nearly blinded once... that shook us, bad. Zanell did what she could, but it was a week before his vision started to come back. AJ took his fair share of injuries, and there was a time where he was out for three straight missions in a row." He frowned at the memory. "We were way outnumbered, and they managed to overwhelm his position. If Brian and I hadn't gotten there, they would have killed him for sure. As it was, he was in a coma for nine days."

"Nine days!" Kevin exclaimed. "What-"

Nick held up a hand, stopping his words. "Easy, Kev. It turned out all right, in the end. It took a while for AJ to get back to form, and he beat himself up over being so careless. I'm not sure he ever forgave himself."

"But it wasn't his fault-"

"No, but that didn't matter. I think it was then that he began feeling guilty whenever any of us got injured. It was stupid, but nothing we said made a difference."

Kevin thought about that. "Then if he tends to take guilt on himself, when Brian was captured…"

"Yeah," Nick said quietly.

Was that why AJ was acting so hostile? It made sense. His self-imposed guilt, along with a feeling of betrayal that they’d never resolved...

"Brian never seemed to get like that, though," Nick said. "He didn't feel the guilt like AJ... whenever we were beaten down, he just tried that much harder. I swear, there were times I thought he'd kill himself rather than retreat."

What could Kevin say to that? He'd never imagined any of this was happening, and it was making him feel physically sick to realize what had gone on.

"Kev?" Nick said in an odd voice. "You okay, man?"

His voice was too shaky to be able to answer verbally, so he just nodded.

"You look kind of pale and not very okay," he said, frowning.

“I'll be fine," Kevin said, his voice not much more than a whisper. "I-I really need to lie down."

"Uh huh," Nick said. "You want me to get Zanell?"

"No," he said at once. "Just... let me be for a while, okay?"

Nick hesitated, but finally said, "Sure. You get some rest, and I'll see you at dinner, before our strategy session."

He stood, turned to go, and then looked back. Kevin waved him towards the door before he could say anything; he needed to think things over, alone. Nick left and Kevin sank back down on the bed, head spinning with the latest revelations. He had failed them, totally. Completely. He had put them all at terrible risk, all for... selfishness. No wonder AJ hated him so much.

Kevin was beginning to agree with him on that one.

"You going to push that around all evening or actually eat some?" Howie asked around a mouthful.

"Not hungry," Kevin said, dropping his fork. He had to eat, he knew that, but he just couldn't gather the determination. Looking at the food, he couldn’t help wondering how something that smelled so wonderful could seem so totally unappetizing.

"You should eat.”

Zanell spoke. "You do need your strength, Kevin. We're making good time now, but soon we'll catch up to that ship and then things will be crazy. Better get your nourishment while you can."

Kevin sighed, then picked up his fork again and forced the first mouthful down. The princess was right; it wasn't about wanting to eat, it was about needing to eat. So much for a pleasant meal. It was a good thing that the other three kept up the conversation, because the last thing Kevin wanted to do was chitchat. A soft chime sounded, marking the time. In five minutes, the strategy session would convene. Everyone finished and quickly cleaned up. AJ, who was currently on duty at the helm, put the ship on autopilot and joined everyone at the gathering. He and Kevin never made eye contact during the meeting, something that Kevin was sort of grateful for.

He didn’t really didn't have a lot to contribute, in hindsight. Strategy hadn't been on his mind for years, at least not this kind. Still, he listened carefully and asked some pointed questions. By the time it was over, Kevin had a solid idea of what they needed to do. AJ went back to piloting, not bothering to speak to him the entire time. Ok by me.

Kevin noticed Zanell leaving the room and stopped her for a second. It took several starts before he could finally say what he wanted.

“You estimate we'll catch up to that ship within the next 20 hours.”

"Yes," she answered. "If that's indeed the right ship."

What a way to keep our hopes up, your highness. "I don't go on for piloting duty until... 12 hours from now, right?"

"Right.”

"Well, I was wondering... I mean, I need to know if you could..." He hated the hesitation in his voice. It was only a question. "Can you give me something to make me sleep, without dreaming, for the next 8 hours?"

She considered his words. "I guessed that you'd been having nightmares. Am I correct?"

"Yeah," he mumbled.

"You look terrible, Kevin. Why didn't you say something before?"

"I thought that I could just ignore them. That eventually I'd be so exhausted I'd just fall deeply asleep and not have to worry about it."

She chewed on her bottom lip. "But that hasn't happened."

"No."

"Yes, I can give you something to help. But maybe talking about your dreams would be better-"

"Forget it," Kevin said at once. "I know what they're about. I just want you to give me something to sleep."

"Okay," she said, reluctantly. "If we weren't so close to going into action, I would have refused. But we'll need you to be alert and aware. Come on, it's in Sick Bay."

Whatever was in that shot, it worked like a charm. Kevin would never remember hitting the pillow, much less seeing Zanell leave the cabin. Thankfully, as promised, he slept without dreaming for the first time in what seemed like forever. He woke hours later, feeling more rested than he had been in a long time. He stayed in bed a while longer, savoring the feeling of having enough energy to face almost anything. But sooner or later, he knew he had to get up. Sighing, he slid out of bed, stretched, and then headed back to the others.

Knowing it would be Nick's turn at piloting, he went to the bridge. The blond turned around when Kevin entered and studied him for a second.

"Got some rest, huh?"

Kevin nodded. "Whatever Zanell gave me did the trick just fine."

He blinked. "Zanell had to give you something? Why?"

Kevin could’ve kicked himself. "I just wanted to get some, well, really solid sleep before we make the encounter."

"No," Nick said, "I meant why did you need help sleeping?"

The kid had grown up, for sure. Kevin could no longer accuse him of being clueless.

"I haven't been sleeping well," he said, hoping his friend would let it drop.

From the look on his face, Nick wasn't happy with Kevin’s answer, but he actually accepted it without further question.

"Ah, anything new on the scopes?"

"Not really. We’re still picking up the signature trail that Zanell found, so I think we're on the right track. The readings are stronger, which she said means they're more recent."

"So, we should be coming up on the ship soon."

"That's the theory."

Kevin paused. "Do you think we're ready?" he asked quietly.

Nick gave a small shrug. "Does it matter if we're ready? We don't have any choice. We'll just have to do what we can do. Besides," he cracked a grin; "we've got you now. How bad could it be?"

"Let's just keep hoping for the best," Kevin said, returning his grin.

He left Nick to his job and wondered what to do next. He had four hours to go before his shift; perhaps something to eat would be a good idea. He was heating up some soup when Howie walked into the kitchen. He nodded in greeting and set about making himself a cup of tea. When he was done, he took a sip, and then finally spoke.

"You look better."

"I got some sleep," Kevin replied simply.

"Good."

There was an awkward silence that came between them; Kevin just didn't know what to say. Taking his bowl to the small table, he sat down and began eating. He thought Howie would just leave, but instead he pulled up the chair across from him.

"He didn't really mean it," he said after a while.

"Who?"

"AJ. He doesn't really hate you, Kev."

"Peacemaking again?"

He shook his head. "No. Just telling you what I know. He's hurting. Give him a chance."

“Give him a chance?" Kevin echoed, eyebrows arching high. "He's done nothing but snipe at me since I arrived. He's made it clear that I am not wanted or valued. He's done nothing but put me down and you want me to give him some kind of a chance?”

"You don't understand-"

"You know it's true, Howard,” Kevin replied bitterly. “And no, I don't understand. I'm not the one who has to make a change. He should be able to deal with it. After all, I'm only here for the shortest time possible."

He started to say something, but Kevin cut him off. "Don't. Please. This is all hard enough."

After a moment, Howie nodded and got to his feet. "I'll leave you be for a while."

Kevin could see in the brown eyes that he’d had hurt his old comrade, but he was almost too frustrated to care. Give AJ a chance when he won't give me one? His previous good mood evaporated, Kevin had to force the rest of the soup down. He sat for a while, head in his hands, hoping that he could get a handle on it all. A wave of homesickness hit him suddenly, and he withdrew the small packet that he had stuck in his shirt pocket before he left home. Carefully he unwrapped the photo within, regarding the image of his beloved wife and children. He gently traced over Kristin's image with a slightly shaking finger. His entire body ached near to the breaking point with loneliness.

He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Zanell's gentle smile.

"I know you miss them," she said, regarding the photo.

"More than I can say," Kevin managed to reply.

"It's going to be all right," she said. "Soon we'll have Brian back, and you'll be able to go home again."

Kevin wondered about that. Could he ever go back to the way it had been? Would he even be given a choice? And if he were, what would he decide? He put the photo back without comment. "Do you happen to know where AJ is at the moment?"

"He's in his cabin, resting."

Kevin simply nodded. He'd have to deal with the situation when they got to the ship that had taken Brian. He glanced at his watch; three-and-a-half hours until his shift. He opted to head to the data library. There he could read up on the more subtle capabilities of the ship, look at maps of the quadrant in space they were approaching, and try to gain as much knowledge as he could for the upcoming battle.

Time must have passed more quickly than he’d expected, because suddenly Howie stood in the doorway telling him to head to the bridge for his shift. He met AJ leaving his room. They watched each other in silence. To Kevin’s surprise, AJ suddenly looked away and headed off in the opposite direction. Kevin watched him go, then headed to the bridge to relieve Nick.

Klaxons wailed. Frantically, Kevin searched the instruments for the source, but he couldn't find it. He hoped it didn't mean they were about to die -

A hand slammed down on a button near his right hand, silencing the alarms. Howie was looking over the data coming in.

He hesitated to ask, "What was that?"

"Proximity alarm," Howie replied. "Means we've found the ship. I'll let the others know."

Kevin stared out the viewport, hoping to pick out the ship from amongst the hundreds of thousands of stars.

We're here, he thought. The moment to rescue Brian had finally come. Could he do it? Would he be able to do his best to help out? Would the others let him help? They had to; it was Brian, a brother in trouble.

Kevin's stomach clenched as new, startling thoughts came to his mind. What if they were too late? What if they'd arrived only to find Brian was dead? What if this wasn't even the right ship?

He shook the thoughts away. This had to be the right ship, Brian was alive, and they were going to bring him home.

Zanell sat in the copilot's seat, flipped a switch, and a vague hum began as the ship's shields activated. At her nod, Kevin slowed the ship and together they scanned the viewport. There... a tiny bluish dot off to the bottom left, growing larger by the second.

The tension in the room was thick as the others took their places -- AJ at weaponry, Nick at the Navigator's seat. Howie slipped on communications headgear and began monitoring messages.

Kevin let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, said a silent prayer, and looked at Zanell.

"Our shields are functioning, so if they hadn't noticed us before, we're good."

"And if they already know we're here?" Nick asked.

"We'll get shot," she replied easily.

Nick rolled his eyes and didn't comment. She was right after all. Once the ship's schematics were downloaded, the team spent the next twenty minutes making a detailed plan, plus a backup in case everything went south. Zanell would stay and fly the ship; she was the most skilled pilot and would be able to make sure it was kept safe. The rest of the team would go by two small pods that would attach to the underside of the ship, allowing them to cut access into the hull. Once there, they had three goals: find Brian, neutralize the opposition, and get out of Dodge in one piece. It sounded so simple, but Kevin knew there was great risk at every turn.

Zanell wished them all luck, then they headed toward the pods; they were small, without much working room. Logic dictated that AJ ride with Kevin, and Nick and Howie take the other pod. Kevin was as happy about it as AJ was, but neither said a word. The pods had maneuvering abilities, shields, life support, and not much else. No weapons, no navigation, barely room to stretch. But this wasn't a luxury cruise. When they retrieved Brian, Kevin knew, it would be even more crowded, but nobody would care at that point.

The trip was short, thankfully. Kevin sent out silent thanks when he didn't actually bump the pod. The roof access hatch was opened, and the automatic laser cutters got to work. Once a viable seal was established, they climbed upwards. Now, the hard part began.

After checking and activating their weapons, such as they had, the search began.

Arriving at the storage bay door, the men activated their amulets.

"Ready?" they asked one another.

"As ready as we'll ever be."

The computer had provided the groups with a map of the interior, and they had calculated where the most likely place a prisoner would be kept. Unfortunately, there were three viable places. Kevin hated the idea of splitting up, but that's what they had to do.

Howie went with AJ; his illusions were awesome, but they weren't weapons. AJ would be able to defend them both, if need be. They headed for the central part of the ship. Nick went towards what they'd guessed would be the crew's quarters; Brian might be held there, if they were planning on keeping him in good shape for whatever they had in mind.

Kevin headed for the engine room; surely Brian wouldn't be kept there, but his first job was to set a time-delayed explosive right in the middle of the engine core. Without power, they wouldn't be chased or fired upon once they made their escape. There were no guards outside the engine room door; inside, Kevin found three very bored looking technicians who were more interested in some kind of game than keeping a sharp eye out. It didn't take long to render them all unconscious; they'd never even raised an alarm. He injected them with a sleeping solution that Zanell said would keep them out of it for at least twelve hours, and then carried their bodies to a storage locker. The device was planted, the timer was set, and he continued on. Kevin was to search the lower part of the ship as quickly as he could, then join the others above.

After a few minutes, Kevin tapped his earpiece, and whispered an inquiry to the others. Nick had almost run into someone, literally, turning a corner, but had managed to evade collision and knock the guy out before he could make a peep. Howie and AJ reported no encounters and were moving on to the central chambers. Kevin suspected that's where Brian would be held; for some reason it made sense. But that didn't matter, there was no time for him to be daydreaming and speculating. Quickly he began searching the warren of compartments, trying to keep his nerves under control. So many things could go wrong; he could make a mistake that alerted the entire ship - Kevin flattened himself against a wall as he heard several footsteps coming down the adjoining corridor. Thankfully, they headed off in another direction before they came to his position.

Pathetic, totally pathetic.

He'd been worrying so much about making a mistake that he hadn't been paying attention! Kevin wrenched his determination up a notch and moved again.

He made his way through several compartments, and was close to finishing the lower deck, when he got a call from Nick.

"You're not going to believe this," he began. "But I think I see Brian."

"In the crew quarters?" AJ demanded.

"How is he?" Kevin interjected.

"Umm... well, from the looks of it, he's just fine." His voice dropped. "Almost looks right at home wandering around on an alien ship."

Kevin had been picturing him being injured, suffering unknown traumas... and he was walking around like normal? Nick gave his location and Kevin hurried off as fast as he could. When he arrived and found Nick, the two secluded themselves and waited for the others to join them. It didn't take long; time was running out and they needed to act fast.

A small sound from Nick directed Kevin's gaze to a hallway. He stared in disbelief; Brian looked whole and healthy, the picture of relaxed ease. He wasn't guarded or bound in any way and seemed to have access through the locked door he faced. When he strolled inside, Kevin stepped out.

"Let's see what this is about."

The thought that Brian had been drugged entered Kevin's mind as a feasible explanation. But instead of pondering the reasons, he simply walked to the door.

"I got it," AJ said, punching a sequence of keys. "I caught the tones."

While Kevin had been observing his cousin, AJ had been paying attention to the musical tones the lock had generated. He had to give the man major credit for that. Two seconds later the door opened with a hiss and Kevin stepped inside. He barely made it past the doorframe when a red bolt of energy came right at his head. Kevin dodged left and held up his hands in a placating gesture.

"Brian, it's us!"

Blue eyes widened, but Brian's gun didn't lower a fraction of an inch. "Kevin?" he said, obviously shocked. "What… what are you all doing here?"

"Saving your sorry butt," AJ said, trying to diffuse the odd tension in the room.

"How did you find me?"

"Put that thing down," AJ insisted. "And trust me, you were hard to find. We're getting you out of here."

Brian's eyes paused a moment on each one of them. "Out?"

"What did they do, drug you?" Kevin asked, frowning. "Don't you realize we're your friends?"

"I... this is just a shock, is all," he replied, slowly lowering his gun. "I didn't expect-"

"Look," Nick said, glancing at the door, "we can talk about this on the way home. We need to move."

But Brian ignored him and turned to Kevin. "I certainly never expected you to be here."

"Funny how things worked out," Kevin said, knowing now was not the time for an involved discussion. "C'mon, Nick's right. We need to go."

Obviously, Brian didn't understand the gravity of the situation, because he kept his focus on his cousin. "What made you take up your amulet after all this time, Kev?"

Part of Kevin was confused as to why he was acting so strangely, but he felt compelled to answer. "Zanell approached me after you'd gone missing," he said. "And I realized that I couldn't stay out of the action any longer. You're family. I couldn't face my children and tell them that I didn't care enough to fight for their Cousin Brian when he needed me so much."

"Zanell is here, too?" Brian asked, blue eyes alight.

Kevin could only blink. "She's waiting for us back on the ship, now let's go!"

Brian's expression shifted, and he suddenly seemed to snap out of the oddness. "You're right, let's go." And with that, he headed towards the door.

Kevin exchanged a confused look with Howie, but they didn't have time to debate. At least Brian's laser was now pointed elsewhere, and he seemed to understand they needed to escape. The five ran as silently as they could, Nick taking the lead. Amazingly, they made it to the lower level without incident. Kevin allowed himself a sigh of relief; the ordeal was almost over.

"Kevin?"

"Not now, Bri. We can't let anyone hear us."

"Kev-"

"Be quiet!"

"Kevin!"

He whipped around. "What?"

For a few seconds Brian just looked at him. Kevin started to turn back around when he spoke.

"I'm glad you came back." Kevin looked back to see him smile. "I always knew someday you'd come back and fight alongside us again."

Kevin faced forward again and swallowed. "Right." His mind went back to the conversation with the others when he'd first arrived. "I'll go on this one assignment, then leave you alone. Everyone should be happy with that."

Brian continued. "It's good having us all together again."

Kevin shook his head. "Look, let's just get out of here and back to earth, then we'll talk about that."

The other three kept silent. Brian stepped closer. "What's the matter? You're staying, aren't you?"

"We'll talk about it later," Kevin snapped. "Let's go!" He took the lead, not allowing any more conversation on the subject.

They rounded a corner and found themselves practically on top of a soldier. His eyes widened when he saw Brian, and he opened his mouth to say something when AJ took a swing at him.

"No, wait-" Brian shouted, but he was too late. The soldier was already on the ground.

Kevin turned to his cousin in surprise. Had Brian just tried to defend an enemy? He halted the thought. Of course not; he'd been worried about the enemy calling out and tried to stop him from doing so.

"Oh, nice job, AJ!" Brian spat. "That soldier was just doing a routine scouting. If he doesn't return, they'll know something's wrong."

"Well, it's a good thing we're almost home free, isn't it?" AJ asked. "Let's go."

"Which reminds me," Nick said as they started walking again. "Where is Brian going to be?"

Brian halted. "What? Where am I going to be, what does that mean?"

"Just keep going!" Kevin directed sharply. "We don't have a lot of time."

"No!" Brian stood firm, well behind the rest. "What is going on?"

Kevin exhaled slowly, forcing himself to stay calm but not doing a good job. "Brian, we're running out of time. We need to get to the pods as soon as possible so we can get out of here and back home."

Brian seemed to hesitate a little longer, then started toward the group. Kevin shook his head and started walking again. A few minutes later, they approached a corridor that split off in two different directions. Howie, in the lead, turned to the left. Suddenly he slammed into an invisible barrier, which crackled upon impact. The force knocked him backwards onto the floor.

"What in the world was that?"

"A force field," AJ suggested. "Which means someone must know we're here."

Nick started to head down the right corridor but was hit with the same barrier seconds later. Kevin signaled AJ to draw his guns. Something was definitely wrong. No one should have known they were here. Nobody except for some unconscious guards, Zanell and Brian. Kevin turned around and felt a sudden sense of foreboding. Without a word, he helped Howie to his feet, then started back toward Brian. Electricity hit him in the face, and he flew back, suddenly realizing that he'd walked into a third force field. He spun around as Howie and Nick hurried back to the split off corridors. Each extended a hand but pulled back immediately as the fields crackled again. They were blocked in!

"How do we get out?" Nick demanded.

"You don't."

Kevin turned around and stared at Brian in surprise. He wore an odd look on his face, which slowly evolved into a smirk.

"That wasn't so hard after all."

Kevin gasped. "Brian? What's going on?"

"I knew you would never listen to the truth," Brian said. "So I had to bring you here, to the source. We had it all wrong, Kevin. From the beginning. I know the real story now."

Kevin stared. "What are you talking about?"

"The truth," he said. "The real truth. And I'm sure that once you know it, you'll be standing right alongside me."

"Brian, what's wrong with you? What truth? What have they done to you, to your mind?" Kevin asked, trying to find some sense in his words.

"I'm thinking clearly for the first time since it all began," he responded with conviction. "You will be, too."

"Did they torture you, brainwash you?" Nick asked, his blue eyes wide with confusion.

"I've been treated with the utmost respect," Brian said. "I've never felt more at home." His expression then turned sympathetic. "The truth is going to be really hard for you to accept, Nick. She's a very good manipulator, I'm afraid."

"She? Bri, what are you talking about?" he asked.

"Look, Brian," Kevin tried, stepping as close to the barrier as he dared, "whatever happened to you, I know we can get help-"

Brian gave him a look that held what he could only call pity, though that wasn't completely correct. "Don't you get it? Zanell lied to us!"

"What?" Nick exclaimed. "No way, Zanell is-"

"I knew we were going to have to do this the hard way," Brian said, his voice bearing no trace of sympathy now.

Before Kevin could open his mouth, a surge of energy exploded from the walls. The four were blasted from all three sides at once, unable to move or scream from the pain. The last thing Kevin saw was his cousin, his expression one of contempt.

His skull felt ready to split in half from the headache that greeted him when he woke. Attempts to open his eyes only resulted in more pain. And on top of that, he was freezing.

"...complete your end of the deal," came a familiar voice. "I did my part and brought you the amulets."

"Did you tell them?"

"Only that she lied to us. I wanted to wait for the whole truth until you were here."

Kevin didn't know where he was or how he'd gotten there, but he did know those voices. Reluctantly, he forced his eyes open and turned his head, searching for the sources. His blood turned to ice when he saw Brian talking to their oldest enemy, Zator. Brian's back was to Kevin, but Zator seemed to notice him right away and his lip curled in disgust.

Brian turned around, saw that Kevin was awake, then came and knelt at his side. "Are you all right?"

Kevin didn't answer.

Brian sighed, spoke quietly. "Listen, I'm sorry I had to do that. It was the only way I could be certain you'd listen to us. Now, are you okay?"

"How can you ask that when you just betrayed us?" Kevin spat, then winced as the movement intensified the pain.

Brian's jaw dropped. "Kevin, I didn't betray you! I'm just trying to help you see the truth. Zanell told us a lie so we wouldn't hand her back to her father when he arrived. The only truth in what she told us was that she stole the amulets from Zator."

"You can't believe that."

"They need proof, Brian," Zator suddenly said. "They won't believe you until they get it."

Brian shook his head and looked back over his shoulder. "I had a hard-enough time believing it. Do you really think they'll understand any easier?"

"Keep it down, man," AJ groaned. "It's too early."

Brian reached over, but Kevin leaned and knocked his hand away. "Don't you touch him!"

He glared, expecting some kind of anger to show in Brian's eyes. Instead, he slowly stood up and looked at him, again with that look that Kevin could only describe as pity.

"You don't need to be angry, Kevin," Brian said calmly. "Once you know the truth, you'll realize that we're all on the same side."

"I'll never be on Zator's side," he said, standing. "I'll never be in league with that monster."

"Zator's not the monster, Kevin," Brian argued. His face darkened. "If anyone's a monster, blame that girl that first brought us the amulets."

"You can't mean Zanell," Kevin opposed in disbelief. "She's always been on our side; she fought alongside us from the start!"

"Shame you couldn't have done the same thing, cousin."

His words were as painful as a physical blow. Coming from his mouth...

The only reason Kevin had come back was to save Brian, and now... Guilt bubbled to the surface, too great to ignore. Yes, Zanell had been there, but Kevin had turned away. Just a moment ago, he'd thought of Brian as a betrayer... but he realized that title belonged more to himself. He swallowed against the lump in his throat but still couldn't summon the will to speak. After all, how could he deny the truth of it?

A soft moan from nearby drew their attention. It was AJ, coming around again. The thought wasn't as comforting as it should have been. AJ had opposed Kevin coming back all along, and now he knew Brian felt much the same, despite what the others had said. As he began sitting up, Kevin heard Howie make a few muted noises.

Brian went over and offered a hand to AJ, who took it after a second's hesitation.

"Are you all right?" he asked as if nothing had happened.

"Think so," AJ answered, stretching a bit. "What... how did we get here?"

Brian gave him a slightly apologetic look. "I'm afraid there was no other way to do it. I couldn't let you go back to that traitor, knowing you thought you could trust her."

"Her?" he asked. "Who, her?"

"Zanell," Brian said, edging the word with sharpness. "She betrayed you... us. Everyone. And I've only discovered the truth recently."

Howie sat up slowly. "What truth?" He winced and started to massage his temples, probably dealing with the same massive headache Kevin had.

"Zanell has been playing us all along," Brian said. "She's a master at deception and manipulation. She didn’t save the amulets; she stole them."

"But that doesn't make any sense," AJ said. "If she stole them, why did she give them to us?"

"Because she had no way to control them herself," he explained. A hard look came to his eyes. "She took them and found five willing people to accept them... people that she thought she could then control. By controlling us, she could use the amulets the way she wanted."

"Control us?" Howie said. "But she hasn't done anything like that!"

Brian raised an eyebrow. "Of course she has. Kevin's been controlled by her deception for eight years now." He gave his cousin a withering glance. "Obviously she found a weakness in him that was missing in the rest of us. He's been a willing pawn the entire time."

"That's ridiculous!" Kevin shot back. "I'm no one's pawn! I left on my own decision eight years ago, and came back only because I was asked to-"

"By whom?" Brian said. "Let me guess. Zanell."

"It was to rescue you!"

"Do I look like I need, or want, to be rescued?"

Brian had him there. It was obvious that he didn't consider himself a prisoner of any kind.

AJ gave Kevin an odd glare. "It’s true; it was Zanell that got Kevin to come back. None of us thought she'd do it."

"Why is everyone shouting?" came a wavery voice from the floor. Nick blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of things.

"Nick, are you all right?" Brian asked, giving him a hand up.

"Yeah, I guess... what happened?"

"Brian betrayed us," Kevin said, anger flaring again.

"Oh here we go again!" Brian growled. "When are you going to get it through that thick skull that it wasn't me that betrayed you? I've discovered the truth, and this was the only way to keep you from making the situation worse."

Nick blinked and looked back and forth between everyone.

"What?"

Brian sighed and turned to Nick with disappointment in his eyes. "Nick, I'm sorry to tell you this, but Zanell is the one that lied to us all, not Zator."

"That's crazy," Nick said flatly. "Zanell wouldn't lie."

"She's blinded you as much as she's blinded Kevin," Brian said. "She's got you believing she loves you."

Nick’s jaw dropped. "What? She does love me! Just like I love her."

Brian shook his head. "Just like I said, she's a master of deception. You never had a chance. Why else would she keep leaving us to work alone?"

Kevin moved in between the two. "Brian, you've been brainwashed! Zator's the liar, not Zanell."

"Not true," Brian said. "And I have proof."

"What kind of proof?" Howie asked.

"Proof that the emperor is a good man, and that he is the rightful owner of the amulets."

"A good man?" Kevin echoed in disbelief. "He killed millions of innocents!"

"Vengeance for my wife's death." Zator moved to Brian's side. Kevin scowled at seeing them together like that. It wasn't right.

"She was brutally murdered," he continued, "and I promised her that I would hunt down those that killed her and the ones that supported them."

"And what does this have to do with the amulets?" AJ asked.

"I knew a simple army of soldiers wouldn't be enough to destroy the strength of these killers. The only way I could do it properly was to use the amulets. You see," he stepped away toward a machine in the corner, "when all of the amulets are together and used in the proper way, their energy can be combined into one, making the wearer infinite times stronger than his enemies. With the combined power of the amulets, I was able to defeat the killers and their supporters." He turned back to his prisoners. "But not all of them."

Brian spoke up. "That's where Zanell comes in. It had been rumored that she was spotted in the company of agitators and known rebels. She tried to keep it secret, but Zator had her watched. She'd grown distant, and he was worried about her safety. After all, she was the only heir to the throne. And after each of these 'secret meetings,' a rebellion would rise up somewhere on the planet. Rioting, assassination attempts, you name it. Then came the day of the biggest uprising of all."

"Brian, that has to be a lie," Nick protested.

Brian shook his head. "He's got the film of it. The rioting just outside the palace, attempts on his life, everything."

For nearly ten minutes there was silence, save for the noise of the recordings. Kevin tried desperately to make sense of it all as he watched. Torches, angry Zophacian civilians fighting the guards, a cloaked figure running through the palace halls. As the figure passed one corner, Kevin glimpsed her face: Zanell. Nick emitted a soft cry when her face came into view. But there she was, no mistake. Through secret tunnels, down a flight of stairs with a glowing bulb she'd taken from its mount on the way down. She approached a dead end. They watched from a ceiling angle as she pressed her hand to a small square and a door opened. The camera switched to a room made entirely of metal. She approached a type of altar on a dais in the center. A velvet tray rose from its depths at her approach. There rested five glowing amulets. She gave a triumphant cry and swept them under her cloak.

The men next saw her racing into what appeared to be a shuttle bay. At the nearest ship, a small group of people sat waiting. They leaped up at her approach.

"Did you get them?" one asked.

Zanell nodded, grinning. "I have them. All five, plus my own."

A cheer went up. After a few more instructions Zanell and one other person climbed aboard the shuttle, leaving the rest behind.

As the footage ended, Kevin looked around at the others. Brian was shaking his head, a look of disgust on his face. Kevin felt sickened by what he'd just witnessed. Not because he believed a word about Zanell, but because Brian was so convinced that it was actual proof. Even Kevin knew that recordings could be manipulated. It was obvious it was just another of Zator's plots. But Brian believed it, there was no doubt. And from the look on AJ's face, he wasn't alone. Nick's blue eyes seemed to smolder with anger. Kevin felt sorry for him. He truly did love Zanell, and Kevin had seen the two of them together enough times to know she felt the same. He wasn't convinced by what he'd seen. For that, Kevin was grateful. Howie was another matter altogether. He was torn between doubt and belief; he kept glancing at Nick and Kevin, then at Brian and AJ. The indecision on his face was clear.

Finally, Kevin broke the silence. "That isn't proof. It could have easily been a set up. Data can be manipulated-"

"Just admit you were used, Kevin," AJ snapped. "I know it will be hard for your ego but face it--she played you exactly the way she wanted." He turned to Nick. "You were the easiest; all she had to do was appeal to your need to be adored." He smirked. "You fell into that one with enthusiasm."

Before Nick could speak, Kevin jumped in. "Get off it, AJ," he said, anger in his words. "You are looking for any excuse to believe that ridiculous parade of lies. I wasn't manipulated and neither was Nick. It wasn't Zanell that convinced me to come back and help find Brian... it was Kristin, my wife." He took a deep breath. "Kristin convinced me, for the children's sake. I did what I felt was right years ago, and I made this last decision with her, not Zanell's, input." He turned to Brian. "Why do you want so hard to believe that this is the truth? Did the job just get too hard? Did you feel guilty for being away from your family so much?"

Brian turned red. "I've fought for my family for years," he snapped. "Unlike you, who sat back and let the rest of us take care of things. You did nothing, until Zanell approached you! Don't tell me about not being there!"

"Brian-" Zator began.

"Don't come in at the eleventh hour and play victim," AJ said, fists clenched and glaring. "You left us, you never lifted a finger to help... and you waltz in on a whim, playing the hero. Well, I'm not buying it. Brian's right, what we saw was the truth."

"I won't believe it."

Brian gave a small growl. "Kevin, why can't you just-"

"Now, Brian," Zator said in a snake-slick voice, "I told you not everyone would be as open to the truth as you were." He gave a withering look in Kevin's direction. "Simple minds are easily manipulated. I can understand how the truth would be difficult to accept. It's admitting you are weak-willed."

"I'm not weak," Kevin snapped. "I don't know how you convinced Brian to buy into this fantasy, but I promise you if he was thinking clearly, he'd see it's just smoke and mirrors."

Brian started toward him. "Why you-"

Zator's hand moved to his shoulder. "Brian, relax. He's not worth it."

Brian stopped under his touch. He clenched his fists, and then relaxed. "Yes, sir."

Kevin's jaw hit the floor. "Sir?"

"Since when do you call the enemy 'sir'?" Nick asked Brian, voice tight in disbelief.

"Zator isn't the enemy," AJ said. "We just saw the recordings... no matter how much you and Kevin want to keep your blinders on."

"Howie, you've been awfully quiet," Brian commented. "What do you think?"

Howie, looking slightly pale, finally spoke. "I saw the recordings, but it just seems so unlikely. I'm not sure what to believe... maybe we should get Zanell involved in this."

Brian scoffed. "Why bother? She'll just tell us more lies."

"If they wish to have her present," Zator interrupted, "then perhaps that is best."

Utter confusion crossed Brian's face as he turned to Zator. He opened his mouth to speak when Kevin noticed a smirk on Zator's face. Two seconds later Brian nodded, as if realizing something. A knot formed in Kevin’s core. Something was going to happen, and it wouldn’t be good.

AJ was already speaking into his communicator. He had to stop it. "Zanell, stay there!"

Brian slapped his hand over Kevin's mouth. "Are you crazy? Don't you want your questions answered?"

"You're just going to trick her into saying something wrong," Kevin retorted. "I refuse to stand by and let that happen!"

"It's not up to you," Brian snapped. "She needs to come forward with the truth, like it or not. And if she's innocent, like you claim, she won't say anything incriminating, will she?" He glared at Kevin for a second. "Or are you afraid of what you'll discover?"

Kevin just glared as AJ put his communicator away. They had to be wrong. Nothing about any of this was right: Brian walking around so freely, the footage they'd seen, AJ being so easily swayed to agree with Brian.

Zator motioned to AJ. "Brian, why don't you two go to the bay to meet the princess and direct her here?"

Brian smiled. "Yes, sir."

Kevin growled. He shouldn't be saying 'sir' to Zator. He had to have been brainwashed; there was no other explanation that made sense, none. Hearing him, Brian just looked over and shook his head, then motioned for AJ to follow him. Kevin wanted to run after them, knock some sense into their heads and tell them that they were making the biggest mistake of their lives. But they were gone before he could take a single step.

"Just let them go, Kev," Howie remarked. "We need answers anyway."

"And you really think Zanell will confirm anything?" Nick asked, coming closer.

"I doubt she'll ever admit to her crimes," Zator said with a condescending look. "But she'll show her true colors again... as she has in the recordings."

"This is ridiculous!" Nick cried. "You altered that film to make Zanell the monster! Well, I don't believe it. And I won't until she says so herself."

Zator chuckled. "She will, human. She will."

Chapter 7

Kevin stopped his anxious pacing when the door slid open after an eternity.  Brian led Zanell inside with AJ at the rear.  The princess froze when she saw her father.

"What's going on?" she demanded.

"We have a few questions, princess," Brian explained, "and you have the answers."

Kevin couldn't believe the spite in Brian's voice at 'princess.'  Somehow they had to convince him that the man that had his loyalty was the evil one and not Zanell.

Zanell's mouth hung open as she gazed back and forth between us. "Brian, what are you talking about?  What questions?"

Nick hurried to her and took her hands.  "It's just some lies we want cleared up, that's all."

Brian rolled his eyes behind them and shake his head. "Nick-"

"His illusions will be shattered momentarily," Zator said, stopping Brian's words.

"Illusions?  Brian, what is going on?" Zanell asked.  She looked from him to her father.  Narrowing her eyes, she said, "Why are you standing there with him like he's an ally?"

"I've recently learned the truth," Brian said. "And I realize that Zator was never the real threat.  You're a traitor, Zanell, and I plan on making things right." He scoffed and shook his head. "I can't believe it took me almost ten years to realize that this was all a trick.  You stole the amulets, lied to us, and I almost died because of it!"

Zanell's look of astonishment quickly turned to anger. "I never lied to you! I came to you years ago because-"

"Because you needed someone to keep you safe from your father when you knew what the consequences would be, had he caught you," Brian jumped in.  He motioned to Zator. "He finally revealed the truth to me and I'm allied with him so that this is put right!"

"What?"

"Brian, have you completely lost your mind?" Kevin demanded, moving right up to his face.  Kevin grabbed the man by his arms and shook him. "How could you do that?"

Next thing he knew, Kevin was stumbling backward with his cheek stinging.  Zator stood in front of Brian. "He is doing what he knows is right.  How dare you dispute that?"

Someone steadied Kevin while he regained his balance.  A quick word from behind told him it was Howie.  Kevin didn't spare him a look; his focus was on Brian.  He could swear there was a smirk on Brian's face.

Zanell, with a surprised look on her face, was the next to speak. "Brian, how can you just stand there and let your own cousin be treated like that?"

"Kevin was always a little slow," Brian said. "He refuses to believe what his own eyes have shown him.  His protests aren't getting us anywhere."  He arched an eyebrow at Zanell. "But then again, you know all about Kevin.  After all, you've manipulated him very deftly over the years."

"What are you-" she began.

"Watch the recordings, and then we'll see what you have to say," Zator cut in.  The machine was activated again.

A few minutes later, Zanell's expression was one of confusion and disbelief. "That wasn't me," she declared. "I never did any of those things.  How could I have wanted my mother's death?  You can't believe this trickery!"

"What about the amulets?"

"I took them for safe keeping, you know that!" she answered Brian. "I gave them to you; I didn't keep them for myself!"

"Because you couldn't control them all by yourself.  You needed five others to work them."

"The amulets choose their hosts!" Zanell argued. "Don't you remember what I told you?  Or what you even saw that day you found me?"

Brian got right into her face. "That day was nothing but a confused mess, and it's been worse ever since.  You know, Leighanne was right.  If you hadn't brought us these amulets, none of this would have happened."

Nick spoke up. "Bri, she said that when she'd been brainwashed.  Don't you remember?  Angel told me she'd said that while you and the others were fighting both for your lives and to break the mind control Zator had over us."

Kevin thought he saw a flicker of doubt cross his cousin's face. "So what?" he asked. "She still says it even today."

"Are you saying you don't even believe your own wife?" Kevin asked incredulously.

"Of course I believe her!" Brian spat. "I simply couldn't do anything about it until recently, when I learned the truth."

"Brian, just admit you don't know what the truth is anymore!  You've become so blinded that anything that looks like a shred of truth, you'll believe it."

"I'm not the one that's blind!"

"Father, how could you do this?" Zanell demanded. "Brian has a wife and three children to care for, and you brainwash him with lies!"

"The only lies that have been cast have been yours," Zator grated.

"Enough," Howie said, surprising us all. "These accusations are getting us nowhere."

Zator smiled. "Howard is right, we must-"

"Stay off of my side.  I'm not on yours."

Kevin wasn't expecting an outburst like that from Howie, but he was glad of it.  If Howie had believed right along with Brian and AJ, Kevin didn't know what he would have done.  He sent me a wink.  So now Kevin knew where everyone stood: Nick and Howie stood with him against Brian, AJ and Zator.  And everyone was arguing about Zanell and her true motives.  He felt another headache coming on, as if being struck hadn't been enough.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Brian shake his head in disbelief.

Suddenly he wanted nothing more than to be back home, holding Spencer in his arms, tucking Natalie into bed for the night.  A week ago his life had been so simple, and now...

He heard Brian's frustrated sigh. "Sir, they're obviously not going to believe us.  Why don't we just show them how the amulets can combine and let them decide after that?" He motioned to the machine. "It's not like they can do anything otherwise."

It was then that Kevin realized his amulet was gone.  A quick glance told him that Nick and Howie had just discovered the same thing.

Brian winced and massaged his shoulder.  The light fell on his hair as he turned away, and for the first time Kevin noticed splashes of premature gray.  And the shoulder... an old injury, perhaps?

Brian caught him looking over and dropped his hand. "What are you looking at?  We're all tired of fighting.  Why should that surprise you?"

"You could've-"

Brian shook his head. "You wouldn't have believed me.  Even if you had, you wouldn't have come back to fight with us."

Kevin groaned quietly. "Brian, I don't want to argue anymore."

"Neither do I." He sounded tired, tired of everything. "Kevin, just listen, okay?  It makes a lot of sense now, and I'm sure you could understand it too."

Kevin sighed and crossed his arms. "Brian... Fine.  If it'll make you happy that I at least listen, I'll listen.  But that doesn't mean it'll change my mind."

"But Kevin," Nick protested, "they'll just lie!"

"Nick, there is nothing we can do right now.  They have us where we can't do anything and we're not getting sensible answers from anyone.  Let's just listen."

Nick grumbled a little, but fell silent.  They turned back to Brian, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.  There had to be something wrong somewhere, something they could use to prove to Brian and AJ that they'd been tricked.

Brian nodded gratefully, and then stepped toward Zator and the machine. "You noticed that your amulets are missing.  We need them so we can show you how their powers can combine into one.  It can make any of us more powerful than ever before."

"I don't believe it," Nick argued.

"It's true," Zanell reluctantly agreed. "In times of great need, the power of all the amulets can combine into one, allowing the wearer to become several times stronger than what he is given by his amulet alone."

Kevin, Howie and Nick stared at her. "Why didn't you tell us this before?" Howie demanded.  "We could have saved a lot of energy, as well as strength.  Brian wouldn't have had to be near death on occasion."

"Because she was afraid of what you would do once you realized what you were capable of," Zator remarked.

"That's not true!"

"No?" Brian countered. "Do you want a demonstration, princess?"

Demonstration?  That didn't sound good.  "Brian, don't!" Kevin cried. "You don't know what you're getting in to."

He just smiled and shook his head.  Kevin couldn't shake the feeling in his gut that something was more wrong than he realized.  He knew there was no reasoning with Brian, but he had to try.

"Brian, this is crazy.  You have no idea what's going to happen!"

"Zanell and I just told you what's going to happen!  Why do you have to worry about something that can only make you stronger?"  He suddenly smiled. "Imagine that, Kevin.  Being several times stronger than you would ever be as Power Lord.  Imagine all you could do."

Kevin wrinkled his nose. "Considering who I'd have to thank for it, I'd prefer not."

Brian's smile vanished instantly.  The silence of the room told Kevin that he had just made a huge mistake and should have kept his mouth shut.  Brian stepped closer, and moved so fast that Kevin never really saw the punch coming. The next thing he knew, he was hitting the floor and seeing stars.  Brian had put a ton of anger in the blow... anger that didn't belong inside the Brian he knew.

Nick appeared by his side, trying to help, but Kevin could only stare at the infuriated face of his cousin.  The realization that Brian had changed so fundamentally hurt him harder than his punch had.  He slowly got to his feet, thanks to Nick's support.  Kevin and Brian just stared at each other, not speaking.

"Come, Brian," Zator said. "Let us show him what he feels ungrateful for.  Perhaps he will change his mind."

Brian turned his back, keeping his eyes on Kevin until he started toward his ally.  Ally.  That word burned in Kevin's stomach worse than acid.  My own cousin working with our enemy.  Zator had something of a victorious smile on his face as Brian approached him.  An angry fire burned in Kevin's chest.  He shouldn't be so smug; he hasn't won yet.  There had to be something they can use against him.

As Brian reached Zator, Kevin spotted the amulets glowing in little niches on a console.  Hearing a hiss, Kevin looked up to see Brian step inside a glass and metal cylindrical chamber with a bar around the inside of the glass at hand level.  The feeling of something being wrong grew stronger as he placed his hands on the bar.

"Brian, don't!"

But the door slid shut before Kevin could finish speaking.  Brian glanced over at him, then back to Zator and nodded.

"Father, no!"

Zator ignored his daughter, dismissing her with a gesture.  His focus was on Brian and the machine.  A small tube connecting the machine to the chamber began to glow deep red, like the crystals inside the amulets.  The glow traveled down the tube and into the chamber, surrounding Brian.  His back arched and his eyes widened.  Kevin saw his mouth open in a silent gasp of pain.  Soon, Brian was white-knuckling the bar, his eyes scrunched closed, jaw clenched, not wanting to display the pain.

"Is it supposed to be that painful?" Nick whispered.

Kevin risked a quick glance - not wanting to take more than a few seconds away from Brian - and saw Zanell shake her head. "No," she whispered back. "It's being done all wrong."

He whirled back to the chamber.  He had been tricked. I knew it!  Ten seconds later the glow faded and the group saw Brian struggling to stay upright.  He took several deep breaths.  As he did, Kevin noticed that his legs stopped shaking and the pain was gone from his face.  He opened his eyes and stepped away from the bar.  Had he regained his strength that quickly?

Brian took a deep breath and turned toward the glass door as it slid open.

"You okay, Brian?" Nick asked.

Brian stepped out and glanced at his friend. "I'm fine," he replied. "But I don't feel any different." He turned to Zator. "Shouldn't I?"

"It takes a minute," Zator replied. "In the meantime-"

"He should feel the effects right away," Zanell interrupted hotly. "At least, from what I've heard."

"You know nothing about this," Zator snapped. Turning to Brian, he ordered, "Go ahead and ready yourself for the demonstration."

Kevin watched as Brian obeyed instantly.  Inwardly, he cringed.  This was not the Brian he knew.  Brian seemed more of a puppet than his cousin and friend.  Kevin began to wonder if he'd really been through more than he'd been able to handle.  Had he truly lost his reasoning to the point he didn't know right from wrong?  Kevin rushed up to stop him, but AJ blocked the way.

"Let him go, man.  Let's see what we've been missing all these years."

Kevin looked past him to see that Brian had opened a door to another room.  Brian, don't do it! He silently begged as he stepped through.

Chapter 8

"Watch him."

Zator commanded their attention back to the screen; this time it showed Brian entering a training room, the door sliding shut behind him.  Brian moved to the center of the room and looked around, waiting.  Kevin and the others held their breaths, hearing a faint rhythmic clunking.  Seconds later, doors in the training room walls slid open; a company of robots nearly five feet in height entered the room.

The emperor pressed a button.  "Concentrate," he instructed. "You know what to do."

Brian reacted at once.  He raised his hands, and to Kevin's shock, they began to glow.  Top Speed's energy spheres were quickly formed in Brian's hands.  The robots exploded in a shower of sparks and flashes of orange light.

"Not possible," Zanell whispered.

"How could he do that without wearing an amulet?" Nick wondered.

Kevin was at a loss for words.  For every robot that exploded, three more entered the room.  Brian didn't seem to be panicking however.  He just continued the energy spheres until, finally, the number of robots began to diminish.  Brian was sweating, but he was in good shape.  Was it over?

"Round two," Zator announced, without a word of praise or criticism.

Two?

They waited, and soon enough, more robots came clomping into the room.  The ungainly black and silver machines began to circle Brian in, aiming their small weapons at him.  His eyes darted side to side, his gaze one of study and concentration. He ducked his head and took a deep breath.  Had he given up? Kevin wondered.  It couldn't be, not from what Nick had told him about Brian doubling his ability to fight.

"Concentrate."

Shimmering objects appeared in the room.  More robots.

No!

But Brian was smirking.  The group watched as the robots stopped moving, confused.  They suddenly began firing upon each other, not realizing they were being tricked by illusions.  Brian leaped up in the air, nearly hitting the ceiling, and did a backward somersault, landing in front of the door.  He shook his head and stepped forward as piles of broken metal fell all around him.

"Unbelievable," he muttered.

"Don't drop your defenses yet," Zator commanded.  "You still have more rounds to go."

"Please tell me it gets harder," Brian remarked as he kicked one of the broken bots.  Kevin and the others could hear his incredulity. "Brainless tiny things... jeez."

The hair on the back of Kevin's neck tingled.  Something worse was coming.  He glanced at their enemy only to see him grin and chuckle.  "Oh, it will."

Uh-oh.  Kevin glanced at the others and noticed that he wasn't the only one worried.  Nick's hands were clenched and Howie was staring with wide eyes.  AJ, however, seemed smug.

"I'm convinced," he said. "Me next."

"Let Brian finish," Zator instructed.

The group turned their attention back to Brian.  The ground was littered with junked robots, leaving barely enough room to walk.  How would Brian be able to move around when the next volley came?

He didn't have to, as they saw just seconds later.  They were smaller, flying now, less than half the size of the first, and from the look of it, perfect openings to use that blaster resting against Brian's hip.  He aimed the blaster at one of the smaller ones, which exploded in sparks a second later.

Kevin's eyes widened.  That speed rivaled Ordnance.  Even Zanell made a quiet sound of amazement.  Kevin looked over at AJ and saw a shocked, stunned expression on his face.  He'd realized, as Kevin had, that Brian was now moving faster than he ever could.

"That could be us?"

His voice was so quiet Kevin barely heard the question.  To his surprise, Kevin found himself beginning to agree.  All the amulets combined and the entire group could be that powerful and fast?  Still, the reasonable side of him asked when something would go wrong to prove that it was all a lie.  It just seemed way too good to be true.

Kevin looked back to see an incredibly arrogant smile on Brian's face.  That was wrong.  No matter what happened, Brian never acted that way.  He was always humble, always quick to thank God for his gifts.  Now this had happened.  Kevin wanted to do something, had to stop him.  But how?

"Stop it," he heard himself say.

Zator ignored him completely.  With an ever-growing dread, Kevin focused back on Brian, watched the man go through cycle after cycle, each time becoming more powerful and arrogant than before.  Then Kevin noticed something; that arrogance was beginning to cause Brian to be reckless and inattentive.  A droid had sneaked up behind him and he hadn't moved at all.  The droid leveled its laser at him and fired.

Brian cried out and clutched at his shoulder, whirling around to find what had hit him.  He scowled when he saw the droid, then shifted.  His movements were almost a blur, but Kevin definitely recognized Brian lifting his leg and giving the droid a vicious kick, smashing it against the wall.  Kevin saw the fire in his eyes.

He was furious.

"That isn't right," Howie remarked. "He never loses control like that."

"You've got to stay cool to survive," Nick added. "Brian knows that better than any of us."

Nick spoke the truth; yet there Brian was, getting angrier by the second.  With an uttered cry, he began slamming things left and right.  He was losing control...  Kevin risked a glance at AJ.  Surely he didn't approve of this?  Studying his face, Kevin was certain he recognized concern.  If AJ was worried...

He whirled back at Brian's cry of pain.  The blond was bent over, his arm wrapped around his middle, panting hard.

Kevin rushed forward. "What did you do to him?"

"It is not the powers at fault," Zator said, surprising him with an actual response. "He lost control.  Weakness still lies in him."  He turned back to the monitor and pressed a button. "You have better control.  Use it."

Much to his horror, Brian obeyed.  He straightened, shook his head as if to clear it, and glared at the newly arriving droids.  The fury on Brian's face sent a chill through Kevin's body.  He'd been so quick to obey Zator... and that disturbed Kevin the most.  He seemed... so connected to Zator, so... unlike the man he always knew.  Did that Brian even exist anymore?  Or was he lost to the enemy forever?  Brian grabbed an object from his belt, then flung his arm out.  From the flash of light reflecting on it, it had to be one of Ninja man's shurikens.  One after another practically flew from Brian's hand to strike the droids surrounding him on ground and in the air.

Suddenly, Brian stopped moving.  The droids hovered around him, but he was staring at his arms.  Kevin moved closer to the screens.  Then he saw it.  The same orange glow of his energy spheres began to surround Brian's body.  Intuitive alarms were going off, but Kevin didn't know what to do.  Brian's hands shook as he forced them into fists.  Kevin saw him wince as the glow grew in size and brilliance.

The glow completely surrounded him and suddenly blasted outward, striking every droid surrounding him.  Amid the sounds of explosion, Kevin heard Brian scream.

"No!" Nick shouted.

Brian was on the ground, struggling to push himself up.  His entire body was shaking, and Kevin was certain he heard a small whimper.

"That was pathetic, Brian," Zator reprimanded. "You can do better.  You have better control within you.  I see it.  You simply refuse to grasp it."

"I can't!" Brian protested.

Kevin winced.  Even with an entire room separating them, he could hear his cousin's pain.  He was in agony.  Over the years in the group, he had become quite adept at hiding pain, like the rest, and it was only when the other four actually heard it in his voice did they know that it was nearly unbearable.

"You can and you will," Zator barked. "Now, on your feet!"

Brian was on knees and shaky arms now.  He looked at the camera, his face filled with pain and confusion.

"Get up."

Brian looked back at the floor, his breathing heavy.  He shook his head.  "I can't do it."

"Get up, human!  If you want your reward, you will get up!"

Brian exhaled, his head dropping heavily.

"Father," Zanell interrupted, "can't you see he's in agony?  You're forcing him to do something he isn't capable of!  Stop this and let me heal him!"

"He will become stronger," was all Zator said.

Kevin gasped in disbelief.  Was he really that crazy?  Suddenly the floor was jolted from beneath their feet. 

Amidst shouts of surprise, Zator was first to his feet.  He pressed another button on the console. "What happened?" he yelled.

He listened to a voice on the other end, then growled an order.  Armed soldiers arrived minutes later - guards - and Zator raced from the room. Could that have been the explosive Kevin had set in the engine room?

"Help me!"

Racing to the console, Kevin searched for a way to open the door into the training room.  He couldn't leave Brian in pain like that, no matter what he had done.  The search seemed hopeless.  Kevin had no idea which button or buttons opened the door.

"How do we get in?" he demanded, spinning around to face Zanell as she got to her feet.

The princess joined him and scanned the console.  Kevin's stomach dropped when she shook her head and frowned.

"This can't be," she murmured. "I can't find it."  She looked at another console, spotted the amulets, then glanced over her shoulder at the guards.  They didn't seem to know what she was doing.  Zanell hurried over to the console and moved around as though she was looking for something; she snatched up an amulet, then came back to Kevin, her shoulders hunched, head down.  Kevin guessed that she was trying to appear hopeless, a decoy for the guards, so he placed a hand on her shoulder as if comforting her.  She slipped the amulet over his head.

"This may be our one chance to help him," she whispered.

"I'll do my best," Kevin replied.  He glanced over; the guards were watching them.  He groaned quietly.  How could he get to Brian without them shooting him? The problem was answered when Zanell headed over to them.  She looked over her shoulder and gave Nick a wink and a smile.  She reached the soldiers and began speaking to them.

No... flirting with them.  Kevin glanced at Nick, who stood confused at her actions.  He started forward, but Kevin put a hand on his shoulder.  Nick turned to him and was about to speak when he saw the amulet around Kevin's neck.  His face brightened in understanding, and he nodded.  Quick as he could, Kevin became Power Lord and headed for the door.

"Hang on, Brian," he murmured.

Rip the door off its hinges or kick it in? Kevin wondered.  He heard Brian cry for help again and the decision was made for him.  He took a step back, put his weight on his left leg, then pivoted and kicked the door in, sending it flying into the room.  The passage clear, Kevin raced inside.  Brian was struggling to stay on his feet, one hand around his middle.  He had looked up when the door crashed open and met Kevin's gaze.  His eyes widened and he stepped back.

"Brian, it's okay!" Kevin soothed, holding his arms up. "It's just me."

"What... what happened?" he gasped.

Kevin stepped closer, explaining. "It was part of the plan to rescue you.  I was to set an explosive in the engine room that would disable the ship and prevent them from coming after us once we were out of here.  It seems we need to improvise a little, now.  We have to get out of here, but we need to get rid of the guards first."

"What about me?" Brian asked.

"When you were inside that chamber, Zanell said that the transfer wasn't supposed to be painful like it was for you.  And no matter what you want to say, I'm inclined to believe Zanell when she said you should've felt the effects of the transfer immediately." He held out a hand. "Come on, cousin.  Let's get you out of here and back home where you belong."

"But..."

He stepped closer, hoping Brian wouldn't back up farther.  He didn't. "Brian, I'm certain that Zanell can help you control this.  She helped all of us when we first received these powers; remember?"

He swallowed, and then nodded. "I remember."

"Zator didn't do that here. He just let you suffer, claiming that you had the capability to control all these powers," Kevin couldn't stop the smile, "when sometimes, if I remember right, there were instances when you had trouble controlling your own Top Speed abilities."

Brian winced and nodded again.  Kevin held out his hand. "Come on.  Let's go home."

He hesitated a moment longer, then started toward the outstretched hand.  Brian was nearly there when his knees buckled under him.  Kevin was at his side at once.  Brian tried to shrug him off, but Kevin immediately replied, "Either you can fight me on it and take twice as long to get out of here, or you can let us help you get home."

Brian was silent, his gaze on the floor.  Kevin put his arm around his shoulder and gently squeezed.  "Bri, I don't know what brought you here, but I can tell you this: it's time to go home."

After a long moment, Brian nodded.  Kevin helped him to his feet and together they headed back to the others.  Howie was the first to spot them.

"Brian, are you alright?"

He, AJ and Nick crowded around the cousins; Zanell hurried over as Brian replied.

"I'm hurting, bad."

"We could hear," Howie said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Zanell can help with that, but we still need to get out of here."

Brian looked confused. "How can she help?"

"She still has her amulet, remember?  You only had five amulets for the transfer."

"Oh."

"What are we going to do about the guards?" AJ demanded.

"There's only two," Nick remarked. "It shouldn't be too hard for Kevin to knock them out."

"Yes, but they have guns," Kevin replied. "They could decommission me easily.  Brian shouldn't do it, he's struggling as it is." He glanced at Brian. "I don't want to risk you hurting yourself again."

"Agreed," he murmured reluctantly.

"I'll do it," Nick said. "Ninja Man's too quick for them."

Kevin slipped off the amulet and handed it over.  In the past, they'd learned that it was possible to share amulets and their superpowers would still work.  Seconds later, Ninja Man led the group toward the guards.  They were almost there when Kevin heard a small gasp from Brian and suddenly realized Brian wasn't beside him anymore.  Kevin turned to see him slowly backing away, his blue eyes wide.

"Brian?  What's wrong?" Kevin asked, moving toward him.

"Get back!" he cried.

Kevin stopped. "What is it?"

He was starting to breathe heavy.  He shook his head. "Stay back."

"Brian, we can help," Zanell soothed, moving closer. "What is it?"

"Don't touch me!" he shouted, leaping backward.

"Brian-" Howie began.

"It's happening again!" he cried. "It's happening and I - and I can't stop it.  Get. Back."

Kevin began to back up, not wanting to be too far way from him.  He remembered a battle years ago when the two of them were fighting the same enemy.  Brian had thrown one of his energy balls, but the creature had moved.  Kevin was standing directly behind it and was hit right in the chest.  He was in pain for several days afterward.  Now, with Brian's powers being so out of control, what would happen?  He noticed Brian still backing away and realized that he was headed toward the torture chamber they had just left.

Oh no... The energy field began to surround him again.  Kevin's eyes widened and he rushed forward.  "Brian!"

"No!"

Kevin was only a few steps away when the force of an explosion lifted him off his feet. Blackness came an instant later.

Chapter 9

"Kevin?"

Wha...?

Pain kept pushing him back into the darkness; he felt utterly unable to go back to the real world.  He was comfortable and safe; now, someone was intruding.  He tried to ignore it, but soon there came another sound, and a flare of pain.  It became too much to ignore, and reluctantly Kevin forced his eyes open.  Nick's unhappy face was staring down at him; a second later Kevin realized Nick was gripping his shoulder.  The source of the pain...

"Kev, wake up!" he said, far too loudly it seemed.

"Shh," he said, wincing.

"Brian's gone!" he said again, fear in his voice. "You've got to get up!"

What?  Kevin sat up, groaned as he waited for the room to stop spinning, and then looked around.  Brian wasn't there.  Nick, who had steadied him a second ago, gripped his shoulder harder.  Desperation had set in.

"We've got to find him," he urged. "What if-"

Part of Kevin wanted to smack his hand away, but a bigger part agreed with him.

"Nick, relax," came a voice.  Howie.  His hand found its way onto Nick's shoulder. "I can look for him.  Remember, Illusioneer isn't the only thing I can do."

Nick stopped clenching Kevin's shoulder, finally, and seemed to calm a bit.  Now it was up to Howie.  Kevin saw that he had managed to get his amulet without getting fried by the guards.  The guards... He turned toward the door and saw that they were slumped on the ground, unconscious.  Both must have hit the wall when Brian's energy field hit them.  He heard a shifting and turned to see Howie kneel.  He had told the group once before that he was most comfortable kneeling when using telepathy.  He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.  The rest could only watch him as he searched.  Nearly two minutes passed before he spoke.

"There he is.  By the... escape pods." Confusion laced his voice.

"Escape pods?" AJ repeated. "Why?"

Eyes still closed, Howie said, "Let me see if I can get his thoughts."  He dug deeper.  The wall around Brian's mind was weak, his thoughts frantic, frightened, scattered.

All in pain...  It's my fault... I injured them, betrayed them... He lied to me! ... I have to stop it...  Only one way...

"No!" Howie's eyes flew open and he leaped to his feet.

Everyone reached out to grab him. "What is it?"

He tried to shake off the hands. "He's gonna kill himself!"

Kevin froze. "What?"

Howie took a deep breath. "He's going to launch an escape pod and set it for self-destruct... with him inside."

No one spoke for several moments.  Finally, "Do you remember where he is, Howie?" Nick whispered.

Howie nodded.  It wasn't something he would forget.  "Keep up.  I'll see if I can nudge the thought into his mind to wait.  He was so panicked he either didn't try to block me, or he couldn't tell I was trying to get in."

Without another word, he raced out the door.  Amulets around their necks at last, the others rushed to follow.

Hold on, Brian, Kevin begged. Don't do it!  Wait for us.

They raced down corridor after corridor, trying to keep Howie in sight.  They had to use a few lifts, but were met with little resistance.  That caught Kevin by surprise; Howie must have seen a way where the group would be safe while he searched for Brian.  Their steps faltered when they saw blackened walls and one unconscious crewman on their journey.  The powers must have exploded again.  The group sped up.  Finally, Howie announced they had reached the level of the pods.

"Go carefully," he instructed. "We'll definitely meet more soldiers down here.  I'll disguise us, but try not to act like Earthlings.  Okay?"

Confident that Howie had properly disguised them, they continued on down the hallway.

"How's Brian?"

"Frightened," Howie replied to Kevin's question. "And really confused.  He's not sure what to make of the thoughts I'm sending him; it's conflicting what he wants to do.  His mind wants to get out, but I'm telling him to wait.  He's getting more confused and emotional by the second."

"How far away?"

Howie sped up. "Just a few more corners and we'll have him."

"Howie, you might want to have some illusions coming from the other direction," Zanell suggested.

"Why?"

"Because I think that when he sees us, he'll want to bolt.  If more than one group is closing in on him, he'll have nowhere to go."

"Except for the pod," AJ interrupted.

Howie motioned the others to keep moving. "Not if there's an illusion waiting in the pod, too."

"Can you handle that?" Kevin asked. "That's a lot for you to do at once."

"We're trying to save Brian," Howie replied simply. "I'll manage."

Kevin was astonished at the amount of illusion that Howie was creating.  Obviously, he'd gained range and strength in the years since Kevin had left the fight.  At least this was a good change.  He shook the thoughts from his head as they rounded what Howie said was the last corner.

Just as he'd said, there was Brian pacing back and forth, his face pale and creased with worry, a slight limp in his step.  He turned just as they came into view and froze.  His eyes widened. "No..." he whispered.

He started to back up, turned again, but didn't get more than a few feet before Howie's illusions came the other way.  Brian gazed wildly back and forth between the two groups, breathing heavy, then whirled and reached for the keypad to open the pod.  Kevin rushed forward. "Brian, no!"

The pod door opened, and he ducked to step inside.  He froze, eyes widening.  He stepped away, shaking his head, whimper becoming audible.  Kevin moved closer and saw Brian's eyes shine with unshed tears, his whole body beginning to tremble.  He was losing it.  Reaching out, Kevin whispered, "Brian, it's okay."

To Kevin's shock, Brian whipped out his laser and aimed it at him. "Stay away from me," he ordered. "Just get away and d-don't touch me."

Kevin stopped, his eyes moving between Brian and the laser. "Brian, we're here to help you," he said softly. "We can if you'll let us.  We won't leave you alone like Zator did.  He lied to you, let you suffer.  I'm not going to let that happen to you.  You have my word."

He could see the conflict inside the man as he began to lower the gun.  Kevin held out his hand and stepped closer.  But Brian backed up and shook his head.  He raised the laser again, but his arm shook.  He didn't know what to do.  Suddenly, his eyes looked past Kevin, widened, then rolled back into his head.  Brian dropped to the floor, limp as a rag doll.

Kevin rushed to his side. Had he passed out?  Looking him over, Kevin didn't see any sign of a wound.

"He's fine, Kevin."

Kevin twisted around to stare at Howie. "What did you do to him?"

"I knocked him unconscious," Howie explained. "We didn't need him pulling that trigger; it could have alerted someone to the fact we'd escaped.  Brian's fine.  He'll wake up in a couple of hours unharmed."

Kevin looked back at Brian.  His breathing was still the slightly-panicked shuddering, but it was beginning to ease. If Howie said he was fine... "You're right.  I'm sorry."  Kevin activated his amulet, then knelt and lifted Brian into his arms. "Let's get out of here."

~       ~       ~

Kevin leaned back in his chair, more tired than he could remember ever being.  They were on their way home, but Brian hadn't stirred so far.  The entire mission had gone so differently than Kevin had imagined...  His body was demanding sleep, rest; his thoughts were far too tangled to comply.  He kept seeing the panicked, desperate look on Brian's face back at the pod.  How had things come to that point?  Had Zator really dared to mess with Brian's mind that much?  Just thinking that man's name made the anger flow again.  How dare he try to pull them apart with lies?  He'll pay.

Kevin's eyes fell closed as his thoughts drifted to his family.  How wonderful it would be to see Kristin again, to feel her comforting embrace with the children around them, anxiously waiting, tugging on his arms and clothes for their turn.  But he knew this ordeal was far from over.  Brian needed help, and Kevin didn't have a clue what to do.

"Kevin?"

His eyes flew open in surprise.  Of all people to join him... "AJ?" he asked, turning around in the chair.

AJ stood there in silence, glancing between the floor and Kevin.  It looked like he wanted to say something but wasn't sure what to do.

"Um... have a seat," Kevin offered, motioning to a chair.

He hesitated, and for a moment Kevin thought he would be stubborn and remain standing. Then he sat without comment.

Neither man spoke for several minutes.  Finally, slowly, Kevin asked, "Was there something you wanted?"

He didn't speak, fiddling with a pen he'd pulled from his pocket.  After a while, he asked, "How's he doing?"

Kevin glanced at the figure on the bed. "No change, so far.  Zanell healed his body, but his mind's messed up because of Zator.  I don't know what to do."

"We'll pay him back," AJ growled, "that's what we're gonna do."

He nodded in agreement. "As soon as Brian's better, we'll start planning."

"Why wait?" AJ demanded.

"Because I'm positive that once Brian's back in his right mind, he'll want to be in on the planning.  He should have the biggest part in this."

AJ nodded.  "You're right." Then his voice got suddenly quiet. "You were right about a lot of things.  I'm... sorry for not welcoming you back on real good terms."

"Well," Kevin murmured, trying to find his voice, "I didn't exactly leave on good terms.  I didn't tell any of you what I was doing until you read my note after we rescued Nick, our wives and the kids."

"Even so," AJ continued, "Brian shouldn't have been the only one to accept you leaving."

Kevin looked over at Brian. "Nick said that if I hadn't given up my amulet, Brian would have."

"Yeah, he would've."

"Think things might have been different?"

There was silence as AJ thought. "Maybe, but not much different.  Zator may have come after someone else instead of him.   Shoot, it might've been you he came after instead."

That drew Kevin's thoughts to another question. "J, why do you think Brian believed so easily and allied with Zator?"

"You're askin' the wrong person, man.  I believed, too.  Remember?"

"Why'd you believe?"

AJ bit his lip. "Honestly, I've been thinking about that one, myself."

"Figure it out yet?"

"I think so," he said. "We're all tired, Kev.  This fighting has been going on for way too long.  The extra strength, well, we really could've used that in the past.  Why Zanell didn't show us, I don't know-"

"Maybe she didn't know how," Kevin interrupted.

AJ was quiet for a moment before nodding. "Maybe you're right.  Well, like I said, we're all tired.  What Zator showed us... it seemed like it would make our lives so much easier, Kev.  I mean," he looked up, "after you left, it got harder real fast, and I was almost ready to give up."

"What kept you going?" Kevin wondered.

The corner of AJ's mouth twitched. "Brian and Zanell's faith in all of us.  Both of them knew that we had to keep going, no matter how many were battling.  It's just hard now.  We... we really do need you, Kevin."

Kevin studied the weaving of the carpet as AJ's words sank in.  Now, every one of his companions had said, in one way or another, that they needed him.  After what had just happened the past several days, he was beginning to understand why.  Zanell was right; they worked better together as a unit.  Kevin's leaving had created a breach in that unity and they had nearly paid for that with their lives.  He would never forget that.

There was a small groan from the bed.  Kevin whipped his gaze over to Brian, eyes wide.  The dark blond head moved slowly from side to side, and then he finally rolled onto his side.  Kevin and AJ stayed silent, watching him.  After a minute, he began to snore.

"That's a good sign," AJ remarked.

"Is it?"

"Yep.  Means he's sleeping regular now, not the Howie-induced sleep.  He'll wake up when his body's ready."

Kevin sighed in relief.  That was a good sign.  Now all that was needed was for Brian to actually wake up, so Kevin and the others could see what state his mind was in.

Howie arrived and announced that it was Kevin's turn at piloting.  He didn't want to leave, but was somewhat comforted by Howie's promise to inform him of the slightest change.  Even so, Kevin could barely concentrate at his station.  It's lucky they didn't crash on an asteroid somewhere, like AJ had said a few days ago.

He was just waking up from a restless night when Nick entered the cabin.  Brian had woken up.  Kevin was at his cousin's bedside two minutes later.  He was looking around the room in confusion.

"We're on Zanell's ship," Kevin explained.  Blue eyes met green. "We're going home."

"How did I get here?"

"Your body couldn't handle the power of all five amulets, and yours started to go haywire," Kevin explained as he moved closer.

Brian looked at his lap. "I remember."

Kevin sat on the edge of the bed. "Do you remember what happened at the pod?"

Brian's eyes darkened slightly. "Howie."

He nodded. "There was no way in heaven or earth that we were going to let you kill yourself just to keep the rest of us alive and safe."

"I hurt you," he murmured, turning to look out the window next to his bed.  The light of the stars sailing past the ship filtered into the room, erasing some of the lines on his face that had appeared while Kevin was gone.

The door opened and closed a few more times, but he could only watch Brian.  Breakfast was offered, but Brian wasn't ready to eat.  Howie brought a tray for Kevin.  As he set the tray down, Brian turned from the window and looked straight at him.  Howie froze, waiting.

Chapter 10

"Why'd you do that?" Brian softly demanded.

"We didn't want you to die, Brian," Howie replied.

Brian wrinkled his nose. "You wanted me to live, even after what I did?  After I allied with Zator?  Your enemy?"

"Your enemy?"? It can't be... "Brian, he's your enemy, too.  He tricked you."

Brian turned his gaze back to the window.  Kevin glanced down and saw him rub his thumb along an old scar on the palm of his right hand.  He'd had that scar since he was eleven and only rubbed it when something really bothered him.

Feminine hands closed around his. "Brian, we can help you," Zanell offered. "If you let us, we can help erase my father's lies."

Brian pulled his hand away from hers and glowered at her.  It was painfully obvious that Zator's words still controlled him.

"Get away from me," he snarled.

Zanell rested her hands on the edge of his bed, surprise on her face. "Brian, we can help-"

"Get out of my sight, princess," he spat. "If it wasn't for you, none of this would have happened."

Zanell rocked back, a gasp of hurt escaping her.  Kevin shifted.  He couldn't let that go unpunished, especially from Brian.  But Brian's glare silenced him.

"Get out," Brian ordered shortly.

Kevin wanted to say something, anything to convince Brian to snap out of Zator's hold on him, but the connection between Kevin's brain and his lips must have temporarily shut down, as he couldn't even open his mouth to speak.  So, in silence he reached down, took Zanell by the elbow and led her from the room.  Howie was already at the door waiting for them.

When the door slid shut behind them, Howie and Kevin glanced at each other, then to Zanell.  After a moment, she shook her head. "I should have expected that."

"Why did he still believe he was Zator's ally?" Howie wondered. "We've got him back, his body's healed..."

"My father is very persuasive, very smooth-tongued as you saw.  And," Zanell offered, "there's always the possibility of hypnosis that Brian never knew about."

"But Brian said that he was treated with respect," Kevin remarked.

"It may have only been that way to bring him further into my father's service.  We won't know for sure until Brian cooperates."

With a frustrated sigh, Kevin closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.  Things were starting to look more hopeless.  If they didn't get Brian back fully, what would they say to Leighanne and the children?

This is exactly why I left.  He opened one eye and studied his companions.  They looked nearly as hopeless and tired as he felt, and he had only been back for a few days.

Something glinted just beyond his vision.  He turned and found himself gazing out of one of the larger window ports.  He moved closer and gazed out at the blackness, the emptiness, of space.  The stars gazed silently back.

"What now?" he murmured.  Nothing felt right. Not out there, here... and definitely with Brian.

Brian was torn... somehow... between Zator and his friends. Kevin couldn't understand how he could be so torn.  It should have been an obvious choice; but then again, what had driven him to Zator's side in the first place?

The desire to be with his family was so strong at that moment that tears filled his eyes.  A hand on Kevin's shoulder made him jump.  He glanced behind to see Zanell gazing at him.  He wiped away the wetness on his cheeks; normally to be discovered crying would have embarrassed him, but at the moment all Kevin felt was tired. Infinitely tired.  By the look in her eyes, she understood.

She was silent for a while before she spoke quietly.  "This just gets harder with every step, doesn't it?"

Kevin nodded. "I don't understand how..." he stopped. "I just don't understand any of this."

"Brian's confused," she said. "Zator caught him at a very vulnerable point in his life and used that to twist his mind and thoughts. If Brian had been in his right, clear-thinking mind, he never would have fallen for the deception."

"You think so?"  A small flicker of hope began to burn. Then something she'd said caught his attention. "Wait... vulnerable?"

She glanced away. "Father uses many methods and tricks to get what he wants. With Brian already on the edge, I don't think it was all that hard to get him to believe my father was his ally. A few sessions of hypnotic suggestion, boosting of ego, and verbal support... Brian believed.  The stresses wore him down," she said sadly. "In all ways, not just the physical. He so wanted an answer, a way to make everything better. So when father stepped in, offering what seemed like the perfect solution... of course Brian jumped.  At least, that's my speculation."

Kevin closed his eyes, the guilt stinging.  If I had been here, I could have stopped all this.  This was his fault. The decision he'd made years ago...  he couldn't just hide at home anymore while his friends risked their lives to save the galaxy.  He had to go back.

"Kevin?  What is it?"

"You were right. I can't stay at home while the others risk their lives.  I have to fix this.  I'm staying."

~~~

Kevin shifted again under the covers, rolling onto his stomach.  A glance at the clock made him groan; it was nearly 2 a.m.  After staring at the wall for another minute he decided to just get up.  If he was still up this late, chances were good that he would not be getting sleep at all.  As he headed for the door, Kevin realized that things were just piling up.  He was way too tense, wasn't used to things being this difficult.  He needed to walk around, let it all out.  Kevin hoped that by the time he returned to his room, he'd be calm enough to sleep.

The silence of the ship at night, for some reason, didn't seem to help.  It was too quiet.  He was used to hearing the sounds of Los Angeles outside the window and here was... nothing.  Absolute silence except for his footsteps.  Looking up, Kevin realized that he was nearing the bridge and thought that looking out at the stars would help; it almost always had back home.  He was a few steps beyond the doorway when he noticed that he wasn't alone.  Brian lounged at the pilot's station, staring out at the heavens.  A part of Kevin wanted to keep walking, to avoid any kind of confrontation.  But he found himself stepping forward anyway.  Brian looked so much older than the last time Kevin had seen him, so tired.  What, exactly, had he forced himself to endure these past eight years?

He glanced over, sitting up when he saw he wasn't alone.  Kevin froze.

"What are you doing here?" Brian finally asked.

"Can't sleep.  Yourself?"

He turned back to the stars without response, and after several seconds Kevin felt it safe to move closer.  He sank into the spot next to Brian and joined him in stargazing.

"Why'd you come back?" he asked out of the blue.

"You know why I came back; to rescue you."

"I didn't need it."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "Sure you didn't.  That's why you wanted to kill yourself when all those powers inside you went haywire.  That's why Howie had to knock you unconscious, to keep that from happening."

"You don't bother to interfere for years," Brian said, anger obvious in his voice. "What gives you the right now?  I could have handled it.  It was my choice, my decision."

"And why did you choose this?" Kevin demanded. "Why in the world would you throw away everything you knew was right and join with our enemy, a man that wouldn't hesitate to kill you if he found you of no more use to him?"

"Our enemy?" he nearly snarled. "Funny, but I don't recall seeing you fighting him recently. Not for the last several years.  What would you know about what we've gone through?   He could have killed any of us at any time he wanted.  But he hasn't."

"That doesn't prove anything!" Kevin grated. "He didn't kill any of us, true, but it wasn't from a lack of trying!"

"You know nothing," Brian said, his voice now full of ice. "I wish you had never come."

"I'm wondering about the wisdom of that choice right now," Kevin said, voice shaking despite his efforts.

"So why did you?"

"Because of Natalie!" Kevin finally revealed.

He paused. "Nattie?"  She was Kevin's princess, but Nattie was the nickname that only Brian was allowed to use.

Kevin tried to swallow past the lump in his throat.  "It was late at night when Zanell came to get me.  The children were already asleep when she arrived.  I'd wanted nothing to do with the amulets anymore, but then Zanell told us that you were missing.  I must have been louder than I'd realized when I protested coming back, because Natalie woke up and joined us.  Then she heard Zanell mention your name, and you know how excited she gets when that happens."

Brian nodded.

"I looked into Nattie's eyes," he croaked, " and I realized that she needs her Uncle Brian in her life.  She needs family, not just Kristin, Spencer and me.  When we found out you were missing... I knew I could never look into those eyes with a clear conscience if I didn't try to find you.  She loves you, Brian, and she treasures that bear you gave her as a newborn." He kept his eyes on the floor, a piece of him not wanting to see his cousin's face. "I agreed to come on this one lone mission... for you, for her.  I never wanted to intrude, to butt in where I'm obviously not wanted or needed." An overwhelming sense of hurt seized his chest, far worse than physical pain. "I'll be out of your hair the minute we get back home."

He didn't wait for Brian to respond.  He had to get out of there.  Kevin stood and hurried to his room, pressing the lock for privacy.  He leaned against the door and squeezed his eyes shut.  He had done all he could for now.  The next move would be from Brian's decision.

Kevin never did make it to sleep that night, instead ended up pacing off and on until morning when he heard the others begin to move around.  A few minutes later came the signal for breakfast.  Could he even eat?  He had to, he rationalized.  They were getting close to home and Kevin wanted to have the energy to greet his family when he returned.

Zanell and Howie were first in the galley, already eating.  They both said greetings as Kevin grabbed a plate and joined them at the table.  Neither asked questions, though, for which Kevin was grateful.  It was obvious he'd missed sleep, and the mirror had confirmed that he looked as bad as he felt.

"We're about ten hours from Earth," Howie finally said. "I'll be glad to get back home for sure."

When Kevin didn't reply, Zanell said, "We still have a lot to sort out."

"At least we have the option now."  Howie leaned back. "The chance to talk and come up with a solution."

Kevin sighed. Talk... He shrugged, deciding not to comment. Nick stumbled in a few minutes later and over to the pot for his morning caffeine kick.  Just as he flopped down beside Kevin, AJ entered and headed straight for the food without even saying hello.  Well, unless you count "Breakfast!" as "Hello."

"Are we there yet?" Nick suddenly whined.

Kevin rolled his eyes.  Some things about that man never change. "Just ten more hours, Nick," he explained. "You can keep yourself occupied for that long, right?"

Nick stuck out his tongue, and then shoved another forkful of food into his mouth as the others laughed.

"Ten hours? That's about nine and a half too long," a voice said from behind.

Brian's tone was hard, not a hint of humor in it at all. It was so unlike the Brian they'd always known... the Brian that Kevin missed more than he could express.

It was Zanell that answered. "And what will you do, once we get back?" she asked flatly.

Brian stepped into view, and they could see his expression.  It wasn't pleasant. "I'm going to make things right again," he declared.

"Meaning?" Howie asked.

"Meaning, I set out to do something and I failed.  I plan to amend that."

"You... you aren't going to contact Zator again, are you?" Howie asked, his eyes wide.

"I'll have to prove my worth all over again," he practically spat. "Thanks to your interference."

"Saving your life isn't what I would call interference," Kevin said. "When we-"

"You're the last one that should talk," he cut off. "First you aren't around when you were desperately needed, and then you come and interfere after all those years... ruining everything!"

"Ruining what?" Kevin demanded, standing. "Your chance to be one of Zator's mindless lackeys?  To be dumped or killed at the first sign of weakness?"

"If you hadn't interfered, I would have become more than that!" A proud smile came to his lips. "He would have looked at me as a surrogate son."

"What?" Zanell shrieked, on her feet and wide-eyed.

Brian sneered. "Yes, princess.  I would have become more powerful than even you, wonder woman that you are.  That was the reward he promised me."

Power.  That was always the problem throughout history.  And now it had corrupted one of the men Kevin had thought it would never take.  Kevin didn't think his hatred of Zator could grow, but he was wrong.  It burned deep in his core.  This had to stop.  Now.  The time for being reasonable and gentle was long over.  If they were going to get through to him... to the real Brian that Kevin prayed still existed... he had to be as blunt as possible.  He spoke just as Brian started for the food.

"I guess you're right, Brian.  You have changed.  The man you are now, we don't even know."

He just smirked and continued toward the food.

Kevin shook his head and crossed his arms. "Shame.  Who's going to be the one to tell your children about what you've chosen-"

Brian froze and glared at him. "You leave my kids out of this," he warned.

"-the side of evil?"  Kevin knew that he had to hit one sensitive spot right after another to get to Brian; it had always worked in the past when he was about to do something stupid.  "And Natalie... She'll be heartbroken when she finds out you don't care anymore."

His fists clenched. "That's enough."

Someone whispered, "Kevin, what are you doing?"

He ignored them. "And Leighanne-"

Brian took a step toward him. "Don't you dare."

Something lingered on the edge of the warning, but Kevin had to keep going. "Would she ever forgive you for what you've done?"

Before he even realized what had happened, Kevin was on the floor blocking Brian's punches. Normally he wouldn't have had too much trouble defending himself, but Brian was coming at him fueled by rage, the likes of which he'd never seen.  Stars flashed, darkness threatened... then the blows stopped.  When Kevin was finally able to focus, he saw a concerned face nearby.

"Easy, Kev.  I've got you."

AJ helped him to a sitting position.  He didn't want to look, but Kevin still found his gaze drawn upward.  Howie and Nick were struggling to hold Brian back.  His face was red with fury.  It was then that Kevin realized his cousin was beyond all reasoning.

"Howie," Kevin ordered around a split lip," do something."

"What should-"

"Make him unconscious."

Howie's startled blink gave way to a look of intense concentration.  Kevin saw Brian falter, just briefly, then suddenly his eyes rolled back and he sank toward the floor.

"I don't know how long he'll be out," Howie said a bit breathlessly once Brian was safely on the floor. "What should we do about this?"

"His mind's gotta be real messed up," AJ remarked. "What did Zator do to him?"

"Howie, maybe you should do a probe of his mind," Zanell suggested as she healed Kevin's injures. "Perhaps we'll see how strong this control is."

Howie swallowed, then nodded. "I'll see what I can find."

He gazed down at the unconscious man and put a hand on his head, eyes narrowing in concentration.  Kevin held his breath, waiting. What would Howie find?  All of a sudden Howie winced.  His eyes snapped shut and he began gasping.  With a cry, he broke away from Brian, eyes wide in shock.

Nick grabbed his arm as the rest crowded around. "What is it, D? What did you see?"

He closed his eyes and drew in a shuddering breath. "There's... darkness, an evil clouding his mind and tainting his spirit."

Zanell gasped.

"Darkness?  What is it?" Kevin asked.

"It's like... a void, so cold and dark that no light could ever penetrate it," he said, struggling with a description. "It was..." He stopped, shaking his head. "It was terrible. And I sensed it was growing."

Chapter 11

Howie shuddered.  "Guys, this is... it's so much bigger than Zator's influence.  More dangerous.  If we don't do something as soon as possible, we could lose him.  Forever."

There was silence for the briefest moment, and then the room exploded.

"Lose him?!  We can't lose him!"

"He's got a family to provide for.  He can't be taken from us!"

"What can we do?  We've got to do something."

"Zanell?"

The men stilled, and then turned to the princess.  She was studying Brian, her lips pressed tight.

"There... may be a way," she said at last. "My amulet can heal.  Howie, do you think you could guide me into his mind?"

Howie started in surprise. "Guide you in?"

"You've done it before," Zanell remarked. 

Kevin's gaze snapped to her in astonishment.

"Like you said," she continued, "Brian's in danger of being lost forever."

That seemed to steel Howie's resolve.  He nodded. "We'll have to be careful going in.  It's a rough, dark ride and I barely got back out.  It'll be a harsh fight."

"I'll risk it."

He watched in surprise, having never witnessed such a thing, as Howie and Zanell clasped hands over Brian's still form.  They settled into comfortable positions, took deep breaths, and then closed their eyes.

Kevin turned to the others.  "When has he done this before?"

AJ answered, "I'm told that he first guided Zanell into my mind when I was in a coma.  They didn't go in for any length of time, since it was Howie's first attempt, but they did just a little bit of work every day until I woke up."

"He wanted to practice until he could do it comfortably," Nick continued, "so we all willingly allowed him to go inside each of us, guiding Zanell." He glanced down at Brian. "I just hope Bri can allow them in now."

Kevin lifted an eyebrow. "Rejection's possible?"

"Rejection is possible in everything."

He nodded after a moment, then watched Howie and Zanell's still forms.  Don't turn them away, Brian.  We're trying to help you.

After a short time of silence Kevin couldn't keep from fidgeting and finally stood.

"Where are you going?" Nick demanded, gripping his arm as he reached the doorway.

Kevin looked back. "I'm sorry, but I can't just sit here and wait, not knowing what's wrong with Brian.  I need... I need to do something."

"But Kev-"

"Please, Nick," Kevin begged, "don't try to stop me.  I need this." He put a hand on the blonde's arm. "You come get me when they've returned and found out more, okay?"

Nick watched him for another moment, and then nodded. "Okay."

With a weak smile, Kevin headed off down the hall, his thoughts broken and worried.  His feet eventually directed him to the training room.  This would do just fine.  He programmed the system for the most difficult setup he could be given and commenced the workout.  By the third round, Power Lord's uniform was completely soaked with sweat, but he just couldn't stop.  There were too many things bothering him to stop: Brian's unnatural hatred, his alliance with Zator, that dark Thing trying to take him over.  Then there was still the question of whether or not Kevin was truly going to stay.  Had Brian really meant it when he wished Kevin hadn't come, or was that the Dark controlling him?  All of it flew through Kevin's mind as he bashed each manifestation that the program sent against him.

He reached down to lift a large metal bar into his hands when, all of a sudden, it vanished and the lights came back on.  The program had been deactivated.  Breathing heavily, he turned to see Nick in the doorway.

"They're back."

"How long has it been?" Kevin panted.

"They were in for an hour, and then took two more to rest up," he replied.

Kevin frowned. "Nick, your tone tells me they weren't successful in helping Brian."

He hesitated, and then said, "It's stronger than Zanell thought.  She wouldn't tell us much until after she and Howie woke up, and even then, she wanted to wait for full details until we got you."

Kevin bolted out the door and headed back to the galley, not waiting for Nick to finish.  AJ was leaning against the table listening to Howie as Kevin entered. Howie's eyes were ringed with shadows, and Zanell had her face resting on one hand, eyes closed. How bad had it been that after only three hours they still looked exhausted, even with rest?

AJ glanced up and raised an eyebrow. "Hey, Kev," he greeted. "You look as exhausted as these two. What'd you do?"

"Set the training program for the toughest it could give me. Still didn't seem like enough, though."

"Well," came the princess' muffled voice, "battling that Dark that's controlling Brian will most certainly be the toughest you'll get."

Kevin looked over as she raised her head, a red imprint of her hand on her cheek. "How bad was it?"

She gave a wavering sigh before replying. "I've never fought something like this before. I can't even figure out how it took such strong control over Brian in the first place."

"Do you think it was a sudden thing, or something that built over time?" Nick asked.

Zanell sighed. "I'd have to honestly say it happened over time."

"What happened?" Kevin asked, though a part of him feared the answer.

"Howie and I almost didn't make it back out," Zanell explained. "If I hadn't been able to sense the other two, we might not have made it."

He gasped.  They almost didn't get out and he had been selfish enough to leave the room?

The princess gave him a weary smile. "It's all right, Kevin.  AJ and Nick were here and that was enough.  Still," she rubbed her eyes; "we should rest some more before we try again."

"Zanell and I couldn't do it alone," Howie continued. "The Thing was too dark, almost too strong." He shook his head. "So many dark thoughts and feelings were present.  We need to work together if we want to get Brian back."

"How?" AJ asked.

"I don't know yet.  We've got seven hours until we're back home.  I'll keep checking on Brian from time to time and pray that he'll be all right."

"He's still under?" Kevin turned to check on him.  His body was gone. "What-"

"He started to wake up about an hour ago," Nick explained, "but AJ and I felt it best to put him back under until we could figure out what to do, then we moved him back to his room."

The seven hours that were left on the trip home seemed like a thousand. No one was really in the mood to talk; the few attempts at conversation didn't go far. Kevin was halfway between exhaustion and anxiety... he couldn't sleep, but he couldn't keep his mind on things either.  Zanell announced re-entry at long last, but he felt no sense of relief. The worst was yet to come.

Kevin looked back down at his still-sleeping cousin. He'd kept watch for the final two hours of the trip, not sure what he was looking for. Even in sleep, Brian's face wasn't relaxed. Kevin supposed he was looking for a peace he remembered, an innocence that Brian had always possessed in childhood. But it had been a long time since they were young and carefree. What had happened to allow this Dark to enter him?

AJ joined him a few minutes later, but remained silent.  For all the resentment toward one another these past few days, Kevin was grateful for his presence.  It would take time for that wound to heal, but it would be dealt with after they helped Brian.

In almost no time at all following Zanell's announcement, they arrived at the base.  Kevin's stomach clenched.  He could sense that they were nearing the moment of one of the toughest battles they'd ever have to face; a battle for the soul of one of their own.  And they would not give him up without a fight.  And they would win.  Of that there was no doubt. 

They couldn't afford doubt anymore than they could afford to lose Brian.

It wasn't exactly a sense of relief when the ship landed; no one spoke as Brian, still sedated, was transported to the base's med bay.  Once Zanell had checked on his general status, she requested a group meeting. Tiredly, they gathered at the small conference room nearby.

"He's resting well," she said after a rather long pause. "At least he's far enough under to prevent him from fighting it all. Now, we have to decide what we want to do next."

"What has to be done?" AJ wondered.

Zanell glanced at Howie. "We think that this... Darkness... is functioning on the astral plane. That's where Brian's true self, his soul if you will, exists right now. And that's where we're going to have to fight."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Nick asked, frowning. "How can we fight on a plane that... well, doesn't exist physically? Our powers won't work there, will they?"

"Maybe not as they work on the physical plane," Howie suggested, "but we won't be entirely powerless.  My power was different, but Zanell's ability remained the same.  I don't really know how to explain it that well."

"So what do we have to do?" Kevin pressed. "The longer we wait the stronger hold this Darkness will have over Brian."

"While we were there, I caught tendrils of black memories from Brian's past.  I'd bet that those were used to allow the Dark to enter him."

"So... what, do we have to cheer him up?" AJ asked, somewhat doubtfully.

"Many of these memories included us," Howie revealed quietly.

"But... we've got good memories too," Nick protested.

"And that is exactly what we have to remind Brian of," Howie determined. "Right now, Brian's emotions are in turmoil.  Joy was beginning to fade, and peace.  Happiness was all but gone. There was a huge sense of overwhelming frustration and despair, along with fear and confusion... a bit of anger and betrayal too."

Kevin's gaze turned to the floor.  Anger and betrayal.  That had to be directed at him.  He had left years ago without a word of discussion, especially with Brian.  They should have talked about it.  Not even when they were working together in the studio was the subject remotely breached.  Why had that been?

Nick was speaking. "We've got to help him.  Those feelings don't belong there.  We have to help him understand."

"How?" Kevin asked.

"Share the good memories," AJ offered. "Remind him of the things we've enjoyed over the years, feats we persevered to achieve.  Surely the good memories will outnumber the bad."

"It won't be easy."

Zanell nodded. "But we think that's the only way."

After a moment, Kevin sighed.  "When do we get started?"

"We're going to have to start thinking positive, fast," Nick said.

"Well, we've had some pretty awesome times touring," Howie suggested. "Traveling, the fans..."

"We may need specific instances, though," Zanell remarked.

Kevin smirked, remembering. "Hearing ourselves on the radio for the very first time."

Howie, AJ and Nick chuckled as they remembered the instance as well. "Brian was ecstatic," Nick said. "He and I were practically bouncing off the tour bus walls."

For the next hour, they shared memories with one another, bringing more laughter than Kevin had heard in years.  Zanell was absolutely shocked silly at some of the pranks that had been done over the years.  She wiped at tears as she struggled to breathe through her laughter.

"Then, of course... there's family," Kevin began. "Brian's wedding..."

"Oh, that was a great day," AJ jumped in. "Just awesome.  Still wish he would've let us help out with something, but he 'didn't want us to work at the wedding'."

"And at the reception when he handed Leighanne over to me so he could sing 'You Are' to her," Kevin added. "All three of us were crying by the time he finished."

"Er... aren't we supposed to be thinking about good stuff?" Nick asked.

"That was good, you doof," AJ said, elbowing the youngest.

Nick blushed. "Oh yeah."

"And then the kids. When Brian became a dad..."

Kevin picked up when Howie trailed off with a grin. "I remember the pride in Brian's voice when he called me to say that Baylee had been born.  And then when I got to hold that tiny little bundle of life for the first time..." He shook his head. "I felt just like he did when my kids were born."

"I still remember when Libby and Ben were born," AJ remarked. "Like it was yesterday.  He and Leighanne had wanted to be surprised on the twins' genders, and his grin was so huge when he came out of the delivery room to tell us that it was a boy and a girl." He smiled. "Then he let us follow him in to see them, and I got to hold both at once," he held his arms up as though he were holding them again, "that was just awesome.  I looked at those kids and knew that I had to have a family of my own some day soon." He sighed, and looked at Kevin. "You remember Becky Watson?"

"She works with children, doesn't she?" Kevin wondered, hoping I didn't embarrass myself by forgetting his new girlfriend.

"Child trauma psychologist," he clarified, and then he beamed. "We're engaged.  And we want a family as soon as possible."

Kevin's mouth dropped open in surprise as the others cheered for him.  Engaged?  But then he smiled.  Becky was a good woman, better for him than some of his other girlfriends would have been.

Zanell smiled. "That will do. Howie?"

Howie nodded, and then led us to Brian's bedside.  Kevin winced when he saw Brian's face.  He was pale, and he seemed to have aged years in just a few short hours.

"We'll get him back," Howie promised. "And he'll get better."

Kevin nodded and took his place beside Howie.  Linking hands as instructed, the strangest journey he'd ever been on began.

Chapter 12

Kevin nearly released his hold on the others as the darkness buffeted him. Darkness with a capital "D" indeed.  It felt almost alive as it struck out, trying to stop them. It had control of a strong, good person, and would not give him up without a fierce battle.  Well, they'd give it a battle.  The Darkness wouldn't give up easily, though.  It continued to come at them, tempting them to just leave and not get themselves hurt.

There was a flicker of a familiar presence up ahead.  Suddenly the journey was over and Kevin found himself standing in a mist that swirled around him like a living fog.  It looked so dense it seemed he could touch it.  He wiggled his fingers through it and found it... cold.

"What is it?" Nick asked.

"It's the astral plane," Howie explained. "Just a featureless land where everything fades into the horizon.  But the cold mist, that's the Darkness taking control."

Kevin clenched his fist, a flicker of anger igniting in his chest.  Going after Brian had made this a very personal battle.  He turned to Howie. "So how do we find Brian?  We can't waste any more time."

Howie tilted his head. "You sense that yearning?  That's Brian."

Kevin could sense it, and wondered at the feeling.  Why would Brian feel that way?  Yearning for what?  Answers?  Guidance?  Rescue?

"Over there." Nick pointed diagonal to the right.

"We follow that," Howie remarked, "and that should lead us to him.  But with the Darkness fighting for control, the trip won't be easy.  Be on your toes."

Leave things to the imagination, why don't you?  Nonetheless, Kevin followed Zanell and Howie through the shapeless world.  In this strange place, there was no sun, no sky, and no landmarks to give a sense of direction.

Eventually, Kevin found himself aware of a subtle pull.  He looked around, but as usual, there was nothing but the shapeless landscape around him.  Which started him wondering - were they even going the right way?  There were no paths, no signs to tell them if they were even going in a straight line.  They could even be going in circles for all they knew.  He wondered how sure Zanell and Howie were as they led the group... yet they didn't falter.  The sense of uncertainty continued to grow with each step until finally Kevin stopped moving altogether.

It was at least another yard before the others realized he wasn't following.

"Kevin, why did you stop?" AJ asked.

"I... we... I don't think we're going the right way. I mean what if this is the way into a trap? Maybe we should stop and come up with a plan or-"

"I feel it too," Zanell said, looking warily around. "Doubt. But it doesn't feel... natural. It's not coming from inside me."

"I agree with Kev," Nick said, licking his lips nervously. "Can't we try some other direction?"

"No," Howie replied, looking at each of them. "This doubt we feel may be strong, but the yearning is stronger.  I can't explain it, but I just know that's Brian."

"I agree with Howie," Zanell said, taking a deep breath. "But keep a sharp eye out."

Kevin sighed.  Howie had yet to steer them wrong, so he forced his feet to continue. The doubt still pulled at him, but the memory of Brian's anger on the ship spurred Kevin on.  That unnatural anger had to go, and he wasn't going to allow doubt to stop him.

Suddenly, a dark shape loomed out of the mist.  A large tree, bare and black, its bony branches long and reaching, as though warning them away.  Howie turned right to sidestep the tree. A crackling rumble began to fill the air.  Kevin looked around for the source, then turned back at Howie's shout of surprise.  He had fallen, his foot caught by a tree root.

"That wasn't there before," Howie murmured, turning to look at the root.

Kevin followed Howie's gaze, and either his eyes were playing tricks on him, or the root was sinking back into the ground.  Impossible.

Nick suddenly shouted a warning.  But it came too late as Kevin was sent flying, landing hard meters away.  What in the world?  He sat up with a groan, throbbing pain coursing through him.  That had hurt.  But what had hit him?  He looked up at the others and saw, to his shock, that the tree was moving.  There was no denying that one, not with branches whipping every which way at everyone.

Nick jumped over a limb that swiped at his feet. "I told you we should have turned around!"

"How could this possibly be the way to Brian?" AJ demanded. "We've got a giant tree blocking the way that clearly doesn't want us to go by, so we must've taken a wrong turn!"

"We can't take a wrong turn here!" Howie called. "There are no wrong turns to take!"

"Are you positive about that, Howie?" Kevin asked before dodging another branch that nearly took his head off.

"Maybe we should go back," Nick offered.

"We can't go back," Zanell affirmed. "We have to keep going.  Doubt is just blocking our way."

"Doubt?  The tree's blocking our way, Zanell!"

"The tree is doubt," Zanell slowly remarked as she began to back away from the tree. "So maybe if we got rid of the tree, our doubt would go away."

"How do you know that?" Kevin asked.

"It's a feeling," she replied. "Think about it, what's the strongest emotion you feel?  For me, it's not fear, worry or anger, even though they're present.  It's..."

"Doubt," Kevin finished quietly, realizing she was right.  Doubt was the strongest emotion here.  The worry for Brian, anger at what had happened, they were still there and strong, but doubt as to what to do was strongest.

"We have to destroy the tree," the princess reaffirmed.

"And how are we supposed to do that?" AJ demanded. "We can't get close to it, even if we wanted to."

Suddenly a pure ringing filled the air.  As it grew, it brought with it a feeling of hope, one that had been fading. The ringing seemed to be all over, yet emanating from above.  Kevin raised his eyes and saw an object fall through the air and land at Zanell's feet, imbedding itself into the ground.  It was a sword.  A sword made of pure silvery blue energy.

"Psychic energy," Howie murmured. "Incredible.  Where did it come from?"

The ringing stopped, but the hope remained as Zanell tugged the weapon from the ground.  It seemed to pulse with the hope and faith missing from this darkened world.

"Beautiful."

Kevin nodded at Zanell's wonder-filled whisper.

"It seems out of place," AJ commented as Zanell took a test swing.

"It is," she affirmed. "I think... I think it's meant to be used to defeat the tree. And in this place, I can only imagine it coming from one source."

"Brian?" Nick asked tentatively, hopefully.

Zanell smiled. "Yes. It has to be." She stepped closer to the tree, which stirred at her movement.  It had stilled when the sword arrived.

"Push away your doubt," she instructed. "I think the tree is feeding on it, strengthening what it broadcasts.  Think about victory, and how we'll celebrate when we get Brian home."

It was hard to do. Kevin knew that even if they did rescue Brian, there was a lot the group needed to resolve. Still, the fact that some small part of Brian wanted to be rescued gave him a glimmer of hope. He clung to it, stepping forward to help battle the tree.  Despite the fact that they were in the astral plane, the pain Kevin felt from the flailing, whipping branches was real. It took every bit of effort from the five of them just to stand their ground.  It wasn't an easy battle, but Zanell kept swinging her sword and finally got in close enough to stab at the heart of the tree.  An unearthly shriek filled the air, and then the tree split in two and crashed to the ground.

Nick took a deep breath and said, "Are we going to have to do this the whole way?"

"I'd place a bet on that," AJ muttered.

"There will be other obstacles in the way, that's certain," Zanell said. "But I don't think we'll have the tree again.  We know how to defeat that one."

"While it wasn't the hardest we've ever faced," Nick commented, "I'd certainly appreciate not fighting it again."

Kevin agreed.  His side still ached from that first hard whomp of the tree branch, along with all the other scrapes and bruises acquired during the fray.  But it left him to wonder.  Things would certainly only get harder after this.  What could they expect next that would try to hold them back?  And what of Brian?  If that sword truly had been a gift from him, how could he have done that?  Even so, more assistance like that would help greatly.

Zanell urged them on toward the yearning, still positive it was Brian, the sword tight in her grip.  Kevin caught a brief look on Nick's face that said he wanted to protest again, but he put his arm around Nick's shoulder and offered a smile.  He gave half of one in return, then they followed after the others.

"We did everything we could.  I'm sorry."

Kevin froze in surprise.  That memory...

If the day hadn't brought such bad news, Brian might have thought the sunset beautiful. But it only served as a reminder of a little angel no longer here to see it. Technically, Sammi wasn't even his niece by blood; she was Leighanne's stepbrother's baby girl.  But Brian had loved that little gray-eyed brunette with his whole heart, like a surrogate daughter, almost.  If only he hadn't hesitated in his decision, Sammi might still be here.  Those people would have been safe.

"So many innocent people..." Brian crushed the can in his fist, and ignored the small spatter of remaining soda on his arm.  His ears still rang from their screams, their cries of help. Keeping his gaze on the treetops as he stood on the second floor balcony of his brother-in-law's house, he spoke. "We could've stopped this from ever happening.  I could have stopped it."

"We couldn't have known this was going to happen, Brian," Nick tried. "We can't see the future."

Brian stiffened. Nick, you just don't get it, do you? "We still could have stopped it!" he snapped, whirling around. "Don't you get it, Nick?  All those people got hurt!  Sammi's dead because I hesitated!  She was my responsibility, and if Matt doesn't forgive me, I won't blame him."

"But Matt doesn't know about the superhero bit-" AJ began.

Thick heads, I swear! "He knows it was my responsibility to watch Sammi!  And now his little girl is dead because of my mistake!"

Kevin spoke up in a soft, controlled voice. "I guess this means that we need to work that much harder against Zator."

Wha-? Brian's eyes moved to his cousin sitting in the corner. "We train harder; we get better," Kevin continued, "less prone to mistakes and hesitation where there shouldn't be any."

More training.  Fewer mistakes... less hesitation.  How could he have been so blind to ignore such an obvious option?

Brian had taken Kevin's suggestion to heart.  After Sammi's funeral was over, he had thrown himself into training to better himself and the group.  Day by day, they strengthened, and Brian's hope had grown.  Two years later Zator kidnapped Leighanne, Baylee, Kristin, Aaron and Angel.

That must be why Brian had thrown himself into the fights after I left; to prevent the mistakes of the past from repeating themselves.  But they hadn't been strong enough with four.  He clenched his fist.  He wasn't going to make them go through that again.

"Kevin, you all right?"

The others had paused and were watching him with worry.

"That memory... Did you see it?"

They shook their heads.

"What memory are you talking about?" Howie asked.

After a moment's hesitation, Kevin shared what he had just witnessed. "It was the day Brian's niece Sammi had died.  He felt awful, blaming himself.  You remember?"

"Yeah," Nick recalled. "He felt he could have done better, but it wasn't his fault alone.  We all had opportunity - not long, but we still could have gotten her out of there."

"Could we really?" Howie asked. "That attack had been well planned."

"Even so," Kevin continued, "Brian blamed himself, so I suggested we train harder.  Brian really took it to heart and worked harder than ever."

"It was just like that after you left," AJ noted quietly. "He threw himself into harder training."

"I doubt he'll be feeling pretty good when we find him here," Nick commented. "If Bri is remembering that day, there's got to be a reason.  We can show him he shouldn't be feeling guilty.  Matt wasn't angry at him at all."

"Guilt sounds like another step we may have to fight," Zanell remarked. "Let's keep going."

The friends continued on, on guard for more obstacles.  As they journeyed, Kevin's thoughts once again drifted back to the sword in Zanell's hand.  Howie had said it was psychic energy.  That didn't make any sense.  He was the psychic one, not Brian.  But Howie had said that their abilities work differently here.  Maybe that was Brian's new ability.  It would be something to talk about after they got back.

It wasn't long before they encountered more obstacles.  A sudden sandstorm arose, taking what visibility they had.  Soon, all sense of direction was lost.  But suddenly Howie created a shield around them, blocking them from the storm, like a bubble of calm in the midst of confusion.  As Howie was a naturally calm person, that made complete sense.  Nick discovered that he could slice through illusions meant to turn them away, lead them down wrong paths.  AJ was able to blast through a wall blocking the way.

Kevin's ability still had to be tested.  He had no idea what he could do here.  Did he still have super strength like Power Lord did back in the physical plane?

"Look!"  AJ pointed.

They followed his finger and saw, a large, round citadel made of black stone.  This was it; the moment of rescue was close at hand.   Would they find Brian being tortured, as in Kevin's dreams?  Or did something worse await them?  But Brian's gifts during the journey - Zanell's sword, Nick's shield, the spark of light during the sandstorm to bring them back on course, surely those meant that Brian was still free.  Kevin prayed it would be so.  The immense iron gates loomed before them.

"So how do we plan to get in?" Nick asked. "Knock?"

Howie shrugged, and had only reached out and touched the gates when they opened with a loud creak.  They froze, waiting.

When nothing happened, there was a collective sigh of relief.

"Let's go, then," Nick said, stepping forward. "We've wasted enough time."

Kevin nodded.  Indeed they had.  There were still misgivings rolling around inside, but he couldn't let that stop him.  He had come for Brian, and wasn't leaving without him.

Chapter 13

The blue light from the sword and shield cast an otherworldly glow on their surroundings.  Stone statues stood sentinel on either side of a wide staircase that led up to a landing, splitting off to the left and right into darkness.  More statues lined the hallways on either side of the stairs and off into the dark.

"Crap," AJ groaned. "Now which way?"

"How are we supposed to find Brian in this?" Nick agreed.

"How?" indeed.  Kevin began to move around the area, studying each direction and could hear someone else doing the same.  After several silent minutes, Kevin suggested, "Maybe we should split up."

AJ whirled around, just outside the circle of light. "Split up? Did I hear you right?"

"Yep."

"You can't be serious!"

"Look, I understand how dangerous this is," Kevin began," but this might just be the fastest way to find Brian."

"Suppose one of us gets in trouble and can't get to the others for help?"

Kevin sighed. "I've thought about that too.  But unless you have another idea - "

"Yeah, I do!  We need to stick together.  Strength in numbers, right?"

"Sometimes.  And other times - "

Zanell interrupted. "We could stand here debating the issue for hours and waste precious time, or we could just make a decision and find Brian."

When that silenced Kevin and AJ, Nick spoke his opinion. "To be honest, I agree with Kevin.  I mean, think about it," he continued before AJ could interrupt, "we have our own powers that can help protect us when we get in trouble.  Zanell has said it time and again: whether in a group or by ourselves, we're still a force to be reckoned with."

Kevin raised his eyebrows, impressed.  His young friend had certainly grown up in the eight years that he'd been gone.  He certainly couldn't accuse Nick of being afraid of a fight.  But then, Kevin recalled, he never had been afraid of one, not since the day he'd received that amulet.

Nick turned to Kevin. "So, which way you headed?"

Kevin grinned and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "The stairs.  You want to join me?"

"If you don't mind."

"Be delighted."

"I still say we stick together," AJ stepped in. "I..."

And Kevin finally noticed the way he was standing, almost the movie-style gunslinger pose he often took to cover up fear.  "Let's go, then.  Maybe we can split up on this level and check each room as long as we're in hearing distance of one another?"

AJ exhaled, his fear deflating.  "That works."

The friends were silent as they searched the upper level.  Looking back, nobody could ever say how much time they spent searching for Brian.  As he reached another door, Nick was beginning to think that maybe they'd wasted their time searching this level.  He turned the handle for one last room, then he'd suggest they search somewhere else. 

The door didn't open.  He stared at the door.  Tried again.  It was locked.

"Guys?" he called out. "Got a door won't open!"

They were at his side at once.  Kevin activated his amulet, gripped the doorknob and pulled.  Nothing happened.

"That's impossible.  I don't have super strength?"

"I did say we might have different abilities here," Howie remarked. "Even if it didn't apply to everyone."

"Let me try," AJ offered. "Maybe I can shoot it open."

Kevin stepped aside.  AJ took aim at the handle and fired. The wood around the handle blew apart, sending the brass handle flying away.  Everyone froze, waiting to see if the noise would attract attention. After a tense minute, Kevin released a breath and reached for the door. It pulled open silently and he stepped inside.  For a moment, he couldn't see what lay beyond the door, but as his eyes adjusted and the others moved, bringing the light with them, Kevin saw that the room was bare except for a mattress up against the far wall.  And curled upon it, black energy binding his wrists, was...

"Brian!"

Kevin knelt by his cousin's side. Looking him over, there was no sign of injury, just a great weariness to his face. Kevin gripped his arm. "Brian, wake up. We came to get you."

He didn't stir. Kevin called to him again, shaking his arm.  Still nothing. Zanell knelt beside him.

"Let me try," she offered. "He may need healing before he'll respond."

Kevin nodded, but didn't move as Zanell placed a hand on Brian's chest.  If Brian was in trouble, he wasn't leaving.  A purple glow appeared around her hand, indicating healing had begun. The air around Brian began to shimmer, as though a shield had been blocking him. Zanell winced as if the shield were painful. Nothing was said as the healing continued.  At last, the field around Brian faded. The energy around Brian's wrists dimmed but did not vanish. Zanell leaned back and closed her eyes.

"Harder than I thought," she murmured. "Still, the healing isn't nearly complete."

"At least you were able to help him somewhat," Kevin replied.

Brian stirred, a quiet sound escaping his lips. Kevin leaned forward and called to him again. "Wake up, Brian. We're here to bring you home."

He moaned quietly, and it took nearly fifteen seconds for his eyes to completely open. He seemed to have trouble focusing, as it was another few seconds before he spoke.

"Kevin? Zanell?" he whispered.

Kevin smiled. "You didn't think we'd leave you, did you?"

Confusion covered his gaze. "What?  No... no, this is just another trick!" He started to shift away, but found he wasn't strong enough to move.

Kevin reached and grasped his hand. "What trick?  Everything's fine."

"No." Brian pushed his hand away. "You're just another illusion!  Why can't she leave me be?  I want out of it."

Kevin and Howie's eyes met.  What in the world had been done to him?

"Brian, it's us," Howie said, moving closer. "Don't you remember the gifts you gave us? The sword and shield?"

Wide blue eyes looked from Kevin to the others.

Zanell reached for the sword she had handed to Howie and then held it out. "Touch it, Brian," she said. "It's no trick."

Slowly, Brian pushed up onto his elbow but couldn't go any farther.  Kevin helped him sit up, letting Brian lean against him as he reached for the sword. Great relief showed when he saw that the sword was indeed real.  He looked up at all of them and allowed a small smile to show.

"You came for me."

"Why wouldn't we?" AJ asked.

"After what I did?" Brian whispered.

"You got a little confused, that's all. Now, let's get out of here," Howie said.

"I can't." He cast his eyes at his bonds, remorse on his face. "I can't get free. I've tried, but... nothing."

"What are these, anyway?" Kevin demanded. "Why are you even in bonds?"

Brian closed his eyes, but said nothing.

Nick knelt at his feet. "What's the matter?"

He shook his head.

"Well," AJ remarked, "I didn't come all this way just to leave you here in chains. We're getting you out and back home where you belong."

"You don't belong here," Brian murmured.

"Well, neither do you," Nick replied, "and we're not leaving without you. So if you insist on staying, I'm not going back, either."

Brian's wide-eyed gaze shot up to him.

"I didn't lead the others here just so we could return empty-handed," Howie remarked before Brian could say anything.

"I came back to rescue you," Kevin said. "We're in this together. That's the way it should always be."

Zanell gave a nod and added, "The sooner we are free of this place, the better."

"Free."

They could hear the longing in Brian's voice, as though it had been a long time since he'd felt freedom.

"Come on." Kevin gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Let's get you out of here and back where you belong."

Brian closed his eyes and tried to smile.

"Your family is waiting for you."

He looked up at AJ's words and nodded.

"Let's... let's go home."

As Brian shifted to get to his feet, AJ realized that the black energy was still holding him prisoner.  "Do you have any idea how to get rid of this bond?"

Brian shook his head.  Zanell examined the black energy carefully, trying not to actually touch it.

"What about the sword?" Kevin asked, suddenly realizing something. "Remember the tree?  We had no idea how to battle it and were losing hope.  All of a sudden this sword falls out of nowhere, bringing hope back to us.  If hope battled - and won - against doubt, why shouldn't it set Brian free?"

Brian looked at his wrists.  He began to smile and Kevin could sense the hope beginning to catch hold again. "Do you think it would work?"

"You're the one who gave it to us," Kevin replied. "Do you think it would work?  It destroyed the tree - split it right in half.  Why shouldn't it free you?"

The others added their encouragement.  Finally, Brian nodded. "Give it a try."

Zanell rested the sword on Brian's extended wrists. "Do you trust me?"

Brian met her gaze.  The princess saw the apology for his earlier words on the ship. "I trust you."

Zanell tightened her grip and slashed hard, causing the air to sing with the contact.  The energy bond brightened, and for the briefest moment she thought she'd made a mistake.  But then she watched as the energy faded away into nothingness.  Brian was free.

A collective sigh of relief went through the group.  Brian opened and closed his hands a couple of times, then looked at her. "Thank you."

Kevin put a hand on his shoulder. "Now, let's get out of here."

Now that they'd found him, Kevin expected the attacks to intensify. It wasn't a victory yet.  Brian stumbled after a few steps, but Nick was there to steady him. Together, cautiously, the group began their exit.

"How long did it take to figure out this was the right room?" Brian asked as they started for the stairs.

"Long enough," AJ said with a frown. "The sooner we get out of this place the better."

Kevin agreed.  He couldn't explain it, but now that they were leaving there was a remarkably strong urgency to get out as soon as possible.  As they walked along, the feeling began to edge towards panic.  He pushed it down as best he could, hoping none of the others had noticed. Luckily, the attention seemed to be focused on the exit, and on Brian. They had reached the landing when a strange prickle crept up Kevin's spine. He stopped, not expecting such a sensation.

A hand on his arm. "Kevin?"

He glanced at Brian. "Something's wrong. You feel it?"

Brian stilled, concentrating. "Yes," he finally said. "We have to hurry."

"Are you able to?"

He nodded. "I'll make it."

"What's going on?" AJ asked.

"Something's about to happ-"

Flame erupted in a searing curtain just a few feet in front of them, blocking the way completely.  They couldn't even turn around.  Howie, closest to the fire, jumped back in shock. Over the roar of the flames, they heard AJ speak.

"What the heck is this?"

"Rage," Brian said after a moment, his face set. "Anger."

No one questioned his words.  They could feel it too.

"Something doesn't want us to leave," Zanell said, stepping back as the heat increased.

"No kidding," Nick said.  Suddenly -- "Hey, guys? I think it's growing!"

Brian grabbed his arm as his friend started backing up. "Stand your ground."

"What?! Brian, can you not see that we're about to get barbecued?"

"If we turn and run, it'll only grow larger," he said with certainty.

"What do you suggest we do, spit on it?" AJ shouted, gesturing.

"If we can't outrun it, and can't go around it," Howie said, "then the only thing we can do is..."

"Go through it," Zanell finished.

"No thanks, I like my skin and hair just fine," AJ said as he shook his head.

"We have to Aje," Nick said. "There's no other way."

"It's the only way we'll get home," Brian replied. "Unless you'd rather stay here for eternity."

AJ muttered something they couldn't hear, but Kevin could see he wasn't going to argue the point.

"Through it," he affirmed, sensing Brian was right while at the same time wondering how on earth they were going to accomplish the feat.  He felt a sweep of dizziness just for a moment, and something began tickling at the back of his brain.

"Kev?" he heard Brian ask.

A surge of energy replaced the dizziness.  Without really realizing what he was doing, he put his hands out; it had to go somewhere. The energy sprang out and surrounded them in a field of silver-tinged dark blue. Howie reached out a hand and touched it.

"It's a force field. Incredible."

"It looks familiar," Nick said.

Kevin concentrated on expanding the field, hoping to snuff out the flames. The heat was increasing despite his efforts, and he barely heard Brian's reply.

"It looks like mine," he said.

Kevin almost broke concentration as he glanced to see Brian watching him. A blast of heat reminded him of what they were battling.

He turned back and took a deep breath. "Let's go.   I hope this works," he muttered to himself.

Although he put all his strength into suppressing the fire, little progress seemed to be made.  Kevin began to falter; how could he fight such intense heat? Then a hand was on his shoulder. Brian's. That support boosted his confidence; he could do this, he had to do this. Smothering the fire wasn't working, so Kevin changed tactics. He mentally shaped the force field into a sphere, one that expanded rapidly. Soon it was big enough to hold everyone. If they couldn't stop the fire, they'd have to go through it.

"Well done," Brian said.

"Hurry," Kevin said, feeling the strain of effort.

As they moved through the flames and down the stairs, the fire intensified, and it was all Kevin could do to fight back. Brian kept his hand on Kevin's arm through the journey. The strain began to ease, and the possibility briefly crossed Kevin's mind that Brian was channeling strength to him while taking on his struggle. Then, incredibly, they were past the wall. Kevin turned, fully expecting the fire to follow, but it simply... disappeared.  Kevin dropped the field.

The comments began at once.

"Kevin, that was amazing!"

"How'd you do that?"

"We just blazed right on through like it was nothing."

"Are you all right?" Zanell asked.

He nodded with care. His head pounded. "Wasn't prepared for that... took a lot out of me."

"Hate to say it, but we're not free yet," Howie said quietly.

It was true. Kevin gave Brian a grateful look; with a small smile, he nodded. Moving forward, they made their way to the door.  They were almost out when a deep rumbling struck beneath their feet.

"What-?" Nick gasped.

The floor shook violently as great cracking sounds exploded around them.

"Earthquake!" Zanell exclaimed, eyes wide. "We have to get out of here!"

Chapter 14

Kevin barely avoided getting flattened by a chunk of the ceiling.  The place was collapsing around them.

"Get out now!" Brian shouted.

They raced outside; barely making it before the building completely collapsed.  For several minutes they stood frozen to the spot, staring at the remains of Brian's prison.

"Why did it just... collapse like that?" Zanell wondered.

"Because you freed me," Brian replied. "I was no longer a prisoner, so there was no need for this place to remain."

"Who held you prisoner?" AJ asked. "And why?"

"Someone I hope you never meet," was Brian's evasive reply. "Me?  I'm ready to get out of here."

Despite the vague answer, Nick grinned and threw an arm across his shoulders. "Then let's go home, bro. Your wife and kids are waiting."

"Go?" came a woman's icy voice, echoing around them. "What makes you think you'll be going anywhere?"

Brian's face drained of all color, instantly changing into a mask of terror. Kevin put a hand on his arm.  He'd never seen the man so afraid.

"Who is it?"

He shook his head, refusing or simply too terrified to answer.

"It's the thing that took you from us," Howie remarked. "Isn't it?"

Slowly, Brian nodded. "Nerezza," he said in a low voice. "Yes... she's the one."

"Nerezza?"

"Darkness," he replied with a shivered whisper.

"Did you really think I was going to let you go?" she asked. "After what you have done?"

Brian flinched.

Kevin scowled. "What nerve does she have saying that to you? It was her fault in the first place!"

Blue eyes widened. "Kevin-"

Before Kevin could even blink, an invisible force knocked him violently to the ground. He groaned at the flare of pain.  Ignoring it, Kevin struggled to his feet.

"Brian invited me in with open arms," the voice purred. "He called to me."

"Called to you?" Nick spat. "You lying little-"

"Nick, stop."

All eyes went to Brian, certain it wasn't true. But Brian turned his head away, shame filling his features.

Kevin's mouth dropped open. "Why?" he finally demanded.

Brian couldn't look at any of them. "Power," he said after a long moment. "I wanted power; I wanted to be effective, strong, invincible. I couldn't do it on my own; it was never... never enough."

"Brian, you were never on your own," Howie protested. "We work together, remember?"

"We were incomplete," Brian revealed. "And so were the powers."

No one knew what to say. Hadn't AJ said that it was Brian's faith that kept them going all these years?

"That's no longer the case, Brian," Kevin promised. "We're together now and we are going home."

"You're going nowhere," Nerezza hissed.

"Your power is not absolute," Zanell countered angrily. "Brian has already broken free of your control, and-"

"Brian has gained nothing, except for bringing the rest of you here for me to play with." A low, blood-chilling laugh echoed around us. "Soon you will all belong to me."

"Just what makes you think you can defeat them?" Brian challenged.

"A challenge!" came the amused reply. "Have you forgotten what I have given you, Brian? Your strength and power?"

He scowled. "All you gave me led to misery and pain!"

"You begged for it," came her voice, hardened. "Pleaded."

"Listen, I..." Brian blinked. "I only..."

"It's not my fault that you lacked the strength of resolve to handle my gift. You were fully aware of the price."

"What price?" Kevin demanded. "What is she talking about?"

Brian sighed. "She would make me stronger and in return, I would not fight against Zator."

"What?"

"I could face any other enemy that came against us," he hurried on, "but not Zator himself. That was the agreement."

"Brian," AJ snapped, "are you absolutely insane? Not fighting Zator? That's the exact thing we've been preparing for ever since Zanell first came and gave us the amulets! How could you have done something so stupid?"

"What was I supposed to do?" Brian demanded. "We didn't have many options left."

"So you choose one that could let our enemy win?" Nick asked.

In desperation, Brian turned to Kevin.  He was asking for help that Kevin wasn't certain he could offer. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't form. Swallowing hard against the painful truth, he tried again.

"Without me," he managed to say in a harsh whisper, "he didn't have much of a choice. This... it's my fault."

The pain of the admission was nearly unbearable. But Kevin knew the truth. His ears began to ring; everything around him seemed to shift in perspective. He stepped back from the group, from the astonished look on his friends' faces. As coldness began to sweep over him, a single voice penetrated his despair.

"Kevin, no," it said, gently but firmly. "This wasn't your fault."

He blinked, searching for her face.

"Desperation led Brian to the choices he made. He had options, but he chose to face it alone. That's why we're here."

"No," Kevin replied to Zanell. "When I left-"

"If Brian had brought the problem to everyone, would you have let him do what he did?"

"Absolutely not."

"Then it cannot be your fault, not solely. Choices were made; what's done is done."

"Yes," came another voice. "There is nothing left to do, but submit yourselves to me or perish!"

"Well, I'd rather live," Howie remarked, "though not working for you. I like my freedom, thank you."

The mist swirled in front of the ruins of Brian's prison and a moment later, a tall, dark-haired ethereal woman stood before the group. Her cold eyes studied the group before her. "You have no freedom in this place," she said in a deceptively velvet voice. "This is my domain."

"Not for much longer," Nick threatened, drawing his sword.

A bone-chilling laugh was his response. "You are all children, playing my game. You cannot hope to win against me."

"You might have been able to subdue Brian, but he's not alone any longer," AJ grated.

Kevin stepped in front of Brian. "You have a fight ahead of you," he told her. "And we will not give up."

"You know all about giving up, don't you?" she sneered. "You've had a lot of practice doing just that. Actually I should thank you for so neatly delivering Brian to this place." She smiled. "To me."

Kevin wanted to deny it, but there was a part of him that knew it was true.

"No," Brian's voice said, cutting through the guilt. "It wasn't his fault.  I've forgiven him. I made the decision on my own to come to you."

"He's worthless," Nerezza spat.  "You all could save yourselves the trouble and just agree to do my bidding now.  At least that way you would live."

Kevin watched as Brian lunged towards her; before he moved half the distance, a deafening crack shook the ground. A great chasm appeared in front of him, and he barely managed to stop his motion. The opening widened with incredible speed, separating him from the rest of the group. Kevin scrambled to his feet and began to run.  Before he really registered what he was doing, Kevin reached the edge of the chasm and leaped for the far side, barely hearing the startled cries behind him.  His hands barely caught the lip of the far side; with a thud, he hit the edge. Just as he slid away, a hand gripped his wrist with iron determination. Slowly, miraculously, Brian pulled him up to safety.

"Kevin, what were you thinking?" he demanded as he pulled Kevin to his feet.

"I'm not leaving you alone, Bri. Not after all you've been through."

"I appreciate it, but they need you more than I do."

Kevin followed his gaze across the chasm. The attack on the other four had already begun. Although Nerezza didn't appear all that threatening, the power she wielded was astonishing. Lightning bolts flashed from her fingers.  Kevin and Brian watched as she easily blocked an attack from behind without even turning around. AJ shot at her but she vanished in a swirl of cloud and reappeared eight feet higher. Nick flung one of his Ninja stars at her, but with a wicked grin she simply raised her hand; the metal was instantly vaporized.  Kevin's eyes widened.

"Oh no..."

If she could destroy a weapon like that with a simple flick of her wrist, then they were in deep trouble.

"Howie'll need a little help, too," Brian murmured.

Seconds later, a weapon hung in the air in front of Howie; Kevin couldn't quite identify it due to the distance across the chasm. Howie paused for a moment in surprise, then looked across the gap and nodded.

Nerezza intensified her fight; seems she wasn't pleased with the gift giving and was determined to have them all as her slaves or something.  Kevin was torn. How could he be with Brian and needing to be with the others fighting her?

"Maybe if..."

"Maybe if what?" Kevin asked, turning to him when he trailed off. "They need help now."

Brian worried his lower lip, then nodded. "I have to do it."

Every time Kevin heard that phrase, it never sounded good. It always meant some kind of sacrifice. "Brian, just what are you going to do?"

"Something that will help you and the others fight her."

He said it so straightforwardly that it caught Kevin by surprise. "W-what are you talking about?"

"This." He stretched out his arm and took a deep breath, closing his eyes.  Kevin's gaze moved from him to the battle and back again. What was he doing? Suddenly a brilliant flash of light lit the plane. Kevin had to shield his eyes from the sheer strength of the light. A shriek of anger filled the air.

"Traitor!" she cried.

Kevin's gaze whipped back to Brian. He had gone white and exhaustion filled his features, but a triumphant grin was on his face. "That should hold her back... for a while. Darkness flees from light." He turned to his cousin. "Kev, they need... your help. I can... make a bridge for you."

Kevin shook his head. "You need help, Brian. You're exhausted."

"I'll be fine," he replied. "I'll be too weak after I get you across, and Nerezza can't do anything to me anymore. Trust me." His eyes moved to the chasm separating them from the others. Kevin watched in shock as a silver and blue bridge of psychic energy was slowly fashioned.

"It won't last long," Brian whispered, panting for breath. "But it will get you across. Don't let me down."

His eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed.

Chapter 15

Kevin was at his side in an instant.  After checking him over, Kevin was relieved to find that it was only exhaustion that had made Brian collapse.  Even though he had said that the woman wouldn't be able to do anything to him, Kevin knew he had to be protected somehow.  Maybe he could make that force field again and put it around Brian.  He held his hands over Brian, not exactly certain how to proceed, but again the tingling came over him as though his powers knew what he wanted.  It felt a little different this time, but a good different. Kevin closed his eyes, took a deep breath and could almost see what he wanted.  The energy discharge wasn't rough like last time; now it was almost like a river of warm light.  Opening his eyes, Kevin saw the dark blue and silver field form a protective egg around his cousin.  There was some white crackling in it too, he noticed.  He had no idea what that meant, but Brian was safe and that was all that mattered.

With one last look at the sleeping figure, Kevin raced across Brian's bridge and barely made it before it faded away.  He dodged a bolt of lightning and made it to AJ's side. "Thought y'all might like some help."

AJ only had time to grunt before he shoved Kevin out of the way to avoid being electrocuted.

"No amount of help will save you," Nerezza said with a scornful laugh. "You will belong to me!"

Nick spared a moment to whisper, "She's weaker, thanks to that light." He darted away, but Kevin quickly followed, throwing up a force field to avoid another attack. "Where'd it come from anyway?"

"Brian."

A startled blue-eyed gaze whipped to him. "What are you talking about?"

Kevin was about to reply when Nerezza lifted a large chunk of rubble into the air and hurled it at the two.  Not having much time to react, Kevin lifted his hands and the field was up at once.  But the force of her throw and the combined speed and weight of the rubble were too much for his new power, slamming against the force field with such ferocity that Kevin was thrown backward, taking Nick down with him.

An amused cackle reached his ears. "Is that all you could do?  Was that your best?  My, you are weaker than I expected."

Kevin helped Nick to his feet. "We've got to do something," he whispered.

"Duh.  Got any ideas?"

The immediate idea was to get out of the line of fire to avoid being incinerated.  Dismayingly, no other ideas came to mind as the five comrades battled with the lady of darkness.

"Fools," she cackled. "Not even your combined strength can beat me!  I will have you as my servants, or you will be destroyed."

Clarity slammed into Nick as suddenly as if he'd met with a brick wall.  Combined strength. The combined amulets!  But was it possible?  He dashed to Zanell's side dodging Nerezza's attacks and countering with a few of his own.

"Zanell, your father said it was possible to combine the amulets.  Do you know how?"

She shook her head. "I've been trying to remember, but - "

Nick lifted his shield to block Nerezza's attack.  But her strength sent him flying backward, hitting the ground hard.

"Give up!" she shrieked. "You are obviously far weaker than I expected.  But join me as Brian did, and you can become stronger than your greatest dreams."

"Brian was tricked!" Kevin shouted. "You won't do the same to us."

"Fools," Nerezza reprimanded as she hovered over them. "You don't have the power to defeat me.  You are incomplete."

Zanell exhaled sharply and gripped Nick's arm.  "What is it?" he asked.

The princess dropped her voice to the barest whisper. "She's right.  We don't have Brian's amulet on this plane.  I left it in my room back in the physical plane."

Oh, crud. "Then, we can't combine them..."

"Until we have it."

Nick groaned, then dashed over to Howie who had managed to find some small cover behind a piece of rubble.

"Howie, we have a problem."

"Tell me something I don't know," Howie shot back as he took aim with the crossbow Brian had given him just moments before he'd passed out.

"We need Brian's amulet."

Howie froze, turned his gaze on the blond. "Tell me you're joking."

Nick shook his head.

"We don't have it?" he demanded. "How could we not have it?"

"Zanell left it behind."

Howie groaned. "So we're in trouble."

"We need his amulet," Nick reiterated, leaning closer. "There's no other way to defeat her."

Howie eyed him carefully.

"Someone has to go back and get it," Nick began.

"And I'm the psychic of the group," Howie finished, his heart dropping to his feet. "I can't leave you guys vulnerable like that."

"It's our only chance."

"Suppose something happens and I can't get back to you," Howie proposed. "Or that woman does defeat you and you can't get back."

Those were fears Nick did not want to face.  But as he glanced at the other three, he realized, "It's a risk we have to take, Howie.  We'll lose if we don't have it to combine against her.  Get that amulet."

Howie sighed heavily. "See you in a few, then."

Nick blinked, and Howie was gone.

~~@~~

Howie snapped into consciousness at once. Of course she forgot the amulet, he grumbled.  Stumbling to his feet, Howie made his way over the unconscious bodies of his friends to the doorway.  He turned left and found Zanell's room at the end of the hall.  Too far away from danger, his cloudy mind processed. Needs to move closer.

After nearly a minute of frantic searching, Howie found the amulet under her pillow.  Clutching it tight to his chest, he raced back to Brian's room.  Nothing had changed physically, so far as he could tell.  Quickly, he knelt back in his place and took Brian and AJ's hands, closed his eyes and entered the astral plane.

The darkness whipped and whirled at him, sensing that he had brought more power to fight the Lady of Darkness.  But Howie fought back - he couldn't leave the others helpless.

Up ahead. Light and darkness raging in a battle.

His vision cleared and showed him AJ struggling back to his feet, Kevin standing over him with a force field against Nerezza.  Nick and Zanell were side by side, trying to attack together.  Across the chasm, Brian's form lay still beneath the protective shell Kevin had created for him.

"I've got it!" he shouted, racing toward his companions.

Nerezza shrieked in anger, sending a blast of energy all around her and knocking all her enemies to the ground. "I will not be defeated!"

Kevin risked a glance at Howie and grinned. "Better get used to disappointment, your ladyship," he replied as Howie slipped Brian's amulet around his neck next to his own. "We won't be defeated either.  We work as a team, and we'll defeat you as a team."

At once the two amulets around Howie's neck began to glow a bright red light, joined swiftly by the others.  The crossbow - which had disappeared at Howie's exit - reappeared in his hands, glowing brighter than before.  He could feel the power pulsing through it and into his body, collecting the power of the amulets.

A hand on his shoulder.  Nick and Zanell had joined them.  Nerezza's next few attacks were easily blocked by Kevin's force field and the shield Brian had sent to Nick.  For the first time, Nerezza looked worried.

The power was nearly overwhelming.  Howie felt not quite in control of his limbs, as if the combined power of the amulets was lifting his arms and the crossbow, until they were level with Nerezza.  A final surge and the power blasted outward, nearly sending Howie to the ground.

An explosion of light and dark filled the astral plane; Kevin had to shield his eyes from the intensity from the brightness that had doubled after the light Brian had sent, but he wasn't deaf to Nerezza's eardrum-splitting shriek.  The ground rumbled; instinctively he threw out his hands to keep himself from falling toward the chasm.  The chasm... it was closing!  Gradually, the brightness faded and Kevin spotted the others slowly regain their feet.  AJ glanced at Nick, Howie at Zanell.  A loud whoop of triumph and the five of them began slapping each other on the back, embracing each other.

Suddenly Kevin remembered; "Brian!"

He was on his feet immediately, racing to the fallen figure.  Kevin knelt beside him and reached out a hand, the field he had placed around Brian dissolving.  Kevin touched his shoulder, but he didn't move.

"Brian, wake up.  It's over."

He heard several pairs of feet running toward him, but he kept his gaze on Brian.  After a moment, Brian inhaled deeply, and then slowly opened his eyes.

"Kevin?"

"It's over," he repeated. "She's gone."

He blinked and sat up slowly. "Gone?"

AJ knelt beside them. "It was incredible, B.  Howie had to go back and get your amulet, but once he got back, the amulets combined their powers and we found ourselves filled with so much energy and power that I felt like I was going to explode.  We took her down.  She's gone."

Brian sighed, his eyes closing and face relaxing with immense relief.

Zanell leaned close to his ear and whispered, "You're free at last, Brian.  You can go home."

"Home." He opened his eyes and frowned. "I've made such a mess there."

"Whatever happened, we'll all be there to help you," Nick promised.

Brian glanced from Nick to Kevin.  Kevin realized he wanted to know if everyone would be there to help him.  He nodded. "Like I'm going to leave you alone after this?"

Brian smirked.

Howie bent down and held out his hand. "You ready to get out of here?"

Brian paused a moment, then, his face set with determination, he nodded and gripped Howie's hand.

~~~^*@*^~~~

Opening his eyes, Kevin realized that he was staring at blue carpet.  Blue carpet?  He lifted his head off the floor and looked around.  They were in Brian's room at the base.  Howie was by the bed, sound asleep on his back.  Zanell was next to him, even in sleep holding hands with Nick, who was snoring like a bear.  AJ, surprisingly, had a pillow under his head.  He must have woken up long enough to grab a pillow and fall right back to sleep.  Brian... Kevin pushed himself up onto his elbow and looked at the figure under the quilt.  He was on his stomach, one hand gripping his pillow.  Kevin smiled.  He looked relaxed, at peace.

Free.

Satisfied that everyone was all right, Kevin crawled over to the cabinet that AJ had left open and grabbed another pillow.  As he sank down onto it, he sighed, happy to be home, glad that it was over at last.

Kevin awoke to the sensation of being smothered. What the...?  Just as he realized that a small body was sitting on his head, there was a sharp whack at his shoulder.  With a shout, he flew up, knocking the small person to the ground.  Small people, he soon saw.  Curly-topped nine-year-old Baylee climbed to his feet.  Next to him, holding a wooden spoon was Benjamin, the younger of Brian's twins.  Next to him was his sister Liberty.  All three stood there with the most innocent smiles on their faces.

"Hi, Uncle Kevin," they greeted.

Kevin blinked. "Hey.  When did you three get here?"

"After breakfast," Baylee replied.

"Na-nell say lunchtime," Libby said. "Get you'n daddy up."

Kevin looked over at Brian's bed.  The man was still asleep; even after all the noise Kevin had made.  Considering how strenuous it had been lately, he was allowed to be exhausted.  Ben dropped the spoon and clambered up onto the bed, crawled to Brian's face, leaned down and kissed his cheek.

"Way-up daddy."

Brian slowly opened his eyes and, seeing the small boy, squinted.  "Benny?"

"Lavi-loli, daddy." Benny reached for his father's hand and tugged. "Gettup!"

"Ravioli?" Brian asked, sitting up.  He blinked and rubbed an eye.  With a gaze that still seemed foggy, he started to look around the room. “What…?”

Kevin smiled and shrugged. "Beats me... literally. Apparently I deserved the 'spoon' treatment and a head smash. How come you get the gentle wake-up?"

He snickered. "The 'spoon' treatment?  They didn't."

"Baylee even sat on my head."

Brian laughed and held his arms out to his children. "Let me have hugs, you guys.  You got so big real quick."

Baylee and Libby ran and jumped on the bed and Brian fell back amid a tangle of arms, legs and tiny kisses.  And yet Kevin had to frown; how long had he been gone that Brian commented on his children’s growth?

"Too long," is all he said when asked.

Kevin shook his head and decided to let the man have his private moment with his kids. "I'm goin’ to get me some of that ravioli and see who else is here."

As he headed down the hall, Kevin noticed bright sunlight shining through the windows.  He paused and looked outside.  With a smile, he opened the nearest window, leaned out and took a deep breath.  It was warm; anything was warm compared to the astral plane, but this was heaven.

Well, almost.

"Daddy!"

Now it was heaven. Kevin turned to see his little girl racing toward him with arms wide open and a smile that filled her entire face.  He bent down as Natalie leaped into his arms, lifted her up and swung her round and round for nearly a full minute; her bubbly laughter made the dizziness worth it.  He slowed down and finally leaned up against the wall, waiting for the room to stop spinning.

“Missed you, daddy.”

Kevin kissed her thick dark waves. “I missed you too, Natalie.”

"Is Uncle Brian awake?”

He nodded; he had been certain that it wouldn’t be long before she’d ask about Brian, yet Kevin had secretly hoped for a little more time with her before her attentions moved on to her favorite uncle. “He’s in the bedroom back there,” Kevin turned and pointed. “Baylee, Libby and Ben are with him.”

“Kay.  Mommy and Aunt Leighanne made ravioli.  We were s’posed to get you and Uncle Brian up.”

Kevin suddenly realized that his stomach was clenching for want of food. Just how long had they been in the astral plane? “Well, Miss Natalie, let’s go get some food before I starve.”

Kevin entered the kitchen and saw his lovely wife and Leighanne standing by the stove laughing quietly.  Nick sat at the table holding little Spencer; Zanell sat beside him trying to get the toddler’s attention.  AJ was talking animatedly while somehow managing to eat his own plate of food.  Howie stood by the window holding an empty plate lightly covered in spaghetti sauce.

He smirked. “So, Howie, what number helping was that?”

All eyes moved to Kevin.  “Good afternoon to you too,” Howie replied with a smile. “It was only helping number two.”

“Only two?”

“He’s just started,” Kristin explained as she joined her husband. “Just wait; it’s the homemade kind.”

Kevin’s stomach growled loudly.  Natalie laughed and wiggled out of his arms.  As he grabbed a plate, Kristin whispered, “How’d it go?”

“Pretty rough,” Kevin whispered back. “But we’re all right.”

“And Brian?”

After a moment Kevin replied, “Physically he’ll be fine.  But I think there are a few things he still needs to work out with his family.”

From the slight squint of her eyes, he could tell Kristin was curious; but both of them knew it was none of their business.  They had just sat at the table when the loud laughter of children filled the hallway, mixed with over-exaggerated grunts and groans.  Ten seconds later Brian dragged into view with Baylee and Liberty on the floor gripping his ankles and Benjamin hanging around his neck.

Continuing into the kitchen, he grunted, “No… losing… energy.” Kevin laughed as Brian began to sink to the floor with each step. “Going… down…” As his hands touched the floor, Baylee started to climb to his feet.  Brian turned and leaped at his oldest son with a growl.  The four of them were at once involved in a “big tickle” as their grandmother called it; if they weren’t tickling one, another was soon the victim.  Natalie couldn’t stand it any longer.

“Me too, Uncle Brian!  Me too!”

Brian looked up. “That can’t be my little Nattie, can it?”

Natalie leaped out of her chair and into Brian’s open arms, throwing him backward with a grunt.

“Come on, kids,” Leighanne interrupted. “Now that daddy’s here, let’s eat lunch or we won’t have mint chocolate chip ice cream afterward.”

In less than four seconds they were off the floor and in line for food.  Kevin didn’t think he’d ever seen the kids move that fast.

“So it’s when ice cream’s involved that they move like that?” AJ asked.

“Only if it’s mint chocolate chip,” Brian remarked as he climbed to his feet.  If Kevin hadn’t been watching him, he would have missed the wince.

"Do you need to bribe them when it’s time to clean their rooms?” Nick wondered.

"Only Ben and Baylee,” Leighanne remarked. “Libby likes her portion of playthings just so.”

Brian hadn’t moved, just watched his wife.  When she finally noticed, she smiled.

“Hello beautiful,” he murmured.

“I was beginning to wonder if you’d be back in time for Libby and Benny’s birthday.”

Brian winced. “Sorry I’ve been gone so long.”

Benny broke the brief silence that followed. “Hugs, mommy!”

“Promised!” Libby added.

"Yeah, mom,” Baylee joined in. “You promised you’d give dad a big hug after he came home.”

“A hug and a spanking for leaving us like that,” Leighanne finished as she moved to her husband’s side.

“No spankin’s!” the twins protested.

“I deserve more than a spanking,” Brian softly replied, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“No,” Leighanne corrected, with a kiss. “We’ve already forgiven you, dear.”

“You don’t know what happened – “

“AJ told me some of it.”

Brian jerked around to stare at AJ. He gazed back in confusion. “What?  She deserved to know and you weren’t awake.  I was convinced of the same things you were, so I thought that might help her understand.”

Brian nodded slowly after a moment. “Thanks, AJ.”

In a way, he was right.  Hearing another perspective of belief might let her, and everyone, understand what drove Brian to do what he did.  Brian grabbed a plate and reached for the ravioli.

“Daddy, can we go swimming after lunch?” Natalie asked.  Baylee’s eyes got big, and the twins smiled.

"Swimming!”

“Please, Uncle Kevin?” Baylee begged. “I haven’t been able to swim all week!”

“That’s what you get for forgetting sunblock,” Leighanne replied. “You should have listened with Leigh told you to reapply.”

That’s when Kevin suddenly realized that Howie’s wife was the only one missing. “Where is Leigh?”

“In town,” Kristin replied. “She’ll meet up with us later.  There were some things she needed to get.”

And it couldn’t wait till later?  But Kevin didn’t voice the question when he noticed the look on her face, the “don’t press, you’ll find out later” look that was often combined with a smile as it was now.  He turned his attention back to Baylee and Natalie’s words.  When was the last time they had had a family get-together?  Kevin realized that with the distance between homes, at least a year had gone by since they, as family, had gotten together.  Since the last gathering with the Kevin and the Boys… it had been a lot longer.  Time together was long overdue for all of them.

“Please, daddy?” Natalie asked again.

Brian glanced over with a smirk on his face. “Your place is biggest, if I remember right, Kev.  Might as well use yours if it’s alright with you and Kris.”

“Why doesn’t everybody come?” Kevin finally offered. “We need a little fun together.”

“Perhaps you could all stay through Independence Day,” Kristin suggested. “It’s only a few days away and we could have a great party for the twins.”

Libby and Benny squealed in delight.  Kevin looked over at their parents and found that Brian was already looking at him.  He could see it in the blue eyes; celebrating wouldn’t be the only thing happening do while they were together.  He glanced at Leighanne and smiled.  “It sounds terrific,” he said.

“I think Ben and Libby deserve a great party,” Leighanne added.

A mischievous smile came to Brian’s face. “That way Kevin can dunk the kids for sitting on his head and giving him the spoon treatment to wake him up.”

 "Didn’t do nothing!” Liberty protested and pointed to the boys. “It was dem!”

 “Hey!” her brothers protested.

 “Don’t be arguing, now,” their mom intervened. “You do, and we won’t go swimming.  No ice cream either.”

 They shrieked in protest and promptly set to eating in silence.  AJ shook his head in amazement.

 “I should take notes so I can be ready for when Becky and I have kids.”

 “When is the big day?” Kristin inquired. “Can I do something to help?  Would-“

 Kevin laughed. “Easy, love.  We just found out the other day.  We need to relax a little before getting involved in something big like that.”

 “Oh, we want a small wedding,” AJ said. “A lot of the details are already done.”

 The conversation continued for several more minutes until Nick remarked, “Brian, I just realized something.”

 “What?”

 “Ever since we got back to Earth, you haven’t had any more…” he paused to think of the right word, “outbursts.”

 Brian paused in lifting his glass and set it back down on the table. “You’re right,” he said quietly.

 “Then you must be healed,” Zanell suggested with a smile. “The powers of the amulets are separate again.  How do you feel?”

 He inhaled deeply and leaned back in his chair. Leighanne took his hand in hers.  Finally he looked up and spoke. “Free.”

 The six that had been present smiled in relief.  Leighanne and Kristin looked a little confused, but Kevin was certain that Leighanne would eventually understand.  The children were completely oblivious, intent on eating all their food so they could be rewarded with ice cream and swimming.

“What a day,” Howie declared as he sank onto the couch in the den and stretched out.

“What a week,” Nick said from his spot in one of the big, comfy armchairs, long legs stretched out in front of him. They had all long ago changed back into their regular clothes, but Nick had either been so tired or just didn’t care that he had his shirt on inside out. “At least, I think it’s only been a week. Anybody know how long we were in the astral plane?”

“Finding Brian in the first place took the most time,” Zanell remarked.

Brian spoke from his spot beside Howie. “How’d you manage that, anyway?”

“Hacked into the planet’s satellites and had them search for any ion trails that could come from a ship.”

They stared.

“You did what now?”

“You can hack into satellites?”

“How does that work?”

“How did you--”

“Daddy?”

Kevin looked up at the sound and saw Liberty shuffling across the carpet, already in her nightgown and dragging what looked like a knit blanket with a monkey head attached to it.

Brian smiled. “Hey, Lady Bug.” He rose from the couch and scooped his daughter up into his arms, where she promptly laid her head on his shoulder and stuck her thumb in her mouth. “Is it bedtime already?”

Her thumb muffled the “Uh-uh” response. Kevin smiled and got up from the recliner, despite the negative response, to let Brian have the chair so he could rock his daughter to sleep. It probably wouldn’t take long, considering the kids had been in near-constant play all day. Brian murmured his thanks, but before he could sit, Benjamin padded into view. Kevin was a little surprised to see that the twins didn’t have matching pajamas on; Benjamin’s pajamas had trains printed on them, while Liberty had monkeys all over her nightgown.

“Hey, little man.” He hugged the toddler to his side. “So, is it not bedtime for you, either?”

“Sing night-night, daddy,” Benjamin pronounced, tugging on Brian’s shirt for emphasis.

“Night-night,” Liberty murmured around her thumb.

Brian’s smile fell. “Yeah, I guess I missed a lot of night-nights, didn’t I?”

“They just won’t go to sleep without it.”

The men looked up to see Leighanne in the doorway. She looked away when they met her gaze. “I… tried to play some of your music for them those first couple weeks, but… I guess I just made it worse.”

Kevin was startled to see the hurt on Brian’s face. What was that about?

Leighanne hesitated, her hands seeming unsure of where to go. “Baylee’s helping Kristin get Spencer into his jammies. I think they’re also trying to keep Natalie from swinging from the fan.”

Kevin laughed, not really surprised. His daughter had lots of family visiting this week, so she’d naturally be too excited for bed. He followed Leighanne and Brian, who each carried a twin back down the hall and upstairs to the guest room. While Natalie wasn’t swinging from the ceiling fan, she was bouncing back and forth across the mattresses Kevin and Kristin had purchased years ago for camping trips or guests, giggling all the way. Baylee watched her now that Spencer was in his pajamas, and shifted from one foot to the other, probably trying to decide whether to join her or to act like he was too old for it. But his parents bringing back the twins seemed to make the decision for him.

The call came for everyone to get into bed. Even then it still took a while for the kids to get under the covers--except for Liberty, who would not let go of her father to get into bed. When they were all finally otherwise settled, Brian started to sing. Kevin watched and listened. He saw a small smile on Baylee’s face; he also noticed that, even though Brian sat between him and Benjamin, Baylee had still scooted as close to the edge of his mattress as possible. Kevin couldn’t blame him. His father had been gone for a month, and not for work. How had all this affected him? Had he tried to be the man of the house? Kevin would have to ask Leighanne later.

After a few songs, Natalie sleepily requested some from Kevin. He wasn’t surprised to see that Spencer had already fallen asleep by the time he finished the first song. The twins were both out, too. He watched Brian and Leighanne gently tuck their daughter into bed, making sure she had her monkey blanket still tucked under her arm.

When the songs were finally over and goodnights had been whispered, the two couples got up to leave.

“Dad?”

Baylee had lifted onto one elbow. Fear tightened his face.

“What’s up, Bubba?” Brian asked, taking his hand from the light switch he’d been about to flip.

“Are you… you’re gonna stay, right? You’re not gonna leave again except for Backstreet Boys stuff? You’re gonna be home?”

He must have heard about what happened with Brian’s amulet that afternoon. Kevin turned to his cousin and was surprised to see uncertainty.

“Well--”

“Of course he is, Bubba,” Leighanne interrupted. “Dad’s not gonna leave us again. We know what happened, and it’s all fixed. He’s coming home.”

Did Brian just blink back tears? There must have been something Kevin was missing, but he couldn’t figure out what. He turned back to see a huge look of relief on Baylee’s face.

“Good.” He slid back down and pulled the covers back up around his chin, keeping his gaze on his parents. “I would have missed you too much.”

Brian swallowed and smiled back. “Me, too, Bubba. Good night.”

He flicked the light off, and the two couples stepped out into the hallway. When the door was mostly shut behind them, Brian turned to his wife and whispered, “Leighanne, are you sure?”

Kevin frowned. Sure about what? But Kristin started tugging him down the hall before anybody could say anything more.

“What was that about?” he asked when they were back downstairs and out of earshot.

“If they want you to know, they’ll tell you.”

“Wait, so you know what it’s about?”

“Only bits and pieces from what Leighanne told me while you were all gone looking for Brian.” She held up a hand to ward off more questions. “And again, if they want to tell you and the others what’s going on, they will. Don’t push.”

But Kevin wanted to push. He needed to know what he’d been missing out on these past eight years, especially in the six years since he’d left Backstreet Boys. Sure, he knew a few details thanks to Howie and AJ, had purchased the two albums they’d recorded in his absence; but after what had happened recently, and those cryptic comments just a minute ago, Kevin knew something else was going on. Leighanne and Brian’s reappearance kept him silent, though.

They returned to the den to see Howie, AJ, Nick and Zanell waiting for them.

“How’d it go?” Howie asked.

“Better than the last month,” Leighanne remarked as she and Brian sat beside him on the sofa, “now that their dad’s back.”

Howie smiled. “Good. I offered to sing to them while they stayed with us. But they only wanted you, Brian.”

“Thanks for trying,” Brian said. “I’m glad you were there for my family when I wasn’t.”

“Why did that happen in the first place?” AJ demanded. “How’d you get mixed up with Zator and that crazy woman? And how long ago?”

“It was the same year the twins were born,” Brian began. “Springtime, I think, maybe earlier. I don’t know how she did it, but Nerezza first showed up in a dream. We were in the studio in the dream, and all four of us were there. Nerezza was beside me on a couch, but it was like you three--” he waved a finger at Howie, AJ, and Nick, --didn’t even see her. I don’t think you even saw me, come to think of it. You guys kept rotating who was in the recording booth and I didn’t even get up.”

“Proof that it was definitely a dream, then,” Nick remarked with a smirk. “Because we would have dragged you into that booth and glued your feet to the floor until you’d sung your parts.”

Everyone laughed.

“Yeah, you would have. Maybe she had control of the dream, for all I know. She is that powerful. Anyway, she said she’d seen how hard we’d been working trying to stop Zator, saw how tired we were and how hard it was to defend our home. She offered to help.” He shrugged. “I must have said ‘no’ or something, because she just smiled and told me to think about it. She was also rolling a little ball of energy around in her hand, like one of those massage balls for your hands.”

“So you didn’t accept her help then,” Howie said. “She tried again?”

Brian nodded. “I think it was another month or so before I had the dream again--same setting, same offer for help. But I still must have refused then, too, because the dream kept coming back. Only this time, it was every couple of weeks. I even told Leighanne about it; I was afraid the fighting combined with Backstreet stuff was wearing me out so much I was starting to crack.”

“Is that when you asked for the break?” Nick asked. “I remember you needed a long one after the twins were born, where we needed to step back from appearances as a group until the tour for This is Us.”

“That’s the one.”

“I’d thought it was just to help Leighanne with the twins and Baylee, so she could recover properly.”

“That was just as big a part of it, too. I figured that as long as I had that break, I might be able to rest and have the energy to fight Zator. It only sort of helped, in the end. That’s when the attacks increased and you two--” he motioned to Howie and AJ, “--got so badly injured.”

Kevin looked over to see the two men nod in understanding.

“In fact,” Brian revealed, “it was while AJ was still in a coma that Nerezza came to see me when I was awake.”

Zanell spoke, “So she’s not limited to the astral plane.”

Brian made a face. “I’m still not really sure.”

“What do you mean?”

Brian glanced at his wife, who looked back in concern, her eyes wide. Understandable, Kevin thought. This crazy woman had violated their home and family with her schemes.

“You and Howie were trying to heal AJ back at the base,” he said. “I’d just gotten home, and I was so exhausted I had to just sit and rest for a minute before I could even work up the energy to climb upstairs and get some sleep. I know I closed my eyes for a bit. When I opened them again, I saw movement in the mirror.”

Leighanne gasped. “She was in our home?”

He held up a hand in a calming gesture. “Let me finish. When I turned around to look, nobody was there. She was there in the mirror, though, and scolded me for not accepting her help in the first place.”

AJ scoffed. “Seriously?”

Brian nodded. “She said she came to make the offer one last time, then she’d leave me alone and it would be up to me. She held up that little ball she’d had in all of my dreams and said that when I finally wanted her help, wanted a taste of the power she could offer us all, then all I had to do was crush the ball in my hand, let her power soak in and take over.”

“And that didn’t sound suspicious to you?” Leighanne asked.

Brian frowned at her. “Of course it sounded suspicious. That’s why I didn’t use it right away.”

“But if she was in the mirror, how did you get that ball?” Zanell asked.

Brian shook his head. “I have no idea how she did it, but I watched as she walked over to the fireplace and set the ball on the mantel. Then she disappeared. And when I turned to look, there it was.”

“Did you use it?”

“Not right away. I think I carried it in my pocket another couple of months before it got bad enough - or maybe that I felt desperate enough - to use it.”

Kevin finally spoke. “What happened?”

Brian sighed heavily. “It was the day we’d been forced to split up farther than we’d ever gone before to fight Zator’s soldiers and droids.”

Kevin looked over in surprise when Howie, AJ and Nick cursed at the comment.

“Yeah, that was a real bad day,” AJ remarked. “I actually thought we were gonna die.”

Kevin’s jaw dropped. He’d been off trying to live a normal life while they had nearly died, and he never knew. The guilt hit him again, hard.

“I did, too,” Brian admitted. “That’s why I used it that day. I was hiding, trying to catch my breath, when I finally remembered that it was in my pocket. I could already feel the energy pulsing from it as I pulled it out.” One palm curled a little, as though holding the ball again. “But when I finally crushed it in my hand like she said to…” he shook his head, “it was unbelievable. I wasn’t exhausted anymore, and it was like my all senses got a hundred times stronger. I somehow knew when a soldier or droid would show up and I’d take them out so easy it was like nothing.”

“But it wore off,” Howie pointed out. “I remember that day. I saw you go from totally energized to sheer exhaustion right before you collapsed.”

Kevin’s gaze whipped back to Brian, who nodded, his face clouded with confusion. “And I must have slept through the rest of the day and into the night. Thankfully, we didn’t have a show that day. I doubt I would have been able to function. When I woke up, the sun was just starting to come up. Leighanne couldn’t believe I’d let myself get so exhausted and scolded me for it, pushing for another break.”

“And then we had another fight,” Leighanne revealed, “about you four being amulet bearers, how maybe it was finally time for you all to give it up.”

Kevin blinked in surprise when the others all looked away. “I take it this is an old argument. How often does it come up?”

“A couple times a year,” Nick replied. “That Brian’s told us about, at least.”

“Or that we’ve overheard,” Howie added. “But since only three of us can or will use the amulets now, maybe it’s time to consider it.”

“After we hear the rest of the story,” AJ said. “Brian, when did you actually… what’s the phrase I need to use? Join her? Accept her help?”

“And why didn’t you tell us about it?” Nick asked. “You just said she’d offered it for--”

“I did,” Brian said pointedly, with a glare. “Or I tried. Several times over the next year. But you guys never took me seriously. You just brushed it off and didn’t believe anything else existed to help other than getting Kevin back.”

The other three winced. Clearly, they remembered. Brian went on, calmer now.

“I never knew how to get in touch with her to let her know I wanted her help. Never knew her name till after. So I just kept working harder, fighting harder, trying to do what I could to help the team.”

“Is that when I started having to heal you after every mission?” Zanell asked.

Brian nodded. “I must have been in real bad shape when she finally came. I remember drifting in and out of consciousness. Sometimes I saw faces above me--you guys, I think--sometimes I was alone. But when I was out, that’s when Nerezza was there in my dreams again. Only this time, I had to prove that I was worthy of her help. That’s what she meant when she said I begged.”

“So when did that finally happen?” Nick asked.

Brian shook his head. “I’m honestly not sure. I just know it was some time after the twins turned one.”

“Well, when did you find out what a wicked witch she was?”

Brian winced. “Not until it was too late.”

Something about Brian’s tone of voice put Kevin on alert. “What do you mean?”

Blue eyes flicked up to his, then darted away so fast he wasn’t sure there had even been movement. The realization hit. “On the way home?”

“After Howie knocked me out the first time,” Brian admitted quietly.

“So, everything that happened after,” Howie said slowly, “that was her? She was controlling you?”

It physically hurt to see the pain on Brian’s face. “Not… entirely… I think.”

They waited in tensed silence while Brian searched for the right words. Finally, starting slowly, he said, “It was like… I don’t know… like she just… opened up and amplified all the frustration and fatigue and helplessness I’d fought ever since Kevin left and shoved them all up where I couldn’t ignore them and it all came out on the ship.”

He met Kevin’s gaze, then the others. “I’m sorry, Kev. For everything. All of you. I really am.”

None of them could speak right away, not even Kristin, who had sat there silently listening to the whole thing. Kevin turned to see tears on her cheeks. He pulled her close, kissed her cheek, then turned back to Brian. But Brian had turned to his own wife, guilt pinching his face.

“I guess Nerezza was influencing me more than I realized,” he said. “Especially at home.”

“You weren’t yourself,” Leighanne murmured.

Brian nodded.

“How do you mean?” AJ asked.

Leighanne reached out and clasped Brian’s hand tightly in her own. She murmured something too quiet for the rest of them to hear. Whatever it was seemed to give Brian the strength to explain.

“I thought I was still the same dad I’ve ever been,” he whispered, “but… I guess my temper was shorter with everyone. Leighanne told me several times that I’d become distant, sharp. She couldn’t tell if I loved any of them anymore, especially her. One day…”

He swallowed hard. A hard knot settled itself in Kevin’s chest as he waited. One fear rose up, and he prayed it wasn’t true.

Brian took a deep breath to continue, but Leighanne spoke instead. “A little over a month ago, a month and a half, maybe, I suggested he find an apartment nearby.”

Kevin stared, heart dropping to his feet. It couldn’t be.

“I told Brian he could see the kids during the day, once I said so,” she went on, “but once they went to bed… I wanted him out of the house.”