*********Sarah********

That’s a neat toy, I thought. I wonder how he got an image of Shaw’s face like that. It sure fooled the soldiers. Hell, it would have fooled me if I hadn’t seen him before he turned it on. He sent those men to hide back there though. Why? If the men he’s here for are terrorists, and he’s a terrorist, obviously, since he probably cleared a path for the people fighting down there, why wouldn't he throw them into the fray to cause more chaos? He’s obviously aware that there really aren’t enough soldiers here to stop him. *I wish I could hear what he’s thinking!*

I concentrated on reading him, the driver’s thoughts an annoying chatter in the background. What I pictured as tendrils of thought reached out to his mind again, hitting those same walls. Instead of drawing back immediately like I had before, I moved them over the wall studying it. He must be a telepath too, to have walls like that. It wasn't nothingness. Rather it was more like a reflection. I didn't notice it at first because it seemed like a barricade of meaningless surface thoughts.

Hearing the driver’s thoughts in my mind as I scanned Jack’s walls made me notice a similarity in the thoughts reflected back at me. They were faint and vague but the cadence was the same as the one she heard in the driver’s thoughts. The wall wasn’t airtight. I had felt him push the sense of urgency out at me several times, so if something could pass out of the wall something else can pass into it.

He looked at me again as I directed my concentration on finding the way through. *What are you trying to do? Maybe I can save you some time.*

What the hell? That wasn’t my thought. How did he do that? He must know I’m trying to get into his head. Well if he's a telepath too, he probably already knows so there’s no point in asking. He won’t tell me if there’s a way to break a shield like that in order to protect himself. *Why did you tell those soldiers to hide?* I tried thinking back at him.

The only indication I had that he heard me was a raised eyebrow. *I'm not here for them* came the distinctly masculine reply in my head. With that he turned back to looking out the windshield in front.

The long walk across the compound that should have taken another half an hour instead turned into a ten minute race along streets clogged with doctors and scientists trying to figure out what happened. All the while I probed at his walls, the sporadic gunfire that broke out only lasted brief moments before it died out again. As we pulled up to the barricade in front of the Chop Shop, two guards stepped forward, guns pointed at the driver and myself.

“Step out of the vehicle slowly with your hands raised!” they said, waving their guns.

Jack got out as requested and started talking. “I’m securing the hostile, it’s time she no longer has the run of the place. She’s behind this I’m sure of it.” When he said that both of the guards trained their weapons on me. Crap, what now? I tried to look scared as I stepped out of the jeep, trying to make myself as small a target as possible.

“What’s happening out there Major? All we’ve heard is that our southern defenses have been breached. No one is allowed in or out of here when we’re under attack sir, you know that." Just then a shadow passed over them and suddenly a man with huge brown wings dropped to the ground behind them. A flash of movement from the man and a moment later the guards were slumping lifelessly to the ground, their necks broken.

“M’lord we’ve secured the perimeter.” he said looking at me then back to Jack. “There are still some guards holding out in buildings to the west near the airfield, but I sent the Chameleon squad to deal with them.”

Jack nodded in thought, “That means they'll be taking prisoners. Send a small team along behind to help transport them. Marco and Ahmed?” he said questioningly. The man with the wings thought for a moment and nodded, speaking quietly into his hand. I’d never seen someone else with wings before. His wings were much larger than mine and actually looked capable of holding him in the air. I am not jealous I told myself, these wings have been nothing but trouble since they'd grown.

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Just then I remembered the driver and jumped ready to... do something, I guess, but he was already slumped in the seat. For a second, I thought he was dead, but then I noticed the slight rise and fall of his chest. So that means he doesn't kill indiscriminately at least. After all, the driver did get us here pretty fast, maybe his reward was life? I went back to poking and prodding his walls while they spoke quickly about this attack he must have planned.

The winged man kept calling him my lord for some reason. What did I really know about this guy anyway? Let’s see, eight years ago we had graduated high school together, he was really good with computers but not so good with people, weird but nice. We had been friends. Then, six years ago, he disappeared from his apartment without a trace. I was still probing the wall as I thought this when something happened and the resistance to the probes disappeared. *What the bloody hell was that?!* His thought resounded through my head.

******Jack*******

What the hell did she just do? *Nothing I didn't do anything* her voice said clearly, but nervously, in my head. Ah no. No, no, no! Not again. She looked at me suddenly concerned. *What? What's wrong? What did I do?* Well at least there was that, she still had control of her body, she must not have put too much of herself into the probes. *What are you talking about Caleb?*

I held my hand up to Michael mid-sentence, ignoring her use of my real name for the moment. “You are perfectly capable of finishing this operation on your own Michael. I will leave it to you.” I said, earning a nod of respect. “A situation has come up that demands my immediate attention, our brothers and sisters are in there. Expect heavier resistance.”

As Michael turned I asked, “How are our men faring Michael?” he stopped, still facing away from me. Odd he was normally very polite about looking me in the face when he was answering my questions.

“We lost two securing the high ground m’lord.” Ah, he didn't want to see the anger in my eyes, but my friend it is not for you. *Why mourn for two of yours and not the many more of theirs?* that newly annoying feminine voice said in my own damn head. I turned my head to her quickly to catch her face as she caught that thought.

“And you, mon chéri,” I said walking up to her, “You and I are going to have a chat, and you are NOT going to dig any further into my head than surface thoughts. I don't know if I can get you out safely as is, let alone if you try to go deeper. I don't suppose you ever learned how to fly?” A shake of her head confirmed it, so I held the wrist com to my lips and spoke, “Marco give me a sit rep.”

A voice with a distinct Italian accent answered through my ear bud, and I knew the little bee buzzing around in my brain could hear it as clearly as I could. “We are escorting the prisoners secured by Chameleon squad Sir! There’s a cargo plane on the tarmac we were thinking about using for immediate transport.”

“Excellent,” I replied, “Hold Chameleon squad there for a full evac within an hour, incapacitate the prisoners if necessary, I will be on the tarmac soon.” I looked back at Sarah *Now for your first lesson, you are not a telepath, at least not just a telepath. Is there anything you want to keep from here?*

*No,* came her quick reply. *What are you going to do to the people here? I don't think they are all in on... whatever this is.* she thought at me, waving to the accurately named Chop Shop.

I couldn't still the anger that raged up within at the thought and her face became carefully blank. *It depends on their level of complicity. We will have plenty of time to determine that on the way home, and if we are lighter when we arrive it will be a deserved punishment. Get in the jeep. We need to leave.*

*Would he really throw someone out of a plane?* her thought rang in my head.

"Yes I would," I said out loud "If it fit the crimes they were guilty of, like cutting a man's wings off."

*He really would* followed an instant later by *Oh shit, he can hear my thoughts too* as she ducked into the front seat next to the unconscious driver.

*Yes, mon chéri, I can. It's called an empathic link. The link works both ways, what occurs on one side occurs on the other. It appears that in addition to being a telepath you are an empath too. I can't break it myself without hurting you so I will need to teach you... a lot... so you can break it safely on your own.* I opened the back door on the driver side, then the front and pulled the driver out tossing him in the back. After restraining him with durable plastic cuffs, I shut the door and got in the driver’s seat.