Wagner continued his work on Nic's Netpod, analyzing every aspect of the device, paying special attention to all the embedded storage sub-systems. He already had recovered the same small fragment of data that Henrik's engineers also managed to pull up. The wipe that Nic's kill command executed was thorough and effective, Wagner doubted whether Henrik's men would be able to recover any additional data.

However, the recovered fragment proved an interesting puzzle, it did not strike him as random. He found it curious that any data was recoverable at all, taking into account the apparent skill of this particular Netpod owner. Something about that intrigued Wagner, he had a suspicion that the data may have been intentionally left behind, so he set about decrypting it. After firing up several idling crypto clusters he had access to, he queued a multitude of cryptanalysis suites to run against the fragment then turned his attention back to the device itself.

The tech was typical for this day and age, he thought. It was compact, powerful and even stylish, similar to devices he had seen in a previous life. The modifications the owner had endowed this unit with were impressive, Wagner admired the cleverness of it all. Whereas most Netpods were simple, over-powered devices, that lay-people carried around for a variety of mundane purposes - this device was tuned, augmented and stacked full of interesting modifications.

It had dual nearband radios, whereas other Netpods had one, the second appeared to be for more than just redundancy, but that was just Wagner's guess. He also found it had a sophisticated wideband passive scanner, that could likely detect an impressive array of communications traffic if the software behind it was any good. To top it all off, all this hardware had been removed from the original case and transferred to a hardened, waterproof package that was even tamper resistant. Wagner marveled at the little device as he scanned and scrutinized it, few people would truly appreciate it for what it was, he thought, it was the artful side of science.

Time passed, which was not much of an issue for Wagner, for the most part he was temporally ignorant, perhaps more so at present as he had Nic's interesting enigma to keep him occupied. He got an alert from the decryption monitor, there had been some progress made on that fragment of code.

Wagner investigated and discovered something that amazed even him, the encryption was not entirely unlike his own, it was even closer to that which Erik used. He surmised that this individual must have had previous contact with Erik and from that he must have reverse engineered some of the encryption.

Niles had had his people trying to decode Wagner's encryption for years, and yet this apparent individual appeared to have made nearly as much progress alone in a much shorter time. Furthermore, he turned around and baked the encryption into his own device. As Wagner analyzed the decrypted data, he began to understand what it was, why it was not wiped as thoroughly as the rest and what this could mean to himself and Erik. If he still had the ability to smile, he would have been grinning ear to ear.

Sean was being half-pushed, half-dragged down a hallway, again. He had lost count of how many interviews and interrogations they put him through so far, all he knew is that he was in excruciating pain, his ankle was an ugly shade of purple, swollen and would not bear his weight. Yet it was the sleep deprivation that was chipping away at his mental fortitude and he was very close to giving in and providing them with the information they want.

After all, they had won, what was the point of fighting? If he just gave them what they wanted they could all go home. But another voice persisted in his head, telling him to resist, to hold-out - and for reasons unknown to even him, this was the voice he listened to.

He finally arrived at their destination, a room they had not taken him to previously. Completely different from the other pristine white, sterile interview rooms. This one was bereft of proper illumination and full of strange equipment. The whole room seemed to hum.

There were technicians seated at workstations, their crisp, white coats stood out against all the dark, metal machinery. Sean, only now noticed the others where already in the room waiting. Miller looked tired, as he looked up briefly while Sean was lined up with the others. Trey was in rough shape as well, it looked to Sean that he was getting regular beatings at the hands of the guards.

Trey made eye contact and nodded ever so slightly to Sean, a sign of solidarity. Abi looked frightened and pale, he thought she looked thinner too. How much more could they all take, he wondered, and to what end? Maybe Nic had the sense to get out of the Core, that would have been best, so even if they gave up his location or identity, he would be long gone.

Sean noticed a very strange chair in the center of the room and a large piece of equipment that hung right above it, he did not want to think about it, but in the back of his mind he presumed it was some kind of torture device, as did the others. Along with the usual bunch of guards, he saw Henrik who was standing next to someone else. A taller man, wearing an expensive looking, dark suit, he had a gaunt, sinister face, his brow deeply furrowed as he spoke quietly to Henrik who looked a bit disconcerted. The taller man stepped forward, approaching the line of prisoners.

"You have all met Henrik from what I gather, so I will just introduce myself," He began as he strut before them. "I am doctor Niles Galvin, you have been summoned here to take part in an experiment that I will oversee. The device before you is a re-creation of a very old piece of technology from the Second Age." Miller looked up his eyes wide as curiousity surpassed fear momentarily. "What this device allows us to do is extract your thoughts without your consent, as you have all chosen silence in the matter of the KTI incident you will be subjected to the procedure. I have been told the experience is rather unpleasant, but you can judge for yourself." He said with a smirk.

"Now who gets to go first?" He looked over the group, inspecting each one as he passed by. He paused in front of Abi and looked her over the way a predator might survey it's prey. "Abigail, is it? Let's say ladies first shall we?" He motioned to the guards.

Abi felt her stomach lurch, but she did not resist as they lead her to the chair.

"No, you bastard!" Sean yelled, struggling with guards. "Leave her alone, use me!"

"Now wait your turn my young man, you'll get your chance." Niles replied in an even, dry tone. "Hook her up." He order the technicians.

"Guards," Henrik began "please stow their restraints until the procedure has completed." He advised, given that powerful magnetic fields were involved, all metals needed to be secured. The guard detail was doubled up, two for each detainee, though in their current condition they posed little threat of escape. The guards removed all their shackles and stowed them in a locker on the wall by the door. Abi was strapped to the odd carbon-fiber chair, several restraints holding her firmly in place. A special mask over her face, locked into the chair preventing her head from moving.

"Begin." Nile ordered.

Miller, Trey and Sean looked on at Abi, who appeared even smaller strapped to the chair. Sean continued to struggle a bit with the two guards, but they wrenched his arms up behind his back and kicked his knees out, collapsing him to the ground. The hum in the room started to grow louder and louder as the equipment powered up. Task lighting at the workstations came up, while the main lighting dimmed, Abi remained lit by a small spotlight high up in the ceiling.

"We're here with you Abi." Miller cried out. It was the only thing he could think of.

The chair reclined with a soft hiss, nearly laying Abi flat, a small antenna telescoped up from the floor to a position directly behind her head. A part of the instrument above her began to unfold, in an organic fluid motion, changing shape as it unravelled. It descending slowly, purposefully until it was just centimeters from her face.

To Abi it looked like a silvery, skeletal hand. Her heart beat rapidly, pounding in her chest as she fought to master her growing terror. The bulk of the machine remained far above, only the small, hand-like signal generator at the end of a long articulated arm approached the intended target.

Half a dozen technicians manning workstations at one end of the room worked diligently operating and monitoring the machine, while Niles and Henrik looked on intently. Abi could feel the hair all over her body starting to stand on end and she had an odd, warm sensation on her face, like sunlight except that it prickled her skin. She braced herself for whatever physical horror would come next.

Suddenly her eyes filled with an overwhelmingly bright light, she shut them tightly but the light only intensified, it was as if every recess of her mind was bathed in white light. Along with the light was the sensation of warmth all over, tingles raced over her body, her anxiety melted away, a sense of calm passed over her.

Thus far the experience was unique but not unpleasant, she wondered if the machine was suppose to function this way. Out of the white blanket of light, amorphous shapes began to appear, then dissolve away. She started to get a sensation of floating, or falling. The shapes became more detailed and there was a smattering of colour mixed in with them.

Suddenly, a shock went through her, she could not discern if it went through her body or through her mind, but it was violent and painful, like falling into a pit of broken glass. The images instantly became clear, she was standing in her parents foyer, she was eight years old, a broken vase lay at her feet, glass everywhere. An expanding pool of water crept across the tile floor, tears welled up in her eyes. It was not a dream, Abi could feel the rug under her feet, the tears on her cheeks, she heard the clock in the other room chiming softly and her father yell from upstairs 'What was that?!'.

A distant part of her consciousness told her she was strapped to a chair in some kind of lab, but at the same time, there she was in her old house, filled with a sense of shame and dread as she heard her father coming down the hall.

Another shock, the world went white and then she was staring through a small, round, thick window watching schools of tropical fish dart about on a reef. Someone tapped her on the shoulder, it was Daniel, he was coaxing her to come and see something. It was one of her childhood vacations, a trip to one of the Oceanic Cores, they had a great time, it was a good memory. Daniel was still alive, life was simple and happy.

Wait, she thought, Daniel IS still alive, she was back in the present. She remembered her recent revelation, her encounter with Daniel, his warning, her peril. This was a memory, these are all her memories and someone was accessing them, watching them, stealing them. She felt violated, they have no right, she thought, these were her memories to hold on to, not some catalogue to be casually flipped through.

A technician turned from his display to advise Henrik, "She's resisting, sir."

"Increase the carrier amplitude and see if the capture array is functioning to specification. Make sure we are running in debug mode."

"Will do, sir." The tech replied.

Another shock.

Trey, Miller and Sean watched helplessly, as Abi writhed and twitched and struggled against the restraints. What began as a trickle of blood from her nose was now a steady stream. Her fists clenched and unclenched, her breath came in gasps.

"You're gonna kill her!" Sean screamed, still pinned under two guards. Neither Henrik or Niles gave any indication they heard Sean's pleas.

"Still resisting, sir." The tech advised, a bit louder than he should have. Trey picked up on the comment--augmented hearing.

"She's fighting it," Trey said quietly to the others.

"Hold on Abi." Miller urged.

Another shock.

The white took longer to wash away this time, she was dizzy, nauseous. It was snowing hard, she was getting off the pod at the stop near KTI, Trey was walking up the street to meet her. The air was cold on her face and the stinging snow clung to her eyelashes. She froze. 'They are going to kill you' - those words, Daniel's words rung in her ears.

She couldn't let them take this memory, not the one that would expose Nic, once they had that, they would have what they wanted. She could not be the one that would get everybody killed. If they could not get this or a confession, they would not kill her or her friends, not yet at least. She fought, with every ounce of will she had to fight with, these men and their machine would not take this from her, she refused to be their victim, they would not rape her mind.

The world began to wash away, fade, turn white and then she was back on the sidewalk in the Rendering District, it was a strong memory and she forced herself to relive it. She could again taste the blood in her mouth and smell the foul stench of her attackers. The fog swirled around her, she heard someone say her name. Her assailant was on top of her, her clothes were being cut away, the knife blade stung as it sliced her flesh, she heard Sean yelling, cursing...

"She switched to another memory, sir."

"She switched what?!" Henrik asked incredulously.

"Memory, sir, this is not the one we indexed." The tech replied.

"Then switch it back."

"I can't sir, it's no longer sequenced, we would have to re-initiate and we cannot do that with the subject in the current state."

"How is that possible?" Niles hissed at Henrik. "I thought you said this was all fully functional."

"It was sir, I mean it is," Henrik stammered. "We had several successful trials on human subjects and--"

"And yet," Niles interrupted, "you cannot pry this one simple memory from this little girl? Your incompetence is quite appalling Henrik. She's a model candidate and you still manage to deliver up nothing but failure."

"This is not what this equipment was intended for, sir. We are way outside the envelope here, it's all basically experimental. Ask Wagner, it's his technology." Henrik tried desperately to deflect Niles wrath.

"I'll take this up with Wagner myself!" Niles said storming from the room. "Have your people reset and return the prisoners to their cells!"

Abi lay limp in the chair, a technician tried to rouse her from her torpor. "She's pretty far gone." He said to the others.

"Give her a shot and get her to the infirmary, Niles will probably want to use her again when we get this thing calibrated, she will have to be stabilized for the next sequence." Another replied.

The first tech injected Abi and unhooked all her restraints as the chair returned to an upright position. She roused slightly and tried to exit the chair under her own power and fell immediately to the cold, hard floor. A dazzling array of sparks and flashes filled her vision, her head continued to spin and her limbs would not respond as she wanted them to. A guard scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder and marched her off to the infirmary, her nose dripping a trail of blood droplets on the pristine floors along the way. Her three comrades were placed back in their restraints and returned to their cells.

Niles strode into the Cortex absolutely seething, "Wagner! I need to speak with you."

"Yes Niles, what can I do for you." Wagner began in a pleasant tone.

"I want more information on this machine of yours, it continues to be a great source of disappointment. How is it some subjects are able to resist the process? I just had a girl, who's profile clearly showed her to be an ideal candidate for memory extraction, yet we were unable to get the target memories. Subjects should not be able to resist the machine." He railed.

"Square peg, round hole, Niles." Wagner chided. "It is not an instrument of torture, it is not another twisted, mechanical thing meant to do your bidding. I created it for a single purpose, my own purpose and it functioned as it was designed. When you, in your blind pursuit of power, stole my designs and tried to recreate the device, you forever fractured our trust leading us to where we are today. Why should I help you further taint it's purpose?"

"Wagner, don't play games with me, I have not the patience for it. Remember, I have your son and I have no qualms about having my people recommence our personality isolation tests."

"Dammit Niles, What about our deal?!" Wagner asked, his tone more serious now.

"What deal?"

"This Netpod you left, I'm making progress, you said you would release my son."

"Did I?" Niles asked mockingly. "Perhaps if you help get this machine of yours working so I can get some answers from these people, perhaps then I'll release your son."

Wagner again conceded, "Very well, Niles - get me the data from your last three sessions with the SC equipment and I will see if I can determine what is going wrong."

"You will have all the information you need within the hour. Keep me advised of any progress, I would like to try the girl again as soon as possible."

"That's very dangerous, Niles." Wagner warned "You could easily kill her running another test so soon."

"That's my problem, you concentrate on getting that machine to do it's job. I have plenty of other subjects to use if this girl proves to be too fragile for successful extraction."

Wagner turned his attention back to Nic's Netpod, Niles left without further discussion. Wagner knew he would have to hurry if he was going to pull off what he intended. He had planned on doing much more with the recovered code on the Netpod, but there would not be time now, he was going to have to make some hard choices if he was to save his son. Wagner faced the reality that his own escape was impossible, this would be for Erik alone. Unlike many years ago when he saved Erik from an early death, now in order to save him, he would have to let him go.

The thought of never seeing Erik again tore through him like a blade, filling him with heart-wrenching unbearable sadness. Long ago, he had done everything in his power for his son, made every sacrifice a father could make all so that a little boy would not see the sun set on his short life. And though he was not always certain he had made all the right decisions, when he was with Erik his doubts faded and it all seemed worth the effort. He regained his composure and steeled himself for the task ahead of him, he could feel sorry for himself later, he had much work to do.

* * * * *

At the church, Nic rubbed his tired eyes and stretched, he had fallen asleep at his desk, reading. He had been studying the printed documentation almost non-stop and Simon's coffee was no longer propping him up (although it was beginning to gnaw at his stomach). It was late afternoon Wednesday, six days since the KTI fiasco and he felt he was no closer to finding Sean, Trey, Miller and Abi than he was on Sunday.