"Fascinating."

The word echoed in the spherical chamber, the only sound despite row upon row of instrumentation that functioned and waited to be used -all in silence. Assistants, mere acolytes where as she was a scholar, stood at respectful distance, patiently observing as their superior continued to study the holographic read-out image that remained suspended above the unmoving form of their present subject -a display of the surface information that they had gathered on the unconscious hominid thus far. "Fascinating," she murmured again.

Unlike their other recent test subject, this human was slight, just a little greater in height than the tallest members of her people; light in hue and almost lacking in fur save for that which trimmed its genitalia and crowned its head in a color that reminded her of a sun which she had not seen for a long time. Not at all dark like the other human. Pale -like her kind. She drew a small, four-fingered hand across the smooth skin, struck by the realization that for a member of the brutish unevolved species that dominated this planet, this smaller human was quite beautiful- "What!" Silver eyes narrowed to slits as she leaned forward and examined the human's neck more closely. "These discolorations -my instructions were to bring this subject back *undamaged*!"

The most senior of the acolytes lowered his head submissively. "Forgive me, Scholar -the device that was placed in the other human was effective in maintaining control over it -it *did* return with this human- but this one resisted and the programming provided only for retrieval...not for gentleness."

"I see." She regarded the pale human with curiosity. Like the all of her kind, she prized knowledge above all things and before her lay part of a puzzle to be solved. It was one of the opposing halves of a human reproductive pairing and yet, indications were that the dark one and this light one were drawn to each other though they were like halves. *Not* a reproductive mating pair then, obviously...something else. This one had sensed the pain that the implant had caused the dark one, almost dying because of it. Something not heard of in many ages. There was a faint whisper of old knowledge in her brain; of a time forgotten by all but a few of when knowledge was not their only goal, of when bodies -and sometimes, minds- would touch... But the moment of reverie passed almost as quickly as it had come. There was much to do. "Acolyte, bring me the probes."

******************** Consciousness came in sluggish stages, like wakening from the narcotic sleep of a knock-out dart. Head aching. Thoughts fuzzy... Napoleon gasped aloud as memory rushed in like a flood. the medical wing...pain...*Illya*... No... What had he-- How *could* he have-- The dark-haired agent shook his head, trying to exorcise the memory of his hand squeezing the consciousness from his partner and the look of betrayal in those blue eyes even as the light faded from them.

But he couldn't forget.

What *had* he done?

Napoleon struggled to rise from his prone position and groaned at renewed pain in the back of his neck. There *was* something there; something that had *made* him-- "I rather suspect that you would like to have that little annoyance removed, wouldn't you, Mr. Solo?"

"Who..?" Solo squinted, trying to ignore the migrainous haze confounding his vision. That smarmy voice...familiar... An indistinct figure swan into sight, gradually -slowly- coming into focus. The UNCLE agent's lips curled in disgust. "Sepharan."