by Cindy Combs
Meanwhile, Sheree slowly shook her head. "The book mentioned this, but I honestly didn't believe it."
Rafe shot her a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"
"My book on sentinel medicine said that some guides had various psychic abilities." Sheree waved her hands. "Telepathy, mind links, premonitions, that sort of thing."
Blair nodded. "Keegan could feel both his siblings' and Harry's feelings." Catching Jim lifting his eyebrows in an unspoken question, Blair shook his head. "Not yet."
"It took a while before Keegan's ability worked with Harry," Sam quickly assured them. "Dad always said that the talent grows gradually."
"There you are!" Banks strolled into the common area, General Thornton behind him. "Next time you decided to take a walk, young man, TELL US!"
Sam gave him a sheepish smile, which turned into a frown when Colonel Pendergrast walked in with a wheelchair. He rolled it next to Sam. "Figured you'd be needing this soon, young man."
Before Sam could protest, Blair asked, "What's going on?" He glanced at each officer nervously. Jim whispered something into Rafe's ear, causing the younger man to smile.
Colonel Pendergrast stepped forward. "Son, we have an offer for you." He handed Blair an envelope. "How would you like to be a commissioned second lieutenant assigned to the 135th, otherwise known as the Panthers?"
Blair blinked in surprise, glancing at the envelope then meeting the Colonel's eyes. "You mean, I'd be in the military? As an officer?"
"You can take some time to think about it," Thornton suggested. He knew there was a huge difference between the military and the life Blair had known before. Yet it would give Blair the cover and protection that the young guide would require.
Blair searched out Jim's face from where he stood behind the higher ranking officers. Studying his sentinel's face, Blair asked, "Would this allow me to stay by Jim's side? Like I'd need to be in order to be his guide?" The proud smirk on his sentinel's face filled him with the warmth of belonging.
"Yes," the Colonel assured him.
Glancing at his brother to confirm the pride and encouragement he felt from the link, Blair turned to his godfather. "Then this is what I want to do." He turned back to the Colonel. "I accept."
"Welcome aboard, BT," Banks congratulated him as he stepped forward.
As the others gathered around his guide, Jim took a step up to stand by the Colonel. He glanced at the pale teen, then turned towards Pendergrast. "Jack, how did you know Sam would be here?"
"Probably for the same reason Rafe knew where to look." Seeing Jim's puzzled face, Jack chuckled. "For the first few weeks after you left the long-term care facility, I would find Rafe watching you sleep. He had to reassure himself that you were really still alive. I figured young Sam would need the same." Jack clapped a hand on Jim's shoulder, then walked over to help Sheree move Sam back to bed.
Two days later, caverns in Challenger Mountain
Jane glanced up from her list to check on Jeff again. He was explaining how the shuttle flew to the kids, drawing his description on his ever present pad of paper. Somehow he was able to bring the concepts of lasers, vorticity, escape velocity, and annihilation of air particles down to the teens' level. An amazing feat, since Jane wasn't even sure SHE understood it. But if anyone could figure out how the ancestors made spinning tops fly, it would be MacGregor.
Hopefully, he would have it worked out soon. She and Gail had determined that they only had supplies for about four or five more weeks. With the Roaches crawling around Gillard searching for them and their human 'Chosen One', it was too dangerous for any of them to leave the caverns. She feared that even if her spelunking group did find a passage to the other side of the fence, the Roaches would spot them escaping. Winter was also biting at their heels; the risk of trekking through the mountains with so many people grew with each passing day. It was no wonder the tension was growing among the adults and filtering down to the kids.
Yet there was something different about MacGregor lately. Not that he wasn't worried like the rest of them. His face would darken with each new 'offer' by the Chosen One. He had also picked up a cough recently. Dianne suspected it was due to the dust and dampness in the cave. However, something had thrown off the darkness that had rode him ever since receiving his son's medallion. Jane could only hope it was a good sign. They desperately needed one.
Five days later, Science Base Delta
"Okay, what can you feel?"
"A ring."
"Even I could feel that. What's the ring made of?"
Eyes closed, Jim's fingertips lightly ran along the object that his guide had handed him. "It's smooth, kinda greasy, like a soft plastic." Pausing a moment, Jim's brow wrinkled in concentration. "There feels like something has been engraved or stamped on it."
Blair leaned in closer. "Can you tell which?"
"Stamped," Jim identified. "It says, Halsplay?" Jim's eyes opened to stare at the smirking young man in front of him. "What did you do? Steal a teething ring from Joel's youngest?"
"I didn't steal it," Blair replied, swatting Jim's shoulder. "Ariel let me borrow it. And you should be glad I washed Hershel's slobber off it."
"Yuck." Jim handed the plastic ring back to Blair, holding it gingerly with his thumb and forefinger.
"Okay, next..."
"Next is lunch," Jim replied, feeling his stomach gurgling. "I eat breakfast early, you know."
"I know," Blair frowned. "I still wish you'd let me go on your patrols with you."
"You're not ready yet, BT. We don't want to ruin all the good progress you've been making."
Blair shrugged as he stood up, brushing off his pants. Jim studied the young man a moment. While Blair was improving, he was still thin and tired too easily. "Come on, kid. Let's see what Ariel's dishing up today."
"You should be able to smell it," Blair pointed out as they walked towards the dining area.
Jim sniffed the air. "Smells like vegetables and spices."
"Which ones?"
Jim barely kept from sighing. Blair in guide mode had a way of turning everything into practice for his senses. Nostrils flaring, the sentinel began identifying the scents drifting past him. "Flat pods, curly root, waternuts, blue and red peppers..." Jim took a deeper sniff. "Marjoram, Tarragon..."
In Blair's mind an image of a beautiful redhead arose, tossing handfuls of chopped veggies into a metal cooking bowl as she stirred. Subconsciously, Blair reached for his neck as he tried to bring the image into focus. Yet his hand only felt his shirt collar as the image drifted away.
"...Cooked chicken, reed rice. I wonder what creation Ariel's dishing up this time." Jim opened the door to the dinning hall.
Blair gave his head a little shake. "Sounds like Island Stirfry to me."
Jim gave him a puzzled look. "What's that?"
"A dish from Claria Island. Dad made it sometimes."
"Hey Blair!" Blair and Jim glanced over to spot Sam and Evan at one of the tables. Once they had passed through the food line, they joined the other two young men.
"How is it?" Jim asked as he poked at the pile of vegetables on top of a mound of brown rice.
"Pretty decent," Evan replied after swallowing. He waved his fork at Sam. "Sam says it's an island dish."
"Yeah, Dad learned how to make it when he was working on Claria," Sam explained, noticing the puzzled look Blair was giving his food. "Blair said it was just like what his mom made, only she didn't use chicken."
"That's because Serenity was a vegetarian commune," Blair remembered. Again his hand rose to his neck, searching for something. Sam noticed the familiar gesture and felt his heart sink. Jim, too, had noticed his guide's preoccupation and gesture. He covertly glanced between Blair and Sam, wondering what was going on.
"Blair's mom?" Evan asked, missing the undertones as he concentrated on breaking a roll in two. "Don't you guys have the same mother?"
"No, Blair and I are actually half brothers," Sam explained, his eyes still studying hi
s brother worriedly.
The redhead again appeared in his mind, only the name 'Ima' was now attached. "Yeah," Blair answered slowly, mentally cuddling the precious images to his heart. "I lived with my Mom on Claria until the invasion."
"So, what are these things," Jim broke in, realizing Blair was forcing his memory again for one that might not be all that pleasant. He displayed a yellow ridged strip.
Blair shook off the memory and focused on the vegetable. "Bambee shoots."
"Rather crunchy," Evan replied as he thoughtfully chewed.
Following Jim's lead, Sam again changed the conversation. "So, you guys are going with us to Glendale?" Evan had tests to take, while Dr. Branson wanted to set up Sam's off-site program.
"Yeah," Jim answered. "The Major is sending us, Janson, and Brown." He caught Blair's worried frown before the younger man could hide it. Jim decided to file that away for later.
"That's great," Evan declared. While he wasn't quite sure how Jim knew Sam's bosses were Roaches, he was happy to have the big man along to keep them safe.
"So, we're getting four guards just for the three of us?" Sam asked after he swallowed.
"Since the Roaches have already made one and possibly two attempts at Dr. Branson, the major wants to make sure both he and you two are safe," Jim explained.
"And Tom Paris is going to fly us in," Blair added. "Sheree needs him to pick up some supplies for her."
"I wish I was only going for supplies," Evan replied glumly. "Advanced Diffy Qs tests are NOT my idea of a good time." He glared at Sam when the other chuckled. "Laugh it up now. Next time YOU'LL have some tests to take, too."
Twenty minutes later, Jim snagged Sam as they walked to the racks to drop off their trays. Watching his guide separate his silverware from the dishes and place it into the bin, Jim whispered, "What's Blair searching for around his neck?"
"His mother's medallion," Sam softly answered. "She gave it to him during the Clarian Invasion while she was dying. Apparently, it had been in her family since the Landing. It was all Blair had left of her and he never took it off." Sam turned worried eyes to the big man. "I'm guessing he wasn't wearing it when you found him?"
Jim shook his head, still tracking Blair with his peripheral vision. "Blair had absolutely nothing on him."
Sam closed his eyes and swallowed hard. "That is not going to go over well once he remembers it."
"Can it be replaced?" Jim asked.
"I doubt it. It was made on the Home world and most of those still strong in the Esbrew faith died during the Clarian invasion. Dad had the worst time trying to find someone just to prepare Blair for his Bar Mitzvah." At Jim's blank look, Sam added, "The passing into adulthood ceremony. It was a big deal to Blair."
Jim released the breath he had been holding. "Guess we'll have to deal with it when it comes up." That it would eventually come up was certain. Jim just hated to have Blair hurt any more. While his guide had not said one word of the material possessions he must have lost in Sealand, Blair did highly value the ties to his family. The loss of his remaining tie to his mother could only hurt. Jim knew how much it bothered him not to have anything physically left of Steve or Sally. But we'll get through this BT, just as we'll get through anything else we have to.
Next day, jet traveling to Glendale
Blair again ran his fingers over the patch on his arm. While the new fatigues felt strange, the thrill of wearing the familiar black cat in mid-leap pushed away any discomfort. He was now a Panther. He still felt awed to be part of the team. No matter what his previous life had held, he could sense that this new one was on the right track. He glanced at his sentinel, snoozing in the seat next to his. He was a guide, just like Keegan had been, just as he had dreamed he would be. The ancient pattern was finally reestablishing itself.
Thinking of Keegan drew Blair's eyes to the seats ahead. Sam sat next to Dr. Branson, both pouring over class catalogs and graduation requirements. The familiar brown lock of hair falling into his brother's eyes made Sam look so young. Blair felt a flash of fear shoot through his soul. He had only just found this special person. He didn't want to lose Sam like he did his mother. An image of his Ima buried in debris flashed before his eyes, the voice of a younger Sam as they lay buried echoed in his ears. Unconsciously, Blair's hand rose to his throat, again searching for something.
"BT?"
Blair turned to find Jim studying him worriedly. "I'm okay."
"You don't look okay," Jim softly pointed out. It was the sharp rise in his guide's heart rate and drop of body temperature that had woken him.
Blair shot another glance at Sam. "I'm worried. The Roaches didn't know where to find Sam before. Now they do. A college campus would be the perfect place to grab him. All it would take for Dad to crack would be for someone to hold a gun to Sam's head."
Or yours. Jim reached over to squeeze Blair's shoulder. "We'll guard him the best that we can. But I want you to promise me something: You are to stay close to me during this trip."
Blair rolled his eyes. "Jim..."
"Yes," Jim tightened his hold on Blair's shoulder. "The Roaches can use you against your father just as easily as they can Sam."
"Yeah," Blair admitted. Then he met his partner's gaze. "But they aren't after me this time. They want Sam."
Surprised, Jim was about to ask Blair how he knew that when Paris announced they were landing.
An hour later
The Glendale campus was bustling when they arrived. Jim was the first out of the van. He stood still for a second, using both his sight and sense of smell to spot potential trouble. Blair's hand managed to slip out the door just far enough to touch his sentinel's shoulder. Detecting no Roach scent or overly tall students, Jim signaled an 'all clear' to Blair. The Panthers then escorted Dr. Branson, Evan and Sam into the Campus Security office, their bodies shielding the scientist and his students from any possible danger.
Still on alert, Jim swiftly examined the small room. A woman in campus uniform was filling out a report to the left while a young man wrote down a message as he listened to the com-link. Then a tall man strode purposely towards them. Jim tensed for an instant, then relaxed as the human scent and the wide grin on the dark face registered.
"So you finally decided to show up!" the man sternly announced, the grin disappearing. Jim spotted the Chief of Security insignia on his shirt sleeve.
Sam stepped around Jim and towards the man, a sheepish smile growing on his own face. "Well, I got distracted."
"Distracted!" The man shook a finger at the teen. "Next time you decide to do something THAT stupid, TALK TO ME FIRST."
Dropping his head and dragging his toe along the tile floor, Sam muttered, "I didn't have time."
"That's bull, Sam. If you didn't have time to talk to me, you should have realized there was something wrong with the deal." The man glared at the teen for another moment, then couldn't contain the large grin any longer. "It's good to see you, kid." He and Sam embraced.
The rest of the group looked at each other, then at Blair. Blair was staring at the Chief, his eyes narrowed in concentration. Jim could almost see the memory wheels trying to make a connection.
When Sam and the man stepped apart, the Chief spotted Blair. "Ah, the other lost lamb." Jim was relieved to see the man continue to give Blair some space, his smile turning gentle. "How are you doing, Blair?" Someone's told him about Blair's memory loss.
"Okay," Blair replied in a puzzled tone. Then recognition sprang into his eyes. "Uncle Jesse?"
A light turned on in Jim's mind. This had to be Dr. Colton's middle son.
Jesse Colton's smile grew brilliant. "That's right, kid." He drew Blair into a warm embrace, thankful the young man was still with the living.
Finally pulling back, Blair introduced the rest of the group. Colton paused as he shook Jim's hand. Including Janson and Brown with his eyes, his voice grew deep with gratitude. "Mama told me how you took care of Blair. Thank you, all of you." He again wrapped an arm arou
nd Blair's shoulders and pulled him close. "It still feels like a miracle to get him back."
Four hours later
Jim's eyes made another sweep of the hallway outside the door. As he turned back to the room, his eyes met Rafe's. The gaze exchanged assurances of their current security. Then Rafe turned his own eyes back out the side door, keeping watch that no one entered by way of long deck outside.
A glance around the room showed Branson and Professor Whedbee still deep in discussion. The object of that discussion was off to the side, flipping through a textbook. Jim didn't think Sam was bored, more like he was uncomfortable. Apparently returning to school was not as easy for the young man as he tried to pretend.
Then there was the bundle of vibrating tension standing next to him. Blair's deep blue eyes had examined everyone and everything even remotely close to Sam all day. Jim had never seen such intensity from the young man before. But then, his guide had always displayed fiercely loyal and protective streak towards his younger brother. Considering everything the General had told him of their background, Jim really couldn't blame him. He was just worried the kid was wearing himself out.
A tap on his arm pulled Jim out of his thoughts. It was Blair's signal that it was time to do another sensory sweep. Taking a deep breath, Jim carefully turned up the dial on his hearing, just as they had been practicing for the past week. Using the feel of Blair's hand on his arm as an anchor, Jim carefully noted Branson's and Whedbee's voices, pushing them to the side to hear the pages rustle under Sam's fingers. That sound was also pushed to the side as Jim noted the scratching of Evan's pencil in the next room and Brown shifting his feet as he guarded him. Stretching farther, he heard a woman lecturing on Fourier something or other, someone pulling a bucket out of a closet, and the voices of students accompanied by clicks and snaps as they struggled through a physics lab. Jim was about to pull back when he heard a familiar voice. It was Tom Paris, asking for directions to Dr. Whedbee's office. He had promised to catch up with them as soon as he had Sheree's supplies, adding to their small security force.