Round Robin: The Infant
by: Angel Island, Renee's Girl, Seven O'Nine, Lisair, Juliette, Lyta....
copyright 2000
Part 2

"And so am I." Sandoval stated unequivocally once Renee snapped her global shut.

"Like hell." The CEO snapped.

Sandoval smiled benignly. "You haven't got a choice, Ms. Palmer. We go together, or you go in a holding cell and I go alone."

Muttering profanity under her breath, Renee stalked out of Liam's apartment. With her back to Sandoval, she missed the self-satisfied smirk flash across the Agent's face.

***********************************************************************

"Are you insane?" Melissa demanded as softly as her anger would allow. She couldn't believe Renee would bring Liam's Father along.

"I had no choice." Renee barked shortly.

"Whenever you're finished arguing, we can leave." Sandoval stated indifferently.

"Fine, he's outside Limerick, Ireland. We'll have to use public transportation from their." Melissa replied. Glaring at the Agent she sneered. "Unless you want to rush in with a cavalry of shuttles."

"I think it's best for all of us if we keep the Taelon's out of it." Sandoval smiled mockingly. "For now."

************************************************************************

Upon arrival, they rented a car and drove for three hours across bumpy dirt roads. On the outskirts of town, they found a small Tutor style boarding house.

Renee was forced to wake the owners, who reluctantly allowed them entrance. Sandoval, surprisingly, let Renee do all the talking. She explained that they were meeting friends and didn't know if they'd arrived yet. After describing both Liam and Seth, they were told Liam's room number. Quickly, the three took the flight of stairs to the designated door.

Melissa, who carried a small black medical bag, gently tapped on the door. Within moments, the knob turned and it creaked open. Seth stuck his small head around the door. He sighed at the sight of Renee and Melissa. Pulling the door fully open, the three quickly entered the room.

Seth, dressed in footy pajamas, closed the door and turned to face them. His eyes widened in shock.

"Granpa." He whisper before flinging himself at Sandoval. Sobbing with pent fear and exhaustion, the child held onto the Agent's legs tightly. "Fa-Father wont wake up. He's having ba-bad dreams about the mean Ta-Taelon. He h-hurts and I can't make him b-better."

In Ireland, Liam could feel Da'an's mind, and willed himself away from it. The void was waiting where he'd left it, he could get back, he would be safe in the void...

And his heart stopped.

*****

In the Embassy Da'an faded out abruptly, collapsing under the weight of his suit.

*****

Wrapped around a surprised Sandoval, Seth suddenly let out a piercing mental cry that sent Melissa and Renee reeling. Sandoval's CVI kept him on his feet, but he felt as if a bombshell had been dropped in his mind for the second time in as many minutes.

*****

Back in the Embassy, a few doors down the hall from Da'an, Ty'ir suddenly clutched at a wall, light-headed. The child, the child was calling him...Seth, Liam had named their child Seth, Ty'ir had to go to Seth, something was horribly wrong...

(RG)

Renee rushed to follow a sobbing Seth into Liam's room, Sandoval and Melissa at her heels.

" Da," the little boy was sobbing, " Don't go, Da, don't go!!!" Renee's heart froze at the implication of the child's words. Liam's killing himself. She wanted to step forward, do something, get him to stop, but Melissa was ahead of her, checking his vitals and talking to him gently. Sandoval was just standing there, shocked. Renee then picked up Seth and cradled him close as he sobbed.

" Don't let Da die," he whimpered, " He can't die! I don't want my Da to die," Renee, finding a place to sit, rocked him slowly in her arms, kissing his hair and murmuring comfortingly until he fell asleep, the tears still lining his face. Renee sent a sad look Liam's way.

You've got to live, Liam. No matter what happened, you can't leave your boy alone. He'll die too.

(SN)

Seth was still sobbing, still cradled in Renee's arms. Sandoval was grimly watching as Parks injected Liam with something thick and blue - and he jerked, his hands clawing at the carpet.

"We have a pulse!" she called.

But surprisingly, Seth began to cry harder...

****

NO!

Da'an spasmed, shivering and trying to shut out the horrified, angry cry that was resonating through his soul...

****

"He's scared!" Seth wailed. "He can't make the Taelon go away! He can't stop thinking about it..."

A long, piercing groan fell from Liam's lips, as Parks pressed him down to the floor. "Liam," she whispered. "This is Melissa. You remember me - calm down, calm down! No one's going to hurt you!"

But her touch only drew another groan from Liam, as he began frantically pushing her away. "Stop!" he said raspily, his eyes still shut. "Let me go! I won't let you do this! I can't! Let go! Stop! Stop it! Please! Someone help me!"

"He's reliving it," Renee said grimly, putting the near-hysterical child on the floor. "Can't you sedate him?"

Parks nodded and picked up another syringe, motioning to Sandoval to hold Liam down. But the hybrid's green eyes flew open, and he sent Sandoval slamming against the wall with a cry.

The syringe shattered as Parks stumbled back. Liam was on his feet, and had picked up Seth before Renee could react.

He leaped out the open window with the child in his arms. Renee ran to it, and stared down at the street below. Both were gone.

****

At the Embassy, Da'an slowly pushed himself to his knees as hazy consciousness returned. His face was twisted, as he tried to pull away from Liam...

[Seth gives Liam a tearful speech about going back.]

"Seth," Liam whispered, gasps making his voice come in staccato bursts, "I don't know what's wrong with me... I can't... I can't stand... having Da'an inside my head... any longer..."

He began to shiver. "Seth, please understand. We have to go... please understand..."

Tears were still rolling down Seth's small face as he clung to his father. "But what about them?"

Liam shook his head jerkily. "Sandoval's... with them... your grandfather... Seth, he works for the Taelons. If he gets me back to Da'an... whether I like it or not, you know... what Da'an will do to me."

Seth shivered. "What are we going to do, Da?"

Liam ran his fingers through his short hair, as if he could pull the memories from his mind. "I don't know..."

****

Ty'ir slowly straightened and began walking slowly toward Da'an's office. The child... Seth had stopped his panicked cries, leaving him only a faint presence in the corner of his Taelon parent's mind.

The only words he could make out were Da, and don't die. Though Ty'ir was not familiar with the word "Da," it undoubtedly referred to Kincaid.

Either Kincaid was dead, and Seth was in shock, or the young man had survived and the child was calming himself. There was only one way to tell...

He stepped into Da'an's office, and stopped short as he saw the diplomat crumpled on the floor, slowly pushing himself to his knees. His pale face was contorted and streaked with blue lines, and he moved as if in a dream.

Ty'ir took Da'an's arm and helped him to his feet. Da'an swayed a little as Ty'ir asked, "Kincaid, is he dead?"

Da'an took a deep breath. "No. He is alive. But he is more afflicted by his memories than before... and feels my presence more acutely. Why-"

"I heard the child - Seth, Kincaid calls him," Ty'ir said grimly. "He was crying for his father not to die..."

Liam stood there panting, unable to think of what to do. He grasped his son more firmly, turning as he heard a door open. A woman sleepily stared out, a woman familiar to him, though he had never met her. "What's going on here, then?" she asked.

"Sorry," Liam told her. "We'll be going now. Sorry to disturb your rest, ma'am."

With that, he walked off before Seth could recognize the woman. Seth began squirming in his grasp. "Da!" he exclaimed, although more quietly. "That was great-granma. She could have helped."

"I can't go to her - she doesn't know who we are. And I can't go back to Melissa and Renee and Grandpa," Liam told Seth patiently. "I can't tell them what happened. Come on, let's go see Grandma."

And with that, he left his mother's mother behind.

* * *

Da'an had just about regained his composure when a Volunteer came into the room. "Sir! A Sheriff Hartland from Taelonville, Indiana wants to see you. He says it's urgent. Should I tell him you're at rest?"

Her wide eyes told him that she had noticed his weakness, and the fact that Ty'ir was standing next to him, somewhat supporting him. "No," he said, gesturing, "Tell the Sheriff that he is most welcome and escort him to my chamber." After the Volunteer had left, he told Ty'ir, "It is imperative that one of us reaches Liam and the child. It is apparent, according to your remarks, that it should be you. You must find Liam and the child and bring them both home safely."

After a few minutes, the Volunteer escorted the Sheriff in. The Sheriff made the greeting gesture.

"Welcome, Sheriff Hartland. I am always pleased to welcome those from Taelonville. Is there any way that I can assist you?"

"Sir," the Sheriff said, in a very respecting but puzzled tone, "I hope you can tell me what's going on."

[Renee collapses and Melissa Park goes to comfort her. Sandoval slips out to find Liam and Seth.]

Ty'ir had remained impassive as Da'an offered the sheriff a highly-edited version of events - that Seth was a Taelon/human hybrid, and Major Kincaid had felt a bond to the boy and had left with him. Hartland clearly had no suspicions - he looked alternately sympathetic or angry. Da'an, on the other hand, was beginning to look strained.

As the diplomat finished the narrative, Hartland straightened slightly. "Sir, if I can help in any way..."

Da'an managed a small smile. "I thank you. However, if you do discover the whereabouts of Major Kincaid and the child, it is imperative that neither be harmed."

Hartland looked slightly puzzled, but nodded respectfully, saluted both Taelons and was escorted from the room.

Ty'ir watched as Da'an slumped back in his chair, his face betraying his fatigue. "Are you feeling unwell?" he asked.

Da'an sighed. "I am merely... affected by the intensity of what Liam feels. There is nothing wrong with me."

Ty'ir considered a retort, but bit it back. "And so, I am to both find Kincaid and coax him back? Am I a conjurer, that I might do this?"

Da'an frowned. "You have a bond with the child, and he is desperate to save Liam. If you can repair his mind, then surely the child will listen to you."

"And what will happen to Kincaid then?" Ty'ir asked.

[Da'an replies that he doesn't know, but that Liam and Seth deserve better. Ty'ir replies that he should have thought of that before the whole thing happened, that there were other ways of ensuring Liam's cooperation. Da'an tells Ty'ir that he was desperate. Ty'ir asks Da'an again if he is pregnant, deflecting Da'an's anger at being asked the question.]

(SN)

Da'an's face was full of pain. "Why does it matter to you?"

"It matters," Ty'ir said stolidly. "It matters because you risk contaminating the mind of any infant you might bear, if you continue feeling these attacks of Kincaid's. It matters because he might well return, if there were a child."

Da'an's gaze flickered down to the floor, and his eyes closed. He answered...

[Yes.]

Seth watched as his Parent picked the lock on the churchyard gate. Liam finally managed to open it, taking Seth by the hand and leading him through before closing the gate again. His father then picked him up again, carrying him along until he stopped at a grave. Seth solemnly read the tombstone. "Siobhan Anne O'Sullivan Beckett," he said quietly.

His father sat down in front of the grave. "Once, on her birthday, I came here and gave her a rose."

"Why are we here? Are we hiding?"

Liam looked at him. "Actually, it's because I need time to think. Your grandmother always thought this was a place to gather her thoughts. It's what I need right now."

Seth nodded, sitting down in front of his Grandmother's grave like his father was. As he watched his father sit there, a voice came into his head. *Seth.*

It did not come from his father.

Ty'ir did not move as Da'an admitted the truth. The diplomat now refused to look at him, staring at the floor, at the ceiling, at Liam's desk - anything but at him.

"Kincaid does not know," Ty'ir said quietly.

"No." Da'an blushed slightly. "I had... hoped not to tell him until..." He hesitated.

"Until when?"

"Until he could receive the news with... anything other than utter repulsion." One hand trailed slowly down his torso, finally coming to rest in his lap. "No child should be brought into the world under hate..."

Ty'ir's eyes narrowed as he stepped toward Da'an. "And why did you seek to conceal this information from me?"

Da'an managed a small smile. "Your reaction when you saw my joining convinced me... that the news of any child conceived from it would not be taken easily by you, however necessary it might be for the future of the Taelon race."

Ty'ir looked surprised, then stern. "You will submit to a full examination immediately. Kincaid's condition will wait until afterwards."

Da'an stared at him for a moment, then carefully climbed down. But as Ty'ir led the diplomat from his office, his mind flew to his own hybrid child. Seth...

"Da," Seth said suddenly, tugging at his father's arm. "Da, I hear something."

Liam had been sunk into a reverie for the past five minutes, oblivious to the outside world as he stared at the gravestone. Now he stared at his son instead. "What? I didn't hear anything."

"It's not that, it's..." Seth frowned, groping for some comparison. "It's like when that Taelon kept saying things to you in your head, that he was sorry and he really didn't want to hurt you, and..."

Seth saw the growing horror on his father's face, and quickly said, "But it's like someone's yelling, far away. It doesn't hurt."

Liam's face had gone pale. Leave my son alone! he shouted mentally, but he spoke no words. He only gripped Seth's hand and hugged his son.

****

Ty'ir was distracted throughout Da'an's examination, often forgetting an implement or missing a scan cycle. It appeared, to all signs, to be healthy. Da'an was experiencing no pain or discomfort, but Ty'ir was still wary.

"Do you not fear Zo'or's response to the child? Or that of the Synod?" he asked quietly.

Da'an's eyes narrowed slightly as Ty'ir placed a hand on his abdomen, pressing a scanner alongside it. "I have the right to choose a mate if I so desire."

"So you do," Ty'ir said dryly. "But there will be little tolerance for a choosing that only goes one way."

"I will deal with Liam's situation when it arises," Da'an said steadily. "I will tell him, at a convenient time...."

Ty'ir stifled a sigh. As he set down the scanner, he felt Da'an watching him. "Have you any questions?" Ty'ir asked brusquely.

"Yes. What of contacting the boy?" Da'an answered immediately, slowly pushing himself up on the medical bed.

Ty'ir turned back. "I informed you that the examination would be first." He grimaced. "Your child appears in all respects to be healthy. Its parents, however, are another matter."

Seth silently climbed into Liam's lap. Leaning against his Father's chest, they boy closed his eyes. He focused on the distant voice. Searching for any signs of malice or ill-will. Oddly, the sense felt familiar. He sent a gently, questing tendril of thought in acknowledgment to the query.

*I am called Ty'ir.* The words brushed against his mind, barely tangible. *I am your other parent.*

Surprised, Seth neglected to reply for some time. Eventually he gathered the courage to ask a question.

*What do you want?* The young hybrid demanded. *I wont let anyone hurt Father, even you.*

*I do not wish to harm your Father. I am simply concerned for your safety. Both of you.* The elder Taelon replied.

Seth's fear pulsed across the void. *The other one will hurt Da if we come back.*

*Then perhaps it would be best if we met on... 'neutral' territory.* Ty'ir reasond.

*I'll talk to Father.* The boy stated before cutting the conection.

[Seth tells Liam about Ty'ir's desire to meet with them. Liam refuses to go, despite Seth's pleas. Seth decides that for his sake and his father's, he has to meet with Ty'ir. He gives Ty'ir a picture of the place that they are staying and runs off. Liam chases after him, calling for him to stop.]

(SN)

****

"Seth!" Liam shouted, stumbling to his feet. But the boy had already vanished into the streets of the Irish town.

Liam straightened slowly, his eyes stinging as he tried to determine which way Seth had gone, but there were plenty of places in Limerick where a small boy could conceal himself. Seth, he thought wildly, would not be found until he WISHED to be...

He began to shake as a subtle winding of Taelon thought began to whisper in his skull. His hands were itching again, as if Da'an had burned and scarred them rather than joining there...

He slowly sank to his knees and pressed his hands to his temples. He couldn't do this - he couldn't allow Seth to go back to the Taelons. Ty'ir had spoken of how important he was - when he was full-grown, would he end up like his father, violated and haunted by voices?

Liam slowly raised his face to the sky, and made his decision. I'll face my demons and conquer them, or I'll die in the trying. And the Taelons will never have my son.

****

"No luck," Sandoval said tensely, dropping into a chair in Liam's abandoned bedroom.

"None here," Renee said softly, breaking a piece of bread into crumbs. "I checked all local schools, hotels, restaurants... it's like they vanished into thin air."

"I went by a gas station," Parks spoke up loudly. "They did see a little boy matching Seth's description racing by in light clothing. But there was no adult with him."

Renee shook her head. "In his present state, Liam'd never allow Seth to go anywhere alone. And Seth loves his father too much to try anything."

"We'll check it out," Sandoval said grimly. He stood up and strode from the room. After a moment's hesitation, the two women followed him...

****

Seth's legs ached from the run, the longest of his short life. He had stumbled on stones and potholes many times along the way. A kind woman had asked him if he was lost, but he had only told her courteously that he was not, and had continued running.

As he approached the inn, he could still hear Liam's frantic cries at the back of his head - his father was desperate. He was even more scared then he had been before... and it wasn't just because of the Taelon's presence in his head.

Seth blinked as he walked down the hill - there was a Taelon shuttle behind the building. It had landed in such a way that it would be hidden from most viewpoints, but he could see a bit of one engine sticking out.

It's for my father, he thought grimly, heading for the shuttle.

****

Da'an winced as Liam's thoughts began to softly color his mind - as hard as he tried to sever the torturous connection, it still existed to haunt them both.

Liam had become more agitated in the past half-hour, full of fear for... something... not himself... his son?

Da'an cringed slightly, pressing his hands to his brow. This had been a disaster ever since he had forced his mind into his protector's... even if he now carried the result. He had imagined a thousand different scenarios to determine what Liam would do when he knew that not only was he violated, but a parent to Da'an's hybrid infant as well... Everything from death at his protector's hands to forgiveness.

He sighed, and closed his eyes. Liam would never return to Washington in the state he was in... and the possibility of telling him had grown into almost an obsession.

Ty'ir had left almost an hour ago. But Da'an rose to his feet and headed for the shuttlepad.

****

"Hello?" Seth called into the shuttle, his voice sounding faint and frightened. "'S anyone there? Hello?"

"Seth?"

The familiar, husky voice from behind him made him freeze. He slowly turned to look up at a Taelon, with piercing blue eyes and wearing the peculiar transparent tunic of a healer. It was the one whom had treated his father at the Embassy--the one who had let them get away.

Seth's eyes were wide as Ty'ir smiled and murmured, "I greet you, my child."

Ty'ir smiled gently as his child, hoping that Seth would not be frightened away. The young one seemed to recognize his voice, for he responded. "You're my other parent?"

He inclined his head. "I am. I came because I know your father is hurt... and it gives me pain as a healer to see that he is hurt. Do you know where your father is?"

Seth shook his head. "Da... he didn't want to come. He's too hurt to come."

If Ty'ir was human, he would have shook his head. "He can only get better if someone breaks the bond that Da'an initated."

"Da'an... the bad Taelon?"

"Like your father, he made some choices which may not have been right. However, I am not here to condemn him or your father for their choices; I am here to stop your father's pain so that he may function normally."

* * *

Liam paused in his search for his son as he heard voices. Familiar voices. Daring to take a look, he saw Sandoval questioning someone, with Dr. Park and Renee in tow. Scrunching down, he hoped that they wouldn't find him before he could find Seth and get away again. Seth?

Father, please come!

[Renee senses someone behind her, but nobody is there. She prays that they find him soon.]

****

Liam's stomach twisted as he crept through the foliage, his head aching from the growing pressure of Da'an's mind. He knew that Taelons had bonds with those they cared for - but the memories made this one hellish.

He quickly tried to repress his thoughts as Seth's concerned voice touched him again. He had tried to home in on his son's location, but hadn't been able...

Da? Da, are you there?

Yes...

Da, my other parent's here. He says he can make you better.

Seth, I... Liam stopped, choking on his breath. How could he tell an innocent child of his resolution: Never to allow himself to be vulnerable again, to a human or Taelon. Even if Ty'ir could stop the pain, make the memories of what Da'an had done vanish, Liam did not want to put himself in the Taelon's power.

Da? Please... please, he's not lying, I promise... please, I don't want you to hurt anymore... Seth's voice was almost tearful.

Seth, I... I don't know if I can... A thought occurred to Liam. He hasn't hurt you, has he?

No, he's been nice to me. Da, he let us go from Da'an, he can't be bad. He asked me to come to the inn.

I don't... don't know... I don't know...

He says if he can touch your mind with the Commonality, then the problems will be gone.

Liam staggered, the memories flooding back with screaming intensity. "Touch" meant a sharing, meant he would have to allow Ty'ir to share with him, leaving himself helpless and without defenses...

Seth saw the images in his father's mind. No, Da, he showed me. It doesn't hurt, it's not like that at all...

I can't... Seth, I just can't. I won't. I'm coming for you now. I can make this stop on my own...

He shut out his son's pleas and began his slow creep through the brush, back toward the inn. Tears rolled down his cheeks, but he did not even notice them.

****

Fear. Pain. Sorrow.

Da'an shivered as he piloted the shuttle low over Ireland. He was tracking in on Ty'ir's shuttle. If he could not see Liam directly, he thought sadly, then at least he could observe from a distance...

[Seth tells Ty'ir that his father still won't come. Ty'ir comes up with a plan to use Seth as a carrier to heal his father. Seth consents, and Ty'ir explains his plan.]

Ty'ir sat beside his child just inside the inn, whose inhabitants were evidently out for the time being. Until Liam Kincaid arrived, he had decided to speak to the boy.

He had already give the child a direct connection to him. Seth would be a conduit from one of his parents to the other, able to express to Liam that no harm was meant. And, if necessary, to try to repair what had been done.

What he discovered thought the brief sharings was that Seth shared many characteristics with Kincaid... but he also had a near-irrational horror of Da'an, undoubtedly the result of seeing Kincaid's suffering.

Something in the corner of his mind began to stir. He frowned, sensing the presence of another Taelon nearby.

"What's wrong?" Seth asked, dangling his legs off the edge of the sofa.

Ty'ir slowly stood up, and his eyes widened. Through the open door, he could see Kincaid walking quickly across the green fields. His green eyes were wide and full of repressed pain and fear.

Seth launched himself at Liam as the older hybrid entered. "Da!"

"I'm fine, Seth," Liam said hoarsely, bending down and gathering the boy in his arms. His eyes locked on Ty'ir, narrowing to slits.

Ty'ir attempted to keep his facade looking benign and soothing. "Major, you are ill. Da'an's violation has damaged your mind - you will not cease feeling and hearing him until I am-"

"No," Liam said tightly, taking a step back. "I won't let you near me."

"Da," Seth said timidly. "I can do it. I can help."

Ty'ir drew in his breath as surprise crossed Liam's face, willing the young man to listen to his child. He looked at Seth's eager little face, and said softly, "What?"

"He showed me how," Seth continued. "I can do it! Ty'ir told me how to make the memories stop, so you don't have to hear Da'an anymore. You trust me, don't you, Da?"

Liam looked almost sick with worry. "Yes," he whispered. "I do... I..."

He froze as a voice behind him said, "Liam!"

[The speaker is Da'an. Renee watches Liam's reaction, finally realizing that Liam has been raped.]

Melissa found herself left alone with Ronald Sandoval, as Renee Palmer had apparently gotten ticked off at the Implant and left. She wished she could go along as well, but given that Sandoval had yet to accept what Seth had said, she didn't want Liam's offspring suddenly being disappeared by Sandoval. For that matter, she didn't want Liam getting disappeared by Sandoval out of a misplaced family loyalty, either.

They walked along until they came to the local church. Sandoval tried each door in turn, and she was about to suggest they went elsewhere when he tried the churchyard gate and it opened. The gate squeaked, and she flinched. If Liam was here, he would hide from them.

Sandoval led her through the yard, through the markers, as if he had been there before. He stopped before one particular gravestone, which Melissa could barely make out as Beckett's. "He's been here," Sandoval said quietly. "So has the boy. But he's left now."

"Most of his stuff would still be in his room," Melissa offered. "But I'm sure Renee would have headed back there."

"True. But we will find him, Doctor. I promise you that."

* * *

Little did they know that Renee had found him, Seth, Ty'ir, and Da'an, and had just realized the horrifying truth about what had happened to Liam. Reaching in to her purse, she prepared to save him and Seth, if needed, although how she would do so with two Taelons nearby she didn't know. Well, she'd saved him from worse before.