Olivia rolls out of bed with one hand on her stomach, lurching half-asleep into the hall. With one hand on the wall to steady her, she makes her way into the bathroom, flips the louver switch to let the light in, and drops to her knees before the toilet. The retching and dry heaves seem to go on forever, but eventually they stop. It takes the Skeek another minute to get her breathing back to normal and for the spots in her vision to leave. At least there's not a headache this time.

She gets shakily to her feet, clutching the sink for balance. The post-puke ritual begins, her hands moving of their own accord to pick out the smaller of the two toothbrushes held in the mug, turning on the water, adding the tooth powder and finally jamming the brush into her mouth to scrub out the taste of bile.

It's during this that Olivia finally notices her reflection in the mirror. A white furred face with a thick thatch on top instead of long hair, pink-red eyes and a leaner, taller build. Arms and shoulders that don't look like they've done heavy lifting, and a body that's at least twenty-five years old.

Olivia pauses in her scrubbing (although the taste is still horrible) and blinks at her new self in the mirror. So this was Abner's 'plaything,' eh? she wonders, turning her head this way and that to get a better look. Odd for a Kadie to pursue a Skeek! But Zahn always said he was a little crazy, anyway.

A step back reveals a form with more pronounced curves and chest than Olivia is used to, although there's a slight pot-belly. The review is interrupted when a male Skreek walks in, yawning. He hugs Olivia from behind and gives the back of her left ear a kiss. "Morning sickness still?" he asks.

Olivia tries her very best not to squeak in alarm at the other's sudden entrance – or what the phrase 'morning sickness' implies! This is probably a memory, Olivia, so just go with the flow, she tells herself. It might even lead to some useful information. "Um… yes, I'm afraid so," she replies, as casually as she can.

The Skeek feels certain things, instead of actually remembering them. This man is her husband! But the children she carries aren't his (obviously). But… she's not happy about it either. It isn't something she wanted. "The Committee works in mysterious ways," she finds herself saying in a sarcastic tone.

Ooookay, I'm much more of a puppet here than I first thought, Olivia thinks. Just go with the 'script,' I suppose!

"They plan ahead is all," the Skreek says, picking up a washcloth to wipe away some of the cleaning foam from Olivia's mouth. "I know you keep telling me you don't want to know who the father is, but I can get the records… " It's an old argument, Olivia feels. If she knows who the father is, then… she'll know her children's destinies, somehow.

Olivia thinks for a few moments, then says something else to see how it will be 'edited.' "I just don't think it would be a good idea to have that knowledge."

"It won't matter what caste they're assigned, we'll still love them," the Skreek recites, and gives Olivia another kiss. "We'd better start getting ready. The big unveiling is today, and we have a lot riding on it." He leaves Olivia for a moment to get the shower started up.

Olivia stares after the Skreek, then rinses her mouth out in the sink and dries her face. "All right," she attempts to say, now curious to know what this 'big unveiling' is.

Things seem a little disjointed to Olivia. She vaguely recalls showering together (and making love as only two people with a very practiced knowledge of one another's bodies can), dressing in matching black jumpsuits with golden stripes coming down from the right shoulder, having a simple breakfast (bread and cereal, she thinks) and leaving the apartment. The underground grotto is busy with people: Skeeks and Skreeks leaving to start their day, all dressed in similar jumpsuits but with different colors and markings. They take a boat to the big doors, and enter the underground workshop.

The place is buzzing with activity. Blue and green-clad workers swarm over the huge pieces of machinery on display in the entry hall, while brown-suited people head off to the manufacturing wing. Olivia and her husband bypass them all, heading for the ramp and down, down to the bottom of the shaft. It isn't nearly so steamy as Olivia recalls, and is brightly lit. The machines seem less ominous.

Olivia tries to take everything in without seeming like she's trying to memorize every detail. One never knows what could be useful later!

Finally they enter another tunnel at the base of the shaft, full of pipes and cables. This goes on for quite some time, with side tunnels going every which way. A left turn brings them to a lab – their lab. A curtain has been set up to block off some equipment, and a brown-suit is busy arranging folding chairs in the cleared floor area.

The Skreek goes about checking on various dials, while the worker sets up a podium right next to where Olivia is standing.

"Is everything to your liking, Dr. Wrathbone?" the worker asks Olivia, smiling hopefully.

Olivia tries not to feel out-of-place in this situation but she hopes that very soon now some feeling or instinct will kick in and show her what to do! As she attempts to answer, "I believe so," she suddenly remembers, Wasn't Igor's last name 'Wrathbone?'

The worker bows and goes to stand silently in a back corner until he's needed again. Voices can be heard approaching down the hallway now. "They're early," Olivia's husband says with a sigh. "But everything is ready."

Olivia nods and tries to reply, "Good. We'll just get started ahead of time, that's all."

Figures start flowing in, until a dozen older Skeeks and Skreeks take their seats. They all wear purple suits, and the women even get to have skirts. Each of them has a differently colored sash going from shoulder to hip to identify their station on the Committee. But Olivia feels unconcerned about facing them. She knows, somehow, that they don't really matter anymore. Someone else is making the decisions.

Olivia doesn't know if her idea will work, but she tries thinking to the ghost, -Who- is making all the decisions now?

The Skreek comes up beside Olivia, and waves to the gathered elders. "We're so glad you could all make it. As you know, Jesti and I have been putting all of our resources towards a solution to the Troll problem… "

"Get on with it, Igor," one of the old men comments, "We haven't got all day you know."

Internally, Olivia rubs her figurative forehead with a figurative hand. Oh yeah, this is one of his ancestors, all right. Which means I probably have to ask him about this!

"We can't fight the Trolls," Igor says bluntly. "They're immune to everything. We can't block the tunnels, our weapons are useless, and they keep taking down the Stabilizers. This is our solution." He reaches up and pulls aside the curtain, revealing a glass tube full of pink liquid, with a Troll floating inside. Not the little breed – the big, metal-clawed, glowing-red-eyed variety. "This is the first of many. We call them Guardians." There's a bit of a gasp from the crowd.

Olivia's hands tighten at her sides but she does her best to appear calm. So even back then, the peoples here had problems with the trolls. Now we may be getting somewhere!

"How… it's a bigger Troll!" an old woman points out. "It will just make the problem worse!"

However, Olivia does try to see if the troll inside the tube is sedated in some way, or perhaps asleep or otherwise unconscious.

The Troll's eyes glow blankly, and it doesn't twitch or move save for the effects of the water circulating. Olivia can see that it has wires mixed in with the spines growing from its head and back. "It is no longer a Troll," Igor insists, and holds a hand towards Olivia. "Jesti figured it out! We drained a captured Troll of the illiaster, and refilled it with our own, which had been processed by the Master Control System. This hulk is a puppet of the M.C.S. and has no will of its own."

Olivia swallows hard and opens her mouth, since it seems some sort of reply is required here. She hopes the right words will come out, though, since she has no idea of what 'illiaster' is!

The Committee doesn't seem to notice the woman's pause, as it's already arguing with itself. "We will allow it to be tested on the Eastern Node, which is the most frequently hit," the spokesman finally says. "If it is effective, then you can expand your project and make more."

Igor takes Olivia's hand and smiles to her. "See? Nothing to worry about," he assures her.

Olivia attempts a weak smile in return, along with the reply, "Looks like you're right."

The new Guardian twitches finally, and things grow dim for Olivia. The next thing she knows, she's back at the boat dock in the underground apartment grotto, and is handing two swaddled bundles to Igor. "Take them to the surface colony," she tells him, choking back tears. "I won't have them live like this!" The bundles squirm, and two white-faced baby Skeeks poke their heads free.

Olivia tries to get some sort of grip on this shifting reality. Live like -what-? What just happened here?

"Come on," Igor says, after putting the babies into a basket in the boat. He holds out his hand to Olivia, but she finds herself shaking her head. "It wouldn't do any good! I've been Selected to be an Operator! The notice came yesterday while you were out. The Guardians will be coming for me, no matter where I go… "

Igor looks shocked. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asks. "Because then you wouldn't leave," is Jesti's reply.

The Guardians have attained control? Olivia wonders. That would make sense with what that… head in a jar told Zahn and me, though…

"We can appeal to the Committee," Igor says, sounding desperate. "You're a mother! The children are barely weaned for Star's sake!"

Olivia takes her cue from an earlier feeling and says, "The Committee isn't in control here anymore, Igor." But what comes out is: "There is no Committee!" Jesti shouts. "It's all the Master Control System now! Everything! The breeding selections, the vocational training, all of the decisions!. We're just cogs in the machine now, Igor! All that matters is getting the children out of here, don't you understand?" she pleads.

The Skreek is shocked at the outburst, and looks numb. "I can't just give up on you like this," he says, sounding beat. "I'll get the children settled, then come back… "

And I don't know if the Bleeding Stone is one-and-the same with this Master Control System but I have to find out, Olivia thinks. The she shakes her head at the Skreek and attempts, "That isn't going to work. I'm sorry."

"Bury the access points," Olivia finds herself continuing. "Make sure nobody ever comes down here again! Destroy the Heart of Stone if you can! Without the illiaster, the Master will shut down. I've already recruited workers to sabotage the Titan, so that the Master can't leave."

Once again, I need to find out what 'illiaster' is. Of course, the only problem is I don't know if asking Dr. Pike or our current Igor is such a good idea! Olivia muses.

"You've… sabotaged the Project?" Igor asks, still looking stunned. "This will work out, you're just… I'll come back, and you'll see!" The Skreek poles the skiff away from the dock, his cheeks wet with tears as he heads into the canal.

As Olivia watches the boat move away, she wonders in bleak resignation, So, do I become an Operator now? Is that like being a head in a jar, too?

Things blur again, and Olivia finds herself walking down a tunnel. There are pipes and cables, but the walls are bare stone, although sometimes hand-cut. A Guardian walks behind her, possibly the original one. A red glow fills the tunnel up ahead.

Yes, I suppose I -do- get to find out, Olivia sighs quietly. Brace yourself, girl.

There's another tube, similar to the one the Guardian was floating in. Cables and pipes are connected to it, but it's the only thing of note in the tunnel. Beyond it, the tunnel goes on into darkness. The empty tube rotates, the two halves folding back to create an opening. A tangle of wires hangs from the top of it, each ending in a silvery-metallic spike.

Olivia looks at the spikes and even though she knows this happened long ago, she still feels fear. She finds herself vaguely wondering about how much this is going to hurt.

Jesti doesn't try to resist. She sheds her jumpsuit and steps into the cylinder. The glass seals, and red liquid begins to fill it. It doesn't feel wet though, and it glows – but somehow manages to smell like blood. The Guardian watches silently from outside until the Skeek is completely submerged, and doesn't move at all when she finally lets out her breath and drowns in the fluid. The pain of the needles penetrating her skull is all but lost as her lungs burn, and even that fades into a stream of lights and shapes and strange patterns.

The Skeek wants to scream but can't find the air anymore. Instead, she goes limp inside the tube as the lack of oxygen beats her senses into submission. Her eyes close…