"Put your hood up over your face, zira!" Jax shouted to make himself heard above the howling of the wind. He pulled her cloak more tightly around her as they slowly made their way across the frozen wasteland of a planet.

Jax glanced at Scorpian, who had covered his face with his hood as soon as the cold kissed his countenance. He was trudging towards a forested area, leading the small band of travelers. Jax gathered his own cloak more tightly around his neck and pulled Brenda under the shelter of his arm.

The only one who seemed totally unphased by the cold was Dooma. His brown fur ruffled in the biting wind, but he merely raised his snout high in the air, stopped momentarily, and then pointed one furry claw towards the trees. "This way we go, yes we go," he chanted happily, and they moved even further away from the entrance to the Matrix.

When they reached the barrier that the trees provided against some of the wind, Scorpian turned back to Jax. "We should find traveling easier now, Jax. At least we’ll be spared the effects of the wind." As though the elements had heard him, small pellets of ice began to fall from the sky, striking the exposed skin of the travelers like thousands of needles.

"You were saying, Scorpian?" Jax inquired with a half-smile. He pulled Brenda even closer under his arm as she squealed at the onslaught of frozen precipitation.

Scorpian raised venomous eyes to the heavens. "Fundin’ sleet," he growled. Then, sensing Brenda’s distress, he looked back to Jax. "Do you wish to continue, Jax? You and Brenda can stay here while I try to find some kind of shelter, if the journey is becoming too difficult."

Jax tenderly raised Brenda’s face to meet his gaze. "Perhaps we should do as he suggests, angel. This vast difference in climate is taking a toll on all of us."

Brenda inhaled to answer but Dooma never allowed it. "No! We not stop now!! Journey much harder will be when we go on. Help we need." Dooma turned back to the dense forest and pointed straight ahead. "Help far not is."

Brenda smiled wanly and nodded. "Dooma has been our guide through danger in the past. He brought Scorpian safely to us in order to save our lives from the bandits. I trust him. We should continue as he says to find the help we’ll need to get to the next Tunnel Point."

Jax sighed and then quickly nodded his head to Scorpian. "We continue. The Brancar seems to think shelter is nearby and we have no reason to doubt him."

Scorpian whipped his cloak around his shoulders and then cast a wary glance at the furry creature. "I abide by your wishes, Jax. Lead on, guide Dooma…." His voice lowered so that Scorpian spoke mostly to himself. "…..but you fundin better be right!" Dooma toddled forward with Scorpian close behind, but before they started moving again, Jax swept Brenda up into his arms. She started to object, but then buried her head in the warmth of his chest as he strode quickly behind the two leaders of the expedition.

They had gone another hour’s journey when Brenda raised her head. "The frozen rain has lessened," she sighed. "You can put me down now." She stroked the side of his cheek gently with her fingers, teasing at the hair at Jax’s temple.

Brenda felt the purr rumble deeply in Jax’s chest, even through the thickness of his cloak. "If you continue to stroke my hair that way, angel, I’ll do more than *put* you down," he teased. He shifted her in his arms but when she expected to feel the ground beneath her feet again, he continued to hold her and walk. "I can sense that Dooma is feeling less anxious – the shelter he speaks of must not be far away. If I was able to carry you across the entire breadth of the ravneau, I can carry you just that little bit farther."

Brenda smiled and snuggled more deeply into Jax’s embrace, but then turned questioning eyes to his. "Jax, it doesn’t make sense – the way Scorpian asked you if we should continue." Jax deliberately kept silent, but Brenda pursued the matter. "Jax – did you hear me?" She placed a flat hand against his chest for emphasis.

"I’m sorry, zira," he replied, trying to evade her questions. "The howling of the wind must have drowned out your speech."

Brenda raised one eyebrow at him. "I said, it doesn’t make sense. Why should a knight of the Thren – a man renowned for his adventuresome spirit and courage – let someone else decide whether or not we continue?" Jax shrugged his shoulders, but Brenda wouldn’t let the issue drop. "Surely Scorpian would be more accustomed to traveling in alien worlds than you, wouldn’t he? Why would *he* defer to *your* wishes?"

{Yes, Sharay, why did I do that? I’d like to hear the answer to that one myself.} Scorpian turned back to Jax with a smug grin.

"Well, angel, I think it has to do with Scorpian’s gallant, tender nature as a knight and a Familiar," Jax replied smoothly.

{Gallant, my tooknit. You, Scorpian, are about as gallant and tender as a Geldfunkian ox.} As Jax’s words echoed in Scorpian’s brain, he turned very red – and it had nothing to do with the temperatures.

"You see," Jax continued, smiling as he heard Scorpian choking loudly, "he can sense that you and I have a special connection. Since you are the most delicate of the four of us, he would be anxious that you would tire the most quickly in these conditions. And who would know if you were tiring better than I?"

Brenda nodded slowly. "Yes, I suppose that does explain it. It still seems odd, though." Brenda snuggled back down into his arms and closed her eyes. Soon, Jax felt her entire body relax in a shallow sleep.

Jax slowly let out the breath he had been holding. Scorpian turned back once and raised an eyebrow at him, but Jax sent him another thought and the question was put to rest once and for all.

It was not another hour before a small stone cottage came into sight. Even from a distance, Scorpian could see smoke coming from the chimney. Dooma began to hop up and down in excitement. "Shelter! Now safe we be!" He turned to Scorpian as Jax came up behind them. "You here stay. Dooma ahead go to make sure welcome we be."

The little Brancar toddled off and went to the front of the cottage, pounding loudly on the wooden door. Neither Jax nor Scorpian could see what manner of creature answered his summons, but within minutes, Dooma turned back to them and motioned for them to come to the cottage.

When the three travelers arrived, Dooma proudly gestured towards the doorway. "Inside! Welcome inside are we!" Scorpian turned back to give Jax a cautious look and Jax nodded. Dooma just shook his head at the others’ fears and trundled through the door. Scorpian followed him with Jax bringing up the rear.

The cottage was very dark inside but a delicious aroma filled the air. The only light came from a crackling fire in the hearth, and a large stone kettle hung suspended over it. The smell of whatever was cooking in the kettle teased the senses of all of the travelers. Dooma turned to the other three and extended his furry claw. "This our host shall be. He by name of Vorclon goes."

A tall creature covered with black fur moved away from the hearth and came to stand next to Dooma. "Vorclon." He pointed to his chest with one long arm. The arm was so long, in fact, that his fingertips almost brushed the floor when it hung at his side.

Brenda wriggled in Jax’s arms and he finally set her down on the ground. She bravely walked forward to the huge alien with a smile. "Vorclon. We are most grateful for this shelter. My name is Brenda." She extended her delicate hand and Jax caught his breath as the alien grasped it with his furry mitt. Scorpian’s hand went to the hidden hilt of his dracon beam, but Brenda just smiled as the alien’s handshake apparently didn’t cause her pain. She turned back to the others, nodding her head at them. "These are my Familiar traveling companions, Jax and Scorpian."

The alien dropped Brenda’s hand the minute he saw Jax. He moved towards Jax, paused briefly, and then dipped his head in a sign of respect. Then he spun quickly and went back to the kettle, removing the lid and dipping up a bowlful of whatever had been brewing. He returned to Jax, offering the bowl without a word, his eyes downcast.

"Thank you," Jax said quietly, trying to appear surprised at the alien’s obvious subservience. Scorpian shot Jax an amused grin while Brenda was openly puzzled. Vorclon returned to the hearth, stirring the pot busily while Jax sniffed at the bowl of broth. "I sense that no harm will come to us from consuming this," Jax murmured to Brenda. He extended the bowl to her before taking some himself. "Drink, angel. It will warm you from the cold as well as satisfying your hunger."

Brenda cupped her hands around Jax’s as she took a sip of the broth. She licked her lips daintily, and Jax had to control his breathing as he found her movements infinitely sensual. She glanced up at him and smiled a little when she realized what her innocent action had sparked in him. Brenda was a little surprised herself – she never thought that she could ever be so physically attuned to a man in her life.

Scorpian saw the chemistry brewing between the two of them that had nothing to do with the nourishment. He shook his head and then turned to Dooma. "Please extend our thanks to your alien friend here for his hospitality and ask him how far the next Tunnel Point is."

Vorclon dipped several more bowls of the stew, passing them to Scorpian and Dooma, and then sat by the hearth with the Brancar. Words – or what Jax presumed were words in a language they both understood – flew rapidly between them. Scorpian took his bowl and moved over to a corner of the cottage while Jax and Brenda went to another corner by themselves to share their meal. As Jax ate, Brenda smiled and watched the interplay between the Brancar and his huge alien ally. "What pleases you, angel?" Jax asked, noting her look of contentment.

"Isn’t it amazing?" she asked in a hushed voice, shaking her head. "That two such opposite creatures as that would be such comrades?" She took another sip of the stew. "That is why I envy you, Jax." He gave her a curious look and she continued. "Your inquisitive Familiar nature takes you to new worlds and allows you to experience all the marvels of the universe. Even the Brancar has found friends in strange worlds." She shrugged her shoulders. "Had you not helped me to escape from Charporta, I would never have experienced any of this." She sighed aloud, and then gave Jax an apologetic smile. "My vagabond Torengi nature weighs heavily on me this night. I’m sorry if my complaining is a nuisance."

"Nothing you do would ever be annoying to me, zira," Jax replied. He placed the bowl on the ground and then leaned forward to pull her towards him. He sat her in his lap, her legs extended at a right angle to his. He draped her arms around his neck and then took her chin between his fingers. "Although the alien’s food does satisfy this body of mine, I find that other hungers only grow unchecked," he growled. Brenda sighed into his mouth as Jax’s lips closed over hers and she kissed him with unrestrained passion.

Brenda’s fingers tunneled into the hair at the nape of Jax’s neck and he purred softly. He trailed his lips down the side of her neck but when his hand began to slide up from her waist to cup her breast, Brenda gasped softly. "Jax! We cannot!" She blushed prettily and glanced over at Scorpian, who suddenly seemed to find something fascinating about his boot.

"I know, angel," Jax replied. "But it pleases me that you feel the hunger as strongly as I do."

Brenda continued to pass her fingers in the open neckline of Jax’s shirt, but then she stopped abruptly. "Jax, what is this marking? I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before." She stroked her fingers over a small, thin, crescent-shaped slash on Jax’s neck below his right ear.

Jax momentarily appeared flustered, but then smiled at her confidently. "It’s nothing, my zira. Merely a scar left by an injury suffered as a child." He put his hand up to his hair and combed it over the mark.

"But, Jax, if the mark is nothing, why does it bother you so?" She pushed his hair aside again and heard his purr rumble in his chest. Brenda’s natural curiosity wouldn’t let it rest. "In fact, I think Scorpian has one, too!" Brenda’s eyes lit with enthusiasm. "When he held me closely coming through the Matrix, I think I saw the same marking below his ear!" She narrowed her eyes. "Are you *lying* to me, Familiar?"

"I would *never* lie to you intentionally, angel," Jax replied smoothly. "You know that." But then he abruptly shifted her next to him and pulled her into the crook of his arm. "Now sleep, Brenda," he crooned, stroking her hair gently.

"I’m not sleepy." She crossed her arms and Jax expected she would have performed the foot-stomping dance were she not in a sitting position.

"Really?" He shifted his weight a little closer to her and pulled her so that her head rested on his chest.

"Really!" She pounded her fist weakly on his chest once, and then opened her fist to lay her hand flat. "Really…." The combined effects of a full stomach, the warmth of the room and the exertions of the journey took a quick toll on Brenda and she was asleep in minutes.

Jax remained with her for the better portion of an hour until he was sure she was deeply asleep before he shifted her off his chest. He gently patted her head and then rose to his feet, nodding silently to Scorpian, who had been watching the entire scene from across the room.

Dooma and Vorclon lay next to the fire, sleeping soundly themselves as Jax and Scorpian huddled in an opposite corner of the room. "We haven’t had a chance to speak privately since you rescued us, Scorpian," Jax whispered, grasping Scorpian’s right arm in friendship once again. "There is no way I will ever be able to repay that debt."

Scorpian glanced over at a sleeping Brenda. "It appears to me that repaying that debt will be the least of your problems once you arrive on Meer’an, Zir Jax," he replied with a teasing wink. "She has no idea what it means when you address her as zira, does she?"

"Not a clue." Jax sighed and folded his hands, propping his elbows on his spread knees as he crouched next to Scorpian. "Fire and zeal are admirable qualities in a woman, Scorpian, but not when they are directed at a man who has deceived them." He smiled crookedly. "But I have a feeling that you already know that already, don’t you?"

Scorpian gave Jax a knowing nod. "How did you meet the Crown Princess? Were you negotiating with her so that Charporta might join the Empire?"

"The only *negotiating* we did," Jax said sarcastically, "was in striking a bargain so that she would free me from the chains in Corinthon’s dungeon."

"Chains?" Scorpian smiled and lifted an eyebrow lewdly, but then his smile faded into shocked outrage. "Chains??!! You were a prisoner?!"

Jax nodded as he placed a hand on Scorpian’s shoulder to quiet him. "The power struggle on Charporta is far worse than the Council of Tron expected. Brenda was the rightful heir to Morenon but she did not wish to rule. Corinthon, Morenon’s brother, has the desire to rule but it is not his due." Jax stared at a distant point over Scorpian’s shoulder. "Corinthon is a vile, cruel despot. But I suspect that he is only a puppet for a leader who is even more evil than he is." His gaze shifted back to Scorpian. "Corinthon has a deadly poison that can render the entire Familiar population senseless. His strategy for using the gas is even more malevolent."

Scorpian’s hand automatically went to the hilt of his dracon beam. "As soon as you and Zira Brenda are safely on Tron, I will make my way back to Charporta and deal with this Corinthon. He will rue the day he ever drew breath or presumed to harm you, Zir Jax."

"I appreciate your loyal passion, Scorpian, but I must first speak to the Council before we deal with Corinthon. He not only threatened *my* continued existence, but the existence of the entire Familiar people." Jax patted Scorpian on the arm. "Once the Council acts to neutralize this worm, I will let you be a part of our revenge."

Scorpian nodded reluctantly. "So....Brenda is not a Charportan, then?"

"No. She is a Torengi." Brenda stirred in her sleep and Jax’s gaze was immediately drawn to her. But when she quieted again, he turned back to Scorpian.

"I thought so." Scorpian gave Jax a lusty smile. "They are not only intelligent, but also a passionate people." He leaned closer to Jax and whispered near his ear. "Has she performed the dance for you?"

"The dance?" Jax was totally mystified. "What dance?"

"I….uh…." Scorpian fumbled for words. "I have never actually *seen* it, but I recall hearing one of the other Knights speak of it once. Apparently there is a customary dance among the Torengi that a woman performs only for her true love." Scorpian shrugged when he saw Jax’s face fall. "It is probably just an old fable. You know how Knights talk….."

Jax smiled and nodded but he couldn’t erase Scorpian’s words from his mind. Obviously Brenda failed to have the depth of feelings for him that Jax felt for her. But he knew that she felt something – even if only physical desire – for him. And perhaps, after spending some time with his family on Tron, she would be able to reconcile her strong desire for freedom with her growing feelings for him.

A plan began to form in Jax’s mind as Scorpian moved silently back to his own corner. Jax went back to Brenda and arranged his body around her in his usual feline, Familiar manner. If seeing his family – the love that was such a vital part of their essence and the happiness they shared – did not convince her, then perhaps a discussion with the Nifonshin High Wizardess, Lilata, would help. Jax fell into a peaceful sleep, hopeful that his plan would somehow prevent his zira from killing him when she learned the meaning of the word.

*~*~*~*

The four travelers and Vorclon sat close to the hearth as they shared food the following morning. Scorpian glanced out one of the windows at the gray skies that promised more snow before the evening fell. "We should be on our way to the next Tunnel Point as soon as possible, Dooma. Our trek will only be made more difficult if the weather conditions deteriorate."

Dooma’s plate rattled as he shook his head vehemently. "No, Knight! Next Tunnel Point be far. We make it not without help from Vorclon."

Jax eyed the alien with some suspicion. "What kind of help?" He looked at Brenda and then back to Dooma. "Certainly warm coats would be most valuable to us if the rest of the journey is a difficult one."

"More than coats you need to get to Tunnel Point," Dooma said tersely. He scooped up more of the stew and shoveled it in his mouth. "Only way to get to the next Tunnel Point is on sotoslay."

"Sotoslay?" Brenda confessed the curiosity that Jax felt but didn’t show. "Do you know what that is?"

Jax shook his head but Scorpian nodded slowly. "A sotoslay is a primitive type of conveyance – logs lashed together and mounted on runners. It’s usually pulled by some kind of beast of burden."

"Meerundunks." Vorclon spoke to the others for the first time since they had arrived. "Meerundunks pull – but only if they like you."

Vorclon rose to his feet and began to collect the plates as Scorpian moved to crouch next to Jax. "Do you have any idea what a fundin Meerundunk is?"

"I was about to ask you the same question, Scorpian," Jax replied, smiling at the alien but suspicious none the same. "And – exactly how does a Meerundunk decide if it…." Jax shuddered as the three shared a grotesque thought. "…..likes you."

Only Dooma seemed happy with the turn of events. He quickly helped the alien clean up the remnants of the morning meal and then followed him as he went into the back of the cottage. He returned with huge fur blankets and after receiving Jax’s nod of approval, he draped one around Brenda’s shoulders. He handed another to Jax and one to Scorpian before he went to the door of the cottage and motioned for them to follow.

The rush of cold air that entered the cottage reminded Jax and Brenda just how lucky they had been to have Dooma as their guide and Vorclon for their ally. Jax had no doubt that they would have perished in the open air the night before. Even with the heavy fur wrapped around her, Brenda’s delicate nose soon began to turn red in the cold morning air.

Vorclon trundled around the back of the cottage with Dooma following, so Scorpian just shrugged and Jax and Brenda joined him. As they rounded the corner, they could see Vorclon dragging a massive conveyance from a crude shed. As Scorpian had predicted, it consisted of a dozen large logs lashed side by side, with smooth metal runners attached to the bottom. Some sturdy logs had been mounted in an upright position on top the raft-like thing, obviously giving travelers something to grip for balance while the thing was moving.

Vorclon dragged the thing to just in front of Jax and Brenda and then dropped it, giving them a proud look. "Sotoslay!" he announced with toothy enthusiasm.

"Fundin marvelous." Scorpian couldn’t help his sarcasm and Brenda elbowed him in the ribs. Jax stifled his grin but before any one of them could say anything, Vorclon went back to the shed again with Dooma following. Scorpian suddenly moved in front of Jax and Brenda, spreading his arms to the side. "Until we learn exactly what a Meerundunk is," he explained to Jax, and Jax nodded and pulled Brenda more securely to his side.

Brenda didn’t need to be told twice to move as piercing howls split the air. Scorpian even trembled a little as he saw Vorclon emerge from a pen behind the shed. He was holding the tether of a four-legged, two headed beast that was making a louder noise than a Twillian hyena at mating time. It lunged straight towards the two Familiars and Brenda, who was almost completely hidden beneath Jax’s arm. Dooma came right behind Vorclon with another similar beast, although a little smaller.

Vorclon stopped and gave them another toothy grin. "Meerundunk. Pure bred. Fourth generation."

Scorpian raised one eyebrow. "Nothing worse than a mongrel Meerundunk, I always say." The beast let loose another howl and scratched the ground with paws that boasted nails at least four inches long. Scorpian jumped just a little, but tried not to show any kind of fear in the face of the beast.

As Jax and Brenda held their breaths, the meerundunk moved closer to Scorpian. He lowered one of his heads to the ground and sniffed delicately at Scorpian’s feet. The other head nudged Scorpian’s hand ever so gently, and Scorpian had to restrain himself from shuddering when he felt the distinctive wetness of meerundunk drool.

Abruptly, Vorclon pulled back on the leash and the animal raised both heads to the skies and howled loudly. Vorclon smiled – at least, Brenda thought he did. "Meerundunk like Familiar!"

Dooma rushed forward, still holding the smaller beast and patted Vorclon on the back. "Dooma tell you – fundin good they smell!" Vorclon nodded enthusiastically and the meerundunks all set to howling that caused Brenda to put her hands over her ears.

Scorpian wrinkled his nose in disgust as he stared at the animal and then his hand, which still smelled faintly from the animal’s saliva. "Fundin charmed, I’m sure." He glanced back at Jax, who was finding all of this extremely humorous. "Now can we please get going before it starts to snow!?"

Vorclon nodded and he and Dooma began hitching the meerundunks to the sotoslay. Vorclon returned to the pen and brought out one more large animal, putting the smaller one behind them in a triangular arrangement. Jax lifted Brenda up onto the barge and then scrambled up behind her. He arranged the furry blankets on the log floor and then helped Brenda into a sitting position, bracing her back against one of the log supports. He tucked another fur blanket around her lap securely.

"What about you?" Brenda asked as Jax rose to his feet once more. "Where will you travel?"

"Scorpian and I will remain standing, zira," he replied. "I will stand just behind you at this post." He crouched down for a moment, taking her chin between his fingers. "I would never leave you, Brenda. I lo...."

Jax’s words were interrupted by another howl from the meerundunks. Vorclon clapped his hands and gave a fierce yell, and Jax barely got hold of the log pillar before the sotoslay began moving across the snow.

The animals proved to be as strong as they were loud. Vorclon’s cottage was soon only a small speck on the distant horizon. The cold wind whipped at Jax’s face and when he chanced a glance at Scorpian, his face was also becoming chapped. But he stood at a post near the front of the conveyance, his stance one of readiness to defend the lives of his zir and zira.

Brenda shrieked when the sotoslay left the ground and began gliding across a frozen lake. The long nails of the meerundunks made a loud clicking noise as they dug into the ice for traction. Jax only appreciated Dooma and his alien friend that much more when he saw their progress. Without the conveyance and the fierce animals, they could never have hoped to cross the icy lake and survive.

It took them more than an hour to cross the lake, and then several more hours before they began to slow their progress. Vorclon finally gave another fierce yell, and the meerundunks came to a slow stop. Dooma conversed with Vorclon once again in the language they both understood, and then he turned back to Jax, Brenda, and Scorpian.

"The Tunnel Point be here -- just beyond those trees in a cave," Dooma said, pointing with his furry claw. "Travel you can the rest of the way on foot."

"You?" Scorpian looked askance at Dooma as he assisted Brenda from the sotoslay. "Aren’t you coming with us?"

Dooma shook his head briskly as Vorclon took something disgusting from a pouch and began feeding it to the meerundunks. "An Imperial planet this Tunnel Point connects with," he explained. "Job of Dooma is finished as guide."

Jax came forward to stand with Brenda and Scorpian. "I sense that the Brancar is correct. The next world is indeed under the protection of the Empire. It is the last Tunnel Point before we arrive on Tron."

Scorpian sighed aloud. "Well, then, I suppose this is where we part ways." He put out his hand in friendship to the small, furry creature. "I will count you always as friend and ally, Dooma. We would have certainly died without your expertise."

Dooma stared at the ground and shuffled his furry feet as Scorpian dug deeply into his pocket. He pulled out a velvet pouch, closed by a drawstring. "This contains 5 rarified gems. I believe that should settle our debt to you for your services."

Dooma jumped up and down in happiness. The deal he had struck was only for one rarified gem. "*More* than generous you are, Familiar Knight!" He startled Scorpian when he rushed forward to give him an impromptu hug at the knees. "Fundin saintly, you be!"

Jax cleared his throat loudly and stifled his chuckle as Scorpian scowled. "Yes, that’s nice, now let’s be on our way," Scorpian finally said through gritted teeth.

Brenda had watched the entire scene with a smile and the hint of tears in her eyes. She came forward to give Dooma an unrestrained hug of her own, and then Jax took her arm. Dooma climbed on the sotoslay with Vorclon and the loud howls of the animals could still be heard even when the conveyance was far in the distance.

Scorpian clapped his hands. "Well, shall we be off to the Matrix? I, for one, would like to leave this planet before nightfall and more cold and snow."

Brenda held her fur blanket more tightly around her shoulders. "I agree, Knight Scorpian. Even though my nature is to discover new worlds, I think that *this* is one I’ll choose *not* to re-visit!" She took Scorpian’s arm as he began to lead them towards the cave that held the Tunnel Point, with Jax bringing up the rear.

They had just about come to the mouth of the cave when Jax noticed that the ground was beginning to spin beneath his feet. He stopped for a moment and put his hand to his forehead. Closing his eyes, he saw multi-colored stars exploding and re-forming. Jax put out a hand to steady himself on a nearby rock. He closed his eyes again and swore softly. This couldn’t be happening to him again! It was too soon for the time of his manifestation to be upon him.

Scorpian had taken Brenda inside the cave when he turned around and saw Jax leaning against the rock. He immediately went back to Jax and grasped him by the arm. "Jax! Are you ill?" Jax looked up at him and his eyes gave away his anxieties. "The manifestation?"

"Perhaps it is only the cold and my weariness," Jax replied weakly.

Scorpian rose an eyebrow but did not contradict his zir. "I am sure that’s all it is, Jax." He held Jax by the elbow and assisted him into the cave, where Brenda met him with fear in her eyes.

"Jax? Is something wrong?" Brenda put her delicate arms around him but Jax pulled himself up straight and tall, his strength returning.

"Nothing is wrong at all, my zira," Jax replied. He put his arm around her. "Let us enter the Matrix and be on our way to the next world."

Scorpian nodded and took his customary place at the head of their group. "To the next world," he said with gusto, but then secretly glanced back at Jax. And then to Tron, he thought to himself, and then -- to Meer’an. Quickly.

To be continued.....