This is just something I've been wanting to do. It's been rattling around in my head for a few days and since no one else thought to do it I did, hehehehehe. Thanks much to Laura for all her help with this. If it weren't for her this would be rather boring instead of just strange. ; }

The character of Katherin Sandoval, Tomas Sandoval, Enrique Sandoval, and the profile of Paliose are mine. Anyone can use them if they ask and promise to send me a copy of the finished story. All other characters dealing with The Sentinel belong to Pet Fly and Paramount and those guys.

Summary: A mystery woman comes to Cascade in the middle of a storm to catch a killer and stop a murder. She has a secrete. Can you guess what it is??

Across Time

by Red Falcon

*Two days before*

Detective Lieutenant Katherin Sandoval enters the Major Crimes bullpen and looks around. No one really pays any attention to her anymore. At first it was hard for them to deal with having a Law Enforcement rated psychic around but now they've gotten used to it. Before she can sit down at her desk, the same one that used to be her father's and uncle's, the door to Captain Banks' office opens.

"Sandoval." he calls out. She turns to look at him, it's Daryl all grown up.

"Yes, sir." she says and aproaches him.

"We've got a situation down at the convention center." he says.

"What's happening?" Katherin asks.

"A kid from the Thorston Center escaped and has at least a half dozen hostages." the captain says.

The Thorston Center is an institution for psychics and telepaths that can't handle being around people. Now one of them has escaped and that makes him or her very dangerous.

"All right, I get over there right away." she says.

She turns to leave and he stops her.

"Are you still going to go through with it? Are you really going to try that Transit Gate thing?" he asks.

"Yes. I need to do this, Daryl. I have to try. I can't stop them from here. Too much has happened since those bastards killed him. Why can't the government just leave well enough alone. He was a good cop. He served his country and protected his city. Why couldn't they just let him do what he was best at? Damn them!" she says.

"Have they come after you?" Daryl asks.

"Yeah, a couple of times. I'd even swear they were behind that bio-weapons factory. Well, if I can stop him from being killed, maybe things will turn out differently. Maybe my father is the one to turn things around for us." she says.

Daryl smiles and claps her on the back as he walks with her to the elevator. "I won't try and stop you but how are you going to explain all of this to them?" he asks.

"I've built a time protected archive. Everything that has happened since the day he died is saved so that no matter what happens someone will know what I did." she says.

"You know, they've posted the Captain's List already." Daryl says.

"I know, I saw it. I'm not gonna take it. I'm not leaving." she says. Her's was a sad smile, "I like it here. I like being close to him. Damn, I miss him and I never knew him." she says and turns away to hide the sudden tears that have flooded her eyes.

"I know. I was just a kid the day Blair told me. I thought my father was going to have a heart attack. Good luck, Katherin. I'll see you when you get back, right?" he says. All she can do is nod, her voice refusing to work past the lump of her heart in her throat. Katherin is not even sure she will come back from this, all possible avenues of the future are dark and stormy. She shakes herself back to reality, she has a job to do, the future can wait.

*Two days later*

A powerful presence enters the Major Crimes bullpen one dark and stormy afternoon. Every man in the room looks up from what he is doing to see a dark shadow glide across the floor. The station has been having problems with their lights since the storm started and the entrance of the stranger did nothing to calm the already excitable group. One man in particular looks up and is totally rocked as she passes him to approach Captain Simon Banks' office. She doesn't even stop to say anything though she is very much aware of him. He is the reason she has come to Cascade. She has come to

make sure nothing happens to him. She knocks on the door and enters when the voice inside beckons. She looks at the seated man and smiles to herself, she remembers hearing stories about him as she was growing up and the sadness of the day that she heard he was murdered. Stories of how he would help her father and his partner and even cover for them with the higher-ups.

"Captain Banks?" she asks.

The man stops what he is trying to do to look at her. He is startled by the forceful

shadow she projects.

"Yes, and you are.....?"

"Katherin Sandoval. I'm sure you were told of my arrival." she says.

"Yes, yes. I remember now. Sorry to keep staring at you but it's kinda hard to see

with the emergency lighting and not having a flashlight and all."

"That's all right captain." she says.

Katherin remembers, as she watches him, that eleven year old girl sitting in a lonely dorm room with the tv on when the news broke into the program she was only half listening to.

*"We interupt this broadcast to bring you important news. Ten minutes ago, in the state capitol, Governor Simon Banks, former head of the Major Crimes unit and former Commissioner of Police, was shot and killed. The assassin is at this point unknown and is feared to have escaped. Once again, the governor is dead."*

From then on she didn't listen, she had been too stunned. She cried for hours after that

but never spoke to anyone about it. Katherin chose this day to make her first appearance on purpose knowing about the storm and the effect she would have on the other cops. She also knows that the one man she is really here to see won't be affected by her or what she is doing.

"I still don't know how we can help. This crazy storm is playing havoc with all our systems and we can't even get a clean line to the outside world." the captain says.

"That's all right, sir. I've been after this guy for years now and until he made the mistake of coming here he has always been one step ahead of me." she says.

"Before you finish let me get my best team in here and you can tell us all just what it is you need from us."

Katherin nods and waits. She stands and goes to watch the storm. If all works out well enough, by the time the storm blows out she will be back home with her family intact and she can get on with her life. In the darkness of the office and dressed all in black she completely disappears. Sandburg and Ellison follow the captain back into his office. Banks looks around and for a second thinks the woman has left, then Ellison points to a shadow in front of the outside window.

"Agent Sandoval this is Detective Jim Ellison and his partner. Why don't you tell them what you told me."

Sandoval turns around and looks at the two men she has only heard stories about. She is stunned to see how young her uncle is now. His eyes have never changed except with time and loss, they are still bright and clear, an intense light blue. Then she sees the man who will be her father. *My god, he's incredible. I can feel his strength and raw power. You never told me just how powerful he is, Uncle Blair.* The few pictures she had seen of him did not do him justice. The day she finally looked at the stuff her father had left behind comes back on her and she remembers.

*"Why didn't you tell me he was dead? Why did you let me think he left us? Damn it, Uncle Blair, he was my father." a twelve year old Katherin rages.

"He was my best friend. It just hurt too much to talk about him, especially since your mother was in such a bad way. We've got the weekend to talk before you head for Peru. You can ask me anything you want." Blair says.

He watches her as she holds his friend's badge and id.

"There's so much I want to know about him. I don't know where to begin." she says, then thinks a moment. "How did you meet him?" she asks.

Blair laughs as he remembers. "It was during his investigation of a series of bombings by a woman calling herself `The Switchman'. He had been alone for days tracking her and his senses started acting up. You see, Kat, your father was a Sentinel. The only one I had ever encountered." Blair begins.

"I remember reading your research on Sentinels. He was the one you were talking about. My god." the young girl says totally in awe.

"Yeah, he was incredible. But he was scared half to death when I found him. He had no idea what was happening to him and I think I was a little over eager. He didn't trust me at first but when he walked out in front of a garbage truck and didn't see it I pulled him to the ground and the damn thing just went right over us. I think that was the beginning of the trust."

"Were you with him the day he died?" she asks.

Blair takes a deep breath and considers how he is going to tell her how her

father died.

"Yes, I was with him that day....................... We were following a trail of this sniper. Jim had been shot at least a dozen times but we never got close enough for him to get a good look and there was never any trace after it was done for him to follow. One morning, near the loft, as we were leaving to go to the station a shot rang out and I watched him fall. It took the paramedics too long to get to him, he bled to death waiting for them to arrive. He was so stunned when it happened, said he didn't even hear the shot but he certainly felt it when he was hit." Blair says.

Katherin shudders, moves closer to him, and hugs him, tears flooding her eyes.*

It only took a moment for this to run through her mind as she watches the predatory grace of the man in front of her. She shakes off a sense of nerves as she begins.

"All right. You gentlemen may want to sit down for this. I don't know if you are familiar with a string of nasty or should I say disgusting homicides that have gone unsolved for the last fifteen years." she says as she watches them.

Captain Banks shudders, Ellison's jaw tightens, the only indication of his displeasure, and Sandburg just looks at them totally confused.

"For the last fifteen years someone or several someone's have been killing young women in a particularly brutal fashion. I won't go into the details so as not to make anyone sick but the killer always leaves a trademark golden rose in the hand of each victim and the sign of Paliose, an inverted crosshex. The profile says he is a nerd type luring his victims through false claims over the net. I've got nothing against the Fed's profiling system but this time they really blew it. I've seen the work this creep does. He's not very intelligent, just smart enough to keep out of the way when the cops show up but he's always around when the body's found." she begins.

Katherin gets this far away look in her eyes as she recalls the details of the profile she saw once on this guy and her own impressions from studying the crime scene and autopsy reports.

"He's strong, probably an athlete or was at one time. He really likes this, the killing, he's getting good at it. He likes to feel powerful, he likes his power over the victims, the fear he creates before he kills them. The rose and crosshex is just something to throw everyone off so we don't see his true motive. The freak gets his rocks off killing these women, any woman that he sees. Killing is fun for him pure and simple. Because we've been looking for hidden meanings in his pattern we have missed him all these years. The choice of victims is truly random, he picks one or two whenever the mood suits him. Then he grabs them and has his fun and kills them slowly sometimes or fast again depending on his mood at the time. He doesn't talk about it though, this is something he keeps to himself but more than likely when we find him he'll have it all written down somewhere. He may even have taped himself as he kills. My guess is that if we never catch him he'll stop one day. That's when he'll want to relive his kills through his journals and tapes. This guy is really sick." she says.

She comes out of her self induced trance and watches them for a reaction. Ellison stands and walks over to her and watches her for a moment as if he is gagging the truth of her statement. She has better control than he realizes and all he gets from listening to her is what she wants him to know.

"All right, what can we do to help?" he asks.

"Well, if you don't mind, I could use something to eat. The flight out here was long and I didn't get a chance to eat before I left." Katherin says.

The others look at her incredulously then Sandburg fights off a giggle fit.

She doesn't pay attention, "We can talk while we eat if you want, but I am starved." she says and heads south of the office with Ellison and Sandburg in tow.

"Why don't we try that new Italian place near the campus?" Blair suggests.

"Sounds good to me. What about you Agent Sandoval?" Ellison asks.

"It's Katherin or Kathy, and it sounds good to me too." she says.

Katherin resist the urge to watch them as the elevator slowly descends to the garage level. Blair can't help but stare at her and wonder where she really came from. He doesn't know if his friend can tell or not but there is something

definitely strange about this Fed, if indeed she is a Fed.

While they are eating, Katherin gets a far away look in her eyes as she tries to concentrate on something that the others do not see or hear. Something jolts her out of her chair and scares Sandburg.

"What happened?" Ellison asks.

Katherin mutters in Spanish cursing herself for taking time to do anything other than get after this psycho. She finishes her lunch and gets up to leave,

completely forgetting that she isn't alone. She follows a trail that takes them to the seedy part of town and Ellison tries once again to get her attention. This time when he touches her she nearly jumps out of her skin.

"What?! What did I do?" she asks then looks around.

In that instant, a simple touch, she is drawn to another incident when Tomas found out that she is a psychic and the look on his face is much the same as the one on Detective Ellison's right now.

"Where the hell are we?" she asks.

"A couple of miles south of the campus. What are we doing here?" Ellison asks.

Before she can answer he hears movement and sees Katherin stiffen. She draws her weapon and edges carefully toward the sound. She watches the cop carefully to see how he reacts to the sounds, gagging the threat potential

by his actions. She doesn't relax though as she picks up a stray thought from the shadowed figure. Katherin moves ahead of Ellison and Sandburg and is nearly on top of the suspect when the tension level around them shoots up and she makes a dive at Jim and Blair. Gun fire erupts over their heads

as the mysterious Federal Agent returns just as much as she gets. She shouts in Spanish at the fleeing suspect. She is still on the ground, having been shooting from a prone position, and lays back to try and still her overactive nervous system. She may not have her father's hyper senses but she is just as deadly as any highly trained cop. And the fact that she was exposed to a neural enhancer on an earlier bust only makes her that much more of a threat to the criminals that she tracks. Her body calms down slowly as she hears the suspect run away. Blair is at her side as soon as the shooting stops, concerned that she may be injured.

"I'm fine, I just didn't have time to get back up." she answers his unasked question then slowly gets to her feet to look around.

"There's a body in here somewhere." she says to herself and she goes hunting for it.

"I found it." she hears Ellison say.

She comes up behind the detective and looks over his shoulder, which is no mean feat. Jim Ellison is over six feet tall and it is rather difficult for the average sized cops to be able to see over his shoulder like that but this woman is nearly his height and when she does see what he is looking at Katherin almost loses her lunch. Katherin walks away and tries to steady herself, Blair follows.

"Are you all right?" he asks.

"Not really. I mean I've seen the pictures before but this is something else. This is really gross." she says.

She begins to shake uncontrollably and Blair thinks it's from shock.

"Take it easy, it's all right. Not everyone can deal with that kind of thing."

She doesn't look at him as a neuro-fit hits her full force and drops her to the ground.

At that Blair gets scared, "JIM!, she's in trouble!" he calls out.

Ellison is at his side instantly and sees the problem. "All right let's get her to the hospital." he says.

"No,........I'm ........... I'll be fine in a minute, Tomas. Just give me a minute..........." she says.

After a few minutes Katherin gets up but is leaning on Sandburg heavily, the neuro-fit has taken a lot out of her.

"I really hate when that happens." she says.

"What did happen? Who is Tomas?" Jim asks, concerned.

"There's nothing you can do about it and it doesn't really effect my work. I ran into something a few years ago and it still bothers me every now and then. He was my husband, he's gone. Damn." she says trying to pass it off as nothing and takes a shuddering breath.

"I've called Simon and he's bringing the evidence crew." Jim says.

"Just wonderful." Katherin whispers.

She walks away from Blair and tries to concentrate, searching her memory for a possible location of her suspect. She is deep in thought and she doesn't hear the cars and vans arrive and nearly misses Simon's questioning glance.

"I'm fine captain, I'm just trying to remember everything I read on this

freak, that's all." she says.

The captain isn't buying it anymore than Ellison, she can see it in their

eyes. "What do you want me to say. I told you I'm fine, a little hyper, I've always been that way. It used to drive my mother crazy that I would never sit still for very long." she says.

"What about what Sandburg said happened?" the captain asks.

"It happened years ago. The worst of it is passed but every now and then it comes back and sends me for a loop." she says.

"What caused it?" Simon asks.

"Something I was working on. We busted a lab that was working on bio-weapons. Apparently they got hold of an experimental batch of Neural-Enhancers. When the lab blew I was still inside and got that crap all over me. It absorbed through my skin and I've been a mess ever since." she says. "Look it's not that bad really. It gives me an edge I wouldn't normally have. I admit it gets bothersome sometimes but if I can live with these damn psychic flashes and the looks I get, I can live with a hyper nervous system." she says as she heads back to the restaurant and away from the scene of the murder.

Just as she is about to leave the abandoned building she hears something. Turning she sees someone taking aim at the knot of officers. Without realizing what she is doing her vision becomes as sharp as a Sentinel's as she opens fire on the unseen intruder. Every cop in the area hits the ground and draws their weapon. The hidden shooter goes down and Katherin walks slowly over to the body. * That's one. All right buster where are your friends?? * she asks the dead man. A powerful wave of hate and bloodlust hits her and she collapses into the wall and slides to the ground.

"What the hell was that?" Banks shouts.

Katherin cringes at the sound.

"Get me out of here. I can't handle this anymore." she whispers.

Ellison helps her to her feet and leads her to his truck.

"We're taking you to the hospital." he says.

"No, no hospitals, please. Any place but hospitals." she says getting very agitated.

She gets a flash of someone waiting in the loft for them to return, "Not there either, someone is there waiting. He's gonna kill one of us." she says.

Her eyes have a blank look that tells them she may know something that they do not.

"I'll be right back, stay with her, Chief." he says.

Blair nods and waits with her. She leans on him and nearly passes out.

"It's too much. I can't stop it."

"May be we should get you to a doctor."

"There's nothing that a doctor can do. I'm a psychic bordering on a full range telepath, they told me this might happen one day. I just never thought it would happen so far from home. I just need a quiet place to think and sort out all these damn visions." she says.

Soon Jim returns and sees that she is still having trouble.

"Simon said we can use his place until he checks out the loft. How did you know that was where we were going?" he says.

"I just did. Just get me out of here and I'll tell you what I can." she says. She has trouble climbing into the truck.

When they arrive at Simon's house Daryl let's them in and helps Blair with the barely conscious woman.

"What's wrong with her?" he asks.

"Shock more than anything. Stay with her for a minute." Jim says.

The boy sits on a chair opposite the woman while Ellison goes outside to use his cellular and Blair head for the kitchen to get her something to drink. Daryl jumps when Katherin moans and tries to sit up. She can feel his curiosity and uses it as an anchor as she slowly fights her way back to reality. Katherin opens her eyes only to close them again against the brightness of too many lamps.

"Please, turn off some of the lights, it's too bright." she says.

Thoughtful child that he is, Daryl immediately turns off both lamps beside the couch and the one directly behind it. He goes to turn off more lights when she speaks again, "Thank you, this is enough." she says. She watches Daryl and a split image of him as he is now and as he will be when she gets to know him threaten to overwhelm her. "Are you all right?" he asks.

"Yes, thank you. This must be annoying for you. Cops coming into your home and not talking." she says.

"No big deal. Jim and Blair are friends of my dad's and I don't mind them being here." he leaves the rest unsaid trying not to be rude.

"But having a stranger around is not your idea of a good time. I understand. It will be all right. Everything will be all right. You'll do your dad proud, you always have." she says.

Blair comes back into the living room and nearly trips over a chair.

"What happened? Why are the lights out?" he asks.

"They were hurting my eyes. This is got to be what it feels like during a cross over. Damn, I should've waited." she says.

"What is this `Cross Over'?" Jim asks having completed his call and standing just out of sight in the shadows.

Both Blair and Daryl jump a the sound of his voice but Katherin just looks up at him with pain and confusion in her eyes.

"A telepathic cross over. That's what's happening to me. It's when the mind of a borderline psychic begins to open and the world intrudes rather painful. It hurts like hell and I was going to go back to Peru to let this happen. It's a natural part of my life even though I never expected for it to happen. When I left to come out here they said it could happen any time and that I should wait until it was done and passed before I did anything like this. It's too late to stop it now and I can't go back while this is happening. I've got to stop this guy and find the ones who were shooting at us earlier. If this wasn't happening I would do this alone but it is and I can't." she says.

Poor Daryl is so confused he doesn't know what to do but he leaves the adults alone and goes to his room to do his homework.

"Who or what are you?" Ellison asks, his voice low and menacing.

"No threat to you or your Guide, I swear. I came here to find a killer and stop another murder from happening. As I told Blair while we were waiting for you, I am a psychic bordering on a full range telepath. Not everyone like me crosses over to being a telepath but some do." Katherin begins.

The men can hear wry humor in her voice but also they hear a bitter sadness there also.

"My intention is to catch this psycho and stop the men responsible for the murder and then go back home. I thought I would only be here until the storm blew out but now that the cross over has begun I don't know how long I will be stuck here." she says.

Katherin leans back and tries to rest but it's not working. She can feel the distrust and worry in the two men with her. She is about to say something when she is hit, again, with a neural-fit. Her body is rebelling against her. Every nerve and fiber is alive with electricity and terrible pain. Her body shakes and contorts in painful angles as the fit progresses. This time she falls off the couch and bangs her head on the coffee table and they are struck by a powerful psychic wave. Nothing major just strong impressions of pain and guilt. Both men are rocked to their knees as the fit and cross over flash pass. Katherin sits up with a pain filled groan and feels around her head for the gash. Her hand pulls back bloody and she looks around for the others, then she remembers Daryl. Leaving the two men in the living room, Kathy stumbles to the boy's bedroom. She knocks on the door and opens it slightly when he doesn't respond. Daryl is completely out of it. She barely makes it back to the living room before she collapses again. Jim picks her up carefully and takes her to the couch and examines the gash on her scalp. "Take it easy, let me look." he says.

"I'm fine. It doesn't even hurt, much." Katherin says.

"Yeah, well let me look at it anyway. What the hell was that?" he asks.

"Cross over flash, wonderful timing. Right in the middle of a neural-fit. I really hate this. Ouch, be careful will you. Ah hell, turn me loose I'll take care of it myself." she says irritably. She mutters to herself in Spanish as she tries to clean the open wound. The smell of blood and peroxide makes both of them a little nauseous but he stays at her side until she is done.

"You should get some sleep, it's gonna be a long day tomorrow." he says.

"Go make sure Daryl is all right. I think he got caught in the trailing edge of the flash." Katherin tells him, trying to get him to leave her alone for a moment.

"How did you know someone was waiting at the loft for us? How did you even know we would take you there?" Blair asks.

"As soon as your friend touched me I knew his intentions. From that I got an impression of danger and gunshots. I saw a body falling and didn't want to take a chance." she says.

"Daryl is fine, he's just sleeping. Which is something we all should be doing." Ellison says. At that moment though, Simon comes home.

"We found three men waiting in the shadows. Would someone like to tell me what the hell is going on?" he demands.

Jim and Blair get real quiet and Katherin tries, in vain, to stifle a rage of giggles. "Sorry, I know this isn't funny but I can't help it." she says.

She looks to her two guardians before she says anything. When she sees that they have completely trusted this man with their secrete she decides to do the same.

"I'm a psychic caught in the middle of a telepathic cross over. Don't ask me to explain because I can't. When we were leaving the scene earlier, Detective Ellison touched me and I saw what he had in mind and that's when I was drawn to the loft. I saw shadows with guns and gunfire. I just didn't want to take the chance on going there while I'm like this. Before you say anything, doctors and hospitals won't help. This is so beyond them that they may kill me out of ignorance. Besides I came here to find a killer and that is what I intend to do." she says.

"OK...... uh ........ whatever. This is too weird even for you guys."

"What happened to the men at the loft?" Katherin asks.

"They're dead. They wouldn't surrender and put up a fight. It will be a while before you can go back home, I'm sorry." the captain says.

"That's all right Simon, as long as no one was hurt trying to catch these guys." Jim says.

"They must not be very good at what they do. They were shooting blindly and none came even close."

With that simple statement things started to click for the mysterious woman. She considers what the captain is saying as she tries to think straight, which isn't easy. Just as the captain is about to check on his son he sees the effects of a cross over flash and is really spooked. He says nothing though and leaves them alone. Whatever is happening it is between his officers and the stranger.

"Man I really hate this." Katherin keeps repeating every time she is hit.

"How long will this last?" Blair asks after a particularly bad flash.

"I don't know. No one knows. I'm sorry to do this to you. You shouldn't have to deal with it." she says.

Katherin tries to move away from them but only manages to stumble. One night as she tries to sleep the dreams come back, pain, terror, confusion. Those terrible weeks and months after being exposed to the neural enhancers come back to haunt her dreams once again. She sits up with a shout of fear and protest.

"Easy, Katherin, it's all right." Jim says when he reaches her side. He can't decide what to do so he puts his arms around her and holds her close. Katherin snuggles closer to him and he feels her shaking, "It's only a dream, it can't hurt you." he repeats over and over again.

Katherin falls asleep in his arms. Blair finds them like this the next morning and smiles. He realizes finally that she will not hurt them, he doesn't know why he knows this but he does. A sudden image of a young girl in the arms of his friend as he comforts her after a nightmare flashes in his mind, he smiles again and goes to the kitchen to get a drink.

Weeks pass as the storm that brought her here passes and the cross over continues as strong as ever. Every once in a while she will slip and forget just where she is and who she's with. Most of the time she is ranting in Spanish so it doesn't really make sense to them. However every now and then she calls out for Tomas or her father, never calling him by name though, or her uncle, not mentioning his name either.

"Tell us about where you're from, Katherin." Blair says. "I'm not that interesting." she says as she reads another autopsy report and shudders.

"C'mon, your Spanish is flawless and so is the other languages we've heard. I've never seen anyone who handles themselves like you. Not even the other guys here."

She smiles at that. "All right. My life is rather boring though. My father died before I was born so I never knew him. I was so angry at him, you see no one told me he was dead. I thought he had left my mother because he didn't want any kids. My mother was institutionalized when I was five and my dad's best friend raised me. I finished school when I was twelve and, after a few months in Peru, I went to Rainier. I've got three Masters degrees, language is only one of them. I met Tomas when I was seventeen and we fell in love. We were married before I left for the academy. He was a cop too, the best I had ever known." she says.

She stops as she remembers that horrible day.

"How did he die?" Jim asks, his voice soft.

Blair is confused, he has know idea what going on, he thought they were divorced.

"He was ......... killed by a gang of tech runners blitzed on Crank. He .................... he pushed me out of the way and took the shell that was meant for me. Our anniversary was the day he was buried. I haven't been with anyone since." she says.

Her eyes are dry but so very sad and her voice is cold. This is the last night she is totally coherent and able and willing to talk. Through the pain and temporary mental confusion she manages to help them catch the ever elusive Paliose killer. She looks down on the dead psychopath and cringes at what might have happened if things had gone another way. Katherin turns away and just makes it to where Jim and Blair are standing when she is rocked by a neural tremor, far worse than a simple fit. She falls into the truck, shaking violently. "What is it?" Jim asks.

"I...... don't know. ........... never ...... felt anything ........... like it before." she manages to say then collapses unconscious.

Tomas is standing before her with his arms out reaching for her. *"It's all right, my brave one. Do not fight it. It will end soon. Be calm. Be still."* his words echo in her mind as she relaxes into the tremor and her body begins to release its strangle hold on her. Jim checks her pulse and breathing. "She's having troubles but she's all right." he says. "Should we try and move her yet?" Blair asks knowing that their backup should be here any minute. "Not yet, this can't last much longer then we can move her."

Katherin slides out of the truck to the ground and rolls over to look around. Jim catches the look in her eyes and notices the change, her eyes have become almost white. He tries to touch her but she pulls away in confusion then she feels who it is and relaxes. She tries to sit up but only manages to lean against Jim's legs as she gets her bearings back. "We've got to go now before anyone sees me like this. I'd end up scaring them." Katherin says.

"What happened?" Jim asks as he helps her to stand.

"I'm not sure. I've heard about something like this happening though. I just didn't think I would go that far. Maybe it's because of the cross over, I don't know. I read about it happening to others exposed to this stuff and it felt like what I read about, neural tremors are rare in anyone exposed to the enhancers though." she says trying to catch her breath.

That same afternoon she kills two men that were ready to kill Jim. She leans against the wall as she waits for Blair to help her. *This isn't working. These bastards keep getting too close. What the hell are they waiting for??? Agh, not again.* she is hit again by a cross over flash, this time it is the most powerful one yet. Blair is nearly at her side and Jim is waiting for Simon when it hits. Both men are rocked hard by the sensory assault. They are drawn into her mind as she relives a fierce gun battle. Bright muzzle flashes and the roar of automatic weapons fire drill deep into their subconscious. Just when the assault couldn't get any worse, the tremendous crash and boom of high explosives drives Ellison to pull away from the overload. He's zoned out on something that isn't even in his own memory and he is having a hard time coming back. Simon arrives before it is over and sees for the first time what it is like during a cross over.

"What's happening, captain?" Joel asks.

"I don't know. Just keep everyone away from here until it's over. No sense in letting the press see this." he says.

Katherin has collapsed in on herself and is hidden beneath her coat so no one sees the changes in her yet. Blair regains his senses first and looks over at Katherin, she is coming around. "Where is he? Jim is in trouble. Help him." she moans and passes out again. He crawls over to him and touches his shoulder. It takes a while before he comes out of it. He is royally confused but puts it aside to look for Katherin. "Where is she?" Jim asks looking around.

"There, by the truck, that's her. Go slow, she's probably not gonna be too happy right now." Blair says.

As a matter of fact, Katherin is highly pissed at the entire situation but is more upset at what it's doing to her friends than anything else right now. Ellison turns her over and sees a bloody cut on the side of her head as she opens her eyes. Now they have turned a very deep violet, kinda like a deep sunset.

"It's almost over, thank god." she whispers. As she is struggling to sit up, Katherin's head cocks to one side and she surges to her feet. She pushes past everyone and heads for another building across from where they are.

"Son of a bitch." she mutters as she draws her weapon and goes in.

"Now what? Katherin, what the hell is going on?" Jim asks.

"Stay back, there's another one in here somewhere."

Just as she finishes that sentence she turns and fires at something coming at Ellison. He catches her as she falls and leads her back to his truck.

"Can we go now? I want to look at that gash." he asks.

"Yeah, that was the last for now."

Indeed, for the next week, there isn't another attempt on the lives of Katherin or her family. The cross over runs its coarse through her and she has a hard time keeping all her emotions and those she is hearing in her mind under control. Jim and Blair watch as she finally becomes a full telepath and shares all the wonders of the gift with them.

"I want to show you something. A memory that I carry and hold onto with all my heart." she says as a way of offering to link their minds.

Both Jim and Blair nod and sit down on the couch.

"Just relax and let me enter your minds." she says.

"What is it?" Blair asks.

"You'll see." is all she says. Soon it feels as if they are falling but they feel the warm presence of the young woman with them.

*The first thing they see is a blanket of white fog then they see Katherin approaching them. "We're here." she says.

"Where is here?" Jim asks.

"The Sandoval Plantation. They grow sugar and tobacco. It's my wedding day. C'mon it's almost time." she says as she leads them through the fog.

Soon the fog lifts and the jungle comes alive. Old growth giants surround a little chapel. There are twenty or thirty people gathered for the ceremony. Along the edge of the jungle Jim can see a black panther as it watches two young people arrive in different cars. The first to arrive is Tomas Sandoval and his father Enrique, both dressed in formal police uniforms. "Doesn't he look wonderful. That's Tomas and his father. I was so scared that day I thought I was going to pass out. Actually, I think I did." she says, laughing.

The two men enter the chapel as another car arrives. A man with graying hair gets out of the limousine and turns to help someone else. She hears them gasp as they see her step out of the car and look around. Her dress is a brilliant white against the greens and earth browns of the jungle. The dress itself is long and flowing, it doesn't have all that fancy embroidery or embellishments. It's a simple thing but she looks like an angelic vision as the man with her lowers the veil over her face. Jim and Blair are filled with love and passion as they see her take her vows, deep love in her eyes for the man standing next to her.

"I was only eighteen when he and I were married. I love him so much and miss him terribly." *

The link ends and she feels their arms around her as they try to comfort her, she smiles. As she regains her strength she eats like a horse and really grows strong, like she was before the cross over began. Now Jim and Blair see her at her best and they can almost forget that she is suffering the effects of an unwanted Neural Enhancement. She is a very beautiful woman. Tall and elegant standing at six feet tall with eyes of violet so deep as to almost be purple and a glowing smile to match the twinkle in her eyes. Her long honey blonde hair has its shine back and hangs in lustrous waves over her shoulders and down her muscular back. Physically she is a match for any man around, more than a match. She doesn't have her father's Sentinel abilities but as a telepath she has no equal. As her physical and emotional strength return they come to see that she is a good cop with instincts to rival even the most seasoned vet and still has an interest in life beyond any work she is doing. Katherin only has a few fits during the last of the cross over and she doesn't even consider the last tremor/fit before the cross over a problem.

Katherin stretches when she wakes up. It's been three days since the cross over ended and she is finally feeling normal again. She scans the loft and feels the presence of the men she came back to protect. Joints pop as she stands and goes to the kitchen and gets something to drink. She finished the programs for Blair and her father the night before. One last drink and she heads for the door.

"Where are you going?" Blair asks.

"There's something I have to do. Stay here with him." Katherin says.

"When will you be back?" Blair asks.

"I won't. When this is done I'm going home. With the cross over complete I can safely return home. Don't let him follow me. I left something for you and him on your computer. Wait till I'm gone and he's awake to look at it." she says and leaves.

As soon as she leaves the building she is hit by a massive neural tremor, she sees her death at the hands of an unseen man, and stumbles to a near-by shooting gallery. She probes the building looking for a killer. She finds the one she is after and moves in on him.

"If you are looking for Detective Ellison, you're going to have a long wait." Katherin says.

The shadowed man jumps at the sound of her voice.

"What makes you so sure I'm waiting for him?" he asks, his voice loud enough to cover the sound of his gun priming.

She smiles as she gets closer. "Do you really think you can get past me? You have no idea what I am."

"What you are, bitch, is dead. Then I'm gonna find Ellison and his sidekick and kill them too." he says.

With an evil look in her eyes and a cruel grin on her face she lashes out and grips his throat. "I'll clue you in on something, you found Ellison. I'm not gonna let you kill him again, you bastard." she says. She watches the man caught in her grip and feels his fear growing. "Yes, that tastes so good. I like the taste of your terror. You really fucked up coming here. I will never let you or anyone hurt my family again, you bastard." she growls in pure white hot anger. She breaks his neck easily and tosses him aside. Katherin sways a little, still high on her victim's fear.

Back at the loft, Blair is hunting through the files Katherin left for him and his Sentinel. "Oh man," he begins when he sees a letter that she had written weeks before they even met. "What is it? Where is Kathy?"

"She's gone. She left this letter for you. I think you better read this." Blair says.

Jim steps up beside him and looks at the computer screen and reads the letter. Jim reads the letter carefully and the implications of what she is saying threaten to overwhelm him.

* I don't even know how to begin to say this. I have read all your case files and even took the time to reread Uncle Blair's thesis. All I know is that I have to do this no matter what the cost to me. So many people have suffered since the day you were killed, I knew when Jenn came up with this crazy idea I had to try. There are other files here that have more details about what is to come. Only go through the file manager and check the dates. The programs are coded to activate as each date comes up and you can decide what if anything needs doing. Look after Blair and my mother, you know who she is. Maybe I'll see you again but more than likely when this is done I will not survive. The tremors are getting worse and I think it will end up being fatal if nothing else happens. I don't know what will happen during the time I will spend with you but I know it will be worth it no matter what.*

"We are going to go after her, right?" Blair asks. "What do you think? C'mon, she can't be that far away." he says.

He gets a whiff of her as they leave the building.

"She's in real trouble. Kathy stopped here before she moved on." Jim says.

"Neural-tremor. Damn, she's gonna get herself killed." Blair says.

"That's what she wants, Chief. She is ready to die for us." Jim says.

This stuns Blair. He didn't read the letter very carefully but it's obvious that his friend did.

"Why? Why would she do that? She hardly knows us." Jim doesn't have a chance to answer, they see her coming out of the building.

Katherin is stumbling out of the tenement as Jim and Blair reach her. She collapses in their arms after missing a step. She is still blitzed on the fear she got from the man she just killed.

"Kathy, are you all right? We were worried about you." Blair says.

"Oh, I'm fine. Just gotta figure out how to get home. Damn, you shouldn't be here." she says.

As Jim helps her to stand she sees the transit gate open and someone come through.

"You did well, my dear. Too bad it was all for nothing. It's time for you to come home and assist Dr. Cantrell with his experiments. It should be interesting now that you are a full telepath." the voice says as the figure takes aim.

"Who the hell are you?" Jim asks, drawing his weapon.

"He works for the Shadow Government. The ones responsible for so much of what has gone wrong in our world. His kind have preyed on our suffering and death. I don't know this one's name and frankly I don't really give a damn, just get out of here." Katherin says.

"That really doesn't matter right now since you won't be here to do anything about it." he says and raises something.

"I WILL NEVER WORK FOR YOU. DON'T YOU REALIZE YOU LOST. HE IS STILL ALIVE AND WILL STAY THAT WAY." she hisses, so very angry.

"That's where you're wrong. I can still have my way AND have you all to myself." the shadowed man says.

"NO ! You will never have me or him."

Everything happens so fast, Katherin pushes Blair out of the way and stands in front of Jim. In desperation she reaches out with her mind just as the mystery man fires. From behind him someone else fires and kills the mad man. Katherin only has time to slow the bullet as it enters her, to keep it from passing through her into the one she is standing in front of.

When the bullet hits her she gasps in pain and falls into him. There is pain in her eyes but also joy that she saved his life even though it may cost her own. "KATHY! NO! Get an ambulance!" he shouts.

"No, I'll take care of her." another, different voice says. This man is shadowed by the intense light of the transit gate as he kneels at the fallen woman's side. "Hold her, I've got to give her the antidote before it really is too late." he says.

He injects her with something then turns to the gate, "Bring me the box! The bastard shot her." he says.

Kathy has no energy to do anything but lay there and listen. She will either live or die in the next few minutes but she has her father back and that's all that matters to her. They see her smile.

"Don't move, give the antidote a chance to work." he says. His voice is calm and gentle.

"Will she be all right?" Blair asks trying to see the man's face.

"In time. That animal had the antidote the whole time. Those bastards let them suffer just to make a profit. Well that's over now." he says as he watches her all curled up against the pain.

"It's almost over now, then we can go home and get you tended to. Don't you die on me in the mean time." he says.

"I'll try but it hurts. Tomas?"

"I know, just hang on a little while longer. He's waiting for you." he says. He brushes her sweat matted hair out of her eyes, still a beautiful violet, just like her mother's. Two figures approach the shadowed man and kneel at his side.

"Katherin, my brave one. Let me take you home." an accented voice says and kneels beside her.

"Tomas, thank god. I have missed you." she says.

"They're ready for her now."

"All right, it's time to go Kat." he says as he picks her up carefully.

"Will we see her again?" Jim asks.

The shadowed figures laugh softly, "Yes, you'll see her again, soon."

"I know this is confusing for you but in time you will understand. Right now I just want to take care of my wife and start rebuilding our lives."

"Wait. How can this be? She said you were killed. How can you be here?"

"It was her doing. What she did here, the choices and sacrifices she has made have changed everything."

"At least tell us who you two are." Blair says.

Both shadowed figures and Tomas smile, "Don't you know? Can't you tell who we are?" the taller shadow asks them.

Before either Jim or Blair can respond they are gone, back into the gate and back to a better world in the future.

THE END ............. OR IS IT??

that's all folks. what do you think?? questions, comments, flames, whatever, I'm at reddragon@sprintmail.com

DO YOU KNOW WHO THE SHADOWS WERE? send email if you think you know and I'll tell you if you're right.