Now he was pleased. The information that had been given to him to give him the means to run the 'problem sprite,' Diode out of the system for good. All he had to do now to put his plan into effect was to bring the Guardian down here willingly. He couldn't physically force her down here or else she may take the truth he was to tell her less seriously. It was bad enough already that he was a virus and that sprites almost naturally disbelieved anything a viral told them.

Getting her down here could definitely be arranged.

Since Diode seemed to survive every previous attempt to delete him, and Jah'kal wasn't about to risk his life, or that of Kah't's, there seemed to be only one alternative.

To destroy Diode with his own secrets.

"Kah't," Jah'kal said, "I want you to get some of ours to start searching the city for kid sprites. One of them must be Diode's own. Make certain that you get the right one, then alert the Guardian. Diode must know nothing until I am through talking with Ms. Chroma."

"Yes, Jah'kal."

"Another thing. Take as few sprites as possible. Not only do we not want to draw attention to ourselves unnecessarily or before we wish to reveal ourselves, but they are merely innocent beings. Once this is over with, I want them all released. I want my council to rule this city, not exterminate nor assimilate all the inhabitants. I want that child by twenty-four fifty."

"It is understood, Jah'kal." She opened a window to the general and began giving orders.

"I don't like the idea of kidnapping others' children, but it's the easiest way." He raised his voice so that the general could hear. "They are not to be harmed! We will let them go later."

Synth joined Diode on the Shrift. He gave no indication that he'd seen her, but she knew he had.

She came and stood beside him on a small outcropping. over-looking the city. The view was beautiful. She looked at him. How much he'd changed! Even the way he thought now was different! She knew that somewhere inside him the Diode she knew was still in there. Not the Diode that had always been in trouble, but the Diode that he could have been, had certain, traumatic, events not happened in his life.

Now he was a fugitive.

He never once looked at her, yet somehow she felt that he wasn't exactly ignoring her, either. As he looked out at the city, there seemed to be an air of sadness surrounding him.

She decided that she'd better talk to him about what she wanted to and get it over with. "You really should tell your friends about... well, everything," she said.

"Why?" he snapped.

"They're your friends! They deserve to know!" she countered, frustrated.

"I came here to start a new life! The authorities wouldn't think to look for me here. I'm safe."

How do you know? You mean you're safe for now! What would happen if they found you? You'd have to leave! They'll all find out about your past, and how you lied to them! You won't be able to come back to this place because they'll feel betrayed, and rightly so; they'll report you on sight!"

"So? They'll feel the same way even if I told them now! It's too late--" Diode started to say something else, but stopped when he saw Synth's eyes regarding him coldly, a slight breeze tugging at the fine silver-blue surrounding her face.

"What happened to you?" she demanded, her disgusted tone seeming to freeze his core-com. He was forced to look away. He shut his eyes as if in pain. "It isn't just your life your decisions are affecting! You took on a responsibility when you took Wire in. What do you think you'd do with her if they found you? You can't just drag her along in your escape! And you certainly can't leave her here without anyone. She has to go to school; she needs stability!"

"What good would it do if I told them?!" he yelled. "What could they do?"

Synth's voice softened considerably. "At least you would have told them the truth. People appreciate honesty, you know. Perhaps, if she's not mad at you, Veronica could deter them. She has to know about something that could help you. So? Are you going to tell them?"

"No," he replied, softly and a little sadly, as if he really had wanted to say yes; and he had, "I can't."

"Why not?" Synth asked, her voice sharpening, ever so slightly.

"Because of the Guardian."

"So? Just don't tell her--"

"You don't understand. I work for them."

"What? Boy... you've gotten yourself into a good fix this time. How'd you get the Guardians to hire a 'wanted man'?" "It's easy to use an alias in the Net."

"Oh. You always have been sneaky, haven't you?"

"When you have my life, you have to be sneaky."

"At least tell Veronica, okay?" She put her arms around his neck, turning him. "Do it for Wire, and for me. Please."

Diode smiled down at her. "I will," he relented. She started to take her arms away, but he stopped her. "Not just yet," he said, referring to her leaving.

She smiled up at him.

"Kiss me," he whispered.

"Here comes a child-sprite now. This time I will ask her if she knows Diode. If she does, I'll grab her. If she doesn't, we'll let her go," said the general to a bunch of his troops hidden in the alley behind him.

"What if she lies and says she doesn't?" asked a zero binome.

"She won't. A sprite of her age would be immensely proud of it if her father was a 'hero'."

They all lapsed into silence as Wire drew near. Stepping out of the shadows, the general went straight to the point. "Say, do you know the sprite Diode-- personally, I mean?"

"Yeah," she said, being careful to stay out of his reach, she said: "He's my dad."

The general threw himself at her and managed to catch her. "We have her, now let's bring her back down before she gives us trouble."

A window popped up in front of Chroma as she made the rounds of the docks. Displayed on it was the general, holding a squirming Wire, his hand over her mouth. "I have the kid," he told Chroma. "Come to level 40. My boss wants a word with you. The kid's only insurance that you'll come. He won't hurt her if you do as we say. Don't tell anyone, especially Diode. Jah'kal wants to see you now."

The window closed.

Chroma felt that she was left with little choice. She decided to at least try to save her. It wouldn't be that hard if Jah'kal truly did want to just tell her something. Somehow, she didn't think that was merely the case. Fortunately, she was wrong, except for her thought that this venture wouldn't be easy.

Chroma steped into the main hall of the viral's lair. She had the eerie sensation that she was being watched.

She was.

"Let me out of here!" Wire screamed at the empty hallway. She rattled the cell's bars futilely. "Let me out right this instant or I'll make sure that I'm not worth it!!"

"Don't bother, Love. No one's listening," said a voice from behind her. She turned, still on her knees, squinting into the darkness.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I should be the one askin' who you are," said a boy, stepping out of the shadows. She guessed he was, perhaps, one one, although she wasn't sure. To her, he seemed to carry himself like a teen.

"Uh, my name's Wire," she replied to an unasked question. His accent was foreign to her. "Where do you come from?"

He softened visibly. He came over and sat down beside her, back to the bars. "To tell a the truth, Love, I'm not sure. My sister and I were orphaned 'ere a long time ago. We've been living on level 35 since then. The virals mistook my sister fer you. Wherever she goes, I go, an' so, 'ere we are.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I never introduced myself. My name's Phoenix, Ripcord Phoenix. And o'er 'ere's Caligari, my sister."

Sitting in a darkened corner of the room, a girl, about three-quarters through the age of zero one, was probably just a bit younger than Wire herself. She was sitting, leaning against a wall, looking miserable. Wire looked back at the orange sprite, with his purple hair, which was in a crew cut style.

"She's always b'en quiet, Love," he said softly, "Don't 'orry about 'er, she's a tough one, she is."

Wire snuffled during his sentence, and he put his arm around her, comfortingly. Wire wasn't about to cry, even Ripcord could tell, but she hated hopeless situations.

It was her 'I'm put off' sniff.

She responded to his comforting by rolling towards him slightly, and proceeded to fall asleep on his shoulder.

"I'm glad you've made an appearance, Guardian," Jah'kal said from his throne where he had been sitting, unnoticed, because of the darkness.

Chroma, startled, turned to look towards the source of the voice.

Boldly, like most Guardians, she addressed the virus, "Jah'kal, I presume? Can I trust you to let Wire go after you finish telling me whatever it is you want to tell me?"

" 'Well, now that we have seen each other, if you'll believe in me, I'll believe in you'," he quoted cryptically. Chroma didn't think she had the time to figure that one out.

"Well, what is it that you want to tell me?" she asked, with the usual Guardian impatience, when someone's life might be on the line. "First, you must promise me that you will listen to me with an open mind. Virals of our kind are not programmed to be able to lie easily, although it is not impossible. In fact, you my be able to find some of this information in those files of yours down at the Guardian Academy, although there is no guarantee, of course."

By this time, Chroma was getting very annoyed. "So, what is it already?!"

"Put simply, your friend, Diode, is a criminal. A wanted male."

"What?? N-u-u-h, u-h-h. I've known Diode for hours. He's no criminal.

He doesn't even swear...much." "It's true. About my being on the Guardians' wanted list," Diode confirmed to Veronica about what Synth had just told her. "But don't tell anyone just yet. The only reason I kept it secret for so long is because of Wire. And now, I have another. We have a Guardian right among us. I wish I'd been able to talk Turbo out of sending her here. All she has to do is look for my name and she'll find it."

"And how do you know about this?" Veronica asked Synth.

"I was a witness to many of them, and I have to admit, I was an accomplice to a number, too."

"Partners in crime," Diode muttered. Synth ignored him for the time being.

"The Guardians haven't as of yet tied me to any of them, however."

"I must say, Diode, you started incredibly young. Just how did you get involved in this kind of stuff, and, ... what was the worst offense?" Veronica wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer to the last question, but it was a necessary one.

"Let's just say I didn't have the greatest childhood. As for your second question, I've done everything."

That kind of vague answer wasn't what she was looking for, and she didn't like what it implied. "Does 'everything' include deleting?" she prompted tentatively.

Diode could only shake his head.

Synth was forced to answer for him.

"Yes," she said sadly.

Could Diode really be capable of deleting, like Jah'kal had said? thought Chroma. Sure, Diode's methods were not those of a trained Guardian, but he wasn't a Guardian. That by itself didn't make him evil, of course. She decided to check the Guardians' files like the viral had suggested, only she's use a certain back way that only Guardians knew about (and the odd hacker). That way, she'd see the file the way it really was-- untampered with, in case the viral wanted to write some things in there about him.

"I'll check it out," she said.

"And, as promised, I'm letting them go," Jah'kal responded.

Wire ran up to Chroma and took her hand. In Wire's other hand, she had Ripcord's hand, dragging him along behind her. Caligari followed more slowly.

"Come on," she said to Wire, "Let's get you out of here." Chroma looked at Ripcord and his sister coming up from behind. "Who are they?" she asked, pointing to the siblings.

"These are my friends, Ripcord and Caligari. You think my dad will let them live with us?"

"I really doubt it. He won't like it."

"Wire made a face, and then brightened. Turning to her new friends, she said, "Maybe Mic will take care of you guys. He's always talking about how his own grew up so fast. Now, he'll have more-- sort of."

Ripcord smiled. Thank you for all this, Love. I-- we appreciate it," he said, putting an arm around his sister and drawing her forward. She still didn't look happy. Not even when they had let her out of the cell.

Wire had nearly socked the guy who had let them out for not letting them out sooner, had it not been for Ripcord, who had stopped her.

Chroma sighed. "Come on, let's go." This wasn't her idea of a good place to stop and chat. She led Wire by the hand out the large 'archway' door. Ripcord walked beside Wire, and, as usual, Caligari followed behind them all.

"Help me keep this life I've built for myself! Can you do something to keep those Guardians off my case? Please, I'm doing this for Wire!"

Veronica looked at him intensely. Finally, she said, "There is something I can do. I'm doing it because you're my friend and I know you're no serious criminal-- right now anyway.

"I might be able to hack the Guardians' files, using a back way I picked up someplace. It may be several extra hours I could buy you, added to the time it would have taken them originally. I'd say it's worth it."

Diode breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Ronnie."

Mic said that he didn't have the time for the siblings, although they could eat what he had and sleep there if they pleased, just so long as they didn't make trouble.

Chroma left Wire there at Mic's to be with her new friends. Chroma was a Guardian, after all, not a baby-sitter!

When she returned home with the general idea of checking Diode's files, she was surprised to find the wolf sitting by her door.

"There you are, Guardian. I was actually just about to leave! I wanted to ask you about Wire. Is she alright? She didn't come home from school on time and I thought maybe you knew where she went."

"She's fine," Chroma replied, opening the door to her apartment. "She's visiting some new friends right now."

"Good. I was beginning to worry. Do you think I could have something to drink? I have gotten thirsty, waiting for you."

"Say, why do you care where Wire is anyway?"

"I care because I don't want to see anything happen to her." The creature watched the sprite pour some liquid-energy into a bowl for her. "Have any of you thought of a name and function for me yet?"

"Well, actually, I've been pretty busy, and I don't know what the others are doing, but I'll bet they're busy too." Chroma set down the bowl.

"Thank you," the wolf-thing said politely.

"I met some others, supposedly of your kind today. I've never seen anything like it. I've studied every type of virus known, as well. Apparently, you've never reached the third phase of your kind's natural growth. You got the voice, but it doesn't look like you'll ever get to the bipedal stage. Their leader informed me of the nature of your viral type.

Anyway, I could think of a name and function for you now, if you'd like." Chroma picked up the empty bowl, put it down in the sink, and they both headed for Chroma's living room. "Um...." she muttered, sitting down on a couch, "a name... let's see... how about, 'Sharp'?" she asked.

The wolf considered.

"I like it. I believe it is an appropriate name," she replied with a canine grin.

"Good. Now for a function... hmmm... that's harder." she said, putting a finger to her chin and lowering one eyebrow. "What do you want to do?"

"I believe that I would like to protect, maybe even serve Wire. I have talked to her and I believe that she may need someone to watch her. I hear she gets herself into trouble often?"

"You could say that again."

"What you just said was a figure of speech, I presume?"

"Yep. Well, if that's what you want to do, then that line of work would go under the category of...File Security."

"All right. Then it is settled. That's what I do, then. Let us tell the sprite that is in charge of my icon."

"Okay, we'll do that now. Then, I have some... stuff I have to... do some... research... on," Chroma said brokenly, not quite having a lot of experience in half-truths.

She opened a window and surprised the three in the Tower. Diode fell over taking several of the windows surrounding him down with him.

"Um, Veronica, if you please, we have the wolf's file name and function. You can start formatting that icon any time."

Veronica stared at her blankly, hands poised just below Chroma's line of sight on a hacker's keyboard. She snapped out of her shock-induced trance when Synth poked her in the ribs. After wincing, she said, hastily, "I, uh, sure... I'll get on with it as soon as I finish up here--" she winced again with a sideways glance at Synth who looked back at her over-innocently.

"What are you doing over there?" Chroma asked. She noticed Diode hadn't gotten up off the floor yet.

"Nothing you'd be too concerned about-- well, much, anyw-- O-of-Ouch!"

"Mmm. Whatever. Just wanted to tell you guys about our wolf, here. I'm sending the info over now." Chroma closed the window.

"Is she gone?" asked Diode from the floor, even though he already knew the answer.

"Yeah," answered Synth. Diode got up and brought some windows that he had knocked down in his haste back up. "Say, Diode. Pretty smooth the way you fell down like that. Moved some questionable evidence out of the Guardian's notice. Quick thinking."

Diode smiled at her, pushing the windows toward Ronnie, to about where they'd been before. "Thanks," he said. He then turned to Veronica. "You know, you really suck at lying."

"Sorry," she said, "I don't get much practice," she added, her tone definitely unapologetic. "I finished anyway. Your file's been modified, Diode. Did you have to poke, then kick me that last time?" she asked Synth.

"I only jabbed you," Synth replied.

"YOU!" Ronnie yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Diode. "You...

I'll kick you, you--

After Sharp left, Chroma went to work entering through the conventional way first, to check the appearance of his files to the more 'public' private areas, meaning most hackers, if not all, could get this far to change the appearance of files. Diode's records were clean, of major offenses, anyway. The worst mentioned was a collection of old speeding tickets, and hardly worth looking at. Whoever, if anyone, had cleaned up his file wasn't stupid. Almost no one has a totally clean record. Now, to view the 'Insider's' files. You either had to be a Guardian or a spectacular hacker to know about this way in. Chroma seriously doubted that there was anyone in Hyper-Terminal that good.

She was right.

Chroma was obliged to contact the Guardians. She decided to stall the inevitable, and wait until the next morning. Then she might wake up, still in the Guardian Academy. She was finding it incredibly difficult to believe that this system's protector was a real criminal. Diode's secrets were out.

Continued in Another Time, Another Place: Part Five

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