She walks down the corridor towards the interrogation room accompanied by one of her mother's guards. Her mother is suspicious, she tells herself to remain calm. "Ahh Lisa, we have been waiting for you", her mother says gleefully. "Joshua's memories are returning, now we will find out who his accomplices are."

He lays stiffly on the metal stretcher, eyes staring at the ceiling, barely moving, barely breathing. She sees a hollowness in his eyes, he is not the same as he once was.

The screen lights up, distorted images appear. He is in the blue energy cell. A female figure walks in. She has long blond hair and is wearing a gray dress. Her mother flashes a steely look at her. While the technician makes adjustments, they can hear bits of the conversation.

"Joshua what happened?'

"We were set up by Chad Decker, if you can get me out I can still cause a diversion."

The voices become muffled, the images more distorted. "Fix it!" she demands.

She feels it in her pocket. It is her way out. She will take it once she is discovered and become nothing but ash. How ironic she thinks, he was willing to die for her, for the fifth column, but now he can do nothing to stop this. He no longer recognizes her as his queen and the memories of his activities with the fifth column will destroy them. She does all she can to conceal the panic in her eyes.

"How do I get you out of here?"

"I put a bug in the med lab security system in case we got caught. The code is John May Lives." Her mother winces when she hears the name.

He stirs and grimaces as the technician buries deeper into his memories. His head feels like it is going to explode. His eyes twitch involuntarily. His body begins to shake.

"What are you going to do?"

"What ever I have to."

The audio is lost but the image becomes clearer, she can see her face now. She steadies herself, looks bravely at the screen, she is ready, the capsule is in her hand.

She gently touches his chin. He bows his head.

"Who is that?" her mother asks. The technician taps the screen. "Her name is Rebecca, she is a low level assistant in the medical bay." "Find her, get whatever information you can from her, then skin her." He taps the screen again to locate her. "My Queen, she is dead, she was killed in the rampage."

She forces back a gasp of surprise. The capsule is tucked back in her pocket.

Her mother appears satisfied, she looks at her daughter approvingly. She should have never doubted her, her own mother will be disappointed to hear she has a loyal daughter. She is triumphant.

"Take him back to the lab. Continue your research." she commands him. "I will take him mother." She nods then turns her attention back to the screen. "Are they authentic?" "Yes my Queen, there is no evidence of tampering."

She tries to meet his eyes. He does not look at her, they are being watched. His gait is stiff, his eyes fixed straight ahead. She understands, they walk in silence.

He hears a knock at the door of his private chamber. It is late, what could Marcus want now he wonders. She is on the other side, he quickly ushers her in. "Lisa." He says softly. Something about the way he says her name makes her heart beat a little faster. "You must not take any unnecessary risks." He scolds.

She starts to shiver, he takes the blanket from his cot and wraps it around her.

"How did you do it?"

"I helped create the program, so I made some modifications to it." He smiles at her, she marvels at him.

"You risk too much Joshua, I know how dangerous manipulating memories can be."

"The fifth column must be protected…our Queen must be protected." He responds. She looks into his eyes, they tell her everything she needs to know.

Tears begin to run freely down her cheeks. "Thank you." It is all she can offer him right now. His hands cup her face as he wipes away her tears. She is still shivering, he takes her in his arms to warm her.

She is safe, she is strong, she will prevail. She is his Queen.

The end.