&The pilot story

"Devon, this is something personal, okay?"
"No, it isn't! It's a miracle!"
"I wouldn't call a chip in my head a miracle!" Michael shot back angrily. "You never even told me about it! You put something in my head and simply forgot to tell me, right?"
"My boy, it never worked...."
"It does now!"
"Yes, and I'm surprised."
"Surprised, right! What was your plan anyway? Link man and machine so Kitt can control me? Read my mind? So you can always keep track of me?" All the anger poured out of him now and the injury stung again. Michael had thought about this whole mess over and over again. Why had they done it? For what purpose?!
 

Hunter, Prey

 

 

"Kitt?"
The voice penetrated the shields around his CPU, chased away the shadows lingering there, and he felt the cold whispers retreat.
Michael?It was his first thought, and hope and desperation clung to it. Michael, is that you?
No sound came out of his voice box and his CPU was shaken by violent tremors, all coming from the oppressing cold in it, the black hole opening wider and wider. No, it couldn't be Michael. Michael was gone.
 

Beyond Loyalty

WINNER OF THE 2000 EDWARD AWARD FOR BEST ACTION SCENE
WINNER OF THE 2003 EDWARD AWARD FOR BEST LONGTIMER STORY
WINNER OF THE 2003 GRAND AWARD FOR BEST LONGTIMER STORY

co-written with elfin
WINNER OF THE 2000 EDWARD AWARD FOR BEST AUTHOR
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four

strong emotional scenes

 
 
 

Payback

 

 

 "What are you doing here?" Nick asked levelly.
"Extending my vacation," Michael replied amiably. "What a coincidence we ran into each other."
"Coincidence," Nick echoed coolly. "Yes."
"I heard you ran into trouble?"
Nick shot him a vicious look which glanced off Michael. "Nothing serious."
"Aha. Do you want me to inquire how much truth there is in this statement or will you tell me everything on your own?"
 

Encounters

 

 

Static

 

 
 

"He is losing control of his shields. I can pick it up," Kitt answered, voice strained. "He won't talk, but he can't keep everything to himself anymore."
Bonnie swallowed heavily. "I can release the restraints from here, but what if he breaks out?"
"We cross that bridge when we get there," Michael said philosophically.
She grimaced and walked over the remote controls, shutting down the restraining clamps.
The effect was immediate. Karr's engine roared and the Stealth shot forward, hitting the doors at an almost impossible speed, breaking through them in an ear-drum shattering spectacle.
"I think it's time for that bridge now," Bonnie muttered.
 

Confrontation

 

 
 

<You want to leave>
It wasn’t a question. Karr didn’t have to ask. He had been there, he had felt Nick’s tightly controlled reaction, and he had known his partner long enough to judge the further actions.
<Yes>
<For a while?>
<I don’t know> was the soft reply.
<Forever?>
He winced and massaged the bridge of his nose. Forever was a long time and he wasn’t looking forward to it.
<I might have outstayed my welcome. I might have overestimated my ability to…>
<Socialize?> Karr added, keeping his voice level.
 

Stronger Than That

 

 
 

Kitt was more than worried. It was bordering to frantic. Karr had been silent for three days now and there was no other explanation as a block the older AI willfully kept in place. A complete block. This wasn't just the one he used when Nick and he were on assignment, to keep negative backlashes from flooding Kitt. This was complete and it had to be draining.
//Maybe it's because of the update?// Michael tried to calm him.
//No. No, this is more. Michael, something it wrong!// Kitt insisted, pushing against the block again and again. It didn't give.
 

Musings          Musings II

just two rather reflective pieces from different points of view
 
 

Facets

 

 

The living room was dark except for the light filtering through the smoked high windows; the blinds on the upper windows had been shut. Nick was hidden in the shadows, but the sharp angles of his face were still partially visible, the watered-down sunlight playing across his features.
"Nick?" Michael asked, then stopped and stared. In front of MacKenzie lay a gun, loaded, safety clip off; a glass of something alcoholic was next to it. His stomach clenched and he forced himself to relax again. "Where's Karr?" he then wanted to know, carefully walking around the couch.
 
 

Backlash

 

 

"He won't hurt him," Kitt whispered and it sounded almost like a prayer. "He can't.... he just can't...."
Michael tried not to think of the people who had been endangered by Karr's flight. He tried to forget the damage the Stealth had done. He remembered when Kitt had been ordered to kill his driver after someone had hacked into him, programming him his way. Kitt had stopped, had broken through the barriers keeping his self from taking over his body. Michael had had the ultimate trust in his partner back then and he knew Nicholas felt the same. He trusted Karr; had trusted him with his life so many times. But Karr wasn't Kitt; he was vastly different....
 
 

First Step

 

 

Angle of Attack

 

 

Piece of Mind

 

 

It came out of the blue. He would never have expected it, he would never have seen it coming, and if someone had told him it could happen, Nicholas MacKenzie would have given them a mild smile. He had been under attack from an AI bonded to his mind before and he knew that this particular AI wouldn't do it ever again. Karr had accepted his partner. That Kitt could ever pose a danger hadn't entered his mind at all.
 

Shroud

 

 

//I’m fine. I’m okay//
//I wouldn’t call that okay//
"There. Almost as good as new."
He gave Nick a half-hearted glare. "I know what new feels like. This isn't it." He applied the ice pack to his throbbing head.
"Did you get a look at who attacked you?"
"Black outfit, two of them, baseball bat. Lights out. Nope, sorry to be of no help." He sank back into the couch and closed his eyes. "Looks like we are already high on the no-no list, one day after we arrived. Very reassuring."
 

Anniversary

 

 

Justice

 

 

//Michael?// Kitt sounded worry.
//I'm okay//
//I'm barely able to make out your position due to the interference, but I think you are in the corridor leading to the stairs next to the freight elevator//
//Is that good or bad?//
//I've relayed the information to the fire crew and they think they can break through there//
//So it's good//
//Only if the wall doesn't fold under the pressure//
//You're such a little ray of sunshine//
//Thank you, Michael//
 

No Different

 

 

“What happened?”
“A lot of shit happened. We were about to close the case when the police interfered, Nick was taken hostage, and everything went down the drain.” Michael’s face was a mask of barely controlled anger.  “There was a fire fight, someone set off a bomb, and Nick was hit by a bullet. Head shot.”
Alex’s eyes darkened briefly and a muscle in her face twitched. “How bad?”
 

Liability

 

 

“Kitt?”
“Yes?”
“I’d like to ask you something.”
If Kitt was surprised, it didn’t show in his voice. “Of course.”
Nick rarely initiated a conversations that went any deeper than what scratched the surface of his self and his emotions. This time, Kitt had this unmistakable feeling that it went deeper. Nick gazed at the distance, watching several cars pull up onto the parking lot. Employees and visitors got out, entering the hospital. No one gave him a second look.
“This is difficult for me,” he finally said and it sounded like it had taken him all his strength just to release the words.
“Understandably,” Kitt agreed.
Nick smiled briefly. “Not for the reasons you think. Yes, it was difficult to see her lying in a hospital, fighting for her life. I know she has gotten better, I know she is getting better.”
But? Kitt thought to himself.
 

The File

 

 
 
 

Switch

 

 

//Kitt?//
Something was there. He felt it and since the presence had been in the back of his mind, he hadn't felt any alarm upon waking. Now he turned completely toward where his partner usually sat - and frowned.
//Kitt....?//
No, it couldn't be Kitt. It felt different. He knew Kitt. Michael tilted his head and gazed at the presence, then suddenly withdrew in shock. No! No, no, no! He back-pedalled and nearly did so in the real world as well. A hand clamping down on his arm, squeezing hard, brought him back to reality. Shocked, he stared at Nick, who returned his wide-eyed look calmly.
 

The Rock and the Hard Place

 

 

<How about I break out of this accursed death trap?> Karr proposed, urgency accompanying his words.
The bluish presence that was his partner touched him and Nick tried to gauge his position. Tons of rubble on top of him, steel and stone, plastic and glass. All weighing him down.
<It is possible> Karr added, almost miffed by Nick’s questing presence.
He knew he could do it. He had the power and the shell had not suffered the slightest chink in the armor. His tires were unobstructed.
<Turbo boost would come in handy> Nick remarked dryly.
 
 

Ties

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