Sun was filtering through the blinds, lines of brilliance slatting across the dark rug. He stared at it, pausing long enough to light his smoke. A lazy exhale brought a perfect circle into being, floating before him a moment or two before dissipating. It was rather like his life, he thought, scratching his arm absently. It all faded away in the end, all the good and the bad, leaving only a hazy sameness to each day. Even revenge felt indifferent.

It hadn't always been that way. Once, he could feel things. Strongly. Now, it was like being thread, stretched and thin, shiny but limp without purpose. Now, he was a man without hope or direction beyond the moment.

I Spy, Part Two

"You will never find him."

Chakotay turned, his gaze meeting alien eyes. A tall creature stood by the doorway, peering at him with large yellow eyes perched on top of dark eyestalks. He had seen him earlier, hanging around the bar, mingling with others of his kind. Chakotay didn't know what they were called. He just knew that they were famous for knowing things no one else did. "Who?" he replied casually, bringing the drink to his lips and sipping slightly. It was a musty flavored drink, nothing he would have again.

"Paris."

The word pricked his skin, something he made effort not to show. Anything having to do with Paris was painful. Their parting had been abrupt and Tom's efforts to bury himself from being found again had been masterful. Chakotay shrugged and turned away, fixing his gaze on the street beyond the window, a dark street with shadows and pools of water from an earlier rain. This world was basic and farflung from decency, in more ways than the obvious.

The alien came closer, pausing beside Chakotay, matching him for height, if not brawn. Chakotay was a big man, his body honed from hard labor. He had worked at jobs here and there as he pursued the shadow that haunted his dreams. It had paid off, helping him from scrapes initiated by people who thought the humanoid would be easy prey. They learned, he mused with a bitter pride. They all learned. "You want to find him."

"Do I," Chakotay murmured, noting the delicate trace of lines up and down the arms of his companion. Silver and purple against a light tan, it colored the reptilian scales of the aliens arms and disappeared into the dark blue tunic he wore to cover himself. Odd, Chakotay thought. He had never met a reptilian alien that didn't cover part of their bodies. He wondered whether they did it for themselves or for others that might be watching them.

"You do. I can sense it. I can sense many things," the alien replied. "I can sense that you are being followed."

Chakotay considered this and nodded. "I knew that. Tell me something I don't know."

"He runs it all, Paris. All that is ... of dubious legality ... it is his to command."

"And why is that?" Chakotay asked. "How could this be so?"

"Because he has entered a darkness that makes fear impossible. He takes what he wants and has no pause ... he has many devices, scientific constructs, many assistants. They say he can make himself invisible."

Chakotay considered that and smiled without humor. "So they say."

"They do," the alien replied. "I say it is so as well."

"Why do you tell me this?" Chakotay asked.

"Because you are looking for this Paris," he said, turning his gaze toward the still figure beside him. "I am too," he finished.