Disclaimer: I do not own Pitch Black, Chronicles of Riddick, nor any of the characters. I do not make any money off of it in any way. My ass is all I own.

-o-o-o-

When the data about the planet started streaming in, he frowned, mirror-like eyes flashing in the dimness of the vessel's cockpit. His normally stoic lips hardened into a grim line the further down he read.

Planet name: Unknown

Temperatures: Ranges from -20 to 103 degrees Fahrenheit

Inhabitants: Unknown

Classification: Dangerous

This kind of information was something he'd expect a merc to collect about him. Everything vague down to the gruesome details that warned smarter men to stay away. Then again, who ever said mercs were known for their intelligence?

So then, what did this say about him? A slow grin formed on his hardened face. Rules that shackled others never really applied when it came to him.

Riddick would just break the chains. Kill the man who put 'em there. Whatever it took.

He slowly cracked his neck, pushing his large hands together and forward until he heard and felt the audible clicks of his knuckles popping as well. Might as well get the kinks out before turning up planet side. Deep space had a way of wearing a man down, dulling his senses. But not for this escaped convict.

As he held tight for the rough descent of his ship ripping through the atmosphere, Riddick sidestepped the forever haunting self-criticizing question for the easier, more pronounced thought:

What, the fuck, was she doing here?

-o-o-o-

She streaked through the lush jungle, ducking under low branches, leaping over fallen trees and weaving through the foliage. The heavy heat settled thickly in the air around her, and she found herself battling for each breath she took. What had she thought would happen? That she could just waltz through the place without any trouble? She had headed to this planet for the exact reason that was currently making her run a marathon right now: it was dangerous. It repelled people.

That's what she wanted. To be alone. Away from society. Away from the wanted posters, the news, even from Imam. Away from anything that would even distinctly remind her of… him.

Now if only she could convince the creature chasing her of that.

She wasn't sure what it was. Merely that she had been minding her own business, sampling the various fruits she had found, when a blur of green and red had rushed out at her. She had had the noticeable tingling at the back of her neck that alerted her to something nearby, but it hadn't been until that moment that she realized just how dangerous and unpredictable the wildlife here could be. It had jumped from wary surveillance, which she had been more than fine with, to intense and hostile aggression.

She had felt the subtle, yet quick change in the air. Something she had managed to catch on to before he… left. Pain struck a chord and she had quickly pushed the thought away before her wounds became physical as well.

"Forget him Jack," She had scolded herself, "he's obviously forgotten about you."

Snapping back into the present, Jack's features hardened as she stopped in her tracks, her ebony-brown locks falling to rest down her back. She was tired of running.

Spotting a thick length of wood on the ground that would suite her needs, she scooped it up and waited for the beast to come barreling through the underbrush. Fear pumped through her veins, for the thing had been as big as the bucket of bolts she had barely managed to crash here.

Despite her attempts to ward it away, his voice from the past resurfaced,

'Fear is necessary. Fear keeps you alive. In check. It's what you do with it that determines the next moments between life and death.'

'Are you ever afraid, Riddick?' She had asked curiously, looking at his back, his dark frame silhouetted by the moonlight through the window. She knew he was mad. Mad at her for exploring the forest alone, for almost getting killed by the first beast she had run across. Because she had been unprepared. Or maybe it was because she hadn't run.

For a long moment he was silent, and she worried she had upset him again.

Finally, there was movement and she was soon frozen in place by those deadly beautiful glass eyes. He had turned his head to look back at her, making sure he had her gaze before answering. He gave a small smirk as he said, 'Fear doesn't work on me, Jack. It lost its affect on me a long time ago.'

Jack frowned, confused, 'But then… what keeps you alive?'

Turning all the way around, the man's smirk grew wider as he tilted his head slightly sideways, tapping the side of his head with a single finger, '…I do.'

Shaking her head, Jack hissed out her frustration and focused on matters at hand, unaware of the dozens of eyes watching her that very moment.

-o-o-o-

Author's note: the next chapter will be longer. Just getting a taste of the plot line.