By Any Means Necessary
Ann Brill White
Part 1 - Resurrection
The impact caused Aeryn Sun to gasp involuntarily, and she swallowed
icy water. She managed to struggle to the surface long enough to call out
for John Crichton one last time, but the weight and inertia from the ejection
seat was already pulling her back down into the lake. Her fingers slid
across the ice, and she went under. Aeryn struggled frantically to free
herself, but the cold caused her limbs to stiffen. As her body sank, Aeryn
gradually began to see a bright white light in front of her, and a strange
sensation of floating came over her. The light reminded her of one of Moya's
starbursts, and she felt herself move towards it. Her soaked clothes fell
away, but her nakedness wasn't uncomfortable. The blinding brightness engulfed
her. She felt a snap in her midsection, like a connection being severed,
but she didn't care. All she wanted was the light.
A snuffling sound, and a brush of warm skin across her leg, stopped her from proceeding further toward the light. Aeryn looked down to see the little vork rubbing her leg with a friendly familiarity. She knelt down and stroked it. "What are you doing here?" she asked the vork. It circled around her and nudged her to the right, away from the light. Aeryn stopped and looked down at the creature that she had inadvertently killed. It looked back up at her with pleading eyes and seemed to point off to the right again. "You want me to go that way?" The vork nodded and continued pushing her. Aeryn looked toward the light again, then shrugged. "You obviously want me to follow you. Fine. You win. Lead on." It let out a satisfied trill, then sped off to Aeryn's right. She followed it without seeming to move her legs The vork was leading her towards a different light - not the blinding white light that she'd first seen, but something that seemed more like shimmery fog. "Slow down!" she called out to the vork, who was already diving into the mist with gusto. The vork stopped and waited for her to catch up. It embedded its claws into her body and clambered up onto her shoulder to better direct her. Aeryn hesitated, then stepped forward into the mist.
She moved as the vork directed her for what seemed like forever without seeing any change to the landscape. The mist seemed to be thinning. Gradually, tall figures became clear to her. A few more steps, and the mist vanished completely. Aeryn saw a grove of six trees that looked like it had been firebombed. The vork made a sad little sound, jumped off of her, and scampered over to the first tree in the grove. Aeryn followed and took a closer look at it. It was a tapaani tree, a common tree used as protection from the elements and predators in agricultural production. It produced beautiful flowers, but it had deep thorns that prevented most predators from attacking it. This tapaani was in bad shape. Although it was a hardy tree, it was encased in a heavy coating of ice that had knocked it over and torn it from its roots. Aeryn had never had much use for natural things before she met Zhaan. But she felt sorry for this poor tree, that had stood as a sentinel and given its life to protect the others. The vork snuffled again, and Aeryn looked up. A few of the other trees in the grove had been damaged, too. The largest tree, with several vines wrapped around it in what appeared to be a symbiotic relationship, had a large char mark where it had been burned. An odd tree with pointed dark green leaves that looked out of place was almost dead from some kind of parasite that was eating away at it. The vork pawed at the base of the green and brown tree and made another sad noise. Aeryn knelt down and examined the blighted tree. "What happened here?" she asked the vork, knowing full well that it couldn't answer.
"A great evil happened," a woman's voice answered from behind her. Aeryn jumped up and whirled in one swift, practiced motion. She reached for her pulse pistol, and her hand hit her bare thigh. She looked down before she realized that she'd forgotten that she was naked. She looked back up at the woman and took a defensive posture. The woman laughed. Aeryn stared at the woman. She wore a blue iridescent cloak, similar to Zhaan's, that covered her face and most of her body. Her laughter was musical, like a stream running over rocks. Aeryn remained where she was while the woman laughed at her, not knowing what to make of all of this. "Don't be offended, Aeryn Sun," the woman said gently. "I mean you no harm. Quite the opposite."
"What do you mean?" Aeryn snapped. She relaxed a bit, but only because she didn't want to be laughed at again.
"You are in my garden. In fact, you have been here for almost two of your cycles, although you didn't realize it." The woman caressed the remains of the tapaani tree gently. The ice melted where her fingers touched.
Aeryn was still puzzled. "Who are you, and how do you know my name?"
The woman reached out and caressed Aeryn's cheek. "I am known by many names throughout the Universe, daughter. However, you may call me by the name that your Delvian friend knows me as - Khalaan."
"You're the Delvian Goddess?" Aeryn asked incredulously. "You've got it all wrong. You want Zhaan, not me."
"Don't be so sure," Khalaan laughed. She pushed the hood back from her face, and Aeryn found herself looking at a Delvian with features remarkably similar to her own. "I am the Goddess of all beings. Even Sebacean Peacekeepers." The Goddess looked at the destruction around her and sighed grievously.
"I still don't know why you summoned me here," Aeryn asked. "What is this place?"
"Look around, daughter," the Lady gestured. "I think you know."
Aeryn looked again at the grove. In addition to the dead tapaani, the large vine-covered tree and the strange green one, she saw four others. One was a beautiful, graceful blue tree that was obviously very old and well-rooted. Another was a slender tree with gray bark and white leaves that danced prettily whenever a breeze shook them. The third was a short, gnarled bush with prickly needles instead of leaves. The fourth tree, which stood on the opposite side of the grove from where she stood, was a stout, solid tree with hanging branches that had withstood damage but was still thriving. The whole grove reminded her of something familiar. "This is us?" Aeryn gestured at the trees. "This is Moya and her crew?"
"Very good. This grove is your representation in the Spirit World," Khalaan answered.
"You didn't answer my question. What do you want with me? I'm a warrior, not a priest."
The Goddess smiled and cupped Aeryn's face in Her hand. "Warriors are also called to serve, Aeryn Sun. A great evil is abroad. It threatens to upset the fabric of the Universe."
"You mean Scorpius?"
"Among others," Khalaan replied. "You see, my daughter, I need a warrior, a champion to fight this evil presence. If you choose to be my champion, you will be sent back. You will be the weapon in my hand, the sword of the Goddess."
"If I choose?"
"All beings have free will. If you choose not to do this, nothing will change. Your body will remain frozen, and your spirit will cross over to its next life. I am offering you a second chance for life. The charge is not easy, and will require great courage to survive. I will be with you at all times, guiding you along the path."
"And if I fail?"
Khalaan smiled at her. "You won't fail, my child. I chose you for a reason. Your skill will help you to succeed." She gestured to the other trees in the grove, then walked to the strange-looking green tree. The tree reminded her of John, another transplant that had been forced to adapt to new surroundings. The Goddess nodded her agreement. "You were chosen long before this," she explained. "Look within yourself, and you'll understand that."
"I'll do ask you ask, Lady," Aeryn readily agreed. She reached out and gently caressed the blighted tree, feeling its rough bark beneath her fingertips. "Someone once told me that where there's life, there's hope. Even in a hopeless situation."
"Very well," the Lady nodded. "Remember, my daughter, I will be with you always. Listen to your inner voice, and I will be there." She held up her hand, and placed it on the crown of Aeryn's head. She felt an electric charge go through her from her head to her toes. Then the grove and the Goddess disappeared, and she was back in the mist.
***
Scorpius walked out of the Diagnostan's operating room humming a strange tune that he'd heard Crichton sing - badly - when he left him in the Depository to die. But Crichton would not be a problem any more. Without the Diagnostan's help, Crichton's brain would probably melt into nothing. Not that he cared. He had what he wanted from the wily Human. He held it in the jar in his hand. Now all it took was to download the wormhole technology, and his plan would be under way.
Lieutenant Braca rendezvoused with him at the entrance to the facility. "The traitor, Aeryn Sun, is dead," Braca announced. "She apparently died after ejecting into the frozen lake."
A smile crept across Scorpius' face. "Tell me, what happened to the body?"
"I saw it in the cryogenic storage area. As far as I could tell, there was no damage. Most likely she drowned."
"I see. Take a team and retrieve the body," he directed. "Keep her frozen. I believe we can make some use of this situation."
Braca grinned, following the hybrid's train of thought. "Very good, sir," he smiled, then turned away, back into the cold storage area.
Scorpius tented his fingers and chuckled to himself. "Love is such a powerful emotion. My dear Crichton, I think I may have just found your weakness."
Two arns later, Braca and his team returned successfully to the Command Carrier. Scorpius met the team in the carrier's medical bay. Two med techs rolled a gurney with the cryogenically-frozen body into an operating room. Scorpius and Braca joined them, observing from a corner of the room.
"Her core temperature is thirty degrees below optimum," a female doctor reported. "We'll need to intubate her," she said, then carefully inserted a tube down Aeryn's throat. "Pumping in warmed oxygen."
A second doctor was preparing a cardiovert. He raised the paddles, then called out "Clear!", then put the paddles to Aeryn's chest. She jerked when the jolt hit her, but to no result. A third tech increased the charge, and they shocked the body again. Still, nothing happened.
"Keep trying," Scorpius urged.
"Sir, this isn't going to work. We need a cardiac rhythm before..."
"I said, keep trying!" Scorpius growled.
The tech jumped back in fear. "Turn it up all the way," he directed. The tech running the crash cart looked skeptical, but followed orders. "Clear!" the male tech yelled, then placed the paddles on Aeryn's chest again. Her body jerked violently again. The monitor beeped.
"Sir, we have a sinus rhythm!" the female doctor announced with relief. The male looked over at Scorpius, who nodded once. The man picked up a syringe with a large barrel and a thick needle approximately six centimeters long. He injected it directly into Aeryn's carotid artery. The tech who was running the crash cart turned her attention to a monitor mounted behind the bed. Five microts later, Aeryn gasped involuntarily and began to cough up water. The techs rolled her onto her side, and another one held a basin up under her mouth to catch the water. A few microts later, her back arched and her heartbeat raced. "She's seizing!" the female tech called out as they tried to restrain Aeryn's limbs.
"We have minimal brain activity," the tech watching the monitor announced as Aeryn's seizure stopped. "She's in a deep comatose state."
"Very good," the woman doctor said. "Start an IV with heated liquid. We need to get her core temperature back to normal. I want someone watching those monitors at all time. Contact me if there's any change."
"Good work, Doctors," Scorpius smiled. "Please keep me informed of your patient's status." With that, he swept out of the operating room, followed closely by Braca.
Three Solar Days later:
Scorpius was awakened by a call from the male doctor. "The patient is making excellent progress, sir," he said. "She's awakening from her coma. Brain, heart, and respiratory functions are within normal parameters."
"Is the patient able to be moved? Scorpius asked.
"I believe so. She's off the ventilator, and we can probably take out the IV before we move her. I'd say that our little experiment worked perfectly."
The hybrid smiled. "Very good. I'll see you shortly," he said, then cut off the transmission. So far, everything was working perfectly. He would have his revenge on John Crichton yet.
***
The first sensation Aeryn had was that of being sucked underneath water. She tried to fight her way back up to the surface, but her arms and legs were restrained. She fought to free them, but a wave of dizziness and nausea came over her. Without warning, the contents of her stomach came back up and threatened to choke her. She heard a male voice say something that she couldn't make out, then her right arm was released and someone rolled her over onto her left side. She vomited water for several microts, until her heaving stomach was empty.
"Is that the last of it?" a familiar voice asked. She couldn't place it, only that it was a man's voice that she'd heard before. She felt like she was spinning, and was terribly cold.
"I believe so," a female voice responded. Aeryn was laid flat on her back again, but her right hand was left free. "In case she vomits again."
"Good idea," a third voice, another man, said. "Clean that mess up, then leave us."
"As you wish, sir," the woman responded. Aeryn heard movement to her left, probably the sound of the floor beneath her being cleaned. Then she heard the sound of footsteps moving away from her position. The room had mercifully stopped spinning. She heard heavier footsteps approaching her.
"You're awake," the third man observed. Aeryn was sure that she hadn't given any sign of being conscious. "You can't conceal it from me."
She opened her eyes slowly. Her vision was cloudy, and all she saw was a black and white blob. She shook her head, and her vision cleared. Scorpius was staring down at her! She stiffened involuntarily and tried to roll away, but she was still restrained. Aeryn reached up with her right arm to try to grab his neck, but her arm remained immobile. "What the frell?" she stammered. "Where am I?"
"Back where you belong, my dear," Scorpius smiled evilly. "A place you should never have left."
She looked past him. "You captured Moya?" Although, the walls and ceiling didn't look like those in a Leviathan.
"Don't be stupid. What would I want with a damaged Leviathan?" Scorpius laughed. Aeryn felt a cold chill go down her spine at the sound. She couldn't forget how he'd driven John insane. "No, you're back on your old command carrier. Although, in a different capacity."
She recognized her surroundings now. She had only been in Crais' quarters once, shortly after the incident with Velorek three or four cycles ago. It wasn't a pleasant memory. "If you think you can get to Crichton through me, you're deluded," she whispered.
"Oh, no. I have what I want from John Crichton. Which is something that I'm sure you'll never be able to say," Scorpius stroked her cheek with a leather-gloved finger. Aeryn shuddered and pulled away. He trailed his finger down her left arm, and released the restraint. Aeryn lifted her arm. It was covered in a tight leather sleeve. She felt her body - it was encased in the same material. She sat up and looked down at herself, and gasped. She was wearing the all-black, form-fitting catsuit that she'd last seen on Scorpius' blonde assistant in the Shadow Depository. "You see, Crichton killed my last assistant with the explosive that was meant for me. So, I needed a new assistant. You didn't seem like you were going anywhere."
Everything was coming back to her now. "I remember ejecting from the Prowler and falling," she recollected.
"You drowned. Lieutenant Braca found you and brought you back here." Braca stepped forward and stood behind Scorpius and winked at her.
Aeryn got a flash of talking to someone that looked like herself, but wasn't, in a grove of trees. She quickly buried that thought, before Scorpius could sense it. "You're insane if you think I'm going to help you."
"Oh, but you will," Scorpius replied. He released the restraints on her legs. She swung them over the edge of the raised platform. "You have no choice in the matter."
Within a heartbeat, Aeryn pushed off the platform, lunged toward Scorpius, and put her hands around his throat. The force of her impact pushed him backwards towards the wall, and she traveled with him. The look of surprise on the half-breed's face made her press even harder. The image of John fighting this monster's control with every fiber of his being - and losing - came to her as she choked the life out of him.
Then, without warning, her muscles went rigid. She let out a cry of surprise as she tried to move and couldn't. In fact, her hands were loosening around Scorpius' neck. He reached up and pulled her arms apart, and stepped out of her grasp casually. Then, he reached up and touched her face in an intimate way, like a lover. Aeryn tried to pull away from him. "I was hoping that you would cooperate, so we could save this demonstration until later. However," he sighed dramatically, "I suppose that we'll have to do this now." He reached down to a black box on his belt that she hadn't noticed before.
Suddenly, every nerve in her body felt like it was on fire! I will not scream, she said to herself as the pain increased incrementally. The lessons learned in the survival portion of basic training kicked in. I am a Pleisar. I have been trained to resist torture. I will not scream.... Her knees buckled under the onslaught, and she collapsed to the deck, writhing in agony. Still, the pain kept increasing. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she distantly heard screaming. She realized that it was herself. Just as suddenly as it began, the pain ended. Every nerve in her body was throbbing, her pulse was racing, and she panted to suck air into her constricted lungs. When Aeryn opened her eyes, Scorpius was looking down at her and grinning. "What...the...frell...did...you...do...to...me?" she managed to gasp.
"You held out longer than I expected, Aeryn Sun. My complements. I see that you haven't forgotten all of your Peacekeeper training," he laughed. "You see, in order to revive you, we had to inject you with nanobots that are now controlling all of your muscles and nervous system. I control them from this remote," he touched the box on his belt. "I could stop your heart if I wanted to. Unfortunately, our scientists haven't found a way for the nanobots to control higher brain functions. So, you get the added benefit of being able to think for yourself, but not act accordingly."
"Why didn't you just leave me dead?" she hissed back at him. She put her hand on the platform and started to stand up shakily.
"Oh, no, my sweet. You're much more valuable alive. Especially in this condition. I can make you do anything, and all you can do is watch. Oh, you can still move on your own volition, as you are now discovering. But I can override your nervous system with a flick of the switch." He demonstrated by reaching down to his belt again. Aeryn felt herself kneeling back down onto the floor, and fought it with every fiber of her being. "Don't struggle, my dear. You'll only injure yourself, and I wouldn't want that to happen," Scorpius cautioned her.
"Frell... you!" Aeryn snapped back. She was on her hands and knees, crawling toward Scorpius. She looked over at Braca, who was watching all of this with great pleasure. "Lieutenant! If you have a scrap of honor left in you, please stop this! Peacekeepers don't do this to each other!" She begged as she came face-to-face with Scorpius' boot.
Braca laughed. "You forget, Officer Sun, that you are no longer a Peacekeeper. You are irreversibly contaminated. You know what that makes you? It makes you dren! You have been engaged in traitorous activities for almost two cycles now. By rights, you should have been executed painfully and slowly. Personally, I'm going to enjoy every microt of this."
"Well, then have some of my contamination!" she hissed, then spat directly onto the toe of Scorpius' boot.
He looked down at the gob of spit running down his boot, and smiled. "Oh, good. I needed a polish anyway." He turned another switch, and Aeryn felt herself lowering down. Her mouth opened, and she licked her spit off of Scorpius' boot, then kissed it. Another wave of nausea came over her, and her stomach heaved. Scorpius stepped away, then released his hold on her body. Aeryn sprawled forward onto her stomach in the middle of the floor and dry-heaved. She gagged, trying to get the taste out of her mouth. It was the bitter taste of her own defeat.
Aeryn heard a gentle voice in the back of her head that reminded her of Zhaan. "Courage, my daughter," the woman encouraged her. "I am with you. You will survive this." She focused on the woman's voice, and the nausea faded.
"Come, my dear," Scorpius said. "We have another appointment to keep. You can get up yourself, or I can force you to do it. It's your decision." Wordlessly, she looked up at Scorpius defiantly, but rose to her knees of her own volition. Scorpius extended a hand to help her up the rest of the way. Aeryn refused it. She held on to the platform to stand the rest of the way. She wiped a leather sleeve across her mouth, then tossed her loose hair back behind her shoulders in an effort to make herself presentable. Although she continued to stare daggers at Scorpius and Braca, she followed them when they left Scorpius' quarters and walked out onto the bridge.
"Captain on deck!" a lower-ranking officer called out as the three of them entered. Aeryn kept her back straight and eyes focused on the back of Braca's head to avoid the stares of the bridge crew. She hadn't known any of them, since they were higher up the food chain than the Pleisars were. The silence on the bridge spoke volumes. She just kept her focal point and tried to ignore the hate directed at her.
The navigator, a tall woman with short blonde hair wearing a dress uniform, approached Braca and Scorpius. "Sir," she asked, looking down her nose at Aeryn, "what is that traitorous piece of dren doing on the bridge? Let me have the honor of executing her!" The woman reached past Braca and spat in Aeryn's face. Aeryn stood stonily, her hands behind her back, as the gob of spit ran down her cheek.
"Now, lieutenant, that's no way to treat my new assistant," Scorpius reproached the navigator. The crew stared at Aeryn in total shock. Scorpius stepped back and put his arm around her. Again, Aeryn stood at attention, not moving a muscle. "I know that this may come as a surprise to everyone, but the former Officer Sun will be acting as my new assistant. In case you're wondering, I have taken measures to ensure her complete loyalty and cooperation." Scorpius stroked her cheek intimately and wiped the spit off of it. She clenched her jaws and swallowed. "I expect everyone to give her the respect that she deserves," Scorpius grinned. "Just make sure that she remains alive and fit for duty." Aeryn knew what that meant. Scorpius had given her former shipmates a line that they couldn't cross. Anything else would be fair game. "Now, lieutenant, I want to you open a channel to the crippled Leviathan..."
***
The three solar days since Aeryn's funeral were the most difficult that Zhaan had ever faced since she began the Delvian Seek. Part of being a priest was comforting the bereaved after a death. But, none of her studies had taught her how to comfort others when she herself was one of the grief-stricken. Zhaan knew that the others were looking to her for spiritual guidance, but she didn't know how to help them. All that she could do was to make herself available.
Since the morning after Scorpius had left John for dead on the planet, Zhaan had periodically gone from room to room checking on everyone's status. As she made her rounds, the only sound she heard was the whirr of two DRDs who were accompanying her. Usually this time of the day, she'd hear D'Argo and Chiana talking, Rygel's thronesled, and John singing badly in the shower. Today there was nothing, not even Rygel's sled.
First she checked in on D'Argo, Chiana, and Jothee. She'd noticed the growing attachment between the two teens, and thought about approaching D'Argo about it before someone got hurt. She knocked quietly, then put her head into D'Argo's quarters. The Luxan was staring out the window into space, his back to the door. She saw no sign of the teens. "Morning, Zhaan," he grumbled.
"Chiana and Jothee are up early," she observed casually.
"She's showing him where the refrigeration unit is," he replied. He looked up at her with sad eyes. "I've been thinking. None of this would have happened if we hadn't tried to rescue Jothee. I wonder, Zhaan, was it worth it?"
Zhaan crossed the room and put her hand on D'Argo's arm. "Sweet D'Argo," she smiled gently, "We all knew what the risks were. Your son is free. Freedom comes with a price."
"Was the price of my son's freedom too high for us to pay? Was it worth the damage to Moya? Crichton's sanity? Aeryn's life? I had no right to ask that of them!"
Zhaan turned around to face him. "Scorpius' chip would have driven John to insanity regardless. As for Aeryn, she was a warrior. She risked her life to save John, and lost. Don't blame yourself for this, blame Scorpius. He is responsible, not you."
"I do blame him. And I swear that I'll have my vengeance on him for the havoc that he's caused," he growled.
She smiled weakly, not wanting to argue with the Luxan any more. He was angry now, but experience had shown that he would eventually listen to reason and give up on any retribution. What was done was done. "May I give you some unsolicited advice?"
"Go ahead, because I know that I can't stop you."
"Channel your anger and regret into healing your relationship with your son. He's a deeply troubled young man, and he needs your help."
That gave him pause. "You're right, as usual," he smiled. She reached over and kissed him gently. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her on the lips. Wordlessly, they released each other, and she left his room.
As she made her way down the hall, she heard a sniffling sound coming from Rygel's quarters. She knocked quietly, and heard Rygel invite her in.
"Oh, it's you," he said drily. He was at his easel painting. "Well, come in if you're going to." He turned back around and began to paint again. Zhaan did a double-take at what Rygel was working on. It was a picture of Aeryn, standing and cradling her pulse-rifle, the way they'd seen her do many times. Granted, he wasn't the best artist in the galaxy, but he'd done a passable job.
"That's very touching," Zhaan observed. "You managed to capture her spirit on the canvas. I'm sure that she would be honored."
"Don't kid yourself, Blue," the little Hynerian grumbled. "She'd probably take her pulse-rifle to it. I just wanted..." he choked up and couldn't go on.
Zhaan reached out and rubbed his earbrow. "I know, Rygel. You wanted something to remember her by. I think it's wonderful." She reached over and kissed him on the forehead.
Rygel batted her away petulantly. "Don't tell the others. Especially not Crichton."
"It will be our secret," she assured him. "I am surprised at you, Rygel. I thought that you would be rummaging through Aeryn's things for valuables, at the very least."
The Hynerian looked insulted. "Please!" he harrumphed. "She saved my life! Besides, we both know that she had nothing of value except that cheap locket that Chiana gave her." They exchanged looks, and Rygel laughed.
"Of course," Zhaan agreed, keeping his secret. "I will let you get back to work. I want to check on Crichton." As she left the room, she heard Rygel grumbling over his easel again. Sometimes the little pest did something that surprised her. This was one of those times.
She crossed the corridor to Crichton's quarters. Unlike the others, they were dark. The door was shut. This was a bad sign. Without knocking, she opened the door and went in. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw John sitting on his bed, staring out the window into space. An untouched plate of food cubes sat on the bed next to him. He was holding something close to his body. He said a few things that sounded like gibberish, shook his head, then whispered "get out." Even though he sounded hostile, Zhaan took the fact that he was able to speak coherently as a positive sign of his healing.
"John, you've been like this since we got back from the planet," she began. After Scorpius had killed the Diagnostan, Zhaan and Stark had found John alone and screaming, strapped to the operating table with his brain cavity open. The two of them had managed to close the wound, and get John up and moving. However, he was suffering from aphasia, and couldn't speak intelligibly. What he said to her just now were the first coherent words he'd said in three days. Since they had gotten back from the planet, John had retreated into himself. He said so little that Zhaan wondered if his more parts of his brain had been permanently damaged by the operation. "You have to eat something."
"Get out!" he said more forcefully, then babbled a stream of incoherent hostility at her.
Ignoring his warning, Zhaan moved closer. She saw that the thing in his lap was Aeryn's coat. Her heart broke to see him like this. "I wanted to see how you were doing," she said. He picked up the plate of food cubes and threw it at her. Without missing a beat, Zhaan caught the plate, but the cubes went flying across the room. "Keep this up, and Scorpius will have won."
"He... has," John whimpered, his rage spent. "Want... to... die."
His words struck fear in Zhaan's soul. He was suicidal, and there was no way that she could heal him. Trembling, she put a hand on his shoulder. "John, promise me something. Promise me that you will not kill yourself. We've lost Aeryn. We do not want to lose you, too." He didn't say a word, but leaned his head over onto her hand. She bent over and embraced him from behind. "I need you too much," she whispered. Zhaan held him in her embrace for several microts before she kissed his cheek and released him. Wordlessly, she walked toward the door.
"Blue," John called after her. She turned around and looked back at him. John was still staring out the window and holding Aeryn's coat. "Promise." She smiled gently, even though he couldn't see it, then left the room, brushing a tear from her cheek.
She had one last crewmate that she wanted to check on before she would be satisfied. Zhaan made her way to Pilot's den and entered softly. "Pa'u Zhaan," Pilot greeted her. He was looking rather gray and in pain. Part of that was from what had happened to Moya, but the rest was his profound loss. "You are checking up on me, I suppose?"
"How are you and Moya doing?" she asked.
"Moya's burned areas are healing slowly. She is in a great deal of pain, both physically and emotionally."
Zhaan looked down, not wanting to meet Pilot's eyes. "I regret causing Moya pain, but it was the only way to save her. I am so sorry, Pilot. Please let her know that."
"She does not blame you, Zhaan," Pilot assured her. "Moya knows that you did what you had to do to protect her. It is just that," he hesitated slightly, "she is grieving for Officer Sun. She insists that Aeryn is still alive somewhere, where we are unable reach her. Perhaps it is because she is in pain, but she is convinced she can feel Aeryn. I am trying to persuade her otherwise, but I would rather believe Moya."
"I know, my friend. I know." She reached up and stroked a tear away from Pilot's face. "How are you holding up?"
Pilot hung his head, and she continued to stroke his cheek. "When I was in Chiana's body, I learned a great deal of things. I later realized that the feelings that she has for her brother are similar to those I have for Officer Sun. She was like a," he searched for the word, "sibling to me. Moya and I care for all of you, but we both felt something more for Aeryn. I will miss her for the rest of my life." He looked up at her. "I have never felt loss like this before. For obvious reasons, I did not become attached to the Peacekeepers that were controlling Moya. I felt some gratitude toward Lieutenant Velorek, but only because he gave me the opportunity to be the pilot of a Leviathan. But, I have never lost anyone close to me before. How do you deal with the feelings, Zhaan?"
"We each deal with them in our own way, I suppose," she confessed. "Some of us deal better than others," she said, and thought of John, alone and on the verge of suicide.
"How are you doing?" Pilot asked.
She was surprised at his question. The others were too deep in their own grief to worry about her. "I am a Pa'u. My training is to comfort others in times of loss. I fear that, because I am also grieving, my efforts may not be enough. Even though Aeryn and I did not always understand each other, I've watched her grow and thrive here. I can only take comfort in the fact that she is with the Goddess now."
Pilot was about to respond, but was interrupted by a signal light on his console. He looked down at it. "Zhaan, we are being hailed by the Scorpius' command carrier," he said, then looked up at her nervously.
"I wonder what that monster wants now?" she muttered. "Tell everyone to assemble in command. I will meet them there." Pilot nodded. "Oh, and one other thing." She reached up and kissed his leathery cheek. "Thank you. You were the only one to inquire about me."
"I guessed as much," he nodded, as a wordless look passed between them. He then patched through to the rest of the crew as Zhaan left.
Since she was so close, Zhaan was the first one to reach command. Chiana and Jothee came in a few microts later. The girl looked unkempt. As D'Argo entered, both Chiana and Jothee's body language showed that something had passed between them that they didn't want his father to know about. Finally, John staggered into Command, being prodded by Rygel. "You stupid yotz," Rygel snapped at Crichton, "you've moped long enough. Pilot said everyone. That includes you!"
"Shut... up!" Crichton croaked, then hurled another stream of invective at Rygel. The others turned to look at John in shock, since it was the first time they'd heard him speak coherently since his return.
Pilot's face came up on the clamshell monitor. "Patching the message through now," he announced. Scorpius's face appeared on the screen. Zhaan heard John wince. "Greetings, John. Oh, and the others, too." Scorpius sneered. He was back on the bridge of the Command Carrier, which worried Zhaan. "You continue to amaze me with your capability to survive. However, I just wanted to wish you all goodbye before we left you permanently."
"You couldn't resist the chance to gloat, could you?" D'Argo stepped forward and snapped at their tormentor. "What more can you take from us?"
Zhaan bit her lip with worry. Perhaps it was a mistake to bring John up here to witness this last humiliation. He was staring at Scorpius with a darkness that frightened her."Oh, no. I've gotten everything I wanted from John. Plus, a little unexpected bonus..."
"What are you talking about?" D'Argo challenged.
"Meet my new assistant," he grinned, and motioned for someone to come into range of the screen. The person must have hesitated, because he reached over and pulled. To everyone's shock, Aeryn Sun came onto the screen! She looked to be in perfect health, even though she was dressed in the leather outfit that Scorpius' assistant wore. Her hair was down, and her gray eyes stared defiantly at Scorpius.
"By the Hynerian Gods!" Rygel muttered. Chiana gasped, and D'Argo growled. What little color was left in John's face drained, and he turned almost as gray as the Nebari. "What have you done?" Rygel was the first to find his voice and asked.
"A small experiment, to see if our latest technology would work," Scorpius replied. He caressed Aeryn's cheek lovingly. She flinched away from his hand. "I'm sure you'll agree that it performed spectacularly."
"Aeryn!" John cried out and rushed forward. D'Argo ran forward and restrained John from breaking the screen. Crichton fought the Luxan's grasp.
On the screen, Aeryn turned suddenly. She threw a well-placed kick into Scorpius' groin. He staggered backwards. "John! Don't come after me! It's what he wants!" she shouted out as the guards restrained her. Scorpius reached to his side, and suddenly Aeryn doubled over in pain. The guards let her go. She sunk to her knees, then fell whimpering on the floor in agony. Another movement by Scorpius caused her spine to bow, and she finally screamed out in anguish.
D'Argo grabbed John and physically turned him, so the Human wouldn't have to face the sight of Aeryn being tortured. Mercifully, the transmission was suddenly cut off. Zhaan looked around the room. Chiana was weeping, Rygel was sniffling, and John was shaking, trying not to break down in tears himself. Jothee looked at them and asked, "what happened?"
"I am sorry," Pilot announced through the clamshell. His voice was shaking with shock. "I cut the transmission off. I could not watch any more," he confessed quietly. Chiana crossed the room and pulled John and D'Argo into a three-way embrace.
"Thank you, Pilot," Zhaan said with relief. "Neither could we."
"Pilot!" D'Argo broke from Chiana's embrace. John put his head on the Nebari's shoulder and let her comfort him. "Ready a transport!"
"Where do you think you're going?" Rygel floated forward to confront the Luxan.
"I'm going after them! Get out of my way, you little coward, unless you're coming along!" D'Argo pushed Rygel out of the way, but the Hynerian floated forward again, this time staying out of D'Argo's reach.
"Didn't you hear what she said? Scorpius is daring us to do just that! He'll be waiting for us, ready to blow us out of the sky!"
Jothee stepped forward to D'Argo's side. "I'm coming with you, Father!"
"Me... too...," another voice said. John shook off Chiana's embrace. The Human had a frightening, deadly look on his face, one that Zhaan had never seen before. "Hurt Aeryn," he struggled to say, then pounded the table with his fist as the words wouldn't come.
"Khalaan help us, now we have three of them," Zhaan muttered. "D'Argo, you need to think this through."
"No we don't," D'Argo shot back, drawing his gun. "We go over to the command carrier, we get Aeryn back, and I rip that freak apart piece by piece."
"Emphasis on Command Carrier! You'll never make it past the first line of defense!" Chiana added her voice to the debate.
"Pa'u Zhaan," Pilot interrupted the debate. "You should meditate on this."
She sighed. Pilot was right. The savage that always prowled below levels of training wanted to join them, to go in there and destroy Scorpius for what he had done. But that was wrong. "Not now, Pilot. I will need to meditate on this, but not right now."
"Zhaan," Pilot addressed her more forcefully. "Moya says that you must meditate now."
She remembered the conversation she'd had with Pilot, which now seemed like it had been arns ago. Moya's instincts had proved correct once. She had to trust that the Leviathan had a reason for her insistence. "Very well," she agreed, then looked back at the men. D'Argo was looking particularly upset at this interruption. "No one is to leave this ship while I am in meditation. Pilot, lock down the docking bay. No ship is to leave unless I say so."
"Who is in command here, anyway?" D'Argo snapped at her. "There isn't time for this. Scorpius is getting away!"
Zhaan faced D'Argo, and shoved him aside with a flick of her arm. "Moya is in command here. I do not know why she is asking this, but I know better than to disregard her intuition." She swept out of Command, leaving a stunned Luxan in her wake.
***
Zhaan found it almost impossible to clear her mind of the images she had just witnessed. She forced herself to ground, center, and breathe the way she had learned during her initial studies of the Seek. The incense and candle helped her to focus, and gradually she sank down into a meditative state. Her spirit went immediately to the grove that was the spiritual representation of Moya and her crew. The grove had been decimated since she was last here, which was consistent with its counterpart on the physical plane. She ran her fingers along the burned part of the central tree with sadness and regret. "Khalaan, I am here. Why did you summon me?" Zhaan called out.
"Zhaan?" a familiar woman's voice with a Sebacean accent came from behind her.
"Aeryn!" She turned to see Aeryn Sun - or her spirit - facing her. Aeryn extended her right hand, and Zhaan put her left hand up to it. "How did you...?"
"Your Goddess seems to think that I'm someone special. She sent me back, with a little help from Scorpius and his nanobots," Aeryn explained. "Khalaan wants me to stop Scorpius."
Zhaan tried to comprehend what her friend was telling her. "Nanobots? But, that's..."
"Experimental Peacekeeper technology. He's controlling my body, but my mind is free. That's how he was able to inflict enough pain to..." she looked away. Zhaan put her hand on the other woman's shoulder in comfort. Aeryn covered Zhaan's hand with her own in gratitude. "How are the others?"
"Taking everything pretty hard, I'm afraid."
"Rygel hasn't gone through my things, has he?" Aeryn smiled.
"He told me that you had nothing worth stealing," Zhaan returned the grin.
"Good," Then the Peacekeeper's expression turned wistful. "How are Pilot and Moya?"
"Pilot misses you terribly. Moya is healing slowly. She felt your presence, even before Scorpius' little show."
"Tell Pilot that I miss him and Moya as well. And John?" she whispered.
Zhaan looked away. "Not good." She filled Aeryn in on what had happened since her Prowler went down. "He is suicidal, Aeryn. When he saw what happened to you, the change in him was frightening. He and D'Argo were ready to go after you, whatever it took."
"No! They can't!" She gasped in horror and grasped Zhaan's shoulders. "You have to make them understand that it's suicide. Tell them, Zhaan! Don't try to rescue me!"
"What about you?"
"Tell them not to worry. I'll endure this. Your Goddess has been helping me. Just let everyone know that I'll do whatever it takes to escape and make it back to you."
An idea occurred to Zhaan. "You have close access to Scorpius, right?"
"Yes. He keeps me locked up in his quarters. What are you thinking of?"
"Find out his plans, and let me know through this link. While you are awake, do not think about our link, or anything about this. John told me once that Scorpius can sense general thoughts, but he cannot read minds. Being a spy will take a great deal of subtlety and guile."
"I'll just think of what Chiana would do in the same situation," she grinned. "I need to go," she said, looking over her shoulder. "Someone is attempting to revive my body. Tell John that I forgive him, and not to give up hope," she whispered. Her image faded, then disappeared entirely. Zhaan willed herself back into her physical body, and found herself back in her quarters aboard Moya. After extinguishing the candle, she went to tell the others what she had learned.
***
Someone was shaking her roughly. Aeryn groaned and opened her eyes to see Lieutenant Braca with his hands on her shoulders. She was laying on the pallet in Scorpius' quarters. Every muscle in her body screamed in pain from the torture, and the violent shaking wasn't helping. She sat up and glared at him. "Braca," she hissed, "what the frell do you want now?"
He leered at her and laughed. "An appropriate choice of words," he chuckled, and reached to unzip his pants.
Well, I knew this was coming, she thought. At least it's only Braca. She let out a sigh. "I suppose that this is the part where you rape me while I beg for mercy, Scorpius watches, and you both get your thrills. Or, is recreation part of the bargain that I was forced into?"
Braca looked annoyed. "There was no bargain. You'll do whatever I say."
Aeryn gave him a withering look. "Whatever you say? I thought Scorpius was the one with the controller. Or, is he letting you play with his toys when he's not around?" Braca slapped her face hard. After having every pain receptor in her body go into overdrive, his slap was the equivalent of an insect bite. "So, that is it!" she laughed. "You thought you'd come in here and have some fun while your master is otherwise occupied? You are so pathetic!"
He slapped her again, this time on her other cheek. "Shut up, you tralk! You're lucky I don't throw you below decks to the infantry! You're forgetting what you are!"
"Oh, am I? I know exactly what I am, Lieutenant. I'm a prisoner, a very valuable one. The way I see it, I'm forced to lick that monster's boots. You're doing it by choice. So, who's the tralk here - me or you?" Another slap. This one caused her teeth to rattle. "Careful, Braca," she warned, "you're damaging his property. He might put you in the Aurora Chair for that."
"No, he reserves that pleasure for the lesser life-form that you've been recreating with," Braca shot back.
Aeryn was actually enjoying this. Now that she wasn't a Peacekeeper anymore, she had no restrictions on what she could say to her former superior. "Would that be the lesser life-form that kicked your eema several times? Remember who taught him how to fight!"
"And remember who has control over you!" he held out the black box and turned a dial. Aeryn felt herself sliding off of the pallet and kneeling on the deck in front of Braca. He unzipped his trousers and pulled out his erect member.
Aeryn looked up at him archly. "So, what do you want, sympathy?" she laughed, then gasped as a bolt of pain coursed through her body.
"In your mouth, tralk. And don't even think about using your teeth!"
"I think the Hynerian was bigger," she snickered as he forced his member into her face. Her jaws were forced open, and he leaned in closer to her.
"Lieutenant Braca!" Scorpius growled from the other side of the room. Braca pulled back immediately, and quickly pulled himself together, releasing his control on her at the same time. She smirked at the sight of the First Officer trying to zip his pants over the obvious bulge, and she wished that he'd catch himself in it. Scorpius snarled, crossed the room in three paces, and pulled the controller out of Braca's hand. "I did not give you authorization to be in here!" Braca stepped back as Scorpius laid into him. "You are not to touch her unless I give you permission!"
Aeryn casually stood up and pulled herself together while enjoying the show. "Sir, I tried to tell him that, but he wouldn't listen to me," she jumped in, hoping to get a few licks of a different kind than Braca had wanted. She had a brief thought of Rygel teaching her how to gamble, specifically how to bluff. Goddess, give me the strength to do this, she thought. She took a deep breath to screw up her courage, and sidled over to Scorpius. The hybrid regarded her skeptically. Aeryn did a passable imitation of Chiana, and rubbed her front up against Scorpius' side. "Lieutenant Braca insisted on showing me his shortcomings." Braca glared at her, but said nothing. Aeryn smiled sweetly at him.
"Curious," Scorpius muttered as he looked into her face. Aeryn focused on what she was doing, to avoid giving anything away. "I'm pleased to see that you've changed your mind, my dear. The nanotechnology is still experimental. I didn't want to end up damaging you," he purred, and stroked her face. Aeryn did her best not to flinch away this time. "So, seeing Crichton one last time convinced you to cooperate?"
"I'm not going to lie to you, Scorpius. I know that it's useless. I've decided to cooperate because I want you to leave Crichton alone. I'm trading you my life for his."
"You're too late, my pet," he laughed. "You have nothing to bargain for. I've already taken everything I want from him. But just knowing that you're alive, and in my possession, will be the worst torture of all."
"Then you don't know him as well as you think," she replied. Aeryn knew that she had only one move left. Mentally, she moved the tile into play. She rubbed her hands against the leather encasing Scorpius' buttocks. That got his attention. "I'll bet there's at least one thing about John Crichton that I know and you don't."
She could see the wheels starting to turn in his twisted mind. "What's that?" he asked.
Aeryn's hand reached around to the front of his leather uniform, trying to keep the gorge from rising in her throat as she did. "His likes, his dislikes, his... reactions," she purred into Scorpius' ear as she gently squeezed his genitals.
"Living around lesser life-forms really has corrupted you, Sun," Braca interrupted.
Aeryn turned to the Lieutenant and arched an eyebrow. "You didn't ask nicely," she smiled sweetly at him. "And besides, you're not the one with the power here."
"You're dismissed, Lieutenant," Scorpius waved him off. Braca stormed out of the room. "Now, tell me more about Crichton's... behavior." Scorpius purred.
John, forgive me, she thought, then pulled Scorpius down onto the bed and straddled him. "Well, you see...." she began, and unzipped the top of her suit.
***
"All I am telling you," Zhaan explained for what seemed like the fifth time, "Is what Aeryn told me. She specifically said for you not to go after her."
"In some kind of dream state? How do you know it was really her?" D'Argo growled. "Maybe it was Scorpius manipulating your mind?"
"He did do a number on you when you attempted Unity," Rygel added. "Who's to say that he didn't manage to get to you again?"
"You bring up a good argument, Rygel," she agreed. "However, we have no option but to trust Aeryn and do what she says."
John slammed his hand down on the table so hard that Zhaan jumped."No!" he shouted, then said something else everyone could understand, even though the words weren't coherent.
Zhaan placed her hand over his. "She loves you, John. She was very worried that you would do something foolish like this. But there is more than just her life at stake now. This is bigger than all of us. You have to believe that. Khalaan willing, she will live and return to us."
"Think about it, all of you!" Chiana added, staring at D'Argo, then at Jothee. "You would be one transport going against a Command Carrier. We've already lost Aeryn." The tears welled up in her gray eyes again. "I can't lose both of you, too."
Pilot's face appeared on the clamshell. "I hate to interrupt, but the Command Carrier is pulling out of orbit. A high-level encrypted transmission was sent via deep-space communications."
Everyone looked up at the screen, to see the stern of the Command Carrier start to get smaller. "Can we follow them?" Rygel asked.
"I'm afraid not. Moya is still incapable of leaving orbit. And, a transport pod cannot keep up with a Command Carrier doing an average speed of hetch five," he replied with sadness.
"Do we have any idea where they're headed?" D'Argo asked.
John struggled to say something. "Scarrans," he managed to choke out. It was all he needed to say. They all understood the implications of what it meant.
"Yotz," Rygel cursed. "We're going to need some help."