I do not own the Riddick Trilogy or any of the characters.

One

Lord Marshall of an entire army of half dead monsters and still he had lost the woman he loved. He was still adapting to that knowledge. Even as she lay dying in his arms, he had been unable to admit that he cared about her as anything more than family. But he did. He loved her. And now, without her, he was capable of doing nothing but keeping himself locked in his quarters and having his food delivered once a day. He had originally spent his time training to keep his mind away from her but as it slipped, he found himself unable to even focus on training. Eventually, he found it difficult to even drag himself out of bed. Some days, he didn't bother. He would get up long enough to eat some of his meal then throw the rest away through a trash chute to the incinerator. He even found that more and more of his food was going to the incinerator until it all was. The only thing he could force himself to keep was the water that he had sent. Every couple days he would eat enough to survive but he knew he would still die eventually.

As he lay in bed, he stared up at the ceiling and just lay there. His mind was, once again, replaying images of his memories with her. Even those from their first nightmarish meeting. He couldn't help but replay those. They weren't exactly some small event. If they hadn't gone there, he never would have met Kyra or learned to be a human again, or at least start on that path. There was no way around it. He missed her and soon, if he didn't rejoin the world of the living, he would join her.

"Lord Marshall," Dame Vaako said knocking on the door.

"What?" Riddick asked.

"There's someone you need to see," Dame Vaako said.

Riddick sighed and stood just as Aereon passed through his door solidifying just inside the room.

"You look like death," Aereon said.

"Soon," Riddick said.

"They escaped their world," Aereon said. "They hid in the cargo bay of a ship and got off world then massacred a city when the ship landed. They have been spreading since you took control here. It's the third planet in under a month."

"Not my problem," Riddick said. "If they come here, we'll kill them. Until then, I don't care."

"You would, if you hadn't let Kyra die," Aereon said.

Riddick instantly grabbed a dagger and swung it at her but suddenly felt light headed and stumbled crashing to the floor.

"What did you do?" Riddick asked.

"I did nothing," Aereon said. "You've been laying around for nine months now without eating a damn thing. You're starving and dehydrated. Eat something, then come and see me."

"No," Riddick said. "I'm not hungry."

"You are hungry," Aereon said. "You just don't want to eat because you want to die so that you can be with Kyra again. You failed to save her now you don't want to live but you don't have the guts to kill yourself. I don't know if you care but do you really think that Kyra would want you to waste away just because she died saving you?"

With that, Aereon walked back through the door and Riddick sat on his bed. She was right and he knew it. It still didn't change anything. Even the fact that the galaxy would be destroyed by those, things, didn't change anything.

"By the way," Aereon said stepping back in. "I almost forgot to mention that there's a surprise waiting for you in the infirmary. I suggest you eat first."

And with that, she was gone again. Riddick stood and walked to the meal he had yet to bother even throwing away and ate it quickly. He gave it a couple minutes to settle then left his room in his usual muscle shirt and jeans. He was pale, had dark circles under his eyes, and was still shaky but somehow managed to make it to the infirmary without anyone saying anything.

The moment he was through the door, he froze. Kyra was laying in the bed furthest from the door and was not only alive but awake.

"K...Kyra," Riddick said walking toward her slowly.

"Riddick," Kyra said smiling but looking as surprised as him before it morphed into a grin. "You look like shit."

Riddick blinked in surprise before smiling and collapsing from exhaustion. A day later he awoke in the bed next top hers with an IV feeding his body with everything he had been denying it.

"Finally awake are you?" Kyra asked.

"You're alive," Riddick said. "How?"

"Aereon said she found me and brought me here without really paying much attention to how I was alive," Kyra said. "She said something about looking a gift horse in the mouth."

Riddick smirked and nodded then lay back. He wasn't going to look the gift horse in the mouth either. He had Kyra back. He was slightly afraid it was a dream.

"I'm glad you're alive," Riddick said. "I missed you."

"Now will you eat and get yourself healthy again?" Dame Vaako asked.

"Yes," Riddick said. "I have a question, is there anyone here that can do a shine job?"

"No," Dame Vaako said.

"Then I'll have to go back to prison," Riddick said. "Give me three days then come get me. Kyra, you coming?"

"Neither of you are going anywhere until you're healthy again," Dame Vaako said.

"How long?" Riddick asked.

"At the rat you've been improving, another day," Dame Vaako said.

"Faster," Riddick said.

"Unless you want to become a Necromonger, we can't," Dame Vaako said.

"Fine," Riddick said. "Just hurry."

He lay back and Dame Vaako glared at him for a moment before turning to leave. A day later, Riddick was finally released with Kyra and they took Riddick's personal ship to go to the prison he had gotten his eyes augmented at.

"We need to find him and get him to give you a shine job soon," Riddick said. "Then we'll need to get out before the rescue arrives."

"How long will it be before I can see again?" Kyra asked.

"A week," Riddick said. "We'll need to land on the next planet, blow the ship and send a distress beacon."

"Does our army know the plan?" Kyra asked.

"Parts," Riddick said.

"Do you know the plan?" Kyra asked.

"Other parts," Riddick said.

"Do I?" Kyra asked.

"No," Riddick said. "You will have to trust me. I need to make sure you're still with me."

"Alright," Kyra said. "Time to land then."

She landed the ship and she and Riddick left it then detonated it and sent a distress beacon in the general direction of toward the jail they needed. About an hour later, a group of mercenaries arrived and instantly placed both in chains and began to fly away from the planet. The plan was working. But they still had a long way to go.

THE END

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