Disclaimer: The story is mine, but the characters, setting, etc. all mostly
belong to big corporations, although there are a few who may be in the
public domain.
A/N: This is a crossover of Andromeda and another show. I'm not going to say what just yet, but it should be fairly obvious. I was hoping someone would write this so that I could read it, but since I can't find any indication that anyone is, I'm taking a stab at it myself. This is complicated by the fact that I haven't seen as much of either show as I should to be writing about them, so please let me know about any errors; we'll probably have to consider this AU for both shows anyway. Also note: this is probably pre-slash, but I'm not sure yet.
* * * * * * * *
Chapter One: Busted
Tyr had been watching Dylan for quite some time, and finally Harper had to ask him why. "He's too stable," Tyr said. "He's been through so much, more than any one should have to deal with in such a short period of time. He should be on the verge of a nervous breakdown, but he isn't. It's unnatural for a normal to be so stable."
Harper thought about that; it was true, Dylan had lost his home, his fiancee, his trust in his best friend, everything he knew and cared about- except Andromeda. "Maybe he's just so focused on rebuilding the Commonwealth that it hasn't hit home."
"No, I think he's less obsessed with the new Commonwealth since we don't have to worry about the Magog and your spawn anymore. So if that were the case, he should have had a release by now."
Harper thought some more; finally he decided that the simplest way to find out what was going on in Dylan's head was to ask Dylan himself.
"Why I haven't succumbed to all of the stress I've been under since Andromeda came out of the singularity? You're right, there's a fairly simple explanation for it. You see, this isn't the first time I've lost everything that was important to me; and I know how to deal with loss. It's a lesson I've unfortunately had the chance to learn very well," Dylan answered, continuing with the work he was doing.
"But there's nothing in your records about you suffering that kind of loss," Rommie protested.
"Well, there' s a reason for that too," Dylan replied, concentrating on the board he was working on.
Harper and the others waited, but it seemed that Dylan had said all that he considered necessary on the matter. Finally Beka broke the silence, "And what reason is that?"
"What? Oh," Dylan look surprised, then, astonishingly, blushed. "Rommie, don't enter this in ship's records, please. Whatever concerns you have, I'll cover with you privately." Finally he turned to the others with a sheepish look on his face. "The thing is, you see, that almost everything in my High Guard records before I entered the Academy is fabricated."
Naturally this provoked quite an outcry from everyone present.
"Yes, it's unusual, but not unprecedented; when it does happen it is usually for the protection of the person involved. In my case, the problem goes back to my childhood; my parents weren't married, my father never could resist a pretty woman, and his wife didn't like to be confronted with the evidence of his straying, so she hated me."
"But it wasn't your fault," Harper protested.
"No, but she didn't care; I was proof that she wasn't enough for him, you see. And I grew up, fell in love, married, and started a family-and she finally decided she couldn't handle it anymore and murdered my wife and our children. But she was so powerful, she'd hidden the trail so well there was no way to prove that she was behind it. She tried quite a few times to kill me too, and finally it seemed that the best solution was to change my identity so completely that she wouldn't be able to find me . . . and eventually I wound up at the High Guard Academy."
"Would we know her name, would we find her in the records?" Beka wondered.
"You might, but I'm not giving you her name," Dylan said firmly. "I'm not risking her finding out who I am these days."
"But she'd have to be dead by now," Harper said with a puzzled look on his face.
"Why?" Dylan replied calmly. "I'm still here, after all. I wouldn't want to bet anyone's life that she isn't."
There didn't seem to be anything more to say to that. The others drifted off the bridge, heading back to their own duties now that the revelations seemed to be over. Only Trance saw Dylan's eyes on Harper.
TBC
A/N: This is a crossover of Andromeda and another show. I'm not going to say what just yet, but it should be fairly obvious. I was hoping someone would write this so that I could read it, but since I can't find any indication that anyone is, I'm taking a stab at it myself. This is complicated by the fact that I haven't seen as much of either show as I should to be writing about them, so please let me know about any errors; we'll probably have to consider this AU for both shows anyway. Also note: this is probably pre-slash, but I'm not sure yet.
* * * * * * * *
Chapter One: Busted
Tyr had been watching Dylan for quite some time, and finally Harper had to ask him why. "He's too stable," Tyr said. "He's been through so much, more than any one should have to deal with in such a short period of time. He should be on the verge of a nervous breakdown, but he isn't. It's unnatural for a normal to be so stable."
Harper thought about that; it was true, Dylan had lost his home, his fiancee, his trust in his best friend, everything he knew and cared about- except Andromeda. "Maybe he's just so focused on rebuilding the Commonwealth that it hasn't hit home."
"No, I think he's less obsessed with the new Commonwealth since we don't have to worry about the Magog and your spawn anymore. So if that were the case, he should have had a release by now."
Harper thought some more; finally he decided that the simplest way to find out what was going on in Dylan's head was to ask Dylan himself.
"Why I haven't succumbed to all of the stress I've been under since Andromeda came out of the singularity? You're right, there's a fairly simple explanation for it. You see, this isn't the first time I've lost everything that was important to me; and I know how to deal with loss. It's a lesson I've unfortunately had the chance to learn very well," Dylan answered, continuing with the work he was doing.
"But there's nothing in your records about you suffering that kind of loss," Rommie protested.
"Well, there' s a reason for that too," Dylan replied, concentrating on the board he was working on.
Harper and the others waited, but it seemed that Dylan had said all that he considered necessary on the matter. Finally Beka broke the silence, "And what reason is that?"
"What? Oh," Dylan look surprised, then, astonishingly, blushed. "Rommie, don't enter this in ship's records, please. Whatever concerns you have, I'll cover with you privately." Finally he turned to the others with a sheepish look on his face. "The thing is, you see, that almost everything in my High Guard records before I entered the Academy is fabricated."
Naturally this provoked quite an outcry from everyone present.
"Yes, it's unusual, but not unprecedented; when it does happen it is usually for the protection of the person involved. In my case, the problem goes back to my childhood; my parents weren't married, my father never could resist a pretty woman, and his wife didn't like to be confronted with the evidence of his straying, so she hated me."
"But it wasn't your fault," Harper protested.
"No, but she didn't care; I was proof that she wasn't enough for him, you see. And I grew up, fell in love, married, and started a family-and she finally decided she couldn't handle it anymore and murdered my wife and our children. But she was so powerful, she'd hidden the trail so well there was no way to prove that she was behind it. She tried quite a few times to kill me too, and finally it seemed that the best solution was to change my identity so completely that she wouldn't be able to find me . . . and eventually I wound up at the High Guard Academy."
"Would we know her name, would we find her in the records?" Beka wondered.
"You might, but I'm not giving you her name," Dylan said firmly. "I'm not risking her finding out who I am these days."
"But she'd have to be dead by now," Harper said with a puzzled look on his face.
"Why?" Dylan replied calmly. "I'm still here, after all. I wouldn't want to bet anyone's life that she isn't."
There didn't seem to be anything more to say to that. The others drifted off the bridge, heading back to their own duties now that the revelations seemed to be over. Only Trance saw Dylan's eyes on Harper.
TBC