Disclaimer: I own nothing from either the Harry Potter series or the Chronicles of Riddick series.
Author's Note: So I finally decided to start working on the first sequel to 'Darkness Excludes No One'. Riddick finally threatened me into an inch of my life, and in remembering all the reviews and votes on my poll requesting a sequel…I didn't want all of you threatening me either.
I originally planned to skip over the 'Dark Fury' chapter of the CoR series, but after going back and watching it again…it was simply too good of an opportunity to screw with the heads of some of my favorite characters. This arc of the story won't be very long at all, three or four chapters at most. This is just clearing the way for the third part of the story that will be taking place in and around the third movie's timeline.
Movie time: Start – 9:07 minutes into the film
Harry had to admit he was surprised the small skiff had yet to explode (or maybe implode, can things explode in space?) with the sheer amount of tension that filled every nook and cranny of the ship. Hours felt like days, days like months, and while they hadn't been in space that long at all. Harry was sure that if their time floating helplessly on the great sea of space stretched into months, it would feel as though eons had gone by.
In the few weeks that had gone by, Harry had spoken very little if at all to the remaining survivors of the disaster on Hades. Jack and Imam had made countless attempts in engaging him in conversation, but barely succeeded in getting a few dozen words. After he had woken up from the knockout he received from Riddick he was furious. He never gave Riddick the verbal attack they both had been expecting for him to receive, no, instead he simply shut down. He was completely disgusted with himself that he held such affection; he wouldn't dare say love for the man who disregarded his opinions and let so many die that could have been saved.
What bothered him the most was he was still attracted to the bastard, still attracted and still having to fight daily his desire to be by the murder's side. While Riddick piloted the craft, Harry could be found at the very back of the ship. He would only move to the front of the skiff when Riddick would settle down for an hour or two of light dozing, refusing to be any closer to the man than possible.
A few times during their time in space while Jack and Imam were asleep, it seemed as though Riddick was about to say something to him, but stopped himself and went back to what he was doing.
Harry was jerked out of his musing and his seat as the skiff jolted, machines flashing red and as a whole started shaking violently.
"Hull breach contained…Engines running at 170% capacity…" The mechanical voice that was the main computer spoke in a slightly male monotone voice that managed to be heard over the blaring alarms. Harry could only watch from where he sat next to a panicked Jack as Riddick frantically started flipping switches and tried to regain control of their helpless craft.
"Engine and all failure…emanate under current…parameters." What a lovely way to find out that he was going to die. 'All Failure' most definitely would include the device that monitored and pumped oxygen throughout the ship, and he doubted any 'bubble head' charms would hold up against the pressure of space.
"Critical system failure in…five seconds…four seconds…three seconds…two seconds…one second-" The computer went silent as Riddick flipped the final switch, as did the blaring alarms and their flashing red lights. All jerking movement came to a halt and Harry could feel for the first time the slight feeling of their ship being tugged backwards.
"First you're a boy. Then you're a girl. Now you're a psychic. Careful what you wish for Jack," Riddick glanced back at the nervously smiling girl before turning his attention back on the windows, watching the stars as they were dragged towards the much larger ship.
"Unidentified craft, state your purpose and contents," another male voice spoke out through the intercom, somehow being transmitted from the larger ship down to their own. Harry honestly couldn't tell if the voice was generated by a machine or not. It didn't really matter in the long run; they were most likely screwed either way. "Unidentified craft, state your purpose and contents."
The three passengers glanced at one another helplessly, unsure as to what they should do in this kind of situation before Riddick finally spoke up, still coming off as calm as can be.
"Name's Johns. My ship got scrapped in a transport run. The only other survivors from the whole mess are with me. Outside of that we've got nothing."
"Tell me Mr. Johns," Harry wasn't sure if there truly was sarcasm in the man saying Riddick's supposed name, or if he was just imagining it, "what brings you to this lonely corner of space?"
"I'm a bounty hunter," Riddick responded as his alibi would allow.
"Then it appears we have something in common." Harry saw Jack wince, finally realizing for the first time what she must have predicted while he was unconscious.
No further words were exchanged between the two crafts as suddenly the tether that was pulling them in jerked once more, quickly tugging the small skiff into the ship until it was completely swallowed whole.
"No offense, but I don't think that's going to cut it against whatever it is coming for us." Jack sat huddled on the bench, holding her knees to her chest as she stared out at Riddick and their only source of light. Their ship had finally completely shut down, and they could only watch in confusion as Riddick took their small torch and worked patiently at the ship's fire prevention system.
"They'll be using their systems to figure out how many people we have in here by our body heat. We'll have the element of surprise this way. Now hold your breath." Riddick was about to turn the torch on again before Harry finally spoke up.
"Wait," he rasped quietly before clearing his throat. "We don't know how long it'll be before they come down here. I've got a way for us to hold our breaths longer."
"Let's see it then," Riddick still gripped the torch, not moving even as Harry came to stand in front of him. He was only watching with hidden interest as Harry moved his hand about and muttered in some crazy language before a large dome like structure surrounded his head and neck. After Harry finished with Riddick he moved to Imam and Jack before repeating the same charm on himself. While his time on Hades had put a heavy dent on his magic levels, he had recovered enough that he could at least do this for them.
"All set. It won't last but a few minutes, but it's better than nothing," Harry murmured quietly and stopped Jack before she could start poking at her dome. Riddick simply turned back on the torch and got back to work, easily finishing well before their captors arrived.
"Anything?" Junner, the officer that held the second command position of his mistress's craft asked of the lowly Merc grunt that had been one of the ones assigned to guard the bay that was now known to contain the escaped convict known as Richard B. Riddick. These captures had been starting to become so ordinary and mundane after they captured that woman off of Lambda-Tau 7. Hopefully this murderer would live up to his reputation. His boss, Antonia Chillingsworth, seemed more than a little pleased with their newest soon to be pet.
He had been working for Chillingsworth for over five years now, having little to no memory of his life before coming to serve under the magnificent woman. Her strength appealed to him greatly, as did her maliciousness that reminded him somewhat fondly of a man he could no longer properly remember. Her plans were always perfect when it came to the final capture of their target. She declared their captives to be true artists, but Junner had once heard the saying 'only a true artist can recognize another artist'. Antonia was an artist, how easily she manipulated these fools as if they were puppets. Junner, as he had been named by his mistress, knew he was manipulated by her as well. He loved it.
"No sir. No one has been in or out of this bay since I locked it down myself. Zero atmosphere," the man spoke simply, not saluting or removing the cigarette from his mouth, but clearly recognizing Junner as his superior.
"Pressurize." Junner stared at the large bay door, not looking at the Mercs behind or in front of him as he stared at the door as if he could see through it to the contents inside.
"We've got O2 Sir. It's thin but you'll be able to breathe it. Green for breach." The man eyed the control panel once more, only waiting for the order to open it for the small troop of heavily armed glorified thugs called Mercs.
"Earn your keep," Junner ordered, his eyes never leaving the door as the Mercs floated past him into the room and assumed their positions, guns trained on the skiff. He could only watch in thinly veiled disgust as the inelegant beasts hung like puppets in the air.
"There is a man inside this vessel that is far worse than anything anyone here has ever encountered." Junner reached his hand out and captured a bullet so carelessly dropped by one of the grunts. "If you should survive this day, it is one that you will remember for the rest of your lives. Do not underestimate the importance of such a thing. Now, begin."
A thin man dressed head to toe in skintight black material slowly floated towards the metal door of the skiff that was the only barrier between him and his mistress's next capture. As he waited for the lock picking device to be activated Junner could surprisingly feel the need to fidget, something would be far different about this capture.
The moment the skiff blew open, Junner already knew he had underestimated his opponent by only bringing a dozen low level Mercs. He quickly ordered them to fall back and get away from the large mass of extinguishing foam that quickly expelled from the ship due to the pressure differences of the skiff and the bay itself. While it was disappointing to lose some of the Mercs they had already somewhat paid and would have to be replaced, it was very entertaining to watch Riddick work. The man had already killed four men within just a few seconds of opening the door, and he had yet to even take a breath of air.
"He has to breathe sometime..." Junner muttered to himself, waiting almost patiently for the rest of the battle to commence. He loved the adrenaline rush he got just from watching such weak beings going to slaughter. While he rarely sullied his hands with their dirty blood, it was immensely pleasing to watch it pool and float through the air.
The first to appear from the large floating orb of extinguishing foam was the face of a young teen, most likely male due to appearance. The second was a far older dark-skinned male, both only appeared long enough to take a quick breath of fresh air before retreating into the foam once more; most likely regular civilians with little to no fighting experience, no threat at all to an experienced fighter such as himself.
Only a few seconds had passed before the man most likely to be Riddick practically flew out of the foam, spinning and moving through the room in a macabre dance that destroyed any that came too close. A man on a mission, he would use anything against his enemies to get closer to his targets. Perhaps the criminal was a former soldier, he seemed to hold the philosophy of 'kill the officers, destroy the army' with just how intently he was working himself towards Junner and the doorway behind him.
"You certainly know how to make an entrance," Junner smirked as he watched Riddick grab a now dead Merc to use as a human shield against on coming fire. He would say this for the man; at least he seemed to have no morals when it came to survival, a necessary state of mind in today's universe.
"That's nothing scarecrow," The boy, or now more likely to be girl pulled herself out of the foam, grabbing a dead Mercs gun. "He's going to kick your ass so-"
Any further ranting from the girl was silenced as she was pulled back into the cover of the thick substance, the action causing Junner's focus to turn almost solely on the gelatinous form. There was another inside that foam, for the old man couldn't have possibly been able to move around so freely inside. Junner jumped from his position, making his way to the exact spot the girl had come from, landing on her and forcing her to the ground when she appeared again.
"I think not," Junner had quickly drawn his gunblade, keeping the point of the blade just mere millimeters from the girl's forehead as he turned to Riddick triumphantly. "What do you say-" He could sense the impending attack before it came, jumping out of the way as a beam of red light blasted through the foam and hit the floor where he was standing only a second earlier. The light reflected off the metal floor, shooting through the air and knocking another useless Merc unconscious.
He pointed his weapon at the mass, prepared to return fire when movement called his attention above. A young man with shoulder length messy hair dove out of the mess and fired that red light once more. That light, that light. It was so familiar and yet unfamiliar. Junner knew what that light was, while not deadly it would render him unable to battle. He launched himself into the air, throwing himself at the young man and quickly restrained his arms, pinning him down against the unforgiving floor before investigating his attacker further: Tanned skin, scarred but not overly so. Calloused fingers, the man was used to labor while his body appeared to be smaller and narrower than most laborers. It was the eyes though that bothered him, pure emerald fire glared and seemed to burn through him and it was all Junner could do to not shudder in pleasure.
He could feel the lust growing within him, not for carnal pleasure of the body, but for the challenge this young man gave and for the joy he knew he would feel at making him bleed. Antonia would have her pet Riddick to keep busy with. Perhaps he'd be allowed to have some fun with this one. The man was so familiar; it struck something in the back of Junner's mind that he should not let his guard down around this one. He maintained his position over the young man, even as flashes of memory seemed to appear before his very eyes. He had met this young man before, even though time had aged him and the glasses and baggy filthy clothes were gone…he knew him. This young man below him would hold the answers to his past.
"Call off your lapdog, before his trying to impress you gets him killed," Riddick growled, neither his grip on a Merc's throat never wavering, nor his grip on his shiv as he looked up at the figure he knew was behind his capture. The cloaked being was obviously female, one that looked too damn confident for her own damn good. This woman unfortunately held the cards right now, and Riddick couldn't afford to have his interest in the lives of Harry and perhaps the others known.
"Am I so obvious?" A husky cultured voice asked as the figure never moved from its position, not even as young Jack threw herself at Junner in an attempt to free Harry, only to find she was facing once more the sharp edge of Junner's blade.
"Call it what you want, but tell him to stand down. Now." Riddick finally looked back at the man restraining his kitten and the kid. The man was straddling Harry's lower back, keeping his hands restrained with the strength of his thighs alone. He kept one hand at the back of Harry's neck, forcing his face to the ground while Jack sat helplessly on her knees, her hands raised in surrender with the edge of the blade against her neck.
"You'll have to excuse Junner's excitement; sometimes it makes him a touch…quick," the woman chuckled as her cloak folded back, disappearing into her gown beneath. The woman was eerily beautiful; curvaceous and tall, she also had a neck that was far too long to belong to any human. If it wasn't for these striking features alone her long lilac colored hair was a dead giveaway. "Although I can't say I blame him. You see, he's just heard so much about you. Riddick. Yes, I know your name. Quite a bit more about you I think."
"Careful. You may find what you're digging for," Riddick glare never wavered, even though deep inside himself he was starting to feel unsettled by the woman. Her presence and that soon to be dead man straddling his lover-to-be were starting to get on his nerves.
"I'm willing to share of course," the woman smiled easily, offering the temptation of Riddick's past freely before she spoke once more. "But I must ask that you surrender your weapon; before any more of my apparently overpaid associates come to an untimely end."
"Hmm… not gonna happen," Riddick challenged the woman, meeting her eyes like a beast and refusing to back down.
"No?" Antonia asked mockingly, the sound of Junner's finger resting on the trigger of his gunblade easily heard in the dead silent room.
"The girl is nothing to me."
"Interesting, to know she's still alive while you are well known for killing anything that gets too close. Why would you go through the trouble of keeping her alive unless…" The woman let her eyes trail to Harry's restrained form, ignoring the glare the man sent her way. "Perhaps, she means something more to someone else in your company."
"She's a cover story, nothing more. You shoot her now you'll be saving me the trouble." Riddick's hand never wavered from its grip on his shiv, the Merc below him having gone silent; strangled to death.
"Then I have your blessing," Chillingsworth turned away to walk towards the door, ignoring the child's whimpering and the fierce struggling of the young man being pinned down. She couldn't help but grin victoriously as she heard the sound of Riddick's shiv being thrown and sinking into the metal of Junner's gunblade. "Maybe I know more about you then you do yourself, Riddick."
"Now's just not the time."
"Lock them down, we're done here."
"My apologies," Junner murmured as he stood at his mistress' side, watching with barely veiled interest as the young man, Riddick and the two others were restrained and bound.
"You know how worthless those are to me. You did well. People die in this line of work Junner, a handful of men… a small price to pay." Antonia Chillingsworth glanced at her best solider, a smirk caressing her lips as she saw his attention elsewhere.
"What will you do with him?"
"Which one do you mean?" She teased, her smirk never leaving her. "Have Riddick brought to my conservatory, and afterwards you can have your fun with the young man. I can see your interest in him. He is not worth my time, so you may have him."
Junner turned to leave, motioning the Mercs restraining Harry to follow him as he felt he had been dismissed.
"And Junner," the man froze, waiting for his Mistress's command. "Unfreeze some more Mercs before you go off to play."
Author's note: So…what do you think? *Grins* I bet you don't know who Junner is! Anyone who manages to figure it out… well I don't know what I'd do, but I'd be insanely impressed. His identity should be revealed within the next chapter or two.
I went back and posted a link to a picture of Junner in my profile. I know alot of people who've seen the Riddick movies may not have seen Dark Fury. I'll warn you though, the picture does not help you in figuring out who Junner is. The person who plays the character from the HP movie(s) looks nothing like Junner.
Stop! Please read and review.
P.S: My other new story I've been promising should appear before Monday.