Childs Play.
Chapter 1: Stubbornness
Author: Deo CFJOHNSON99@KESTEVENGRANTHAM.LINCS.SCH.UK
Summary: Aeryn Meets up with her mother before Relativity, and is made little again. Talyns crew race to return her to her old state.
Setting: Season 3 before Relativity
Disclaimer: They're not mine, Blah, blah, blah...
Rating: PG.
Notes: Thanks to Beak for back up, and Charly for reading it first. This story starts from Rygels point of view, then switches to 3rd Person Narrative, then to Aeryn, then back, etc.
* * * * *
Rygel.
'I don't care, she has to go down alone!' Once again, both Crais' and Crichtons voices are echoing through Talyns corridors, ripping me from my dreams, and depositing me back into the squalid cell, that I have the 'liberty' of calling my quarters, even though I am forced to share them with a Banik slave. It's still surprising that I can get any sleep at all, what with that idiot dithering around in the corners. Ah, they're fading away, finally I can return to my wealth- ridden dreams. No, wait; they're back, and Aeryn has joined them. Frell.
* * * * *
'I don't care, she has to go down alone!' Crais and Crichton were bickering again, loudly, outside of Rygel and Starks shared quarters, Both believing themselves to be right, and both making their points known, in what appeared, to the innocent intruder, to be a shouting match.
'Why? Not only is it stupid and dangerous, we always wok together, when it comes to planetary expeditions.' Crichton was livid, hating Crais for his bluntness, and himself for the pain he was causing, in his care for Aeryn. Hopefully, she was still asleep, oblivious to the conflict over her, occurring as she dreamt.
'The planet supports a female inhabited society, and the leaders will nit tolerate any male creature within the atmosphere. Even Talyn is not allowed any closer. No male is, apart from in extreme cases, and ours, isn't. 'Crais countered his feelings on the matter, barely listening as John muttered; 'I wonder what they are', and continued: 'and we badly need the cromexton that she can get for us.' Crichton's brain was struggling to find a suitable reply, his usually deft verbal skills, non-existent in the face of his fury. He resorted to offending the Captain;
'Well, you dress up and go down yourself! God knows, you look enough like a girl anyway.'
'What's going on? 'Aeryns tired form had appeared in the corridor before them, her face and voice registering puzzlement. Crais turned to her, and began pacing, smiling smugly as he filled her in.
'Commander Crichton and I have been having a little 'discussion' about the planet I informed you of earlier.'
'You 'informed' me, of sixteen planets earlier,' Aeryn deadpanned.' And about ten other things that | have completely forgotten about. What's the problem?'
'It's the one called Zectal.' Crais reminded her, watching her face as she recalled the details. 'The one with the female inhabited society.'
'He wants you to go down alone!'
'Do you see any other females on board?'
'Hell, who knows what you are, you could be anything for all I know...
'I am not...' Crais began, before being stopped himself, by John muttering; 'Or care'. Meanwhile, Aeryn had been looking on as the two men argued, thinking over the problem at hand, and how to solve it. She turned to Crichton;
'I'm perfectly capable of getting the cromexton on my own, John. I don't need you to hold my hand.' Aeryn was also stubborn about the subject, even though she knew her heart wasn't in her words. In another situation, she would have been glad for his company, but that wasn't possible. She watched as his face slackened, taking on the expression of a child who has been deprived of a new toy. He opened his mouth, to protest, but she raised an ebony eyebrow at him, her eyes daring him to speak. With a resignated sigh, he turned and stared daggers at Crais, as they discussed procedures.
* * * * *
Aeryn.
Why do Crais and Crichton fight so much? Even Rygel has noticed it; it gives him something to moan about. My hands know the controls of this transport pod of by heart now, so I don't need to concentrate on procedures. Only the distant crackle of the comms are reminding me of the mission at hand. 1. Wake up. 2. Get Cromexton. 3. Get the hell of the planet. Simple.
* * * * *
Aeryn walked through the market place, warily keeping an eye out for possible threats behind the disintegrating stalls. Crais had informed her that she would need to speak to a royal, either the Queen or her younger brother, and get them to authorise a transfer of Cromexton to Talyn. Row after row of merchants smiled nervously at her, as though she posed a threat, but was still a possible customer. All of the stores bore a mixture of items; food, clothes, machinery, jewellery, but not one had anything of use to her, not even the clothes, many of which she wouldn't be caught dead wearing. She reached the end of one column, and turned to enter the next.
Pffssst! A sharp sting hit her in the side of her neck; a vicious metal barb with tainted hooks. She had been hit with a tranquilliser, worse, a peacekeeper one. Aeryn veered off course, heading for a decrypt abandoned dwelling to her right, and broke into a run, comming Crais at the same time;
'Crais, track me, I've been hit by a peacekeeper tranquilliser. I'm not going to be conscious much longer, so hurry!' She could hear the startled Captain on the other end of the comm. swearing to himself as he and Talyn programmed a tracking signal. She collapsed just inside the door of the building, her legs refusing to work beneath her, to keep running. The last thing Aeryn was aware of as a dark cloud enveloped her, was Crichton screaming, at her, at Crais, at all who would listen, that it was the Captains fault, as he struggled to reach the panels that would allow them to track her.
* * * * *
Crichton.
She's gone, lost. the only comfort left to me is a barely registering blip on a blank screen; telling me she's alive. I can feel my anger building up in me, filling the empty space that shock left behind. I turn to Crais, who looks shocked too, obviously his brain hasn't fully conveyed what just happened.
'What the frell did I tell you|? I told you this would go wrong, we should have found another source, I...'
'Crichton, be quiet.'
He interrupted me. How dare he! It's not my fault this entire operation just collapsed. What! That that blip telling me my Aeryn is still alive has been replaced by a comm. channel. Before I can protest, he interrupts me yet again:
'You can still hear the signal, Crichton,' so I can.' Before you as, I'm opening up a comm. channel to the palace on that planet. You need permission to go down there. Unfortunately, this is now an extreme case.'
* * * * *
Crichton watched as Crais hailed the palace, requesting to be patched through immediatly. He could hear the beat of Aeryns heart, rolling around in his head, like a slow motion drum roll. A beat that could stop at any moment. He waited.
Chapter 1: Stubbornness
Author: Deo CFJOHNSON99@KESTEVENGRANTHAM.LINCS.SCH.UK
Summary: Aeryn Meets up with her mother before Relativity, and is made little again. Talyns crew race to return her to her old state.
Setting: Season 3 before Relativity
Disclaimer: They're not mine, Blah, blah, blah...
Rating: PG.
Notes: Thanks to Beak for back up, and Charly for reading it first. This story starts from Rygels point of view, then switches to 3rd Person Narrative, then to Aeryn, then back, etc.
* * * * *
Rygel.
'I don't care, she has to go down alone!' Once again, both Crais' and Crichtons voices are echoing through Talyns corridors, ripping me from my dreams, and depositing me back into the squalid cell, that I have the 'liberty' of calling my quarters, even though I am forced to share them with a Banik slave. It's still surprising that I can get any sleep at all, what with that idiot dithering around in the corners. Ah, they're fading away, finally I can return to my wealth- ridden dreams. No, wait; they're back, and Aeryn has joined them. Frell.
* * * * *
'I don't care, she has to go down alone!' Crais and Crichton were bickering again, loudly, outside of Rygel and Starks shared quarters, Both believing themselves to be right, and both making their points known, in what appeared, to the innocent intruder, to be a shouting match.
'Why? Not only is it stupid and dangerous, we always wok together, when it comes to planetary expeditions.' Crichton was livid, hating Crais for his bluntness, and himself for the pain he was causing, in his care for Aeryn. Hopefully, she was still asleep, oblivious to the conflict over her, occurring as she dreamt.
'The planet supports a female inhabited society, and the leaders will nit tolerate any male creature within the atmosphere. Even Talyn is not allowed any closer. No male is, apart from in extreme cases, and ours, isn't. 'Crais countered his feelings on the matter, barely listening as John muttered; 'I wonder what they are', and continued: 'and we badly need the cromexton that she can get for us.' Crichton's brain was struggling to find a suitable reply, his usually deft verbal skills, non-existent in the face of his fury. He resorted to offending the Captain;
'Well, you dress up and go down yourself! God knows, you look enough like a girl anyway.'
'What's going on? 'Aeryns tired form had appeared in the corridor before them, her face and voice registering puzzlement. Crais turned to her, and began pacing, smiling smugly as he filled her in.
'Commander Crichton and I have been having a little 'discussion' about the planet I informed you of earlier.'
'You 'informed' me, of sixteen planets earlier,' Aeryn deadpanned.' And about ten other things that | have completely forgotten about. What's the problem?'
'It's the one called Zectal.' Crais reminded her, watching her face as she recalled the details. 'The one with the female inhabited society.'
'He wants you to go down alone!'
'Do you see any other females on board?'
'Hell, who knows what you are, you could be anything for all I know...
'I am not...' Crais began, before being stopped himself, by John muttering; 'Or care'. Meanwhile, Aeryn had been looking on as the two men argued, thinking over the problem at hand, and how to solve it. She turned to Crichton;
'I'm perfectly capable of getting the cromexton on my own, John. I don't need you to hold my hand.' Aeryn was also stubborn about the subject, even though she knew her heart wasn't in her words. In another situation, she would have been glad for his company, but that wasn't possible. She watched as his face slackened, taking on the expression of a child who has been deprived of a new toy. He opened his mouth, to protest, but she raised an ebony eyebrow at him, her eyes daring him to speak. With a resignated sigh, he turned and stared daggers at Crais, as they discussed procedures.
* * * * *
Aeryn.
Why do Crais and Crichton fight so much? Even Rygel has noticed it; it gives him something to moan about. My hands know the controls of this transport pod of by heart now, so I don't need to concentrate on procedures. Only the distant crackle of the comms are reminding me of the mission at hand. 1. Wake up. 2. Get Cromexton. 3. Get the hell of the planet. Simple.
* * * * *
Aeryn walked through the market place, warily keeping an eye out for possible threats behind the disintegrating stalls. Crais had informed her that she would need to speak to a royal, either the Queen or her younger brother, and get them to authorise a transfer of Cromexton to Talyn. Row after row of merchants smiled nervously at her, as though she posed a threat, but was still a possible customer. All of the stores bore a mixture of items; food, clothes, machinery, jewellery, but not one had anything of use to her, not even the clothes, many of which she wouldn't be caught dead wearing. She reached the end of one column, and turned to enter the next.
Pffssst! A sharp sting hit her in the side of her neck; a vicious metal barb with tainted hooks. She had been hit with a tranquilliser, worse, a peacekeeper one. Aeryn veered off course, heading for a decrypt abandoned dwelling to her right, and broke into a run, comming Crais at the same time;
'Crais, track me, I've been hit by a peacekeeper tranquilliser. I'm not going to be conscious much longer, so hurry!' She could hear the startled Captain on the other end of the comm. swearing to himself as he and Talyn programmed a tracking signal. She collapsed just inside the door of the building, her legs refusing to work beneath her, to keep running. The last thing Aeryn was aware of as a dark cloud enveloped her, was Crichton screaming, at her, at Crais, at all who would listen, that it was the Captains fault, as he struggled to reach the panels that would allow them to track her.
* * * * *
Crichton.
She's gone, lost. the only comfort left to me is a barely registering blip on a blank screen; telling me she's alive. I can feel my anger building up in me, filling the empty space that shock left behind. I turn to Crais, who looks shocked too, obviously his brain hasn't fully conveyed what just happened.
'What the frell did I tell you|? I told you this would go wrong, we should have found another source, I...'
'Crichton, be quiet.'
He interrupted me. How dare he! It's not my fault this entire operation just collapsed. What! That that blip telling me my Aeryn is still alive has been replaced by a comm. channel. Before I can protest, he interrupts me yet again:
'You can still hear the signal, Crichton,' so I can.' Before you as, I'm opening up a comm. channel to the palace on that planet. You need permission to go down there. Unfortunately, this is now an extreme case.'
* * * * *
Crichton watched as Crais hailed the palace, requesting to be patched through immediatly. He could hear the beat of Aeryns heart, rolling around in his head, like a slow motion drum roll. A beat that could stop at any moment. He waited.