Title: Daybreak

Author: AstraGalactic
Archive: Ask Please
Disclaimer: Andromeda is not mine. If it was, Gaheris would be alive, and Dylan would be with Rommie.
Rating: T
Setting/Season: TUM universe and Season 1.

Characters: Andromeda, D. Hunt, G. Rhade.
Summary: What if Gaheris had not been mortally wounded at the end of the Unconquerable Man?

A/N: "Love" as used here refers to a purely emotional bond. No physical relationship is implied (despite typical usage of the term - especially in human courtship)

"Whatever is done for love

occurs beyond good and evil. "

Friedrich Nietzsche.

Gaheris and Trance materialized on one of Andromeda's decks... somewhere deep down inside, he had understood the unspoken plan between them, perhaps because he had always wished it had been him who died on that fateful day, and Dylan who lived.

"Are we?"

Trance knew what he was asking and answered: "Yes. Hephaestus, on a parabolic mission towards the black hole. It's the eve of the Nietzschean uprising."

Gaheris raised his head, but not looking straight at her, instead staring to the side, the emotions of pain and regret from his memories showing clearly in his eyes.

He remembered walking into command and killing Dawn, then Dylan before he had the chance to fire once. More than anything, he remembered the momentary look of shock and betrayal in his best friend's eyes before they closed forever. That alone was a memory that was permanently etched into his mind and heart, a wound that would never close. What Dylan had never known was that Gaheris's actions hurt him too. It was not what he WANTED, it was what he had to do - or so he had believed.

In the last seconds of his life, Dylan never knew how much that decision had hurt, never knew that Gaheris's actions were never about THEM. Gaheris knew from the pain in Dylan's gaze that Dylan had felt this was a personal betrayal, that for some reason he did not understand, he had lost Gaheris's friendship.

Perhaps it did not make sense why it should matter. This time, Gaheris would ensure that it was he who died in the fight, ensure that Dylan would live, and 300 years later help the universe to find peace. Yet there was one more mistake Gaheris had to rectify. He had to let Dylan know why he had taken this path in the first place, had to let him know that it never was because he hadn't valued their friendship. He had taken this path because he believed he had to, to protect the universe...a tragic error in judgment.

Gaheris said softly, more to himself than to Trance, the pain evident in his voice: "I remember... So much has happened... There's so much for him to understand... So much for him to know."

His eyes had a distant look, as the memories of the life he had shared with Dylan, and the way it ended all came crashing back against his wounded soul.

Trance leaned up to him, planting a chaste kiss on his cheek. She knew he was hurting, and she hurt for him. There was a deep regret and pain evident in Trance's eyes. She softly said to him, with a sad smile: "Make sure that he does. It's up to you now." Trance tesseracted away, leaving Gaheris alone with his thoughts.

Memories of his life flooded his mind: himself arguing with other Nietzscheans about the Commonwealth's demise, Dylan's death, his quest to restore the Commonwealth, the victories and tragic losses, the myriad times he had wept for his friend. The two strongest emotions that stood out, overpowering everything else were regret and love.

He closed his eyes, breathing evenly in and out to calm himself, before he drew his forcelance and strode purposefully down the corridor. This was hard for him, survival was a part of his genes, an undeniable all-powerful instinct. Now he was walking into a fight where he would ensure his own death. Beyond what anyone could have ever expected from a Nietzschean, Gaheris had been able to override the power of his genes, override the wish of any life to continue, and to make the ultimate sacrifice...for love.

It would be hard for him to see Dylan again, after so long, and not be able to tell him how much he had missed him, that he loved him. He would have to fight his best friend again, but this time ensure that he died, and Dylan lived.

Gaheris strode swiftly down the corridor, knowing where his younger self had walked, determined to stop him before it was too late. Upon catching sight of his younger self, he called out: "Commander!"

Gaheris was counting on his younger self to be thrown off by hearing his own voice call out his rank. He was right. The young Gaheris turned toward the source of the voice, shocked to see himself, but an older version of himself - one who had hurt a lot. He had no more time to wonder because at that instant, the older Gaheris raised his arm holding the forcelance shooting his younger self dead, in one fluid movement. Himself frozen in shock and pain momentarily, Gaheris walked to the side of his own now still body, and knelt, his left hand resting on his younger self's chest. For just a few seconds, he froze, looking at his own face.

The young man laying dead on the floor now was him, a younger, perhaps more naive Gaheris, a man who had truly wanted the very best for the universe, who had wanted to do the right thing, but did not know how. Ironic that he knew now how to ensure the perfect possible future, by ensuring that he would soon join his younger self in death.

In the end it would not matter...who he had been, and how much he had sacrificed...but he did not care. The one thing he had wanted the most was to undo that one terrible mistake...at any cost. Gaheris steeled his expression and started to undo his younger self's uniform.

Gaheris walked onto Command, now disguised as his younger self, and shot Dawn. Then he aimed his forcelance at his best friend, but this time paused, giving Dylan time to react. He was waiting for Dylan, giving his friend the time he needed, knowing how this fight would end...how he would make it end. Yet there was a deep pain in his eyes as he was forced to relive the worst moments of his life, as again he caught Dylan's gaze filled with shock and pain.

His voice rang through the deck, carefully concealing his own sorrow and hesitance, and at the same time explaining to Dylan why he had done what he did that fateful day. Each word a blow to his own heart, knowing that each word drove the person he loved most to be angry at him...angry enough to kill him. He knew he could never tell Dylan how much he loved him. Better that Dylan hated him than have to live with the pain which had tormented Gaheris for two years.

Dylan called his friend's name, still reeling in shock, while he took cover behind a console, not knowing that the Nietzschean could have easily killed him had he wanted to: "Rhade!"

Gaheris replied: "I tried to warn you."

It was true, his younger self had been trying to warn his friend, time and time again, not to be so trusting. If only he could have made Dylan understand that...they would have never been on opposite sides.

Dylan still did not understand: "What are you doing?"

Gaheris explained. Now, he did not mean a word of it, but it had been the reason why he had betrayed Dylan years ago, and he wanted Dylan to know that it was never personal.

"Ensuring the survival of my people! The Commonwealth is weak. It bargains with its enemies, it compromises. My people are engineered to be perfect! And the Commonwealth is no place for the strong."

Gaheris said things he no longer believed in, but it was how the story had began, and over the course of the years, he had said these words to himself enough times that they had lost meaning, replaced by the tragic reality of his life. What irony: in a way he had been too much of an idealist, believing he could gauge all his people as being like him.

Dylan was coming to understand what Gaheris wanted him to know: "So the Nietzscheans decided to destroy it."

But Gaheris also wanted him to know that he had never been happy with the idea, that it was not what he wanted.

"We spent years preparing, waiting, arguing. For a long time, I opposed the destruction of the Systems Commonwealth. So did many others. The Treaty of Antares changed all that."

Dylan filled in: "The Magog."

Gaheris replied, his tone was a little more close to his feelings, remembering the recent encounter his Andromeda had with the Worldship: "Yes! The Magog. Savages. Predators. They eat sentient beings. They reproduce by rape. They killed over a billion people on Brandenburg Tor. They destroyed the Nietzschean colony on Hawking. And what did the Commonwealth do?"

Dylan answered: "We made peace with them!"

Gaheris went on, he wanted Dylan to know what had been the true catalyst of his actions:

"You compromised with monsters! The blood of over a billion people cried out for vengeance, and you made peace…

You have sown the wind. You shall reap the whirlwind."

Dylan slid his overloaded force-lance toward Gaheris, who leaped away, thrown into the air by the blast. He dropped his forcelance as he fell, knowing Dylan would be unarmed.

Dylan rushed him, trying to take the advantage, to subdue him, but he leaped up...fighting hand-to-hand with his best friend, intentionally missing the many openings he had to win. He was just stalling, knowing that Dylan did not want to kill him, but there was no way and if he kept this going long enough he would die.

Gaheris barely suppressed a scream of pain as Dylan slammed his right arm against a rail, ripping off a boneblade. He fought free, pulling away from Dylan to catch his breath and control the paralyzing pain that was spreading like fire through his nervous system. He could see Dylan's shock give way to desperate anger, the anger that would keep him alive, and ensure Gaheris's death. Fanning the burning flame he said: "Give up. You can't win." - knowing that Dylan would never give up, knowing that in the end Dylan would win...he would ensure it. Gaheris saw Dylan glance at the forcelance in Dawn's holster, and for a brief moment emotions of sorrow and even fear flashed through his eyes, knowing that this was it. Knowing that in a few seconds he would die... never again having the chance to be with his best friend.

Gaheris leaped for his own forcelance, knowing that Dylan would never shoot him if he was unarmed.

They both reached their forcelances, but Gaheris was ready to fire first. He aimed at Dylan, but then made an almost imperceptible shift to the right, intentionally missing Dylan by a hair, and giving his friend the chance to fire back.

As they both flew through the air, time slowing down again, they exchanged fire for the last time. Gaheris intentionally missed Dylan, his shot exploding just inches above as Dylan landed on the floor. But Gaheris was hit in the chest by the blast. His forcelance bounced away from him as he hit the deck, and he collapsed against the cool surface.

Dylan landed, the shock and horror he felt written on his face when he did not see Gaheris get up. He could not believe he had just seriously wounded his best friend.

Gaheris had gathered his left arm close to his chest, trying to roll over, to see Dylan one last time before he died. It was too much effort. He was dying, and although he tried as hard as he could, moving was too difficult. His eyes shut in unbearable agony as he tried to roll over, but then gave up as he heard Dylan running to his side. He relaxed back against the floor, feeling his life ebbing away, but at least calm knowing that his best friend was okay.

Dylan grabbed his friend by his raised left shoulder, turning him over to check on him, his shock turning into downright sorrow as he realized Gaheris was dying. The front of his chest was covered in blood, spilled from his heart where the blast had ripped through.

Dylan moving him was exceedingly painful for Gaheris. His left arm clenched against his body from the agony, but despite his intense pain, despite the knowledge that he had lost everything - sacrificed everything, as he lay on his back, his lips parted, silently looking up at Dylan, Gaheris's face showed a deep sense of peace and hope.

Dylan choked out, clearly regretting what he had just done: "Gaheris, what have you done?"

Within the deep sea of raging emotions, there was happiness. He was happy that through his sacrifice, he could save his best friend's life, could undo the mistake he made long ago. He was happy to see his best friend alive again. Happy that the universe would be a better place.

He knew Dylan felt betrayed, but he also knew that Dylan still cared for him, and would one day realize that Gaheris had always loved him, always treasured their friendship.

Gaheris whispered quietly:

"I'm proud of you."

An expression of sorrow filled Gaheris's features. There was so much more he wanted to say, but could not...

He fell silent for a moment, looking into Dylan's eyes. He saw Dylan's sadness, but he did not want his best friend to hurt. With a slight momentary frown, he said to Dylan, with the little life he had left, once again as if trying to give a beloved little brother advice:

"... You should be."

With those last words he fell silent. One single tear made its way from his eyes, across his temple, getting lost in the dark hair on the side of his head. He wept, but not from the pain. It was a tear of love and grief, finally seeing his beloved best friend alive again, yet having to part so soon.

Gaheris closed his eyes, leaning his head against Dylan's hand, patiently waiting for his end, knowing that if he had jumped just a nanosecond sooner, that blast would have hit him fully in the heart and he would be dead right now. As things were it had hit his heart, but halfway, the rest of the blast tearing into his right lung, giving him a few minutes to live. He could feel his wounded heart trying to go on beating, erratically convulsing with each beat, and his own blood bursting in ever weakening spurts from the cut arteries. It was over, there was nothing to go on for, he had succeeded in what he had come for, saving his best friend at the expense of his own life...all he needed to do now was wait.

Through all the unbearable pain, through the shock his body was going into, he could feel Dylan's tearful gaze resting upon him, he could feel the warmth of Dylan's touch where he had leaned against his hand...He could feel Dylan's love for him overpowering the unbearable agony, and though he knew he would die slowly, Gaheris was in some way grateful that he had these last moments with his friend.

He fought against the blackness that was pulling him down, not to survive, but so that he could be with his friend for as long as possible, holding onto his last conscious thoughts, to the love he felt that was transforming his physical agony into heaven.

Strange, how many people had asked if there was a heaven for people after they died...it seemed that he had found it, as he lay there dying, by his best friend's side.

Then he realized something was wrong, Dylan's hand moved behind his neck, the other pressing against his throat checking for a pulse. Then a wave of paralyzing agony washed over him as Dylan lifted his chest with his right arm, holding it against his own. No. He was supposed to die here, but Gaheris knew that if Dylan took him to medical, he had a slim chance of surviving. He tried to protest, calling his friend's name in a voice that was little more than a pained gasp: "Dylan." But he was cut off from going further as he choked on his own blood that rushed into his throat from his lung that was been torn open by the movement.

He could feel Dylan's love as warm tears fell on his throat from Dylan's eyes, but he could also feel Dylan's anger as he pulled him into his arms much too harshly and lifted him up. Another wave of agony and dizziness washed over him, the strain of moving too much for his dying body, and blackness overtook him, his last thought focusing on the one comforting thing he had left: Dylan's love for him.

Within her own mainframe, Andromeda watched over and over her memories of the fight between Dylan and Gaheris. She needed to understand, to know why this had happened - especially since it seemed that he would live and likely remain on-board her.

After seeing it for the thousandth time, and other memories of Dylan and Gaheris, she realized that though she could not understand why Gaheris had done what he did, she realized that there were times in their fight where Gaheris had held back. He could have won, he could have killed Dylan right where he stood, or several times during their fight...yet in the end it was he who now lay in her med-deck, each breath and heartbeat a struggle to survive.

Logically, she could find no explanation for why things happened the way they did, and it told her to be wary, but the part of her that made her sentient, the part that could feel...love...weep, told her that Gaheris's love for Dylan was what saved Dylan's life, and somehow deep down inside she felt she could trust him.

Three hundred years later, and just hours since Dylan had brought him here, Gaheris awakened in Medical.

As the ceiling of Med-deck came into focus, Gaheris tried to move his arms and realized they had been locked in restraints on the bed. His chest hurt unimaginably, and he could feel the oxygen-deprivation he was suffering from the lung damage. He could feel his heart still struggling with each beat, but it was functioning adequately.

He could feel the fracture on his own jawbone, but it was rapidly fading, thanks to the medical nanobots and his own bioengineered immune system.

What was not going away was the spikes of burning agony coming from his forearm where the boneblade had been ripped out... it was one of the most painful injuries possible for a Nietzschean, perhaps short of having his heart torn out... and the fact his arms were locked in those restraints was not helping any.

Pushing the pain from his mind, Gaheris breathed in deeply, still picking up the lingering scent of Dylan who had brought him here. He could not suppress the tears that filled his eyes, thinking of his best friend, thinking of what they had shared, and what he had seen them loose in his life...

Yet somehow through a strange twist of fate, and through the mysterious girl Trance - the person he never really understood, yet always felt that the sun shone through her eyes - he had somehow been given a second chance. A chance to save the person he loved the most, a chance to set things right.

Faced with this, his own death was a small price to pay. He knew that he would loose everything above and beyond his own life, his friendships, his chance at ever being happy again... he knew that the universe he was saving would hate him...that the person he loved most would never know how much he loved him...but he had been willing to give it all up to save Dylan, to give his friend one last gift of love.

Yet now he did not know what to think. He had saved Dylan, he had set things right, but he too had survived...was that a problem? Trance had never told him he had to die...but somehow he had known it was necessary...or was it simply a manifestation of the one thing he had wished for the most for two years...that he had died that fateful day?

Did his survival endanger the perfect possible future?

Another question raced through his mind, even more painful than the first. Would Dylan hate him now? If he did, Gaheris would not be angry. After all, Dylan had every reason to hate him, and he did not know how much Gaheris had sacrificed to save Dylan.

One thing was certain, nothing would ever shake Gaheris's love for Dylan, nothing.

But…. if Dylan hated him now, could he bear that?

Part of him wanted to end his life right now, and avoid the pain of feeling Dylan's inevitable anger, to not see the pain he knew he had caused his friend by bringing him into this dark world...Yet the greater part of him vowed that no matter how much it hurt him, he would be by his best friend's side till the end.

In the end, his love for Dylan would give him the strength to be there for his friend when he needed him, to protect him, even die for him... no matter how much it hurt, having to face every day the person he loved most...every day hoping the sun of love would rise in his universe, and every day having his hopes crushed.

One thing was certain. Right now, he had to be by Dylan's side.

He quietly called out: "Andromeda."

Andromeda's hologram materialized by his side, her deep brown eyes looking at him with a sort of understanding, but still penetrating, as if seeing to the very depths of his soul.

She asked: "How are you feeling?"

Gaheris smiled very slightly at her and admitted: "Better."

He went to move his arm and was stopped by the restraints. Andromeda explained: "We were not sure what to expect from you." Gaheris noticed the hurt in her voice...it made sense; he was her friend as well, so she felt betrayed.

Gaheris dropped his gaze, and asked Andromeda for a briefing on the current situation, knowing already what he would hear. Even though it had happened before, the knowledge that his family was gone still hurt immensely.

One thing worried him though. Unlike him who had killed the mercenaries, Dylan was trying to do this more peacefully, and as a result, there were still most of the mercenaries running around the ship. He said to Andromeda: "Please, you have to release me... I will not hurt Dylan or you."

Andromeda was silent in thought for a few moments, her deep gaze boring into his own, before the restraints slid open. He moved his right arm, grateful for the relief of the pressure on his boneblade root, and said :"Thank you."

Andromeda nodded, and then said thoughtfully: "I am not sure why, but somehow I believe I can trust you...perhaps it's because I know you had many opportunities to kill Dylan in that fight... Was it that you hesitated because some part of you did not want to hurt him? Or did you somehow want him to win, even if it cost your life?"

Gaheris remained silent, and Andromeda continued: "I know you pretty well after all these years, and I believe you never wanted to hurt him...if not for any other reason but that he means too much to you...

I will not pretend to understand why you did what you did, but nevertheless I think I can trust you."

Gaheris slowly sat up, still utterly exhausted from the physical trauma. He looked into her eyes, thankful beyond words of, in a sense, her forgiveness. He remembered her bitterness toward him in his own time, and knew all too well that it stemmed from the loss she could not bear. More than anything he wished he could have taken back the pain he caused her, and her words proved that in this he had succeeded.

He said to her softly: "It is hard to explain, Andromeda."

Andromeda nodded, knowing that this was bound to remain a wound in his soul that would perhaps never heal, and not wanting to hurt him.

Gaheris smiled sadly, and said, his voice trembling with emotion: "Thank you...for believing in me. I will not break your trust."

Gaheris stepped off the bio-bed, and was instantly assaulted by a wave of dizziness and pain. Andromeda exclaimed in a scolding tone: "Where do you think you are going?"

He replied perfectly honestly - and in a tone that suggested that it was the most obvious thing in the world: "To find Dylan, and see if he needs help."

Andromeda stared at him momentarily before replying, knowing that Dylan was still very hurt and angry: "That is not such a good idea."

She elucidated: "Look, Dylan is still pretty upset...and you still should be in intensive care. Given the severity of your wound, you are in no condition to fight."

Gaheris looked at her, his sorrow showing in his gaze as he replied: "I know, Dylan is hurt by what I did. I know we may never be as close as we were, but right now there is a battle going on...this is the end of the line, and he can use all the ... allies he has."

Andromeda noted the pain in his voice, the deep stab of sorrow as he said allies, not friends.

Gaheris pulled on a shirt, his already wounded heart overstressed by the exertion, and upon noticing Andromeda still watching him with the scolding look that said he should stay in medical, he steadied his breathing, and met her gaze saying: "Don't worry, I can fight."

With those words, Gaheris took his forcelance that was laying nearby, and putting it in the holster, exited medical in search of his Captain, and best friend.