One For The Road Part 2: And Baby Makes Two

John Crichton found himself waking up in a strange place for the second time in the same day. He was thankful that not only was all his senses in working order this time, but someone had taken off his restraints and clothed him. It didn't change the situation he found himself in, but it was an improvement. He took a look around the room as he slowly rose from the cot. He felt sore. Funny, considering he had spent the last…what had the creature said…fifteen solar days just lying in pieces. Fifteen solar days. To him it had just been seconds. He closed his eyes. His memory was telling him it hadn't been that long since he had been with Aeryn. Since he found out the baby was his. Since she had said she would marry him. And now here he was prisoner who knew where and he had no clue what had happened to her. Anger, hot burning anger raced through him. The fact that he had been blown to pieces didn't even touch his anger that she had met the same fate as well. He prayed she was okay. And if she wasn't…no, he wasn't going to consider that choice. Aeryn was fine. The baby was fine. They were going to be fine.

"The illustrious John Crichton." He turned his head toward the door to see who had interrupted his thoughts. He found he was being watched. She was leaning against the door frame, watching with her arms crossed in front of her. She was Sebacean and a Peacekeeper judging from her leathers.

"Do I know you?" He asked, already uninterested in her answer. Whatever he had done to piss her off that he would find himself in this situation, didn't matter.

"Technically no. Not many people in the universe have to meet you to know who are John. You have a rather notorious record." She was only half teasing, but his cold expression was a warning he was not in the mood to be pushed.

"Aren't you going to ask who I am? What my master plan for you is?" She teased again.

He didn't answer.

"Oh, come now John. Let's not start off on the wrong foot. If it wasn't for me you'd still be a pile of crystals, floating away on your little love boat."

"Am I supposed to be thanking you? Because that's the last thing on my mind right now." His angry reply did not go unnoticed, but she understood this was awkward for him. For both of them. For him because being crystallized and then being united was not part of a normal day and it was awkward for her because…well that didn't matter now.

"I didn't separate your particles, John. That would be the work of Scarrans. Apparently you got yourself on the top of their hit list. All I did was get you before they did. And believe me when I say you're a lot better off with me then them."

"What happened to Aeryn?" He said it slowly letting the anger seep through every word. He wasn't going to play games. He wanted Aeryn and he wanted her now.

"I want to make a deal. You help me out with a little problem I have and when it's done you and Aeryn can go."

"Where is she?"

"Aeryn is safe…for the moment."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that if you want her back then you better play nice."

"If you want me to do anything, you better tell me where she is."

"The question you should ask is not where she is, but what she is."

His face changed with the realization. "You haven't brought her back yet."

"No, and on whether I do depends on you."

"I'm not doing anything until you put her back together."

"John do you really think you're in control of this? I say and you do what I say, bottom line. You do what I want and you'll get her back. You don't and I flush her out to space in her current form."

"You do and I'll make sure you know what that feels like."

"Do we have a deal?" She asked ignoring his threat.

"What do you want?"

"What everyone wants from you. Wormhole knowledge."

"Not for sale."

"It is today. You are going to help me find the wormhole I need and then your free. That's it. How ever long it takes you to find what I need is all it's going to take. Then we go through and we're done."

"What do you mean we go through?"

"I'm not stupid John. You could send me anywhere with what you know. So you're going to go through with me. You take me where I want to go and then you're free to come back."

"And what am I supposed to be finding."

"Home."

"What does that mean?"

"It means John, that this is not my reality. I got stuck in this one and unlike you, I have not found any reason to stay here. I want to go back and you can get me there."

"You belong to a different reality?"

"Yes."

"Why don't you go the same way you came?"

"Doesn't work like that."

"Well how does it work?"

"What you know about wormholes is only a part of the big picture. You can do some things and you can't do others. I, can create a wormhole anywhere at any time, but I can't navigate one or know where it goes like you can."

"You have wormhole knowledge?"

"Like I said I only have a piece. What? You thought you were the special chosen one of the Ancients? Sorry John, but there are a million of us out there that have some piece of the puzzle to wormholes. Each one with different knowledge for different reasons."

"And you got yourself lost with yours."

"For the most part."

"And how do I fit in all this?"

"You share with me what you know and help me get back to where I belong. That's all. This wasn't some vendetta John. You just have what I need."

"Fine. But I want Aeryn put back now. No waiting. Or no deal."

She thought a minute. "Deal."


John stared at the pile of blue crystals that made up Aeryn. He had seen a lot over the last four cycles, but the fact that what he was looking at made up the woman he loved was beyond him. It scared him. The vulnerability. All it took was one tiny piece to be misplaced and Aeryn would be stuck like that.

"Are you sure you want to watch. You look a little pale there John." The Sebacean, who he had learned was called Draforn, had turned back to her teasing after he had calmed down. Aeryn was going to be okay. That's all that mattered to him. From what he could tell, what she wanted him to do seemed painless and easy. Of course that should have been a warning sign in itself from what he knew of his luck.

"So where exactly are we?" He asked watching the creature from before, who he had also learned was called Baalex.

"Palkosa colony ship. Their a race that has mastered the art of reading other people's thoughts. They can pretty much do anything they want with their minds actually."

"The ESP gods of the universe. But your not one of them?"

"No. Special Peacekeeper Commando. Laction Company, Maspern Regiment."

So she was a Peacekeeper.

"The Palkosa found me when I first got lost in this reality." She continued.

"And their helping you get back?"

"Their a peaceful race, but are well sought out for what they can do. Not unlike you. So I helped them get away from a marauder that was tracking them, and now they feel they owe me."

"So they can be pretty dangerous if they wanted to."

"If your thinking you can get Aeryn and get off this ship without me allowing you to leave then, yes. Baalex here would know the minute you thought that and could kill you if I wanted him to."

"So how long is this united thing going to take." He ignored her statement. The thought would have crossed his mind at some point and he had to watch what he was thinking. He looked back at the crystals.

"Not long Human. I simply place the particles of your female into the particle expansion apparatus and she will be united." Baalex replied looking over the crystals.

"Her senses will be missing at first too, right?

"Affirmative. But I can do the same to her as I administered to you." Baalex picked up a mirror like sheet and placed it over the crystals. A blue light emitted from it and started to spread the crystals around.

"Whoa. Whoa. What is that doing?" John asked.

"All beings must be scanned before being united. It does not hurt her I assure you. We simply must make sure no other particle that does not belong to her being is put in with her. The result would end her existence."

"What kind of particle would be needed to do that?" John was slowly understanding that he might know of a problem they didn't.

"Any that does not make up her physical being." Baalex explained. The scanner was done as all the crystals were now in two piles. One large pile and another smaller pile.

"Human, your female has a large number of separate particles. Can you clarify?" John stared at the smaller pile. His child.

"She was pregnant."

"She was what?" Draforn, who had been absently watching from the doorway, now made her way up to John.

"A child doesn't count right? It counts as being apart of her" John ignored her question and stared at Baalex. The creature didn't answer.

"Right?" He asked louder.

"Apologies Human, but no. The particle expansion apparatus cannot not process two beings into one."

"You have the most advanced technology I have ever seen and it can't understand pregnancy?" John yelled.

"No. And if I try it will end both life forms."

"No. No way. There has to be another choice. You find a way to put her back with the baby inside her."

"I cannot Human. I can only put her through and the child separately."

"A child that young cannot survive outside its mother. You would kill it."

"What would you desire me to do Human?"
"You're asking me to choose to kill my child. I can't. I won't."

"John, I don't think a pregnant being has ever been crystallized before. Even if there was a way, we don't know how it would affect her or your offspring." John stared at the piles. This wasn't happening. He wouldn't choose. Aeryn wouldn't want him to. He closed his eyes and waited. Waited for whatever solution he could think of.

"You said even if...you know another way." He turned back to Draforn.

"John, it's complicated."

"But you know a way."

"John, you don't know what your asking."

"I'm asking that my child have a chance to live."

"Human, my thoughts agree with Draforn. What you inquire has only been correlated a number of times and never on a female bearing offspring. We would have no certainty of the outcome."

"What ever you tested it on? Were they okay?"

"The pain experienced was increased, but they were normal."

"And there's no other way."

"I don't even look at this as an option John." Draforn argued.

"And there's no other way?" John repeated. He wanted Baalex to answer, not her.

"No."

"What do you have to do." He wouldn't say yes, until he knew what was involved.

"Re-evaluate her particles into animation."

"They pretty much grow her back." Draforn explained. John thought a minute. There was no other way. If his child had a chance...any chance, he was going to take it.

"Do it."

"John." Draforn pleaded.

"Do it!"

"As you desire. Unfortunately you will not be permitted to attend. The process is too complicated."

"John." Draforn pulled his arm to leave, but he jerked it back. He took one more look at the crystals and turned to go. The door shut with a deafening pound behind him.

"I'm sorry." She offered. She wasn't lying. She meant it and he knew it. But he didn't answer because her apology meant nothing.

"This could take awhile. I could show you to some quarters if you would like to…"

"No. Let's get started."

"We don't have to…" He put his hand up and stopped her mid sentence.

"When Aeryn is okay. When she can leave I am taking her off this ship and we are going to find our friends. So let's get started. The sooner I find you your frelling wormhole the sooner we can leave."

"I'll get the prowler ready."