"Why try to hide it from any of us?"
He was in a seriously foul mood. And his headache was almost blinding him with pain. He had been arguing about having the cane and then the whole thing had escalated. He was beginning to think arguing was the only way to communicate on board Moya. Did anybody ever do anything on this ship without yelling?
"I'm telling you, I need to be up and about. I can't just lie here doing nothing. Humans need to use their muscles to keep their circulation going. If I keep laying here, my muscles will grow too weak. I have to move around, or my blood could pool and clot. Then, Jool, I could have a stroke or a heart attack, and, yes, you won't have me around to pester you anymore, but I will be dead. And if you care about your patients at all, you will see that that's not a good thing.
Jool wasn't buying it. "Crichton, you told me yourself that there are people on your world who can't walk, and they have wheelchairs that they stay in all day except when they're in bed, right? And yet they're somehow still alive." Her look of triumph made him wish he hadn't been so chatty whatever day he had given her that piece of information.
He nodded. "Well, yeah, but they also have physical therapists and family members to massage their muscles, and their muscles are never as strong as they would be if they could walk and run. Muscles atrophy, Jool, over time. And I'm not home. There isn't going to be anyone massaging my muscles or putting me in a nursing home if things don't work out. Look around, Jool, we are all on our own and we have to survive. And I have a mission to plan. I can't just stay here day after day. I have things I have to do." He had to stop and hold his head in both hands - all this arguing was making it hurt even more. Then he realized his ring was doing wonders for his headache, and he turned away, making sure that Jool didn't notice the telltale blue light. Oh, man, much better. He realized gratefully that his ring was better than the aspirin he often found himself wishing for on board Moya.
"All I asked you to do was wait two more days, Crichton," Jool reminded him. "The scan shows that your knee is healing amazingly well, but right now if you try to do too much too soon, everything I've done for you will be a total waste." Jool came towards him while she told him this, and he quickly pulled the ring away from his head.
"Fine. I'm getting up anyway, and you really can't stop me. I am sick of being here. I need to have some privacy." He had sat up and was bringing his legs over to the side of the bed when he heard Jool comming D'Argo. Crap. He's a bigger mother hen than Jool.
"D'Argo, I need you to help me with Crichton." Jool stood with her back to Crichton.
"What is going on now," D'Argo grumbled. "I was just leaving to go planet side with Crais.
"Well, I can't get Crichton to stay in bed," Jool answered him, "and he insists that he needs to start walking around, which will ruin all my work." She glanced around at Crichton as she said this, and to her horror he had almost made it to the door.
"Get back here," she said as she grabbed one of his arms and began pulling him away from the exit.
"Jool, knock it off!" He managed to yank his arm away from her, and headed towards the door again, almost bumping into Aeryn in the process. Aeryn took instant stock of the situation and pulled him up against her and spun him around - right back towards his bed. He couldn't keep his balance long enough to stop her and stay upright. He found himself back in bed before he was able to even get out so much as a protest.
"Never mind D'Argo, Aeryn's here and she's taken care of it," Jool breathlessly told the Luxan.
"Good. Crais and I should be back in four or five arns. Just try not to get in any trouble until we get back."
"Well, `trouble' is back in bed, so no problem," Jool told him. She thanked Aeryn for her help, and asked her to keep an eye on Crichton. She needed to get a shower and some rest. Aeryn nodded at her and settled into the chair by his bedside, with a look of determination on her face. She didn't have to wait very long before Crichton started in again.
"Look, Aeryn, I need some time to myself, okay? I'm just asking for 500 microts," he pleaded with her.
She turned her chair away from him, ignoring him.
He tried again. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise. I just need to be alone for a while." He waited, but she didn't move or say anything.
He sat up and looked at his leg, wondering how hard it would be to take the brace off. He still hadn't figured out how it was attached, which would be an obstacle to that plan. He decided to try using the ring to finish healing his knee. He really couldn't waste any more time. With Crais and D'Argo off the ship, he needed to talk to Pilot about his plans. He knew he could trust Pilot not to tell the others. And - he glanced over at Aeryn - he was as alone as he was going to get on this ship. Aeryn had her back turned to him and didn't seem at all interested in what he was doing. He fervently hoped she wouldn't notice, anyway.
The blue glow of his ring told him healing was in process. He determined to keep the ring in place until his knee was completely healed. The feeling in his leg was akin to pain, but he stuck with it. He found himself sweating after a few moments, and holding back grunts of pain. Oh yeah, this was working, but it wasn't easy. He could see that the light was growing dimmer, indicating that the healing process was just about complete. His total focus at this point was on his leg, and he was definitely not paying enough attention to Aeryn. She grabbed his blanket and pulled it away before he realized what she intended - and before he could pull his ring away.
"What are you doing, Crichton?" she asked, staring at the faint blue glow around his hand and knee.
He quickly pulled the ring back and grabbed for his blanket, but she swung it out of his reach and asked him again, "Tell me. What. Is. Going. On?"
He fell weakly against his pillow. Aeryn grabbed his hand and looked at the ring. "You said this was just a gift from the Dom you talked to. What is it really?"
"I don't want to talk about it," he told her. He tried pulling his hand back, but she held fast. He was still sweating and feeling exhausted from the rapid healing process, and he was in no mood to answer questions. Especially questions about the ring. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I should never have tried to use it with Aeryn around.
"What does it do?" she asked. She was not letting this go. And she still had a firm grip on his hand. Now she began trying to pull the ring off, and was finding out that it wouldn't budge.
"This is a pretty tight fit, Crichton," she murmured as she yanked again, hard.
"Aeryn, geez, stop it!" he managed to pull his hand free and tuck it under crossed arms before she could grab it again.
"Just tell me, Crichton!" She was getting angry now.
"It's need to know only, Aeryn." He tried to make that sound like a final statement. End of story. Closed subject. Nothing more to be said. That's all he wrote. Fini.
"So it's one of the weapons the Dom gave you?"
There was no point in hiding it. "Yeah. So let's just drop it, okay?" He reached out for his blanket again, and this time she gave it to him. In the middle of arranging it over himself she grabbed for his hand again, and began giving the ring a more minute examination.
He decided to let her do it. The tug-of-war between them was getting old. He settled back on his pillow and she continued looking at the ring.
"It doesn't come off, does it?" she finally asked him.
"Nope."
"Is this why your knee healed so well, when everyone was sure you'd never walk again?" Damn, she's so perceptive. How am I supposed to hide anything from her? He decided to keep it short.
"Yep."
"Then why didn't you just heal your knee right from the start? Why all the fussing around? You obviously haven't been enjoying being stuck here." Of course. The questions will just keep on coming until she knows everything. You are such an idiot! Did you really think you could hide anything from Aeryn?
"Right now, you're the only one who knows. I was hoping to keep it from everyone. Aeryn, you are right, this ring doesn't come off. If someone wants it from me, getting it wouldn't be pretty. Capisce?"
"But why hide it from us? We want you to heal - no one aboard Moya has been exactly reveling in your sick time, I promise you. Why try to hide it from any of us?"
"Because, Aeryn," he looked at her pointedly, "Not everyone aboard Moya would think it was just a neat trick. Rygel would sell me upriver for a whole lot less than this ring. He's tried it before, if you recall. And you were right earlier when you mentioned I don't trust Crais. And any one of you could tell this to the wrong person, at any time, and end my life right then and there. This ring is unique, Aeryn. Valuable - and worth killing for. Now that you know about it, Scorpius can get the information from you. That would lead to him wanting to visit the good people living on that nice little planet - which actually is a pretty peaceful place, considering they deal in weapons. But believe me, if Scorpius pays them a visit, that would all change. The Dom thinks they can hide from Scorpius. But I think he underestimates our hybrid friend. Scorpy might just take it into his head to nuke their whole planet, rather than risk having their weapons fall into the hands of his enemies. And, trust me on this Aeryn, the weapons have fallen into the hands of at least one of his worst enemies already. Scorpy can reconstruct a whole building from a single block of information. Don't think he won't figure it out."
"Oh." She stared at his ring, her earlier fascination with it turning to horror.
She looked at him, realization dawning in her eyes. "And you have other weapons, right?" She dreaded the answer, now.
"Need to know, Aeryn, need to know." He gently pulled back his hand and tucked both hands under his head and stared up at the ceiling. It's all getting to be too much. There were pitfalls everywhere he looked, and Aeryn, the love of his life, was one of the biggest pitfalls he could see ahead. Oh, yeah, he could not afford to let her anywhere near Scorpius now. Damn it. Did he have no brains at all? How could he have let this happen?
Her next comment fell right in with his own thoughts, "This is a disaster, Crichton. What were you thinking?"
"You know, Aeryn, sometimes things just happen! When we went down to that planet, D'Argo and I were just looking to buy weapons. We didn't know what they had, and we didn't have any idea what to expect. We just figured we'd take a look, buy what interested us, and get the hell out of Dodge. But no, it couldn't be that easy. They kept telling me they were giving me gifts. And it wasn't optional, Aeryn. They said I needed them to accomplish my mission. I haven't told you even a fraction of what happened down there. But, bottom line, they didn't give me a choice. I found out everything after the fact, okay?" He couldn't keep the bitterness out of his voice. Why does everything have to be so hard!
Aeryn stared at him. "So, the ring doesn't come off, and you can't give it back. What about the other weapons?" Oh god, it was never going to end. She could be so relentless!
"You know what, Aeryn, I can't keep answering your questions, okay? This is too dangerous for us both. How 'bout helping me out of this damn bed. I'm ready to take a shower and put some clothes on. You can tell Jool I drove you crazy until you agreed to do it. She'll understand, trust me."
He was afraid she would fight him, but finally she stepped forward and helped him out of bed. His leg felt much better. If he hadn't had the brace on, he was pretty sure he could have made it to his cell without any help, but his balance was thrown all off. Aeryn was silent all the way back to his cell. In spite of how good his leg felt, he was still weak from bed rest, and just wanted to take a long, hot shower. Aeryn insisted on staying with him while he showered and dressed. Normally that would have thrilled him. But this time, he knew she was just waiting to pump him for more information. This wasn't over. Not by a longshot.
As the spray from the shower sluiced over his body, he leaned back against the wall and tried to relax. The thought of Aeryn finding out about Mike was enough to start his heart racing again. He knew he had screwed up big time with the ring. The Dom and his people must have made a mistake. They couldn't possibly have meant to give him these gifts/weapons/whatever when he was obviously too stupid to have them. What were they thinking? Who was the sick bastard in charge of this neck of the universe who was expecting him to save anyone from anything? He couldn't even figure out how to defeat Scorpius - and he was just one guy in a long line of Peacekeeper baddies. Crichton knew his plan had enough holes in it to make Swiss cheese. Hell, Aeryn had known it. Probably Crais too. And as for his "weapons," well that was working out great so far. He hadn't kept the ring secret. And he was relying on Scorpius to be less sharp than Aeryn had been. And Mike, his big secret weapon, had been of very little help so far. Oh, yeah, this is gonna work great.
He quickly finished his shower, and wrapped a towel around his waist. Well, at least some things are improving. He could shower by himself now. Big step up in basic hygiene. He had a hope of some privacy. And he got to wear clothes again, and soon good ol' Winona would be loyally tucked up against his thigh. Sometimes it's the simple things in life that keep you going. He was smiling to himself as he picked his pants up off the shelf. There also didn't seem to be a downside to the modifications he had made to his module. That thought cheered him considerably. By the time he came out, he felt ready to take on the world again. Well, almost. Except for the annoying hop/walk that he was temporarily stuck with. I really need Jool to take off this damn brace. He commed her as he stepped back into his cell living area.
Aeryn was still waiting for him, sitting on his bed and looking at his notebook. He sympathized. It wasn't like you could just pick up a book in the Uncharted Territories. No magazines, either.
She is thinking about your twin, Crichton. She still has his notebook.
He'd forgotten about that. He found himself wondering how much his newfound ability to mind read would affect his relationship with Aeryn - and others. He tore his eyes away from her and the notebook, and turned his attention back to his more immediate problem.
"Jool, I need you to get this brace off my leg. Could you come by my cell?" He paused, waiting for her response.
"Crichton, what the frell are you doing in your cell? Where's Aeryn?"
"She's with me," he said impatiently, "she helped me here. Just answer my question."
"Fine, I'll take it off, but only after I scan it again, to make sure it's healed enough."
"Fine, Jool, I just want it gone." He tapped his comm into the off position. Aeryn was looking at him.
"I talked with Crais, you know." He had been expecting this comment, thanks to Mike.
"He thinks we should each have a vote - not just follow you blindly. He says that you are the least experienced amongst us, and you shouldn't have the final say about anything."
"Aeryn, this is getting really old. You and Crais don't have to come, okay? Let's just forget I ever said anything about it." He sat down next to her, waiting for Jool to come. Hoping she hurried. He couldn't believe he had been so happy earlier that Aeryn was talking to him again. Now he wanted her to just leave him alone. Amazing.
"Well, I think you need to consider what he said. You really don't know our world like we do, Crichton."
He held his head in his hands. "Yeah, Aeryn, I wasn't born in space, or shanghaied from a farm to serve the greater good. But you know what, I'm still the guy with the wormhole knowledge everybody's so hot to get their hands on. I can't just lay that aside." He pulled his hands away from his face and turned to look at her.
"And I can't keep running from Scorpy, the Scarrens, and the endless assortment of alien bad guys inhabiting the Uncharted Territories. I haven't had any control of anything since I got here. And I'm damned if I am going to let you and Crais make decisions for me. You can help, but if you think I'm letting either one of you take charge, think again, Aeryn."
She was quiet for a moment. Blessed relief.
Jool came bustling in with the scanner, and another device Crichton didn't recognize, but hoped was a grade-A certified brace-remover.
"You need to take those pants off," Jool informed him without preamble. She seemed totally unaware of the tension in the room.
"Oh, yeah, I forgot about that," Crichton muttered. The damn things hadn't been easy to get on, and now he was going to have to work them off in front of two females who were intently watching him. At least he hadn't tried to put his boots on.
He stood up and looked at Aeryn and Jool. More embarrassment.
Jool figured it out. "I'll help you. Just sit down."
"I don't think so," Aeryn told her, sharply. She brushed past Jool and grabbed the front of Crichton's pants, clearly claiming her territory. The whole thing would have been far more erotic if Jool hadn't been standing by waiting with medical gear. Aeryn was nothing if not efficient. He was in boxer shorts again in short order. He had sat back down on the bed as Aeryn helped him, and Jool ordered him to lie down on his stomach.
"Is this gonna hurt?" he asked as he complied.
"Don't be a baby," Jool snapped at him.
"Have you people ever heard of `bedside manner?'" he grumbled, mostly to himself.
Jool had the brace off in a few microts, and he sat up and experimentally bent his knee. Stiff, but it would do. He got up and paced the length of his cell and back again - amazing how such an ordinary act could feel so good. Both women watched him as he walked around and it suddenly dawned on him where their attention was focused, reminding him that he really needed to put his pants back on. He quickly sat back down and grabbed his pants, starting to put them on as Jool left his cell.
"Just don't overdo it, Crichton. I am a free woman now and I intend to stay that way." Jool didn't even glance back as she headed out into the hallway.
Aeryn came over and sat by him again. "Crichton, before you put those back on, why don't you see if your leg is completely healed?"
"What? You mean with the ring?" he asked her, putting his pants aside again.
"Well, yes. If it isn't completely healed you could injure it again," she told him.
"Aeryn, that's a good idea." He put the ring against his knee and the light glowed blue for about 20 microts before completely fading. "Good call," he told her.
"You better periodically check it, Crichton."
"Yeah, that makes sense." He started putting his pants on again and suddenly found his mind filled with Aeryn's thoughts - she was thinking how much he reminded her of his twin. Every muscle, every movement, all so familiar and so well-loved. She had memorized everything about him, and the memories came welling up, unbidden, flooding her mind and overwhelming her. For the first time since having Mike he felt like a Peeping Tom. Back off, Mike. The flow of thoughts instantly stopped.
"You know," her hand was on his knee before she had time to think it through, and Crichton looked at her and abruptly stopped trying to get his pants back on, "We could test that knee now, if you want."
No frelling way, Aeryn. We are not making love in memory of my dead twin.
"Um, Aeryn, that's a nice thought, but I don't think it's a good idea," he gently told her.
Mike sent him a quick message, What are you doing? She wants you!
"What, you want to play with safety?" she teased him, looking down at her hand on his knee.
"That's `play it safe,' Aeryn, and yes, I do." He took her chin in his hand and lifted her face up to face him. "You were right, you know."
She stared at him, frowning. He could tell she had no clue what he was talking about.
He smiled. "About personal indulgences and small crews," he explained.
She pulled away from him angrily. "So you're throwing that on my face?" She was standing up now, looking down on him with anger and shock.
This time he didn't dare correct her. "No, I'm not. It's just - I've got to focus on my mission, Aeryn. I can't handle anything else right now." He stood up and tried to put a consoling hand on her shoulder, but she backed away, slapping his hand aside.
"Fine. At least you still have Harvey to keep you company!" With that scathing comment, she turned and stormed out of his cell. He put his head in his hands and sank back down on his bed. For a long while he stayed like that, feeling sorry for himself, and then he slowly started putting his pants back on, mentally taking a moment to give Mike a new command - From now on I don't want to know what Aeryn is thinking unless it affects my mission. Period.
He had turned Aeryn down once before, when she had suggested casual sex as a way to reduce bodily fluid levels. He didn't want their relationship to head in that direction. And knowing that she was still mourning his twin had put him in yet another situation that required him to turn her down. The fact that it was necessary didn't make it any easier. You think you'll get a third chance, Johnny boy? He doubted it. He admitted to himself that he actually needed Aeryn to be mad at him again so she would avoid him as much as possible.
And now, he needed to have that talk with Pilot.
* * *
"Pilot, have you heard anything from Crais and D'Argo about those coordinates?" he asked as he entered Pilot's den.
"Commander, I told you I would inform you the microt I heard anything," Pilot calmly informed him.
"Yeah, I know, I just wanted to be sure," Crichton told him. "I'll go work on my module, I guess. Let me know as soon as you-" Pilot interrupted him, "Commander, I am receiving the coordinates now."
"Excellent. Send them right over to my module, Pilot. When are D'Argo and Crais due back?"
"D'Argo commed me a half arn ago and indicated that he and Crais would be back within the arn," Pilot replied. "Why am I sending the coordinates to your module instead of to Talyn?" he queried.
Crichton jumped onto Pilot's console and hunkered down by him as he responded, "Change of plans, Pilot. And this is strictly between you and me. I've decided to go alone - there's no point in risking Aeryn, Crais and Talyn on this mission. But if anyone discovers too soon that I'm gone, this isn't going to work."
"I admit, Commander, that Moya is relieved to know that Talyn will not be going. May I ask how you intend to keep the others from discovering you are gone?"
"Well, Pilot, that's where you come in," Crichton told him. "Everyone needs to think I'm still on board for about two solar days. By then it would be too late to follow me. So official word is I'm in my quarters, or working on my module - just conjure me up wherever everyone else isn't - move me around a little - keep them guessing as long as you can. You can always tell them I don't want to be disturbed. In fact, before I go I'll get real cranky with everyone - I've already got Aeryn mad at me again - and that'll keep them from wanting to be around me until it's too late for anyone to go after me. And you will be sending coordinates to Talyn - just not the same ones you are sending to my module."
Pilot looked dubious, but Crichton patted his shoulder, "Relax, Pilot, I know what I'm doing. You've been wanting a vacation from me for a while now. Just think of the peace and quiet you'll have when I'm gone." At least until they find out what I've done.
"Commander, Moya and I do not want anything bad to happen to you," Pilot protested.
"Yeah, I know, Pilot. But I've kinda run out of choices. If I stay on Moya, I put everyone in danger. And I'm tired of being a target. I'll let you know when I'm ready to go, and you just keep everyone guessing long enough for me to get to Scorpius' command carrier. Okay?"
"D'Argo and Crais are signaling Moya to open her docking bay."
"Great, I'll go down and meet them." He turned to look back at Pilot again. "I'll leave a message for you to play when they figure out I'm gone, Pilot. I don't want anyone mad at you for helping me."
"Thank you, Commander Crichton. Moya and I were concerned that the others might be angry with us. Good luck, Commander. We will miss you."
"Oh, and Pilot, don't keep those coordinates. If you have them they'll be after me the microt they get them from you." Pilot did not doubt the truth of that statement. Nor did he pretend he could keep anything from Moya's crew for any length of time. He knew better than that.
* * *
Crais and D'Argo were just getting out of the pod as Crichton came into the docking bay. "Hey guys, how'd it go?" he asked.
D'Argo looked irritated. "We got the coordinates, but our informant wants to meet you. He made us promise we would ask you."
Crais added, "I believe he is curious to see what a `human' looks like. And, apparently, your exploits are well-known to him. You do not, of course, have to do this, since he already gave us what we want."
Crais intends to tell you he doesn't trust the informant, Mike whispered in his mind, but he really wants to have some time alone with Aeryn. He is convinced that they need to take over the mission plans. And D'Argo will not let you go alone if you insist on going.
"I think I'll give the autograph session a miss. I've got some work to do on my module," Crichton told them both.
D'Argo nodded his head and grunted. "I see you are recovered from your wound. It is good to see you up and about."
Crichton smiled back at him. "Yeah, you were right. Too many females were fussing over me. Oh, by the way, Aeryn's mad at me again - don't ask." D'Argo gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder and headed out of the docking bay. Crais stayed behind for a moment, giving Crichton a curious look.
"Something on your mind, Crais?" he asked with an innocent look.
"I am not sure we can trust this informant. Perhaps you should meet with him," Crais told him.
It was too easy. "Yeah, okay, if you think it's important. Tell me who, when and where."
After Crais had filled him in, Crichton headed to his cell, comming Pilot on the way.
"'Nother change of plans, Pilot. I'm going down to the planet for a few days. At least, that's what you're going to tell everyone. D'Argo and Crais found an informant who wants to meet me, and that works out even better with my plans."
"Commander, are you sure-" Pilot started. "Yes, Pilot, just do it, okay?" Crichton was already packing supplies as he responded impatiently to Pilot's concerns. "If anyone asks, I need some time alone."
He headed to the maintenance bay, already feeling his stomach muscles tighten as he prepared to face his nemesis."
He debated stopping planet side first, then rejected it. The chance to get going with his mission drew him like a magnet. And he hadn't been able to try out his new and improved module - a temptation that he was truly unable to resist. Aeryn would be deeply surprised to find out his "pile of dren" module was now as fast as a command carrier, and had weapons capability - weapons that were as well-hidden as Mike. And the sophistication of his new onboard navigation system would have shocked IASA. All the arns he had spent making the modifications to his module would now payoff. And all the changes were virtually unnoticeable by scan. Only if Scorpius insisted on the module being taken apart piece by piece would there be a problem. And he didn't think Scorpy would be that interested in his primitive vehicle.
He had barely had enough time to record a message for Moya's crew before leaving. In fact, he had completely forgotten about it until he saw the little DRD waiting beside his module, reminding him of Pilot - and his promise. He wouldn't put it past Pilot to have arranged that.
In spite of himself, he felt elated to be in space again. Nothing about his insane trip through the Uncharted Territories could be regretted if he could periodically do just what he was doing - flying through this huge expanse of space and having the privilege of viewing an incredible vista of stars and planets. No astronaut back home could ever begin to do enough "missions" to hold a candle to all that he had done, and regularly did as he lived aboard Moya and traveled with his companions from planet to planet. Just the thought of being on another planet had been such an incredible experience at first. And that feeling of amazed wonder had never totally left him. He circled Moya once before heading out. Moya - his home. He was leaving her and his newfound family. And Aeryn.
They are all going to be royally pissed when they finally discover what I've done.