A/N: And so it starts turning a bit dark... violence and fighting and other
nasty carry-on. Oh, and I guess I should warn sensitive readers of the
(well-warranted) use of the F-word which might pop up from here on in...
Other than that, what can I say? Oh yeah; Review! But I guess that goes
without saying at this late stage... as does 'thanks for reading'!
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Interlude:
Strange feelings about the place. Strange emotions from the crew. Dylan seemed… edgy. Harper radiated some nervousness. Trance was sad, no doubt about that. And Tyr was… not there. He was supposed to teach him how to use a gun, but he wasn't in his quarters. Ah, well. Tomorrow morning he would be out of here. Just leave them all behind. That's what he did best, right?
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Chapter Nine: All in the timing
Tyr returned to the Andromeda in the early hours of the new day. The ship was quiet, everybody was sleeping. Everybody except Andromeda herself of course. The hologram appeared next to Tyr as he walked from the shuttle hangar to his quarters.
"Where have you been?"
"Investigating the planet."
"You should have told us you were going."
Tyr did not answer, just kept going until he reached the door of his quarters. Time to get some sleep. About three hours was all he would get. Luckily, it was also all he needed. Tomorrow he would let Dylan know about his plan. As Tyr walked into his quarters, Rommie's hologrammatic projection shrugged her shoulders and disappeared.
While Tyr and Harper were getting the Maru ready to go parts shopping, Milon said goodbye to Dylan, Beka and Rommie. Trance was just hanging around on the bridge of the Maru, seemingly in a very bad mood. More than once, Harper asked her what was wrong, but she just mumbled 'nothing' and continued to sulk.
"Right, time to get a move on!" Harper said, "We haven't got all day. Or, yeah, we do have all day, but unfortunately the day's not very long."
"Harper is right," Tyr said, Trance, will you go get Milon."
Trance frowned but got up and left without a word. The normally so lively alien girl was unusually silent, walking with her shoulders slumping, the spring gone from her step. Tyr wondered briefly what was wrong with her, but he did not ask. Ten minutes later she returned to the hangar with Milon by her side. Milon looked at Tyr and gave him a quite subdued smile. Was he not happy to leave? Did it make a difference?
"It's raining down there," Trance said.
For a second they waited for her to continue, but it did not seem that she had a point to make. Or maybe she just did not know what to say. The mood onboard seemed generally low as they took off. Even Harper was keeping mostly quiet. Finally, Milon spoke up:
"Hey, what's with all the long faces? You don't like having to leave the ship or something?"
"It's not the ship we're leaving," Trance said sullenly, then got up and walked off the bridge.
Milon looked like he was feeling guilty for something, then said:
"I should probably go and talk to her…"
He followed her out.
"You think there's something going one between those two?" Harper asked.
"I really do not care."
"Yeah, I know, but still. I've never seen Trance so glum. I think she likes him."
"Perhaps."
"I think she'll be grumpy for a while now he's leaving," Harper continued, "But she'll get over it. Right? I mean it's not like we're leaving him there to die. He'll be fine, right? Besides, it's his own choice, you've got to respect that…"
He was rambling again. Maybe he was trying to make himself feel better as well. Maybe he already considered Milon his friend, and was not happy to see him go. At least Tyr did not have any feelings of that nature. Besides, after Tyr's plan had been executed everything would be different. They would have more power and knowledge than any of their enemies. Tyr would have a perfect ace up his sleeve. Some might say it was ironic how he had just stumbled across this chance, but Tyr knew that it had nothing to do with luck, it was how you used the situation to your advantage that mattered. Something had made him free the boy on that first day. His instinct. His instincts always paid off in the end. And a good plan was all in the timing.
They set down on the planet's surface in grey haze. The landing pad and the terminal building looked even dirtier in daylight. There were only about five other ships in the port, mostly small, rusty shuttle-type vessels. The rain was still falling like it would never stop. Tyr had a feeling that might actually be the truth. Milon and Trance had returned to the bridge. Tyr thought he could see a slightly red hue around Trance's eyes.
"The repair shop is on the far side of the terminal building," Harper said, looking at the map, "and there's some kind of hostelry over there… maybe you could get a room there if you don't get a lift straight away…"
He did not sound very enthusiastic.
"Go down to the holds," Tyr said, "I will follow you down. Wait until I get there."
"Yes boss!"
Harper jumped out of the chair, making a half-hearted, sarcastic salute with his hand, but at least he did as he was told. Milon turned to Tyr, smiling as always.
"So, guess you forgot all about teaching me how to use a gun, eh? Afraid I'd turn into a security hazard?"
"I did not forget. There was simply no time."
"Yeah, there never is, is there? Well, I suppose this is it. I did thank you for saving me, right? I mean, I'd hate to come across as an ungrateful creep."
"You thanked me. Now go down to the holds and wait for me."
Tyr turned his back on them and waited until he heard the door shut behind him. Then he called up the Andromeda. Dylan answered his transmission immediately.
"Tyr. Problems?"
"No problems. I have found out some rather interesting facts about Captain Morgan and his people… I think it might be worth while holding onto our guest for a while longer…"
After having worked out the specifics of the plan with the captain, Tyr made his way down to the lower levels of the ship to find the others. Trance and Harper was sitting on one of the cargo crates in the hold, talking quietly. When Tyr entered the room, they both looked up with the looks of two children who had just been told they were not allowed any sweets. But where was the boy?
"So, can we go get this over with now?" Harper said.
"Yes. Where is Milon?"
"He's gone," Trance said with a hint of anger in her voice.
"Yeah, he said to tell you so long and all the best, but he didn't really want to wait around any longer," Harper filled in.
Tyr suddenly felt the sickening lurch of a well thought out plan blowing up in his face. Or, not even so much his face as Milon's. They boy was going to walk straight into the arms of the waiting Vertexans. This was not how it was supposed to be.
"What do you mean he is gone?" Tyr roared, "I told you to wait for me! I told him to wait here. Stupid boy!"
"What's your problem?" Trance said, even angrier now, "You wanted to get rid of him, he went, what more do you want?"
"The problem is; he is walking straight into an ambush!"
Tyr grabbed his guns and started off towards the airlock.
"What?" Trance shouted.
There was no time to explain. Trance and Harper would not be of much use in a fight either. Well, maybe Harper could have come in useful, but it was probably better if they stayed here. No time to contact Dylan again either, Tyr would just have to handle the situation on his own. As usual. If it was not already too late.
As the outer door of the airlock on the Maru opened and Tyr jumped down onto the landing pad, the rain had turned into a veritable torrent. He was soaked right through in less than a minute. It did not matter.
Tyr looked around, but all he could see was the mostly empty landing strip. Further away, everything was lost behind a curtain of rain. Which way would Milon have gone? Tyr decided that the hotel was the most likely direction. He started running. It was not easy, the mud was slippery and his wet clothes were clinging to his body, slowing him down. He did not know how much truth there was behind Lillian's story of the demon brought through from another world, but it seemed at least partly plausible that if Tyr did not manage to get to Milon before the Vertexans did, not only would the boy most likely die, but the Earth might also be in danger of being wiped out. Harper would not be happy.
Suddenly, Tyr caught the sound of screaming through the din of the falling rain. It seemed to be coming from somewhere behind the hotel building. He forced himself to run faster. As he rounded the corner, he could make out shapes of moving people through the rain. They were down the far end of what appeared to be a parking lot. A flash of light momentarily brightened up the dull day, like lightning striking the ground. When Tyr got closer, he could see Milon in the middle of the small crowd, trying to fight off about fifteen or so men who had him surrounded. He was fighting silently but absolutely ferociously. Every time one of his attackers moved in, he would let off a flash of light and a flurry of knife slashes. Tyr could see three bodies on the ground already, their blood mixing with the mud, running down the street in dark red stream. The boy was so obviously outnumbered, but he would not give up. They wanted him alive and he knew it. The problem was, so did Tyr.
Tyr drew his gun and fired off a couple of shots, taking down two of the attackers. But this time they were returning fire. Tyr had to dive headlong into the mud to avoid being hit by a high energy blast coming out of the rain, heading straight for him. Damn. He crouched down behind a large bin, which stank of rotting food. Sometimes he really could have done without his enhanced Nietzschean sense of smell. From this cover he quickly fired off another rapid series of shots, but the rain and the moving targets made it hard to hit anything. Then he heard a sound behind him and spun around. Another group of people was coming fast around the corner. About twenty men pointed their guns straight at him. He was trapped.
Milon might be both brave and desperate, but eventually they closed in on him. Tyr saw them grabbing the boy, wrenching the knife out of his hand, punching and kicking until he was slumped on the ground. The people surrounding Tyr simply stood there waiting until the smaller group hauled Milon to his feet and brought him up to them. He was still struggling to break free, but unarmed and beaten he did not stand much of a chance. No more flashes of light were coming, Tyr thought that he might have exhausted his powers for now.
"So, what do we do with this one?"
One of the men poked Tyr in the side with his gun.
"I don't know. We don't need him. Kill him."
"No!"
The voice came from the corner of the hotel facing the landing strip. Tyr turned his head to see Lillian come walking through the rain, the drops bouncing off her waterproof coat.
"Let him go. He has fulfilled his part of the deal."
She nodded at Tyr and the ragged soldiers parted to let him out. Tyr saw Milon raise his bloodied face and stare at him with unbelief in his eyes. Suddenly he felt a churning, unfamiliar sensation in his stomach. He thought it might be guilt. No, it must be anger of having his plan backfire on him like this. He had not meant for this to happen, so how could he feel guilty?
"You sold me out?" Milon said, his voice sounding thin and tight.
Tyr watched as Lillian walked up to her prisoner, slowly eyeing the boy up and down. Then, unexpectedly, she hit him across the face, hard enough to split his lip.
"Silence slave!"
Her voice was so full of hatred, it did not leave Tyr any doubt as to what would happen to Milon when, if, he had fulfilled their purpose. There was that strange feeling again. Milon looked at Try once again, like the blow had not even registered with him.
"You sold me out?" he said again.
He started trashing about violently, trying to break free, but they were too many holding him down.
"You bastard!" he screamed at Tyr, "You fucking double crossed me! I should have known! I should have fucking known the minute I laid eyes on you, you traitorous fuck!"
Tyr swallowed. He had honestly never imagined language like that coming out of someone so soft looking as Milon. Not that it mattered. He was wrong. Tyr had not double-crossed him. Not that he would ever know the truth now.
"I'll get you for this Tyr!" Milon screamed as they started dragging him off, "I'll make you wish that you never met me!"
Tyr could hear the tears on his voice, even though he could not make them out amongst the raindrops on his face. The threat was wasted on Tyr though, he already wished that they had never met. Brushing the rainwater out of his face, he started making his way back to the Maru.
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Interlude:
Strange feelings about the place. Strange emotions from the crew. Dylan seemed… edgy. Harper radiated some nervousness. Trance was sad, no doubt about that. And Tyr was… not there. He was supposed to teach him how to use a gun, but he wasn't in his quarters. Ah, well. Tomorrow morning he would be out of here. Just leave them all behind. That's what he did best, right?
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Chapter Nine: All in the timing
Tyr returned to the Andromeda in the early hours of the new day. The ship was quiet, everybody was sleeping. Everybody except Andromeda herself of course. The hologram appeared next to Tyr as he walked from the shuttle hangar to his quarters.
"Where have you been?"
"Investigating the planet."
"You should have told us you were going."
Tyr did not answer, just kept going until he reached the door of his quarters. Time to get some sleep. About three hours was all he would get. Luckily, it was also all he needed. Tomorrow he would let Dylan know about his plan. As Tyr walked into his quarters, Rommie's hologrammatic projection shrugged her shoulders and disappeared.
While Tyr and Harper were getting the Maru ready to go parts shopping, Milon said goodbye to Dylan, Beka and Rommie. Trance was just hanging around on the bridge of the Maru, seemingly in a very bad mood. More than once, Harper asked her what was wrong, but she just mumbled 'nothing' and continued to sulk.
"Right, time to get a move on!" Harper said, "We haven't got all day. Or, yeah, we do have all day, but unfortunately the day's not very long."
"Harper is right," Tyr said, Trance, will you go get Milon."
Trance frowned but got up and left without a word. The normally so lively alien girl was unusually silent, walking with her shoulders slumping, the spring gone from her step. Tyr wondered briefly what was wrong with her, but he did not ask. Ten minutes later she returned to the hangar with Milon by her side. Milon looked at Tyr and gave him a quite subdued smile. Was he not happy to leave? Did it make a difference?
"It's raining down there," Trance said.
For a second they waited for her to continue, but it did not seem that she had a point to make. Or maybe she just did not know what to say. The mood onboard seemed generally low as they took off. Even Harper was keeping mostly quiet. Finally, Milon spoke up:
"Hey, what's with all the long faces? You don't like having to leave the ship or something?"
"It's not the ship we're leaving," Trance said sullenly, then got up and walked off the bridge.
Milon looked like he was feeling guilty for something, then said:
"I should probably go and talk to her…"
He followed her out.
"You think there's something going one between those two?" Harper asked.
"I really do not care."
"Yeah, I know, but still. I've never seen Trance so glum. I think she likes him."
"Perhaps."
"I think she'll be grumpy for a while now he's leaving," Harper continued, "But she'll get over it. Right? I mean it's not like we're leaving him there to die. He'll be fine, right? Besides, it's his own choice, you've got to respect that…"
He was rambling again. Maybe he was trying to make himself feel better as well. Maybe he already considered Milon his friend, and was not happy to see him go. At least Tyr did not have any feelings of that nature. Besides, after Tyr's plan had been executed everything would be different. They would have more power and knowledge than any of their enemies. Tyr would have a perfect ace up his sleeve. Some might say it was ironic how he had just stumbled across this chance, but Tyr knew that it had nothing to do with luck, it was how you used the situation to your advantage that mattered. Something had made him free the boy on that first day. His instinct. His instincts always paid off in the end. And a good plan was all in the timing.
They set down on the planet's surface in grey haze. The landing pad and the terminal building looked even dirtier in daylight. There were only about five other ships in the port, mostly small, rusty shuttle-type vessels. The rain was still falling like it would never stop. Tyr had a feeling that might actually be the truth. Milon and Trance had returned to the bridge. Tyr thought he could see a slightly red hue around Trance's eyes.
"The repair shop is on the far side of the terminal building," Harper said, looking at the map, "and there's some kind of hostelry over there… maybe you could get a room there if you don't get a lift straight away…"
He did not sound very enthusiastic.
"Go down to the holds," Tyr said, "I will follow you down. Wait until I get there."
"Yes boss!"
Harper jumped out of the chair, making a half-hearted, sarcastic salute with his hand, but at least he did as he was told. Milon turned to Tyr, smiling as always.
"So, guess you forgot all about teaching me how to use a gun, eh? Afraid I'd turn into a security hazard?"
"I did not forget. There was simply no time."
"Yeah, there never is, is there? Well, I suppose this is it. I did thank you for saving me, right? I mean, I'd hate to come across as an ungrateful creep."
"You thanked me. Now go down to the holds and wait for me."
Tyr turned his back on them and waited until he heard the door shut behind him. Then he called up the Andromeda. Dylan answered his transmission immediately.
"Tyr. Problems?"
"No problems. I have found out some rather interesting facts about Captain Morgan and his people… I think it might be worth while holding onto our guest for a while longer…"
After having worked out the specifics of the plan with the captain, Tyr made his way down to the lower levels of the ship to find the others. Trance and Harper was sitting on one of the cargo crates in the hold, talking quietly. When Tyr entered the room, they both looked up with the looks of two children who had just been told they were not allowed any sweets. But where was the boy?
"So, can we go get this over with now?" Harper said.
"Yes. Where is Milon?"
"He's gone," Trance said with a hint of anger in her voice.
"Yeah, he said to tell you so long and all the best, but he didn't really want to wait around any longer," Harper filled in.
Tyr suddenly felt the sickening lurch of a well thought out plan blowing up in his face. Or, not even so much his face as Milon's. They boy was going to walk straight into the arms of the waiting Vertexans. This was not how it was supposed to be.
"What do you mean he is gone?" Tyr roared, "I told you to wait for me! I told him to wait here. Stupid boy!"
"What's your problem?" Trance said, even angrier now, "You wanted to get rid of him, he went, what more do you want?"
"The problem is; he is walking straight into an ambush!"
Tyr grabbed his guns and started off towards the airlock.
"What?" Trance shouted.
There was no time to explain. Trance and Harper would not be of much use in a fight either. Well, maybe Harper could have come in useful, but it was probably better if they stayed here. No time to contact Dylan again either, Tyr would just have to handle the situation on his own. As usual. If it was not already too late.
As the outer door of the airlock on the Maru opened and Tyr jumped down onto the landing pad, the rain had turned into a veritable torrent. He was soaked right through in less than a minute. It did not matter.
Tyr looked around, but all he could see was the mostly empty landing strip. Further away, everything was lost behind a curtain of rain. Which way would Milon have gone? Tyr decided that the hotel was the most likely direction. He started running. It was not easy, the mud was slippery and his wet clothes were clinging to his body, slowing him down. He did not know how much truth there was behind Lillian's story of the demon brought through from another world, but it seemed at least partly plausible that if Tyr did not manage to get to Milon before the Vertexans did, not only would the boy most likely die, but the Earth might also be in danger of being wiped out. Harper would not be happy.
Suddenly, Tyr caught the sound of screaming through the din of the falling rain. It seemed to be coming from somewhere behind the hotel building. He forced himself to run faster. As he rounded the corner, he could make out shapes of moving people through the rain. They were down the far end of what appeared to be a parking lot. A flash of light momentarily brightened up the dull day, like lightning striking the ground. When Tyr got closer, he could see Milon in the middle of the small crowd, trying to fight off about fifteen or so men who had him surrounded. He was fighting silently but absolutely ferociously. Every time one of his attackers moved in, he would let off a flash of light and a flurry of knife slashes. Tyr could see three bodies on the ground already, their blood mixing with the mud, running down the street in dark red stream. The boy was so obviously outnumbered, but he would not give up. They wanted him alive and he knew it. The problem was, so did Tyr.
Tyr drew his gun and fired off a couple of shots, taking down two of the attackers. But this time they were returning fire. Tyr had to dive headlong into the mud to avoid being hit by a high energy blast coming out of the rain, heading straight for him. Damn. He crouched down behind a large bin, which stank of rotting food. Sometimes he really could have done without his enhanced Nietzschean sense of smell. From this cover he quickly fired off another rapid series of shots, but the rain and the moving targets made it hard to hit anything. Then he heard a sound behind him and spun around. Another group of people was coming fast around the corner. About twenty men pointed their guns straight at him. He was trapped.
Milon might be both brave and desperate, but eventually they closed in on him. Tyr saw them grabbing the boy, wrenching the knife out of his hand, punching and kicking until he was slumped on the ground. The people surrounding Tyr simply stood there waiting until the smaller group hauled Milon to his feet and brought him up to them. He was still struggling to break free, but unarmed and beaten he did not stand much of a chance. No more flashes of light were coming, Tyr thought that he might have exhausted his powers for now.
"So, what do we do with this one?"
One of the men poked Tyr in the side with his gun.
"I don't know. We don't need him. Kill him."
"No!"
The voice came from the corner of the hotel facing the landing strip. Tyr turned his head to see Lillian come walking through the rain, the drops bouncing off her waterproof coat.
"Let him go. He has fulfilled his part of the deal."
She nodded at Tyr and the ragged soldiers parted to let him out. Tyr saw Milon raise his bloodied face and stare at him with unbelief in his eyes. Suddenly he felt a churning, unfamiliar sensation in his stomach. He thought it might be guilt. No, it must be anger of having his plan backfire on him like this. He had not meant for this to happen, so how could he feel guilty?
"You sold me out?" Milon said, his voice sounding thin and tight.
Tyr watched as Lillian walked up to her prisoner, slowly eyeing the boy up and down. Then, unexpectedly, she hit him across the face, hard enough to split his lip.
"Silence slave!"
Her voice was so full of hatred, it did not leave Tyr any doubt as to what would happen to Milon when, if, he had fulfilled their purpose. There was that strange feeling again. Milon looked at Try once again, like the blow had not even registered with him.
"You sold me out?" he said again.
He started trashing about violently, trying to break free, but they were too many holding him down.
"You bastard!" he screamed at Tyr, "You fucking double crossed me! I should have known! I should have fucking known the minute I laid eyes on you, you traitorous fuck!"
Tyr swallowed. He had honestly never imagined language like that coming out of someone so soft looking as Milon. Not that it mattered. He was wrong. Tyr had not double-crossed him. Not that he would ever know the truth now.
"I'll get you for this Tyr!" Milon screamed as they started dragging him off, "I'll make you wish that you never met me!"
Tyr could hear the tears on his voice, even though he could not make them out amongst the raindrops on his face. The threat was wasted on Tyr though, he already wished that they had never met. Brushing the rainwater out of his face, he started making his way back to the Maru.
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