Part 5: Search
~~~
Finally, the isolation ended. It ended without warning or much fanfare. The door to Aeryn's cell opened, and two Peacekeepers entered. Although they were armed, neither seemed to consider her to be much of a threat. They were wrong.
Aeryn saw her chance, and immediately attacked. She took the one on the left first, lashing out with her foot. It met with a satisfying crunch, and the soldier grunted in pain as grabbed for his thigh. Spinning, she struck out at the other soldier with her forearm, catching him beneath the chin. He stumbled backwards, and she moved in for the kill.
And then she was being yanked back, a strong arm clasped around her neck, cutting off her air. She tried to ram her elbow back into her new assailant's gut, but met only air. A split microt later, her arms were pinned behind her back.
"Ahh. I see you still have the fighting spirit, Officer Sun," Scorpius breathed into her ear. "Luckily, I came prepared for such an event."
She heard the sound of metal scraping metal, and moments later felt the restraints being tightened on her wrists. Scorpius released her, pushing her towards the cot. Aeryn spun quickly, taking in the new situation. Behind Scorpius were Lieutenant Braca and Officer Nerz. They were flanked by two more soldiers, both with their pulse rifles pointed directly at Aeryn.
At a gesture from Scorpius, Nerz quickly examined the two fallen soldiers. "This one's got a broken leg," she murmured, "and the other is unconscious, but unharmed."
Scorpius nodded. "Impressive. Officer Nerz, have one of the guards assist you in bringing them to the med lab. They will be suitably punished later."
Microts later, they were gone. Now, only Scorpius, Braca, and the other guard remained.
"I trust you are well, then, Officer Sun?"
"Frell you," she spat.
"Not likely," he replied in a conversational tone.
He strode forward, denches from her now. Aeryn refused to budge, to show her fear to him. She stared forward stonily, until he reached out and pushed her. She stumbled backwards and fell to a sitting position on the cot.
"You have information I need. There are two ways that I can retrieve this information. You can tell me, or I can extract it from you using the Aurora Chair."
Aeryn scoffed. "Your Aurora Chair? Did you forget that it burned with the rest of the Gammak base, Scorpius?"
Scorpius' expression hardened. "Do you think that I am stupid enough to have built only one? That I was incapable of building another, traitor? The Chair is very real. You will have twenty-four arns to decide, Officer Sun. But either way, I will get the information I seek."
He swept out of the room, and Aeryn was left alone again.
~~~
Chiana stopped in the doorway of Aeryn's room. She'd been searching for Crichton for nearly an arn. His back was turned to her, and he was sitting on Aeryn's cot. She should have known to check here first. "Hey," she said softly.
He jumped, then turned to look at her while tucking something into his pocket. Then, he offered her a big smile and waved her in. She knew immediately that the smile was false.
She slipped in the doorway, "Where've you been? We've been trying to find you. Dinner's in less than a half an arn," she said.
John took out his pad. "Not hungry," was all he wrote.
Chiana sighed and sat down next to him. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her chin on his shoulder. "I know you're upset, old man," she murmured. "We're gonna find him, okay? We all miss Aeryn. Even Rygel," she said, earning a wan smile for her joke. "But if you don't eat, you're not gonna be in any condition to take on Scorpius."
John nodded, and they stood. As they left Aeryn's old quarters, John paused and looked over the room again. He had kept everything as it was when she lived.
~~~
Arns had passed. Aeryn couldn't know how many, but she knew to expect Scorpius' return at any time. No food had arrived for her; but she understood that this was part of his plan to try and convince her to talk.
Then, the door swung open again, and Scorpius entered. This time, Aeryn did not attempt to attack him or the guards that flanked him. "Officer Sun. Have you made a decision?"
Aeryn hesitated. "What do you expect me to tell you?"
Scorpius took it as a sign that she was willing to tell him what she knew. "Why, I want to know everything you know about wormholes, of course."
"Why ask me? You have the chip, don't you? Just ask it," she said.
"The chip has its… limitations. Especially where measurements are concerned. I do not understand the Earth measurement systems. You have lived with Crichton for over two cycles."
"I don't know anything about wormholes, other than one brought Crichton here, and you're trying to make one," Aeryn answered, crossing her arms over her chest.
Scorpius stared at her. "You're lying. I will give you one more chance to tell me what you know."
Aeryn felt the dread building up in her stomach. She had seen what the chair had done to Crichton and Stark. The only thing she hadn't told Scorpius would be of no concern to him – it wouldn't help him. She remained silent.
"Nerz, prepare the Aurora Chair. Bring her," he said briskly, as he turned to leave.
As the guards closed in on her, she attempted to fight them back. But they were numerous, and they overwhelmed her.
~~~
"Again," Scorpius called to Nerz.
A moment later, the pain shot through her again, and Aeryn gritted her teeth to hold back a scream. More memories flashed by on the view screen, almost to fast to identify. Then they slowed to reveal flashes of the Dam Ba Da depot. Crichton in the cockpit, Aeryn in front of her. The proto-wormhole.
Scorpius watched in interest from over her shoulder. "Interesting. However, I already have this information. Continue."
The images sped up again, and the pain increased tenfold. Suddenly, Scorpius called out again. "Stop! There!"
On the screen was the image of the wormhole that led to "Earth". The one that had caused so much trouble for the entire crew. Scorpius watched the images as they flitted across the screen.
"The Ancients, again," he mused aloud. Suddenly, the images flickered. A new image appeared: that of Aeryn and John, together in a darkened room. In bed. "A trelk indeed. Crais was correct to have you declared contaminated," he said.
Aeryn closed her eyes, humiliated to have such intimate memories displayed for anyone to see. As Scorpius taunted her with his comments, she felt her anger and hatred deepening. Suddenly, she understood the utter fear and rage John had directed at Scorpius for the past cycle. She felt it now.
"Is that everything?" Scorpius asked.
"Yes. It appears that she has no other memories that are relevant to the wormhole technology," Nerz answered. "Shall I have have her disposed?"
"No. She may have another use. Return her to her cell."
~~~
The message came the next day. D'Argo had been in Command when Pilot commed him, informing him that there was a signal coming through. D'Argo had watched the brief recording in disbelief. Then he'd called the others, including Crais.
"Where is he?" D'Argo snarled.
"Relax, D'Argo. He had to fly a transport over," Stark said. He looked across the table to Zhaan for support.
Chiana spoke up. "What's so important that you had to call us all up to Command, D'Argo? Is it about Aeryn?"
"D'Argo. Crais has just docked. He should be with you in a matter of microts," Pilot informed. He, too, had been invited to the meeting, and his image was visible in the clamshell.
"Thank you, Pilot. I will show you when Crais arrives, Chiana," he repeated.
Microts later, Crais strode into the room. John's eyes narrowed instantly, and almost instinctively, his hand went to the pistol strapped to his leg. He felt foolish, and mentally chastised himself. Crais could do nothing with the others all present.
"What is so important?" Crais asked in an impatient tone.
"Pilot, play the recording," D'Argo said.
The main viewscreen in command suddenly darkened, and then an image appeared. The entire crew gasped almost reflexively.
"Hello again, Crichton," Scorpius said. "Once more, I require your… assistance." Scorpius paused, seeming to search for words. "I have the traitor Aeryn Sun. This you probably already know. What you do not know is that she is alive."
The image flickered again, and they now saw the interior of what appeared to be a cell. In a few microts, they realized that they were being shown an image from a security camera. On the screen, a dark haired figure lay prone on a small cot, her face turned from the lens. She was still. A microt later, she shifted, confirming that she was, indeed, alive. As she moved to make herself more comfortable, her face became visible.
"Aeryn!" Crichton thought wildly. "Alive!"
The image returned to Scorpius' face. "I am offering a simple trade, in two solar days' time. John Crichton for Aeryn Sun. The coordinates for the meeting place have been included in this message. If you do not arrive, I will kill her. If Crichton is not alone, I will kill her."
The screen went blank, and chaos broke out.
~~~
Everyone was talking at once, save Crichton. The mixture of voices got louder and louder as everyone began yelling. John tapped the pad again, trying to get his crewmates' attention. They continued to ignore him. Finally, he stood up and slammed the pad down on the table. He raised his fingers to his mouth and produced an ear-splitting whistle.
Well, that certainly got their attention, he thought as everyone stopped speaking, glaring at him. He calmly picked up the pad again and pointed at what he had written.
Zhaan took the pad from him and read it. She looked up at him, a question in her eyes. John nodded. "Pilot," she asked, "Did you receive the coordinates given for the rendezvous point?"
"Yes, I have them now. It is a desert planet, about half a solar day's travel from our current location."
"Would you please take us there?" Zhaan said.
"Of course."
Crichton suddenly became aware that everyone was staring at him. He smiled weakly. He knew they would ask what they already suspected. Before they could, he turned and left Command.
"He's not…" Chiana began. She couldn't finish the sentence.
"Zhaan, what did he say?" Stark asked.
Zhaan held up the pad and began to read. "Zhaan. Tell Pilot to go to the spot if he's got the coordinates. I'm going to do what he says. I owe Aeryn at least that much."
"He's gone fahrbot!" Rygel declared.
"I agree. I will not allow him to do this," D'Argo said, and he left the room in pursuit of Crichton.
~~~