Darkness by EdenAdvance
Notes: I couldn't watch the ep again, so any quotes that were wrong, are my fault. (How can I help it, could I really make myself to watch that part again?)
"Gilina, I don't want you to leave..." she could hear Crichton say from around the corner.
"Are you asking me to stay?" Leave, leave, leave. The words repeated themselves in here head over and over. How could she hate such a... tech? She was no treat, not really.
"I can't... I can't, it's no way to live."
"But what if I would want to stay? What if I choose to stay... with you?" she heard the tech say.
Aeryn looked down, she was still carrying the pulse rifle. What if she said Crichton was wanted in Command, and leave Gilina at the door? She could force Gilina to leave the ship. Suddenly she remembered the conversation she and Crichton had shared onboard the Zelbinion.
"In the beginning... I found you interesting."
"Me?"
"Yes. But only for a moment."
She had acknowledged it for a moment, but after that she had denied it. She knew why she hated Gilina. She had so much in common with Crichton, and she dared to do what Aeryn hadn't. Gilina had made her move on Crichton, within a solar day! She was ripped from her thoughts as she heard Crichton speak to either Zhaan or D'Argo.
"We can go... Gilina is staying with us. Crais doesn't know she's alive and it's safer this way."
Safer? For who? Aeryn peeked around the corner... and suddenly felt like shooting someone. He was there, kissing Gilina... in a very intimate way.
Crichton let Gilina go as he heard retreating footsteps. As he looked around the corner, he could just see Aeryn entering another corridor. He looked back at Gilina, who was waiting for him. He wondered why it felt like Moya had just become a battlefield.
"What's wrong?" Gilina asked.
"Nothing, let's get you to your room. I think the room next to me is still empty, you could live there... for a while. Now, make sure you leave any valuable things out of the open, Rygel is known to accidentally wander into any of our rooms. If you got any questions, you can always come to me. Oh and tell me when Aeryn is bugging you... I know how she reacted towards you on the Zelbinion, somehow I have the feeling that it won't be the last of it." Crichton explained as they walked towards his room.
Aeryn reached the terrace, but her anger hadn't faded yet. Slowly, the darkness of space relaxed her and she sat down.
She would just pay no attention to Gilina and Crichton. Gilina was still a Peacekeeper, so she would better act like one. She was an officer, and she was going to make sure Gilina knew it and never forgot it. She looked at the wreck of the Zelbinion. If only Crichton wouldn't have joined them on the Zelbinion, Gilina would've been dead. And so would she and everybody else on Moya. Aeryn sighed. She didn't know what to do.
30 Solar days later.
Aeryn looked up as Crichton and Gilina entered the mess. She watched Crichton as he kissed Gilina and whispered something in her ear. Then, Gilina took a seat on the other side of the room and watched Crichton get their food.
It had only took her ten solar days to move into Crichton's quarters. The first time Aeryn had given Gilina a hard time, pulling rank on her, Crichton had had a serious discussion with her, basically telling her to leave Gilina alone. Since then, neither of them had spoken more words than necessary to her. She had to admit she missed his humor. He was always mocking her, when she was in a bad mood, he would lighten her up.
When she was about to leave the mess, Zhaan's voice came through the comm.
"Aeryn, Crichton, we're approaching the commerce planet."
"Yeah, Zhaan, we'll be down in the docking bay in a few microts." Crichton responded before Aeryn could.
As Aeryn left the mess, she could hear John call after her. "Aeryn, wait up!"
She turned around as Crichton jogged towards her, as usually followed by Gilina.
"Gilina's coming with us."
"As long as you both stay out of my way..." was her reply.
As they landed on the planet, Aeryn glanced at the couple in the pod.
"We're on the ground. Were you planning on staying here all day?" Aeryn snapped.
Crichton laughed. "Nope, it's alright. We're moving, aren't we Gilina?"
Gilina simply nodded and followed Crichton out of the pod.
Aeryn sighed, grabbed her pulse rifle and followed the two others.
As they reached the market, Aeryn spotted a shop with some parts she needed for her Prowler and some that Moya could use. While she bartered with the merchant, John and Gilina moved ahead of her, looking at other things they might be able to use. As she caught up with them again, John was saying something to Gilina.
Then he turned towards Aeryn.
"Rygel wants this food, but I'll have to go inside. So you and Gilina will wait for me here. Okay?"
Aeryn nodded and watched as Crichton entered the shop.
Inside, he had quickly found what he needed and waited for the merchant to finish with another customer. He bartered about the price and finally got the right prize. Rygel had told him they wouldn't go any lower. As he was paying the merchants, he heard shouting from the outside, followed by a few shots and a cry. He grabbed his bag and hurried outside.
"Zhaan, we need you assistance when we dock. I think she's dead, but I can't be sure." Crichton said through the comm. His voice sounded hollow, as if he was on automatic, if you could call it that. Zhaan nodded and left Command, to greet the small group as Pilot hauled them in. When she entered the docking bay, Crichton was carrying a lifeless body, wrapped in a blanket. She couldn't see who it was, but she noticed the blood stains on the blanket. D'Argo, who had followed her, took Crichton's burden and carried it to the nearest empty room, this time followed by Zhaan.
Crichton turned at the other person left in the docking bay.
"Will she make it?" he asked.
As he waited for Zhaan to tell him the outcome, he watched the stars as they moved through space. In his mind, memories of their earliest encounter replayed over and over.
He looked at the floor as he sensed another presence on the Terrace.
"And?" he softly asked.
"Zhaan couldn't help her anymore. It was too late."
"She's dead?" He felt the tears coming, he let out a sob and then turned towards Aeryn.
She didn't know what to do, emotions of loss and mourning she had never really dealt with, and now her best friend lost the one he loved. She hugged him, as a friend, silently telling him he wasn't alone...
The end