~see part one for disclaimers ect~
*****
As with most things, Aeryn's torturing skills improved with practice. Although she heard the tortured screams of many victims, she never actually heard that illusive information that command sought. That thought clutched coldly at her soul.
She also improved in her combat skills, enough so that other classes began to be added to her schedule. In biology she learned why the Luxen girl's blood had been black, and about Sebacean heat death. In a brief history course that lasted no more than a weeken she learned the story of sub-officer Dacon, a tale she was particularly fond of. She was not trained as a tech, but she understood technology enough in order to keep a prowler running effectively.
She was also taught how to use pulse rifles, daggers, and all forms of weaponry. She often had to resist the temptation to use the weaponry on Mila-annoying little trelk. She was fond of her combat studies. At fifteen cycles they began to teach her how to fly a prowler, a pursuit that quickly became the highlight of her young life. She loved the feeling of racing through space at amazing speeds, and watching the stars streak by her. She lived for it.
At the age of fifteen she had also started to notice some rather spectacular changes in her body. She found that oil deposits sometimes allowed red atrocities to erupt on her face, temporarily marring her appearance. More positively, she was beginning to grow taller, and a rather attractive figure seemed to be molding itself out of nothing. She was beginning to feel a strange interests in male Peacekeepers, but not the ones who she had bunked with since childhood. She was more interested in adult Sebacean men, though she never let this interest show.
*****
It was late at night when Aeryn was awakened by the sound of the door slamming loudly. Several of her companions began to rouse themselves from their beds as the light flickered on. Mila walked in; her close cropped black hair was disheveled, as was her clothing. The girl wore a slight smile, and seemed excited. Aeryn was the first to speak.
"Where exactly have you been all night?" She asked tersely. Mila flashed her a wicked smile.
"I was with Gbran Tika." Aeryn nodded, urging her to go on. She barely noticed the use of the term Tika. Mila always called her that, she had since given up on punching her in the face every time she said it. Besides, she was interested in what Mila had to say.
"We... um, it was an interesting experience." Mila said, as she began to out of her black PK uniform, and into her yellow nightshirt. "Very interesting." Aeryn actually laughed.
"Is that all you have to say about it?" She asked. Mila pulled her nightshirt on, and than sat down on her cot.
"What do you want to know?" She asked frankly. For the first time ever Aeryn was beginning to feel a certain camaraderie for this girl who she had always seen as an enemy.
"Did you like it?" Aeryn asked after a microt had passed between them.
"That's the strange thing. I'm not really sure."
"Ah... I see." Aeryn grinned, leaving it at that. She didn't see, but she would never let Mila know as much. Pulling her rough military blanket up to her chin she rolled over in bed and closed her eyes. She was surprised to here Mila speak again.
"Rest well Tika." Her voice held none of its usual mockery. Aeryn responded in kind.
"You too."
****
Two weekens later Aeryn was given her first real assignment, and her first real rank. She was to be with the Limmyf regiment, working on prowler maintenance. The work was barely suitable for a tech, but it was a good start for a soldier who was little more than fifteen cycles old. Besides, when the need arose, she would participate in battle besides her comrades. All in all she was excited, for more reasons than one. She knew that the Limmyf regiment was commanded by Erivil, the young officer who had treated her so kindly several years ago.
Aeryn stalked into quarters just after Gbran had given her the news of her reassignment. Most of those who she had grown up had already been reassigned. Only Mila was left, and Aeryn suspected she would be staying a long time considering her relationship with Gbran. Mila smiled at her as she entered the room, but her grin quickly faded as she noticed that Aeryn was beginning to pack her sparse belongings.
"You leaving me to Tika?" She asked, her tone a mixture of sadness and grim humor. Aeryn nodded, as she tossed everything she owned into a small sack: Two pairs of black leather pants, a dark sleeveless leather vest, and a soft white tee-shirt.
"Limmyf regiment." She explained, "due for reassignment immediately." She slung the sack over her shoulder, walking out the door. Only her quick reflexes saved her from being hit by the small silver thing that Mila through at her head.
"Nice catch Tika! Mila exclaimed with forced laughter. Aeryn examined the object in her hand. It was a tiny ring, engraved in a delicate pattern. She gave Mila a questioning glance. "Got it off some dead Delvien." She explained, "Why don't you keep it... to remind you of me or something."
"Yes... every time you look at it I'll think of the sniveling little trelk that gave it to me." Aeryn smiled to soften her words.
"And every time I look at your empty bunk I'll think of the weak little Tika cat who used to sleep there." Mila smiled as well.
*****
Later that day Aeryn arrived at the Gallun 4 base, and met her new commander there. Erivil was exactly as she remembered him. His auburn hair had not faded, nor had the scar on his across his face. The five cycles that had passed since Aeryn had seen him for the first time seemed not to have touched him at all, he still seemed unusually young. He also seemed genuinely glad to see her.
"Ah, if it isn't the little officer." He teased, "But it seems you're not so little anymore." He looked Aeryn over appraisingly, his eyes resting briefly on her chest in a way she found slightly disconcerting "Not little at all. You should make a fine officer." His demeanor seemed to change completely, as he listed for Aeryn the rules of the regiment, and her duties. She could not leave the base unaccompanied, unless ordered to do so. In a battle situation, she was to fight in the back line, do to her youth and inexperience. Extended contact with unclassified alien life forms would result in irrevocable contamination. She was always to obey her superior officer, and answer him with "yes sir" unless otherwise directed. She had already known those rules before joining the regiment, and had never had any problem obeying them before. She doubted she would have any trouble obeying them now.
For the first few solar days of her new assignment Aeryn found herself anxious, and frightened that she would somehow make a mistake that would cost her her life. This feeling faded as she found that her daily routine on the Gallun base was little different than the one she had practiced for years as a child. She would spend arns practicing her battle skills with her new comrades, followed by several more arns performing her assigned tasks, most of which were related to prowler maintenance. After that she would have a brief evening meal, and then another brief period of physical conditioning. Occasionally she would be sent to attend to the many alien prisoners that the base held. She would give them their meager ration of food, as well as a much less meager ration of blows and insults to keep them from becoming to cocky. She would also help to attend to the needs of the peacekeeper vessels and occasional Levithin that docked at the base.
Aeryn was happy. There were rules, and she followed them. She enjoyed her structured life, and the busy schedule that left her no time to think, and sent her to sleep exhausted each night. She liked her crewmates, most of who were much older than her. She also liked captain Erivil who always treated her kindly, although sternly. She was truly a soldier now.
*****
Aeryn lay on her back, carefully examining a prowlers damaged communication system. Her hair was tangled from moving around in the tight space, and her face was covered in specs dust and dirt that for reasons she could not fathom seemed to have invaded the inside of this delicate system. Besides the mess there seemed to be nothing wrong with the system, yet nothing she did seemed to make it work. She jerked her head up, as she felt a light tap on the foot of her boot, almost knocking her head against the top of the engine. Pushing her hands against the wall of the prowler, she slid quickly out of the cave like enclosure. She felt a gush of cool air as she immerged, she hadn't realized how warm the tiny space had become.
A pair of strong arms closed around her shoulders and she found herself pined down by ensign Kel. He was older than her, though Aeryn wasn't sure how much so, with pale brown hair and brown eyes with little specks of blue and green in them. His face was unusually pale, and it seemed to have an almost transparent quality. Since Aeryn had arrived on the Gallun base he had seemed to take a particular interest in her , following her around during his free period, offering to help her with menial tasks. He looked down at her, licking his lips in a playful manner. Then he allowed her to struggle out from under him, laughing at her indignant glare.
"You're a mess." He commented. Aeryn ignored him, as she stood up from the prowler floor. "The old Greecorien on tier nine has apparently escaped. Captain Erivil has sent us to go retrieve him." He gave Aeryn a flirtatious smile, "Looks like you could use a break from-whatever the frell you're trying to do to that engine." Kel was already moving briskly toward tier six, with Aeryn in tow.
"It won't work I was..."
"Really? How did you manage to break it?" Aeryn couldn't tell if he was joking or not. She merely rolled her eyes, annoyed by her companions pestering.
"I was trying to fix it." She replied. Kel slapped her back in an infuriatingly friendly manner.
"Of course you were. Well now you-we-have something more important to do." They soon arrived at tier nine where most of the prisoners were kept. Aeryn's nose wrinkled slightly at the smell given off by the wretched creatures this tier housed. Most of them were hanging limply on their chains, resigned to their fate. A few newer arrivals were struggling valiantly, but to no avail. They had been brought here for various crimes, ranging from mass murder, to merely being an annoyance to their political figures. Aeryn didn't care about the causes of their imprisonment. They were barbarian scum, bugs who needed to be squashed for their own good.
"We should separate." Aeryn suggested, We'll find him faster that way." Kel seemed disappointed, but agreed. He ran off away from her, and Aeryn was suddenly alone under the icy stair of the prisoners. She started at the most obvious place, the Greecorien's cell. His heavy chains had been severed some how, and a few spare links lay scattered on the floor. Other than that there were no signs that a prisoner had ever inhabited the cell.
The next cell over housed an old, felinoid creature. Her species was rare, nobody knew enough of her people even to name them. She had been imprisoned here for so long that nobody even remembered what her crime had been, and if she had ever had a name it had been forgotten cycles ago. Her body was clothed only in thick tangled gray fur, and her body was frail and emaciated. She had droopy blue irises, and she stared at Aeryn, not seeing her, but certainly aware of her presence. Aeryn regarded her with disgust.
"Tell me where the Greecorien went!" She ordered fiercely. The woman's long tail swished back and forth in annoyance. She did not answer Aeryn, merely spat in her general direction. When she opened her mouth Aeryn could see that it was devoid of teeth, and the gums were red and painfully swollen. She was revolted. She repeated her order.
"Tell me where he is now!" The old woman's facial expression didn't change, but to Aeryn it still seemed as though she were mocking her. The felinoid's mouth opened and closed, trying to force coherent words from the throat that had uttered nothing but inarticulate screams and sobs for years.
"Why do you want to know peacekeeper?" She finally managed to mutter venomously, those simple words seeming to hold all her years of pain and hatred. They infuriated Aeryn. She punished the prisoner with a hard kick in the gut. She tried to double over, but her tight chains would not let her. A pained cry escaped her throat, but Aeryn ignored it.
"Now will you tell me what I want to know, or would you prefer I kick you again?" Then Aeryn was trapped in a pair of foul smelling arms that dragged her away from the ancient prisoner. She struggled, stopping suddenly when she felt something cold and sharp press against her side. A deep voice resonated in her ear.
"Is this what they send after me? A pretty little trelk? Surely you don't ever want to become old and ugly like us, now do you. Hmm? Don't worry, all you have to do is fight me, and you never will." Aeryn was not overly frightened. She knew what to do in this kind of situation. She jabbed her arm into his shoulder, and then whirled her leg around, effectively tripping him. He seemed relatively helpless, lying there on the ground, even with his sharp knife waving in the air. He resembled a Sebacean, except for the fact that his brow was more defined. His hair was gray and wild looking, and his face was wrinkled, but Aeryn suspected that his years as a prisoner had aged him prematurely.
Aeryn leaned over him, rendering him unconscious with a quick pentac jab. However, his reflexes were surprisingly acute compared to what she had expected. His knife cut deeply into the left side of her stomach before he lost consciousness. For a moment Aeryn's vision blurred, and she stumbled slightly in pain and shock With quite a bit of difficulty, she managed to regain her equilibrium. She stared down at her wound in mute horror. Already her blood was pouring out of it, soaking through her shirt, beginning to drip like tears onto the floor. In her pain induced haze, all she could think about was how weak the others would surely think her if she couldn't finish her task because a mere prisoner wounded her.
She managed to stumble to a supply closet, where she found some chains to replace the ones the Greecorien had destroyed. She also grabbed several cloths used for cleaning, and stuffed them into her wound, hoping to stop the bleeding. She then carried the heavy chain back to where the prisoner lay. It took her nearly a quarter of an arn to connect them to the wall with fingers that had suddenly become thick and clumsy. She chained the Greecorien to the wall tightly, and removed his knife. That's when she noticed her blood still spattered messily across the floor. She couldn't leave it that way. She returned to the supply closest gathering a few cloths to clean the floor with. Absently, she dropped the knife into a waste disposal unit.
After the floor had been cleaned she began her descent back to tier two, command. She would have to report to Captain Erivil and inform him that she had apprehended the criminal. She wasn't thinking coherently enough to remember to tell Kel of her success.
She entered the captains private briefing room in a small huff. It was a tiny space, equipped only with a chair, a large view screen, and a computer showing the condition of the bases vital systems. Erivil's head shot up from whatever he had been looking at. She could feel her blood beginning to soak through the hastily applied rag, and she was to becoming dizzy.
"Sir," she said respectfully, doing her best to stand straight, "The Greecorien has been apprehended." Aeryn's voice sounded far away to her ears. He nodded, his expression unreadable. "If that is all sir..."
"How were you injured, ensign?" His tone was businesslike, but Aeryn thought she saw some concern in his facial expression.
"The prisoner stabbed me... its nothing serious sir. I'll be alright." Aeryn was not completely convinced by her own words, and Erivil's next action showed that he was not either.
"Let me see." He said, moving toward her. She lifted up the corner of the shirt, where the blood laden cloth was stuck against her skin. Captain Erivil pulled it away from her skin, and began to gently probe the deep wound with his fingers. Aeryn took a sharp intake of breath as he did this, nearly doubling over in pain. Erivil gestured to his chair.
"Sit there." He ordered, "I'm going to call up a med." Aeryn gratefully sank down into the captains chair. It was hard, and it's back was positioned in a way the forced her to sit upright despite the positions painfulness. She half-watched as the Captain punched a few buttons on his computer terminal, and said something she didn't quite hear into it.
"Did you chain up the prisoner?" Aeryn had to force herself to open her eyes, which had somehow drifted shut. The blood was flowing out of the wound faster now that it didn't have to pass through the thick cloth. When she didn't answer right away, he repeated his question.
"Yes sir. His chains were broken, I had to put in new ones." She rasped.
"And what did you do with his knife?" He asked, leaning close to her, as if straining to hear her voice.
"Threw it out." The corners of his mouth twitched. He seemed to find something amusing about this response, although Aeryn could not fathom what. The med entered in a whirl of motion, and suddenly she was kneeling at Aeryn's feet, examining the wound as Erivil had done. Aeryn payed little attention to what the med was doing as waves of burning hot pain washed through her entire body. She heard dimly something about blood loss, and she registered the med saying that the knife had missed her peripheral nerve. Then something cool and metallic was used to close the gaping wound in her stomach. The med nodded formally toward Erivil, and then she was gone as quickly as she appeared. She stared tiredly at her captain, waiting for him to order her to do something. Finally he spoke.
"Go back to quarters." He said softly, "You are excused from training for tonight." Aeryn nodded, forcing herself back to her feet. She made her way to quarters slowly; the bandage stopped the blood flow but it did little to lessen the pain caused by each movement she made. Erivil walked by her side, escorting to the room she shared with her comrades the same way he had the day she had met him five cycles ago. On that walk they had discussed many issues ranging from emotional attachments to felipes. Now they were both silent.
He followed her into the room. She found she had no strength to change for bed, so she just rolled into her cot clothes and all. She didn't pull her blanket up over her; she felt far to hot already. She closed her eyes, and listened to the door swish open and close as Erivil left the room. For a long time she lay awake, her throbbing side making it impossible for her to find any comfort. It took her several arns to fall into a fevered sleep.
****
As things turned out Aeryn was excused from exercises, as well as her normal duties, for a bit longer than she had suspected. It took three solar days for her wound to heal to any degree. She despised those three days. Not only did she feel as though she were weakening the regiment as a whole, and fear the consequences of this, her inactivity gave her time to think. Aeryn did not like thinking, because most of the time the thoughts that entered her mind the most readily were the ones she found most painful. Lying in that bed, her mind rested on painful separations, mistakes she had made, and a dream of motherly love that somehow wasn't quite a dream.
She was out of bed the microt she realized she was healing, participating in her normal activities like always. At first it was painful, but she had always been one to ignore pain. Life was easier that way, pain that was ignored would eventually go away on it's own, or at least sink far below the surface. With in a weeken the pain caused by her injury had faded into nothingness.
***
Once again Aeryn was rooting around in the vital systems of a prowler. She loved the great machines as though they were her family. Arns passed seeming more like microts as she tinkered with their systems, fixing any problem she might find. Captain Erivil had once commented that she took better care of the prowlers than any one else who had ever served under him. This compliment inflamed her pride, and consequently she worked much harder. All the prowlers were always in perfect working order.
A loud buzzer sounded causing Aeryn to jerk out from her hiding place under a prowler's ailing engine. The base was a whirlwind of activity as several of the soldiers who had been doing odd tasks around her began taking out there weapons, all running in the same general direction. She quickly took her own pulse rifle out of its holster and, spotting Kel, ran up to meet him.
"What's happing?" She whispered, moving rapidly beside him.
"We've been boarded." He replied tersely. Aeryn was confused. She had believed it was impossible for any hostile aliens to penetrate the base's defense system.
"What? How?" Aeryn asked. Kel merely shrugged distractedly. "Who?" Another shrug.
"We'll find out. Tier three, common." She weaved through the crowd, following Kel closely. As they entered the correct tier, she was the first one to notice the ray of energy moving dangerously toward his head. She pulled him down to the floor quickly. It was then that she got her first view of what was attacking the ship.
The creature looked somewhat reptilian, with chalky white skin, and an extremely elongated head. He was wizened looking, but somehow not old, and his eyes were a shade of black that sent shivers running down Aeryn's spine. He walked quickly, but hunched over at what seemed like a funny angle.
"What is he?" Aeryn whispered. She had never before encountered such a creature.
"A Scarren." Kel said haughtily, as if that should have been immediately apparent. "A telepathic species." He explained after a microt. Already the Sebacean troupes were beginning to move into battle formation. With measured movements Aeryn took her assigned spot near the back of the battle lines, and away from Kel. She hated being behind the action, where she could see the battle but not participate effectively. True, it was safe, nut it wasn't particularly exciting.
The battle was a truly glorious sight to watch. Aeryn saw a few of her own people fall, but most of the casualties seemed to go to the Scarrens. There was blood everywhere, and screaming, and death. It was like being inside one of the legends she had learned about in history class.
"And he stood at the wall, his blood and entrails flowing from his body like a mighty river. He spoke calmly, and stood at attention, even as his life drained from him. With his last breath he negotiated a lasting peace between the two warring peoples." Aeryn grinned savagely at the memory of the story of sub officer Dacon. She watched the fight, occasionally joining the fray with her own pulse rifle. This was what being a peacekeeper was all about.
Captain Erivil was up front, leading his troop. Aeryn watched the speed with which he took the lives of three Scarrens, with a certain amount of surprise. He had always seemed so gentle, but now for the first time she realized how ruthlessly capable he was in battle. Another thing she noticed was that some of the Scarrens were fighting back in extremely unusual manner. Some were simply staring at soldiers, using their eyes to make them double over in pain. Aeryn made a point not to be caught staring at them.
*****
The battle was over. The Peacekeepers were victorious. Aeryn had never doubted that this would be the outcome. The Scarrens had seemed powerful, but they had been vastly outnumbered. As the last Scarren fell a strange sort of silence descended through the room. Aeryn was afraid even to breath, to break the eerie hush. Captain Erivil was the first to move, taking two of the seven Scarren bodies and stuffing it through the airlock triumphantly. Soon other troupes were doing the same, moving both Scarren and Sebacean corpses. A few went back to their normally scheduled tasks, but most remained present for the clean up duty.
Why had the Scarrens attacked them? Aeryn desperately wanted to know the answer, but would not allow herself to utter a phrase that contained the forbidden word. Instead she pushed the question from her mind, as she did so many other things. It was merely the product of idle curiosity anyway. What she needed to know her superiors would tell her.
Aeryn moved toward a body that lay disconcertingly near her feet. The hair was a light brown color, and the skin the coldest shade of white Aeryn had ever seen. She turned it over, wishing to gaze one last time at the face of the warrior who had once lived. It was Kel! Her breath caught in her throat for a moment before she slung him over her shoulder. She didn't exactly feel any sadness at his passing. He was infantry, and therefore expendable, as was she. Death was merely a reality that had to be faced. It didn't matter. Still, it felt a bit odd to know that she was the last person to ever speak to him.
He was given no sort of funeral ceremonies. Aeryn stuffed his body into a bag and out an airlock, and that was that. She realized that some species believed in a life after death. Aeryn believed that any such concept was a complete load of dren. When one died, everything that sustained life was shut down. There was no place left inside the body for life to continue to exist, and there was no way a normal flesh and blood being could suddenly become non-corporal. Such theories were scientifically not possible, but such were the beliefs of lesser life forms.
Aeryn watched somberly through the view port, as several bodies, both Scarren and Sebacean, floated out into space, still locked in the ghastly positions of death.
****
As things turned out, the grisly reality of death had some rather positive side effects for Aeryn. About a weeken after the battle she was called down for a meeting with Captain Erivil. She walked into his briefing room nervously, standing at respectful attention before him as she had always been taught to do.
"At ease ensign." The Captain gave her one of his trademark half smiles. "Do you know why I've called you down here?" He asked. Aeryn shook her head.
"No sir," Was all that she said.
"As you know one of our prowler pilots was killed in the battle with the Scarrens."
"Yes sir." Aeryn found she liked the direction this conversation seemed to be taking.
"You'll be undergoing a slight change in assignments." Erivil was smiling more broadly now. "Officer Sun, you are this regiment's new pilot." It was all Aeryn could to keep from jumping up and down with glee. For the longest time all she had wanted in the universe was to fly prowlers. Now she had the only position she had ever truly desired. The Captain nodded toward her, seeming pleased by her evident elation. "You are dismissed." Aeryn was making her way to the door, when suddenly Erivil stopped her.
"Officer Sun, are you familiar with... recreation?" Aeryn gave him a confused glance before speaking.
"You keep me a bit busy for games sir," she answered respectfully. Erivil actually seemed to blush.
"I mean the kind between a man and a woman." Now Aeryn blushed as well.
"You mean the exchange of body fluids?" She asked. Erivil nodded. "No sir, not in application." Captain Erivil nodded briskly, shattering the awkward moment.
"That will be all ensign. You may go now." He finished enigmatically. On her way to training exercises Aeryn contemplated her new position, as well as her Captain's strange questions.
****
Aeryn was not the type to reminisce. She remembered things she needed to know, lessons learned, but she let simple things go. The past had a way of being the past. She rarely thought of Mila or Kel, and never of Teark. That was why it was such a surprise when one of these people reentered her life when she was sixteen cycles old.
Like so many events in her life, Teark's reappearance was something that caused her to loose sleep. It had been a difficult day. The base had been busy, attending to several large transports, and the prisoners it held had been especially rowdy. Aeryn had gone to bed exhausted, only to be woken up what seemed like only a few microts later.
Aeryn blinked several times, trying to overcome her sleepiness. There was a warm body leaning over hers, though it was to dark in quarters for her to see it. Once her lethargy had finally cleared, she reacted violently, taking hold of the hand that rested gently over her lips, and twisting it hard.
"Aeryn-Aeryn no!" Came a somehow familiar male voice. The use of her name was the only thing that kept her from breaking the man's wrist. She paused, long enough for him to continue speaking, "Don't you recognize me?" He asked plaintively. Aeryn moved away from him.
"Of course not! It's frelling pitch black in here!" Her tone was angry. She wanted to be sleeping, not conversing with this mystery man. He sighed, and then whispered to her.
"Aeryn, it's me... It's Teark." The sound of that name being said was like a blow to Aeryn's stomach. For the longest time she had convinced herself that she no longer cared about him, that she had stopped missing him. He was one of two emotional attachments she had formed, and though cycles had passed and she was no longer a child, that attachment could not be denied. That's why when he pulled gently on her arm to get her out of bed and into the hallway, she did not resist him.
In the well lit hall she got a good look at him for the first time. When they were little she had always now been taller and stronger than he. The man before her possessed more height and muscle than she most likely ever would. His dark hair and eyes remained the same as they always had however, as did his basic facial figures, although now Aeryn found them a bit more intriguing.
"You've changed." They both said in unison. A trace of a smile began to show on Aeryn's usually stoic face. Teark's grin was broader.
"Well, your taller than I remember." Aeryn stated awkwardly, and than cursed the stupidity of that statement. Of course he was taller, the last time she had seen him he had been only ten cycles old.
"So are you." He replied, seeming more at ease than Aeryn herself was feeling with this strange encounter.
"Why are you here?" She asked quietly. Then she caught herself, she had used the word why. She didn't remember who had told her that that word would get her into trouble, but she had always held that rule as important. It didn't matter so much though. It was only Teark, her friend. So simple a word would not turn him against her.
"You say that as though you wish I wasn't." Teark seemed somehow disappointed. Aeryn didn't want to disappoint him, didn't want him to feel that she was no longer the person he had come to see.
"No-no" She answered quickly, "It's just, your appearance confuses me. That's all." Teark smiled at her, a small facial expression that seemed to send a warm glow across his face.
"I'm with the D'Alene. I trust you checked it in?" Aeryn nodded, she had admired the D'Alene as it had docked near one of her prowlers. It was a gorgeous vessel, and Aeryn couldn't help but being a little jealous of its captain. "It's here for some maintenance work... In the meantime..."
"I've got it, you're here with it." Teark nodded in agreement, and then suddenly took Aeryn by both hands.
"I've missed you." He whispered. Aeryn nodded, but didn't reply vocally. After a microt she looked away from his dark eyes, not knowing what to say. He let go of one of her hands, but held tightly on to the other, gently pulling her down the hallway.
"Wait," She whispered, "What exactly are you planning to do?" She found she didn't like the look in his eyes, even though he was still smiling. She jerked her hand away from his, "We're not even supposed to be out here right now, its..."
"Don't worry Aeryn! We're not doing any thing wrong." He promised, staring unnervingly at her. Aeryn remained skeptical, but found her desire to follow her friend outweighed her nervousness about the situation. The walk, which turned out to be the docking bay was shrouded in an uncomfortable silence that seemed to make the short trip interminable.
He paused, looking briefly into her eyes, before stepping into one of the prowlers that she cared for as if it were her child. She followed him quickly, her curiosity more than aroused.
"What exactly are we doing?" Her voice was so quiet that it was almost inaudible. Something told her that despite Teark's assurances, they were doing something that they shouldn't be.
He gestured toward a girl who was sitting huddled in the passenger seat of the prowler. She seemed to be fourteen cycles old at the most, probably younger. She seemed tall for her age, and strong looking. Her facial features were plain verging on ugly, and her eyes were greenish brown in tint. Her hair color was brownish and indistinct. The only thing that was remarkable about this girl was the tremendous bulge in her stomach. Teark rushed over to the frightened looking girl.
"Carah, this is Aeryn, my friend." He said soothingly, "She's going to help us."
"Help you what?" Aeryn was beginning to become agitated, and it showed. Teark smiled at Carah indulgently. Aeryn felt a surge of jealousy at this look. They were obviously very close, how much so she wasn't sure, but she found she didn't like it. He then returned his attention to Aeryn.
"She's pregnant Aeryn, an assigned birthing based on her genetics," he began to explain, "She wants to keep the baby, it's hers. They won't let her. We need to get her away from here." Aeryn exploded at him.
"I thought you said we weren't going to break protocol!" She hissed, carefully keeping her voice soft enough so as not to attract unwanted attention.
"No, I said we weren't going to do anything wrong. This isn't wrong. You pilot these things don't you Aeryn?" She nodded mutely.
"Please help us." Teark's voice was gentle, imploring. "You'll be back before morning, nobody will even realize that you were missing." Aeryn found herself unable to refuse his plea, not only because he was the only true friend she had ever known, but because she still remembered her brief encounter with her own mother. She merely nodded, taking her spot in the driver's seat of the prowler. Teark clapped her on the back affectionately, and she was disturbed by the thrilling sensation that moved through her body at his mere touch.
She expertly maneuvered the prowler out of the docking bay. She grinned at the familiar euphoria that raised in her when she reached open space. For maybe a quarter of an arn she flew the prowler at top speed through the stars, both to impress Teark with her skills, and for her own enjoyment.
"Where exactly are we supposed to be going?" She asked after satisfying her own wanderlust .
"There's an uninhabited planet..." Teark began.
"You just going to drop her off at some frelling desolate rock?" Aeryn asked surprised, and grimly pleased.
"No of course not, there's a high vegetation content on the planet, and she won't be alone."
"Oh." Was all Aeryn said, suddenly upset for reasons that went far beyond the knowledge that she was breaking protocol and putting her career in jeopardy; reasons that she didn't quite understand. She took a moment to glance over at Teark. His hands were resting on Carah's shoulder, his thumb tracing a soft circle on her skin. She locked eyes with the girl briefly, but she turned her face away in a submissive manner, refusing to look Aeryn in the eye. "What are the coordinates?" Teark gave her a string of numbers, which she punched easily into her control console. For a long time, all were silent.
"Aeryn," Teark's deep voice sounded through the quiet prowler, "You can come with us, if you want to."
"No." Aeryn answered instantly, though she somewhat liked the idea. It just wasn't something she could do. she had a life with the Peacekeepers, and she enjoyed it. She would not give it up so she could go live as a fugitive on some vegetable filled planet. Carah smiled, apparently quite pleased with this decision. The look on her face was almost enough to make her change her mind.
Aeryn's thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of a small dot on her censor. Almost instantly she realized that that spot was a Peacekeeper vessel, one from her own regiment, and it was heading towards them. She told Teark as much. Carah grabbed on to Teark's arm, her wide eyed fear making her look almost attractive.
"They're going to get us." She whimpered, the obvious weakness in her voice making Aeryn slightly sick. She sighed and turned to Teark.
"They've seen us. I'm going to bring the prowler back to the base." She explained, her fingers moving expertly over the vessel's controls as she did exactly what she had said she would. Teark shoved up against her, using his superior strength to shove her away from the controls.
"What the frell Teark!?" She exclaimed, pushing herself off the floor.
"They are not going to catch us." His own fingers were now moving over the controls at a ridiculously slow rate. Aeryn attempted to push them away.
"What are you doing? Do you even know how to fly this thing?" She asked, as Teark pushed her away from him again. He had never been able to do that when they had been younger. She tried to trip him, as she had the unruly prisoner, but he was to familiar with Peacekeeper combat techniques for something so simple to work on him. She also noticed he was hunching over in a position that would allow him to sufficiently halt any attempt at a pentak jab.
"I'll figure it out." That did not fill Aeryn with confidence. She took her pulse rifle out of its holster, holding it against his back.
"Teark, I order you to stand down!" She yelled, both angry and terrified that she'd actually have to shoot her him. Through out all of this Carah remained silent, but Aeryn could see that there were tears running down her cheek.
The planet Teark had mentioned was coming into view... closer... closer. They began to descend into the planets atmosphere at an alarming rate, as Teark made a desperate attempt to regain control over the prowlers betraying engines. Aeryn let her weapon fall to floor.
"We're going to crash! You have to let me fly this." Teark paused, wasting precious microts merely staring at Aeryn. Finally, realizing they didn't have time for this, Aeryn pushed him away. He didn't resist her this time, and stood silently while she tried to facilitate a smooth landing on the planet's surface.
No matter what Aeryn did she could not regain control. Teark had somehow triggered one of the prowlers many security functions that were meant to keep it from being stolen by somebody who was not a trained pilot. She was locked out of the prowlers systems completely, and had no time to reactivate them.
The ship shook, and seemed to collapse under her as it crashed on the planet's surface. There was a burst of light, and a sharp pain in her head. Then she gave into the blackness.
*****
Aeryn opened her stormy gray eyes, looking around her ruined prowler in disorientation. She was lying under a rather small pile of debris. Bright sunlight was streaming in through the smashed window, aggravating her already splitting headache. It took her several microts to cognize what had happened, but the mere memory filled her with dread. Not only had she broken protocol, she had also destroyed a prowler, and-Where the frell were Teark and Carah?
She stumbled to her feet, somewhat clumsily, running her fingers through her hair. She could feel something sticky and half dry near her left temple and knew she had bled, but she also knew it was nothing serious. She also found her muscles were extremely stiff, but other than those to minor injuries she was intact. It was truly a shame she couldn't say the same for the prowler.
She called out Teark's name, then Carah's, thinking perhaps one of them had awakened before she had. When there was no reply she began to dig quickly through piles of rubble, not liking the thought of what she might find there. For nearly a sixth of an arn her search was fruitless, then she noticed a small red ravine flowing silently out of one of the piles. She lifted up a large hunk of dead mettle that had been part of the vessel's defense system up off the ground, revealing Carah's broken body.
She turned her head from the sight. She was used to blood, guts, and general gore, and even reveled in it if the entrails were those of her enemy, but the sight of Carah was simply too much. The girls face had almost completely collapsed under the weight of the debris, and her bulging stomach was wide open exposing her insides. Aeryn even thought she had seen a tiny hand before looking away. Silently she wondered if Carah's stomach had burst open like a bubble under the pressure. The thought made her sick; she turned her head to the side and vomited.
She had to force herself to continue her search for Teark. There was already a morbidly clear mental image of his handsome form lying prone, in a state similar to Carah's, forming in her mind. She knew if she were subjected to another site like the one she had just encountered she would be sick again.
Teark was found under another, much smaller pile of collapsed mettle. Aeryn couldn't help but wonder about how hard they had hit the planet's surface to do this much damage to the prowler. He was bleeding, but not profusely, and although the seriousness of his injuries could not be underestimated, he was alive and breathing. But Aeryn knew that if she didn't get him help he wouldn't be breathing much longer.
The communications systems were the only part of the prowler not completely destroyed. How ironically convenient, Aeryn observed, that she could use an instrument that was a component of the very thing that had gotten her into this mess, to call for help, for the person who had caused the situation.
****
"This is certainly not something I would have expected from you officer Sun." Aeryn could tell from her captains voice that he was very angry with her. She wanted to shrink back, to cringe away from him, but knew full well that any such action would be viewed as weakness. Instead she stood stiffly at full attention, avoiding his eyes the same way Carah had avoided hers. Erivil seemed frustrated by the fact that she didn't reply. "What exactly did you think you were doing?" He asked exasperated.
"I..." Aeryn paused, she had no clue what to say. She chose to be honest, "I wasn't exactly thinking at the time sir." Erivil seemed to sigh.
"Then what exactly was going on?" The anger in his voice was barely controlled, and his face was going slightly red. Aeryn realized she was going to have to give him an answer, but unsure exactly how.
"I-um-encountered an old acquaintance sir." She stopped, but when Erivil didn't say anything she knew she would have to continue, "A...friend who I used to know. He..."
"Forced you into the prowler?" Erivil asked. Aeryn shook her head in negation.
"No sir, I went on my own free will." Erivil frowned.
"Officer Sun, explain to me what possessed you to do such a thing!" Erivil exclaimed in exasperation.
"Teark!" Aeryn explained in equal exasperation, "He's my... I became emotionally attached to him before I knew any frelling better! Okay? He told me not to go and I did it!" Aeryn blanched. Not only had she just broken protocol and screamed at her superior officer, she had said something that would most likely incriminate Teark. Actually, a spiteful part of Aeryn was actually glad she had said something that could get Teark into trouble, he had after all been the one to get her into this mess in the first place.
"I apologize sir, that was out of line."
"Noted." Erivil's tone was still extremely serous, but now it was kinder, somewhat less intimidating, "Do you know what this little escapade of yours has caused?"
"The death of a woman who was carrying-"
"A very important child." Erivil finished her sentence for her. Aeryn was silent, hoping he would elaborate. He did not, and she knew better than to ask questions, especially considering her currant situation. However, there was one that needed to be asked.
"Sir," Aeryn began timidly, breaking the uncomfortable silence, "Will Teark be alright?" Her captains facial expression hardened again. He seemed about to dismiss her, but then for some strange reason he didn't. He began to move closer to her-very close. The were almost touching. She could feel his warm breath on her forehead as she stared up at him. She was tall, but he was much taller. His closeness even made it possible for her to smell him, a sweaty but not unpleasant odor. Aeryn had no idea what to do, so she merely stood still.
"He's fine." Erivil's voice surprised Aeryn. She had almost forgotten her question. "But you are not to be seeing him again."
"Thank you sir." Aeryn whispered, then tried to duck away from Erivil. He caught her head in his hand, almost tenderly tracing the line of her jaw with the rough pad of his thumb.
"You are very young." Erivil breathed.
"Yes sir." Aeryn tried to look away from him, but his hand held onto her face tightly.
"Inexperienced." He added. Aeryn didn't say a word. She thought she knew what he wanted, and although certainly intrigued by the prospect, what he had said was true. She was inexperienced. This whole situation was completely new to her. She wasn't sure she'd know what to do.
A thought crossed her mind. This situation was already completely out of her control. There was protocol to be obeyed and she had broken it. She realized he was giving her a second chance, a chance to salvage her career. The universe was not known for second chances, she would be a fool not to take this one.
He kissed her. It was that simple. There was very little emotion involved on her part with the exception of curiosity and an acute interest in detail. She was doing what her superior expected her to, like always.
His lips were warm and rough like sandpaper. She felt his warm toung tap briefly against her closed lips, like a hand knocking on a door, and she opened her mouth to let him in. The inside of his mouth didn't taste similar to any thing she had ever tasted before, but like his scent, it was not unpleasant. To Aeryn's surprise she was actually almost enjoying this. It was certainly a fascinating diversion.
His lips pulled away from hers and started to move down her neck. His hands moved up under her shirt, ever so slowly beginning to remove it. Then he stopped suddenly.
"Not here." He whispered, straitening himself. Aeryn did the same, smoothing out her clothing, and running a hand through her hair. Taking on an air of pseudo seriousness she followed her captain to his private quarters.
*****
Aeryn awakened in Captain Erivil's quarters. He lay fast asleep on his bed, the blankets pulled up slightly passed his waist. Aeryn climbed out of the left side of the bed silently, and gathered up her clothes from a heap on the floor. It took her a microt to separate her own simple apparel from Erivil's.
She observed her captains quarters as she dressed. She had never expected to see them! They were Spartan, almost obsessively so. There was a small shelf with a few necessary electronics, surrounded by gray walls and flooring. A few weapons, some of which Aeryn had never seen the like of before, were strapped to the wall, which was also adorned with a small view screen. There weren't any seats, but his bed was comfortable enough. Aeryn was in a position to know.
Captain Erivil seemed extremely attractive as he slept, more so than Aeryn remembered him ever being. His exposed arms and chest were muscular, but not overly so. It was covered in tiny ringlets of hair that were the same auburn color of that which was on his head. His face was not the only part of his body that was scared. A rather large white scar ran across the area of flesh that lay over his peripheral nerve. That wound must have been deep... and painful.
She traced the pail sliver of flesh with feather light fingers. Last night had certainly been interesting, although somewhat painful. He had seemed to enjoy it at the time, but already Aeryn was beginning to have doubts about her performance. Had she done it right?
Erivil's eyes shot open, and Aeryn jerked her hand away. He sat up in bed, and smiled briefly at her.
"Did you sleep well officer Sun?" He asked simply, as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He got up and began to dress. Aeryn didn't look away. It was nothing she hadn't seen before.
"Yes sir." She replied in kind. She gave him a faint smile which he returned.
"You'd better get going, or you'll be lat for conditioning, ensign." Aeryn nodded, and left the room obediently.
~~~~Notes: More coming very soon... If reviews are good enough.
*****
As with most things, Aeryn's torturing skills improved with practice. Although she heard the tortured screams of many victims, she never actually heard that illusive information that command sought. That thought clutched coldly at her soul.
She also improved in her combat skills, enough so that other classes began to be added to her schedule. In biology she learned why the Luxen girl's blood had been black, and about Sebacean heat death. In a brief history course that lasted no more than a weeken she learned the story of sub-officer Dacon, a tale she was particularly fond of. She was not trained as a tech, but she understood technology enough in order to keep a prowler running effectively.
She was also taught how to use pulse rifles, daggers, and all forms of weaponry. She often had to resist the temptation to use the weaponry on Mila-annoying little trelk. She was fond of her combat studies. At fifteen cycles they began to teach her how to fly a prowler, a pursuit that quickly became the highlight of her young life. She loved the feeling of racing through space at amazing speeds, and watching the stars streak by her. She lived for it.
At the age of fifteen she had also started to notice some rather spectacular changes in her body. She found that oil deposits sometimes allowed red atrocities to erupt on her face, temporarily marring her appearance. More positively, she was beginning to grow taller, and a rather attractive figure seemed to be molding itself out of nothing. She was beginning to feel a strange interests in male Peacekeepers, but not the ones who she had bunked with since childhood. She was more interested in adult Sebacean men, though she never let this interest show.
*****
It was late at night when Aeryn was awakened by the sound of the door slamming loudly. Several of her companions began to rouse themselves from their beds as the light flickered on. Mila walked in; her close cropped black hair was disheveled, as was her clothing. The girl wore a slight smile, and seemed excited. Aeryn was the first to speak.
"Where exactly have you been all night?" She asked tersely. Mila flashed her a wicked smile.
"I was with Gbran Tika." Aeryn nodded, urging her to go on. She barely noticed the use of the term Tika. Mila always called her that, she had since given up on punching her in the face every time she said it. Besides, she was interested in what Mila had to say.
"We... um, it was an interesting experience." Mila said, as she began to out of her black PK uniform, and into her yellow nightshirt. "Very interesting." Aeryn actually laughed.
"Is that all you have to say about it?" She asked. Mila pulled her nightshirt on, and than sat down on her cot.
"What do you want to know?" She asked frankly. For the first time ever Aeryn was beginning to feel a certain camaraderie for this girl who she had always seen as an enemy.
"Did you like it?" Aeryn asked after a microt had passed between them.
"That's the strange thing. I'm not really sure."
"Ah... I see." Aeryn grinned, leaving it at that. She didn't see, but she would never let Mila know as much. Pulling her rough military blanket up to her chin she rolled over in bed and closed her eyes. She was surprised to here Mila speak again.
"Rest well Tika." Her voice held none of its usual mockery. Aeryn responded in kind.
"You too."
****
Two weekens later Aeryn was given her first real assignment, and her first real rank. She was to be with the Limmyf regiment, working on prowler maintenance. The work was barely suitable for a tech, but it was a good start for a soldier who was little more than fifteen cycles old. Besides, when the need arose, she would participate in battle besides her comrades. All in all she was excited, for more reasons than one. She knew that the Limmyf regiment was commanded by Erivil, the young officer who had treated her so kindly several years ago.
Aeryn stalked into quarters just after Gbran had given her the news of her reassignment. Most of those who she had grown up had already been reassigned. Only Mila was left, and Aeryn suspected she would be staying a long time considering her relationship with Gbran. Mila smiled at her as she entered the room, but her grin quickly faded as she noticed that Aeryn was beginning to pack her sparse belongings.
"You leaving me to Tika?" She asked, her tone a mixture of sadness and grim humor. Aeryn nodded, as she tossed everything she owned into a small sack: Two pairs of black leather pants, a dark sleeveless leather vest, and a soft white tee-shirt.
"Limmyf regiment." She explained, "due for reassignment immediately." She slung the sack over her shoulder, walking out the door. Only her quick reflexes saved her from being hit by the small silver thing that Mila through at her head.
"Nice catch Tika! Mila exclaimed with forced laughter. Aeryn examined the object in her hand. It was a tiny ring, engraved in a delicate pattern. She gave Mila a questioning glance. "Got it off some dead Delvien." She explained, "Why don't you keep it... to remind you of me or something."
"Yes... every time you look at it I'll think of the sniveling little trelk that gave it to me." Aeryn smiled to soften her words.
"And every time I look at your empty bunk I'll think of the weak little Tika cat who used to sleep there." Mila smiled as well.
*****
Later that day Aeryn arrived at the Gallun 4 base, and met her new commander there. Erivil was exactly as she remembered him. His auburn hair had not faded, nor had the scar on his across his face. The five cycles that had passed since Aeryn had seen him for the first time seemed not to have touched him at all, he still seemed unusually young. He also seemed genuinely glad to see her.
"Ah, if it isn't the little officer." He teased, "But it seems you're not so little anymore." He looked Aeryn over appraisingly, his eyes resting briefly on her chest in a way she found slightly disconcerting "Not little at all. You should make a fine officer." His demeanor seemed to change completely, as he listed for Aeryn the rules of the regiment, and her duties. She could not leave the base unaccompanied, unless ordered to do so. In a battle situation, she was to fight in the back line, do to her youth and inexperience. Extended contact with unclassified alien life forms would result in irrevocable contamination. She was always to obey her superior officer, and answer him with "yes sir" unless otherwise directed. She had already known those rules before joining the regiment, and had never had any problem obeying them before. She doubted she would have any trouble obeying them now.
For the first few solar days of her new assignment Aeryn found herself anxious, and frightened that she would somehow make a mistake that would cost her her life. This feeling faded as she found that her daily routine on the Gallun base was little different than the one she had practiced for years as a child. She would spend arns practicing her battle skills with her new comrades, followed by several more arns performing her assigned tasks, most of which were related to prowler maintenance. After that she would have a brief evening meal, and then another brief period of physical conditioning. Occasionally she would be sent to attend to the many alien prisoners that the base held. She would give them their meager ration of food, as well as a much less meager ration of blows and insults to keep them from becoming to cocky. She would also help to attend to the needs of the peacekeeper vessels and occasional Levithin that docked at the base.
Aeryn was happy. There were rules, and she followed them. She enjoyed her structured life, and the busy schedule that left her no time to think, and sent her to sleep exhausted each night. She liked her crewmates, most of who were much older than her. She also liked captain Erivil who always treated her kindly, although sternly. She was truly a soldier now.
*****
Aeryn lay on her back, carefully examining a prowlers damaged communication system. Her hair was tangled from moving around in the tight space, and her face was covered in specs dust and dirt that for reasons she could not fathom seemed to have invaded the inside of this delicate system. Besides the mess there seemed to be nothing wrong with the system, yet nothing she did seemed to make it work. She jerked her head up, as she felt a light tap on the foot of her boot, almost knocking her head against the top of the engine. Pushing her hands against the wall of the prowler, she slid quickly out of the cave like enclosure. She felt a gush of cool air as she immerged, she hadn't realized how warm the tiny space had become.
A pair of strong arms closed around her shoulders and she found herself pined down by ensign Kel. He was older than her, though Aeryn wasn't sure how much so, with pale brown hair and brown eyes with little specks of blue and green in them. His face was unusually pale, and it seemed to have an almost transparent quality. Since Aeryn had arrived on the Gallun base he had seemed to take a particular interest in her , following her around during his free period, offering to help her with menial tasks. He looked down at her, licking his lips in a playful manner. Then he allowed her to struggle out from under him, laughing at her indignant glare.
"You're a mess." He commented. Aeryn ignored him, as she stood up from the prowler floor. "The old Greecorien on tier nine has apparently escaped. Captain Erivil has sent us to go retrieve him." He gave Aeryn a flirtatious smile, "Looks like you could use a break from-whatever the frell you're trying to do to that engine." Kel was already moving briskly toward tier six, with Aeryn in tow.
"It won't work I was..."
"Really? How did you manage to break it?" Aeryn couldn't tell if he was joking or not. She merely rolled her eyes, annoyed by her companions pestering.
"I was trying to fix it." She replied. Kel slapped her back in an infuriatingly friendly manner.
"Of course you were. Well now you-we-have something more important to do." They soon arrived at tier nine where most of the prisoners were kept. Aeryn's nose wrinkled slightly at the smell given off by the wretched creatures this tier housed. Most of them were hanging limply on their chains, resigned to their fate. A few newer arrivals were struggling valiantly, but to no avail. They had been brought here for various crimes, ranging from mass murder, to merely being an annoyance to their political figures. Aeryn didn't care about the causes of their imprisonment. They were barbarian scum, bugs who needed to be squashed for their own good.
"We should separate." Aeryn suggested, We'll find him faster that way." Kel seemed disappointed, but agreed. He ran off away from her, and Aeryn was suddenly alone under the icy stair of the prisoners. She started at the most obvious place, the Greecorien's cell. His heavy chains had been severed some how, and a few spare links lay scattered on the floor. Other than that there were no signs that a prisoner had ever inhabited the cell.
The next cell over housed an old, felinoid creature. Her species was rare, nobody knew enough of her people even to name them. She had been imprisoned here for so long that nobody even remembered what her crime had been, and if she had ever had a name it had been forgotten cycles ago. Her body was clothed only in thick tangled gray fur, and her body was frail and emaciated. She had droopy blue irises, and she stared at Aeryn, not seeing her, but certainly aware of her presence. Aeryn regarded her with disgust.
"Tell me where the Greecorien went!" She ordered fiercely. The woman's long tail swished back and forth in annoyance. She did not answer Aeryn, merely spat in her general direction. When she opened her mouth Aeryn could see that it was devoid of teeth, and the gums were red and painfully swollen. She was revolted. She repeated her order.
"Tell me where he is now!" The old woman's facial expression didn't change, but to Aeryn it still seemed as though she were mocking her. The felinoid's mouth opened and closed, trying to force coherent words from the throat that had uttered nothing but inarticulate screams and sobs for years.
"Why do you want to know peacekeeper?" She finally managed to mutter venomously, those simple words seeming to hold all her years of pain and hatred. They infuriated Aeryn. She punished the prisoner with a hard kick in the gut. She tried to double over, but her tight chains would not let her. A pained cry escaped her throat, but Aeryn ignored it.
"Now will you tell me what I want to know, or would you prefer I kick you again?" Then Aeryn was trapped in a pair of foul smelling arms that dragged her away from the ancient prisoner. She struggled, stopping suddenly when she felt something cold and sharp press against her side. A deep voice resonated in her ear.
"Is this what they send after me? A pretty little trelk? Surely you don't ever want to become old and ugly like us, now do you. Hmm? Don't worry, all you have to do is fight me, and you never will." Aeryn was not overly frightened. She knew what to do in this kind of situation. She jabbed her arm into his shoulder, and then whirled her leg around, effectively tripping him. He seemed relatively helpless, lying there on the ground, even with his sharp knife waving in the air. He resembled a Sebacean, except for the fact that his brow was more defined. His hair was gray and wild looking, and his face was wrinkled, but Aeryn suspected that his years as a prisoner had aged him prematurely.
Aeryn leaned over him, rendering him unconscious with a quick pentac jab. However, his reflexes were surprisingly acute compared to what she had expected. His knife cut deeply into the left side of her stomach before he lost consciousness. For a moment Aeryn's vision blurred, and she stumbled slightly in pain and shock With quite a bit of difficulty, she managed to regain her equilibrium. She stared down at her wound in mute horror. Already her blood was pouring out of it, soaking through her shirt, beginning to drip like tears onto the floor. In her pain induced haze, all she could think about was how weak the others would surely think her if she couldn't finish her task because a mere prisoner wounded her.
She managed to stumble to a supply closet, where she found some chains to replace the ones the Greecorien had destroyed. She also grabbed several cloths used for cleaning, and stuffed them into her wound, hoping to stop the bleeding. She then carried the heavy chain back to where the prisoner lay. It took her nearly a quarter of an arn to connect them to the wall with fingers that had suddenly become thick and clumsy. She chained the Greecorien to the wall tightly, and removed his knife. That's when she noticed her blood still spattered messily across the floor. She couldn't leave it that way. She returned to the supply closest gathering a few cloths to clean the floor with. Absently, she dropped the knife into a waste disposal unit.
After the floor had been cleaned she began her descent back to tier two, command. She would have to report to Captain Erivil and inform him that she had apprehended the criminal. She wasn't thinking coherently enough to remember to tell Kel of her success.
She entered the captains private briefing room in a small huff. It was a tiny space, equipped only with a chair, a large view screen, and a computer showing the condition of the bases vital systems. Erivil's head shot up from whatever he had been looking at. She could feel her blood beginning to soak through the hastily applied rag, and she was to becoming dizzy.
"Sir," she said respectfully, doing her best to stand straight, "The Greecorien has been apprehended." Aeryn's voice sounded far away to her ears. He nodded, his expression unreadable. "If that is all sir..."
"How were you injured, ensign?" His tone was businesslike, but Aeryn thought she saw some concern in his facial expression.
"The prisoner stabbed me... its nothing serious sir. I'll be alright." Aeryn was not completely convinced by her own words, and Erivil's next action showed that he was not either.
"Let me see." He said, moving toward her. She lifted up the corner of the shirt, where the blood laden cloth was stuck against her skin. Captain Erivil pulled it away from her skin, and began to gently probe the deep wound with his fingers. Aeryn took a sharp intake of breath as he did this, nearly doubling over in pain. Erivil gestured to his chair.
"Sit there." He ordered, "I'm going to call up a med." Aeryn gratefully sank down into the captains chair. It was hard, and it's back was positioned in a way the forced her to sit upright despite the positions painfulness. She half-watched as the Captain punched a few buttons on his computer terminal, and said something she didn't quite hear into it.
"Did you chain up the prisoner?" Aeryn had to force herself to open her eyes, which had somehow drifted shut. The blood was flowing out of the wound faster now that it didn't have to pass through the thick cloth. When she didn't answer right away, he repeated his question.
"Yes sir. His chains were broken, I had to put in new ones." She rasped.
"And what did you do with his knife?" He asked, leaning close to her, as if straining to hear her voice.
"Threw it out." The corners of his mouth twitched. He seemed to find something amusing about this response, although Aeryn could not fathom what. The med entered in a whirl of motion, and suddenly she was kneeling at Aeryn's feet, examining the wound as Erivil had done. Aeryn payed little attention to what the med was doing as waves of burning hot pain washed through her entire body. She heard dimly something about blood loss, and she registered the med saying that the knife had missed her peripheral nerve. Then something cool and metallic was used to close the gaping wound in her stomach. The med nodded formally toward Erivil, and then she was gone as quickly as she appeared. She stared tiredly at her captain, waiting for him to order her to do something. Finally he spoke.
"Go back to quarters." He said softly, "You are excused from training for tonight." Aeryn nodded, forcing herself back to her feet. She made her way to quarters slowly; the bandage stopped the blood flow but it did little to lessen the pain caused by each movement she made. Erivil walked by her side, escorting to the room she shared with her comrades the same way he had the day she had met him five cycles ago. On that walk they had discussed many issues ranging from emotional attachments to felipes. Now they were both silent.
He followed her into the room. She found she had no strength to change for bed, so she just rolled into her cot clothes and all. She didn't pull her blanket up over her; she felt far to hot already. She closed her eyes, and listened to the door swish open and close as Erivil left the room. For a long time she lay awake, her throbbing side making it impossible for her to find any comfort. It took her several arns to fall into a fevered sleep.
****
As things turned out Aeryn was excused from exercises, as well as her normal duties, for a bit longer than she had suspected. It took three solar days for her wound to heal to any degree. She despised those three days. Not only did she feel as though she were weakening the regiment as a whole, and fear the consequences of this, her inactivity gave her time to think. Aeryn did not like thinking, because most of the time the thoughts that entered her mind the most readily were the ones she found most painful. Lying in that bed, her mind rested on painful separations, mistakes she had made, and a dream of motherly love that somehow wasn't quite a dream.
She was out of bed the microt she realized she was healing, participating in her normal activities like always. At first it was painful, but she had always been one to ignore pain. Life was easier that way, pain that was ignored would eventually go away on it's own, or at least sink far below the surface. With in a weeken the pain caused by her injury had faded into nothingness.
***
Once again Aeryn was rooting around in the vital systems of a prowler. She loved the great machines as though they were her family. Arns passed seeming more like microts as she tinkered with their systems, fixing any problem she might find. Captain Erivil had once commented that she took better care of the prowlers than any one else who had ever served under him. This compliment inflamed her pride, and consequently she worked much harder. All the prowlers were always in perfect working order.
A loud buzzer sounded causing Aeryn to jerk out from her hiding place under a prowler's ailing engine. The base was a whirlwind of activity as several of the soldiers who had been doing odd tasks around her began taking out there weapons, all running in the same general direction. She quickly took her own pulse rifle out of its holster and, spotting Kel, ran up to meet him.
"What's happing?" She whispered, moving rapidly beside him.
"We've been boarded." He replied tersely. Aeryn was confused. She had believed it was impossible for any hostile aliens to penetrate the base's defense system.
"What? How?" Aeryn asked. Kel merely shrugged distractedly. "Who?" Another shrug.
"We'll find out. Tier three, common." She weaved through the crowd, following Kel closely. As they entered the correct tier, she was the first one to notice the ray of energy moving dangerously toward his head. She pulled him down to the floor quickly. It was then that she got her first view of what was attacking the ship.
The creature looked somewhat reptilian, with chalky white skin, and an extremely elongated head. He was wizened looking, but somehow not old, and his eyes were a shade of black that sent shivers running down Aeryn's spine. He walked quickly, but hunched over at what seemed like a funny angle.
"What is he?" Aeryn whispered. She had never before encountered such a creature.
"A Scarren." Kel said haughtily, as if that should have been immediately apparent. "A telepathic species." He explained after a microt. Already the Sebacean troupes were beginning to move into battle formation. With measured movements Aeryn took her assigned spot near the back of the battle lines, and away from Kel. She hated being behind the action, where she could see the battle but not participate effectively. True, it was safe, nut it wasn't particularly exciting.
The battle was a truly glorious sight to watch. Aeryn saw a few of her own people fall, but most of the casualties seemed to go to the Scarrens. There was blood everywhere, and screaming, and death. It was like being inside one of the legends she had learned about in history class.
"And he stood at the wall, his blood and entrails flowing from his body like a mighty river. He spoke calmly, and stood at attention, even as his life drained from him. With his last breath he negotiated a lasting peace between the two warring peoples." Aeryn grinned savagely at the memory of the story of sub officer Dacon. She watched the fight, occasionally joining the fray with her own pulse rifle. This was what being a peacekeeper was all about.
Captain Erivil was up front, leading his troop. Aeryn watched the speed with which he took the lives of three Scarrens, with a certain amount of surprise. He had always seemed so gentle, but now for the first time she realized how ruthlessly capable he was in battle. Another thing she noticed was that some of the Scarrens were fighting back in extremely unusual manner. Some were simply staring at soldiers, using their eyes to make them double over in pain. Aeryn made a point not to be caught staring at them.
*****
The battle was over. The Peacekeepers were victorious. Aeryn had never doubted that this would be the outcome. The Scarrens had seemed powerful, but they had been vastly outnumbered. As the last Scarren fell a strange sort of silence descended through the room. Aeryn was afraid even to breath, to break the eerie hush. Captain Erivil was the first to move, taking two of the seven Scarren bodies and stuffing it through the airlock triumphantly. Soon other troupes were doing the same, moving both Scarren and Sebacean corpses. A few went back to their normally scheduled tasks, but most remained present for the clean up duty.
Why had the Scarrens attacked them? Aeryn desperately wanted to know the answer, but would not allow herself to utter a phrase that contained the forbidden word. Instead she pushed the question from her mind, as she did so many other things. It was merely the product of idle curiosity anyway. What she needed to know her superiors would tell her.
Aeryn moved toward a body that lay disconcertingly near her feet. The hair was a light brown color, and the skin the coldest shade of white Aeryn had ever seen. She turned it over, wishing to gaze one last time at the face of the warrior who had once lived. It was Kel! Her breath caught in her throat for a moment before she slung him over her shoulder. She didn't exactly feel any sadness at his passing. He was infantry, and therefore expendable, as was she. Death was merely a reality that had to be faced. It didn't matter. Still, it felt a bit odd to know that she was the last person to ever speak to him.
He was given no sort of funeral ceremonies. Aeryn stuffed his body into a bag and out an airlock, and that was that. She realized that some species believed in a life after death. Aeryn believed that any such concept was a complete load of dren. When one died, everything that sustained life was shut down. There was no place left inside the body for life to continue to exist, and there was no way a normal flesh and blood being could suddenly become non-corporal. Such theories were scientifically not possible, but such were the beliefs of lesser life forms.
Aeryn watched somberly through the view port, as several bodies, both Scarren and Sebacean, floated out into space, still locked in the ghastly positions of death.
****
As things turned out, the grisly reality of death had some rather positive side effects for Aeryn. About a weeken after the battle she was called down for a meeting with Captain Erivil. She walked into his briefing room nervously, standing at respectful attention before him as she had always been taught to do.
"At ease ensign." The Captain gave her one of his trademark half smiles. "Do you know why I've called you down here?" He asked. Aeryn shook her head.
"No sir," Was all that she said.
"As you know one of our prowler pilots was killed in the battle with the Scarrens."
"Yes sir." Aeryn found she liked the direction this conversation seemed to be taking.
"You'll be undergoing a slight change in assignments." Erivil was smiling more broadly now. "Officer Sun, you are this regiment's new pilot." It was all Aeryn could to keep from jumping up and down with glee. For the longest time all she had wanted in the universe was to fly prowlers. Now she had the only position she had ever truly desired. The Captain nodded toward her, seeming pleased by her evident elation. "You are dismissed." Aeryn was making her way to the door, when suddenly Erivil stopped her.
"Officer Sun, are you familiar with... recreation?" Aeryn gave him a confused glance before speaking.
"You keep me a bit busy for games sir," she answered respectfully. Erivil actually seemed to blush.
"I mean the kind between a man and a woman." Now Aeryn blushed as well.
"You mean the exchange of body fluids?" She asked. Erivil nodded. "No sir, not in application." Captain Erivil nodded briskly, shattering the awkward moment.
"That will be all ensign. You may go now." He finished enigmatically. On her way to training exercises Aeryn contemplated her new position, as well as her Captain's strange questions.
****
Aeryn was not the type to reminisce. She remembered things she needed to know, lessons learned, but she let simple things go. The past had a way of being the past. She rarely thought of Mila or Kel, and never of Teark. That was why it was such a surprise when one of these people reentered her life when she was sixteen cycles old.
Like so many events in her life, Teark's reappearance was something that caused her to loose sleep. It had been a difficult day. The base had been busy, attending to several large transports, and the prisoners it held had been especially rowdy. Aeryn had gone to bed exhausted, only to be woken up what seemed like only a few microts later.
Aeryn blinked several times, trying to overcome her sleepiness. There was a warm body leaning over hers, though it was to dark in quarters for her to see it. Once her lethargy had finally cleared, she reacted violently, taking hold of the hand that rested gently over her lips, and twisting it hard.
"Aeryn-Aeryn no!" Came a somehow familiar male voice. The use of her name was the only thing that kept her from breaking the man's wrist. She paused, long enough for him to continue speaking, "Don't you recognize me?" He asked plaintively. Aeryn moved away from him.
"Of course not! It's frelling pitch black in here!" Her tone was angry. She wanted to be sleeping, not conversing with this mystery man. He sighed, and then whispered to her.
"Aeryn, it's me... It's Teark." The sound of that name being said was like a blow to Aeryn's stomach. For the longest time she had convinced herself that she no longer cared about him, that she had stopped missing him. He was one of two emotional attachments she had formed, and though cycles had passed and she was no longer a child, that attachment could not be denied. That's why when he pulled gently on her arm to get her out of bed and into the hallway, she did not resist him.
In the well lit hall she got a good look at him for the first time. When they were little she had always now been taller and stronger than he. The man before her possessed more height and muscle than she most likely ever would. His dark hair and eyes remained the same as they always had however, as did his basic facial figures, although now Aeryn found them a bit more intriguing.
"You've changed." They both said in unison. A trace of a smile began to show on Aeryn's usually stoic face. Teark's grin was broader.
"Well, your taller than I remember." Aeryn stated awkwardly, and than cursed the stupidity of that statement. Of course he was taller, the last time she had seen him he had been only ten cycles old.
"So are you." He replied, seeming more at ease than Aeryn herself was feeling with this strange encounter.
"Why are you here?" She asked quietly. Then she caught herself, she had used the word why. She didn't remember who had told her that that word would get her into trouble, but she had always held that rule as important. It didn't matter so much though. It was only Teark, her friend. So simple a word would not turn him against her.
"You say that as though you wish I wasn't." Teark seemed somehow disappointed. Aeryn didn't want to disappoint him, didn't want him to feel that she was no longer the person he had come to see.
"No-no" She answered quickly, "It's just, your appearance confuses me. That's all." Teark smiled at her, a small facial expression that seemed to send a warm glow across his face.
"I'm with the D'Alene. I trust you checked it in?" Aeryn nodded, she had admired the D'Alene as it had docked near one of her prowlers. It was a gorgeous vessel, and Aeryn couldn't help but being a little jealous of its captain. "It's here for some maintenance work... In the meantime..."
"I've got it, you're here with it." Teark nodded in agreement, and then suddenly took Aeryn by both hands.
"I've missed you." He whispered. Aeryn nodded, but didn't reply vocally. After a microt she looked away from his dark eyes, not knowing what to say. He let go of one of her hands, but held tightly on to the other, gently pulling her down the hallway.
"Wait," She whispered, "What exactly are you planning to do?" She found she didn't like the look in his eyes, even though he was still smiling. She jerked her hand away from his, "We're not even supposed to be out here right now, its..."
"Don't worry Aeryn! We're not doing any thing wrong." He promised, staring unnervingly at her. Aeryn remained skeptical, but found her desire to follow her friend outweighed her nervousness about the situation. The walk, which turned out to be the docking bay was shrouded in an uncomfortable silence that seemed to make the short trip interminable.
He paused, looking briefly into her eyes, before stepping into one of the prowlers that she cared for as if it were her child. She followed him quickly, her curiosity more than aroused.
"What exactly are we doing?" Her voice was so quiet that it was almost inaudible. Something told her that despite Teark's assurances, they were doing something that they shouldn't be.
He gestured toward a girl who was sitting huddled in the passenger seat of the prowler. She seemed to be fourteen cycles old at the most, probably younger. She seemed tall for her age, and strong looking. Her facial features were plain verging on ugly, and her eyes were greenish brown in tint. Her hair color was brownish and indistinct. The only thing that was remarkable about this girl was the tremendous bulge in her stomach. Teark rushed over to the frightened looking girl.
"Carah, this is Aeryn, my friend." He said soothingly, "She's going to help us."
"Help you what?" Aeryn was beginning to become agitated, and it showed. Teark smiled at Carah indulgently. Aeryn felt a surge of jealousy at this look. They were obviously very close, how much so she wasn't sure, but she found she didn't like it. He then returned his attention to Aeryn.
"She's pregnant Aeryn, an assigned birthing based on her genetics," he began to explain, "She wants to keep the baby, it's hers. They won't let her. We need to get her away from here." Aeryn exploded at him.
"I thought you said we weren't going to break protocol!" She hissed, carefully keeping her voice soft enough so as not to attract unwanted attention.
"No, I said we weren't going to do anything wrong. This isn't wrong. You pilot these things don't you Aeryn?" She nodded mutely.
"Please help us." Teark's voice was gentle, imploring. "You'll be back before morning, nobody will even realize that you were missing." Aeryn found herself unable to refuse his plea, not only because he was the only true friend she had ever known, but because she still remembered her brief encounter with her own mother. She merely nodded, taking her spot in the driver's seat of the prowler. Teark clapped her on the back affectionately, and she was disturbed by the thrilling sensation that moved through her body at his mere touch.
She expertly maneuvered the prowler out of the docking bay. She grinned at the familiar euphoria that raised in her when she reached open space. For maybe a quarter of an arn she flew the prowler at top speed through the stars, both to impress Teark with her skills, and for her own enjoyment.
"Where exactly are we supposed to be going?" She asked after satisfying her own wanderlust .
"There's an uninhabited planet..." Teark began.
"You just going to drop her off at some frelling desolate rock?" Aeryn asked surprised, and grimly pleased.
"No of course not, there's a high vegetation content on the planet, and she won't be alone."
"Oh." Was all Aeryn said, suddenly upset for reasons that went far beyond the knowledge that she was breaking protocol and putting her career in jeopardy; reasons that she didn't quite understand. She took a moment to glance over at Teark. His hands were resting on Carah's shoulder, his thumb tracing a soft circle on her skin. She locked eyes with the girl briefly, but she turned her face away in a submissive manner, refusing to look Aeryn in the eye. "What are the coordinates?" Teark gave her a string of numbers, which she punched easily into her control console. For a long time, all were silent.
"Aeryn," Teark's deep voice sounded through the quiet prowler, "You can come with us, if you want to."
"No." Aeryn answered instantly, though she somewhat liked the idea. It just wasn't something she could do. she had a life with the Peacekeepers, and she enjoyed it. She would not give it up so she could go live as a fugitive on some vegetable filled planet. Carah smiled, apparently quite pleased with this decision. The look on her face was almost enough to make her change her mind.
Aeryn's thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of a small dot on her censor. Almost instantly she realized that that spot was a Peacekeeper vessel, one from her own regiment, and it was heading towards them. She told Teark as much. Carah grabbed on to Teark's arm, her wide eyed fear making her look almost attractive.
"They're going to get us." She whimpered, the obvious weakness in her voice making Aeryn slightly sick. She sighed and turned to Teark.
"They've seen us. I'm going to bring the prowler back to the base." She explained, her fingers moving expertly over the vessel's controls as she did exactly what she had said she would. Teark shoved up against her, using his superior strength to shove her away from the controls.
"What the frell Teark!?" She exclaimed, pushing herself off the floor.
"They are not going to catch us." His own fingers were now moving over the controls at a ridiculously slow rate. Aeryn attempted to push them away.
"What are you doing? Do you even know how to fly this thing?" She asked, as Teark pushed her away from him again. He had never been able to do that when they had been younger. She tried to trip him, as she had the unruly prisoner, but he was to familiar with Peacekeeper combat techniques for something so simple to work on him. She also noticed he was hunching over in a position that would allow him to sufficiently halt any attempt at a pentak jab.
"I'll figure it out." That did not fill Aeryn with confidence. She took her pulse rifle out of its holster, holding it against his back.
"Teark, I order you to stand down!" She yelled, both angry and terrified that she'd actually have to shoot her him. Through out all of this Carah remained silent, but Aeryn could see that there were tears running down her cheek.
The planet Teark had mentioned was coming into view... closer... closer. They began to descend into the planets atmosphere at an alarming rate, as Teark made a desperate attempt to regain control over the prowlers betraying engines. Aeryn let her weapon fall to floor.
"We're going to crash! You have to let me fly this." Teark paused, wasting precious microts merely staring at Aeryn. Finally, realizing they didn't have time for this, Aeryn pushed him away. He didn't resist her this time, and stood silently while she tried to facilitate a smooth landing on the planet's surface.
No matter what Aeryn did she could not regain control. Teark had somehow triggered one of the prowlers many security functions that were meant to keep it from being stolen by somebody who was not a trained pilot. She was locked out of the prowlers systems completely, and had no time to reactivate them.
The ship shook, and seemed to collapse under her as it crashed on the planet's surface. There was a burst of light, and a sharp pain in her head. Then she gave into the blackness.
*****
Aeryn opened her stormy gray eyes, looking around her ruined prowler in disorientation. She was lying under a rather small pile of debris. Bright sunlight was streaming in through the smashed window, aggravating her already splitting headache. It took her several microts to cognize what had happened, but the mere memory filled her with dread. Not only had she broken protocol, she had also destroyed a prowler, and-Where the frell were Teark and Carah?
She stumbled to her feet, somewhat clumsily, running her fingers through her hair. She could feel something sticky and half dry near her left temple and knew she had bled, but she also knew it was nothing serious. She also found her muscles were extremely stiff, but other than those to minor injuries she was intact. It was truly a shame she couldn't say the same for the prowler.
She called out Teark's name, then Carah's, thinking perhaps one of them had awakened before she had. When there was no reply she began to dig quickly through piles of rubble, not liking the thought of what she might find there. For nearly a sixth of an arn her search was fruitless, then she noticed a small red ravine flowing silently out of one of the piles. She lifted up a large hunk of dead mettle that had been part of the vessel's defense system up off the ground, revealing Carah's broken body.
She turned her head from the sight. She was used to blood, guts, and general gore, and even reveled in it if the entrails were those of her enemy, but the sight of Carah was simply too much. The girls face had almost completely collapsed under the weight of the debris, and her bulging stomach was wide open exposing her insides. Aeryn even thought she had seen a tiny hand before looking away. Silently she wondered if Carah's stomach had burst open like a bubble under the pressure. The thought made her sick; she turned her head to the side and vomited.
She had to force herself to continue her search for Teark. There was already a morbidly clear mental image of his handsome form lying prone, in a state similar to Carah's, forming in her mind. She knew if she were subjected to another site like the one she had just encountered she would be sick again.
Teark was found under another, much smaller pile of collapsed mettle. Aeryn couldn't help but wonder about how hard they had hit the planet's surface to do this much damage to the prowler. He was bleeding, but not profusely, and although the seriousness of his injuries could not be underestimated, he was alive and breathing. But Aeryn knew that if she didn't get him help he wouldn't be breathing much longer.
The communications systems were the only part of the prowler not completely destroyed. How ironically convenient, Aeryn observed, that she could use an instrument that was a component of the very thing that had gotten her into this mess, to call for help, for the person who had caused the situation.
****
"This is certainly not something I would have expected from you officer Sun." Aeryn could tell from her captains voice that he was very angry with her. She wanted to shrink back, to cringe away from him, but knew full well that any such action would be viewed as weakness. Instead she stood stiffly at full attention, avoiding his eyes the same way Carah had avoided hers. Erivil seemed frustrated by the fact that she didn't reply. "What exactly did you think you were doing?" He asked exasperated.
"I..." Aeryn paused, she had no clue what to say. She chose to be honest, "I wasn't exactly thinking at the time sir." Erivil seemed to sigh.
"Then what exactly was going on?" The anger in his voice was barely controlled, and his face was going slightly red. Aeryn realized she was going to have to give him an answer, but unsure exactly how.
"I-um-encountered an old acquaintance sir." She stopped, but when Erivil didn't say anything she knew she would have to continue, "A...friend who I used to know. He..."
"Forced you into the prowler?" Erivil asked. Aeryn shook her head in negation.
"No sir, I went on my own free will." Erivil frowned.
"Officer Sun, explain to me what possessed you to do such a thing!" Erivil exclaimed in exasperation.
"Teark!" Aeryn explained in equal exasperation, "He's my... I became emotionally attached to him before I knew any frelling better! Okay? He told me not to go and I did it!" Aeryn blanched. Not only had she just broken protocol and screamed at her superior officer, she had said something that would most likely incriminate Teark. Actually, a spiteful part of Aeryn was actually glad she had said something that could get Teark into trouble, he had after all been the one to get her into this mess in the first place.
"I apologize sir, that was out of line."
"Noted." Erivil's tone was still extremely serous, but now it was kinder, somewhat less intimidating, "Do you know what this little escapade of yours has caused?"
"The death of a woman who was carrying-"
"A very important child." Erivil finished her sentence for her. Aeryn was silent, hoping he would elaborate. He did not, and she knew better than to ask questions, especially considering her currant situation. However, there was one that needed to be asked.
"Sir," Aeryn began timidly, breaking the uncomfortable silence, "Will Teark be alright?" Her captains facial expression hardened again. He seemed about to dismiss her, but then for some strange reason he didn't. He began to move closer to her-very close. The were almost touching. She could feel his warm breath on her forehead as she stared up at him. She was tall, but he was much taller. His closeness even made it possible for her to smell him, a sweaty but not unpleasant odor. Aeryn had no idea what to do, so she merely stood still.
"He's fine." Erivil's voice surprised Aeryn. She had almost forgotten her question. "But you are not to be seeing him again."
"Thank you sir." Aeryn whispered, then tried to duck away from Erivil. He caught her head in his hand, almost tenderly tracing the line of her jaw with the rough pad of his thumb.
"You are very young." Erivil breathed.
"Yes sir." Aeryn tried to look away from him, but his hand held onto her face tightly.
"Inexperienced." He added. Aeryn didn't say a word. She thought she knew what he wanted, and although certainly intrigued by the prospect, what he had said was true. She was inexperienced. This whole situation was completely new to her. She wasn't sure she'd know what to do.
A thought crossed her mind. This situation was already completely out of her control. There was protocol to be obeyed and she had broken it. She realized he was giving her a second chance, a chance to salvage her career. The universe was not known for second chances, she would be a fool not to take this one.
He kissed her. It was that simple. There was very little emotion involved on her part with the exception of curiosity and an acute interest in detail. She was doing what her superior expected her to, like always.
His lips were warm and rough like sandpaper. She felt his warm toung tap briefly against her closed lips, like a hand knocking on a door, and she opened her mouth to let him in. The inside of his mouth didn't taste similar to any thing she had ever tasted before, but like his scent, it was not unpleasant. To Aeryn's surprise she was actually almost enjoying this. It was certainly a fascinating diversion.
His lips pulled away from hers and started to move down her neck. His hands moved up under her shirt, ever so slowly beginning to remove it. Then he stopped suddenly.
"Not here." He whispered, straitening himself. Aeryn did the same, smoothing out her clothing, and running a hand through her hair. Taking on an air of pseudo seriousness she followed her captain to his private quarters.
*****
Aeryn awakened in Captain Erivil's quarters. He lay fast asleep on his bed, the blankets pulled up slightly passed his waist. Aeryn climbed out of the left side of the bed silently, and gathered up her clothes from a heap on the floor. It took her a microt to separate her own simple apparel from Erivil's.
She observed her captains quarters as she dressed. She had never expected to see them! They were Spartan, almost obsessively so. There was a small shelf with a few necessary electronics, surrounded by gray walls and flooring. A few weapons, some of which Aeryn had never seen the like of before, were strapped to the wall, which was also adorned with a small view screen. There weren't any seats, but his bed was comfortable enough. Aeryn was in a position to know.
Captain Erivil seemed extremely attractive as he slept, more so than Aeryn remembered him ever being. His exposed arms and chest were muscular, but not overly so. It was covered in tiny ringlets of hair that were the same auburn color of that which was on his head. His face was not the only part of his body that was scared. A rather large white scar ran across the area of flesh that lay over his peripheral nerve. That wound must have been deep... and painful.
She traced the pail sliver of flesh with feather light fingers. Last night had certainly been interesting, although somewhat painful. He had seemed to enjoy it at the time, but already Aeryn was beginning to have doubts about her performance. Had she done it right?
Erivil's eyes shot open, and Aeryn jerked her hand away. He sat up in bed, and smiled briefly at her.
"Did you sleep well officer Sun?" He asked simply, as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He got up and began to dress. Aeryn didn't look away. It was nothing she hadn't seen before.
"Yes sir." She replied in kind. She gave him a faint smile which he returned.
"You'd better get going, or you'll be lat for conditioning, ensign." Aeryn nodded, and left the room obediently.
~~~~Notes: More coming very soon... If reviews are good enough.