1.1 Chapter TWO

"Why does this guy Scorpius want to talk to me?" Morgan asked.

Aeryn and Crichton sat around the table in Talyn's kitchen. Crais, as always, paced the room. The transponder at the back of his neck blinked in time with his steps. "Scorpius obviously believes you know something that your cousin does not. You are the only other human that we know of that has successfully traversed a wormhole," Crais answered.

Scorpius had given them three arns to hand over Morgan. Talyn had aimed all the firepower he had available on the cruiser, starting a standoff. Crichton looked at Morgan. "What did you do to trigger the wormhole?" He sipped the cup of coffee Morgan had made him, enjoying the flavor of the brew.

She shook her head. "Nothing. " She stood up and rubbed her temples. "All I did was take the Osiris out to the area you disappeared at. I started running some scans and tests and it didn't take long before something happened." She let her hands drop. "As a matter of fact, I don't remember what happened between the time the wormhole sucked me through to the time I woke on the Osiris after Crais and Talyn rescued the ship."

Crais had stopped pacing, one arm folded over his chest, his left hand tapping his lips in thought. "Crichton said you helped design the propulsion system on his Farscape module. Did you make any changes to the system on the Osiris?"

Morgan thought about it. "No. I used the same schematics John used when they built the Farscape."

"Something had to set the wormhole off," Aeryn commented. She looked at Crichton. "I can't believe you are at a loss for ideas."

Crichton shrugged. "I'm stumped, Aeryn." He looked back at Morgan. "You recorded everything that happened, right?" She nodded. "Maybe we can find something on the tapes. Crais, come on. I can use your unique point of view." The two men left the kitchen, leaving Morgan and Aeryn alone.

"Did you talk to Crais?" Aeryn asked quietly. She had noticed the tension between Morgan and the Captain, and was thankful Crichton hadn't.

Morgan regarded Aeryn for a moment, sitting across from her. "We talked briefly. He was insistent on knowing why I wanted his side of the story."

"What did he tell you?"

Morgan's eyes met Aeryn's. "He warned me that I might not like what I hear."

Aeryn's expression grew grim. "He's right, Morgan." She stood up. "Be wary of Crais. Both of us were at one time highly trained Peacekeepers and Crais was part of an elite group. He has his own agenda, but frell if any of us has figured out what it is." Aeryn left, leaving Morgan to consider her warning.



"There has got to be something here," Crichton mumbled to himself as he reviewed the Osiris' system logs. They had an arn left and he was not about to give Morgan up to Scorpius. For that matter, he wasn't about to let her set foot on the command deck as long as he was around.

Aeryn slipped into the shuttle. Crais was reviewing the anomaly logs. "Anything?"

Crais looked at her. "Not yet. Talyn and I have been comparing both incidents. So far, they are identical."

"I don't profess to know how this works, but that doesn't seem right," she commented.

"It's right if it's a stable wormhole," Crichton called. He walked from the cockpit. "And somehow, I don't think that's possible. Hell, it wasn't even possible on 'Star Trek'."

Crais leaned away from the monitor. "We have to keep Scorpius from taking anymore interest in this matter than he already has. Morgan can not be allowed to speak with him."

Crichton looked at him. "What's it to you? What's this sudden interest in Morgan's and my well-being?" He moved towards Crais.

"John, Crais is right. We need to get out of here, away from Scorpius," Aeryn interjected before the two men could start their usual arguing.

Morgan chose that moment to walk onto the shuttle. She saw Crichton and Crais squaring off and sighed. "Look, just tell this Scorpius to go fly a broom and get out of here. If Talyn can blow him to bits, why doesn't he just do it?"

The ship shuddered slightly around them as Morgan spoke. Crais looked at them. "Talyn has just broken orbit." He glanced at Morgan as he pushed his way down the ramp. The ship rocked as the cruiser fired on them. "Talyn, what are you doing?" The ship refused to answer Crais and he slid to a stop on the bridge. "Talyn, you must listen to me. This will not help any of us!"

A bolt of energy blew across Talyn's bow as the gunship initiated starburst, the star lines blurring around them. Crais went down to his knees, a scream escaping his lips as he blacked out.



"Where are we?" Crais asked. His voice was hoarse, his head throbbing. He couldn't feel Talyn and he reached back to the transponder.

"Looking for this?" Morgan asked, holding the other part of the transponder in her hand.

"What have you done?" Crais snapped, reaching for the transponder.

Morgan closed her hand around it. "Aeryn pulled it. Privacy mode, huh? I suppose you've been listening in on my conversations with my cousin," she commented, laying the transponder on the console. She turned back to Crais, a cool cloth in her hand. She sat on the bed, laying it on his head. "It'll help the headache."

Crais laid back on the bed. "I have not been eavesdropping on you, Morgan." He closed his eyes.

"Want to tell me what happened back there?"

Crais opened his eyes. "Talyn was.trying to.protect you."

Morgan nodded. "And he thought that by knocking you for a loop would help? He has a wicked sense of humor."

"Talyn is very stubborn and very strong. There.are times." Crais paused, closing his eyes. ".when he is too strong for me to control him."

"Crichton and Aeryn told me what happened the last time. Cybernetic feedback."

Crais nodded. "It is worse now than ever before."

Morgan leaned a knee on the bed. "Why?"

Crais struggled to sit up. He caught the cloth as it fell and gazed at Morgan. "Did Aeryn tell you what happened with her mother?"

"Part of it." Her expression was blank, showing no emotion as she waited.

Crais nodded, wishing he hadn't. "When I helped Talyn repair the damage she had caused, part of my psyche melded with his." He took Morgan's hand. "He.sensed that I wanted to.protect you." Crais let go of her hand, falling back onto the pillows.

Morgan took the cloth, rewetting it and laying it back on his forehead. "Get some rest. We'll discuss this later." She slipped out of Crais' quarters, heading for the bridge. She was bound and determined to converse with the stubborn gunship.



"What the frell is that noise?" Aeryn asked as she stepped from the shower out into the quarters she was sharing with Crichton.

"This? This is the Beatles." He looked at the CD case. "Morgan told me George Harrison died. I guess they'll never get back together now."

Aeryn sat on the bed, pulling her clothes on. Crichton pulled her against him before she got very far. "What are you doing?"

Crichton kissed the soft spot between her neck and shoulder. "Well, since we managed to flee from Harvey, I thought maybe we could just spend a bit of quiet time together. Whatcha think?"

Aeryn turned her head and kissed Crichton. "What about your cousin and Crais?" she asked between kisses.

"Captain Crunch is down for awhile, so Morgan should be fine." He pulled her back, shifting on the bed. "Besides, I think she's a bit annoyed with him." Crichton pulled his shirt off, leaning over Aeryn to lay a kiss on her stomach.

The Beatles sang about Strawberry Fields as Crichton and Aeryn made love, neither one of them noticing Morgan slipping past their quarters, the extra transponder she had found in Crais' quarters in her hand.



Morgan stood on the gunship's bridge, studying the consoles before her. "Cybernetic feedback, huh, Talyn? That's not very nice." The ship chirped at her. "Like I know what you're saying," she mumbled. She turned and sat down at one of the command consoles, her small toolkit opened up next to the transponder. "You know, I appreciate you wanting to help Crais protect me, but, as I keep telling everyone.oh, never mind. This is your part of the galaxy, not mine.yet."

She popped open the casing of the transponder, studying the internal workings. She had completed a degree in cybernetics, a little piece of information she hadn't had time to share with Crichton. "You know, if we tweak this system a little bit, the physical symptoms Bialar feels should be minimized substantially. How do you feel about that?" Talyn chirped again. Morgan looked up at the ceiling. "Okay, dim once for yes, twice for no." The lights dimmed once. "So then we are in agreement?" Talyn dipped the lights once again. "Good. If this works, then I can fix Bialar's too." The lights dimmed again.

A small DRD rolled in moments later, bumping against Morgan's foot. She looked down at it. "You want something don't you." The DRD backed up and bumped into her foot again. "Talyn, I take it this annoying little pest wants this transponder." The lights dimmed again. Morgan closed the case, confident that it would work. She stood up, following the little DRD. She looked up as she stood in the center of the bridge. "Aeryn made the mistake of telling me how this works. If my cousin was in here right now, he'd be having a conniption." Morgan handed the modified transponder to the DRD, sinking to her knees. "Talyn, I want you to promise me something. Promise me that you will never, ever, lie to me. Dim the lights once if you promise." There was no response at first. Morgan rested her hands on her hips and looked up. "Talyn, do you want me to stay here? With you and Bialar?" The lights dimmed once. "Then promise or I will leave." Talyn dimmed the lights again.

Morgan closed her eyes as the DRD rolled forward, bracing herself.

The Beatles sang Yellow Submarine as John and Aeryn rolled off the bed in the middle of making love.

Crais tossed in bed, dreaming.

Everything momentarily froze.

And then Morgan's scream echoed through the ship.



"She's coming around," Aeryn sighed with relief. She leaned back on her heels, gazing over Morgan's prone form at Crichton.

"It's about frellin' time." Crichton leaned his elbow on his knee, rubbing his face then cradling his chin between his thumb and forefinger. He heard movement behind him and quickly rose, stopping Crais.

"What has she done?" Crais yelled, his anger barely held in check. He pushed against Crichton.

"Easy Bialar. The last thing she needs is you blowing a gasket in her face," Crichton replied, holding the Captain back. He understood how Crais felt, but knew his cousin well enough to keep his mouth shut. Morgan wouldn't hesitate to argue and swing back.

Morgan sat up slowly, rubbing her shoulder where she had slammed into a console. She shook her head, holding out her hand to stand. Aeryn wrapped her arm around her, trying to steady Morgan as she stood, leaning her hands on her knees for a moment before straightening.

"Are you alright?" Aeryn asked, concern etched across her face.

A gentle smile spread across her face. "Yeah." She chuckled softly. "Yeah, I'm fine." She looked at Aeryn. "He's phenomenal."

Aeryn nodded knowingly. "I know."

"And you are incredibly stupid for doing what you just did," Crais snapped, breaking away from Crichton. He grabbed Morgan's arm, turning her to face him, his eyes boring into her.

Immediately, Talyn went on the defensive, dropping Crais to his knees, his hand still gripping Morgan's arm. "Talyn, stop it," she simply said. She used the neural link, blocking the signal the ship sent to Crais. Talyn retaliated, only to find the cybernetic feedback did not affect her.

Crais' grip on Morgan's arm loosened and he looked up at her. "What have you done?" he hissed through clenched teeth.

Morgan knelt down. "I blocked the feedback." Her blue eyes locked with Crais' in defiance. "We can still control Talyn, but he cannot control me." She reached around Crais' neck and plucked the removable transponder piece from its cradle. "Or you, once I'm done." She stood up, stepping over him, moving back to the console where her tools still sat. "Sulk all you want, Talyn. You can't always get your way," she replied to the gunship.

Crichton stepped up beside his cousin. "Since when did you know anything about cybernetic links?" he asked quietly.

Morgan glanced at Crais, who glared at her, watching as she rearranged the tools before her. She looked up at Crichton. "I finished my PhD in cybernetics three months ago. The Osiris was supposed to use links similar to this, but I couldn't get it finished in time." She opened the casing, making the same adjustments to Crais' neural link. Closing it, Morgan tossed it back to him and stalked off the bridge.

Aeryn leaned against the weapons console, staring down at Crais. "I think you have met your match."

"In a human, at that," Crichton added. "A female human."

Crais replaced the transponder, standing up and storming off the bridge without a word.

"Who's sulking now?" Crichton observed quietly. He shook his head. "Things are getting interesting around here." He rubbed his eyes, gazing at Aeryn. "Why? Why on Earth did Morgan do that? I just don't get it Aeryn."

Aeryn walked over to where Crichton was leaning, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Maybe you should ask her that." He started to move, but she held him still. "When she calms down."

Crichton looked at her and reluctantly nodded, pulling Aeryn into his arms.



And Crichton did exactly that. It took Morgan three days to calm down, refusing to talk to anybody, hiding in her quarters, only coming out long enough to eat or work on the Osiris, barely saying a word to anyone. Crais' mood wasn't much better, but he didn't go into hiding. Instead, he and Crichton kept working on the wormhole logs from Morgan's module. Aeryn worked on tweaking Talyn's systems, letting the Leviathan rest. Crichton waved his hand over the door panel to Morgan's quarters, expecting to have to pound his way in. Instead, the doors slid quietly open, Crichton's raised fist hanging in mid-air. He cautiously stepped in, looking around the dim room. "Morgan?"

The lights were so dim that at first he didn't see her. Sarah McLachlan played on the boom box sitting on a shelf over a console, softly repeating the song "Fear" over and over. "Mor?" he called again. A quiet sob made Crichton move forward and he found her on the floor, her head on her pulled up knees. The transponder blinked slowly and he knew she still had it in privacy mode. Crichton eased down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. He saw the picture hanging from her fingers and simply waited.

Morgan sniffed, wiping the tears from her puffy, red eyes. She looked at the picture and handed it to Crichton. "They loved you so much," she said.

He gazed down at the graduation picture of Morgan and himself, standing between her parents. They had both graduated with honors, PhD's in interrelated fields. "How are they?" he asked.

She sniffed. "Dead." She leaned her head back on the bed. "Everything has happened so fast around here and I have so much to tell you. And yet."

Crichton shifted to look at her. "What happened?"

She shook her head. "A freak accident. Air plane crash." She started crying again. "They were going on their second honeymoon."

Crichton looked back at the picture of his aunt and uncle, the pieces slowly starting to fit together. Morgan had been their only child and he was the closest thing to a brother she had. "You never intended on going home, did you?"

She shook her head. "No. All I wanted after they died was to find you. Uncle Jack helped out with getting the funding to build the Osiris. He knew John. He knew I wouldn't come home, but he never said a word, just kept on going." She picked another picture up from the box beside her. "This is for you. There is a whole box of letters for you in one of the containers from him." She wiped her face.

Crichton looked at the picture of his father. He looked old, the years he had been gone having taken it's toll on him. "When was this taken?"

"About two weeks ago." She leaned her head back again, rolling it to look at him. "He believed that I would find you. Uncle Jack said if anyone could, it would be me."

Morgan didn't realize that she had disengaged the privacy mode and Crais looked up as Talyn fed the conversation onto the bridge. His eyes met Aeryn's and they listened quietly.

"You remember that time I ran away from home? You told dad you could find me and led him right to me."

"Up in the tree house. God John, we were what? 5? 6?"

"Something like that. And when you ran away 'cause your parents didn't understand why you were so upset for being stood up for prom?"

"Yeah. You found me out on the old landing strip."

"Yup. Sitting up on top of the launch mooring."

Silence filtered through the comm and then Morgan spoke, her voice steadier.

"I know you're mad at me for doing this."

"Nothing I could've done to stop you. Why'd ya do it anyway?"

"I don't know. I.there's something about."

John sighed. "Crais?"

"Yeah. I guess you were right about me always liking the tall, dark, brooding and moody as hell types."

"Morgan, be careful. Crais is dangerous."

"I know." She snorted. "I know that even better now than before, but that's my choice John. And somebody should give him a chance. Like you gave Aeryn."

Aeryn looked at Crais, her hand going to her mouth. Crais sighed. "Talyn." The gunship stopped the feed.

Crichton pulled Morgan to him, his arm around her shoulders. "I know. Maybe the two of you will be good for each other."

Morgan leaned her head on Crichton's shoulder. "Or we'll kill each other."



Crichton held Aeryn tight beside him, his head cradled on his arm. He had told her about the conversation he and Morgan had. Aeryn listened quietly, never saying a word about hearing part of it, but hanging on every one of his. He wondered what had gotten into her, for she had been extremely affectionate and loving. Not that he was complaining. A smile spread on his lips and he kissed the top of her head, breathing in her soft scent. He opened his eyes and moaned.

"Hello John." Scorpius stood there in a pink bathrobe, mules and curlers.

"Harvey, buzz off. Don't you think you've done enough damage?"

Scorpius moved around the bed and sat next to Crichton. "Oh, I could do more. Your cousin is definitely interesting. She has something I want even more than the wormhole technology."

"And that would be?" Crichton asked suspiciously.

Scorpius laughed. "Now what fun would it be if I told you?" He stood up and walked away, his image shifting. He turned to face Crichton, this time in a slinky red negligee. "Although I would venture to say that she could get me out of your head for good." The neural clone disappeared, leaving Crichton shaking.

"Oh no. No. No. No. No. NO!" he yelled, sitting up.

Aeryn stirred beside him, leaning up on one elbow. "What's the matter?"

Crichton turned and looked at Aeryn. "Nothing. I.uh.I need to think." He leaned down and kissed her, pulling his t-shirt over his head and walking out of their quarters, pacing Talyn's corridors. "First the wormhole technology from me, now Morgan's cybernetic technology. This is just not our week."



Morgan stood outside of Crais' quarters, gazing at her distorted reflection as she debated whether or not she was ready to face him. She ignored Talyn's prompting, the ship wanting her to speak to Crais, sighing in annoyance when he opened the door. "Thanks, you pain in the ass," she grumbled as she walked in. She found Crais sitting at his desk. "So, find anyplace we can stop for a burger?" she asked, tucking her hands in her pockets and leaning on the edge of the desk.

Crais shut off the log he had been recording, slipping past Morgan. "What do you want Captain?"

Morgan's eyebrows rose. "A bit testy are we?"

"I don't.appreciate people messing with my ship," Crais responded. He slid the handful of data chips back into their respective slots, each one slamming into it's home a little harder than the one before it. He was not in the mood to deal with her.

Morgan crossed her arms, her own annoyance flaring. "Then you'd rather be incapacitated every time Talyn wants to buck your authority? Have it your way." She stood up, her cowboy boots clicking on the floor as she approached Crais, reaching for the transponder.

Crais whirled around, his hand closing around her wrist, exerting just enough pressure to make her flinch. "Ever since you showed up and I saw you, I." He clenched his teeth, his breathing heavy as he glared at her. He softened his tone. "Thank you."

Morgan stared at him, a small, satisfied smile on her face. "That was hard, wasn't it?" she goaded. "You just can't let down your guard and give up that Peacekeeper training, can you?"

"You have no idea what you are talking about," he hissed, releasing her wrist. "You wanted to know my side of the story," he said walking back to the desk, "then sit down and do what I tell you."

"I didn't come here to."

"SIT DOWN!" Crais pointed to the chair. Morgan walked back to the desk and sat down, Crais leaning over her shoulder. "Now, access Talyn's logs. Use the neural link." She took a breath and opened her mind to Talyn. "Since part of my psyche is there, in Talyn, you can see it through my eyes," he continued, his voice softening, his breath warm on her neck.

Morgan watched, sitting frozen as she learned of Crais' life. The harrowing training as a Peacekeeper and his quick rise to the position of Captain. His appointment as head of the Leviathan project. His anger at Crichton over his brother's death. His experience in the Aurora chair at Scorpius' hand. The day he stole and linked himself to Talyn. Everything. Everything she wanted to know about him, through his eyes, his experiences, his mind.

Crais stepped back, waiting, his hands clasped behind his back as he walked over to gaze out the viewport above his bed, giving Morgan time to absorb the information, knowing that what she saw, what Talyn showed her, was the unadulterated truth, in all it's cruelty, horror and pain.

Morgan stared at Crais, his back straight as he waited. She wasn't sure what to think other than the fact that she was growing fonder of him everyday. This was not going to change it. It just explained Crais. She joined him at the viewport. "John knows all of this?" she asked quietly.

"Yes." He saw her nod out of the corner of his eye. He turned towards her. "Morgan, you wanted to know. And I did warn."

Morgan faced him, holding her hand up, touching her fingers to his lips, shaking her head. Her blue eyes met his, soft and bright in the light. "Don't apologize to me for who you are or what you have done. I don't want it and I don't need it. " She paused. "I can accept you as you are, even if others can't. Maybe I'm just crazy. Maybe I understand. I don't know." She shrugged, turning back to look out at the sky.

Crais stared at her. He would never figure out humans. He leaned towards her, his lips brushing her cheek as he slowly pulled her towards him. She turned, their mouths meeting, Morgan laying her hands on his chest, letting down her guard. He moved his mouth over her face, his goatee tickling as he began to make his way down her neck. "Bialar?"

"Yes Morgan," he answered softly.

"What is that?"

Crais looked up and followed her gaze. "Frell!" He grabbed her hand, pulling her up the corridor. "Are you sure?"

"What is a Scarren?" Morgan asked, trying to keep up with him. She waved to Crichton as she took off into a run after Crais.

"Scarrens? Where?" Crichton yelled, following Morgan.

Aeryn peered out of their quarters, half-asleep. She strapped her belt on, following the others. By the time she reached the bridge, Crais and Morgan had already manned the consoles. "What in the frell is going on?"

"Talyn has picked up a Scarren dreadnaught about a half an arn out from us," Crais answered.

"Can we starburst?" Aeryn asked.

"Not without attracting it's attention," Crichton replied.

"Too late, guys," Morgan called. "It just saw us and is heading our way."

Crais looked at her. "Access the weapon's controls. Turn every frellin' gun on this ship in their direction and prepare to fire. Can you do that?"

Morgan nodded, turning back to the console. "Is Mickey a mouse?" she mumbled. She reached back, grasping the transponder, accessing the weapons array. She whistled. "Han Solo would've liked this ship."

The Scarren ship moved in on them quickly. Morgan got off one shot, the dreadnaught firing back, rocking Talyn as the young Leviathan banked to move away. The dreadnaught hit again. "Shit! They got the main gun!" She turned back to Crais, but he was no help. It was all he could do to control Talyn.

Crais' eyes snapped open. "Crichton!"

Crichton and the others turned towards Crais. "What's the matter?"

"I don't know. I can't move." His hand clutched at his chest, the pain crossing his face.

Crichton looked at Morgan. "Is Talyn doing that?"

"No. It's an outside source."

Aeryn looked at Crichton as Crais began to glow red.

"Crais!" Morgan yelled as his body began to slowly fade. Crichton held her back, keeping his cousin from jumping into the hot, red light that had enveloped the Captain. "Let me go."

"No." Crais disappeared, leaving them standing there, staring. "You need to control Talyn."

"The dreadnaught is moving away," Aeryn reported.

Crichton double-checked the console, letting go of Morgan who moved to where Crais had disappeared. She reached out with Talyn's sensors. "He's still alive," she said softly.

Aeryn turned towards her. "What just happened?"

Crichton and Morgan glanced at each other. "Scotty just beamed the Captain up."

Copyright 2001 Beth A. Carpenter