Chapter One
Commander John Crichton paced Talyn's corridors in frustration, the buzzing in the back of his head growing louder and more insistent. He glanced at the bridge doors, not daring to even try and gain access. He wasn't stepping one foot on the bridge until things settled down. Crais was in a foul mood, his cousin Morgan in an even fouler one, and Aeryn was trying to mediate between the two. Crichton leaned against the bulkhead, his eyes closed as he let himself slide down the side to land on the floor. He hung his head between his arms as he pulled up his knees and propped them there. The last time the buzzing had bothered him like this was almost a cycle ago, the day Morgan appeared in the Uncharted Territories.
Crichton leaned his chin on his upper arm, staring at the doors, the muffled voices rising and falling. Once again, he and Aeryn found themselves stranded on Talyn when a Peacekeeper retrieval squad came calling. And once again, they had no idea where Moya and the others were. He moaned in aggravation, banging his head on the bulkhead until he finally had had enough. In one smooth move, Crichton was up and marching to the bridge, waving his hand over the panel. To his surprise, the doors opened and he stepped inside.
"Five minutes ago you thought it was a good idea and so did Talyn!" Morgan yelled as Crichton stepped in.
"That was before we analyzed the amount of time and resources it would take to run the conduits." Crais threw his hands up, pointing to the ceiling. "It is not feasible Morgan!"
Morgan stepped up to him, her hands on her hips. Crichton gazed at his cousin, noticing for the first time the changes in her since she had arrived. Gone were her blue jeans, a pair of Peacekeeper leathers encasing her legs, a simple black tank top and military boots completing the ensemble. Aeryn's doing, he thought to himself. He looked at the muscles in her arms, knowing that she had not been someone to mess with on Earth, let alone now. Crais' doing, he begrudgingly admitted. Her hair had grown long enough to pull up in a ponytail and the transponder blinked at the base of her neck. He looked at Crais. The Captain's hair was unbound, his uniform jacket open, almost casual. Morgan's doing.
"It is feasible, you stubborn jackass. And if all of us work on it, with the DRD's, we can get it done in less than a week," she snapped, poking Crais in the chest.
Crichton caught a glimpse of blue from the viewport. "Hey guys?" he said, moving towards them.
"Where do you propose we go for a week where the Peacekeepers will not find us?" he responded, gazing down at her, his eyes hard as he caught her wrist in one hand.
"Guys?" Crichton said a little louder, glancing at Aeryn. She shrugged, folding her arms and shaking her head in defeat.
"Zorosa 3. Shantar told you…" Morgan stated, jerking her hand free.
"No! Out of the question!" Crais yelled. "We will not…"
Crichton sighed and raised his fingers to his lips, whistling long and loud, ending Crais' tirade before it could get started.
Morgan and Crais both looked at Crichton, eyes flashing, tempers still flaring. "What?!" they snapped in unison.
"Wormhole," he answered.
Crais looked at him, blinking once. "Crichton, what are you blathering about?"
Crichton pointed towards Talyn's viewport, stepping between Morgan and her lover. "Worm. Hole." He emphasized each word.
Aeryn, Crais and Morgan all turned to look at where Crichton was pointing. Sure enough, a bright blue wormhole twisted and spun in the blackness of space metras from the gunship's bow.
And in the middle of it was Earth.
"Um, John?" Morgan said quietly, leaning towards her cousin. She pointed at a dark spot moving just inside the outer edge of the wormhole. "What is that?"
Both men squinted at the shape as Morgan moved over to Talyn's propulsion system. "Talyn, identify," Crais called, stepping back to the center of the bridge. The gunship chirped and Morgan spun around to look at Crais, her eyes wide in horror.
"You have got to be kidding me," she said, turning back, her eyes locked on the wormhole.
"What?" Aeryn looked back and forth between the two of them. "What is it?"
"It…is a Scarren dreadnaught," Crais answered, his eyes locking with Crichton's.
"We have to destroy that thing before it can get any further into the wormhole," Morgan declared, her hands flying over Talyn's propulsion system. The gunship burst forward, picking up speed, trying to close the distance between the dreadnaught and them.
"We do not have enough firepower to destroy it," Aeryn answered. She gazed at Morgan, wondering what she was thinking.
Morgan's eyes had narrowed as she watched the dreadnaught. She looked at Crichton, raising a single brown eyebrow.
"No, but we can follow it," Crichton answered, picking up on Morgan's train of thought.
"Are you insane?" Crais demanded. He stared at Morgan, expecting her to back him up.
Morgan's eyes locked with his, determination filling their blue depths. "Talyn, analyze that wormhole. Is it natural or did the Scarren's create it?" she called. It didn't take long for the gunship to answer. Morgan tilted her head at Crais, her hands on her hips, her chin raised in quiet challenge.
"Talyn! Pursue the dreadnaught!" he commanded.
"Somebody want to clue us in here?" Crichton asked as he stepped over to man the weapons console. Aeryn took a place at the system's console, while Morgan returned to propulsion.
"The wormhole was created by the Scarrens. Somehow they unlocked the technology," Crais replied, stepping up to join Morgan.
Aeryn and Crichton looked at each other, then at Crais. "Furlough!" they all said.
Morgan peered around Crais, her eyebrows drawn down in confusion. "Furlough?"
"I'll explain it later," Crichton said, wondering how he was going to tell her about the run in Aeryn, Crais and other Crichton had with the infamous Furlough without telling her about his 'twin'. He watched as the wormhole grew closer, Talyn picking up speed. "Here we go again," he said under his breath.
"Oh man, I hate this part." Morgan closed her eyes against the bright glow of the wormhole, leaning against Crais.
The spirals engulfed Talyn, drawing the gunship in, sucking them back to the Milky Way, back to the Terran solar system and the planet Earth.
Kira Preston glanced at the monitor and paused, her eyes squinting at the blip that showed up on her radar. She tapped the screen, watching as the line made it's way around the screen. There it was again. "Hey DK. Check this out," she called, waving to her partner. She tapped a few keys, enlarging the image on the monitor. She leaned back in her chair, a satisfied grin on her face.
DK leaned over her shoulder, the green screen reflecting on his face. Kira placed a soft kiss on his cheek as he stared in shock. "Holy mother of…what is it?"
Kira looked up at him and laughed. "Now, if I had the answer to that, would I have called you? My guess is that it's a UFO." They watched as a second blip joined the first, much farther behind. "This is fucked up," Kira hissed, tapping the keys.
DK turned and hurried back to his own console. "Yeah, well, this is Roswell, New Mexico. What'd you expect?" he replied nervously. He adjusted his own screen to watch the mysterious blips. One was moving faster than the other, heading straight towards Earth. His stomach quivered. Rattlesnakes, that's what Crichton called them. Crichton. What made him think of his best friend, gone almost four and a half years? He looked up at the calendar. Morgan had been gone almost a year. "Kira, turn the dishes and block the signal," he called, the rattlers growing.
Kira looked at him, her brown eyes narrowed. "Are you nuts? This is the first…"
"Just do it! I have a hunch!"
Kira shrugged, typing in the command, watching as the huge ground-based dishes began to move. The blips disappeared. She turned in her chair and walked over to DK. "A hunch?" She ran her fingers through her hair. "The last time you had a hunch, Crichton…" She stopped, staring at DK.
DK's eyes met hers and he nodded. "Yeah." He cranked up the radio transponder. "Do me a favor. Get on the phone to Jack."
Crichton and Morgan stood together staring as the spinning blue orb before them. The dreadnaught had fallen back, hiding in the shadows of Jupiter. Morgan had taken Talyn to Earth's moon, using it to keep out of both Earth's and the Scarren's sensor range, but staying just at the edge of Talyn's own systems, the gunship keeping a close watch on the Scarrens.
Crichton rubbed his chin. "I have been dreaming of this," he whispered, leaning his arms on the viewport ledge.
Morgan crossed her arms, her feet planted firmly apart. "Minus the dreadnaught I hope." Her face was serious, concern etched across it. Talyn had taken a beating coming through the wormhole and it was taking everything in her and Crais' power to keep him going.
Crichton looked at her. "Yeah. Minus the dreadnaught." He turned away from the view of Earth, leaning against the bulkhead. "Although, I expected to come home in something other than a Peacekeeper hybrid Leviathan gunship."
Morgan smiled, turning away. "Well, you can't have everything, can you?"
"Says who?" Crichton asked indignantly.
Aeryn looked up at them smiling. "So, what is the plan?" she asked as Crichton stepped up to stand next to her.
"Determine why Talyn is losing power," Crais replied as he strode onto the bridge. He looked at the three of them. "We will not be able to maintain orbit for more than 10 arns."
Morgan walked over to the system's console, gazing at the reading displayed on the clamshell in front of them. She bit her upper lip in thought, catching her lip in her teeth for a brief moment. "This is not good," she said quietly.
Crais glanced at her, taking in her profile in the soft bridge lights. "Talyn and I concur that you were correct in your initial damage assessment." His voice rang softly in her head.
Morgan nodded, glancing quickly at Aeryn and Crichton. She had modified the transponders after their little escapade on Zorosa 3, allowing them to broadcast their thoughts through Talyn and eliminating the need for verbal communication during emergencies. The idea had come to her when the Scarrens had captured Crais, when she had displayed a brief moment of hysterics when she had mentally experienced her lover's torture. It was a good thing too, for it had already helped them get out of a few tight jams. "You just can't stand it when I'm right," she thought back, looking at Crais smugly.
Aeryn turned to them. "The power fluxes are worsening," she observed. "Can we safely land on Earp?" She had said it on purpose, trying to draw Morgan back into the conversation, knowing that the human was mentally sparring with Crais.
"Earth," Crichton and Morgan corrected at the same time.
"Earth then," Aeryn commented, a smile tugging at her lips.
Morgan rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Sure, if you don't mind Talyn being dissected by an international science convention."
Crichton's eyes lit up. "Roswell," he remarked, snapping his fingers as he turned to look at his cousin. He smiled. "Roswell, New Mexico."
Morgan's eyes grew as wide as quarters. "The back up plan. ET capital of the world," she laughed, slapping Crichton's hand in a high five. She noticed the confused looks on Crais and Aeryn's faces as they stepped closer to each other, arms crossed, looking almost like a Peacekeeper recruitment poster. "Trust us. You're on our old stomping ground now."
Jack Crichton looked over the data sheets, an expression of utter shock mixed with slight hope on his tan face. "Are you sure?" He glanced at DK, the wind whipping his white hair. "I mean, it could just be a glitch in the system."
"Honestly, sir, no, I'm not sure. But it's as good a…" DK paused, looking out over the desert. Something had flashed just within the canyon's entrance, but the sun caused heat waves to dance across the sparsely vegetated area and he wasn't sure if what he saw was real.
"DK! We've got incoming!" Kira called, running out of the complex's main building.
Both men looked at Kira, turning to follow her pointing hand. The flash was back, moving fast through the canyon. DK and Kira, with help from Jack, had set up the listening and observation post shortly after Crichton had disappeared. No debris had been found from Crichton's Farscape module or from Morgan's Osiris shuttle. And the three of them refused to believe that the cousin's were dead. They watched as the unidentified flying object moved towards them.
"DK, get the rifles," Jack commented quietly as they watched the UFO disappear, only to reappear as it made the last turn in the canyon. It glided across the desert before them, moving faster than any human ship could possibly travel. Kira and Jack looked at each other and quickly turned to move back into the building as the ship closed the distance.
"Are you sure this is the right place?" Crais asked again, squinting against the bright light that was reflected off the sand below them.
"Yup." Crichton looked at the ex-Peacekeeper. "Look, DK and I always said that if anything happened, this is where we'd meet. I know DK. This is the right place."
Crais looked at him again, his arms folded across his chest. "We will see."
Morgan sighed, stomping her foot on the deck in annoyance. "Cut it out! Both of you! I am sick of this constant bickering!" she demanded. She turned back to the viewport, guiding Talyn through the last canyon turn and out into the open. The buildings grew closer, the huge ground based satellite dishes silent beacons in the sun of mid-day.
"Why don't you both be useful and get some gear together while Morgan and Talyn land? Just in case," Aeryn suggested. She grabbed a handful of Crais' jacket and one edge of Crichton's vest, pushing them through the bridge doors.
Crais stared at the closed doors, waving his hand over the panel. "Talyn! Open the door!" He waved his hand over the panel again, banging one hand on the door when it didn't open. "Talyn!"
"C'mon, Crais. She's not going to let him open the door," Crichton commented, grabbing Crais' arm and pulling him up the corridor.
The Captain glanced back, wrenching his arm from Crichton's grasp. "Your cousin just locked me out of the bridge of my own gunship," he hissed in protest.
Crichton laughed, tossing him a knapsack and pulse pistol. "Yup. Women. Can't live with them, can't shoot them."
Crais looked down at the pulse pistol in his hand, momentarily contemplating the weapon before holstering it. "Oh, I assure you I can. Especially her."
Crichton smiled at him. "Shoot her later. We've got work to do."
Morgan and Crichton slowly walked down Talyn's ramp, pulse pistols in their hands as they warily looked around the complex. The weather was warm and mild, comfortable for both human and Sebacean. Talyn's bulk provided some shade, his shadow stretching across the sand. They paused as the door to the building slowly opened and instinctively, Crichton and Morgan raised the pulse pistols in their hands. "Here we go," Morgan whispered.
Crais stepped up beside her, his own pistol drawn and aimed. "Let's hope they are your friends," he commented. He heard the whir of mechanical parts moving as Talyn turned his cannons, aiming it at the building. "Stand fast Talyn." Crais watched as three humans walked from the building, two of them carrying what looked like weapons. He cocked his head, recognizing the older human. "Jack Crichton," he remarked.
The sun was in Jack's eyes and he squinted, holding his arm up to shield them. "Who are you?" he called. "What do you want?"
Morgan swallowed past the lump in her throat, laying a gentle hand on Crais' arm as she holstered her pulse pistol. Crichton walked forward, his hands held out, a huge grin on his face. "I want you to take me to your leader. I want you to find me a beer and a pizza and let me sit down to watch a football game."
"John?" Jack said hesitantly.
"I want to know why you ever let Morgan come looking for me," Crichton finished as he stepped up to his father, his voice cracking with emotion.
"She really found you." Jack looked at his son in shock, pulling him into his arms and hugging him tightly. "By god, she actually found you."
"Yeah Dad. She found me." He looked over his shoulder at Aeryn's footsteps crunching on the sand. He noticed Morgan still standing at the bottom of the ramp, Crais beside her. "She's with me," he said, turning back to look at his father.
Crais noticed the stiffness of Morgan's back and he laid his hand on her shoulder. "What is the matter?"
She shook her head, sighing, turning to look up at him. "This scares me more than that Scarren dreadnaught." Morgan smiled softly.
Crais nodded, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, kissing her forehead in an unusual public display of affection. "Come. This is your family. You have no reason to be scared," he playfully scolded in a soft voice. They heard Crichton explain the translator microbes and patiently waited as the small DRD Aeryn had carried off of Talyn do its job, the little bio- mechanoid chirping irritably as it rolled through the sand back up the gunship's ramp.
A young woman with sandy brown hair came running up to them, grabbing Morgan in a hug. "Morgan!" Kira yelled. "Thank god you're safe!"
Morgan hugged her best friend, the two women rocking back and forth as they fought back tears. "Yeah. We both are."
Kira stepped back to study Morgan for a moment. "Man you look good!" She gazed at Crais. "Who's this?"
Morgan turned back to her lover, grabbing his arm and pulling him forward. "Kira, this is Bialar Crais. The ship is his."
"Ours," he corrected, glancing down at Morgan.
"Ours."
"Yours?" Kira questioned, pointing to the gunship. She nodded, a smile growing on her face. "Uh-huh. And I'm sure Morgan is yours too."
"Kira!" Morgan laughed.
"What? Uh, Don't even try to deny it," she said, holding out her hand, palm facing Morgan.
"You're still a brat," Morgan remarked as they walked towards the others.
"Yeah well, you're still a bitch, but I won't hold that against you," Kira laughed as Morgan pushed her.
Jack turned at his niece's laughter, watching the young woman walk up to him. She had definitely improved since she had left, her attitude much better than the depression she had been in. "You said you would find him. And you were right." He opened his arms, hugging his niece to him.
Morgan finally let the tears slide down her face as she pulled Crichton into the embrace. "I promised you I would."
Morgan and John had spent the rest of the day and half the night telling their family of the exploits in the Uncharted Territories. Jack, DK and Kira listened intently as the night grew cooler. Of course, Morgan and John left out certain details, such as the neural clone, and Crichton's twin. And Morgan's neural transponder. The questions flew at them faster than they could answer them and Aeryn and Crais were both surprised at they way they calmly explained the situation that led them back through the wormhole to Earth.
They had hidden Talyn in an old military hangar on the complex, just big enough to accommodate the growing Leviathan comfortably. The elder Crichton and Kira had toured Talyn, DK keeping an eye out for any intruders. They were astonished at the Leviathan, excited and mildly frightened by the living ship.
It was to Crais' surprise that he found Morgan already running a system's analysis early the next morning. She had crawled into bed exhausted, asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. He listened quietly as Morgan and Talyn conversed. She had an easy report with the gunship, a report that even he did not have. The only other person he had seen speak to Talyn so easily had been Aeryn.
"I know, my friend. We'll get it fixed and solve the Scarren problem and head home. I promise," she replied to Talyn. Morgan smiled. "Yes Talyn. I am sure Bialar is as concerned as we are, but you know how he is. Rest, okay?" The gunship chirped softly.
Crais leaned his frame in the doorway, one hand propped on the bulkhead. "This is your home, Morgan," Crais remarked softly.
Morgan turned at his voice. He noticed the notebook and pen in her hand, wondering what she was writing. He still could not comprehend the complicated language Morgan and Crichton referred to as English and he gave up trying. Morgan moved over to the propulsion system, jotting down another note. "Nope. Not since I met you. My home is here on Talyn, you know that." She looked at him, surprised to see him out of uniform, his muscular arms bare in the soft lights of the bridge. His hair brushed his shoulders in waves that Terran women would be jealous of. A smile lit her face and she licked her lips. "Damn," she whispered in admiration.
Crais smiled as he approached her. "Then…you are not planning on remaining here?" he asked.
Morgan laid the notebook and pen on a console, turning to face Crais. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he pulled her into his arms. "Do you want me to? Tired of me already?" she whispered.
Crais shook his head, his eyes boring into hers. "No. But…if that is your desire, then Talyn and I will remain here with you." He pulled her up against him, trapping her between the console and his body.
"Bialar, you're from a space faring race. You'd be grounded here and miserable. And Talyn…" She raised her eyebrows, a sad expression on her face as she silently shook her head. "I'd rather be running from the Peacekeepers and the Scarrens, exploring the Uncharted Territories, than do that to either one of you." Her face was set in lines of determination. "I'm going back with you and nothing will change my mind."
"Then…we are in agreement." His lips met hers in a passionate kiss.
"I can come back later," Kira said from the doorway, a teasing grin on her face. She wondered just what Morgan and her lover were in agreement about and made a mental note to herself to ask.
Morgan leaned her forehead on Crais' chest, sighing. "Her timing is as impeccable as always," she whispered.
"Huh? What? What about my timing?" Kira asked, her eyebrows shooting up only to be lost by the unruly bangs that curled on her forehead. She looked at Morgan questioningly.
"Nothing Kira." Morgan turned from Crais, picking up her pen and quickly jotting down another note in the book, clearing the panel. "You and DK have friends around here where we can get some supplies?" she asked, leaning around Crais to peer at another panel.
Kira laid her equipment bag down, gazing around the bridge. She noticed Crais' arm still circling Morgan's waist possessively, his brown eyes following her every move. "What kind of supplies?"
"Conduit. Wires. Electrical dren…shi…stuff," Morgan answered, turning to face her friend, catching herself. She had to remember where she was and that not everything would translate properly.
"Yeah. How much?" Kira propped her hands on her hips.
"Enough to sufficiently rewire Talyn," Crais responded as he turned from checking the gunship's power levels.
Kira's eyes almost popped out in surprise. "He's kidding, right?" she said, pointing at Crais.
Crais folded his hands behind his back, staring at Kira haughtily. "No. I am serious."
Morgan suppressed at smile. "Crais doesn't kid," she commented, taking Kira's arm, leading her off the bridge. "I'll be back in a few arns."
"Arns?" Kira asked, looking at Morgan.
Crais shook his head, listening to Morgan explain the concept of an arn. He turned back to the console, watching the power levels rise and fall drastically, the display very disturbing.
Copyright 2002 Beth A. Carpenter
Commander John Crichton paced Talyn's corridors in frustration, the buzzing in the back of his head growing louder and more insistent. He glanced at the bridge doors, not daring to even try and gain access. He wasn't stepping one foot on the bridge until things settled down. Crais was in a foul mood, his cousin Morgan in an even fouler one, and Aeryn was trying to mediate between the two. Crichton leaned against the bulkhead, his eyes closed as he let himself slide down the side to land on the floor. He hung his head between his arms as he pulled up his knees and propped them there. The last time the buzzing had bothered him like this was almost a cycle ago, the day Morgan appeared in the Uncharted Territories.
Crichton leaned his chin on his upper arm, staring at the doors, the muffled voices rising and falling. Once again, he and Aeryn found themselves stranded on Talyn when a Peacekeeper retrieval squad came calling. And once again, they had no idea where Moya and the others were. He moaned in aggravation, banging his head on the bulkhead until he finally had had enough. In one smooth move, Crichton was up and marching to the bridge, waving his hand over the panel. To his surprise, the doors opened and he stepped inside.
"Five minutes ago you thought it was a good idea and so did Talyn!" Morgan yelled as Crichton stepped in.
"That was before we analyzed the amount of time and resources it would take to run the conduits." Crais threw his hands up, pointing to the ceiling. "It is not feasible Morgan!"
Morgan stepped up to him, her hands on her hips. Crichton gazed at his cousin, noticing for the first time the changes in her since she had arrived. Gone were her blue jeans, a pair of Peacekeeper leathers encasing her legs, a simple black tank top and military boots completing the ensemble. Aeryn's doing, he thought to himself. He looked at the muscles in her arms, knowing that she had not been someone to mess with on Earth, let alone now. Crais' doing, he begrudgingly admitted. Her hair had grown long enough to pull up in a ponytail and the transponder blinked at the base of her neck. He looked at Crais. The Captain's hair was unbound, his uniform jacket open, almost casual. Morgan's doing.
"It is feasible, you stubborn jackass. And if all of us work on it, with the DRD's, we can get it done in less than a week," she snapped, poking Crais in the chest.
Crichton caught a glimpse of blue from the viewport. "Hey guys?" he said, moving towards them.
"Where do you propose we go for a week where the Peacekeepers will not find us?" he responded, gazing down at her, his eyes hard as he caught her wrist in one hand.
"Guys?" Crichton said a little louder, glancing at Aeryn. She shrugged, folding her arms and shaking her head in defeat.
"Zorosa 3. Shantar told you…" Morgan stated, jerking her hand free.
"No! Out of the question!" Crais yelled. "We will not…"
Crichton sighed and raised his fingers to his lips, whistling long and loud, ending Crais' tirade before it could get started.
Morgan and Crais both looked at Crichton, eyes flashing, tempers still flaring. "What?!" they snapped in unison.
"Wormhole," he answered.
Crais looked at him, blinking once. "Crichton, what are you blathering about?"
Crichton pointed towards Talyn's viewport, stepping between Morgan and her lover. "Worm. Hole." He emphasized each word.
Aeryn, Crais and Morgan all turned to look at where Crichton was pointing. Sure enough, a bright blue wormhole twisted and spun in the blackness of space metras from the gunship's bow.
And in the middle of it was Earth.
"Um, John?" Morgan said quietly, leaning towards her cousin. She pointed at a dark spot moving just inside the outer edge of the wormhole. "What is that?"
Both men squinted at the shape as Morgan moved over to Talyn's propulsion system. "Talyn, identify," Crais called, stepping back to the center of the bridge. The gunship chirped and Morgan spun around to look at Crais, her eyes wide in horror.
"You have got to be kidding me," she said, turning back, her eyes locked on the wormhole.
"What?" Aeryn looked back and forth between the two of them. "What is it?"
"It…is a Scarren dreadnaught," Crais answered, his eyes locking with Crichton's.
"We have to destroy that thing before it can get any further into the wormhole," Morgan declared, her hands flying over Talyn's propulsion system. The gunship burst forward, picking up speed, trying to close the distance between the dreadnaught and them.
"We do not have enough firepower to destroy it," Aeryn answered. She gazed at Morgan, wondering what she was thinking.
Morgan's eyes had narrowed as she watched the dreadnaught. She looked at Crichton, raising a single brown eyebrow.
"No, but we can follow it," Crichton answered, picking up on Morgan's train of thought.
"Are you insane?" Crais demanded. He stared at Morgan, expecting her to back him up.
Morgan's eyes locked with his, determination filling their blue depths. "Talyn, analyze that wormhole. Is it natural or did the Scarren's create it?" she called. It didn't take long for the gunship to answer. Morgan tilted her head at Crais, her hands on her hips, her chin raised in quiet challenge.
"Talyn! Pursue the dreadnaught!" he commanded.
"Somebody want to clue us in here?" Crichton asked as he stepped over to man the weapons console. Aeryn took a place at the system's console, while Morgan returned to propulsion.
"The wormhole was created by the Scarrens. Somehow they unlocked the technology," Crais replied, stepping up to join Morgan.
Aeryn and Crichton looked at each other, then at Crais. "Furlough!" they all said.
Morgan peered around Crais, her eyebrows drawn down in confusion. "Furlough?"
"I'll explain it later," Crichton said, wondering how he was going to tell her about the run in Aeryn, Crais and other Crichton had with the infamous Furlough without telling her about his 'twin'. He watched as the wormhole grew closer, Talyn picking up speed. "Here we go again," he said under his breath.
"Oh man, I hate this part." Morgan closed her eyes against the bright glow of the wormhole, leaning against Crais.
The spirals engulfed Talyn, drawing the gunship in, sucking them back to the Milky Way, back to the Terran solar system and the planet Earth.
Kira Preston glanced at the monitor and paused, her eyes squinting at the blip that showed up on her radar. She tapped the screen, watching as the line made it's way around the screen. There it was again. "Hey DK. Check this out," she called, waving to her partner. She tapped a few keys, enlarging the image on the monitor. She leaned back in her chair, a satisfied grin on her face.
DK leaned over her shoulder, the green screen reflecting on his face. Kira placed a soft kiss on his cheek as he stared in shock. "Holy mother of…what is it?"
Kira looked up at him and laughed. "Now, if I had the answer to that, would I have called you? My guess is that it's a UFO." They watched as a second blip joined the first, much farther behind. "This is fucked up," Kira hissed, tapping the keys.
DK turned and hurried back to his own console. "Yeah, well, this is Roswell, New Mexico. What'd you expect?" he replied nervously. He adjusted his own screen to watch the mysterious blips. One was moving faster than the other, heading straight towards Earth. His stomach quivered. Rattlesnakes, that's what Crichton called them. Crichton. What made him think of his best friend, gone almost four and a half years? He looked up at the calendar. Morgan had been gone almost a year. "Kira, turn the dishes and block the signal," he called, the rattlers growing.
Kira looked at him, her brown eyes narrowed. "Are you nuts? This is the first…"
"Just do it! I have a hunch!"
Kira shrugged, typing in the command, watching as the huge ground-based dishes began to move. The blips disappeared. She turned in her chair and walked over to DK. "A hunch?" She ran her fingers through her hair. "The last time you had a hunch, Crichton…" She stopped, staring at DK.
DK's eyes met hers and he nodded. "Yeah." He cranked up the radio transponder. "Do me a favor. Get on the phone to Jack."
Crichton and Morgan stood together staring as the spinning blue orb before them. The dreadnaught had fallen back, hiding in the shadows of Jupiter. Morgan had taken Talyn to Earth's moon, using it to keep out of both Earth's and the Scarren's sensor range, but staying just at the edge of Talyn's own systems, the gunship keeping a close watch on the Scarrens.
Crichton rubbed his chin. "I have been dreaming of this," he whispered, leaning his arms on the viewport ledge.
Morgan crossed her arms, her feet planted firmly apart. "Minus the dreadnaught I hope." Her face was serious, concern etched across it. Talyn had taken a beating coming through the wormhole and it was taking everything in her and Crais' power to keep him going.
Crichton looked at her. "Yeah. Minus the dreadnaught." He turned away from the view of Earth, leaning against the bulkhead. "Although, I expected to come home in something other than a Peacekeeper hybrid Leviathan gunship."
Morgan smiled, turning away. "Well, you can't have everything, can you?"
"Says who?" Crichton asked indignantly.
Aeryn looked up at them smiling. "So, what is the plan?" she asked as Crichton stepped up to stand next to her.
"Determine why Talyn is losing power," Crais replied as he strode onto the bridge. He looked at the three of them. "We will not be able to maintain orbit for more than 10 arns."
Morgan walked over to the system's console, gazing at the reading displayed on the clamshell in front of them. She bit her upper lip in thought, catching her lip in her teeth for a brief moment. "This is not good," she said quietly.
Crais glanced at her, taking in her profile in the soft bridge lights. "Talyn and I concur that you were correct in your initial damage assessment." His voice rang softly in her head.
Morgan nodded, glancing quickly at Aeryn and Crichton. She had modified the transponders after their little escapade on Zorosa 3, allowing them to broadcast their thoughts through Talyn and eliminating the need for verbal communication during emergencies. The idea had come to her when the Scarrens had captured Crais, when she had displayed a brief moment of hysterics when she had mentally experienced her lover's torture. It was a good thing too, for it had already helped them get out of a few tight jams. "You just can't stand it when I'm right," she thought back, looking at Crais smugly.
Aeryn turned to them. "The power fluxes are worsening," she observed. "Can we safely land on Earp?" She had said it on purpose, trying to draw Morgan back into the conversation, knowing that the human was mentally sparring with Crais.
"Earth," Crichton and Morgan corrected at the same time.
"Earth then," Aeryn commented, a smile tugging at her lips.
Morgan rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Sure, if you don't mind Talyn being dissected by an international science convention."
Crichton's eyes lit up. "Roswell," he remarked, snapping his fingers as he turned to look at his cousin. He smiled. "Roswell, New Mexico."
Morgan's eyes grew as wide as quarters. "The back up plan. ET capital of the world," she laughed, slapping Crichton's hand in a high five. She noticed the confused looks on Crais and Aeryn's faces as they stepped closer to each other, arms crossed, looking almost like a Peacekeeper recruitment poster. "Trust us. You're on our old stomping ground now."
Jack Crichton looked over the data sheets, an expression of utter shock mixed with slight hope on his tan face. "Are you sure?" He glanced at DK, the wind whipping his white hair. "I mean, it could just be a glitch in the system."
"Honestly, sir, no, I'm not sure. But it's as good a…" DK paused, looking out over the desert. Something had flashed just within the canyon's entrance, but the sun caused heat waves to dance across the sparsely vegetated area and he wasn't sure if what he saw was real.
"DK! We've got incoming!" Kira called, running out of the complex's main building.
Both men looked at Kira, turning to follow her pointing hand. The flash was back, moving fast through the canyon. DK and Kira, with help from Jack, had set up the listening and observation post shortly after Crichton had disappeared. No debris had been found from Crichton's Farscape module or from Morgan's Osiris shuttle. And the three of them refused to believe that the cousin's were dead. They watched as the unidentified flying object moved towards them.
"DK, get the rifles," Jack commented quietly as they watched the UFO disappear, only to reappear as it made the last turn in the canyon. It glided across the desert before them, moving faster than any human ship could possibly travel. Kira and Jack looked at each other and quickly turned to move back into the building as the ship closed the distance.
"Are you sure this is the right place?" Crais asked again, squinting against the bright light that was reflected off the sand below them.
"Yup." Crichton looked at the ex-Peacekeeper. "Look, DK and I always said that if anything happened, this is where we'd meet. I know DK. This is the right place."
Crais looked at him again, his arms folded across his chest. "We will see."
Morgan sighed, stomping her foot on the deck in annoyance. "Cut it out! Both of you! I am sick of this constant bickering!" she demanded. She turned back to the viewport, guiding Talyn through the last canyon turn and out into the open. The buildings grew closer, the huge ground based satellite dishes silent beacons in the sun of mid-day.
"Why don't you both be useful and get some gear together while Morgan and Talyn land? Just in case," Aeryn suggested. She grabbed a handful of Crais' jacket and one edge of Crichton's vest, pushing them through the bridge doors.
Crais stared at the closed doors, waving his hand over the panel. "Talyn! Open the door!" He waved his hand over the panel again, banging one hand on the door when it didn't open. "Talyn!"
"C'mon, Crais. She's not going to let him open the door," Crichton commented, grabbing Crais' arm and pulling him up the corridor.
The Captain glanced back, wrenching his arm from Crichton's grasp. "Your cousin just locked me out of the bridge of my own gunship," he hissed in protest.
Crichton laughed, tossing him a knapsack and pulse pistol. "Yup. Women. Can't live with them, can't shoot them."
Crais looked down at the pulse pistol in his hand, momentarily contemplating the weapon before holstering it. "Oh, I assure you I can. Especially her."
Crichton smiled at him. "Shoot her later. We've got work to do."
Morgan and Crichton slowly walked down Talyn's ramp, pulse pistols in their hands as they warily looked around the complex. The weather was warm and mild, comfortable for both human and Sebacean. Talyn's bulk provided some shade, his shadow stretching across the sand. They paused as the door to the building slowly opened and instinctively, Crichton and Morgan raised the pulse pistols in their hands. "Here we go," Morgan whispered.
Crais stepped up beside her, his own pistol drawn and aimed. "Let's hope they are your friends," he commented. He heard the whir of mechanical parts moving as Talyn turned his cannons, aiming it at the building. "Stand fast Talyn." Crais watched as three humans walked from the building, two of them carrying what looked like weapons. He cocked his head, recognizing the older human. "Jack Crichton," he remarked.
The sun was in Jack's eyes and he squinted, holding his arm up to shield them. "Who are you?" he called. "What do you want?"
Morgan swallowed past the lump in her throat, laying a gentle hand on Crais' arm as she holstered her pulse pistol. Crichton walked forward, his hands held out, a huge grin on his face. "I want you to take me to your leader. I want you to find me a beer and a pizza and let me sit down to watch a football game."
"John?" Jack said hesitantly.
"I want to know why you ever let Morgan come looking for me," Crichton finished as he stepped up to his father, his voice cracking with emotion.
"She really found you." Jack looked at his son in shock, pulling him into his arms and hugging him tightly. "By god, she actually found you."
"Yeah Dad. She found me." He looked over his shoulder at Aeryn's footsteps crunching on the sand. He noticed Morgan still standing at the bottom of the ramp, Crais beside her. "She's with me," he said, turning back to look at his father.
Crais noticed the stiffness of Morgan's back and he laid his hand on her shoulder. "What is the matter?"
She shook her head, sighing, turning to look up at him. "This scares me more than that Scarren dreadnaught." Morgan smiled softly.
Crais nodded, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, kissing her forehead in an unusual public display of affection. "Come. This is your family. You have no reason to be scared," he playfully scolded in a soft voice. They heard Crichton explain the translator microbes and patiently waited as the small DRD Aeryn had carried off of Talyn do its job, the little bio- mechanoid chirping irritably as it rolled through the sand back up the gunship's ramp.
A young woman with sandy brown hair came running up to them, grabbing Morgan in a hug. "Morgan!" Kira yelled. "Thank god you're safe!"
Morgan hugged her best friend, the two women rocking back and forth as they fought back tears. "Yeah. We both are."
Kira stepped back to study Morgan for a moment. "Man you look good!" She gazed at Crais. "Who's this?"
Morgan turned back to her lover, grabbing his arm and pulling him forward. "Kira, this is Bialar Crais. The ship is his."
"Ours," he corrected, glancing down at Morgan.
"Ours."
"Yours?" Kira questioned, pointing to the gunship. She nodded, a smile growing on her face. "Uh-huh. And I'm sure Morgan is yours too."
"Kira!" Morgan laughed.
"What? Uh, Don't even try to deny it," she said, holding out her hand, palm facing Morgan.
"You're still a brat," Morgan remarked as they walked towards the others.
"Yeah well, you're still a bitch, but I won't hold that against you," Kira laughed as Morgan pushed her.
Jack turned at his niece's laughter, watching the young woman walk up to him. She had definitely improved since she had left, her attitude much better than the depression she had been in. "You said you would find him. And you were right." He opened his arms, hugging his niece to him.
Morgan finally let the tears slide down her face as she pulled Crichton into the embrace. "I promised you I would."
Morgan and John had spent the rest of the day and half the night telling their family of the exploits in the Uncharted Territories. Jack, DK and Kira listened intently as the night grew cooler. Of course, Morgan and John left out certain details, such as the neural clone, and Crichton's twin. And Morgan's neural transponder. The questions flew at them faster than they could answer them and Aeryn and Crais were both surprised at they way they calmly explained the situation that led them back through the wormhole to Earth.
They had hidden Talyn in an old military hangar on the complex, just big enough to accommodate the growing Leviathan comfortably. The elder Crichton and Kira had toured Talyn, DK keeping an eye out for any intruders. They were astonished at the Leviathan, excited and mildly frightened by the living ship.
It was to Crais' surprise that he found Morgan already running a system's analysis early the next morning. She had crawled into bed exhausted, asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. He listened quietly as Morgan and Talyn conversed. She had an easy report with the gunship, a report that even he did not have. The only other person he had seen speak to Talyn so easily had been Aeryn.
"I know, my friend. We'll get it fixed and solve the Scarren problem and head home. I promise," she replied to Talyn. Morgan smiled. "Yes Talyn. I am sure Bialar is as concerned as we are, but you know how he is. Rest, okay?" The gunship chirped softly.
Crais leaned his frame in the doorway, one hand propped on the bulkhead. "This is your home, Morgan," Crais remarked softly.
Morgan turned at his voice. He noticed the notebook and pen in her hand, wondering what she was writing. He still could not comprehend the complicated language Morgan and Crichton referred to as English and he gave up trying. Morgan moved over to the propulsion system, jotting down another note. "Nope. Not since I met you. My home is here on Talyn, you know that." She looked at him, surprised to see him out of uniform, his muscular arms bare in the soft lights of the bridge. His hair brushed his shoulders in waves that Terran women would be jealous of. A smile lit her face and she licked her lips. "Damn," she whispered in admiration.
Crais smiled as he approached her. "Then…you are not planning on remaining here?" he asked.
Morgan laid the notebook and pen on a console, turning to face Crais. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he pulled her into his arms. "Do you want me to? Tired of me already?" she whispered.
Crais shook his head, his eyes boring into hers. "No. But…if that is your desire, then Talyn and I will remain here with you." He pulled her up against him, trapping her between the console and his body.
"Bialar, you're from a space faring race. You'd be grounded here and miserable. And Talyn…" She raised her eyebrows, a sad expression on her face as she silently shook her head. "I'd rather be running from the Peacekeepers and the Scarrens, exploring the Uncharted Territories, than do that to either one of you." Her face was set in lines of determination. "I'm going back with you and nothing will change my mind."
"Then…we are in agreement." His lips met hers in a passionate kiss.
"I can come back later," Kira said from the doorway, a teasing grin on her face. She wondered just what Morgan and her lover were in agreement about and made a mental note to herself to ask.
Morgan leaned her forehead on Crais' chest, sighing. "Her timing is as impeccable as always," she whispered.
"Huh? What? What about my timing?" Kira asked, her eyebrows shooting up only to be lost by the unruly bangs that curled on her forehead. She looked at Morgan questioningly.
"Nothing Kira." Morgan turned from Crais, picking up her pen and quickly jotting down another note in the book, clearing the panel. "You and DK have friends around here where we can get some supplies?" she asked, leaning around Crais to peer at another panel.
Kira laid her equipment bag down, gazing around the bridge. She noticed Crais' arm still circling Morgan's waist possessively, his brown eyes following her every move. "What kind of supplies?"
"Conduit. Wires. Electrical dren…shi…stuff," Morgan answered, turning to face her friend, catching herself. She had to remember where she was and that not everything would translate properly.
"Yeah. How much?" Kira propped her hands on her hips.
"Enough to sufficiently rewire Talyn," Crais responded as he turned from checking the gunship's power levels.
Kira's eyes almost popped out in surprise. "He's kidding, right?" she said, pointing at Crais.
Crais folded his hands behind his back, staring at Kira haughtily. "No. I am serious."
Morgan suppressed at smile. "Crais doesn't kid," she commented, taking Kira's arm, leading her off the bridge. "I'll be back in a few arns."
"Arns?" Kira asked, looking at Morgan.
Crais shook his head, listening to Morgan explain the concept of an arn. He turned back to the console, watching the power levels rise and fall drastically, the display very disturbing.
Copyright 2002 Beth A. Carpenter