Just like you…
Disclaimer: Only Delwyn and Annelise belong to me, the rest belong to their respective owners. This story is for entertainment only.
"My name is John Crichton... an astronaut... a radiation wave hit, and I got shot through a wormhole... now I'm lost in some distant part of the universe, on a ship -- a living ship -- full of strange, alien life-forms... help me... listen, please... is anybody out there who can hear me?... I'm being hunted by an insane military commander... doing everything I can... I'm just looking for a way home."
The planet was blistering hot, it's three swollen suns hung lazily in the sky. Commander John Crichton stayed as close as possible to Aeryn Sun who gripped her large weapon. The planet was that of a desert with small huts and rows upon rows of fields filled with slaves of every different alien race, sex and color. As they made their way to the market a young woman looked up. Her face was partly shielded by a white handkerchief and her eyes were a striking light blue against her dark tanned skin. A series of freckles splayed across her nose from too many hot hours in the sun.
Her hands which gripped a hoe were bare, bloody and callused from long hours of hard labor. Her younger sister sat in the blood red dirt trying to pull a stubborn root from the ground.
"Delwyn,"Annelie hissed, Delwyn looked up and saw her sister lean her head slightly in the direction of a man and woman. Her eyes opened wide but Annelie held a finger to her lips.
"Shh," her sister hushed, "don't make a sound."
There was to be no talking on the plantation and the punishment for disobeying that order was severe.
"But the woman...she's a Peacekeeper." Annelie shot her sister a glare. Delwyn swallowed. 'Are you sure?' Delwyn asked and Annelie nodded curtly.
"Positive." She replied, she suddenly dropped her hoe onto the ground and dropped to her knee's beside Delwyn, her right shoulder pressed against Delwyn's left and she took hold of the same root as her sister.
"What the frell are we going to do? Delwyn demanded and her twin sister older by ten minutes shrugged, they gripped the root and tugged in unison.
"I have no idea," Annelie whispered crushing her lips against Delwyn's ear, "wait for my signal."
"Your signal?" Delwyn asked.
"You'll know it when you see it," Annelie grunted.
Suddenly there was a sharp crack and both girls fell back sprawled across the dirt holding the fat juicy root in their hands. Annelie pushed herself back up and grabbed her hoe. She began digging at the land, waiting until the time was perfectly right.
Delwyn looked over and caught a flash of white and black, the man and woman were done their shopping and now appeared to be arguing over which package either one got to hold. Delwyn looked over to Annelie who paid no attention to her sister, Delwyn looked to the guard who was patrolling this strip of farming land.
As soon as Annelie's hoe exposed another root Delwyn shoved the other root into her satchel and grabbed hold of the new one. Her hands slipped and red smeared across the root, she new that the blistered on her hands had popped but she didn't dare pause to survey the damage, suddenly Delwyn felt a boot crushing down on her hand.
"What the he-" Annelie pressed down harder and Delwyn cried out, Annelie mouthed the words.
'Get ready,' and Delwyn took out a tiny knife and sighed as Annelie finally took her weight off her left hand. Delwyn sawed at the root.
Annelie took a deep breath and concentrated on the guard she suddenly looked left and the guards gun exploded into action, lasers exploded from the barrel, the other slaves screamed and shrieked as Delwyn leapt to her feet.
"That was the plan?" Delwyn demanded.
"I was desperate," Annelie replied.
"Run!" Delwyn screamed as a laser blast flew over their heads, a fruit stand exploded and the two girls sprinted out of the field. The guards turned and saw the two woman escaping. They aimed and fired, Delwyn screamed again grabbing Annelie's hand she crushed her sisters fingers and she stumbled as the ground rumbled beneath her.
"Help us!" Annelie screamed in Crichton and Aeryn's direction, dragging Delwyn to her feet she slung her sisters arm around her shoulders.
Delwyn turned her head just in time to see a flash of blue. Her scream was cut short as the ground erupted underneath them. The sisters were throw apart and Delwyn landed hard on her knee's. She felt a hand grab her arm.
"Annelie!" She cried out as she felt herself lifted into Crichton's arms, she clung to him as Aeryn saw Annelie's body: bloody and burned lying in the rubble of another fruit stand. Her left wrist was bent at a ghastly angle. Aeryn didn't bother to check for a pulse as she hefted Annelie into her arms. Annelie's head lulled to one side and her forehead bumped against Aeryn's collar bone as she and Crichton dashed for Moya's escape shuttle.
"Pilot!" Aeryn screamed into her communicator, "get us ready for take off now!"
"They're coming! The Peacekeepers! She's one of them...she's a Peacekeeper." Delwyn babbled into Crichton's chest, she suddenly jerked awake and outstretched her arms. "Annelie!"
Crichton ran towards the ship nearly tripping over a loose stone he stumbled up onto the ship.
"What happened?" Ka D'Argo asked glancing behind Crichton at Aeryn who was clutching the body of a frail young woman. The young woman in Crichton's arms began to cry.
"Hell if I know!" Crichton yelled.
"Give her here to me," Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan said holding out her arms, Crichton handed over Delwyn who's blue eyes were wide with terror.
"It appeared as some sort of ambush," Crichton said running a hand through his hair.
"Or as if they sought us out, or you out for that matter," Aeryn said following Zhaan to the sick bay.
"What is going on?" Pilot's voice asked.
"Long story Pilot just get Moya off the ground as fast as you can."
"It's already done," Pilot replied as Crichton felt the take-off.
Zhaan was first into the sick bay, "lay her here! Lay her here!" She cried out to Aeryn as she thrust Delwyn into D'Argo's arms.
"What do you expect me to do with this?"
"Just try and keep her calm, check her wounds" Zhaan commanded as Aeryn lay Annelie's unconscious body on the metal medical table. "Is she breathing?" Zhaan asked as she grabbed a small hand held device from the counter.
"Yes I think so," Aeryn replied.
D'Argo stared down at Delwyn in contempt and she stared up at him, reaching up she brushed a hand against his face, D'Argo held the girl out, "take it." He growled at Crichton. Delwyn turned her head to look at Annelie who was lying limp on the medical table, Zhaan was checking her vital signs with a small black dial she held in the palm of her hands. Crichton reached down and brushed Delwyn's copper hair out of her face.
He lifted her up onto the other medical table, it was then he saw her bleeding legs and scraped elbows.
Her right forearm was badly burned.
Delwyn looked past Crichton to her sister as John carefully lifted up her arm and turned it carefully in his hands to inspect the damage. A series of blisters ran up her forearm and her hands were also bloody.
"Zhaan you might want to come over here," Crichton said.
"Why?" Zhaan asked.
"Nevermind," Delwyn said, "I'm fine," Crichton kept hold of her arm. "I said I'm fine, leave me alone." She pushed him away and slid off the table she was slightly aware of a burning sensation in her legs but pushed the pain to the back of her mind.
"Annelie," she said slipping past Aeryn.
Annelie was pale, her face the color of ash.
"Is she going to die?" Delwyn didn't realize she had even spoke the words until Zhaan replied.
"She's lost a lot of blood but I don't think so."
Delwyn blinked rapidly and gently pushed Zhaan aside, she reached down and grabbed Annelie's shoulders, she lifted her up and wrapped her arms around her sister pulling her up, Annelie's head rested against Delwyn's chest; Annelie's golden hair was blinding against Delwyn's dark brown skin.
"Shh," she whispered brushing Annelie's hair out of her bloodied face, "Ssh," Delwyn's voice wavered as she felt hot tears roll down her cheeks. She began to sing a song that their mother used to hum when they were little. "Hush a bye d-don't you cry..." Her voice drifted off and Delwyn pressed her face against the top of Annelie's head.