Shadowed Paths

"If you'd wanted to pounce on me, you could have just asked"

Part 6

Kyizi

Disclaimer: I've spent so long away from the story that Chiana escaped and I didn't even notice! ...but I've still got John and the others! :op

Rating: 12 I guess.

Timeline: I'm trying to stick within the first season as that's when I started to write it.

Spoilers: Season 1

Notes: I know Part 5 sounded like it'd been written by a completely different person when compared to parts 1 to 4 but it's cuz there was about 6 months gap or more between them! So it's my goal to finish this ASAP so that that doesn't happen with the other parts. (But don't hold me to that!)

~x~x~x~x~x~

"Oomph." Aeryn landed with a thud...on top of a very wet man. Her eyes widened as she fumbled to get up, her knee connecting with a very tender part of the man's anatomy.

"I...I'm sorry...I didn't mean to..."

"Aeryn," the man stood up, in more pain than he was letting on, and pulled a towel from the railing. Aeryn turned her head away, embarrassed at the situation. "If you'd wanted to pounce on me, you could have just asked." He smiled at her as she excused herself, trying to figure out where she'd seen him before.

I have to find John and try to explain what's happening...again. She thought, groaning.

Turning the corner she froze as three people walked passed her, nodding hello. She knew these people, she knew their uniform, but she didn't know what was going on. She continued to walk faster through the tier, heading for Pilot's chamber. Along the way she passed three more Peacekeeper's, all of who seemed to know her and nodded with respect.

Thoughts kept running through her head, How did they recapture Moya?, Where are John and the others? But the thing that echoed in her head the most was, Why aren't they trying to capture me?

Ahead of her, she heard voices and quickly she ducked into another corridor as she watched herself walk by. She watched in amazement as the other her talked with...Crais. Making a quick decision, she creeped into the corridor behind them and began to follow, making sure to listen out for any other people. Suddenly they stopped and she threw herself behind a large ridge in the corridor wall.

"I do not understand how you could allow that to happen." she heard herself say.

"It was completely out with our control..."

"I don't want to hear it, Captain Crais. This has happened one too many times. It will be my recommendation that you be stripped of your rank and..."

"Please, Admiral Sun, you must understand..."

"I understand only that you have failed me yet again."

"Please, give me one more chance. I promise you that I will find those prisoners."

There was a pause and Aeryn held her breath, hoping that they hadn't spotted her. She'd been lucky enough so far that no one else had come along the corridor, but that wouldn't last.

"Very well." she heard herself reply. "You have 5 solar days to recapture the Delvian and her friends. If you have not, I will have you arrested and..."

"Of course."

Aeryn breathed a sigh of relief as their footsteps faded. She was confused, she had no idea what was going on. She heard people approaching and quickly walked down the corridor in the opposite direction that Admiral Sun and Captain Crais had gone. She nodded at the passing Peacekeepers and kept walking until she found an empty storage room.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she slumped against the wall and placed her head in her hands as she sat.

"What the frell is going on?" she whispered to herself, as if hearing her own voice would prove to her that this wasn't really her life. "Why are the Peacekeepers still on board Moya? Why am I? And Admiral?" She grunted in frustration and let her head fall back against the wall. "Where are you John?" She whispered.

"Right here."

Suddenly Aeryn jumped to her feet as she came face to face with him. He looked...like a Peacekeeper.

He gave her a lopsided smile, "You wouldn't be questioning yourself would you Admiral?"

"John?" She asked, frowning. Why would he be here...in a Peacekeeper uniform? Crais wants him dead. He even sounds like one...well he's trying at least

He frowned, still smiling at her. "On first name terms are we now, Admiral?"

Aeryn sighed and closed her eyes. It's worth a try

"Listen, John. I know this is going to sound insane but you have to believe me. I'm not your Admiral Sun. I'm from another dimension..." At this, John snorted but motioned for her to continue. "I've been to four different versions of my reality now. This is the only one where the Peacekeepers were still on board Moya."

John was no longer smiling but he still didn't look like he believed her. She placed her head in her hands and rubbed her eyes. She was exhausted, she hadn't slept properly in days. She looked back up at him, her eyes pleading with him.

"Please, you have to believe me. I know there's probably no reason that you should, but I need you to. I can't do this without you. It was you that first understood what was happening to me. You said that for every choice I made there was another dimension." She laughed a little. "I guess I made some pretty bad choices in this reality." She turned to look back at him. "I realise that you probably don't care, but I want to get back to my life, to my John...just as much as you want to get back to Earth. Please, you have..."

"What did you just say?" Aeryn looked at him, frowning. He had spoken in his normal voice. He had also stepped closer to her and was looking at her with wide eyes.

"That I wanted to get home."

"About as much as I did." He finished softly. "Is this some kind of trick?" he asked, suddenly angrily. Aeryn took a step back at the complete fury in his eyes.

"Have you been reading my mind now?"

"John, I don't know what you're talking about." She took another step back.

"How did you know about Earth?"

"You told me! You told everyone. We even went there once, well it wasn't really Earth, it was made from your memories. You came through a wormhole. D'Argo and Zhaan brought you on board when they were trying to escape..."

"Zhaan?" he asked frowning. "The Delvian?"

"Yes!" Aeryn smiled, her first genuine smile since she had landed on this dimension...although the landing itself made her smile a little. "They were on..." Aeryn stopped talking when she heard movement in the corridor. She looked at John and quickly hid behind one of the large containers to her left.

"Ah. Lieutenant Crichton, there you are."

Aeryn's eyes widened as she recognised the voice as her own. She glanced up at John, who was standing further back, wide eyed.

Please, please don't let her know I'm here, she silently pleaded.

"Yes." He replied, pulling himself up straighter. "Here I am. Were you looking for me?"

"No. Why would I be looking for you?"

"I don't know, you seem to get a kick out of following me around."

"I have never kicked you." she replied and Aeryn could hear the suspicion in the Admiral's voice.

"No, of course you haven't." He smiled tightly, "Is there anything I can do for you, Admiral?"

"I was looking for Captain Crais."

"He's not here." John replied nodding his head a little to the side. "But should I come across him, I'll let him know that you wish to see him."

Aeryn held her breath as there was silence. Then she heard movement and a moment later, the door closed. She breathed a sigh of relief as she heard the Admiral's footsteps fade away.

"Parallel dimensions, huh?"

She looked up and John and smiled. "Yes." For a moment he said nothing and Aeryn was afraid he was thinking of letting the Admiral know of her presence.

"We'd better get you moved to a different room. This place'll be swarming with people in about an arn." He smiled at her and reached out his hand. "Come on."

~x~x~x~x~x~

"Are you sure about this?" Aeryn asked him again, tugging at the bottom of her jacket.

"You'll stand out like a sore thumb if anyone sees you out of uniform." Aeryn smiled at him as he fixed her collar. After a few moments he looked her in the eye. "What?" he asked grinning.

"It's nice to hear you using your silly Earth terms. It makes me feel more..."

"At home?" he whispered.

"Yes."

For a few moments they simply stared at each other until a noise in the corridor made them jump back. Aeryn watched from the corner of her eye as Crais entered and headed straight for her.

It's strange, she mused, how he can be the cause of my death in one dimension and under my command in another.

"You wished to see me Admiral."

Aeryn's eyes widened as she realised that she'd have to talk to him. "Yes." she started, trying to think of a reason that the Admiral could have wanted to speak to him so soon after their previous talk. "I wondered if you had thought of any way in which to trap the Delvian and her friends."

"But we only talked about that a few microts ago." Crais said uneasily.

"I like efficient officers under my command, Captain." Aeryn replied stonily, "If you question my motives again, I will be forced to have you punished. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Admiral." Crais replied, bowing his head.

"Good." Aeryn nodded, "Do not upset me again, Captain, or I may be forced to follow through with my threat." Aeryn turned again to John, "Com...Lieutenant. I wish to speak to you, in private. Please follow me." With that, she turned and walked from the room, John following her, trying not to smile. They walked into the corridor and he caught up with her so that they were walking side by side.

"That was good." he said quietly, "If I hadn't known, it woulda fooled me. You sure you're not an Admiral in your dimension?" She glared at him and he smiled, "Guess not."

~x~x~x~x~x~

"Wow." John looked at her, "My life's really like that?"

"Yes." she smiled at him. They had spent the last couple of arns in his quarters, talking about her and her John, about what had happened to get her there with him, about all the dimensions she had come across so far.

Aeryn turned away shyly as she realised that he was staring at her. She shifted uncomfortably, "Tell me about your life here." she asked, hoping that would draw his attention.

"Well," John propped his arm under his head, "when I came through the wormhole, there was nothing there, minus a few asteroids. At first I thought that maybe I'd simply been pushed out into the asteroid belt...that was until I landed on a planet that most definitely wasn't in my solar system. I learned about the Peacekeepers, about everything. H'Lay and I..."

"H'Lay?" Aeryn asked frowning.

John smiled sadly, "She died about a year ago...she died to save me."

Aeryn felt her stomach lurch at the look in his eyes. He had loved her. She could tell. That one look portrayed so many happy memories all torn to shreds by her death and she could tell that a part of him had died along with her.

"She...she must have been a wonderful woman." Aeryn whispered.

"She was." John breathed out heavily and shook his head. "Anyway, she was the only person who knew I wasn't Sebecean. She wanted to escape from her life as a Peacekeeper, in a way, she was lost too." He smiled at her, "A lot like you were. We realised that the only way for me to get home was to impersonate a Peacekeeper. There was to be a new officer transferred to command her unit, we intercepted them...we didn't mean to kill him but it was a no win situation...and he died. So, I took his place. No one suspected a thing."

"Didn't they know the name of the new officer?"

John smiled, "H'Lay was good with machinery. She rigged all the computers, changed the Lieutenant's ID card...everything."

"So, you've lived as a Peacekeeper ever since." Aeryn finished and he nodded, "I'm surprised it hasn't driven you mad." she said smiling at him.

He laughed, "Who says it hasn't?" He grew sombre again, "It hasn't been easy, but I'm closer to finding out how to create a wormhole."

Aeryn nodded, "Your slingshot manoeuvre and the solar flares."

"What?" he shot upright.

"That's what created the wormhole." Aeryn said, frowning, "I thought you knew."

"Well, I had hypothesised, but I didn't think there was anything in it."

"Well, believe me, there was." Aeryn sat up straight, "You...I mean my John, nearly took us straight into one. Didn't even ask me." she finished.

"He wouldn't have done it."

Aeryn looked up at him, "Wouldn't have done what?"

"Taken you through. Not if you didn't want to. The opportunity was there, he wanted a moment to savour the thought that there was a way home. If he cares about you as much as I think he does, he wouldn't have done it."

They smiled at each other and John took a deep breath, "So, what have you learned so far on your little trip?"

"Well...I've learned to make sure that I keep Chiana away from Crichton, never to underestimate Crais. Not that I ever did."

" 'Course not." he grinned as she continued.

"I've learned about your adventures with a cow..."

"What?" his eyes widened suddenly and she laughed as he leaned forward. "Who told you that?" She shook her head and he leaned closer. "Tell me." Again she shook her head and he grabbed her and began to tickle her mercilessly. She squealed with laugher as she struggled to get away but he had a strong hold and wouldn't let go.

"Okay, okay!" she coughed, "It was Lucy."

"Lucy?"

"Your cousin. In the last dimension, she was on board Moya."

"How'd she get there?"

"She created a wormhole of her own, she travelled here to find you."

"Wow." She watched as John seemed to drift into a daydream. It was then that she realised that he was lying on top of her, his face inches from hers. She moved slightly and he looked at her. After a moment he leaned forward and gently brushed her lips with his. Her stomach did summersaults, and for that moment, she was lost.

He pulled away and smiled at her, "Sorry. I just wanted to do that."

"I'm not H'Lay." she replied softly.

"I know. I'm not your John either. But you don't know how many worlds you'll have to go through before you get home. I just wanted to give you something. And you remind me of H'Lay...for a moment I almost had her back."

Aeryn smiled at him, "Thank you."

"Your wel..."

"CommanderCrichton." Suddenly John sat upright and pulled a small comm. badge from his trousers.

Aeryn frowned, "Pilot knows your name?"

John smiled at her, "He knows everything. It's a private channel. What is it, Pilot?"

"There is a strange energy signature on the terrace. There was another earlier, but the room was full, I could not tell you."

"That's it." Aeryn replied sitting up.

"Thanks, Pilot." John said, standing and pulling Aeryn up with him. "And don't worry, that wasn't the Admiral you heard. I'll fill you in later." He turned to look at Aeryn.

"Well, I guess this is it." she said, smiling sadly, knowing that when she left, he had to go back to being Lieutenant Crichton, the Peacekeeper.

"Let's see if this one takes you home."

~x~x~x~x~x~

They walked briskly down through the tier, nodding at the passing personnel. She was nervous but she didn't know why. She glanced at John, he looked like any other Peacekeeper would, unless you knew him. She could see that sadness in his eyes, she almost wished that she could take him with her...maybe she could...

"Who are you?" She jerked to attention and looked straight ahead...at herself. Her breathing became shallow as she realised her situation. She was not far from the terrace but it would mean getting past her counterpart. The officers around them were looking back and forth from one to the other as Aeryn took a deep breath and made a silent prayer to anyone who might be listening.

"Who are you would be the most important question!" Aeryn replied with more confidence than she felt. "And what are you doing on my ship?"

"This is my ship!" her counterpart was fuming and Aeryn knew exactly how to push her buttons.

"Captain Crais!" Aeryn looked at the man, who had shrunk back a little when he had spotted Aeryn. "What are you doing with this impostor? I warned you not to disappoint me again..."

"Captain, do not listen to her..."

Aeryn watched as the personnel around them grew more and more confused, more uncertain with every word. That was exactly what she needed. Suddenly she broke forward, pushing her counterpart into Crais and running towards the terrace. She could hear voices behind her, people following her. She bumped into a confused soldier but continued to run.

A few moments later she was on the terrace. She ran to the controls and shut the door, but not before a figure rolled onto the ground in front of her. She quickly pulled the wires, hoping to stall the mob behind her. To her left she could see the pink energy, which had grown larger since her last encounter. But first she turned to the person currently pulling himself from the floor.

"Hey," he said smiling sadly at her.

"Hey," she replied returning his smile. She let out a breath and walked towards him. She pulled his head down and kissed him on the forehead before leaning hers against it.

"You want to come with me." she stated. "Will you?"

He let out a breath and stood up straight, his arms encircling her waist, "I can't. There's no place for me there. Besides...I owe it to my dad and DK to at least try to get home."

"You will find a way home." she replied confidently and he smiled. Repeating her gesture, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"Now," he said pulling back, "You're gonna have to make this look real."

"You ready?" she asked.

"No, but..." he crumpled to the floor as her fingers impacted with his neck.

"Sorry." She smiled at his form before taking another deep breath. She turned to face the pink energy and walked slowly towards it.

"Well," she sighed, "lets see if this one takes me home."

~x~x~x~x~x~

END OF PART 6

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