"So, any ideas?" John rubbed his forehead and groaned. The headache wasn't going away
anytime soon. Especially not with Crais pacing in front of him. "Would you stop that please!"

Crais looked up from his walk and frowned. He saw the look of disdain in the human's eyes and
was hit with how odd this situation was. The other Crichton had carried that look many times in
the short period they had been shipmates. Well, not at the end. "I'm sorry Crichton."

He sensed just enough sarcasm in the words to determine that they were insincere. John stood up
from the console in front of him and headed for the door. "Forget it."

The ex-captain watched him go. Talyn offered up his opinion of what they should do but Crais
ignored it. There would be no accidental shootings today. It actually worried him a little that the
gun ship would suggest something like that. 'This is so frelling confusing.' Then again, a lot of
things were like that these days. "Why don't you get some rest John. I'll let you know if I think
of anything."

John froze in his tracks and turned around. Perhaps it was the sound of his first name coming
from the man in front of him. At one point it might have annoyed him. Now, well, that kind of
thing didn't seem important. "Sure, whatever." He waved his hands over the door controls and
stepped outside.

Bialar flinched as the doors slid shut. It wasn't like him to get so worked up during a time of
crisis. Honestly, he didn't know what was happening to him. Only that something had changed
recently. What she had said to him. 'You didn't used to be like this.'

Talyn was feeling it as well. The hybrid leviathan hadn't let more than that fact slip to the man he
called captain. What she had said to them had disturbed him greatly. But it hadn't started with
her. He'd begun feeling differently a while ago.

"Show it to me again." Crais spoke the words and waited for the display screen in front of him to
light up. It didn't take very long. He watched quietly.

-

Crais rubbed his hands together. They were ice cold despite the warm temperatures. He saw the
screen go black and then turned to leave the room. The ex-captain hadn't believed what she said
until now. Hadn't allowed Chiana's strange words to affect him. But something was happening.
Events were leading him to something. 'But what?'



Aeryn felt herself moving back towards consciousness. The numbness was beginning to dissipate
and she felt the first side effects of being stunned. Her joints were sore and she could barely open
her eyes. Dim wisps of light broke through but that was all. Aeryn managed to open them with
all the strength she'd built up. 'What the frell?'

She was lying face down and could feel grains of sand working their way into her mouth. Aeryn
forced herself to the side and almost jumped. A body had been placed beside her. She didn't
recognize the face but he was dressed like a peacekeeper captain. The blood trailing from his
mouth was enough to tell her he was dead.

"I wouldn't get too worked up about him." Keller watched her first movements from the platform
above and smiled when she gave him a cold look. "Well, you don't disappoint do you? I thought
maybe you'd warmed up by now." He smiled at some almost forgotten memory.

Aeryn narrowed her eyes at him. She tried to talk and found it easier than expected. "Who the
frell are you?" Considering their introduction, she decided not to be too forceful. Dying like this
wasn't part of the plan.

Keller wondered what she was thinking but quickly set it aside. They had places to be and not too
much time to get there. He finished his work and wrenched a small black device from the
marauder's front console. "We can leave now."

She watched the device fall to the ground and studied it. The object looked familiar. "Someone
will be looking for us then?"

He smiled. "We'll get to that."

Aeryn suddenly remembered something important. "What the frell did you do with Chiana?"

Keller froze. "You mean she was the other prisoner?" A look of distress filled his face for a
moment. "Idiot! How many frelling Nebaris do you see around here?" He stood up and tried to
get a glimpse of the prison center. It would be too late by now.

"What is it? What did you do with her?" Aeryn watched him carefully for some sign. There
weren't any good ones.

"I made a mistake. I'm sorry." He dropped down and extended a hand to her. "Come with me
now. No sense getting us killed too."

Keller helped her stand and motioned for Aeryn to climb up into the marauder. She eyed him
suspiciously but obeyed. Not that anyone found him particularly intimidating, but he was still
carrying a gun.

Aeryn didn't know what the frell was going on but she really didn't have another choice. The ex-
peacekeeper found herself feeling something entirely new. Somewhere out in the darkness Chiana
was in serious danger. Aeryn was worried about her.



"Explain it to me again."

Chiana glared at the peacekeeper from her seat on the bench. The effects of the stun gun had
finally faded away but she still felt like dren. She groaned as a sharp pain cut across her ribs. That
frelling guy had kicked her.

He watched her carefully and tried to imagine what she was thinking. Jezik had not been properly
briefed on the Nebari. They knew she was on Moya but that was about it. "I didn't mean to yell
at you before. Sorry."

"Don't do that. Don't apologize." She turned away from him and looked out into the night. The
big hole hadn't been covered up yet. Maybe she could make a run for it. 'Funny.'

Jezik tried to keep from laughing. This little one was tough, he could see that. She had that
playful look to her but there was something in the eyes. Something he couldn't wrap his mind
around just yet. "Then explain it to me. Who took her?"

"You think I know? I didn't exactly have the best view." Chiana raised her hand and wiped a
smear of mud off her cheek. It was bad enough to feel like dren. No use in looking the part as
well. "The bastard knocked me out before I could see him."

The peacekeeper stood up and walked over to the hole in the wall. Jezik searched the area but
saw nothing suspicious. Nothing that would signify a trail. Whoever had done this was good. It
would have taken planning. "Help me find her. I promise no harm will come to you."

Chiana laughed. "The peacekeeper wants me to trust him." She checked to make sure he wasn't
reacting violently. "Aeryn can take care of herself."

Jezik turned back to face her. "Can you?"

She scowled. "Frell off!"

He smacked her hard across the face and took a step back. Jezik wasn't in the mood for games
anymore. They were working on a timetable. "I can take you with me or I can kill you now.
Make your choice." The anger was rising inside him again. Jezik shook himself out of it. 'Don't
make this personal.'

Chiana let her eyes fall on the pulse rifle her captor was holding. It looked scarier than usual now.
Moonlight reflected off of its smooth surface and made it appear like some wicked thing.
Chiana's thoughts turned to survival. "Where are we going?" She tried to force a smile but none
came.

Jezik nodded. This was better for everyone. He would just have to make this plan up as he went
along. No big deal. He'd done it before. "You'll see."



Command was silent except for the constant hum of Talyn's systems. The lighting had been set to
its lowest so anyone looking in could barely make out the solitary figure. Concerned, the gun ship
had centralized its consciousness in the hub above the floor. He watched his captain, his father in
some respects, standing quietly. Talyn sensed change.

"I can feel it too." Crais was surprised at how strikingly his words shattered the silence. It felt
like a veil had been lifted from his eyes. He'd been off somewhere again without actually leaving
the room. What Crichton called daydreaming. There was no time for that now.

There were two small objects placed on the table in front of him. Each glimmered with the dim
light that filled the room. Crais stared at them cautiously. He was still trying to decide between
the two of them. One gold, the other silver, each with its own problems. The ex-captain lifted his
hand.

Talyn suddenly broke in with an alert from the long range sensors. A ship large enough to pose a
threat was entering the area. If it worried the hybrid leviathan, then Crais was worried too. He
had to get this over with.

"Hey Crais, you picking this up?" John's voice came in over the comms and further bothered the
silence. The human sounded concerned.

"I have. Where are you?" Crais waited for a reply.

John answered quickly. "Coming your way. I'll be there in a second."

Bialar looked down at the two data chips and made his decision. He launched his fist downward
and smashed the gold chip to pieces. They scattered across the surface and slid over the side of
the table. That was that. "Very well Crichton."

The doors to command opened and John Crichton stepped inside. Ignoring whatever the hell
Crais was doing, he made for the sensor console and tried to bring up a visual. "The DRDs were
going bananas. I thought you'd be worried."

Crais watched him for a moment before speaking. At least now they could dispense with the
rivalry. Personal conflicts were out of place in a combat situation. The ex-captain nodded. "You
don't need to do that. I know what's coming."

John stopped working at the controls and turned around. He suddenly felt worse. "Don't be so
damn dramatic. What is it?"

Crais waved his hand and a display came up. A familiar one actually. "The Vigilante."




The marauder lifted off from the ground and made its way quickly up towards the sky. Keller
watched his sensors tensely in case another craft came into the vicinity. He'd modified them
enough so that long range ships would come up as well. So far the leviathan was moving in the
opposite direction. It had to stay that way for the moment.

Keller breathed a sigh of relief as the peacekeeper vessel left the atmosphere and entered free
space. He could hear his cargo beginning to move behind him. "Has it worn off yet?"

The stun gun must not have been set to its highest level. Aeryn already felt the drowsiness leaving
her completely. Now she was just angry. She took in her surroundings and something connected.
This was a marauder. "You're a peacekeeper."

He heard the stiffness in her voice. The business-like manner. Keller figured that meant she was
back to normal. "Yes, but in name only."

Aeryn frowned. She remembered what had happened in the prison cell. "That's just what the
other one, Jezik, said."

Keller felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. "Jezik? He was there?"

She took the shock in his voice to mean that Jezik being there was a bad thing. Aeryn felt a
headache coming on. The ex-peacekeeper was tired of complications. "He said my mother sent
him to protect me."

"Frelling retrieval squad." He checked the sensors again and made sure no Vigilantes were in the
area. The screen was clean. "He was lying."

Aeryn gave a weary smile. "Yeah, I figured that." She considered the rest of what he had said.
"But we defeated the retrieval squad. High Command sent another one?"

The tech shook his head. "Don't be foolish, they didn't put everything on Xhalax. High
Command had a contingency plan. Jezik and his men will do whatever it takes."

"And these are the people who have Chiana? The ones you're not willing to go after?" Aeryn
suddenly realized her hands were clenched into fists. The anger, any emotion at this point, felt
good.

"Too dangerous." Keller tried to change the subject. "Say, you never told me how you were
feeling." Even as he spoke, he heard the sound of something charging.

Aeryn stuck the barrel of Keller's pulse rifle into the back of his neck. "Better."