Nothing's Quite The Same

Story by: Neuroscpr and Can

Pt 24 by: Neuroscpr

Setting: After DWTB, spoilers up until that episode

Rating: R

Summary: John and the other displaced members of the crew embark on their own missions as Moya heads into unknown territory



It stood silently in the corridor leading up to Pilot's den. The narrow space between the hall's two sides left little room for it to maneuver. Examining each power conduit it passed, the object started up again and headed for the door.

A few beeps and low chirps escaped it before it crashed into the metal door. The loud pounding sound sent it recoiling backwards. On the other end, the two hideaways grew only more frightened.

"Pilot??!"

Jool took another step away from the door and reached out with her arms, finding nothing solid to hold onto.

"There is nothing I can do Jool," Pilot said. "My ability to control Moya's functions is severely limited. I can barely keep the door closed."

The Interon shook her head in rising panic.

"He left us, he left us!" she shouted. "Why would he just leave us here to die?"

Pilot shook his head, unsure of what bothered him more, Jool or the intruders.

"He must have believed we would be unharmed," he said and instantly regretted it.

The pounding noise from outside stopped abruptly. In the dead silence that followed, both of them strained to hear what was happening on the other side.

"Do you hear that?" Jool asked.

"Hear what?" Pilot answered.

A new sound suddenly reached their ears. This time more of a grinding than pounding. Orange light could be seen through the crack beneath the door.

"They're drilling!" Pilot shouted. A look of terrible pain covered his face. His eyes closed tightly and he scrunched back into the wall.

Jool turned at his shout and gasped. "Pilot!" she screamed. "What's wrong?"

The Interon's screams only added to the level of his pain. Pilot shook his head violently, which Moya mimicked. The entire room lurched, throwing Jool to the side and momentarily silencing the intruders.

"Jool, come quickly," Pilot said. "They are almost through."

Too frightened to think about Pilot's own well being, Jool raced to him and clambered onto his console. With his help, she climbed up into the rafters.

"What the frell am I doing up here?" Jool yelled as she dangled from above. Her legs kicked wildly, hitting Pilot more than once.

"There is a maintenance passageway," Pilot said. "You should be able to access it from there."

Jool did as she was told and managed to make her way into the tunnel. Throwing herself through the narrow crawlspace, she tumbled to the ground and stopped. "Frell," she whispered.

At that moment, something ran past her field of vision. Craning her head to get a closer look, Jool managed to catch sight of it.

Standing a ways down the passage, Chiana was watching her with eyes wide open.



The level riser came to a stop deep in the bowels of the diplomatic ship. Down where the lights were dimmed and few soldiers walked. It was used mostly for storage and the incarceration of 'special' prisoners.

Grayza stepped forward and placed her hand onto the identification screen. This particular measure had been her idea. She smiled in self- satisfaction.

"My name is Commandant Mele-On Grayza," she said. "My voice is my passport. Please verify me."

The reinforced steel door made a loud clicking sound and then slid to the side. Grayza motioned towards her men and walked out into the hallway.

Marching boots connected with the metal catwalk, causing an ominous sound to travel up and down the corridor. At the head of the moving armada, Grayza pulled out her pulse weapon and headed for the door at the far end.

She stopped at another security checkpoint and reached into her coat pocket. Her hand searched through the small space for a small gray chip. The entry key.

"Is there a problem Commandant?" one of the men asked.

Grayza shook her head, suddenly in a less than optimum mood. "No problem, sergeant," she said with tapped anger. "I have it…"

Quite unexpectedly, the door opened from the inside. The Commandant and her men looked up to see a single man sitting on a narrow black slab. His face appeared beaten and bruised but he was otherwise unharmed. He was dressed in the uniform of a colonel.

"Colonel Schumka?" Grayza said. "What is the meaning of this?"

The Colonel stood slowly and gestured around the room. His eyes held Grayza in a cold angry stare and would not let go. "You let the prisoners escape, Mele-On."

Grayza suddenly felt very awkward. "I'm sure you understand it was a bit more complicated than that, sir." Her voice never betrayed her nervousness. "Scorpius allowed them to escape."

Schumka nodded his head. "Yes, and you pursued," he said. "Just as he intended." He made another sweep of the room with his eyes. The fact that it was empty escaped no one.

"Scorpius is missing?" Grayza asked. She suddenly realized where her key card was.

The Colonel frowned. "A lapse in judgment is one thing, Commandant." He stepped up so they were mere inches apart. "Two is another."

Grayza stared back at him, her mind racing. Her mouth dropped open as the realization came to her. Without saying another word, she turned and ran out of the room.



Chiana opened her eyes and glared angrily at the Ancient in front of her. She wanted very much to wipe the passive expression off his face.

"Why didn't you do something!" she shouted.

Jack took a step back but did not seem too concerned. "I cannot interfere in their situation any more than I already have," he said.

She grabbed a fistful of his shirt and slammed him back against the wall. "You keep frelling saying stuff like that!" She yelled. "Why can't you?"

They'd moved out of the ship's control room by then. Otherwise Crichton or one of the others would have been pulling her off by then.

When Jack didn't answer, Chiana let go and turned away from him. She closed her eyes again but saw nothing. The frelling Ancient wasn't backing her up anymore.

She looked back at him and shook her head. "Frell you then," she said. "I'll do it myself." Chiana considered her options for a microt and then took off down the corridor.

Jack stood there watching as she disappeared. He'd known that she would make such a decision but chose again not to interfere. Instead the Ancient headed back into the control room.

Inside, Aeryn was just waking up. She eyed him suspiciously and fingered her pistol. Past events had soured her somewhat to his presence.

"Something's happened," Jack said.

Aeryn nudged Crichton and then stood. She walked over to Jack. "What now?" the ex-peacekeeper asked.

"What's the problem?" John said as he came up behind her.

She pointed at Jack with her pulse pistol. "He says that something's happened."

Jack did not wait for them to arrange their thoughts. "Chiana has taken one of this ship's reconnaissance vessels," he said.

At that moment, D'Argo saw something small and silver-looking fly past the forward portal. He turned around to see what was going on.

"She believed, and I concur, that this ship will not reach Moya in time to save your friends," the Ancient continued. "She has gone ahead of you."

That was all the excuse Aeryn needed. She shot forward and placed the muzzle of her gun against the man's neck. "Why didn't you stop her?" she said.

Jack looked her right in the eyes as he answered, "I couldn't have. There is nothing I can do for her now."

"Aeryn, calm down," Crichton said as he slid in between the two of them. "Jack knows what he's doing."

In almost direct opposition to what the human had just said, Jack continued. "This wormhole is not a natural one," he said. "By leaving the safety of this ship, Chiana has exposed herself to its effects."

Suddenly it was D'Argo's Qualta blade against the Ancient's neck. He bared his teeth and pressed it in closer. "What the frell does that mean?"



The passageway ended right outside the door to Pilot's den. Jool stumbled out into the lighted corridor and took a cautionary look around.

"Please, oh please don't let me die," she prayed and exited completely.

At that very moment, the rumbling sound started up again. Jool stared in horror as an enormous black DRD-type object came barreling down the hall. It looked like a giant box with two probing antennas reaching out towards her.

"Ahhhhhhhhh!" Jool screamed, remembering what Aeryn has said about her abilities.

The object seemed momentarily stunned but then continued on towards her.

Jool turned and ran the other way. Still, she could hear it gaining ground with each step.

"Pilot!" she shouted. "Help me!"

Muffled sounds came from her comm but nothing resembling a coherent sentence. She ripped the useless item off and tossed it to the ground as she went.

Then the object slammed her from behind and knocked Jool to the ground. She hit hard and immediately tasted blood in her mouth.

"I frelling bit my tongue," she moaned.

Its large form loomed horridly over her, beeping and chirping every few microts for added effects. After a good amount of this, it stopped.

Jool stared up at with eyes wide. "Hello?" she managed.

The sound of footsteps interrupted her attempt at first contact. Two odd- looking creatures were now moving up the corridor in slow, deliberate strides. Both held powerful looking weapons.

"I beg you," Jool said almost calmly. "I mean you no harm. Please just don't kill me, I don't belong here."

They raised their weapons in response, each pointing directly at her. "Let us see your hands," one of them ordered.

Jool complied and displayed her open palms to them. She trembled slightly as the looked at one another. "Well?"

A loud pop reached her ears followed by a feeling of excruciating pain. Jool curled herself up into a ball against the black object and searched frantically for the penetration point. Tears escaped as her anxiety grew.

Finally, she found a small object embedded in her right thigh. The Interon touched it lightly and realized that it did not hurt anymore. She pulled it out slowly and examined it. A small metal stick with a feather attached at the rear.

Jool then gasped and tipped over into unconsciousness.



Scorpius walked up to the security door and slipped Grayza's key into the machine. It beeped excitedly at him and then flashed green. The door slid open.

"Thank you, Commandant," he said and entered.

The room beyond was a large hangar filled almost to capacity with alien ships of every size and shape. A few were familiar to him but most were radically different to what the hybrid was used to.

He smiled to himself. Scorpius had not figured Grayza as a person who cared much about accumulating information. Nevertheless, his priority had little to do with the Commandant.

Sitting in the middle of the room, apparently the centerpiece of her collection was Crichton's module. It had been recovered from a peacekeeper outpost. One of many locations that the human had managed to escape from.

Scorpius walked up to the module and ran his hand longingly over its battered exterior. The tiny ship brought back many memories, both good and bad. Chief among them was his clandestine journey through a wormhole. His first and only.

Checking once more to see that he had not been followed, Scorpius pried open the hatch and began to climb inside. Almost immediately, his throat met up with the barrel of a pulse pistol.

Sitting comfortably inside the module was Commandant Grayza. A look of supreme satisfaction crossed her face as she stood up in her seat. Her finger slid playfully around the pistol's trigger.

"Going somewhere without me?" she said.

Scorpius managed a look of tempered malice. He shook his head slightly. "I would not dream of it Commandant," he said.

Grayza smiled. "Of course you wouldn't."



"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" John shouted. His own pulse pistol had now joined the array of weapons pointed at Jack. In fact, the only person not doing so was Rygel. The Hynerion stood off in the corner, a disgruntled look on his face.

"It's too late," Jack said. "She made her own choice."

D'Argo pushed past the others and growled into the Ancient's face. "There has to be something we can do," he whispered. "Think of something. Now!"

Jack continued to shake his head. "If she were to come back now, maybe the effects wouldn't be fatal," he said. "But she won't do that."

"We can try," Crichton said abruptly.

All eyes fell on the human.

John reached out and grabbed Jack's hand. He pressed it against his forehead. "Come on, Jack," he said. "Come on man, do your thing."

Aeryn looked over at D'Argo, who appeared to be thinking the same thing. "Crichton, what the frell are you talking about?"

John nodded his head at both of them. "I know what I'm doing," he said. "Trust me, Aeryn."

She shrugged and turned back to the Ancient. "Do as he says."

Jack looked at the three of them reluctantly. With deliberate slowness, he stepped forward and pressed his hand more firmly against the human's forehead. As he did this, a flash of white light forced everyone's eyes closed.

Somewhere ahead of their ship, floundering in the violent grasp of the wormhole, Chiana's tiny ship suddenly had another passenger. The Nebari froze as she realized that the seat next to her was occupied.

"Scorpius?"