Disclaimer, summary and spoilers: see first chapter

As for the reviews, thank you! They were all so nice! And Dale -definitely a loser. For the safety of pigeons everywhere, here is chapter two:

"That's the thing about life - you either catch your train or you miss it. Of course occasionally, very occasionally, along comes a person who steps straight out in front of it"

He was exhausted. For twenty hours he'd been stuck in a small, cramped maintenance conduit trying to repair whatever was broken, which seemed to be everything. He had no idea what time it was, he had very little light and very little air.

He wouldn't collapse. He just wouldn't. But he'd been telling himself this for over four hours now. His shift had to end soon, didn't it?

But he wasn't even sure how long he'd been here. It just felt like twenty hours. But sometimes their shifts lasted twenty-five hours or even longer. He'd hold out, he knew the penalty for collapsing on the job and he wouldn't risk that.

But it turned out luck wasn't on Harper's side that day. He managed to work for another seven hours in those cramped conditions, praying for his shift to end, the air to run out, anything to save him from this. Finally he lost the battle for consciousness while chanting over and over again. "I won't collapse, I won't collapse, I won't collapse......"

***

He woke feeling himself being dragged along the ground. He was pulled out of the conduit and roughly thrown on the floor. He opened his eyes and struggled to stand up. Granzen was standing in front of him. Harper groaned inwardly and a sick feeling creeped into his stomach.

Even though he was staring at the floor he could imagine the grin of pleasure on Granzen's face. He didn't even try to dodge it as the first blow hit him, after that it was just a matter of praying for unconsciousness. It was kind of ironic wasn't it? One minute he was praying to stay awake and the next he was praying not to be.

It seemed to take a long time coming and even though Harper had been through many similar ordeals, you never really got used to the pain. The last thing he remembered was Granzen satisfied face standing over him. Gloating with pride at the young human lying on the floor.

***

It just seemed to be a day of waking up and Harper was sure he didn't want to wake up again. Though it had probably been two or three days. He opened his eyes. It was dark. He wasn't in their sleeping quarters, no, people who collapsed on the job didn't get to sleep there.

This was the Box. So named because there wasn't enough room to stand, it was pitch black and closed in on four sides. He'd been here before, once for talking back to a guard and once for collapsing in another conduit. He'd be here for a day or two maybe. Hopefully no longer, but he knew they wouldn't risk leaving him here for more than a day without food or water. It was small and dark, smaller than the maintenance conduits. He was just lucky that he wasn't afraid of small spaces, he knew some people who were and if they ended up in here they usually came out insane.

He hated this place but he knew how to stay sane. It was something Brendan had though him long ago and it had come in useful before. There was no-one around to hear him.

He began quietly and quickly picked up the tune.

"One million green bottles hanging on the wall, one million green bottles hanging on the wall....."

***

Captain Hunt was staring out the window. The view outside was just how he felt inside. Empty, except for a few small pinpoints of light that were far out of reach. What was he doing here? How had he ended up here?

Trust. That's how he ended up here, through trusting. Trusting his second-in-command. Well he wouldn't make that mistake again. These people were only on his ship because they had no-where else to go. He find somewhere to leave them, eventually. Captain Valentine and her crew he meant, the Kodiak, Tyr, he really didn't know why he was still here. He was an assassin and in this dark and broken universe there was plenty of work for him.

Unless of course he wanted something else. A highguard ship of the line for example. Maybe he was just waiting for the right time to strike. That was why Hunt slept with a his force lance under his pillow. It reassured him a little. Paranoia wasn't good for the soul, or so they said, but as far as he could see, neither was trust.

***

Rev. Bem stood next to Beka. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice him. He coughed politely and she looked up.

"Hey Rev. I didn't notice you there. How are you feeling?"

She smiled at him but the smile didn't reach her tired eyes.

"I am fully recovered, thank you. And how are you doing? You are not still guilty about what happened to Dale are you?"

She sighed. Rev was back to this again. He seemed to think she was blaming herself for Dale's disappearance and she felt she had a right to. And for letting Rev get hurt by those psycho-kids on that station. She didn't really feel impressed by Captain Hunt after they managed to destroy a few solar systems and nearly kill Rev. He was supposed to be a legendary soldier guy but he just seemed like a broken man to her.

She knew that he resented their presence much as she resented being there. He'd kick them off when he got the chance and then she'd never find her ship. Trance had been acting strangely though, she seemed eager to stay. Beka supposed it had something to do with the plants. But Trance could stay here if she wanted, Beka didn't know her very well and really didn't care. Life was hard enough as it is without tag-alongs.

***

Trance was getting more and more anxious. Things were getting so much worse and there was no sign of him, the blond human. Beka and Dylan had just about reached breaking point and she knew Tyr had something on his mind too. Like if he didn't shoot something soon, they'd be the next target.

Things were going to be very, very bad. It was like they were missing the glue that should be sticking them together and she didn't know how to find it. "Please hurry", she whispered knowing that the person, whoever he was, couldn't hear her.

And far away, in an abandoned corner of a Nietzchean ship, a quiet voice faltered and then continued. "....and if one green bottle should accidentally fall...."

***

Well? Do you want more? Review and let me know!