Part 3: The best of intentions.
As it turned out, no one heard. Talyn's other occupants were...well...occupied.
Jo sat on the floor of command, her knees pulled up to her chest, her head between them, breathing heavily. What she'd just felt had been unquestionably the most intense experience of her entire life. She wasn't entirely clear on what had just happened, but she knew what she felt. Somehow, she and Talyn were joined. She'd never dreamt of anything like this.
What she knew was that she needed some help. This was completely overwhelming. Instinctively, she used her new connection to search for Jessica.
She found her and nearly blacked out at the sight.
"Jessica, what the hell are you doing?!" she thought.
Unfortunately, she accidentally opened the internal comms. Jessica and Crais both got the shock of their lives when Jo's voice suddenly boomed out from nowhere. Crais immediately switched his transponder out of privacy mode. It took all of a microt for him to understand what had occurred and for his face to turn black with rage.
"Talyn, what have you done?!" he demanded mentally.
"I like her, I want her with us," Talyn pleaded.
"You cannot just give transponders to anyone who comes on board! She cannot possibly come with us and we do not even know if her physiology can tolerate the cybernetic link! To take action like this without consulting me is intolerable!"
"What's going on?" Jo thought, hearing the two of them arguing in her head was incredibly disorienting.
"Talyn has given you a transponder, like the one I have," Crais answered, to Jo's surprise. She hadn't realised that he could hear all her thoughts. "This is how I communicate with Talyn."
Jo reached up to the back of her neck and felt the implant there. She suddenly felt dizzy. Dear God, what had he done to her?
Jessica, unable to stand the suspense any longer and annoyed that the man who'd been giving her his undivided attention for most of the last arn had suddenly tuned her out, grabbed Crais' arm and shook it.
"What's going on?" she demanded.
"Talyn has joined with your sister," Crais replied, tense with anger.
Jessica blinked. "Joined? What do you mean 'joined'? Joined how?"
"Through a transponder, like mine," Crais said, indicating the back of his neck.
"Well, un-join her!" Jessica demanded.
"I...do not know if I can," Crais answered. "Although I have some medical knowledge, it is not sufficient for delicate surgery, especially since I am not familiar with your physiology."
"You obviously have very good instincts then," Jessica answered, her heart for once only half in the exchange. What on Earth were they going to do?
"Your human doctors...."
"Would freak if they knew about this," Jessica answered. "There's no way anyone back on Earth can find out. Somehow, we have to deal with this here - and quickly. IASA only gave us a week, max. If we're not back, I wouldn't put it past them to send another team up here to get us. Scientists, ones who would take great pleasure in ripping Talyn apart to find out what he's made of."
"I suggest we go to command and discuss this situation with Jo," Crais answered, beginning to pull his uniform back on.
Jessica followed suit, although reluctant to have him all covered up.
***
"What are we going to do?" Jessica wondered out loud. "I guess we should get Dad up here."
"No," Jo said, very definitely. She'd tried that as soon as Crais had told her they were coming. And she'd thought seeing him and Jessica together was disturbing. No one ever wants to think of either of their parents recreating, let alone have to witness it.
"Why?" Jessica asked, frowning.
Jo shook her head weakly. "Just...don't ask. We don't need to tell them...him...yet." She went back to concentrating on her breathing, controlling the panic that threatened to envelop her.
Crais was frowning. "I do not like this."
"You don't like what?" Jessica asked, not liking his tone.
"Pain is normal and a certain degree of disorientation as well, but I have never seen anyone react so strongly to this."
"How many has this happened to?" Jessica demanded.
"Two. Myself and Officer Sun - your brother's...consort."
"What happens if something goes wrong?" Jessica said, now very worried.
Crais sighed. "I do not know what could be done."
"Fantastic, brilliant," Jessica muttered. "Do you realise what will happen if she's hurt by this? All hope of the Star Trek ideal coming to life will be over, all chance of people thinking of you as the good guys will be over. If John ever comes home, he'll probably find that he's not allowed to set foot back on Earth, even though he is human. This could ruin everything for us."
"I did not intend for this to happen!" Crais snapped. "If you recall, this was Talyn's decision, not mine."
"Will you guys stop talking like I'm not here," Jo said quietly, trying to concentrate through the fog in her mind. At the moment it was like she had the flu and hadn't slept in three days, her brain didn't seem to be functioning properly.
"You're the Captain of this ship, you're supposed to know what's going on!"
"If you recall, I was somewhat distracted," Crais growled. "By you!"
"Don't you go laying this all on me. I wasn't the one who made the first move, remember?"
"You made your intentions perfectly clear before that."
"Shut up!" Jo screamed. Crais and Jessica both turned to her in surprise. Jo struggled to calm herself. "If all you two can do is fight, I suggest you just go back to fucking each other until you've calmed down. Obviously I interrupted you too soon! I have someone else - no, two people - living inside my head with me and I don't need this as well!"
"Sorry, Jo," Jessica said, a little sheepishly.
"I suggest we proceed to medical, where I can monitor you more closely," Crais added.
"Fine," Jo said slowly. "Let's do that."
When she tried to get up, her knees buckled. It took both Crais and Jessica to hold her up, Jo between them with one arm around each of their shoulders.
"I still don't see how you can have so little control over your ship," Jessica muttered.
Crais raised his eyes to the ceiling, reigning in his temper with difficulty. "For your own safety," he growled. "I strongly suggest that you cease this discussion now."
"But...."
"NOW!"
***
"When this is over, nothing will ever be the same again."
Everyone there knew the truth behind DK's words. It had been five arns. They'd tried removing the transponder, only to discover that Jo could no longer survive without it. Her heart had stopped. If Crais had ever thought about it, he would have assumed that Sebaceans and Humans were similar enough that joining would cause no problems. Even now, he couldn't determine just what had gone wrong. It frustrated him, but he knew there was more to this than that.
She couldn't survive with it and she couldn't survive without it. Talyn was slowly killing her, his mental signature overpowering her own. In not much longer, although he didn't know it, John Crichton would be losing a sister.
What he hadn't fully understood until Jessica had explained it to him - loudly - was exactly what this first contact would do. He'd come in peace, but was about to leave death. This would never be forgotten. He would start a panic which might never subside.
Crichton had been right. They weren't ready.
***
"We analysed all the data from when John...left...and we have a theory as to how the wormhole was opened. If you can re-create John's experiment in this ship, you might just be able to get back. To wherever you were before," DK said, giving Crais a weak smile.
"Judging by the state of this part of the galaxy, I suspect it would be best to make the attempt, even if it is not successful," Crais said grimly. "Thank you...for your assistance. Talyn and I will leave as soon as you have returned to Earth."
"We will do our best to explain the truth about what happened," Jack said, from the doorway. Today he felt old. No father wants to outlive his child.
"I hope, for your own sakes, that you are successful."
"It doesn't change the fact that you killed my sister," Jessica said, arms folded, expression angry.
"It is not the first death that I have been the cause of," Crais said. "But I in no way intended it to occur. I do know what it is to lose a family member and I offer you my condolences. Talyn does also. He wishes me to impress on you that he had no idea of the consequences of his actions. Neither of us did."
Talyn's lights dimmed around them.
"I accept that it's not your fault," Jessica said. "But that doesn't mean that I don't still blame you."
Crais almost chuckled. "That I can understand."
"I hope you get back," Jessica added reluctantly. "Because I don't think you'll be very popular if you stay here."
***
Bialar Crais stood dead centre in Talyn's command once again, preparing to throw himself on fortune's mercy. This time, he had no idea where he would end up.
He and Talyn dived, and then began to skim the Earth's atmosphere like a flat stone across a pond. Crais felt, rather than saw, the radiation levels spike and they pulled out, heading for the very centre of the disturbance. Suddenly they were surrounded by the familiar blue walls again, Crais was hurled from his feet, this time hitting his head on a console. Talyn groaned inwardly and knocked himself out straight away.
Free fall once again. With no guarantee of a soft landing.
As it turned out, no one heard. Talyn's other occupants were...well...occupied.
Jo sat on the floor of command, her knees pulled up to her chest, her head between them, breathing heavily. What she'd just felt had been unquestionably the most intense experience of her entire life. She wasn't entirely clear on what had just happened, but she knew what she felt. Somehow, she and Talyn were joined. She'd never dreamt of anything like this.
What she knew was that she needed some help. This was completely overwhelming. Instinctively, she used her new connection to search for Jessica.
She found her and nearly blacked out at the sight.
"Jessica, what the hell are you doing?!" she thought.
Unfortunately, she accidentally opened the internal comms. Jessica and Crais both got the shock of their lives when Jo's voice suddenly boomed out from nowhere. Crais immediately switched his transponder out of privacy mode. It took all of a microt for him to understand what had occurred and for his face to turn black with rage.
"Talyn, what have you done?!" he demanded mentally.
"I like her, I want her with us," Talyn pleaded.
"You cannot just give transponders to anyone who comes on board! She cannot possibly come with us and we do not even know if her physiology can tolerate the cybernetic link! To take action like this without consulting me is intolerable!"
"What's going on?" Jo thought, hearing the two of them arguing in her head was incredibly disorienting.
"Talyn has given you a transponder, like the one I have," Crais answered, to Jo's surprise. She hadn't realised that he could hear all her thoughts. "This is how I communicate with Talyn."
Jo reached up to the back of her neck and felt the implant there. She suddenly felt dizzy. Dear God, what had he done to her?
Jessica, unable to stand the suspense any longer and annoyed that the man who'd been giving her his undivided attention for most of the last arn had suddenly tuned her out, grabbed Crais' arm and shook it.
"What's going on?" she demanded.
"Talyn has joined with your sister," Crais replied, tense with anger.
Jessica blinked. "Joined? What do you mean 'joined'? Joined how?"
"Through a transponder, like mine," Crais said, indicating the back of his neck.
"Well, un-join her!" Jessica demanded.
"I...do not know if I can," Crais answered. "Although I have some medical knowledge, it is not sufficient for delicate surgery, especially since I am not familiar with your physiology."
"You obviously have very good instincts then," Jessica answered, her heart for once only half in the exchange. What on Earth were they going to do?
"Your human doctors...."
"Would freak if they knew about this," Jessica answered. "There's no way anyone back on Earth can find out. Somehow, we have to deal with this here - and quickly. IASA only gave us a week, max. If we're not back, I wouldn't put it past them to send another team up here to get us. Scientists, ones who would take great pleasure in ripping Talyn apart to find out what he's made of."
"I suggest we go to command and discuss this situation with Jo," Crais answered, beginning to pull his uniform back on.
Jessica followed suit, although reluctant to have him all covered up.
***
"What are we going to do?" Jessica wondered out loud. "I guess we should get Dad up here."
"No," Jo said, very definitely. She'd tried that as soon as Crais had told her they were coming. And she'd thought seeing him and Jessica together was disturbing. No one ever wants to think of either of their parents recreating, let alone have to witness it.
"Why?" Jessica asked, frowning.
Jo shook her head weakly. "Just...don't ask. We don't need to tell them...him...yet." She went back to concentrating on her breathing, controlling the panic that threatened to envelop her.
Crais was frowning. "I do not like this."
"You don't like what?" Jessica asked, not liking his tone.
"Pain is normal and a certain degree of disorientation as well, but I have never seen anyone react so strongly to this."
"How many has this happened to?" Jessica demanded.
"Two. Myself and Officer Sun - your brother's...consort."
"What happens if something goes wrong?" Jessica said, now very worried.
Crais sighed. "I do not know what could be done."
"Fantastic, brilliant," Jessica muttered. "Do you realise what will happen if she's hurt by this? All hope of the Star Trek ideal coming to life will be over, all chance of people thinking of you as the good guys will be over. If John ever comes home, he'll probably find that he's not allowed to set foot back on Earth, even though he is human. This could ruin everything for us."
"I did not intend for this to happen!" Crais snapped. "If you recall, this was Talyn's decision, not mine."
"Will you guys stop talking like I'm not here," Jo said quietly, trying to concentrate through the fog in her mind. At the moment it was like she had the flu and hadn't slept in three days, her brain didn't seem to be functioning properly.
"You're the Captain of this ship, you're supposed to know what's going on!"
"If you recall, I was somewhat distracted," Crais growled. "By you!"
"Don't you go laying this all on me. I wasn't the one who made the first move, remember?"
"You made your intentions perfectly clear before that."
"Shut up!" Jo screamed. Crais and Jessica both turned to her in surprise. Jo struggled to calm herself. "If all you two can do is fight, I suggest you just go back to fucking each other until you've calmed down. Obviously I interrupted you too soon! I have someone else - no, two people - living inside my head with me and I don't need this as well!"
"Sorry, Jo," Jessica said, a little sheepishly.
"I suggest we proceed to medical, where I can monitor you more closely," Crais added.
"Fine," Jo said slowly. "Let's do that."
When she tried to get up, her knees buckled. It took both Crais and Jessica to hold her up, Jo between them with one arm around each of their shoulders.
"I still don't see how you can have so little control over your ship," Jessica muttered.
Crais raised his eyes to the ceiling, reigning in his temper with difficulty. "For your own safety," he growled. "I strongly suggest that you cease this discussion now."
"But...."
"NOW!"
***
"When this is over, nothing will ever be the same again."
Everyone there knew the truth behind DK's words. It had been five arns. They'd tried removing the transponder, only to discover that Jo could no longer survive without it. Her heart had stopped. If Crais had ever thought about it, he would have assumed that Sebaceans and Humans were similar enough that joining would cause no problems. Even now, he couldn't determine just what had gone wrong. It frustrated him, but he knew there was more to this than that.
She couldn't survive with it and she couldn't survive without it. Talyn was slowly killing her, his mental signature overpowering her own. In not much longer, although he didn't know it, John Crichton would be losing a sister.
What he hadn't fully understood until Jessica had explained it to him - loudly - was exactly what this first contact would do. He'd come in peace, but was about to leave death. This would never be forgotten. He would start a panic which might never subside.
Crichton had been right. They weren't ready.
***
"We analysed all the data from when John...left...and we have a theory as to how the wormhole was opened. If you can re-create John's experiment in this ship, you might just be able to get back. To wherever you were before," DK said, giving Crais a weak smile.
"Judging by the state of this part of the galaxy, I suspect it would be best to make the attempt, even if it is not successful," Crais said grimly. "Thank you...for your assistance. Talyn and I will leave as soon as you have returned to Earth."
"We will do our best to explain the truth about what happened," Jack said, from the doorway. Today he felt old. No father wants to outlive his child.
"I hope, for your own sakes, that you are successful."
"It doesn't change the fact that you killed my sister," Jessica said, arms folded, expression angry.
"It is not the first death that I have been the cause of," Crais said. "But I in no way intended it to occur. I do know what it is to lose a family member and I offer you my condolences. Talyn does also. He wishes me to impress on you that he had no idea of the consequences of his actions. Neither of us did."
Talyn's lights dimmed around them.
"I accept that it's not your fault," Jessica said. "But that doesn't mean that I don't still blame you."
Crais almost chuckled. "That I can understand."
"I hope you get back," Jessica added reluctantly. "Because I don't think you'll be very popular if you stay here."
***
Bialar Crais stood dead centre in Talyn's command once again, preparing to throw himself on fortune's mercy. This time, he had no idea where he would end up.
He and Talyn dived, and then began to skim the Earth's atmosphere like a flat stone across a pond. Crais felt, rather than saw, the radiation levels spike and they pulled out, heading for the very centre of the disturbance. Suddenly they were surrounded by the familiar blue walls again, Crais was hurled from his feet, this time hitting his head on a console. Talyn groaned inwardly and knocked himself out straight away.
Free fall once again. With no guarantee of a soft landing.