5.01 - The Fearing Mind
Chapter 5 - Can't Handle The Truth
(11/6/04)
=========
Apologies for the wait for this one, plus for any lack of consistency of presentation - I've just formatted my PC so previous chapters have been lost.
By the way, I am *hopefully* going to do a full 22 fan-fics, making up an entire virtual season. Let's hope, anyway.
Also, sorry for perhaps confusing previous fans with the title change, and by saying chapter 5 was up when it wasn't. But in any case, here's chapter 5!
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Chapter 5 - Can't Handle The Truth
----------------------------------
Unconscious again. Really must start doing something to stop that, John thought. Still, at least waking from this one was more peaceful than the last two times.
Maybe he'd try and get some answers this time, thanks to Harvey clueing him in.
But what? Was he to believe that everything since the boat had been a nightmare? A figment of his tortured imagination brought on by something else?
And what if it started before the boat? His whole life since the Farscape experiment went down the crapper had been pretty much torture.
Except for one thing.
Aeryn.
John wondered where she was. If she hadn't been part of his feverish imagination, then he should wake up, find her, make sure she was safe.
And if she didn't really exist?
Well, John would wake up anyway, and spend the rest of his sad insanity with a fictitious woman who he dreamed cared about him.
Same as chatting over the Internet really, he thought.
He gradually heard voices, gaining in volume as he slowly regained consciousness. They sounded more like they were breathing in rather than out as they spoke, a bizarre growling noise to their voices.
John managed to regain his sense of touch, and identified that he was on a soft cushion surface of some sort. Nice. Finally, maybe not much torture this time round. Not even any restraints!
His right hand was near his hip. He slowly moved it, felt for his pulse pistol, Winona.
Gone.
Whoever these guys were, John would make sure they regretted taking Winona.
"The invader is coming to." John managed to make out from one of the voices. The next, slightly different, responded "I can see that."
John opened his eyes, making out a grey, featureless room, except for one thing.
A small but doubtlessly lethal gun emplacement on the ceiling, trained at his head.
"Whoa..." John managed to gasp, waking. "What the hell was that?"
"Restrain your tongue, invader!" he heard. "You are being monitored."
John managed a smirk. "Hell, frell, hell, frell, you guys don't know what hell means do ya?" he laughed. "I bet you thought I said frell. I'll never understand the language of people out here, even with those little translator microbes."
He managed to sit up and looked around. Looking up, he saw that the gun emplacement automatically tracked his head wherever he moved. He moved it from left to right, saw the gun follow suit.
"Look at me, Invader John Crichton!" he heard from behind him. John turned his face to see... well, it looked fairly human, with some weird facial bone structure, wearing a suit that reminded him of ancient Roman soldiers from history class, and... a mullet?
John had to laugh. "I've been captured..." he started, "by a guy with a mullet? The superbly evil Mullet Man?"
"Silence, Invader!" Mullet Man roared, but John kept giggling. "We are known as Vwert."
"Yeah, sure, Mullet Man." John giggled, then slowly stopped. "You said 'we'?"
"Yes, we." another voice, slightly different, said from Mullet Man's direction. John could have sworn it was Mullet Man himself doing a very good ventriloquist act, but it wasn't. His lips didn't even move.
Suddenly, Mullet Man's face split open along the middle and each of the two halves branched off to the side of the head. Inside was a mutilation of organs, but John could make out eyes looking at him from inside.
"We are Vwert!" the voice said again. "And we know you are an Invader, John Crichton. We know what you can give us, and we know your weakness."
John just stared. "Whoa... this is a new one." he said. "So... you have two brains or something, one operates the body and does a few little bits and bobs, and the other takes it easy?"
"You do not remember us invader?" the voice continued. "Over a thousand cycles... is this a long time to you? It is not to us. We were known as the Sedum."
"Sedum? No, doesn't ring a bell." John said. "Why do you keep calling me an invader anyway? Just who do you think I am?"
"An invader!" Vwert said, but the inner-Vwert calmed him. "Your kind invaded our planet over a thousand cycles ago, destroyed us and condemned us to live here, in a small colony on the ocean floor. I believe you were called... Peacekeepers."
"Peacekeepers?" John reeled. "You think I'm one of them? A Sebacean? I'm not - I'm human."
"I have never heard of such a species."
"Well, do a test on me. Analyse my DNA, test my blood, hell, measure little Johnny - I am not Sebacean, not Peacekeeper, and I can prove it."
"We cannot." Vwert replied. "The Peacekeepers destroyed all our planet. We were once a land-bound species, enjoying good trade with local systems, yet we kept our planet's location a secret due to the abundance of minerals on the surface. However, you Peacekeepers took the minerals for yourselves, and ravaged our atmosphere. The oceans rose, and it was all we could do to build ourselves this colony, and a few atmosphere-bound vessels for protection. We have medical facilities, but none to scan other species, since we did not anticipate them."
"You just let the Peacekeepers come in and chuck you in the water?" John asked.
"To we Sedum, all life is precious, even that of our enemies." Vwert said. "We wanted to house as many of our species as possible, to protect them."
John sighed. "Well, that's enough of the history lesson." he said. "Now, mind telling me what you did to me?"
"Simple." Vwert said. "By invoking fear in you and witnessing the results, we were able to ascertain what you are most afraid of, the likelihood being we could use it to our advantage."
"And what am I most afraid of?" John asked bluntly. "Spiders? The big bad wolf? Clowns?"
"Wormholes."
John got up off the surface he was lying on, and was about to punch Vwert. He hadn't noticed before that the creature was large, intimidating, and looked like he could take on Mike Tyson and win without breaking a sweat.
But John had been in worse situations before.
He heard a "zap" noise and saw a yellow bolt of light whizz past him, into the floor between him and Vwert. Looking down, he saw the laser's impact - a blackened patch of metal, smoldering away.
"Okay..." John said. "That's a good laser."
Vwert continued. "We have long been interested in wormholes." he said. "The one that opened near us, when we had capabilities for space travel. We were close to discovering the secret behind them, allowing us to travel vast distances. However, you Peacekeepers stopped all that, taking away our ability to monitor it."
"And now what?" John said. "The wormhole is gone - I destroyed it."
Vwert snorted. "While we cannot believe a word you say, Peacekeeper Invader, I can assure you that, with the correct information, we are capable of creating our own wormhole, and go through it. A relic from when we were a prosperous species allows for just the right amount of energy, and had been created for when the breakthrough would be made, and is capable of the energy required to create a wormhole, and has been modified to allow this colony to lift off through it."
"And what do you want from me?"
"The correct information." the inner-Vwert said. "Provide us with the final wormhole equations so we can find ourselves a more habitable planet so our species may prosper again. It is the least that you, as one of the ones who condemned us here in the first place, can do."
John sighed. "And what if I'm not one of the ones who condemned you here?"
"Then do it out of the goodness of your heart." Vwert replied. "Or maybe we should present another incentive?"
Behind Vwert the wall seamlessly opened, and behind it was a seat with restraints, a figure in it.
"Aeryn!" John ran over to her, hearing the gun emplacement track him but not caring. He put a hand to her cheek, felt her face. She was cold yet clammy, unconscious.
He turned to Vwert, a primitive growl in his voice. "What have you done to her?"
"She is of no use to us now, but we know you have feelings for her." the inner-Vwert replied. "And for the child as well."
John resigned himself. "Okay, I'll help you." he said, knowing he would try and find a way to sabotage the wormhole work - he had no intention of giving it out. "What about the others? The ones on Moya?"
"Moya?"
"The Leviathan."
"Leviathans are a peaceful species." Vwert said. "For them to be used to transport your kind is unacceptable."
John looked puzzled. "Meaning?"
"The Sedum have a moral code." Vwert said. "It is impossible for us to lie, even to one such as you. The Leviathan, Moya, is to be cleansed. All aboard are going to pay for their perversion of such a magnificent species, with their lives."
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Now we're getting somewhere! Please keep checking for new chapters, and read & review!
Chapter 5 - Can't Handle The Truth
(11/6/04)
=========
Apologies for the wait for this one, plus for any lack of consistency of presentation - I've just formatted my PC so previous chapters have been lost.
By the way, I am *hopefully* going to do a full 22 fan-fics, making up an entire virtual season. Let's hope, anyway.
Also, sorry for perhaps confusing previous fans with the title change, and by saying chapter 5 was up when it wasn't. But in any case, here's chapter 5!
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Chapter 5 - Can't Handle The Truth
----------------------------------
Unconscious again. Really must start doing something to stop that, John thought. Still, at least waking from this one was more peaceful than the last two times.
Maybe he'd try and get some answers this time, thanks to Harvey clueing him in.
But what? Was he to believe that everything since the boat had been a nightmare? A figment of his tortured imagination brought on by something else?
And what if it started before the boat? His whole life since the Farscape experiment went down the crapper had been pretty much torture.
Except for one thing.
Aeryn.
John wondered where she was. If she hadn't been part of his feverish imagination, then he should wake up, find her, make sure she was safe.
And if she didn't really exist?
Well, John would wake up anyway, and spend the rest of his sad insanity with a fictitious woman who he dreamed cared about him.
Same as chatting over the Internet really, he thought.
He gradually heard voices, gaining in volume as he slowly regained consciousness. They sounded more like they were breathing in rather than out as they spoke, a bizarre growling noise to their voices.
John managed to regain his sense of touch, and identified that he was on a soft cushion surface of some sort. Nice. Finally, maybe not much torture this time round. Not even any restraints!
His right hand was near his hip. He slowly moved it, felt for his pulse pistol, Winona.
Gone.
Whoever these guys were, John would make sure they regretted taking Winona.
"The invader is coming to." John managed to make out from one of the voices. The next, slightly different, responded "I can see that."
John opened his eyes, making out a grey, featureless room, except for one thing.
A small but doubtlessly lethal gun emplacement on the ceiling, trained at his head.
"Whoa..." John managed to gasp, waking. "What the hell was that?"
"Restrain your tongue, invader!" he heard. "You are being monitored."
John managed a smirk. "Hell, frell, hell, frell, you guys don't know what hell means do ya?" he laughed. "I bet you thought I said frell. I'll never understand the language of people out here, even with those little translator microbes."
He managed to sit up and looked around. Looking up, he saw that the gun emplacement automatically tracked his head wherever he moved. He moved it from left to right, saw the gun follow suit.
"Look at me, Invader John Crichton!" he heard from behind him. John turned his face to see... well, it looked fairly human, with some weird facial bone structure, wearing a suit that reminded him of ancient Roman soldiers from history class, and... a mullet?
John had to laugh. "I've been captured..." he started, "by a guy with a mullet? The superbly evil Mullet Man?"
"Silence, Invader!" Mullet Man roared, but John kept giggling. "We are known as Vwert."
"Yeah, sure, Mullet Man." John giggled, then slowly stopped. "You said 'we'?"
"Yes, we." another voice, slightly different, said from Mullet Man's direction. John could have sworn it was Mullet Man himself doing a very good ventriloquist act, but it wasn't. His lips didn't even move.
Suddenly, Mullet Man's face split open along the middle and each of the two halves branched off to the side of the head. Inside was a mutilation of organs, but John could make out eyes looking at him from inside.
"We are Vwert!" the voice said again. "And we know you are an Invader, John Crichton. We know what you can give us, and we know your weakness."
John just stared. "Whoa... this is a new one." he said. "So... you have two brains or something, one operates the body and does a few little bits and bobs, and the other takes it easy?"
"You do not remember us invader?" the voice continued. "Over a thousand cycles... is this a long time to you? It is not to us. We were known as the Sedum."
"Sedum? No, doesn't ring a bell." John said. "Why do you keep calling me an invader anyway? Just who do you think I am?"
"An invader!" Vwert said, but the inner-Vwert calmed him. "Your kind invaded our planet over a thousand cycles ago, destroyed us and condemned us to live here, in a small colony on the ocean floor. I believe you were called... Peacekeepers."
"Peacekeepers?" John reeled. "You think I'm one of them? A Sebacean? I'm not - I'm human."
"I have never heard of such a species."
"Well, do a test on me. Analyse my DNA, test my blood, hell, measure little Johnny - I am not Sebacean, not Peacekeeper, and I can prove it."
"We cannot." Vwert replied. "The Peacekeepers destroyed all our planet. We were once a land-bound species, enjoying good trade with local systems, yet we kept our planet's location a secret due to the abundance of minerals on the surface. However, you Peacekeepers took the minerals for yourselves, and ravaged our atmosphere. The oceans rose, and it was all we could do to build ourselves this colony, and a few atmosphere-bound vessels for protection. We have medical facilities, but none to scan other species, since we did not anticipate them."
"You just let the Peacekeepers come in and chuck you in the water?" John asked.
"To we Sedum, all life is precious, even that of our enemies." Vwert said. "We wanted to house as many of our species as possible, to protect them."
John sighed. "Well, that's enough of the history lesson." he said. "Now, mind telling me what you did to me?"
"Simple." Vwert said. "By invoking fear in you and witnessing the results, we were able to ascertain what you are most afraid of, the likelihood being we could use it to our advantage."
"And what am I most afraid of?" John asked bluntly. "Spiders? The big bad wolf? Clowns?"
"Wormholes."
John got up off the surface he was lying on, and was about to punch Vwert. He hadn't noticed before that the creature was large, intimidating, and looked like he could take on Mike Tyson and win without breaking a sweat.
But John had been in worse situations before.
He heard a "zap" noise and saw a yellow bolt of light whizz past him, into the floor between him and Vwert. Looking down, he saw the laser's impact - a blackened patch of metal, smoldering away.
"Okay..." John said. "That's a good laser."
Vwert continued. "We have long been interested in wormholes." he said. "The one that opened near us, when we had capabilities for space travel. We were close to discovering the secret behind them, allowing us to travel vast distances. However, you Peacekeepers stopped all that, taking away our ability to monitor it."
"And now what?" John said. "The wormhole is gone - I destroyed it."
Vwert snorted. "While we cannot believe a word you say, Peacekeeper Invader, I can assure you that, with the correct information, we are capable of creating our own wormhole, and go through it. A relic from when we were a prosperous species allows for just the right amount of energy, and had been created for when the breakthrough would be made, and is capable of the energy required to create a wormhole, and has been modified to allow this colony to lift off through it."
"And what do you want from me?"
"The correct information." the inner-Vwert said. "Provide us with the final wormhole equations so we can find ourselves a more habitable planet so our species may prosper again. It is the least that you, as one of the ones who condemned us here in the first place, can do."
John sighed. "And what if I'm not one of the ones who condemned you here?"
"Then do it out of the goodness of your heart." Vwert replied. "Or maybe we should present another incentive?"
Behind Vwert the wall seamlessly opened, and behind it was a seat with restraints, a figure in it.
"Aeryn!" John ran over to her, hearing the gun emplacement track him but not caring. He put a hand to her cheek, felt her face. She was cold yet clammy, unconscious.
He turned to Vwert, a primitive growl in his voice. "What have you done to her?"
"She is of no use to us now, but we know you have feelings for her." the inner-Vwert replied. "And for the child as well."
John resigned himself. "Okay, I'll help you." he said, knowing he would try and find a way to sabotage the wormhole work - he had no intention of giving it out. "What about the others? The ones on Moya?"
"Moya?"
"The Leviathan."
"Leviathans are a peaceful species." Vwert said. "For them to be used to transport your kind is unacceptable."
John looked puzzled. "Meaning?"
"The Sedum have a moral code." Vwert said. "It is impossible for us to lie, even to one such as you. The Leviathan, Moya, is to be cleansed. All aboard are going to pay for their perversion of such a magnificent species, with their lives."
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Now we're getting somewhere! Please keep checking for new chapters, and read & review!
