Chapter 13! Whoo hoo! Enjoy! (hands out chocolate harpers to all the female population and chocolate trances to the guys.)

Harper's mind

"Beka!" Harper screamed, not caring if the ever nearing Angel could hear him. Someone or something was going to hurt his Beka. He couldn't even help her.

It happened in the past. You couldn't change the past…he knew from experience.

He was still trying to say sorry to Tyr for what he did at the battle of Witch head. Instead of amending and saying the words, he had been pushing…no not pushing him, more like goading Tyr into trying to hurt him, trying to make him feel better.

"Beka, you gotta run! Now! It's gonna get you!"

It tore him from the inside out, every step the thing took it meant less time for Beka. Why wasn't Rommie or Sephiroth doing anything?! Surely Rommie could see the thing walking up to Beka?

Once again he screamed at the blonde captain, a small part of him hoping that she would hear his desperate screams for her to turn round but he knew she couldn't.

It seemed that his screams would only be answered by an angel. One hell bent on killing him.

His heart quickened as Beka turned round to greet the stranger or so he thought. He frowned as Beka smiled at the person…it couldn't of been Rommie. She was standing right in front of him…

Nah…that couldn't be it. The ship he was in was empty and it wasn't the Angel. Everything was so much darker over there and the Andromeda was always nice and neat and light.

Beka seemed to give the person walking to her a friendly but concerned smile, did she know this person? Then why was Harper getting a bad feeling?

"Hey kiddo, how you feeling?" Beka's voice came through the tiny little screen.

Kiddo…that was her name for him sometimes.

"Tired…feels like I'm fighting with myself just to stay awake," he heard his voice reply.

His voice?! His freaking voice?! When bad luck struck Harper, it always struck more than once.

Harper grabbed his head in frustration and confusion. How or why the hell was he hearing his voice? Did…did he do something bad to…no. No, he would never in a million years hurt Beka.

Not even the time when she threw up on his favourite Hawaiian shirt after he had challenged her to an ice cream eating contest or when she brought Rev Brem onboard the Maru for the first time.

"HARPER! You can't run forever you know!" Angel's voice called nearer.

The blonde muttered under his breath, "I know this ship like the back of my freaking hand so I can hide…"

The blonde span round, his morbid fascination with the screen forgotten. His hands reached for his guass weapon and they came away empty. Fingers trembling as he looked at them.

"Harper…there you are," Angel appeared right in front of him, "You are such a tricky man to actually locate."

The blonde backed into a bulkhead, still hoping somewhere in his heart that Tyr or Dylan would bound round the corner to the rescue. That this was all a nasty little dream that an infection in his brain had concocted.

Andromeda, still in the past….

Beka watched as Harper stood beside her, swaying slightly. Her friend didn't look his usual perky self but at least he was standing. Standing meant he was alright.

"What happened to Sephiroth?" the blonde male asked as he looked at the avatar, "He isn't damaged is he?"

"Rommie isn't working and your worried about Sephiroth?" Beka looked at him oddly, unable to believe that the man in front of her was more concerned for a male avatar rather than the female creation he had made.

"…sorry. Must still have a little bit of the angel in my head," he offered her a weak smile.

Beka smiled back softly, she'd seen him at his worst before. This wasn't anything she felt she had to be to concerned about, not yet anyway.

Harper had never really had an easy ride even on the Andromeda. Always getting picked on by bigger and stronger aliens than him or being forced to do the work of an entire engineering crew.

"That gonna be a problem kiddo?" Beka edged a little nearer to him and was a little surprised to see him back by a millimetre. If she hadn't knew him as well as she did, she wouldn't of even noticed.

Huh? What's up with him? Beka turned and walked to the two stationary avatars and leaned against Sephiroth.

"Tall and silver over here ran out of gas and Rommie…well, Dylan was going to check on you and then find out," the Maru's captain nodded in the direction Dylan had ran off in.

"Where's Trance?" Beka frowned.

She had left the purple wonder to look after him, knowing full well that the alien would take care of him and wouldn't leave his side until he felt better.

"…I think she's in the medical bay. Before Rommie went nuts that is," Harper made a face as he tried to remember.

Beka's blue eyes widened in surprise before narrowing. Andromeda gone nuts? She frowned again. Something fishier than a Castelian was going on.

"You sure?" the Maru's captain crossed her arms, "I mean, nuts?"

The upper cut caught her by complete surprise as she fell flat on her backside. She tasted blood in her mouth as she landed on the cold metal grated deck.

"Like I said…my memory is kinda fuzzy," the engineer offered.

Harper shook his right hand and flexed the fingers. It seemed that the human male had a fist made of glass and the woman a jaw of steel. Angel felt the pain throb through the delicate fingers and wondered whether or not the hand was broken.

Beka scrambled to her feet, using Sephiroth and Rommie as shields. On impulse she pulled out her gun and pointed it steadily at her friend. Never in her life did she ever think that she would use it on him.

"Harper…back off," she drove a pointed look into his tired eyes.

He didn't respond as he expertly took the gone from her and pointed at her, "No, I think you should."

Beka tried her stern don't-mess-with-me voice on the young man, "Harper, stop being an idiot. Give me the gun."

Pale fingers gripped Beka's weapon tightly, his index finger resting gently on the trigger.

"Back off Captain Valentine," Harper hissed.

Never, in all his time working with her, had he called her Captain Valentine. He referred to her as Boss, Beka or on the really odd occasions, Rebecca. Never, in all her time working with him, had she had any reasons to fear him. He was always there for her.

"Harper, it's me. Beka," she whispered to him.

Red rimmed, cold eyes stared at her. Harper tilted his head slightly to the left, as if he was listening to someone else. His eyes darted from side to side before resting finally on the Maru's captain.

"I know exactly who you are," Harper hissed again, "So, that is why I am not going to kill you. Get to your ship and leave."

"If you know me, then you'll realise that I'm not going to leave," Beka argued, "Harper! For the love of the Devine!"

"Love of the Devine?" a short bitter laughed crept from Harper's pale lips, "I don't believe in the Devine."

Beka held out her hands in the sign of peace, not wanting to agitate the blonde further. She had to get the gun from him and get him back to the medical bay.

"Alright. I'll go back to the Maru, on one condition. You come with me," Beka bargained.

"No," a second blow caused her to fall back.

Her head cracked against the metal grated deck. She prayed that this was all a nasty dream before allowing darkness to claim her.

Harper's mind

Anger pulsed through his frame as he swung at empty air.

"YOU BITCH!" he screamed, "She didn't do anything!"

Angel's voice filled his entire being with even more hate, "You still don't get it do you?"

"Foolish child, where do you think you are?"

Harper span round, trying to locate the woman, "On…on the Andromeda."

A disembodied laugh sent chills down his spine. Why was she laughing?

"Not on the Andromeda?"

No answer, except that laugh. What was so freaking funny?

"Dear, dear, dear child. Not exactly," Angel started her mad laugh again.

He ran from her voice, hoping to see a huge exit sign in big neo letters somewhere. What the hell is going on?

What the hell is going on?! Harper dived into an access tunnel, hoping to hide from the ever present Angel.

He took the chance to take a small breather from running and the chance to get his thoughts in order.

He crawled further into the crawl way, looking for his regular thinking spot or a space large enough for him to sit comfortably anyhow. After what seemed like a lifetime of crawling, he found his little safe haven and pressed his back firmly against the bulkhead.

"Harper," he heard his name echo down through the crawl way, "I know what scares you. I know your fears and I will do everything I can to keep you silent and obedient until I carry out my plan."

"Yeah?! What freaking plan?! Why are you here?!" Harper cried out.

"I'm going to destroy the Andromeda, then the restored Commonwealth will die a fiery death as I launch my Nova bombs on their worlds," Angel divulged.

Harper's eyes widened, nova bombs? Nova freaking bombs?! No freaking way!

Suddenly and in the distant, he heard rhythmic drumming and faint thuds of things impacting with the hull of the ship.

"I'm not afraid of them…" he whispered, "Not afraid. My fear is like the Devine. It is like air, it is like water."

He heard a nearby screech from a Magog, ,"My fear…is like the Devine. It is like air, it is like water."

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Yeah, I know. The bad old magog comes a knocking. Well, he's all alone right now. You guys still enjoying this fic?