Jack watched his son, unashamed to stare at the man who was so unlike the person who'd left Earth eight years ago. John Crichton stood near the front of the transport pod about to break out of the Earth's atmosphere, looking for all the world like a hardened soldier. His eyes were steely and cold, face set in grim determination, body toned for combat, face bearing scars from some past battle.
Jack stood, moving unsteadily toward his son. The others were seated to keep steady in the turbulence of exiting the atmosphere, but Crichton stood firm, used to the sensation. Jack had to grip the wall as he made his way over to his son.
John saw his father coming and frowned, reaching out to steady his dad and pull him forward. At the stranger's proximity to their leader a few of the soldiers nearby tensed and brought up their guns... until Crichton held up a hand to them for them to desist.
They complied and sat back, merely keeping watch over the guest near Crichton.
Jack shook his head, fighting to stand alongside his son, "John... what's happened to you? These... 'people'... what are you to them?"
John sighed, looking over the troops in the pod with them as he said, "They're... just Sebaceans who've pledged their loyalty to me."
Jack's confusion was clear in his expression. "What happened to your face?" he asked, reaching up to touch John's scar. John moved as though to flinch away, then held himself still as his father's fingers touched the old mark.
"Scarran claw grazed me in a hand-to-hand a few cycles ago."
"Scarran... that's the bad guy, right?" Jack doubted he'd be able to catch up on what it was his son was doing in the other end of the universe. Since when did his son have troops loyal to him? When did John become a military leader, a captain of a warship? Nine years ago Jack would have said they were all occupations that his peaceful scientist son could never be fit for.
John nodded, checking out the window nearby, searching for sight of Talyn. He wasn't in visual range yet. As an unconscious motion, he dropped his hand down to his thigh to graze his fingers over his gun, making sure it was on him.
Jack shook his head, "Good god, son... what have you gotten yourself into out there?"
John looked at his father, meeting his eyes and for once since they were reunited Jack could see sorrow and pain in the cold blue eyes that his son had kept carefully neutral and guarded. John dropped his eyes, looking around to see that none of his men were in listening distance, and whispered, "I screwed up big time, Dad."
Jack frowned in confusion, father-mode kicking in as he saw his son in pain. He wanted only to reach out and comfort him as he used to when John was a little boy, when the biggest worries were the bogey man and the common cold.
Crichton put out a hand to brace himself against the wall of the transport pod as it rocked exiting the atmosphere, "This war is my fault."
Jack's mouth cracked open, eyes widening and looking at his son, unable to comprehend what John was saying. How could his son be responsible for an interstellar war... for the threat to Earth?
Crichton felt Talyn through his transponder stir in excitement and overwhelming relief to see the pod returning, and Crichton looked out the window. Just as he expected, he saw Talyn hanging in space and drawing closer as the transport pod neared. Crichton responded through his transponder, 'good to see you too, boy', and could sense Aeryn's own reassuring greeting in return to Talyn's contact with her. It was a strange experience to be bonded together, the three of them, through their thoughts. But in another way, it wasn't so odd. Even before Talyn, Crichton and Aeryn had a closeness and understanding, a likeness and compatibility of thoughts and motives that only served to calm Talyn when he accepted them both as captain after Crais's death. The agreement of thoughts between them had been reassuring to Talyn as he recovered from losing his first captain. Aeryn had been a great comfort to him and a big help in getting Talyn to accept and get used to the human taking the Hand of Friendship.
John looked back at his father, waving him toward the window. Jack struggled to look out the window with his son, shocked by what he saw, a massive warship like nothing he'd ever seen or imagined, "My..."
"Dad... meet Talyn."
They entered the command of Talyn and instantly a cascade of chirps and beeps came upon them. Aeryn smiled, one of the few she allowed herself lately, and touched the red circular neural console overhead, "Hello, Talyn."
DK, Jack Crichton, and General Tranguard followed the errant human and strange alien woman, watching in shock as the ship's lights and sounds responded to their entering the command room.
Talyn chirped. Crichton smirked, "You too, Talyn..." and turned to look at his friends, "Talyn, these people are guests, and they're not dangerous or here to harm any of us. This is General Tranguard, Daniel Knox, and Jack Crichton."
More chirping, this time slightly faster in alarm.
"I know, Talyn. Jack is my father, my real father this time."
Talyn acknowledged, standing down his readied systems to drop his intruder guns.
Crichton turned to the three humans, dismissing the Sebacean guards that had accompanied them. DK looked around at the ship, wide-eyed, "Man, John... this ship is something."
Crichton nodded, "He is that, nothing like him in the universe."
General Tranguard looked at the weapons prepped in the ceiling of command, "This thing is armed to the teeth. Who built it, these Sebaceans?"
Crichton frowned, checking with Aeryn (who gave no answer), and replied, "Not exactly... he's a hybrid ship. He was born with weaponry as a genetic experiment by the Peacekeepers."
Jack blinked, "What do you mean 'born'?"
Crichton stepped toward one of the consoles, checking a readout, and answering, "Talyn is a living ship."
The general startled, stopping in his tracks and looking around. "You mean this thing's a living creature?"
Aeryn looked over at the three guests, wary, and turned back to her work. Crichton knew she was just trying to distract herself from having to interact with them... she didn't agree with having them aboard. As long as Earth was not involved in the war, John had been content to not see his family and friends again for their protection. But now that they were in the war anyway, John wanted to finally see his family again, and Aeryn was allowing him that. It just didn't mean she had to like it.
Crichton nodded, "That's right, General."
DK moved toward one of the consoles in fascination, "Amazing..."
Aeryn's sharp reprimand in her language and drawing of her gun halted DK dead in his tracks. Talyn grew concerned and confused... one captain telling him they were friend, the other treating them as foe. He chirped and groaned in protest, demanding an explanation.
Crichton looked quickly at Aeryn, "Aeryn..." then calmed, "it's all right, Talyn."
Aeryn realized her wariness had caused Talyn confusion and put her pulse pistol away, adding herself, "Yes, Talyn, everything is all right."
Talyn calmed, relaxed to find consensus.
DK, still in his spot, asked, "Uh... can I move?"
Crichton nodded, speaking again to Talyn, "Talyn, prepare some translator microbes for our guests." He turned to the three humans, "We're not going to get much accomplished if we can't understand one another. We're going to inject you with translator microbes... they'll allow you to understand the others."
DK stepped back toward the other two humans, "You have them?"
Crichton nodded.
An incoming transmission surged to the forefront of both Aeryn and Crichton's senses as it reached Talyn. It was a distress call from a Leviathan... Moya.
Their actions required no discussion... in a split second it was unanimous.
Without a word, they moved into action. Crichton rushed to the navigational console, taking the manual controls that Talyn had instantly transferred to him so he could perform the maneuver to reopen the wormhole, a delicate combination of knowledge and intuition John Crichton knew by heart. Aeryn went to another station, priming Talyn for partial starburst.
"Aeryn!" Crichton called.
"Ready."
Crichton pulled Talyn into a roll, positioning him along Earth's atmosphere, and when the trajectory hit just right, when atmospheric disturbance refracting off Talyn's hull pitched just right with solar rays from the sun, the shimmering blue funnel erupted into being right in front of them.
"Talyn..." Aeryn prompted.
Talyn groaned and complied, tail and back of his wings sizzling with electricity as he entered the first stage of starburst.
Crichton flew Talyn straight for the opening in the wormhole.
Talyn's starburst built and grew in intensity. His wings shifted and moved, first tipping back to make contact with his tail, then tucking into his body as the starburst effect rippled over his entire body.
Microts before starbursting, Crichton flew Talyn into the wormhole... perfect timing.
They were rocked by the impact as Talyn was sent hurtling through space, or maybe more correctly hyperspace, before Crichton regathered himself and took hold again of the manual controls, guiding Talyn into a position and trajectory that was much easier on the ship and his passengers.
They shot through the blue passageways, like falling through the proverbial rabbit hole at blinding speed, then just as suddenly were out again in normal space. Exploding into an entirely new area of space, the blue disappeared and stars returned.
Talyn's excess energy surrounding him from the partial starburst had been bled off by the walls of the wormhole. He came through looking normal, wings extending back out for normal flight.
"How far..." Crichton began.
"Seven hundred metras," Aeryn shouted back.
"Who's..."
"Peacekeepers."
Crichton glowered, "Talyn, prime weapons," and returned control of navigation to him. There was little that had to be told to the ship now... Talyn would go to protect Moya, and it was all the encouragement he needed that both his captains agreed completely with his actions. Talyn took off toward his mother's call at his maximum hetch speed.
"John!"
Crichton turned at his father's call, surprised to see them there. In the heat of the action, he'd forgotten about their guests.
"What just happened?" DK asked, shocked.
"I'm afraid you've just been dragged into your first space battle. Grab hold of something, don't touch anything, and keep quiet," he all but ordered.
Crichton turned his back on them, not having the time to bother with them, and asked the ship, "What was Moya's condition when she called?"
Talyn relayed the sensation she'd sent to him... pain.
"John," Aeryn prompted when she felt Talyn's long range sensors touch the objects in the distance. They had a habit of doing that, talking and alerting one another when there was really no need... what one felt from Talyn the other did, too. John concentrated on the feed... one large Leviathan mass, Moya's call signature, and small ships. Prowlers. Maybe a Marauder.
"What the..." DK's stunned voice came from behind.
Crichton looked back to see his friend, holding on to a console and staring out the front view port. Crichton looked up at what his childhood friend was looking at and saw in the distance through the window a dot of gold-brown and flitting yellow bolts of light from weapons fire.
Talyn's anger and urgency boiled through them all.
Aeryn relayed to him calm... calm and collection in battle to improve performance, and Talyn listened. Crichton felt Talyn calm down, and he did too, determined instead on saving their mother ship... mother to them all in so many ways.
Talyn came upon the melee quickly, bringing weapons online and fleetingly asking if he was cleared to fire. He would have anyway despite orders, but Aeryn and Crichton together permitted him 'fire at will'.
Talyn's massive firepower was unleashed on those Prowlers that dared to fire upon Moya. Seven were destroyed before the squad thought to fire back. The sharp pricks of pain only angered Talyn further and his strikes became more ruthless. When he was younger, four of five cycles younger, taking on a Prowler patrol might have been dangerous to his health, but Talyn had grown beyond that. He was a powerhouse, and Prowlers could do little to harm him.
The Prowler pilots soon learned this and retreated, spinning off into space.
"Talyn, stand down weapons," Crichton ordered.
Talyn acknowledged and did so, sonic ascendancy cannon withdrawing.
"How is she?" Crichton stepped up behind Aeryn at her console.
Aeryn frowned, "Injured... I can't be sure to what extent."
They both felt Talyn's concern as he contacted Moya directly, Leviathan (more or less) son to Leviathan mother. Moya responded joyously to Talyn's presence, but her happiness was tempered by pain.
Crichton took control of Talyn's crew communications while the young ship spoke with Moya, contacting the larger ship's occupants, "Pilot... Pilot, you guys okay over there?"
Pilot's voice came over the communications system, "Commander... we are grateful you're here."
Crichton nodded, "How's Moya?"
"She is... in pain."
Aeryn stepped past Crichton to go to another console, "Why were you attacked, Pilot?"
Pilot's voice, tired and weary, came over the communications system, "It appears that the Peacekeeper patrols discovered we were... harboring defectors."
"How many?" Aeryn stopped to ask.
Pilot answered, "Four."
Crichton exchanged sad looks with Aeryn. For her own safety, Aeryn and John had protested Moya's involvement in the war. Those aboard her had insisted upon helping, and Moya had gone along with their decision willingly.
Crichton sighed, "Well, as long as we're here we can take them off your hands. Is everyone else all right?"
Pilot responded after a moment to check, "Everyone has reported in. If they are injured I'm not sure, but they are alive."
Both Aeryn and Crichton felt a great relief at that, and Talyn broke from his exchange with his mother to momentarily share in their relief at the health of Moya's crew.
Crichton turned to his guests, finding them all as wide-eyed as deer in the headlights of an oncoming truck. He sighed to himself, wishing they somehow could have been left on Earth. This was the last place he needed their inept nagging... then he stopped to think about what he just did. So that was what the others felt about him when he first got to Moya so many cycles ago.
Crichton considered the three humans, head cocked, then went to a side wall panel and pried loose from a hanging DRD the translator microbe shots. Talyn had better things to do than worry about the three humans, so he took them to the guests himself.
Crichton held up the three vials, "This will hurt at first... it'll pass." Before anyone could protest, Crichton depressed one syringe into DK's throat.
DK gasped and shuddered, clenching his eyes against the pain. After the initial wave passed he coughed and looked up, glowering, "Damnit, John... what do you think you're doing?"
Crichton eyed his friend seriously, "Look, DK, I'm too busy to babysit you all the time, and without these I'd be the only one who could, because I'm the only person you understand."
Aeryn looked back at them, frowning, "You sure you should do that without the DRDs?"
DK blinked in alarm, "Whoa, I just understood that. Well, I think I did... what the hell's a DRD?"
Crichton ignored his friend, returning to Aeryn, "Seems to work fine without them."
Aeryn shrugged, looking back at the consoles.
Crichton gave the next one to his father, who had prepared himself for the shot and gripped the console as the microbes worked their way to his brain stem. The last injection was to General Tranguard.
Crichton threw the empty syringes aside, a DRD moving to clean them up, "There... in case anyone's unclear, we just went through the wormhole in response to a distress call by a ship under attack... that ship out there," he indicated out the window the gigantic vessel in front of Talyn.
Crichton's eyes narrowed, "I'm sorry you got dragged into this, but now that we're here, we're going to help that ship in any way we can. I know you probably can't help, but you'll have to stay out of the way."
Jack was staring out at the massive golden-brown ship, dumbstruck, "What is that, John?"
Crichton felt a resurging affection for the ship that was in question. Moya, their home away from home, mother to them all from her original crew. Talyn felt Crichton's fondness for Moya as he thought of her and responded in a feathery, agreeable sentiment to the emotion.
"That, my friends, is Moya. She's Talyn's mother."
General Tranguard was shocked, "That ship is the mother of this one? She's enormous... is this ship going to be that big?"
Crichton shrugged, "We're not really sure how big Talyn will get, but he's still a child now."
DK whistled, "That's some kid, then."
Crichton turned to Aeryn, "Aeryn, I'm gonna go over there and see if I can do anything for Moya."
Aeryn nodded, then threw back, "Take those three with you; I don't want to watch them."
Crichton nodded, "All right, come on then, you'll get to see Moya up close and personal."