Sorry if it's taken me awhile to post. Recently I've had other, more dismal things to worry about than when to finish writing this chapter. But I promise I won't depress you with the details. (Or if you do want the details, look on my bio.)

Here it is, the chapter you've all been waiting for, where we get some Beka/Rhade action! (Not anything nasty, mind you, because this is a PG-13 fic.) Thanks so much to prin69, Alohilani Moon, Namaresca and Cynthia for their ideas - I really appreciate it! This chapter is for you!

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            The clouds billow around us and the wind is whistling furiously past as the Maru plummets toward Earth at a critical speed. We aren't heading toward the Boston spaceport anymore, but that's so much the worse; now we're on a straight course for the Atlantic Ocean and a watery death. On my left, Dylan is punching buttons and hollering something into my ear, but I can't tell what it is. Behind me, Rhade is doing everything he can to slow our descent from the console at the back of the cockpit. Harper's disappeared in the general direction of the engine room. I don't know what he thinks he's doing, but there isn't enough time to get the reverse thrusters on-line again before we make impact. As for me – I'm pulling up on the pilot's controls with everything I've got. If I can somehow bring the Maru around so that we're flying up, instead of down, then theoretically, Earth's gravity should slow our momentum until we can drift into a landing. But it doesn't work. We have too much momentum already, so pulling up on the controls has just turned the ship so we're falling tail first. I don't think there's anything I can do, and I've never been so scared in my life.

            There's a crackle of static, and then a voice comes on over the COM link. "Eureka Maru, this is Boston Airspace Control. What's your situation?"

            I feel a quick flash of anger. There isn't time for a lengthy explanation! "We've lost our reverse thrusters," I say, my voice cracking. "We're falling out of control."

            The voice is steady, calm. "Stand by, Eureka Maru. We'll have an emergency crew there soon to assist you." I fight the urge to laugh insanely, knowing that no matter how soon their emergency crew gets here, it will already be too late.

            Dammit! I can't just give up. An idea flashes through my mind, and with nothing to lose I clench my teeth and put the forward thrusters on full blast. There's a horrible grinding and rumbling sound from the engine room, and then, miracle of miracles, the Maru starts slowing her descent. She falls slower and slower, until there's a second or two when we're just hanging motionless in the air. Then, with a painful-sounding chugging noise, the forward thrusters kick in and the ship starts making her way up again.

            Dylan, Rhade and I share a collective sigh of relief as I pull the Maru into level flight again and turn her toward land. I turn the forward thrusters down to low power, so it's just enough to keep us moving forward but not enough to make us pick up speed. What now? The Maru's thrusters are too busted up for us to be able to land properly, so no matter what I do, we're still going to have a crash landing. The only thing I can do is make sure that the place where we crash is as open and empty as possible. "Rhade, run a scan and find me the nearest empty area that would be large enough for us to land," I call over my shoulder.

            "Land?" Dylan asks tartly. "I think you mean crash."

            "That works too," I say shortly as Rhade puts the coordinates for the landing location on the pilot's console. "Either way, I think you're going to want to strap yourselves in." Dylan pauses, and I can tell he's giving me a disapproving look, but I don't bother to look up as he makes his way to the second console in the Maru's cockpit and straps himself in. I grip the pilot controls and bring the ship around to the right, careful not to increase our velocity. This is going to be dangerous; if I'm not careful, our impact could be too severe and the Maru – with us inside of it – will end up just a bunch of scrap metal.

            From the console behind me, Rhade taps in a few keys and hails Harper over the Maru's COM link. "You're going to need to leave the thrusters, Harper, and find somewhere to strap yourself in," he says tersely. "We're going to be making a crash landing in about a minute and a half."

            "Sure thing, Rhade." Harper's voice crackles over the Maru's speakers. "One more minor adjustment -" crack "- Ow! All righty, I'm about as done as I'm gonna be."

            I can see our "landing site" up ahead on the horizon. I look down at its coordinates. It looks kind of like a town square, except it's covered in grass and the buildings that surround it are broken down and obviously empty. This section of Boston has been abandoned – or at least, the only people who live here are thieves and beggars, who have nothing to lose and who have gotten only the worst from the Drago-Kazov. If the Maru crashes here, there won't be anyone around who could get hurt. Then again, there won't be anyone around to help us if we're the ones who get hurt. And as we approach that empty space on the horizon, I'm beginning to get this sinking feeling in my stomach that's telling me we won't get away from this unscathed. And for once, my great piloting skills won't be able to save us.

            I take in a deep, shuddering breath, trying not to let myself think that this may be the last chance I ever get to see my baby the Maru again, or Dylan and Harper, or... Rhade. I don't know if I could stand losing Rhade now – especially after I just figured out about half an hour ago why I care about him so much! Rev Bem always used to say that the Divine works in mysterious ways, but I have to say that if the Divine tries to take me away now, I'm going to have to do something horrible to Him in retaliation. And I know from experience that no one, the Divine included, wants to mess with Beka Valentine when I'm in a temper.

            The empty square is drawing closer. I turn the thrusters off and let us glide in. Even though we're not going very fast, we still have too much speed for a safe landing. "Hey, Harper," I say into the COM link, "You wouldn't by any chance have the reverse thrusters back on-line, would you? Because if you don't we're going to have a painful landing."

            "I dunno, Boss," Harper's voice replies. "I fixed one of 'em up so it's working all right, but I don't think it'll be enough to keep the Maru from crashing. It will keep us all from getting killed, though. I think."

            "Glad to know you're sure of yourself," I mutter under my breath, and brace myself as I throw on the single reverse thruster. For the third time in the past five minutes, the engine room emits a noise that really doesn't sound healthy for my ship, and the Maru slows down to little more than a crawl. Unfortunately, the Maru's crawl is still too fast for us to land safely.

            The empty square looms ahead, and I take a deep breath – I hope it isn't my last – and direct the Maru down at the slightest angle I can manage. The ground seems to reach up to meet us, and then with a horrible lurch we hit the ground and go spinning off across the square with an awful screech of metal. My hands are jarred, and I throw them up instinctively to protect my face. There's dirt flying in front of the view panel and the ship is rattling so hard I can't focus my eyes on anything, making it almost impossible to see outside; but what I can see, I don't like. The ship is shooting straight for the large, sturdily-built building ahead of us. I can feel my stomach fill with cold dread. I'm sure the Maru will survive collision with the building, which looks like concrete, but will I? I reach for the piloting controls again to try to turn the ship away, but there's no time anymore as the viewing panels shatter with impact and I'm thrown forward into blackness.

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            The darkness is receding. The pain isn't. I can see the sunlight through my closed eyes, and feel it beating into my brain. I can't remember who I am, or how I got here, or even where I am. The pain is nearly unbearable, but it seems almost natural, like it's always been there. My mind clings to it like a lifeline. The pain is the only indication I have that I'm still alive. Or am I? Would it hurt this much if I were dead? It seems as if I'm floating in a sea of pain; I can barely feel my body, and even the sunlight seems surreal. The only sounds I can hear are muted and faint.

            The pain surges up in a wave of heat, and the sunlight suddenly becomes brighter against my eyelids. The noises in my ears abruptly get louder. There's a voice, a voice I think I recognize, calling something. It sounds familiar. Have I heard it before?

            Beka, the voice says, over and over. Beka, wake up. Beka. Beka.

            Whoever it is sounds so sad, like they've lost someone. I want to help them. I know how it is to lose someone you love. I have to help them. I want to reach out and touch them, and tell them not to be sad. But I feel too heavy. My arms won't move. The pain has tied them down. And I can't even see who is talking.

            Beka. Beka. Wake up.

            I want to open my eyes now; to see who it is that is so sad. My eyelids feel like lead weights. I have to struggle just to open them to slits. The sunlight is blinding and I shut them again as the pain overwhelms my head. But I must help the sad person. Again I struggle to open my eyes, and I have to force myself to keep them open as the pain becomes unbearable. Someone is moaning nearby – I can hear it. Is it me?

            Beka?

            The sunlight dims as a shadow falls over me, and as the pain lessens I force my eyes open further. There's a face in front of me. I'm too blinded by the sun to make out who it is. But I think I know that face – the same way I think I knew the sad voice. Who is it? It's . . . It's . . .

            Rhade.

            Everything comes rushing back in a clash of pain. The talk with Trance, and the message from the Drago-Kazov, and my poor, sabotaged ship. The crash . . . and then the blackness. I close my eyes as I remember. It hurts too much to think.

            Rhade's saying something. I open my eyes again and try to focus on his face. "Are you all right, Beka?" he asks. I can tell by the look in his eyes and the crease on his brow that he's worried about me.

            I lick my dry lips and say, "What happened?" It comes out as a whisper.

            He puts a bottle of water to my lips and tilts it a bit so the cool liquid flows into my mouth. "The Maru went straight through that building," he explains, pointing to something past me – presumably the building. I don't bother to turn my head to look. "When we hit it, the straps on the pilot's seat snapped and you went flying through the broken viewing panels. Harper, Dylan and I weren't hurt, and when the Maru finally slid to a stop, we got out and found you lying in a heap of broken concrete blocks. Dylan and Harper went for help, and they left me under orders to get you back to the Andromeda, where Trance can take care of you. You have a fairly deep gash on your head that needs to be taken care of."

            "So that's . . . that's why it hurts," I mutter, just barely audible. Rhade has to lean in closer to hear. "How long . . . have I been out?"

            Rhade leans back again. "You've been unconscious for at least fifteen minutes," he says, "although I haven't been keeping track of time. Dylan and Harper left a few minutes ago." He's silent for a few moments, just looking down at me. Finally he says, "Do you think you could sit up? I have to see how badly you have been hurt." When I nod my head very slightly – the pain flares up again – he slips one arm behind my head and the other under my shoulders. He lifts me up gently as I struggle against the pain, and sets my back against something hard and cool. I can feel the blood pounding in my head.

            Rhade studies me, his face expressionless. "You're bleeding again," he says, and pulls a rag out of his pocket, and carefully dabs at a spot over my left ear. I gasp as the pain shoots through me again. Rhade frowns. "We have to get you back to the Andromeda as soon as possible," he says, sounding as if he's talking to himself. "I'm beginning to think we can't wait for Harper and Dylan." He glances around, and I follow his gaze. Off to the right, the Maru is lying in the midst of several large chunks of concrete. She looks pretty beat up, but she's still in one piece, as far as I can tell.

            Rhade looks back at me, his face grim. "Let me take a look at your head and your back," he says in a voice that allows no argument. "I have to make sure you don't have any wounds I don't know about. I checked the rest of you while you were unconscious." I lean forward slightly and he brushes his fingers lightly through my hair. Finding my head whole, other than the gash on my left temple, he starts to reach for my back, then pauses. If it weren't for the pain, I think I'd smirk – he's obviously embarrassed with the fact that in order to check my back for wounds, he'd have to take off my shirt. "I think I'll let Trance check your back. We'll have to get you to the Andromeda. Do you think you can walk?" he asks.

            "I'm damn well going to," I tell him vehemently.

            He smiles a little. "That's the Beka I know," he says. He reaches out both his hands. "Lean on me. I'll help you up." I take his hands and arrange my feet underneath me so that they'll hold my weight. I push myself up as Rhade pulls, and I wobble to my feet. Once up, the world starts to turn grey and blurry, and I feel strong arms pick me up off my feet just before I lose my balance completely and fall over. Rhade's dark eyes swim into focus, and his amused voice says, from far away, "I guess I'll have to carry you after all."

            My last thought before the world goes black again is – what is it with Nietzscheans?

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            When I come to, the first think I notice is that my head is tucked comfortably against Rhade's chest and that one of his strong arms is wrapped around my shoulders, the other under my knees. It's weird, because recently I've been wondering what it would be like to be held in Rhade's arms; only, I never really pictured it to be anything like this.

            I turn my head slightly to look up at him. He notices the movement and glances down. "Awake again?" he says, turning his eyes to look ahead once more.

            "Hmmm," I say noncommittally, leaning my head on his chest again. I really think I could get to like this. "Where are we going?"

            "We're going to find a ship to take us back to the Andromeda," he says, "even if that means stealing one. It's not far to the Boston spaceport." I'm actually quite surprised that Rhade's going to steal a ship to get us to the Andromeda. It isn't that I'm against stealing ships or anything (especially if they're unmarked and unregistered and I can sell them later), but since when has Rhade been willing to steal one? Well, since he joined the crew of the Andromeda, I guess. I didn't know we've been rubbing off on him so much.

            I'm quiet for a moment, just taking in the scent of Rhade's shirt. Musky and masculine. "How long was I out that time?" I ask finally.

            "Only a few minutes," he says. "Not as long as last time." He looks down at me. "Are you feeling any better?"

            I consider it. The pain, which was sharp and shooting through my whole body the last time I was awake, is now just a dull, throbbing ache in my head. The sunlight still hurts my eyes, but it's much more bearable now. And then, of course, I have to take into consideration the fact that I'm being held in the arms of a tall, dark, handsome, and generally sexy Nietzschean. Yes, I think I'm definitely feeling better now. But I won't tell Rhade that, because he'll probably put me down and make me walk.

            "A little," I murmur into his shirt. Then, in all fairness, I have to add, "I hope I'm not too heavy for you to carry. If I am, you could always set me down so I can walk."

            He quirks an eyebrow down at me and snorts. "You're actually quite light, and I'm not going to let you walk when you can't even stand up without falling over." I shrug one shoulder – that's perfectly all right with me – and turn my head to watch the scenery go by. Rhade (with me in his arms) is walking down a deserted street, but because of the lively sounds of machinery coming from inside the squat, industrial-looking buildings, this neighborhood has a more friendly feel than the area where the Maru crashed. And speaking of which –

            "Is the Maru still back there?"

            Rhade looks surprised, or as surprised as he can when he's genetically engineered to hide his emotions. "Of course," he says. "Its thrusters were too shot for us to take her back to the Andromeda, and we don't know how badly it was damaged in the crash. It's useless to us until we get it fixed."

            I struggle to sit up and look over his shoulder in the general direction of my ship. Rhade stops walking as he almost drops me, and tries to hold me still. I only struggle harder. I don't want to leave the Maru behind in an empty square where any thieving kludge could sneak in and steal something like machine parts or navigation instruments, which could fetch a tidy sum on the black market. I don't think I could stand to see my ship gutted like that. And Rhade, of all people, should understand that the Maru is all I have left. Taking me away from my ship is like tearing me away from the only home and family I have left.

            Rhade sets me down carefully in the middle of the street and squats in front of me. "Beka," he says, bringing me back to myself. "I keyed the lock on the Maru. Your ship will be fine right where it is. We have to worry about getting you back to the Andromeda." Before he can say anything else, there's a beep nearby, and Rhade pulls out a portable COM unit. He flips it open so we can both see a tiny picture of Dylan on the screen, with Harper hovering in the background.

            "Beka!" Dylan says, sounding warm and mildly surprised. "It's good to see you're awake again. How's the head?"

            "Painful," I say frankly, carefully feeling the area around the gash.

            "It is my intention to take Beka back to the Andromeda, where Trance can take care of her," Rhade explains to Dylan. "We're on our way to the Boston spaceport right now, but Beka's been somewhat unwilling to leave the Maru behind."

            "Well, that won't be a problem," Dylan says, and Rhade raises his eyebrows in a look of skeptical expectancy. "I've just spoken to Tarachand Johari, and he's arranged for us to borrow a ship to tow the Maru back to the Andromeda, where Rommie's bots can start to fix it up. Mr. Johari also says that Ylizavetta Santiago is willing to provide the esteemed Captain Beka Valentine with any parts that need to be replaced."

            "That," I say, "has to be the best thing I've heard in weeks. It almost makes it worth having a horrible dent in my head." Dylan laughs a little.

            "Well, I'm glad something good came out of all this," Harper's voice says from behind Dylan. He peers over Dylan's shoulder at us. "If only I could help Rommie's bots when they fix the Maru. Man, I'd like to just watch them, just to learn about all the new technology the Drago-Kazov have come up with recently."

            "Harper," I begin warningly, "do you remember what happened the last time you tried to upgrade the Maru?" That was a horrible mess – the part that Harper installed tripped Rommie's internal defense system, and the Maru was nearly vaporized in a storm of laser fire.

            "Yeah, I know, I know," Harper mutters, jamming his hands in his pockets.

            "Well, I think the plan right now is that Harper and I will meet you back at the Andromeda after we've met with Ylizavetta Santiago," Dylan says, and I can tell he's trying to bring the conversation back to important matters. "Once Trance has Beka fixed up, I'd like the two of you to contact us from the Andromeda's conference room so you can be in on the negotiations."

            "Understood," Rhade says decisively. "We'll send our coordinates to Johari so he knows where to find the Maru, then we'll make our way back there and wait for him to pick us up."

            "Sounds good," Dylan says. "I'll wait to hear from you."

            "And Harper," I add before anyone can end communications, "once all of this is over, I want to talk to you. I need to find out how and why my ship was sabotaged."

            "Uh, right, Boss," Harper says, looking decidedly nervous.

            "We'll talk with you later," Dylan says. "Hunt out." The COM unit's screen goes blank and Rhade snaps it shut and puts it away in his pocket.

            "Do you think you can walk back the Maru?" Rhade asks me. I nod a little. Whether I can or not doesn't matter to me – as long as I stay conscious this time, I will anyway, and Rhade knows it. He takes my right arm and pulls it over his shoulder, and taking my left elbow in one of his large hands, he stands up, pulling me to my feet. I shake my head a bit as my ears roar, but that only makes it hurt more. Rhade looks me at me carefully, then apparently decides I'll be fine and starts walking down the street the way came, half-carrying me along with him. I lean some of my weight on him and try to focus on putting one foot in front of the other. Rhade's strong, supporting arm around my waist is comforting against the pain in my head.

            We walk along in silence for a little while, and I try to grapple with my conscience – what little I have – as we go. I'm feeling uncharacteristically guilty about something Rhade said to Dylan. "I hope you didn't take it personally that I didn't want to leave the Maru behind," I say finally, then pause. Do I really want to share more of my personal secrets with Rhade? They're secrets for a reason, after all . . . But then again, this is the man I, well, the man I love. And besides, I've already told him about Thalia. What have I got left to lose?

            Rhade raises his eyebrows. "I didn't," he says, glancing at me and then away again. "Why did you think I would?"

            I stop walking and pull my arms away from him, and I sway a bit when I turn to face him as he stops as well. I'm not quite sure why I'm going to say what I'm about to tell him, but I know that I can trust Rhade to keep my secrets and to not think any worse of me for knowing my weakness. Which I suppose is odd, considering that as a Nietzschean his instincts are probably screaming "blackmail" at him. I study his face – expressionless, like usual. I turn away. "It was personal," I say, and stop again. Rhade waits silently as I collect my thoughts. "After Thalia skipped out, everything got really messed up. My father started Flash, Rafe started getting in trouble with all sorts of different governments with his stupid swindling plans. Dad's addiction got really nasty really quick – he was always sick, and when he didn't have Flash he was so angry, and he always took it out on Rafe's hide. Eventually Rafe left, too, and Dad died not too long after that. When Uncle Sid showed up three years ago, I thought maybe I still had someone who cared about me. But then he got me addicted to Flash and tried to kill me, and then just disappeared again." I try my best to keep my voice cool and very matter-of-fact, but it's hard.

            I look at Rhade, who is watching me quietly. "That's why I've never forgiven Thalia for leaving. Because she left, my whole family fell apart, and now I don't have anyone at all. All I have left is the Maru, and I don't want to lose that, too."

            I glance quickly into his eyes, then turn my back on him. I feel so ashamed now. Why did I have to open my stupid mouth? I can hardly stand to think that Rhade's seen me in such an unguarded state. This is why I don't do emotion – cool, sassy and practical is ultimately safer for my pride and far less embarrassing. I can feel my cheeks heat up as Rhade continues to say nothing. I can only imagine what he thinks of me right now.

            From behind me, Rhade's low, gentle voice says, "You can have me, if you want."

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Kat's note: This chapter and the last one were a lot of action and not much of Beka's thoughts, so I promise that the next chapter will be more of her musings.