Chapter 17:

He should have known it, he definitely should have known it. Thydia had lived a life with too many sacrifices and dangers as that she would have simply obeyed to his decision. He should have expected her to try to do something against his decision, but he hadn't believed she would react so soon and so aggressive.

Luckily his armory officer had been more suspicious about her and the doctor had been very attentive, which still gave him a very good chance to react to her. But he wouldn't be able to convince her... or Trip, he knew this. He had to try none the less.

The doctor had given a call to the bridge informing him that Trip was no longer in sickbay and he didn't know where he had gone to. Reed had immediately chacked for Thydia's biosign, finding both of them on their way to a shuttlebay. They would try to escape and get back to the planet.

Jonathan had no idea why she did this, why she tried to steal a shuttle. She should know that they would detect that they were missing and even if they hadn't done so immediately, they would've gotten back down, taking their crewman with them. She had no chance to escape them, but she tried none the less. It probably was her strong will and her stubborness that made her try, but he wouldn't let her go. He had left bridge and had gotten down to the shuttlebay.

She had expected him, had expected them to detect their flight. As soon as he was entering the wide room he had a phaser pointed to his head. It was Thydia with a slight grin on her face. Trip was close to the shuttle, overriding the shuttle's door to get inside and get down to the planet's surface.

"What are you planning to do know, Captain? Are you trying to talk us out of leaving your wonderful company on your beautiful ship or are do you already have a team outside that will shoot us down? What is it gonna be?"

"You know that you have no way of escaping – you cannot interfer against my decision. What are you going to do yourself? Getting back down to the planet – and next? Don't you expect us to follow you, to get after you and take you back? What the hell were you thinking when you planned on stealing a shuttle? Where do you wanna go?"

"I expected you to follow us and try to take us back – but that would have been it... a try. You can't catch us down there – I know about a milion hiding places down there and a milion ways of getting someone killed. You wouldn't have kept up your search for a long time..."

"You didn't do it the last time."

Jonathan had expected that he would have to face this accuse once again. He had expected Thydia to come up with it again and again, but it had been Trip's remark instead. Which hurt him even more – because he wasn't a stranger, he was supposed to understand his decision, his decision as a captain. But he wasn't having the same understandment any more, for he wasn't the same person...

He had finally been able to anounce the words – this one sentence he had heard so many times by Thydia, but had never managed to believe them, to take them as the truth. Thydia seemed to have seen his realisation, the change in his face's expression – both of them had.

"So – what's it gonna be? Will you let us leave, will you give us a chance to live our own life's?"

"I would like to..."

"But you won't do it, because...?"

"You know why."

He had told Thydia why he couldn't take this back any more, why he couldn't change his mind. Their return back to Earth was official now and he couldn't show up there without the two of them. He could understand why this didn't mean anything for Thydia or even Trip for that matter. They only felt responsibility for themselves.

This situation couldn't be solved – they wouldn't listen to him and he couldn't let them go. It was as simple as this, they wouldn't get out of this situation. He – they needed to find another way, some other possibility to get over this whole incident unharmed, without any more fighting or hard words.

"What about returning?"

Thydia was allowing herself a small smile as he anounced the words. She had been fighting with him about this and she had clearly made her point, but he hadn't listened to her – he hadn't wanted to. She didn't like him – that was no secret and neither did he like her, which wasn't a secret, too. But obviously they had found a common basis. Still she couldn't keep herself from giving a sarcastic comment.

"Finally! Some progress..."

"You will actually send us back down to the planet? Without any more delays and disturbances?"

She could hear the disbelief in Kyran's voice and she wasn't surprised. The captain had actually tried to talk him out of this even more than he had done talking with her. He probably had tried, hoping to reach the former friend he believed to still be in there somewhere.

"I actually didn't mean this planet."

She looked at him in shock and disbelief not trusting her ears had really just heard what he had said. What the hell was he trying this time? Why wouldn't he give up? She was done and over with his constant fussing and fighting over their lifes – he had no right to do that!

"What – for heaven's sake – were you meaning instead?"

"I meant Earth – I ask you to return back to earth."

"Why are you doing this? Why are you still trying to force him to go back to a life he has left behind, why do you force him back into the past, force him to remember?"

"This isn't about forcing anyone to anything. It's not about my personal wishes and intentions. I just want you to get to a place that is safer and more comfortable than this. And – no offence – but every place in the universe is safer and more comfortable than this hell down there. You told me your life wasn't easy and you told me you were dreaming of a place where there were oceans full of water. You can have this, you can make your dream come true."

"You actually offer this to both of us? You suggest it? You won't force us to go?"

"I'm in no position to force you to do anything. You're both grown up, you can decide on your own. I'm just offering you a chance to get away from here – take it or leave it. It's your decision."

"This isn't some sort of trick? You're not trying to pull us apart or play anything else?"

She still didn't trust him – he had been honest and had offered this to her and she still didn't trust him... But actually she didn't have much of a reason to trust him so far. He had taken her to this ship, had taken the newfound personality of her comrade away and had left her with the fact that he couldn't stay and she couldn't leave with him again. Definitely now reason to trust him...

"I swear to you I'm not trying to trick you. I offer this chance to both of you and I hope you will take it."

Something happened then that he had never seen before. In the whole time since she was aboard this ship he had never seen her do this – not the way she did it right now. She smiled – a warm, friendly smile.