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"KRAIS!", Crichton shouted. He burst forth from the bushes and ran towards Krais, who looked rather startled.

"Do I know you, fr..?", he started, but never finished, as Crichton's fist connected with his jaw. Krais's head popped back and he staggered, then went up to guard. Crichton charged, which Krais turned into a flip. As Crichton went down, tho, he grabbed Krais' ankle, twisted, and he went down, too.

Crichton was on top of him, a knife now at Krais' throat.

"Crichton!", Chianna yelped. D'argo looked ready to interfere. Rygel looked on speculatively.

"Ok, Krais, you ! What the hell is going on here? What are you doing here? Where's Aeryn? I'd start singing now, you ?"

Krais gazed up at Crichton calmly, and said, "As I was saying, sir, I don't know you. I don't know who this Aeryn is."

"Oh, right," Crichton growled, his knife increasing pressure. "You've never met me?"

"No, I haven't. I can see by your garb, you are one of the fabled Rangers of North Oceania. And..." his eyes squinted a second as he looked at Crichton's companions, then fixed on Rygel..."Is that..."

"Never mind our biographies!", Crichton snarled, the tip of his knife drawings Gaze line of sight back to him. "What are you doing here?"

"Doing what I can to help out in these dark times," Krais sighed. "I've been given a charge, and I will fulfill it."

"Krais the humanitarian..?", Crichton said, shaking his head.

"Krais the hopefully redeemed," he responded somewhat sadly. "Speaking of, you may want to get off me. Slowly. I have a mission, and I must continue."

"Yeah, or what?", Crichton snarled.

"Or my companion might loose patience with you...", Krais said calmly.

"Who..?" Crichton asked.

A rumble came from the woodline, then from the trees stepped, floated...a strange mass. Vaguely man shaped, it surged with power. It didn't have anything that could be identified as eyes, but Crichton got the distinct impression it was scrutinizing him intently.

"Talyn?", Krais called.

The apparition warbled in response.

Chrichon held his knife more tightly to Krais' neck.

"He comes closer, you are a dead man," Crichton warned.

"And you will follow," Krais said calmly. "I'm ready to die, if this is fated to be my time. Are you?"

Crichton swore, and slowly got off Krais.

Krais got up and nodded at Talyn. He then turned to Crichton and said, "I think we will meet again, Ranger."

He then turned to Rygel and bowed, "Your majesty."

Rygel looked startled, but managed to nod in return.

Krais regarded the group a second more, then turned to the entity called Talyn. It moved swiftly forward. It eveloped Krais, and the two of them vanished.

Crichton stared at the space they used to occupy, then turned to his companions. D'argo and Chianna shrugged in response. Rygel preened a bit.

Crichton looked at the merchant wagon. The passengers and driver were just starting to look up.

"Hey, any chance we can bum a ride?", Cricthon asked.