A/N: My goodness it's been a while. So, so sorry! Lots of action in this chapter. Close to the end, so hold tight. The last chapter is going to be awesome and I'm super excited. :) A huge, HUGE thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and followed this story. I really didn't expect this much of a response and I love you guys for it. No worries, I won't ever abandon the story, but no regular updates as of right now. Alright, onward to the usual disclaimer: I don't own the Riddick franchise or the character, but damn would I love to. Yum.

Chapter 6

Jumping into the hole was akin to jumping into the unknown. My eyes barely had time to adjust to the dim lighting before Riddick, now fully alert, urged us to run. So we did, the pain in my side getting worse by the minute. Bruised ribs were just as painful as broken ones, but I knew if I wanted to live there was no stopping, so I clenched my jaw and kept moving, following the convict who led us through corridor after corridor, our ears straining for any sounds of pursuit. Nothing.

Chillingsworth was beyond furious and I honestly thought she would make good on her 'Beauty and the Beast' vision if we got caught, and we would be stuck in an eternity of being more dead than alive. I suppressed a shiver at the thought.

"Where are we going, Riddick?" Jack panted from behind me.

"Lookin' for a way out," he answered shortly. "Find a skiff or something."

That sounded almost impossible at this point, but I kept my mouth shut. The man seemed to bend the laws of what was possible and what wasn't. I trusted him to figure it out – after all, what choice did I really have?

"Heads up," Riddick warned. We were in a corridor and I couldn't see anything putting us in immediate danger.

"What the-" One second my boots were pounding on the metal floor and the next I was floating in midair as we hit non-gravity. "Fucking great."

"The gravity must be off in the part of the vessel," Imam muttered. "At least our footsteps will now be silent."

"So will whoever follows us," Jack pointed out sagely. Good point.

"Less talking, keep moving," Riddick ordered, pushing off a wall and continuing down the hallway. We all followed suit, Jack struggling a bit with the new feeling – she obviously wasn't used to a zero gravity environment. I didn't have much experience either, but every little bit helped and I quickly found a rhythm, allowing me to keep up with the two men in front of me.

Sailing through an archway, we continued deeper into the bowels of the ship, the lighting getting even worse, if possible. I really, really fucking hope we don't get stuck in the dark again. It did seem to be a trend lately, though, so I wouldn't be that surprised if it did happen.

"Oomph!" I stumbled and almost fell as we suddenly entered an area that most definitely had gravity, but managed to steady myself just in time. I had no clue as to where we were, but from the looks of it, we seemed to be in a possible storage area. Pieces of scrap metal, piping, and other miscellaneous parts lay everywhere, causing our speed to drop a little as we sometimes had to climb over an object blocking our way.

"Not that I'm complaining, but where is everyone?" I asked, keeping my voice low and moving closer to Imam and Riddick.

Jack was struggling over a large piece of metal when a loud roar echoed throughout the ship, causing the hair on my neck to stand on end. The floor shuddered and I swallowed heavily. "Nevermind."

"What the hell was that?" Jack hissed, quickly scrambling over her obstacle to stand with us.

"Don't move," Riddick answered lowly, his body tense and slightly crouched. We immediately obeyed, waiting, listening. After a beat, he straightened and looked around. "We need to go up. Now. Don't know what the fuck they got, but I don't think we wanna stay here and find out."

I heartily agreed and trailed behind him as he searched for a way out.

"Here."

A large pile of extra piping and scrap metal lay in a haphazard pile in one part of the room, the top reaching upward to another level. I eyed the pile dubiously as Imam started to climb first, but all the oddball scraps made plenty of hand and footholds. When he moved up far enough, I followed. Reach, grab, pull. The going wasn't as bad as I expected and we managed to scale the wall fairly quickly and easily, Imam rolling over the top ledge, and then leaning over, hand extended to help me up the rest of the way. I winced as my ribs scraped the ledge, but bit my tongue. Imam and I reached down to haul him over, the larger man turning back around to reach for Jack.

A sudden bright light froze us in our tracks, a group of mercs appearing below us. Shit!

"What the-" one of the male mercs exclaimed. That was the cue - gunfire ripped through air, Imam and I ducking for cover. I heard Riddick grunt in pain before Jack was unceremoniously dumped over his shoulder, the convict inching our way.

"You're badly hurt," Imam said worriedly. Scanning the large man, I saw blood on the side of his shoulder and furrowed my brow.

"Him?" Jack said in disbelief, "He almost tore me in half!"

I arched an eyebrow in direction as I checked on Riddick's arm.

"Just a graze this time," he dismissed. He was right - the bullet barely got him. Lucky bastard. "Let's go."

Shouts and curses drifted our way and we pushed on, vaulting over debris until we finally hit flat ground, breaking into a run. Another hair-raising roar ripped through the ship, sounding closer this time.

"What the fuck is that thing?" I gasped, pressing my arm against my side to try and alleviate some of the jarring movement from running.

"Something I don't want the pleasure of meeting," Imam panted and I whole heartedly agreed. Riddick glanced over his shoulder, then came to a sudden stop, causing me to plow straight into his back. I stumbled backwards from the force and fell into Imam, both of us going down with an ungraceful thud.

"The hell, Riddick?" I snapped, pissed and slightly embarrassed as I scrambled off of Imam.

"We cannot stop," the holy man reminded him as he rose to his feet.

"We're not outrunning this thing," the convict stated, turning around. "Not the four of us."

It took a second to sink in, but when it did, Imam and I turned to look at Jack, who was bent over, her hands on her knees, panting heavily. Realizing that we were staring at her, she straightened up, a panicked look crossing her face. "What? No, I can keep up!"

"Maybe someday," Riddick replied, not unkindly, looking upwards. I followed his line of sight and saw that we were standing under a docking bay. "Get to the flight deck."

"It's just aft, upper level," Imam confirmed after a glance upwards.

"Yeah. Stow in there" – Riddick pointed to a sheltered area – "and let whatever's following pass." The three of us obeyed, squeezing into the shadowed hiding spot and crouching down. He continued his instructions, "When it does, make for the flight deck and don't look back, no matter what you hear."

I swallowed heavily, my tongue feeling thick in my mouth. I had no idea what his exact plans were, but the way he spoke made it seem like he might not make it back. Don't be whiny, my inner self snapped. That man is like a damn cat with never-ending lives…he'll be fine.

"We'll wait for you," Jack assured and I turned my attention back to the conversation.

Riddick turned away and started walking in the direction we had been running in. "Follow Imam."

"What are you going to do?" Jack called after his retreating form, a hint of desperation in her voice. I pinched the bridge of my nose and closed my eyes. This felt like déjà vu, taking me back onto the planted we escaped from. When the convict didn't answer, Jack sat back down with a huff.

My head jerked up and I opened my eyes as multiple footsteps headed our way. We stayed perfectly still as four mercs ran by us, one of them suddenly stopping. No, no no. We waiting with baited breath, not daring to move a muscle. A moment passed, the lone merc's footsteps fading as he ran to catch up with the others. A sigh of relief escaped my lips, Jack immediately whispering, "Now where do we gotta go to meet up with Ridd-" Imam's hand over her mouth cut her off midsentence.

"Jack, shh!"

The holy man hesitantly peered around the corner as heavy, metallic thuds came our way. The floor beneath us shuddered and I covered my own mouth to make sure no noise escaped. Jack's eyes were wide as saucers.

A hulking creature lumbered into view, it's visage so grotesque and distorted that I felt my own eyes widen in shock. We only had a quick glimpse, enough to see metal limbs connected to twisted flesh, fresh blood staining it's sides. For fuck's sake, I just wanted to get to New Mecca, not deal with all this crazy bullshit! I groaned inwardly. The creature continued on its hunt, not daring to even breath until we were certain it was gone.

Imam cautiously poked his head out before rising, Jack and I following him into the open.

"Okay, let's get out of here," I said, Imam nodding his agreement before setting off into a jog. I followed, glancing behind me to make sure no one was following us, then stopped. Jack was still standing there, looking in the direction everyone had gone. Imam realized we weren't following and came back, standing beside me.

"We've got to help him, Imam," Jack pleaded. "We can't help him if we leave. Come on, Eris."

Imam and I shared an uncomfortable glance before he walked towards her, a resigned look on his face.

"Sometimes, that is exactly how it works," he said quietly, Jack squeezing her eyes shut. She opened them, blinking back visible tears, her pleading gaze landing on me.

"Imam is right, Jack," I said heavily. "I want nothing more than to help, but Riddick has to do this one on his own. He'll be fine, he's the Big Bad, remember?"

The young girl slowly nodded, obviously not liking our logic, but realizing there wasn't anything we could do at this point.

"Let's go," I said, jogging towards the flight deck and hopefully towards freedom.