Riddick had been gone for a long while, and I was starting to get nervous. The fake cop called Johns had caught him and restrained him, but Riddick had broken free and was now missing. I was worried, but not because Riddick was loose, I was worried at what the survivors would do if they found out I was with Riddick. But I just kept my mouth shut and did as they asked me, helping to get air pumps working for each person. Turns out my mechanic traits were giving me a pretty good cover. For a long while I thought I had caught glimpses of Riddick around the wreckage. But he had never made contact. And eventually half of us went out on a search party to see if there was anything to find. I stayed with the wreckage, just in case Riddick came back, and Johns seemed to become suspiscious of me. But I didn't care. Shazza and Jack kept me plenty occupied by having me cut open more containers to see if there were anything of use. Just after a while I needed a break. I met Paris and Zeeke, and though they were nice I wanted nothing to do with them. At one point Zeeke had shot and killed another survivor, thinking he was Riddick, but when he was talking with the others I spotted Riddick up in Paris' perch, drinking liquor. Zeeke went off to bury the dead from the crash and I followed, hoping to be of some help. I wanted something to do that didn't involve a woman. Zeeke dug while I prepped the bodies, and after a little while I started to hear strange sounds coming from the strange termite looking mounds around us. Once the bodies from the first trip were in the hole Zeeke went back to get more. I stayed by the bodies, relishing the shade, but when something broke through the wall of dirt just before a termite mound I nearly screamed, but a hand covered my mouth. Riddick was there.
"Don't move," he whispered, his big body pressed close to mine, giving me some semblance of comfort.
I nodded my head just enough for him, and he stayed still as the thing dragged the bodies into the hole after it. There was no blood, and only scrape marks giving away that there had been something nearby. Riddick pulled me away from the hole, his goggled eyes never leaving the hole, and he pushed me behind a mound. He formed a cage with his body, effectively trapping me. I placed a hand on his chest and he looked down at me.
"That was freaky," I mumbled, taking a deep breath.
"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm gunna make sure those things don't get to you," he growled, pushing his body closer to me.
"You make no sense at all," I grumbled, letting my head rest on his shoulder.
"What do you mean by that?" he asked, his deep voice holding a note of curiosity.
"You are one of the most wanted men in the universe, a cold blooded killer that everyone describes to the letter. Yet here you are, protecting me. Johns thinks you belong in a pit, Shazza thinks you're nothing but crazy, and everyone else is terrified of you. But here I am, unafraid, and I think I'm losing my mind. What could you possibly see in me that is worth saving?" I asked, staring into his goggles, hoping that I wasn't pressing any buttons that would make him want to kill me.
"I happen to like you. Is that not enough of an excuse to keep you out of harms way?" he chuckled, pulling one arm away to place his hand on his hip as if to back sass me.
"I suppose so. Why didn't you just say that from the start?" I asked, unable to hide my smile.
He gave me a knee weakening grin and was about to say something, but Zeeke had returned. He pulled away the tarp that had fallen in our retreat, and he froze when he saw that gaping hole. I knew what was going to happen next. He was going to go inside, and I wasn't going to do anything about it. And neither was Riddick. I closed my eyes and listened as Zeeke pulled out a flash light and crawled into the hole. I heard his screams and the sound of the gun going off, and Riddick slowly left my side to see what was going on. I stayed where I was, really not wanting to move, and when I heard more feet coming in our direction I turned to see what was going on. Riddick was staring down at Shazza who had just arrived and when Riddick turned to run I bolted. I only got to run for a few seconds before I was tripped, hitting the ground hard. Riddick slid to a halt next to me and tried to pull me to my feet, but Johns was right there to give Riddick a beat down. Shazza appeared shortly after Johns pulled Riddick's goggles off, and she knew I was with Riddick. Shazza kicked me in the head, knocking the breath out of me as everything went black.
I woke with a start, gasping for air and then groaning in pain. My head was throbbing and I could feel one of my eyes was starting to swell. I shifted, only to freeze in place. I was tied up, hands behind my back and feet tied together, and I was lying on a cold hard ground. We were back in the wreckage. Riddick was sitting in a chair not far from me, his hands pulled wide and chained to the frame of the ship. His eyes were closed, but I knew he was awake, for his head shifted slightly when I tried to wriggle out of my bonds.
"Stay still. Shazza took a good crack to your head," he said softly, leaning forward a bit.
"I know. I feel my brain throbbing," I grumbled, letting my eyes close.
"You feel sick at all?" he asked, shifting in his seat.
"A little. My head really hurts right now. I think I have a black eye too," I grumbled, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves.
"If you stay quiet I'll get us out of this mess. Maybe find you some pain killers too," he growled, the faint sound of footsteps approaching.
"Already planned on it," I grumbled, feigning sleep.
From the sounds of the footsteps I knew it was Johns. He stopped right next to me, earning a growl from Riddick in response.
"Found yourself a toy did you?" Johns asked, leaving my area to stand close to Riddick.
"What does it matter to you?" Riddick growled in response.
"It doesn't. But the women are a little frazzled by this whole thing you two got going on. They think Alex is a killer just like you," Johns snapped, his voice holding a note of anger.
"She's not. Just a mechanic," Riddick chuckled, making me smirk a bit.
"Then why is she with you?" Johns asked, shifting his weight.
"Cause I asked her to," Riddick said, the smile clearly heard in his voice.
"Bullshit. No woman in her right mind would stick around you," Johns growled back, starting to pace.
"I wouldn't talk about her like that. She's a fighter, could knock your teeth out," Riddick growled, shifting in his seat.
"She's out cold. Wanna tell me what happened back at those termite things?" Johns snapped, the sounds of his gun holsters scraping against a pile of wreckage making me open my eyes to watch what was going to happen next.
"I heard some sounds, followed it, found Alex there. Zeeke came back then he was gone. Down in the hole," Riddick growled, eyes locking on me.
"He's not in the hole," Johns growled right back, turning to look over at me.
I stared at him with my expressionless eyes, and he shivered slightly.
"Riddick didn't kill him," was all I said before I closed my eyes.
I heard Johns storm over to me, and when he kicked me in the gut, making me gasp for air, Riddick shot to his feet, pulling on the chains. The muscles in his arms, shoulders, and neck bulged, making me blush at the sheer muscle mass he had, muscle that he was straining because Johns had hurt me. It made me excited to have all that masculine power on my side. I had never had a man looking out for me before, though I was sure that once Riddick had his way he would just move on.
"Get you hands off her," Riddick snarled, his deep voice unrecognizable in his anger.
"Oh? You're attached? That's new," Johns laughed, grabbing my long hair and pulling me after him on the ground until I was lying at Riddick's feet.
Johns pulled out a gun and pointed it at my head.
"Riddick," I called out softly, making him look down at me.
"Yeah?" he asked, looking back up at Johns with a glare.
"We know the truth. You didn't kill Zeeke. And you were kind to me. It is alright. I'm not afraid to die," I told him, closing my eyes.
Fry chose that moment to intervene.
"What the hell is this?" she demanded, her voice sounding angry and shocked.
"Riddick said he heard noises. He killed Zeeke, I know he did. And his little slut is repeating everything he said," Johns snapped, placing a boot on the back of my neck.
"Get off of her!" Fry snapped, pushing Johns out of the way and pulling me off to the side.
Riddick leaned back in his seat, going stoic again, and I just laid there. All this excitement was exhausting. Fry was asking Riddick questions and he was giving her a round about while Johns stormed off. Leaving me on the floor with several new burises and a worse headache than before. At some point Fry asked to see his eyes, and I knew he was gunna scare her. And sure enough when she got close enough, he leapt from his seated position to his feet, pulling at the chains until there was no give in them at all. Fry gave a short nod that she was satisfied and Riddick remained in place.
"Where the hell can I get eyes like that?" Jack asked, making all of us look to the stairs.
The kid had come out of nowhere.
"You gotta kill a few people," Riddick stated, eyes locked on Fry.
"Kay. I can do it," Jack said hastily, leaping down from the stairs.
"Then you gotta get sent to a no daylight slam. Dig up a doctor and pay him twenty menthol kools, to do a surgical shine job. On your eyeballs," Riddick said, bouncing lightly on his feet.
"That's enough. Leave," Fry snapped, looking to Jack.
Jack stood there for a second, giving Fry a hard look.
"Leave," Fry commanded, the sterness in her voice making the kid run back up the stairs.
Once Jack was gone Riddick turned back to Fry.
"Cute kid," he rumbled, an amused smirk on his handsome face.
Riddick and Fry talked some more, but I wasn't interested. I was struggling to stay awake with my head pounding so hard it made my vision blurry. I heard Fry storm out at one point, then it was quiet.
"Alex," Riddick said, and I could feel his eyes on me.
"Yeah?" I asked in a whine, squeezing my eyes shut.
"Just checking. Need you alive. Don't go to sleep," he growled, shifting so that he was closer to me.
"But I'm so tired. And everything hurts. Did they hit me with a vehicle on the way here?" I grumbled, frowning up at him.
He chuckled and shook his head, metallic eyes raking over me. He slid a leg out in my direction and gently nudged my head up. I let my head fall onto his foot and he settled rather quickly.
"That feels better," I mumbled, struggling to stay away.
His foot bounced under my head, keeping me awake and I had to smile to myself. I kept my eyes closed, and just listened to him breathe.