Serendipity and Procrustes -- Chapter 8: Coming Home

          "Look, all I'm saying is. . ."

          "Spare us Crichton," snapped Rygel waving the empty golden flask at him for the thousandth time. "You are either fahrbot or your brain had been dissolved completely from the vintage yinyo you stole from me. In either event, your vote no longer counts!"
         "Listen, Fluffy. All I'm suggesting here is a flag of truce." Crichton began only to be silenced as the flask came whistling at his head.
         "Rygel," Zhaan warned menacingly.
         "No I will not be silent," the Hynerian growled bitterly. "For once I will not give in to the wishes of inferior weaklings. I say Crais gets nowhere near Moya. We take his tralk to the nearest commerce planet to see what we can get for her in trade. Failing that I vote we space her."
          Chiana gave the tip of his left earbrow a vicious twist eliciting a sharp cry and a cloud of helium.
          "You asked for that one, Froggy," Chiana squeaked.
          "No one is getting spaced," Aeryn interjected. "Except perhaps for you if you do not keep your royal mouth shut."
          "We cannot allow that madman back onboard Moya, who disagrees with this?" D'Argo asked bluntly.
          "I hear ya, buddy," Crichton said clapping a hand to the Luxan's shoulder. "But we can't just keep sitting here hoping he'll call us back. It's been two weeks. I say we call a truce, let Crais come aboard to meet with Senna. They can iron out their problems and we all live happily ever after."
         "I vote no," Aeryn said immediately.
         "As do I," agreed D'Argo.
         "You already know what I think," smiled Rygel wickedly.
        "Pip, where do you stand?" Crichton asked her.
        "What could it hurt?" she asked cocking her head at him.
        "Oh, that's just great," Aeryn spat turning on the Nebari. "Leave it to one tralk to side with another."
         "Ease off with that, Aeryn," Crichton barked.
          She spun toward him, her face contorted with fury, "I can't frelling believe you're even considering letting Crais back onboard Moya! We only have this woman's word about his. . .transformation."
          "Hey, weren't you the one talking about how people can change?" Crichton shot back angrily.
          "Just because we've found another human, you're suddenly willing to forgive and forget?" Aeryn countered "You claimed you wouldn't trust Crais under any circumstances."
          "He's thinking with the wrong head," Rygel sniggered as he scratched his earbrow with his scepter.
          "Can I say something?" Senna asked from where she sat off to the side by Zhaan.
          "Shut your frelling mouth," Aeryn snapped back not turning to face her.
          "Hey, frell you Peacekeeper!" Senna was on her feet in an instant shoving Aeryn roughly from behind.
          Aeryn's response was immediate. She spun around to face the human woman with weapon drawn and aimed at her face before Crichton could blink. He gripped Aeryn's shoulders and tried to lower her gun arm, but she was as immovable as a statue.
          "Whoa, whoa ladies!" he said with a nervous laugh. "Claws in. Neutral corners, okay?"
          "I'm not going to stand here and take this kind of crap from anyone," said Senna with an angry, audible exhalation.
          "Oh, come on tralk," retorted Aeryn. "You've taken a lot of everything from what I've overheard."
          Senna stepped forward until the muzzle of Aeryn's pistol was square between her breasts.
          "You think you can hurt me with words. . .Peacekeeper?" Senna countered. "Words? You think you can do anything the Tirysps and all their smelly cohorts didn't do?"
          "John if she doesn't shut her frelling mouth I'm going to blow her brains all over this tier," Aeryn warned between clenched teeth.
          "No you're not!" John said into her ear. "Senna shut up."
          "No, John." She retorted. "I want her to do it. That's what you're good for, right Peacekeeper grunt? All you're good for? Then stop threatening and pull the frelling trigger already."
         "John!" growled Aeryn.
         "Senna!" yelled John and Zhaan in unison.
         "If Crais doesn't come back for me, I'm done for anyway." Senna said, a note of defeat creeping into her defiant tone. "I can't go home even if there was a way and I sure as hell can't stay here with Ms. World Heavy Weight Wrestling Champion. I don't belong."
          Aeryn cocked her head to the side and sited down the barrel of her pistol with a cold glint. As her finger began to depress the trigger, John yanked her arm upward. Without a word, he took the weapon from her hand. Aeryn pursed her lips and the muscles of her jaws worked furiously but she remained silent, staring at Senna.
          "Whether you can, in your limited scope of understanding, get a grip on this or not," Senna said staring unflinchingly into Aeryn's eyes. "I. . .care for Bialar Crais. And if he cares for me. . .or only ever thinks of me as a burden, bargaining chip, whatever. . .my place is with him. If he doesn't agree, then he can do whatever he wants with me. I don't care."
          For long tense moments the seven people on command simply stood saying nothing. John could see the sweat beading on Senna's forehead and upper lip. The look in her eyes was unyielding. He had to admit it. As much as he longed for the company of another human, for news from home, Senna had to go. She and Aeryn were like fire and gasoline. They would never be able to coexist without destroying each other and everyone within the blast radius.
          "Okay," said Crichton finally. "Here's the deal. We signal to Talyn and Crais. We agree on a landing area down on a nearby planet. Neutral ground. We hand Senna over to Crais then we get the hell outa there. Kosher, Aeryn?"
          "I'm going in my prowler," Aeryn said still staring at Senna.
          "You can't do that, Aeryn," Crichton said. "Neutral, remember? Whether we like it or not, that's how it's got to be. He didn't fire on Moya when he turned Senna over to us. Why would he fire on us now that we're trying to give her back to him?"
          "It may be a moot point in any case," Aeryn replied. "If Crais doesn't answer any of our signals, we're stuck with her anyway."
          "That's right," Rygel chimed in as he hovered near them on his throne sled.
          "I won't warn you again, Sparky." Crichton snapped as he pinched the Hynerian's lips shut.
          "You've got to keep trying, John. You've got to reach him." Senna said, her face a mask of anguish. "I meant what I said. I don't care what happens to me if he won't take me back. And. . .I'm not staying on Moya."
          "Look, even if we can't reach Crais, we're not just going to drop you off at the next commerce planet." John said angrily.
          "Of course not," Rygel said after his lips were free "Not without at least trying to get a fair price."
          Crichton tried to land a flick to the Hynerian's sensitive earbrows, but the throne sled was already swerving out of the way.
          "I can't just let you off at the next stop. I'm. . .I feel responsible for you, okay." John continued softly.
          "Well, don't." snapped Senna. "Don't feel anything for me."
          With that she turned and walked out of command. Crichton started after her, but Aeryn held him back. He spared her a harsh look.
           "I gotta talk to her, Aeryn, okay?" he said angrily.
           "It's not you that needs to speak with her, John." She replied. "I'm going to talk to her."
           "Wait. Hold the phone. Stop. Is it just me or has everyone gone just a little bit fugazi over this whole thing?" he asked on the verge of laughing hysterically. "I mean, I'm expecting Jack Nicholson to bust through a wall any microt now with an axe. Here's Johnny!"
           "Don't fight me on this, John." She said gently.
           "What? First you were going to blow her brains all over command and now it's time for a little girl talk?" he asked in disbelief. "I don't think she's a member of your coffee klatch, Aeryn."
          "John, you're just going to have to trust me on this," she said heading after Senna.
          Before anyone could say another word the door swung closed behind her.



          Senna sat on her bed with her guitar cradled in her arms. Aeryn watched her quietly through the latticework door, letting the mournful sound of the music fill her with sadness before pushing the controls. The door slid aside causing Senna to look up in surprise. This quickly transformed into disgust when she realized who had interrupted her song.
          "You're the regular Energizer bunny, aren't you?" she said bitterly. "Come to shoot me in private? Don't want John to see you do your dirty work?"
          "Senna," Aeryn said exercising great restraint. "We must talk."
          "Must we?" She replied brusquely.
          "I understand that you love Crais." Aeryn said carefully.
          "I never said that," Senna snapped, interrupting her. "I never said that word."
          "Just the same." Aeryn went on. "My treatment of you has been. . .terrible. I am not good with apologies, but I was wrong to treat you as I have. I'm sorry."
          "Why the quick turn around?" Senna asked. "Did John put you up to this?"
          "He tried to convince me against it, actually." Aeryn answered. "He said I was not a member of your café clutch."
          "Coffee klatch," Senna corrected quietly, and then chuckled a little. "Guess the translator microbes don't catch everything."
          "With some of John's. . .Crichtonisms that is probably a blessing." Aeryn smiled wryly.
          "He's a good old southern boy. They tend to be filled with. . .Crichtonisms." Senna agreed.
          "Many cycles ago," Aeryn began hesitantly. "I knew Crais. I served under him aboard the Mhultaan, his command carrier."
          "He doesn't like to speak of his time with the Peacekeepers." Senna said when Aeryn fell silent for several microts. "I didn't even know he was a renegade until three months after I came aboard Talyn. When I found out, he made my life miserable. He's a hard man to understand. Later, I realized everything he did was meant to protect me."
           "He was a dedicated officer. His career meant everything to him," Aeryn explained settling down on her heels beside the bed. "He worked his way up through the ranks; unusual for someone of such a low birth. His parents were peasants, farmers on a commune planet."
           "He told you that?" Senna asked looking hard at the other woman.
"It was common knowledge," Aeryn replied defensively. "He was considered quite the hero to the enlisted ranks from which he came. Even I looked up to him once."
          Senna seemed to take this in and considered Aeryn more carefully.
          "Several cycles ago, Crais was involved in a relationship with a member of his crew." Aeryn explained quietly. "There was a certain amount of emotion involved and. . .a child was conceived."
          "He has a child?"
          "At least one that I am aware of," Aeryn replied. "A son from a Genetics Directorate pairing with another woman. He should be nearly four cycles old by now."
          "He's never spoken of him," Senna said softly.
          "Not out of the ordinary. Peacekeepers don't have mates or families. Procreation is assigned to fill the ranks, nothing more."
          "And the relationship," Senna asked looking at the other woman.
          Aeryn swallowed hard, feeling the woman's eyes uncomfortably on her.
          "Transitory," she answered looking down. "As with all things of that nature. They are discouraged and can be punished if any dereliction of duty can be proven. It makes most relationships short and meaningless."
          "Except," Senna ventured. "For this one woman."
          Aeryn looked up and their eyes met.
          "Have you and Crais. . ." Aeryn began uncomfortably, her mind filled with memories of Darinta Larell. "Have you been intimate with each other? Was the child his?"
          Senna's brow creased for a moment as she considered why Aeryn would even ask such a question. She let her anger and resentment of the other woman slip away. She was tired. Tired of the fighting, tired from her illness and surgery, tired of everything.
          "No," she finally answered. "I have no idea who the child's father was. As you observed earlier, I've taken a lot of everything."
          "I'm sorry, that was. . .needlessly cruel." Aeryn apologized then said, "I asked because the child conceived between Crais and this woman was stillborn. He took it very hard, made life very hard for her for months after. There was even a time when he pursued me in an attempt to hurt her."
          Aeryn watched this fact sink in and Senna's face turned very hard.
          "Is your relationship with him an intimate one?" Aeryn asked as delicately as possible.
          "No," Senna admitted, lowering her head. "And I'm embarrassed to admit, not for lack of trying on my part. So many times he seemed to be sending all the right signals, but the microt I would approach him, touch him. He would turn icy and I wouldn't see him for arns. Days even."
           "Did he explain to you the Peacekeeper concept of irreversible contamination?" Aeryn asked softly.
           "Irreversible contamination?" the other replied with furrowed forehead and narrowed eyes. "What the hell is that?"
          Aeryn took a deep breath and searched Senna's face for a microt or two. Could she take the truth that Crais probably would never touch her or even accept her back aboard Talyn? She was a strong woman obviously, having survived things Aeryn could only image. Would the truth be the one thing to break her?
          Her feelings for Crais were blatantly obvious whether she was willing to label it love or not. She wore it like ill-fitting body armor. His name was on her lips during her fevered illness and recovery.
          "The Peacekeeper High Command long ago developed a doctrine on maintaining Sebacean racial purity. It was felt only that way could they achieve a perfectly solidified military force that would accomplish their ultimate goals." Aeryn began.
          "Nazis," Senna interrupted sotto voce.
          "I've heard John use that word," Aeryn said. "What does it mean?"
          "During the last century on Earth a military force known as the Nazis had the same philosophy. They killed millions trying to spread their notion of racial purity across the entire planet. They killed my grandfather's whole family." Senna explained.
           "The Peacekeepers have killed billions," Aeryn admitted. "Basically for the same reasons as your Notcees. If it isn't racially pure, and doesn't serve the Peacekeeper goals, it's destroyed."
          Senna snorted bitterly, "Idealizing racial purity and religion have killed more people than anything else on our planet. You'd think we'd learn from our mistakes."
          "We haven't," Aeryn replied honestly.
          There was a long silence then Aeryn continued, "Because of this idea of species separatism and racial superiority, High Command established stringent parameters on contact with unclassified alien life forms.
           "Of course it's often abused," Aeryn observed coldly. "The interpretation of such a thing can always be. . .selective. At any rate, that is where the concept of irreversible contamination comes in. Even brief contact. . .just being in the same room with an alien can be deemed contamination. The punishment for a Peacekeeper who has been contaminated is. . .death.
          She paused, watching her words sink in.
          "Did Crais tell you how I came to be aboard Moya?" she asked cocking her head to the side and looking into Senna's cheerless eyes.
         "He told me you were fleeing a death sentence," she replied.
         "Crais was my commanding officer, as I said before." Aeryn recounted slowly. "I was a prowler pilot with his brother's fighter division, assigned to his command carrier. When Moya made good her escape from Crais' convoy, I was still in pursuit and my prowler was sucked in with the starburst. I contacted him the very first opportunity that presented itself, betraying the others in order to get back to my life as a Peacekeeper. Crais rewarded this loyalty by declaring me irreversibly contaminated by my contact with John. It would have meant execution."
          Senna took a deep breath and lowered her head to her chest. Aeryn did not want to continue, but knew there was no going back now.
          "The Peacekeeper training begins at birth or in early childhood. It is very hard to set aside," she said. "I know. There are times when it comes back to me even though I try to fight it. It makes life with the rest of the crew. . .difficult. I'm overcoming. . .slowly.
          "There is a possibility that Crais cannot overcome it. That he can't get beyond that notion of contamination. That he never will." Aeryn's voice trailed off painfully.
          She watched the other woman sitting stiffly, head still lowered and eyes closed for several long microts. She realize her words cut the woman more sharply than any blade. She hadn't meant to strike out at her. It was painful to watch the ideas shift on Senna's face. That her feelings were deep for Crais was something she could comprehend. She truly did understand the emotions themselves now. She remembered caring for Crais cycles before, until she'd seen the treachery beneath the charming smile. Then she thought of Velorek and of John and lowered her head as well. Finally, looking up at Senna she broke the silence.
          "He's never laid a hand on you," Aeryn pressed. "Never expressed any feelings for you at all?"
          "Oh, he's touched me," Senna said. "Other than hitting me I mean. Once he had me join him in some sort of mutual, moving meditation ritual."
          "Wait," Aeryn said with a sudden feeling of dread. "Moving meditation? Describe it."
          "It happened after a workout. He had been teaching me self defense," Senna explained. "He coached me to be very quiet, synchronize my breathing with his and follow his movements. It was familiar to me. Really similar to something called yoga on Earth. I commented about how good the stretching felt and his mood changed. It was like a door slamming shut. Every bit of closeness between us vanished."
          The look on Aeryn's face stopped her.
          "What?"
          "It's a Sebacean practice. It's done by couples who have been selected for. . .procreation." Aeryn explained, astonished by the idea of Crais being so tender with an alien woman. "The ritual movements are very old. They have the effect of stimulating the female into ovulation so that impregnation will be successful."
          Senna's eyes were so wide by the end of this statement Aeryn was convinced they would pop from her head and fall to the floor. Then something even more surprising happened and Aeryn found herself deeply moved. A single tear crept slowly over the rim of Senna's right lower eyelid. It traced a shimmering trail down the gaunt cheek, reflecting the lights around them. Aeryn's brow knitted and she swallowed the lump in her throat.
          Zhaan told the entire crew about Senna's injuries and the outcome of the terrifying surgical procedure. There would be no children in Senna's future. The woman's feelings for Crais coupled with her new understanding of the procreation ritual had to be a crushing blow. Aeryn's heart ached for her and that single, silent tear. Her own maternal instincts were very strong. The idea of never having a child of her own would leave her devastated.
          Without thinking she rose and sat beside Senna, gingerly wrapping her bare arms around the woman. She stiffened slightly at the unexpectedly personal contact, then relaxed against Aeryn. She surprised herself at hugging the other woman to comfort her, but it seemed the natural thing to do. She realized it was yet another bit of her Peacekeeper nature chipping and falling away. She closed her eyes and tightened her arms around the other woman, rocking her slowly.



          Aeryn entered Pilot's den, striding purposefully across the ramp. She climbed up onto his control panel and sat down.
          "Officer Sun," Pilot greeted her pleasantly.
          "Pilot, can Moya still sense Talyn's presence in the area?" she asked.
          The large coppery eyes blinked slowly and he cocked his head, "Yes, he is in fact quite nearby."
           "Nearby?" she asked surprised.
           "Yes," he replied, four arms working in concert over Moya's myriad controls. "Talyn has not left the area in the last 15 solar days. He seems to be maintaining position just at the edge of comms range."
           "Waiting," Aeryn said almost in a whisper.
           "Waiting?" Pilot questioned. "For what?"
           "Only Crais can tell us that, Pilot." Aeryn answered.
          They looked silently at each other for a microt.
          "Can you send a signal to him without anyone else on board knowing about it?" she asked.
          "Yes, of course, but why?" he replied.
          "What I need to say to Crais is best not broadcast to the others," she said.
          Pilot's eyes blinked rapidly and his brow ridges cocked at an angle.
          "Officer Sun," he said in a cautionary tone.
          "Trust me, Pilot." She said with a slight smile. "It concerns our human guest. Nothing more."
          "I see," he said, head tilted. He pressed several controls then continued, "Channel open."
          Aeryn took a deep breath before she began, "Crais, this is Aeryn. I know you can hear me."
          Silence, just as the dozens of times before when they attempted to signal him since Senna was brought aboard Moya.
          "I've spoken with Senna," she continued. "She's told me about the procreation ritual you've shared with her."
          Silence.
          "Crais, I know how difficult it is to overcome the Peacekeeper training," she went on. "I know. It is so hard sometimes to see beyond it, to get out of the contamination mind set."
          Silence.
          "I know that your life with the Peacekeepers was hard to abandon. I know you wouldn't have done it if any other choice had been available to you."
          Silence.
          "Remember Lt. Velorek?" She went on. "He taught me something about myself that I didn't want to learn at the time. It's taken me cycles to get it. There is something beyond the Peacekeepers. A life beyond them filled with so many possibilities, so many intangible riches we could never have imagined back then. A life far more worth living than the emptiness the Peacekeepers offer."
          Silence.
          "We can all change Crais," she continued. "You have changed. The battle with the Halosians proved that. Bringing Senna to us proved that."
          Silence.
         "You are no longer a Peacekeeper. You said it yourself." She went on with more emotion. "You didn't choose this path any more than I did. Scorpius forced it onto you just as you forced it upon me. But, as I told you on the Gammak Base, I would not go back to that path. Not for any reason. Can you understand this? Can you understand that no matter how hard this life can be, I wouldn't change it?"
          Silence.
          "She cares for you Crais." She said simply. "I know you can understand that. You have to. Why else would you have initiated the procreation ritual with her? Ask yourself why you did it. You certainly weren't assigned by Genetics Directorate. You did this once before because you cared for another person. Remember? Don't treat this woman as you did Larell."
          Silence and the rapid beating of her own heart.
          "Crais?"
          "Officer Sun," Pilot said forlornly. "Moya indicates that Talyn has just moved outside signal range."
          Aeryn bit her lips painfully and put her hands over her eyes. She wiped down her face with her palms and placed her steepled fingers against her lips. What had she done?



           Crichton was killing time tinkering inside his module. Letting Aeryn talk to Senna was probably a terrible idea. But, when Aeryn made up her mind to do something, it was best to just stay the hell out of the way. The waiting was always the worst part. He wanted to go check on Senna but didn't want to interrupt if Aeryn had made headway with her.
          When he looked up from his control panels, he found Aeryn standing beside the module. Her hair was fanned around her shoulders and her eyes were red-rimmed as though she had been crying. Aeryn crying? He had a terrible feeling.
          "Aeryn?"
          "John," she said quietly, an intense look on her face. "I may have done something terrible."
          "You didn't hurt Senna, did you Aeryn?"
          "Frell, John!" she swore. "Give me some credit."
          "Okay, okay. I had to ask."
          "I tried contacting Crais." She said. "I went to Pilot and asked him to send a secret signal to Talyn so the rest of you wouldn't know."
          Crichton held up a hand for her to wait as he climbed out of his module. He took her by the arm and led her to the chairs beside the workbench. Guiding her into one, he sat down facing her, his hands on her knees.
          "Start from the beginning." He said. "What did you and Senna talk about?"
          "I explained to her about irreversible contamination," Aeryn admitted painfully.
          "You what?" he countered squeezing her thighs just atop her knees and leaning closer. "Why in the world did you do that?"
          "John, though she denied it, she loves Crais," she explained. "As difficult as it is for any of us to fathom someone caring for him, she does. She deserved to know the truth. He may never return for her because he may never overcome his fear of contamination."
          "She's been through a lot, Aeryn." John said bluntly. "It was probably not the best time to lay that particular concept on her."
          "She cried, John." She said, her throat tightening. "She cried."
          Crichton was convinced for a moment Aeryn was going to cry and touched her face gently with his fingertips.
          "Honey," he said softly. "The timing may be bad, but the message is probably true. I have the feeling Crais may never respond to our signals."
          "And that is what I came to tell you," she continued brow furrowed, pressing her cheek into his hand. "I may have shoved Crais beyond the breaking point. I explained to him about her feelings and that she was counting on his return."
         "And he said?"
         "Nothing, John." She replied. "Nothing. There was only silence. Then. . ."
         "What?"
         "He took Talyn beyond Moya's communication range." She concluded.
         "Oh, man." Crichton whispered. "This is not good."



          "Mauro, call the boys in for dinner." Kamuela Crais shouted to her husband from the doorway of their home.
          She smiled at the shifting forms of women laying out the evening meal on the communal tables. The men and older boys of the commune stood around the courtyard talking about the harvest and smoking aromatic gema root.
          "They had better not be wasting time out by the stream again," her husband warned as he moved his burly form from among the other men.
          "I saw them going into the drying lofts just before dark," she said softly, placing a loving hand against his coppery cheek. "Don't be so hard on them. They're just boys."
          He kissed her palm before turning away. The two brothers giggled in their hiding place in the attic as they watched their father stalk off into the darkness. He would come back furious only to find them smiling and innocent, awaiting him at table. Bialar fished in his pocket for his quantro stones. Tauvo took his five and placed them carefully in front of him on the dirty floorboards. Bialar mirrored his younger brother's positions and they began their game.
          Sounds of shouting cut through the still night air. Bialar sat bolt upright from where he'd been leaning to study his stones. Screams followed the shouts and Tauvo began to whimper. He pulled his younger brother closer and placed a hand against his mouth.
          "Stay quiet," Bialar whispered looking into his brother's terrified black eyes.
          A roaring whine and loud thumps resounded through their settlement sending the commune members fleeing for their lives. Gigantic black monsters covered in shiny armor stormed into their courtyard. Bialar's breath caught in his throat and he turned Tauvo's face into his chest so the younger boy could not see. A mechanized voice was shouting unintelligible words above the den.
          When the worst was over several men from their settlement were marched into the courtyard. Their father was among them. The leader of the monsters made an announcement using words Bialar had never heard before. He saw his father's rage at the words. From below them the sobs of their mother ripped through his heart. He watched with horror as she ran out into the pack of monsters. One raised his fiery weapon and struck her hard in the head with its butt. It made a crackling, wet sound and she crumbled like a broken doll to the ground.
          Tauvo whimpered louder and shifted in Bialar's arms. His tiny feet brushed against the quantro stones, sending them falling through the cracks in the attic floor. They rattled downward, clicking loudly on the tiles on the main floor. The monsters fired their weapons in the direction of the sound and Bialar could hear the shouts of the men.
          When it was silent again the monsters' leader pointed his weapon at their mother and spoke rapidly to their father. Bialar watched as the man he feared and respected began to cry. The other men moved slowly toward their houses coming out microts later with their children.
          "Boys," their father called sharply from below. "Come outside now."
          Bialar held Tauvo's dirty face in his hands wiping at it with the corner of his vest, "Don't let them see you've been crying, my brother. Never let them see you cry."
          Tauvo hugged him tightly before allowing Bialar to lead him down the ladder and into the courtyard. As they stepped out into the night the smell of their mother's spice bush, burning by the front door, nearly choked them. He pushed Tauvo behind his own body to protect him as he looked from their mother--now lying very still on the ground--to the monster, then finally to their father. The children of the commune, everyone they had known since they were old enough to walk, were being led out of the settlement in chains. Bialar turned a mute, terrified stare on his father.
          "Remember, farmer," an ugly voice said from behind them. "Carefully."
          Bialar could hear the click and pop of the armor and smell the chakan oil in the weapon only denches from their cloth-wrapped heads. Their father knelt before them touching him briefly on the arm and trying to smile at little Tauvo.
           "The. . .recruiter is here to pick you up," Mauro said levelly as another commando stepped closer behind the two boys.
           "Tauvo is so young. He doesn't know anything of off world. You're his older brother and my first born. I'm counting on you to protect him." He father instructed him harshly. "Do you understand? Bialar!"
          Before their father could speak another word the recruiter had shackled them both and was tugging them away from the commune into the night. Bialar looked over his shoulder to see his father stand then bow his head in defeat.
          Crais sat bolt upright as a moan escaped his lips. He tried to shake the horrible nightmare from his mind as he rose and fumbled in the dark for the neural transponder. Sliding it into place, he slowly began to dress. He was unable to forget the image of his mother's black hair fanned out against the pale ground and bright red blood. She had most certainly died that night from the pulse rifle blow to her head. For cycles he had tried to convince Tauvo and himself that she'd only fainted in fright from the monsters.
          Talyn was insistent. He would not be silent about Senna and the messages from Moya. He was a child. He would never understand. Things were simpler before the human came. They were warriors together with no emotional ties to anyone else and no regrets. It was like the early days after the academy for he and Tauvo, before command, the matter of Liliina EL-Vashti and Darinta Larell.
          He was also relentless. Again and again he bombarded Crais with the pleading calls from Moya.
         "Enough!" he shouted as he stepped onto Talyn's command. "Send these coordinates to Moya. Instruct them to arrive unarmed in one arn."



         "You can't take the prowler, Aeryn and that's that." Crichton said as he helped Senna up the transport pod ladder. "Flag of truce, remember?"
         "Then I'm coming along with you," she insisted pushing him upward.
         "You're a hard woman to say no to," he smiled.
          Once aboard, she shouldered by him. He followed her into the center control seats.
          "Zhaan how's it looking?" he asked as he watched D'Argo help Senna strap into the side bench.
          "Pilot says scanners show Crais' pod just landing on the planet at the agreed coordinates." She responded. "Senna?"
          "Yes, Zhaan," she replied into D'Argo's comms.
          "The blessings of the Goddess go with you," the Delvian said reverently.
          "Thank you," Senna smiled. "And thank you for saving my life. I'll never forget you."
          "Enough with these sickening farewells before Talyn decides to use us for target practice," Rygel growled. The yelp that followed made Crichton, Aeryn and D'Argo exchange amused glances.
          "If I were to receive a swift kick to the mivonks every time I opened my mouth to say something foolish," D'Argo said with a lopsided grin. "I would quickly learn to keep my mouth shut."
         "I hear ya there, buddy." Crichton chuckled, then turned to Aeryn. "Ready?"
          She nodded an affirmative.
          "Then we're up, up, and away." He said guiding the pod off the deck and out of Moya's landing bay.



           "Zhaan! Chiana!" Pilot's excited voice called from the clamshell. "Moya and Talyn have detected an approaching ship."
           "What kind of ship?" Chiana asked as she came running into command.
           "Peacekeeper light cruiser," Pilot replied, fear plain in his tone.
           "By the Goddess!" Zhaan exhaled. "What next? Can you plot their trajectory, Pilot?"
           "The cruiser is taking up a high orbital position keeping the planet between us," he replied. "However, a prowler has been launched and is heading directly for the coordinates of the meeting."
           "Frell!" Chiana swore. "Prepare Aeryn's prowler pilot. Someone's got to go stop those Peacekeeper skivulks."
           "That would not be wise, Chiana," Pilot cautioned her.
           "Frell wise, just do it!" she ordered as she left Zhaan alone on command.



           Crichton landed the transport pod a safe distance from Crais' craft. He scanned the area but found no hint of a trap. Unbuckling his harness he gathered Senna's belongings and handed them to D'Argo. The Luxan gave a polite bow of his head to Senna before leaving the pod. Aeryn nodded to Crichton and followed D'Argo outside.
          "Promise you'll write," Crichton joked as he took her shoulders in his hands.
          "I'll email every day," she smiled.
          "Twice a day,"
          "You'll be getting so much mail from me you'll think it's spam," she said as she slipped her arms around him.
          He kissed the top of her head and whispered, "If that mean old renegade ever mistreats you or you just happen to change your mind about a ride home. . .you know where to find me."
          "Yes, I do." She smiled painfully. Pulling away from him she touched her palm to his face and kissed his cheek. "You're good people, John. A true blue hero."
          "Aw, shucks ma'am." He drawled as he followed her out into the planet's foggy morning.



          Crais waited in full Peacekeeper uniform fifty yards from them. He made no acknowledgment of her or any of them for that matter. He simply stood with hands behind his back staring at them. Senna gave Aeryn a finally knowing look before she took her belongings from D'Argo. Aeryn smiled slightly and nodded.
          "Need a hand with that stuff?" Crichton asked not wanting to let her go now that the moment was finally upon them.
          "I'm strong enough," Senna smiled as she began to back away from them. "I can make it."
          "That you can," Crichton agreed crinkling his nose at the stinging in his eyes.
          He watched with a lump in his throat as she walked, slowly closing the distance to Crais. The former Peacekeeper didn't make a move to touch her, simply relieved her of her belongings.
          "Better take good care of the lady, Hoss," Crichton shouted to him.
          Any retort Crais might have made was cut short by the explosion of prowler cannon fire across the ground between them. The blue bolts churned the earth up in long furrows filling the air with the stench of carbonized plants.
          "Get down," Crais shouted as he pushed Senna beneath the protection of his pod. "Talyn, track that cruiser and stay clear of its sensors! Do you understand? Stay clear until I come back aboard."
          Aeryn pulled her pistol from beneath her long coat knowing it was almost useless against the prowler. Still, it was the only weapon they had. As the ship made a screaming bank preparing for another run she took careful aim.
          "Look out below!" shrieked Chiana over the comms as she came in low and tight behind the enemy prowler. She fired, struggling to gain altitude and avoid the explosion of the fighter dead ahead of her.
          "Pip!" Crichton crowed. "You did that?"
          "Told you I knew how to fly one of these," came her bubbling reply over his comms. "Men love me for more than just my loomas you know!"
           "Crichton," Crais shouted. "Get your people back aboard Moya. Talyn and I will take care of the cruiser in orbit."
           "If you think you can handle it," Crichton retorted then yelped as Aeryn and D'Argo both jerked him backward to the transport pod.



          "Talyn, target enemy vessel and prime guns for firing," Crais ordered as he strode onto command.
          The Gunship responded with a series of eager trills and hoots as the hum of his main cannon increased in volume. Using his superior speed and maneuverability, Talyn closed the gap between himself and the Peacekeeper light cruiser. Crais noticed from the insignia that it was an Expeditionary Division vessel, from the Freydahl's group and he began to suspect the worst. Like a bird of prey, Talyn raced over the curve of the planet and downward to the cruiser.
          "Fire!" Crais ordered and the cannon blazed before the word left his mouth.
          The ship splintered like the asteroids Talyn had practiced on weeks before. They could only hope the Peacekeepers didn't get a message off to home base before being destroyed. If Scorpius had any doubts about their whereabouts, this would end them. Crais plotted a starburst and gave Talyn the order to proceed.



          Senna waited for the battle to end. She felt the jolt of starburst and the lagging feeling as they decelerated after the jump. She didn't know what she would say. Didn't even know what to rehearse. She was going to go with the feeling in her gut, the one that made her melt into the ground down on the planet when he looked into her face. No matter what happened, that much was real. They'd work from there. She had hope. Aeryn was too cynical. Crais wanted to change.
          The door to her quarters slid aside and she felt her heart leap into her throat. She got up from the bed and approached him as he walked inside.
          "Senna," he said softly.
          "I'm not even going to ask why you didn't want to come back for me," she said as she came to a stop within denches of him. "I'm not going to ask for anything. . .except this."
          She gently took his arms in her hands and draped them around herself. Then she wrapped her arms around his body and held him tightly against her.
         "Just this one time I'm going to ask you to unbend a tiny bit and hold me in your arms." She sighed against him. "Then so help me God, I'll never ask you for another thing as long as I live."
          Crais stiffened at her violation of his personal space. After a long, silent interval his arms relaxed around her. Senna tightened her grasp and he did not protest. Finally he sighed, placing his cheek against the softness of her black hair.