Title: Ne humanus crede
Author: Karolyn Gray <kmgray3@aol.com>
ScifiBB/Chat Handle: Gray3
Rating: R (violence, gore)
Synopsis: The crew is under attack.
Type: Story
Spoilers: None.
Archiving: Yes
Disclaimers: All Farscape names, characters and other related indicia are the property of Jim Henson Productions, Hallmark Entertainment, Nine Networks, the Scifi Channel and all associated parties. No copyright infringement is intended.
Ne humanus crede
by Karolyn Gray
Smoke filled the hallway, diffusing what little illumination still available into a soft light. The occasional spark from ruptured conduits cast eerie flashes in the gloom, but did little to assist the visual senses. Aeryn Sun tread carefully through the gloom, suppressing the urge to cough at the irritants in the air the tickled her throat. One hand carefully traced along the burnt and battered wall of the hallway, the other firmly grasped her pulse pistol.
Whoever or whatever had done this damage had struck with out warning, with devastating effect, and with extreme cruelty. The evidence of this last trait had been evident by the state in which she had found the bodies of Jool and Chiana. She suppressed a shudder at the mind's image of Jool's gutted corpse and Chiana's violated form, gagged and her throat expertly slit.
She had yet to find the rest of the crew in her two arns of searching the corridors. With the comms down she had first made her way to Pilot's chamber only to find the gentle creature unconscious but apparently otherwise unharmed. Her continued search had led her to her two dead crewmates but no one else.
As she now approached the entrance to command she stopped, certain she heard something above her. Reaching up she yanked the hatchway open to reveal Rygel cowering with in.
"Aeryn?" The Hynerian whispered.
Aeryn gestured to him to be quiet, earning a quick nod from the royal. She quickly gestured to ask if he had seen anything. Frowning for a moment as he studied her gestures he shook his head no when he realized what she was asking.
Nodding in response Aeryn tightened her grip on the pulse pistol and squinted into the smoke filled command looking and listening carefully for any sign of movement. After a moment she heard a soft and familiar scraping sound on the floor, one she recognized instantly. She glanced up to Rygel who nodded that he to had heard the movement.
"Crichton!" Aeryn whispered harshly, tensing in anticipation of bringing forth an attack.
"It's clear in here Aeryn." Came the oddly monotone reply from the human. "Mostly."
Cautiously Aeryn swept into Command, her pistol following her gaze as she quickly assessed the shocked expression on the human's face and the large shape covering the main tactical station. She wrinkled her nose as the smell of blood struck her as she got closer to Crichton.
"It's...D'Argo." Was all Crichton said, still staring at what lay on the table before.
"D'Argo did this?" Aeryn asked in shock, glancing back as she heard Rygel's throne sled glide into the room.
"No." Crichton shook his head and pointed to the table. "D'Argo."
Aeryn took a closer look and instantly stepped back, her stomach turning at the site of what remained of D'Argo's body. She turned to Crichton noticing that what she had mistook for dirt smudges were in fact dark, reddish-black fluid. Looking him over she noted the blood spatters and streaks on his clothes. He had to have seen what happened then, she reasoned.
"Crichton, what happened?" She asked.
Crichton looked at her, blinking once. "I don't know."
"What do you remember?" She asked, speaking slowly as if to calm him. She had seen combat shock enough to suspect Crichton was in such a state now.
"I...I was eating in the Central Chamber." He said slowly, frowning slightly. "Chiana was there. Asked me to...Said you wouldn't..." He stopped, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose as if in pain. "I don't 'member."
Aeryn yanked his arm down and shook him hard once. "John, concentrate!"
That seemed to get through his dazed expression. He looked at her in confusion for a moment before nodding. "OK, ok. Central chamber. Chiana asked me to go with her. Said you wouldn't care anyway. Everything...went dark."
"Anything else?" Aeryn demanded.
Crichton simply shook his head. "I'm sorry. I-I..."
Aeryn sighed, squeezing Crichton shoulder. "It's ok, John. We better get to the Den and see if Pilot's all right."
"What about the others?" Rygel asked, his voice unusually soft and timid.
"They are dead." Aeryn reported matter-of-factly.
The diminutive Dominar blanched at that.
"Don't worry. Everything is going to be all right, Rygel." Aeryn reassured the Hynerian.
"Yeah, I'll take care of you Ryg. No problem." Crichton agreed, earning a nod of thanks from Aeryn who was glad the human had finally pulled himself together.
Crichton smiled softly. "Let's go. Rygel, stay behind me and Aeryn."
A half arn later of walking through darkened corridors, with the Leviathan making strange noises and no DRDs in site, had unnerved Aeryn. Annoying her even more was the continually growing noisiness of those who followed her lead, namely Rygel's complaining and Crichton's whispering back for the Hynerian to shut up.
"But Crichton..."
"Shut the frell up, Rygel! You'll get us killed!" Aeryn snapped over her shoulder at that.
"I'll take care of it, Aeryn." Crichton replied cheerfully.
Aeryn wanted to growl at the human's apparent lack of nervousness. There was a time when she would have welcomed his lack of apprehension. Now it just made her even more edgy. Crichton had changed. This Crichton was not the John she had known. But neither was he the Crichton she had thought him to be. The past few monens she had noticed little behavioral changes: he was quieter, less willing to compromise in negotiations, more argumentative, and kept to himself more than ever.
She noted a muffled cry from Rygel but didn't bother to look back to see what had happened as she moved to the sealed door that led to into Pilot's chamber. Despite the tension between them she trusted Crichton. He had earned that much from her.
"It's sealed." Crichton said, coming to stand beside her and resting a glistening hand on the controls.
"Yes, I..." She stopped as she noticed the lighter greenish fluid on Crichton's hand. She looked up to see Crichton smiling at her. She swallowed the lump in her throat away. "Where's Rygel."
Crichton's broke out into a toothy grin and brought forth a combat knife stained with several different colors of blood on the blade and handle. "Oh, his Eminence won't be a problem any more."
The human fiddled with the locking mechanism for a moment before the door slid open. He grabbed the stunned Sebacean's hand and pulled her into the Den. "C'mon. Pilot's waiting for us."
After a few steps in, Aeryn yanked her arm from his grasp and shoved him away staring in horror at what was before her. Pilot sat behind his console, purple fluid flowing freely from where his arms had once been and from his mouth. Pilot's clamshell head turned groggily in their direction to reveal the left side of his face had been mutilated, the golden orb stripped from its socket.
"What the frell is going on, John?"
Crichton smiled happily. "Moya's ours now."
"What?" She asked in disbelief, her pistol hanging forgotten from her fingers in her shock.
"Moya. She's ours." Crichton said. "Chi explained it to me. She said it wasn't that you didn't love me. It was because we always get distracted. By Pilot. By them." He stepped closer, resting his free hand onto her shoulder and pulling her closer. "We can free of them now." He whispered before placing a light kiss on her forehead.
"No!" Aeryn screamed trying to pull away. "Let me go!"
"Aeryn!" Crichton held onto her tightly. "I love you!"
"You're insane!" Aeryn broke free of his grip, stumbling back.
"You can't leave. I won't let you." Crichton said calmly as he started after her.
A single pulse blast struck him in the side, sending him to the floor. Crichton moaned in pain, clasping his hand over the bloody wound as he rolled over and propped himself up against the base of Pilot's control panel. He smiled through bloody teeth at Crais' drawn pulse weapon. "Ah, the Good Captain joins our little soiree."
"Aeryn, are you all right?" Crais asked, ignoring the human's comment.
Aeryn slowly regained her footing, looking at Crichton in obvious shock, her hand trembling. She felt unsteady and nauseous and something else she couldn't define. "I'm...I'm fine, sir." She mumbled slowly.
"Talyn received a distress signal from Moya, but it was cut off before it was completed. We came as fast as we could." Crais nodded, his dark eyes boring into Crichton's own. "What have you done, Crichton?"
Crichton slowly stood, smiling all the while. "What had to be done, Crais. You know that." Crichton's eyes flicked to Aeryn. "You know this is what must be, baby. I did this for you. For me. For both of us. Without the others there's no more excuses, no more interruptions."
"You murdered the rest of the crew, people you claim are your friends?" Crais asked in shock.
Crichton returned his gaze back to Crais, shaking he head. "No, you don't understand. They aren't my friends. They treated me as a copy, not John Crichton. Always demeaning me, blaming me for everything that went wrong. Never supported what I wanted. D'Argo even killed me, but I was stronger and came back."
Crais shook his head. "Your insane."
"No. In Love." Crichton replied. He turned to Aeryn with a look of complete devotion, Crais found himself repulsed by it. "I love you, Aeryn. I just wanted to show you nothing could keep us apart. That nothing could take me away from you. Ever."
Crais raised his pulse pistol. "I'm sorry Crichton I cannot allow this to continue."
"No!"
Crais looked over at Aeryn in surprise. She shook her head, the sadness so evident in her eyes that Crais knew he could not deny her any request. "What should we do with him?"
"Let him live. I'll return to Talyn." She replied softly.
"Aeryn, please!" Crichton called out. "I love you. Please stay with me. I'm not John, but I can love you as well as he did. Maybe even better."
Crais simply shook his head and started to slowly back away towards the exit, confident Aeryn would follow his lead. "Good bye, John-....." Crais gasped as he felt a searing pain rip through the back of his neck, realizing his transponder from Talyn had been ripped free. Turning he was shocked to immobility long enough for Aeryn to jerk his chin up and slash across his throat with a knife.
Crais tried to bring his pulse weapon to bear on Aeryn, who stared at him with a shocked expression even as she handily disarmed him. Sinking to his knees Crais grasped his throat, his mouth moving as if to speak, to ask the question so plain on his face. Why?
"Because it is the way it should be." She said softly, a strange smile coming to her face as she walked away from Crais slumping to the floor, unable to stop the flow of blood from his throat. With a final gasp, Crais collapsed into a pool of his own blood.
"Aeryn." Crichton whispered, almost reverential as their hands joined.
"John." She smiled, enveloping him in a hug. "I missed you."
"I missed you too, baby. Nothing will keep us apart." He replied, ignoring his own wound to hug her even closer.
"What now?" Aeryn whispered, reveling in his scent mingling with the familiar scent of blood.
"We take Talyn and go home." Crichton replied.
"Moya should be decommissioned." Aeryn said softly.
"She will be. Will Talyn understand?" Crichton asked, pulling back to look at her.
"We'll make him understand." Aeryn said with a predatory smile that matched Crichton's own perfectly.
"Then let's go." Crichton started to rise.
"No. I want to savor this moment." Aeryn stilled him with a tighter hug. "The future can wait a few more microts."
Fin.
Note: Ne humanus crede translates as trust no human
Author: Karolyn Gray <kmgray3@aol.com>
ScifiBB/Chat Handle: Gray3
Rating: R (violence, gore)
Synopsis: The crew is under attack.
Type: Story
Spoilers: None.
Archiving: Yes
Disclaimers: All Farscape names, characters and other related indicia are the property of Jim Henson Productions, Hallmark Entertainment, Nine Networks, the Scifi Channel and all associated parties. No copyright infringement is intended.
Ne humanus crede
by Karolyn Gray
Smoke filled the hallway, diffusing what little illumination still available into a soft light. The occasional spark from ruptured conduits cast eerie flashes in the gloom, but did little to assist the visual senses. Aeryn Sun tread carefully through the gloom, suppressing the urge to cough at the irritants in the air the tickled her throat. One hand carefully traced along the burnt and battered wall of the hallway, the other firmly grasped her pulse pistol.
Whoever or whatever had done this damage had struck with out warning, with devastating effect, and with extreme cruelty. The evidence of this last trait had been evident by the state in which she had found the bodies of Jool and Chiana. She suppressed a shudder at the mind's image of Jool's gutted corpse and Chiana's violated form, gagged and her throat expertly slit.
She had yet to find the rest of the crew in her two arns of searching the corridors. With the comms down she had first made her way to Pilot's chamber only to find the gentle creature unconscious but apparently otherwise unharmed. Her continued search had led her to her two dead crewmates but no one else.
As she now approached the entrance to command she stopped, certain she heard something above her. Reaching up she yanked the hatchway open to reveal Rygel cowering with in.
"Aeryn?" The Hynerian whispered.
Aeryn gestured to him to be quiet, earning a quick nod from the royal. She quickly gestured to ask if he had seen anything. Frowning for a moment as he studied her gestures he shook his head no when he realized what she was asking.
Nodding in response Aeryn tightened her grip on the pulse pistol and squinted into the smoke filled command looking and listening carefully for any sign of movement. After a moment she heard a soft and familiar scraping sound on the floor, one she recognized instantly. She glanced up to Rygel who nodded that he to had heard the movement.
"Crichton!" Aeryn whispered harshly, tensing in anticipation of bringing forth an attack.
"It's clear in here Aeryn." Came the oddly monotone reply from the human. "Mostly."
Cautiously Aeryn swept into Command, her pistol following her gaze as she quickly assessed the shocked expression on the human's face and the large shape covering the main tactical station. She wrinkled her nose as the smell of blood struck her as she got closer to Crichton.
"It's...D'Argo." Was all Crichton said, still staring at what lay on the table before.
"D'Argo did this?" Aeryn asked in shock, glancing back as she heard Rygel's throne sled glide into the room.
"No." Crichton shook his head and pointed to the table. "D'Argo."
Aeryn took a closer look and instantly stepped back, her stomach turning at the site of what remained of D'Argo's body. She turned to Crichton noticing that what she had mistook for dirt smudges were in fact dark, reddish-black fluid. Looking him over she noted the blood spatters and streaks on his clothes. He had to have seen what happened then, she reasoned.
"Crichton, what happened?" She asked.
Crichton looked at her, blinking once. "I don't know."
"What do you remember?" She asked, speaking slowly as if to calm him. She had seen combat shock enough to suspect Crichton was in such a state now.
"I...I was eating in the Central Chamber." He said slowly, frowning slightly. "Chiana was there. Asked me to...Said you wouldn't..." He stopped, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose as if in pain. "I don't 'member."
Aeryn yanked his arm down and shook him hard once. "John, concentrate!"
That seemed to get through his dazed expression. He looked at her in confusion for a moment before nodding. "OK, ok. Central chamber. Chiana asked me to go with her. Said you wouldn't care anyway. Everything...went dark."
"Anything else?" Aeryn demanded.
Crichton simply shook his head. "I'm sorry. I-I..."
Aeryn sighed, squeezing Crichton shoulder. "It's ok, John. We better get to the Den and see if Pilot's all right."
"What about the others?" Rygel asked, his voice unusually soft and timid.
"They are dead." Aeryn reported matter-of-factly.
The diminutive Dominar blanched at that.
"Don't worry. Everything is going to be all right, Rygel." Aeryn reassured the Hynerian.
"Yeah, I'll take care of you Ryg. No problem." Crichton agreed, earning a nod of thanks from Aeryn who was glad the human had finally pulled himself together.
Crichton smiled softly. "Let's go. Rygel, stay behind me and Aeryn."
A half arn later of walking through darkened corridors, with the Leviathan making strange noises and no DRDs in site, had unnerved Aeryn. Annoying her even more was the continually growing noisiness of those who followed her lead, namely Rygel's complaining and Crichton's whispering back for the Hynerian to shut up.
"But Crichton..."
"Shut the frell up, Rygel! You'll get us killed!" Aeryn snapped over her shoulder at that.
"I'll take care of it, Aeryn." Crichton replied cheerfully.
Aeryn wanted to growl at the human's apparent lack of nervousness. There was a time when she would have welcomed his lack of apprehension. Now it just made her even more edgy. Crichton had changed. This Crichton was not the John she had known. But neither was he the Crichton she had thought him to be. The past few monens she had noticed little behavioral changes: he was quieter, less willing to compromise in negotiations, more argumentative, and kept to himself more than ever.
She noted a muffled cry from Rygel but didn't bother to look back to see what had happened as she moved to the sealed door that led to into Pilot's chamber. Despite the tension between them she trusted Crichton. He had earned that much from her.
"It's sealed." Crichton said, coming to stand beside her and resting a glistening hand on the controls.
"Yes, I..." She stopped as she noticed the lighter greenish fluid on Crichton's hand. She looked up to see Crichton smiling at her. She swallowed the lump in her throat away. "Where's Rygel."
Crichton's broke out into a toothy grin and brought forth a combat knife stained with several different colors of blood on the blade and handle. "Oh, his Eminence won't be a problem any more."
The human fiddled with the locking mechanism for a moment before the door slid open. He grabbed the stunned Sebacean's hand and pulled her into the Den. "C'mon. Pilot's waiting for us."
After a few steps in, Aeryn yanked her arm from his grasp and shoved him away staring in horror at what was before her. Pilot sat behind his console, purple fluid flowing freely from where his arms had once been and from his mouth. Pilot's clamshell head turned groggily in their direction to reveal the left side of his face had been mutilated, the golden orb stripped from its socket.
"What the frell is going on, John?"
Crichton smiled happily. "Moya's ours now."
"What?" She asked in disbelief, her pistol hanging forgotten from her fingers in her shock.
"Moya. She's ours." Crichton said. "Chi explained it to me. She said it wasn't that you didn't love me. It was because we always get distracted. By Pilot. By them." He stepped closer, resting his free hand onto her shoulder and pulling her closer. "We can free of them now." He whispered before placing a light kiss on her forehead.
"No!" Aeryn screamed trying to pull away. "Let me go!"
"Aeryn!" Crichton held onto her tightly. "I love you!"
"You're insane!" Aeryn broke free of his grip, stumbling back.
"You can't leave. I won't let you." Crichton said calmly as he started after her.
A single pulse blast struck him in the side, sending him to the floor. Crichton moaned in pain, clasping his hand over the bloody wound as he rolled over and propped himself up against the base of Pilot's control panel. He smiled through bloody teeth at Crais' drawn pulse weapon. "Ah, the Good Captain joins our little soiree."
"Aeryn, are you all right?" Crais asked, ignoring the human's comment.
Aeryn slowly regained her footing, looking at Crichton in obvious shock, her hand trembling. She felt unsteady and nauseous and something else she couldn't define. "I'm...I'm fine, sir." She mumbled slowly.
"Talyn received a distress signal from Moya, but it was cut off before it was completed. We came as fast as we could." Crais nodded, his dark eyes boring into Crichton's own. "What have you done, Crichton?"
Crichton slowly stood, smiling all the while. "What had to be done, Crais. You know that." Crichton's eyes flicked to Aeryn. "You know this is what must be, baby. I did this for you. For me. For both of us. Without the others there's no more excuses, no more interruptions."
"You murdered the rest of the crew, people you claim are your friends?" Crais asked in shock.
Crichton returned his gaze back to Crais, shaking he head. "No, you don't understand. They aren't my friends. They treated me as a copy, not John Crichton. Always demeaning me, blaming me for everything that went wrong. Never supported what I wanted. D'Argo even killed me, but I was stronger and came back."
Crais shook his head. "Your insane."
"No. In Love." Crichton replied. He turned to Aeryn with a look of complete devotion, Crais found himself repulsed by it. "I love you, Aeryn. I just wanted to show you nothing could keep us apart. That nothing could take me away from you. Ever."
Crais raised his pulse pistol. "I'm sorry Crichton I cannot allow this to continue."
"No!"
Crais looked over at Aeryn in surprise. She shook her head, the sadness so evident in her eyes that Crais knew he could not deny her any request. "What should we do with him?"
"Let him live. I'll return to Talyn." She replied softly.
"Aeryn, please!" Crichton called out. "I love you. Please stay with me. I'm not John, but I can love you as well as he did. Maybe even better."
Crais simply shook his head and started to slowly back away towards the exit, confident Aeryn would follow his lead. "Good bye, John-....." Crais gasped as he felt a searing pain rip through the back of his neck, realizing his transponder from Talyn had been ripped free. Turning he was shocked to immobility long enough for Aeryn to jerk his chin up and slash across his throat with a knife.
Crais tried to bring his pulse weapon to bear on Aeryn, who stared at him with a shocked expression even as she handily disarmed him. Sinking to his knees Crais grasped his throat, his mouth moving as if to speak, to ask the question so plain on his face. Why?
"Because it is the way it should be." She said softly, a strange smile coming to her face as she walked away from Crais slumping to the floor, unable to stop the flow of blood from his throat. With a final gasp, Crais collapsed into a pool of his own blood.
"Aeryn." Crichton whispered, almost reverential as their hands joined.
"John." She smiled, enveloping him in a hug. "I missed you."
"I missed you too, baby. Nothing will keep us apart." He replied, ignoring his own wound to hug her even closer.
"What now?" Aeryn whispered, reveling in his scent mingling with the familiar scent of blood.
"We take Talyn and go home." Crichton replied.
"Moya should be decommissioned." Aeryn said softly.
"She will be. Will Talyn understand?" Crichton asked, pulling back to look at her.
"We'll make him understand." Aeryn said with a predatory smile that matched Crichton's own perfectly.
"Then let's go." Crichton started to rise.
"No. I want to savor this moment." Aeryn stilled him with a tighter hug. "The future can wait a few more microts."
Fin.
Note: Ne humanus crede translates as trust no human