chanceencounters3

Chance Encounters (part 3)
by Tekking

CHANCE ENCOUNTERS
(PART THREE)

Chiana was getting frantic, Aeryn had not returned yet and the two teks had signaled over the Moya COMs that John and they were on their way back.
Chiana waited until she could stand it no more.
Creeping up to the stairwell door she went up on her tiptoes to peer out the glass into the corridor.
The stairwell was across form the hanger bay, but the barricades had all been removed. Instead of the legionnaires two squads of regular Peacekeeper infantry were formed up in spit and polish lining the entrance of the hanger.
Just then she heard the two teks coming up the stairwell with a disoriented John.
“ Look you really can expect me to trust you guys... I mean...” John was saying.
Chiana looked over the railing down below.
One of her girlish giggles with the wide-open smiles is what met John’s quick look up.
“ Chi!” John said in surprise.
Chiana rushed down the few steps to then grasp him in a hug.
“ Hey...whoa... Chi what's happening here?” John said kissing her cheek and returning her affection.
Chiana could sense he was still not quite himself.
“ We are here... that is Aeryn and these teks and I... me of course and were here to rescue you...” Chiana said at full speed.
“ Hey hey... chi I can barely understand... We got a plan to get off this Station? Is Scorpie here? Where’s Aeryn?”
John said as she released her hold and looked into his blue eyes.
“ We are to meet here before we make a break to our marauder... but Aeryn hasn’t shown up and there’s
something going on up stairs in the corridor.” Chiana said.
John turned to look at the two Peacekeepers.
Plu pushed his way up past the group and went to the
door on the next level.
Lans, John and Chiana were following.
“ How do you feel now John?” Chiana was saying as they came up behind Plu.
“ Sore...tired... hungry... and totally confused,” John said with a mock smile.
John’s expression seemed to draw Chiana to joy.
Plu turned to face them.
“ It’s an honor guard of Peacekeeper infantry. They must of come from the Admiral’s Carrier.” Plu said with a worried look on his face.
“ We’ll have to wait on Aeryn.” Lans said.
John began stretching his arms and legs to make the
crushed ice feelings in his bones start to subside.
“ If she doesn’t show up... could we go looking for her?” John said. He realized he was dressed in a tek uniform and that the rest were also in uniforms.
The others looked at each other and remained quiet.
***
Admiral Sun was a middle-aged man, about one hundred cycles old. His jet-black hair had only a trace of the silver that was beginning to color his temples. He was about the same height as John and still strongly built.
He wore the white jacket of a Fleet Admiral with the star insignias on his sleeve.
He was a man that at a glance you knew he was disciplined, fearless, and not one for allowing weakness in himself or those around him.
The Admiral nodded briefly to the officers formed with the honor guard. As Admiral Sun passed the two squads formed behind the focused Leader who moved in a mindset all his own. As he approached the Command center he looked at his usual staff with the Legion commander who were still in the corridor.
As he approached his usual awareness in evaluating every situation he involves himself he looks to one side and stops. Standing at attention was a Commander who looked the exact image of... the only woman he had ever loved.
“ Who are you?” Sun said to the dark haired woman with
Kara’s face and body, but his blue-gray eyes.
“ Commander Sol. Ustar regiment...” Aeryn began.
“ No you’re first designate,” the Admiral said.
“ Aeryn.”
His eyes showed the first hint of expression as if surprise was trying to pry its way into the long-time, emotionally frozen face.
“ Commander Sol was instrumental in destroying the boarding party in the recent action,” Admiral Alton said to ease what he supposed as tension.
Sun looked deeply into Aeryn’s face and the image of his longing and symbol of sacrifice, force the memory of their parting moment together tear fresh anew the old wounds of his lonely heart.
Years of training and control wouldn’t allow the feelings within show on his face.
Aeryn kept looking ahead at attention.
“ Well... good work Commander. I’m sure your initiative
will be rewarded by your superiors.” Sun said as he turned to go, he looked back one last time to view Aeryn’s face.
Aeryn caught herself as she moved and found herself looking at her father’s face.
And she knew beyond any doubt that he was her father.
They for that instant both knew.
“ Good health to you Commander.” Sun said before turning and entering Command. The rest of the staff and
honor guard also entered leaving Aeryn in the Corridor.
Aeryn pushed aside the strange new feelings and rushed
down the corridor towards the hanger bay.
The pressure was there and she was close to tears as she pushed the stairwell door open, not knowing what or who would be on the other side.
As the door opened and she came into the stairwell she was confront by John Crichton.
“ Hello Sunshine” John said with his silly grin.
Aeryn wiped the tear from her eye and grasped John’s arm.
“ It looks like you have made quite a recovery.” Aeryn said as she drew him to her and pressed her cheek
against his. She could already feel the intense anxiety begin to lift from her body.
“ Come on we have got to get out of here,” Chiana said.
The two teks said nothing.
“ Right, follow me!” Aeryn said pulling herself away.
They all left the darkness of the stairwell and marched to the hanger bay. John felt exposed and helpless with so many Peacekeepers standing around, but they moved toward the marauder without hesitation.
Aeryn punched in the access codes and the ramp opened.
***
“ Clearance to leave granted,” the controller said into Aeryn’s headphone.
The marauder was soon outside the ship moving away at hetch seven. Within a few microts they were where they left Moya... but she wasn’t there.
“ Pilot? This is Aeryn. What is your location?” Aeryn said over the special low band COM-signal Moya used.
Nothing but static.
“ This may be a very short trip,” Aeryn said, “ I can’t find Moya.”
John was at the controls running the checks just as Aeryn had already done.
Chiana pulled open the uniform front to help her cool off.
“ What do you mean... they left us?” Chiana said her voice on the edge of panic.
“ D’Argo wouldn’t do that,” John said.
“ D’Argo wouldn’t, but what about the rest of the Luxans?” Chiana said all most to a pout stage.
“ Luxans?” John said shaking his head,“ How about someone filling me in here?”
***
[On board Moya]
“ Farewell D’Argo. I truly hope you do find your Son, and happiness,” Pilot said.
Zhaan grasped D’Argo’s hand and stroked it and said her goodbyes as well.
“ Good bye Luxan. I’m as happy to be rid of you, as you are of me,” Rygel said before turning his throne sled and buzzing off toward the galley.
D’Argo watched him leave without a word. He smiled at Zhaan and freed his hand from her grasp.
“ Will you say farewell to Aeryn, John, and especially Chiana? Tell them that I ... well you know,” D’Argo said.
Zhaan lowered her head as if in a bow and smiled.
“ Fare well Pilot, and thank you... for every thing.” D’Argo then got into the transport and headed toward the awaiting Luxan assaulter.
As the ship moved away, Zhaan looked at the ‘clamshell’
and said. “ Pilot take us back to the rendezvous site... you must hurry,” Zhaan said.
***
John listened to Chiana and Aeryn argue for a few more microts before standing up to get their attention.
“ All right lets look what we have here.
If we go back to the station we will be discovered, arrested and executed... that will not do.
We can float out here for a weeken hoping for Moya to
return... In the mean time either the Luxans, or the Peacekeepers could discover us and... poof... that won’t do. We can try to get to the nearest free spaceport...
How long would that take?” John said defusing the
intense emotion of the two women.
“ The nearest port would be in Luxan space...but that
wouldn’t be too safe right now.” Aeryn coolly said.
“ No... not with a war going on,” Plu said.
“ We could try to make it back to Lothorian space.” Chiana said.
“ It would take three weekens and we would run out of fuel during the second weeken.” Aeryn said glumly.
“ I guess that means we wait on Moya.” John said sitting back down.
“ How long?” Lans said.
“ We can wait up to a weeken and a half, maybe two... if we conserve energy and rations.” Aeryn said.
The small group began looking at one another.
“ Two weekens?” John said incredulously.
“ It’s possible.” Aeryn said.
“ Ah, ha... no.” John said shaking his head with a look
of disenchantment with the idea.
With a look at Aeryn’s incredulous look on her face, John let out a sigh and relented.
“ Well, I guess we could hang on a few days.” John said.
The marauder was hidden in the asteroid field.
The engines were off, and the power cells were turned on by timer to give a sensor read out every forty microts.
John had taken up a seat on one of the small benches.
He finally fell asleep after aurns of waiting had passed.
Aeryn traded off playing sentry watching the scanner when Plu came to relieve her. Aeryn stood up and stretched and her eyes fell upon John’s sleeping form.
She walked up to him and sat beside John.
She was looking at his face; the soft eyes were closed
and seemed innocent and calm. He was breathing softly and she tentatively reached up and brushed his thick hair off his brow. His skin was warm and she found herself outlining his face with her finger, she brushed his soft lips and resisted the urge to kiss him. She smiled at the thought, but went and sat down on the other end of the small bench and leaned back. She found herself looking at him until she drifted off to sleep.
[TO BE CONTINUED]