Seeing The Light: 3
By ISIS
Notes and Disclaimers: See part 1
"That was much better. You were so much closer that time, Aeryn. Try it again," John said encouragingly.
"It was not better, Crichton! Stop patronizing me!"
It was day five of Aeryn's 'training' and things were not going well. John and Aeryn were down in an unused maintenance bay. Five days earlier, John had collected as many of Moya's unused comms as he could find, with Pilot offering to have the DRD's produce more. Then he had shown Chiana how to modify the tiny pins to give off a distinct pinging sound. D'Argo had complained that the sound was annoying, but John merely ignored him. He had then attached them to various objects, instructing Aeryn to move from one to another, following the sound. She had practised the exercise first in total silence, then in a room filled with the rest of the crew and several DRD's all making various sounds and talking at once. At first she had glared at the Human, or at least in his direction. But as she grew more able to distinguish the pinging from other background sounds, she had grown more confident. When she successfully completed seven different circuits without hesitation, the rest of the crew had cheered. Aeryn's face had broken into a reluctant, but triumphant grin.
John's next exercise was to have Aeryn follow a moving object with one of the pinging comms attached. He had pinned one to his clothes and led her throughout the ship. She had moved after him with increasingly sure steps, swinging her cane back and forth to ensure that her path was clear. She had grown so good at the hunt, that she even managed to get around in front of him. John had shouted with laughter as Aeryn tackled him, giggling happily at her new-found skill. It had made John's heart swell with joy to hear her laugh again. Their playful wrestling might have easily turned into something else, if Chiana had not come running, notified by an overprotective Pilot that Aeryn had fallen in the passageway.
When John had introduced the idea of the guide dog, Uncharted Territories-style, Aeryn had started to object. But John insisted. He had taken his favourite DRD, the one he had damaged his first arn on Moya, whom he had taken to calling L'il Blue. The tiny yellow robot with the blue electrical tape already followed him around like a puppy dog anyway. He worked with Pilot to make several modifications to its programming. Then he brought it to Aeryn.
At first she had been skeptical. John had shown her how to follow the little machine's pinging as she had the comm. Then he told her that all she had to do was tell the DRD where she wanted to go, and it would lead her there. Aeryn tested the device extensively. Even though she never said, John could tell she was impressed and pleased. He had then taught her to work with the other characteristics he had programmed. L'il Blue was modified to respond to her every command. It would retrieve her cane for her, scan for obstacles in her path, even attach the pinging comms to items. And crewmembers. Aeryn had enjoyed showing up at D'Argo's side in the Command and speaking to him as if she could see him, causing the Luxan to momentarily think her sight had returned. John had even given the DRD a special power source that allowed it to work independently from Moya and Pilot. "That way, you can take it down to planets," John had explained. Aeryn had hastily vowed that she would never be leaving Moya with such vehemence that John had let the matter drop. Finally, he worked with the Sebacean and her new 'guide dog' on communicating without sound. Aeryn learned how to recognise the extensive pattern of movements John had programmed. The biggest challenge had been to move through an obstacle course with only L'il Blue's bumps and nudges against her ankles to guide her. But after several tries Aeryn had succeeded.
That evening, John had offered to show a weary Aeryn to her quarters after a surprisingly fun dinner in the central chamber. Her hasty acceptance was testament to her exhaustion. She had accomplished a lot in the last four days, but it had taken its toll on her. John offered Aeryn his arm, taking her hand and placing it at his elbow. The rest of the crew bid the pair a good night, smiling at the sight of L'il Blue following the Human and Sebacean with Aeryn's cane in its grasp, looking for all the world like one of the obedient Labrador guide dogs John had described to them.
John and Aeryn moved silently through Moya's quarters, enjoying their time alone together. They walked slowly, not wanting the moment to end. But unfortunately they reached Aeryn's quarters all too soon. The Sebacean reached out unerringly and palmed open the door. L'il Blue slipped inside. Aeryn sighed and turned to follow. Then she faced back to where John stood. John's breath caught as she raised her beautiful face to his. "John, I ... I want to thank you for what you're doing." Hesitantly, Aeryn lifted her hands and placed them on either side of his face. "I'm sorry about what I said ... before. I know this was just an accident, not your fault at all." Her slender fingers traced over his face, revelling in the slightly whisker-roughened skin of his cheeks, then up and over his brow. One hand moved lightly down the ridge of his nose while the other traced around the shell of his ears before coming to rest on the back of his neck. Her fingers slid down over his face to rest lightly on his lips, tracing their outline. John could see the rise and fall of her chest as her breath started to come faster. Then she stretched up and replaced her fingers with her soft lips.
John held his breath, afraid to jeopardize the moment by moving too fast. But as Aeryn's lips moved on his, he finally gave in to his impulses and slid his arm around her slender waist, drawing her up against him. His other arm wrapped around her shoulders, his hand tangling in her silky dark hair. Aeryn sighed and slid her arm under his and around his back, molding herself to his warmth. Their kiss deepened, grew more demanding, more passionate. At last, they eased away from each other. John stood gazing down into Aeryn's flushed face. He knew it would be so easy for him to take her back into his arms, to lead her the last few steps into her room and make love to her as he so desperately wanted to do. But he needed to know that she wanted to be with him out of love, not simply apology and gratitude for what he had done for her. So, aching for her body and soul, he released her and stepped back.
A brief look of confusion crossed her face, then she relaxed. John smiled, knowing he had done the right thing in his indescribable relationship with his Sebacean crewmate. He took her two hands in his and kissed the knuckles lingeringly. Then he bent to press a tender kiss to Aeryn's lips. "Good night, Aeryn," he whispered. He turned and headed down the corridor to his room. His last glimpse was of her with her hand pressed to her lips, a look of smiling wonder on her face. Then she turned and the door closed behind her.
That had been the night before. Now in the maintenance bay, things were very different. John had decided it was time to prove to Aeryn that she was not only self-sufficient, but also still a valuable member of the crew. However, as soon as he had broached the subject of combat and weapons at breakfast, Aeryn had shut down again. What he had taught her so far was all new and different. As soon as he had reminded her of her past skills, Aeryn felt inadequate and useless again.
But the Human was as stubborn as she was. First he had attached the pinging comms to her exercise equipment in the cargo bay. It had taken a few tries, but Aeryn had finally been able to hit the punching bag both with her fists and with kicks. Soon she was exercising with the same energy that she had before her accident. John watched her, marvelling at her impressive skill and stamina.
Aeryn was not as successful with the pulse rifle. John had modified a rifle so that it worked without its chakan oil cartridge, still able to deliver an energy pulse but without the explosive charge. He had set up a shooting range in one of the unused maintenance bays. To each of the targets, he had attached a pinging comm. Then he had invited Aeryn to join him.
As soon as he tried to place the rifle in her hands, she started protesting. "This is insane, Crichton! Even if I can learn to shoot with any accuracy, which I highly doubt, I would only be able to hit targets that ping." She stood with her hands on her hips, still in her exercise gear, her face flushed with frustration." What the hezmana is the value in that?"
John had studied her defiant posture with a grin. Even L'il Blue had taken up a stance at her side, as if resisting him too. "Let's just see if you can shoot first, Aeryn. Then we'll see about painting the targets." Aeryn had stared at him, her patented Human nonsense expression still deadly even with her sightless stare. "Just try it, Aeryn. You thought all the rest of it was nonsense too, but look how well you've been doing, how far you've come."
She had relented and taken the rifle. Then she had tried several times to hit the pinging targets. John had encouraged her, adjusted the pings, tried everything, but despite her previous expertise, she was unable to hit the targets. John was baffled. He even tried taking the rifle from her, closing his eyes and firing. He hit all the targets with his first shots. Aeryn's face had grown stony at that. She had grabbed the rifle from him and tried again, but missed every time.
"It's no use, Crichton!" She shoved the rifle back into his hands. "You'll just have to accept the fact that I will never be able to help in the defense of this ship and its crew." Aeryn turned from him, groped for a towel (which L'il Blue moved into her reach) and wiped her brow, sweating from her intense concentration.
John sat down, stunned. He stared at the rifle, at the targets and then back at the rifle. "I don't understand it! Everything else worked out so well."
Aeryn stood with her head cocked, listening to him. Then she sighed and crouched down, sliding over to sit on the floor next to him. "It's all right, John. You've helped me so much. You can't expect everything to be a success." She placed her hand lightly on his arm and smiled, leaning her shoulder against his. "Let's take a break. We've been at this all morning."
John put the rifle down and stood up, his face still confused. He reached down and gave Aeryn a hand up. "Good idea, Sunshine. Come to think of it, I'm a little hungry."
Aeryn smiled at him. "Me, too. Let me just go back to my quarters and change, then I'll meet you in the central chamber to see if Rygel left any foodcubes." She turned her head and called out, "L'il Blue?" and the obedient robot quickly slid over to pass her her cane.
John smiled at the ease with which she had settled into her new routine. "It's a date," he agreed then watched the former PeaceKeeper move confidently out the door, her 'guide dog' at her heels. He turned back towards the pinging targets, his expression contemplative then he hit the button to turn off the pinging and headed down to the central chamber.
Aeryn joined him a few microts later, clad once more in her leather vest and pants. She ably retrieved a tray of food cubes and moved unerringly over to join him at the table. They ate in companionable silence for a few microts then pushed their trays away. John reached for a pitcher of water he had brought to the table. He poured each of them a glass and placed one in Aeryn's hand. Then he sat sipping at the drink, lost in thought. Finally he spoke. "Aeryn, what did you used to do when you fired a weapon? What went on in your head?"
Aeryn paused, mid drink. "I don't know. I just raised the rifle and shot. It was automatic. Nothing went through my head." She sipped her water and placed the cup down next to her food tray at two o'clock (whatever that was?), as John had taught her.
"Okay, bad question. Think back to when you were first learning to shoot. What were the stages they taught you to go through?"
Aeryn stared straight ahead. "I can't remember, John. It was a long time ago. I was only four or five cycles old."
John choked on his water. "Four cycles!"
Aeryn looked upset and embarrassed. "John, PeaceKeeper training does not take into consideration childhood or age. As soon as a child is deemed physically able to hold a weapon, they are taught to shoot it. If the child does not grow fast enough or does not compensate for his or her size, then the child is demoted to the ranks of tech."
"And if the child still does not succeed?" John had to ask. The bleak look on Aeryn's face was answer enough. Even though he knew about the harsh life she had lived, times like this brought the reality back like a slap in the face. His heart ached for his beautiful Sebacean shipmate. At four, he had barely learned to tie his shoelaces. And he had been considered precocious.
"Okay, try this. There's a big old Scarran ugly coming right at you. Here's your rifle." He handed her her cane. "What do you do?"
Aeryn smiled at his scenario. "Okay. I take the rifle," she explained, grinning at the foolishness of the situation. " I sight it, checking the distance to the target." She pretended to do just that. "Then I take him out."
"Whoa, whoa, don't shoot!" Chiana smirked as she came into the room and caught them. Aeryn dropped the cane, embarrassed at being caught in the Human's silly game.
John smacked his head. "That's what the problem is!" he cried. Both Aeryn and Chiana turned to him in surprise. Caught up in the idea, John continued. "Back in the maintenance bay, how far away were the targets, Aeryn?"
"I don't know. The bay's only a few metras across."
"Right!" he shouted warming to his topic. "You didn't know. You compensate for the distance in the way you aim and fire. But you couldn't tell accurately enough how far the targets were away from you. All you could tell from the pinging was the location." He leaped up and planted a smacking kiss on Aeryn's startled mouth, much to Chiana's amusement. "Don't wait up, honey!" he cried. Then he raced out of the room, leaving a confused Sebacean and Nebari behind him.
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