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Congratulation to Shipscat for getting Dishonorable Mention in Worst of the Worst for Comedy. | |||||||||||||
Read at Your Own Risk The battle was over and they had won. Aeryn still couldn't believe it. The unlikely plan, nearly suicidal in its recklessness, had worked. The motley group of castaways had destroyed the Command Carrier and the wormhole knowledge it contained. There were no casualties among the group, which still surprised Aeryn. Sure, Talyn had taken some damage and they weren't sure Scorpius was dead- John had said that he wouldn't believe that Scorpius was dead until he had seen his corpse burned and the ground that the ashes were buried in sown with salt, whatever that meant. D'argo had shown bravery and good sense in the battle, using his new ship to good advantage. Chiana had had flashes of the future that enlightened and helped them. She seemed to be enjoying being useful for something other than stealing or selling her body. Jool had come into her own as one of the crew- both intelligent and compassionate, she had saved several lives. The Scarren had proven to be a worthwhile ally, and Crais had astonished them all with his loyalty and self-sacrifice. And Rygel! He had shown the courage of twelve men, his heart having sometime, when Aeryn wasn't looking, outgrown his stomachs. And John- it had been wonderful to fight alongside him, one of him, again. When they watched the carrier explode, and the crew was going wild with excitement, John had enveloped her in his arms and lifted her off her feet. Without thinking she had kissed him, hard and brief. He had put her down, the both of them staring at each other as if seeing the other for the first time, and knowing that they had just found their other half. She knew what that look was now, and she knew what the end of the story would be. Which is why she was going to go tell John now that nothing was ever going to happen between them, and it was time for him to go home. She found him in his quarters, packing. "home is the sailor, home from the sea, and the hunter home from the hill,' she heard him say under his breath. "Do you think its..safe...making a wormhole when you don't have the knowledge unlocked from your brain?" she asked to start the conversation. "It should be. I have the module with the phase stabilizer." "I'm not going with you." "I- thought that. Aeryn, just say the word- and I'll stay." She shook her head. It was already getting difficult not to cry, but she knew she needed to say this. "I loved you, you know," she said, taking a little intake of breath. " I loved you long before the twinning- I can't remember when I started loving you, and I love you still. I probably always will. But we will never be together. You died." he started to say something, but a look stopped him. "And you will die again. even if we lived long, safe, happy lives, you would leave me before I am even starting to get old. I can not go through that again," she said, her voice quaking. "Aeryn," John said softly. "I would do anything to avoid that hurt. I want you to go. I want you to live a long and happy life, safe on earth. find someone- make babies. I don't want you to pine over me." "I don't even get to miss you?" "No," she said fiercely. "You deserve better than me, because I am a ..a..coward, and I can't change that." "Oh, Aeryn," John said. "I will miss you, and,' she could see that tears were coming to his eyes now. "I'm not mad at you. I can't ask more of you than you can give." The tears were coming down freely now, and she fled, but not before she heard him say, "I love you, too." She was strangely calm after that, knowing that it was resolved, that he was going where he would be safe. Until she saw the small craft hover on the edge of the wormhole, and go in. The pain and loss crashed down on her, just as it had when she had stood by his deathbed. Why had she ever thought that this loss would be easier? Which is why she felt a jolt of joy when she heard his voice. "I can't do this, Aeryn. I can't leave you. Permission to come home?" "Yes!" she yelled as the small craft bobbed back out of the wormhole. "Yes, John, please come back. Please." "Great.," she could hear the grin in his voice. "I'll be right there, Babe." She tore out of Command and ran to the docking bay where the module was still being pulled in by the docking web. She bounced up and down impatiently, shifting her weight from foot to foot, until the doors opened. As soon as they did she ran to the module and opened the hatch, not waiting for John to do it, which is why she was the first one there to see the red goo flowing over the edge of cockpit. |
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