Morgyn Leri (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
morgynleri) wrote2009-08-11 01:36 pm
morgynleri) wrote2009-08-11 01:36 pm
Entry tags:
Warrior Child; Farscape; PG13
Title: Warrior Child
Word Count: 1241 (2519)
See first post for header info.
Chapter 2/?
Chapter 1
I was monitoring the communications, listening for a continuation of Scorpius's scare tactics, when Jors brought Crichton in by the scruff of the neck, a pulse pistol in his other hand. His own was still at his side, and there was a trickle of blood at the corner of Crichton's lip that made me think Jors had made certain the human had not had a chance to use the pistol before he confiscated it.
"Sir." Jors addressed Captain Crais, giving Crichton a small shove to propel him into the room. "He arrived in Officer Sun's prowler. Alone, sir."
Crichton let out a snort of laughter, a small smile on his face. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. I should have called, but I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd drop in and say hi, how you doing?"
There are times when I'm not entirely certain the translator microbes actually work on all languages. Certainly Crichton's is sprinkled with odd turns of phrase that do well to confuse his adversaries. I carefully closed off the communications, turning to face him fully as Captain Crais asked where Officer Sun was.
"Have you harmed her?" Crais's expression darkened, a frown on his face that I could see echoed on Jors's. I hoped my own was more controlled, but there was already a sense that Officer Sun was part of the crew, one of us, not one of those we would gladly leave to travel on Moya.
"You're asking me if I harmed Aeryn?" Crichton gave another small laugh, looking at Crais with an incredulous expression. "That's a winner. Tell me, do Sebacians have a word for chutzpah?"
He started to move towards one of the control panels, and I stepped away from my post to intercept him. That he was aboard and in the command center was enough, he didn't need to poke at everything. His gaze met mine a moment, and he smiled at me, shrugging as he turned to look at Crais again.
"What do you want, Crichton?" Crais circled Crichton, his frown not fading despite the vague assurance from Crichton that Officer Sun had not been harmed.
"Oh, a couple of things. Your head on a platter for starters." He looked at me again, and then at Jors. "A chance to pay your bully-boy back for the split lip."
"I am unarmed." Crais held his hands out from his body in a display of that lack of weaponry. "I would not, myself, stop you from attempting to kill me. However, Talyn regards me as a friend."
"Interesting." Crichton tilted his head, regarding Crais with what appeared to be curiosity. "I heard you had a long way to go in that department."
"Perhaps I would be more accurate in saying that Talyn has come to regard all of us as allies. Nevertheless, I think he would react badly to my death and react by... killing you." Crais's voice and expression were nearly smug, that of a man who has out-manuevered his opponent, even if said opponent hasn't realized it yet.
"Oh." Crichton looked thoughtful a moment. "Well, but. If you're dead, he's out of your clutches. Fair price to pay, I'd say."
"I don't think the price is as fair as you'd like to imagine, Crichton." I flicked a glance at Crais for permission to expand on my statement before meeting Crichton's curious gaze. "You are unarmed, and neither Officer Jors nor I would permit you to carry through on your desire to kill Captain Crais. Even if you were able to do so, that does not negate the chain of command. I would, if Captain Crais were incapacitated, take command."
Crichton grimaced, his distaste for that outcome clear in his expression. "Yeah, not quite what I want." He tilted his head, looking at Crais. "Fine. What do you want, Crais?"
"Simply to escape." Crais flicked his gaze towards me, and Jors. "To give Lieutenant Teeg and those officers loyal to me a chance to do the same. Travel deeper into the Uncharted Territories, re-examine my path further."
"You want to have a mid-life crisis?" Crichton stared at Crais, and I shifted my weight, straightening slightly. "Fine. Then just... Ditch the firm, head off to Maui..." He trailed off, glancing at me before continuing, "Shack up with the secretary, but you don't get to keep the Porsche! You don't get the keys to Moya's baby."
Crais looked down a moment, his expression serene in a way that made me worry. "Talyn. Intruder."
Jors moved rapidly forward as the hatch shut, and I brought the hands I had clasped behind me out from behind my back to reach for my pulse pistol. Crichton was moving before Talyn could get a clear shot, grabbing Crais by the hair, dragging him into one of the alcoves. Where none of us had a clear shot at Crichton.
"Tell Talyn and your bully boy to put away the toys, Crais." Crichton was snarling, and I could see one of his arms slide around Crais's neck. "You too, Teeg."
"Not while my captain's life is threatened, Crichton." I took a step sideways, trying to get a clear shot, and Crichton's arm tensed a moment. I glanced at Jors, and he shook his head. Too much in the way to get a clear shot at the human from his vantage point. "You won't leave this room alive if you kill him."
"Lieutenant." Crais's voice was strained from the grip around his neck, and he met my gaze for a moment, and I wondered just what he was trying to communicate without giving away what it was to Crichton. "I will be in no danger from Crichton."
"Sir?" I would allow as Selem wasn't trapped in here, and might be capable of effecting some assistance, but his aim was... regrettable, unless he was in his prowler.
"Talyn. Open the door." Crais looked over at Jors, his voice quiet despite the command in his tone. "Officer Jors."
"I think this is a bad idea." Jors was already returning his pulse pistol to its holster even as he spoke, his jaw clenched as he watched Crichton work his way to the door, still holding onto Crais, using him more as a hostage than a shield, but effective nevertheless.
As soon as he was into the corridor, I took the two short steps to the communications panel, opening a channel to Selem's prowler, hoping he was doing the maintence still. "Officer Selem."
There was no answer, and I frowned, wondering where he'd gotten to if he weren't in his prowler. "Officer Jors, was Officer Selem in the docking bay when Crichton arrived?" I looked over at him, and he snapped to attention. Some of my frustration must have shown in my expression or in the tone of my voice for him to react quite that rapidly.
"Yes, ma'am. He was performing maintenance on his prowler." Information that wasn't particularly helpful at the moment, as it was what I had surmised in the first place. "It's possible he chose to so the same for Officer Sun's prowler while Crichton was our prisoner."
That someone who knew a prowler as well as Selem - as a technician as well as a pilot - could sabotage it without leaving signs the human would notice went unsaid. Perhaps I had not given Selem enough credit earlier, though his aim was only barely passable with a pulse pistol.
Word Count: 1241 (2519)
See first post for header info.
Chapter 2/?
Chapter 1
I was monitoring the communications, listening for a continuation of Scorpius's scare tactics, when Jors brought Crichton in by the scruff of the neck, a pulse pistol in his other hand. His own was still at his side, and there was a trickle of blood at the corner of Crichton's lip that made me think Jors had made certain the human had not had a chance to use the pistol before he confiscated it.
"Sir." Jors addressed Captain Crais, giving Crichton a small shove to propel him into the room. "He arrived in Officer Sun's prowler. Alone, sir."
Crichton let out a snort of laughter, a small smile on his face. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. I should have called, but I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd drop in and say hi, how you doing?"
There are times when I'm not entirely certain the translator microbes actually work on all languages. Certainly Crichton's is sprinkled with odd turns of phrase that do well to confuse his adversaries. I carefully closed off the communications, turning to face him fully as Captain Crais asked where Officer Sun was.
"Have you harmed her?" Crais's expression darkened, a frown on his face that I could see echoed on Jors's. I hoped my own was more controlled, but there was already a sense that Officer Sun was part of the crew, one of us, not one of those we would gladly leave to travel on Moya.
"You're asking me if I harmed Aeryn?" Crichton gave another small laugh, looking at Crais with an incredulous expression. "That's a winner. Tell me, do Sebacians have a word for chutzpah?"
He started to move towards one of the control panels, and I stepped away from my post to intercept him. That he was aboard and in the command center was enough, he didn't need to poke at everything. His gaze met mine a moment, and he smiled at me, shrugging as he turned to look at Crais again.
"What do you want, Crichton?" Crais circled Crichton, his frown not fading despite the vague assurance from Crichton that Officer Sun had not been harmed.
"Oh, a couple of things. Your head on a platter for starters." He looked at me again, and then at Jors. "A chance to pay your bully-boy back for the split lip."
"I am unarmed." Crais held his hands out from his body in a display of that lack of weaponry. "I would not, myself, stop you from attempting to kill me. However, Talyn regards me as a friend."
"Interesting." Crichton tilted his head, regarding Crais with what appeared to be curiosity. "I heard you had a long way to go in that department."
"Perhaps I would be more accurate in saying that Talyn has come to regard all of us as allies. Nevertheless, I think he would react badly to my death and react by... killing you." Crais's voice and expression were nearly smug, that of a man who has out-manuevered his opponent, even if said opponent hasn't realized it yet.
"Oh." Crichton looked thoughtful a moment. "Well, but. If you're dead, he's out of your clutches. Fair price to pay, I'd say."
"I don't think the price is as fair as you'd like to imagine, Crichton." I flicked a glance at Crais for permission to expand on my statement before meeting Crichton's curious gaze. "You are unarmed, and neither Officer Jors nor I would permit you to carry through on your desire to kill Captain Crais. Even if you were able to do so, that does not negate the chain of command. I would, if Captain Crais were incapacitated, take command."
Crichton grimaced, his distaste for that outcome clear in his expression. "Yeah, not quite what I want." He tilted his head, looking at Crais. "Fine. What do you want, Crais?"
"Simply to escape." Crais flicked his gaze towards me, and Jors. "To give Lieutenant Teeg and those officers loyal to me a chance to do the same. Travel deeper into the Uncharted Territories, re-examine my path further."
"You want to have a mid-life crisis?" Crichton stared at Crais, and I shifted my weight, straightening slightly. "Fine. Then just... Ditch the firm, head off to Maui..." He trailed off, glancing at me before continuing, "Shack up with the secretary, but you don't get to keep the Porsche! You don't get the keys to Moya's baby."
Crais looked down a moment, his expression serene in a way that made me worry. "Talyn. Intruder."
Jors moved rapidly forward as the hatch shut, and I brought the hands I had clasped behind me out from behind my back to reach for my pulse pistol. Crichton was moving before Talyn could get a clear shot, grabbing Crais by the hair, dragging him into one of the alcoves. Where none of us had a clear shot at Crichton.
"Tell Talyn and your bully boy to put away the toys, Crais." Crichton was snarling, and I could see one of his arms slide around Crais's neck. "You too, Teeg."
"Not while my captain's life is threatened, Crichton." I took a step sideways, trying to get a clear shot, and Crichton's arm tensed a moment. I glanced at Jors, and he shook his head. Too much in the way to get a clear shot at the human from his vantage point. "You won't leave this room alive if you kill him."
"Lieutenant." Crais's voice was strained from the grip around his neck, and he met my gaze for a moment, and I wondered just what he was trying to communicate without giving away what it was to Crichton. "I will be in no danger from Crichton."
"Sir?" I would allow as Selem wasn't trapped in here, and might be capable of effecting some assistance, but his aim was... regrettable, unless he was in his prowler.
"Talyn. Open the door." Crais looked over at Jors, his voice quiet despite the command in his tone. "Officer Jors."
"I think this is a bad idea." Jors was already returning his pulse pistol to its holster even as he spoke, his jaw clenched as he watched Crichton work his way to the door, still holding onto Crais, using him more as a hostage than a shield, but effective nevertheless.
As soon as he was into the corridor, I took the two short steps to the communications panel, opening a channel to Selem's prowler, hoping he was doing the maintence still. "Officer Selem."
There was no answer, and I frowned, wondering where he'd gotten to if he weren't in his prowler. "Officer Jors, was Officer Selem in the docking bay when Crichton arrived?" I looked over at him, and he snapped to attention. Some of my frustration must have shown in my expression or in the tone of my voice for him to react quite that rapidly.
"Yes, ma'am. He was performing maintenance on his prowler." Information that wasn't particularly helpful at the moment, as it was what I had surmised in the first place. "It's possible he chose to so the same for Officer Sun's prowler while Crichton was our prisoner."
That someone who knew a prowler as well as Selem - as a technician as well as a pilot - could sabotage it without leaving signs the human would notice went unsaid. Perhaps I had not given Selem enough credit earlier, though his aim was only barely passable with a pulse pistol.