TITLE: Darkness
E-MAIL: eli @ popullus.net
ARCHIVE: Ask, please.
SUMMARY: She was lost in the darkness.
RATING: PG-13
POSTED: Aug. 7, 2002
AUTHOR NOTES: Response to the ScapeRoute July 2002 "Make a Scene" challenge.Thanks again to Rhea (Apathy) and DCookKC for the beta services, especially since this time the request came with a deadline.
STORY NOTES: This takes place between Dog With Two Bones and Crichton Kicks.
DISCLAIMER: I claim no responsibility or ownership. Read.
It wasn't so much the pain. The pain went away. It was the fear. That this time the darkness wouldn't go away. That she would be lost. That no one would try to find her.
At least not anyone that she wanted to find her.
Chiana sat motionless on the bench, her back securely wedged in the corner of the booth. She couldn't see in front of her, but at least no one was going to come at her from the back. Only way to keep people from touching her. She shuddered.
Only one more hop before they reached the Leviathan burial ground. One more. Not soon enough. Shouldn't have tried to experiment. No way to control these frelling visions. Not visions. Not anymore. Don't know what to call them now. No more quick flashes. Now they were slow. Everything was slow. Except the headaches. They struck like a Peacekeeper. Hard.
Peacekeepers. Those beacons. Her head was splitting. See if you can tell if there are any around, Chiana. We need to know, Chiana. The flashes had always been of danger. The beacons were dangerous. Guess they weren't dangerous enough, 'cuz she couldn't see them. Couldn't see anything now. She was lost in the darkness.
You givin' up on me? C'mon. It's us against the universe.
Her shoulder jerked up and she shook her head, warding off the voice. Crichton. This was his fault. Grayza wanted him. She was just stuck in the middle. And when she found him she was gonna…
Huh. She could lie to others. It's the one of the best things I do. Lying to herself? She wasn't so good at that. She grimaced.
"What's so amusing? I see nothing good about this mess that you've gotten us into."
'See.' Just that word alone was enough to set her off. Can't laugh. Rygel was likely to leave her if she did. And having him there was better than nothing.
"Just a thought, your eminence. Nothing to bother you with."
The hum of his throne-sled dimmed as it settled across the table. Then came the scrape of a cup as he pushed a new drink into her hand.
"Fahrbot girl. I have been reduced to fetching and carrying for a blind tralk."
She could hear his muttered comment clearly, and briefly, anger pushed everything else out of the way.
"Yeah, I'm fahrbot. And blind, for now. But I am not a tralk, you little slug! As soon as I can see again, y-you're going to eat this cup."
For once there was silence from the other side of the table. She cocked her head, daring him to respond. When he said nothing, she nodded and settled back again.
Sounds. Everywhere, sounds. She'd never noticed how much noise everything made. Like the guy edging toward the booth. She turned her head, eyes narrowed. Go. Away. Don't want you. As the footsteps retreated, she let her head drop and her hair fell into her eyes once more.
Stay calm. The light was returning. Light reflecting off the metal of her cup. The shadows where her hands griped it. Good.
A hand on her arm. Panic. She swung around, stifling a scream.
"Chiana…" Rygel's low-voiced warning barely reached her, but she didn't need it. The familiar silhouette stopped her cold.
"Is there something we can do for you, officer?" Rygel was in his diplomatic mode. He'd talked them out of tight spots before. Maybe this one hadn't seen the beacons either.
"You, come with me."
Frell. Maybe he had. Chiana rose, pulling her arm away as the darkness lifted. Now she could see his face. Speculation filled the hard eyes staring down at her. Speculation she recognized.
Her turn to get them out.
Automatically, with a small smile, she turned her shudder into what she hoped he took as a shiver of pleasure. "Now, officer, you'll have to do better than that," she purred. "I'm being…very well compensated to…stay where I am."
The officer shot a look of disbelief at Rygel, who immediately put on his most condescending smirk. The officer let out a bark of laughter. "My compensation would be better."
He grabbed her again, pulling her into him. As his arm tightened around her waist, something snapped. No! All pretense and caution fled, and Chiana erupted. The officer fell as her fists and feet pounded into him. She heard Rygel's shocked "What in hezmana…" behind her, but it was drowned out by the scream in her head. No! NononoNO!
Someone tried to pull her away and she turned on him. Rygel quickly floated out of reach. "Chiana! Pull yourself together before you get me killed!"
She froze. Her panting breaths echoed in the silence in the bar. Every set of eyes was locked on her. One of the servers stepped forward, and Chiana flinched. But although the woman reached out, she didn't try to touch her.
"Thank you."
"Wh-what?"
Rygel's throne-sled settled and he got right down to the core of the matter. "Where are the rest?"
"Peacekeepers? There aren't any. He stayed because he liked the look of things here." The server smirked and kicked the man on the floor. Sound started up again as the other patrons turned back to their conversations. "Maybe now this frellnik will leave."
Chiana just stared. She looked down at the battered face of the non-Peacekeeper. Won't touch me again, no, you won't. She was out of the darkness. For now.
"Rygel?"
He was in an intense conversation with the server and motioned her to silence. Chiana, emotions still running through her, glared, but stayed silent. He shook his head at something the server said, and drifted over.
"We're leaving. Now."
"Can't be soon enough to suit me."
"She says the Peacekeeper vessel this deserter was attached to is on its way back, so the faster the better."
Turning toward the exit, Chiana caught the eye of the server, who nodded. Chiana paused, bent her head -- thank you -- and slipped out the door.
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