The Soul's Rainbow Pt 3
By Sarah Wait
Disclaimer: See pt. 1
If he had thought it was eerie hovering around Moya and Earth where nobody could see him, it was even more disconcerting to be floating in the middle of space. Empty space. "Where are we?"
"Nowhere," Larraq answered calmly.
"What do you mean, 'nowhere'? I thought we were going to Moya."
"We were."
Frustrated, John pressed a hand to his forehead. "So take us there, already."
"I can't."
John stared at him, irritated and confused by his answer. This was the next step - so what the hell was going on? "Why not?"
"I can't take you there, because Moya no longer exists," Larraq explained patiently.
"What do you mean, she doesn't *exist*?"
"Moya's attempt to escape failed. For their part in the plan, Pilot and Moya were decommissioned."
"You mean they killed them," John stated unbelievingly.
Larraq nodded. "Essentially."
John closed his eyes briefly, suddenly not sure he wanted to hear the rest, but knowing he had to ask. "And the others? Were they captured?"
"See for yourself."
With a start, John looked up to find himself standing at the edge of a lush field. Far in the distance, the gentle slopes of mountains rose above the precise lines of vegetation. The quiet beauty of the valley contrasted sharply with the scene before him. All around him, hundreds of figures bent over small plants, picking clusters of bright red fruit from their branches and placing them in the large baskets that sat in the dirt next to them. Peacekeepers milled around the rows, stopping periodically to bark orders at the workers or push them roughly towards the transport pallets, where the baskets were being loaded and conveyed to the large buildings flanking the sides of the field.
It reminded him very much of Sykar, but the workers reflected a variety of species, most of which he did not recognize. In addition, they all wore heavy metal collars, reminiscent of the one Chiana had worn when she was initially brought on board Moya. "Where are we?"
"To those who are here, this is just as much 'nowhere' as emptiest space. In spite of that, it is called Terran Ra."
John nodded as the name struck a familiar chord. "The lifer's colony. The one Moya was scheduled to go to."
"Yes."
"So they're here." He swore violently and kicked at a clod of dirt. "The failed escape attempt. It must have happened at that commerce planet. Without the slingshot maneuver, Moya didn't have a chance of outrunning them. Damn." Larraq made a non-committal grunt, but did not answer as John started walking along the rows, swinging his head from side to side as he searched.
Halfway down he stopped, then turned and walked along the small path between the plants. Near the end of the row he dropped to a crouch next to a figure swathed in a dirty, lightweight robe. Blue hands methodically worked the soil, despite being chained closely together. "Zhaan?" he asked timidly. He knew she couldn't hear him, so he was startled when she raised her head as if in response.
As the hood of her robe fell back, John recoiled, stumbling to his feet. He stared in horror as Zhaan's bright red eyes gazed out at the mountains. A moment later a shadow fell over her and the butt of a rifle connected with her shoulder.
The guard grinned maliciously, but did not move closer. "Get back to work, witch," he spat.
Another guard moved in and pulled the first slightly away from her. "Best be careful, Eilidh. This one killed half a dozen guards before they could subdue her. Frelled their minds." The guard laughed harshly and motioned towards Zhaan's face, making sure to keep his distance. "When they finally pulled her off the last one, her eyes came up red. Been that way ever since."
As Zhaan's hands returned to the soil, John turned away, his head lowered in sadness. He reached the main pathway and continued searching again.
He made it all the way to the end without stopping. Confused, he turned back and carefully retraced his steps. Within minutes he was back at Larraq's side. "What about the others? Rygel and D'Argo? Where are they?"
"Rygel is here at Terran Ra. However, he was caught thieving half a cycle ago. He was sentenced to the traditional punishment and has been unfit to work in the fields ever since."
"Why?" John asked, then considered who they were talking about. "I mean, I can't see Sparky doing physical labor to begin with, but what would make him 'unfit' to do it?"
"They cut off his feet."
"They *what*?" John sputtered.
The Peacekeeper studied him, appearing somewhat perturbed by John's reaction. "And how do humans punish thieves, Crichton?"
John scowled defensively. "We stopped cutting off people's hands a long time ago."
Larraq lifted an eyebrow as if to say 'I told you so.' "We can go to his cell if you wish," he offered.
John shook his head. He had no desire to see the mutilated Hynerian. Facing the fields, he scanned the workers again. "So where's D'Argo?" he asked.
"He's not here."
Surprised, John looked back at Larraq, a tiny seed of hope beginning to blossom. When he had not seen the tall Luxan amongst the workers, he had begun to fear the worst. "You mean he wasn't captured?"
"No, he wasn't. In the confusion caused by the Delvian, he managed to slip away and secure a transport pod."
"He ditched them?" John stared at Larraq in disbelief. "D'Argo *ditched* them?"
The Peacekeeper shrugged. "They meant nothing to him. The escaped convicts barely refrained from killing each other - working together to attain their freedom was out of the question." Larraq looked at John pointedly. "This is not the crew of Moya that you know, John Crichton."
John shook his head, still trying to reconcile the fact that D'Argo had abandoned the others. Larraq paused for a moment, then continued the story. "When the paddock beacon went off, the crew was trading for supplies on a commerce planet. They ignored Pilot's warnings and were met by the Peacekeepers as they re-boarded Moya. The Luxan escaped and continued to look for his son. They were reunited approximately two cycles later, and settled in a new colony in the Uncharted Territories."
Finally, something good. John broke into a grin. "That's great!" His smile faded as Larraq simply stared at him. "What?"
Larraq snorted derisively. "You just don't get it yet, do you?" His words brought back memories of another time, another place, when the Commando had made the same accusation. "Every life that you touch, touches someone else's."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Me, 'Captain'. It means you forgot about me."
John spun around, realizing they had shifted locations again. They stood in the middle of a deserted street, surrounded by the low remains of blackened, burned-out buildings. It reminded him of pictures he had seen in his History books - pictures of decimated European towns after the vicious battles of World War II. Confused, he turned to Larraq, recalling his cryptic explanation. "What? What about you?"
Larraq tossed familiar words back at him. "Let me make it... simple for you. My team managed to make it to the Gammak base. We completed our mission. The intellent virus was safely delivered into the hands of the Peacekeepers. And less than four cycles later, they had their weapon. They just needed somewhere to test it."
All hope fled, only to be replaced by a gnawing sense of dread. John closed his eyes briefly, knowing what came next even as Larraq continued speaking. "And they had the perfect place. A small colony, close enough to provide easy access, yet far enough away to ensure no accidental contamination. The colony was called Tir-Imrich, and two of its most prominent citizens were a Luxan ex-warrior and his half-Sebacean son." The Peacekeeper paused, and John was surprised to see a look of regret flare in his eyes. In an instant, it was gone. "I honestly don't know what happened to them - but I can assure you that it wasn't a pleasant way to die."
John swore violently under his breath. Another friend lost. "Well, what about Chiana?"
Larraq began to answer, but John held up a hand to stop him. He knew where this was going. "No, wait - let me guess," he interrupted. "Without us around, the Nebari transport didn't have anything to crash into. They had a nice little cruise to... wherever they were going. No problems. They got there, unloaded, kicked back and relaxed - and then they 'cleansed' Pip's brain."
Nodding, Larraq confirmed John's statement. "I'm not sure where she is, but as the process takes a hundred cycles of cryo-stasis to complete - I imagine it doesn't matter."
Larraq paused, as if giving him the time to let it all sink in. "So, Crichton, we have one person left to see."
John nodded tensely. "Aeryn."
"Yes. You feel responsible for her situation." It wasn't a question.
Sighing, John looked around at the crumbled walls; the twisted metal; the scorched terrain. "Yeah. Crais declared her irreversibly contaminated. She lost everything - all because of me."
Larraq regarded him solemnly. "But without you, would she have been able to escape to the commerce planet in the first place?"
His brow furrowed for a moment before he remembered. "The fork."
"Ah, yes, the fork," Larraq repeated with the barest hint of a grin.
Another idea followed quickly on the heels of the first, and John's eyes widened. "But that's good! If she had never escaped from Moya, she would have still been in that cell when the Peacekeepers caught Moya. Crais only declared her irreversibly contaminated because she stuck up for me. If Aeryn and I had never met, then there would have been no reason for him to do that."
"But if she hadn't escaped the cell, who would have contacted Crais to tell him where to find Moya?"
"But you said they were captured near a commerce planet..." John's brow furrowed briefly, then the pieces fell into place. 'A' commerce planet - any one of hundreds. Not necessarily *his* commerce planet. He heaved a sigh and rubbed his eyes. Wrapping his mind around this was beginning to be about as complicated as his first thesis defense. "I think I'm getting a headache."
Larraq shrugged unsympathetically. "Whatever the case, you were right. You did affect Aeryn's life the most. To see exactly how, we will start with your arrival - because that's where everything really begins."
~~~~~~~
They were floating in space again. This time, however, to John's relief, the space was anything but empty. They were surrounded by large asteroids, and in the distance, stars twinkled comfortingly. "Where are we?"
Larraq ignored him, concentrating on a nearby asteroid. "Ah, here they come." Three ships flew by, and John suddenly realized where he was - this was where the wormhole had dumped him. He was back where he started. Except this time, he wasn't here. Farscape was nowhere in sight.
The Prowlers turned back and streaked past them again. They completed another circuit before a solitary craft emerged from behind the asteroid. Crais' brother. The Prowler zoomed by without a hitch, and John let out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding. "See, everything would have been fine. He didn't crash into the rock, so his brother has no reason to go into Peacekeeper Hyper-Insanity Rage. So maybe Crais isn't the one who finds Moya, after all. That's fine with me."
Larraq regarded him silently for a moment, then suggested, "Let's follow him, shall we?"
An instant later they were floating next to the tail of Tauvo Crais' Prowler. As they rounded an enormous asteroid, John reflexively yelled a warning. The Prowler hurtled into a formation of other fighters as they soared by in a sweeping turn, preparing for another pass at the leviathan. Several pilots attempted to perform evasive maneuvers, but it was already too late. Crais plowed directly into the rear of another Prowler. The remains of both ships spun off into space, the collision virtually disintegrating everything but the cockpits.
John shook his head. "Man, I *knew* it wasn't my fault. That guy's just a terrible pilot!" Larraq nodded his agreement, but remained silent.
Suddenly John felt a horrible, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Wait. Whose... whose Prowler was that? Who did he hit?" Larraq turned to him, a deep sadness in his eyes. John grabbed him by the shirtfront, inexplicably enraged. "WHO was it?" he screamed through clenched teeth, terrified that he already knew the answer.
Larraq continued to stare at him, and in the next instant, they were inside a docking bay. Around them, medics and techs rushed to extract the injured pilots from the remains of their Prowlers. John ran to the first med-bed and an involuntary shudder ran through him. A younger version of Bialar Crais lay still on the pallet, visibly uninjured except for a variety of superficial scratches, a nasty scrape along his cheek, and a colorful bruise forming above his left eye. Tauvo. John snorted his disgust and pushed away from the bed, searching frantically for the location of the other med-bed.
He found it and slipped between two of the medics just as they removed the pilot's helmet to reveal a bloody but familiar face. "Oh, no. Oh God, please no," he whispered pleadingly. "Aeryn."
~~~~~~~
end part three