The sparkling blue and white energy from a leviathan starburst dissipated as Moya forced herself back into normal space. Her remaining crew was scattered about the ship in their respective pairings. Some odder than others. Chiana and D'Argo stood in command watching the sensors for any movement close by. "Are we near the base yet Pilot?" The eggshell shaped monitor came to life. "I believe so yes. Officer Sun has instructed me to remain just out of sensor range until we are signaled." D'Argo nodded and turned to his companion. "Do you think we'll see them again?" The young Nebari stared back at him with uncertainty in her eyes. "Of course we will. Don't talk like that."

<<<<>>>>

She couldn't believe it at first. The picture staring back at her could possibly be the most important thing she would ever do. Tek Feyd rose from her computer console and looked around nervously. There was no one else there. She remembered the immense pride she had felt when Scorpius himself had congratulated her. "The hardest working member of my team." He had said that. She smiled and reached for the comm. "Sir, could you come here please?" It took a moment for the response to come through. "I will be there shortly. This better be important." Feyd giggled, yes giggled, knowing what he would say now.

Scorpius rose from his chair as the cooling rod was completely inserted into his head. It had been his first break from research and he was anxious to return. The tek had sounded excited. He wanted to believe the time had finally come. Could almost feel it inside. The hybrid rushed out of the room and down toward the girl's lab. He flashed his security key and stepped inside. The room was a maze of notes and drawings. As a centerpiece, the giant computer in the middle of the room completed the image. A simulation was playing on the screen as he approached.

The wormhole formed itself on the screen and flowed into the familiar cylinder shape. He flexed his gloved hands repeatedly as the simulation continued. It held strong and passed the breakaway time with no problems. "How long has it been?" Feyd checked the timer and grinned. "Quarter of an arn sir. Well past the cutoff line." Scorpius felt numb. All his work boiled down to this precious moment. "How?" That was all he could manage at the moment. "The sequence was out of order sir. When the attack came, it provided me with a model to follow." She brought up the order on the screen. "Who else has seen this?" She looked surprised. "No one sir. I tell you first."

<<<<>>>>

The supply closet was dark and cramped. Aeryn turned to look out the slit in the doorway and her cheek brushed against John's nose. "Careful." She stopped and turned to look at him. "Sorry about that." He nodded, feeling her hair move against his forehead. The moment would have been almost romantic. "How long we gotta be in here?" The gruff voice came from the other two people in the closet. Talero and Norm were both smashed up against each other. John had graciously offered to stand in between them and Aeryn. They didn't understand why.

Outside, Zelaya stood behind her companion as he spoke to the visitor. Kezia's usually calm demeanor had become somewhat more nervous. The man standing in front of him was a legend. One of the greatest generals in Scarren history. General Quelnor looked down at the exiled ex-spy with more than a little contempt. He had no respect for the man. Kezia was a screw-up. But this opportunity was too good to pass up. Noticing the Ferrian woman, he sighed to himself. If this operation ever got back to him, it would be an incredible embarrassment.

"We will provide a diversion so you can go in with minimal resistance." Kezia nodded. "Divert their main defense forces away from there. I will do the rest." The general accepted this and turned to leave. "Don't fail me again Kezia. Or it will be your head instead of Scorpius's on my wall." Kezia felt his face warm up and said nothing as Quelnor left the ship. He turned back to Zelaya. "That's taken care of. Go get the others." She looked concerned. "They would kill you?" She reached for his hand. "I wouldn't like that."

The other four stumbled out of the closet and into the hanger. "Did he agree?" Kezia nodded at John and moved past him to the cockpit. "We have to do this right Crichton. If this goes wrong, I'm not dying alone." John said nothing and turned back to Aeryn. She did not look pleased either. "Do you realize how insane this sounds?" He almost smiled. "Yes I do."

<<<<>>>>

Chernov sat quietly behind his desk at the security office. This was what he had been reduced to. A great peacekeeper general made to work security to for a scientific experiment. He prayed to whatever was out there that John Crichton would come today. He had no idea if the human would succeed. But the thought was too good not to consider. Chernov wondered how it would happen. What plan could possibly get someone inside this base to kill Scorpius? He would help if possible. "Sir, we have reports of a warship coming in on the radar."

The convey had left command thirty solar days ago. It carried with it hundreds of fresh teks and personnel to aid those already at the base. The journey had been quiet and peaceful. Until now that is. Appearing almost out of nowhere, an enormous Scarren warship burst onto the scene and began attacking the ships. Prowlers and marauders were dispatched immediately but they didn't seem to be enough. From his desk, Chernov smiled despite the loss of life. This could only mean one thing. "Central, this is General Chernov. I want you to deploy every available ship to aid the convoy." The response came back immediately. "But sir, we'll be defenseless." That was the plan. "Do it!"

<<<<>>>>

"It's starting." Meryl watched from the terrace as explosions lit up the darkness in the distance. The plan was ludicrous and she feared for the safety of her friends. Then again, they appeared to deal quite well with lost causes. Tom walked out behind her and looked around. He had never seen this place before. "This is amazing." She didn't turn around. "Has it started yet." Meryl pointed off into space. The explosions continued unhindered. It dawned on her for the first time that her own people were being slaughtered. Strange, it didn't bother her as much any more.

<<<<>>>>

The auto-defense grid went up as soon as it came within detection range. A Scarren ship, albeit smaller than the warship, was descending quickly on the base. No ship rushed out to meet it. They had been conveniently called off to battle only microts before. Kezia set the controls on auto-pilot and moved towards the back of the ship. Pulse fire erupted from the defense guns. They tore the outer coverings away from his ship with ease. But it was stronger than it looked. A Scarren ship, like the people, had very strong skin. The hull was almost impossible to rupture with conventional weapons. With incredible momentum, this ship plunged through the main entrance and into Scorpius's gammek base.

There were only a few people in the lobby when the attack came. A grunt named Doyle was the first to see it. The outer walls buckled inward and came flying across the room. "What the frell!" Those were his last words as a shard of metal was thrown through the air and him. Kezia's ship tore through the lobby and smashed easily through Scorpius's glass shield. It came to a stop just as the first group of soldiers came out to greet it. John and Aeryn were first out of the ship. The pulse fire had already begun and was all around them as they dropped to the ground. "What now?" The ex-peacekeepers words were lost among the chaos.

Scorpius heard the loud crashing sound and rose from the computer. Feyd looked frightened and clung to his arm. He brushed her off and went for the comm. "What is going on out there?" The line was full of static and hard to make out. "Sir, we're under attack." His eyes widened. "Scarrens!" He roared. How had they found this place? A realization suddenly dawned on him. He turned back towards the tek. "Show me the sequence again." She punched it up and he quickly memorized it.

Talero and Norm jumped out of the hatch and hit the ground. They looked at each other and wondered just what they had gotten themselves into. "Freeze!" A peacekeeper soldier ran up beside them and raised his weapon. Norm chuckled and rushed the unassuming grunt. The gun never got off a shot. Kezia and Zelaya came out next. He ran up to Crichton and shouted in his ear. "How do we get out of this room?" It was a frustrating question for John. This was the farthest he had ever gotten. "Kill the soldiers!" Kezia stared back at him in anger. "We're all going to die aren't we." He turned as Zelaya rushed out into the fray.

Chernov watched the scene from his monitor and shook his head. "Those idiots." He stood and pulled a small comm device from his pocket. "They're going to need some help in there." It took a moment but the response did come. "Understood. I'm heading there now." Chernov grabbed a pulse rifle from the cabinet and left his little office. With any luck, he'd never see it again.

Fred stared out at the confusion and wanted to shut his eyes. They told him that Scorpius was here. That they would take him to see the man. "I, I can't." He whispered the words to himself over and over while clutching his pulse rifle. The gun felt heavy in his hands and took considerable skill to shoot straight. The sound of someone climbing the stairs alerted his attention. A man in brown rags stepped inside and grabbed him by the collar. The next thing he knew, Fred was sailing towards the ground. The man dropped down next to him and ran away.

Aeryn turned to see the boy lying on the ground with a pulse rifle in his hand. She pulled it from his grasp and aimed towards the soldiers. "Shoot at them." He nodded. Fred tried to communicate what had just happened but the woman had already gone back to fighting. A strange smell filled his nose and he felt himself being thrown forward. His clothes were on fire.

The explosion knocked everyone to their feet or killed them. Kezia watched in horror as his precious ship fell to pieces and released waves of fire across the ground. "My, my.." He couldn't even speak. Zelaya pulled him up. "Get up, a path's been cleared." He followed her gaze and saw that she was right. The soldiers blocking their way into the base had been dispersed across the room. He shouted over to Crichton. "Let's get inside before the main reactor blows!" John and Aeryn grabbed the others and followed him down the hall. Just as they passed through the entrance, Norm fell to the ground. A pulse shot tore through his stomach and he dies before his partner's eyes.

Scorpius fired a shot into the computer and watched it sputter out and die. The image disappeared and took all the data along with it. He fired a few more shot for good measure. Feyd looked on in confusion. "Sir, my research?" He shook his head. "We know the sequence. The Scarren's can't discover it." He grabbed her by the arm and ran out the door. The hallway was empty but the sound of footsteps could be heard nearby. Then Scorpius saw the last face he ever wanted to see coming down the corridor. John Crichton was coming towards him with an odd group of followers. They fired on him at first sight and he was almost hit. "Forgive me, Feyd." She cried out as he pulled her close to him. She took the pulse fire and died in his arms.

John stopped and the others followed his example. "John, what are you doing? He's right there." He grabbed Aeryn and pointed out the woman Scorpius was using as a shield. She gasped. "I've got him." Talero angrily fired before they could stop him. They watched in horror as the defenseless tek fell dead. "Damn it!" John cursed again. He looked back up in time to see something terrible happen.

Chernov led his detachment of soldiers down the narrow corridor and towards the research labs. Those had been Scorpius's last known whereabouts. As the hybrid came into view, he motioned for the troops to stop and take positions. He smiled, understanding what was going on. Scorpius was trapped.

Scorpius watched the two sides take aim at him slowly and deliberately. He cursed himself for not taking care of Chernov earlier. It was too late now. He prepared himself for the end and tried to show as much composure as possible. The secret of wormhole technology would die with him. "Scorpius!" He opened his eyes and looked towards the sound. Bob was beckoning to him from a shaft on the wall. The firing began as he ran forward and towards salvation. "How did you-?" Bob pulled out his gun and smacked the hybrid across the face. "You belong to me now."

"Was that Bob?" Both sides were asking the same question. John could not comprehend what had just happened. He had been moments away from sending that monster back to hell when... He blinked repeatedly. Chernov swore loudly and smashed his gun against the wall. "That double-crossing-." He stopped as the nearest soldier patted him on the shoulder. "Sir, what do we do about them?" He had almost forgotten. Crichton and his crew of assassins were still there. "Let the human live. Kill the rest of them." They opened fire.

<<<<>>>>

Moya swooped in over the gammek base and stopped alongside its open hanger doors. D'Argo raced to the entrance as Pilot opened the way in. He saw John and Aeryn running towards him and some others close behind. They raced inside and shut the doors as peacekeepers ran out with pulse rifles blazing. "Did you do it?" The sorrowful faces that looked back at him did not provide much confidence. "Pilot, get us out of here!" The force of starburst knocked them from side to side as Moya vanished from the ruined base.

<<<<>>>>

It had been four days now and they had finally reached the planet. The harsh light of day hung over John Crichton as he knelt over the fourth and final grave. They had died because of him and he had insisted on carrying the bodies out. How could he leave them in that terrible place. Aeryn walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "I could have helped you bury them." He shook his head. "It's our responsibility." Zelaya nodded from her place in front of Kezia's grave. There were actually tears in her eyes. "Yes, it was."

John knelt over the Scarren's grave and whispered into the ground. "I'll get him Kez. I'll get him for the both of us." Zelaya put her arm around him. "We'll get him." He nodded. "Frell, I killed him. He was there because of me." Aeryn watched the two of them from behind. She wanted to say something. It didn't seem her place to do so. She looked over at the other three graves. Remembering what Kezia had said about the Rotonions, Aeryn felt bad knowing that she had agreed. They were both dead now too. Good shields though.

Zelaya stood up and walked to the other grave. She remembered the frightened look on Fred's face the first time they had met. She told him that he was safe because of the Scarren in him. That was only partially true. The innocence in his eyes had saved Fred's life. Zelaya did not kill children. It seemed odd that the first two people she had not wanted to kill in along time were now lying in the ground. She looked over at John. He was all she had left now. They would find Scorpius and kill him. Then maybe she'd kill herself.