TITLE: "THE SATISFACTION OF HONOUR"

AUTHOR: Alison M. DOBELL

FANDOM: "Farscape"

PAIRING: JOHN/CRAIS series

RATING: PG-13

STATUS: New.

ARCHIVE: Yes. Just let me know where.

FEEDBACK: Welcomed

The usual disclaimers apply. No infringement of copyright is intended.

"THE SATISFACTION OF HONOUR"
A "Farscape" slash story
Written by Alison M. DOBELL

Ka D'Argo was finding it hard to control his not inconsiderable temper. He did not approve of going back to Benryddin to look for the Hynerian Dominar but he could hardly say as much to Chiana. He would do it for her not for him. Privately he thought leaving the irrascible Hynerian
behind had a great many advantages for the crew of Moya not least being the absence of
the annoying little slug. Naturally, Zhaan did not agree. He was alone with the Delvian in Command at this microt. Aeryn was with Crais and Chiana had gone to get some food to take to them. Zhaan looked at D'Argo's stiff pose, a sure sign of how irritated he was.

"Sweet D'Argo, you do not approve of our return to Benryddin for Rygel?"

He snorted at the understatement, barely able to contain his annoyance. "It is a mistake, Zhaan. No doubt his lowness has been gambling. Perhaps even been caught cheating," Though he privately thought the latter unlikely. Whatever else he was, the Dominar was very accomplished at sleight of hand. "Any trouble he is in has been brought upon himself. He is selfish, self-seeking, lazy, offensive and completely lacking in honour."

"He is also a friend." Said Zhaan mildly.

Another snort. "That word is not in the Dominar's vocabulary, Zhaan, and where he is concerned it is not in mine either. I suffer his presence because he is a member of this crew. Do not ask me to enjoy it."

"I see." Zhaan paused and D'Argo tried to hide a vague feeling of discomfort. The Delvian raised her noble head as if coming to a decision. She gave him a serene smile and touched his arm gently. "In that case when we reach the planet I will go down with Chiana to look for Rygel."

He looked at her in surprise. "That is unacceptable."

"It is the only solution, sweet D'Argo. Aeryn will not leave Crais and someone needs to stay aboard Moya. You have said yourself you do not care about the Dominar so we will go."

He felt trapped by the haste of his own words. "I may not like him Zhaan but even I do not want to see him come to harm. I want to see you and Chiana come to harm even less. I will of course go down to the planet surface."

She tilted her head gracefully. "I would never ask you to do something you did not want to do, D'Argo."

"I insist!" The Luxan warrior rumbled. Zhaan hid a smile.

"Very well. If you insist..."

* * * * *

Scorpius still could not believe the Hynerian had come to him. His assertion had to be a trap but he was intrigued nontheless and it was not as if he could question Crichton any further. The human was on the point of death. Why not amuse himself for a few microts with the Hynerian
before relieving him of his head for a trophy?

"As I was saying Dominar, what do you know of wormhole technology?"

"More than you at this point it would seem." He paused, his look hardening further. "Allow me to speak plain, Scorpius. I do *not* like you, do not trust you, and would rather be shredded by a Falavian Snarkhound that have this conversation with you but I am not here for my pleasure or
yours."

"Then why are you here?"

Rygel forced a heavy sigh. "The others have some misguided sense of loyalty towards the human Crichton. We quarrelled naturally about what to do about him. I said leave him, he was more trouble than he was worth. Lose the human and we lose all the problems that follow in the bartantic idiot's wake. The others did not agree."

"So why are you here not them?"

"A good question. The others wanted to come after you and blow you to subatomic particles. A plan I approved of but could see no worth in pursuing. We have neither the firepower nor the necessary resources to obtain it. Every plan they came up with became more and more ludicrous. It finally occurred to me that like it or not I was the only one with a workable solution. And as I was the only one who could impart that solution it stood to reason that I needed to come. However, I do not trust you. This solution is a simple exchange, what you want for what they want. Therefore we did not need to endanger the whole of Moya's crew to do it. If you decide
not to make the exchange I leave, you carry on and the universe goes on regardless."

Scorpius looked at him for a moment. He did not believe the Dominar for a microt but he had come alone. The ship that carried him was too small to StarBurst. It was big enough to carry another passenger and little else. "What makes you think I will not simply take you prisoner and blow up your pathetic vessel?"

"The wormhole technology I carry."

"I could just sieze it from you."

Rygel laughed. Scorpius frowned. He was not aware he had made a joke. "Scorpius, let us be clear on motivations. I have told you why the offer of this trade is being made. I have not told you *why* I agreed to come."

Scorpius sat down again. Intrigued though he tried to hide it. "Go on."

"I have more reason than most to hate and distrust Peace Keepers. I was captured and tortured for cycles by Durka aboard the Zelbinion. Nothing would give me more pleasure than to destroy you with my own two hands and I make no attempt to hide that fact. Accept it as a gift from me. The Hynerian Empire is vast. Many cycles ago the Scarrans came to Hyneria and waged the first of several wars on my people but they reckoned without the vast number of subjects over whom the Dominars reigned. We beat them back, made their incursions into our territory more trouble for them than it was worth. But they always promised to be back and they always kept their
promises." His words were bitter, filled with hate and loathing. "I have heard from Crichton the reason you have so single mindedly pursued him. The reason you are so frantic to get hold of the wormhole technology in the first place." He paused. You could have heard a bleethik sigh in its'
sleep cycle. "The only creatures I dispise, loathe and abhore more than the Peace Keepers are the Scarrans." He paused, his visage dark, hate smouldering in his eyes. "*That* is why I agreed to come."

"And this....wormhole technology. How do I know you have it? That it is not a trick?"

"Many cycles ago we met a race calling themselves the Ancients. They are part of our history. For a time we shared certain ideals and upheld peace between our races. We did not understand them but we respected them. They were searching for a home. In return for one of our outer colonies they helped where they could. When we were almost decimated by an intergalactic
plague they gave us wormhole technology enabling us to relocate our people and preserve our noble houses until the plague had run its' course and it was safe for us to return. We had to promise in return to seal that knowledge away thereafter. To never again use it except with their
permission. It was an easy promise to make. A sincere one to keep for they had saved our entire
race."

"Yet now you would break it?"

"Hynerians are supremely practical, Scorpius. We do not pretend to aspire to high ideals which would leave us hungry or wanting. We see a need, we accommodate it. We do not place form over function."

"How did *you* get the information?"

Rygel snorted. "I am a Hynerian Dominar!"

"Were," Said Scorpius mildly. "You were desposed."

"I am *still* a Hynerian Dominar, still the rightful ruler of Hyneria and one day I *will* return and reclaim my throne! On that I can give you my word."

For some odd reason Scorpius believed him. Whatever else might be sham about Rygel XVI this struck a deeper truth. He nodded. "I want to see it."

"First," Said Rygel. "I want to see the human."

"He is dying."

Rygel showed no reaction. "Alive or dead I will make the trade but first I need to see him. To satisfy myself you still have him."

Scorpius called for Lt Braca and they took him to see Crichton. It took Rygel all his strength to hide his reaction. Shocked and upset he could only gaze down on the human with a pity that wrung out his heart and filled him with a deep growing anger. That he had to affect nonchalence was the hardest thing he had ever done. He turned and looked at Scorpius. "Very well, I have seen him. How do I know you will let us go if I give you the technology?"

Scorpius smiled and Rygel felt a thousand pricks of dread beneath his skin. "I give you my word."

He took a crystal out of an inner fold of his tunic. "Everything you require is here."

The half-Scarran took the crystal, his look suspicious while unable to hide the spark of hope waiting like a greedy child to snatch up the gift. "I will need to examine it first to satisfy myself that you are telling the truth."

"Of course. I will come with you."

If Scorpius was surprised he showed no sign. He showed Rygel into his quarters then set the crystal in the viewing port and watched as a holographic image took form in the air between them and a perfectly formed wormhole began to appear.

* * * * *

Mirkot was startled out of StarBurst by what they found. He queried Aylsa. "Are you sure?"

Aylsa rippled with affirmation and excitement. He could not help but share it with her. This was incredible. Another leviathan. What stunned him even more was that the leviathan had a smaller one next to it. The younger ship looked injured. It listed against the side of the mother ship but even more astonishing than that was the realisation that it was another leviathan gunship. Mirkot had mixed feelings. This was the Scarran target but it was also another like Aylsa. A leviathan-Peace Keeper hybrid.

* * * * *

A hand on his shoulder grounded him when he stirred. Crais opened his eyes slowly and looked up into Aeryn's face. He still felt very fragile but every solar day he was getting stronger. His skin no longer felt tender to the touch and the beat of his heart was now strong and regular. Aeryn helped him sit up then took the bowl from Chiana.

"I can feed myself, Aeryn."

Aeryn nodded and proceded to feed him anyway as if he had not spoken. Chiana hid a smile as Crais got grumpier and his mood darkened with irritation. He did not like having things done for him. Being in anyone's debt was a weakness. Aeryn understood. They had both been Peace
Keepers for too long. For a while he was silent, enduring what had become a ritual humiliation. He only endured it because he owed Aeryn that much.

"Why has Moya stopped?"

"We have returned to Benryddin."

"Benryddin?" He felt a stab of anxiety. "Is Talyn worse?"

She shook her head. "No. Talyn is making a very good recovery, Crais. Better even than I could have hoped for."

"Then why are we here?"

It was Chiana who answered. "Rygel has gone missing."

That surprised him. "Rygel? Why would you think he would come here?"

"When we came to Benryddin for you and Talyn, Rygel went down to the planet surface as well. With eveything that was going on no one realised Rygel was not aboard when we left."

Crais looked puzzled. "That does not sound like the Dominar."

Chiana looked worried. "I just hope nothing has happened to him."

Crais looked at her but said nothing. Rygel was not one of his favourite people but he knew that Chiana was the closest thing he had to a true friend on board Moya. "Have you tried to contact him?"

Aeryn nodded, putting aside the now empty bowl. "Yes, but he is still not answering his coms."

"Maybe he does not want to be found." Said Crais slowly.

"Perhaps, but if he wouldn't tell us he would have told Pilot. Pilot says he has had no word or instruction from Rygel. That at least is unlike
him."

"Unless he has got into trouble." Murmured Crais darkly.

Chiana had been thinking the same thing.

"What are we going to do about it?" Asked Crais.

"D'Argo and Zhaan have taken a transport pod down to the surface. Hopefully we should hear something in a few arns."

No one cared to speculate about what they would do if they could not find him. Just then Pilot's voice interrupted. He sounded alarmed. "Aeryn! Moya says there is another leviathan approaching!"

* * * * *

Rygel could not wait to get back aboard the Dramarkian vessel. He was alarmed at the state of Crichton. The palor of the human made Chiana look flushed he was so pale. He quickly ordered the Tomusk to get under way, before anything could go wrong. The Tomusk queried nothing. His
busy gifted fingers making light work of the controls and freeing Rygel to go and check on Crichton.

His heart ached just looking at him. Not at all sure that he could get him back to their friends before he died but he would try. At that point he remembered the second gift from the Rakalas. Carefully he removed the tiny yellow bottle. How it could help he did not know but he trusted the
Rakalas. Generations of Hynerian Dominars could not be wrong in placing their trust in them. He gently prised open the human's slack lips and fed every drop of the precious golden liquid into his mouth, careful not to spill a single drop. Once done he settled his throne sled beside him and started to quietly tell him tales of the old Hynerian Empire. Tales his father had once told
him. A hand unconciously straying to touch the pale hand as if to comfort him.

He was rudely woken from the daze he had started to fall into by the sudden lurch of the little ship. Alarmed he checked first that Crichton was alright then hurried to see what was going on. He had a pretty good idea but a check of the instruments confirmed it anyway. Scorpius had turned his Command Carrier and was firing on them. "Oh, frell!"

He had hoped his little deception would not unravel until he had at least put some distance between them but he had forgotten that like Crichton, Scorpius was primarily a scientist. He looked at the Tomusk. "Get us the frell out of here! I don't care how you do it, just do it NOW!"

The Tomusk obeyed without question. Completely serene and unruffled. His small brain able to comprehend simple instructions but lacking the curiosity to query anything he saw or heard. Tomusks knew no fear. Were not rendered senseless by the thought of impending death and
destruction. They would carry on with whatever task they were given until the last cell in
their body had been crushed into oblivion. Rygel smiled for the first time since thinking up this bartantic scheme of his. He loved Tomusks. They were the ideal servitors. Totally loyal and unquestioning. All they needed was a good Dominar to tell them what to do.

The little vessel rocked and shuddered harder as they were hit again. Things were flying in the little ship. Anything not bolted down was airborn including Rygel, his thronesled minimising the effect but unable to do anything about things hitting *him*. That was when part of the loading arm he had used to bring Crichton on board snapped free and struck him. The jagged metal embedding itself deep into the middle of his third stomach. His eyes bulged, pain drove the breath out of his lungs. He struggled simply to stay conscious. The Tomusk looked up from the controls, a mild look of alarm on his face. He waited for orders.

"Get....get us to Moya. Details are already programmed in."

The Tomusk nodded then accessed the information so he could patch in the co-ordinates. Rygel leaned over, the pain too much to block out, too little air seeping into his lungs to aid him. With an unuttered curse on his lips he lost consciousness.

The Scarren Command Carrier stopped firing. Lt Braca looked at his Commander in surprise. "We are not going to finish them off, sir?"

Scorpius smiled and leaned back in his chair, the crystal Rygel had given him was in his hand. Slowly he turned it end on end, his look thoughtful. "Hold fire, Lt. Follow the vessel."

Seeing the look of puzzlement on his lieutenant's face, Scorpius enlightened him. "The vessel will lead us to Moya and the others. It does not have the capabilities to go to StarBurst therefore the others must be nearby."

Lt Braca nodded, a smile of appreciation on his face.

* * * * *
END