Title: Return

Author: Jemisard

Fandom: seaQuest- Post Hyperion

Paring: Unknown as of yet

Rating: MA

Status: Incomplete

Archive: If you ask nicely :)

E-mail address for feedback: kalika@senet.com.au

Series/Sequel: No

Disclaimers: They arenıt mine. You know that. Iım just borrowing them.

Warnings:Slash themes, violence, torture.



THE RETURN
By Jemisard

The ship shuddered as it hit the atmosphere. The pilot swore and hit a few more switches, trying to get the engines to come back on line. He slid his hands into the grooves and tried to pull out of the nose dive.

"You're doing it wrong."

He frowned, trying to ignore his companion. "No, I'm not. I know what I'm doing."

"You don't. You'll kill us both like that."

"I know what I'm doing. The engines have died, the fight took too much out of them. We might be able to stop from crashing and dying, if you don't distract me any further. So be quiet, capiche?"

"Naturally. No need to yell."

He sighed and tuned her out. He had to concentrate if they were going to live.

He pulled the ship up slightly, to plummet into the ocean. His head smacked against the control panel, and he fell unconscious.

Tim O'Niell looked upwards and down again, to check the flashing warning on his console. "Captain?"

Hudson looked over. "What is it, Lieutenant?"

"There's something plummeting from the sky, about three kilometres a head of us. Some kind of space craft."

"Macronesian?"

"No sir, the technology is different." He pushed his glasses up further. "It's hard to say, but I think that ship is Hyperion based."

Hudson narrowed his gaze to the main viewer. "Bring up the view."

The view from Loner came up on screen. The whole bridge had gone silent, watching the screen, as the ship crashed into the ocean. Loner ducked closer, showing a sleek ship with scorch marks splattered along it.

"Helm, move in closer. Prepare to take on casualties."

Tim watched Tony as he started to move in, and looked back down. It had always been too much to hope for.

Maybe it wasn't though.



Return 2

The team took a deep breath as they prepared to board the ship. Fredericks nodded slowly and the seal was opened.

They all had their guns ready as they stormed the cockpit. Fredericks stared at the body lying across the panels, the dark hair spilled around the white face. Shallow breathing was visible even from here.

The traveler looked human.

"Get him out of here and up to the ship!" She yelled. "Do it, now!"

They hurriedly moved him onto a stretcher and carried him upwards, to the ship.

Fredericks checked for anyone else, and, satisfied that they had found everyone, headed out with the team.


**************


Hudson sat with the prisoner. He was human, dark hair and light skinned. He was also tall, with a lot of scarring on the broad chest. He was securely handcuffed to the bed, having been checked for serious injury.

Dark eyes fluttered open. "Where?"

"Who are you, and what were you doing on an alien spacecraft?"

Long blink. "Where am I? Who are you?" Panic was tingeing his voice. "Why am I tied up, you have to let me go, let me go, now, please."

"Who are you?"

"Let me go!" He thrashed against the restraints. "Let me go!"

"Who are you?!" v Suddenly the thrashing stopped, and his eyes rolled back in head, before they opened again slowly. The gaze was slightly amused and warm. "I am Miguel Ortiz, Petty Officer, number 7710726."

Hudson's eyebrow raised. "Ortiz? As in former Sensor Chief on board seaQuest?"

"Yes. I served three years on the seaQuest, under Captain Nathan Bridger."

"Welcome back, officer. This is the seaQuest, I am Captain Oliver Hudson. The year is 2032, and you just landed in the middle of a war."


*****************


The crew was talking in hushed whispers as Tim was escorted along the halls by security. He had no idea what had happened, nor why they were taking him down to Med-Bay, all he was told was that his presence was needed.

The guards stopped outside the door and gestured for him to go inside. He took a deep breath and entered.

Captain Hudson stared at him levelly. Tim swallowed hard. "You wanted me, sir?"

"Yes. We need you to verify something that our DNA tests have already hinted at."

"Does this have anything to do with the ship?"

"Did I give you permission to speak, Lieutenant?"

"No, sir." Tim bit his cheek. He was still getting used to the red necked captain with a thirst for blood, so much like Marilyn Stark.

Hudson nodded. "Watch out, he's violent."

Tim opened the door and his mouth fell open in a gasp. "Migs?"

Miguel's eyes shot open, lighting up. "Tim!"

Tim forgot all proper procedure at that point, and ran over the bed, throwing his arms around his imprisoned friend. "Thank the Lord, it's you, you're alive."

Miguel and Tim were both crying, Tim was holding Miguel as close as the handcuffs would allow. A loud clearing of a throat drew their attention away from each other. Hudson raised an eyebrow. "So, this is Miguel Ortiz?"

"Yes, sir."

"Can you be sure?" Hudson had a gleam in his eye that Tim remembered well. It never boded well for someone.

"No, sir, never one hundred percent." Tim admitted. "But I can find out, I know Miguel, and he knows me."

Hudson got a angry look. "And what does that mean, Lieutenant?!"

"We were best friends, sir. We were friends since the academy, sir."

"Ah, that's all." Hudson backed down. "Well, got on with it."

"Aye, sir." Tim turned around and took Miguel's hand. "Migs, I'm sorry about this, but we have to be sure."

"I understand, Tim." Miguel relaxed back into the pillow. "Ask away."

"What classes did we share in the first year?"

"None, except the after school linguistics class."

"And how did we meet?"

"I was your roommate. You were in our room when I found it, and I said about how grateful I was to have finally found the right room. You wanted the bed away from the window, which was fine, because I hated feeling trapped. You were always re organizing my stuff, and and I could never find anything when I needed it."

Tim grinned. "Sir, this is Miguel Ortiz alright. No one else knew about the bed thing, we always bunked together after that."

Hudson nodded slowly. "Very well, I'll accept your word, Lieutenant. Mr Ortiz, you will be released from here, but you are not to wander the ship alone, you must stay within civilian limits and I want to question you about what happened, and why you didn't return with the rest of the crew."

Miguel nodded slowly, and watched as Hudson unlocked the handcuffs, before sitting up. Tim frowned. "Migs, what happened to your chest?"

He glanced down. "Umm, I had a run in with a big guy with a whip and two scalpels. It wasn't a pretty sight." He stood up. "Can I have some new clothes, I've been on the run for a week."

Hudson nodded curtly. "Mr O'Niell, please escort Mr Ortiz down to storage, get him something to wear. And since the two of you seem so close, he can stay with you for now."

Tim repressed another smiled. "Aye, sir. C'mon, Miguel, we'll find you something to wear."

Miguel stood up and smiled. "Sure thing, Tim." He gave a small salute to Hudson and walked out after Tim, loudly asking, "Geez, where'd you dig that guy up?"


**********


Tim had gone back on duty. Miguel chewed his lip thoughtfully and tugged on the collar of his shirt. He couldn't believe he was here, back on seaQuest, away from Hyperion at last.

He yawned and lay back on the bunk. He hadn't slept for a week, not properly. His sompanion hadn't been able to fly the shuttle, or else they would have pulled shifts.

She was his lifeline when everything had been ready to give up. She had forced him to fight back, forced him to keep the struggle going.

He really needed to sleep. He shifted the pillow and dropped off to sleep within minutes.


********


Tim came back after his shift to find Miguel dead to the world, curled up in Tim's bed. Tim shook his head. Miguel always had been able to sleep anywhere, anytime. Came from the navy lifestyle he guessed.

He walked over and sat next to his sleeping friend. His face wasn't relaxed like her would imagine, but twisted slightly, and he was thrashing with fear, mumbling words that Tim couldn't quite understand.

Tim shook him firmly. "Migs, wake up."

Miguel's eyes shot open,and he slammed his hand into Tim's face with a crack. Tim reeled backwards, clutching at his jaw, even as Miguel dived out of bed and grabbed him.

"I'm sorry, Tim, I'm so sorry, I didn't realise, God, are you alright?"

Tim nodded and tentatively checked his jaw. "I'll be fine, I think."

Miguel cupped Tim's jaw with his hand, and rubbed lightly. "I'm so sorry, for a moment, I thought, well, I forgot where I was. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, really, Migs. You got a fright."

Miguel nodded and sat back. "I remember when, back on Hyperion. I was in my cell, and they came for me. And I heard Wendy, she was screaming, and it echoed in my mind. It was frightening, because I knew that if she died, I'd be alone. You don't know how frightening that thought was."

Tim wrapped his arms around Miguel. "What happened to Wendy?"

Miguel paused, lost in thought, nodding absently to himself. "She died eventually. She wasn't healthy enough to survive the interrogation. She, it was with her last words that I managed to escape."

Tim felt tears in his eyes. He had never mourned properly for his friends, hanging onto the thought that they might still be alive. "Was she alone?"

"No." Miguel looked up him. "Tim, do me a favour?"

"What is it?"

"Can I contact Nathan?"

Tim was surprised by the familiarity that Miguel used when referring to their old captain. "Umm, Lucas should be able to put you in contact."

"I have a message from Wendy for him. An important one, I need to tell him."

"You and Wendy mist have gotten pretty close." Tim said, trying to keep the jealousy out of his voice.

"Yes," Miguel whispered. "Sometimes, I, I know here better than anyone else."

"Miguel, what happened on Hyperion?"

"They tortured us. Sometimes for information, sometimes for fun."

Tim held Miguel a little closer, breathing in his warm earthy scent, confirming to himself that his friend was alive, and here. "But something happened, with you and Wendy."

"Yes," Miguel whispered. "But she doesn't want anyone to know."

Tim pulled back. "Doesn't? Don't you mean didn't?"

"No. Doesn't." Miguel hung his head. "She doesn't want anyone to know, but I want to tell you."

"Tell me what, Miguel?" Tim tried to take Miguel's hand, but he shrunk back from the soft touch.

"Tell you about us. What happened to us." Miguel yawned and leant back against the bed, eyes drifting shut. "What happened when she died."

Tim stared at Miguel as he fell asleep again. What had happened to his friend, to make him so fearful of talking?


*****



END PART 3