Silent Running
Author's
Notes: This was
written for the Farscape Ficathon, for Apathy. Thanks
to Feldman and Kixxa for the beta. And
ScaperRed for holding my hand when this made me
psychotic. You all make me rite gud. All other
mistakes are mine. So hit me with the feedback. If you're wondering about the
title, I got it from a song by Mike and Mechanics because the idea for this
reminded me of that song.
Setting: AU after Bad Timing, Futurefic
Disclaimer: Not mine. If it was, we'd have a Farscape Channel.
Darkness is my advantage, and curse. Right now I wish for only a few microts of
real light, if merely to revel in its limited warmth. Glancing up, I try to see
the sky through the swirling mist around me and feel disheartened when I cannot.
It is a rare occurrence to actually see the stars that had been my home for so
long.
Being born and raised upon a command carrier, it was instilled in me that those
planet-born were grubbers. Stupid brutes who toiled upon subjugated planets. Food providers. That, of course, was one more lie. Day and
night we have stood at each other's side. Soldier and farmer,
parent and child. Our hands ingrained with the pale gray dirt of this
world as we gathered food in order to remain alive. I have seen more honor and
integrity in the last six cycles than I ever thought possible. On more than one
occasion, these people have given me a fortitude that I had thought lost.
Their unyielding cries of strength continued even up until the end. I watched
as my people fought and died. And in victory, the Scarrans wanted genocide. The senseless waste of lives, a slaughter to appease the distant
Scarran rulers. An empire founded on brutality and fear.
High Command had not heeded Scorpius’ warning. They paid the price for their
arrogance and pride, and mine was not the only species to suffer the violent
excesses of the newly crowned dominant race. It was evident in the camp, when I
was brought to this planetoid. Sebaceans chained and kept with Luxans, Khurtanans, Nebari, and several species I’d only witnessed
through reports. No one had escaped the animosity of the Scarran captors. Here
we were nothing but toys for them to play with and torture whenever they liked.
Behind the fortified enclosure, the few remaining Peacekeepers were kept alive
to parade and kneel before the more sadistic guards. The blows were sharp and
random, delivered with the full-force of Scarran strength. Fear permeated the
air we breathed, but we did not beg. Dignity, in ourselves, in our very species,
was the only thing we had left. And we were not going to give that to our
captors willingly.
And through it all, these men and women who had served the Peacekeepers as I,
looked to me for guidance. I had none.
I was once a Peacekeeper Captain, so I did not allow myself the luxury of
showing my own rising fears. All I could do was try
and lead by example. All it took was one or two men, who once served under my
command, asking for orders and the others soon began
to do the same. I didn't want nor ask for this, but I would not shirk my duty.
Our rigid command structure may have gone, but the ideals I was bred to believe
in, were still alive in this miserable outpost.
~*~
Shadows are the heart of my existence now. Around me, people move soundlessly,
living shadows of the people they once were. This ‘place’, seems contained
within the shadow of the much larger planet it orbits.
Artificial lighting on each of the ten buildings, casts overlapping shadows
through the mist that seeps up from the porous ground.
If it weren’t for the underground thermals venting from beneath the surface,
this rock would be nothing but a huge block of ice, uninhabitable by anyone.
The Scarrans use the thermals as a power source to run the factory, where we
spend most of our waking arns, on the far side of the camp.
We prisoners use them as a way to fight off the biting temperatures that covet
the surface we all share. Huddled in small groups around these areas of heat,
the lines between our different races faded. Here we were all the same.
~*~
There was a small shuffle at the door, a tentative knocking. Before I could
call ‘enter’ a Kalish darted in. Weak and emaciated, he glanced nervously at
the window before dragging me to a secluded corner.
We eyed one another with suspicion as I waited for him to speak. I knew him to
be one of the
Thin lips pursed before he blew out a quick breath. “You’re the one that served
with Scorpius, are you not? You knew Sikozu Shanu?”
Of all the things I expected him to say, these questions were not among them.
“Yes.”
Relief became quickly apparent in his eyes. “I’m to give you this, and to tell
you to be prepared.” I watched him draw a parcel from the inside of his too
large shirt before shoving it into my hands.
“Prepared for what?”
We both heard noise coming from the rear of the building, and his eyes flicked
to the door. “I’ll contact you soon. I can’t be seen here, with you.” Before I
could attempt to stop him, he was gone through the door.
Falling onto my filthy bedding, ignoring the scuttling of bevra
beetles, I turned my back to the thirty others lying down in the small room and
opened the package. The room was dark, but as my eyes adjusted, I was able to
inventory the contents. For the first time in over a cycle, I felt the
beginnings of hope spread through me.
~*~
It took the longest monen of my life before the plan fell into place. Quietly,
I took the more lucid aside, and made them allies. Their listless eyes
glistened with hope as I swore them to secrecy or death. We all knew the risks.
Our numbers had grown large enough for two groups to try to make the attempt.
As the time to leave drew near, I became desperate that someone more afraid of
Scarran reprisal would report back to our captors. I knew it was foolish to try
and escape with so many, but I couldn’t turn them away when my own misery
reflected from their eyes.
Somehow I wasn’t surprised to find two more of the Kalish resistance within the
camp walls. They used various means to inform me when the next stage had been
secured. It was deep into the sleep cycle, almost six weekens after the initial
contact, when I was given the pre-arraigned signal and told to report to the
factory for special work detail.
There was only a quarter arn window open for all of us to try to make it.
Fifteen souls that now had a chance for life. I couldn't help but offer a quiet
prayer hoping for success. I heard that once Sebaceans had a god, and after all
that we had survived, there must be something else looking over us.
Everything had to be organized in small steps, including manipulating the
prisoner work rotations so the lucky ones would be assigned to the same area.
We worked silently, unloading containers of rock for processing.
My training automatically took over when I heard the alarm sound on the other
side of factory. I led the others through the corridors to the designated
rendezvous point. The harried Kalish didn't speak, only gestured for us to
follow her as she led us farther away from the panicked mass of Scarrans and
prisoners that would be working feverishly to put out the fires. A sharp
explosion made me glance back, it appeared that the
fire had reached the combustible material stacked carelessly on the loading
dock.
~*~
My hand sweated as it gripped the pulse weapon that was completely useless
against Scarrans, but I held onto it to feel some of the control I once had
over my life. The terrain was rough as our group worked its way through
vegetation so thick, that in the dark, it was impossible to identify. Once I
had wondered idly how it grew without a source of light, but now I was only
thankful it existed to cover our movements.
Our group was the last of the two. The first, consisting of only a few men had
left only a hundred microts before my own, and were making their way through
the darkness to the unarmed transport three metras away. Sitting for a moment,
I listened for any sound that would indicate we were being followed. There was
none. All I could hear was the soft movements in the trees above us of small
animals scurrying away from those that dared invade their sanctuary.
A moss attached to several of the trees gave off a faint luminescence, and in
its pale light, I took in the members of my group. The men and women sat as I did, crouched down, ready to move swiftly at the first sign
of attack. Sweat trickled down my neck despite the cold, and I tried to hide my
fear from them behind a mask of resolve. These people risked their lives on my
word that I could lead them to a safer place. Even as I scanned the trees, I
could feel their eyes on me, waiting for the next signal.
There were several children of various species among them, a few of them
Sebacean. Malnourished, they all sat without making a sound. Their eyes were
haunted by images that no one, not even Peacekeeper children, should see at
that time in their lives. I don’t know why I even allowed them to come. They
would be nothing but a hindrance if, or more probably when, we all were
recaptured.
My only thought was that they represented hope. These, the smallest and weakest
among us, had survived the war and the almost complete annihilation of their
species. For that alone, I had to give them a chance.
Checking the coordinates, I couldn’t help a grim smile at the thought of
freedom. Pushing on, I could see the soft outline of the transport. My arm
jerked up instinctively when I heard the faint rumble of the engines as they
flared to life. One of the men further ahead staggered toward the ship, his
voice lost in the steady roar. The effort was in vain.
We all watched as the transport was shot down mere microts later, and for a
brief moment, I didn’t know who exactly were the lucky ones.
They at least would never feel the sting of Scarran claws ripping at their
flesh, wanting to live but at the same time wishing for death to make the pain
end.
Automatically, I drew the others away from the area. Once we were at what I
hoped was a safe distance, I pulled out the flimsy I still carried and checked
to see how far we were from a network of caverns I recalled while committing
the escape route to memory. We walked for arns, but no one wanted to risk
stopping to rest. After much searching we finally
found an entrance, stunned, we stumbled from the cold into warmer temperatures.
Thankfully, they were not so warm as to be a hazard for Sebaceans.
Taking the first watch, I passed the time by worrying about the fate of these
people, our chances of survival in this harshest of worlds. The clatter of a
rock shifting alerted me to someone nearing our location. My finger tightened
against the trigger of my weapon. Through the heavy mist the Kalish called out
a pre-arranged word, and appearing from my hiding place, I beckoned her toward
me. I received the proffered sack with a grunt of pleasure. Inside was a small
supply of food culled from the camp kitchen rations.
“How did you know we would be here, and not on the ship?” I asked as my eyes
darted behind the woman to see if there were any more surprise visitors.
“I followed you after we separated. We had to make sure you all safely made it
to the ship and were not recaptured. And I was not followed, I made certain of that.” She walked by me and into
the cavern. I watched as she looked over the other escaped prisoners.
“If we were
recaptured?” I knew her answer before she spoke, and expected nothing
less.
“None of you would have survived long enough to resist interrogation.”
Later, as the small fire crackled and the children slept fitfully, the contact
drew me aside. "You're relatively safe here. The Commander is under the
impression you were all aboard the ship when it was shot down.”
For the first time, I felt an upsurge of hope. "Are you certain of this? I
do not want to give these people false assurances."
"What it brought you was a life away from daily threat of death."
"And we don't have that now? We have no food, no source of water..."
"You do not have those things now, that is true,
you only need to learn where to look. It is conjectured that further down,
within this network of caves, you will more than likely locate a water supply.
As for food…" her voice trailed off.
She studied our small group of escapees and smiled sadly. "That is the
best that I, or the rest of us can do for you. This will be the last time we
meet. Further contact will bring attention upon ourselves. But do not think
that we will stop trying to help. Take hope that we will still aid others to
escape the camp. We only have to find another way to attempt this."
~*~
For five cycles we all lived within the intricate cavern system beneath the
planet’s surface. Scavenging for grubs and edible plant life by the light of
the moss discovered on the night of our escape.
Our numbers continue to grow gradually due to the efforts of the Kalish
smuggling an herb into the camp. A herb that, once
consumed, drugs the prisoners into a death-like state. Or, close enough to fool
the Scarran guards. What once were fifteen are now almost one hundred men,
women, and children. We never know when we’ll find their drugged bodies lying
comatose on the forest floor, but we bring them in and wait for them to awaken
so I can explain their fate.
The children adapted quickly, so myself and the other soldiers began to train
them to fight. To fight not only against our common enemy, but also against the
helplessness that each of us feels at one time or another.
Every few arns a new group of men and women would go out and search for food.
With our numbers growing, the search became almost constant. Other than the
constant fear of Scarran soldiers patrolling near us and learning of our
existence, the endless search for food was our main concern.
Small fires dotted the insides of the caverns and people continued to
congregate around them as they once did within the camp walls, but the feeling
was changed. While before, in the camp, we waited for death to take us, here we
reveled in life. We took comfort in each other's company, joked, and shared in
the welcome of new members to our little society. Whether a new escapee, or a
child being born into this life. It is unlike anything I had experienced before
and regret not knowing until living in these strange circumstances. It has made
me a better leader, I think. I hope.
Occasionally there is news from off world, and the news was usually grim. It
was almost always the same. Reports of worlds destroyed and more lives
needlessly lost. At least, until recently. The Kalish resistance, in allegiance with the surviving Sebaceans, led by
Scorpius and several other species, have begun to make their move
against the Scarran Imperium. To take back what is rightfully theirs. It was
heartening to see my old friend was still alive, if not well.
The last contact from the camp relayed that soon even our meager numbers might
be needed. Plans were in place to free the remaining prisoners as well as
destroy the factory manufacturing the fuel substitute needed for the Scarran
Strykers.
This news came as a great surprise. In all the cycles wasted here, I had never
been able to find out what exactly the prisoners were forced to refine.
I didn’t know how the others would take this news as I brought them all
together. Every one of us had been through hezmana together. How they would
take this final step towards freedom or death, I was too close to judge. I
think they sensed something important was about to happen as they stood
shoulder to shoulder. Species that had once looked at each other with
hostility, now stood side by side as if brothers. The cavern was filled with
soft whispers as I waited for everyone to arrive.
When the moment came, I was astonished to find myself almost nervous as I spoke
of our part to liberate the camp. No one spoke for several microts, and I began
to think that perhaps they didn't want to risk all that we had achieved.
"When do we start?"
I looked to the source of the voice. It was a young Sebacean woman. Her arm
held a baby that I knew was only a couple monens old. Her other hand held onto
that of a young Nebari boy that she cared for.
"As soon as possible. We have to be ready when
the signal comes."
It seemed everyone began to speak at once. Each trying to
come up with something that would possibly aid us in the fight. They
were pleased when I told them that a cache of projectile weapons were being
smuggled to us within the next weeken. Not a single one of them backed away
from the plan presented them, not even the children who had grown in my
company. Our numbers were small compared to those in the camp, but I knew that
when the time came there would be more. None of us would be alone.
~*~
The mist swirls around me and I can't but help and look up one more time to try
and see the stars as Marauders quietly settle below the hill. I remember my
past, and those who sacrificed their lives, the ones I used to deride as
‘grubbers’. And I remember who I was, and who I will be again.
I give the signal, and rise, hands anxiously straightening the rags of my
uniform.
There is the hiss of a charging pulse weapon, and the others drop to the
ground, instantly fading into the shadows. I do not. Instead, I step forward. I
do not flinch as I look down the barrel of the pulse rifle at the armored
commando and reclaim my birthright:
“Captain Miklos Braca, Peacekeeper Interplanetary
Services.”
Originally
posted May 25, 2004