{"id":999,"date":"2022-03-10T11:40:15","date_gmt":"2022-03-10T16:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/?page_id=999"},"modified":"2024-03-20T06:18:36","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T10:18:36","slug":"one-rule-stay-in-the-light","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/read-online\/one-rule-stay-in-the-light\/","title":{"rendered":"One Rule: Stay in the Light"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 768px) {\r\n  .su-tabs-nav {\r\n    display: flex;\r\n  }\r\n  .su-tabs-nav span {\r\n    flex-basis: 100%;\r\n    text-align: center;\r\n  }\r\n  .su-tabs-nav span:last-child {\r\n    margin-right: 0;\r\n  }\r\n}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\r\n<div align=\"center\" class=\"button\" style=\"margin-bottom: 10px;\">\r\n<a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/fan-fiction\/one-rule-stay-in-the-light\/\">Return to the Title Page<\/a>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<input type='hidden' bg_collapse_expand='6a869d51f17f63095640169' value='6a869d51f17f63095640169'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-more-text-6a869d51f17f63095640169' value='WARNING: Stories rated \u201cM\u201d are not intended for younger teens or those who are easily offended. In the case of this particular story, there are content warnings for: Sexual Situations, Harsh Language, and Graphic Violence\/Gore. If such content is objectionable to you or inappropriate for you, please hit your browser\u2019s Back button now, or close this window or tab. By clicking on this link to access the story, you are declaring that you are 16 years of age or older, and that this content is not illegal in your place of residence.'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-less-text-6a869d51f17f63095640169' value=''><button id='bg-showmore-action-6a869d51f17f63095640169' class='bg-showmore-plg-button bg-green-button  '   style=\" color:#D9ECFB;\">WARNING: Stories rated \u201cM\u201d are not intended for younger teens or those who are easily offended. In the case of this particular story, there are content warnings for: Sexual Situations, Harsh Language, and Graphic Violence\/Gore. If such content is objectionable to you or inappropriate for you, please hit your browser\u2019s Back button now, or close this window or tab. By clicking on this link to access the story, you are declaring that you are 16 years of age or older, and that this content is not illegal in your place of residence.<\/button><div id='bg-showmore-hidden-6a869d51f17f63095640169' >\r\n\r\n<div class=\"su-tabs su-tabs-style-default su-tabs-mobile-scroll\" data-active=\"1\" data-scroll-offset=\"0\" data-anchor-in-url=\"yes\"><div class=\"su-tabs-nav\"><span class=\" tabmoji-cover\" data-anchor=\"cover\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\"><\/span><span class=\" tabmoji-pubdata\" data-anchor=\"pubdata\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\"><\/span><span class=\" tabmoji-toc\" data-anchor=\"toc\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\"><\/span><span class=\"\" data-anchor=\"chapter-1\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">1<\/span><span class=\"\" data-anchor=\"chapter-2\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">2<\/span><span class=\"\" data-anchor=\"chapter-3\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">3<\/span><span class=\"\" data-anchor=\"chapter-4\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">4<\/span><\/div><div class=\"su-tabs-panes\"><div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-cover\" data-title=\"\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4059\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4059 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">Publication Data \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div style=\"text-align: center\">\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/One-Rule-Stay-in-the-Light.png\" alt=\"Cover art for \u201cOne Rule: Stay in the Light\u201d by Ardath Rekha\" align=\"center\" style=\"width:100%\" \/>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4059\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4059 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">Publication Data \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-pubdata\" data-title=\"\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3995\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3995 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#cover\">\u00ab Cover&nbsp;<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4060\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4060 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<a href=\"#toc\">Table of Contents \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1250\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1250 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><b><u>One Rule: Stay in the Light<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <h4 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 30px;\">By Ardath Rekha<\/h4>\r\n\r\n<span data-post-id=\"4498\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4498 \"><p><b>Synopsis:<\/b> Something has gone horribly wrong. A desperate move on Jack\u2019s part makes Riddick aware of it\u2026 and of how much she really means to him.<\/p><\/span>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><p><b>Category:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-genre\/#fiction\">Fan Fiction<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><p><b>Fandom:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-fandom\/#pitch-black\"><i>Pitch Black<\/i> (2000)<\/a><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><p><b>Series:<\/b> None<\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><p><b>Challenges:<\/b> None<\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><p><b>Rating:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-rating\/#rated-m\">M<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><p><b>Orientation:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-orientation\/#het-plot\">Het (Plot)<\/a><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p><b>Pairing:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-pairing\/#riddick-jack\">Riddick\/Jack<\/a>\r\n\r\n<p><b>Warnings:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/the-content-warning-system\/#controversial-subject-matter\">Controversial Subject Matter<\/a> (Suicide, Attempted Suicide, Mental Illness), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/the-content-warning-system\/#sexual-situations\">Sexual Situations<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/the-content-warning-system\/#harsh-language\">Harsh Language<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/the-content-warning-system\/#graphic-violence-gore\">Graphic Violence \/ Gore<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/the-content-warning-system\/#death\">Death<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><p><b>Number of Chapters:<\/b> 4 \r\n\r\n<p><b>Net Word Count:<\/b><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d5220b29_button\" class=\"su-tooltip-button su-tooltip-button-outline-yes\" aria-describedby=\"su_tooltip_6a869d5220b29\" data-settings='{\"position\":\"top\",\"behavior\":\"hover\",\"hideDelay\":0}' tabindex=\"0\"><sup><i class=\"fas fa-question-circle\" style=\"color:#243a68;\"><\/i><\/sup><\/span><span style=\"display:none;z-index:100\" id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d5220b29\" class=\"su-tooltip\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-inner su-tooltip-shadow-yes\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%);color:#D9ECFB;font-size:16px;border-radius:5px;text-align:left;max-width:300px;line-height:1.25\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-title\"><\/span><span class=\"su-tooltip-content su-u-trim\">In the Read Online section, net word counts exclude cover pages, publication data pages, tables of contents, chapter titles, page links, original post date medatata, and \u2014 in the case of Lyric Wheel stories \u2014 song information and lyrics. In the case of articles, contextual notations are also omitted. Afterwords and chapter notes are treated as part of a text\u2019s overall body.<\/span><\/span><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d5220b29_arrow\" class=\"su-tooltip-arrow\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%)\" data-popper-arrow><\/span><\/span> 18,468\r\n\r\n<p><b>Total Word Count:<\/b><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d522113d_button\" class=\"su-tooltip-button su-tooltip-button-outline-yes\" aria-describedby=\"su_tooltip_6a869d522113d\" data-settings='{\"position\":\"top\",\"behavior\":\"hover\",\"hideDelay\":0}' tabindex=\"0\"><sup><i class=\"fas fa-question-circle\" style=\"color:#243a68;\"><\/i><\/sup><\/span><span style=\"display:none;z-index:100\" id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d522113d\" class=\"su-tooltip\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-inner su-tooltip-shadow-yes\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%);color:#D9ECFB;font-size:16px;border-radius:5px;text-align:left;max-width:300px;line-height:1.25\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-title\"><\/span><span class=\"su-tooltip-content su-u-trim\">In the Read Online section, total word counts include all text present in the story tabs, excluding forward\/back page links and tooltips. This count tends to be slightly different from the eBook Total Word Count reported on the title page.<\/span><\/span><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a869d522113d_arrow\" class=\"su-tooltip-arrow\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%)\" data-popper-arrow><\/span><\/span> 18,768\r\n\r\n<p><b>Story Length:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-story-length\/#novelette\">Novelette<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><p><b>First Posted:<\/b> April 8, 2002\r\n\r\n<p><b>Last Updated:<\/b> July 25, 2004\r\n\r\n<p><b>Status:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-status\/#incomplete\">Incomplete<\/a><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n\r\n<span data-post-id=\"4451\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4451 \"><p><small>The characters and events of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0134847\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i>Pitch Black<\/i><\/a> are &copy; 2000 USA Films, Gramercy Pictures, and Interscope Communications; Directed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0878638\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">David Twohy<\/a>; Screenplay by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0003117\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ken and<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0923646\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jim Wheat<\/a> and David Twohy; Story by Ken and Jim Wheat; Produced by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0257259\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tom Engelman<\/a>. This work of fan fiction is a transformative work for entertainment purposes only, with no claims on, nor intent to infringe upon, the rights of the parties listed above. All additional characters and situations are the creation of, and remain the property of, Ardath Rekha. eBook design and cover art by <a href=\"https:\/\/laraklaber.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LaraRebooted<\/a>, using a screen capture from <i>Pitch Black<\/i>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/fontmeme.com\/fonts\/nightmare-randi-ilhamsyah-font\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nightmare<\/a> font from <a href=\"https:\/\/fontmeme.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Font Meme<\/a>, and background graphics &copy; 1998 Noel Mollon, adapted and licensed via Teri Williams Carnright from the now-retired Fantasyland Graphics site (c. 2003). This eBook may not be sold or advertised for sale. If you are a copyright holder of any of the referenced works, and believe that part or all of this eBook exceeds fair use practices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/contact-me\/\">please contact Ardath Rekha<\/a>.<\/small><\/p><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><small><i>Rev. 2022.10.09<\/i><\/small><\/p><\/span><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3995\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3995 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#cover\">\u00ab Cover&nbsp;<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4060\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4060 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<a href=\"#toc\">Table of Contents \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-toc\" data-title=\"\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3996\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3996 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">\u00ab Publication Data<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4064\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4064 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-1\">Chapter 1 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1578\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1578 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\">Table of Contents<\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <ol class=\"toc\">\r\n\r\n    <li style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\"><a href=\"#chapter-1\">Under My Skin<\/a><\/li>\r\n\r\n    <li style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\"><a href=\"#chapter-2\">Father Figure<\/a><\/li>\r\n\r\n    <li style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\"><a href=\"#chapter-3\">Mercy Man<\/a><\/li>\r\n\r\n    <li style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\"><a href=\"#chapter-4\">Quick Changes<\/a><\/li>\r\n\r\n<\/ol><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3996\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3996 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">\u00ab Publication Data<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4064\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4064 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-1\">Chapter 1 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" data-title=\"1\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3997\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3997 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#toc\">\u00ab Table of Contents<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4065\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4065 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-2\">Chapter 2 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1582\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1582 \"><h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><b>1.<br\/><u>Under My Skin<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack slipped quietly into Riddick\u2019s room and stared down at him. He was fast asleep, as always. It puzzled her that a man who had been on the run for so long could sleep so soundly, but he had never woken up, not once, on any of the occasions she\u2019d sneaked into his bedroom to look at him. Tonight would be the last time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>He has no idea,<\/i> she thought to herself, sadness making her mental voice seem to echo in her own head.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His sleep was so peaceful, so unbroken.  \u201cThe sleep of the righteous,\u201d she\u2019d heard it called.  So ironic that he could sleep in peace while she tossed and turned and suffered.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">No one understood.  Imam had <i>almost<\/i> seemed to, at one time, but he\u2019d been consumed by his own inner pain.  Her friends at school looked at her strangely whenever she broached the subject, and she\u2019d stopped even trying to.  And <nobr>Riddick\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick slept on, oblivious to her suffering.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She wondered what he would do once she was gone.  Would he stay on the station, put down roots, pretend to be a normal guy?  Find a woman and raise some kids?  Or would he move on to some other locale, perhaps pick up his criminal career where it had been left off?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I\u2019m never going to know.<\/i>  For a moment the agony surged up again, filling her veins.  She bit down on the urge to sob.  She wouldn\u2019t.  Not now.  Not here.  Not in front of him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Once, she\u2019d dreamed that maybe the pain could be soothed away in his embrace.  She\u2019d dreamed of him holding her, touching her, spreading a new sort of fire beneath her skin, burning away the darkness with his caresses.  She\u2019d dreamed of magic.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But the darkness was too great, and the caresses had never come.  The magic had never existed, and now she was too old to believe in it anymore.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I held on as long as I could.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He\u2019d held her only a very few times, most recently after Imam\u2019s abrupt and shocking death had left both of them rattled and confused.  There had even been a few moments when she\u2019d thought the nature of those embraces and touches had changed, less protector-and-charge and more man-and-woman.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But nothing had come of it.  No fire, no light.  The pain had only grown stronger.  She was out of time.  Out of choices.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Time to go, Jackie Girl, before he wakes up and asks what the hell you\u2019re up to.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She didn\u2019t bother to disguise the sound of her approaching footsteps as she moved to his bedside table.  Why?  He wouldn\u2019t really wake up anyway.  She set the folded note on the bare surface, then leaned down and kissed his cheek.  Good-bye.  Slowly she turned away and left the room.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack\u2019s entry into Riddick\u2019s bedroom had not gone unnoticed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He lay still in his bed, his breathing slow and even like that of an actual sleeper.  His entire body remained relaxed.  He was known for that, actually.  Relaxed one moment, in lethal motion the next.  But he remained perfectly still, perfectly <nobr>calm\u2026<\/nobr> outwardly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Within, though, he was in turmoil.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">For more than a year now Jack had done this, sneaking into his room with increasing frequency until it had become a nightly occurrence.  Sometimes she stayed for just a moment.  Sometimes she would stay for an hour or two.  She never spoke, never touched him, just watched him pretend to sleep.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">And he always pretended.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It had puzzled him for a long time.  Riddick wasn\u2019t particularly interested in self-analysis.  He\u2019d had enough psychiatrists take turns skull-fucking him over the years that he had stopped caring about the underlying motivations of his actions.  But his reluctance to confront Jack about her nocturnal <nobr>visits\u2026<\/nobr> confused him.  Especially when he realized what lay behind it.  Fear.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If he opened his eyes and spoke to her, everything between them would change.  And he feared that change.  In that moment, they\u2019d both have to deal with what her visits meant, and he wasn\u2019t ready for such a drastic redefinition of their relationship.  It had almost happened after Imam\u2019s death, but he\u2019d chickened out.  Richard B. Riddick, scared of getting close to a <nobr>woman\u2026<\/nobr> who\u2019da thunk it?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She would let him.  He was sure of that.  If he opened his eyes, within moments he could draw her into his arms, into his <nobr>bed\u2026<\/nobr>  But she couldn\u2019t possibly be ready for the sort of hunger he felt for her.  She was eighteen now, <nobr>but\u2026<\/nobr> still so young.  Still so innocent.  He had no business messing with innocence.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">All he had to do was keep his eyes closed, and things would stay as they were.  He could always open his eyes the next night, if he decided it was time.  For one more night he would resist the pull of his animal side, which didn\u2019t see uncertain youth, didn\u2019t see the constraints of trying to live as an Honorable Man; it only saw Female.  And it hungered.  He had no intention of letting it be unleashed upon her.  Carolyn\u2019s death had reawakened Loss within him; Imam\u2019s suicide four months ago had driven it home.  He would not lose Jack, especially not to the beast within.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Whatever it cost him, he would not lose her as he had lost everything else in the course of his life.  This time he would <i>not<\/i> fuck things up by listening to the siren call of his inner beast.  His eyes would stay closed, and the possibility of further loss would be staved off for one more day.  Jack neither needed \u2014 nor, he imagined, <i>wanted<\/i> \u2014 to know that in his imagination he had explored every inch of her body.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The caress of her lips almost cost him the charade.  That was new.  She had never so much as touched him in her nightly visits before.  Paper rustled on his bedside table and then he heard the soft sound of her retreating footsteps.  The latch on his door quietly clicked home, and he opened his eyes.  His glance moved to the bedside table.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">A note.  He picked it up and soundlessly unfolded it.  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <blockquote>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 20px;\"><i>Dear Riddick,<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I\u2019m sorry. I tried, I really did. But I\u2019m just not strong enough. Please forgive me. You should have left me behind on the planet.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I love you. Good-bye,<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><i>Jack.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He had to read it four times before the meaning sank in, and then his heart plummeted.  He knew exactly what it meant; Imam had written a note much like it, at the end.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Not again!  Not her!<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He lunged out of the bed a second later, the full impact of what she\u2019d written hitting him with lethal force.    The casing of his bedroom door splintered as he slammed his way through without turning the knob, and the door cracked against the hallway wall with the sound of a gunshot.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Bathroom or kitchen?  Where would she go?  What was she planning on using?  What little was left of his rational mind pointed out that she wouldn\u2019t have brought him the note until she was absolutely ready.  He had to find her <i>fast!<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">There.  The bathroom door was closed and a thin stream of light spilled out from the crack beneath it.  She was inside.  The handle wouldn\u2019t turn when he tried it but he only hesitated for the barest second, wondering how close she was to the door.  Fuck it.  Concussed was better than dead.  He kicked the fucking thing in.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack was sitting on the toilet lid, her arms extended over the bathtub.  Blood dribbled from both of her cut wrists as she watched in fascination, mesmerized by her own escaping life force.  He grabbed her and pulled her up, lifting her arms above her head to slow the bleeding as much as he could.  She didn\u2019t even struggle.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He bound one wrist with a towel and then went to work on the other, cleaning it and using temporary stitches on it, then binding it tightly with proper bandaging.  Then he worked on the first wrist.  All the while Jack stood still, listless, cooperative, like someone already dead.  Finally he was done.  He picked her up and carried her back to his room.  The door wouldn\u2019t close but he didn\u2019t care.  Since the Holy Man\u2019s suicide, Riddick and Jack had been alone in the apartment. Nobody was left to have shit-fits about impropriety.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He put her on her back in his bed and climbed in, lying on top of her and glaring down into her eyes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat the fuck were you doing, Jack?\u201d  he growled, showing more anger than he meant to.  \u201cYou giving up on me?  Don\u2019t you fucking dare, girl!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She ignored him, still in her daze.  He slapped her cheek, hard enough to sting, and she blinked and looked up at him, some form of recognition returning to her eyes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cAnswer me, Jack!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She swallowed.  \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Riddick.\u201d  Her voice was resigned and he knew he couldn\u2019t turn his back on her yet or she\u2019d open her wounds right back up.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSorry?  That\u2019s all you gotta say?  What the fuck is going on?  First Imam and now you!  You\u2019re stronger than this!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIt <nobr>hurts\u2026\u201d<\/nobr> she suddenly whimpered.  \u201cSo <nobr>much\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>please\u2026<\/nobr> I can\u2019t take it, Riddick, <nobr>please\u2026\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Beneath him her body writhed.  He watched as her features contorted.  Whatever this was, it was a real malady, something physical.  His mind flashed back over the last five years, to similar whimpers heard in the dead of night, many of them right before she would sneak into his room and watch him pretend to sleep.  To tiny winces that would mar Imam\u2019s expression from time to time, with increasing frequency, until finally he\u2019d walked into the Holy Man\u2019s room to find him dead, with his <i>own<\/i> wrists slashed.  What the fuck?  How long had both of them been in pain?  Why had they hidden it?  <i>What the fuck was happening here?<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack listened to Riddick moving around in the bathroom.  He was muttering as he cleaned up her spilled blood, something about tests; blood tests.  She wriggled, testing her bonds.  He\u2019d made them tight, escape-proof.  What else could she expect?  Richard B. Riddick was nothing if not an expert on the art of restraints.  He\u2019d worn them all at one time or another and knew how to get out of most of them.  \u201cThe Houdini From Hell,\u201d that was one of the nicknames that appeared in his criminal record.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It was crawling through her again, black fire that scoured cruelly at her nerves.  He\u2019d never felt it, she knew that.  Every time it had assaulted her, she\u2019d checked to see if he was feeling anything like <nobr>it\u2026<\/nobr> but he always slept like a stone.  Now it moved along her body again and she writhed against it.  She wanted to tear out her veins, drive it from her, whatever it was, this invader that had lived beneath her skin since the <nobr>planet\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cJack?  You okay?\u201d  Riddick was standing in the doorway, a small glass in his hand.  She grimaced as she realized that it was half-filled with her blood, collected from the bathtub.  As she watched, he set it down and came over to sit beside her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo,\u201d she wheezed after a moment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTell me what hurts, kid.\u201d  His voice was uncharacteristically gentle.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She was caught.  She had to speak about it, to <i>him.<\/i>  After all of her attempts to avoid doing so.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She\u2019d tried, at first, to tell people.  <i>Something\u2019s wrong with me.<\/i>  Her friends had looked askance at her when she\u2019d attempted to describe the sensations, back when she first really noticed them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cShit, Jackie,\u201d Maureen had said.  \u201cYou sound like one of those nuts who think bugs are crawling under their skin or something!  You been doing things I don\u2019t know about?\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">By that, her best friend of those days had meant drugs.  They\u2019d grown distant to each other soon after.  Maureen was a straight-laced girl who wanted nothing to do with a <nobr>druggie\u2026<\/nobr> or a crazy person.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She\u2019d begun to wonder if that was what she was.  Crazy.  In the light of day and reason, surrounded by her friends and feeling normal, it had seemed like the most logical thing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It always struck in the dead of night, waking her from her sleep.  She would lie in bed, whimpering and wriggling, trying to get comfortable, until finally she couldn\u2019t stand it and rose, switching on her light.  And then, with wakefulness fully upon her, the pain would ebb once more.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Crazy,<\/i> she\u2019d tell herself, and shiver.  She was turning into her mother.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Nothing had ever shown up on her physicals, although her doctor had prescribed a skin ointment for her one time.  She\u2019d been unable to keep from scratching at her limbs, trying to dig out the tickling burn that came to her at night.  Finally she\u2019d begun keeping her fingernails cut back to the quick; scratching didn\u2019t help anyway.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">And even when she\u2019d asked her doctor to check her blood for \u201canything funny,\u201d nothing had shown up.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick, she knew, suffered from nothing of the kind.  She\u2019d checked.  Rising from her bed on those horrible nights, she would creep into his room and look at him.  Fast asleep and completely at peace, Riddick never looked like a man who had taken dozens of lives and was feared and reviled throughout much of the galaxy; he looked to her like the epitome of beauty and grace.  But there was never any pain in his face.  Sometimes, if she stayed and watched him for too long, her own pain would return.  She\u2019d leave in a hurry, then.  If Riddick ever knew how crazy she\u2019d become, she told herself, it would kill her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Imam, after all, had stopped speaking to her when she\u2019d tried to tell him.  It had crippled their relationship.  They\u2019d only talked, from then on, about inane things, for the final six months of his life.  Up until then she\u2019d told him everything and basked in his serene acceptance of her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She could still see it so clearly.  Breakfast time and Riddick was in the shower.  She\u2019d brought Imam his coffee and sat down across from him, trying to appear as nonchalant as she could about her question.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cHave you <nobr>ever\u2026<\/nobr> heard of <nobr>someone\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>who\u2026\u201d<\/nobr> Shit, even though she\u2019d practiced the words alone for hours, saying them now was damn near impossible! <nobr>\u201c\u2026who<\/nobr> feels like something\u2019s crawling under their skin?\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>For a moment Imam\u2019s eyes seemed to widen. Then he frowned, clasping his hands and resting his chin upon them. \u201cWhat makes you ask this, child?\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cWell\u2026 <nobr>say\u2026<\/nobr> I know someone. And this <nobr>person\u2026<\/nobr> they wake up in the middle of the night and there\u2019s this pain, like something\u2019s tunneling through them, eating at them from the inside or something. Like <nobr>bugs\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cJacqueline.\u201d Imam\u2019s voice was firm and strangely harsh. \u201cYou are speaking of hallucinations. Madness.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">There was, she\u2019d thought at the time, an almost desperate tone in his voice.  His face had been hard as stone, suddenly.  She\u2019d looked down, unable to meet his eyes, and had stared at his hands instead.  His knuckles had been white.  His nails, she remembered, had been trimmed down to the quick, much like her own.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She\u2019d never actually known how <i>he\u2019d<\/i> slept.  A year after they\u2019d moved into the station, he\u2019d begun locking his bedroom door at night.  And from that day on she\u2019d been locked out of his heart as well.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She\u2019d been alone with her madness.  Alone with her pain.  And now she had to admit to both, to Riddick.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIt\u2019s inside me,\u201d she tried to explain.  \u201cI can feel it crawling.  It\u2019s eating me.  Biting <nobr>me\u2026\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She shuddered and writhed as it struck at her again as if summoned by her words.  The bed creaked as Riddick rose and moved to shut the door.  He struggled with it for a moment and then managed to get it to close, blocking out the light from the hallway.  Of course.  He\u2019d be more comfortable in the total darkness, <nobr>but\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo, no, please, open the door, please, it\u2019s worse when it\u2019s dark!\u201d  She was babbling and she knew it but the thing inside her had grown ferocious.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cShhhh, it\u2019s okay, Jack!  We\u2019re gonna get this fixed, whatever it is, I promise.\u201d  He was beside her again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cPlease,\u201d<\/i> she begged.  \u201cEither kill me or open the door!  Please, Riddick!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><nobr>\u201cFine\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>okay\u2026\u201d<\/nobr>  He rose from the bed and took a few steps.  \u201cHoly <i>fuck!\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The alarm in his voice roused her from her pain and she lifted her head.  She could barely make out his hulking outline, pure tension in every aspect of his form, as he stared at his dresser.  At the glass on his dresser.  At the glass of her blood on his dresser.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">At the <i>glowing<\/i> glass of her blood on his dresser.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI don\u2019t know where the hell this stuff came from, but your young friend is lucky to be alive at all.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dr. Dane was probably the best toxicologist on the space station, or any station within ten parsecs.  He looked up from the microscope, fixing Riddick with a shrewd gaze.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick waited impassively, hiding his urgency behind iron control.  He wanted answers and he wanted them fast.  He\u2019d left Jack alone in the apartment, surrounded by as much light as he could power up.  He hadn\u2019t unchained her, still not at all sure that she wouldn\u2019t try to hurt herself again.  The light had been far too bright for her to sleep beneath, until he\u2019d found something that could be used as a blindfold and bound it around her eyes.  She\u2019d slipped into a peaceful sleep once he\u2019d done that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Lit that way, she\u2019d looked beatific and luminous, despite the hollow exhaustion on her face.  She\u2019d looked like an angel.  A fallen, chained, tormented angel, but an angel nonetheless.  <i>His<\/i> angel.  The only one he had left.  She seemed to be in no pain.  The pain only moved in the <nobr>darkness\u2026<\/nobr> as if it was his own kin.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow come this shit never showed up on any of her tests before, Doc?  We\u2019ve been here for five years.  She\u2019s been in <i>pain<\/i> for at least four of them, and I know she had some blood tests done last year.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFirst, it is impossible to test for everything, let alone the unknown.  Most of the time when blood tests are run, we do simple red counts, white counts and platelet <nobr>counts\u2026<\/nobr> blood sugar levels and the like.  There\u2019s no way to test for all possible conditions.  Unless you have some particular malady in mind, based upon <nobr>symptoms\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay, Doc, I get that part, but her blood was fucking <i>glowing!<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOnly in the dark, Mr. Riddick.  The sample I exposed to light went completely inert and showed no unusual properties.  And most of the time when we study a blood sample under the microscope, we\u2019re exposing it to light the entire time.  The microbes causing this problem are extremely small and easily missed when they\u2019re inactive.  Active, <nobr>however\u2026<\/nobr> well, I don\u2019t doubt she was in horrible pain.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick shuddered, remembering the way Jack had writhed beneath him.  She\u2019d wept and thrashed against the bonds until he\u2019d gotten the smart idea to turn the lights <i>on.<\/i>  Then she\u2019d gone quiet, soon becoming rational enough to answer his questions about her pain and how long she\u2019d experienced it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTell me again about this planet you were on.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI don\u2019t get that, Doc.  You\u2019ve already heard all about it.  Anyway, how come she and the Holy Man would have <nobr>this\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>infection\u2026<\/nobr> and I wouldn\u2019t?  We were all there.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWere you always together?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo, of course not.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTell me about the times that you were away from them.  What were they doing?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow the fuck would I know <i>that,<\/i> Doc?  I wasn\u2019t there!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTell me what you do know.  Were any unusual substances found?  Perhaps in the coring room?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo.  And anyway, I was in there too.  Only time I was away from them for long <nobr>was\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>You should have left me behind on the planet.<\/i>  He almost had.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He saw it again, Carolyn caught in the light of the skiff, a whiskey bottle held aloft in her hand.  A glowing <nobr>bottle\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cShit!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat is it, Mr. Riddick, what do you know?\u201d  Dane was one of the few people who could speak so calmly to Richard B. <nobr>Riddick\u2026<\/nobr> one of the few people, outside of the station\u2019s owners who had granted him sanctuary in the first place, who even knew who he really was, making that calm even more extraordinary.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFucking glow-worms!\u201d  He turned and stared at the doctor, his manic frustration morphing into manic excitement.  \u201cThey found \u2019em in a cave when they were hiding.  The three of them pulled \u2019em off of the walls of the cave and put \u2019em in two bottles to make <i>lamps!<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYes, that makes sense,\u201d Dr. Dane agreed, nodding.  \u201cThe toxin is secreted by microbial organisms, undoubtedly the same ones that existed within your glow-worms.  Somehow your friends became infected.  Perhaps the creatures bit <nobr>them\u2026<\/nobr> or perhaps they were infected by fluids from the creatures coming into contact with open wounds and abrasions.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, they sure as fuck had a lot of those,\u201d Riddick muttered.  They\u2019d <i>all<\/i> been banged up by the time they\u2019d reached the skiff.  \u201cWhy didn\u2019t I get infected?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cAll of the creatures were inside the bottles by the time you handled them, and I imagine the torrential rains you described washed any fluids off of the glass.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">So simple for the doctor!  Riddick paced, nodding.  Okay, it made sense.  Shit, Carolyn had probably been infected, too.  He hoped her blood had glowed bright enough to burn the shit out of whatever beast had pulled her from his <nobr>grasp\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It couldn\u2019t have.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow come it took so long?  It\u2019s been five years!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI imagine it took the microbes a while to reproduce sufficiently to spread the infection throughout their bodies.  When did young Jackie say she first noticed the pain?\u201d  Dr. Dane was already back at his desk, ordering beakers and preparing liquids.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cA year after we got off that rock.  She said it only got really bad in the last eight months.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cPoor child.  Very well.  I will begin searching for an antibiotic that can kill these creatures.  In the meantime, you have to keep her surrounded by bright light.  Whatever they are, they seem to only become active in darkness.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow the fuck do they know?  They\u2019re inside her body, how can they tell whether it\u2019s dark or light?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSeveral centuries ago, Mr. Riddick, scientists discovered that the compound Heme, in human blood, was photoreactive.  They discovered that the human biological clock was controlled by this compound, not, as was once thought, by light signals to the retina.  These creatures are in her blood as well.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBut that\u2019s still inside her body!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHold a flashlight to the palm of your hand, Mr. Riddick, and tell me if any light shines through.  <nobr>Here\u2026<\/nobr> use this one.\u201d  Dane handed him a pen-light.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick took it, already knowing exactly what he would see.  Moving to a darkened corner of the room, though, he obediently turned on the light and pressed it to his palm, looking at the circle of bright red that appeared on the back of his hand.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay.  You win, Doc.  I believe you.  They\u2019re in her blood, and they wake up when the lights go out.  Can we kill \u2018em?  Without hurting her?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019ll know very soon.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cAnd if you find out we can\u2019t?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThen young Jackie must stay in the light for the rest of her life.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She slept for several hours, more peacefully than she had in years, before Riddick returned.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat is it?\u201d she asked him groggily.  \u201cDoes Dane know?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah,\u201d Riddick said, his rumbling voice oddly soothing. \u201cAn infection from the planet.  From those glow-worms.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThe <i>glow-worms?\u201d<\/i>  Jack shook her head, astonished.  \u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDon\u2019t know yet.  He thinks maybe when you guys were putting the worms in the bottles, they secreted something that got into your bloodstreams through whatever cuts and abrasions you had.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBloodstreams?\u201d  For a moment the bizarre thought \u2014 <i>I have more than one?<\/i> \u2014 passed through her mind and she almost wanted to laugh.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah.  Looks like Imam was infected too, and that\u2019s why he killed himself.  Dane says Imam\u2019s infection was probably more advanced than yours.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack suddenly wanted to choke.  Now, horribly, everything in Imam\u2019s goodbye note made perfect, chilling sense.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">When they\u2019d found Imam, he\u2019d been dead for almost a day.  He\u2019d gone to bed as usual, locking his door.  He had the next day off; Friday, for him, was the holy day of rest, after all, but Riddick and Jack had work and school.  His door had still been locked when they came home.  It was only when he didn\u2019t appear for dinner, and didn\u2019t answer Jack\u2019s pleas at his door, that Riddick had finally kicked the door down and they\u2019d found his body.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack suddenly realized that he\u2019d cut his wrists too, much as she had.  <i>His<\/i> blood hadn\u2019t glowed in the darkness of the room, but then it had dried hours earlier, and she\u2019d turned on the light almost immediately anyway.  Riddick had held her through her hysterics and then, once she was calm enough, had gone to call the station coroner.  She\u2019d found the note a moment after he left the room.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <blockquote>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 20px;\"><i>Dear Richard and Jacqueline,<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I regret that I have failed you both, as I have failed my God. I have not the strength to endure Allah\u2019s punishment any longer. Please forgive me for this weakness within me. Peace be upon you both. Pray that I find peace as well.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><i>Abu al-Walid.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cJack?\u201d  Riddick\u2019s voice pulled her back out of her memories.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhy\u2026 why was he so far ahead of me?\u201d  In her mind she could see every flicker of pain that had crossed Imam\u2019s face.  She\u2019d been so wrapped up in her own that she hadn\u2019t <nobr>realized\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDane thinks there are two reasons.  First, his skin is much darker than yours.  Darker-pigmented skin absorbs less light than paler skin like yours.  And then he was always in those heavy robes.  That cut out a lot of light, too.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cLight?\u201d  Of <nobr>course\u2026<\/nobr> when she\u2019d awakened at night, in the darkness, with the pain ripping at her, she\u2019d always turned on her bedside <nobr>lamp\u2026<\/nobr> and within moments the pain had subsided.  Riddick had confirmed that himself, only hours earlier.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah, light.  Dane says that the microbes in your blood go totally inactive in light, and wake up in the darkness.  He\u2019s going to figure something out, some kind of treatment.  The good news is, until then, we can keep them from hurting <nobr>you\u2026<\/nobr> we just keep you in the light.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">In the light?  But Riddick\u2019s world was in the darkness.  How was he going to manage this?  How was <i>she<\/i> if she couldn\u2019t have him with her?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cShit, that\u2019s just <nobr>so\u2026<\/nobr> so fucking perfect,\u201d she finally grated out, not caring if her fury at the world, at that fucking bitch Fate, showed.  \u201cStory of my <i>life!\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSomething wrong with staying in the light?\u201d  He seemed amused, the bastard!<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat\u2019s not where you are, Riddick!  I want to be with <i>you!\u201d<\/i>  Five years of longing manifested itself in those words.  Beside her, hearing it, Riddick went still.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou will be,\u201d he finally answered her, his voice oddly husky.  His clothing rustled and she looked over.  He\u2019d pulled his shiv out of the waistband of his pants.  His \u201clucky shiv.\u201d  The one he\u2019d made back on that planet.  The one he\u2019d used to kill Johns.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">What was he doing?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She watched in astonishment as he undid one of the shackles that had imprisoned her.  Taking her hand in his, he drew the edge of the shiv over first his thumb, and then hers.  His grasp of her hand became iron-hard as realization hit her and she tried to pull it out of his grip.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cRiddick, <nobr>no\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It was too late.  She watched in a mixture of horror and amazement as he pressed their two bleeding digits together, mingling their blood.  His clean blood and her infected blood.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Oh my god.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He drew her hand to his lips and for a moment she thought he was going to give her an honest-to-god courtly kiss, but instead he licked both of their thumbs clean.  Lying down beside her, still holding her hand, he smiled ironically.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWherever you are, I\u2019m gonna be right there too.\u201d  He leaned forward and kissed her lips, his mouth gentler and softer than she\u2019d ever imagined it could be.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Holy shit,<\/i> she realized, as his arms slid around her body.  <i>Richard B. Riddick just told me he loves me!<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Staying in the light didn\u2019t seem like such a bad thing, after <nobr>all\u2026<\/nobr> not anymore.<\/p><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3997\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3997 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#toc\">\u00ab Table of Contents<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4065\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4065 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-2\">Chapter 2 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" data-title=\"2\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4000\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4000 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-1\">\u00ab Chapter 1<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4066\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4066 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-3\">Chapter 3 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1586\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1586 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><b>2.<br\/><u>Father Figure<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack woke up in the pitch black, not sure where she was.  She couldn\u2019t see anything, but she could feel a massive body curled around hers, holding her tightly.  Her arms ached like a bitch.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Where am I?  Am I back <b>there?<\/b><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Memory began to seep in slowly.  Riddick was holding her.  This was his scent, his warmth, his strength.  She\u2019d slept in his arms at his insistence <nobr>after\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Now she remembered why her arms hurt so much!  And she knew why she couldn\u2019t see.  Riddick had blindfolded her.  Reaching up, gritting her teeth against the pain the movement woke in her arm, she fumbled the blindfold off of her head.  Brilliant light splashed in, stabbing at her eyes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cShit, that\u2019s bright!\u201d  The words came out before she could stop herself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou\u2019re not kidding,\u201d came a low rumble in her ear.  Riddick\u2019s voice sounded amused and irritated in equal measures.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Squinting against the glare, Jack struggled to turn around and see him. She tried to push against the mattress to turn over and an agonizing lance of pain flew up along her arm. \u201cOh <i>shit!\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Large, strong, impossibly gentle hands grasped her torso, and Riddick turned her around to face him.  \u201cYour arms are hurting.\u201d  He didn\u2019t sound surprised.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah,\u201d she whimpered.  Eyes screwed shut, biting her lip against the angry throb in both wrists, she let him draw her into a sitting position.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGot something for that.\u201d  His voice was different.  Softer and less ironic.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack flinched for just a second as something feathery touched her cheek, relaxing when she realized Riddick was wiping away her tears with a tissue.  \u201cWhat do you have?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDane gave me some painkillers for you to use.  And I\u2019ve got ice packs in the freezer.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Cracking her eyes a little again, she managed to make out Riddick\u2019s calm face above hers.  He had his goggles on and they were a little askew.  He\u2019d <i>slept<\/i> in them, she realized.  He\u2019d have to have.  If this light level was hard on <i>her<\/i> eyes it had to be a <i>killer<\/i> on his.  At least she was beginning to adjust.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Gonna have to figure out a way to sleep in bright light without a blindfold,<\/i> she thought wryly. <i>Taking it off hurts too damn much.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDrugs and ice packs, huh?  I see I\u2019m gonna have a lot of fun at school today.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Her reputation would solidify in the \u201cpsycho\u201d range.  Anyone looking at the bandages on her wrists would know what she had to have <nobr>done\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou\u2019re not going today.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHuh?\u201d  That was a huge relief, actually, but it came as a surprise.  Back when they\u2019d first gotten to the station, she\u2019d been such a misfit that she\u2019d dreaded every day of school, balking repeatedly at going and cutting classes whenever she could manage it.  <i>Riddick<\/i> had been the one who had come down hard on her about that, not Imam.  So this easy nonchalance came as a surprise.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He grinned at her astonished expression.  \u201cI already called you in.  Talked to the Station Shift Three administrators and they said they\u2019d clear it with the Shift One crew.  Nobody\u2019s expecting you in classes for the next few days, and I\u2019m on leave at work.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">As he spoke, Riddick rose off of the bed and padded to the door.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat did you tell them?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He stopped at the door and glanced back at her, amused irony in his voice.  \u201cI told them you\u2019re sick.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Relief blasted through her.  \u201cYou didn\u2019t tell them I cut myself?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNah.  Only ones who know about <i>that<\/i> are you, me, and Dane.  No point in getting Suicide Intervention involved, given your extenuating circumstances.  Back in a second.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack watched as Riddick left the room.  She sighed and leaned back against his headboard, taking stock of everything that had happened, everything that had <i>changed.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Extenuating circumstances.  She wasn\u2019t crazy after all.  The pain had a real \u2014 if admittedly bizarre \u2014 source.  And a treatment, if not a cure.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Please God let there be a cure,<\/i> she thought.  Her eyes fixed on the cut on her thumb.  <i>For both of us.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She still couldn\u2019t believe he\u2019d <i>done<\/i> that.  Mixed their <nobr>blood\u2026<\/nobr> and then kissed her the way she\u2019d always dreamed he would.  She didn\u2019t know which part was more astounding.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cI know you\u2019re not ready for me,\u201d he\u2019d whispered, holding her close, their bodies pressed together. \u201cAnd maybe I\u2019m reading all of this wrong anyway. It\u2019s okay if you don\u2019t want me <nobr>like\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cI do,\u201d she\u2019d told him, her heart racing. \u201cI always have, <nobr>but\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>He\u2019d chuckled softly, resting his forehead against hers. \u201cBut not now. Not when you\u2019re in so much pain. It\u2019s okay, baby. I can wait. I want you to be <nobr>sure\u2026<\/nobr> and I want you to be able to enjoy it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Okay, she thought, <i>that<\/i> had been the most astounding thing of all.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>What the fuck did I <b>do?<\/b><\/i> Riddick thought, heading for the kitchen.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He knew what he\u2019d done.  He remembered it all, remembered it well.  And it had to be the most bizarre stunt he\u2019d ever pulled in his life.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He pulled open the freezer door and extracted two ice packs, wrapping them in dish towels.  He filled a glass with water, grabbed the pill bottle Dane had given him, and headed back toward the bedroom with the whole mess.  Back to Jack.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack.  His dream, his torment, his <nobr>center\u2026<\/nobr> the most confusing thing in his life.  The girl he\u2019d protected and the woman he hungered after, mixed together.  Sometimes he wasn\u2019t sure which one she was from moment to moment.  But despite the way his whole universe seemed to revolve around <nobr>her\u2026<\/nobr> <i>What the fuck did I <b>do???<\/b><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She was sitting up on his bed, a musing expression on her face, as he returned.  Looking up, she gave him a brave smile of gratitude.  He carried his burden over to the bedside table.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cLemme get the ice packs on you first.  Then I\u2019ll help you take the pills.\u201d  He smiled when she nodded and lifted her hands, holding them out to him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Carefully, as gently as he could, he settled the ice packs in place over the cuts on her wrists, and wound each towel around her arms to hold them in place.  He didn\u2019t miss the winces that marred her expression, or the way she bit her lower lip to hold in her urge to flinch away.  He\u2019d taken enough injuries of his own to know how much pain she had to be in, poor kid.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThanks,\u201d she said when he finished.  Her voice trembled but he could hear the sincerity.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo problem, Kid.  You ready for your drugs?  They\u2019re good ones.  Only the best from Dr. Dane.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYes, please.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He held back the chuckle that wanted to emerge.  He\u2019d never thought, when he\u2019d first met her and heard the mouth she had on her, that one day she would be the kind of girl who said \u201cyes, please\u201d to him.  But there it was.  He had to wonder, though, how much of it was the infection.  She\u2019d gone <i>mousy<\/i> on him as time had passed, and as the pain he\u2019d only learned about had grown.  Had the microbes in her blood killed her fight?  Or had she been fighting so hard against <i>them<\/i> that she\u2019d had nothing left to send out against the other dramas in her life?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The more he thought about it, the more he figured it was the latter. <i>Gotta get her fighting again. Maybe it\u2019ll be easier for her now that she has someone on her <nobr>side\u2014<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">That was why he\u2019d done it.  Shit, it still made no sense at all to him, but that was why.  After years of looking out for number one only, he\u2019d suddenly joined a <i>cause.<\/i>  He\u2019d enlisted for a fuckin\u2019 <i>war,<\/i> here.  And then he\u2019d done something to make sure he <i>couldn\u2019t<\/i> back out, couldn\u2019t <i>chicken<\/i> out.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Where the fuck had that kind of devotion come from?  How the fuck had she managed to inspire it in him?  Okay, yeah, he\u2019d fought for her <nobr>before\u2026<\/nobr> he\u2019d taken on a man with a shotgun once to protect <nobr>her\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>but\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>but\u2026.<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If he tried to compose a list of her attributes, it just didn\u2019t make sense.  She was beautiful, sure.  Smart.  Sweet.  All the things that a man liked.  But he couldn\u2019t figure out <i>what<\/i> in that list might inspire his crazy actions.  Until he actually <i>looked<\/i> at her and then suddenly it made some kind of improbable sense.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>How long will it be before I start feeling those motherfuckers inside <b>my<\/b> skin?<\/i> he wondered.  Taking up the pill bottle \u2014 <i>stupid fuckin\u2019 childproof cap, Dane, you were <b>not<\/b> thinking, she can\u2019t open this herself in her condition<\/i> \u2014 he twisted off the top and shook out two pills into the palm of his hand.  Setting the bottle down, he turned and lifted them to her lips.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack opened her mouth for him and he put the pills on her tongue, resisting the urge to slide his fingers in after them.  Damn, this was going to be tough.  To his animal side she was, if anything, more provocative than ever.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I am a sick, sick man,<\/i> he thought, bringing the glass of water to her lips so she could swallow her pills.  He tilted it carefully and watched her take deep sips until she had enough.  She pulled her mouth away, swallowing, and then gave him another brave smile.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBetter?\u201d  Dumb thing to say.  It was going to be a while before the pills did anything.  But sweetness bloomed on her face in answer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cMuch.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Dane, old man, you were dead-on about placebos, and all that shit about the mind leading the body.<\/i>  If the day came when Dane <i>didn\u2019t<\/i> have a logical answer for something, he might just curl up and die.  More than ever, he was glad he\u2019d stayed, accepting the reclusive doctor\u2019s protection.  Jack needed the best.  <i>And she\u2019s gonna have it.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo what happens now?\u201d Jack asked.  She was looking over the wrappings on her arms with a thoughtful expression.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, Dane wants to see you at noon.  He\u2019s gonna look over your cuts and take some more blood samples, maybe give you some more meds.  We\u2019ll see what he says.  Maybe there\u2019s a quick fix to all of this.\u201d  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He doubted it.  These things were a brand new species.  Years ago Dane had described to him some of the plagues that had swept through humanity during the Colonization Waves, as new organisms were encountered on world after world.  One of them, Dystarth Fever, had threatened humanity with genuine extinction.  A new virus like this would be hard to treat or cure.  They were lucky it wasn\u2019t infectious or Jack would have had to go into quarantine on the spot.  But Riddick had lived in close quarters with her for five years, and his blood was clean.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Well, it was up until last night,<\/i> he amended.  Dane was going to be pissed off at him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The wise expression in Jack\u2019s eyes when he looked up startled him.  She wasn\u2019t fooled by his words.  But there was a serenity in her gaze that was new.  A hint of the old fire that he hadn\u2019t seen in years lay within it.  She knew she had a hard battle ahead of her, but she was ready to fight it.  Because she knew she wasn\u2019t crazy.  Because she knew she wasn\u2019t alone.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>What the fuck did I <b>do?<\/b><\/i>  The question sputtered through his mind again, and this time an answer came to him.  <i>Either the smartest or dumbest thing I ever did in my life.  I rejoined the human race.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dr. Ian Dane\u2019s section of the space station was very elaborate.  His residential quarters were directly connected to both his extensive laboratories and the sickbay complex, which he held complete dominion over.  All of the doors would open for his handprint or retina scan instantly, and he could call up the information of his massive database from any terminal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It had been constructed to his specifications during the building of the station itself, eight years earlier.  Most people who passed through the station on their way to the Frontiers had no clue that the quiet, reedy man giving them their vaccinations was one of the most wealthy, powerful people in the known galaxy.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">And he wanted it that way.  He\u2019d come here to get away from the stares and the publicity.  Even after his full exoneration, those had continued until he\u2019d almost wished he <i>was<\/i> capable of murder.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">At least it had let him do, with a clean conscience, what he\u2019d always wanted to do.  Get away from the bulk of humankind and lose himself in his work.  He no longer felt obligated to oversee the family businesses \u2014 let his sister and the bean-counters handle those.  He had much more important things to do.  Be a doctor.  Be a researcher.  Discover new life forms, and protect humanity from <nobr>them\u2026<\/nobr> and protect them from humanity.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If it weren\u2019t for the girl\u2019s suffering, he\u2019d have been dancing with joy over this discovery.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But he liked Jackie.  A lot.  She was a sweet girl \u2014 young woman, really \u2014 and deserved a better life than the one these creatures had given her.  There was a lot more to her than could be seen on the surface, too.  There had to be, the way Riddick acted.  Nobody\u2019d ever managed to stir him to anxiety before.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He sat back in his favorite chair, pursing his lips as he considered the full meaning of that development.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I know you too well, Riddick.  You were standing there, trying to look as calm as ever, but I can see through that.  You care.  There\u2019s finally someone you\u2019d run into a burning building after.  Never thought I\u2019d see that day.  Never thought I\u2019d see you actually love someone.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He leaned forward and called up the star charts again, studying the region of space that Riddick\u2019s derelict skiff had come out of.  Exasperated, he shook his head and grabbed another menthol Kool out of the pack.  There were no suitable star systems within that area.  Unwillingly, his eyes moved to the Albireo Trinary.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Not possible.  I don\u2019t care if all three of them claimed that\u2019s where they were.  Trinary systems can\u2019t support life.  Whatever they thought they saw, they were <b>not<\/b> in the Albireo system.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He reconfigured the program but nothing else came up.  <i>Nothing<\/i> in that region of space could have supported life.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou never <i>can <\/i> do anything by the rules, can you, Riddick?\u201d he sighed.  He was going to have to question the girl closely about the planet they\u2019d crashed on, and see if she could remember anything that Riddick had forgotten.  Not that she\u2019d be able to come up with anything useful, like <nobr>coordinates\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Coordinates.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He felt it rush through him, a chill of discovery.  <i>I <b>have<\/b> coordinates.<\/i>  His fingers almost trembled as he began keying in his request.  Then his quiescent speakers crackled to life, and the final transmission from the <i>Hunter-Gratzner<\/i> began to play.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <blockquote>\r\n\r\n    <p style=\"margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><i>\u201cThis is an emergency dispatch from the merchant vessel <\/i>Hunter-Gratzner,<i> en route to the Tangiers System with forty commercial passengers on board. We have been knocked out of our shipping lane and are currently entering the atmosphere of a planetary body in the following position: X38, stroke 5; Y95 stroke 8; <nobr>Z21\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019ll be fucked up the ass,\u201d he muttered in awe, slipping back into the prison cant he\u2019d sworn he\u2019d never speak again.  He didn\u2019t need to call up the charts to know what he\u2019d see, but he did it anyway.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The Hunter-Gratzner had gone down within the Albireo Trinary.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack hadn\u2019t been afraid of anything except herself in months.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It had been a lonely way to live, thinking she was going insane, knowing she couldn\u2019t tell anyone.  Her calls for help had gone unanswered until they were at last silenced.  As hope had died, so had fear.  Who cared if others <i>thought<\/i> you were crazy when you already <i>knew<\/i> you were?  Who cared if something might be dangerous or painful, when you lived with the promise of pain at any moment?  And who cared if something might kill you, when the quietude of death seemed like a welcome blessing?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Nobody, when hope was dead.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Funny how she hadn\u2019t acted on any of that, she thought.  She\u2019d turned quiet.  Mousy.  Whatever nihilism had come to roost inside her had been a silent type.  Her inner fire had died along with hope, until only the fire that crawled through her veins lived on.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But now hope was reborn once more, and Jack was afraid.  What would she see, she thought nervously, in Dane\u2019s eyes?  Pity or scorn for an attempted suicide?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Cutting her wrists had been an act of stupidity on multiple levels, she thought.  Oh, she\u2019d <i>intended<\/i> to kill herself, and might have <nobr><i>succeeded<\/i>\u2026<\/nobr> except she\u2019d forgotten to reckon with Riddick\u2019s awareness.  It was probably the <i>smell<\/i> of her blood that had jolted him awake and brought him to her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But it had felt so natural and right.  After years of her blood burning through her veins, expelling it from her body had seemed <nobr>so\u2026<\/nobr> sensible.  So logical.  <nobr>So\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick opened the door to Dr. Dane\u2019s clinic, and once more Jack\u2019s fear of her reception flared to life.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She didn\u2019t miss the strange, charged look that passed between Riddick and Dane as she was led into the lab.  For the thousandth time, she wondered what was between those two.  Then Dane\u2019s gaze moved to her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack felt tears welling up in her eyes as she saw only gentle compassion.  She could have stayed strong in the face of scorn, she suddenly thought, but <nobr>this\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>kindness\u2026<\/nobr> was undoing her!  A hard, painful lump was suddenly lodged in her chest.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">And then came his voice, like a soft caress.  \u201cHow are you feeling this morning, Jackie?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She burst into tears.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Arms encircled her and drew her into a kind embrace.  Dane\u2019s embrace.  His scent was different from Riddick\u2019s.  He smelled like old books, antique leather and expensive aftershave.  She\u2019d never been close enough to him to notice before.  It took her several minutes to compose herself and he held her the entire time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Finally she was recovered to look up at him and meet yet another kind smile.  \u201cI\u2019m okay,\u201d she managed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGood girl.\u201d  He led her over to one of the examination rooms, Riddick following them.  The two men helped her up onto the table.  \u201cNow let\u2019s have a look at you.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She watched in morbid fascination as he began to unwrap the bindings on her right arm.  Her stomach turned as she saw \u2014 really saw \u2014 what she\u2019d done to herself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, my dear, you certainly weren\u2019t playing around.\u201d  His voice held a hint of amusement as he pulled over a rolling cart.  \u201cFortunately you didn\u2019t nick the arteries, just the vein.  And you didn\u2019t cut any tendons.  This will heal cleanly.  Riddick did a good job with the temporary sutures.  I\u2019m going to replace them with stronger ones, though, so that you can use your hands normally once the swelling and pain begin to go down.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack nodded gratefully.  The wound looked horrible.  At least, if he was telling the truth, it\u2019d be okay.  She hoped her other wrist was the same way.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane removed a syringe from the cart and uncapped it.  \u201cThis will sting a bit.  But it\u2019ll numb the area, and I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll find that a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay,\u201d she said, surprised at the shakiness in her voice.  Riddick climbed up onto the table beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.  Jack blinked in astonishment as the numbness spread quickly.  Her arm suddenly felt <i>good<\/i> again.  Pain-free.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane began to carefully close and seal her wound as she watched.  He was a perfectionist, she decided with bemusement, carefully tucking the edges of the ragged gash together.  There would be very little scarring.  As long as she didn\u2019t pick at the thing.  She\u2019d always been the kind of girl who did that too, picked at scabs.  She\u2019d have to get Riddick to watch her and stop her if she started up with that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat should do it,\u201d he finally said, and began winding a light dressing over her wrist.  She grinned, feeling grateful, when he extended it over her hand.  The end result did <i>not<\/i> look like the bandaging of a wrist-slasher.  It looked, rather, like the bandaging of someone with a sprain.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His smile was conspiratorial as he rolled the cart around and began to work on her left wrist.  Riddick moved around to her other side and continued holding her.  None of them talked much, but there was no sense of discomfort.  Rather, there was a kind of peace that she hadn\u2019t felt in almost a year.  Since her falling-out with Imam.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Don\u2019t project,<\/i> she admonished herself.  <i>Just because he\u2019s being nice to you like this doesn\u2019t mean you can adopt him as your father.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Finally the bandaging was done on both wrists.  Dane stood and began cleaning up the detritus from the operation.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNow, I\u2019m giving you prescriptions for anti-inflammatories and painkillers.  They\u2019re the same kinds you would take if you <i>had<\/i> sprained your wrists but they\u2019ll work fine with your real injuries. I\u2019ve notified the school that you sprained them last night in a fall, trying to catch yourself before you hit the ground. But the school nurse has been informed that she is not to involve herself in your treatment. Rhona\u2019s a good and trustworthy woman so I told her a little bit about your actual situation. She\u2019ll keep silent and call me if you develop any complications.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane walked back over, taking her hands in his.  His eyes locked with hers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFor now, we are not going to tell anyone about your condition.  People here are understandably paranoid about extraterrestrial microbes and the fact that yours is not contagious wouldn\u2019t stop them from overreacting.  I\u2019ve had to alert the GCDC, of course, and forward them the test results on your blood, but they\u2019re in agreement that you pose no threat to the station\u2019s populace and don\u2019t have to be isolated.  So for now we\u2019re going <nobr>to\u2014<\/nobr> what\u2019s this?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane\u2019s eyes had dropped to her hand.  He was staring at it, frowning.  Jack looked too.  Realization hit her after a puzzled moment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He was looking at the cut on her thumb.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">When his eyes lifted they went straight to Riddick\u2019s and the charge was back in the two men\u2019s gazes again.  Releasing Jack\u2019s hands, Dane grabbed first one and then the other of Riddick\u2019s, examining them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSon of a <nobr>b\u2014\u201d<\/nobr>  Dane stopped himself.  \u201cJackie, will you excuse us for a few moments?  Riddick and I need to discuss this.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The glare Dane flung at Riddick was intense. And Riddick actually seemed to <i>shrink<\/i> beneath it for a moment. Jack\u2019s jaw dropped as Riddick meekly climbed down from the examination table and followed the infuriated doctor out of the room.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>What <b>is<\/b> it between those two?<\/i> she wondered yet again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">When Riddick had been a boy in foster homes, he\u2019d never managed to connect.  Not with the foster parents, not with his foster siblings.  He\u2019d felt no sense of kinship with them, even on the basic \u201cwe\u2019re all human beings here\u201d level.  So whenever he\u2019d gotten into trouble and been called onto the carpet, his responses had been pure slyness and rebellion.  Vacillating between \u201chow do I bullshit my way out of this\u201d and \u201cwho the hell do you think you are to tell me what to do,\u201d he\u2019d never felt any sense of guilt over disappointing or hurting the authority figures in front of him.  Until now.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Fuck, Dane\u2019s pissed.  Shit, I can\u2019t blame him.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHave you gone <i>completely<\/i> out of your mind?\u201d  What was left of Dane\u2019s calm fa\u00e7ade dropped with the closing of his office door and the look he turned on Riddick was charged with more emotions than could be counted.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick took a deep breath.  There was no bullshit handy, and even if there had been, he owed Dane better than that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBeen wondering that myself ever since I did it,\u201d he admitted, abashed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThis is incredible,\u201d Dane snapped, pacing.  Riddick found himself retreating to the corner, overwhelmed by the sheer agitated presence of the smaller man.  Dane almost crackled with nervous energy.  \u201cFor God\u2019s sake, I knew you\u2019d run into a burning building for the girl but I never thought you\u2019d douse yourself in gasoline first!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick leaned back against the wall.  That image of self-immolation struck at him hard.  Was that what he\u2019d done?  Something not just stupid but suicidal?  Had he rejoined the human race just in time to kiss it goodbye?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He remembered his sense of scorn when, back on that fucking planet, he\u2019d watched the others.  Calling after each other.  Running after each other.  Putting themselves in harm\u2019s way on the off chance that they could help each other.  He\u2019d felt so superior to them at the time, because he understood something that they <nobr>didn\u2019t\u2014<\/nobr> that survival of oneself took precedence over everything else.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Now he felt inferior to them.  Now he understood why they\u2019d done those things, why Jack herself had done them.  And now, it seemed, he was making up for lost chances with a vengeance.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I\u2019m an idiot.<\/i>  He looked down at his thumb, not sure which idiocy he was referring to.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThis isn\u2019t some school-child blood oath here, Riddick!  This is serious business!  This is a potentially lethal infectious agent and you just exposed yourself to it!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Ice passed into Riddick\u2019s veins, and he looked up at Dane.  \u201cYou haven\u2019t found a treatment.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane sighed, deflating a little.  \u201cNo, I haven\u2019t.  It doesn\u2019t respond to any of our stock antibiotics or antivirals.  I even tried some that haven\u2019t been used in centuries because all of the modern germs have built up resistance.  No joy.  Not yet, anyway.  There\u2019s going to be a great deal of research <nobr>before\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick saw Dane stiffen as some sort of enlightenment came to the man.  He\u2019d seen that happen before.  Hook had called them \u201cDane Moments.\u201d   <i>And here comes another <nobr>one\u2026<\/nobr> please, let it be a solution to Jack\u2019s <nobr>illness\u2026.<\/nobr><\/i> <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane abruptly sat down.  His face had gone eerily calm.  Gazing out in front of him for a long moment, he at last took a deep breath and spoke.  \u201cThere may be a way to turn this in our favor.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Something ominous was lodged in that quiet tone.  Riddick felt a chill move through him and he took a chair in front of Dane\u2019s desk.  \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane closed his eyes.  \u201cWe don\u2019t tell anyone what you\u2019ve done.  I don\u2019t do any tests or treatments on you.  We go with the blood samples I took from you last night, before your <nobr>\u2026impulsive<\/nobr> <nobr>gesture\u2026<\/nobr> which say you\u2019re clean.\u201d Dane\u2019s eyes opened and locked with his.  \u201cAnd you apply for Mercy Man status.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">For a moment Riddick thought the entire station had been grabbed by a gravitational well and was plummeting downward.  Then he realized it was just him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Mercy Man status.  Dear God.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He wanted to laugh.  He wanted to tell Dane to stop joking around.  But the look in the doctor\u2019s eyes stopped him.  Dane was serious.  Deadly serious.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Oh my God.<\/i><\/p><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4000\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4000 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-1\">\u00ab Chapter 1<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4066\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4066 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-3\">Chapter 3 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" data-title=\"3\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4001\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4001 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-2\">\u00ab Chapter 2<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4067\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4067 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-4\">Chapter 4 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1590\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1590 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><b>3.<br\/><u>Mercy Man<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Freedom was close; Riddick could taste it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He navigated his way through the labyrinthine corridors of the Pit with an ease that pleased him, heading for the Mediplex.  His blood was almost simmering with his excitement.  Two years, and he\u2019d be out of this shithole, back out in the world, with a clean record.  Two years and he could start his life over, do it <i>right<\/i> this time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Two years.  Two years.<\/i>  It echoed through his steps and his heartbeat.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The Mediplex lived in a kind of twilight, unlike the rest of the Pit.  Light enough for Dane and the other medically-trained convicts to work by, but dim enough to suit the men they worked with, and worked on.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He entered the complex and looked around for his <nobr>friend\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u2026His friend?  Funny, he\u2019d never had any of those since he was a kid, but Dane was definitely one of the best allies he\u2019d ever come by.  Not the kind of guy he\u2019d have thought to strike up an alliance with on his own.  It was ironic, and amusing, how an arrangement of convenience had become so much more than that.  Dane, he decided, was going to be very happy for him.  For one thing, it would probably mean they\u2019d get to work together.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane wasn\u2019t around.  He leaned against the counter in the lobby and waited.  Nobody even seemed to be on duty.  He could hear raised voices behind the inner doors, talking calmly but rapidly and at high volume.  Sounded like trauma surgery to him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Two years.  Two years.<\/i>  With that hammering in his chest, it was absurdly even harder than ever to wait a few minutes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Finally an orderly emerged, his scrubs spattered liberally with blood.  Riddick felt his eyebrows go up.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhoa.  What\u2019s goin\u2019 on?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The man shook his head.  Riddick recognized him \u2014 Marvin Katzman, cell block D-7.  Former ambulance technician, lifer for more than twenty serial rape-murders on Proxima Centauri 4.  Riddick generally avoided him.  The man\u2019s hatred for women was obsessive and ugly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick <i>liked<\/i> women.  Being around them again was going to be one of the huge pluses of getting out of Slam.  Hell, most of his early criminal stunts had been about showing off for <nobr>them\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFight in the mess hall,\u201d Katzman said, cutting off his thoughts.  \u201cNightcrawler gutted Barrymore.  They got him back in surgery <nobr>now\u2014<\/nobr> Dane\u2019s trying to see if he can sew the guy\u2019s guts back together.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick sighed.  Sounded like Dane wasn\u2019t going to be free for a while.  Part of him \u2014 the part marching to the relentless beat of <i>two years<\/i> \u2014 was tempted to shrug it off and head out.  Find Norris and see who he needed to talk to and what he needed to sign.  But the rational survivalist side of him, born in this hellpit, knew better.  First he needed the advice of someone he could trust.  He\u2019d just have to wait.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Waiting would fuck with his schedule, but he\u2019d just have to live with it.  And <i>dammit,<\/i> Nightcrawler was gonna be in Solitary for a week, too.  Tonight was going to be insane.  Not that this was any <nobr>surprise\u2026<\/nobr>  Barrymore had been pushing.  Nobody pushed Nightcrawler and lived.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Incoherent shouts erupted from behind the doors.  At the sound, Katzman turned and headed back in, leaving Riddick alone again.  The shouting went on for several minutes, slowly reducing until it was just one authoritative voice over all the others.  Dane\u2019s.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFuck, that\u2019s it, I\u2019m calling it.  Time?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick shook his head.  <i>That\u2019s how many now, seven?  Just since I got here.  I think Nightcrawler\u2019s killed more people <b>in<\/b> Slam than Outside.  Glad I\u2019m on his good <nobr>side\u2026<\/nobr><\/i>  He looked up as Dane emerged from behind the doors.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane was covered in blood, solidly on his arms up to the elbows.  Spatters and splashes of it were strewn over his surgical gown as well.  He looked exasperated.  Spotting Riddick, he shook his head and held up one bloody finger before disappearing into the showers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Guess that means \u201cwait,\u201d<\/i> Riddick decided.  He could do that.  He grabbed a seat.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane was gone for ten minutes.  When he approached Riddick he smelled like soap and shampoo over disinfectant.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>He must have <b>really<\/b> felt dirty.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow can I help you, Riddick?\u201d  Dane\u2019s voice was calm and professional, all of his fury over losing a patient gone.  Riddick knew it had to be simmering below the surface, though.  There was nothing that Dane hated more than losing the struggle to save a life.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u2026Which was a funny thing, given that he\u2019d supposedly stabbed his vid-star wife and her lover to death.  More and more, Riddick was inclined to believe Dane\u2019s staunch claims of innocence.  He\u2019d <i>seen<\/i> the doctor fly into rages a few times now, but the fury had never once been expressed in violence.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI think I found a way to get out of here,\u201d he said, amazed at the way his heart actually <i>fluttered.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane frowned.  \u201cI hope you\u2019re not talking about an escape attempt.  I can show you the remains of the last man who <i>tried<\/i> to escape the Pit, if you want to know why it\u2019s not <nobr>poss\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo, nothing like that.  I heard about this program, and I wanted to ask you about it.  \u2018Cause if it\u2019s legit, it\u2019ll get me out of here.\u201d  Riddick took a deep breath and pressed forward.  \u201cHave you heard of something called the Mercy <nobr>M\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane\u2019s hand was suddenly over his mouth.  The doctor glanced around the room warily for a moment before releasing him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>What the fuck?<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">When Dane spoke, his voice was low and rapid.  \u201cDon\u2019t say another word about it here.  Switch off with Hook so tonight is your night to walk me back to the cell block and we\u2019ll talk about it then.  Have you told anybody else what you\u2019re considering?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick shook his head, speechless.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGood.  Don\u2019t.  Don\u2019t say a word to <i>anybody<\/i> until we talk.  Now get out of here before someone wonders what you want.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Despite the soft tone, Dane\u2019s voice drove Riddick to his feet.  He left the Mediplex swiftly and headed for the laundry, where Hook would be working.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Two years.  Two years.<\/i> It still pulsed through him, even as he arranged with Hook to switch off protection duties for the night.  Even with the sudden doubts Dane had stirred, he couldn\u2019t let go of that beat.  He didn\u2019t think he\u2019d survive the Pit past that time, anyway.  The fights, the <nobr>killings\u2026<\/nobr> it was only a matter of time before someone decided to take him for the position of Nightcrawler\u2019s right-hand <nobr>man\u2026<\/nobr> or before Nightcrawler himself decided that he no longer trusted his lieutenants and did away with them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane was silent as they walked from the Mediplex to the cell block.  Every time Riddick began to speak, he stopped, compelled by the stern look on the smaller man\u2019s face.  Finally, reaching one of the \u201cdead zones\u201d where the cameras couldn\u2019t see, they stopped.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick knew that Dane could barely see him through the darkness, but it felt like the man\u2019s unshined eyes were boring into his.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat I\u2019m going to tell you, you never, ever heard.  Do you understand me?\u201d  The doctor kept his voice soft, below the pickup level of the surveillance system.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay,\u201d Riddick answered, his voice equally soft.  The only other man in the Pit who got this level of meek obedience out of him was Nightcrawler himself.  <i>Shit, he\u2019s in Solitary by now, that means I have to be the Top Man around here on his behalf until he gets <nobr>out\u2014<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThe Mercy Man Project is <i>not<\/i> something you want to be part of, Riddick.  It\u2019s a death trap.\u201d Dane raised his hand as Riddick\u2019s mouth opened to protest, silencing him.  \u201cI know what you\u2019ve been told.  You submit to the program and you serve two years, and then your criminal record will be wiped from the system, and you\u2019ll be released.  All you have to do is let them test vaccines and treatments on you.  Right?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah, that\u2019s what Norris was saying.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane spat.  \u201cNorris.  Good to know.  You watch what you say around him from now on, okay?  What that fucker\u2019s trying to sell to you isn\u2019t <i>nearly<\/i> as hot as what he\u2019s selling to the guards.  Got me?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick kept a smile off of his face.  Half the time, Dane sounded like an intellectual when he talked, but prison cant was seeping in and taking over his language more and more.  <i>Another few years and you won\u2019t be able to tell him apart from the rest of us numb fucks,<\/i> he thought, and was surprised at the sense of regret that woke in him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">But what he\u2019d said was sobering.  \u201cYou saying Norris is working for the guards?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat\u2019s about the size of it.  <i>Listen<\/i> to me, Riddick, very carefully.  In order to test those vaccines and treatments on their subjects, the doctors who run the experiments first have to infect them with the <i>diseases<\/i> they\u2019re trying to <i>cure.<\/i>  Then they try out their experimental drugs.  Some Mercy Men get the drugs and some get placebos.  So even assuming the drugs are going to <i>work,<\/i> there\u2019s only a fifty-fifty chance that you\u2019re going to <i>get<\/i> the good stuff.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">A chill moved through Riddick as he listened.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThey\u2019re not testing little things here, either,\u201d Dane continued.  \u201cWe\u2019re talking about the most virulent diseases they have, the things they can\u2019t test on anybody <i>but<\/i> lifers and death row inmates, without the Human Rights groups going up in arms.  Smallpox.  Dystarth Fever variants.  Pathogens they\u2019ve never seen before and may not find a cure for until <i>ten years<\/i> from now.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The chill became a shiver.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIf you survive the two years, <i>and<\/i> you\u2019re actually cured of the disease they gave you, they\u2019ll release you, yes.  But let\u2019s be absolutely <i>clear<\/i> here.  Out of every twenty Mercy Men, only three survive to the end of the two-year period.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The shiver became a shudder.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOf those three, only one of them can actually be released.  The other two are still sick with \u2014 <i>dying of<\/i> \u2014 the disease they were infected with, and have to stay in quarantine until they are either successfully cured, or <i>die.<\/i>  You have a <i>five percent<\/i> chance of survival in the Mercy Men, Riddick.  That\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The shudder overwhelmed him, rattling his bones.  <nobr>\u201cWhy\u2026<\/nobr> how come nobody says that when they talk about it?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThey don\u2019t know.  <i>I<\/i> know because the techs make me assist them in some small capacities \u2014 mostly when they need to perform an autopsy.  They\u2019re mostly virologists, not surgeons, so I\u2019m the one they grab to assist the pathologist.  And I\u2019m not allowed to discuss what I know with anyone.\u201d  Dane glanced around again, trying to peer into the dark for eavesdroppers.  Riddick felt his own eyes following the doctor\u2019s blind gaze, suddenly fearful himself over who might have overheard.  \u201cI\u2019m taking an awful risk telling you this, Riddick.  So remember, we never had this conversation.  You\u2019re just not interested in signing up.  Right?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His throat was so dry, when he spoke, that his voice cracked like he was a callow teenager.  \u201cRight.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The tension eased a little out of Dane\u2019s slim frame.  \u201cGood.  Now, let\u2019s go on.  Finish walking me <nobr>home\u2026<\/nobr> I know you have a lot to do tonight, with Nightcrawler in Solitary.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane began to turn, but stopped when Riddick put his hand on his shoulder.  He looked surprised by the gesture; Riddick knew <i>he<\/i> was surprised, himself, at the fact that he\u2019d made it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThanks, man.  I mean it.\u201d  Hearing the gratitude in his own voice shocked him a little.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The doctor gave him an ironic grin.  \u201cWell, you know I can\u2019t let you die on <nobr>me\u2026<\/nobr> you still haven\u2019t paid off your shine job.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick joined him in a wry chuckle and they began to walk once more.  It would be a long time before he <i>did<\/i> finish paying off the shine job, but he knew that wasn\u2019t why Dane had warned him away.  It was much more than that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">And now, he realized, what he owed Dane would never be paid off.  Because he owed so much more to the doctor now, more than just a little shine job \u2014 he owed Dane his <i>life.<\/i>  And even though that was one debt he doubted Dane would <i>ever<\/i> attempt to collect on, it would always be there.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The rhythm had changed inside him.  <i>Two years<\/i> was gone, replaced by a new and strange phrase.  <i>A friend.  A friend.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">For the first time in his entire adult \u201cme-against-the-world\u201d existence, Richard B. Riddick had something better than an ally in the <nobr>fight\u2026<\/nobr> he had <i>a friend.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick swallowed.  He stared at Dane in astonishment, still trying to comprehend what the doctor had said.  <i>Apply for Mercy Man status?  You were the one who warned me <b>away<\/b> from <nobr>it\u2026<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou\u2019re <nobr>not\u2026<\/nobr> you <nobr>don\u2019t\u2026\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane fixed him with a stern look.  \u201cI\u2019m very serious, and I <i>do<\/i> mean it.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBut you said that was a death trap!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIn the Pit it would have been.  The only treatments tested on volunteers from there are for diseases that have a high mortality rate.\u201d  He shrugged.  \u201cAs far as the authorities are concerned, the Pit is the last stop.  It\u2019s Death Row for people who committed their crimes in places where there\u2019s no death <nobr>penalty\u2026<\/nobr> and that\u2019s why they let everyone there run wild.  The average life expectancy of a felon in the Pit is five years.  They don\u2019t really want to let any of them back <i>out.<\/i>  Anyway, there are plenty of volunteers for less dangerous diseases.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo how\u2019s it different now?\u201d  Dane\u2019s words hadn\u2019t eased the cold knot in Riddick\u2019s belly one bit.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cFirst, you\u2019re not <i>in<\/i> the Pit.  Second, for the past five years you\u2019ve been a model citizen.  Every time the station gets a petition to have your asylum revoked, that consideration weighs in more and more strongly.  You\u2019ve shown repeatedly that you\u2019re <i>reformed.<\/i>  Third, we do have a disease here that needs study and treatment.  Jackie\u2019s development of it is already acute enough that we can\u2019t observe early symptoms or test early treatments, so a volunteer who allows us to track its progress from early infection is very useful.  And fourth, although we\u2019re not going to <i>tell<\/i> them this yet, you\u2019re already <i>infected.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane rose and moved to one of his terminals, punching buttons.  He continued to speak as he gazed at the screen.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHonestly, Riddick, I think we\u2019re going to be working on a cure for more than two years here.  That means that once we find it, you\u2019ll have your pardon and you won\u2019t be limited to this station anymore.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The cold knot unraveled and warmed.  Was this actually <i>it?<\/i>  His chance to be free, utterly and completely free?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His eyes immediately moved to the door, as if he could see through the walls and into the exam room where Jack waited.  He remembered the dreams that had filled his mind years ago when he\u2019d first heard of the Mercy Man Program.  The young women he\u2019d be able to find and get to know upon his <nobr>release\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Young women who looked remarkably like Jack, he realized.  Funny thing.  He\u2019d never consciously considered that she was his ideal type.  But she was.  And he\u2019d be able to take her anywhere in the galaxy she wanted to <nobr>go\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>One thing at a time, asshole.<\/i>  This was still a pretty big long-shot.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He shook himself out of the tangent and forced himself to focus on the moment at hand.  \u201cWhat if they grant me the status but then say you have to test something <i>else<\/i> on me?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThey can\u2019t.  I run this station\u2019s infirmary and we already <i>have<\/i> a health crisis, albeit one of very limited scope.  That health crisis has top priority, and I have the right to commandeer any Mercy Men on the station who aren\u2019t already enrolled in a clinical trial.  We don\u2019t actually <i>have<\/i> any, enrolled or not.  That means I automatically have full rights and powers over your regimen the moment you\u2019re approved.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>That\u2019s a lot of power,<\/i> Riddick thought.  He didn\u2019t like to give up that much power over himself. <i>But I\u2019m already infected.  I did it to myself.  <nobr>And\u2026<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His gaze moved to Dane again.  Remembering the strange, crushing sense of loss he\u2019d felt when the man had left the Pit, exonerated at last.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cYou can\u2019t go, I still haven\u2019t paid off my shine <nobr>job\u2026\u201d<\/nobr>  It had been the only way to express what he\u2019d really wanted to say.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>A gentle smile he\u2019d never forgotten, telling him that Dane knew what he really meant, had answered.  \u201cWe\u2019ll just let that one ride.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He\u2019d thought that they would never see each other again.  And yet here they were.  It almost made him want to believe in the <i>merciful<\/i> God that the Holy Man had talked <nobr>about\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I trust him.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay.  What do I need to fill out?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane gave him an impressed look.  \u201cThere are some forms I want to fill out first, requesting a Mercy Man or Mercy Men.  That way my request predates your application, and I can say that you stepped forward specifically to volunteer for this.  Plus nobody can assign you to another trial if my request has gone through before your application.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">As Dane\u2019s printer began to produce sheets of paper, he returned to his desk.  \u201cThis far out into the Frontiers, you\u2019ll be the <i>only<\/i> Mercy Man within range of my request, in all likelihood.  And you can specify that you\u2019re volunteering for this protocol, <nobr>too\u2026<\/nobr> that\u2019s actually allowed, but it\u2019s not a right they inform inmates of the Pit that they have.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo I\u2019m protected, now?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane met his eyes squarely. \u201cYou\u2019ll always be protected.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cAnd Jack?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane nodded.  The promise passed from his eyes into Riddick and relieved him.  No matter what happened, Dane would take care of both of them.  If something happened to him, she would be safe.  Always safe.  Dane would see to it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Not that I have <b>any<\/b> plans of dying anytime <nobr>soon\u2026<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhat do I need to do?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Relief, not triumph, appeared on Dane\u2019s face.  \u201cI\u2019ll have my assistant put together the documents we\u2019ll need, and I\u2019ll go over them myself before you validate and submit them.\u201d  A new emotion appeared in Dane\u2019s gaze. \u201cI will <i>not<\/i> let you sign anything that could put you in harm\u2019s way.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick nodded.  Something was wrong with the air.  It was very dry and it was making his eyes sting.  \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGood,\u201d Dane said.  \u201cThen we just wait for official word that your application is granted.  If all goes well, we\u2019ll be able to acquire not only a cure for both of you, but a pardon for you as well.  That\u2019ll solve several problems at once.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou that eager to get rid of me?\u201d  Riddick kept his tone light and humorous, but he did have to wonder.  Would Dane be happier with him \u2014 and the reminder of times past \u2014 gone?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOf course not,\u201d Dane replied, mild amusement in his voice.  \u201cBut we both know that spending the rest of your life on this station is <i>not<\/i> the kind of life you want to have.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick nodded, acknowledging Dane\u2019s point.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">When he\u2019d first awakened on the station, the sight of Ian Dane entering his hospital room had genuinely terrified him.  No false name, he knew, was going to fool the one man in the galaxy who knew him better than he knew himself.  And there was no escaping.  Severely malnourished and dehydrated as he was, recovering from the injuries on his left side, he didn\u2019t have the strength to fight anything or anyone, and he was the <i>strongest<\/i> of the trio pulled from the <nobr>skiff\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>My resistance was way down.  Jack\u2019s and Imam\u2019s had to be worse.  Is that how the damn things got a foothold in the two of them?<\/i>  He\u2019d have to ask Dane.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It had been a frightening moment.  He hadn\u2019t been sure, right away, what the lack of security or restraints meant in terms of Dane\u2019s intentions, and he\u2019d been afraid to ask.  Dane had had to come right out and tell him the ground rules before he\u2019d understood.  Before he\u2019d realized what a friend he really had.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane technically did not own the station, but he might as well have.  His money had played a significant role in its construction, especially in the medical wings.  He\u2019d created himself a world where nobody knew or cared about the murder of his wife, the scandals that had followed, and the nine years he\u2019d spent in prison before the real killer had been unmasked.  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>\u201cNew Lives Start In The Frontiers,\u201d<\/i> the slogans read.  Riddick had seen them in his youth, on billboards throughout his stomping grounds on overpopulated Earth.  Dane had successfully built one for himself, and the extraordinary part was his willingness to turn around and share that new life with an old \u2014 and dangerous \u2014 friend.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">After all, unlike Dane, Riddick had <i>not<\/i> been sent to prison for crimes he hadn\u2019t committed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">By the time he was actually well enough to consider making a break for it, Dane had already persuaded the station managers to offer Riddick asylum and immunity.  As long as he stayed on the station and out of trouble, nobody could touch him.  He wasn\u2019t exactly a free man, but it was much better than a cage in the darkness.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick had accepted.  He\u2019d expected Jack to ask to stay with him, but it had surprised him that Imam had, as well.  The Holy Man, though, had seemed to be adrift.  He\u2019d wanted a place to stay while he recovered his <nobr>faith\u2026<\/nobr> and for a while it had seemed like he\u2019d started to.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Then the microbes got to him,<\/i> Riddick realized.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick wondered if someone more socially-inclined than himself might have caught on to what was happening, when the Holy Man became reclusive and Jack\u2019s vivacity faded.  But years in Slam, and years on the run, had atrophied his social skills and even many of his people-reading skills down to a more primitive level.  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Hunter-hunted relationships and violent power politics were natural to him, but the more mundane, nonviolent social structures had become foreign.  The nuances of family politics had always been something he observed from the outside anyway, and trying to figure out the alien perspectives of a religious man \u2014 and a <i>girl<\/i> \u2014 had been extremely difficult.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He\u2019d just mentally shrugged and let it be.  Just as he hadn\u2019t really pursued a closer friendship with Dane on the station.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">They\u2019d seen each other every day and worked with each other frequently back in Slam.  But on the station, they\u2019d had nothing in common.  Not really.  Dane handled the Medical wing and Riddick was just another loader on the space docks.  Slam, Riddick assumed, and the ordeals they\u2019d shared together there, was something both of them were trying to <i>forget.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">In retrospect, he wished he\u2019d made different assumptions and pursued the friendship.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The silence in the room had stretched out, he realized.  He wished he knew what to say to break it.  There was just too much unsaid, <i>years<\/i> of unspoken things.  What if it was too late to say any of it?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane saved him.  \u201cI haven\u2019t been much inclined to spend time with people, since I got out.  The things you see, in a place like the Pit \u2014 and I\u2019m heartily glad that I couldn\u2019t see a good deal of it through the darkness \u2014  they change you.  They make you less inclined for the company of others.  Especially when half of those people still point and stare if they realize who you are.  But I should have tried harder.\u201d  The doctor\u2019s voice was gentle and apologetic.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The hard lump suddenly in Riddick\u2019s throat forced him to make do with another nod.  He knew <i>exactly<\/i> what Dane meant.  Few people on the Station knew who he was, but most of those who did treated him like he <nobr>was\u2026<\/nobr> some half-tamed beast that might turn on them.  Jack and Imam had been <nobr>exceptions\u2026<\/nobr> and Dane.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGuess we were both serving time in Solitary, huh?\u201d he managed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane chuckled.  \u201cI should have come and seen you more.  It <nobr>just\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDidn\u2019t occur to you.  Me neither.\u201d  Riddick grinned at Dane and shrugged.  \u201cDidn\u2019t occur to me that you\u2019d want a reminder <nobr>of\u2014<\/nobr>  It\u2019s okay.  Guess we\u2019ll be working together a lot, now.  Kinda gonna be like old times.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He hoped Jack wouldn\u2019t mind Dane entering their lives on a social basis, in addition to being her doctor.  It suddenly occurred to him to wonder how lonely <i>she<\/i> might have become.  When <i>was<\/i> the last time she\u2019d invited a friend over?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cA little,\u201d Dane agreed, lips twitching.  \u201cBut at least here, I don\u2019t have to be worried that one of the lifers is going to jump me for the codes to the narcotics <nobr>cabinet\u2026<\/nobr> and I can see.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">That made Riddick chuckle.  Dane <i>could<\/i> have had a shine job.  With the wealth his skills gave him in a place like the Pit \u2014 enough that he could afford to actually <i>smoke<\/i> the cigarettes inmates paid him in \u2014 Dane could have had one of the best.  He had claimed, whenever asked, that a shine job might rob him of the ability to function in the bright lights of the mediplex, or to see colors well enough to make good clinical diagnoses.  But the best shine jobs would have let him keep both abilities.  The real reason had been deeper and more tortured.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane had <i>known<\/i> he was innocent.  He had known that his sister was battling on to prove it.  Getting a shine job would have been tantamount to giving up, accepting his fate and his place in the Pit.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">For nine years he\u2019d lived in the almost-total darkness, bartering his medical skills for cigarettes and protection services, while he waited to see light again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Kinda puts things in perspective now,<\/i> Riddick thought.  And to think <i>he\u2019d<\/i> been convinced he wouldn\u2019t make it another year in the Pit without going <nobr>insane\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane rose from his desk.  \u201cAnyway, we should get started.  There\u2019s a lot I need to learn, still, about Jackie\u2019s infection, and a good many tests that will have to be run.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick nodded and rose from his chair too.  \u201cYeah, I guess so.\u201d  He paused, and chuckled ruefully.  \u201cGonna be a long road, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane cocked his head and grinned.  \u201cTrue.  But why is that funny?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cMan, <nobr>I\u2014\u201d<\/nobr>  Riddick felt heat on his cheeks.  \u201cThis morning, I had to help her get dressed.  You wanna talk about being put to the <nobr><i>test<\/i>\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The memory of helping Jack put on her bra was still with him.  His fingers began to itch again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane laughed.  \u201cYou\u2019re going to have to help her with that for the next few days, you know.  And worse.  She can\u2019t get her dressings wet, so you\u2019re going to have to help her with sponge-baths.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHoly <i>shit,<\/i> Doc, I\u2019m gonna die of blue-balls before I even <i>become<\/i> a Mercy Man!\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Now <i>that<\/i> was a genuine guffaw.  Dane\u2019s eyes sparkled.  \u201cIf you want, one of the nurses can stop by and help <nobr>her\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cNo! No, that won\u2019t be necessary.  I\u2019ll <nobr>survive\u2026\u201d<\/nobr>  Riddick chuckled and shook his head.  <nobr>\u201c\u2026somehow.\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane grinned.  He picked up a data pad and chuckled again.  \u201cOkay, getting back to business, I need you to think about the planet you two \u2014 and your other friend \u2014 were on.  I need as many details as possible about it as you can remember.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhy\u2019s that?\u201d  Riddick cocked his head.  Hadn\u2019t he already told Dane about the planet?  Back when they came to the station and again last night, when they were trying to figure out how and when Jack was infected?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019ll show you.\u201d  Dane moved to a terminal with a large screen and pressed some buttons.  A star chart came to life on the screen.  \u201cThis is the region of space identified in the <i>Hunter-Gratzner\u2019s<\/i> distress <nobr>call\u2026<\/nobr> and here, in the center of <nobr>it\u2026\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane pressed another button and the image zoomed in closer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201c\u2026is the triple-star system called Albireo.  A blue single and a red-and-gold binary pair.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick nodded.  \u201cThat\u2019s where we were.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIt can\u2019t be.  Riddick, you could fit almost sixty solar systems inside the orbit between the blue star and the binary.  A planet centered between them would have to have its own sun to rely on, and from its surface, all three stars would look like just <nobr>that\u2026<\/nobr> just stars.\u201d  Dane shrugged.  \u201cThe kind of star system you described doesn\u2019t exist and couldn\u2019t anyway.  A planet would be torn to pieces by the gravitational fields of three stars that were <i>that<\/i> close to it.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It was testimony to how much Dane had taught him in the first place, during their time in Slam, that Riddick understood him now.  <nobr>\u201cBut\u2026\u201d<\/nobr> he stammered, feeling chilled.  \u201cIt\u2019s right there.  On your screen.  You said it yourself, the coordinates match.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane sighed.  \u201cI know.  And god knows, we need to find that planet.  If none of the antibiotics we have work, that\u2019s where we\u2019ll have to go to find a cure.  But the world you\u2019ve <nobr>described\u2026<\/nobr> shouldn\u2019t be able to exist.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhere the fuck <i>were<\/i> we, then?\u201d Riddick demanded.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane\u2019s eyes were grave.  \u201cThat\u2019s what we need to find out.  As soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"margin-bottom: 0;\"><small><b>Author\u2019s note:<\/b> When I was a senior in high school, I worked at the local public library as a library page. My duties consisted mostly of re-shelving books that had either been returned by borrowers, or pulled out and left lying around by browsers. One evening I was working in the fiction section when I picked up a book called <i>The Mercy Men<\/i> by Alan Nourse. My favorite rock band at the time was \u201cSisters of Mercy,\u201d so naturally the title caught my eye and I stopped to read the back cover. It was a prison novel, about a group of men who had been enrolled as \u201cguinea pigs\u201d in medical experiments.<\/small><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><small>I shelved the book, but the concept stuck in my head. I never actually got around to reading Nourse\u2019s novel (sadly, now out of print and virtually impossible to find) but he is the original source of the concept \u2014 I have no idea how my depiction of it compares to his.<\/small><\/p><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4001\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4001 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-2\">\u00ab Chapter 2<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4067\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4067 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-4\">Chapter 4 \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" data-title=\"4\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4002\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4002 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-3\">\u00ab Chapter 3<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1594\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1594 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><b>4.<br\/><u>Quick Changes<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The two men had been gone for so long \u2014 and Dane\u2019s drugs had turned out to be so good \u2014 that Jack had fallen asleep on the examining table.  She blinked slowly awake as they came back in.  The light on her eyes wasn\u2019t nearly as bad this time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Guess I <b>can<\/b> sleep without a blindfold.  Looks like I\u2019m better off doing so, too.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Both men seemed calmer, the energy crackling between them now humming on a very different level.  But it was still there.  Something was up.  One look at Riddick\u2019s face told her that she was better off not even bothering to ask, though.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Instead she sat up and stretched carefully.  \u201cSo, is it time for more blood tests?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane smiled.  \u201cJust a few.  I don\u2019t dare take all that much at the moment because I\u2019m not entirely sure how much you lost last night.  The specimen Riddick brought me was both diluted and degraded by the time I got it, though, so I do need some, in order to see how these creatures behave.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack nodded and then shuddered.  The thought of all those little things, swimming through her blood \u2014 <i>Bugs under my skin.  Wasn\u2019t as crazy as I thought I was.  Almost wish I had been<\/i> \u2014 unnerved her a little. \u201cOkay, sounds good.  Anything else?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019m going to give you a basic physical as well.  Overall, you appear to be in very good health, and that\u2019s a good sign.\u201d  Dane snapped on his gloves and assembled his blood collection kit even as he continued talking.  \u201cIt tells me that the likelihood of systemic organ damage is low.  These creatures may be <i>hurting<\/i> you, but they don\u2019t appear to be <i>harming<\/i> you too <nobr>badly\u2026<\/nobr> if you follow the distinction.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick nodded, his expression thoughtful as he climbed back up onto the table to sit beside her.  Jack decided that she\u2019d puzzle over that later, and nodded too.  She suspected that Dane knew his words had sailed right over her head by the wry grin he gave her as he sat down in front of the table.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019d ask you which hand you write with, but there\u2019s not much difference at this point.\u201d  He gave her an amused wink, as if her suicide attempt was a funny secret they shared.  And suddenly it almost felt like it was.  She found herself grinning and extending her left arm so he could swab the inside of her elbow.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He filled three vials while she watched in bemusement.  The blood looked perfectly normal to her, a little dark, maybe.  But there was nothing <i>weird<\/i> about it.  It had looked normal the night before, too, as it dribbled into the bathtub.  Riddick\u2019s hands rested on her shoulders, gently kneading at her muscles, keeping her soothed.  It wasn\u2019t long at all before Dane was finished.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat\u2019s it.\u201d  He covered the vials with a dark cloth.  \u201cI\u2019ll be right back.  I want to get the computers started on this as fast as I can.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay.\u201d  It was all she managed to get out before he\u2019d disappeared out of the room.  Jack found herself chuckling at his abrupt departure.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick\u2019s basso rumble joined her voice.  \u201cSorry, kid.  I think we just came in second to some microbes.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack grinned.  She had to admit that, now that she knew <i>what<\/i> was wrong with her and how to hold it at bay, she was pretty curious to learn more, herself.  Dane\u2019s enthusiasm didn\u2019t bother her.  In fact, it relieved her.  He would be putting in a lot of overtime on his research.  She knew it with iron certainty.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat\u2019s okay.  It\u2019s nice to have a moment to catch <nobr>up\u2026<\/nobr> even though I already know you\u2019re <i>not<\/i> gonna tell me what happened.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSure I am.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She found herself gaping at him.  He grinned and put his finger under her chin, closing her mouth.  Yeah, their relationship had changed a <i>lot<\/i> in the last day.  <nobr>\u201cSo\u2026<\/nobr> <nobr>uh\u2026<\/nobr> what happened?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, I\u2019ll bet you can imagine how upset he was that I infected myself.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack nodded, remembering the look of pure fury that had ignited in Dane\u2019s eyes, and the way Riddick had shrunk from it.  <i>Gotta ask him about <b>that,<\/b> as well, while he\u2019s talking.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick shrugged.  \u201cHe figured out something that, if it works, might actually mean I can leave the station with a clean record, once we find a cure.  It\u2019s kind of a long shot, but with me already infected, there\u2019s nothing to lose by trying it.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou mean nobody would be hunting you anymore?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIf it works out, yeah.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She frowned.  \u201cYou don\u2019t sound very confident.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, Dane\u2019s about the only government official I\u2019ve ever met who\u2019s kept his word to me.  If it were up to him, it\u2019d be a done deal, but it\u2019s not.  There are a lot of people who want to see me rot away in Slam and they don\u2019t give a shit how many \u2018civic duties\u2019 I do.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBut you\u2019ve changed.  You\u2019re not the same man.\u201d  That was one of the things Jack had told herself for years.  Richard B. Riddick was a very different man than he\u2019d once been.  <i>We\u2019re both different <nobr>people\u2026<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She needed to believe it about him because then she could believe it about herself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTo them I\u2019m the same.  I always will be.  I can\u2019t give them back the people I took from them.  And I can\u2019t really blame them for hating me.  I\u2019m not going back to Slam for them, but I <i>do<\/i> understand where they\u2019re coming from.  Somebody did anything to <i>you,<\/i> I\u2019d feel the same way.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo you don\u2019t think it\u2019ll work.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick was silent for a long moment.  \u201cIt might.  Things are different this far out.  Maybe we can work out a deal.  If they say I can\u2019t ever go back to Earth, I\u2019m fine with that.  Never really planned to go back anyway.  But this station is really starting to crawl up my ass and I\u2019d like to get off <nobr>it\u2026<\/nobr> without fifty mercs pouncing on me the second I leave.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>I.<\/i>  Funny how that word seemed to undo all of the good of the anesthetics.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhere would you go?\u201d she asked after a moment, hoping her voice sounded natural.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cShit,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack turned and looked at him, surprising an expression of bafflement and longing on his face.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOld habit, Jack.  I\u2019m sorry.\u201d  The words sounded almost foreign on his tongue.  \u201cI meant \u2018we.\u2019  I ain\u2019t going anywhere without you.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Her eyes began to sting.  She swallowed, but before she could try to answer him he\u2019d wrapped his arms tightly around her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">That, Riddick reflected, had been stupid.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He <i>knew<\/i> how lonely and cut off Jack had been feeling, and he\u2019d been dumb enough not to watch his mouth.  Then again, it was the first time he\u2019d really been aware of how self-involved his language \u2014 and his thinking \u2014 could be.  He\u2019d failed her, repeatedly, in the last few years, too concerned about what a <i>theoretical<\/i> emotional entanglement might do to <i>him<\/i> to pay enough attention to what was happening to <i>her<\/i> before his eyes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Guess it\u2019s true that you never know how important something is until it\u2019s gone.  Or almost gone.<\/i>  He had no idea what he would have done if her suicide attempt had succeeded.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She sniffled and wiped at her eyes, the motion making him feel another stab of guilt.  His hand moved, of its own accord, to stroke her cheek.  Gentleness was new to him, and it suddenly came to him that he\u2019d been afraid, for years, that he might hurt Jack with a careless touch.  Especially those times when he\u2019d found himself wanting to devour her.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Like now.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He wanted to put her on her back and bury himself inside her, comforting her the only way he knew.  He wanted to explore her body, map her skin with his hands and his <nobr>mouth\u2026<\/nobr> and damned if he couldn\u2019t.  Not until she healed some.  He found himself wishing, more than ever, that he\u2019d given into his impulse after Imam\u2019s funeral and taken Jack to his bedroom.  Would he have found out about her illness long before this, if he had?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Normally he never dealt in what-ifs, but now they plagued him, the way they\u2019d plagued him after Fry\u2019s death.  He <i>knew<\/i>, as he\u2019d known then, that it was his own failure to do right, and do it in time, that had allowed things to come to a head.  At least in Jack\u2019s case it hadn\u2019t ended in tragedy.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHey,\u201d he whispered to her.  \u201cI promise, I\u2019m not gonna leave you.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The sweetness in her smile speared through him.  \u201cI know.  You never have.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Her eyes were arresting.  Large and liquid, fringed with dark lashes, they had him captive.  He wished he could see colors better; Imam had once told him that they were the green of fine jade, but he wanted to see it for himself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Too bad shine jobs ain\u2019t reversible.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo.\u201d  She reached up, putting one of her hands on his cheek to match the way he was touching her.  <i>Equals.<\/i>  The message in her touch was clear.  \u201cWhere would <i>we<\/i> go?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>That\u2019s it, baby.  That\u2019s exactly right.<\/i>  \u201cAnywhere you want.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The next second she shocked him by climbing onto his lap and kissing him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">It took all of his self-control to hold her gently as he kissed her back.  He <i>wanted<\/i> to press her down onto the exam table with his body, crushing her to him, but he didn\u2019t dare.  Not until she\u2019d healed some more.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Won\u2019t be the first time she\u2019s given me blue balls,<\/i> he thought with amusement as his tongue touched her lips.  He kept his hands gentle, stroking her hair and back.  This whole situation was baffling.  He\u2019d <i>never<\/i> been in this situation when sex wasn\u2019t imminent, until now.  Until Jack.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He chuckled into her mouth as their lips parted.  \u201cYou\u2019re gonna kill me, girl.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Her soft, answering laugh left him amazed at her resilience.  \u201cHey, if I do, you mind if I collect the reward?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Yeah, this was the woman of his dreams.  \u201cI got something better in mind.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She smiled and raised an eyebrow at him.  \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019m thinking after we get done here, we go out for dinner.  You pick any restaurant you want.  Maybe dancing or a movie afterwards.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWill we have to dress up?\u201d  Her eyes sparkled with mischief.  \u201c\u2018Cause you know I\u2019ll need help if we do.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His fingers were suddenly <i>burning<\/i> to touch her again.  His first look at her breasts, this morning, had been fueling erotic fantasies ever since.  \u201cMy idea just gets better and better.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">She turned around and leaned back against him, smiling and closing her eyes.  \u201cYou know, I think we should skip the blindfold from now on.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou able to sleep in bright light?\u201d  Some people could; as long as his goggles were on, he was one of them himself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah, and it doesn\u2019t hurt as much when I wake up, if I\u2019m used to the light level.\u201d  She wriggled a little, getting herself more comfortable.  Riddick\u2019s pants were getting tighter and tighter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cGood point.\u201d  He was glad that his voice was as gravelly as it already was, or she might have heard it crack.  As it was, he could feel it, for the first time since he\u2019d gotten through puberty.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo, is that what I think it is?\u201d she asked after a moment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIs what what you think it is?\u201d  He was trying hard to concentrate on thoughts of cold showers and baseball statistics.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Damned if she didn\u2019t wriggle back against him again.  \u201cThat.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Riddick coughed.  <i><b>Damn,<\/b> woman!<\/i>  <nobr>\u201cSo\u2026<\/nobr> what do you think it is?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The grin she turned on him was pure mischief.  He hadn\u2019t seen it in years, he realized, since she\u2019d gotten sick.  It soothed him more than anything else he\u2019d seen <nobr>yet\u2026<\/nobr> and riled him.  \u201cI think there\u2019s a great big hard-on pressing against my ass.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He didn\u2019t know why that shocked him but it did.  He\u2019d gotten so <i>used<\/i> to the mousy Jack that the resurgence of her more vibrant self <nobr>was\u2014<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>One huge fucking turn-on.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWell, then.  It <i>is<\/i> what you think it is.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Damn if she didn\u2019t wriggle <i>again!<\/i>  \u201cSo what happens now?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cDepends on if you keep wiggling like that or not.  I\u2019m supposed to be taking it easy on you.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow easy do you have to take it?\u201d  Who the hell had taught her to bat her lashes like that?  The little <nobr>minx\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cProbably wouldn\u2019t be a good idea for me to fuck you ragged in here anyway.  Leaving aside the whole part of someone walking in on us, I\u2019m trying to arrange a romantic evening for us before we get to that stage.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Maybe even a few <nobr>evenings\u2026<\/nobr> if I can last that long.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOkay,\u201d she said with exaggerated gravity.  \u201cCheck.  No fucking me ragged on the exam table.  <nobr>But\u2026<\/nobr> can we play a little?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He stared at her in astonishment.  He hadn\u2019t thought she\u2019d <i>want<\/i> to for a while yet.  Where was this sudden burst of energy coming from?<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow come you\u2019re suddenly so upbeat?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Jack paused, looking thoughtful.  Her lips quirked, making him want to catch them with his tongue.  <nobr>\u201cWell\u2026<\/nobr> I\u2019m not gonna <nobr>die\u2026<\/nobr> and I don\u2019t <i>want<\/i> to die <nobr>anymore\u2026<\/nobr> and I\u2019m not <nobr>crazy\u2026<\/nobr> it\u2019s funny.  I just feel like <i>me<\/i> again.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">His hands had been resting on her abdomen.  Now they began moving upward.  \u201cYeah, I\u2019d say you feel like you.\u201d  He cupped her breasts in his hands and hoped she wouldn\u2019t go ballistic on him.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHow can you tell through all those clothes?\u201d  <i>That<\/i> quip hit him right in the crotch.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He turned her in his arms again, so that their eyes would meet.  The lights of the exam room were painful but he needed to be <nobr>sure\u2026<\/nobr> to know that <i>she<\/i> was sure.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cJeez, Riddick, put your goggles back down before you burn your eyes or <nobr>some\u2014\u201d<\/nobr>  She stopped when his fingertips touched her lips.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHere, Jack?  Someone might walk in.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI guess, <nobr>but\u2026<\/nobr> I can\u2019t wait.  And I know how hard it is for you to.\u201d  The sweet earnestness in her smile made his throat ache and his blood burn.  \u201cWe can do a little, can\u2019t we?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Aww, hell with it.  If she tells me to stop, I will.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He was amazed by how pliant and helpful she was as he maneuvered her down onto the exam table, on her back.  She raised her arms above her head and arched her back, making it all the easier for him to push up her top and bra.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>This is what heaven looks like,<\/i> he thought.  Her breasts were small but full, pert from the sudden cool air.  He slid his arms around her waist and lowered his head.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOooh,\u201d she gasped, as his mouth clasped her nipple.  \u201cWow, this feels <nobr>wonderful\u2026\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Yes, it did.  Riddick closed his eyes and let himself surrender to his hunger for her.  Just for a little while.  <nobr>Just\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Just hoping Dane doesn\u2019t walk <nobr>in\u2026<\/nobr><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<hr style=\"align: center; width: 50%; background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%); height: 3px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;\" \/>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane had all but forgotten about the couple in the exam room.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">He hadn\u2019t been able to resist turning off the lights in his office so that he could see the phenomenon again.  Lifting the cloth off of the vials, he smiled with delight at the soft glow emanating from the plastic containers.  Alien visitors, he thought.  He was looking at a whole new <nobr>species\u2026<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>A potentially deadly new species,<\/i> he reminded himself, realizing that he\u2019d spent half an hour ogling them instead of being productive. <i>On with business.<\/i>  He hit the intercom for the lab.  \u201cThis is Dane.  Who\u2019s on duty?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cMichaels, here.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane smiled, glad that his very best tech was the one who had answered his call.  \u201cI need you to prep two bio-couriers.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYes, Doctor.\u201d  He could hear Michaels already moving about on the other end of the comm.  \u201cWhat size?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSmall.  They\u2019ll each just be carrying one vial of blood in a cryo-pod.\u201d  He walked over to the vault and drew out one of the freezer units, carrying it to his desk.  \u201cPriority One shipments.  Biohazard labels and protocols.  One is going to the GCDC and the other to the head office of Dane Pharmaceuticals.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Carefully, he inserted a vial into the cryopod, adjusting the settings.  Satisfied, he closed the unit and switched it on, snatching his hand back as frost covered the surface in an instant.  Shaking his hand, he headed back to the vault for the second unit.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI\u2019ll have them ready in thirty minutes.  Looks like you have an interstellar call coming in.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Excellent.  If it was who he thought it was, she was right on time.  As always.  \u201cRoute it to my desk.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane left the second unit in the vault for the time being, and headed to his desk.  The comm unit chimed softly as he approached and he smiled.  That particular chime only sounded when his sister was calling.  He opened the connection.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHello, Sarah.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Sarah Dane was their mother reborn.  Chestnut hair streaked liberally with gray flowed over the shoulders of her elegant business jacket.  He grinned, recognizing the makeup style she called her \u201cPower Look,\u201d and wondered what Board of Directors she\u2019d been intimidating before her call.  Probably several.  As the more business-minded of the two scions of a multi-trillion-dollar pharmaceutical conglomerate, she wielded vast quantities of power both on her own behalf and on his.  The lines on her face were barely visible, a mixture of laugh and frown lines that he knew by heart.  They creased now into a smile of loving welcome.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cHello, Ian.\u201d  She tilted her head in a way he recognized instantly and that always brought a smile to his lips.  \u201cAny progress on getting me a niece or nephew to spoil rotten?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane chuckled.  \u201cNot yet, sadly.  How about you?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Sarah grimaced.  \u201cI\u2019m about to give up on the idea.  The only halfway respectable man I\u2019ve met in a <i>year,<\/i> who isn\u2019t a gold-digger and who I\u2019d actually be able to wake up next to without gagging, wants nothing to do with me because he says I\u2019m a \u2018shallow rich bitch with delusions of power.\u2019  The rest are, you <nobr>know\u2014\u201d<\/nobr><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cMarried or gay?\u201d  Dane smirked.  That lament was centuries old.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYou got it.  What\u2019s your excuse?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cMy mail-order brides keep getting misdelivered,\u201d he quipped.  Sarah grinned back at him and dropped the subject, recognizing his real meaning.  It was two decades now since Jessica\u2019s murder, and the thought of another woman in his bed still felt like treason, in spite of everything.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo tell me about these probes you want.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane grinned and began uploading the coordinates.  He\u2019d sent her the message hours earlier, knowing that this would be her first chance to get back in touch with him.  \u201cI want to send them into the Albireo System.  The coordinates enclosed aren\u2019t actually complete.  The transmission they draw from was cut off before it finished.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSo I see.  You\u2019re not actually looking for a planetary body in <i>Alberio,<\/i> are you?  Even I remember enough stellar science to know what a long shot that is.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI don\u2019t know what I\u2019m looking for.  The survivors of the crash swear up and down that they saw a blue star and a red-gold binary rising and setting over the planet.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cWhy is this so important?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat planet is the source of a new pathogen.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Sarah\u2019s whistle was clear and sweet, arcing down like a birdcall.  It made him think of summer nights, fireflies, and creek hiking.  \u201cHow many are infected?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTwo so far.  One committed suicide when the symptoms became unbearable, and the other one attempted to do so yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cPoor things.\u201d  The sympathy in her voice was real, as it always was.  It amazed Dane, sometimes, when he considered how ruthless she could be in business, how much empathy she had for others.  \u201cDo you need me to put our labs on it?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSamples will be en route shortly,\u201d Dane replied with a smile.  He\u2019d known she\u2019d offer.  \u201cIt\u2019s not very much.  The organisms appear to stay in the bloodstream, and my patient already tried to bleed herself dry.  I need that planet if I\u2019m going to study this properly.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIf <i>we<\/i> are, you mean.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane felt his smile widen.  Although Sarah loved what she did, and was one of the most extraordinary business magnates the galaxy had ever seen, she had a researcher\u2019s mind as well.  She\u2019d always snatched and devoured his medical thrillers the second he was done with them.  \u201cDoes this mean I get three probes?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThat means you get four.  That final coordinate is the <i>real<\/i> bitch.  If we have to cover stroke-zero to stroke-ninety-nine, you want four probes or you won\u2019t get an answer for more than a month.\u201d  Sarah\u2019s lips quirked with triumph; she was one up on her big brother for the moment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cReally?  I thought these new ones were faster than that.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThey are.  But they usually work with better information than this, you know.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cSorry about that.  From what I hear, it was a really rough landing.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Sarah glanced down at her desk and punched some instructions into its surface.  \u201cIs there going to be any problem with the corporation piggybacking onto this?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThere shouldn\u2019t be.  You\u2019re providing free resources for a humanitarian use.  The fact that you\u2019ll be onsite first is a side benefit.  The data\u2019s all been reported, but our corporation is the only one volunteering to research a cure.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Sarah chuckled and shook her head.  \u201cI guess they\u2019re forgetting there\u2019s a whole ecosystem there to be mapped.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cBut not exploited,\u201d Dane felt compelled to add.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cJeez, Ian, <i>never.<\/i>  Don\u2019t I already have a dozen lobbyists working on reforming the Mercy Man System for you?  You know we\u2019re on the same side.\u201d  Sarah looked genuinely affronted.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cI know.  It <nobr>just\u2026<\/nobr> needs to be said aloud every now and then.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The offended look vanished; Sarah knew quite well what he meant.  \u201cYeah.  People can forget.  Oh, and speaking of the <nobr>reforms\u2026<\/nobr> we\u2019ve had some kind of <nobr>breakthrough\u2026<\/nobr> I think.  I\u2019m not sure yet, but it looks promising.  Aldridge and Danzig have been filibustering, but they\u2019ve conceded an important point.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cOh?\u201d  This was good news, indeed.  \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cThey\u2019ve agreed that what\u2019s being done in the maximum security prisoners is unethical, but they\u2019re upset about the prisoners being able to choose lesser trials for such a huge reward.  They don\u2019t want a flood of hardened convicts getting out of the worst prisons and going back to their old ways.  There\u2019s no way they\u2019ll agree to letting a multiple-murderer walk free because he spent two years testing vaccines or allergy medicines for possible side effects.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Dane frowned.  Why did this bother him?  He understood the position perfectly, and it wasn\u2019t one he was planning on fighting against, <nobr>but\u2026<\/nobr> something about it was very chilling.  \u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cTheir offer is to change the terms of the project for those prisoners.  Nothing life-threatening will be tested, but service in the project for those individuals can only be used to get a reduced sentence or more amenities.  No more commutations to time served.  No more early releases.  It\u2019s either that or they rescind the project altogether from the high risk inmates.\u201d  Sarah shrugged.  \u201cIt sounds very fair.  Our lobbyists are discussing it in greater detail with them, and approaching the swing-voters.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYes\u2026 very fair.\u201d  It was exactly what he\u2019d hoped to achieve.  But Dane\u2019s mouth had gone dry.  \u201cWhen are they going to vote on it?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cIt\u2019s on the committee docket for two weeks from today.  If they approve it, it could be in front of the legislature before the end of the month.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Two weeks.  Dane swallowed hard.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cLooks like you\u2019re going to win this one, Ian.  <nobr>Congra\u2014<\/nobr> are you okay?\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">\u201cYeah, I\u2019m fine,\u201d he managed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>Shit,<\/i> he thought.  <i><b>Shit!<\/b>  I have two weeks to get Riddick approved and enrolled, or he might not even <b>qualify!<\/b><\/i><\/p><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4002\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4002 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#chapter-3\">\u00ab Chapter 3<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div align=\"center\" class=\"button\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0px;margin-top: 10px\"><a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/fan-fiction\/one-rule-stay-in-the-light\/#comments\">Leave a review<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Return to the Title Page","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":308,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"bgseo_title":"Read Online: \u201cOne Rule: Stay in the Light\u201d by Ardath Rekha","bgseo_description":"Something has gone horribly wrong. A desperate move on Jack\u2019s part makes Riddick aware of it\u2026 and of how much she really means to him.","bgseo_robots_index":"index","bgseo_robots_follow":"follow","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-999","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","no-wpautop"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=999"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4909,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/999\/revisions\/4909"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}