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Tagget 4, The Uncharted Territories. Present.

"Oh, Jeez! I'm sorry."

"Your pardon, sir. I should have watched where I was going."

John blinked, dumbfounded for a moment as the short being before him kneeled. By the voice the alien sounded female but John had decided long ago to never take anything at face value after the recent incident with Maldis. The dark gray cloak covering the kneeling figure revealed nothing as to gender as well.

Seeing several small parcel's scattered about he quickly kneeled down to gather them up. "Here, let me help you get these."

After a moment he realized the being beside him had remained perfectly still and silent. "Hey, are you..."

"Crichton. There you are."

John looked up to find his Aeryn Sun striding towards him with a long suffering look to her face. Behind her D'argo and Zhaan followed. Despite their unreadable expressions he go the distinct impression they were annoyed with him as well.

"Sorry. I just had a little run in here I was taking care of." John explained with a quick shrug as he finished gathering the parcels and placed them in front of the cloaked being. He smiled slightly as he set the last package down. "There you go. Sorry about our accident."

"It was entirely my fault." Came the reply, spoken so softly John leaned forward to hear her clearly.

"Hey! What the hell..." John yanked his arm from Aeryn's grasp, surprised and angry that she had jerked him up like that.

"Come on." She cut him off coldly eyeing the still kneeling figure with a wary look. John started to appeal to D'argo and Zhaan until he noticed similar expressions on their faces.

"Come, John. We must go." Zhaan said softly.

John held her gaze for as long as he dared before quickly looking away from her and back to the alien. Curious as to the alien's subservient position he kneeled back down.

When she did not move John began to worry that he had injured the alien. "Are you all right?"

"She'll be fine. Now come on. We don't have time to waste on this creature when there is barter to be done." D'argo interrupted.

"What is with you people?" John asked in exasperation.

"Crichton."

John ignored Zhaan's plea and touched the alien's shoulder to help them up. As soon as his fingers brushed against the rough cloth the being quickly gathered the packages together and turned to leave, never once looking up. He grabbed the alien's arm, instantly freezing her in her tracks.

He got the impression that the alien was scared of him. Slowly releasing his grip, he smiled reassuringly hoping this species could understand his intent. "Hey. I'm not going to hurt you. I just wanted to make sure you're all right."

The figure shifted slightly to face him, though he could not see it's head and body under the cloak. All he could see was black frail looking hands with light blue vein-like patterns on the back.

"Why? You are Peace Keeper." The figure suddenly asked raising it's head. An odd, almost synthetic undertone to the words made it hard to tell a gender, if any, but John suddenly thought of the alien as a she.

"No." He shook his head. "My species looks like them, but we're a little different."

She cocked her head sideways, revealing a cobalt blue eyes that reminded John of a cat. John's smile grew as he saw more of the same black skin and blue veins that had covered her hands. Her nose twitched once before what appeared to be a smile crossed her face, revealing sharp teeth. "That would explain why you smell different."

"So I've been told." He chuckled lightly. "My name's John Crichton."

"I am called Tuzal K'ris. I am honored to be acquainted with you John Crichton." She bowed her head in an odd bobbing, birdlike gesture towards the human.

"Get away from him, Sou'Kha!" D'argo spat shocking John with the genuine hatred he saw in the Luxan's eyes.

Instantly K'ris backed away. "My pardon, John Crichton. I shall leave you now."

"Hey! Wait a minute!" He called out after her only to see her dive into a small stall down the way.

"Forget about her. Come on," Aeryn snapped, shooting a venomous look in the direction K'ris had run.

John looked at all three of them like they were insane. "What was that all about?"

"She is Sou'Kha. It would be best for you to stay away from them." Zhaan said, with a tone that was gentle and yet demanding compliance. 'Mom-mode.' John couldn't help but think.

"Why?" He shot back, stubbornly.

"It just simply is."

John frowned at this. Usually Zhaan didn't hesitate to answer his questions, even the annoying ones. What could a little girl have done to elicit such strong reactions?

"That's not good enough. What's your problem with these Sou'Kha?"

"It is difficult to explain and would take too much time. They simply are dangerous and let us leave it at that." Zhaan replied with some annoyance.

"Why won't you tell me? I'm not some little kid that needs to be looked after." Crichton protested.

"Then perhaps you should stop acting like a one and take our words at face value." Zhaan snapped impatiently.

John's intended retort died on his lips, shocked and hurt by Zhaan's words. After all this time, after everything they'd been through did she really still see him that way? He shook his head, backing away from them. He waved his hands. "Fine. Fine. Whatever."

Seeing the hurt look in his eyes, she started towards him. "John, wait. I didn't mean it that way."

He cut her off with a wave of his hand. "Just go. Leave me alone and have your little barter session OK?" With that he stalked off.

"John."

"Let him go. He will not listen to us right now." Aeryn said, a bit uncomfortable at having to be the one to advise the others when it came to Crichton. But she'd seen the look on his face at Zhaan's ill spoken words and knew all too well he wouldn't listen right now. He needed his 'space'.

"The others here have no reason to harm him." Aeryn pointed out at Zhaan's hesitant expression.

"I didn't mean to hurt his feelings like that. I was simply trying..."

"To protect him." Aeryn finished with an understanding nod.

Somewhere along the line this human scientist from a low tech backwater planet had somehow come to mean a great deal to all of them. Aeryn didn't like to dwell to deeply on her own reasons and simply accepted it without much thought.

"Yes." Zhaan replied uncertainly.

"Perhaps one of us should follow him?" D'argo suggested.

"No. It would only offend him more. He is simply curious. The Sou'Kha female will not harm him. She seemed as curious about him as he was about her." Zhaan replied, sighing in resignation.

"Curiosity killed the dog." Aeryn said. She noted the other's puzzled expression and subtle glances at one each other and sighed.

"It's a human expression Crichton tried to explain to me." Aeryn shrugged, vaguely wondering when had she come to know the human so well.

"So what does it mean?" D'argo asked. "It sounds like a Luxan saying."

"I don't know. I did not see the relevance of the pack animal in relation to it's curiosity and impending death but I imagine it serves some sort of cautionary purpose." Aeryn explained quickly, feeling foolish the entire time.

"Oh." Came the Luxan's rather unimpressed reply.

*****

John slowed as the stalls he passed became noticeably more dirty and ill kempt. Much like their operators, who unlike those on the main thoroughfare, were silent and watched him with sharp eyed suspicion.

He had been looking for the alien he had encountered, not really sure why he seemed to care so much. The others hadn't. Then again, maybe it was that reason alone he had searched for her. They were just too jaded sometimes to accept anything different and new.

"I could have sworn I saw her come this way." He muttered under his breath as he cast a wary eye at some of the vendors. He definitely didn't like the looks he was receiving.

Deciding to give up his search, he turned to rejoin the others only to catch a flash of blue veins on a dark hand from a nearby merchant stall. Quickly going over to the stand, John peered into the darkened booth.

"Excuse me?"

A hooded figure approached cautiously. "Yes, Peace Keeper?"

John swallowed nervously at the hard tone. "Excuse me, I was looking for Tuzal K'ris."

"What has she done this time?" The cloaked figure snapped irritably, shrugging back their hood to reveal a hairless black face and blue cat like eyes. John guessed the Sou'Kha before him was male.

"Actually it was more what I did to her." John replied with a reassuring smile. "I accidentally bumped into her in the main square. I just wanted to make sure she was all right."

The Sou'Kha's face crinkled up, a look John took to mean confusion. "But your are a Peace Keeper?"

"Um, no. I'm not. I'm told I don't smell right." John grinned at that last part, earning a curling of the lip from the alien before him.

"You are not Peace Keeper." The Sou'Kha nodded in agreement, amusement entering his voice. "They have no sense of humor."

"No kidding." John replied with a shrug. "Do you know Tuzal K'ris?"

"Of course. She is my granddaughter." My name is Shakna-Tuzal Kev'ran. You may simply call me Kev'ran if you wish."." The Sou'Kha replied, bowing his head.

"John Crichton." John mimicked the head bow. "May I see her?"

"Be assured that she was not harmed by your encounter." Kev'ran said. "It will not happen again."

John did  not like the sound of those words. "You're not going to punish her, are you? It was my fault after all."

Kev'ran leaned forwards slightly as if sniffing the human before him. A curious look came onto his face. "What concern is it of yours?"

John frowned at that, but shrugged. "None, I guess. I just don't think she should be punished when she did nothing wrong."

Kev'ran chuckled bitterly. "But we Sou'Kha always do something wrong. We are to blame for everything. Is that not what everyone says?"

"I don't know. I've never met a Sou'Kha, let alone heard of you, before today." John admitted. "Why does everyone seem to hate you?"

Kev'ran sighed. "A tale far to long in the telling for what little time remains for us here."

"You're leaving the planet?" John asked.

Kev'ran nodded. "As soon as we are able to find ones willing to accept our kind for transport."

"You can pay?" John asked, an crazy idea entering his head.

"Of course, John Crichton." Kev'ran replied offended.

John smiled. "I *might* be able to help you there, but I'll need some more information, namely your destination, how many of you there are. That sort of thing."

"Why should I trust you?" Kev'ran asked.

"I didn't say you should. I'm just saying I might be able to help you get transport off world." John replied.

Kev'ran stared at Crichton for a long moment, his head tilting first one direction then the other. Finally he nodded. "Very well. Come. You should meet the others."

"And Tuzal K'ris?"

"If she is agreeable, then yes."

*****

"Absolutely not!" Rygel sputtered. "They're..they're animals!"

"I must agree with Rygel on this, John. We cannot allow these people on Moya." Zhaan added.

"Why not?" John asked, in exasperation. "None of you have given me a straight answer just insults and vague warnings. What are you afraid of?"

"It's not what we are afraid of, Crichton. It what we know about the Sou'Kha." D'argo grumbled.

"Then what exactly have these people done to make you guys hate them so much?" John asked. "Are they like contagious or something?"

"John, please. Listen to us. Forget the Sou'Kha. They are not worth your concern." Zhaan said.

John shook his head, "You didn't see how they live, Zhaan."

The Delvian lowered her head. "I understand your compassion for them, John. A part of me feels it as well." She replied sorrowfully.

"But we're just going to leave them there because they 'deserve it'?" John finished angrily rising from the table they sat. He shook his head in disgust. "I just don't get it."

"There is nothing to 'get', human. The Sou'Kha will simply have to find transport from someone else." D'argo replied.

John sighed in frustration. "Look, think of it as a business deal. We take a bunch of them to their colony world and we get a chunk of change in return. Simple as that."

"John..." Zhaan started to protest.

"We can confine them to the unused lower decks if you guys are so worried about them." John interrupted. "What do you say? Will you at least think about it?"

"This is very important to you?" Zhaan asked, her resolve to deny the humans request wavering.

"Yeah. Yeah, it is." John replied softly.

"Why?" D'argo asked suspiciously.

John turned away from them, looking up to the purplish sky. "Because maybe I know what it's like to be out there alone and with no way home. To be the outsider who gets ignored, mocked, abused and blamed for every accident because of where I came from. Who I am."

Zhaan, D'argo and Rygel looked at one another in alarm at his words, Acquara very much on everyone's minds. Even Aeryn and Chiana, who had been silently eating, focused their attention on the human. He turned, catching the looks and smiled reassuringly. "Maybe I just want to give the Sou'Kha the same chance I've been given."

"I think you've made your point, Crichton. We'll consider their offer." Aeryn Sun spoke up for the first time since the meal started. A small knowing smile creeping onto her face.

"That's all I'm asking."

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