SCARS by TB's LMC RATED FRPT

One take on Jeff and Kyrano's first meeting.

Chest heaving, he waited behind the large, gnarled tree. His senses were heightened, muscles keyed to run. He listened, the sounds of the jungle fading into the background as more unnatural sounds came to his ears. He closed his eyes, tried to calm his breathing. But it would not be calmed.

He had hidden his daughter well. He was certain the Evil would not find her. He could trust the one he had left her with. He barely knew the man, yet he knew with him, she would be safe from harm. He had given his promise, and Kyrano believed him.

But his fate was much less certain.

Fear rose again like bile in his throat as he felt, more than heard, his half-brother grow nearer. Nearer. He turned to the tree and contemplated the effectiveness of scaling it. The foot and handholds seemed to be there, and so he reached up and began climbing. But after running all night, he was weary, and his left foot slipped.

When he felt the cold hand upon his ankle, he knew he was dead.

Blinking his eyes open slowly, he was surprised to discover that he was still alive. Surprised and dismayed. Still being alive could mean only one thing: the terror wasn't yet over. He looked upon his surroundings and immediately recognized the dungeon beneath the temple. This is where he had escaped from. He had little concept of time in its murky depths. In front of the cell in which he was shackled there stood two large men in heavy armor.

He would not be escaping this time.

How had he become so careless? He knew, and yet he would not believe it even though it was fact. When the man had crashed in the jungle not far from his hut, he had gone to retrieve him. It had been raining heavily and the man was badly injured. It had not even occurred to him to be concerned.

Yet the fallen plane had brought his brother. And his brother had found his hut. The pilot had agreed to take and protect his daughter as he drew Radzi Belah away from their underground hiding place. A place Kyrano himself had created when they had first built their small haven. He wondered if the man would take care of her for him once he was dead. Or even if he didn't die, he knew he would be held prisoner here for the rest of his life. Most likely to become the object of Radzi's appetite for inflicting pain.

His heart cried out to his one and only child. And his thoughts opened to the man she was with. He seemed strong, honest and good. Take care of my child, he pleaded silently. She is everything to me.

Whether or not the man had heard him, he could not say. But deep inside he knew that if anyone could protect his daughter Tin-Tin, it was the pilot he had found: Jeff Tracy.

"Where is my father?"

Wide-eyed, the beautiful three-year old asked the question softly. He looked at her in the candle's light and felt a twinge of sadness followed immediately by wondering what in the hell he thought he was doing. He had to get back to Base, he had to get in contact with his squadron, let them know he'd survived, get picked up, get himself back for debriefing. So many things he should be doing, or trying to do, and yet he found himself stuck in what amounted to little more than a hole with the child of someone he barely knew.

What he did know of the man who'd rescued him was that he was quiet, reserved and resourceful. After all, he'd seen no digging implementations anywhere around his hut for the entire week he'd been there. The man had not spoken very often, but from what he could gather, he'd carried him back to his hut and tended to his wounds and fever. It had been four days, or so the man who called himself Kyrano had told him, before he woke up.

Three days later, Jeff found himself in an awkward - not to mention impossible - situation. He looked again into the striking green eyes of the child before him and decided she needed some sort of answer. But what could he tell her? He hadn't a clue where her father was. The truth?

"I don't know."

Evidently not the right answer. Her head bowed and she turned away. He blinked a few times, his mind working. He had no supplies - everything had been destroyed in the crash. Okay, then what did the hut have? Nothing, if his brain had interpreted sounds from above correctly. It had been nearly 24 hours, and though Kyrano had left them with enough food and water for two days, there had been nothing else to do but sit.

"If I have not come for my daughter within 24 hours, please take her from this place."

Jeff checked the watch Kyrano had given him, as his own had been smashed. Twenty-two hours almost on the dot. It had sounded like some sort of raid above them not twelve hours prior. Fire crackling, yells, barked commands. Jeff had peeked up from the hidden hole, but had been able to see nothing but smoke and one man who made his hair stand on end. He wondered if that were the half-brother Kyrano was so frightened of.

The child had spent the first five hours in his arms, unwilling to let go. After that she had kept to herself, occasionally humming a tune or reciting words in what he guessed was her native language. He had managed to coax a smile out of her with some food, but other than this most recent question about her father, had spoken to him little.

What am I doing here? he asked himself for the hundredth time. He could leave right now. He'd peeked out twice in the last four hours and there had been no sight of hostiles. He could very well take the little girl out right now. But where would they go? Kyrano had told him approximately how far they were from civilization, but under the jungle canopy it was very difficult to know which way was which. Besides, how could he ask a three-year old girl to make a journey through the jungle on foot? Even Jeff grimaced thinking about it, let alone doing it towing a kid behind him.

A kid who was, admittedly, quite endearing in spite of her lack of communication.

Then again, could he really fault her? Jeff knew little of her short life history, but if Kyrano's reaction to his half-brother's impending arrival was any indication, things hadn't been easy for them. His true insight had come in the moment Kyrano had returned to the hut. He had been so hurried, so unlike he'd gotten used to him being.

"Mr. Tracy, are you well?"

"I...I guess I'm better. Why? What's happened?"

"My half-brother is coming. He means to take my daughter." Kyrano had come to the chair upon which Jeff sat and knelt before him, one hand on his arm, the other on his leg. "Will you protect my daughter for one day?"

"How can I do that? And why wouldn't you do it yourself?"

"He is too close," Kyrano had responded, rising and hurrying to gather food into a sack. "I could never make it far enough with Tin-Tin. If I remain here, he will know."

Jeff had risen to his feet. He was still a bit weak, but the fever had gone three days prior and his wounds, though not completely healed, seemed to be on the mend. "How can you trust me with your daughter's life? You don't even know me."

He had stopped and looked across the small hut at him. "Yes, I do."

Kyrano stiffened as he heard the heavy wooden door at the far end of the long row of cells open. He heard the footsteps and asked silently for strength. When he looked up, Radzi was before him. No questions were asked. No requests made. He approached, coiled whip in one hand, and stroked the butt of it against Kyrano's cheek.

"Do you remember when my father used to take this to me?" he asked. "Do you, Meor?"

Kyrano didn't nod. Didn't shake his head. Barely allowed himself to breathe. His eyes stared straight ahead.

"I always wanted to see it used on the son he could not touch," he continued. "But since he is not here, I will have to be the one to show you the pleasure one can gain at the mouth of a whip, my brother."

Steeling himself as Belah backed across the cell, Kyrano prayed once again for the safety of his daughter. He knew it must be nearing the deadline he'd given Jeff Tracy. He could only pray the American would make it out of the jungles alive.

When the first sting came, it took his breath away. A red line appeared on his chest and a drip of blood fell to the floor. The second lash hit the other side of his chest. The third, his stomach. Muscles straining against the pain, he closed his eyes, refusing to cry out. Belah would not have the satisfaction of hearing his pain.

He felt rough hands on him, and opened his eyes to find a guard turning him around. He winced as the shackles cut into his wrists and was unprepared for the next strike. Against his will, he heard his voice escape his lips in agony. And in that moment, as his brother laughed at his weakness, Kyrano remembered the times of good.

His mother. Nuraisyah, beautiful and magickal, had loved him. His hours spent at her side had been ones of happiness. The happiest he could remember. Even his daughter's birth had been clouded by Belah's presence. Born to parents who could not raise her in safety. For even as Tin-Tin was weaned from her mother's breast, she lost that mother to the one who now held her father's fate in his hands.

And they had run. Always running. Always hiding and in fear for their lives. She had been his joy through it all, his driving force for remaining alive, remaining one step ahead of Belah. Another sting of the whip. His nerves screamed, blood rushing through his ears as the pain tore like a hot iron through his torso and shot into his legs.

How she had become the loving child she had when her life had known only great tragedy was beyond his understanding. He only knew that he cherished her as he had once cherished her mother. His one mistake had been falling in love. The whip tore at his back, but it had begun to grow numb.

His better judgment had warned against involvement with her. He had known she had one primary interest, and it had been his family's wealth. Yet her beauty was unsurpassed, her laugh brought him happiness, her eyes lifted his defenses away. Her lips and mouth lit a fire deep within him that drove him to making a decision that would haunt him forever.

For though he would never regret Tin-Tin, he would always regret that he had brought her into a world so unsafe. His life was no place for a child, not when his half-brother was always around the next corner, just two steps behind, haunting their every day and night. Radzi Belah had killed Serena. And now it was Kyrano's turn.

Jeff felt like he'd been running forever. The girl clung to his back. He held to her hands to keep her from slipping. Sweat poured down him. The jungle was oppressive. Heat combined with a palpable humidity to make it nearly impossible to breathe. His lungs protested the abuse, his legs felt like they were turning to Jell-O. Yet still he forged on. Forged on, led by a child.

She would point the way for him to go. He surmised she must have made the trip with her father many times, it would explain how she knew which way to go. He had no idea how long they had lived in that hut, no idea really what their history was, no idea why the hell he was doing this. Obviously he had to get out of there now that he was well enough to make the journey.

But he'd lost an entire day, and he had someone else to take care of besides himself. He couldn't imagine little Scott being dragged around like this. Couldn't imagine entrusting him to someone he didn't know. Tin-Tin's arm rose again and Jeff dodged a large, low-hanging leaf to change course slightly. The foliage ripped into his face and he squinted to shelter his eyes.

That's when the stitch came on, hitting him in the side fast and furious. Gasping he stumbled to his knees, bracing himself to stay as upright as possible to keep Tin-Tin safe. His body heaved, pain seared through his chest and abdomen as she climbed off his back. She stood watching him with wide eyes, but he could barely focus on anything but the green and black ground beneath him.

He lunged forward, hands catching his body as the pain overtook him. Crying out softly he fell to his side, clutching his body in agony. It felt like a knife twisting deep inside and no matter what he did he could not catch his breath. Training kicked in and he tried to get his mind off the pain, tried to get it back to the situation, to the peril he and the girl would continue to be in if they stopped now.

So lost was he in his own internal repetition of Air Force procedure that the touch startled him. His eyes snapped open and he looked up to find her small hand upon his forehead. She smiled at him. "We are almost there," she said, her accent thick. "You can make it, Jeff Tracy."

Somehow the pain began to ease. He rolled over to all fours and rose to his feet. Her hand was still outstretched and he took it as he struggled to get his breathing under control. Slowly the stitch subsided until at last he realized it was gone completely. She began to walk, tugging on his hand. Mystified by her calm demeanor, he followed. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered what had happened to her father. Since he had not returned for her, he could only assume the man was dead.

Jeff's mind continued to chew on the sad event until at last they reached a clearing which led, in turn, to a rather good-sized village that looked a lot more modern than he'd dared hope. As they cautiously traversed the open space, Jeff realized that Kyrano had saved his life so he, in turn, could save Tin-Tin's.

His heart went out to the child, who clung to him as they passed the first building. Her grip became tighter as they passed the second. Then Jeff saw what looked like a store. They had made it. Within hours, he was sure he'd be back at Base. But as he made the phone call, he looked down into the green eyes of the one he'd promise to protect. What would become of her? He couldn't take her with him. He was a soldier, not a civilian. There was no place in the Air Force for her.

As if reading his thoughts, she moved forward and wrapped her arms around his body, burying her face in his stomach. He felt his heartstrings being pulled by her plight. What was he going to do with her?

"Yes, sir. That's right," he said into the phone, wondering if he was going to live to regret it. "I said, a child."

How long had Belah's whip been at him? How long had he hung here bleeding? How long had it been since he'd left his daughter in the pilot's care? His eyes opened slowly and he tried to focus through a haze of pain and sorrow. How was he even still alive?

When at last he was able to focus, he realized he was not alone. Before him stood the one who had done this to him. He held Kyrano's tunic in his hands and a smug look of satisfaction upon his face.

"If you can walk out of here," came the menacing voice, "you are free to go."

What was this, some sort of game? Kyrano looked up at him. He never had been able to read Belah, for his younger brother was quite good at hiding anything he might be thinking.

"Yes, Meor, it is a game. You are the mouse. I am the cat." He moved forward, Kyrano's eyes never leaving his face. "If you can put this on and walk out of here, you are free."

Try as he might, Kyrano could not produce the strength required to pull his lashed body to its feet. He made it partway up only to find himself falling forward. He reached out blindly and caught fabric in his hands. He felt bile rise in his throat when he realized he was clinging to his half-brother's pant legs. Yet he had to get up. He had to. Tin-Tin was out there somewhere.

And so he swallowed any pride that may have remained and used the fabric to pull himself slowly to his feet. He felt hands on his arms steadying him and cursed the fact that he was getting help from the very same man who'd put him in this condition to begin with.

"Take your tunic, Meor," he said, disgust evident in his voice. "Were it not for my mercy, you would last no longer than my lowliest slave." He shoved the shirt at Kyrano, whose numb fingers fumbled to get it over his head. At last he felt Belah help him get his head through the hole. Kyrano whimpered as the fabric settled against his broken skin.

"Now go," Belah said.

Kyrano began to shuffle towards the cell door. But he could not leave without knowing why. Why was his brother not simply finishing the job? Why not kill him now?

"Why, Radzi?"

Belah smiled. A smile that sent shivers up and down Kyrano's spine. "I have a feeling you will be of more use to me alive than dead," he replied. "Do not wait too long or I might change my mind."

And so Kyrano fled.

Jeff looked at his watch again. Well, not his watch - Kyrano's. The pickup had been delayed thanks to a combat mission that was keeping the entire squadron busy. They'd estimated five hours until they could get to Jeff's position. Five hours in which the captain had made it quite clear that Jeff had to find someplace for the girl.

He'd tried speaking to the natives, and though Tin-Tin translated well, he could not find anyone who would take her in. Made all the more complicated by the fact that she understood every word she was saying. Understood that nobody wanted her. Her face was dirty, her eyes sad as he sat on the ground at the edge of the clearing, back against the first building they'd seen upon arrival.

He had to do something, but what? He was stuck in a foreign land with people who'd made it evident they wanted nothing to do with the American pilot, in spite of the fact that he held the hand of one of their own. Yet as he looked at them, and compared them to her, it became apparent she was most definitely not full-blooded Malay. Her skin was too light, and the green eyes didn't fit in with everyone else's brown ones.

And that's when he realized that must by why both Kyrano and his daughter spoke such good English. There was something else to them, one of a million things he didn't know, and he felt it might include either a British or American background for the child. Then again, he could play guessing games all day, and at the end of it he still had the promise he'd made. Made to a complete stranger. A stranger who had saved his life.

He had just about decided that Tin-Tin would be coming back to Base with him even if it meant he'd be court-martialed when there was a rustling at the edge of the clearing. He rose to his feet, hiding Tin-Tin behind him. He had no weapon. He had nothing but his wits and hand-to-hand combat training to back him up. But when the figure emerged into the open, he realized he wouldn't be needing either.

"Abah!" Tin-Tin cried, running across the clearing. Jeff very clearly noted the wince and pained look on his face as his daughter barreled into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her, though, and held her tight in spite of it. Jeff crossed the clearing and waited until he had put his daughter down. She grabbed her father's hand and held it tightly.

"You did as you promised," Kyrano said, bowing. When he righted himself, Jeff more clearly than ever noted the look in his eyes. It was the look of a hunted - and hurt - man.

"Yes," he replied. "Are you injured?"

"Not very badly," he said, looking down fondly at Tin-Tin. "How can I ever thank you?"

"You're alive for her, that's thanks enough. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with her." Kyrano nodded, but Jeff saw a shadow pass over his face. "Are you sure you're all right? Do you need medical attention?" Kyrano shook his head. "I can arrange it."

"No, Mr. Tracy. You have done enough." The sound of a huey on approach broke the peaceful silence of the clearing. The trio looked up to the sky, and Tin-Tin's hand slid into Jeff's. "We must go."

"Kyrano, listen, you can come to the base, they'll give you a hot meal and a place to bunk down for the night. Then tomorrow when you're stronger you can leave."

"I am fine," he said firmly, but Jeff wasn't convinced. Tin-Tin's hand squeezed his even tighter as the chopper came in for a landing. The wind whipped their hair as Tin-Tin tugged on his hand. Kyrano watched as Jeff knelt to hear what she was saying.

Jeff listened to the words and smiled. "I hope so," he said, touching her cheek with his hand. He rose and looked one more time at Kyrano. "Are you sure?"

Kyrano nodded and held out his hand, which Jeff shook firmly. "Thank you."

Jeff nodded and, with one last look, ran towards the chopper. When he got to it, he saw only Kyrano's back as he disappeared into the jungle. A back covered with blood. But he could do nothing as the chopper rose into the air, trees and leaves bending and dancing in its artificial wind. They were gone.

Jeff stood outside the door, wondering if he should interrupt. Kyrano usually spent time in this room either exercising or meditating, that much he knew. He didn't like approaching Kyrano unnecessarily, but they needed Tin-Tin on this rescue, and he couldn't send her without her father's permission, no matter what she said.

He pressed a button on the keypad and the door slid open almost immediately. He stepped into the dimly lit room to find his friend in the midst of what looked like a Tai Chi routine. His movements were slow, calculated, graceful. Jeff watched him for half a minute, admiring the restraint and concentration. Finally he cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry to bother you."

"It is all right," Kyrano said, never missing a beat.

"Virgil and Alan think they could really use Tin-Tin on this rescue. She's gung-ho, but of course I wanted your opinion."

Kyrano stopped his movements and faced him. "What type of rescue?"

"Another space one," Jeff replied. "Seems the military's got themselves in trouble on the Moon and Virgil wants both Tin-Tin's and Brains' engineering expertise to try and diffuse the situation on one of their bases up there."

Kyrano ran a hand through his damp hair and nodded. "Of course she will go. As before."

Jeff nodded. "Okay," he said as Kyrano turned around and moved into a new stance. Jeff's eyes grew wide as he stared at his friend's back. "My God," he whispered. Kyrano stiffened for a moment before standing upright again and turning around. "Is that from...?"

"Yes."

"I saw the blood only when you turned and ran," Jeff said. He couldn't believe the ugly mark that ran from Kyrano's left shoulder blade diagonally down to his spine. All this time and he realized he'd never seen the other man with his shirt off before. "I had no idea you'd been hurt that badly."

Kyrano reached out and grabbed his robe, quickly pulling it on and tying it 'round his waist.

"You're not the only one, you know."

He stopped in mid-motion. "What do you mean?"

Jeff turned around and lifted his shirt about halfway up his back. He heard a murmured exclamation and put his shirt back down.

"From the crash?" Jeff nodded. "I did not know."

Jeff smiled. "I guess even after a couple years there's a lot we don't know."

"Yes." Jeff turned to leave and was surprised to feel Kyrano's hand upon his arm. "What did my daughter say to you that day?"

His grin broadened. "She said she would see me soon." Kyrano smiled. "Pretty prophetic. Guess she didn't know what she was saying." With that, Jeff turned and left the room.

"Yes, she did, Jeff," Kyrano said, moving to follow. "Yes, she did."