Ronan's half-growled phrase cut the silence. "You told them." With no more warning , he lunged.
Tev'keta rushed to put herself between them, but it turned out she didn't need to. Sheppard, Beckett, and Teyla had quickly caught him before he got far. Now he was pinned against the wall, struggling to break free.
"Take it easy, Ronan," Sheppard growled as he held one of Ronan's arms. "We don't know what happened. Calm down, that's an order!"
"It was not anything that I did." Kalesh replied, though his hands were clenched in an instinctual reaction. "What systems did you bypass, Dr. McKay? What did you do to reactivate the scanners?"
McKay rattled off some technical jargon, but Tev'keta was only half listening. Something about the dots' direction was bothering her, especially when words flashed boldly next to them. They were in a text older than what Wraith she'd been taught; some lines she knew, but they were in such a context that it stumped her. Tev'keta placed a hand on Kalesh's arm to get his attention. "What does that say?"
If Kalesh had been worried before, the face he showed Tev'keta was close to terrified. "They have discovered our position and are preparing to fire!" He grabbed Tev'keta's arm and ran, helping her navigate the corridors at a speed she couldn't have managed herself.
Deep in her mind, Tev'keta knew he wasn't running full speed. If he was, she would have been carried, not led. Behind her, she could hear the others trying to keep up without having Ronan get too close. Sunlight nearly blinded her as they emerged into the mid-morning sun. Above the sound of her pounding heart Tev'keta could hear the whine of the approaching darts. She didn't look, however, and just ran. Kalesh would lead them away safely, she was sure.
Suddenly, Kalesh shoved her to the ground; only to be blown to the ground himself by the shockwave of the darts destroying the hiveship. When he didn't move, Tev'keta panicked and tried to crawl over to him. Was he dead? He couldn't be!
A hand snapped up and Kalesh's eyes refocused. "Stay put," he murmured.
Slowly, Tev'keta nodded and brought her knees to her chin. A dart passed overhead, making her wince and try to make herself smaller. It wouldn't help, she knew, but it satisfied her mind at least. As the darts passed endlessly over her head, another memory resurfaced:
She was standing in front of a semi-circle of Atlantians, waiting for their verdict. To her right was an arrogant man who seemed sure the Council would side with him.
The elder man in the front cleared his throat and began. "Due to the results following the destruction of one of the Wraith's major supply plants, this Council has agreed that Experiment 532 does show incredible power." He held up a hand before the man could say anything. "However, we have also agreed that she is as much a sentient being as we are and must not be used as a weapon unless she wants to and offers herself freely."
Tev'keta snapped back to herself to find she was shaking. 'Experiment 532'. That's what they called me. She couldn't quite fathom that the Al'Terrans could call anything like that. The fact she might not have been organic to begin with scared her more than the darts overhead.
The whisper of a touch on her hand made Tev'keta yelp, but seeing only Kalesh, she calmed down. Sheppard and the others were just sitting up, but they all appeared fine. "Are they gone?" Tev'keta whispered, noticing the silence for the first time.
"Yes," Kalesh replied, though he kept glancing skywards. "However, they will return to scout on foot. We should get to shelter."
"Then let's get back to the jumper." Sheppard suggested, having overheard them.
"Not...with...him." Ronan growled, as if he had to force the words past his anger.
"Ronan, for crying out loud, he obviously didn’t tell them! He was going to die as well as us." This time it was McKay who defended them, a surprising act that even startled him.
What Tev'keta was going to say died as the hum of a dart once more passed overhead. Sheppard muttered darkly and jerked his head. "Doesn't matter, anyway. Let's go!"
Once again, Tev'keta found herself running; this time with Sheppard's tem instead of away. She recognized the trail they were on and couldn't help but feel curious. If she was right, they were headed for the camp they were at two days ago. Her curiosity crashed, however, when they arrived and nothing was there.
"Beckett, where'd you put the remote?"
Dr. Beckett frantically searched his pockets until he fished out a small rectangular device. "Here we go!" He pressed a series of buttons and glanced up.
Tev'keta returned her gaze to in front of her and gasped as an Al'Terran ship de-cloaked. Next to her, Kalesh's mouth opened a little farther, though from shock or recognition, she couldn't tell. Someone (probably Sheppard) shoved her roughly, his weapon suddenly clattering to life. Tev'keta glanced over her shoulder as she reached the safety of the ship and couldn't help but stare. Several real Wraith had appeared out of nowhere, only visible because of their pale skin versus the dark forest.
Teyla grabbed her shoulders and dragged her back further inside just as Sheppard jumped in the pilot's chair and closed the door. It was slightly cramped in the back, but she worked her way up front to stand next to Kalesh. The ship vibrated several times as they rose sharply until they were too high for the Wraith's weapons to reach them.
"We're going home, right?" McKay called from the back. Besides Beckett, he was the most terrified of the group.
"Yeah, Rodney. That's what we're trying to do." Sheppard grunted from the pilot's seat. "With any luck, they haven't reached the Stargate yet."
Kalesh shook his head. "That is where they would have gone first, Colonel Sheppard. They cannot run the risk of having us escape that way."
Tev'keta, watching the horizon, saw the signs of Wraith ground forces before they did. "Colonel, Kalesh, look." She pointed at the several hundred Wraith guarding any retreat through the Stargate. Half-consciously, she drew away from the window until she felt Kalesh at her back. Before today, she had never seen any other Wraith besides Kalesh and now she was faced with part of a hive of them.
"They do not see us, 'Keta." Kalesh whispered so only she could hear. His eyes, though, showed more tenseness than he allowed to show.
He's afraid, too. Tev'keta realized and made herself show less fear. One glance, however, brought back another memory:
She was in a newer version of where Kalesh had found her, looking at several readouts of letters and numbers. (The now-Tev'keta memorized them quickly so she wouldn't forget.) A man walked in. "Are you ready for the stasis?"
All she did was nod and lay down on one of the Al'Terran's stasis beds.
With a gasp, Tev'keta returned to her surroundings and plopped down on the closest seat. Colonel Sheppard had turned the jumper around and was headed for the distant hills. At the same time, he was having an argument with McKay about reaching something he called a Space Gate. No one had noticed her sudden change of mood. That was good, she decided, for she didn't want to cause any of them to worry more; not even Kalesh. Staying alive was more important than long forgotten memories right now.
As if to challenge that statement, the ship shuddered and there was a sound of a sudden loss of power. "What was that?" Beckett demanded his voice slightly higher from panic.
"We've lost the cloaking devise. Must've taken a harder his than I though." Colonel Sheppard muttered something else to McKay that Tev'keta couldn't catch. The ship pitched even more wildly just as a dart whizzed by. "And we have company."
Tev'keta watched in morbid fascination as the dart looped around to make another pass. All she had seen of a dart was when Kalesh landed near the ship; never one in action. She nearly lost her seat when Sheppard dove closer to the tree-line. It hit her...that dart wasn't carrying Kalesh; it was trying to kill them! Curiosity caved in to fear and she tried to make herself as small as possible. She glanced up at Kalesh and realized he wasn't paying attention to them at all. His eyes held that very-slight glazed look he had during his link with other Wraith. "Kalesh?" She whispered, tugging on his sleeve. When he didn't respond, she tried again, louder this time. "Kalesh?"
The Wraith in front of her held a sort of detached look about it at the far end of the room, the Queen began snarling in frustration. She was the one controlling the Wraith!
Very brief, the memory was enough to jog Tev'keta into action. "No!" This time, she reached between Sheppard and McKay to press a button that suddenly popped out of nowhere. She didn't know why, but she needed to bring Kalesh back to his senses long enough so he could fight the Queen. Nothing visible happened to the ship, but the look on Kalesh's face was like if someone had slammed a door closed.
"What the heck did you just do?" McKay demanded in chorus with Sheppard.
It was Teyla who answered in a breathless voice, "I-I can no longer feel or hear the Wraith." She glanced curiously at Tev'keta.
Tev'keta shrugged. "I don't know how it does that, only it does. You probably know more than me." At once, she returned her attention to Kalesh who had recovered somewhat. "Kalesh?"
Kalesh's head jerked her way as if she'd slapped him. His expression was almost under control, but Tev'keta knew him well enough to see he was still every much shaken. "I am all right, 'Keta," he said, but his eyes told her he would need to talk later.
Suddenly Sheppard banked hard. "Sorry, guys, but I think I've found us a pretty good hiding spot down there."
"Just don't tear the ship apart, okay?" McKay muttered sourly.
******************************************************************************
By the time Kalesh and Teyla determined that they would be safe outside, Tev'keta was more than ready. McKay had discovered that not only did the strange shield cover the jumper; it somehow covered the entire planet as well. Everyone had stared at her after that as if they expected her to explain what she did and how to escape. She had come very close to bursting out in tears when Teyla suggested that they should go outside.
"I don't know anything!" She wanted to scream at them. "Leave me alone!" True, her sub-conscious might know the answer, but it didn't bother telling her conscious mind what it was. It was unfair how they thought she knew everything! Tev'keta dashed off into the trees as soon as the ramp lowered. She wouldn't go far, but she hated Sheppard and his team at the moment.
She was alone for only a few minutes before Kalesh found her. For once, he didn't sit next to her and try to explain. Instead he quietly but firmly helped Tev'keta to her feet. "'Keta, I know you want to talk, but please, listen to me first," he began, his eyes flickering to either side. "You do not know how close I came to loosing myself, 'Keta. If it was just the two of us, I would not be as concerned, but there are four other humans who are not immune to me."
Tev'keta realized what he was trying to say and her eyes widened. "You're leaving? Why can't I come with you? The others don't understand me..."
Kalesh placed a finger on her lips, halting what she was going to say. "It is better this way, 'Keta. Even though I know you would not be harmed, I would not trust myself to remember around the others. After the last time, I made myself a promise that I would not harm you no matter how great the desire. Now I fear I might break it if I stay." His eyes, normally reassuring and confident, were clouded with misery and uncertainty.
Reluctantly, Tev'keta nodded. During the many times he had been strong for her, she now knew she had to do the same. She could tell his decision was hard enough without her begging. "You'll come back, though, won't you?"
A hand tenderly stroked Tev'keta's hair, but Kalesh didn't reply. He seemed to glance at her for a long while...and then he disappeared into the trees.
******************************************************************************
Tev'keta's mood was noticed as soon as she entered the makeshift camp the others had made. "Kalesh has decided to stay away until he can be sure you won't be harmed," she replied to the unasked question as she sat down opposite the others. "He runs the risk of harming you four until he has fed."
Nothing was said until Ronan, of all people sat next to her. The others had moved off a ways again. “We’ll be staying here until Sheppard comes up with an idea on how to get back,” he began, obviously not comfortable with being alone with her. He remained silent and Tev’keta began drawing absently in the dirt. “He’s never left you alone before?”
The question startled Tev’keta and she eyed him warily. “Well, not during danger or with…strangers.” She replied, her toe tracing a line in the ground. “I’m alone every three months or so, but he’s always come back for a couple weeks. Why?” The ground design began taking shape, but she was focused on Ronan.
“How come he left you with us, then?”
Sighing, Tev’keta folded her hands, self-consciously mimicking Kalesh. “Kalesh had no choice, Ronan. Back when he had first tried to feed on me, he promised me and, more or less, himself, that he would never feed on another human unless he absolutely had to. Today when the hiveship was destroyed, he was essentially killed. Healing from that state takes enormous amounts of energy and his need for sustenance increased. Sure, if he had stayed, we would be fine, but…” Tev’keta eyed the four arguing some ways away and let the glance finish her sentence.
Very slowly, understanding dawned in Ronan’s eyes. “So you’re saying he would rather risk leaving you with us than breaking his word? I didn’t think Wraith’s had a sense of honor.”
“They do; probably as high as or higher than your own.”
At that instant, Sheppard came back. “All righty; we’ll wait here for another hour before making a—” He halted and stared openly at Tev’keta’s drawing. “What’s that?”
Glancing down at her so-called doodling, Tev’keta frowned. Before her lay an organized series of zigzags and straight lined in the form of what looked like a map.
“What’s what?” McKay demanded, but was soon analyzing the map like the rest of them. “Is that a map?”
Teyla paused and pointed to a circular design on her end. “This looks like the Stargate.”
Suddenly, everything made sense. “Of course it does!” Tev’keta exclaimed, crouching lower without disturbing the dirt. “There’s the Stargate and this is the hiveship you found me in.” Her finger lightly traced a line between the hiveship and a design with a star. “This is definitely where we are now.”
“Then what’s that one?” Ronan pointed to a fourth design nearest him.
McKay’s hand rose after a few moments’ silence. “Excuse me, but that seems incredibly similar to a set of rings and an Ancient outpost. Remember the incident in Antarctica?”
“Excuse me?”
Beckett jumped in with the explanation. “A couple years ago, a member of another team discovered an Ancient outpost under the ice of our planet’s most southern continent. It also was armed with thousands of bug-like weapons we call drones.” At this, he shuddered distastefully at a memory. “Besides all of the freaky mental devices, there was a set of transportation rings that helped them get there from a ship.”
Tev’keta nodded slowly as what Dr. Beckett said drew up long-forgotten images in her mind. “That sounds like what is there, but…”
“But what?” Sheppard demanded, his eyes having lit up at the possibility of weapons. “We find the base, I find the chair and launch all the space bugs, the Wraith are gone, and we go home. What’s the problem with that?”
“I don’t know how far it is or even if the energy source is fully charged. The weapons you call drones may vary from hundreds to none, depending on how many it took to bring down the hiveship.”
“It is still there, though?” Teyla’s voice remained so positive that it reassured Tev’keta enough to think.
Biting her lip, Tev’keta followed the plain directional arrow with her eyes. Though she couldn’t see it from here, a part of her told her that, yes, it would still be standing. “I’m pretty sure it will be. We just have to travel a good distance that way.” She pointed in a direction nearly ninety degrees from the Stargate.
Amid complaints from McKay and Beckett, Ronan spoke up. “Do you know how many days it would take on foot?”
“Um…It takes a couple hours by jumper, so…I’d give it two and a half days, no less.” Tev’keta glared at McKay who had started complaining again and stood up. “Do you want to go home or not? If you do, I suggest you quit whining and get walking.” Startled by her vicious sarcasm, she followed her own advice, not caring if any of them followed.
Featured Stories
Fortune\'s Favor by Offworlder FAM
Winner of the Atlantis challenge for the December 2007 fic challenge contest.
Winner of the Atlantis challenge for the December 2007 fic challenge contest.
Most Recent
Alisa - The College Years by LE McMurray 13+
Having left Atlantis to go to college in no way meant Alisa McKay's life would...
Having left Atlantis to go to college in no way meant Alisa McKay's life would...