Act 3

Teyla squinted against the sudden flood of light, momentarily confused, as the four men burst in, completely invading her privacy.

"Clear!" One of the marines spun to the left and checked that side of the room, before going through into the bathroom to check there too.

A second marine circled rightward, making his way around to the partly open balcony doorway, and checking outside. He too called out, "Clear!" before both men began a perfunctory search of the room.

Teyla's heart pounded, and she still trembled with the fading edge of the dream and her awakening from it, but she was aware enough to realise what was going on.

"What… what are you—?" she stammered and grabbed the covers, irrationally pulling them up over her sleeping clothes. "Get out! Get out of here, now!"

She glared at Woolsey as he, followed by Hollick, came further into the room. Teyla rose from the bed, becoming more herself. She was fuelled by her anger, though partly out of modesty still held one of the blankets around her.

"How dare you!" she snarled.

"Where is it, Teyla?" Woolsey answered her with a question.

"What are you talking about?" she demanded angrily.

"Major Hollick's men in the infirmary reported you left with something in your hands. Where is it?" he said.

Frowning, Teyla jerked her head to indicate the side of the room. On a table there stood the breast pump that she had collected on her departure from the infirmary. "That is what your men saw," she spat at Hollick, at the same time she began to wind her fingers into the blanket, "I told you before of the reason for my visit to the infirmary." Then, before either man could answer, she added coldly, "Or perhaps you would like to watch me use it!"

To his credit, Hollick looked down, a little ashamed, but Woolsey persisted, saying, "You have to appreciate our position, Teyla. Your behaviour, the things you've said… that you were calling for Michael in your sleep… you have to admit, it's hard not to believe that you've been compromised."

"He has m—"

"—your son, yes… so you keep saying," Woolsey held up his hand to stop her from saying anything, "but frankly, right now, that's not very comforting. In fact, I can see how it could be a lever he could use against you to make—"

The accusation that he only part way completed was all Teyla needed to push her from anger into fury. She had been winding the blanket in her agitation almost into the knotted tangle of a rope… and, as the only thing she had to hand, she used it as a weapon, swinging it out toward Woolsey's legs and pulling hard to topple him backwards. She did not wait for him to hit the floor before she leaped toward him. She had no clear plan, indeed was not thinking at all. Driven by the pure folly of her anger she reached to snatch the knife from the belt of the nearest marine; to descend on the winded and surprised Woolsey.

She never reached him. Though she moved with an almost inhuman speed, her agitation, her anger, left her vulnerable. The two marines flanking Woolsey caught her by the arms and threw her backwards onto her bed, both levelling their weapons, aimed at her head, toward her as they let go of her. She froze.

"You lied to me!" she growled, turning her head to bring Woolsey into view as Hollick helped him to his feet. "You care nothing for my comfort; my health, and you never intended for me to have freedom in the city. You have had me under surveillance the entire time!"

"You have been under surveillance, yes. Teyla, please—" Woolsey held up a hand to try and stop her from speaking, but she refused to be quieted.

"Do not try to placate me. It will not work," she snapped and reached up to slap at the barrel of the weapon that was closest to her face, to push it away. The marine tensed his finger on the trigger.

"All right," Hollick held up his hand, and waved a slight signal to the marines. Slowly they took a step back, though they relaxed only slightly. "Let's just… take it easy, hmm?"

"At least listen to our position," Woolsey said to Teyla, his voice businesslike.

"Very well," she said and leaned up on her elbows, then sat up, no longer held in place by the threat of the weapons. "Explain… but do not take me for a fool."

Woolsey nodded. "All right," he said, quietly. "Since your return to Atlantis, you have been evasive, belligerent; your conduct on the mission you undertook with Colonel Sheppard was, frankly, reckless."

Teyla looked away and sighed heavily. For a moment she covered her face with her hands and massaged her tired temples.

"You have been paranoid; been making accusations against people that you know are your friends. You even attacked Colonel Sheppard in the hallway just yesterday."

"We understand that this is difficult for you," Major Hollick took a step forwards, speaking more gently than Woolsey, though his words were no less hurtful. "And that, after everything you've been through, it's hard to trust people around you and be yourself, but what you've been doing, Teyla, we believe is more than just the effects of post traumatic stress – and we already had Doctor Keller test for the only other possibility that makes sense."

Teyla got to her feet, straightening up and beginning to pace as she realised what they were saying. She had learned about Carson's clone from Doctor Keller. It agitated her still further to think that they could believe that this was what had happened to her as well.

"A clone? Me?"

"No." Hollick shook his head. "As I said, Doctor Keller tested that possibility as soon as Colonel Sheppard and the others found you. You check out. You really are who you think you are, but," he looked at Woolsey, who nodded for him to continue, "when we debriefed Doctor McKay, he remembers seeing you in Michael's laboratory; remembers you talking openly with Michael with no guards, no restraints, nothing."

"So what are you saying?" Teyla paused in her pacing to turn and regard the two men. "That… I am under some kind of… control by Michael… because of something he did to me, and that is why you come bursting into my quarters in the middle of the night? You think that gives you the right to do this to me?"

"Look, Michael has your son." Hollick said, "I'm a father. I know I'd do anything to save my child. Any parent would."

"You do not know me at all." Teyla pointed at him, her face set in a sneer. "My son? To harm him would only make an enemy of me!"

"I'm sorry, Teyla," Woolsey said. "There are other reasons why we have to do this."

"Why!" she demanded angrily, and took a step toward Woolsey. The marines flanking him once again raised their weapons and she stopped cold.

"Because we're concerned that, in spite of repeated opportunities to tell us what happened, you still refuse to answer any of our questions," Woolsey said.

"The whole point of our attempts to debrief you is to try and find a way to stop Michael," Hollick said, "and he has to be stopped. We believe that you're deliberately stalling in order to protect him – whether consciously or not – and that makes you a danger to us and to yourself. So until you can be properly debriefed, we have no choice but to place you under house arrest. It's for your own good, Teyla."

Teyla clenched her fists at her side, and almost growled softly as she looked at the men in contempt.

"You asked us for the truth." Hollick shrugged almost apologetically.

**

Sheppard blinked to make his eyes adjust to the change in light, and then tightened his grip on his P90 as his surroundings came into focus. The terrain around them was a rocky, barren wasteland. It felt cold, wet and thoroughly inhospitable. The air was damp and instantly soaked through his clothes to cling to him, leechlike and uncomfortable.

"What is it with these guys and dark, damp places?" he murmured irritably.

It was meant to be a rhetorical question, but McKay answered cheerlessly, "Well, considering what they evolved from, it does make a strange kind of sense."

"Aren’t you full of wit and wisdom today?" Sheppard thought he’d made the sarcasm in his voice obvious enough, but maybe it was true about intellectual people – they more often than not missed the obvious.

"I usually am, yes," McKay answered.

Sheppard sighed and shook his head at the scientist. Then he signalled to the rest of the marines. They were fortunate enough to have arrived at the coordinates designated for the meeting ahead of the Wraith. Daedalus had arrived in orbit and had taken a thorough scan of the area before transporting Sheppard and the others to the surface. They had found no trace of the Wraith, but that didn’t mean there were no other dangers that the planet could subject them to, and Sheppard was anxious to get back to Atlantis in one piece.

"Fan out," he said, "let’s take a look around; secure the area."

"That won’t be necessary," Todd’s rumbling, breathy voice came from the darkness behind them. "The area is already quite secure."

Ronon was the first to react. He swung round, his weapon clearing its holster and charging musically almost before the sound of Todd’s voice had given way to silence. Sheppard and the marines were not too slow in following his example.

"How did you get here?" Sheppard demanded.

"The same way as you, I would imagine," Todd answered. He looked a little confused at the question. "By cruiser, and then we were beamed down to the planet by Dart materialisers."

"We scanned the system," Sheppard said, as if he was protesting the unfairness of Todd’s prior arrival. "There was no one here."

"My warriors and I arrived several hours ago to ensure we were able to secure the area for our meeting," Todd said. "I took the precaution of keeping my ship’s presence masked by the gravitational eddies between this planet and its closest moon." The Wraith scientist glanced in the direction of the seemingly massive, green hued orb that dominated the sky just above the horizon. Then he added almost in amused companionship, "After all, I wouldn’t want our presence to have been detected by rival Hives and our meeting interrupted, now would I?"

"I guess not."

"Additionally, I wanted to ensure the location was safe from dangers for you and your men," Todd continued. "I know what lurks in the shadows of this world, Colonel Sheppard, and I would hate for any of you to fall foul of those dangers."

"Hey," Sheppard said indignantly, "you said a neutral planet."

"And indeed it is," Todd’s voice rolled towards him, as chilling as the damp air. "The Wraith abandoned this place millennia ago."

"That’s not the point," Ronon grumbled, tightening both his grip on his weapon and his aim on Todd.

"The point is," Todd said, "that we are all here. Why don’t we all lower our weapons and begin this meeting?" He made a gesture to suggest that Sheppard and his men should do so first.

"I don’t think so," Sheppard said.

"Oh, but I do," Todd purred, and from behind the Wraith, many more warriors stepped out of the shadows.

"Erm… guys?" Rodney tugged at the back of Sheppard’s vest. When Sheppard turned, he saw what had the other man so worried. As they had been talking, several more Wraith had appeared from the rocky darkness and now they were completely surrounded.

"All right," he said, dragging out the words a little, "why don’t we all… lower our weapons and start this meeting." He signalled to the marines and slowly took his hands off his own weapon, leaving it hanging across his chest by the strap. Only the big Satedan made no move to stand down. "Ronon," he said, "lower your weapon."

Growling, Ronon finally complied, though he did not move his hand very far away from his gun.

"Good," Todd crooned and spread his hands a little. Around them the Wraith also lowered their stunners. "Now we can talk."

"What do you want?" Sheppard took a wary step closer to the Wraith commander.

"Want?" Todd questioned, sounding surprised and perhaps slightly offended. "As I said, I have a proposal for you."

"I’m listening."

"It has come to my attention that you and I…" Todd gave a slight shrug. "Your people and mine… share much the same goals."

"We do?" Sheppard asked, adding sarcastically, "Must have missed the memo on that one."

"Come now, Colonel," Todd pressed, "It cannot have escaped your notice that we were both recently engaged in battle against a common enemy."

"Michael?" McKay said, only in part a question.

"Look, what is this, the enemy of my enemy is my friend?" Sheppard snapped, tiring of the politics.

"Hardly," Todd rumbled, "but we have used each other… when the need has arisen; have exchanged… information and we both seek the former Wraith that you call Michael."

"Former Wraith," Rodney let out a little chuckle. "Good one. Very reminiscent of The Artist Formerly Known as Prince." His mirth faded quickly as he added, "So both our people were out there trying to blow the crap out of Michael and his people – which, as a matter of fact, I should thank you for so very little – almost got me killed—"

"So we were all after Michael, so what? He had some of our people. We were trying to get them back," Sheppard interrupted McKay's tirade, watching Todd's face carefully.

"I think you are not being entirely honest with me, Colonel Sheppard," Todd said softly. "Yes, I am aware that you, Teyla wasn't it, was his captive? You told me as much when we last met, but our intelligence suggests that she has been returned to you, and yet you still seek him – quite rigorously so."

"What if we do?" Ronon grumbled out the question and Sheppard glanced at the impatient expression on his face.

"Then I propose we… pool our resources in order to find him," Todd said.

"An alliance?" Ronon folded his arms.

"Yes."

"With you?"

"Yes."

"No offence," Sheppard cut in, moving a step closer and putting himself between Ronon and Todd before Ronon could act on the expression of distaste he saw on the Satedan's face and punch the Wraith Commander in the mouth for the audacity of the suggestion, "but we don't exactly have warm and fuzzy memories of the last time we made an alliance with you people."

"You are not entirely innocent of… deceiving those with whom you have allied, John Sheppard," Todd said, quietly breathing out a sigh.

"Careful," Sheppard said, "you're letting your sympathies show."

"No!" Todd suddenly all but roared. "I have no sympathies with that one!"

The marines, and Ronon, tightened their grip on their weapons at the change in tone. As they did, so too did the Wraith. Realising the inherent danger in the moment Sheppard raised a hand.

"All right, all right," he said, almost apologetically, "we're not entirely blameless. What are you—?"

He broke off as a sudden movement among the shadows of the rocks caught his attention. With no more warning, the shadow came flying at him. Before even the ever alert Satedan could react, Todd's hand shot out and snatched the danger from the air beside Sheppard's head. He did not hold it for long, but tossed it to a space and, grabbing the nearest weapon from one of his warriors, fired on the creature before it could scuttle into position for a second attack.

As soon as Todd laid a hand on the weapon, Ronon snatched his own from its holster and aimed it at the Wraith's head. Following the Satedan's lead the marines, also, raised their weapons. Sheppard feared the situation was rapidly degenerating. It could be deadly if anyone on either side opened fire.

"Easy," he called out.

"Hold," Todd commanded at the same moment.

"Let's not get over excited," Sheppard continued. "He was only trying to help."

"Indeed," Todd breathed and walked the few steps to where the remains of the creature lay smoking on the ground. He picked it up and brought it back to Sheppard. "It would seve none of us any good were I to have left it to feed on you."

Sheppard couldn't help but shiver as he looked at the mangled ruins of the Iratus bug.

"After all," Todd added dryly, "It would mean so much less to sustain me."

Sheppard gave him a sour look.

Todd chuckled slightly at his expression and then said in a louder, more business like manner, "An alliance. My Hive, and the Hives under my control, will join our efforts with yours in locating the renegade and destroying his outposts and facilities. The only condition I impose is that, when we find him, we shall be the ones to deal with him."

"Deal with him?" Sheppard questioned. "Can't see as there would be much left to deal with once we catch up to him."

"Ah yes, Sheppard," Todd said firmly. "He must be taken alive."

**

"We searched, Sir," Hollick's voice travelled toward them as Sheppard, McKay and Ronon approached Woolsey's office. "Three times, and there's nothing there."

"Is it possible that your men made a mistake?" Woolsey asked. The frown that must have been on his face was evident in his voice.

"No, Sir," Hollick said adamantly.

"Anything we can help you with," Sheppard said lazily as he and the others burst into the room unannounced. He took in the expressions on the two men's faces in a glance. Both were puzzled, concerned, perhaps even a little irritated. Woolsey was the first to school his face into a more neutral expression.

"Colonel Sheppard," he said almost cheerfully. "How was your meeting?"

"Oh, you know," Sheppard said with a shrug. He was trying to hide his growing disquiet at being so blatantly excluded from meetings and ignored when he asked reasonable questions. "The usual – cold, damp meeting place, Wraith, Iratus bugs trying to feed on me… all in a day's work. You lose something, Major?"

"Sir?" Hollick asked, quite obviously attempting, once again, to side-step the question.

"You were just saying—"

"Aside from all of that, Colonel Sheppard," Woolsey interrupted, "how was your meeting with Todd? What did he want?"

Sheppard fixed his eyes on the major, trying to stare him down, but he answered Woolsey's question, none-the-less. "An alliance – our people and his – working together to track down Michael, destroy his facilities and to deliver him into the hands of his former brothers."

"Is that wise, Colonel?" Hollick asked, finally looking away and glancing at Woolsey as if he were worried that he would be reprimanded for cutting in on their conversation.

"It's a reasonable question, Sheppard," Woolsey said as Sheppard frowned. "You'll no doubt remember what happened on the previous occasions an attempt has been made to ally with the Wraith."

"I haven't forgotten – how could I. That's part of what started this whole mess in the first place." Sheppard snapped. "But, as cautious as I am to accept any kind of deal with the Wraith, all of the arrangements we've had with Todd in the past have pretty much worked out. If anyone can help us find Michael it would be him."

"You're saying you support this alliance?" Hollick asked, and there was a good degree of scepticism in his voice.

"I'm saying I don't necessarily oppose it," Sheppard corrected, "there's a big difference."

"Another one obfuscating," Hollick muttered, starting to turn away.

"What's that supposed to mean, soldier?" Sheppard's frown was deeper than ever at the attitude of his subordinate officer.

"I'm just tired of all this double talk, Sir," Hollick, still a marine after all, answered his superior officer.

"I think we all need to take a step back," Woolsey said, clearly trying to divert the conversation, "try and make a considered decision as to what we'll do about Todd's proposal."

Sheppard wasn't about to let himself get diverted, not this time. "Double talk?" he asked.

"Why won't anyone around here give a straight answer?" Hollick demanded. "These are Wraith, and you propose we deal with them to get to Michael. You keep on saying, they can't be trusted and yet here you are suggesting we do… whichever way you look at it, that's what you just said. Well maybe that's what he wants you to do… Sir," Hollick answered, looking and sounding more than a little unsettled. "Maybe that was his plan all along. Maybe you're acting this way because he reverse fed on you a—"

"You better be damn careful of the next words out of your mouth, Major Hollick," Sheppard's mood darkened to near midnight as he stepped up nose to nose with the other man. "What the hell has gotten into you?"

"I'm just concerned," Hollick did not back down, "and after what happened with Teyla – after what I saw—"

"What do you mean, 'after what happened with Teyla?' What's going on?" Ronon stepped closer, right up beside Sheppard, to join him in menacing the smaller man.

Beside the three of them, McKay squeaked at Woolsey expectantly, gesturing with open palms toward the storm that was brewing. After only another moment, Woolsey cleared his throat.

"Gentlemen," he said with a quiet authority, and when Sheppard glanced at him he was looking at them with a raised eyebrow, clearly waiting for them to step away from each other. "I'm afraid there's been a… development where Teyla is concerned. I now have very little doubt."

"About what?" Sheppard demanded, turning away from the marine and boring into Woolsey with an expression of deep displeasure.

"I'm afraid Teyla's been compromised," Woolsey said.

"Where is she?" Ronon demanded, and before Sheppard could stop him – not that he was sure that he would have, even if he could – he shot out a hand to grab Woolsey by the front of his uniform jacket and haul him closer. "What have you done to her?"

It was Hollick that answered, as Woolsey attempted to free himself, ineffectively, from the big Satedan's grip. "She's been placed under house arrest until she can be properly debriefed."

As soon as Hollick told them, Ronon let go of Woolsey and turned angrily, leaving the room seconds after. Woolsey fell against the table, a little out of breath, but trying to regain his dignity as he tugged his clothing back into place.

"I think maybe you better start at the beginning," Sheppard said, his own quiet anger bubbling under the surface of his words, "and tell me what the hell is going on here."

**

Vega trembled slightly from the cold as much as from her fear of angering the Queen. Even though her back was turned, she heard and recognised his footsteps before the elder Wraith waved her away, and rose from her throne, to descend the steps toward Todd.

Vega watched, in a kind of terrible fascination, the way the Queen stalked around him. It was predatory and sexual, though she doubted that the Wraith female had any of those kinds of desires for her Commander. Vega couldn’t help but wonder if Todd was in any way fooled; seduced by her advances.

"My Queen," he said with a little bow. "I have met with them as you commanded. Colonel Sheppard of Atlantis has returned to his superiors to lay the proposal before them."

"And he is willing?" she hissed, for once making no protest at his use of spoken language.

"I believe he is agreeable, yes," Todd crooned. "He has only to convince the others of the advantage that our alliance could bring. I am confident in his ability to do so."

Through the connection that the Queen kept with her, the hold she had on her mind, Vega felt a momentary flush of elation. It was so powerful that she could not help but take in a breath at the sensations it sent flushing through her. She felt as though every nerve in her body had responded to that brief touch and she trembled in the wake of it and suddenly clutched at the wall beside her.

=Soon…=

The word, or rather the idea of the word, echoed around in Vega's mind. The elation she felt turned to hunger; a jealous desire that was muted only slightly by doubt; worry that spiralled to the surface and was finally given form in the words that the Queen spoke.

"And your work?" she said, almost as though she were trying to tease the Wraith commander before her.

"It progresses," he said, his breathy voice, a reassuring counter-pressure from his mind somehow soothing the burning that still lingered in Vega's nerves. "Though I have, as yet, been unable to prevent the reversion. I believe, however, that I have isolated the gene cluster responsible. It is only a matter of time."

"See to it that you do," the Queen said, and all of the lightness had flown from her voice, to be replaced by the deadly cold and sibilant hiss with which Vega associated her. It was not only her voice that had turned murderous. The warning blackness of her anger once again filled the chamber, and Vega knew that it was meant as a warning to Todd. In the sudden clarity of that thought she began to try and work out why the Queen should need to threaten him; to work out what it was he tried to do with the hybrid prisoners that were now his test subjects. What ultimately did the Queen expect him to do?

**

She barely looked at him as he rushed into her room, virtually lifting the marines aside who had been set to guard her quarters.

"Teyla?" he said softly, the questioning tone meant as an invitation for her to tell him what was on her mind. She ignored him, looking away again. "I just got back. I'm sorry I wasn't here to look out for you, but I promise I won't let it ha—"

"Did they send you here so that you could make me talk to you?" She finally asked. The cold distrust in her voice cut into him as though she had stuck a knife into his gut, even though he could understand why she would think that and, in her position, he would probably have thought the same thing. His hesitation in answering her made her look up again. She fixed him with an intense glare. "Colonel Sheppard told me what happened when you came to find me, but I cannot help wondering why you bothered – given the treatment I have received since awakening. I do not feel that I can trust anyone as a friend."

Ronon began to walk toward where she sat, despondent, on the end of her bed.

"You can trust me, Teyla, you know you can," he answered.

"You expect me to just believe that?" she snarled and looked away again.

"I understand that you may not believe it, but just think, Teyla, I've done nothing to earn your suspicion. I know you're telling the truth."

"Really?" she asked sarcastically, "Because from where I sit, it is highly convenient that you should return at this time; to speak with me when I have evidently refused to speak to the others."

She turned her head to stare at him once more. He could not argue with her, because he could see the logic of her argument. Whatever had happened here while he and John were at the meeting with the Wraith had more than shaken her, and now, here was he, the one person who had been able to come anywhere close to her since they had brought her back to Atlantis, showing up in her quarters – and yes, he wanted her to talk to him, but only because he was sure that her accounting of the events would be more truthful than he would ever hear from Woolsey or the marines.

"So tell me," she said when he remained silent, "what is it that they wish to hear so that I may give them the lies they want, and have done with it?"

"They're wrong, Teyla," he said at last, "They've used you, and your people; show no respect, and as for Woolsey, he doesn't know how things work in this galaxy."

"And that is an excuse for this?" her voice rose for the first time into a semblance of the Teyla he knew as she raised her hands to gesture around them.

"No," he said, "but it's a reason."

"So what they have done to me – you think it is justified?"

Again he could not answer her. Right – no. Justified, if you looked at things from their perspective, perhaps it was. She looked away again, obviously taking his silence to mean he agreed with what they had done. Frustrated with his own inability to break through her reticent anger and reach the reasoning woman he knew and loved, he crossed the rest of the way to kneel down in front of her and take her hands in his. She did not pull away.

"Teyla, listen to me," he said softly, looking up into her down turned face, "putting you under arrest like this, it's ridiculous. I don't know exactly what's going on, I don't need to know, because I know you. Yes, all right, maybe you and I haven't always had the same opinions about the whole sorry mess that made Michael what he is today – and maybe you're the better person because you can see the good in him, or find it in yourself to show compassion that none of the rest of us can – but that doesn’t make you a criminal."

"Ronon," Teyla's sigh was one of frightened relief as she freed her hands from his and reached for him. He moved to sit beside her and she leaned into his offered embrace and held on to him tightly, "I'm afraid."

"I know you are," he whispered, smoothing her hair down and fitting her beneath his chin. "To lose a whole chunk of your life like that, it's got to be terrifying."

She shook her head against his chest. "What is happening to me?" she asked.

"We'll get you through this," he promised, "and if they don't want you here on Atlantis, maybe they'll let you go and stay with your people. Anything has to be better than this."

Mutely she nodded. He felt her sigh again, and settle against him even more as though the fortress of his arms could protect her from all the crazy things that were happening to her. He sighed too – only wishing that he could.

**

"What do you mean, she was calling for him?" Sheppard had heard just about all he could stand of the insinuations and accusations that Woolsey was levelling at Teyla, but this last comment, and the thinly veiled smirk on Major Hollick's face, was almost enough to push him from anger into disbelief.

"See for yourself," Woolsey invited, gesturing to one of the screens at the side of his office.

"You bugged her quarters?" Sheppard demanded, the disbelief rapidly turning back to anger.

"Of course he bugged her quarters," McKay began to ramble almost sorrowfully, "and it's my fault. If I hadn't told them I saw her walking around aboard Michael's cruiser – I should have known they'd take it out of context – it wouldn't have happened. Oh," he grumbled at himself, "Rodney McKay, when will you learn to keep your mouth shut."

"Shut up, Rodney," Sheppard snapped, and then to Woolsey, added, "This is a gross invasion of privacy, you know that, right?"

"When Teyla's behaviour became erratic, I contacted the IOA to report what was going on. They ordered that she be placed under surveillance," he answered.

Sheppard said sarcastically, "Even you could come up with something more original than that."

"It happens to be the truth," Woolsey said.

"But in her quarters?" Sheppard questioned again, "that's not surveillance, that's… that's… Well, I don't know what it is, but it's certainly not decent."

"Stalking," Rodney suggested.

Woolsey sighed, "Just look at the tape, Colonel, and then tell me that you think I'm wrong."

Teyla gasped and turned her head against her pillow, letting out a soft moan.

"Don't…" she gasped, and then let out a shuddering, sudden breath. Snatching another, she moaned, "…Please… Michael, I want…"

She gripped the blanket beside her tightly in one hand, and the other hand, resting beside her face, closed into a fist. She moaned again and her breathing quickened until she was almost visibly trembling with each breath.

Even though he wanted to look away, some terrible fascination held Sheppard immobile.

Teyla moaned again and the blankets over her moved as though she was moving beneath them. It looked like she was twisting, trying to free herself from some imaginary peril. The snatches of breath she took were rapid and shallow. Laboured as though she were running – or in pain…

She called out Michael's name again and bit her trembling lower lip, turning her head and pleading with him, "Please, I… don't…"

One of her hands flailed out as though fending off some contact, or perhaps reaching for something and she took a breath that shuddered – was almost a sob – through her trembling body. The moans she was making became a cry and she almost arched her back as the wordless sound she made became a breathless cry of her captor's name.

"Michael… Michael!"

She sat up, the bedclothes falling in a heap around her waist—

"All right, all right!" Sheppard couldn't stand to watch any longer. She was clearly troubled, remembering some kind of pain… something he did to her. "So she cried out his name," he said, and glanced at the door as it opened to admit Ronon. The Satedan had a face like thunder. "Big deal," Sheppard continued. "Seems obvious to me she was dreaming, maybe unconsciously remembering something he did to her. She was in pain. Of course she called out his name."

"Some of us don't quite see it that way," Hollick said from his vantage point beside Woolsey. "The marines that were monitoring the surveillance – that are trained to analyse this kind of thing—"

"Besides which," Woolsey cut off the major, saying, "If she can remember unconsciously, then the memories are there, she just needs help to access them and—"

"Let her go," demanded Ronon.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Woolsey said.

"She can't help you, and you don't want her here, so let her go," the Satedan said again. His voice was clipped and angry. "She can go back to her people. She'll be comfortable there, and safe… as safe as she would be here, anyways. Halling won't let anything happen to her."

"As I just said," Woolsey repeated with exaggerated patience, "I can't do that."

"Why not?" Sheppard asked, getting a terrible, sinking feeling inside of him.

"Because the IOA, in consultation with Stargate Command, has ordered that she be transported to Earth so that she can be properly, and fully debriefed… so that those unconscious memories can be brought to the fore. The information she has on Michael's operations could be vital to the survival of—"

"No," Sheppard folded his arms and breathed out quickly down his nose, trying to keep his anger from mounting any further. It was a futile attempt.

"I'm sorry, but it isn't up to you, Colonel Sheppard," Woolsey said, "and Stargate Command has also instructed me to warn you that should you attempt to interfere – any of you," he added, looking pointedly at Ronon and then McKay, "then you too will be censured."

"I'm not going to let you get away with this," Sheppard growled, taking a step toward Woolsey. "Threaten me with Court Marshal just to get your own way over Teyla? That's low, even for you!"

"Low or not, it's what will happen, Colonel, if you try to interfere," Woolsey said. "Besides, you have a meeting to attend. If we are going to find Michael, and hopefully exonerate Teyla, as you seem so convinced of her innocence, then we need this alliance with Todd and his Wraith."

Almost before the words had left Woolsey's mouth, Sheppard stretched out an arm to hold Ronon back from attacking the wiry little man. They were backed into a corner. Stargate Command would not be gentle with Teyla in getting whatever truth from her she could remember. The only way to help her now was to do as Woolsey had, albeit sarcastically, suggested and find Michael. If Todd could help them to do that, then they had to go and cement the deal with the Wraith.

"You dare do anything before I get back, and I swear," he warned Woolsey in a deadly, serious tone, "I will feed you to the Wraith myself."

**

Sheppard looked around as they materialised at the new rendezvous site. Neither party had been comfortable to meet where every shadow might harbour an Iratus bug just waiting to drain the life from them, so, after scanning the planet, Sheppard had suggested a small rocky valley on the planet's only other landmass from their previous meeting place.

McKay frowned as he joined Sheppard in his perusal of the site. "And this is better… how exactly?" he complained. The valley was no less damp, and still as inhospitable as the previous meeting place. The rocks were equally as shadowed and might as easily hide all kinds of dangers. "You couldn't have suggested a morning meeting?"

"This is morning, Rodney," Sheppard told him, signalling to his men to spread themselves out among the rocks. "Planet is in the perpetual shade of its largest moon."

"No wonder nothing grows or lives here," Ronon said.

"Aside from the… Iratus bugs," Rodney reminded them.

"Thanks for that," Sheppard said humourlessly.

"So what does make this a better site?" Ronon asked.

"The Gate," Sheppard answered almost casually.

"Gate," Rodney said, his interest piqued once more, "No one mentioned there was a Gate. Wher—"

"That's because the Gate here is only of any use one way," Todd purred as he and his soldiers stepped from the shadows.

"The dialling device was damaged some time ago and was never repaired," Todd replied. "Otherwise I would have suggested each of us should travel in that manner and not trouble our respective star ships to bring us."

"That's mighty neighbourly of you," Sheppard glanced at McKay. "See what you can do, Rodney. According to Daedalus' sensors it should be about three klicks west of here."

"If you'd like, I can have some of my soldiers show you its location," Todd suggested.

"I think I can manage," Rodney said, and Sheppard could hear the badly masked suspicion in his voice.

"It's no bother," Todd said, mildly teasing in his tone.

"Edwards, Robbins," Sheppard called out to the marines, "Go with McKay… and the Wraith," he added before Todd could protest, "We are meeting here in friendship, after all."

"Indeed," Todd purred, and barely glanced in the direction of two of his soldiers, who moved to join the small party assembling off to one side.

Sheppard waited, and watched as McKay and the others stepped out and soon became swallowed by the darkness. Then he turned his attention back to the Wraith Commander in front of him.

"So," Sheppard started, "Your people and my people… how exactly do you see this working?"

"I had imagined we would work together," Todd answered, a shrug evident in the pattern of his speech, "as we did when we defeated the Replicators."

"Except when we catch up to Michael."

"As I said, it is… important that he be taken alive," Todd confirmed.

"See, that's where we have a problem," Sheppard said. "He's responsible for a lot of heartache – not to mention kidnapping, murder—"

"And I assure you he will be brought to justice," Todd interrupted.

"What kind of justice?" Ronon growled, fingering the grip of his weapon.

"Wraith justice," Todd hissed, and Sheppard couldn't help the shiver that went through him.

"One condition," Ronon insisted. Todd spread his hands, inviting Ronon to name his clause. "When you're through with him, Doctor Keller verifies the body."

"You suspect us of subterfuge even before this alliance is cemented," Todd raised his voice just enough to unsettle the marines, who grasped their weapons more tightly. Todd took in a deep breath, that seemed to calm him somewhat, before he added, "When we are, 'through with him,' as you say, there will be very little left to identify, Ronon Dex."

"A little is all I need." Ronon rumbled softly.

**

Quiet times occurred few and far between aboard a battle cruiser and Caldwell enjoyed the times when he could commune with his ship and her crew. He walked the hallways slowly, on occasion stopping to exchange quiet words with one of the ever present, perpetually busy maintenance engineers.

He was confident the bridge and ship's systems were in safe hands. He couldn't have wished for a more competent Con. Officer than Major Marks.

He smiled at the man as he completed his tour and returned to the command position. He was trying very hard not to allow the sight of the Wraith cruiser unsettle him, but the truth was, being so close to an enemy battleship bothered him. It wasn't necessarily the closeness, as much as the fact that neither ship was firing on the other, that so troubled him.

"Sir?" Marks' voice almost startled him out of his contemplation.

"What is it, Major?"

"I'm not certain, Colonel," Marks was frowning at his sensor displace. "For a moment I had an echo or something on subspace sensors."

"Heads up," Caldwell ordered, and though Marks told him that whatever had caused the echo was gone, the Con. officer complied with the order none-the-less and activated the Tactical HUD.

"It was right there, Sir," Marks said, "almost on the edge of the sys—" He broke off and his confused tone became one of urgency. "I'm detecting a hyperspace window forming, full astern," he said, adding, "It's Wrai— my God!"

Caldwell didn't wait to see what had caused the additional outburst. "Bring us about," he ordered, "shields up."

Marks didn't have time to enact either order before the Daedalus rocked under the first of the shots fired at her.

**

"Our intelligence leads us to believe that several settlements on worlds within these systems contain sympathisers with the renegade," Todd turned his tablet so that Sheppard could see the star map. Sheppard at least could identify the placement of the stars if not read the text. "And that at least one of his facilities lies within the region, but that is all we have managed to gather. He is a very cautious individual."

"Makes a twisted kind of sense, I guess," Sheppard said. "Our people made contact with settlements here, and here," he pointed out two of the planet shaped dots on the screen, "and many of the people there suffer from the effects of the Hoffan drug, some survivors."

"That's very interesting, Colonel," Todd tilted his head slightly to one side.

"Consider it a… show of good faith on our part," Sheppard said.

Todd inclined his head in a nod of gratitude, before he said, "Our most recent encounter with… Michael took place here," Todd switched the screen on his tablet to show a wider view, and a system some distance away from the worlds they had been discussing. "We tried several times to fit together some kind of pattern based on what we already know, but…"

When Todd shrugged, Sheppard said, "Let me guess – there is no pattern."

"Isn't that—" Ronon asked, peering at Todd's tablet.

"Yeah," Sheppard confirmed.

"Come now, Colonel Sheppard," Todd said, admonishing them for their secrecy.

"One of our people that had been taken by Michael—" Sighing, Sheppard began to explain.

"Ah, this is where you found Teyla," Todd surmised. Sheppard nodded. "Then it is fortunate for her that we engaged the renegade there."

"Yeah, I guess we should say—"

"Sheppard, this is Daedalus."

"Go ahead," Sheppard keyed his headset mic.

"We're under attack," Caldwell, clearly under duress, told him.

"What?" Sheppard asked, unable to keep the horrified surprise from his voice, or to keep from glancing at Todd in open suspicion.

"The Queen…" the Wraith said, his voice trailing off into a sigh.

"A few seconds ago," Caldwell continued, "the biggest damned Hive ship you ever saw came out of hyperspace almost right behind us; opened fire immediately."

"You double crossing son-of-a-bitch," Sheppard growled at Todd, "you set us up!"

Lacking ease of access to his P90, Sheppard drew his handgun and aimed angrily at Todd. Disappointment lent extra fuel to his anger. Beside him, almost in the same instant, Ronon drew his own sidearm.

"I swear to you, John Sheppard, I knew nothing of this," Todd spread his hands, a gesture meant to be placating. "I have been deceived as much as you."

"Why should I believe you?" Sheppard snapped, and realised, as he said the words, that he truly wanted to believe and not to have been deceived again.

**

Teyla was hot and beginning to feel a little claustrophobic. Her quarters were a reminder of everything that was wrong since she had returned… since she had been returned… to Atlantis. She was more convinced as each moment passed, that in truth, that was what had happened. Her return to New Lantea had had not been some happy accident; had not been a matter of her companions stumbling on her whereabouts, but had been part of some well orchestrated plan that was even now unfolding around her, and which she was powerless to alter or prevent. That she could remember nothing only frustrated and frightened her still further.

-…Teyla-

The memory of her name on his lips came on her suddenly, so strong that she could almost hear it and knew that it had been preceded by other words she could not recall. She leaned against the window, staring out over the ocean, fighting to recall them; to unveil them to her conscious mind.

"Teyla…" When Major Hollick came into her room and called her name she barely even heard him, she was so lost in her contemplation. He had to call her name again a second, and then a third time, before she turned her head to look at him. "They're almost ready for you in the Gate Room."

With a tired sigh, she peeled herself away from the window and walked to join the major. Part way across the room, the resigned thought pushed its way to the surface of her mind.

…Will I still feel you in another galaxy…?

**

"It's now or never, Sheppard," Caldwell said urgently into his ear. "What's it to be?"

"Call her off," Sheppard demanded of Todd, grabbing the Wraith by the arm and almost shaking him. "This plan can work, we can find him together, but I need that ship."

"It's not as easy as that," Todd started to explain.

"Sheppard!" Caldwell repeated, with more alarm in his voice. "There's no more time."

"You have to at least try," Sheppard pressed. "You want me to believe you're not involved in this – get her to call off the attack."

Todd stared at him for a moment, and at his expression Sheppard began to realise the enormity of what he was asking; was expecting. Finally Todd inclined his head.

"I will speak with her," he said.

**

The ship rocked beneath him as another explosion reverberated through the hull. The Wraith weapons were cutting through the shields like a hot knife through butter and he knew there was only so much more that The Daedalus could take.

"Damn it, Sheppard, I swear if you don't answer me I'm beaming you out of there and making a run for hyperspace while we still have a ship to run with!"

"Negative, Colonel," Sheppard finally answered. "I'm sure this is just a misunderstanding. Continue to take a defensive position. We'll have it all cleared up in a minute or two."

"This ship isn't going to last another minute or two. We—"

A massive, percussive flash rolled out across the bridge behind him and the entire ship bucked, as if protesting the treatment. The automatic fire suppression system fired, filling the area immediately behind and to the left of the command position with inert gasses that were vented just as quickly, taking the fire with them as though swallowing it down.

"We just lost main beaming capability," Marks' voice sounded like a death knell as he continued, "The Hive is launching darts."

"That's it," Caldwell snapped, "to hell with a defensive position. Launch the three-oh-twos. I'm not about to sit still and do nothing while the Wraith take this ship apart a piece at a time. Engineering – see what you can do about getting our beaming technology back online." Hardly pausing for breath, he called down to Sheppard, "We just lost the ability to beam you out of there so I sure as hell hope you're confident in your ability to stop this. The Hive launched darts and our three-oh-twos are heading to intercept."

"Damn it, Steven—"

"Colonel Caldwell," Marks interrupted, sounding fearful, "I'm reading several hyperspace windows forming." He was frowning when Caldwell glanced in his direction. "Multiple contacts – they're in theatre. It's the Wraith, Sir."

"What, more of them?" Caldwell peered at the HUD.

"Wait a minute," Marks said, confused, "the lead cruiser just fired on the Hive. The others are following, Sir. They've launched darts."

Frowning, Caldwell got up from his command chair and approached the viewing window to watch, real time, as the four cruisers that had jumped to their position closed in on the massive Hive, firing as they came. Darts came streaming out of their bellies, heading to join the fight, weaving in and out of the three-oh-twos. It was a chaotic dance.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked rhetorically.

"Sent by a rival Hive?" Marks suggested.

"Maybe," Caldwell agreed, though something in his gut was not so sure, and then frowned still more deeply as a number of the darts began to head away from the ships. "Major Marks, Where are those darts going?"

**

McKay practically fell to his knees in front of the DHD and pulled off the front panel. From inside his jacket he took a small tool pouch and began to examine the crystals and circuits inside the cylindrical column. He was still breathless from the forced mark he'd adopted the minute he began listening in on the conversation between Caldwell and Sheppard, as certain as he ever was that he would be called on to save the day.

"As usual," he grumbled to himself as he began to test one circuit after another. At least all of the crystals were in place and seemed to be intact. In fact, the more he examined the dialling device, the more he realised that it was not as badly damaged as he had feared. "Why the hell didn't they fix it? It doesn't make any sense."

"Doctor McKay?" Robbins asked, confused.

"Looks to me as if just one of the circuits overloaded and that's why the Gate won't dial out, but I'm sure, if this was a Wraith stronghold, and let's face it, what Ancient in his right mind would want to live in a desolate hellhole like this, anybody for that matter, even the Wraith would have been able to fix this – so why didn't they?"

"That means you can fix it, right?" Edwards asked.

"Yes, of course I can fix it," McKay said testily. "Why wouldn't I be able to, if even the Wraith can do it?"

"One day, human," one of the Wraith that Todd had sent with them evidently took exception to McKay's words and tone, and decided to join the conversation, "you will meet the Wraith who is your equal, or perhaps even superior to you."

"Unlikely," McKay answered blithely, and yet, in the back of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder, and a conversation with Teyla and his own words came rushing up on him unexpectedly.

"…We know very little of his past other than he was a Wraith," Teyla said.

"A very smart Wraith," He said as he looked over Michael's data.

"Perhaps he was a scientist," she surmised, glancing at him from the doorway.

Engrossed in the data, he answered distractedly, "Huh? Sure. Probably. Why not? One of their very best, I'd wager."

"Like you."

He shuddered at the thought and more than a little quickly set to work repairing the damaged circuit.

Barely minutes passed before he began to hear the familiar and unwelcome sound of Wraith darts buzzing in the air. One handed, he keyed his headset mic.

"Sheppard, we've got company," he said.

"I hear 'em," Sheppard's voice came back, slow and reassuring. "You just concentrate on getting that Gate operational."

"Yes, well, it might not be as simple as all that," he finally admitted, tossing aside the tool he was using and pulling on the board until it came out of its place. "If it were any of the other circuits that were fried on this thing I could have it fixed in seconds, I'd just route the control through an already existing system."

"So what's the problem?" Sheppard asked.

"The problem is that the circuit that holds the point of origin, that actually finishes the dialling sequence, is shot to hell." he grumbled.

"But you can fix it, right?" Sheppard said.

McKay sighed irritably, "Yes, of course I can fix it," he snapped, "It'll just take time, is all." As he spoke a new sound filled the air, making a counterpoint to the low buzzing of the darts, slightly more musical, but even more deadly. "Sheppard…" he called out, his voice taking on a note of panic. Before he could explain further, the ground beside him exploded, showering him with dirt and rocky debris, as a Wraith blaster was fired in his direction by the soldiers that had been beamed down.

Beside him, Edwards and Robbins didn't wait for orders they just raised their weapons and started firing.

"Here too, McKay," Sheppard said, and over the radio he could hear the sound of weapons' fire from the colonel's location. "Just keep working on fixing the Gate. Soon as you have, dial Atlantis; get us reinforcements on the ground!"

"See," he grumbled to himself, "I knew it… just knew it!"

It never failed to surprise McKay how much 'pressure' was a motivating factor for him, and there was no greater pressure than the many Wraith soldiers that were being beamed in. As soon as they had, of course, Todd's Wraith had turned coat and joined their brothers in fighting against them. His hands flew over the circuit, switching one tool for another and another as he tried to find a route across the board that was not already burned out or in danger of overload the moment the gate was activated.

A bolt of heat and light flashed across in front of his face, as one of the Wraith aimed much more closely in his direction. McKay ducked aside, trying to use the base of the DHD as cover. Partially surrounded by Wraith warriors, it was not much help.

McKay jumped, and let out a little cry of his own as, from nearby, Robbins screamed as he fell to a Wraith blaster.

"Come on, come on, come on, come on," he chanted at the circuit as he tried one final route across the board. Triumph, the green light on the meter he was using to test the circuit burned as a victory signal before his eyes. "Yes!"

He wasted no time thrusting the circuit back into place. He could not have timed the moment better if he had choreographed the Wraith assault ahead of time. In the second the board slid home, Edwards flew across the clearing in front of the Gate to land, a crumpled heap against the base of the DHD. Glancing back toward the direction from which he came, McKay saw a Wraith warrior beginning to bear down on him… on them both, he reminded himself. Quickly he snatched up the fallen marine's weapon, and barely aiming in the right direction began firing one handed, the butt of the gun jammed against his hip to give some stability to it, and with the other hand, he quickly dialled Atlantis.

The familiar rush of sound and shimmering light from the creation of the event horizon did little to calm his frantic, panicked heartbeat.

**

"Unscheduled offworld activation!"

Woolsey came, all but running, from his office as the alarms began to sound throughout the city, skidding to a halt in the middle of the control room. Already a small group of marines were taking up defensive positions in the Gate Room, even though the shield was still in place.

"Receiving IDC – it's Doctor McKay."

"Lower the shield," Woolsey ordered. The moment the shield faded, all hell broke loose.

McKay staggered from the event Horizon, frantically grappling with a masked Wraith warrior. Trying to keep the creature's hands at bay, the scientist yelled, "Shut it down!"

Woolsey nodded quickly and the technician's hand flashed across the console. The wavering blue light disappeared in an instant, leaving the fight between the doctor and the Wraith in stark grey against the normal lighting.

"Down!" a marine's voice rang out, almost as loud as the gunfire that followed. McKay barely had time to stop struggling with the Wraith and cover his head with his hands before the group of marines opened fire on the intruder. The Wraith staggered under the percussive force of the many bullets hitting him, falling backwards through the inactive gate. The Gate Room finally breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"Doctor McKay, what happened," Woolsey said urgently as he hurried down the stairs.

"Wraith," McKay squeaked, beginning to uncurl from his foetal position.

"I can see that," Woolsey said, "but how… when?"

"Minutes ago," McKay said breathlessly, starting to pull himself together a little, "Caldwell reported the Hive had arrived."

"The Hive?"

"The… the… the Mother-Hive… M3X-667…" McKay took up Woolsey's offer of assistance to rise. "They need reinforcements on the ground."

"Todd double-crossed us," Woolsey said, and it was not quite a question.

"No. Yes. I don't know – maybe!" McKay snapped, "Look, Sheppard's still out there. He needs reinforcements."

"Captain Warsh," Woolsey turned his head to one of the marines in the Gate Room, "Assemble your teams, be ready to go in five." The captain nodded curtly, and then began to order his men to round up their fellow soldiers. Then Woolsey keyed his radio headset and gave one further order. "Major Hollick, escort Teyla back to her quarters. Her trip to Earth will have to wait."

**

Major Hollick led the way along the corridor back toward her quarters, behind her, two more armed men followed – men at whose side she had fought – men for whom she would have risked injury, even death. The betrayal cut deeply.

The sound of the footsteps behind her changed slightly, and Teyla glanced behind her, to see Doctor McKay joining the small escort party. She stopped and turned to face him.

"What are you doing?" Hollick demanded.

She ignored the major and smiled briefly at McKay. "Rodney," she said softly, "It is good to see you." Her smile faded a little and she asked a little more curtly, "Is there something you wanted?"

"Just… look," he started, "I know this is probably my fault," he gestured to the marines escorting her, "I just wanted you to know that I never intended for any of this to happen. If there's any way I can help – anything I can do to make things easier…"

"If that is true, if you are responsible for the way I have been treated," she nodded in response to his apology, "then I should thank you. You have begun to open my eyes to the lie under which I have been living. My only wish is that you could have come to me from the start."

"Ma'am," Hollick interrupted softly, "Your quarters?"

"Yeah," McKay said nodding slowly, "I guess I deserved that… Teyla—"

Looking at him intently for a moment, Teyla said softly, "Forgive me," and frowned, the words feeling strangely familiar to her for no reason she could understand. Slowly she turned away, to face Hollick and the direction in which they were going. With no warning, she spun around again and raised her forearm to smash it against Rodney's face. He staggered backwards into the two marines behind him. Without letting her momentum fail, she completed a full circle, bringing up her leg, foot leading to impact hard against Hollick's chest, following through with a second forearm smash, this time to the side of the man's head. As he staggered away from her, momentarily stunned, she made a grab for his sidearm, and without waiting for the tangle of men behind her to recover, set off at a run along the corridor. With no knowledge of why, she headed for the infirmary. She barely heard the winded Hollick report her escape to Woolsey.

"Get out!" she yelled at the orderlies as she came charging into the infirmary. As they left, she closed and locked the door, then fired a shot into the panel, ignoring the sparks that leaped to bite her shoulder and the side of her face. Instead she all but ran to the refrigerator and fired ahead of her to take out the glass in the door.

Heedless of the jagged glass, she reached in and snatched up the vial, and the syringe she had attached to it with a rubber band, slipping it into her pocket. She turned quickly as she heard the hurried footsteps coming her way.

"Drop your weapon!" she ordered the marine flanking Doctor Keller. When he did not comply, she shouted, "Do it!" and, shifting her aim barely an inch away from the man's face, she fired another round. Wisely, perhaps feeling the stinging heat of the bullet, the man carefully set down his weapon and backed away. He tried to hook Jennifer by the arm, but the doctor snatched her elbow away from him.

"Take it easy, Teyla." she said softly.

"Do not get in my way, Jennifer," she warned. "Move aside – both of you."

Cautiously she began to circle toward the doorway that led to the isolation wing, gesturing with the weapon for them to move the other way. When she reached the automatic weapon that the marine had dropped to the ground, she kicked it ahead of her, until she could crouch down, without taking her eyes off the others, and pick it up.

"You don't have to do this," Jennifer told her softly. "I know you're frightened – I would be too, but this isn't the way."

"It is the only way I have left to me, Jennifer," Teyla said, and shook her head slightly. "It is all they understand. They drove me to this."

Without warning, she raised the barrel of the P90 and with a short burst of gunfire shattered the lights, drawing a little scream from Jennifer, and plunging the room into darkness. Under that cover, she made her way into the isolation room, closed and locked the door, and shorted out the control panel with a single shot from her sidearm. She knew it would not hold them for long, but at least it would give her a moment's peace to think.

Angrily, she blinked away her gathering tears.

**

They were already pinned down by sheer force of the number of Wraith that had been beamed down to fight with them. Todd's attempt to contact the Queen had been fruitless. She had refused to hear him, he said, so he and what few Wraith remained loyal to him had retreated to their dart so that he could go to her physically; speak with her and get her to call off the senseless attack.

But that meant that he would need time, and time was something that Sheppard and the others did not have. Even with the reinforcements that Woolsey had sent, they were heavily outnumbered.

"Incoming!" Warsh called out as a wave of Darts came buzzing in across the sky.

"Ah, great, that's all we need!" Sheppard said sourly. He took a tighter grip on his weapon, trying to be ready to face the inevitable. He ordered, "Stay sharp. We're in trouble, guys."

The Darts' culling beams swept across the ground, their heat-haze wavering clearing to leave figures in their wake. One of their Wraith attackers suddenly grunted and contorted in agony as a bolt of energy from a blaster engulfed him. He fell, smoking, to the ground.

Around him Sheppard saw the focus of the battle shifting. The Wraith attacks were no longer aimed solely at him and his men, but split between them and the newcomers, defending as much as they were attacking. Overhead the Darts, too, began to engage, firing energy weapons that scorched the ground below with their heat.

"What the—" Sheppard started to say, but then one of the newcomers' faces was briefly lit up in the light of an explosion from a Dart that crashed to the ground. The figure was human – mostly, dressed in homespun, thick linen and leather… and on the man's face the tell-tale twin marks of the Wraith-Human Hybrids.

Finally, what was happening began to fall into place, though the reasons for it remained something that was beyond his comprehension.

"He's here," he said softly, a tremulous note of frightened worry in his voice.

"What?" Ronon asked, "Who?"

"Michael."

Coming soon