Warnings: AU world, violence, death, sexual content
Disclaimers: I earn no money from this and I own no part of the canon Stargate world, only the characters that I create for myself.
Spoilers: Set in established AU world, set in equivalent time to late season 2/early season 3.
Note: And the Alliance fics are back! This is going to be another long one, but I plan to get at least one chapter out a week, maybe more some weeks, depending on my work and family schedule. I recommend perhaps going back over the fics set prior to this one, 'First Contacts' and 'Convergence of Acquaintances', or at least the last chapters of CofA, because even I had to look up details to remind myself of the details I've created! I've had to draw up an Alliance encyclopaedia for myself.
Note2: I have purposefully, as you may have noticed, given nothing away with the summary of this fic, just some hints, because I hope you'll all enjoy the story as it unfolds. All I can promise is that I've got it all worked out, half written already, and that there will be surprises (hopefully), angst, death, a juggler, lots of Ketra, a kiss or two, and maybe a wedding…
Note3: This fic is dedicated to those of you who have been determined enough to keep nudging me to write this one, but sweet enough to do it gently. Much love, Wedjatqi XXX
Chapter One - Mada
00000
Iketani's underground bunker on the planet Mada
The air was thick with the ever increasing levels of smoke that were filtering down from above, creating a thick dangerous cloud that crawled along the ceiling above him. The air was growing warmer and tasted badly even through the strip of damp fabric he had tied over his nose and mouth. But, despite his fears and the instinuctal compulsion to just run far away from the billowing heat that was devouring the house above, he stepped further into the bunker's entrance.
Bodies littered the floor, pieces of Wraith cut and scattered around him. His stomach rebelled, turning over and threatening to empty. He swallowed that instinct as well, for he had survived far worse. He stepped forward, setting his foot carefully over the twisted shoulder of a dead Wraith. It was dead, he was sure of it, yet years of fear imprinted on him since from his childhood made him suspicious and ready for the monster to come alive again to kill him.
However, the Wraith did not move, none of them did, so gasping loudly through the wet rag over his mouth, he put one foot in front of the other, moving around the open torso of another monster. In his mind he knew this was a sight to be celebrated, but in his gut he just wanted to run. The smell of death and Wraith had made its way, along with burning ash, into his breath, but he kept moving forward. His boot slipped briefly under him in a gathered pool of dark liquid. They were Wraith, he reminded himself over and over as he walked on, stepping over severed Wraith limbs. One arm shifted as he passed and he froze, eyes locked down on the pale fingers frozen in a half clawed position as if the monster had been about to grab it's victim. It was one less monster that could kill others. His stomach did not listen to such logical thought and the nausea only grew as he came upon a pile of more severed limbs, and he ran his eyes nervously over the pile, fearing to find a human's hand among the monsters'.
He edged closer to the pile, moving around it only for his eyes to meet those of a decapitated Wraith head. Cold dead alien eyes stared wide open at him, staring at him. He fixed his gaze with that horrific image, walking backwards away from it, uncaring as to the blood and bits of bodies he kicked out of the way. Instincts born of a lifetime of fear, kept his eyes on the Wraith head and with a childlike fear of the shadows he waited for it to rise up fully formed again from the pile of death.
He kept moving away, circling round out of the line of sight of the Wraith head, until he had circled far enough away that the dead eyes could no longer be seen. He breathed heavier, panting through the rag, his vision diminishing slightly with lack of fresh air and his own terror. He edged back further and forced his gaze across the floor away from the Wraith head.
A flash of pure colour among the death and ugliness caught his eye and all fear and panic fled.
Her hair, pure gold and sunlight lay over a Wraith, and he rushed forward, the limbs and bodies forgotten, now only obstacles towards her. As he neared he could see that half of her hair was tainted, covered in Wraith blood, but as he reached her side, he realised it was also her own. Panic and despair filled his chest as he dropped down into a crouch beside her body, into a patch strangely clear of obstacles, as if someone else had made room before him to look down at her.
She lay on her front, the deep pool of blood soaked into her clothes, and her face was turned from him. He reached out with a shaking hand and carefully, gently, brushed her hair aside. Her pale cheek came into view and he bent over her, eager to see her eyelashes move, but they remained unnaturally still against her far too pale cheek. The panic swelled up higher, he was too late, but he kept pulling her hair away to clear his view of her and he reached down carefully to her throat, seeking out her pulse of life. Her skin was cold, far too cold for one who should breathe. He pressed his fingers tight to her skin and felt nothing. He felt further around her neck, fearing he was foolishly feeling in the wrong place. He found the central column of her throat and set his fingers against the dip beside it. Again nothing. He pressed his fingers deeper, hoping, praying.
The faintest of sensations moved under his fingers and he held his breath, as if that noise may scare away the sensation. He waited and felt the movement again. She still lived, but perhaps had only moments left.
The plan had been clear in his mind before now, repeated by her to him many times to make sure he remembered, but in this moment he had needed no such repetition, he knew what he had to do with a determination that he had never felt before. She had saved him from the Wraith and he would not fail her now.
Filled with renewed strength and confidence, he pulled on her arm, turning her towards him, and he slid his arms under her, the blood covering his hands. As he pulled her into his arms he paused, shocked as the other side of her face came into view. His beautiful saviour! A deep raw gash cut up from her chin, up one side of her face. His stomach once again promised to turn over his late meal, but he closed his eyes and lifted her up into his arms. She was too heavy, telling him that not a single muscle in her body held any tension. He stood though, shifting her against him, uncaring about the blood now soaking into his clothes – he had to save her, to follow her plan. He strode as fast as he could through the piles of Wraith remains towards the far narrow entrance to the tunnel beyond, which continued to pour out a steady cloud of dark ugly smoke. He resisted his instinctual urge to turn, to move away from the danger ahead, but she would surely die, if she had not already passed in his arms. He hurried his steps, only briefly noticing that one body he passed was that of a Queen. His saviour likely had killed the evil creature.
He had to turn his body to carry her with in into the tight space of the tunnel, the smoke hanging and crawling above his head. He should have changed the rag over his face, but it was too late now, he had to save her. he glanced up at the dancing smoke high above his head that had made it's way down here from the house above. It lacked the truly dark nature of cruel smoke - he still had time. He had to have enough time.
He splashed through the small damp chamber halfway along the tunnel system and headed straight on into the next tunnel, where more Wraith bodies and fallen masonry hindered his steps, but he forged onwards. Ahead he could see the air was growing thicker with smoke from the fire raging above. He prayed that she had been able to implement the most important factor of this plan or all of his effort for her would be in vain and they would both die down here. The tunnel turned and the small chamber containing the exit up into the bunker appeared, but more importantly, the Wraith cages remained locked to the right. Inside three of the four cages, as planned, the Wraith inside were not dead, though one was clearly still stunned. She had stunned them not killed them, as planned, as she had exited the bunker. There was hope.
With relief, though coughing loudly, he released her legs down so he had one hand free. He reached around behind his back and pulled out the Alliance energy weapon and raised it towards the two conscious Wraith.
"One of you gets to live," he shouted through the rag, his voice gruff from the smoke. "Whichever one of you returns life to her, will be freed. Who will it be?" He demanded of the caged Wraith that had been her prisoners and test subjects for many months.
He feared that fact would prevent this plan from being successful, but she had repeatedly reassured him that Wraith would always betray each other for a chance to be free. He stared down his raised weapon towards the two sets of the pale yellow monstrous eyes.
One pair of eyes dropped to her in his arms, held limping against his body, and it sneered.
"You expect us to give her life?" It demanded with sarcasm that seemed foolish considering that the descending smoke would just as soon kill these Wraith as it would him.
"There's no way out of here for you. Except this way. One of you. Who will it be?" He shouted at them, trying to ignore the sounds of destruction above as the house and possibly now the upper levels of the bunker were collapsing.
The local peoples had finally realised the main focus of the Wraith had been directed on the house above the bunker and had retaliated, even though the Wraith fighters had gone. The fire would purge away everything from being discovered at least. He just had to pray that it would not take him and his mistress as well.
"Which one?" He demanded, turning his panic towards his mission. His hand was shaking, but his resolve was strong as he swung the weapon from one Wraith to the other.
The Wraith who had spoken before sneered again, its eyes dropping to the weapon. "Then bring her closer and I will do as you wish."
He wasn't fooled by that. The monster simply wished to kill him and finish off his Mistress.
"Your cages can only be opened from the controls set on that far wall," he reminded them. "If you kill me you will never escape and will die down here."
The Wraith lifted its upper lip, baring its deformed teeth. "You think we would give her life, after what she did? Foolish human. However, if you let us go, then we will spare you. That is your only hope."
He managed to laugh at that ridiculous offer. "No, I can turn round and leave you here."
The Wraith narrowed its eyes at him. "And leave your mistress to die? I think not."
"Save her and you get to live, or refuse and die," he repeated to them. "Which will it be?"
The Wraith lowered its gaze to her in his arms, its gaze narrowing with assessment. "She has but a moment left, her wounds too deep. She should not have starved us, perhaps then we may have been able to save her, but-"
The Wraith did not get to finish its point, for the Wraith in the cage next to it stretched its hand through the shared wall of bars between their cages and slammed its hand against the other Wraith's chest. The talking Wraith's words were stolen from its throat as it turned towards the other Wraith who was now stealing its life.
He watched in horror, breathing as calmly as he could, his eyes drifting up to the growing smoke above. He looked back to see the second Wraith pull its hand free, the body falling dead to the floor of the cage. The fed Wraith turned towards him, as in the furthest cage the last Wraith was waking.
"Open the cage," the fed Wraith ordered.
He wavered, the weapon still raised. "You give her back her life, return her to how she was, and then I will let you go."
The Wraith tilted its head. "You will simply leave me here. Why should I believe you will free me if I do as you wish?"
He glanced up towards the descending smoke. "I do not care about you. One Wraith in the town, you can take your fill of the local people. You give her life and I will let you out. You have no choice."
The Wraith narrowed its eyes and then dipped his chin in something close to a confirming nod.
He shifted forward, holding his mistress between him and the Wraith, the weapon still raised as best as he could. The Wraith stretched out one clawed hand through the bars towards the Mistress. He moved just close enough for the Wraith to touch her and watched as the Wraith set its hand over her throat and connected to her. The Wraith hissed and abruptly she gasped in his arms, her body shaking against his and he almost dropped the weapon in relief.
The Wraith dropped its hand, leaving the Mistress still limp though now clearly breathing.
"Why have you stopped? Heal her!" He commanded the Wraith.
The Wraith bared its teeth. "The other did not lie to you – we are too weak. I have given her enough to survive."
He looked down at his Mistress, barely conscious in his arms, her cheek still cut and raw, though now he could see fresh blood oozing from the wound. "Heal her completely!" He ordered the Wraith, but had to stop to cough, the smoke now filling the room and a new sense of nausea began in his stomach.
The Wraith looked up at the thickening cloud filling the small chamber, and from above, there was the distinctive sound of something structural collapsing. The ceiling shifted, dust joining the smoke over them.
"I have nothing more to give her, unless you release me and I feed on him," the Wraith suggested, looking through the cages to the last captured Wraith, who hissed at them.
He tried to think what to do, but the Wraith was right – the Mistress had starved them and no doubt it had taken from the other Wraith to sustain itself, and had given of that to bring her back to life.
"Let me feed on him and I will heal her further," The Wraith offered.
He had no choice. He moved away towards the wall with the controls, the weapon raised and his other arm tight around his weak Mistress. She may no longer be near the moment of death, but she was not healed enough. He touched the control to the cage and it swung open. The Wraith hissed as it emerged and turned away towards the far cage. The Wraith inside hissed back, only for the freed Wraith to turn away abruptly and in a flash of movement it had disappeared out of the small room into the tunnels. The Wraith had betrayed him!
The final Wraith, spared being fed upon, looked round at him with what looked like relieved amusement. He fired at it, stunning it only, but it dropped the creature to the floor.
He wrapped his arms protectively around his Mistress. He had run out of time and all there was to do was get her to safety now. Get her to the escape vessel and hope that the Wraith had given her enough life to allow her to heal.
Finally able to run from the billowing smoke, the blood and death around him, he lifted his Mistress higher against him and ran for the tunnels. There was nothing to do but chance the fact that the escaped Wraith might be waiting for them outside the bunker. He had the stunner still and he had the determination and relief that, for now at least, his Mistress breathed.
000000
TBC - (Should have chapter 2 up tomorrow)
