Previously on Stargate Millennium
While exploring the galaxy of Caldwell 70, the Millennium Expedition encountered the Harvesters: a race of monsters that harvested civilizations, stripping entire areas of all living organic matter. During the encounter, Isaac McFree was dragged off by the creatures. But, he was later found unharmed.
Wolf Pack was eventually assigned to try to track down the elusive Furlings. While doing so, they found the Quinterans, a race of humans that was once known for liberating the galaxy of several tyrannical empires despite a severe technological inferiority and helping all civilizations in need. Impressed, the Ancients had allied themselves with these humans and, before ascending, declared them to be the Fifth Race. However, their descendants squandered the gifts passed down to them and began to ruthlessly conquer the galaxy. The Quinteran forces searching for the Furlings was led by Colonel Krampus. But, Nova managed to get in contact with the Furlings who easily wiped out the Quinteran forces.
-.-
Jennifer Hailey really wished she could wear a HAZARD suit right now. The planet they were exploring was humid, sandy, and a barren wasteland. The civilization that came before was long gone. It was a pity; they seemed pretty advanced. But now, all that was left were their crumbling buildings. She, McFree, and Dannick were supposed to be exploring the ruins together. It could've been interesting if Isaac McFree wasn't constantly running his mouth.
"No," she repeated again. "There isn't anyone." McFree has always been annoying but now he couldn't shut up.
"C'mon!" he insisted friendlily. "You were very bubbly when we got back. You sure there was no one?"
"My god, will you just shut up?!" Hailey growled. She remembered she promised Commander Umar not to strangle McFree but she was seriously considering to break that promise.
"Just drop it, Isaac," Dannick groaned, also getting rather irritated.
"C'mon, Mikey. We were on Earth for a week…plenty of time to get together with someone."
McFree chuckled at this statement, putting an arm around the two of them. Hailey immediately shrugged his arm off.
"Yeah, and plenty of time for you to get together with several someones," Dannick remarked, brushing McFree's arm off his shoulder.
"Wow…low blow."
Hailey got ready to either snap back at him or just plain old snap him in half when Umar called them.
"Are you done?" he asked from atop the stairwell in front of them.
"Yes, sir," Hailey replied, returning to her calm demeanor. "Isaac just felt the need to pry where he's not wanted."
"Well, if you're finished, you might want to look at this," Umar said, turning around and heading into the room. The rest of his team scrambled up the stairs to see what Umar wanted them to see. At least it would shut McFree up.
Stepping inside the room, she could see why Umar would be excited. The room was filled with old and half destroyed computers. It wasn't any secret laboratory but it was still a room filled with alien technology.
"Major Hailey, you recognize the technology?" Umar asked, staring at the computers. It was time for Hailey to work her magic. She pried the panel off a damaged computer.
"Well, the Ancients and Asgard use crystal technology," she explained, looking inside the machine. "These guys seem to use regular computer chips."
"So...not as advanced?" Dannick asked.
"Well, I wouldn't jump to any conclusions yet," she said, standing up with a computer chip in her hand. "All it means is that their technology is different."
Umar took a moment to process everything. It was a big city and there was a lot left to explore. But, there still could be interesting stuff here.
"Alright," he said. "Dannick and I will clear the perimeter then return to see if you have anything."
"Me?!" Dannick exclaimed. "Wouldn't I be more useful here?" he asked worriedly. The desolated planet was creepy enough as it is and he could only imagine all the nightmarish wildlife that was probably hiding and watching them.
"There's a sign outside that I want you to translate," Umar replied in a monotone voice. "C'mon." Dannick gave a small whimper but followed. Hailey opened her mouth to protest but didn't know what to say. Before she knew it, Umar and Dannick had already disappeared out the door.
"Well, you and me now," McFree remarked cheerfully. "Who is it?"
"I'm not telling," Hailey snapped. McFree's face could've glowed at this.
"So there is someone…" he chuckled. "C'mon, I can keep a secret." Hailey gave a sarcastic scoff at this statement.
"I've been trying to get you to keep your mouth shut since the day we met. I doubt you'll suddenly do it now."
She went back to fumbling with the computer, taking off the panel and rummaging with the wires and chips inside. This was going smoothly…too smoothly. She couldn't put her finger on it but something felt wrong. Finally she realized why: it was too quiet.
"McFree?" she called out, standing up but McFree wasn't there. "Isaac!" She stepped around the table and spotted him sprawled out on the ground. "Isaac!" she called out, rushing to his side. He was breathing…he had a pulse. Isaac McFree was known for bad jokes and stupid pranks but this didn't seem like another one of his jokes. She couldn't figure out what was wrong.
"Commander Umar," she called over the radio in panic. "Commander, McFree is down! Need you back up here now!" Suddenly, McFree's eyes opened and he stared right at Hailey. "My, god," she breathed as she stared into the yellow eyes with black slit pupils. His hand shot forward and seized her throat.
-.-
The galaxy is a big place. The humans of the Tau'ri have their team to explore the galaxy, and other races had their own.
On another planet, a Quinteran government official swiftly made his way down the hall. With his gray robes and gold trimmings, he stood out in the brightly lit corridor. He glanced at the prison cells to his left, the occupants glaring back out. Failures, all of them. And they were all locked up for a reason.
"Senator," the Quinteran guard behind them said, the flaps of his long jacket gently swaying behind him. "If I may, why do you need this particular prisoner."
"We have an operation in need of a military commander," the Quinteran senator explained dismissively.
"Then why this one?" the guard asked again. "You are aware of what she has done to earn her sentence?"
"I am well aware. However, the operation in question is rather minor and all our military commanders are currently preoccupied with more pressing matters with the Ror'char."
"I still don't agree with this."
The Senator stopped and glanced at the guard and said with a smile, "You don't need to agree; just obey." The senator then turned back around and they continued walking silently until they finally reached the end of the hall.
"This is it," the guard grunted as he walked up to one of the cells. He slid his card and the thick metal door opened. The room inside was pitch black, the only light coming from the hall. As part of their punishment prisoners were to be kept in total darkness. But with the light from the hall, the Senator stepped forward.
"Colonel," he greeted. "I see prison has treated you well." At first the prisoner simply sat on the bed at the back and glared at the politician. "You don't need to stay in shadows. Reconstructive surgery has already restored most of your face."
"Most of it…" the prisoner repeated, her hand drifting to the left side of her face. "And I'm fine where I am."
"Very well, Colonel."
"You say 'Colonel' as if I wasn't stripped of my rank," the prisoner growled angrily, still not stepping out of the shadows. The senator couldn't see her face but he didn't need to. He knew what she looked like and could hear her anger. "Stripped of my rank, charged with treason, humiliated in front of the men…" Her fists clenched so tight her entire body trembled.
"The deaths of the men under your command was your fault and your prison sentence was well deserved," the Senator said smoothly. "However, the current Administration was…overzealous. The Senate and the Courts agree that you are no traitor."
"What good is that?! The troops will never trust me again..."
"You must understand, you were given a ship and an army along with technology handed to us by the Ancients. And, despite all this, your search for the Furlings was foiled by four humans. The money spent to fund your search can be replaced eventually, but the men lost under your command are gone forever. It is doubtful that the troops will continue to follow you unless you regain that trust."
"How?" the prisoner demanded to know. "How could I possibly regain the trust of the troops?"
"Trust is not given; it is earned. You must start over with a simple mission and work your way up from there. And we have just the thing."
The prisoner stood up but chose to remain in the shadows. There was no hesitation for her.
"Ready for orders," she croaked hoarsely. The senator nodded at the guard who walked forward and un-cuffed the prisoner.
"Good to have you back…Colonel Krampus."
STARGATE
MILLENNIUM
It had been over two months since the Stargate Council attack on Millennium. But now, it was next to impossible to tell. After their week-long visit to Earth, they came back with new recruits and even more supplies. Workers had already fixed most of the damage. The gaping hole behind the stargate was already patched up. Several of the buildings were already fixed. It was going to be a while until the Millennium is back to its former glory but it was getting there. Even the main cafeteria was back in shape. That was where Corin Nevec, Charles Martin, and Steven Chen were.
"Seriously, the food's gotten better after we got back," Martin remarked, digging into his breakfast. Among the things brought with them this time was a new assortment of foods from around the planet. Corin had to agree: the food was a lot better. He remembered when he first saw it how hesitant he was to even touch it. Now, he ate it without a second thought. Food from Earth really wasn't that much different from the foods he was used to. There was meat, fruits, nuts, and vegetables. There were a few less edible fungus but just mushrooms worked.
"You meet any of the new people?" Corin asked with his mouth full. Martin just shrugged.
"Not really. I'm sure the SGC wouldn't send rookies though. From what I've heard, most of these people have already done a tour of Atlantis. What about you, Chen? You meet any of the new guys?"
"No," Chen replied bluntly.
"Well, someone's grumpier than usual," Charles remarked. Chen was known for his short temper and cynicism but this was a new extreme.
"He's been like this all morning," Corin said.
"Fine!" Chen exclaimed in defeat. "After getting chewed out…again…by the General for not being ready by the stargate last week, I did meet one new recruit," Chen explained.
Martin knew what Chen meant. When they left to visit Earth, Chen and Corin volunteered to stay behind. Chen didn't say why he chose to stay but Corin was alien and didn't have family back on Earth. When the expedition got back, Chen and Corin were found sleeping. Needless to say, Mercer was beyond pissed. "The Ror'char know where the Millennium is. If it was them coming through that gate instead of us, we will have not only lost this station but the returning expedition would be walking into their hands."
But, Martin was more interested in the new recruit that had Chen so pissed off.
"Who'd you meet?" Charles insisted. Before they could continue, another man eagerly rushed to join their table.
"Hey guys!" the man said cheerfully. Chen stared at the man in horror before burying his face in his hands.
"Uh…hello," Martin greeted awkwardly. He has never seen a person so aloof before.
"Hey, Chen!" the man greeted.
"Wow, you actually got my name right," Chen said stoically. "What are you doing here?"
"I came highly recommended by General O'Neill!" the man said proudly. "He thought you could use some help and encouraged that I came along!"
"No, Felger. I mean why are you here right now? I'm here, eating breakfast, because I already finished my morning rounds. Everyone who is eating right now has finished their morning rounds! You, on the other hand, haven't even logged in."
Jay Felger stared at Chen blankly, not sure what to say.
"So…does that mean I have to work now?" Felger stuttered nervously.
Chen didn't even bother answering that; he just glared at Felger. After about five seconds, Jay finally got the point and scampered off, leaving his tray of food behind.
"You really don't like that guy, do you?" Corin asked innocently.
"Gee, what was your first clue?" Steven reached over and took Felger's tray of food.
"Alright, you two," Martin interrupted. "I'm enjoying a nice breakfast and neither of you are going to bugger it up." He took another bite of his sandwich. "By the way, where's the Major? I haven't seen her all morning."
-.-
Major Terra Nova was in her private wood shop. She had already finished her duties for the morning and had decided to spend her time here. Technically, the Millennium Expedition was civilian expedition so they were allowed some luxuries. She off duty so she could wear her jeans and teal T-shirt as she sawed into the slab of wood.
Terra did have power tools but she only used those when she needed to finish her project quickly. Otherwise, she always stuck to hand tools.
"Major Nova," a voice called out. Nova brushed the sawdust off her goggles and looked up.
"General," she greeted, putting dawn her hacksaw. "You don't usually come down here." Nova walked over to the doorway, figuring Mercer wouldn't want to get sawdust over the dark blue dress uniform he was wearing.
"I see you are already helping yourself to our newly-brought supplies," Mercer remarked, examining Nova's woodshop. "I assume this is why you declined the offer to give your quarters furniture."
Nova remembered when they first began to spruce up Millennium, they gave everyone a bed, a dresser, and a desk. Nova accepted the bed but declined everything else. She could make it by herself.
"I apologize if I'm interrupting but we recently lost contact with the Dusk Riders," General Mercer explained.
"Commander Umar's team?" Nova asked.
"Indeed. We've already attempted to radio them but no response. I want Wolf Pack to check it out." Nova took off her goggles and set them on the counter before taking a broom from the corner.
"What do we know about the planet?" she asked, beginning to sweep away the sawdust on the floor.
"The former inhabitants appear to be somewhat more advanced than Earth. Doctor Dannick speculated it is a city and not a military base and, compared to the other ruins of civilizations, he guesses it was not abandoned very long ago."
"So, at the very least, it's unlikely they released some alien mad science experiment," she remarked. "But still…the Dusk Riders are the Millennium's flagship team. If something happened that has them in trouble then it has to be pretty big."
"If you're worried about them being injured, I can spare either Kauffmann or Osborn. I need at least one of them to manage the infirmary."
"We'll take Osborn then. She and Chen seem to have a history."
"Good. I want Wolf Pack ready and at the ramp in five."
-.-
Corin Nevec put his hand to his nose as he choked on the dust blowing through the air. What happened to this place? It was barren, the landscape worn down by the dust blown by the wind. The buildings were old and crumbling, the windows all shattered.
"Shouldn't we be wearing the desert uniform for this?" Chen coughed, shielding his eyes from the sand. They always wore a tactical vest when going off-world but they could've switched the black uniform for a desert-camo. As a search and rescue, Wolf Pack didn't need much more equipment than that. Only Doctor Osborn carried more: a backpack full of medical equipment, even some medical equipment that belonged to the Alliance of Four Great Races. Nova and Chen carried M-16's while Martin got to keep his beloved ion rifle. Corin and Kara had next to no combat experience and carried a berretta.
Everyone was squinting to keep all the dirt out of their face. Kara Osborn seemed to be the only one who was enjoying herself. She smiled and stared across the amazing scenery with her arms stretched out as if to catch as much wind as possible, though she knew she was going to be spending an hour in the shower getting all the dirt out of her hair.
"Because this isn't a desert," Corin noted. "The MALP read a humidity level way too high for a desert. I don't see any reason for plants not to be growing! Like, I can even see a pond not too far from here."
"Then what is with this place?" Martin asked. Even the buildings that were clearly supposed to have lawns had nothing but a stretch of dirt and sand. "Poison gas? Radiation?" Kara took out her scanner upon hearing this.
"My scans are the same as the MALP's," she said. "There's nothing in the air and there's no radiation."
"If that's the case we can worry about their landscaping choices later," Nova concluded.
"Should we split up?" Martin suggested, prepping his gun.
"We'll stick together for now. C'mon, Wolf Pack."
They started walking toward the center of the city. Corin glanced back at the stargate, still feeling uneasy. This city didn't feel abandoned; it felt dead.
-.-
"Kinda wish I brought my camera for this," Osborn remarked. She stared at the old buildings in admiration. She didn't know anything about the culture and architecture but it all still looked fascinating.
"You're joking," Chen grumbled when he heard this. "I know you like to travel and all, but can you pick a better time to sight see?"
While Chen and Osborn bickered in the background, Nova kept checking the radio, hoping Umar would respond.
"Commander Umar, do you read me? Commander, report."
"Hey, Charles," Chen called out, noticing Martin staring at one of the buildings. "You ok?"
Martin didn't look away. He kept his eyes maintained on the dilapidated structure, his ion rifle held tightly against his shoulder.
"You get the feeling we're being watched?" he muttered. Nova put down her radio cautiously walked over to Martin's side. His instinct is usually right when it came to being watched.
"Where?" she asked as the rest of the team huddled down. Martin gestured toward one of the buildings. Nova fumbled with her pockets as she took out her binoculars. It was impossible to figure out exactly where Martin was pointing but at least she had a general area to scan. She carefully examined the building window by window. She didn't have enough time to look at every window but she could at least give each one a quick glance.
"I don't see anyone," she said. Martin kept staring at the building. He would swear he saw someone staring back at them through the window. Whatever it was, it was gone now. But, what was it?
Feeling a bit safer, the team stood back up.
"We done being scared by birds?" Chen asked, wanting to get back to the search. That was when Corin realized-
"There are no birds. Anyone else notice this?"
Everyone fell silent. There were no plants nor animals at all. There wasn't so much as a weed growing out of the ground or a twig on the sidewalk.
"Déjà vu," Martin remarked. He was beginning to actually hope he did see someone in the building. This place would be a lot less creepy with people even if it was a bad guy.
"Guys!" Kara suddenly called out as she walked over to the edge of the road and looked over the guard rail. Everyone else followed her over the rail and looked over the edge of the edge of the steep hillside and across the rest of the city, a landscape that went on for as far as the eye could see. "Something tells me we're going to be searching for a while…"
Corin leaned against the rail. The Dusk Riders could be anywhere. This was going to be a long search. At least he could take comfort in the fact there won't be a lot of shooting.
He spoke too soon.
Martin whipped around, his ion rifle raised.
"Alright, we are definitely being followed!" he growled. Nova and Chen both stepped forwards and prepped their weapons while Corin and Kara took cover behind them. There was no doubt about it this time. They all saw the dark figure that was peering at them through the window. It immediately ducked behind cover once it realized it had been spotted.
"We know you're there!" Nova yelled. "C'mon out!" The moment she said this, the thing leapt out into the open and dashed away.
"Did anyone catch that?!" Chen yelled as the figure disappeared.
"No," Martin yelled back, holding his rifle even tighter. "That thing was fast!" Whatever it was, it had begun dashing from cover to cover, leaping out into the open and leaping away faster than the eye could track.
"Well don't shoot yet," Nova ordered. "We still don't know what we're dealing with."
"Well, whatever it is, can the bugger stop-"
Martin didn't finish his sentence. The figure leapt to the ground in front of them, barely a meter away. Chen gave a yell of surprise and fired at it. He didn't aim though and the bullets simply hit the ground in front of the figure. It immediately froze. It stared at the ground where the bullets impacted before looking up and staring at the three.
Nova blinked a few times. She couldn't believe her eyes. Chen almost dropped his gun in shock.
"No way," Martin muttered. They assumed the figure was some sort of alien or wild animal, but it looked like a monster, a demon from a person's nightmare. More than that, its face looked like-
"Isaac McFree?" Corin called out, stepping forward. "Isaac, what happened to you?" Seeing a monster on an alien world was always terrifying, but to see a monster that looked like someone you know…
"McFree?" Nova asked cautiously. The creature's face was the only thing that bore even some resemblance of McFree with its long limbs and molted gray skin that looked like it was infected and rotting and long barbed hairs growing from its spine.
"Terra?" Chen called out when Nova began to slowly approach the creature, her hand out as if she was trying to pet a dog. "Not sure if that's smart."
"I'm with Chen on this one," Martin added in. Charles Martin was usually the one who didn't mind taking risks but this was just too risky.
"Hold on," Nova breathed, slowly walking forwards. "McFree?" she asked as her hand approached its face. The creature stared at her, tilting its head to the side curiously with a gentle purr. It got to its feet and stared down on the Major. She held her hand out, ready to put her hand on its cheek. Maybe the thing did recognize her.
Then, the thing reeled its head back before opening its mouth and roaring at her, a hail of spit flying at her face.
"Ok, bad idea!"
Nova turned around and ran as the monster swiped at her. Chen and Martin aimed their weapons but both froze. That thing looked like Isaac McFree. If this was a coincidence and it was a wild animal, they could stop it right there. But what if it was McFree? They'd be killing him.
"Major!" Martin cried out in shock when the thing picked up a chunk of cement off the ground and flung it at Nova. The piece of debris bounce off her head and she collapsed to the ground. Martin and Chen aimed but hesitated. If they wanted to shoot it was too late. The creature and Nova were too close to each other. One tiny misaim and they might hit her too.
"Terra!" Corin yelled as the monster lunged forwards again. Her vision was blurred, her head was aching, and her ears were ringing. She saw the thing moving in on her but she couldn't move. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back, ready to accept her fate. But it never came.
She opened her eyes again when she heard a yell and a bang. It wasn't the bang of a gun though. She looked up and saw someone standing in front of her, shoving back against the creature with a rectangular shield of shimmering blue energy. It snarled in rage as it threw itself against the shield, trying to reach its prey.
"Go!" the person yelled. Nova glanced back at her friends before looking back at the stranger. Who was this random person helping them? "Stop gawking and start running!" Nova finally gave a nod and bolted for Martin and Chen.
The stranger glanced at the scraggly humans before looking back at the monster. It slammed against her shield. It was strong and her strength was fading. It was time for a change of plans. The creature reeled back and prepared to toss itself against her shield again. This was her chance. She dropped her shield, aimed her rifle, and fired. The shotgun at the bottom of her rifle blasted the creature backwards. Without hesitating, she turned and ran.
The creature watched as the six humans took off. It gave a quiet growl before scampering in the other direction.
-.-
"Minor concussion," Osborn reported. "Blood's simply from the skin being cut. Just take it easy and you'll be fine."
"It feels like I got conked by a block of concrete," Nova groaned, instinctively rubbing the area that got hit. Every tiny jolt, whether it was her foot hitting the ground when walking or just her heartbeat, made it feel like her brain was sloshing inside her skull.
"That's 'cause you did. If it didn't feel like that…then you should be worried. Just take it easy, let the boys do the heavy lifting."
"Thanks, doc," Nova remarked. She picked up her M-16 and walked over to the mystery woman, who sat on a nearby block of concrete. She was definitely human, and her equipment didn't look much different than their own with her gray uniform and black tactical vest atop of it. Even her gun looked similar to their own. Martin and Chen stood on either side of her. Martin was relaxed with his ion rifle but Chen kept his M-16 tight, ready to start firing at a moment's notice.
"You know," the woman coughed, using her own weapon to help her stand up. "For people who carry a lot of guns, at least I think those are guns, you sure don't use them much." Nova wasn't really sure how to answer that. They weren't gung-ho lunatics that shot everything in sight, but she would like to think that they could evaluate a situation and judge whether nor not they needed to defend themselves.
"It's a little more complicated than that," she finally said.
"What? Are you out of ammo and you want to look scary?"
"Hey," Corin called to Terra, putting a hand on her shoulder. Nova stepped back and let Nevec take this conversation; he was the people person. "We appreciate what you did for us but we're not…we're not a combat team."
"Yeah, the lack of shooting gave that away," the stranger said. "Who are you people?"
"We should be asking who you are," Chen remarked. He gave a grunt as Martin sharply elbowed him in the stomach.
"Little nicer to the person that saved us," Charles muttered. The strange woman didn't seem to mind Chen's paranoia.
"The name's Nyrah," she answered, gently pushing back her shoulder-length light brown hair. "Though, I would like to know who you people are." Chen still didn't trust her and the fact she seemed to have to say everything with attitude only served to get on his nerves. She may have a cheerful attitude but Chen could tell by her scarred left eye, which had become a pale white, that this woman has seen her fair share of violence
"We're explorers," Corin explained. "I'm Corin, that's Major Terra Nova, Lieutenant Charles Martin, and Doctor Steven Chen. We're peaceful explorers. We were hoping to learn about other cultures, maybe trade technology." Nyrah scoffed at this answer.
"That's it? No offense but…that's one of the two most common excuses out there."
"What?"
"Everyone's some peaceful explorer here to meet alien races and learn about different cultures. And, two out of three times, they're lying."
"What about you, then?" Chen asked, his eyes narrowing. "What're you?"
"Me? I'm a space pirate."
There was a single loud click as Nova, Chen, Martin, and Nevec all cocked and aimed their weapons at Nyrah. Wolf Pack hasn't encountered any space pirates before but Corin has told enough horror stories about them to put them on edge.
"W-wait!" Nyrah stuttered. "I'm just a mercenary! A freelancer?! I'm not with the raiders or slavers."
"Oh, thank god," Nova sighed in relief, lowering her gun.
"You know, you could've just saved us the trouble and said 'mercenary'," Martin remarked.
"Hey, it's a dangerous galaxy," Nyrah said. "Ambiguity and anonymity are the best forms of protection. And what's your story? What're you 'explorers' doing here?"
"Didn't you just say anonymity was the best protection?" Nova pointed out. Nyrah shrugged at this comment. If they didn't want to tell her, it wouldn't matter. But, Nova knew the mandate of finding allies and technology still stood and, mercenary or not, this woman could be a powerful ally in the future. And the SGC has befriended mercenaries and smuggler in the past. "We're here looking for our friends. They're also explorers. But they went missing. But, I am more curious about what's a mercenary doing here."
"Well…for starters, do you guys even know where here is?"
Everyone in the room exchanged glances. The galaxy map back on Millennium has already been damaged twice and, even if it wasn't, the Alliance disbanded long ago. There was no way for them to know exactly where they were.
"This is the Andaran homeworld," Nyrah finally said. Corin felt a chill go down his spine when he heard this. It all made sense now.
"Oh no," he muttered, putting his hand to his head. He didn't even wait for his friends to ask since he knew they wouldn't understand. "The Andarans used to be one of the galaxy's superpowers. But, most of their civilization was right on the boarder of Harvester territory so…they got harvested. Lost over half their homworld before they finally decided to relocate. I remember hearing about it on the news once. Half this entire planet was harvested."
"So what does that have to do with anything?" Chen interrupted.
"Well the planet's half empty," Nyrah said. "So, some people on another planet thought it was strange when they suddenly detected a random subspace signal coming from the planet and, since they're afraid it's the Harvesters, they hired me to investigate."
"So that's why you saved us," Osborn concluded. "You thought we might be the reason for the signal so you can go back and get payed."
"Well, I'm not chatting with you because I'm lonely."
"I don't buy it," Chen immediately cut in. "Why can't you just go back with some half-assed story?" Nyrah laughed at this question in amusement.
"You clearly don't know how the market works, hon."
"Call me 'hon' again, and I'll show you how an automatic rifle works."
"Doing what you're suggesting is bad for business. Granted, it might take a while before they discover I lied but they'll still eventually find out. And it'll be that much harder to find my next contract. Speaking of contracts, I still need to fulfill this one and investigate what caused the signal."
"Sorry, but I doubt we have anything to do with it," Nova answered. Nyrah simply shrugged and stood up, slinging her gun over her shoulder. "Where're you going?
"Well, you clearly aren't what I was looking for. I'll ask the other group of humans."
Everyone's face immediately lit up when they heard this.
"What other humans?" Martin immediately asked.
"I saw three humans earlier: a big bald man with darks skin, a small pale girl with yellow hair, and a chubby guy with glasses. Was about to talk to them when I had to save your rears."
"And you didn't decide to tell us this when we mentioned we were searching for someone?!" Chen exclaimed in disbelief, throwing his hands up in the air.
"Hey, I don't get paid to tell you what I find," Nyrah snapped defensively. "The only reason I'm talking to you people at all was because I thought you could be what lets me cash in my paycheck. Helping you and telling you what I know is not going to give me any income."
Nova took a moment to take in everything she heard. It would be nice to return to the search but they still had to search a massive city. That's when she got an idea.
"Then how much?" she immediately asked. Chen stared at Nova.
"Excuse me?" Steven stuttered. He looked around at his teammates, hoping someone would show support. "Guys, can we talk for a moment," he asked irritably, gesturing toward the back room. Nova didn't have any issue so she walked back there. Corin and Martin quickly followed. Chen glanced at Nyrah once last time before going in. Osborn looked at Nyrah awkwardly, not sure whether to stay out here or join them in the conversation.
"So…" Kara said.
-.-
Out of sight and out of earshot, Chen hissed, "What are you guys doing?! You're just chatting it up with some random alien. We're telling her everything!"
"Our mandate is to find allies and technology," Martin reminded Chen. "And trust is a two way street."
"Yeah, and trust is earned. You don't give it out like Halloween candy."
"It's not just that," Nova interrupted. "If she knows where the Dusk Riders are, we need her help."
"Are we even sure that those are the Dusk Riders she saw?" Chen asked desperately, hoping that these three would change their minds.
"Well, her description sounds like them," Corin remarked. "It's everyone except…" Corin's voice trailed off as he thought about the creature they saw earlier and how much it looked like McFree.
"We still don't know what's going on," Nova said, shattering the silence. "We need to find the Dusk Riders as soon as possible. We need her help."
"And what can we possibly pay her with?!"
"Well," Corin remarked, glancing around the corner at the mercenary. "One way to find out."
Chen simply sighed as the four of them stepped back out. It wasn't a democracy and, even if it was, he was out voted.
Nova glanced at Chen one last time. It wasn't too late to take his advice. All she would need to do was tell Nyrah that they weren't interested in her help. She understood where Chen was coming from. They didn't know anything about this person. For all they knew, she could immediately try to kill them once she has the ion rifle. But, what about Umar and his team? What if they refuse Nyrah's help and they get to Umar too late? Would refusing her help be letting them die? Nova looked at the ground and clenched her teeth. Why could it never be simple?
"Alright," she said. "If we wanted you to lead us to our friends, how much for your services?"
Nyrah put her hand to her chin, thinking about the offer. Part of Nova felt rather stupid, knowing that another reason the mercenary stuck around was probably so she could coax them into paying her to find the Dusk Riders. The other half of Nova knew they had no choice but to ask Nyrah for help.
"What do you have?" she asked curiously. "Got any currency, quarium, valuable metals?"
Terra's face sagged as she realized that they had nothing of value. Luckily, Corin had an idea.
"How about technology?" he suggested. It seemed like a brilliant like to him. Nyrah, however, scoffed at this suggestion.
"No offense, but what technology could you possibly have?" she asked, eyeing the rather primitive guns they carried. She's seen plenty of weapons like those before…in history books. They all looked around desperately. Terra remembered SG mission reports describing how SG teams were able to make deals with the more primitive cultures just by trading a firearm. But most of the civilizations in Caldwell 70 were more advanced and they couldn't think of anything to trade with.
"Ror'char ion rifle!" Martin finally exclaimed. The rest of Wolf Pack stared at Martin. Ever since he got the alien rifle he couldn't let it go. Hell, he hated going on any mission without it.
"You sure about that?" Nova asked. "We don't exactly have a lot of those lying around."
"Not to mention, we are kinda just handing out alien technology," Chen added.
"Hey, I'm not thrilled about this either," Martin said. "But, we have to find the Dusk Riders." He turned his attention back to the mercenary. "So, what do you say? You help us find our friends, and right before we gate back I'll give you the ion rifle.
Nyrah stared at the gun thoughtfully. She'd be lying if she said it wasn't a tempting deal.
"How do I know you're not cheating me?" she asked suspiciously. "I've never done business with you before."
"Well, how do you find new employers?" Nova posed the question. "This may be your first job from us but it's a small thing in exchange for Ror'char weaponry. So, what do you say?" Nyrah paused one last time before saying with a smile, "We have a deal."
Chen glanced at Nova. No matter how he viewed this, it seemed like a bad idea. He knew that SG teams and Atlantis teams tended to tell alien civilizations who they were and where they came from to try to earn trust. He didn't like them doing it then and he certainly like Nova doing it now.
"Hey," Martin chirped, giving Steven a gentle elbow. "It's gonna be ok." Chen looked at the mercenary, who prepared to lead them to where she last saw the Dusk Riders.
"I hope you're right," he said.
-.-
The wind had finally died down so they didn't need to worry about dirt blowing in their eyes. The walk wasn't that far.
"This is it," Nyrah said, pointing at a building a block down from them. Corin stared at the structure before it hit him.
"That's a sub-space station!" he blurted out. Corin felt rather stupid for not thinking of this earlier, especially after hearing about Nyrah's contract. "You guys say that on your planet that people communicate with 'e-mail'. We have something similar here in our galaxy and sub-space stations are used to send messages if they're on another planet."
"You think the Dusk Riders accidentally turned on some of the machinery?" Kara suggested, staring at the building.
"Well, this place isn't that old," Chen remarked, strolling across the barren dirt that probably used to be a lawn. "I've seen World War II computers more degraded than these. If Major Hailey was messing with some of the computers, it's possible she might've caused a short that temporarily activated the tower."
He took a step forward and heard a loud click under his foot. Everyone had heard the click. Nova, Martin, and Nyrah looked at him in horror. It didn't register to Chen what the click could be so he lifted his foot.
"Aw crap," he groaned. Nova and Martin threw themselves to the ground and covered their ears. Nyrah immediately activated her shield and held it out in front of her. She couldn't help the two men standing out in the open but at least the Doctor woman was right behind her and protected by the shield.
The thing finally detonated with a blinding flash of light and a bang that sounded like it could shatter the world as a white blanket of smoke covering the entire area.
Even looking away with her ears covered and eyes closed, she could still hear the bang and see some of the light seem to burn through her eyelids. But, something was off. She expected a boom, not a bang. And the noise was a lot more muffled than she thought it would be.
She looked up and could see Chen and Corin stumbling around through the white smoke.
"The hell was that?!" Chen exclaimed, raising his gun, expecting something to jump out and attack him. Didn't matter if something did or didn't; he couldn't see anything but a blurry mass.
"Was that a flashbang?" Martin groaned, rubbing his ears.
"Well, it flash and bang," Major Nova announced loudly. "Someone must've rigged it. But why a flashbang and not a grenade?"
Nova and Martin slowly got to their feet, as Nyrah lowered her shield. There was a loud crash as the door of the building burst open. Martin and Nova immediately raised their weapons, ready to fire. But Nova immediately recognized the person who came out.
"Hailey?!"
Terra could see the surprise and relief on Hailey's face as she realized who it was that triggered the flashbang. Umar soon followed her out, his weapon lowered. They were both covered in dirt and sweat. Umar had a deep gnash in his left shoulder and Hailey's neck was horribly bruised.
"You two look like crap," Martin muttered. Hailey glared at Martin, not in the mood. Umar was a lot more pleasant though.
"Just glad General Mercer finally sent reinforcements," he said.
Nyrah observed the four talk to each other. These were the humans she saw earlier but she didn't think they would set a trap. The mercenary rubbed her ears in pain. Her shield filters out any light that was considered dangerously bright, so she wasn't affected by the flash, but it did nothing against noise so the bang left her ears ringing.
"Thank god you guys are alive," Nova said, putting her gun down.
"I'll thank him once we're back on Millennium," Umar remarked, shaking his head. "Michael Dannick's inside. We should talk there."
Nova glanced at Nyrah as if to make sure she approved.
"Hey, I'm not leaving until I get my half of the bargain," the mercenary said, getting ready to follow. With that said, they all went inside.
-.-
"At least I can finally see something I can call a hand," Chen groaned in frustration. His ears were still ringing but at least he could finally see something.
"You're such a baby," Hailey muttered from the other side of empty room.
"Baby? I just stepped on a grenade, what do you expect my reaction to be?!"
"Hey, if that was a grenade you'd be a messy puddle and I wouldn't have to be having this conversation!" Hailey snapped defensively.
"Would you guys stop," Corin groaned, his hand at his temple. "You're giving me a headache." The magnesium that goes off from a flash bang was designed to blind a person and the bang was to temporarily deafen them. Corin could feel both these effects and getting over them was not easy.
Everyone else in the room just stared at the arguing trio. Dannick was slouched against the wall, still unnerved by the whole situation. Nyrah was standing in the corner, playing with her dagger. Now that they found their friends, it was only a matter of time before she gets her payment. Doctor Osborn using a medical scanner left behind by the Alliance to see how deep Umar's wound was. Once she got her data she set aside her scanner, which Nyrah eyed curiously, Osborn went to work bandaging the wound on Umar's shoulder as he explained the situation to Nova and Martin.
"I left the room with Doctor Dannick. Suddenly, Hailey radioed me to come back. When I came in…McFree was attacking her. But…I don't know."
"He mutated?" Nova asked. Umar looked at her in surprise, not expecting her to predict exactly what happened. "We saw a creature earlier. If Nyrah over there hadn't saved us, we might not be here. The creature looked like McFree…"
"We were hoping that it wasn't though," Martin added. Commander Umar held that same hope. But he could not provide the good news.
"No; it's him. Every time we tried making a break for the stargate, it chases us down."
"That's why we setup flashbangs around the place," Dannick added. "I don't Isaac to get killed but…we need to protect ourselves."
"Did you consider that your rescue party might step on it and get blinded?" Chen huffed.
"Oh boo hoo!" Hailey mocked. "It's a nonlethal explosive."
"So what?! A shot to the nuts is nonlethal too!"
"That depends on who does the shooting."
"Hailey, that's enough," Umar said calmly. "We've all been through a lot today."
"Wait a minute," Osborn remarked as she finished wrapping his shoulder. Umar went to put on his uniform as Kara continued talking. "You said it kept attacking you? It left us alone for a while." Just saying this, she then looked at Nyrah. "And it didn't go after you either."
"What didn't?" Nyrah asked.
"The creature you saved us from. Not only did it leave you alone, it didn't strike you as odd there was a monster here?"
Everyone on Wolf Pack stared at Nyrah. She was the one who told them that almost half the planet was stripped of all life and she didn't' once question why there was a creature in that section.
"As I said: the planet's on the edge of Harvester territory," Nyrah said casually. "I just assumed that was a Harvester hunter."
"Wait…Harvesters?" Umar interrupted. Nyrah looked at him in confusion. "Major Nova, you remember when McFree got dragged off by the Harvesters?"
"And you guys found him unconscious afterwards," Nova said with a nod.
"It's awfully strange that they drag him off then just leave him. And it seems like an awfully big coincidence he begins mutating while on a planet near Harvester territory. He was even the one who picked this planet as our next mission. Mercer and Donavan just sent MALP's to the next few planets to explore. We were looking at the images sent back and McFree suggested we go to this one."
"Well!" Nyrah announced, stepping forward and dramatically clasping her hands together. "This is all very touching but…my payment?"
Nova felt all the blood drain from her face.
"We agreed to give Nyrah the ion rifle if she helped us find you guys," Terra Nova explained to Umar.
"If you give that away, we might not be able to save McFree," Umar pointed out. "We need every technological advantage we can get."
"We had a deal," Nyrah growled darkly. Chen hands gripped his rifle tighter, not liking where this is going. Nova looked at Martin then back at Nyrah. They needed the rifle but they had already agreed to give it to the mercenary.
"We did promise…" Martin said nervously, beginning to regret his idea.
"We might need the rifle to save Isaac!" Hailey argued.
"Hate to break it to you, but the mercenary's going to be mighty pissed if we don't pay up," Chen pointed up. "You think we can look for McFree and fight her at the same time?"
"Wait," Corin called out. "What if we sweeten the deal? We can give you something else, something better than the ion rifle if you help us."
"You have something better than Ror'char weapons?" Nyrah scoffed skeptically. "The Ror'char reproduce Alliance technology. The only ones that could have anything better are the Quinterans who use Ancient technology. What could you possibly have?"
"We have technology from the Alliance of the Four Great Races."
"Corin," Chen growled in agitation. "Not another-"
"How would you have Alliance technology?" Nyrah interrupted, intrigued by this proposition.
"We're from the city of Millennium," Nova explained despite Chen's protests. Nyrah practically dropped her dagger when she heard this.
"Millennium," she repeated, sheathing her weapon. "Archaeologists and scientists have been looking for that place for as long as interstellar travel's existed. It's said only the Fifth Race can find the Alliance capital of Millennium."
"Yeah…that sounds about right. Look, if you help us save our friend, we'll take you back to Millennium and pay you in Alliance technology. Deal?"
