Atlantis:
Mirianic World:
Once Makela had her weapons and bag of stuff, Ford brought the children and all of their belongings to the surface, and Todd was again with a gun to his back. They all made their way back to the gate; Todd proceeded to punch in the Atlantis' code and waited for a response. As soon as a response came and the shield was lowered, Todd walked through first, and then the kids went through.
Gate Room:
Sheppard and his team were waiting on the other side of the gate when Todd walked through. Before they could move, the first of the kids walked through. Thirty kids in all walked through the gate and then Ford and Makela walked through together, hand in hand. Ronon spoke first.
"Who are these people Todd?"
"This is Makela, the young Runner I have tracked down. Upon further talk, I came to know this young man as Lieutenant Ford. Apparently, Makela helped get the Enzyme out of his system. The children are in their care."
"Ford?" Colonel Sheppard, Teyla & McKay asked together.
"Yea, Makela got me off the Hive ship, got the Enzyme out of my system and I, in turn, took charge of the kids while she was gone. Ah, Todd here removed Makela's Transmitter this morning."
"And the kids? Who do they belong to?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"They are all orphans who sought me out. They come from wraith ravaged worlds. They have been hiding on Mirianic in the catacombs. Todd took the Transmitter out so he could use us as a bargaining chip to you. Apparently, he has come upon an Ancient Machine that turns wraith human."
"Really? Where?" McKay asked.
"Not now McKay," Ronon said.
"Can the children get some rest, please? They are not used to being in a city like this. And quite frankly we could all do with some rest." I said.
"You and the kids can share a room; Ford needs to answer some questions." Colonel Sheppard said.
"And he will, in the morning. He is still recovering from our fight with the Wraith a few days ago."
"Fine, we'll talk in the morning. We'll show you to your quarters. Todd, no offense, but its back to the cell for you."
"Of course, I would expect nothing else from you, Sheppard."
"Follow us," Teyla said.
Ford and I picked up some of the younger kids. My bag was still on my back, hiding most of my weapons. We followed them to our quarters and helped the kids settle down. Once the kids were sleeping, Ford and I met with Colonel Sheppard and his team in the Medical Wing.
Medical Wing:
Ronon noticed all the weapons I had. He seemed to be starring a lot which made me uneasy. Ford was checked out and I got a new bandage on my back. I thanked the doctor, then turned to the small leather satchel attached to my belt. I turned to Kernel Sheppard.
"I believe these belong to all of your fallen soldiers. As I took the weapons, ammo, and C4 from their bodies, I also took their dog tags. The Wraith didn't need to get ahold of them." I said, pulling the dog tags from the satchel and putting them on the table.
"So you are the one that was stripping them of anything useful. Well, I guess you needed it more."
"How long have you been a Runner?" Ronon asked.
"My planet was culled when I was ten. I was taken before the Queen to be fed upon. But just as she was going to feed on me, she saw the fire in my eyes. She ordered her men to make me a Runner. I've been running ever since, picking up weapons as I go. I've made a bunch of weapons as well. I especially like my crystal arrows. They kill three wraiths in one shot."
"So how long have you been a Runner?" Ronon asked again.
"Oh, sorry; that would have to be eight years. I'm eighteen now so there's the answer to your question. You're not going to take my weapons from me are you?"
"You can keep them but you have to give back the C4, P90's, 9mm's and all the ammo. Everything else you can keep."
"How did you cure Ford?" Teyla asked.
"He was already having withdrawal symptoms when I started. Using the explosions from the Wraith hive ships as a way to block my Transmitter, I used this handy little device and pulled the Enzyme from his body. It's of Ancient Technology like most of my weapons are and I'd already taken the Enzyme from some of the kids so I knew it would work."
"Wait, you use Ancient Technology against the wraith? How did you find weapons like that?" McKay asked.
"My people used Ancient weapons to fight the wraith before we were wiped out. When I was let go on my home planet, I grabbed this space bag and filled it with weapons as well as clothes. This is my favorite gun." I finished, pulling out a gun that resembled Ronon's own gun.
"You didn't happen to be a part of a people that live in space did you?" Colonel Sheppard asked.
"Larrin told me that she knew my last name. Apparently, just before we were culled the last time, some of our people took to living in space to stay away from the wraith. But I had the gun before meeting up with Larrin. She gave me about ten cartridges for the gun but I barely need them. They are safely put away."
"Do you keep in contact with Larrin?" Teyla asked.
"That depends. Did any of your off-world contacts give you our notes? I used Aiden's IDC code to show you that you had a friend in need."
"We got a few. But…" McKay began.
"But what?" Aiden and I asked together.
"Well, we thought Ford was dead. We didn't heed them."
"Of course not; did you ask your contacts who left them?"
"All answered with a 'tough girl in her late teens left them', then told them to hide for the wraith were coming."
"I only visited inhabited planets when Aiden needed to leave a message. Other than that, I tended to keep to the planets where even Wraith ships explode upon entering the atmosphere. I have placed many displaced peoples on those planets over the years. The wraith simply won't go there. They can't breathe the air and the atmosphere destroys any wraith ships that try to land or cull. It's the perfect place for displaced peoples."
"Is it harmful to people?" Teyla asked.
"For two years, displaced people have lived in peace. They have called the planets Toxin, Toxica, and Toxinora. Even the wraith refuse to go to them. Larrin stocks up on food on those planets. She welcomes any and all that wish to join her fleet. She understood why I could not of course, but said she'd always be there for me when I needed the help. I think that's enough talk for now. Aiden and I must get some rest." I finished and grabbed my weapons, leaving the C4, 9mm's, P90's and all the ammo that went with the guns on the bed. Then Aiden and I headed back to our quarters.
More to come in next chapter…
Please Review…