Okay, this is like really weird. I'm updating a lot faster than I normally do! Normally a few months past until I update again! It's really, really weird...

Anyway... please enjoy the next chapter and review... please do review...

Enjoy :)

Marid

Ronon kept running down the tunnel. It wasn't like a normal tunnel. The walls were smooth and uncracked, the ground was soft and there wasn't any light, anywhere. So far there wasn't any sign of it ending, but he kept running down it anyway. It got darker and darker the longer he ran and it had started to get more narrow. But, Ronon wouldn't stop. He had to find the others and get out of... wherever they were.

"There is no point," came a voice, making Ronon stop dead in his tracks, "You cannot leave until you are proven worthy,"

"What does that mean?" yelled Ronon into the darkness.

"It means you cannot leave until you prove that you are not bad people,"

"And how do we do that?"

"You shall see,"

Ronon's eyes darted around the narrow tunnel, trying to find the owner to the voice. But there was none. "Who are you?" he asked, rather angrily, "where are we? Where are you?"

"My name is Marid," replied the voice, "and you are in the testing grounds... and I am right here" as the voice said this, a blonde haired man stepped towards Ronon. His face looked almost exactly like Keon's except he had a scar, stretching across his face. Starting at his right temple on his forehead and ending at the left side of his bottom lip. His hair stuck out from his head, as if he had been electrocuted and his blue eyes were cold and had no emotion in them at all. He was no ordinary person.

"We're getting tested," said Ronon, glaring at Marid.

"Yes, you are strangers to us," confirmed Marid, "we cannot allow you to proceed into our village without being tested first. If one of you fails, you all fail,"

"And we'll be stuck down here, right?"

"How did you know that?"

"It's obvious, test us in a cave so when we fail we can stay down here and die,"

"That is true,"

"What happens when we pass?"

"If you pass, you will be trusted by my people and we will eagerly trade and allow you onto our planet at any time,"

"I doubt we'd want that, after you nearly kill us just to test us!"

"You will not die unless you fail,"

"How do you know that!?" yelled Ronon, his anger rising, "some injuries can kill!"

"That is true, but your people have a means to heal people, correct?" replied Marid.

"Slowly and painfully,"

"But you do heal... you will not die on this planet unless you fail our test,"

"Where are my friends?"

"You are spread out among these tunnels. All but one of your teammates are moving to try and get to each other,"

"Why is one of them not moving?"

"Because he cannot,"

Ronon's eyes flared up as he thought of a reason why one was not moving, "My friends better not be seriously hurt!" yelled Ronon, finally snapping, "if they die, you die!"

"You have loyalty," was Marid's simple reply, "we respect loyalty, it is good for people to be loyal to one another, especially those on a team together,"

"Where... are... they?" asked Ronon, his voice threatening.

"Follow the tunnel and you will reach them,"

"They better not die,"

"They will not... not yet anyway,"

Ronon growled and lunged at Marid. He tried to get out of the way but he was too slow. In a matter of seconds Ronon was holding Marid against the wall by his throat, "they better not die," he repeated slowly and angrily, "you will regret it if they do,"

"They are alive," was Marid's choked reply, "but if you continue this they won't be for long,"

Growling in anger, Ronon dropped his hand from Marid's throat, making the man fall to the ground with a thud. Marid quickly stood up and stared at Ronon in his eyes, "make no mistake," he said warningly, "one mistake you make could end the lives of you, and your companions,"

"If I make a mistake, they all die?" said Ronon, his anger still high.

"That is correct... you are all responsible for each other, as well as yourself,"

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"It means, that a simple mistake you make could make you and your team fail the test, and then you will all die,"

"One mistake?"

"That you make, the others could make mistakes... you are getting scored Ronon Dex, every mistake loses you a point, and every right decision gains you a point, get too low and you all die,"

"That's not fair," growled Ronon, his eyes flashing with nothing but anger, "You're judging us on mistakes that others could make,"

"True, but that is the way we work," replied Marid calmly, acting as if he had answered that question millions of times, "We want an average score for your people, and judging you individually and then working out the average would take too long,"

"So you're testing us as a group,"

"Yes, it is simpler, and it also gives us an idea of how your people think,"

"So what? You can kill them all if we don't score right!?"

"As a matter of fact, yes... if you score too low we will destroy the planet which your people come from,"

"That's crossing a line!"Yelled Ronon, lunging for Marid again, this time he missed.

"Maybe to you, but for us it is perfectly reasonable... and by assaulting me you have already lost 4 points for your team... let's hope you don't make the same mistake again,"

Ronon stopped dead before he lunged for Marid again, "but I only went for you twice,"

"Yes, but depending on mistakes the point loss varies," Marid grinned a rather evil grin at Ronon and nodded down the path, "better hurry, one of your teammates needs help," he said, before vanishing in front of Ronon's eyes.

"Damn it," growled Ronon, his hands curling up into fists, "damn it," he repeated before taking a deep breath and running down the tunnel again.