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John sighed heavily as he checked the time on his watch yet again. It had been about twelve hours since he'd first gone to check the North Pier with Lieutenant Rodgers, and he still hadn't been rescued.

For a moment he wondered if they'd even noticed that he was missing, but quickly dismissed the thought as traitorous. His people were undoubtedly doing the best they could, they were just being darn slow about it.

It probably didn't help that his only companion was a Wraith. To be fair to Thorac though, he'd been pretty good – the whole saving the life thing took a bit of getting used to. It was just that Thorac wasn't looking too good, and when it came right down to it, John didn't think that Thorac would choose to starve to death when John was sitting right next to him…

"Checking the time every 10 minutes isn't going to make them find us sooner," Thorac remarked tiredly. "They'll arrive when they arrive."

"You've been saying that for two hours now," John complained. "And they still haven't arrived. Are you sure that the explosion didn't damage the door controls?"

"No," Thorac admitted. "It's not my city. I have no idea what the schematics are, but the lab shouldn't have been connected to anything vital."

"It wouldn't be the first time the Ancients have done something stupid," John muttered in irritation. "Did you know they developed a fatal ascension machine?'

"So you said," Thorac replied wearily. "If you don't like the Ancients that much then why are you here?"

John shrugged. "They have really cool space ships. I like to fly."

Thorac looked amused. "So you choose to stay in a galaxy full of beings who want to kill you because you like to fly?"

"It's more than that. These are my people. It's my job to protect them," John said quietly, his gaze fixed on the far wall. "Besides, Atlantis is home."

Thorac nodded. "I understand," he said softly. "It's the same for me with my people, and our home. They're capable of looking after themselves, but I worry about them all the same." He groaned slightly as he shifted position, and broke into a coughing fit.

"Are you alright?" John asked, looking at him warily. "You look a bit pale."

Thorac huffed at that. "I'm a Wraith," he pointed out. "I'm supposed to look pale. And I'll be fine, provided my people reach me in time."

"How much time are we talking here?" John asked in suspicion.

Thorac sighed. "Four hours."

Shaya cursed in frustration as they traipsed through the hallways of Atlantis. This was taking far too long. They only had several hours to locate and rescue Thorac before it was too late for all of them. At least, she thought in satisfaction, she'd left the ships with standing orders to destroy Atlantis if they didn't return before the deadline. If they were going down then they were taking Atlantis with them.

If only there was some way to know where to look. Kilatha had managed to narrow the zones down to several areas, the largest of which was the entire North Pier. This was where Shaya, Kalak and Col were currently heading, with the company of several marines, a scientist with a funny accent and the giant – Ronon.

"Are you sure that there is no other way to locate Colonel Sheppard?" Col asked the scientist for the fifteenth time. "Surely you have some method of tracking him if gets lost or captured?"

"I already told you," the little scientist said in irritation, adjusting his glasses with one hand. "The tracker implanted on the Colonel doesn't work through the shields. We have to be within the shielded area before we can find it with our technology, and even then it may not work."

"So what happens if someone captures him and keeps him in a shielded cell?" Kalak asked curiously.

"Sheppard would find a way out," Ronan said firmly.

"That's your foolproof rescue plan?" Shaya said sarcastically, the conversation doing little to sooth her nerves. "Just sit around and wait for people to rescue themselves? That's brilliant, really, but we don't have the time. Find another way."

Ronon shot her an amused glance, reminding her that it was hard to be intimidating when you look all of about 10 years old. Just wait until she was normal size again, she fumed silently. She'd show him.

'What about Thorac?" the scientist asked Kalak, casting a nervous look in Shaya's direction. "Do you have any means of tracking him?"

Kalak shook his head. "Not here. It'd take to long to get pass the shields to do a bioscan. If only we had another Wraith…"

"Why's that?" the scientist asked, glancing around nervously as if he expected a Wraith to come out of the shadows.

"Shields don't affect the Wraith's mental network," Kalak explained. "They'd be able to communicate."

The scientist looked up at Ronon in excitement. "Teyla," he exclaimed gleefully.

Ronon frowned. "Are you sure?" he asked the scientist doubtfully.

The scientist nodded. "It's perfect. She'll be able to locate him and hopefully he'll know where the Colonel is situated."

"Uh, excuse me," Shaya interrupted, waving her hand in front of the scientist's face. "How exactly can Teyla help us?"

"She has some Wraith DNA," the scientist explained rapidly. "It enables her to communicate with the Wraith via their network. She may be able to reach Thorac."

Shaya considered this for a moment, and then nodded. "Well, hurry up then. What are you waiting for? Get this Teyla to talk to Thorac."

"Right," the scientist said, reaching for his radio. "I'll just run it past Dr Weir first."

"Quickly," Shaya interjected impatiently. "What?" she snarled at Ronon who was studying her with a puzzled expression on his face.

The large warrior shrugged. "Nothing," he said. "Except didn't you used to be bigger?"

Thorac sat in silence, his attention focused on keeping his most vital organs from shutting down. Being a Wraith he didn't need to eat very often, but the use of his Lantean abilities tended to shorten the periods between meals considerably. Unfortunately the events of the last two days had depleted his reserves to the point where he needed to feed almost immediately.

To his side he could sense Colonel Sheppard's wariness at his weakening state. Tempting though the notion to feed was, Thorac didn't think that it'd be advisable, especially since there was a chance that Sheppard's people might find them first.

And while he knew that he would return any life force borrowed, it seemed that Sheppard's people were inclined to be a suspicious group and probably wouldn't believe his good intentions…

Besides, he had owed it to his people to wait for them. If they died because of him, for him, then he had no right to survive in their stead.

The whisper of a mind reaching for his disturbed his thoughts. His first instinct was to ignore it - he had been avoiding the Wraith for so long that it had become second nature. There was a touch of familiarity to the mind though, and that made him pause.

Slowly and slightly clumsily he reached out with skills long disused and opened his mind to the caller. 'Ta'Marea?' he asked silently.

There was a wave of confusion and a negative reply. 'I am Teyla,' the caller replied. 'I am with the Atlanteans.'

Of course, Thorac thought to himself. The Athosian with the Wraith DNA. 'Are my people there?' he asked her.

'Yes,' Teyla said. 'Is Colonel Sheppard with you?'

Thorac nodded from habit, forgetting for a moment that she couldn't see him. 'He is here,' he replied.

"Thorac?" John asked him, sounding alarmed. "What are you doing?"

Thorac looked at him vaguely – it was difficult concentrating on two conversations at the same time.

"It's your friend, Teyla," he replied softly. "She contacted me via the Wraith telepathic network."

"Why didn't we think of that?" John muttered to himself. "Ask her what's taking them so long."

'He better be unharmed,' Teyla warned Thorac mentally, a strong sense of protectiveness accompanying the communication.

'He is fine,' Thorac reassured her, sending an image of the Colonel to her mind. 'He is growing impatient with the delay, though.'

There was a pause, then Teyla replied with a hint of amusement colouring her thoughts. 'Rodney says that he should've thought of that before he wandered off without letting anyone know where he was going. We haven't been able to locate either of you on the sensors. Where are you?'

'We're on the North pier, not far from the labs,' Thorac replied. 'The Colonel accidentally set off a Lantean bomb and the entire section shut down in order to protect the city. We can't activate any of the controls from this side. If Kilatha is there then she should be able to override the shutdown protocols.'

'We'll get to work on it,' Teyla said swiftly. 'Tell Sheppard that we'll be there soon.'

"Well?" John asked impatiently. "What's the delay?"

"They didn't know where you were," Thorac replied tiredly. "She said that they'd be here soon."

"Soon?" Sheppard asked him, his expression bordering on concern and wariness. "They'll be here before you need to feed, right?"

"You can only hope," Thorac replied with a small smirk.

Teyla regarded the scene before her with worry, and perhaps a hint of amusement. Nearly the entire science team was working on accessing the North Pier, though most were being careful to do so a safe distance from Rodney and Shaya.

Rodney was in full rant mode, his concern for Colonel Sheppard causing him to completely disregard everyone else. After a scientist had nearly been trampled by him, everybody was making sure to keep out of his way.

As for Shaya, she wasn't a scientist so there was little she could do besides wait impatiently and snap at anyone who came near her. At the moment, her target seemed to be Ronon. For some peculiar reason she seemed to delight in antagonising the large warrior, who seemed unsure whether or not to treat her like a child as per her appearance.

Kilatha was making herself useful – her knowledge of the Ancestor's technology rivalled even Rodney's – though it was extremely disconcerting to see a child of about five working with the scientists. Several people had nearly tripped over her, but no one felt inclined to say anything after the woman who'd suggested that she go play with the other kids had run off in tears.

"They seem worried," Elizabeth remarked, coming up beside her.

"Colonel Sheppard has been alone with the Wraith for a long time," Teyla remarked. "Perhaps that is causing concern."

'I meant Thorac's people," Elizabeth clarified. "They keep urging everyone to hurry up. I wonder what they haven't told us?"

"I thought it must be my imagination, but do they seem younger to you?" Teyla asked thoughtfully.

Elizabeth frowned as she studied the strangers. "A little bit, yes. Do you think it's connected?"

Teyla shrugged. "I've never heard of a people that age in reverse. I doubt that it is a natural occurrence."

"You think the Wraith…?" Elizabeth asked in horror.

"Possibly," Teyla said, her eyes tracking the scientists' progress as she talked. "It would make sense, especially with the current food shortages."

A whisper in her mind distracted her from the activity around her. 'Are you there?'

Thorac, she realised, startled by his sudden presence in her mind. The Wraith method of communication still felt alien to her, though she had to admit that it could be very useful at times. 'I am here,' she replied softly. 'What do you want?'

'Sheppard wants to know if you will be much longer,' Thorac replied, a trace of irritation accompanying his normal calm mental voice.

Teyla smiled slightly. 'I'm not sure,' she said apologetically. 'Everyone is working as hard as they can. Rodney thinks they can have it fixed within the hour.'

There was a slight delay as the Wraith relayed this to the Colonel, and then his response was accompanied by a wave of exasperation. 'Sheppard says that means we'll be here for another day or so.'

Teyla hesitated before asking a question that had been bothering her for a while. 'Earlier you called me Ta'Marea. Who is that?'

There was a long hesitation before Thorac finally replied. 'Ta'Marea was a friend. I have not spoken with her in a long time.'

'Why?' Teyla wanted to know.

'It does not matter,' Thorac told her sternly, sending her a firm sense that the subject was off limits.

A touch on her arm pulled Teyla's attention back to her surroundings. Blinking slowly, she looked up to see Carson's concerned face staring down at her.

"Are you alright, lass?" he asked, swiftly checking her pupils to see if they responded to the light. "You gave us a scare, standing there mutely like that, as if you'd been drugged."

Teyla shook her head firmly as her senses refocused on reality. "I was just talking to Thorac," she explained. "Apparently John is feeling impatient."

"Aye, I can't say I blame the lad," Carson said gently. "Being trapped out there with a Wraith isn't something I'd like to experience."

Teyla nodded thoughtfully. "He seems different from other Wraiths," she said slowly, casting her mind back over her conversations with Thorac. "His mind is smoother, more orderly somehow. I think it might be the blood of the Ancestors that he carries."

"It's possible, luv," Carson said, relaxing once he was convinced that she was fine. "Who knows what affects that sort of combination could have?"

"I'm part Wraith," Teyla pointed out.

"Aye, and look at what abilities it has given you," Carson exclaimed. "The Council notes proposed a complete blend of the two strands of DNA, which means that Thorac could have any combination of abilities from the two species."

A shout from Rodney interrupted their conversation. Looking across, Teyla realised that they'd finally managed to cancel the lockdown and gain access to the North Pier.

John checked the time on his watch once again, partly because he was genuinely interested in how long he'd been stuck out on the pier alone with a Wraith, and partly because it annoyed said Wraith.

It was one of the few traits that John had keep from his childhood – when bored annoy someone. It was a simple hobby, easy to do, and fairly safe – except when your target was an alien who could literally kill you with one hand…

"Are you alright?" he asked Thorac, shifting slightly further away from the Wraith who was looking rather hungry.

"I will be," Thorac said simply, his eyes closed in tiredness.

"Uh huh," John said sceptically. "And what if your people don't make the deadline? You'll just keel over and die?" His hand instinctively tightened on the metal rod he'd been carrying since he woke up.

"No," replied Thorac quietly. "They will. I'll survive for at least several more days without sustenance."

John frowned at that. "So, they have to be near you in order to live?" Strangely enough, he hadn't thought that Thorac was the kind of being who approved of slavery.

Thorac sighed. "It's complicated," he muttered.

"It always is," John remarked.

"They stay with me because they chose to," Thorac insisted. "They are free to leave when they wish."

"Right," John said doubtfully. "So why will they die without you then?"

There was a long silence before Thorac answered. "It's connected to how I feed," he said reluctantly.

John narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Thorac paused, and then smiled slightly. "You'll understand when you see them," he said calmly.

It took John a few seconds to process that. "They're coming?" he asked hopefully.

Thorac nodded tiredly. "Any minute now."

John didn't think he'd ever been quite so relieved to see his team as he was right now – expect maybe whenever the Genii were involved. He wasn't sure which group he disliked more – the Genii or the Wraith. It was pretty close either way.

To his intense surprise a group of four children detached themselves from the main group and flung themselves at Thorac.

"Whoa, that's not a good idea," he exclaimed, grabbing one of the boys as he raced past. The boy twisted in his grasp and turned to face John.

John let go of him in shock. "Kalak?" he asked in disbelief.

The child of about seven nodded seriously. "It is good to see you again John Sheppard," he said smiling cheerfully. "Though I had hoped that the circumstances might be different."

"How?" John managed to ask, his glaze darting over the group of kids. To his astonishment he recognised Shaya standing protectively near Thorac, and the other two seemed vaguely familiar as well.

"We're genetically modified to produce the life force that Wraiths need in order to survive. Unfortunately the build-up of life-force has the opposite effect to the feeding process and we appear younger as the amount increases," Kalak explained.

John frowned at that. "Thorac said you could leave at any time," he said, glaring at the Wraith who was chatting to what appeared to be a four year old.

"We can," Kalak said calmly, "but why would we want to?"

"But if you leave then you'll die," John argued. "That's not much of a choice."

Kalak smiled. "The modifications can be reversed," he explained. "Many of the Companions have chosen to start families and lead normal lives."

John nodded thoughtfully. So this was how Thorac got his food supply. He didn't particularly like the idea of humans being modified for food, but at least they weren't being captured and killed.

A startled exclamation from one of the marines caused to John to spin around in alarm, just in time to see Thorac and the two youngest children disappear in a beam of light.

Elizabeth tapped on John's arm to gain his attention. "One of the Marines just reported that Thorac's ship has left Atlantis and is now hovering over the city. They want to know if they should shoot it down?"

John considered it for a moment, and then shook his head. He owed it to Thorac after he'd saved his life – again, and he clearly remembered the Wraith's worried expression as he'd insisted that his people had brought several battleships with them.

Shaya looked almost disappointed at his response, but Kalak smiled brightly.

"Hopefully, the next time our paths cross it will be in better circumstances," he said with a slight bow before he disappeared in a beam of light.

"We'll meet again," Shaya told him coldly, shooting a quick glare at Ronon. "Until then, we'll be watching you."

With that parting remark she too vanished, leaving the Atlanteans staring at the empty hall.

"Well," Elizabeth said with a sigh. "This has been an eventful day."

"Aye," Carson nodded in agreement. "Which reminds me, I'll need you to report to the infirmary for a check-up, Colonel. I'd like to make sure that you're alright after the explosion and everything."

At that moment Rodney looked up from his laptop in alarm. "Um, Colonel, Elizabeth, I think you need to see this."

"What is it Rodney?" John asked impatiently. After the day he'd had he felt like going to bed and sleeping for a week.

Wordlessly, Rodney turned his laptop around and showed them the image on the screen.

Elizabeth frowned. "What are those?" she asked, pointing at the ring of twelve dots on the screen.

"Ships," Rodney replied anxiously. "Warships. They were here the whole time, we just couldn't see them until they uncloaked."

They all watched in relief as the ships drew away from Atlantis and disappeared into hyperspace.

"They must've brought their entire fleet," Rodney exclaimed in amazement.

John grimaced slightly. "I don't think they did," he replied quietly.