"I told you before, I can't override anything from these controls." moaned McKay at Venner. The two of them were in panic mode, talking fast and thinking out loud.

"Think McKay. What do we do?" demanded Venner, trying not to yell. He was not going to sit back and let everybody on that ship get killed. Even if he had to storm the bridge by himself.

McKay typed on the keyboard like a man possessed, bringing up a schematic of the entire ship and zooming on the section they were currently in. "We need to pull the power conduits right here. They power the weapon and shield systems." he said, pointing to a series of tubes several levels down.

"I'll go. You stay here and tell me everything I need to know via radio. And barricade the doors too." said Venner, dashing out the door a second later. He heard McKay yelling something but he was already too far away for that to matter. He stopped at an emergency ladder tube and pulled the door open.

"Beam weapons are fully charged. They'll be in weapons range in thirty seconds." came McKay's voice over Venner's radio. The Lieutenant hustled down the ladder, trying to go as fast as he can without losing his grip and falling down to the bottom.


"Weapons range in fifteen seconds." reported Katana. Sheppard was at the tactical chair, controlling the weapons. He could see the look of disgust in the crew's eyes when Larrin gave the order to destroy the Odyssey and kill every Traveler on it. Despite all that's happened, it was still some of their own people that were going to die. Not that John believed they wouldn't follow Larrin's orders but he felt more comfortable being the one who used the weapons.

"Commander, I'm picking up a power surge." said the operations officer. A second later, the blood drained from his face. "They're charging weapons!" he yelled.

"Evasive maneuvers now!" yelled Larrin. Suddenly the whole bridge shook, sparks flying everywhere. Everyone who wasn't in a chair were all knocked off their feet. Sheppard was thrown from his chair, his body crashing down onto the cold metallic floor. The impact knocked the wind out of him for a second. Thankfully, his head didn't hit anything.

Teyla got back to her feet and quickly ran to Sheppard's side. "John, are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm breathing, that's a plus." moaned John. Ronon joined up with Teyla and the two helped Sheppard to his feet. The bridge wasn't too damaged but several consoles were offline. Everyone quickly got back to their feet and positions.

"Report." ordered Larrin as Sheppard sat back down on the tactical station. His chest hurt a little but otherwise, he was okay. Which was more then he could say to several of the Travelers in the room. Two were motionless on the floor, bleeding and unconscious.

"We've lost hyperdrive and several maneuvering thrusters." said Katana. Larrin quickly checked over her injured crewman, breathing a sigh of relief. Sheppard took that as a sign that they were alive.

"Primary shielding is gone. Backup shielding coming online but it won't last a single shot." reported the operations officer, his head bleeding. The Traveler ripped a piece of clothing from his uniform and held it against his head, trying to slow the blood loss.


Neeran frowned when the beam weapon only grazed the side of the enemy ship. Cara was operating every control like a seasoned veteran and yet she clearly didn't go for a direct hit. The ship was damaged but not as much as it could have been. "You could have destroyed them. Why didn't you?" he asked.

"Do you want the blood of our people on your hands?" Cara replied.

"As much as I hate to say it, Larrin and her crew were more then willing to kill all of us in cold blood. They don't deserve your pity." said Neeran, coldly. Cara stared at him for a moment, the look of uncertainty apparent on her face.

"You're right. They don't." she finally said.


"It wasn't a direct hit but they can't take another one." reported McKay, making Venner run faster down the corridor. He finally made it to a maintenance room and opened a wall panel, following the instructions Rodney gave him on his way down the ladder. Inside were three power conduits running parallel to the wall. "Now in order to…" McKay started to say.

"Ah screw it." said Venner, pulling out his pistol and shooting the conduits.


Cara frowned. "We just lost weapons and shields." she said. Everyone glanced at her, waiting as she checked over the damage reports. "Someone just sabotaged several of the main power conduits on Deck 13." she continued. Cara pulled up security camera footage of the sight of the damage.

To her surprise, there was one of the Atlanteans she previously captured standing in the room. Cara remembered him, the pilot that she didn't consider a priority or problem at first. A mistake she wouldn't make again. "That's impossible. How is he still alive let alone onboard this ship?" said a disbelieving Neeran.

"I don't know and I don't care. Take a team and sweep the lower levels. Make sure he dies this time." said Cara, watching Venner exit the room.


"You shot the conduits?" groaned McKay into the radio. Why do military people always think that shooting something will always solve a problem?

"I just asked myself what would Ronon do." replied Venner sarcastically.

"Wonderful, taking engineering tips from the Klingon." moaned McKay.

"Everything alright on your end?" asked the Lieutenant.

"I've locked the doors and there's a maintenance hatch I can use in case they try to break in." said McKay. He frowned when he looked over some security footage. Several Travelers were all heading down to the lower decks. The fact that they suddenly started moving after the Lieutenant's sabotage wasn't a coincidence.

"Venner you've got to get out of there. I've got at least a dozen grunts on the move and they do not look happy." said McKay.


Vega groaned as she picked herself off the floor. One second she was talking with Dusty about that time they went to M32-P7R, particularly the village where no one wore any clothing. Then the ship suddenly shook violently, knocking Vega and Dusty all over the room.

"I really hate roller coasters." groaned Dusty as she got to her feet. An alarm went off overhead, never a good sign. Vega opened the storage room hatch and found several Travelers running in both directions in the hallways.

"Are we under attack?" Vega thought out loud.

"Well I highly doubt it's a Chinese fire drill." commented Dusty.


"Why haven't they finished us off?" Sheppard asked, thinking out loud. The Odyssey didn't need time to recharge between shots and the Travelers couldn't jump the ship into hyperspace so Cara had them dead to rights.

"You're not going to believe this but I'm not picking up any shields." said the operations officer, blood trickling down from his forehead despite his attempts at a makeshift bandage.

"Lowering shields in combat? Cara would never do something that stupid." said Katana. The image of the Odyssey sat motionless on the view screen.

"Who cares why? Just shoot." said Ronon. Sheppard quickly checked over his console, brining the forward cannons online. Then a blip appeared on his screen.

"Larrin, we've got a problem. There's another ship out there." said Sheppard, glancing at the view screen. Right on cue a ship passed by the Odyssey, heading straight towards them.

"It's the mining ship." said Larrin, the sound of fear apparent in her voice.


"We're in weapons range." Moric heard as he positioned the ship between Larrin's vessel and the Odyssey. Cara would normally be mad as hell if the pilot ever put the ship into a combat situation but Moric was certain this would be considered an exception.

Moric was sickened by what he was about to do but there was little choice in the matter. He couldn't let anything, not even his own people threaten Cara's plan. "Open fire." he ordered.


"Evasive maneuvers now!" ordered Larrin. The whole ship rocked from the impacts, sparks flying throughout the bridge. From what Sheppard could read, Katana was trying to shake their pursuer loose but that last shot from the Odyssey took out several thrusters. No way they could out run them in their current condition.

"Shields are failing." reported operations officer.

"Transfer all auxiliary power to shields." ordered Larrin.

"Maybe we can fight 'em off. They're just a mining ship right?" suggested Sheppard. The look on Larrin's face said otherwise.

"Because our mining ships are so valuable, they're the most heavily armed vessels we have." she replied with a grim tone. So fighting back wasn't an option. "I need options people." Larrin said, glancing at everyone in the room.

"There's an asteroid belt nearby. We can lose them inside it." suggested Katana, though her voice was hesitant. Obviously she didn't think it was a good idea and Sheppard didn't blame her for thinking that. Taking a small very maneuverable jumper through an asteroid belt was easy, taking a larger much less maneuverable ship was practically suicide.

"Are you certain that is a wise decision?" asked Teyla.

"Hey it worked for Han Solo." pointed out Sheppard.

"Didn't he also end up into the stomach of a long necked space monster?" replied Ronon. Sheppard shrugged nervously.

The bridge shook from another hit, sparks flying in response. "Not much choice. Take us through." ordered Larrin. She then turned back to Sheppard. "The targeting computer can't handle that many targets. I'm going to need some of your people to man some of the defensive turrets manually." she continued.

"I'll go." said Ronon, already out the door. Teyla quickly followed him.


"Teldy, Jordan. I need both of your teams operating the front section turrets. We're heading into an asteroid belt and we need to clear a path through it." came Sheppard's voice over Vega's radio. Dusty and Vega both exchange a nervous glance before dashing towards the starboard section.


Larrin and her crew didn't stand a chance. Her ship was in no condition to fight anything let alone a more powerful vessel. Now they were turning into the asteroid field. Moric didn't know whether it was desperate or stupid. Probably both. "Don't tell me they're actually that crazy?" He heard Fornell ask.

It didn't matter in the end. Cara and everyone onboard the Odyssey were defenseless and Moric could not let anything happen to them. He remembered the briefing he had just before they took the Atlantean ship and it stunned him. Cara's plan was beyond ambitious but if it worked then everything they suffered would be worth it.

"Divert all auxiliary power to weapons and shields. We're going after them." said Moric. Everyone on the bridge stared at him in complete shock. "If they manage to get around us and attack the Odyssey, Cara and everyone onboard will die. We cannot let that happen." explained Moric.

The thought of saving the lives of their comrades quickly spurred them into action. No one protested as Moric increased speed towards the asteroid belt.


Everyone on the Odyssey bridge watched silently as the chase unfold. "Shouldn't we call them back?" asked Ralik. Cara normally would have been on the com in a second and berate Moric for such a stupid idea. But they were too close to stop now. Moric understood that and he was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to see it through.

"Get our weapons and shields online and I will." said Cara.

"But…" Ralik protested.

"The more you talk, the less concentration you're spending on the repairs." snapped Cara.


When Vega entered one of the many turret control room, she was quite frankly expecting a little more. The room was small and cramped cockpit. Everything including the chair and console was worn down and the lights flickered. The windows covered over by blast shields. "Asteroids eat your heart out." she commented as a flat screen targeting display lowered from the ceiling.

After strapping herself to the chair the blasts shields retracted, revealing the incoming asteroid field dead ahead. Outside, a turret opened up underneath her and a control stick came out of the console in front of her. "We'll be entering the field in thirty seconds. Ignore the larger rocks, concentrate your fire on the smaller ones. They're plasma cannons so don't worry about running out of ammunition but they will overheat." came Larrin's voice over the com.


"I'll try avoiding any large asteroids but you'll need to use the primary cannons to destroy anything that I can't." Katana told Sheppard.

"What about the mining ship?" asked Sheppard.

"It's much less maneuverable then us. If it gets too narrow, they'll have no choice but to pull back." said Katana. Sheppard glanced at the view screen, the asteroids were getting bigger by the second.


"Fire at will." ordered Larrin. Vega squeezed the trigger on the control stick, firing the cannon underneath her. It certainly wasn't as big and powerful as the ship's primary cannons but it looked like it could still pack a punch. The whole pod shook as rapid fire red bolts of energy shot out underneath.

Multiple asteroids of various sizes and shapes raced towards the ship. The turrets managed to destroy most of the approaching rocks but not all of them. The one that caught Vega's attention was heading straight towards her pod. She squeezed the trigger, only to get a red light go off in response. Cannon overheated. Please wait until cooling process is complete appeared on a screen in front of her. "Oh for the love of God." moaned Vega. She continued to squeeze the trigger but the same red light kept flashing.

The asteroid was seconds away from killing her when red bolts of energy sliced into dust. Small fragments from the remains impacted harmlessly on the blast shields. "You owe me one." came Dusty's voice over the radio.


"We have to pull back. Our shields weren't designed to handle this much debris." pleaded Fornell. The bridge shook violently, the result of an asteroid impact. "Divert all available power to primary weapons. We're finishing them off." said Moric, his eyes fixated on the targeting screen.


"They're gaining on us. Backup shielding down to twenty percent." said the operations officer.

"Sheppard, you see that one dead ahead?" asked Katana, indicating a massive asteroid easily twice the size of the ship. Sheppard nodded in response, not sure he was going to like what she was about to say. "Don't shoot it." said Katana.

The Traveler increased their speed, heading directly towards it. "Uhh…pull up." gulped Sheppard. Katana ignored him, maintaining her course.

"You're not doing what I think you're doing?" asked Larrin, obviously she had a better idea of what was about to happen.

"Larrin?" asked Sheppard, turning to her for answers.

"Better you don't know. Just hold on." said Larrin, jumping into a seat and strapping herself in. John quickly did the same.


"That rock is getting really big." said Vega. The large chunk of rock kept getting bigger and bigger and so far they didn't seem to be turning away from it.

"Blast shields up. I repeat, blast shields up. All hands brace for impact." came Larrin's voice over the intercom. Immediately, the blast shields all slammed shut around Vega's pod. A red warning flashed across her console: Impact imminent


Katana continued her course towards the asteroid, slowly bringing the throttle up. They were going to miss it but Sheppard didn't want to think about how close it was going to be. Then she did the last thing Sheppard ever expected. Katana activated the frontal maneuvering thrusters and cut the sublight engines. She just stopped the ship.


Moric's eyes widened in terror. Larrin's ship just stopped right in front of their path. "Turn!" screamed Fornell. Moric turned the ship but he knew he couldn't make it fast enough. A second later, the whole bridge shook violently from the impact.


Sheppard felt like a rag doll as the bridge violently shook, far worse then the last time. Sparks flew everywhere as debris, pieces of the ceiling, and support beams collapsed to the floor. Screams filled the room as the whole room seemed to be ripped apart. The last thing Sheppard saw was a metallic ceiling come crashing down on him.


Cara and the rest of the bridge watch in horror as the two ships collided. Larrin's ship was propelled forward while the mining ship was drifting off towards the side of the asteroid. "Get me transporters back online now!" screamed Cara. The mining ship bounced of another large asteroid, the hull starting to crack.

"Transporters online." said Ralik. Cara immediately began scanning for any life sign onboard and beam it onto the Odyssey. She glanced up to see an asteroid half the size of the mining ship impact right through the hull, breaking the ship in half. The ship exploded, disappearing into flames that quickly dissipated.

"Well?" asked Ralik. All the bridge crew looked at her anxiously, all waiting to hear how many she got off before the vessel's demise. "Twenty seven. I got twenty seven off the ship." Cara finally answered. She knew that wasn't a lot. There were sixty people onboard the ship at that time.

"Ralik, you have the bridge." Cara said before getting up and walking out of the room. Twenty seven was all she could get. But none of them were from the bridge. Moric was gone, one of the people Cara considered to be a brother. The tears she held back finally burst out of her eyes as she collapsed against the wall. Cara thought she cried the all tears she could in one lifetime but she figured wrong. She almost broke down back on the bridge but she couldn't let her crew see her like this. They needed to draw confidence and strength from her.

"I'll see you soon old friend." she said before picking herself back up.