"Do you honestly think you can win?"
"Who are you?" One of the smaller Neitzchians smirked at her.
"Its the ship's AI hologram," Another of them responded, "High Guard ships use a sensient AI interface with hologram emitters throughout the ship."
"That's right," Andromeda responded, "And I thought I'd let you know that my remaining officers are preparing to bring my defense systems back online. You should surrender now. If I have to use force, some of you will be injured, or killed."
"We still have you outnumbered by far. Our men have certainly overrun engineering by now, we have people in your point defense stations, and we will take the bridge as soon as we can drain the gas from it. How exactly do you plan to repel us?"
"I would suggest you don't rely on your engineering staff. They had some unforseen difficulties."
The Neitzchian scoffed, "We sent twenty five of our top soldiers to take engineering. Now really, I would have expected a better bluff from a ship of The Line."
"Fine, have it your way," Andromeda walked past them, "It's your survival on the line, not mine."
"On the contrary," The leader of the squard answered, "Once we get on the bridge, we're going to purge the AI program. If I were you, I wouldn't be spending my last moments in some pointless argument."
***
Finally, yelling began to break out in the hallway ahead. Andromeda had managed to get the Neitzchians to make enough noise to mask their movements.
Andromeda looked up, "I have unlocked the emergency doors in the repair crawl ways. You can now acess the bridge."
"Nicely done," Jack gave her a brief nod as he entered the tunnel.
---
"Harper, how are internal sensors coming?" Ishan asked.
"We're almost ready up here, what about engineering?" Harper responded.
"I've just got one more power junction to get online."
"Great," Harper turned, "Ready to clean up some Neitzchians?"
"All defense systems are online. As soon as my sensors are ready, I'll take care of them."
"In that case, I had better make my move now," A voice said, "I am Ker, acting Neitzchian commander aboard this vessle. I have tapped into your internal communications system. Don't bother trying to trace my signal; my engineers have sent this message through over eighteen backup loops. We have captured your captain. If you value his life, you will surrender. I'll give you one hour to discuss it. If you attempt any further repairs of your internal sensors, I will set off an explosion that will destroy this vessle."
"You can't destroy me without killing yourselves," Andromeda answered, "Neitzchians never go on suicide missions."
"We are Raptor Pride, Special Forces. If we do not complete our mission, we will be executed, along with our children. As you know, the one thing that Neitzchians will die for is genetic immortality. Still, if you think I am lying, try to resist."
Andromeda cut off communications with Ker so that they could discuss the situation. Everyone seemed worried, even the strangers that they had picked up on the planet.
"Maybe he is lying," Harper suggested hopefully.
"I wouldn't count on it," Jack answered dryly.
"Beka and the others are approaching the bridge," Andromeda informed them, "They should be here in a few minutes."
"We can't surrender," Harper stated, his voice unusually firm, "They'll erase Rommie, and probably torture us. I grew up under Neitzchian rule, and I am not going back."
"Don't worry, we'll come up with something," Trance responded, trying to make him feel better.
"Yeah, I don't suppose you're having one of those 'flashes' right now…"
Trance shook her head, "Sorry."
"Figures," Harper answered, sitting down in the slipstream chair.
"We can't wait here much longer," Andromeda mused, "Without the rest of my internal defenses online, its only a matter of time before they override my command systems and force their way in."
"So what can we do?" Sam asked.
"A frontal assault would fail," Teal'c observed, "And we do not know the location of the captain."
"Maybe we could find out…" Harper trailed off.
"Harper?" Trance wondered what he was planning.
Before he could answer, Beka and her team walked through the doorway. Andromeda had explained the entire situation to them while they traveled to the bridge, and they did not look as if they had a way out. They talked about the situation for a moment, but soon their attention was diverted.
"Harper, what are you doing?" Andromeda demanded, "You aren't planning on fixing my sensors, are you?"
Everyone looked, and realised that Harper had quietly gone over to work at the other end of the bridge.
"Don't worry, babe," Harper answered, "The Neitzchians won't realise a thing."
"How do you plan on hiding something like that?" Andromeda asked.
"Simple. I'm not going to turn everything on at once," Harper explained, "I can make it look like your sensors are blinking in and out because of the damage you've taken. It'll take some time, but we should be able to search the whole ship without the Neitzchians figuring it out."
"How much time?" Jack asked.
"It'll take a couple of minutes to set up, and about an hour for the search."
"You know, we do have a deadline, here," Jack reminded him.
"Don't worry, we'll probably find Dylan and the explosives before then," Harper answered.
"Probably?" Beka asked.
"What if we don't find them in time?" Sam added.
"I'll think of something," Harper assured them. Tyr scoffed.
After a few moments, Harper was ready, "Rommie, I'm going to have to send a power surge through your secondary processors to make the Neitzchians think this is a random engineering problem. I'll make sure it doesn't do too much damage."
"I understand," Andromeda answered, "I'm ready."
"This might hurt," Harper said, making the final connection in her circuitry.
Andromeda sucked in air as pain flowed over her body like a wave. A mild ache in her head lingered, but she was soon able to regain control. She could see flashes of various portions of her decks. There wasn't time to activate her defenses, but she took careful note of any Neitzchians she saw. The plan had worked, though her systems were even more damaged now. She doubted that they would be getting to slipstream any time soon, and that would mean almost certain capture.
***
"We're nearing the radiation field," The young officer informed him.
"Good," Kyn nodded, "I want full active and passive sensors. We'll need a full run-down of their defenses."
"But sir," The tactical command officer responded, "They'll easily detect us."
"They have no chance of defending against our fleet," Kyn answered, "But we must know what they will be sending in order to find the most efficient method of attack."
"What about the Andromeda?" The officer said, "It is allied with this world, and they are close enough to intercept us if our enemies send a distress call."
"The Andromeda has been taken care of," Kyn gave the officer a steely gaze, "But if you don't trust me, just say so."
The officer was silent.
***
"There," Andromeda stated aloud, even though none of them could see what she had detected, "Dylan is on deck four, section two."
"Let's go," Beka answered.
"If we try to rescue Dylan, they'll set off the explosives," Tyr reminded her.
"I believe the bomb is also in that area," Andromeda answered, "They are being guarded by twelve Neitzchians."
"Why would they take Dylan and the explosives to the same place," Rev wondered.
"The guy with the explosives must have found Dylan," Harper suggested, "He would have had to take both to the same place when Andromeda forced them into hiding."
"Maybe," Tyr said, "Or maybe this is just their way of luring us into a trap."
"We have to try," Trance implored.
"I just don't like our odds," Tyr responded, "Twelve soldiers from Raptor's special forces won't go down easily."
"Would you rather surrender?" Beka asked, "Because that's the only alternative we have right now."
"Of course not," Tyr was indignant, "But we can't just rush in there and expect to survive."
"A radiation burst might disable the explosives," Andromeda suggested, "That would at least stop them from destroying the ship."
"We'll have to find some way to separate Dylan from the Neitzchians…" Beka contemplated.
"How?" Jack asked.
"We could gas them," Harper suggested.
"I don't have any gas reservoirs in that area, and my pumps are disabled," Andromeda responded, "You would have to inject the gas manually."
"We would need to make a diversion," Rev noted.
"We can handle that," Jack volunteered.
"What are you going to do?" Trance asked.
Jack pointed the barrel of his MP5 at the ceiling and briefly squeezed the trigger, resulting in a brief moment of ear-splitting noise.
"That'll work," Beka nodded, taken aback.
***
"Still think your 'crew' will be coming to the rescue?" Ker asked.
"They will stop you," Dylan responded.
"You sound like a broken recording," Ker smirked, "I've heard that the Commonwealth didn't fall because it was weak, but because it was boring."
Dylan shook his head, "If I were a Neitzchian, I wouldn't be telling my enemies what my plans are."
"It doesn't matter. They are far outnumbered, and we know they won't risk your life to save themselves. That's what makes you humans weak."
"Unity isn't a weakness," Dylan answered.
The Neitzchian chuckled, mockingly, "My brother told me about you High Guard captains with your grandiose pronouncements and your eternal optimism. I thought he was exaggerating."
Dylan thought he saw movement in the shadows at the far end of the large room, "That's another thing. I didn't think Neitzchians were supposed to underestimate their opponents."
"I haven't. You…" Ker's response was cut short by the sound of nearby gunfire. Three of his top men were cut down in the hail of bullets, while the rest quickly found cover.
"Someone set us up!" A nearby soldier shouted.
"The bomb!" Ker shouted, turning his gaze to the powerful explosive device. Carefully, he made his way over to it. He placed his hand on the ID panel and shouted the order for detonation. The device beeped three times in response, but nothing happened.
When he turned his attention back the battle, one of the larger humans had already made his way over to the prisoner. Ker quickly went to stop him, careful to stay away from the supporting gunfire.
He quickly raised his weapon and ordered the massive, camoflauged man to halt.
Teal'c looked up from the panel that he had to manipulate to free Dylan. The Neitzchian had been cut off from the others, and he was within reach of the staff weapon. Taking only a moment to consider the tactical situation, Teal'c raised his staff weapon, and knocked the weapon out of his opponent's hand with a single, blindingly swift blow.
The Neitzchian was surprised. This was no ordinary human. He had underestimated his enemy. It wouldn't happen again.
Ker charged at Teal'c and raised his arm up. Teal'c caught his hand before he could drive the bone spurs into the Jaffa's heart. With equally blinding speed, Ker's other hand shot up and broke his wrist from Teal'c iron grip. Ker attempted to kick Teal'c feet out from under him, but the staff weapon blocked that maneuver. Ker gripped the top of Teal'c staff and pushed downward. Ker again brought his arm up and swung down, this time aiming for Teal'c head. Bracing the bottom of the staff against his boot, Teal'c forced the top between his head and Ker's arm. The bone spurs caught the shaft, poised only centimeters away from Teal'c skull.
Three of the other Neitzchians noticed their leader locked in hand to hand combat. They immediately moved to intervene.
As they came around a corner, a human and…something else… came out from behind a pile of cargo crates.
"Hold it!" Beka ordered.
The Neitzchians raised their weapons and opened fire. Beka and Trance ducked behind the boxes and returned fire. Trance slipped around quietly and hit the Neitzchians from behind. Two fell to her effectors, but the other dove to the ground, trying to get a good firing angle. Beka took the opportunity to come into the open, getting a clear shot at the third Neitzchian.
"Where is Tyr?" Beka lamented.
"I'm sure he'll be here in time," Trance answered as they looked for a way to get close to the remaining Neitzchians.
Both Ker and Teal'c could hear the sounds of battle all around them. The surprise attack had resulted in utter pandamonium. Even as he fought, Ker mentally berated himself for not finding some way to set up adequate defenses.
Teal'c made a sudden movement with the staff weapon, and one of Ker's bone spurs clattered to the ground. Ker quickly released his grip on the staff weapon.
Teal'c lashed out with his staff, nearly striking Ker in the stomach. However, the agile Neitzchian lunged backward, escaping the powerful swing. Ker kicked Teal'c hard in the stomach, but the seasoned warrior didn't flinch. Teal'c maneuvered the staff weapon around, blocked a second kick and delivering a crushing blow to Ker's shoulder. Had he been a normal human, it would have easily broken his collar bone.
Rev watched quietly as the Neitzchian came closer. There were only a few of them left. As the tall soldier approached, unaware of the Magog's presense, Rev took a moment to consider the situation. They had begun with twelve. They lost three during the initial attack. Teal'c occupied one. Trance and Beka had taken down another three. The SG team had two more pinned down, and Rev was about to take down his first. That left two unaccounted for.
At that moment, Rev lunged out at the Neitzchian, seconds before he would have been spotted. He sprayed venom over the face of his opponent, blinding him and causing extreme pain.
The Neitzchian threw his arms up to cover his face as he shouted in pain. Almost instinctively, his leg flew up, kicking Rev hard in the chest. Rev fell to his knees as the Neitzchian writhed in pain on the floor.
"I think the Divine is trying to tell me something," Rev huffed to himself as he crawled back into the shadows.
Ker again tried to bring his bone spurs to bear, but Teal'c knew enough to guard against that. Teal'c pushed against the arm with the staff, seeting Ker off balance. Ker braced himself by placing his hand on the nearby crates. Teal'c raised the staff weapon and smashed the tip into the back of his hand, crushing the small bones within.
Ker shouted in pain. Before he could react, Teal'c swept the other end across his face, sending Ker to the floor. Teal'c brought the staff down on his stomach. Teal'c tried not to deliver a fatal blow, yet ensure that Ker wouldn't be in a condition to fight.
Meanwhile, Sam had broken off from Jack and Daniel, and began to inch toward the last Neitzchians. While the other two gave cover fire, she looked for a position that would allow her to get a clean shot.
Before she could get into position, the defense systems came online. A gunpod designed to protect the ship's cargo sparked to life and brought down the remaining Neitzchians. Harper had probably just saved her life.
Andromeda's holographic avatar appeared immediately after the gun finished, "Tyr has been injured. We need to get him to the medical bay."
"Where is he?" Trance asked, already heading for the door.
"In the corridor just outside," Rommie responded, "It looks as though he tried to fight two Neitzchians by himself."
Dylan, Beka, and Jack ran to help as well. The rest stayed behind to watch over the captured Neitzchians.
Once outside, the four of them saw Tyr on knees, blood flowing through an open wound on his chest. He was struggling to get to his feet.
"Whoa big guy," Beka called out, "Don't try to get up."
Tyr slid back to a seated position, "I wouldn't have, but I wasn't going to just lay back and hope for someone to rescue me."
Andromeda's holographic form was standing nearby, "He's bleeding internally. He brought down both of the other Neitzchians before my sensors came back online, but he might won't last much longer without medical attention."
"We're carrying a stretcher and some emergency medical supplies in the cargo hold," Dylan explained, "I'll be right back."
As he ran off, Trance placed her head against Tyr's chest and listened, feeling his powerful heartbeat. As she did, the strings came to her mind. She saw the possibilities interweaving like a tapestry. One by one, the potential futures fell away, contingencies arose, but were eliminated even more quickly. Within the space of a heartbeat, she saw the future narrowing down before her, and tears started to form in her eyes.
Tyr hadn't exactly been a friend. He was never nice, least of all to her, but…still. He didn't deserve this. Neitzchians had bad reputations, and Tyr's upbringing was bad, but some of his intentions… He had potential, and so many futures. Now, they were slipping away…
"Trance? Will he be all right?" Beka asked.
"I…" Trance trailed off, "We have to hurry."
Beka saw the look in her eyes. Trance's young face tried to hide her fears behind a show of determination, but something was terribly wrong.
"Who are you?" One of the smaller Neitzchians smirked at her.
"Its the ship's AI hologram," Another of them responded, "High Guard ships use a sensient AI interface with hologram emitters throughout the ship."
"That's right," Andromeda responded, "And I thought I'd let you know that my remaining officers are preparing to bring my defense systems back online. You should surrender now. If I have to use force, some of you will be injured, or killed."
"We still have you outnumbered by far. Our men have certainly overrun engineering by now, we have people in your point defense stations, and we will take the bridge as soon as we can drain the gas from it. How exactly do you plan to repel us?"
"I would suggest you don't rely on your engineering staff. They had some unforseen difficulties."
The Neitzchian scoffed, "We sent twenty five of our top soldiers to take engineering. Now really, I would have expected a better bluff from a ship of The Line."
"Fine, have it your way," Andromeda walked past them, "It's your survival on the line, not mine."
"On the contrary," The leader of the squard answered, "Once we get on the bridge, we're going to purge the AI program. If I were you, I wouldn't be spending my last moments in some pointless argument."
***
Finally, yelling began to break out in the hallway ahead. Andromeda had managed to get the Neitzchians to make enough noise to mask their movements.
Andromeda looked up, "I have unlocked the emergency doors in the repair crawl ways. You can now acess the bridge."
"Nicely done," Jack gave her a brief nod as he entered the tunnel.
---
"Harper, how are internal sensors coming?" Ishan asked.
"We're almost ready up here, what about engineering?" Harper responded.
"I've just got one more power junction to get online."
"Great," Harper turned, "Ready to clean up some Neitzchians?"
"All defense systems are online. As soon as my sensors are ready, I'll take care of them."
"In that case, I had better make my move now," A voice said, "I am Ker, acting Neitzchian commander aboard this vessle. I have tapped into your internal communications system. Don't bother trying to trace my signal; my engineers have sent this message through over eighteen backup loops. We have captured your captain. If you value his life, you will surrender. I'll give you one hour to discuss it. If you attempt any further repairs of your internal sensors, I will set off an explosion that will destroy this vessle."
"You can't destroy me without killing yourselves," Andromeda answered, "Neitzchians never go on suicide missions."
"We are Raptor Pride, Special Forces. If we do not complete our mission, we will be executed, along with our children. As you know, the one thing that Neitzchians will die for is genetic immortality. Still, if you think I am lying, try to resist."
Andromeda cut off communications with Ker so that they could discuss the situation. Everyone seemed worried, even the strangers that they had picked up on the planet.
"Maybe he is lying," Harper suggested hopefully.
"I wouldn't count on it," Jack answered dryly.
"Beka and the others are approaching the bridge," Andromeda informed them, "They should be here in a few minutes."
"We can't surrender," Harper stated, his voice unusually firm, "They'll erase Rommie, and probably torture us. I grew up under Neitzchian rule, and I am not going back."
"Don't worry, we'll come up with something," Trance responded, trying to make him feel better.
"Yeah, I don't suppose you're having one of those 'flashes' right now…"
Trance shook her head, "Sorry."
"Figures," Harper answered, sitting down in the slipstream chair.
"We can't wait here much longer," Andromeda mused, "Without the rest of my internal defenses online, its only a matter of time before they override my command systems and force their way in."
"So what can we do?" Sam asked.
"A frontal assault would fail," Teal'c observed, "And we do not know the location of the captain."
"Maybe we could find out…" Harper trailed off.
"Harper?" Trance wondered what he was planning.
Before he could answer, Beka and her team walked through the doorway. Andromeda had explained the entire situation to them while they traveled to the bridge, and they did not look as if they had a way out. They talked about the situation for a moment, but soon their attention was diverted.
"Harper, what are you doing?" Andromeda demanded, "You aren't planning on fixing my sensors, are you?"
Everyone looked, and realised that Harper had quietly gone over to work at the other end of the bridge.
"Don't worry, babe," Harper answered, "The Neitzchians won't realise a thing."
"How do you plan on hiding something like that?" Andromeda asked.
"Simple. I'm not going to turn everything on at once," Harper explained, "I can make it look like your sensors are blinking in and out because of the damage you've taken. It'll take some time, but we should be able to search the whole ship without the Neitzchians figuring it out."
"How much time?" Jack asked.
"It'll take a couple of minutes to set up, and about an hour for the search."
"You know, we do have a deadline, here," Jack reminded him.
"Don't worry, we'll probably find Dylan and the explosives before then," Harper answered.
"Probably?" Beka asked.
"What if we don't find them in time?" Sam added.
"I'll think of something," Harper assured them. Tyr scoffed.
After a few moments, Harper was ready, "Rommie, I'm going to have to send a power surge through your secondary processors to make the Neitzchians think this is a random engineering problem. I'll make sure it doesn't do too much damage."
"I understand," Andromeda answered, "I'm ready."
"This might hurt," Harper said, making the final connection in her circuitry.
Andromeda sucked in air as pain flowed over her body like a wave. A mild ache in her head lingered, but she was soon able to regain control. She could see flashes of various portions of her decks. There wasn't time to activate her defenses, but she took careful note of any Neitzchians she saw. The plan had worked, though her systems were even more damaged now. She doubted that they would be getting to slipstream any time soon, and that would mean almost certain capture.
***
"We're nearing the radiation field," The young officer informed him.
"Good," Kyn nodded, "I want full active and passive sensors. We'll need a full run-down of their defenses."
"But sir," The tactical command officer responded, "They'll easily detect us."
"They have no chance of defending against our fleet," Kyn answered, "But we must know what they will be sending in order to find the most efficient method of attack."
"What about the Andromeda?" The officer said, "It is allied with this world, and they are close enough to intercept us if our enemies send a distress call."
"The Andromeda has been taken care of," Kyn gave the officer a steely gaze, "But if you don't trust me, just say so."
The officer was silent.
***
"There," Andromeda stated aloud, even though none of them could see what she had detected, "Dylan is on deck four, section two."
"Let's go," Beka answered.
"If we try to rescue Dylan, they'll set off the explosives," Tyr reminded her.
"I believe the bomb is also in that area," Andromeda answered, "They are being guarded by twelve Neitzchians."
"Why would they take Dylan and the explosives to the same place," Rev wondered.
"The guy with the explosives must have found Dylan," Harper suggested, "He would have had to take both to the same place when Andromeda forced them into hiding."
"Maybe," Tyr said, "Or maybe this is just their way of luring us into a trap."
"We have to try," Trance implored.
"I just don't like our odds," Tyr responded, "Twelve soldiers from Raptor's special forces won't go down easily."
"Would you rather surrender?" Beka asked, "Because that's the only alternative we have right now."
"Of course not," Tyr was indignant, "But we can't just rush in there and expect to survive."
"A radiation burst might disable the explosives," Andromeda suggested, "That would at least stop them from destroying the ship."
"We'll have to find some way to separate Dylan from the Neitzchians…" Beka contemplated.
"How?" Jack asked.
"We could gas them," Harper suggested.
"I don't have any gas reservoirs in that area, and my pumps are disabled," Andromeda responded, "You would have to inject the gas manually."
"We would need to make a diversion," Rev noted.
"We can handle that," Jack volunteered.
"What are you going to do?" Trance asked.
Jack pointed the barrel of his MP5 at the ceiling and briefly squeezed the trigger, resulting in a brief moment of ear-splitting noise.
"That'll work," Beka nodded, taken aback.
***
"Still think your 'crew' will be coming to the rescue?" Ker asked.
"They will stop you," Dylan responded.
"You sound like a broken recording," Ker smirked, "I've heard that the Commonwealth didn't fall because it was weak, but because it was boring."
Dylan shook his head, "If I were a Neitzchian, I wouldn't be telling my enemies what my plans are."
"It doesn't matter. They are far outnumbered, and we know they won't risk your life to save themselves. That's what makes you humans weak."
"Unity isn't a weakness," Dylan answered.
The Neitzchian chuckled, mockingly, "My brother told me about you High Guard captains with your grandiose pronouncements and your eternal optimism. I thought he was exaggerating."
Dylan thought he saw movement in the shadows at the far end of the large room, "That's another thing. I didn't think Neitzchians were supposed to underestimate their opponents."
"I haven't. You…" Ker's response was cut short by the sound of nearby gunfire. Three of his top men were cut down in the hail of bullets, while the rest quickly found cover.
"Someone set us up!" A nearby soldier shouted.
"The bomb!" Ker shouted, turning his gaze to the powerful explosive device. Carefully, he made his way over to it. He placed his hand on the ID panel and shouted the order for detonation. The device beeped three times in response, but nothing happened.
When he turned his attention back the battle, one of the larger humans had already made his way over to the prisoner. Ker quickly went to stop him, careful to stay away from the supporting gunfire.
He quickly raised his weapon and ordered the massive, camoflauged man to halt.
Teal'c looked up from the panel that he had to manipulate to free Dylan. The Neitzchian had been cut off from the others, and he was within reach of the staff weapon. Taking only a moment to consider the tactical situation, Teal'c raised his staff weapon, and knocked the weapon out of his opponent's hand with a single, blindingly swift blow.
The Neitzchian was surprised. This was no ordinary human. He had underestimated his enemy. It wouldn't happen again.
Ker charged at Teal'c and raised his arm up. Teal'c caught his hand before he could drive the bone spurs into the Jaffa's heart. With equally blinding speed, Ker's other hand shot up and broke his wrist from Teal'c iron grip. Ker attempted to kick Teal'c feet out from under him, but the staff weapon blocked that maneuver. Ker gripped the top of Teal'c staff and pushed downward. Ker again brought his arm up and swung down, this time aiming for Teal'c head. Bracing the bottom of the staff against his boot, Teal'c forced the top between his head and Ker's arm. The bone spurs caught the shaft, poised only centimeters away from Teal'c skull.
Three of the other Neitzchians noticed their leader locked in hand to hand combat. They immediately moved to intervene.
As they came around a corner, a human and…something else… came out from behind a pile of cargo crates.
"Hold it!" Beka ordered.
The Neitzchians raised their weapons and opened fire. Beka and Trance ducked behind the boxes and returned fire. Trance slipped around quietly and hit the Neitzchians from behind. Two fell to her effectors, but the other dove to the ground, trying to get a good firing angle. Beka took the opportunity to come into the open, getting a clear shot at the third Neitzchian.
"Where is Tyr?" Beka lamented.
"I'm sure he'll be here in time," Trance answered as they looked for a way to get close to the remaining Neitzchians.
Both Ker and Teal'c could hear the sounds of battle all around them. The surprise attack had resulted in utter pandamonium. Even as he fought, Ker mentally berated himself for not finding some way to set up adequate defenses.
Teal'c made a sudden movement with the staff weapon, and one of Ker's bone spurs clattered to the ground. Ker quickly released his grip on the staff weapon.
Teal'c lashed out with his staff, nearly striking Ker in the stomach. However, the agile Neitzchian lunged backward, escaping the powerful swing. Ker kicked Teal'c hard in the stomach, but the seasoned warrior didn't flinch. Teal'c maneuvered the staff weapon around, blocked a second kick and delivering a crushing blow to Ker's shoulder. Had he been a normal human, it would have easily broken his collar bone.
Rev watched quietly as the Neitzchian came closer. There were only a few of them left. As the tall soldier approached, unaware of the Magog's presense, Rev took a moment to consider the situation. They had begun with twelve. They lost three during the initial attack. Teal'c occupied one. Trance and Beka had taken down another three. The SG team had two more pinned down, and Rev was about to take down his first. That left two unaccounted for.
At that moment, Rev lunged out at the Neitzchian, seconds before he would have been spotted. He sprayed venom over the face of his opponent, blinding him and causing extreme pain.
The Neitzchian threw his arms up to cover his face as he shouted in pain. Almost instinctively, his leg flew up, kicking Rev hard in the chest. Rev fell to his knees as the Neitzchian writhed in pain on the floor.
"I think the Divine is trying to tell me something," Rev huffed to himself as he crawled back into the shadows.
Ker again tried to bring his bone spurs to bear, but Teal'c knew enough to guard against that. Teal'c pushed against the arm with the staff, seeting Ker off balance. Ker braced himself by placing his hand on the nearby crates. Teal'c raised the staff weapon and smashed the tip into the back of his hand, crushing the small bones within.
Ker shouted in pain. Before he could react, Teal'c swept the other end across his face, sending Ker to the floor. Teal'c brought the staff down on his stomach. Teal'c tried not to deliver a fatal blow, yet ensure that Ker wouldn't be in a condition to fight.
Meanwhile, Sam had broken off from Jack and Daniel, and began to inch toward the last Neitzchians. While the other two gave cover fire, she looked for a position that would allow her to get a clean shot.
Before she could get into position, the defense systems came online. A gunpod designed to protect the ship's cargo sparked to life and brought down the remaining Neitzchians. Harper had probably just saved her life.
Andromeda's holographic avatar appeared immediately after the gun finished, "Tyr has been injured. We need to get him to the medical bay."
"Where is he?" Trance asked, already heading for the door.
"In the corridor just outside," Rommie responded, "It looks as though he tried to fight two Neitzchians by himself."
Dylan, Beka, and Jack ran to help as well. The rest stayed behind to watch over the captured Neitzchians.
Once outside, the four of them saw Tyr on knees, blood flowing through an open wound on his chest. He was struggling to get to his feet.
"Whoa big guy," Beka called out, "Don't try to get up."
Tyr slid back to a seated position, "I wouldn't have, but I wasn't going to just lay back and hope for someone to rescue me."
Andromeda's holographic form was standing nearby, "He's bleeding internally. He brought down both of the other Neitzchians before my sensors came back online, but he might won't last much longer without medical attention."
"We're carrying a stretcher and some emergency medical supplies in the cargo hold," Dylan explained, "I'll be right back."
As he ran off, Trance placed her head against Tyr's chest and listened, feeling his powerful heartbeat. As she did, the strings came to her mind. She saw the possibilities interweaving like a tapestry. One by one, the potential futures fell away, contingencies arose, but were eliminated even more quickly. Within the space of a heartbeat, she saw the future narrowing down before her, and tears started to form in her eyes.
Tyr hadn't exactly been a friend. He was never nice, least of all to her, but…still. He didn't deserve this. Neitzchians had bad reputations, and Tyr's upbringing was bad, but some of his intentions… He had potential, and so many futures. Now, they were slipping away…
"Trance? Will he be all right?" Beka asked.
"I…" Trance trailed off, "We have to hurry."
Beka saw the look in her eyes. Trance's young face tried to hide her fears behind a show of determination, but something was terribly wrong.