Chapter 2- Capture

The next thing the team knew, they woke in a closed, lightly lit room. It was furnished with two dark blue, streamlined couches and one matching chair. What can be called a dark wood coffee table was positioned in the center of the room. The walls were a light cream color, with some colorful abstract art hanging. It seemed it was not meant to keep prisoners, it actually looked like a highly modern living room, minus the technology.

McKay sat up, he felt like someone hit him in the head with a baseball bat, several times. He looked around wondering what the hell was going on. He rubbed his blurry eyes, but his sight took a few seconds to clear up. Teyla was lying nearby unconscious, placed one of the couches. Ford was sitting on the other, talking to the Major.

"Do you guys feel like I do?" McKay asked.

"If you feel like you got hit by a hammer, then yea," Ford answered, rubbing his head.

Just then, Teyla started to move and quickly sat up.

"Teyla, how you feeling?" Sheppard asked her.

Shaking her head, she answered, "It is hard for me to see and my whole body aches."

"We couldn't see much of anything either." Talking to her and McKay, "What's the last thing you two remember?"

Teyla answered first, "I remember you asking Rodney about the shield."

"That's all we remember too." Ford commented.

"Am I the only one to remember that woman?" McKay asked them.

"What woman?" Ford asked.

"I assume she's the one who put us in here."

"McKay, what woman?" Sheppard asked, annoyed.

"I saw her standing over me after I collapsed on the ground, before I passed out."

"Then she has to be who took all our gear." Ford said.

Rodney immediately searched his pants pockets, and found a power bar. Of course he started eating it and everyone else just shook their heads.

"Major, we need a plan."

" I know Teyla, let's start with getting out of this room."

"This place is pretty well sealed. As far as I can tell, that's the only door," Ford said as he pointed to the other side of the room.

"Have you two even tried to open it?" McKay asked.

"We tried but no luck."

"See if you can get it open, Rodney." Sheppard told him.

Meanwhile, in a room just down the hall, the woman responsible for the capture was sitting down in front of a low table reviewing the situation and looking at what she had taken from the people. She didn't know if she had done the right thing, she didn't even know who these people were. They had come through the Ancient Avenue, the first people to in thousands of years. She'd have to wait for the military team to get there, but she had to make a call anyway. She pressed a button on a console and on a screen on the facing wall, the image of a well dressed, gray-haired, middle-aged man appeared. She greeted him, cordially.

"Hello Tom."

He was relieved to see her. When he was notified of the Ancient Avenue activation, he immediately dispatched a team, but it was so far from the city. He responded, "Anirul, are you alright? Did the travelers reach your house yet?"

"Yes…."

"Well, where are they"

Unsure of herself Anirul responded with "I apprehended them and locked them in my sitting room."

"For Ancestors sake! What possessed you to that by yourself ! You could have gotten hurt, or killed, and then where would the project be? Our lead physicist killed by some... travelers from Ancestors-know-where… Did you forget how important the project is for our protection!"

"I did not forget. What I did was to protect the project. They were at the archway…"

"If anything would have happened to you I could forg---"

"Tom, I can take care of myself. I have for eight years." Anirul cut him off.

"Alright, but remember we don't know who these travelers are. Do not try to talk to them. AS:2 and I should be there shortly."

"Oh, you're coming too?"

"Of course, I would not miss this. What have you observed? How advanced are they?"

"I have their weapons and other gear here. They seem to be a combination. The weapons use metal projectiles, but there is a sensor… I believe it to be of Ancient technology."

"Ancient! Are you positive?

"Yes," Anirul responded.

"But they're not the Ancients are they?"

"No."

"Damn. That would have been the most amazing event in our recent history," Tom said disappointedly.

"I know. They could still be a good source of information for us… perhaps allies. If they possess more Ancient technology… and they are after all human…"

"We have to make sure they are the type of people we want to ally ourselves with. We know virtually nothing about them, not even where they come from. I have to go, but remember Anirul, be careful."

"Yes, Tommy."

"Do not call me that. We're not children anymore."
"I realize that, I suppose I'm still not used to you being the most powerful man on the planet."
"You also seem to forget the dangerous time we are living in."

Suddenly Anirul got angry at him. "No one knows that better than I, after what happened to Paulus!"
Equally as angry Tom snipped back "That is why I don't understand why you feel it is safe to be out there by yourself."

"I'm alright Tom, just go if you must."

"Fine, keep your com on."

Anirul waved goodbye as the screen shut off. She stayed sitting down to collect her thoughts. There were four strangers in her house from another planet. She had rarely been through the Avenue, even though she knew more than anyone on the planet about them. No one from another planet had tried to come to the planet since… well, in thousands of years. Only her people had used it, and these people were certainly not her people.

Her thoughts drifted to her brothers traveling to other worlds. Hawat and Rone were always the adventurous ones. They'd rather explore other worlds than stay home and experiment like Anirul. Besides, her work was too important to spend much time on other planets. Maybe Tom was right, she should permanently move back to the city, but the thought of all those people looking at her, feeling sorry for her, she couldn't bear it again. Anyway, if she wasn't out here, she wouldn't have been the first to meet these travelers. She realized how lucky everyone one was that they had picked today to come here.

She stood up slowly, pacing back and forth, waiting. Finally her scientific curiosity got the best of her. She grabbed her weapon that worked so well on the travelers before and headed to the sitting room.