Author's Note: Remember! I don't know all that much about the Wraith and everything I put is going to be from my own imagination, so if the technology isn't right – according to something you UK people might know from episodes I haven't seen yet, just keep it to yourself! It's an AU.

OOOOOOOO

Undesignated planet

We can't stay long. There's a very good chance there are more of them here that we just haven't seen

"I know."

Melony was standing beside the closest dart, looking up at the thing with an almost awed expression. The craft was a pretty one, deadly and sleek, and she wondered how anyone so ruthless could create something so beautiful.

They're aerodynamical, that's all

Talon wasn't nearly as impressed with the ship as Melony was – although he was just as anxious to check out the technology. That was because Melony was a pilot at heart, and Talon was a scientist, and while the two of them blended well most of the time, they were still very different entities. It was just that most of the time; they had the same goal – just as they did, then.

"Let's hope you don't have to be Wraith to operate them…"

Which would be a serious setback.

We could always see about getting you a Wraith gene, too, Talon told her, amused, despite the exposed position they were in.

"Ugh."

She didn't even want to think about that. Instead, she walked around the dart, looking for any mechanism that might open a door or a hatch. That would be the first test, after all. If she couldn't get into the ship, there was no way she was going to be able to fly it.

At the tail of the ship she found what she was looking for. A simple panel – much like the one on a Jumper – that was glowing slightly. Amplifying the personal shield device she was using – just in case the damned thing was booby-trapped – she hit the panel with her hand, and the entire back of the ship seemed to shimmer for just a moment, and then an opening appeared. Just out of nowhere, like the metal had melted away.

"Wow."

Even Talon was impressed by that. Since there had been no sign of any trap – or anti-theft device – she moved up the single step and into the back of the craft.

It was small and compact, but the Wraith were more or less the same size as humans, and Melony wasn't large, so she fit just fine. There were all sorts of panels and glowing lights at the front of the ship – on what looked like a dashboard – and there was a single pilot's chair, which was well cushioned with a high back and a lot of intricate carvings. A simple yoke with a typical looking stick appeared to be the main steering device, and Melony wondered how a race so alien from her own had still managed to create something so similar to an aircraft cockpit from earth.

The best designs are the ones that end up being used, Talon told her. It happens in nature – why not in science?

"Why not?"

She ran her hand along the chair, feeling the texture of the fabric covering the padding. It was identical to the fabric the Wraith had been wearing under their armor when Mitchell had gone through their pockets looking for devices and technology that might come in handy. Devices that were now sitting in a pile, waiting for her to learn how to fly the ship she was in – at least well enough to get the two of them and their stolen loot back to Talonopolis where she'd have more time to look it over.

Have a seat, Talon told her. He didn't want to wait too long, and really, the worst that could happen was the thing could blow up around them, or Melony would crash it and it would blow up around them. They'd probably be killed, but with the shielding device on high like it was, there was always a chance they'd live.

"Maybe they forgot to set the alarm," Melony said, sitting down in the chair.

Before Talon could answer, straps came out of nowhere, down around her shoulders, around from her hips and one up between her legs – which was a little nerve-wracking. They clicked together with a metallic sound at a point right above her belly button, and Melony decided that it wasn't a capture device, simply a 6-point harness. And a snug one at that.

"Well… that's a start…"

The harness probably was automatic, but it at least proved that she didn't have to be Wraith in order for the ship to accept her as the pilot. She looked at the console in front of her.

"I wonder how to start this thing…"

As if in response, a small button started blinking, and Melony stared at it, feeling Talon's own surprise.

Could it be that simple?

The Wraith might communicate telepathically, Hot Shot, Talon said, hesitantly, as if he were only just thinking this through as well. Perhaps their ships are similar to the Ancient's in the respect that they can 'hear' what their pilots need… It wouldn't be the first time the technology was used. Just a more advanced version

"Of course, it could be a self destruct button, too…"

To her surprise, another button – this one a little bigger and far off to the side – started blinking as well.

Don't hit that button, Talon told her.

Not a chance.

Instead, she took a deep breath, and reached out, one hand coming to the yoke of the craft, and the other pressing the first button.

"Here goes…"

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Melonyville

"How many more?" Sam asked.

Tao shrugged.

"Several."

"And are you willing to let us have them?"

No sense beating around the bush.

Tao scowled. He wasn't so sure he should just give up something so willingly – especially to the Tau'ri.

"I am uncertain that my Lord Talon would desire-"

"He'd tell you to help us," Daniel said, reminding Tao that Talon was a good friend of theirs and considered himself an ally. "You know he would."

The First Prime scowled again.

"What will you give my people in return?"

Jack scowled.

"Remind me again, what do we want them for, Carter?" He asked.

She sighed.

"Sir. Colonel Mitchell used them to amplify the power to the gate. I helped her do it. I saw what she did, and I could duplicate it."

"So you could get us to Atlantis…?" He asked.

She nodded.

Jack turned to Tao.

"We'll give you whatever you ask."

And that wasn't something anyone would ever have imagined hearing Jack O'Neill ever tell any Jaffa other than Teal'c.

Tao smiled.