Part 6

Mark looked down once more; his small lifesigns detector confirmed his fear. All three dot groups were still heading his way. The largest group was very close now; they could be heard coming through the door. Mark took his aim and waited. He hit the first Wraith and just missed the second. He dived to the floor and without aiming fired another 4 shots. Two hit the mark and another Wraith went down. He saw the stunner shots hitting the wall behind him and he felt the adrenaline rush through his system as again he fired at the next hostile; again it fell. He was determined and it paid off he hit two more of the last three before being hit in the back with a stunner blast.

He woke up to the sight of the Wraith; there were 5 of them, all around him. He was the most scared he had ever been in his life and he couldn't move. He had heard rumours of the paralysis the Wraith weapons caused; it eventually wears off but not quick enough to stop the five Wraith from feeding on him.

He tried his best not to show that he was conscious. It seemed to work. For a while.

One of the Wraith turned to look at him and swung his hand back. The ecstatic look on his face was worrying. Could he, it, really take that much pleasure in killing him? The hand swung towards his body but there was a bright blinding flash and Wraith blood splashed onto the wall.

I fired again. "Get the hell away from him!" I shouted as I dispatched two more of the nightmarish beasts. There were only two left and I shot them both whilst they were in a state of confused shock.

"Sara? Sara? Are you there? We are placing the bomb, prepare to activate the destruct and head for the rings we'll meet you there" I said down the radio. I lifted Mark into the crawlspace and I hurried into the engine room and activated the explosives.

We got into the duct and made it to the intersection. I pushed the detonator and another one of the ships components went up in flames.

I heard my radio buzz; I lifted it to hear Sara talking "… Leg might be broken, the Wraith are closing in and I am unable to complete…" The radio went dead. I put Mark on the rings and activated them, sending him back to the jumper and I once again set off down the tight fit tunnels.

Sara looked down, the three Wraith were too close now. She looked for her weapon but couldn't find it. She must have dropped it in the duct. She cursed and grabbed the only weapon she had available. She found her standard issue combat knife and prepared for the oncoming Wraith.

The first one investigated the duct. She knew it wouldn't be easy. In fact that was an understatement; it was going to be damn impossible. The Wraith clearly expected the ducts to be the entrance we would try to use to get to the destruct. If she had taken the main route she would have been slaughtered.

The second Wraith to come around the corner saw her, he pulled out his stunner and she launched the knife. It hit the target and it fell silently; the knife buried deeply in its head. She couldn't get it back, it would be impossible for her now. She now had two Wraith heading her way and no weapon.

She saw the first and third come around the corner together and the last thing she saw was the flash of the stunner as it impacted her head.

I dropped in on the other side of the controls, hoping I could get to them and then to Sara. 8 of the Wraith were gone. I would just have to dispatch the last two. I dropped quietly into the control bay. I walked towards the first from behind and cut off its head using my knife.

I hoped to be able to get to the next but it was facing my way. I lifted the stunner and fired, the Wraith fell to the floor, stunned but still alive. As it fell I threw the stunner and the sharp end split it into two and I ran to the controls. I activated the destruct and the small counter began to read down in ancient.

I ran out of the bay but could see nothing on the detector or with my eyes, they must have gone somewhere. I needed a clue and I got one.

Sara's scream was massively loud; I ran as fast as I could, I knew what was happening she was being shared between the Wraith as a meal. Her scream stopped for a second and then started up again.

It was enough for me to find her, I saw the Wraith with the hand on her chest; she was in agony. I fired at the Wraith and he fell dead. She gasped and tears rolled down her face. I launched another two shots and took down more Wraith. Their shots flew over my shoulders and impacted the walls. I fired 5 more shots and all the Wraith fell dead.

I grabbed Sara and lifted her. "Can you walk?" I asked her, "No" she replied , "Look we have less than 2 minutes to get back to the rings if I have to lift you I will." I told her, I looked at my lifesigns detector; there was a solid group of Wraith heading toward the destruct control. "Can the Wraith turn off the destruct?" I asked her, "Oh no, they could if they have been here long enough. Sir give me your weapon and head for the jumper bay, it's the only way you'll get out in time. Drop me at the bay, I'll hold them off until the blast goes off" She said. I reluctantly agreed and hurriedly brought her to the bay. She took her weapon out and prepared to face the Wraith. I lifted my pack and headed out at a run.

I got to the jumper bay and pulled out my pack, I was going to blow the jumpers, there was about half a minute left. There were no explosives left, I was sure that I had 6 grenades and some C4 left. I realised that Sara's plan didn't just involve shooting. I ran into the jumper and tried to activate the engine. It wouldn't start up. There was no power! I ran out and into the next jumper. The self destruct began to go off as I powered up the ship. It lifted and I shot out of the inferno that was the bay. I tried to access the cloak but it failed.

I flew to where I left the other jumper and ringed over a mere three seconds before the Wraith destroyed the other jumper using a cruiser. As the ship began to explode my legacy kicked in. The engines powered up and it headed towards the cruisers, it hit all six of the cruisers before they could manoeuvre and then it finished its sequence and the ship blew to hell. I smiled and sped the ship towards Lucas; he must have seen what happened.

As we headed closer the Virtue appeared shadowing the moon. I couldn't wait to dock. We flew into the bay and we landed successfully and I walked onto the deck.

TO BE CONTINUED…