Second chapter of the day...
0000
Chapter 25 – The Breadcrumbs
John's cries were horrifically audible over the transmission, mixing in with the feeding growls of the Wraith as it fed on John's life.
Unable to do anything, unable to stop what was happening, Teyla could only stare in horror at the image on Dr McKay's computer screen.
John's head was thrown back, his body physically shaking under the onslaught of the Wraith's attack.
It was taking too much!
Teyla felt the tears in her eyes and she clenched her hands tightly in front of her, leaning into Si' back at the analysis console.
"No!" Dr McKay shouted from beside her, shooting up from his seat, almost knocking over his computer as he did.
"Enough," the man holding John commanded loudly over the growls and cries, and Teyla watched as the two other men pulled the Wraith away from John.
As the Wraith was pulled aside, John slumped forward in the chair, his body visibly heaving with his breaths.
He was still alive.
He lifted his head.
She could see the hair around his face was partly greyed and his face was drawn, not just from his newly weakened state, but because he already looked older.
John!
The main captor stepped back across the image, blocking their view of John once more.
Teyla narrowed her eyes on the man responsible for all of this, who held John's' life in his hands far more than the Wraith that had just fed. She fixed the man's face into her mind, swearing to herself that she would deal with him personally. There would be no justice but that which she would bring upon him.
"You have three more hours to reconsider the value of human life to your people, and the value Major Sheppard has to your new alliance," the man stated and abruptly the image cut away into blackness and, in the room below, the Portal shutdown.
Voices chorused around the Lantean room around her, but Teyla simply kept staring at the darkened computer screen where John had just been.
She had to keep control and not give into the urge to cry.
John was still alive. There was still time to save him.
At which point she remembered Si' work and she snapped her attention down over his shoulder to the display screen. At which point that she realised that her hands had been on Si' shoulders this entire time and that she had clenched large fistfuls of his shirt in her hands. He had not reacted to it, silently, as always, her ever-steadfast friend.
She made herself open her white-knuckled hands and release his clothing, and then she was able to look at what was on the screens in front of him. Si was in quiet discussion with the two technicians, and Dr McKay was now leaning in as well.
"Do you have anything?" Colonel Carter's voice asked urgently, arriving on the other side of the tech from Si, General O'Neill beside her.
Teyla focused on the screens herself as Si answered.
"We have a full recording of the transmission," Si reported, while he and the technicians were tapping away on controls. Teyla frowned at the display, finally able to focus enough to assess what it showed.
Her heart fell.
"There is plenty of background data," Si continued, "in fact that there is too much."
Teyla stood upright and looked at Colonel Carter. "This suggests that the transmission did not come through one single Portal," she reported.
Colonel Carter's expression shifted, clearly understanding the implications instantly. "Are we able to separate the different Portal transmissions within the data? Still identify which Portals were used?"
"It needs far more analysis," Si replied. "This is going to take time."
"If we filter it through Atlantis' systems?" Dr Zelenka put in from one side. "Perhaps we can identify the different parts of transmissions for you to analyse?"
"We should be able to filter it down," one of Facility's technician replied. "But, I suggest that we copy this through to the Facility; our computer systems there should be able to analyse it faster and use other transmissions we have as comparisons."
Colonel Carter nodded quickly. "We'll dial the Elite now. McKay do you think-"
"Unscheduled off-world activation!" A voice shouted across the room though as the Portal in the next room came alive again.
All heads turned and Colonel Carter hurried back towards her station. Hopefully it would be the Facility anyway, or was it Cowen finally supplying the information he had on Kolya's likely locations?
As she stared at Colonel Carter's retreating back, Teyla's eyes were drawn to General O'Neill, who had held back and had his deeply dark eyes upon her.
"We'll find him," he told her, the promise clearly heartfelt. "We don't leave our people behind."
Teyla nodded. She had heard John say that very statement several times, and to hear it voiced by John's superior, who she knew he deeply respected, it gave her little bit of confidence. John's people really did care for him and would not let this pass.
She just wished that she would stop thinking of the many she had lost over the years; fallen to the hands of the Wraith that she had been unable to save in time.
"Receiving Athos IDC," the announcement drew Teyla's attention back across the room.
"Atlantis, this is Athos," Father's voice was very welcome as Teyla hurried towards the usual large display screen Colonel Carter was already turning towards.
"We are receiving you, Torren," Colonel Carter replied to him.
Teyla reached her side to see Father's face filling the screen and his eyes immediately moved to her.
"Honoured Daughter," he smiled tightly, his eyes assessing her. "Is there any further news on Major Sheppard?"
"We have had no progress so far," Teyla replied, trying to control her expression and tone but knowing full well that Father would be able to see through it. Her control was for those around her, not Father. She could see the worry in his eyes in turn; concern for John and for her.
"I am sorry to hear that," Father replied. "But, I may have something to help."
Teyla had not been expecting that.
"What do you have?" Colonel Carter asked eagerly from Teyla's side.
"Do you recall that I was approached by a member of the Genii who reported that we had a common enemy in the excommunicated Commander Kolya?" Father asked.
"Yes," Colonel Carter nodded.
"The same individual has just approached me again," Father reported. "This time with a list of last known locations of Kolya."
Sensitive hope burst to life in Teyla's heart; would this finally be something they could use?
"I am sending the list through now," Father added as he nodded off to the side to someone.
"Receiving," a voice behind Teyla reported. "We have six Gate addresses and text for each."
"Could this have come from Cowen?" Colonel Carter asked Father.
"No," Torren replied. "I do not believe so. Without disclosing the contact over Portal, I have confidence this individual is well placed to provide accurate enough information. It may be that this individual will remain readily available for further queries as well."
Was the contact on Athos?
"Has the Alliance high alert been lifted?" Teyla asked Father.
"No, but politically important individuals are using the Portal," Father replied, which meant that not only was the individual on Athos, but that they were from the Genii Government to be able to use the Portal to reach Athos. "Though there are indications from the Councils that the high alert status may need to be lowered if there is no further attack. Trade and transport has been delayed for over a day now and foods are spoiling left undelivered."
Teyla nodded.
"You trust this contact?" Colonel Carter asked Father.
Father tilted his head as he considered her question. "I think it is in this individual's best interest that the culprit is found. I should add that this individual seems very certain that it is indeed Commander Kolya of the Genii who has Major Sheppard."
So there were Genii who knew what was going on.
"Can the individual be sent here?" Teyla asked. "For further questioning?" She would very much like to speak with this person.
"If they were to leave here," Father's eyes met hers heavily, conveying meaning, "it might alert certain people. At least that is what they have led me to believe. They are, however, speaking with the Honour Guard."
That was good.
Father looked off to the right. "Lead Guard Vakalis is here and wishes to speak with you."
"Thank you, Father," Teyla said quickly before he disappeared.
"Find him for us all," he replied, his own turmoil a little more obvious in the look.
"Thank you, Torren," Colonel Carter added. "We are very grateful for your help."
"Contact me if you need anything," he replied to her and then stepped away.
Vakalis filled the view, his eyes lifting from a pad in his hand. "Honoured Elite; Colonel Carter," he nodded.
"What do you have?" Teyla asked quickly.
"Cowen has allowed Elite access to the Genii databanks, and we have now identified all the men seen in the transmission you provided," Vakalis reported the good news. "The individual here has also confirmed the same identities. They are all Genii with former associations with Kolya, and they are all listed as either dead or missing by the Genii military."
Finally, something.
"Who is the one apparently in charge?" Teyla asked, hearing the anger in her voice now.
"He is called Pranos," Vakalis lifted his pad. "He has been one of Kolya's closest compatriots throughout his former military career and is described by the individual here as being blindly loyal to Kolya."
"What does the contact know about Kolya's plan?" Teyla asked.
"The individual here knows only that Major Sheppard is being held by Kolya and that it is indeed, as you suspected, part of Kolya's attempt to return to the Genii homeworld, preferably as a replacement of Cowen."
"If that's all your contact knows," Colonel Sumner put in from the other side of Colonel Carter, "then there's no guarantee that the Major is being held at one of the six Gate addresses they've provided?"
"The six locations are definite bases that Kolya has been using outside Alliance space since his excommunication, but there is no way to know which one is where they are holding Major Sheppard," Vakalis replied.
"Good work," Teyla told him. "We have been contacted again by Pranos and his group," she informed him. "We are going to send through a copy of the transmission. Pass this along to Halling and ensure this is only shared via the highest secure links."
Teyla looked to Colonel Carter, who looked back towards Dr McKay.
"Sending now," Dr McKay replied instantly as he tapped on his computer. Beside him, Si was watching from the Elite tech console, the technicians working beside him.
"Be advised, that our analysis so far shows that the transmission was sent through more than one Portal," Teyla told Vakalis.
On the screen, Vakalis nodded, his eyes downward, no doubt on the control screen at his end of the conversation. "I am receiving the data now."
To the left, someone else's shoulder faintly appeared and Vakalis looked round. Shemu, another member of John's Honour Guard, leant in and handed Vakalis a new pad.
"The latest in from Enforcement reports that they have still found no intel from any of the Ancestor worship groups that have threatened Major Sheppard," Vakalis reported from the pad.
"I am convinced that it is Kolya," stated Teyla, the evidence now overwhelming in her opinion. "He is using the Ancestor worshippers' cause as a cover."
Vakalis nodded and glanced down again. "We have the full transmission recording. I will speak with the Facility now. Honoured Elite Oneakka asked me to inform you that he has spoken over link with Supreme Leader Cowen and informed him of the Elite's displeasure that Genii are behind the capture."
Teyla almost smiled to think of how that conversation had gone. Oneakka would have used none of the clever persuasion that Colonel Carter had used on the Genii leader.
"Good," she told Vakalis. "Report back as soon as you have anything."
"Yes, Honoured Elite," Vakalis nodded. "Colonel Carter," he nodded to the city's leader and then reached forward. The screen went dark.
"I knew it was Kolya," Lieutenant Ford cursed loudly from one side as the Portal from Athos shutdown.
"I might have something here," Dr McKay called from the back of the room. All eyes turned to him. Si was stood at his side, both of them looking at the Earth computer screen. "One of the new Gate addresses is on the list I brought back from M1K 177."
"Do we know it?" Colonel Carter asked as she approached the Doctor and Si. Teyla followed quickly.
"We've not been there," Dr McKay reported, "but this new information includes text on where Kolya's base is supposed to be on the planet. It's apparently in an empty quarter of a town close to the Gate, in an old factory building." Dr McKay looked up from his screen, the eager hope clear across his face.
"Do we know of this planet?" Teyla asked Si.
Si shook his head. "No, it is on the other side of the galaxy from the Alliance."
Teyla turned to Colonel Carter. "I would like to go with your team," she stated and, fortunately, the city's Lead nodded.
"Colonel Sumner," Colonel Carter called to her Military Lead, "are your teams ready?"
"Yes, Ma'am," he replied with clear eagerness before he turned and strode out of the room to head down to the Portal, while simultaneously shouting orders to his people to prepare to depart.
"Dial the planet," Colonel Carter ordered next as she moved away. "Have the malp drone ready to fly through."
Teyla didn't listen to anymore, for she followed Lieutenant Ford as he hurried after Colonel Sumner. As she reached the steps out of the Lantean Control Room, she noticed Si approaching her, checking over the stunner on his hip. She turned to block his path. "You should remain here," she told him quietly.
Si frowned, as she had expected he would. "You will be with unknown warriors on an unknown planet," he argued.
"It is hardly the first time," she reminded him. "I have fought with many of these people before; and one of us needs to remain here."
She knew that Si would understand and agree with the logic, for it was vital that one of them remain in Atlantis. If something were to happen to her on this mission, if this was a trap laid out by Kolya, then Si could continue the search for John. She needed him here to ensure that far more than she needed him at her side in the raid to come.
He frowned and pursed his lips, but she could see that he agreed with her conclusions, much of which went unsaid between them; they knew how each other thought and did not need to spell out the details to each other. She also understood that it was his desire to protect her and help her find John had made him want to stay at her side, not that he doubted her abilities.
She smiled up at her long and trusted friend. "I need you here," she stressed.
He nodded sharply. "Find Sheppard," he stated and turned away.
Teyla turned to leave, hearing the wormhole forming in the Portal Room below, and as Si headed back to the technicians pouring over the transmission analysis, she saw Dr McKay heading towards her. He appeared armed up and ready to leave with her and the others to find John. Despite his obvious lack of military experience and temperament, he was clearly determined to go with them to help save John.
She found herself smiling at the man before she turned and hurried out of the room with him.
She just had to hope that this Portal address was where John was being held, and, if so, that she could get to him before Pranos might try to kill him first.
00000
Oneakka frowned at the analysis running on the latest transmission sent from Atlantis. Two recordings now of Genii using a Wraith on Sheppard. It was not comfortable watching.
A small team had been assigned to analysing the transmissions, hoping to identify anything useful, but preferrably the original source Portal, but with clearly more than one Portal used, there was so much data for the team to filter through and isolate. It would not be an easy job.
Oneakka sat back from the unhelpful status.
"This is very suspicious timing," Halling noted from the next seat
Oneakka nodded.
The excommunicated Genii Commander had taken Sheppard just when the Elite had their hands tied with the current alert.
"Kolya had to know we would be limited in our assistance," Halling echoed Oneakka's own thoughts.
"Except he couldn't have predicted this was going to happen," Oneakka considered. "He clearly has planned this through."
"So, a helpful coincidence for him?"
"Sheppard was taken from a routine planetary visit apparently," Oneakka noted from the comments sent from Si in Atlantis and added to by the most recent intel in via Sheppard's Athosian Honour Guard. "Kolya probably has people watching known Atlantis allied planets, and Sheppard just happened to be there. Si says Sheppard's assignment on the mission was only decided the day before."
"Which means then," Halling considered, "Kolya has protected himself from us in other ways."
Oneakka nodded. "This Portal transmission data is mucked up."
"He relayed it through at least two Portals," Halling tapped on a screen. "Our only hope is that so much noise in the back of the transmission means that there will be something useful among it."
That was true at least. The problem was the time it would take. Even with the best working on it and dedicated computers analysing it all, it would take time on the best of days. Sheppard didn't have time on his side.
The Earthman had looked strong in the two recordings, despite what had been done to him, but a human could only survive so much feeding before they wouldn't be able to come back from it. Oneakka had seen people saved partway through a Wraith feeding on them, only for the effects of the feeding to kill them later anyway. Using a Wraith on a hostage was a risky move, except if Sheppard wasn't really a hostage but the feeding was simply a slow and dramatic way of killing him.
"He's never going to let Sheppard go," Oneakka concluded the hateful truth. "He can't risk it, and we know he's tried to assassinate Sheppard before now."
"We have enough evidence that it's Kolya," Halling considered. "Maybe threatening to release that evidence publically might persuade Kolya to let Sheppard go?"
Oneakka considered that. "Kolya's not appeared in any of the recordings, and analysis shows Sheppard doesn't look off to someone out of shot, so Kolya might not even be there. If I were him, I'd be in an entirely different hideout, so if Sheppard is rescued, he can still claim he had nothing to do with it."
"And his followers are so loyal, they'll say they did it for him rather than on his orders," Halling nodded. "It is a ridiculously bold plan."
Oneakka had to agree with that. "We'll make him pay for it."
The problem was finding the man. If Kolya wasn't in the same location as Sheppard, what were the chances of hunting him down outside the Alliance? The Elite had some contacts out beyond the border, but none had so far had any intel on Kolya and his small band of excommunicated soldiers. It was such a vast area of space in which he could be hiding, how were they going to narrow it down?
"If he thinks he's safe from us outside our territory, he's mistaken," Oneakka promised.
"It's a big galaxy," Halling muttered echoing Oneakka's worries.
Oneakka turned from the screen and stretched his neck one way and then the other, working out some kinks. He looked out across the Incident Room, seeing the many tired faces at the consoles and tables. Most of the military assessment staff had headed to the nearest canteen for food, and the rest assigned to the Incident Room were on a rolling rotation to eat or sleep as needed until the next appearance of the Hive.
Halling was right – the galaxy was too big; they couldn't even find one Hive that might be sneaking around their own carefully watched territory.
All around the room, he saw the signs of flagging focus and motivation. It had been too many hours since the Hive had last appeared, and without any idea where it might be now or where it will attack next, there was nothing to do but wait.
Oneakka hated waiting. He'd been waiting too damn much of late. Waiting for the threat to Halling to show itself, waiting for the Sythus to be fully repaired, and now waiting for this damn Hive to show itself.
Without any target to focus on, he couldn't do anything useful. He couldn't even help anymore with the hunt for Sheppard. Though, getting to threaten Cowen of the Genii had been fun. He should have dragged it out longer. He'd kept his comments forceful and to the point and Cowen had barely said anything during the 'conversation' other than to say he was working on supplying Atlantis with possible locations of Kolya. Oneakka had ended with the promise that, if Cowen turned out to be implicated in anyway, or if he attempted to delay the investigation by the Elite or Atlantis any further, then Oneakka would visit Cowen personally.
Some days it really helped to be seen as a violent animal of a warrior.
But it didn't help with a disappearing Hive ship!
Stupidly cowardly Wraith.
He glanced off towards the brainy corner of the Incident Room, spotting Seeal stood with a few of the scientists. She was already looking his way though, and, from the quick tilt of her head, he understood that she wanted him to head up to that end of the room. Had she found something?
He got up from his seat without comment and headed down the large room towards her.
She moved away from the scientists, which probably meant that they hadn't found anything useful yet. Instead, Seeal had her arms crossed and was frowning; so she had something to say. When didn't she?
"What?" He asked once he was close enough for her to hear him, at which point he realised that Halling was barely a pace behind him.
Seeal moved to meet them. As he stopped in front of her, she pointed towards the brainy corner. "These people are scary clever," she stated.
"Obviously," he returned. "That's why they're here."
"I mean they are each on a genius level of intelligence," she felt it necessary to explain further. "If even one of these turned evil, you need to watch out."
He had to smile at that assessment; she always looked at things from a security perspective.
"We'll keep an eye on them," he told her. The Elite didn't employ anyone they didn't fully trust. Except maybe her – some Elite had expressed concerns, but had still agreed to her being employed by them. She'd proven herself repeatedly in his books and the majority of his fellow Elite agreed.
"Well, even with these smarts, they're floundering now," she reported, which seemed the common theme in the room. "Without the actual Hive, they have nothing but guesswork left."
"Their latest report suggested they might have a jamming frequency," Halling put in from Oneakka's right.
"Possibly," Seeal conceded. "But, there's no guarantee it'll work until it's actually tested, and no one knows where this Hive is going to pop up next."
"What about the slug robot angle?" Oneakka asked.
"There's definite similarities," she replied. "A few more than I originally spotted. Our best guess is that they're from the same source of tech as both the Seed Ship and this new tech. The working theory is that it's some old style form of Wraith tech that they've dug up to try and use against the Alliance; maybe started by that group of Queens in the former Nest System since we found the Seed Ship and the slug robots so close by."
"Or it was a rival Hive trying out the tech on the Nest Queens' ships," Oneakka gave his idea of the theory. "Since we know one of their Hives was gutted by the Seed Ship and exploded on return to the Nest System."
"Or," Seeal added, "there's my favourite theory, that they stole the tech from another group and are trying to patch it into their systems. Maybe the drive is out of a Seed Ship, since we know they jumped location without a standard drive."
"And how does this help us with the current crisis?" Halling asked, that irritated tone having returned. It definitely appeared more around Seeal.
"It doesn't right now," Seeal replied honestly.
"So, it was a waste of time?" Halling said curtly.
"The information might be helpful later somehow," Seeal countered the defeatist talk. "It would explain why the Wraith are using tech that seems to damage their own systems, because it's not theirs, or because it's just plain risky tech they haven't gotten working right yet."
So, basically, more waiting was required.
Oneakka looked off to the left where the large front screen now showed a map of Alliance territory, three bright dots showing where the Hive had appeared so far. Other than the fact that all three were in the same half of the massive territory, it wasn't all that helpful.
"We need to work out how the Hive is picking its targets," he muttered.
"We have plenty of theories, but all the analysis we've done is unhelpful until the Hive appears and we can find out which theory is right," Halling replied.
"Three points are too small a group to accurately predict the next appearance," Silvar's voice arrived from the right, likely having noticed Seeal talking with them.
"We have all the wealth of experience to suggest that one of the predicted attack points is right," Halling said, sounding definitely tired and a little grumpy now. "We need the Hive to show itself again."
Oneakka looked back round at Seeal and wondered if maybe she should be assigned to look at the Portal data from Atlantis. She probably knew more planets outside Alliance territory than they did and was good at picking out patterns in data, and since she wasn't able to help any further here... A thought occurred to him.
"If you saw these attack points," he told her as he gestured towards the big screen, "and you were after a criminal responsible, how would you predict where he'd reappear?"
Seeal looked faintly surprised at the question, and then switched her eyes to the display. "I'd start with a different set of questions. Like where is he now?"
"Theoretically the Hive could be anywhere in the known galaxy, so that's not helpful," Halling replied to her.
"Looking for a criminal is about understanding his, or her, reasons for doing something and how that impacts their behaviour," Seeal continued.
"Wraith cull and breed fear," Halling supplied.
"Well something else is going on here, because if they really prioritised culling," Seeal replied to him, "they would have done a better job on Atreus."
"Atreus was a test of our capabilities and response to attack," Oneakka told her.
"Or was it that you simply overwhelmed the Hive? Maybe the Hive's new tech is unstable and they couldn't risk staying around," Seeal replied.
"As we have debated, the radiation emitted is highly unstable and it is likely that the field it creates is just as unstable," Silvar put in.
"So my question is, why use it in the first place? What is their motivation?" Seeal asked. "It's highly unstable, the radiation is likely to actually damage the Hive itself, and they use it to jump into our territory and risk being destroyed or the tech captured? Something doesn't make sense here."
"Even if that is true, how are we supposed to find out?" Halling asked, sounding more interested in her questions now.
"It means that the Wraith on this Hive are not behaving as they usually do," Seeal replied. "So, using your usual models to predict where they'll turn up might not work here."
"If they turn up again at all," Maja said, stepping forward. Oneakka hadn't noticed her arrive, but then she'd been keeping an obvious watch over Seeal in the Incident Room. "Maybe the jumps we saw are the only tests they'll do and they have enough data to refine their new, or stolen, tech."
That was a worrying thought; and unhelpful to them.
"Even if they reappear soon," Seeal added, "they'll likely do the same as before and turn tail and-" She stopped talking and Oneakka snapped his eyes to her. That confused frown was back.
"What?" He asked.
"They turned," she seemed to ponder out loud before she looked at Silvar next to her. "When they left both times, they turned around and then activated their new tech."
Silvar nodded.
"Why turn?" Seeal asked.
"If it is a new drive, then they opened something like a hyperspace window and when through it," Silvar explained.
Oneakka frowned at that, realising Seeal's point and was instantly annoyed that he hadn't noticed that fact sooner.
"You don't need to turn around to open a hyperspace window," Seeal voiced the realisation. "Just open one ahead of the ship. So why turn around?"
"Hyperspace windows open easier in the same location as one previously," Silvar supplied a fact Oneakka hadn't known. "The tear in the fabric of spacetime is a weak point and seems to open more easily for a short while afterwards until equilibrium of the field returns."
"But it's not necessary to do so," Seeal argued. "No, instead they arrived, then to leave they turned around and went back to the point they arrived at. Like coming in through a door and then having to turn around and go back through the same door to leave."
"It is likely then that the drive they are using needs the weak point in the field to jump," Silvar concluded, not sounding at all like this was important news.
Seeal, however, still had that frowning confused look. Oneakka kept his eyes on her, as this usually meant she was working an idea through.
She moved past him, walking towards the large screen and the three widely separated points of attack by the Hive. "Why did they jump to the Negese System?" She asked. "There's nothing there."
"Our theory is that there used to be life on one of the planets," Silvar supplied. "Perhaps when that Hive had last been in that area, long ago, that planet had Human life that have all since gone."
"If it's very old tech, could it be that its navigation system is off by thousands of years?" Halling asked Silvar.
"Yes, we have considered that," Silvar confirmed immediately. "The stars and planets will be in slightly different relative positions."
"The stellar map would be different, so what we thought was clever testing of the Atreus defence system by arriving just beyond the planet," Halling followed the logic, "could actually have been a mistake that allowed the planetary defence to warn the populace and dial out the Portal in time before the culling started."
"But why those three so disparate points?" Seeal asked. "Why take out Amduat but then not take over that territory, or send in an attack from there? She turned back to the three points. "Or, what if they don't know where they're going?"
Oneakka frowned at that idea.
"That seems unlikely," Maja put in doubtfully.
"If they have to turn around to run away," Seeal continued to herself, "then..." She turned back towards them. "What if their arrival points are fixed somehow. A doorway that they move through and then have to leave by again. Maybe they're opening doors randomly and don't know where they'll end up?"
"You are suggesting that they picked three random places and they happened to just arrive over Atreus and at Amduat?" Halling asked, clearly not taken with the theory.
"We don't know what's going on outside Alliance territory," Seeal replied. "They could have been jumping to random places out there and we wouldn't know about it. Or maybe they don't have a proper map of the doorways."
"You are suggesting that there is some sort of phenomena that opens an entranceway in various fixed places in our territory and their new tech is the key that opens them?" Silvar asked, but Oneakka could hear the intellectual curiosity in his voice. "Like a wormhole but without a Portal to hold it?"
"Not a wormhole," Seeal shook her head. "I don't know what it is, but why turn around in the two cases we have their departure recorded? Maybe there are fixed points where this new drive works."
Oneakka looked away to the map again, an idea forming.
"If this theory is correct, then there would be corresponding similar features of the fixed jump points," Silvar said. "We have not found anything similar between the three known areas of the Hive's arrival."
"What if the doorways are waiting in subspace?" Heka's voice arrived, having joined the conversation. "If there is a concealed doorway in a wall, you only know it is there when you have seen it open."
"The radiation may still be concealing the common factors now revealed," Silvar replied to her, sounding like he liked the theory now.
"If we can work out some common aspects, perhaps that might help us find further fixed points, if they exist," Heka considered.
Oneakka turned back from the map. "If this is old tech they've found, then the fixed jump points are old as well. Which means we need to find one we know has been opened in the past."
Seeal looked at him with understanding. "Then we may already know a fourth place – where we found the Seed Ship and picked up its slug robots."
Oneakka nodded. "There was an old abandoned Wraith base on a moon there, above which was where the Seed Ship first appeared out of nowhere; maybe through one of your doorways."
"A possible fixed point to scan," Seeal smiled eagerly.
"Could the old base be where they found the tech?" Maja considered.
"A Wraith ship was crashed into it," Halling recalled. "Maybe to destroy any further tech being taken from it?"
Oneakka nodded.
Maja lifted up her pad and tapped away on it. "It was the Arkinian system and a research team have been working on the moon in question since. They have been salvaging pieces of the crashed Wraith Cruiser, but have found nothing yet of the base formally beneath it. Their conclusions so far suggest the base was very successfully destroyed by the Cruiser."
Oneakka remembered the downed Cruiser well enough. "Have they found anything else of interest on the moon?" He asked Maja.
"The team were recalled when the high alert was issued," Maja reported. "There's no one there to check with, but I have their reports." She frowned at her screen, no doubt speed reading report contents. "Apparently there is some life on the moon after all. Water caverns under the base and stretching further afield. There's enough atmosphere for the team, they've been camping down there."
"Why didn't we hear about this?" Halling asked, stepping closer to Maja to look at the readings.
"They predict that it's a residual pocket of basic life holding on from when the moon went through climatic changes hostile to life on the surface," Maja replied, quickly summarising what she was reading. "In the caverns there's only trees, plants, and a small insect that pollinates the flowers. Nothing more advanced than a fish."
"No sign of any Wraith?" Oneakka checked.
"Not besides those on the Cruiser that died on impact with the base," Maja replied.
"It's the only other place we know that this type of tech has been used, so we need to scan the area of space above the former base," Seeal said, clearly having decided on the next course of action. "If that's where they found the tech, then maybe there's something in the caverns as a hint about it? Maybe an even older base survived deep underground?"
"If there was anything like that, the research team would probably have found it by now," Silvar suggested, almost apologetically to Seeal. "Our sensor systems are good at detecting Wraith tech on a planet."
"Even when there's a big distracting crashed Wraith Cruiser on the surface?" Seeal challenged.
"That would alter the readings," Heka agreed with Seeal's argument. "And the research team have only been there a few weeks."
"It's the only lead we have right now," Seeal pointed out.
"It's worth checking it out," Oneakka agreed, looking to Halling.
"The only problem is how far out the Arkinian system is," Maja said. "There's no Portal in that system and, as it is uninhabited, we have no ships there. The closest would be the Fleet which are engaging the Cruisers, but we cannot risk pulling a ship from there just to scan some caverns."
"Any chance the Sythus is space-worthy yet?" Oneakka asked hopefully.
Halling shook his head. "It's weeks away from being ready," Halling gave the depressing answer.
"You could use a couple of Portal-able fighters to go through to the most local Portal," Maja suggested, "but their engines are not the most powerful over large distances. It is likely to take a long time to get into the Arkinian system and then they are very vulnerable ships to be stuck in if you come under attack. The raiding Cruisers out from the former Nest System could strike there."
There was one possible ship to use though.
Oneakka looked to Halling. "Unless we use a ship that is free, has good defences, and can get there a lot faster from the closest Portal."
Halling raised one eyebrow.
"Is Inifee still on the Sythus during the repairs?" Oneakka checked.
Maja tapped away on another screen. "He is still registered as on the Sythus."
"We've got the Sythus' transport craft on standby if they are attacked locally by the Hive; Inifee is Lead Pilot on Transport One detail," Halling supplied.
"Get him here now," Oneakka instructed and Maja immediately headed away to the closest links console.
Halling moved up to Oneakka and they turned away from everyone else. "We can't take that ship," Halling said quietly.
"Why not?" Oneakka asked. "This is an emergency, and what better ship to have than one that can turn invisible?"
"Invisible?" Seeal suddenly appeared at Oneakka's left elbow, having overheard. "You have a ship with a cloaking shield?"
Halling glanced at Seeal with no small amount of irritation, and, surprisingly, she stepped back out of view. "They're the most valuable craft we have in the entire Alliance," Halling continued more quietly.
"So we let the one here just sit barely used when it is exactly what we need? It's the best way to get into the Arkinian system and back without the chance of being detected and, if attacked, the Ancestor ship is fully weaponized," Oneakka argued.
The three working Ancestor ships that the Elite had were a highly guarded secret. One was kept permanently here for emergency use only by the Facility, while the other two were kept hidden on the Mad Moon, ready for deployment but also being studied and, hopefully one day, replicated by the scientists there. Quite a few of Elite tech developments in recent years had come from studying the ships, which had been discovered in an abandoned Ancestor site that none outside of the Elite knew about.
Use of the Ancestor ships was highly restricted, but, an Alliance wide alert and potential Wraith invasion certainly qualified as an emergency in Oneakka's mind.
Halling sighed.
"Every other ship is busy protecting planets and stations," Oneakka continued. "Inifee is experienced at flying them and it's not like it's the only one. Besides, our one needs a run."
"It's not the goat needing a regular walk," Halling argued, but Oneakka could see his friend was convinced. "I suppose it is the best chance of us getting to Arkinian quickly and back considering the circumstances."
"Getting Inifee and me there; you're staying here," Oneakka corrected him.
"I'm not staying here, Oneakka," Halling argued.
"It's too dangerous," Oneakka pushed. He was not about to take Halling into a more dangerous situation; he'd spent the last weeks desperately trying to persuade Halling to get to this Facility to be safer.
"We are up against the Wraith, Oneakka," Halling said back with annoying logic. "They are a known enemy; this is not what Sitayi predicted. I am the only other able-bodied Elite available here."
Oneakka pursed his lips, annoyed that Halling was probably right. He'd prefer it if Halling just stayed here, but, truthfully, it didn't make sense to go by himself without more backup. At least he'd have Halling with him so could keep an eye on him. Because the unknown enemy could just as easily appear here while Oneakka was away, leaving Halling unguarded.
"Alright," he agreed and turned back round, only to find Seeal stood in his way.
"I should go with you," she stated forcefully, her hands on her hips.
They probably should take someone who actually knew what technical readings they were looking for, and she was, as she had said earlier, something of an expert on the Seed Ship and slug robot data. Plus, she was a capable fighter which made her far more useful than taking one of the other scientists. Plus, she could help him keep watch over Halling, just in case.
"Fine," he agreed, glancing to where Maja was still talking at a links console. How quickly would it take for Inifee to get here and get the Ancestor ship ready to depart?
"But, I know more about what you're looking for than you two," Seeal argued unnecessarily.
"I already said yes," Oneakka pointed out.
"Oh," Seeal closed her mouth. No doubt the silence wouldn't last long.
Maja was approaching from the right. "Inifee is on his way through the Portal now."
"Good, inform Aedii where we're going," he told Maja and she nodded. "Let's gear up," he stated to Halling and Seeal as he turned and led the way swiftly down the Incident Room for the exit out.
Finally he had somewhere to go.
No more waiting around and being useless.
000000
TBC