SPECIAL NOTE: It seems a few people were confused over the weekend with this fic: I edited previous chapters to clarify things and rid of mistakes. I also deleted a chapter, which was really an author's note, hence the reason why there are now 14 chapters when it previously said 15.
I also updated with a new chapter, Rage. And the day before that, there was the new chapter, Underneath the Veil. Sorry for the confusion. I didn't realize until after the fact that you can simply reload chapters. My mistake was to delete all of the old ones and replace them, hence the numerous chapter alerts sent out. Again, my apologies for any confusion. I know I said I would post chapters daily, but because of this confusion, and the disappointing lack of reviews, I'm going to postpone, sorry.
A/N: The latter half of this chapter has sections in italics. These sections will be the voice of Risha as she narrates the history of her people. Also note that all previous chapters have been reloaded and revised. :)
CHAPTER 14: Bittersweet Parting
The third Jumper was at an odd slant with a third of it concealed by water. A few of the natives were giggling as they pointed at it. Major Lorne grimaced. Should have known better than to park on a beach on a planet with three satellite moons: the tide was bound to be a bit trickier and unpredictable. In his haste, he hadn't thought of the consequences of parking on such unstable ground.
He was pretty sure Dr. Weir wouldn't appreciate another Jumper lost on a mission.
The other two Jumpers and their crews had been recalled to their position to pick them up and take them home. They sat side by side, each with the back hatches open wide.
"Sir." A marine standing beside him held up the LSD in his hands to show the major what was on screen. Lorne exchanged a look with the marine before turning to the others.
Sheppard lay barely conscious on a stretcher upon the white sand, oxygen being pumped into him via an ampu-bag operated by another marine. Ronon sat beside him, beyond exhausted. Teyla and Rodney stood by, exhaustion revealing its toll across their features. A small gathering of natives hovered at the edge of the sand, their faces hidden in the shadow of the jungle just beyond them. Beckett stood to face Lorne.
"The sooner we leave, the better."
"Right, doc. There's something you should know." Major Lorne replied, lowering his voice as he stepped over to the doctor. What he had to say, he did not want to be overheard by the natives. And quite frankly, from the haggard expressions of Sheppard's team, he didn't want them to know at the moment either.
"I don't know quite how to say this, doc, but…there's only thirty-two life signs on the LSD."
Beckett didn't respond; his gaze at the major remained unchanged. Lorne tilted his chin and peered at the doctor, wondering if he had even heard what he had said.
"Doc?"
Beckett blinked several times, clearing his throat and glanced back at the team just beyond them for a long moment. As he turned back towards Lorne, his gaze passed over the group of natives watching them in silence.
"Thirty-two?" Beckett nodded for a long while, processing the information. He was sick to his stomach but his face showed nothing of his distress. He locked eyes with Lorne. "Can we fit them all in the Jumpers?"
Lorne scanned the groups huddled upon the beach and took a deep breath. The heat was unbearable and there was a thin layer of haze in the air. A red tinge began to paint the scene as the sun drooped lower in the sky.
"I don't think so, doc." His face was grim.
Beckett nodded once.
"They will not go." A soothing female voice called from amid the natives. They parted, quite comically, stumbling over each other to give the disfigured female room to emerge to the forefront. Her long wavy golden hair hung around her face, her eyes sparkling like the ocean itself.
"Risha." Rodney supplied, in a small voice, his eyes never straying from the colonel lying at his feet.
"You can't stay here, love." Beckett shook his head, moving to stand before the woman. He nearly stumbled backward as her gaze seemed to pierce his soul.
"Death is no stranger. We do not fear it." Risha acknowledged. She looked to Sheppard, then, her visage dimming. "Time you have not. You must go."
"She's right, doc. I think the colonel is getting worse." The marine who had been assisting Sheppard's breathing called out. Beckett rushed over to find Sheppard's face reddened, his eyes pinched tight in pain.
"Colonel? Can you hear me? Tell me what hurts." Beckett demanded. Sheppard remained unresponsive to his calls and his limbs began to wriggle around in discomfort.
"Carson?" Teyla prompted. She knelt on the other side of the colonel.
Beckett proceeded to listen to Sheppard's heart through his stethoscope. In the tense atmosphere, all eyes were upon the doctor and his patient.
"Ach, don't do this to me now, Sheppard!" Beckett exclaimed finally. "I think he's having an M.I. We have to leave. Now!"
In the blur of a minute, they had Sheppard loaded onto one of the two remaining Jumpers. Following close behind were Teyla and Rodney, supporting Ronon between them.
"Myocardial Infarction…heart attack." Rodney supplied in a dismal voice when Teyla and Ronon looked to him in need of clarification. He paused momentarily, looking back at Risha before sorrow shrouded his eyes and he turned back to his teammates.
"Wait, we can't just leave them behind." A marine bellowed as Lorne turned to enter into one of the Jumpers. The entourage of marines paused, glancing back at the natives staring in their direction. From the blank expressions, it appeared none of the natives were coherent enough to realize their fate was at hand.
"It's their choice, not ours." Lorne barked back. In truth, he couldn't stomach the decision to leave the natives behind. There were so few of them, surely they could be rescued: if they could wait until they returned, maybe…. But he knew they wouldn't leave. The look in Risha's eyes had been enough to sell him on the decision.
The Lanteans looked upon the natives one last time as the back hatches of both Jumpers simultaneously began to raise. Fifteen faces stared back, eyes blinking owlishly. For the most part, they did not realize their dismal fate. The remaining natives had lost much of their sanity long ago.
Risha stood amongst them, head bowed in sorrow. The remaining Heracs would not die naturally, she knew. It was only a matter of time before they turned on each other, through no fault but that of the poison that had stolen their lives so long ago. Soon, she would join her brother.
The Jumpers maneuvered slowly at first, flying side by side while gaining altitude before taking a wide trajectory upwards to circle the continent before heading to outer space.
The sight out of the cockpit was beyond words. Something more sinister than fire had painted the landscape black. Heavy smoke lingered but much of the land was already revealed. The scars of the tragedy tolled upon the land were devastatingly extensive.
The copilot of one of the Jumpers dialed in Atlantis' address and established a connection. Moments later, the IDC was sent. It was time to go home.
-------o-------
It began with a seed. The seed flourished, sprouting many new stems and leaves. Upon the stems, flowers budded and blossomed. New seeds developed. Eventually those seeds took flight. They scattered. More seeds nestled into fertile ground. More stems and leaves grew. This happened again and again. It became a continuous cycle that would cease only should the universe itself die.
--o—
Whirling flames spiraled up into the night sky, screaming to the heavens above. Winds raged and howled. Screams accompanied the cacophony.
Not a tree was left unscathed. Not a stone left without a coat of ash. Life on the continent was quickly fading.
The madness of flame quieted upon the first hues of light appearing at the horizon upon the sea.
Only one life remained.
--o--
This is how we came to be. We were born from such a seed. We knew of no other seeds. Only us. Isolated.
Then they found us. The Ancients, they called themselves. They were impressed by our strength and agility, our adaptation, our resourcefulness.
They had gifted this life to us. Planted the seed. In turn, we offered ourselves to their will. It was a right, an honor. The Ancients were the sun, the wind, the ground, and the sea. They were everything we wished to be.
--o—
The gentle waves rolled across the surface of the serene waters. The air was still save for a whisper of a breeze. The horizon was a soft band of color, nearly merging white into the far reaches of the ocean. Not a single wisp of cloud inhabited the sky. The waters calmly lapped onto a gray bank of sand. Only small crustaceans rolled with the water flowing onto shore. The silver rim of a large moon peered from above, accompanied halfway across the sky by a smaller sliver of a second moon. The third moon had already sank below the swallowing depths of the ocean.
Dawn was fast approaching.
The peace of this day soothed the single soul standing at the shore. Her tattered clothes, nearly the color of her papery white skin, gently flittered across her body in the lift of a breeze. Her crystal eyes mirrored that of the ocean she stared longingly into.
--o--
Our home was unique to them. Just as we were. The sand, the rock. These things became a new form. Something that encased the stars and darkness from the night. The Ancients taught us the skill. We created their source.
In turn, we were gifted many things. Most we could not use at first. The Ancients blessed these things. A simple touch. Only then could we use them.
Some of the source was created on land. The rest, in the night sky. We traveled to the night sky many times. But never further. We were afraid.
A dome was built. In this dome, Ancients and Heracs discussed many things. Twinkling stars often graced the dome. Maps. Places we had never known. The Ancients knew them all.
--o—
Inhaling deeply, allowing the salty air to fill her lungs, she stole a step forward into the cool water. The level of water rose as another wave rolled onto shore, then gently, almost tickling her skin in its haste, it retreated.
--o--
The Ancients and Heracs flourished. Time strengthened. Then, then something unexpected.
The Ancients no longer came.
We waited and waited.
And waited.
Death came in shrouds. Sometimes it was disease. Other times the sky. Still others, war.
The Ancients were responsible. In turn, we destroyed their gifts. Everything. We cleansed ourselves of their malice.
The sun, the sea, the wind, and the ground. They did not abandon us. So we did not abandon them.
--o—
She took another step, the water rising to her ankles and the coolness just as quickly retreated. Then another step, the water rising nearly to her knees. She pushed onward into the cooler depths of the water, her eyes casting only for a moment through the crystal clear surface to observe the colorful stones beneath her bare toes. She lifted her chin in resolution, her eyes skimming the surface as she drew deeper. The rolling currents pushed her body ever so gently, almost lulling her as she continued forward.
Peaceful.
--o--
Yet more betrayal awaited us.
Poison. Born of the trees and the ground and the berries. And later: the water. Discovery led to misuse. Our leaders grew greedy. Four we became, instead of one. Trials performed. The poison needed to be perfect. Death plagued us again. Murder. Suicide. None by mistake.
The Ancients never returned. A seed of another kind did. It did not flourish here. And neither could we. No longer.
It ended with death.
--o--
She calmly took her last breath.
The water claimed her then, rolling smoothly over her flowing golden hair.
And just as quickly, her existence was erased from the short memory of the sea.
-------o-------
A single Wraith Hive Ship arrived from hyperspace above the planet of Herac. Their findings were shocking: there were no life signs, not a single one. Frustrated and hungered, they left, taking the address of this planet off their database permanently. They had always known the people of Herac were poisoned, but the promise of fresh blood from the newly sent signal not long ago had been too tantalizing to pass up. They did not panic, however. The universe was a large and fruitful place.
Food was aplenty.
-------tbc-------