Chapter 3: Thin Air

"It's beautiful," Ryder lifted a hand to catch one of the sparks like a snowflake and marveled at its pulsing glow.

Akksul stepped closer and bent to examine it also, eyes reflecting its light as if it was mesmerizing him; or he it, judging by the determined way his eyes studied it. Ryder caught herself studying him more than the spark, intrigued by how different he looked when he wasn't glaring hate or derision; he was admiring and analyzing, much in the same way that she did when discovering something. Abruptly he seemed to realize the fact and he straightened, forcing a sneer onto his face as he leveled a disdainful stare at her. It was forced, though.

"Aren't you going to go on about how dangerous it could be?" he asked with a hint of mockery in his voice. She was sure that was an honest reflection of his attitude, reckless as he was.

Ryder didn't respond, however; she realized the spark in her palm was pulsing more energetically now and as she examined it more closely, she noticed that it was slowly growing in front of her eyes, building into what she assumed was a very small bot. Hastily she brushed it off, backing away uneasily and making sure none were still on her or in her hair. Akksul gave her a puzzled frown, but he also studied the sparks dancing in the air, looking for an indication of what had alarmed her.

As if in reaction, the sparks began to swirl intensely as if kicked up by a wind, sticking to the sides of the chamber and thereby cutting them off from the exit. She exchanged a concerned look with Akksul and this time neither one minded the fact; clearly whatever this was, it was reacting to their presence and considering the snake bots, it was likely these would be just as dangerous. Faster than she believed was possible abruptly a hum and striated ripples of energy seemed to join a group of the lights together into a net that dropped around her before she could even think to move out of the way.

"What…" she began, looking at Akksul again. Her shields buckled without warning and icy fingers seemed to grip her mind as if to rip it out, blurring her vision and blanking her thoughts – the world began to fade as the vibrating hum intensified.

"Skkut!" she heard Akksul's voice, felt a hand suddenly grip her arm and she was falling heavily into someone's arms, drifting on an icy tide of darkness that was parting beneath her to swallow her soul.

Pathfinder, SAM's voice was so faint and overlaid with static that even in a semiconscious state she despaired, but for once the pain was warming, it felt real.

Just before consciousness slipped away entirely, Ryder opened her eyes one last time and glimpsed lightning coruscating from Akksul's fingers, disrupting the field, while he dragged her back as best he could with his other arm around her waist. Her head rolled to the side and the last thing she saw was the pain and anger on his face.

Ryder's eyes opened and slowly, uncomprehendingly focused on a myriad of glowing veins climbing up the walls into darkness. Memories and voices that had filled her mind with their din faded into the background, leaving only a lingering sense of nostalgia that grew more intangible with each flicker of awareness that lit up in her mind. Struggling to sit up, she was surprised and pleased to discover that the agony was completely gone; her body felt weak and cold, but far more comfortable than she had felt in what seemed like an eternity. Her eyes focused on her surroundings and after a moment's study, she realized she was back at the gravity well.

"Akksul?" she called out, looking around. After receiving no response, she stood and walked around the containers, reorienting herself as she did; she finally found him leaning against one of the smaller crates, facing the way that headed deeper into the building. Clearly he was guarding their makeshift 'camp' at the foot of the well, which was a painful reminder of their encounters with the bots down here so far; more concerning, however, was that Akksul's breath was labored and when he scrambled to his feet at her approach, he moved gingerly.

"I wasn't sure you would live," he said, then seemed to realize his tone was a mix of concern and relief and he grimaced, glaring at her. "Instead you live another day to burden me," he added, turning away from her firmly.

Ryder's lips thinned. "If that's how you feel, why didn't you just leave me to die?"

"Because I'm not a monster," Akksul said, his tone bordering on condescension. His eyes, however, studied her in a way that they hadn't before, as though seeing her clearly for the first time.

"So now you feel compassion for me," Ryder said skeptically, crossing her arms. Absently she wondered where SAM was; if he had reestablished their connection, as she suspected based on her physical condition, he should have said something by now.

"You're just another alien to me, human," he replied with a sneer, averting his eyes.

"An alien that saved your life," she pointed out.

Akksul snorted. "Only because it serves your cause somehow."

"Yes, my evil plan was to trap you down here so I could get you almost killed only to heroically save you to win you over," Ryder rolled her eyes. "I would maybe give it an ounce of merit if your role with the Roekaar still mattered," she added bitingly.

Predictably, her words angered him. "I still matter," he growled. "You wouldn't even be alive if I didn't! But I probably should have let you die anyway."

"Then you would also die," she frowned, surprised at how taken aback she felt.

It wasn't as if Akksul's feelings about her living or dying really mattered; but Ryder couldn't help but suddenly remember flashes of how he had leapt to save her without thinking. She had been delirious, maybe she had imagined the whole thing; but then, he definitely had laid her down behind the crates as far from the entrance as possible while he guarded it. The contradiction of his actions and his words frustrated her more than she would have cared to admit. It was silly, really; she knew what he was like, it should have come as no surprise that he had no regard for her as a living being and being angry over it wouldn't change it, he had definite reasons for wanting to keep her alive that had nothing to do with concern for her well-being and that was that.

"Maybe that's not too high a price to pay," Akksul shot back and for a split second Ryder saw again in his eyes the same determination, the same willingness to die she had seen at the Forge; some part of him was still convinced that martyring himself was a good choice, perhaps even the only way to redeem what he had done. The idea filled her with a sudden panic; especially considering that if he had a death wish, there was only so much she could do to stop him, particularly while they were down here.

"What about the Moshae?" she asked. Surely the threat on her life would keep him alive, at least long enough to make sure she was safe. Why do I even care? she wondered suddenly. Any harm that befell him would surely make the Roekaar stronger, even if he no longer lead them she was sure Zivrel would capitalize on it, but she was beginning to realize that a part of what made her anxious about the prospect was that she was becoming used to him; maybe SAM's absence affected her much more deeply than she realized. And where is SAM…

Akksul was silent for a moment. "I won't let anything happen to her," he said firmly, then took a breath and with obvious reluctance he met her eyes again. "Do you have anything useful to suggest?"

Ryder tried hard not to smile in relief; she didn't want to ruin her chances now that he finally seemed willing to listen to reason. "I think we should explore," she said a little cautiously, "but first we should go over what we know."

"You know nothing. You've barely just arrived in Andromeda, I studied Remnant ruins for years and not even I recognize those bots or the architecture – I said useful, not examples of your ignorance."

"There must be some correlation," Ryder frowned, carefully controlling her tone of voice. She would not let him provoke her this time. "These are Remnant ruins after all, I can't believe that they just suddenly decided to change how they do things."

Akksul gave her a flat stare. "You don't know what you're talking about. There are many variations of Remnant structures."

"That may be so, but does it seem logical to you that we haven't seen a single similarity to ruins we've seen elsewhere? Where are the Observers or Assemblers, or any of the bots that turn up at practically every site?"

"The basic construct is still the same, pillars and ferrofluid conduits, even if the architectural design is different," he said.

"That only indicates that the same base technology was used… what if these aren't Remnant ruins at all?" Ryder mused.

Akksul scoffed. "Is that what passes for theorizing among your people? Wild guesses?"

"Give me a better explanation," Ryder demanded, gritting her teeth. She was growing truly tired of his constant need to make supercilious remarks.

"This cannot be anything but a Remnant site," he replied flatly. "The technology is the same, even if the bots do not match."

"But these bots are a clear indication that, at the very least, this place was constructed by a different group of their kind."

"Because you haven't discovered these particular bots before?" he frowned, clearly dismissing her suggestion. "All that indicates is that you don't know enough."

"Because of what we learned about the Jardaan," Ryder corrected, then hesitated. She wasn't even sure if Akksul knew anything about the Jardaan; she had shared all the information they had gathered at Khi Tasira with the Resistance and the Moshae, but beyond that she wasn't sure whether the rest of the angara were aware of the facts, although she was fairly sure the Moshae wouldn't have kept that information from her colleagues at least.

"Ah, yes, your discovery," Akksul said sardonically.

"You don't believe me?" she asked incredulously. "Akksul, your own people have confirmed my findings there!"

"You mean the Resistance has confirmed your findings," he retorted.

"The Resistance and your scientists."

"And I should just trust that?" he asked, as if wondering how she could expect such a thing from him.

"What reason do you have not to trust that?"

"I have a long list," he frowned. "You left the galaxy where you belong to who knows what fate and you come here and expect everyone to be your friend because you were willing to take one of us with you? That's not a basis for trusting your every word, for all I know you could have left your galaxy in smoldering ruins."

"I suppose you're going to say that you know better," Ryder said irritably.

"I never pretended to like or trust your people," Akksul said. "And why should I even try to?"

"Because I've proven you wrong," she snapped. "All you've done is turn your own people against each other while everything I've done has served both our people's interests. You don't get to take the moral high ground after that!"

"So you're saying that blindly trusting you in my best interest? Don't make me laugh," he sneered.

"I could have let you die down here, but I didn't," she pointed out.

"Why didn't you?" he demanded hotly. "Isn't that what you really want, to finally take revenge for what I did to Jaal and kill me?"

"No," Ryder replied, a little startled at the suggestion. "I don't doubt or regret my choices, not then and not now. Why would you even think that?"

"I expected no better from you," he replied dismissively. "You betray your arrogance with every word."

"Are you angry because I saved you or because you saved me?" she asked, suddenly grasping something about his demeanor that had escaped her until now. He was far angrier whenever the subject of saving each other's lives came up than was called for. The sudden expression of shock at the unexpected question was confirmation enough, though he immediately masked it with an approximation of contempt.

"Why would I be angry about that? Even if you are useless now, I may need that AI of yours," he said, but Ryder wasn't convinced.

"You may need it?" she asked. "Have you suddenly developed an ability to use RemTech, then?"

"This place hardly qualifies as a regular Remnant site, there is nothing to say it works the same way," he said sourly, but his tone was far less abrasive than before. His eyes appraised her then, clearly making note of how she held herself differently. "Something changed," he said finally. "You are no longer in pain?"

"No," she replied cautiously, sure he would somehow turn the observation into yet another accusation. Not wanting to give him the chance, she looked him up and down in turn. "But you clearly are… did that field or whatever it was hurt you?"

Akksul grimaced. "It was as though it started draining my life force, I think that is what was happening to you as well. You paled and your heart slowed so much I was sure you were going to die. My electromagnetic ability seemed to disrupt it somehow though, so I was able to get you out."

Ryder blushed, flustered at the sudden mental image she had of him pressing an ear to her chest to listen to hear heartbeat; though she knew that there were more ways than one to check for a pulse, that was the one that came to mind, despite not even knowing if Akksul even knew where the human heart was in the first place. Idiot, she chided herself, wondering what possessed her to even think of such a thing. Clearly the insufferable man was causing her brain fever, that or SAM's absence did; or maybe it was both. SAM's silence was increasingly making her uneasy.

She cleared her throat. "Why do you think it targeted me and not you?"

"Maybe it doesn't like aliens," Akksul said, completely seriously.

Ryder exhaled sharply, exasperated. "Then why did the giant snake thing go after you and not me?"

"The small ones reacted far more hostile to you," Akksul pointed out.

"The big one went for you," Ryder repeated flatly.

"There is something they must be attracted to in us," Akksul mused, then gave her a wary look. "What do we have in common?" he asked.

Ryder blinked. "Well, we are both mammals," she said.

Akksul shook his head. "Those stars went for you and ignored me until I interfered."

"Technology!" Ryder gasped, eyes widening as puzzle pieces seemed to snap together in her mind in a rush. "Wait," a sudden apprehension gripped her as yet another clue fell into place. "SAM?" she asked. "SAM, are you there?"

Silence.

"I thought you couldn't communicate with your AI," Akksul frowned.

"This can't be happening," she said, horrified, feeling ready to jump out of her skin and she pressed fingertips to her temples as if by some miracle she could reassure herself that the implant was still whole… or even there in the first place. There was no way for her to tell that, however. "I think I lost SAM," she exclaimed, beginning to pace up and down. "I can't lose SAM, I would die without the connection! Not to mention that we are trapped here forever if…"

"Perhaps it is temporary," Akksul said.

"But it makes sense! Think about it: most of the damage we've received have been either to keep us out or to disable our technology. The first thing that went was our shields and then… maybe it was SAM's presence, maybe that's why it targeted me?"

Akksul frowned, studying her silently for a long moment. "If the Moshae dies because of you, human…"

"I gave her the best protection I could," Ryder said angrily. "I know you don't trust that, but…" she cut off, eyes fixed on the wall behind him. "Akksul, look… those weren't blue before, were they?" she nodded her head at the pillars.

He turned. "No," he replied, looking suddenly troubled. He approached the pillars and examined them, running fingers over their surface.

Ryder took a few steps backwards to take in the whole chamber, turning around as her eyes travelled across as much of the pillars as she could see. Not all of it was blue, but even as she watched the green glow paled and turned into an icy blue. It was like watching the spread of an infection, or some kind of rewriting process; she was sure it wasn't immediately dangerous to them, otherwise they surely would have realized it by now, but something was definitely changing and she was very much afraid that they were the cause.

"We need to find out what's happening," she said. "Damn it, we need SAM…"

"So we fix your AI," Akksul said, for all the world as if it were the most obvious thing.

"You don't understand," Ryder said. "I have an implant that enables me to communicate with him, but he is also linked to me physically… I feel fine, I shouldn't feel fine if there's even a chance… if that thing can disable technology, maybe it damaged it…"

"Our shields and weapons still work," Akksul said.

"What if it's because they're a simpler technology? An AI is far from simple in that sense, neither is the method we use to communicate… I need to figure this out, maybe we can reverse the process! If we capture some of those sparks and study them…" she resisted the urge to keep calling for SAM. She was sure that SAM wouldn't hold out on her, if he wasn't speaking it meant that either he was incapable of communicating yet, or that their link had somehow been completely severed. But how am I alive if that is the case? Why do I feel fine?

"Prioritize, woman, we need to get out of here, nothing matters more than that!" Akksul said irritably.

"And I can't do that without SAM, haven't you been listening?" she demanded.

"You stopped that snake," Akksul said, narrowing his eyes. "You didn't have your AI then."

Ryder hesitated, trembling from the stomach-churning mix of anger and anxiety. "I have a residual talent for using RemTech after using so much with SAM's aid," she admitted. "But with SAM completely gone…"

"If you use it again and it works, perhaps that may indicate whether your SAM is still part of you," Akksul said patiently.

Ryder stared at him. "You're right," she said. "Let's go! Did you see any consoles down here? Any at all?" A voice in the back of her head said that she was grasping at straws, that even if SAM were completely gone she may be able to use the technology anyway, but she shoved it aside firmly. For all she knew, it could be the trigger SAM needed and she was willing to try anything if it meant getting the connection back.

Akksul wordlessly gestured at the gravity well.

"Right, I'll try again," she said, approaching it, but as she reached forward she hesitated. There was more than a little risk in trying to use RemTech without SAM, but more than that, she was very much afraid that nothing would happen.

"Well?" Akksul said impatiently.

Ryder held her hand out firmly and concentrated, focusing on that same feeling, as she had before, straining to feel the well and bring it alive. Her fingers began to tremble and her heartbeat sounded loud in her ears, but she persisted, grasping for that feeling of connection when everything just clicked. After long seconds slipped by, she strained even more, feeling as though she was just at the cusp of breaking through, but she just kept sliding back. Her head was beginning to ache from the effort and just then she felt something stir in her fingers, a whisper…

Gasping, Ryder staggered back and let her hand drop. "I can't," she said, vision blurring from unshed tears. She felt wetness on her lip and when she wiped it with shaking fingers they came away red with blood. Her brain seemed to pulse with a washing pain, but worse was the despair closing in around her. I can't lose SAM…

"That means we do things my way, then," Akksul said firmly. "We're going deeper in."

Ryder shook her head, trying to clear her mind and collect herself. She closed her eyes and took deep, regular breaths. "Akksul, you are hurt."

"Not hurt badly enough to stop trying," he said grimly.

She met his eyes and she realized that he was offering her something to focus on to distract her from the gravity of their situation. He knew as well as she did that it was increasingly likely they would die down here, but there was still a sliver of a chance that they might find a different way. Considering him and his opinions on humans, her in particular, she doubted it was an intentional offer of comfort, but she felt grateful anyway; Akksul the Roekaar may be her mortal enemy, but Ryder decided that she was just fine with Akksul the determined scientist.

"We do it your way," she sighed.

Akksul smiled in triumph and hoisted his weapon. "Keep up, Pathfinder."