The Fall

by Wedjatqi

ALLIANCE FIC – 2 weeks after the events of 'Interlude 4' and Atlantis continues to search for Janus' secret lab; Teyla, still feeling slightly unwell, is aboard the Sythus on its way to hunt down the elusive Skerti out beyond the Alliance border. And in the Training Facility, Oneakka continues his recovery while struggling with new developments regarding Seeal.

37. Act 2 - Prowling Along the Line

Note: I believe there were some calls for a reunion…

00000

ACT 2 – TRUTH

Chapter 37 – Prowling Along the Line

"…Portal is now active," The Honos Commander's voice announced over the audio link.

It had taken considerably longer and apparently a lot of hard work to extract the Portal from the crushed end of BreakAway One. Large girders had had to be cut through and sections removed, then various other pieces of hull and debris pulled out. The cut through the bulkhead had had to be widened more than once to get enough space for the haulage equipment, but eventually the Portal had been extracted.

But then there had been the long predicted pause through which the teams down there had had to get the Portal upright and into the Power Hold, then the power tuned to start it. Two hours longer than predicted, the Portal was finally working and a wormhole had been established.

"Confirmed, Honos," Deployment Station replied. "Portal is confirmed open to us. Survivors can be received through now."

"Excellent," the Honos Commander's relief was obvious in his voice. "My ground Troops report that all sections of BreakAway One have been successfully searched and the survivor and deceased list is now finalised."

Oneakka dropped his eyes back to BreakAway One's long list. Over three thousand people to be moved through the Portal wasn't going to be quick. He wasn't even sure there would be enough room on Deployment Station's Healing Bay to receive them all to go through decontamination and full medical checks.

The list shifted and a 'complete' icon appeared at the top. Oneakka quickly scanned down through the names again, checking for the last time if Raven's name had appeared on this list…

Her name still wasn't there.

He tapped into the separate deceased list.

There were several more entries now, but her name wasn't there. There weren't any new unidentified females listed appeared either.

She hadn't been on BreakAway One then; that was now certain.

He shifted to the newly arrived list from BreakAway Two. All fifty-one of the injured found inside that former section of the station were now up on the Honos and being cared for by their Healing Bay. She wasn't on that list, but he checked again just to be certain. Her name still wasn't there, and neither was it on the separate deceased list from that BreakAway, though he noted that several more had appeared on the deceased list. The latest report from BreakAway Two had been that the lower few levels that had been crushed almost entirely had been searched as much as possible, but only a handful of former station staff's bodies had been found inside. There were now no unidentified bodies from BreakAway Two.

So, if she'd been in BreakAway Two, she was now in the tunnels.

Or her body was in the still inaccessible areas of the far worse state of BreakAway Three. Most of the internal fires there had been contained, but the resulting damage from the fires and the impact by the Wraith Cruiser on that part of the former station had been severe. There were entire sections that were completely inaccessible apparently, and there was currently an operation underway above the planet to collect up the bodies that had been thrown out into space from the initial impact of the Cruiser into Saoka's Station.

Which meant there was another list for those poor victims too.

He tapped into it to check for updates.

She fortunately still wasn't on that horrific list.

To his right, he saw Massa bustle back into the room, having left briefly to leave Aki with the early morning Infant Care staff. Massa's eyes swept over the central console's screens and then down to Oneakka. Oneakka shrugged as he shook his head: they still knew nothing.

Massa frowned as he carried on across the room to his usual place on Oneakka's left.

"…we have Military Medical Base 003 ready to receive Portal wormhole once our Healing Bay is full," the Deployment Station's Commander's comment slid into Oneakka's awareness.

"Understood, Deployment Station. We have some additional information up from BreakAway Two site. Engineers have removed the BreakAway's Beacon and will relocate it to the muster point to allow freer communications at that site. I have two wings running regular patrols over the muster point, and they report it is still free of any enemy and that the area looks clear, ready to receive Portal once its ready to be relocated."

"Understood, Honos. We have two battalions and Medic units ready to deploy through the Portal once it is relocated to muster point."

Massa dragged a free tall stool up to Oneakka's left, settling down back at his station. "Have you read Therfire's report from the defence of BreakAway One?" He asked in a low voice.

"Yes," Oneakka nodded, though he'd more skim-read the Elite's report sent up from the ground.

"It's been a while since we've seen any Warrior lineage males," Massa noted.

Oneakka nodded, glancing away from the screens to Massa. "But the Cruiser and most of them attacking were from the Star Born Lineage, so the few Warrior lineage males there were probably just mixed in. We knew there'd be Cruisers and leftovers of them out there beyond the border after their Queens were killed. Taken in by other Hives."

"Or there's still a Warrior Queen or two out there," Massa suggested worriedly as he tapped on several screens. "Maybe a young Queen that was hidden, now mature and producing batches?"

Oneakka angled his head, not all that interested in focusing on such things right now. "Maybe," he admitted though. "Though the Warrior Queens took their daughters into battle remember. One of the reasons why we were able to eliminate them so thoroughly."

"That and the way they practically threw themselves on blades," Massa muttered darkly.

It had been a good day when the last known Warrior Queen and her Hive had been destroyed. Fighting Wraith was never an easy experience, but the Warrior lineage had produced exceptionally aggressive and unusual Warriors and Drones. They'd been all too eager to get into hand-to-hand and had seemed to purposefully track down Elite to challenge them in a fight.

There'd even been evidence that some Warrior Queens had kept Elite heads as trophies. He winced at the disgusting memories of the peeling Human skulls set into one Warrior Queen's throne…

"You eaten anything?" Massa asked after a beat, which wasn't the best comment after the memory of that throne.

"I had some of the food they delivered," Oneakka replied honestly without looking round as he tapped the latest status into the Elite database. "You had any?"

"I stopped by the Canteen, saw Smee in there," Massa replied quietly. "He asked if I knew anything about Seeal."

Oneakka just nodded faintly, not wanting to hear about Smee. The source of another argument with Raven, the mistake he'd made in threatening the male with a glare across the Canteen. She'd been really angry at him about that, but it had helped put Smee in his place. Raven wasn't interested in the male that way anyway, so…

He realised he was thinking like she was definitely coming home, that she was okay.

He glanced down to his personal electronic pad, activating it awake.

There were no new text links…which meant nothing had come in from Pelydr.

He'd started worrying about that.

The rare few times in the past when he'd not been able to get to Pelydr for his usual yearly cycle holiday, they had always known in their Pelydrian seer way and sent him a text link, telling him an alternative time to stay instead. Or occasionally, when he'd been just delayed in starting the break, they'd always contacted him to assure him that they knew that he would arrive late to Pelydr.

He'd not had anything like that so far.

Which meant that they knew he was still going to be on Pelydr tomorrow for his two weeks holiday there.

He was really starting to worry about what that meant…

Because if she was alive and injured, then he'd delay his holiday a day or so at least to make sure she was okay before he left; but Pelydr hadn't contacted him about that, so it wasn't going to happen.

But if she was…dead…then he knew he'd go there to grieve…

He winced at the rush of emotion tightening up his throat, and clenched his fists tightly against the edge of the console.

He blinked away from his pad to the console screens.

He needed to focus on what he could do.

But with BreakAway One's multitude of survivors all processing through the Portal, there was only waiting to do still. Reports were now just small updates from each BreakAway site or from the wings of Fighters patrolling the planet to find any remaining Wraith.

There was little for him to do now, just record events into the permanent Elite database as they happened.

So, he reached up and opened up Therfire's report again; he could read that more thoroughly then while they waited for the next update from the planet.

As the report pulled up, he glanced back to the list of recovered floating dead from above the planet. Several new entries had appeared…all named and identified…and none of them Raven.

He glanced back to his pad, but there was nothing new in.

Still nothing from Pelydr.

0000

The queue in front of the trolley shuffled to another stop and Seeal reduced the pressure on the trolley's handle, its wheels squeaking slightly as it rolled to a stop.

Her shoulders and upper back were tight painful lumps and rolling her neck, massaging her shoulders, or stretching were barely making any difference anymore. Considering how many endless hours had passed, it wasn't surprising.

But she was doing better than a lot of other people.

Previously, people had filled the width of the tunnel entirely, packed in, but now almost everyone was keeping close to the walls, one hand against the rock wall for support as they shuffled along. Everyone was exhausted, legs tired and probably hurting. A few had nearly collapsed as well, but the stronger arms of the six Station Security taking up the rear of the line had been helping those walk. Seeal had glanced back a few times, noticing that the Security six were taking turns watching the tunnel behind them for any more Wraith, while four of them helped people walk.

Though someone had succumbed from further up in the line. Seeal had tried not to look too closely at the slumped body as she'd pushed the trolley past it some time ago. Someone had draped a station-branded coat over the male's head and shoulders, providing some privacy in the male's death. There had been a lot of dried blood on his shirt, so she guessed he'd been injured during the crash and the exhaustion, perhaps in combination with the crappy air, had finished his long walk far too early.

That hadn't exactly helped morale in the long line, but one thing had at least improved. The tunnel had begun to slope downwards at a nice gentle angle for the trolley, and the roof was no longer pocketed with holes to the sky above. Now they were definitely deeper underground, a familiar cooler stillness of depth obvious in the tunnel; though it reminded her all too much of Lalwani, the underground hidey-hole that Creass had run too after they'd been forced to leave Dream. She'd hated that place, the coolness of its dense stone walls all too similar to the cold of the Glisi world. But at least this tunnel had a far drier, warmer edge and someone had wisely felt it was now safe to put some wall lights back on.

Though without the roof holes, the reduced airflow was all too obvious. It was partly helped by the occasional dark empty entrance to other tunnels that they'd started passing, but the smell of the air was far too dank for her liking. Some of that was from the multitude of stressed, exhausted unwashed Humanity in the line, but the rest of the smell had a faint metallic edge that had started around the same time that the walls had started seemingly to glitter with what looked like a coating of ancient salts. The glittering was also obvious in the occasional stalactite poking down from the now higher tunnel ceiling, but they looked as old and dried up as everything else on this horrible planet.

The tunnel was wider at least too now, allowing everyone a bit more space, even with everyone leaning on the walls. Whenever the line ground to a halt, people were going a step further and repeatedly sitting down to rest, even if it was for a minute or two. Right now, the line had stopped again and didn't look like it was going to start moving any time soon, so people were sinking to the tunnel floor, hunched over and coughing.

She lifted her aching hands from the trolley handle and ran them up over her face. Her skin felt coated with grit, probably from the earlier fight with the roof caving in she guessed. She reached for her bottle of water, newly refilled from a recent well point. She lifted the bottom of her shirt, but then frowned down at its equally dusty and gritty feel, so she reached up to her blue scarf, tugging one end free. She wetted the end of it with as little water as possible and wiped it over her face. The wet coolness felt stupidly wonderful against her face and she wetted another bit of the scarf and scrubbed a little at her cheeks, getting the dried grit and old sweat off her. The difference was surprising, like her skin could breathe and move better. She'd not realised she'd been wearing a mask of dust all this time…well since…she had no idea how long it had been since the Wraith had attacked. She didn't care anymore. Forward was the only important thing.

Her face clean enough, she drank down a couple of good gulps of the water. The well water was clearly treated in some way, as it had the edge of a chemical taste that she remembered from those decontam tablets they'd smuggled into Dream from the Alliance. But, right now, the water tasted amazing.

Next to her, Nanuet shifted away, moving wearily around the side of the trolley to check on Saoka again. The trolley had acquired an outer ring of people using its sides for support as they walked, which included the elderly couple and Seeal watched the headwound Engineer helping the elderly male turn and lean his weight against the right side of the trolley. The elderly male hadn't seemed too badly affected by the Wraith stunning, but he was breathing heavily and breathlessly. Any suspicion she'd used to have that being stunned by a Wraith stunner was like a nap, had been quickly dispelled when she'd seen how drained the stunned people had been since. Particularly Nanuet.

As she put her water bottle back on its little shelf, she glanced towards Nanuet. It had taken him a while to wake up from the Wraith stunner fire, probably having been shot more than once, but that period of unconsciousness certainly hadn't given him any respite. His face was also caked in a layer of dust, making his normally dark skin look unhealthily grey in the dull wall lights. The exhaustion was still obvious on the big male's face though under that mask, as well as his fear and worry about Saoka.

She leaned forward a bit to look at Saoka's profile a little better. Nanuet was offering Saoka the cap of his water bottle, pouring the little amount of water past Saoka's dry lips. Lips that were looking worrying cracked and pale. Saoka wasn't even able to hold up his head all that well now, so Nanuet was cupping the back of his head for support as he fed Saoka tiny capfuls of water.

And despite the dry lips, Seeal could see beads of sweat on Saoka's forehead and cheeks. He had a temperature, which wasn't good. It wasn't anywhere close to that warm in the tunnel, and he wasn't able to take in that much water from the small bottle cap.

He lay worryingly still on the stretcher too, no longer shifting his shoulder or arms to move as much as he could; he was just lying still and quiet.

She glanced up from Saoka's drawn clammy face to see Nanuet's eyes lifting to meet hers and then drop back to Saoka.

She didn't say anything, because Nanuet didn't need to be told what he could already see.

Far ahead in the tunnel, she became aware of some whispering, the sound usually heralding some gossip working its way down here to the back of the line. Maybe someone else had collapsed. Whatever the gossip was about, it was resulting in all those still standing deciding to either lean fully against the tunnel wall or sit down on the floor; which meant the news included the promise of a longer pause.

Sitting sounded a real good idea, but she held off. Instead, she folded her forearms on the trolley handle and leaned her weight onto them.

The whispering had reached just ahead of the trolley and a youngish male still on his feet turned round. "They're saying another line of survivors have joined in ahead from another tunnel," he reported eagerly. "Survivors from the section of the station that was hit!"

"That's really good news," the elderly female uttered from where she was leaning against the side of Saoka's trolley. "More people made it down here."

"Explains the long pauses too," the Engineer uttered. "Have they said how many there are?" He asked the young male.

"A lot," the male replied with a smile.

Seeal envied the emotional energy the young male seemed to have right now, though she didn't envy the injury that had his arm in a sling, his other arm constantly cradling the injured limb.

She dropped her attention to her ankle. It's aching pain had become such a constant in her life these unknown numbers of hours that she barely registered it anymore. She lifted her foot and rotated the ankle, the tight swelling feeling within her boot still obvious, as was the grumbling pain. She set her foot back down and shifted her weight onto it again. It still felt stable under her; just a sprain.

"Does that mean we're closer to the Portal point?" The elder female asked and Seeal looked up to see the female was directing her question towards Nanuet.

"Probably," Nanuet replied with no clarity. "But," he added, glancing up at the closest stalactite, "I think we still have at least a handful of hours left to go."

Seeal let out a heavy sigh at that news, hanging her head forward.

"We should…perhaps…take a break," Saoka stated with a tight wavering voice.

"With more survivors joining the line it may be quite a wait for us back here," the Engineer nodded.

That was more than enough for Seeal to agree and she lowered herself down to the cool tunnel floor, anyone still standing now doing the same around her.

The ground felt wonderfully stable and secure under her, and a surprising emotional flush hit as she sat down, her legs folded up to one side. Her shoulders really hurt and so she hung her head down, trying to let the muscles loosen a bit.

Around her, the whispering gossip was being passed back to the six Security behind her, the very back of the line, and she heard the six discuss keeping two on lookout while four rested.

Resting…wonderful, glorious resting.

There were groans and sighs, along with the usual coughs, around her as she shut her eyes and wrestled against her rushing emotions.

She just wanted to be home now. Wanted to sleep.

She felt so tired, so exhausted inside and out, and they weren't even close to the muster point apparently. More walking, more pushing…

A deep out-breath to her right made her open her eyes and glance round. A male was curled up on the tunnel floor, his back to the wall and was already asleep, his breathing sounding loud with the thin air.

Nanuet's voice drifted down from beside the trolley, talking quietly with Saoka.

"…don't talk like that Saoka," Nanuet insisted in a whisper. "We're almost definitely in the last section of the tunnels, we've passed several junctions and we're deeper."

She tried not to listen in, but they were too close.

"…you have to stay strong. It is only a matter of hours. Have some more water," Nanuet said almost sternly to his friend and boss. "I've got some dried kita fruit, chew on a little piece of this."

Seeal reached up to her neck and massaged the tight painful muscles, feeling more caked on dusty soil on her skin. Even the areas of her that weren't tight and painful were instead feeling rubbery and exhausted. Even her eyes felt tired and dry, so she closed her eyes again and hung her head forward, willing her body to just stay strong.

She was strong.

What had Oneakka told her when he'd insisted she go confront those fish in the Spa Gym? His little rallying bolstering talk when he'd gotten her to confront her fear. What had he told her? That she was strong. That she'd faced criminal scum, Slug Robots, Glisi giants...

That the mind was the greatest weapon.

Her pit trainer had taught her the same. The mind was where true power and skill came from.

Her trainer had made her repeat over and over again that the mind was stronger than the body, that when the body was weak, the mind could be strong. That even in the deepest sleep, the mind wandered free through dreams.

She'd been through far worse than just a long walk on an alien planet. She could do this.

That's what Oneakka would say right now. He'd tell her to hold herself strong. That she was a Warrior.

The feeling of homesickness rushed up through her renewing fortitude, stealing some of it.

She just really wished she'd handled that fight better back in the Facility.

She really wished he was here right now. Despite the long hours and hard work, he'd be strong. Even when he'd been dying from being impaled he'd somehow dragged himself down that corridor on the Rogue Hive.

All she had to do here was keep walking, keep pushing Saoka's trolley. That was simple.

She could do that.

She opened her eyes and reached for the strap of her bag, looping the string up over her head and dug inside for her last remaining rations outside water; the small box of minty sweets. She took one out and sucked on the sharply intense sweet as she put the little box in her trouser pocket. There was only the water bottle in the bag now, so what was the point in carrying the thing now? She shifted on the tunnel floor, reaching around the trolley and stuffed the empty bag into a compartment and then wedged her spare water bottle into a free space there. That took a little weight off her protesting shoulders at least.

That done, she shifted her backside until she could rest her back against the trolley, it's cool metal helping ease her tired muscles as she closed her eyes.

Just a long walk; she could do that.

Then she'd get to the Portal, hopefully, and get off this crappy planet…

"The line is moving again," Nanuet's voice arrived from her right and she blinked open her eyes.

"That was too quick," she complained as she grudgingly pushed herself up from the floor, the motion taking a little more effort than normal and various parts of her complained.

She wasn't the only one either, various groans, grunts, and a snort of a half-snore as the sleeping male was nudged awake. The promise of a nice long break hadn't lasted unfortunately, but it had been a little break at least. In the end, they wanted to get this over with, so best to get back to it.

Just push Saoka's trolley.

She looked away from everyone groaning their way to their feet, and looked at Nanuet's exhausted drawn face. He was a big male, who needed a lot of food to get all that muscle and flesh moving, so he was probably far hungrier than she was, and maybe more tired given how much of him he had to cart along. He wasn't wavering on his feet like many others, but he looked close to it.

She waited until he looked at her again and she held his gaze. "A handful of more hours then?" She asked, checking if he was keeping to his previous assessment of the distance left.

He nodded, his eyes straying to Saoka and back.

He wasn't voicing his concern or exhaustion, but it was obvious. She suspected Nanuet wasn't the kind of male who would ever admit such a thing out loud.

But it was clear to her that he was desperately afraid for his friend – she understood all too well what that felt like given Oneakka's recent injury.

She held her chin up and forced her shoulders to relax down. "What's a few more hours then?" She asked Nanuet with a forced smile.

He nodded, a faint almost painful smile shifting his dust-coated face.

She turned to face the trolley and set her wrapped hands on the thick trolley handle.

Just a handful of more hours…assuming no more delays like Wraith attacking them again, but otherwise, it was doable. She could almost hear Oneakka's voice again with his pep talk. She was strong. She could do this.

She was a Warrior.

She had fought alongside Elite; she'd killed a Wraith Queen with a single knife throw.

What was some walking?

Nanuet's arm brushed against hers as he took up his position at the handle next to her and, together, they silently pushed the trolley forward again.

00000

"Portal is confirmed as ready for lift," the Honos' Commander stated over the link. "Estimated flight time for Portal to reach the muster point is half an hour, saving any concerns with wind speed and any enemy attack."

"Understood, Honos," Deployment Station replied. "All medic on-ground units are ready for deployment through Portal once it is established and active at muster point."

"Troop Transport already on the ground at muster point have confirmed ground is cleared ready for the units, and we have your two Fighter wings holding escort that deployed through the Portal before it was hoisted up."

Oneakka pushed up from his stool and reached for the spare body armour he'd retrieved from the Security Centre's emergency stores. He pulled the thick armour up over one arm and into place around his shoulders as he watched the latest information scrolling across the console screens. There still weren't any live images coming up from the planet's surface, but he'd seen Portals being lifted by Fighters before; though, it was a strangely bizarre sight, watching a Portal flying through the air carried only by heavy-duty straps looped through it to the fighters above. But it was efficient and, once at the muster point, the Portal would be simply lowered into position, back into the cradle of the Power Hold and be ready for activation.

And once it was, Deployment Station would send through their medical tent pods, and then, finally, the Facility could send it's Transports. Two Elite manned Transports would go through first to help with the Wraith mop up, then the two Healer Transports, on one of which Oneakka was assigned.

Finally, he was going to get his boots on that planet.

Be there right at the muster point to be useful, to be a pair of eyes watching over the survivors that were hopefully going to emerge from those tunnels.

And to find Raven…if she was there.

"Portal is confirmed in flight, Deployment Station," the Honos Commander reported. "Skies looking clear so far. I am moving the Honos into geosynchronous orbit above the muster point and we will keep in as low an orbit as possible. Muster point ground team confirm that BreakAway Two's Beacon has arrived on location and the team is setting it up for Medics and Troops to communicate in live time with us and local Fighter wings, and allow use of a network for medical equipment and electronic pads in the local area."

"Excellent news, Honos."

Oneakka tightened the side strap on the store armour, taking a moment to take a deep breath to test how tight he could secure the strap. He felt his wound pull slightly at the big held inbreath, but he ignored the tight sensation. As he fixed the side strap in its final place and reached up to the shoulder strap, he realised this was his first time back in armour since his injury. He had spare armour in his quarters, but he hadn't wanted to waste any time going there to get it. It was not his preferred armour anyway, not that his preferred armour was serviceable anymore after it was cracked from his fall and impalement. He'd cleaned it though and had it put into storage, held ready for the day when it would be buried with him.

That armour had seen him through countless battles and near misses, and he felt a pang now in remembering that he'd never wear it again.

One of the first things he had planned to do after passing his medical review had been to officially put in an order for new bespoke body armour, but, as he'd failed his review, he'd still not put in the request. It didn't matter, there was always spare armour in the Facility, but he made a mental note to actually put in the request when he came back from Pelydr.

His eyes snapped down to his pad lying on his stool by the console. Only one alert still showed on the pad, the call to prepare for departure on his assigned place on the Transport.

No other messages.

He was going to Pelydr tomorrow then.

He looked away down to where he'd set a borrowed holster near the feet of his stool. He picked it up and wrapped it securely around his hips.

"Deployment Station, this is Honos," the Commander's voice cut through, the sudden hurried tone very recognisable now after hours of various different reports. Something new and significant had happened.

Oneakka leaned over the screens as he finished securing the buckle of the borrowed holster. The lists hadn't been updated that he could see.

"In air Fighters confirm they have seen sight of first survivors at local entrance of the tunnels near muster point," the Honos Commander reported.

"Yes!" Someone uttered from further down the console.

"Excellent news, Honos," the Deployment Station Commander's voice was full of the same relieved smile.

"Our ground troops are heading to them now. Portal is currently…." there was a pause and then "almost halfway to muster point," Honos' Commander reported.

"We have medical units ready to go through the second the Portal is open, Honos," Deployment Station replied.

Oneakka felt another flush of anger towards the stupid planet's scattering interference. If it were any other planet, they would have live footage. Be able to see who those faces were showing first out of the tunnels.

Would Raven be right at the front?

Could she already be out of the tunnel and safe?

Oneakka picked up the first of his two borrowed stunners and slid it into place in the holster against his right hip, checking the charge and setting without even having to think about it. He turned to pick up the second one, only to find it was in Massa's hand, being held out to him.

"Be careful out there," Massa uttered, his dark eyes holding a wealth of other things that Oneakka didn't stop to try to process. He just needed to focus on getting to the planet, getting there to find her.

He nodded as he took the weapon from Massa, checked it over and slid it into place against his left hip.

He turned back to the console screens, avoiding Massa's worried assessing gaze, as he picked up his pad and doublechecked once more that her name hadn't appeared on any new updates of the lists of the dead.

She wasn't there still.

Massa's hand was a warm squeeze against his arm. "Bring her home."

"Count on it," Oneakka stated as he made himself look into Massa's worried emotional eyes and nod before he turned away and headed for the exit out.

As he turned out of the room into the narrow corridors of the Facility's Security Centre, he lifted his pad and quickly typed a short text link to Amel, telling her he was going to the planet and would let her know once he had information on Seeal.

That done, he checked again that he hadn't had any messages from Pelydr.

He hadn't.

A short 'thank you' text link came back from Amel.

He set the pad on battle status, where it would only vibrate on alerts, and slid it into his back pocket as he turned the last corner and headed out of the Security Centre.

Out in the bright open whiteness of the Facility lobby, he turned right and started to jog. The few in the corridors all quickly stepped aside as he jogged through the turns, a running Elite was always given clear space in the Facility. He took another right, heading towards the Healing Bay. There was a separate docking area for Medical vessels incoming and outgoing, and his assigned Transport would be there.

He had plenty of time given the timeframe for the Portal to reach the muster point, be set into the Power Hold and activated. But he didn't slow down as he rounded corners and headed down the last stretch of curved corridor towards the Healing Bay docking area.

After too many long hours of waiting and not being able to do anything helpful, he was finally going to be able to get to Saoka's planet…and find Raven.

In whatever state she was in, he wasn't going to leave that damn planet until he found her.

Even if it was to bring her home for the very last time.

0000

After the news had arrived about the other group of survivors joining the long queue up ahead, various pieces of interesting gossip had made their way down through the tunnel. Most of it was details about the other survivors who had come from the BreakAway that had been the end of the station that had been hit by the Wraith ship. Apparently that BreakAway had been partially engulfed by fire as the survivors had evacuated, so it was probably the source of that giant plume of black smoke Seeal had seen…actually she had no idea how long ago it had been that she'd been briefly on the surface of Saoka's sucky planet.

That so many had survived that severely damaged BreakAway was brilliant news in and of itself, but it also hopefully implied that the other end of the station, which had been entirely undamaged before the fall from orbit, had probably faired even better.

How long it would take until she found out was unclear as she had no idea what time of day it was, being this deep underground. With the numerous times the line had had to stop, she had no way to judge how long it was taking and if they were anywhere near the end of the "handful of hours" walk Nanuet had predicted.

All she knew was that she was hungry, very tired, and parts of her were now constantly complaining. Her shoulders, neck, and back had all morphed into one fixed tight mass. Her legs and backside felt achy and rubbery under her, and her ankle was now just constantly painful.

But she was still walking, still pushing the trolley, so that was the positive she'd been focusing on.

That was until one particular piece of news reached the back of the line. The news everyone had been waiting for: that the very front end of the long line had finally reached the exit out of the tunnels and that the Alliance Military were there waiting for them. Then, a little later, the additional fantastic news that the Portal was definitely there too and was active.

Rescue had arrived and a way off this horrible dry planet with its awful air was now guaranteed.

Everyone had been exceptionally happy about that. Morale had shot up, people chatting animatedly with each other again despite their breathlessness and coughing. But, all too soon, that burst of cheerfulness had run dry and everyone was back to the exhausted breathless walking in silence, well, except for the coughing.

And the scuffing sounds of many feet not quite lifting up as high off the floor as before, people shuffling along, one hand on the closest tunnel wall or friend/helper.

Seeal had no idea why she was feeling even more tired knowing that rescue was ahead. She'd have thought it would have given her a good boost of energy, but what little energy she had was coming from the box of minty sweets she'd been making her way through. It had become a stupid, yet oddly engaging game to see how long she could make each sweet last, sucking on them slowly to get the constant flow of sugar and flavour out of the things.

Her other main occupation was watching those on and around the trolley. Saoka hadn't gotten any noticeably worse, but he wasn't any better either. He barely made any noise, the only part of him moving was his head rocking with the motions of the trolley. Her view of him was limited from the trolley's handle, but Nanuet was regularly checking on him. Sometimes that simply involved Nanuet reaching forward and laying his palm on Saoka's upper chest, and each time he did that, she locked her gaze on Nanuet's big dark hand and waited the long seconds until she could see his hand moving with Saoka's breathing.

But Saoka wasn't the only one they were collectively keeping an eye on. She kept sweeping her gaze over the elderly couple shuffling alongside the right side of the trolley, leaning more of their weight than before onto it's side. How they were still walking at their mature years was really impressive, but Seeal kept waiting for one of them to fall.

Not that anyone else looked much better. Everyone was now clearly suffering to varying degrees.

But at least now they knew rescue was at the end of this long trek.

Stifling a yawn so big Seeal felt her jaw click, she blinked watery tired eyes at the line ahead of the trolley.

She was almost near the end of the latest minty sweet, the sugar and flavour all but drained from the teeny, little blob remaining on her tongue. She suspected she could still get a bit more out of it though… That the sweet prolonging was so engaging made her seriously suspect that her brain was now moving as slowly as the line. Sleep deprivation did that to you, on top of the thin horrible air and physical fatigue.

Another yawn broke free of her control and, as it finished, she accidentally swallowed the last bit of the sweet.

Muttering at that, she ferreted into her trouser pocket and pulled out the small box of sweets. She'd gotten good at balancing the little tin against her hand on the trolley handle and getting it open. As she popped a new sweet into her mouth, she counted only three left in the tin.

Ahead, the line shuffled to another stop as she closed the tin lid and slid the box back into her pocket.

As the trolley rolled to a slow stop, she watched Nanuet reach forward and gently rest his palm on Saoka's chest.

She watched the dark, dust-coated hand…and saw it moving.

Saoka was still with them.

Looking ahead, she could see a few people sinking to the tunnel floor to take advantage of the latest brief pause.

Hunger niggled in her middle, the hollow feeling rumbling.

When she got back to the Facility she was going to have the biggest and best meal ever. She'd order it into her quarters, eat it while she was on her bed, wrapped up in her duvet and surrounded by her fluffy pillows.

She'd have that spiced stew they made a lot in the Canteen; she loved that stuff. Maybe some of those fluffy stem things that tasted like Kiber bark that she'd used to eat on Dream. She didn't bother using any brain power to try to remember what they were called. She'd definitely have some though and some salad. As boring as that seemed, she really craved those big leafy salads the Facility had all the time; She was pretty sure Neligan had told her that the leaves were grown in the Facility's Hydroponics Bay.

And she'd have some of that pinkish sweet vinegary salad sauce drizzled all over it.

Then some sweet grain bread with some of that spring nut spread on top. Jin had had a really nice version of it when she'd visited him…

And her favourite Athosian tea.

She wasn't sure she'd craved anything as much as she had that tea throughout this nightmare.

She'd order a whole teapot of it delivered to her quarters, drink copious cups of it.

Maybe have a bath in it.

She snorted at that stupid thought.

The line didn't appear to be any closer to moving, so she folded her arms on the trolley's handle and considered what she'd have for pudding for her dream meal. Maybe that sticky kita baked sponge cake thing that Oneakka loved. Maybe with some sort of sweet topping on the cake…

She wasn't sure planning this fantasy meal was helping her hollow hungry feeling.

And the truth was that any celebratory meal was going to have to wait until after the long sleep she had promised herself.

Though, she was pretty sure she had at least one frosted-cookie hidden away in her quarters, the only survivor from the boxes she'd won off Oneakka for having faced those fish. She'd devoured most of the boxes contents within days of the Spa Gym, but she'd rationed back a few. Though, she was down to one left.

She'd eat that and then curl up in her bed and sleep for an entire day, maybe two. Then have her perfect meal after that. Maybe not leave her quarters for days, just sleeping and eating…

The line started forward again, but almost immediately someone stumbled in the right of her peripheral vision. Seeal reached out automatically to catch the person, an already injured female, but someone else had caught her. Seeal watched as the female righted herself and agreed to Security Mendez' offer to help the female walking.

Ahead, everyone else was back to the shuffling forward, some very obviously wavering on their feet. But, Seeal could see that the tunnel was now starting to change. The salt-coated walls were getting wider and she could see several more dark entrances to other tunnels spaced along both walls. More ancient dried up underground rivers that had clearly all started converging in this area.

As they passed one entrance in the righthand wall, she craned her neck, peering up an entirely identical tunnel-

The trolley abruptly stopped without her noticing and she was folded in half over the handle. She staggered back, extracting the thick metal handle from her belly, aware that her coordination was feeling a bit clumsy. Righting herself with one hand on the handle to steady herself, she looked forward to see that the people ahead were shifting around, turning and handing something back down the line.

Small things wrapping in plastic.

She watched the items being passed back, reaching those at the front of the trolley. People were keeping one for themselves and passing others onwards. Seeal watched in silence as a plastic wrapped item finally reached her. She lifted it into the glow of the closest wall light. It was an Alliance Military ration bar.

They'd used to have these on Dream, smuggled out of Alliance storerooms. Creass used to accept them as currency from some smugglers, the bars designed to be stored for long periods and still be fresh. They'd had stores built up on the station in case food supplies had been cut off.

She ripped open the packet and took a huge bite of the bar. It tasted amazing. She closed her eyes for a moment, only opening them when someone tapped something against her hand. She opened her eyes to see more bars being passed to her. She took them and turned, handing them back towards Security behind her. That done, she focused back on eating the bar. It had a faint minty taste after her many hours of sucking on those sweets, but it still tasted so good.

Rolling the ration bar's wrapping down to reveal the last section of the bar, she turned to Nanuet, seeing he was eating one of his own. He was looking absolutely shattered. Unable to stand at his usual tall height, he was stood stooped, one long thick forearm on the trolley's handle as he focused on chewing with far more attention than it would normally require.

She reached down for his water bottle stored next to hers, opened it for him and held it out.

He took it with a faint nod, his eyes red and tired.

She watched his face as he drank. He didn't look like he was about to collapse, but it probably wouldn't be that long until he did.

Until she did too.

She stretched out her neck one way and then the other, and then took Nanuet's bottle back from him, closing the lid and putting it down in the shelf again.

The line was moving again, so she set her wrapped hands to the handle and shoved, getting it moving by herself as Nanuet finished his bar. Those walking alongside were still eating theirs, but they shuffled forward with the trolley.

Always forward.

But at least now they knew there really was help ahead and a way off this planet.

After a while, Seeal became aware that the air was smelling different: fresher and a little damper. More stalactites were dotting the ceiling above, the tunnel starting to slope slightly downwards again. In fact, she could hear more people talking ahead, and their voices had a louder, slightly echoing quality to them…like they were in a bigger space.

Feeling a flush of hopefulness, she rose up on her toes and peered ahead, but people were now crowded into the centre of the tunnel and she couldn't see…

"Saoka?" Nanuet's voice registered to her left and she glanced quickly down to Saoka. She saw his head move faintly, saw Nanuet's large hand resting on Saoka's upper chest.

"We're at the cave, Saoka. We're almost there," Nanuet told him and Saoka's head moved a fraction again, but it was the only part of him that did.

Cave? Almost there… The hopefulness renewed with a burst of energy through Seeal's body.

"We're almost to help," Nanuet added to Saoka as he lightly patted Saoka's chest before lifting his hand away.

The line shuffled forward, the air smelling fresher with each step. And, after a few metres, the tunnel's ceiling noticeably vanished up ahead, disappearing up into the roof of the cave that she couldn't see quite yet, but the echoing mass of many voices from inside it was obvious.

The line kept pausing, people now looking off to the left…Seeal rose up on her toes and peered up and around heads, trying to work out what was happening.

People were disappearing to the left, into the cave presumably.

"There are long steps down to the left," Nanuet explained. "We made sure they were cut long enough for people carrying stretchers, so there should be enough space to get the trolley down."

"Good planning," Seeal offered, her voice sounding and feeling scratchy…in fact she wasn't sure how long it had been since she'd talked out loud.

Those just ahead were now disappearing to the left, and, after waiting for those who had been limping alongside the trolley to go first, she and Nanuet worked the trolley into a wide turn and onto the now obvious long steps heading down and along the back wall of a cave.

It was a massive cave with its tall walls pockmarked with exits from other tunnels, the walls worn in a way that suggested the cave must have once been full of waterfalls cascading down from all the tunnels, down to the cave floor. Seeal peered carefully to the right, over a simple metal railing running along the edge of the stone steps, down to a large dried up pool taking up most of the floor of the cave. Alongside that old pool, she could see the long line of survivors who had already descended the steps and were now heading across the cave floor towards an obvious glow of sunlight. She couldn't see the exit out of the cave yet, but the sunlight was unmistakeable, as were the Military uniforms stood alongside the line moving out of the cave.

Rescue really was here.

They'd made it.

She focused forward, working with Nanuet to be careful when to push the trolley forward so as not to run over those ahead. Most people were keeping close to the wall of the cave as they worked their way down the long steps, keeping well away from the drop on the right side of the steps. Seeal could understand that. Everyone was so tired that it would be all too easy to slip and tumble over the simple metal railing. It would be a long way to fall too.

She tightened her hands on the trolley's handle, its heavy weight now transformed from a source of struggle to a source of security for her for this last stretch. Just how awful would it be to almost reach safety only to fall over a ledge!

Her eyes strayed to the ledge worriedly. Falling had always been her worst nightmare, and to go from surviving falling from orbit to then falling off some steps… Oneakka would have a right go at her for not being careful enough.

Another rush of optimism hit her: she was going to get to see The Oaf again!

Well, once she got back through whatever Military base the Portal was presumably open to…and Massa, she desperately wanted to be with laughing with him again. Enjoy shared Late Meals in the Canteen with them both again, all safe around the table.

That was assuming Oneakka had gotten over their argument…the memories of that trickled in, dampening the rescue excitement.

Well, she'd worry about all that once she was back in the Facility, had had that long promised sleep and the big fantasy meal.

When she could think straight and move without most of her hurting or feeling like it was going to collapse.

The bottom of the steps abruptly arrived and she and Nanuet turned the trolley around the right turn and followed the line towards the glow of sunlight ahead. She could finally see that exit too now, a rectangle of bright sky, surrounded by Military uniforms.

As she and Nanuet pushed the trolley up a faint incline up towards that exit, the line narrowing towards the exit as people struggled the last stretch thanks to their various injuries and exhaustion.

Then the exit was filling her view beyond the trolley, two Military staff appearing to recognise Saoka on the trolley and Nanuet. They were reaching out to help too, drawing the trolley faster up the incline to the exit.

"What happened with the Wraith?" She heard Nanuet ask them.

"Mostly taken care of," one Military male replied. "Some stragglers out there somewhere, but we've got Fighters, and Elite came through the Portal to help hunt them down."

"What about the Skerti?" She asked, her voice coming out breathless and weak sounding.

"Only that first ship that exploded," the Military male replied as they crested the incline, sunlight sliding over the far end of trolley.

It was all good news then. There was no massive invasion of the Alliance as she'd feared.

Sky and open space abruptly surrounded Seeal as they pushed the trolley out into the open air.

She closed her eyes, drinking in the fresh-smelling air and the sunlight's warmth on her face again.

"Follow the line of people that way," a Military voice stated and she opened her eyes to see another male pointing off to the right, where the very obvious line of other survivors were heading towards a wide wall of white tents several hundred yards away. "Emergency medical help is in the tents," the Military male continued. "Otherwise, go round them and join the queue to go through the Portal."

"Thank you," she and Nanuet both replied simultaneously as they reangled the trolley to the right to follow the others towards.

There was another gradual incline towards the medical tents, their tall, pointed tops sending long deep shadows along the limping, stretched out line of survivors heading towards the far right end of the tents. None of the tents had any openings, except at the far right end, the apparent single entrance to the promised medical help, which was obviously where they needed to take Saoka.

Watching the line reaching the medical tent entrance, she could see a few people were moving on past it, disappearing around behind the tents. Glancing to the far left end of the medical tents, she could see that they were jutted up against a thin ridge of rock rising up out of the orangey brown ground of this crappy planet. There was a faint overhang to that rock just visible behind the end of the medical tents, and, glowing up against the underside of that overhang, Seeal could see the recognisable shine of an active Portal.

The way off the planet was finally here. She'd get Saoka to the medical tent, then head around behind it, get to the Portal wherever it was open to. Then, on the other side, she'd find a safe flat place to lie down.

"We're almost there, Saoka," Nanuet repeated brightly from her left as the trolley rumbled up the dusty ground. "I can see- Saoka?!" He added more sharply, the sudden fear in the male's voice snapping her attention away from the tents to Saoka.

Nanuet had one hand on Saoka's chest, but was moving hurriedly around the corner of the trolley to be able to see Saoka better.

She stopped pushing the trolley, the weight almost too much to push by herself right now anyway, and watched Nanuet's hand on Saoka.

She couldn't tell if his hand was moving this time.

"Saoka?! Can you hear me?" Nanuet asked, his voice rising in sharp panic. "I don't think he's breathing!"

Seeal moved quickly around the other side of the trolley. Saoka's eyes were closed, his face limp and unmoving, clammier than earlier.

"I'm not sure I can feel a pulse!" Nanuet added, his fingers fumbling at Saoka's throat.

"Saoka?!" Seeal shouted loudly at the male as she grabbed his closest shoulder through the blanket and shook him forcefully, knowing sometimes that was what was needed in these circumstances.

He didn't respond at all, and he felt worryingly limp. She didn't bother doing anything else but turned to face the waiting medical tents, still many yards away, but waved both her hands high up to draw attention. "We need help here!" She shouted, hoping the strong breeze wasn't stealing most of the sound. "We need help."

Fortunately, they had clearly understood her as instantly three Military uniformed Medics were running towards her. She turned back to Saoka, reaching to his throat herself, pressing her fingers against his clammy cool skin. He'd be colder if he was dead, wouldn't he? But then she wasn't good at feeling coldness… But… "I think I can feel a pulse," she told Nanuet quickly.

Then people were arriving.

"What happened to him?" An efficient clipped voice asked as a female Medic pushed in next to Nanuet.

"He has an open break of his right upper leg," Seeal supplied instantly to save Nanuet the brain space in his panic. "The Healers at the BreakAway gave him extra blood, pain meds and a splint."

The female was nodding as she held the listening end of a stethoscope against Saoka's chest, two more Military Medics arriving, two cases snapping open as they were set on the trolley. The Lead female was now flashing a light in Saoka's eyes.

"Pupil responses normal and I'm getting a pulse, but it's thready and weak. I want a B52 shot and then A28 intravenous."

An injection device, similar to the ones she'd seen used on Oneakka when his heart had stopped, was shoved against Saoka's closest arm, then another device was wrapped around his arm.

"We need him in the tent now," the Lead female Medic ordered sharply.

Seeal moved back around the trolley to the handle, unable to help with all the medical care, but she could help get Saoka to the medical tents. One last push.

Except, helpful Military gloved hands landed next to hers on the handle, one of the males who had been at the tunnel exit, and the trolley started rolling forward with greater speed.

As they rushed forward, she was aware that the Lead Medic was running alongside with Nanuet, but Seeal just fixed her eyes on the tent entrance ahead. She idly noticed that everyone who had been closest to the trolley in the former line were all already in that entrance or were moving around the end of the tent to the promised Portal somewhere behind. She could see the elderly male and female being guided inside the tent, and then several more Medics appearing at the entrance, an empty medical bed with them, presumably to receive Saoka.

She looked down to Saoka, seeing medical hands moving over him even while the trolley was moving so fast, one young Medic kneeling on the trolley as he worked, someone in a Military uniform steadying him through the bumpy journey. There were several more devices on Saoka, the top of his shirt open and a large piece of tech attached to his dark chest. It was flashing…Seeal had no idea if that was a good thing or not.

She snapped her eyes back up to the tent…they were suddenly there.

The waiting Medics flooded forward and, as she heard medical words thrown back and forth, other hands were moving in to try to undo the straps, ropes and other means she and Nanuet had used to secure Saoka's stretcher to the trolley.

"Here," Seeal stepped round the trolley, reaching down and unclipping two of the big straps, other hands now helping and then in seconds the stretcher was being slid off the trolley. She followed the Medics as the stretcher was lifted, set directly onto the medical bed and was then being pushed inside the tent.

Seeal followed, watching worriedly as the Medics assessed, checked, and discussed Saoka.

Nanuet was just to the left, so she headed to his side, a burst of fresh air washing over them as they stepped inside the open end of the medical tents. It wasn't a series of separate tents, Seeal now realised, but a long line of them, all open to each other, resulting in a long hospital-like set up. A massive number of Medical beds were stuffed inside, lining both walls and running two central lines down the length of the tent. A lot of them were filled with familiar faces. She could see the elderly male being helped onto a bed, his wife at his side, Medics around both of them.

"…any other injuries?" the female Lead Medic's voice cut through the background medical chatter.

Seeal looked round to see the female looking towards Nanuet as she moved around Saoka, two other Medics busy cutting through the thick blood-stained bandages around Saoka's leg.

"No," Nanuet replied, swaying slightly on his feet.

Seeal reached out and set a steadying hand against his back. "Actually," Seeal added loudly to be heard. "Saoka was unconscious for a while after the crash, he likely fell a good couple of metres when he broke his leg."

Nanuet glanced round with a slightly dazed look and nodded. "Yes, that's right."

"Add concussion protocol," the Medic ordered her people as she nodded and was shown a large electronic pad with a graph on it. "Good, that's good at least. I want another shot of B52."

"Yes, Healer," someone replied instantly.

This was all looking a little too familiar to when Oneakka had been worked on. She could feel a faint panicked feeling of her own rushing up at recalling that traumatic memory.

"You two injured?" The Medic asked sharply as she looked back round.

"No," Nanuet replied.

"Actually," Seeal repeated with a look at Nanuet's profile as she pointed at him. "He was unconscious a while too after the crash and he took at least two blasts from a Wraith stunner in the tunnel."

The Medic's eyes shifted up to Nanuet, running her gaze over him with a quick efficient assessment. "Healer," she added across Saoka's busy medical bed. "Please see to this gentleman."

"Yes, Healer," a female voice replied.

"And you?" The Medic now asked, though she was being shown another graph on a pad.

Seeal guessed she was talking to her.

"Just a sprained ankle. Been walking on it fine," she replied. She wasn't exactly a priority here.

"Run it again," the Medic stated to her assistant and then looked round at Seeal. There was another one of those swift visual assessments, through which Seeal made sure to stand tall and look far more alert than she felt. "Okay," the Medic stretched out an arm, pointing to one side of the tent. "Go see a Medic along that left side for minor injuries before leaving through the Portal."

"Okay," Seeal agreed, but she could see that decisions were being made about Saoka.

"Let's move him there now, I want to see inside that wound before we take him through the Portal in case we have a bleeder in there still," the Lead Medic was ordering as the medical bed was abruptly moved out of what appeared to have been a triage area and was now being pushed at a fast pace down the length of the busy tent, Nanuet following along behind, a female Medic at his side. Hopefully the female was making sure Nanuet was properly taken care of, because he was clearly more interested in Saoka's care than his own.

But they were both in good hands now so…

Seeal realised she was now stood by herself in a small open space inside the busy tent. Turning round she found that the formerly open end flaps of the medical tent were now shut and she couldn't see any way to open them. That presumably meant all the survivors were here now…well, she and Nanuet and the trolley had been last out, except for Security…

Okay, her mind was definitely feeling slower again.

She turned back round and looked towards the left line of medical beds the Medic had directed her towards. Everyone looked busy and she just had a sprained ankle.

She wanted off this crummy planet. There had to be another way to get to the Portal from in here… The Portal had clearly been behind these tents, so she needed to find a way out the righthand wall of the tent.

Setting off down one aisle, then squeezing between several beds and into the next aisle, she could see that all the righthand wall was simply lined with stacks of boxes on large pallets, behind the last line of beds. How did you get out of this darn place?

A rough wave of weariness abruptly hit her, instantly sapping away her former burst of renewed energy in getting out of the tunnels.

Her legs felt rubbery under her and she reached out blindly for something to steady herself. Her hand found a metal railing and she gripped onto it, the breathlessness suddenly feeling almost smothering, her vision narrowing for a beat. She focused on breathing, drawing in air. The air really did feel and taste better in the medical tent. Focusing on that small fact, she glanced up and realised that there was a background humming noise in the tent that she hadn't actually noticed before now. There were large boxes and long thick tubes running along a gantry in the high roof of the tent, large vents noticeably vibrating. She slid her hand along the supportive metal railing as she stepped to one side and into the noticeable breeze from the closest vent above. Proper healthy air!

She drew in deep breaths of it and almost felt high for a moment as the good air filled her lungs, and she swore her senses were sharpening.

Starting to feel a bit better now, she opened her eyes again and worked to fight against the tide of demanding exhaustion nagging at her. She idly realised that the metal railing she was using for support was the end of a medical bed, on which was lying the Engineer with the headwound. His eyes were shut, possibly already asleep-

"Have you been seen?" A voice abruptly asked her and she looked round to see a Medic stepping up to the side of the Engineer's bed. Another intense medical assessing gaze ran over her and Seeal suspected she probably looked as awful as all the other survivors in here.

"Yes, just a bad ankle," she lied slightly as she made herself stand up straight again. "I need to find the way out to the Portal?"

"Through there," the Medic pointed off to an area along the wall of the tent. "There's gaps between the pallets there; takes you out to join into the queue for the Portal. There's also spare water bottles and ration bars on those pallets too," he added pointedly, implying she looked like she needed both of those things. The male wasn't wrong, but, right now, what she really wanted was the Portal.

"Thank you," she replied simply and pushed herself away from the metal railing, glancing back down to the Engineer. His eyes were still closed and didn't even flicker as the Medic started dabbing something against his unbandaged headwound. It was a deep sleep that she abruptly really envied. Once she was through the Portal, she promised herself again, she'd take the very first opportunity to lie down and sleep.

For now though, she focused on walking down the aisle of busy activity, her eyes fixed on the area the Medic had pointed out, her legs still feeling shaky under her, but they were working.

As she neared the pallets in question, she could now see that there was indeed a gap between them leading to where she could see a slither of sunlight between two flaps of a tent exit. As she moved between the pallets, she could already hear the people just outside the tent exit. And it was a sound she knew all too well after today: the trudging tired steps of exhausted fellow survivors all crowded together.

She suddenly lost the will to go out there, back into the smelly press of stressed, tightly packed people.

Tiredness washed over her again and she paused between the pallets, noticing one of them held boxes of the promised water bottles. Thirst was a sudden rushing demand, loud and pounding in her hears.

She reached into the pallet's closest box and uncoordinatedly hauled out a bottle, clumsily got the lid off and started drinking down the cool water inside.

She gulped as much as she could of the wonderfully clean tasting water until the need to breathe took over. She lowered the bottle and squeezed her eyes shut as she rested back against the other pallet.

Exhaustion was a literal weight throughout her body, threatening to steal what little energy she had left to keep standing, and her hands felt like they were throbbing under their wrappings. It was odd that she hadn't felt them too much with all the pushing the trolley these last final hours, but now she was no longer pushing Saoka's trolley, her hands burned with fatigued overuse.

Her legs and middle felt shaky, and her ankle was just a constant source of pain.

She needed off this horrible rock…but she couldn't seem to find the energy to move just yet.

So she'd just stay here for a bit, hidden between the pallets in a small silent space by herself.

Then get her arse off this planet.

Find her way home…

0000

He'd been here hours looking across the dishevelled constant flow of survivors as they appeared around the end of the medical tents to join the packed thick line towards the Portal. Saoka's selected muster point was pretty good, though Oneakka would have had it closer to the local exit out of the tunnels. But it was close enough and he could see why it had been chosen.

This entire area had once been the shallows of a massive ocean that had dried up since surely the time of the Ancestors. The dark orange ground here was mostly flat, but there were the occasional small hillocks of rock that protruded up out of the ground, probably once having been small islands that had stood up through the surface of the ancient ocean. They provided useful points to hold guard, being able to watch the surrounding landscape and see anything incoming, either on the ground or in the air.

The muster point itself was set into what had been an almost entirely eroded island. Only the far end of it and a ridge of higher ground running up to it remained. The Portal had been set up against that remaining end of the island, which prevented the Portal being attacked from behind, and a slight overhang of rock above it provided good shelter for the Ancestral tech and people passing through it. Then, with the tall medical tents set up in a long line opposite the ridge of higher ground, on which Oneakka was currently stood, the two formed high walls, creating a safe gulley between them for the survivors to channel down towards and through the Portal at the far end.

And the survivors clearly also needed a watchful eye to check none of them were collapsing from exhaustion either.

They all looked dishevelled, their faces drawn, their clothes and hair often stained with dried blood and/or coated with the dusty soil of this planet. There weren't many with bandages or limping packed into the wide queue in the gulley a couple of metres below Oneakka. Those who needed urgent medical attention had been taken directly into the medical tents, with only those seemingly without immediate medical need moving round the tents and joining the back of the queue. As each person came round to join the queue, Military Troops were greeting them, taking names and making sure none of them should actually be seen in the medical tent.

Lifting his eyes up from the exhausted line below, Oneakka lifted his electronic pad. It had been permanently in his hand these long hours as he'd stood up here watching and providing guard for the evacuation. The commandeered Beacon from BreakAway Two was working well from where it stood near the Portal, a relay network working to allow some medical equipment to function on this planet and all electronic pads to communicate in the immediate area. The Beacon was also facilitating audio links up to the Honos and nearby wings of patrolling Fighters. Everyone was able to communicate now, or at least reasonably well given the static on the links, but it was only the pad that Oneakka was really interested in outside the survivors.

The pad's screen displayed the constantly updating list of everyone in the line below and those being seen in the medical tent.

Her name still hadn't appeared.

Hours had passed, thousands of people's names adding to the list before they went through the Portal, but still her name hadn't shown.

He switched his attention back to the queue below.

The line was moving slowly due of the sheer number of survivors going through the Portal, each person stopped before stepping through the wormhole to have their names checked again and given directions on where to go on the other side. A few Elite staff who had been on the station had been offered to leave in the Facility's Healer Transport that Oneakka had come in on, and he'd walked down there a short while ago to make sure Raven hadn't been directed in there without him seeing her. She hadn't, and she'd have had her personal Beacon scanned for sure in there. So he'd stayed in there just long enough to take in some proper healthy air inside the Transport and then had headed back up here onto the ridge, along which several other Military troops were stood, watching over the evacuation.

Fewer survivors were starting to appear around the end of the tents to join the line, and they were looking more rough and exhausted than those that had arrived hours earlier and gone through the Portal already.

Military Troops at the local tunnel's exit had given an update a short time ago that they could see the end of the line of evacuees inside the cave entrance to the tunnels. So these then would be from that back end of the line, a place which naturally accumulated those most injured, tired, or elderly.

Which meant if she was part of this group, she might be hurt.

He considered the pad again, watching more names appearing that were marked as being in the medical tent. Most of those arriving now were being seen in there rather than joining the main queue.

Her name still wasn't there.

He switched his attention back to his view of the end of the gulley. He couldn't see the tunnel exit from here, the medical tents blocking the view down the slope to the tunnels, but stood furthest along the high ridge meant that he could see each person as they came round the end of the tents, watch them being met by a Military Trooper before they joined the back of the queue.

None of them were Raven.

Despite being sure he'd have spotted her instantly, he shifted his eyes over those already in the crowded queue, looking for her black hair or the profile of her features if she had her hair covered.

His wound was aching again, the standing still for so long straining his middle, especially not having slept at all last night. As he'd done a few times already, he paced along the ridge towards it's very end point and then back a metre or so, keeping his eyes on those below, the pacing helping to ease the tension through his wound somewhat.

The pad was constantly vibrating in his hand with the updates to the list so he paused, glancing down at it again.

Almost all the names were now marked as being seen in the medical tent.

Raven wasn't among them.

Where was she?

He switched his gaze back to the end of the queue, the latest newly arrived few now having joined the rest.

No one else was appearing round the end of the tent. The flow of people had paused frequently over the hours, when people had been particularly struggling or even when someone had collapsed.

He watched the space next to the tent…no one else still…

Was it the end of the line?

He lifted his pad back into view.

Saoka's name had appeared at the bottom of the list. Oneakka lifted the pad higher, watching the open space under Saoka's name where the next names would appear.

If she had been with Saoka in his office when the Wraith Cruiser had hit the station, then she could have been with Saoka in the line, keeping to the back of the evacuees to make sure everyone else was okay.

A flag alerting a significant injury and highest priority appeared next to Saoka's name.

Oneakka could feel his breathing getting shallower.

If she had been with Saoka on the station and Saoka was badly hurt, what did that mean for her?

Nanuet's name, Saoka's ever present bodyguard, appeared under Saoka's….

A minor injury flag appeared next to Nanuet's name a moment later.

Then an unknown name appeared next.

Then another, this one marked as minor injury but vulnerable so to be fast tracked out through the Portal. Elderly or perhaps someone susceptible to the air on this planet.

The space underneath that name remained empty…

He switched his gaze down to the open space at the entrance to the gulley, several people came into view around the end of the tent…all of them wearing Saoka's Station Security's uniform. They looked tired, but their smiles were wide as they talked with the Military Troopers, their gazes shifting to the Portal at the far end of the line and then a couple glanced up at Oneakka, and he saw the 'the Elite are here' relieved smiles he'd seen from plenty of the survivors. It was another reason why he was stood here at the end of the ridge: to be seen, so that everyone knew the Elite were here to protect them.

Oneakka dropped his attention back to his pad.

Only one other name had appeared at the bottom of the list.

Did the arrival of a handful of Station Security below mean it really was the end of the line of survivors?

But she wasn't here.

He lowered the pad and coughed against the thick feeling of panic in his throat. He focused down on the queue, doublechecking he hadn't missed her joining the line while he had been looking at his pad.

But she'd have seen him up here, waved up at him surely.

She wasn't there.

He lifted his pad.

An update from the Troops behind the medical tents flashed up across the top of the pad: the tunnel was fully evacuated.

And then there was some information from Station Security that had been at the back of the line – those stood with the Troopers below then. They'd reported Wraith had attacked the line hours ago, killed two people, and that there had been at least one other death in the tunnel from injuries.

He pushed away the update to reveal the list of names again.

No one else had been added.

He stared at the list, and saw the 'finalised' alert appear.

Everyone was accounted for, in the line below or in the medical tent.

No, no, no, no.

He looked down to the end of the line again, checking, just in case she had appeared with the Station Security. She'd naturally want to be around them so…

But she wasn't there.

The Station Security were stood casually chatting with the Troopers.

Because no one else was appearing round the tent.

He lifted his pad again.

The list was exactly the same.

Finalised and she wasn't on the list.

Wasn't in the line.

Hadn't made it to the tunnels…

This couldn't be happening.

He snapped his gaze away, looking off into the distant orangey brown landscape as the rush of tears burned his eyes.

This wasn't happening.

She had to be alive still. Had to be here somewhere.

He lifted the pad again, blinking through the tears. Nothing had changed.

She wasn't here.

She'd died in one of the BreakAways or by a Wraith in a tunnel…or her body was floating out there in the vacuum above the planet.

He lowered the pad and looked back out over the barren view as he struggled to contain the rushing, tightening pain in his throat.

This couldn't be happening.

Everything he'd feared, had happened again.

Another one he'd loved and lost.

Unless…he lifted the pad again and tapped into the updates from the other BreakAways, but her name hadn't magically appeared on any of them. He tapped into the deceased lists…they had grown, but he quickly scanned through them all…she wasn't listed on any of them, but they were still being updating as the burnt up areas of BreakAway Three were still being investigated and more bodies were being collected up from the debris field above the planet…

He tapped back into the list from here at the muster point, just in case…

She still wasn't there.

The list still finalised.

She wasn't here.

She'd fallen.

He lowered the pad and paced back towards the far end of the ridge, peering round as much as he could of the end of the medical tent, but there was no one else coming into view.

This could not be happening, not to Raven.

He turned away, turning his back to the gulley and his face towards the sun and the sharp breeze as he squeezed his eyes shut.

The pad had stopped vibrating in his hand with updates.

Grief was an old and painfully regular visitor, but it felt unbelievably powerful now as it tried to strangle him. His legs felt weak under him, but he locked his knees, holding himself upright.

This was exactly what he'd feared…why he'd stayed away from her.

But he'd gone and lost her anyway.

And it hurt just as much as he'd feared.

Depressed old dark thoughts stirred through his mind, given fresh blood today to rear up renewed, whispering how he'd failed again. Someone else had needed him and he'd not been there to save her. Forced to be the survivor while all those he cared for fell around him.

Everything he loved taken away from him.

He was never going to see her smile again, bicker playfully with her over something random and unimportant.

She was supposed to go live a long life away from him, safe and happy.

That had been the whole damn reason why he'd kept away, why he'd held that very clear line between them.

Held it strong…

Except, the lie in that was obvious now and rang as bitterly hollow as the wind against his face.

He'd kept to the clear line between him and Raven…but he'd been prowling along that line for quite some time.

It wasn't like he hadn't known he wanted over the line, because what else had all the erotically-charged dreams and powerful attraction been about, but somehow he'd still not believed it. Like some sort of denial by choice.

And it was a denial that felt completely unrecoverable now. Laid out in the warm sharp breeze of this bleak, empty planet…like his life was going to feel without her in it.

Without her bolshie stubborn attitude, holding him to account on everything he said and did, speaking honestly and plainly in everything she did. What more could he want from a female at his side?

He'd been so stupid and…afraid.

It wasn't an emotion he felt very often nowadays. It had dominated his youth of course, not just from the first days of knowing he was going to leave Ugun to train as a Recruit and through those days after leaving his family and homeworld, but then the years afterwards through challenging training and then starting out as a newly qualified Elite into a life of horrific warfare. His every fearful boundary and sense of safety had been challenged and then broken through, forging him into as strong and skilled Elite Warrior as he could be.

Time with Raven had felt rather like that too, he realised. Challenging and worrying, but also exciting and addictive at the same time.

But he'd denied it, wilfully blinded himself to the truth of what he wanted.

And now, the whole excuse he'd used – that she could live a happy and safe life away from him – was now as much a lie as the ones he'd told himself.

And he hadn't saved himself from the pain of losing her; it was here now, eating away at his heart.

She'd been taken away from him.

His whisperer.

His Raven.

0000

Fatigue, weakness and exhaustion all felt too accurate descriptions right now.

Seeal wasn't sure she could stand up from the support of the pallet even if she wanted to, to be able to move out to join the shuffling footsteps of what sounded like a lot of her fellow survivors just outside the tent flap to her right.

She looked back to the left, to the rows of medical beds, most of them occupied, but there were a couple free. She could just go to one, lie down and sleep. She was pretty sure they would allow that given it was a medical tent! It looked like everyone lying on a bed was already asleep anyway as people tended to them.

Except she really, desperately wanted off this Wraith shitty planet.

The Portal surely wasn't that far away outside.

She just needed to push a bit further.

Just one last walk to be free of this place…

She took a deep breath and looked to her right where that slither of sunlight glinted between the tent flaps. Just a bit further.

Just like the last pit fight of a sector competition. When you'd faced too many different fighters, worked your way to the last two and those final fights had either been over in moments because your opponent was just far more exhausted or injured than you, or the fight had become a seemingly endless test of pure endurance. The last two fighters, both equally tired and looking for the smallest opening to end the mutual exhaustion by taking a winning shot at the other. She had usually won those types of final fights, so she could win here too.

Pushing herself wearily away from the pallet against her back, she was surprised that her legs were actually holding her up, but they were. Her painful ankle complained a little louder, but she forced herself to turn towards the tent exit and move forward, reaching out with her wrapped, aching hands to push her way out into the sunlight outside.

She was momentarily blinded as she stepped out of the tent and into that bright light, so she held still, blinking with one hand against her forehead to shield her sensitive eyes. As she'd predicted from sound alone, there was a wall of Humanity just in front of her, all packed tightly together and slowly shuffling towards the left. She looked to the far left and saw the wonderful sight of the active Portal at the end of the line, perhaps ten metres away.

Glancing to the right along the line of shuffling people, she saw that she was about halfway down the thick slow queue, so pushing her way into the line was the only way to join.

She just wished she felt like she had the energy to do it.

Looking ahead at the dishevelled display of other survivors she realised the far side were in the shade, the cover provided by a high ridge of ground on the far side of the queue. Up on the ridge towards the Portal, there were several males dressed in Alliance Military uniforms…watching over everyone, eyes turned up and out. She looked up towards the sky above them and spotted the dark shape high up in the thick layered clouds. A big Military ship by the looks of it, and then several far smaller dots of Military Fighters in a tight formation passed underneath it, too far up to be audible.

She watched them fly over, watched them disappear off to the right…

She blinked at the far end of the ridge of high ground.

Was she hallucinating? That was very possible right now, but she blinked and frowned at the Oneakka-shaped person stood at the very end of the ridge.

Was it actually him?

How as he here? He was still on sick leave off-rotation… Was it really him?

She shifted the small distance she had available to the right between the tent exit and the wall of trudging survivors, her eyes fixed up on him.

His back was towards her as he looked off into the far distance – always on duty, watching out for everyone.

He shifted his weight, lifting a pad in his hand and his face turned into profile as he looked at the small screen. His pale complexion, his mohawk and facial tattoos blissfully visible now.

It was him!

He was actually here!

Without thinking, she threw both her arms straight up in the air and waved them, but belatedly realised that he obviously couldn't see her from here.

She lowered her arms and squeezed herself between the wall of the medical tent and the side of the packed queue of fellow survivors. Pushing her way awkwardly through the confined space, made more difficult by the fact that the tent wall gave too easily against her hand and that she was moving the 'wrong' way down the line. Then she tripped up over a pair of guy-ropes holding the medical tent in place, but she managed to steady herself by grabbing hold of one of the thick ropes and someone kindly gripped her elbow. She thanked whoever it was, but forged on, eyes back up on Oneakka.

She was getting closer.

She lifted one arm again, waving it, knowing if he saw that kind of movement in his peripheral vision he'd look round.

But she was still too far down from him, so she pushed on. Sliding herself between people and tent, apologising as she went, especially when she felt herself treading on some toes, but she kept her eyes up on Oneakka the whole time.

He was actually here. She'd thought she'd have to wait, but he was here.

Around another guy-rope, she lifted her arm straight up again, waving it as she stumbled onwards, her legs only just seeming to be working.

He shifted, turning towards the end of the queue, his profile even clearer.

She waved more wildly as she squeezed on alongside the line.

His head turned; he'd seen the movement…

She stopped and raised her other arm, waving them both as high as possible to draw his attention over the heads of all the other survivors in the dense queue.

His gaze instantly tracked to her waving, fixed on her, and she saw him recognise her in an instant, his entire body turning towards her.

It was him. It really was!

She could see his mouth moving, but she was far too far away to hear him, but he was now moving rapidly along the ridge.

She looked at the thick line of people in front of her, between her and the closest area of that ridge.

"Excuse me, sorry, thank you," she uttered on repeat as she shoved herself in between people, definitely treading on toes now, but that was more from uncoordinated legs, and her ankle protested sharply as she angled it badly, but she kept on moving.

Crossing the river of people, apologising as she went, not aware of anything but the rock ahead and seeing Oneakka moving closer along its top until he was level with where she was crossing the moving line.

Then she was through the people, at the rock, but the ridge was higher than she'd realised from the other side and she set both hands against it, looking up to where Oneakka was crouched high above her, reaching one pale arm down towards her. She only needed to get a metre or so up to his hand.

She considered the rocky wall in front of her. Climbing was her thing; she could easily get up this. She reached up and got a grip on two hopeful handholds, then looked down, locating at least one rough ledge of rock that her boot could fit on. She almost set her weak ankle side on it, but switched and set the toes of her other boot on the ledge and pushed and pulled herself upwards.

Her arms and shoulders protested instantly, but she ignored it as she braced herself flat against the wall, reaching up for a higher hold, pulling herself upwards. Her shoulders were already shaking with muscle fatigue barely a few feet up the wall, and her hands felt almost numb as she tightly gripped the rock, but she got her right boot up and onto something strong enough under her. Her ankle screamed in protest, but she pushed up, able to release one hand and look up.

Oneakka's hand was only just out of reach.

"…little further Raven," his voice drifted down to her over the sound of all the voices below her and the rushing in her ears.

She lifted one boot, blindly scraping it against rock until she found a little ledge for her toes, reached up for another handhold, pulled herself up. Her head hanging back, she looked up, let go of the wall with one hand again and reached up towards Oneakka's open hand.

His grip was warm and strong, and suddenly her weight was being lifted. She pressed her free hand and boots flat against the wall, walking up the rock wall as he pulled her up with a strength that felt awe-inspiring given how exhausted she felt.

The top of the ridge was abruptly in her eyeline as he lifted her, so she reached up to it, set one hand flat on it, then one knee as she felt Oneakka's other arm around her back, pulling her up and onto the ridge towards where he was crouched in front of her.

The rock felt solid under both her knees now, then under one hip as she lost all ability to hold herself up, and she all but collapsed forward against Oneakka's chest.

But she willingly slumped into the embrace, his arms tight around her back, as she flattened her cheek against his inner shoulder. He felt so real, so strong and solid when everything else felt so watery and shaky.

She just prayed that this wasn't a dream, that she wasn't going to wake up still trapped in that horrendously awful tunnel, or still falling from orbit…

But, she could feel him breathing, feel this arms moving around her, hear his voice distantly as she tightened her arms around his body armour.

She was safe now.

Oneakka was here, it was okay to sleep now.

"…Raven?!" His voice cut through the blurring sleepiness and she opened her eyes as she registered the fearful edge to his voice. She blinked out past the base of his throat towards the stupid orange bare landscape and the top of the bright medical tents.

"Are you hurt, Raven?" His question was asked loudly just above her head and she realised he was squeezing firmly down her arm then her upper leg, checking for injuries. She'd seen the Medics do that in the medical tent.

He was worried she was injured.

"Just my right ankle," she reported, her breathing feeling too short and shallow again. Stupid alien air on this crappy planet.

"…blood…" he said, but it was just too much sound to process. Every last drip of energy and focus was draining away behind the muted wall of sleepiness, everything drifting away except the feel and knowledge that he was here.

And then there was a sense of weightlessness and she was shuffled slightly, her cheek pressing against the smoothness of body armour and she could feel one of his arms under her knees; he was carrying her then. That was okay, he'd done it before. He could sort everything out.

She'd done enough.

Swaying unclear motions registered for a while and then shadows replaced the sunlight against the outside of her eyelids. All motions stopped and warmth surrounded her instead. Everything felt instantly better, the air clearer and everything smelt good.

But then something sharp was jabbed against her left upper arm.

"…ankle, but there's blood on her temple," Oneakka's voice registered.

What blood? Was someone else hurt?

She blinked open her eyes to find that she was inside a ship now by the looks of the bulkhead behind Oneakka's shoulder. She glanced away from it as something tightened around her left wrist. She frowned round and down at the uncomfortable touch.

"Hello," a female's face filled her vision. "Can you tell me your name?"

What a crazy question. Oneakka could answer that.

"Seeal," she still replied though, blinking down at her arm. The female had gloved fingers tight against her pulse. Ah, a Healer then.

"Do you have a headache? Dizziness?" the female asked as she finally let go of Seeal's wrist.

"No," Seeal replied, though her voice sounded really far away, almost like it wasn't hers.

"How is your breathing?"

Why so many questions?

"Better now," Seeal reported simply.

"Good," the female's voice replied, but it was just all too much again.

Seeal rested her head back against Oneakka, vaguely aware of sunlight through an open hatchway, saw people moving into the ship.

Oneakka shifted, his arms drawing her closer towards him as she heard movement behind her.

Was she on his lap?

People were talking, various unidentifiable noises all mixing and then there was another sharp scrape against her arm.

But she just ignored it this time as she closed her eyes.

"…her some fluids, but I can't see...vitals…okay considering."

"…the blood on her?" Oneakka's voice asked, deep and vibrating into her through the body armour that was not the most comfortable pillow for her, but she wasn't complaining. It was comfortable enough to finally sleep.

"…we'll be going…Portal once the last…"

The voices faded away as she curled up into the warmth and let go of the last of her resistance against the exhaustion.

She knew Oneakka would get her home.

Finally home.

0000
TBC