by Martha Wells
John stepped back into cover as more stun blasts hit the wall near him. Ronon leaned out, took several shots, and the blasts abruptly stopped. John could see Kethel wasn't unconscious, his eyes were open, but his hands were twitching helplessly. The Eidolon couldn't lift his arm to reach the transponder on his shoulder.
John swore and ducked out into the corridor, leaning over Kethel. He grabbed the scanner where it had fallen on the deck, tossing it back to Ronon. Then he pushed the transponder on Kethel's shoulder. It pulsed blue, and John flinched back as Kethel's body dissolved in a sudden blue-white flash.
As he started to stand, a drone barreled around the corner, almost on top of him. It lunged for him and John fell backward, firing the P-90 almost point blank. Then a blast from Ronon's energy gun took the drone in the face, and Ronon grabbed John's arm, yanking him back through the hatchway.
Teyla hit the door control, but just as the membrane was folding down, another drone reached the hatchway, leaning down to fire his stunner under it. Ronon caught a burst in the leg and staggered, dropping his gun. He went to one knee, reeling. John lunged for Ronon's fallen gun, grabbed it and fired at the door control. The burst of energy fused the organic components just as the membrane sealed. The burned area steamed, releasing a sickening smell like fried meat.
Wincing at the odor, John said, "I hope that worked." He turned to Ronon. "You okay?" Ronon didn't look okay. He was trying to stand, but one arm hung limply and he struggled to move his leg; he looked like he was having a stroke. Teyla grabbed his arm, just managing to keep him upright. "How many hits did he take?" John asked incredulously.
"At least two," Teyla said with a sympathetic wince. Ronon tried to lurch to his feet and almost fell over. She set her jaw and held onto him. "Send him back?"
John nodded. "Do it."
Ronon growled an incoherent protest, glaring at them, but Teyla let go of his arm and pressed his transponder. She stepped away as Ronon disappeared in the flash. John keyed his radio, "Rodney, you got Ronon?"
"What? Hold it, wait-Yes, yes, he's here!" There was a slurred grumbling protest in the background. Rodney came back on, sounding sour, "He's not happy about it, but he's fine."
"Get him to the jumper." John signed off as he looked around. The dimly lit chamber was packed with pulsing membranes and bizarre organic shapes that looked like the internal organs of something huge, all shrouded with web. He could hear thumping and a high-power hum from just outside the closed membrane, a pointed reminder that they didn't have much time before the Wraith cut their way in here.
Teyla pivoted, flashing her P-90's light into the dark corners, her face grim. "I do not see it. Will Kethel's scanner work for us?"
"Good question." John studied the little device, brow furrowed. The screen showed the same schematic that Kethel had used to pick a spot for the damn bomb, and according to it, these were the coordinates it had been beamed to. John turned, surveying the chamber again. "It's working, and it looks like we're in the right spot, but where the hell is-" Then his eyes fell on a set of small familiar-looking tentacles sticking out of the bulkhead. They were near one of the pulsing organ-things, a foot or so above the deck. The energy drones. Oh, crap. The bomb was melded to the organic material of the ship's wall. "That can't be good."
Teyla followed his gaze, shocked. "Kethel was right, it was beamed into a wall." She shook her head, her brow creased. "Can it still work like that?" She threw a look back at the door membrane; a glowing spot was forming in the center, letting off steam and smoke as the Wraith outside burned their way through. "There is no time for anything else."
There was only one way to find out. "Get ready to hit your transponder." Just for luck, John closed his eyes, concentrating the way he did in the puddlejumper or the weapons chair, thinking about the energy drones, thinking about launching, targeting, impact. He pressed the detonator touchpad again.
There was a muted thump. John opened his eyes to see the heavy bulkhead around the bomb bulged out, like it was a misshapen helium balloon. He exchanged a desperate look with Teyla. "Okay, that's-"
Across the room, the door membrane exploded outward, sending them staggering back, showering the room with slimy debris. John ducked, raking the doorway with a burst of fire from the P-90, driving back the first two drones to step inside. Teyla opened fire an instant later, shouting, "We must go! It is not going to-"
Suddenly the distended bulkhead started to glow white, a high power whine filling the chamber. That did it, John thought. He yelled, "Go, go now!"
Two drones forced their way through the shattered door membrane, just as Teyla hit her transponder. She vanished and John pressed the crystal in his. The drones lifted their stunners, then the chamber disappeared in a haze of white light.
CHAPTER TWELVE
ohn sat down hard, but the floor he landed on was the floor of the maintenance bay in the installation. The abrupt change to brighter light and warm clean air was a shock. Next to him, Teyla was sprawled on the floor, just pushing herself upright.
Kethel and Caras were lying on the floor nearby, a couple of older Eidolon checking them out with some sort of medical scanner. John didn't see Edane, but nobody was acting worried. There weren't many Eidolon left in the room anymore; Edane might have been sent away to evacuate already. Across the room, the Queen and the others were still gathered around the console, watching the realtime sensor image of the scout ship.
Rodney hurried over from the jumper, crouching down beside John. He demanded, "Did it work? We need to get out of here as soon as possible."
Teyla pushed her hair back, starting to say, "It looked as if-"
At the console, one of the Eidolon said, "I'm reading an energy surge-
Then lines of red and black crept through and across the ship's image, growing out from the center. John heard a reverberating roar from outside, and the glowing hologram image tipped sideways, drifting downward, the angle changing as the sensors followed it down. John slumped in relief. "It worked."
"That was... uncomfortably close," Teyla said ruefully, and drew her fingers through her hair, combing out a handful of door membrane with a disgusted expression.
"That's our specialty," John told her. The adrenaline was wearing off, and he had time to notice just how much he hurt. Knee, side, the occasional shooting pain down his back. And he had a big splat of door membrane goo on his shirt.
"Seriously, we have to move," Rodney persisted. "The Mirror's accretion surface is building up to a major discharge and from my readings, it'll be the last one before the singularity collapses."
"Yeah, we're leaving now." John looked back at the jumper. Ronon was sprawled on the open ramp, Miko anxiously patting his hand. "How's Ronon?"
Rodney snorted, making a throw-away gesture. "He's fine, he's just sulking because he can barely move."
Then John saw the Queen coming toward them, her dark skirts sweeping the floor. Before John could try flailing to his feet, Rodney and Teyla got a grip under his arms and they all stood up together. The Queen stopped a few paces away, and said, "The Wraith ship is completely disabled. We thank you."
"You're welcome." John watched her warily. They had fulfilled their part of the bargain, and if the Eidolon wanted to screw them over, now would be the time. But the Queen just said, "The singularity is close to detaching, so we must retreat to our ships now. The others have already evacuated." She paused, as if weighing what to say, and it was odd to see her show even this much uncertainty. "If the Mirror does not function as expected-"
"It'll work," John said, because he didn't want to think about the alternative. Not until he had to.
The Queen eyed him, apparently deciding not to argue with the crazy human. She said, "Good luck."
John backed away with Rodney and Teyla as the blue-white transport beam outlined the Eidolon's bodies. In another instant the whole group vanished. He let his breath out in relief, shoving a hand through his hair. "Right. Rodney, what do we need to do?"
Rodney bolted for the stairs that led up to the Mirror control platform. "I need to make a last adjustment, then we go." He waved a distracted hand overhead. "The ceiling hatch will open automatically for the jumper, so that's not a problem."
John told Teyla, "I'll stay with him."
Teyla nodded and started for the jumper. "I will get Ronon inside and make sure the others are strapped in."
John followed Rodney up the stairs to the platform, keeping himself going mostly by force of will. He reached the platform to see Rodney at the big console, carefully manipulating a set of touchpad controls. Then he saw the miniature Mirror in the center.
He forgot his exhaustion, and limped forward for a closer look, circling around the console. From what this was showing him, the Mirror was an angry swirling cloud, throwing off jagged sparks of light. And he was going to take the jumper into it and hope it got them back home. Rodney glanced up and saw his expression. His mouth twisted in grim agreement, he said, "We've only got one shot at this."
"Yeah, well." John hadn't been expecting anything better.
John heard footsteps and looked at the stairs, expecting to see Teyla. But the figure standing at the top of the steps was Edane. The Eidolon halted, one hand on the railing, staring blankly at them. "I thought you guys were gone," John said, puzzled, though maybe the Queen had sent him back for some reason.
Edane said, "I stayed behind to help."
Occupied with the Mirror, Rodney barely glanced up. "I don't need help. After this last sequence engages, we'll be set to go."
Edane was looking at John, his alien eyes unreadable. That was when John knew why he was here.
John jerked the P-90 up but Edane threw himself across the small platform, slapping the weapon aside and slamming John backward into the floor. John caught Edane's arm before his hand could hit his chest, held it off inches away from him, the P-90 trapped between their bodies.
The bizarre thing was that Edane still didn't look that much like a Wraith. His features were still smooth and human, and his yellow eyes intent, lost in concentration; he was focused on his task and completely oblivious to the fact that John was pinned under him and fighting for his life.
Past Edane's shoulder John caught a glimpse of Rodney scrambling up, dragging out his sidearm and taking aim. Take the shot, Rodney, he thought, teeth gritted, all his strength concentrated on holding Edane back. He knew to his bones that he would rather take a stray bullet than be fed on.
Then Edane twisted, abruptly pulling away from John to slam the pistol out of Rodney's hand. It went off, flying across the platform. Rodney stumbled sideways, knocked off balance, and John tried to wrestle the P-90 up again. Edane grabbed it, tore it off the strap, and backhanded John. John's head bounced off the floor. Stunned for an instant, he saw Edane leaning over him.
Then somebody fired a 9mm, emptying the clip.
Dazed, John watched Edane stagger sideways and fall.
Trishen was standing beside the Mirror console. She set Rodney's pistol down on the edge with a shaking hand. She said, "We realized he was missing. Mother sent me back to find him."
Rodney dropped to his knees beside John, patting his shoulder anxiously. "You said you didn't feed on sentient beings!" he shouted at Trishen, furious and afraid. "What the hell was that?"
She shook her head. "I lied to you. That was the only lie."
John lifted a hand to his jaw. That really hurt. He managed to say, "Yeah, we figured that out."
John heard someone charging up the stairs, saw Teyla jerk to a sudden halt at the top, P-90 ready. John lifted a hand, signaling her not to fire. She nodded an acknowledgement, eyes wide as she took in the scene.
Trishen glanced back at Teyla and said, "It isn't-We aren't like the Wraith. We don't need the life force of sentient beings, but we can take it, and some are tempted. Some ofus go all our lives without ever feeling that temptation, others feel it and resist. But there are always a few who give in." She looked at Edane's body sprawled on the platform, and pressed a hand to her mouth. After a moment she continued, "They try to resist, but eventually they give way, and they take a life. A sibling, a friend, a child. It's terrible, and we punish them as the criminals they are."
"You have to kill them," Rodney said, sounding shellshocked. And now John understood what Kethel had said, about stun-weapons being forbidden. Of course they're forbidden. If you wanted to feed on someone, you needed him immobile but conscious, not dead. Rodney's throat worked and he shook his head. "Of course, you have to kill them."
Trishen nodded. "Yes. Once one of us succumbs, there is no turning back. Edane would have been dangerous to everyone he encountered." She made a helpless gesture. "We have tried to discover why, to stop it, but there's no answer. We can't tell if it's genetic, and there are no other signs of insanity or criminal acts. When we find places left behind by the Creators, that is the answer we desperately search for." She looked up, and this time John had no trouble reading the bleak misery in her expression. "My mother believes that the Creators were dying from the plague when they gave us life, and that they didn't survive long enough to finish what they had started. Some of the others here wanted to ask your assistance, thought that perhaps you could help us."
Rodney nodded, eyeing her. "Then we told you that we didn't know very much about the Wraith."
"Yes. And we knew the Creators didn't begin work on our race until long after they came here, so the chances of our solution even existing in your reality seemed small. My mother thought it safer for all of us if you left as soon as possible, then we realized the singularity was detaching and that there was no other choice. But we have the bodies of the Wraith killed inside the complex for our doctors to examine, and perhaps that will help us."
Watching her with a furrowed brow, looking torn between sympathy and disgust, Teyla said, "You were not afraid of us. You were afraid of what you might do to us.
Trishen turned toward her. "I was afraid of you because I knew you had every reason to kill me. The longer I was around you, there was something... strangely compelling. I was afraid that there would be those here who, though they weren't tempted by members of their own species, would be tempted by you."
John grabbed Rodney's arm, dragged himself into a sitting position. He said harshly, "We've got to go."
Trishen nodded, her face set in what might have been regret. "I'm sorry. I hope.. .that you will be safe." She touched her transponder and an instant later the bluewhite light took her.
Teyla came forward hurriedly. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, just help me up." John held back a yelp as they hauled him upright. Once there, he thought he was fine; it was just that transition from sprawled on the floor to standing that he was having trouble with.
"Well, that was fun," Rodney said, grimly determined, picking up his side arm from where Trishen had left it and holstering it again. "Now let's go give the giant Quantum Mirror another shot at us, shall we?"
They got down to the jumper, and while John managed to fold himself into the pilot seat, Rodney secured the ramp. Rodney came forward to the shotgun seat to strap himself in, while Teyla stayed in the back. Powering up the board, John heard her quietly telling Miko and Ronon what had happened. Radek was only semi-conscious, strapped in on the bench with a couple of pillows from the sleeping bags to help pad him.
As they lifted off the bay floor, the ceiling hatch started to open, the triangular partitions sliding out of the way, letting in wan daylight and a strong breeze that carried dust all through the empty chamber. His voice tight with anxiety, Rodney said, "There's a chance of a strong concussion wave when we hit the accretion surface. Not hit. Pass through. I meant pass through the accretion surface."
John stared at him. "Right." He lifted the jumper up through the hatch.
As soon as they cleared the roof, the jumper registered a strong pull forward. Down on the platform, past the far side of the Mirror's frame, the Wraith scout ship was in pieces, smoke swirling up from
it. But the lighter dart wreckage was stirring, lifting up as if pulled by a tractor beam. "Gravity well?" John asked.
"Yes." Rodney studied the platform, eyes wide. "It's going to pull some of this wreckage in. And us too."
"Here we go," John said, and directed the jumper straight for the Mirror.
The silver surface grew larger and larger in the port until there was nothing else. Then everything went black.
Carson felt he was half-mad from waiting. The Daedalus had been scanning the system for hours now, with no result. He couldn't fault their efforts; Hermiod and Dr. Novak had come up to the bridge to assist, and the little Asgard was at one of the consoles now, finetuning the sensors to better search for the jumper.
"It doesn't look good, Doc," Lorne said. He leaned on the bulkhead, watching the activity at the forward section of the bridge, his face set with concern. "If they had to land somewhere on this moon, they would have come out by now."
Carson knew Lorne was trying to prepare him for the worst. But Carson knew just how many times Rodney, Sheppard, and Teyla had survived the worst, and they had some good people with them. "Then it's either the Wraith or the Quantum Mirror, Major." Both possibilities were fairly terrible. He folded his arms, shaking his head. "I'd rather it was the Mirror. At least then we'd have a chance of finding them."
Lorne frowned. "They wouldn't have gone into that thing voluntarily. McKay knows just how dangerous it is." He threw an uncertain look at Carson. "Would they?"
Carson had to admit, "No, I don't think so either, lad. Not voluntarily."
An alarm went off somewhere forward. Carson saw Caldwell stride over to look at Hermiod's screen. He decided to hell with patience. He hurried forward, demanding, "What is it?"
Caldwell glanced up from the screen to say, "The Mirror's apparently activated. It's spitting out Wraith darts, and pieces of a ship."
"A ship?" Carson looked from Lorne to Caldwell, wishing the man would just say what he meant. "Is it-