Findings and Decisions - 3. Blind trust 3
Title: Findings and Decisions
Author: split
Fandom: Stargate Universe
Pairing: Eli W. / Everett Y. / Nicholas R. (that's the plan, if they don't resist ^^°)
Rating: P12 Slash
Genre: SciFi / Drama
Summary: Destiny reaches the next galaxy and Young and Rush wake from stasis, but something is wrong. Eli's pod is empty and the clock reading of the ship just can't be right...
In panic, Eli stared at the dark surface, but aside from the waves of the incoming water he couldn’t make out any movement. He knew he stood no chance against an animal that would attack him under water, but he had to do something.
“Don’t panic, that won’t get you anywhere,” he whispered to himself as he tried to calm down, with little success. He pulled his shirt over his head and lay down the flash light. He wasn’t leaving without Rush.
Carefully he slipped into the water.
His heart beat heavily.
The water already reached his chest when his feet hit solid ground. He could feel the current but it didn’t hinder him. A contact at his leg made him cringe but nothing else happened. He didn’t have any time left to think about it - to envision all kinds of horror scenarios. Rush had already been under water for too long. He closed his eyes and dove at the spot where he last had seen Rush.
After a short time he was able to grab a piece of cloth, finally an arm, and he dragged Rush up along with it. He pulled his head above the water, found his bearings by the glow of the flash light on the ledge and swam the few yards over to it. Hurriedly, he pulled Rush’s lifeless body onto the bank, which was already under water. The roar of the numerous small waterfalls was getting deafening and the salty water which was running out of his hair stung his eyes.
“Rush! Come on, wake up.“ As much as he tried, Eli wasn’t able to hold back the panic anymore. He felt for a pulse but couldn’t find any. With all his strength he pulled the slender man higher out of the water, wrenched the backpack off his shoulders and followed with shaking hands TJ’s voice in his head, which was telling him the different steps of resuscitation again and again. He had been annoyed by having to practice it regularly, but TJ had insisted because she couldn’t always be there, especially on a planetary mission.
When, after an eternity, Rush finally coughed up the swallowed water and opened his eyes, Eli thanked her silently for her hardheadedness.
“Rush? Are you okay?”
Rush needed a couple of attempts before he managed a hoarse ‘yes’. A small trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth. He must have bitten himself.
“Come on. We just have to get a little bit higher, then you can rest.“
Because Rush could barely move Eli had to muster the strength for them both and, in the end, lay down out of breath next to Rush on the higher ledge. Rush didn’t move anymore beside him but he was breathing fairly even, though flatly, which reassured Eli. With a wet hand, he was reaching blindly for the backpack and hauling it back when he got a slight electric shock. “Ouch.” Confused, he looked to the side and watched, bewildered, as one of the crystals that he had touched accidently started to glow and send small arcs of light to its neighboring crystals. Those started to glow too and like a chain reaction it continued from one to the other. Breathless Eli watched as the whole cave lit up bit by bit.
“Rush. Look.”
The scientist forced his eyes open unwillingly and could now see what they only could have guessed the whole time in the dark. The ceiling was completely overgrown by crystals that were now glowing softly. And the cave was actually gigantic; what they had seen in the dark had only been a fraction of it.
“… ‘tals… ba’pack.” Rush was hardly intelligible, but Eli knew what he was trying to say. He pulled the backpack closer, this time being careful not to touch the wall. Then he got the wet cloth with the collected samples from it. When Eli opened it the crystals were tarnished black.
Carefully he brushed the surface of one. A kind of light soot was left on his fingers.
“Wow, they really don’t like the water. But why are they growing down here at all?” Eli wiped his hand on his trousers, wrapped the samples back up, and packed them away together with the flash light he didn’t need anymore. The water had only gotten partly into it so the jackets had mostly stayed dry. He got them out and took a closer look to find out what else Rush had brought besides the knife and the testing units. It wasn’t much. A bottle of water - not that they didn’t have more than enough of it at the moment, albeit impotable - a small bag of tried berries, and his radio, which was probably useless thanks to the electric shock. Besides, there was certainly no reception down here. Obviously Rush had anticipated neither difficulties nor that it might take longer. Great. A mathematical genius he might be, but a boy scout he surely wasn’t.
Eli sighed. And like an idiot he had blindly followed him just to get away from the others. That hadn’t been exactly clever either.
He shivered and was reminded that he was completely soaked. The inflowing rainwater had lowered the average temperature considerably. They had to get dry if they were going to stay for some time. He got out of the rest of his clothes and got the still dry shirt back on. Only the wet shorts he left on, even though it wasn’t really comfortable.
“Rush, are you able to move?”
“What for?” His voice was still rough.
“You have to get dry. The temperature is dropping.”
Rush didn’t move.
“Then I’ll have to do it.” Resolutely Eli grabbed Rush’s shirt, which made the man flinch.
“Eli!”
Eli expected that Rush would push him away, but the man barely managed to lift his arms before they dropped powerlessly.
“How many volts did the damned thing send through you?” Eli asked, surprised but undeterred. He continued more carefully, ignoring the quietly hissed insults and curses. As long as Rush could still curse everything was alright.
When Eli was finished he put the second jacket on him. The rock beneath them hadn’t lost any of its warmth yet luckily. Hopefully it would stay like this for a while.
“Look, much better. Spare the dark look and get your body back under control. Get some rest. I’ll keep an eye on everything.” Eli lay down next to Rush and tried to relax. The panic slowly seeped out of his body and his heartbeat normalized, leaving him drained. He listened to the sounds from the cave while he watched the glowing crystals above them. Their low humming was barely audible beneath the roar of the water. Eli wasn’t sure, but it seemed to him it had gotten slightly quieter. Maybe, after all their disasters, they had some luck and they wouldn’t be stuck too long down here.
oOo
„That’s it.“ Brody gestured in the direction of the open gate, and Young, who had been talking to Greer, stepped up to him.
“Are you sure?”
“I went through the list of all available planets. No sign of Rush or Eli. But I didn’t get any data from this one. So, either the kino is damaged or someone switched it off or brought it out of range.”
“Good. Send a new one. I won’t send anybody through blindly.“
Corporal Barnes already had one of the small devices ready and let it slide through the event horizon after a sign from Brody. It only took a couple of moments before it started sending back plenty of data and a recording.
“It’s raining cats and dogs,” Brody asserted first.
Greer stepped up next to them, too, and took a look at the recording. There was hardly anything to see. “If there had been any traces they’re already washed away. Are you sure they’re there?”
“Yes, even though I can’t explain why, they… wait.” Brody entered something into the console and some more data appeared on the display next to the kino broascast.
“This is the original data from the first kino. Do you see that? It’s a really unusual energy signature. I already noticed it this morning but I wanted to investigate it later. I’ll wager Rush saw it too and wanted to take a closer look.”
Young took his radio. “Rush, come in.” He waited a couple of seconds before he tried again. “Eli, do you read?”
“They’re either too far away or reception is disturbed.”
“Let’s hope it’s only one of these. Can you locate the remote?”
“No, not from here. But as soon as someone goes to the planet it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“But we can’t risk it with this weather. Close it and dial every half hour. Keep me posted. As soon as the rain lets up you go through, Greer. Stand by.”
“Yes sir.”
“All right.” Brody shut the gate and Young left the gate room. Greer hesitated for a moment before following the colonel. He caught up to him in the empty corridor.
“Colonel?“
„Yes, Sergeant?“
„Rush’ll keep an eye on Eli. He always comes back.”
Young just nodded and watched as Greer went back to the gate room.
No matter how much of a genius each of them were, Rush and Eli were magnets for disaster.
It also could have been bad luck, or the fact that they didn’t belong out here. Whatever the reason was, he would bet they were in a stupid dangerous situation again. He hoped they would come back safe and sound so he could strangle Rush personally and lock Eli up somewhere. Both of them drove him mad.
oOo
Rush’s vision was blurred. Pain ripped through his nerves and made his muscles spasm as electric shocks went through his body over and over again. He was defenseless against Kiva's men, but he wouldn't give up easily. He tried to get away, tried to move as far as his hurting muscles would allow it but something held him back. Panicked, he tried to fight it off.
"Dr. Rush... Rush!... Damn it, Nick! Believe me, you don't want me to let go of you."
Cold water splashed into his face; leaving salt on his rough lips, and he came to. Only a few inches away from his eyes was the dark surface of the lake. Eli's arms held him around the chest and barely kept him from falling. Surprised, Rush drew back and Eli used the momentum to roll them over and get some space between them and the water.
"You can move again. Great," Eli said dryly, but his voice was unsteady.
Rush clenched his fists, moved his legs and toes. Yes, he could move again but his muscles still hurt like hell and there wasn't much strength in his grip. He wasn't surprised that this reminded him of his stay with the Lucian Alliance. The electric shock of the creature seemed similar to that of an electric eel on Earth and it had brought back the memory in each and every cell of his body far too clearly.
He brushed his shaky hands over his face and tried to banish the pictures from his inner eye. With little success.
"How long..."
"Did you sleep? About an hour. The rain must have stopped a while ago. Anyway, the water isn't rising anymore, luckily. It was getting close. I just hope it won’t take days till it drains because I'm already starving." Eli's grumbling stomach emphasized his last words.
"There're berries in the backpack."
"I know. I ate half of them, rest is for you."
"Just eat 'em. 'm not hungry."
"It's okay. Maybe later."
"Eli."
"Save me the 'Eli'." He copied Rush's tone and got out the water bottle. "Drink. You might feel better afterwards."
Rush peered at Eli and finally complied. Eli had to help him straighten up for drinking. He gulped down some water and lay back down. His body was thankful for it.
"Meanwhile, I did some more recordings of the crystals. Maybe they'll help later somehow, but there is nothing else to do but wait, which is boring as hell."
"So sleep. I'm awake now."
"I'm not tired. I've rested enough."
"Can you say that again without your eyes closing every other second?" Rush asked without hesitation. Eli gave him a dark look and went back to watching the crystals without another word.
Rush took the remote and watched the recordings and measurements Eli had made in the last hour on the small display. The crystals had expanded their electromagnetic fields considerably. He didn't even need the kino's sensors to feel that. He could feel the energy on his skin where the small hairs stood on end. It was a strange feeling.
"I never thought of you as a hobby geologist," Eli said after a while out of the blue and Rush looked at him, confused.
"How did you get that thought?"
"We're in a cave with glowing crystals? Granted, they're fascinating and beautiful, but still you never would leave the ship for something like this. Unless you were hoping for something else." Eli looked at him suspiciously. "Where did you think the energy would come from? What were you expecting down here?"
"Nothing important. The colonel kicked me literally off of the ship and I was just curious."
"You’re at least as bad a liar as I am."
Rush didn't reply. His arms had already started to protest against holding the remote. He laid it aside and tried to relax, watching the crystals like Eli. Neither did Eli say anything after that. Finally it was Rush who broke the monotonous sounds of the cave because the silence seemed overwhelming. Normally he didn't care. Maybe it was their current situation.
“Gloria would’ve liked this place. She loved crystals. She didn’t want to know anything about their underlying mathematical structures. She just loved the clear edges, the colors caused by material inclusions, and the manifold shapes. The wonder of nature. Mandy, on the other hand, liked their technical possibilities and could spend hours with the crystalline circuitry of the Goa’uld and the Ancients…”
Rush went silent and Eli needed a moment before he asked, confused: “Why’re you telling me this?”
“Because you asked.” Rush looked to the side and directly into Eli’s face.
“I didn’t…” He could exactly see the moment when Eli realized the meaning of his words.
“You saw the kino footage!” Eli bolted upright, his face contorted in rage for a couple of seconds. But before he said something, he took a deep breath and sank back resigned. The angry expression vanished as fast as it had appeared. “Damn it, you shouldn’t have seen those.”
“I know.”
“How much?“
„Does it matter?“
„How much?“
„Most of it. I had to know what you were doing all this time. We already know that Destiny can’t be operated by one person alone. That many repairs need more than one person, because anything else would be too dangerous. A great part I skipped through in fast forward.”
“You could’ve just asked me. I would’ve told you. At least, what’s important.”
Rush could not resent Eli the reproachful look. Watching the records had been a great violation of his privacy, after all, as far as there was anything like privacy on a space ship.
“You had a lot of questions you couldn’t answer by yourself and there was nobody else to answer them for you. Always aware of the fact that you might not make it through. That must have been… difficult.”
“Sometimes.”
“But you had a lot of fun too.”
“How did you get that idea?”
“Yoga with an alien energy being that preferred to take your form? As far as I can tell you looked happy in those moments.” Rush raised an eyebrow and Eli looked at him, stunned, before he grinned and broke into peals of laughter. “Oh my gosh yes, Sidus. Somehow I had to stay fit and I was never much of a runner. So I tried what Chloe had shown me. It helped and he was just curious about everything. I don’t know if he understood why I did it. How much he understood at all of all those things I told him.” He gasped for air and suddenly the laughter was mingled with tears and erratic breathing. Embarrassed Eli turned away and rubbed his eyes hastily, tried to calm down again. It took a while and Rush gave him the time before he continued as if nothing had happened.
“I guess that’ll stay a mystery. The Ancients took their souls with them when they ascended and transferred to energy. They took the ability to think and feel with them, in some way, even though there’re people on Earth who would question the part about feeling. But how does a being consisting only of energy evolve the ability to think and feel?”
“I asked the same question sometimes. But I didn’t care as long as Sidus was with me.”
Rush didn’t know what to reply to that. He closed his eyes reluctantly and tried to get some more rest.
oOo
Eli bent over the edge of the ledge and evaluated the water. Again. Lying there and doing nothing drove him nuts. Especially as hungry as he was. At least his stomach had stopped the embarrassing rumbling. “The water level has started falling. Fortunately.”
“Seems to be going pretty slow. It’ll take hours.“
„At least try to think optimistically for once,“ Eli grumbled. Meanwhile, the crystals had gone out once already and Eli had had to reactivate them. He still found them somewhat creepy, but he didn’t want to sit in the dark or exhaust the batteries of the flash light unnecessarily.
In the light of the crystals he had seen a swarm of small fish and unfortunately the alien electric eel, too. He had recorded everything with the kino and had seen live how the animal, that had nearly killed Rush, hunted normally. With so many animals in the water there had to be a tunnel to the outside or else the big animal would have starved long ago. He wondered if the small fish were edible. Even if they were, they had no chance of making a fire down here and he was no fan of sushi. He wouldn’t…
“Eli! Rush! What the hell are you doing there?” They both jumped when Greer’s slightly distorted voice sounded suddenly very closely. It came from the kino.
“Greer. Thank god. How did you find us?“ Eli caught the small device.
“Your traces were hard to miss after Brody told us what to look for. Besides, the signal of the remote was strong enough to make it through. Where are you? According to the readings you can’t be more than two hundred yards away, but this is a dead end. The tunnel is flooded.”
“Stating the obvious,” Rush replied. „The rain surprised us and trapped us down here in a big cave. The tunnel is too narrow to dive through and there is something in the water I don’t want to meet up close a second time.”
“Are you injured?”
“No,” Rush said before Eli could say something. The man still couldn’t move properly. This was idiotic.
“Okay. So, what’s the plan?“
„Now, that it has stopped raining the water level is falling slowly. But at the current rate it’ll take hours.”
“Do we just have to sit here and wait?” Greer asked grumpily.
Rush looked confused at Eli.
“Claustrophobic,” he mouthed, turning away from the kino.
“You don’t have to wait there. It would be even more helpful if you would go back to the surface and keep an eye on the weather. If it starts raining again, this will take forever. Also, there’re countless tunnels leading into this cave. Maybe you’ll find one that’s passable without danger.”
It was silent for a while before Greer’s voice sounded again. “We’ll see what we can do. Radio communication doesn’t reach all the way down here. We’ll work something out so you can stay in contact. Tell us as soon as something changes on your side. Greer out.”
Eli put the kino away and lay back on the stone. “Oh boy, the colonel will be so pissed.”
“Possibly, like always.”
“That’s not funny, because this time he has a right to be.“
Rush looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Eli sighed. Sometimes, Rush really seemed to be set out to provoke Young. They were like cats and dogs.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t always just funny, but dangerous, too. And at the end Eli was the one who suffered.
“You’re impossible,” Eli grumbled and turned away to stare at the water again, but his glare did nothing to help it fall faster.
oOo
Greer took an inconspicuous deep breath when he stepped out of the tunnel. The sun was rising at the horizon. The sky was a clear blue as if it hadn't been pouring just a couple of hours ago. This wasn't a comfortable planet even if it looked like it at the moment. Brody had given him the data of the kino and during daytime the canyon was going to heat up a great deal. The rain must have been an exception considering the lifeless desert around him. He didn't plan to stay longer than absolutely necessary, but this was still better than those damned tunnels. Damn Rush and his harebrained ideas.
He reported to the Colonel who sent him Scott and half a dozen other soldiers.
"What's going on? Colonel Young just said you could use some help," Scott said, when he arrived and looked around.
Greer gestured behind himself to the tunnel entrance. "Eli and Rush are trapped in a flooded cave. They aren't in any danger at the moment, but if it starts raining again or if the water isn't falling faster this will take forever. We should split up and search for other entries. Take a look around, now that we're already here. I would like to take a look from up there. There were cracks in the ceiling on the record of the cave. Maybe we can get both of them out from above."
"Good plan," Scott agreed and turned to the soldiers who had come with him through the gate. "Marsden and Dunning, you two take this direction. Reynolds and Baras, you two go this way. Graham and Panhall that way. Look for tunnels that..."
"Are heading southwest in their main direction. The sun just started rising so this is east." Greer gestured to the sky before he continued. "We haven't encountered any aliens so far, but there are animals in the water so it's possible they're on land too."
"You heard the man," Scott resumed. "Keep your eyes open and report regularly. James, you stay at the gate and keep up communication between everyone and the Destiny. Questions?"
"No, Sir."
"Then go."
"Yes, Sir," everyone said in unison, and the men scattered. Greer and Scott requested climbing gear from Destiny and went to work as soon as they received it. The soft rock made it easy to find footing but it gave way easily, too, and they had to be careful. James kept them in the loop while the climb dragged on.
oOo
"Knight to F5."
"Not possible."
"Why? Sure it's possible. I just..."
"Eli?"
Eli took the remote as Airman Metner’s voice came through, glad to end this stupid imaginary chess game. "Yes?"
"Scott said you should navigate the kino through the biggest gap you can find in the ceiling."
"Understood." He sent the kino through the gap where the most water had come from during the rain. At the moment it was just dripping now and then. He concentrated on the video, trying to assess if it was possible for them to pass through. It looked really narrow at some points. Did they even have this much rope? When the kino left the dark shaft and entered the sunlight, Eli couldn't see anything for a second. Only after the kino had switched back to normal sight mode did the surroundings get clearer. High grasses, some individual gnarled trees, only a few hills and a still low-lying sun. A steppe-like landscape. And in the middle of this Scott and Greer came walking up to the kino. They exchanged silent looks, dropped their climbing gear and drew their weapons simultaneously.
Eli starred confusedly at the display. "Uhm, guys, what's going on?"
Scott put a finger to his lips in a hushing gesture and grabbed the kino to turn it about one hundred eighty degrees.
"Holy..." Eli swallowed the rest of his words and looked fascinated at the crashed space ship that was partly buried into the ground only a couple of yards away from Scott and Greer. It must have been a hard crash. Eli could feel Rush pressing into his side to see.
"Switch back to the measurements," Rush said and Eli switched back to the charts. When he saw the high values he knew what Rush was aiming at. "You're right. The energy must have come from this ship. Maybe it had been something in their drive."
"Whatever it is, it must've drained down here with the rain, where it crystallized. Lieutenant, drop the weapons and just get us out of here first. Even if something had survived the crash it's long gone. The wreck has to have been there for quite a while. Those crystals didn't grow over night."
Eli turned the kino back to Scott. He could see that the man was hesitating, but finally he nodded and took the climbing gear.
"How does it look down there, Eli?" Scott asked while he got ready for the descent. Greer helped him.
"Not good. Water level is dropping slower now. So, even without the fish we won't get out of here the way we came in."
"Okay, then we have to try it this way. Did you notice something in the shaft?"
"There're two spots were it gets more narrow but we should be able to squeeze through I guess. I hope you're aware that I've never done this before and Doctor Rush'll have his own problems in his condition."
"Eli!"
"Condition? I thought no one was injured."
"I'm not injured."
"How do you call an electric shock that caused you a heart attack?"
"I'm fine. And we've got to get out of here somehow; there is no other way."
"I just said..."
"Enough!" Scott cut in on the quarrel because they were only loosing time. "We'll address it when it comes up. I'm coming down now. Get ready. The kino should follow me down so we can stay in contact."
"Okay." Eli was glad to finally have something to do, even if it meant that he had to get his still-clammy clothes back on. Rush gave him a couple of dark looks while he was dressing too. But Eli could see that his movements were still erratic. He couldn't imagine that he would manage it up without help.
Eli kept one eye on the events above them. Greer had secured the rope at the entrance and Scott was beginning to descend slowly.
„You were right Eli. It’s getting more narrow,“ Scott confirmed after a while. “But it’s still passable.”
When he finally arrived in the cave Eli took a relieved breath. “Stay away from the crystals. The bigger they are the more energy they generate and that’s really nasty,” he warned belatedly. “Besides, we still don’t know what else they can do, if they’ve been used in the alien drive.”
“Thanks.” Scott pulled back his hand just before touching one of them. He slid down the rope and swung back and forth till he could reach the ledge. Eli and Rush helped him gain his footing.
“Good, now that was the easy part. Getting back up will be more of a challenge. You first, Doctor Rush. Use the uneven walls of the shaft for leverage while you climb. Greer will secure you with the rope, but he can’t pull you up the whole way. Save your strength. It’s a long way up.“ Scott gave them his water bottle, which they emptied in turn. To Eli’s regret he didn’t have any food with him.
Eli sent the kino ahead and followed Rush’s ascension with apprehension. His earlier assumption was confirmed only after a short time. The man had barely managed the first yards when his hand started to tremble visibly. Nobody said anything, and interjected by countless breaks Rush fought his way up. Two times he lost hold and Greer had to catch him with the rope.
When he finally reached daylight and sat next to the shaft on the ground, Eli breathed a sigh of relief. “So stubborn,” he murmured. Scott patted his shoulder. „Nothing new. And this time it actually helped. Come on Eli, you’re next. You can do this, too.“
„Sure.“ Eli glanced skeptically up to the dark hole in the ceiling and got ready. It was time he got out of here. He didn’t take as long as Rush but the last couple of yards seemed to stretch forever.
Scott emerged from the cleft in the ground shortly after him, the backpack hanging behind him on the end of the rope.
“Boy, I’m glad we’re out of there. Thanks. Some dry clothes and something to eat and I’m going to vacation like a nice boy. I swear. What do you think, Rush?“ Eli looked around, but there was no sign of Rush. “Where did he go now?”
“Take a guess.“ Greer gestured over to the alien ship while he wrapped up the rope impassively.
“Rush! Come back. A team can take a closer look at the ship later,“ Scott shouted but he didn’t get an answer. Eli sighed. “As if he would miss out on a chance like this. I’ll go get him.“
Eli jogged the few yards over to the ship, which looked ready for scrap heap. It was hard to tell how long it had been lying there. The crystals in the cave could have grown within a couple of weeks. It was always depending on environmental conditions.
Hopefully there were no alien bodies in there. That would be the last thing he needed now. The ship had been about twice the size of one of Destiny’s shuttles. It had been broken apart in the middle by the crash and miscellaneous parts had been scattered in a perimeter of several yards.
Eli found Rush in the rear part where the drive most probably had been. A trace of small crystals went from a broken container over the floor to the outside.
“If this really was the energy source for the drive we should find out what this is.”
“Sure, but now we should get back to Destiny first. We caused enough trouble for one day and the ship isn’t going anywhere. As soon as we get some rest we can analyze it closer.” Eli looked at the strange symbols that were scattered on every surface. He admitted that he was more than curious, but he had a bad gut feeling. Though that could just be his hunger.
Rush finally looked up to Eli and started to say something. But he seemed to change his mind because it took a few moments till words actually left his lips. “You look tired.”
“Yeah, because I am. You know as well as I do that I haven’t been sleeping properly for weeks. But that doesn’t matter now. You’re at the end of your powers, too, no matter how much you deny it. This really doesn’t go anywhere. Also, it would be better you come voluntarily because at least Greer would have no problems dragging you back to the gate forcibly.”
“Right.” It wasn’t clear which of the statements Rush was referring to, but that was secondary, as long as he finally came. “Okay, I just want to take a look at the front compartment, then we can go.”
“Thank you.” Eli followed Rush through the ship. There were broken parts everywhere, cables hung from the ceiling and here and there were signs of a fire. The crash must have been rough. But if he took the spreading pattern of the parts and the completeness of the shell - aside from the break in the middle - into account, it must have been a decelerated crash. Whoever had piloted this ship had tried to avoid the worst and to land it, as far as he could tell. But they didn’t seem to have had much luck.
“Oh God.” Eli stood rooted to the ground when they reached the cockpit and pressed a hand to his mouth. He could see three alien bodies on first sight but he was too busy turning away and avoid getting sick to take a closer look and be sure. As if the sight of the deformed bodies wasn’t enough, the smell of decay was nauseating. The only reason they were still able to breathe was obviously the broken glass-like front of the cockpit which let in fresh air.
“I think we’ve seen enough,” Eli choked out.
Rush held an arm in front of his nose and mouth but kept going. “Hmm, strange. They look as if they’ve died only recently. The crash might not have been that long ago, but then the growth rate of the crystals must be unbelievable fast.”
“That’s really interesting. But can we leave now?”
“Just a moment.” Rush concentrated on something and Eli gave up. He turned away to leave the ship when he saw a movement in the corner of his eye. Directly behind Rush. “Rush, watch out!”
Eli didn’t think, he just reacted. It only needed two steps to reach Rush. All he wanted to do was drag him to the side, out of reach of the clawed hand but instead he got in between and was grabbed by the arm. Goosebumps went all over Eli’s body at the contact with the unfamiliar cool and rough skin. His gaze followed the claws up the arm to the face of the alien. Dull violet eyes starred at him and he froze.
“Eli!” He could hear Rush next to him, feel him pulling at his shoulder. But the sensation vanished when a feeling like a dozen needles began spreading at the spot where the creature touched him. And in the next moment his eyes went blind.
Innumerable images poured over him, accompanied by smells, sounds and feelings.
The alien ship, Destiny, the crew, a group of aliens, numbers, letters, Ancient, strange symbols, plants and animals he had never seen before, Earth and the sun, unknown star constellations, other aliens, the stargate, Sidus, a wonderful smell he couldn’t describe, his mother’s cookies…
It was too much, completely chaotic and it seemingly endless. He couldn’t process it. “Stop it, stop it, please,” he kept whispering over and over as he tried to free himself from the unremitting grasp of the creature.
A loud bang echoed through his ears. Weapons fire, his overloaded brain told him just before an unbearable pain pierced through his chest. He groaned. Two more shots followed by even more pain. The pictures in his head increased, becoming even more chaotic.
His senses were heavily overloaded and he could do only one thing to compensate.
He screamed.
oOo
Chapterindex
Author: split
Fandom: Stargate Universe
Pairing: Eli W. / Everett Y. / Nicholas R. (that's the plan, if they don't resist ^^°)
Rating: P12 Slash
Genre: SciFi / Drama
Summary: Destiny reaches the next galaxy and Young and Rush wake from stasis, but something is wrong. Eli's pod is empty and the clock reading of the ship just can't be right...
In panic, Eli stared at the dark surface, but aside from the waves of the incoming water he couldn’t make out any movement. He knew he stood no chance against an animal that would attack him under water, but he had to do something.
“Don’t panic, that won’t get you anywhere,” he whispered to himself as he tried to calm down, with little success. He pulled his shirt over his head and lay down the flash light. He wasn’t leaving without Rush.
Carefully he slipped into the water.
His heart beat heavily.
The water already reached his chest when his feet hit solid ground. He could feel the current but it didn’t hinder him. A contact at his leg made him cringe but nothing else happened. He didn’t have any time left to think about it - to envision all kinds of horror scenarios. Rush had already been under water for too long. He closed his eyes and dove at the spot where he last had seen Rush.
After a short time he was able to grab a piece of cloth, finally an arm, and he dragged Rush up along with it. He pulled his head above the water, found his bearings by the glow of the flash light on the ledge and swam the few yards over to it. Hurriedly, he pulled Rush’s lifeless body onto the bank, which was already under water. The roar of the numerous small waterfalls was getting deafening and the salty water which was running out of his hair stung his eyes.
“Rush! Come on, wake up.“ As much as he tried, Eli wasn’t able to hold back the panic anymore. He felt for a pulse but couldn’t find any. With all his strength he pulled the slender man higher out of the water, wrenched the backpack off his shoulders and followed with shaking hands TJ’s voice in his head, which was telling him the different steps of resuscitation again and again. He had been annoyed by having to practice it regularly, but TJ had insisted because she couldn’t always be there, especially on a planetary mission.
When, after an eternity, Rush finally coughed up the swallowed water and opened his eyes, Eli thanked her silently for her hardheadedness.
“Rush? Are you okay?”
Rush needed a couple of attempts before he managed a hoarse ‘yes’. A small trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth. He must have bitten himself.
“Come on. We just have to get a little bit higher, then you can rest.“
Because Rush could barely move Eli had to muster the strength for them both and, in the end, lay down out of breath next to Rush on the higher ledge. Rush didn’t move anymore beside him but he was breathing fairly even, though flatly, which reassured Eli. With a wet hand, he was reaching blindly for the backpack and hauling it back when he got a slight electric shock. “Ouch.” Confused, he looked to the side and watched, bewildered, as one of the crystals that he had touched accidently started to glow and send small arcs of light to its neighboring crystals. Those started to glow too and like a chain reaction it continued from one to the other. Breathless Eli watched as the whole cave lit up bit by bit.
“Rush. Look.”
The scientist forced his eyes open unwillingly and could now see what they only could have guessed the whole time in the dark. The ceiling was completely overgrown by crystals that were now glowing softly. And the cave was actually gigantic; what they had seen in the dark had only been a fraction of it.
“… ‘tals… ba’pack.” Rush was hardly intelligible, but Eli knew what he was trying to say. He pulled the backpack closer, this time being careful not to touch the wall. Then he got the wet cloth with the collected samples from it. When Eli opened it the crystals were tarnished black.
Carefully he brushed the surface of one. A kind of light soot was left on his fingers.
“Wow, they really don’t like the water. But why are they growing down here at all?” Eli wiped his hand on his trousers, wrapped the samples back up, and packed them away together with the flash light he didn’t need anymore. The water had only gotten partly into it so the jackets had mostly stayed dry. He got them out and took a closer look to find out what else Rush had brought besides the knife and the testing units. It wasn’t much. A bottle of water - not that they didn’t have more than enough of it at the moment, albeit impotable - a small bag of tried berries, and his radio, which was probably useless thanks to the electric shock. Besides, there was certainly no reception down here. Obviously Rush had anticipated neither difficulties nor that it might take longer. Great. A mathematical genius he might be, but a boy scout he surely wasn’t.
Eli sighed. And like an idiot he had blindly followed him just to get away from the others. That hadn’t been exactly clever either.
He shivered and was reminded that he was completely soaked. The inflowing rainwater had lowered the average temperature considerably. They had to get dry if they were going to stay for some time. He got out of the rest of his clothes and got the still dry shirt back on. Only the wet shorts he left on, even though it wasn’t really comfortable.
“Rush, are you able to move?”
“What for?” His voice was still rough.
“You have to get dry. The temperature is dropping.”
Rush didn’t move.
“Then I’ll have to do it.” Resolutely Eli grabbed Rush’s shirt, which made the man flinch.
“Eli!”
Eli expected that Rush would push him away, but the man barely managed to lift his arms before they dropped powerlessly.
“How many volts did the damned thing send through you?” Eli asked, surprised but undeterred. He continued more carefully, ignoring the quietly hissed insults and curses. As long as Rush could still curse everything was alright.
When Eli was finished he put the second jacket on him. The rock beneath them hadn’t lost any of its warmth yet luckily. Hopefully it would stay like this for a while.
“Look, much better. Spare the dark look and get your body back under control. Get some rest. I’ll keep an eye on everything.” Eli lay down next to Rush and tried to relax. The panic slowly seeped out of his body and his heartbeat normalized, leaving him drained. He listened to the sounds from the cave while he watched the glowing crystals above them. Their low humming was barely audible beneath the roar of the water. Eli wasn’t sure, but it seemed to him it had gotten slightly quieter. Maybe, after all their disasters, they had some luck and they wouldn’t be stuck too long down here.
oOo
„That’s it.“ Brody gestured in the direction of the open gate, and Young, who had been talking to Greer, stepped up to him.
“Are you sure?”
“I went through the list of all available planets. No sign of Rush or Eli. But I didn’t get any data from this one. So, either the kino is damaged or someone switched it off or brought it out of range.”
“Good. Send a new one. I won’t send anybody through blindly.“
Corporal Barnes already had one of the small devices ready and let it slide through the event horizon after a sign from Brody. It only took a couple of moments before it started sending back plenty of data and a recording.
“It’s raining cats and dogs,” Brody asserted first.
Greer stepped up next to them, too, and took a look at the recording. There was hardly anything to see. “If there had been any traces they’re already washed away. Are you sure they’re there?”
“Yes, even though I can’t explain why, they… wait.” Brody entered something into the console and some more data appeared on the display next to the kino broascast.
“This is the original data from the first kino. Do you see that? It’s a really unusual energy signature. I already noticed it this morning but I wanted to investigate it later. I’ll wager Rush saw it too and wanted to take a closer look.”
Young took his radio. “Rush, come in.” He waited a couple of seconds before he tried again. “Eli, do you read?”
“They’re either too far away or reception is disturbed.”
“Let’s hope it’s only one of these. Can you locate the remote?”
“No, not from here. But as soon as someone goes to the planet it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“But we can’t risk it with this weather. Close it and dial every half hour. Keep me posted. As soon as the rain lets up you go through, Greer. Stand by.”
“Yes sir.”
“All right.” Brody shut the gate and Young left the gate room. Greer hesitated for a moment before following the colonel. He caught up to him in the empty corridor.
“Colonel?“
„Yes, Sergeant?“
„Rush’ll keep an eye on Eli. He always comes back.”
Young just nodded and watched as Greer went back to the gate room.
No matter how much of a genius each of them were, Rush and Eli were magnets for disaster.
It also could have been bad luck, or the fact that they didn’t belong out here. Whatever the reason was, he would bet they were in a stupid dangerous situation again. He hoped they would come back safe and sound so he could strangle Rush personally and lock Eli up somewhere. Both of them drove him mad.
oOo
Rush’s vision was blurred. Pain ripped through his nerves and made his muscles spasm as electric shocks went through his body over and over again. He was defenseless against Kiva's men, but he wouldn't give up easily. He tried to get away, tried to move as far as his hurting muscles would allow it but something held him back. Panicked, he tried to fight it off.
"Dr. Rush... Rush!... Damn it, Nick! Believe me, you don't want me to let go of you."
Cold water splashed into his face; leaving salt on his rough lips, and he came to. Only a few inches away from his eyes was the dark surface of the lake. Eli's arms held him around the chest and barely kept him from falling. Surprised, Rush drew back and Eli used the momentum to roll them over and get some space between them and the water.
"You can move again. Great," Eli said dryly, but his voice was unsteady.
Rush clenched his fists, moved his legs and toes. Yes, he could move again but his muscles still hurt like hell and there wasn't much strength in his grip. He wasn't surprised that this reminded him of his stay with the Lucian Alliance. The electric shock of the creature seemed similar to that of an electric eel on Earth and it had brought back the memory in each and every cell of his body far too clearly.
He brushed his shaky hands over his face and tried to banish the pictures from his inner eye. With little success.
"How long..."
"Did you sleep? About an hour. The rain must have stopped a while ago. Anyway, the water isn't rising anymore, luckily. It was getting close. I just hope it won’t take days till it drains because I'm already starving." Eli's grumbling stomach emphasized his last words.
"There're berries in the backpack."
"I know. I ate half of them, rest is for you."
"Just eat 'em. 'm not hungry."
"It's okay. Maybe later."
"Eli."
"Save me the 'Eli'." He copied Rush's tone and got out the water bottle. "Drink. You might feel better afterwards."
Rush peered at Eli and finally complied. Eli had to help him straighten up for drinking. He gulped down some water and lay back down. His body was thankful for it.
"Meanwhile, I did some more recordings of the crystals. Maybe they'll help later somehow, but there is nothing else to do but wait, which is boring as hell."
"So sleep. I'm awake now."
"I'm not tired. I've rested enough."
"Can you say that again without your eyes closing every other second?" Rush asked without hesitation. Eli gave him a dark look and went back to watching the crystals without another word.
Rush took the remote and watched the recordings and measurements Eli had made in the last hour on the small display. The crystals had expanded their electromagnetic fields considerably. He didn't even need the kino's sensors to feel that. He could feel the energy on his skin where the small hairs stood on end. It was a strange feeling.
"I never thought of you as a hobby geologist," Eli said after a while out of the blue and Rush looked at him, confused.
"How did you get that thought?"
"We're in a cave with glowing crystals? Granted, they're fascinating and beautiful, but still you never would leave the ship for something like this. Unless you were hoping for something else." Eli looked at him suspiciously. "Where did you think the energy would come from? What were you expecting down here?"
"Nothing important. The colonel kicked me literally off of the ship and I was just curious."
"You’re at least as bad a liar as I am."
Rush didn't reply. His arms had already started to protest against holding the remote. He laid it aside and tried to relax, watching the crystals like Eli. Neither did Eli say anything after that. Finally it was Rush who broke the monotonous sounds of the cave because the silence seemed overwhelming. Normally he didn't care. Maybe it was their current situation.
“Gloria would’ve liked this place. She loved crystals. She didn’t want to know anything about their underlying mathematical structures. She just loved the clear edges, the colors caused by material inclusions, and the manifold shapes. The wonder of nature. Mandy, on the other hand, liked their technical possibilities and could spend hours with the crystalline circuitry of the Goa’uld and the Ancients…”
Rush went silent and Eli needed a moment before he asked, confused: “Why’re you telling me this?”
“Because you asked.” Rush looked to the side and directly into Eli’s face.
“I didn’t…” He could exactly see the moment when Eli realized the meaning of his words.
“You saw the kino footage!” Eli bolted upright, his face contorted in rage for a couple of seconds. But before he said something, he took a deep breath and sank back resigned. The angry expression vanished as fast as it had appeared. “Damn it, you shouldn’t have seen those.”
“I know.”
“How much?“
„Does it matter?“
„How much?“
„Most of it. I had to know what you were doing all this time. We already know that Destiny can’t be operated by one person alone. That many repairs need more than one person, because anything else would be too dangerous. A great part I skipped through in fast forward.”
“You could’ve just asked me. I would’ve told you. At least, what’s important.”
Rush could not resent Eli the reproachful look. Watching the records had been a great violation of his privacy, after all, as far as there was anything like privacy on a space ship.
“You had a lot of questions you couldn’t answer by yourself and there was nobody else to answer them for you. Always aware of the fact that you might not make it through. That must have been… difficult.”
“Sometimes.”
“But you had a lot of fun too.”
“How did you get that idea?”
“Yoga with an alien energy being that preferred to take your form? As far as I can tell you looked happy in those moments.” Rush raised an eyebrow and Eli looked at him, stunned, before he grinned and broke into peals of laughter. “Oh my gosh yes, Sidus. Somehow I had to stay fit and I was never much of a runner. So I tried what Chloe had shown me. It helped and he was just curious about everything. I don’t know if he understood why I did it. How much he understood at all of all those things I told him.” He gasped for air and suddenly the laughter was mingled with tears and erratic breathing. Embarrassed Eli turned away and rubbed his eyes hastily, tried to calm down again. It took a while and Rush gave him the time before he continued as if nothing had happened.
“I guess that’ll stay a mystery. The Ancients took their souls with them when they ascended and transferred to energy. They took the ability to think and feel with them, in some way, even though there’re people on Earth who would question the part about feeling. But how does a being consisting only of energy evolve the ability to think and feel?”
“I asked the same question sometimes. But I didn’t care as long as Sidus was with me.”
Rush didn’t know what to reply to that. He closed his eyes reluctantly and tried to get some more rest.
oOo
Eli bent over the edge of the ledge and evaluated the water. Again. Lying there and doing nothing drove him nuts. Especially as hungry as he was. At least his stomach had stopped the embarrassing rumbling. “The water level has started falling. Fortunately.”
“Seems to be going pretty slow. It’ll take hours.“
„At least try to think optimistically for once,“ Eli grumbled. Meanwhile, the crystals had gone out once already and Eli had had to reactivate them. He still found them somewhat creepy, but he didn’t want to sit in the dark or exhaust the batteries of the flash light unnecessarily.
In the light of the crystals he had seen a swarm of small fish and unfortunately the alien electric eel, too. He had recorded everything with the kino and had seen live how the animal, that had nearly killed Rush, hunted normally. With so many animals in the water there had to be a tunnel to the outside or else the big animal would have starved long ago. He wondered if the small fish were edible. Even if they were, they had no chance of making a fire down here and he was no fan of sushi. He wouldn’t…
“Eli! Rush! What the hell are you doing there?” They both jumped when Greer’s slightly distorted voice sounded suddenly very closely. It came from the kino.
“Greer. Thank god. How did you find us?“ Eli caught the small device.
“Your traces were hard to miss after Brody told us what to look for. Besides, the signal of the remote was strong enough to make it through. Where are you? According to the readings you can’t be more than two hundred yards away, but this is a dead end. The tunnel is flooded.”
“Stating the obvious,” Rush replied. „The rain surprised us and trapped us down here in a big cave. The tunnel is too narrow to dive through and there is something in the water I don’t want to meet up close a second time.”
“Are you injured?”
“No,” Rush said before Eli could say something. The man still couldn’t move properly. This was idiotic.
“Okay. So, what’s the plan?“
„Now, that it has stopped raining the water level is falling slowly. But at the current rate it’ll take hours.”
“Do we just have to sit here and wait?” Greer asked grumpily.
Rush looked confused at Eli.
“Claustrophobic,” he mouthed, turning away from the kino.
“You don’t have to wait there. It would be even more helpful if you would go back to the surface and keep an eye on the weather. If it starts raining again, this will take forever. Also, there’re countless tunnels leading into this cave. Maybe you’ll find one that’s passable without danger.”
It was silent for a while before Greer’s voice sounded again. “We’ll see what we can do. Radio communication doesn’t reach all the way down here. We’ll work something out so you can stay in contact. Tell us as soon as something changes on your side. Greer out.”
Eli put the kino away and lay back on the stone. “Oh boy, the colonel will be so pissed.”
“Possibly, like always.”
“That’s not funny, because this time he has a right to be.“
Rush looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Eli sighed. Sometimes, Rush really seemed to be set out to provoke Young. They were like cats and dogs.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t always just funny, but dangerous, too. And at the end Eli was the one who suffered.
“You’re impossible,” Eli grumbled and turned away to stare at the water again, but his glare did nothing to help it fall faster.
oOo
Greer took an inconspicuous deep breath when he stepped out of the tunnel. The sun was rising at the horizon. The sky was a clear blue as if it hadn't been pouring just a couple of hours ago. This wasn't a comfortable planet even if it looked like it at the moment. Brody had given him the data of the kino and during daytime the canyon was going to heat up a great deal. The rain must have been an exception considering the lifeless desert around him. He didn't plan to stay longer than absolutely necessary, but this was still better than those damned tunnels. Damn Rush and his harebrained ideas.
He reported to the Colonel who sent him Scott and half a dozen other soldiers.
"What's going on? Colonel Young just said you could use some help," Scott said, when he arrived and looked around.
Greer gestured behind himself to the tunnel entrance. "Eli and Rush are trapped in a flooded cave. They aren't in any danger at the moment, but if it starts raining again or if the water isn't falling faster this will take forever. We should split up and search for other entries. Take a look around, now that we're already here. I would like to take a look from up there. There were cracks in the ceiling on the record of the cave. Maybe we can get both of them out from above."
"Good plan," Scott agreed and turned to the soldiers who had come with him through the gate. "Marsden and Dunning, you two take this direction. Reynolds and Baras, you two go this way. Graham and Panhall that way. Look for tunnels that..."
"Are heading southwest in their main direction. The sun just started rising so this is east." Greer gestured to the sky before he continued. "We haven't encountered any aliens so far, but there are animals in the water so it's possible they're on land too."
"You heard the man," Scott resumed. "Keep your eyes open and report regularly. James, you stay at the gate and keep up communication between everyone and the Destiny. Questions?"
"No, Sir."
"Then go."
"Yes, Sir," everyone said in unison, and the men scattered. Greer and Scott requested climbing gear from Destiny and went to work as soon as they received it. The soft rock made it easy to find footing but it gave way easily, too, and they had to be careful. James kept them in the loop while the climb dragged on.
oOo
"Knight to F5."
"Not possible."
"Why? Sure it's possible. I just..."
"Eli?"
Eli took the remote as Airman Metner’s voice came through, glad to end this stupid imaginary chess game. "Yes?"
"Scott said you should navigate the kino through the biggest gap you can find in the ceiling."
"Understood." He sent the kino through the gap where the most water had come from during the rain. At the moment it was just dripping now and then. He concentrated on the video, trying to assess if it was possible for them to pass through. It looked really narrow at some points. Did they even have this much rope? When the kino left the dark shaft and entered the sunlight, Eli couldn't see anything for a second. Only after the kino had switched back to normal sight mode did the surroundings get clearer. High grasses, some individual gnarled trees, only a few hills and a still low-lying sun. A steppe-like landscape. And in the middle of this Scott and Greer came walking up to the kino. They exchanged silent looks, dropped their climbing gear and drew their weapons simultaneously.
Eli starred confusedly at the display. "Uhm, guys, what's going on?"
Scott put a finger to his lips in a hushing gesture and grabbed the kino to turn it about one hundred eighty degrees.
"Holy..." Eli swallowed the rest of his words and looked fascinated at the crashed space ship that was partly buried into the ground only a couple of yards away from Scott and Greer. It must have been a hard crash. Eli could feel Rush pressing into his side to see.
"Switch back to the measurements," Rush said and Eli switched back to the charts. When he saw the high values he knew what Rush was aiming at. "You're right. The energy must have come from this ship. Maybe it had been something in their drive."
"Whatever it is, it must've drained down here with the rain, where it crystallized. Lieutenant, drop the weapons and just get us out of here first. Even if something had survived the crash it's long gone. The wreck has to have been there for quite a while. Those crystals didn't grow over night."
Eli turned the kino back to Scott. He could see that the man was hesitating, but finally he nodded and took the climbing gear.
"How does it look down there, Eli?" Scott asked while he got ready for the descent. Greer helped him.
"Not good. Water level is dropping slower now. So, even without the fish we won't get out of here the way we came in."
"Okay, then we have to try it this way. Did you notice something in the shaft?"
"There're two spots were it gets more narrow but we should be able to squeeze through I guess. I hope you're aware that I've never done this before and Doctor Rush'll have his own problems in his condition."
"Eli!"
"Condition? I thought no one was injured."
"I'm not injured."
"How do you call an electric shock that caused you a heart attack?"
"I'm fine. And we've got to get out of here somehow; there is no other way."
"I just said..."
"Enough!" Scott cut in on the quarrel because they were only loosing time. "We'll address it when it comes up. I'm coming down now. Get ready. The kino should follow me down so we can stay in contact."
"Okay." Eli was glad to finally have something to do, even if it meant that he had to get his still-clammy clothes back on. Rush gave him a couple of dark looks while he was dressing too. But Eli could see that his movements were still erratic. He couldn't imagine that he would manage it up without help.
Eli kept one eye on the events above them. Greer had secured the rope at the entrance and Scott was beginning to descend slowly.
„You were right Eli. It’s getting more narrow,“ Scott confirmed after a while. “But it’s still passable.”
When he finally arrived in the cave Eli took a relieved breath. “Stay away from the crystals. The bigger they are the more energy they generate and that’s really nasty,” he warned belatedly. “Besides, we still don’t know what else they can do, if they’ve been used in the alien drive.”
“Thanks.” Scott pulled back his hand just before touching one of them. He slid down the rope and swung back and forth till he could reach the ledge. Eli and Rush helped him gain his footing.
“Good, now that was the easy part. Getting back up will be more of a challenge. You first, Doctor Rush. Use the uneven walls of the shaft for leverage while you climb. Greer will secure you with the rope, but he can’t pull you up the whole way. Save your strength. It’s a long way up.“ Scott gave them his water bottle, which they emptied in turn. To Eli’s regret he didn’t have any food with him.
Eli sent the kino ahead and followed Rush’s ascension with apprehension. His earlier assumption was confirmed only after a short time. The man had barely managed the first yards when his hand started to tremble visibly. Nobody said anything, and interjected by countless breaks Rush fought his way up. Two times he lost hold and Greer had to catch him with the rope.
When he finally reached daylight and sat next to the shaft on the ground, Eli breathed a sigh of relief. “So stubborn,” he murmured. Scott patted his shoulder. „Nothing new. And this time it actually helped. Come on Eli, you’re next. You can do this, too.“
„Sure.“ Eli glanced skeptically up to the dark hole in the ceiling and got ready. It was time he got out of here. He didn’t take as long as Rush but the last couple of yards seemed to stretch forever.
Scott emerged from the cleft in the ground shortly after him, the backpack hanging behind him on the end of the rope.
“Boy, I’m glad we’re out of there. Thanks. Some dry clothes and something to eat and I’m going to vacation like a nice boy. I swear. What do you think, Rush?“ Eli looked around, but there was no sign of Rush. “Where did he go now?”
“Take a guess.“ Greer gestured over to the alien ship while he wrapped up the rope impassively.
“Rush! Come back. A team can take a closer look at the ship later,“ Scott shouted but he didn’t get an answer. Eli sighed. “As if he would miss out on a chance like this. I’ll go get him.“
Eli jogged the few yards over to the ship, which looked ready for scrap heap. It was hard to tell how long it had been lying there. The crystals in the cave could have grown within a couple of weeks. It was always depending on environmental conditions.
Hopefully there were no alien bodies in there. That would be the last thing he needed now. The ship had been about twice the size of one of Destiny’s shuttles. It had been broken apart in the middle by the crash and miscellaneous parts had been scattered in a perimeter of several yards.
Eli found Rush in the rear part where the drive most probably had been. A trace of small crystals went from a broken container over the floor to the outside.
“If this really was the energy source for the drive we should find out what this is.”
“Sure, but now we should get back to Destiny first. We caused enough trouble for one day and the ship isn’t going anywhere. As soon as we get some rest we can analyze it closer.” Eli looked at the strange symbols that were scattered on every surface. He admitted that he was more than curious, but he had a bad gut feeling. Though that could just be his hunger.
Rush finally looked up to Eli and started to say something. But he seemed to change his mind because it took a few moments till words actually left his lips. “You look tired.”
“Yeah, because I am. You know as well as I do that I haven’t been sleeping properly for weeks. But that doesn’t matter now. You’re at the end of your powers, too, no matter how much you deny it. This really doesn’t go anywhere. Also, it would be better you come voluntarily because at least Greer would have no problems dragging you back to the gate forcibly.”
“Right.” It wasn’t clear which of the statements Rush was referring to, but that was secondary, as long as he finally came. “Okay, I just want to take a look at the front compartment, then we can go.”
“Thank you.” Eli followed Rush through the ship. There were broken parts everywhere, cables hung from the ceiling and here and there were signs of a fire. The crash must have been rough. But if he took the spreading pattern of the parts and the completeness of the shell - aside from the break in the middle - into account, it must have been a decelerated crash. Whoever had piloted this ship had tried to avoid the worst and to land it, as far as he could tell. But they didn’t seem to have had much luck.
“Oh God.” Eli stood rooted to the ground when they reached the cockpit and pressed a hand to his mouth. He could see three alien bodies on first sight but he was too busy turning away and avoid getting sick to take a closer look and be sure. As if the sight of the deformed bodies wasn’t enough, the smell of decay was nauseating. The only reason they were still able to breathe was obviously the broken glass-like front of the cockpit which let in fresh air.
“I think we’ve seen enough,” Eli choked out.
Rush held an arm in front of his nose and mouth but kept going. “Hmm, strange. They look as if they’ve died only recently. The crash might not have been that long ago, but then the growth rate of the crystals must be unbelievable fast.”
“That’s really interesting. But can we leave now?”
“Just a moment.” Rush concentrated on something and Eli gave up. He turned away to leave the ship when he saw a movement in the corner of his eye. Directly behind Rush. “Rush, watch out!”
Eli didn’t think, he just reacted. It only needed two steps to reach Rush. All he wanted to do was drag him to the side, out of reach of the clawed hand but instead he got in between and was grabbed by the arm. Goosebumps went all over Eli’s body at the contact with the unfamiliar cool and rough skin. His gaze followed the claws up the arm to the face of the alien. Dull violet eyes starred at him and he froze.
“Eli!” He could hear Rush next to him, feel him pulling at his shoulder. But the sensation vanished when a feeling like a dozen needles began spreading at the spot where the creature touched him. And in the next moment his eyes went blind.
Innumerable images poured over him, accompanied by smells, sounds and feelings.
The alien ship, Destiny, the crew, a group of aliens, numbers, letters, Ancient, strange symbols, plants and animals he had never seen before, Earth and the sun, unknown star constellations, other aliens, the stargate, Sidus, a wonderful smell he couldn’t describe, his mother’s cookies…
It was too much, completely chaotic and it seemingly endless. He couldn’t process it. “Stop it, stop it, please,” he kept whispering over and over as he tried to free himself from the unremitting grasp of the creature.
A loud bang echoed through his ears. Weapons fire, his overloaded brain told him just before an unbearable pain pierced through his chest. He groaned. Two more shots followed by even more pain. The pictures in his head increased, becoming even more chaotic.
His senses were heavily overloaded and he could do only one thing to compensate.
He screamed.
oOo
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