Fic: Atlantis, chapter 9a
Next chapter in Atlantis. This is split into two parts cause I'm still working on the second half. Well, the second half of the second half, which I guess would be the last quarter of the fic...anyway. Here. Enjoy.
Title: Atlantis
Author: Tonia Barone
Rating: Teen
Spoilers: Defiant One, of course, a minor one for the Eye, and a semi-major one for Prodigy (SG1 season 4)
Disclaimer: Not mine, yadda yadda yadda...
Notes: Thanks to jakisbishlygay for the beta and moonbeam for the ep download, way back when I started this chap. Really couldn't have done it without it. Okay, yeah, I probably COULD have, but I'm glad I didn't have to.
Summary: Children are also very curious creatures. Sometimes perhaps too curious for their own good.
~*~
After the first three days, her Protector ceased to complain about his wounded arm. That her Favorite, the Healer and the Engineer threatened that horribly humiliating things would occur if he did not 'shut up', as her Favorite put it, around the time which he stopped complaining was merely a coincidence. It was probably best that her Protector never tested his friends anyway; the three of them had gathered together to discuss things she could do with the power she had.
It would seem that the incident with the dye has not been forgotten.
It takes a week after that before the Healer will allow her Protector to leave her halls and it is a moment much celebrated by his fellow thinkers. The length, volume and sheer strength of her Protector's cutting remarks to his colleagues was enough to not only resort the meek female thinker with the visual enhancers to tears, but to also force the Engineer and the much-disliked thinker into an alliance. The two thinkers were almost finished with a rather ingenious program that would allow her enough power to create an area roughly five feet in diameter in which the environmental systems would be slightly out of alignment with the rest of whichever room he was in.
The Engineer promised her he would complete the power distribution research so that she might communicate with her Children before the month was out. It was an offer she could not refuse, never minding the fact that he was already working on it. She had much fondness for the Engineer and her Protector had insulted her ability to function properly no less than ten times in half as many days. It was not her fault that she had so little power, and he should be grateful for that; if she had been at full power, she would have taught him a lesson in respect.
Several thinkers had 'stumbled' upon the only defense satellite to survive the Great Siege and the Leader had given her permission for two of the thinkers, her Favorite and her Protector to go inspect it. Unfortunately it was over fifteen hours away by puddle jumper and she had to work quickly to ensure that her Protector would return as he left; her Favorite really wanted to do something. His argument being: “It's not like his hair wouldn't grow back! ...eventually. Probably. And besides, orange is a good color on him! He wore orange when I first met him.”
As tempted as she was-this was her Favorite asking this of her, after all-she could not in good conscience allow such a 'prank' to be played. This did not mean she would not allow her Favorite his fun, however. It was her idea that her Protector should learn to fly and such a long journey would be perfect practice. So once they had cleared the atmosphere her Favorite turned the controls over to her Protector.
Five minutes later she wished she had kept her proverbial mouth shut.
How someone with a mind such as her Protector's could fail to understand the concept of 'straight line', she did not know. What she did know was that the two thinkers were becoming ill and her Favorite was reconsidering his promise not to bring her Protector back in the same state he left in. When her Favorite pointed out how not in a straight line they were flying, her Protector protested profusely. The look on his face when she brought up the display of their intended path then overlaid it with the path he had flown was priceless.
At last they reached the satellite and her Protector gratefully traded places with her Favorite. There was no power, of course; it had taken much damage during the Great Siege. There was, however, a distress signal coming from the planet. That couldn't possibly be correct; according to these readings it was a Wraith distress signal! The last reports from the satellite said that a Wraith cruiser fell into the planet's atmosphere, but there should not have been enough left for it to have a distress signal, let alone use it.
No, no, no, no, no! These two, must they go looking for trouble? It finds them often enough on its own, they needn't search for it! Of course the Leader cannot say 'no' to these two. Thankfully one of the thinkers voices the concerning factor of the ionization of the planet's atmosphere, which would make communication with their radio devices all but impossible. The Leader is almost swayed against it when this is made known to her, but more pleading from her Favorite and her Protector finally get the Leader to agree-on the condition that they contact home in three hours. Three hours is far too long as far as she is concerned, but she has no way of making her thoughts known; especially when both of the Children in question are ignoring her.
So with the Leader's dubious blessing her Favorite guides the puddle jumper to land several hundred meters from the Wraith cruiser. She is thankful now that she has shown her Favorite how to calibrate the life signs detector so that she might keep an eye on them while they are away from the puddle jumper.
Her Protector, of course, whines about the warning the thinker voiced, while her Favorite complains of having to listen to them argue. Personally, she found it quite amusing; her Protector was so proud to 'impart' his off-world knowledge to his fellow thinkers. Also amusing was watching him try to fly the puddle jumper whilst her Favorite guided him. One thing that was always true with these two Children was that life was never dull.
Before long they are on their way, making the long trek to the Wraith cruiser. After a time the two thinkers comment on the length of the walk and her Protector boasts that it becomes easier with time and off-world experience. A bare second later, in a sotto voce, he asks her Favorite if they are “there yet.” However, before he can respond-with a suitably sarcastic remark, she sees-they encounter the small life forms of this planet.
Though her former Children never gave these life forms a name, from the glimpses she has had into her Favorite's mind she believes the name 'fairy' would suit them best. What is known of these...fairies...is that they are moderately intelligent-roughly the same as a domesticated animal; again, from what she has seen in her Children's minds, they are comparable to a 'cat'-and mostly harmless.
'Mostly' because these life forms are a secondary evolution of a similar species in what her Children refer to as the 'Milky Way' galaxy-the galaxy of their origin. The species there are vulnerable to electromagnetic fields, can pass through matter and are very territorial. A few of for her former Children's younglings would keep them as pets. When they began to interfere with her systems, her former Children brought the life forms to this planet. She was actually quite sad that they had to be relocated; their innocent curiosity warmed her.
At least this evolution did not appear to be harmful to her Children. Their predecessors, when aggravated, would pass through whatever had aggravated them; usually this was another animal or, occasionally, one of her Children. Wherever the life forms passed through the body of their target, a red welt would form. The life forms became hot when angered, see, and wherever they passed through cooked, for lack of a better term. A swarm of these life forms is sufficient enough to kill.
Her Protector mentions his allergy to an insect on his home world, called a 'bee'. She reassures him that these are not the same creatures as she has seen in his thoughts. One of the thinkers points out the strong life signs these fairies emit before her Favorite 'suggests' that they continue to the Wraith cruiser.
***
Back in her halls, the Leader summons the Second. The Leader has good instincts and feels a team should be assembled to be sent to the planet. The Second fails his training for a brief moment, showing his concern over her Favorite and her Protector. He is quick to compose himself, but his mind is in turmoil; her Favorite is not just his superior, but also his friend.
The Leader assures the Second that she hasn't heard anything either way, though thought it best to be safe than sorry. The Second nods his agreement and goes to gather the Warrior, the young guard who guided the puddle jumper while her Favorite was injured by the 'Iratus bug', as her Children called it, and one last guard, this one carrying one of her Children's larger explosive projectile weapons.
The Leader reinstates that though nothing has been heard, she feels a team should be sent and the Warrior agrees. The Second informs the Leader of the small arsenal they packed in the puddle jumper and with the final prayer that it not be needed; the Leader sends them on their way.
What the Leader doesn't know is that Atlantis herself told the Second that such weaponry would be needed. It is the first time she has spoken to him so directly, though he did not show fear or surprise. He simply asked what was needed, then packed double what she said. He did not question why it was needed and neither did his team. She was glad that they didn't, for she had no concrete answer for them; just a bad feeling about the Wraith cruiser the others had found.
***
When the team finally came upon the Wraith cruiser, her Favorite wasted no time scanning the area through his binoculars. Through him she was also able to see the bodies of the dead Wraith and the damage the ship had sustained. She worried that perhaps there might yet be Wraith alive in the ship and shared her concerns with her Favorite. He asks her Protector to check the life signs detector, which of course her Protector scoffs at. At both the behest of her Favorite and herself, however, he quickly relents.
She is almost disappointed when the results are negative on life signs, at least from the ship; the fairies emit fairly strong life sign readings on their own, but are no where near the ship. Her Favorite considers this an 'okay' and leads the others into the Wraith ship. There is little evidence of habitation, which would be expected if the surviving Wraith died out millennia ago.
Her Protector is leading the others to the source of the power readings he is detecting when they come across a fork in the path. Her Protector, her Favorite and one of the thinkers follow the power readings, but the last thinker strays. She cannot Feel him, for he is not of her True Children or one of those Gifted by the Healer. She only knows he strays by the single life sign leaving the small group that is her Children. She wishes that her Protector was not so focused on the power source, or her Favorite on protecting the thinkers; with their minds so focused, she is unable to reach them.
Her Favorite and the thinkers soon come across the body of a dead Wraith, one that is remarkably well preserved. Her Protector reaches to get samples for the Healer while her Favorite trains his weapon on the body. As her Protector clears away the webbing surrounding the body, they discover something very disturbing-something not even she was aware of: the Wraith are cannibals.
In the center of the body's chest are the tell-tale marks of Wraith having fed. This upsets her Favorite to the extent that he is about to order their retreat when the wandering thinker calls for them. Through her Favorite's eyes she can see the purpose of this vessel: a supply ship, bringing food for the Wraith laying siege upon herself and her Children. Her Favorite orders the two thinkers to document the number of storage pods with the small digital recording device one of the thinkers carries while he and her Protector search for the bridge. Though reluctant, the thinkers comply with her Favorite's wishes.
Watching her two most mischievous Children, something dawns on her. Her Protector is explaining his plan to interface with the Wraith computers and thus is closed to her; her Favorite, however, has relaxed his guard just enough for her to share this new thought. Under the pretense of thinking aloud, he asks her Protector if it would be possible for a Wraith to survive from feeding on the bodies discovered. Seeing where he's going with this, her Protector opens himself to her at last and they quickly confer. Together, the three of them share their knowledge of the Wraith and come to the conclusion that, yes, a Wraith could possibly survive ten thousand years on the humans in storage, his fellow Wraith and if he hibernated every few centuries.
Her Protector contacts the thinkers, telling them to meet at the entrance to the ship. Though there is a moment of interference, the message is understood and the thinkers prepare to leave. She sees the life sign a split second before the thinker contacts her Favorite, reporting that they saw something. She worries when her Favorite tells the thinkers to remain where they are, that he and her Protector will come to them. Her Favorite cannot possibly know the results of this order.
When the screams begin, her Favorite and her Protector 'double-timed' it, as the guards would say, but they were too late. One of the thinkers was dead and the other was fading. Her Favorite's mind shut down to her, so narrowed was his focus at the moment; a Wraith had killed one of the thinkers in his care and he did not take kindly to such slander. Her Protector was so frightened at the thought of facing this ancient Wraith-even more so than he had been when facing the Genii during the storms-that she could hardly reach him to sooth him.
The Wraith was fleeing at a rapid pace with the remaining thinker. Her Favorite hurried to catch up, but upon reaching the thinker he found that the Wraith had left the ship. The thinker was in bad shape: cocooned in the Wraith webbing, a fresh feeding wound in his chest, his life readings fading and his physical features visibly aged. Even if they could bring him home to her and the Healer, there was little chance the thinker would survive.
Her Favorite orders her Protector to stay with the thinker while he chases the Wraith. Her Protector protested this very loudly, fearful for his friend and love. In other circumstances, the look shared between them would be sweet. Her Favorite spares another look at the thinker before leaving; his purpose clear in his mind: keep the Wraith from leaving, protect his love and save the thinker. Not necessarily in that order.
Her Favorite pauses long enough to take two of the explosive devices on the cannibalized Wraith they had found then runs after the fleeing Wraith. Though her Favorite is swift, he is no match for a Wraith that has so recently fed and it comes as no surprise that the Wraith beats him to the puddle jumper. She is barely able to curb the urge to forcibly eject the Wraith while in orbit. Only the thought of having to spend multiple weeks under scrutiny for displaying this never-before-seen ability stopped her. While she would love to show her Children all the things she could do, even with just the puddle jumpers, it would be too much hassle at the moment. But she is sorely tempted to do so anyway when that filth begins to work on the control crystals in the rear compartment.
***
Her Protector removes the webbing from the thinker, trying to remain lighthearted for the dying man-and he was dying, make no mistake. The dying thinker was not fooled, however, but knew enough about her Protector to see that he needed to be distracted himself. To this end, he insulted her Protector in hopes of opening a verbal sparring match such as he'd seen her Protector and her Favorite take part in. Unfortunately, his efforts had the opposite effect and he was soon demanding to see the damage the Wraith had wrought.
When her Protector reluctantly showed his fellow thinker his reflection in a small reflective glass, both she and her Protector ached at the horrified sound that the thinker made. Even she could not confirm her Protector's speculations about how the Wraith feeding affected the aging process. Her Protector put aside the reflective glass and began to bandage the feeding wound, and though he put on a light front, inside he was berating himself for having allowed inexperienced thinkers to accompany him and her Favorite on what as basically a scouting mission. She tried to calm him, but he would not be calmed. So she remained ever vigilant as he focused his attentions on the thinker, and silently urged her Favorite to hurry.
I'll try to have the second part out by the weekend, but no promises. *sighs* I hate that I can't focus in long enough spurts to meet deadlines.
Title: Atlantis
Author: Tonia Barone
Rating: Teen
Spoilers: Defiant One, of course, a minor one for the Eye, and a semi-major one for Prodigy (SG1 season 4)
Disclaimer: Not mine, yadda yadda yadda...
Notes: Thanks to jakisbishlygay for the beta and moonbeam for the ep download, way back when I started this chap. Really couldn't have done it without it. Okay, yeah, I probably COULD have, but I'm glad I didn't have to.
Summary: Children are also very curious creatures. Sometimes perhaps too curious for their own good.
~*~
After the first three days, her Protector ceased to complain about his wounded arm. That her Favorite, the Healer and the Engineer threatened that horribly humiliating things would occur if he did not 'shut up', as her Favorite put it, around the time which he stopped complaining was merely a coincidence. It was probably best that her Protector never tested his friends anyway; the three of them had gathered together to discuss things she could do with the power she had.
It would seem that the incident with the dye has not been forgotten.
It takes a week after that before the Healer will allow her Protector to leave her halls and it is a moment much celebrated by his fellow thinkers. The length, volume and sheer strength of her Protector's cutting remarks to his colleagues was enough to not only resort the meek female thinker with the visual enhancers to tears, but to also force the Engineer and the much-disliked thinker into an alliance. The two thinkers were almost finished with a rather ingenious program that would allow her enough power to create an area roughly five feet in diameter in which the environmental systems would be slightly out of alignment with the rest of whichever room he was in.
The Engineer promised her he would complete the power distribution research so that she might communicate with her Children before the month was out. It was an offer she could not refuse, never minding the fact that he was already working on it. She had much fondness for the Engineer and her Protector had insulted her ability to function properly no less than ten times in half as many days. It was not her fault that she had so little power, and he should be grateful for that; if she had been at full power, she would have taught him a lesson in respect.
Several thinkers had 'stumbled' upon the only defense satellite to survive the Great Siege and the Leader had given her permission for two of the thinkers, her Favorite and her Protector to go inspect it. Unfortunately it was over fifteen hours away by puddle jumper and she had to work quickly to ensure that her Protector would return as he left; her Favorite really wanted to do something. His argument being: “It's not like his hair wouldn't grow back! ...eventually. Probably. And besides, orange is a good color on him! He wore orange when I first met him.”
As tempted as she was-this was her Favorite asking this of her, after all-she could not in good conscience allow such a 'prank' to be played. This did not mean she would not allow her Favorite his fun, however. It was her idea that her Protector should learn to fly and such a long journey would be perfect practice. So once they had cleared the atmosphere her Favorite turned the controls over to her Protector.
Five minutes later she wished she had kept her proverbial mouth shut.
How someone with a mind such as her Protector's could fail to understand the concept of 'straight line', she did not know. What she did know was that the two thinkers were becoming ill and her Favorite was reconsidering his promise not to bring her Protector back in the same state he left in. When her Favorite pointed out how not in a straight line they were flying, her Protector protested profusely. The look on his face when she brought up the display of their intended path then overlaid it with the path he had flown was priceless.
At last they reached the satellite and her Protector gratefully traded places with her Favorite. There was no power, of course; it had taken much damage during the Great Siege. There was, however, a distress signal coming from the planet. That couldn't possibly be correct; according to these readings it was a Wraith distress signal! The last reports from the satellite said that a Wraith cruiser fell into the planet's atmosphere, but there should not have been enough left for it to have a distress signal, let alone use it.
No, no, no, no, no! These two, must they go looking for trouble? It finds them often enough on its own, they needn't search for it! Of course the Leader cannot say 'no' to these two. Thankfully one of the thinkers voices the concerning factor of the ionization of the planet's atmosphere, which would make communication with their radio devices all but impossible. The Leader is almost swayed against it when this is made known to her, but more pleading from her Favorite and her Protector finally get the Leader to agree-on the condition that they contact home in three hours. Three hours is far too long as far as she is concerned, but she has no way of making her thoughts known; especially when both of the Children in question are ignoring her.
So with the Leader's dubious blessing her Favorite guides the puddle jumper to land several hundred meters from the Wraith cruiser. She is thankful now that she has shown her Favorite how to calibrate the life signs detector so that she might keep an eye on them while they are away from the puddle jumper.
Her Protector, of course, whines about the warning the thinker voiced, while her Favorite complains of having to listen to them argue. Personally, she found it quite amusing; her Protector was so proud to 'impart' his off-world knowledge to his fellow thinkers. Also amusing was watching him try to fly the puddle jumper whilst her Favorite guided him. One thing that was always true with these two Children was that life was never dull.
Before long they are on their way, making the long trek to the Wraith cruiser. After a time the two thinkers comment on the length of the walk and her Protector boasts that it becomes easier with time and off-world experience. A bare second later, in a sotto voce, he asks her Favorite if they are “there yet.” However, before he can respond-with a suitably sarcastic remark, she sees-they encounter the small life forms of this planet.
Though her former Children never gave these life forms a name, from the glimpses she has had into her Favorite's mind she believes the name 'fairy' would suit them best. What is known of these...fairies...is that they are moderately intelligent-roughly the same as a domesticated animal; again, from what she has seen in her Children's minds, they are comparable to a 'cat'-and mostly harmless.
'Mostly' because these life forms are a secondary evolution of a similar species in what her Children refer to as the 'Milky Way' galaxy-the galaxy of their origin. The species there are vulnerable to electromagnetic fields, can pass through matter and are very territorial. A few of for her former Children's younglings would keep them as pets. When they began to interfere with her systems, her former Children brought the life forms to this planet. She was actually quite sad that they had to be relocated; their innocent curiosity warmed her.
At least this evolution did not appear to be harmful to her Children. Their predecessors, when aggravated, would pass through whatever had aggravated them; usually this was another animal or, occasionally, one of her Children. Wherever the life forms passed through the body of their target, a red welt would form. The life forms became hot when angered, see, and wherever they passed through cooked, for lack of a better term. A swarm of these life forms is sufficient enough to kill.
Her Protector mentions his allergy to an insect on his home world, called a 'bee'. She reassures him that these are not the same creatures as she has seen in his thoughts. One of the thinkers points out the strong life signs these fairies emit before her Favorite 'suggests' that they continue to the Wraith cruiser.
***
Back in her halls, the Leader summons the Second. The Leader has good instincts and feels a team should be assembled to be sent to the planet. The Second fails his training for a brief moment, showing his concern over her Favorite and her Protector. He is quick to compose himself, but his mind is in turmoil; her Favorite is not just his superior, but also his friend.
The Leader assures the Second that she hasn't heard anything either way, though thought it best to be safe than sorry. The Second nods his agreement and goes to gather the Warrior, the young guard who guided the puddle jumper while her Favorite was injured by the 'Iratus bug', as her Children called it, and one last guard, this one carrying one of her Children's larger explosive projectile weapons.
The Leader reinstates that though nothing has been heard, she feels a team should be sent and the Warrior agrees. The Second informs the Leader of the small arsenal they packed in the puddle jumper and with the final prayer that it not be needed; the Leader sends them on their way.
What the Leader doesn't know is that Atlantis herself told the Second that such weaponry would be needed. It is the first time she has spoken to him so directly, though he did not show fear or surprise. He simply asked what was needed, then packed double what she said. He did not question why it was needed and neither did his team. She was glad that they didn't, for she had no concrete answer for them; just a bad feeling about the Wraith cruiser the others had found.
***
When the team finally came upon the Wraith cruiser, her Favorite wasted no time scanning the area through his binoculars. Through him she was also able to see the bodies of the dead Wraith and the damage the ship had sustained. She worried that perhaps there might yet be Wraith alive in the ship and shared her concerns with her Favorite. He asks her Protector to check the life signs detector, which of course her Protector scoffs at. At both the behest of her Favorite and herself, however, he quickly relents.
She is almost disappointed when the results are negative on life signs, at least from the ship; the fairies emit fairly strong life sign readings on their own, but are no where near the ship. Her Favorite considers this an 'okay' and leads the others into the Wraith ship. There is little evidence of habitation, which would be expected if the surviving Wraith died out millennia ago.
Her Protector is leading the others to the source of the power readings he is detecting when they come across a fork in the path. Her Protector, her Favorite and one of the thinkers follow the power readings, but the last thinker strays. She cannot Feel him, for he is not of her True Children or one of those Gifted by the Healer. She only knows he strays by the single life sign leaving the small group that is her Children. She wishes that her Protector was not so focused on the power source, or her Favorite on protecting the thinkers; with their minds so focused, she is unable to reach them.
Her Favorite and the thinkers soon come across the body of a dead Wraith, one that is remarkably well preserved. Her Protector reaches to get samples for the Healer while her Favorite trains his weapon on the body. As her Protector clears away the webbing surrounding the body, they discover something very disturbing-something not even she was aware of: the Wraith are cannibals.
In the center of the body's chest are the tell-tale marks of Wraith having fed. This upsets her Favorite to the extent that he is about to order their retreat when the wandering thinker calls for them. Through her Favorite's eyes she can see the purpose of this vessel: a supply ship, bringing food for the Wraith laying siege upon herself and her Children. Her Favorite orders the two thinkers to document the number of storage pods with the small digital recording device one of the thinkers carries while he and her Protector search for the bridge. Though reluctant, the thinkers comply with her Favorite's wishes.
Watching her two most mischievous Children, something dawns on her. Her Protector is explaining his plan to interface with the Wraith computers and thus is closed to her; her Favorite, however, has relaxed his guard just enough for her to share this new thought. Under the pretense of thinking aloud, he asks her Protector if it would be possible for a Wraith to survive from feeding on the bodies discovered. Seeing where he's going with this, her Protector opens himself to her at last and they quickly confer. Together, the three of them share their knowledge of the Wraith and come to the conclusion that, yes, a Wraith could possibly survive ten thousand years on the humans in storage, his fellow Wraith and if he hibernated every few centuries.
Her Protector contacts the thinkers, telling them to meet at the entrance to the ship. Though there is a moment of interference, the message is understood and the thinkers prepare to leave. She sees the life sign a split second before the thinker contacts her Favorite, reporting that they saw something. She worries when her Favorite tells the thinkers to remain where they are, that he and her Protector will come to them. Her Favorite cannot possibly know the results of this order.
When the screams begin, her Favorite and her Protector 'double-timed' it, as the guards would say, but they were too late. One of the thinkers was dead and the other was fading. Her Favorite's mind shut down to her, so narrowed was his focus at the moment; a Wraith had killed one of the thinkers in his care and he did not take kindly to such slander. Her Protector was so frightened at the thought of facing this ancient Wraith-even more so than he had been when facing the Genii during the storms-that she could hardly reach him to sooth him.
The Wraith was fleeing at a rapid pace with the remaining thinker. Her Favorite hurried to catch up, but upon reaching the thinker he found that the Wraith had left the ship. The thinker was in bad shape: cocooned in the Wraith webbing, a fresh feeding wound in his chest, his life readings fading and his physical features visibly aged. Even if they could bring him home to her and the Healer, there was little chance the thinker would survive.
Her Favorite orders her Protector to stay with the thinker while he chases the Wraith. Her Protector protested this very loudly, fearful for his friend and love. In other circumstances, the look shared between them would be sweet. Her Favorite spares another look at the thinker before leaving; his purpose clear in his mind: keep the Wraith from leaving, protect his love and save the thinker. Not necessarily in that order.
Her Favorite pauses long enough to take two of the explosive devices on the cannibalized Wraith they had found then runs after the fleeing Wraith. Though her Favorite is swift, he is no match for a Wraith that has so recently fed and it comes as no surprise that the Wraith beats him to the puddle jumper. She is barely able to curb the urge to forcibly eject the Wraith while in orbit. Only the thought of having to spend multiple weeks under scrutiny for displaying this never-before-seen ability stopped her. While she would love to show her Children all the things she could do, even with just the puddle jumpers, it would be too much hassle at the moment. But she is sorely tempted to do so anyway when that filth begins to work on the control crystals in the rear compartment.
***
Her Protector removes the webbing from the thinker, trying to remain lighthearted for the dying man-and he was dying, make no mistake. The dying thinker was not fooled, however, but knew enough about her Protector to see that he needed to be distracted himself. To this end, he insulted her Protector in hopes of opening a verbal sparring match such as he'd seen her Protector and her Favorite take part in. Unfortunately, his efforts had the opposite effect and he was soon demanding to see the damage the Wraith had wrought.
When her Protector reluctantly showed his fellow thinker his reflection in a small reflective glass, both she and her Protector ached at the horrified sound that the thinker made. Even she could not confirm her Protector's speculations about how the Wraith feeding affected the aging process. Her Protector put aside the reflective glass and began to bandage the feeding wound, and though he put on a light front, inside he was berating himself for having allowed inexperienced thinkers to accompany him and her Favorite on what as basically a scouting mission. She tried to calm him, but he would not be calmed. So she remained ever vigilant as he focused his attentions on the thinker, and silently urged her Favorite to hurry.
I'll try to have the second part out by the weekend, but no promises. *sighs* I hate that I can't focus in long enough spurts to meet deadlines.