Bounty Chapter 4
Title: Bounty
Author: stella_pegasi
Genre(s): Action/Adventure, H/C, Whump
Rating: PG-13
Character/Pairing: John Sheppard, Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex, Teyla Emmagan, Evan Lorne, OC's.
Spoilers: Set after Season 5, Events in Inquisition
Warnings: Minor language
Het/Slash/Gen: Gen
Word count: ~27,500
Disclaimer: I do not own them, I would have treated them better.
Summary:A bounty has been placed on Sheppard and his team, but by whom? An old enemy or by a new one?
Written for sheppard_hc's Summer Fic Exchange as a gift to maddie_amber, who wanted Sheppard whumped…I did my best!
maddie_amber, I hope you enjoy!
BOUNTY
By stella_pegasi
Chapter Four The Hunt
Livica exited the factory as the sun rose indicating dawn was breaking. She stood quietly as the sky transformed from inky black to gray, then pale rosy-pink. As the first rays of the system's sun glinted above the horizon, she turned to her assembled team of bounty hunters.
"It is time. I caution you to remember that Colonel Sheppard is cunning. I have studied his behavior; you will do well not to underestimate him. I want them to fear you; I want you to find them, but do not kill them. That pleasure will be mine, and mine alone."
Ventur took a cautious step forward, "Madam; you offered amnesty to the woman. Do we honor that offer?"
Livica whispered, "No."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Teyla was nearly at her wits end. She had been attempting to keep Rodney calm, but the scientist was not cooperating. He would pace, then he would sit, then pace again.
"We can't just sit here; we have to start looking somewhere."
"Rodney, please sit down; you are distracting everyone who is trying to work."
"Teyla, he's hurt; we have to find him."
"I know, and we will, but we must have an idea where to look or we will be wasting time."
"We're wasting time now. It's been nearly an hour since Kelore contacted us."
"He contacted us to tell us that they might have a lead as to who this woman is that may have the colonel. Rodney, Kelore will contact us as soon as he knows."
Rodney leaned on the banister, looking over into the gate room. Lorne had finally given up keeping everyone in the ready room. The ground rescue teams were assembled in gate room, and three jumpers were standing by in the jumper bay. Lorne and Ronon were talking to a team of technicians, who were milling around a small winged-drone that Area 51 had designed for both land gates and space gates.
Woolsey emerged from his office to join them, as Lorne and Ronon bounded up the stairs, "Major, everyone ready?"
"Yes, sir; we just need somewhere to go."
"I'm certain Kelore will find something," Woolsey said, although it appeared from his tone, he was attempting to convince himself.
McKay snapped, "Well, it better be soo…" The sound of the gate engaging stopped McKay in mid-sentence.
Everyone froze as the event horizon stabilized, waiting to hear Sergeant Chuck Campbell announce who was dialing in. As soon as they heard the golden words, 'It's Kelore,' a collective sigh filled the room. At least, the wait for where to begin might be over, but the rescue was just beginning.
Kelore and Herus rushed up the gate room stairs toward an anxious group of Atlantians, "I believe we know who has taken them, Richard." He pulled a data pod from his jacket. "This has everything that we know about a woman named Livica Ponaes from a planet called Jutan. A planet attacked by the Wraith and Replicators simultaneously. We spoke to several Jutan survivors, who told us that Ponaes was a teacher at their Academia; her husband was a government official. They had two children and were attempting to get through the Ancestors Ring when a Replicator weapon struck nearby, killing her husband and children. She was pulled through the ring by a fleeing Jutan."
"Her story is as Shiana's, her family taken from her, just as they were about to escape," Teyla uttered sorrowfully.
Kelore replied, "Not an unusual story for any of us, but it explains why she might be the one who has taken the two people in question. She probably took her cue from Shiana's efforts to extract her view of justice on Colonel Sheppard and Atlantis."
"It was your version of justice, too."
Kelore turned toward the low, threatening voice, "Ronon; I do not deny that we were all caught up in Shiana's vengeance. Thanks to Richard, reason prevailed."
Woolsey intervened, "What else do you know about this woman?"
"Once the Coalition became established, a bureau to search for missing survivors from planets known to have been fully culled or attacked by the Replicators was formed. Ponaes registered as a survivor consultant, finding refugees and helping to locate a planet where her fellow Jutans could immigrate."
Herus added, "I took a team to Etavia, a planet where several small groups of survivors have banded together to start over; it's where the Jutans relocated. I spoke to the leader of the Jutans, and she said that the last time they saw Ponaes was about three months ago. She said the visit was unusual, that Ponaes didn't interact with them but spent her time with a few men who had gated to the planet after her. From the description, they sound a lot like the men Captain Isaacs' team described."
Kelore added, "They also match a description of a group of mercenaries for hire whom we've been getting reports about. The good thing is that apparently the stargate on Jutan escape destruction by the Replicators. Ponaes returned there several times with rescuers and brought back people from areas of the planet great distances from the gate."
Lorne quickly asked, "You got a gate address, sir?"
"Yes, I do."
Rodney looked up from a computer terminal, "I've found a reference to Jutan in the Ancient database. It's a planet on the outer rim of the galaxy; not a lot of information past that."
Lorne looked over at Woolsey, "Sir, do we have a go?"
"Yes, major; you have a go."
The major turned to Chuck, "Dial the gate." Then he yelled to the drone techs, "Get that AirMALP ready, we need eyes."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Filtered sunlight now flooded the shop through the dusty window. With Shiana's help, Sheppard moved behind the rear counter, the corner where he had been all night was too exposed in the daylight. He convinced Shiana to hide in the loft above the rear of the store. She had resisted but finally agreed that if someone managed to get close to him, she would be in a better position to attack from the rear.
The sun had been up for slightly over an hour, and Sheppard was certain that the bounty hunters would be fanning out across the city. He was so tired, his fever increasing, his vision blurry; he was in no shape for hand-to-hand combat. He wasn't in shape for anything but passing out. That he was certain he would be quite proficient at doing, but he couldn't, he had to stay alert. The silence was screaming at him, as sick as he was, his hearing was hypersensitive. Every little gust of air had his heart pounding faster than the infection was causing.
His thoughts drifted back to the first Gulf War; he was a lieutenant, fresh out of the academy, on his first tour of duty as a helo pilot. His talents as a pilot had earned him training in Combat Search And Recovery, and he was flying a rescue mission for a group of SOs caught behind enemy lines. Everything was nominal until the motor turning the rotors failed, not providing enough power to maintain speed and the chopper went down. Sheppard scoffed, one of the first medals he was awarded came out of that incident. He managed to crash land the helo with only minor injuries to the crew, but they were behind enemy lines, so much for the rescue mission.
They had nowhere to hide except the helo, which left them very vulnerable to the enemy. He remembered how hard his heart was beating, as he hunkered down under cover of the helo. It was six hours before another rescue team found them, and those six hours was the most frightened he had been in his life, except for the confusion and fear he felt the day his mother died. When they had safely returned to base, the captain of the SO unit approached him as he left the infirmary. He remembered the conversation as if it had happened yesterday.
"Sheppard, wait up."
"Captain Marlowe, what can I do for you, sir?"
"About today, lieutenant; there's something I need to tell you."
"Sir, I'm sorry; I should have checked to make certain the helo was in working condition. I put everyone in danger."
The captain had dropped his head then, the slightest of smiles crossing his face. "Look, we wouldn't be alive if you hadn't kept control of that Pave, and gotten us on the ground. The crash was an accident, Sheppard; a mechanical failure, it was not your fault. What I wanted to tell you was that I know you were scared out there. It was what, your second mission?"
He had nodded, even though he was loathed to admit he was scared, "Yes, sir."
"Well, it wasn't my second mission, lieutenant, and I was damn scared. The one thing that you need to remember is that we are all scared. How we deal with that fear is what matters. Fear can make you seize-up or fear can be your friend; let it be your friend, embrace it. Let it cause your senses to become super-senses, your hearing, your eyesight, hell, your sense of smell…let it work for you. Don't try to be unafraid, make it work for you; it will keep you alive."
As he listened for the softest of noises outside the shop, he thought about the notion that fear could keep him alive. He was rarely aware of fear anymore. His reaction to dangerous situations had become so automatic that he responded without thinking. Marlowe had been right; fear had kept him alive many times. He wondered if it could now.
The minutes dragged on; occasionally, Sheppard could hear Shiana move around from her perch on the loft. He was struggling to stay awake. He was weak; alternating between burning up and shivering, the room was spinning, more often than standing still, his vision blurry. He was fighting passing out when he heard a muffled voice.
"Nevi; check those building across the street, I'll look on this side. Ventur ordered us to check every building, so don't skip any. Meet me at the end of the street."
He tensed, grasping the 'broomstick bayonet' lance tightly, willing his arm not to shake. He rose to sit on his heels, so that he could spring up to surprise anyone who entered. He heard Shiana move on the loft, hoping that she wouldn't panic and give her location away.
The hunter pushed hard on the door, which stopped abruptly when it struck the debris that Shiana had carefully piled in the front of the door. Sheppard hoped that the hunters would think that the debris blocking the door was from the attack by the replicators, and would keep them from coming in the shop. There was a pause and Sheppard held his breath, waiting for the hunter to give up. A loud grunt and the crashing of the heavy door against the debris quickly dashed his hopes.
Before he ducked lower behind the counter, he caught a glimpse of the hunter. He was tall, broad-shouldered, formidable, and from the quick look, Sheppard noticed the man was carrying a Genii pistol. He tried to slow his breathing, but the longer he crouched behind the counter, the dizzier he was becoming. He needed this to be over quickly.
The hunter picked his way over the debris, light from a flashlight penetrating the dark corners; it was only a matter of moments before he would check behind the counter. Sheppard tensed even more, waiting like a coiled Cobra to strike, but his vision was blurry, and he could barely focus on the back of the counter much less anything further away. He was thankful that the hunter was big, lessened his chance of missing him with the bayonet.
A loud crash startled Sheppard, and he stifled a shout of surprise. The hunter had turned over a display table just a couple of feet away from the counter. Sheppard waited, hearing the man picking his way across the shop, getting closer to him with each step. He took a deep breath, gripping his lance tighter.
The brightening daylight streaming into the store gave Sheppard a bit of an advantage. The hunter was casting a shadow as he walked across the room, and Sheppard was monitoring the man's movements across the floor. The pale shadow was now along the wall behind the counter.
Sheppard waited until the shadow was almost on him, and then sprung up, shoving the bayonet into the hunter's chest. The hunter instinctively grabbed the lance and pushed it away, blood pouring from the wound near the center of his chest. He tried to raise his weapon, but he faltered as the life drained out of him; uttering a weak moan, he fell to the floor.
The exertion had taken a lot of energy from Sheppard's already depleted reserves; using the counter for support, he made his way to the front to determine the hunter was dead. He had just reached the body when Shiana whispered to him.
"Colonel, are you alright?"
As his fingertips pressed against the hunter's neck, Sheppard answered her, "I'm fine, now be quiet." He retrieved the hunter's weapon. Using the counter as leverage, he slowly pushed himself up, then leaned across the counter, unable to move. "The other hunter will come looking for this guy doesn't when he doesn't meet up with him. Just stay up there."
"You sound very weak; I'm coming now."
"No…stay there, I'm fine." He forced himself upright, gripping the counter to keep from falling over. "I need to get back in position."
Shiana spoke again, this time much closer. "I will not stay here. We need to move this body first. We don't want to give ourselves away as soon as his friend shows up."
He dropped his head, "I told you to stay out of sight."
She laughed, "Since when did I ever take any credence in what you say, Colonel Sheppard."
He turned to look at her, "Yeah, well, there is that."
Shiana helped him back around the counter and eased him onto the floor. He sank without a word, resting his back against the wall. "Just give me a minute, I'll be fine."
"Sure, you will." She walked away, retrieving a tarp from the cubbyholes in the corner. She laid the tarp next to body, rolled the dead man onto it, and began to drag him as best as she could through the debris. Through sheer effort, she managed to get the body out of the line of sight from the front door, and folded the tarp over to hide the dead hunter.
Returning to Sheppard she asked, "How much time do you think we have?"
"No idea, h-how many buildings…on this street?
"Only a few, I think; this is a side street off the main street, but I am not certain."
"Well…we need to…get ready; back upstairs."
"No, you are not able to fight off anymore of these hunters; you need me."
He grimaced, "Shiana, I…"
"Neither of us asked for this; Livica made us allies, colonel, at least for now. Now rest while you can, I am staying here."
Resigning himself to Shiana's stubbornness, he muttered, "You…sound like my team, they don't a-always listen to me either."
"Rest, I am going to go retrieve a few things from the loft."
As he sensed her leaving, Sheppard closed his eyes; in a few seconds, he was asleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The buzzing noise roused her from her thoughts. She knew there was nothing currently on the planet that could make that sound. Livica rushed to the window, looking toward the sky but could not see the source of the buzzing. She activated the radio strapped to her wrist, a Genii radio that Ventur had acquired. He was wearing the only other radio he had been able to locate.
"Ventur, I can hear some sort of machine; it sounded like it was coming from the sky. Do you hear it?"
"No, not yet, madam but we are a distance away from you."
She asked testily, "Did you leave anyone at the Ancestors ring?"
"No, we decided not to do that, remember. You wanted everyone on the hunt."
"A hunt that isn't going well, is it, Ventur? I don't see a beaten, defeated Sheppard in front of me. Find him and find out what's causing that noise, and while you're at it, get some people to guard the ring. I don't wish to be surprised by those meddlesome people from Atlantis."
She barely heard his reply, as anger seethed inside her. She peered out the window again, and muttered loudly, "I will avenge my family and my people. He will die for them all."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Woolsey was hanging over McKay's shoulder watching the data feed from the AirMALP, "What are we seeing?"
McKay compressed his lips together as he viewed the screen, only answering when Woolsey asked him again. "What we are seeing are infrared images from the city. There are teams of people all over the place."
"So, no way to know which one is the colonel or Shiana?"
"No."
Switching to normal view, Rodney said, "This city has been devastated, but not to the extent we have seen on other planets. I think the Wraith, and the Replicators were too busy fighting each other to annihilate the planet completely.
Ronon asked, "What are those?" He was pointing to numerous small vehicles, some about the size and complexity of a golf cart, some a bit larger.
McKay answered, "According to the data Herus brought, those are vehicles used for transportation. The Jutans generated electricity by hydropower generators; the vehicles ran on battery power. Apparently, the Replicators took out the planet's power grid with an EM pulse.
Lorne grabbed Rodney's arm, "Come on, doc; let's go, we have a pretty good idea of what we're dealing with." He looked as Woolsey as McKay gathered his pad, "We'll find them."
A few minutes later, three jumpers dropped, one after another, from the bay and disappeared through the stargate, followed by several teams of ground forces. As the gate shut down, the Atlantians left behind settled in to wait for word.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shiana heard the crunch of boots on the debris-strewn street. She shook Sheppard, "Wake up, someone's coming."
Sheppard struggled awake; he was shivering, dizzy, and disoriented. "W-who…"
She whispered, "It's the other hunter."
"Okay…" His arm felt like lead as he reached for the Genii gun. All he could think was that aiming and firing it was going to be very difficult.
Shiana had closed the door again, replacing the debris as best she could. She couldn't afford to spend the time she needed for fear that the other hunter would find her. There wasn't enough debris and this hunter had no trouble pushing the door open. He cautiously entered the shop, whispering, "Cervis; it's Nevi, are you here?"
Not getting an answer, he kept walking toward the back of the shop, stopping a few feet from the counter when something caught his eye. He dropped to one knee, and touched the dark wet puddle about a foot in front of the counter. Touching the pool of liquid, his fingers were red, "Blood, fresh blood." He stood up, his eyes following the trail of blood toward a lumpy tarp. He headed for the lump and pulled the tarp back, "Cervis." Whirling around, looking in all directions, Nevi pulled his gun, another Genii weapon, and yelled, "Come out, I said come out now."
Shiana started to rise, but Sheppard stopped her, and rose himself; the gun held in a very shaky hand, "Here I am." Nevi spun toward Sheppard's voice, just as Sheppard fired, and missed. The hunter fired at Sheppard, but not before the colonel managed to squeeze off another round, this one hitting the man in the chest.
Sheppard fell sideways against the wall, then slid down, leaving a trail of blood; he'd been shot in the right hip. Shiana screamed, startling Nevi, who turned toward her. Sheppard fired again, but his shot went wild. He was too weak to control it, but it distracted Nevi long enough for Shiana to act.
She grabbed the mini-crossbow that Sheppard made and stood up. As Nevi, turned toward her, she released the metal stake from the bow. The stake wobbled but did what she needed it to do; it struck Nevi in the eye, the sharp point driving into the hunter's brain. He was dead before he hit the floor.
"Sheppard," she dropped next to him, "Let me see how badly you are injured." The bullet had torn into his hip, just above his thigh; blood was flowing profusely from the wound. "I can't find an exit wound." She searched his vest for another pressure bandage but there were none.
"I have to find something to use as a bandage. I'll be back." As she rose, Sheppard grabbed her arm.
"No, you…need to leave h-here; they'll hear…the gunfire. Find…another place to hide, like we talked about."
"I am not leaving." She tried to pull away, but he gripped her arm even tighter.
"Do what…we talked a-bout, go over roof...tops…get away." Sheppard began to take shallow rapid breaths, his hand falling away from her.
Shiana sighed, "Nice try." She remembered seeing a stack of cloths in the loft; quickly retrieving several, she returned to Sheppard. She ripped the fabric of his BDU pants a bit and slid folded pads of fabric over the wound tucking the corners under the black fabric. She was still not certain if there was enough pressure over the wound, so she unhooked his empty gun holster, slipping the belt from the holster. She wrapped the belt around his hips, pulling as tightly as she dared.
"There, that should put enough pressure on the wound." He didn't answer; he had passed out. She shook her head, "You are no help to me now, colonel; I'm going to have to figure this out on my own."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lorne banked right as the jumper burst through the gate and immediately engaged the cloak. Following him, Captain Winters banked left and Lieutenant Salem flew straight from the gate. They quickly established perimeter around the immediate area, while Stackhouse, Isaacs, Morgan, and Wong, along with Herus's team and an additional Latiran team, came through the gate on foot.
Lorne keyed his COM, "Stackhouse, the HUD is showing approximately thirty life signs scattered across the city. They're mostly in groups of two; seem to be running a search grid."
Stackhouse responded, "Transfer that data to me; I'm going to leave Wong's team at the gate. We're heading out."
"Understood; stay in contact, Lorne out."
Sitting in the jumper with Lorne was Sheppard's team, along with Herus, Dr. Beckett, and an EMT team. His own team was 'baby sitting' Herus' group, although he hadn't presented it exactly that way to Herus. McKay, sitting in the copilot's seat, was quiet, which surprised Lorne.
"Dr. McKay, you okay?
McKay, seemingly lost in thought, reacted slowly, "Yeah….I'm fine. We just need to find Sheppard."
Teyla was sitting behind him, "We will, Rodney. It is a good sign that these people seem to be searching for something, no doubt John is eluding them."
Ronon asked, "When are we going to land, so we can help in the search. I want down there."
Let's give the ground teams' time to get the lay of the land and see if we can pinpoint where the colonel might be. That shouldn't take long; we'll be on the ground soon.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sheppard regained consciousness, and immediately felt claustrophobic; his back was against something hard, and covered by a heavy cloth. His initial instinct was to throw the covering off, but his training kicked in, resisting the urge. He listened closely, then shifted ever so slightly until he could move his right arm, searching for the edge of the cloth. He was about to pull it back, when he heard Shiana's voice.
"Sheppard, be quiet; they are out there. I expect them inside here any second. I have moved you to where the tarps were stored. I dare say that my back will never recover; you are quite a bit heavier than you appear, colonel.
"Sorry," he said weakly. He thought he heard a soft laugh from her.
"Listen closely; you are in no shape to fight. I have done all I can to hide you, when they come in, you must absolutely still and quiet, or we will both die."
"I…told you, you need to…get away." His voice was raspy and much weaker than before.
"Colonel, I am a council member of the Pegasus Coalition; last time I looked, I outrank you in this galaxy. Now do what I tell you. They will not kill me, until they find you; perhaps I can buy us sometime to see if your Atlantis teammates can find us."
Muffled voices drifted into the shop from the street. Before the hunters entered the shop, Sheppard whispered, "They will."
End of Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Author: stella_pegasi
Genre(s): Action/Adventure, H/C, Whump
Rating: PG-13
Character/Pairing: John Sheppard, Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex, Teyla Emmagan, Evan Lorne, OC's.
Spoilers: Set after Season 5, Events in Inquisition
Warnings: Minor language
Het/Slash/Gen: Gen
Word count: ~27,500
Disclaimer: I do not own them, I would have treated them better.
Summary:A bounty has been placed on Sheppard and his team, but by whom? An old enemy or by a new one?
Written for sheppard_hc's Summer Fic Exchange as a gift to maddie_amber, who wanted Sheppard whumped…I did my best!
maddie_amber, I hope you enjoy!
BOUNTY
By stella_pegasi
Chapter Four The Hunt
Livica exited the factory as the sun rose indicating dawn was breaking. She stood quietly as the sky transformed from inky black to gray, then pale rosy-pink. As the first rays of the system's sun glinted above the horizon, she turned to her assembled team of bounty hunters.
"It is time. I caution you to remember that Colonel Sheppard is cunning. I have studied his behavior; you will do well not to underestimate him. I want them to fear you; I want you to find them, but do not kill them. That pleasure will be mine, and mine alone."
Ventur took a cautious step forward, "Madam; you offered amnesty to the woman. Do we honor that offer?"
Livica whispered, "No."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Teyla was nearly at her wits end. She had been attempting to keep Rodney calm, but the scientist was not cooperating. He would pace, then he would sit, then pace again.
"We can't just sit here; we have to start looking somewhere."
"Rodney, please sit down; you are distracting everyone who is trying to work."
"Teyla, he's hurt; we have to find him."
"I know, and we will, but we must have an idea where to look or we will be wasting time."
"We're wasting time now. It's been nearly an hour since Kelore contacted us."
"He contacted us to tell us that they might have a lead as to who this woman is that may have the colonel. Rodney, Kelore will contact us as soon as he knows."
Rodney leaned on the banister, looking over into the gate room. Lorne had finally given up keeping everyone in the ready room. The ground rescue teams were assembled in gate room, and three jumpers were standing by in the jumper bay. Lorne and Ronon were talking to a team of technicians, who were milling around a small winged-drone that Area 51 had designed for both land gates and space gates.
Woolsey emerged from his office to join them, as Lorne and Ronon bounded up the stairs, "Major, everyone ready?"
"Yes, sir; we just need somewhere to go."
"I'm certain Kelore will find something," Woolsey said, although it appeared from his tone, he was attempting to convince himself.
McKay snapped, "Well, it better be soo…" The sound of the gate engaging stopped McKay in mid-sentence.
Everyone froze as the event horizon stabilized, waiting to hear Sergeant Chuck Campbell announce who was dialing in. As soon as they heard the golden words, 'It's Kelore,' a collective sigh filled the room. At least, the wait for where to begin might be over, but the rescue was just beginning.
Kelore and Herus rushed up the gate room stairs toward an anxious group of Atlantians, "I believe we know who has taken them, Richard." He pulled a data pod from his jacket. "This has everything that we know about a woman named Livica Ponaes from a planet called Jutan. A planet attacked by the Wraith and Replicators simultaneously. We spoke to several Jutan survivors, who told us that Ponaes was a teacher at their Academia; her husband was a government official. They had two children and were attempting to get through the Ancestors Ring when a Replicator weapon struck nearby, killing her husband and children. She was pulled through the ring by a fleeing Jutan."
"Her story is as Shiana's, her family taken from her, just as they were about to escape," Teyla uttered sorrowfully.
Kelore replied, "Not an unusual story for any of us, but it explains why she might be the one who has taken the two people in question. She probably took her cue from Shiana's efforts to extract her view of justice on Colonel Sheppard and Atlantis."
"It was your version of justice, too."
Kelore turned toward the low, threatening voice, "Ronon; I do not deny that we were all caught up in Shiana's vengeance. Thanks to Richard, reason prevailed."
Woolsey intervened, "What else do you know about this woman?"
"Once the Coalition became established, a bureau to search for missing survivors from planets known to have been fully culled or attacked by the Replicators was formed. Ponaes registered as a survivor consultant, finding refugees and helping to locate a planet where her fellow Jutans could immigrate."
Herus added, "I took a team to Etavia, a planet where several small groups of survivors have banded together to start over; it's where the Jutans relocated. I spoke to the leader of the Jutans, and she said that the last time they saw Ponaes was about three months ago. She said the visit was unusual, that Ponaes didn't interact with them but spent her time with a few men who had gated to the planet after her. From the description, they sound a lot like the men Captain Isaacs' team described."
Kelore added, "They also match a description of a group of mercenaries for hire whom we've been getting reports about. The good thing is that apparently the stargate on Jutan escape destruction by the Replicators. Ponaes returned there several times with rescuers and brought back people from areas of the planet great distances from the gate."
Lorne quickly asked, "You got a gate address, sir?"
"Yes, I do."
Rodney looked up from a computer terminal, "I've found a reference to Jutan in the Ancient database. It's a planet on the outer rim of the galaxy; not a lot of information past that."
Lorne looked over at Woolsey, "Sir, do we have a go?"
"Yes, major; you have a go."
The major turned to Chuck, "Dial the gate." Then he yelled to the drone techs, "Get that AirMALP ready, we need eyes."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Filtered sunlight now flooded the shop through the dusty window. With Shiana's help, Sheppard moved behind the rear counter, the corner where he had been all night was too exposed in the daylight. He convinced Shiana to hide in the loft above the rear of the store. She had resisted but finally agreed that if someone managed to get close to him, she would be in a better position to attack from the rear.
The sun had been up for slightly over an hour, and Sheppard was certain that the bounty hunters would be fanning out across the city. He was so tired, his fever increasing, his vision blurry; he was in no shape for hand-to-hand combat. He wasn't in shape for anything but passing out. That he was certain he would be quite proficient at doing, but he couldn't, he had to stay alert. The silence was screaming at him, as sick as he was, his hearing was hypersensitive. Every little gust of air had his heart pounding faster than the infection was causing.
His thoughts drifted back to the first Gulf War; he was a lieutenant, fresh out of the academy, on his first tour of duty as a helo pilot. His talents as a pilot had earned him training in Combat Search And Recovery, and he was flying a rescue mission for a group of SOs caught behind enemy lines. Everything was nominal until the motor turning the rotors failed, not providing enough power to maintain speed and the chopper went down. Sheppard scoffed, one of the first medals he was awarded came out of that incident. He managed to crash land the helo with only minor injuries to the crew, but they were behind enemy lines, so much for the rescue mission.
They had nowhere to hide except the helo, which left them very vulnerable to the enemy. He remembered how hard his heart was beating, as he hunkered down under cover of the helo. It was six hours before another rescue team found them, and those six hours was the most frightened he had been in his life, except for the confusion and fear he felt the day his mother died. When they had safely returned to base, the captain of the SO unit approached him as he left the infirmary. He remembered the conversation as if it had happened yesterday.
"Sheppard, wait up."
"Captain Marlowe, what can I do for you, sir?"
"About today, lieutenant; there's something I need to tell you."
"Sir, I'm sorry; I should have checked to make certain the helo was in working condition. I put everyone in danger."
The captain had dropped his head then, the slightest of smiles crossing his face. "Look, we wouldn't be alive if you hadn't kept control of that Pave, and gotten us on the ground. The crash was an accident, Sheppard; a mechanical failure, it was not your fault. What I wanted to tell you was that I know you were scared out there. It was what, your second mission?"
He had nodded, even though he was loathed to admit he was scared, "Yes, sir."
"Well, it wasn't my second mission, lieutenant, and I was damn scared. The one thing that you need to remember is that we are all scared. How we deal with that fear is what matters. Fear can make you seize-up or fear can be your friend; let it be your friend, embrace it. Let it cause your senses to become super-senses, your hearing, your eyesight, hell, your sense of smell…let it work for you. Don't try to be unafraid, make it work for you; it will keep you alive."
As he listened for the softest of noises outside the shop, he thought about the notion that fear could keep him alive. He was rarely aware of fear anymore. His reaction to dangerous situations had become so automatic that he responded without thinking. Marlowe had been right; fear had kept him alive many times. He wondered if it could now.
The minutes dragged on; occasionally, Sheppard could hear Shiana move around from her perch on the loft. He was struggling to stay awake. He was weak; alternating between burning up and shivering, the room was spinning, more often than standing still, his vision blurry. He was fighting passing out when he heard a muffled voice.
"Nevi; check those building across the street, I'll look on this side. Ventur ordered us to check every building, so don't skip any. Meet me at the end of the street."
He tensed, grasping the 'broomstick bayonet' lance tightly, willing his arm not to shake. He rose to sit on his heels, so that he could spring up to surprise anyone who entered. He heard Shiana move on the loft, hoping that she wouldn't panic and give her location away.
The hunter pushed hard on the door, which stopped abruptly when it struck the debris that Shiana had carefully piled in the front of the door. Sheppard hoped that the hunters would think that the debris blocking the door was from the attack by the replicators, and would keep them from coming in the shop. There was a pause and Sheppard held his breath, waiting for the hunter to give up. A loud grunt and the crashing of the heavy door against the debris quickly dashed his hopes.
Before he ducked lower behind the counter, he caught a glimpse of the hunter. He was tall, broad-shouldered, formidable, and from the quick look, Sheppard noticed the man was carrying a Genii pistol. He tried to slow his breathing, but the longer he crouched behind the counter, the dizzier he was becoming. He needed this to be over quickly.
The hunter picked his way over the debris, light from a flashlight penetrating the dark corners; it was only a matter of moments before he would check behind the counter. Sheppard tensed even more, waiting like a coiled Cobra to strike, but his vision was blurry, and he could barely focus on the back of the counter much less anything further away. He was thankful that the hunter was big, lessened his chance of missing him with the bayonet.
A loud crash startled Sheppard, and he stifled a shout of surprise. The hunter had turned over a display table just a couple of feet away from the counter. Sheppard waited, hearing the man picking his way across the shop, getting closer to him with each step. He took a deep breath, gripping his lance tighter.
The brightening daylight streaming into the store gave Sheppard a bit of an advantage. The hunter was casting a shadow as he walked across the room, and Sheppard was monitoring the man's movements across the floor. The pale shadow was now along the wall behind the counter.
Sheppard waited until the shadow was almost on him, and then sprung up, shoving the bayonet into the hunter's chest. The hunter instinctively grabbed the lance and pushed it away, blood pouring from the wound near the center of his chest. He tried to raise his weapon, but he faltered as the life drained out of him; uttering a weak moan, he fell to the floor.
The exertion had taken a lot of energy from Sheppard's already depleted reserves; using the counter for support, he made his way to the front to determine the hunter was dead. He had just reached the body when Shiana whispered to him.
"Colonel, are you alright?"
As his fingertips pressed against the hunter's neck, Sheppard answered her, "I'm fine, now be quiet." He retrieved the hunter's weapon. Using the counter as leverage, he slowly pushed himself up, then leaned across the counter, unable to move. "The other hunter will come looking for this guy doesn't when he doesn't meet up with him. Just stay up there."
"You sound very weak; I'm coming now."
"No…stay there, I'm fine." He forced himself upright, gripping the counter to keep from falling over. "I need to get back in position."
Shiana spoke again, this time much closer. "I will not stay here. We need to move this body first. We don't want to give ourselves away as soon as his friend shows up."
He dropped his head, "I told you to stay out of sight."
She laughed, "Since when did I ever take any credence in what you say, Colonel Sheppard."
He turned to look at her, "Yeah, well, there is that."
Shiana helped him back around the counter and eased him onto the floor. He sank without a word, resting his back against the wall. "Just give me a minute, I'll be fine."
"Sure, you will." She walked away, retrieving a tarp from the cubbyholes in the corner. She laid the tarp next to body, rolled the dead man onto it, and began to drag him as best as she could through the debris. Through sheer effort, she managed to get the body out of the line of sight from the front door, and folded the tarp over to hide the dead hunter.
Returning to Sheppard she asked, "How much time do you think we have?"
"No idea, h-how many buildings…on this street?
"Only a few, I think; this is a side street off the main street, but I am not certain."
"Well…we need to…get ready; back upstairs."
"No, you are not able to fight off anymore of these hunters; you need me."
He grimaced, "Shiana, I…"
"Neither of us asked for this; Livica made us allies, colonel, at least for now. Now rest while you can, I am staying here."
Resigning himself to Shiana's stubbornness, he muttered, "You…sound like my team, they don't a-always listen to me either."
"Rest, I am going to go retrieve a few things from the loft."
As he sensed her leaving, Sheppard closed his eyes; in a few seconds, he was asleep.
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The buzzing noise roused her from her thoughts. She knew there was nothing currently on the planet that could make that sound. Livica rushed to the window, looking toward the sky but could not see the source of the buzzing. She activated the radio strapped to her wrist, a Genii radio that Ventur had acquired. He was wearing the only other radio he had been able to locate.
"Ventur, I can hear some sort of machine; it sounded like it was coming from the sky. Do you hear it?"
"No, not yet, madam but we are a distance away from you."
She asked testily, "Did you leave anyone at the Ancestors ring?"
"No, we decided not to do that, remember. You wanted everyone on the hunt."
"A hunt that isn't going well, is it, Ventur? I don't see a beaten, defeated Sheppard in front of me. Find him and find out what's causing that noise, and while you're at it, get some people to guard the ring. I don't wish to be surprised by those meddlesome people from Atlantis."
She barely heard his reply, as anger seethed inside her. She peered out the window again, and muttered loudly, "I will avenge my family and my people. He will die for them all."
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Woolsey was hanging over McKay's shoulder watching the data feed from the AirMALP, "What are we seeing?"
McKay compressed his lips together as he viewed the screen, only answering when Woolsey asked him again. "What we are seeing are infrared images from the city. There are teams of people all over the place."
"So, no way to know which one is the colonel or Shiana?"
"No."
Switching to normal view, Rodney said, "This city has been devastated, but not to the extent we have seen on other planets. I think the Wraith, and the Replicators were too busy fighting each other to annihilate the planet completely.
Ronon asked, "What are those?" He was pointing to numerous small vehicles, some about the size and complexity of a golf cart, some a bit larger.
McKay answered, "According to the data Herus brought, those are vehicles used for transportation. The Jutans generated electricity by hydropower generators; the vehicles ran on battery power. Apparently, the Replicators took out the planet's power grid with an EM pulse.
Lorne grabbed Rodney's arm, "Come on, doc; let's go, we have a pretty good idea of what we're dealing with." He looked as Woolsey as McKay gathered his pad, "We'll find them."
A few minutes later, three jumpers dropped, one after another, from the bay and disappeared through the stargate, followed by several teams of ground forces. As the gate shut down, the Atlantians left behind settled in to wait for word.
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Shiana heard the crunch of boots on the debris-strewn street. She shook Sheppard, "Wake up, someone's coming."
Sheppard struggled awake; he was shivering, dizzy, and disoriented. "W-who…"
She whispered, "It's the other hunter."
"Okay…" His arm felt like lead as he reached for the Genii gun. All he could think was that aiming and firing it was going to be very difficult.
Shiana had closed the door again, replacing the debris as best she could. She couldn't afford to spend the time she needed for fear that the other hunter would find her. There wasn't enough debris and this hunter had no trouble pushing the door open. He cautiously entered the shop, whispering, "Cervis; it's Nevi, are you here?"
Not getting an answer, he kept walking toward the back of the shop, stopping a few feet from the counter when something caught his eye. He dropped to one knee, and touched the dark wet puddle about a foot in front of the counter. Touching the pool of liquid, his fingers were red, "Blood, fresh blood." He stood up, his eyes following the trail of blood toward a lumpy tarp. He headed for the lump and pulled the tarp back, "Cervis." Whirling around, looking in all directions, Nevi pulled his gun, another Genii weapon, and yelled, "Come out, I said come out now."
Shiana started to rise, but Sheppard stopped her, and rose himself; the gun held in a very shaky hand, "Here I am." Nevi spun toward Sheppard's voice, just as Sheppard fired, and missed. The hunter fired at Sheppard, but not before the colonel managed to squeeze off another round, this one hitting the man in the chest.
Sheppard fell sideways against the wall, then slid down, leaving a trail of blood; he'd been shot in the right hip. Shiana screamed, startling Nevi, who turned toward her. Sheppard fired again, but his shot went wild. He was too weak to control it, but it distracted Nevi long enough for Shiana to act.
She grabbed the mini-crossbow that Sheppard made and stood up. As Nevi, turned toward her, she released the metal stake from the bow. The stake wobbled but did what she needed it to do; it struck Nevi in the eye, the sharp point driving into the hunter's brain. He was dead before he hit the floor.
"Sheppard," she dropped next to him, "Let me see how badly you are injured." The bullet had torn into his hip, just above his thigh; blood was flowing profusely from the wound. "I can't find an exit wound." She searched his vest for another pressure bandage but there were none.
"I have to find something to use as a bandage. I'll be back." As she rose, Sheppard grabbed her arm.
"No, you…need to leave h-here; they'll hear…the gunfire. Find…another place to hide, like we talked about."
"I am not leaving." She tried to pull away, but he gripped her arm even tighter.
"Do what…we talked a-bout, go over roof...tops…get away." Sheppard began to take shallow rapid breaths, his hand falling away from her.
Shiana sighed, "Nice try." She remembered seeing a stack of cloths in the loft; quickly retrieving several, she returned to Sheppard. She ripped the fabric of his BDU pants a bit and slid folded pads of fabric over the wound tucking the corners under the black fabric. She was still not certain if there was enough pressure over the wound, so she unhooked his empty gun holster, slipping the belt from the holster. She wrapped the belt around his hips, pulling as tightly as she dared.
"There, that should put enough pressure on the wound." He didn't answer; he had passed out. She shook her head, "You are no help to me now, colonel; I'm going to have to figure this out on my own."
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Lorne banked right as the jumper burst through the gate and immediately engaged the cloak. Following him, Captain Winters banked left and Lieutenant Salem flew straight from the gate. They quickly established perimeter around the immediate area, while Stackhouse, Isaacs, Morgan, and Wong, along with Herus's team and an additional Latiran team, came through the gate on foot.
Lorne keyed his COM, "Stackhouse, the HUD is showing approximately thirty life signs scattered across the city. They're mostly in groups of two; seem to be running a search grid."
Stackhouse responded, "Transfer that data to me; I'm going to leave Wong's team at the gate. We're heading out."
"Understood; stay in contact, Lorne out."
Sitting in the jumper with Lorne was Sheppard's team, along with Herus, Dr. Beckett, and an EMT team. His own team was 'baby sitting' Herus' group, although he hadn't presented it exactly that way to Herus. McKay, sitting in the copilot's seat, was quiet, which surprised Lorne.
"Dr. McKay, you okay?
McKay, seemingly lost in thought, reacted slowly, "Yeah….I'm fine. We just need to find Sheppard."
Teyla was sitting behind him, "We will, Rodney. It is a good sign that these people seem to be searching for something, no doubt John is eluding them."
Ronon asked, "When are we going to land, so we can help in the search. I want down there."
Let's give the ground teams' time to get the lay of the land and see if we can pinpoint where the colonel might be. That shouldn't take long; we'll be on the ground soon.
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Sheppard regained consciousness, and immediately felt claustrophobic; his back was against something hard, and covered by a heavy cloth. His initial instinct was to throw the covering off, but his training kicked in, resisting the urge. He listened closely, then shifted ever so slightly until he could move his right arm, searching for the edge of the cloth. He was about to pull it back, when he heard Shiana's voice.
"Sheppard, be quiet; they are out there. I expect them inside here any second. I have moved you to where the tarps were stored. I dare say that my back will never recover; you are quite a bit heavier than you appear, colonel.
"Sorry," he said weakly. He thought he heard a soft laugh from her.
"Listen closely; you are in no shape to fight. I have done all I can to hide you, when they come in, you must absolutely still and quiet, or we will both die."
"I…told you, you need to…get away." His voice was raspy and much weaker than before.
"Colonel, I am a council member of the Pegasus Coalition; last time I looked, I outrank you in this galaxy. Now do what I tell you. They will not kill me, until they find you; perhaps I can buy us sometime to see if your Atlantis teammates can find us."
Muffled voices drifted into the shop from the street. Before the hunters entered the shop, Sheppard whispered, "They will."
End of Chapter 4
Chapter 5