From above there was the report of Ronon’s energy pistol, and Rodney dodged back away from the shaft, nearly running into Teyla. There was a flash of white light that seared his eyes, and then he knew no more.
There was a hand at his throat, long nails cool against his skin, opening the top of his jacket. Wraith! Some part of Rodney screamed, and he drew a deep, heaving breath, his eyes opening on darkness.
*It is I,* Ember said as Rodney shoved him away. *We have been stunned.*
*No shit,* Rodney said. It was absolutely black. He could see nothing. *Where are we? Why’re you talking mind to mind?*
*I thought until we knew where we were and what was happening it was best not to speak aloud,* Ember said. *As to the rest, I know no more than you. I woke only shortly before you did.* He moved. Rodney could hear the creak of his leather tunic in the darkness. *Jackson lies over there. He is unconscious.*
*Teyla? Ronon?*
*I have not found them yet.*
*Wraith,* Rodney thought.
Ember’s mind was cool, considering. *If so, it is another hive,* he said at last. *And I do not know the technology.*
*And I should believe you?* Rodney asked. *I’ve seen Wraith mind games, remember?*
He heard the creak of leather again, and Ember’s hand found his arm, sliding down to touch palm to palm. *Do I deceive you?*
Open, clear, there was no deceit there. Ember was telling the truth. Which of course didn’t mean that there wasn’t another hive in this. Ember wouldn’t necessarily know.
There was a familiar moan, and Rodney whipped around, eyes searching the darkness fruitlessly. “Teyla?” For once he wished he had his Wraith vision back.
The sound of Ember moving, and then Teyla’s voice, mumbling as though she came out from under anesthetic. “Rodney?”
*He is here,* Ember said mind to mind, *And so am I. We have been stunned and we do not know where we are.*
*Where are Ronon and Dr. Jackson?*
Rodney put out one hand in the dark. That was Teyla’s foot. OK, that was Ember’s thigh where he knelt beside her.
*Jackson is unconscious over there,* Ember said.
*Hang on,* Rodney said. He pressed the little button for the LEDs that lit the face of his watch. In the absolute darkness the tiny light seemed incredibly bright, but it was just bright enough to make out the general forms of his companions. He turned away, trying to direct the light around. There was another darker lump beyond Teyla. Rodney scrambled over. “Ronon?” He let go of the light, fumbling to find his friend’s carotid artery. There was the pulse, slow and steady. *He’s alive,* he said to Teyla and Ember. *But he’s out cold.*
*So is Dr. Jackson,* Ember replied.
Teyla sat up, Ember steadying her. Her voice sounded a little stronger. *We have greater resistance to whatever was used than they did.*
*I am fully Wraith,* Ember said. *And then Rodney. And then you.*
*Which does suggest this isn’t a Wraith thing,* Rodney said. *If it’s least effective on Wraith.*
*Or that it is,* Teyla said darkly. *Like the device we found on the planet that caused half our people to kill each other.*
*The one you were immune to,* Rodney said. *And Sheppard shot me.*
*That one,* Teyla said and felt in the pockets of her BDUs, producing a little LED flashlight on a clip. Teyla turned it on, the light seeming unbearably bright after complete darkness.
Ember got to his feet. *I am more interested in finding out where we are.*
*I do not know,* Teyla said. *But we were not carried here. See?* There were no marks in the dust of the floor around where she lay other than where Rodney and Ember had disturbed it.
*Beaming technology,* Rodney said. *So if not Wraith, Asgard.*
*Vanir,* Ember said, his mental tone agreement. *What you call Asgard.*
Rodney got to his feet, trying to illuminate the space around them with his watch, which wasn’t much use. It just wasn’t bright enough for human vision, but maybe it was enough for Wraith. *Ember, what do you see?*
The Wraith got to his feet. *We are in a small room,* he said. *There is an archway over there with another chamber beyond it. I see no furnishings or equipment of any kind, though there are marks on the walls where there might have been such in the past.*
*A typical abandoned Ancient installation,* Rodney said with more confidence than he felt.
*No locked doors?* Rodney could hear the rise in Teyla’s mental tone. *That suggests we are not prisoners.* She got to her feet slowly. *I do not see that Ronon and Dr. Jackson are in any imminent danger here. Let us see if we can find a way back to the jumper. Then we can return with the first aid kit and a stretcher if need be.*
With Ember in the lead, since his vision was best, they went through the arch into the room on the other side, Teyla walking right behind Ember with her hand on his back and Rodney behind her with his hand on hers like some kids’ game. It was a much larger room with multiple doors like the ones in Atlantis all sitting in the open position, though there was no furniture and equipment remaining. There were also no windows, as presumably they were still underground.
*Open. Close. Lights on,* Rodney thought. Nothing happened.
*There is a lighting fixture over here,* Ember said.
*Rodney,* Teyla began.
*I know. On. On. On.* Rodney thought at it. Again nothing. He went over and touched it, hands roving over the very familiar fixture.
*Will this help?* Teyla shone her flashlight so that he could see the fixture a little.
*There’s no power,* Rodney said. *That’s the problem.*
*There was power to launch drones before,* Ember said.
*Well, either that was the last power in the ZPM,* Rodney began.
*Or they have taken the ZPM,* Teyla concluded grimly.
*Yeah.* Rodney blew out a long breath.
*Here is a stairwell down,* Ember said. *Toward the main levels?*
*Worth a try,* Rodney said.
They trooped down the flight and through another hall. Nothing stirred. There was no sound. The air was fresh enough, but there was no soft breath of ventilation.
*The fans have stopped,* Ember said. *The air is good enough for now, but it won’t remain so.*
*Ah ha!* Rodney exclaimed. There was a familiar set of doors ahead, the usual markings for a technical center, and here there were signs of activity. The floor had been wiped clean except in the corners by the passage of large items, and the doors were not quite fully open. Inside, tables stood emptied of their terminals, scrapes and marks showing where they had been recently removed. Even worse, there was the podium to one side, the hexagonal carriage in the upright position and empty.
*They took the ZPM,* Teyla said. *And who knows what else?*
“Lorvine,” Elizabeth said. “What world is that?” Dekaas had found her a long sleeved white knit shirt that was warmer for shipboard than the clothes of the Mazatla, and that felt more right to her, more like something she used to wear. With the baggy gray pants she’d acquired, looking in a mirror she recognized herself. Her hair was growing longer than she’d worn it in a while, but she looked like herself. Pale, yes, one would expect that on shipboard. But she looked like herself.
“It’s a mining world,” Dekaas said. “Or rather, it’s a nearly deserted world that has some minor mining operations. The atmosphere itself is toxic, but at some point in the past someone moved their Ring underground. The population is never very large, a few hundred at most, living in the mines themselves in fairly deplorable conditions. But the ores are worth a great deal, and there are always people who find it worth it to work the seams. We trade there from time to time for raw metals.”
“What do they get?” Elizabeth asked. She was finding herself fascinated by the shadow economy of Pegasus, by the complex interactions that took place out of sight of all governments. Or perhaps in the absence of all governments was a better term.