The Queen & Me

[Akren Garkos]

Olaf stared across the conference table in disbelief, hardly able to comprehend the words he was hearing.

"Are you sure?" He asked, "I can't but help feel we are biting off more than we can chew"

"It's no big deal, Olaf, we've penetrated a Hive ship before" Colonel John Sheppard replied from across the conference room table, "Don't forget that the Puddle Jumpers have cloaking technology & squidies" - He threw in the Earth slang term for the squid-shaped, thought-controlled drones Puddle Jumpers & other Ancient devices were capable of firing as ammunition - "And between you, Rodney & Verak, we'll have a big jump on them technologically speaking"

"I don't see how my & Dr. McKay's mutual obsession with Ancient technology is going to help, given the gravity of what you are suggesting" Olaf replied, "The Wraith are almost as advanced as the Ancients were, & even with my somewhat expanded fields of scientific expertise, I doubt we will find the information we are looking for"

"You were the one whom said you wanted to gain first-hand knowledge of how Wraith technology works" Sheppard replied, "What better place to do it - & gain some valuable Intel along the way - than a Hive ship?"

"It was Verak's stupid idea" Olaf replied, borrowing from a Human youthamism, frowning profusely. "I agree with him in principle that we should study the Wraith to better understand their capabilities & to find ways to counter their various technologies - such as their transporter-jamming technology - you were the ones whom came up with foolish notion of taking on an entire Hive ship"

"That’s what you get for sharing your body with a Tok'Ra. . ." Dr. McKay replied drolly, rolling his eyes & swirling in his chair for the umpteenth time, clearly bored with the whole meeting (or so it seemed). He received several disapproving stares from the others gathered around the conference table.

"I say we do it" Ronnon said, putting in his two cents' worth.

"You would!" Rodney said, the good doctor getting a death glare from the ever-ready-to-fight Mr. Dex.

"What does Verak think?" Teyala asked, still getting used to the idea of their being two entities - two minds, two souls, if you will - inhabiting the same body.

Olaf bowed his head & let Verak speak, which wasn't always a good thing; but speak he did :

"I believe the strategic advantage to this kind of covert operation would be greatly beneficial to our cause; as well as gauge the strength of our mutual enemy"

"How so?" Sheppard asked. Whilst no fan of any alien species that imposed itself upon Humans - whether a particular individual welcomed such attentions or not - Sheppard nonetheless had grown to trust - if not at the very least, respect - Verak for his military expertise & dedication to the cause. No-one could accuse either Verak, or his host, the Tollan Olaf, of slacking off, whether it be during peace or war time. "What do you think we'd get out of it, besides maybe a data node?"

"Whilst a data node would be useful Colonel Sheppard, I was thinking more along the lines of finding out exactly how many Wraith are actually on a Hive ship at any one time" Verak replied, "Not to mention their weapon capabilities, how many Humans they can hold in suspended animation & the like. The sooner we can find these facts out, the sooner we can calculate exactly how many Wraith we may actually be facing"

"By finding out exactly how many Wraith are actually on a Hive ship, on average, & what damage they can do; we should be able to take a reasonable guess - or at least an educated one - on the numbers of Wraith across the galaxy by taking the number of Wraith on one Hive ship, & timings that by how many Hive ships we know to be in the galaxy. The resulting number from that little sum should give us an indication of exactly how many Wraith there really are out there" Dr. McKay said, offering the 'commoner's' version of the equation they would use to work out the forces arrayed against them.

"You are correct Dr. McKay" Verak replied, turning to the Atlantis base's Commander-In-Chief, "What do say, Dr. Weir?"

"Are you sure you want to do this Verak?"

"Yes, although Olaf has his reservations; I can ultimately assure you that we are in agreement" Verak replied.

"Can I hear that from Olaf, please?" Dr. Weir asked.

"Of course" Verak replied, bowing his head & letting Olaf resume control of his body once more.

"I concur" Olaf replied, nodding & clearing his throat Colonel Sheppard spoke up.

"We have done this before Elizabeth, you know we can do this" Sheppard said, trying to give her a pep talk when he knew Elizabeth would make her decision regardless of how he tried to butter her up.

"Fine, but be careful" Dr. Weir replied, "The last thing we need is another run in with the Wraith so soon after the siege"

"As you wish" Olaf replied, bowing slightly in respect & gratitude for Dr. Weir granting them the mission.

"We'll have him home by 10, promise" Sheppard replied, smiling, leading the way out of the conference room, the team gearing up & setting out within the hour.

“Why are you wearing a Super Solider Battle Suit?” McKay asked as Olaf/Verak stepped into Jumper 1.

“This Super Solider Battle Suit was modified with Tollan & Tok’Ra technology prior to our arrival at Atlantis aboard the last trip from Earth on the Daedalus” Verak replied, adjusting the suit’s sleeves, taking aim & lining up his eyes with the wrist-mounted plasma repeater on his right wrist, “The High Council of the Tok‘Ra thought it may come in handy on field missions such as these”

“And what are those things?” Ronnon asked ,pointing to two nossels mounted on top of the right-hand plasma repeater & the small box-like projection on top of the left-hand plasma repeater respectively.

Gesturing to the right arm first, Verak replied :

“This one is a modified T.E.R., or Trans-Phase Eradication Rod; useful for targets out-of-phase or which are just plain hard to kill”

“Like the Wraith?” Ronnon asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, like the Wraith” Verak replied.

“And the other one?” Ronnon asked.

Waving his left hand about, Verak replied, “That is a Tollan Phase-Shifting Device, which allows me & anyone, or anything else, that I am in physical contact with to pass through solid matter, or any known variety of shielding technology”

“Even Ancient shields, like the one here at Atlantis?” Teyala asked.

“That, we have not tested yet” Verak replied, “But Olaf is anxious to test the theory for himself”

“And why, may I ask, are you packing such serious hardware?” McKay asked, “It’s overkill! We’re going to observe & do reconnaissance - you know, stealth, sneaking about & stuff? - not start your own little personal war?!”

“I know that Dr. McKay” Verak replied, “However, we are about to attempt to gain access to a Hive Ship; & given your own personal record with the Wraith, it does not hurt to be overly cautious & well prepared”

“What is that supposed to mean?!?” Mckay asked incredulously as Verak took his seat, bowing his head as Oalf regain control of his body; clearing his throat before saying :

“Shouldn’t we departing now?”

“You still didn’t answer my question!” McKay whined, as Colonel Sheppard brought the Puddle Jumper down through the hole in the roof above the embarkation area & dialled the Stargate.

“Give it a rest Rodney, we have some Wraith to go spy on” Colonel Sheppard stated matter-of-factly; as the Stargate kawooshed! p[en & the Puddle Jumper shot through the gate, emerging out in the darkness of space a few moments later.

A few hours later, the team - with one tricked-out Tollan/Tok’Ra operative in tow - found themselves laying on their bellies on a ridge overlooking the nearby Hive ship in the plateau below, which had settled for the time being on the planet’s surface - the Wraith only knew what for - looking through binoculars at their target.

“Some sight seeing tour” McKay replied, lifting his binoculars off his face, grimacing; “Can we leave now?”

“No” Came the reply from the rest of the group, almost in unison.

“Didn’t think so” McKay replied sourly, the grimace on his face turning into an unpleasant & worrisome scowl. “What are you doing Olaf?”

“Putting my helmet on” Olaf replied, adjusting the Super Solider Battle helmet over his head as he locked it into place with the rest of the suit, pressurizing the suit & making it completely air-tight as he relinquished control of his body - & this part of the mission - to Verak.

“Are you sure you can see in that thing?” Colonel Sheppard asked, raising an eyebrow at Verak.

“Anubis designed these Super Solider Battle Suits for his Kull Warriors using a mixture of Asgard & Ancient technology” Verak replied, his voice sounding even more deep & metallic sounding through the helmet‘s air filtration system, “In addition to re-enforced armour plating with in-built energy-dissipation, the suit also acts as an environmental barrier against external hazards - including the vacuum of space - in additional the usual enhancements; such as increased sensor packets : which includes infra-red & vision-enhancement technology”

“Does it come with the kitchen sink?” McKay asked sarcastically; giving Verak a condescending look through his helmet.

“No Dr. McKay, it would not be practical” Verak replied, humourlessly. “Besides, I doubt Anubis took the sanitary requirements of his Kull Warriors into consideration when he was breeding them to replace the Jaffa & slaughter all those whom stood in his path to galactic domination”

“Very funny” McKay replied, turning back to observe the Hive as the team sussed out their next move.

“I think we should enter the Hive from there” Sheppard asked, pointing to a side point on the grounded Hive ship in the plateau below, partly secluded by an unshelling of rock & sand. “Ronon?”

Ronon looked at Sheppard & nodded, then the pair looked at Verak, the Tok’Ra nodding in agreement.

“We are in agreement, then?”

“Looks like” Sheppard replied, nodding again to confirm the plan.

“I would advise caution” Teyla said, “I sense a great many Wraith in the plateau below; & not just on the Hive ship”

“I advise we go home?!” McKay piped up, everyone giving him a foul look & replying at the same time in union :

“No Rodney!”

“Just checking” McKay replied sourly, frowning & muttering to himself, “We‘re all gonna die. . .”

The others ignored him as the team, with Verak in tow, moved out; making their way down into the plateau & across the open expanse, using rock, shrub & out-croppings scattered here & there to hide as best they could. Luckily, the nights on this particular world were dark & gloomy - kind of like the Wraith themselves; seeing as how they preferred such worlds for some reason - helping provide cover for the team as they made their way as stealthily & silently as possible to their goal, determined to breech the Hive & uncover it’s secrets before the night was done.

“There’s our entry point” Sheppard said to the rest of the team, leading them quickly & quietly to a particular point along the side of the Hive; ducking under an out-cropping & making his way to the Hive proper. Turning back to the rest of his team, he asked : “Everyone ready?”

Telya &Ronon nodded, the pair of seasoned warriors stoic as ever; Verak simply tilting his helmet to the side in an decidedly un-Kull Warrior-like fashion as McKay brought up the rear.

“Verak; would you do the honours?” Sheppard asked, as Verak stepped forward; depressing a button on his left gauntlet, activating the Tollan phase shifter located there as the outter hull of the Hive ship pulsed & fluxed in front of him.

“Everyone stay close & hold on to me” Verak said, voice filtered through his helmet. “We must remain in physical contact in order for all of us to pass safely through to the other side”

So saying, they all linked hands; Verak leading the way as they literally walked straight into the Hive; passing through the outer hull, through the once-coherent mass & out the other side to emerge within the corridors of the Hive ship itself. Once all were safely through & accounted for, they all let go of one another & Verak deactivated the device; returning the wall back to solidarity.

“That was weird” McKay commented, shaking in spite of himself.

“You’re telling me!” Sheppard replied, the others all sharing similar feelings of mental disorientation at having just passed through solid matter for the very first time.

“I have gotten used to it” Verak replied.

“Hazards of the job & all?” Ronon asked; getting a nod from Verak in reply.

“Teyla?” Sheppard asked, wondering if she sensed any Wraith nearby.

“It is hard to tell” Teyla replied, “There seems to be an unusually high number of Wraith, both on the Hive & here on this planet from what I can sense, but I do not believe we are in any immediate danger”

“Shall we?” Verak asked; looking at the others.

“Lead the way” Sheppard replied, indicating down the corridor & smiling in typical, sarcastic John Sheppard fashion.

“As you will it” Verak replied, turning & leading the party down the corridor the way Sheppard had indicated; checking sensor data relayed from their surroundings in his H.U.D. inside his helment. He was unsure if it would pick up Wraith life signs specifically - he doubted Anubis even knew of the Wraith, let alone wished to combat them, at the time he created the technology that resulted in his near-indestructible army of Kull Warriors - but Verak was not taking any chances; & kept checking for life signs anyway at constant intervals, using the in-built heat sensors to make random sweeps of up-coming terrain as best as the technological limitations of the Super Solider suit would allow.

“Verak, Teyala; anything?” Sheppard asked as they stalked along the corridors of the Hive, following Rodney’s readings as they made their way to what they hoped was the nearest command centre.

“My sensor sweeps detect nothing” Verak replied.

“I sense a great many Wraith nearby, but am uncertain as to their location” Teyala replied, “As a said before, I sense a great many Wraith on this world, & their presence on the Hive is making it difficult to distinguish how many may or may not be nearby”

“So we keep laying low & hope that we don’t encounter any Wraith”

So saying, Verak raised his hand in a clenched fist; signalling them all to stop. Scanning ahead, he confirmed his suspicions & activated the Tollan phase shifter on his wrist, everyone grabbing a hold of one another - & Verak - as they literally pulled them through a wall & into a nearby feeding chamber.

“What the hell are you doing?” Rodney asked, Verak turning to look at him through his helmet; Mckay getting the distinct impression he was giving him a dirty look.

“Silence, Dr. McKay; a patrol comes this way” Verak said simply, before turning off the Tollan phase shifter & turning back to the wall they had just passed through & finding where the joined the nearby door; leaning against the wall & using his helmet’s in-built scanners to watch the Wraith as they walked past in the corridor outside.

To Verak, the Wraith appeared to be a cool blue, going down to a warm-ish centre; kind of like the body of a dying man as the last vestiges of life faded from his body - quite appropriate considering the Wraith literally sucked the life out of others to sustain their own. By the looks of the outlines in his H.U.D., the patrol seemed to consist of 5 male Wraith - 4 Warrior caste, & one of the more lither, agile command caste; although he could not be certain, as this was the first time he had ever seen a Wraith pictured on the suit’s internal scanners.

After they had past & all was safe, Verak motioned for them to continue; & was about to cycle the organic node next to the door that passed for a doorknob in Wraith culture when Rodney raised his hand & exclaimed in that ‘I’ve found something!’ kind of way he did when he found something good or had a brilliant idea.

“What is it McKay?” Ronnon asked, getting impatient with Rodney’s annoying mannerisms by the second.

“According to these readings, we’re quite close to a major power source - possibly the command control centre”

“Where?” Sheppard asked.

“If my readings are correct; then that way!” McKay replied, pointing ot the nearby left wall.

“Are you certain?” Verak asked.

“As certain as I can be with these readings” McKay replied.

“Very well then” Verak replied, the group phasing through the wall & into the chamber beyond.

“Yes!” McKay exclaimed, “I knew I was right!”

Looking around the command chamber, Sheppard nodded & said :

“Well done Rodney; now get to work”

Not needing to be told twice, McKay went to the console & started to interface his equipment with the command control board; working his way through various encryption programs & data blockages as he attempted to access the Hive’s databanks.

“Dr. McKay, I suggest you hurry; I can sense many Wraith coming this way!” Teyla cried; turning to look at the door to the command chamber as she sensed the Wraith’s fury at having been deceived in their own house.

“Just a few more minutes!” McKay cried, fiddling with his equipment, trying as fast & furiously as he could to access the relevant data essential to their mission.

“How did they detect us so fast when we have evaded them for so long?” Ronnon asked, arming his gun & readying himself for combat.

“Probably a back-up system, like a silent alarm or something?” Sheppard offered; kicking himself for not thinking that the Wraith would have put fail-safes in place to guard the information stored in their computers.

“They will be upon us any second!!” Teyla cried, bracing herself for the coming conflict.

At that comment, Verak raised his arm & promptly shot the door controls; reducing them to a mass of gelatinous tissue.
“That should hold them for a few minutes” Verak stated matter-of-factly, turning ot McKay; whom replied :

“Got it!”

“Let’s go people!” Sheppard cried, nodding ot Verakas they made their way to the nearby wall from which they had entered; Verak activating the Tollan phase shifter as they passed through the wall just as the Wraith broke through into the command centre.

Then, they were running through the corridors of the Hive, running for their lives; running from the Wraith that hunted them as they made their way back to their entry-point & to the Puddle Jumper. They were almost there when they heard the sound of darts in the air; & ran even faster, the rest of the team making it to the jumper. Verak, however, was not so lucky; getting swept up in a culling beam by a passing Wraith dart as the Wraith made a pass over the cloaked jumper.

“They got Verak!” Ronnon cried, “We have to go back for him!”

“We can’t!” Sheppard cried, holding Ronnon back. “At least not yet. We have to wait until things calm down in the Hive before we can attempt a rescue”

“Rodney, contact Atlantis & appraise them of the situation” Sheppard said, Rodney doing as asked; before making a back-up of the data they had stolen from the Hive & sent it to Atlantis, along with the message that Verak had been captured by the Wraith.

Meanwhile, in the Hive, Verak fought long & hard to free himself from his captors as he pumped plasma burst after plasma burst from his repeater into the on-coming Wraith; but was eventually overwhelmed & outnumbered, subdued & imprisoned before being brought before the Queen of the Hive for interrogation. . .

[Akren Garkos]

“What do we have here?” The queen of the Hive asked, walking around Verak as several male Wraith stood guard nearby, two command caste males forcibly holding him down & restraining his arms behind his back as the Queen started her interrogation. “You are a most interesting prize indeed”

“Flattery will get you nowhere” Verak replied, quoting an old Earth axiom he has picked up during his travels there.

“You share your body with a symbiotic life form, do you not?” The Queen asked, “Our preliminary studies of your physiology & the technology inherit in your suit indicate you are unlike any specimen brought before me in living memory”

“I share the body of my host, Olaf, in a symbiotic relationship” Verak replied, ignoring the Queen’s comment about his being a ‘specimen’.

“What is the name of your host?”

“My host is Olaf of the Tollan, & I am Verak of the Tok‘Ra; & you will gain nothing of value from either of us” Verak replied, defiant as he had ever been.

“Tell me, Verak of the Tok’Ra; what world do you come from?” The Queen asked; indicating the male Wraith should remove Verak’s helmet - which they did so, setting it aside - “The technology inherent in your armor is unlike that of any species we have yet encountered in all the worlds of this galaxy. Are you from the planet the Humans call ‘Earth‘?”

When Verak did not reply; the Queen wrapped her formable mind around Verak’s & proceeded to ask again :

“Are you from the planet called Earth? Tell me how to get to Earth?”

“No” Verak replied, resisting as best he could; his own mind managing to hold up to the Queen’s own dominating will - but only just. “Neither my host, nor I, are from Earth.”

“Tell me the location of Earth?” The Queen asked again, pressing harder this time.

“No” Verak replied, starting to tremble under the pressure of the Queen mental interrogation.

“Your will is strong; Verak of the Tok’Ra” The Queen replied, “But my resolve is stronger”

“You..will..get…nothing from me” Verak replied, raising his chin in defiance of the enemy before him.

“Then perhaps your host will be more co-operative?!” The Queen replied, putting the pressure on Verak to relinquish control of his host & allow Olaf to speak.

“Argh!” The Queen roared, frustrated with her progress as verak once again held his own against the Queen of the Hive - although she could feel him weakening with each mental probe of his own domineering will. “I will enjoy tasting your defiance; Tok’Ra!”

So saying, she slammed her hand onto to Verak’s chest; puncturing the suit just below the re-enforced armor platting; digging through layers of the super solider suit to contact Verak’s chest & pierce his flesh with the pincers in her hand as she began to feed off host & symbiont alike.

Verak clenched his teeth & muffled a cry of pain as the Queen began to feed, continuing to probe his mind for information as she literally sucked the life out of the bonded life-mates. Stopping her feeding sessions, the Queen raised her hand & looked in astonishment at Verak / Olaf.

“Your symbiote heals you?!?” She cried, “With such beings under our control, we could maintain our food supply for far longer”

Verak, repulsed by the idea that his own natural healing abilities could be of benefit to the Wraith, was sickened by the mere thought of the idea; even as the Queen slammed her hand back onto Verak’s chest to resume feeding.

“Your life energy is rich, & tastes strong” The Queen stated, clearly enjoying herself, “But it will not last for long”

“Argh!” Verak cried, finally letting loose a scream as the Queen revved up her feeding regime, crushing Verak’s mind with her own like an egg in a vice; his eyes glowing as he head rolled forward & his eyes closed.

“Verak, no!” Olaf cried, raising his head, eyes wide & crying in agony as the pair were fed upon by the Queen; the symbiont having relinquished control of his host in order to focus on preserving both their lives, before they were killed by their ruthless interrogator.

“So, I speak with the host now?” The Queen stated, smiling as she continued to feed off Olaf / Verak.

“Yes” Olaf replied through gritted teeth, trying to ignore the pain even as Verak focused all of his energies ons sustaining his host’s life & preventing the Queen from absorbing Olaf’s life - even if it meant he might very well loose his own in the process - as she continued to slowly but steadily take his life energy from him one agonizing minute at a time.

“Olaf of the Tollan, you are an ally of the Humans from Earth; are you not?”

“Yes” Olaf repeated again, tryign desperately to prevent he Queen from clamping down in his mind as she crushed his own mind with her, forcing her will upon his in order to obtain the information she sought.

“Tell me the location of Earth?”

Her words echoed in Olaf’s ears as she probed his mind for the information she sought, Olaf focusing on memories from his past, the pain he felt whilst she fed - anything from revealing to her the information the Atlantis Expedition desperately needed to keep safe.

“N-No” Olaf replied, “I can’t. I won’t!”

“The technology you wield; it is not of this galaxy & it not of that we have encountered with the Humans from Earth. Where did you obtain such technology”

“Salvaged” Olaf replied, his control slipping as both he & Verak weakened with each passing moment. “A mixture of technologies, not from Earth”

“If you & your technology are not from Earth, then where?”

“T-Tollana” Oalf gasped as the Queen reeved up her feeding, putting her entire being into obtaining this new information. “I come from the world of New Tollana”

“It is not amongst our stars - another world like Earth?” The Queen asked, getting excited that more worlds existed out there for them to plunder.

“Yes” Oalf replied, tears streaming down his face as he involuntarily betrayed his people.

“How many more of your kind are there?” The Queen asked, “Are there more worlds like Earth from where you come from?”

When Olaf did not reply, she probed deeper until Olaf screamed in pain; able to conceal the information the Queen so desperately sought any longer

“Thousands of Tollan” Olaf replied, “Many more species, from many, many worlds”

The Queen roared in triumph, her face contorting in a sheer pleasure & joy at Olaf words - & his suffering.

“Such numerous feeding grounds would sustain all the Wraith for many, many generations!” She exclaimed, “So numerous, so rich, so many worlds. The Wraith would never go hungry again!”
“May you starve until your dying day & may the hungry burn inside you & consume you alive until you rot!” Olaf spat in what would probably be one of his final acts of defiance; sickened, repulsed & horrified at the information he had divulged to the Queen & her Hive.

“You first!” the Queen replied, about to drain all of the remaining life force from Olaf & Verak when gun fire interrupted her revere.

Olaf, his vision blurry & fats fading to black, saw the two males either side of him drop like stones as they were riddled with bullets; other Warriors around them likewise dropping just as fast as the Queen roared her rage at having her inner-most sanctum breached by the invaders from Earth.

“Olaf! Verak?!?!” Sheppard cried, his voice sounding faint & distant to Olaf’s ears.

The Queen groaned as bullets hit her in the back, the impact of the projectiles reverberating through her & into Olaf - connected as they were - as Olaf made use of the momentarily distraction to activate his phase shifter with one hand - making himself immaterial & thus unable to fed upon - & then raise the other to ump plasma burst after plasma burst into the Queen now that his hands were finally free.

The Queen was sent flying backwards - coping bullets from one side, plasma blasts from the other - Olaf using the last of his remaining strength to blow her head clean off even as the Queen projected the information she had learnt on a board telepathic frequency to any & all remaining Wraith in the vicinity; using her dying breathe to relay the newly-found information she had gleaned through her interrogation & torture of Olaf/Verak.

“Die!” Olaf screamed, unable to contain his rage, as he continued to decimate the Queen’s body even after she was clearly dead; Sheppard & his team shocked & momentarily stunned into silence by the normally placid Olaf’s extremely violent reaction.

Breaking down in tears & collapsing to his knees, Olaf allowed Sheppard & Ronon to haul him to his feet as his Tollan phase shifter deactivated; turning him back to solidarity, Sheapprd’s team & the two marine units that had accompanied them to rescue Olaf high-tailing it out of the Hive as fast as they could - Olaf using the Tollan phase shifter to speed up their progress where & when he could - to the waiting cloaked Jumpers just outside the Hive entrance before ‘gating it back to Atlantis.

It was only after they were out of the Puddle Jumper & Dr. Beckett & his medical team arrived did Olaf allow himself to collapse into Carson’s arms after taking two steps forward; content in the knowledge that he was home, safe & in the best care the Atlantis Expedition could provide, finally surrendering to the darkness that threatened to claim him for it’s own.

“How is he?” Dr. Elizabeth Weir asked, walking into the infirmary as Atlantis’ other resident alien expats gathered around their wounded comrade; Anise already fast & hard at work with the Goa’uuld healing Device she had brought with her from the Tok’Ra homeworld, focusing on healing his wounds - particular his chest around the area where the Queen had physically attached herself to feed of Verak & his host - Dr. Carson Beckett giving her a serious, concerned look that told her that Oalf & Verak weren’t out of the woods just yet.

“Both Olaf & Verak have sustained quite a shock” Carson replied, motioning to Elizabeth to move out of the way of Olaf’s hospital bed & out of earshot of the others. “The Queen fed off both of them extensively; but from what I have managed to gather from Olaf during the brief periods of time when he is conscious, Verak apparently deliberately relinquish control of Olaf‘s body in order to heal him & prevent the Queen from doing too much damage when she fed off of him”

“Will Verak survive?”

“I don’t know much about symbiont physiology, but if the Tok’Ra are anything like the Goa’uuld - genetically speaking of course - then Verak is tough - they both are! - but it will still be touch & go for a whiles”

“What about Olaf?” Dr. Weir asked; as concerned for the host as she was for the symbiont within.

“Olaf will be fine, thanks to Verak” Carson replied, “Physically his wounds will heal; but I am worried about psychological trauma & emotional scarring”

“He got fed off, interrogated & tortured by the Wraith” Elizabeth replied, “I‘d probably feel the same in his position”

“Anise is using the Goa’uuld Healing Device to heal the more serious of Olaf & Verak’s wounds; & we are doing everything we can. His friends haven’t left his bedside since they found out about what happened”

“I bet” Dr. Weird replied, “Olaf & Verak have been instrumental in helping the other non-Human base personal adjust to life here in Atlantis; it‘s no wonder they‘re all so close”

Walking over to Olaf’s bedside, she asked if she could have a moment with Olaf. The others hesitated, obviously not keen to leave their friend’s side; but in the end they relented - if only out of respect for Olaf/Verak & the fact that they all admired, if not respected, Dr. Weir & her work - Dr. Weir leaning in to talk to Olaf in his ear as Anise continued her healing vigil.

“Olaf, Verak; it’s me, Elizabeth. I don‘t know if you can hear me, but if you can, we‘re all here - you‘re amongst friends now, & we are doing everything possible in our power to help you recover” Pausing to taking a breathe & swallow the lump she felt welling in her throat, Dr. Weir added: “Get better soon, both of you!”

Placing her hand on Olaf’s shoulder, she nodded to Anise & the others, before walking back over to Carson & saying : “Make sure they‘re looked after”

“Aye” Carson replied, nodding as Dr. Weir put her hand on his chest in a fond gesture friendship & dependability before exiting the room; only to return several days later.

“He wanted to see you” Carson said she came walking in, Dr. Weir going to Olaf’s bedside as the Tollan wearily opened his eyes to regard the base commander with a sorrowful, haunting expression that would stay with Elizabeth for the rest of her days.

“Olaf, how are you feeling?” Dr. Weir asked, noticing that Olaf looked a few years older than when he left to go on the mission, a grey streak running through his otherwise dark hair; unable to stop wondering how he had come out of the whole ordeal - physically at least - so unscathed.

“Like I just got hit in the chest by an Ion Cannon” Olaf replied weakly, smiling through cracked lips up at Dr. Weir, whom smiled back, trying not to let her concern show.

“And how is - ?”

“Verak?” Olaf replied, finishing off Elizabeth’s sentence for her. “He is very weak, but he will live. He saved me from the worst of it - the Queen’s feeding - he saved my life; saved both our lives. Anise, theo thers & Dr. Beckett also did a great job in that regard” Olaf adde,d smiling weakly up at Carson, whom smiled & nodded back, glad to see Olaf was recovering.

“That’s good to hear” Dr. Weir replied, noticing Olaf’s sour face & asking, “Olaf, what’s wrong?”

“The Hive Queen, she interrogated us” Olaf replied, shuddering at the memory. “When she couldn‘t obtain the information she sought through probing Verak‘s mind, she tortured & fed upon us both. First, it was Verak, & when he withdrew to focus on healing me - in order to save my life - she interrogated me”

Elizabeth felt her heart go out to Olaf as a single set of tears streaked down his pale, still-recovering cheeks.

“I held out for as long as I could; but it wasn‘t enough” Olaf said angrily, frustrated & furious with himself for not being stronger & resisting longer than he had. “I told her everything : About the Tollan, the other species - like the Unas, the Goa‘uuld & the Tok‘Ra - in the Milkyway, about the thousands of inhabited worlds there - not just Earth, all[/I][/u] of them! - & she told the other Wraith, right before I shot her, she toold as many of them whom would listen; I am sure of it! Thanks to me, the Wraith now know that the Milkyway Galaxy has a great many more worlds, with many more intelligent lifeforms on the, in it than just Earth. All because of me, all thanks to me”

“Don’t blame yourself Olaf” Elizabeth replied, “You were being tortured, interrogated & fed upon. I don‘t know how long I would lasted in those circumstances; but you did your best. That’s all you could do - all any of us can do - & hope for the best”

Olaf nodded, closing his eyes & going back to sleep as Anise walked in with the Goa’uuld Healing Device to continue his healing treatments.

Dr. Weir nodded to both Anise & Carson as she placed a hand on Olaf’s shoulder before leaving the room; burdened with Oalf‘s news & what this new information might mean for the Wraith; glad that Olaf & Verak were going to be OK. She did not know what the Wraith might do with this new information & how they would react now that they knew the Milkyway was inhabited by billions of sentients on thousands of worlds just life Earth; but she put it to the back of her mind for the time being, intent on crossing that bridge when she came to it. . .