Atlantis

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

Siphon half shrugged.

"Apparently we were married if what I saw was accurate. If it was, then technically I'm still a married man even if I can't remember it, and come to think of it ... that'd make me a hell of a lot older than anyone I've ever known."


He was silent for a moment before picking up again.

"Not really sure how to handle it. On the one hand, if that is the case and these are legitimate flashbacks triggered by todays events, it could answer a lot of things that haven't made sense for as long as I can remember. It also begs some very big questions like do I have any children? On the other hand ... part of me isn't quite sure I'm ready to find all that out, to relive whatever happened that caused me to become who and what I am today. Obviously something happened, and I came back at least one more time than we know of. The question really is, what the hell happened? Of course, this is all assuming it can be believed. Ah, a moment, Talvesh wants to speak with you."


There was a slight pause, and then the familiar tone of the symbiote took over.

"I believe what he experienced was in fact a flash back. This woman, Aya, she cannot be aware of my existence. Even if she were capable of projecting false memories, those would translate over to me as well. However in this case ..."

He hesitated, which was unusual for him, and then finished.

"These ... memories if you will, they did not translate through to me. I believe this means that they are not projected upon him, but rather something buried deep within his own mind. However ... they are not memories I have ever been able to see myself. As you know, we share all memories with each other after merging as one being. These however appear to have been so deeply buried within him ... I believe they may very well be older than his supposed birth year. Once they became visible to me from him sharing them after experiencing it ... I noticed that the stars in the sky he mentioned from it were in different patterns than they appeared on the sensor charts and our known star maps. I believe the reason for this is that this memory he saw is several million years old. It would explain the difference in star positions. I would caution you to make sure he doesn't go too overboard trying to find the truth here. This may be only the tip of long hidden memories, and there can be only one reason why he wasn't able to access them until now."

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"Either deeply buried or because Siphon's playing time lord, it doesn't jive with you," she remarks. "Either way, you're right. There's likely a reason he kept them from himself. I just hope the cracks in the wall that seeing Aya started don't cause the whole thing to come flooding down around him. Keep an eye on him, Talvesh. And I'll do the same from out here. Right now, though, we've got bigger Wraith to fry."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

Talvesh shook his head.

"I do not believe he kept them from himself, or they would have been brought back when Daina helped him recover who he was. I believe they were intentionally blocked from him by an outside source, and there is only one outside source that could do that. I believe they were intentionally blocked by the Ancients when he ascended. The real question is why only those of the previous life?"


He paused for a long moment, then continued onward.

"I will do what I can to ease the flood should it happen again, however I must stress that the first one completely took both of us by surprise, and likely that will be the case again. With any luck, it isn't at a critical moment."

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"Maybe there was something about the timeframe that the Ancients didn't want him to remember, either because he was an outsider or because of, well, who knows. Maybe there's something about this place they didn't want getting out. It sounds all very Manchurian Candidate when you put it that way, so maybe he did something or they did something or someone did something that would've set him off...or something." She concludes with a bit of a chuckle. "Do your best. I know you will. Hopefully Aya's the only trigger around here and he's not going to barrel into a room and open up a can of worms. Particularly if there are Wraith around, which we should be getting to exterminating."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

Again Talvesh nodded.

"Very likely he did something and was punished for it, that would be my guess based on what we know of the Ancients and their non interference in lower planes. As for the Wraith, I believe we are coming up on the first of them."


A moment later, it was Siphon, who blinked slightly.

"That was a long conversation, looks like it ended just in time too, I think we've got company."


As they came around a bend, they could see a half dozen or so Wraith attempting to blast open a door that had closed them in. The bunch of them looked less than thrilled, and hadn't seen either of the two just yet.

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"Just planning on what to get you for Christmas this year," Sho replies with a grin. As both of them mention the Wraith, though, she grows quiet. Given that the two of them have the element of surprise, there's a good chance of reducing the things' numbers before they even know they're there. She'll brush back the side of her coat, indicating her zat or she'll make a pulling gesture near her mouth and nose, both ways she's willing to engage them, unless he has something else in mind.

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

Siphon paused for a moment. While it was true she could repeat the same feat as before, these wraith were much closer, which meant they could, in theory, live long enough to get some shots off, and possibly get lucky while she was focusing. He was good, but six on one odds weren't good in the sense of being able to account for all targets at once. Shaking his head, he motioned to the zat, withdrawing his own pistol and checking once to be certain it was thumbed back to the kill setting. Nodding once to indicate he was ready, he took aim and fired, blasting the first wraith in the side of the head and dropping it dead without a doubt.


((And let the energy fly!))

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

A fire-fight it was. That didn't mean, however, that she was going to fight fair. Siphon got his shot off first, which dropped one of the Wraith immediately. Her zat was going to need more time, so as soon as she squeezed off the shot, angling for the next closest Wraith, she also summoned up a violent push of wind to slam them all and keep them off balance for another few moments, which would hopefully allow the two of them to get a couple more shots off.

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

The move proved to be a good one, spoiling the aim of one wraith, causing it's shot to sail about ten feet wide of her position. Her zat blast hit one wraith, causing him to accidently shoot one of his own companions, which Siphon then mopped up with blasts to the chest.


The other three by now had managed to recover and started shooting back, trading off shots with the two of them. The sound of other shots being fired nearby indicated more wraith were trying to backtrack to help out their buddies.



"This could get ugly. Fast."

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"It's already ugly. It's Wraith, after all," Sho quips. She does her best to keep up the vortex, though the wind will do little to deter any blasts of energy that the things are letting off. She'll fire back with her zat any time she can, but she isn't quite as crack a shot as Siphon is. "See if we can't fall back to a more defensible position, chief? Or at least one where we're not pincered?"

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

There was a brief pause as Siphon fired off a couple shots, the intended target managing to duck behind cover JUST in time.


"Hmm, I don't ... wait yes, back the way we came midway down there should be a secondary juncture that loops back towards the Z.P.M room. And close to the chair."


Another pause.

"OK, not sure how the hell I knew exactly where it goes ... but I'm not complaining with convienent flashback info. Ready to move?"

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"So long as it gets us out of here, I don't care where you're getting your ideas from. At least not right now. Let's book." She'll keep up the vortex as long as she's able. It won't stop the blaster fire, but it might at least give them a few minutes head start on the Wraith, who won't be able to get through without being slammed into the walls or sucked up off their feet, however briefly.

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

He took off back down the hall, checking to be sure Sho was in tow the whole time. After only a moment, they reached the panel, and Siphon yanked it open, indicating for her to get in.

"I'll close it behind us, go."


A moment later, he came back around the corner and let loose with a shock blast from his hand, sending the wraith staggering backwards around the bend.





Back in the control room, Aya had just gotten the bypass going when the gate came online. She reached to place the shield up, but at that moment the doors in front and to her right exploded inward as some kind of explosive blew them away, and about a dozen wraith charged in. She had to duck down as they opened fire, pinned down and unable to get out or rig the self destruct. She couldn't even tell what was happening with the gate.



... And then suddenly Ariana found herself standing near a brightly lit stargate that looked completely different from the one she'd left behind, and the room was vastly different. Then suddenly, she realized she was on the sidelines of a firefight between the two Alverans in front of her, and a dozen or so aliens that she could only assume were hostile wraith.

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

With the exception of the few seconds that it takes her to break off the concentration with the vortex, she's behind him the whole time. She does her best to squeeze through the panel as quickly as possible, once he has it wide enough. "Never thought I'd be happy to lack padding," he hears her mumble as she slips inside. "Get your ass in here," comes out a littler louder and a little more hurried, even if he is causing the Wraith to retreat, however briefly.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Atlantis

Ariana experienced the moment of nothingness, stepping through on the other side distracted by the sensation. “Amazing.“ she said, before suddenly ducking, a stray shot passing over her head. Moving quickly, she fired off a few rounds from her pistol to try and get the wraith to take cover, her eyes scanning the room for some of the same she could take herself, leading the others in the group towards it with a touch and a quick “Hit cover, quick.“

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

After ensuring Sho was in and the Wraith were knocked back off their feet, Siphon quickly crammed himself into the juncture, sealing it behind them. He fired one shot into the control panel, annihilating it with a shrug.

"Ought to slow them down from following at least. Not quite sure how many of them there were coming, but it sounded like a lot. Let's get moving before they cut through though, we can get a head start."



The rest of the group was already in motion even as Ariana spoke, suppressive fire being laid down as the Alveran contingent made their moves. The stargate snapped shut behind them, leaving a bit more room to work with. One of the Alverans, she couldn't tell who from her spot, manage to land a shot between the eyes of a wraith getting ready to fire on her, half blowing it's head off and surely dropping it dead. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement on the upper platform, and saw a woman poke out, only to be driven back to cover as two wraith fired on her again, a third now making it's way up the balcony in a crouch heading for the woman, who seemed to have no clue it was there. The creature though was out of line for her to shoot ....

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Atlantis

Ariana moved with the group, using the suppressive fire to find some cover herself, catching sight of a wraith dying just as it aimed for her, just before she ducked behind a console herself.

She spotted the other woman being approached upon, trying to line up a shot with her pistol to at least slow the wraith sneaking up on her, but unable to get a clear shot at it. Frustrated after a few seconds of trying, she ducked a little further where she was to make sure she was safe, then concentrated on the wraith, taking hold of it with her mind's grip and lifting it into the air several inches, tensing with the effort. She couldn't do much else with it, but it was a clearer target for others now, and couldn't advance on the woman in cover as well.

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"Let's just hope you remember how to fix these later. Or that the holes the Wraith cut in them can be patched." Sho's teasing was near constant, a sign that she was getting a little more worried about their situation. At least she wasn't thinking about the claustrophobic atmosphere for the time being. And since putting distance between them and the oncoming Wraith was ideal, she didn't stick around long enough to see how quickly they were going to force their way through the door.

"Leaving is good. Especially if they get impatient and just try to blow the thing up. Hope not. That's cheating."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Atlantis

"Wouldn't put it past them. They do that you know, they cheat."

Nevertheless, they pushed their way down the juncture until they reached the end of it. Moving the panel aside carefully, Siphon checked for a moment before giving it the clear.

"Now we need to move. Chair should be this way. We should have heard the drones fire by now if Aya managed to get that system working. So that means either she couldn't patch them in or ..."

He shrugged, trailing off.



The wraith she had targeted seemed to suddenly become aware of her as she did her little trick, for a few moments later she felt another mind trying to pierce into her own. She held no illusion that it wasn't one of the wraith, and after a few moments she'd discover it truly was trying to get into her head and fuck with her. And that was when she started to see phantasmal images dart across her view, ones that came right up to her like a demon maw, passing through her without seeming harm.

 

[Copper]

Re: Atlantis

"Bastards," she mutters, though she's wearing a grin. "Well, let's just assume for now that she's been busy and we'll have to make the chair work on our own. Or rather, you make the chair work and I'll keep them away from you in the meantime."