space. Something large.
A spaceship.
“You keep this hidden here?” Ronon asked as he followed the Retemite down a narrow trail to the valley and up to the ship. He was impressed — he knew Nekai was resourceful, but stashing an entire ship here just for emergencies? That was something!
“There aren’t any ancestral rings where we’re going,” Nekai responded, pulling a gray-brown tarp from the small ship and keying a code into the panel beside the airlock. The lights on the panel shifted to green and the door hissed as it slid open. He stepped inside, carrying the bundled-up tarp with him, and Ronon quickly followed.
It was a simple vessel, not unlike ones Ronon had traveled in or even flown during his military days. Bare bones, no frills but good sturdy construction, decent shields but only a single gun and that only for last-ditch efforts — firing the weapon would probably drain the ship’s power completely. This thing wasn’t built for long-range travel, or for combat. It was strictly a shuttle.
Ronon scanned the sky through the viewport as Nekai slid into the pilot’s seat and began powering up the engines. “We heading to that moon?” he asked, pointing at a faint crescent high in the sky.
Nekai hid it quickly, but Ronon saw the other man’s eyes widen for a second. “How did you know?” he demanded.
“Just figured,” Ronon answered with a shrug. He hid his grin and dropped into the co-pilot chair. Nice to know that even after these months of training he could still surprise the Retemite.
“Not bad,” his mentor admitted, shaking his head. “I knew I was right about you.” He didn’t say anything further, but hit the thrusters. The ship groaned as power surged through it, then shuddered slightly as it lifted off the ground. It hovered for a second, adjusting its fields, and then shot into the sky with enough force that Ronon was pressed back into his seat. Seconds later the pressure eased as the planet’s atmosphere fell away behind them, and they were out among the stars.
Ronon had always enjoyed space travel. There was something very freeing about floating through the galaxy, untethered by gravity, surrounded by the welcoming dark of space and the comforting twinkling of the many stars and other bodies it contained. It was beautiful up here, and soothing. This was the first time Ronon had been in space since his capture — or at least the first time he had been able to see it, since during his captivity he’d been held deep within a Hive somewhere — and he released a deep breath and let some of the tension ease out of him. Sometimes he thought he could simply stay up here forever.
It never lasted, though, and this trip was no exception. Already Nekai was turning the shuttle, curving its path around the planet and angling toward the moon that floated there, just out of reach. It was a small moon, blue-gray in color though its surface sparkled where the sun’s rays struck it. Judging from their trajectory, Nekai was bringing them toward its dark side, out of sight of both sun and planet.
“What, you have a secret base up there?” Ronon asked idly, studying the moon as it drew quickly closer.
“Something like that,” his companion replied. He didn’t say any more, and Ronon decided not to press it. He’d find out soon enough. .
* * *
Nekai proved to be a competent pilot if not a good one, and the shuttle jolted a bit as it came in for a landing on the pitted surface of the moon. Ronon pressed back into his chair, letting it absorb most of the impact, but was still tossed about as the shuttle set down. At least there wasn’t a tearing sound coming from the underside, so he didn’t think Nekai’s fumbling had ruptured the hull. If it had, they’d know soon enough.
When the ship had halted its motion, groaning to a stop, Nekai shut everything down. “Suit up,” he instructed, tossing a light atmospheric suit at Ronon and grabbing another himself off the rack
A spaceship.
“You keep this hidden here?” Ronon asked as he followed the Retemite down a narrow trail to the valley and up to the ship. He was impressed — he knew Nekai was resourceful, but stashing an entire ship here just for emergencies? That was something!
“There aren’t any ancestral rings where we’re going,” Nekai responded, pulling a gray-brown tarp from the small ship and keying a code into the panel beside the airlock. The lights on the panel shifted to green and the door hissed as it slid open. He stepped inside, carrying the bundled-up tarp with him, and Ronon quickly followed.
It was a simple vessel, not unlike ones Ronon had traveled in or even flown during his military days. Bare bones, no frills but good sturdy construction, decent shields but only a single gun and that only for last-ditch efforts — firing the weapon would probably drain the ship’s power completely. This thing wasn’t built for long-range travel, or for combat. It was strictly a shuttle.
Ronon scanned the sky through the viewport as Nekai slid into the pilot’s seat and began powering up the engines. “We heading to that moon?” he asked, pointing at a faint crescent high in the sky.
Nekai hid it quickly, but Ronon saw the other man’s eyes widen for a second. “How did you know?” he demanded.
“Just figured,” Ronon answered with a shrug. He hid his grin and dropped into the co-pilot chair. Nice to know that even after these months of training he could still surprise the Retemite.
“Not bad,” his mentor admitted, shaking his head. “I knew I was right about you.” He didn’t say anything further, but hit the thrusters. The ship groaned as power surged through it, then shuddered slightly as it lifted off the ground. It hovered for a second, adjusting its fields, and then shot into the sky with enough force that Ronon was pressed back into his seat. Seconds later the pressure eased as the planet’s atmosphere fell away behind them, and they were out among the stars.
Ronon had always enjoyed space travel. There was something very freeing about floating through the galaxy, untethered by gravity, surrounded by the welcoming dark of space and the comforting twinkling of the many stars and other bodies it contained. It was beautiful up here, and soothing. This was the first time Ronon had been in space since his capture — or at least the first time he had been able to see it, since during his captivity he’d been held deep within a Hive somewhere — and he released a deep breath and let some of the tension ease out of him. Sometimes he thought he could simply stay up here forever.
It never lasted, though, and this trip was no exception. Already Nekai was turning the shuttle, curving its path around the planet and angling toward the moon that floated there, just out of reach. It was a small moon, blue-gray in color though its surface sparkled where the sun’s rays struck it. Judging from their trajectory, Nekai was bringing them toward its dark side, out of sight of both sun and planet.
“What, you have a secret base up there?” Ronon asked idly, studying the moon as it drew quickly closer.
“Something like that,” his companion replied. He didn’t say any more, and Ronon decided not to press it. He’d find out soon enough. .
* * *
Nekai proved to be a competent pilot if not a good one, and the shuttle jolted a bit as it came in for a landing on the pitted surface of the moon. Ronon pressed back into his chair, letting it absorb most of the impact, but was still tossed about as the shuttle set down. At least there wasn’t a tearing sound coming from the underside, so he didn’t think Nekai’s fumbling had ruptured the hull. If it had, they’d know soon enough.
When the ship had halted its motion, groaning to a stop, Nekai shut everything down. “Suit up,” he instructed, tossing a light atmospheric suit at Ronon and grabbing another himself off the rack
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