How is it written: "consciousness returned with a jerk"?
Never understood this expression. Until now.
But only at this moment, it was as if a switch flipped in my head. Brain as if turned on, realizing the last that stuck in consciousness.
ZPM room, filled with water, me, numb and suffocating without a sip of air. For unknown reason, I jerked forward.
Already on the move opening my eyes.
The very first thing I saw, then felt—a massive brown rectangle emanating greenish light on my body. And that it was sturdier than my forehead.
"Damn your god's soul mother!" I yelled, collapsing back... onto a cot.
Feeling that despite my will I could breathe without effort, inhaling unbelievably wonderful utterly tasteless air. Can fill my chest full, hold it, release...
And not fear that head and body will be crushed by pressure of several atmospheres, or more.
Above my head, continuing its insidious work, the scanner arm with the same rectangle with green light stopped. Shining on my head, it slowly floated toward my feet, illuminating my body with a pattern of numerous small green cells.
"This is the medical scanner!" I muttered, realizing what was happening.
Atlantis has plenty of technological wonders that any professional would like.
There was an infirmary equipped with the latest tech. But in the series they showed only the medical scanner. From Ancient equipment, naturally.
I don't exactly remember what this thing is really useful for, but for expedition members it easily found internal injuries, parasites, nanites in blood, tumors and so on without issues. Something between MRI and CT scan in one bottle. Wouldn't be surprised if over time I learn the device can scan me at molecular level.
All this wonderful, all this great, no doubt.
The question is only how I ended up here⁈
The infirmary is somewhere in the Central Spire, I remember that. But during my stay in Atlantis, at best I peeked here once, understood I comprehended nothing of what's happening here. And safely forgot the way here.
Medical scanner.
And especially, I couldn't come here on my own. Not in unconscious state, at the end! I'd at least soak everything around with liters of ocean water...
By the way, about that!
Realizing I was on a "hospital bed" in just underwear, not very like what I had during the unplanned swim, decided it was time to know my limits.
Clear I didn't save myself, didn't drag here. Someone's in the city. Don't think enemy, or there'd be at least guard. At most, they wouldn't save me—if these unknowns can launch Atlantis's medical scanner, they have the ATA Gene. And if so, then...
Goosebumps ran down my back.
So the gate builders returned?
Curious. Here the gate creators, allegedly the most advanced human race in several galaxies returned home, and I'm prancing in shorts with bare heels. Disorder.
Looking around, still didn't find anything to wear. Didn't find my weapon either. Everything sterile, like in a hospital!
Actually, I'm in the local hospital. During examination of the medical bay nooks I discovered a separate hall with isolation ward, operating rooms, hospital beds for recovering. Or sick... Not a gram of human tech—purely alien design.
The flashed thought that the expedition arrived after all. But it withered too—there'd be at least one-two people. Guard again.
And here absolutely no soul.
In short—enough pondering, time to act.
Need to find out who's running the city and why the hell they didn't come to my aid while I swam in icy water. But first need to find something like a weapon.
For example, that narrow decorative panel would do well as a stabbing weapon.
"I have only one question," a voice sounded behind my back. "What, for all scientific knowledge, are you doing⁈"
The panel easily came off the floor. Gripping it in hand, I turned, demonstrating my skill at hiding objects behind my back with just sleight of hand.
"You won't believe," I exhaled in relief, seeing who was before me. "Contact lens rolled away."
The young woman with Latin American appearance couldn't hold back a ridiculous facial expression.
"You lie as disgustingly as you plan," she said. "For your information, the medical scanner detected no health deviations in you. Though now I'm not sure of its readings' accuracy."
"And why?"
"You most likely have brain trauma if you say such things," she said without a shadow of a smile, folding arms on her modestly displayed chest. "You can put the panel back and close the energy channel from foreign objects. I'm not your enemy. I hope you're not mine."
"Depends on what intentions you arrived in my city with," I said, returning the ill-fated panel to place.
"Your city?" she raised a thin chestnut eyebrow.
"You can check the central computer—it's recorded there," I nodded. "Melia promised."
"Oh," the swarthy woman jerked her head. "Indeed. Since Melia promised. However, I have no desire to argue and bicker. I'm here only because I wanted to help. My name..."
"Chaya Sar, also known as Athar," I finished her thought. "No need, I know all about you."
A well-distinguishable shadow crossed the woman's impassive face. Her body tensed so that I felt awkward ogling her in just shorts. I noted how her tiny palms clenched into fists, knuckles whitening from tension.
Wait... Can Ascended do that?
Chaya Sar.
"And what do you know about me?" she inquired with steel in her voice.
"You're an Ancient, one of the Ascended," I recalled. "At some point, living among local peasants, you decided to protect them from the Wraith and interfered. For which you were sentenced to exile on this planet."
She didn't hide from me that the Ancient exhaled in relief.
"Your memory seems fine too, Mikhail," she said, casting a distrustful glance at me.
"So, we're acquainted by correspondence, but I don't remember meeting in person," I shook my head.
"If you hadn't drowned, we'd have met where you choked," the mulatto smiled slightly. "But you preferred to avoid that and swallow water."
"I assume my salvation is your doing?"
"Yes, but..."
"Thanks," I interrupted her. "If not for you, the end would have been horrific. I hope the other Ascended took this interference with understanding?"
"Undoubtedly," she smiled sadly, averting her gaze aside. "They merely erased most of my memories related to the time I was part of them, deprived me of all higher powers, Ascended memories and knowledge. I think if I try to return it all, they'll stop me. This time forever."
"Excuse me, what?" I was taken aback. "You were Ascended... They... how to call it... dethroned you?"
"I'm mortal again," the Ancient relented over my attempts to pick the right words.
"Punishment for breaking the non-interference rule," I nodded understandingly. "I'm sorry..."
"I don't need your pity," she jerked her bare shoulder. "It was my decision—to interfere and save you. Otherwise, you'd have drowned, and Atlantis would remain at ocean bottom. At least that would suit the Pegasus Ascended community."
"Is that a joke?" I clarified. "They themselves asked me to help them... save the city."
I added the last a bit quieter.
Well, exactly. Schemers!
They needed me to save the city! The city, not save myself with it! Looks like these guys decided to fix Hippaforalkus's actions at my expense. Eliminate rule violation without breaking them themselves.
Clever. I'll remember this trick. And find how to retaliate—but first check if it's true.
"If possible, I wouldn't want to discuss other Ascended's actions," Chaya asked.
"No problem," I spread my hands. "But we should talk."
"I think so too," the Ancient nodded. "But I have a request for you, Mikhail."
"Anything I can—I'll do," I assured.
"In that case, be so kind as to dress," casting a sidelong but clearly not angry glance at me, the Ancient returned to mortal life spun on the low heels of her turquoise (matching the dress) shoes, and exited the infirmary. "Clothes in the patient personal items locker."
The explanation reached already from somewhere in the corridor.
"Excellent!" I shouted after her. "Don't worry, I'll find it myself! Wherever that thing is..."
*
My savior, also the only Ancient I knew not suffering deficit of biological components, I found only half an hour later.
She sat in the conference room in the left part of the Gate Room.
The girl settled at the table, performing some manipulations on the snow-white, like the tabletop backlight, Ancient laptop. I saw such only a couple times in the series.
Frame from the series. In the lady's hands—that very laptop.
"Sometimes the Ancients' logic amazes me," I said, entering the room and taking a seat on the other side of the horseshoe-shaped table. So we could converse looking each other in the eyes.
"Only sometimes?" she tore away from her occupation and looked at me with a gaze full of restrained skepticism.
Chaya Sar and her skepticism.
"Exactly," I nodded. "Take, for example, this computer. Why, instead of one big screen to parse all written there, have better overview and more details, make two quite tiny ones?"
"It's more convenient that way," she shrugged. "For us it's no big deal to discern even the smallest details at such magnification. But at the same time there's possibility to work with two parallel tasks."
"Need someone to tell you about two desktops," I smiled. "So... Our acquaintance didn't go most successfully."
"That's true," the girl said calmly. Now she seemed quite young to me—not older than twenty-five. That very age when a girl's features show a mature woman. "However, I'm already glad you have tact and showed up to the meeting clothed."
"Sounds like you wanted to reproach me, but since we're not married yet, you have to hold back the claws," I continued innocently smiling and playing on her nerves.
No, I'm insanely glad she saved my skin. But that doesn't cancel the fact that in known events Chaya Sar didn't even think of becoming human to help expedition members. And for me she made such an exception.
From what I knew of this lady's past, can't boast of details.
The expedition encountered her on one of the underdeveloped planets where they came under Wraith attack. The latter were destroyed by energy weapons, so the Earth group decided to learn more. Chaya posed as a servant of some goddess Athar, worshiped by locals. Later it turned out she was from that planet. Once, being Ascended, she stood up for her countrymen, preventing the Wraith from culling them for feeding. In fact—clear rule violation. For that she was sentenced to be her people's protector. But only theirs.
In the series I concluded she's sympathetic, taking others' grief close to heart. And the Ancients made it so she couldn't do anything when other humans, millions across the galaxy, died. In the end she told about herself, her origin and punishment. But by the Ascended's will she couldn't help the Earthlings.
However, now she dared go against. All strange.
***
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