Sails Away, to Far and Beyond

by Laurie-ky

Stargate Universe with SG1 and SGA characters. Rush/Young. kidfic. Prologue : On Destiny, Eli's come up with Plan B. But for all of them to survive the trip to the next galaxy, Rush and Young are going to have to live with the consequences. At Stargate Command, something forces the iris open. A strange entity stumbles through, connecting Destiny with Earth's survival.

1. Prolouge

Sails Away, to Far and Beyond

Prologue

"Colonel?"

He opened his eyes, but they drifted shut again.

"Crap. Colonel Young?"

He opened his eyes again and saw a young man with tousled dark hair, stocky, dressed in a gray sweatshirt. He was standing below Young, his good-natured features solemn.

Eli.

He glanced around and confirmed that he was still in the stasis pod, open to the corridor. Eli was alive, that was great news. He felt the tension in his shoulders relax.

"What's our status, Eli? Did it take three years or a thousand?"

Eli made a face, one side of his mouth quirking up into a rueful expression. "Actually, it's only been a week since Destiny turned you into a popsicle. I need to talk to you. And to Rush."

"Rush? Where is he?" He stepped down and quickly surveyed the corridor. It was just Eli and him standing there in the dim light. He motioned for Eli to come with him as he jogged down to where he had left Rush in a stasis pod, the man's hands clasped together, eyes closed as the ship had frozen him into stillness.

With a sense of relief, he saw that Rush was safely enclosed in the pod. He wasn't roaming the ship, doing god knows what. It was odd to see Rush this way. Even when the other man had been just sitting quietly at a console or leaning forward gripping the observation deck railing with both hands, attention focused outwards, there had always been a sense of contained energy about him. Except... except for those times when he'd been in the neural interface chair, where he'd seemed more dead than alive. Or in a coma or passed out from exhaustion.

Or, his conscience whispered, the time you beat him into unconsciousness and abandoned him, flung like a discarded rag doll onto the hot sand of a desert planet. Or when you choked him till he passed out, white hot anger cooling before Rush had stopped breathing all together. Everett had pushed him away so he wouldn't have to look at Rush's deceiving, lying, manipulative face. He'd been a limp tangle of limbs for long minutes, lying on the deck of the wrecked alien ship.

He'd looked so small that way. He never seemed like a small man when he was confronting Young or losing his temper, or coming up with solutions to their never-ending problems with the ship or their enemies.

"Colonel Young?" Eli gripped his forearm. "Before I uncork Rush, I wanted to give you a heads up."

"Go ahead."

"See, here's the thing. The last pod, it can't be salvaged—"

"You're sure."

"Yeah, trust me. It's toast."

"I know you did your best, Eli. Sometimes the deck is just stacked against you. Look, you're going to take my pod. These people are going to need you, when Destiny makes it to the new galaxy."

"Uh, they're going to need you too! And this isn't why I woke you up, just so you could do the self-sacrifice thing. I've got a plan!" Exasperation was plain on Eli's face. "I thought you should know what was up."

Everett eyed him. Eli shrugged. "I need Rush to take a look at the database. His Ancient is better than mine, and, okay, I know I said I was smarter than he is, and I'm not taking that back, but it wouldn't hurt to have another pair of eyes looking this over. He is brilliant. Don't tell him I said that, okay?"

"You think you can trust what he tells you?"

"He doesn't want anybody to die, Colonel. Not if it can be helped." Everett saw that belief play across Eli's face. His chin had jutted up, and his stance had tightened. He must think that Young was going to argue that Rush was a heartless pragmatic bastard who would cut everybody else's throat just to save his own.

Right. Everett might have believed that once about Rush, but that was before he'd watched him disarm the bomb planted on Lisa Park's back, warning everyone else to stay on the ship. Heard him comforting her. Before he'd seen Rush's eyes after he'd come back from the trek across the rocky plateau after tracking down and killing that Lucian Alliance son-of-a-bitch who'd killed Ginn and Amanda Perry. Pragmatic bastard, sure. Heartless, no.

He might make an exception if it came down to either Young or him, though. And despite everything the two of them had been through together, Everett couldn't trust the man.

"Eli. Just what is this plan?"

"Two people can share one pod. It's sort of a last measure kind of thing, but it's possible. Probably. In a theoretical way." Eli raised his eyebrows, his expression almost comical.

"But you're not sure," Everett said slowly.

"I'm mostly sure. I can show you the statistical probabilities for an optimal versus non-optimal outcome-"

"Please don't. Sounds like you're giving it a thumbs up. Good enough for me. But Rush and I are going to share a pod."

"Colonel? Um, are you crazy?" Eli looked disbelieving. Everett didn't blame him.

"No. Eli, I'm just going to motivate the man to do his best work by putting us together. I think that'll increase my own chances at surviving. And I don't want you two sharing. These people," he made a gesture towards the other pods, "are going to need at least one of you when they get out of these pods."

"In other words, don't put all of your eggheads in one stasis pod. Okay, I see your point. But. There's going to be, like, no personal space in that pod. And you know Rush and personal space."

"We'll manage, Eli."

"I got a bad feeling about this."

"Eli."

"Just sayin," Eli sing-songed.

"Wake him up." Eli walked up to the control panel and pushed a button. The blue light within dimmed and the door slid up, leaving the occupant exposed. A moment later, Rush was staring down at him, dark brown eyes vague and confused and honest for a change as he blinked several times. Everett told himself wryly that he might as well enjoy that look while he could. Soon enough the secretiveness that defined Nicholas Rush would return to the man's features and once again he'd have the devil's own time deciphering what was really going on inside Rush's head.

x x x

Rush's gazed sharpened. "Mr. Wallace, Colonel. What's the problem?" He quickly came down the steps and stood before his stasis pod, eyebrows raised.

Everett wasn't surprised at Rush's question. The man was quick and good at reading people.

Eli said, "Problem, yes. So, we're going with Plan B. And you're not gonna like it."

"The last pod was hopeless, then?" Rush pushed his long hair back and tucked a few strands behind his ear. Everett crossed his arms and waited for Eli to finish briefing Rush. He expected Rush would make a case for Eli to share a pod with him, not Rush. That wasn't happening. He wanted Eli to have the best shot at making it through the void.

"Yes. But you know how we threw out the idea of sharing pods? Not so much anymore."

"I see." Rush glanced at him, and Young nodded. "You've evaluated some new data?"

"Yes. According to the database, sharing is possible. It's not preferred, though. Might have some drawbacks, so it was uh, considered only appropriate for people who were really close to each other. And only in an emergency."

"Close to each other." Rush's eyes flicked between Eli and Everett.

"The term I read translates to 'kindred souls.''' Eli attempted to look nonchalant, but by the way Rush narrowed his eyes towards the kid, he wasn't buying the act. "You should take a look," Eli said.

"Yes, obviously." He walked briskly to the console at the head of the corridor and beckoned Eli over. He looked at Everett. "Colonel? You've decided, have you not, which two of us will share?"

"You and me, Rush."

"I see."

"Not going to complain about it?"

"That would be pointless. It's too risky to put Eli and I together. For the sake of the crew, an' all." Rush's eyebrows quirked up, and a small smile that bordered on being a smirk tugged at his lips.

Everett worked to keep his own expression calm. Rush could be such a smart ass, but although that was a dig at their former agreement to get along – not that Rush had kept it, not until Everett had to beat the shit out of him again – he wasn't wrong.

He played it straight. "That's right. For the sake of the crew."

"We're not kindred souls, Colonel."

"Not even close."

Rush had made room for Eli at the console, and Eli was bent over it, working the controls.

"Aye, too right."

"Not going to insist that Eli and I share?"

"As I said, that would be pointless. There's risks to sharing, even if we don't yet know what exactly. O' course we want Eli to have the best chance at making it through."

Everett shot Rush a look. It was just so damn hard to read the man, sometimes. Everett honestly couldn't tell if that had been Rush's brand of sarcasm or sincerity. It usually took something huge to happen to Rush before his usual guardedness was disrupted enough for Everett to see the man's true emotions.

"So, I'll let you two work. I'm going to report in to Homeworld Command."

Looking up, Eli said, "Really? Do you think they'll still have someone on stones duty? They won't be expecting us for three years."

"Mr. Wallace, if I could please have your attention back? " Rush said softly. He usually did speak softly. Unless he was having a meltdown. Still, softly spoken words from him usually carried a razor's edge of disdain within the polite phrasing. Eli was more than used to the man's ways, though.

"Um, cool your jets." He fiddled with the controls for another few seconds. "Here's the section I wanted you to review. Colonel, if you do get through, can you find out how my mother's doing?"

"I'll try, Eli. Rush, any messages?"

Rush didn't bother to answer him, just shook his head slightly.

Of everybody on the ship, only Rush had declined to use the stones to say goodbye to anyone who cared about him back on Earth. He'd never asked for personal leave when he'd been based on Icarus, either.

If it hadn't been for Amanda Perry, Young might have believed there hadn't been anybody in Rush's life back on Earth who he gave a damn about, or who gave a damn about him.

He left them to make his report, walking down the cold dark corridors, the flashlight only giving glimpses of the muted colors of the floor and walls. Destiny was mostly asleep, like the crew. Young expected that the three of them would need to go into the stasis pods within a few hours, in order to not dip into the reserves of power Destiny needed to take them to the next galaxy.

x x x

He was back within an hour, having left a note for whoever swapped with him to just stay put in the stones communication room. He'd spoken with both O'Neill and David Telford. O'Neill was his usual sardonic self and let Everett know that the uproar about the meaning of the structure Rush had found within the cosmic background radiation was still hot and heavy. The hand of God, or an intelligence present at the beginning of time, Everett didn't really have an opinion about who or what was behind it.

Plenty of people who knew about the Stargate program wanted to claim what Rush had brought to light for their own political or religious agenda. There was also a strong faction who accused Rush of pulling a hoax in order to gain support to continue the mission. Funding another attempt to dial into Destiny was going to be expensive. Icarus type planets were almost non-existent. Rush's detractors accused him of falsifying the Ancients' data in order to keep Destiny a priority.

And Rush had lied before. Everett had never gotten why Rush had planted the false information about an Icarus planet in Destiny's database. Within the year he had told the crew it would take to reach it, the real story would have come out.

He just didn't understand the man. But ever since the truth about the bridge had come out, Rush had been cooperating. But whether or not he was using that to cover up some other agenda, Everett didn't have a clue. The best he could do was to keep a close eye on the guy.

David brought the conversation back to Rush as they sat together in the stones room at Homeworld Command. After Everett had given him an update on the current problem with the stasis pod, David had dismissed the other people in the room.

He put a hand on Everett's shoulder for a moment. "I'm going to give you a head's up, Everett. If Destiny's crew makes it across the void in one piece, then I think there's going to be a formal inquiry into Rush's actions on Icarus and on the ship."

"Who's pushing for this, David? Besides you, that is."

"He's pissed off the wrong people. And that's entirely on him."

"And you. What's your beef with him?"

"He knows more than he's saying about how the other version of me died."

"He wasn't even there. Scott can vouch for him. And you've been at him since you first used the stones and showed up on Destiny. You already had a history together. Not a good one, apparently."

"Sorry, Everett. That's classified."

"He's a lot of work, I'll grant you that, but he's saved the crew's lives. We need him."

"He put them in danger in the first place. That hasn't been forgotten or forgiven."

"By Mrs. Armstrong, I bet. She's got a lot of pull."

"She lost her daughter and her husband because of that bastard. She's not alone. Don't try to defend him, Everett. The best thing you could do for yourself and your people is to let him get thrown to the wolves."

"Throw him to the wolves. You think that's the kind of man I am?"

"How did he get left on that planet, Everett? Stuck in a rockslide, was it? Yes, I think you can cut him loose. You've done it before. Don't let him take you down with him when he goes under. And he's going to go under. The bastard's gonna be done and when we're able to send new crew back and forth to Destiny, he's going to be out. Prison is where he's going to end up."

"Not if I can help it. But give it your best shot, David. We'll take this back up in three years."

"He's not worth it, Everett. He's going to just keep screwing you and the crew over. He's dangerous and he needs to be taken out."

"He's a member of my crew and he's under my protection."

"He won't let you protect him. He never lets anybody protect him."

"Like you? You resent him because of that?"

"Classified, Everett."

"I might not know the details, but you wanted him to do something your way and he refused, didn't he? And that still pisses you off."

"You can't tell me he hasn't done the same to you."

"He's a lotta work. But I think he's worth it. And now that I think about it, it's been quite a while since he's said something arrogant. Actually, he's been pretty quiet."

"A leopard doesn't change his spots; I'll never believe Nicholas Rush has stopped being a user and actually cares about those people on Destiny."

"I'll be the first to say he's made mistakes. No. He was the first to say he'd made mistakes. He can be a pain in the ass, and I don't have a clue how his mind works, but he's a good man at heart. I'm not wrong about that. And you might remind Chloe's mother that it was Rush who saved her daughter from those aliens. He took a risk with his own life to do that."

"He's got you snowed. I can't believe that you actually were going to stay with him on Destiny."

"I would have continued the mission. I told him that."

"I just wanted to shake you and the rest of the crew that chose to stay. And I'm sure he did something to cause all of you – well, your doubles – to not make it to Earth."

"I don't believe that for a minute. You didn't see him, well, the other Rush, the one that went down with the earlier Destiny, you didn't see his face, his eyes, when he stumbled off the shuttle. He was devastated, David."

"Well, we'll never know what actually happened, will we. Everett, just watch yourself. I consider us friends, even after everything with Emily, and I don't want to see you get burned. Rush will be dealt with, don't get in the way. Please."

"You know I'm not gonna step aside and let him be railroaded. He's under my authority and I'll deal with any discipline issues."

"Have you done that? If so, it's been conspicuously absent from your reports."

"I would say he's been on probation. But after we make it out of the void, I'll take it up with Wray and Homeworld Command about any charges. Hopefully that will keep your allies out of our affairs."

"You're compromised when it comes to him. After this conversation I see that very clearly. You need to step back and let this inquiry happen, Everett. He won't be on your conscience that way."

"Not gonna happen, David. He's mine to deal with, mine to protect."

"Are you even hearing yourself?"

"You owe him, you know. If it hadn't been for him coming to me about the glimpse of your memories he had when you were using his body, you'd still be the Lucian Alliance's favorite bitch."

"That's irrelevant."

"You know, I didn't believe him about you. I thought he was the mole and was trying some scheme. If I'd believed him I would never have let him play secret agent man. He was a math professor, for heaven's sake. He wasn't trained to deal with the Lucian Alliance. They tortured him."

"Everett, that changes nothing."

"Oh, I think it does. I got Varro's take on it. He was very impressed with Rush. He withstood being shocked over and over for a long time. Even after Rush finally admitted who he was and they forced him to help with dialing the ninth chevron, he just played along with them. He didn't give them any new information on how to dial us without tearing apart the planet."

"So he's a tough little bastard. I know that, okay. I think he's always been that way, hiding it behind that harmless eccentric professor facade. I keep telling you, Everett. He can be dangerous."

"But not to Destiny's crew. Not even to me. I'll grant you he was a manipulative little shit before. Maybe he'll be one again. But he doesn't want to harm me. He never did. It wasn't him who threw the first punches between us, and I think a part of him kept holding back. He killed a Nakai with his bare hands, you know. He never turned that level of ferocity against me. He should have because I can't say the same about myself towards him. But that's over. I'm gonna learn to understand that man and get him to trust me if it's the last thing I do."

"You won't. I can see that I'm not going to get you to let him go. Just, watch yourself."

"I'm gonna get back. Eli and Rush are probably done with the database."

"I can't believe you're gonna share a pod with Rush."

"As long as Eli doesn't take any kino footage, it'll be fine. Goodbye, David."

He'd picked up the stone again and found himself back on Destiny. God. David and Rush. What he wouldn't give to hear the story on those two. And neither of them would ever say a word to him about what had happened between them.

x x x

He thought about what he'd told David as he walked back to the stasis pod corridors. Maybe he'd overstated his case. Because despite what he'd told Telford, Rush had a way of making him doubt the man's motives, even when it was more likely that he hadn't been trying to pull a fast one.

The Rush who had returned from the wrecked Destiny had seemed like he was being honest with Young. He'd been traumatized, shaken. He hadn't appreciated any of the smart ass looks or comments his Rush had made about their fucked up situation.

And yet...

When his Rush had run back through the gate right before the other Destiny fell into the star and broke apart, falling to his knees on the deck, he couldn't help but think how convenient it had been that they could scavenge the parts they needed from the dying Destiny. The mission would continue.

He'd looked down at Rush's face and just knew that the man was keeping secrets from him. But the other Destiny being unable to handle the stresses from dialing the gate within the star couldn't have possibly been his fault. How could the other Rush have engineered a jump in time?

A fucking jump in time.

Rush was a lot of things, but he was no Time Lord. He couldn't call up a solar flare, like some space wizard. That flare must not have been caught by Eli or Brody or Volker or Park. Unless, he'd blinded the sensors? No, that was too crazy to even contemplate. And it assumed that the rest of the science team were all morons, which they were not. Even if he was sure from the expression on Rush's face sometimes that the man thought they were.

Rush was by himself at the console when Everett walked over. Rush looked over at him, his attention no doubt caught by the sound of Everett's footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. Immediately he stepped back a good four feet, his hands held up in front of him.

"Colonel?" he asked, his wariness evident in his posture and tone of voice.

"Relax. I'm sure it's against some galactic code to belt a Time Lord."

"Have you stopped by Brody's still then, for a wee drop?" He reached up to massage his shoulder muscle. Everett had seen him do that a thousand times. Never seemed to help loosen his muscles, though.

"No, I haven't," Everett said. Although if this scheme worked and both he and Rush lived he planned on knocking back a couple of shots. Hell, maybe he'd even drag Rush with him to Destiny's makeshift bar.

"An' Time Lord?" Rush asked skeptically.

"Get Eli to explain what a Time Lord is."

"Oh, I know that well enough. Why are you calling me one?"

"Never mind. Are you two ready to proceed?"

"Soon. If you don't care?" he indicated the console where Everett was standing. Apparently he wanted Everett to grant him personal space. Perversely, Everett wanted to do the opposite.

"Just get over here. We're going to be in that pod together for three years. I think you can manage to stand next to me."

Rush's expression turned blank. He moved carefully, eyes watchful, until he and Everett were shoulder to shoulder. His breathing was a little fast and if he couldn't settle down they might have a problem. Well, better to test that out here and not deal with Rush having a panic attack within the small space of the pod.

"I said to relax. Consider this a dry run before we step foot in the pod together." He put an arm around Rush's shoulders and pulled him a little closer.

Rush scowled and tried to step sideways, but only succeeded in bowing his body away from Everett. "We don't need any bloody practice," he hissed.

"Oh, I think you do. Look, just try to relax." He pulled Rush back against his side again.

"Get t' fuck off me, ye heid case!" Rush shoved him and Everett let go.

It was never a good sign when Rush let his usual Scottish accent slur and quicken like that. Greer had told him once that Rush said that he'd grown up poor in Glasgow. He figured when Rush sounded like that he was using his childhood speech. And it meant that Rush was starting to lose it.

Rush moved away and glared at him. Yeah, Everett knew that look. It had never intimidated him but it used to reduce Volker to an insecure heap of scientist, but – but actually, from what he'd overheard – Volker was holding his own now against Rush. He'd said some pretty cutting things to Rush, and Rush hadn't lit Volker on fire with his searing wit. Instead Rush had just stayed quiet and let Volker rip him a new one. Huh. Everett hadn't really considered what this new behavior was saying about Rush.

Rush ran his hand through his hair, and Everett just held his hands out, like he had when he'd been in the body of a Nakai and trying to get through to Rush that he wasn't going to hurt him. That he was trying to help him.

"Hey... He drew out the word, making it sound as soothing as he could.

Rush crossed his arms over his chest and looked away.

Everett slowly approached him. When he was close enough to touch Rush, he stopped. "Look," he said quietly, "we've got to do this. I get that this makes you uncomfortable. What would make it easier?"

Rush glanced at him, but dropped his eyes and stepped back. "Nothing." He sighed. "We'll step inside the pod and Eli will seal us in. It'll be over within seconds. There's no need to engage in a farce about hugging beforehand."

"Why'd you get so rattled, Rush?"

Rush shot him a disdainful look.

He didn't enlighten Everett on what had freaked him out. Everett wanted to question him, to try to learn something about this man, but if you pushed Nicholas Rush too hard then he'd explode in your face like C-4. And Rush in a fit was something he'd like to avoid at the moment. So he made a conciliatory gesture with his hands and watched Rush's shoulders slump a little, and yes, that was relief that had raced across the man's face for a brief moment.

"C'mon, Ace. Let's get this done."

Rush nodded, and they moved back to the console, Everett being careful to not overcrowd his chief scientist.

Lotta, lotta work, was Dr. Nicholas Rush.

x x x

Eli joined them at the console and Rush moved aside, pointing to a passage in Ancient. Eli skimmed it and then looked over at Rush, eyes rounded. "Seriously? You guys are going to-"

Rush grimaced. "No. Not to that extent. I'm going to check the pod. Then we'll give this a try."

Rush moved at his usual brisk pace down the corridor and began working. Everett watched him fiddle with the controls, running a diagnostic, probably. And he had been very careful to not catch Everett's eye before he'd left. He was keeping something from Everett. Again.

Stretching, he filled Eli in on how his mother had been handling things this last week. She and Sharon, Camile's partner, had held a support group for the families of the crew who had been read into the program.

Eli had smiled gratefully at him. "Thanks, Colonel."

"Eli. What did that passage say?"

"Oh, just... gave some directions on uh, the positions the two people sharing the pod should take." Eli wasn't meeting his eyes, either.

He rubbed the heel of his hand over the arch of his eyebrow and sighed. "Just read it to me. Don't abbreviate or change it around. Read it to me straight."

Eli made a face. "Yeah. You're probably gonna love this as much as Rush does. But, um, I think he's in denial about it, just so you know. And can I just point out – once again - that everybody on this ship should learn Ancient, not just the scientists. Well, Matt's learning, and Chloe, but really, she's part of the science team now, but hell, even Becker should be taught. Who knows what kind of recipes the database might hold-"

Everett interrupted him. "Eli, stop stalling. Just read the damn thing."

"O-kay. Uh, don't kill the messenger." He cleared his throat and looked down at the script that filled the screen, all sharp angles and dark lines. "It starts with a warning. 'Only those who uh, deser- um, desire to be as one with a – not sure exactly how this translates, close friend, lover, bonded or kindred soul – should join hands within the chamber of etera dormata, um, sleep, eternal sleep, for upon awakening their thoughts shall be open to each other and thus verimas, uh, truth, the truth shall be evident. They will – need, or maybe require?- habe clementiam, to have mercy upon each other and cool the pain of fire and so be sure, traveler, of your decision. Once the stream joins the river it cannot flow alone.'"

"You're saying that Rush and I are going to end up connected in some way." Everett massaged his forehead with one hand. He could feel a headache waiting to ambush him. Jesus Christ.

Eli nodded. "Yeah, maybe. But, remember, it's really, really possible that's only true for Ancients. You and Rush, well."

"Rush is a natural carrier of the ATA gene. A very, very strong carrier. It's one reason he was recruited into the program. It's helped him become an Ancient tech expert. And I was given the retro virus. It took."

"You're kidding me, right?" Eli's eyebrows shot upwards. "Rush never said he was a carrier."

Everett snorted. "You're surprised that Rush kept something private? It wasn't relevant to our situation here. He told us right away that Destiny's tech was pre-ATA gene compatible. Although I've wondered if his affinity with the ship was enhanced in some way because of his DNA."

"So when Destiny messed with your head?"

"I don't know. It's possible the retro virus made it easier for the ship to do those simulations."

"So... you and Rush might be able to mind-meld. Scary, huh?"

"You bet. But we don't have a choice here."

"Awkward," Eli muttered, drawing the word out.

"Rush knows this, doesn't he?" It would certainly explain why Rush had uttered "fuck," with such feeling earlier, his eyes skimming the script, and then ignored him when he'd asked what was wrong. Nothing. Don't worry about it, Colonel.

"His Ancient is really good." Eli shot a quick glance at Rush. "There's no way he would have missed the whole 'My mind to your mind' thing.

Everett put a hand on Eli's shoulder. "Read the rest. Let's get this done before Rush works himself into a state worrying about it."

"Um, there's pictures?"

"Pictures?"

"Recommended positions. Ah, here." He scrolled down to a new page. "Just touch this button to go to the next screen. I think I'll let you look them over and I'll just go..." He pointed towards Rush, who was on his knees in front of the pod control panel and scribbling something in a ragged little notebook.

Eli's face was turning red. Oh, great.

"Go. Help Rush with the final checks. I'll be there in a minute."

Eli left, but not before throwing him a sympathetic look.

Everett touched the button. His eyes widened when he saw the next screen.

He and Rush were screwed.

x x x

"Eli, Rush, we good to go?" Everett said calmly when he walked over to the pair of them, both crouched on the floor looking into the open panel. He'd settled down after he'd first looked at the console screen. So, okay, it looked like touching was going to be needed. How much, now that wasn't as clear.

He'd stared at the illustrations and thought about what might happen to him and Rush. Maybe some kind of telepathic connection. Maybe nothing at all. Eli was right. They weren't Ancients. Anyway, it didn't matter. In order to live they had to share the pod. They'd sort out the rest later.

"Um, yeah." Eli said.

Everett offered his hand; Eli grasped it and levered himself up from the deck. Rush fastened the grill back over the panel, and, ignoring Everett's extended hand, stood up with his customary energetic gracefulness.

"Eli will be monitoring from the console." Rush tucked his hair behind his ear, and massaged the back of his neck. He glanced at Everett. "The controls are locked so that the pod won't engage until the benchmark is reached. We'll, ah, we might hae t' experiment a bit to reach the correct level."

Everett held back a snort with effort. Experiment. Well, let Rush call it whatever he wanted, if it would let him accept that the two of them were about to get up close and very personal with each other. If Rush wasn't going to mention that they very well might end up tied to each other in some way, then he wasn't going to say a word either. He was fine with avoiding that conversation for now.

"Let's get to it, then. Eli." Everett turned and held out his hand. Eli shook it, then shrugged and hugged him. Everett patted him on the back and they stepped apart.

"Hugs are good," Eli said. "More people should hug each other. Hugs are manly. Very very manly. Like when your team is winning, and you know, all of us are on the same team. Destiny's team. So it's really legit cool for say, two team members to hug each... oth... er." Rush was glaring at Eli.

"Yes well, thank you, Mr. Wallace, for your observations."

"I'll just." Eli indicated the console with his thumb.

"Yes, yes. Kindly wake us up first afterwards, will you?" Rush had stopped glaring at Eli. He wasn't looking at him at all, pretending instead to focus on the control panel. And he was pretending. Everett didn't have much of a handle on Rush, but after all the time he'd spent observing the man in person or in the kino footage, he could tell this much: the man was pretending; he was feeling uncomfortable and possibly embarrassed.

Eli shot Everett a look, and then, a look of determination on his face, he pounced on Rush and wrapped him in his arms, Rush's face against Eli's neck. Like that, it was clear how much taller and broader Eli was than Rush.

Rush startled and then tried to push Eli away. "Eli, wha' are-"

"Shut up. Nobody touches you. You think I haven't noticed that? And you're human, Rush. You're like those failure to thrive babies. You need human contact, so just shut up. We're doing this."

"I don't nee-"

"Yes you do. Man, for somebody's who's a freakin' genius, you can be really dumb."

Rush sighed but after that first initial reaction he hadn't struggled against Eli's hold. Slowly Rush moved his arms around Eli until he was returning the hug.

"Alright, lad. Now let go o' me. Colonel Young is waiting."

Eli tightened his hold for a few seconds and then he stepped back, freeing Rush. Rush ran his hand through his hair, tousling the shaggy mop even further into disarray. He punched Eli's arm lightly, a rueful look on his face. "Cheers, man. Go on now."

He turned away from Eli and stood on the far side of the pod, waiting. And not looking at either of them.

Eli gave Everett a look dripping with significance and nodded towards Rush. "Good luck," he mouthed at him. Then he pointed to a radio sitting inside the pod. "It's on one-way. I'll let you guys know if what you're doing is improving the readings."

"Thank you, Eli. We'll see you on the other side. Oh, and what Rush asked about? I agree. Pop us out right after Destiny wakes you up when we reach the next galaxy."

"Sure thing, Colonel." Eli smiled at him, then walked down to the console. A moment later his voice came over the radio. "Colonel, Rush. I'm in position. I'll monitor vitals signs and the... other stuff."

Rush rolled his eyes. Everett moved next to him. Rush looked at him and he seemed to have regained his equanimity.

"Well, Colonel. Best we start. We'll do a baseline of just standing one in front o' the other and see if that's sufficient."

"And if it's not?"

"We'll move closer."

"And if that doesn't do the trick? You had a bad reaction when I put my arm around you. You think you can keep it together now?"

Rush didn't answer him. He just looked at Everett, emotions warring with each other until stoicism won out.

Everett gentled his voice. "Look, I know this is hard. Usually when I lay my hands on you it's to beat you down. You've probably got some instinctive reaction to not get so close to me."

"Usually? I remember a friendly slap on the shoulder during our early days on Destiny, but that was just the once."

"Don't you remember waking up in my bed after you killed Simeon? How do you think you ended up there?"

Rush started massaging his shoulder again. "I was a rude bugger an' commandeered it? I was pure dead tired when I came back from that planet. You insisted on dragging me with you to your room, to interrogate me about what happened and... And somebody came to the door and got you. I was waiting on you to return and then I don't remember anything after that till the next day. You weren't there." He shrugged. "I left you a note sayin' I was sorry to have crashed on your bed."

"Well, you didn't make it there on your own steam. I found you asleep on the floor near the door."

"Why didn't you just wake me up and send me off?"

"You were too deeply asleep. Exhausted again, like when you had that meltdown and passed out and slept, what was it TJ told me? Ten hours? And she said you probably needed another eight but we needed you, so I told her to wake you up."

"The first time we flew through a star."

"Yep. So there you were on my floor, dirty and passed out. I picked you up and carried you to the bed, I unlaced your boots, pulled off your clothes, and covered you up. I washed your shirts, beat the dust out of your jeans." Everett decided not to tell him that he'd also wet a cloth and wiped the blood and dirt and sweat from Rush's face and body. And the faint trace of tear tracks.

"Why?" Rush seemed honestly baffled.

"You needed somebody to take care of you and I didn't feel like sticking TJ with it."

"I see." Rush pushed a hand through his hair again. He must do it a hundred times a day, Everett thought idly.

Everett put a hand on Rush's shoulder, testing him. "And you took out the bastard who killed our people. Everybody appreciated that." Rush had stiffened but he hadn't thrown off Everett's arm. So, progress.

"Appreciated?" Rush snorted, shaking off Everett's offer of thanks. No surprise there. The man could not take a compliment or any expression of gratitude. "I killed that man against your direct orders. I thought you were going to throw me into a makeshift cell and lose the key."

"There was no way you could have managed to get Simeon back to the stargate on your own. He'd have jumped you." Everett let his arm drop back down to his side.

"He was wounded. Greer shot him, but he was able to walk. Did no one tell you that?"

"Rush, you've got more guts than you've got muscles. He'd have gotten the upper hand and killed you. You're not trained to fight, especially against a Lucian Alliance elite soldier."

"That wasn't why I shot him," Rush said acidly, in a soft tone.

Everett shrugged. "It's still true. And that's what I put in my report, that you had no choice but to kill him or leave him a dangerous enemy at our back."

"Shaded the truth, did you?" Rush asked mildly.

Everett narrowed his eyes. "I've been taking notes from an expert over the last damn year."

"Yes well, you might find that comes back on you."

"Like nobody believing anything you say anymore, sure that there's some hidden motive for your own gain in everything you do or say?"

Rush looked at him, his eyes dark and unreadable. He said, almost in a croon, "Something like that."

"Eli told me about the little chat you two had before you and I went into stasis. That you told him you offered to stay out and fix the pod, but you knew I wouldn't believe that Nicholas Rush would sacrifice himself for the crew, and so I would do it instead. Neither of us counted on Eli."

"You couldn't take the chance that I would refuse to kill myself for the rest of you lot."

"Well?"

"I was sincere. But I'm a good enough chess player to know what your reaction would be, that you wouldn't trust me. I knew you'd turn me down and sentence yourself to death, because you don't know a bloody thing about how to fix the pods or anything else on this ship. And that would have been entirely on you, because I offered." Rush had spoken rapidly, voice rising slightly, his hands slashing through the air, his posture stiff and straight with outrage. "I offered!"

Everett's irritation grew and exploded his good intentions to keep Rush calm. He raised his own voice. "And we know now that the last pod couldn't be fixed. So what would you have done, Rush, if you hadn't found out about the double occupancy last chance that Eli came across in the database? What would you have done with the time ticking away? Shot yourself? What about hanging? Go down to the infirmary and take TJ's sleep meds with a chaser of Brody's booze? Just what was your plan to kill yourself?"

Rush stared at him and then his shoulders straightened, his chin went up. "Why bother telling. You don't believe that I'd have done it."

"So you might as well lie, is that it? Or keep things a secret. Another damn lie of omission."

"Wow. You've just got me all figured out, don't you?"

"No. You're as much a damn mystery as those structures you found in the cosmic background radiation. Which, you know, a lot of people on Earth think you're lying about that."

"I'm aware."

With an effort Everett calmed down. He spoke gently this time. "What were you going to do if the clock ran out on you?"

Rush didn't say anything. He just looked at Everett with that same damn expression that had convinced him that Rush had known Destiny would be fine flying through a star. The expression that had persuaded him that the other man had flat-out lied to the rest of them, leaving them to think they were all going to die.

He clenched his hands. Every time he saw that look on Rush's deceitful face he wanted to wipe it off.

Rush looked at Everett's fists. He raised his eyebrows. "Going to knock me around again, are you? Go ahead, get it out of your system, and then let's get this bloody well done. We shouldn't keep Eli waiting."

"Don't tempt me like that. It won't do either of us any good to have another fight."

"Well, it won't do me any good. You'll win again. But the release of adrenaline from fighting, well, afterwards people calm down and they become more reasonable, in my experience."

"In your experience. Just how many times have you gotten yourself beaten up because of that smart mouth of yours or for pulling some stunt?"

Rush sighed and started massaging the back of his neck, his long hair hiding his hand. He didn't say anything, but that same expression crossed his face again. God damn it.

"You're a lotta work, Rush." He had to calm down. Rush was the volatile one and Everett couldn't keep the man on an even keel if he himself was ready to blow up.

Rush kept his mouth shut.

"All right," Everett said quietly, "you don't have to answer that question."

Rush shot him an incredulous look. Everett could just imagine his thoughts. As if you can just give me orders and I'll do as you ask. Not bloody likely.

Rush said, tightly, "We need to work the problem, Colonel. You can harangue me later."

"You've got a raincheck on that. And also? You're going to learn some hand-to-hand. You're more of a street fighter. You use whatever's around you for a weapon, I've noticed. Bouncing a rock off my head, for instance. But you're little and that's a disadvantage if you don't know some pretty good hand-to-hand."

"I'm not little," Rush said, affronted.

"Now you're just in denial."

Rush pushed his messy hair off his forehead and gave him another one of those baffled looks. Everett fucking loved putting that expression on Rush's face.

Everett swallowed down a grin. "So, working the problem: if I have to touch you, can you just relax about it?"

Rush shrugged, and said, "I'll manage." He waved towards the pod. "After you."

x x x

I'll manage.

Right. Rush had managed until he'd had a damn flashback. The closed-in space, the glass door, had triggered him into a waking nightmare of being back in a tank on the Nakai ship.

Eli had warned them that Rush's pulse was starting to zoom up, but by then Rush was pounding on the glass door, flattening his hands against it.

"What the hell? Calm down. Just open the damn door."

"No! NO! The water!"

That was when he had figured out Rush thought he was back on the alien ship. He was oblivious that the means to escape was right next to him. Everett reached around him and pushed the release. The door slid up and Rush fell out, tumbled down the stairs and twisted on the floor looking up, panicked, as Everett stepped out.

"Get t' fuck away from me!"

In a weird deja-vue moment that duplicated the events on the alien ship, Everett held out his hands, fingers splayed open. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm Colonel Young, remember? Rush, you're okay. You're on Destiny."

A look of confusion passed over Rush's face. "Chloe!" He jumped up to his feet, still watching Everett. Then he turned and ran down the corridor. Fast. Rush lived up to his name. Still, the way he was headed was a dead-end. Everett moved out to the middle of the corridor, hoping he could catch Rush if he was still lost in his head when he came back towards him. He really wasn't looking forward to chasing the man all over the ship.

But Rush slowed down when he'd reached the last of the pods. Turning around, he started a slow jog, glancing into each pod as he passed them by. Everett walked slowly towards him, not wanting to spook him.

They met at Chloe's pod, Rush with both hands on the glass door, looking at her. "She's okay, Rush. Do you know where you're at, who I am?"

Rush nodded, sweat trickling down his face. "Okay, Ace, I'm gonna need to hear a verbal confirmation here. Do you know where you're at and who I am?"

The other man said dully, "Destiny. In one of the corridors that house the stasis pods. You're Colonel Young. Chloe is here, she's all right. We got away from the aliens and came back to the ship."

"And when was that, just, uh, for the record."

Rush looked confused and then yanked up his shirts, felt his chest. "You made them take out the transmitter."

"That's right. So, just for the hell of it, tell me about the last thing you remember."

Rush brought up his fists and pressed them against his temples. He was still breathing fast. "That, shite, that was'na real. I thought I was back in the tank. And then the tank broke and the alien was looking at me. You were looking at me and I heard you in my head. But it was'na real."

Everett remembered how terrified Rush had looked when Everett had freed him and he'd landed on the alien ship deck in a gush of water. Despite having left the man for dead he couldn't help but feel empathy for him for what he'd endured with the blue aliens.

He was feeling that empathy again right now. Poor bastard. He spoke soothingly,"That's right, sport. It wasn't real. You just had a doozy of a flashback. Now, can you tell me the last thing you remember before you flashed back to the alien ship?"

Rush lowered his hands and his eyes were still wide and dazed. "I... and you. In the pod, and we didn't reach the right readings and you were behind me and then you moved closer and we waited and Eli said it wasn't enough. I was staring at the door, and then I guess it happened. The flashback. Damn it. Thought I was done with those."

"Did I trigger it?"

Rush shook his head. "I don't think so. I think it was the closed-in space and the glass door. Maybe the door more than the space."

"It's all right. Okay. When we try this again, you face me, not the door."

"Yes, alright."

Everett looked at him and the way his fists were opening and closing. "Look. I'll get us through this. Just trust me. I'm not going to hurt you." He slowly moved closer to Rush. "I'm going to put my arms around you now. Just take deep breaths and let them out. You're all right."

He slowly drew the other man into a loose hug, and when Rush didn't freak on him, he oh, so, slowly drew him in closer, until there was maybe two inches of space between them. He could still feel Rush trembling, and his breathing was still faster than Everett liked.

Everett started talking about how much he'd like to have new socks, how he kept patching up his old ones but every time he turned around he'd poked another hole in them. He shifted one arm so it was securely around Rush's lower back and with his other hand he started carefully sweeping up and down Rush's back, gradually increasing the pressure until he was firmly rubbing the other man's back.

Rush's breathing had slowed down. Everett moved him a little closer, so that their chests were touching. Rush gave a long sigh and Everett could feel the remaining tension in his body dissipating away. He moved his hand up to Rush's neck and started massaging the tight muscles there. Rush let his forehead rest against Young's shoulder, his arms a loose circle around Everett's waist.

Everett left the topic of socks and moved onto the subject of shipboard clubs. It was Wray's idea, but he thought it was a good one. There was already an informal group who liked to play cards together, and some folks wanted to start a choir. There was interest in a bible study group, and of course, Chloe's yoga classes.

Rush said quietly, "Chloe's time shouldn't be squandered on teaching people how to stretch and bend. We need her to run calculations."

"Well, Ace, I think she could do both. She likes Yoga and she's a good teacher. And it's probably a break for her to do something physical. " He worked on a difficult knot between Rush's neck and shoulder.

"Why do you call me that?"

"What, Ace?"

"Yes."

"Oh, because I think of you as our ace-in-the-hole."

"Even though you don't trust me," Rush said evenly.

"I meant what I said at our farewell dinner. You've come through for us, Rush, despite all the crap you've done. You might not be able to calculate as fast as Eli, but don't think I haven't noticed it's you who comes up with ideas that saves our asses."

Rush shook off the compliment. "I don't. Eli and the science team are better."

"I'm gonna let that last part you said go for now. About not trusting you – that's because you haven't been entirely honest with us. Or in some cases, honest at all. That's got to stop, Rush. I don't know why you have these impulses to keep information to yourself or to just plain lie. You've got to get over that habit."

Rush whispered, "I'm aware."

"You know, at times we work really well together. When you're not fighting me."

"I'm not after your job," Rush said tiredly. "You can have it."

"What do you want then?"

"To be able to do my own job. Don't hold me back. It makes me wild."

"I don't want you to do something rash and irresponsible. You know, you're like a kid who's been given the key to a candy store. There's things you might get into that could be bad for you. For the rest of us, too."

"I'm no a child. And I don't do things on a whim."

"I have to disagree with you on that one. You're impulsive."

"Maybe it seems that way. But I assure you, Colonel, that I weigh every action very carefully, the risks and the benefits. I'm just fast. I can see how things are going to unfold before other people even see the problem."

"And I suppose you think it slows you down too much to explain what you're doing to the rest of us."

"To be blunt about it, yes."

"Okay. Good talk. Do you think we can tackle the pod now?"

"Yes. And, well, thank you." Rush raised his head and looked at Everett.

Rush had nice eyes, when he wasn't glaring at somebody. They were really dark. Almond shaped and kind of mesmerizing.

Eli and some of the others liked to designate crew members as various characters in the video games they used to play. Everett had heard them having fun about it a few times, especially after knocking back some of Brody's paint thinner. They all agreed that Rush could be a wizard, with his brown longish hair, pointed chin, sharp angled cheekbones and thin build.

The others idly would discuss the way Rush walked with a swagger, brisk and confident. The intense way he would competently tackle a problem, even when he didn't come up with the answer himself, but paved the way for one of the science team to come up with the solution. The way he'd written his equations on the damn walls of the ship like he was casting a spell. Somebody who was sort of, part of, the fairy world. Someone who was hard to understand and harder to find if he didn't want to be seen. He didn't know if Rush knew about their little game. Everett could see why they thought of him that way, though.

"You're welcome," he replied to Rush, a little surprised that Rush had thanked him. He loosened his hold on Rush and they moved a little apart.

He slung an arm around Rush's shoulder and tugged him forward without any resistance from the other man. Ah, if only all their interactions could be this easy, in step with each other to accomplish a goal.

x x x

"Everything okay now?" Eli's voice greeted them when they stepped back into the pod, Everett first, facing the door and then Rush stepped inside facing Everett.

Everett picked up the radio and answered him "Yeah, Eli. We're going to give this another shot. Thanks for giving us some space."

"Sure. I mean, I could tell you two needed some alone time."

Everett put the radio down while Rush rolled his eyes. They looked at each other, and Rush almost smiled, the corner of his mouth turning up just a little. Everett opened his arms, pleased that Rush moved closer without hesitation. He wrapped his arms around Rush and Rush tightened his own arms around Everett's waist.

They stayed that way for several minutes. Everett noticed that Rush had closed his eyes.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Hey, Colonel Young? Rush? That was better but still nowhere close." Eli sounded apologetic.

Rush opened his eyes. "Well. I think we both know what we have to do now."

Everett reached over and hit the pod's release button. "Let's try it with shirts and boots off."

Rush turned and stepped out of the pod, Everett following him. Everett knelt down and began unlacing a boot, and Rush sat down on the steps. He made quick work of his own boots and slid off his socks, tucked them into his boots and set them down near the pod. Then he unfastened his vest and folded it, placing it on top of the boots.

Everett watched him, struck by how matter of fact he was acting. Rush noticed he was watching.

"What?"

"You seem to be okay with this now."

"Yes well. Not like we have a choice, is it." Rush unbuckled his belt and slid it free. His jeans were loose around his hips without the belt to cinch them tight. He pulled off his brown T-shirt and folded it.

"You're very pragmatic." Everett unfastened his jacket and pulled it off, neatly folding it as well.

"So I hear. I believe you yourself have called me a pragmatic bastard on at least one occasion."

"Were you eavesdropping?"

Rush smirked at him.

"Rush." His voice came out a little lower, an edge of a growl to it that he hadn't intended.

"Don't worry about it, Colonel. It wasn't like you were holding a secret meeting. As I remember, you were in the mess eating dinner with some o' the others." He pulled off the long-sleeved Henley that a year ago had still been white.

Everett removed his black long-sleeved T-shirt and tidied up his pile of clothes. He glanced over at Rush, to see if he was finished undressing. Rush was bent over, rolling up his jeans.

"You look like a beach bum like that."

"Aye. I suppose my hair and beard just adds to the look."

"Yep." He frowned, looking at Rush's back. Several quick strides had him next to the man, and he pulled him up, startling Rush.

"Colonel?"

Everett took him by the biceps and looked hard at his chest, then spun him around and examined his back. Rush didn't fight him.

"Who beat you up?"

"Well, I wouldn't know."

"I want names. And I want you to tell me what happened." He tightened his grip on Rush, resisting the urge to shake an answer out of him.

"Want all you like. Why do you care anyway? It's not like you haven't done worse. You were even thinking about teaching me another lesson about an hour ago."

"So are you saying you deserved this? What did you do to piss off whoever did this?"

Rush shrugged. "This is irrelevant and distracting. We need to get back in the pod and see if being bare skin to bare skin will make the difference." He shook loose from Everett's hold and ran his hands up and down his arms. "It's bloody cold in here."

"Rush," he gritted out in frustration, "you're going to tell me about this."

"Oh, am I?"

"You're a member of this crew. If you're being hurt I want it to stop."

Rush gave him a thoughtful look. "I might believe you about that. Or at least that you didn't authorize it or condone it. This time."

"This time. This has happened before, hasn't it?"

Rush shrugged and wrapped his arms around his bare chest.

"You can't stop it. So don't worry about it. They make it clear each time that this is just punishment. They know the ship needs me; they won't kill me."

"And you thought I've been giving whoever this person is a green light to do this? Thanks a lot."

"Well. Your disapproval of me has never been any sort of secret." Rush shifted, cocking one hip forward in a familiar pose, arms crossing across his chest. "I thought you might have acted the part of Henry the II and wished that someone would give me what I deserve."

"Henry the... Are you talking about Thomas Becket?" Rush was broadcasting defiance with that stance and Everett wanted to jerk him right out of it.

"Forget about it, Colonel. I'm ready to do this. Would you please step inside the pod?"

"Not until you tell me what the hell has been going on." Everett said firmly, giving Rush his best no-nonsense look.

They waited in silence, a showdown between them, Everett prepared to stare him down until Rush gave in. A minute passed. Then three or four. Six minutes. Eight.

Rush threw up his hands. "Fine. If it will get you to move your arse into the pod, I'll tell you."

"I'd appreciate it."

"Yes, yes." He looked past Everett, avoiding his eyes. "So sometimes, after something has happened that's been deemed my fault, I get jumped by three or four men – I am fairly sure they're men – who have their faces covered up."

He paused, but didn't make eye contact. "Is that sufficient for you?"

"No. Go on."

"Ah, well then. The wankers hold me down and bind my hands and feet, and stuff a rag in my mouth. They throw a blanket over me and sometimes they carry me somewhere else and sometimes they don't. They kick me and hit me and tell me I'm a piece of shit that they're not going to kill because I'm needed. They let me know what I've done wrong in their eyes. And that I might as well save my breath about complaining because it won't change anything."

"And you just went along with this?"

Rush did look at him finally. "I never have any proof except a bunch of bruises. Besides, I'm not deaf, you know. Most of the crew would thank them for teaching me a lesson."

"And you thought I was behind it."

"I did. Or at least that you were turning a blind eye to it. I've revised my hypothesis though. I think you wouldn't subcontract the work out but do it yourself if you were angry wi' me again."

"I'm not going to hit you, no matter how aggravating you get."

"Ah." He shaded his voice into something dark, almost seductive. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Colonel."

"If I make a promise I do keep it. I won't hit you, but that doesn't mean I won't make your life miserable in other ways."

Rush made a sound edged with derision. "That I already knew. You're one to reward and punish as you please, aren't you then. Awarding me double rations or keeping me chained to your side when as the Ancient tech expert I should have gone to that first seed ship to assess its potential usage."

"You're still pissed that I tried to do something nice for you, to show my appreciation? Although I was wrong about that since you'd lied to us about flying through the star. And you're right about the seed ship. I was punishing you since I knew damn well you were keeping something from me. I was surprised that you didn't throw a fit about that, just pouted a bit."

"Pouted! I did no such thing."

"Yeah, you did. Stuck your lower lip out like you were five, although you hid it away again fast enough. And you practically scorched Eli with the looks you were giving him since he was excited about the data being sent over from the seed ship."

"Yes, well. None of that is relevant now. Can we please proceed?"

Everett ignored the question. He moved closer to the other man and pressed down on one of the large dark purple bruises, one that was edged with green, right above Rush's beltline and near his belly button.

Rush flinched. "Shite. Stop that." He stepped a little away from Everett.

"These are around a month old, I would guess. And if you're still sensitive now, then they hit you really hard. What were you being punished for?"

Rush kept silent.

"Rush," Everett growled.

Rush made an annoyed sound. "If you must know, it was Park going blind."

"That wasn't your fault."

"They disagreed. They thought I could have come up with some way to override the door and let her out of hydroponics before the star blinded her. They thought I just didn't care enough to try."

"What else have you been punished for?"

"I don't see the point of telling you. You say I'm pragmatic and I agree. So drop this inquisition and let's focus on the problem at hand."

"Rush, you're going to tell me everything about this."

"You're a damn stubborn man. If I don't care about it, why the hell should you?"

"This could escalate, and you could be seriously hurt. I already knew you lacked common sense, and now I learn you've let yourself be a punching bag and think it's no big deal? There's going to be some changes when we get to the new galaxy. I'm putting myself in charge of keeping you in one piece. And that means that you are going to tell me every detail about these beatings. There's going to be an investigation."

"You are not putting yourself in charge of me! I'm no for having that!" Rush gave him that affronted look again.

"Wrong. And since you're being so damned uncooperative, I'm going to be checking on you every other day for any new bruises. And if you won't raise up your shirt on your own, I'll have the two biggest airmen on the ship help you."

Rush stared at him, speechless. Then he scrubbed his hands over his face, ending with looking at Everett between his splayed out fingers. Another way he had of hiding away, Everett supposed.

"Look, Rush. You're not seeing the big picture here. If you're being harassed like this, how many other people are being intimidated? I can't let a gang of thugs take condemning their shipmates into their own hands. What if it was Eli that they blamed for some perceived mistake? What about if they think Chloe is still a danger to the ship?"

Rush sat down sideways on the bottom step leading into the pod and pulled his knees up close to his chest. He wrapped his arms around his legs and Everett was reminded of how he'd tucked himself up like that on the seed ship, after crawling away from Everett after had he almost murdered Rush.

"Fuck," he said, sounding exhausted. "You bloody well will have your way, won't you?"

"It's for the greater good, you ought to appreciate that. So tell me, what were you punished for?"

Rush sighed. "For dialing the ninth chevron. For lying about the Icarus planet in the database. For keeping the bridge secret. The first star we flew through. For not telling about the transmitter in my chest. For Franklin sitting in the chair. Park's blindness. Riley. I think that was all. Now for the love of god will you drop it and work this problem?" He indicated the stasis pod behind him with a nod of his head.

"I'll table it till later. You're not done. If you don't remember many details, Camile can hypnotize you."

"Yes well, hypnosis never worked on me when I was trying to quit smoking. So I doubt very much she would have any success." He looked at Everett and shivered. "Can we try this now? Or do you want to discuss every last thing you don't approve of about me first?"

He was trying for sarcasm, Everett knew, but his words just sounded tired. The man looked miserable. He wondered how much sleep Rush had gotten before going into stasis. He knew how worn out he felt still, so apparently being in stasis didn't substitute for actual sleep. It was freezing in Destiny's halls. Heat as well as light had been mostly turned off.

He had a high cold tolerance and he was starting to feel pretty chilled. Rush was shivering again, and his shudders didn't stop; he was being affected by the lack of heat more then Everett. Not surprising, though. There wasn't much to the man. Had he always been this thin?

"Okay, we're done here. Just expect to have a long talk when we wake up."

"Yes, yes. You've made yourself quite clear." Rush got up and waited by the side of the pod while Everett rolled his own trouser legs up.

"Everything about this ship, everything that pertains to the safety and the welfare of this crew is my concern, Rush. You are my concern," Everett said firmly. "You are going to learn to work with me and the rest of the crew if it kills me. You don't have to like that. You do have to accept it."

Rush's expression morphed into the one that Everett disliked so, so much. That closed off, secretive look, his eyes promising deception as he remained mute. Everett took a deep breath. He was not going to become angry.

He wasn't.

x x x

Rush kept his mouth shut inside the pod. He just nodded when Everett suggested that Rush place his bare feet partly over Everett's feet, close enough so that their lower legs were touching. That position unbalanced Rush somewhat, so Everett tightened his arms around him, holding him snugly against him. Rush closed his eyes again and let Everett take his weight. He was holding his body stiffly, though. His skin was cold and he was still shivering.

"Guys, that's a lot closer. Can you uh, do something... more?" Eli sounded embarrassed.

"Try to relax against me," Everett suggested. "I'll hold you up. And maybe put one hand up higher on my back and the other lower. Maybe this works on how many points of contact there are between the partners."

Rush shifted from locking his arms around Everett to the new positions, his hands freezing cold against Everett's back. He slipped out a small relieved sound as his hands began to warm. He still was holding himself stiffly against Everett's chest, though.

They waited for Eli's report in silence.

"A little better. Um... maybe you should take it to the next level."

"Look, Rush, try not to be so stiff. Okay, I'm going to shift an arm down to hold your weight and I'm going to rub your back with my other hand. So don't freak. And lay your head against me."

Rush put his head down, and Everett lifted his shoulder a little, nudging Rush so his face was buried in Everett's neck. His breath and beard tickled a little.

Rush sighed, but Everett could tell he was trying. Rubbing his back seemed to help him become more pliant.

"Still not there," Eli interrupted the silence between them. "Look, do what you're doing for maybe ten minutes, and if these readings don't increase to the magic numbers, then Colonel, you at least know what you have to do. And I promise, my lips are sealed."

Ten minutes. Okay, they could do ten minutes. Rush's skin was soft, smooth. He found that he was lingering over some of the bruises on Rush's back, skimming the edges of them, laying his palm over them as if he could form a protective barrier between them and who? His unknown assailants? Destiny? Destiny had left her own marks on Rush, breaking through his skin at his temples, leaving him in a coma after using the neural interface chair. He flashed on the other Rush's injuries from the ship's consoles blowing up, leaving him with cuts and burns on his face and hands.

After a while Everett asked, "Are you feeling warmer?"

Rush nodded against him.

"Is this the silent treatment? My ex-wife used to pull that on me."

"No," Rush said softly. "But what is there to say? I don't want to start up anything else between us, so being quiet seemed a better option."

"Oh, I think we've got something to discuss. Ever play spin-the-bottle or seven minutes in heaven when you were a kid?"

"No."

"How about drunken make-out sessions with random strangers in bars?"

"No."

"So you only kiss people you like?"

"I gather that's about t' change."

Everett laughed. "What about guys? Ever kiss a guy before."

"Yes."

"Well, I have too."

"Colonel, I've given you a Glasgow Kiss already."

"When was that?"

"When I head butted you during our fights."

"You really are something else, you know that, right?" Everett said, amused for the moment.

Rush shrugged. "Actually, I hear that I'm a lot of work."

x x x

"It's been ten minutes." Eli said, carefully nonchalant. "I'll just, uh, keep on monitoring, okay?"

There was silence between the two of them after Eli had spoken. Everett kept moving his hand on Rush's back in comforting circles. Well. No point in stalling any longer.

"Okay, Ace," Everett said briskly. "Let's just go for it."

"Fine," Rush replied, and kissed Everett's neck, startling him.

Somehow he wasn't expecting Rush to take the lead on this.

One of Rush's hands had crept up and his fingers were gliding through Everett's curls, touching his head, massaging it, while he continued to kiss Everett's neck.

This wasn't bad. As long as he just concentrated on the sensations of fingers and lips and the drag of stubble on his skin and not on who was giving it to him, it wasn't bad at all. Pleasant, even.

But then Rush ruined Everett's mindless enjoyment. He stretched up a little and moved both of his hands to Everett's face, the other man's clever and quick hands caressing him even as Everett was forced to take even more of Rush's weight to keep him balanced against Everett.

"Colonel Young," he breathed out, and then he was kissing Everett on the mouth, and god damn it, Rush was focusing on him like he was some new fascinating Ancient tech that Rush had just discovered.

Rush slid one hand around to the back of Everett's neck, and he played with Everett's mouth, alternating small kisses at the edge of Everett's mouth to pressing their lips together, his mouth soft and welcoming and still tasting of the tea he must have drunk before going into stasis the first time.

Everett broke their kiss, pulling back a little so he could look into Rush's dark wizard eyes. This felt like passion. This felt like honesty. And trust. If he loosened his hold on Rush even by a little, the other man would fall back, unbalanced.

Rush's pupils were dilated. God. He wasn't faking this, he wasn't being deceptive. For this one moment, Everett knew exactly where Rush was and what he was doing.

Rush kissed him again, his mouth opening a little. Was this just an impulse on Rush's part, to treat Everett like a lover, or was this him doing his lightening fast calculations again and deciding that all their arguing and fighting had held something else that they'd both ignored?

Damned if he knew. What he did know was that he was going to make Nicholas Rush whimper with desire before he was done with him and they were frozen in time.

It was intoxicating to think of finally, finally seeing Rush do exactly what Everett intended him to do. No side agenda known only to the other man. No ambiguity about his actions.

And he was taking charge right now.

It was like powering up the FTL drive. Rush startled a little as their dynamics shifted to Everett's mouth dominating him, Everett's hand cupping Rush's ass, dragging him up and even closer.

He made this kiss aggressive, a mute order that Rush surrender to him; and Rush did, opening to him, laying down his defenses.

Letting Everett in.

Everett hardened, sexual desire rising in him and it had been so long since he'd let himself feel it.

He tightened his hold on Rush more, sliding his hand under the jeans that hung low on Rush's hips. He relished how Rush was pinned against him, fingers gripping the soft, warm curve of Rush's ass. Felt Rush's erection against his belly.

Kissed him again and again, fast strikes that left Rush panting and gasping for air before Everett plundered him once more.

Rush reacted so beautifully, off-balance, doing just what Everett was demanding of him and oh, Everett was going to treasure this memory because he knew capturing Rush like this would be a fleeting thing and once they were out of this pod Rush would revert to his secrets and shuttering away his thoughts. Not like now, where it was crystal clear what he was feeling and thinking.

He gripped Rush's long hair at his nape, pulling it back and exposing his throat.

"Nicholas," he growled, taking the name without it being offered to him. He said it with the same intonation he had been using for the last damn year when he would be so frustrated with this man, this small man who took up twice as much space as he was entitled to, so much so that Everett had always colored the name "Rush" with all his anger and frustration and worry.

He kissed Nicholas' neck, and sucked hard on the tender skin, knowing he was going to leave a bruise that would tell everyone who saw it that Nicholas Rush had been claimed long enough to leave the proof.

Nicholas made a desperate, pleading whine, and Everett felt flooded with satisfaction at the sound.

He was kissing Nicholas' mouth again when he heard Eli's voice counting down. He knew he should break them apart.

He didn't.

Blue light flashed.

x x x

To be Continued.

Author's note: Eli quotes Starwars and Star Trek.