Thomas McKay stood calmly next to the lieutenant as she ranted about being stuck in a hospital bed while her team needed her.
"No." He said for the last time.
The lieutenant huffed. "I'm fine."
Thomas shrugged. "I'll be the judge of that."
The girl rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
"What's your name again?" Thomas asked.
"Jackie. Jackie O'Neill."
"Nice to meet you, Jackie. I'm Thomas McKay."
Jackie shook his outstretched hand. "A pleasure."
Thomas smiled and walked away. Lieutenant Jackie O'Neill. Suddenly he remembered where he'd heard that name before. He turned around.
"Your father wouldn't happen to be..."
"Retired General Jack O'Neill?" Jackie grinned.
Thomas shook his head and continued on his way.
Some people. Jackie thought.
Thomas McKay. Doctor Rodney McKay's son, though it appeared Thomas had chosen to be a different kind of doctor.
"He's cute. Who is he?" Daniela had walked right up to Jackie without her even knowing it.
"You scared the daylights out of me!" Jackie complained.
"Quit stalling. Who was he?" Dani asked.
"Rodney McKay's son, Thomas." Jackie answered.
"Hmmmm." Dani looked thoughtful.
"No!" Jackie glared at her new friend.
Dani raised an eyebrow. "No? You don't even know what I was going to say."
"I grew up with two, boy crazy, sisters. I know that look."
Dani shrugged and Jackie took it as a defeat.
She was not about to let someone play matchmaker. Especially not with her.
The girls talked a bit longer. Jackie learned that they were nearing the selected relocation planet. That they'd still not been able to find Colonel York, even after a planetary scan. Jackie also found out Major Hofius had chosen a new team and Jackie was on it.
"Who else?" Jackie asked.
"Myself and Dr. Connor." Dani replied.
"Interesting." Jackie mused.
The sudden appearance of Thomas and his request that Dani leave were the only things Jackie remembered before she fell asleep.
Dani waited on the bridge while Connor fiddled with the ship's computer.
"Are you done yet?" She asked impatiently.
Connor didn't say anything. Dani wondered if he even heard her.
When it was clear that Connor wasn't going to answer any of her questions, Dani resorted to pacing. She kept an eye on Connor the entire time.
Finally he looked up. "Done."
"What?" Dani asked.
"I've gotten most of the ship's sensors working again." Connor replied.
"Good," Major Hofius said walking onto the bridge. "We're approaching our coordinates."
"Right on schedule." Connor muttered.
Dani crossed her arms. "Are we going or not?"
"Impatient today, aren't we?" Hofius said.
"Call it stir crazy." Dani shot back.
Hofius smiled. "Let's go. Tell Captain Kirsen he's in charge." He said to one of the scientists standing nearby.
The jumper trip was short, an hour flying over the planet and choosing several places for relocation.
"This is exhausting." Dani grumbled. She leaned back in her seat and pretended to sleep.
"You're not the one flying the ship." Connor said.
Dani shrugged and went back to her nap.
Something beeped and Dani looked up. "What is it?"
"Interesting. The jumper seems to have picked up some kind of energy signature. I wonder what it is?"
"Let's check it out." Suggested Hofius.
"Okay."
Dani sat up and pulled her p-90 close. "I hope that we don't run into any more of those... things, that attacked me and Jackie."
"We're about to find out." Connor said. "The signature is coming from directly below us."
He set the jumper down and the team stepped outside.
"Not much different than Earth." Connor observed.
"There are some differences." Dani pointed to a huge tree with purplish-red leaves.
"Wow!" Connor breathed.
"Quit gawking and show us this energy thing." Hofius barked.
They saw many of the alien trees on their way to whatever Connor was intrigued with. Dani kept waiting for a weird alien to jump out and claw them to death.
The energy signature was coming from a large cave inside a very large mountain. It was also twenty feet up, a small, narrow trail led up to it.
"Looks like we're climbing a mountain."
Suddenly Dani felt herself being yanked to the ground. Connor was next to her.
"Get down!" Hofius hissed.
When Dani looked up she saw what Hofius was concerned about. A small group of people were making their way up the mountain path, they carried a large chest between them and were chanting in a language Dani had never heard before.
"What are they doing?" She whispered.
"It looks like their headed towards the cave." Connor said.
Dani rolled her eyes. "As if that isn't obvious."
Before Connor could say anything further, Hofius hushed him.
The group had reached the cave.
Hofius stood up and started for the path. Dani and Connor trailed behind.
"Sir, are you sure that this is a good idea?" Dani asked.
"There's only way we're going to find out what's up there." Was Hofius's answer.
The path was steep. It was hard not to think of what could happen if Dani made one wrong step. After a nerve- racking ten minutes they reached the top.
"I hope that was the hard part." Connor muttered.
Hofius glanced inside the cave. "Sorry Connor." He said.
Connor rolled his eyes. "Now what?"
Dani looked into the cave and shook her head. This was going to be interesting.
Inside the cave were two armed guards, blocking a large door that led to a big cavern filled with people. Torches lined the walls and ornate red tapestries hung from the ceiling. It was every bit as royal as a palace might be. Dani wondered who the inhabitants were.
As if someone had heard her thoughts two overly dressed people entered the cavern from what looked like another tunnel. The man was steely faced and rigid, while the woman smiled, but there was something unsettling about the pair.
The pair stood in front of the roomful of people.
"Today we come together to celebrate a wonderful occasion, Harvest. A time when you bring the best of your labors." The man said. "To your protectors. The ones who keep you safe."
"Bring forth the offering." The woman commanded.
The two people carrying the chest stepped forward. Then, with their heads down, they scuttled back to their places.
The man waved his hand. "Out!"
The crowd backed out of the room and the man and woman disappeared down the tunnel they had come from.
Dani flattened herself against the wall as the people rushed out of the cave.
No one even noticed the four standing against the wall, they were too concerned about getting out of the cave.
After the people were gone Dani turned to Hofius. "And what was that about?"
Hofius glanced inside the cavern. "It's all clear." Then he disappeared into the next room. Dani let Connor in front of her.
They crept through the large door and down the tunnel where the man and woman had disappeared into.
Dani wondered how anyone could live in a place like this. It was dark and unsettling, that was until they saw what the tunnel led to; a huge underground hanger, full of ships.
"Wow!" Dani couldn't believe her eyes.
"Indeed." A voice said from behind them.
Dani whirled around and came face-to-face with the man from the ceremony.
The man smiled. "Welcome."
To be continued...