*Author's Note: I couldn't have done this myself. So, thanks to my little elves that helped me write this.
Over Troubled Waters:
Woolsey began his stroll towards the balcony overlooking the San Francisco Bay. For the past few weeks of Atlantis being stranded on Earth, he had made a custom to go there to enjoy some peace and quiet before the day got too demanding. His prize spot came in to view; Woolsey paused for a moment when he noticed a figure leaning on the railings, gazing out at the majestic landscape in front of them.
As he got closer, the figure became clearer, he could see the slumped shoulders, their head hanging low and they were wearing Athosian style clothing.
"Kanaan," Woolsey called out and inadvertently startled the man.
Kanaan twitched and whipped his head around to see who was behind him, his face flushed red.
"Mr. Woolsey!" Kanaan responded as he stood up straighter and glanced back at the view behind him. "I was just admiring your world. It is quite wondrous, to say the least."
Woolsey smiled, "That it is, but I thought you would be out with Teyla right now and enjoying it with your son."
His body language changed. His eyes lowered and his head shook side to side slightly, "I… I had thought of other plans for us when Torren and I had returned. Especially being away for so long, but I was not able to convey them to Teyla when we arrived."
"Oh, I see, "Woolsey said sympathetically.
"Teyla had made plans for Torren and I to go visit Earth. She wanted to show us the wonders it possessed."
"Ok. That sounds reasonable," Woolsey interjected.
Kanaan smiled lightly, "But she could see that I was not feeling well and was willing to stay here with me. Even Colonel Sheppard and Ronon were not comfortable without me going, but I insisted that they take them. It took quite some time for me to convince them to go."
"Well, I'm sure your cold will be better in a few days and you can visit Earth then," Woolsey attempted to cheer him up. "Do you think you got it from one of the crewman on the Daedalus?"
"I am unsure. Perhaps it was the long trip and not getting enough sleep, or the re-circulated air... it takes some time to get used to. Your ship is not as quiet as it is here or on many worlds in the Pegasus Galaxy."
Woolsey sighed, "May I suggest that you get some sleep while you can before they come back?" He paused for a moment, "Teyla was very worried while you were both gone." Woolsey paused, "I hope you understand why we had to drop you off at the nearest planet before coming to Earth. We couldn't risk having a child on board during battle."
Kanaan gave him a small smile, "Yes. I do understand and I thank you for taking the time to get us and bring us back here so we can be a family again."
Woolsey was about to answer when he was called on his ear comm.
"Yes," he said abruptly while clicking on his earpiece.
He listened intently as the technician on the other side of the conversation announced that he had an urgent message coming in from the SGC.
"Ok, give me a moment," he turned to Kanaan. "I'm sorry. I have to attend to this. Please excuse me."
Kanaan nodded and was about to thank him, but Woolsey was already talking to whoever was on the other side.
"Ok. Patch it through."
"Mr. Woolsey, it's General Landry."
"Yes General, how may I help you," Woolsey said in a pleasant and somewhat cheerful way.
"You can start by getting over here ASAP. The IOA have some things that they want to discuss," Landry's voice boomed in his ear.
Woolsey cringed, he had a feeling it wasn't anything good.
"Yes sir, General. I will be there as quick as possible," His cheery attitude faltering.
"Make sure that you do. Landry out."
As soon as the General was signed off Woolsey radioed the technician in the control room to get a hold of Colonel Sheppard.
"Tell the Colonel that his day trip will have to be rescheduled," Woolsey turned and smiled at Kanaan. "I'm sorry, but I need to attend to some things. Teyla should be back shortly."
A weak smiled crossed Kanaan's face and Woolsey left, unable to get his moment of peace.
----------
John and Rodney strolled in, obviously teasing each other; they were followed behind by Ronon and Teyla, who was pushing Torren in a small stroller. Teyla let out a soft but heartfelt laugh at the latest insult Sheppard threw Rodney's way. All taken in good humour of course.
Teyla's face was red, but glowed brightly. She struggled to restrain her amusement of the day's events when she saw Kanaan.
"Kanaan, you should have joined us," Sheppard grinned. "Torren seemed to really like cotton candy."
Teyla gave him a disciplinary glare, "Yes. I could tell by his sticky face that it was more than just a little."
Kanaan didn't answer and Rodney could see the confusion on his face as he stared at the contraption his son was sat in.
"It's a stroller. It's what we use to carry babies around," Rodney began explaining.
"We just figured with all the walking we'd be doing that it would be easier for the both of them," John interrupted. "Plus, he got to take a nap while we went out to eat."
Kanaan nodded, "Yes, the Athosians have a similar contraption that straps the child to our back." He smiled thinking of carrying his son around their own planet again in the future.
Teyla reached into a bag hanging off the stroller.
John chuckled; shopping was not something he'd have thought Teyla would take too so naturally. "I think you spent more on clothes this time than the last time we did a shopping trip on Earth."
Teyla's eyes widened, "I did not… and besides, last time was not real."
Ronon looked at Rodney for clarification, who just shrugged, as much in the dark as Ronon was.
John waved his hand at his side and said with a boyish smile, "I'll explain later."
"Well, I am happy that you had a wonderful time. Maybe now that you are back early we can do something together," Kanaan said compliantly
Teyla gave him a smile, "Yes. That would be nice. Hopefully Torren will stay asleep while I lay down for a little while," Teyla said lightly, but no sooner did she say that, Torren woke up. She released a long sigh.
"I will take him. Go. I will meet with you later," he suggested.
Teyla thanked him with a nod and continued walking towards her room. Kanaan couldn't help but feel disappointed at how the day had gone so far, especially since he had just come back.
----------
John walked into Woolsey's office, the older gentleman was dressed in a suit and placing some files into a briefcase.
"Hot date?" John asked mischievously, a glimmer shining in his eyes.
Woolsey frowned, "Unfortunately, no. General Landry informed me that the IOA want me right away."
Woolsey picked up his briefcase and the two colleagues began walking towards the control room.
"Do you need me to take you in a jumper?" John assumed that was one of the reasons why he might have called him back, even though there were plenty of other men that could do the same.
"No, actually I need you to watch Atlantis while I'm gone. I don't know how long they will need me. I have a feeling it's to ask about the progress on how things are coming along with finding any ZPMs."
John pursed his mouth and scrunched his eyebrows, he hated being so far away from his men while they were on a mission, "I'm still not liking the idea about just leaving our men out there without better help. I mean… don't get me wrong, I get it that we need them out in the Pegasus Galaxy to look for more ZPMs for us, but…" John paused.
"It's just…" his voice cracked a bit and his face contorted more as he struggled to find the words.
"I agree, but there's little we can do now," Woolsey replied with a sympathetic sigh.
"So, if you're not going by Jumper, how are you going to get there?" John asked.
"The Daedalus is going to beam me there."
John raised his eyebrows "Well… then have a safe journey," John said noticing the concern in Woolsey's tone and seeing that this must be important for him to be required at such immediate notice.
Woolsey clicked his earpiece and informed Colonel Caldwell that he was ready to beam aboard. Woolsey turned his gaze upon John.
"I'd say don't blow up the city, but we know what happened last time."
John's winced, hating the memory of that day, "Good thing I didn't promise." He attempted to say with a light heart.
Woolsey frowned as he was beamed up.
----------
Stargate Command:
The members of the IOA were assembled in the briefing room of the SGC, including Chinese Ambassador Shen Xiaoyi and the most recent addition, Mr. Coolidge.
Before Woolsey arrived they began to talk about the main topic, the fate of Atlantis. The discussion, for the most part was civilized, but there were some heated points, especially when it came to the idea of keeping Atlantis on Earth and where its permanent location should be.
The loud voices rang down the corridors as a certain general strolled down them. He squinted his eyes tight before opening the door; this was the least favorite place he'd rather be.
"Gentlemen… ladies, I could hear you half way around the continent! What is going on?" General Landry barked.
The room was instantly silent.
Coolidge leaned forward and rested his elbow on the table as he fiddled with the pen in his hand, "We were simply trying to figure out the best location for Atlantis… if… we decide that it should stay."
Landry rolled his eyes in disbelief, "Oh, please. That was far from simple and we all know that no matter what Mr. Woolsey, General O'Neill and myself feel you have already made up your mind that Atlantis is staying."
"Well, do you blame us?" An older gentleman interjected. "Besides the fact that we can finally unlock some secrets of The Ancients, we would have a way to protect Earth…"
"Yes," Shen interrupted. "Especially, since we lost the chair during the attack by the Wraith ship."
"Something that would not have happened if the United States didn't insist on having it here," the Russian consultant said pointedly.
More disagreeable chatter started to fill the room again; Landry rolled his eyes and, with a shake of his head, walked out of the room. He met Woolsey in the hallway. "Good luck in there," the General plainly stated. Woolsey frowned, hearing the commotion beyond the door.
"Thanks, I fear that I will need it."
They parted ways and Woolsey entered the room. Coolidge began to demand that everyone settle down and smiled at Woolsey.
"Richard," he began. "I'm glad you made it."
Woolsey knew that he was trying to make pleasantries, but he couldn't help question, "Did I have a choice?"
"Richard," Shen began. "I think you know why you are here."
Woolsey frowned, "I believe so, but I'd still like to hear it."
Coolidge leaned back in his chair; "We plan to keep Atlantis here, on Earth."
"I feared that was going to be your decision," Woolsey sounded grim, as he took his seat at the table.
"You have to understand Richard; Atlantis is the best weapon to defend Earth against alien attacks. Especially now that we lost the only weapon we had," Shen interjected.
"Oh believe me, I understand, but I happen to disagree. Atlantis needs to be back in the Pegasus Galaxy where it belongs. If it wasn't for the fact that we don't have enough power I would've returned it already."
"You cannot be serious," Coolidge sarcastically chuckled. Do you know the potential of what we have? Not just that, we have the means to explore the city and find out more about the Ancients. That alone is worth keeping it here."
"We've been doing that for the past five years. Exploring Atlantis will have wait for now anyway," Woolsey said plainly.
"And why is that?" asked an IOA member.
"Because exploring the city would pull too much power and we would lose our cloaking ability," Woolsey answered.
"But isn't that the reason why we sent some of our men back the Pegasus Galaxy to look for more ZPMs?" Another IOA member questioned.
"Yes, but that may take some time…" Woolsey started.
"It doesn't matter now. I've already sent some of our scientist to begin exploring the city," Coolidge interrupted.
Woolsey was shocked, "You did what? How are you going to explain to the people in San Francisco or the rest of the world when we suddenly appear out of now where? Not to mention how dangerous some of the Ancient labs can be. I strongly advise against this."
"Sorry Richard, but it has already been decided. The scientists are on their way to Atlantis as we speak and don't worry…" Coolidge said smugly. "…we sent the top scientists to do this. I'm sure everything will be fine."
We already have McKay. Woolsey thought to himself, sighing in defeat.
----------
"Colonel Sheppard, this is Colonel Caldwell. Can you read me?" John heard through the comm. in his ear.
"Yes, sir. This is Sheppard. How can I help you Colonel?" John replied.
"We have orders to beam down teams of scientists to Atlantis by the IOA. I was told to tell you that they will have orders for you when they get there," Caldwell answered.
John threw a strained glance at his friend that stood beside him.
Rodney knew that expression couldn't mean anything good. "What? What's going on?
John didn't answer him, but continued to talk to Caldwell, "Any particular reason Sir?"
"Sorry, Sheppard. That's all I know. Some of them seem even less friendly than Dr. McKay."
John's cringed imagining the horror about to be unleashed on Atlantis.
"Thanks for the warning, sir," John replied.
"Just thought you'd want to know. Caldwell out."
John's grim look remained on his face as he turned to McKay, but before he could update Rodney with the latest news the teams of scientist appeared in the gate room.
Rodney began to grumble, "What the hell is this?"
He recognized some of the scientists that were down there and shot a furious glare at Sheppard. John's eyebrows went up and he shrugged his shoulders.
"I'm just as confused as you are," John answered.
They headed down to the gate room to meet their visitors.
"Ah! Colonel Sheppard I presume," a middle aged man said as he out stretched his hand to shake John's.
John was about to say yes and then ask who he was, but he didn't get a chance.
"I'm Dr. Phillip…."
"Haven. What are you doing here?" Rodney questioned smugly.
"Oh, Rodney, why so bitter? You know I've always had the utmost respect for you," he retaliated with a fake smile.
"Do you mind!" a younger scientist blurted out. "I'd like to get working as soon as possible. You have no idea how long I've wanted to explore this place."
John's mind did a double take at the comment, "Ex… excuse me?"
"No, no, no, no," Rodney opposed with a stutter. "There is no way you're going to be coming in here and thinking you can go anywhere you want. One; the sheer enormity of power that you would be using to do that would deplete us of what little we have to sustain the cloak. And two; you have no idea how dangerous some of the labs are…."
"We know that Rodney," Haven calmly interrupted. "We have a plan for all of that. We will divide up with experienced members of your expedition and we believe we have a way to keep the cloak going while we explore Atlantis."
"I doubt it," Rodney pouted and folded his arms.
Haven motioned for one of his team members to bring over a wide metal case. He flipped the top open and presented Rodney with a gift.
"A Zed P. M," Rodney said with astonishment, his arms unfolding on instinct. "How did you…?"
Haven smiled widely, "It took us forever to get to it. The Wraith left Area 51 in such a mess…"
"You got this from the chair room? I can't believe it's still intact." Rodney said, still in shock.
"Well, we don't know if it still works, but with your help…" Haven began.
"Yes. Yes," Rodney said as he grabbed the Z.P.M. and started to walk away with Haven closely behind.
"Um, Rodney?" John blurted out and nodded his head in the direction of the other scientists.
"Oh, yeah, right. Um, I suggest that they wait 'til we know if the Zed P.M. works or not, then I'll let you know when they can start looking around."
John gave a deep sigh. He hated the idea of all these people coming in and possibly put him, his people and the rest of Atlantis in danger. He motioned for an officer to come over towards him.
"Why don't you show the… scientists the cafeteria for now and make sure they stay there until I give further notice."
The officer complied and started to shout orders over the multitude of voices and directed them to where they needed to go.
John clicked on the comm. in his ear, "Teyla, could you meet me in the conference room in five minutes?"
"Yes, of course. Is there something wrong?" she asked, noticing the uneasy sound in his voice.
"It will be easier if I tell you when I have you, Ronon and Zelenka all together," he answered.
Teyla was curious when he didn't mention McKay, "What about Rodney?"
"He's in the middle of another project right now. I'll update you when you get to the conference room."
Teyla acknowledged and signed off. John proceeded to contact Ronon and Zelenka.
----------
Teyla sat down at the conference table and looked around at Radek, then Sheppard. "Where's Ronon?"
"He's been keeping our friend company, should be here any moment." Sheppard told her.
Ronon walked in as if on cue, patted the holstered gun at his side and shared a nod with Sheppard that everything regarding Todd was under control.
"What's going on?" Ronon asked; his voice deeper in the closed off room.
John frowned.
"Whatever it is, it does not look good," Teyla said, matching John's frown.
"Well, we might have a working Z.P.M…" John began.
"That is great news," Radek interrupted excitedly.
"…that a group of scientists brought over just now," John finished.
"Scientists?" Teyla questioned.
"Yeah, the IOA sent them to explore more of Atlantis," John explained.
"Oh, that is not good. It can be extremely dangerous. The labs alone…" Radek started gesturing more as he went along.
"I know, Radek. I said the same things," John interrupted. "But some of these guys are more arrogant then Rodney."
"Oh my," Radek quietly responded.
John tossed his head back a little, "Yeah, I know.
"So, what can we do to help?" Teyla asked.
"Well, depending if Rodney can get the Z.P.M working, I was hoping to have Ronon with Radek, lead one team," John paused while still talking to Ronon. "I figured you wouldn't want Rodney plus more like him in the same room."
"Thanks," Ronon answered, his gratitude didn't show in his voice but Sheppard knew it was there. That was the reason Ronon liked working with Sheppard so much, he understood him without Ronon needing to express himself, he hated expressing himself.
John continued, "I'll go with Teyla and Rodney can go with a Marine for a third team. The fewer teams exploring the better I'll feel."
John redirected his attention back to Radek, "Radek, I need you to pick someone that has the ATA gene to go with you. Just in case you need to get something working."
John was about to dismiss everyone when he could hear Rodney call him on his ear comm., "Sheppard, it's McKay."
"Go ahead, Rodney," John answered.
"We got it going. Its not fully charged, but it should work," Rodney said proudly.
"Thanks, Rodney. Meet me at the cafeteria and I'll update you with what I had in mind."
----------
Hours had gone by and it seemed to drag on for those that had to chaperon the new scientists. Ronon remained stoically silent during most of it while Zelenka and McKay had to constantly tell the men to be careful of where they were going and devices they wanted to touch.
John and Teyla had Haven and his small group with them. They followed them into an empty room that lit up brighter when John walked in.
"Do that again, Colonel," Haven asked.
"Do what?" John asked, unsure as to what he'd actually done.
"Leave the room and walk back in," Haven smiled kindly, which just confused John further. "Trust me Colonel. I just want to make sure I wasn't seeing things."
John did as he asked and as he left the room, the lights dimmed and once again brightened as he entered.
"Fascinating," a woman scientist exclaimed.
Teyla moved her eyes slowly to John and lifted the corner of her mouth, he was looking back at her with a similar expression, this was nothing knew on Atlantis, John's ATA gene always lit things up, but they resisted from stating this fact and humoured the new scientists.
"I would like to explore this room more thoroughly, Colonel. If you don't mind," Haven asked.
John looked at Teyla, checking that she also thought it was the best course of action and sighed. "Sure. Knock yourself out," John said. "Teyla and I will be waiting over here." He pointed to the wall across the room.
"Thank you, Colonel," Haven added, overly politely. John simply nodded and proceeded to the adjacent wall where Teyla was already sitting on the floor.
As John sat down, he let out a long exhausted exhale. Teyla smiled at him.
"If we are fortunate, they will find nothing and we will be on our way," she whispered.
He leaned in closer so the others wouldn't hear, "Actually, if we're lucky, they'll stay and we can take a break for a while." Teyla smiled softly.
John noticed she looked a little stressed as he looked her over, "You doing ok?" She returned him a questioning look. "You just seemed… I don't know… tired." He explained.
She gave him a small grin, "No, I am fine." She paused for a moment before she smiled and continued on. "Torren is older and more active now. He is actually walking quite well too."
"Walking, already? How old is he now?" John asked, genuinely interested. Torren was such a huge part of Teyla's life that it was hard to remember her without the little boy, yet his memories of the day he was born were so vivid that it felt like yesterday.
"He will be a year old next week," she replied.
"Wow," John said in a barely audible voice.
John's eyes gazed downwards but not before Teyla saw the sadness contained in them. Floods of memories flashed in his head, the loss of good men in the booby-trap set by Michael, the rest of his men, including himself and Ronon being trapped. Without even thinking he placed his hand over the area where he was impaled by a metal rod. Teyla did not miss his gesture.
He looked back to her with a slight smile and a little spark as he recalled them rescuing her from Michael's ship, how Torren was born in the middle of it and how Rodney had to deliver him.
Teyla placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Thank you again."
John cleared his throat; "You would have done it for anyone of us." Teyla gave him a knowing smile. "Plus, we'd just be a bunch of sweaty guys without you." John attempted to joke.
Teyla nodded with a ghost of amusement, "Very true."
John was about to make another light-hearted comment, but something on the wall across from him caught his eye. They were unusually geometric designs on the wall, nothing like the rest of the ones in Atlantis. There were four different shapes, each spaced evenly in a vertical fashion.
"John?" Teyla looked worried.
He laid a hand on her shoulder before getting up, "It's ok. I just want to check something out."
Teyla followed him as he walked across the room and gazed at the fixtures. He examined them and saw that they were like puzzle pieces. Pieces that would interlock together if they could lie on top of each other.
He reached out to touch one to see if it would move, but nothing happened. He tried another and it slowly protruded itself further out of the wall.
"Perhaps we should have Rodney and Radek here before you go any further," Teyla wisely suggested.
John snapped out of his concentration, "Oh, um, yeah, right." He reached for his comm. "Rodney, get Zelenka and meet me in the south wing."
"Why? Did you find something?" Rodney asked.
"I'm not sure; you and Zelenka should probably be over here though."
"We'll be there as soon as we can. McKay out."
"On our way." Ronon said, jumping into the conversion, on behalf of himself and Zelenka.
Haven overheard the conversation, "Can I help with anything? I'm sure if Rodney can figure it out, I could."
"We have had many accidents from Ancient devices, Doctor," "Teyla spoke up.
"And the last thing we need is more trouble," John spoke sternly, admitting to himself that McKay was probably the only one he trusted with this kind of stuff.
----------
Woolsey sat at the opposite end of table from Coolidge. Before settling down he took a notepad out of his briefcase and set a pen next to it, ready to jot down any notes he wanted for his files later. He knew the main topic was going to be Atlantis staying on Earth and even though Coolidge announced the scientists being sent to the city to explore it, he had a feeling there would be more to talk about than just that. They had made up their minds and he didn't see the need for them to rush him over there like they did just for one thing.
"So, are we waiting for General O'Neill?" Woolsey interjected as everyone talked amongst themselves.
"Oh, didn't he tell you?" Coolidge said smugly.
Woolsey took in a deep breath, "No, but I am sure you will."
"He's not coming," Coolidge could see that Woolsey was going to speak, but he raised his hand to stop him. "He said that he was not able to attend and that he was going to send someone he trusted to be in his place."
"I highly doubt those were the exact words he used," Woolsey rebutted.
"Well, he had some choice words about our decision for Atlantis and other topics we will discuss shortly, but I thought the abridged version would sound … better," Coolidge responded diplomatically.
Woolsey's eyes squinted slightly and a smirk came across his face, "So, what are the other things you wanted to talk about?"
"We need to decide on a suitable location for Atlantis. I personally don't think it should stay in the San Francisco bay," one man interjected.
"I agree," another piped in.
"Look." Woolsey sounded exhausted. "You have to understand, as of this moment we don't have the means to go anywhere. We barely have enough power to maintain the cloak and until we obtain a ZPM we might lose that as well."
"Well, according to what we heard, they found one in Area 51," a member blurted out.
"Yes, but we don't know how damaged it is from the Wraith attack," Coolidge corrected them. "For all we know it doesn't work." Woolsey was pleasantly surprised that Coolidge was being the voice of reason here, but then he knew from previous experience that Coolidge really did have good intentions at heart, he just went about things in a very frustrating, smug way.
"For your sake, I hope it is working. Especially since you are determined to explore the city against my advice," Woolsey said firmly.
"We'll also need it if we plan to defend Earth from any other attacks," Shen added.
"Which brings us to another point of discussion," Coolidge began. "We need Colonel Sheppard to stay with Atlantis."
"You mean with the chair," Woolsey cynically remarked.
"Well, yes, but that's beside the point," Coolidge continued. "We need someone that can run the military aspect of it."
"Like he has been doing?" Woolsey asked.
"Yes," Shen responded.
"I will ask him if he's willing to stay on in the position if Atlantis stays on Earth, but I…"
Coolidge interrupted Woolsey, "Um, you don't seem to understand. He doesn't have a choice. He's the only one with the ATA gene strong enough to control the chair."
"What about Dr. Beckett? He's more than capable of controlling the chair. In fact, if it wasn't for him we wouldn't have been able to stop the Wraith in time," Woolsey proudly stated.
"That may be true," Shen nodded, "but I believe we would be more comfortable with Colonel Sheppard." Woolsey distinctly got the impression that there was still some distrust of the doctor from his situation, he was a clone after all and these people had no experience dealing with that kind of situation. To these people, he was an entity but to the people of Atlantis, he was a person – a copy of someone they had known. For them, his being a clone wasn't even a factor anymore. Woolsey shook his head and wondered if he should find it odd that he was one of the people who didn't find it an issue to trust the doctor.
----------
"I can't find anything unusual about this wall," McKay said as he scanned it with one of his devices.
"Neither can I," added Zelenka.
Rodney touched one of the shapes that Sheppard hadn't touched yet, but nothing happened. He looked at John, "Did you do something different?"
John looked at the wall puzzled, "No. All I did was this…"
He touched the same place as Rodney, but this time it moved. It protruded out of the wall like the first one John had touched, but then it automatically slid into place over the stationary piece, followed by the shape that came out earlier.
"How'd you do that?" Haven asked. "Don't you and Rodney both have the ATA gene?"
"Yes they do, but Colonel Sheppard has it naturally whereas Rodney had the gene therapy," Zelenka blurted out.
Rodney quickly rolled his eyes. "Thanks for bringing that up," he said. "But it might explain why it didn't respond to me." John simply shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, are you going to try the last one?" Haven asked, trying to contain his excitement.
John nodded his head, took a deep breath and touched the last piece on the wall and just like the others; it came out of the wall and slide into place. The wall disappeared, revealing another room.
Haven's team was about rush in when Rodney shouted, "Stop!" He made sure everyone was listening before continuing. "Everyone halt where you are and don't move until I say so." Rodney ordered. He pointed to Zelenka and flapped his hand as an afterthought, "Except you." Zelenka proceeded to follow him into the room.
"Ah, com'on. You just want to get all the glory," one of Haven's men exclaimed in a huff.
John glared over at him, snorting internally as he saw the scientist cower away from Ronon's looming presence.
"Um, Rodney. You should take a look at this," Zelenka said slowly, pointing at something on the other side of the room. Rodney rolled his eyes; annoyed that Radek was distracting him from his own search. When he looked up he could see ZPMs throughout the room in various stages of completion. His eyes opened wide with excitement and his heart stalled for a moment before restarting in overdrive, "Jackpot."
----------
Landry walked into the briefing room. He had been informed of the news of Atlantis' find and, despite McKay's over confident ego; Landry insisted Colonel Carter would assist them.
"Well, it looks like we have some good news. I just received information that Atlantis may have a way to produce ZPMs, possibly hidden so that any intruders could not find it and produce their own. We have our top scientists, including Colonel Carter working to see if they can get everything operational."
There were smiles and faces of relief around the table, Woolsey being one of them. He had complete confidence in his scientists and Sam that they would work things out. But he couldn't help the little question at the back of his mind as he caught Coolidge's smug grin; surely he couldn't be taking credit for finding the lab? Woolsey shook his head to rid himself of those thoughts.
He sat back in his chair; a weight lifting off his shoulders that. He closed his eyes but they were forced open wide when SGC internal communication beeped into life. Walter's seasoned voice came over the tannoy and informed them of an urgent message from Colonel Ellis on the Apollo. Woolsey rushed to his feet and followed Landry, who had just rushed out of his office, to the control room, with Shen and Coolidge joining them not far behind.
A snowy transmission showed on the screen. Colonel Ellis had started his message before General Landry and company arrived.
"I'm not sure how long I can transmit so I'll be short. We just got our long-range scanners on and we detected a Wraith hive ship heading towards the Milky Way. I'm told that they will be there in a matter of days." Ellis informed them.
"Days?" Shen questioned with a hint of fear.
"How many are we talking about?" Landry asked; his voice tight.
"Two, sir," Ellis answered before they lost transmission.
The room was quiet for a moment as the occupants processed the news; two days until the Wraith arrived in the Pegasus galaxy? They must have set off weeks before. Woolsey flicked his eyes to the General, conveying his worry. There was a beat and the room erupted into a flurry of movement.
"Walter, patch me through to Atlantis," Landry ordered, kick starting himself into gear.
"If you don't mind General, I would like to go to Atlantis to help with any preparations," Woolsey asked eagerly.
But before Landry could respond Coolidge intercepted, "Actually, I would like for us to finish. There are a couple more things I would like to talk about." Woolsey balked – what could they possibly still have to talk about, apart from the imminent arrival of the Wraith in the Milky Way? "Not least the issue of our... interesting prisoner." Woolsey thought of Todd and winced slightly; he didn't want to think about what the IOA would want to do with him.
Landry hung his head slightly and sighed, "Sorry, Richard." He redirected his gaze to Coolidge. "You have the rest of the day."
"Thank you, sir," Coolidge said smugly before going back to the briefing room, followed by Shen.
"General…" Woolsey began to say.
"I know that you don't want to be in there. Hell, I wouldn't want to be in there," Landry said sympathetically, "But this is probably the best time to do this. The sooner you get done, the sooner I can get you back to Atlantis. I'll inform Sheppard."
Woolsey frowned and spoke softly, "Very well."
-----------
Rodney's nerves were wearing thin with all the questions being asked by the younger scientists while he, Sam, Radek and Haven worked hard to figure out the ancient machine. Haven asked the rest of the teams to go wait somewhere and Ronon and Teyla volunteered to escort them to the cafeteria.
John's ear comm. began to buzz. "Sheppard," John answered.
"Sir, there is a message coming through from the SGC. It's General Landry," a technician replied.
"Patch him through," John said as he walked into the corridor to find a quieter location.
"Sheppard?" Landry started.
"Yes, sir."
"We just received a message from the Apollo. Their long-range sensors have picked up a Wraith Hive heading our way. I want you to tell Dr. McKay and Colonel Carter that getting those ZPMs working is now imperative. We expect the hive ship to reach the Milky Way within two days."
"Oh crap," John spoke out without thinking. "Uh, sorry sir."
"That's ok. I was thinking the same thing," Landry agreed.
"Thank you, sir."
John walked back into the room; Colonel Carter noticed his entrance and the increasing tension in his face.
"John? What's going on?" she asked as she walked towards him.
"That was General Landry. We've a Hive headed our way. We have about two days before they get here," he answered.
Rodney's head shot up as he overheard, "What? Oh no, no, no. Two days!" Rodney's voice began to pitch higher as he whined. "That's not enough time for us to figure it out."
"You say that every time and you always end up making it work," John quipped back at Rodney, though the tension was still evident on his face. Atlantis – no, the whole planet – would be a giant sitting duck if they didn't get some of those ZPMs working in time.
"And you always work better under pressure," Sam added, despite knowing that it would inflate his ego.
"True, but still," Rodney said without modesty but John sensed a spiel coming and cut him off.
"But still nothing. We need this Rodney. You have less than two days to get as many of those working. I have a feeling we'll need it," John said and left the room, already thinking tactics.
----------
John knew he didn't need to ask Ronon to stay to fight the Wraith, but he couldn't say the same for Teyla. She had a family to think about and if anything happened he wouldn't forgive himself.
He gave a long exhale before waving his hand over the crystal to ring the chimes for her door. He was expecting her to answer the door, but instead it was Kanaan.
"Colonel Sheppard, please come in," Kanaan said politely.
Teyla looked up as soon as she heard Kanaan call John's name. She saw the deep, serious expression on his face, even though he was trying to smile to them both.
"Something is wrong," Teyla blurted out.
Kanaan was surprised she could sense that. He thought Sheppard was just there for a visit.
"There is a Wraith Hive ship on it's way here. The Daedalus is almost fully repaired, but they are not at their best and we don't know if we'll have time to get the ZPMs working," John paused to reorganize his thoughts. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm giving you the option to go with your family and stay at Earth's Alpha site. It's probably the safest place to be during the battle."
For Teyla, it was an easy decision – she had made it before, already back in Pegasus. The preservation of her family was crucial; she would not risk her son.
"I agree," she said and turned to Kanaan. "I would like for you and Torren to go-"
"Teyla," Kanaan interrupted and took a step towards her but she shook her head.
"I am sorry, Kanaan, but I could not stand by and stay some place safe while everyone else risked their lives to fight the Wraith. I would do no less if we were back in Pegasus."
Kanaan silently nodded his head reluctantly, his gaze flicking to Sheppard who was standing quietly just inside the doorway. Kanaan could not resent him for desiring Teyla's presence during the fight, but he could resent him for splitting his family apart at such times. But as Teyla busied herself preparing Torren's bags, Kanaan shook those thoughts from his head. Teyla would return to him, once the fight was over.
He didn't know who he was trying to convince.
----------
The following day, Woolsey and the IOA were able to end their meetings. Woolsey still wished they would have changed their minds about having Atlantis stay on Earth along with Colonel Sheppard, but their minds were made up and firm. They also accepted that this would be pointless without any working ZPMs
Now all he had to do was tell Sheppard. Woolsey knew that he wouldn't be happy especially since it was the IOA that made the decision for him. He was returning to Atlantis shortly and this was not news he wanted to deliver.
----------
"No, no, no!" Rodney shouted at one of Haven's minions. He leapt up and grabbed the equipment from the terrified young scientists' arms. "Do not touch that! Never touch that, unless expressly ordered by me!"
Sam gently cleared her throat.
"Or her." Rodney muttered, sitting back down to inspect the new readings. His face contorted at what he saw.
"Still not there?" Sam asked, looking over his shoulder.
"No, the powers not even up to half of what we're going to need, without the right amount of energy we're never going to be able to convert it into entropy. Sam had stopped what she was doing and just looked at Rodney with that 'why do I put up with you so nicely' look that Rodney knew so well.
"Which you already knew," Rodney admitted, looking back at his computer screen intently.
Sam walked over to him to stand at his shoulder, she pointed at the screen, "Look, I think if we just increase the speed of the propeller it could reduce the distance of the anti-particle turbulence."
"Yes, yes," Rodney said, his dejection rapidly disappearing, already typing in new calculations and instructions for the computer to generate in the ancient machine, "the increase in speed could loosen up the particle distribution to create the quantum foam."
"Brilliant idea, Colonel." Zelenka complimented. Rodney snorted cynically in resentment. As if his ideas aren't always brilliant.
Chuck's voiced came over the citywide tannoy, so that everybody was aware of the current news. "We've just received word from the Apollo that the Hive is travelling faster than first calculated, and the fleet contains several cruisers around a Hive."
The young scientist that Rodney had chewed out earlier fainted in the corner of the room. Haven ran over to him and fumbled his hands to find a pulse.
Rodney clicked his fingers at Haven, "Haven, get here, we need you to move the smallest crystal to the left."
"Can't you see I'm busy McKay?" Haven stood up, incensed at Rodney's insensitivity; he flung out his arms in anger, "This kid…"
"That kid," Rodney interrupted, "is slowing us down from protecting earth against a Wraith Hive ship which is getting closer and closer, while we are still defenceless." Rodney scolded. "Now get moving!"
Haven twisted his mouth and huffed air through his nose but did as he was told.
"Ok?" Rodney asked.
Sam nodded, giving him the go ahead to start the simulation.
Sam fiddled with her thumbs, Radek pushed his glasses further up his nose, and Haven flung his hand through his hair, all waiting impatiently as the calculations worked their magic on the Ancient system.
Rodney's eyes were glued to the computer screen, he was so intently focused that he almost didn't notice when the screen changed.
"I got it!" Rodney exclaimed.
"It worked?" Sam asked, joy spreading across her lips, "You did it?" She queried when she realized the words he'd actually said.
"Fine, you did it, but I did most of the work," he said petulantly. Sam stared him down with a dismayed look. "What? I did," he continued.
Haven looked over to Sam, "Does he always do this?"
"For the most part, yes," she said with a small smile.
Haven turned his gaze to Radek and he quickly nodded his head, but went back to work when he saw Rodney's disciplinary glare.
"Ok. Ha, ha," Rodney retorted. "We all got our laughs, but need I remind you that we have to try make two more of these things."
----------
Woolsey arrived back to Atlantis with Sheppard waiting for him in the control room. John had a feeling that Woolsey's news wasn't good.
"So, how bad was it?" John asked.
Woolsey frowned and couldn't look John in the eyes.
John sucked in a sharp breath and grimaced, "That bad huh?"
Woolsey didn't answer his question, but outstretched his hand to direct him to his office, "If we could talk in my office?"
John was feeling more uncomfortable by the second. Woolsey motioned John to sit down on the seat in front of his desk; he paused and sighed before sitting in his office chair.
"The IOA has been considering having Atlantis remain here on Earth," he put his hand up to prevent John from commenting. "Please let me finish before you saying anything. Believe me, this is not easy for me to do and I am hoping to change their minds still." He paused again. "If that happens then they want you to stay here too… on Atlantis."
John felt as if someone pulled the rug from under him. He wasn't surprised, he'd even half expected it knowing the IOA, but actually hearing it shocked him. He'd managed to convince himself without realizing it that it would never actually come to this.
"What?" John struggled to get the word out. Hoping he'd misunderstood. "They want Atlantis to remain here on Earth?"
Woolsey lowered his head slightly, "Yes and since you're the most qualified to operate the chair…"
Now he saw the real reason why the IOA wanted this, some part of his ego had wanted to believe they thought Atlantis couldn't be run without him, from a military stand point, but that ego had long learned to shut up. They wanted to protect their own asses and damn everyone else. He was enraged with the whole idea.
"Are you serious?" John blurted out. "Because of the… chair. My men are still out there in the Pegasus Galaxy! Atlantis can't remain here; we still have a job to do! What about Teyla and her people?!" Woolsey didn't say anything and John stood up abruptly, "I fully expect to stay with Atlantis… in the Pegasus Galaxy!"
"I'm sorry John, but you don't have a choice. Especially if General Landry signs the orders," Woolsey said remorsefully.
John didn't know what to say. He was furious; Atlantis was needed in the Pegasus galaxy because without it, the people there were defenceless against the Wraith. Surely the IOA knew that – surely Landry knew that. They couldn't order him to sit back and let the Wraith overrun Pegasus again; they couldn't expect him to leave his men without a touchstone. It was ridiculous.
His breathing quickened as his anger increased. "I don't' care if it's an order. It's not happening. Atlantis should go back to the Pegasus Galaxy, where it belongs."
John walked briskly down the corridor and didn't even notice when Ronon came up behind him. His friend could see that something was upsetting him.
"Hey, you ok?" Ronon asked.
John gave a furious exhale, he took a moment to compose himself, "They want Atlantis to stay here and me with it."
Ronon's brows furled, "What?" Knowing full well who 'they' were.
"Yeah, my thoughts exactly. According to Woolsey the IOA feels that I'm the most qualified for the chair. And they need the chair on Earth."
"But Atlantis belongs in…" Ronon growled.
"I know," John jumped in. "Woolsey agrees as well, but them being their typical..." He let out a growl of frustration, barely managing to stop his tirade before he said things he'd regret. "They are so infuriating!"
Ronon seethed, "What can we do?…You going to tell McKay and Teyla?"
John nodded, his eyes already drifting off down the corridor, "Yeah. I'm heading to see Teyla right now, hopefully I'll catch her before Kanaan and Torren leave. She and Kanaan have the right to know. Then I'll tell Rodney, right now he's got to get those ZPM's working before the Wraith get too close."
----------
Rodney had no time to stand admiring the ZPM his team had made. He'd always hoped one day he'd figure out how to make one himself, this put him one step closer to realizing that dream. More important things than his own ambitions were at hand though and now they needed to test them to make sure they would work properly, one untested ZPM was not enough reassurance if the Wraith arrived at that moment.
He led the team of scientists to the power room. They were just around the corner when Rodney's ear comm. went off; he reached for it to respond.
"Oh, for the love of…" He said to himself, don't people know he's in the middle of something vitally important? But then again, when isn't he?
"McKay here."
"Rodney," Sheppard said sharply. "The Wraith are getting a lot closer to the Milky Way, at the rate they're going, they'll be at the outer edge sooner than we thought."
"How much sooner?" Rodney's voice squeaked.
"Maybe in a few hours," John said with uncertainty.
"A few hours! Are you serious?" he barked. "You better hope the one we just finished works then." He paused to think. "Go to the chair room and I'll let you know if it does."
John stalled momentarily in his search for Teyla, he looked one way and then the other, before turning back in the direction he'd come. "On my way already. This way we can lift off as soon as you get them in." His news for Teyla would have to wait.
"What?" Rodney exclaimed. "I…I didn't say that. Sheppard? Sheppard!"
----------
Rodney darted into the Power room and was confronted by another group of scientists, from Haven's original contingency, he was just about to bark expletives at them but Sam was already handling it.
"Haven, I need you and your men to get out of here now!" Sam ordered.
Haven quickly and efficiently ushered the men out of the room.
Teyla momentarily stood staring into what should have been a blue puddle, the gate was rigid and strong, a figure of strength in this time of upheaval. Her family were prepared to embark to the Daedalus, part of her wanted to go with them, just to keep the family together, but she knew her emotions would go through much more agony if she wasn't here fighting the Wraith by her teams' side. The remaining scientists joined them and distracted Teyla from her contemplations. She kissed her son goodbye and Kanaan bowed his head to meet hers.
"Be safe," he said quietly.
She forced a small reassuring smile, "I will."
Once they finished their goodbyes, they were beamed away.
----------
Rodney was franticly trying to get the ZPM up and running, barking orders to those around him when John called him on his radio.
"Rodney! What's taking so long?" John demanded, already sat waiting in the control chair.
"I'm going as fast as I can!" Rodney shouted through gritted teeth.
"Well, then… go faster," John ordered impatiently. "How long will it take for you to hook up all three ZPMs?"
There was silence over the air.
"Rodney… You did make all three, right?" John asked, his body tensed as he awaited an answer.
"Well, that's the problem," Rodney's voice cracked under pressure. "It took us a lot longer than we hoped, plus it's a lot harder than you think and… I'm sure I only mentioned one before… where did you get three from?" Rodney attempted to misdirect John from his initial question.
"So… that's a no?" John interrupted.
"Yeah, well, they turned up quicker than those idiots on the Apollo calculated so you'll have to make do with just the one. It's not like we haven't created history just now." Rodney replied, grumbling.
There was a long pregnant pause before John replied, "How much longer will it take?"
Rodney heard the controlled fury in John's a voice, he knew it wasn't directed personally at him and that it was the situation, it definitely did the job in making him focus though. "We should be done any moment."
"Fine. Let me know when you're ready."
----------
Rodney got the ZPM hooked up, but nothing was working.
"Ah, com'on!" Rodney moaned. "This should work."
"Um, Rodney," Radek said as he was pointing to something.
"Not now Radek," Rodney said dismissively.
Radek began to move towards the area that he was pointing too.
"And don't touch anything!" Rodney demanded.
"Rodney," Sam said, her eyes piercing into his.
"You know I don't deal well with pressure and if we can't get this going well then… you know… we're screwed and…" he rambled on with a higher pitch to his voice, tapping frantically on the laptops surrounding him.
"Rodney. You can do this. We know it should work," Sam reassured him.
"I know I can do this," Rodney retorted, "You don't need to baby me, I've been in situations like this for years, just because you've been on the SGC's number one team from the beginning doesn't mean you…"
"Yes, she's right," Radek interrupted. "You just need to…"
"What!? What, do I need to do, Radek?" Rodney snapped.
Radek pointed to an open panel, "You to turn it on."
Rodney was quiet for a brief moment, embarrassed. He'd been too busy anticipating greater problems that he'd somehow managed to miss the basics. If it weren't so serious, Sam would've laughed, especially seeing a trace of amusement on Radek's face.
"I knew that," Rodney said smugly. "I was just seeing if you noticed… and obviously you did, so why didn't you do it?"
Radek's brows narrowed as he began to speak in Czech and neither Rodney nor Sam felt the need to ask for translation.
Rodney continued working, "And don't think I don't know what some of those words mean."
Before Radek could make a comment, the ZPM began to glow.
----------
John had informed Woolsey of Rodney's update and once they had established that the ZPM was working they beamed Haven and Sam back to the SGC.
He went to the chair and waited for the go ahead from Woolsey and Colonel Caldwell. Once they had everything in order, John closed his eyes and felt the chair respond beneath him. A strange sense of calm overcame him as he connected with the city, his mind becoming a blank as he sorted through the systems. He did not think of the Wraith, or their approach on Earth. He simply let himself be led by the city's response to his thoughts. He felt the pulling sensation and concentrated on the power outlets, sensing that the city was rising at his command.
He boosted the city's sub-light engines as soon as he cleared Earth's atmosphere. He knew that the hive ships were close to the Milky Way and that they had limited time to intercept them before they were close enough to launch an attack. They had to get to them before that was even a possibility.
------------
Rodney monitored the systems from the control room.
"Look!" Radek shouted, pointing at the computer screen in front of him. Rodney swiveled his chair over to him, Ronon jumping out of his way.
"What is it?" Teyla asked.
"According to the long range sensors, the Wraith have stopped…" Rodney explained absent mindedly, still staring at the information before him.
"And..." Ronon prolonged his word to encourage Rodney to finish is thought.
"That must me they stopped to cull. This could be the break we needed," Rodney finished.
Rodney clicked on his ear comm., "Sheppard. The Hive ships have stopped just outside of our galaxy. I think we can use this to our advantage."
"Great. Make sure that Caldwell knows as well," John said briefly before going back to devote his concentration to flying the city.
-------------
The Daedalus was the first to arrive and without hesitation Caldwell ordered all firing on the hive ship, knocking out their hyper-drives. The cruises joined forces to attack their foe. Caldwell could see Wraith Darts on his sensors but he didn't have time to think about that.
"Shields are down to seventy percent," a technician shouted.
The Daedalus got another hit and Caldwell had to duck from a shower of sparks from a nearby console.
"Damages?" Caldwell yelled.
"Decks twenty-seven through thirty have hull breeches!" another technician called out.
"Where the Hell is Atlantis?" Caldwell hollered.
The next minutes dragged on, the Daedalus taking hit after hit. They were venting atmosphere from the lower decks, the shields were at less than fifty per cent and it was only a matter of minutes before the game would be over. Even though it was only a short space of time, it seemed much longer, Caldwell's hands ringed with tension but his strategy remained considered. He just hoped they could hold the Hive off for long enough.
"Atlantis just dropped out of hyperspace!" Major Marks announced but Caldwell didn't sigh in relief; shields were at thirty per cent and the hive was still firing, the Darts had changed course and were heading towards his ship at collision course trajectories and the Cruisers were circling around them. They were sitting ducks until at last, Atlantis drew the hive's fire and Caldwell turned the full battery on the cruisers.
"Fire all we have on those cruisers! I want this done before we take any more damages," Caldwell ordered. "What's our status?"
"Shields are now down to twenty-five percent, sir," was the response.
A big explosion glowed in front of them and Caldwell had to look away from the view.
"One of the cruisers is down, sir," a female officer at the helm reported.
But before Caldwell could sing any praises, another officer shouted out, "Darts have split up; they're heading for Atlantis!"
"Launch the 302s, give Atlantis all the help they can get," Caldwell commanded.
Caldwell watched his sensors as F-302s joined the battle; from the viewer, he could see the small explosions that corresponded with the dwindling number of Darts on the sensors. He allowed himself a small smile; they might just win this after all.
-------------
"Jumpers are a go." Lorne announced over the radio.
"Good, good." Rodney muttered; remaining absorbed in his laptop even when Atlantis was hit by a blast that shook him in his seat.
"Oh crap!" Lorne shouted frantically through the comm. "A blast has hit the Jumper Bay doors, they're stuck, and I'm trapped in a Jumper." Lorne said; his voice sounding distracted.
"On our way." Teyla told him and leapt into a run.
Ronon grabbed Zelenka by the back of his shirt and pulled him up from his seat next to Rodney.
"Right, I'm going with you." Radek said to nobody in particular as Ronon dragged him along.
Teyla kept the major talking as they made their way down corridors and through transporters. "How did you get trapped Evan?" She asked.
She heard a quick intake of breath before Lorne responded, "The blast that hit the doors carried on through and hit my Jumper, I was in the cockpit."
"Are you alright?" Teyla asked, concerned that the Major hadn't spoken of his own welfare.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just trapped, the inner door is jammed shut, the guys are trying to get through but no luck so far."
"Ok Major, we're here now." Teyla told him as the Jumper cam into sight.
Ronon gave Zelenka a nudge in the right direction and told him, "You fix the Bay doors, we'll get Lorne out."
Zelenka nodded frantically before running over to the Bay door controls and moving crystals around.
Teyla ordered the other pilots to get into their Jumpers so that when Radek had the Bay open they could fly straight out and assist the F-302s.
Ronon was already trying to pry the Jumper door open with his bear hands but so far it was having no effect.
"Hold on Ronon," Teyla said as she looked around the remains of the outer section of the Jumper. She pulled open a panel above her head, "Major, can you open the panel next to the door above you?"
"Got it." Lorne called from inside the Jumper.
"Now move the crystal on the right to bridge the two on the left." She did the same on her panel.
"Do you know what you're doing?" Ronon asked quietly without the hint of an insult.
"I have seen Rodney and Radek do this on many occasions." She reassured him.
"Now try." She instructed Ronon, with Lorne pulling from the inside as well. But the door remained firmly shut.
Teyla looked back up at the crystals and reassessed their dull state, "The Jumper has no power remaining. I do not see another way through except cutting."
"I do." Ronon told her.
"Lorne?" He raised his voice for the Major to hear, "get as far back as you can and shield yourself."
After a few moments Lorne's voice came through tentatively, "Ready."
Ronon extended his arm and shot the Jumper door with his gun, shot after shot. A hole began to form in the door from his continued blasts.
"Bay doors are open." Radek cried from behind them.
When the hole in the Jumper door was big enough for him Lorne climbed through to see the Jumpers flying out of the Bay.
He clicked his earpiece and informed the control room, "Jumpers are a go."
-------------
Sheppard felt the impact of the Hive's attack; he jerked forward but held on steadily to the arms of the chair. He refocused his attention on the drones in the cargo bay, sending a barrage out towards the darts and another load firing upon the Hive itself. He identified the points of attack, aiming the drones at the Hive's control room and power source. He guided the drones smoothly around his own men's jumpers and fighters, the first wave crashing into the control area.
"Great shot Sheppard!" Rodney shouted down the comm. "Now…." Rodney was cut off by another jolt hitting the flying city.
"Everyone alright?" He asked.
"We are surviving." Teyla answered; her voice strained and heavy.
"But not for much longer!" Rodney announced, "The Hive is firing again and shields are down to 25 percent! We can't take another hit like that Sheppard!"
"On it." Sheppard said, half instructing himself to focus. He launched more drones, heading straight for the Hive's power source, the drones majestically swept around the Hive and plundered into its hull. The Hive drifted away as it was rendered inert.
Sheppard breathed out and sat forward.
"Great job everyone," Caldwell commended over the comm. "All Wraith ships neutralized."
"Thank you, sir. Glad we could help," John replied. "What's the damage?"
"Could have been a whole lot worse Sheppard." Caldwell informed him. Sheppard hung his head, he knew that meant they'd lost people and while it was expected, he still felt it like a hammer to his gut.
"You all right to clean up, Colonel?" He asked Caldwell, who replied in the affirmative. "Good luck."
He assessed the damage to Atlantis before setting a course back to Earth. It took a few minutes but once the course was established he quickly erected the chair and clicked on his ear comm., "Is everyone ok?"
Rodney yelped as he dodged a spark from his laptop, "Erm, there's been some reported injuries, but fairly minimal."
"Teyla? Ronon?" John questioned with concern.
There was a long beat and John felt his heart rate pick up slightly.
"Slightly bruised but we are fine, John," Teyla answered reassuringly and John let out a small smile.
"Good."
----------
John made it to the Control Room just as Landry videoed through with a message from the IOA. They had decided, out of fear, that Atlantis may be discovered by the general public that the city should be temporarily stationed out in space, perhaps behind the moon. This way they will be prepared to defend against any further threats.
Later that day Woolsey had already been recalled to the SGC for further meetings, he sent a message back to Atlantis to request the presence of Colonel Sheppard and his team.
The team gathered in the conference room on Atlantis to talk to Woolsey, Teyla had elegantly taken her seat and remained uncomfortably calm while Rodney paced around behind her.
Woolsey sat up straight in his chair; it amazed Sheppard that the man still kept things so formal even though they were communicating through video.
"Did they say why?" Teyla asked.
"No," Woolsey simply answered.
"They want to tell us that they are keeping Atlantis on Earth and Sheppard is staying with it." Ronon informed the room.
"Straight to the point big guy," Sheppard said, patting Ronon on the back.
A brief, mournful silence filled the room.
Woolsey cleared his throat and broke through the quiet, "I'm sure they will explain it all once you get here."
Diplomatic to the end, Sheppard thought.
----------
The team arrived at the SGC fully expecting the IOA to give them the orders about Atlantis and John remaining on Earth. One of the officers escorted them directly to the briefing room. John had prepared for what he wanted to say in argument against the decision, if IOA thought they would just sit back and accept the decision they had another thing coming.
Coolidge could sense the dissatisfaction in the Colonel's demeanour. He raised his hand as John opened his mouth, gesturing for him to wait before saying anything. He noted the snarl on Sheppard's lips but the Colonel bit his tongue. Coolidge waited for the team to sit down, he looked at the rest of the IOA panel and they nodded for him to start.
"You may or may not be aware that we have been considering the idea of keeping Atlantis here on Earth along with Colonel Sheppard," Coolidge stated plainly.
John rolled his eyes and again opened his mouth to talk, but Coolidge motioned him to stop again, "Please, Colonel. Let me finish. General O'Neill has appointed someone new to represent Homeworld Security in this matter."
John smirked and mumbled a little louder than he expected, "Obviously he didn't like the idea either."
The IOA panel looked on disapprovingly, but John met their gazes reproachfully.
Coolidge cleared his throat, "Like I was saying. We have a new representative coming in and we need to allow them to voice their point of views and so on. So, until then we are suspending our decision."
The team took that as the end of the meeting and began to push their chairs back, Sheppard was sure he heard McKay muttering some expletives under his breath.
"However," Coolidge raised his voice to compensate for the loud noise from the chairs, "We would still like to know how you would stand if we decide to go as we plan. We hope that Dr. McKay and Colonel Sheppard are cooperative and stay on with Atlantis, but what about you, Ronon and Miss Emmagan. How do you stand? Do you wish to stay here or go back the Pegasus Galaxy?"
"I'll stay with Atlantis," Ronon's answered immediately. "I have nothing to go back to without it"
Coolidge turned his eyes to Teyla.
"I will have to think it over, and talk with Kanaan," Teyla said with caution, her eyes flicking around the room before resting on John. She wasn't surprised that he didn't meet her eyes.
"Very well. I hope to hear your answer soon," Coolidge said before they adjourned.
The team left the room and walked slowly through the corridors of Atlantis, thoughts of having Earth as his permanent base again flitted through John's mind but his squashed them almost as quickly as they appeared, his heart insisting that Atlantis should and would return to the Pegasus Galaxy.
His team remained silent as they walked but John hadn't noticed, deep in his own thoughts, as were they all. A brunette walked across a doorway out of the corner of his eye, he stopped and looked around.
"What is it John?" Teyla asked when she realised he was no longer walking beside her.
John was staring off towards the doorway, trying to grasp hold of the image he'd not fully seen. The brown hair and gliding posture of her walk were so familiar to him, but it couldn't be. It couldn't be her.
"Nothing," he said, flapping his hand through the air and starting to walk again, "just thought I saw someone I knew, but it can't be."
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Kanaan and Torren joined the team in the Jumper when they returned to Atlantis. He noticed an odd quietness amongst Teyla and the rest of her team.
"Is there something the matter? Have they decided to keep Atlantis here?" He asked innocently.
Teyla motioned with a shake of her head to let the subject go and it confused him more, but he honoured Teyla's request and didn't say anything further.
Rodney hadn't seen Teyla's gesture so carried on with abandon.
"Oh they've decided it's staying here, got to get through a bit more red tape first though. And then they asked Ronon and Teyla if they wanted to stay. Ronon of course said yes and Teyla told them that she had to think about it…"
"Rodney!" John snapped and motioned with his head for him to shut the hell up.
Rodney frowned at Sheppard then glanced at Teyla, finally realizing that she hadn't told Kanaan about it and he'd just blurted it out.
"Oh. Sorry," he said in a small voice.
Teyla released a soft sigh. She could see the questioning look on Kanaan's face but he didn't say anything and for the rest of the trip everyone was quiet.
Back on Atlantis John called Teyla aside. Kanaan waited as they walked to a quiet spot.
"Teyla," John said with a hint of sadness in his voice, "I know this won't be an easy decision, but we will all understand if you go back home, just know that we will really miss you."
Teyla was touched by his words, she gently grabbed a hold of his sleeve and pulled him to touch her forehead with his, as he moved to pull away she hesitated and wrapped her arms around his waist. Momentarily John remained still but he came to his senses and returned the gesture, placing his arms over her slender shoulders. She didn't have the heart to tell him that she had already made up her mind.
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Woolsey walked into the control to see Coolidge already there and talking animatedly with a strikingly beautiful lady, her sleek brown hair drifted past her shoulders, accenting her curvaceous figure.
"Ah Richard," Coolidge said upon noticing him, "I would like you to meet O'Neill's representative from Homeworld Security," The woman turned round to him and smiled, holding out a hand, "this is Nancy Sheppard."
The end of episode one: