Legacy
A Stargate Atlantis fan fiction by: sore wa himitsu desu
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For the sake of appeasing my pondering at how Stargate Atlantis will function without Dr Beckett. /sniffles. He shall be missed.
Please enjoy.
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Disclaimer: I can say I own the Season 1 DVD set of Stargate Atlantis, not the show nor the wonderful characters. Dr Carita Magadia Graham decided to poke me into putting her in this little drabble and, well, she is an actual character of mine. I do own a character, joys of joy.
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She was four years old when she performed her first surgery, never mind it was all pretend in her childhood imagination. She saved Sir Teddy from a terrifying gutting caused by one mean-spirited bully of an older brother. Looking back, she had spent hours at her imaginary operation table saving a cherished gift from her dear grandmother, on her birthday, and two weeks before passing away. But even then, those hours were as strenuous as it was in real life.
Yes, she, Dr Carita Magadia Graham, had chosen the path of a healer, sworn to the Hippocratic Oath, and performed countless surgeries – losing the battle oft times, but retaining equal amounts of successes. There was something special about her career and there was no denying she had a miracle touch. She had received patients too far gone – the "little hope, they're as good as dead so don't waste your time saving them, make them comfortable" type. Yet, she endured and pulled these patients from that teetering brink. She never gave up if there was a chance, even if her efforts ended in death. She did not waver against her failures, she learned from them. And that was what got her to the Pegasus Galaxy.
Once more, she was faced with another life hovering at Death's door.
Lt Colonel John Sheppard of the United States Air Force, Commanding Military Officer of the Stargate Expedition to the Pegasus Galaxy, and resident trouble-magnet.
Carita had faced numerous situations like this, but this one separated itself from the others. Her hands were drenched with the blood of a man well respected by the people of Atlantis. A man who lifted the cumbersome weight of replacing another cherished member of the expedition with a charming smile and a friendly, "Welcome to Atlantis, Dr Graham."
She did feel nervous then – four months ago. Three weeks before actually stepping through the Stargate, she had received a call from the Pentagon. It was a surprising turn of events considering she was not a doctor in the military, but, somehow, word of her successes appeased the higher ups and they deemed her worthy of replacing one Dr Carson Beckett. Initially, she hadn't the clue who this person was and she had her guesses, but after spending nearly two weeks preparing and assimilating into the Stargate Program, she had heard plenty about him. Her guesses paled to the appraisals of those who knew him.
That made her nervous, so much that she considered backing out from this offered position. She was replacing someone very dear to the expedition at Atlantis. Someone who, countless times, saved the lives of other prominent expedition members and more. Dr Beckett was loved and his loss still pricked at many people's hearts. She would have loved to meet this man and it brought tears to her eyes when they told her how he had died. It was unfortunate and Carita admired the man for his bravery.
Thinking about Dr Beckett and wondering how he managed to keep up with the myriad of stressful situations inspired her. Her careful gaze and steady surgical hand moved over her patient's body as nurses and doctors rushed about, taking in her precise orders. She knew Dr Beckett ignored the weariness tempting the body to acquiesce to rest much needed and long overdue. She knew Dr Beckett prayed that Colonel Sheppard made it through another life-threatening injury. She knew Dr Beckett breathed out a sigh of relief, arms steadying, and heart filling with warmth as machines and people alike provided assurance of another life saved.
However, Carita knew she was nothing like Dr Beckett, but she'd be damned if she couldn't continue his legacy.
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Short, I know. I've a habit of not writing enough, but I hope it was… somewhat good? I apologize if anything sounds off, I'm working on limited knowledge. Thanks for reading.