A family reunion.
A bit of background :- Mike Slattery, the XO on the Nathan James is a cousin of Colonel Dave Dixon from Stargate SG1. Kate Gentry did a short term secondment to the SGC during the time of late season 7 and the beginning of season 8, but wasn't read into the full program due to her upcoming marriage to Jack Lassiter.
A big thank you to tea-induced scribbles for allowing me to borrow Kate to put into my story and for letting me play with her time frame a little.
Totally AU and just something that I thought of due to Adam Baldwin playing both characters.
Reviews are very welcome and wonder whether to continue. Your views matter, but no flames please.
LS – LS – LS – LS – LS
In the Comms room on the Nathan James, a cryptic message had just come through. No one could understand its meaning and wondered who it was meant for. It had come through on a secure military channel and was headed HWS. Kate was busy unravelling the mess that was Lassiter Industries and was using one of the terminals to access satellite links.
With all they had gone through in Baltimore, she had decided to use the information for the benefit of the ship and spreading the cure, not, as Granderson wanted to cement her power.
The Captain and XO were keeping an eye on her. Not as a security measure, more of a wellbeing task. Making sure she took regular rest breaks and kept her fluid intake up. She was still coming down off of a medically induced detox program. Neither one of them wanted to endure the wrath of one Dr Rachel Scott after the last time when Kate had near collapsed due to dehydration.
That story would be doing the rounds for a few more days, how the fragile English doctor had torn such a strip off of the two men that they had hung their heads in shame as she reamed them out in the P-way in full view of a few of the crew.
All of a sudden a clear broadcast could be heard loud and clear.
"Calling the Nathan James, calling the Nathan James. Friends and family in the Springs can help. I repeat, friends and family can help. Call on secure #346."
The broadcast went into a loop and kept repeating.
The Captain and XO looked at each other, both thinking it was a trap, as had happened before but both silently hoping for a better outcome than that they had received in Baltimore.
"Open a channel," the Captain said. Knowing the XO's family, he turned to him and said "All yours."
"This is the Nathan James calling on #346. I repeat, this is the Nathan James."
Waiting for a reply did not take long.
"Standby for authentication. What has the best steaks in the Springs?"
Mike Slattery, the XO smiled and answered "O'Malleys, but most personnel are banned, including myself."
Tom Chandler, the Captain frowned at his XO thinking there had been trouble but Mike laughed and told him "I and my cousin are often mistaken for one another. He's a jarhead (marine). What do you expect?"
The radio came to life again.
"Slatters, that you?"
"Dix, am I glad to hear from you. Are you all safe?"
"Yeah, the Springs got away lightly and we managed to contain the outbreak. We wondered why we hadn't heard from you from our previous signals." Now the cryptic signal made sense. Mike didn't know what his cousin did but knew it had some highly classified security about it. "I've been authorized to offer you full support, supplies and intel, so, what do you need? We can be at Norfolk when you need us there."
Looking at Tom, Mike raised his eyebrows, silently askng the question.
"Two days, that should give us time to get in and assess the ground."
"Two days good for you?" Mike asked.
"Roger that, we'll secure the area and rendezvous point. As a side note, do you still have Bondi girl aboard?"
Hearing her private nickname, Kate's head snapped up. There was only one person who called her that, in fact he gave her that nickname, and that was a Major General in the US Air force. She'd first met him when doing a hot extract from a jungle in South America with two scientists, Daniel and Bill. He'd been a Colonel then but had risen to the rank of Major General the last time she'd seen him, which had been at a Washington function. He'd offered her a job/transfer when he made Brigadier General but she'd turned him down as she was retiring to get married.
Kate said to Mike "ask him for proof of who he means. Ask for his favourite cartoon."
Mike looked at her like she had gone mad but still asked "Dix, need to know what the person who knows Bondi's favourite cartoon is."
"Doh!" came over the radio "The Simpsons of course. He said to say, if she needs any toys or parts, to make a list."
Hearing this Kate grabbed a clean notepad and started making a list of all sorts of spares she needed for the Helo. She then decided to be a bit outrageous just to see what she could get.
The Helo bay that had been turned over to Rachel had been stripped when they were in Baltimore and what little equipment was left could be housed in the med bay below decks.
Rachel had told her space required to make the vaccine would only have to be as big as a two man cabin and seeing as how they had lost a few crew there were a few empty cabins even with the Captain's family aboard.
The XO arranged the rendezvous point and he and Tom got down to outlining the Op to meet at Norfolk Naval yard.
Kate was still working on her list or should I say lists. She was now at three pages. The first was necessary spares for the Helo, it had taken a battering over the last eight months.
The second page was headed Helo 2. and she'd created a wish list just for herself. No 1 was a troop carrying gunship helicopter with all the bells and whistles she could think of and at the bottom with an asterisk at the side listed 'top of the range sound system'.
The third was more personal, clothes, footwear and the like. Being ex military was one thing but wearing the same clothes for the previous eight months was getting annoying.
Getting up she passed the 3 sheets over to Mike who looked them over, then laughed.
"Like that's going to happen," he said passing them to the Captain.
"Just send them" she huffed and under her breath muttered "don't ask, don't get and he likes me."
Lt Kara Foster heard this and gave Kate a cheeky smile.
They'd both been through their fair share in Baltimore and the young Lt liked the way Kate was.
While Kate had been held in captivity, the XO had been a bear of a man to be around and since her return his mood had lightened.
In point of fact, the whole ship was uplifted now she was back. Kate created a humorous mood, whether it was blatant disregard for certain things or just her phrases. Never forgetting though that when a military approach was called for the change was like a switch being thrown and she was the consummate professional.