Title: Persuasion
Author: Lorr
Genre/Rating: General – Missing Scenes
Character: Weir, Sheppard, Beckett, McKay, O'Neill, Jackson
Disclaimer: The characters and universe do not belong to me. I'm just playing here, and it's heaps of fun.
Spoilers: None.
Background: I often wonder what happens in the scenes between what we see in the final program. What was the writer thinking? How did the characters get from one point to another? This little piece is my take on two scenes that occur immediately after Sheppard first sits in the chair at the Antarctic outpost. I hope you enjoy. Complete.
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Everyone standing in the chamber tried to look at the stranger in the chair and the hologram floating above them at the same time. The image of the solar system was sharp and detailed, the best effort they had seen. It slowly wheeled around its axis, planets and moons in their respective dances.
"Did I do that?" The stranger asked.
"Well, no need to test his DNA." Daniel Jackson said to no-one in particular.
"Major?" General Jack O'Neill said in a slightly annoyed tone.
"Yes, Sir. Sorry." Major John Sheppard replied as he slowly started to move the chair to its upright position.
"Wait, wait! Don't move!" A flustered Rodney McKay stepped forward with his hand up to stop the Major. Everyone froze while he went to the nearby computer. He hit a few keys. "We, uh…We should try something else. Uh, think of where the solar system is in our galaxy. Can you do that?"
"In the Milky Way?" Sheppard asked, a little confused.
"Yes, yes, the Milky Way. That is our galaxy." McKay replied impatiently.
Sheppard frowned at him and leaned back again. The solar system dissolved and was replaced by an elegant spiral galaxy. Two smaller, irregular galaxies floated nearby. The image swirled slowly, giving everyone in the chamber a chance to see the whole thing. One star in an outer arm glowed bright red and had Ancient symbols written next to it.
Peter Grodin walked further into the chamber and pointed up. "Are those the Magellanic Clouds?"
"Atlantis. Where is Atlantis?" Daniel Jackson suggested eagerly.
"How is he going to do that?" McKay kept watching the computer screen. "We've only just figured out the Gate address."
Sheppard glanced from Jackson to McKay and back. "What do you mean?"
"The lost city of Atlantis isn't here on Earth." Jackson spoke rapidly. "It's in the Pegasus Galaxy, in the local group. Can you take us there?"
The Major stared at Jackson for a few seconds then moved to settle his boots on the chair's footrest and took a deep breath. The hologram above began to change again. This time, though, it was not just replaced by a new image. It slowly zoomed out to show a broader field.
The number of people in the chamber was growing with each passing second as base personnel approached to see what the commotion was all about. They tried to catch a glimpse of the figure in the chair, asking each other who it was. A sudden intake of breath drew all eyes back to the hologram.
As the crowd watched, the Milky Way and its companions shrank even more. The perspective tilted and they left the Milky Way behind and began to speed away. As they neared an object, it would enlarge and give them a detailed view of it. Then it would disappear as they passed by and moved on to new territory. The hologram neared and entered a large spiral galaxy. As it passed into and through it, they saw nebulae, planetary systems, binaries and globular clusters.
"Oh, my God!" People were pointing at the large bulge in the galaxy center. "Is that a black hole in there?"
"Slow down!" McKay was trying to watch the hologram and the computer screen at the same time. He glared at the Major for a split second. "I need to make sure we're recording all of this!"
Sheppard glanced McKay's way, sighed and looked up again. The speeding image slowed significantly, giving the now packed chamber an even better view of the small portion of the universe passing before them. At one point, the hologram seemed to disappear and the room darkened. Murmurs of disappointment could be heard. Thinking it was over, a few turned and started to walk away. The disappointment evaporated when the hologram broke through the darkness and revealed spectacular objects on the other side.
"Dark matter or dust." Someone at the back said. "Wow! I wish we could get samples."
"Did you see that?" Exclamations came from around the chamber.
"A supernova! Unbelievable."
"How is he doing that?"
Everyone stood enthralled for many minutes, unwilling to move for fear of missing something. They seemed to be unaware that the speed with which the image moved was slowing more and more. Even Sheppard appeared to be lost in the hologram. Only his fingertips moved on the chair's gel pads, and that movement was almost imperceptible.
The hologram slowed to a crawl near a small, spiral galaxy with only two distinct arms. It circled to the right about a third of the way along one arm then turned inward, magnifying stars and other objects on its way. All motion stopped at a solar system with several planets, complete with moons, comets and asteroid belt. One planet glowed blue and white, but did not enlarge to show any detail.
McKay studied the planet opened mouthed then stared at Sheppard. "That must be it. That must be where Atlantis is. Can you get the coordinates?
A second later, a complex series of symbols and numbers appeared next to the planet. There was a collective intake of breath in the chamber.
"Can you find the city?"
Sheppard thought for a moment. "No. It won't go any further."
Almost as one, the crowd looked down at Sheppard. He suddenly became conscious of their attention and warily glanced around. The hologram disappeared as he sat up then stood up. He cleared his throat and walked toward the General.
"Sorry, Sir." He said, looking from side to side with uneasiness.
O'Neill looked around. People quickly turned and left in small groups, talking animatedly about what they had witnessed. It was only seconds before only O'Neill, Sheppard, Jackson, Elizabeth Weir, Carson Beckett and McKay were alone in the chamber.
Elizabeth stepped forward with her hand out. She smiled broadly. "That was quite a show you put on for us, Major."
"Dr. Elizabeth Weir, this is Maj. John Sheppard." O'Neill stared at Sheppard. His expression was unreadable.
"Pleased to meet you, Ma'am." Sheppard smiled self-consciously as he shook her hand.
Elizabeth introduced the others. "Dr. Daniel Jackson, Dr. Rodney McKay, and I think you've already met Dr. Carson Beckett."
After shaking hands, Sheppard looked at O'Neill. "Are you ready to leave now, Sir?"
"Go? You can't leave." McKay was alarmed.
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows at the General. "Gen. O'Neill? Do you have to leave just yet?"
"No, he doesn't, do you, Jack?" Dr. Jackson jerked his head sideways. "Can I talk to you for a few minutes, please?"
O'Neill frowned as he looked at the hopeful expressions around him. He wiggled a finger at Jackson then smiled at Elizabeth. "It seems I need to talk to Daniel for a while. Daniel?"
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Elizabeth found Sheppard looking inside an open panel on the side of the helicopter. "Major? Do you have a minute?"
Sheppard glanced at her then stepped back and closed the panel cover. "Sure. Yes, Ma'am."
"Let's go inside." She indicated one of the small buildings on the surface above the outpost. "What were you doing?"
"I had to set her down pretty hard when that drone was chasing us earlier. I just wanted to make sure nothing was damaged." He flashed a lopsided grin at her and raised one eyebrow. "Wouldn't do to fall down with the General on board, would it?"
She laughed at the unexpected comment. "No, it wouldn't."
Inside, they entered a tiny room that served as her office at the Ancient outpost. As she walked around the desk to sit, she lowered the screen of the laptop sitting there.
Elizabeth waved to the only other chair in the cramped room as she sat down. "Please make yourself comfortable. Would you like some coffee?"
"No, thank you, Doctor." Sheppard sat down. She could see a hint of suspicion in his eyes. "Can I help you with something?"
"I hope so, Major. I'm just not too sure how to ask this." Elizabeth sat back, biting her lip. She saw his suspicion grow. "I'd like to tell you a little about what we are doing. What do you know about the Stargate program?"
"Well, only what Dr. Beckett told me. There's a device called the Stargate that allows people to go to other planets. It was built by the…uh…Ancients. And, these Ancients left Earth millions of years ago to go the Pegasus Galaxy. Apparently I have this gene the Ancients had and that's why I can use that chair thing. Dr. McKay had me doing stuff with the chair for the last couple of hours."
"Did you have any trouble with it? Getting it to do what you wanted? I mean, did it take much effort or concentration?" She was intensely curious why it was apparently so easy for him.
He slowly shook his head. "No. It was as if it was reading my mind. Why?"
"I was just curious. The others have a little more difficulty, that's all."
"If these Ancients left so long ago, and we're the second evolution like Dr. Beckett says, how can this gene still be around?"
"We don't know for sure. Some of them may have come back or maybe the gene evolved a second time as well."
"So, you've never met one of these Ancients?"
"Well, one was found frozen here in the Antarctic a couple of years ago, but she died very soon after thawing out." Elizabeth could see disbelief in his eyes now. She rushed on. "I know it sounds preposterous. It's a long story, but it is true. The Ancients are, or were, very advanced people."
"Why did they leave?"
"There was some kind of disease. The young woman that was found here died from it."
"Did she say anything, tell you anything about them?"
No, we think the time in the ice affected her speech. She could talk, but it was as if she had forgotten language."
He cocked his head to one side and raised an eyebrow. "Doctor, am I going to regret knowing more?"
"I hope not." Elizabeth was a little taken aback by his questions. This was not your typical military pilot, she thought to herself. "The Stargate was discovered in Egypt about fifty years ago. It was used just once at the time, and the subject was trapped on the destination world until recently. The project was shut down. Dr. Jackson was instrumental in starting it up again several years ago. We have been regularly going to other planets since."
She paused. "I say we, but I joined the program only recently. It has mostly been run by the military since reactivation.
"During the trips off-world, we have encountered both new enemies and new friends. Through these contacts, and deciphering the writings on many ruins and artifacts, it was discovered that a race we call the Ancients built the Stargate system in this galaxy. We also discovered the Ancients left to go to the Pegasus Galaxy, taking their whole city with them. That was Atlantis."
Sheppard nodded, an expression of skepticism on his face. "The whole city. How big was it?"
"We don't know, but it was probably big." Elizabeth leaned forward. "The Ancients built the Stargates. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of them throughout the galaxy. They created technology so far beyond us, we can't even imagine it."
"Like that chair?"
"The chair barely even scratches the surface. By the way, it is actually a weapons platform. It uses the drones as missiles."
His eyes narrowed. "A few months back, something happened down here. Was that…?"
"Yes, but I didn't think you could have seen or heard much from the base. How do you know?"
"I was test flying a chopper after engine maintenance."
"Well, the chair's main purpose does seem to be that of a weapon, but, as you saw, it does other things. We don't know even a fraction of what it can do yet. As I mentioned, most people have more difficulty than you using the chair. A lot more. You've probably given us more data in one afternoon than we have gotten since it was found. Anyway, the events that led up to finding this outpost provided clues to the whereabouts of Atlantis. Dr. Jackson has only just determined it is in the Pegasus Galaxy."
"And, you're going there?" Sheppard asked reluctantly. He crossed his arms over his chest.
"Yes, we have just been given the green light for the expedition." Elizabeth smiled. She could see that he understood her intent. "I have been choosing team members for some time now."
"Doctor, why are you telling me this?" He asked although he knew what she wanted.
"I'd like you to join us." She watched him closely.
He shook his head. "Oh, I don't…"
"Major, wait, please. Hear me out." Elizabeth held her hands out, palms up.
He compressed his lips and nodded, but she could not read his expression now.
"You have the Ancient gene, and can use the technology more easily than anyone else we have. We need everyone we can find with the gene to have any hope of making this mission a success." She took a deep breath. "We don't know if the Ancients are still alive or not, but what if they are? What if we really have located the lost city of Atlantis?"
Sheppard thought for a moment and scratched the side of his head absently. "Doctor, I was transferred to McMurdo for a reason. You may want to reconsider your offer once you've seen my record."
"I have read your file, Major. I don't consider it an issue." Elizabeth held his gaze for a moment then looked away. She finished closing the laptop with a click. "There is one thing you need to know before you give me an answer."
"Yes?" He said slowly and his eyes narrowed.
"We don't know when we will be able to return, or even if we'll be able to return at all. This could be a one way trip."
There was a knock on the door and a Marine Sergeant poked his head in. "I'm sorry to interrupt, Dr. Weir. Dr. Jackson is looking for you."
"Thank you, Sergeant." Elizabeth smiled and the Marine disappeared, closing the door behind him. She looked at Sheppard. "Did you have any questions, Major?"
He looked down at his hands. She waited patiently while he thought. Elizabeth had watched him in the chair. The Major showed no sign of exerting any effort or even a need to concentrate as the others had. Instead, it was as if he was merely another spectator. Even later, Rodney had been both thrilled and jealous at the ease with which Sheppard manipulated the chair. Rodney had said that it was almost like Sheppard had been using it for years.
Finally, Sheppard looked up. "When are you going?"
"As soon as we can. It could be a matter of weeks."
"Can you give me some time to think about it?"