The Puddlejumper Diaries

By Andrew J. Talon

Disclaimer: Stargate: Atlantis, and all associated nouns (people, places, and things) are the property of MGM and the SciFi Channel. I don't own squat.

Jumper Three: "Murphy's Law"

If anything could go wrong with me, it would. Well before the humans from Earth happened upon the submerged city, the Atlanteans Jumper Pilots christened me the "First Step"-What people never saw on a dark staircase, leading to their falls.

I hibernated over the ten thousand years, my self-esteem so low that I didn't bother coming out of it until one of the humans reactivated me. They called me Jumper 3, officially. I had two unofficial names. The first was Echo. The second, and less flattering title I received, was Jinx.

I have to admit, I was in awe of John Sheppard's raw confidence and skill. He made me feel like a true Puddlejumper again, instead of a "First Step." I felt reborn, with a clean slate.

For about four hours. You might think of it as an eternity for a super-advanced AI, but even that ended all too soon. My first mission had me being used against Sheppard by a Wraith. The restrictions placed upon my programming prevented me from acting on my own against the monster, leaving me to only helpless watch as the Wraith killed two of my party and injure the others.

My next missions were no better. Crashed here, crashed there. Finally, I crashed on a world where a penal colony was situated right in front of the Stargate to feed the Wraith. Once more, I was a useless wreck. It was only through Dr. McKay's efforts that I could launch a single drone to ward off a Wraith Cruiser, the Stargate was finally activated and my crew escaped, leaving me behind. I wondered if I could blame them, for my latest failure.

My power failing… I realized that the blocks on my AI, preventing me from using my cloak and/or weapons on my own, was finally offline. And though my reserves were nearly gone, I had enough for one last weapon's activation. I launched all of my remaining drones in one swarm, directed against the Wraith cruiser now hovering over the city. I can't help but recall the old human adage known as Murphy's Law: Anything that can go wrong, will.

And it has. But maybe, just maybe, for the right reasons.

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Next Chapter: Jumper Four: Hypochondria