Hey guys, because you all waited so long you get a new chapter really quickly :) This one is slightly a filler chapter but plenty more is coming soon. Now that we have gotten over holidays, I will try an update once a week, if I keep banging off chapters in my holiday time maybe shorter. I just wanted to thank you all for reading and it would be great to get some reviews, this story has been my life and it would be really great to hear what you guys think about it or what I can improve on. To Zoe6, just because I get to say you are my beta 'cause you are a damn rockstar in the fandom! Thanks everyone, and to show how much I love you all, there is a sneak peek at the end!

Two weeks had passed since the stitches had come out of her legs, and Alicia could still feel it. Although it was better several times over, she still struggled sitting. But she was better and working so there was nothing more she could ask for.

Elisabeth had told Alicia to take at least three days off to recover, but she only needed one. She walked into the commander's office after her recovery day, dressed for work. He gave her a questioning look, she stared right back at him. He sighed, knowing that he had already lost the fight. She was happy to be at work, but in response to her actions Taylor had given her paperwork and light duty as well as the next day's pre-dawn patrol. Alicia was annoyed at Taylor's decision, but at the end of the day she realised just how tired she was and that a slow day was the right thing to do.

Over the next week, she slowly got her normal routine up and going. Increasing her workload everyday until she was back to where she had been before. But she was better, and was independent once again and that alone made Alicia feel hundreds of times better.

Today marked the first time Alicia would go outside the gates since the accident. She wasn't nervous herself, but she knew Taylor was. He had done everything in his power to find someone else to make the trip, but the logical answer was for Alicia to go out. This trip required Alicia and two of her soldiers to obtain a particular plant that the medical team were in desperate need of. There was a virus spreading throughout the colony and supplies were running out fast. Alicia having a medic past knew the plant to look for and what it was. Although the doctor could have shown and explained it to Taylor, Alicia still had the invaluable lifetime of knowledge. After much discussion he agreed, but only on the terms that she brought three men with her instead of two.

He didn't doubt her safety, she knew how to take care of herself, but he wanted them to get plenty of the plant and three people wouldn't quite cut it. Alicia agreed, knowing that he was right, but mostly because she really just wanted to get out. She felt unused, this time because Taylor had given her a backseat for her first week back and only now was he letting her officially get back to her duties. Not that she had really held back, she ran training sessions all week and did rounds of the gates each day.

Reynolds had made a surprise visit the night before, wishing her luck on the trip.

"Please be careful Wash, for everyone's sake. I don't think you realise but our survival is dependent on you being alive." Reynolds spoke; Alicia noted what he was saying. She felt both proud and slightly silly at the same time.

"Thank-you Reynolds, I'll do my best. The other soldiers are good too, we'll be fine." She replied, confident in their uneventful return.

"Also take care of your legs, I know they still bother you. If they start hurting let the guys know, the three know you were injured, I'm pretty sure the Commander had a word with them. Those guys would expect any normal person to still be sore so don't be afraid to let them know. You really shouldn't be pushing it too hard." She was surprised at how much he picked up, and he was right, her legs still caused her grief - certainly not as much but it was there. What she wanted was to know what Taylor had told the soldiers she was going with, but decided that maybe she really didn't.

Because the operation to get Saunders was kept quiet, no one in the colony knew about it except for the Commander, Jim and Elisabeth Shannon, Guzman and herself. Reynolds only knew she had been attacked by a dinosaur. They had all agreed that they didn't want the colony to find out that their Commander was making secret trips OTG, and in search of a mole. Because they had arrived so early too, no one was awake to see the homecoming. Alicia's students had been worried when she hadn't turned up to their session the same day as her operation, especially when Commander Taylor had arrived in her absence. But he explained that she had done some very serious damage to her knees and wouldn't be in action for a few days. That was what was tossed and turned around the camp, and she was surprised that Taylor had told the Sergeants the truth, it had been two weeks and she was doing a hell of a lot better. But he wouldn't have told the three of them if he didn't think there was a good reason for it and she trusted him.

"I'll be careful Mark, hold the fort up while I'm gone." She smiled at him, using his first name was an irregular occurrence, but she liked saying it. He smiled back, she pat him on the shoulder and said goodnight.

"Rest easy soldier, I'll be back." He nodded his head in reply to her and left Alicia standing in her doorway watching him make his way home.

It was early morning and she was finishing packing the rover. She threw her bag in, turned to Sergeants Thomas and Brennan, grabbed both their bags from them and tossed them in the back. She turned back to the third Sergeant, Ladler. She had trained them all, and each one of them was exceptionally talented and brave. Grabbing his bag, Alicia quickly went over the trip for the last time, she wanted to do it right and she wanted to do it her way. Which wasn't a problem, being the highest ranked soldier she automatically had that power.

"We have two days OTG. One day there, one day back. Get as much as possible. And I'm driving." Alicia stated, leaving no room for argument. She saw the three men look behind her and all stiffen, she knew who it was and wondering just what he had said to them yesterday to scare the soldiers even more than the thought of going OTG.

"In the rover, I'll be there in a minute." She said, dismissing them as she saw Taylor approaching. Alicia turned to face him, putting her hands into her pockets.

"Wash, you be careful out there now, I want you back in one piece, both legs attached." Taylor assured her, both of them staring straight at each other. She nodded in reply.

"You got two days Wash, no longer. Report back on comms tonight. Now get out of here." He said with a cheeky smile. She smiled back, put her hand up to signal her goodbye and went around to the front seat of the rover.

"Everyone ready? Got everything?" Alicia checked, looking at all three of them. Ladler was in front with her; Thomas and Brennan were buckled up in the back. They nodded heads in unison; Alicia turned back, buckled herself in and revved the rover to life. The gate slowly lifted itself up and Alicia slowly inched forward. As she left the colony, she looked back and she could only see Taylor. He was standing right in the middle of the platform, watching the rover as they sped of into the distance.

They had managed to use the rover for a good part of the trip, usually they would have to abandon it pretty early but they had used it until lunchtime, a good five hours. But now the four of them had another five hours to trek. She unpacked their bags from the rover, Alicia tossing the bags straight to them. She closed the back up, thoroughly locking the machine, which was now well hidden amongst the trees.

She watched as the guys pulled out bottles of water and their lunches, supplied by the Terra Nova mess hall. As they went to sit down, Alicia interrupted the picnic before it could get started.

"We eat lunch as we go soldiers, that's life on the road for you." Alicia explained, as she waved her own lunch in the air and started walking in the direction that the map directed them. She didn't need to look back to make sure they were following, she could hear the sighs and crunch of their boots on the ground. She smiled to herself and started to eat lunch, preparing herself for the five hours ahead.

"Lieutenant Washington." Alicia turned in response to her name; the three soldiers were lined up next to each other, an assortment of fruits and drinks between the three.

"Thomas."

"How many times have you been OTG?" She was walking backwards now, only needing to check once that the coast was clear for her to continue walking that way.

"Good question, way too many times to count I can tell you that." She said, trying to honestly count, but she gave up hope once she realised she was going at least three times a month, and that was only since the 10th had arrived.

"Do they go wrong often?" Ladler asked, looking nervous - a rookie mistake.

"No, but it depends I guess on what you would call going wrong. Generally trips OTG with anyone involved don't go wrong or turn out badly. Anyone that goes outside is capable of taking care of themselves and others. You just need to be prepared for anything and everything." Alicia replied, looking over her back, doing a sweep of the area.

"Are you expecting trouble on the trip?" Brennan questioned her, looking slightly nervous as well.

"You learn out here, never to expect anything. The jungle is as unpredictable as it's inhabitants, so there's really no way of saying if we will come across trouble. Considering the remoteness of the area, I believe we should be clear. But that's no promise, and you shouldn't feel any safer than before. As long as you keep an eye and an ear out, we'll survive." Alicia explained, before turning back to finish her lunch. She almost wondered if she was being too harsh, but realised that there was no room for comfort in these jungles. She could not protect them from what was out there by telling them their enemies did not exist. Alicia was being realistic, and that was what she needed to do in order to survive the trip.

"How are you legs Lieutenant?" She heard Brennan call from behind, the question almost made her stop. Sure she knew they all had heard what happened from Taylor, but she wasn't expecting anyone to say anything about it. Nonetheless, she continued walking and answered the question while still looking ahead.

"They're fine soldier, nothing for you to worry about. Two weeks since and they're good as new." She replied, although this time she was outright lying. But Alicia knew they wouldn't know any better of it, and there was no use putting a seed of doubt in their heads. Alicia was fine, yes it still throbbed a bit, and ached when she put any weight onto it, but it was nothing unexpected or intolerable.

"Just wanted to make sure you were good Lieutenant." Brennan added and she believed it. He had been a hardworking soldier when she trained him, and she knew how much he had been looking forward to his first trip out.

All three were dedicated and fearless - Thomas was a very big man, and had the strength to show for it. Ladler was short, but he still had the heart of a lion. Sure he got nervous easily, but when it came down to it he would be out there, guns a-blazing. She knew they were all good soldiers, having trained each one, and she knew they would all be proper companions to the field of their destination. Well, as long as they stopped asking her questions.

SNEAK PEEK Coming at you...

"Think of it this way, whatever decision you make someone's blood will be on your hands by the end of today Commander. You know it just as well as I do, so let's just hope you make the right choice."