Thanks to Dani, Sagey and JoeyLuv for your comments. Anda great thansk to my beta Lanteanscribe...
Chap 7 : Friction…
-Space ship George S. Hammond-
Ronon looked at the thousands of blue beams streaming along the hull of the George Hammond, a sign that the ship had entered into hyperspace. While everyone was in the turmoil of the control room, he preferred to isolate himself in a resting hall where a huge window overlooked the vastness of space. Eyes fixed on the soft light of the vortex, he heard footsteps slow and finally stop behind him.
"Did Sheppard send you?" He asked after a few seconds of silence.
The Athosian gently placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Can I?" She said with a soft voice.
Nodding, Ronon pointed to the spot beside him on the bench. Teyla sat down and began to contemplate the spectacle. The monotonous drone of the ship enveloped them. Slowly, Teyla finally turned her head towards him.
"He is worried about you. And I must confess that I am too. "
Ronon took a deep breath before answering in a mechanical tone.
"There is nothing to worry about. They are clones, nothing more. This woman is not Melena. "
Teyla was not sure if she should continue on this way and waited a few moments before adding:
"If, like Carson, it turns out she still has all her memories of Sateda ... Memories of her former life ... before the attack ... Memories of your life together..." She preferred to stop there.
Ronon was staring at the blue light. For now, he did not think about these things. He did not want to admit it, but he was still in shock.
Clones... These human beings were only clones ... His wife had died ten years earlier.
Then before his eyes appeared the smiling face of Amelia.
Amelia ...
"When they wake up, I'm sure they'll have the answers to our questions." Teyla murmured.
Ronon was still desperately motionless. The Athosian sighed.
"Doctor Jones has kept them asleep in the infirmary but when they awaken, you might go to see them." She added. "Samantha Carter also needs the consent of Mr. Woolsey to bring them onto Atlantis. Or maybe they will stay at the SGC."
At these words, almost imperceptibly, the ex-runner gave a start. The young woman perceived his agitation.
"I don't think you can act like nothing had happened, Ronon. But if you need someone to talk to... John and I are here ... "
Speak. If only it was that easy. For many years, only two feelings had kept him alive: the fear and hatred. The fear of falling into the hands of the Wraith when he was runner and hatred he felt towards them for having destroyed his planet, killed his friends, killed the only woman he had ever loved...
Then, on Atlantis, these feelings had faded to give way to friendship, joy sometimes, gratitude to those people who had welcomed him and who had become his new family... And recently, there was love ... he never thought one day he would find that heat in his belly again... In the last eight months, this heat finally appeased him. It was because of her ... Amelia.
Clones… They were only clones…
Leaving Ronon to his silence, Teyla got up slowly and left the room.
OooooooooooooO
"Well, you know the situation Richard. The decision is yours. "
On the giant screen of the Hammond's control room, communication with Atlantis had been established. Anxiety was written on Woolsey's face while Wilson, sitting at his side, seemed overwhelmed by an excitement he struggled to conceal.
"Colonel Carter" the leader of Atlantis said "I think you forced my decision when you bought these men and this woman on the ship without consulting me first! "
"Richard ... You mean you would have preferred that we left these people to the fate of the Wraith?".
Justin Wilson allowed himself to clear his throat while Woolsey cast an eye in his direction.
"Of course not, of course ... But I think the risk is real. Each of you had obviously been suspecting a trap. The presence of this woman, Melena, who's the deceased wife of Ronon, is more than doubtful."
"Indeed, we've all thought about it." Sheppard muttered.
"Listen, we are informed." Wilson said, taking the control of the conversation. "I have convinced the IOA to welcome these people on Atlantis to clarify things ... At this time, General Landry has other problems to solve and we are fully confident that we will be able to handle this situation. "
Richard Woolsey clenched his fists.
"I'm not sure ..." he began.
"If these people knew this Michael, they may be very useful to us." Justin replied.
"Wilson, they may have been his guinea pigs but do you want that they become ours now? " Woolsey heated.
"Gentlemen! " Sam cried.
The two men stopped and eyed each other. It was Justin who finally went on.
"Listen Mr Woolsey, the IOA has been very clear. They want us to take every precaution to be sure that these individuals will not be a danger: look for any tags, scan, etc ... But we need them on Atlantis! Keep them sedated until a full medical examination can be done on the Hammond. Then we'll see. What we will learn from them could be vital for us! Think about Michael's other bases and the gene therapy! Think about everything that he may have developed to annihilate the Wraith and think about the hybrids! "
Woolsey resisted the determined look of Wilson. He hated that somebody forced his hand and, above all, dictated to him what he had to do. This youngster seriously began to get on his nerves. Bringing the clones onto Atlantis was risky. Too risky...
"Why not take them to one of our facilities. We have established temporary camps on a number of uninhabited planets in the Milky Way. They will benefit from any medical help that they might require without jeopardizing the integrity of the city." He proposed.
"That would be more cautious." Samantha Carter agreed.
Wilson lost a little of his customary composure.
"OK Woolsey, listen ... The IOA have made their decision. These four individuals will be brought here."
"The IOA has not ..." the leader raged.
"The IOA has every right, Woolsey! And can I remind you that you are under their authority! "Justin snapped.
"If I may, Mr Wilson ..." attacked John in defence of his boss.
"We do not need to know your opinion Sheppard!" the young bureaucrat threw, cutting him short.
A heavy silence suddenly settled. In the control room of the Hammond, nobody dared to add anything. The soldier looked at each member of his team. He was not wrong about Wilson. The mask had fallen. Woolsey apparently had to worry about that. And they had too.
"Okay ... bring them here." the leader of Atlantis told Sam before getting up and leaving his office.
Justin Wilson was jubilant. He was now alone facing the crew of the Hammond. Suddenly a little laugh rang from the bottom of the control room. All eyes looking at Larrin. Leaning on a console, she was looking at the scene, casually.
"What! " She exclaimed when all eyes were glaring at her. "They are both so funny bickering about who's the boss! So pathetic! Among the Travelers, a good sword duel and it would all be solved!"
"And you, what do you want exactly? " Wilson adressed the young woman with a harsh tone.
Larrin stood up and approached the screen with an air of defiance. She stood before the angry face of the IOA member with a feral smile.
"I want what was agreed. The wormhole drive technology and everything that McKay downloaded. I venture to think that you are all men of your word on Atlantis. "
"Of course, we are allies. You'll get what we promised you." He retorted without enthusiasm.
"Good!" Larrin turned to Sheppard. "For my stay on Atlantis, I hope you book me into a comfortable room ... and some sweet company!"
Teyla gave him an icy stare.
"If you want some company, we will place you next to Zelenka's room. You'll see, if you can't sleep, you can ask him to explain his dark energy theory, or recite you a poem in Czech. It's radical!" Rodney sniffed.
Sheppard reppressed a smile. Larrin turned to face McKay.
"Or maybe, to relax me, I could take a walk around the city, find your room and visit you in the night..." she whispered, so close to his face that the scientist had to take a step back. "to suffocate you with your pillow ..." she whispered in his ear before patting his cheek. "Let me know when we arrive, I'll go take a nap! Gentlemen ..." she bowed before disappearing under the bemused eyes of the audience.
"That woman is insane!" Rodney exclaimed, casting an imploring look to John.
"We really did not need this!" Sheppard sighed...
OoooooooO
-City of Atlantis- Planet Earth- Two days later-
"I can't keep them asleep any longer," Jennifer said. "They have been fully scanned. Nothing abnormal. No subcutaneous tags which could signal our position, no physical problems."
"But they are indeed clones." Woolsey added.
"Yes, they are. " the young woman replied.
The entire team had returned to the city a few hours earlier. The occupants of the stasis chambers had been taken to the infirmary and placed under guard while Dr. Keller had made further investigations on them.
In the unexpected absence of Wilson, Sheppard's team and Richard Woolsey were in discussion in the "aquarium", a small glass room above the medical hall where the clones were lying. Jennifer Keller presented to them her preliminary findings. Unfortunately for them, they could not get rid of Larrin who followed Sheppard like a shadow.
"Are they showing the same failure as Carson showed at the beginning?" John asked.
"Surprisingly not. The problem had been fixed in these clones. They don't degenerate."
"Apart from the young woman, can you tell us if others are also Satedans? " Woolsey questionned.
"I think they are…" Jennifer said.
All looked at her with astonished eyes. The doctor turned his head toward the ex- runner.
"I have found in their DNA a characteristic gene of the Satedan people. Which means ... "
Jennifer sighed.
"Go on Dr Keller ..." the leader encouraged her.
"... The person who created these clones went to Sateda and found the original DNA of these people: hair, bones maybe ..." she said, a little uncomfortable using these words in front of Ronon.
The Satedan kept his head down. His friends could not help glancing at him with compassion and concern. And he hated that. He wanted to get up and leave but he needed to know.
"Let's be realistic" Larrin suddenly said. "Michael had something in mind when he created them. Maybe spies ..."
"Michael is dead now" Teyla's voice cut.
"It's true. So if these clo ... uh ... persons were spies then who would they make their report to?" Rodney added.
The mystery remained.
"I wonder how has he was aware of Melena? " Sheppard asked. "You've never told him, right?" He threw at Ronon.
The Satedan looked down at him.
"Maybe he has explored my mind…"
"When?" the soldier replied.
"When he attacked the city and wanted to kidnap Teyla and Torren. I went over the gateroom railing. I was unconscious. Who knows what he could have done to me when I was on the ground ... "
"If I had been in his place, I would have used the opportunity to finish you!" Larrin added, tapping the table with her nails.
Ronon looked at her with a murderous glance that she greeted with a big smirk.
"What a bitch that one is!" many of the team members present thought.
"This had to happen" the ex-runner continued.
For nearly an hour discussions went on. How should they treat the clones? No way could they let them freely wander the corridors of Atlantis. For the time of their stay in the infirmary, they would have an armed guard. Then they would be questioned before their fate was decided. Ronon expressed a desire not to meet them as yet. They all finally came out of the room with the exception of Woolsey and John. The leader could no longer hide his despondency.
"If you allow me to give you some advice Sir… In the future, do not let your guard down in front of Wilson as you did this morning in your office."
Woolsey looked up at the soldier.
"You know Sheppard, I'm not a violent man ..." the leader began.
Sheppard rewarded him with a knowing smile.
"... But in this office, faced with that kind of arrogance, I suddenly had a vision of my biro planted firmly between his eyes. So, as I'm supposed to be a diplomat and that my dream does not become reality, just now, I prefer to not "let my guard down" as you said. But don't worry Sheppard. This is only a postponement."
The soldier shook his head in support and walked toward the exit. Then, at the doorway, he turned to his superior.
"Between the eyes, eh? "He said in a sarcastic tone before leaving the room.
OooooooooooO
Amelia was sitting on the bed, hands clasped and face closed. Ronon was perched on a chair in front of her. He looked at her anxiously to guage her reaction. But oddly, the young woman had none. She remained motionless, gazing into the void.
"Amy?" the Satedan ventured.
"Oh." She finally said.
A heavy silence. Again.
"Oh." That was all she was able to answer. What she had heard from Ronon was a bombshell. For eight months, she was dating a man she thought widowed, and now his dead wife had suddenly reappeared here on Atlantis as a clone.
Listening to the news, she had gone through a range of different feelings: first the misunderstanding, then the shock, and now a slight feeling of panic ... Panic ... She looked at Ronon's face and she could see exactly the same thing ... Panic ...
And at this precise moment, she realized. She realized how much she needed it now. She needed these three simple words. Three words that she had been waiting since the first day she put her lips on his. Three words he longed to tell her... And again, while these three words were the only ones which could break this wave of anguish flooding her, she did not hear them.
"Amy, it's a clone. It's not really her."
But it was. She was Melena. Technically, it was her. Physically, it was her.
Amelia looked Ronon straight in the eye. The Satedan began stroking her cheek. He was lost. She saw it well. She understood. And for now, she also did not know how to react.
"Ronon, I'm sorry ..." she finally said, getting up, "I think I need time to digest the news."
The Satedan rose in turn and walked two steps toward her.
Three words ...
Ronon took her hand and leaned forward to kiss her.
Just three words ...
When their lips parted, Amelia tried to project a serene face with difficulty.
"From what you told me, nothing is known yet. Let's wait and see how things evolve." She said, moving away, gently disengaging her fingers from Ronon's hand.
Then the technician went to the door.
"I have some work to finish" she said with a trembling voice. "See you later."
The door closed behind her.
Ronon stayed a few minutes standing alone in the middle of the room. Suddenly, he grabbed the chair and projected it with all his strength against the opposite wall.
Then, trying to calm his breathing, his fists clenched, a voice echoed in his headset. Jennifer's voice.
"Colonel Sheppard's team ... Can you come quickly to the aquarium ... They have woken up ..."
Ronon left the room like a whirlwind.
TBC…