Deadly Intent
Chapter 10
A few doors down from Sheppard's office, Evan Lorne was just about to enter his latest mission report into his computer when General Trumble barged into his office without so much as a knock. Lorne quickly stood and saluted his superior before saying, "Is there something I can do for you, sir?" Then he noted that the General looked somewhat red-faced. He was also breathing quite heavily. "Please take a seat, sir."
Trumble willing sat down in front of Evan's desk. He looked around the rather unadorned, clinical-looking room with disdain. It seemed almost identical to the one he'd just left with its slatted windows, which would have let in an overwhelming amount of light if left fully opened. He let several minutes go by before he found it necessary to say anything. "How long have you served under Sheppard with the rank of Major?"
Evan had to think for a moment. "Seven years now, sir."
Trumble appeared to wince. "And before that? How long were you a Major serving the SGC?"
"I gained my promotion two years before coming out to Atlantis. Why are you asking, sir?"
The General looked almost pained. "So you've been a Major now for an incredible nine years without any sign of a promotion. You know why, don't you? Sheppard has continually blocked your promotion because he doesn't want anyone threatening his position here."
Lorne tried to look shocked. It was quite obvious Trumble hadn't done his homework and was making assumptions. "To tell you the truth I'm happy with the way things are, sir. Colonel Sheppard is the best commanding officer anyone could ever ask for. He genuinely cares about everyone under his command and would put his life on the line for any one of us. In fact, he has done so on many occasions."
The General completely dismissed Lorne's statement believing it to be totally fabricated. "So you have no desire to take command of this base? Pity really as I believe you would have been the perfect choice to replace Sheppard when he goes," Trumble said, his voice loaded with scorn.
This time Lorne did look shocked. "I didn't know the Colonel was leaving. He's never mentioned anything to me."
"I can assure you it certainly won't be his doing. Rather I intend to replace the man as he has served far too long and has made far too many bad decisions. Cost too many lives. I'm hoping Doctor Ross will sign the bastard off on a medical discharge as that would make things far easier for us to get rid of him."
Evan leant forward to face Trumble head on. He normally didn't use curse words or profanity, but he certainly felt like doing so now. This cold-hearted son of a bitch was leaving a very bad taste in his mouth, and now he fully understood John Sheppard's actions all those years ago. He counted to ten to calm his temper before answering as he didn't want to give the nasty man any reason to demote him from his newly gained position. "Permission to speak freely, sir."
Trumble gave a short nod as he couldn't very well deny the Major a chance to speak. "I personally think you're being unfairly judgemental. The Colonel has done the best he could under the circumstances against formidable enemies. I don't believe anyone could have done a better job. As I said before, he has saved many lives, nearly at the cost of his own on more than one occasion. He has always put the well-being of Atlantis and its personnel first and foremost." Lorne took a deep breath, "You're entitled to your own opinion, sir, but I certainly don't appreciate you calling him a bastard or imply that we also wish to be rid of him." Evan knew that for a fact after talking to his fellow officers and service personnel.
Trumble had gone even redder in the face. "And I totally disagree with you, because Sheppard is a spoilt bastard. No matter your opinion, Sheppard will be leaving at the earliest opportunity. Now if you don't want to be promoted and take over his command that's your loss…Major."
Although Lorne knew Colonel Sheppard didn't want Trumble to know about the promotions yet, he saw no choice but to mention it. Evan just hoped Sheppard understood. "That's Lieutenant Colonel, sir. It isn't official yet, but the Colonel told me only yesterday that my promotion has been approved at long last. Colonel Sheppard has been pushing for my promotion for at least three years now, sir. They always turned him down stating I was still too young and inexperienced. It seems I must have reached the golden age at thirty-seven."
"And you believe him?"
Lorne looked astounded. "Why would he make that up and Mr Woolsey was also present. So I fully believe him. The Colonel doesn't joke about things like that."
Trumble's felt his blood pressure rise again. It seemed no matter what he tried, his plans were coming to nothing so far. He had promised Shen Xiaoyi and the new Russian I.O.A. member Alexei Brezhnev that he would remove Sheppard as quickly as possible. They believed rightly or wrongly that the Colonel's departure would weaken Woolsey's position, so much so that Shen could once again make a bit to take over leadership of Atlantis. Trumble personally didn't think she stood a chance but had been only too willing to move against Sheppard as an act of revenge against the insolent officer. Now he only had a few options left open. Hopefully, Dr Ross would find a reason to recommend his medical discharge or he'd let Corporal Carpenter get to him as the young man hated Sheppard for killing his uncle eight years ago. Nobody seemed aware of Carpenter's connection to Colonel Sumner and that's the way Trumble liked it. Aside from that, Trumble had already assured Carpenter's mother, Sumner's kid sister that he would deal with Sheppard as she didn't believe her son capable of doing so.
Without any warning, the General abruptly stood and walked out of the room leaving Evan bewildered. He was beginning to wonder just how mentally stable the General truly was. He shook his head and quickly got in touch with his CO to explain what had just transpired. Luckily, Sheppard had fully understood and had asked his XO to keep a close eye on the man. He also agreed about the General's seemingly erratic behaviour.
oOo
Woolsey looked up from his desk when a quiet, heavily accented voice asked permission to enter. Recognising one of their resident geologists, Mr Woolsey immediately said. "Ah…Doctor, please take a seat." Dieter Stein quickly nodded and gratefully took a seat in front of the Atlantis expedition leader. When he had settled, Woolsey politely asked. "Now what can I do for you?"
"I wish to ask permission to take our visiting geologist Doctor Finnegan off-world for a trip to M3B 226," Replied the thirty-five-year-old German scientist. The man of average height had neatly brushed blond hair and pale blue eyes. He'd been on Atlantis now for about a year and during that time had made some remarkable discoveries, especially on the planet he wanted to visit. His main interest was mineralogy. He was most fascinated with the complex crystal structures the Ancient's had sometimes used for their conductivity in much of their equipment, ships, weapons etc.. However that wasn't why he was here.
Mr Woolsey moved his hands away from the tablet computer he'd been working on and said. "May I ask why?" At the moment he couldn't recall the planet in question.
"Doctor Finnegan wants to see something unique and extraordinary to Pegasus. M3B 226 has some incredible rock and mineral formations on its southern continent. Some of the best just happen to be located reasonably close to the Stargate. The feature I want to show Finnegan is about an hour's hike, so we should have plenty of time to complete the whole trip in a day if we set out early."
Woolsey held up his hand for a minute and punched the planetary designation into his computer. The information he needed came up immediately. Located on the far side of the galaxy, the planet was relatively small. According to the database, the Ancients had used it for mining crystals for their electronics. Like Stein had said, the planet did seem to be a geological wonder. Woolsey wasn't surprised Finnegan wanted to see it. It was first explored six months ago by SGA12 and they had reported no problems. It appeared the planet was uninhabited, although it was able to support human and animal life. The team had also reported seeing very little in the way of dangerous wildlife and the climate had been mild and calm. It sounded like a good place for an Alpha site, but for some reason, it had been overlooked. Woolsey finished reading the report and looked up at Stein. "You will need a military escort just in case, but I see no reason why you shouldn't go, at least for a short trip. I'll ask Colonel Sheppard to arrange for a team of Marines to accompany you."
That was the last thing Stein wanted. "With all respect Mr Woolsey there really isn't any need to involve the Colonel in this matter. I should have also mentioned that General Trumble wants to tag along. I don't think it would be wise to…er…mix those two elements together. We have all heard the rumours concerning the General's problem with our good Colonel. No?"
"Er…yes," Woolsey replied automatically as he couldn't deny it. He certainly saw the wisdom in Stein's recommendation as it wasn't that unusual for Sheppard not to be involved with military team assignment as he was often off-world or far too busy. In fact, Lorne often did it when Sheppard wasn't available. "Very well, I'll speak to Major Lorne and get him to organise an escort. Maybe the original Atlantis recon team could accompany you as they have had experience with the planet. According to my report, you were with them at the time." Richard pondered out audibly. It wasn't really a question rather an observation.
Stein also wanted to steer Woolsey away from that. Just because he'd been able to slip away and explore alone during the first visit, didn't mean they wouldn't notice it this time around. Especially as there would be more of them. "I believe a couple of Marines should be enough, Mr Woolsey. In fact, when I mentioned the planet to Corporal Carpenter he seemed truly fascinated. The young man has a keen interest in mineralogy for a Marine."
If Woolsey had been paying more attention, he would have realised he was being manipulated into choosing a team. However, he had other things on his mind at the moment, including General Trumble's awful attitude towards his military commander. And yes there had been plenty of rumours. Maybe it would do some good if the General were to go off base for a day. "All right if you can find a few volunteers to go with you, including the Corporal, then you have my permission. When do you intend to go? It will have to be soon as the Daedalus returns to Earth in three days from now. They have a schedule to keep and they have already been delayed by the sickness."
Stein nodded. He had kept himself locked away in his lab and hadn't succumbed to the virus. "The planets daylight cycle of fifteen hours starts during our night-time period, so if I can arrange things we would like to leave the day after tomorrow at 03:00 hours. We should be back by midnight at the latest."
Woolsey nodded. "Very well. However, I want you to check in with us after eight hours regardless of where you are or what you're exploring. Is that understood?" Stein nodded. "All right then take what equipment you will need. Oh, and good luck with dealing with the General. I'll inform Major Lorne first off. Colonel Sheppard will eventually find out as he's bound to want to know where his nemesis has disappeared to."
Lucky, the Colonel wasn't cleared for off-world travel otherwise Trumble may have insisted on him as an escort, Woolsey considered as Dr Stein left his office. Little did Woolsey know, but that would have been the last thing Trumble and the others would have wanted. Of course, the Atlantis leader had no idea what their real reason for going to M3B 226 truly was.
oOo
Several floors below the command area of the central tower, Dr Julia Ross finally headed for the infirmary after having had a very late breakfast. Julia's guide ambled in front of her giving the doctor plenty of chance to take in the wonderful city. She thought back to the blissful night's sleep she'd had. It had been the main reason why she had overslept. Her assigned quarters were just so wonderful with a spacious living area, comfortable double bed and top of the range bathroom facilities.
Julia had spent yesterday evening taking in the magnificent view of the city from the adjoining balcony while planning what tests she would carry out on the delightfully charming and good looking Colonel. The view and calm atmosphere had left her feeling totally relaxed for the first time in what seemed like forever. Everything about Atlantis was so unlike where she lived in Washington. Her small apartment was situated on a busy road, and the continuous noise of emergency vehicles never really gave her any peace, as they raced passed her double glazed windows. That's what came from living too close to your workplace. She really should have looked for a new apartment years ago, but just hadn't found the time with her demanding job at the busy medical facility. Her current department served several Washington based organisations, including the I.O.A., the Department of Aerospace and Homeworld security.
Julia had been in that department for four years now after learning all about the Stargate program. At the time, Julia never thought she would actually get to go to another world yet alone another galaxy. However, she had jumped at the chance when personally asked by Mr Coolidge to oversee an independent medical assessment of Colonel John Sheppard's injury. Julia hadn't been under the impression that Coolidge had been gunning for Sheppard, certainly not like General Trumble always painted it. She had promised the I.O.A. that she would make a fair assessment. From what she'd observed so far, the man seemed perfectly fit and able. However, she intended to go over Sheppard's medical record with Doctor Beckett or the CMO, Jennifer Keller.
Her guide eventually entered what was obviously the main medical facility. It seemed very different from normal hospital wards, although the smell was much the same. Several beds were located along one wall. They appeared unoccupied at the moment. A little further on, they entered another section and Julia realised that this must be the main ward. For one thing, there were more beds in here. Three of them were occupied by patients either resting or reading. They were surrounded by medical equipment that showed their statistics as well as cabinets and well-equipped shelving units. According to Colonel Caldwell, a week ago this place was buzzing with sick people suffering from viral stomach flu or whatever. She'd been told the epidemic was over, so these people must be in for other reasons.
Her thoughts were interrupted when an Asian looking woman stepped in front of her. Julia's guide had already walked away. "Can I do something for you?"
"Yes, I'm Doctor Ross. I'll be conducting a medical evaluation on Colonel Sheppard later today. First, however, I'd like to read his medical record and speak to his doctor, if possible."
"Oh, yes, we were expecting you. I'm Marie Ko the head nurse. Dr Beckett is currently preparing to do a sonogram on Teyla Emmagan to check on her pregnancy, so I'm afraid you'll have to wait a while to see him."
"And Dr Keller?"
Marie looked apologetic. "We've just received word of an off-world emergency, so Dr Keller and her team have gone to meet them in the gate room."
"I see. You know I'd love to watch Dr Beckett if that's okay with him and his patient. It's been quite a while since I performed a sonogram. Most of my female patients haven't the time for babies." Then she thought - my goodness that includes me.
"Wait here a moment while I ask them."
Julia Ross watched the nurse go, wondering who Teyla Emmagan was.
TBC
AN:-
Many thanks for the reviews, followers and favourites. It lets me know you're still enjoying this story. Special thanks to a guest who pointed out that a Brazilian Corporal would not be speaking Spanish. Of course not that was a real oversight of mine. It's now corrected and I apologise to any Brazilian readers.