Chapter Fourteen

Emma's POV

She smelled, she was stiff and in a really bad mood. All she wanted was a hot shower, a warm bed and food. Man was she starving. She couldn't remember the last time she had had a decent meal. Instead she was on the verge of curling up into a ball and crying, but she pulled herself up straight and lumbered forward trying to muster up whatever self-respect she had left. The creatures where still out there and she still was determined to get her plan to work. Unfortunately the juvenile that had chased her and McKay into the closet to begin with was still missing. She slowed her persistent walk as she tried to regain her composure. It would do her or anyone else no good to get upset or angry. She was tired of being angry but really of the last three men she had been stranded with one way or another, two of them were not nearly as smart as they made themselves out to be. McKay and Kavanagh certainly didn't make it any easier, each one bringing their own issues to the table, McKay with his tendency to panic and Kavanagh with his tendency and need to be right. Whatever the deal they had survived and if she thought about it long enough it was rather funny. She stopped in the middle of the hallway and thought about the last week and she suddenly felt the urge to laugh bubble to the surface. Things like this always seemed to happen to her, trouble always found her but the one thought that was getting to her was Dr. Rodney McKay hanging stuck from ceiling! It was too much, the laughter bubbled up and she just started to laugh. She laughed so hard her sides started to hurt and tears ran down her face. She could hear the guys behind her shift and mumbling to themselves. Things like "Did she hit her head?" and "Is she alright?" where being tossed around behind her. She turned to look at them only to laugh even harder at their expressions. The stress from the last few days just seemed to suddenly go away. She leaned against the wall for support as the laugh started to subside and she tried to catch her breath. Evan was at her side in that minute looking at her with such concern. It almost sobered her up as the laughter died.

"I'm alright." She said answering his unspoken question. Her laughter died suddenly as she looked up into his worried eyes as he seemed to check her for bumps on her head.

"Are you sure?"

"Yup, never better." She answered as she smiled up at him.

"Do you want to share the joke?" He asked her with a trace of that dry sense of humor that was his signature response.

"Did you see McKay dangling from the ceiling thinking he was being eaten?" She answered between giggles. This earned her a smile in return as she heard the other men bark with laughter.

"It's not funny!" McKay replied which only earned him more ridicule and laughter.

"Oh come on McKay, it was funny. Until you landed on me that is." Sheppard replied with sarcasm.

"You try hiding from one of those creatures and not think you're going to get eaten!" He responded.

"Where is our friend anyway?" Sheppard spoke up again as he looked down the corridor with narrowed eyes.

"I'm not sure but I think I know how to stop them." Emma mentioned as she turned around in the corridor trying to get her bearings. She found what she was looking for and followed it with her finger as she traced it from the wall to the ceiling and into yet another closed off room. "That piping is our ticket."

"What is that going to do?" McKay asked trying to follow her train of thought. "It's the piping to the environmental control system."

"Exactly." She said with a smile. Only to be meant with a questionable silence so she elaborated. "On the other side of that door is the bay the Atlantians used when they did underwater exploration. I think that's her nesting ground. If we lure them in there and use the environmental system to drastically and quickly freeze the room basically turning it into a giant freezer."

"So basically you want to put them in cryo sleep." Sheppard answered.

"Essentially yes." She confirmed with a nod of her head.

"Is that even possible without full power?" Reed asked from behind Sheppard.

"It's all manually operated if memory serves." Emma added as she looked at McKay for confirmation. When he seemed to take his time answering Sheppard decided to push it.

"Well McKay…?"

"I'm thinking!" He snapped.

"Well think faster."

Emma growing tired of waiting decided to take matters into her own hands.

"So the controls are on the other side of this wall. It's a manual override but it should do the trick. We just have to find mom and the rest will follow."

"And how do we lure them?" McKay asked sarcastically. Emma gave him a look and held her arms out straight as she turned around in a small circle. When she stopped Evan who had been mostly quiet up to this point said one word when he figured out what she was getting at.

"No."

"What do you mean no?" She was suddenly irritated. Who was he to tell her no? Up to this point she had been the only one who had any contact with this creature that didn't involve a gun. The creature had spoken to her. She was scared, alone and confused. She missed her mate and she knew of the dangers. She knew her babies where dangerous and she knew if they found her they could use her. Emma had seen what her species was what had been done to them and a glimpse of what could happen.

"It's too dangerous. You saw what that creature is capable one. The one on the planet tried to kill and this one is not much different."

"Yes she is. It's all different here and besides what choice do we have besides shooting them and with the amount of them that there are I wouldn't recommend it."

"You keep calling it a she like it's some kind of a person and yet it has done nothing but cause chaos and destruction. It like you thrives on all of this and have a death wish or something." He was almost shouting at this point and they were nose to chin, mainly because she was so short.

"She is scared. They took her and tried to use her as a weapon. They tried to control her by torturing her and when she wouldn't comply they put her in stasis until they could control her." She shouted back and she noticed his eyes widen a little but still he didn't back down. The firm set of his jaw told her he wasn't moving on his opinion.

"And for the record I do not have a death wish. I just deal with the hand I'm dealt!" At this point common sense told her to turn and walk away but pure stubbornness wouldn't let her give in. So she continued to glare back almost not blinking. Finally Sheppard decided to break it up.

"Okay you too, can we save this for later?" He came up to look at the two of them who still were glaring at one another. "I for one can't think of a better plan and we are running out of time." Lorne tore his eyes from her and focused them on his commanding officer.

"Sir?!" He asked in a concerned and disbelieving voice.

"Major, she does have a point and they are obvious attracted to whatever she is covered in. Now I suggest we get moving before we don't have a city left. Now Dr. Brennan here is smart enough not to take any undue chances. Right Doc?"

"Yes Sir." They both answered at the same time which caused Sheppard to smile.

"Alright them let's get started. Doc after you." He gestured to her and she followed head held high and not making eye contact with Evan. In truth she knew he was right to a point but she wasn't about to admit that and defiantly not in front of anyone. She could feel the frustration and anger radiate off from him as she past. She had a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. He was the one person she didn't need to have mad at her and like she was accustom to doing she found she was pushing him away. She walked a little ahead of everyone taking deep breaths to calm her own anger and fear before she turned and faced the four men before her.

"Okay boys time to use me as bait." She said arms wide out just as the unmistakable familiar growl filled the air. "I guess it's show time and she is right on time." Then Dr. Emma Brennan turned to stand her ground and face her deathly fear. The fear of being proven wrong.

Oh yes our dear stubborn girl has done it again. Let me know what you think and thanks for reading. I believe I am seeing the home stretch.