Update 2018-05-28 - less typos now
oOo
Eli looked at the monitor next to the stones. The face of a man in his early forties with short, dark hair and big glasses looked back at him. He took off the glasses and had to blink fiercely. Everything was blurred. Sighing, he put them back on. He felt more uncomfortable than ever with this swap. Luckily it was only for a few hours.
A movement at his side distracted Eli and he turned around.
"Eli Wallace. I'm being expected," he identified himself without being asked and the man nodded marginally.
"I'm Major Anderson and I'll accompany you as long as you are on Earth. I have been told that you want to visit your mother as soon as you've finished your report."
"Could I write the report on the way to her?" Eli asked straight forward. He was not keen on writing this report as he still did not know if he really should be telling everything. The report had only been an excuse to get off the ship.
"You'll have to ask Colonel Telford. I'm supposed to bring you to him first anyway."
"Okay." Eli stood and followed Anderson along the endless corridors of the building.
The door to the colonel's office stood open. Telford just finished a phone call as Eli entered after a short knock. Anderson stayed at the door.
"Mister Wallace, I guess?" Telford leaned back in his chair.
"Yes."
"I'm glad to hear that you have returned to the ship seemingly unharmed. I'm really curious about your story. I heard you have a lot to tell."
"That depends. I wanted to ask if I could write the report in the car. The drive to my mom will take a while and it probably would be easier for me than sitting somewhere in a dark corner in the building."
"Are you sure this is not just a delaying tactic?" Telford asked with a raised eyebrow.
Eli shook his head. "No, no delaying," he replied hastily. He still did not like Telford and he doubted that it would ever change much.
The man assessed him for a couple of moments then he nodded. "Fine. Major Anderson will supply you with a notebook. Hopefully, I don't have to remind you of the confidentiality agreement."
"No, I know. Thank you, sir." Eli turned while Telford was already getting back to his paperwork.
He was glad that the conversation had been so short. It did not take long for Anderson to get the mentioned notebook for him. Then they were on their way outside.
At the elevator Eli nearly tripped over another man's crutches. Surprised he realized that it was the guy from the Stargate information tapes. Doctor Jackson. His left foot was covered in a colorful inscribed cast. Over one shoulder he had a shoulder bag that seemed to be quite heavy.
"I'm sorry. I'll never get used to these stupid things," said Doctor Jackson hastily and looked past Eli. "Ah, Anderson, perfect timing. I take it you are going to be my chauffeur again today?"
"Actually no, Doctor Jackson. I have been assigned to him today." He pointed to Eli.
"Pity, so I have to find someone else."
"Where do you have to go?" asked Eli confused. It was strange to stand face to face with the man who was some kind of a legend around this place.
"I need to visit the Institute of Archaeology."
"Is that on our way?" Eli asked, turning to Anderson.
The man nodded curtly. "Not quite. It would be a little detour."
"So, I wouldn't mind. It would be quite interesting." Eli turned back to Jackson.
"Yes? Why is that?" Jackson asked puzzled.
„I've seen your tapes about the Stargate traveling and you probably have a lot to tell."
"Hm, so you already know who I am. And with whom do I have the pleasure?"
"Uhm." Eli realized that he had been too rash. He did not know how much he was allowed to say. Anderson solved the problem for him.
"Doctor Jackson has the necessary clearance. You can tell him everything, Mr Wallace."
"Oh, thanks." Eli took a breath while Jackson looked at him with curiosity.
"The Eli Wallace? From the Icarus Project?" he asked immediately before Eli could introduce himself.
"Yes, the one. I'm currently using the stones," Eli explained the obvious.
"Ah, it's nice to meet you finally." Jackson shook his hand vigorously. "I have heard a lot about you already."
"Likewise," Eli replied a little embarrassed and did not know what else to say.
"We should probably go then," Jackson said and pointed to the elevator. Together they went up to the parking lot.
oOo
Ron put the cleaned rifle by the other ones he had already checked, and took the next one. Colonel Young had made him check all off the military gear. For now. Compared to the arrest he had gotten after punching Telford this was a really easy punishment. He had probably earned it because he really should not have lost control like that. On the other hand, it had been Eli's own fault. He just should have shut up instead of provoking him.
At the moment, it was not easy for Ron to interact with Eli. Normally he was able to discern people – and aliens – easily into friends and enemies. And Rush. But right now Eli did not seem to be any of those. Ron could not see him as a friend. His mistrust was justified and he was not alone with it. But obviously he was not allowed to see Eli as an enemy either. He also was not a Rush. Not yet. Hopefully he would never become one.
Ron rubbed a little too hard at a stain on the next rifle. This situation was much too complicated for him.
Eli helping Lisa who was now really pissed at Ron did not make it any easier. He was thankful for the open joy his girlfriend finally showed again, but he surely would not apologies to Eli for his behavior, nor thank him for his help because of it. In the end he was glad that Eli was on Earth right now and after that it was better to just avoid him. The ship was big enough. Also, it remained to be seen if the Colonel would come up with any other punishments.
For a while Ron just worked stoically and focussed until he had gone through all their weapons. Then he switched to the backpacks. The fabric had been new when they had started their journey on Icarus and even though they had been as careful as possible, it looked worn now. Every trip to a planet left its traces.
Ron took the first backpack, emptied it completely and checked every centimeter. Even though this was meant as a punishment it was work that had to be done anyway, and it killed time much better than standing guard somewhere or sitting in a cell.
Next he checked the basic equipment and repacked it in the original places in the backpack. This he repeated with every following backpack. Unpack, pat down, repack.
On the second to last one he finally felt a small hard resistance that had not been there on any of the others. Ron turned the side pocket inside out and pulled the small object from a wrinkle where it had gotten stuck. It looked like a small memory card. One of the scientists must have forgotten it there. If no one had been looking for it, it could not be important. Ron put it aside to give it to whoever crossed his path first later. No matter how unimportant the thing seemed, their resources were limited.
Then he continued his work.
oOo
Eli sat on the backseat of the SUV, the notebook in his lap writing out his report while Jackson was talking to Anderson from the front seat. He ignored the conversation and tried to concentrate. For those who were going to read this he would have to put in enough details so they would be satisfied without giving away his memory gap. He did not want to deal with it at the moment, not to mention the distrust he would earn again. As long as no one questioned how he had gotten to the last planet there wouldn't be any problems. It was a risky game and he had no clue if it would come out at some point. It probably was naive to think it could stay a secret forever.
Finally Eli was so engrossed in the phrasing that he looked up in surprise when they stopped and Jackson got out. Obviously they had reached the institute. After he had closed the door Jackson leaned back in through the open window. "I think it won't take longer than an hour but you can drive on. I will wait in the meantime or find another transportation."
"We can wait," Eli replied before Anderson could say anything. „That way I will get finished with this report… if you don't mind waiting for me later," Eli added.
"Oh no, I have enough literature to pass the time. See you later."
Jackson smiled happily and turned away on his crutches.
Anderson fiddled with the car radio until he seemed satisfied. Eli did not know the song that was playing currently. Of course. By now he had to get up to date with a couple of years of new releases. While he listened with one ear to the catchy beats he continued writing.
When he reread his writing he mentally checked everything. Nanite infection; meeting the doppelgangers; the way to the Aza'an. He was lucky he did not belong to the military. Surely he had breached a dozen rules of some kind or other.
What happened on the moon of the Aza'an he summarized the shortest even though it probably was the part that everyone was interested the most in.
Mentioning that the Aza'an had been in a state of war during his arrival so no one would get the idea to make contact again.
Keep back, that he had helped them evacuate through the gate and that they now had essentially the knowledge to get to the ship through the gates.
Mentioning that they had healed him completely and that they had given him the nanites for Lisa as a thank you for exchange of information.
Keep back that he had gotten much more because it had not only been the information they had thanked him for. As well as he kept back that he had not been there the whole time and that he was missing three days.
Then he padded everything with descriptions of the planet to make the report seem longer. Things like that normally were not his strong suit but started to become fun. If he put aside all the terrible incidents everything he had seen was just incredible and breathtaking.
Eli was just at the last paragraph when the car door opened and Jackson slipped back on the co-driver's seat.
"Done already?" Eli greeted him and registered belatedly the steep line between Jackson's eyebrows when he turned for a moment. He seemed thoughtful.
"Everything alright?" asked Anderson who seemed to have noticed too.
"Yes, everything's fine, just some unexpected information. For my part we can go on," Jackson placated and buckled up.
"Good, then we will drive to the hospital now."
"Hospital?" Eli asked in alarm.
"I have the information that your mother is at work," Anderson replied calmly and rejoined the traffic.
"Oh, of course." Eli pushed down the sudden panic. For a moment he had thought that she was bad again but then someone would have told him by now. He hadn't even thought about asking if his mom was at home or working.
For a time they were driving in silence while Eli finished his report and Jackson read some files. When the car finally came to a stop in the driving lot of the local hospital Eli had finished rereading the whole text for the third time, unsure if he should not add or delete something. But he decided that it was enough like this.
"Perfect timing," he announced and shut the notebook.
Jackson turned to him in his seat. "You got finished in the meantime?"
"Yes, this should be enough for now. In the end they will ask a thousand questions again, anyway."
"Yeah, I know. May I read the report while we wait here?"
"Uhm." Eli looked to Anderson, unsure.
"Don't worry, I have the clearance. Icarus was my project when it was nothing but research. I know all the reports from Destiny."
Anderson nodded affirmative and Eli shrugged. "If you want to, but it really isn't that exciting." Eli gave Jackson the notebook. Jackson took it with a grin and opened it.
"Oh, I think you underestimate yourself. After everything I've seen so far your reports are always diverting."
Eli became embarrassed and opened the car door. "If you think so. I don't think that I'll be long. I can't interrupt much at work."
"Don't worry. It takes as long as it takes. We aren't in a hurry," Jackson replied but seemed to read already.
"Okay."
Eli walked across the parking lot to the main entrance and, at the reception, asked his way through to his mother. When he found her shortly after he watched her while she was talking to a doctor. She looked well- there were no signs of her illness. Henry and Aaron seemed to be good for her. Unsure Eli pondered if it was that wise to just show up for a short hello without any real news. Like this he always pulled her from her daily routine. She knew that he was okay as long as the Air Force did not show up announcing his death. Was it not better to leave her in peace now that he knew that she was in good hands?
Before he could turn away she noticed him and looked at him openly. Yet Eli could pull back, say that he was just looking for a patient or that he had gotten lost. He decided against it.
When she came closer he had to smile involuntarily. "Hi mom."
She hesitated and then answered his smile. "Eli?"
"Yes, sorry, that I'm bothering you here. I had hoped to meet you at home but then I heard that you are on shift."
"You are never bothering." She hugged him shortly but heartily and gestured down the corridor. "I can take a short break or shall we meet later?"
"I won't be here long. I don't know when I'll be called back. I just wanted to say hi. The last weeks had been really... busy." He wasn't supposed to worry her.
"That's sweet of you. Come, let's go outside." She gave notice to a colleague and went down with him outside the door.
"I guess, as always, you can't tell me anything about what happened."
First, Eli shook his head, happy for this excuse, then he corrected himself.
"Not directly. I can describe you a couple of the places I have been to. But a short break won't be enough for that. So we have to postpone that to later when I have more time again and you aren't at work."
"I'm looking forward to that." She was still smiling and Eli returned it.
"But you look really good. Henry and Aaron seem to be good for you."
"Yes, they are. But I won't forget you because of them, Eli. You are still in my thoughts every day."
Eli bit his bottom lip and forced himself to keep smiling. In his throat formed a lump he tried to swallow. "I should go back."
He could see the disappointment in her look but he did not know what else to say. Finally she just nodded and hugged him tightly. "Visit again soon and then you have to stay longer, do you hear?"
"Yes, mom, I will." He returned the hug as tightly and then turned away hastily. As he walked across the parking lot he turned back again. She was still standing there, looking after him. He waved shortly and got into the car.
"Done?" Anderson asked. Eli nodded silently.
"That was fast," Jackson added but did not look up. He seemed to be reading still. Eli had just been gone for a couple of minutes.
"Yes, she's busy. So I didn't want to interrupt any longer." Finally Jackson looked up and Eli avoided his piercing gaze, instead he busied himself with the seatbelt.
"Are you through?" he asked to change the topic.
"Yes, in a moment." Jackson continued reading while Anderson drove off the parking lot.
"This is really impressive," Jackson said when he was finally done and returned the notebook to Eli.
"You think so? You experienced a lot more already and if one can believe what one hears then you even returned from the dead."
"I wasn't really dead, just ascended and I had help with that," Jackson downplayed his experience. "And just call me Daniel." He looked thoughtfully at Eli and then went on. "Considering that you've gone into all of this mess without any training you have dealt really well with the challenges so far."
"Thank you." It embarrassed Eli again to hear those words from Jackson, probably because the man was famous. He was the one at the beginning of the journey they were on now.
"It seems we have both finished what we needed to do. Do you want to go back to headquarters already?" Jackson asked while he rummaged in his bag.
"Not really, but I wouldn't know where else to go if I could be called be back any moment," Eli confessed.
"Then let's go into town. It's far too early for dinner but I know an amazing ice cream parlor. I'll invite you and you can tell me something about your trip, something that isn't in the report. Deal?"
Eli was so happy about the delay that he accepted without thinking. And who could say no to ice cream?
oOo
Nick had watched the swap between Eli and Doctor Bakewell using the kino, but soon he had gotten bored. Morrison had taken over the task of passing on their current results about the crystals. If there was something new, the men would call. Though for now Nick did not have any interest in following both geologists in their shoptalk. That was why he had addressed himself to other tasks again.
In the background Park was busy watching the ship's monitors. Up until now no one had ever done that with so much joy but it was obvious that Parks sudden healing made her appreciate her eyesight more than ever.
Nick let her be because he was happy for her and she did not interrupt him. Everyone worked by themselves in comfortable silence but it did not stay like that for long.
Greer and Lieutenant James entered the bridge. Nick kept a watchful eye on him as he walked over to Park. By now he had learned - unwanted - every detail of the events that had taken place in Eli's quarters in the morning and it did not make the Sergeant any more sympathetic. This was a dispute that was not Nick's business and he would not interfere but mentally he stood on Eli's side. After everything that had happened, the boy did not need the enmity of the crew especially as he had not done anything wrong in his opinion.
"Hello Lisa, will you come to dinner with me? James will take over", Greer said and Nick noticed that he did not seem as self-confident as he was usually. Park had made it unmistakably clear that she was pissed at him when she had retold the story of this morning.
Even now she left him waiting and did not jump up immediately. But eventually she nodded and left her spot for James. When both came by Nick's workstation on their way out, Greer suddenly stopped. He rummaged in his pockets and then put a small object on the console before Nick. He instantly realized what it was. The memory chip of a kino. He had been present once when Eli had taken apart one of the devices to understand how the flying worked among other things.
"Where did you get this?" Nick asked and took the small chip. Normally they did not remove those parts.
"It was stuck in a pocket of one of the backpacks. Probably one of the scientists forgot it there after the last planetary mission. Is it important?" Greer asked but Nick waved it aside.
"No not really. I will look at it later." Nick put the chip into his pocket and did not give Greer any attention any longer. The man finally understood the sign and left the bridge together with Park.
Nick only looked up again when their steps had faded away. He had a vague idea where the chip came from. If he was right, there was going to be some really useful information on it. It looked like he would be spending the evening watching kino records again.
oOo
Eli had expected them to end up in a crowded shopping center but under Daniel's directions Anderson finally stopped in a quiet side street where cafes took turns with small shops.
They got out after Daniel had given Anderson instructions to report back and then pass some time. They would call as soon as they were finished.
"It's nice here. Are you here often?" Eli asked after the SUV had vanished behind the next junction.
"Sometimes. I don't have nearly enough time for things like this. I'm hardly going through the gate anymore but I'm still busy with research and translations. There are still secrets out there to be solved." Daniel winked at him and provided their path and speed on his crutches.
"Inside or outside?" Daniel asked when they reached their destination, an apparently comfortable, small cafe with tables and umbrellas in front of it. It seemed to be well visited.
Eli gestured to a shadowy corner in the outside area that was a bit at the side. Daniel nodded approvingly. "Of course, after such a long time on the ship you'll enjoy every minute in the sun."
"It's not only that," Eli confessed after a short hesitation. They set down and Eli took the menu. "It's more the closed space. It never bothered me before."
"I know the feeling. After a couple of weeks on a ship you can already get claustrophobic. It can't be easier after months."
"Oh, it isn't as bad as it sounds. After all, we have the gates and I've been off the ship for the last three weeks. You said you know the reports. It's hardly boring."
"It's still not the same."
Eli shrugged. The waitress saved him from a direct answer. With a practiced smile she took their orders and vanished again. The break was followed be a short silence that Daniel finally broke.
„So, I'm curious. What's not in the report? For three weeks it's quite a short summary though I'll give you points for the flowery descriptions." Daniel had rested his elbows on the table and his fingers were interlaced under his chin while he watched Eli intently.
Eli leaned back and toyed with a paper napkin. He had agreed to talk with Daniel but how much could he tell him? "Would you honestly answer me a question first before I tell you anything?" Eli asked unsure.
"Sure, if I can."
"It was no accident that we met at the elevator. I know the structures well enough by now to realize that. There would have been less time consuming ways for you to get to the institute and back. And Anderson wasn't surprised enough. So who gave you the order to talk to me?" Eli did not want the distrust that had been gnawing at him all the time, but he wasn't able to ignore it any longer.
Daniel looked at Eli imploringly for a moment then he smiled. "You are fast. I said it was a bad idea," he honestly admitted and Eli was thankful that he did not try to feed him any lies. Impatiently he waited for more explanations.
"I agreed to do this because I actually wanted to meet you personally. And I thought better it's me than someone who would report everything dully. Unfortunately I wasn't able to talk them out of it either. Though as fast as you figured it out, I doubt it would have worked with anyone else.
"And you wouldn't do that? Report back everything dully, I mean," Eli asked suspiciously.
"No, if you ask me not to and if it doesn't endanger the crew in my opinion then I won't say anything. I have my own share of secrets."
„Who gave the order?" Eli repeated his first question. He figured there could only be two people for that. "Young or Telford?"
This time Daniel thought visibly if he should answer but then did it. "Colonel Young."
"I probably deserved that." Eli had expected something like this but still felt a certain disappointment. Resigned he sank back into the chair.
"Why do you think so?" Daniel asked directly.
„You know what happened from the reports. Young doesn't trust me anymore. Even though he knows that I wouldn't do anything that would endanger the others or the ship he can't accept that I want to keep some details of my trip to myself. Of cause we had bad experiences but under the influence of the nanites I never once acted aggressive or sabotaged anything. And the tests showed that my blood is clean now. He is pissed at me because I went away without him knowing. And saving Lisa with nanite technology made it worse instead of better."
"You have to see it from Young's point of view," Daniel replied thoughtfully. "As the leader he has to remain in control. Your decision wasn't easy for you but you made it without him."
"Yes, but I was running out of time." Eli stopped abruptly and Daniel looked at him questioningly. "One of the things I didn't write more about in the report is the war of the Aza'an with the people of their home planet. I arrived in the middle of it. Even if I'd survived the fever any longer the Aza'an that had helped me would have been dead by now."
The waitress that brought their order interrupted him. Two big sundaes with fruits, whipped cream and chocolate sauce, and two espressos. Eli started to shine. It had been too long since he had eaten something like this.
When the waitress was gone again Daniel continued their conversation. "Why do you think so? What was it about?"
"Similar to us the Aza'an had gone through different technical evolutions. When they developed the nanites it was a huge progress, naturally. That nanites would bind themselves to the cells of their carriers and would start their own evolution had never been planned or foreseen. The Lita developed.
There were discussions and protests. The Lita were categorized as an illness, a danger and were ordered to be shut down but that wasn't easy for several reasons.
Finally a minority of the Aza'an separated from the others; those who carried the Lita inside and wanted to keep them. Because they weren't welcome on their planet any longer they built a colony on the moon where the Stargate was. It went well for some time but the administration of the planet learned about the gate and the different resources on the moon.
What had been negotiations and contracts in the beginning turned into a cold war where, of course, the population of the home planet was totally outnumbering the Aza'an on the moon. The Lita on the other hand brought the Aza'an a technical advantage that assured a fragile balance for a long time. But in the end the scientists of the home planet caught up. The Lita-infected were about to lose." Eli stirred a generous amount of sugar into his espresso. Summarizing it this shortly did not even come close to what the Aza'an had gone through and what Eli had felt.
„What happened?" Daniel asked when Eli didn't continue. Eli drank his by now far too sweet espresso, crunched his face in disgust and finally continued.
"They healed me without any problems, while they learned from some confederates in the ranks of the enemy that a major offensive was planned. So, I led the whole population of the moon through the gate to a new home. We had only a couple of days to explore the nearest planets and to make a decision. Then thousands of Aza'ans and everything they could carry had to be brought through the gate. That's why I was gone for so long. It's nothing you can do in a day."
"Yes, we already had similar situations," Daniel added understandingly.
"But I still couldn't save everyone. When I wanted to leave the moon with the last unit we were surprised by an air strike. We had only known that it would come, not when. There were explosions everywhere in town and I had to watch my friends die before I went through the gate at the last possible moment."
Eli poked his slowly melting sundae. Saying it aloud wasn't as easy as he had thought. "The gate must have been destroyed because shortly after that the address vanished from the remote."
"Wow, I didn't expect something like that. That must be hard."
"What? No reassuring words? No ‚it will be alright' or ‚it had only been ugly aliens'?"
Daniel smiled and put milk into his espresso which was probably lukewarm by now. "You should know that during my time with SG1 I came more than once into situations very similar to yours. It wasn't always easy for me either but only if one sees what lies beneath the surface one can go forward. Sounds like a phrase from a fortune cookie, I know. But if your life depends on you binding and communicating with an alien creature one often learns more than expected. The alliances and friendships that develop from these situations are precious and their loss can be as painful as the loss of a close person."
Eli felt a lump in his throat, stronger than the one he had felt with his mother, and starred silently into his ice cream. Daniel's words reflected exactly what he felt and it was nice to know that there was someone who understood his situation and didn't try to analyze and judge it or to talk it down.
"Tell me more about your new friends," Daniel finally said and Eli enjoyed the curiosity and the honest interest. He coughed, took a deep breath and followed Daniel's request.
"On first sight they are really ugly, I know, but if you get over it there is much more about them. Their scale colors vary and shimmer in the light." Eli looked around and discovered a cheeky dove that was pecking crumps from the street. With a nod he pointed in her direction.
"Like her feathers. Their thorns are different too. Like the different skin and hair colors among humans. They are unbelievable talented in all areas of art and science. Their music is different from ours. Several sounds really take some getting used to but they also have complex and harmonic compositions. I was able to record some of it but I didn't show anyone so far. And they are really in love with details, nearly obsessed. I thought it was the fever or the Lita but it's actually the Aza'an themselves who are fixated with details. I remember the first time the echo of Xaven's ghost woke up in my head and how fascinated he was with Young's skin. The cellular structure and the small hairs. It was impossible to overcome this fascination." Eli stopped and realized too late that he had gotten lost in his words and had given away far too much.
"What?" he snapped at Daniel when the man started to smile strangely.
"It's interesting to watch your face. First totally excited, then lost in thought and now embarrassed. What are you embarrassed about?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Eli asked darkly.
"Not entirely. Do you mean this fascination for Everett?"
"Yes, what else?"
"But you said yourself it was – how did you call it – the echo of Xaven's ghost?" Daniel asked back.
"Yes… no, it's… damn." Frustrated Eli stirred the content of his melting sundae. Soon there would be nothing left but a uniform sauce if he continued like this.
Meanwhile Daniel was grinning only more. "Caught!"
"Not cool, really not cool," Eli complained uncomfortably.
"Hey, no reason to sulk. I'm just teasing you. When you are stuck in a small space for so long it's normal to start to care about each other and its better this way than not liking each other at all."
"I think you don't understand the problem."
"Yeah? So, explain it to me."
"No," Eli replied tersely because he was totally embarrassed about it and he had known the man for only a couple of hours. This was private.
Daniel seemed to take it without hesitation. „Okay, so back to the Aza'an. Tell me more. What did their world look like?"
Eli was thankful for the change of topic. "Originally the moon had been classified as unliveable for the physiology of the Aza'an, but their technology in combination with the Lita gave them the chance to stand the atmosphere until they had built domes with artificial air. You could see their home planet in the sky like we can see the moon and the days were much longer. That's why I lost my sense of time. I wasn't aware how long I was away from Destiny.
I hope the new planet can really be their home. We didn't have time to estimate the long term conditions. A few hours aren't enough even with the best technology. But now there is no turning back and I can only hope that they will have a long and peaceful future ahead of them."
"Those Aza'an seem to be quite adaptive. What happens next is not in your hands anymore. If it was about getting even about the guilt of the dead one you definitely did it with the relocation."
"But it never was about getting even out of guilt," Eli replied nearly desperate. "It was about going home and saving friends, my family."
Eli balled his hands into fists, loosened them again and tried to get rid of the pressure in his chest. Maybe he could lie to the others but not to himself. Xaven's feelings would never go away completely.
"Hm, do you want to hear a couple of my stories?" Jackson asked abruptly.
Eli blinked in confusion then he nodded hastily. „If they have a happy ending, sure," he added. "So, I can finish this before the ice cream has melted completely." He gestured to his cup and Daniel laughed.
"Fine, I'll do my best."
Daniel started to talk about his journeys in the frame of things Eli was allowed to know with his level of clearance. It didn't take long and Eli saw in him the same joy he had himself while recounting his adventures.
When Eli looked at the clock the next time two hours had passed and both of them had had another cup of coffee.
"How long was the exchange supposed to last, anyway?" Eli asked suddenly. Surely Daniel had gotten a window of time.
Daniel looked at his watch, too. "Not that long. Doctor Bakewell was supposed to make a first assessment of the stones. Maybe we should get back slowly. We can keep talking in the car and at the office until the connection is cut."
"Okay."
Daniel gave the waitress a sign and then payed. When they stood he looked around. "I'm going to call Anderson and ask him to pick us up where he dropped us off."
"Sure."
They walked back the way they had come, again slowed down by Daniel's crutches, and then waited for Anderson at the street. He would take some minutes. Eli watched the passing cars… and found himself back at Destiny the next moment. His head hurt and when he looked around with blurred eyes he realized he was lying on the floor. Something stung in his side and when he tried to move pain raced through his nervous system. When he touched the place with his hand and then looked at it, it was full of blood. Young was lying motionless next to him. Something had happened! But before he could find out more he was back on Earth. He leant heavily against a street lantern and Daniel was far too close.
He looked at him worriedly. "Doctor Bakewell?"
"No, it's me, Eli."
"What happened?"
"I don't know. Something is wrong. We dropped out of FTL which separated the connection. I have to get back to Destiny immediately."
"You probably reached the next planet," Daniel guessed. "Everything is going to be okay. If something is wrong they will call."
"Nothing is okay!" Eli replied and felt panic. "Young was unconscious and I'm wounded, bleeding far too strongly. I have to go back now. Use the emergency protocol. We can reconnect if everything is okay, but now I have to get back to my own body, please," Eli begged and hoped that Daniel knew what he was talking about.
After the incidents with Ginn and Mandy as well as the Senator and Doctor Covel, the emergency protocol had been established. In case one person was in mortal danger during a connection, the connection was to be ended if possible to not loose both lives. No matter what the original plans for the connection had been.
Luckily, Daniel nodded and got out his cell. To Eli it seemed like an eternity until Daniel gave short orders.
"Thank you", Eli said relieved. "I'll message you as soon as I can."
"Good luck and…"
oOo