One day, a few years in the future.

"Shields are at ten percent!"

"McKay," Colonel Caldwell growled into his earpiece. "How much longer before you get that weapon online?"

"Just give me one more minute!" he replied.

Caldwell glanced over to the captain to his right, who shrugged her shoulders and shook her head in response.

"Crew, brace for impact," Caldwell spoke into the ship-wide intercom.

Teyla grabbed onto a notch in the ship's wall – Sheppard to a nearby control panel. Ronon followed suit, gripped to the back of a nearby seat, and ducked as the ship endured a direct hit from the hive. Wires exploded above him, shooting a shower of sparks over his head.

"Three percent, sir," the captain announced.

"I think it's good to go!" McKay's voice exclaimed in their coms. "Give it a shot!"

Caldwell didn't wait to confirm. "Power it up," he ordered.

The captain lifted a lever on her control panel. "Weapon is powered," she stated.

"Fire," he commanded.

She pressed a button on the side of the lever, sending a bright wide beam of light toward the Wraith hive ship.

"Direct hit!" Ronon heard someone shout.

"Their shields have been neutralized, sir."

"Hit 'em again."

The captain pulled the trigger once more. Again, her aim was precise.

Ronon released the seat in front of him from his grasp and watched with wonder as the hive ship exploded into a giant fireball.

The last hive ship in the galaxy…in the universe.

"Did it work?" McKay shouted through applause as he rushed to the brig, doubled over with one hand clutching to a stitch in his side, the other to his tablet.

Still in disbelief, Ronon surveyed the scene in front of him and began to laugh. Teyla appeared at Ronon's side and they shared a hearty and joyous embrace. From behind him, a heavy hand grabbed his shoulder and shook it with pride. He turned around to see Sheppard smiling back at him.

They Wraith weren't totally annihilated – that would be the work of a lifetime – but destroying their last hive meant a fair chance at life for everyone in the galaxy.

Life…

He broke away from his teammates and barged over to Colonel Caldwell. "Beam me down to the city," he demanded.

"Ronon," the colonel started.

"Do it," he growled, directing himself to the technician on Caldwell's left.

The colonel nodded his head and within an instant, Ronon was transported back to the gate room of Atlantis. Cheers and laughter met his ears as every member of the expedition rejoiced over their decisive victory. His eyes darted all about the room searching for Emma until the telltale pop of a champagne cork drew his gaze toward her. A level above him, she stood partially hidden amongst a huddle of scientists who were all holding champagne flutes in their hands as foam bubbled freely over the neck of the celebratory bottle that Alan had somehow already found.

New life…

He clambered up the stairs, pushing his way past marines, engineers, and linguists to reach her. Ignorant to the multitude of spectators around them, he scooped her into his arms, lifted her up and kissed her with a kind of unbridled passion he had never felt before. She teetered a bit when he brought her back to the ground, her eyes wide with astonishment. Without a word, Ronon seized her by the arm and led her away from the commotion and celebration.

"Ronon," she protested once they found themselves in a quieter hallway, pulling against him and releasing her arm from his tight grip. "Where are you going? Where are you taking me? We should go b –"

Ronon stopped abruptly and turned to face her. He placed both of his hands on her cheeks and peered down into her face, his eyes gleaming. "I am taking you to our quarters so that you and I can finally start our family," he stated matter-of-factly, his chest heaving.

Her jaw fell open and her eyes searched his face. A smile spread across her lips as she let out a quiet laugh of disbelief.

For a brief moment, as she stared incredulously back at him, he felt a sudden pang of doubt. She would surely dismiss him with a wave of her hand, laugh and tell him he was acting rashly, and insist they return to the celebration. He lightly stroked her cheek with his thumb, silently pleading that she would agree to go with him.

She nodded as tears formed in her eyes. When she finally spoke, her voice was thick with emotion. "Lead the way."

A/N: And that's the end! My last little epilogue for this story. Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed, and favorited. I hope you enjoyed. :)

I have a lot of plot bunnies running through my head and have already jotted down 36 pages of random ideas and scenes for a few possible future fics, maybe sequels. Stay tuned and hopefully it won't take six years for another story from me. ;)

Thanks again everyone and happy holidays!