A/N: Apparently this is going to be a multi-part Epilogue. As some of you have asked and commented, yes, i'm thinking about a sequel but haven't finished the outline for it inasmuch as there's no guarantee that more than 53 readers would start it. I'll take it under advisement.


Epilogue Part 2 The Plague

"UP," the onlookers seemed to shout in unison or at least Penny thought so. 'C'mon, Moon Pie, just twenty more feet and then you'll be down and safe. Just hit the brakes, sweetie, and hang on.'

The big transport seemed to float over the beginning of the runway as Sheldon used the rudder pedals to keep the nose aligned with the 1,700 feet of concrete that seemed to rush up at them at great speed.

Smoke began to billow out from underneath the instrument console again and fill the cockpit even though the ramp was partly down.

"Raj, the instant this piece of crap stops rolling, get the ramp down and get out. Don't worry about me. I'll be that flash of light you see whizzing past you. The cattle will fend for themselves but I want us well away from any effects of the explosion."

"Explosion? What the hell – "

The transport's wheels kissed the concrete runway in a near perfect landing. With both motors dead, it wasn't possible to reverse the thrust and slow the heavy aircraft so Sheldon literally stood on the brake pedals but the end of the runway seemed to rush towards them.

The ground speed indicator was slowly winding down from 90mph to 70mph then slowly to 40mph and finally, with only a hundred feet of runway remaining, it stopped.

"Out! Get out!" Sheldon yelled, hitting the quick release on his harness but Rajesh was already gone and Sheldon could hear the whine of the ramp lowering.

He slid down the ladder to the cargo deck and followed the last of the Brangus off the ramp. Raj was hugging Melissa who was torn between hugging him and holding him at bay because of the crap he'd rolled in.

Sheldon shuddered. He's slipped and fallen at least twice that he could remember in his haste to exit the winged death trap that now sat quietly as if nothing was wrong. He smelled like the streets of Mumbai and desperately needed a shower and a change of clothing.


Penny had watched as the transport made a near-perfect landing and ground past her going much too fast for her liking. She could hear the tortured squeal of the brakes as the lumbering aircraft began to slow down.

Penny jumped on a 4-wheeler and tore off for the slowing aircraft. She could see the smoke funneling out of the cockpit windows and then the big cargo ramp seemed to crash down and a man ran out and away from the smoking plane. He was followed by a small herd of Brangus that veered off across the runway towards the grassy verge. Every practical, they weren't going to pass up the opportunity to eat.

A woman broke from the group lined up beside the first transport to land and ran towards the figure now on his knees and kissing the ground. Penny was still too far away but laughed when the man jumped up to hug the woman who suddenly wasn't all that thrilled with the idea.

She slowed the 4-wheeler and then braked when she recognized the tall woman holding a filthy man at arms' length.

"Missy? Missy!" Penny vaulted off the 4-wheeler and ran up to the couple but stopped dead a few feet away, her arms still extended to hug the shit out of Missy when the smell hit her. Had someone already hugged the shit out of someone else? Ewww…

Missy heard her name called and turned and recognized Penny and lightly shoved stinking Raj away and hugged her new sister-in-law.

"Damn, girl, you're a sight for sore eyes. I thought fer sure the Choker got you but then Shelley showed up and stirred up a ton of shit and well, here we are. Look at you…married and everything." They both were crying and laughing, so glad to see one another alive.

"Penny, it is good to see you. Missy, when your brother has finished with his homecomings, I want you to beat the Bazinga out of him. Look at me! I smell like – "

"Damn it all, Rajesh Koothrappali, you're supposed to be in India with your folks and the Hindu Whore. How – " Penny was glad to see Raj but had no idea just how he came to be in Texas instead of India.

"I will tell you everything later but first I think you should greet your husband – that is if you still consider yourself married. Penny, you must quit being so foolishly stubborn where Sheldon is concerned and must admire his devotion to family. Once he found Missy, JR and I, all he talked about was returning to the Island and his wife. You are still his wife, aren't you?"

Sheldon had stopped a few feet behind the trio and just stood looking at her. Her hair was longer and sun-bleached and she looked so good in jeans and a t-shirt and tennis shoes that he never wanted her to wear anything else. She was exactly how he'd pictured her in his daydreams.

"Yes, Penny, do you still consider us married or have you made good on your threat of finding someone else from the pool of eligible and available survivors?"

She whirled and threw herself at him, hugging him so hard that he wheezed when he breathed. She brought her palms up and held his face and just stared at him and then started to laugh.

Her hands were covered in fresh Brangus crap. He'd fallen in the cargo bay and Penny hadn't notices how gooey his back was. Now his cheeks were too.

"Sheldon, let's hold off on the physical stuff until we both take a shower. I missed you so much but I'm not going to kiss you when you're covered in cow poop. Take me home, Sheldon, unless you're needed here for some reason…"

If he said he had to stay for any reason at all she'd kill him right there on the spot. His place was with her, in the shower first and then their bed and then she'd stay by his side wherever he ventured. She'd been without him for so long and she vowed 'never again'.

"I just want to make sure that the Major meets your dad. Those two can organize the new arrivals and figure out how to handle all the ducks, geese and chickens we brought along. Won't take but half a sec and then I think we need to begin setting an example and spend time doing things that are really important. The Colony will survive without us for a few days, right? We never really had a honeymoon…"


They took three days alone and away from everyone and everything. Cooked food appeared magically at their door at random times. They didn't starve, thanks to Penny's mom and Tasha who discovered that while Sheldon's brother, JR, was dumb as a box of rocks, he did have the same piercing blue eyes and weird sense of humor as Dr. Cooper. He also had a thing for little girls and had sweet-talked the first words out of Penny Blossom since she saw her daddy thrashing around on the floor, poisoned by a religious charlatan.

Sheldon watched Penny 'teach' her 9-year olds, picking up on the struggles of early North American colonists and his mind did what it did best, compare and contrast and discover anomalies that required further investigation.

He waved and blew her a kiss and stepped away from the group sprawled out under a large tree in the warm afternoon sun. He had questions and he needed answers.


Wyatt wanted to have a long sit-down with his son-in-law. Now that he was back home where he 'Goddamned belongs and needs to quit running off trying to save the world' (as he often muttered to Penny's mom, usually after something 'Sheldon-y' occurred), there were issues that needed resolved.

They adjourned to the coach that had carried the Pasadena group through the 'wilderness'. Wyatt looked at Sheldon and smirked but then frowned. 'I can tell exactly what he's been doing these past few days and I'd make some manly joke about it but – damn it! She's my daughter!'

"We're going to be out of coffee soon and eventually our scrounging will taper off as distances become too great or other hazards make such trips too expensive in either people or fuel," said Sheldon wistfully, savoring the hot beverage that he'd avoided because he'd promised his mother that he'd stay off drugs - and caffeine was a drug.

"I've been thinking about that a lot, son. We can't survive unless we become self-sustaining and we're not even close to it. Running out of food isn't going to be a problem. We've planted more than 400 acres of consumables. What' going to the a problem is fuel for the diesel generators and – "

"And spare parts for when things break down, skilled hands to fix things, more medical personnel and equipment…the list goes on and on, Wyatt. I've been thinking of little else."

"I'm sure your wife appreciated that." Okay, he was allowed at least one off-color remark and the way Sheldon blushed made it worthwhile.

"Well, I meant en route to the Island and while I was in Texas. The past few days all I've done is think about what I might have lost - and other things, of course. I propose inventorying the skill sets of all our adult colonists and then form a database of sorts to match skills with immediate needs."

"Already done. Dr. Winkle put together a questionnaire and then she and some others, Howard, Bernadette and Cap'n Kaminski, interviewed them all. It's quite impressive but there are still problem areas and more will crop up as things break down."

"Wyatt, there needs to be some sort of hierarchy to make decisions and outline projects and day-to-day duties. I think the three you named should take over those tasks. And you, too. We need 'adults' and you already have the respect of most of us."

"What about you? We need leaders who will – "

"No. I'm no leader. I'm a follower. Just ask Penny and Leslie. Wyatt, I'm tired. The last months have burned me out. Tell me what to do and I'll do it but don't expect me to do more than follow instructions. I'd add Penny to your group but she's far too invested in her students to have the time, so I'd suggest Major Holmes. She's a true leader and has a good head on her shoulders."

"Okay. If that's the way you want to play it, fine. Here's a list of things 'to do'. Go do them." His voice carried bitter disappointment in his son-in-law. He'd expected him to step up and do what was necessary – just like leaving that woman to the coyotes – but instead he'd stepped back from his responsibilities.

"Wyatt, are you angry with me for some reason?" Just like his own father. Sheldon sensed disappointment and disapproval from a man he'd considered a mentor and father figure. 'Nothing new there. History repeats itself.'

"Yes and no. Yes, because I expected more from you and no, because from everything I've observed, it's exactly what I should have expected."

"This list is quite lengthy and will require some assistance from others. Has Winkle put her database into one of the computers available?"

"Yes, go see her and select your team. I'll see you later, son. Jenny's making spaghetti tonight and you and Penny are expected."

Sheldon knew better than to ask if there were going to be 'little hot dogs' or if the sauce was the one he preferred. Such things belonged in another age.

And that was the problem in a nutshell. So did he.