Chapter 26
2034
"Seen Torren and Grace together recently?" Evan asked after the door slid shut behind him.
Alex looked up from the book in her lap, cocked her head and watched him take off his shirt. His skin was still glistening with sweat. How long had he been at the gym? About an hour?
"Alex?"
"Yep, I have. She hasn't talked to me about it, though. Do you think she ever will?"
"Probably not. I mean, it's not like he hasn't been in our lives before they hit it off."
"It's not like this thing hasn't been going on for years," she added.
In response he grinned at her over his shoulder and threw the shirt into the laundry basket. "So, we're just gonna pretend she's already told us about this and freak her out?"
"Sounds like a plan," Alex said, nodding and looking down at her book again. "Would it speed things up with Lucas if we pretended, he and Caleb are a couple?"
"Only if you want Caleb to hate us forever."
Alex nodded again. "Fair point." She wasn't sure how she felt discussing their childrens' love lives like this, but it wasn't as though either Caleb or Grace were particularly subtle. Both of them had come to her or Evan during their first big crushes when they were still in high school, they'd never discouraged talk like this, but of course she could see that things between Grace and Torren, and between Caleb and Lucas were difficult. In each case there was a lot at stake, and the impact these relationships could have on various careers didn't even add in to these complications. In a way, she and Evan had been lucky to be stranded off-world for over half a year. After that nobody had even dared question their relationship and professionalism.
"I'm gonna take a shower," he said, already inside the small bathroom. "We'll be in Pegasus in about an hour, if Fisherman is to be believed."
"Can't believe you got so many children of former expedition members to sign up." Alex closed her book again and leaned against the headboard. He still had the door open and she watched on as he worked on the cord holding up his pants.
"Wasn't just me," Evan said, turning around to face her and leaning in the doorway. "Mitchell and Sam worked on getting them to sign up as well. It's not just our kids who deserve a chance to find out where their story started." He rubbed the back of his head and smiled softly at her. That same smile which forced her to return it. She crossed her legs.
"Massive unofficial reunion."
"That's the idea," he said with a slight smile. Then he looked at his watch. "I should get in the shower." He stretched out his hand towards her, an inviting smile on his lips. "Care to join me?"
Lucas tapped his nose, thinking hard. He did that a lot, Caleb had noticed over the course of the past few weeks. "I have wool and I'm gonna need bricks. Josh?"
"Not gonna trade with you, pal," Josh said. He had his arms folded on the table and wasn't even looking at Lucas anymore. They were both tied for the win and Caleb couldn't for the life of him figure out a way to beat them both. He didn't win often when they played Settlers of Catan, but he still liked playing. Especially, he had to admit, because Lucas was there as well. He didn't care much for board games otherwise.
"Caleb?" Lucas was gazing at him now, Caleb could feel his eyes resting on him. Those gorgeous deep blue eyes.
"Don't have any wool."
"Sure?" There was that grin again. That grin which easily managed to transform his stomach into a labyrinth of gooey, hot knots.
Caleb sighed and shook his head. "Not for you."
Grace approached their table, a mug of hot steaming tea in her hand. Wasn't she supposed to be on duty? She looked at the game set-up, then at each one of them. She'd spent the better part of the last few days in engineering, trying to keep the ship running. They could only travel short distances through hyperspace at the moment, since one of the key components they needed to keep travelling constantly at the pace they needed was broken. Or so they said. "Are you guys ever gonna stop?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.
But Lucas ignored her. He leaned closer, an unmistakable glinting in his eyes. "Would you be willing to trade for something that's not part of the game, Caleb?"
Josh groaned again, threw his cards down on the table and got up. "Would you two please get a-"
But what exactly it was they were supposed to get, they never found out. At that precise moment, the Hammond dropped out of hyperspace and all their heads turned to the enormous window looking out into space. "That was quicker than I'd have thought."
"Are we early?" Caleb asked and Grace quickly set down her mug, reached into her pocket and slammed a clear, square crystal in front of Caleb. She exchanged a curt nod with Lucas, who was already on his feet. Without another word they hurried off down the corridor.
Alex was the last one of Murdoch's team to come through the Gate and climb up the stairs. She shot him a look and forced a smile. Evan was standing next to Chuck, waiting for something to happen that never did. Except now it had, and seeing her this exhausted, made him wish for the more boring life up here. He nodded once, relief flooding him as it always did to see her return safely through the Gate. Especially since that wasn't exactly a given anymore.
Woolsey was waiting by the door to let Alex, Murdoch and Fisherman pass. De Clare had already been pushed into the transporter. He was awake, but badly wounded. Seeing him stare up at the ceiling, his leg bloody, made Evan feel queasy.
This could easily have been Alex.
And by the way Chuck was looking at the door, which now slid shut behind Woolsey, he could tell that he was thinking about his husband as well.
"This happens more often than I'd like," Chuck said and Evan nodded. "Every fourth team returns with a casualty or someone wounded."
He wasn't wrong. Only last week Teyla had been hit by one of those new weapons, energy bolts which tore through skin and flesh like arrows. Some chemical had to be involved, Keller had said, but up until now that chemical hadn't been identified. "What's the point, though?" Evan said quietly, pulling up a chair to sit next to Chuck. All this time they spent up here together had given them ample opportunity to become more than just a bit familiar with one another. "They ambush our teams, but never show their faces. We don't even know who's attacking us."
Chuck shrugged. "Whoever this is, whatever they want, they're obviously stealthy enough to sneak up on Ronon."
"Scary thought," Evan said quietly, reaching for his tablet and jotting down a quick note on his to do list. Sheppard: Ask for extra contingent of Marines to be added to off-world teams. The question was whether or not they'd get that extra contingent. In the past year the Stargate Program's budget had been cut and so far they'd only gotten new scientists here on Atlantis. Not that that was a bad thing, but scientists didn't necessarily make good soldiers.
"I'm gonna get some coffee," Chuck said with a look over his shoulder to make sure that there were enough people present to manage the Gate for the five or so minutes he'd be gone. "Does anyone else want something?"
"Coffee sounds good," Evan said, switching to the word processing program to type up his next report. "Thanks."
When Chuck left, Evan looked up again. The conference room's doors were still shut. What would Alex tell him when she got out? What had happened this time?
"Is that…" Evan broke off, squinting at the viewscreen. They had dropped out of hyperspace ten minutes too early.
"Hive ship, Sir, yes." Fisherman pulled up a larger image on his holo screen to compare the enormous vessel up ahead with the specs in the Hammond's records. "We shouldn't have dropped out yet. But there's a strong magnetic field emanating from-"
"Shields!" Carter said without needing to shout, easily interrupting Fisherman. Out of the corner of his eye Evan had seen Fisherman hitting the right button the moment they'd identified the ship.
"Energy build-up within the ship, Ma'am," Major Chung said and Evan had to remind himself to take a step back. This wasn't his ship. He might be Carter's commanding officer, but this was her command. Her crew. Alex was standing right behind him. He felt her stiffen and he reached for her arm to give it a gentle squeeze. She wasn't supposed to be here. Not with an imminent battle. But he wouldn't send her away. They were in trouble and if all things went to hell, he wanted to be with her. Especially if he couldn't be with his children as well.
"Prepare for impact." Carter sat down in the commander's chair. "How long to plan the next jump?"
"The circuits would overload, Ma'am," Fisherman said. "We'll need at least another ten minutes for the next safe jump."
Carter nodded and looked up at Evan. "Looks like we'll see how good our idea was, General."
Evan turned his attention back to the view screen. It'd been over twenty years. The Wraith hadn't returned to hibernation. They had no idea what they were up against here and they'd willingly crippled their ship. He could only hope Grace still had the replacement crystal. But right now it wouldn't be safe to install it. Right now they needed to stay and fight.
"Send the pilots to the F-305's", Carter said calmly and one of the airmen typed the order into her console.
"But if we jump-" Alex began but Evan interrupted her with one single look.
"They'll be fine. They've been equipped with small hyperspace generators. Won't be a problem."
He could see that she was still tense, probably even more so than he was. No small wonder there. Alex had never seen Grace fly. And Grace was one of the pilots who would be deployed. She and her team would be in those fighters along with a few other constant members of Carter's crew. "She'll be okay," he whispered, returning his attention to the viewscreen, just as the Hive fired its first shot.
It didn't hit them, just grazed the shield, but it was enough to make the ground shake beneath them.
"Shields down by ten percent," Fisherman said, making Evan's heart drop. Ten percent with one failed hit? This was going to be bad.
"Try hailing them!" Evan said and Carter's head snapped around to him. "They have no idea what happened to us. We don't know what's going on here and-"
"I get it," Carter said, turning to Chung. "Go ahead. All frequencies."
"They're launching Darts," Fisherman's voice was strained.
Chung was working feverishly on her console, her fingers flying over the keyboard. "Sending a request for parlay. Not sure we can get through though. There's some massive interference."
"He had you in there for quite a while." Evan sounded as concerned as she felt.
He'd only just returned from his shift and Caleb was pretending to read to his sister on the couch, making up nonsense words and pointing at pictures, while Grace was already fast asleep, her thumb between her pouting lips.
"This was the fifth ambush out of ten missions for us. De Clare is still with Doctor Keller…. Not a great mission."
She could see him starting to say something, then pause and shake his head.
"What?"
He sat down at the small table in their apartment and reached for her hands. "Never mind."
"No. What is it?" She could already guess what he was trying to say. But he wouldn't.
He bit his lip and shook his head again. "Sorry."
"You wanted to say I should think about leaving Oliver's team?"
Evan's eye flickered up to hers. "Yes, it's what I wanted to say, but, no, you shouldn't. I'm sorry I even thought about it."
Alex nodded once and turned to look at Caleb and Grace again. Caleb had given up on reading to Grace, scooted away from her and stood up. Looking at Evan, he slowly made his way over to them. "Daddy, let's draw!" He raised his hand and patted Evan's leg.
"In a minute, okay?" Evan picked him up and put him on his knee, but Caleb started squirming immediately. He sighed and looked at Alex with a crooked grin. "You really shouldn't. Either you or me are always here and whatever happens…"
They'd talked about this a hundred times. A thousand times. And he wouldn't hear of her quitting her position on Oliver's team. But she was the only one who could quit and remain on Atlantis. If Evan decided to quit, he'd have to resign his commission along with it and that was out of the question. At least for now. Maybe in a few years, when Caleb and Grace were too old to forget about Atlantis and too young to keep secrets, they'd rethink this arrangement, but for now this was where they were supposed to be. Working on what was important, not just to them, but for Earth.
"Daddy!"
"Yeah, yeah, let's go." Evan shook his head, put Caleb down again and as he got up, he fixed Alex again. "Don't even think about it. I know you can handle yourself and I know-"
"I know, you know," Alex interrupted him. "And you know, I know. So let's stop talking about it, okay? The chances of one of us going missing or getting stuck won't go away. Being here is dangerous. Being on Earth can be dangerous. We-"
"Mommy, stop!" Caleb said, his voice slowly but surely starting to turn into a wail. "Draw!"
"No, not like that," Evan said, kneeling down so he was closer to his son's face. All sympathy was gone from his face and Alex got the feeling she'd seen that face before. When she'd been new to the SGC and he'd trained her. Trying to hold back his emotions when all he wanted to do was hug his son. "Be nice. That wasn't nice."
Caleb pursed his lips, tears shooting into his eyes, but Evan wouldn't budge. "But-"
"No, you heard me. You don't interrupt me or your mommy."
With a short sniffle, Caleb rubbed his eyes with his pudgy hand and looked at his feet. "But-"
"Caleb…"
"Dad…"
Evan sighed and put his hands on Caleb's narrow shoulders. "Just wait a few more minutes okay? I'm not angry, I promise."
Caleb sniffled again, but he couldn't stop the thin trickle of snot running down from his nose.
"Why don't you go into your room and get the crayons and paper ready."
That was all it took. A thin smile spread over Caleb's face and he hurried, more stumbling than running, past his little sister into the bedroom he shared with her. Evan turned his head to look up at her a frown on his face.
"Go," Alex said, crossing her arms over her chest. "We can talk after dinner."
She'd tell him then. If he and Sheppard wouldn't be called in before that.
About the fact that both she and Oliver had caught a glimpse of their attacker. About the fact that Fisherman had been the one to fire the shot that killed another one of them.
A Furling, who had died on the spot.
She'd never fought a battle in space.
Not once.
She knew the layout of the instruments before her like the back of her hand, knew exactly which manoeuvres she needed to perform and when. What she hadn't expected was the tight knot in her stomach she felt as the thin spaceship ahead of her fired its first blast, forcing her to evade.
It was one thing to learn in a simulated environment. It was one thing to practice with your comrades. It was one thing to fly over a landscape and release a bomb.
It was different from all of these things. This was the first time she'd ever been in a dogfight and as she pulled her fighter to the right, and she saw the flash of white light as the Dart she'd hit exploded, she felt a sense of triumph mixed with panic. This was what it was like then, she thought, urging her fighter back on course to assist Lucas, who was being chased by two more Darts. This was what she'd trained for.
The voices of the other pilots were constant reassurance that everyone was alright. That they hadn't lost anyone. Yet.
"Good shot, Princess," came Ferretti's voice through the radio and for a brief moment Grace grit her teeth. She'd hated her callsign from the moment it'd been assigned to her after it'd become more or less public knowledge her father supervised the training for Special Forces aimed to go to a top-secret program. But she wasn't fool enough to complain about it too loudly. Especially not, when her sensors picked up another Dart on her own tail.
"Granny, would you mind taking care of this?" she barked into her radio, focusing all her energy to staying on target.
"Sure thing, Princess." Ferretti was smiling, Grace could hear it in her voice.
The Dart disappeared in a fiery blaze just as Grace fired her missiles, destroying both of the Darts hunting Lucas. "You're welcome, Frodo."
"Yeah, yeah, thanks."
"The Hive's stopped firing!" Miller. "Darts are returning to their hangar."
"Do we follow them?" Lucas asked.
"All pilots, this is Carter." Of course the Colonel would address them now. "Return to the Hammond immediately."
A/N: Seems like I can only write one chapter per week at the moment. As the holidays here have started, I'm hoping to write more.
Thank you for the lovely comments after last chapter! They've really given me a boost!
Can I say something?
Today is the one-year anniversary of me publishing the first chapter of "Between the Lines" and I remember the excitement of starting to write this story. It was my first ever Stargate fanfiction, even though this was the first show I've ever been obsessed with. I was really nervous about writing and publishing it, especially since I was terrified of getting things wrong. I know I have gotten things wrong, but you've been very forgiving. I was also really nervous about writing about a hetero couple, after only writing Poe/Finn for years and years. It felt weird at the beginning, but I got there eventually. I hope. Thanks for sticking with me through this experience and for helping me become more confident.
"Between the Lines" and "Interrupted" helped me get through the last, horrible stage of teacher training (here in Germany that stuff's a bitch). I was a wreck when I started writing, and writing helped me pull through. "Interrupted" and "Children of the Ancients" are helping me through my first few months of being a proper teacher. I really needed (and still do) the chance of escaping to my desk to vanish in a different world. I guess you all know that feeling?
And last, but not least, let me give you some statistics. I'll give you the full thing when it's over. It's not even the latest numbers, since I only started jotting them down this morning and I've written a bit since:
27th June '19- 27th June '20
Loyalties series (so far)
Words: 394 707
Pages: 1008 (MS Word)
Chapters: 149
Stories: 3; Between the Lines; Interrupted; Children of the Ancients
Comments: 270 (on both AO3 and )
Incredible experiences (excerpt):
- Making new friends
- Printing a copy of BtL as a paperback
- Another writer asking permission to use Alex, Evan and Nora in their beautiful story (check out "Language of Love" by Tanista on AO3)
- Losing track of the fact that Alex hates chocolate
- Losing track of about a billion other ideas that I forgot to write down in my messy notebook
- Filling a notebook
- Starting a new notebook
- Writing in a cloister
- Realizing that the story has more words than the Lord of the Rings trilogy (303 500) already
- Adding a spin-off ("Three Weeks on the Daedalus"), totalling:
- Words: 399 506
- Pages: 1021
- Chapters: 154
- Comments: 270
- Stories: 4
Let's keep this thing going! Thanks for your patience and see you soon!