9

Second Chances

It was a beautiful day, the sun shone brightly, contrasting against the starkly blue sky above. The temperature was humid yet not uncomfortably warm or cold and everyone around her seemed happy and content. It was with a sting of jealousy Teyla Emmagan glanced around the Athosian settlement one last time before she and Torren was to beam back onboard the Daedalus.

She smiled as Halling came up to her and offered her a traditional Athosian blanket as a parting gift. She accepted it and they bowed, touching foreheads, in the Athosian customary greeting. She had never felt this torn before; she'd never really had to choose one people over another this way. Atlantis and the Tau'ri or Lantean descendants had always been close but now galaxies separated them. Even with the advanced technology onboard the Daedalus it took three weeks to travel the distance and that was one-way only.

When Teyla and Torren John had first arrived, Kanaan had been cold – dismissive - as he'd felt left out and hurt by her willingness to leave him behind. They'd argued about her willingness to follow the Tau'ri blindly around the universe instead of reuniting with her people. While Kanaan appreciated everything the Lantean descendants had done for their people, he didn't really trust them the way she did. It didn't matter how many times they talked about it; they would never see eye to eye on the topic. She felt disappointed that he would not listen to what she had to say but, in the end, she'd sadly accepted that none of them were the same anymore. They had always been friends but their experiences in life began to differ the moment the Atlantis Expedition arrived to their home all those years ago. From there, Teyla began to broaden her horizon while Kanaan continued to work with the crops at the settlement, trading it; every day the same to him.

The one thing they had in common, Torren John, was happy being with daddy and that allowed Teyla to walk around and have a chat with almost everyone she knew. She was grateful Kanaan still had love for his son and she felt content leaving him in his care. The two had seemed to rekindle and share many happy moments during their reunion but Teyla knew that the older Torren John got, the harder it would be for her to try to explain everything. She could see that he was different from the other Athosian children even though she had tried to raise him according to the Athosian customs. Earth had so much more to offer and he had gotten used to cars, sturdy built houses with heating, airplanes, grocery stores and domestic gadgets that his father could only dream about.

Teyla smirked, her eyes twinkling as she recalled overhearing Rodney saying to Carson; 'We're in another galaxy. How more out can you get?´ At that time she didn't understand what he had meant but now she realized how spot on he'd been when comparing Pegasus and Milky Way.

She sighed. She'd had too much time on her hands lately and had begun to really contemplate about her life; what she wanted. She had to do what was best for her son because he was part of her future but other than that, she didn't know what to do. Somehow, when Atlantis landed on Earth, she'd felt that her life no longer served the same purpose it once had.

John had tried to convince her that Earth was not the peaceful, friendly place it seemed to be from the suburban neighborhood where she'd settled down but she had found no predators, no threats worth mentioning. She did see the news so she knew wars were raging in places in a faraway distance, and she knew crazed people went out on open streets and shot innocent bystanders at times but she was used to so much worse back home. Teyla found herself wondering what an ordinary citizen from her neighborhood would do if a Wraith showed up on their doorstep and then shook her head, realizing they would probably faint from the sight of the vicious creature.

Ronon had been very unimpressed when he'd met the regular population on his new home planet. He'd even called them weak, cocky, self-confident and sometimes even stupid. Yet he held every member of the Atlantis Expedition in high regards, respecting each member for their courage and willingness to explore things unknown to them.

Teyla broke into a jovial smile as the Athosians gathered behind Halling to wave them off, her eyes seeking Kanaan for a moment. He gave her a faint nod in return and a tight smile as he waved at them. She saw it in their eyes; the sadness. Halling had assured her that they'd accepted that this was the way it must be for now – that she would stay in the Milky Way galaxy – but there would come a time soon enough when they'd request her return, demand that she retook her position as the leader amongst her people and raised Torren John with his father. Strangely such a proposition didn't appeal to her anymore and while she enjoyed seeing her people again, they had begun to feel like strangers.

"Daedalus to Teyla," Caldwell spoke up suddenly. "Stand by for transport."

She gently tapped her earbud as she took one last look around. "Teyla here, Colonel. I am ready."

OOOOOO

Daniel let go of the rope, Sam was already standing next to Evan. "It must be at least 6 meters," the archeologist mused as he glanced up.

"Definitely felt like it," Evan quipped.

"Are you sure you are alright?" Sam pushed kindly as she studied him up close.

"I'll be fine. Nothing is broken anyway and that's good enough for me," he replied in a subdued voice. The tone was meant to be reassuring but the strain was giving him away.

"Lantean design," Daniel stated as he examined the pillar whose top-display had been activated and waited for a command code.

"Yeah," Evan managed with a grimace. It looks like the one Helia used to lock us out from Atlantis.

Daniel turned to him, unable to fully conceal his excitement. "This means that something behind this door – or whatever is going to appear to us – is hidden or shielded even from Lanteans."

"Right now, I am not sure that's such a good thing," Evan offered. "Besides, there are endless of combinations to unlock this thing. It might take days to-," he trailed off as Daniel punched in a code and the door appeared before them, "- or we could just open it now."

OOOOOO

Walter smiled as the IDC finally came. He'd been worried since the team was slightly overdue for the check-in. "Colonel Carter," he said. "It's good to hear from you."

"Thanks. Is the General somewhere nearby by any chance?" she asked.

Landry turned around from where he was standing in the back of the room, ready to leave.

"He's right here, Colonel," the Sergeant replied.

Hank sighed. 'Please don't let it be anything wrong,' he thought.

Sam's voice was too optimistic for that sort of news as she addressed him. "Sir, we've found a weapons facility. It's Lantean, there are drones here – they are everywhere."

Hank and Walter shared a relieved sigh before the General broke into a grin.

"Where are you?" he asked curiously.

"I am at the gate. Doctor Jackson and Colonel Lorne are 6 meters underground, in the facility. I am afraid the communications aren't that great; the place is shielded."

"How did you find it?" Landry wanted to know.

"Actually, sir. Colonel Lorne tripped on it. He fell down in a whole in the ground caused by geological instability and reshaping of the planets rock formations over the centuries. A pillar rose from the ground as it sensed his ATA gene," Carter explained. "It was locked by a code but Daniel figured it out on his first try. Don't ask me how he managed that – said it came to him."

Landry narrowed his eyes at the revelation. "I thought all memories was ripped from him when he de-ascended?" he mused curiously and found himself wondering if that was even a word.

"He said he got lucky but I am not so sure about that," Sam offered. "We're going to need a lot of people here to study the place. Preferably members of the Atlantis Expedition and some help to bring some of it with us back to base."

"You can expect company within the hour," he assured her.

OOOOOO

One year, six months and thirty days after the second homecoming.

Doctor Rodney McKay grabbed his duffel bag from the jeep, closed the door and nodded at the man who'd given him a ride from the airport. He stopped before the entrance to the mountain complex, glanced around the familiar place and sighed heavily. The card slung around his neck was a pass, a credential required to enter and work in the facility.

He fingered absentmindedly at the plastic card in the holder; he wasn't unfamiliar with it, in fact, he'd used one on several occasions. It was just that the printed word 'visitor' next to his name felt strange and out of place. Like he was some random guy who didn't belong there. Come to think about it, maybe he didn't belong anymore.

He was his own now; had started up a lab back in Chicago which he could attend occasionally while he spent most of the time in Madison, Wisconsin, where Jennifer Keller had set up a medical practice, not too far from her hometown. He snorted lightly to himself and shook his head. Sometimes the two places, his lab in the US and the lab in the old Lantean city, seemed so different that it felt like he was living two separate lives at the same time.

When the city landed in the bay of San Francisco several years ago he'd thought - like most of the other expedition members - that Atlantis would be given a once over, get patched up and then return to the Pegasus galaxy. The fact that he now stood solidly planted with both his feet on the old and worn asphalt next to the tunnel entrance to the Cheyenne Mountain complex told a different story.

Rodney McKay didn't like people, he tolerated people; at least that was he used to say before he embarked on that trip to Pegasus almost eight years ago, but the expedition had changed him. The mix of people there; they had taught him what it meant to be alive, what it meant to be a part of a community and what it meant to have real friends. Even though he pretended to at times, he wasn't the same Rodney McKay who'd signed up for Pegasus. So many things had happened during those years; he had matured, been taught compassion, nearly lost his life on a number of occasions, watched others been brought back from the brink of death and learned how to defend himself. It was funny, a part of him longed to go back, longed to return to some unknown and uninhabited planet with the cityship. He was beginning to feel restless back on Earth and he didn't like it. This unknown call from Pegasus had lit his hope of being able to return again, a hope that had been diminishing more and more for every year that passed.

"Rodney," Carter called as she walked out to meet him. "Aren't you coming?"

He brightened as he looked up find the Colonel standing next to him. "Hey Sam," he said kindly. "It's good to see you. I-," he trailed off, confused. "-I thought you'd left with George Hammond?"

She shook her head amusedly as they began to walk inside and took the elevator down the mountain. "No, I just came back from an off-world mission."

"Congratulations to your new command," he pressed on. "I don't think I've said that."

"Wow, are you sure you are Rodney McKay?" she asked with a twinkle in her eyes.

He turned toward her, somewhat offended by the suggestion. "What?" he said. "Can't I be nice? I make one kind comment and you throw it in my face," he protested.

"Definitely not Rod," Sam stated. "It's good to see you too, Rodney."

"Now that we're done with the small talk, can we please get to the point," he reasoned. "Who called and why?"

"If I knew that already I would have told you," she replied with a strained look on her face. "But there is something else you must know."

"Don't drag it out, Carter," Sheppard said with a smile as joined them. "You know how cranky he can be when you keep things from him."

"John," Rodney brightened as they embraced in a manly hug. "It's good to see you again."

"Sorry for not coming up to see you in Madison – you and Jen – but you know how it is around here," Sheppard shrugged. "There is always something going on."

"Are you heading out?" Sam asked.

Sheppard nodded. "Yeah. I promised the General to bring the jumper we've stored at the SGC over to Isa and assist. Then I am doubling back to babysit two teams of engineers and scientists. Apparently, the Atlantis liaison officer is needed at his post as soon as possible."

Sam actually laughed about that. "When I spoke to Evan earlier, before I headed back, he told me how much he'd missed being out in the field. I don't think he'd mind if you delay your arrival a few hours."

John grimaced. "Odyssey is waiting to beam him over to San Francisco the minute he walks through the gate," he explained and nodded at his former team mate. "Take care, Rodney."

McKay offered a faint wave with his hand then refocuses his attention on Sam. "Who's working with the call?"

"Bill," she answered.

"Then we'd better hurry before he does irreparable damage," he muttered as he began to walk. "So, tell me, what's going on?"

"You decided to leave the Stargate program, remember?" Carter said.

"So, you're shutting me out? After everything I've done?" he asked incredibly.

"You're a private contractor, I can't serve you benefits. You know how IOA reasons," she said.

He huffed. "Atlantis is full of private contractors and government fractions alike, thanks to IOA. I am surprised the whole world doesn't know that an alien city is laid up in the San Francisco Bay. Tell me, how did they hand out those contracts? Did they do a lottery?"

"Okey," she raised her hands in a gesture of surrender as they neared the lab, returning to his earlier question. "Drones. We found an ancient drone facility. Interested in coming back?"

He looked genuinely surprised for a moment, then shook his head and spoke up sarcastically; "You'll call for my assistance when no one else can make heads or tails about how they are constructed."

Sam smirked. 'Same old Rodney' she thought. "Should I remind you that, during all the years in Pegasus, you never once managed to replicate a drone, despite being able to study it up close."

"I think I performed enough miracles over there," he muttered sullenly. "Let's go to the lab, shall we? And see where that call came from?"

OOOOOO

To be continued