Chapter Seven: Little teeth and big teeth

Back in the submarine, McKay had fallen asleep. Neither Sheppard nor Beckett minded the accompanying quiet, though, since it gave them an opportunity to enjoy the beauty outside the ship. The sub was traveling through pleasant blue water, rich in unusual fish and other creatures. They even saw the occasional green shape of one of the lizards from the base. Beckett had coxed the baby one off his arm and it was now exploring the ship's controls. Sheppard gently nudged it away while steering around a large creature that looked a lot like a manta ray.

"So, have you named him yet?" Sheppard asked.

"No," Beckett admitted. He picked up the creature as it started to gnaw experimentally at McKay's shirt. The scientist just snored on. Beckett smiled. "He's so innocent. Just like a wee puppy. It's hard to believe he'll grow up to be one of those beasts." He shuddered, remembering his earlier adventure.

"I wouldn't say that," Sheppard said in an effort to cheer him up. "After all, he's got a better parent."

"Thanks, Major." He smiled again and put the lizard gently on his shoulder. "I hope Dr. Weir doesn't mind me keeping him."

"As long as he's house trained." Sheppard smiled too. "And if we can find something he likes to eat besides McKay."

Beckett chuckled. His next thoughts were interrupted, however, when an ominous shape passed the screen. "What was that?"

"What?"

"I saw something move out there."

Sheppard sighed in exasperation. "About a hundred things are moving out there. Could you be more specific?"

Beckett didn't answer for several seconds. "There!" He pointed to a large spiked fin swimming across their view.

Sheppard shrugged. "It's probably just some sort of shark."

"If you say so," Beckett relaxed a little.

"I doubt anything out here is dumb enough to take us on."

As soon as he said it, the ship rocked violently with a sudden impact. McKay was thrown from his chair as the craft swayed dangerously close to a wall of coral. Sheppard struggled to regain control and watched a row of large, sharp teeth pass in front of them.

"What the hell was that?!" McKay shouted. He scrambled back into his chair just as the ship received another violent whump.

"We gotta get outta here!" Beckett screamed.

"I'm trying!" Sheppard shouted back. "This thing won't go any faster!" He swerved wildly around a coral pillar, nearly causing McKay to fall from his chair again. Their attacker followed them easily and gave them another ram from behind.

"Doesn't this thing have any weapons?!" McKay asked in rising panic.

"Doesn't seem to!" Sheppard forced the sub into a steep dive and sped along the reef's surface. Dirt and sediment churned in an angry cloud in their wake, but the creature kept coming. Swimming over the obscuring dust, it came down at them from above and slammed them into the rocks. Sheppard fought to maintain control as the craft scraped along the bottom, groaning at the stress. The huge monster circled around, rising once again above the cloud of murky water.

"We have to do something!" Beckett shouted hysterically.

"No kidding," Sheppard muttered. He turned the ship upward, heading towards the surface.

"What are you doing?!" McKay asked in horror.

Sheppard was in no mood for questions. "This thing looks like a jumper, maybe it'll fly like one." McKay didn't have time to protest as the sub shot upward, gathering speed and momentum. The monster shark angrily turned to follow, gaining on them inch by inch.

They broke through the surface like a cork, skyrocketing straight up into the air. The shark lept after them, its great maw closing inches from the sub's rear. Then it plunged with an explosive splash into the water once more.

Unfortunately, the sub was little better at flying than the shark. It hung in midair for a tantalizing moment before plummeting over a hundred feet to the ocean.

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Ford and Teyla were on their way back from checking out the underwater base. They had found no sign of their friends and were just about to radio Dr. Weir, when they witnessed the most amazing sight. A ship, a lot like a puddle jumper, shot out of the water in front of them closely followed by a monstrous shark over three times its size. As the two plunged back into the ocean, Ford came to the obvious conclusion: it had to be Major Sheppard.

"Major? Is that you?"

"Ford!" Sheppard could hardly believed his ears. Knowing it was only a matter of time before the shark recovered, he snapped a quick order: "We're being tailed. Can you get rid of it?"

Ford was already ahead of him. He ordered the Markham to fire on the beast as it once again bore down on the sub. The water absorbed most of the drone's momentum, but it still made a resounding hit on the creature's side. Finally, the monster had had enough. It gave a final thrash before swimming off to find a safer territory.

"Major Sheppard, are you alright?" Teyla asked.

"Alright?! What kind of question is that!" McKay shouted. He really didn't think he could take any more surprises.

"We're fine. Just a little banged up," Sheppard told them. He steered the sub back to the surface. "Care to escort us home, Lieutenant?"

"That's what we're here for, sir."

The journey back passed uneventfully and before long they reached Atlantis. Weir was overjoyed to see them back safe and insisted on a full report as soon as they recovered. After a night's rest and a big meal, the three friends were almost back to normal. McKay was already working on some of the devices from the Ancient's lab and organizing a team to investigate the underwater base.

Sheppard enjoyed a morning of practice with Teyla, which, as usual, involved two hours of being beaten by a girl. Even so, he thought he did pretty well considering the numerous bites and scratches on his face and hands that still smarted. Hoping to gain back some of his pride, he decided to see how Beckett was doing.

He found the doctor in the infirmary, perched on a stool. His leg was in a brace and his face was covered in scabs, which the Major knew must be a mirror of his own injuries. Still, Carson looked much better. He was, in fact, feeding the baby lizard small chunks of meat, complements of the Athosian hunters. The creature was much plumper than before and had lost some of the gray tinge on his skin.

"Got a name for him yet?" Sheppard asked, as he leaned casually against the counter.

"I'm not sure."

"If you don't hurry up, I'll let Ford do the honors." Sheppard grinned at his threat. Ford was already calling the creatures sea dragons.

Beckett grimaced, then sighed. "I've been thinking of calling him 'Jamie'."

Sheppard considered. "'Jamie'. I don't know, Doc. I was thinking of something more like 'Dave'."

Beckett glared at him. "Maybe you shouldn't be allowed to name things either!"

"Relax. He's your pet." Sheppard smiled and struck a dramatic pose. Grinning broadly, he tapped the lizard gently on the head with one finger. "I dub thee...Jamie!"

Beckett had had enough. He was too tired to deal with anymore of the Major's foolery. He shooed him out with a threat to find an excuse to ground him for a week. The lizard cocked his head with a questioning look in his intelligent, golden eyes.

"Aye. He can be annoying, can't he, Jamie?"

FIN

AN: Special thanks to anyone who reviewed the story the first time through! I really appreciated all the response for my first story! Feel free to leave more reviews!