Chapter 1:A New Officer
Old memories and feelings raced through her mind as she watched Atlantis get closer and closer through the view-port on the Daedalus.
"Something the matter, Captain," Caldwell inquired.
"Huh, what?" Her mind jumped back to the here and now. "Oh, no sir. It's just going to take a little while to get back into the swing of things. Who knew that when I returned to the SGC that they'd be sending me to another galaxy?"
"Well I can assure you that things aren't that much different than what you're used to. Though you are going to have to follow orders now, and not at your discretion." The Colonel gave her a stern look. "While Dr. Weir may be a civilian, she is in charge of this expedition and I expect you to follow her orders as if they were mine. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes sir." She turned back around to see Atlantis covering the entire view port.
Holy… It's like flying over Manhattan. If that's the outside, I can only imagine what the inside of the city is like. I think I might just have to accidentally get lost when I go running. Hmmm, I wonder if Colonel Sheppard will care or not. Probably not since everyone says he's the polar opposite of Colonel Chrome Dome. Oy, if Caldwell was in charge there would have been no way Jack and General Laundry would have ever talked me into this. I still don't get why Jack thought I'd like to come here anyway. I mean he knows I can't face him, after what we went through. Urg. What am I going to say when I run into him? "Hi, I'm really sorry. Forgive me. Oh and I still love you. Anyway can we get back together?" Hah! Why did things have to go so wrong?
She pulled her attention back to the matter at hand. The Daedalus had landed and her orders were to report to Dr. Weir and Colonel Sheppard for assignment. As she exited the tin can the crew called home she was greeted by an SO who directed her forward.
"Captain Madison?" She nodded. "This way. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Weir are waiting in her office."
She followed the marine through the corridors and couldn't believe her eyes. Atlantis was everything she had imagined and more. As they entered Stargate Operations Alexa felt like a child lost in a daydream. While she had been apart of SG-7 and thought nothing could surprise her, the vast control room took her breath away. The SO motioned up the stairs and to the right. She thanked him for the escort and read the ancient greeting etched on the illuminated staircase before her and then slowly made her way up to Weir's office.
"Ah, Captain Madison. Please, come in. We were just discussing your assignment." Weir greeted the young woman as she walked through the door.
"Ma'am. Sir." She acknowledge Colonel Sheppard. "Well, if you're still deciding what to do with me I could come back later." Oh yes, Alexa was still lost in that daydream and wanted nothing more than to roam the city and become acclimated to her new home.
"You're not getting away that easy." Sheppard spoke up. "We were just deciding whether or not you should head up your own team, after a week or two of back-seat gating of course."
Weir chimed in. "Yes. I understand that as a Lieutenant you were apart of SG-7 for nearly a year and that you know how to handle these situations, but you have been out of the Stargate program for over a year…"
"I completely understand where you are both coming from and I would have to agree, though I'm not quite sure about heading up a team myself. As of late, I haven't been very good at making the right decisions. I wouldn't want to put my team at risk. I'm sure if you read my file that you…"
"I have and I am aware of what you went through with your father's death. I'm very sorry. I never met him, but I've only heard wonderful things about him." Dr. Weir extended her condolences.
"Thank you ma'am. I have been able to move forward, but I just don't want to put myself or anyone around me in any rash situations. It just wouldn't be fair. So, what did you have in mind then?" the Captain quickly changed the subject.
"Oh, uh, well we couldn't help notice your camaraderie with Major Lorne, so we thought that would be a good place to start." The Colonel answered.
Alexa's eye's widened. "Excuse me sir?"
"Well, from your file it says that the two of you worked well together and seem to be good friends. So, we thought that putting you on a team headed by someone you knew would make the transition a little easier. Is there a problem with that?"
Alexa's mind raced. Was there? She didn't know what to say. Common Lexa, pull it together. What are you gonna do, avoid Marc the whole time you're here? That'll mean a lot of lonely time stuck in your room… "Oh, no sir. No problem. Um, does the Major know about this?"
Weir continued. "Not yet, we thought we'd talk to you about it first. And seeing that you're fine with it, I'll be telling him when we're done here. That is, unless you'd like to tell him yourself?"