Disclaimer: I still own nothing.
Spoilers: No Man's Land. Sort of.
A/N Thank you to my reviewers. I'm sorry this took so long. It hasn't been beta'd because if I don't post it now you may never get it. I also tried to make this one a little longer. Feedback appreciated, particularly in the case of grammar errors. Hope you like it!
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"Redeploy immediately"
"Daedalus is in no condition to fight right now!"
"Steven"
"Do you know what you're asking me to do?"
"I do"
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She met him outside his room. He entered and she followed.
"Steven…" she didn't finish the sentence, because he met her eyes with resignation and pain. The guilt over her face was overwhelming, and his heart ached.
"You have no choice," he began. She shook her head, and he took her face in his hands. "There's no other way to do this. We can't risk it." She's crying now, and the last thing he wanted was to see her like this. His radio buzzed, but he didn't answer. He didn't have to. They both knew what it meant. Her tears fell across his face as well when he took her in his arms and kissed her before slipping away.
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No conversations beyond the necessary were held aboard Daedalus as they sped through hyperspace alongside Orion. The ships emerged, and immediately began to fire on the half-dozen hives before them. The firefight was thick as 302s and darts were launched amid the nukes and missiles.
Steven called out orders and watched as hives burst into oblivion before them. He listened to the calls of the pilots over the radio as they destroyed dart after dart.
He also heard the final screams of men and women as their ships blew to pieces.
The Orion exploded into a miniature supernova after taking out two hives.
The last hive was annihilated, but too late. Their shields were too weak. The last thing Steven saw was a bright light heading for the bridge…
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Steven's eyes flew open and he was disoriented for a moment before realizing that he was not on the Daedalus. He was not fighting a wraith. Death wasn't seconds away. At least not right now.
Sitting up, he looked around. It was just a standard-issue room, his to be used when Daedalus docked at Atlantis. Normally Steven slept on the ship, but it felt good sometimes to be somewhere that wasn't a metal box. While small, at least this place had a window.
He got up, knowing that he wasn't going to get back to sleep. Maybe a walk would clear his head.
He wandered down into the gate room, garnering an odd look from the guard on watch before a light going out caught the corner of his gaze. Turning, he saw Elizabeth come out of her office, eyes still on the tablet computer in her hand, looking about as bad as he felt.
She seemed to sense his presence, and flicked her gaze up to meet his. They walked down the hall, and he waited until they were out of earshot of the guard before he spoke.
"Solitaire?" She gave him a tired smile.
"Unfortunately, no. I got behind when I was gone," she closed the last report and shut the tablet down. "What's got you up late?" she asked.
"I think your insomnia rubs off," he teased her lightly and was rewarded with another smile.
"Well, at least then I'd have an explanation for why you always seem to find me when I can't sleep," she replied.
"What did you do without me?" Steven wondered aloud. It was an intentionally sarcastic remark, but something in Elizabeth's face shifted when he said it. She looked nervous and torn for a moment before she answered.
"Why don't I show you?" she questioned back, and turned down the next corridor. She was walking ahead of him now, and not looking back. Apparently she trusted that he was there, or she was trying to prevent him from seeing her face.
They started to climb a spiraling staircase, and Steven could catch brief glimpses of her expression. She looked slightly uneasy, and he wondered what on earth (scratch that, Atlantis) she could be showing him.
He didn't have to wonder for much longer, because the staircase ended and he emerged onto the roof of one of the city's tallest spires. Elizabeth was standing at the edge of the platform, apparently no longer on edge as she looked out. Walking up beside her, he said nothing, letting her take her time in describing this place.
"Did you know that the Atlantean night sky is remarkably similar to Earth's?"
"I've never seen the stars here," he admitted. "I take it you've compared them?" She smiled.
"Atlantis's position in the Pegasus galaxy and Earth's in the Milky Way are almost identical. Both galaxies are a form of spiral, and each planet is located far out along one arm. So when we look up, we see this," Elizabeth pointed out in front of them, then trailed her finger up, where a long ribbon of closely packed stars wove its way across the sky over their heads.
"I see it. The Milky Way," he said, taking in the sight.
"Not quite, but yes, that's the basic idea. And even some of the constellations are similar, if shifted in location."
"Reminds you of home?"
"I suppose so, yes. I used to sit by my window at night and stare out at the sky. As I got older, more and more people moved out near us, and the light pollution got bad. By the time I graduated high school you could barely see the Milky Way anymore. This reminds me of back then," her eyes misted over a little as she remembered her past, and Steven slipped his arm around her shoulders. She leant her head on his shoulder, and continued. "This is the other part of why I don't want to go back to Earth. The sky is still pure here."
They both fell into silence after that. Then Steven smiled. Knowing she saw the same thing, he leaned over and whispered in Elizabeth's ear.
"Make a wish." She closed her eyes for a moment, before a soft smile lit her face. She turned her face and kissed him before a yawn caught her. He grinned.
"Come on, I'll walk you back," he left his arm around her as they wandered silently through the corridors. He kissed her goodnight at her door, and she was inside before he realized that he was tired now as well. Heading back to his own room, he fell asleep quickly, dreaming of stars and Elizabeth.
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Please review! I know how I want to end the story now, it's a matter of getting there. You may only get one more chapter after this.