Disclaimer: SGA - not mine, don't sue! For fan enjoyment, not profit….
AN: I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. I swear, it's writing itself at this point! I'm just as anxious as everyone else to see how it'll end…
Decompression - Take 2
By Kerr Avon
The alarm claxon blared as Sheppard raced up the stairs to central control to where Weir stood leaning on the balcony railing, her eyes glued to the Stargate. "What's up?" he panted.
"Major Lorne's team just called in; they're under attack," she replied without ever taking her gaze off the activated wormhole. As if to verify her statement, several energy blasts emerged though the Gate, followed by one very beat up Jumper.
"Activate the shield," she commanded as soon as it was clear. The sounds of several very large somethings hitting it made her grateful for the quick reflexes of the new man on the Gate console.
Staring at the pock-marked craft beginning to ascend through the ceiling, Sheppard began, "I'll just head to…"
"Go," she answered with a nod. "Beckett's team is already up there, just in case."
She didn't have to say it twice; he was off and running for the Jumper Bay.
By the time he got there, all four members of Lorne's contingent had disembarked and Beckett's outfit was giving them a once-over. Lorne grinned crookedly as he caught sight of the LTC. "Hey, Colonel! The natives on PX345D have become…less than friendly."
"I can see that," the CMO answered, scrutinizing the damage to the Jumper. Running his hand along a scorch mark, he encountered a gouge the size of his fist. Glancing up, he noticed that this appered to be the least of the destruction. He gave a low, appreciative whistle. It was amazing the thing managed to make it into the Bay. He turned to his exhausted subordinate, and grinned. "Are you trying to make a career out of trashing Jumpers?"
Lorne chuckled grimly. "Looks that way, doesn't it? I hear Jumper 6 bought it on its shakedown after repairs."
"Yeah, and it almost took McKay with it," rejoined Sheppard.
Lorne grimaced sympathetically. "Oooh. Sorry to hear that."
Sheppard shrugged. "Oh, he's all right. Bad crash, sunk to the bottom of the ocean, but survived to terrorize another day."
They shared a chuckle, then Lorne excused himself to take quick shower before debriefing with Weir.
Sheppard whistled again as he further inspected the trashed Jumper. "Boy, the engineers are going to have a field day with this," was his conclusion. They couldn't afford to lose many more ships; they didn't have the capability to manufacture them, after all.
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"Nevertheless Rodney, you are not an engineer!" Zelenka waved his arms violently at his side as he made his point. After his talk with Sheppard he had regained some of his self-confidence, and even managed to argue with McKay when absolutely necessary.
When Dr. McKay had heard of another shuttle requiring repairs, he had dropped what he was doing and hightailed it down to the Jumper Bay, much to the relief of the entire physics department. Immediately upon arrival, he began to haughtily order the technicians to show him what they were doing, and began to inspect every centimeter of their work. Zelenka, who had been inside recalibrating the sensor array, heard the protests of his crew and emerged to see what was going on. Within moments the two scientists were engaged in a heated verbal battle, and all work ceased as the mechanics stopped to watch.
"No, I'm not. But we all know how well the engineering department performed last time, don't we?"
"Fine. You want waste your time peering over my shoulder, then go right ahead. I have the best team in this galaxy, and they do good work." He threw his hands up in disgust and started to walk away, oblivious to the appreciative glances of the aforementioned men who had been avidly following the argument.
"Well, somebody made a mistake, and I paid for it!" McKay was a man who liked to get in the last word.
Radek stopped dead in his tracks, dropped his head and clinched his fists as he counted to ten in Czech. Not trusting himself to turn around, he gritted out, "Do not worry on that account. I shall not ask you for any more favors."
As Zelenka continued on his way, Rodney resumed 'overseeing' the repairs to the Jumper. He even went as far as personally checking the tightness of the bolts after the techs had replaced a particular panel. By the end of the afternoon, tempers were flaring as the crewmen began to vent at each other, as they didn't dare snap at the real object of their frustration. Anyone who could leave the Bay did so the second their job was finished. At the end of the workday, Zelenka knew something had to be done, so he sought out Dr. Weir.
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"Please, you have to do something about McKay. He's driving my repair crew crazy!"
They were both standing in her office with the door closed, to minimize the transmission of their conversation to no doubt curious ears outside. Weir folded her arms across her chest and asked reasonably, "Have you talked to Rodney about this?"
Radek ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Yes, of course. But he believes my entire team is incompetent, and feels obliged to recheck every connection, every bolt, and every patch that we do."
"Well, he has been through some trauma recently…"
"I understand that, and I accept full responsibility for it. However, I won't have him treating my people as if they were…." he searched for the appropriate word, "…nincompoops!"
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. "Are you certain that you aren't exaggerating just a little bit?"
"He berated Ensign Wells for almost thirty minutes about a speck of dirt she left on the windshield when she cleaned it. She left the Jumper Bay in tears, convinced that her 'inattention to detail' in window washing had directly caused Jumper 6 to crash."
Weir's eyebrow quirked up. "Really?" she asked.
Zelenka sighed and nodded, knowing that she finally understood the problem. "Yes, really. I'd wager that at least three people call in sick tomorrow just to avoid him."
Weir's lips thinned. "I'll have a talk with Rodney."
Radek smiled in relief. "Thank you, I appreciate it." He turned to go, then swung back around for one last comment. "They are a good crew, you know. I don't understand what caused McKay's crash, but it wasn't sloppiness on their part."
Elizabeth smiled back reassuringly. "I'll take care of it." She was secretly pleased with his defense of his men, even if he wouldn't defend himself.
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Zelenka didn't know what Weir said to his irascible superior, but it seemed to do the trick. While still insisting on overseeing the repairs, Rodney ceased acting as if everybody in the room was incompetant. When McKay finally deemed the Jumper flight-worthy, Elizabeth called a meeting to discuss the test run.
"Given the problems encountered with the last repaired Jumper, I'd like to take this one out myself," LTC Sheppard drawled. Seated at the conference table, he leaned back in his chair languidly and played with his pen.
"But given the fact that we still don't know what caused those problems, should the Chief Military Officer be the pilot of the next test flight? We can't afford to lose you, John." Weir was hesitant.
Sheppard leaned forward in sudden intensity. "That's why I have to go." He began to tick his points off on his fingers. "One: If Zelenka says it's fixed, then it's fixed. Two: Should something happen, then we need the best pilot on Atlantis at the helm, and that would be me. And finally," he fixed her with a fierce stare, "I would never send one of my men out to do a job that I wouldn't do. Just the fact that I was sending them rather than going myself could cause someone to make a mistake through sheer nerves."
Elizabeth held up a hand for silence and smiled slightly. "All right, all right, you've convinced me. Colonel Sheppard, you will pilot this test flight." She turned expectantly to McKay. "What scientist do you want to accompany him to run the diagnostics?"
McKay crossed his arms defiantly. "I'd like to say none…"
Sheppard smirked, "What, don't you trust your own repairs, McKay? Way to inspire my confidence."
"No, the repairs are fine. I oversaw them every step of the way." He gulped. "I guess I'm just a little nervous, what with…" he trailed off uncomfortably.
"Best thing to do is get right back on the horse," John had relaxed in his chair again, and spread his hands as he made the suggestion. Weir watched the interplay in silence, ready to step in when necessary.
Rodney looked thoughtful and waved an index finger in the air as he gazed into the distance. "Not necessarily a good analogy for me. When I was eight I was thrown by a horse and my father gave me the same advice. He had decided at some point that horse riding was a mandatory skill for a growing boy."
"So, what happened?" Sheppard asked.
McKay met his gaze. "I got back on. Within ten minutes the beast threw me again, but that time I broke my arm. By the time Dad finished paying for the medical bills, he decided that all kids didn't need to learn to ride a horse after all."
Sheppard snorted. "OK, someone expendable then." He sighed and shrugged. "I'll make the supreme sacrifice and take Kavanagh."
"I wouldn't trust him to be able to read the back of a cereal box, much less the results of a highly sophisticated diagnostic program." McKay crossed his arms.
Sheppard was open to suggestion. "Then who else?"
"I will fly with you." Zelenka had been silently staring at the table throughout the entire meeting, hands clasped rigidly in front of himself. Sheppard had almost forgotten that he was even in the room.
John fixed him with a curious look. "I thought that you were afraid of flying?"
"I did it to rescue Rodney. I can do it again. After all, Dr. McKay has personally guaranteed the repairs."
The sarcasm was not lost on the other scientist, who angrily added, "Well, it's better than being certified by 'Doctor Davy Jones' over there!" He threw an arm in Zelenka's direction.
"Enough!" Weir stepped in before the fight could escalate. "We have our team. Colonel, you and Dr. Zelenka can proceed at your convenience."
Sheppard ignored the still-fuming Chief Scientist to address the Czech. "How soon can you be ready? I'd like to get this over with as soon as possible."
"Give me a few minutes to gather my equipment, then I'll meet you in the Jumper Bay."
"Very well then. Excused." Weir stood and began straightening her papers. As the group began to exit, she called out, "Rodney? A word."
McKay turned back like a schoolboy caught by the truant officer, and the door to the hallway closed on them. Sheppard turned to Zelenka and mused, "I wonder what that was all about?"
Radek shrugged. "I do not know. I will meet you in ten minutes." He skittered off down the corridor, intent on his mission.
Sheppard glance at his watch. If he hurried, he'd have time for a quick sandwich before he was due in the Jumper Bay. Thought into action, he headed for the mess hall.
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"See, this isn't so bad." John had intentionally made the flight as gentle and stress-free as possible for his pteromerhanophobic passenger. After cruising to the Mainland uneventfully, he decided that a nice, scenic trip up the coast might be just the thing to settle down the jumpy Czech. However, despite efforts to point out the beauties of nature that lay below them, Radek's complete concentration was focussed on his laptop as the diagnostic program ran its course.
"Say, this looks like the place I was thinking about surfing!" he exclaimed, trying to draw Zelenka into looking out the window.
"That is fine for you. Please, now, be quiet." He was apologetic, but stern. "I will be able to monitor or progress more efficiently if I am not distracted."
The Jumper began to quiver. "Woah. What was that?" Sheppard's hands flew across his console, checking for updrafts, crosswinds, and any other of a number of external factors.
The quivering rapidly progressed to a full-out buffeting, as if the ship had been caught up in the storm from a few months previously. To Zelenka's credit, he didn't freeze up despite his worst nightmare coming true. Typing furiously at his keyboard, he diagnosed, "The right drive pod's intermittently switching to reverse thrust, just like Jumper 6!"
"Can you shut it down?" John was wrestling with the controls at this point to keep them aloft.
"It's not recognizing any of my commands," the engineer replied frantically, unaware that he was echoing McKay word for word. Tossing the laptop aside, he leapt to the side control console and furiously began rerouting the crystals.
"It's too late for that!" called back Sheppard. "Sit down and buckle up; we're going in!" He reached over and flipped on the automatic distress beacon rather than try to establish radio contact, directing all his attention to finding a nice, soft landing site.
Zelenka's eyes took on the appearance of a frightened deer as his glasses hovered on the end of his nose. "What?" he exclaimed. "Just a minute more!"
"We don't have…." The Jumper touched ground at that point, and talking became a luxury the pilot couldn't afford. Sheppard had started scrubbing off speed when he realized that a crash was unavoidable, and located a long, straight section of sandy beach to try and land on. He managed to put it down level, but the sudden change in velocity was too much for the inertial dampeners to compensate and they overloaded, throwing the Jumper's occupants around like rag dolls. Miraculously the vehicle managed to stay upright as it skidded to a halt, sloughing sideways slightly in the process. The two men were in no position to thank their luck; they had both been knocked out by the impact.
TBC……
AN: I told you this chapter would be good! And I learned a new word: 'pteromerhanophobic'. Means, of course, 'a fear of flying'. Now, if I can only figure out how to pronounce it!