A/N: Chapter 6 Beta'd by Angw and Trickster's Queen of War. This chapter features significant crossovers with Atlantis. This is your only ship warning. I won't tell you what ship your going to see, but that you'll see it.

Cameron motioned for everyone to fall back into the compound. They were all tired. There was little chance they could handle another fight. Cameron leaned against the wall, just inside the opening. He waited silently.

"No, no, no." He heard an extremely whiny voice say. "It's a desert wasteland, what could possibly be here."

"You said it yourself." A sarcastic voice replied. "There might be something about the order of time here."

Cameron turned to see Sam smiling. "What's so funny?" He asked quietly.

"I'd know that voice anywhere." Sam stepped out of the compound. "Hey Rodney."

"Oh my god, I must be seeing things." Rodney said. "I mean, I must be seeing a mirage."

"I do not believe so Doctor McKay." Teyla replied. "I can see her as well."

Cameron stepped out behind Sam and was soon joined by the rest of his team. He noticed Aiden Ford staring him down along with Ronon Dex. Both men were intimidating.

John Sheppard snapped to a salute. "General O'Neill."

Jack titled his head and let John stay like that for a few seconds. "Sheppard, you know better than that." He said sarcastically.

"If you don't mind me asking." Rodney said. "But what are you doing in the Pegasus galaxy."

"Looking for buried treasure." Vala shouted from the back.

"SHUT UP!" Daniel snapped.

Cameron laughed. Daniel and Vala were perfect for each other. He glanced at Sheppard's team, then turned to Jack. "It's your move."

"Right." Jack said absently. "Would you care to take us to see the good Doctor Weir?"

John looked around. "Anything important in those ruins?"

"It's a fully functional intergalactic transportation device." Sam said quickly.

"Really?" Rodney's face lit up like a light bulb.

"I can help with that." Daniel quickly suggested.

Cameron knew that Daniel just wanted to get away from Vala. "Alright, Jackson you stay here and give..." He turned to John. "You are leaving someone here right?"

John turned to Aiden and Ronon. "Ford, Ronon, stay with McKay and..." John pointed at Daniel. "... you, Teyla and I will take the rest of them back to the city."

"What about me." Vala protested vainly. "I can be a really great asset, I'm also funny..."

"Not today." Cameron interrupted. "Now be quiet and behave yourself."

Vala muttered something about unfair treatment before throwing him a mock salute.

"Alright, let's go to Atlantis." John said as he began dialing the gate.

Cameron had to admit, seeing the Pegasus gate dial was even cooler than it was at the SGC. It was like looking at an analog watch versus a digital watch. Both were cool, but the Pegasus gates were definitely more technological.

As soon as the stargate opened, John tapped his radio. "Atlantis, this is Sheppard, you're not going to believe this." He paused for a second, listen to a response. "It's SG-1."

Cameron could've sworn he heard Doctor Weir's shrill voice say. "What?"
"No kidding." John replied, not sounding the slightest bit concerned. "General O'Neill wants to see you." He paused turning to the group. "We can go through." He then stepped through without a second thought.

Cameron stepped up to the event horizon and glanced at the familiar sight before him. When he came through on the other side, he struggled to keep his mouth closed.

He was not prepared to walk into the city of Atlantis. The only familiar aspect was the marines pointing weapons at him. There were no stationary guns however. He shielded his eyes from the sunlight streaming in through the stained glass window just up the steps in front of him. One thing was for certain, he'd only gotten here, yet he was impressed.

Doctor Elizabeth Weir walked down the steps from the control room. She walked straight up to Jack. "Welcome to Atlantis. I must admit I'm surprised to see you here General."

"We do travel." Jack replied sarcastically. "Actually it has something to do with the Ori and a transporter. Sam can explain it."

"Where's the rest of your team John?"

"They're with..." John paused. "...Daniel on the planet."

"Doctor Jackson's here?"

"Yep," Cameron replied, "and he's not going to believe this place. I'm impressed."

"We try. I don't think I've met you."

"Lieutenant Colonel Cameron Mitchell." Cameron replied with a slight smirk. He never got tired of hearing that title. He motioned to Vala. "That's Vala Malduran. I'll assume you know everyone else."

"If you'll follow me to the conference room, I'd like to debrief you all."

XXX

Thankfully, the debriefing was mercifully short. If there was one thing Cameron hated about his job, this was it. He stepped out of the briefing room and onto the balcony. He was again in awe.

The city was huge, and he could see out way beyond the city, into the vast ocean. He took in a deep breath. The air here was so clean, it wasn't recirculated like the SGC's. It was pure, perfectly pure in every way.

He took one last breath then stepped back inside. He spotted John heading for the stairwell in the control room. He quickly jogged to catch up. "Sheppard, wait up."
John nodded, acknowledging his presence. "Mitchell. What's on your mind?"

"My friends call me Cam."

"John." He stepped down into a long hallway.

"Do you know anything about the order of time?"
John grinned. "That is an interesting story. I met this old man on this planet."

"Big long beard." Cameron made the hand motion that accompanied the description. "Crazy robes."

"Yeah, that sounds like him. How'd you know that?"

"Met him in a dream."

"Really?" John didn't sound impressed.

"He said I had some part in some prophecy to fulfill and that you were the chosen one." Cameron stopped. "He also said that I had to arise to help you restore the universe to its former glory."

John nodded, becoming serious. "That sounds like him."

"And your advice?"
"Trust him. He helped us defeat the Wraith."

"You think he could help us against the Ori?"

"It's a distinct possibility." John thought about something for a moment. "Follow me."

"Where are we going?" Cameron asked, resuming walking alongside him.

"To the gym. I'm supposed to meet Teyla there anyway, but I think we need to teach you a few things before you get involved in this."

"What am I getting into?"

"You don't have much of a choice really." John said offhandedly, stepping into a transporter. He waited until Cameron had stepped inside before hitting the button that would take him down to the gym. "But probably the most important thing is to learn how to fight with a sword." John gestured to a small cylindrical object on his belt. He stepped out of the transporter and pulled it off his belt. He extended the blade.

"Lightsaber anyone?" Cameron commented.

"Yeah, my first thought." John retracted the blade and placed it back on his belt. He continued down the hall. "I had to fight a super wraith with this because our guns couldn't hurt him. Not to mention, how many guys can say they get beat up by a very attractive young woman. Hell, how many can say they married one?"

Cameron laughed. Now it all made sense. John was married to Teyla. If this had been the SGC, things wouldn't have ended up like that. Yet here in Atlantis it worked. Obviously Elizabeth didn't have any complaints.

He stepped into the gym behind John and immediately suppressed the large grin growing on his face. "She fights in that!" Cameron remarked to John.

John leaned back to whisper into Cameron's ear. "Yeah. It doesn't matter if I win or lose, I enjoy this way too much."

"I see you brought a friend." Teyla said to John.

"Yeah, he needs to learn a thing or two about sword fighting." John picked up a pair of elaborately decorated sticks and handed them to Cameron. "One in each hand."

Teyla bowed politely then twirled her sticks. "I shall start with the basics. The fight is over before it even begins." She quickly knocked Cameron's sticks out of his hands and placed one of hers against his throat. "Secondly, never let your guard down."

"We have fun with that one." John commented from the window.

"Okay." Cameron replied, bending over to pick up his sticks. He stood and held them across his chest.

"No." Teyla instructed. "Like this. They are extensions of your body, nothing more." She demonstrated by holding her sticks so that he chest was exposed, but both sticks were comfortably ready to move. "Bend your legs."

Cameron did as she said, dropping into a classic defensive stance. He twirled one of the sticks effortlessly in his left hand. "Your move."

Teyla attacked quickly, her sticks flashing faster than he could track them. He rolled out of the way of the first couple of slashes then tried to block a few of her attacks. Within seconds he lost the battle and was once again disarmed, only this time he was rolling on the floor.

John laughed from his seat at the window. "You see Teyla, it's not just me."

Cameron coughed. "You went through this."

"Oh yeah." John replied.

Suddenly John rose from his seat and attacked Teyla with a pair of sticks of his own. Teyla responded instantly, almost as if she was reading his mind. Cameron quickly got out of the way, watching in amazement as John and Teyla lashed out against each other in perfectly balanced moves.

For each attack there as a defense; for every parry there was a shunt. He could only stare bewildered at the two of them as they fought faster than he could actually follow their movements. He laughed it was going to be a long afternoon.

XXX

"When do you want to get back to Earth General?" Elizabeth asked, walking into her office with Jack and Sam in tow, along with a very grumpy Vala.

"Whenever it's convenient."

Elizabeth smiled. "It's not a convenience issue General. All we have to do is dial the stargate."
"Well, we have to wait for Daniel then I actually have to want to go back to Washington."

"Yes, the transporter could be a gift or a curse. We just managed to defeat the wraith a month ago."

"And the last thing you need is for the Ori to come here." Sam finished.

Elizabeth nodded, gazing out into the gate room, where Major Lorne's team was gearing up for a mission. "And we're not out of the woods yet. The Genii are still a threat."

"The Genii?" Vala asked sarcastically.

"Yes... I'm sorry... Vala."

Vala grinned smugly. "That's me. Is there anything exciting to do here? I'm bored." Vala made a noise that sounded very much like a teenage girl.

Jack rolled his eyes and grinned. "Where's Danny boy when you need him?"

"Rodney's team is due for a check in." She glanced at her watch. "In twenty minutes."

"I'm sure he's having the time of his life. So how's Sheppard been?"
Elizabeth fixed Jack with a death glare. "What do you mean how has he been?"
"You know... making out on duty, flirting with alien women."

Sam coughed a little too conveniently.

"He's married General." Elizabeth replied.

"Right, forgot that." Jack said absently.

"Where'd... Vala go?" Elizabeth asked, noting that Vala had disappeared.

Sam quickly glanced over her shoulder. "This could be a problem."

"Do you want me to send a security detail?" Elizabeth asked. "I know Sergeant Bates would relish the opportunity."

Jack sighed. "There's that... or Sam and I should just go find her. She sticks out."

Elizabeth nodded. "If you need anything just call. I've got a city to run." She walked out of her office and back into the control room.

Jack turned to Sam. "So, shall we go find her?"

"Jack." Sam stuttered. "There's something I have to ask you." Her voice became quiet.

"What?" Jack said, barely a whisper.

"When the Prior tried to take me, why'd you stand in front of him?"

Jack gazed at Sam for a moment. "Because I couldn't bear to lose you. It's not something I should feel."

She glanced down at her hands, fidgeting uncomfortably. "Uhh... this probably isn't the best time to say this, but Jack..." She trailed off.

He raised an eyebrow, he knew exactly what she was thinking about. He placed his hands in hers. "You already know the answer."

Sam looked around the exposed office. "This isn't the place for this."

"Right." Jack said, resuming his usual sarcastic tone. He threw her a wink. "Later." Smiling inwardly, Jack realized he'd just admitted something he wasn't even sure he knew himself. Oh well, he thought to himself. This is the city of the Ancients, miracles are bound to happen.