Coming Home
Spoilers: Not intentionally, but references to both seasons may slip in on occasion.
Rating: T for some mild language and potentially disturbing images in some chapters.
Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate Atlantis or any of the characters associated with it, unless you count Jesi.
Chapter Seven
"Elizabeth, for the record, I must say I find objectionable the entire notion of allowing Colonel Sheppard and his sister to experiment with the artifact so soon!" Beckett frowned uncharacteristically. "If something goes wrong, we might not be able to pull them back in time. You saw how close we came with the Colonel."
"Are they fit for duty?" Weir asked. She understood the doctor's unease, knew what he was trying to do, but for the greater good of Atlantis, she couldn't allow him to derail the experiment.
"Technically, yes, they're fit. But, Elizabeth, their blood work shows a slight rise in white blood cells. Their bodies are suffering from exhaustion and dehydration. I'd feel better if they rested for a few days."
"I understand your concern, Carson. However, long-range scanners picked up four hive ships heading our way. They'll be in our area in approximately three weeks. If John and Jesi can perfect their ability to use the technology, we may be able to gather some critical intel from the Wraith ships." Weir gave the disgruntled doctor a pat on the shoulder before crossing the room and taking up a position between the infirmary beds upon which Sheppard and Jesi reclined. Someone had arranged the beds facing opposite directions, with Sheppard's feet by Jesi's head and vice versa. "Are you sure about this, John?"
"Piece of cake, Elizabeth." Sheppard flashed his best 'sway 'em to my way of thinking' grin and patted Weir's hand.
"Hmm, where have I heard that before?" Weir exclaimed with a small, nervous smile. "If things start to go wrong, get out of there!"
"We will, Dr. Weir." Jesi watched the by-play between Sheppard and Weir. Interesting! She'd save that card for when she needed an ace up her sleeve. "We'll protect each other and come home in one piece."
"I have a theory about that." McKay stepped up next to Weir. "If the artifact works like most things Ancient, your thoughts should dictate your actions. When you're ready to shut it down, just think 'stop'. "
"Good point, McKay. We'll keep that in mind." Sheppard turned to Jesi. "You ready?"
"Beyond ready," Jesi replied, smiling at the technician attaching the last of the leads to her person. She glanced at Sheppard, already tricked out with matching medical paraphernalia. "You realize this is my first time flying with you?"
"Yeah, pretty cool way to start." Sheppard winked. "McKay, how are we doing this?"
McKay slid a cart in between the two beds. He adjusted the beds so the tray was within easy reach of both Sheppard and Jesi.
"That should do it. Now, when I remove the artifact from the containment device, you should both touch it and just... relax." McKay placed the containment device in the center of the tray. "Ready?"
Sheppard and Jesi locked eyes, love and support traveling between the two. After a long moment, Sheppard nodded at McKay. "Ready."
"I wish you both a safe journey. May your experience benefit both our peoples." Teyla bowed her head regally.
"Sheppard, watch your back if you come across any Wraith." Ronon chimed in from where he sat on his yellow doughnut.
"Yes, Colonel, use your powers for good..." As McKay reached to open the containment device, the room lights dimmed to a soft glow. "Hey..."
"I did that, Rodney. Just trying to set the mood..." Jesi's soft, husky voice wafted through the amber light.
"Right... you, ah, did well." McKay ran a hand down Jesi's arm, pausing to squeeze her hand. "You okay?" he asked in a low voice.
"I'm just peachy," she replied, squeezing his hand in return.
"I'll be right here. I won't let anything happen to you." McKay whispered.
"McKay, quit trying out pick-up lines on my sister and let's get started!" Sheppard's tight words made Jesi grin.
McKay dropped Jesi's hand and rolled his eyes before turning back to the tray. He opened the containment device and removed the artifact, placing it in the center of the tray.
Sheppard and Jesi reached out and lightly rested the fingers of one hand upon the artifact. Sheppard closed his eyes and relaxed on the bed; Jesi's eyes drifted downward.
No, no, no! They're going about it all wrong!
If Atlantis had legs, she would have paced beside the unschooled couple reclining in the infirmary beds. They had made progress, but not enough to use the device for its true purpose. She'd have to see about dropping a few hints if they survived their little experiment. In the mean time, she could do little else but watch and worry.
Sheppard found himself in space above the planet that housed Atlantis. He looked around, relieved to find Jesi next to him, wearing a Cheshire cat grin. He reached out and took her hand.
"Where do you want to visit first, Jesi?"
"Since I'm new around here, why don't you show me your favorite place?" Jesi glanced around in wonder. "I still can't believe we're in space!"
"Technically we're not, but I know what you mean." Sheppard grinned. Let's start out with a visit to the mainland." He thought of the Athosian village, and they were instantly moving forward, flying downward toward land. They picked up speed, until Sheppard became concerned. "We're moving too fast!"
"I know!" Jesi shouted above the rushing wind. "Think 'slow' and see what happens." She closed her eyes and thought about regulating their speed.
Closing his eyes, Sheppard visualized himself flying a puddle jumper. He sent the imaginary jumper a command to reduce speed and felt their descent slow. He opened his eyes and sought out Jesi. "Better."
"We did it!" Jesi whooped. "We controlled the flight!"
"Yes we did, but it should be easier than it is." Sheppard grimaced.
"Colonel, Jesi, can you hear me?" McKay's voice intruded into their conversation.
"Rodney? Where are you?" Sheppard asked with a confused frown.
"Ah, good, you can hear me. I'm standing right next to your bed, listening to your conversation."
"Whew! For a second there, I though I had another consciousness in my brain." Sheppard smiled when McKay groaned. He knew it was wrong, but he couldn't help himself.
"You can hear us?" Jesi asked.
"Oh yes, more than I needed to hear. You're speaking aloud, so hearing is the easy part. Seeing, now that's a different predicament. How's it going? Any luck controlling the device?" McKay's voice asked.
"So far we've managed to direct our movements with thought, but it's mentally draining. When I fly a jumper, I don't have to think so hard to maneuver; I fly on a subconscious level most of the time." Sheppard tried to adjust their downward glide path and could feel a resistant sluggishness tugging at his mind.
"Aye, Colonel, I can see the results of your efforts on my medical readouts." Beckett's voice sounded tense.
"Could you describe exactly what you do to control..."
"I'll try to keep you in the loop, McKay, but I'm kinda busy giving a tour. Feel free to take notes." Sheppard teased. "Come on, Jesi." He flew closer to the mainland until they were hovering over the village.
"Can we land?" Jesi asked, eyeing the group of children playing a game with large fighting sticks.
"We can try." Sheppard thought 'land', and they shuddered downward. He grappled with the mental controls until their movements settled.
Jesi called up visions of Mary Poppins floating with her open umbrella. She was happy when the descent smoothed out and they slid softly to the ground, landing without as much as a puff of dust.
"Another successful Sheppard landing, I presume?"
"As always," Sheppard rejoined, dropping her hand.
"Ah, I happen to recall a few not so soft landings, Colonel." McKay's voice chimed in.
"The proper term is 'controlled crash', McKay. The control part is what kept your 'smart' ass alive." Sheppard turned to Jesi. "Rodney can't manage to fly in a straight line."
"If you'd let me practice a little moreā¦"
"Gentlemen, focus!" Weir's dulcet tones slid over them, restoring a semblance of control. "John, what do you see?"
"We see Halling and some of the other villagers meeting near a fire pit. Looks like a deep discussion. The children are playing with fighting sticks. Hold on, we'll try and move closer to Halling."
Sheppard and Jesi walked across the open space, green grass waving gently in the soft breeze. Jesi watched the grass sway. She lifted her face upward to the sun and the musical sound of the wind flirting with the treetops.
"John, why can't we feel the wind blowing?"
Sheppard stopped and followed her gaze to the swaying trees. "I'd have to guess maybe because we're not really here. Right, McKay?"
"Yes, yes, from the readings I'm getting, I'm beginning to think the device allows one to travel between dimensions. I suspect your consciousness does the visiting while your body remains safely at home, but I'll have to study the device more to be sure. Can Halling see you?"
Sheppard walked over to the taller man and waived a hand in his face. Halling kept talking to the group, never acknowledging Sheppard's presence.
"Nope, he can't see or hear me." Sheppard reached out to touch the other man's arm, but his hand slid right through. "I can't touch him, either."
"Can you hear what he's saying?" McKay asked.
John listened for a moment. "Yup, he's talking about planting crops in the spring."
"Crops? Oooh! Did he say anything about growing coffee beans? When I asked, he said he'd think about it." McKay's excited voice made Sheppard smile.
"John, why don't you check in on some of our other 'friends' and see what they're up to." Weir's voice cut in.
"Good idea." Sheppard turned to Jesi and took her hand again. "Let's fly!" He thought of returning to outer space and was rewarded by an upward thrust.
Beside him, Jesi let out a joyous shout and squeezed his hand.
Their flight upward to the heavens was choppy, but they managed to pop out above the atmosphere. Sheppard thought of one of the small worlds they'd visited recently. In seconds, he and Jesi appeared above the planet. They repeated the process for flying down, landing and checking on the locals.
They visited three planets in all. On one planet, they saw signs of a recent culling, and the villagers were in the process of recovering and rebuilding. The other planets were living in peaceful oblivion. Sheppard's head began to throb as it became progressively harder to maintain control. Jesi could feel his tension and it made her slightly airsick.
Beckett kept watch over the medical readouts and, when he noticed a spike in blood pressure and heart rate, he shot a nervous glance at Weir who nodded in reply. Beckett spoke up, addressing the siblings.
"Colonel, Jesi, it's time to come home. Our medical data indicates your bodies may need a rest. You've had enough fun for one day."
"Understood, Carson. Be there as soon as we figure out how to shut down the device." Sheppard turned to Jesi. "There's no place like home?"
"Worth a try." Jesi grinned and clicked her heals three times. When nothing happened, she shrugged. "Guess we'll have to try something else."
"Okay, think about the Ancients' planet. We should appear above it and we can figure out the rest when we get there." Sheppard closed his eyes and pictured his new home world. He opened his eyes and was happy to see they'd returned to space above the planet.
"John, I have an idea," Jesi said. "Can we land on a balcony near the infirmary?"
"No problem. Hold on!" Sheppard guided them through a shuddering descent before lowering them onto one of the balconies. "As requested, Madam! Now what?"
"Now, we walk." Jesi headed for the infirmary with Sheppard keeping pace beside her. "My head is killing me!"
Sheppard slowed and reached for his temples, rubbing softly at the dull ache.
"Yeah, mine too. Beckett will fix us up when we get back, right Doc?"
"Aye, as soon as you're free of the artifact, you'll be spending some time in my infirmary... both of you!" Beckett's concerned voice called out.
"Great... Not how I wanted to spend the rest of my day." Sheppard shared a look with Jesi. "We were kinda hoping to sleep in our own beds tonight, Doc."
"We'll see, Colonel." Beckett replied cryptically.
In less than two minutes, they reached the infirmary, passed through the closed door, and looked down at their bodies.
"This is so weird!" Sheppard said, reaching out to touch his body. As his hand connected, he morphed into a swirl of misty white light, and sank into his body. Pain exploded behind his eyelids and he curled into a tight ball, trying to escape the agony. Firm hands tugged at him, forcing him to relax and uncurl as Beckett's concerned lilt penetrated his haze of pain. He struggled to reply before the threatening void could suck him downward.
TBC
A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed my story. It encourages me to keep fighting with the bunny in charge. He keeps hopping down bunny holes I don't want to explore, but as he's the only bunny in sight, I'll squeeze myself into the darkness and follow his bobbing 'tale' until I see daylight!
