They continued talking for several more minutes before the remaining members of both teams slowly wandered into the medbay. Striker ran through another round of bloodwork on all of Power's team, finally satisfied with how the numbers looked.
"All vitals are back in normal range. If the headaches persist more than the next twenty-four hours or if they get worse, report immediately to the nearest hospital for eval. Anything else, like dizziness, vomiting, vision changes, or lethargy all need to be checked as well. We're not taking any chances with this." Molly handed a small container to Matt. Though the entire team was trained in emergency medical techniques, Matt had the most significant of that training. "In here are four more pain reliever pills. They each get two in about twelve hours. If they don't need them, that's even better."
She looked at her watch. "I am certain a good night's sleep will be beneficial, but I'd like you to wake them up every few hours and send me vitals, at least through the night." Turning her attention to Jon, she added, "When I hear from Sam, I'll be in touch with you. She might even contact you directly. Depends on how crazy things are for her right now."
Jon nodded, knowing full well that they would likely be hearing from Alpha before they even arrived home. "We'll get vitals before they hit the sack, then every few hours after that." He watched the two stand, fighting the urge to reach out a supporting hand to them. Molly was already evaluating them and when she gave a satisfactory nod, he released a breath he hadn't even realized he was holding.
Kong moved from Gretchen's side to sit in front of Jennifer and cocked his head at her.
"Of course, sweet boy. Shake?" She smiled at him and carefully knelt, extending her palm to him. He brought his paw up and she shook it, then wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his thick fur. After a moment, she shifted back and softly said, "Take care of our family, okay? And give Dad and Mama a hug for me when you see them."
Kong licked her cheek. He'd been from the first litter of pups born to Lucy and Ricky while Jennifer had been at Alpha. She'd watched him grow and be trained and had been ecstatic when Gretchen had chosen him for the team.
"I swear this boy has a crush on you." Gretchen smiled as Jennifer stroked his coat before standing. He nudged her hand with his muzzle and she obliged with scratches behind his ears. "The guys sneak him treats and you give him all kinds of love. He's going to leave ME for all of you!"
"Nah. He knows who his mama is." Rob reached down and added his own scratches. Kong responded by sitting down on his boots, then looked up at him, his tongue hanging out, almost grinning at him. "Buddy boy, I would love to stay here all night, but you have to get to bed so you're ready for your next mission."
Gretchen motioned Kong back to her side and he obeyed, stopping only to get more scratches from Jon.
As he straightened, Jon regarded the group with sincerity. "Thank you. For everything."
Addy smiled. "Anytime, Jon. Now get your people home. Your day has been long enough." She knew from their eyes that they were all thoroughly shaken by the mission, despite the good front they were putting up.
"Hawk, you're flying. Jennifer doesn't get the keys to the ship, no matter how much she begs." Molly grinned when the young blond scowled at her.
"Doctor's orders. You know we're following that one." Matt squeezed Striker's arm gratefully as he passed her, wrapping his arm around Jennifer's shoulders to escort her out of the medbay.
Hugs and handshakes were liberally dispensed in the hangar and Molly gave both Rob and Jennifer one final check before allowing them to board the jumpship, with Tank and Hawk following closely behind them.
Power hugged Striker and planted a quick kiss on top of her head. "Thank you," he whispered near her ear. "You're the best."
She patted his back. "Get out of here, you big lug. And take care of Jennifer, or I WILL show up at your door and take her away from you."
"You don't know where we live. And Rob's gonna be hurt that you're not threatening to take him too." He winked at her, then turned to Herndon. "Sorry for barging in on you like this but thank you. We'll restock your food and medical supplies within the week."
Addy was already shaking her head. "You don't need to worry about that. Just take care of your people. Get yourselves home and resting. Everything else will take care of itself."
Despite a war raging around them, they still had the support of friends to get them through. He would be forever grateful for it.
"Stay safe, Addy." Jon hugged her and felt her return hug, as emotion-filled as his own.
"That's always on the 'to do' list. You should know that by now." Herndon pulled back to look at him, her expression turning stern. "Promise me you'll talk to her."
"Yes, Mom."
He was rewarded with a swat to the back of his head. "I am old enough to be your big sister. MAYBE your crazy aunt. But definitely not your mother," Addy scolded. "Now promise me."
Jon grinned at her as he moved toward the ramp. "I promise. Good luck with the mission." With a final wave, he boarded the ship.
Though Jennifer sat in her seat, she transferred primary flight controls to Matt's side. She slipped her seat harness into place and tried, unsuccessfully, to hold in a yawn.
"You can doze off, you know. I know how to fly the ship," Matt said softly. He finished running through the pre-flight checks before resting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure the med bunk is more comfortable than your seat."
Jennifer smiled softly at him. "I'll be fine right here, Matt. But thanks."
A shadow came over them and both looked over their shoulders to find Power leaning over their seats. After a moment, he squatted down between them and touched Jennifer's arm. "Go lay down on the med bunk."
He wanted to order her, but he also knew that would get him nowhere.
Matt grinned. "I already tried that one. She's refusing."
"I'll be okay right here." She lightly squeezed his hand and gave them both a small smile. "Stop looking at me like I'm going to die."
"You're not allowed to die. It's in the contract you signed when you joined the team." Matt leaned over and planted a firm kiss on her forehead before ruffling her hair.
Jon realized that Jennifer hadn't let go of his hand yet and smiled back at her. "That is definitely one order you're not allowed to disobey."
She just chuckled, then rested her head back into her seat, not even trying to fight the yawn that escaped.
With another squeeze of her arm, Jon said softly, "It's okay to sleep on the way home."
"We'll see," she responded noncommittally. "Unless you're ordering me, of course."
She was practically snuggling into the seat at this point and Jon had to stop himself from going to the hold to get a blanket for her. "Not ordering you. You'd probably ignore it, anyway, wouldn't you?"
Another chuckle and another yawn. She was used to their teasing about rule breaking and how it came out when they were more worried about her than usual.
"Take us home, Matt." With a final squeeze of Jennifer's arm and a pat on Matt's shoulder, Jon moved back to Scout. The young man had also loosely belted himself in and was yawning almost as consistently as Chase. With a small nod to the front of the ship, Jon quietly said, "She's politely declined the med bunk. It's yours if you want it."
Baker immediately rolled his eyes. "Pilot, for crimony's sake, take the medbunk!" He'd already refused it himself, wanting Chase to rest en route to the base.
Though there was soft laughing through the cabin at his comment, it took a moment before Jennifer turned in her seat. When they saw the look on her face, they all quieted. "I'd rather stay up here with all of you."
Rob nodded, understanding clearly written on his face as his annoyance faded. "Same reason I don't want it," he answered.
They both settled back in their seats and the jumpship lifted off.
Only ten minutes into the flight, Jon ducked into the hold and returned with a small pile of blankets. He carefully lifted Rob's head from his console and placed one of the blankets on it before settling the sleeping man back down and covering him with another. In the front, Jennifer had fallen asleep with her head awkwardly tilted against the access panel on her left. She stirred when he gently slipped a blanket between her head and the cold metal, but was out again before he tucked the remaining blanket around her.
Jon moved quickly through the base, needing time with his senior officers without worrying about the other two hearing their concerns. He had set the showers for three cycles to allow them time to relax their aching muscles and hopefully soothe their headaches; twelve minutes wasn't long, but he hoped it would be enough to get the main thoughts out.
"Mentor, monitor Chase and Baker. Any change in vital signs, notify me immediately." Jon set the alert with their supercomputer as he walked, then transferred any use of the comm units in the bathrooms to go through his wrist communicator.
He found Hawk and Tank in the kitchen, readying some tea. As soon as he was within hearing range, Masterson began speaking.
"Jon, that rattled me. The big guy here too. And not by just a little." He leaned against the counter and looked out the door, worry written all over his face. "If we're feeling like this, what are Rob and Jennifer like? Neither one of them said anything when we got home. That's not like them."
"Agree." Jon's gut had been knotted the entire trip home. He knew they were exhausted and seeing them both doze off in their seats had been as unsettling as when they'd done it in the hold on the way to Virago's base. He'd checked them multiple times, just to make sure they were still breathing, but even that didn't settle him.
"We need those two. We won't find anyone else with the skills they have." It was Ellis who said the words that had been going through Jon's brain, tormenting him.
Separately, Baker and Chase were each a force to be reckoned with. They analyzed problems in ways that baffled the rest of the team. Ideas came from seemingly out of the proverbial left field and they worked. Together, though, they bordered on extraordinary. Their handling of the transit gate situation was just one in a series of problems they'd tackled and solved with whatever happened to be available. And when time was not on their side.
If they lost either Baker or Chase, their chances of winning the war were drastically reduced. If they lost both? Though he didn't want to admit it to even himself, he had no choice but to face reality. There was very little hope without them.
"Not to mention that I've grown rather attached to them," Matt added, rubbing at his eyes to get rid of the sudden wetness that threatened to fall.
"You're not the only one." Jon reached out and squeezed his foster father's arm, understanding all too well those feelings of loss that were washing over him. "And I don't think they'd do well without each other."
They'd all seen the relationship that had grown between Jennifer and Rob as the years had passed. Right from the start, Rob had used humor to make her talk and it became obvious that he was the one she felt most comfortable with even before she'd joined the team. Once she'd moved into the base, the two became nearly inseparable. It wasn't at all strange to find them working late into the night to make repairs or come up with new tools or weapons for their missions. It had turned into an almost sibling-like relationship, especially for Rob, who took Jennifer's safety and well-being personally.
Jon continued, knowing their time was limited. "I feel a little better knowing that Molly has checked them over, but I don't want either of them alone tonight."
Both Tank and Hawk nodded their approval.
"I'll take watch on Scout," Ellis said without hesitation. He knew what Jennifer meant to both Masterson and Power and he wanted them to have their time with her.
Matt looked at Jon, eyebrow raised, silently offering him the option he knew the young man didn't just want but needed.
"Matt, you're the closest we have to a full medic, so I'm going to ask you to float between the two. I'll stay with Pilot. Mentor will monitor transmissions for the night." Power tried his best to come up with a legitimate reason to stay with Jennifer other than he wanted to.
Hawk nodded in agreement. "We'll have Mentor patch through any messages from Striker or Alpha. I'm actually surprised we haven't heard from Adam or Elle already."
"I'll be calling them as soon as we get them resting." Jon knew it was best to hear it from him instead of the grapevine.
"Sounds good. You let me know when you want to do that, and I'll stay with her." Matt's eyes gave away the concern he still felt. "I'll feel better seeing her myself anyway. Same with Rob."
Michael smiled sadly. "I doubt any of us will be getting much sleep tonight." Though he was undoubtedly going to be right, he knew none of them would regret the peace of mind that came with it.
"Alright, gentlemen, I am going to head back to them and see how they're doing." Jon was already on his way out the door and gave his thumbs up approval to mugs of tea in their quarters when Matt asked.
Less than a minute later, he was back at the bathrooms. The sound of running water gave him a bit of peace. They were still relaxing. He looked in and to his left and found the lights low, but steam rising from the stall farthest from the door. To the right, it was dark.
"Jennifer?" Jon called out. He quickly slapped at the switch to her side of the showering area, the overhead lights flooding the room with brightness. "Jenn?" He said her name again and walked in, checking all the stalls in case she'd fallen or was too weak to answer him.
The whole place was empty.
"Mentor, locate Corporal Chase." He snapped the words out, his gut once again churning.