-Colonel Sheppard, do you read?- his com badge asked.
"This is Sheppard, what do you want?" he replied. Outside the jumpers window he saw one of the technicians drift away from the section of Athyl they were repairing, with a twist of the controls he moved the jumper to catch the man before he drifted too far away in the Alterran space suit.
-We just received word that Colonel Carter is coming to relieve you in a few minutes- the voice said. Meanwhile he had caught the technician with the front of the jumper and now he pushed him back into position.
"Did they said anything about why?"
-I guess you're lucky enough that they have something better for you to do.-
"I'll be back as soon as I can, have someone take over here, they're not the best at working in space suits."
-Will do Sir.-
With the four technicians securely fastened to the outside of the section they were repairing he angled the jumper back towards the control center where the gate was and pressed the engines to their max.
When he arrived back at the main asteroid about an hour later he landed in the hangar connected to the control room and stepped out of the jumper to see Daniel waiting for him. "I thought Carter would be relieving me?"
"Oh she's here already," Daniel said and led him back into the jumper. "We however are going to go meet up with some old friends of yours."
"Genii or Travelers?" Sheppard asked grumpily as he was pressed back into the pilot's seat.
"Travelers," Daniel said and begun to dial the gate remotely while Sheppard piloted the ship outside.
"A nomadic people who travel around in the galaxy to avoid contact with others, I'm having a hard time figuring out how we're going to find them," Sheppard said as he lowered the jumper through the roof into position in front of the gate a second after it finished dialing.
"Which is exactly why we have been using the long range sensors on Atlantis to search for any ships moving around in the galaxy," Daniel said seconds before they passed through the gate.
On the other side of the gate they found the emptiness of space and a lush green world which they hung above. For a few seconds they just hung there while Sheppard checked the sensors then just as they were about to move a ship raced around the planet and headed towards them.
"Let me handle this," Sheppard said when he recognised the ship. With the press of some buttons he opened a channel to the other ship. "You still flying that old bucket of rust?"
-Sheppard, you still have a withy comment in your sleeve?- came the response from a female voice.
"Mind if we come aboard your ship Katana?"
-You're welcome to land Sheppard, if you can find some space in our small hangar,- she responded just as a large number of hyperspace windows opened ahead of both the ships. -Or perhaps it would be better if you talk to Larrin, now that she's here.-
"Thank you Katana, could you tell her we're coming over?"
-She already knows Sheppard,- a second female voice came over the radio just as Sheppard begun to fly the jumper towards the newly arrived ships.
"Larrin," Sheppard said acknowledgingly and used her transmission to pick out her ship from the rest. "I hope you don't plan to do anything stupid now."
-How could I have planned something when you show up without a moment's notice?- she said teasingly while he flew beneath the gathered fleet towards her ship.
"I'm sure you can figure something out," he responded in the same manner while the hangar doors opened. When they were inside the ship the doors closed behind them and armed men and women rushed out from their hiding places with their weapons pointing at the front. As the jumper sat down on the hull Sheppard activated the shield and opened another channel.
"Larrin, I thought you said you didn't have time for any tricks."
-This isn't a trick Sheppard. I just needed to make sure it was really you,- her voice came back and from behind a stack of crates she strode with a radio in her hand. An order from her which did not transmit through the radio made the others lower their weapons, but he could still tell they were ready to shoot at any moment.
"We're coming out," he replied, lowered the shield and shut down the jumper.
"At least we have these in case things take a turn for the worst," Daniel calmed and tapped his chest where their personal shields sat. Then they left the jumper.
By the time they had left the jumper all soldiers had left the hangar and only Larrin remained.
"So what can I do for you Sheppard?"she asked in a very sweet voice.
"We need to borrow some ships," he said seriously, not willing to put up with her games.
"Have the Asuran returned?" she asked.
"I will handle this Colonel," Daniel said and stepped in front of Sheppard. "My name is Daniel Jackson, I was one of two saved with the help of the ship you sent to investigate the destruction of your stargate."
"Katana have told me about you," she said affirmingly, this time using a much more serious tone.
"Good," he said and smiled to make her feel more at ease. "As the Colonel said we are in need of ships. But perhaps there's a more fitting location for this discussion?"
"What would you offer in exchange?" she said, ignoring the question.
"Complete and proper repairs to every ship which is willing to help. To start with," he said, putting emphasis on the last part.
"Come, I will send for the other captains," she said and led the way.
Twenty minutes later the three had been joined by seven other people around a large conference table. All around them cables hung out of the grey walls and sparks were coming out of a few of them.
"Why have you called for us?" an old grumpy woman asked from one of the short sides of the table.
"We have been given an offer from Atlantis," Larrin said.
"We shall listen to them then," the woman said and the captains around her noded.
"Most of you have probably heard of me already," Sheppard said and stood up. "Larrin forced me to activate the Lantean ship you found a few years ago and I also helped you get it ready for battle. But I'm not here to make the offer, that's Daniel's job."
Taking the cue Daniel stood up and waved a little. "Hello. My name is Daniel Jackson," he said confidently. "As it is we need to borrow a couple of ships from you. We will of course repay you."
"Get to the point Daniel Jackson, we do not have the time to stay in the same place for long," the grumpy woman complained. Her voice was crackling with age and her annoyance at having been called there to talk to outsiders was shining through into her voice.
"Our offer is this, any ships which helps us will be repaired to the same condition they were in when they launched," Daniel said and the annoyed look he got from the woman caused him to hurry on, yet he could see a glimmer in her eyes as he mentioned the repairs. "We ask that you help us scout a number of worlds throughout the galaxy which we hope contain advanced civilisations."
"How many ships do you need?"
"We can only serve two ships at a time right now, we hope that we can increase that number to six or seven in the coming weeks," Daniel said and did a quick calculation in his head. "We might need six ships to start with, but I'm sure we can create a large demand if there are more captains who are interested."
"All you ask in return is that we scout these worlds for you?" she asked skeptically.
"Yes," Daniel confirmed. "But I hope this can form a solid ground for us to work together in the future."
"This is a most interesting offer, but the Captains Council will have to discuss this in private," the woman said.
"Of course, we will return to our ship," Daniel said and motioned for Sheppard to mimic him, then he bowed and walked out of the room.
Outside the room four soldiers formed up around the two and they were walked back to the hangar and their jumper. When they stepped through the doors to the hangar the soldiers parted and held position outside. With the doors closing behind them a figure parted from the shadows and Katana came up to them.
"You must have had something important before Larrin called the other captains," she said and joined their stride towards the jumper.
"Yes, but I think we have an even better one for you," Daniel said.
"For me?" she asked.
"We need a ship to travel back to our home galaxy and from there to another," he said as they walked inside the jumper and she followed.
"There is no ship in our fleet which can do that," she said while Daniel sat down in one of the seats.
"That is a problem we can solve for you," Daniel said and opened a file he had brought with him onto the forward viewport. It showed a diagram of the Pegasus galaxy, then it zoomed out and the surrounding galaxies showed up, with the Milky Way being highlighted. "That is our home galaxy, which we can reach in under three weeks if all goes well, with the proper power source we can cut that down to four days."
"My ship is the fastest in our fleet, but it could never make such a trip or even reach those speeds."
"Trust us, we can make your ship go much faster. Right Daniel," Sheppard said.
"Yes, it would be no problem at all."
"And all you ask in return is that I take you to this other galaxy?" she asked hesitantly.
"Yes, if you're lucky we might not even have to go further than the Milky Way," Daniel confirmed.
"There has to be some catch," she urged.
"Well there will be no ships to escort you and there are plenty of hostile ships flying around in that galaxy. Other than that there isn't a catch, we just really need to get there."
"We're used to dealing with the Wraith Daniel, I can handle it. I would gladly accept your offer, but I will need to talk to Larrin about it first."
"That will be fine," Daniel confirmed and watched as Sheppard tried to suppress a yawn. "If you'll excuse us I do think the two of us will need some sleep."
"I can tell," she said and pointed to the Colonel who had fallen asleep against the bulkhead.
"We'll keep a channel open if you need to contact us," he said before she left. When they were alone again Daniel activated the jumpers shield and lay down on one of the benches in the back.
Somewhere in low orbit above Earth a military satellite was relaying communication between the Alterran outpost and a military base in Europe.
-Preparations are proceeding faster than anticipated.-
-How far have you come?-
-All the explosives are in place.-
-Then you are ready to rise up?-
-We are. There will be nothing remaining of their cursed base when we do.-
-We will drive the aliens from Earth and return it to humanity again.-
-Vivati humani.-
-Viva terra.-
After the quick exchange the satellite realigned and begun to transmit between Europe and Asia.
Some hours later Sheppard and Daniel were awoken and escorted back into the conference room. Where before there had been eight captains now only Larrin and the old woman remained.
"The council have made a decision," the woman said. "Each captain can choose if their ship will help you. We are however concerned about the length of this contract."
"How so?"
"All our ships collect their own supplies, if these ships will be under your command for any longer periods of time we require that you provide them with supplies," she said.
"I don't see a problem with that. How long would their current supplies last?"
"We are here to pick up supplies. When fully loaded they will last about a month, give or take a week depending on the ship," Larrin informed.
"So six ships, at most two and a half thousand people?" Daniel asked.
"The first six ships will not have more than twelve hundred people onboard Daniel," Larrin said.
"That would double the people we're feeding, but we should be able to do it. Of course I will have to run things by Atlantis first."
"Then as long as your people can provide supplies, our ships will be at your disposal for safe errands," the old woman stated and slammed her fist into the table so the entire thing shook.
"You said that you can serve two ships at a time right now. Correct?" Larrin asked.
"Yes, we have two piers on Atlantis on which we can land and fix ships, but we hope to have a proper shipyard working soon. We hope it can serve four ships of these sizes, perhaps more if no major work is needed," Daniel confirmed.
"Many are not sure about this offer until they can see proof themselves." Larrin said. "So my own and Katana's ships will be the first served, to prove that you truly mean what you say and that we're in no danger while our ships are grounded."
"Then it's decided. I can give you Atlantis' location and you can arrive after you have gathered your supplies," Daniel said.
"It is," the woman said and got up. "I look forward to seeing the result of this pact." With those words she left the room and in her wake Katana entered.
"We're ready, as you asked," she said to Larrin.
"Good work," Larrin said and turned to the two men. "Her ship is fully stocked and ready to go, there's no reason she can't follow you back to Atlantis right away."
"That's our ride back home then," Sheppard said happily.
"I'll just need to call Jack and clear it with him, otherwise they might come out looking for us," Daniel said.
"We can do that on the way back to my ship," Katana said with a smile. "I'd like to see what that ship of yours can do."
"I can show you a trick or two," Sheppard said with a laugh. Something which caused Larrin to glare at him.