Chapter Three-Heir Apparent

Elizabeth looked at him incredulously. "What?" He knew she had heard him correctly so he did not respond but waited. "Maybe it was a set-up," she added a few seconds later.

He shook his head. "I wish it was, but they had several people come up and try to grab the damn thing. Including the Guardian himself and my team. Maybe it was, but we can't know for sure."

She nodded absently. "What are you going to do?"

"I think this would be a remarkable alliance. They are the most advanced we have encountered and ignored or forgotten by the Wraith. I am not sure how right now. We didn't get that far. But by reaching out to us, they are also putting themselves at risk...exposing themselves to the Wraith. Besides, can't wait to see what kind of fighter aircraft they have tomorrow." He added with a grin.

"I bet you can't" she said smiling back at him. He always had that gleam in his eye when he talked about flying, even in the puddle jumpers.

"John, this has far reaching ramifications."

"I know," he said quietly. That gleam quickly faded. "But Elizabeth, if it is true that this Evander would have save this information, and we can use it, maybe the ramifications of not following through are worse."

She studied Sheppard's face. Still young, fresh, but harder in the eyes. Eyes that had seen too much so quickly. Battle hardened. Survival hardened. Since their arrival to Atlantis, they have had to fight for their lives. She relied heavily on him to do the hardest work of all that often put him and his team in danger. He was so willing to have given his life for them. To fly a nuke loaded puddle jumper into a hive ship, allow himself to be tortured to death by a Wrath than give up a dubious Genii ally. Why wouldn't he sacrifice himself now and let his own world change forever? "It will change everything John. For you especially."

Sheppard looked at her. His eyes softened. "Elizabeth. This isn't up to you. Not your decision this time. Besides. Everything has already changed forever. It did that minute we stepped through the gate."

No arguing that point.

"Well I see you have your mind made up. I just wanted to make sure you thought this through. You do have a choice despite the expectation of others, including myself."

"I know Elizabeth. I appreciate what you're saying. But I need to go through with it. The potential is too great."

"And the curiosity?" she asked slyly.

He looked at her sheepishly, "And that too." He stood up. "Besides, imagine the sheer annoyance of Rodney if this all turns out to be true. That is worth the risk alone."

She laughed. He always seemed to lighten the mood. "I would like to head back down with you if you think it is safe and I won't be in the way."

He turned to look at her as he exited her office "I don't feel any bad vibes on either end of that."

She shook her head as he left. The man was an enigma.

Sheppard went to his quarters. He needed to be alone. Actually he needed to run. He had enough time for a quick jog. He was already packed as he learned from his deployments to keep a bag ready to go at all times particularly since 9-11. He grinned in the solitude of his thoughts. Wish we could send a couple of those Wraith bastards to take care of bin Ladin. Would love to see the look on that son of a bitch's face.

He ran fast. Adrenaline can be a good thing. Helps to clear the thought processes if you knew how to manage it. He learned well through flying. Too many in flight emergencies…combat. If you want to survive and do your job, then you use adrenaline, not let it overwhelm you.

The truth of the matter is he was afraid. Afraid this would change everything. That kind of knowledge was great, but the responsibility that came with it could wear on a person. He wondered how Evander faired. He saw what continuous battle did to people. It was not pretty. Hell just look how each president of the United States earned gray in a few short years.

Good thing he was laid back. Stress was a source of energy for him, fuel to make him do things he never thought he could do. He loved being on his game. But he was no fool. He knew what to get upset over and when to let things go. He knew how to relax. What sort of warrior was Evander? What would he think of his 10,000 year old grandson killing Genii as they walked helplessly through a gate. He dreamt about that. No one talked to him about it, except Ford and the other military at the time. He let the thought of Ford slip past him and not linger. They knew you had to do things to survive and protect, but the civilians seemed to fear him for a while after that. And, he dreamt about the sound of the thud against the gate even now from time to time, and that was not the only thing. What bothered him even more is that he knew he would do it again if he had to. Damn. Yeah what would the enlightened Evander think of that? He had responsibility for the safety of the expedition and shared responsibility with the allies they had made. If he received that information then he would be responsible for more. But if he didn't, then that would be the same except it would be responsibility without knowledge. Ignorance was never a good thing even if it meant banishing bliss. He ran back to his room for a quick shower. He had no doubt what he had to do.

His team was waiting for him at the gate with their gear. He shook his head as Rodney had a few extra cases for them to lug since he was going to be busy with snooping around and testing whatever he could. They were about to step through when he felt a strong arm on his shoulder. He looked around. Ronon looked down at him and without a smile he said, "Luke…this is your destiny." Sheppard looked at him shocked then he started laughing hard as Ronon and the rest of his team joined him. They had just watched that a few days ago. They were still laughing as they stepped through the gate. Elizabeth smiled as she followed after them. At least he had the team to help him through this.

"Welcome back my lord. I am glad that you come back to us with laughter," Saphides said as he greeted them at the gate. This formal my lord stuff was not sitting well with him, but he kept his smile slightly as he introduced Elizabeth.

"Very nice to meet you Dr. Weir." Saphides said with a slight bow of his head. I am looking forward to engaging in negotiations with you about how our worlds can help each other. With your permission of course sir."

"What? Oh yeah right. Negotiate away."

"Wonderful. We have transportation arranged as it may rain and thought you might be tired. Once we arrive, Samsus will escort you to your chambers. Therus will escort the others."

"Are we going to be close to the Colonel?" Ronon asked.

"What? Oh yes of course. Same corridor."

Samsus stepped out of a side room and into Sheppard's main room when he was through talking to a few attendants.

Sheppard looked at the kind older man and nodded. "What exactly are they doing?" He asked pointing to some female attendants in the adjoining room.

"They are preparing your bath."

"They are going to leave," Sheppard said matter-of-factly as he took off his tac vest.

"It is their duty to attend to you sir."

"Yeah, well I like to attend to my own baths if you don't mind. I prepare alone. Besides, I don't take baths. I take showers. Please ask them to leave."

Samsus looked confused but nodded. "Of course sir. Good night."

Sheppard watched the old man escort the females out. They looked disappointed. Hell he was somewhat disappointed but that was just too much. He did not want to become spoiled and have someone bathing him. He went to the bathroom. Thank God they had a shower, but he saw that the bath was made. Oh what the hell, no one will know. He undressed then got in the hot bath. His muscles immediately relaxed. He closed his eyes. This isn't a bath. It's physical therapy.

oOoOoOoOo

The next morning he woke and quickly got dressed. Where the hell is my uniform? Dammit! He went out into the hallway and ran squarely into Samsus.

"Oh, excuse me Samsus. Do you know where my uniform is?"

"Yes sir, I sent it to be laundered?"

"When?" Sheppard asked eyeing him suspiciously.

"Well this morning sir."

"It's barely dawn."

"Yes sir."

"You laid out this lovely set of clothes." Sheppard said pointing to his silver tunic black pants and black boots. Comfy at least. Reminded him of elfin clothes in Lord of the Rings.

"Yes sir"

Sheppard frowned at Samsus. He then looked at him mischievously. "Do I snore?"

Samsus looked at Sheppard unflappable. "No sir you do not."

Sheppard looked at him again as they walked down a long corridor. "So are you my handler Sam?"

The old man grinned. "Consider me the body guard of your time."

Sheppard raised his eyebrows and nodded approvingly. "I like that. I guess you and I are going to get to know each other very well."

"Yes my lord." They entered an empty dining hall.

"Guess everyone is still sleeping."

"Yes sir. It is barely dawn. What would you like to eat?"

"Not much. Going to go check out the all the pretty flying machines today. How about some toasted bread, some milk and a piece of fruit that is not too acidic. Might pull some g's today if I am lucky."

"As you wish sir. I will return shortly."

Oh yeah I wish for some g's. Sheppard looked around. Nothing to read. Damn he missed the New York Times. Lucky to get a few back from the Daedalus, but reading old news was weird. With Wraith knocking at your door not much seemed like news anymore.

Samsus returned not too long with his breakfast. "Aren't you going to sit and eat with me?" Sheppard asked looking up from his chair.

Samsus smiled at him. This young man was a pleasant surprise. He was not what he expected. He was so unassuming although his presence was commanding. He looked eager and even innocent. How could a warrior still look at the world with such innocence? "No my lord," Samsus said quietly. "It is not my place to join you."

"Not even when no one else is around?" There an opening, the old man thought. "That is up to you sir." This is the one that his brother had heard and seen born. His brother had shared the image of this infant. Placed it in his mind and occasionally other glimpses when his brother saw them.

"Well that is easy then. Sit down and have some breakfast, I mean that is if you're hungry."

A minute later Sheppard turned to him. "You don't mind if I call you Sam do you?"

"No sir," Samsus replied.

Sheppard nodded. He liked the old guy. Reminded him of his grandfather. He loved fishing because of his grandfather and he loved flying because of them. They talked for an hour about fishing and flying then Sheppard stood up. "Sam I am so ready to go see those aircraft."

"Yes sir. I have alerted our defense minister. He is waiting for you. I will take you there myself."

Sheppard immediately liked Lear. Cool name too. They had spent half a day inspecting various aircraft. Their fleet was good sized although mostly old due to limited resources and trading partners, but it was very well maintained. "The Great King had left many of these plus plans for others," Lear commented, "We tried to create what we could, but some plans were incomplete or we did not have the technology or resources. We also had to be careful to not draw too much attention to ourselves."

"I understand," Sheppard said as he nodded at the ship in front of him approvingly. "Compliments to your maintenance crew. They look perfect." Sheppard's mouth hurt from grinning so much but he could not help it. Lear looked at Sheppard and smiled. The Aviator, regardless of which world he came from, had that look in his eye. Sheppard turned and looked at him. His hazel eyes were intense and eager at the same time. "Well," Sheppard said chipperly, "I'm ready to take one of these beauties up."

"I beg your pardon sir?"

"Yeah. I know we need ground rules and communication stuff," Sheppard said quickly, but I won't be able to sleep tonight unless we get airborne. You have a two-seater you train in don't you?"

Lear looked at Sheppard bemused by the strange informal speech. "Yes sir. I understand perfectly. Let me escort you to our pilot's gathering chamber."

The what? "Gathering chamber. You mean a locker…where all the gear is?" Geez these people were so formal.

"Yes sir. You will find what you need there. I will file a flight plan while you prepare."

An hour later they stepped onto the flight line.

Perfect, John thought. Perfect weather. He enjoyed flying in choppy weather. The worse the better. It made flying more interesting and challenging, but a first flight in a new aircraft should happen on a pristine day like today. He let all thoughts of the future slide off his brain and just enjoy the moment. This was going to be fun. Funny how flight suits weren't that different in this world, but he liked his better. Will bring that next time he told himself. But the g suit. Now that was going to be interesting. Might have to take that back to the good old USAF. Need to give it a good try first. Lear had told him that the air defense for the planet within atmosphere had little inertial dampeners as opposed to the ones in space. He said something about weeding out mediocre pilots, not in those words of course, but John knew what he meant, and also about improved performance.

John grinned as they approached the aircraft. It was silver and he could see his reflection as he put on his black helmet. "Which one is the IP seat?" Sheppard asked without thinking. He turned and saw Lear looking at him quizzically. "Instructor pilot," he clarified. "Sorry."

Lear smiled. "I apologize. It will take some time for us to understand nuances in your language."

Sheppard strapped himself in to the student seat. Well that was one way to put it. He felt the ship hum as soon as he sat down. Cool.

They quickly reviewed again egress procedures and communication. It really wasn't much different than the AF. There really were not too many ways you could say get the hell out or clear for take off. He and Lear reviewed the checklist and soon they began to taxi.

"AD-1, Tower. You are clear for take off. Runway 2-1 Left."

"Acknowledged Tower. AD-1 clear for take-off."

Within seconds they were airborne and Sheppard was in Heaven.

"AD-1, Tower, you are clear for unrestricted climb to 3-0-0"

"Tower, AD-1. Copy. Clear to 3-0-0"

They leveled off. Lear talked him through a number of maneuvers as he became accustomed to the trainer. Then finally Lear said," Pilot 2, you have the controls."

Finally! "Pilot 1, I have the controls."

Sheppard sighed as he felt the trainer respond to him just like the puddle jumper. Wonder how fast this thing can go? Suddenly they began to accelerate and he was pushed back slightly by the increase in G's. Sheppard took them through a series of maneuvers. Smooth, he thought. He performed a tight turn and immediately started the anti-g-loc maneuver. The HUD showed the increasing g's, 6-7-8. He started to have to work harder at 9 and decided to push it no further this time. "Okay back there?"

Lear laughed. "Yes sir. I had not done that for some time."

"Fun right?" came the boyish reply.

"Yes sir."

Any mountains nearby? Ah. There we go he thought as the heads up obliged. "Let me show you some real fun."

Sheppard flew close to the edges of the mountains, and down low in the valley close to a river flowing. His heart was racing as the adrenaline coursed through him…just enough for peak performance. Everything was in sharp focus and Sheppard relished the feeling of being on his game for the sure joy of it. "Okay back there?" He asked when he remembered he had a passenger.

"I am fine my lord." Lear said through clenched teeth. He was not use to flying so close to the mountains although they did train here at times.

Sheppard grinned. He was fine too. He had not done this for some time at least since Afghanistan and that was not exactly a fun time. He felt his mind drift for a split second…don't go there, he chided himself and then refocused. A few minutes later he pulled out of the canyon and leveled off. Good way to end the day. "Guess we should head back?"

"Yes sir. Saphides is expecting you shortly to meet the one who will prepare you for the trial. Shall I take the controls?"

"Yes. Pilot one you have the controls."

"I have the controls," Lear responded. He was glad of it too. He had not flown quite like that before. He was pleased at what a good pilot Sheppard was.

Sheppard closed his eyes and relaxed. Enjoy it now, he thought to himself.

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Still working on the set up. Hope this flow is making sense.