Title: The Last Goodbye

Author: stella_pegasi

Rating: K+

Warnings: Canon Character Death

Spoilers: Story set post-Season Five

Characters: John Sheppard, Evan Lorne

Summary: Closure sometimes comes with a lesson.

Disclaimer: I do not own them; I would have treated them better.

Notes: This short story was written for a challenge on LiveJournal, and was limited to 1000 words. The prompt was the death of someone close to an individual, and how the individual grew from the experience.

The Last Goodbye

By stella_pegasi

"Major, we found something."

Rain was pouring from the darken skies of Morda as Major Lorne caught up with Lieutenant Parker. Lorne and his teams were on a recon mission, investigating reports of raids by Genii mercenaries on several villages.

Lorne tugged the hood of his poncho forward against the driving rain, as he replied, "What have you found?"

The lieutenant hesitated, "I think you should…please, come with me, sir. "

They walked through the stone-paved streets, splashing water wherever their boots landed. After several minutes, Parker led Lorne into a small building on the outskirts of town. Inside, three bodies lay on the rough wood floor.

"Sir, we were checking out this building and found these bodies. Sergeant Davis and Corporal Pena discovered two Wraith chained to a wall in the basement."

Lorne's throat constricted. He managed to eek out, "Wraith…are they alive?"

Parker shook his head no, then added, "We continued looking behind the building and that's where we found him."

"Him?"

"Yes, sir," Parker headed back outside, and led Lorne outside to a grove of trees surrounded by heavy underbrush. Two Marines stood guard over what appeared to be a body. As protection from the rain, the Marines had draped a silver emergency blanket over the form.

Lorne approached, and one of the Marines pulled the blanket back, continuing to shield the body from the downpour. Lorne fingered the silver chain lying across the still chest, his head dropping as he swallowed hard.

He stood up, "Don't move him, don't let anything happen to him. I'm returning to Atlantis, I have to tell the colonel. We'll be back."

~~ooOoo~~

As Lorne stepped through the gate, he hesitated, drops of water forming puddles where he stood. He glanced up at the control room in time to see Colonel Sheppard heading for the stairs. He wanted to walk toward the colonel, but his boots felt bolted to the floor. Instead, Lorne stood quietly, dreading the moment when he would have to tell the colonel the news.

"Major, you're making a mess; you need a mop, not a towel." Sheppard was grinning broadly. Grinning, at least, until he came closer and saw Lorne's expression.

"Major, what's happened?"

Lorne swallowed, and informed his CO what they had discovered. His heart sank as he watched pain replace the previous mischievous look in the colonel's eyes.

Turning to a Marine on duty, Sheppard ordered a litter brought to the gate room. He then headed for the gear-up room, with instructions he would be back in five minutes.

Lorne didn't move, but he did add another item to the colonel's orders, "Bring a body bag."

~~ooOoo~~

Sheppard had refused a poncho; when they arrived at the site, he was soaking wet and shivering. They discovered the Marines and airmen waiting for them had assembled in a protective circle around the body. They parted only for Sheppard to approach.

The colonel stood quietly for a second before he knelt down. A Marine pulled back the silver cover to reveal the body. Barely audible, he whispered, "You big kid, I never wanted it to end this way." He remained quiet for a few more minutes, then stood up, turning to Lorne.

"Any clues how he got here and what happened?"

Lieutenant Parker spoke, "Colonel; we found a survivor, one of his men. He said the story was that he escaped with a group of Wraith, who were being scooped up into a Dart. A raiding party headed to board the other Hive ship. After the ships exploded, the pilot managed to find a planet with a gate. According to this guy, he managed to kill the Wraith, and escape, eventually gathering a new team and ending up here. The mercenaries caught them by surprise. They were trying to escape, but the enzyme supply was extremely low, and they weren't as strong as usual. It took a few bullets, but the mercenaries killed him."

Sheppard stared at the body for brief time, then quietly murmured, "Thanks, Parker. Now, let's get Lieutenant Ford home."

~~ooOoo~~

Bright sunlight shown on the acres of gravestones at Arlington as the service for Lieutenant Aiden Ford came to a conclusion. Lorne was present at Sheppard's insistence. The colonel felt the family should hear from the leader of the team who found his body. So he and Sheppard had gone to Ford's cousin's home to notify her, then accompanied her to break the news to the lieutenant's grandparents. Of course, the story they told them regarding Ford's death was a carefully crafted cover-up.

Lorne was concerned for Sheppard. He could tell that the colonel was in a great deal of pain, but, as always, camouflaged his feelings behind a façade of calm. He watched as the colonel accepted the flag from Ford's coffin and presented it to his grandparents. Ford's grandmother clung to Sheppard for several minutes, then pulled away, smiling at him. Sheppard watched as they walked away, then returned to stand next to Ford's coffin.

Standing with Lorne was Rodney McKay, Ronon, General Landry and Colonel Mitchell, and he noted that none of them moved. They understood Sheppard needed time to grieve, to say his last goodbye. Eventually, McKay went to him and gently took him by the shoulder, leading him away. The others followed, whispering their own last goodbyes.

As they waited for their cars, Sheppard sought him out, "Lorne, t-thanks for coming with me."

"No problem, sir; I was honored that you asked." Sheppard was looking decidedly uncomfortable, but Lorne continued. "Colonel, you did the right thing here. Ford would be pleased."

"You think, major?" Lorne only nodded.

Sheppard smiled slightly, "I've had enough time to think about this, and I finally realized I didn't cause what happened to Ford. It's hard lesson major, when you realize that you can't protect everyone. Sometimes, growing wiser takes some time."

"Yes, sir, sometimes it does."

Lorne was confident Colonel Sheppard would continue to protect them all.

The end.

Thanks for reading. Comments welcomed and appreciated.