The Best-Laid Plans – Chapter 10

Author's Notes – Refer to Chapter 1 for all the thank yous. I've really appreciated everyone that has read this so far. Reviews are always appreciated.

Disclaimer – Refer to Chapter 1

Once they were there, Dr. Rush, Lieutenant Scott, and a tall man with dark hair approached them. Scott greeted Young. "Sir, I am very glad to see you."

"As am I, Lieutenant," said Ev. He motioned to Mac to take his end of the stretcher and told Dr. Giovanni, "Go ahead and take Missy and the children to the infirmary." She nodded, and he leaned down and tenderly kissed his wife's forehead. "They're gonna take you to the infirmary and fix you up, honey. I'll be there in a few minutes."

Melissa weakly smiled at him. "That's fine, Ev. We'll see you shortly."

The group moved off into the main part of the ship. Once they were gone, Everett turned back to the other three men. He grinned and shared enthusiastic handshakes with Scott and Rush. "You two must have some kind of story to tell."

Rush grinned back at him. "Aye, that we do, Colonel, but first…" He motioned to the third man and the woman who had come to stand beside him. "Let me introduce Commander Gaius Aurelius of the Alteran ship Caprea and his first officer Leia Caligula. Commander, First Officer, this is Colonel Everett Young."

Holding out his hand as he had seen the other men do, Aurelius said, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Colonel."

Briskly shaking the hand he was offered, Ev said, "The pleasure is mine, Commander. I am very grateful for a number of reasons that you are here now. Did you have a problem finding us?"

"Well, we were on the other side of the binary pulsar, and we hadn't detected any signal indicating that you had jumped again." He motioned to the woman beside him. "First Officer Caligula deduced that the pulsar might have been preventing you from jumping again so we flew around it and found you."

"Excellent."

"Yes, it was," replied Scott. He indicated himself and Rush. "We, along with Chloe, Greer, Eli, and Brody, were in the hydroponics lab when they radioed us. We were going to shut down the air so we could take control back from the Lucian Alliance."

Dr. Rush continued the story. "Commander Aurelius called us over the radio asking for you, Colonel Young. Of course, those idiots Dannic and Simeon knew they had thrown you off the ship. Well, I answered and told them a hostile force had taken over the ship. Within moments, we heard sounds of a pitched battle in the gate room."

Before Commander Aurelius could add his comments to the story, they were interrupted by the last of the people who had come through the gate. Lieutenant Peterson spoke to Everett. "Sir, did you decide what to do about Varro and his men?" He motioned to the Lucian Alliance men.

Everett spoke up. "Oh I'm sorry, Peterson. I told Mac, but I didn't tell anyone else. Go ahead and assign them quarters." He explained to the other men. "They helped when Missy went into labor." Then he addressed Varro. "Please stay put until we get things sorted out. I'm getting the story of what happened up here now."

"We will," said Varro. "Thank you for trusting us."

"You're welcome." He motioned for Peterson to escort them out. After they were gone, he turned back to the Alteran commander. "I'm sorry about that. Please continue."

Aurelius replied, "That's fine, Colonel. Let's see. Where was I? Oh yes, Dr. Rush had told us that a hostile force had taken over the ship and were mainly concentrated in the room with the stone ring. Our special fighting unit had already been prepared, and we beamed them over there. It took a few minutes, but we finally overwhelmed them with our superior numbers."

"Great! How many survivors and where are they?"

"There are ten survivors, and they're in one of the cargo holds. With the six you brought back from the planet that makes a total of sixteen."

A set expression appeared on Ev's face. "Is either of them named Dannic or Simeon?"

Gaius looked over at Rush. "You know, I'm not sure. Do you know?"

The scientist grimly smiled at Everett. "No, both of them were killed. Dr. Park told me what happened in the Mess with the lass being assaulted by Dannic. Don't worry. He got what was coming to him. So did Simeon."

"Excellent," said Everett. He then gazed back at Aurelius. "So, what happens now?"

The commander replied, "We have a lot to talk about."

"You're right." The five of them walked out of the gate room and into the main part of the ship.

Meanwhile, the men carrying Melissa's stretcher had carried it over to the Infirmary. Dr. Giovanni told the men, "Go ahead and put her and Katie on that bed. I'll take Matthew…" She picked up Matthew's body. "And give him a dose of growth hormone before putting him in the neural stimulator."

Melissa nodded in gratitude and held onto her daughter as the men got them settled. Once they were in the bed, she heard a soft voice to her left. "Well, she certainly is a cutie-pie."

When she turned in that direction, Missy saw who the voice belonged to. It was a pale-looking TJ propped up in bed. "TJ, you're okay."

"I am." She noticed Mac gazing at her with tears pouring down his face. Holding out her arms, she told him, "I'm okay, Mac," and he came over and embraced her, kissing her on the forehead. TJ then looked back at Missy. "I am so sorry I wasn't there to deliver the babies."

Melissa softly smiled at her friend. "It's all right. Vanessa and Jessie did a good job."

"What happened?" She motioned to where the doctor had taken Matthew.

"Matthew stopped breathing a few hours ago. I think he was too small. But the doctor says she can save him."

"That's good. So, you named him Matthew?"

"Yes, Matthew Ronald, actually."

Grinning, TJ nodded. "I like it. Of course, the guys won't be able to contain themselves."

Sergeant Greer spoke up with a grin. "That's right. I have a namesake now. I get to teach him all kinds of things."

The group around the beds which included Greer, Mac, Eli, and Chloe chuckled as TJ spoke once more. "What's that one's name?" She pointed to the baby in Melissa's arms.

Mac touched his girlfriend's shoulder. "You'll like this one. You're gonna have namesake rights too. It's Katherine Tamara, but they're gonna call her Katie."

"Oh wow!" A few tears came down TJ's face. "Thank you, Melissa."

"You're welcome," said Missy.

TJ swiped at the tears on her face and looked around at them. "Well, I suppose enough of you are here for me to tell." She softly smiled at Mac. "In a little over seven months, I will be giving someone a namesake."

They all gaped at her until Missy realized what she meant. "You're pregnant, aren't you?"

Eagerly nodding, TJ looked over at Mac, waiting for him to react which he did a moment later. "You're pregnant. Oh wow!" He hugged and kissed her. "Is the baby okay?"

"Yes, it is," said TJ. She pointed to her shoulder which was bandaged. "I was shot here, and I hit my head when I hit the ground so I have a concussion—neither of which are anywhere near the baby."

"I'm so glad. I love you."

"I love you too."

As the others congratulated TJ and Mac, an overwhelming feeling of tiredness came over Melissa. She said, "I'm really happy for you, TJ, but I think right now I want to…" Her eyes shut as she slurred the last word.

Her friends gazed at her worriedly, and Chloe reached over and grabbed Katie before she could fall. Eli called for the doctor. "Dr. Giovanni, something's wrong with Melissa."

The doctor scurried over after telling her aide to keep an eye on the neural stimulator. She took Missy's vital signs and told the group standing there, "Dr. Young needs a blood transfusion. Actually, one should have been started before now. Let me check her blood type." She took a needle out and got a blood sample. "After she placed it in a small hand-held device and got the results, she cursed. "Damno!"

"What's wrong?" asked Greer.

Gazing around at the group, Giovanni asked, "How many of you know Dr. Young's true origins?" When they all nodded in the affirmative, she continued, "Well, with Alterans, we have eight total blood types, but each blood type is only compatible with one other blood type. Unfortunately, she has the rarest blood type, and we don't have any on board the Caprea and not very much of the compatible type either. I'll have to check and see if we have anyone on board who could donate."

Chloe spoke up. "Why don't you ask Colonel Young first?"

Stacia looked at her thoughtfully. "You're right. Why didn't I think of that?" She picked up a radio and turned it on saying, "Commander Aurelius, this is Dr. Giovanni."

The commander's voice was heard over the radio. "What can I do for you, Doctor?"

"I need to let you know that Dr. Young has lost consciousness. Her blood type is AB 12, and we don't have any of that type and very little of the compatible type on board the Caprea. I'm going to need a donor, Sir. I'd like to see if Colonel Young is compatible."

"We're on our way."

A few minutes later, the two men came hurrying in with Everett going to his wife's bedside anxiously. "What happened?"

Giovanni replied, "She lost consciousness. I need to see if your blood type is compatible."

"Of course." He rolled up his sleeve, and she took a blood sample, putting it into the device she was holding. When he heard it beep, he asked, "Will it work?"

She smiled at him. "Yes, you are A 12. Why don't you get on the bed next to your wife, and we can start right away?"

He did so, and she hooked him up to what looked like a filtering device. When she saw him glance at it with interest, she said, "This machine will filter the impurities out of your blood and then this tube…" She showed him where her assistant was about to connect a tube to Melissa's arm. "Will send the filtered red blood into your wife. It won't take long." The doctor gave him a reassuring smile.

"Good." Ev looked around the infirmary. "Where are the children?"

Chloe responded, motioning to the baby in her arms, "I've got Katie."

At that moment, a machine at the back of the room beeped. Dr. Giovanni said, "And that's my signal that the stimulator is done. Hold on a second." She walked over to the machine and took Matthew out of it. Noticing that he was cooing and kicking vigorously, she nodded with satisfaction and took him over to Everett. "Here's your son, Colonel, and he's just fine."

She placed him in the crook of his right arm, and Ev gazed down at him in wonderment. "Matthew, you're okay." A few tears fell down his face. "I love you so much." He then looked back at the doctor. "Thank you." Indicating Missy, he continued, "Thank you from both of us."

Giovanni warmly smiled at him. "You're welcome." She pointed to where the blood was coming out. "We'll probably need to keep that up for at least an hour."

"I understand." He spoke to Aurelius, indicating the group around them, "Besides Dr. Rush and Lieutenant Scott, these are the people I've relied upon for counsel since we've been on the Destiny. Shall we tell them what we've already discussed?"

"Of course," said the commander. "Like I was telling Colonel Young and the others, we have a device we can place on what we call the astrum porta—the stargate—which will fulfill the power requirements to dial a nine chevron address in the Milky Way. We can send you home." He grinned at seeing the excited expressions on their faces. "We are also interested in an alliance with your people. The device is being installed now, and I think Colonel Young wanted to try dialing once things got sorted out here."

"That's correct. I know we'll have to do a test dial as Homeworld Command will not be expecting us." He gave them an impish grin. "We're about to give some poor gate tech a heart attack. Well, anyway, after they know we're coming, I'm going to send some people through to report. I've already talked to Scott about going, and Chloe, I would like you to go too."

"I would be glad to," said Chloe.

"Thank you. I am also going to send Miss Wray as the IOA representative."

Greer spoke up. "Are you sure that's wise, Sir?"

"Well, General O'Neill and the IOA will expect a representative from the civilian side of our group, and she's the most logical one to send. And the Alterans are not a secret anymore. They're here. Now, the thing I do want to remain secret, for as long as possible is Melissa's and my origins. In fact, I want that to be the very last thing that is revealed." He gave Missy a fond smile. "I have three people to protect now."

"Understood, Sir. No one will hear about it from me."

As the others nodded in agreement, Commander Aurelius remarked, "I am hoping things go well with these negotiations, but, in case they don't, I should tell you that I have offered asylum to Colonel Young and his family and that my offer extends to those they trust. Colonel Young has explained to me that not everyone on your planet knows of the existence of life on other planets and that people in your government might be upset to hear of him and his mate's true origins."

"I hate to say it," said Mac, "But he is probably right. Listen, I had a question. I'm assuming you're gonna want to have the negotiations here. How will they be able to dial our gate?"

"I was wondering when someone was going to ask. We have a device that Lieutenant Scott is going to take with him. They will be able to attach it to their astrum porta, and it will give them the necessary power requirements. It will work for five days without the code word, but if the negotiations are successful, we will give this word to your people, and they will be able to use it to travel to our planet."

"Ahh, okay. Sounds like a good plan." He addressed Young. "What about Colonel Telford?"

Ev replied, "Well, Scott assigned him quarters after he was helpful in subduing the Lucian Alliance. He has a gunshot wound and a concussion, but didn't want to come back here. So, he's resting. When I talk to Homeworld Command, I'm going to ask that they bring more doctors." He looked over at the doctor. "I have really appreciated everything you've done. I just want to make sure you have enough help."

Stacia warmly smiled at him. "I appreciate that, Colonel. Thank you."

"You're welcome." He gazed at his watch. "All right, it's 11PM Homeworld Command time. I want to make a general crew announcement in about nine hours and then we're going to try and dial. Get some rations and some sleep, and I'll see you then."

Everyone nodded, and the group headed out. Before she left, Chloe asked Everett, pointing to the baby in her arms, "Where should I leave Katie?"

"Why don't you ask Dr. Giovanni?"

He motioned to where she had gone, and Chloe went to ask her. The doctor took the baby from her, and Chloe left with the others. She placed Katie on a small bed and wheeled it over to where Ev was. "I thought you would like having both of them near you." She checked the machine and then her watch. "It's almost been an hour. Your mate should wake up soon."

Almost as if in response, Melissa blinked her eyes several times and then opened them. "Whoa! What happened?"

Turning to her, Everett smiled and said, "Hi baby. How are you feeling?"

Missy thought for a moment before answering him. "I feel better. Wait a minute. Where's Katie?"

He pointed to the small bed. "Right there, honey, and I've got someone else that wants to say hi." He spoke to the baby in his arms before lifting him up where she could see him. "Say hi to Mama, Matthew."

Gasping with surprise, a look of joy appeared on Melissa's face. "Oh, oh, you're okay, Matthew." She gazed at her husband. "May I hold him?"

A voice interrupted them. It was Stacia who said, "Let me unhook you from this first. I think you have enough blood in you now. She unhooked the machinery from Missy and from Everett. Then she helped her sit up, telling him, "Go ahead and let her hold the baby."

Nodding, Everett slid Matthew into his mother's open arms. He then sat on the bed next to them cradling them in his arms. "It's a true miracle. After what happened earlier, I was just trying to figure out how to go on."

"I know. Me too," said Missy. She looked around at the empty infirmary. "Where did everyone go?"

"Told them to get some rations and some sleep. You've been unconscious for a couple of hours."

A sheepish look came over her face. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I hope I didn't interrupt what you were doing with the Alteran commander."

"No need to be sorry." He stroked the side of her face. "We just finished our discussion in here, and I found out something very important."

"What's that?"

"Our blood types are compatible. We can transfuse blood for each other if we need to."

"Oh, that's good. So, what happened with Commander Aurelius?"

An impish grin appeared on his face as he told her everything they had discussed. When he finished, he said, "After the general crew announcement in the morning, we will be doing a test dial to Earth, and when we finish giving the gate tech a heart attack, I'll be sending Scott, Chloe, and Camille through to report in and hopefully start the process of putting a negotiating team together."

Melissa chuckled. "You are so bad, Everett, because you know you're gonna give that tech a heart attack." She sobered as she continued, "So, the Alterans want an alliance?"

"They do, but we have a guarantee in case things go sour. Gaius has offered our family and anyone we trust asylum. They were really excited when the ascended Alterans appeared to them and told them about the Destiny and about us. Said we would be treated like royalty if we visited Altera."

"Royalty, huh?" She grinned at him sheepishly. "Don't know how I feel about that, but it would be nice to visit and learn more about our heritage."

"I agree."

Before he could say anything else, Matthew arched his body towards Missy and started crying. His mother looked at him fondly. "I think someone is hungry." She put him to her breast, and he began sucking vigorously. "Ev, I can't remember the last time I ate or drank something, and I'm starving. Can you get me something?"

"Sure, honey." He went over to the doctor who found some supplies she had brought into the infirmary. When he came back, he was holding a bottle of water and what looked like some round bread. Ev handed it to her, telling her, "The doctor called this a caro sandwich. I'm not sure what it means, but she said it was good."

"I don't know either. Let's find out." She took a bite and said, "Oh, this is good. It tastes like beef. Can you open the bottle for me?"

"Sure."

He opened the bottle, helping her balance the items so she could eat and drink while feeding the baby. When she was halfway done, they heard crying coming from the small bed. A frantic look came over Missy's face. "Katie's hungry. Everett, how am I supposed to feed them both at the same time?" She pointed to where Matthew still had a firm hold on one of her nipples. "There's no way he's done yet."

"Don't know." He went and picked Katie up trying to soothe her. "Matthew's almost done munchkin."

Dr. Giovanni came up to the bed. "Can I help you with something?"

"Katie wants to eat, but Matthew's not done yet." He pointed to Missy and the other baby.

"I might have something that could help with that." Stacia walked over to a drawer, got something out, and came back to the bed. She told Missy to lean forward and once she did, she slipped what looked like a large sling with belts on the inside over her head. When she was finished attaching it, the doctor said, "Okay, lay Matthew in the sling and fasten the buckles so you don't have to hold him." Melissa did so, and then the doctor said to Ev, "Ok, hand her Katie," and once he had done so, said to Melissa, "All right, now put her at your other breast and do the same thing."

The new mom did so, and moments later, Katie had found her other nipple and begun sucking. Gazing at the doctor and Ev, Missy grinned and said, "Wow! They're feeding at the same time, and my hands are free. This is cool! Thank you, Doctor." She reached for the bottle of water and took a sip.

"You're welcome."

"Will I need to switch the breast they're at for each of them to get a full feeding?"

"No, let them feed as long as they want where they are, and then they should fall asleep."

"Wonderful. Thanks again." Stacia nodded and moved off to examine another patient. The babies continued to breast feed while Missy finished her meal. When she was done, she looked over at Everett. "Hey, I had a question for you. Can I come to the all-crew meeting when you dial the gate? The babies can ride in here." She pointed to the carrier she was wearing. "Or we can get the slings from our room and each wear a baby." She gave him a pleading look. "Please."

Ev laughed as he shook his head. "Missy, I don't know what I'm gonna do when I have three sets of eyes wanting something instead of just one. I can't tell you no now."

She gazed at him hopefully. "Does that mean yes?"

"Yes, you may if the doctor says it's okay, if you can walk, and if you promise to sit when we get there."

"Yes to all three." She leaned over and kissed him. "Thank you. Thank you."

"You're welcome." He pointed to where the babies had fallen asleep. "How about we get them in their bed and then go to sleep ourselves?"

"All right." Everett took each baby from her and placed them in the bed. Once he had done so, Missy cautiously got up and walked to where he was observing them. Noticing that the babies had curled up together, Missy said, "Look, Matthew's protecting his sister just like you protect me. Today has been such a miracle."

"Yep." He put his arm around her waist. "Our family is okay. Honey, I will do anything I have to, to protect the three of you. You know that, right?"

"Yes, I do." She let him help her get back in the bed, and he climbed in it with her, putting his arms around her. "I love you, Everett."

"I love you too, Missy. Good night."

"Good night." They drifted off to sleep content in their love for one another and for their children.