Chapter 17

Atlantis

Over the next week, the humans, Colonials and Asgard worked night and day to ensure the Wraith would be met with a fleet capable of stopping them in their tracks when they reached Earth. The forces of two galaxies rallied together, recognizing that doing so was the only way to stop their advancing foe.

It would soon be time for Atlantis and the Colonials to depart. They were a little behind schedule, but the humans and Colonials were safe in the knowledge that they would still make it to Earth in time. The Galactica was upgraded and looked better than she had in years. The Asgard had noticed stress fractures in the ship that indicated she wouldn't have lasted much longer had they not upgraded her. Luckily, that wasn't going to be a problem now. The Astral Queen, the only other Colonial ship capable of fighting, had also been upgraded. The situation in the Milky Way was also positive. Earth's ships had all arrived back home, and the Battlestar Ares was now there too. Teal'c had gotten the Jaffa to agree to provide help, and a small armada of Hataks would soon be arriving.

Meanwhile, Dr. McKay had finally returned to Atlantis following his time aboard the Heracles. The Ancient ship was now battle ready, with a 'little help from the Asgard', and Rodney could now take a little time to relax on Atlantis. Or at least that's what he'd been told. He couldn't relax, not with the current situation. He'd been spending days just thinking, trying to come up with any way that could tip the balance in their favour. And he'd finally thought of something. He stood outside of Colonel Sheppard's quarters, so many thoughts running through his head. Was this a good idea? Should John be the first person he goes to? Could this cause even bigger problems for the humans and Colonials? Atlantis was leaving tomorrow evening, he knew if he was going to do something he had to do it now.

He waved his hand across the crystals next to John's door, alerting the man inside to his presence. He stood impatiently for a minute, before the doors opened revealing a tired John Sheppard. The Colonel rubbed his eyes, adjusting to the light in the hallway. "What the hell are you doing here Rodney? It's 2AM. We've got a big day tomorrow..."

"Yes, yes, I know that, but I really need to talk to you..."

John sighed. "What about?"

"I think I know a way we can win this battle... Like insurance, in case the fleet isn't enough to stop the Wraith."

There was a pause for a moment, before the Colonel begrudgingly let the other man into his quarters. He pulled on a shirt and sat on his bed, wishing he could just go back to sleep. "Shoot."

"I wasn't sure whether this idea would be too well received, that's why I came to you first..."

"Yeah, yeah, just get on with it McKay, I'm tired."

"Well... I suppose you remember that planet we sent Dr. Weir and her... Replicator friends to a couple of years ago?"

"Of course I do."

"I thought that if we went there in a Puddle Jumper and picked Dr. Weir up we'd be able to re-animate her and..."

"What?" John was shocked, to say the least. "What the hell does this have to do with the Wraith?"

"Well if you'd let me finish!" Rodney waited for a response. There was none, so he carried on. "If we pick up Elizabeth and re-animate her, we may be able to use her to destroy the Wraith fleet."

"How?"

"Well, when she was... 'ascended', she was able to transfer her conciousness into technology and manipulate it. If she could do that again, she should be able to destroy the Wraith Hives from the inside."

Sheppard sat, and thought for a second, before turning back to Rodney. "No."

"But... but this could be our best chance!"

"We know what happened the last time her and her 'friends' were here. I don't want to take the risk."

"It would only be her. She could do it herself, easily. It's worth it."

"No."

Rodney stood, staring at John in disbelief. He knew it was a long shot, but to dismiss their best hope without even considering it properly wasn't right. He was about to argue, when he noticed a look on John's face that he hadn't seen in a long time. He turned to go, opening the door to the other man's quarters. He was about to step outside, when he turned to his friend and team mate. "Is this really about the threat to Atlantis?" The other man looked up at him. "Or is it because you feel like you'd be using her?"

There was silence for a moment as neither man spoke. Rodney turned to leave again, but John stopped him. "You heard what she said, what the experience was like the first time. It wasn't nice... at all. I don't want to wake her up just to put her through that again. It's not right."

"Neither is the destruction and enslavement of the human race, but if we're not careful, it's going to happen."

John looked for an answer to McKay's remark, but there was none. He was right. The fleet that they were putting together was impressive, but there was nothing to say that it would be enough to combat such a huge Wraith fleet. And even if they succeeded, there would no doubt be thousands of losses, to Earth and her allies. "It... It just doesn't feel..."

"I know John. Believe me, I do. I don't like it, using her like that... But if it means the lives of the billions of people on Earth... or even the lives of a few hundred crew members are saved, then it's worth it." He looked at the Colonel, who was considering their options. "Think about it... Let me know in the morning."

"Meet me here at 07:00." McKay was stopped once again as he went to leave. "We'll present the idea to Colonel Carter together."

Atlantis Conference Room One

"And... That's our idea..." Rodney sat back in his chair, waiting.

Carter looked at the two men in front of her with a slight sense of disbelief. She wasn't sure if they were playing a joke on her, but she looked over at John and she could tell by the look on his face and his past history with Weir that he wouldn't joke about this. "Do you two know what your asking me to do? If I present the plan to the IOA as the Commander of Atlantis, I could lose my position. Considering what happened last time..."

"Well... I was against it too at first Colonel, but it is a good plan... and I've thought about this. We don't have to tell the IOA."

"DON'T tell the IOA?" Sam thought about it for a moment, and realised that John had actually made quite a good point. If the plan failed, they'd all be dead and wouldn't have to answer to the IOA. If the plan worked, the IOA wouldn't have a leg to stand on when it came time for Carter to answer for what her and her people had done.

"It'll work Sam. I promise."

"Don't promise Rodney. I know the risks. And I can't exactly call them small."

"Well neither is that fleet of Hive ships out there right now."

Sam thought for a moment, before leaning forward, cupping her hands on the desk and addressing both of the men in front of her. "Are you guys actually okay with this? On a personal level?"

"I can't say I am..." John replied. "But it helps to stop the Wraith, then it has to be done. We can't let a single Hive survive the battle and reach Earth. This is the best way to stop them."

"Do you think Dr. Weir will be cooperative?"

"I'd bet on it."

The Colonel sat in thought for what seemed like minutes. Finally, she made her decision. "Okay, we have to work fast. We've only got about twelve hours before we leave the system. I'll tell the General of what we're doing, but not the IOA. Get Ronon and Teyla and take out a Jumper. You have a go. I have to see off Lee Adama, he's heading out to Earth this morning. Let me know as soon as you get back."

The two men shot up out of their seats. "Will do Colonel."

SGC

Less than 15 minutes after her meeting in the conference room, Colonel Carter had said good luck to Lee Adama, and sent him on his way to Earth. The first Colonial to step foot on the planet once thought a myth, now the planet that would be the remainder of his people's salvation. He was honoured, and pretty scared at the same time. As he stepped through the Earth end of the Gate- another amazing experience in itself- he took in his surroundings. It was... less impressive then Atlantis had been. But then he had been informed that the Gate was currently in a secret underground base, so he hadn't set his hopes on first impressions. He walked down the metal ramp in front of him to be met by three smiling men.

"Mr. Adama, it's good to meet you." The man in the centre extended his hand, which Lee firmly shook. "I'm General Hank Landry, base commander of the SGC. This is General Hammond on my right, and Richard Woolsey on my left."

"Nice to meet you all." Lee shook the other two men's hands in turn, before following the three of them out of the main Gate room and into a large hallway.

They were soon in a room overlooking the Gate room, with a large table in the middle of it. Lee walked straight to the windows, looking down at the Gate below. It was different to the Atlantis gate. Not as advanced by the looks of things, more... raw. Something that, after spending so long in the fleet, he identified a lot more with. "It's amazing."

Woolsey smiled. "Yes. Yes it is." He gestured to the table, and the four sat down, ready to start the proceedings.

"Mr. Adama," Landry began, "we need to discuss something with you, before we start."

"Yes?"

Hammond and Landry shared a glance, before turning back to the younger man. "We sent out a scout ship to investigate the wormhole you travelled through."

"Oh?" Lee was taken off guard by this, after all the commotion recently he had almost forgotten about how the fleet had ended up in the Pegasus Galaxy.

Mr. Woolsey frowned. "We've discovered something... surprising about it."

Atlantis Mess Hall

Carter walked into the mess hall of Atlantis to see it almost empty. There were a few people scattered around, and in one corner sat General Jack O'Neill, a beer in his hand. She walked over to her ex commanding officer and good friend, pulling up a chair beside him.

"So... It looks pretty empty in here."

"Yes sir. I guess everyone is preparing for this evening." There was an awkward pause between the two for a moment. "I take it you got my message?"

"Yes, I did. And I've gotta say, I'm not sure Carter... This all sounds a little too... risky?"

"I understand sir, but I think it could work. I trust McKay and Colonel Sheppard to do the right thing."

O'Neill sighed. He couldn't say whether or not he would have given the go ahead to the plan, he felt it was one of those things when the only way you could know whether you'd say yes or no was if you were the one sitting there and having to actually say it. Either way, this was Sam's command, and he wasn't about to impinge on it. "Well... I hope it works out alright."

"Me too. There's a hell of a lot riding on this now."

"I think it's best not too."

O'Neill smirked. "I don't blame you. I doubt you'd get much support for an idea like that. Sometimes it's best to just make the decisions yourself and deal with it later."

"I hope you're right Sir."

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. I trust you. And you wouldn't make a decision unless you thought it was the right thing to do. That's good enough for me." Carter smiled back at him as he handed her a bottle that had been sitting on the end of a table. "Here, I got you a beer. Thought you might need it."

Sam opened the bottle and took a drink from it. "Thanks. You were right."

Puddle Jumper

The Puddle Jumper shot through the space gate, entering orbit of a planet whose address the team thought they would never dial again.

Sheppard and Rodney sat at the front of the Jumper, with Ronan and Teyla sitting close behind. No one had said a word since they entered the small ship, bar Sheppard getting the go ahead for launch. None of the team members could quite believe what they were about to do, even Rodney, who'd thought up the idea in the first place.

The HUD flashed up in front of them, showing the planet below. "I'm not picking up any Replicators, Rodney."

"Weird..." Rodney replied.

"What is?"

"That sentence being used as a bad thing..."

John turned to his friend, irritated. "Where are they?"

"Take us into orbit. It's possible they were pulled into orbit themselves."

Teyla leaned forward. "Is it not also possible that they were pulled into the atmosphere... and destroyed?"

John winced at that.

Rodney turned towards the HUD, watching it intently for any sign of the missing Replicators. "There's only one way to find out.

Adama's Quarters

Adama and Roslin sat either side of the Admiral's desk, sharing one of the last bottles of Ambrosia in the fleet, possibly in existence. The old man filled Laura's glass first, and then his own, before sitting back in his chair and sipping from the glass. The two shared a smile across the table.

"So Bill... What do you make of our new allies?"

"... I'm... grateful for them. The fleet was falling apart. Hell, the Galactica was falling apart before the Asgard got to work on her. We wouldn't have lasted much longer..."

"Especially not since we came across those space-vampires..." The two shared a brief chuckle. The idea would be almost humorous, if it hadn't been so frighteningly real. "How do you feel about sending her into a war that... Well, a war that isn't ours?"

"I have no doubts that the people of Earth will lend us their help, if we ever encounter Cavils forces again. If we can't do the same, then we aren't really allies..."

"But what if the Galactica is destroyed, Bill? The fleet, our new home world will be without protection."

"Hey." Bill took her hand, holding it on his desk, rubbing his thumb across the ring he had placed on her finger months before. "The people will never be without protection again."

He smiled at her again, and she held his hand tighter.

"We're safe now."

Puddle Jumper

"There" Rodney pointed at a number of red dots that appeared on the HUD. "I'm willing to bet it's them..."

Sheppard set the Jumper on a course to intercept the frozen synthetic bodies, breathing a sigh of relief that Weir hadn't been destroyed by the planet's atmosphere. Teyla and Ronon stood, coming closer to the screen and looking out over space and the planet below.

Ronon squinted. "...That's them."

"He's right..." Rodney confirmed. "The readings correspond with what I'd expected... Get us in closer."

The Puddle Jumper approached at high speed, giving the inhabitants a better look at the replicators. Teyla turned to Sheppard. "You don't have to do this John... This is your last chance to turn around..." She waited for him to respond, but he didn't. His silence told her everything she needed to know.

The small Lantean ship pulled up close to the machine who bore resemblance to FRAN, the one with the consciousness of Elizabeth Weir inside. John sealed the internal door, before opening the airlock at the back of the ship, and carefully manoeuvring the craft so that Weir would come aboard.

"Steady... We don't want to damage her."

"You think I don't know that, Rodney?"

His friend was about to argue, but for once recognized that it wasn't the time or the place to do so. Eventually, the body was aboard, and John re-sealed the back section of the ship.

"Got her."