CHAPTER 17 – THE PORTAL OPENS AGAIN
There was a cooler breeze coming off the ocean as they made their way back to the island, Gina's island. She had been quiet on the trip back and he knew it was not just tiredness that silenced her. He had insisted she air her demons, and she had. But at what cost? Had she not faced them enough already? Selfish John... why did you insist that she tell you about him? Did you need to put her through it all again? For what?
The docked and he helped her pull the boat to a safe position. The wind had picked up even more and clouds now skudded across the sky. John smelled rain in the air and looking back out to sea, it looked as though a storm was on it's way. The humidity had been building up all afternoon.
The moved across the sand and John picked up the surfboard that had been left there this morning and intended doing a thorough sweep of the area to ensure that everything was locked down tight. He knew that these island storms could be brutal and sweep away anything that wasn't tied down securely.
There was a crack of thunder overhead and lightning forked across the sky and within seconds the heavens opened and it began to pour. Gina stood there immobile, and simply turned her face up to catch the raindrops that began to heave down upon them. "Gina... get inside. You'll be soaked through!" She didn't acknowledge his voice against the noise of the storm and he moved up behind her, gripping her arm to get her attention. "Gina! You can't just stand out here in the rain – go!"
There was another crack of thunder, then John saw a flash of purple light that came from the edge of the sand area, the same part of the beach where he had awoken two days ago. "Gina – look! The portal... I think it's opening again! Come on!"
She heard him then and turning a soaked face in his direction, she allowed him to take her hand and move quickly up the beach, now having to battle slightly against the driving wind and rain. The purple light began to glow more until it encompassed a large area of the beach. This is how it must have looked the night he came through and no one had been awake to see it. He had simply stayed on the sand where he had fallen until morning and the natural light and feel of the sun had eventually woken him.
"John? Is it happening again? Is someone from your time coming through to find you?" He gripped her hand tightly.
"I don't know Gina. Don't get too close – if this is a two way portal then you don't want to get sucked into it. Stay back here, with me. Wait to see if anything comes through." He pulled her back against him, their clothes plastered against them, blinking rapidly at the rain that threatened their vision.
He felt his eyes begin to tear with the strain on keeping them trained on the purple light. It continued to pulse and then finally shut down with a hiss of static electricity. The night was dark again, punctuated only by the occasional fork of lightning that streaked through the sky. Gripping her hand he moved closer, now able to see that two distinct shapes had been left on the sand in the wake of the purple light shutting down. There was no movement, no sound and John cursed the fact that he had no flashlight on him. Not wanting to startle the two shapes on the beach, he crouched down a reasonably close distance to them, but not so close that he would be in hitting distance if they were foes and not friends that had come through.
He immediately recognised the big Satedan, saw his long dreadlocked hair splayed out across the sand and grinned a little when he saw that Ronon wore jeans. Obviously Rodney had told him that his normal attire would not be suitable for a visit to earth. Taking a careful look at the second body, John nodded to himself. Yep, that was Rodney. Nosy little scientist couldn't resist the trip back through time. He felt a sudden surge of relief. They had found a way to come back for him, which would mean that Rodney must have discovered his purpose for coming here and knew a way for them all to get back. Then relief bottomed out. He would have to leave Gina. Not gonna happen... John pushed the thought away. It had to happen, ripples, paradoxes and all that crap. No question about it. It had to happen.
"Rodney! You arrive on earth fifty years in the past and all you want to do is sleep? Get up you lazy scientist. Whose the hell is rescuing who?"
Rodney groaned and it was Ronon who leaped to his feet, face registered instant wariness in the darkening of the storm before he realised that it was Sheppard who stood before them. His face broke into a grin and he was bouncing towards the smaller man, picking him up like a rag doll and nearly shattering all the bones in his body to hug him. "Damn Sheppard, it's good to see you!"
"Yeah Ronon, back atcha... but could you...aah, put me down. Ribs about to crack... aaah thank you.!
Rodney rolled to his feet making ineffectual motions to keep the rain from battering his face. "Sheppard? That you? Did we make it?"
"Yes you did Rodney. I hope you brought the means to get us all home. Not that I'm not pleased to see you... but I'd hate to think we were all trapped here now?"
Gina now clung to John's soaked arm and pulled slightly. "Can we continue this indoors John? The storm's getting worse and we need to get out of this wet clothing."
Gina put the kettle on to boil, a pot of soup on the stove to simmer, directed John to grab as many dry towels as he could and started making a large plate of sandwiches. It was Ronon's dark glance that followed her around the kitchen as she worked and more than once she looked up to find him staring at her. Eventually, she stopped what she was doing, planted her feet in the middle of her kitchen with her hands on her hips, a slightly grumpy expression on her face and said "what?"
Ronon just looked at her. Gina all but stamped her feet. "You've been staring at me like some sulky child who lost his favourite toy. What is wrong? If you want to know something, damn well ask me. Don't just stare at me. It's rude and disconcerting."
John walked in then, having just had a shower and was drying his hair off. Catching the end of her conversation he laughed. "Ronon's the strong silent type. He doesn't say much. But Ronon, play nice with the lady. She's been my lifeline since I've been here... and then some..." His gaze heated as it slid over her and Ronon's gaze sharpening, switching quickly from Gina to John.
"We need to talk Sheppard!"
"That we do Ronon. We'll wait until Rodney's done in the shower and we'll sit and enjoy the food that this wonderful lady has prepared for us, and then we'll talk. There's nothing you can't say in front of her – I had to come clean so to speak. Her father is a general in the airforce... and there are some other things, that have come to light... oh yeah, lot's to tell you big guy!"
Rodney's enthusiasm returned in spades when he saw the spread that Gina had arranged for them, and with his first genuine smile since he had arrived in this time line, sat down and began devouring the food, trying to talk as sandwich after sandwich disappeared into his mouth. John flashed a derisive smile at Gina. "You'll have to excuse my rather rude friend Gina. Eating is a favourite past time of his and I'm sure in his food starved mind, he has no doubt rationalised that he hasn't eaten for fifty years..."
Rodney spat out the mouthful of sandwich. "Fifty years Sheppard? That's how far back this took us?"
"Yup! Fifty years Rodney. No comments from you big guy? In fact Ronon, you've been quiet, even for you..."
"I'm worried Sheppard. You look too calm. I expected you to be a little more... pissed... when we arrived."
"Ok boys, time for the story, and it's a doozy..." John steepled his fingers and began from his arrival on the beach two days ago, stopping now and again to answer questions from Rodney and feeling all the while, Ronon's dark gaze that first raked his own face, then lingered on Gina's. The big guy missed very little.
"So in the veritible nutshell boys. Save the astronaut, save the space programme, let Sam Carter do her thing with the stargate... and all is right in our little corner of the time line."
Rodney's glance took in Gina. "So, Samantha Carter's cousin... my Sam? Wow – I'm not usually at a loss for words – just ask Sheppard here, but wow! That is some thought provoking stuff, really. Sam? Wow. And Sheppard? You haven't done anything here, interacted with the wrong people – so as to mess with the time line...please tell me you haven't..." He threw a meaningful look at Gina this time.
Unprotected sex? I guess that counts as interacting and messing with the time line... God, what if she's pregnant? That would pretty much screw things right away... but there's something I'm missing... Jen/Callandra knew about us... there were no warnings, she knows what is happening is not going to change anything... and she knows something about Gina that she hasn't told me yet – or Gina...
"I've told a few things to people who now have a bit of advance warning of things to come, but nothing that could invoke anyone to do anything beyond what they would normally. Gina's dad had heard whispers about the stargate programme – it's being researched now as we speak, so I didn't open any can of worms there. Gina's aunt, that was the scary bit..."
Gina looked at him sharply. "She told you something, didn't she? You were alone in the kitchen with her for too long, and I saw the look in her eye when she saw you. She knew you. And there are things about her that didn't seem right as I was growing up. She was careful always, to watch what she said and did, but sometimes little things would slip... little comments that made me think that she had a pyschic ability, could see into the future. But it's more than that isn't it?"
"I can't tell you your aunt's secret – that's hers alone to tell you. But I do know that she's keeping something important from me, something that affects what I do here. I'm going to see her again tomorrow, I need to know everything she can tell me if I am to complete this job and do it right. I suggest you pin her down and make her tell you – she knows that you can handle whatever she throws at you... perhaps she just needed the right moment."
He turned to Rodney now. "You didn't answer my question Rodney. Do you or do you not have the means to get us home...?"
Rodney turned a not so delicate shade of red. "Ah! About that Sheppard..."
"I'm guessing that means 'no'... Rodney!"
"Damn it Sheppard! I had Ronon breathing down my neck just to get us here. There was no way he was going to wait for me to find out whether it was a two way tunnel or not. Besides, I figured you'd have the answer by the time we got here... have you?" This last bit was said somewhat hopefully.
"You're lucky Rodney – I don't have the answer, but I'm pretty sure I know who does and it seems that everything we do here – now – is predestined, which means there's a way home. Tomorrow we talk to Jennifer Carter. I'm sure she'll shed some illuminating thoughts over all of this. For all of us..." This last was said with a sharp look at Gina.