A/N: I do not own the most amazing series ever. What a shame, right? Oh well. Chalk one up to MGM!
Anywho. Sorry about the cliffhanger. It was worth it though, I swear!
Chapter 9
Jack snapped the phone shut. It looked like he had a few calls to make. He moved through the SGC and into General Landry's office and closed the door. Hank looked up. "Hank. I need a favor."
A little while later, Jack left his office and made his way to the control room. When he walked in, he looked at Sam Carter sitting in front of one of the computers. "Sam, dial Atlantis."
She turned and looked at him. She saw the seriousness in his eyes and wondered what was going on. She nodded and dialed Atlantis.
On the other side of the wormhole, Chuck was yelling for Dr. Weird. "Unscheduled gate activation!" Elizabeth walked into the control room from her office. "It's the SGC, ma'am." She nodded. "Open a channel."
He nodded and pointed to her when the line was open. "This is Dr. Weir." General O'Neill's voice came over the radio. "General Jack O'Neill here. I need to speak with Drs. Carson Beckett and Jennifer Keller." Elizabeth turned around and nodded to Chuck to have them come to the control room immediately. He nodded and informed them. "They're on their way. Is something wrong, General?"
He sighed. "Actually, yes. That's why I need to speak with the Drs." She nodded and turned to see them walk into the room. "Here they are."
Carson walked over to the control panel with Jennifer and Rodney right behind him. "This is Dr. Beckett. What can I do for you, General?"
"I called to inform you and Dr. Keller need to come through the wormhole. Immediately. You'll only be gone for a few hours." Jennifer and Carson exchanged looks. She stepped up next to Carson and spoke up. "If you don't mind me asking, sir, but why are we going back to Earth?"
There was a pause before he answered. "You will be accompanying me to St. Rose Hospital where a man named Dave Sheppard is being treated. I'll do the business talk while you do the medical talk. We'll be taking him with us and returning to Atlantis with Colonel Sheppard Dr. Teagan."
They all looked at each other. Rodney looked up. "That's Sheppard's brother." Jack's voice came over the radio again. "Is that McKay?" "Yes, General. Dr. McKay here." "Oh. But yes, that is John's brother. I received a call from the Colonel a few minutes ago. There's nothing the doctors on Earth can do for him and he was hoping Beckett and Keller would be able to do more. I already approved it with Landry. So, I'll see you both in a few minutes. Well, I'll see the three of you. McKay can come too. O'Neill out."
Elizabeth looked at her senior staff members and nodded. "Go. Bring them back safely." They nodded and the three moved down the stairs to the gate room and walked through the gate.
sgasgasgasga
John walked back into Dave's room. He walked over and sat on the couch. He took Becca's hands in his and looked directly into her eyes. "Becca, you need to listen to me, okay?"
She nodded hesitantly. "I just spoke to Dr. Heath and he said there's nothing more he can do. But." He looked at Nikki and then back at Becca. "I made a call to a good friend of mine who made another call to the base where I'm stationed." Her eyebrows scrunched together. "I don't understand. Isn't it just a military base? How would a military base be able to help Dave?"
John took a deep breath. "I'm not stationed on an ordinary military base. Before I can tell you more, you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone about anything I'm about to tell you. You still don't have security clearance, but that's being processed as we speak."
She looked between Nikki and John. She slowly nodded. "Becca, I'm the commanding military officer in a place called Atlantis. I'm sure you've heard of the Lost City of Atlantis?" She nodded. "That's the one. We're on a science expedition and I'm in charge of everyone's safety. I would never ask this if I thought there wasn't a chance it might help Dave."
"John, I don't understand." He nodded and looked down for a second and then back up at her. "There are doctors on Atlantis who are very experienced and have more technology than the doctors have here. Dave has a better chance of surviving there than he does here, you have to trust me on this. I'm asking for both of you to come to Atlantis with us. He'll receive the best care possibly in two galaxies."
She smiled at what she thought was his joke. She turned and looked at Dave. She watched as his chest slowly moved up and down. The looked at the tube that was the only thing keeping her husband breathing, at all the wires and iv's. She looked back at John. "Okay. We'll go."
He breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. Because they're on their way here now. Two of my personal friends who are doctors will be accompanying General O'Neill who will talk to the hospital about releasing Dave into their care. He'll tell them he's being transferred to a military hospital since I'm in the military. No one can know where he's really going, okay?"
She nodded. John looked at Nikki and silently asked her to explain the rest. She nodded and turned to look at Becca. "Becca, there are some things you need to know before General O'Neill gets here. Are you up to discussing it right now?" She looked at the woman John seemed to trust. She looked at John and he nodded. She turned back to Nikki. "Yes, I'm ready."
"Atlantis isn't on Earth. It's in another galaxy. We'll be getting there by a device called a stargate. It opens a portal for you to step through and reach your destination. With this device, you can go to other planets, solar systems, and galaxies. All it is, is a round, blue surface that looks a lot like a puddle of water. All you have to do is step through it. It doesn't hurt. I've stepped through it plenty of times, as has John."
Becca turned to look at John, her eyes wide. "It's true, Becca. It doesn't hurt at all, I promise. It's perfectly safe." Unless there's a solar flare in the area, then you may be sent back or forward in time…, he thought to himself.
He squeezed her hands. "I'll be right there with you the entire time. The people on Atlantis are very nice and they'll help us. They'll help Dave as best as they can. Dr. Beckett and Dr. Keller have an exceptional team and they'll do their best. You have my word on that."
She nodded. "Okay. What about the kids? I can't just leave them here.."
John thought for a moment. "How old are they?" "The oldest is fifteen and the youngest is twelve." John nodded and looked at Nikki. "You think Teyla would mind?"
She shook her head and smiled. "You know Teyla. She never minds. And plus, she's expecting a child of her own. She'd probably love to watch them."
He nodded and looked back at Becca. "There's a woman named Teyla Emmagen. She's a member on my team and I've known her since the first day we found Atlantis. She's from a planet in the same galaxy that Atlantis is in. She's a very kind and caring woman. She's the leader of her people and would be more than happy to watch them while we're on Atlantis."
"So, will she be coming here or are we taking them with us and she'll watch them there?"
John thought for a moment. He really didn't want to push his luck with the SGC, but it was Dave's kids. "They'll be coming with us. You'll all have to sign a non-disclosure statement and I'll have to get them security clearance as well." She nodded. "Okay. Let's do this." John nodded and leaned back against the couch.
He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and flipped it out. He decided to text the general instead of calling again. He asked him to get security clearances for the two kids as well. He explained that they were too young to just be left at home by themselves, but old enough to understand why they couldn't talk about Atlantis when they returned to Earth.
They spent the next few hours waiting for their friends to get there. They didn't really do much. John's face was a little pale and Nikki didn't like that look. She volunteered to go down to the cafeteria and get them all some food. Becca decided to join her to learn more about her brother-in-law's girlfriend.
They walked down to the cafeteria in silence. They were originally going to take all the food back up to the room, but Becca had another idea. "Why don't we give John a few more minutes alone with Dave. He's a very private person and he could probably use the alone time right now."
Nikki nodded and they headed over to a table with their food. They sat down and started eating in silence. Becca was the first to break it. "So, tell me about you. I want to know more about the woman who's stolen my brother-in-law's heart." She looked up at Nikki with a smile on her face. Nikki blushed slightly and smiled. "I'm one of the head scientists on the base. I also have a medical degree and my father was in the military, so he practically put my brother and I through boot camp while we were growing up."
Becca smiled. "Ah, so you're a triple threat out there." Nikki smiled and looked down at her coffee. "Yeah, that's what John says. I'm really lucky to have him in my life." She looked up at Becca who looked thrilled. "You seem like a really wonderful woman. And perfect for John. I've noticed that it seems like you can look right through all those walls he puts up around himself. And he lowers them for you. You two must really care about each other. How long have you been together?"
Nikki almost laughed. "Well…we've been good friends for a few months. We started going on dates about two months ago, but we just made it official today."
Becca looked surprised. "Really? That's all? It seemed like you two had been together for quite some time the way you were interacting with each other." Nikki nodded and smiled. "Yeah, you'd think we have been. We've just been through a lot together and it's brought us a lot closer." Becca nodded, thinking everything through.
"So, you mentioned you have a brother?" Nikki nodded and took a sip of her coffee. "Yeah, he's a scientist on the base too." Becca finished her food and took a sip of her coffee.
"I see. Are you both in the same kind of science?"
Nikki actually did laugh at this. They had gotten in so many fights about what kind of science they each went into. "No. I'm an astrophysicist among other things and he's a botanist."
Becca nodded. Wow, John sure did land himself a smart one. And beautiful…,she thought.
"So, tell me about his team. What are they like? How many are on his team?"
"Well, there's three others on his team besides him. Dr. Rodney McKay who is the head of the Science and Research department and a completely arrogant man who surprisingly won over John's trust and loyalty and they're best friends. Ronon Dex is…a civilian contract. He looks really intimidating, and is if you pose a threat to John, the team, or…the base. He's very protective and a really cool guy when you get to know him. And then there's Teyla Emmagen. She's the leader of her people. They're called Athosians. She's one of the most caring people I've ever met. You'll really like her." Becca smiled. It seemed John worked with a lot of interesting people.
"What about others on the base? Is there anyone I should know about?"
"Dr. Elizabeth Weir is in charge of the expedition. John's her second in command. She's a civilian so he takes care of all the military and safety aspects. She's a really wonderful woman. Highly respected on the base. Dr. Carson Beckett and Dr. Jennifer Keller are the chief medical officers. They're the best in their field. Um…Major Evan Lorne. He's John's second in command. They've gotten really close since Lorne was transferred there."
Nikki looked down at her coffee for a moment and then back up at Becca. "Becca, I mean no disrespect when I say this. Our group back on base…we've become like an adopted family. We all look out for one another and everyone's really close. John, his team, Dr. Weir, Beckett, Keller, Lorne, my brother…we all consider each other family. We fight to save each other's lives almost every other day. It's brought us really close together. But, like I said, I mean no disrespect to you or your family when I say that."
Becca smiled. "I know you don't. To be honest, I'm not sure if John considers us really family anymore. I wouldn't blame him one bit if he didn't. John and his father never saw eye to eye. The last time they spoke to each other…Patrick had demanded John stay out of the military and stay and work in the family business. He actually told John that…He would be a disgrace to his family if he left to go fly a plane around with no concern for anyone but himself. That had hit John really hard. And then he and Dave got into a big fight about that fight. And John left. That was the last time we all saw him before the funeral. I had hoped those two would reconcile their differences before it was too late, but…as you can see, that didn't happen. I just hope that it's not too late for John and Dave."
Nikki nodded. "I'm sure it isn't. Our doctors will do their damnedest to help Dave. I know they will. There's still hope." She reached over and laid her hand on Becca's giving her some hope. Becca smiled and squeezed her hand.
They let go, but before they got up to throw their trash away, a cold voice came from behind Nikki.
"So, I see the whore's still here." Nikki's muscles tensed. She turned around to see Nancy standing behind her. Nikki stood up to face her. "What do you want?"
Becca stood up, but stayed where she was at. "I want to know why a little home wrecker like you is still here. It's disrespectful to this family and to Dave for you to be here. So why don't you scurry on away before I call security."
Becca moved to stand next to Nikki. "She's not being disrespectful, Nancy. She was invited here and she has more of a right to be here than you do. Now, I understand your intentions for being here for Dave, but if you continue to insult my brother-in-law's girlfriend, I will be the one to call security." Nancy's eyes buldged. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me, Nancy. You're not a part of this family anymore. You haven't been since you asked John for a divorce and tried to make his life miserable while he was in the States. He was nothing but nice to you. He didn't even ask for anything out of the divorce. And that was years ago and you're still bitter."
"I'm only bitter because he chooses to sleep around with little hoes like this one instead of coming back to me, where he belongs." Becca rolled her eyes. "You're the one who asked for the divorce. So drop it."
"Why don't you mind your own damn business, Becca? Oh wait, you don't know how to do that. Just like your husband."
Nikki kept looking back and forth between the two during the discussion. It was time for her to jump in. "That's a low blow and you know it. It's you who can't seem to mind their own damn business. I don't care what you call me, but don't you dare disrespect this family. It just proves how worthless you really are. Now why don't you do the scurrying and get lost."
Becca grabbed Nikki's hand and started to pulled her away. "Let's go back up to the room, Nikki. This isn't worth it."
Nikki turned away to follow Becca, but Nancy grabbed her arm, yanked her around and punched her in the face. Nikki stumbled back a step, but caught Nancy's next strike. She blocked it, grabbed her arm, twisted it behind her back, and slammed her down on the table they had just been sitting at. She leaned forward and whispered in Nancy's ear. "The next time you decide to disrespect this family, think twice. This is nothing. Now I suggest you get your ass out of here before you're thrown out of here. Got that?"
She yanked on Nancy's arm for good measure and then released her. She turned back to Becca and they left the cafeteria together. As soon as they were clear of the cafeteria, Becca turned to Nikki.
"You truly are amazing. That was awesome. You didn't have to stick up for my family."
Nikki turned to look at her. "I know, but that was completely disrespectful and I couldn't just stand there and not do anything about it. Especially after she hit me."
Becca then noticed the line of blood running down Nikki's cheek. "Nikki, you're bleeding."
She reached up and touched the cut. "She must have gotten me with one of her rings when she hit me. John's not going to be happy when he sees this…" Becca shook her head. "No…he's not."
So..what do you think about Nancy? Hah. I wanted to have her really tick off Nikki and have Nikki show her loyalty to John and his family in that way. Review! Tell me what you think!