Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a work of pure fiction. All characters and events depicted in this story are entirely fictitious. Any similarity to actual events or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Tags: *Nicholas Rush (SGU)/Belle French (OUAT), *Col Everett Young/Lt Tamara (TJ) Johansen, *Eli Wallace/Ginn, *Lt Matthew Scott/Chloe Armstrong, *Dr Nicholas Rush, *Belle French, *Chloe Armstrong, *Col Everett Young, *Lt Matthew Scott, *Eli Wallace, *Camille Wray, *Lt Tamara (TJ) Johansen, *Master Sergeant Ronald Greer, *Adam Brody, *Lisa Park, *Dale Volker, *Lt Vanessa James, *Dr Daniel Jackson (SG1), *Maurice French (OUAT), *Henry Mills (OUAT), *Emma Swan (OUAT), *Baelfire (OUAT), *Regina Mills (OUAT), *Col Samantha Carter (SG1), *Gen Jack O'Neill (SG1), *Col David Telford, *Crossover, *Series re-write, *Angst (beware chapter 17), *Smut (did I really write this much smut? Yes … yes, I did), *Nasty blue aliens, *Super long chapters
Summary: Belle's not the shy, timid little teacher's assistant Dr. Rush always believed her to be. Would he have brought her aboard Destiny had he known beforehand? A reboot of the series basically, but with my own twists and Belle thrown into the mix.
A/N: I originally posted this story under the name 'Another Chance' back in 2014. It was taken down for extensive re-editing (hoping I could somehow find my muse once more). Two ladies very near and dear to me, AquaJasmine23 and Emilie Brown begged me to write this (eons ago in a galaxy … well, you know). Anyway, I'm going to give this a shot (again) and see if I might be able to finish it this time. Yes, I got hung up on season two (horrid). I hope you all enjoy it. Thank you to Moonlight91, Ladybugsmomma, beastlycheese & ghostwriter107 for encouraging me to repost.
Another Chance at Love
By:
CharlotteAshmore
I: Air Part I
Belle slowly approached his desk at the front of the auditorium style classroom, nearly biting a hole in her lip to stop her anger from bubbling forth. In the ten years since fleeing Storybrooke after the death of her true love, she'd learned better than most how to hide herself. She'd dyed her hair the mousiest brown she could find in the Clairol section of the nearest Walmart, wearing it in a demure bun at the back of her head instead of hanging in loose curls over her shoulders. She hid her startling cerulean eyes behind a pair of ordinary metal framed glasses, making sure to keep her eyes lowered, giving the illusion of shyness. And she dressed more conservatively than she ever had since gaining her release from Regina's underground prison, her style more suited to her former friend, Mary Margaret, than her own. If it was one thing Belle French was adept at, it was hiding, refusing to let her guard down for a moment. Her life in Storybrooke had ended the moment Gold had sacrificed himself and she'd been left sobbing … alone in the street. She'd never looked back, but on the off chance someone from Storybrooke ever came searching for her, they'd never find her.
Now, she was six months away from earning her doctorate in Astrophysics and she wouldn't let one paper derail her dream. She'd worked too long and hard to see it all become a pile of ash. It didn't matter that she was exceedingly attracted to her professor … and not for the cosmic coincidence that he favored Gold far too much. She admired him for his quick wit and utter brilliance in his field. The physical attributes were just a bonus. He knew for a fact how many hours she logged every week working as his teacher's assistant in addition to her studies and he was just being unfair. Besides, the last thing she needed was the complications of a romantic relationship even if she thought he was capable of such. He was far too devoted to his work. Yet, it didn't stop her from admiring the view. The best she could admit to was a grudging friendship. Her determination to succeed demanded she get through this on her own merit, and she would never use that friendship to her advantage, but his comments had cut her to the quick.
Dr. Rush lifted his head from the papers he was grading and sat back in his chair, removing his glasses, and pinching the bridge of his nose before arching a brow at her.His gaze raked her from head to toe as she edged closer to his desk. "Ah, Miss French," he said in greeting, his voice a soft caress, his brogue not as pronounced as it had been when she'd first met him. Years of teaching in the states had mellowed his accent just as it had her own. "What can I do for you?"
"Dr. Rush," she began, striving for an even tone to hide the anger burning in her chest. "I have questions about my paper." She flipped open the cover on her portfolio and withdrew the offending essay from within. She held it out before her as if it were dripping with refuse, a large red C- marked at the top and more than one or two notes written in the margins.
He glanced between her and the paper, making no move to take it from her. "And what might those questions be, Miss French?" his tongue rolled over her name as if it were precious to him. "I thought I made it quite clear what you'd done wrong,"
Belle set the paper and the portfolio down on the desk and perched her hip against the edge, crossing her arms over her chest. She regarded him from beneath her lashes so he wouldn't see the flashing ire hidden within the depths of her cerulean orbs. "I don't agree with your assessment," she said simply.
The corner of his thin lips quirked up into a sneering smirk. "Miss French, in the four years you've taken my classes, and the two years you've been my teacher's assistant, have you ever known me to alter a grade once I've marked it?"
"No."
"Then why would you think I would do it for you?" he asked, his dulcet tones dropping an octave into something which sent a pleasurable shiver skipping up her spine. "Because you don't agree with it? Or because you are my teacher's assistant in my other classes and wish to take advantage of our … association?"
Belle gaped at him at the mere suggestion that she would use her position to coerce him into changing her grade. "If you alter my grade, it will be because the work is deserving of the mark and nothing more," she insisted. "I just don't think your assessment was fair. I put in the work ..."
"And it was more suited to a first year student than what I've come to expect from you." He rose from his desk and sighed, as if he were weary of their discussion. "Your work was shoddy at best, your thought process was mediocre and it was … sloppy."
Belle sucked in a sharp breath as he moved closer, that last word whispered just inches from her lips. "But, Dr. Rush, if my GPA slips lower than a 3.8 I'll be booted from the honors program, and I won't be able to graduate early. I need this degree," she murmured, her heart racing at his close proximity. She clasped her hands behind her back to rein in her desire to reach for him, and pull him closer.
"Tell me, Miss French … what would you be willing to do for a better grade?" he asked, slipping one lone finger beneath her chin to tilt her face up to meet his gaze.
Her lips parted on a gasp as she lost herself in deep pools of warm sable so dark they were nearly black. He reached for her, one hand gently removing the glasses perched on her nose, the other pulling the comb from her hair, her glorious curls cascading over her shoulders to the middle of her back. He tossed her glasses onto the stack of papers next to his own and buried his hands in her unbound hair, his long fingers stroking gently over her nape as he pulled her closer, his lips brushing gently over hers. "Beautiful."
She moaned softly, her lips parting beneath his as his tongue slid sinuously along hers, probing farther to flick against the roof of her mouth. "Tell me what you want, Belle," he whispered, sucking on her lower lip. His large hands slipped over her arms and along her sides until they fitted themselves perfectly over her gently rounded hips, lifting her to sit on the edge of the desk as he stepped between her parted knees.
His mouth trailed a scorching path of lips, teeth, and tongue to the shell of her ear as he molded his body flush with hers, bending her back over his arm, her hair sweeping across the wood surface of the desk. She tilted her head to the side to give him better access. "Nicholas ..." she breathed, her nails digging into his shoulders through the white button up he wore.
How long had it been since someone had touched her like this? And the fact that certain someone was Dr. Nicholas Rush - whom she'd wanted since she'd met him - made her all the more sensitive to his touch as his hand glided along the inside of her thigh beneath her average length skirt. She wouldn't allow herself to dwell on all the reasons this was wrong … not when it felt so good, so right, so perfect. She cried out, a long keening cry of need as his knuckles grazed against the lace covered juncture between her legs, the cloth damp with her arousal.
"I want you so much, Belle. I have for what seems like forever. Will you have me, Belle? Belle ..."
"Belle! Wake up!"
Belle's eyes flew open in alarm as she sat back hard in her chair, nearly toppling over. She regained her balance and laid her palms flat on her desk, glancing up at Sergeant Riley as he peered down at her, a concerned frown knitting his brow.
"Hey, you ok?" he asked, perching a hip on the corner of her desk in the limited space. Belle was organized to an OCD level, but the amount of work she was required to do on a daily basis for Dr. Rush took up most of the surface. "You were moaning in your sleep."
Crimson colored her cheeks as she covered them with her hands, pushing her glasses atop her head and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Oh, gods!" she groaned.
"Must've been some dream, eh?"
"You have no idea," she deadpanned, grinning sheepishly up at him. "How long was I out this time?"
"'Bout an hour," he said, glancing at the clock hanging on the wall. "You were on the same shift I was yesterday. Corporal Andrews said you worked all last night and you were here when I came on this morning. When are you planning to take a break?"
"Have you forgotten who my boss is, by any chance?" she snorted. "Just because he had to rush back to Earth to meet with the general does not mean I can slack off while he's gone."
Riley snatched a green jolly rancher out of the small glass crock on her desk and peeled off the wrapper. "You're not going to be able to work if you collapse, Belle. Try to get some rest, knock off at a decent hour," he suggested.
"I'll try," she promised, watching him walk back to his own terminal to monitor communications there at the base. He was a nice guy, younger than she was, and not yet jaded to the horrors she'd experienced before she was twenty. Being in the military, even such an enviable post as Icarus base, he wouldn't remain innocent for long.
She clicked the mouse and her computer screen flickered to life. She did the same to the laptop sitting next to it and checked to see if the figures in the program matched. She removed the flash drive from the laptop and reinserted it into the tower of the desktop before once again entering the calculations she and Rush had been working on before he'd been called away. It was a dream come true for him to have the chance to work in this program, his life's work finally realized. She'd jumped at the chance to come with him. She didn't want to admit she couldn't imagine remaining to finish her degree if he wasn't there. His friendship and mentorship had breathed new life into her stagnant existence and now she felt her life had purpose again. She was doing a job she loved - lack of sleep being the only drawback sometimes - she was off on the greatest adventure she could have imagined.
Belle grinned at the memory of her first ride in a spaceship … the same one which had brought them to Icarus base six months ago. Twenty one light years from Earth and anyone who might still be looking for her. When Rush had been offered to head the science team on this project, he'd had one request; that she would be allowed to accompany him as his assistant if she agreed. She would have been utterly stupid to refuse. So she'd packed her overlarge rucksack - the same one she carried with her everywhere so she would be ready to run if the situation required it - and set off to follow him.
The work was demanding, but highly rewarding, their singular mission to unlock the mathematical proof which would allow them to dial the ninth chevron address on the stargate. Since it had been found in the Ancients' database on Atlantis, it had been a mystery, and not even she and Rush had been able to solve it. He'd even gone so far as to embed the mathematical problem into an online video game in hopes that someone might solve it. So far they'd come up empty handed, but she had hope. She had no regrets. The path she was on was surely destined. And when Rush flew off into one of his rages, she was there to soothe him through it … much to the relief of anyone within a ten foot radius. Normally he was soft spoken and studious, but woe to those foolish enough to underestimate his temper.
Her cheeks flamed once more as her mind drifted back to the dream she'd had. It seemed the more she denied her mounting feelings for Rush, the more he plagued her dreams. Her very vivid naughty dreams, she thought, groaning inwardly. Perhaps she just needed to get laid, her own hand no longer enough to satisfy her urges. The base was full of eligible young men who would suit her purposes, several whom had already propositioned her, but she dismissed the thought as if it had never crossed her mind. She didn't want a casual relationship with just anyone. She wasn't built that way. She needed someone who could arouse her mind as well as her body and as sweet as some of her new friends were, they weren't what she wanted. If she were honest with herself, she would admit that only one man would do for her and in her mind, he was strictly off limits.
X*X*X*X*X
Belle had finally reached a stopping point in her work where she felt it wouldn't be amiss to take a short break to return to her room to shower and change. She opted for a more casual look on Icarus than she had while living on earth, preferring jeans, boots and a long sleeved blue tunic style shirt that afternoon. Quickly running a brush through her still damp hair, she coiled and pinned it at the back of her head, leaving a few stray tendrils to frame her face in her haste. She slipped her needless glasses onto her nose and locked the door behind her as she set off back to the gate room.
Tamara Johansen, better known as TJ to her friends, called out to her as she started off down the corridor. "Belle!"
Belle stopped, allowing the other woman to catch up with her, the black uniform she wore proclaiming her status as military. "Hey, TJ, you on duty? You only have two weeks left, right?"
"Yeah, my scholarship came through, so I'll be leaving at the end of next week."
Belle noticed the medical bag she carried. "Someone hurt?"
TJ shot her a surprised look. "You didn't hear?"
Belle shook her head, a puzzled frown pulling at her lips.
"Well, you didn't hear this from me, but Greer is in detention for attacking a senior officer. I'm on my way to the holding area to assess his wounds."
Belle winced, hating that the young master sergeant had finally let his temper get the better of him. He was a good friend, having taken an instant liking to her when she'd arrived at the base, but his temper was just short of volatile. "You can't mean to tell me he attacked Young? He practically worships the man."
"Telford," TJ whispered in an aside.
"Do you know why?"
TJ snorted. "This is Colonel Telford we're talking about. Who on this base can claim they haven't wanted to do the same?"
Belle chuckled in spite of herself. "You mind if I tag along? I have a few minutes to -" The radio clipped to her belt crackled to life, cutting her off.
"Miss French!"
TJ cringed, her pert nose crinkling at the sound of Dr. Rush's clipped tone. Belle held the radio closer to her mouth. "Yes, Dr. Rush?" she asked, hoping the medic didn't notice how her cheeks tinted pink at the sound of his voice.
"Gate room … now. Rush out."
"Crap," she groaned, clipping the radio back to her belt. "Well, back to work. TJ, tell Ron I'll try to come see him later, ok?"
She set off down the corridor leading to the gate room, her steps hurried now that her boss was back. Of course, he would have to show up when she was away from her terminal, and would no doubt scold her for slacking while he was away. She missed a step and nearly stumbled, catching herself at the last minute, as she took in the scene before her. Telford and Young had their team assembled in two lines on either side of the gate platform and there were three civilians she didn't know. Thankfully, they commanded Rush's attention, and she was able to slip around them to her terminal unnoticed.
Belle's ears perked up with interest as he addressed a tall man in a suit, the senator of California, if she had heard correctly. "As you know, up until now, we have been unable to channel the precise amount of power necessary to unlock the stargate's ninth and final chevron. However, thanks to some ingenuity from young Mr. Wallace here," Rush said, gesturing to the young man at his side, "that problem has finally been solved."
Wait, what? She thought, arching a brow as she took in the man standing beside Rush. He was tall, though maybe not six feet, with dark hair and eyes. His clothes were wrinkled and disheveled, as if they'd pulled the poor soul right out of bed. This was their genius?
Colonel Young turned to smirk at Rush. "We've heard that before."
"This time we're sure," Rush assured him. Only Belle knew him well enough to notice the slight tensing of his shoulders as he answered the other man.
Eli shot a dubious look between the colonel and Rush. "That's what I figured out?"
"I embedded the mathematical problem we had to solve into the game. I then engineered your solution into a practical workable application."
Belle edged her way to Riley's side at his terminal as Young gave the order to begin the sequence, watching with avid interest as the first chevron locked in place, the gate whirring to life.
Eli gaped incredulously at Rush then turned his startled gaze on the slowly spinning gate. "We're dialing now?
Rush nodded. "A test … to see if we can make a connection."
"If we do, we will send an automated reconnaissance drone through. We'll see what's on the other side," Young said, rocking back on his heels.
Chloe, Senator Armstrong's model thin daughter, could barely contain her excitement. "And then we'll go?"
"No, first we close down again, assess the data we receive, and then perhaps send the away team," Rush said, his brows drawing together as the symbol for the ninth chevron was engaged … and refused to lock on. The gate sparked, the lights in the room flickering at the increased power.
Eli leaned close to the first lieutenant who had been assigned to him, as tour guide or just someone to keep him out of trouble, he wasn't certain. "What's going on?"
Matthew Scott shook his head. "I dunno. We never got this far before."
Belle groaned inwardly as she watched Rush's face fall. He'd been working so hard to achieve this goal and now it seemed they would be faced with another failure.
Rush moved to stand behind Riley, checking over the man's shoulder to make sure everything had been entered into the program properly. "We matched the power requirements down to the EMU. It must work."
Young ordered Riley to shut it down and the gate went dark and slowly came to a stop. Rush wanted to protest, but decided not to bother, knowing his protests would fall on deaf ears, mumbling about running through the equations again. Belle sighed and settled at her terminal, opening the camera on her iPhone and setting it aside, ready for when she needed it, ignoring Young and his entourage as they left the gate room.
X*X*X*X*X
"What is your status, Miss French?" Rush asked, tossing a bag of Jolly Rancher hard candies on her desk and swiping up a dry erase marker. His eye never ventured from the whiteboard as he shucked his jacket. "Those are a gift from Dr. Jackson, by the way," he added as an afterthought. "He said he misses your emails."
Belle grinned at the scowl twisting his mouth and shoved the bag of candies in the open rucksack beneath her desk. "I'm sure you sent him my regards?" she asked, knowing Daniel had gotten a scowl at best and Rush's best death glare at worst. She'd gotten to know the doctor well when she and Rush had been forced under his tutelage and they'd become fast friends. He was the leading authority on Ancient and she and Rush could speak it fluently after their six week course with Jackson. Now the man indulged her obsession with fruity hard candies at every opportunity. She was sad she couldn't email him to thank him properly.
Rush turned back to the board, chewing thoughtfully on the top of the marker and steadfastly ignoring her question. "Status," he reminded her.
"I'm quite well, Dr. Rush. How are you?" she asked playfully, a teasing grin stretching her lips. "And might I say, it was so very thoughtful of you to bring me someone new to play with," she snarked, glancing at Eli with a wink. The boy blushed and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"You are determined to distract me," he snarled.
Belle shrugged, enjoying their exchange. "Of course."
Rush tossed the marker onto her desk and raked a frustrated hand through his hair. "Fine. It's lovely to see you, Miss French. I missed your witty repartee while I was away and just couldn't wait to get back. Dr. Jackson drilled me for information on how you are doing and I told him you were busy. Which is clearly a falsehood because I haven't seen you lift a finger since my return. This is Eli," he hissed, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he gestured to the young man hovering beside her desk. "He is the genius to crack our little proof and will be working with us to figure out why it didn't work. Now have I sufficiently answered all of your questions?"
"Yes. Thank you," she returned, smiling brightly.
Rush shook his head, picked up the marker and gave them his back, studying the board once more. Belle waved a hand to the chair and offered Eli a seat.
"Sooo, how long have you two been married?" the boy asked Belle in a conspiratorial whisper.
Belle flushed, her brows disappearing somewhere into her hairline. "What? Oh, no … no, no, no, Eli … do you mind if I call you Eli?" she asked, not waiting for him to answer as she peeled the wrapper from a grape Jolly Rancher and popped it into her mouth. "Rush and I aren't married. We're just colleagues. I'm Belle, by the way. Don't even think about calling me Miss French. Nicholas is the only one who persists in doing that because he knows I hate it." She shifted things around on her desk and came up with a stack of printouts which she handed to Rush. "I've entered the new data into the program with our new calculations, updated the database and downloaded the information onto your flash."
He grunted in response as his eyes scanned the pages in his hand.
Belle rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair with a yawn. Eli focused his attention on the math prominently displayed on the whiteboard. "Seriously, who uses a whiteboard anymore? You have computers, like, everywhere around here."
Rush tuned him out. "The power flow was in the target range. Why wouldn't the address connect?"
"Wrong address?" Eli said, taking a guess.
Rush scoffed. "There was only one found in the Ancient database in Atlantis."
"With no further instructions?" the boy asked, grinning at Belle as she tapped commands out on the keyboard.
Rush turned to scowl at him. "No, but that's not the issue. It has to be your proof."
Eli pushed himself to his feet, his eyes widening. "My proof works. You know how I know that it does? Because you said so."
"You'll be sorry," Belle sing-songed under her breath. When Eli raised a questioning brow, she elaborated. "You can't argue with him when he gets like this."
"Thank you, Miss French, but could you save the derogatory remarks for when we're done?" Rush snapped.
Colonel Young came back into the gate room and crowded into their work space. "Gentlemen … Belle. How's it coming?"
Rush snorted and grabbed the eraser, wiping down the whiteboard. Eli gaped incredulously, raising his hands to grab his hair. "Whoa, whoa! What are you doing?"
"Starting from the beginning."
Eli tried to grab the eraser. "Wait. Save! Save! Save! I can't ..."
Belle pulled the boy away from her boss. "Eli, it's ok. I have a copy, look," she said, showing him the picture of the board saved to her phone before it had been erased. "I've already entered it into the database."
He breathed a sigh of relief and turned to listen to what the colonel was saying. "We'd like for you to join us for dinner in the officer's mess if Rush can spare you."
"Thank you, I'm starving," Eli replied, taking a step towards Young.
Rush turned to face the departing men, eraser still in hand. "We're quite close to a breakthrough, actually. I'd like Eli to keep working."
"Well, we've been here for six months. It can wait a few more hours," Young stated, leading the way to the mess.
Belle watched them go through narrowed eyes. She'd tried to like the colonel, or at least tolerate him, considering he was the commanding officer on the project, but there was just something about him that rubbed her the wrong way. She wasn't likely to admit that it was the colonel's disdainful attitude when it came to Dr. Rush. She sat back in her chair and took in the tension in Rush's lithe frame.
"When did you eat last?" she asked softly, intruding on his thoughts.
He began writing on the board, his marker flying across the clean surface as he wrote out the proof. "Not now, Miss French. The answer is here, I know it."
She rose from her seat and stepped behind him, resting her hand over the nape of his neck. He shivered violently, closing his eyes and letting his head fall back onto the back of her hand as she rubbed at the knot of tension. "You're overthinking it, Rush. Why don't you take a walk to clear your head?" she asked softly, refusing to acknowledge how much pleasure she took in easing away his pain.
"I can't. I have too much work to do."
"Work that isn't going to get done unless you clear your head. Fifteen minutes, go," she ordered, turning him away from the board and giving him a gentle nudge in the direction of the exit. "I'll fetch our dinner while you're gone so you can eat when you get back."
"Miss -"
"GO!"
X*X*X*X*X
Belle had just re-entered the gate room, a brown paper bag containing sandwiches and a few bottles of fruit juice clutched in her hand when the first blast rocked the base, the overhead fluorescents swinging violently. She raced up the stairs and set the bag down on her desk. "What was that? Is it the core, do you think?"
Riley shook his head. "No, we're under attack."
The colonel's voice came over the PA system confirming what Riley had just said and asking everyone to please proceed to their designated areas. This was no drill. She sat down at her desk and pulled the rucksack from beneath, shoving her laptop as well as Rush's into it along with anything important cluttering her desk. Matt came in with Eli and left the younger man there with Rush before scurrying away to his assigned position.
"Dr. Rush?" Riley called. "I'm reading a dangerous energy spike in the core."
"Damnit," Rush cursed, stumbling into Belle's desk as more enemy fire pelted the base. "Are you ok?" he asked, taking in her wide eyes and trembling hands.
"I'm ok," she assured him, struggling with the zipper on the overfilled bag.
"Eli! Eli! I need your help," he yelled over the din of panicked voices from the base of the platform as he studied the screen over Riley's shoulder.
"With what?" Eli cried, his voice a high pitched squeal as he felt fear clench his gut.
"The ninth chevron."
"What?" the boy asked incredulously. "We need to get the hell out of here!"
"Look, it took us two years to find this site. The properties are unique. This may be our last chance," Rush implored, his gaze pleading Eli to at least try. He ducked as another explosion rocked the base and mortar and bits of brick rained down on them. "If this bombardment continues, the radioactive core is going to go critical."
"You mean the planet … it's going to explode!?"
"YES!" both Belle and Rush intoned simultaneously.
Eli paced away several steps, pulling at his hair again as he wracked his brain for an answer. "Ok, ok, ok, ok, ok. If my math works ..."
"We can't assume that …" Rush protested.
Eli interrupted frantically, "I said if! Then if it works, then it's not a power supply issue, it's the gate address."
Belle bit down on her lip as she concentrated. "We've known the first eight symbols for years, the ninth has to be ..."
"… the point of origin," Rush finished for her.
"Ok, you guys, that is just creepy," the boy said, his gaze swinging between the two scientists. "Anyway, so, what if we're not on the planet you're supposed to be dialing from?"
"But this is where we are," Rush insisted emphatically.
Eli refused to give up on his theory. "Ok, but what if we are not supposed to be here?"
Riley's radio crackled, Young ordering him to dial the gate to evacuate their people to Earth.
Rush was still doubtful, but Eli pressed. "Ok, follow me … the symbols on the stargate are constellations as seen from Earth. That's what you said ..."
"Yes, yes," Rush agreed, a note of impatience in his tone.
"Ok, so what if Earth is supposed to be the point of origin?"
Belle frowned, her quick mind beginning to see where the boy genius was going with this. But Rush beat her to their next point. "The only viable power source was here, light years away."
"What if that doesn't matter?" Eli asked. "What if it's the only combination that will work, like a code?"
Belle's eyes widened as the sheer brilliance of his idea smacked her in the face. "A code."
"A code?" Rush asked, glancing at the pair.
"Yeah."
"Stop the dialing sequence," Rush commanded.
But Riley didn't suspend his keystrokes on the keyboard. "I have my orders."
"Get out of my way!" Rush growled, shoving Riley aside and sitting down at the terminal. "We can't risk dialing Earth," he explained, punching in the new sequence with Eli's code.
Belle stood frozen, waiting with bated breath as the stargate whirled to life, locking in one chevron after another, sparking as it locked in on the eighth. Rush stood at her side, so distracted, he curled his hands over her shoulders and pulled her back against him. If she hadn't been so out of sorts with the events transpiring all around her, she might have been able to appreciate it more. The ninth and final chevron locked and the event horizon exploded outward before settling into the puddle and all Belle could do was stare in disbelief. They'd finally done it … and there was no time to see what was on the other side.
Eli gaped at the shimmering puddle. "Now, that is impressive."
Riley slipped back into the seat at his terminal. "Power's fluctuating at critical levels."
Young barreled into the gate room, followed closely by Greer. "What's everybody doing? I ordered an evacuation!" he bellowed, taking in the stunned faces at the base of the ramp.
Eli rushed forward as Colonel Young climbed the steps to the platform where the command center was located. "He, uh … he didn't dial Earth. It's the ninth chevron address."
"What?!" Young hissed, turning on Rush.
Rush pulled Belle behind him, protecting her from the colonel's wrath. "The attack started a chain reaction in the planet's core. There's no way of stopping that and any blast could easily translate through an open wormhole. It's too dangerous to dial Earth," he said defiantly.
Young raked his hand down his face in vexation. "You could have dialed somewhere else … anywhere else."
Rush shrugged. "This could be our only chance."
Young pierced Riley with his gaze, commanding, "Shut it down!"
"You can't, it's too late," Rush insisted, locking his heated gaze with the colonel's.
"Riley!" Young called over Rush's shoulder.
"System's not responding, sir," the young sergeant replied.
"I need to get these people out of here."
Rush felt Belle slip her hand into his, emboldened by her support. "We have a way out," he said, gesturing to the open wormhole.
"We don't know what's on the other side! Damnit, Rush!" Young snarled.
Another blast rocked the base and Eli stepped forward. "Can't be worse than here, can it?"
Young's steely gaze bored into the scientist for a moment longer before he turned on his heel and descended the stairs. "Nobody move. Await further instructions."
Rush turned to Belle, still gripping her small hand. "It's going to be ok, Belle, I promise," he said earnestly, taking in her wide eyes, her lips pressed into a thin determined line. "Go, grab your bag. I promise I'll never laugh at you again for always having it near to hand."
"I hope you know I'm going to hold you to that!" she snarked over the din of enemy fire and sparking lights overhead.
Lieutenant Scott strode forward onto the platform and paused before the gate, a pack strapped to his back and his semi-automatic rifle clutched tightly in his hands. "Once I'm through, follow one at a time on a three count," he said, addressing the occupants of the gate room.
Belle thrust her pack at Rush and ran towards the steps. "Where the hell are you going?" he called after her.
She grabbed a heavy pack and tossed it up onto the ramp. "We need to take as many of the expedition supplies as possible." She tossed three more before Young grabbed her around the waist and shoved her towards the stairs.
"Get out of here, Belle! That's an order," he commanded. Belle nodded and ran up the steps to where Rush was waiting for her, her rucksack over his shoulder and one of the packs clutched in his hand. She grabbed a bag and slung the strap over her head, gripping another in her hand.
Rush took her other hand and pulled her swiftly towards the gate, admiring her bravery … although if the base collapsed around them he was sure to change his mind and call her stupid. Greer herded others behind them as they stepped through the puddle into the unknown.
X*X*X*X*X
Rush shook his head to clear it, his senses dulled by the flight through the wormhole only to have it all come rushing back to full awareness. He lifted his head from the soft surface he was lying on, his lips parting in surprise to find his little assistant sprawled beneath him. He pushed one of the packs off of them and took in the chaos in the room, his head having cleared enough to know they couldn't remain where they were with more and more people and boxes of supplies careening haphazardly through the open gate.
"Miss French," he said, his voice a ragged croak as he tapped his hand against her cheek. "Miss French?" She didn't respond. "Belle! Shit!" He moved off of her and grasped her under her arms, pulling her to the side of the room where Eli and Riley were sitting in dazed confusion.
"Oh, my god, did she hit her head?" Eli asked, taking a position on her other side and taking her hand in his. She'd been so nice since he'd arrived at the base. He didn't take well to his new friend being injured. More than a dozen others had also been injured coming through the gate aside from those who had been injured by various explosions at the base. TJ had her hands full.
"Belle, talk to me," Rush commanded. He couldn't lose her now, not when their dreams were so close to becoming reality. She'd worked so relentlessly, standing by him when no one else would, putting in more than her fair share … no, he wouldn't lose her. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, she was the one person he felt he needed in his life. "Belle, please."
Belle groaned and then coughed, drawing much needed oxygen into her lungs. "Rush ..."
Rush breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her up into his arms, his fingers probing gently at the bruise forming near her temple. "Are you alright?"
A relieved smile crossed Eli's face. "Do you want me to get TJ to check you out? I can go get her," he offered.
Belle shook her head and groaned, her head spinning. "No, I think I'm okay. One of the packs hit me as we came through, but I'll be fine. Rush, stop fussing," she said, pushing his searching hands away.
"You lost consciousness, Miss French; you could have a concussion," he said sternly, making her hold still as he searched her eyes.
"How do you even know what to check for, Rush? It's not like that's covered in basic first aid," Eli snapped, still thinking TJ should check her out.
"Eli -"
"Enough, both of you. I'm fine," she assured them, pushing herself to her feet. "Any idea where we are?" She reached down and grabbed her rucksack, slinging it over her shoulder and leaving the rest of their bags with the soldiers dragging crates of supplies off to the side of the room.
Rush glared at her in exasperation and shook his head, wondering why she always had to be so stubborn. She'd changed when they'd begun working on the Icarus project, slowly gaining more confidence in her skills and asserting her opinion when she felt she was right. She'd lost some of the shyness he'd found so charming, and now didn't hesitate to put him in his place. The passion she displayed for the project awakened feelings in him he'd thought had died with his wife. He'd thought when Gloria died, he'd never have anything more than his work, but Belle had changed all that. When she'd first taken the position as his teacher's assistant, he'd looked on her as just another perk, someone to make his life easier, but she'd wormed her way under his skin until she had become a pleasant itch he didn't want to live without.
By the time he'd been offered the position on the Icarus project, he'd already been half in love with her and couldn't see going without her. He knew she'd never consider more than friendship with him, but having her with him, being close to her, even just as colleagues, was enough. Now he couldn't help but feel guilty for leading her blindly into danger.
"Rush, are you alright?" she asked when he didn't answer.
Her soft voice, so filled with concern, pulled him from his reverie and he offered her a reassuring smile, no more than a twitch of his lips, but he knew she'd interpret it as such. "Yes, Miss French, I'm fine. Eli, why don't you see if you can help TJ, hm?" he said, shooing the young man off to make himself useful.
Belle arched a brow. "That wasn't very nice."
"So? Who says I'm nice?" Belle stuck her tongue out at him, to which he chuckled and said, "Come on, let's see if we can't figure out where we are." He took her hand, curling his around her warm fingers and leading her around the perimeter of the room, taking no chance that they'd be separated.
X*X*X*X*X
Belle couldn't help the bubble of excitement which hummed through her blood, despite how wretched she felt. Her head ached like a thousand tiny hammers were trying to chip away pieces of her skull and she had to stop every now and then to let a wave of dizziness pass as they explored the corridors they found themselves in. Rush still hadn't released her hand, his fingers still entwined with hers as he led her forward, afraid if he let her go she might collapse. They'd been walking for maybe five minutes when they came to a large central open area, a closed door before them and corridors branching off in two directions.
She reached out, her fingers brushing against the symbols etched into the door. "Rush, look … these markings are Ancient."
He pulled her back, his hand hovering over the panel he suspected would open the door. He had to bite back a chuckle at the pleasure etched on her face. Everyone else who'd come through the gate with them would have probably wanted to stay as far away from unknown doors as they possibly could. Not his Belle. She wanted to plunge blindly forward, come what may. He palmed the panel and the door whooshed open.
Belle squealed in delight, rushing forward into the room and turning in a circle as she tried to survey her surroundings in their entirety. It looked to be some sort of lounge area with tables and plush chairs scattered throughout the room, more of the soft lighting they'd encountered on their trek down the corridors offering a muted glow from several sconces on the walls. He followed at a more leisurely pace, smirking slightly at her exuberance. He moved to the far wall, inspecting the panel there.
"Did you find something?" she asked, moving to his side. Her eyes widened and she jumped back when the wall slid open. She gasped, nearly collapsing against the iron railing before the window the wall had concealed.
"They appear to be blast shields," he said, never taking his eyes off the view before them.
"We're on a ship. The ninth chevron address was a ship? How is that even possible?" she murmured, her voice filled with wonder as the enormity of the ship stretched out before them, streaking through the vastness of space, the pinkish blue glow of the shields flickering brightly. It reminded her of the few times she'd been fortunate enough to witness the aurora borealis while living in Maine. Gold had told her it wasn't often they experienced such a phenomenon that far from the top of the world and to appreciate the sight. She caressed the teacup pendant she wore on a thin gold chain around her neck and smiled fondly at the memory, realizing the gaping hole in her chest - which had been there since his loss - wasn't so ragged anymore.
She shifted the weight of her rucksack on her back and glanced over her shoulder as Eli and Lieutenant Scott charged into the room. "Where have you two been?" Scott asked, only then noticing the view through the window. "How the hell did we end up on a ship?"
Eli stepped to Belle's right, his eyes alight with wonder.
Rush seemed mesmerized by what he was seeing. "The design is clearly ancient, in the truest sense of the word," he said softly. "Launched hundreds of thousands of years ago."
Scott moved closer, wondering if Rush had taken leave of his senses. "Dr. Rush?'
But the scientist continued, "Faster than light, yet not through hyperspace."
"Yeah … what are you doing?" Scott asked, his gaze flitting back and forth between Rush and Belle, her rapt attention focused on her mentor.
"Who knows how far it's traveled," Rush said, taking his eyes from the view to look down at his assistant.
Scott groaned, trying again. "Dr. Rush, I've got a lot of wounded we need to get home."
Belle's brow furrowed as a crunching noise reverberated through the room. "What was that?" she asked worriedly, her eyes searching through the dim lighting, seeking the source.
"It seems the life support system may be failing," Rush sighed, grabbing her hand and pulling her along behind him. "I suppose we should do something about that."
Scott answered TJ on his radio and headed back towards the gate room, but Eli fell into step behind Belle and Rush. "Um … do you have any idea how to fix this problem or even where?"
"We should be able to find the bridge or at the very least, a central control room which will give us a basic understanding of the systems on this ship," Rush said absently, taking the left corridor which should lead them to the center of the ship … hopefully.
"But this is an Ancient ship!" Eli shrieked. "How are we even supposed to know the life support system from … say the … navigation system."
Belle reached out and patted his shoulder. "Eli, calm down, dear. If this is indeed a ship built by the Ancients, we should be able to figure out the basics."
He didn't look so sure, but he held his tongue. Rush led them into a darkened room, the lights coming on as they stepped over the threshold. The room was circular, benches scattered about and four consoles spaced evenly at the center. Belle approached one eagerly, intrigued when it sprang to life on its own, just as the lights had done before. Page after page of readouts of the various systems scrolled across the screen, all of it in Ancient.
"Well, at least we can read it," she assured them, smirking with satisfaction.
Rush and Eli nudged her out of the way and bent over the console, trying to take in the vast amount of data on the screen. "There."
"How do you know?" Eli asked, his voice holding an edge of uncertainty. "You only think it's the life support when it could be something else."
"I can read, Mr. Wallace," Rush growled.
Belle rolled her eyes as their argument continued. She moved to another console and studied the same data, hesitant to touch the various buttons on the side of the display.
Scott came in, closely followed by Greer. "What's going on in here?"
"The life support system is on, but for some reason, it's not working properly. I'm attempting to reset it," Rush told him, casting the lieutenant a brief glance.
Eli faced Scott with a disgruntled expression. "He has no idea what he's doing!"
"I beg your pardon," Belle hissed, moving between Eli and Rush.
"Not now, Miss French," Rush groaned, switching to Ancient.
Belle snorted. "Who is he to say you don't know what you're doing? We've been here for what … ten minutes? I'd trust you before any of the others on board," she answered, slipping into the coarse dialect.
"English!" Scott yelled over their bickering.
Greer lifted his rifle and pointed it at Rush, his voice deadly calm. "Step away from that thing."
Eli's excited chatter went on as if Rush couldn't be shot at any moment. "That screen says that what you're doing is gonna overload it ..."
"Eli, please!"
"Is that what it says or not?"
"You only think you know what it says on this screen," Rush fumed, his voice rising in irritation as he pointed to the console, "because I embedded a rudimentary version of the Ancient language into the game. This is not a game!"
Scott rubbed his hand wearily over his brow, not knowing what to do. "Don't touch it, Rush."
Rush gnashed his teeth together, the force making the muscle tick dangerously in his jaw. "When the oxygen aboard this ship falls below critical level, it will become increasingly difficult to concentrate."
"And what you're doing could blow up the ship!" Eli yelled, panic edging into his tone.
Scott moved closer to the console to peer at the screen, not understanding a thing he was looking at. "Are you sure, Eli?"
"Back off now or I will shoot!" Greer shouted, "He already screwed us once. I'm not going to let him do it again!"
"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Belle snarled, stepping around Rush and glaring at all of them. "You lot need to get it together! Ronald, you are not shooting anyone and the rest of you are going to get along or we're all going to suffer for it," she snapped, glaring at each of them … just before she batted Rush's hand away from the console and pushed the button.
The life support system shuddered, went silent and then whirred back to life with a clanking sound, rumbling just as it had moments before. Rush sighed. "Well, I suppose that would have been too simple."
Greer lowered his weapon and cocked his head at Belle. "Need to do something about that temper of yours, Miss Belle."
"Yeah, well, it's been one of those days," she snarked back before turning a pointed look on Eli. "And as soon as we get settled, Eli, you're going to have a crash course in Ancient."
Scott and Greer left the control interface room to check in with TJ and explain the situation as Eli and Rush leaned over the console again while Belle moved to sit on one of the benches, stowing her bag beneath and out of the way. She rubbed her head, wincing as her fingertips skimmed over the knot on her temple. She pulled her glasses off her nose, noticing for the first time the minute crack in the left lens near the bottom of the frame. Well, it's not like she needed them anymore, she thought wryly. She stowed them away in her pocket, wondering why she was even attempting to remain hidden behind her disguise. The Icarus project had brought her so far away from Earth, not even Emma Swan, with her uncanny ability to find someone, would ever be able to locate her. She'd begun acting more like herself instead of the persona she'd adopted and now with the threat of death hanging over her head, she knew she couldn't allow herself to hide any longer. She just wondered how Rush would adapt to the new … old … her.
Belle was pulled out of her thoughts by a digital display popping up in the center of the room and she pulled herself to her feet to get a closer look. "Wow," she breathed, studying the display. "It's a star map. Look, that's the Milky Way."
Rush leaned on the console, his chin propped on his hand as he looked at the screen. "I believe it's a visual log of the ship's journey," he murmured quietly.
Eli moved to stand next to Belle and pointed to the screen. "So, this is where we are now?"
Rush shook his head. "No, that's where the ship originally embarked from."
"Earth," the boy mumbled.
A line began bouncing from point to point on the map. "It's leaving the galaxy."
"It did, a long time ago," Rush confirmed.
A small smile of wonder lit Belle's face as she tried to wrap her mind around it all. "That was Pegasus. Those points aren't stars ..."
"No, they're galaxies," Eli finished for her, turning to look back at Rush. "Rush, where the hell are we?"
"Several billion light years from home."
X*X*X*X*X
Back on Earth ...
General O'Neil stood before the digital display in the center of headquarters and greeted Colonel Carter, the commander of the Hammond, relieved that her ship had evaded destruction at the hands of the Lucian Alliance when they'd mounted their attack on Icarus.
"General," she began, "we barely got away. The planet was destroyed. We managed to beam most of our people off the surface before jumping to hyperspace. We also believe that the enemy forces were destroyed. Any word on how they gained intel on our base?"
O'Neil shook his head. "No. What about casualties?"
Carter looked grim, a frown tugging at the woman's lips. "Twelve. Eighty plus MIA. The bunker shielding technology prevented us from beaming out anyone inside. How many people made it through the gate to Earth?"
"None."
Carter gaped in disbelief. "None? Our sensors indicated that the stargate was active for a full six minutes before the core went critical."
O'Neil sighed wearily, just as baffled as the commander of the Hammond. "Well, they didn't come through here."
"Then where'd they go?"
a/n: If you decide to tag along on this journey, be prepared … it's hella long. I will be posting every Sunday, and look forward to hearing what y'all think. Love & hugs!