Battlestar Galactica, Unknown area of Space; 2200 hours.
The Galactica had just jumped back to the emergency coordinates of the fleet in a bright flash of white as she appeared right in the middle. Back in the CIC, the entire place was silent except for the sound that the DRADIS screen was making as the rest of the fleet registered on the Colonial scanners. Breaking silence die to the shock that everyone had been through, Lt. Gaeta was the first one to break if when he turned back to his screen, before turning back to the middle of the CIC where the President had taken off her glasses with trembling hands and placed them on the table while Colonel Tigh and Commander Adama just silently looked at each other.
"Ummm" said Lt. Gaeta nervously, "we… we've reached the fleet, sir."
"Pegasus?" asked the Commander as he took in a deep breath and looked back over his shoulder.
"She's not showing on the DRADIS, sir" said Lt. Gaeta, "I… I think she may not have jumped."
"Stand down to condition two" said the Commander as he turned to Colonel Tigh who nodded his head. The Commander then turned to the President who had one hand on the table, while her other hand covered her eyes as she rested on her elbow.
"Sir" said Dee as the Commander turned towards her and nodded his head, "it's the Vice-President on Cloud Nine; he… he's insisting that the President talk to the Quorum of Twelve…. They.. they're eager to know what… what happened."
"Nothing happened" said the President softly as she slammed her other hand on the table as the sound reverberated throughout the silent CIC, "tell that frakker that nothing happened, that this was all a colossal waste and that we'd….."
"Dee" said Commander Adama as he interrupted the President who looked back at the man with a look of anguish on her face, "tell the Vice-President that the President will need some time to reflect on what we've learned, and then she will address the Quorum."
"Sir" said Lt. Gaeta, "have they talked about Earth? Will they.. I mean reports from the Vipers showed that they were defending the Cylons and then….."
"Lt. Gaeta" said Colonel Tigh sternly, "we will find out what happened when the President addresses the Quorum."
"In the meantime" said Commander Adama as he held onto the President's shoulders gently, "I want all of you to go about your duties; Lt. Gaeta, the coordinates are supposed to be for a supposed safe-haven about a hundred light years from our previous location. I want you to plot a jump, and then send a raptor team there. Recon only… I don't want anyone landing on the planet until we make a final decision."
The Commander looked at the shocked faces of everyone around him and recalled the promise he had made to them about getting them to Earth, after the second night the Cylons had destroyed their lives. Although he knew that Earth didn't exist, he had seen the hologram in the Tomb of Athena that convinced him that it could be real. And then to meet people from Earth who claimed not to be the Thirteenth Tribe, but lived on Earth was both unbelievable and terrifying; however, it brought hope that the planet really existed. It was a bit of a shock at first when they were told that they wouldn't be told Earth's location, that the people from Earth on Colonial One didn't trust them was a shocker; but a part of him understood the need for secrecy, the military part of his did… at least. But the normal, Colonial Citizen half of himself was shocked and upset. He then held on to the President as he slowly began to walk towards the exit.
"Colonel Tigh" said the Commander, "set up a Combat Air Patrol around the fleet. I want to be informed immediately if the Pegasus jumps in. They just sold out the Colonies to beings who would enslave this Galaxy. From this moment on, they are considered traitors to the Colonies."
"Sir?" said Colonel Tigh confused.
"Once the CAP is up" said Commander Adama as he looked at Colonel Tigh, "I want you, Apollo, Helo, Starbuck and Lt. Gaeta in my quarters in fifteen minutes. Also, I want Tyrol and Helo to have their former commissions reinstated. Have the Chief work with Chief Laird on how they can work together."
The Commander then turned around to a man standing next to Lt. Gaeta who nodded his head when his name was called.
"Captain Kelly" said the Commander, "you have the Watch after Lt. Gaeta leaves the CIC."
"Yes, sir" said Captain Kelly before the Commander walked out of the CIC
Commander Adama's Quarters, 2220 hours.
The President was on the couch in the Commander's quarters still clutching the glass of untouched ambrosia in her hands; all she did was look at it while the Commander just looked at his table. Reaching for the bottle of brown liquid on his table, he poured some of the contents into a glass before placing the bottle back on the table and he sipped the drink as he leaned back on his chair in relative quiet, which was broken when he head knocking on the door.
"Come" said the Commander as the Marines outside opened his door to let Colonel Tigh, Major Adama, Starbuck, Helo and Lt. Gaeta into the room as the Commander directed them to take a seat.
"Dad?" said Major Lee 'Apollo' Adama, "what's going on? Back there it was…. .i mean those ships protected the Cylons, then fought against that… what was it called?"
"Ori" said Lt. Gaeta as Apollo nodded his head.
"Ori" replied Apollo who was still in his flight suit, "they fought against that Ori ship until they were almost destroyed, and then the Pegasus turned on them.. and we turned on the Pegasus… Dad?"
"The situation has become… complicated" said the Commander as the President downed her drink, slammed the glass on the table before taking off her glasses with trembling hands and laughed, before throwing them on the table.
"Complicated?" said the President when she stopped laughing while everyone looked at her as she leaned back on the couch, "complicated? My gods, Bill…. It was a complete frak up…"
Everyone looked at the President who had now closed her eyes and shook her head from one side to the other before she stood up and walked to the other end of the room and wiped her eyes. She then apologized for her behaviour and started telling the others what had happened while they were on Colonial One. She told them everything from how the people from Earth claimed that they were not the Thirteenth Tribe, to human life on other worlds, to their offer to talk with the Cylons so that some kind of a truce could be reached in order to battle the Ori. The Commander also mentioned that Admiral Cain thought that they were Cylons themselves who took over Earth and had killed the human population. After giving them a briefing of what happened, everyone just stared at the Commander at shock, or looked down at the floor in dismay.
"Wait" said Helo who was the first one to break the silence as he leaned forwards and looked at Commander Adama, "that doesn't make any sense…. There are only twelve models of Cylon's, correct?"
"That's what we've been led to believe" replied the Commander.
"Starbuck and I saw many different people coming in and out of the Mess Hall where we were sequestered on the Avalon" said Helo, "I'm not talking about ten or twenty similar models of human looking Cylons… I mean that all of them were unique. And that woman… Dawn, was it…? She said that some of them wanted to talk to us; some were eager to know about our history and culture, and she translated as much as she could. If they were Cylons, then they would have killed us on the spot."
"Maybe they were gathering intelligence, Helo" said Starbuck softly as the tall man turned towards her, "I'm just saying, maybe they are another type of humanoid Cylon.. an experiment that was conducted long ago. I mean… did you see how easily they granted asylum to Sharon."
"Wait, what?" said a surprised Apollo as he, and the others, looked on in shock at the President and then at the Commander.
"Maybe they really are Cylon sympathizers" said Colonel Tigh.
"Sharon was beaten, sir" said Helo as he looked at Colonel Tigh, "she was beaten with my baby. The bald guy, Woolsey.. he told me after interviewing her that she was drugged and beaten, multiple times and everyone on Pegasus knew about it. And no one did a single thing. Absolutely no….."
"Captain Agathon" said Colonel Tigh as he stood back up and looked at Helo, "like it or not, Sharon is and always will be a machine. She is the enemy."
"She's been giving us good intelligence, sir" said Helo, "she's been helping us and…."
"If you hadn't killed that Thorne bastard then she wouldn't have been on Pegasus in the first place" said Colonel Tigh.
"If I didn't kill him" said Helo, "then Thorne would have been raped her."
"Enough!" shouted Commander Adama as he stood up, "what happened, happened… nothing we can do to change it now. Sharon has been granted Asylum by these people, but like the offer that was made to us…. She would not be allowed to visit Earth for some time."
"Sir" said Lt. Gaeta as he tried to change the topic of conversation as the tension rose in the room, "they mentioned other human populated worlds?"
"Yes" said the President softly, "we didn't go into detail but the translator mentioned that parasites took human bodies, used them as puppets to take the names of gods and enslave people. It was just before they had left Colonial One. She implied that they have been fighting these creatures for a long time."
"Are we talking about real-life aliens here?" asked Starbuck as she held her hands up, "has anyone thought that 'hey, we seem to be talking about aliens here'?"
"The galaxy is a big place" said Commander Adama as he looked at Starbuck, "we haven't explored outside the farthest region of our known space. So perhaps there is other life we don't know about. But, there is one thing I would like to know."
"Commander?" asked the Colonel as he saw the man take another drink from his glass.
"Helo…. Starbuck" said the Commander as he looked at the two officers who were on the Avalon, "what can you tell me about a red haired woman? About five foot six, has green eyes?"
"Not much boss" said Starbuck scratching her head, "I mean, we've only seen her once… that's it."
"I see" said the Commander as he poured another drink while everyone looked on, "I.. I've seen that woman before."
"What?" said everyone in the room shocked.
"Dad?" said Apollo as he walked towards his father, "what are you talking about?"
"I did, I mean her eyes were brown coloured then" said the Commander as he looked up at his son, and then at the others behind him, "it was four years after the official introduction of the Cylons for mass consumption, two years after they saved everyone in the Atlas Arena in Caprica… I was at the Delphi Museum of the Colonies with my parents when I ran into her…. literally ran into her."
"You're serious?" said Colonel Tigh as he turned his whole body to face the Commander, "Bill?"
"She said her name was Danielle" replied the Commander as he recalled the strapless white dress with golden embroidery on the chest, red hair, brown eyes and the brown stain that was spreading on the lower part of the dress, "and to a child, she was the most beautiful woman ever."
"Commander" said President, "are you absolutely sure?"
Nodding his head again, the Commander told everyone that he had looked back to see his parents running after him, when he hit someone and spilt his drink all over a pure white dress. He said that he looked up to see a red haired woman who at first frowned at the spreading stain and then looked at the boy who had given her a cheeky smile. He told the others that her name was Danielle, and that she was exploring the Colonies. They had made their introductions and had talked for a while, before they finally said goodbye. The Commander said that she had walked towards the stairs, while he and his family walked the other way.
"But I remember turning back as she walked away" said the Commander, "I wanted to see where she was going. She was heading towards the stairs and as she walked down, I noticed that the stain was gone."
"Gone?" asked Colonel Tigh.
"The area where I spilt my drink" said the Commander, "the stain… it.. was gone."
"It was a trick of the light, dad" said Apollo.
"Maybe" said the Commander as he looked down at his desk, "but I know what I saw, that was the last time I've ever seen her…. until today."
Once he had finished his story, the Commander looked up only to see everyone looking back at him stunned. Then Apollo glanced at Colonel Tigh, before he looked at a equally stunned Roslin and then shrugged his shoulder and turned back to the Commander.
"So she's a Cylon" said Apollo, "I mean that's the only reason I could think of for her being young."
"He has a point" said Starbuck, "if it was the same woman, then she'd be what? Over ninety years old?"
"If she is the same person" said Roslin as she looked down at the floor shaking her head, before she looked up and at the Commander, "then I really want what she's using."
"I don't think they're Cylons" said Helo as everyone looked at him, "look, they treated us better than I know any Cylon would have… and I remained behind on Caprica, remember? I was almost killed so many times by both type of Cylons but Sharon saved me."
When he saw that he still wasn't getting through to the others, Helo stood up and started to pace in the room before he stopped and turned around.
"Sharon said that she couldn't feel Major Satterfield" said Helo frustrated, "she told me and Kara that she couldn't sense her. And she said the same thing when she returned to the Galactica. Sharon assured me that Major Satterfield is human…. Is it really that much of a stretch to believe that we're not the only people in the galaxy?"
"If we hold that to be true" said Lt. Gaeta, "then everything in the Sacred Scrolls…"
"No" said Roslin shaking her head, "no, I don't believe that. The Scrolls say that humanity evolved on Kobol, and that the Thirteenth Tribe made its way to Earth. Maybe they're from Kobol, but they've called it Earth."
"We ran scans over the entire planet with our Raptors when we were on Kobol before Starbuck was sent to retrieve the Arrow of Apollo" said the Commander as he looked up at the President, "no other human life was present."
"Madam President" said Lt. Gaeta, "they said they weren't the thirteenth Tribe."
"They forgot their history" said Roslin as she pointed at the Commander, "even you said that they could have forgotten their history."
"Yes" said the Commander as he slowly leaned forward and closed his eyes as he tried to get the buzzing out of his head, "but I understand what General O'Neill told us. They have enemies who know the location of Earth and I can understand the need to keep it a secret."
"But we're their cousins, sir" said Starbuck, "I mean… we should be helping each other."
"My father's right" said Apollo as he was thinking about what had already been said on Colonial One from the Commander's verbal report, "like it or not, they don't know us. The neither see us as friends, or as enemies."
"And that's a good thing" said Helo nodding his head, "at least they don't see us as the enemy."
"The girl said that they've already destroyed an entire race of machines that was ready to eat everything in this galaxy" said Commander Adama as everyone except for Roslin looked on shocked, "she said that they couldn't be reasoned with, that they weren't even alive to begin with. It seems as if they may have tried… the same thing with those parasites. Her people killed most of them and now they are on the verge of extinction. She said that her people have already been burned by the Ori, and I got the impression that a lot of people died because of it; and that's even after trying to reason with them."
"They wanted us to give them a chance to talk with the Cylons" said Roslin, "talk about a truce, while we band together to fight this new danger to the galaxy."
"But instead we opened fire on defenceless Baseships" said Apollo.
"We can't go all peacenik's now" said Colonel Tigh, "might I remind everyone about the great Cylon turkey shoot we had before meeting the Pegasus?"
"This time we did it in front of strangers" said the Commander as he looked at President Roslin, and then at the table, "while we heard pleas to stop."
"We were doing our goddamned jobs" said Colonel Tigh, "they can understand that… we have been burned too."
"But I think the key thing here, sirs… and Ma'am" said Lt. Gaeta as he looked at everyone in the room before turning to the President, "they gave us the coordinates to a planet. I've already assigned Racetrack and Skulls to jump to the planet to conduct a recon mission, and then jump back."
"Wait" said Starbuck as she stood up, "we're really giving up on Earth? What the frak was all of that Arrow of Apollo and Tomb of Athena for?"
"Kara" said Apollo as he looked up at Starbuck and nodded at her to sit down, which she did.
"We know Earth is out there" said the Commander as he looked at Starbuck, "we know that it's defended by either humans, or Cylons…. The truth is that we don't know who's defending that planet. But from a military standpoint, we need them more than they need us."
"Commander" said a surprised Roslin as he put his hand up, asking her to wait for a little while until he's done explaining.
"Lee's right" said the Commander, "they don't see us as the enemy. They had all the time in the world to use their weapons against us, which they didn't. And the fact that they gave us the jump coordinates to the planet shows that they believe we need their help… and the truth is that we do need their help."
"What I saw out there" said Apollo as he looked at everyone, "those Ori ships were powerful… even the Earth ships were no match for them. And like the Commander said, the fact that they still sent us the coordinates despite the Pegasus turning to fire on them…. well… I don't really know what to say to that."
"They thanked us for the help" shrugged the Colonel before shaking his head, "so what are we deciding to do?"
"Madam President?" asked the Commander as he looked at Roslin, "they promised to take us to Earth someday, but in the meantime… maybe they do have a planet where we could lay down our burdens."
"The Cylon Natalie did say that the Ori were destroying them" said Lt. Gaeta, "maybe that's why we've seen attacks against us decrease."
"Maybe" said Helo, "but we'll still have our tech with us, and at the same time… we'll be getting help to rebuild."
"Laying down our burdens" said President Roslin who suddenly looked so tired as she sat down next to Helo and lay her head back, "forgetting about Earth, gods… this is so hard to do."
"It's your decision, Madam President" said Commander Adama.
"Lt. Gaeta" said the President softly as she sat up, "Call the Vice-president and my aide, Billy. Tell them to meet me in Colonial One in an hour."
"Yes, Madam President" said Lt. Gaeta as he stood up and left the Commanders quarters once he got the nod from the old man. After he left, the remaining people just sat in the room quietly, contemplating the reality of what was about to happen. Giving up the search for Earth, and putting their faith in a people who helped defenceless Cylons; who offered them a chance at a new home… a chance to rebuild.
Atlantis, Pegasus Galaxy, three hours after Naquadria generator explosion; 0015 hours.
Willow listened to the sounds made by the waves breaking on Atlantis' southern pier as she sat alone with her legs dangling over the edge. Leaning back as she lay on her elbows, she looked up into the sky as a light breeze went through her hair. She then looked up again at the horizon as the Lantean sun started to set. It was a few seconds later that she heard footsteps from behind her, and twisting her body around; she smiled as she saw Faith walking down the pier before she sat down next to the redhead and dangled her feet off the edge of the pier as well.
"Nice to be in your dreams again" grinned Faith as she looked at Willow, "so where are we?"
"Atlantis" said Willow as Faith furrowed her eyebrows at the redhead which made Willow laugh, "fine, fine…. We're on Atlantis' Southern Pier. The best place to catch the sunset."
"Oh" said Faith as she looked at the horizon where the sun was already touching as the sky started to darken, "you came here often?"
"After mother passed" said Willow, "father would bring me and Hera here and watch the sunset. He'd tell us that he, and her, would come out here and… and just sit and look. It was an escape from the Wraith threat."
"I can leave if you want" said Faith as she looked at the sun go halfway down the horizon, "I mean, this seems like a private memory and our link…"
"Hey" said Willow as she sat up and grabbed a hold of Faith's hand as they looked at the setting sun while the lights all over Atlantis started to come online, "I wouldn't share this with anyone else on Earth."
"How about Dawn?" said Faith as Willow lay her head on the Slayer's shoulder.
"She… she doesn't want to know" said Willow softly as she closed her eyes, "I'm not going to force the issue."
"I can feel you" replied Faith slowly, "I can feel the pain in your chest."
"Sorry" said Willow softly as she put her arm around Faith and pulled her in closer, "I was thinking about taking a few days off after we get back to Earth. I wanted to visit Atlantis and…"
"I'll understand if you want to go alone" said Faith as she lay her head on Willow's, "it's a private moment."
"I want you there" said Willow as she looked at Faith as the redhead cupped the back of the Slayer's head, "I need you there."
The both of their surroundings suddenly melted away and changed to their room on Earth as the both of them sat on their bed. Willow ran her fingers along Faith's face, and then her neck and shoulders; down to her hands while Faith took her other hand and ran it along the redhead's lips, along her jaw line to the base of her skull before running her hands down her back, along the spine as she closed her eyes.
"You like playing, don't you?" said Willow softly as she felt Faith slip her hands underneath the redhead's shirt and slowly ran her fingers back up to her neck along the bare skin before Faith pushed the redhead gently onto the bed and kissed her.
"How bad am I?" asked Willow as she closed her eyes while she ran her hands through Faith's hair as the Slayer started to kiss down the redhead's neck.
"Very good" said Faith as she gave Willow a little bite before kissing the same area, "you taste like strawberries."
"Thanks" said Willow as she slipped her hand under Faith's shirt and she hurriedly took it off, leaving her in only her bra before the Slayer started a renewed assault on the redhead's ear lobe, "but what I meant was, how badly am I injured?"
"What makes you think you're injured?" whispered Faith into her ear before she kissed behind the lobe as Willow scratched Faith's back.
"Because of what you're doing" said Willow as she gave a small smile when Faith stopped what she was doing and look down at her, "you're keeping my mind busy… not that I'm complaining mind you, just that…."
"Really bad" said Faith as she closed her eyes, "the Electro Magnetic Pulse caused power surges all over the ship. You and the engineering team managed to disable the connections to the Naquada reactors and most of the primary systems so that they won't get affected but…"
"But?" said Willow.
Faith told Willow that they don't know what happened since all the camera's in the room were destroyed in the power surge, but Colonel Mitchell and Vala had come to the engineering room and found all of the consoles had exploded, as well as the overhead lights. Four people were dead, a Captain Ryder was alive but his face and arms were burnt and Colonel Carter was lying close to Willow. Faith told Willow that the Colonel's station experienced a massive power surge as it was completely destroyed.
"I remember" said Willow as she recalled what happened. She, Colonel Carter and the others were disabling connections throughout the ship so that major systems wouldn't be affected by the Electromagnetic Pulse that was coming towards them. She told Faith that the Colonel said some systems had already failed, even with fifty percent of all connections severed from the generators, when they heard humming in the room as the lights got brighter and suddenly exploded as everything got dark and glass showered down on everyone. Willow said that she saw the Colonel cover her eyes before she covered hers, but she could feel the glass cutting her. It was then she heard more humming as consoles exploded while people fell onto the floor, and Willow recalled a bright flash as the one she was using exploded as chards of control crystals and debris were embedded in her body.
"Willow!" shouted the Colonel as she ran towards the redhead just as the Colonel's own console started to hum. She jumped towards Willow but the Colonel hit her head on the bulkhead as the console behind her exploded.
"How's Colonel Carter?" asked Willow as she looked up at the Slayer.
"She suffered a concussion, and some shrapnel from the exploded console was lodged in her left leg" said Faith, "she'll be alright… there were some fatalities… about ten in total. Mostly from massive burns. But you were badly injured. Your chest and face was badly burnt when Cam and Vala found you, you had crystal shards embedded all over your body; not including the two control crystals you were stabbed with. If you didn't start healing immediately from the burns….."
"They're taking the shards out of my body now?" asked Willow as Faith nodded her head.
"Your burns had healed by the time you taken to the infirmary" said Faith, "gave Dawn a heart attack… oh, she and Sharon are alright. Just some cuts and scrapes, the doc already checked them out. Some critical injuries have been already taken to the Excalibur since the Avalon infirmary is nearly full. Oh, and Big-G and Woolsey are alright…. Big-G's got a wicked cool white bandage on his head… started calling him the one twentieth mummy. And miraculously, Woolsey escaped any injury…. Though the poor guy tore a sleeve on his expensive suit."
"So" said Willow with a smile on her face as she took off her own shirt and threw it onto the floor, "how long is the whole thing gonna take?"
"Doc said about two hours" said Faith as she leaned forwards and held down Willow's wrists with her hands , "they're using a scanner to get at the shards in your body. Once those are out, then you can start fully healing."
"Ummm" said Willow smiling as she raised her head to kiss Faith as the Slayer pressed down the redhead's wrists into the mattress, "you know, this means no powers for either of us."
"I know" said Faith, "you'll be relaxing under the scanner as they take out the crystals, and I'm just sitting with my eyes closed in the control room."
"Good" said Willow as Faith renewed her attack on the redhead's neck and then moved down to her shoulder, "Faith?"
"Uh huh?" said Faith as she looked into her eyes.
"Thank you" said Willow, "you know… for this."
"No problem, Red" replied the brunette.
"Now" said the redhead with a grin, "I've been a bad girl, and I deserve to be punished."
"I know" said Faith as Willow started to giggle loudly as everything went dark.
Infirmary, Avalon, 0215 hours.
Colonel Mitchell, Vala, and Teal'c had been visiting Colonel Carter who was resting in the Avalon infirmary to make sure that the blonde woman was alright. The doctors had told her that she was mentally cogent; she just needed to get some downtime for her leg to heal so that she could recover. The Colonel was told that she'd have to use crutches for a while until Willow was well enough to heal her wounded leg. After leaving her with the bandaged General O'Neill sitting next to her, the Colonel told him that he'll be going to check on how the extraction of the crystals shards from Willow's body was going. Nodding his head, the General told Colonel Mitchell that he'll be by to see her soon.
As the three of them walked the short distance to the scanning room, they opened the door into the control room from which they could see Willow under a scanner as the doctors where taking shards of crystal out of her body. Turning to the left, he saw Faith sleeping on a chair with her arms crossed across her chest, and her feet up on another chair.
"Hey" whispered Colonel Mitchell as he looked back at Vala and Teal'c, "watch this."
The two of them looked on as Colonel Mitchell got a pen from the table and used it to try and induce the Slayer to wake up. The Colonel walked towards Faith and tapped her cheeks, and her right ear with it.
"Cam" said Vala as she tried to suppress a smile while the Colonel flicked her ear lobes with the pen, "she will beat you senseless if you wake her up, the girl's tired."
"No she's not" said the Colonel as he continued what he was doing, "'sides, she'll get a kick out of it."
Just then, Faith moved away from the pen as she tried to swat away the offending contraption with Colonel Mitchell pulling away his hand at the last moment. Checking to make sure she was still asleep, the Colonel began the pen assault again when suddenly Faith started to moan.
"Yea, Red" said Faith in her sleep, "no… not there, go lower….a bit lower… ah… there…. Don't stop now."
All the Colonel could do was stay completely still as the brunette sighed and gave a smile. He then turned towards Teal'c who was looking around the room nervously before he told the Colonel that he remembered something he had to tell General O'Neill. He then rushed out of the control room.
Vala couldn't help but laugh as the Colonel's face turned red, before he made an excuse about talking to Colonel Ronsen about the Hyperdrive and heading back home as he rushed past Vala. The older brunette for her part just looked at the sleeping Faith before she grabbed a seat and sat down right next to her.
"You know" said Vala as she sat back on the seat and interlocked her hands together behind her head while looking at the doctors as they turned off the scanner, "you may be a good liar, but I'm better."
Faith then opened one eye as she looked at Vala before giving the older dark haired woman a wide grin. It took a few seconds before the both of them just laughed out loud at what just happened.
"I wish I saw Cam's face" said Faith, her face red from laughing so hard.
"Cam?" said Vala as she wiped tears, "you should have seen poor Teal'c, he just ran out of here like he was being chased."
As they were laughing, the two women didn't notice the door behind them open as the doctor walked in and pulled down his mask.
"Hey doc" said Faith as she Vala stood up, "Red gonna be alright?"
"Yes" said the doctor, "we've managed to take out all the shards in her body, and she's completely healed. We ran her under the scanner to search for foreign materials again, and found none. But she'll be sleeping for a few hours. I know she's healed but from what I've read, the process tires her out when it's something as major as this."
"Thanks" said Faith as they wheeled Willow out of the scanning room, and the short distance to the larger infirmary where she was placed next to the sleeping Colonel Carter. Following the doctor into the infirmary, Faith and Vala were met by Dawn who had been helping the nurses in the infirmary, along with Sharon who was now with Satterfield. She walked over to where Willow was sleeping and held her hand when an announcement came over the speakers that the Avalon would be towed to the Beta site where the injured could be transferred down to the surface, and sent to Earth through the Stargate.
Dawn looked over Faith's shoulder at Satterfield who was translating everything that was being said to Sharon, who looked on in surprise. Dawn then looked at Faith, before looking back at Willow and tightened her hold on the redhead's hand.
'Willow, I don't know if what you said was true' thought Dawn to herself, 'I hope you understand, that even if I see your memories… it could be someone who just looks like me. The monks made my body, maybe it's just a coincidence that I look like your sister. I really do hope that you do find her one day.'
Dawn then told Faith and Vala that she'll check out Sharon who seemed to be distressed. The both of them nodded before Dawn walked towards the corner where Satterfield gently held on to Sharon's shoulder.
"Hey" said Dawn as Sharon turned to the young brunette in surprise, while Satterfield gave her a small smile.
"Dawn" said Sharon as she pointed at the speakers, "Lauren translated what the Colonel just said, did I hear just right? A Gateway to the Stars?"
Dawn looked back at Satterfield in confusion. The Asian woman told the confused brunette that she couldn't figure out a proper translation for the Stargate yet, so she came up with the closest translation she could.
"All hands" said Colonel Ronsen's voice over the speakers again, "stand by, we have repaired the shield emitters, and the sublight engines as much as possible given the spare parts from the Excalibur and her engineers who worked with ours. The Excalibur will tow us through Hyperspace to the Beta site which we should reach in less than five hours. From there, all non-essential and injured personnel will be transferred down to the planet, before we return to Earth for repairs. The Excalibur has already notified the SGC of our plan, and they are ready for the injured. Entering hyperspace in five…. Four… three… two…."
Everyone in the infirmary held on to something as the ship started to shake while machines in the infirmary fell onto the floor. Then suddenly the shaking stopped and the Colonel's voice came over the speakers again.
"We have entered Hyperspace" said Colonel Ronsen as everyone cheered, "engineering teams to the secondary control room please."
Once everything had calmed down, Dawn grabbed a hold of Sharon's hand after she looked back and smiled at Willow, and then Faith. She gently pulled Sharon as she, and Satterfield, accompanied the humanoid Cylon to the Mess Hall.
After they had left the infirmary, Colonel Mitchell and Teal'c had walked back in and made their way to Willow and Colonel Carter. Faith looked at Colonel Mitchell whose face was still red with embarrassment from earlier as the brunette continued to stare at him with a grin plastered on her face.
"You know" said Faith finally as she leaned sideways towards the Colonel, "let that be a lesson to you, never poke a pen on my face while I'm sleeping."
"You were awake?" asked the Colonel as Teal'c looked around until he saw General O'Neill sitting next to Colonel Carter. Colonel Mitchell looked on as the Jaffa walked towards the General, leaving him all alone with Faith, and Vala.
"Uh huh" said Faith as Vala could only grin.
"Fine" said the Colonel as he sighed, "I swear, no more tapping or flicking with pens."
"Thanks" said Faith, "now, you wanna know what I was really dreaming about?"
"No" said a wide eyed Colonel Mitchell.
"I do" said Vala as she put up her hand.
Colonial Fleet, Cloud Nine, Unknown Area of Space, 0930 hours.
Gaius Balter was not only the smartest man in the fleet, he was also the Vice-President of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol and unknown to any of the others… he was the reason the Cylons were able to annihilate the Twelve Colonies so completely. Now, as he stood in the Quorum of Twelve's chamber on the luxury liner called Cloud Nine, he could only remember the briefing he had with the President and her aide, Billy Keikeya, about the talk on Colonial One. He and Billy were stunned to learn about what was talked about from other humans, to Sharon being given asylum, to Admiral Cain selling them all out to the Ori.
As Balter waited for the session to start, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning to the hand, he looked up at a blonde haired face of the Number Six that remained in his head, the same one he saw after all the Colonies were destroyed. She grabbed the top of his head and turned it around to face the President who nodded at him, before he nodded back. He then glances to his left as the Six walked around him and bent over, putting her head on Balter's shoulder.
"God is angry, Gaius" said the Six, "His plan has been… altered."
"You talk as if everything was fixed" said Balter as he nodded at the press who were at the side of the chamber. This was going to be an unprecedented address by the President to the Quorum, and the entire fleet was going to hear it. Balter just didn't know how they would take what's coming.
"Destiny, Gaius" said the Six as she breathed onto his neck, "everyone has a destiny, now Cylons are being destroyed left and right from what Roslin said; humans from Earth… are you really sure that they're human? Maybe they're another form of Cylon."
"You told me there were only twelve models" whispered Balter, "you telling me there could be more?"
"What do you think, Gaius?" asked the Six as she put an arm around his shoulder, "do you believe in your Scrolls?"
"I don't believe in the Scrolls, neither do I in your so-called God" whispered Balter, "I believe what I see… and I've seen the gun camera footage from the battle yesterday. There are advanced civilizations out there…. Civilizations that many have theorized, but were laughed at by those who have the Scrolls or the concept of God in their heads."
"Careful, Gaius" said the Six as she cupped the back of his head, "the plan… the plan will work itself again. You know what they say, it has happened before… and it will happen again."
"And…" said Balter as he turned to face the Six, but she vanished. He then heard someone tapping on the microphone on the podium to his left as Billy introduced President Roslin to the lectern as everyone stood up and gave the redhead a round of applause.
Roslin approached the podium from where she was standing next to the Vice-President, Commander Adama, Apollo and Starbuck in their dress uniforms as Billy walked back to take her place among them. She stepped up to the podium, put the speech she had spent hours writing and revising before taking off her glasses and placing them near the microphone. Taking a drink from the glass of water, Roslin then looked up and smiled at the press, and at all the delegates.
"Ladies and gentlemen of the Quorum" said Roslin as she looked around the room, "members of the Press, people of the Fleet; no…. People of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. Yesterday at twenty one twenty hours; Commander Adama of the Galactica, myself, and Admiral Cain of the Pegasus met with representatives from Earth."
At the mention of Earth, everyone started to murmur among themselves as the President held up both her hands and asked everyone to settle down.
"Now" said Roslin, "I only ask that all questions be asked, if any, at the end of this speech. I will take questions from the Press at that time as well."
The President saw nods of agreement from all of the delegates as she heard a commentator from the Press giving the fleet news about what was going on in the chamber. Roslin then took in a deep breath before she gave her account of what happened during the entire meeting, including what Dawn told her… and the arrival of the Cylons and the Ori. Once she was finished she could see the stunned faces of the entire Quorum in front of her before everything went to hell. Roslin shook her head as everyone tried to talk at once, including the members from the Press. She could even feel the outrage in the whole Fleet about what she just told them. But she had to put a stop to this. Suddenly, she felt a tapping on her shoulder as Billy handed her a brown folder before whispering that it was from Commander Adama. Glancing at the Commander, she opened the folder and went through the contents with her eyes wide open.
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?" whispered Roslin as the Commander nodded his head. Managing a smile, Roslin turned around and called the session to order again.
"Ladies, and Gentlemen!" shouted Roslin, "ladies and gentlemen!"
Roslin watched as everyone quietened before the person she disliked in the entire fleet raised his hand, Tom Zarek of Sagittaron, and she nodded towards him as he stood up.
"Madam President" said Zarek with a smile, "humans on other worlds… that's such a ridiculous concept. But the great crime here is that these people… and I use that term lightly because we don't really know if they are even people; they provided shelter to an enemy combatant, and helped our mortal enemy escape us. An enemy who, by your admission, were already defenceless. And you expect us to believe that we should put our future.. the future of this fleet.. the last of humanity in their hands?"
"Mr. Zarek" said a smiling Roslin as she tried to mentally convince herself that what she was telling was the truth, and given the information that she received, could mean that everything the General had said could be true. But she still had to tread carefully, "are we so arrogant to believe that the Thirteenth Tribe, upon their reaching Earth could not have been able to master space flight and colonise other worlds? Perhaps they encountered those Parasites that General O'Neill told us about and they have been protecting us since then?"
"What you're saying is heresy" said Sarah Porter, the delegate from Gemenon, "you yourself said that they haven't heard of the sacred scrolls, that they don't know Kobol… Kobol is the birth-place of humanity! That is the most blasphemous thing I have ever heard."
"What if they forgot, Sarah?" said Roslin calmly, "what if they forgot who they really are? Who do you want them to see? A fleet that would tear itself apart because our lost brothers and sisters forgot their home planet and the Lords of Kobol; or a fleet that's being offered a home to go to by those same brothers and sisters, a fleet that shows our lost brothers and sisters the best of Colonial Society? Ladies and gentlemen, I know this isn't Earth… I know that… like I know that my role as the leader in Pythia is to lead us all to Earth. But the fact of the matter is.. Earth is a dream… a dream of finding a new habitable world where we could rest; a place where we could rebuild again. I know many of you are tired, I know many of you want to step on fresh grass; see trees… feel the breeze…. Smell the rain and the fact is that we get none of that here. We have been offered a planet… a planet that is alive and teeming with life where these people can help us to rebuild. Sarah, Tom…. Like it or not… we are alone in this if we refuge their offer… we've seen the dangers that are out there and the Cylons are only a small part of it."
"You're talking about these.. Ori?" said Marshall Baggot from Virgon, "the ones that have been supposedly destroying the Cylons?"
"Yes" said Roslin, "according to Major Adama's report."
Roslin was handed a file from Apollo which she then placed on her podium and opened.
"The Earth ships took multiple hits from what seemed to be their main weapon, and blue coloured energy weapons" said the President as she looked up from the report, "he said that some of those energy weapons were heading towards the Galactica and the Pegasus, which they blocked as well and…."
"These people should have been arrested" said another delegate, "if they are willing to save Cylons then…."
"These people have destroyed a race of machines" said Roslin, "if they are willing to do that to machines, then I have to believe they have a good reason to protect the Cylons."
"Because those 'machines' weren't alive; they couldn't reason" said another delegate from Picon who leaned forward, "the Cylons butchered everyone…. We offered our surrender and they refused. Do you see them reasoning? Do you see any reasoning in that? And how do we know if anything they said was true? Humans on other worlds, Parasites that take the name of gods, and…"
"That's the most sacrilegious part of all" said Sarah as she stood up once again, "who are these things to come on board Colonial One to tell us all these lies and deceptions?"
"I saw everything" said Roslin, "the Ori ship… an individual calling itself a Prior said that our gods had caused the destruction of the colonies. That the Ori were our salvation; Miss Summers translated that these Ori are beings that sap free will from humans.. that they are on the verge of taking over the galaxy."
"That's a load of bull" said the delegate from Aerilon as everyone cheered and shouted over each other. The delegate from Aerilon who was talking had to raise his voice just to be heard by the President, "that is impossible… faith is what sustains people… free will is what sustains people.. how can anything take that away?"
"We were told that they would enslave us all" shouted Roslin as she lost her cool and shouted at the shouting delegates who suddenly stooped in total surprise at the redhead raising her voice, "and Admiral Cain sold us out to the Ori. She would rather enslave us all to them so that she would see the Cylon's destroyed!"
"Lies!" shouted the delegate from Tauron as the session started to become a free for all, and Roslin didn't care anymore, "Admiral Cain is a proud Tauron, she would never do that to her people."
As the screaming matches reached a crescendo, Commander Adama walked up to the President as she held her head low in embarrassment at what she had begun, and at what was happening right now as one delegate started screaming at another while the Press were shouting questions at the President.
"Delegates of the Quorum" said Commander Adama as he signalled to lead the visibly upset Roslin away. However, just as Billy took a step forward, the President raised her head smiled at Billy and told him it was alright. She then turned to the Commander and thanked him for helping her, but she insisted that she should be the one doing this. Nodding his head, the Commander then took a few steps back but remained close enough.
"My fellow Colonials" said Roslin into the microphone as everyone was still shouting at each other, "my fellow…."
"HEY!" shouted Balter as he slammed a gavel he was holding onto the table in front of him before he stood up and looked at everyone. In turn, everyone in the gallery looked at the man in surprise, even Roslin had raised her eyebrows at what the normally fidgety and reclusive man had just done. Balter then turned towards Roslin and bowed his head before taking a seat.
"Thank you, Mr. Vice President" said Roslin as she gave him a nod of the head before she took a deep breath and then turned back towards the other delegates who had quietened down and taken their seats, "before we continue, I ordered Commander Adama to send a raptor to conduct reconnaissance on the planet that we were sent coordinates to. Readings indicated that it's habitable, has large oceans, lakes and rivers… animal life… looks just like Caprica from space. The atmosphere is breathable… and it's empty… there is no life except for what seems like a small outpost with people."
"Cylons!" said a delegate from the planet Libra.
"They left a message for us in Colonial Standard" said Roslin as she looked at the picture of four people in black uniforms and vests holding up signs to the raptor that had been taking pictures of the surface.
"Madam President?" asked the delegate from Caprica as the President looked up and put her glasses on her face, "what does it say?"
"Come quick" said Roslin as she looked at the sign, "coffee, meds and fishing available. Limited time run. Fourteen days only."
"Is this a joke?" asked Zarek again, "what is this?"
"They offered us a planet" said Roslin, "a planet that….."
"I…" said Porter as she stood up, "I would like to table a motion…. That we hold an immediate vote to determine our confidence in Laura Roslin's leadership."
"Excuse me?" said Roslin surprised as she glared at Sarah Porter, and then turning around to look at the surprised look on Balter's face. She then looked at the Commander and the others behind him who were looking at each other shocked and confused at what was going on.
"You have…." Said Balter as Zarek stood up and seconded that motion before the scientist looked at Roslin who stepped back as she was shaking her head.
"I'm sorry, Laura" said Zarek as he was interrupted by Sarah Porter.
"I'm not" said Porter as she stood up, "you were going to sell us out to blasphemous strangers, to heretics…. You were going to sell us out to those who say that the Sacred Scrolls aren't important…. Which means that it's not important to you... which means that you have been lying to us since day one. And that stops now."
"What are you doing?" said Roslin as she looked around the delegates in the gallery "we have a home to go to.. a home.. and you're willing to…"
"I place a vote of no confidence" said Porter as she raised her hand.
"You are making a mistake" said Roslin, "we are out here alone…. We need the allies. We found an advanced civi…."
"As do I" said Zarek as he raised his hand.
"We found an advanced civilization to protect us" said Roslin as she raised her voice when three more hands went up, "we can teach them their history and these people… they haven't harmed us.. they cannot be Cylons… they have to be the Thirteenth Tribe!"
Roslin stopped when another delegate raised his hand.
"We are alone out here" said Roslin as she held on to both sides of the lectern and leaned forward, "we are in uncharted territory and these people are giving us all a second chance. Is that what you all want to give up? A second chance at life? A second chance at living? We all lost to the Cylons…. Everyone in this fleet lost. You think I'm glad about making this decision? But I am also aware of the fact that the longer we stay out here…. the greater are the chances that we die. Tell yourselves what you want."
General Landry's office, SGC, 1300 hours.
It had been hours since the injured and the non-essential personnel from the Avalon had come through the Stargate from the Beta Site. With the beaming technology still temperamental on the Avalon.. the injured, and the bodies of those who had died were taken to the surface and brought back to Earth through the Stargate. SG1 and SG2 were the last to transfered down to the planet alongside General O'Neill and Woolsey, after a fully healed Willow was able to heal Colonel Carter's injuries. In the meantime, Dawn and Satterfield had gotten authorization from Woolsey and General O'Neill to tell Sharon the basic information about the Stargate.
Initially not believing what the two were talking about, Sharon was shocked to see the Stargate activate before SG1 and SG2, minus Satterfield and Grogan stayed back at the Beta site to keep Sharon company, and help her in learning Earth history and English until someone else could be sent to cover for them. The humanoid Cylon was told that one day she would be allowed to visit Earth, but that would be some time later. Just before Dawn and Willow stepped through the Gate, the young brunette looked back and waved at Sharon before Satterfield gently held on to her arm, and guided her to one of the doctors who would be looking over her, and her baby. Sharon then looked back at Dawn who was looking at Willow before the both of them walked through the Stargate and the wormhole disengaged.
"I have a lot to read, don't I?" asked a still shocked Sharon as she turned to Satterfield, who was standing next to Grogan.
"Oh, yea" grinned Satterfield as they walked into the medical building.
It was after their post-mission check-ups, around thirteen hundred hours, that Willow told Anya, Tara and General Landry the truth… including everything about the Furlings and the Clones. After she had finished, she looked at Anya and almost fell onto the floor laughing as the redhead saw the ex-vengeance demon's mouth just hand open. Tara, being the person that she was, insisted on apologizing for everything that happened to Willow and to Sineya. However, Willow told her that there was nothing to forgive, that she wasn't the one responsible for what happened; she even told her that Buffy and the others wouldn't blame her at all. However, Tara still apologized and told Willow about the woman she met in her dream… the one who had shown her the battle at the Supergate.
"You saw my mother" said Willow who had her eyes wide open while they were seated across from the General in his office, "red hair? White dress with gold accents?"
"Uh huh" said Tara as she nodded her head, "I thought it was you."
"She visited you" said Willow as she smiled and looked down.
"She was worried about you" said Tara as Anya still couldn't believe what Willow told them earlier, that she was a ten thousand year old Ancient, "she shed a tear when I mentioned your name."
"To save you and the others" said General Landry, "she appeared to Tara for help."
"But I still don't know why" said Tara as she looked at the General and then at Anya who shook her head and looked back at the witch.
"It is pretty obvious" said Anya as she looked at Willow, and then at Tara, "she reached out to a powerful magic user… I mean she couldn't come to Willow. That would be like saying goodbye to your daughter, so she came to Tara… showed her what was going on because she knew that Tara would trust her vision and call the SGC."
"Which in turn led us to launch the Avalon and mount a rescue mission" said the General as he nodded his head.
"Sir" said Willow as she turned to the General, "with your permission, I'd like to go to Atlantis this evening. My mother…. Melina died two days from now… and there are some things that I'd like to do before I visit her grave. I have a few days leave, Dr. Lam's orders since my body still needs to recuperate. I'd like to take Faith with me."
"I've already talk to General O'Neill about it" said General Landry, "and he agreed. But he's insisting on Colonel Carter and Vala accompanying you. While Miss Jenkins and Miss Maclay have made a case for going back to Merlin's library on Camelot to search for any information on how to build another Sangraal, General O'Neill has ordered Colonel Carter to work with Dr. MacKay and Dr. Zalenka to sift through the Atlantis database on instructions to build a new Sangraal."
"Any news on the Cylons and the Colonials, sir?" asked Willow.
"No" said General Landry shaking his head as the three of them heard footsteps coming up the stairs from the Control Room downstairs. Nodding his head at Vala and Faith, he motioned for them to come into his office before he turned to Anya, Willow and Tara, "they haven't made it to those planets yet, but Woolsey said that the IOA will authorize the teams to be on site for not more than two weeks. They've seen a sign we left them when our ground sensors noticed a aircraft… so they know how long they've got. Nothing from the Cylons yet though."
The four people in the room heard the door being knocked on as Faith and Vala were told to come in. Once they were in, he told the two of them that they would be going to Atlantis along with Willow and Colonel Carter. In the meantime, Colonel Mitchell and Teal'c would be taking a team to the planet that the Cylons were given coordinates to so that they could relieve the team that was already there.
Before he dismissed everyone, he told them that they had received reports from the Tok'ra that more Priors were coming to this Galaxy through Stargates. However, so far there had been no news about Daniel…. Or about Adria.
Jumper Lab One, SGC, 1700 hours.
It had been nearly four hours since the briefing in General Landry's office as Willow walked up the ramp, and into the Jumper. She put a small black carry-on bag into one of the compartments and just stood straight as she looked into the distance and smiled.
'I'm going home' though Willow to herself, 'this is… I've been to Atlantis before but… this time will be different. This time…. It's my home.'
Smiling to herself, Willow then quickly walked to the control console and activated the systems to get the pre-flight checks out of the way. She was cycling through the holographic HUDs when she felt a nervous presence behind her. Closing her eyes and frowning to herself, Willow leaned back and then smiled before turning around in her seat to face Dawn who had just stepped into the Jumper. The redhead saw Dawn look straight at her with feelings of sadness just emanating from her before she walked over to the cockpit as Willow looked at her sit in the co-pilot's seat.
"You didn't tell me you were leaving for Atlantis" said Dawn softly.
"No" replied Willow as she looked at Dawn, before she turned around and activated the last HUD she was looking at, "I didn't."
"Why?" asked Dawn as she looked at the HUD of the available power, followed by the status of all flight systems. She them turned back to Willow who was simply just looking at the HUD in front of her.
"You have a few days off" said Willow softly as she looked at readings on the console and then switched to another HUD, "I figured you wanted to visit Joyce and Buffy in Sunnydale."
"Jay and Rose wanted to see you too" said Dawn as she leaned forward and placed a hand on Willow's arm, "if I knew you were going, I wouldn't have made last minute plans to…."
"My mother…. I mean Melina's death anniversary is two days from now" said Willow as she switched screens and looked at the status of the inertial dampeners, "before that…. There are just some things I need to do."
Dawn left go of Willow's arm as she made that revelation as she felt a pang of hurt go through a part of her, a feeling that she was sure Willow had felt since the redhead stopped what she was doing and looked at Dawn confused. Then shaking her head after a few seconds, Willow scanned through another HUD as Dawn tried to push down the hurt for not being asked along to see the grave of someone she never knew, or met before in her life.
'Why would I be hurt in the first place?' thought Dawn to herself.
"Will you be going to her grave?" asked Dawn.
"Yea" said Willow as she continued looking at the HUD, "Hera would crouch down at the side of the trail that lead to her grave and pick up flowers. She'll then arrange them in her hand as she sang a song that Father had taught her… the same song that mother would sing to me when I was little to get me to sleep. I'll pick the same flowers that she did, and place it there for her."
"Oh" said Dawn softly as Willow let go of the controls, and then leaned back on the chair as she looked at the scientists walking across the forward window of the Jumper.
"Yeah" said Willow as she got up and walked to the back of the Jumper while Dawn followed Willow with her eyes. The brunette saw Willow walk to the back as she pulled down a panel and checked the control crystals inside. She took out some of the crystals and checked them for any cracks or damages. Finding none, Willow closed the panel before walking back to her seat, "I can sense Faith, Colonel Carter and Vala are on the way."
"Have you told anyone other than Faith about what you told me?" asked Dawn as she looked at Willow avoiding her eyes, while she shook her head as she sat down.
"Oh" said Dawn as she nodded her head and leaned back on the co-pilots seat.
"Enjoy your time with them, Dawnie" said Willow as she looked at the controls while she leaned back on the pilot's seat, "tell Buffy that we'll probably go to Nairobi for that thing, she know what it is, in about a month's time. I'll show her, and the others, my memories before that."
"About?" asked Dawn who was wondering what Willow was talking about.
"Buffy will tell you" said Willow as the both of them heard footsteps and the voices of the three women coming down the hallway, "anyway, you should get going. You need to pack for your trip.. you taking Jon?"
"No" said Dawn softly, "he's on the planet… the same one whose coordinates we gave to the Colonials."
"Oh" said Willow nodding her head as she turned to face Dawn, "tell the others I said hi?"
"Yeah" said Dawn as she gave a small smile before she got up as Vala, Colonel Carter and Faith walked in.
"Hey squirt" said Faith as Dawn walked past all of them without a word. Faith then turned to Willow and suddenly felt a spike that buried into her chest. The same spike that told her the conversation the redhead had wasn't a good one, for her or for Dawn.
"Is Dawn alright?" asked Vala as she and Colonel Carter looked back at Dawn as she walked away while wiping her eyes.
"Yeah" said Willow softly as she looked at Faith, "she wanted to know why I didn't tell her we were going to Atlantis."
"Well" said Colonel Carter as she put down her bag, "this is a working trip and…."
"A trip to visit someone I never knew existed until I got my memories back" said Willow as Vala put aside her things and sat next to Willow in the co-pilot's seat as Faith pressed the button in the back to close the ramp, "anyway, I need to make up for lost time and…."
"Where was your sister buried?" asked Vala as everyone looked at the dark haired woman while there was a tinge of hurt on Willow's face as she glanced at the hallway that Dawn had walk out into.
"Next to my mother" said Willow softly before she grabbed a hold of the controls, "anyway, you ladies ready?"
After everyone nodded their heads, Willow raised the Jumper off the ground before flying it down to the Gateroom where the Stargate was already connected to the Intergalactic Gate Bridge. After getting clearance to leave from General Landry, Willow flew the Jumper into the gate and before they knew it.. they found themselves in the partially constructed Midway Station. Once the Milky Way Stargate was disengaged, Colonel Carter input the macro that Mackay had developed and activated the Pegasus Stargate before she input her IDC. Once they got the green light from Atlantis, Willow flew the Jumper into the Stargate for the second stage of their journey. In what seemed like an instant, but in reality took almost fifteen minutes, Willow and the others found themselves in the Atlantis Gateroom as Dr. Weir told Willow to take the Jumper up to the Jumper Bay.
However, before doing anything, Willow closed her eyes and felt a tingle go through her body. It was the same sensation anyone would get when they've come back to a familiar place after many years, and in Willow's case; she was home.
'Hello, old friend' thought Willow to herself smiling as she raised the Jumper into a doorway that opened in the ceiling, 'I'm home.'
Jumper Bay, Atlantis, 1740 hours.
Dr. Weir was surprised when she received a message hours earlier that Colonel Carter, Faith, Willow and Vala would be travelling to Atlantis to find any information that detailed work on how to create a new Sangraal, in case they were unable to find Daniel. She was also told that Willow was going along for personal reasons which would be revealed to the Ancient city's administrator later on. As she, Colonel Sheppard, Ronan, Teyla and Mackay were rushing towards the Jumper Bay… Dr. Weir could only wonder what would be a personal reason for Willow to come to Atlantis as well.
It was a few minutes later that she and the others heard voices from the Jumper Bay with Willow laughing at Vala on why she decided to bring two bags; one which was filled with all her clothes, and the other one was empty. Dr. Weir frowned at Colonel Sheppard and told him to keep an eye on Vala when she said that the other bag was for souvenirs.
"Colonel Carter" said Dr. Weir as she and the others walked into the Jumper Bay and towards the group from Earth, "welcome again to Atlantis."
"Dr. Weir" said Colonel Carter as she pulled up her bag on her shoulder, "sorry to make this a last minute sort of a deal but… well, I take it that Mr. Woolsey and General O'Neill told you about Daniel and the Sangraal?"
"Yes" said Dr. Weir as she recalled her shock at hearing that Daniel was taken by Adria when she was notified about the reason for Colonel Carter coming to Atlantis, "Dr. Mackay and Dr. Zalenka are at your service, they know the Atlantis Database better than anyone. If you're looking for technical specifications on that weapon, then it could be in there."
"I get coming here for the Sangraal" said Mackay as he looked at Colonel Carter up and down her body, "and you look good by the way, Sam. Having a kid really did well…."
"Mackay" said Colonel Carter frowning as Colonel Sheppard stamped down onto his foot.
"But how is this also a personal visit?" asked Mackay as he yelped out loud, while he look at the male Colonel who was glaring at him.
"Willow" said Colonel Carter as she turned to the redhead, "why don't you go and do your stuff…. I'll brief Dr. Weir, and then we'll start going through the database. This is your, and Faith's, personal day off so…."
"Again" said Mackay, "how is…."
"Dr. Weir" said Willow as she picked up her bag while facing Dr. Weir, "did your alternate timeline self mention a woman named Athena?"
"It's in my report, Willow" said Dr. Weir, "she never mentioned anyone by that name."
"She was brave, Dr. Weir" said Willow when she sensed deception in what Dr. Weir was saying, "she was alone in this city, but all she did was want to journey home and make sure that you and your team was safe."
"I know that but…." Said Dr. Weir as Willow interrupted her.
"She was nervous for the final push, the final thirty three hundred years" said Willow, "she had already grown older, her hair was already grey… she picked up the last ZPM and just looked at it. She was nervous about if she would even survive the last leg of her journey. But she knew it was something she needed to do. She replaced the ZPM, pushed it into the control console and then walked back to the stasis chamber. Before she went in, she turned around to see Athena walking into the room. Athena told her that she's been visiting the city every hundred years or so, and every time she did… she would visit the alternate Dr. Weir while she was in stasis. Athena knew that that was the final time that your alternate would come out of stasis.. so she returned to Atlantis early to tell her that she would be safe… to reassure her."
"Nice story" said Mackay, "but that doesn't….. Elizabeth?"
The First Atlantis Recon Team looked at a surprised Dr. Weir who had her hands over her mouth as she took a step back. Willow then told Dr. Weir that the last time Athena visited her alternate self, the redhead assured her that everything would be fine… that the program that Janus had created would kick in once the shields were down to a critical level… that her journey wasn't in vain; that her team would survive this time. Willow told her that Athena watched as Dr. Weir's alternate self smiled before she stepped into the stasis pod; that Athena looked on as the stasis ice enveloped the alternate Dr. Weir.
"I…. I…." said Dr. Weir as the others looked on. She then turned around to face Colonel Sheppard and the others and told them what the alternate Dr. Weir had told her while they were all sleeping. That they had a talk about a woman named Athena, an ancestor of Willow.
"She… she told me that" said Dr. Weir, "what Athena had told her, how nervous she was… but I never mentioned that in my report because… well…. I thought she just telling a story… a vision that she had to keep her company."
"Athena wasn't a vision" said Colonel Carter as she stood next to Willow. The blonde woman then turned to Willow and told her to go ahead, that she had a lot of things to find out about herself. Smiling, Willow grabbed onto Faith's hand, but not before she turned to face Dr. Weir again.
"I know that you're not her, Dr. Weir" said Willow as she gave the older woman a quick hug, "but thank you for keeping this city company, she would have been alone if there wasn't anyone here; and thank you for continuing to protect her."
Willow then stepped back, before running off with Faith as Dr. Weir looked at Willow shocked, before turning back to Colonel Carter and asked her what was going on.
"We need to talk" said Colonel Carter, "I need to talk to Dr. Beckett and your science team as well."
"Colonel" said Teyla, "Major Rosenberg.. it seemed as if she was familiar about some aspects of Dr. Weir's alternate self…. What is….."
"That's what we need to talk about" said the Colonel.
"Conference Room" said a still shocked Dr. Weir as she turned back to the hallway that led to the Jumper Bay, "Conference room, now."
TBC.