Chapter 10

Lunch time had soon rolled around at school. Mr. Hinckley's special class all sat together as the found keeping secrets was all so isolating. Janet sat across from Sam and Daniel as she poked at her food. "I don't remember school lunches being this bad the first time." she mentioned off hand.

Daniel suggested, "Maybe they were always this bad but our taste buds just weren't developed yet?"

Sam shook her head, "We have had worse at the SGC."

Daniel agreed, "MRE's."

Tony asked, "MRE's are what?"

"Rations." he informed. "Meals ready to eat."

"Got any?' he asked curious.

"I'm sure Colonel Hammond can get some." he assumed.

He grinned, "Neat! I want to see if it's as bad as you say." Tony glanced up to spy one of the more popular girls walking towards the table. She had long blondish brown curly hair and sported the latest 80's fashion of stone washed jeans and a white blouse and bright red slip stick. He gave a heavy sigh for he did not want her around his new and much cooler class. "Great…" he muttered.

Ali Mills came to the table to visit her friend, Janet. She took a seat near her friend. "Hey Janet! I see your class really grew." she noticed.

Janet introduced her friend, "Everyone…this is Ali Mills. She's my friend. Ali, meet Daniel, Sam, Mark, Rhonda, Tony and Karl."

"I know half of you." she smiled.

Janet asked, "Not sitting with Daniel?" She referred to Ali's boyfriend.

"We're taking a break." she told her.

Rhonda asked, "Will Daniel be in this years tournament?"

She rolled her head back, "He wants to go to Japan for some big karate tournament there." She confessed, "I'm so tired of karate at this point. Johnny was all about karate. Daniel is all about karate. Me…not so much."

Janet recalled, "That's right. Daniel La Russo won the state champ last year. Is Johnny still with Cobra Kia? I heard Kreese chocked Johnny after he lost to Daniel."

"I never heard that." Ali admitted. "I have not talked to Johnny all summer. So, what are you got going here, Janet?"

Janet went with the cover. "My class started an astronomy club."

Ali perked up, "I love astronomy. Can I be in the club?"

"Um…" Janet looked to Sam and Daniel unsure what to tell her old high school friend.

Tony smirked, "Sure! More geeks the better." He was teasing both Ali and Janet by allowing the girl to join.

Sam stuttered, "Well…um…" she looked to Daniel for help.

"We're kind of full." he excused.

Tony really had no desire to be in any astronomy club but found he could leverage the cover against Sam and Daniel. He waved the notion off. "Nah, there is plenty of room. Ali lost both her boyfriends to those karate kids and all. Let her join!"

"Um…" Daniel sat wide eyed.

Ali cheered, "This is so awesome. I love astronomy and looking at the moon and starts at night. I got a telescope that my dad gave me for my birthday."

Sam had to admit "A telescope helps."

Ali wanted something new to do and was tired of being the girlfriend of the latest karate champ. Astrology was nerdy. It was not something any jocks would want to get into and certainly not either of her ex boyfriends.

"This is so exciting, Janet." she cheered. "Do we go to each other houses at night to star gaze?"

"We just started the club." Janet told her.

Tony than slid a piece of paper with the symbol for Earth. "This is our little club sign. It means earth."

Ali grinned, "I had no idea you were into astrology, Tony. I thought you were just a car guy."

"I am just a car guy." he admitted.

Janet told her, "We're called the Star Gazer Club."

Daniel smirked, "SGC. Star Gazers Command."

Rhonda nearly chocked as she laughed at Daniel's joke.

Ali didn't get the joke. She thought the name was neat. "Star Gazer Club. I like it." She so looked forward to her new club and hanging out with her old friend Janet.

Next into the cafeteria was a young man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He wore jeans and a flannel shirt. He was shunned from the table that the karate kids sat at as he lost the tournament. He heard Ali Mills broke up with Daniel LaRusso and he thought maybe he could win her back. He spied her sitting at the table with the trouble kids from Mr. Hinckley's class. He walked over holding his tray of food. "Hey Ali." he meekly greeted. "I was wondering if we could talk."

Ali assured, "I'm not going back out with you. I'm done dating anyone right now."

"So, you are sitting with the reject class?" he asked looking the class over. At that moment he felt like a reject himself.

"It's an astronomy club. The Star Gazers. I'm going back to my hobby, astronomy." she told him annoyed.

Sam looked at Daniel and puckered in thought.

Daniel asked, "Karate? Contingency plan?"

"Wouldn't hurt." she confessed.

Desperate to belong to something again Johnny asked, "Great! Can I join your little club?"

Tony beamed amused, "Sure!"

Sam huffed at him, "Shut up, Tony! Don't let everyone and anyone join."

Johnny thought it meant he was not welcomed. "That's okay. I'll go sit be myself." he turned to leave the table when Janet called out.

"Johnny!" she called.

He paused and turned slightly, "Yeah, Janet?"

"You can come sit with us if you want to." she invited him.

A small smile crept across his face. "Thanks." He then went back to the table and took a seat ensuring to give Ali some room. He sat across from Daniel. He decided to introduce himself, "Hi! I'm Johnny Lawrence." he offered a handshake.

"I'm Daniel. Daniel Jackson." he shook his hand.

The pleasant smile melted from Johnny's face. "You name is Daniel?" It was as if he could not get away from losing the tournament.

"It is! I'm not into karate." he informed.

"What are you into?" he wondered. Maybe he could start fresh and find a new friend who liked cars, girls and sports.

Daniel informed, "I'm a linguist and an archeologist. I speak over fifty seven languages, twenty eight from Earth and I'm into Ancient Aliens."

Johnny sat like a deer in the headlights. "Um…"

"Welcome to the reject table." Daniel added amused.

Ali asked, "You really speak that many languages, Daniel?"

He confirmed, "I do."

"This new astronomy club is so cool." she cheered.

Meanwhile

Jack took over piloting Airwolf as String instructed. The ride was smooth as butter for Jack as the chopper was still in rotor mode.

String asked, "How's she feeling?"

"Smooth as a new born baby's butt." he replied.

String gave a little laugh. "Alright Jack. Let's try going from rotors to jet now."

"Ready." Jack stated. He made the transition with ease. He checked his instruments, "We are now approaching mach one." he reported.

"Not many can do the rotor to jet transfer, Jack." Dom spoke. "You're a real ace."

For Jack having an actual World War Two fighter Ace call him an Ace was a compliment that he would always cherish. He humbly replied, "Coming from you, Dom that's the greatest honor anyone has ever given me." He continued to fly. "I bet Teal'c would love this." he spoke to himself.

Dom had to ask, "Do you know what become of Airwolf in the future, Jack?"

"I honestly don't." he reported. "We don't have hybrid jet engine choppers in the future. This technology must have been lost somehow."

Dom suggested, "I bet you flew all kind of top secret experimental craft, Jack."

"A few." he agreed. "I'm special forces. So, most of my time was boots on the ground. Then paperwork galore when they promoted me to General. Damn that sucked." he complained.

Caitlin asked, "Being promoted to General sucked."

"Not the promotion. I had to go to D.C. and work there. Was a swamp. I hated working there." he complained. "That rock was kind of a dream come true. I got to be young again and now I am far away from the swamp."

String stated, "Not much of a politician, huh?"

He shook his head, "Nope! Hated the politics." He looked out the window as he brought Airwolf back to rotors. "Now this I could do all day." he smiled.

Dom pondered, "Forty years is a long time. I know I'm dead but I wonder where String and Caitlin are in forty years."

Jack shrugged, "I have no idea." He looked to String, "It would be kind of neat if you were in the SGC, String."

String stated, "I need to find my brother."

"Then maybe both you and your brother." he suggested.

Dom urged, "I bet you could do that space command thing, String."

String laughed a bit to himself. "I don't see me going to other planets and chasing aliens."

Jack asked, "Can you see me doing it?"

"Honestly, no!" he shook his head. "I can see you working for Dom flying as a stunt pilot after you get out."

Jack stated, "I can see you doing it, String. I can see you going off world with your team. Maybe even Dom and Caitlin with you."

Caitlin asked, "What would I do…off world?"

"You were a cop, right?" he asked.

"I was." she nodded. "I flew chopper patrol after my partner, Michael got killed."

"Your partner got killed?" he asked.

She nodded, "My first big undercover break. Michael was shot in the face and died. I went back to flying choppers. Weird thing is Michael Knight sounds and walks a lot like my late partner, Michael."

Dom asked, "Who was your partner, Cait? I didn't know he got killed."

"Michael Long." she stated. "I put flowers on his grave on his birthday. It's so sad. He died in the line of duty but no one ever comes to put flowers on his grave. Just me."

Dom agreed, "That is sad."

Jack agreed, "Especially for dying in the line of duty like that. My best friend died in the line of duty. I always visit his grave for his birthday. Same with Frasier."

Caitlin asked, "You mean Janet Frasier?"

He confessed, "She died in the line of duty. She was off world, one hell of a firefight. She was tending to a wounded man. Got hit herself. That stone sent her back right before she goes off. I'm trying to figure out a way to warn her."

String stated, "If the government can get the Russians to lend us their Star Gate, we could alter the timeline to the point where she never died. Like with the tomb and the tape you were telling us about."

"You mean we alter it so she never gets killed off world in the first place?" he asked.

"Yes." he nodded. "We could actually start the program a decade ahead of time as a result. If that happens that timeline is altered."

Dom asked, "You sure about that, String?"

"It's quantum physics, Dom." he told him.

He asked, "Quantum physics? Is that something new?"

He nodded, "That's what you would need for a wormhole."

"Oh, so this is something only you can understand." he figured.

"And Carter." Jack injected. "She can teach you all about it, String."

String took over flying and gave a disturbed look. "A fifteen year old teaching me about quantum physics."

Jack nodded, "She or McKay!"

"Who?" he asked.

"Never mind," Jack shook his head at the thought of dealing with a teenage Rodney McKay.