Fic: Twice In A Lifetime 4/6 StarGate: Atlantis/BattleStar Galactica
Title: Twice In A Lifetime Author: Lopaka Tanu Disclaimer: I do not own BattleStar Galactica or StarGate: Atlantis. Characters: Gaeta, Lorne, Caldwell, Sheppard, Weir, Rodney, Woolsey Hermiod, Carson, Teyla, and Kate Heightmeyer. Words: 23,232 Prompt: Galactica jumps to alien planet, is destroyed. SGA rescues. Fandom: StarGate: Atlantis/BattleStar Galactica Pairing: Pre-Lorne/Gaeta Rating: Teen Warnings: Language, Violence, Character Deaths. Summary: After rescuing a group of strangers from a debris field, Lorne and the rest of Atlantis become embroiled in a three millennia old mystery that leaves them asking who can they trust. Author's Note: More SGA style than BSG, which means it tends to be humorously bad in parts. Spoilers: BSG 2x09; SGA 3x06 ______________________________________ Part 4. Pigs In Space
"I am trying, sir." Pulling off his ear piece, Lorne winced at the shouting voice coming from it. If the man was in front of him, career or not, he would have flattened that bitch. Since he wasn't going to get the chance he did the next best thing.
Reaching over to the Communications console, Lorne turned off the channel. That done, he activated a program that blocked any incoming signal from Mr. Woolsey. There was quite enough of that mess.
Calming himself down, he looked to the Conn. Officer who was pretending to be busy. He wasn't fooled one minute by her act. "How long until the repairs to the hull are complete?"
"I...have no idea, sir." Her hitch in breath made it clear she was lying.
There was only one reason she would deliberately lie to him. She was under orders from the Colonel.
Until the repair crew gave the all clear the ship could not enter the atmosphere. Since they were under medical orders not to beam the survivors down to Atlantis, the ship had to land to transfer them. He could clearly see Caldwell's hand in all of this.
What it all added up to was a big headache for him. Closing his eyes, he allowed his body to sag against the console. It was going to be a long day.
Checking his watch, he sighed. The mission was already two days behind schedule. Sure, it was for a rescue, but that was still a delay. At this rate they were never going to get these gates collected in time.
He could already hear McKay now. The Colonel's effect on the man wasn't going to last very long. If they didn't shove off soon, he knew that Rodney would come up with something new for him to do. Looking down at the console, Lorne grimaced.
He had been specially chosen for this mission because of his experience. It wasn't hard to go pick the damn gates up. That wasn't where he had qualified. No, his experience laid in his dealings with both McKay and Caldwell. As one of the few people who could mediate between them he had been chosen.
The fact he had an Abnormally high ATA gene level also helped things along. Someone had to control the jumper in the docking bay in case they had to dial out.
So, despite his rank, he was basically a glorified man-servant.
Still, it was his first solo mission since the Orion. Well, aside from the fact that it was Caldwell's ship. And that one trip through the gate with his own team. But that didn't really count as they had just been saving Sheppard's ass again.
Rolling his eyes, Lorne realized that he was doing what the whole Universe had been. Everything came back to Sheppard and his team.
That led to the main attraction of this mission. Two months off from having to deal with the shenanigans Sheppard and his team got them in. Sure, he had his own, once or twice. That was to be expected when going through the gate. It was the fact that almost every mission with Atlantis One ended in a rescue he hated.
A beep from the console behind made Lorne shoot up off of it. Spinning to face it, he forced his heart back in his chest. He realized to his chagrin that it was an incoming communications.
The Comm officer recovered from her silent laugher first and activated the signal. "Bridge." The humorous expression on her face quickly slipped off as her back straightened. "Yes, sir." She looked up to Lorne. "Major, the Colonel and Dr. Weir request your presence in the infirmary immediately."
Lorne didn't bother to hide his sigh of relief. It was good to be able to do something finally. "Tell them I am on my way."
She nodded. "Right away, sir. Also, the Colonel orders that you to turn your radio back on."
Already halfway to the hatch, Lorne paused for only a second. He sighed with a quick nod. That done he was on his way again. This time, he had the ear piece turned on.
~~~~~~~~~~
By the time Lorne made it to the infirmary he was thoroughly confused about what might have actually happened. There were entirely too many possibilities for him to actually brace himself. Therefore, he decided to expect the worst. That included a need for firearms.
The handgun on his hip provided more than just physical security.
Stopping at the hatch, he nodded to the guards. They didn't seem to be on high alert. In fact, their mood could almost be considered bored. That boded well.
Puffing out his cheeks, he exhaled and stepped up to the sensor. The doors slid back to let him enter.
Inside the infirmary was nothing unusual. The three surviving members of the alien crew were still on life support. The ambient lighting was lower than standard for their comfort. Obviously this wasn't where he was needed.
That left one place. He should have known.
Squaring his shoulders, Lorne made his way over to the private room. This time he didn't hesitate before he walked through. The doors parted letting him in to the crowded room. He quickly took in the situation and looked to Weir and Caldwell for orders. "You rang?"
Caldwell scowled at him. "Very funny, Major." Shifting so that he could look at the man in the bed, he kept a hard set to his features. "Dr. Seigel informs us that Mr. Gaeta here is ready for transport down to Atlantis. You are to provide security on this one."
"Why me?" The words came out before Lorne could think to censor himself. And did he really sound that bitter? At least he knew better than to ask why not Sheppard.
The look the Colonel gave him said it all. "You rescued him, he's your problem."
"Right, sir." Back straightening, Lorne felt like green recruit fresh out of basic. "How long..."
"Someone has already been selected to take your place when the Daedalus ships out." It was left to Weir to soften the blow. Smiling, she effected a cheerful demeanor. "Considering your time and emotional investment, we both feel that you are the most qualified for this assignment."
"I barely know him, them! Colonel Sheppard spent more time with him." There was that pesky lack of control again. If he didn't think it would look awkward, Lorne would have kicked himself.
It was Caldwell's turn to smile. "I believe you have something in your quarters that belies that fact. Well, it's down on Atlantis now." The stare he pinned the younger man brokered no refusal. "Besides, there are strict orders to keep the Lieutenant Colonel and his team far from this one. Their actions earlier only served to make me agree with that decision."
Lorne felt an imaginary noose tighten around his neck. They had him between a rock and a hard place over this. Sighing, he nodded his acceptance. That settled, he turned to the other person in this little drama.
The man wouldn't even meet Lorne's stare.
Sighing again, Lorne knew this wasn't going to turn out good.
~~~~~~~~~~
"I can't believe they kicked us off like that! We had every right to be up there with the rest of those imbecils." His voice echoed in the briefing room. Hand clutching at his tablet, Rodney used it like a shield between him and the rest of his team. He shifted his outraged glare from Sheppard to Teyla. "As the top scientist, I should be involved in any new technological discoveries!"
"Yes, but there was no technology." Teyla tried to appease the man while keeping a neutral stance. After over a hour of his bitching, though, her smile was more a grimace. "Colonel Caldwell had every right to do exactly as he did. It is his ship."
"That's beside the point." Waving off her concern, McKay missed her sigh. His attention was turned once more to John. "We should be up there going over the evidence, not some second fiddle..."
"Major Lorne is more than capable of baby sitting a few injured survivors." His voice almost a growl, Ronon scowled at his team mate. "If you make things worse for us by doing something stupid, McKay, I promise to touch everything in your lab."
That stopped the angry scientist dead in his tracks. Narrowing his eyes, he pointed one finger at the bigger man. He shook it in agitation. "Don't even kid about that!"
"Who said I was?" The smirk on Ronon's face made it hard to tell if he was joking.
It was sufficient enough threat to cool off Rodney's ranting. He had to come up with something else to occupy his mind. Waiting for Elizabeth to come back from the ship was nerve racking enough as it was. There was now need to find something else to focus his nervous energy on.
Quiet came to them outside his head, but internally, Rodney was running calculations. It wasn't much, but figuring the fuel consumption ratio for the Naquidah reactors every time they opened the gate was sufficiently distracting. Well, it was until something else popped up.
A small alert outside the briefing room drew all to the doors.
Rodney, since he was already standing, was the first to them. He followed the signal down the corridor to the main entrance of the Gate Room. The footsteps of his teammates behind him were but a faint distraction from his goal.
Walking up to the gate controls, he wasn't a bit surprised to find Woolsey perching over Chuck's shoulder. Putting on a superior grin, he cleared his throat.
Unlike the desired reaction, Woolsey didn't even so much as twitch. "What do you want, Dr. McKay?" His attention was solely for the readouts on the city controls. "As you can see, I am very busy, so make it quick."
"What do you happen to be busy with?" Voice taking on an air of authority, Rodney crossed his arms. He could sense the rest of his team coming up behind him to back him up. That was the wonderful thing about these people, they always stuck together against the enemy.
"Yeah, what's so damn important that you've got everyone running around here like their pants are on fire?" Putting an arm on Rodney's shoulder, John leaned against him. He ignored the put upon sigh and glared at the older man.
"You're not cleared to know." Leaning over, Woolsey tapped out something on the crystal controls in front of Chuck. Frowning when it returned something, he thinned his lips until they were white. "That isn't right. Try it again."
"Yeah right." John was no longer just annoyed, he was getting angry. "I have the highest security clearance on this base."
Closing his eyes, Woolsey lowered his head a bit. "It's obviously not high enough, now is it?"
Pushing off from Rodney's shoulder, John ignored the other man's protest at being shoved back. "Now you just wait a minute! I have..."
"Contact established!" Chuck's head shot up as he monitored the readouts. "We are receiving an incoming message."
Confrontation forgotten, Woolsey leaned in closer over the tech's shoulder. "About time." He read the message to himself and nodded. "Send the go ahead."
Having had enough, Rodney stomped up to the gate controls. He pushed aside Woolsey and scanned the display for himself. "Hey. This isn't a big secret." Confused, he turned around to scowl at the politician. "Why are you trying to hide this from us?"
Woolsey adjusted his glasses that had nearly been knocked off his face when he was shoved aside. "Did you ever stop to think that it wasn't your place to know?"
Rodney's jaw dropped in protest.
"Don't bother. I already know such a revelation would never occur to you, Dr. McKay." Checking his watch, the man sighed with contempt.
The words died on McKay's lips. A number of emotions flitted across his face before he settled on outrage. "Now just wait one second!"
"No, you wait!" The tensing of his features gave away how angry Woolsey was. Focusing all his anger on Rodney he took a step towards him. "I am not Dr. Weir, I will not tolerate your insubordination. You have been ordered to stay out of this. Interfere again, and you'll be on the next wormhole out of here. Do I make myself clear?"
"Hold up, there's no need to start in with the threats." Holding up his hands in a 'time out' gesture, John tried to get the irate man's attention. "We're all adults here, let's start acting like it."
Noticing the other man, Woolsey didn't relent. In fact, his ire ratcheted up a notch. "Actually, the same goes to you, Colonel. The IOA is not playing around this time, gentlemen. Our threats are very real."
Swallowing, Rodney backed away from the console slowly. "Holy crap, I don't think he's kidding."
~~~~~~~~~~
Using the bulkhead to hold his weight, Felix made his way down the corridor. It was slow going since his body still felt extremely tired. The doctor here had told him it was toxic cyanosis. That he was able to walk on his own was nothing short of a miracle.
That isn't what he would have called it.
Glancing back the way they had come, he saw nothing but more unfamiliar metal hallways. Felix knew that he should have felt guilty about leaving the others. It didn't matter to him though. All he could manage was a sense of empty loss.
Everything was gone. That was the one fact his mind kept coming back to again and again. He knew it for fact but could not seem to make his mind accept it and move on. There wasn't even their duty and BattleStar to fall back on this time.
If they were lucky, they wouldn't come back either.
It was a morbid thought. Yet, he didn't really care any more. Enough had finally happened that he was ready to quit. That was quick. Less than six months and the total loss of everything was all it had taken.
A hand on his arm drew his attention back to the corridor. Looking up at the stranger, Felix found knowing eyes observing him. "It's all gone." He wasn't sure what he had wanted to say or why he said anything.
The blue eyed man nodded slowly.
They stood there staring at one another for a few more beats. Almost in spite of the ship and people aboard, there was quiet around them.
Felix looked down, uncomfortable with the intimacy. This man was a stranger, surrounded by his own people, what did he know about loss?
"Come on, let's go." Jerking his head back towards the corridor they had been walking, the man smiled slightly. "They're expecting us."
He could only nod dumbly. This wasn't his place. Whoever these people were they held complete control.
Allowing himself to be guided down the corridor, he studied the bulkheads. At the rate he was able to move that wasn't a hard thing. On the occasional door was writing. It was standard Colonial script. The words themselves were familiar.
Green Section, Deck Two.
The deck was made of similar metal to some of the ships he had served on, the more modern ones. Not many ships were built like the Galactica any more. That was a shame because they were so easily destroyed because of it.
He snorted at the random thought. Experience told there would be a lot of those until he got used to the situation.
Before he knew it they came upon a set of massive double doors. He recognized words like 'Restricted' and 'Engineering'. The name written on the center plate was unfamiliar though. In confusion he turned to look at his guide. "What is the Asgard?"
The man looked surprised for a moment. Then he must have remembered their situation because he had a mischievous grin. "A three foot pain in the ass if you ask people around here."
Felix did not share his amusement. He waited for a further explanation with a blank expression.
That quickly sobered the man up. Clearing his throat he cast a quick look at the door. "Uh, he's an alien."
He just stared. Right at the man.
"I know, that isn't the politically correct term. It's just the only one I can think of at the moment." Apparently the man mistook what Felix's stare was for. "Well, really." He shrugged. "I guess I'm an alien to you too. Considering that we're not even from the same galaxy."
All right. He had had enough of this bullshit. Eyes narrowing, he pointed at the door. "Are we entering or do you intend to play games until I fall over?"
The man froze in place. He raised an eyebrow in question.
"There are no such things as aliens." Ignoring the man's shocked reaction, Felix glanced for a door control. It was a restricted access, but if he got the man to moving again it might remind him of his duty.
"Now, wait just a sec. You can't tell me there are no such things as aliens. Your people fought against them..." He trailed off at the withering look from Felix. "Right. I guess it's just easier if I showed you."
Silently, he disagreed. If the man was going to play this game Felix would rather have none of it. But, since the man was insistent, it was just best to humor him. So, to be a good sport since it meant getting out of there sooner, he faced the doors.
The man shook his head. Sighing, he reached out and pressed his palm to a scanner on the wall. "I'd brace myself if I were you."
"Just open the door." Felix barely managed to keep the irritation out of his voice.
Snorting, he waited for the hatch to open. They slid back as he stepped aside. "All right, don't say I didn't try to warn you." He gestured for Felix to preceed him. "After you."
Taking a deep breath through his nose, Felix exhaled the same way. 'Best to get it over with now,' he figured, and took a step through the doors.
At first all he saw were some silly looking consoles. There were glass partitions with stellar maps. Several consoles blinked with monitoring information through out the chamber. It was when he turned to his right that he paused.
Strong hands caught him before he completely lost his balance.
Standing behind a console, the being raised its head to blink at him. Finding nothing of interest, it went back to working on the console in front of it.
Once he was certain he wouldn't fall down, Felix shook the man's hands off him. He had to swallow twice to wet his dry mouth. There was something extremely unsettling about the creature he saw in front of him. "This can't be real. It's too hideous." He was too shocked to say anything else.
The being raised its head to stare him. Narrowing its eyes, it seemed to stare down at him. "Your species is nothing to admire physically either."
"Just beam us down to Atlantis." Taking charge, the man came from behind Felix. He stood to the side, but within reach in case the other started to fall again.
"Gladly." Picking up a stone from the console, the being placed it on another spot.
Felix felt the world around him grow lighter. For a moment he thought the gravity had been shut off. Panic seized his heart and he blindly reached out for something to ground himself. Then, quick as the sensation came upon him, he was enveloped in light.
Suddenly he was no longer in the chamber. The world around him was bathed in a brilliant light that hurt his eyes. Just as quickly as it had come it was gone. The light left him in a large, open room with high walls.
He felt distanced from his own body, almost as if he were floating. Everything around him moved slowly. This gave the world a dreamy quality.
In front of him was a grand staircase. The steps were lit up from beneath and the floor itself seemed to glow. Lights from above and behind him made it all feel ethereal and out of reach.
There was movement that tugged at his attention. In a large control room that had glass walls were several people. The room was high up. They were looking down at him, talking, but Felix couldn't hear them. The only sound in his ears was his own breathing, even it was slower than normal.
Felix glanced over to his left. The man from the ship was still beside him. He was staring up at the people in the control room. Felix wanted to talk to him, to ask him what was going on. Then it happened.
With a physical pop, he felt the world around him speed up.
Around him everything went in to extreme speeds. The lights above him and behind suddenly dimmed. An alarm blared as people began to shout.
He wanted to ask them what was happening but he felt a stabbing in his head. Wincing, he reached up to clutch at his temples as the pain increased. It quickly drove him to his knees.
Images flooded his mind. He saw things, flashes of things. This place was abandoned. It wasn't supposed to be inhabited. Felix knew this because ten million voices screamed it at him. They shouldn't be here!
Opening his mouth, he tried to beg them to make it stop. All that came out was a guttural scream. Through the tears the filled his eyes he saw the people. They were rushing down the stares, staring at him in alarm. He screamed again as something larger slipped in to his thoughts.
It asked him a question. There were no words, but he knew that it was waiting for a command.
Felix told it something. A single sentence. Then, mercifully, it did.
Sound returned. People were shouting. The sounds of their footsteps echoed of the floor beneath them.
He felt hands clutch at him but Felix was too tired to care. He offered them no resistance when they pulled at him. In fact, he went willingly. Not with them, of course, but back in to the sweet darkness of unconsciousness. At least there the only demons that taunted him were his own.
~~~~~~~~~
Panic erupted in the control room as the lights went out. Whispers filled the darkened room as people groped about. One was loudest above the rest.
"Oh god!" Flailing blindly for anything to grab on to, Rodney stretched out his arms to their limit. In his blind moves he smacked someone to his right.
"Ow! Watch it, Rodney!"
"John, is that you?" Blinking, Rodney turned in the direction he heard the voice.
"Who else would it be?" The angry voice was closer now. John reached out and smacked Rodney at chest level. "That's for hitting me!"
"Oh, forgive me..."
"Shut up, both of you!" Woolsey's angry voice silenced the panicked whispers all around them. A second later and he had a flashlight turned on. He waved it around the control room until he found Rodney. "You! Fix this, now!"
"I'd love to! Just tell me how I'm supposed to do it in the dark first!" Fear quickly being replaced with anger, Rodney took two stomping steps towards the bureaucrat.
A second light joined the first. "Here!" Slapping it to Rodney's chest, Woolsey was near to spitting with anger. "Now get to work, or do I have to show you how to do that too?"
"Uh, guys, can I get a hand over here?" It was Lorne's voice from across the gateroom.
Swinging his flashlight over to the StarGate, Woolsey frowned at what he saw. "Just perfect."
Distracted by the calling, Rodney shown his flashlight over at the Major. Seeing who the man was holding in his arms made him frown. "Hey! That's him, the guy from the ship."
"Congratulations, Doctor McKay, you get the silver star." Leaning towards Rodney, Woolsey dropped his voice. "By the way, aren't you supposed to be doing something?"
"Calm down, Mr. Woolsey." In support of her teammate, Teyla took a step in to the light from the man's flashlight. "I am sure we will all be glad later if we have cool heads now."
"Stuff it, Sister Mary Sunshine! From the moment I got here you people have done nothing but go from one disaster to another." Feeling his oats, Woolsey spun to include the other three members of her team in the light. "In fact, I knew this would happen! That's why you were ordered to stay out of the way! You're..." He never got to finish his sentence as a red flash of light hit him dead center of his chest.
"Ronon!" Alarmed, Teyla was barely in time to catch Woolsey before he fell forward unconscious. She missed the flashlight all together.
It hit the floor with a loud thump and began to spin.
"Nice snot!" Smacking Ronon on the shoulder, John grinned. It became visible as the flashlight came to a stop.
"Colonel, please." Despite her words, Teyla could not keep the amused grin off her face. "You do realize we are going to all be in trouble when he awakens."
"Then we'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen." When he suddenly became the center of attention in the control room, Rodney grimaced. "Just kidding."
"Uh, guys!" From out by the gate, Lorne sagged under the weight of his burden.