Easter 2010 Fic Exchange: Into the Rain by stella_pegasi
Title: Into the Rain
Author: stella_pegasi
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Rating: PG-13
Character/Pairing: John Sheppard, Richard Woolsey, Rodney McKay, Teyla Emmagan, Ronon Dex, Evan Lorne
Spoilers: The Return I & II, Inquisition (Story set after Season Five)
Warnings: Whump
Het/Slash/Gen: Gen
Genre: Action/Adventure
Word count: 19,474
Disclaimer: I do not own them, I would have treated them better.
Summary: Written for x_erikah_x for the Easter 2010 Fic Exchange. Prompt at the end of Chapter 5.
INTO THE RAIN
INTO THE RAIN
By stella_pegasi
CHAPTER FIVE CLEAR SKIES
“What the hell do you mean we can’t go after them tonight?” Rodney was yelling at Major Lorne, who looked exasperated with Dr. McKay, as though they had already had this argument; and they had already had this argument, not ten minutes before. Lorne shook his head from side to side to make his point.
“Damn it, I’ll take one of the jumpers myself, and go find them. Get out of my way, captain.” Rodney tried to push past Captain Waters; but the taller captain, who had moved to block the doorway during round one of this argument, wouldn’t budge this time either.
“Get this grunt out of my way, Lorne. I am going to go get Sheppard and Woosley; I don’t care what you say.” Rodney’s anger was palpable, his face was flushed a deep red, and he was trembling as he glared at Lorne. Lorne continued to shake his head no.
“Rodney, please, Major Lorne is correct. These are very dangerous storms headed toward the city. Kelore told us that the storms will intensify greatly now that they are crossing the hot plains from the cooler air in the mountains. We must allow the storms to pass before we attempt to find the colonel and Mr. Woosley; the winds will be too strong for the jumpers to fly safely.”
“Damn it, Teyla; we have to find them. They’re depending on us.” Rodney’s bright blue eyes were pleading with her.
“Rodney, you know John would order us not to go out in this storm; he would be displeased if we placed anyone else in harm’s way. We must wait until Major Lorne says it is safe.”
Rodney glanced over at Ronon who appeared just as angry as he was; the big guy just wasn’t creating a fuss like he was. Looking back at Teyla he nodded that he understood and then walked over to the conference room window to watch the storm. Enormous bolts of white and violet lighting were streaking across the sky illuminating the entire city. As the rumbling of the thunder and high wind reached his ears, Rodney was depressed; this was going to be a very long night.
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Struggling to his feet, Sheppard first looked for Woolsey who had vanished from his line of sight. He breathed a bit easier when he realized the director had made make his way to a rock and was sitting, leaning against a tree.
Sheppard cautiously approached the rocks where Vangar’s body lay motionless. Blood flowing from the gunshot wound to his head was mixing with the light rainfall, and tiny rivulets, dyed pale red, were running along the cracks in the rocks. Kicking the gun from Vangar’s hand, he knelt down to feel for a pulse. There wasn’t one.
As he straightened up, burning pain flared along his right side, reminding him he had taken fire from Vangar’s gun. He staggered over to the rock that Woolsey was sitting on, and eased down next to the director. Taking a quick peek at his side, he gave a little sigh of relief to see that the wound was more of a deep graze, and wasn’t bleeding badly.
“Hey, buddy. You, OK?” He lightly pressed his shoulder against Woolsey’s to see if he could get a response.
“Is…it ov’r?” Woolsey’s voice was weak.
“Yeah…Richard, it’s over…uh...except for us…getting out of here.” Sheppard reach down to grab Woolsey’s wrist, his pulse was rapid and weak. Sheppard was concerned that Woolsey was bleeding internally, and he needed to get the director medical care as quickly as possible. He didn’t think the Daedalus wouldn’t arrive in time. The ship Vangar possessed had to be nearby, but he couldn’t bring it to Woolsey; Woolsey would have to go to the ship.
“Richard, Vangar's airship is parked somewhere nearby; we need to find it. I am going back to the cave before it gets completely dark to get the pack, you stay here.” Woolsey nodded slightly.
Sheppard headed toward the cave in the dimming light. By the time he reached the cave opening, the rain had ended. He made quick work of gathering up the few belongings they had left there, and policing the area before returning to Woolsey.
“Richard!” Sheppard’s heart started racing as he approached the director, who was now lying on the ground, a few feet from the rock he had been sitting on. Reaching him, Sheppard dropped to his knees without registering the pain that radiated through his injured thigh, and felt for Woolsey’s pulse. He sat back on his heels when he found a heartbeat, rapid and weak like before, but present.
Woolsey reached up to Sheppard, a small device resting in his palm, “Saw this…next…to body. Blinking…thought…thought it…might be ‘portant.”
Sheppard pulled the small flashlight out, flicked on the beam, and took a close look at the device. It was smaller than an Ancient scanner, black in color; the top consisted of a small screen along one side and buttons along the other side. The screen showed a small, green blinking cursor; on a hunch, Sheppard started moving the device around, and the little green blinking light moved. Sheppard smiled and patted Woolsey on the head.
“Richard Woolsey, you may have just saved our lives by finding this little device. I think this little jewel is giving the location of Vangar’s ship. I hate to do this to you, but we need to go now. We both need medical treatment, and we can’t wait for the Daedalus to arrive and find us. I don’t know how far away the ship is, but it has to be parked in a valley, so no more climbing.”
“No…climbing?” Woolsey asked.
Sheppard answered, “No more climbing, I hope.”
Woolsey replied, “Piece...uh...of…cake.”
Sheppard laughed softly at this man who continued to amaze him, slipped the rucksack on his back, the night vision goggles on his head, and the device in his pocket. He bent down to get a grip on Woolsey and helped him up. Once he had Woolsey somewhat secure, he pulled the device back out, got his bearings and told Woolsey, “Let’s go home.”
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The storms over Latira City were far worse than Kelore had suggested they might be. The city’s rudimentary electrical system collapsed after several lighting strikes on the main power grid. Flash flooding was occurring all over the city, and the storms were producing numerous tornados and wind shears over the entire area. Cloistered in the conference room, the Atlantis contingent was waiting out the storm.
Dr. Rodney McKay was getting claustrophobic. “Did we have to close those shutters?” McKay was pacing again, which was difficult; nearly thirty people, all the Marines and SGA-1, were in the room.
“The Latiran who closed the shutters suggested that it would be safer since we are on the west side of the building, and the storms are coming from that direction. From the sound of that wind, and the reports we are hearing, these storms are vicious; there is a lot of damage out there.” Lorne was trying to keep McKay calm, but he wasn’t having a great deal of success.
“McKay, sit. Eat.” Ronon pointed to the chair next to his.
“Rodney,” Teyla grabbed him by the arm, steering him to the chair, “Ronon is right, you need to eat. We do not wish for you to become sick from not eating when you should.”
“Well…yeah…you’re right,...uh...I should eat.” He sat down, asking Ronon, “Are those any good?” as he reached for a roll stuffed with meat. The Latirans had provided an abundant array of food and drink for the Atlantians while they waited out the storm.
Teyla smiled at Rodney’s ability to eat even when he was extremely stressed. She was standing next to Lorne, and asked him, “Do you have an idea when the storms will clear?”
“Captains Isaacs and Waters went to the government command center about fifteen minutes ago, they received weather and local conditions update. The worst should be over in about two hours; we should be able to get jumpers in the air then.”
Before Teyla could comment, the door opened and Kelore entered. “Ms. Emmagan, Major Lorne, may I speak to you, along with Dr. McKay and Mr. Dex?”
“Of, course.” She motioned for McKay and Ronon to join them, and they went into the hallway with Kelore.
“I wanted to inform you of the latest developments now, for once the storms subside, we will both be busy with our own missions. Of course, should you need assistance searching for Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard, we will do what we can, but we will have our hands full with the severe storm damage.”
Teyla nodded her thanks, “We would appreciate the help, if necessary. Of course, Atlantis will be more than willing to help Latira with whatever resources we can provide.”
“Thank you. I just came from meeting with Shiana; she has agreed to withdraw her proposal for the Genii to assume the security of the galaxy. She admitted to having private discussions with Radim of the Genii, and to making ‘arrangements’ with other council members, as well. We will be addressing those governments and what is expected of them in the future.”
“You gonna charge Shiana with anything?” Ronon asked.
“Mr. Dex, no; we decided that the stability of this very new coalition is too tenuous to subject it to this kind of crisis. And, as we are convinced that she did not know about Vangar’s crime, if he is, in fact, the person behind the kidnappings, there is no reason to charge her.”
Major Lorne, “I believe that Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard would agree with that decision, sir.”
“One other thing, Chair Dimas has spoken with Ladon Radim of the Genii. Dimas informed him that the council is aware of the actions of the Genii to undermine the council’s authority by forming a covert relationship with other members. Radim was also informed that the council will issue a unanimous statement of support for continuing the relationship that we currently enjoy with Atlantis.”
“I believe I can speak for all of us, Kelore, in saying that Atlantis will be pleased to continue to assist the coalition in any way we can.” Lorne replied.
“Good; now, please let us know if we can help with your search for the colonel and Mr. Woolsey. I will be in the command center should you need me.” Kelore took his leave of the Atlantians, who returned to the conference room to wait for the skies to clear.
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Darkness had completely engulfed them for the first half-hour of their trek though the valleys. Then the clouds parted, and two of the three Latiran moons bathed the mountain in an eerie silver glow. Sheppard was glad for the extra light; keeping steady footing for himself and for Woolsey was a slow and tiring process. The extra light helped him make quicker choices of where to step.
“Woolsey, you hanging in there?”
“I’m here…not good.” He sounded as exhausted, as Sheppard knew he had to be, but Sheppard also knew that he needed to keep him alert.
“We’re getting close to the ship. I think another thirty minutes or so and...uh... we should be there.” Actually, Sheppard thought they were about an hour away at the rate they were progressing, but he didn’t want to tell Woolsey that piece of information. He didn’t want his left thigh, which was given him serious grief, to know how much longer they had to walk either.
“So, how did you know to come help me? I’d be dead if you hadn’t shown up.”
“Heard shots… then later…heard…more.” He stopped, catching his breath. “Heard voices…uh...figured…you might need…help. Couldn’t…stay…cave and not…help.”
“Richard thanks. You saved my life.”
They walked for nearly forty minutes more when the blinking light on the sensor told Sheppard that the ship was close. Looking through the pale moonlight, he thought he could see a dark shape. His only thought, “Please, let that be the ship.”
Looking around for a place to sit Woolsey down, he spotted a log. “Richard, I think the ship is ahead. I want you to sit here for a minute, and let me check it out.”
“Sit…good.” Sheppard got him settled and headed for the ship.
As he walked up to the ship, he started playing with the buttons on the device. He was able to pull up the main menu, and within seconds, he had the hatch unlocked and the interior lights on. He rushed back to Woolsey.
“Come on, it’s the ship, and it’s a lot more comfortable inside than out here.” He pulled Woolsey up and managed to get him the last twenty yards, and up the narrow steps into the small ship.
The ship had two padded chairs in the tiny cockpit area, and a short bench one side. Freight containers made up the rest of the ship, which was about two-thirds the size of a jumper. Sheppard sat Woolsey down in the right front seat and strapped him in as securely as he felt he could with the director’s injuries, and then sat down in the pilot’s seat.
“OK, let’s see what we’ve got here.” Running through the gauges and dials he became familiar with the controls, and was pleased at finding that not only was there was a navigation system but also a radio. Checking the last heading on the nav system, Sheppard decided to simply return on the same heading Vangar has followed to the mountains. He thought it was a fairly safe bet that heading would take them to Latira City.
“Mr. Woolsey, we’re taking off. Should be back in the city soon.” He thought he heard Woolsey say ‘good’, but he thought it could have been ‘go.’ Which ever it was, John Sheppard thought go was the better choice. He gave the little ship power and headed for the clear, moonlit sky.
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The six Atlantian jumpers had been in the air for almost a half hour, and were flying a spread formation toward the mountains. Lorne wanted to be certain that they covered as much area as they could; he didn’t want Vangar’s ship to slip past them, returning to the city. There wasn’t a lot of chatter over the radio; the teams were aware that the storms they had suffered through in the city had been raging in these mountains. With their lost team members unprotected from the elements, they all shared an unspoken concern about Sheppard and Woolsey’s safety.
Lorne was about to give Sheppard’s team an update on their ETA to the mountain range when Lt. Salem’s voice came through the COM. “Major Lorne, we have a bogey coming toward us.” Lorne brought up the HUD and spotted the ship on sensors.
“Dr. McKay, isn’t that the energy trace we were looking for?” Lorne looked at McKay,
who was sitting in the co-pilot’s seat, and nodded to the signal blinking on the HUD.
“Yes, it is, major.”
Lorne tapped the COM, “All jumpers converge on the coordinates that Lt. Salem is sending you, and surround that ship. Do not open fire on that ship; I repeat, do not fire on that ship, our people could be on board.”
Inside the smaller ship, a simple sensor system popped on, and Sheppard saw six blips coming directly toward him at a fast rate. From the speed they were traveling, Sheppard had a fairly good idea who might be inside those ships. He checked to make certain that power was getting to his communications systems.
Within a few minutes, the jumpers had the small ship surrounded. Sheppard opened a channel on the radio, and he heard a familiar voice fill the cockpit, Major Lorne’s.
“Unidentified craft, this is Major Lorne of Atlantis; you are surrounded. Please follow us and land at the coordinates being transmitting to you. This is your only warning.”
Sheppard grinned; Lorne was pretty darn good at sounding quite formidable. The colonel knew for a fact that the major could back up his tough words with tough actions, as well.
“Major, if it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer to put this little ship down in Latira City. Mr. Woolsey and I were just taking her out for a spin, but we need to get back to work.”
When the teams recognized Colonel Sheppard’s voice, shouts of Oo-rah and cheers came through the com system inside the jumpers, and into the cockpit of the small ship. Lorne was grinning, as he replied, “Colonel, we were worried about you and Mr. Woolsey, sir. A lot of people here are happy to hear your voice. We thought we were coming to save you, sir, but doesn’t appear you two needed our help.”
“Major, what we need is medical care; Woolsey’s suffered some serious injuries, broken arm, ribs, head injury, maybe internal injuries.”
Teyla interjected, “And you, colonel?”
“Oh, the usual, gunshot wound to left upper thigh, and right side, just a graze, various scrapes and bruises.”
Ronon asked, “And the bad guy?”
Sheppard quietly answered, “Dead.”
Lorne barked out orders, “Salem, Isaacs get back to the city ASAP. Salem contact Atlantis; get Dr. Beckett and a med team in the city by the time we arrive there. Isaacs let Kelore know that we are returning to the city with the colonel and Mr. Woolsey; and that their kidnapper is dead. Tell Kelore that Atlantis is prepared to assist the Latirans with search and rescue and clean up. I want you coordinating teams from Atlantis.”
“Colonel, the rest of us will escort you back to the city. And colonel, the next time you need help getting rescued, just let us know.”
“Will do, major.”
Woolsey stirred, mumbling something. Sheppard glanced over at him, “Almost home, Richard. We will soon be in the infirmary covered with warm, dry blankets; pretty nurses taking special care of us. With Beckett covering for Keller while she is back at the SGC, we will get by with my team sneaking us good food and games and stuff. Beckett's a pushover compared to Keller. Rest, we have a nice night, with clear skies, for flying. We're finally out of the rain.”
The end.
I was pleased to be asked to pinch hit for the exchange and write a story based on x_erikah_x's prompt. I may have included the other characters a bit more prominently than she might have wanted, but I tried to provide the whump to the two characters that she requested. Hope x_erikah_x and you enjoy.
For x-erikah-x:
Character(s) I want in the fic: Sheppard with Woolsey OR Sheppard with Lorne OR Sheppard with Rodney, *in this order of preference* - other characters can appear but a lot less and not as main focus of the scenes. I'd like one to be more whumped than the other, but I have no preference on which one. Either having Shep being protected or being protective is a major like.
My likes: Any of these: angst, torture, friendship, bleeding wounds, prison, dark fics, offworld setting, military Shep, Sheppard in protective mode, the other person having to step up and protect Shep when time comes. I'm pretty easy to please, but please, some physical hurt AND angst is a must. I put a large list of likes, but only one or two of this is enough to make me really happy. I'd love some plotty h/c.
My squicks: non-con, unhappy endings, deathfic
My request: I'd like only the two characters of the ones mentioned above and not the team. One nasty bad guy. The pair fighting for survival, maybe torture (not a must) and escape on their own. When rescue arrives, they have pretty much solved the situation themselves. Infirmary scene at the end with Carson (the clone is not a problem) and an emotional resolution.
Author: stella_pegasi
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Rating: PG-13
Character/Pairing: John Sheppard, Richard Woolsey, Rodney McKay, Teyla Emmagan, Ronon Dex, Evan Lorne
Spoilers: The Return I & II, Inquisition (Story set after Season Five)
Warnings: Whump
Het/Slash/Gen: Gen
Genre: Action/Adventure
Word count: 19,474
Disclaimer: I do not own them, I would have treated them better.
Summary: Written for x_erikah_x for the Easter 2010 Fic Exchange. Prompt at the end of Chapter 5.
INTO THE RAIN
INTO THE RAIN
By stella_pegasi
CHAPTER FIVE CLEAR SKIES
“What the hell do you mean we can’t go after them tonight?” Rodney was yelling at Major Lorne, who looked exasperated with Dr. McKay, as though they had already had this argument; and they had already had this argument, not ten minutes before. Lorne shook his head from side to side to make his point.
“Damn it, I’ll take one of the jumpers myself, and go find them. Get out of my way, captain.” Rodney tried to push past Captain Waters; but the taller captain, who had moved to block the doorway during round one of this argument, wouldn’t budge this time either.
“Get this grunt out of my way, Lorne. I am going to go get Sheppard and Woosley; I don’t care what you say.” Rodney’s anger was palpable, his face was flushed a deep red, and he was trembling as he glared at Lorne. Lorne continued to shake his head no.
“Rodney, please, Major Lorne is correct. These are very dangerous storms headed toward the city. Kelore told us that the storms will intensify greatly now that they are crossing the hot plains from the cooler air in the mountains. We must allow the storms to pass before we attempt to find the colonel and Mr. Woosley; the winds will be too strong for the jumpers to fly safely.”
“Damn it, Teyla; we have to find them. They’re depending on us.” Rodney’s bright blue eyes were pleading with her.
“Rodney, you know John would order us not to go out in this storm; he would be displeased if we placed anyone else in harm’s way. We must wait until Major Lorne says it is safe.”
Rodney glanced over at Ronon who appeared just as angry as he was; the big guy just wasn’t creating a fuss like he was. Looking back at Teyla he nodded that he understood and then walked over to the conference room window to watch the storm. Enormous bolts of white and violet lighting were streaking across the sky illuminating the entire city. As the rumbling of the thunder and high wind reached his ears, Rodney was depressed; this was going to be a very long night.
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Struggling to his feet, Sheppard first looked for Woolsey who had vanished from his line of sight. He breathed a bit easier when he realized the director had made make his way to a rock and was sitting, leaning against a tree.
Sheppard cautiously approached the rocks where Vangar’s body lay motionless. Blood flowing from the gunshot wound to his head was mixing with the light rainfall, and tiny rivulets, dyed pale red, were running along the cracks in the rocks. Kicking the gun from Vangar’s hand, he knelt down to feel for a pulse. There wasn’t one.
As he straightened up, burning pain flared along his right side, reminding him he had taken fire from Vangar’s gun. He staggered over to the rock that Woolsey was sitting on, and eased down next to the director. Taking a quick peek at his side, he gave a little sigh of relief to see that the wound was more of a deep graze, and wasn’t bleeding badly.
“Hey, buddy. You, OK?” He lightly pressed his shoulder against Woolsey’s to see if he could get a response.
“Is…it ov’r?” Woolsey’s voice was weak.
“Yeah…Richard, it’s over…uh...except for us…getting out of here.” Sheppard reach down to grab Woolsey’s wrist, his pulse was rapid and weak. Sheppard was concerned that Woolsey was bleeding internally, and he needed to get the director medical care as quickly as possible. He didn’t think the Daedalus wouldn’t arrive in time. The ship Vangar possessed had to be nearby, but he couldn’t bring it to Woolsey; Woolsey would have to go to the ship.
“Richard, Vangar's airship is parked somewhere nearby; we need to find it. I am going back to the cave before it gets completely dark to get the pack, you stay here.” Woolsey nodded slightly.
Sheppard headed toward the cave in the dimming light. By the time he reached the cave opening, the rain had ended. He made quick work of gathering up the few belongings they had left there, and policing the area before returning to Woolsey.
“Richard!” Sheppard’s heart started racing as he approached the director, who was now lying on the ground, a few feet from the rock he had been sitting on. Reaching him, Sheppard dropped to his knees without registering the pain that radiated through his injured thigh, and felt for Woolsey’s pulse. He sat back on his heels when he found a heartbeat, rapid and weak like before, but present.
Woolsey reached up to Sheppard, a small device resting in his palm, “Saw this…next…to body. Blinking…thought…thought it…might be ‘portant.”
Sheppard pulled the small flashlight out, flicked on the beam, and took a close look at the device. It was smaller than an Ancient scanner, black in color; the top consisted of a small screen along one side and buttons along the other side. The screen showed a small, green blinking cursor; on a hunch, Sheppard started moving the device around, and the little green blinking light moved. Sheppard smiled and patted Woolsey on the head.
“Richard Woolsey, you may have just saved our lives by finding this little device. I think this little jewel is giving the location of Vangar’s ship. I hate to do this to you, but we need to go now. We both need medical treatment, and we can’t wait for the Daedalus to arrive and find us. I don’t know how far away the ship is, but it has to be parked in a valley, so no more climbing.”
“No…climbing?” Woolsey asked.
Sheppard answered, “No more climbing, I hope.”
Woolsey replied, “Piece...uh...of…cake.”
Sheppard laughed softly at this man who continued to amaze him, slipped the rucksack on his back, the night vision goggles on his head, and the device in his pocket. He bent down to get a grip on Woolsey and helped him up. Once he had Woolsey somewhat secure, he pulled the device back out, got his bearings and told Woolsey, “Let’s go home.”
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The storms over Latira City were far worse than Kelore had suggested they might be. The city’s rudimentary electrical system collapsed after several lighting strikes on the main power grid. Flash flooding was occurring all over the city, and the storms were producing numerous tornados and wind shears over the entire area. Cloistered in the conference room, the Atlantis contingent was waiting out the storm.
Dr. Rodney McKay was getting claustrophobic. “Did we have to close those shutters?” McKay was pacing again, which was difficult; nearly thirty people, all the Marines and SGA-1, were in the room.
“The Latiran who closed the shutters suggested that it would be safer since we are on the west side of the building, and the storms are coming from that direction. From the sound of that wind, and the reports we are hearing, these storms are vicious; there is a lot of damage out there.” Lorne was trying to keep McKay calm, but he wasn’t having a great deal of success.
“McKay, sit. Eat.” Ronon pointed to the chair next to his.
“Rodney,” Teyla grabbed him by the arm, steering him to the chair, “Ronon is right, you need to eat. We do not wish for you to become sick from not eating when you should.”
“Well…yeah…you’re right,...uh...I should eat.” He sat down, asking Ronon, “Are those any good?” as he reached for a roll stuffed with meat. The Latirans had provided an abundant array of food and drink for the Atlantians while they waited out the storm.
Teyla smiled at Rodney’s ability to eat even when he was extremely stressed. She was standing next to Lorne, and asked him, “Do you have an idea when the storms will clear?”
“Captains Isaacs and Waters went to the government command center about fifteen minutes ago, they received weather and local conditions update. The worst should be over in about two hours; we should be able to get jumpers in the air then.”
Before Teyla could comment, the door opened and Kelore entered. “Ms. Emmagan, Major Lorne, may I speak to you, along with Dr. McKay and Mr. Dex?”
“Of, course.” She motioned for McKay and Ronon to join them, and they went into the hallway with Kelore.
“I wanted to inform you of the latest developments now, for once the storms subside, we will both be busy with our own missions. Of course, should you need assistance searching for Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard, we will do what we can, but we will have our hands full with the severe storm damage.”
Teyla nodded her thanks, “We would appreciate the help, if necessary. Of course, Atlantis will be more than willing to help Latira with whatever resources we can provide.”
“Thank you. I just came from meeting with Shiana; she has agreed to withdraw her proposal for the Genii to assume the security of the galaxy. She admitted to having private discussions with Radim of the Genii, and to making ‘arrangements’ with other council members, as well. We will be addressing those governments and what is expected of them in the future.”
“You gonna charge Shiana with anything?” Ronon asked.
“Mr. Dex, no; we decided that the stability of this very new coalition is too tenuous to subject it to this kind of crisis. And, as we are convinced that she did not know about Vangar’s crime, if he is, in fact, the person behind the kidnappings, there is no reason to charge her.”
Major Lorne, “I believe that Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard would agree with that decision, sir.”
“One other thing, Chair Dimas has spoken with Ladon Radim of the Genii. Dimas informed him that the council is aware of the actions of the Genii to undermine the council’s authority by forming a covert relationship with other members. Radim was also informed that the council will issue a unanimous statement of support for continuing the relationship that we currently enjoy with Atlantis.”
“I believe I can speak for all of us, Kelore, in saying that Atlantis will be pleased to continue to assist the coalition in any way we can.” Lorne replied.
“Good; now, please let us know if we can help with your search for the colonel and Mr. Woolsey. I will be in the command center should you need me.” Kelore took his leave of the Atlantians, who returned to the conference room to wait for the skies to clear.
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Darkness had completely engulfed them for the first half-hour of their trek though the valleys. Then the clouds parted, and two of the three Latiran moons bathed the mountain in an eerie silver glow. Sheppard was glad for the extra light; keeping steady footing for himself and for Woolsey was a slow and tiring process. The extra light helped him make quicker choices of where to step.
“Woolsey, you hanging in there?”
“I’m here…not good.” He sounded as exhausted, as Sheppard knew he had to be, but Sheppard also knew that he needed to keep him alert.
“We’re getting close to the ship. I think another thirty minutes or so and...uh... we should be there.” Actually, Sheppard thought they were about an hour away at the rate they were progressing, but he didn’t want to tell Woolsey that piece of information. He didn’t want his left thigh, which was given him serious grief, to know how much longer they had to walk either.
“So, how did you know to come help me? I’d be dead if you hadn’t shown up.”
“Heard shots… then later…heard…more.” He stopped, catching his breath. “Heard voices…uh...figured…you might need…help. Couldn’t…stay…cave and not…help.”
“Richard thanks. You saved my life.”
They walked for nearly forty minutes more when the blinking light on the sensor told Sheppard that the ship was close. Looking through the pale moonlight, he thought he could see a dark shape. His only thought, “Please, let that be the ship.”
Looking around for a place to sit Woolsey down, he spotted a log. “Richard, I think the ship is ahead. I want you to sit here for a minute, and let me check it out.”
“Sit…good.” Sheppard got him settled and headed for the ship.
As he walked up to the ship, he started playing with the buttons on the device. He was able to pull up the main menu, and within seconds, he had the hatch unlocked and the interior lights on. He rushed back to Woolsey.
“Come on, it’s the ship, and it’s a lot more comfortable inside than out here.” He pulled Woolsey up and managed to get him the last twenty yards, and up the narrow steps into the small ship.
The ship had two padded chairs in the tiny cockpit area, and a short bench one side. Freight containers made up the rest of the ship, which was about two-thirds the size of a jumper. Sheppard sat Woolsey down in the right front seat and strapped him in as securely as he felt he could with the director’s injuries, and then sat down in the pilot’s seat.
“OK, let’s see what we’ve got here.” Running through the gauges and dials he became familiar with the controls, and was pleased at finding that not only was there was a navigation system but also a radio. Checking the last heading on the nav system, Sheppard decided to simply return on the same heading Vangar has followed to the mountains. He thought it was a fairly safe bet that heading would take them to Latira City.
“Mr. Woolsey, we’re taking off. Should be back in the city soon.” He thought he heard Woolsey say ‘good’, but he thought it could have been ‘go.’ Which ever it was, John Sheppard thought go was the better choice. He gave the little ship power and headed for the clear, moonlit sky.
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
The six Atlantian jumpers had been in the air for almost a half hour, and were flying a spread formation toward the mountains. Lorne wanted to be certain that they covered as much area as they could; he didn’t want Vangar’s ship to slip past them, returning to the city. There wasn’t a lot of chatter over the radio; the teams were aware that the storms they had suffered through in the city had been raging in these mountains. With their lost team members unprotected from the elements, they all shared an unspoken concern about Sheppard and Woolsey’s safety.
Lorne was about to give Sheppard’s team an update on their ETA to the mountain range when Lt. Salem’s voice came through the COM. “Major Lorne, we have a bogey coming toward us.” Lorne brought up the HUD and spotted the ship on sensors.
“Dr. McKay, isn’t that the energy trace we were looking for?” Lorne looked at McKay,
who was sitting in the co-pilot’s seat, and nodded to the signal blinking on the HUD.
“Yes, it is, major.”
Lorne tapped the COM, “All jumpers converge on the coordinates that Lt. Salem is sending you, and surround that ship. Do not open fire on that ship; I repeat, do not fire on that ship, our people could be on board.”
Inside the smaller ship, a simple sensor system popped on, and Sheppard saw six blips coming directly toward him at a fast rate. From the speed they were traveling, Sheppard had a fairly good idea who might be inside those ships. He checked to make certain that power was getting to his communications systems.
Within a few minutes, the jumpers had the small ship surrounded. Sheppard opened a channel on the radio, and he heard a familiar voice fill the cockpit, Major Lorne’s.
“Unidentified craft, this is Major Lorne of Atlantis; you are surrounded. Please follow us and land at the coordinates being transmitting to you. This is your only warning.”
Sheppard grinned; Lorne was pretty darn good at sounding quite formidable. The colonel knew for a fact that the major could back up his tough words with tough actions, as well.
“Major, if it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer to put this little ship down in Latira City. Mr. Woolsey and I were just taking her out for a spin, but we need to get back to work.”
When the teams recognized Colonel Sheppard’s voice, shouts of Oo-rah and cheers came through the com system inside the jumpers, and into the cockpit of the small ship. Lorne was grinning, as he replied, “Colonel, we were worried about you and Mr. Woolsey, sir. A lot of people here are happy to hear your voice. We thought we were coming to save you, sir, but doesn’t appear you two needed our help.”
“Major, what we need is medical care; Woolsey’s suffered some serious injuries, broken arm, ribs, head injury, maybe internal injuries.”
Teyla interjected, “And you, colonel?”
“Oh, the usual, gunshot wound to left upper thigh, and right side, just a graze, various scrapes and bruises.”
Ronon asked, “And the bad guy?”
Sheppard quietly answered, “Dead.”
Lorne barked out orders, “Salem, Isaacs get back to the city ASAP. Salem contact Atlantis; get Dr. Beckett and a med team in the city by the time we arrive there. Isaacs let Kelore know that we are returning to the city with the colonel and Mr. Woolsey; and that their kidnapper is dead. Tell Kelore that Atlantis is prepared to assist the Latirans with search and rescue and clean up. I want you coordinating teams from Atlantis.”
“Colonel, the rest of us will escort you back to the city. And colonel, the next time you need help getting rescued, just let us know.”
“Will do, major.”
Woolsey stirred, mumbling something. Sheppard glanced over at him, “Almost home, Richard. We will soon be in the infirmary covered with warm, dry blankets; pretty nurses taking special care of us. With Beckett covering for Keller while she is back at the SGC, we will get by with my team sneaking us good food and games and stuff. Beckett's a pushover compared to Keller. Rest, we have a nice night, with clear skies, for flying. We're finally out of the rain.”
The end.
I was pleased to be asked to pinch hit for the exchange and write a story based on x_erikah_x's prompt. I may have included the other characters a bit more prominently than she might have wanted, but I tried to provide the whump to the two characters that she requested. Hope x_erikah_x and you enjoy.
For x-erikah-x:
Character(s) I want in the fic: Sheppard with Woolsey OR Sheppard with Lorne OR Sheppard with Rodney, *in this order of preference* - other characters can appear but a lot less and not as main focus of the scenes. I'd like one to be more whumped than the other, but I have no preference on which one. Either having Shep being protected or being protective is a major like.
My likes: Any of these: angst, torture, friendship, bleeding wounds, prison, dark fics, offworld setting, military Shep, Sheppard in protective mode, the other person having to step up and protect Shep when time comes. I'm pretty easy to please, but please, some physical hurt AND angst is a must. I put a large list of likes, but only one or two of this is enough to make me really happy. I'd love some plotty h/c.
My squicks: non-con, unhappy endings, deathfic
My request: I'd like only the two characters of the ones mentioned above and not the team. One nasty bad guy. The pair fighting for survival, maybe torture (not a must) and escape on their own. When rescue arrives, they have pretty much solved the situation themselves. Infirmary scene at the end with Carson (the clone is not a problem) and an emotional resolution.