SGA Fic: All Our Yesterdays Will Haunt You
Title: All Our Yesterdays Will Haunt You (pdf)
Rating: R
Category: Gen
Length: ~5100 words
Spoilers: general season two
Summary:"So it's like our own personal Groundhog Day?" "But with a civil war and a Wraith culling, yes."
Written for the Atlantis Back2Basics Ficathon, for ismenetruth, who requested Team Sheppard being protective of each other and kicking bad guy ass on a mission (ie, that scene in Irresponsible where they all offer to be shot first), with a possible side of h/c. Preferably gen.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
Ronon's blood was hot and slick on Teyla's hands, soaking through the bandages already as she pressed on the gut wound. The jumper dove downwards and Ronon gasped with pain as they slid across the floor. When she looked up, she saw the gate was falling off the side of the mountain, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. She looked down at her clean hands and wondered why she half-expected them to be covered in blood.
Ronon leaned forward in his chair to look at the valley on jumper's display. "See," he said. "I told you so."
"Oh my God," Rodney said. "They really do have woolly mammoths on this planet."
"They don't have trunks though," John said, taking them down for a closer look.
The animals were harnessed to great machines of wood and metal.
"Oh," Rodney said. "Mammoth-powered catapults. And-is that a trebuchet?"
The animals and machines and their attendant soldiers were neatly lined up on a grassy lawn, facing fields of some grain that rolled in purple-green waves to a dense forest in the distance. Behind them was a keep built into the base of one of the mountains that surrounded the valley. John landed close to the keep, but not too close to the animals. More soldiers came to greet them warily when they were on the ground.
"We are peaceful traders," Teyla said, the words coming automatically as she introduced her team.
Eventually, they were brought to the attention of the Stadholder.
He eyed their weapons, then seemed happy to show them around the keep.
It was like a small city built into the mountain. The Stadholder touched one wall, gentle and affectionate. "The Wraith may bring the mountain down on top of us, but they will never harvest us."
He took longer than she was expecting to ask about their weapons.
"We live in dangerous times," Teyla said, careful to smile.
"Do you offer them for trade?" he asked bluntly.
"Do you need more weapons?" John asked, looking pointedly at the soldiers filling the hallways of the keep.
"As you have said, we live in dangerous times. More weapons are always welcome."
John met his eyes in steady silence, until the Stadholder sighed. "We are also dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
"Ah," John said.
The Stadholder waved it off. "A minor matter. They have no hope of taking this keep; it is impregnable."
"Perhaps we could offer our services as mediators," Teyla suggested, and the Stadholder made more noises about how insignificant the unrest was.
The first explosion was more felt than heard, a faint shudder in the keep's bones. The second explosion was louder, and followed by the sharp rattle of gunfire.
"That sounds kind of pregnable to me," Rodney said, but the Stadholder was already turning away, snapping orders to his honor guard as he strode out of the room.
One of the guards tried to stop them as they followed. "Really," he said nervously, "I think it would be better, um, safer, if you stayed here."
Teyla kept walking forward, and he backed up, glancing over his shoulder after the other soldiers.
"You should be with the rest of your men," John said, and that did it. They followed the guard through the hallways, back the way they came.
The central hall was a battleground. Part of the inner wall had been blown apart by explosives, and smoke filled the room. The sound of gunfire was almost constant as the keep's soldiers attempted to hold the rebels pinned down behind the rubble. The heavy stone gate that they had entered through was barred now.
"Shit," John said.
"So I'm guessing they're not going to let us just pop out if we ask nicely," Rodney said.
"Maybe we don't have to ask," Ronon said, and jerked his chin towards a group of soldiers heading for the gate. They wore the keep's uniform, but their helms had been hastily painted white.
Traitors, Teyla realized.
The men unbarred the doors, and a flood of rebels poured in. Teyla saw the Stadholder briefly, before he went down under the weapons of his own guard.
"Now or never," John said. "Follow me and stay low."
They kept close to the wall, away from the worst of the fighting, John on point, Rodney between Ronon and the wall, Teyla guarding their backs. They scrambled over dead bodies and broken furniture, flinching down away from the ricocheting bullets. One of the bodies wasn't quite dead; it grabbed Rodney's ankle as he stumbled by. Rodney flailed and Teyla kicked the man's wrist, sharp and precise, and they were free, still moving towards the door. Two men, grappling tightly, staggered into them and Ronon shoved them back. The sounds of gunfire slowed as people fought hand to hand. John shot the first man who came running out of the smoke, screaming and waving a long knife. Ronon shot the second and the third, but he wasn't quite fast enough to get the fourth. Ronon gasped and fell to his knees, and Rodney shot the fourth man.
"Oh God, oh God, oh God," Rodney said, but he grabbed one of Ronon's arms and Teyla grabbed the other and they half-dragged him the rest of the way to the doors.
They staggered into the wall beside John, who snarled wordlessly when he saw Ronon hunched over and clutching his belly. The stream of rebels had slowed to a few remaining stragglers who ignored the four of them. Outside, Teyla could see the jumper. It looked unguarded. The keep's soldiers had lost-or given up-control of several of the siege weapons arrayed just in front the gates, and only pockets of fighting remained around the others.
John pulled something out of his tac-vest; Teyla recognized it as a stunning grenade just before he threw it. The light and sound panicked the two closest mammoth-creatures.
"Now," John said, and they ran, staggered really, to the jumper under the cover of the distraction.
Ronon barely made it inside before he collapsed. John didn't hesitate, throwing himself into the pilot's seat. Teyla knelt beside Ronon, applying pressure to the wound as Rodney ripped open one of the first aid kits.
John took off too fast and sharp, but no one complained. He had to tip them out of the way almost immediately as something exploded in the air nearby.
"Are they shooting at us?" Rodney asked, incredulous.
John didn't bother to answer.
"Can their weapons damage the ship?" Teyla asked.
Rodney looked up and met her eyes. "I'd rather not find out the hard way."
He handed her the last of the bandages, then scrambled up went to dial the gate. He left smears of Ronon's blood on the console.
More explosions, and then John said, "Rodney," and it sounded startled and desperate.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
Ronon's blood was hot and slick on Teyla's hands, soaking through the bandages already as she pressed on the gut wound. The jumper dove downwards and Ronon gasped with pain as they slid across the floor. When she looked up, she saw the gate was falling off the side of the mountain, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"Whoa," John said, "déjà vu."
"What?" Ronon said. He had his palm pressed against his stomach almost absently, and for some reason, that made the back of her neck crawl.
"I don't know-it feels like we've been here before."
"It does seem...familiar," Teyla said, looking at the valley beneath them, cupped between the worn mountains.
"Eh, all planets start looking the same after awhile," Rodney said. "Trees, grass, rocks. Eventually there will be people shooting at us." He frowned. "The mammoths should be more of a surprise, though."
"See, I told you," Ronon said automatically.
When they were on the ground, John stepped back and let Teyla talk with the Stadholder. The words came easily, reflexively, talking about peace and trade and friendship between their peoples as they toured the keep, and she thought perhaps Rodney was right, that it was just experience that made this familiar.
Then the Stadholder said, "We are also dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
Rodney looked up from his energy detector, Ronon turned away from the little model catapults, and Teyla and John exchanged a look.
"Ah," John said. "Well, this has been really great, but I think we should get going now, our people will be worried about us..."
Teyla could feel Rodney and Ronon stepping up close behind them, presenting a united front, as if they all shared the same slightly irrational feeling that now would be a very good time to leave.
The Stadholder looked a little taken aback by the sudden change in attitude. Teyla smiled politely but brushed off his reassurances, moving discreetly towards the door. They were still too late.
The first explosion was more felt than heard, a faint shudder in the keep's bones. The second explosion was louder, and followed by the sharp snap of gunfire.
"Right," Rodney said, trying to sound calm. "This is giving me déjà vu, but I may just be confusing this moment with all the other times people have shot at us."
"No one's shooting at us," John said.
"Yet," Ronon added.
They crouched in the hallway just outside the great hall.
When the white-helmed soldiers opened the gates to the rebels, John didn't even have to say anything. They stayed close to the wall, away from the worst of the fighting, John on point, Rodney between Ronon and the wall, Teyla guarding their backs. They scrambled over dead bodies and broken furniture, flinching down away from the ricocheting bullets. One of the bodies wasn't quite dead; it grabbed at Rodney's ankle as he stumbled by, but Rodney had already taken an extra long step and the hand missed him.
John shot the first man who came running out of the smoke, screaming and waving a long knife. Ronon shot the second and the third. Teyla shot the fourth coming up on Ronon's off side.
They made it to the jumper under the cover of the panicking mammoth-creatures and John took off fast and sharp. He swerved out of the way and something exploded nearby.
"They're shooting at us!" Rodney said incredulously.
"Yes," John said. "I'd noticed. Dial the damn gate."
Teyla could see it happen this time. The gate faced the valley, set at the far edge of the mountain top. One of the hurled barrels of explosives hit the stone platform the gate was built on, tearing away stone and earth. The gate wavered and tipped slowly backwards. John said, "Rodney," and it sounded startled and desperate.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
The gate was falling off the side of the mountain now, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"What the hell?" John said.
The gate stood behind them, still intact, and before them the same valley lay between familiar worn mountains.
"Okay," Rodney said, starting to sound a little breathy again, "it's really not a good thing to come out of the gate we just went into."
Ronon leaned forward. "It looks just like when we came through the first time."
It was true; the gate and keep were intact, and the siege engines were lined up neatly in the short grass.
"Try to change something with your mind," Rodney said to John.
Teyla felt an unpleasant chill at the memory. "You think..."
Rodney shrugged. "Yeah, maybe."
But John shook his head. "It didn't worked."
"Okay, so we probably didn't get stuck in a virtual environment without realizing it."
Ronon's expression shifted from faintly confused to startled. "So that's...good, right?"
"Well, since the other option is time travel, no, not so much."
"Time travel," John said dubiously.
"Yes, yes, solar flares can interfere with an established wormhole and cause time travel-did you not read any of the SGC mission reports?"
John made a face at him.
"How far back are we?" Ronon asked.
"I have no idea."
John reached out and dialed the gate. Rodney frowned at him.
"Atlantis, do you copy?" John said into the radio.
There was no response, not even the hiss of static.
"So, more than three years," Rodney said. "Which I could have told you, since I don't remember getting a call from my future self since I've been in this galaxy."
More than three years, Teyla thought, and for a moment her mind was full of all the things that hadn't happened yet. Ronon met her eyes, and she knew that he was thinking the same thing.
She shook it off quickly, focusing again on John and Rodney, who had decided to talk to the people of the valley.
The Stadholder was the same man, and he did not look particularly younger. John asked about the catapults before they even entered the keep, and the Stadholder said, "We are dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
"Right," John said, and they turned around and trooped back into the jumper.
"It's probably just a coincidence," Rodney said. "I mean, I'm sure civil wars last a really long time, right? And he didn't seem that surprised to see us when were here last time."
They hovered in the cloaked jumper just over the trees near the stargate. Their past selves did not arrive.
"Huh," Ronon said after a little while. "I was wondering how they got that close."
The rebels had come up out of the grain fields, throwing off their grass-covered cloaks at the last minute. They rushed the machines, and only some of the soldiers resisted them.
From the jumper, they couldn't feel the explosions, or see the front of the keep, but they saw the moment when the rebels surged forward as a spearhead and disappeared in the mountain.
"So maybe this kind of thing happens all the time," Rodney said half-heartedly.
"McKay..."
"I don't know!" Rodney said, and then Teyla felt it, like someone whispering cold and vicious and unintelligible in the back of her mind.
"Wraith," she said, and everyone was still.
Rodney cursed and slapped at the controls, pushing the sensors up and out until they could see it, a Hive ship just at the edge of the atmosphere, already spilling darts.
They swept down into the valley, making a rough pass over the last pockets of fighting. There were less darts than she expected for a full-scale culling, but after a moment she realized the darts were leaving Wraith on the ground. They would harvest the keep like picking the meat of a nut from its shell.
"Good timing," Ronon said flatly as they watched the Wraith march into the mountainside. One of the white-helmed soldiers ran towards them, waving his arms. She thought, even at that distance, he looked more angry than scared. The Wraith stunned him and moved on.
"Good intelligence, most likely," Teyla said, and swallowed against the desire to spit out the taste of the Wraith and the humans who would bargain with them.
The darts kept coming. The soldiers fired the few loaded catapults. They were aiming away from the stargate this time, but the darts were not.
"Oh, goddamn," John said when one of the darts started spiraling out of control. "Don't dial Atlantis."
"I know, I know," Rodney said.
The gate rushed to life a heartbeat before the dart slammed into the side of the platform. It wobbled and then started tipping backwards.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ronon asked as they flew towards it.
"Do you really want to be on this planet after the gate falls down the side of the mountain?"
"Good point."
They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. The mountains and the valley spread out beneath them, unpleasantly familiar.
John opened his mouth, but Rodney said, "Shut up. I need to see the gate."
They landed in the clearing in front of the stargate. Rodney immediately opened the access panel on the front of the dialing device and made an inarticulate, outraged noise.
"I-what the? I don't even-it's like drunk monkeys got loose in here!"
Which was when the throwing knife bounced off the dialing device. Teyla whipped around to see the man trying for another throw. She shot him in the shoulder, which seemed to be the signal for other people to start shooting at them.
"Fall back," John shouted. Ronon had already grabbed Rodney by the vest and yanked him back towards the jumper. Teyla and John scrambled after them, firing blindly towards the trees as they went.
"Oh, my God, I hate this planet," Rodney moaned when they were safely inside.
"Did you figure out what's wrong with the gate?" John asked.
"I'm not sure, but it looks like they were trying to reroute the gate so that the wormhole always engaged here instead of wherever you dialed. But since you can't come in through an outgoing wormhole, our matter stream got shifted to the last time we came through."
"So we are going back in time?"
"Not exactly. It's more like starting over from a save point in a game."
A year ago, she would not have understood that analogy. She bit her lip to stop what probably would have been a slightly hysterical giggle.
"So it's like our own personal Groundhog Day?"
"But with a civil war and a Wraith culling, yes. If you don't want to use my far superior video game metaphor."
"Why would they do that?" John asked. "And how did they do it without breaking the gate?"
"The Wraith probably told them how to do it."
Teyla nodded. "It would disable the gate without being obvious about it, and this way no one can get off the planet when they attack."
"Can you fix it?" Ronon asked.
"Probably, as long as no one is actually shooting at me."
As if on cue, there was a sudden rain of metal objects, and outside the jumper, someone started screaming.
John cloaked them and took off. The clearing was sprinkled with spiked metal balls. Below them, in the valley, the soldiers had turned around and were reloading one of the catapults.
"The gunfire must have got their attention," John said.
"They would not-" Teyla started, and one of the barrels of explosive powder came hurtling upwards.
"I hate this planet and all of the stupid, stupid people on it," Rodney said calmly and dialed the gate.
Teyla thought they hit the event horizon before the gate started falling this time.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. No one was immediately visible near the clearing, but when John pulled up the sensors, the forest held several handfuls of lifesigns, too many of them to capture or defend against for any period of time.
"If they're part of the revolution, maybe they'll go join the fighting," John said. Everyone looked at him doubtfully, but they waited just the same.
"Okay, fine, you were right," John said eventually, as the jumper raced towards the gate just ahead of the crashing dart.
They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Using drones to try and frighten off the rebels attracted the attention of the keep's soldiers.
"A mammoth-powered catapult is not the solution to everything!" Rodney shouted as he dialed the gate.
***
"The Stadholder would most likely want to take back control of the stargate, if we informed him of the situation," Teyla said.
John ran a hand over his hair, looking tired. "Yeah, I guess. The worst he'll do is call us crazy and kick us out, right?"
"Okay, I see the flaw in our plan now," Rodney said as he flew the jumper back towards the gate, fast and a little shaky.
"Is it the part where we tell one of the traitors inside the keep about the rebel plan and then he tries to kill us to keep us quiet?" Ronon asked, wrapping a bandage over the wound in John's thigh.
"Yes, that's it exactly."
"It's an important learning experience," John said, trying to smile. The jumper swerved. "Jesus, Rodney!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! They're shooting at us again!"
Teyla said nothing, just handed Ronon more bandages. John was still gripping her shoulder when they dove through the gate.
***
Teyla closed her eyes when they came out on the other side of the gate. Switching between the fear and battle rush of one side of the gate to the calm body that was always on the other side was beginning to give her something like whiplash.
"So," John said from the pilot's seat, and met her eyes when she opened them. "It wasn't a bad idea. Just-this time we have to only talk to the Stadholder guy."
John let Teyla do the talking, as though it were just another trading mission. Teyla thought she was not perhaps as convincing as she was the first time around.
The soldiers sent for their commanding officer. When he came out of the keep to greet them, Ronon took one swift step forward, putting himself in front of the rest of the team. She couldn't see his face, but it made the other man stop in his tracks.
The commanding officer was the man who had shot John the last time.
Teyla touched Ronon's wrist, and after a moment, he stepped back. Teyla smiled at the officer and worked on charming their way to the Stadholder.
The story they'd agreed on was that they were attacked when they came through the gate, and they wanted the Stadholder to give them safe passage back.
The Stadholder frowned and flicked a glance at the officer, who shook his head. "I have men there now. The ring is secure," he said.
Rodney made an outraged sound.
"I assure you," Teyla said. "There are bandits or, or rebels preventing people from leaving through the ring."
"And you wish me to send soldiers to deal with these bandits." She could tell he did not believe her.
"Sir," John said. "That man-" he nodded towards the commanding officer "-is working with your enemies. They made some kind of deal with the Wraith, and they are going to literally open your doors to them."
The officer regarded them blankly as John spoke, and the Stadholder's face settled into grim lines. "You would have me believe that the Captain of my Guard, whom I have known since we were boys, will not only turn against me, but also betray our entire people to the Wraith."
John's shoulders slumped a little. "Well, who are you going to believe, a bunch of complete strangers or your right-hand man?" His voice was flat and self-mocking.
"Indeed," the Stadholder said, looking at John as though he were a little mad.
"We'll just be going then."
"Oh, I think not."
"What?" Rodney said.
"You come here with this ridiculous story to lure my soldiers away from the safety of the keep, and you expect me to let you go as though you were not enemies?" The Stadholder nodded at the soldiers and walked out of the room.
"Um," John said, and they all looked the at the ring of soldiers pointing guns at them.
"Please put down your weapons," the officer said mildly.
"Do it," John said, and the three of them obeyed.
The soldiers locked them in a cell and walked away.
"So the captain-guy didn't try to kill us this time," Rodney said.
"At least some of those soldiers must still be loyal to the Stadholder," Teyla said.
"He'll be back when he doesn't have an audience," Ronon predicted, and after a little while, they heard sharp footsteps coming back down the hall.
"Ronon," John said.
"Right." Ronon flattened himself against the wall next to the door. The lock clicked, and when the captain pushed the door open, Ronon grabbed his wrist and the back of his head, pulled him into the cell, and slammed his face into the wall twice. When Ronon let go, the man slumped to the floor, unconscious.
John took the man's weapons and keys, and they all started running. There was another guard at the end of the hallway. He was so startled by their appearance, he didn't even have time to draw his weapon. They heard the explosions after that, which made things a little easier. The closer they got to the great hall, the more people, soldiers and civilians, filled the corridors and provided cover.
Crossing the great hall was as nerve-wracking as she remembered. At the open gates, John reached for something in his tac-vest, and cursed when his hand came back empty; their grenades had been confiscated as well.
They had no choice but to run for the jumper and hope the battle itself would provide enough cover.
Teyla didn't even feel the pain, just the sudden pressure against the back of her head that flung her into darkness.
***
Teyla rubbed her head when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"Teyla!" Rodney said, and then Ronon pulled her out of her chair and folded her into a sideways embrace. A second later Rodney flung his arms around her from the other side. John pressed his forehead to hers, his hand warm and strong on the back of her neck.
"Jesus, Jesus," Rodney babbled.
"What-"
"You were dead," Ronon said into her hair, and she remembered suddenly the darkness that was blacker and colder than the space between the stars. She shuddered and their arms tightened around her.
"I think we should take this loop off," John said, and she nodded against his forehead.
They sat in the back of the cloaked jumper and ate MREs, legs and shoulders pressed together, even though there was plenty of room.
They dialed the gate before the Wraith came.
***
"This is the dumbest plan ever, and you realize I am comparing it to everything else we've tried on this mission," Rodney said, but he threw the stunning grenade anyway.
Teyla, John, and Ronon fired their weapons over the heads of the soldiers; between the grenade and the gunfire, they managed to get their attention. The soldiers were yelling, and pointing at where they stood, a few switchbacks up on the trail that led from the valley to the stargate. They made sure the soldiers were following them, starting up the trail, before the team moved on.
"The thing is," John had said, "the Stadholder didn't believe because we didn't have proof. If we can show them there is a problem, maybe we can get some back-up, or at least distract them long enough for Rodney to fix the gate."
It worked better than she would have thought. They scrambled through the underbrush, abandoning the trail when it leveled out. Around them, Teyla was aware of other people moving. Then the gunfire started.
John checked the lifesigns detector. "They've cleared the gate area. Let's go."
They'd landed the jumper in front of the gate. She only hoped the cover and the distraction would buy them enough time.
Rodney pulled open the dialing device, hands working feverishly over the crystals. At the twenty minute mark, John said, "McKay..."
"Oh, are we under some kind of time constraint?" Rodney asked with elaborate sarcasm. "Teyla, hand me the-no, the other ones."
Teyla was kneeling to hand Rodney the crystals he asked for when someone behind her shouted, "Drop your weapons!"
There were three of them, soldiers from the keep, coming around the jumper with their own guns drawn.
Teyla turned a little to face them, letting her P-90 drop to the ground. John and Ronon had lowered their weapons warily.
"On your knees!" the one in the center shouted, then to Rodney, "Get away from there!"
"Look this is just a misunderstanding," Rodney said, "I'm trying to fix th-"
The one in the center shot Rodney. Teyla felt suddenly very calm.
John dropped to his knees beside Rodney, reaching for the wound. The soldiers were shouting something but she couldn't hear it over the ringing in her ears. She could sense Ronon tensing, gathering himself to leap at the soldiers, but she moved faster.
She rose up off her knees in one smooth lunge. The one in the center was already turning, bring his gun around to bear on Ronon, and she slapped one hand against his wrist, pushing the gun aside. She slammed her other fist into his throat. She twisted the gun out of his weakened grip and shot the man on his right. She turned to shoot the one on the left from the cover of the first man's body.
The first man dropped to his knees and then his face when she let him go; something had cracked when she punched him.
"Rodney?" she said.
"He's alive," John said.
"The crystals," Rodney gasped.
Her hands wanted to shake but she held them steady as she pressed the last crystals into place.
Ronon and John heaved Rodney to his feet as she dialed. They staggered past her and she followed, half-turned back to provide covering fire. They plunged through the gate together, half-walking, half-falling.
***
Teyla laughed with relief and joy when they came out on the other side of the gate, falling to their knees on Atlantis's cold floor.
Rating: R
Category: Gen
Length: ~5100 words
Spoilers: general season two
Summary:"So it's like our own personal Groundhog Day?" "But with a civil war and a Wraith culling, yes."
Written for the Atlantis Back2Basics Ficathon, for ismenetruth, who requested Team Sheppard being protective of each other and kicking bad guy ass on a mission (ie, that scene in Irresponsible where they all offer to be shot first), with a possible side of h/c. Preferably gen.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
Ronon's blood was hot and slick on Teyla's hands, soaking through the bandages already as she pressed on the gut wound. The jumper dove downwards and Ronon gasped with pain as they slid across the floor. When she looked up, she saw the gate was falling off the side of the mountain, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. She looked down at her clean hands and wondered why she half-expected them to be covered in blood.
Ronon leaned forward in his chair to look at the valley on jumper's display. "See," he said. "I told you so."
"Oh my God," Rodney said. "They really do have woolly mammoths on this planet."
"They don't have trunks though," John said, taking them down for a closer look.
The animals were harnessed to great machines of wood and metal.
"Oh," Rodney said. "Mammoth-powered catapults. And-is that a trebuchet?"
The animals and machines and their attendant soldiers were neatly lined up on a grassy lawn, facing fields of some grain that rolled in purple-green waves to a dense forest in the distance. Behind them was a keep built into the base of one of the mountains that surrounded the valley. John landed close to the keep, but not too close to the animals. More soldiers came to greet them warily when they were on the ground.
"We are peaceful traders," Teyla said, the words coming automatically as she introduced her team.
Eventually, they were brought to the attention of the Stadholder.
He eyed their weapons, then seemed happy to show them around the keep.
It was like a small city built into the mountain. The Stadholder touched one wall, gentle and affectionate. "The Wraith may bring the mountain down on top of us, but they will never harvest us."
He took longer than she was expecting to ask about their weapons.
"We live in dangerous times," Teyla said, careful to smile.
"Do you offer them for trade?" he asked bluntly.
"Do you need more weapons?" John asked, looking pointedly at the soldiers filling the hallways of the keep.
"As you have said, we live in dangerous times. More weapons are always welcome."
John met his eyes in steady silence, until the Stadholder sighed. "We are also dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
"Ah," John said.
The Stadholder waved it off. "A minor matter. They have no hope of taking this keep; it is impregnable."
"Perhaps we could offer our services as mediators," Teyla suggested, and the Stadholder made more noises about how insignificant the unrest was.
The first explosion was more felt than heard, a faint shudder in the keep's bones. The second explosion was louder, and followed by the sharp rattle of gunfire.
"That sounds kind of pregnable to me," Rodney said, but the Stadholder was already turning away, snapping orders to his honor guard as he strode out of the room.
One of the guards tried to stop them as they followed. "Really," he said nervously, "I think it would be better, um, safer, if you stayed here."
Teyla kept walking forward, and he backed up, glancing over his shoulder after the other soldiers.
"You should be with the rest of your men," John said, and that did it. They followed the guard through the hallways, back the way they came.
The central hall was a battleground. Part of the inner wall had been blown apart by explosives, and smoke filled the room. The sound of gunfire was almost constant as the keep's soldiers attempted to hold the rebels pinned down behind the rubble. The heavy stone gate that they had entered through was barred now.
"Shit," John said.
"So I'm guessing they're not going to let us just pop out if we ask nicely," Rodney said.
"Maybe we don't have to ask," Ronon said, and jerked his chin towards a group of soldiers heading for the gate. They wore the keep's uniform, but their helms had been hastily painted white.
Traitors, Teyla realized.
The men unbarred the doors, and a flood of rebels poured in. Teyla saw the Stadholder briefly, before he went down under the weapons of his own guard.
"Now or never," John said. "Follow me and stay low."
They kept close to the wall, away from the worst of the fighting, John on point, Rodney between Ronon and the wall, Teyla guarding their backs. They scrambled over dead bodies and broken furniture, flinching down away from the ricocheting bullets. One of the bodies wasn't quite dead; it grabbed Rodney's ankle as he stumbled by. Rodney flailed and Teyla kicked the man's wrist, sharp and precise, and they were free, still moving towards the door. Two men, grappling tightly, staggered into them and Ronon shoved them back. The sounds of gunfire slowed as people fought hand to hand. John shot the first man who came running out of the smoke, screaming and waving a long knife. Ronon shot the second and the third, but he wasn't quite fast enough to get the fourth. Ronon gasped and fell to his knees, and Rodney shot the fourth man.
"Oh God, oh God, oh God," Rodney said, but he grabbed one of Ronon's arms and Teyla grabbed the other and they half-dragged him the rest of the way to the doors.
They staggered into the wall beside John, who snarled wordlessly when he saw Ronon hunched over and clutching his belly. The stream of rebels had slowed to a few remaining stragglers who ignored the four of them. Outside, Teyla could see the jumper. It looked unguarded. The keep's soldiers had lost-or given up-control of several of the siege weapons arrayed just in front the gates, and only pockets of fighting remained around the others.
John pulled something out of his tac-vest; Teyla recognized it as a stunning grenade just before he threw it. The light and sound panicked the two closest mammoth-creatures.
"Now," John said, and they ran, staggered really, to the jumper under the cover of the distraction.
Ronon barely made it inside before he collapsed. John didn't hesitate, throwing himself into the pilot's seat. Teyla knelt beside Ronon, applying pressure to the wound as Rodney ripped open one of the first aid kits.
John took off too fast and sharp, but no one complained. He had to tip them out of the way almost immediately as something exploded in the air nearby.
"Are they shooting at us?" Rodney asked, incredulous.
John didn't bother to answer.
"Can their weapons damage the ship?" Teyla asked.
Rodney looked up and met her eyes. "I'd rather not find out the hard way."
He handed her the last of the bandages, then scrambled up went to dial the gate. He left smears of Ronon's blood on the console.
More explosions, and then John said, "Rodney," and it sounded startled and desperate.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
Ronon's blood was hot and slick on Teyla's hands, soaking through the bandages already as she pressed on the gut wound. The jumper dove downwards and Ronon gasped with pain as they slid across the floor. When she looked up, she saw the gate was falling off the side of the mountain, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"Whoa," John said, "déjà vu."
"What?" Ronon said. He had his palm pressed against his stomach almost absently, and for some reason, that made the back of her neck crawl.
"I don't know-it feels like we've been here before."
"It does seem...familiar," Teyla said, looking at the valley beneath them, cupped between the worn mountains.
"Eh, all planets start looking the same after awhile," Rodney said. "Trees, grass, rocks. Eventually there will be people shooting at us." He frowned. "The mammoths should be more of a surprise, though."
"See, I told you," Ronon said automatically.
When they were on the ground, John stepped back and let Teyla talk with the Stadholder. The words came easily, reflexively, talking about peace and trade and friendship between their peoples as they toured the keep, and she thought perhaps Rodney was right, that it was just experience that made this familiar.
Then the Stadholder said, "We are also dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
Rodney looked up from his energy detector, Ronon turned away from the little model catapults, and Teyla and John exchanged a look.
"Ah," John said. "Well, this has been really great, but I think we should get going now, our people will be worried about us..."
Teyla could feel Rodney and Ronon stepping up close behind them, presenting a united front, as if they all shared the same slightly irrational feeling that now would be a very good time to leave.
The Stadholder looked a little taken aback by the sudden change in attitude. Teyla smiled politely but brushed off his reassurances, moving discreetly towards the door. They were still too late.
The first explosion was more felt than heard, a faint shudder in the keep's bones. The second explosion was louder, and followed by the sharp snap of gunfire.
"Right," Rodney said, trying to sound calm. "This is giving me déjà vu, but I may just be confusing this moment with all the other times people have shot at us."
"No one's shooting at us," John said.
"Yet," Ronon added.
They crouched in the hallway just outside the great hall.
When the white-helmed soldiers opened the gates to the rebels, John didn't even have to say anything. They stayed close to the wall, away from the worst of the fighting, John on point, Rodney between Ronon and the wall, Teyla guarding their backs. They scrambled over dead bodies and broken furniture, flinching down away from the ricocheting bullets. One of the bodies wasn't quite dead; it grabbed at Rodney's ankle as he stumbled by, but Rodney had already taken an extra long step and the hand missed him.
John shot the first man who came running out of the smoke, screaming and waving a long knife. Ronon shot the second and the third. Teyla shot the fourth coming up on Ronon's off side.
They made it to the jumper under the cover of the panicking mammoth-creatures and John took off fast and sharp. He swerved out of the way and something exploded nearby.
"They're shooting at us!" Rodney said incredulously.
"Yes," John said. "I'd noticed. Dial the damn gate."
Teyla could see it happen this time. The gate faced the valley, set at the far edge of the mountain top. One of the hurled barrels of explosives hit the stone platform the gate was built on, tearing away stone and earth. The gate wavered and tipped slowly backwards. John said, "Rodney," and it sounded startled and desperate.
"Go," Rodney shouted. "It will still work! Just go!"
"Shit shit shit," John said and they flew faster.
The gate was falling off the side of the mountain now, the center still liquid and luminous as the jumper plunged towards it. They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"What the hell?" John said.
The gate stood behind them, still intact, and before them the same valley lay between familiar worn mountains.
"Okay," Rodney said, starting to sound a little breathy again, "it's really not a good thing to come out of the gate we just went into."
Ronon leaned forward. "It looks just like when we came through the first time."
It was true; the gate and keep were intact, and the siege engines were lined up neatly in the short grass.
"Try to change something with your mind," Rodney said to John.
Teyla felt an unpleasant chill at the memory. "You think..."
Rodney shrugged. "Yeah, maybe."
But John shook his head. "It didn't worked."
"Okay, so we probably didn't get stuck in a virtual environment without realizing it."
Ronon's expression shifted from faintly confused to startled. "So that's...good, right?"
"Well, since the other option is time travel, no, not so much."
"Time travel," John said dubiously.
"Yes, yes, solar flares can interfere with an established wormhole and cause time travel-did you not read any of the SGC mission reports?"
John made a face at him.
"How far back are we?" Ronon asked.
"I have no idea."
John reached out and dialed the gate. Rodney frowned at him.
"Atlantis, do you copy?" John said into the radio.
There was no response, not even the hiss of static.
"So, more than three years," Rodney said. "Which I could have told you, since I don't remember getting a call from my future self since I've been in this galaxy."
More than three years, Teyla thought, and for a moment her mind was full of all the things that hadn't happened yet. Ronon met her eyes, and she knew that he was thinking the same thing.
She shook it off quickly, focusing again on John and Rodney, who had decided to talk to the people of the valley.
The Stadholder was the same man, and he did not look particularly younger. John asked about the catapults before they even entered the keep, and the Stadholder said, "We are dealing with...civil unrest at the moment."
"Right," John said, and they turned around and trooped back into the jumper.
"It's probably just a coincidence," Rodney said. "I mean, I'm sure civil wars last a really long time, right? And he didn't seem that surprised to see us when were here last time."
They hovered in the cloaked jumper just over the trees near the stargate. Their past selves did not arrive.
"Huh," Ronon said after a little while. "I was wondering how they got that close."
The rebels had come up out of the grain fields, throwing off their grass-covered cloaks at the last minute. They rushed the machines, and only some of the soldiers resisted them.
From the jumper, they couldn't feel the explosions, or see the front of the keep, but they saw the moment when the rebels surged forward as a spearhead and disappeared in the mountain.
"So maybe this kind of thing happens all the time," Rodney said half-heartedly.
"McKay..."
"I don't know!" Rodney said, and then Teyla felt it, like someone whispering cold and vicious and unintelligible in the back of her mind.
"Wraith," she said, and everyone was still.
Rodney cursed and slapped at the controls, pushing the sensors up and out until they could see it, a Hive ship just at the edge of the atmosphere, already spilling darts.
They swept down into the valley, making a rough pass over the last pockets of fighting. There were less darts than she expected for a full-scale culling, but after a moment she realized the darts were leaving Wraith on the ground. They would harvest the keep like picking the meat of a nut from its shell.
"Good timing," Ronon said flatly as they watched the Wraith march into the mountainside. One of the white-helmed soldiers ran towards them, waving his arms. She thought, even at that distance, he looked more angry than scared. The Wraith stunned him and moved on.
"Good intelligence, most likely," Teyla said, and swallowed against the desire to spit out the taste of the Wraith and the humans who would bargain with them.
The darts kept coming. The soldiers fired the few loaded catapults. They were aiming away from the stargate this time, but the darts were not.
"Oh, goddamn," John said when one of the darts started spiraling out of control. "Don't dial Atlantis."
"I know, I know," Rodney said.
The gate rushed to life a heartbeat before the dart slammed into the side of the platform. It wobbled and then started tipping backwards.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ronon asked as they flew towards it.
"Do you really want to be on this planet after the gate falls down the side of the mountain?"
"Good point."
They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. The mountains and the valley spread out beneath them, unpleasantly familiar.
John opened his mouth, but Rodney said, "Shut up. I need to see the gate."
They landed in the clearing in front of the stargate. Rodney immediately opened the access panel on the front of the dialing device and made an inarticulate, outraged noise.
"I-what the? I don't even-it's like drunk monkeys got loose in here!"
Which was when the throwing knife bounced off the dialing device. Teyla whipped around to see the man trying for another throw. She shot him in the shoulder, which seemed to be the signal for other people to start shooting at them.
"Fall back," John shouted. Ronon had already grabbed Rodney by the vest and yanked him back towards the jumper. Teyla and John scrambled after them, firing blindly towards the trees as they went.
"Oh, my God, I hate this planet," Rodney moaned when they were safely inside.
"Did you figure out what's wrong with the gate?" John asked.
"I'm not sure, but it looks like they were trying to reroute the gate so that the wormhole always engaged here instead of wherever you dialed. But since you can't come in through an outgoing wormhole, our matter stream got shifted to the last time we came through."
"So we are going back in time?"
"Not exactly. It's more like starting over from a save point in a game."
A year ago, she would not have understood that analogy. She bit her lip to stop what probably would have been a slightly hysterical giggle.
"So it's like our own personal Groundhog Day?"
"But with a civil war and a Wraith culling, yes. If you don't want to use my far superior video game metaphor."
"Why would they do that?" John asked. "And how did they do it without breaking the gate?"
"The Wraith probably told them how to do it."
Teyla nodded. "It would disable the gate without being obvious about it, and this way no one can get off the planet when they attack."
"Can you fix it?" Ronon asked.
"Probably, as long as no one is actually shooting at me."
As if on cue, there was a sudden rain of metal objects, and outside the jumper, someone started screaming.
John cloaked them and took off. The clearing was sprinkled with spiked metal balls. Below them, in the valley, the soldiers had turned around and were reloading one of the catapults.
"The gunfire must have got their attention," John said.
"They would not-" Teyla started, and one of the barrels of explosive powder came hurtling upwards.
"I hate this planet and all of the stupid, stupid people on it," Rodney said calmly and dialed the gate.
Teyla thought they hit the event horizon before the gate started falling this time.
***
Teyla frowned when they came out on the other side of the gate. No one was immediately visible near the clearing, but when John pulled up the sensors, the forest held several handfuls of lifesigns, too many of them to capture or defend against for any period of time.
"If they're part of the revolution, maybe they'll go join the fighting," John said. Everyone looked at him doubtfully, but they waited just the same.
"Okay, fine, you were right," John said eventually, as the jumper raced towards the gate just ahead of the crashing dart.
They hit the event horizon and everything went white.
***
Using drones to try and frighten off the rebels attracted the attention of the keep's soldiers.
"A mammoth-powered catapult is not the solution to everything!" Rodney shouted as he dialed the gate.
***
"The Stadholder would most likely want to take back control of the stargate, if we informed him of the situation," Teyla said.
John ran a hand over his hair, looking tired. "Yeah, I guess. The worst he'll do is call us crazy and kick us out, right?"
"Okay, I see the flaw in our plan now," Rodney said as he flew the jumper back towards the gate, fast and a little shaky.
"Is it the part where we tell one of the traitors inside the keep about the rebel plan and then he tries to kill us to keep us quiet?" Ronon asked, wrapping a bandage over the wound in John's thigh.
"Yes, that's it exactly."
"It's an important learning experience," John said, trying to smile. The jumper swerved. "Jesus, Rodney!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! They're shooting at us again!"
Teyla said nothing, just handed Ronon more bandages. John was still gripping her shoulder when they dove through the gate.
***
Teyla closed her eyes when they came out on the other side of the gate. Switching between the fear and battle rush of one side of the gate to the calm body that was always on the other side was beginning to give her something like whiplash.
"So," John said from the pilot's seat, and met her eyes when she opened them. "It wasn't a bad idea. Just-this time we have to only talk to the Stadholder guy."
John let Teyla do the talking, as though it were just another trading mission. Teyla thought she was not perhaps as convincing as she was the first time around.
The soldiers sent for their commanding officer. When he came out of the keep to greet them, Ronon took one swift step forward, putting himself in front of the rest of the team. She couldn't see his face, but it made the other man stop in his tracks.
The commanding officer was the man who had shot John the last time.
Teyla touched Ronon's wrist, and after a moment, he stepped back. Teyla smiled at the officer and worked on charming their way to the Stadholder.
The story they'd agreed on was that they were attacked when they came through the gate, and they wanted the Stadholder to give them safe passage back.
The Stadholder frowned and flicked a glance at the officer, who shook his head. "I have men there now. The ring is secure," he said.
Rodney made an outraged sound.
"I assure you," Teyla said. "There are bandits or, or rebels preventing people from leaving through the ring."
"And you wish me to send soldiers to deal with these bandits." She could tell he did not believe her.
"Sir," John said. "That man-" he nodded towards the commanding officer "-is working with your enemies. They made some kind of deal with the Wraith, and they are going to literally open your doors to them."
The officer regarded them blankly as John spoke, and the Stadholder's face settled into grim lines. "You would have me believe that the Captain of my Guard, whom I have known since we were boys, will not only turn against me, but also betray our entire people to the Wraith."
John's shoulders slumped a little. "Well, who are you going to believe, a bunch of complete strangers or your right-hand man?" His voice was flat and self-mocking.
"Indeed," the Stadholder said, looking at John as though he were a little mad.
"We'll just be going then."
"Oh, I think not."
"What?" Rodney said.
"You come here with this ridiculous story to lure my soldiers away from the safety of the keep, and you expect me to let you go as though you were not enemies?" The Stadholder nodded at the soldiers and walked out of the room.
"Um," John said, and they all looked the at the ring of soldiers pointing guns at them.
"Please put down your weapons," the officer said mildly.
"Do it," John said, and the three of them obeyed.
The soldiers locked them in a cell and walked away.
"So the captain-guy didn't try to kill us this time," Rodney said.
"At least some of those soldiers must still be loyal to the Stadholder," Teyla said.
"He'll be back when he doesn't have an audience," Ronon predicted, and after a little while, they heard sharp footsteps coming back down the hall.
"Ronon," John said.
"Right." Ronon flattened himself against the wall next to the door. The lock clicked, and when the captain pushed the door open, Ronon grabbed his wrist and the back of his head, pulled him into the cell, and slammed his face into the wall twice. When Ronon let go, the man slumped to the floor, unconscious.
John took the man's weapons and keys, and they all started running. There was another guard at the end of the hallway. He was so startled by their appearance, he didn't even have time to draw his weapon. They heard the explosions after that, which made things a little easier. The closer they got to the great hall, the more people, soldiers and civilians, filled the corridors and provided cover.
Crossing the great hall was as nerve-wracking as she remembered. At the open gates, John reached for something in his tac-vest, and cursed when his hand came back empty; their grenades had been confiscated as well.
They had no choice but to run for the jumper and hope the battle itself would provide enough cover.
Teyla didn't even feel the pain, just the sudden pressure against the back of her head that flung her into darkness.
***
Teyla rubbed her head when they came out on the other side of the gate.
"Teyla!" Rodney said, and then Ronon pulled her out of her chair and folded her into a sideways embrace. A second later Rodney flung his arms around her from the other side. John pressed his forehead to hers, his hand warm and strong on the back of her neck.
"Jesus, Jesus," Rodney babbled.
"What-"
"You were dead," Ronon said into her hair, and she remembered suddenly the darkness that was blacker and colder than the space between the stars. She shuddered and their arms tightened around her.
"I think we should take this loop off," John said, and she nodded against his forehead.
They sat in the back of the cloaked jumper and ate MREs, legs and shoulders pressed together, even though there was plenty of room.
They dialed the gate before the Wraith came.
***
"This is the dumbest plan ever, and you realize I am comparing it to everything else we've tried on this mission," Rodney said, but he threw the stunning grenade anyway.
Teyla, John, and Ronon fired their weapons over the heads of the soldiers; between the grenade and the gunfire, they managed to get their attention. The soldiers were yelling, and pointing at where they stood, a few switchbacks up on the trail that led from the valley to the stargate. They made sure the soldiers were following them, starting up the trail, before the team moved on.
"The thing is," John had said, "the Stadholder didn't believe because we didn't have proof. If we can show them there is a problem, maybe we can get some back-up, or at least distract them long enough for Rodney to fix the gate."
It worked better than she would have thought. They scrambled through the underbrush, abandoning the trail when it leveled out. Around them, Teyla was aware of other people moving. Then the gunfire started.
John checked the lifesigns detector. "They've cleared the gate area. Let's go."
They'd landed the jumper in front of the gate. She only hoped the cover and the distraction would buy them enough time.
Rodney pulled open the dialing device, hands working feverishly over the crystals. At the twenty minute mark, John said, "McKay..."
"Oh, are we under some kind of time constraint?" Rodney asked with elaborate sarcasm. "Teyla, hand me the-no, the other ones."
Teyla was kneeling to hand Rodney the crystals he asked for when someone behind her shouted, "Drop your weapons!"
There were three of them, soldiers from the keep, coming around the jumper with their own guns drawn.
Teyla turned a little to face them, letting her P-90 drop to the ground. John and Ronon had lowered their weapons warily.
"On your knees!" the one in the center shouted, then to Rodney, "Get away from there!"
"Look this is just a misunderstanding," Rodney said, "I'm trying to fix th-"
The one in the center shot Rodney. Teyla felt suddenly very calm.
John dropped to his knees beside Rodney, reaching for the wound. The soldiers were shouting something but she couldn't hear it over the ringing in her ears. She could sense Ronon tensing, gathering himself to leap at the soldiers, but she moved faster.
She rose up off her knees in one smooth lunge. The one in the center was already turning, bring his gun around to bear on Ronon, and she slapped one hand against his wrist, pushing the gun aside. She slammed her other fist into his throat. She twisted the gun out of his weakened grip and shot the man on his right. She turned to shoot the one on the left from the cover of the first man's body.
The first man dropped to his knees and then his face when she let him go; something had cracked when she punched him.
"Rodney?" she said.
"He's alive," John said.
"The crystals," Rodney gasped.
Her hands wanted to shake but she held them steady as she pressed the last crystals into place.
Ronon and John heaved Rodney to his feet as she dialed. They staggered past her and she followed, half-turned back to provide covering fire. They plunged through the gate together, half-walking, half-falling.
***
Teyla laughed with relief and joy when they came out on the other side of the gate, falling to their knees on Atlantis's cold floor.