Stargate Defense - season one

Chapter Four

Rodney handed Mal an envelope. "This explains everything that went wrong and it will also tell your Dr. McKay how to remove the device I installed to help get you home so he can fix the ship and get it working properly."

"Thank you for all your help," Mal told him.

"Don't thank me yet, we have no idea if it will work."

Oliver slapped him on the back. "It will because you're Rodney McKay."

"I appreciate that, kid, but I supposedly built this thing and something went wrong with it."

"I have faith in you," Oliver said with a huge grin.

"All right, let's get you home, shall we?" Rodney said, while he ignored what Oliver had said.

Mal grinned. "Yes, let's." He climbed aboard the ship, checked everything then taxied out of the hangar.

"Dr. McKay, we don't have permission to allow that thing out of the hangar!" one of the guards yelled at them as he and Oliver stood and watched Mal taxi further from them.

Rodney flapped a hand at him. "Don't worry about it. I need to see it fly to understand how it works."

"Oh, I suppose that makes sense." The guard stood beside him and watched the ship taxi out onto the runway then take off. "Whoa, that thing is fast."

"It certainly is," Rodney replied quietly with a small smile.

Mal headed for the upper atmosphere. "All right, let's try this again." He activated the hyperspace drive and a window opened, then he hit the button on the small box Rodney installed in the cockpit to recreate the malfunction and hopefully send him home. Electricity crackled over the surface of the ship. Light flashed and he looked around. "Same place, let's hope this worked." He clicked on the radio. "Flight this is the Kalenka, do you read?" Nothing, he began flipping channels and repeating the message.

"Colonel, is that you?"

He released a relieved sigh when he heard Lee's voice. "Yes, Captain it is."

"You're home!" Van screamed over the radio.

He chuckled. "Yes, I am. Can someone give me permission to land?"

"Oh, uh, we're at the SGC, the radio equipment was moved here after you vanished. Give me a minute!" Lee said.

"We missed you, Mal," Van told him.

"Thanks, Van. I missed everyone too. I do not want a repeat of that incident."

"Where did you end up?"

Mal sighed. "Let's get me on the ground before I launch into explanations. I don't want to have to repeat it a zillion times."

"Yes, sir."

He grinned when Van called him sir.

It took nearly half an hour to get the appropriate clearance for him to land at the research base. He was happier than he could ever remember being when he landed. It took him another hour to get back to the base. When he arrived and was taken to the briefing room, Lee and Van were there waiting for him.

"Welcome back, Colonel," Lee said with a smile. "Permission to hug the stuffing out of you, sir?"

He laughed and allowed her to hug him. The moment she stepped back, Van launched himself at Mal and hugged him enthusiastically.

"Welcome back, Colonel, it's good to have you back safe and sound," General Carter said once Van finally released him.

"Thank you, ma'am, it's good to be back."

Rodney rushed into the room. "He's back?"

"Yes, I am."

"What happened, what went wrong? Tell me everything," Rodney demanded.

He fished the envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Rodney. "This will explain what went wrong, how to fix it for future production, and how to remove the device you installed to get me home."

"I installed?"

Mal nodded. "Yes. The consensus by everyone there was that I was sent to an alternate reality."

Rodney groaned. "Of course! Why didn't I think of that!"

"I have no idea. I'm just glad you were able to help. Now, I'd like to sleep for a week." He yawned. "We didn't get much sleep while we were trying to figure out what went wrong with the ship." He grinned at Lee. "Oliver was a big help."

"My brother was there?"

"Yes, and he was quite upset when I showed up. It seems we never returned from P8E-394, when I appeared he believed I escaped from wherever we were being held and left the two of you behind. He was a little angry."

"You'd never do that," Lee insisted.

"I'm glad someone realizes that!"

Van held up a hand. "I knew it too."

Rodney frowned. "So, I was there? I helped fix the 306? What about Zelenka?"

He slapped Rodney on the back. "Zelenka never joined the Stargate Program and you retired after Atlantis was stranded on Earth and became an internationally known television star."

"Television?" He paled.

"Yes, your show was called Science for Idiots."

Rodney grinned. "That would be a great show."

"I bet it was, I didn't have a chance to see it." He gestured to Sam. "Both you and General O'Neill were retired, you had just married and were on your honeymoon."

"Who was running the SGC?" she asked.

"Ahh, that ...was interesting to say the least. Vala was in charge of the SGC."

Sam looked like she was going to choke. "Vala?"

He nodded. "Yes, the Stargate Program went public. The Gate was used to travel by just about anyone. Atlantis couldn't return to Pegasus so it was turned into a tourist attraction."

"That's a horrifying thought," Rodney said.

"Oh it gets worse. Vala and Dr. Jackson were married. Daniel was the public relations liaison between the SGC and the public and he taught a course at Harvard about the Stargate."

"It sounds as if you had quite the adventure, Colonel."

"Yes, General, I did. Which is why I'd like permission to go take the longest nap of my life."

"Permission granted. You can fill us in on the rest of the details later."

"Thank you, ma'am." He bid everyone goodbye and went to his quarters. He fell onto the bed with a sigh. He was home. It seemed as if years had passed, but it had only been a week.

He knew Lee and Van were going to bug him for details. He grinned. Yeah, it was damn good to be home. His eyes slipped shut and he fell asleep fully clothed lying diagonally across the bed on top of the covers.