The Gathering – Part One

Title: The Gathering
Art by FanArts Series
Series:The Sentinels of Atlantis
Series Order:1
Pairings:McKay/Sheppard, Sam/Daniel, Cameron/Vala, Cadman/Ford, Keller/Lorne
Genre: Sentinel/Stargate: Atlantis– crossover, Alternate Universe, Romance, Adventure
BETA: Heather
Content Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Explicit sex, adult language, violence

Summary:
Sentinel John Sheppard thought he’d spend his life unbonded and then he met Dr. Rodney McKay. The mission to Atlantis is their mutual path and they will gather the strongest, brightest, and best for the mission that will take them to another galaxy.

Author’s Note:
While this is a Sentinel/Stargate: Atlantis crossover – I’ve played fast and lose with pretty much everything from the way a Sentinel/Guide pairing works to the events leading up the Atlantis mission, character ages, etc. Basically, anything was fair game as I created this world. This is definitely AU in every single way.

Disclaimer:
None of the characters, places, or concepts belongs to me. I’m not trying to make money on it. I’ll never try to make money on it. I’m just messing around. Don’t sue me—it would be a total waste of your money. But, hey these words are mine so don’t steal them and claim they are yours.

- – - -

“There is an unbonded Guide here.”

Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter paused and turned to face the pilot she was giving a tour of Stargate Command. He’d been located through his DNA. Major John Sheppard had the Ancient gene and was from all reports a low level Sentinel. He’d barely registered on the scale and had eventually been evaluated at a level two out of six. There was no way he should’ve been able to sense an unbonded Guide in the mountain. She could barely feel Dr. McKay and she rated at level four on the Sentinel scale. There were fifteen floors between their current location and the lab that Rodney preferred. It was… odd and something of a puzzle. She loved puzzles.

“Actually, yes, there are two that work here but only one is on the base today. Dr. Rodney McKay. He’s a level six guide. The Sentinel Council does not believe he will bond. He’s refused every single candidate ever presented to him for potential bonding.”

“Really? But, Sentinels are so… rare.”

Sam nodded. She knew it was rare for the a Guide to actually refuse a Sentinel – even more rare for it to repeatedly happen. “Yes, Guides have always out-numbered Sentinels but Rodney is a unique sort of person and not your typical Guide. There are only five or six Guides in the entire program that have tested at level six. Unfortunately, there are only ten Sentinels in the world who have tested at level six and most of them are bonded. He met one a few years back and while the Sentinel was very willing – Rodney would have nothing to do with her.”

John frowned. “I don’t suppose I get to meet him?”

“Actually, yes, he’s the Chief Scientist for the mission you’re here to be briefed on. I should warn you, however, not to touch him. He’s not comfortable around unbonded Sentinels and rarely tolerates being in their presence for any length of time.”

“Understood, Colonel.”

- – - -

Carter had left him alone for nearly twenty minutes, but the time alone hadn’t been enough for him to repair the tears in his shields. Just being in the same facility with McKay was overwhelming. John closed his eyes and forced himself to erect every single mental wall he had. He knew the moment the man entered the room that it just was not going to be enough.

He opened his eyes reluctantly and found himself drowning in the bluest eyes he’s ever seen in his life. John tried to look away, forced himself to look at the Carter and the other people she’d brought with her but his gaze snapped back to those amazing eyes. Warmth, understanding, acceptance, shock, intelligence, and then a slick hot wave of anger flowed over his shields and right into his mind. The phantom touch that had been in his mind for twenty years blossomed in an instant and he knew this man. He knew this man in a way he’d never known anyone. It was too much. He felt the fugue state coming – fought it but it was impossible. The surprised voice of Colonel Carter barely registered.

Blue. He was surrounded by blue. It was amazing and so enthralling that he couldn’t imagine ever wanting to leave the safety of it. John had never known something so amazing and pleasurable before. He couldn’t move, didn’t care if he ever moved again. Unknowingly, he pushed in deeper letting the color drench his mind, into the peace it offered.

Then strong hands were on him, pushing him back against the rough concrete wall. The sensation of the warm hand in the middle of his chest was enough to pull him immediately out of his first zone out he had experienced in fifteen years. He took a deep breath and swallowed hard. This man, this Guide who had refused so many Sentinels in the past was his. Would McKay refuse him as well? And if he did, what the hell would he do then? John had never met a Guide that had called to him, never met a Guide he wanted to claim as his own. He was wholly unprepared for it.

“Major, can you speak?” McKay asked, his voice penetrated like a knife.

“I’m good. Thank you. I haven’t zoned out in years.” he whispered, his voice naked with emotion.

“Yes, I realize that,” McKay murmured. “One day you’ll have to tell me exactly how you managed to fool the Sentinel Council into rating you a level two.”

“He’s not?” Sam asked, shocked. They had discussed Sheppard all the way to the conference room. She’d never seen Rodney so off balance and shaken before but it hadn’t even crossed her mind that Sheppard was the cause. No Sentinel had ever disturbed McKay like this before.

“No,” McKay whispered, his voice a little broken at the knowledge. “I don’t think he would even register on the ridiculous scale you American’s use—he’s so far above it.” He refocused on John. “You do realize if you hadn’t hid what you were I would have found you years ago.”

John nodded. He also knew he was about to lose it and zone out again. The man’s voice was a sweet, unbearable agony that pitted in the bottom of his gut. It twisted, delicious and vicious against his insides. “You have to stop talking. It’s killing me.”

“It’s not killing you, Major. I promise. What you’re feeling is perfectly natural considering our circumstances.”

John shook his head. “No. No Guide has ever done this to me.” He started to shake. “You have to shut the fuck up.”

“No Guide has ever done to this because they weren’t yours.” McKay looked back over his shoulder at the four people who had followed him into the room. “I need, Sam…”

Sam Carter nodded, obviously stunned. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry, Rodney.” She turned to the others in the room. “General O’Neill, Dr. Weir, we need to give these two some time alone.”

“I don’t understand.” Elizabeth Weir turned to stare at John and Rodney.

Sam smiled gently. “It’s actually not for you to understand. The Sentinel/Guide bond is a private matter.”

“Oh. Oh!” Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “I see.”

“Rodney, Daniel and I will be outside if you need us.”

John shuddered as the door shut. “You’re still hurting me.”

“I know,” Rodney murmured. “I know. Why did you hide, John?”

John swallowed hard. “I was tested when I was six years old. If I hadn’t hidden what I could do. If I hadn’t tested below a level four they would have taken me from my parents and forced me into one of the schools. They didn’t give parents or kids the choice back then. I had to hide it. I didn’t want to leave my family.”

“And later?”

“It was easier to hide it.” John opened his eyes and looked at his Guide for the first time since the man had touched him. “A Sentinel at my level would have been heavily recruited by practically every government agency in the country. I wanted to fly. I didn’t want… I didn’t want anything else.”

“I understand.” Rodney tilted his head. “You have two choices.”

“Okay.” John took a deep breath and tried to push the pain deep so he could concentrate on what was about to be offered to him. God help him if McKay told him no. What the fuck would he do?

“You can leave this room and then this mountain and never look back. I’ll make sure you get the posting of your choice anywhere in the Air Force. The General will see to it. We’ll never tell anyone what you’re hiding.”

“Or?” Because God, that first choice was so fucked up and stupid that John wanted to scream his pain and frustration.

“You can stay with me. You can bond with me.”

“Colonel Carter told me you’ve refused every Sentinel you’ve ever encountered – even ones that really wanted to bond with you. Why me?”

“Do you remember the exact moment you felt me today?”

“Yes,” John nodded.

“I felt you, too. In that very moment and I nearly passed out. My skin suddenly was too tight, too uncomfortable. I was looking for you before Sam even came to get me. I’ve felt you for years, John. Sometimes you were so close to me that I felt like I could reach out and grab you – only I couldn’t see you. I couldn’t find you. And I looked. I looked so many times. I know you felt it, too. The tug deep in your mind. You’ve heard me in your dreams for years.”

“Yes.” John nodded. “Christ, yes, I have.” He rested against the wall and closed his eyes. “And you’d give that up? What are the chances you’d find a Sentinel to bond with if I walk out of this room?”

“Zero. You are my Sentinel. It’s you or it’s no one.” Rodney stepped back and pulled his hand away. “That being said, because you are my Sentinel my primary concern is your happiness. The decision is yours.”

“No.” John shook his head. “There is no decision to make. There is no way I can walk out of this room without you. I – I – fuck, I don’t even think I understood how empty I was until now. Until you touched me.” He sucked in a harsh breath. “I feel like my insides are on fire.”

“How much training have you had?”

“I did the standard two years. I went to a Sentinel program during undergrad. I wasn’t given any advanced training because of my rating. They figured I was so low on the scale that I would never have the desire to bond with someone.” John started to shake. “Your voice—it’s like a sharp knife in my gut. Will it always be like that?”

“If I said yes?”

“I’d learn to deal with it because I’m not sure I can part with you.”

Rodney laughed, obviously pleased. “Fortunately for you and your gut – it won’t always be like that. It’s painful because your body is fighting me. Once we bond, every part of you will accept me. Your mind, your body, and your heart.” He paused then. “You realize if you bond with me—there will be no hiding from the Sentinel Council. They will demand to see us and confirm our relationship. They know I would never accept someone unless they were at my level, which is why I’ve never met you. They’ve never sent a Sentinel beneath a level four to meet me.”

“Colonel Carter is around level four. Was she sent to you?”

“No, when I met her she had already bonded with her Guide. He was the other civilian that came in with me. Dr. Daniel Jackson. They’ve been bonded for nearly seven years.” Rodney inclined his head. “You can sense her abilities?”

“Oh yes.” John swallowed. “Her shields are pretty much paper thin to me. Really, I’ve met very few people in my life that could hide from me.”

“Do you need to talk to her? Talk to them? Maybe talking to a bonded couple, someone who has been through this would help you.”

“I think so.” John opened his eyes again. “Yes, I need to talk to her.” He grabbed Rodney’s hand and held it tight against his chest. “One thing? How could you offer to let me leave you behind? Don’t you want this? Don’t you want this bond as badly as I do?”

McKay moved closer and touched John’s face with hesitant fingers. “I want it more. I’ve waited – turned away Sentinel after Sentinel over the years even when the Council questioned my sanity over it. I’ve waited for you nearly all of my life, John. But, you’ve hidden what you are nearly all of yours, and I would have you do nothing that you aren’t comfortable with.”

John rubbed his face against the fingers that still trailed on his skin. “I’ve waited for you, too.”

“I’ll get them now.” Rodney whispered. He separated himself from John, walked across the room, and opened the door. “Sam, Daniel—could you join us for a few minutes?”

John forced himself to leave the security of the cinder block wall and go to the conference table. He pulled out a chair and sat down as Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson entered and took seats near him.

“You hid your true abilities to stay with your parents?” Daniel asked as soon as he sat down.

“Yes, how did…?”

“You wouldn’t be the first Sentinel or Guide to purposefully hide from them. It’s a problem that the Council is well aware of. They’ve tried through the years to discreetly retest adults in our age group so that people like you get the rating they deserve and of course so they know exactly what they are dealing with.” Daniel looked from Rodney to John and then refocused on John.

“I’ve never been retested,” John admitted. “They tried to recall me about four years ago but I was in a war zone and I pushed them off. They didn’t try again.”

“John? Would you be willing to drop your shields so I can see you?” Daniel asked gently.

John shook his head. “I, fuck, the last time I did that I was zoned out for nearly an hour.”

“It won’t happen this time.” Sam put one of her hands on his. “Rodney snapped you out of a zone-out in seconds. I’ve never seen anyone come out of a fugue state that quickly. Daniel and I have been bonded for years and it takes a full minute to pull me out if it happens.”

“I didn’t think bonded Sentinels zoned.”

“We’re in a high stress environment. It’s happened twice in the past five years.”

“Okay.” John nodded. That made sense. High stress in the past had always made controlling his heightened senses very difficult.

He forced himself to relax back in the chair and slowly started to open holes into his shields. As each layer bled away, he felt the room change around him. Coffee, deodorant, bath soap, aftershave, and he realized that it was Rodney – his senses were already focusing on his Guide above all other things in the room. He spread out a little and connected with the gentle thud of his heart. Yes, his Guide. It was overwhelming and more than he’d ever hoped for. John had known hiding would make a bond nearly impossible and he’d prepared himself to be unbonded for life.

Then Rodney’s hand was on him and he pulled back from the steady beat of the all too important heart and brought his shields back up. When he looked towards Carter and Jackson, he found them both pale and a little shaken. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”

Daniel shook his head and folded his hand into Sam’s. “No, my God, not at all. I’ve never…” He cleared his throat. “John, you’re amazing. I don’t even understand how you’ve managed your whole life without a Guide. I’ve never felt anything like that ever.”

“I was uniquely motivated to learn to protect myself.”

“Yes.” Daniel nodded. “I can see that.”

John cleared his throat. “What is the fastest and most efficient way to bond? Because the sound of his voice is an agony right now.”

Sam smiled then. “As painful as it is now… after the bond it will be that much more soothing and pleasurable. So, at least you have that to look forward to.”

“The fastest way to bond is to find some place very private – both of you drop your shields and fuck yourselves stupid as you engage as many of your senses as you can. Essentially you glut yourself on him.” Daniel grinned when both men turned to stare at him. “If that method doesn’t suit your sexuality—you’ll have to go through the standard bonding ritual which can take hours but isn’t nearly as much fun.”

“The bond you share isn’t sexual,” Johnmentioned, if they were surprised that he guessed this about them neither Daniel or Sam made mention of it.

Sam smiled softly and John felt a momentary rush of sadness from her before she pushed it deep. “No, Daniel and I are just very good friends. We share a profound love for one another but it’s never been sexual. It’s rare with a pairing such as ours – most Sentinel/Guide pairs that are male/female end up in a romantic relationship.”

John nodded. He’d encountered several such pairs in the past and he’d never understood it. “Okay.”

“The sexual component would speed up the process; especially since you are in a great deal of pain. It’s written all over you and frankly, you’re making the other Sentinel/Guide pair in the facility very uncomfortable. Your distress is getting difficult to push away.” Daniel inclined his head as he looked at them. “Do you know how to create the mental connection?”

“Not really. I was rated so low that the Council assumed I would need help creating such a link if I ever found a Guide that I wanted.”

“You won’t need any help,” Daniel promised. “The easiest way to surrender to your Guide is drop your shields and let him nest in you. Rodney is a powerful Guide and he’ll be compelled to surround your mind with his own. The connection will build on itself from the first moment you’re both together in an unguarded mental state. The sex will help create the intimacy you need to do this.”

“All right.” John swallowed. The idea of it was a little horrifying. He’d never dropped his shields completely; at least not since his mother had taught him to make them. “I haven’t been in an unguarded mental state since my gifts started to manifest.”

“It’s a big leap of faith,” Sam admitted. “When Daniel and I did it—we spent three hours in the bonding ritual before I could even let him past my primary shield. Once that breach was made and I could move around in his mind—things got much easier for us both.”

Daniel smiled. “Can you explain how you were able to hide so effectively?”

“My mother was a Sentinel. She taught me to build shields practically from the moment I started to walk. By the time I was tested at six, even she couldn’t penetrate them and she was a level five. She never had a Guide so I have very little experience with having one in my life.”

“Major, you do know that Sentinel/Guide relationships supersede any regulations and codes of conduct that the military places on us. They are entirely too desperate to have bonded pairs to concern themselves with fraternization or homosexuality.” Carter stood from the table. “So, should we prepare a room for the ritual or would you just prefer to go back to Rodney’s base quarters?”

John knew which one he preferred and when he focused on Rodney, he could see it in him too. The way his eyes had dilated, the increase of his pulse, and the blooming scent of masculine arousal. Yes, they were definitely on the same page. Thank fucking God.

“What is your spirit guide?” Rodney asked softly.

The tone did nothing to dull the pain of it but John appreciated the effort. He smiled. “The eagle. Yours?”

“Wolf.”

“His quarters will be fine,” John said finally as he stood from the table. “Now.”

“Yes. Now.”

- – - -

“Well,” Jack O’Neill started with a small smile. “That certainly solves the problem of the Major agreeing to go to Atlantis. He’ll go with Rodney.”

Sam winced then and exchanged a look with Daniel. “Actually, Sir, Rodney will adhere to whatever his Sentinel wants.”

“But, Rodney has worked towards the Atlantis mission for over a year.” Elizabeth Weir frowned and stared at the door that separated them from McKay. “Can we prevent them from bonding until we know what the Major’s plans are?”

Daniel’s mouth dropped open. “What? No! First and foremost, interfering with a pair bond is illegal. Not even the Air Force could withstand the assault the Sentinel Council could levy. Second, neither McKay nor Sheppard would tolerate it. If you attempt to come between them things will get nasty and probably violent very fast. They are already half-way there anyway. They were sharing a partial bond when Rodney entered the room. I didn’t realize it at the time—but they’ve been connected for literally years. They just couldn’t find each other and now that they have separation is impossible for either of them. Third, every Sentinel/Guide pair on this base would be compelled to help and shelter them.”

“What would happen?” Jack asked neutrally.

“It would be mentally devastating to them both,” Sam answered her gaze connecting with Daniel’s. “Losing your Guide is like having your heart torn out of your chest.” She would know – she’d experienced it with Daniel. Granted, when he’d ascended he’d returned to her as soon as he could but it didn’t lessen the pain of the event.

The door opened and John leveled his gaze at Elizabeth Weir. “You should be aware, Dr. Weir, that I can hear a conversation from more than a mile away when I want to and sound proofing is absolutely useless.”

Her mouth dropped open. “I see, Major.”

“It’s good that you do,” John’s eyes darkened with temper. “As for Atlantis, I was already going to say yes. I was going to say yes pretty much the second someone mentioned the possibility of a space ship. The lot of you basically had me at hello. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Dr. McKay and I have something very private to attend to.”

- – - -

John glanced around the disaster area that Rodney had led him to. “Oh, you’re going to have to be so much neater in the future.”

Rodney laughed. “So, we had you at hello?”

John turned and looked at him. “You’ve had me so much longer than that. I think I felt you the first time when I was ten years old. The day my mother died. I was in so much pain that I just wanted to crawl into the grave with her.”

Rodney nodded. He remembered. Emotional pain so deep that it had staggered him – forcing him to sleep and seek out the damaged soul that screamed inside his mind. “I helped so little.”

“You helped so much,” John corrected. “That night—I felt like I was alone in the world. My father never understood me the way my mother did. He was never comfortable with my gifts. He tried so hard but he wasn’t her. I was alone and then you were there—on the edge of my mind and I knew I’d never be alone again. I’m so sorry I hid for so long. I just didn’t know. I don’t think I knew what you were there in the back of mind until I saw you today. I can’t explain it.”

“That’s the beauty of us.” Rodney reached out for him and sighed when John immediately came to him. “You don’t have to explain.”

“So,” John brushed his fingers over Rodney’s face, tracing his angular jaw and then brushed the tips over the crooked mouth he was pretty much half in love with already. “I have to glut myself on you. That’s what Dr. Jackson said.”

“Yeah, about that.” Rodney tilted his head. “Have you ever slept with a man?”

“I prefer men,” John admitted. “Women often wear too much perfume, use scented soaps and hair products, and they get so emotional during sex that it’s difficult not to zone out. I’ve always liked the way men smell, feel, and taste. I assumed that if I ever found my Guide that it would be a man.”

“Huh.”

“And you?”

“The same… but for just the emotional reason. Men are better at keeping their emotions at bay during sex and my empathic abilities manifested long before puberty. Women were just way too complicated and I was thankful when I realized that I didn’t really enjoy touching them all that much. Guys just want to get off and I could get that.”

John stepped back a little. “Take off your clothes.” He pulled his t-shirt over his head and tossed it aside. “Don’t hide from me.”

“I wouldn’t,” Rodney promised.

John sat down in a chair and unlaced his boots as Rodney efficiently stripped in front of him. As the clothes fell away, he was left with the body of his Guide. Pale, lean, broad shouldered, slim-hipped. Perfect, really. Not very muscular but John had never wanted that in his lovers. Rodney’s cock jutted, dark and beautiful, from his body the head already wet with pre-cum. John let his primary mental shield thin so that he could surround himself in Rodney’s presence and his amazing mind. His Guide shuddered in that moment and John smiled.

“Yes, I’m very pleased. I can’t wait to taste you.” John dropped his boots on the floor and then stood to unbuckle his belt. “Lay down on the bed, please.”

He stripped as quickly possible, his gaze glued to the lounging form of Dr. Rodney McKay. It seemed impossible that it had only been mere minutes since he’d set eyes on the man. He never wanted to forget a single detail of this. John walked to the bed and crawled onto it, his head dipping automatically as he moved up between Rodney’s thighs. The strong scent of an aroused man… of his man filled his nose and he wallowed in the power of it. He brushed his lips over the silky flesh of his lover’s cock, sliding the length of him and flicking his tongue over the head with no pretense masking his enjoyment of it.

“You’re beautiful,” Rodney whispered, his fingers drifting in John’s hair. “Amazing. I want you inside of me in every way possible.”

John moved up, his lips trailing soft kisses across Rodney’s chest until he could capture his mouth. He moaned into McKay’s mouth as he lowered himself and their bodies came together. Skin to skin.

He lifted his head and hazel eyes met blue. “Lube?”

Rodney rolled to his side slightly, opened a drawer in the small nightstand beside the bed, and pulled out a tube. “Do you have a preference about condoms?”

John paused. “I’ve always used them in the past… to dull the touch sensation. I don’t think I want anything between you and me.”

He smiled and sat up. Running one hand down the center of John’s chest, over his stomach to the fine dark hair that surrounded his cock. “Let’s see if you can handle me touching you this way.”

John bit back a curse as Rodney’s strong, calloused hand wrapped around his cock. His world whited out for a few precious seconds and then he came back to himself. “It’s perfect. You are perfect.”

McKay relaxed on the bed and spread his legs wide for John. He watched his Sentinel react to the shameless display through half-closed eyes and shivered when John lowered another shield for him. “You’re not really dropping your shields, are you? You’re just opening a door for me?”

John nodded.

“Do you have any idea how fucking impressive you are?” Rodney demanded, his voice full of disbelief and awe. “As impressive as you are hot; and really you’re the hottest person I’ve ever seen naked. Ever.”

John paused in his, his hand stilling in their quest over Rodney’s thighs. “You know I’m already half in love with you, right? I didn’t even know it could happen so fast.”

“Open all of your doors for me, John. Let me see all that you are. I promise you I will keep you safe.”

“I know.” John whispered as he opened the lube and slicked his fingers. “I know that deep in my soul where you’ve always been. The deeper you go in my mind the more you will see… the more you will know how much of you has always been with me.”

Rodney groaned and lifted his hips as John brushed his blunt fingers over his entrance in a teasing motion that spoke of experience, care, and patience. As much as John could trust his mind into Rodney’s care… McKay understood that he could give over everything to his Sentinel for safekeeping. His body, his heart, and most certainly his mind. The mind that had been his only consolation in a childhood filled with rejection and isolation. The mind that helped him forge his way in a world that could have easily destroyed him with tainted thoughts and vicious emotions. The mind that had protected his abilities practically from birth… shielding him in ways that he did not understand until he was an adult.

“John!” He shuddered as he two fingers breached him again and again, stretching and preparing him to be taken. “More.”

Sheppard added a third finger carefully and when he pushed again, he brushed against Rodney’s prostate and his Guide floundered before him, his body bowing and straining against the pleasure he knowingly bestowed. He pulled his fingers free then. “I can’t wait… I need…”

“Yes. Now.” Rodney agreed, his hands clutching at his own legs as he spread himself further. “Now.”

John shook himself and closed his eyes briefly to find his center. Then he positioned the head of his cock against the ring of muscle that protected Rodney’s body and pressed. McKay’s body gave away to him quickly and John slid deep with one powerful, smooth stroke. “Fuck.”

“Yes.” Rodney wrapped his legs around his Sentinel, high up on his waist and clutched at John’s shoulders with strong hands. “More. Give me all that you are.”

John opened doors he’d kept in place for years allowing Rodney entry into parts of his mind that no one had ever touched until he laid was bare before his Guide. He shuddered at the exposure and cried out with relief as Rodney’s brilliant and amazing mind surrounded him; enveloping his unguarded psyche and inviting it into safety in much the same way his body had accepted John’s physical invasion.

He started to move as their minds came beautifully and fully together. The blend was as uniquely pleasurable as their physical joining. At once, the places that had lain open and empty between them filled with trust, loyalty, and the strongest, purest of emotions. Honesty and new affection drifted into love as the seconds turned into minutes. Their gazes locked together, their bodies rocking and straining to pleasure to each other and their minds fully connected… then it was there. The bond flowed between them fast and so strong that they both moaned. Connections unfurled between them like vines. Glowing silver tendrils of thoughts, emotions, and needs drifted through them until nothing separated them. Until there was nothing left unsaid or unknown between them.

John lowered himself against Rodney and buried his face into the side of his Guide’s neck as he acknowledged that he’d never be able to close the pathway he’d given his lover into his mind and he couldn’t imagine wanting to. McKay clutched him with big, strong hands as John thrust deep one last time and came. He slid one hand between them and stroked the hard cock that slid against his belly with a firm hand. On the fifth stroke, Rodney tightened around him and came with John’s name pouring from his mouth like water.

- – - -

“So, what you’re telling me is that my second in command is downstairs fucking Dr. McKay,” Colonel Marshall Sumner summed up snidely.

“No, Major Sheppard is downstairs bonding with his Guide,” Jack O’Neill repeated and wondered why Sumner was in such a bad mood. Everyone knew Sentinel sex was supposed to be a morale booster. He was starting feel very relaxed and pleased, himself. “As you well know, Colonel Sumner, the relationship between a Sentinel and a Guide is protected by the highest laws in our country. We’re not allowed to question or speculate on the nature of their relationship in any form whatsoever. The Pentagon is very pleased to have a bonded Sentinel/Guide pair on the expedition, especially one of their levels of suspected ability. Colonel Carter believes them both to be at a level six on the Sentinel Evaluation Scale. Even you can’t deny how valuable such a pair would be to your mission.”

“Not if they are fucking,” Marshall snapped. “It’s a violation of the codes of conduct and it’s a detriment to my chain of command. Dr. McKay has joint leadership role with me, for the love of God, and with Sheppard has his Sentinel… I won’t have it. I won’t have him.”

“Then you don’t have Atlantis,” O’Neill responded. “Dr. McKay is mission essential to the Atlantis Expedition. Where he goes, his Sentinel goes, and we cannot touch Major Sheppard in regards to his relationship with McKay. It would be a direct violation of the agreement we have the Sentinel Council and would endanger the continued service of over one hundred Sentinels in the United States military.”

“Sheppard has a shoddy record at best. He’s been passed over twice for promotion in the past four years.”

O’Neill grimaced. “Did you bother to read about the so-called incident that earned him the black mark?”

“No. General Holland is a good man. I’m sure he had his reasons for the reprimand.”

“If you had, you would know that he reprimanded Sheppard for failing to bring home Lt. Jared Holland alive. He reprimanded a good soldier who brought home three men alive because his own son was killed in action. He disciplined every single soldier on the ground, including the three that were rescued, during the incident and the Pentagon did nothing to stop it.”

Sumner’s eyes hardened. “They had a responsibility to their CO.”

“They had a responsibility to their mission and they completed it. The entire mission went under review an hour ago by the Pentagon at the request of the Sentinel Council. They are livid that we allowed a Sentinel to be so mistreated and threatened to pull him from our service entirely.”

“They can pull a Sentinel from service?”

“Yes, without reason. Sentinel’s answer first and foremost to their own Council, Sumner.”

Marshall frowned. “I had no idea. Why in the hell do we allow any of them to serve?”

“Because they are the best soldiers you’ll ever work with. If you can’t accept Sheppard on this mission, Marshall, I’m going to have to make some pretty heavy changes for the expedition. We are six months out from our launch date; you realize that.”

“I won’t lie to you, General. There is no way I can accept this.”

“Then you may consider yourself removed from command of the Atlantis Expedition. You’ll receive your new orders within the hour. Dismissed.”

- – - -

Ten hours had passed. Daniel had watched his own Sentinel relax by degrees within the first hour of Rodney and John seeking privacy. Now she was mellow and happy, working at her laptop as if she didn’t have a care in the world. And, God how could she? Sheppard’s peace and contentment had spread out over the entire base in a matter of hours. McKay’s overwhelming relief and staggering protectiveness layered on top of it all. Even the mundanes, normal humans, were heavily affected and that was pretty damn cool. He took off his glasses and rubbed his nose.

“So, for Rodney to be his Guide…”

Sam looked up. “Rodney must have held back during testing, too. McKay wasn’t tested until he came here to work. He was raised and trained in Canada and they don’t test their Guides or Sentinels like we do.”

Daniel nodded. “They also don’t pressure their Sentinels into public or military service.”

“I wasn’t exactly pressured.”

“You have two PhDs, Sam, and you’re in the Air Force. You could have done so much in academics.”

“I still do a lot and I’m very happy with my career, you know that.” She slid off her stool and walked to where he was working. “So, how’s this going?”

“Slow. My Ancient isn’t as good as it used to be. I’ve lost a lot of it… and no matter how much I study it… it’s difficult. Like they did it on purpose when I was made human again.”

“Maybe they did. You’ve never had a problem with a language before.”

“So, I was thinking. You know how Beckett said that Sheppard had the strongest ATA gene he’d ever seen?”

“Yeah?”

“I wonder if his ATA gene is enhancing his Sentinel gene?”

Sam’s mouth dropped open. “Holy shit, Daniel.”

Daniel laughed. “It didn’t cross your mind? You and I both have fairly weak ATA genes; but it can’t be a coincidence that the most powerful Sentinel either of us has ever encountered also has the strongest ATA gene we’ve ever seen. Rodney’s gene is pretty powerful, too.”

“No, it didn’t cross my mind.” Sam admitted ruefully. “Frankly, I’m just getting my head around the fact that he’s probably like a ten if the scale went that high.”

Daniel’s mouth fell into a flat line. “He’ll still have to hide during testing. If he tests off the scale, the Council might try to keep him for extensive testing. They may even remove him from the Air Force. You know how they can get with advanced Sentinels.”

“We’ll warn him. It isn’t as if he can’t do it. If he could hide it nearly all at six… at thirty-one he must be able to show people exactly what they need to see and nothing more.”

- – - -

Rodney arched under John’s mouth and shuddered as his lover lifted away. “You do realize that most Sentinels avoid giving head.”

“Why?”

“The taste of semen is overwhelming.”

“It never has been for me,” John admitted, flicking his tongue over the weeping head of Rodney’s cock. “And you… I love the taste of you. You taste amazing, everywhere.” He placed a sucking kiss against McKay’s hipbone and chuckled when he twisted and lifted up against the pressure. “I could spend a week with you like this but I don’t know that they are going to give us much more time.”

“No, they won’t. Sam has probably been on the phone with the Council. As the Sentinel representative for the base she’s required to report any changes in my status.” Rodney carded his fingers through John’s hair with a soft sigh. “Let’s talk about your testing.”

John rolled over onto his back and stared at the white ceiling above the bed. “I can control how much I’m affected, even better than I did when I was younger. I won’t test above a level six. It’s what you did, right?”

“Yeah.” Rodney rolled to his side. “Testing above me would lead to questions and maybe retesting for me.”

John pulled him close and stroked his back. “I’ll protect you, Rodney.”

“Due to the details our mission, we’ll have to go to them. They can’t really know what we’re up to. They might refuse to let us travel with the expedition if they find out about the Stargate. Level six bonded pairs are very rare.”

John nodded. “I know.” He placed a soft kiss against the top of Rodney’s head. “We should shower and dress. O’Neill is getting impatient with our bonding.”

Rodney snorted and then paused. “You can pick that up from him?”

“I have six advanced senses not five,” John admitted. “But I’d rather keep that as much to need to know as possible.”

Rodney nodded. “All right.”

- – - -

“Major, sit.”

John sat and glanced quickly around O’Neill’s office. “Thank you for the time, Sir. I realize it was unexpected and might have caused problems with my orientation in the program.”

“It is a red letter day around here, Major.” Jack sat back in his chair. “To have gained a bonded pair like the two of you in a matter of hours… the President is quite pleased. The Pentagon is beside itself and…” He sighed. “That reminds me. Why didn’t you officially protest the reprimand you received after your last mission in Afghanistan?”

John winced. “It would have brought undue attention to me as a Sentinel and I didn’t want to risk being brought before the Council. I was in a rough place emotionally. I’d lost a good friend, a friend who had in some ways acted as a Guide to me despite his lack of gifts, and I couldn’t…” John sighed. “I felt guilty. I should have said something. Several men faced censure on the ground that did nothing wrong and I did nothing to help them.”

“So, Lt. Holland and you were lovers?”

John flushed. “You aren’t supposed to ask questions like that, General.”

“I’m just trying to get a good grasp on why his father reacted the way he did and you’re a Sentinel, John, those rules don’t apply to you.”

“But they did apply to him,” John responded neutrally. “Please, don’t ask me that again.”

“Understood.” Jack sat back in his chair and tapped a pen on top of his desk. “The entire matter is before a review board at the Pentagon as we speak. You and the ten men that were disciplined you will probably receive written apologies and any promotions due you. If and when that happens, we’ll discuss your role with the Atlantis Expedition. For now, the Sentinel Council is demanding that you and Dr. McKay make a trip to Seattle immediately. We arranging transportation. Dr. McKay doesn’t fly commercial if he can avoid and being a pilot yourself, I’m sure you’re not fond of it.”

“No.” John shook his head. “Not at all actually.”

“Sam and Daniel would like the see the two of you before you leave. They are probably already with Rodney.”

John wanted to confirm that because he could feel his Guide’s anxiety. He knew the three of them were discussing something pretty distressing and John figured it had to do with his coming retest. He wished he could reassure them all but words weren’t going to be enough. “Understood. We’ll be ready when to leave as soon as the plane is ready.” He paused and checked his watch. “Do I have time to meet with Colonel Sumner?”

Jack pursed his lips and had the grace to flush. “Colonel Sumner is no longer in charge of the military contingency assigned to the Atlantis Expedition.”

John’s mouth dropped open and then it fell into place in his mind. “He had a problem with me? He approved my placement on this mission six weeks ago. Most anyone that has read the incident report about my black mark hasn’t held it against me.”

“Yes, and then you went downstairs and had copious amounts of gay sex with Rodney McKay,” Jack responded amused. “He had a real problem with that.”

“I wasn’t aware that he was allowed to have a problem with that.”

“And that was the problem I had,” Jack shot back. “Dr. McKay is mission essential to the Atlantis Expedition. Since the two of you are effectively joined at the hip for life—where one is not welcome the other is not welcome. I relieved Sumner of command and trust me that was not a part of the red letter day we have going on around here.”

John winced. “Is that going to reflect badly on him?”

“No, I’ll make sure it doesn’t. He’s a good soldier, a good man… he’s just very much by the book and has never agreed with the things that Sentinels get away with. He’d rather none of you served at all than to let you run roughshod over his precious codes of military conduct.”

“I see.”

“It’s good that you do.” Jack looked over his face then, took in the measure of him as best any mundane could. John wondered what he saw. Then the General nodded. “I believe you’ll find your Guide with Carter and Jackson on level four, lab six. That’s their favorite lab to get together and bitch about stuff. Your plane for Seattle leaves in two hours.”

John stood at the casual dismissal, offered the General a precise salute, and left at the man’s brief nod. It was not the conversation he’d expected to have. As he walked towards the elevator, he felt himself relax a little more. The answering relaxation in Rodney was a relief. He wondered how apart they could be and still have a connection. He figured it might be pretty damn far since they’d had a tenuous connection since childhood.

He caught McKay’s scent as soon as he got off the elevator and for a moment, he stood there and inhaled. It was amazing really, amazing and fulfilling, acknowledging the changes that had taken place in his mind and body just in a space of hours. John made his way down the hall and to the door of the lab.

It opened before he could even touch the knob and Daniel Jackson offered him a smile. “You’re projecting quite nicely right now. We’re going to have to work on that before you leave.”

John’s mouth dropped open but he allowed himself to be prodded into the lab and then the door was shut and decisively locked behind him. “I haven’t projected unwillingly in years.”

“Oh trust me,” Daniel said dryly. “You are projecting all over the place. Even the normal humans in the mountain are in a fucking amazing mood because of you. That’s some serious afterglow you’ve got going on. We all feel like we got deliciously laid. The other Sentinel/Guide pair on the base stopped by and thanked McKay personally a few minutes ago.”

John had the grace to flush. “I had no idea.”

“No, we’re not surprised by that either. Your bond is very deep.” Daniel motioned him to sit. “Come, we have a lot of ground to cover and very little time to cover it in.”

John slid onto a stool beside Rodney and bumped shoulders with him. “It’s not just me, you know.”

Rodney laughed. “I know. I’m doing my own share of projecting; but it’s my nature to project pleasure and happiness. It’s not supposed to be yours so that’s something we’re going to have to hide at least from the Council. The bonded pair on the base would never report back to them on your abilities. It’s a violation of our most basic principals. Very few Sentinels are actually loyal to the organization in that way—and they all work for it.”

“So six senses.” Sam leaned forward. “What else?”

“I have a fast and reactive adrenalin response. I’ve been able to control that for about ten years. So – it makes for better reflexes, high-hand coordination, and speed. I’ve never had my base levels tested for that though. That’s something I’d like to do here, after I get back from Seattle.”

“Agreed. They don’t need to know that.” Rodney ran his hand down John’s arm and curled his fingers through his. “They’ll test you without me present but I can still help you build shields if needed. They’d probably have to put us on different planets to prevent it.”

John nodded his agreement. “I think so, too.”

“So you think that you could contact each other anywhere on the surface of this planet?” Sam asked softly.

“I think it would take a couple of light years of distance to truly separate us; and I’m not even sure then,” Rodney admitted and flushed under her scrutiny. “It’s something we can test with the Stargate before we go to Atlantis.”

“Yes.” Daniel nodded, obviously excited. “Sam and I have about a five hundred mile barrier.”

“What happens in your head when the connection breaks?” John asked.

“It’s like a light gets shut off,” Sam responded immediately. “Sharp, quick, and painful if you aren’t paying attention and can prepare for it. We’ll be very careful in testing you.”

John nodded and focused on Daniel. “You’re a level five Guide.”

Daniel raised one eyebrow. “Yes, you can sense that?”

“Yes. I hate to be rude but there isn’t a single Sentinel or Guide on this base that can keep me out.”

Sam’s mouth dropped open. “Okay, that is definitely something you need to keep to yourself. If the Council knew you could test others by just being in the building with them they would never let you leave the Center again. I’ve never known a Sentinel that could penetrate mental shields like that.”

“I’d prefer that knowledge never leave this room,” Rodney said. “I’d hate to have to cause an international incident over the unlawful imprisonment of my Sentinel. You know my government has never liked the policies of the US on Sentinels.”

John rubbed his thumb against Rodney’s hand. “They couldn’t keep me. Because as much as I can project pleasure and satisfaction… I can also project anger and pain. Granted, I have to actually work to hurt someone but I’m capable of it.”

“On mundanes as well?”

“It’s actually easier to give them pain than it is another Sentinel,” John admitted. “I’ve only done it a handful of times in my life and always in an effort to defend myself. It’s not pleasant and it often makes me physical ill afterwards.” He focused on Daniel. “Tell me what you can sense from me.”

Daniel paused. “To be honest, with your shields fully in place you barely feel like a Sentinel at all to me. If you hadn’t zoned out when Rodney walked into the room the first time I would have believed you were a level two. But when you zoned out your primary shield failed. I still wouldn’t have pegged you anywhere above a level five or six.”

- – - -

The Sentinel Center was outside the city limits of Seattle in area that was almost rural. The peace of the place often proved to be a haven for fragile Sentinels and Guides alike. John had been there exactly four times ever. The last three times had been in an effort to find a Guide. None of them had ever appealed and after the third social event, he’d stopped responding to invitations. Eventually, the Council had stopped sending them.

As soon as they entered, everyone in the front lobby paused, turned, and looked. He knew his shields were firmly in a lock down position and that the response was mostly due to the fact that they’d heard that McKay had finally bonded. On the trip, McKay admitted to him that he’d turned down thirty-six Sentinels in his lifetime. It was a staggering number. It set his teeth on edge that his Guide was so attractive to other Sentinels. He knew his mark was all over Rodney now. Even Rodney’s shields had altered and changed. In his mind’s eye, John could see that the shields that had once been almost translucent in color shimmered silver now like his own.

He put one hand on the small of Rodney’s back and prodded him to the front desk so that they could sign in. The receptionist, an unbonded mid-level Sentinel that practically dripped with disdain, stood at their approach. She was jealous of John that much was obvious and like all the other Sentinels in the room, she thought he was fairly low on the scale. Lower than her. A level two Sentinel bonding with a level six Guide was practically sacrilegious to them. John figured they would all be relieved when he retested at a six.

“Dr. McKay.” She offered him a smile. “Director Morris is expecting you and Sentinel Sheppard. If you’ll step into the elevator on the left, you’ll be shown to testing.” She shot John a look and her smile immediately turned fake. “He’s not convinced your bond will pass the integrity test.”

“Then he’ll be pleasantly surprised,” Rodney snapped in a sharp unpleasant tone that had her jerking back a little from the desk. “Do let him know that we are on our way up, thank you Suzette.”

“Susanne,” she corrected through her teeth.

“Whatever,” Rodney waved her off. “Tell him I expect coffee. The good stuff, not the crap he puts out for everyone else.”

John held his laughter back until they were in the elevator. “That was… cruel.”

“She’s a bitch. She’s barely a level four and she was looking at you like you didn’t deserve to be in the same room with me.”

“Is she one of the ones that you said no to?

“I never even gave her the opportunity to ask; her intentions were written all over her face the first time we met. She’s tried to make overtures twice. First, she’s only of average intelligence and didn’t even finish her undergrad degree. I have three PhDs for fuck’s sake. Like I’d bond with a woman like her. I despise intellectual laziness. Second, she’s a woman and I made my preference clear a very long time ago. I’ve only been offered three female Sentinels by the Council and only then because they all tested high. One was a six and the other two were fives.”

“I have a Masters in Theoretical Math.”

Rodney grinned smugly. “I know. I figured I might talk you into a PhD one day.”

“You might succeed,” John admitted. “I always thought I’d go back after I got my twenty in with the Air Force.”

“That’s hot. Later I might ask you to do proofs for me in your head. It’ll be practically porn for me.”

John was laughing when the doors opened to a large room that felt very full even though it only had five people in it. He cupped McKay’s elbow as they moved out of the elevator.

“Deacon.” Rodney slid into a chair in front of them without offering his hand and John did the same. “Where is my coffee?”

“My admin is brewing for you right now. I chose an Arabian Mocha. I believe you’ll find it very acceptable.” Deacon Morris focused on John and frowned. “I was reviewing your initial tests in preparation for this meeting. It was obvious from the results that you were hiding your abilities. Why didn’t the evaluating Sentinel call you on it?”

“He tried,” John smiled. “But I was six years old and pretended that I didn’t understand him until he got frustrated. Then I cried and screamed for my mother. He abandoned testing on me and marked me a two.”

Deacon laughed and shook his head. “Well, I take it you won’t be crying today.”

“No. Air Force Majors don’t cry—it’s bad for our image.”

Deacon’s face clouded then. “I have a bone to pick with you about that. We’re all a little more than pissed about how you allowed yourself to be treated in Afghanistan. It’s dangerous for other Sentinels when you don’t stand up for yourself, you must realize that.”

“I also allowed several good soldiers who were not Sentinels to suffer that day as well. It was a selfish and vain attempt at avoiding coming before this council. I was already up for retesting and I didn’t want it then. To be honest, I don’t want it now.”

“Let’s not spend a lot of time on that path, Deacon. It’s no secret that the past actions of this organization have forced many Sentinels of John’s level into hiding for their own protection.” McKay’s gaze lasered around the room like a weapon and watched the four Sentinel/Guide pairs that made up the governing body of the organization color with discomfort and embarrassment. “If things had been different in the past, John wouldn’t be faced with retesting today.”

“Where do you think you’ll test?” Deacon asked, obviously trying to change the subject. He was a Guide, John realized, a level four at that. His Sentinel was on the other end of the table and like the others in the room wouldn’t be formally introduced to him. Their names were never actually revealed to anyone who did not work for the Sentinel Center.

“A five or a six,” John finally said.

“Rodney do you agree?”

McKay nodded. “I’d say a six. I had a high level of exposure to his gifts during the bonding.”

“I understand that you completed that yesterday within hours of meeting.”

“Yes.” Rodney grinned and John laughed. They were both still pretty pleased with how they’d spent the day before. “We chose a profound amount of filthy sex. It was…”

“Amazing,” John finished.

Deacon Morris laughed. “I bet it was. You do realize that if you test at a six John… that the two of you will be only bonded pair on record at that level.”

“Yes.” John inclined his head. “Of course, we have no real way of knowing how many there are. The United States is the only country on the planet that actually rates Sentinels and Guides. There could be many more – in fact there are probably far more Sentinels than we are aware of because testing isn’t automatic in the majority of the third world countries.”

“Granted,” Deacon nodded. “We’re excited to test you, at any rate. About the Afghanistan matter, the Pentagon is reviewing it. Your record will be cleared and you will be given all that has been due you for the last four years. My word on that. I won’t have a Sentinel/Guide pair of your abilities held back by anything so obscene as a blatant lie.”

“And if it hadn’t been a lie?” John asked.

“We would put your ass in an ethics class. You’re very lucky you didn’t end up in one anyway.” Deacon accepted the coffee that his assistant slipped in front of him. “Disobeying orders from your commanding officer is a violation of the agreement we have with the military regarding Sentinels. The only time you’re allowed to such leniency is in the event that your Guide is mortal peril. No one can prevent you from aiding him in anyway you see fit.”

“Oh.” Rodney sighed into his coffee cup. “This is lovely. This is almost as lovely as all the sex I had yesterday.”

John leaned into him and after a second or two of reluctance; Rodney let him have a sip. He let the chocolate flavored coffee swirl on his tongue and then nodded his agreement as it slid down his throat. “Close.”

“I’ll see that you get a few pounds.” Deacon stood. “Rodney will stay here with his sex-like coffee while you’re in testing, John.”

John shared a glance with Rodney. They’d discussed the tests the entire plane trip. Tested their mental connection through a series of situations on their own and had found they could even talk to each other. It was a rare gift among bonded pairs; so they were both a little smug about it.