Author's Note: Yeah, I'm back with this one! So sorry I've taken so long to update! It may be another gap after this, as I'm about to try NaNoWriMo, so we'll see.

Since it has been so long since chapter 4, to recap, Alicia talked Nathaniel into letting her go OTG for the first time after Gracie's birth. She, Mira and Reilly took two privates and headed out on a short supply run to a nearby outpost, leaving a worried Nathaniel to babysit…what could possibly go wrong?

Disclaimer is as usual – no profit, not mine, just borrowing.

As their rover cuts through the trees, Alicia can feel Mira's eyes on her. "What?"

Mira laughs softly. "Sorry. I'm just fascinated. I've never seen you so reluctant to leave before." Alicia briefly looks away from the terrain in front of her to cut her eyes at Mira, who holds her hands up apologetically. "Hey, no offense intended. Believe me, I know better than anyone how hard it is to leave your baby behind, even if only for a short time."

Alicia's expression softens. "Mira, I'm sorry, I…"

Mira interrupts her. "Stop, Wash. It's fine, and please don't make me try to talk about it. I can't." Her voice goes quiet on the last two words, an easy sign of her emotion turmoil over it.

Alicia nods. "We could talk about guns instead. Or about beating up Carter. That's a nice, safe, fun-filled topic."

With a snort, Mira laughs softly. "I haven't done that in a while. May have to get him to spar with me soon."

"He and Shannon are both so ridiculously protective of me that I think they gave Guz a hard time for starting hand-to-hand with me again." She shakes her head.

"They did," Mira confirms, "He thought it was hilarious."

They drive for a while in silence, the second rover close behind them. Eventually, Mira says, "I saw you packing your pump. How often do you have to use it?"

"Theoretically, I shouldn't need it. I just fed Gracie before we left and pumped a little after that. I should be good for between at least three to four hours." She cuts her eyes briefly at Mira again. "Theoretically."

Mira laughs loud at that. "I'd have brought it too. Do these little outings ever go as planned?"

"Sometimes, but not often." Realizing that they're closing in on the outpost, Alicia activates her comm using an open channel so their whole group can hear. "Washington to Outpost One. Come in please."

A moment later, a voice crackles back over the connection. "Oh, thank God, Lieutenant, this is Doctor Thomas. We need assistance!"

Furrowing her brow, Alicia keeps her voice calm while pressing the accelerator to increase their speed. "We're there in ten minutes or so. What is the situation, Doctor?"

"Miss Cahill was running and she fell. I think she has a sprained ankle." The man sounds distracted as he mentions his lab assistant on his research project, a young woman in training to become a botanist.

"Doc. That's it?" Alicia can't hide her impatience. Then, in the background, she hears a roar. She and Mira exchange a glance. "Doc, what the hell was that?"

"Sorry Lieutenant. That was the carno that was chasing Miss Cahill. I think he's a little angry that she got back inside."

Alicia rolls her eyes. "Doc, next time I ask you for a situation report, please mention the giant predator dinosaurs first." She hears Mira snort. "Have you radioed the colony?"

"No ma'am. I tried, but I think it broke the transmitter." He pauses. "It may be getting close to giving up, Lieutenant. The roars and attacks on the fence and outer perimeter seem to be more spaced out now."

Alicia sighs. "Understood, Doc. We're on our way. You're just three there, correct?"

"Yes, Lieutenant. Doctor Winstead, Miss Cahill and me."

"OK, Doc. Stand by. If we need you to do anything, we'll call." The scientist nervously agrees and closes the call. She taps the comm again for another open channel. "Reilly?"

"Yes ma'am?"

"I'm going to stop in a moment. I want one of your guys to jump in with Mira and me. We're going to be your distraction." Alicia glances at Mira who just nods. "Make sure he has a sonic. I want him in behind me so we can shoot at it from both sides of the rover."

"Ma'am, are you sure? We can draw it…"

"Reilly! That's an order. We'll draw it off, you get those scientists loaded up and you run. Are we clear?" Alicia knows they don't have time for a discussion. The upside is, if this works, they'll be home even faster than they expected to be, because they'll be hauling ass back to Terra Nova. She calls the outpost again and tells them to be at the door, ready to go.

Alicia skids to a stop, and Reilly stops next to her. In seconds, a young soldier with a large sonic rifle climbs in behind Alicia. With a stiff nod to Reilly, Alicia takes off for the outpost. "Private Jackson, Mira, get ready," when she gets an affirmative and hears the pulse rifles power up, she assumes they're ready and presses the accelerator all the way to the floor. "Hold on!"

She has to mentally pause for a moment. She knows she should be scared right now, but all she feels is alive. She laughs softly to herself, shaking her head. They hear a roar ahead, and Alicia shoots a look at Mira, who gives her a feral grin. "Welcome back, Lieutenant." She pulls herself to a standing position on the side of the rover, pulse rifle ready.

The outpost and the carno attacking it come into view. Alicia heads the rover straight for it, and a moment later, she hears the pulse rifles discharge and another roar from the carno. It turns towards them, and she yells, "Turning, hold on! Let me know when it starts for us!"

She slams on the brakes and turns the rover hard. Once they're turned, she sees Mira smoothly turn around and start firing again. Seconds later, more rifle blasts tell her that the private has done the same.

At another carno roar and the sound of pounding steps, Mira yells, "We have its attention, go Wash! Go!"

That's all she needs. She guns the engine, shooting off into the forested area and hoping they don't encounter any downed trees or other barriers. She taps her comm. "Reilly, call me when you have the scientists and are at least two clicks into the trip back."

"Yes ma'am!"

For the next fifteen minutes, Alicia zigzags their rover through the trees, leading the beast away from the outpost in the opposite direction of the colony. The trees make it such that Mira and Private Jackson can just occasionally fire off a round to keep it interested. It can't get near enough to them to require constant shooting.

Alicia starts to get nervous as the trees begin to get thicker. She's about to veer off in a new direction when her comm chirps. "Lieutenant? We're two clicks away from the outpost, en route to Terra Nova."

She lets out a breath and begins a slow circle back towards Terra Nova. "Thanks, Reilly. You go as fast as you can without compromising safety. When you get to the colony, get them ready to fire the sonics at this son of a bitch. I have a bad feeling that it's still going to be on our ass."

"Got it, ma'am. Be safe." The younger woman sounds concerned.

"You too, Reilly. See you soon." Alicia tries to sound reassuring. Just under ten minutes later Alicia yells, "Hang on tight, you two. We're about to pass the open area near the outpost, and I'm going to floor it. Can't have this bastard making up ground. And, I don't think I need to tell you this, but you don't need to keep firing at it to keep it interested. If it wants to go away, that's just peachy. Got it?"

She knows the message was received by both when Mira's hand comes down and gives her a thumbs up and the private thumps twice on the back of her seat. They hit the open area, and she pushes the accelerator to the floor. They fly through the space at top speed, and while she hears the beast roaring, it doesn't sound like it's gaining much ground, if any.

She takes a deep breath, knowing that even at high speed, it'll take them forty minutes to get home. She listens closely as they fly through the trees, this path more established and allowing them more speed. The only downside is that the more open terrain, though not as exposed as right by the outpost, may give the carno the ability to pick up speed too.

As the minutes and miles tick by, Alicia is unhappy with the fact that the pounding steps behind them and roars of the carno persist. She's also worried how Nathaniel is going to react to this. It's probably going to be a while before he lets her go OTG again.

"Wash?" Mira's voice sounds in Alicia's ear over the comm.

Judging by Mira's tone, she guesses that it's a private channel. "Here, Mira."

"I'm worried about the open plain near the colony. It's not huge, but we'll be sitting ducks for a bit. Is the kid up to it?" That confirms the private channel.

"He's new, but his records indicate that he's tough and a good shot. He'll be OK. How are you holding up?"

Alicia grins when she hears a snort over the comm. "Walk in the park, Wash. Walk in the park."

As they draw nearer and nearer to the colony, the terrain begins to open up more. Alicia can't help but become even more tense, her hands taking a death grip on the wheel, as the pounding and roars begin to get closer. She thinks they'll be OK, but she knows it's going to be close.

**WT**WT**WT**

"Commander!" Nathaniel looks up from his lunch in the market at the sound of Reynolds' voice, and he sees the young soldier running full out towards them.

He exchanges a worried look with Elisabeth, who he met here for lunch along with Sam and Leah Marcos, their mother, Zoe and Gracie, Gracie being sound asleep in her stroller. Elisabeth gives him a quick nod, and he stands. "What's going on, Reynolds?"

"Sir, Reilly just called in. They're coming in with the three scientists from Outpost One. A carno was attacking the outpost, so Wash, Mira and Jackson drew them off to let Reilly get the scientists out. They're two minutes out, Wash should be not far behind."

Nathaniel swears under his breath before looking at Elisabeth again. "Is there milk for her at your house?" At his nod, she says, "I'll take her there, use my medical override to get in. You go."

"Thanks, Doc." He leans down and drops a soft kiss on Gracie's head, careful not to jostle her. He then takes off for the guard tower near the gate, Reynolds hot on his heels.

As they get to the top of the tower, Reilly's rover bursts out of the tree line. They tear across the plain, and Nathaniel calls out to the guard to open the gate and then to close it again behind them. Before he has to order her to, Reilly bounds out of the rover and up to the platform of the tower. Her eyes are wide and her expression concerned. "Sir, I'm sorry, I tried to make her let me draw the thing off, but she wouldn't allow it."

Nathaniel, staring at the tree line nods. "There's no one better behind the wheel of a rover, Reilly. She made the right call. You would only have something to apologize for if you'd disobeyed a direct order." He hates to admit that, but he knows it's the truth.

"Yes sir." She turns towards the tree line. "It should be any moment now, sir. She's probably going a lot faster than I did."

As if on cue, they hear the roar of a carno. Without moving his eyes from the trees, he yells, "Get the sonics ready, people."

Thirty seconds later, the second rover flies out of the trees. Unfortunately, the carno is only about sixty feet behind them. Nathaniel swears, thinking that it's going to be close. He hears more boots on the stairs, and he's joined by Guz and Shannon. He starts to think they'll make it when Alicia has to jerk the wheel sharply to avoid a large rock in their path. To everyone's horror, Mira loses her grip and tumbles to the ground, rolling to a stop.

A comm channel opens, and Nathaniel feels almost physically ill when he hears Alicia shout instructions at Mira over the comm. He feels even sicker when the little rover spins and heads back for Mira, straight towards the carno.

**WT**WT**WT**

"Shit. Hang on!" Alicia yells out warning to Jackson. She taps her comm, leaving the channel open, hoping the colony picks it up too. "Mira, I don't care how much you hurt, you get sitting up and get an arm out. Jackson, I'm going to grab her and swing her to you. You fire at that son of a bitch until you need to catch her and you start firing again the minute she's secure, you got it?"

"Yes ma'am!"

She points the rover just to the right of where Mira is struggling up to a sitting position, her face and entire right side bloody as hell. Alicia is about to hit the comm again when Mira shakes her head and sticks her left hand out.

Alicia knows they only have one shot at this. If they miss, Mira will be dead. Alicia slows just enough for her to safely get Mira. She feels the adrenaline pumping through her system, and keeping her right hand tight on the wheel, she leans out and reaches her left arm towards the former Sixer while Jackson fires repeatedly at the carno. As her hand hits Mira's arm, she yells, "Jackson!"

**WT**WT**WT**

"Holy shit." It's Jim who utters the words almost reverently. They all watch in stunned silence as Alicia catches Mira's outstretched arm and twists to the left, hauling Mira up towards Private Jackson. The private stops firing briefly, catches Mira and swings her into the seat by him, and then he starts firing again.

Over the comms, they hear the young man yell, "She's in! Go, ma'am!"

Alicia clearly doesn't need to be told twice. She spins the rover hard, and they can tell that she puts the pedal back on the floor. Private Jackson continues to fire, but the enraged carno stays with them, roaring at each hit.

The second they're near enough, Nathaniel yells, "Fire the damned sonics at that bastard!" The soldiers stationed on the fence line all open fire, driving the carno back as the little rover puts more distance between them. When they're close, Nathaniel tells them to open the gate again to let them in. He's already halfway down, Guz right behind him, when the rover flies in skidding and spinning to a stop.

He yells up to the guards to close the gate again, and in the background, he can hear the carno roar again. This time, though, it sounds like frustration, and he hears Jim call, "It's leaving!"

As he approaches the rover, Private Jackson steps off of it, shooting Nathaniel a funny look. Alicia's legs pop out of the rover, and when he gets there, he can see that she's sprawled backwards across the seat, her head on the opposite seat. Mira is in a similar position in the back, and she's holding her right arm to her body.

The sight is mostly what Nathaniel expected, save one thing. Both women, to his great surprise, are laughing. Alicia, in fact, is laughing so hard that she's actually got her arms wrapped around her own waist and tears running down her face, creating tracks in the dust from their wild ride.

He lifts an eyebrow at the sight, and he crosses his arms across his chest. Guz, next to him, just snorts. A moment later, Alicia must sense his presence, because she struggles back to a sitting position. She then shoots him a shit-eating grin. "Hi honey! We're home! How was your day?" That sends her and Mira both back into gasps of laughter, Guz joining them, and he can't swallow the grin that comes to his face.

"Fine dear. Yours?" All he gets is a snort in reply, and she flops back across the seat, still laughing.

As much as he wants to yell at her, when he pulls her to her feet a moment later, he finds himself at a loss. She looks ten years younger, her eyes still shining from laughter and adrenaline, her ponytail mussed and her face a little wind burned. Instead of saying anything, he just leans down and presses his lips to hers.

After several seconds and even more catcalls from the soldiers, he pulls back, pressing his forehead to hers. "Welcome home, Lieutenant. Nice driving and nice catch."

She smiles, the silliness gone. "Thanks, Commander. Sorry if we gave you a scare."

"No problem, Lieutenant."

Seeing the medics taking a look at Mira, without another word he grabs her bags and her hand and leads her home. When they get there, Elisabeth is sitting on the sofa holding a sleeping Gracie. Alicia nods towards the shower. Nathaniel takes Gracie from Elisabeth, assuming her place on the sofa as she bids her goodbyes.

Less than ten minutes later, Alicia emerges again, hair and body clean, dressed in some yoga pants and a soft nursing top. Gracie is waking up, so Alicia drops into her rocker, and Nathaniel hands Gracie to her. Once the baby is latched on, Alicia looks up at him. "I hope this little incident doesn't change things."

He sighs and runs a gentle hand through her hair. "It doesn't. I admit, it did cross my mind, but then I saw your face when I pulled you out of the rover." She gives him a questioning look, and he says, "You looked so damned happy. You'd just spent nearly an hour trying to outrun a carno, and you looked happy. I can't fight that, and I don't want to."

She grins at him. "You know, you're one of the only people I know who won't think I'm insane if I say it was kind of fun."

He chuckles. "Nope. It looked like fun. And that move with Mira? Genius, Alicia. I just can't believe you and Private Jackson pulled it off."

"That kid's tough. We need to take care of him, Nathaniel. He was invaluable today." She looks down as Gracie detaches and burps on her own, making them both laugh.

As she lifts Gracie to her shoulder to see if she needs to burp any more, Nathaniel smiles. "Take care of him, Alicia? Looks like the mothering is spreading. When did that happen?"

She shrugs as she nuzzles Gracie's neck, earning herself a two-toothed smile. "It is what it is, Nathaniel. I guess I just am going with the flow." She moves Gracie back to her breast, where she latches on again.

Nathaniel just leans down and kisses her. "Works for me, Lieutenant. Works for me."