They spent the next few minutes going over all the applications they could think of for the shield. John couldn’t believe their luck. If there were more of these things, it could make all the difference for his men out in the field. “Hey, McKay, did you find any others?”
Rodney shook his head, looking dismayed. “No. The log did mention there were several made, but I was only able to locate this one.”
Stuffing his hands in his pockets, John scowled. “Did it mention-?”
“No,” Rodney cut in. “It didn’t say anything about where the others might be. They might be somewhere in the city, though. I mean, it isn’t like we’ve managed to explore even an eighth of the place, after all.”
Nodding, John conceded the point and settled on hoping they’d come across them at a later date. Eyeing Rodney, he contemplated what else they could do to test this shield of his. Pulling his knife from its sheath, he held it up, again asking for silent permission which he was granted. Tossing the knife between his hands twice while he thought how best to try, he once again opted for the other man’s thigh. It was the safest area he could think of should something go wrong.
Slashing down, he let out a yelp when the knife connected with the shield. Between the resistance of the forcefield and the slight jolt of energy on contact, it was definitely not a pleasant experience for John. Rodney, however, didn’t appear to have felt a thing and stood grinning triumphantly at him. “Okay, what next?” Snapping his fingers, he pointed to a chair. “Hit me with that.”
Giving him a skeptical look, John shrugged and did as requested, swinging it with all his might at Rodney’s upper back. He dropped the chair on his toes, unable to hold onto the thing once it hit the shield. John’s arms weren’t too happy either. Frowning, he glanced at McKay. “Anything?”
“Not even a tickle!” Rodney practically giggled with glee.
A tickle. John suddenly grinned as the thought crossed his mind that perhaps the shield was intent-based somehow. Hey, this was alien technology, after all. Who knew what the Ancients were capable of.
Rodney took an involuntary step back at the sudden change in John’s demeanor as he stepped closer. “Major?” he squawked, holding out his hands reflexively.
John swooped in, intending to tickle the other man’s sides, but was thwarted by the forcefield again, though this time there was no shock from the contact.
“Nothing, huh?” John said pensively. Stepping back and scratching the back of his head, he hummed. “I wonder how it’d hold up against a fall?”
Eyes widening, Rodney smirked. “Like from the balcony?” At John’s nod, Rodney’s grin grew broader. “Let’s go!”
They didn’t quite run up to the gate room balcony, but it was a near thing and several people turned their heads. Ioan even called out after them, “Where’s the fire, sir?”
John called back with a grin, “No fire, Lieutenant. Just science.” That was his story and he was sticking to it. So what if John got a kick out of messing around with this shield? Or that watching Rodney get this excited was more enticing to him that it should be.
Still, by the time Rodney and John made it up to the balcony, they had a little bit of a following. Everyone was curious what they were up to. John was sure it had as much to do with the fact that they’d been hurrying through the corridors as it was seeing Rodney this gleeful. John was well aware that Rodney had a reputation of being a bastard, and that he hadn’t been much liked in the mountain. Not that John cared about that. He knew better than most that a reputation wasn’t always warranted, and that they didn’t always sum up the whole of a person.
“You sure about this, McKay?” John asked, his stomach knotting at the thought of this not going as they both thought it would. It was all fun and games until someone broke their neck, after all, and he was getting rather fond of the astrophysicist.
Rodney waved his concerns off, rolling his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he squared his shoulders. “Okay, I’m ready.”
“Okay,” John muttered under his breath as he gave Rodney a shove, sending the man flying backwards over the railing, much to everyone’s shock.
Leaning over to make sure Rodney was alright, John looked up as he caught Elizabeth’s, “Oh my God!” from the opposite balcony.
“Did you see that?” John grinned.
“Yes, I saw that,” she bit out. “What the-?”
Below them, Rodney jumped to his feet, throwing his hands up in the air in victory. “I’m fine,” he called up.
The delight on Rodney’s face, as well as the proof that he truly was okay, turned the knots in John’s stomach to butterflies. At least, that’s what it felt like to John. He knew that falling for the guy would mean nothing but trouble considering the regulations, so he did his best to stomp down on his attraction – and there was no denying to himself that he was attracted to Rodney.
John practically skipped down the stairs in his eagerness to congratulate his friend. “Look,” Rodney said, beaming up at Elizabeth and Peter who were on John’s heels. “Beckett’s gene therapy worked! I was able to activate this,” he added, pointing to his chest. “It’s a er, a personal shield. Acts like a protective skin.” Rodney’s hands were moving rapidly as he explained the device. “I’m invulnerable. Here, I’ll prove it.” Turning to Peter, he grinned. “Hit me.”
Without so much as a second’s thought, Grodin took a swing at Rodney with what would have been a right hook hard enough to knock any man on his ass. What happened instead was Peter cried out in pain as he cradled his hand in disbelief, while Rodney merely looked smug. “Well you didn’t have to swing so hard.” Glancing at John, he added, “And notice that he didn’t even hesitate?”
John grinned and turned his face to try to hide the satisfaction he felt that Grodin was hurt after that. He had definitely taken note of the man’s immediate reaction to Rodney and he found it didn’t sit well with him. It made him wonder just how poorly people thought of Rodney.
Elizabeth huffed. “I’m still trying to understand why you thought it was a good idea to test that out by having someone throw you off a balcony.”
Rodney and John exchanged knowing looks and Rodney said conspiratorially, “Oh, that wasn’t the first thing we tried.” As he explained what they had done prior to the balcony incident, Elizabeth’s face turned ashen so John hurriedly pointed out that he had aimed at non-lethal areas. Mostly.
Throwing his arms wide, Rodney beamed. “I’m invulnerable.”
“Aren’t you the one who’s always spouting off about proper and careful scientific procedure must be adhered to?” Elizabeth asked skeptically.
“In-vul-ne-ra-ble,” Rodney sing-songed, flailing his hands in time.
Shaking her head in disbelief, Elizabeth sighed. “Alright. Take it off. Let’s go have this meeting.”
“You’re just jealous,” Rodney muttered.
“Oh yes, green with envy,” Elizabeth retorted with a roll of her eyes.
Rodney made to grab at the device but when his hand encountered the shield, his previous look of elation turned to one of dawning horror. “Uh oh. This could be a problem.” When everyone turned to look at him, he cast a panicked glance at John. “I can’t get at it.”
Narrowing his eyes, John stepped closer and reached out to try for himself, making sure to put everything he had in thinking ‘off’ at the device. Nothing. Cold dread settled in John’s stomach. “Just checking,” he offered apologetically.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Well, Major, did your team encounter any indigenous life forms on your second trip? I heard your first dalliance in Pegasus was rather eventful,” Mac said jovially as he stepped up to Major Lorne’s bed.
The major’s team members groaned in unison, while the major’s face turned crimson. “C’mon, doc. How did you hear about that?” Lorne asked.
Mac chuckled, placing a cuff on the major’s bicep to take his blood pressure. “Word gets around, Major. What can I say? I’m told you were quite the sight. One of the nurses kept the lei you left after your check up and has it hanging in the office.”
“Oh, God,” Lorne moaned under his breath as he closed his eyes. “Please, doc. Don’t remind me of that mission. Like, ever.”
One of the major’s men chuckled, “Aww come on, sir. Guy like you doesn’t have anything to be ashamed of, trust me.” He winked at Mac, who laughed as he eyed the major.
“Stevenson, if you know what’s good for you, you will keep your mouth shut or you’ll find yourself on KP duty for the next three months. Got it?” Lorne growled.
Mac shivered slightly in response. Casting a sly look at him, Mac grinned. “Don’t worry, Major, your secret’ll be safe with me,” he said sotto voce.
Lorne appeared nonplussed as he stared at him. “What secret?”
Eyes traveling downward discretely, Mac indicated Lorne’s bulge which Mac had noticed becoming a bit of an issue as the conversation had gone on. No doubt, the major was remembering that mission and seemed to mind it less than what he pretended. It made Mac incredibly curious, but he would never ask the man about it, and certainly not in front of his men.
If anything, Lorne’s cheeks reddened further, which didn’t help Mac in the slightest as far as his own reactions to the man went. For all that this was their first interaction, Mac had paid close attention to the major from the first time he had laid eyes on him back in the mountain. Their paths simply had never crossed before now. Deciding to throw him a lifeline, Mac smiled. “Today’s mission went better, then, I take it?”
Sighing in relief, Lorne nodded. “Yeah, doc, it did. Well, in the sense of nothing happening at any rate. Unfortunately it looked like the natives either fled the area recently, or something happened to them, but there was no one around.” After Mac had listened to his heart, Lorne added, “I’m Evan Lorne, by the way. I don’t think we’ve met yet, have we? I’m usually pretty good with faces, but…”
Grinning, Mac straightened up and held out his hand which Lorne took. “Pleasure to meet you, Major. The name’s Muiredach MacTavish. Mac, to my friends.”
Lorne’s face twisted slightly as he tried futilely to pronounce Mac’s name. “Just call me Mac, please, Major,” Mac said amused, squeezing the man’s arm.
“Deal, if you’ll call me ‘Evan’ instead of ‘Major’.” Evan sounded relieved and pleased, but Mac could tell there was an all too familiar question brewing behind the man’s eyes. Sure enough, after they’d gotten through most of the examination, it came. “Muiredach? What kind of a name is that? I’ve never heard it before.”
With a sigh, Mac settled on the edge of the bed and folded his hands on his lap. “It’s an old Irish name that means ‘lord’, and you could say I was given the name out of an extreme sense of loyalty to country. Which might seem strange, since I’m from Scotland, but my mother was half-Irish and half-Scottish, my father Scottish, and the name Muiredach also is used in Scotland. My mother, God bless her soul, was very proud of our heritage and my parents had moved to London a month before I was born for my father’s job – or rather, my Da moved, and my Mum and I followed as soon as we could. Also, I’m their only child, so my mother felt it fitting as I was her ‘little lord’.”
Evan let out a low whistle. “Wow, that’s… pretty great, actually.”
Mac gave a derisive snort. “Aye, I suppose it is. It just wasn’t so grand growing up with a name like that, if you catch my drift.”
Chuckling, Evan scratched his jaw. “Yeah, I suppose you have a point, there. Kids can be cruel.”
“Indeed, they can,” Mac agreed as he got back to his feet and placed a tourniquet on Evan’s arm. “Just your blood sample left and you’re free to go.”
Evan’s jaw twitched as Mac pierced his skin with the needle. “So, doc. Did anything interesting happen while we were gone?”
Mac shot him a knowing look. He knew diversionary tactics when he saw them, and he had to admit that he was amused that the man seemed to have an aversion to having his blood drawn. “Aye, you could say that. Dr. Beckett’s ATA therapy had its first human test subject this morning.”
Intrigued, Evan tilted his head. “ATA therapy?”
Grinning, Mac explained about the gene therapy they had devised and that Dr. McKay had received the first dose earlier that day. His smile faltered and was replaced by a frown of worry when he got to the part where McKay had put on a personal shield and now couldn’t take it off again. “He was in here just before you arrived, actually.”
“Is he okay?”
“Aye, for the moment at least, but unless we can figure out how to turn off the device soon he’ll be in a spot of trouble.” At Evan’s querying look, he added, “He can’t even eat or drink or anything else if you catch my meaning.”
“Oh! Yeah, that… Hmm.” Evan frowned down at his boots for a bit, then turned his attention back to Mac. “I’m sure they’ll figure out something.”
“No doubt,” Mac agreed. “Alright, that’s it for you, Major. Until next time.” Mac smiled warmly at Evan, pleased when the other man’s cheeks flushed slightly as he nodded and headed off to be debriefed.
A few hours later, Mac was sitting in the office going over some paperwork when there was a knock on the door. Eyes widening in surprise, Mac started to get to his feet. “Evan? What can I do for you?”
Evan waved him off with a small smile, indicating he could remain seated. “Nothing. I stopped by to check on Ford, figured I’d pop my head in and say hello.”
“Ah, yes. The lieutenant’ll be fine. Just needs a few days rest and some lotion for his skin. Though the man needs to learn to stay away from energy beings,” Mac teased. It wasn’t really a laughing matter, of course. Ford had been extremely fortunate not to have been hurt worse in the encounter. Still, Mac couldn’t do anything for it. He felt inordinately pleased that the other man had dropped by. Eyeing him carefully, he took in the way the major seemed to bite the corner of his lip, the way his gaze kept flicking away from Mac only to return again as if he couldn’t help himself.
Evan’s cheeks flushed as his eyes landed on the lei hanging on the wall behind Mac, slightly off to his right. Mac didn’t even need to check to know that was what had caught the man’s attention. He could tell simply from the way Evan’s blush deepened. Mac fought to contain his grin, though he was certain he was failing miserably at it.
Clearing his throat, Evan stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Right, well… I’ll head back to work then.”
Still trying to stifle a grin, Mac managed a, “See you later, Evan,” just as the other man walked out. Shaking his head, he allowed himself a chuckle before turning his attention back to his paperwork.
Carson was busy with a patient when Major Sheppard radioed, “Medical team to the gateroom!”
“On our way, Major,” he replied before shutting the com. Mac grabbed the first aid kit and beckoned a nurse to follow him as he took off running. When they got to the room, Mac took a few seconds to asses the situation. Rodney was beginning to sit up, with Elizabeth, Dr. Grodin, Teyla, and Major Sheppard hovering over him. Evan and his brother stood off to the side with twin looks of concern on their faces.
Kneeling down beside Rodney, he went through the motions of checking the man’s vitals even as Rodney grouched, “Thank you. Take your time.” Rodney tried to stretch, but couldn’t move very well judging by the ginger way he shifted. “Ugh, man down.”
Mac suppressed a grin. “Come now, Rodney, don’t be such a baby,” he muttered, pressing the stethoscope to the man’s chest to listen to his breathing.
“I’m not being a ‘baby’, Mac!” Rodney protested in a huff. “You try evicting a giant energy monster from the city and see how well you fare.”
“Did you now?” Mac said, impressed with his friend. With a nod at the nurse, they each grabbed Rodney by the elbow and shoulder and helped him to his feet.
Looking exhausted but beaming with pride anyway, Rodney straightened, his chest swelling as he confirmed, “Yes, I did, thank you very much,” and off he went, telling Mac in great detail about how they had lured an energy creature that was hiding on Atlantis to the gateroom with a naquedah generator in front of the open gate. How instead of the M.A.L.P. leading the creature through the gate, the being instead drained the thing of its power and feasted on the generator. How it had continued to grow until it had expanded all the way to the steps, and how Rodney had bravely stepped into the shrouded being and tossed the generator through the gate at great personal risk.
Mac’s eyes flitted over Rodney in assessment as they walked. “What about your shield?”
Rodney gave him a triumphant, if tired, smile. “Oh, it fell off after the creature drained it of energy.”
Eyes widening, Mac shook his head in astonishment. “You don’t say. In that case, I do believe you’re quite lucky to be on your feet at all,” he murmured.
As they slowly made their way to the infirmary for a more thorough check up, Mac glanced over his shoulder. He smiled at Evan who was trailing behind them, his brother walking beside him with an amused glint in his eyes. At Mac’s raised eyebrow, Evan shrugged. “Just making sure you get him to the infirmary okay. You know, in case he ‘passes out’ again.”
“Thank you, Major,” Rodney said, sounding somewhat petulant.
“Aye, thank you, Major,” Mac repeated, but with sincerity in his voice. He had a feeling that life in Pegasus would prove very interesting, indeed, and for a myriad reasons. He fervently hoped that one Evan Lorne would be one of them.
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