“This plan of yours had better work, Rodney,” John muttered as he ran through the city toward grounding station three. He was beginning to think that maybe they should have had one more person stay behind to help out, but it did him no good to worry about that now. Besides, Ford, Carson, and Teyla were still inbound with the last Athosians, so if push came to shove, he could always get one of them to lend a hand.
Slowing to a walk, he regulated his breathing as he checked his watch. Damn, that had taken longer than he would have liked, but at least he was here. When he opened the door, he paused, momentarily stunned by the sheer power of the storm, and it wasn’t even hitting the city yet. “Yeah, Rodney had better be right about this, or we are in deep trouble,” he murmured, stepping to the railing to look out over the ocean. The storm was moving pretty fast.
Tapping his comms, John had to shout to be heard over the roaring wind. “I’m here!”
“I told you to contact me when you got to the first one, Major,” Rodney scolded over the radio.
What the hell? Who did he think he was? Roadrunner? Speedy Gonzalez? “I am at the first one, Rodney!”
“Oh. Sorry. I’m already done.”
Of course he was. He had taken the station closest to the labs. John rolled his eyes. “Oh great, good for you.”
“Me, too,” chimed Elizabeth.
“Good for everyone!” John groused, throwing his hands up. Great. Well, he was here. Now what was he supposed to do?
“Where are you now?” Rodney asked.
“I’m at the damned grounding station!” John said, starting to get irritated. Hadn’t they already covered that?
“No no no no, not you, I meant Elizabeth.”
“I’m in the transporter,” she replied.
John closed his eyes briefly to fight the urge to remind the scientist they were on a tight schedule. John listened as Elizabeth bumped into Rodney. He took a deep breath. “Glad everybody’s having such a good time, now what do I do?”
“There should be a keypad on the console of the station,” came Rodney’s voice.
Keypad on the console of the station. Okay. Should be easy enough to find. Scanning the walls, he saw nothing so he moved toward the pillar in the middle of the space he was in. Keypad. Okay, now what? “Got it.”
“Punch in the Ancient equivalent of oh-three-one-five-four-seven.”
Silently thanking Dr. Jackson for the information packet he had sent along on the Ancients, including everything he had managed to translate, John did as he was told. Well, it seemed to be doing something, at least.
“That do it?” Rodney asked.
John watched closely as he put in the last digit and sighed in relief when the grounding station disconnected. “Yep!”
“Good.” Rodney sounded pleased. “Three down, one to go. They all seem to have the same separation code, so err, get to the next one, repeat the procedure and we’ll meet you in the control room.”
“Roger that,” John said, already running again. He had to make it to that fourth station in time. This was going to work, he was sure of it now. It had to. He was over halfway to it when Lieutenant Mills called over the comms, “Dr. Weir, there’s been some sort of an attack on Manara. We have an Athosian party incoming with wounded.”
What the hell? That didn’t sound right. The hairs on the back of John’s neck wanted to stand up. He had had a bad feeling about the deal he had made with Smeadon. Could this be it? Had they attacked his people?
“Apparently there’s wounded incoming,” Elizabeth said, sounding worried.
John stopped running, conflicting needs warring in him. “That doesn’t make any sense. They said it was Wraith related?” He hadn’t heard that, but he had to ask. For all he knew, they had contacted Elizabeth on a different channel and filled her in.
Her, “We’ll ask them ourselves in a second, hold on,” had his stomach sink a little, then it dropped to his feet when he overheard a scuffle and the conversation that followed. “What the hell?”
“Dr. Elizabeth Weir, I presume,” said a man. “And you must be Dr. Rodney McKay.”
John’s heart skipped a beat when he recognized the voice that answered tersely, “Yes, that is him.”
That was Sora. The Genii had invaded the city.
The male voice spoke again. “Where is Major Sheppard?”
John wondered why their leader was so interested specifically in him? The voice didn’t sound familiar at all, so he was pretty sure he hadn’t had dealings with the man before.
Deciding the grounding station would have to wait, John changed course and headed to the jumper bay instead, since it was closer than the armory. He needed weapons and any tactical advantage he could get his hands on. As he ran, he promised himself that after this whole mess was over with, he would create some bolt-holes with arsenal, in case anyone else in Pegasus got it into their heads to invade them. There was no doubt in John’s mind that he would have the chance to do that. There was no way the Genii were getting his city. Failure was not an option, John thought. Not today.
He firmly pushed his fears for Rodney and Elizabeth aside. He had to focus or he would be of no use to them. John reminded himself as he stepped into jumper one that Rodney had been in the field with him many times now and had learned to hold his own. He had to trust that. Have faith in Rodney’s abilities or he would lose it.
Tapping the comms as he started rummaging through the inventory of the jumper, John called, “Jumper two, this is Sheppard.” Nothing. John frowned and tried again. “Jumper two, do you copy?”
“This is Ford, sir. We decided to wait out the storm in the jumper.”
Ah, hell. “You’re still on the mainland?” So much for backup.
“Yes, sir.”
Sighing heavily, John reassessed what he would need as he filled Ford in on the situation. The young lieutenant wanted to come to the city right then and seemed prepared to risk everyone’s lives to do it, but thankfully both Carson and Teyla had better sense. John wasn’t sure whether to commend the boy on his eagerness, or smack him upside the head for being too gung-ho and risking lives – especially civilians.
“It’s okay, Lieutenant. Just get here as soon as you can, I could use a little backup,” John assured him. He sincerely hoped that Ford wouldn’t do anything foolish. Grabbing the LSD, John scanned it to see if anyone was nearby. Clear. Good. The Genii had Rodney and Elizabeth, so the most likely place for them to be would be the control tower. He would start there and take out as many people as he could.
“-give him what he needs. He needs the C-4, all the medical supplies, and the Wraith data device. Just give it to him. None of that is worth dying for,” came Rodney’s voice over the comms.
“Thank you, Rodney,” John whispered. “Good thinking. Now stay safe and don’t do anything stupid until I can get to you.” He hurried off to the armory. He had some C-4 to hide.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Step away from the console!” the leader of the Genii raiding party, Kolya, said, voice soft and hard all at once.
Rodney’s stomach twisted. He had a feeling that this man was very, very dangerous. “I was leaning. I was just leaning!” he said hurriedly as he straightened up. Please let John have gotten the message. Please.
He couldn’t believe this was happening. Not now, not ever. Atlantis was supposed to be safe. They had the IDC’s to prevent anyone from coming in. How the hell had the Genii gotten ahold of one, much less gotten the correct code? Was whoever they had taken it from still alive, or had they killed them? Rodney’s mind kept spinning on all the possibilities while Elizabeth tried to argue with Kolya. Tried to buy time, but it was of no use. Kolya had the upperhand and he knew it.
Elizabeth was taken away, forced to show them where the Wraith data device was being kept, leaving Rodney with Kolya. His stomach turned to ice at the speculative look in the other man’s eyes. Squaring his shoulders, Rodney shored up his nerve as best he could and met the man’s gaze.
“Why are you here?” Kolya asked quietly.
“To my understanding, I’m being held hostage,” Rodney replied, heart thudding in his chest.
“No. I mean what are you doing here. On Atlantis. Why did some of you stay behind?”
“Oh.” Crap. He sucked at lying, but he knew he had to try. “Err, tie up some loose ends.”
Raising an eyebrow, Kolya wondered, “Oh? Like what?”
“Make sure everyone got out okay,” Rodney bluffed. Oh crap, oh crap, he wasn’t buying it. He could see it in his narrowed eyes.
“Isn’t that the work of someone less important?” Kolya ventured, his voice growing softer with each question.
Rodney huffed, putting up all the false bravado he could muster. “You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” He swallowed hard.
“You have a plan, don’t you.” It wasn’t a question.
“I got lots of plans about lots of things,” Rodney tried, knowing it was futile. Oh man, what was he going to do? He wasn’t brave like John, or as smooth a talker as Elizabeth.
Kolya’s stare turned ice cold. “I’m interested in the plan you have to save the city.”
“I never said anything about saving anything.” Rodney’s heart raced, his palms were sweaty, and he knew he was in serious trouble. His stomach dropped when Kolya gave a little smile and stepped into his space.
Grasping Rodney’s shoulder, Kolya murmured, “Not yet.”
Rodney’s eyes widened when he saw Kolya give a little nod to one of his men. He heard a knife being unsheathed and he began to hyperventilate. Oh crap, he was a dead man, he just knew it. What would John do?
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“I will ask you one more time, Dr. McKay. What are your plans to save this city?” Kolya’s voice sent shivers through Rodney’s spine, and for not-fun reasons. The man was silk-on-steel and Rodney was terrified of him.
The knife against his arm cut a little deeper still. Each time he had been asked, the Genii soldier slid the knife further into his flesh. A small part of Rodney’s brain marveled at the amount of skill he had with it. Minimal blood loss and, as far as he could tell, little damage – yet – but Rodney was certain that he would not remain so lucky much longer. He cried out, tears brimming his eyes as he tried to struggle against the hands that held him. He wasn’t strong enough for this. Not brave enough. Oh God, but he hurt.
“The plan, Doctor,” Kolya insisted.
Closing his eyes, Rodney silently begged John’s forgiveness as he told Kolya everything.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
John’s stomach lurched and his heart constricted, though it was more like an echo of something than anything else, causing him to stumble. Steadying himself with a hand against the wall, John frowned, wondering what the hell was going on. Never in his life had he felt anything like this before and he had no words to describe it. It was over almost as soon as it began, and in its wake, John felt dread.
Rodney. Something had happened to Rodney. He was sure of it. Taking a deep breath, he forced the burgeoning panic down and started to run. The C4 was hidden and with a little luck Kolya would contact him soon via the radio he had left behind in the crate the C4 had been in. John had Genii to hunt. He figured the Wraith data device the Genii wanted was the least important to the expedition’s mission. They had taken everything they could from it so it was basically useless to them now. The medicine, however, they would need so he headed toward the infirmary with the intent of preventing them from raiding it all.
He was halfway there when the radio activated. “This is Commander Kolya.”
Nope. Definitely not familiar, John thought. “Kolya, that’s a hard name to pronounce. Is that a first name?” John replied glibly. It took some effort, but he couldn’t afford to let the man know he was rattled. “My name is Major John Sheppard, and I have hidden the C4 where you will never – I repeat, never – find it. Now, when I get confirmation that the prisoners have been safely released and allowed to gate off Atlantis, I will help you find it.” The C4 would be a small price to pay to guarantee Rodney’s safety, and Elizabeth’s.
“Your offer is very generous, Major.”
Damn straight it was. He would just as happily kill every single Genii on his city, but he could not risk Rodney and Elizabeth’s lives. “Yes, it is.”
“However, Dr. McKay recently shared with me there’s a plan in action to save the city.”
John’s stomach dropped. “He did?” He couldn’t believe Rodney would have just given the information up willingly, which meant that he had been tortured. Questions tried to bubble to the surface but he ruthlessly pushed them down. Focus. He had to focus.
“He did. My understanding is there’s one final grounding station that needs to be deactivated. Uncouple the grounding rods at station four, assist with the reactivation of the shield, and you and your friends can leave here, unharmed.”
What? That didn’t make any sense! Why would the Genii want to remain on Atlantis? They’d never be able to use it, they didn’t have the gene. They had to know that. “Wait a minute, I thought all you wanted was C4 and a jumper?”
Kolya sounded amused. “Why raid a city when you can seize it, Major?” John ground his teeth. “Atlantis will be ours or the ocean’s,” Kolya added with conviction. “You choose.”
Great. Just great. John weighed his options for a moment. There really wasn’t much choice. If Kolya could be trusted to keep his word, then saving the city was his best shot at getting Rodney and Elizabeth out of here. With the city saved, they would at least stand a chance at getting it back. Something that would be impossible if he allowed the city to weather the storm without the shield. John hoped Rodney was okay. “Hold on, Rodney. I’m coming,” he promised as he altered course and headed to grounding station four.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kolya stalked out of Elizabeth’s office with Elizabeth and Sora following close behind. Rodney met Elizabeth’s gaze, but she shook her head. Swallowing hard, Rodney nodded. He hadn’t believed her appeal would work, but he couldn’t help feeling disappointed all the same. Rodney listened closely as the men on the radio reported to Kolya. Elizabeth squeezed his good arm gently but before he could wonder what she was trying to say, he heard Kolya give the order to use lethal force if necessary.
Rodney’s eyes widened. No! No, that wasn’t right. He had promised he would let them go unharmed, though a not-so tiny voice in the back of his mind reminded him that that had been a lie from the start. After all, he had been harmed already, hadn’t he. He clutched his arm a little tighter to his chest reflexively.
Sora seemed just as shocked at the order, and she protested. The cold look Kolya gave her made Rodney’s throat tighten. A silent mantra began to play in his head, willing John to be safe. To be careful. God, but he hated the Genii. He really did.
“He’s stopped. He’s not at the control panel anymore,” came over the radio.
Rodney’s breath quickened. Come on, John, he thought. What was he doing? If he wasn’t at the panel that had to mean he was aware of the soldiers close by. Right? He shared a panicked look with Elizabeth, who seemed to be holding on to her stoicism by a thread. Mind racing, he tried to think of anything that might stall the Genii. That would keep John safe. Blinking, he stepped forward without meaning to. “Those control panels are pretty fragile,” he said quickly. “You might not want to-,” he cut off when one of the soldiers grabbed his wounded arm, pressing hard. “Ow!”
Breathing hard, he squeezed his eyes shut a moment, jaw clenching as he fought to remain as calm as he could. Not an easy task, since he could feel his distress increasing by the second. Rodney’s knees nearly gave out when John’s voice sounded over the Genii radio. “Let me tell you what you did wrong here, Kolya!” John! He was okay, right? This had to mean he was okay. He sounded pissed.
“A: you lost two of your men.” Rodney glanced at Kolya who seemed shocked, though that was rapidly disappearing and being replaced by anger as John continued, “B: you damaged the switch before I could separate the grounding rods. Which I’m sure you’re gonna get an earful from McKay for!”
Rodney’s lips twitched in spite of himself at hearing John’s confidence in him. Weird as it was, it helped bolster him. Then the rest of what he had said sunk in and he had to stomp down on the despair that tried to overtake him. Without that grounding station deactivated, the plan was doomed to fail. His mind started to race, automatically trying to come up with a contingency plan.
“And C: you lost all of what little credibility you had with me!” Oh yeah, John was pissed. Unfortunately, so was Kolya, and between the two, Rodney was not at all sure what the outcome might be. He shared a worried look with Elizabeth as Kolya stalked around the control room like a predator about to pounce its cornered prey. Rodney definitely didn’t care for that feeling – or the comparison and knowledge that he was the prey.
Squaring his shoulders, Rodney attempted to divert Kolya’s attention. “Do you have any idea how big of a setback that is? I may not be able to activate the shields, I can’t possibly-” he paused when two soldiers grabbed him, trying to yank him back from Kolya. “Get off of me,” Rodney ground out, starting to get mad himself. Elizabeth stood quietly a couple of paces away, not making any move to help. He wasn’t sure what to make of that.
Kolya picked up the radio. “You killed two of my men.”
“I guess we’re even.”
Kolya’s eyes blazed and his voice turned colder than Rodney had heard yet. “I don’t like even,” Kolya said as he pulled out his gun and aimed it at Elizabeth. Oh God, no. No, no, no. This couldn’t be happening.
“I’m not finished yet!” came John’s voice.
“Neither am I,” was Kolya’s icy reply. “Say goodbye to Dr. Weir.”
Rodney’s breath caught in his throat. What was he supposed to do now?
“The city has a self-destruct button. If you hurt her, I’ll activate it! Nobody’ll get Atlantis!” John threatened. Rodney watched Kolya’s reaction carefully, but the man didn’t seem fazed in the slightest.
“Even if it exists, Major, you need at least two senior personnel to activate it, and I’m about to take one of them out of the equation.”
Elizabeth’s mouth opened several times, but nothing came out. Rodney’s mind worked frantically to think of a way out of this. A way to save her.
“Kolya!” John shouted, but the man ignored him. “Kolya!! I’ll give you a ship! I’ll fly you out of here myself!” No, John couldn’t. Kolya would kill him, Rodney was certain. The thought of that made Rodney’s stomach turn worse than it already was at the thought of having to watch Elizabeth get killed in front of him. “Kolyaaaaa!!! Kolya, don’t do this!”
“How is this going to help you get what you want?” Elizabeth asked.
“Sheppard put you in this position, not me,” Kolya ground out.
Shaking, Rodney stepped in front of Elizabeth. Heart hammering in his throat, he tried to stare the other man down. “You can’t do this. This is crazy. You need her.” Yeah, but what he was doing was crazier. Was he insane to step into the line of fire?
Sora piped up. “She’s right, Commander.”
Okay, good. Maybe he’d listen to her, because Rodney wasn’t sure the man would listen to him. Thinking quickly, he gave one last ditch effort, putting as much bluster as he could manage into his voice. “I’m not kidding. There are codes required to activate the shield. Codes that only she knows. You can’t do this without her!” Kolya’s gaze turned to flint and his gun hand twitched. Gulping, Rodney held up his hands and added, “You can’t do this without me, either. I mean… we’re a package deal.” Oh, he was going to die. He was going to die and it would be his own damn fault.
He started to babble. “You take us out of the equation andandand you don’t have an endgame!” The silence in the room grew unbearable and Rodney realized the term wouldn’t mean anything to the Genii. Scrambling, he tried again. “Granted, that’s a chess term. I’m… I’m…” Taking a deep breath, he tried again, talking faster as he went. “My point is, we’re the only ones that can fix the grounding stations. We’re the only ones that can activate the shield. We’re the only ones that can solve problems I can’t even think of yet! You kill either one of us, and you don’t get what you want! That’s how important we are.” Rodney hated hearing the fear in his voice. The tears that were threatening to to spill at the thought of leaving John behind.
“Rodney,” Elizabeth said quietly from behind him. “Rodney, he gets it.”
It took Rodney a moment to realize that while he had been rambling, Kolya had lowered his gun. The stark relief he felt at the threat of death being lifted – temporary though that might be – had Rodney nearly collapsing in on himself. He’d done it. He had saved Elizabeth and himself, and John was still out there.
“I appreciate y-” Elizabeth started, but Sora cut across her harshly. “You’re an asset we need to complete this mission.”
As she stormed out of the room, Rodney turned toward Elizabeth to make sure she was alright. “You stood in front of a gun for me,” she said quietly.
Turning his head slightly, he muttered, “Don’t thank me just yet. We have two and a half hours until the storm hits and unless our luck changes drastically the city is going to be obliterated.” He was going to be sick, he just knew it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Report, Sergeant,” Ioan ordered when he went to relieve Bates of duty.
Bates shook his head, eyes darting to the Manarians several feet away. “No activity, sir. They seem to be content to just stand there and watch us. A few of the Athosians wanted to go hunting, but Halling convinced them otherwise.”
Ioan nodded. “When I explained to him why we were concerned, he didn’t seem particularly surprised. I think there’s some history there, but he wasn’t very forthcoming.”
Bates frowned. “History? Then why did they suggest trade with the Manarians?”
Ioan shrugged. “Better the devil you know, maybe? I don’t know. Could just be it’s a personal matter for Halling, not an Athosian one. Like I said, he wasn’t very forthcoming.”
Bates nodded, casting a suspicious look at the guard. “Still don’t like it, sir.”
Ioan huffed. “None of us do, Sarge. Go get some rest.”
“Yes, sir,” Bates said, saluting smartly before heading toward his tent.
Sighing, Ioan took up position and focused on the task at hand, pushing his worries about Atlantis aside. He knew the storm was due to hit in a couple of hours and they had no hope of news before at least another hour after that, and that was being overly optimistic, Kimberly had told him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Major Sheppard. How is this for credibility? Weir is dead.”
Anger roiled in John’s gut. He’d failed Elizabeth, and now she was gone and it was his fault. Pressing the Genii comm to his mouth, he ground out, “I. Will. Kill. You.”
“Maybe. Stay out of my way or McKay will join her.”
Rodney! John’s stomach threatened to revolt at the thought of Kolya laying a hand on him. Closing his eyes, he took several deep breaths in an attempt to squash the sudden helplessness that washed over him. If Rodney died… No. He couldn’t think on that. The only way to save Rodney was to take the Genii out. Nodding to himself, he set off running with grim determination.
He made his way carefully through the city, keeping a sharp eye on the LSD. He had to be smart about this. Going in guns blazing, however appealing that sounded just then, would only get Rodney killed, and losing him was not an option. A few corridors down, John noticed a small cluster of blips on the screen moving toward him from a level below. Slowing his pace, he approached them soundlessly until he was right above them. Dropping a couple of smoke bombs, he silently set about creating an ambush.
He could hear one of the Genii giving them directions to his location. Damn, that meant they had figured out how to use the city’s scanners. Well, maybe he could use that against them. For now, he needed to take out this group and they were headed his way fast. Scrambling up the rafters, John got into position and waited. It didn’t take very long at all before a group of four Genii stood under him. He grinned darkly as he listened to their confusion, knowing the scanners would show him in the same room.
Very carefully, he set his sights on the first one and, after taking a slow breath, opened fire. The room filled with the sound of gunfire and their shouts, which were abruptly ended in short order. Four down, however many left to go, John thought as he climbed down. Checking the LSD again, he allowed himself a brief respite. “What would McKay do?” he muttered to himself. When it hit him, he almost wanted to laugh it was so simple. With renewed vigor, John made his way to the naquedah generator that powered the control room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Teyla, I’m scared.”
Kneeling down beside the young boy who had been on his first hunting party when the storm hit, she took his hands in hers and smiled reassuringly up at him. “We are safe here, Degan. The storm will pass and we will see our people again,” she promised gently.
He shook his head, his eyes wide with fear. “We’ll get blown away!”
“We will not. Dr. Beckett has made the jumper heavier. No wind can lift us if we do not wish it to.”
“But-” Degan started, only to stare open-mouthed out of the window. Teyla turned her head to look and got to her feet instantly. The sky had cleared, the sun was shining, and the wind had stopped almost completely. Was it over?
Aiden and Carson both moved to the back where Aiden slapped the button to lower the ramp. They all three stepped outside in disbelief. Never had she experienced a storm so fierce, only to have it die down so abruptly.
Aiden exhaled sharply. “We’re in the eye.”
Teyla looked at him in confusion, then at Carson as he agreed with him. “The eye?” she asked.
“Dead center of the storm,” Carson explained, his eyes scanning the sky above. “The storm swirls around it, twenty to forty kilometer-wide area.”
She nodded. “Then this calm will not last.”
Turning to her, Carson inclined his head. “No, it won’t. In fact, in about ten minutes it’s going to get very ugly again.”
Aiden spun on his heel and began to push Carson back into the jumper. Teyla watched in astonishment as he said, “Come on, we have to help the major.”
Carson put a restraining hand on Aiden’s shoulder. “Aye. We can take off, but landing’s going to be twice as hard, believe me. What if the storm’s reached Atlantis?”
She watched to two face off, unsure which – if any – side she should take. She knew nothing of weather like this and these men seemed to have more experience with it. To her, they both had valid points, yet she could not deny wanting to assist the major. Aiden forced Carson inside and into his seat even as the man protested vehemently that attempting to fly was insane.
“This is a spaceship,” Aiden reminded him. “We can fly up and over.”
“Oh, straight up and down,” Carson said incredulously.
“Yes, straight up and down,” Aiden said firmly. “We have to help the major, doc.”
“I’m a bloody medical doctor,” Carson argued. “Not a bloody magician!”
“You can do it,” Aiden assured, though Teyla sensed he was not as confident as he wanted to appear.
Carson turned helplessly to her. “Teyla?” he pleaded.
“If we can help, then we must.” If Aiden said they could avoid the storm entirely during the eye, then she had to believe him. She had to have faith that Carson could fly them to Atlantis in one piece. She chanced a quick glance over her shoulders to the three young Athosians and flashed them a smile. They were staring at them with wide eyes. She hoped she would be able to keep them safe.
Carson flung his seat around and began his pre-flight, anxiety pouring off the man in waves. “Oh crap,” he mumbled as they took off. Placing a steadying hand on his shoulder, she offered what support she could to her friend. She hoped the major, Rodney, and Elizabeth were alright. At least now they were on their way to lend assistance.
The flight to the city was shorter than she had ever known before. Carson had managed to land them safely in the city, if barely. The winds had barreled at them and Carson’s own fears did not help their approach. However, they were in the jumper bay, all in one piece. She and Aiden scouted the immediate vicinity and once it was cleared, went back to the jumper where Carson was waiting with the young ones. As Aiden offered Carson a gun, she warned the others to stay inside the jumper and to be still. It was the only thing she could think of to keep them out of harm’s way.
“Remember how you’re always saying you’re not military and you don’t have to take orders?” Aiden groused.
Carson nodded. “Aye.”
“Well, now you do. Follow me.” Aiden ordered gruffly, an air of pomposity practically shimmering around him.
Teyla frowned at the lieutenant. She and Aiden had been on the same team for months now. She liked him. He appeared to have a ready smile, and he had not yet been jaded by the Pegasus galaxy as so many of its inhabitants had. She had found him to be easy-going while on missions, quick to obey orders, as well as to take suggestions from her when it came to dealing with the people of this galaxy. Yet now, she saw an entirely different side to him and it was one she could not reconcile with the boy she had come to know. When this was all over, she intended to have a word with Major Sheppard about their youngest teammate, because his current attitude would not do.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Really, really dangerous!
Don’t touch!
Mckay.
John eyed the sign Rodney had left on top of the generator with trepidation, weighing the pros and cons of going through with his plan. If this worked the way he hoped, then the most he would get from the scientist was a lecture. If something went wrong though, then this could end up being his worst decision yet. Swallowing hard, he stared the generator down as if it held the answers. “Okay, Sheppard. Quit it. This will work, and when it does, you have to haul ass to the control room before the Genii reinforcements gate in.”
He mentally went over everything he had read about the naquadah generators, but he had to admit he hadn’t paid as much attention as he probably should have. Still he hoped he was remembering correctly as he gripped the top and twisted, lifting the cap off. The generator died instantly and John sighed in relief. Okay, next step, he thought as he double-timed it to the control room.
It filled John with satisfaction to hear the communications between the Genii as they tried to figure out what he had done. The scanners were down, so he was free to move about the city without risk of discovery, which was a very good thing considering what he was about to do. Stepping into the transporter he took a deep breath. John hit the pad just off from the control room, very glad that the process was virtually soundless.
John crept closer, keeping his eyes and ears peeled as he went. He didn’t need their radios now to hear their conversation. He just had to stay out of sight until just the right moment.
“How many can we expect?” Sora asked.
John ducked a little further behind the console as she walked by it. “A full complement. Sixty, or more,” came the answer from a Genii John didn’t recognize. “I don’t know how we were expected to take a facility this size with any less,” the man said as the gate activated. He got up and walked to the balcony.
“We’re supposed to be a raid. The retrieval was rightfully ours,” Sora offered curtly. John thought she sounded disapproving. Interesting. “With me,” she said as she headed down the stairs to meet the reinforcements. Two Genii followed her, leaving the guy on the balcony alone.
Good. This was his chance, then. “Reinforcements are arriving now, Commander,” the man relayed.
“Have them secure Stargate operations and report back to me.” Sorry to disappoint, Kolya, John thought as he noiselessly made his way toward the soldier.
“Yes Commander,” the man said and turned around. Right into John’s right hook. He went down instantly and John had to move quickly to catch him in order to avoid anyone hearing the racket.
Once the man was on the floor, John slipped over to the dialing device and activated the shield, inputting a personal code to prevent it being lifted without his explicit permission. There would be no more Genii coming onto his city. Before he could escape unseen, Sora spun to yell at her accomplice and spotted him. “Get him!”
Crap. Jumping to his feet, John ran across to the other side of the control room, firing as he went. He thought he killed at least one more, and wounded a few others, but he was too busy evading bullets himself to pay too close attention to his marks. He all but dove into the transporter, randomly hitting a spot on the map in order to get away. John listened to Sora update Kolya on the situation. The thrill of knowing the blow he had dealt them shot through John, but he pushed it down. Yes, he had won a battle, but the war was still going and it was one he had to win.
Taking care to avoid running into more Genii, John decided to take out more generators, figuring the less power the Genii had to work with, the better for him. If nothing else, it would keep them busy, and if they did as he hoped and sent guards, they would be easy pickings. John was evading a couple of Genii when Kolya’s icy rage piped into his ear. “Major Sheppard, I have a proposition for you.”
Crap! If that patrol overheard him, he would be in trouble. The LSD showed him he was way too close to another group of Genii to risk a firefight. Doubling back, John decided to go down a few levels. “Kolya. I’m having a hard time keeping up. What’s the score again?” He had to keep the man on edge. If Kolya was unbalanced enough, he might be able to surprise him.
“My men have informed me that not only have you disabled some crucial generators, but you have stolen key components which make it impossible for them to be restored.”
“Yeah, I did that.” Keep talking, Kolya, John thought. The man had to slip up sometime, and John was determined to catch him at it.
“There are two flaws in your plan.”
John snorted. Probably more than two if he were honest, but he was working with what he had, which wasn’t much. “Always open to constructive criticism,” John quipped.
“One: the assumption that I would believe you would rather destroy the city than have it fall to us, is childish.”
“That doesn’t sound like me,” John retorted as he continued down several flights of stairs.
“Second: if and when I determine Atlantis unsalvageable, Drs. Weir and McKay become obsolete.”
John stopped so suddenly he nearly tripped down the last step. “Weir’s alive?” His heart pounded in his chest.
“Dr. McKay was able to make a strong case for keeping her alive.”
John smiled in spite of himself. Way to go, Rodney. “Let me talk to her,” he demanded, needing to be absolutely sure Kolya was speaking the truth this time.
“Sheppard, we’re both here,” came Elizabeth’s voice, and John breathed a sigh of relief.
“It’s good to hear your voice.” He closed his eyes briefly, mentally reordering what he knew now that Elizabeth was alive.
“Yeah, it’s good to hear you, too,” she replied before Kolya came back on the line.
“We have less than one hour before the storm hits full force. If the power is not returned to grounding station four within the next ten minutes, Dr. Weir dies.”
John blinked. How could he be sure Kolya’s threat was real this time. He had bluffed before, could he be doing so now, John wondered? “Again, you mean?”
“Her death will buy you another ten minutes, after which, should the power still be out, Dr. McKay dies.”
John’s gut clenched with fear as he checked his watch, tallying how long it would take him to get back to the generator. He could not risk Rodney. He couldn’t. The very thought of being the cause of Rodney’s death… it was worse than when he had been unable to rescue Holland and forced to watch his friend die. That incident had nearly unglued John. Losing Rodney would be the end of him, he was certain.
Kolya continued, “We will then leave with what we can and the city will be destroyed.”
John shook his head. “But that’s not enough time!” He had to try, but there was no way he would make it from where he was at without cutting it real close.
“If you don’t mind destroying Atlantis, stay where you are for the next twenty minutes. Starting now,” Kolya challenged.
Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap! John raced down the stairs, putting everything he had in getting to his destination on time, praying he wouldn’t run into any patrols. He made it to the generator with less than a minute to spare. Dropping to his knees, he grabbed the cable and reattached it to the machine before fumbling in his bag for the missing piece. He was about to put it in the generator when a voice behind him ordered him to stop.
“You have got to be kidding me,” John muttered under his breath. He didn’t have time for this shit. Raising his hands in the air, he took slow, steadying breaths to keep his temper in check. If he didn’t get the power back on, like now, Elizabeth would die. “Look. Your boss wanted me to turn this thing back on, so I think we should do as he says,” he tried, knowing it was probably a wasted effort.
Sure enough… “Be quiet.”
Great. Now what was he going to do? Hanging his head, he listened with fading hope as the man reported to Sora and was told to keep him there until she got there. At least they were under orders to keep him alive, which was something.
“I don’t mean to be a bad prisoner or anything, but Kolya’s going to kill one of my people if I don’t get this thing turned back on in time, so…” John gritted his teeth. If it came down to it, he would take the chance and try to activate it anyway, even if it meant getting shot.
“Turn. Around.”
Taking a steadying breath, John weighed his options. On his knees as he was, he was vulnerable. On his feet, he could try to overpower them or at the very least get out of their line of fire. He stood up slowly and did as ordered. It took him a second to register what he was seeing. A grin spread on his lips. Things had just taken a turn for the better. “You turn around,” he said casually.
The two Genii shared a confused look. “What?”
John half-shrugged, hands still in the air. “Well, if I have to turn around, you should turn around.”
They stared stupidly at him for all of three seconds before Ford stunned them and they dropped to the ground. About time they got here, John thought. “What the hell took you so long?” he asked no one in particular even as he turned his attention back to the generator.
“Well there’s the storm, you know, and-” Ford began, but John cut him off.
“Just… hold that thought,” he muttered as he checked he had the top aligned correctly and pushed down. His knees shook with relief when the generator lit up. Checking his watch, he ran a hand over his face. He had made it, just in the nick of time.
Right. They had to move fast now. Rodney would no doubt have the grounding station working again soon, which meant that the corridors would not be a good place to be. John filled Ford, Teyla, and Carson in on what had been going on, all the way from Rodney’s plan to save the city, to what had happened with the Genii up until they had found him. Well, he gave them the CliffsNotes version as they headed to the control tower. There was no time for details.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
John was alive. Elizabeth was still here, and for the moment, they were both safe. Rodney had to keep reminding himself of that as he sat hunched over the console. He had tried as hard as he could to stall, but they were running out of time. The storm was going to hit any moment, but if he could just give John a little more time… Just one more chance to come and save the day. Rodney was absolutely terrified of Kolya. Back at the grounding station when Kolya had gotten word of what John had done with the gate shield, Rodney had been certain that that would be it for him. The man had been deranged and Rodney believed the only reason he hadn’t killed Rodney that instant was because it took him too long to decide whether to strangle him or throw him into the ocean.
Rodney’s heart was alternately in his throat or somewhere around his toes, depending on where Kolya was in relation to him. Elizabeth hovered over his shoulder, whispering in his ear. “We have to keep stalling. Sheppard is still out there.”
Yes, thank you, he was aware of that. All too aware. Still, she hissed, “If you activate it now, he’ll-”
Kolya called from the window. “Now, McKay.”
“It’s done,” Rodney said, ignoring Elizabeth, as well as the sickening feeling in his gut. Squaring his shoulders, he shot her a meaningful look. “Dr. Weir, I need to enter codes now.”
She blinked in confusion, so he willed her to understand. Straightening, she gave the tiniest of head bobs. “Yes, of course.” She rattled off a set of numbers which Rodney typed in as judiciously as possible before prompting her for more. They were all nonsense, anyway, but the Genii didn’t know that. It was the only thing he could think of to do, and it would hopefully work toward convincing Kolya when the shield failed. Which it would, only by virtue of Rodney having set it up to do so. There was a slim chance his desperate plan would work, but he had to take it.
One of the Genii shouted, “A massive wave is approaching. Without the shield…”
Kolya roared, “McKay!”
Okay, Rodney. Breathe. He just had to stay calm. Had to play his part. He could do this. Eyes roving the readouts the console was spitting out, Rodney reported, “We’re starting to get hits to the northern pier. Reverting power to the corridor… now.” He punched the button which made a sorrowful noise, but nothing happened. Okay, so far, so good, Rodney thought. He took a steadying breath and hit it again. “Now!” Again the noise and again nothing. A third time. And a fourth. “Okay, this is a problem,” he said, turning to Kolya who stalked over to his console.
Kolya growled, “What?”
Steeling himself, Rodney pushed through. He was in no doubt that he would pay for his little charade even if Kolya believed him. All the more if he did not. “I told you this was a longshot from the beginning.”
“We already have serious flooding on the north and west piers,” came the Genii who had warned of the approaching wave.
Rodney felt as if his heart was about to race out of his chest and his palms were starting to sweat. “Look, it’s no use. The corridors just can’t handle this kind of raw power.” Please, oh please, let them buy it. Let them cut their losses and just leave while there’s still time, Rodney thought.
Elizabeth sounded genuinely concerned, which was good. “Is there any power getting to the shield generator?”
Rodney shook his head. “Not enough. Minimal amounts, nowhere near enough.” He avoided Kolya’s eyes, focusing on his screen as he pretended to attempt to find a way around it.
Kolya loomed over the console, cold fury in his voice. “You said this would work!”
Gathering every bit of the arrogance and anger he was most known for, Rodney faced the man. “I don’t know if you noticed or not, but I’m an extremely arrogant man who tends to think all his plans will work.” Kolya didn’t disappoint in his reaction as he backhanded Rodney, nearly knocking him out of his chair. Yeah, he had known something like that was coming. Didn’t make it hurt any less, though, he thought.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Open the stargate,” Kolya ordered. “Start evacuating the remaining men.”
“You’re making the right decision,” Elizabeth said.
John’s relief was short lived as Kolya’s next words filtered down to them. “You’re coming with us.”
Oh, hell no. He glanced around the pillar he was hiding behind and tried to decide the best course of action. Carson and Teyla should have been there already, which meant something had happened to them and it would be up to him and Ford to stage a rescue on their own. Genii were leaving the city with their loot in tow. John took small pleasure in knowing that they were not taking any C4, but he was certain Carson would be less than happy knowing his already limited medical supplies were now severely diminished.
He only half paid attention to what was happening above them, only dimly aware of Kolya and Rodney arguing. He wished he could tell Rodney to shut up and not make the man any madder than he already was. John was still reeling slightly from when Kolya had hurt Rodney. He had no idea what had actually happened up there, but he had heard the impact and he had… felt that same feeling from before again. That weird echo-y twisting of his stomach and tightening of his heart. Not nearly as bad as it had been then, but enough to take him by surprise. He had to figure out what that was about, but it would have to be later.
Turning to Ford, he indicated where he wanted the man to go as he told him to protect Elizabeth. Rodney was his. John would trust no other to save the man at this point. Stepping out from behind the pillar, John shot at the men trying to get through the gate. The one holding Elizabeth let her go in an attempt to flee, but Ford took care of him. Kolya had Rodney in his grip, using him as a shield as he backed them slowly toward the gate. Forcing his breath to remain steady, John took careful aim. “You’re not going anywhere.”
Kolya grinned, certain of his victory as he took another step backward, forcing Rodney to arch slightly as Kolya tightened the pressure on his wounded arm.
“I will shoot you if you don’t let him go,” John said, only somewhat surprised at how calm he sounded.
“And risk hurting Dr. McKay?” Kolya challenged.
John briefly met Rodney’s eyes who seemed to be silently begging him to get it over with. To save him. It tore at John to see the fear in his lover’s eyes. John stepped forward, securing his sight. “I’m not aiming at him,” he assured, his attention once more laser focused on Kolya. When the man took another step back, John pulled the trigger and Kolya released Rodney even as he fell through the event horizon.
Rodney was on all fours, shaking and panting as John rushed over to him. He dropped to his knees, letting the gun slip from his hands as he reached to cradle Rodney’s face in them instead. He stared intently into Rodney’s eyes for a moment, whispering, “You’re okay. I’m here, Rodney. You’re okay, you’re okay,” before crashing his lips to Rodney’s. Rodney wrapped his arms around him and John did the same, holding onto him for dear life. Nothing mattered except Rodney.
That was, until Elizabeth placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him. “John,” she urged. “John!”
Reluctantly, they separated and he glanced up at Elizabeth who watched them with an unreadable expression. John’s stomach dropped when he realized what he had just done, certain they were in even more trouble, but Elizabeth shook her head. “We can discuss this later. For now, let’s try to save the city first.”
“Right. Yes. Of course,” Rodney rambled as he got to his feet and ran up the stairs, John following close behind.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Carson, come on. Faster, we have to make it to the control room in time,” Teyla urged as she and Sora carried him between them. He and Teyla had gone to the jumper bay to retrieve the three Athosian stragglers they had left there, and they were supposed to have gone to help the major rescue Elizabeth and Rodney. Instead, Sora had knocked Carson out briefly and he had woken to see Teyla and the Genii girl fighting.
When Kolya’s order to evacuate came over the radio, Teyla had used the distraction and pinned Sora to the wall, telling her plainly that she was going to get those hunters to safety. Sora could either help or die in the corridors of Atlantis. Sora had opted for helping, which is how they found their way stumbling to the control room.
“Aye, lass, I’m trying,” he assured. He frowned slightly when he realized he was slurring his words.
Together, they hobbled into the room and Elizabeth yelled, “Rodney, go!”
Carson limped over to the console, needing to hold onto it to stay upright. Oh, but his head hurt. Carson wasn’t entirely sure what was going on, vaguely remembering the plan Major Sheppard had laid out, but he wasn’t sure it was working. He did notice Major Sheppard hovering at Rodney’s side with a look of concern.
Rodney glanced up and nodded to him. “Carson.”
“Rodney,” Carson replied, wondering what that was about.
“Just in time to see how this ends, huh?”
Aye, he supposed he was, at that. Carson sent up a quiet prayer to whoever was listening that Rodney’s crazy plan would work. “Now!” exclaimed Rodney, punching a button. Carson turned to look out the window and joined the collective sigh of relief when he saw the shield go up just in time to block the massive wave that surely would have swallowed the city whole.
“Nice work, Rodney,” Elizabeth said with a smile.
Rodney leaned heavily on the console, head drooping, but he glanced up at her. “Did you ever doubt me?”
Her lips twisted briefly. “Yes. Several times,” she admitted.
“Oh…” Rodney nodded, but before he could do or say anything else, Major Sheppard enveloped him in a hug.
Carson’s eyes widened at the unexpected, not to mention unusual, display. His gaze met Elizabeth’s and she nodded. Yeah, they would definitely need to have a talk about the regulations, and soon. Life on Atlantis was about to change.
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