Mind Meld: Mckay fought it but eventually he lost and consciousness started to invade his quiet, dark peace

Mind Meld:

Chapter 1:

Mckay fought it but eventually he lost and consciousness started to invade his quiet, dark peace. He felt the familiar sense of disconnectedness that he felt when coming around from anaesthetic but as he came too he realised he was looking at his own body. Not down his body but down AT his body, from a perspective he never thought, or never should have.

What the hell am I doing over there? Am I alright?

He felt this body flinch in shock but there was still the feeling of distance as though it was a reflex, not something that he had consciously done. He tried to move over to his body, tried to look around him and found out that he couldn't move. Oh God! I'm paralysed… the thought was stopped short as he realised his view was changing, his head was moving… and not because of him. He stilled his thoughts, listening to his surroundings and that's when he heard John.

"Are you okay?"

John Sheppard came into view, looking angry and confused.

"What?" a disembodied voice answered. Rodney knew it came from himself and he knew it was not his voice because he would recognise that self-righteous, opinionated, egotistical whine anywhere. Kavanaugh! What the hell have you done to me! You imbecile, if you've damaged my body so help me I will kill you slowly! Damn it! I know you can hear me you… you... damn peacock! I knew you're strutting ego would get you killed one day, but if I had known for one minute you were going to take me with you so help me I would have had you sent you back to Earth long ago. Damn it, Kavanaugh! Can you hear me god damn it! Answer me or so help me I will make your life hell! You will be lucky to get a job putting lego together in a toy shop, let alone engineering anywhere – in any galaxy!

"I said, are you okay?" John asked again as his hand indicated vaguely over this body, "You seem distracted and you just…er… flinched." His eyes narrowed slightly.

McKay mentally leant back and crossed his arms. Well, go on! Tell him! Tell him what you've done. Tell him how you may have damaged his chances of survival by trapping the mind of a genius inside the mind of a monkey!

"It's probably just shock, I'm fine," Kavanaugh assured him.

What! Fine!! You call this fine?? Wait, why won't you tell him I'm in here? He paused while he tried to think things through and came up with the only conclusion he could. Look, when I said I would kill you I was angry. Just tell him and when I am back in my own body we won't mention it again… honest… okay? Kavanaugh? He realised that Kavanaugh had not acknowledged him since he 'woke up' and he started to wonder if Kavanaugh could hear him. The flinches every time he'd shouted could just be coincidence. Oh god, what if he can't hear me, what if I'm stuck in here forever.

"What happened?" Sheppard asked.

"McKay was looking at a piece of ancient technology when I went to see him to discuss my project," Kavanaugh's voice stated. To waste my time asking why I stopped it you mean, which by the way should have been obvious. It would have blown us to kingdom come because you have trouble with 2+2 using a calculator, let alone the delicate equations required to keep it stable manually. Kavanaugh's voice continued, with an angry bite to it.

"He started ranting and the A.T. turned on which he didn't even realise as he was still going on about his own genius and how he wished he knew how my mind worked."

'If there was anything in there apart from tumbleweed and a howling wind whistling across the empty landscape' I believe were my exact words. It was just a guess earlier, who knew?

"There was a blinding white light and next thing I know I'm waking up in the infirmary and McKay is in a coma."

The view switched briefly to his own body, as Kavanaugh glanced at McKay's body lying on the infirmary bed, and then back to Sheppard. The steady beat, beat of the heart monitor filtered through to McKay. At least I'm still alive.

"With Zelenka on leave I don't know who is next in the command structure and I will have to speak to Elizabeth. Do you have any ideas on how to fix this? Do you think touching the piece again would somehow put things back?"

Yes, I think that just might work. They could put it in my hand and then if Kavanaugh touches it I'm sure it will return my immense consciousness to my way better body. Oh god! Kavanaugh is next in the command structure. How could I not have changed that when I realised just how stupid you were!

"Actually, I am next in the command structure and no, I don't think that would work." What would you know imbecile. "I may have a few ideas but I want to check them out in more detail first."

Oh God, we're all going to die.

"I don't want to do anything to endanger Dr McKay any further." Oh yeah, since when? Rodney mentally gave Kavanaugh a very suspicious glare and he noticed Sheppard's eyes startle slightly before resuming the casual air that he had before.

"I'm glad to see you're worried about Rodney. To be honest I didn't think you would be eager for him to return to us given your past arguments." Sheppard's tone was carefully casual but McKay knew that tone. Ha! Thank god you're smarter than the average grunt! You'll figure it out just please god don't stop looking for me, Sheppard. Please god, don't leave me in here.

"We did clash on a few ideas but that's scientists for you, we are a very emotional bunch. At the end of the day we have our love of science in common and I don't know anyone, apart from me, who loves science as much as McKay. We were slowly finding a way to communicate. Now, if you will excuse me, Colonel? Dr Keller has taken all the tests she can from me and I have been released. I want to get back to the labs and see if I can find a solution to this." Forgive me if I don't hold my breath but feel free to hold yours.

"Okay," Sheppard responded. "I need to bring Elizabeth up-to-date and hopefully we will have some answers from Dr. Keller shortly. Let me know if you find anything." Sheppard dismissed him with a distracted nod as he watched McKay's body.

McKay watched as Kavanaugh left the infirmary, only half watching through his eyes as he tried to think on his current predicament and how to get the hell out of Kavanaugh without being able to communicate with anyone and therefore it took him a little longer to realise that they were not heading towards to Labs but towards Kavanaugh's quarters.

Oh Yeah, that's about right, slacker. Go for a lie down and rest your brain as you've probably overworked it already. Hey, I wonder if this is like Cadman… if he sleeps then I may be able to get control of this body. He steeled himself, remembering how much mental power it had taken to try and get control of his body when he was fighting with Cadman. He tensed, waiting for Kavanaugh to relinquish control.

Kavanaugh went straight to the bathroom. Oh God! Please no, don't make me see that. I wonder if I mentally shut my eyes I can block this out. I could be mentally scarred for life after this. Thankfully, Kavanaugh just went straight to the sink and gripping the sink so tight his knuckles turned white he glared at himself in the mirror. "Do you ever just shut up, McKay!"

The shock of his words stopped McKay's rambling dead. Wait! You can hear me?

"Of course I can hear you. Yabbering away, non stop drivel and while we are on the subject my project would not have blown us to kingdom come and I am more than capable of adding 2+2 without the use of a calculator and now," he continued as his face fell into a smug smirk, "I finally get to prove it without you or Zelenka breathing over my shoulder, holding me back. Finally, everyone will be able to see that you are not the only genius around here. Zelenka is not due back for two weeks and I am in charge. A few days of me and they won't even bother trying to figure out how to wake you up."

You… you can't be serious. You can't just leave me in here. You just can't.

To be continued...