A/N: Just a quick note to say a GREAT BIG THANKS to ga unicorn for the awesome beta. If patience is a virtue, then she is very virtuous. You rock, ga unicorn! All other errors of any kind are my own. Hope you enjoy.
Disclaimer: Not my toy box. I just get to play with the toys.
Trapped In Atlantis
Part 1 of 4
"Another typical day in Atlantis." Colonel Sheppard grumbled sarcastically under his breath. He signed off on the current file and forwarded it to be included in the weekly data burst to Earth, then pulled up the next one awaiting his approval. Since their last off world mission a little more than a week ago Dr. Carson Beckett had relegated him to light duty. This was after what Carson termed his obligatory off world injury. This time Sheppard thought the damage had been relatively minor, all things considered. Fewer stitches than he had first estimated for the gash in his right leg. Could have been much worse, he figured. Actually it had been worse on several occasions, now that he thought about it. He had tried to explain that to Carson, but the doctor hadn't bought it.
"Exactly my point, Colonel. In the past ten missions you've come back injured four times. This time I'm putting you on light duty for at least a week to give your leg time to recuperate."
"Last mission it was Rodney, not me, who came back injured," he replied defensively, wishing Carson hadn't been keeping up with it so accurately. "Before that it was Ronon. But that was only because we were ambushed."
"Aye, if I remember right you were all in here for some form of treatment that time. You know for all Rodney's jokes about my medicine being something akin to voodoo, you all seem to be in need of it frequently enough." Finishing the bandaging on the Colonel's leg, Carson looked up at him and asked, "Are you competing to see who can have the most injuries while on missions in current Atlantis history?"
Smiling, Sheppard replied, "We just thought: if we're going to set the bar we might as well set it high enough that everyone else will have to work hard to reach it."
"Aye. I can say you bloody well may accomplish it." Pausing, Carson added, "And send your doctor to an early grave as well."
"Somehow, Carson, I think you're made of stronger stuff than that," John encouraged.
"And you and your team feel duty-bound to continually test my mettle."
"We wouldn't want you to be bored."
"Oh no, Sheppard. Certainly no one could accuse you of that." Carson walked over to a dry-erase board and put a new hash mark next to John Sheppard's name.
Sheppard groaned, wondering when that had been put up. "Carson, please tell me you don't have a pool going."
"We have to get our pocket-money somehow. It's not like our regular's tip us," he answered studying the chart on the wall. "By the way, I know you've logged a lot of time in here recently but I think Rodney must be trying to play catch up."
"How so?" Sheppard asked, noting that the comment had not been made in jest. Before Carson could answer a nurse came in to say that another team had returned with an injured person.
Carson sighed, but nodded toward his board. "Looks like if this keeps up you might have some competition."
"Bring it on," Sheppard teased, which earned him a threatening scowl from the doctor. "Just kidding, Carson."
oooOooo
Laptop in hand, Rodney, hurried down the hall toward Colonel Sheppard's office eager to share his most recent discovery. Although they had occupied Atlantis for quite a while now, they were still finding that the city housed many secrets and surprises.
Swallowing to push back nausea, Rodney was beginning to think that it might have been wise to pass up the single cup of coffee that he had drunk earlier. It felt as if the beverage was still brewing in the pit of his stomach. Thankfully soup was on the menu for later and he hoped it would settle his stomach better than the toast and coffee he had at breakfast.
A few days ago, Rodney had attributed the burning in his gut to too much caffeine. He had been deep in the ancient archives looking for specific entries that he was researching. He had assumed the headache and nausea were due to the beginning of a hypoglycemic reaction. Now more fatal physical complications were plaguing his mind.
It was just that so many things demanded his attention here in Atlantis. One of which had piqued his curiosity to the point he had stayed up most of the night for the last several days, scouring the archival records. Admittedly, it had been a tedious task. But with so little information available, he was desperate for anything that would help him solve the little mystery he had stumbled across.
Rodney knocked on the door, startling Sheppard, who'd been daydreaming. Jerking upwards to a more professional posture he began typing as though he had simply been interrupted. "Rodney," he acknowledged.
"Colonel Sheppard. I see you're hard at work on your ever increasing stack of mission reports," Rodney remarked.
"Well we can't all have your focus and energy. Especially when we don't have ten cups of coffee flowing though our veins before noon."
"Some people find their comfort in chocolate. I happen to find mine in coffee," Rodney defended.
Sighing, Sheppard pushed back his chair and got up to stretch his legs. Matter of fact, he thought to himself, a cup of coffee right about now might not be such a bad idea. Dr. Weir's version of light duty was about to put him to sleep. Mission reports should be done in small shifts. Right now, missions were bleeding together and the details were blurring. "Since I know you didn't come up to talk about my illustrious desk job, why don't you tell me what's on your mind."
Rodney's eyes suddenly lit up. Boyish eagerness laced his voice. "Actually, I thought you'd like to accompany me into the bowels of Atlantis for a research project."
"Doesn't sound like a very pleasant place. What are we researching?" Sheppard asked, wondering what McKay was up to.
"Ahh." Rodney pointed his finger heavenward. "That's the beauty of it. What would you think if I told you it could possibly be the greatest discovery in Atlantis thus far?"
"I'd have to say with you, Rodney, it's always the greatest discovery."
"Which you have to admit it usually is," Rodney insisted smugly.
"If not the greatest disaster," Sheppard couldn't help but add, not wanting to feed the monster ego within Rodney. He stood with his arms akimbo and asked, "Alright, I'm curious. What makes this one so special?"
"Well, actually… that is… I'm not completely sure yet," Rodney admitted, albeit reluctantly. "At this point it's merely speculation which is why I thought we might go check it out."
"I see."
Rodney smirked, lifting his eyebrows. "Would you rather I leave you to your stack of mission reports? Perhaps they would provide more stimulation for your lackluster imagination. Hmm?"
Sheppard scowled, snapping down the lid of his laptop. He'd give anything if The Powers That Be would let him do the exploration and someone else handle the paperwork, but it seemed one didn't come without the other. "That's low, McKay."
"Perhaps," Rodney freely admitted, stepping aside for Sheppard to get through the door before following him out. Frowning, the scientist noticed his friend was still favoring his right leg slightly. Feeling somewhat concerned, Rodney pulled him to a stop. "Are you sure you're up for a walk?"
"I'm touched, Rodney. First you goad me into taking a jaunt through Atlantis with you and now you want to know if I'm really up to it?"
"I just…" Rodney started, slightly repentant. Sheppard would have begun the conversation with questions of his well being. With Rodney it tended to be almost an afterthought. Not that he cared any less, he would tell you. Perhaps his excuse this time was that he hadn't been feeling at his best himself.
"Relax, Rodney," Sheppard reassured him. "It's just a little stiff from sitting all morning. Matter of fact a walk might actually help it."
"Of course."
Surprised to see another member of his team coming down the hall, he called out to her, "Teyla!"
"Good afternoon, John. Rodney."
"What brings you here today? I thought you were going to accompany Ronon off world."
"I did. We finished the trade agreement. I had some business on the mainland to take care of and have just returned. Ronon found there were some Satedans on the planet and wished to stay a while longer."
"Maybe you'd like to walk with us then," he suggested. "Rodney has something he wants to check out in the city."
"Oh?" she said, visibly interested. "So we do not need our gear?"
"No." Turning to Rodney as they entered the transporter, he asked, "So, what is it exactly that we're looking for?"
After the door hissed shut, Rodney explained, "I've been studying the blueprint schematics of Atlantis for quite some time."
"And?" Sheppard prompted.
"And," Rodney stressed, his tone harsh with annoyance at having been interrupted. "A couple of days ago, I found an older version of the schematics and there seems to be some inconsistencies between the two."
"So we're chasing some miscalculation in the ten thousand year old blueprints of Atlantis?" Sheppard asked.
"At first, yes, I thought so. But then I stumbled across an entry in the archives that made references about a weapon that the Lanteans were working on."
"And this is of interest why? They were always working on weapons or devices."
"True," the scientist agreed. "And it's part of our job to research each and every one in the hope of coming up with something to help in our war against the Wraith."
"And you think that there is a device such as that hidden in the city?" Teyla asked.
"Again, perhaps. The entry went on to indicate that the research was being done under the pretext of some geological research. I can only assume that it might have been the reason for the differences in the schematics." Rodney paused for a breath. "What's interesting is why someone would go to such lengths to hide it. I mean, so far, the rest of the labs have been easily accessed."
"So you think they might have been performing illegal experiments?" Sheppard inquired, still a little wary after the last time Rodney got his hands on an experimental weapon. And this was a lot closer to home.
"There's certainly a good possibility of that. But until we actually find the place I'm afraid there's little we can state positively. Then I got to thinking of all the places we've been where the people have made an effort to hide their technology."
"But don't you think you're jumping to conclusions here?" Sheppard asked.
"I agree. It does not make sense." Teyla interjected, pointing out. "The other worlds we have been on have hidden technology under the guise of having none. The Wraith already knew Atlantis was technologically advanced."
Sheppard nodded. "She's right. Not to mention The Lanteans were arrogant enough that it seems unlikely that they would have felt the need to hide it. Have you discussed this with Zelenka?"
The look on Rodney's face made the answer clear. While he was unsure if they would actually find anything, he would not share this information with any of the other scientists. Part of him thought about doing this alone, but if he had to trust anyone with the fact he might be wrong it would have to be his teammates. "I wanted a chance to prove or disprove it first," was the stilted reply.
Arriving at the lowest level of the city, Rodney led the way down the halls until they were at a inner wall near the desalinization tanks. "Now we begin to search."
"For what, Rodney? It's a wall," Sheppard observed dryly.
Scowling, Rodney replied, "Thank you for your report on the obvious. I think this may be a false wall. That's why we have to search."
"Please don't tell me we're planning on blowing something up today. Because I don't think Beckett or Weir would appreciate our efforts."
Teyla decided it was a good time to intervene. "Are you sure this is the correct location?"
"Positive," he replied, sounding frustrated. Sighing deeply, he began banging on the wall but didn't get any hollow sounds. Mumbling under his breath, he said, "There has to be something here."
"Rodney, are you really sure about this?" Sheppard came to stand beside him, looking for any obvious cracks in the wall. Whatever his thoughts on the matter he knew that Rodney usually wasn't so determined without a good reason.
"Everything okay down here, sir?" Peters, one of the marines that patrolled the area, asked when he came upon them. All three were showing an unusual interest in the wall. Teyla was standing behind them as if some great mural were painted upon it. Dr. McKay was hitting it with the palm of his hand while Colonel Sheppard was running his fingers along the wall. It was one of the moments you wished you had a digital camcorder where you could record the top staff and later put together a music video to show at a party. Oh yeah, this would make a great one, he mused, smiling to himself.
"Just fine." Sheppard answered and then scowled at Rodney when he saw Peters walking away with a bemused look on his face. "Are you trying to get Elizabeth to order us all into sessions with Heightmeyer?"
"Misery loves company."
"Thanks, but I'll pass."
"Perhaps we should come back another time," Teyla suggested.
Rodney was adamant. "No. I know there has to be something behind there. We just have to figure out how to gain access to it." Without another word he pulled his laptop out of his satchel and pulled up the schematics. "Maybe we just haven't found the right point of entrance."
On a whim Sheppard pushed his way around Rodney and began searching inside a small closet that was on the wall. It was a small rectangular room that obviously wasn't meant to hold much.
"Colonel?" Teyla stood behind him.
"Just checking on something." Turning to the left he began to systematically run his hand over the wall. It might turn out to be nothing but it couldn't hurt to try. Sure enough within a few moments part of the wall slid aside giving way to what appeared to be a fairly large room. "Rodney!"
Hearing the excitement in Sheppard's voice, Rodney put down his laptop and hurried to see what had been found.
"That better?" Sheppard asked with a grin.
"Much," Rodney said, awed that they had found it. A preliminary sweep of the room, lit only by the light from the hall, revealed absolutely nothing of what he expected. No equipment. No technology. But something caught his eye. "This can't be."
Sheppard was equally dumbfounded. "It looks like a…"
"Playroom," Teyla finished.
"Congratulations, Rodney." Sheppard recovered quickly and patted him on the back. "You've just discovered the first official Lantean clubhouse. We could have used this when the Athosian children were here."
"I don't get it." Rodney's eyes darted back and forth. This made no sense. Surely there had to be some mistake. "Why hide it on the schematics?"
Before anyone could speculate the door suddenly slid shut leaving them in complete darkness. Sheppard reacted and was at the door first, waving his hand over the sensor. Nothing. In frustration he hit it, thinking that when all else fails sometimes brute force works. The result was a loud pop, followed by a series of sparks. Rodney was behind him trying to push him out of the way, but it was no use. They were trapped. The clubhouse had suddenly become their prison.