Imposter
Author's note: This story begins immediately after my story "Klon". Andrew had already spent a couple of weeks on Atlantis by the time Klon ended.
Part One
Andrew still didn't understand what all the fuss was about. He sat uncomfortably at the conference table while everyone seemed to be looking at him. As if I have any answers. I don't even understand why this is an issue.
Five pairs of eyes turned to stare at him again, expecting an answer to some question he hadn't heard. Elizabeth, along with John and his team, all fixed their eyes on him. Rodney began to sigh impatiently.
"Sorry, what?" Andrew asked, raising his eyebrows while giving them a blank stare.
"I asked you what you remember about Kolya. You remember him: scary, mean guy, soviet outfit. Dang, Andrew, you don't listen any better than Carson sometimes," Rodney smacked his hand on the table in frustration.
"Rodney, don't be rude," Elizabeth said sharply before turning back to Andrew. "Andrew, we just need you to try to remember more recent events. What is the last thing you remember about Commander Kolya? Think hard. Try to really remember the last event when we encountered him."
"I remember him…didn't he kidnap John?" Andrew's voice was hesitant has he fished through someone else's memories. They don't understand. It's so hard to peel away layers of memories. The Michael-created ones are so hard to sift through. It's so much easier to let Carson's memories come naturally. "Yes, he took ye prisoner. Made a wraith feed off of ye. We saw ye age before our very eyes. But the wraith are full of tricks. Who knew they could reverse it if the wished," Andrew faced John, as the memories began to surface.
"There you go!" Rodney exclaimed, standing up and almost knocking his laptop off the table. "He remembers Kolya and the wraith but not Lucius Lavin…"
"I remember Lucius," Andrew interrupted. Andrew was unable to suppress the blush of embarrassment over his memories of Lucius and his behavior during that event. Carson's behavior! Andrew happily corrected himself. He didn't need to take the blame for everything; some things could just be Carson's fault. "Carson made a fool of himself bringin' that one to Atlantis," Andrew said, continuing his detachment from that occurrence.
Again, five set of eyes turned to look at him. I really don't like the way this meeting is going, Andrew thought, glancing at the door wistfully. He imagined the next time they looked away, he would sneak out the door and down the steps. Looking back he realized they were still watching him.
"Is that all you remember about Lucius? Just that one meeting? You never saw him again?" John leaned over and grasped his arm reassuringly, as if he could sense Andrew's desire to bolt.
"Yes, we just met that once. Carson brought him here, but he helped ye get rid of him as well. He won't be using his concoction to drug any more people," Andrew answered matter-of-factly, still separating himself from the Lucius fiasco.
"Andrew, do you remember returning to Earth?" Elizabeth leaned forward in her seat, looking into his eyes.
"Yes, we had to return. The Ancients booted us out. But the bloody buggers weren't willing to listen to us, and now they're all dead again," Andrew said shaking his head. "I bought some turtles before we came back to Atlantis. I'm glad Dr. Lee was able to find them new homes; I would hate for the wee ones to be neglected. We were able to free Atlantis, as well as General O'Neill and Agent Woolsey, from the Asurans. It was very good to come home."
"What about the whales and the specters. Do you remember this event, Dr. Beckett?" Teyla asked softly, attempting to jog his memory.
"The whales were using the specters to communicate with us and warn us of the solar blast, and to seek the protection of the Ancients – in this case, us," Andrew said rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Look, are ye about done on this trip down memory lane? I'm tired and trying to remember things actually makes me feel exhausted. I need to go rest." Andrew stood up and tried to leave, despite the fact that John still had a hold of his arm.
"Okay, that pins it down!" Rodney exclaimed again, his nervous energy turning into a march around the table. "He remembers the whales but not the second encounter with Lucius. That means that we are only talking about a span of a few weeks."
"But what are we talking about here?" John said, tightening his grip on Andrew while still turning to face the rest of the room. "What does this actually mean?"
"Michael insinuated that he cloned Carson and took his memories when he held him prisoner on that worthless planet. These memories that Andrew is having mean that at some point between the whales and Lucius, Michael got a hold of Carson again. He must have more of Carson's memories at that time."
Andrew sat down again slowly. His blue eyes wide with shock. That is why they have been looking at me like I'm daft for the last hour. That is why they've been pickin' my brain. Andrew kept his eyes on Rodney as he began his second trip around the table.
Everyone had been adamant about letting him remember what he could on his own, even going so far as to ban him from reading any mission files unless they pertained to a medical case he was working on. He still couldn't put most events in any kind of sequential order. He still got the Ancient Chaya confused with the ascending Teer. Both had almost captured the heart of the swashbuckling John Sheppard, befuddling the poor lad. Andrew shook his head to clear his wandering thoughts and focus in on what Rodney was about to say.
"We need to figure out exactly when he got a hold of Carson for the second time. We need to determine what information Carson may have been forced to give him. What missions did Carson have during the two weeks we are talking about?" Rodney turned to Elizabeth, finally stopping his pacing.
Elizabeth flipped open a file on her laptop and began scanning through the missions for the time in question. "Nothing much happened during that time. It was quiet. Carson only left Atlantis twice. Once to the Athosian settlement for routine checkups. He was with his staff and four marines almost the whole time. The second time was a mission with SGA-3 to M1J-473 where he, a couple of his staff, and a group of botanists, including Drs. Parrish and Stanford, were looking for a rotutas flower which was supposed to have cancer curing properties. There is a note here that Lieutenant Briggs was unable to reach Carson and Dr. Stanford, but he found them fifteen minutes later by a stream. Dr. Stanford indicated Carson had fallen in and hit his head."
"I remember that. Carson was dizzy and had headaches for days after that. In fact he seemed distant and forgetful at the time, but the imbecile medical staff was unable to find anything wrong with him. That has to be it! Stanford must have taken Carson to Michael. Damn, I hope the SGC puts him to death!" Rodney said viciously. "You Americans do have the death penalty? They'd execute for treason, right?"
"Down, boy," John smiled despite himself. "Elizabeth, he's right though. That has to be when Michael picked up the rest of Carson's memories. The second battle with the wraith 'mind-meld' has to be what shook Carson up so badly. No wonder he was detached."
They all began talking at the same time, with Rodney and John's voices rising above the others.
"Why does any of this matter? It doesn't change that I am the one here now," Andrew's soft voice was barely a whisper, but it penetrated though all the shouting. The five pairs of eyes turned to him again. "Nothin' that ye figure out or do will change the fact that it is me here now, not Carson. Why can't I just be who I am now?"
"Andrew, we just want to know what happened to Carson and to you," Elizabeth said, rising from her seat and placing a hand on his shoulder. John's hand, which had never left his arm, squeezed him gently.
"Well, I don't want to know!" Andrew stood up, shaking off both John and Elizabeth, and hurrying towards to door. "I'm going back to my quarters. My children need to be put to bed, and I'm tired as well." Without looking back, Andrew flew out the door and took the steps two at a time before sprinting out of the gateroom.
∞SGA∞
"What are ye two up to now?" Andrew asked, catching the two children as they ran down the hall laughing. Brador and Traysha skidded to a halt when they heard him.
"Nothin'!" Brador said innocently, while Traysha tried to stifle the grin which threatened to break out on her face.
"Where are you, proklít malý neřád?" Zelenka slipped into a series of angry Czech phrases from around the corner. Andrew thought there might be a few Czech swear words involved.
"Bye, Andrew!" Traysha said, grabbing her brother by the arm and running past him down the hall.
Andrew was suddenly face-to-face with the furious Czech. The Radek's lab coat was stained red and lavender, while his hands were a bright shade of violet. Andrew's attempt to cover up his laugh turned into a coughing fit that brought tears to his eyes. Andrew's mind brought the image of Radek's painted face after his return from the children's planet.
"Radek, do ye need to wash up?" Andrew asked, as soon as he could breath normally again. "Yer hands are a fright, and Rodney's not gonna be happy that ye ruined another lab coat."
"Andrew, so help me," Radek began stomping back and forth while spewing more Czech swear words. "Your children are very bad children. And your laughing doesn't help. They have taken it upon themselves to torment me. I am too important a scientist to submit to being teased like a little child, and I will not baby-sit your brats again."
"I am sorry, Radek. They only tease ye because they like ye. I'll talk to them. They'll be sad to know that ye don't like playing with them," Andrew said, choking back another laugh. "Let me help ye clean up. Come with me to the infirmary."
Radek walked with him, still mumbling under his breath in Czech. It didn't take long to get Radek's hands clean – rubbing alcohol and a little soap and water and at least Radek's hands were clean again. A cup of coffee and little conversation and Radek had calmed down again.
"I know it seems as though it doesn't matter when Michael created you and when he took Carson's memories, but you have to understand, it is not just for personal reasons that we want to know: Carson knew many things and secrets that we don't want the wraith to know, secrets that Stanford would not have been cleared for. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Weir just want to find out what needs to be altered. After Michael took Carson prisoner the first time, we feared what information had been given to him. Carson had no memory, so much had to change: passwords, the alpha site, immediate missions and plans. We were fearful for what he could gain by taking one of the chief officers of Atlantis." Radek, as always, saw right to the heart of the matter, easily explaining to Andrew the context for the probing questions posed by the others.
"It just feels again like I am not here. Like I am not free to be myself." Andrew shook his head sadly. Stop sounding like an outcast teenager, you're a thirty-eight year old man, who has three degrees and host of commendations from three different countries. Stop sniveling and buck up. And with that, Andrew forced himself out of his depression and put on a smile. "Okay, enough crying in m'coffee. Tell me again what Traysha did to ye."
∞SGA∞
"Let him go," Elizabeth's words stopped John in his tracks as he ran after the fleeing doctor. "We don't need him for the rest of this meeting, and I think he might like to be by himself for little while. This is hard on him, and he doesn't understand why we need to find out what happened. Focus on the task at hand, and then you can go after him."
"He's right. Why does it matter?" The big Satedan spoke for the first time in this meeting.
"We have to know what more information Michael got from Carson. We need to know how much more we've been compromised," Elizabeth answered calmly, turning back to her laptop. The room became silent for the first time since Andrew had spoken about Barroso.
"Why would Michael take the time to implant Andrew with the new memories that he had taken from Carson? Of what gain would that be to him?" Teyla's tone was soft but sure as she voiced a question that had not yet occurred to the others.
"That is a question we may not get answered now that Michael and the others were killed in the explosion," John said, confident of the truth of his words.
"I'm not so sure," Ronon said. "Michael makes a habit of showing up when you think he is dead. I think we should head back to Acronicus and go back over the remains of that ship."
"Good idea!" Rodney said, snapping his fingers. "There may still be computer banks and technology that could help us, maybe even get us information on Carson and Andrew."
"What do you say, Elizabeth," John said, his mouth curving into his lopsided grin. "We can be ready to move out tomorrow morning. We'll just pack a lunch and spend the day shifting though rubble."
"It's a go!" Elizabeth answered. "Please bring back good news."
TBC
Feedback is appreciated.