In Your Head
Chapter 1
The day was warm, but with a cool breeze keeping everything comfortable. The sky was nearly cloudless and a brilliant blue. Green fields spotted with yellow flowers resembling an Earth variety of daisies or brown-eyed-Susan's spread across those places not filled with scruffy patches of over-grown woods. The gentle humming of insects and the trill of birds filled the air, giving the entire place a peaceful atmosphere.
Elizabeth Weir walked through the field of wild flowers, smiling slightly to herself. She had decided to come along on the most recent mission with Colonel Sheppard's team in order to gain a little more off-world experience. The world was supposedly uninhabited so would be of little interest to the Wraith—hence why they figured it would be unlikely for them to bump into any of the life-sucking pains in the asses and why Sheppard had actually consented to let her go without much of an argument. But he had teamed her up with Dr. Rodney McKay, figuring that if the Wraith did make an appearance they would do so at the 'Gate and so run into him and his men first before reaching Weir and the others.
The day was quiet but for the playful bickering Lieutenant Laura Cadman had initiated with Rodney. Elizabeth had only been half-listening until she heard the woman mention Rodney's date with Katie Brown—one of Atlantis's resident botanists. Just as surprised as Carson, she looked up sharply from her silent daydreaming just in time to see Rodney glance back at her with a guilty expression before flashing a dangerous glare at Cadman who gleefully ignored him.
"What—you have a date, Rodney?" Carson asked in surprise. "With a woman?"
Rodney glanced back at Elizabeth again, this time with an unreadable expression on his face, before he looked at Carson. He sighed heavily and his voice came out laced with heavy sarcasm.
"Yes I have a—yes with a woman." He interrupted himself sharply, outraged that Carson should even imply such a thing. Carson looked at Rodney innocently—he looked at everybody innocently—but Cadman laughed merrily as she scooped down to pick a fistful of wild flowers.
"Ah, it's okay, Rodney." She grinned over her shoulder. "I think it's cute."
"Well of course you would." Rodney snapped back irritably, obviously uncomfortable with the open discussion of his private life. "You're a woman—and how did you hear about this anyway?"
"Lady's poker night." Cadman grinned playfully. "You should hear the things we tell each other."
"Well… Elizabeth, did you know about this?" Rodney asked, looking over his shoulder at the woman. Elizabeth shook her head.
"Not a word of it, Rodney." She assured him. "I've never had the time for poker—besides it would be unfair to the other women."
Cadman grinned back at Elizabeth.
"Don't worry, Dr. Weir, I'll get you to beat us at a game of poker sooner or later!"
Elizabeth managed an answering grin.
"I look forward to it, Lieutenant."
Rodney threw another cryptic look over his shoulder at Elizabeth before he returned to glaring at Laura Cadman.
"Well, poker night or no, it seems a massive misuse of personal information to be raving about other people's personal and private lives without their permission—"
Cadman stopped dead in her tracks and held up a hand. Rodney's glare hardened.
"No, I will not be quiet. You women have no right to be—"
"Dr. McKay, shut up." Cadman snapped. Something in the woman's tone seemed to set off warning bells because Rodney's mouth immediately snapped shut. Moments later Elizabeth heard the horrible sound—a high-pitched, buzzing whine. Though she had never heard the sound personally, she had had it described to her enough times to know what it was. But there had been no word from Sheppard's team at the 'Gate. The dart must have already been on the planet when they arrived.
Cadman tapped her radio.
"Colonel Sheppard, we've got Wraith." She said calmly, the only indication that she was worried was a slight sharpness to her tone.
"Take cover." Sheppard's voice snapped instantly over the radio. "We can't let them see us or they'll know Atlantis is still in one piece."
Cadman nodded and looked at the doctors in her charge.
"You heard the man." She said, instantly in military mode. "We'll head for those trees."
She pointed ahead to a thin line of woods on the horizon. No one objected—they merely nodded and started running towards the safety of the forest line.
Carson and Cadman quickly out paced Elizabeth and Rodney. Strangely enough, Elizabeth had a feeling that Rodney could have easily kept up with the others, but was deliberately slowing his steps to keep stride with her. Though she thought he was an idiot for doing it, she appreciated the gesture anyway. As he ran beside her, McKay flashed her a lopsided grin.
"How's this for your second off-world expedition?" he asked breathlessly. Weir couldn't help but grin back.
"Not what I expected." She admitted. They were still smiling when they heard Cadman's shout.
"Get down!" she shouted, turning to face the sky behind them and over their heads. They heard the loud buzzing of the drone and the two of them looked up just in time to see the brilliant beam of blue-white light. A moment later the place where Rodney and Elizabeth had been running was empty.
Carson, seeing his friends disappear into the Wraith dart, froze in shock and only avoided being taken himself by Cadman roughly shoving him into the dirt out of the path of the dart before throwing herself out of the way.
Cadman got to her knees and tapped her radio again.
"Colonel, it's headed your way." She said into the radio.
"Colonel Sheppard," Carson shouted into his own radio, "they beamed up Rodney and Elizabeth."
There was a moment of silence on Sheppard's end, and then his strained voice spoke once again.
"Shoot it down." He ordered his men. "If that dart gets away, Atlantis's cover is blown."
"But, Colonel—" Carson tried to argue.
"Just do it!" Sheppard shouted to whoever had a gun to fire. From the sound in his voice he was none too pleased to be doing what he was doing, but he was right. Better to loose two people—no matter how valuable—then to lead the Wraith back to the city and hand them Atlantis and Earth on a silver platter.
Carson watched in horror as gunfire soared over the trees, striking the dart and knocking it out of the sky. And then Carson watched it tumble out of the air straight towards him and Cadman.
"Oh, crap." He swore as he ran to get out of the way. Once again it was Cadman that saved him, throwing them both to the side just as the dart slammed into the Earth and slid several feet across the grass and dirt before coming to a smoking halt.
As the dust cleared and they could see the ship again, both Cadman and Carson saw the Wraith pilot barely alive in the cockpit. Carson, as much of a bleeding heart as ever, tried to convince it that he was there to help him, but before the Wraith could accept or deny any such help Cadman aimed her P-90 and let an explosion of gunfire eat the Wraith's chest, killing him instantly.
Carson leapt back in alarm and looked at Cadman with a horrified expression.
"He could have told us how to release Dr. Weir and Rodney!" Carson exploded, sounding as close to angry as he ever got. Cadman glared at him.
"He was reaching for the self-destruct." She snapped. "That wouldn't have helped Doctors Weir or McKay any more than trying to convince him to tell us how to get them out. In fact, it would have been less help. Now come on."
"Come on where?" Carson demanded, turning to watch Cadman march towards the distant 'Gate. She threw a glare over her shoulder.
"We've got to get back to the 'Gate. The sooner we get someone out here the sooner we can figure out how to get them out of the dart."