Evil Intent

Chapter One

Friday, 0730 hours…

Lt. Daniels stood in the Gateroom, waiting to go home along with fellow Marines who had just completed a 12-month rotation. He gripped his military – issue duffel bag securely. No one had questioned its benign contents during the routine inspection required of all personnel who were going back to Earth. No one had given him, or what he was actually carrying, a second thought.

Several anxious individuals awaited the arrival of his precious cargo. They could do what they wanted with it; he was just their delivery boy. All he cared about was the money, a new identity, and the chance to disappear. Good riddance to the military life.

The lieutenant stepped through the event horizon and was gone. He'd never understand the true impact of what he had done.

Two days earlier…..

"Sheppard!"

Damn, he was so close. A few more steps and he would be in the mess hall; cheeseburgers, and a "chance" encounter with the new lab tech from astrobiology, awaited.

"McKay, unless the Wraith are attacking, or even worse, Woolsey has paperwork, you never saw me," implored Sheppard, practically breaking out into a run.

"Sorry, no can do. Lorne's team brought back that Ancient thingy this morning from MM4-287, remember? Well, it seems to be intact, not broken – but not even Lorne's natural ATA gene can activate it and…"

"Since when do you call Ancient technology "thingies"? Sheppard snapped back over his shoulder, mess hall in sight.

"Since I'm starving and in a hurry, 'cause Wednesday is cheeseburger day and the supply runs out fast, you know…"

(Sheppard knew too well…..)

"Well, Woolsey saw the artifact and it has Ancient writing on it, that our so-called expert linguist Dr. Savitz is stumped by, so…"

Sheppard stopped short, spun around on his heel, and gave up. "So, everybody has agreed to intercept Colonel Sheppard," he griped, "before he can get one of those rare cheeseburgers." (Or the even rarer red-haired, green-eyed, 5' 4" lab tech that liked golf and had been taking flying lessons back on Earth, muttered Sheppard to himself.)

McKay paused long enough to try and look suitably chastised, and then piped up "I can save you a burger if you want, they microwave pretty good later although the bun gets kinda soggy…"

"When and where do you want me, McKay? Let's just get this done with," said an exasperated Sheppard, recognizing defeat when he saw it. Sometimes it was just plain easier to get snared by the lab geeks than try to avoid them.

"Uh, now, lab #3 with Dr. Inouye," McKay replied, with so much enthusiasm it made Sheppard's head hurt. He didn't need that; if testing out this "thingy" was like the other times, he'd have a migraine before he knew it.

Thursday, 2200 hours…

Sheppard made his way in the general direction of his quarters. Generally, because he was so tired he was letting his feet guide him more than his mind. And speaking of that, he didn't think he had a brain cell left that hadn't been tested over the past few days. Ronon, god bless him, had broken the arm and punctured the lung of a village elder's son on MM6-720 during a "ceremonial" display of warrior skills, part of a bonding ritual with the Zorn. With Teyla's help, Sheppard had been able to soothe damaged egos. Of more immediate concern, however, was an emergency video conference with Caldwell regarding recent attempts to hack into SGC and Area 51 computers. Some of the data targeted was related to Atlantis personnel and technology. The severity of the breach was as yet unknown; the hackers had covered their tracks well. McKay and Zelenka were heading an investigation at Atlantis's end, in coordination with SGC security on Earth.

And then, if that wasn't enough, Dr. Inouye had kept badgering him about the find from Lorne's mission. Sheppard had been able to make it glow a bit, but he didn't know what it was for and neither did the scientists. The mostly ruined building where it was found provided few clues. It was metal and roughly the size of a large watermelon, but with sharper edges, and not quite as heavy. It wasn't a solid object; instead, it resembled a thick block that had been carved like filigree, with angular lines and empty spaces. At each end was a smooth, solid metallic disc. The science staff thought it might be a component of something larger, rather than a single, unique device. Dr. Savitz was trying to translate the Ancient markings on it; maybe the answers lay there. Sheppard was in no hurry to find out, though; whatever the thing was, he didn't like touching it. It felt…disturbing, on his skin and inside his head. That wasn't normal, even when he considered all the Ancient tech he had come in contact with over the years. He was relieved when the lab staff had turned him loose.

As he finally neared his rooms, Sheppard was surprised to see a Marine waiting outside the door – well, he hardly saw him; why were the lights so dim? Was he gonna have to "think" them on again, too? And why did this soldier need him now? Sheppard wearily went to address him.

He barely registered the blinding flash as a small object was pointed at him…and John vanished. His attacker slipped the item into his pocket and stepped away several feet down the hall. He pulled a short metal rod from another pocket which he directed at the security cameras. Lt. Daniels then hurried off to pack.

Friday, 0915 hours…

"Sheppard!"

McKay had better things to do with his time than track that man down. Didn't Sheppard know the meeting should have started 15 minutes ago? Rodney then grimaced, realizing he had barked into his radio headset in the middle of the conference room, surrounded by Woolsey, Teyla, Ronon and Lorne.

"Thank you, Dr. McKay," Woolsey commented. "But let's give Colonel Sheppard another minute or two, shall we? From what I understand, the past few days have been rather…trying." (That was an understatement. The Zorn situation just wouldn't go away; Harvard hadn't prepared Richard for irate villagers bearing spears.)

"He did forego our scheduled session in the gym yesterday," Teyla said. "I believe he mentioned a headache, which must have been severe, as the Colonel does not usually yield to illness." She spoke sympathetically while throwing a hard glance at Rodney. She knew how much he had been pestering John about the scientist's latest acquisition.

They sat for a few more minutes. "Well, let's try again," said Woolsey, breaking the awkward silence as he tapped his earpiece. "Colonel Sheppard, please report to the conference room right away." His polite tone barely masked his aggravation. When there was no reply, he switched to a channel which broadcasted directly into John's quarters. "Colonel Sheppard, you are needed immediately in the Gateroom." Again, no answer. A page to Sheppard over Atlantis's city-wide system also failed to elicit a response.

"Maybe he's cranked his iPod up really loud," offered Rodney, silently hoping that Sheppard wasn't unconscious somewhere on migraine painkillers. At the same time, he punched keys on his tablet. "Uh, guys, I'm not getting a hit on Sheppard's subcutaneous transmitter."

"He didn't go out in a Jumper, did he? asked Ronon.

"Apart from this morning's outgoing troops, no one's gone through the 'Gate since yesterday afternoon. If he went to the mainland for some reason, he would have logged out a Jumper, which he hasn't," Lorne replied, concern creeping into his voice.

The atmosphere in the conference room was becoming anxious. "Major, please dispatch a security team to Colonel Sheppard's quarters immediately," Woolsey instructed.

"Already on it," grunted Ronon, who was out the door in seconds. Lorne, Teyla and McKay sprinted to join him.

It didn't take long to determine that Sheppard was not in his rooms, or anywhere on the planet for that matter. Security cameras inside the City had tracked him during the previous evening, but…

"Someone's tampered with the video system," McKay announced when they gathered back at Woolsey's office. "Any images that would have been time-stamped between roughly 9:45 PM and 10:30 PM have been deleted. And that includes activity extending about 50 feet on either side of the door to Sheppard's quarters. What the hell's going on?! McKay was close to losing it.

No one could answer him.

TBC…