"Ow!" Mckay slapped at his neck and looked anxiously at the small insect.
Sheppard regarded him with amusement. "Something the matter, McKay?"
"Yes, there's something the matter! I was just bitten by an alien life form! There could be all kinds of microbes swarming through my bloodstream!"
The major peered at McKay's neck. "Looks like a mosquito bite to me."
"I'll have you know I'm very sensitive to mosquito bites too," huffed McKay.
Sheppard sighed. He hadn't had any illusions that he would enjoy this outing with the scientist, but his patience was wearing thin. From the moment he had walked into McKay's lab, the man had done nothing but whine and complain…
"What is it, Major? As you can see, I'm extraordinarily busy with important work and I have no time for stupid questions."
Sheppard would have turned and walked out the door if Elizabeth Weir hadn't personally asked him to get to know Mckay and he managed a smile. "No stupid questions, Doctor McKay. Elizabeth spoke to me about you wanting to go offworld and I thought we'd take a quick trip."
The scientist looked up from some piece of alien tech with interest. "Offworld? You mean through the stargate?"
"Unless your idea of offworld is to take a puddle jumper and orbit the planet, yeah, I mean the stargate."
Mckay looked suspicious. "Why?"
"I told you. Elizabeth told me about how you want to get on a team and get out there and the only way I can decide if you're up to the challenge is to see how you perform in the field."
"Oh." The scientist fiddled with the alien device again, then tossed it away. "When did you want to go?"
"How about an hour? Teyla gave me the addresses of a couple of planets to check out. They've been uninhabited for as long as her people can remember, so the Wraith have no interest in them and they should be safe enough for a little field trip."
"Well…"
The major shrugged. "Up to you, doctor. I have a lot of people to evaluate and if you're too busy, I'll try to get back to you next week." He started to leave and smiled to himself as McKay called him back.
"How long would we be?"
"Just a couple of hours." Sheppard looked over the chaotic pile of papers weighted with bits and pieces of technology human and alien. "You won't be away long from your important work."
They had gone through the stargate, McKay complaining that Sheppard had said an hour and it had actually been an hour and ten minutes before the major showed up in the gate room, then there had been a nonstop barrage from McKay about the sun and his sensitive skin and the rough terrain and how he hoped they would get back before one of the other scientists ruined what he was working on. Sheppard let it all wash over him without really listening, although he couldn't help noting what a beautiful place this world was and thinking wistfully how much nicer it would be without McKay's annoying voice in the background.
If ever there was a place that could qualify as the garden of Eden, this was it. The stargate was set in the middle of an emerald green field thick with wildflowers, their forms unfamiliar but their scent as sweet as anything back on Earth. The sunlight felt good on Sheppard's face, and birds sang liquid melodies that seemed to pierce his soul. Had birdsong always been this beautiful or was it a special quality of the birds on this planet? Several trees advanced from a forest so old that the ground was bare of any small plants other than bizarre fungi that reminded Sheppard of mushrooms. He was bending down to look at a particularly interesting specimen when McKay pulled him back, warning about spores. That was a fair point, and the major conceded with a nod that the scientist was probably right. He continued to walk, McKay's voice making about as much of an impression as a babbling brook, then realized that he actually was hearing running water. He headed towards the sound and they came out of the cool shadows of the trees to find themselves at the edge of a bluff. At the bottom was a fast noisy stream, bright silver fish flashing through the water and small insects buzzing through the air. It was one of these that had bitten McKay and brought the major back to the reason for this offworld trip.
He had something to talk to McKay about, something so serious and private he hadn't wanted to raise the subject on Atlantis at all. Elizabeth thought Sheppard's only reservations about the scientist were his abrasive personality and his civilian status, and he let her think that, but if McKay couldn't satisfy him on the point he wanted to address, he was going to drop him back in his lab and look elsewhere for a fourth member for his team.
