Very sorry for the long delay. Real life has been an absolute sod recently (apologetic grimace for the language). Wouldn't it be so much easier if we didn't have to work for our daily bread? Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far. Your comments and encouragement are really appreciated and the one I got last week prompted me to actually finish this and post it!
Part 4 - The Ghost in the Machine
McKay was sitting in his lab working, pouring over the data that he'd recorded on the planet. He kept re-playing the meeting with Elizabeth in his head. It hadn't gone well. He'd given her an ultimatum and she'd forbidden him from returning to the planet.
"Rodney, I can't allow you or anyone else to take a team back to that planet until you can give me a 100 per cent reassurance that you can counteract whatever it is that is causing the hallucinations and that you have a solid theory as to what is going on."
It was a reassurance he hadn't been able to give and he'd sat there mouth open for a few moments until he had launched into the offensive.
"How can you not let us go back to the planet, Elizabeth? It's Sheppard's life we are talking about!"
"Rodney, I'm not saying you can't go back, I'm saying that we can't go back until we know it is safe…"
"But we can't just leave him there!"
"You must understand that I can't send in a team of people to what could be their deaths to look for one person, who may be, for all we know, fine."
"If he was fine I think we'd know don't you?"
"Rodney! This is difficult enough as it is without you making it worse!"
"Just be reasonable, Elizabeth. Let me go back to the planet and I'll work this out!"
"In the same way you worked out what was happening when you were there last time? Rodney, my answer is no until you can give me more than an unsubstantiated 'it's going to be fine'. Do you understand?"
She'd held his gaze for what felt like minutes but was probably only seconds until he acquiesced with a brief nod that had set his head pounding again.
"Rodney, you aren't fit for duty – go and get some sleep, Zelenka and Grodin will carry on reviewing the data whilst you sleep. In the meantime, Bates, can you put a team on standby? I want to be able to send a team as soon as Dr Zelenka and Dr Grodin give us the all clear."
She'd looked up at Rodney to be sure he'd understood her and then dismissed him with a nod.
How dare she treat him like that? He'd been smouldering as he left the conference room and had barely noticed he was being accompanied by Teyla as he made his way to the lab flagrantly disregarding the order to rest.
How dare she treat him like a three year old being sent to bed whilst the grown ups sorted out the problem? They didn't trust him that was it. They had decided that this was his fault and it was! How could he rest knowing he'd caused this? He felt helpless, sick and an overpowering sense of guilt.
Something had happened on the planet of which he should have been aware. He had missed something and now it looked like Major Sheppard might pay for that mistake with his life.
He grunted to himself and dragged his attention back to the data that was scrolling across his screen ignoring Zelenka and Grodin who were conferring together on the other side of the room.
The problem was that he hadn't exactly been truthful when he said he had a theory about what was going on although he had been truthful about being 70 per cent sure he could block the hallucinations. He'd briefed Zelenka and Grodin on that and had set them working and then had turned to the other problem. When he had spoken to Elizabeth he had had a hunch (that had been proven wrong) as to what was going on but no fully formed idea and definitely no concrete plan. One thing, however, he did know was that whatever was going on it was very, very bad for Sheppard, alone, unaware of his surroundings on a world where daytime temperatures exceeded 45 degrees.
He scrubbed at his eyes with the heels of his hands in an attempt to alleviate the pounding headache behind them and went back to squinting at the screen.
Teyla, who had accompanied him in accordance with Beckett's wishes that someone be with McKay at all times, winced as she watched him, her eyes almost watering in sympathy. She noted with concern that he was still pale under his sun burn, as pale as he had been when he first woke up and that the dark shadows under his eyes were deepening. She checked her watch. "Do you not have to return to the Infirmary for a check up, Dr McKay?" she asked.
"Quiet, I'm busy," he snapped and carried on pouring over the data.
"Rodney, this is Carson. I'm just reminding you that you are due back in the Infirmary for a check up about now," Beckett's voice was slightly tinny over the radio. Barely pausing in his work, McKay reached up and removed his ear piece and let it drop onto the desk.
Seeing this Teyla frowned slightly and looked questioningly at Ford who had just entered the lab.
"What are you doing here?" asked McKay irritably. "Isn't one watch dog enough?"
"I'm not watching, that's Teyla's job. I came to see if you needed any help," replied Ford.
"And exactly how do you want to help me?" asked McKay abrasively.
"I don't know, I just want to help," replied Ford.
"And when I have figured this out and it is time for brute force and ignorance then maybe you can, but until then, keep out of my hair!" snapped McKay throwing Ford a sour look.
Teyla thought McKay was acting like a wounded animal snarling and snapping at everyone around it.
"So you haven't found a solution yet, McKay?" Ford continued.
"No, I think even you should have been able to work that out by now," McKay snapped. "Was it the fact that we're still here and not on a rescue mission that gave it away?"
"But we're running out of time!"
"Of that, Lieutenant, I am aware and you are now wasting my time so shut up and go away instead of making puerile offers of assistance."
"No, I'm serious, McKay. Is there anything I can do?"
Without looking up from his laptop McKay said, "So tell me, Lieutenant Ford. Just when in basic training did you cover interpreting Ancient technology? Was it before or after your degree in advanced mathematics? Or in between your PhD programmes? I ask merely for information as you must obviously have these qualifications since you are offering to help."
Ford's short store of patience with McKay was used up and he said irritably, "Fine, so I'll just wait for you to fix whatever it was you screwed up on the planet and then I'll go and save the Major's ass, OK? Just say the word when you're ready, McKay, just say the word."
McKay scowled and turned his back on Ford. This was just what he needed, more pressure, more blame. Ford opened his mouth to speak again but was cut off by a call on his radio. "Yes, Dr Beckett?" he answered.
"Lieutenant Ford, do you recall I asked you or Teyla to stay with Dr McKay at all times?"
"Yes, Doc, I do," his eyes alighted on McKay's radio where it lay discarded on the desk.
"Well then, could you be so kind as to tell me where he is at this very moment and why he's not here in the Infirmary as we agreed? And Laddie? If he resists I suggest that you remind him that he needs my clearance before he goes through the gate again."
With a slightly malicious smile Ford ignored McKay's pantomime of actions that meant he was to tell Beckett he didn't know where he was and said, "Doc, he's right here in his lab. He just doesn't have his radio on. I'll bring him down to see you now. See you in five."
McKay looked up and gave Ford a look, his best withering look, and then said, "I don't have time for this. I have got to find out what happened before we can return to the planet and every minute counts."
Ford said nothing in response, just raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced towards the door. McKay could see he was serious. "Alright, fine. I'm coming," he said and with bad grace he snapped his laptop closed, tucked it under his arm and stood up to accompany Ford to the Infirmary.
"Here he is, Doc." Lieutenant Ford walked into the Infirmary with his hand resting on McKay's shoulder. McKay's face was as black as thunder and Beckett's eyes were dark with concern as he took in the pinched look to McKay's face and the unhealthy cast to his skin.
"Rodney, I seem to remember that both Elizabeth and I have told you to get some rest," he observed.
McKay gave him a sour look and said, "I'm fine, Carson. There is a time element here you know. Sheppard is on a desert world in the burning heat in the grip of a hallucination. I really don't think that I have time for a quick nap do you? And anyway, if you hadn't dropped me on my head you wouldn't be ordering me to rest now would you?" McKay stomped over and sat down on the examination table and started rolling up his sleeve for the blood pressure cuff.
Beckett ignored McKay's accusation and picked up his pen light to examine his pupils. "Rodney, you are exhausted and you are concussed. You cannot keep going like this. You will push yourself too far. Don't you think that Zelenka and Grodin can do some of this?" he asked.
McKay's eyes flashed with fury at the implied statement that Zelenka and Grodin could do something he couldn't and he seemed almost ready to explode but then somehow he deflated a little and looked at Beckett, exhaustion clearly showing in his eyes.
"Carson, they are, I'm not quite so arrogant as to try to fix this one on my own but you heard what Elizabeth said, I have to have a guarantee of being able to block the hallucinations before she'll let us go back and I have to supply a plausible explanation as to why it's happening. I've got Zelenka and Grodin working on how to block the hallucinations – that is relatively simple. What I've got to come up with is the theory of how and why this happened and although I had a hunch the data doesn't back it up at all and..." McKay's voice trailed off and he retreated into his thoughts submitting to Beckett's examination. "The problem is that I couldn't get that damn chair to work and spent hours doing work arounds so I didn't have time to review the database," he continued softly to himself. "If only I'd managed to review the database there I might have a better idea of what was going on. I got most of the secondary systems on line but there was a problem with the primary programme, it seemed to be encrypted and so I focussed on a work around for the power supply, seeing if I could bypass it."
"Don't beat yourself up Rodney. You were tracking down the wee ghoulie."
"The wee what, Carson? You're talking nonsense."
"The wee ghoulie… the ghost in the machine that was giving you the run around," Beckett said as he gave McKay an appraising look weighing up his chances of getting him to go to bed for the 12 hours sleep he so obviously needed.
"The ghost in the machine?" McKay stared at Carson his face lighting up as the answer came to him. "Oh my god, Carson – you are a genius! I've got it! The ghost in the machine that is exactly it!" He stood up and tore the pressure cuff off his arm and pushed Beckett away as he headed purposefully for the door.
"Rodney, where the hell do you think you're going?" spluttered Beckett.
McKay turned around with a delighted grin and said, "Ghost busting…" then bounced on his heels and left the room.
Ford and Beckett exchanged confused looks and watched helplessly as the elemental force of nature that was McKay in the throes of a brilliant idea headed out of the Infirmary straight for the labs. With a wry glance at Beckett and a shrug of his shoulders Ford followed its wake.