I don't own SGA or any of it's characters. I only own Puren and some of the extras. Hey there folks. Sorry it's been a few days, but I was finally able to write this chapter. Thank you for the new reviews. This is a bit of a short chapter, but you never know, the next one could be longer. I've already started writing it. So enjoy the chap. Ta. :)

Chapter Fourteen

"Well this sucks!" came the sudden comment from a corner of the debris strewn lab. Rodney stood up slowly from his crouched position and unconsciously rubbed his lower back.

Teyla looked at him from across the room. "What problem have you found know Dr. McKay?" she asked as she brushed a piece of hair away from her face.

"These two pods are completely ruined." He said as he threw his arms up in the air in complete frustration. "Damned Ancient technology."

"What about the other two pods?" she asked as she moved towards him. "Are they still working?"

"Well that's debatable. They should be working because they worked through that console over there and not through this one which caused the feedback loop. But they're not. There's something here that we're not seeing. That I'm not seeing. And yes, I'm admitting that freely. Just don't tell Sheppard or Ronan or I'll never hear the end of it." He said looking at her as she approached him. "Don't give me that look. You know what I mean. As soon as they hear that I'm admitting to any kind of defeat they'll bug me day and night. You know I'm right."

Teyla just stood with her arms crossed and her left eyebrow raised, staring at him in consternation. Rodney, unable to take the staring, self-consciously turned around and picked his data pad up off of the floor. He made a comment in his head but did not have the courage to voice the word to the Athosian. He knew he would get his ass kicked for it. Plus he knew that he really didn't feel that way about the woman so he pushed the thought out of his head and turned back to her. She had an amused smile on her face.

"What?" he said as he stood there and looked at her.

Her smile broadened and then she spoke. "You are worried for Colonel Sheppard and Ronan. It is nice to see you reacting this way. It is comforting."

"How am I reacting?"

She smiled and then turned away from him, letting him figure things out for himself. The man may have been an overbearing egomaniac, but he did care for his friends. And at least that was breaking his self absorbed attitude.

"Teyla! How am I reacting?" he said again as he watched her walk away. When she didn't answer him he frowned and then stood in place trying to figure out what she had been talking about. When he finally got it his features brightened and it was as if a light went off in his head. "Oh. I get it! I get what you mean! Thanks." And with that said he quickly went back to work without saying another word.

Teyla turned and just shook her head lightly, a smile plastered on her face. Rodney was definitely an interesting person to work with. One of a kind. And she wouldn't have it any other way.

Weir walked into her office and slumped down in her chair, resting her arms on the desk and then she put her head down on top of them. She was exhausted. She had laughed so hard with Beckett and Sheppard that she was having a hard time keeping her composure. It had been exhilarating to do that, especially knowing what lay just below the surface in John's mind. It hadn't lasted as long as she had hoped it would. Shortly after the display they gave to the infirmary staff, Puren seemed to rear his ugly head. John had almost immediately stopped laughing and he had grimaced in pain. 'I do not believe this is a prudent way of using my time Elizabeth Weir.' She had hated hearing those words coming from the mouth of John Sheppard. She, herself, along with Beckett had stopped their own laughing and had stood up as straight as their frames would allow them. Then the pilot had abruptly passed out. He could no longer keep the evil in the recesses of his mind. She knew that it meant that Puren was getting stronger and that they had to get the pods working as fast as they could. She had a gut feeling that it was only a matter of days before the Ancient device would take him over for good. A tear came to her eye and she sniffed her nose. She was so scared.

Elizabeth hitched her breath when she heard a knock at the door to her office. When she lifted her head up from her desk she saw Rodney and Teyla standing in front of her. She straightened immediately, knowing that they would have some kind of news for her… whether it was good or bad.

"I'm sorry Elizabeth, did we wake you?" Rodney asked as he stepped inside her office.

"Not at all Rodney." She said wiping the tears away from her eyes with her fingers. "I was just thinking. Please, come in and sit down." She gestured to the two chairs sitting opposite her on the other side of the desk.

Rodney and Teyla sat down across from her and waited until she composed herself before they mentioned what they had found. The head of Atlantis was looking extremely tired. They wondered if she had been getting any sleep. They doubted it. She probably wouldn't get much. At least not while John and Ronan were in the infirmary and John was so close to being lost. Naturally she was upset.

"Well, what have you found out about the pods?" Weir asked as she steepled her fingers in front of her.

"Two of the pods are completely destroyed Elizabeth." McKay began. "The feedback loop and the resultant explosion ruined them. There's absolutely no way that we can get them or their connecting console to work again."

"What about the other two? What did the explosion do to them?"

"We are having a hard time getting them to work Dr. Weir." Teyla broke in before McKay could say anything. "We are trying our hardest but it would seem that the two that were destroyed were the only ones that had been initialized." The Athosian looked to Rodney to finish the thought.

McKay nodded. "We weren't sure at first why the other two weren't working. They were safe from the explosion but they were dead. I knew we were missing something, but I couldn't figure out what. Then Teyla innocently asked if the power was correctly connected to it and the pods. I felt so stupid because I wasn't thinking in that direction. I didn't think of the batteries."

"So it was an internal power source that hadn't been initialized by the ATA gene yet?"

"Correct." He said as he caught Teyla's confused glance out of the corner of his eye.

"But you have the gene Rodney. Why couldn't you just activate it yourself?" Elizabeth asked.

"Unfortunately, I think it requires the touch of a natural gene. Not a fabricated one. That had to have been something the Ancients came up with. Maybe so that nobody but a natural Ancient could use them. Who knows."

"So how do you expect to get the pods going Rodney? There are only so many people here on Atlantis with the natural ATA gene. John would normally be the one to ask… but well… you know. And Major Lorne is off world with Zelenka. His gene is not as strong as John's… well, nobody's is actually. But it's strong enough. Who are you going to ask to initialize it?"

Rodney thought about it for a moment and then it came to him. "The only one I trust enough for something like this, being that both Colonel Sheppard and Major Lorne are unavailable, is Carson. I know he has a way of letting things get a little out of control when he tries to activate things, but I wouldn't ask anybody else. What do you say Elizabeth?"

Weir smiled. "I totally agree with you Rodney. I wouldn't have it any other way. Do you want me to ask him, or do you want to?"

"Um… if you wouldn't mind asking him…?" he let the question hang in the air.

"You really don't want to go to the infirmary, do you?"

"Not particularly, no. At least not right now." McKay said with an air of self-consciousness. He lowered his head and started to pick at a loose thread that was sticking up on his jacket.

"No, I don't mind Rodney. I get it. I don't want to see him that way either. I'll talk to Carson as soon as we're done here. Okay?" she said with a guarded smile.

McKay slowly nodded his head and then he stood up, Teyla following suit. When they came to the door of the office McKay turned around and looked sadly at her. "Thanks Elizabeth."

She nodded her head and then watched the two teammates walk out of her office. It had been a long time since she'd seen that look on the physicist's face. She watched them until they had disappeared from view and then tapped her ear piece. "Carson. Can I meet you in your office? I need to discuss something with you."

She heard is Scottish brogue almost instantly come over the air way. "Yes, of course Elizabeth. I'm here now. I've been keeping an eye on the Colonel and Ronan."

"I'm on my way. I'll be there shortly."

"I'll be waiting."

She tapped off her earpiece and then stood up from her desk. As she headed out her door the thought of getting their Military Commander back came flooding through her mind. This would work. She knew it would. It was gut instinct. A brief smile flashed across her face and then it was gone.

TBC in Chapter Fifteen….

A/N: So, what do you think Beckett's response will be? Will he say 'yes' or will he say 'no'? You'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out. Hehe. Sorry. Anyways, hope you liked the chapter. Later days folks. :)