CHAPTER XIII

ATLANTIS
2034 AST

Terrance had to admit one thing: These people were very good at keeping secrets.

Before he had met Doctor Weir, Dionysus had told him who they were, and where they came from; that they had once lived in the last city, Atlantis, but it had been destroyed before the Wraith could take it.

That had been a lie.

It hadn't been the only secret, either. After they had used the portal to transport back to the Pegasus Galaxy he had been ready for a fair bit of walking. They would have to reach the Stargate on that world, travel to wherever Dr Weir's people were now staying... he had not been expecting transportation. He had most certainly not been expecting an Alteran Gateship to appear out of thin air before him. His people no longer used them but he had recognised it immediately.

It had rippled into existence before him and he had stopped short. As the rear hatch began to lower he had cast around and saw, to his surprise, Major Lorne wielding the small control unit for the Gateship. He supposed that it would make sense for them to have the little vessels - after all, they had previously lived in Atlantis. Operating the vessel required the gene-key, though, so who…? Just as he was about to ask, Major Lorne stepped past him into the Gateship and Terrance could feel the hum as the small ship sprang to life in response.

The Major had easily settled himself into the pilot seat at the front of the ship, and Terrance had followed Weir into the forward compartment. He was offered the second seat at the front, and he took it without hesitation. He watched and felt as Lorne manipulated the controls of the craft, lifting them smoothly up into the air. It seemed Sheppard wasn't the only with Alteran genetics, then. How many more of Weir's people were Alteran?

Terrance spared a moment to glance at her where she sat behind the Major, but her expression conveyed little more than faint amusement. She could clearly tell exactly what he was thinking about; she could see the questions tumbling about in his mind. It told him that he would have all the answers he wanted as soon as they reached their destination; as soon as John Sheppard had been saved. Within moments they were approaching the Stargate and Major Lorne had tapped out an address on the central console of the Gateship.

An airy double-level room with an inscribed central staircase and Alteran patterned windows greeted him on the other side. Clear blue skies lay beyond the glass, visible for just a few moments before the Gateship had risen up. It was clearly and undeniably Alteran architecture. Specifically, it was a Gate Control Room, as was shown in the archival imagery of the old cities. They were in an Alteran City.

He didn't know why they chose to keep the city's survival a secret, but he was awed by Atlantis herself. This was the culmination of his people's work; their crowning achievement. He didn't know yet how much of the city had survived. Perhaps this building was all that was left? He would find out soon, when the ship landed and they could step outside.

Soon enough (and yet too long for his taste), Major Lorne had expertly set the vessel down, and the ramp lowered. Weir was first out and he saw a woman waiting for them.

Doctor Weir smiled, "Teyla."

Teyla smiled happily. As Lorne's team quickly dispersed, leaving only the Major and Terrance still standing on the ramp, Teyla's eyes found him. Her smile didn't falter, but there was an emotion in her eyes he couldn't place. Weir introduced him, and he inclined his head. Her face changed when she was told he was here to help. Hope and relief seemed to flow from her very being.

Weir passed her tactical vest to the Major, and she started off with Teyla. Terrance followed, asking questions about the Colonel (How is he? When was the last seizure?) while Doctor Weir used her communications device, "Carson. We brought help."

The answers were not good.
Five total seizures in the span of two days. The longest lasting under three Terran minutes. (He needed to get acquainted with their form of timekeeping.)

He ran the possibilities through his head once more. Why was Sheppard's mind reacting as it was? If it was a true coma, Terrance would know as soon as he laid eyes on him. His consciousness, his selfness, everything that made him- him, would still be close to surface of his mind.

In which case, the reason for the coma was not clear.

But, if his selfness was withdrawn, if he had withdrawn into the depths of his own mind…

As they entered the Infirmary, as the humans called it, he sensed the Colonel before he saw him, and he knew the answer to his question.

He saw a large man stand up as he had entered. Another man with a white overcoat approached, relief on his face.

The big man with the thick hair was called Ronon Dex. He seemed to be the fiercely loyal type, with emphasis on fiercely. The other was a healer: Carson Beckett. It didn't take long for Doctor Beckett to lead Terrance to the man he already knew was John Sheppard. Beckett asked intelligent questions, and Terrance gave him what answers he could.

The Alteran healer took out the scanner he'd brought with him, and scanned Colonel Sheppard's head and part of his chest carefully. He asked the device to perform a bio-scan as well. He also, very carefully, reached his mind toward the younger man's. His mental shields were nonexistent, and Terrance dared not go beyond where those shields might exist. He could feel his lifeforce, but his mind, his essence, was out of Terrance's tentative reach. He withdrew completely, swallowed, and looked over the results of the scan.

To fully enter another's mind without permission - to have access to their deepest thoughts and feelings - was one of the highest crimes among their people. Unless you were bonded to the person in some form it was strictly forbidden. Even those who were bonded were careful not to enter another's mind unbidden. Sometimes, surface thoughts and emotions bled through as that could not always be helped.

The results of both the scan and Terrance's mind-touch were clear: John Sheppard had completely withdrawn himself into his mind. His life was being sustained only by the automatic needs of his body.

"So." Terrance had no idea such emotion could be driven from a single syllable word, until Ronon said it.

"I can help him," he said looking at each of their faces. "But I can't cure him. Strictly speaking, there's nothing to cure."
Ronon took a step forward, "He's sick." Had Terrance been far younger and less experienced than he was, he might have been intimidated by the sheer mass of the human. He was not a man to be taken lightly, or underestimated, that was for sure.

"His body is healthy," the healer insisted, "Nor is it his mind; it's how his mind is coping."
"What does that mean?" He wondered if Ronon Dex was always this brusk, if he was doing this out of underlying fear, or if he was doing it to get more information out of him.

Probably all of the above.

Terrance looked to Doctor Weir, "It means my theory was correct. I scanned for the specific gene; he has genemoria."
Weir answered the expected question before anyone could ask it, "Genetic memory."

"His mind is being flooded with new information, and he has no method of controlling it," he said. "Those who had genemoria in the past were trained from childhood in order to be prepared."
Doctor Beckett summarized, "The Colonel was caught unawares."

The Alteran removed the small device from the scanner's body, and held it between his thumb and forefinger, "This is designed to target and isolate specific brain functions and regulate the activity. Until he learns to control his genemoria on his own, he'll be using this."

The only reason why his invention had been locked away was that the Council had deemed it useless. 10,000 years ago it would have been useful, when there were still those who carried genemoria, but not anymore. Their logic had angered him at the time because helping patients with genemoria was not it's sole function.

Weir and Beckett looked at each other, and Weir nodded.
"Aye," Beckett said solemnly, then looked to Terrance, "Do what ye have to do." Before he has another seizure went unspoken and the healer only nodded as he turned toward the prone man. Terrance took a second to look at him physically before pressing the device to his left temple and activating it. It would automatically run through basic functions, identify the issue, and begin to regulate it as per its programming.

Cut off from his basic sense of self, there was no reaction from Sheppard to the delivery needle piercing his flesh, nor to the hair-like tendrils spreading throughout his brain. Terrance stepped back to let Doctor Beckett read his vitals.

The various wires and tubing sustaining and monitoring Sheppard made him look older, while the lack of gray in his dark hair, and his relaxed face made him look younger.

Nevertheless, Sheppard was young.
Perhaps not by human terms, but his people were fairly long lived and slow to mature. In the eyes of his people, John Sheppard was just barely an adult, mature enough to have limited responsibility, but not enough to be taken seriously. He briefly wondered what Sheppard's role in this city was.

The loyalty of the people around him spoke volumes about this man.

Beckett took a step back, looking relieved and years younger, "His brain activity is lowering, and his vitals are more stable." Terrance looked at the scanner still in his hand, and linked it with the small device. It showed the progress of the device as well as more detailed information: overall brain activity, health, enzyme levels and a variety of other useful but presently irrelevant information.

Terrance handed the scanner to Doctor Beckett to look over, and he took it gratefully, looking over the images and information provided. He wasn't sure how much of his language Beckett could read, but he seemed to understand the gist of it. The doctor handed the scanner back, a smile and expression of gratitude on his face. He turned to the others, "He's going to be okay."

It was at that moment that another man rushed into the room, noticed the mass of people, and stopped abruptly. "Oh," he said, "What'd I miss? He okay?"

Terrance immediately noticed the new arrival, but not because of his blustering entry. He could feel the man's presence, but it was… faint, like smelling food cooking on the wind instead of standing in front of it. Abruptly he became aware that he could sense Doctor Beckett as well, but it was the same as the awareness he had felt with Major Lorne in the Gateship. The doctor clearly had Alteran genetics as well, but he and Lorne both felt far muted in comparison to Sheppard's presence.

Sheppard's presence felt the same way Terrance's people felt. It answered one of Terrance's many questions - Beckett and Lorne were probably distantly descended from the Alterans. They had the gene-key but it felt diluted, just strong enough to allow them to interact with Alteran technologies. The new arrival's gene-key was even fainter and felt so dull it was barely there.

Beckett answered, "He will be, Rodney." Amused looks were passed around and Terrance found himself feeling out of place. This city was the city of his ancestors; he should feel at home here but instead he felt like an intruder among these people. He was glad he was able to help them, but he still felt… isolated.

He suddenly longed for the feel of home, the sense of his people around him. He'd never been away from his people, and the sense of loss was pushing in around him. The only beacon in the emptiness was Sheppard's presence, but it was missing the feeling of life, of consciousness.

Rodney's voice shook him from his thoughts, bringing him back to the present, "I have questions. I have lots and lots of questions." Terrance guessed they all did, so he did the logical thing: "I can help with that."

A few moments later, Elizabeth, Terrance, Carson, Teyla, Ronon and Rodney all convened in a small room off the main infirmary. He assumed they all felt the need to remain close to Sheppard even though it could be hours before he woke.

Weir officially introduced Rodney to Terrance, "He's an Ancient from the planet Lorne found."

"What, really?" Terrance could see the smile tugging on his lips, and he nodded, a polite smile on his own lips. The other man started talking swiftly, excitement causing him to stumble over some of his words and lose sight of why he was here in the first place. Weir stopped him, "Rodney. Sit. I know you're excited, but John first."

McKay sat in his chair between Teyla and Weir, mumbling agreement.

"Questions," Terrance asked.

McKay sat up straight, "Oo, yes. Um-"
"About Sheppard," Ronon interrupted.

Rodney quickly defended himself indignantly, "It was."

Weir gave both Rodney and Ronon a warning look. "Rodney, continue."

The scientist looked at Terrance, "So, I've looked through the city's database several times, and I couldn't find any reference to Sheppard's symptoms."

Terrance nodded, and gave the reason that he'd already explained to Doctor Weir. He got more questions, answered them, and learned they called the gene-key the 'ATA gene'. They were silent for a moment, processing the information.

Beckett was the first to speak, "You're sayin' that Colonel Sheppard's growth has bin 'stunted'?"
"For lack of a better word, yes." He looked between them, "How much have you discovered about my people… medically?"

"Not a lot, to be honest," Weir stated.

Carson nodded, "Aye, most of what we know is just theory. Aside from th' ATA gene, we know 'at yer people had an ability to heal others 'at we think came just before ascension."

Terrance nodded, "Our healing ability isn't limited to pre-ascension. The method of healing is different though."
Elizabeth leaned forward, "Really?"

Terrance gave a mixture of a shrug and nod in reply, "Add his developing telepathy," he took a breath, "as well as genemoria, and you have his exact symptoms." He ignored the well-hidden surprise that he knew would come after that announcement (from everyone but Weir) and continued, "His mind is trying to do too much at one time. The reason he fell into the coma was a way of coping. His mind, everything that makes him who he is, has retreated to a safe corner of his mind. If it had continued, his mind would have eventually stopped. My device will regulate the flow of information, and his mind will take care of the rest."

The group was silent for a moment, all of them understanding what would have happened if they hadn't found help, and how lucky they had been.
"Ok, back up," Rodney was confused, "What is genemoria?"
"Genetic memory," Beckett said.
"What!?" Rodney McKay's tone was colored with jealousy, "Oh, that is just so typical." The man then proceeded to pout, arms crossed and glaring at no one in particular.

Rodney spoke again, "You're telepathic?"
Terrance chuckled halfheartedly, "Yes. Though only with other Alterans, however, I should mention that I have realised that I am able to sense the presence of anyone with the, ah ATA gene. Presence only, no thoughts or emotions." Elizabeth thanked him for clearing that up quickly.

"You're welcome." Terrance took a breath turning the focus back on Sheppard, "As I'm sure you've noticed, Colonel Sheppard also has the ability to heal his own injuries, but that is much less taxing and quicker to develop than his ability to heal others or telepathy. It would have been the first."

"I assume," Carson leaned forward, "since you said you have the ability to heal others, Colonel Sheppard will have that as well."
"Yes," Almus nodded, "Though that will take much longer, and is mostly a biological process."

Carson said something to Elizabeth, but Terrance wasn't focused on that anymore. He let his mind wander toward John, prompted by a feeling in the back of his mind. He had been waiting, feeling, for John to start rising toward consciousness. He stopped the conversation around him with three words, "He's waking up."

It was nice, he decided, floating around in the darkness. His body was numb and his mind was only a little fuzzy. He knew who he was, but beyond that nothing else really mattered. He enjoyed it, like flying, free from physical restrictions. He felt like if he thought about it hard enough, he could turn himself into a bird and just… fly.

He frowned to himself when he heard a garbled voice, like the other person was under water… or maybe he was under water. He kinda felt like it.

The words were beyond his understanding. He could only hear the tones of the voices… it was annoying.
"John. Come on, lad. Open yer eyes."

He heard the voice again, and somewhere, in the back of his mind he recognized it, knew he should probably listen to it, but he didn't want to.

"Come on, Colonel."
"He's too deep in his own mind; he might not be able to understand your voice. Let me try."

He just wanted to restfloatfly. The voicesound stopped for a moment, and John relaxed in the nothingspace of his mind.

He got annoyed again when a new voice came to him, one he decidedly did not recognize. He grit his teeth, opting to ignore it. Was it too much for a guy to ask for some rest?

[John.]

That was… new. Clear as day like a bell tolling, he heard his name – not just from the outside, but the inside as well, like it was in his head.

[It's time to wake up.]

'No, it's not.' He heard a chuckle inward and out.
[Yes it is. You've been asleep for too long.]

John groaned tiredly, protesting. He really didn't want to wake up, it was the last thing he wanted to do, but he could feel the pull toward wakefulness, and it was getting too hard to ignore.

[Open your eyes.]

John squinted against the sharp light, then closed them again, unwilling to face the brightness of the room just yet. He tried again, lifting his head slowly, squinting; hazel eyes searching. He found Carson first.

A hand coming off his shoulder and movement just out of his field of view had him looking to the left at an unfamiliar face. He let his head drop back down into the soft pillow, "Doc?"

"Aye." John opened his eyes to find Carson closer than before, the other unfamiliar man now standing near the foot of his bed. He saw Elizabeth, and his team too. He looked at Carson, "What 'appened?"

"What's tha last thing ye remember?"

He was silent for a moment, thinking. "566. Passed out. Came back. Sparred with Ronon. Went to bed." He thought harder for a moment, like there was something else he was forgetting, but it kept slipping out from his fingers. He finally closed his eyes, not willing to expend the energy to remember just yet, "That's it."

"We can let him rest for a while longer." He knew that voice, the voice from his head, but he was too tired, too drained, to open his eyes again and find the speaker. "He's not in danger of falling into a coma again. He'll remember more when he wakes again."

"Aye." Carson patted his shoulder, and John felt himself slipping into rest again.

['What I wanted to do anyway,'] John thought, and he could have sworn he'd felt… amusement. But it wasn't his own. Confusion drifted by, but didn't settle long enough to be examined by his exhausted mind, and the world around him faded away.

-TBC

END ACT 1

NEXT TIME:
"The Deadalus would be leaving in less than twenty minutes, not that John would need that much time to finish packing. He was anxious, but hopeful about this trip. He actually, deep down, thought about not going and trying to find the answers he needed on his own. That would be near impossible though, he knew that. Much as he loathed to admit it, there was only one source he could get answers from, and that was back on Earth."

-words 3,393

A/N: So that's it for Act 1. Act 2 is still being rewritten. At this point I have no idea when it'll be finished. Right now, I've gotta deal with the other things sucking my time up. Then I'll actually have time to write. I'm shooting to be done by late Nov, early Dec, but we'll see how that goes.

This chapter was beta'd by the brilliant KeianaLunae.