A/N: Hi everyone! A quick note this time. Zeta radiation is fictional. You might recognize it from RPGs and sci-fi. It is normally extremely painful and deadly. I do not have enough scientific background to use the radiation that killed Daniel so I'm not going to try making it act the same other than the pain and dead outcome. Also, radiation of any kind can be damaging in sufficient quantities. Why do I bring this up? Don't forget the mini waves when this episode is all said and done.
Recap:
Ah yes. Probably the one person, other than Carter that he wanted in his lab right now helping to save the city. "What do you have for me Sterns?"
"I've been studying the scans of systems as we pass through." She began. "I'm sure you've seen the two precursor waves that are headed our way. And while those are concerning sir I believe we'd survive them without much structural damage. What concerns me sir is the radiation signature of the third wave."
"Out with it."
"It looks like zeta radiation, sir." She almost sighed. "As you know, zeta has been widely regarded as theoretical sir, and for good reason."
"Let me guess you'd rather we stick around and take readings?" He asked. There were times he understood the military attitude with his scientists all too well.
"No sir." She contradicted stopping his thoughts in their tracks. "I want to get the hell out of the way. I can go over sensor readings but I don't want to be in the neighborhood when that wave gets here."
Blinking in surprise, Rodney's genius brain ticked over what he knew of zeta radiation. Sam's voice supplied what he was too afraid to put into words as she pried his locked lab door open and slid inside. "It's world killer radiation, Rodney." She turned to Keller and smiled. "You have patients waiting for you in medical doctor. Life signs show you got everyone."
With a relieved nod Keller took to flight. No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the wave hit. The entire city bucked and rolled like a leaf in a hurricane. Anything unsecured went flying. From people to plants, computers to tools. Every single thing that wasn't tied, bolted, or lashed down was shaken and bashed about.
"Was that it?" Jennifer asked, looking over everyone in the room. There were bumps, bruises, and other minor injuries, but nothing she saw was life-threatening. Carefully she set the computer with its precious life-saving program back on the table. Most of the scientists were doing the same, having protected their computers and tablets with their own bodies. "Is it over?"
"That was only the first major wave." Rodney groaned, holding one hand to his head as he opened his laptop back up. In their shielded, faraday cage of a lab, the tech was only affected by the tremors, but they were now officially cut off from the comms system or anything else that didn't run on the city's crystalline construction.
"There are two more minor waves like that headed our way." The female scientist with the glasses and blond curly hair grunted, pulling herself upright. "Then the main event."
Episode 10 The Wave Part 2
Still in Rodney's Lab
"Which means we need to get out of here." Rodney breathed. "Now." He hit the city's com system, praying that he was doing the right thing.
"Lieutenant Evans." He addressed, choosing his words carefully for once in his life. "If you aren't in the chair already, get your ass in it now and start warming up the hyperdrive. Daniel, keep him calm whatever you do. We're working on getting either the Colonel or the General to you but it's gonna take time."
"Is this your 'it'll only take five minutes time' Rodney?" John's voice growled back over the comms and Rodney nearly sagged hearing it. John had been in the gardens, Rodney had seen the life signs there himself, and didn't know if the colonel was conscious after that wave. "Or an 'it might take an hour time?"
"I'd like to know the answer to that too!" Jack barked, making Rodney wince. He had forgotten that the entire city would hear and be able to respond. A moment later that was proved true when Woolsey and the rest of Atlantis clambered for an answer over the system.
With a flick, Radek cut off all sound over the system but what Rodney would say and nodded to Keller. "Please keep transferring people. We have more than a few who will be alarmed and in tightly sealed spaces they will use their oxygen faster."
Blinking back to her senses, she began the transfer again as Rodney announced to the city "I appreciate the fact that you all want an explanation of what's going on, and here's what I can tell you." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "The city detected ripples of a radiation wave which caused it to go into a lockdown similar to the viral outbreak that we experienced some time ago. This was done in an effort to protect us." He summarized the plan to get people out and to safety without going into massive detail as it would take more time than he had.
"Now everyone who can't contribute please stay off the com system." He added with his customary annoyed tone. "Generals and colonel please wait as calmly as you can. And mister Woolsey I will keep you as informed as I can when I can. Thank you." He signed off.
All over the city.
Trying to remain calm, people began putting their labs and offices back in order, locking down what they could. They had all been so prepared for attacks from the wraith, or even replicators that they hadn't even thought about the gravitational forces and radiation waves that were normal in space. They had been through a meteor shower and clipped the edge of an asteroid belt but even that hadn't prepared them for something like this.
All but the astronomy department.
"Sir!" The voice of the head of the department broke over the silence of the com system a few moments later. "Dr. McKay!"
Rodney's Lab
Rodney knew he knew that voice. He had personally met with every single person in the science departments at least once during their interview. But for the life of him, he couldn't place that odd husky female voice. "Yes?"
"It's Doctor Sterns, sir." She introduced. "From the astrophysics department."
Down in the Training Gym
With closed eyes, Sophie went to sit down against the wall while she thought. She had wondered if the saboteur would begin targeting her personally. It seemed they finally had. Her brothers and Todd the Wraith had been transported minutes ago but she was left in the dark.
There would be no rescue she knew. Not with how many locked bulkhead doors there were between her present location and anywhere else. Although how he got to the life signs detector she would never understand. That system was so integrated into the city that it would take some serious skill just to alter the readings for one person. Either they were desperate or very very lucky.
She was glad that her brothers got transported though. Two less people to worry about. Everyone else was either safe and sound in their rooms or in medical. So there was a blessing.
Pulling the bag of lacrosse sticks and first aid kit to her, Sophie quickly took off the bottom section of two handles and splinted her arm. If she was going to get out of here, fighting that break was not something that she could afford to do.
Five seconds, she thought. I'll allow myself to feel the pain, the fear, the desperation for five seconds. Then I have to get out of here.
One. She breathed in.
Two. She breathed out.
Three. And in again, slowing her breath.
Four. Sophie stood and looked at the door. She would never get it open with a broken arm.
Five. She let her head loll back to look at the ceiling.
There.
Panic over.
Time to get to work.
Medical.
Lief and Gunnr materialized less than a moment after they felt the beam begin to work on them and looked around. They recognized the medical wing instantly. Lief because he had liked a girl who was a surgical tech here for a few days. Gunnr because Lief often sent him to a doctor needing treatment when he acted particularly idiotic.
They even saw Todd, guarded by the two marines from before, lounging in a chair.
But no Sophie.
"Where is?" One brother began, turning to look around the crowded wing.
"I was just about to ask that." The other admitted.
"We need to find the Doctor," Gunnr said already in motion looking for Doctor Keller.
"Doctor Keller!" They both yelled, jogging through the crowd to find her. "Jennifer!"
Her blond head popped up from where she was stitching someone's forehead back together and she waved to the brothers. "Over here!"
"Where's Sophie?" Gunnr asked while Lief looked down at the clear band on his arm. "You transported her with us, right? From the big gym beneath the simulation and training rooms? Where did you send her? To Luka, maybe?"
Shaking her head, she glanced up at them confused. "No. I saw your life sign signatures with her and the wraiths. I transported everyone I thought. I certainly didn't leave her there on purpose. And the transporter is a medical transport. It only goes here."
Glancing away from the band and the tiny little hologram screen that projected up from it, Lief took her shoulders gently in hand. "We need to see the program logs of what you were doing. Maybe they show an error log and sent her somewhere else." When he saw her hesitate, he didn't hesitate. "She was in rough shape Doc. Broken arm, cheekbone, and displaced ribs. She needs medical treatment."
