Author's Note: I've found two glaring grammitcal goofs in chapter 3. If you can bear with me, I'll try to replace that chapter with the fixed version this week (yes, I'm an idiot, and despite reading things over three times I still miss things). Redick4, fireworks would be good, lasers are so 1980's. (big grin). Your review had me rolling, thanks for making my night! Dru, of course our guys will be fine...(evil laugh).
Chapter Four
Asking For Trouble
"You want to what?" Sheppard shouted from his bed. He was staring at McKay with a mixture of surprise and disbelief. McKay for his part was returning Sheppard's look with a stubborn jut of his chin.
"It's the only way to get samples." McKay said.
Sheppard couldn't believe what he was proposing. "Releasing the wraith from stasis is a bad idea. They have this problem with being almost indestructible and I don't see a good prison cell around here."
"Do you want to die Major?" McKay asked bluntly. He was staring hard at Sheppard, blue eyes bright with emotion.
Sheppard rolled his eyes, "No McKay. I don't want to die. But if we release that thing, dying from the virus will be the least of our problems. What if he calls his buddies for dinner?"
"We can keep it sedated." Beckett spoke up.
Sheppard wished he could think clearer, but the headache growing inside his skull was making thought difficult. He knew they were in trouble. And what if Ford, Teyla and Beckett started getting sick? Beckett was important, not only for finding an answer, but continuing to care for the people back at Atlantis.
"This is one of those rock and hard places." He growled. He looked up and found McKay studying him. He sighed, "Do it. Beckett, make sure you keep it under. Sedate that thing till it thinks it's back in the 60's."
Ford clutched his weapon, training the muzzle towards the head of the wraith. Teyla stood nearby with another gun loaded and ready. Beckett had a dart gun aimed and prepped.
"Ready." Carson said. If he was being honest he was far from ready, but he didn't suppose he'd ever feel prepared to face down a live wraith.
Ford didn't take his eyes off the stasis chamber, "Do it McKay." He ordered, voice steadier than he felt.
McKay tapped codes into the interface. The stasis chamber hummed with power. The psuedo-ice melted away from the body with a speed that surprised everyone. The wraith leapt out of the chamber screeching, fingers curled and ready. He lunged towards Ford.
"Doc!" Ford shouted.
The twang of the dart gun echoed in the chamber. The wraith stumbled back and looked down at its chest where the dart was embedded. The creature peeled its lips back in an angry snarl, appearing like a bear bothered by a bee, and plucked the dart out. It paused long enough to toss the offending projectile to the side and began advancing on Ford and Teyla.
"Do something!" Ford ordered with more emphasis. Another step and he'd start shooting, live sample or not.
"It should work!" Beckett swore and reloaded another dart, taking aim and pulling the trigger in a matter of seconds.
This time the wraith's reaction was slowed. He reached towards the dart and stumbled. His hand flopped. He dropped to his knees and stared defiantly at his attackers. Ford knew if he woke up they were in trouble. This thing could kill them a lot easier than they could kill it. It slid to the ground, eyes closing slowly as the drug overwhelmed its system.
"Is this going to work?" Ford asked. It took twice as much to knock it out. What happened if it metabolized the drug at a faster rate than a human?
Beckett seemed to be considering that possibility. "We'll set up a constant flow. I don't want to risk it wearing off."
"No, we do not." Teyla agreed.
"Beckett?" McKay's voice across the chamber interrupted the dark turn in their thoughts.
Carson looked over and was alarmed to see a pale sweating McKay leaning against his laptop, "Rodney?"
McKay swallowed, "I'm going to be sick."
Beckett hurried over to McKay and managed to catch him before he fell. "Let's get you to bed."
McKay really was going to be sick. Bed sounded good. He fought down the growing lump in his throat and nodded, half-afraid to open his mouth.
Ford and Teyla shared a worried look through the faceplates on their haz-mat suits. "Another one bites the dust." Ford muttered to himself. "Let's get this thing strapped down for Beckett." He said loud enough for Teyla to hear. He didn't want to show how anxious he was beginning to feel. McKay being struck down so soon after Sheppard was bad.
Teyla reached down to help him heave the wraith upwards, and they began dragging him towards the makeshift bed with restraints that they had set-up. Teyla uttered a quiet prayer the bed would hold. This was turning out to be a very bad mission. She didn't want to consider the thought that it could get a lot worse.
"How bad is it?" McKay whined. Beckett had helped him to a cot next to Sheppard. He had assessed the man quickly. Fever slightly lower than Sheppard, but his blood pressure was lower. McKay's face had taken on a gray tint that Beckett was alarmed to see.
"You'll live." Beckett said, withdrawing a sample of blood before Rodney could protest, "For now." He added with a slight twist of his lips.
"Gee, thanks. What a wonderful bedside manner." McKay grimaced as Beckett withdrew the needle and pushed a gauze pad against the drop of blood welling out from the puncture site.
Carson handed the sample to an assistant who had appeared behind him. She was the nurse who had tended Major Sheppard after that nasty incident with the tic-wraith. He had been impressed with her work and had requested her help on this mission. Her anticipation of what needed to be done helped him stay sane in the lab.
"How is he?" McKay asked, breaking into his thoughts. Rodney was looking at the Major sleeping in the cot next to him.
Beckett frowned. He wasn't sure whether he was relieved Sheppard was sleeping or worried that he was sleeping. He got up from Rodney's bedside and headed towards John's. He lifted the chart from the end of the cot and quickly scanned the details. Fever was climbing, blood pressure dropping, headache worsening and light sensitivity. He put the chart back and plastered a hopeful look on his face before turning towards McKay, "He's fine."
McKay knew he was lying. This was his fault. He couldn't believe how stupid he was. "I'm an idiot."
"No you're not. It could've been any one of us." Beckett assured him and he meant it. It was dumb luck that McKay had been the one to knock the dish off the counter. They went barging through places all the time and didn't see half the stuff they should. It wasn't the first screw-up and he doubted it would be the last. He could only hope it wouldn't be the last.
"But it wasn't." McKay said, his voice so soft Beckett knew he wasn't meant to hear.
Carson placed a reassuring hand against McKay's shoulder and felt the heat seeping through the material, "Get some rest Rodney." He said. He had a wraith to deal with and hopefully a cure to find.
Beckett stared at the microscope not believing what he was seeing. Could this be it? He pulled his face back and rubbed his eyes-or at least he attempted to, his hands encountering the plastic startled him. He had been so focused on his work he had almost forgotten he was still stuffed in a bio-suit. He leaned his face back into the microscope and studied the cells. He couldn't fight the grin breaking across his face. He'd found it!
"We've got it!" He hollered, startling the people working around him. "The cure. I've got it." He repeated.
Smiles began breaking out across the room, hooded faces sealed securely behind the haz-mat gear that everyone was growing tired of wearing.
Beckett began showering everyone with orders. They needed to get this ready immediately. He didn't want to admit it but he had begun feeling achy and tired. He suspected it wasn't from working hard to find a cure. The sooner they had this ready to try, the better they would all be.
Sheppard couldn't take the pounding in his skull another minute. He felt sick. He was hot, tired and he felt like his skin was crawling off him. He shifted again, desperately trying to find a comfortable position.
"Stop fidgeting."
Sheppard almost jumped out of bed. He didn't know anyone was next to him. The weak voice was hard to recognize but using the powers of deduction that he still seemed capable of using, he figured it was McKay.
He turned his face towards the sound and saw Rodney staring at him. "When did you get here?" He asked confused. Wasn't he going to thaw out the wraith?
McKay shrugged, "A while ago. You were doing a good impression of sleeping beauty."
"Be happy I can't get out of bed." Sheppard said. "What happened to the wraith?"
"I got him out of stasis. Beckett darted him and that's when I got hit with this virus." McKay didn't mention the wraith almost getting to Ford and Teyla before getting sedated.
"Creepy aren't they."
"Oh yes." McKay agreed. "Kind of got that Marilyn Manson look, don't they?"
"In a weird 'different galaxy' way."
They were distracted from further conversation by shouting and gunfire. Sheppard was alarmed. "Ford?" He shouted. "Beckett?"
No one answered except for the rapid retort of weapons being fired. "Son of a..." Sheppard couldn't lay here and let whatever was going on happen. He got to his feet, wavering but staying upright.
"What are you doing?" McKay asked alarmed.
"They need help." He replied, reaching under the bed and finding his gun where Beckett had put it earlier.
McKay snorted, "And you think you can?"
"It's better than waiting for the wraith to get to us." Sheppard slid the safety off, "You coming?"
McKay figured Sheppard was right. Staying here and waiting for whatever to come and get them was too much like lying in bed as a kid and thinking the boogeyman was going to leap out of your closet any minute and eat you up. He swung his legs over the edge of the cot and stood. "Reluctantly, just make sure that's noted."
"Done, let's go."
McKay and Sheppard were supporting each other as they headed through the corridor towards the echoing shouts. The gunfire had stopped and Sheppard was pretty certain he could make out Ford and Teyla's voices mixed in with others, but with the helmets muting words it was hard to be sure.
They came into the opening where the Ancient's chair was taking up center stage to find what had to have been the majority of the Atlantis personnel frantically running around, the occasional reply barked at each other.
Sheppard and McKay stood rooted in the middle, Sheppard's face warped into what had to have been Alice's expression when she fell into the rabbit hole. "What the hell is going on?"
Ford came running down the corridor from the transporter device, "Major, why aren't you in bed?"
"Because someone is shooting up my outpost Lieutenant." He said calmer than he had thought he could manage.
"I'm sorry Major but we've lost him." Ford said.
Sheppard stared at him, "Lost who?" He asked, voice low and menacing. He was sick, barely on his feet, and this had better be damn good.
"The wraith Sir. He's gone." Ford cringed at the stunned look on his superior's face.
"Gone? What do you mean gone?"
"Stackhouse was guarding him. He turned away to..." Ford paused and fumbled uncomfortably with his sleeve, "Uh...scratch, Sir. When he turned back, it was gone."
"I don't believe this!" Sheppard was going to chew Stackhouse a new ass, "You tell that incompetent son-of-a-bitch that he'd better find that wraith and get him back here or we're all dead."
Ford nodded, "Yes Sir."
Teyla had listened to John, not used to seeing this side of the man. She couldn't help but agree. The man's carelessness had placed them all in great jeopardy. She turned to help Lieutenant Ford begin searching when she noticed McKay stumble forward.
"Help." McKay squeaked as Sheppard collapsed, dragging them both to the floor.
"Just shoot me now." McKay said from underneath the weight of the Major, "This can't possibly get worse."
Ford seconded that thought, "Give it time Doctor McKay. I'm sure it could." And he swore more than few very bad words that would've gotten him cuffed across the head by his mother. Yes, he was sure it could get a lot worse and he was even more certain it probably would.