A/N Sorry for the delay. I've been working double hours and am a bit behind. Thanks for all of the encouraging notes. They really help!

Chapter 3

Carson studied Rodney's grey complexion from his position on the edge of the bed while taking the man's pulse, shifting slightly to move away from Sheppard's warm breath hitting the back of his neck. "Major, would you mind giving me a little room?" he asked, without a backward glance, gently resting McKay's hand beneath the covers and leaning forward to check the quiet scientist's temperature.

"Sorry," the dark haired man mumbled, stepping around to the other side of his friend. "What do you think that is? What's wrong with him?"

"I'm not sure. He appeared fine when we met this afternoon. But now his temperature's elevated, pulse is rapid, he's vomiting, and this, this…rash. Maybe he ate something, or had an exposure to something he's reacting to, or possibly this started on Atlantis before he arrived. Could be viral, I don't know. I want to take him back to my infirmary to run some tests and do a complete blood work up."

"Great…needles," the man in question muttered, swallowing a couple of times as he tried to get the vile taste of vomit out of his mouth. It was the strong grip of the Major on his left arm that prompted him to crack his heavy eyelids and lazily glance back and forth between the two concerned faces hovering beside him.

Sheppard's tight smile tried to deflect his worry, "Hey, how you feelin'?"

"Actually," he shifted and took stock of his physical symptoms, then shrugged when he didn't feel another wave threaten his insides, and hesitantly pushed himself up to a sitting position with help from Beckett and Sheppard, "better, now that I, uh..." his hand waved in front of his chest.

"Tossed your cookies? Blew chunks? Worshipped at the porcelain god?" The major teased with a small grin, relieved to see the Canadian looking more alert.

McKay rolled his eyes in disgust and then turned to take a sip of water from the glass Carson was holding in front of him. Feeling the cool liquid slide down his sore throat, he nodded his thanks.

Setting the glass on the side table, the Scot examined his patient closely, "Rodney, when did you first start feeling poorly?"

"I woke up with a twinge of a headache, figured it was from lack of sleep."

Carson had Rodney lean forward so he could check his back for more of the rash. "You didn't sleep well last night?" Not finding that it had spread, he gently pushed his friend back to lean against the pillow.

The scientist stuck out his lower jaw and shook his head, "No more than the usual. I finished my notes around 1:30 and went to bed. I woke up around 5 to find the temperature controls because the room felt stuffy."

"You were hot?"

"It just felt close in here; the whole no windows thing." He glanced around the room, "It's like trying to sleep in a tomb."

The physician rested his hand on Rodney's brow again, noticing the scientist felt cooler to the touch and his appearance was no longer flushed. The sound of voices from the other part of the suite had the three look to the door.

Teyla was the first to enter followed by Havis and Ford. She quickly handed Dr. Beckett the duffle before taking up a position beside the Major. When McKay's sharp gaze caught hers, she smiled; relieved to see him looking much better than when they had left.

The room remained silent for the next few moments while Carson pulled out several instruments from his med pack. Once completed with his examination, he looked puzzled as he returned the items, "Do you still have a headache? Feel any more nausea?"

"No and no."

"Well, it appears your temperature has almost returned to normal, blood pressure's fine, and your digestive track has quieted. I still don't like the rash. What did you eat today? Did you try anything of the Krahn's?"

Rodney glanced towards his chest in surprise, shocked at noticing the colorful blotches for the first time. "What's that?" he gasped, lifting the blanket to look towards his stomach, before covering himself up from the others prying eyes.

"Calm down, lad. It looks like you came in contact with something that disagreed with you." Carson turned to face the silent Krahn's physician, "Have you seen anything like this before?"

Havis stepped closer to inspect Rodney's chest, reaching out to touch the scientist's forehead with his purplish fingertips. Instantly, his hand changed to a pale green and he withdrew it quickly. With more hesitancy, he reached out towards the rash and let his fingertips brush over the discoloration, watching in concern as the color on Rodney's chest turned pale green. "Where have you been, Dr. McKay?" he asked.

"I was in the lab yesterday and today, until Master Tenbrook took me on a tour of the facilities."

"Where did she take you?"

Rodney's telltale swallow of fear revealed his increasing anxiety level. His eyes darted around the group before resting on Beckett's, "What's wrong?"

"We're trying to figure that out, lad." He repeated Havis' question, "Where did she take ya?"

"We went to the power station, engineering control, um, walked forever in the tunnels discussing the gates, but I got a little claustrophobic, so we decided to return."

"Gates…?" Sheppard started to question, taking a seat beside McKay, but was cut off by Havis.

"You were under one of the energy lakes, Doctor?"

The scientist nodded.

"For how long?"

"Two...three hours."

This time it was Havis who swallowed in trepidation. "I'm sorry, Doctor McKay, but you must go immediately back to Atlantis."

"Why?" Sheppard demanded, jumping to his feet.

"What is it, Havis?" Carson quickly leaned forward, placing his hand on Rodney's shoulder to keep him from panicking.

Havis' color changed to dark orange. "If I am correct, I believe that Dr. McKay has some how come in contact with the original ancient plague."

"Oh, god, I'm a dead man," Rodney wheezed, leaning forward, only to find himself by stopped by Sheppard's firm grip on his arm.

"That's it. Take it easy," the major grunted, carefully pulling McKay to his feet. He grabbed a clean shirt and passed it to his frightened friend, then glanced to the rest of the team, "Gather your gear as fast as you can and we'll meet at the gate. You've got five minutes."

Carson tossed his kit in his duffle before hastily thrusting Rodney's belongings together. "We'll need to inform Dr. Weir of full bio-hazard precautions and be escorted to directly to the quarantined section of the infirmary."

"We'll tell her when we get to the gate, Doc." The major slung his pack over his shoulder before grasping McKay by the arm, giving him a brief shake. "You're gonna be okay once we get back. None of the doom and dying crap, understood?"

Rodney took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Got it."

It was clear by the way that Sheppard continued to grip McKay's arm that he was ready to be there for the scientist, no matter what. Shooting Carson an inquiring glance and receiving the physician's nod, he led the way back to the gate.

The halls were lined with Krahn citizen, varying in a multitude of colors of concern, as the wildfire news spread that one of the strangers might possibly be infected with the plague. Their murmurs quieted as the group hurried past them, only to resume once again.

Sheppard slipped his radio from his jacket, ready to call Weir once the wormhole opened after Ford typed in the gate address. The 'whoosh' burst brightly, filling the room before disappearing back into the puddle.

"Atlantis, this is Sheppard."

Grodin's voice returned over the radio, "Go ahead, Major."

"Is Dr. Weir nearby?"

"Major?" Elizabeth replied.

"Elizabeth, we have a medical emergency exposure to an unknown virus times five. We need biohazard and quarantine precautions."

There was a brief pause as they each imagined her organizing the needed response teams. "We're ready for your signal, Major."

He turned to Ford, giving him the okay to type in their code on the GDO. "Ready on your end, Doc?"

Silence.

"Elizabeth?" he called, before turning to McKay and Beckett, seeing both men with raised brows, wondering what the hold up was.

"Major?" Zelenka's accent cut through the stillness.

"Dr. Z, what's going on?"

"I'm sorry Major, but for some reason, lockdown protocol has overridden the shield control and will not allow your code to clear on the system. The shield has activated and will not permit you to return."

"Well, try again! We got here just fine and we need to come back now!"

Silence emanated once more as the team stood in front of the gate, all bathed in its reflective light, restlessly shifting their packs in anticipation of leaving.

"Major?" Elizabeth's voice crackled over their radios.

"What's happening on your end, Doc?"

"Dr. Zelenka and Grodin are trying to override the lockdown sequence. It appears that there is some sort of block preventing anyone from your address coming through the gate."

Rodney slipped out of Beckett's grasp to sit on the floor with a weary thump. "It's to stop the plague from spreading," he snapped tiredly, running his hand over his disheveled hair.

"What are you talking about?" Sheppard wasn't in the mood for any of McKay's doom crap.

"The builders, when they helped the Krahns set up the underground cities, they knew anyone leaving after the release would carry the plague. Think about it Major, it could kill anyone on the other side. We're effectively stuck here."

TBC