Part Four

"Beckett, I need someone to monitor the team's health when we're out there," I argued. "The atmosphere is barely enough to support life, it's so thin we need supplemental oxygen out there. Add in the toxic fumes -"

Carson wasn't buying it. "Which is precisely why I'm not going," he said solidly. "Major, I didn't come on this expedition to have my molecules repeatedly scrambled by that Ancients attempt at interplanetary travel, and I'm of no use on this mission."

I looked at the Doc, and despite the stubborn jut on his chin, and the cross demeanor, the man was a teddy bear. He could be talked into anything. He might bitch the whole time, but he'd do it.

With a knowing nod his direction, I sniffed slightly. "Okay, then. We'll need oxygen tanks, some masks, and what are the signs of anoxia again?"

He scowled.

I continued, "We might need some stimulants," I paused thoughtfully then pointed at a cabinet for effect, "You know, if we start having trouble."

"Bloody hell, Major," Carson exploded, weakening and knowing it. "Why d'you need me along on this trip?"

I gave him a hard stare, and then decided what the hell, sometimes honesty was the best policy. "Look, Doc, Ford and Teyla are off having fun in the sun and surf, and that leaves me with McKay. Elizabeth said I could take any two bodies to help, but nobody is going to be good enough for Rodney."

He studied me, trying to figure out if I was on the up and up, and I guess I passed, because he offered a grudging agreement. "Aye, I suppose that's true, but you know his opinion of doctors is about as high as his appreciation for lemon."

I smiled broadly at him. "I think the man doth protest to much, besides, if we gang up on him he'll arrive back home feeling more harassed than either of us will, and I consider that a mission well accomplished."

I saw the gleam in his eyes, and knew I had him by the gonads; the man was as good as mine. But, there was still that slight shadow of doubt. "Exactly how hot is it?"

I coughed, and said simultaneously, "110." And before he could take back his acquiescence, all but ran out the infirmary, shouting cheerily as I went, "Thirty minutes, Doc!"

"110!"

So he'd caught that part –

OoO

As it was, I think 110 was an optimistic measurement. It had to be pushing 120. Hellfire, indeed, this planet was straight out of Dante's Inferno. The ground was hard baked clay, cracked, and stretching out endlessly away from the gate. A few brown strands of plant life struggled unsuccessfully to stay alive, and judging by it's sorry state, it wouldn't be long before even that was gone. The gate was in a valley, and rising up all around were towering mountains, some flattened after losing their tops in explosions, while others smoked menacingly on the horizon, belching volcanic gas and detritus every now and then.

According to Bates, the location of the rock pile where our particular goal lay waiting, was about ten miles to the northernmost mountain, aiming straight as the arrow flies from where we stepped out of the gate. I'd wanted to take the Jumper, but damn if that wouldn't have made it easy, and so fate, God or whomever stepped in and squashed that down – actually, Rodney McKay did, but I was beginning to equate him as the vessel of fate, God, or whomever – something about unstable atmospheric conditions, turbulence, and unknown magnetic resonances on the planet because of the increasingly volatile nature of a planet burning it's last bit of life.

"SPF 1000 wouldn't be enough on this planet," grouched McKay.

He was walking behind me, followed by Beckett and the fourth body I'd dragged along, Roberts. Kid was 22, and eager to prove himself. The sad thing was that it was becoming increasingly clear that proving yourself on this expedition often meant dying. We'd already lost more than we could've anticipated.

The good thing, on the other hand, was that aside from the inhospitable status of the planet, this should be an easy scoop and go. There wasn't any native life to present a danger, and while the volcanoes were active, they were also far enough away from the gate.

"You put sunscreen on?" I asked surprised. It wasn't like we were staying long, and despite my warning to dress light, Rodney was wearing his long-sleeved shirt, and I was pretty sure I saw his jacket sticking out his pack.

"Didn't you?" he seemed equally surprised. "Major, did you realize that skin cancer is the only cancer on the rise?"

"Dying of skin cancer is the least of my concerns," I said dryly. My list was topped by wraith, and then wraith, and oh look, wraith again. I think I'd added the tic wraith bug as number 5, just because technically it had already killed me, and I'd survived, and I wasn't ever going to walk into one of those webs again.

"Carson, did you hear him?" Rodney said. "I knew you didn't do your job. You're supposed to be educating people on safety and health precautions. I've told you about their deplorable lack of care when we're off-world."

I looked past McKay, and had to stifle a laugh at the expression on Beckett's face. And then Beckett caught my eye, and oh shit, was that anger transference? Wincing, I hastily looked away.

" – don't even wash their hands!" droned McKay.

A loud rumbling stopped his ranting, and also stopped all of our walking. It started out low, and angry, like a long drawn out spat of thunder that keeps booming, but then it grew louder, and fiercer, and the ground started to tremble.

Everyone was watching me, but I was watching the ground, not sure what to do. If it'd gone on another moment, I would've headed back to the gate. We could make do on four tanks. It wouldn't be easy, but it'd be better than dying on this planet. You know that thing about fate - well, it stopped. Right as I was opening my mouth to issue that particular order, it stopped. And I will regret it forever that it did, because once the quiet had settled around us, I decided if we hurried, it'd be safe enough.

"Pick up the pace," I ordered. It was my only concession to the earthquake.

"Major," called Beckett. "Do you think it's safe?"

I eyed the mountainous horizon stretching far ahead, and sighed. No, I didn't think it was safe, but I figured it was safe enough, and therein was the difference. "Stay close together," I said, not really answering his question, but I had a habit of doing that, and I know it bugged him. I didn't often give direct answers. I was oblique, vague, skirting the issue, but as bad as I was, McKay was ten times worse. Between the two of us, Carson probably had a lot of headaches at the end of the day.

We hiked the next hour in silence, before I called a ten-minute break. "Water break," I said, pulling out my own canteen.

Beckett wiped sweat off his face, and took a long swig of water. His face was redder than Weir's uniform shirt, and I worried if maybe I was pushing him too hard. Elizabeth would kill me if Beckett wound up in bed with heat exhaustion, and too ill to do his job.

I sidled over to him, and knelt by his shoulder. He was reclined on the ground, and his elbow was the only thing keeping him from being supine. "You okay, Doc?"

He wiped his hairline again, and eyed me accusingly, "Don't ever ask me to accompany you again."

Fair enough. He had a point. The Hoffan thing had been an abysmal failure, and now this – I could understand his reluctance to ever listen to my ideas again. "We're almost there," I offered.

I checked on Roberts next. He was looking better than Beckett and McKay, and, I imagined, better than myself. Being young has its advantages. "Okay, Airman?"

"Fine, Sir," he answered. "I could go ahead, if you'd like?"

I shook my head. "We stick together. Splitting up on an alien world is never a good idea."

Disappointment flitted across his face, but I clasped his shoulder reassuringly, "Don't worry, we'll be there soon."

Young, and eager to prove himself, but this wasn't a mission that would allow any heroics, and besides, he could save the heroics for the day the wraith found Atlantis. God knows, we'd need more than a few heroes when that day arrived.

"I'm fine, by the way," said McKay loudly, waving in my direction. "Thanks for asking!"

I waved cheekily back.

I was rewarded with a disgusted scowl, before he went back to rubbing his calves. The walk on the hard ground had been punishing on the bones. Every step was a jarring impact. Try as we might, you couldn't walk softly. The heat wasn't helping.

I went ahead and dropped beside him, because despite the bickering, I was drawn to McKay. We had some kind of friendship, though I'll be damned if I knew what. "How's the SPF holding up?"

"It's not," he retorted.

He did look kind of red, almost as much as Beckett. I was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, so was a little better off under the baking sun. "Why didn't you wear your other shirt?"

"It was dirty."

I snorted. "And it wouldn't have been a sweaty mess after this trip anyway?"

"Maybe dirty isn't a good word," he admitted. "Burnt is better."

"How did you burn your shirt?" I said startled.

He almost looked pleased that I'd asked. Uh oh.

"Funny you should ask," he started. "I was risking life and limb with a device that could potentially make that shield device look like a child's plaything -"

"If it burned your shirt," I said wisely, "I don't think it's better than the other shield device."

He rolled his eyes. "It wasn't supposed to burn anything," he replied. "Someone; and when I find out who, they'll be scrubbing floors; charged it improperly." His face twisted in dismay. "It shorted out completely, totally fried, useless, paperweight."

"How do you know it wasn't meant to do that?"

"Three letters, Major, P H D."

"Potentially Horny Dumbass?"

I saw his jaw muscles tightening below the surface, and grinned unrepentantly. "Time's up," I called to everyone and quickly got to my feet, and outside McKay's strike zone.

We made it the rest of the way without anymore quakes, and after confirming these rocks were the same as the one we had, gathered up a few bags' worth to take back. Beckett had a chance to be useful, and after taking some vitals, told me it was time to crack out the extra oxygen.

I signaled for Roberts, and pulled off my pack, when the proverbial floor dropped out from under us.

This time, we had little warning. The shaking, and splitting, began almost instantaneously, and all I remember was hearing McKay shout, and then I was falling because the ground that had been under my feet was suddenly gone.

TBC…