Don't Drink the Water…part eleven
Sheppard watched as Elizabeth radioed Beckett, but something was wrong. He didn't know what, but he felt it. On a whim, one he was sure he'd pay for later, he took off down the hall, going to find McKay on his own.
He heard Elizabeth shouting after him, but he was already in the transporter. He got out, and headed straight for Rodney's lab, and was surprised to find it empty. What the -? Elizabeth had just stood in front of him and told him that McKay was here.
He was struck by a wave of intense dizziness, and he put a hand against the wall. He heard footsteps, and saw Elizabeth and Carson approaching with guards. What was going on here?
Another wave of dizziness, and he felt himself slipping to the floor. Hands grabbed him, and eased him down, murmurs of platitudes, that it'd be all right, met his ears before everything shut down.
OoO
"Will he be alright?"
Sheppard moved his eyes, but didn't open them. He wanted to listen, and find out information before letting on that he was awake.
"Aye, that drug's got a nasty after effect. Teyla and Ford brought me a sample, and I've identified the component. It's similar to LSD, very strong hallucinogen. He'll recover, but he and Rodney are going to have a very interesting next few days, I'd wager." The brogue gave away Beckett, and Sheppard idly wondered if this wasn't the hallucination.
He heard Elizabeth sigh. "What about Rodney?"
"Same thing, it's already begun."
John opened his eyes. "LSD, huh?" he said, and it was with a high degree of skepticism, because, damn it, he'd know if he was drugged.
Carson and Elizabeth turned guilty eyes towards him. "So that little trip I just took with McKay choking me, wasn't real?"
Beckett was eyeing him oddly. "Well," he coughed self-consciously. "Not exactly."
"Not exactly how?"
Elizabeth stepped forward. "McKay did choke you. He broke free during a bathroom break, and he thought they were hurting you…"
"So he tried to kill me?" said Sheppard, thinking they were all a little nuts, not just him and McKay.
"He thought he was helping you. He tried to help you ascend." Beckett explained this time.
Sheppard stared at them incredulously. He'd heard about ascended ancients after the run-in with the entity. He'd cornered McKay and found out more about that ascension, which included a debrief regarding Daniel Jackson and his history.
"He tried to be my Oma," mused John, surprised by McKay's backward attempt at help.
Their attention was drawn to the object of conversation. McKay was thrashing in bed, pulling at his restraints and shouting for Sheppard. John looked at the others in surprise, "Has he been doing that?"
Beckett nodded. "For some reason, he's certain we're out to hurt you, and we can't reassure him."
"Let me up," ordered Sheppard, tugging ineffectively at his own restraints.
"I'm sorry, but no, we can't do that John. You're under the same effect as Rodney." Elizabeth looked regretful, but firm.
"Well move me close then!" he shouted impatiently, because McKay's fighting against the restraints was getting more violent, and alarmed Sheppard.
At Elizabeth's nod, Carson waved over two nurses, and they unlocked the wheels, pushing his bed next to McKay's. "McKay!" shouted John, trying to get Rodney's attention. "Rodney, I'm here! I'm fine, nobody is hurting me."
McKay's fighting against the restraints slowly came to a halt, and his eyes fluttered open. "Major?"
"It's me, McKay, right here, as trussed up as you, but fine."
Rodney turned his head towards me, and Sheppard could see a glazed moistness to McKay's eyes, and it made John swallow the own lump growing inside. "Why are they doing this to us?" asked Rodney, sounding lost and alone.
Sheppard was about to answer, but Elizabeth stepped forward. "Rodney, the drink you had, there's a drug in it, and it's very dangerous for us. Teyla had a natural immunity against it, but you and the Major didn't. Carson is taking care of you, please, trust us."
McKay kept his eyes on Sheppard, but they drifted shut after only a short period. It hadn't been a long episode, but it'd left John shaken. "Have I been like…"
Beckett adjusted McKay's restraints, and tucked his blanket back in place, avoiding eye contact with Sheppard. "Yes, Major. Both of you, in and out."
Sheppard fixed his eyes on something away from the two people paying him far too much attention now. "How much longer?"
John could hear Beckett shrugging, even though he wasn't watching the Doctor. "Not much longer…I hope."
Sheppard closed his eyes. He wished it were over now. He'd thought it was…and it'd seemed so real. He wasn't aware that he was falling asleep until the next hallucination began…