Chapter 10- Beginnings of a Chase
Major Sheppard beat his hands against the transporter door, he had just watched his team member, chief scientist, and friend step in being controlled by a murderous Ancient. He swore at himself for letting this go on for days.
He activated his radio to the search teams and added two more three-person teams. Lt. Ford was still leading one, Sgt. Bates had his own, Sgt. Stackhouse another, and Markham headed the last with Teyla until Sheppard met up with them. He also had Smith coming down to 13B to stand guard as Zelenka and Grodin worked. If Garin decided to go back to the lab, he wanted someone there. After relaying the new information to the group he ended the conversation with, "Each member carries a Wraith Stunner, it is still McKay we're talking about here."
"Yes, sir."
"Sir."
"Will do, Sir."
He stopped in 13B one last time before meeting up with one of the teams. Carson was talking with Zelenka by the computer about the suppressant Garin made, Grodin was still by the cabinet, and Elizabeth and Kate/Elana were talking in the center of the room.
John announced, "He made it to the transporter."
"Did you see where he went?" Elizabeth asked, her expression hiding her worry.
John shook his head reluctantly, "No."
"Peter, get back up to the Control Room, use the city's scanners."
"Yes ma'am. Do you have this Radek?"
He looked up from the computer, "Go ahead," and went back to talking with Carson.
Peter quickly left as John addressed Kate/Elana, "Anything else you two have to tell me?" He felt extremely odd talking to two people in one body, not knowing which one was going to respond to him.
"My husband was one of our leading scientists, the last architect of Atlantis among other things. He knows every corner and will use his knowledge. Garin wants to live. He'll do anything to make that possible, even if he can't have me."
"What are you saying?"
"He'll leave the city."
John immediately keyed his radio to the teams, "Bates, take your team, guard the Gate and Control Balcony. Stackhouse, you have the Jumper Bay. He's going to try and run. Ford, you have the northern side of the city, we'll get the south."
"Understood, sir."
"Got it, sir."
"Sounds like a plan, sir."
Smith chose this exact moment to show up at the lab's door, a stunner crooked in his arm. "Reporting, sir."
John turned around, a little shocked the soldier was there already, "That was fast. Okay, you know what to do." He turned back to the people in the room, speaking sincerely, "We'll find him," and he quickly headed straight to the armory, he wasn't exactly walking around with weapons that morning.
After he left, Elana kept talking to Elizabeth, "I believe I could be of some assistance to Peter, I may not be as knowledgeable about the city as Garin, but I still know more than you all." She wasn't trying to be arrogant, and it didn't come off that way.
Elizabeth sensed the honesty in the Ancient's voice, "Yes, let's make our way."
---
Garin exited the transporter in the hallway of Rodney's quarters, quickly walking into it, and grabbed the pack Rodney took on missions. He stuffed some clothes and other supplies into it, including chocolate and power bars for Rodney's hypoglycemia, threw the radio headset on the ground, and left the room, leaving it a mess in his rush. It took all of a minute. Garin then proceeded back to the transporter, punching in a destination, and within moments he was out again. This time in a dark and deserted hallway.
He brought his hand to his temple and breathed deeply as he walked, starting to feel the effects of two minds fighting for control of the body. He stopped reading Rodney's thoughts, it took to much out of him now. Besides, he had to do two things at once, focus on keeping command and escape the city at all costs. If Elana didn't want to live, fine, he'd go on without her. He couldn't just surrender, not after everything that brought him to this point. He wasn't the type to give up on a goal, not when there was still hope of attaining it.
Rodney stood in his world's Control Balcony, hands on the railing, looking down at the Gate. The recent success of taking control of his own arm for a brief moment had given him hope. He focused on the world around him, focusing on it disappearing.
One orange couch vanished, then the other, and then the Gate itself. He kept willing the world away, and it continued to work, the walls literally melted away, revealing an empty whiteness all around him. The floor of the Gateroom dropped out, he watched it fall away and ultimately vanish in the vast emptiness.
A smile pierced his lips, thankful that Garin was in such an emotional state that it let him assert this much control. He kept concentrating, and turned to face the area where he was. The consoles shimmered and faded away one by one until they were all gone.
Rodney continued to will the hated recreated world away, until all that was left was him, the screen, and the vast whiteness. The blinding white world no longer carried a sense of creepiness to him, now it pursed with optimism. He was in control of it.
The hard part would be actually taking control of his whole body, forcing Garin out into this reality, and keeping a grip on it. He knew the suppressant still coursed through his veins, giving Garin the upper hand, but after all, he did succeed once.
Garin stopped at a six-foot wide door and thought it open, but it wouldn't budge. He sighed and realized that of course the others locked this room when they left the city, they sealed his, why wouldn't they do the same to this one? It was most likely the case with the other three entrances also.
He set the pack down to free his hands, pried the panel off, revealing the flat, clear crystals beneath. It was a small obstacle, but an annoying one at that. He picked up the white pen-like instrument attached to a wire, and after touching a couple crystals and moving one, the door slid open.
Smiling at the small victory, Garin replaced the panel, slung the pack on his back, and walked into the small space, only as wide as the door itself, and there was an identical door five feet in front of him. The door behind him slid closed and the room lit up.
---
John ran into the armory to find Teyla and Markham armed with stunners and waiting, Markham handed him a Wraith stunner, "Ready to go, sir."
He slung on a vest and then took the stunner, resting it in the crook of his arm, "So, we actually had enough of these things huh?"
"We scrounged up a few, sir."
Teyla handed him a life-signs detector, "Ford's team is progressing as ordered. Nothing yet." Teyla said calmly.
Sheppard waved them through the door, "Let's move out."
"Should we not check Rodney's room to see if he made a stop in there?"
"Good idea Teyla, but we'll make it quick."
Needless to say, the sight of the three of them, and the other teams, walking through the inhabited parts of the city, carrying Wraith Stunners, raised some eyebrows from the other expedition members who had no idea what was really happening. For all they knew, Sheppard and the rest were just moving the Stunners to a new storage facility or something, but the looks on their faces gave away that there was something else going on.
They reached McKay's quarters in record time, and upon entering, they were startled by the room's appearance.
Markham was the first to comment, "Looks like a hurricane has been through here." He stooped and picked up the headset, showing it to the other two.
"And its name is Garin." John's voice reeked of loathing for the man and he went out the door, followed by the other two.
As they headed into the emptier parts of the city, they heard Weir's voice over the communications system informing the others of the situation. John noticed she left quite a bit out, wisely, so as not to cause a panic. That was the last thing they needed.
---
Elizabeth hurriedly yet gracefully walked to where Peter was working in the Control Balcony, followed by Kate/Elana who had a look of worry and nervousness on her face. They passed Sgt. Bates on the way who gave them a nod. The other two members of his search team were down on Gate level by the doors.
Peter Grodin saw them walk up, "Haven't found him yet."
"Keep scanning, and meanwhile put me on city-wide."
He pressed a couple of buttons on the communication console, "Good to go."
Elizabeth nodded and started talking on the system, "This is Dr. Weir, we have a situation. Dr. McKay has been, for lack of a better word, compromised. A separate person is in control of his body and actions. Do not engage him in any way, but report sightings to the Control Room. Weir out." She nodded to Peter who promptly turned the system off.
Elana asked Peter, "Where exactly have you scanned for him?"
Unsure of who exactly just asked him, he pointed to the map on secondary screen on the wall, "I've done a detailed scan of the explored parts of the city and a preliminary of the unexplored."
Elizabeth crossed her arms deep in thought, "You couldn't find him anywhere?" Just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, now Garin seemed to have completely disappeared.
"No ma'am. It's the strangest thing, as if he vanished."
Not noticing Kate/Elana moving to a console a few feet away, Elizabeth opened a channel to the search teams, including Major Sheppard, on her headset, "We have been unable to locate Rodney in the city."
"How can that be?" John paused a moment before continuing, "Stackhouse, any activity in the bay?"
"No, been as quiet as a church, sir."
Elizabeth listened to the chatter, "Keep up the search."
---
Garin was standing in the small room and a computerized voice echoed in his head.
"Access code"
He responded automatically, aiming his thoughts at the computer, "Dr. Garin Trelio, Beta-Gamma-2-1-0-7-3-Alpha"
"Access granted."
The door slid open, being a leading scientist among the Ancients had its benefits, one being access to anywhere in the city. Garin walked into the hallway as the door closed behind him. It was one of four twenty- foot long halls, surrounding an inner lab chamber. Directly in front of him was another six-foot wide door leading to the chamber, but he wasn't going in there.
He turned right, passing up a few doors on the inner side of the hallway, until he came to the last one. He thought it open and eyed the room thinking of course it wasn't exactly the same as he last set eyes upon it, but with any luck, some things would still be the same.
The back wall was all glass and looked down upon the inner chamber. The room itself had a desk, chair, cabinets, all the standard office items. Garin went directly to the desk, sat down, and felt under the lip for a trigger.
He found and activated it, when he did a secret drawer in the desk slip open next to him. He peered in and saw what he was looking for, a life-signs detector, and three powerful hand weapons that his brother-in-law kept there just in case.
Taking one out, he looked at it. It was larger than the standard military issue 9mm, but not by much. It was also smoother, made up a white metal that shined different colors under light, and didn't fire bullets. The front was flat, not circular like a barrel, so as the wave it fired could spread horizontally, if that was desired. The weapon was controlled by thoughts, and so were the settings. The default was a stun mode, but it could also kill.
---
Elana was busy at the console and looking up at the screen at a three-dimensional screen of the submarine bay, she was shaking her head.
Peter walked over, having just noticed the woman over there, and curiously asked who he assumed was Elana since Kate wouldn't be off by herself working a console, "What are you doing?"
Elana didn't turn her head, "Investigating my intuition."
Now Elizabeth asked her, "Which would be what?" Talking to two people in one body didn't phase her anymore, back at the SGC she had some encounters with Tok'ra. Though it was easier to know who was talking with a Tok'ra, at least the voice changed.
"I was checking to see if the Submarine Bay doors and ports have been opened, but they haven't.'
Elizabeth blinked, "We have a Submarine Bay?"
"You can actually detect if the ports have been opened?" Peter's shocked expression matched the Expedition leader's.
She answered both questions in a row, "Oh right, I apologize, you didn't know that. It's a security measure." Elana brought up another image, this time of a square, multi-layered laboratory complex. "Since the Jumper and Submarine Bays have seen no activity, I can only assume Garin is where no scans can penetrate." She pointed, "Here, in the weapon research complex."
Peter didn't ask a question as much as he stated an observation, "The complex is shielded to prevent an accident harming the rest of the city, which inadvertently also blocks the sensors."
Elana nodded, "Precisely. Every wall in the complex is made from an ore that will withstand explosions, and when a test was in progress, they would activate the actual shield as a precaution." She pulled up a screen that showed the west entrance door, stats came up showing the last activation a few minutes earlier by Garin's access code. "That's not good."
Peter questioned, "What would he want from the complex?"
Kate took over, "Elana's brother was a weapons specialist, and also a bit cautious. He kept a hidden compartment in his office with three stun type hand weapons and a life-signs detector."
"Is he still there?" Elizabeth hoped she could tell.
Kate bit her lip and looked at the stats, "The entrance door has only been opened once today. So yes."
Elizabeth opened a channel to the search teams, "We found him in an unexplored part of the city, in a weapons research complex. There is a high possibility he is armed." She ended with directions to the complex and a quick layout that Elana had brought up on the screen.
Kate/Elana got tired of communicating to the search teams through other people, and put on the headset they had been carrying around since the library.
---
"Understood." Major Sheppard, Markham, and Teyla walked down the empty hall they were presently searching and entered the transporter. When it opened they were at the corner of the west hallway and the south hallway. Markham moved to the right and approached the south hall entrance, keeping the stunner ready. Sheppard and Teyla started moving down the west hall.
They could see Ford and his team at the other end of the south hall, moving in entirety up the east hall since Markham had the south entrance covered.
John checking the detector, and since only his and Ford's teams were showing, he assumed Garin was still being shielded by the complex, and slid it back in his pocket.
He and Teyla moved quietly down the hall, and Teyla stopped at the west entrance, it sliding open, courtesy of Elana in the Control Balcony. They started moving in when out of the corner of his eye, John saw Garin at the other end of the hallway, walking in another transporter.
"Garin!" John fired a blast from the stunner, but it hit the transporter doors as they closed.
He broke the radio silence using a channel to the Control Balcony and the search teams, "Grodin, tell me where he's going."
-
Grodin was busily working on the scanner, "He just exited a few floors beneath you."
Elana's eyes widened when she looked on the map and saw where he was heading, "This is really not good." She talked on the channel, "Major, get down there right away. He's heading to the auxiliary Gate and Control Room."
"Auxiliary? This gets better and better."
---
Garin walked up to a door, and a computerized voice sounded in his head again,
"Access code"
"Dr. Garin Trelio, Beta-Gamma-2-1-0-7-3-Alpha"
"Access granted."
The door slid open and he strolled into the room, thinking the door locked behind him. It wasn't a miniature copy of the Gate/Control Balcony area, this had no Balcony or fancy stairs, only a dozen or so consoles, a rather Gate-deprived floor area, and a Jumper sitting in the corner. After a closer look, however, one would notice a circular object resting in the floor.
He looked down at his right hand as he headed over to the console he needed to use. His hand was shaking again, but this time it was progressing through his right side.
He shouted, "Damn it, McKay, I don't have time for this!" Garin approached the console and started working feverishly.
---
Elizabeth was standing with her arms clasped behind her back, looking at the map displayed by the scanner on the large screen when it shut off and went black. She turned immediately to Peter, "What happened!"
He was pressing buttons on the console, trying to bring it up again. He then moved to the other consoles, the other scientists doing the same to the others. No one could get anything to work.
"It seems as if we lost all power, but that doesn't make any sense." He checked the DHD, "The only system still online is the Gate shield."
Elana quietly said, "Garin is jamming the systems from the auxiliary controls. I should have thought of this earlier…" She closed her eyes and Kate took over, "The Ancients added a backup Gate and command center during the war with the Wraith in case this room was compromised. Access to the backup was limited, as the weapons research complex, the Gate laid in the ground so as not to interfere with this one, but can be raised in less than a minute, and the controls given the ability to block out these."
John's voice sounded in their headsets, "We're locked out, get me in now!"
Peter responded, "I can't, Garin has jammed all our systems up here."
"Then I'll just blow it open."
"Understood Major." Elizabeth turned to Peter, "We can't dial out to stop him from activating the second Gate?
He was hastily working on bringing the systems back, getting nowhere, "Correct."
-
By now, both Sheppard's team and Ford's team had made it to the door. John pulled out a block of C-4 from his vest, stuck in on the door next to where the jam was, and set the trigger. Everyone retreated around the corner.
Ford questioned, "Are you sure that's going to work, sir?"
"As Rodney once said, 'Atlantis is remarkably fragile.'" He detonated the explosive, blowing the door away.
TBC…
