The tearing of metal woke him up. He looked around the room.
"Oh yeah, here. Where ever here is." Sheppard tried to push himself off the floor, he failed. He searched for anything to help himself up with. He found a counter in the middle of the room. He crawled over to pull himself up to a teetering standing position. His back was to the door.
Something grabbed his ankle and jerked him hard face down on the floor. The wound on his head reopened smearing blood as he was dragged across the floor. It did not take long to figure out what was happening. He could feel and smell his pants leg and skin burning.
"Cosmic jellyfish Sir."
"No shit Ford!" He reached for anything to stop himself from getting closer to the creature. 'Close door!' His mind bellowed.
The door groaned trying to close but the jellyfish kept it open. He pulled and kicked his leg. He finally found a jutting edge from the counter he had been leaning on.
'Emergency, close door!' He could hear the door grinding trying to comply. He figured his leg would separate from the rest of his body before the door would close. The jellyfish was finally forced back out into the corridor. The door shut on the tentacle around his leg severing it.
He crawled as quickly as he could to the back wall of the lab. He panted and looked wildly around the room making sure the jellyfish was indeed gone.
He inspected his corroded pants and ankle. It did not hurt like he thought it would. The burn must have been deep enough the nerves were damaged. He spotted the first aid kit sitting across the room, right next to the door.
"You need it Sir."
"Really? What was your first clue Mr. Phantom?"
"The smell Sir."
Sheppard gingerly crawled on all fours towards the door. He grabbed the kit and returned to the far side of the lab. The door started to groan. It wavered back and forth as if it were made of wood laminate. He had one last refuge, the small side room. He made his way in and shut the door. He heard the other door shriek as it gave way. He was now officially trapped.
"Sorry Ford, I may not be there for the real you."
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"Rodney! What's this about you putting the Archive into a diagnostic!" Weir yelled as he exited the wormhole.
"I detected an anomaly and thought it better to be safe than sorry."
He scanned the Gate room. He had to complete his objectives. The Lanteans had taken away his death as a warrior. They had taken away his ability to hunt properly. He looked down at his hand. They had even taken away his ability to feed properly. Ingesting sustenance through the mouth- disgusting.
"We still have not heard from Col. Sheppard, Pvt. Ryals or Pvt. Burns. You said they came back with you to the Learning Center?"
"Yes, we separated as we entered the city."
"Your hand Rodney, is it burned?"
He stared at it longingly.
"Go see Dr. Beckett, and then I want a debriefing." She turned back toward the Command Center. "Tell Dex and Sgt. Stackhouse they have a go."
She watched McKay amble towards the infirmary.
"Now that's not right." She keyed her radio. "Teyla, Rodney is back; make sure he gets to the infirmary."
"Yes Dr. Weir."
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He walked into the infirmary quite nonchalantly. Beckett exited a storage area and greeted him.
"Rodney, what have ya done now?"
"Burned my hand on a device at the building we were searching." He surveyed the entire medical center. "We found nothing. Very disappointing."
"The colonel did not come back with you?"
"No."
"Well, this does not look too serious. I'll get the ointment and bandages." Carson went over to one of the cabinets and retrieved his supplies. "Alright, rest your hand on the tray and let me take a look."
The door glided open and Teyla entered. "Dr. McKay, I see you…" She froze. A voice. A voice that should not be there. She couldsense Dr. McKay's thoughts and they were not all his.
McKay glared back at her.
"Dr. Beckett step away from Dr. McKay," Teyla said with a frighteningly calm voice.
"What? Why?" Carson looked between the two. His eyes widened at the smoldering expression of hate on Rodney's face.
"Think you can take me little human girl," he challenged her. He would definitely relish a fight even if it was with this little bit of a thing. Unfortunately, he had other concerns at the moment. He struck the contents out of Beckett's hands and sent them scattering across the floor. He grabbed Carson by the arm and pulled him to rest against his own body with his other arm around Carson's neck.
"Security to the infirmary. Who are you?" Teyla commanded never taking her eyes off of McKay.
"Dr. Rodney McKay." He shoved Carson at her. She caught the Doctor but still lost her balance. They both crashed to the floor as Rodney made his escape out of the infirmary.
"Security, Dr. McKay has been compromised by the Wraith." Teyla helped Beckett up looking him straight in the eyes. "Tell Dr. Weir that Dr. McKay has been taken over by a Wraith mind." She ran swiftly out of the infirmary towards a weapons locker.
Carson stood there, mouth agape and in shock. He tapped his head set and relayed the message.
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He ran out of the transporter towards his lab. It should still be there. A glimmer of his human conscience nipped at him for a moment. He swept it aside. His lab could bring the city and its denizens to a grinding halt. Running full speed down the corridor, he nearly bowled over Dr. Zelenka, who was just exiting the lab.
"Aah Rodney, where is fire?"
McKay punched him sending his glasses flying back into the lab. He dragged Zelenka inside, plopped him on the floor, and locked the door. Opening his laptop, he interfaced with the naquada generators and shut them off. He then uploaded a program to keep everyone busy for a while. Searching the cabinets in his lab, he found the same piece of Wraith technology he had on Parcini. Waving bye-bye to Radek, he slipped out the door to his next stop- the Command Center.
A public address went out city wide.
"Dr. McKay has been compromised. Do not approach. He is dangerous and possibly armed. Everyone remain where you are until further notice. Security measures are in place."
As soon as she finished the announcement, Elizabeth turned around and came face to face with Rodney McKay.
"Dr. Mc…" She was flung aside as he went straight for the main control console.
He shoved the hapless tech out of the way. His fingers flew across the board as all the systems the ZPM ran shut down. He took the Wraith technology out of his pocket, gave a grim smile and went to activate the little trinket.
The sound of a Wraith stunner blast filled the room. McKay dropped to his knees stuggling for muscle control. He tried to press the device again. Teyla fluidly marched up and stunned him again. This time he fell down and stayed down.
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A/N:I think some of you were right, maybe we should have awaken John. Oops. Now who hasn't wanted to shoot Rodney with at least a stunner? Come on... I think Teyla may have enjoyed it. Please show support for those on Atlantis, review.