Long Strange Trip
Chapter 6
Regular SGA-1 team on Alternate Atlantis
John Sheppard knocked briskly on Rodney's door, praying that the physicist had also been caught up in this switched-body nightmare. The Colonel (now only a Major, he reminded himself) was reluctant to admit to anyone here that he was not who he seemed to be; with the way things were now, that would guarantee him some time in the rubber room. His only hope was that McKay, Teyla and Ronon had also been switched, and, together, they could figure out a way to get things back to normal.
He was startled when instead of a surly scientist yanking open the door, he was greeted with the wide grin of Lieutenant Ford. The young soldier leaned against the door frame, his eyes puzzled.
"Major? Can I help you?" Ford asked. John noticed that the man had neglected to get dressed, and was only garbed in a silken robe. Then, from within the room he heard a soft giggle, and was rewarded with a light blush on Ford's cheeks.
"Umm..I was looking for Rodney, and he's not in the lab. I thought he was here," John replied, trailing off at Aidan's confused look. The Lieutenant stared hard at John for a moment, then shook his head.
"Man, Caldwell must have really rattled you. Today is Rodney's day off…he's probably at home." At John's vacant look, Ford sighed.
"Level twelve, third door on the left," he directed, then started closing the door.
"Ford." Aidan paused, his look both curious and impatient. John stood a moment, realizing that it had been more than a year since he had last seen the lieutenant whole and healthy, a man who was a valued member of his team, a man he had called friend.
"Thanks."
oOo
Rodney stared at the baby girl who lay half-naked on her changing table. His initial panic over his current situation had dissolved into resignation. He had screwed up – again – and now he and the rest of the team were wandering around in an alternate Atlantis. At least, he hoped the rest of the team was here.
Rodney had reluctantly rummaged through the house, uncovering more evidence that his alter-ego was both a husband and a father. He had carried Lizzie (his daughter!) with him, muttering under his breath, unsure of his next step. One thing was for sure – he just couldn't leave the child alone while he went in search of Sheppard and the others. He had remembered Jessica (his wife!) saying something about daycare. With a sigh, he had decided the best course of action was to try and act like this Rodney McKay, and the first step was getting his daughter clothed and fed.
He had managed to undress the child, remove her soiled diaper (gross! – what did they feed this kid?), clean her up and put on a new diaper. After rummaging through the drawers for a moment, he had located a pink T-shirt, tiny blue jean overalls and some socks. Now, his new challenge was re-dressing his wiggling daughter.
A daughter. Who'd have thought? Rodney smirked; his distaste for children was a well-known fact around Atlantis. Yet, the fact that this child was his – okay, not really his, but Rodney was certain he would pass any genetic test they tossed at him – well, that changed everything. She seemed cuter, smarter, more cuddly. She beamed a smile at him, and Rodney paused ramming her arm into the sleeve, his emotions churning.
Rodney had very little doubt that the machine on his Atlantis had somehow switched him into this Rodney McKay – in fact, it was pretty obvious. Unless he was insane, a thought which gave a moment of pause. Then, with a shrug, he tossed that idea aside. He was confident that he had retained his sanity. He was also pretty sure that with a little effort, he would find Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon somewhere close by, as confused and bewildered as he had been this morning. He was also fairly sure that with a little time, he would be able to get all four of them back to their reality.
What he wasn't sure of was his growing attachment to this little person. Granted, he had only just met Lizzie about an hour ago, but he could feel something developing between them. It didn't help that she seemed to like him, clutching at his shirt and grinning whenever he spoke aloud.
A knock at the door made Rodney groan. "What now?" He grabbed up Lizzie, one arm in a sleeve, and tromped to the door. He waved an impatient hand over the control panel, and the door opened to reveal the man who stood in the hall.
"Rodney?" The man stared in shock at the baby who bounced in McKay's arms.
"John." Rodney thought furiously, trying to figure out a way to determine if this was his Colonel Sheppard. Finally, he stepped back, allowing John entry in the room. The Colonel gaped at the interior, homey and warm, with a multitude of pictures scattered about and a huge, fluffy couch. Rodney quickly closed the door behind them, and, switching Lizzie to his other arm, led the way back to her bedroom.
John followed silently. He wasn't sure if this McKay was, in fact, his McKay. For one thing, he had a child in his arms, and was currently dressing the baby. Doubt filled John as he watched the man deftly slide her other arm into the sleeve, then tug on the overalls.
"Rodney, I know this is going to sound crazy, but…..are you the real Dr. McKay, or the other Dr. McKay?" The scientist froze, his blue eyes meeting John's, and something close to relief filled their depths.
"Oh, thank God," he replied. "I wasn't sure if you were….you." He finished dressing Lizzie, then picked her up, unconsciously holding her to his chest. She twisted around, then held her arms out to John. Captivated by her smile, he reached out and took the girl from Rodney.
"And who is this?" John asked, bouncing her up and down, and receiving a delighted giggle in return.
Rodney ran a hand through his hair, then gestured for them to leave the room.
He peered into the kitchen area, spied a refrigerator and, after rummaging for a few seconds, emerged with a bottle of milk and an apple. He raised his eyebrows at John, waving the apple, and the Colonel shook his head. Rodney only nodded, his mouth crunching as he bit into the apple, and popped the bottle into a microwave oven.
"This is my –his – daughter, Lizzie. Apparently, in this reality, I'm a married man. My – his – wife, Jessica, had to go to work, and left me in charge of the baby. I'm supposed to drop her at day care or something."
John merely nodded, struck by the child's name. Lizzie. As he gazed at the girl, he realized that she had McKay's intense blue eyes. He stopped as a thought occurred to him.
"Rodney, everyone knows that you don't like kids. Yet, you dressed Lizzie like a pro. What's up with that?" He waited, watching as the scientist grimaced.
"I do have a sister, you know. And she has two kids. There were times when I was recruited to baby-sit." Rodney, waiting for the bottle to warm in the microwave, reached out and, with a small ,"Aha!" turned on a laptop computer. Typing quickly, he scanned the screen, his forehead furrowing.
"Okay, tell me what's going on," John said, placing Lizzie into a baby chair. She whimpered at his tone, and Rodney glanced up from the screen. The microwave beeped, and he removed the bottle, testing the temperature on his wrist, then offered it to the child. She grabbed it, sucking noisily, a smile on her face.
'Like father, like daughter – feed her and she's happy,' John thought as Rodney took another noisy bite of his apple.
"Okay – obviously we're not on our Atlantis. Somehow, we were transported to an alternate Atlantis. By we, I mean the four of us – you, me, Teyla and Ronon. Have you seen them, by the way?" Rodney asked, and was dismayed to see John shake his head.
"Anyway, I'm guessing that all of us are alive in this alternate reality, or we'd have a real problem. I'm also guessing that our other selves are inhabiting our personalities in our Atlantis." Rodney paused, picking up Lizzie, and gently patting her back. She responded with a loud burp, causing Rodney to shake his head in consternation.
"Piglet," he muttered, and John nearly snorted in laughter. Rodney carefully wiped the girl's face with a towel, then turned to John.
"I need to get down to that room, make sure that their machine is operational. I have a theory on how to get us back, but I need to check a few things out. Dr. Weir might be able to…" Rodney trailed off at the pained look on John's face.
"Rodney…Elizabeth is dead." The scientist paled, clutching the baby closer, causing her to wriggle in protest. "At least, on this Atlantis, she's gone. Killed during the Genii attack last year." McKay nodded, sagging against the counter.
"Ford is here…and he's completely normal. No Wraith infection. And I'm only a Major – Caldwell is in charge." John stopped, a thought occurring to him. "Caldwell dismissed me from Atlantis. I'm supposed to go back to Earth on the Daedelus."
Rodney, his gaze distant, glanced sharply at Sheppard. "The Daedelus? Why not through the stargate?" At John's shrug, Rodney nodded, then asked, "When?"
"Caldwell said a day or two," John replied. He watched as Rodney cuddled the baby, unconsciously running a hand through her dark hair. His brow furrowed in thought, and he muttered incomprehensibly for a moment.
"Then we better get moving," Rodney finally said. He gestured for John to leave the room, juggling Lizzie from one arm to the next. As they entered the corridor and began heading towards the lab, Rodney remembered to ask:
"By the way, you don't happen to know where daycare is, do you?"
oOo
Ronon Dex watched the morning sun rise, his eyes scanning the landscape for any threats. In the distance he could see the top of the stargate, the metal gleaming in the light. Behind him, he could hear Owen stir, shuffling on his sleeping pallet.
Throughout the night, Ronon had tossed various plans back and forth, discarding some immediately and looking for flaws in others. He knew that he needed to return to his own reality, and not only because he had grown accustomed to feeling safe on Atlantis. Last night, after they had eaten, Ronon had casually asked the other runner why they hadn't removed the tracking devices located in their backs. Owen had stared in confusion, then shook his head.
"I prefer to remain in one piece, thank you. You do remember the explosive device, don't you?" Owen had peered closely at Ronon, causing the big runner to duck his head, avoiding the stare of his companion. He may look like Ronon – how could he not? – but he realized that he didn't act like the other Ronon.
He would have to monitor his behavior.
Owen had informed him that they would be leaving this world today, moving on to another. Ronon had only nodded, a chill settling in his gut. He wasn't sure, but he had a suspicion that he needed to stay on this planet. Leaving and going off to parts unknown seemed like a really bad idea.
He wondered about the rest of his team. He was fairly certain that they had also been transported to a different reality, one that seemed so familiar, but had glaring differences. He worried about Teyla – he was closer to her than to anyone else on the team, and although he knew she could take of herself, he still wished he was with her. He desperately hoped McKay was working on the problem; if anyone could fix this mess, it was the physicist.
Ronon's musings were interrupted by Owen. The other runner yawned as he approached, scratching at his belly.
"Hey," Ronon said, then returned his gaze to the vista below. Owen didn't answer, just plopped down next to the runner.
"So, what's up?" Owen asked. He didn't wait for an answer, launching into monologue about which planet he wanted to escape to next. Ronon barely listened; he had already decided not to accompany the smaller man. He was torn between waiting here, hoping to be rescued by Sheppard and the others, or dialing the Atlantis Alpha site, and trying to explain the situation to the soldiers there. Both options had serious flaws, but Ronon found himself leaning towards the Alpha site. At least, then, he might find himself back on Atlantis. Perhaps he could even locate Sheppard and the others, and help get them back to their own reality. In any case, Ronon's instinct was to do something, rather than wait around, giving the Wraith time to locate him.
Owen's voice tapered away, and he sighed. Nervously twisting his hands together, he looked sadly at Ronon.
"You're not coming, are you?" Owen asked in a small voice. Ronon started, then smothered a guilty look. This man had saved his life yesterday, and Ronon was positive that if the other Ronon was here, they both would be moving on together.
"No. I can't." Ronon swung around, giving Owen his full attention. "I'm sorry – but I have to stay here. At least, for a little while longer." Owen only nodded.
He stood, dusting off his pants.
"Well, at least we can share a meal, Dex." He slowly moved back into the cave, retrieving the cooking pan, and started fixing breakfast. Ronon, his face a blank mask, rose from his place, and went inside to help.
oOo
"Teyla, you cannot do this! They will kill you – or worse!" Halling blocked Teyla's exit from the hut with his enormous bulk, and she glared up at him. She had made the decision that she would address her people, try to convince them that contacting Atlantis, and forging a treaty with the humans, was their only hope. Teyla was mortified by the Athosian's living conditions, and knew that if she could just speak to Dr. Weir – or even Colonel Caldwell – she could negotiate a trade agreement, helping her people, and herself.
Teyla was fully aware that the Dr. Weir on this Atlantis might have nothing to do with her. With careful questioning, she had learned the whole story from Halling – how she had befriended John Sheppard, trusted him to help her and her people, only to have that trust destroyed. He had insisted that Sheppard was a liar, a man who used the Athosians to gain what he wanted, and then left them to fend for themselves. Teyla had shaken her head, unable to believe that the Sheppard who resided in this reality could be so different from the man she knew.
She paced the floor, annoyed by Halling's protectiveness. She needed to do something – even if it was only to help her people. Teyla had no idea if the others had suffered the same fate as she, and were currently wandering around in another reality. And she didn't know what to do to remedy the situation. She had no access to Atlantis, or to the machine that sent her here. For all she knew, she was stuck here, on this Athos, with these people. If that was the case, then she was going to do everything in her power to improve the situation.
She stopped pacing and approached Halling. "My friend, I believe I can help our people. To do this, I must be allowed to speak with them, convince them to contact the humans on Atlantis and offer a treaty."
"Teyla, what makes you believe that the humans have changed? You have always sworn to kill Sheppard for his betrayal, and destroy anyone who was associated with the city of the Ancients. Now, suddenly, you wish to broker a treaty? This makes no sense." Halling crossed his arms, his face stern.
Teyla reached out and lightly grasped her friend's arm. "I know it seems unusual, but, Halling, I am asking you to trust me." He stared at her for a long moment, then with a sigh, nodded his head.
"I trust you Teyla. The question is – will anyone else?"
TBC