AN: Happy New Year back at you guys! Of course, we have to make things difficult, it's what we do. (big grin)

Part 11…

"He's not trying to hurt me!" shouted John.

Goethe had effectively inserted himself between Sheppard and Lorne's unit, and tensions in the room were ratcheting skyward. Lorne gestured with his weapon. "Sir, you can say so, but from our standpoint, it is responsible for your current condition," he reasoned. "And since you are incapacitated, I'm in charge, and I'm ordering you to get out of that cell."

Sheppard processed the information that he'd been the leader of these men, and used it to his advantage. "If I was in command, then you know I make sound decisions. Lorne," and if he stumbled over the name slightly he hoped it wouldn't reinforce the precariousness of his situation, "Goethe has only tried to protect me. Please," he added, knowing as awkward as the word felt, it wasn't something he said often.

He tried to step around Goethe, hoping the lull would've settled the half-wraith, but the second he moved, the arm that was far stronger than one would think, shot out like a barrier, and pushed John back behind.

While John's attention was diverted, he heard Lorne calling for back-up. He knew the situation had deteriorated, regardless of his intentions in coming here. The best outcome would be for him and Goethe to leave this place, but even as he thought it, a picture rose up of Lily, and unexpectedly, Rodney. Shaking his head, John tried to sort through the confusing pictures and emotions.

A strong hand was pushing him backwards, and John realized Goethe was trying to usher him into the far corner. "I need to go," Sheppard protested. "They'll hurt you."

Goethe jerked his head negatively, still facing half towards the men, and half now towards John. "Need you…of my kind," he said haltingly. "Help me. Lonely."

The word alone didn't – couldn't - convey what Goethe's tortured face did.

Reaching for the arm that had stilled on John's own, he said, "I know. You're not alone anymore." He pointed around Goethe's bulk to the growing number of personnel, and John recognized that the doctor, Beckett, had joined the rest, before saying "If I don't go with them, this could get ugly. But I'll be back. I promise." And this time there wasn't any awkwardness because he knew he kept his promises.

What happened next would replay in John's mind over and over again. The nurse, Alicia she'd said her name was, blustered in with a large rifle in her hands. "Doctor Beckett, the tranquilizer wasn't pre-measured, I'm sorry it took -" she trailed off as she caught sight of Goethe, and now huddled behind and protected by Goethe's body, John.

"Colonel!" she said suddenly, and stepped towards him, something inexplicable in her expression.

Lorne threw a hand out to stop the nurse, but in doing so he had to step forward. Goethe bristled, and howled, leaping to stop them from moving closer. "No take!"

The bullets whistled through the air with unerring precision, and Goethe danced back from the impacts. The report from the weapons quieted, and still Goethe stood. The half-wraith stared down at the black blood oozing from at least a dozen wounds, before lifting his eyes again. Sheppard couldn't see his face, but the stance radiated a desperate fury.

"No!" John shouted, jumping to his feet, even as Goethe rushed forward.

Sheppard felt a hot slice of agony flame in his shoulder and felt himself being flung backwards, even as he watched Goethe falter. One more step, two, and then the half-wraith dropped to his knees, before sliding to his side.

Soldiers rushed in, and there was shouting, loud and frustrated, but all of it stilled to a vacuum as Goethe rolled towards John. The would-be monster blinked, and smiled sadly, before his eyes closed a final time.

Enraged, John fought to sit. He pushed a hand against the wound in his shoulder, and kicked out at the approaching medics. He'd trusted these people. Had been about to go with them, and look what had happened? They'd killed this being, and all Goethe had wanted was to stop being alone.

"You stupid son-of-a-bitches!" he swore. John kicked back harder because there were too many, and the accumulated injuries stepped in to do what the shoulder injury alone wouldn't, and that was weaken him too much to resist. "He didn't want to hurt anyone!"

Amidst the hands holding him, and pushing him against the floor, Sheppard felt the sharp needle prick in his other arm, and the fight went out of him. He stilled, and blinked at the ceiling because he'd failed. Taking a ragged breath in, he latched on to the one face and whispered, "You didn't have to kill him."

Beckett's expression was stricken, and he leaned closer to Sheppard. "I'm sorry. It wasn't supposed to happen this way."

But John's world had already grayed, and he spun down into unconsciousness.

OoO

Elizabeth slammed the palm of her hand down on the briefing table in an unusual explosion of anger. "I want to know who fired first," she said, and whereas the body language screamed her anger, her tone was clipped, precise and coldly controlled.

"Ma'am, we're investigating now to determine, but -"

Rodney rolled his eyes, and interrupted, "What the Major is trying to say, and failing miserably I might add, is that the likelihood of pinning down the culprit is almost nil, as what most likely occurred was that more than one of the 'shoot first, ask questions later' Neanderthals were at fault."

"Major?"

Lorne chewed the stick of gum harder than necessary, but reluctantly nodded. "Most likely."

Elizabeth straightened, and her arms folded as she paced around the circumference of the oval table. "So, this was a breakdown in training, is that what you're telling me?"

Lorne bristled, and he leaned forward in the direction she was currently at. "That's not fair and you know it." He waved an irritated hand, expressing his frustration. "That thing was half-wraith, and it was charging my men! What'd you expect them to do? Offer to change its diapers?"

The snort from McKay caused Elizabeth to shift her attention for a moment, but before she could return to Lorne, Carson butted in. "In the Major's defense, the autopsy has revealed a fully functional wraith feeding system, Elizabeth."

"And yet, it apparently wasn't hungry," berated Rodney. "Otherwise, Sheppard would've been dinner a long time before this. If you'd teach your men to think -"

"Enough, Rodney," Elizabeth warned.

Lorne's jaw clenched and he and McKay shared a split-second stare down that promised it wasn't over by a long shot, before Rodney turned away. "The priority now is Sheppard. Not only did he get shot, courtesy of our…" at the sharp look from Elizabeth he skipped that part, "…now he sure as hell isn't going to trust us. What we've spent the past couple of days laboriously doing, Lorne has undone in the span of less time than it takes me to calculate a power curve."

Elizabeth quirked an eyebrow towards Carson. He frowned, and stared down at the folder before nodding reluctantly. "Aye, I'm afraid Rodney's right." He flipped open the file, and withdrew a report, pushing it across towards Weir. "These are the latest scans on the colonel. The bruising and swelling has reduced -"

"That's good news, right?" she asked puzzled.

"Well, yes," he said flustered. "But Elizabeth, he still doesn't remember anything except bits and pieces, and the fact that the physical manifestations of the injury have begun to recede and his memory hasn't returned, isn't good."

"I see." She paused for a moment, staring at the report on John's condition, before unfolding her arms, and dropping into the chair closest to her. She felt a lot older than her years. "Rodney, I want you to take Sheppard to the new quarters for you, John and Lily. Get him settled, keep an eye on him, and try to help him heal. If you need help with your regular duties -"

"Radek has already volunteered," Rodney interjected.

She nodded, accepting that McKay had already decided to do what she wanted. It wouldn't be the first time, and she hoped it wouldn't be the last. "Good," she smiled in relief at one hurdle crossed. "Carson, find out everything you can on this Goethe. I want to know why the Ancients did this, and what they hoped to accomplish. Unless either of you have anything further to add, I believe we're finished for now."

Rodney was gone before the words had practically left her mouth, and Carson stood, an amused twist to his lips. He took the paper back from Elizabeth and said, "I'll get back to you with the final autopsy results." Then he, too, left.

Lorne went to go, but Elizabeth said, "I need to talk to you, Major, alone."

He swiveled smartly on his heel, and faced her, his face stone.

"Major, what your men did was inexcusable. At the very least, they should've had one stunner amongst them." She drummed her fingers against the open computer by her on the table. "I've prepared official reprimands, and whether I send them or not, is up to you."

Quizzically, Lorne raised an eyebrow. "Ma'am?"

"I've sent you a list of training guidelines I want to see implemented. I know it's not my area of expertise, but with Colonel Sheppard down, I'm trying to do what I know he would in this situation." She tried to force back the burning regret. "I should've done this a while ago. I know John always insisted security teams be armed with both restraining and impact weapons, but some things were accepted to those of us that'd been around a while, and with John taken off duty so much…" frustrated, she gave herself a mental shake, "…suffice to say, some things were allowed to slip that shouldn't have. As much as I blame your men, and consequently you, I also shoulder some of the blame. Because of this, the reprimand is also against myself. I'd like us all to get an opportunity to redeem ourselves."

Lorne studied her, surprised by the turn in what he'd known was a private dressing down. He nodded, sober. "Consider it done."

"Good." She got to her feet, and this time the smile was weary. "Dismissed, Major."

Lorne hesitated, and what he was going to say, Elizabeth didn't know, but he finally nodded and left.

Feeling the weight of a thousand souls, she shut the laptop lid, and lifted the computer in her arms, wishing that somehow this entire debacle would end for the better. Heading to her office, she also found herself wishing for a strong glass of Carson's secret stash.

OoO

Rodney swung by their rooms to bring Teyla up to speed after the briefing, but found the Athosian wasn't there. He blinked at the room in consternation. The bed was mussed, and Lily's crib had the side rail lowered. Teyla's armoire was ajar and her boots gone. He continued to scan the room for a clue as to where she'd gone, and found the whiteboard sported a new message.

It'd been Elizabeth's idea, along with the entire room, which he realized he had yet to really thank her for. Since so many were splitting Lily coverage, it was a way to keep up with where everyone was, who had done what, and even a rough schedule of her days and meals.

Now, he noticed in the free area, Teyla had scratched a quick note that she'd taken Lily to the infirmary.

Frowning, he hoped it wasn't because of Ronon's condition worsening. The runner had yet to regain consciousness, though Carson insisted he was improving.

Ordinarily, Rodney would take every opportunity to bait Carson, but the situation now leeched any arrogance out of McKay, and instead he found himself feeling at odds at where to be, and who to sit by.

Sighing, he lifted the rail on Lily's crib, picked up a discarded stuffed frog and tossed it back in the pile that was by the rocking chair, and shut the door on the armoire. Teyla was a damn good fighter, but she was a lousy housekeeper. He debated taking a shower, but even though Carson had assured him Sheppard would be under for another hour, he didn't want to risk not being there.

Minutes later, he walked in to find that Sheppard was still under, and Teyla was sitting by Ronon, cradling a sleeping Lily and talking quietly with Carson.

"Rodney," greeted Beckett.

Teyla turned enough to nod his way.

He acknowledged both with a short wave, and headed towards them after another furtive look at John, just to make sure.

"How's he doing," he asked, nudging a chin at Ronon.

"Better." Teyla stood carefully, and held out Lily for McKay. "She should be waking soon. Her naps are off because of the teething, but if she does not wake soon, I doubt she will sleep much tonight."

The wistful smile that stole over Rodney's face had nothing to do with the dimpled chin, he told himself, even while his mind laughed and called himself a liar. She was beautiful, and had captured his heart completely.

"Did you give her anything for the pain?" he asked, taking her gently against his chest, and jostling Lily just enough to hopefully ease her into a wakeful state.

"Tylenol. She fell asleep soon after."

"The poor lass has at least two on the bottom fighting to break through the gums," Carson intoned. "Once they manage, she'll be more comfortable, at least till the next ones are ready to come through."

The soft moans that interrupted them sent a snarl of emotions through McKay. He moved towards Sheppard, holding Lily tighter as she began to wake and fidget. "I knew you'd wake up early," he said softly to himself. "Never listen to anyone or do anything expected, do you?"

The man blinked up at him, confused. "McKay?"

"You remember!" exclaimed Rodney, the grin breaking through.

But the confusion didn't ease and John managed to move his head enough for Rodney to get the point. "But you knew my…" and then he sighed, because it didn't mean anything.

"They killed him," rasped John. "Why weren't you there to stop it?"

He paled at the accusation in the question. God knows, Rodney had already been asking himself the same thing. If he'd been in the infirmary with John in the first place, he wouldn't have been able to leave and get down to Goethe, and none of this would've happened –

"I'm not Q," he said instead.

That made John's forehead scrunch up even more, before he turned away and looked at the ceiling.

Carson interjected himself into their private space, and started asking basic questions, before checking his vitals. Once he was satisfied, he eyed Sheppard skeptically and said, "Against my better judgment, I'm releasing you tonight."

That surprised John out of his sulk, and he turned back to look at Carson and by positioning, also Rodney. "Really? Where to?"

"You'll go to your room," he stated. "Rodney is going to be there to make sure you're okay. And Lily will be there also. I know you need time to get to know your daughter again." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Maybe it'll bring back some memories."

Sheppard glanced at McKay, and the hardness softened when it traveled down to Lily. But John hadn't forgotten Goethe so easily. "Why didn't you try to save him?" he asked Beckett.

"The wounds were fatal, besides that, Colonel, it was a kindness."

"To who?" Sheppard snapped. "To you? To what's his name, Lorne? Who, because he didn't mean to cause any trouble, he just wanted company."

Carson's cheeks flushed. "That's not fair, and you know it. Memory or not, you know we wouldn't intentionally kill just because his being here was inconvenient."

"Or maybe you didn't want to be reminded of your own attempts. Was that it? Maybe the proof of what your experiments were doing was too close to home?" Sheppard didn't know where the accusation came from, but he knew he was right the moment the words impacted the doctor. Apparently not all his memories were gone, merely…unavailable.

Beckett's mouth thinned, and he stared at Sheppard for a moment, before stalking away to his office.

Rodney whistled low. "Well, that was positively out of character for you."

"How would I know?" bitched Sheppard. "Apparently I don't know who I am."

"You knew enough to hurt Carson more than I would've thought you capable of," McKay reasoned.

"Yeah, well, I've learned from the best." And again, he didn't even know what that meant. It completely pissed him off, and you add in the raging ache in his shoulder from the bullet wound, and his general irritability over this memory loss thing, well…a guy had a right to be disgruntled with everyone. And Goethe had died. Maybe, if his mind was firing on all four cylinders, he'd know enough to warrant how much that meant, but right now all he knew was that Goethe had cared for him, helped him, and in return, had only asked for companionship.

He'd died because he'd tried to protect Sheppard.

Lily grunted, and struggled in Rodney's arms. "I'll be back to get you, until then, try not to alienate your doctor anymore than you already have."

As Rodney left, John purposefully ignored anyone else in the room. Rodney had gotten one thing right enough. He wasn't making any friends today, and judging from how he felt, tomorrow wasn't looking any better…

OoO

True to his word, and ironically not saying a word, Beckett released Sheppard into McKay's care. When the door slid aside, John stepped into the room, and tried to ignore the pang of disappointment when it remained unfamiliar.

"Nothing," he grouched. "It's like I've never been here before."

The snort from McKay made him glare, but Rodney waved at the room and said, "Because you haven't. This was a surprise, and believe me, when you do get your memory back, this is going to be really funny, because Elizabeth's sneaking around while preparing it really pissed you off."

Sheppard wasn't amused, but he started moving around the room, peeking into drawers and staring at the baby items with a mixture of bewilderment and fondness. "Where's Lily?"

"With Elizabeth. We wanted to give you some time to get settled. She's cranky and teething, and the Tylenol from earlier has worn off, just so you know."

But something else had already grabbed John's attentions, and he glanced at the closet where he saw – "We share a room?" he asked.

The lab coat, the computer bag with Doctor Rodney McKay embroidered on the front, they were two very big give-aways.

There was something inscrutable in McKay's eyes as he answered. "What'd you expect? Lily is our daughter."

Sheppard chuckled, the first real touch of amusement surfacing since events had gone to hell in a handbasket. "That's funny." He winced as the movement tugged the few stitches the bullet had earned him. Looking away from the closet, he drifted till he locked on to the bed. One very large bed. "Where do you sleep?"

Because there was no way he was sleeping in the same bed with this…stranger.

Now Rodney had came up behind him, and pushed John gently forward, towards the bed, "Where do you think?"

"Okay, you've had your fun, McKay," John grouched. "Seriously, did you pick on cripples growing up? Stop taking advantage of the guy with swiss cheese for brains and -"

He drifted off because now his eyes had glanced across at another armoire, and this time he distinctly recognized female gear. "What the hell? Is this some kind of polygamous hell I've woken up in? Let me guess – Elizabeth?" he snarled, because it really wasn't amusing to have all these gaps and have conflicting things staring you in the face.

"Teyla, actually," Rodney answered smugly, stepping around to drop on the bed. He patted the mattress to his side and smiled widely.

John stared at the spot on the bed, and then at Rodney. He raised his eyebrow. "You expect me to believe you, me, and this Teyla, are in some kind of ménage a trios and Lily is our daughter? Or is it Teyla's and your daughter, because last I checked, men lack the equipment to have babies alone."

The smug smile didn't slip at all, in fact, if anything, it grew broader. "Oh, you were pregnant, all right. I was your labor coach."

Sheppard automatically looked down at his…down parts. "What?"

"You should've seen how sick you were in the first trimester! I swear you threw up more than a sea sick penguin."

Now John was feeling decidedly queasy, and the irony of it wasn't lost on him. He dropped down beside Rodney and said weakly. "Morning sickness?"

"Try morning, afternoon, and night sickness. The only thing you could keep down was blue Jell-O, and -"

Sheppard shook his head. "No, just, shut up, because I'm not buying it. There's no way a guy can be pregnant." But even as he insisted he didn't believe, his eyes were roving over the paraphernalia related to Lily, and there was something inside that was saying 'yes' even while his mind screamed 'no'.

"Suit yourself," said Rodney.

Things were rapidly skewing outside of his ability to mesh reality with what he knew. He'd woken in that room with Goethe being the first thing he could recall, then Rodney had blustered in behind Ronon, both of them being knocked out by Goethe – then, being thrust back into the city and all the people that knew him, but he couldn't remember, and Goethe's death…yet he knew Lily, and he knew this Rodney down deep. Something was recognizing Rodney as meaning more than the others, because he felt an easiness with the man that he didn't have yet with anyone else.

"So, what, we're married?" he tried. "Because I don't see a ring."

Again, something passed across McKay's face that John couldn't read, but Rodney was already shaking his head. "No. You're in the military, and it's against regulations to be in a same sex relationship, so it's all hush-hush."

"We're sharing a room and have a daughter, Rodney! How is that hush-hush? That's more like taking a dead fish and slapping them in the face just to make sure they know it's dead! And this isn't me saying I necessarily believe you -"

"A dead fish?"

John took a steadying breath. He fixed Rodney with a look that promised danger. "If you're lying to me, you're going to hell. A special hell, the kind reserved for people that take handicap parking spots and draw pictures on photos of ugly women."

The hooded look didn't give enough away.

Unexpectedly, John reached out, grabbed Rodney on the neck, and plunged inward, closing his lips on Rodney's.

McKay started to push back, but relaxed into it after a startled second. The kiss deepened, and Sheppard pulled back, rubbing a hand across his lips and narrowing his eyes at McKay. "Huh," he said finally.

"What?" Rodney blustered. "You just ravish me and all I get is a 'huh' afterwards?"

"Just checking," said Sheppard casually.

But Rodney was already moving in, and claiming Sheppard's lips again.

When they broke away this time, John was the one looking the more dazed of the two, and he swallowed convulsively before saying, "Remember, Rodney – special hell."

The knock on the door interrupted anything further, and both shouted "Come in" simultaneously.

Sheppard got up, and added low before the door had opened, "And I'm not sure I believe you…yet."

Elizabeth walked in, smiling and holding a giggling Lily. "Look who's ready to see her Daddy's!"

The use of 'Daddy's' made John pause, and gave McKay's claims further weight. On a whim he asked, "Was I really pregnant?" even as he reached forward for Lily.

Her eyes crinkled from the memories she apparently had as she answered, "You were. I gather Rodney has been explaining some things?"

"Some," he replied, turning back and ignoring the gleeful expression painted across McKay's face. And so what if it was childish to roll his eyes at the man? God, he had really been pregnant? He had to fight the urge to lift his shirt and check for stretch marks.

"Well, I'll let you two keep getting…reacquainted," she said. As she stepped back towards the door she added, "Rodney, don't forget the mission you have tomorrow with Major Lorne's team."

After she left, John stared at the baby in his hands, and back at McKay. "She does have your hair," he admitted.

"What hair?" puzzled, Rodney got up and crossed the room to coo at Lily.

"Exactly."

John enjoyed the confounded look he earned from McKay.

"Even without knowing a thing about us, you still manage to annoy me," Rodney said bemused. "That's amazing."

It felt good to be here, to joke, and forget the bad things. Lily was heavy in his arms, and though he'd only needed three stitches, his shoulder was sore and he was growing tired overall.

"Here, let me take her, you go lie down," instructed McKay, reading Sheppard's feelings.

"Is that something you do a lot?" asked John, giving Lily over, before moving wearily back to the bed.

"What?"

"Look out for me?"

Rodney shrugged. "It's what friends do."

John closed his eyes. It's what he didn't do for Goethe, but according to everyone else, he hadn't been friends with Goethe. At least not a decision he'd made. But he still should've been able to help the thing. "I thought you said we were more than friends," argued Sheppard.

John heard Lily giggle again, and Rodney settling her in bed, clicking the railing tight and turning on the mobile. It was quiet, but then beside him, Rodney spoke softly. "We are."

"I've got to trust you, then?"

McKay pulled the covers back, before stripping out of his pants and shirt. He slid into the covers, and waited for John. Sheppard rolled off the bed, careful of his injury, and hesitated.

"We're just going to sleep, Sheppard." McKay seemed almost hurt by his indecision.

Lily had already quieted down, the odd giggle traveled across the room, and Rodney must have told the city to dim the lights, because the room darkened, and John was very aware of just how tired he was. Sighing, he awkwardly slid off his pants, but left his t-shirt on because it'd be hard and painful to get it off anyway. The sweat pants had been easy, but the nurse had helped him get dressed the rest of the way.

As he slid into the sheets, Rodney huffed and ordered, "Sit up."

"What?" but John did it even as he questioned.

Gently, Rodney eased the t-shirt off John's injured shoulder, before tugging it the rest of the way. "All you had to do was ask."

"Look…Rodney, I know this…is hard for you. It's hard for me. I don't remember any of…this. Just," he struggled for the right words, "give me time, okay?"

John settled into the sheets, laying on his back. Rodney sighed, and turned towards him, but stayed far enough away that they weren't touching. "Just go to sleep. If Lily needs anything during the night, and I don't wake up, just hit me, it usually works."

"Sure."

Impulsively, because he heard something in Rodney's voice, John scooted himself over…just a little. And if now his arm, and thigh, and hip touched Rodney's, it wasn't because he remembered or anything. He was just offering something back to be nice. He didn't need the contact…

And as he drifted to sleep, he pretended he didn't feel the hand that snaked onto his belly, and rested there comfortably.

OoO

Rodney stepped out of the gate, mentally repeating the same mantra he'd been repeating all morning. I'm completely going to the special hell. Why on earth had he done that?

If – when - he thought viciously, Sheppard got his memory back, he was so screwed.

He'd taken advantage, and he still wasn't even sure what had made him do it. Rodney tried to tell himself it was the sadness he'd sensed in John, even the anger over Goethe's death, but in truth, it'd been his own sadness, his own anger.

Rodney had repressed his growing feelings for Sheppard. It seemed like every time they'd gotten close, they'd either danced back, or events had interceded to keep anything further from being talked about.

And then fate had handed him John Sheppard on a platter…and God forgive him, he'd snatched the appetizer. And it'd tasted so unbelievably good that now he hated himself more for it, because when John remembered what McKay had done, he was likely to kick Rodney out and then he'd never get to feel it again.

"Doctor McKay, which way?" Lorne drawled.

He was not blushing. He was completely not fucking blushing. "Do I look like a compass, Major?" he snapped.

"Yes, that head of yours looks suspiciously needle like, now, which way?" Lorne didn't even blink against the Rodney hate.

"Fine, fine!" Rodney yanked the machine out of his vest pocket, and regarded it, before frowning. "Where'd it go?"

"Where'd what go?"

Sheppard was momentarily forgotten as Rodney looked at the machine giving him inexplicable results. "The power reading, Major," he explained impatiently. "The MALP read a significant power reading right after traveling through the gate. But I've got nothing."

Lorne looked as out of sorts as Rodney felt this morning, though with a bit of wryness, Rodney imagined it was for completely different reasons. Lorne was still dealing with the blacklash of being a suspect, yet the cocky officer was returning slowly back to himself, even after the debacle with Goethe.

"So, maybe the MALP was wrong," Lorne suggested dryly.

Rodney smacked the side of the machine, as if that'd help, before replying, "Right, and I never calibrate and verify the MALP's operational status before sending it out to scout potential life threatening planetary conditions."

"Doctor McKay, I assure you, both of your machines are working properly."

Rodney's hands dropped, the machine falling to his side. He recognized that voice too damn well. But Lorne didn't. Because Lorne hadn't been there.

Before Lorne could assess the situation, Koyla and his squad of Genii soldiers had them surrounded. The tightness Rodney felt in his gut had nothing to do with his previous encounters with the man, none at all, and maybe if he told himself that enough, he'd believe it.

"I see Cowen is as stupid as he looked," Rodney said.

Koyla merely raised an eyebrow, and thrusting his duster to the side, tucked his pistol into the holster. "As witty as always, Doctor McKay."

"Please, let's skip the pleasantries and go straight to what you want. Atlantis again, or wait," he snapped his fingers and smirked, "universal domination this time?"

"McKay," Lorne intoned in a way that said it was time to bring him up to speed on what was going down.

"Major Lorne, It's distinctly not a privilege to introduce you to Sheppard's nemesis and my on and off again torturer, Acastus Koyla, of the Genii. Koyla, here's another goon for you to threaten and bully, when you're tired of doing it to me."

The Genii soldiers remained still, while Koyla walked up and stood between McKay and Lorne. He grinned pleasantly. "Come now, Doctor McKay, you've been missing your anger management classes. Besides, I promise to make things…as unpleasant as possible," and before the words had barely finished, he'd spun and brought the back of his pistol, that he'd slid out of the holster so quickly that Lorne didn't have time to react, against the back of Lorne's skull, dropping the man like a stone.

Around Rodney, the other Genii did the same to the other two members of Lorne's team.

"Now, Doctor McKay, we've got places to be, things to do. Let's not let the day go to waste, then, hmm?" Koyla waved his pistol to one of his men, and Rodney watched as the man broke off and went to the DHD, quickly dialing an address.

"This was the proverbial bait and switch," McKay said. "Why?"

"In good time, Doctor. In good time."

And the wormhole flung out from the gate, and settled back into the rippling event horizon. As he was pulled forward, Rodney found himself wishing desperately that he'd stayed in bed with John this morning.

TBC