A/N: wheee! I'm loving the feedback. Thanks so much!
UNDER GLASS
By NotTasha
CHAPTER 4: CRACKLE
Teyla tore through the woods, following the path blazed by Ronon. From time to time she could hear him firing at the probe, but she couldn't catch sight of him. She strove onward, downward, into the valley. Branches cut across her arms, crackling as she pushed past them.
They had to stop it – they had to down the probe before it made its way to the Ring of the Ancients, for certainly that's where it was heading. They were coursing through the valley, following the curve of the hill, angling their way back toward the Gate.
She couldn't understand it. Why would the Wraith leave a probe on this empty planet? Had the creatures set up the device specifically to be released when the room was opened?
But it hadn't activated when the room was opened – only after it had closed down – like a trap.
She furrowed her brow, leaping in an almost gazelle-like fashion over a downed log. She landed, crunching on the forest floor and ran again.
It came to her. The doorway, cleared from debris -- the room, recently cleaned. Someone had been in that room before them, someone who'd tracked in dirt just as they had. Someone had altered the room and then hid that fact.
It was a trap. They'd been tricked into coming here, enticed by the possibility of getting their hands on Ancient technology.
She slid to a stop, the layer of leaves under her feet making her almost take a tumble. She grasped hold of the nearest tree and spun about. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. McKay – they were still in that room. The door would not open.
Her hand rose to activate her radio as she panted for breath, to contact Sheppard and let him know. But they would already have figured that out, wouldn't they? So she should contact Ronon and let him know that the probe needed to be deactivated before it reached the Gate – but he was already doing that.
So she pushed off the tree and continued running – to catch up to Ronon – to help him with the task. Her time was better spent in motion, because if they failed to stop the probe, then their friends were as good as dead.
"Colonel," Rodney anxiously called, his voice muffled slightly by the door. He closed his eyes for a second as he tried to imagine a huge empty space.
Sheppard stepped away from the panel, gripping his weapon as he glared at the technology that didn't seem to 'fit' in the Ancient ruin.
"Get me out of here!" McKay shouted, his voice a little more frantic than it should have been. He swallowed, realizing his timbre. He made a concerted effort to lower his voice, and smooth out his expression without much luck. "Get me out so that I can get a look at it."
Sheppard made his way over to the glassed-off alcove and stared at McKay a moment. The scientist was obviously distressed, his eyes a little too wide – his hands unable to rest.
Aw crap, John thought. Damn damn damn! How could he have forgotten? He kept his voice calm as he stated, "Don't freak out, McKay."
A haughty look came over the astrophysicist. "I am not freaking out," he said tightly. "The sooner you get me out of here, the sooner you'll see me not freak out."
"You'll be okay," Sheppard assured. "There's nothing to be afraid of."
"Afraid? Well," McKay ticked off on his fingers. "There's the Wraith for one. There's that wretched jenfruit for another."
Sheppard nodded, displaying a calm exterior. "McKay, you can get through this."
"Of course I can," Rodney shot back, crossing his arms over his chest. "This is nothing. Anyone can handle standing in a tiny little box, right? This is… nothing. No reason to get upset. I'm not upset." And he winced, knowing his voice was rising.
"You'll make it."
"Oh, don't patronize me," McKay grumbled. "I know exactly how ridiculous I seem. Go ahead, get your laughing out of the way now."
"I'm not laughing."
McKay glanced at Sheppard as if to verify this was true. He was met only with a firm and friendly look. "I…" McKay started, finding he had to lick his lips before continuing, "I'd open it up myself. It's just that there are no controls in this alcove, so you're the one who's going to have to do it."
"You sure there's nothing in there?"
"Yes, I am sure."
"Because, maybe there's a secret panel or something you missed."
"No," McKay bit off. "Unlike some, I know exactly what I am looking for and there is NOTHING here!"
"Wouldn't hurt to look again," Sheppard suggested, keeping his voice even.
Rolling his eyes expansively McKay grumbled, "Oh yes, sure. They're going to rig this place up to trap someone in this incredibly small box, but… oh… hey! Why don't we leave the key right in plain sight? No! There is nothing here. I have looked!"
Sheppard watched the expressions that flitted over McKay's face. The man was obviously worked up – the red face was a giveaway. What the hell was he doing poking around in that alcove if he was so frightened to be in tight places?
"So you'd better get me out of here RIGHT NOW!" McKay's voice had a crackle to it, even through the transparent door. "You get me out of here," he gestured with both hands towards his feet. "And I'll get us both out of there!" and he pointed toward the main entrance.
"Sounds like a deal."
"So get moving!"
"I'll get you out in a sec," Sheppard promised, knowing that there would be far more than a second or two involved. "Let me check on the others."
"Right, yes, let's check on the others… sure," McKay grumbled, turning about again. Miserable, he pressed one hand to his forehead as Sheppard called over the radio to the others.
Teyla's voice came over the com, huffing as she ran, "Colonel. This is a trap!"
McKay threw his hands into the air. "Great! Great! Now she tells us."
"We figured that," Sheppard told her.
"Have you been able… to free yourselves… from the room?"
"Not as yet."
"NO!" McKay interrupted. "No, we are still in here! Still inside this trap and…"
"Have you caught up to the probe yet," Sheppard called in, signaling to McKay to quiet down. The doctor sneered, but clamped his mouth shut.
"Not yet," Teyla responded, panting. They could hear the crackle of foliage as she tore through the trees. "I have not yet caught up to … Ronon. But… he is not far ahead of me."
"Will you get it before it reaches the Gate?"
There was a pause, and the two men waited – McKay pressed both hands against the glass as he stared at the colonel.
"We will do … everything we can," Teyla finally responded.
"You understand what will happen if you don't?"
"I understand, Colonel."
"Good. Sheppard out," John stated, ending the transmission and looking again to McKay.
The man looked absolutely wretched, his hands scrunched up on the door, his forehead pressed to it, his breath fogging. "Are you going to get me out now?" he asked, harshly.
"Yup," Sheppard replied, giving the doorway a good once over. "Got to be a way to release it somewhere."
"It's just that…" McKay started. "I have a little bit of claustrophobia is all. You know… small spaces…" He lifted one hand from the door to let it land on the wall to his left and put the other to the wall on his right. His elbows remained bent. "So, if you could… get on with it… you know…" He swallowed thickly. "Because," he continued, "Sooner you do… the sooner we can get out… and help the others with deactivating that probe."
"Yeah," Sheppard responded. His gaze tracked along the surface surrounding the door, and then he smacked the wall in the same general area where he'd found the last panel. He frowned as nothing opened to him. He tried the other side to no avail.
McKay watched, trying not to look upset.
Frowning, Sheppard slapped the wall again, without luck.
McKay groaned miserably, "Of course they weren't going to make this easy."
John shrugged. "I'm still looking. Give me a chance, okay?"
"They must have overridden the release mechanisms." McKay threw back his head. "I am so screwed!" he whined.
"Hang on. I'm still working," Sheppard returned, searching for any sign of a panel, finding nothing. He moved over a few feet to the next door and tried the same maneuvers, without result.
McKay watched him, his head pressed to the glass. "Wish you were in here."
"Yeah, wouldn't it be a bit tight?"
"No, Mr. Smartypants," McKay shot back. "I mean, if you were in here and I was out there, I'd have the doors open in an instant and we'd be out of here."
Sheppard grimaced and stepped back, unable to find anything that might trigger the release. "Well, you just have to figure out how to do it from in there. That massive brain of yours should be up to the challenge."
A snap of the fingers and McKay pointed to the main panel in the room. "It must be controlled from the main panel." He pointed. "Up there."
"Roger," Sheppard responded and turned, taking the quick steps to get behind the panel.
"The buttons in a circle, do you see them?" McKay said, illustrating the general idea of a circle by drawing one with his finger.
"Yup," Sheppard said, finding the buttons that McKay had indicated earlier. "They're illuminated now," he stated.
McKay looked a little worried. "They are?"
"So are all the planet buttons."
"Okay, okay," McKay nodded processing this new information.
"Now, I just press the button the corresponds to the room you are in?"
McKay responded, "No! No, do NOT do that!" He let out an anxious breath.
Sheppard held out his hands, showing that they were nowhere near the panel.
"You don't want to accidentally transport me to one of those planets, do you?"
"Well…" Sheppard let the word draw out as if he had some other ideas. "Then again, it might be better than being trapped in there."
"Oh, and ending up on an unknown planet is better?" Rodney paused and nodded and added, "Okay, so maybe that's not a bad idea. I mean, if worse comes to worst, but we try something else first, okay? I mean, I don't want to end up on a planet with a toxic atmosphere or Waterworld or something." He laughed, trying to sound humorous. "I mean, no big deal if I'm stuck in here for a little bit, right?"
"I'm working on it, McKay," Sheppard insisted.
"And anyway, you shouldn't just go pushing buttons. The Wraith have altered the technology in the door mechanism, so we can only begin to imagine what they've done to the rest of the systems." McKay rubbed a hand at his brow. "Who knows what it'd do to me. Okay, Colonel, let's just take that idea off the table."
"So, what do I do?" John asked.
McKay stood still a moment, opening his eyes slowly to squint at the walls around him. "It isn't getting smaller in here, is it?" he asked quietly. "Because I wouldn't put it beyond them to put 'masher' doors in here."
Standing behind the control panel, Sheppard watched his friend. "It isn't any smaller, McKay," he uttered evenly. "You know that," he spoke the words concisely, clearly, almost kindly -- hoping that Rodney listened.
"I know…I know… irrational… I know…" McKay replied, his voice low and almost swallowed up behind the wall. "I just… you know."
"I know," Sheppard responded. "Now, tell me what I need to do."
McKay nodded, took a deep breath, and got to business.
Ronon ran, keeping an eye on the probe that bobbled just ahead of him. It seemed to have no difficulties with the trees, easily finding its way, following the creek. Ronon rushed after it, splashing through the water as he crossed over the steam and then ran up the steep bank and down again.
The device was maddening. As soon as he felt he could get a clear shot of it, it turned again sharply. He hated probes. He hated the Wraith, but he could understand them. He knew how they thought, how they moved, how they plotted. Probes were a different story altogether. They didn't move the way natural things should – they float in the air! And they were damn fast – never tiring.
As Ronon forced himself onward. Water soaked his boots. His damp pant-legs clung to his legs, making movement less fluid. But the discomforts only made him more determined to catch the damn thing. He would not let it reach its destination.
He raised his arm, firing as he ran. The silver sphere shot upward, dove toward the left and spun, evading him. Little lights illuminated along its surface, meaning nothing to the Satedan.
Snarling, he burst forward, not about to let it best him. It went up, and up, then suddenly down and to the right to pivot and come back up again -- he examined the complicated dance. He watched it, his concentration more on the floating sphere than on the ground before him. His legs ran on, almost without a thought from him. His body leaned as he turned. He leapt when he had to. He ducked. He adjusted, keeping his gaze upward, studying the thing that he hated.
Machines – damn machines. He scowled, watching it dive and spin to the left, swoop down and up.
He was aware of pursuit. He could hear the footfalls, the splashing, the fluttering of foliage behind him. Teyla was apparently catching up on him. He knew this only in the vaguest sense – as something he should be aware of, but a fact that wasn't necessary to him at the moment. Only the probe mattered – the probe and its destruction.
It bobbed upward, dipped toward the left and spun. He raised his weapon as he burst suddenly through the trees, and the abandoned town came into view. In the distance, at the end of the street, half-hidden in the totem poles, the Gate awaited. Ronon knew this without even looking. He raised his weapon again as it went up, and up, then suddenly down. He aimed just to the right and fired.
He grinned toothily as the thing played right into him. It exploded in a crackle of burned circuitry. The particles came down, littering the area in specks of metal. Coming to a stop, he let out a whoop, just as Teyla came out of the tree line, tearing toward him.
"Got it!" he announced triumphantly. "Got it!"
He expected Teyla to smile and congratulate him, but instead, her troubled gaze was on the Gate that stood at the end of the street. He turned, and swore in frustration as the complete dialing sequence took hold and the wormhole engaged with a whoosh.
TBC - oh dear... so close!