Radek had just dozed off again when Carson woke him. The infirmary was dimly lit and Carson spoke in a hushed voice.

"Dr. Zelenka? Wake up!"

"Mhm. What is it?" Radek mumbled. It couldn't possible be morning already. He felt dead tired.

"Sorry to wake you already, but it is really urgent." Carson looked deeply concerned.

Radek sat up, trying to clear the cobwebs from his mind.

"You discovered something about the implant?"

"Unfortunately yes. It does seem to be some sort of locator beacon for the Wraith. We don't know how exactly it works, but a Wraith ship is on its way here."

"I was afraid that it was something like this." Radek said quietly and began to get out of bed.

"Careful. Take it slow." Carson supported him.

Radek ignored him. Now was not the time for this.

"What's the plan?"

"We don't have one. Dr. Weir has put this as the top priority. Everyone from the science department is awake and working on this right now."

Radek knew this should reassure him, but it didn't.

"What about me? I can't stay here in the City. It's too dangerous." Radek said.

"Aye. You're right." Carson nodded. "Dr. Weir and Dr. Grodin are looking through the database of available planets right now." Carson looked as distraught as Radek felt.

The doctor must have noticed how the scientist felt, because he continued. "I'm sure it will only be for a short time, until we figure out something."

"But by then it will be too late." Radek said gloomily.

"Don't talk like that. Everyone is working on this. We will find a way to take care of this."

Radek didn't reply. He was thinking about something. He couldn't go to the Alpha site; they needed it in case the Wraith ever did make their way to Atlantis. Most of the planets they had explored were either inhabited or if they weren't there was a good reason why not. But there was one planet that was unpopulated that he could go to. Radek swung his legs over the side of the bed and hurried out of the infirmary. Carson called something after him, but he was already too far away to make out what he was saying.

In the control room, he found Dr. Grodin and Dr. Weir leaning over a computer terminal. When they noticed his presence, Dr. Grodin just stared, while Dr. Weir looked positively not amused.

"Dr. Zelenka! You were supposed to be in the infirmary with Dr. Beckett." From her tone, Radek inferred that Carson had not been supposed to let him leave.

"What are you doing here?"

"I realize that I cannot stay in the City. But I have an idea as to where I could go. The Alpha site as out of the question, but what about the planet Rodney was stranded on?" Radek proposed.

Elizabeth frowned, but didn't look any friendlier.

"A hostile group of pirates had their camp on this planet. I don't think it would be safe there."

Radek almost laughed. This was preposterous. He wouldn't be safe anywhere, he was a walking Wraith-magnet.

His amusement must have shown, because Dr. Weir now looked at him like he had lost his mind completely. Radek tried to stay serious.

"The people that imprisoned the major have left the planet, according to Teyla and Lieutenant Ford. We know that they are nomadic, they won't be coming back any time soon." Radek argued. He wished that Elizabeth would realize that searching for a suitable planet was consuming time that they didn't have. The closer the Wraith ship came, the more likely it was that it would find the City. He had to leave as soon as possible. What he would do then, he had no idea and it scared him more than he would ever admit.

"It sounds plausible." Grodin admitted.

"All right." Dr. Weir said. „We'll get a MALP ready with some equipment that you might need. You might want to dress." She noted.

oOo

Twenty minutes later, Radek and the MALP were ready in the control room. Radek tried to convey an air of calm, but internally he was trembling. He afraid of what was going to happen to him once he was on the other site of the Gate, alone on the alien planet. He knew the science team would keep working on the problem, but what if they did not come up with a solution, in the time he had left until the Wraith found him? He was just one person. He understood why he couldn't stay, yet he didn't want to leave, knowing that he most likely would never return to the place that had become his home in a strange galaxy.

Sergeant Peters checked through the gear loaded on the MALP.

"Everything checks out, Dr. Zelenka. You got a tent with assembling instructions. You should have it up in ten minutes. Rations and drinking water for seven days, a radio was back-up batteries and one of your gizmos." Sergeant Peters summed up.

"Thank you, Sergeant." Elizabeth said. She was glad; the sergeant had been able to get all the equipment together this quickly. It was the middle of the night, but they had no time to lose.

"Do you have everything Dr. Zelenka?"

Radek nodded.

oOo

An eternity seemed to have passed, it had just been twenty-four hours since the last time they had had breakfast together, when Carson walked up to Elizabeth sitting in the cafeteria.

Atlantis' leader looked tired and worn. She hadn't been getting a lot of sleep lately. They never caught a break. Ever since the major had been taken from the market, it had been one long string of bad luck for the Atlantians.

The loss of one more good man weighed heavily on Elizabeth's shoulders as she stirred on her cup of coffee substitute. She nodded absent-mindedly to Carson when he asked whether he could join her.

Carson took the seat opposite her. He wasn't hungry, but he desperately needed a cup of coffee, even if it was not real coffee.

"We shouldn't have sent him away alone." Elizabeth said. "Sending him away to this planet...It felt like sending him away to die."

"It's not like this." Carson insisted. "We are not giving up on him. It was the only thing you could have done."

"I keep sending people to die, Carson. Good people who did nothing to deserve it."

"Nobody deserves to die."

"I'm not so sure anymore." Elizabeth sighed. "We and the Wraith can't exist together." She put her cup down. "As long as they are out there, they will keep coming at us. And we are defenceless against them."

"Ah, that's unfortunately true, but what are you thinking about?"

"A pre-emptive strike." Elizabeth said with determination.

"We didn't come here to wage war." Carson cautioned.

"This isn't a choice. The moment Sheppard woke, the war started." Elizabeth replied. "We didn't come here to die. It's my job to make sure that we survive and if going to war with the Wraith is what it takes..."

oOo

Rodney woke up in a bad mood. He had had a bad night. He didn't know what been going on, but with all the screaming, talking and running around in the infirmary during the night, he had been woken several times.

His mood didn't improve when Dr. Woods came around to his bed, smiling brightly.

"Good morning, Dr. McKay. How are you doing today?"

Rodney grimaced. "Better. Where is Beckett?"

"Working on his research, I assume." Dr. Woods replied. "I got the results of your blood work from yesterday back and it is looking good. There is no reason for you to stay here any longer."

Rodney nodded. He should be glad that he was getting out of the infirmary, a place that he normally hated, but this time, he didn't look forward to getting back to his quarters or getting back to work. He still felt so tired. What if Sheppard never woke up or Teyla remained blind? Rodney didn't know what he would do if it came to that.

"I'll bring you a pair of crutches, and then you can go. You need to keep the weight of your ankle for at least another two weeks." Dr. Woods explained.

"Where's Radek?" Rodney asked when he realised that the bed opposite of his was empty.

"You mean Dr. Zelenka? I think he was released already. He was only here for over-night observation. Oh, another thing. Dr. Weir wants to talk to you as soon as you are released."

Rodney nodded. He had no intention of going to see Elizabeth. He could already guess that it was about the science department leadership. Normally he would have been furious that she had appointed Kavanaugh and Jamison. His low opinion of Kavanaugh was widely known and Jamison was as unremarkable as they got. What had Elizabeth been thinking? Rodney didn't want to know.

Rodney grabbed the crutches and made his way towards John's bed in the back of the ward. When he passed by Teyla's bed, she startled at the sound the crutches made.

"Who is it?" Teyla asked, panic shining through her voice. She had her arms raised; looking like she was ready to fight an opponent she couldn't see.

"It's just me, McKay." Rodney said softly, feeling sorry for Teyla.

Teyla lowered her arms and a shaky smile appeared on her face. "It is good to know that you are out of bed, Dr. McKay." She said.

"I didn't mean to startle you." Rodney felt the need to apologise.

"It was nothing." Teyla said too quickly. Rodney could tell that she was embarrassed by her earlier reaction.

"Teyla, Doc?" A voice from the next bed asked. Rodney and Teyla turned.

Aiden was awake, head turned in their direction. He looked pale and bruised, but better than the last time Rodney had seen him.

"Doc, how'd you get here?" Aiden asked and smiled.

"It's a long story." Rodney said and for once he didn't feel like telling it.

Aiden picked up on it. "What's wrong, Dr. McKay?"

"Nothing." Rodney lied. The day was not starting out too well. Not that he was unhappy that Aiden seemed to be doing better. Carson had said that the young Lieutenant was going to recover, but to see him awake and talking was more reassuring.

Dr. Woods came hurrying in their direction, having spotted Aiden awake. He shooed Rodney away and pulled the curtain around the Lieutenant's bed.

"Dr. McKay?" Teyla asked. "Could you help me to go see Major Sheppard?" She manoeuvred herself towards the bedside.

Rodney didn't know what to do.

"Are you sure you can walk over there? There is a wheelchair in the corner; I can get it for you." Rodney offered.

"No, I will walk. I just need you to tell me where." Teyla replied with determination.

She swung her legs over the bedside and stood up. She had to hold on to the bed to remain upright, but she was on her feet. Rodney didn't want to tell her that it wasn't a good idea to walk. If Teyla needed to do this, then he would let her.

"Walk straight ahead." Rodney coached. He let Teyla walk on her own but remained close to catch her, should she fall. Teyla moved slowly, but she made it across the room without falling.

"Now two more steps to the right and then you can feel the back of a chair." Rodney instructed.

Teyla's hand settled on the back of the chair.

"Thank you."

TBC