Elizabeth leaned over the console, her grey eyes pinning the anxious blue ones that stared back. "You're saying there's no way to stop them?"

"I'm saying people are talking about evacuating, and it sounds like a very good idea right now!" Rodney had his arms crossed and looked like he was ready to either swim to the mainland, or ride the back of a bug to get there.

"We don't have that kind of time!" John insisted.

"Fine! You'd rather be an incubator?"

John stared. "What are you talking about?"

Rodney sighed, and gestured to Dr. Lind, who nodded and pushed his glasses further up his nose. "These insects aren't just migrating," Lind said in a deep voice that belonged on stage, "they've found a way to propagate." He hesitated, until he felt every eye on him. "They're nesting."

"In us?"

"Correct."

"Hence, 'incubator'," Rodney said snidely. "Any more questions? Good. Then let's get the hell outta here."

"Where to?" John asked. "The mainland?"

"Why not?" Rodney asked.

"I suppose it never occurred to you that these bugs might be there, too?"

Teyla suddenly looked nervous. "The people there would have informed us, surely."

"Not if they're dead," Rodney grumbled, and raised a mutter amongst the group.

"No," Dr. Lind broke in firmly over the voices, "I believe this is in fact a migration. They are headed to the mainland, yes, but will they cause harm? For all we know this is a natural part of their cycle."

"Eating our guts and having little baby bugs. Impressive. NOT." Rodney saw Radek standing in the door, and said before Elizabeth could jump in, "Not now, Radek. I'll look at the readings in a minute."

The Czech frowned from the doorway. "This isn't about the readings . . ."

"What about those thousands of years when there was nothing here?" Rodney cut in. "What did they do then?"

Lind shrugged, and removed his glasses. "I don't know. I haven't had time to study this, as you well know. Everything at the moment is speculation."

"Well let's speculate on land, preferably bug free, huh?" He caught Elizabeth's eye and sighed, irritably acknowledging the new arrival. "Yes, Radek, what?"

"Dr. Lind is correct." He shuffled into the room sideways with uncertain energy. "They are migrating."

"Thank you, Dr. Know It All. We gathered that. But from where to where?"

Radek continued. "It says in the Ancient database that the migration occurs every year. These creatures are actually very highly intelligent. They travel over the water to an island west of here, to propagate. Then they return. That is the sum of it."

"Yes, yes, and the not so sum of it?" Rodney asked pointedly.

Radek made himself comfortable in his chair and decided to address Elizabeth. "This island they come from is largely uninhabited and relatively small. There are a few creatures there, but nothing more intelligent than, say, a dog."

"Dogs are perfectly intelligent," Elizabeth argued lightly.

"Yes, but I believe these creatures to be even more so. Now. They would leave the island and swim a thousand miles to this location," he plugged his laptop into the mainframe as he spoke. A button was tapped, and a grid lit up the screen on the wall behind them, highlighted in yellow. "This is referred to in the Ancient texts as 'Al Shloha', or as far as I can tell, 'the God's grave'. It is believed to be where the large whales that swim beneath us go to die. They beach themselves when their time has come, thus providing a perfect nesting ground for a species that requires an incubation period.

"So these bugs would swim thousands of miles and lay their eggs inside the whales?" Elizabeth clarified.

"And the young would ride on the backs of the largest."

"Yeah, what about that, the size difference?" John asked.

Radek shrugged and looked at Dr. Lind. "Not sure. It may serve a place in their society where everyone has a role, like ants or bees. It would take further study."

"So," Rodney rose and pointed at the grid, "if they are migrating to this island here," he pointed again, "from here, then why are they here," he pointed to Atlantis, "when we are so obviously out of the way?"

"That's the problem. Lt. Groundsdale did an aerial sweep. There is no longer an island for the whales to go to, therefore no nesting ground."

Elizabeth frowned. "No nesting ground. What happened?"

Radek removed his glasses with a sigh. "I am not certain, but I believe it happened when the city rose. The massive displacement of water must have caused a tsunami of incredible proportions. It submerged the island." He shook his head sadly. "Our arrival has inadvertently disrupted a working ecosystem. They are just trying to find a way to survive."

"There's no place for the whales to go," Elizabeth said quietly. She pushed away from the table and walked to the large window, looking out over the water, what was left of it. "How long do we have?"

"Until that swarm gets here? Two hours maybe."

"And after that?"

"They head to the mainland."

"Wait, they can't!" Rodney exclaimed. His outburst startled those around him, and he met their raised eyebrows with cynicism. "What? Those kids may be annoying but they don't deserve to be turned into happy meals."

"Then I suggest we find a solution, and fast," Weir said.

"What are you going to do?" Ronon walked beside Rodney, dwarfing him. His patented response toward the increasingly black ocean was "this isn't good," and nothing else. But he had attached himself to the scientist as if his imposing presence would press the physicist to a solution.

"I don't know, you got a super-sized can of Raid?"

"Would it work?"

Rodney stopped and sneered. "Doubtful." He popped open a panel and examined the interior before replacing it.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm thinking! Not an easy task with you around - look, why don't you go play Chewie to Han Solo or something? I'm sure Sheppard could find something useful for you to do."

"I doubt it."

"No defense plan? No heavy artillery? No guts, no glory?" Rodney shook his head. "Huh."

"I think he's planning an evacuation."

"First smart thing the guy's done since we got here." He entered his lab and walked straight to his laptop.

Ronon leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms. He could see the tension in McKay's back, the muscles straining against a problem he wasn't sure he could fix. "I heard they want a place to have their babies."

The head lifted. "Yes," Rodney said without turning, "though it sounds almost obscene when you say it."

"Then find a place for them."

Rodney swivelled in his chair and opened his mouth to spout out a few choice words, and stopped at the serious expression. It caught him off guard enough for him to ask, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"That's all they want. They're not here to kill us."

"You didn't see. . ."

"They need a whale."

"Atlantis isn't a whale!"

"Exactly."

Rodney stared for a moment, then spun back to his laptop, typing furiously. "I can't believe it. The Wookie has a brain. Right. We need an island. And we need a way to lure the whales to it. But in two hours? How the hell can we find a sick whale and get it to an island in two hours?" Rodney slammed his hand against the hard desk. "Dammit McKay, think! A large incubation center. Lots of power, lots of heat . . ." his eyes widened, and he started tapping furiously. "Get Radek in here, now."

"You got an idea?"

"Radek! Now! Go!" Eyes glued to the screen, he pointed to the door behind him, not checking to see if the big man obeyed. There was no need; he merely felt the imposing presence leave. And he started to smile.