Beauty and the Beast

Invasion

Chaya strode toward Castle McKay, pretending to use the mirror to guide her. She seethed inwardly in anger, eyes sparking with power. She was tired of playing by the rules that the Ancients had set down. She'd kill the Prince and then use her powers to tie John and his power to her. The Ancients may have banned the use of such a spell but she didn't care anymore.

Wraith Wolves started to charge them and she fried them with an electrical attack. She looked back at the men of Genii and stated, "You handle the inhabitants of the castle but remember that the Beast is mine!"

The men nodded in understanding, glad to let her handle such a ferocious creature and Chaya smiled in satisfaction. Rodney would die tonight. She still couldn't believe that John had fallen for the Prince. She curled her lips in a snarl, remembering just how abrasive he was. Chaya looked up and smiled cruelly. She could see the castle in the distance. Rodney's time was about to end.

John threw himself against the basement doors, trying to get them open. He did it over and over again, desperate to get out and get to the castle and Rodney. Radek watched him with worried eyes, concerned that he might injure himself. "John, calm down. There is nothing you can do. You'll just hurt yourself."

John stopped, knowing Radek was right. He slumped down onto a bench near the door and closed his eyes and whispered. "This is all my fault. If only I didn't . . ."

"Save me from being sent to an insane asylum?" Radek interrupted gently.

John looked up and smiled sadly. "No matter what choice I made, I was going to lose someone I care for wasn't I?"

Jinto had kept himself hidden during John and Radek's confrontation with the villagers of Genii. Once they had left he quickly hopped out of the house. He eyed the barred basement door. He realized he would not be able to open the door in his current form. He desperately looked around the yard, searching for something to help him open the door. Then there on the hill, axe gleaming in the moonlight, Jinto saw it. Radek's invention which sat there just waiting to be used and Jinto's eyes shined in excitement and breathed, "Cool."

Quickly he hopped up to the rather intimidating contraption. With a little judicious jumping, he managed to get himself into the drivers' seat. He looked around him curiously, wondering how the hell he was supposed to start it. After a quick examination he quickly figured out how it worked. Somehow he started a fire in the boiler. The water quickly heated up until it was boiling. He nodded in satisfaction, pulled down a line wrapped around a metal hoop and cheerfully screamed, "Here we go!"

Slowly at first the axe began to move up and down. Then it rapidly began to move causing Radek's machine to roll down the hill heading directly at the basement doors. Radek, hearing the whistle blow, peered out of the crack between the doors. His eyes widened and he grabbed John's arm, pulling him quickly away from the door and out of the path of the machine. It cut through the door and crashed down the stairs onto the basement floor. Radek's pride and joy, destroyed in an instant for the best of reasons. Jinto hung from a wire and Radek gently picked him up. Jinto looked up at Radek and said, "That was the coolest ride ever! Can I ride it again?"

John and Radek laughed, relieved that Jinto was alright. John kissed Radek on the head and said, "I've got to go warn Rodney. Thanks Jinto!"

Radek and Jinto nodded and watched as John raced up to Puddlejumper and jumped onto his back. John and Puddlejumper raced out of the yard. Puddlejumper, sensing the urgency of his master, poured on the speed as he raced to the castle.

Ford, Bates, Teyla and Hollings were on the parapet of the castle discussing the past couple of days. "Master Rodney told me he loved John." Bates muttered.

Teyla nodded serenely and sighed, looking out onto the forest. Her eyes narrowed as she caught sight of the men of Genii with Chaya in the lead, come marching up to the castle. "It seems we're about to be invaded." Teyla stated grimly.

"Not only that, they have the Master's mirror." Hollings muttered grimly.

"Something must have happened to John." Ford whispered and Bates nodded in agreement.

Teyla sighed, "I agree. I shall go inform Rodney of our predicament. Ford, you and Bates prepare the castle defenses."

"Gotcha!" Ford muttered.

Teyla turned and swept gracefully up the stairs to Rodney's lab. Upon arriving she nudged the door open and entered. She looked at Rodney who was about to rush to another room and said, "Master Rodney we have a problem."

Rodney paused mid-stride and looked at her in irritation, "Well, what is it?"

"We're about to be invaded by some villagers." She stated smoothly.

"Really?" Rodney muttered, not really paying any attention to her. "Well, I'm sure you can handle it without me," And continued on to the other room.

"But . . ." She sighed and then whispered to the empty room, "but they have the mirror that you gave John."

The men of Genii marched up to the castle doors and tried to push the doors open. They would not budge. Chaya raised her hand and shot a blast of power at the door, blowing it to smithereens. The men cautiously crept into the castle with their crude weapons brandished threateningly. They slowly moved past the assorted furniture and knick-knacks piled in the front entrance of the castle. Cowen grabbed a lit candelabrum that was sitting on a table and held it up high to illuminate the dark room. Ford cautiously opened one eye, taking stalk of the positions of the men in the room. He waited until everyone was in the perfect position and yelled, "Now!" While he simultaneously plunged one of his arms down on Cowen, setting his arm on fire.

This was the signal the other cursed inhabitants of the castle were waiting for. They attacked the villagers in unison. The villagers tried to fight back but they found it difficult to fight household furniture come to life. Hollings screamed was directing his teacups to dump boiling water onto the invaders. Bates had somehow gotten a hold of a sword and a fancy hat and was attacking a villager with a few well-placed jabs, grinning viciously all the while. Teyla was just kicking ass. She flew at her opponents briskly thumping them on the heads and jabbing them in the guts, or hitting them hard where it hurts a man the most. Carson grabbed a passing villager, muttering something about giving him a prostate exam and a enema. The screams that emerged from the wardrobe were horrifying to hear.

Chaya, in the confusion began to slip upstairs, heading up toward Rodney just as the footstool raced by her. He had somehow got a shoe off of Koyla and was running away with Koyla, Cowen, and a couple of villagers hot on its heels. The footstool raced into the kitchen and they followed it. The backed the footstool into a cupboard and it growled at them around Koyla's shoe. They grinned nastily thinking that it couldn't fight back. That was till Ronon started up his fire and called his knives out of their drawers and growled menacingly at them. The villagers, Koyla, and Cowen went white and raced out of the kitchen as fast as they could just as a set of knives thunked into the door behind them. The men of Genii raced out of the castle, tails between their legs, knowing that they had been roundly defeated by housewares. The cursed inhabitants cheered in happiness at their victory. Bates calling out, "And don't you ever return!"

Meanwhile Chaya moved through the West Wing, opening doors, searching for her prey. She found the main lab and walked in. It was empty but she saw that the door across the room was slightly open. She hurried toward it and slipped through. It led to another lab which opened out onto a balcony with a telescope on it. Rodney was there peering through his telescope and jotting stuff down on a nearby chalk board. Chaya quickly moved onto the balcony, gathering power into her hand. She flung her spell at Rodney just as he bent down to pick up the piece of chalk he had just dropped. The blast of power shattered the chalk board, raining pieces onto Rodney's back. Rodney stood up, blue eyes staring at her in surprise. "Who are you? And why did you do that?"

Chaya just smiled and said, "I just locked him in his basement. He'll be fine. I'll let him out for our wedding." With that statement, she flung another spell at him.

Chaya just smiled and said, "I just locked him in his basement. He'll be fine. I'll let him out for our wedding." With that statement, she flung another spell at him.

Rodney dodged out the path of the spell and then leaped at her. Chaya danced nimbly out of his grasp, once again preparing another spell. Just then Puddlejumper, with John on his back, burst into the courtyard below. John looked up and saw Chaya and Rodney fighting each other. He yelled up, "Kick the bitches' ass! She's Allina!"

"Allina?" Rodney whispered and looked at Chaya closely. He saw the truth in her eyes and growled angrily. He swiftly moved forward and grabbed her by the neck, choking her.

"Please," she choked out, fear in her eyes. "Don't kill me!"

Rodney glared at her for a moment and then sighed. He was not a killer. Not only that, he just could not bring himself to seriously hurt a female. He tossed her aside just as John burst onto the balcony. Rodney smiled and said softly, "John, you came back."

John sighed in relief upon seeing that Rodney was all right. He rushed forward and hugged him, muttering into Rodney's shoulder, "Of course I came back."

Rodney wrapped his arms gently around John and smiled blissfully. He had John with him and that was all that mattered. "Bastard!" Chaya hissed from behind Rodney. A blast of electricity hit Rodney in the back causing Rodney to collapse onto the floor. John glared at her, anger flashing into hazel eyes. "Bitch!" he hissed and his anger caused his own power to stir.

It responded to his anger and a blast of power flew from him to hit her square in the chest, hurling her from the balcony and onto the ground far below. She died instantly. John knelt down by Rodney, "Rodney, please . . . please be alright." He whispered desperately.

Rodney opened his eyes and gently reached out to cup John's face. He coughed harshly and whispered, "I'm glad you came back. I'm glad I got to see you . . ." His breath faltered for a moment and then he continued, "got to see you one . . . last . . . time."

With that last word, his eyes slid shut and his arm thumped to the ground. "No!" John whispered, "You can't . . . you can't die. Please . . . please don't leave me." He leaned his head onto Rodney's still chest, "I love you."

TBC