Chapter 2
Rodney McKay made his way along deserted corridors to his lab; a troubled night leading to yet another early morning start. Dreams of the Wraith had been plaguing him since before the siege but, recently, bad dreams had become nightmares that left him in the morning drenched in sweat and filled with a sense of dread.
Last night's vivid nightmares were starting to fade but he couldn't shake a vague feeling of unease. His head still felt muzzy from lack of sleep and he knew what he needed more than anything right now.
His first port of call was the coffee machine in the corner of the lab. Now that the Daedalus could make the round trip to Earth in little over a month, supplies weren't the concern that they had been. Still, it felt good to know that he had been in the team that had brought the first Pegasus Galaxy coffee back to Atlantis even if he wouldn't drink it himself; it just didn't give him the same buzz as Earth coffee.
He cracked open a Tupperware container allowing the smell of Arabian Mocha to drift through the air. Measuring out a generous scoop he flicked the switch, checking that the orange light came on before walking over to his bench and leaving the machine to work its magic.
McKay hardly noticed when Zelenka arrived to start work four hours later. His bench was by now littered with partially disassembled Wraith devices left over from the siege. One in particular was holding his attention. From the outside it looked like a wide bracelet made of either copper or gold, depending on how the light hit it. His careful examination had revealed that it was a type of stunner, possibly intended to be used as a concealed weapon. The frustrating thing was that he was sure that he had seen something like it before but couldn't remember where. He felt certain that he hadn't seen the device in Atlantis so he thought back over all of the other times that he had been face-to-face with a Wraith.
Fragments of memories surfaced in his mind; indistinct impressions which left him feeling confused and vaguely anxious. Then, without warning, a powerful image of Ronon being held captive by a Wraith guard, somewhere in a dense forest, entered his head.
He looked up from his bench with a frown and reached for his coffee mug, draining the last cold mouthful. Putting the mug back down on the bench, he tried again to recall where he had seen the stunner.
Sheppard fell paralysed to the ground as a Wraith fired the bracelet device at his back.
Rodney shook his head, trying to dislodge the unsettling image, but, instead of fading, the vision grew stronger.
Ronon, his neck cruelly twisted, collapsed at his side.
Unable to break free of the visions, Rodney felt reality slipping away.
A sudden, searing pain seized his chest and he couldn't breathe. It was like a white-hot brand pressing against his bare skin, burning his flesh down to the bone. He felt panic rise, and opened his eyes wide to see a Wraith staring back at him, its pale face a mixture of hunger and exhilaration.
He tried to scream, but the shock had robbed his lungs of air.
Through the agony he could feel the hands of another Wraith holding him securely by the shoulders and he writhed against the powerful grip, frantic to escape. His heart pounded against his ribs, stuttering as it was forced to work far beyond its natural limits.
He felt his skin tighten over wasted muscles and his sight dwindled to darkness. The strength leeched from his body leaving behind a tiredness so profound that it swamped even the terror.
He knew that he was dying but refused to surrender, fighting for a just few more moments of life. Finally, as his last seconds were torn away, he gazed with unseeing eyes into oblivion.
oOo
Carson Beckett's radio crackled in his ear.
'Dr Beckett, this is Radek. Could you come to Rodney's lab, please? There is something wrong with him.'
Carson had got used to being called out to McKay. Usually it was some minor injury; a burn or a cut that rarely needed stitches. But Zelenka's voice had Beckett reaching for his medical bag. The engineer sounded worried and confused, but what had got Beckett jumping to his feet was that he also sounded frightened.
"What's the matter with him, Radek?" Beckett checked his bag and snapped it shut. Grabbing a stethoscope from his desk and stuffing it into his lab coat pocket he made for the door.
'I don't know, doctor. Please hurry.' Zelenka's fear was more obvious now and Beckett started to trot towards the nearest transporter. Both the infirmary and the Science labs were close to transporters, something he had found very useful on a number of occasions.
"Is he injured?"
A short pause. 'Not that I can see.' That wasn't encouraging; Zelenka had had to check for himself.
"Is he conscious?" He stepped out of the transporter and jogged down the corridor leading to McKay's lab.
'I don't know.'
Beckett broke into a run, rounding the corner and skidding to a halt to avoid a knot of scientists standing outside McKay's lab, those at the back craning to see inside. They were mostly newcomers from the Daedalus, but Beckett saw one familiar face.
"Dr Brown, can you get these people out of here?" Beckett shouldered his way through the group who were talking in hushed tones. Again, he could hear worry tinged with fear.
The crowd had already started to disperse as he made it to the door and looked into the lab. Dr Zelenka was standing with his hand on McKay's shoulder, facing the physicist, as Rodney sat on a high lab stool, his body rhythmically rocking backwards and forwards.
"Rodney, can you hear me? Please, Rodney, say something." Radek's quiet voice coaxed. He looked up at Beckett, concern showing plainly on his face.
"He has been like this for nearly ten minutes." Zelenka turned back to the gently rocking man. "Rodney, please speak to me."
Beckett stepped around a cluttered bench to stand in front of McKay. The man's eyes were open, but focussed on something far beyond the wall of the lab. His usually animated face lacked any expression, making him look older than his years. Carson took McKay's hand as it hung limply at his side; the skin felt cold and clammy.
"What happened?" Beckett snapped open his bag and took out an Ancient medical scanner, running the device over McKay's back while Zelenka answered.
"He came in this morning as normal, worked for a while, then this."
"What was he working on?" He checked the readings and frowned, everything looked fine.
"Wraith devices. Nothing very dangerous, just things that the Wraith brought with them when they attacked Atlantis."
It was time to go back to basics. "Radek, can you hold him still for me, please?" Beckett waited until the Czech had taken a firm grasp of McKay's shoulders and stopped the steady rocking. Taking his stethoscope from his pocket and putting it to his ears, Beckett leaned over and unzipped the top of McKay's blue shirt. As the cold metal of the stethoscope touched his bare chest, McKay finally reacted. Suddenly and violently.
Beckett was unprepared for the fist that hit him just above his left eye with enough force to spin him to the ground and send the stethoscope flying.
He shook his head to clear the ringing in his ears and blinked away the blood that ran into his eye. Scrambling to his hands and knees, he looked up to see Rodney, the heavy metal lab stool in his hands, advancing towards Zelenka. As McKay swung the stool, Zelenka leaped backwards, avoiding the blow but tripping over a second stool and tumbling to the floor.
"Rodney!" Beckett shouted, trying to take attention away from Zelenka who lay helpless in front of McKay.
Rodney turned; his face was no longer expressionless but Carson was surprised to see not anger, but abject terror in McKay's eyes.
McKay took a step towards Beckett, who still knelt on the floor shielding his head from the expected blow. A loud clatter made the Medic look up. Rodney had dropped the stool and, as Beckett watched, his eyes rolled back and he collapsed silently to the ground.
oOo
"What's wrong with him, Carson?" Elizabeth Weir stood in the infirmary doorway, looking worried, Colonel Sheppard at her side. They had received Beckett's call that he had finished his tests on McKay and had come immediately to hear the results.
"I don't know, Elizabeth." Beckett admitted, shaking his head. "I've run every test and scan that I can think of, and they've all turned up negative. I can't find anything physically wrong with him." He looked back over his shoulder at McKay's unmoving form as if searching for a clue to help him understand the man's condition. "I even had Dr Zelenka round up everything that Rodney had been working on to see if he had been exposed to some sort of Wraith weapon, but…" He shook his head again in frustration.
"And you say that he's awake?" From the doorway, Elizabeth could see Rodney's open eyes gazing up at the ceiling. She found the blankness of the stare even more disturbing than his unnatural stillness.
Carson caught the expression on her face and answered softly. "Aye, he's awake. His eyes are tracking, but that's the only reaction we've had since I brought him in." He put his hand to the dressing above his eye and winced, then sighed wearily. "To tell the truth, Elizabeth, I can't help thinking that this might be more Dr Heightmeyer's territory than mine."
"You're saying that you think he's crazy?" John Sheppard narrowed his eyes and glared at the Doctor.
"No, Colonel. I'm saying that we have all been under a great deal of stress over the past few weeks; Rodney more than most." Beckett closed his eyes while he spoke and Elizabeth could hear the exasperation in his voice.
"So what's the next move?" She asked, before Sheppard could respond.
"I can only suggest that we wait for a reaction from him, and take it from there. And, before you ask, I wish I could tell you, but I have no idea when that will be." Beckett's voice started to rise in volume with his obvious frustration. "To be honest, I can see no reason why he isn't sitting up in bed right now, demanding a bloody coffee."
He caught the look in Elizabeth's eye and had the grace to look sheepish. "I'm sorry, it's just that…"
"It's just that we've all been under a great deal of stress." Elizabeth gave him an understanding smile. "You've done everything you can for now, Carson," She cut off Beckett's protest before it could begin. "You should take a break; you look like you could use one."
He lifted his hand again to his swollen eye. "Oh, I'm okay. I'll just stay a while longer in case he decides to come back to us."
Elizabeth could see the pain and tiredness that Beckett was trying to hide. "Well, I haven't eaten yet today, Carson. I'll have some food brought to your office; we can wait there and you can fill me in on what we can do to help."
Carson smiled, obviously aware that he had been outmanoeuvred. "Okay, Elizabeth. I'll just fetch someone to keep an eye on him." He glanced around the infirmary and took a step towards the nearest medic.
"You go, I'll sit with him." Sheppard's voice had a calculating tone and he gave the Doctor a grin. "I've got a couple of ideas that might persuade him back."
oOo
"Hi, Rodney. Carson says you're not talking. Now that doesn't sound like you." Sheppard curled his foot around the leg of a chair and dragged it over towards McKay's bed.
"He also said that there was nothing wrong with you, so I brought you something." Sheppard looked down on McKay's quiet form, "don't tell Carson."
Rodney's eyes followed the movement of Sheppard's hand as he reached into his vest pocket.
Sheppard took a, now slightly melted, chocolate bar from his pocket and began to unwrap it. "These came with the last batch of provisions on the Daedalus." Runny chocolate oozed onto his fingers and he reached for a tissue. "They haven't hit the streets yet, but I managed to get hold of a box."
Rodney could hear the words, but they held no meaning for him. It was the reassuring sound of the familiar voice that slowly began to coax him back to wakefulness.
Sheppard wiped his sticky fingers clean and Rodney watched in rapt fascination. The image caused a name to bubble up into his memory. "Teyla." His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.
Sheppard tapped his radio, "Carson, he's awake." He looked back down at McKay, a relieved smile on his face. "Welcome back, Rodney. Sorry, you're stuck with me for now, Teyla's not here."
Rodney struggled to remember; it felt like he was trying to recall something that had happened long ago. "Did we go back for her?"
Sheppard's smile faltered and he tilted his head with a puzzled frown. "Go back?"
"After the crash. You said we would go back to the Jumper for her," Rodney insisted. He knew that it was important, but he couldn't remember why.
"It's okay, Rodney. Just relax." Sheppard put a calming hand on McKay's shoulder as the scientist tried to sit up.
McKay hadn't heard him. He felt confused, there were gaps in his memory and he needed to fill them. He couldn't remember going back. Closing his eyes tight, he forced himself to concentrate. Pictures flashed in front of his eyes like disconnected scenes from a movie. He remembered being attacked by Wraith darts... the Puddlejumper smashing through a forest canopy... "We crashed on M4A-635."
"I wouldn't call it a crash," Sheppard sounded more offended than anything. "We had trouble with an engine and I had to put her down pretty hard but you know what they say 'anything you walk away from...'."
Of course – that's what had happened. Rodney remembered it perfectly now. There had been a problem with one of the engines and they had been forced to land. He couldn't repair the engine and they had had to leave the Puddlejumper and return to Atlantis on foot, intending to go back later and fix it. But once back in the city they hadn't been able to get a Gate lock on M4A-635.
It felt completely logical; it felt right, and he remembered it perfectly. So why could he also remember kneeling in a crashed Puddlejumper, next to Teyla's dead body?
TBC
