A/N: Apologies again for the delay. Once more, this has spent ages in my inbox until I could get around to posting it.
I've been here beforeā¦
A.T 14:40 R.T. 1:5:42
Rodney watched the sensors yet again as the Atlantian ships fought over the planet. This time around, he focused on the jumper's shots compared to the outpost's drones. He couldn't see the difference, but time would tell.
He didn't want to watch the loss of hundreds of lives, yet again, but he had to find out what was different. He had a unique opportunity and he needed to make the most of it.
He had to turn off the screen as the Daedalus's last moments proceeded, but he got what he needed. He paused, head bowed for a minute, contemplating his situation.
If he couldn't solve this, would he have to keep going, forced to relive the death of his friends over and over again until he was killed as well? Would that be the end? Would the loops stop and Atlantis fall, or would everyone be trapped for an eternity? Which was worse?
For more than ten minutes, he just stood there, his mind going around and around, and he wondered if it was worth continuing. Could he change the outcome? Was he right to try and fight time itself to save them? He just stood there, completely silent.
In her office, Elizabeth watched the physicist, immensely concerned by his lack of action for the last quarter of an hour. Aware of their one hope for survival's inner struggle, she made a call on her radio.
A.T. 14:55 R.T. 1:5:57
Rodney stared unseeing at the blank panel before him. He hadn't moved since the destruction of the Daedalus. In his mind, turmoil ruled over the usually analytical man.
Gently, a hand rested on his shoulder, but he didn't respond to the touch. Quietly, someone said, "Rodney?" Their tone conveyed in a word all the concern and pity they had for him.
The tone penetrated the chaos further than any words could. It reminded him of those he would condemn by giving up. The surge of loyalty induced by it warred with the uncertainty, driving it back a way. Rodney looked up to see who was standing next to him.
On one side, arm draped across Rodney's shoulders, stood John, looking extremely worried. On the other side stood Teyla, her arm resting on Rodney's - something he hadn't even noticed. She was the one who had spoken.
"Weir told us you were here. Everyone's getting worried about you." Said John quietly.
Rodney didn't reply.
"We understand what you must be going through." Added Teyla.
Rodney looked at her. "How? How can you know what it is like to see you all killed and then go back and know it'll happen again?" The words came out in one long sob.
"We know," replied John, "because we see all those we've lost because of our mistakes every night. But you have a chance to change that. Are you really prepared to stand aside and let it slip away?"
A glimmer of hope showed on Rodney's face, and John smiled and clapped his shoulder. "That's better."
A.T. 16:15 R.T. 1:7:17
Rodney turned, instinctively ducking a blow and lashing out with one of his own. His blade drew a line across the man's arm and he dropped his gun. A blow around the back of his head made the man drop, revealing a blood smeared John, gun held like a bludgeon.
They both turned to face the door where the troops had been entering. All seemed quiet, they'd held off that last wave, though at the cost of the rest of their team.
Out of nowhere, a single Genii soldier dashed straight at John. He dodged the spray of bullets from John's gun, and before he could move, Rodney saw a flash of steel.
Finally able to move, Rodney emptied his handgun's magazine into the Genii's chest. Before his body hit the floor, Rodney had moved to John's side. Slowly, with Rodney's support, John sank to the ground, head supported off the floor by Rodney's legs, and Rodney's hand over the wound.
Despite his best efforts, blood was spilling over Rodney's hand, something that would previously disgust him. Now, it was unimportant. He looked around for a medic, but Beckett and the rest of his team were scattered around the room, all perfectly still. In fact, there was nobody else. He and John were the only ones left, and he could feel John slipping away under his hands.
Seeing Rodney look around, John asked, "How did we do?"
"We won!" Rodney replied, despite every feeling telling him otherwise. He tried to put on a smile he didn't believe. "We just have to wait for Beckett to finish with someone else, then he'll come over, and you'll be fine, and then we can carry on exploring this galaxy."
John smiled weakly. "Don't lie to a dying man, Rodney." He coughed and closed his eyes.
"Hey, hey, stay with me here."
John opened his eyes again and looked up at him. "I'm not going anywhere, just so tired..." His voice trailed off. His breath slowed, and he gave one final sigh. Gently, while struggling to keep his emotions under control, Rodney brushed John's eyes closed.
Taking deep breaths in order to remain calm, Rodney just sat in the middle of the gate room. John's blood was still soaking into his trousers, he was in a room filled with his dead friends and he was sure the cruiser was still in orbit. He'd never felt so alone.
An alarm pierced the silence. He had five minutes until he would jump back. Gently, he rearranged John into a more dignified position and got up. His trousers were the colour of rust, his face and hands grimy from battle, his shirt in tatters.
He reached for his laptop and transferred all the information about the cruiser to the removable hard drive. Then, to a smaller flash drive he copied a recording he had prepared. Then, with only a minute to go, he positioned himself in Elizabeth's office, looking to where he knew she would be.
Right on time, he was enveloped by the sense of extreme motion.
