A/N: Well, this is nearly done. Thanks for everyone who's stuck with this, and especially to my wonderful beta who has helped catch some rather annoying mistakes that I never would have spotted. Only one more to go, so enjoy...

I've been here before…

A.T. 9:00 R.T. 1:7:39

Elizabeth looked up as she heard a movement in front of her. At first she registered only the face as Rodney's, and mustered a scowl for him for barging into her office. Then she registered his appearance.

Despite her annoyance, she hesitated while she took in the mess he was in. Ideas of the cause flicked through her mind. The first one was, 'Oh god! What has he been fiddling with this time?' However, something about him, something very un-Rodney-like, made her shorten it to, "What's happened?"

Rodney, after taking a moment to reorient himself, replied, "At nine forty-five, when John comes through the gate, play the file on this." He slid the flash drive across her desk. "I'll be in my lab." He turned around and headed off.

Normally, Elizabeth would have stopped him and asked for an explanation, but what could be best described as a closedness about him stopped her. She wondered what had happened to cause such a dramatic change to the normally talkative physicist.

A.T. 9:55 R.T. 1:8:34

John walked into Rodney's lab. He had passed most of the other scientists walking the other way, none looking too happy. Now he saw why. Rodney, fortunately now dressed in clean clothes, was working at a computer alone. Dr Zelenka was cautiously watching him from afar so John approached him first.

"Is he alright?" He asked.

"I'm not sure." Zelenka replied slowly. "He does not sound like Rodney. He seems...err...how do you say..." He faltered.

"Closed?"

Zelenka examined the word for a moment. "Yes, that is it. He does not answer me when I ask him things, he just tells me to leave."

"Well, I'll give it a go. Just be ready to rescue me if he starts throwing things." John grinned.

"You think you are joking?" Replied Zelenka. He wasn't smiling.

John moved over to Rodney's side, but before he opened his mouth, Rodney, who hadn't turned around said, "Go away."

"You really think you're getting rid of me that easily? Now, what's wrong?"

Rodney turned to face him, and for a moment, a strong emotion John couldn't quite identify registered on his features. Then an impassive mask flowed over them, and he could almost see the wall descending in the physicist's eyes. "Nothing. Please, just leave me alone." There was a slight hitch in his voice that revealed some underlying emotion that just defied recognition.

"Rodney. You can't fool me that easily. Elizabeth told me about your visit earlier." They had both been concerned by his appearance, and completely bemused by the fact that he predicted exactly John's unscheduled arrival.

"Just go. Watch the video. It'll explain everything, and please, don't come here asking me questions. Not about anything." There was that hitch again, and John could have sworn he saw tears in the man's eyes.

"But..."

"Just go, please." Entreaty filled his expression, along with that emotion that John still couldn't work out. He thought he knew Rodney pretty well, but this was something he hadn't seen before and it troubled him.

Reluctantly, he turned away, and, after a second backward glance, he walked out, collecting Zelenka as he passed.

A.T. 10:25 R.T. 1:9:04

The room fell silent as the last image of the briefing faded.

"Can we believe this?" Asked Caldwell, earning glares from some of the other people around the table.

"Yes." Replied Elizabeth. "He accurately predicted John's unscheduled arrival, so I believe the rest will also become true. Now, John, you went to see him. How's he doing modifying the drones?"

"I've no idea." Replied John. "He asked me to go away and leave him to work alone. I think he may have seen something bad even by our standards in one of those previous loops, but I don't want to talk to him about it until we're in the clear."

"What do you mean, 'seen something'? We can't have our best hope of victory putting himself out of action." Said Caldwell.

"I'm not sure, but I think he's trying to block it out." He didn't add, 'I think it was about me.'

Elizabeth nodded, "We'll keep an eye an on him. Anything else?"

As nobody answered, the meeting broke up.

A.T. 14:40 R.T. 1:13:19

Rodney watched as the first drones approached their target. He visibly flinched as they were deflected causing no damage. Using the scanners, he collected what information he could. Yet another modification to the drones had failed.

Reluctantly, he made his way back to his lab and began to work on the plan again. Every now and again he checked he still had the flash drive in his chest pocket. On it, as well as the briefing, was a personal message, just in case.

He continued to work with next to no rest. Against the doctor's better judgement, Rodney made Beckett administer a stimulant so he could keep working, but the need to save his friends worked better than any drug.

He made every variation he could to the drones, but any advantage they gained disappeared after the first ten minutes.

Finally, after a week of ceaseless working, while his friends fought the Genii and lost to them again and again, he finally made a breakthrough.

A.T. 12:10 R.T. 7:1:46

Rodney rushed to catch up with John. He looked a mess, clothes unchanged for a couple of days, unshaven and exhausted.

"John, I think I've got it, but I need your help."

John stopped and spun around, surprised. The physicist, who, from John's point of view, had turned instantly from a fairly happy, excitable man, to one who made every attempt to avoid contact with everyone, had barely said ten words to him since the mission.

He could still sense the closedness about him, but whatever he needed overrode it, so John didn't even hesitate. "Sure, what is it?"

"I need to get into the computer system."

"You already can."

"No, the way you can. I think it's possible, but I need you to let me in."

"Okay. Where?"

"The auxiliary controls in the Chair Room."

John nodded and the way. They walked in silence, Rodney fighting to stay calm with every second of John's presence reminding him of that day almost a week ago. John, still worried, watched as the signs of the battle flickered across his friend's face.

They reached the Chair Room, and John turned to face the physicist. "Well, what do I do?"

"Sit on the Chair. It should be obvious if you can do it."

John nodded again. As he settled himself in the Chair, Rodney placed both hands on the controls. They both concentrated hard, eyes closed.

John was soon in the view he always saw when he used the chair. He could just sense Rodney's presence, as if he was just in the corner of his eye. A thought, and a little persuasion, made Atlantis let him in.

In the real world, Rodney reeled as the information overwhelmed his senses. With his customary stubbornness, he held onto the panel as he gradually acclimatised. John was quite frankly impressed. The last new person able to control the Chair hadn't been able to deal with the sheer quantity of raw data.

"So. What do you need to do?" Muttered John, though it echoed loudly in both their minds.

"I think, if I can make the changes to the drones at random, they'll be able to break through the Genii shields."

"Okay. If you don't need me here, I'll go explore the database, see if I can find anything useful."

Rodney sensed John's presence move away, and, hoping this wouldn't unduly strain the ZPM, began to work.

A.T. 12:10 R.T. 7:1:51

John hovered nearby in the system. He was certain Rodney wouldn't notice it over all the noise of the rest of the information, but John could sense quite a lot from him.

Gently, so Rodney wouldn't notice, he concentrated on him. He couldn't get much, the system wasn't designed for such uses, but he could feel that the man wasn't as calm as he appeared.

Backing away, he had a quick rummage through the database and then returned to the defence systems. "Are you finished?"

"As much as I can until the cruiser arrives." Replied Rodney.

"Okay."

John removed himself from the system. Only when it was too late did he remember that only his will kept Rodney in it as well. The force of the system ejecting him knocked the physicist across the floor. John rushed over to help him up. "Sorry about that. Are you alright?"

"Physically, yes."

John pounced on the qualifier. "And mentally?"

The effect was instant. Rodney closed up and simply replied, "Yes." He made to move off, but John stepped in the way.

"Rodney. You are not fine. I could feel it in there." He cocked a thumb at the Chair.

"What?"

"It was as clear as a bell." He lied. He clasped Rodney's shoulders, forcing him to look him in the eye. "Promise me you'll talk to someone when this is all over. I can't even begin to imagine what you've gone through, but you can't bottle everything up."

For a moment, Rodney tried to barge past, but he had neither the strength nor the mass. Knowing full well when he was beaten, he looked at John. "All right. I promise."

John, satisfied Rodney would keep the promise, let him go. The physicist hurried off down the corridor.

A.T. 14:40 R.T. 7:4:21

Beckett watched as John and Rodney prepared themselves, immersed in the Atlantis' computer network. He wasn't pleased about this, knowing it was mentally and physically exhausting, and Rodney was already spread thin. However, he doubted either man would step aside.

An alarm sounded as, right on cue, the cruiser appeared.

In the defence system, John watched as the cruiser entered his reach. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be." Rodney looked around the unreal landscape. The Daedalus, the jumpers and the F302s were all waiting in the shadow of the planet, ready to move in at a moments notice.

As the cruiser started firing, he found he couldn't keep track of everything, so didn't bother. Despite this, he felt every impact on the shield and they hurt. When John opened fire, Rodney was nearly overwhelmed again. He only just managed to keep himself in place until his mind filtered out the unnecessary details.

Picking groups of drones at random, he made subtle changes to their internal functions. Each change made the drone's points a different colour. Above the pair, the sky was lit with a kaleidoscope of colour.

While some drones were deflected, most ripped through the cruiser's shields. The deck guns were torn from their housings and great chunks of the hull fell away. A few escape pods dropped away and their contents were beamed directly into holding cells.

Before the Daedalus got into weapons range, the cruiser was a wreck, and not long after its rail guns opened fire, the wreck was reduced to many glittering splinters.

For a moment, stunned by their victory, both John and Rodney just stopped and watched from their unique perspective. Then, a tap on Rodney's arm, which felt decidedly unreal, made him drop out of the system, closely followed by John.

The shock to his senses as the additional stimuli ceased made Rodney feel like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over him. Looking down, he saw he was drenched in sweat.

"If you two are finished, you should both rest. You both look like you defeated the cruiser with your bare hands!" Said Beckett, looking balefully at them.

Looking over to John, who was in a similarly bad state, Rodney wondered why winning easily was harder than losing badly. "No." He said. "I've got to get to the lab before I loop back again. I do not want to have to win this battle again."

As he pushed himself up from the control panel, he felt his legs sag beneath him and he dropped to the floor. John moved to his side to help him up, Beckett grabbing his other side.

"Well, half your body has the right idea." Quipped Beckett as they lifted him to his feet.

"Oh, very funny." Shot back Rodney, though he was grateful for the help.

Together, Beckett and John keeping Rodney on a straight course, they made their way to a transporter and then on to a lab.

A.T. 15:10 R.T. 7:4:51

The odd device Rodney had deduced to be the cause of his loops was still lying on its stand in the centre of the room. On it, the lights were still flashing in what Rodney now recognized as a countdown.

Rodney half walked, half fell towards the control station and sank gratefully into the chair. He then began to rummage through the database, desperately aware that he probably didn't have time to decipher all the research notes.

John had a good look at the device.

"Do you mind if I try something?" He asked.

"Just be careful." Said Rodney automatically.

John rolled his eyes and cautiously waved his hand over the device, concentrating on turning it off. When that failed, he gently laid a hand on it. There was no change.

Seeing Rodney scanning through the database, he moved to his side. "Can you show me a phrase to look for?"

"How will that help, there's only one screen in here." Replied Rodney without thinking.

"Since when did I need a screen?"

That penetrated Rodney's sleep deprived mind. "Oh. Here." He entered a command and a handful of Ancient symbols appeared.

"Thanks. Oh, and by the way, that was real slow, even for you. You need sleep."

"Later."

When John placed a purposeful hand on the console, Beckett went to argue, but before he could draw breath, John was in.

Working from both ends, they raced through the file. Finally they found an entry which said Rodney was the one who had to shut it off.

Carefully, Rodney got up and placed a hand on the device. There was no change.

"Concentrate Rodney."

"I am."

"No, you're not."

Rodney sighed and closed his eyes. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, a humming he hadn't noticed stopped. His eyes snapped open and he saw the inactive device under his palm.

As relief coursed through his body, he relaxed, and John and Beckett only just caught him before he hit the floor.

Together, they managed to carry him to his room, though each step was more difficult than the last for John. Carefully, they laid him down on his bed, where he instantly fell asleep. John sank into the chair by his desk.

Beckett paused to check Rodney was staying asleep, and then whispered to John. "You're next. To bed."

Only a gentle snore answered him, and he turned to see John slumped on the desk. Deciding moving him to his quarters without waking him was impossible, Beckett fashioned a make-shift bed on the floor and gently dropped him onto it. Then, glad they were both finally resting, he headed off to the infirmary.