John stood to one side of the 'gate with the last of the medical gear as Brandt pressed a series of tiles on the DHD. John noted he looked better after a couple of weeks of regular meals, not to mention help with the radiation exposure. The cough was gone, and he had lost the prison pallor from the lack of sunlight.
"Where are you going to go now?" Ronon asked Graime and Alman, standing near the 'gate.
"One of the other prisoners told Brandt about a friendly planet where the people have taken in other refugees," Graime replied. "Alman and I decided to go with them. Who knows, there might be some Satedans there already." Graime held out his hand to Ronon. "Until we meet again, Ronon Dex."
Ronon grunted and glanced at the 'gate as the wormhole formed. "That really what you want to do? You could come back with us. Help fight the Wraith."
Graime smiled. "It's enough for now." He shook Ronon's hand and turned to John. "Colonel," he said, holding out his hand. "It's been an honor."
John smiled as he shook Graime's hand. "Likewise."
Graime let go of John's hand and stepped toward the 'gate. "If you ever need help, get word to me. I owe you one, Sheppard."
Teyla, Carson, and Rodney walked into the clearing, followed by Septimia and her cohort. John noticed Rodney limping heavily as he entered the clearing and the itch at the back of his skull told him how hard a toll the hike had taken on McKay. Beckett's concerned glances at Rodney as he leant on the cane only confirmed his suspicions.
"Doctor Beckett," Graime said. "Thank you for everything."
"You're welcome, lad," Carson replied. He set down the cases he carried and shook Graime's hand.
"What I said to Sheppard goes double for you, Doc. We owe you a debt."
"You don't owe me anything," Carson told him. "I'm just glad I was able to help and that you and your brother will recover."
"Still," Graime replied, his expression serious, "you ever need anything, let us know."
Graime nodded to Teyla and Rodney, then disappeared through the 'gate.
John felt the itch crawl up his skull and frowned when Rodney grimaced as he shifted his weight off his injured leg.
"Doing okay?" John asked as he walked over to Rodney's side.
"Just peachy," Rodney grumbled, leaning more of his weight on the cane.
John glanced at Carson, who shook his head. "I told you, you didn't have to hike back here. We could have carried you."
Rodney scowled in response.
"I want you to come down to the infirmary as soon as we get back," Beckett told him with a long-suffering sigh. "I want to make sure you didn't do yourself a mischief with all of your stubbornness."
"Fine," Rodney replied.
"John Sheppard," Septimia said as she walked over to John's side. She carried a wooden staff in one hand, and John noticed the women behind her all carried a similar weapon. It wasn't until John saw the quiver of arrows fletched with white feathers strapped to Septimia's back that he realised the staff was actually an unstrung bow.
She must have noticed him staring and smiled. "Teyla showed us the room of weapons confiscated when the guards took all of us prisoner." Septimia ran her hand over the polished wood. "I was glad to find it again. It has been with me through many campaigns."
Septimia switched the bow to her other hand and held her free hand out to John. "You will visit our planet soon?" she asked as she gripped John's forearm. "We will hold a feast in your honor, and I look forward to showing you some of the wonders of my planet."
John ignored the whispered mutter of 'Kirk' Rodney uttered from behind his hand and focused on Septimia. "I think that can be arranged," John replied with a smile.
"Excellent," she said and stepped back. "Cassia," she added with a nod at the DHD.
"As you command," Cassia replied. She walked over to the DHD and pressed several tiles in quick succession.
The wormhole formed again a moment later, and Septimia waved her cohort forward. "Until we meet again, dear friends," she said with a glance at John and then the others. "May the Ancestors protect you." She walked through the event horizon, and the 'gate shut down a moment later.
John looked around the clearing for a moment, then blew out a breath and picked up one of the medical cases. Ronon grabbed the others, and John nodded to Teyla. "Let's go home."
"There is one last thing we should do first, Colonel," Teyla said as she stepped over to the DHD. "I promised Jor-tan we would return to Drellim and reassure him we were all right."
John pursed his lips.
"All right, we'll make a quick trip to Drellim, then head back to the city." He turned, handed the medical case to Carson, and glanced at Rodney. "You two head back now. Let Elizabeth know we've wrapped up the medical operation here, and we'll be back in a couple of hours."
"Certainly, Colonel," Carson replied as he hefted the cases.
John nodded to Teyla, who punched in the address for Atlantis and sent her IDC. "The shield is down," she reported a moment later.
"Come on, Rodney," Carson said and herded Rodney toward the 'gate. "The sooner you're off that leg, the happier we both will be."
"We've been gone almost two weeks, Carson," Rodney said as he stepped toward the 'gate in front of Carson. "I really need to check in with Radek and make sure -"
John lost the rest of the conversation as Rodney and Carson vanished, and the 'gate shut down. He turned to Teyla and nodded. "One quick trip to Drellim, and then I think we're all more than ready to get back to Atlantis."
"Agreed," Teyla said and started to dial.
~*~*~*~ SGA ~*~*~*~
"I really need to check in with Radek and make sure no one did anything catastrophic while I was gone," Rodney said as he came through the 'gate.
"I'm sure everything is fine," Carson replied.
Rodney humphed under his breath and gripped the cane in a tighter hold, trying to hide how much his leg ached. Elizabeth came down the stairs from the control room, and the Marines lowered their weapons.
"I'll get those for you, Doc," one of the Marines said.
"Thank you, lad," Carson replied as the Marine shouldered the strap for his P-90 and took the medical cases from Beckett.
"Carson, Rodney, good to see you," Elizabeth greeted. She paused and glanced behind Rodney as the 'gate shut down. "Where are Colonel Sheppard, Ronon, and Teyla?"
"They wanted to make a quick visit to Jor-tan to thank him for his help in all of this," Carson replied. "They should be along in a few hours."
Elizabeth nodded. "Major Lorne gave me a preliminary report on everything that happened when he returned a few days ago. I'll want to have a meeting in the conference room once the others return to discuss details. There are a number of things we need to decide after everything that's happened in the last few weeks."
"In the meantime," Carson turned to Rodney, "Rodney, come with me, and I'll change the dressing on your leg."
Rodney lay on an infirmary bed a few minutes later with one arm over his eyes as Carson unwrapped the bandage on his leg. He felt Carson's fingers probing the edges of the wound and jerked his leg when Beckett found a tender spot. "Ow!" he complained and moved his arm enough to glare at Carson. "Are you trying to make it hurt more?"
Carson ignored the complaint and sat back on his stool. "This looks to be healing well. The bruises are fading, and the swelling is almost gone."
"Still hurts," Rodney grumbled.
He glanced at the long row of stitches down his leg and covered his eyes with his arm again. "Yet another scar courtesy of Commander Kolya," he grumbled to himself with a sigh.
"Rodney?" Carson asked and tapped his arm.
Rodney dropped his arm and focused on the textured ceiling. "It's nothing," he muttered.
Carson studied him for a moment longer, then reached for a clean dressing. "Do you still have the pain medication I gave you?"
Rodney reached into his jacket pocket and rattled the pill bottle.
"All right, keep taking them and the antibiotics," Carson told him as he wrapped the new bandage around Rodney's leg. "I'll take the stitches out in another week, and then you can start on the physical therapy."
"Lovely," Rodney muttered and sat up. He slid off the bed, pulled on his trousers, and tried to hide his grimace as a jolt of pain ran up his leg when his foot landed on the floor.
"Don't go pushing yourself too much," Carson admonished. "That hike back to the 'gate was enough exercise for one day. I'd prefer you went back to your quarters -"
"There are things I need to do," Rodney protested, and Carson held up his hands.
"But since I know you won't," Carson continued with a stern expression, "Make sure you keep that leg elevated when you aren't moving."
Rodney nodded, took the cane Carson held out to him, and turned toward the door to the infirmary. "Thanks, Carson."
"You're welcome, lad."
Rodney left the infirmary and stopped in the mess hall long enough to stuff a few power bars in his jacket pocket, and after deciding he didn't want to juggle a cup of coffee and the cane, he settled on a bottle of water. Armed with sustenance, he headed down to the lab and blew out a breath of relief when the door whispered closed behind him.
"Just a graze," he mimicked under his breath and groaned as he dropped into the chair in front of his desk.
He could admit to himself that the hike from the mining camp to the 'gate had taken more out of him than he wanted to admit. His pace had slowed the farther they walked, and he'd been silently grateful when Teyla suggested John and Ronon go on ahead with Brandt and Graime while she stayed behind with him and Carson.
He sat in the chair for a few moments, savoring the fact he was no longer moving, then managed to hook the stool from the work table with the cane, pulled the stool over to the desk, and rested his foot on the stool. Once he had his leg somewhat settled on the stool, he pulled the bottle of pain pills, the smaller bottle of antibiotic, and the power bars out of his pocket, swallowing both the pain medication and the antibiotic with a few swallows of water.
Once the pain in his leg stopped pounding and settled down to just aching, he sorted through the various notes Radek had left on his desk.
M
Repairs complete to jumper.
Try not to damage it again.
Z
Rodney scowled at the note, then crumpled it up and tossed it in the wastebasket at the end of his desk. It wasn't his fault they had run into Wraith while helping Teyla bury Charin's ashes.
The next note was attached to a thick file folder, and Rodney read the short note as he opened one of the power bars.
M
Preliminary reports are attached for field teams working on the mainland.
Most work ended for the season due to weather.
Z
Rodney skimmed the reports from the various teams who had spent the last several months exploring everything from the plants and animals to the weather on the mainland. According to the reports, the botanists had plenty of samples to keep them busy until spring. The geologists were eager to explore a few areas discovered by the cartographers when the weather warmed up.
Like what? he wondered and flipped through the file until he found the report on the mapping project. He was surprised the project was farther along than he had expected. The maps, so far, were still within a few dozen kilometers of the Athosian village, but they gave a detailed view of the area, including a series of low hills near the edge of the most current map.
"Must be what they're so excited about," Rodney muttered as he studied the new maps.
It didn't take him long to find the Ancient waypost, and he felt a shiver up his spine at the reminder of the gauntlet. At the same time, another part of his mind wondered if any other Ancient structures were hiding on the mainland, waiting for someone to find them.
Rodney finished the power bar, tossed the empty wrapper in the trash, and closed the folder. The project had started more as a whim, a way to get everyone out of his hair for a while, but skimming the reports, he was pleased to see some actual results from all of the work.
"Not a complete waste of time, then," he muttered.
He tried to ignore the twinge in his leg as he shifted in the desk chair and sorted through the pile of supply requests Radek had left for him to sign. Most of the requests were for the mundane items required to keep the science division functioning, but he paused and frowned when he saw the entry for more blank research notebooks Katie Brown wanted for the field teams assigned to the mainland.
"If no one is working …" he muttered but stopped when he heard someone tapping on his door a moment before the door whispered open.
He awkwardly twisted around in his chair and saw Radek walking into the lab.
"Rodney," Radek said with a nod and stopped at the end of the desk. "Shouldn't you be resting?" he asked with a glance at Rodney's leg resting on the stool.
"I'm fine," Rodney told him. "Why did -" He saw the strange look on Zelenka's face and paused. "What's wrong with you?"
"There was something I wanted to discuss with -" He looked Rodney in the eye and hesitated.
What is going on? Rodney wondered as Radek studied him for a moment longer, then waved a hand in the air.
"Nothing," Zelenka said, pushing up his glasses. "Never mind. It was not important."
Rodney started to make a sarcastic reply, then he remembered Sheppard's comment about Radek asking questions about the link. He looked at Zelenka, who in turn glanced at his foot resting on the stool and then at the wall separating the two labs.
That is not a conversation I want to have right now, he thought to himself and searched the desk, looking for something to distract Zelenka. He picked up the request for more blank books and flapped the paper in front of Radek's face. "What is this?" he asked.
Radek took the paper and glanced at it. "Doctor Brown has requested more blank notebooks for the research team working on the mainland," he replied with a shrug and handed back the form.
Rodney glowered. "I can see that. If none of the scientists on the mainland are doing any actual research at the moment, why does she want so many blank notebooks?"
"Oh." Zelenka hesitated again, and Rodney felt his impatience growing. "I believe the books were actually for Teyla," he finally admitted.
"Teyla? Why would Teyla …"
"Teyla is afraid her people are losing their past."
Rodney grimaced at the reminder of his conversation with Sheppard.
So Teyla wanted to, what? Use the books to write down her people's history? he wondered.
"On the longest night of the year, it is a time to reflect and light candles to ward off the long winter's night. Families exchange small gifts. There is food, storytelling, an opportunity to come together as a community."
"She's going to use the festival to hand out the books to her people," he muttered as the light dawned.
"Sorry?" Radek asked.
Rodney ignored the question as he studied the request form. He had to admit, it made a certain amount of sense. The more people writing things down, the better chance of capturing the most information.
He reached for a pen and hissed when his leg twinged.
"Rodney, are you certain you are all right?" Radek asked.
Rodney looked up, saw the concerned expression on Radek's face, and scowled. He did not want Zelenka back on the topic of the link. That was a conversation he was happy to put off as long as possible.
"Stop looking at me like that," he ordered. "I'm fine." Rodney grabbed the pen, scrawled his signature on the supply request, and handed it back to Radek. "We should have enough of the blank books in the stores. Take as many as Teyla needs, and we'll order more with the next supply run."
"Okay," Radek drawled and took the form.
Rodney dropped the pen back on the desk and carefully moved his foot off the stool. "Since you're here, we can go back down to the silo and finish the work on the emitters."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Radek asked with a frown.
"You do remember we've been watching a pair of Wraith cruisers circling the area for weeks, right? You don't find it the least bit suspicious they were so close to this planet even before the signal beacon alerted them?"
Radek shrugged. "Their flight path wasn't anywhere close to this planet."
"This time," Rodney retorted. "I don't think it was an accident they were in the neighborhood, and I don't plan on betting our continued survival on the chance the Wraith haven't already figured out the truth about the city's existence." He pushed himself out of the chair and grabbed the cane leaning against the end of the desk. "Let's go," he said and led the way out of the lab.
He was near the door when he heard his name over the radio.
"Weir to McKay."
Rodney sighed and tapped his earpiece. "Yes? What?"
There was a pause over the radio, then, "Colonel Sheppard, Ronon, and Teyla are back from Drellim. We're meeting in the conference room in a few minutes."
"Fine. I'll be right there." Rodney tapped his earpiece and turned to Radek. "Change of plans. Sheppard is back. We'll deal with the emitters later."
Radek gave him another strange look at the mention of Sheppard's name. Rodney ignored the look, herded Radek out of the lab, and headed up to the control room.
Rodney limped into the conference room a few minutes later and sat down next to Sheppard. Teyla, Ronon, and Carson sat across from him while Elizabeth sat at the head of the table. John glanced at him, and Rodney shrugged in reply as he set the cane on the floor next to his chair.
"Now that we're all here," Elizabeth said with a glance around the table, "let's get started." She turned to Carson. "How are the people who were affected by the radiation in the mine?"
Carson sat forward in his chair and clasped his hands together on the table. "I've done what I can for the worst cases. Some of them were too far gone to do much," he paused and looked down at his hands, "we lost a few of them in the last few days." He looked up and added, "Some of the others will likely only survive for a few months at most."
"What about us?" Rodney asked.
"You're fine," Carson replied with a long-suffering sigh. "Your exposure was negligible, and the Prussian blue was merely a precaution."
Rodney grunted and crossed his arms over his chest. He had already done the calculations for his running tally of radiation exposure and hadn't liked the result.
"As for the remaining people affected," Carson continued with a sideways glance at Rodney, "They should recover with time. Most of them were suffering from malnutrition and low vitamin D as much as from radiation exposure. A few good meals and the fact they were no longer confined in the dark did wonders for their overall health. I'll want to make monthly visits to check on them, but I don't foresee any long term problems."
"I'm not sure that's wise," Elizabeth said. "We need to maintain the illusion the Wraith destroyed Atlantis, remember."
Rodney saw Carson's expression harden, but before he could say anything, Sheppard jumped in.
"I'm not sure how much that matters anymore."
"Oh?" Elizabeth replied.
John nodded. "Kolya knows Atlantis wasn't destroyed when the Wraith attacked the city."
Elizabeth sat forward in her chair. "He knows? Or he suspects?"
"He seemed pretty sure," John replied.
"Those Wraith ships may not have been here purely by accident either," Rodney added.
Elizabeth pursed her lips and sat back in her chair. "I suppose it was foolish to hope the ruse would last forever," she eventually said. "But I had hoped we'd be better prepared before the Wraith launched another attack. Speaking of which," she added and turned to Rodney, "How is your idea for the dual emitters coming?"
"Slowly," Rodney replied. "We've hit a few snags with the tests -"
Ronon snorted, and Rodney glared across the table at him. "But I still think I can find a solution. The issue is going to be time. It will be at least another month for me to work out all of the kinks in the scale version. Then the engineers on Earth are going to have to review everything before they can start building them."
"You can't build them here?" Carson asked.
"No," Rodney replied. "The actual emitters are huge, too big to try and manufacture here. They will take months to build even on Earth, and then the Daedalus will need to bring them here. After that, we'll need to install and test them before we can be sure they will work against an actual attack."
"So all of this was for nothing?" Ronon asked.
"Not nothing," Rodney countered. He glanced at Elizabeth and added, "But it will probably take more time than we have if the Wraith have figured out we're still here."
Elizabeth frowned even as she nodded and made another note. "Do what you can. If we can get some sort of dual system to work, that would be an advantage the Wraith aren't expecting if, or more likely when, they launch another attack.
"We still have the current emitters," John said. "We aren't completely defenceless. That will have to be enough for now."
"True," Elizabeth replied. She paused for a moment, then took a breath and said, "Which leaves our other problem, namely the Genii. Were you able to find out how much uranium this Randorian had given them? Or how many nuclear bombs Cowen might have now?"
John shook his head. "Randorian wasn't big on keeping records, it seems."
"If there's any good news," Rodney added, "From what I saw of that refinery, any uranium the Genii have won't be very pure. Any bombs they do manage to build won't be very effective."
"That doesn't mean they can't still be dangerous," Carson said. "Even an ineffective nuclear explosion poses a threat from fallout and other secondary effects."
"That's assuming they don't end up blowing themselves up while making them," Rodney countered. "If their nuclear design hasn't improved since the two bombs they gave us before the siege, the galaxy may not have that much to worry about."
"And Commander Kolya?" Elizabeth asked Sheppard. "From what Major Lorne reported, Kolya told you he was building nuclear weapons as well."
John nodded. "For a coup."
John glanced at him, and Rodney tried not to twitch in his seat as he replayed those last few minutes in the woods before John and the others showed up in his head. "Too close," he muttered to himself. Way too close. He didn't want to think about the fact that Kolya had almost succeeded in kidnapping him this time.
"I don't think he has the people with the scientific know-how to finish building the weapons, though," John finished.
"Let's hope you're right, Colonel," Elizabeth said.
"Besides, we shut down the mine," John said. "Neither Cowen nor Kolya will be getting any more uranium from the planet."
"Speaking of the mine, what is the status of Randorian?" Elizabeth asked. "Major Lorne was rather vague when I asked him about her."
John crossed his arms over his chest and glanced at Rodney, then over at Ronon and Teyla. "There's not much to tell. The villagers and the former prisoners can't agree on what to do with her or Hollum."
"Both sides suffered thanks to her arrival on the planet," Elizabeth pointed out. "I'd think they would want the same thing."
"Yes and no. All of them agree that Randorian and Hollum should pay for what happened and the deaths that occurred. The problem is, they all want to be the one to mete out the punishments."
"I see." Elizabeth clasped her hands together on the desk. "Maybe we should -"
John shook his head and held up a hand. "I think this is one time where we should let things run their course."
Elizabeth frowned. "Some might say you have a conflict of interest in this matter, Colonel."
"Maybe I do," John agreed with a shrug. "Doesn't mean I'm wrong."
Rodney silently agreed with John, and a glance across the table showed him neither Ronon nor Teyla disagreed with Sheppard's suggestion.
Elizabeth glanced around the table, and after a moment, nodded and let the matter drop. "I think that's everything for now. All of you need to get some rest after what you've been through."
"Doctor Weir," Teyla said as the meeting broke up. "I would like to request permission to return to the mainland. The festival is in a few days, and I would like to help with the last of the preparations."
"I think that can be arranged," Elizabeth replied with a smile.
"I can take you," John offered.
"Thank you, Colonel," Teyla said. "There are a few items I wish to collect from my quarters, then I will be ready. "
"No rush," John replied and rested his hand on Rodney's shoulder. "There's something McKay and I need to do, too."
"There is?" Rodney asked and winced when John tightened his grip. "Oh, umm, yes. Right. That something."
Teyla gave them a puzzled look, but before she could say anything, John added, "It shouldn't take long. I'll meet you in the jumper bay in thirty."
"That will be fine." Teyla nodded to Elizabeth and left the conference room.
~*~*~*~ SGA ~*~*~*~
John floated the jumper into its space in the bay, and once the ship was secure, he mentally shut down the flight controls. He sat in the pilot's seat for a few moments savoring the silence as he let the last of the tension from their latest mission drain away. What he wouldn't give for a few days on a beach, just the sun and the surf. A chance to relax.
"Too bad it's snowing on the mainland," John muttered to himself as he stood and walked out of the jumper. "Might be some good skiing, though," he added with a smile as he left the bay.
He stopped in the control room long enough to see that everything was running smoothly in the city, then headed for the nearest transporter and down to McKay's lab. Rodney had promised to check in with Doctor Chaudhri while he was taking Teyla to the mainland and make sure the translation would be done in time. John wanted to know if his plan was still on track.
The door to the lab opened when he waved his hand over the sensor, but the room was dark, and Rodney wasn't there. John mentally turned up the lights and smiled when he saw the small black book sitting in the middle of the desk. A folder containing a sheaf of papers sat next to the book with a handwritten note on top.
Doctor McKay,
Here is the translation of the Athosian text you requested.
The language has some fascinating roots in both Ancient as well as a few African dialects.
I would be interested in studying the language more if any of the Athosians would be willing to assist me in such research.
PS: I have also included several copies of a primary translation key the Athosians can use to start translating any other texts they may possess.
"Thank you, Doctor Chaudhri," John murmured, putting down the note.
He glanced around the room, wondering where Rodney was and spotted several pieces from one of the shield emitters sitting on the work table.
"He wouldn't," John said, picking up one of the parts.
"But it will probably take more time than we have if the Wraith have figured out we're still here."
John dropped the part back on the work table as visions of McKay trying to climb ladders and work on the emitters with a bum leg danced in his head. He flicked off the lights and hurried back to the transporter.
"He wouldn't be down there, would he?" John asked himself as he tapped the map for the section with the silo.
He thought about the two Wraith ships that had almost discovered the truth about Atlantis and shook his head. It was entirely possible Rodney would be working on the emitters, injured or not, he realised and walked faster as he left the transporter a few seconds later.
John tapped the sensor for the silo door and blew out a breath when he saw the room was dark. He let the door slide closed and walked back to the transporter. "If you aren't in the lab or down here, where are you?" John asked. While it was late by most people's standards, John doubted Rodney would have gone back to his room. So, where would he go?
He studied the map for a moment, then snapped his fingers. John stepped out of the transporter a moment later and nodded when he heard music coming from the end of the hall. "Should have known," he said to himself.
He walked into the rec room and sat on the reclaimed jumper bench seat next to the keyboard.
Rodney glanced up at him with a nod but didn't stop playing.
John sat back and listened to the music. There was something familiar about it, but John couldn't place where he would have heard the tune before. "What is it?" he asked after a few minutes.
"'A Pine Forest in Winter'," Rodney said. "Seemed appropriate."
John mouthed the title and shook his head.
"From Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker," Rodney added with a glance at John. "What?" he said with a scowl. He finished the tune and sat back on the bench, flexing his hands.
"Nothing," John replied and hid his smile. "I guess I never figured you for the Christmas ballet type."
Rodney snorted. "I'll take something classical over this any day," he replied and played a few bars of Jingle Bells.
"There's always White Christmas." Rodney rolled his eyes, and John changed the subject. "I went down to the lab looking for you and saw that Doctor Chaudhri finished the translation. Thanks."
"Just don't hog all of the credit when you give it to Teyla," Rodney replied.
John sat back on the bench and tried to look innocent. Rodney glared at him, and John chuckled. He intended to tell Teyla exactly where the translation came from, but it was always fun to yank Rodney's chain.
Rodney shifted on the bench and winced as he rubbed his leg.
"Doing okay?" John asked.
Rodney shrugged and ran his fingers up and down the keyboard. "Carson says it's healing. He thinks I can start on the PT soon."
"That's not what I meant," John replied.
Rodney stopped playing and crossed his arms over his chest. "He almost succeeded," Rodney said in a whisper. "If you hadn't found us when you did …"
"It wasn't all me," John said. "You were doing everything you could to slow Kolya down and give us time to find you."
Rodney glanced at John in surprise. "How could you know that?"
John smiled. "One, you forget I had Ronon with me. He pointed out any number of places where you tried to slow Kolya down."
Rodney shrugged.
John sat forward on the bench seat and tapped Rodney on the knee. "And two, I know you. I knew you weren't going to go with him without a fight."
"He," Rodney paused and clenched his hands. "Kolya. He got away. Again."
"Yeah." John sat back on the bench seat with a sober expression. "I know." They sat in silence for several seconds until John shook himself out of his dour mood. "This time, we won. That's the important thing." John stood and pulled Rodney to his feet. "Come on. Kolya will keep for another day. For now, we can just relax and celebrate Athosian Christmas."
Rodney stared at him for a moment. "I guess I should consider myself lucky there wasn't a Secret Santa this year, at least," Rodney said as he grabbed the cane and followed John back to the transporter.
"Does this mean you didn't get me anything?" John asked with a grin.
Rodney snorted and followed John back to the transporter. "I'll buy the next round of beer."
"It's a little cold to sit out on the pier," John replied, "But I guess that will work."