In the spirit of old horror movies...
The Monster of Atlantis
Chapter 1
He awoke, not knowing how long he had been asleep. Sleep was not actually correct. He had been in stasis for millennia, in a laboratory on the lowest level of Atlantis. But when he first became conscious, he had no idea where, or even who, he was. Climbing out of the stasis pod, he was weak, and sat down on the floor. He looked at his hands, misshapen and slimy. After some rest, he stood up and found a metal surface, and looked at his reflection. Memories flooded back. He was humanoid but misshapen, his skin bluish gray, hairless, and oozing slime. Sharp pointed teeth, claws, bulging reptilian eyes, and the repulsive circular mouth of a Lamprey eel. He was indeed a monster, but remembered a time when he had been human. Before he was captured by a rogue Ancient scientist, and brought here. Unlawful experiments made him the creature he was, but also gave him some special abilities. He could temporarily take the form of another living being. Enough mental concentration, and he could keep the new form for as long as his focus was strong. Anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. Movement drew his attention to the recently vacated pod. A flat dark gray bug about two inches long was crawling out. It must have gotten in the pod by accident when he climbed in it millennia ago. These bugs had been used in the experiments on him. When he had turned on the scientist and tried to kill him, he was tricked into getting in the pod, ostensibly for a cure.
Another ability he had was sensing the presence of living things, and their thoughts and feelings to a degree, tho not total mind reading. He found a glass jar and put the bug in it. Then he sat down and concentrated on sensing any living presence. After a while, he began to sense many humans, far above him. A plan began to grow in his mind.
Chapter 2
Strange things had begun happening on Atlantis. Nothing dramatic, just little things. First food began disappearing from the mess hall kitchen at night. A lock was put on the door, but the thefts continued. Packaging was left, tho the door remained locked. Then things began to disappear from people's quarters. Then from the laboratories and the infirmary. People began to report seeing odd shadows or even someone lurking in the halls at night, but they would disappear, causing the person to doubt what they saw. An uneasy feeling pervaded.
Dr. Zelenka was angry. He discovered several bottles of his moonshine missing. "Why would someone steal them? All they had to do was ask!"
"Someone stole my sword!" Ronon said angrily. "I will kick their ass if I find out who!"
"Well, my Johnny Cash poster went missing!" said Col. Sheppard.
"One of my Bantu sticks is gone, plus some of Torren's toys!" said Teyla.
Rodney was fuming over the disappearence of his favorite coffee mug from his lab.
Katie was very upset when some of her plants were stolen.
Amelia's birthstone ring and pictures of her father and brother went missing, which caused her anguish, and Ronon to swear an oath of vengence on the thief.
When the thefts were reported to Mr. Woolsey, he said the picture of his Yorkie dog had vanished from his office. No one could understand how the thief gained entrance, or why someone would want many of the stolen objects.
Chapter 3
Far down in the lowest level of the city, the monster studied his growing collection of objects. From them, he got impressions of the humans who owned them, and life in this time and place. He did not require food, but enjoyed the sensation of eating, as well as the feeling he got from the liquor. He studied the medications from the infirmary, but did not understand their use. Medicine as he remembered had been very different.
He had improved his burglary skills since first venturing under the kitchen door. He would assume the form of the bug, who could slide under doors and thru the smallest cracks. Then assume his own form, and leave thru the door with his loot. If he was caught, he could always change to the bug and crawl away, but his senses warned him of anyone nearby, and he was never caught. He decided the bug was his default form-he could hold that form easily, without the need for a strong focused mind. Probably because the bug had been used by the Ancient scientist in the transformation.
He began to find their frustration amusing, and the feeling gradually turned to hatred of these humans who were (as he saw it) so undeserving of their lives. How would it feel to be one of them? He could have power over them, and would enjoy causing them pain.
More strange things were happening. People who were off world would be seen lurking in the halls. A person who was sick in the infirmary would be spotted somewhere else. Often late at night someone would be seen, but swear they had been in bed asleep. The monster was cautious at first, not getting too close to others, and shifting into the bug form and hurrying away to his lair far below. He felt the people's confusion and fear. Extra guards were on duty at night but the mystery continued.
But he soon became bored. He observed the humans, deciding whose form to assume, and actually interact with others. Which form would cause the most disruption? He finally made a decision.
Chapter 4
Rodney entered the mess hall and joined the team for breakfast. He was dressed in sweat pants, T shirt, and sneakers, rather than in uniform. His tray held a pot of tea, bread and cheese, and an orange. Not his usual fare.
"Are you joining my training class today?" Ronon asked, with a smirk. "And what's with the orange?"
"Must be a joke-haha!" said John. "Let's see you eat it!"
"Are you all right, Rodney?" Teyla said, looking worried.
They all noticed something off about him, especially his eyes, which looked flat and void of expression. Then he picked up the orange, bit off a big chunk and swallowed it, juice running down his chin.
"Your allergy!" they all exclaimed at once. Feeling their alarm, he began to lose his focus, jumped up, and ran from the room. The scurrying bug was not noticed in the shadows.
The team ran after Rodney, wanting to get him to the infirmary ASAP. His citrus allergy could be life threatening, but he was nowhere to be seen. A men's room was next to the mess hall, and John and Ronon went in to look around. A pair of sweat pants, a T shirt, and a pair of sneakers lay in a corner. They decided to alert the infirmary, then break up and search for Rodney.
But then a voice was heard-"Hey! Where are you going?" It was Rodney, in uniform. "I saw your food on our usual table. Who ate part of an orange, peel and all?"
Back in the mess hall, Rodney recoiled at the half eaten orange. "Someone get rid of that! Who was here anyway? A tea drinker!"
When told it was his tray, he replied, "No way! I over slept. I just got here. Ask Katie."
Katie soon joined them, and when told what had happened, she confirmed Rodney's story. They noticed that Rodney looked normal now, including his eyes. He was drinking his usual pot of coffee.
Chapter 5
The monster realized that feeling strong emotion caused his focus to weaken, and he would revert to his monstrous form. He would need to practice control. But he was impatient to carry out his plans.
"Private Allen, what's with you today?" Ronon yelled at a Marine in his training class, after knocking him on his butt for the third time. The young man's eyes looked vacant and he moved clumsily. "Go to the infirmary and get stitches, and take the day off."
Later Ronon went to check on him, and the doctor said Private Allen had not been in. Ronon found out he had gone off world the day before, and not yet returned.
Later Ronon told John about the incident.
"I was trying to train a new scientist in firearms," John told him. "He became angry when I corrected him. Suddenly he ran out of the firing range. I found him later in the mess hall and he denied being at the range. I thought he was just bullshitting, and chewed him out. Strange thing, when I picked up the pistol he dropped, the hand grip was slimy. Not sweat, slime! Really gross!"
"I noticed something slimy on the mat after Allen fell on it," Ronon said. "Something is wrong around here!"
Late that night, a Marine on guard duty came into the infirmary with a head wound. He had heard a noise in the jumper bay and gone to investigate. A man was in a jumper, trying to start it, and speaking angrily in an unknown language. When told to get out and show his hands, he attacked the guard, knocking him out. When he regained consciouness, the man was gone. When asked if he got a look at his attacker, the guard swore it was Col. Sheppard. But Sheppard had been in his bed asleep, Teyla vouching for him. The Marine insisted it was Sheppard but said his eyes looked strange.
Chapter 6
Ronon was invited to a Satedan version of a bachelor party for a friend of Solen Sincha. He left in the afternoon, kissing Amelia goodbye before leaving their quarters. A woman named Priscilla had the hots for him, but he had told her in the past he was not interested. She threw herself at men, and being turned down made her angry, and more determined. Seeing Priscilla, Ronon ignored her, but she ran to him and said,"If you get tired of your wife, you know where I live."
"In your dreams," Ronon answered, then went thru the Gate to Sateda. A vacant eyed man overheard the exchange, and an idea formed in his mind.
Ronon returned the next afternoon, still a little hung over after winning the traditional drinking game. The other men had all passed out. Ronon had stumbled to his room, flopped on the bed, and fallen asleep.
Amelia was not at the console, as Ronon had expected. Entering the infirmary for his checkup, people looked at him coldly, even Dr. Beckett.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
Beckett shook his head. "I expected better from you, lad."
"What did I do?" Ronon asked.
"Go talk to Col. Sheppard," he answered.
"What the hell is going on? And where is Amelia?" Ronon demanded.
Sheppard told him that Amelia was confined to quarters for assault. But in a room in the infirmary, as she did not want to go to their quarters, plus her hand was badly bruised.
"What happened?" Ronon demanded.
Sheppard handed him a photo, which had been torn in half and taped back together. It was of Ronon and Priscilla, both naked, lying side by side on her bed. Ronon looked at it in shock. Then he noticed a date/time stamp. "I was still on Sateda at this time! It has to be fake! And look at the eyes-blank, not the eyes of a man about to get laid!"
"Can anyone vouch for you on Sateda?" John asked.
"No, they were all passed out," Ronon answered, dismayed.
"Amelia found the picture stuck to your door. She went to Priscilla's quarters and confronted her. Things escalated and Amelia knocked her across the room, breaking her jaw. I had to arrest her," John continued. "She doesn't want to see you."
"It wasn't me, any more than it was you who attacked the guard in the jumper bay!" Ronon exclaimed. "I don't know about the picture. Maybe something to do with all the weird things happening."
"I want to believe you," John said. "Come with me to the infirmary. I want to talk to Priscilla."
They made a detour thru the Gate room, where Chuck handed Sheppard a print out of the Gate traffic. It showed Ronon leaving for Sateda the previous afternoon, but not returning until over twenty four hours later.
"This proves I wasn't here when the picture was taken!" Ronon exclaimed.
"I believe you, buddy, but maybe the date/time stamp could be faked. I have to be sure because Woolsey will want proof. I will check with the photo lab," Sheppard said. "Wait outside while I talk to her." Ronon scowled but sat down to wait.
John entered Priscilla's room and could see she had been crying, looking at herself in a hand mirror, face swollen and jaw wired shut. "I want the truth from you," he said, handing her a pen and paper. "You can be charged with sexual harassment for the photo stunt, and sent back to Earth with your name on the sex offender registry for life! I feel like turning you over to the Wraith!"
Priscilla looked terrified and began writing.
I heard the chimes and answered the door. It was Ronon Dex, and he was naked. He pushed his way in, saying we can have sex now. I said why did he wait so long. I took a selfie of us on the bed. Then I turned off the light, but there was some light coming thru the window. He pushed me down and got on top, but I said I wanted to play around first. He was impatient and said he had waited millenia and wanted sex right now. How weird is that? I slid out from under him-suddenly he felt slimy. I saw him start to change. He jumped up and ran for the door. He looked like a monster! Buggy eyes and a round mouth like those sucker fish, only with sharp teeth. His hands looked like claws. His body was bent and lumpy. Then he was gone. The light was dim and I tried to convince myself I had imagined it. But I think it was real. I want to go home to Earth!
Chapter 7
"Something is definitely wrong. Someone or something is able to assume another's form, at least temporarily," Sheppard told Rodney.
"Oh come on now!" the physicist scoffed. "This is not some old horror movie about shape shifting monsters!"
"Stargates, space ships, and the Wraith, but you can't believe this could be true?" Sheppard said incredulously. "How do you explain the incident in the mess hall with the orange?"
For once, Rodney had nothing to say.
Then Sheppard's com beeped, and Chuck said, "Col. Sheppard, report to the infirmary immediately."
Sheppard hurried there, Rodney following close behind. Dr. Lee was on loan from Stargate Command, helping with a project. He was having emergency surgery after being stabbed in the chest, barely missing his heart. No idea who the perpetrator was, another scientist had found him. They would have to wait until he was awake to question him, if he survived.
The young scientist who had found Dr. Lee was new to Atlantis. He walked hesitantly to Col. Sheppard's office. "May I speak with you, sir?" he said hesitantly.
"What can I do for you? I'm sorry, I don't recall your name," Sheppard replied.
"I'm Dr. Andy Shaw. I'm afraid I may be accused of stabbing Dr. Lee!"
"Don't worry about that," Sheppard said. "I know what Dr. Nelson has said but you were seen in the mess hall when the stabbing occurred, plus everyone knows how flaky he is. I have been considering sending him back to Earth. He is too unstable for this expedition, and has earned the name Nervous Nelly!"
"I was working in the lab with Dr. Lee. I needed a break and went to the mess hall for some coffee. I stayed about twenty minutes. When I came back, Dr. Lee was lying on the floor with a knife in his chest, and Dr. Nelson was hiding under his desk, crying hysterically, and screaming that I had done it. I called for help, and thought it would be better to leave the knife, and let the doctor pull it out."
"Good choice," said Sheppard. "I'm glad you spoke to me. Don't worry, you are not a suspect, in spite of what Ner, I mean Dr. Nelson, says!"
Sheppard thought about what Andy had said. Could the 'monster' have assumed his form and stabbed Dr. Lee? "One question. Was anyone else in or around the lab when you went on break?"
"Not in the lab," Andy replied. "But I passed a man in the hall. One of the maintenance guys. He had been in the lab checking out something but had left. I wasn't really paying attention. I said hello and something about coffee will taste good. He gave me a blank look-his eyes looked weird."
Sheppard headed to the maintennance area and found out something puzzling. A man was scheduled to check out a leaky pipe in Dr. Lee's lab, but had cut his hand and gone to the infirmary, never making it to the lab. After Sheppard showed him a picture of the maintenance man in question, Andy identified him as the man who had come to the lab, adding, "his eyes look normal in that photo, but when I saw him in the lab, they looked weird."
The monster was quite proud of himself. He had actually shifted from one human form to another. As a bug, he had startled that stupid human into cutting his hand, which was very enjoyable! Then assumed his form, found a spare uniform in the maintenance room, and went to the lab where the human had been heading. Another human was leaving for a break, so he shifted to his form and stabbed that nerdy human who was so excited about some dumb video game! He would have stabbed the other human who hid under the desk and screamed, but felt his focus weakening, so he left the lab and became a bug again, after leaving his clothes back in the maintenence room. He was so clever! What an experience! It made up for his disappointment over not having sex! Next would be killing a human-that would be the ultimate thrill!
Chapter 8
Ronon was beside himself with grief over what had happened. Amelia thought he had been unfaithful. Even worse, with that skanky Priscilla. Satedans took marriage seriously, and while not unheard of, infidelity was considered disgraceful. He wanted to search out and kill whoever was responsible, but Sheppard removed him from active duty, giving him a direct order to stand down, or go to the brig. So he went on a long run and demolished a punching bag. Neither helped that much. He went to the East pier and sat on the edge, staring into the water.
A meeting was held in Mr. Woolsey's office to discuss the problem. Could some alien life form be assuming people's identities? Rodney was still skeptical. It was decided Radek Zelenka would lead a team, including archaeologists and linguists, to search Ancient records for any information. Rodney got offended that he had not been chosen to lead. He was told he could help if he wanted to, but the decision was final. He left the room and sulked.
Zelenka, Sheppard, Teyla, and the rest of the team considered everything that had happened. The picture was taken to the photo lab, with faces and other parts blacked out for privacy. It was pronounced authentic, not photoshopped. The date/time stamp was correct, and proof of Ronon's innocence.
Dr. Lee came thru the surgery, and was improving enough to be questioned. "I'm so sorry this happened, I don't know what else to say," Sheppard told him.
"I'm just glad to be alive," Lee replied.
"Tell me what you remember," said Sheppard.
"I was telling Dr. Nelson about last night's World of Warcraft game, when someone spun my chair around and stabbed me in the chest. It was Andy Shaw, but he looked, well, not himself. His eyes were flat and expressionless. I remember falling off my chair, and Dr. Nelson screaming," Dr. Lee stated.
"Dr. Zelenka, report to Col. Sheppard's office," was heard over the PA syatem. Radek sighed. He was grabbing some food in the mess hall. He and his team had been working non stop for days, searching thru Ancient texts.
Arriving, he noticed a ripple of excitement in the tired group. "We've found something," said Sheppard. "Tell them," he told one of the archeologists. "You can explain better then I can."
A tired looking woman began. "In a nut shell, an Ancient scientist was experimenting on a convict to create a human with special powers of shape shifting and ESP. He had delusions of taking over the government by creating a race of super soldiers, but ended up creating a monster, who eventually turned on him. He got away but was captured and executed. He refused to say where the monster was and it was never found. His laboratory was on the lowest level of Atlantis."
"Like Dr. Frankenstein!" came a voice from the back of the room. It was Rodney McKay. Everyone turned and stared at him. Clearing his throat, Rodney said, "I figured it had to be something like that. I'm here to help you!"
Sheppard rolled his eyes. Some of the group snickered, or shook their heads.
The archeologist continued. "There were stasis pods in those labs. We think the monster could have been put in one. The lab was sealed and never used again. The convict had been in prison for 'heinous and traitorous acts.' Not a good guy even before he became a monster. The scientist arranged to have him let out of prison in his custody, supposedly for medical experiments. It seems that was sometimes done at the time."
Chapter 9
Ronon left the pier after several hours, going back to his empty quarters. If Amelia broke up their marriage, he would not stay on Atlantis. He avoided other people, and felt like he was a Runner again.
"May I come in?" Teyla asked, as Amelia opened her door slightly. She was still in the private room in the infirmary, Marine guard stationed outside. Entering the room, Teyla noted she looked depressed, her eyes red and puffy. "I do not mean to disturb you, but there are things you should know."
"I'm glad to see you," Amelia said, giving Teyla a hug. "I've heard some people talking about Dr. Lee getting stabbed. I'm glad he made it. Everyone seems scared. Does it have to do with the thefts?"
"Yes, it does. Other strange things have happened too." She told Amelia the whole story.
"No wonder everyone is afraid. It's like a horror movie!" Then she became quiet, looking down. "I should not have doubted Ronon, but seeing that picture tore me up. When I confronted Priscilla, she laughed, saying Ronon always wanted her, regrets marrying me, and still loves his dead wife and Dr. Keller! I lost it and punched her, which I don't regret."
"Those are all lies!" Teyla exclaimed. "That was not Ronon in the picture!"
"I realize that now. I was in shock and didn't want to see anyone. I wish I could go to him now, but I can't leave," she said sadly. "I will probably be sent back to Earth and never see Ronon again," Amelia said, tears starting. Then she wiped her eyes and asked, "How is he?"
"Miserable," Teyla answered. "He will not talk to anyone. I heard he goes to the mess hall late and gets sandwiches and water. The night worker said he looks awful."
"Can you bring him here?" Amelia asked.
"Yes. Col. Sheppard approved he and I to visit you," Teyla replied, then left for Ronon's quarters.
Chapter 10
Knocking loudly on the door, Teyla said,"I am not leaving this time. You better open up or I will disturb everyone!" Still no answer, so she pounded the door with a Bantu stick and yelled Ronon's name over and over. Finally he opened the door, looking exasperated. She noticed his eyes looked haunted. His hair and beard were dirty and he did not smell good, but she hugged him anyway.
"Sorry," he said.
"I have many things to tell you," Teyla said, and began the weird tale.
"Wow!" Ronon said. "That is crazy. I want to go with them when they break in that lab."
"I will ask John to come here, if you promise to let him in!" she replied.
"Of course I will!" Ronon said. He looked away for a minute, then said, "Amelia wants to see me? Maybe I don't want to see her!"
"You know you do!" Teyla said.
Ronon sighed. "You're right." Then he said, "I need a shower first."
"Yes, you do!" Teyla exclaimed.
A short time later Ronon emerged from the bathroom in clean clothes, wet hair, and smelling fresh. They headed for the infirmary.
Amelia opened the door and Teyla said goodbye and left. Ronon stepped inside and shut the door. They simply looked at one another. Then Amelia threw her arms around Ronon, murmuring, "I'm so sorry," against his chest. He had feared he would never get to hold her again, and held her tight. "I was so shocked by the picture," she said. "I needed to sort it all out."
"I would have killed him if it had been the other way around," Ronon said. "I would have been crazy!"
"I need a tissue," Amelia sniffed, tears flowing. "I'm sorry!"
"Don't be sorry, I need one too!" Ronon said.
They sat on the bed and talked. "I'm in trouble-charged with assault. I could get sent back to Earth."
Ronon took her bruised hand and kissed it. "You did good! Sheppard says he can work that out. If not, we can go to Sateda."
Chapter 11
Sheppard rang the chimes and Ronon answered quickly. He looked like his old self. "I want to be the one to kill that piece of shit!"
"I'm sure that can be arranged," Sheppard replied. "Welcome back to active duty!"
Sheppard's team, Major Lorne's team, and some extra Marines began searching the lowest level of Atlantis. It was dark and many areas had standing water. They were delayed while water was pumped out and damaged lights were repaired. All wore hazmat suits. Ronon needed one specially made, as none were large enough to fit him.
The monster sensed the activity on his level. The stasis pod that had held him for millenia was cleverly disguised. He was sure it would not be discovered by the ignorant humans, plus there was his default form of the bug. He waited for the lab to be discovered, and his chance to kill as many humans as possible.
Finally the level was dry and lighted. They searched thru the various rooms, weapons ready, with both Rodney and Radek monitoring various equipment. Nothing of importance was found in the empty labs and storage areas, except for one storage room. There they found all of the missing items, plus some uniforms and shoes, in various sizes. John remembered hearing that uniforms and shoes had come up missing, along with some workout clothes.
But one room was welded shut, with a heavy metal door. Equipment was brought down to cut thru the weld. It was slow going but finally the door was broken down. The room contained several stasis pods, all empty. A live bug in a glass jar was found, and eventually taken to the entomology lab. The scientists went over the room with various meters, finding nothing. But one part of the wall registered an odd reading on one of Radek's modified life signs detectors. He called Rodney's attention to it.
"I noticed that already," Rodney said.
"No you didn't," Radek replied.
"I did too," said Rodney.
"Then why did you not mention it?" Radek asked.
"Because I was busy thinking about it and I don't need your opinion!" Rodney answered rudely.
"We don't need this bullshit!" said Sheppard. "Radek, check it out!"
"It's not a typical life sign, but the reading is fluctuating. Something is in there," he replied.
Cutting into the wall, a stasis pod was found. All weapons were aimed as it was opened. Ronon had pushed his way to the front and aimed his blaster, set on kill. The pod was opened, and a strange looking bug crawled out and scuttled thru a crack in the wall. It looked like the bug in the jar.
"What the hell!" Ronon exclaimed.
"A damn bug!" said Sheppard.
Radek was speaking angrily in Czech.
"I knew it was nothing!" said Rodney, prompting more Czech words from Radek.
"I need to learn Czech," said Sheppard.
Chapter 12
"Looks like we're back to square one," Sheppard later told Mr. Woolsey.
Everyone was frustrated by not finding the monster. Atlantis was put on lock down, Gate travel stopped, extra guards everywhere. People were told not to travel alone, and everyone was to be armed at all times.
The monster moved to a nearby room and bided his time.
Ronon was happy to have his sword back, but even happier to return Amelia's treasured belongings. She returned to their quarters and they spent the night making up for the awful misunderstanding.
Sheppard spoke to Priscilla again. The record would show she had been injured in a fall, (she did actually fall) required more medical care, and would return to Earth, released from her contract with Atlantis. She agreed not to press charges for assault and there would be no sexual harassment charges against her. Some men missed her when she left, but some anxious married men were relieved.
The entomologists, working with Radek's team, discovered some interesting things about the bug in the jar. References were made to it in Ancient texts. It had some similar DNA to humans, and it had been extinct for thousands of years. At one time the Ancients had done extensive extermination work to rid the city of these bugs. Possibly it was related to the Iratus bug. This gave John Sheppard the creeps!
Chapter 13
Several weeks went by uneventfully. People began to relax and get careless, especially the civilian population. Extra guards were still posted.
Ronon was finishing up a training class of new Marines. One of them, Private Collins, was grumbling to himself. "I'm stuck with snowflake duty tonight."
"What's snowflake duty?" Ronon asked.
"Guarding Dr. Nelson!" he answered. "He freaks out if he sees a shadow or hears a sound, and goes to the infirmary. So he has a guard, even tho the monster, or whatever it was, seems to be gone."
"Why snowflake?" Ronon asked, curious.
"On Earth, people like him, especially guys, are called snowflakes. Like weak, melt easily," he replied. "I called him a pussy, but I got in trouble for saying that!"
Ronon laughed. "He's due to go back to Earth, but the paper work has not arrived yet. He will fit right in!"
Later that evening, Dr. Nelson was working late in the lab. Private Collins was standing outside the door, bored out of his mind. "I didn't join up for this shit!" he thought. "I want some action!"
Then came a scream from inside the lab. Collins went in, expecting something silly. He had not noticed that a bug had crawled behind his feet, into the lab. A large, misshapen creature had Dr. Nelson by the throat. Bluish skin, naked and glistening with slime, it turned it's hideous face toward the astonished Marine, throwing Nelson aside. Collins fired his P90, hitting the creature center mass. But it lunged at Collins, knocking him to the floor, the P90 flying from his grasp. The creature seemed unhurt, and began to strangle Collins, who gouged one of the creature's bulging eyes. It let go enough for Collins to draw his side arm and shoot the creature point blank in the head, emptying the magazine. It slumped to one side, and changed back into a bug. Collins stomped on it, but it crawled away, seemingly unhurt.
Chapter 14
A meeting was held in Mr. Woolsey's office to figure out how to deal with the monster. Sheppard's team, Major Lorne and the other team leaders, plus Dr. Zelenka's research team, all put heads together. The archeologists searched for any record of how the bugs had been exterminated from the city millenia ago by the Ancients. The bug was tough, seeing how it had not been smashed by Private Collins' boot. And how to find one small bug in the huge city?
The entomologists had tried various insecticides on the bug in the jar, and none had any effect. Even if it did, would the bug/monster react the same? Then the archeologists discovered a reference to a substance which killed the bugs on Atlantis. The city had been insect free until now. They went to work trying to figure out what the substance was. Hopefully not a toxic chemical which would necessitate evacuating the city.
Meanwhile, McKay and Zelenka worked on modifying a life signs detector to show insects, which they accomplished after much bickering.
People were on edge, looking for bugs in every corner. Dr. Nelson's papers arrived and he was sent back to Earth thru the wormhole. Normally he would have waited for the Daedalus, but Woolsey and the medical staff were tired of his histrionics and glad to be rid of him!
Finally the linguists were able to fugure out what substance killed the bugs. It was borax powder! The bug in the jar died quickly, hopefully the bug/monster would do the same. The substance was non toxic, tho would irritate skin and eyes, and should not be inhaled. No problem with hazmat suits.
The monster rested in his lair, gouged eye hurting, and sore all over from being stomped on in bug form. He would enjoy killing the man who had done it, as well as all the other humans. The city would be his! He was certain they would be too stupid to ever find him, plus their weapons could not kill him. One of his abilities was healing himself.
The teams prepared to go hunting on the lowest level. A flame thrower was modified to shoot borax powder, which was often used to kill gardern pests. "I used it for centipedes in my garden back home," said one of the team members. "It works for slugs too, turns them into slime!"
Finally all was in readiness, and the large group descended to the lowest level. Rodney monitored the special life signs detector, while Ronon carried the modified flame thrower. He felt a little silly to be hunting a bug!
They searched every room, but no 'bug sign.' They were feeling frustrated, when Rodney said, "I got it!" It was in a small chink high on the wall. Ronon fired the flame thrower, shooting out a stream of white powder. The bug fell to the floor, immediately changing to the hideous monster. Another shot of borax powder, but it kept coming. All fired their P90's which had little effect. But the monster's skin was starting to melt, dripping on the floor as it ran. Another shot of powder and it fell to the floor, and turned into a large puddle of grayish slime. Everyone felt like puking and some did, which was not fun in hazmat suits!
The slime puddle was washed out into the ocean, where the fish enjoyed a surprise dinner. That was the end of the monster of Atlantis!