Part Four

"He's on his way back," McKay announced to the room.

Ronon shared a look with Teyla, the only other occupant. They both had their radios on and had heard every word Sheppard and McKay had exchanged. He looked back toward McKay. "Thanks. Didn't know that."

McKay rolled his eyes. "Oh, sarcasm. Did you learn that from hanging around with Sheppard?"

"No," Ronon replied. "From living." He crossed his arms as he leaned against the wall. He might as well settle in. Sheppard usually did the verbal sparring with McKay. Since he wasn't there, and Ronon was bored …

"Have you truly found the answers to all of those questions?" Teyla asked, interrupting the fun. She moved closer to the table where McKay was working and looked at the computer screen over his shoulder.

"What? You think I made it up?" McKay asked. "Of course I figured it out."

Teyla looked back at him, waiting.

"What?" McKay stared back.

"Tell us what you found, Rodney." Teyla's patience was a true virtue, but even Ronon could tell it was wearing thin. He wondered if her head still hurt.

"If I tell you now, I'll just have to repeat it all again when Sheppard gets here."

"And that's a problem for you?" Ronon asked.

McKay seemed to think about that. "Hmm. Good point. I do get some of my better ideas while I'm actually talking. Okay, here goes, starting at the beginning. I haven't gone through everything in the database yet, mind you, but what I have read explains the premise behind this place. It was a testing ground for a new weapon against the Wraith."

Ronon stood up straighter. "Really?" He didn't understand how fog could be effective against a race that attacked from the skies, but he was willing to listen.

"In simple terms, they wanted to create a force field that wasn't a force field. The fog isn't actually fog. It's a medium for tiny machines – the glowy bugs – that interact within the medium to prevent the darts from beaming anyone into Wraith storage and it also prevented their stunners from remaining cohesive."

So far, Ronon liked it. There were however still a couple of problems. "What about Wraith on the ground?" he asked. "They could still feed."

"Ah, yes," McKay nodded. "That is where I suspect the swarm madness comes in. The Wraith rely heavily on telepathy among themselves. We've theorized that the drones are controlled by telepathy. The field has the added effect of interfering with telepathic transmissions. It creates some sort of feedback which causes confusion among the hive. It may even have interfered with the operation of their ships."

"So, what happened?" Ronon asked. "Why didn't they use it on other worlds?" It seemed like a pretty good weapon to him. Hundreds of worlds could have been saved.

"The inevitable side affects – chief among them was the swarm madness among the general population. Then there were the power requirements."

"So they created the focus stones," Teyla said thoughtfully. "And they taught some of the villagers to use them."

"Yes. The whole system was run on a single ZedPM – long since depleted. They knew that would happen eventually, so the back up is that the system will charge from a number of sources and come online as soon as the charge is high enough. The combination of solar, wind, geothermal and other energy sources take about five years, give or take, to get the power up to minimal levels. At that stage the system goes in and out until it comes online completely, protecting a fifty square mile radius around the gate from Wraith attack. All of the power is used within a day and then the system is back to charging again."

"So the first swarm came early because …?" Teyla asked.

"Because we arrived in a puddle jumper of Lantean design – a ship the system recognized. The software categorized charging to protection levels as a priority and drew additional power from the jumper. Hence, an early swarm."

"So there was no protection from their Lady?" Ronon asked. Of course, he hadn't believed there was, but he thought Sheppard would want to know the reason why she had appeared.

"The stones, in addition to being a broadcast beacon for brainwaves, are also a receiver. The "Lady" is a message from Atlantis still stored in the database buffers. Because they had no instruments to play back the audio, they couldn't hear the message, which is in Ancient anyway. Apparently, Atlantis sent the message after the scientists had already left so technically, no one ever listened to it. So every time the power climbed to a high enough level, the Ancient lady would appear as a sign that there was still an unseen message in their database."

"What does it say?" Teyla asked.

McKay started fiddling with his computer. "I recorded some of what we saw in the woods with … the other monk lady, but I only have pieces."

"Meltis," Teyla told him. "Why don't you just open the message on their system? Do you not have a translation program?"

"Well, Meltis and the others seem to think she's really helping them and I guess in a way she is, albeit in a really oblique not entirely intended kind of way since the message isn't even for them. The thing is, if I open it, then their Lady in the Woods will stop appearing at swarm time."

Ronon smiled. McKay looked uncomfortable. Like he'd let out a secret he would have preferred to keep private. "If they don't see the lady show up then they might not know when the swarm is coming," he suggested, adding to McKay's logic.

"Exactly," McKay agreed. "In all likelihood it's an evacuation order, anyway. I can confirm that when we get back to the city."

"A very thoughtful decision, Rodney," Teyla said. "I believe— "

Teyla's face drained of color. She grasped her head in her hands and dropped to her knees.

"Teyla!" Ronon was on the floor and at her side. McKay was on the other side. "What's wrong? Is it the headache?" He berated himself for not asking how she was feeling.

"I am fine," she insisted, though her voice sounded strained and beads of perspiration had broken out across her brow.

"Excuse me for saying," McKay said, "but you don't look fine.'

"I believe it is the swarm," she confessed. "If it was truly designed as an attack against the Wraith, perhaps my DNA is causing me to be affected as well."

McKay met Ronon's gaze across Teyla's bent head. "Oh no."

"What?" Ronon demanded.

"I think she's right." He pointed to a display on a wall behind them. "According to that, the second swarm sighting just began. It's only going to get stronger. As soon as this wave is over, we should head back to the jumper. We've got to get her out of here."

Ronon couldn't agree more. A thought occurred to him as he glanced around the room. "Shouldn't Sheppard be back by now?"

~!~

John woke to an up close and personal view of crushed leaves, and the familiar feeling of having been shot with a stunner. He breathed out a cautious breath and took inventory. He was laying on his side, obviously on the ground, in the woods. His hands were tied behind his back, but his legs felt free. His radio was missing.

A minute sound somewhere behind him suggested that whoever had dumped him here was still around. There was no warning before something hard impacted against the back of his legs.

"I know you're awake," a voice drawled. John was pretty sure he hadn't heard it before. "Turn over."

The weight of his weapons was missing, and the voice had backed away several paces so John decided to oblige. He rolled as much as he could with bound hands, and looked up the towering form of Scars – the security man who had come to Atlantis with Myrus. A smug grin was plastered over his face.

"How'd I know I'd be seeing you again?" John asked, not really caring for an answer as he looked around, trying to get a handle on how many he was up against. He could only see four from where he was laying, but he had the sense that there were others behind him.

"You couldn't have known that." Scars seemed pretty proud of himself, and he was out of his Coalition uniform. He and the men John could see were dressed more like someone else he knew and had thought was long behind him: Michael.

"So what's your name," John asked. This was getting old and he hadn't even heard the rant that he was sure was coming.

"Wouldn't you rather know what I want?" Scars asked.

"I like to know who I'm dealing with."

"Why don't you call me Michael?" Scars had a gleam in his eyes as he said it. He thought he was toying with John, letting him in on something he hadn't already figured out.

"You're not Michael," John told him point blank. Then something occurred to him. "But you want to be. You don't look like one of his hybrids. Did you make those scars on your face and cut your hair that way so you could look more like him?"

The man's eyes hardened and John knew he'd hit a nerve. "I have plans for this world, and for you. Nothing you say can change that."

"Yeah, Michael was big on plans, too. It got him dead. I watched him die."

Scars looked off into the distance. "There is a place that we're having trouble accessing. You're going to help me to get in."

"Why would I want to do a thing like that?" John asked.

"Because if you don't, you will force me to hurt this man."

John heard a commotion behind him as yet another minion dragged Tobar into John's visual range. He looked a little worse for wear; his hands were bound behind his back, but he was still wearing his focus stone. And he still wasn't much for making eye contact.

"He's probably already working for you," John posited, and watched the little man closely for his reaction. He thought he read disbelief and dismay in the eyes that briefly danced toward his.

Scars laughed. "Why would I need that, when I already have this one?"

Another man stepped from somewhere among the trees so that John could see him. It was Tobar's under monk. The one Meltis had sent with John to show him the look out. The one who had probably stunned him.

~!~

"How's she feeling?"

Teyla looked up as Ronon rushed back into the room and over to Rodney. "I am better," she told him firmly. She was more than capable of speaking for herself.

"The second swarm passed," Rodney responded to Ronon. "We only have like an hour until the next one. Did you find Sheppard?"

"I found this." Ronon tossed a radio onto the table near Rodney's laptop. John's radio. "He wasn't at the look out and no one has seen him. There were tracks leading away. I'm going to go back and follow them."

"No." Rodney shook his head. "If we can get back to the jumper, we can find him with his subcutaneous transmitter."

"You and Teyla do that," Ronon said. "I'll contact you when I find him."

"Ronon, no." Teyla couldn't let him go out there alone. "We should all stay together. What if you are outside of the grounds when the next swarm arrives? You would have no protection against the madness."

"Sheppard is in trouble," Ronon told her. "What good is it if we're all in the jumper, but can't fly to help him because of all the trees?"

"Very well." Teyla had to admit to the sense of Ronon's words. She didn't like the idea of his being alone, but they had no choice. "Rodney and I will go the jumper and you will go after John, but we will keep the radio link open at all times."

"Deal." Ronon agreed readily. "Let's go."

~!~

"You are a traitor!" John heard Tobar speak for the first time since he'd met him. "The Lady will repay you in full!"

"And you are weak!" The younger monk bullied his way into Tobar's personal space and pushed him to the ground. "There is no Lady. The rest of the galaxy is moving and you would have us be left behind. I stand with Tynan."

"So you see?" Scars said. "Now, get up. We must go." John figured Tynan must be Scars' real name, but he preferred Scars.

"I'm pretty comfortable where I am," John said, though parts of his body were lodging complaints about the uneven ground beneath him.

Scars sighed, drew back his foot and kicked Tobar in his midsection. The monk whimpered and curled in on himself as best he could. Scars kicked him again, then stooped and grabbed the monk by the hair. "This is what happens when you trust the people of Atlantis."

"I'll go." John gave in. He couldn't watch a man beaten for his own stubbornness. He got his knees under him and worked his way to his feet. With his hands behind his back, it wasn't pretty, but he made it.

~!~

Rodney glanced toward Teyla as they moved through the growing twilight of the seemingly never ending Sylan forest. They had been walking for what seemed like hours, but according to his watch had been more like forty-five minutes. If the LSD was to be trusted, there wasn't another soul nearby.

"I am fine, Rodney," Teyla said out loud, not looking in his direction. Her expression was grim and he wasn't sure if that meant she was annoyed or if the pain in her head was bothering her.

"I didn't say anything," he tried to defend himself. She did turn to look at him then, and he decided on annoyed. Or at least, more annoyed than in pain.

"You did not have to," she said. "Your actions spoke loudly enough."

"Well, what do you expect? You stoic types always say that you're fine until it's beyond obvious that you're not and then the rest of us –"

"Ronon, how is your search?" Teyla spoke to their other team mate over the radio.

"There are at least nine of them now. I think one was being carried before." Ronon's voice seemed so far away. "I can't be that far behind them. How close are you to the jumper?"

"We are nearly there," Teyla said. "I believe –"

"Wait!" Ronon's voice dropped to a whisper. "I think I hear something. They're right ahead. Stand by."

"We have reached the jumper," Teyla told him, then fell silent as they waited.

Rodney uncloaked the jumper, lowered the ramp and ran inside, Teyla right behind him. He didn't stop until he reached the forward section where he immediately activated the scanner. Within moments the HUD displayed Sheppard's sub-Q transmitter in relation to the jumper. And he wasn't that far away. There were eight other life signs near him with a ninth closing in on the group.

No wait … there were fifteen … no twenty-five … no …

The HUD whited out just as the LSD had done when the first swarm came.

"Oh, no," Rodney whispered.

~!~

John trudged alongside an embankment leading down to a dry waterbed. A pair of Scars' minions moved ahead of him, urging Tobar along, and two more followed behind him. He wasn't sure where they were going, but the direction was opposite that of the monastery. Whatever they wanted him to access, it wasn't there. That might mean that the monastery wasn't the only Ancient site on this world.

There was a change in the air – almost like an increase in barometric pressure. John slowed to a stop, trying to remember if that had happened before.

"Keep moving!" One of the guards behind butted him hard in the shoulder with his rifle.

"Wait. Tynan, it's time." The traitor monk strode past John and snatched the focus stone from Tobar's neck and tied it around his own.

"No! The Swarm is coming. You are not ready! You have no control." Tobar fought viciously against the men who held him.

"It is only technology. It is not some mystical thing that lets it work, Tobar. The stones will function for anyone."

"You are a foolish boy! You will bring the Swarm down upon us all!" Tobar continued to struggle. John edged his way back a few steps, hoping to use this distraction as an opportunity.

"And you are a useless old man!" Traitor monk pulled out a stunner and shot Tobar. The older monk collapsed to the ground.

John chose that moment to make his move. He bent double and kicked one of the guards behind him then turned and rammed the other with his shoulder. He thought he caught a glimpse of the fog rolling in before someone slammed into him from the left.

Already off balance, he lost his footing and went over the embankment. He rolled through the scrub, unable to halt his rolling progress. Pain spiked and the world went hazy as he came to a sudden stop at the bottom.

Something cried to him, telling him that he needed to get up, that he had to do something. He had to …

His eyes flew open to a sound he would have recognized anywhere – the not too distant sound of his favorite Satedan in battle. John huffed a relieved breath and got to his knees by pressing his shoulder into the ground. It hurt like hell and he was pretty sure he'd broken something in his left arm, but Ronan was there. Things were looking up.

By the time he managed to disentangle himself from the heavy underbrush, the flurry of fighting had died down. Only pacing foot falls interspersed with Ronon's heavy breathing remained.

Limping forward across the rough terrain, John spotted the big guy in the foggy semi-darkness at the top of the embankment. "Down here, buddy!" he called in a stage whisper. "Come untie me!" His prospects of making it up the steep bank on his feet with his hands still tied behind his back weren't looking very good.

Ronon turned sharply at the sound of his voice, then began bounding down toward him. His shadowy form seemed large and reassuring in the deepening twilight.

"You don't know how glad I am to see you," John said and half turned his body to give Ronon easier access to his bindings even before the other man reached the bottom of the hill. The sooner the too tight leather ties were cut, the better.

"How are –" John broke off mid thought. Something was wrong. There was something in the grim cast of his friend's expression, the way he simply stood over John and stared.

"Ronon?" Confusion warred with a sinking fear as he registered the murderous intent that glittered in the big guy's eyes.

"You don't want to do this." John took a half step backward.

Ronon charged.

~!~

"Ronon!" Rodney yelled over the dead radio connection. "Sheppard! Anybody! Answer me!"

"This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening." Rodney looked down at Teyla's barely conscious form. Her features were pale and twisted in pain.

"What am I going to do?" he asked aloud. How had things gone so wrong?

He'd heard a commotion over Ronon's radio link right about the time the swarm hit. Some one was yelling about something not working and then there was what sounded like Ronon taking on the entire marine contingent of Atlantis.

Then, when things had quieted down to just breathing and pacing, he'd thought he'd heard Sheppard. He was sure of it. Then the fighting and yelling started all over again. Ronon must have lost his radio at some point because the sounds grew more distant before the connection went completely dead.

"Oh God." The rest of his team was out there, and they needed help. But the part of his team that was in the jumper needed his help, too. Rodney looked around, desperately hoping for some inspiration.

The HUD was back. The white-out state had cleared, and once again he could see Sheppard's sub-Q transmitting as well as the other life signs. He looked out of the ramp – the fog was clearing. Teyla was coming around, too – though if it was anything like last time, she was going to be very weak.

Rodney made a decision.

~!~

As the mists cleared, Ronon's mind cleared. He was on his knees at the bottom of an embankment, his balled fist pulled back ready to strike. He blinked down at the man before him. The face was bloodied and bruised and his body twisted and half covered with leaves and other debris.

"Sheppard?" He half whispered the word as he unclenched his hand and moved it toward the motionless form. His gaze was caught by his own red-crusted knuckles. All of the air rushed right out of him. He felt sick.

Could he have done this? Could he really have beaten his friend and not remember it?

He examined his surroundings more closely and the memory of where he was returned. Sheppard needed help; he had to find it. With as much care as he could, he released the bindings around Sheppard's wrists and lifted him from the ground.

He was brought up short when he reached the top of the embankment. There were bodies everywhere. He knew he should know what happened, but the memory was frustratingly lost to him. The sound of uneven footsteps drew his attention to McKay approaching at a jog. The scientist skidded to a heavily-breathing frantic stop.

"Oh my God! What happened? Is he …?" McKay took hesitant steps forward as if afraid of what he might find.

"He's alive, but he's hurt. We've got to get him back to Atlantis." He looked around behind McKay. "Where's Teyla?"

"Oh, I locked her in the jumper," Rodney said dismissively. "What are we supposed to do with all them?" He gestured toward the unconscious men. "I'm guessing they're the ones who did that to Sheppard. We can't just leave them here."

"Why not?" Ronon demanded. He might not remember how they ended up unconscious in the forest, but he did remember that they had held Sheppard captive. He set off along the path to where they'd left the jumper.

"Because they could come after us!" McKay called after him. "Your hands are a little full and I've only got one gun." He was already bent over one of the men, wrapping zip ties around their hands.

Ronon came back and very carefully lowered Sheppard to the ground. He didn't want to hurt him more than he already was. His pulse still seemed good, but Ronon was terrified of what might be damaged, aside from the obvious.

"How is he?" McKay asked, moving to another man, adding the ties.

"Alive." Ronon breathed the word.

"Well, in that case. Help would make this faster!"

Ronon snatched the ties McKay shoved his way and went to work binding the men. The last one was Tobar, the monk who had met them at the gate. His hands were already secured with leather straps.

"Don't tie him," a hoarse voice spoke from the side. "He was a hostage."

Ronon turned sharply and locked eyes with Sheppard. McKay started talking, but Ronon didn't hear him. There was something else going on between him and Sheppard. Ronon broke first. He felt ashamed.

"I'm fine, Rodney." Sheppard answered the question Ronon hadn't heard.

"You don't look or sound—"

"Swarm over?" Sheppard cut him off, and tried to roll into a sitting position. He wasn't doing very well. Ronon moved closer to help. He didn't know how to feel about the fact that Sheppard let him.

"Hardly," McKay said. "There's another one coming. We need to get out of here, and fast. I don't know if –"

"Where's Teyla?" Sheppard asked next, his words not much above a whisper. He was still stooped at the waist, but he had made it to his feet.

"She's in the jumper. It's kind of a long story. You see …."

As McKay continued talking ahead of them, John and Ronon followed. "It's not your fault." Sheppard said the words softly, his voice tinged with the pain of each step.

"Yes it is."

Sheppard's only response was a grunt. They followed McKay the rest of the way in silence.

EPILOGUE

"Good. You're awake."

John looked up as Rodney walked into his little corner of the infirmary. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked, speaking with care.

"Well … you were kinda …" Rodney gestured a twirly motion. "Loopy there at the end, during the flight back to Atlantis."

He looked back down at the bright white cast wrapped around his left arm. "It's a concussion, Rodney, not a coma." He couldn't speak to the rest of it; it was a bit of a blur.

"And fractured ribs and ulna, assorted lacerations and abrasions …." McKay recited the list of his injuries, counting them off on his fingers.

"Are my medical records posted somewhere on the public network?" John asked.

"No, there's a mass email." Rodney broke into a goofy grin at John's sharp look. "Just kidding. I see Teyla's been released."

"Yeah – she's fine, by the way. No lasting affects." He shared what she'd told him before she'd left.

"Good to know."

John didn't miss Rodney's shifty look. "She still not speaking to you, huh?"

"It was for her own good." Rodney tried to defend himself. "I couldn't just let her wander around the forest in her condition."

"You locked her in the jumper, Rodney. Without telling her what was going on. She's not going to thank you for that."

"Believe me; I'm painfully aware of that fact. How long before you're cut loose?"

"Later today – Keller's insisting on a full twenty-four hours of observation."

"Did you hear Everett sent Lorne and a team of gene-carrier marines to pick up the bad guys?"

"Really?" John suddenly felt out of the loop. Keller had forbade his having a radio until he was released.

"He and Woolsey are still arguing over when and if they should be turned over to the Coalition."

John decided that being sans radio might not be such a bad thing at the moment. "Did we figure out where they were trying to take me?" he asked.

"No. But guess what world got bumped to the Explore ASAP For Ancient Technology list?"

"I'd be surprised if it didn't," John commented. "Hopefully the Sylans will play along considering they now know who their inside man was."

"Yeah," Rodney agreed. "Do you need something to do that doesn't involve two hands? I could bring your lap top."

"Thanks, Rodney. But I'm okay. You don't have to stick around. I'm sure you've got things to do."

"So, you're just going to sit there and stare at your cast until Keller let's you go?" Rodney was beginning to sound annoyed.

"I'm waiting for someone."

Rodney was silent for a moment. Obviously that thought had never occurred to him. "Who?" He looked completely stumped.

"Me." Ronon spoke from the curtain.

John looked up, glad his friend had decided to come.

"Oh." Rodney finally got it. "Okay. Right. I'll just go …." He gestured vaguely behind him. "See ya."

"Later, Rodney." John bid him goodbye. Once he was gone, he looked back toward Ronon. The big guy had moved a few more paces into the room to allow Rodney to pass, but he hadn't come any farther.

"So did Teyla convince you or threaten you?" John asked, hoping to lighten the mood. The sooner things got back to normal, the better.

"You asked for me, I came." Ronon's words were to the point.

"While I appreciate that, there used to be a time, when I didn't have to ask."

Ronon bristled. "So I'm a failure?"

John saw through the anger. "No. Maybe you feel responsible."

"I should."

"No, you shouldn't," John objected. "Was I responsible for getting you shot when Elizabeth and I weren't … ourselves?" Recalling that time still made him feel uncomfortable, but he was willing to bring it up if it fixed the problem.

He thought he saw something relax in Ronon's expression as the words sank in. Then, "What if I say you were?"

John chuckled soflty. "Then I'd say now we're even."

Ronon smiled. "How about next time we spar, I let you win?"

"How about next five times we spar, you let me win?"

"Deal."

"Good. Now that that's settled, why don't you go find Keller and get me out of here?"

"Okay." Ronon held his gaze a moment longer. "Thanks." And then he turned and went in search of the doc.

End