Chapter 8 – The Night is So Cold

Rodney lay impatiently in the infirmary. The cannula making his nose itch as it gave him oxygen. Carson had made him keep the mask on for a couple of hours, "Just to be sure," he had said. It had only angered Rodney as he could not talk to Teyla or anyone else properly with it covering his face. He had then swapped it for the nasal cannula.

He grimaced every time he remembered the sight of what the doors had done to the pale skin on his chest and abdomen. Dark purple and painful bruises cut a line down the right side of his body. He had not seen his back yet, but imagined it was just as ugly.

He had tried desperately several times to reason with Dr Beckett to release him, but to no avail. The Scottish Doctor matching Rodney's stubbornness and assuring him that there had been no more malfunctions since his encounter. Carson said that he needed to be monitored for several hours, preferably overnight.

Rodney turned his head to the side and watched Teyla as she sat keeping an eye on him. At the moment she was looking at the door and had her eyes narrowed. The visible skin of her face and hands was still an angry shade of red from her earlier scalding.

Carson had already given Rodney some painkillers, but he could still feel his sore ribs every time he breathed.

Teyla noticed him looking at her and softened her expression as she studied his face, "How are you feeling?"

"Well you know, trapped, bored and useless. Also I don't think I'll be running again any time soon."

Teyla smiled at him, "Dr Zelenka and Colonel Sheppard are investigating the lab you found. I believe it is only a matter of time now before we find out what happened earlier."

Rodney frowned, "That's not what Sheppard told me earlier when he came in to give you a break. He said they'd got nothing." Rodney lifted his left hand and waved it in the air to illustrate his point, "'Running around in circles' was the term he used."

Teyla furrowed her brow in exasperation, "They will find something Rodney. Just try not to worry."

At the mention of worrying, Rodney was suddenly acutely aware again of his current location with its lack of access to any open-air balconies. The doors could so easily slam closed and trap them all inside.

Rodney closed his eyes tightly and tried not to think about it. His fear of suffocating in a small space was high up on his list of the worst ways to die and he had nearly experienced it earlier. The gaseous malfunctions had done anything but alleviate his fears. Now that he was hurt too, he just hoped that he would be able to move and get them out of there if the doors all slammed and sealed them inside.

He consciously remembered not to try and move his right hand unless he deliberately wanted to hurt himself. Instead, he lifted his left hand up and placed it over his eyes as he began muttering, "Wide open fields. Wide open fields." Trying to visualize and forget where he was and what could happen to him.

It did nothing though and his breathing increased in panic. He wanted to go and stand outside on a balcony where he could look at the sky and never have to come back in. Hell, at the moment he just wanted to get out of the infirmary.

His mind ran through the course he would need to go to find the nearest balcony and it just made his heart hammer even faster in his aching chest. His breath was now coming in shallow and shaky gasps through his mouth. He did not care how much his ribs and abdomen hurt, he needed to leave.

Rodney flung his eyes open wide and he saw Teyla looking at him in worry. She reached over and put a hand on his shoulder, "What is wrong Rodney?"

"I… can't… need to get out." He said between gasps.

"Dr Beckett, your assistance please," Teyla called across the room as Rodney tried to push himself upright and she held him down by the shoulders.

Carson was doing a final check on a patient he was about to release and quickly walked over to Rodney.

Rodney turned his face towards Carson and again tried to get up, wincing and closing his eyes as Teyla held him down firmly and his bruises shifted.

"Deep breaths. In through the nose, out through the mouth," Carson said to the distressed man as Teyla relaxed her grip and let go of him.

Rodney obeyed, but still felt vulnerable and helpless. He was so afraid that he would hear the doors slamming any moment and a faint hiss as the room filled with life destroying gas.

Carson had already figured out what was causing it, "You're safe Rodney. There are many people in here, you included, who could open the doors manually if necessary."

"You're right. I just…" He let out a particularly deep breath he had just drawn in.

Carson smiled as Rodney opened his eyes to look at him.

Carson said gently, "Aye, keep it up. It's been a few hours now. I want to scan you again and make sure there's no internal bleeding we missed the first time."

Rodney inhaled another deep breath through his nose and whispered a breathy, "Okay," as he exhaled. His heart was still pounding in his chest and the constant nagging fear had not lessened, but the slow breathing was helping to calm him slightly.

Teyla's features were clouded in concern as she watched the medical team moving Rodney onto the Ancient scanner again to take some more readings.

She sat back down in the chair and looked uneasily at the door. Rodney was right, it was perfectly possible and would be so quick and easy for all of them to be sealed in the room and trapped.

Sheppard, Zelenka, Perkins and Ronon sat around the Briefing Room table looking at Dr Weir expectantly.

"So, are we anywhere nearer finding out what happened earlier?" She asked.

Zelenka answered from behind his laptop, "I was hoping we would be able to find some information in the Ancient Database, but there's nothing."

Sheppard said, "I've been helping to go over the life sign readings in the log."

Zelenka glanced over at him, "I had a look too, but I can't read anything now. The life signs detectors, the power distribution, they are all wrong. It's like there is some kind of interference."

Ronon asked, "Can you break through it?"

"I don't know. Rodney could, maybe, but it will take time."

Dr Weir narrowed her eyes, "Time is what we don't seem to have at the moment. We still have no idea when or if these malfunctions will start again and Dr McKay's still in the infirmary.

"I think we can safely assume that it isn't over," Sheppard admitted. "Rodney's been hassling Carson to let him out so that he can help us break through the lockdown. I think he hates the idea of the us losing control of the city while he sits around doing nothing."

Zelenka smiled, "Carson should let him out. We can keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn't go too far."

Weir smiled tightly, "I'm not sure if Dr Beckett would agree with you."

Zelenka frowned, "Rodney would never forgive himself or us if he does nothing."

A tense silence filled the room for a moment and they all averted their gaze from one another.

Dr Weir looked up and clasped her hands in front of herself on the table, "The Daedalus will be here later. We've been locked out of the long range communicator array, but they can use their sensors to try and find whoever is doing this."

She turned to Dr Perkins who had been keeping silent. He was a little stunned to have been invited to such an important meeting.

"How's the city doing?"

"Uh…" he wrung his hands nervously, "We're still assessing the damage. Many doors had to be deactivated and several rooms are off limits as they're still flooded with gas. So far we've concentrated on freeing the people who were trapped."

He looked up at Dr Weir, "With your permission, I'd like to start making repairs on the systems we had to damage to release people."

She narrowed her eyes, "That's a good idea, but I think it would be better if you helped Dr Zelenka trace the source of the problem before we repair anything."

They all left the Briefing Room a few minutes later. Sheppard and Ronon went down to the infirmary to relieve Teyla for a while and Zelenka and Perkins went back to the science labs.

1900pm

Dr Newall rolled over and coughed harshly. His mouth was parched and he felt dizzy as he forced himself to stand.

Dr Li was due back in a few hours and he still had one main task to complete before her team returned. After it was finished, he would be free to do anything he wished.

Narrowing his eyes, his expression devoid of all emotion, he reached out his shaking right hand towards the podium and connected the device once more.

Honing his thoughts with the systems of Atlantis he searched through the video feeds and life signs until he found the person he sought.

Sheppard, Ronon and Perkins walked along the corridor towards the Ancient lab once more.

"Why are we doing this?" Ronon muttered.

Sheppard frowned, "Zelenka said he's going to monitor the power grid when we go inside and I activate the room. See if he can see anything. Perhaps he'll be able to find links to main systems that we may have missed earlier."

Perkins dragged his feet as he walked behind them, "A fresh pair of eyes may help too."

Sheppard grinned over his shoulder at the scientist.

Newall watched the video feed as the three figures walked along the corridor.

"What are you up to?" He muttered to himself.

He saw Sheppard and Perkins go inside the lab he had been using earlier, while Ronon waited outside.

He had no desire to kill Sheppard, but he was in the way and would soon be an unfortunate but unavoidable casualty in his plan.

He steeled himself as he saw them standing in the lab. They were talking to someone, but were using the portable radios so that he could not listen into the other side of the conversation.

He concentrated and listened to them through the video feed.

"See anything Radek?" Sheppard asked.

Perkins crouched down on the floor and ran his hand over the ground in the middle of the room. In his other hand he held a scanner, which he was pointing to the area he was touching.

He stood up and brushed his hand on his trousers. He shook his head as he spoke, "I can't find anything either."

Newall searched the systems and found Zelenka in the science lab. He quickly raised a shield around the lab. It would be unknown to the scientist unless he tried to leave the room. McKay was still in the infirmary with Teyla. Even if he could move it would be unlikely he would be able reach them in time.

Sheppard watched as Perkins straightened up and looked around the empty walls of the lab in frustration.

He sighed, "There's nothing here."

"I know, but it was worth a try."

Ronon was standing out in the corridor making sure they had a safety net, "We should go back to Zelenka and see if he has any more ideas."

"I agree." Sheppard said as he started to walk towards the door, followed by Perkins.

As he got closer he hit an invisible shield. Staggering backwards he held his head in his hands and let out a pained hiss, "What the hell?"

Perkins narrowed his eyes as he looked around the room. Holding the scanner aloft he turned around in a full circle on the spot.

His eyes widened, "It's all around us!"

"Oh crap!" Sheppard muttered.

"Ronon to Zelenka…we need you over here now…a shield's raised in the lab."

Ronon listened for a moment and then his eyes darted back into the lab where Sheppard and Perkins were now caught in the centre of the room without access to any control panels.

"Zelenka's trapped too."

Sheppard's face flooded with a look of grim anticipation of what was about to happen. Very soon his question was answered.

A freezing blast of air erupted from the vents in the ceiling and forced Sheppard and Perkins to their knees.

The cold air was coming down in such a strong current that it impacted on the shield trapping them and made the edges visible in a dull blue light.

Sheppard and Perkins both fell down and lay shivering on the floor with their arms wrapped around themselves. Their teeth chattered in the sudden extreme cold.

"McKay…" Sheppard managed to stammer out before his body began shuddering in violent shivers, making speech and thought impossible.

TBC