Title: The Pi Covenent
Title: The Pi Covenent
Author: AshtakRa
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters: Ronon/Lorne, Sheppard, McKay
Rating: PG (for now)
Summary: A comrade recovered, but how much of him remains? Weir mentioned the existence of advanced civilisations but did not elaborate on their intentions - The Pi Covenent could be their doom, or their salvation.
Chapter Three
The Wraith hissed its dying breath and struggled uselessly against Ronon – there was little it could do since he had lopped off its hand earlier in the fight.
"Are you done," said Rodney in his higher pitch which Ronon knew meant he was scared but not panicked.
In answer he dropped the corpse and allowed a grin of triumph.
"Good," said Rodney, able now to interpret most of Ronon's non-verbal clues. "I believe I successfully blocked their transmissions so this planet should be safe – for now."
Silently cleaning his short sword on the Wraith's garment and striding over to pick up his fallen gun Ronon simply grunted in response.
"So um… I guess we really should head back now, I mean the Wraith are dead, we've saved the day again – don't look at me like that!" Rodney gestured to two other bodies at the edge of the clearing. "I did my share, which if you take into account the technical work may just work out to more than my share… Ronon, Ronon!"
It was half a minute before Rodney caught up, huffing dramatically even though Ronon knew he was fitter than that. With a thump on his back Ronon muttered a few words that could equate to 'good job' and that placated Rodney for the time being.
The walk back to the gate was at least an hour and half that was spent in silence, until Rodney thought it time to bring up a matter anyone in their right mind left well enough alone.
"I solved the feedback problem we were having when Nox's implants were activated separately – I was looking at it all wrong until Zelenka, well he suggested it but it was based on my idea so really the answer is therefore thanks to me." He paused to step over a fallen log and Ronon was pleased he also checked ahead for possible ambush – since the log may have been cut on purpose. After enough missions together and without Sheppard hand-holding him Rodney was finally learning to look out for himself, at least a little.
"You see they aren't so much separate pieces, its just we see the tattoos and think they are, but its more like a ultra-thin mesh embedded throughout most of his body; and I mean ultra-ultra thin, like almost quantum sized – that's why we didn't spot it at first. Well I would have but Keller insisted on having her medical input and that meant not so many biopsies and then she was concerned about the amount of scans; its not as if they're like x-rays, harmless… relatively harmless… a little bit of background radiation but no more than say, orbiting a Blue Giant – are you listening?"
Waiting to see that McKay saw the glare he was providing Ronon grunted a response. "Tiny mesh, implants yeah got it."
Rodney harrumphed but was satisfied. "The thing is I can now localise the implants not one-by-one but by studying the pattern when he does certain things."
"So?"
"So? Well I don't really know but its interesting isn't it – we'll have a better insight into how Nox works."
Rodney stopped walking and this time so did Ronon to turn and look at him. Rodney had on one of his more rarer expressions – one of empathy and shared pain.
"I know how hard it is – believe me I do understand." He took the moment to take a drink from his flask and offered it to Ronon who accepted. "Too many times we've lost people, only to get them back and realise they're not who they should be… when Carson, well you know – and Elizabeth, and then you." He gestured at Ronon. "Getting you off the Wraith enzyme, there were times when we thought…"
He didn't finish the sentence, thankfully. It was not something Ronon liked to remember.
"What I'm trying to say," continued Rodney, "Is that we never gave up – and we're not going to now."
They took up the walk again in silence but this time Ronon kept in step with Rodney.
"You know McKay," he said after a while. "I think you're becoming a people person after all, no matter what Zelenka says."
SGASGASGASGASGA
"Welcome back Doctor McKay, there's something we wanted you to look at, one of the orbits of the-."
"Yes yes, send an email," said Rodney irritably and left the control room. He needed a shower and then had to check on their latest research. He wouldn't have left at all but it was necessary to get Ronon off base or he went stir-crazy. Its not as if he hung around Nox's holding facility – far from it, but he could become more 'Ronon' than normal if he didn't manage to vent some anger; usually by killing Wraith.
"Ah Rodney," smiled Radek, catching him before he even got close to his quarters. "I'm glad to find you – we are getting some strange power readings and I needed to know if you-."
"What," snapped Rodney. "I haven't done anything, I've been offworld for two days."
"Yes," Radek wrinkled his nose. "I can tell – but you did install the back-up shield around command and I thought it may be interfering with the grid."
"No," said Rodney adamantly. "Separate power source, totally new cables – you think I'd make a rookie mistake like that?"
Radek chuckled at Rodney's use of words, he sounded more military every year.
"Fine, I will check elsewhere – oh and Sheppard wanted you in the Nox facility as soon as you returned."
"I bet he did," rumbled Rodney to an empty corridor.
SGASGASGASGA
"Took your sweet time McKay," said Sheppard through clenched teeth.
Rodney didn't even bother to answer, he had taken a shower but really needed sleep.
They entered Nox's secure area and found Nox in the rec room. It was about the same size as most others and had the usual variety of weights and equipment – minus any weapons. Nox himself was sitting cross-legged on the floor, in some state of meditation.
"Good morning Doctor McKay – how was the latest mission?"
"Life-threatening situations just aren't the fun they used to be," answered Rodney snidely, not bothering to question how Nox knew he'd been off-world, probably just a lucky guess or Parrish had told him; the man had no idea what 'need-to-know' really meant.
Nox opened his eyes and gestured for them to sit – as if he was the host. It was one of the few human characteristics that were very much not Lorne's. The Major was far from being arrogant enough to 'own' his prison and treat his guards as guests.
"I hear you wish to activate more of the integration – allow me more power as it were?"
"That's true; I've worked out an algorithm that will map your structure by testing your responses when you use multiple systems."
"Mmm." Nox rubbed his chin thoughtfully in a very Lorne like manner and Rodney suppressed a sigh. Much as they called him Nox and tried to pretend, when he did things like this it was impossible not to think of him as their friend and comrade.
"Aren't you worried I might try to break out?"
"Frankly I think if you'd wanted to you would have by now," said Rodney truthfully. "I think you need us more than the other way around."
Nox looked from Rodney to Sheppard and raised an eyebrow. "That could change."
Sheppard snorted. "You mean when your people come to take you back – yeah, you ranted about that at first but its been a month and I don't see any of your friends yet."
Grinning Nox slowly stood. "Would you know them if they did – would you know where to look?"
They joined him and walked into the larger lab next door. At first they had led him here at gun-point but as time went on he came willingly – especially when he realised they weren't trying to remove the implants. He removed his shirt and lay on the half-raised table and Rodney started attaching probes.
As Sheppard watched he glanced back at the camera, wondering if Ronon had arrived and was watching. The big man did sometimes come to check but stayed away more than Sheppard would have thought. Maybe it was too painful or he was practical enough to realise there was little he could do? The former Runner had shown remarkable coping abilities before and Sheppard had little doubt he was holding up now.
Of course he would never have guessed that his Satedan team-mate and XO would form a relationship. Sex, a short affair or even a 'friends-with-benefits' agreement Sheppard could understand – he'd had enough of those, just not with any male members; well maybe the once back in the academy he thought wryly. That was more to piss off his father more than anything else.
The first he'd heard of their bond was after Lorne had been MIA on Kolj, a farming world formerly free of any Wraith activity. Covering his team's escape from a band of Wraith worshippers Lorne had not made it to the gate. They sent three teams immediately but the only signs were of a massive fire-fight that had left the dialling mechanism damaged and a dozen worshipper bodies. With a Wraith hive closing they had to split their people between evacuating the small farming community and searching for Lorne. Success of the former but failure on the latter.
Ronon had disappeared after that, dialling back to Kolj and saying they'd hear from him when he found something. Sheppard had seen the look in his eyes when he returned with nothing, not a track and not a rumour. He knew the look of someone who had lost something dear to them. After a few beers Ronon had opened up to him, as much as Ronon ever could and Sheppard was surprised that quite a few others knew about it. Lorne's team, Radek, Chuck, Keller and even McKay – how he'd never let slip Sheppard would find out one day but he was sure it had something to do with he and Ronon once competing for Keller's affections.
"Done," announced Rodney triumphantly.
"What? You barely flicked a switch?" said Sheppard incredulously. His answer was an arrogant smile.
For his part Nox did not appear to care but just stood up and removed the wires, staring at them impassively.
"Do you feel any different?" asked Sheppard carefully, his hand unconsciously hovering near his empty holster.
Nox saw his movement and smiled. "I find Doctor McKay annoying but endearing and you utterly transparent."
"You know," stated Sheppard. "For all your claims of being an integrated network of implants you have quite the sense of humour, not to mention a wealth of other emotions we noticed – anger, depression, glee, irritation… lust."
"This body," Nox pointed at his frame. "Still produces all the chemical and bio-neural compounds to facilitate emotional response – if I did not utilise them they would build up to toxic levels. Besides, your supposition that integration must be cold and lifeless, free of what you think are biological factors, is entirely incorrect." He moved and put the shirt back on. They had to provide smaller sizes than Lorne's since as Nox he was thinner. Keller had let slip that with a sleeker physique and less pronounced muscles he looked healthier than Lorne ever had; the fact she said it with a blush belied what she really meant.
Integration responding…
Nox allowed his face to betray nothing but he could feel his various systems coming back on-line. It was like getting the use of sight back after being blinded. The room now seemed so small compared to what he could sense beyond his immediate surroundings. The control room behind the first set of blast doors only twenty meters distant; the second set of re-enforced blast doors to the spillway between piers. Systems he could easily overcome, but they were right. For the moment he had no-where to go.
He frowned as he picked up a signal that should not be in Atlantis and without thinking through consequences he turned to Rodney.
"Doctor, there is a Wraith transmission emanating from within Atlantis. I recommend blocking it immediately and going to lock-down stage 3."
"How did you? Never mind." Rodney furiously checked his equipment but shook his head. "I can't find anything."
"Here," Nox said and stepped forward, laying his hand on the console. It burst to life and he narrowed down the bandwidth he was searching for.
"But that's, oh!" exclaimed Rodney and turned to Sheppard. "Its true, a Wraith code being transmitted from Pier 2, sub-section 35."
As Sheppard started issuing orders into his radio Rodney spun back to Nox and pointedly looked down at his hand still on the console. "It won't let you into any critical systems you know – I made sure of that when we set this up."
Nox turned his head only slightly, for the most part he was ignoring Rodney as he downloaded information; nothing critical but he required data.
Rodney used the second monitor to check what he was downloading. "Equipment maintenance, radio logs, personnel health checks, room allocations…" his voice faded as several files were brought up, specifically Lorne's original team and SGA1.
"Sheppard." Rodney called but was ignored. He stared at Nox, whose face had gone blank and the tattoo across his cheek, normally invisible, darkened considerably to a deep bronze. The normally restricted files opened and all their information was immediately downloaded to Nox. Background, families, places of origin and photos.
"Colonel!" That got his attention and Sheppard turned, swearing when he looked at the monitor.
Upon it was a mug-shot of Ronon.
Nox lifted his hand from the console and put it towards the photo, the tattoo fading immediately.
"I feel a sense of loss when I see this man," he spoke, more to himself than to the two others. "Yet how can that be? I have never met him, he is not a member of the Covenant."
Sheppard and Rodney looked at each other, mouthing the word Covenant, Nox had never mentioned it before.
"That's… Ronon, I told you about him remember," prompted Sheppard. "You and him, you were friends, really close."
Nox looked confused, his hand falling and he shook his head. "I – it is difficult, I can feel the pain, this body 'hurts' for this man." He put hands to each side of his head, "It is as if the pain is mine… but that cannot be."
Sheppard went to say more but stopped as a distant explosion was heard, followed by the room shaking. The lights went out as did all power and they were left in complete darkness.
"Oh shit," muttered Rodney.
Tbc…