Ch. 74
(Atlantis, The Sheppard's Quarter's)
Stacey entered the room quickly and scooped up Allison in a hug.
"I had that dream again," Allison said sniffling.
As her mother released her she rubbed her eyes sleepily.
"Atlantis is not in any danger, sweetie," Stacey told her. "Dr. McKay tricked the Wraith. They think the city self-destructed."
Allison swallowed and lowed her head on her pillow. Stacey caressed her forehead and then kissed her lightly. She made sure that Allison had fallen asleep before exiting the room.
When Stacey entered the room where John and she slept, John was taking off his boots.
"I'm gonna call it a night. We've got an early mission tomorrow morning," he told his wife.
John then rolled into bed. Stacey followed, curling up next her husband.
(Atlantis, Infirmary)
The moment John and his team returned it was very chaotic. And it didn't help that Rodney was complaining over a stupid splinter. Stacey and Carson were busy seeing to John. His arm was bloody where Elia had fed on him.
"What about my splinter," Rodney whined.
Stacey rolled her eyes, took a pair of tweezers and plucked it out quickly. Then took his finger and healed it within 4 seconds. She then went back to John. Carson had gotten a large Q-tip covered with Iodine.
"This might twinge a bit," Carson told him.
Dr. Beckett cleaned away the blood. Only to find that there was no break of skin. Carson looked up at Stacey.
"You haven't healed it yet, have ya?" he asked her.
"No, I haven't been close enough to," she answered. Stacey then turned to a nearby nurse, "Alright, I want every blood test available to look for anything unusual."
"Yes, Doctor,"
Stacey and Carson exchanged looks with John.
"Well, I feel fine now. What do I do in the mean time?" John asked.
"How about a sparring session?" Stacey suggested.
"I don't know. I'm not really in the mood to get my ass kicked by a pregnant women again," John told her.
"Again," Rodney sniggered.
(Atlantis, Gym)
Stacey and John circled around the room. John was waiting for her to make the first move. He felt awkward to be making the first move. Stacey finally made the first move, hitting him on the arm. She made another move, but he blocked it.
The couple traded hits for several minutes, mostly blocking one another. Until John caught her off-guard, hit her hard and then pushed her into the nearest wall. He threw the sticks down on the ground, and then grabbed her roughly, and then kissed her.
When John broke away, there was an awkward silence. It was only interrupted by Carson via the radio.
(Atlantis, Infirmary)
"The good news is, we can now say with some certainty that Elia didn't drain away any of your life," Carson said the moment John, Weir and Stacey stepped into the Infirmary.
"We already knew that," John said.
Carson sighed, "I suppose."
"That's the best good news you could come up with?" Stacey asked, before John could.
"It looks like you've been infected with the iratus bug retrovirus. The one we were working on to turn Elia into a human," Carson explained, a little uncomfortably.
"You mean the one that didn't turn her into a human," John said. It was comment, not a question.
"Elia administered the treatment prematurely. It wasn't ready, it wasn't even supposed to be …" Carson said defensively.
John interrupted him, "I'm not blaming you, Doc."
"But you're right. The transformation was into a creature closer to the iratus bug than to a human, and I know how much you …"
John grimaced and finished his sentence, "... hate those bugs?"
Elizabeth jumped into the conversation and said, "But, for one ... Elia was a Wraith. And she took a massive dose of the retrovirus. I mean, do we know how the Colonel's system might respond to the drug?"
"I have no idea," Carson said.
Stacey added, "It was never engineered to be given to a human. It was never intended to be given to anyone."
"The problem is, I have no idea how your body will react! I can't even begin to guess," Carson said.
"Well, if how I feel is any indication? I'm fine," John said.
"It's certainly possible that it's already breaking down in your system. Ellia's transformation was extreme, and immediate," Stacey said, trying to sound positive.
To Weir, John said, "See?"
"But the wound on your arm healed unnaturally fast!" Stacey interjected.
"If there was a wound," John said.
Carson added, "There had to be! Otherwise, I don't see how you got infected in the first place!"
"She was spitting an awful lot!"
Weir asked, "So what, we just monitor it for now?"
"Aye," To Sheppard, Carson said, "You'll need to check in every six hours."
John nods reluctantly, "I can do that."
"And you should probably …" Weir started.
"... suspend my off-world activities until we know more?" John finished.
Weir gives a gracious nod, "Thank you."
John says to Beckett as he leaves, "See ya in six hours!"
To be continued . . .
(A/N: Sorry it's been so long!! I had a bit of a block. And then I had all these plot bunnies for other fandoms, thus starting more stories. For those who stuck with me: THANK YOU!!)