Several hours later, Colonel Sheppard and Doctor Weir had been paged by Carson to the infirmary. Ro had fallen asleep for a few hours, giving him some much needed rest, but the boy was now awake and much calmer. As Sheppard entered with Weir, they found the boy propped up in bed, talking with Carson. Seeing them approach, he looked at them with a wary expression.

"John, Elizabeth..." He looked down at his hands. "I'm sorry about what I did at Doranda." Weir traded a shocked look with Sheppard. Neither knew which was more surprising: the fact that he was apologising for that event, or the fact that they were now hearing a distinctly Canadian accent coming from him. Sitting down on a chair beside the bed, Sheppard seemed to find his voice first.

"You don't have to apologise for that."

"But I do. If you didn't stop me, we both would have died." Ro's hands covered his face. "But I've been working in the fields for many cycles now." The accent in the boys' voice was hovering between Canadian and what was normal for a Pegasus native. He looked up at them. "My name is Ro Neemak... But I know my name is Rodney McKay." Elizabeth put her hand on the boys shoulder.

"I know this is hard, but you need to understand that we're not angry with you and we just want you to be okay. Okay?" The boy looked up at her, before glancing back at his hands. "Now, I know what you're going through is hard, but we'll be here to help you."

"Why don't you just tell us what you remember... uh Ro?" Sheppard said, not quite sure which name to use.

"You can call me Rodney I guess... I don't completely remember being him though." He sighed as he looked up at Sheppard. "I remember meeting you in Antarctica... but I also remember seeing you in a dream and I remember meeting you again at home with Mother..." He trailed off as realisation hit him. "My Mother, is she okay?"

"Aye son, Teyla is showing her around the city. She'll be back later."

"She's great... I remember Rodney's parents... they didn't really care that much for me. But Mother... she gave me so much freedom, guided me when I was lost. She took me in when..." His voice trailed off as his body stiffened.

"Ro? Rodney?" A tear fell out of the boy's eye as he trembled slightly. Elizabeth squeezed his hand. After a minute, they boy blinked a few times and turned to look at Sheppard.

"I remember..." He wiped tears from his eyes. "I remember dying in the hands of the Genii."

"You don't have to talk about that if you don't want to." Colonel Sheppard didn't want to hear how the Genii had mistreated his friend. The boy simply shook his head.

"You don't understand. I remember what happened after I died..."

Rodney's vision was completely whited out. It was almost like he was looking directly at the sun and it was blowing out everything else in his vision. Instinctively, he blinked his eyes rapidly, and reached out with a hand. He could see where he was reaching. Looking around, he realised that his vision was completely fine, he was just in an empty white void. The memories of what he had just been doing came flooding back and he reached towards his hip to find that it was completely fine, no evidence of the mistreatment he had suffered at the hands of the Genii.

This was now a puzzling and slightly troubling situation to be in. He was completely healed and healthy, but there was nothing to be seen in any direction. Was he dead? Was this an alternate dimension? Was he stuck between dimensions or in subspace? He ascended somehow? The possibilities were slightly dizzying to consider, instinctively making him go to sit down. As he did, he found himself seated at a table, which was very similar to the ones in the Mess back on Atlantis. In fact, it looked exactly like the ones on Atlantis.

As he pondered the sudden appearance of the furniture, he noticed a figure approach from his side and sit next to him.

"John!"

"Hello Rodney."

He couldn't believe his eyes. His best friend was there, sitting next to him.

"You found me, I knew that you would come for me. How did you find me?"

"I didn't need to find you Rodney."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

One of Rodney's earlier thoughts began creeping back into his head.

"I'm dead, aren't I? And you're not really Sheppard, are you?"

The man sitting next to him shook his head.

"This was just the image was easiest for you to accept."

"So I'm dead?"

"Yes... well no... kinda."

"That has to be one of the worst possible answers to that question."

The Sheppard look-a-like chuckled at that.

"I suppose so, but I'm working with what I've got. I'm technically bending a rule by appearing to you like this."

While it wasn't his friend, Rodney had to admit that it sure sounded and felt like he was really there. Realisation dawned to him about what he was just told.

"You're an Ancient, aren't you?" The Sheppard clone smiled and tapped his nose. "Don't you have a rule against interfering in the affairs of humans?"

"Hence the bending of the rules. But I'm not technically interfering here as your body did in fact die and you are no longer on that plane of existence."

"So, are you here to help me ascend? Or have I done that already?"

Not-Sheppard sighed and shook his head.

"This is the awkward part. Your body died, but your mind did not. The device the Genii had you work on was not a weapon. It was one of our earliest experiments at Ascension. It was not successful. It did convert the body into energy, but the mind remained alive, trapped in this" Not-Sheppard pointed to the white void surrounding them. "This plane of existence. Neither dead nor alive."

"So I'm stuck here for eternity? What on earth am I going to do? I can't interact with anyone, or build anything? I'll go nuts!"

Not-Sheppard put his hand on Rodney's shoulder to help calm him down.

"You are not stuck here Rodney. That is why I am visiting you. I cannot help you ascend, as there is far too much at stake for that. Without your assistance, the Wraith will not only destroy all life in the Pegasus galaxy, but will begin to threaten others as well."

"So you're going to send me back to Atlantis?" Not-Sheppard shook his head. "Please tell me you're not sending me back to the Genii."

"No Rodney. The problem here is that I cannot just send you back to your body, because it was destroyed by the failed experiment. I can however, let you be born again on a world where your team will find you and bring you back to Atlantis."

"When you say born again..."

"You will enter life from the beginning.

"As a baby?!"

"That is the only way."

"Will I remember who I am?"

"That is not possible I am afraid."

Rodney stood up, his anger building.

"You have got to be kidding me. First of all I die in the hands of the Genii, but I don't completely die because my mind is stuck is this... this... thing. I have to go back to Atlantis so that the Wraith don't destroy all life, but the only way for that to happen is for me to be born as a baby and have to start life all over again without any of the knowledge I have gained, which would probably be so critical to my usefulness in stopping the Wraith?! I'm sorry, but that is just not good enough!"

Rodney turned and started to walk away, into the void. Not-Sheppard quickly appeared at his side keeping pace.

"It is all I am allowed to do Rodney."

"Well try and think this through, when the real John Sheppard finds me, is he going to recognise me? Or will I still be an infant when that happens, huh?"

The pair both stopped and stared at each other. Not-Sheppard looked as though he was thinking hard.

"We did not consider that problem." He admitted. "I must go and discuss this with the others. I will return."

And he was gone, leaving Rodney with nothing but whiteness surrounding him.

"Oh, come on. You're all powerful and you didn't stop to think this plan through?! You guys really suck at this kind of thing!"

The white void didn't answer, but a voice from behind Rodney did.

"It has been some time since we have had to deal with the problems of time Rodney. For that I apologise." Not-Sheppard did appear to be sorry, which did help him calm down a little. "We have a solution."

"Who's we?"

"The others, who agree that this is necessary. We have found a planet and a place in history where you will be safe until Colonel Sheppard and his team reach it, but I am afraid that you will need to wait for some time before they find you. This does mean a wait of many years."

"Am I going to become an infant in this plan?" Not-Sheppard shook his head.

"No, we will be able to return you to life at the age of four of your earth years, however, your mind will not be able to retain all of your adult knowledge. There is little we can do to alter that limitation."

"This plan is looking less good."

"But we will give you the ability to read our language naturally, as well as the ability to use all of our technology and tools. We will also cause many of the skills you have learned to be natural gifts, such as your understanding of mathematics and physics."

Rodney was actually little impressed. Even if he had to start life as a four year old, what they were offering would be very useful. But he was a proud man and knew how much would be lost from his memory.

"That's sounding great, but you have to do something to let me keep my memories. You're probably already breaking some big rules here, there has to be something you can do."

There was a pause as the man considered this.

"There may be a way." He said slowly. "The problem with your memory is that the mind of a child simply cannot handle the knowledge of an adult. It would be unable to understand and cope with such knowledge. But we could awaken your memories as you sleep."

"You mean give me dreams about the life I've lived?"

"In a manner or speaking, yes. Although I should warn you that they may cause you more pain than you would like. Being around those you once knew will help quicken the process. But I must tell you Rodney, even with all that we are doing here, it is also possible that you may never recall all that you once knew. We are bending a lot of our rules to do this for you."

"But there is a chance?"

"It would take many years. Decades even. I am sorry, but that is the best that we can offer."

"Then that will have to do." Rodney sighed and thought about what was going to happen. "Will this hurt?" Not-Sheppard shook his head.

"No."

"Then I'm ready." Not-Sheppard put his hand on Rodney's shoulders and brought their foreheads together.

"Rodney McKay, I promise you that you will be safe until your friends find you. Good life my friend."

The whiteness glowed around Rodney until it filled his vision, suddenly being replaced with darkness. He felt the coldness of the ground around him and opened his eyes, seeing stars fill his vision around him. A shudder rushed through his system as he blinked rapidly and felt the cold overcome him. His mind began to focus only on the chill until a kind voice broke through the night.

"Child, are you all right?" A woman rushed over, picking Rodney up, quickly wrapping him in her cloak and held him close. The warmth of her body made him feel safe. "Do you have a name child?" Rodney felt sleep overcoming him, but he fought to keep his eyes open.

"Ro..ney Mc..."

"Rest now Ro, I shall care for you."

Ro opened his eyes a little, a small smile on his face. "Mother?" The woman held him close, a tear escaping her eyes. Instantly, she knew that she had been given a calling by the Ancestors.

"By the grace of the Ancestors. I am your mother Ro."

The boy drifted off to sleep, safe in his new mother's arms, to grow and await the time when he would be needed by the Lanteans.

They all sat in silence for a while at what Rodney had recounted. He looked at his friends before looking at his hands.

"What happens to me now?"

"I think it would be best if we left that choice to you."

"I think..." Rodney swallowed hard as he considered his thoughts. "I think that I would like to return home with Mother. I need time to think about my future... And to understand my past."

The three adults all nodded, Carson even forcing a small smile, despite the situation. It was bittersweet finding their friend, only to have to let him go for his own sake.


Author's note: Just one more chapter to go. :)