Chapter Sixteen – Obstacles
Rodney McKay gritted his teeth as the ground shook beneath his feet. He didn't fancy being deep underground, not if he could avoid it. The old hallways seemed like a maze. He and Ronon had walked for what felt like hours; several times they had been forced to turn around and try another way due to structural collapse.
"I really hope the chair room is where you think it is, McKay," Ronon said gruffly as he wiped his forehead clean of perspiration and dust.
"So do I," Rodney muttered sourly as he stared down at his dirty and scraped fingertips and life signs detector in hand.
They walked in silence, fine dust raining down on them like a drizzle. Irritated, Rodney wiped the screen clear of dust with his sleeve.
"Another dead end, McKay," Ronon said, his voice hard and tinged with frustration.
Rodney glanced up from the detector and pursed his lips into a thin line of displeasure as he came face to face with a solid wall of dirt, soil and rocks. "Great," he piped up sarcastically. "I've run out of ideas to get around this type of distraction."
"There might not be anything left," Ronon said as he crossed his arms over his chest. "From what we've seen, this might not be a cave in with free passageway on the other side, it might be-"
"And I thought I was the one who was pessimistic," Rodney interrupted, his words tinged with annoyance.
Ronon shrugged. "Fine, where do we start?" he asked as he walked forward and started to look for weaknesses in the caved in wall.
Mumbling something unintelligible Rodney pocketed the life signs detector and came to stand next to the Satedan. "Okay, let's get this over with, I really start to hate this place," he said sourly.
"What's there not to like, McKay?" Ronon asked with a wicked grin on his face as he dug into the dirt.
OOOOOO
Teyla wrung her hands, itching to do something instead of just sitting on a chair. It had been at least an hour since she'd helped scrub the theatre clean of all the dust and grime. With the help of the junior doctor, Lani had then taken John into the room to finish repairing his severely injured body.
The nurse was left outside to see to M.E Tori, and Teyla watched her do her round for the second time, attend to the man, take his vitals and ask how he was faring.
The Athosian couldn't resist the urge to get up and pace the room. After what felt like forever, she finally came to a stop at the large window next to the doctor's office. Instead of the vast ocean and the piers of the city, she saw nothing but soil and darkness on the other side of the cracked glass. The lights flickered in and out occasionally as the Zero Point Modules were nearly depleted, the Wraith culling above did nothing to keep the power levels from dropping.
How she wished to see the sun stream in through the beautiful arched window and to smell the fresh air of their own Lantean city, instead she grimaced as she took a deep breath of the old and trapped air deep underground. Cautiously, she stared at the large double door separating her from her team mate. She forced down her fears and swallowed as she thought about him. So much and so many had already been lost; Carson, the compassionate and warm doctor, the steady leader figure and ever diplomatic Elizabeth Weir, scores of scientists and soldiers.
Atlantis had taken damage during her escape from the Asuran beam, her own ZPMs almost depleted. The path taken recently had been dangerous, but had in the end led to another planet and to a reconnection to the gate system and Earth, but Teyla wondered sadly how much more the expedition could lose before itself became lost. John Sheppard seemed to be the one man who held it together at the moment and if he was about to die here, she feared for what was to come.
For the first time in a long time Teyla really feared for the future. All that blood that John had lost; she couldn't give any to him, Ronon couldn't either and Rodney's blood type was not compatible. There had been cross matching between the Askulans present and John as well but Lani didn't dare to set up a transfusion anyway, even though it seemed the nurse and John where compatible. Teyla wished to see the young face of Jennifer Keller and a team of medics but she knew it wasn't to be.
The Athosian sighed deeply as she turned away from the window and picked up her P90 to strap it tight to her TAC vest once again. She grabbed the life signs detector and strode out the infirmary doors. She was no use to John waiting, but maybe she could help him by helping the others. She nodded at the two Alpha team members just outside the room.
"Please, stay here and see to it that no one enters," she said.
OOOOOO
"I wish I'd never set foot on this godforsaken planet," Rodney complained loudly as he scraped his thumb on something sharp.
"Don't be such a baby, McKay," Ronon returned.
"We've been at it for hours and I don't think…" he trailed off at the sound of footsteps coming their way.
Ronon quickly reached over and into Rodney's pocket to retrieve the life signs detector. The screen lit up at the touch, already initiated by Rodney's ATA gene. The screen filled with white dots causing the Satedan to swallow and McKay to blanch. There was simply nowhere to go.
Ronon bristled as he reached for his gun while Rodney shrank back before staring in utter bewilderment at the men coming toward them.
"Somehow, I do not believe you expected to see us?" Dadan said with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes as Rodney straightened and adjusted his jacket.
"Something like that," the scientist muttered.
"I see that you have reached a dead end," Dadan spoke up, ignoring Rodney's mutterings.
"All of them are dead ends," Rodney returned in annoyance, not really meaning to take out his frustration on Dadan but he simply couldn't help it.
Dadan nodded and made no affair of it. "I take it that something important should be on the other side?" he asked curiously.
"Yes," Rodney said with urgency as he ran a dirty hand through his dusty hair.
"Then you must stand aside so that we can dig out a passage for you," Dadan said simply and nodded at the soldiers who had followed him.
Ronon and Rodney stood back as ten of the twenty men moved forward and began to work on the cave in.
Within an hour the hallway had been cleared and reinforced to the extent that it was safe to walk through.
"I wish you'd come sooner," Rodney said in appreciation as he led the group further into the core of the old city.
"The way here was tricky and dangerous," Dadan answered.
Rodney nodded solemnly.
The large team consisting of Rodney and Ronon together with Dadan and his soldiers walked in silence, every step a cautious one due to the structural integrity of the area they were passing and the possibility of dots showing on the life signs detector even if the latter wasn't very likely.
Dadan watched in muted fascination as the old lights flared to life when the descendants of the sky people passed. Large, heavy doors opened as the smaller man swiped his hand at the console next to them. It was indeed the magic of the sky people Dadan was seeing before him. He saw the large eyes of his young soldiers and knew that they were even more convinced of the power the two people in front of them carried.
After several twists and turns they were once again stopped by structural collapse. This time not a big one, but enough to set them back.
Rodney cursed under his breath as the doors before them refused to budge. The display lit up at his touch but then nothing happened. He took a step back and saw to his dismay that the beam above the sliding double door was strained by the heavy forces bearing down on it and therefore didn't allow the door to open.
"Another type of structural problem," Ronon said succinctly.
"We'll never be able to free it of its load," Rodney deduced with a sigh.
"What happened to your positive approach?" Ronon asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Never had one, didn't Sheppard told you?" He returned testily and then his mood sank even further as he thought back on his dying friend. Something sparked in his eyes and he turned in determination to Dadan who was standing next to him.
"Dadan, instruct your soldiers to stand on each other, foot on shoulders so that together two and two they can reach the beam above the doorframe. Have them stand five on each side while the rest of them try and pry the door open," Rodney said.
"I am afraid I don't follow your train of thought but I'll have them do as you say," the old man assured him as he saw the determination in the scientists face.
Five minutes later Ronon found himself secretly wishing for a camera as he stood with his arms crossed over his chest watching as ten men, five on each side, in teams of two tried to offload the construction above the door, while another five men on each side tried to pry the door open. Ironically, it looked like some sort of team exercise that Sheppard liked to give to the new marines and civilians that walked through the gate.
Rodney watched as the door amazingly started to budge, inch by inch, until it was opened as much as it was required for them to pass.
He wasted no time as he took up the lead again and walked down the previously dark ancient hallway. "I hope I'm right," he whispered as he walked up to the end of the hallway and swiped his hand over the console to open the door.
OOOOOO
To be continued