Disclaimer: The characters of, "Stargate: SG-1" and "Stargate Atlantis", are owned by Robert C. Cooper, Brad Wright, Sci-Fi Channel and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fan fiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

Chapter 24: Red Bell

McKay leaned back in his chair, irritated once again about those questions that he wanted to ask, but he knew he needed more information before he did. So many theories were going through his mind and yet, every time a new one popped into his mind

Dr. Zelenka was studying the information from the cave walls instead of analyzing the chip while Dr. Taylor had reread Sinell's personal journal for the third time.

"This is all a waste of time," McKay scoffed, wondering why Zadek was even looking into the information at all when he should have been looking into other matters.

Dr. Taylor looked up from the journal, her green eyes fiercely locked onto McKay. "You don't need to be here if you don't want to be. Radek and I can handle this on our own."

Before McKay could argue, Sinell came into the room, with the two guards that Sheppard had appointed to follow the Ancient wherever he went. McKay saw Lucy quickly slip the journal underneath some papers hiding it from view.

"Is there anything I can do?" Sinell asked.

Lucy smiled sweetly at the Ancient, which caused McKay to frown since he knew that smile, and it never bode well for the receiver of the smile. "We are all set, Sinell. If we need anything, we shall send for you."

The Ancient nodded his and clasped his hands together before him. "Very well, Dr. Taylor. If you shall excuse me, I shall return to my room." He turned around

"Wait. I have a question for you," McKay said as he jumped out of the chair and stepped toward the Ancient excitedly. "Ereshkigal had this device that destroyed a Wraith ship. I was wondering if you knew anything about it."

Sinell's head snapped up. "I have no knowledge of this device. It must be something she created. If she had such a device, we could have used it to protect and defend Atlantis all those years ago."

McKay nodded his head but he could tell the Ancient was hiding something about the weapon but decided that it was better not to point it out. Just yet. "What about the writing on the wall where we found her?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The cave where Sheppard's team found Ereshkigal in the stasis chamber. There was writing on the walls all in code that we were able to decipher but most of it was about the plant life and wild life on that planet and then a small hint about this lab," McKay explained. He noticed out of the corner of his eye, that Lucy was looking at him intently as though she wanted to grab something sharp and stab him.

"I have forgotten," the Ancient whispered distantly.

"Forgotten?" McKay questioned.

"The transition back to a mortal body can affect the memory, Dr. McKay. Some of my memories are fuzzy. It should clear up soon. Are there any other questions that you wish to ask?"

McKay shook his head.

Sinell bowed his head, turned around and walked out.

McKay frowned, wondering if Sinell's was telling the truth about his memory when he felt something hard hit his head. "Ow!" He spun around and Lucy was standing there, her hands on her hips.

"What did you think you were doing?"

"I was asking questions."

"Yeah, I can see that, but you didn't have to bring up the cave. You knew that Radek has been looking at the information and if we wanted to ask Sinell about them, we would have."

"Why are you yelling at me for?"

She shook her head fervently, turned around and went back to her seat. "Never mind."

He looked at Radek who shook his head and turned back to his work.

McKay walked out of the lab, rubbing the sore spot on the back of his head. He wondered what that was all about and he knew better than to ask since that woman was crazy.

Sheppard pushed the food around his plate. He was sitting across from Teyla and Ronon in the cafeteria not eating, when McKay came in, grabbed a piece of fruit and plopped down next to him.

"So, what's going on with you guys?" McKay asked before he bit into the fruit.

"Nothing, that's what and I mean it. Absolutely nothing," Sheppard snapped, dropping his fork onto his plate. "I am tired of waiting. We need to form a plan to rescue Elizabeth."

"McKay was correct that Ereshkigal may be using Elizabeth to lure you into a trap. I don't believe it would be wise to go to Tigria and try to rescue her when we don't have a way to stop her," Teyla calmly pointed out.

"What about that Ancient? Does he have anything? A weapon?" Ronon asked, as he leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.

McKay scoffed and shook his head. "So far, we have nothing. He's being evasive and claiming his memory isn't clear due to some transition back to mortal form."

"Selective amnesia? How convenient," Sheppard remarked. He shook his head, wondering why he sounded like McKay. Maybe it was the constant concern for their missing leader.

"How long are we going to allow this guy to mess with us?" Ronon asked.

Before anyone could respond, Lucy and Radek rushed into the room.

Sheppard looked at the two red-faced, panting scientists standing before him. "You two seem to be in a rush. What's going on?"

"We need to talk," Lucy said.

"Well, go ahead and talk," McKay ordered with a wave of his hand.

She shot McKay a dark look before returning her attention to Sheppard. "Radek and I decided to review the writings in the cave and the journal. The journal has so many hidden secrets in it, that it took us a long time to find it."

"What did you find?" Sheppard asked.

Radek nodded his head. "It does list all of the plant life on that planet. What we found so interesting is that Sinell's journal lists one of the plants. It's a flower that he calls a red bell. The petals and pollen of the flower cause people to be susceptible to suggestions and it encourages infatuation."

"You think that is what Ereshkgial used this flower on the Ancients," Teyla replied.

"No, we are not certain about that until we have more information. There is something interesting about this flower," Radek replied adjusting his glasses while he shook his head.

"Will you guys get to it already?" Ronon snapped.

Lucy turned and glared at Ronon. "The root of the flower counteracts the affects of the petals and pollen of the flower."

Sheppard couldn't believe what he had just heard. He shook his head and looked at the two scientists. "You found this in Sinell's journal?"

Lucy looked at Radek then back at him. "Yes, Colonel Sheppard. We did."

He swore loudly, which made Teyla look at him with a raised eyebrow. "We need have a talk with Sinell and find out exactly what he's up to." He stood up and rushed out of the room. He could hear footsteps behind him and he knew that his friends had his back. He wondered if this new information would help them or make the situation worse. Of course, he wouldn't know until he took some form of action. Any form of action that he had been waiting to do for a long time.