Radek sighed as he made his way towards his friend's quarters, upon opening the door he looked at his friend sitting on the couch playing with his daughter, "I hope you enjoy day off," mumbled the scientist.
"You'll get over it," grinned Rodney.
"What did you want?"
"When we were working on the project four levels down…I think I may have accidently wandered upon another jumper bay…"
"Really?" Radek immediately sat down on the coffee table.
"Yeah…it's under water, it's very plausible that the jumpers could be used as underwater vessels…anyway, I want you to go down there and see what you can find out."
"Anything else?"
"Ah…no, just try to find out if this really is a port for jumpers…also try to find out if the room has to fill with water…and Radek, be careful."
"More careful than you?" Radek said grinning.
"Oh just shut up," mumbled Rodney.
"You wish me to report to you?"
"Uh…well no, not really just fill me in at some point, email me what you find…we'll see if we can't learn more about this sometime."
"Okay…I will take Brown and Donavan…"
"Brown is a botanist…"
"Perhaps, but she is smart…perhaps smarter than you."
"I resent that," griped Rodney.
"Good…" Zelenka grinned as he headed out of the room.
Rodney shook his head and looked back at his daughter, "I think Uncle Radek likes to make your daddy moody," mumbled the scientist.
"Dadda!" grinned the girl.
"You're going to actually speak a real sentence one day…right?"
"C'okie!"
"Did you not pay attention in School!" yelled Radek Zelenka to one of the scientists.
"I am doing what I was told!" the other scientist yelled.
Radek shouted several profanities in Czech before walking away and moving over to the next system, he was starting to sorely miss Rodney and his demanding arrogance. The man had been given one week off after the electrocution issue. He was supposedly spending it with his daughter.
Radek looked at one of the volumes of the pressure in the room and felt his heart start to pound, "we must get out now!" he yelled.
"Why?" another scientist asked.
That was another thing Radek loved about Rodney, he didn't ask questions and when he demanded something generally no one else did either. Radek began to open his mouth when suddenly an alarm over head started to sound, his eyes instantly went to the door which suddenly slid shut and hissed as the lock sealed.
He looked down at the ground around his feet to see water starting to pool around their ankles, "this is Zelenka! We need immediate assistance, we've got a water break down here!"
"You thief!" Rodney yelled.
"I am not! I barrowed it…" John retorted.
"With no intention of giving it back! That classifies you as a thief!"
"I am not a thief!"
"Yes you are…I'm not talking to you anymore…"
"You just did…"
"Only so I could tell you I'm not talking to you…"
"But you just did…"
"What part of I'm not talking to you don't understand?"
"The part where you're not talking to me…but you are talking to me…" John said raising an eyebrow.
"That's it we're not having this discussion."
"Of course we are…"
"You stole it right off my desk! I watched you…"
"Do you want me to get you another one?"
"No! I want mine back!"
"I could get you a new pretty pink one…"
"Mine was green! No…John…get out of my lab…"
"No…not until you take back calling me a thief."
"No…because you are!"
"All I did…" John began but was cut off.
"Doctor McKay…" the radio in their ears interrupted them both.
"WHAT!" they both growled staring at each other in contempt.
"We've got a water leak in the lower levels…we have three scientists stuck down there…and the water is rising rapidly…" the voice spoke.
"Who?"
"Donavan…Brown and Zelenka sir…"
"Shit, get me Beckett, and Weir, have them meet me down there…"
"Rod…" John began.
Suddenly Rodney turned on him, "when this is all over, I'd better see my highlighter where you found it!" With that the scientist stalked out of his lab, John quickly following.
"What happened?" Weir asked as she and Carson joined John and Rodney.
"I don't know…Atlantis has the ability to shut whatever part of the city it wants from everything else to keep from endangering the rest of Atlantis…"
"So…how do we get to them?" Carson asked.
"We either go in from the bottom or the from the top up…" began another scientist who had just joined.
"No, we go in from the top you moron, didn't you ever study in high school, if you go in from the bottom up you'll just let more water in, if we go in from the top, we can pull everyone and try to figure out how to seal off the leak…"
"You could risk drowning yourself…" began Kavanagh who had also just come.
"You're still here?" Rodney mumbled.
"I'm just trying…"
"Look, no one is asking you to try anything, Carson…we'll need something to keep the three scientists warm…this water is freezing, John I need an oxygen tank…and a swim suit if the military has one…"
"You're not actually going to go in there…" Elizabeth began.
"Listen to me, if we don't stop the water from filling that room, it'll fill into the next room, and I'm not willing to lose another lab…"
"We'll get to work on the hole McKay," John said.
"Good, and John, be careful not to hurt any of them, let them know what you're doing and that we're going to get them out…"
"Will do Rod…"
"Why did this happen?" Elizabeth asked as Rodney moved over to the room and placed his hand against the quickly chilling door.
"There are multiple reasons, It was an extra jumper bay…we've got reason to believe the jumpers can be underwater transporters too…Radek was down here with two of our people looking into it…the entire thing is under water…there's supposed to a door on the bottom that's latched at all times and can only be opened by a jumper. There are no jumpers in there…and unlike the opening in the actual jumper bay, these doors are only the size of the jumpers."
"So you're saying the door opened?"
"No…I doubt it…it's far more plausible that somehow the seal around that door that usually keeps the room from flooding was broken by one of Radek's people, and it started leaking like a sieve. If the pressure build up got bad enough, it's also possible the room started flooding from other areas."
"Then why wouldn't this entire part Atlantis be flooded?"
"Because frankly the Ancients were smarter than us…they created water seals on all their doors below the sea level. The city can shut out any part of the city if need be…we should hopefully be able to drain the water out…somehow and get the room back to functioning order in due time."
"How do you plan to get it out?"
"It's possible that the room naturally fills with water when releasing a jumper…which if this is true then theoretically there should be some type of water pump to pump out the water."
"So what, you're going to go swimming in freezing water to find it?"
"No…I'm going to have Zelenka detect it, then I'll try to get to it…Elizabeth it's important."
"All right…lets get started, these guys don't have much time."
"Right."
"Radek, how ya doin' buddy?" John asked over his radio.
"C…cold," came the scientist's reply.
"Radek…did you see anything that could have been a water pump?"
"No…but I wasn't exactly looking for one…"
"I need you to locate it for me…"
"Ro…rodney…"
"I know Radek…and I realize it's cold, but if you can locate it…I might be able to help you at least slow down or stop the water…do you understand?"
"Y…yes…"
"Hang in there Radek…we're almost through the ceiling…as soon as we're through we're going to get you out."
"How long?"
"How long what Radek?" Carson asked.
"Ho…w…long…can….we…?"
"Radek…It's only been an hour or so, you're doing fine, okay we're gonna get you guys out of there," Rodney called, wishing he believed the words coming out of his mouth
"He…heart….stops…."
"Radek, listen to me son, don't think about how cold it is, all right, think about keepin' your head about the water…" Rodney called gently.
"How high is it Radek?" Carson asked.
"Chest…" came another scientist's voice.
"Can't you go any faster?" Rodney yelled towards Major Lorne who was trying to blow torch his way through the floor above the room.
Lorne stopped and looked up at the scientist, "Look McKay I'm doing my best here, so let me do my job, then we'll toss you in there…and let you do yours."
"Cool it you two," John said when he saw his brother scowl.
"R…Rodney…we ma…y have a water pump," came Radek's slurred words.
"Where?"
"On…the…floor…nnnear….door."
"All right buddy, just keep your head above the water and we'll do the rest."
"We're almost through sir," came Lorne's voice suddenly.
"Rodney…you're going to be jumping into freezing water," Carson began.
"I know…so try not to remind me," Rodney replied looking at his friend.
"We'll be waiting." Elizabeth continued.
"Yep…it'll be have to quick, the water slows your muscles down quicker than you can imagine."
"We're through!" Lorne yelled.
"Let's go, Zelenka, we're coming buddy!"
They pushed the large circle they had just created open down, reveal a large room almost full of water, and three very scared and cold people, "Come this way guys," Rodney called as he and John leaned over the sides and held out their hands.
Katie moved to them the fastest, Rodney and John reached out gently and grasped her under the arms, lifting her out of the frigid water. Once she was up Carson immediately came over and wrapped her up in a thermal blanket, "let's get her to the infirmary," he called to his first group of medics.
"Radek," Rodney called, the water was dark, and the lighting was pretty bad in the room, Rodney tried not to worry what would happen once he got in the water.
"Donavan, come on," John quickly reached into the room and gripped Donavan and hauled him out of the water.
"Radek, come on," Rodney called out. "That's it, I'm going in," with a large breath Rodney dove into the water before anyone had time to stop him.
The water was beyond frigid, he could vaguely remember falling into freezing water as a young boy when he was ice skating, the water instantly slowed all his muscles down, fogged his brain and incapacitated his thoughts to the point of almost drunkenness.
Rodney quickly resurfaced and looked at his brother, "you okay?" John asked.
"Oh yeah…you know…just cold," he mumbled, it felt like a million icicles or splinters were jabbing into his skin. He took a gulping breath and dove under water.
Rodney was trying desperately not to think about what would happen if Zelenka was hurt, or dead. He knew full well the scientist wasn't the best swimmer, they had joked about it frequently. John had taught Rodney shortly after arriving in his family. The water was dark, everything looked fuzzy under the dark blue rising water. He kicked off in hopes to find the water pump for starters. It didn't take long, but like they had said, it was at the bottom of the room, and by the time Rodney had gotten to it, he was finding himself nearly out of air.
John watched as his brother the surface a second time, shaking out his hair. "I found the pump…no Radek…"
"Keep looking," John whispered.
Rodney nodded, with another breath he dove into the water again. This time he didn't bother going to the pump, he hurried to look for Radek, hoping the man would be all right. He paused, trying to calm himself and took a moment to really look around the large room. Finally he spotted Radek, the man was floating, as if dead in the water. Eyes wide, Rodney swam over to him as quickly as he could, he grabbed the man by the shirt and rapidly made his way towards the top. Without hesitation he hoisted Radek above the water, in all hopes his brother would be there to grab the scientist.
"Rodney get out of there!" Carson demanded as John pulled the unresponsive Radek out of the water and began CPR.
"I've gotta flush out the room…I'll be fine," Rodney lied, his moves were already growing sluggish, he lung capacity was decreasing and he was becoming exhausted. With another gust of air he dove to the bottom for the pump.
"Give him a ten count, then you're going in after him," Elizabeth said looking at John.
"I've got a pulse!" called Carson as he wrapped Radek up in a blanket.
Two solemn blue eyes opened weakly, "your safe lad, we're moving you to the infirmary now," Carson whispered.
"Rod…?"
"He'll be fine," Carson patted his friend's shoulders and watched them wheel him away.
Rodney grabbed the pumps manual lever and began to pull frantically, in hopes he could trigger the release. Gritting his teeth with a grunt of precious air he continued to pull.
Elizabeth sighed as she paced the length of the floor in the lab above the water filled bay. She watched everyone else kneel around the large hole in the ground, as if waiting for Rodney to pop up and be fine.
"I'm going in," John finally said as he quickly stripped off his jacket, shirt gun and shoes.
"You can't!" Elizabeth bit, worried about both men.
"I have to...he's in trouble, I can sense it..."
"John…" Carson began.
"Don't worry, I'll be careful," John said then without another thought he jumped into the water, unable to keep from gasping at how cold the water was, "it's still rising."
John found Rodney at the bottom, still fighting with the manual pump, Rodney was surprised when the felt hands wrap around his and a large yank on the lever. They were both stunned when they heard a whoosh. Looking around they watched as the water started decreasing. Rodney opened his mouth to say something, or make a face, and began to panic. John grasped his brother around the chest, tightly like he had on their first swimming experience and quickly kicked his way to the surface. John and Rodney broke the slowly decreasing surface seconds later. Instantly Ronan, Lorne and Carson were dragging the brothers out of the water.
Radek and Rodney lay in cots right beside each other, both sitting up, looking a little more comfortable and much warmer than a few hours ago. Radek had barely scrapped by without hypothermia, and the other two had mild cases. Rodney had been lucky, however, he would never forget the feeling of his lungs starting to burn as he ran out of air, and the panic he felt when he realized he couldn't breath in real air.
John sat on the end of Rodney's bed, Elizabeth on the end of Zelenka's, Carson, Teyla and Ronan filling in around the two beds, "so what happened?" Elizabeth asked.
"As far as I could tell it was a malfunction in the system itself…Donavan triggered it when he was messing around with the pressure system in the room…I fear it will never be the same," Radek spoke.
"We'll dry it out…even if we have to use hair dryers," John said smiling.
"Are you offering yours?" Rodney asked grinning.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," lied John.
"Well, another minor disaster averted…and yet here you are again in my infirmary," grinned Carson.
"Har, har, har," mumbled Rodney.
"So how long are you keeping us Carson?" Radek asked.
"Tomorrow afternoon I may let you go."
"How long until I'm back on active duty?"
"Monday next week lad, don't stress," mumbled Carson.
"We really need to stop these catastrophes…couldn't we just have…you know a normal day here?" John asked.
"It wouldn't be nearly as much fun," Ronan added smiling at his friends.
"Maybe…but it would certainly keep me from spending more time in this room than in my own room," chuckled John.
"Aye…" Carson agreed.
"Okay, well that's enough lets let the boys sleep, they could certainly use it," Elizabeth said smiling.
"Gee thanks," mumbled Rodney crossing his arms over his chest.
She smiled and gently squeezed Radek's arm, followed by Rodney, "we'll come back tomorrow," she grinned.
"Night guys," John called chuckling as they headed out.
The two friends were silent for a moment, "Thank you," whispered Radek.
"For what?" Rodney mumbled.
"Saving me…"
"Well you've saved my life a couple times…Radek…for every moment I don't tell you how worthy you are of being the top scientist here on Atlantis, that's how often I think it. Certainly after I screwed up the whole solar system…"
"Thank you Rodney," Radek said smiling, "that means a lot."
"You're a good friend Radek, a better scientist and a fine man…don't let that get to your head," with that Rodney turned on his side and quickly drifted to sleep.
Radek watched his friend for a moment and smiled, Rodney was not often a man to give compliments, but like man, when he did give them, it meant a great deal. Smiling and looking over at his friend, Radek turned on his side as well and allowed his mind to drift itself to sleep as well.