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nymphthroughthestargate · 1 year ago

Text

Ronan With Nymph

a fic by mushroom with help from stick

With the midway station fully operational, Jack and Sam decided to take Nymph to Atlantis for a little holiday. it would be nice to check up on Dr. Weir, and Sam was itching to explore the city with Nymph.

they brought their carry-ons to the gate, and Daniel went to sadly wave them off.

"what's wrong, uncle Danny?" Nymph asked, her head tilting in a concerned manner.

"I'd love to go with you and see the city, but general Landry said I have important work to do and can't leave." Daniel sighed. he was completely unaware of the lengths that Nymph would go to to make her Uncle Danny happy. she floated up to the giant window of the command room, and tapped the glass to get Landry's attention.

"Mr. General, sir?" she called out to him.

Landry leaned into the microphone. "yes, Nymph?"

"can uncle Danny please come with us? he really wants to go and it's making him really sad." she gave him puppy eyes through the glass, and her power had completely taken over him.

"Dr. Jackson, prepare to embark to the midway station. don't forget to pack your bags."

Daniel looked confused, and even pointed at himself like there was another Dr. Jackson the general could've been talking to. with a confirming nod, he dashed to pack a quick bag before they dialed the gate.

~ • ~ • ~

the little family stepped through the event horizon into the magnificent Atlantis gate room, audibly gasping at how beautiful the Ancient architecture was. light spilled through the enormous stained glass windows, making colours dance all around.

Elizabeth Weir was right there to greet them, along with the AR-1 team. Nymph's eyes went wide as she craned her neck to see the giant that was Ronan Dex. Jack and Sam hugged Elizabeth, and started walking up to her office while catching up on different mission reports with John. Daniel was waved on to follow Rodney, and Nymph and Ronan were left standing in the gate room. one could only guess that everyone assumed Nymph had followed Jack and Sam.

"you're very big." Nymph remarked. "kinda like the trees."

"I guess you could say that," Ronan shrugged.

Nymph floated up to Ronan until she reached his height. he acted like that wasn't quite the weirdest thing he'd seen, but it was close.

"how're you doing that?"

"I float. the trees taught me how."

"that's kinda cool."

the two of them stayed there, awkwardness tangible enough to cut it with a knife. Ronan finally waved up at Chuck, who nodded and started dialing the gate with a thumbs-up.

"I was going off world anyway, you wanna come?" Ronan offered, pointing to the stargate as it spun to life.

"are we allowed?" Nymph asked, tilting her head.

"yeah, I already got permission. let's go."

Ronan held out a hand to guide her through the gate, and she hesitantly took it. When they reached the other side, there was a path through a field that led to a small village. Ronan guided Nymph to the tavern he had planned to go to. he wasn't sure how a drinking night with a group from Atlantis was going to go when he had brought this kid, but they were going to have to make do.

he opened the door and carried Nymph to the bar, mumbling a "stay here" command while he walked around looking for his group. she politely obeyed, looking even smaller sitting on the rough counter twiddling her little baby thumbs.

Ronan found the Atlantis base group, and brought them over to where he had left Nymph. Radek and Lorne just stared at her.

"that is a child," Radek remarked in his heavy Czech accent.

"Uh, Ronan, buddy, whose kid is this?" Lorne asked delicately.

Ronan shrugged. "she came through the gate with O'Neill's group. they were all busy, and I didn't feel right leaving her alone. so I brought her with."

Lorne looked like he'd seen a ghost. "You kidnapped general O'Neill's kid. we are accessory to the kidnapping of O'Neill's daughter, who he loves almost more than his fiancee."

"we are so fired." Stackhouse whimpered.

Ronan wasn't listening to their concerns - he was too busy arm-wrestling some grunt while telling Nymph a Satedan fairy tale. Nymph was equal parts enamored with the story, and uncomfortable around such shady people. her radar was going haywire in an underbelly place like this one, but she knew she was safe with Ronan and his friends. when Ronan turned his attention more towards the arm wrestle, she turned to the rest of the group.

"hi! I'm Nymph!" she smiled wide, showing her teeth. Stackhouse just whimpered again. Cadman rolled her eyes, and focused on Nymph.

"hi, sweetie! my name is Laura. are you having fun?"

Nymph nodded excitedly. "we went through the big stargate that's actually lots of stargates and we had to stay in between them for a little while and that was really boring but exciting at the same time. and Atlantis is so pretty!"

"it is a really pretty city! I get to live there, did you know that?"

Nymph shook her head, her eyes sparkling with excitement. Radek, Lorne, and Stackhouse were having a crisis beside them, but Cadman was actively ignoring them.

~ • ~ • ~

"So, now that we're all caught up, I think I'd like to get to know Nymph a little more," Elizabeth said. "There wasn't a lot of get-to-know-yous while I was at Stargate Command."

"true," Jack shrugged. Sam turned around to bring Nymph forward, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"Nymph?" Sam called out, craning her neck to see if the little girl had just wandered off. Jack glanced around quickly and joined in on calling her name. the calling quickly turned to panic as it was apparent that Nymph wasn't in earshot of Elizabeth's office. Jack and Sam ran out of the room calling out to her, Elizabeth joining in.

"Call Dr. Jackson on the intercom, immediately," Elizabeth ordered Chuck, who promptly summoned Daniel to the control room.

Daniel came running, and Jack met him at the stairs while Sam tried to help with the sensors.

"What's wrong, Jack?" Daniel was worried, but he didn't know why yet.

"good, Daniel, you're here. is there ANY chance that Nymph was with you, and you just left her in the care of McKay while you came to check out why we called you?"

"Noooo...?" he drew out the syllable, confused for a second and then realizing why Jack would possibly ask that. "she's LOST?"

Jack looked ready to pull out his greying hair as Sam came running down the stairs, shaking her head.

"I helped them programme the sensors to look for Nymph, and it doesn't look like she's in the city!"

"We'll find her, Sam, don't worry," Daniel tried to calm her.

"It's a big city, Daniel!" Jack snapped.

"and sensors are down in big parts of it," Sam continued. "she could've taken a transporter to any of those sections and we would never find her."

Elizabeth called down to them from the balcony, telling them to come over there. when they reached the control room, John was next to Elizabeth in full gear.

"my men are ready to start searching damaged areas, sir. don't worry, we'll find her."

Elizabeth glanced over at the DHD, which Chuck was very nearly hiding under.

"Chuck, you didn't happen to see anything, did you?"

his eyes widened in anxiety. I'm so fired, I'm so fired, I'm so fired. I thought Ronan had permission to take her. I'm so fired.

"um. IsawRonantakeherthroughthestar -gate," he mumbled, more like squeaked. Jack whipped his head around to look at him, his glare boring holes into poor Chuck's head.

"What was that?"

Chuck gulped, and stood up a little. "I saw Ronan take her through the stargate."

Jack, Daniel, and Sam all lunged at the terrified technician, and John and a guard quickly grabbed them before they could hurt him.

"I swear, I thought he had talked with you about it!" Chuck stammered, backing away from the three very furious guardians. "if I knew he wasn't supposed to, I would've stopped him!"

"general, I know where Ronan went!" John grunted through excertion. "in fact, once this meeting was over with, I was supposed to meet up with him. I can take all of you there."

they stopped fighting John and the guard, and nodded to Chuck to dial the gate. he did so with visibly shaking hands.

~ • ~ • ~

the door to the tavern kicked open with enough force to knock it off its hinges. The entire crowd turned to look at the violent entrance, and Nymph perked up at the sight of her family.

"daddy!" she exclaimed happily, raising her arms to get Jack's attention. he, Sam, and Daniel rushed over to her with tears of relief in their eyes, and enveloped her in a huge hug.

"Oh, honey, we thought you were lost!" Sam cried. "don't ever do that again!"

"sorry mama, but Mr Ronan said it was OK." Nymph pulled a hand away to point at Ronan, which made John just glare at him with an expression that meant "on what planet would you think that was a good idea".

Jack turned to Ronan in a fury, and John had to put a hand out to stop him from tackling Ronan.

"why in the world would you take my kid without asking?! and to some random off-world tavern?! what were you thinking?!" Jack roared.

Ronan shrugged. "I was heading here anyway, and I didn't think it was a good idea to leave her in the gate room."

Jack's eye started to twitch. "so send her up to us in Elizabeth's office! don't just take her off world without telling anybody!!"

Ronan shrugged, unbothered. John glared at him, trying to silently hint at how badly he messed up, but he either wasn't getting it or didn't care. Stackhouse, Lorne, and Cadman sat awkwardly at the table, unsure what they could add to this conversation.

Radek raised his hand. "general, if I may, she was unharmed and has been in sight of us since she walked through that door. and there's no one on base more qualified to stay with her on the way here than Ronan. she was perfectly safe the entire time."

"and she had fun!" Cadman piped up, which got a "stop talking now" glare from John. knowing that Nymph was OK had relaxed Sam and Daniel, who in turn attempted to calm Jack. Nymph was very confused about what was going on, silently pulling a juicebox out from her little bag. Daniel chuckled at the sight of her sipping her apple juice with wide eyes taking in her surroundings.

Jack took a deep breath, and picked up Nymph. "Let's just head back to the city, alrighty? Elizabeth still has some sights to show us."

the family turned and headed for the door, which was still off its hinges. Jack turned around apologetically, and John waved him off.

"one of us will fix it, go sightsee with your family." he shrugged. Jack raised an eyebrow, then walked out.

#nymph the floaty baby #stargate #stargate sg1 #stargate atlantis #daniel jackson #jack o'neill #sam carter #stargate sg1 fic #mini fic #jack is ready to murder for his kid and john is just trying his best at damage control #poor chuck didnt deserve this #part of the reason i wanted nymph to age so slowly is because i wanted her to Still Be Baby even in atlantis #and this point in atlantis is set like 10 years after nymph was found #which would make her in her late teens which wouldnt work for this idea #also this is not a mini fic lol its super long

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wonkyelk · 1 year ago

Note

Directors cut of any of your cat rodney fics! 💜 please?

Thanks very much for the ask, this was a lot of fun to revisit. Have never done a director’s commentary before, so hope this is the right sort of thing.

Have opted for the first one, “A cat may look at a particle accelerator” - fic and commentary under the cut. If you just want the notes, skip to everything in italics.

So, this whole series was entirely @massharp1971’s fault.

We got into a conversation in the comments of another fic (In which Rodney is not a princess and John works through a few things) in which we agreed that Rodney was, in essence a cat. They then pointed me in the direction of the Pallas cat, who was so quintessentially Rodney that I broke off what I was writing and jumped fully on board the Cat!Rodney train:

“I knew it! I knew there was Ancient tech here! McKay is going to go green…”

“Yeah, yeah, Langstrom, but save the victory dance for now. Just remember the golden rule is don’t…”

[Langstrom is a name plucked from the Quarantine episode of Red Dwarf - for no particular reason, except that Red Dwarf was my childhood and I love that episode in particular. Plus, she’s a great creepy villain, who undergoes a transformation of sorts, so there is a tenuous link.]

VSWOOSH!

[It took far, far too long to work out how to spell ‘Vswoosh!’]

“… touch anything.”

———

“Sergeant Holly, you weren’t due back for another three hours. Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine, Ma’am.” Pause. “Well, mostly fine.” Pause. “It’s not fine.”

“Sergeant. What’s in the bucket?”

“It’s more of a ‘who’s in the bucket’ really, Ma’am.”

Pause.

“I see.”

Tap.

“Dr McKay? We’re going to need the Rehumanator.”

[The name was intended to give off fifties style Mad Scientist vibes. Every sci fi adventurer needs this particular bit of kit and, honestly, it’s surprising that it doesn’t come as standard]

——-

Rodney stalked up and down the lab as Zelenka readied the cumbersome ray for use. If he’d had a tail, it would have been lashing with angry fervour.

[I wanted from the start to make Rodney an actual cat, who had - for practical reasons, mostly thumb-based - transformed himself into a human, rather than have him discover his inner cat through some form of Pegasus Standard Malarkey. Hence a bit of heavy foreshadowing.]

“…how many times do we have to go over the most basic safety protocols? I mean, three penguins, two mountain lions and a gerbil wasn’t enough? And who the hell gets themselves turned into Bouillabaisse soup?”

[this is a direct nod to the large number of - generally excellent - transformation fics in the fandom, though only the penguins are referencing stories that I knew existed. There may well be a gerbil Radek or Rodney or Teyla out there and I’m sure the world would be a better place for it.

Bouillabaisse Soup is there, by the way, because it’s just fun to say (not so much to type)]

John rested a placating hand on Rodney’s shoulder.

“You did catch all the drips, did you, Sergeant?”

“Sir, yes, sir!”

“Hmm. He does smell more pleasant than the mountain lions, at least.” Rodney inhaled from the bucket with a slightly dreamy expression.

“Er, Doc, can I humbly request that you don’t eat Dr Langstrom?”

As Rodney raised his hackles to full and started savaging Sergeant Holly for such an infamous suggestion - while casting the occasional longing look at the bucket - Zelenka stepped in with a hasty wave.

[more cat anvils being lobbed at you]

“Rehumanator is fully charged and ready.”

Rodney rolled his eyes so far, they went all the way round and came back again.

“Honestly, Radek, I expect this sort of thing from the grunts and soft scientists, but you, of all people, should know better. It’s not a Rehumanator, it’s an original DNA restoration device…”

“A factory reset.” John put in, mostly to watch Rodney go purple.

“Yes, yes, if you must reduce complex scientific principles to the most banal possible description.”

“I really must.”

[this is one of the most fun dynamics they have, when Rodney is being precise and wordy and John just cuts it down to essentials, with a huge smug smirk. Honestly, Rodney might just win in a smug-off, but John would be close]

Rodney glared at John. John smirked back. Radek carefully walked around them, so as not to get hit by a stray bolt of sexual tension. The last time that had happened, he hadn’t left his quarters for a week.

But what a week.

[I swear, this sort of thing actually happens in the show. Extras and side characters were constantly being hauled off the set with Sexual Chemistry-Related Shrapnel Damage]

“Perhaps we should restore Dr Langstrom now, Rodney? Unless you feel that he has not yet exhausted all the possibilities inherent in being soup?”

Rodney tore his gaze reluctantly from John’s and nodded impatiently.

“Yes, yes, of course. Do the thing.” He waved his hand at the ray and backed swiftly away from the bucket.

Zelenka aimed and fired.

VSWOOSH!

“Ouch.”

It turned out that scientists and buckets, in combination, could bond with more of a tenacity than one might imagine, when picturing them separately. Two Marines held the bucket, while Rodney and John took one arm each and began to heave.

In hindsight, Zelenka should not have leaned down over the Rehumanator to get a better view of his boss’s contraband, but inarguably excellent, ass, with muscles all nicely taut in the act of straining.

[There is an SGA Fiction Law which states that any fic containing more than a few sentences of Rodney McKay, must also contain due reverence towards his ass. This is just me complying with the law]

VSWOOSH!

“Sorry, sorry, my elbow slipped. But, is fine it should not do harm unless… ah. Now that is unexpected.”

The marines and John looked down at themselves, relieved to be in one piece. But sitting on the floor, with a glare like a rabid tiger, was the angriest, fluffiest grey cat they had ever seen.

[if you haven’t seen a Pallas cat, go look one up now. It will warm your heart and also glare at you, like you just ate its kittens]

———

“So let me get this straight. It wasn’t a malfunction with the Rehumanator?”

“No, no, was working perfectly. But, as Rodney explained,” Radek gave a nervous glance to the cat on the chair next to him, who was currently portraying the world’s mightiest huff with every separate fur he possessed, “it does not actually turn you human. It merely undoes any transformation that you may have undergone.”

“So, what are you saying?” Elizabeth glanced at Rodney and then Zelenka with incredulity. “You mean that Rodney is not human? That he’s really a cat?”

Sheppard knew that couldn’t be what Zelenka was saying. Except that, no, he was saying it. In those exact words.

“I have done all diagnostics, all possibilities for error. All it did, as the Colonel so eloquently put it, was a factory reset on Rodney. Therefore,” he shrugged. “Rodney is cat.”

They all looked at Rodney. Rodney glared at all of them, before letting out a little kitty sigh, licking a paw and nodding slightly.

Sheppard blinked and turned pale. “Excuse me. I need to just… process a few things.”

[as a side note, I believe there must be at least one SGC form for accidental bestiality; though whether anyone has dared to fill it in is very doubtful]

Rodney tried to follow but he was firmly scooped up and placed - to his absolute horror and indignation - in an improvised and very secure cat basket, which all of Rodney’s science team had worked together to make, with an unusual swiftness and sense of unity.

“Sorry, Rodney, but we need to get you checked out at the infirmary.”

“Actually, Dr Weir… I believe that Dr Sanders has a degree in veterinary science…”

The very secure cat basket proved to fold like so much tissue paper, in the face of the lashing of vengeful claws.

———

“Carson, could you be on the alert for three scientists and two marines headed your way with multiple lacerations, bites and one severe fur allergy?”

———

“Atlantis General Notice: Should anyone spot a largish, extremely fluffy cat in your vicinity, please report it immediately. Do not, repeat, do not, approach the animal or attempt to capture it. Nor, and this is very important, should you make kissy faces at the cat or use phrases like ‘Here Tiddles!’ or ‘Who’s a little cutie pie, then?’. The infirmary is rapidly running out of bandaids.”

[I ran through several alternate cutesie cat names (which I can’t remember now but probably were along the lines of FluffyBoots or Snugglekins) but ultimately ‘Tiddles’ had just the right quality of banality and depressing indignity]

——-

“Atlantis General Notice: Colonel Sheppard has asked me to also point out that the cat should not be harmed in any way. Or, I quote, “if anyone harms so much as a whisker on his angry little face, they will spend the rest of their lives, and afterlives, regretting that they were ever born.”

[Sheppard will, naturally, protect Rodney under any circumstances and as any species, no matter the cost - and, frankly, I think he enjoys being just that much of an ethically flexible badass]

——-

“Atlantis General Notice: Seriously, stop it with the pet names. We’re now down to two Spiderman bandaids and a roll of sellotape.

[the author does not recommend that you tend your wounds with sellotape and refuses to be held responsible for any subsequent physical and emotional distress consequent on trying]

———

Sightings of Rodney ceased after less than a day. It wasn’t until two days later that he returned: bipedal, distinctly less fluffy and wearing an improvised toga made of bedlinen.

Elizabeth allowed him to retrieve a uniform before the debriefing.

“So, I think you can understand that we have some questions…”

Rodney scowled, his expression so like his cat self that, for a moment, the whole Command staff thought he had reverted and backed off about a foot.

“Okay, look. Yes, I was born a cat. Obviously. And I would go so far as to say that I was a very good cat. For about six months, I lived a happy, catly life, deducing natural laws from first principles, studying the stars and enjoying the benefits of an incredibly flexible tongue and spine. Until I realised that, for all my incredible intellect, the stupid prejudices and species-centricity of humanity was going to make it impossible for me to ever win a Nobel prize.

So, I worked for weeks on my own personal transformation ray, which, let me tell you, was no picnic with paws. But, you know,“ Rodney preened smugly, “genius.”

[or, in other words, the author couldn’t really think of a method of complex DNA-shuffling machine-construction by a kitten and used the ‘get out of explanations free card]

He leaned back on the chair, absently lifting his hand to his mouth then hastily lowering it, just before it met his gently poking tongue.

“Anyway. I was still pretty young, from a human perspective, at that point, so I smuggled myself to Canada, got adopted and threw all of my energy and time into science. And also, quite a lot of batting at scrunched up paper for the first two years, but some habits are hard to shake.”

[I considered whether to make Jeannie a cat too, but ultimately decided to just go simple. At this point in the series, at least, therefore, she doesn’t realise that her brother is actually a cat. I don’t know whether Rodney’s been brave enough to risk that conversation since]

Rodney crossed his arms and scowled fiercely at everyone.

“So, how did you turn back?” Sheppard asked.

Rodney sighed.

“Apparently you weren’t listening. I built a transformation ray at the age of six months. And that was with the drawback of the lack of materials to be found on the rocky steppes of my birthplace. You would not believe how hard it was to source a DNA reconstituting module… well, anyway. Short answer, I’m a genius and Atlantis is chock full of weird stuff. The only reason it took me so long was that it’s also surprisingly full of string and… well, that’s not important either.”

[the birth of Cat!Rodney’s fascination with string, which all cats I have known have been greatly enamoured with and scientists are rather keen on in general too]

“So, are you planning on staying as a human, now?”

Rodney waved his hand vaguely. “Yes, yes. It was… not wholly unpleasant to connect with my roots, but the lack of opposable thumbs and intelligible speech would always be a drawback. Though some of my scientists seem to manage…”

Elizabeth stepped in before he could get going on a full rant.

“Well, I’m sure that we’ll all be glad to have you back. Though, you might find that people need a little time for adjustment.”

Rodney snorted. “What’s to adjust? I’m exactly the same as I always was, except now everyone knows that my baby pictures are cuter than theirs.”

[some kind person left a link to a Pallas kitten on the last fic in the series, which should definitely be checked out if anyone doubts this]

Sheppard nodded. “Can’t argue with that.”

The meeting adjourned shortly afterwards.

——-

“So, er, Rodney…”

Rodney sighed and removed his hand from John’s pants.

“This whole interspecies sex thing is freaking you out, isn’t it?”

[despite this essentially being crack, I felt this whole issue had to be addressed a bit, if only to then sweep it firmly under the carpet]

John missed Rodney’s hand but he felt they probably did need to discuss the issue.

“Well, yeah. Kinda.”

“Okay, so look. I don’t do my DNA alteration by halves. I’m completely physically human. Ask Carson. I would never have been allowed on the expedition otherwise.”

“So…”

“So, sleeping with me is not bestiality, nor does it make you a furry, if that’s a concern for you. It just means you have excellent taste.”

John considered for a moment and then popped Rodney’s hand back into his boxers.

“Well, okay then.”

———

“So, Rodney. Ever thought about having kittens?”

“I will end you in your sleep, Sheppard.”

“Goodnight, Rodney.”

“Goodnight.”

——-

And, at least, now John knew why Rodney had always purred after sex.

[this whole fic took about an hour to write (plus some polishing time afterwards) and the longest part of that was trying to end it; which is something that goes for almost all my stories. It almost finished with Goodnight, but that just felt too abrupt; fortunately I think Rodney is easy to imagine as a happy post-coital purrer, without stretching disbelief too far. Because, you know, this is a very serious fic 😁]

This series is one of my favourites to write, because it’s full of love and support from everyone, and because I love the sheer goofiness of it all, with, hopefully, a lot of heart at the centre.

And because cats. You can never have too much cat.

Appreciate the ask! 💖

#Ask game #answer #A cat may look at a particle accelerator #Fic commentary

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hlmoorewrites · 1 year ago

Note

commentary on a scene of your choice from "the house is burning (better run for cover)"? 👁️ 👁️

hhhh but I love every scene in it how do I just chose one--!

After much deliberation, I'll be providing commentary on this scene from the house is burning (better run for cover):

***

“It’s pancake morning. Need to get there before McKay eats it all.”

“He’s never up this early,” Ronon says, and it’s true – McKay isn’t there, so Sheppard takes his time loading up on pancakes and genuine Canadian maple syrup and joins Lorne at his table.

“How’s the painting going, Major?”

“Almost done with the latest, Colonel,” Lorne says proudly. “Want to see it?”

Not particularly, but Sheppard makes a point of being supportive of his soldiers’ creative hobbies. It’s an impressive work, a landscape of the ocean with Atlantis in the foreground surrounded by her puddle jumpers, cast against a night sky and a full moon.

After he makes his escape, he showers and roams the large, mostly empty corridors of his city of silver and water. Atlantis’s song is quiet today, her response to his presence the brush of his fingers across her panels weak, sluggish. He walks along the southwest pier until Woolsey comms him to tell him there are complaints coming out of the science labs and can Sheppard get the ‘situation’ (code for a one Dr M. Rodney McKay) back under control, please?

The ‘situation’ makes itself immediately obvious: all four of McKay’s scientists huddled outside (thrown out?) and watching McKay through the glass panels. “What’s going on here?” Sheppard asks, and before anyone can respond, a laptop gets thrown through the window. Sheppard jumps back with a curse and orders the scientists to clear out.

“Hey, enough! Enough!” he yells, storming in between chairs and valuable, priceless equipment getting launched all over the thoroughly trashed lab. He grabs McKay by the arms, forcing his friend to stop and breathe. “What the hell’s gotten into you?”

“He’s gone!” McKay yells.

“Who’s gone?”

“Radek! Radek Zelenka!”

Sheppard frowns. “Who?”

McKay snarls and jerks out of his grasp. “Radek Zelenka, small Czech guy with glasses, crazy hair? Engineer? Come on, Sheppard!”

Sheppard doesn’t remember McKay hitting his head on the last mission, but he’s been jumpy about McKay seeing things or forgetting things since the parasite. Probably time to get Carson up here. Sheppard reaches for his earpiece. “Rodney, look, you’ve… been under a lot of stress lately, but –”

“It’s funny,” McKay continues, pacing back and forth, “you’d think I’d be less hysterical than when Teyla vanished. And don’t get me wrong, I was! I spent five loops curled up in my quarters until my powerbars started disappearing! She was the only one who believed me from the moment I told her, because she felt something was wrong even though she didn’t remember Torren! But she couldn’t help me with equations and engineering like Radek can, and now he’s gone too and the sample size is decreasing more and more every single loop which means the rate of decay is accelerating exponentially.”

Sheppard blinks. “I have no… idea who or what you’re talking about it.”

McKay stares at him helplessly, tears in his eyes. He looks gutted, an expression Sheppard has seen on his face only once: John, I’ve never been so scared, I’m slipping away, I’m slipping away and I don’t know how to stop myself.

“I’m trying to say – I can’t fix this,” McKay says. He reaches for Sheppard’s arms; Sheppard reaches back, catching McKay before he can collapse. “John. I don’t think I can fix th—”

***

This is from the second segment of the fic. We already know that the story involves a time-loop because that's in the summary, so this isn't a surprise to the reader... but it is the first time we realise that the loop isn't the same each time.

I chose to write this fic from the perspective of Sheppard, who actually doesn't know that time is looping, in order to see the impact of the loops on the only one who does know: Rodney McKay. My intention with this scene was to demonstrate a few things - to make it occur to the reader that time has been looping for much, much longer than they may have initially realised, and it isn't a stable loop. Things are disappearing each loop. Teyla wasn't even mentioned in the first loop, but how many readers picked up on that? It's not until Rodney mentions that Teyla was "the only one who believed [him]" that we realise she isn't there, and probably hasn't been there for a while.

In doing so, I force the reader to go back up to the first section and reread it, and compare it to the start of the second section, to identify what is missing. What's being eaten away as the fabric of reality disintegrates around Atlantis. And to sit there with existential horror, because no one else except Rodney - and now the reader - knows reality is unravelling.

Thank you for the ask!!! <3

#stargate atlantis #SGA #rodney mckay #john sheppard #McShep

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halestrom · 1 year ago

Note

😄 for leather, ✏️ for won’t say I’m in love, 🎲 for alllllllllll of themmmmm

😄 What part are you most excited to write?

baassssiclly the fic is gonna end with john fucking rodney while rodney is wearing his season 4 leather jacket and nothing else so that's gonna be fun lol.

✏️ Have you deleted any scenes or strayed from your initial plan?

I just deleted like 3k! Not because the scene wasn't good, but because its the Moment in the fic. The oh moment and i liked the one i wrote, but it wasn't the vibe i had had in my head for the last 60k i had written and it was stalling me from writing the rest of it. so i scrapped the whole thing and rewrote it and i like this one a lot better.honestly. might rewrite it again because its The Moment I've had in my head and i want it to be perfect.

🎲 Scroll wildly through your WIP doc and post a snippet from where you land when you stop!

I Won't Say I'm In Love:

“Hmm,” Radek said. “So, there is no one?” Evan shrugged. “As far as I know there isn’t. Unless you wanna know who I’m fucking.” “No, do not have the time to listen to that list again,” Radek said, shaking his head. “Hey!” Evan said, slightly offended even though it was true. “Hi!” Evan looked up as David appeared in the doorway, looking between Radek and Evan. “Oh, you weren’t saying hi?” David asked, even as he walked over and kissed Radek hello. “Well, it could double as a hello,” Evan said, tapping his stylus against his tablet. “Mostly I was just being insulted.” “I called him a slut,” Radek said, beaming at David.

Slowburn

His phone rang again and he checked it, seeing the same number. He ignored it, but after a second thought added Rodney’s name to his contact list. The phone rang again, and this time John picked it up. “We’re sorry, the number you have dialed is no longer in service. Please hang up and try again,” John said in the same voice he had once used on CO’s he didn’t like. “Bullshit,” Rodney muttered. “Look! I know I’ve been a bit of a dick lately but there’s a good reas—” John hung up

Leather+John

John pulled back from Rodney and sneezed, shaking his head to clear it only to sneeze, and keep on sneezing until he started to get frustrated. He was aware of Rodney hovering, hands fluttering in the air and holding something it took John a moment to realize was a tissue. He took it and blew his nose, shaking his head as something still tickled his nose. He finally managed to clear it and breathed in, smelling something new. “Cologne?” he asked, hearing how stuffy he sounded. Rodney took a few, hasty, steps back. “Yeah, new one,” he said. “I uh…take it that it doesn’t work for you?” John waved for Rodney to come closer and leaned in to kiss him again, only to sneeze when Rodney got closer and he backed up, shaking his head. “Ah, Jesus. What is that? Pepper spray?” he asked, rubbing both hands over his face as he tried to stop himself from sneezing again, but it was a lost cause. “Smoke Show. It’s supposed to have notes of pink peppercorn,” Rodney said, rubbing the side of his neck, looking at John before shaking his head and walking into the bathroom, the shower starting up a second later.

One More Lonely Soul

“Is this urgent?” he asked, interrupting Bates. He dropped his hand to look at his new Senior NCO and then at Ford, a kid entirely too young to be an XO in his opinion, but John was still too new to question anything, even if he had a thousand questions. Bates opened his mouth, closed it and glared. “I would think considering the past week you would find the security of this base to be quite urgent.” “I think the only thing the past week has shown us is that any preconceived notion anyone had should be kicked out the door,” John replied before he leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Look, Sgt. None of you want me in this position, and I’m not gonna Monday morning quarterback Colonel Sumners decisions regarding chain of command, but, and no offense here Lt. Ford, but, I don’t think he is quite ready to be in Command. Right?” “No argument here,” Ford said quickly, looking over at Bates and back at John.

#ask meme #woop this is a long post #yolo

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texasdreamer01 · 1 year ago

Note

Thank you for joining in on WIP Wednesday!!!!!

👁️🪢🥐⏰

Ooh, random emojis - I guess you'll be getting some snippets since theorems of a ghost is my longest wip at the moment lol

👁️

Once again Radek felt the need to curse at his coworker. McKay would have of course predicted that outcome as well, a dog with a bone where his anxieties were concerned. It didn't help that the man was right. He slumped into one of the chairs opposite the man, sighing, "We've found even more data." "Dr. McKay was a thorough man," Woolsey said dryly, the bags under his eyes evidence of the synopses the science departments had sent his way, "I can only imagine how much all of you are thumbing through."

🪢

Mox had taken one look at them and shook her head, dragging out more mats and arranging them with Teyla's direction. It seemed to settle both of them, especially with the thin string of tension that McKay's contemplative silence knotted over them. He knew it wasn't the man's fault, throat and temperament still healing, but only Sheppard seemed mostly unbothered by it, the two of them conducting entire conversations via facial expressions.

🥐

"Doctor Zelenka?" He glanced up, seeing Ms Emmagen looking at him in polite concern. She had a tray full of food, and he collected himself, gesturing to the empty seat opposite. Smiling, she acquiesced, settling down in front of him. Her meal was left untouched in favour of meeting his gaze - his lips twitched in a faint smile, and he leaned back in his seat, "Good morning, Ms Emmagen." "Teyla, please," She admonished, returning his smile with a brighter one. It reminded him of Elizabeth, and he felt his heart clench, exhaling instead. Catching the mood, she peered down at her own plate, reluctantly taking up her utensils, "I see you are up early." He shrugged, slouching a little into his seat, "Too much to do, I… still haven't acclimated, to be honest."

⏰

Missions like this were usually resolved within a week, at most two, if cultural relations were a little more stringent than usual. The frightening ones, which made them look at the clock rather than the calendar, were resolved with a determination they appreciated. But one week turned into two, and two into three. By the time the fourth week rolled over them, carrying their worry like so much flotsam, AR-1 had settled into an ashen, grim-faced demeanour that spoke of the long haul.

#spurious #did I cherry-pick for dramatic bits? yep

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sga-owns-my-soul · 1 year ago

Text

20 Questions for Fic Writers

thanks @wonkyelk and @esteefee for the tag!!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

21 currently!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

27805! which is insane to me

3. What fandoms do you write for?

stargate atlantis 🥰

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Rodney McKay Has Worth (and not just for his brain) and Not Dating, but More Than Friends

Names Have Power

The Scientist and The Soldier

Expressions of Love and Trust

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

i try to! i don't always see comments but i definitely try to respond, even it's just to say thanks for commenting i'm glad you enjoyed it! it means a lot to me when people take time out of their day to not only read my fics, but to also leave a comment. i always appreciate it!

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

for posted fics, probably Bludgeoned, it's very angsty and ends with an vague insinuation that rodney may or may not survive his latest off-world incident. for fics in general it's definitely my Bad Timeline au wip where nothing happy happens

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Ronon Gets Mad at Sheppard, i think. i've got a lot of fics with a happy ending but i'm really proud of this one and how it turned out. it was a bit of a challenge bc i don't write ronon very often but it was really fun to get into his character and i'm happy with how things got wrapped up in that one, i think it's a very cute fic

8. Do you get hate on fics?

thankfully, no!

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

yesss i love writing smut 🙏🏼 im honestly surprised at how little smut i have on my ao3 honestly, i don't think i even have a kink fic posted which is my favourite kind of smut to write. i should fix that 🤔 (feel free to send me ideas!!)

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

i have written exactly one crossover in my life, i posted it unfinished on wattpad like a decade ago and it was a bones/one direction crossover where the boys got kidnapped by the gravedigger. i think i wrote like 4 chapters total before i abandoned it 😅

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i know of, and i really hope i never do. i have no issues with people sharing my fics but please don't claim it as your own!!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that i know of, but i would be so honoured if someone did!!!

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

i'm currently co-writing A Big Project with @the-mushroom-faerie but shhh it's a secret no spoilers

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

this will come as no surprise to anyone but it's mcshep 🥰🥰

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

so i had this idea for a fic about radek visiting rodney everytime he's in the infirmary, and it starts off with like a "hey can you sign off on these things cool thanks bye" but then after the storm he visits him and sees his arm and it progresses to radek getting very sad and stressed every time rodney gets hurt so he visits him in the infirmary. i've written a few scenes for it but it's such a big project that i doubt i'll ever finish it

16. What are your writing strengths?

i'm very very good at writing angst and sadness, probably bc i am a void of angst and sadness 😂

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

endings i'm so bad at endings i can't write endings for SHIT i feel like most of my endings suck lmao i also cannot do technobabble i'm not smart 😂

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

i only speak my bastard native language so i have to rely on other people or google translate so i very rarely do it, but i think it's so cool when other writers can do it!!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

uhhhh i don't remember if it was one direction or dan and phil that i first ever wrote for, i wrote for both of them right around the same time

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

i really love all the fics i've written, both published and unpublished, but i think my absolute favourite fic i've written was this ficlet i posted here for a kiss prompt between ronon and jennifer (i just think it's so adorable and i love them and the little team dynamic/interaction is so sweet it's just so cute okay i love it)

Tags: @the-mushroom-faerie @spurious @frostysfrenzy @colonelshepparrrrd @frankthesnek and anyone else who wants to!!!

#thanks for the tags friends!!!#these are so fun #always good #tag game #writing #kinda stargate

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twotales · 2 years ago

Note

👀 Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

Thanks for the ask!! Well, the fic I am really excited about and have been working on every day for pm a month now is called Static. Static might be the scariest thing I have ever written. Which is hilarious to my partner because I do not like scary things. But this story must exist, so~ It actually stemmed from a Radek & Rodney prompt I got in which the two had to be working on a problem while very sick or tired. I'm trying to be vague here but here is an excerpt (this fic is super long so editing is nil right now:) [ It launched over the table at him, pinning him to the ground. “Oh fuck, oh fuck,” its mouth opened wide, a metallic scent burning Rodney's nose and stinging his eyes. Nonononono. He punched it in the side, his fist pushing into their torso far more than should have been possible. Oh, god. I'm dead. I'm fucking dead. He heard a thunk before it let out a hiss of static and wrenched away from him, pressing its wrists to its now slit-open face. It stumbled back against the table, the microscope and vials smashing against them. Rodney shoved himself backward by his hands and feet before jumping to stand just as Radek thrust a hand sledge at him. Rodney hefted it up as -Redacted- shuddered violently, its chest pushing outwardly as its belly twisted in and turned at wrong angles... ]

#wip ask #asks #fanfic #twotalesff #Static #sga #rodney mckay #radek zelenka #horror

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the-land-of-eternal-winter-novel · 2 years ago

Text

I posted 136 times in 2022

That's 136 more posts than 2021!

78 posts created (57%)

58 posts reblogged (43%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@tzarina-alexandra

@dalriata-propaganda-department

@scarvenartist

@the-land-of-eternal-winter-novel

I tagged 135 of my posts in 2022

Only 1% of my posts had no tags

#the land of eternal winter - 114 posts

#my novel - 91 posts

#draft 1 - 62 posts

#anatoliy - 21 posts

#gintare - 13 posts

#sveta - 12 posts

#scene - 9 posts

#radek - 8 posts

#afanasiy - 7 posts

#draft 2 - 7 posts

Longest Tag: 134 characters

#the chapter was named something like the country in which winter never ends or something less spiritual sounding than land and eternal

My Top Posts in 2022:

Now that I finished posting the chapters I can finally post my latest illustration

This depicts the very first scene of the very first chapter. You can read it by searching #chapter 1

I have re written the first scene a little, although I haven't gotten round to the entire chapter

_______

The prince rushed down the hallway, with a determined look, heavy, steady steps and a large pile of newspapers. Entering the main dining room, he didn't even bother to sit down before slamming the papers against the table. He pointed his finger to the title of an article and told his brother-in-law next to him:

"Read that!"

“Maksim Vladimirovich Sokolov died in a fire in his own laboratory, only a day after having been found guilty of his parents’ poisoning. ”

"As he very well deserved!" he exclaimed, full of confidence.

"What is it that you want from me, Tolya? You arrive late for breakfast, you don't greet me and now you desperately want me to read this 25 year old newspaper. You weren't even born then!"

"Sorry, Radek, but this was rather urgent. You didn't believe me when I told you of lab-made diseases, so I did a bit of research on that. If they existed then, they also do now. Read the other articles as well, you'll find everything you need to know about that 'scientist'.”

Radek looked at him in confusion for a second, then widened his eyes in disbelief. It was only now that he noticed Anatoliy was dressed the same as the previous day, and he was pale and with dark circles under his eyes.

"Did you stay up all night just to prove me wrong? It wasn't that serious of a debate either!"

"I knew you wouldn't take me seriously, so I went to the archives immediately after finishing yesterday's breakfast in order to do some research. I was certain I would find much information, and as you can see, I did."

Radek placed his palms on his forehead and sighed, then continued:

"Please, stop now. (...)"

______

I may be insecure about other parts of my writing but I am very satisfied with the opening for this novel, I think it sets the stage well in terms of mood and characterisation.

4 notes - Posted September 6, 2022

As I have mentioned many times both here and on main, I have already written and posted draft 1, and I am now working in some capacity on draft 2, which is going to contain smaller or greater changes.

Please refer to these links for future reference:

Description of the plot:

All LoeW art posted ever:

https://www.deviantart.com/tzarina-alexandra/gallery/71744393/the-land-of-eternal-winter-art

All draft 1 chapters:

https://www.deviantart.com/tzarina-alexandra/gallery/73346611/the-land-of-eternal-winter-draft-1-chapters

Main tumblr: @tzarina-alexandra

4 notes - Posted August 18, 2022

🖊Your main character

Thank you for the ask!

The main character of my novel is Anatoliy, the son of the emperor (but not the heir; he is the middle child).

In terms of personality, he is a very passionate person, both for the better (he puts a lot of attention and care into his interests and his loved ones) and for the worse (in modern times he would 100% be diagnosed w/ OCD, being unable to let go of his fears and worries). His main quality would be honesty and his main flaws would be stubbornness and recklessness. He thus perceived by others as rather immature (he's almost 22 in the first chapter) and a bit of a conspiracy theorist, but he is well loved by his family despite the disagreements.

In terms of values, he is very religious (but it would be accurate to say that he tends towards legalism). What he values the most in life is justice, but to the detriment of forgiveness, and honesty, to the detriment of grace.

In terms of relationships, he is the kind of person to put people into two main groups: friends vs enemies. Towards people he considers to be friends he is very kind and loyal, but, as he in fact does in the first chapters, he would take matters into his own hands if he thought somebody harmed his loved ones. As it stands, his circle of trusted people is rather small, consisting mostly of his family members (father, two sisters, a brother-in-law, 3 nephews, uncle and as of recent his wife and newborn).

The main plot involves him assassinating the neighboring king because he believed him to be guilty for his father's death, and only afterwards does he learn that the man was innocent.

(#anatoliy for pictures or posts about him)

5 notes - Posted September 18, 2022

The Land of Eternal Winter - Political Compass 9×9 - ultimate character sheet + worldbuilding masterpost

Auth-Left

Including actual communists but generally just working class people and their adjacent labour unions, political parties etc

See the full post

6 notes - Posted November 24, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I wanted to draw her with a candle for some time because I thought it would be symbolic, as the meaning of the name Elena is something along the lines of candle

11 notes - Posted September 13, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #literally so excited #very satisfied with the end top 5 #also the tags make sense #top rebloggers yeah obviously #etc

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eirian-houpe · 1 year ago

Text

Harm's Way - Act 3

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Teyla Emmagan/Michael Kenmore Characters: Michael Kenmore, Teyla Emmagan, John Sheppard, Ronon Dex, Rodney McKay, Radek Zelenka, Samantha "Sam" Carter, Evan Lorne, Kanaan (Stargate), Jennifer Keller, Todd the Wraith (Stargate), Steven Caldwell, Original Stargate Wraith Character(s), Original Stargate Character(s) Additional Tags: Angst, Kidnapping, Action, Canon-Typical Violence, Drama, Hybrids, Pregnancy, Interspecies Romance, Slow Romance, Other Additional Tags to Be Added Series: Part 1 of SGA Virtual Season Five Summary:

With Colonel Sheppard's team still trapped in what remains of Michael's compound, and Teyla in Michael's hands, Colonel Carter must hurry to rescue them before the game of 'Lantean in the middle' takes an even more deadly turn with the arrival of the Wraith, led by a new and vicious queen, and her too-familiar scientist.

Read previous chapters on AO3

Act 3

He was dreaming. It was a terrible dream wherein he was trapped in a hole barely big enough for him to crawl around on his hands and knees. He was hurt and bleeding, but still scrambling around searching for something; something important that could mean the salvation or destruction of the Pegasus galaxy. Just when he thought he'd found it, some screaming Banshee had flown at him out of the rumbling fire of another explosion. She robbed him of his senses as she carried him down into the pit of hell filled with half Wraithlike men. They dragged him to a chamber where he was subjected to torture and partial dismemberment

Rodney McKay surfaced slowly. The dream had been so real that the back of his head and his arm still ached from the memory of it. Moaning he tried to sit up and move his hand to wipe the last vestiges of sleep from his face. After a moment of struggling, that became increasingly more urgent as the seconds passed, he realized that he couldn't.

"Please try not to move around, Doctor McKay. I should hate for you to undo the work I've put in to ensure your good health."

"Michael!" Rodney's eyes flew open and he watched as the menacing figure that was Michael came to his side and looked down on him, where he lay, restrained against the bed.

"Of course, whether you continue to enjoy that good health is entirely in your hands," Michael continued, quietly intimidating.

"Sure," Rodney managed, somewhat more confidently than he felt, "threaten a helpless man."

"Hardly," Michael said.

"Oh yeah?" he asked, unable to help himself as he rattled his good arm against the restraints. "What am I going to do?"

"It was hardly a threat," Michael corrected him with even softer menace.

Rodney watched in alarm, refusing to take his eyes off the former Wraith as Michael attached a bag of a strange, almost luminescent, straw-coloured fluid to an IV line and then adjusted the flow. The line disappeared beneath the bandage around Rodney's forearm

"Relax, Doctor." Michael said and he cringed as Michael looked at him with wry amusement. "You lost a lot of blood after you were injured "

"What do you care?" he snapped.

" and I wouldn't want you dying before you tell me what I want to know." Michael concluded without missing a beat, the mild amusement replaced with a definitely threatening undertone.

Rodney swallowed hard. His bravado suddenly evaporated in the heat of Michael's gaze. "What do you want from me?" he asked.

"In time," Michael answered and then left his side to cross the room and stop next to another bed. He looked down at the occupant, whom Rodney couldn't properly see, and said almost thoughtfully, "Your companion was not quite so fortunate."

"Major Lorne?" Rodney swallowed again. "What did you do to him?"

Michael turned and glared, making Rodney wish that he could take back the words and sink into the surface of the bed. He whimpered slightly and stammered, "Well, I can't believe you'd help him purely out of the goodness of your heart. Altruism, you know?"

"I fear that there is little more I can do for him," Michael cut him off, adding somewhat coldly, "even out of the goodness of my heart."

Slowly Michael returned to Rodney's side and looked down at him again. For a long time his wraithlike eyes bore into Rodney's, awakening every fear, every nightmare, that the scientist had ever known.

"Now, tell me what you saw," Michael said almost gently.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, his voice trembling.

"Don't be a fool, Doctor," Michael's gaze did not waver and the room receded into a darkness that pressed around him, threatening to suffocate him. It grabbed his primordial fears and crushed him with them until a scream began to gather in his throat as Michael asked again, "What did you see?"

-did you see- -you see- -see-

"You. I--" he squeaked.

"You will tell me."

-will tell me- -tell me- -tell-

"Ronon!" Carter called a warning to him in the same moment that he sensed the Wraith behind him and turned to catch the enemy warrior by the arm. He pulled him into the fist he swung into the bone cover of his face.

Without waiting to see if his pugilistic attack had been effective he snatched his weapon from his holster to fire point blank at his would be assailant , and then beyond to the others that were already running in, raising their weapons as they came.

"Ronon, get out of there!" Carter repeated the warning, as more of the bone faced warriors began to rush toward his position. He growled and instead faced off against them even more, firing time and again into their midst.

"We need to get back to the 'Gate while we stand at least half a chance of taking them down," he called to her. He knew he was taking a risk in rushing the Wraith as he was, but he couldn't help but notice the change in them since the incident at the compound. It was almost as if something had knocked some of the wind out of them. Though it didn't necessarily make them any less deadly, he knew they had to take advantage of even the smallest weakness.

"But not to get ourselves killed in the process." The colonel, and the men with her, advanced to his side. They fired into the Wraith warriors to give him support against the onslaught.

He turned his head and almost grinned at her, "I hadn't intended to," he said, before once more, firing with each step, he lead the colonel and the marines deeper into the Wraith held vicinity of the 'Gate.

She woke suddenly and even before she was fully awake began running her hands over herself, checking for injuries; checking for anything out of place, before opening her eyes into the dim, blue lit interior of the holding area aboard the Wraith cruiser. Quickly Alicia Vega scooted backwards until she made contact with the solid wall.

"Fine mess you made of it this time girl," she told herself softly, under her breath. She reached inside her uniform, inside the front of her shirt to make sure that the core she'd taken from Doctor McKay was still nestled there against her bust. She breathed a sigh of relief when, disturbed, it pinched her soft skin until she could resettle it again. "Maybe not quite a complete mess then."

Narrowing her eyes a little she peered beyond the confines of her cell to try and see what she could of the rest of the ship. She could see little enough and no Wraith at all, which as far as she was concerned was more than all right, because it meant she might live for a little while longer before one of them decided to feed on her. She frowned, her memory of how she reached the holding cell was at best hazy, at the worst, it made little sense to her.

Scrambling over the lip of the mound she threw herself at Rodney McKay, taking him down to the ground in an inelegant tackle that knocked the breath out of her lungs and jammed the butt of her P90 painfully against her ribs.

The scream of the Dart grew louder, reminding her that she did not have time for discomfort, and she rolled to the side. As she did she quickly grabbed the object from the doctor's hand and quickly shoved it down inside her shirt before she snatched her weapon into her hands and began firing

A tingling cold spread through her body and she lost awareness of herself for a moment. In the next heartbeat she opened her eyes to the dim interior of some kind of cavernous chamber. She lay on her back, her P90 still clutched in her suddenly unresponsive hands. Beside her lay the stunned Doctor McKay, and next to both of them the badly injured form of Major Lorne.

And around her, several shadowed forms. It didn't quite take the mind of a genius to work out that the outstretched arms were no doubt holding some kind of weapons

"They weren't Wraith, they were men," she remembered with mounting horror. That could only mean one thing, and she didn't expect it to be good news. Quickly she unfolded her legs, and climbed to her feet, approaching the web-like bars of her cell to try and find a way out.

In spite of her fears, things had taken a bit of an upturn as they committed themselves to Ronon's insane charge. She didn't dare let herself get complacent though, the sky was still ringing with the sound of mosquito-like Darts that were still flying search patterns, randomly firing into the ground and air alike to try and find the Jumpers she had ordered to the other side of the planet. On the ground the Wraith still outnumbered what amounted to little more than a small guerrilla force of marines by at least four to one and worst of all, it would soon be dark. However, they had managed to take, and hold a defensible position within site of the Stargate.

Ronon ducked back down, breathing hard as he pressed his back against the natural barricade behind which the two of them sheltered. Around them the sounds of gunfire provided a staccato accompaniment to his labored breathing.

"I think I can see a way past this," he said, his voice a little hoarse from all the yelling he'd been doing.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

She watched him glance around and then he picked up a stick, and with his booted foot levelled a section of the ground in front of them to make a pallet for his diagram. Quickly he started to draw.

"Here's the 'Gate," he said as he made some marks in the dirt, "and here and here are the Wraith guards." He looked over at her to make sure he was following so far. She nodded and he continued, "We're here and beyond us here," he made another series of marks on the ground, "is the tree line. This..."

Whatever he started to say was interrupted as the natural barricade of fallen logs, overgrown with tufts of grass, exploded behind them. Almost as one, she and Ronon turned to lean up over the lip of their cover, opening up on the Wraith who had tried to take advantage in the lull of their assault.

"I got it," she yelled at him over the combined sounds of their weapons, telling him she had the diagram in her memory, "go on!"

"Just the other side of the trees is a small gully, and from the shape of the ground over there," he nodded to their side, "the gully runs out from the woods, through to the other side of the Stargate. If we could get to that point I think it's a blind spot that could get us close enough to take out the guards."

He stopped talking for long enough to fire an uninterrupted volley of shots into an overgrown patch of foliage up ahead until a Wraith warrior came tumbling out with a smoking hole in his chest.

"How do we know there aren't more Wraith in the woods further down?" she asked, not to challenge him, but to better understand his thinking; to encourage him to develop his plan.

"We don't," he answered, "though I'd think if there were, we'd have Wraith breathing down our necks from both behind us and in front as well."

He started firing again. The high pitched sound of his weapon against the percussive sound of her P90 was staring to make her ears ring. "Good point," she yelled, and then she glanced behind her toward the trees. "It could work," she decided after a moment or two. "We'll need cover."

"Go," he told her, "I'll cover you."

"No." She put her hand onto his arm. "Your plan you're coming with me."

"What," he turned his head to grin at her, "So you can kick my ass in case something goes wrong?"

"Something like that," she said with a smile and then she keyed her mic and called for one of the other subdivisions of her team to give them both the covering fire they needed to reach the woods.

Nothing she could do made the slightest difference to the bars of the holding cell. She could find no control panel to tamper with, not, she thought to herself, that doing so was a particularly good or safe idea and neither could she damage them with anything she had to hand. With a sigh she rested her forehead against the bars.

"There is little point in your struggles."

She started, and jumped away from the bars as the figure that had spoken approached the cell. From beyond arm's reach she peered at him, taking a measure of him and shivered at the appearance of the hybrid soldier.

His skin, obviously once tan, was mottled and the veins at his temples and along his forehead stood as though engorged. His pupils were wide in the dim light, but even so she could see the pale quality of his irises.

He regarded her with cold dispassion and continued, "He will come to speak with you when he is ready."

She glared at the hybrid, trying not to let show just how much the thought of it disturbed her. "Then what do you want with me?"

The hybrid shrugged, and blinked as if the question made no sense to him, and then, holding out the bowl he had in his hands, said, "I was told to bring you food."

She took a step backwards, away from the outstretched hands and looked at the bowl as though it was a weapon pointed toward her. The hybrid remained in that posture, waiting patiently for a time, before he took another step forward and set the bowl onto the floor just inside the bars.

Vega couldn't help but take a look. The food inside had the appearance of porridge, though she doubted very much that was what it was. Taking another step back she said, "What makes you think that I'll take anything you give me?"

The hybrid shrugged, "It does not matter to me if you do, or you do not," he said. "But I was told to say to you that the Geneva Conventions state: The basic daily food rations shall be sufficient in quantity, quality and variety to keep prisoners of war in good health and to prevent loss of weight or the development of nutritional deficiencies."

Vega blinked. If she could have made a guess at the answer he would have given, that was the furthest from her mind.

"Excuse me?" she said, nonplussed.

"The Geneva Conventions st--"

"I heard what you said," she took a step toward the bars, to peer at him more closely, wondering perhaps if she had been mistaken in identifying him as a hybrid. The same pallid skin and bulging veins, the same paling of the iris met her eyes. She had not been mistaken.

"Then what is your confusion?" he asked, creasing his face in confusion of his own.

"Since when did your..." she struggled for a way to describe the part-Wraith, part-Human creature; eventually settled on, " boss comply with the Geneva Conventions?"

"I was told to bring you food," he repeated, starting to turn away.

Vega's mind began to race. She could use this. She could turn this to her advantage and use it to find a way out of the cell and off the ship.

"Wait!" she called. He turned back and waited for her to speak again. "What about " she glanced around, " you know, facilities."

"Your needs will be catered for," he said, fixing her with the kind of expression that told her he knew exactly what she would try to do, "at the appropriate time."

"And when is that?"

"He will speak with you when he is ready." The hybrid soldier turned and began to walk away, as he did so, he said, "In the mean time, I suggest you eat."

"This is so not good," Sheppard said quietly as he maneuvered the cloaked Jumper into orbit and threaded his way through the collection of Wraith ships gathered around one of the largest Hive ships he could ever recall seeing. Worse still, it wasn't the only one.

Beside him, he heard Zelenka take a breath. The doctor then began swiveling his head one way and another, muttering under his breath.

"I have to agree with you, Colonel," he said at last sitting down and pushing up his glasses. "By my count there are two Hives, at least three cruisers and well I lost count when it came to the Darts."

"We are so screwed," Sheppard said, studying the heads up display that activated even as he began to wonder how accurate Zelenka's count had been. "Even if the Daedalus were to show up right now and we could throw all the 302s at them, with so many we'd be hard pressed to make even an insignificant dent in their numbers."

"Maybe it would be better if we " Zelenka said, cringing a little as they got closer to the Wraith fleet of ships, " didn't get too close?"

"Relax, Doc," Sheppard said lazily, "We're cloaked we're perfectly safe."

"Yes, well, you'll forgive me if I'd rather not risk my life on that," he answered. "The modifications I had to make to the cloak on the planet's surface were somewhat hasty and--"

"Now you tell me," Sheppard interrupted, and instantly began plotting a course to take them out from under the noses of the Wraith.

"I'm sorry. I thought you knew."

Sheppard shook his head, and sighed as they pulled away, setting them back into their own geosynchronous orbit.

"Why did you want to get so close anyway?" Zelenka asked him after a moment.

"What? After what Sam told us you expect me not to try and scan for McKay, Lorne and Vega aboard those ships?"

"Of course. Right... right "

"I figured, the closer we got the more likely we would be to find them," Sheppard said.

"And what would you have done if you had?" Zelenka looked at him with honest curiosity. His eyes blinked owlishly behind the lenses of his spectacles.

"I dunno," Sheppard had to admit. "I hadn't quite gotten that far."

"I see." Zelenka pushed his spectacles back up again and added, "As you say, it is unlikely that we would be able to pull off any kind of daring rescue, not with so many of them out there."

"Well we can't just leave 'em." Sheppard said, horrified at the thought. "God knows what they're going through."

"On the contrary," Zelenka said sadly, "I think we can make a pretty good guess as to exactly what is going on."

"Well you're a bundle of laughs, Radek. Thanks for that."

"I am only trying to be realistic, Colonel." He said. "Perhaps we should let Colonel Carter know what we have discovered."

Sheppard sighed again and turned his gaze back out toward the Hive ships, and in particular the larger of the two. He couldn't help wondering at the disparity between them.

"Colonel Carter, this is Sheppard. Come in."

Slowly she lowered herself back down into the gully beside Ronon as Sheppard's voice came uncomfortably loud in her ear. She and Ronon had managed to come almost to within arms reach of the Wraith at the postern side of the Stargate and she was sure that they would have heard the Lieutenant Colonel's overly cheerful voice.

Carefully she keyed her own radio and in a stage-whisper answered, "Go ahead, John," then added after a second's thought, "quietly."

When he spoke again his voice was much more subdued. "We have a little more company than we expected."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Two Hives."

"Two!" she yelped, forgetting herself, then jumped as Ronon grabbed her and dragged her further down into the gully, all but covering her with the bulk of his form. Dressed as he was in more natural earthen toned clothing, he was much better camouflaged than she.

"Stand by," she hissed into her radio as she heard the Wraith start to move and then, daring to raise her head, watched as a pair of warriors left their positions and approached, peering into the undergrowth and the trees beyond. She held her breath and tightened her grip on her weapon.

Beside her, Ronon moved slowly, reaching down to the sheath on his thigh to close his hand around the hilt of the knife it contained. He barely moved more than an inch with each of his slow breaths. Every muscle was under tight control.

Step by step the booted feet of the Wraith came closer until one of them stood on the very lip of the gully almost directly above them. She could hear his breathing, his almost growling hiss as he continued to peer beyond their hiding place.

An intense chill began to descend on Sam as she prayed Sheppard would continue to be patient. The click of her radio now would give them away as surely as if she were to stand up right in front of the Wraith.

Her head began to swim and her lungs burned for lack of air, but she dare not take a breath; fought to keep her body from automatically obeying its need. She glanced at Ronon again, and saw that he was tensing, preparing for action. If they had to move against the single Wraith, who now stood over them, their timing would have to be perfect. They couldn't afford to alert the others, otherwise their careful approach would have been for nothing and with the news that Sheppard had just delivered, the need to retake the 'Gate was even more vital now.

As quietly as she could she took in a long slow breath and watched as Ronon turned his head to try and locate the other Wraith. She realized, somewhat sheepishly, that in concentrating on the more immediate threat of the warrior that stood over them she had neglected to consider the possibility that the other might take a position that would completely compromise their stealthy approach. Their pincer assault would be over. Carefully, she too looked around to try and see where the Wraith was, so that she could predict what their best course of action would be. The second warrior had, it seemed, lost interest in the search and had begun to return to his place beside the 'Gate. For the moment at least, it seemed that the best strategy was to try and wait it out.

Not for the first time she found herself cursing the Wraith's telepathic abilities. An assault against any other enemy from this position would simply be a case of making a grab for the one above them and taking him out. She had faith in Ronon's ability to do such a thing with a reasonable amount of stealth, but the minute that either one of them moved against any of the Wraith, each one of the patrol by the 'Gate would know of their presence.

"Maybe we should contact her again," Zelenka looked across at him with a frown on his face.

He shook his head, though every sense was nagging at him to do something when several minutes had elapsed without any contact from Sam. "She said to stand by," Sheppard said.

"I know what she said, Colonel," the scientist answered, somewhat testily, he thought. "But what if she's hurt or needs something. What if she needs something?"

"If she needed us she would have called," Sheppard reasoned, but it was as much for himself as it was for Zelenka. He had a bad feeling and it was growing more and more acute by the moment.

"What if she can't?"

"If she can't she..." he trailed off, having no answer to that.

"You see," Zelenka said triumphantly, "I told you we should contact her."

Again he shook his head.

"But Colonel," the Czech began, "You said--"

"I'll do you one better than that," Sheppard said, and leaned a little in spite of the inertial dampeners when the Jumper banked as he began to search for a favorable vector for re-entry. He was looking for one that wouldn't give away their position. "After all, there's not much we can do up here now, is there?"

Zelenka frowned for a moment, and then his face came alive, his eyes going wide as he obviously realized what he intended to do. "No, I suppose not," he agreed with a quirky smile finding its way to his face.

"All we have to do is find an approach that doesn't paint a bright red bull's-eye on our ass and--"

"Wait!" Zelenka suddenly pointed at the heads up. "What was that?"

"What was what?" he asked, peering at the display.

"Go back up. Go back around," Zelenka told him.

"A minute ago you were all right with my plan," Sheppard said lazily, though it didn't stop him from doing as Zelenka said. When it came to reading sensor data he trusted the man almost as much as he did Rodney if not more. "Now you want to stay up here with all these Wrai--"

"There." The scientist pointed at the forward display again, and this time he too saw the momentary ghost on the sensors. "What is that, a glitch? I didn't think I'd disturbed the sensors when I rerouted power to the cloaking generator, but--"

"That's no glitch," he said, his eyes narrowed as he realized what the presence of a third ship, masked behind the planet's moon, must mean. He brought the Jumper around again, bringing it to a stop at just the moment the ship became visible to the sensors.

"Then what?" Zelenka asked, still not catching on, "Another Hive? It isn't big enough for a Hive. It--"

Through clenched teeth Sheppard said, angrily, "Michael."

A momentary vibration passed through the ground. Sam frowned and her heart began to sink still further as she realized the vibration was a prelude to the activation of the 'Gate. How many more were they going to send? How many more did they need? With Two Hives in orbit, and outnumbering them on the ground, why would the Wraith need to send more troops?

A light tap on her arm pulled her out of her angry contemplation and she glanced over at Ronon, only to have him nod upwards. Following his lead, she looked up to watch as the Wraith left the lip of the gully and start toward rejoining the rest of his patrol, who were taking up positions in front of the 'Gate. Not the Wraith then?

"Expedition teams, this is Atlantis, come in please."

"Damn it," she hissed. "Atlantis, this is Carter. This is not a good time." She tried to speak quietly, but it was already too late. The retreating Wraith had heard the radio engage, and turned back toward her position. Abandoning stealth, with Ronon already moving at her side, she called to the rest of the marines to provide supporting fire, to at least give her and Ronon a chance to withdraw to safety.

Only Ronon was evidently not in the mood for retreat and was already scrambling over the lip of the gully toward the Wraith.

"Ronon!" she called to him, but he ignored her and taking out his gun began firing at the Wraith as he went.

Sam swore again and called out quickly into her radio, "All teams - move on the 'Gate - go, go, go!"

Suddenly the area around the 'Gate was a rattling cacophony of P90 fire, percussive explosions from the blasters, and the high pitched whistle of Ronon's weapon as the marines pushed forward in an all out effort to take back the 'Gate from their Wraith enemies.

Sam dropped to one knee, tiling her head and her weapon to take a better aim at a group of three Wraith heading toward where Ronon was already embroiled in a fierce hand to hand battle with two of the biggest warriors she thought she had ever seen.

Catching the incoming raking claw of one of the warriors he faced, Ronon kicked out at the other as he pulled the first toward his waiting fist, to shatter the bone covering from his face and send him staggering backwards. In the meantime he turned almost full circle, letting the momentum add power to the attack against the second who, recovering from the kick to his chest, came back at Ronon growling and hissing like an angry alley-cat.

"Colonel Carter, we have security teams standing by, do you need back up?"

Sam couldn't help looking around at the pockets of fighting scattered around the 'Gate, at the numbers of marines over-run by the number of Wraith. Certainly they were making some headway, but it would undeniably even the odds of success if she could boost their numbers. In spite of that she answered, "Negative, Atlantis. What was it you wanted?"

"We dialed in to let you know that Daedalus in en route. We would have informed you when she left, but we were unable to dial in at the time."

Sam nodded to herself. If Atlantis had been unable to dial in when Daedalus set out, that would mean it was around the time that the Wraith first showed up and could well mean the ship would reach them at any time. "Understood, Atlantis," she said, raising her voice over the chatter of her weapon's fire as she turned her aim against a second group of Wraith heading her way. "Have the infirmary standing by. As soon as we can secure the 'Gate we'll begin sending back the wounded. Contact Colonel Caldwell and inform him of two Wraith Hive ships - I repeat, two Wraith Hives, in planetary orbit. One of them took some of our people. He might want to come out of hyperspace a little early and come in cloaked."

"Understood, Colonel." Atlantis confirmed.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she began to register an overloud mosquito-whine coming from somewhere up above. The next moment she was hit by the flying brick wall that was Ronon, and thrown aside. The ground beside the two of them exploded in clumps of earth and rock and scorching fire.

She didn't have time even to nod her thanks at Ronon before he was pushing at her, encouraging her to move again with a shout of, "Darts!"

Scrambling to her feet, she turned her P90 skyward to try and pepper the incoming darts while Ronon provided her cover from the Wraith ground forces. Once again, just when she felt the slightest glimmer of hope stirring within her, matters had taken another downturn.

"Atlantis about that help," she said, "Any chance of sending through just a couple of personnel with ground to air missiles?"

"We'll see what we can do, Colonel. It may take a few minutes."

She bit her lip, seriously wondering if they could actually hold out that long. Perhaps if they could engage the Darts with one or two of the Jumpers they might stand a better chance. "Sheppard, this is Carter."

"I hear you," he answered, and she thought she detected a somewhat hard edge to the lazy tone he used. She frowned.

"Anything wrong?" she asked in spite of the pressing need.

"Just peachy," he said sarcastically, but he didn't elaborate, and she didn't have the time to spend teasing it out of him. "What do you need?"

"We're at the 'Gate," she paused to fire a stream of bullets into the Dart that was beginning a second strafing run. "We need air support to get these Darts out of our hair."

There was a long pause, before Sheppard came back. "Stand by, Colonel. I think I have a better idea."

The last time Rodney could remember feeling this way, he had been lying in the infirmary on Atlantis and though he'd felt just as sick, and light headed there had been none of the associated pain. Dizzy too, he'd been just as dizzy. No matter how hard he tried, either with his eyes closed or open as they were, everything still spun around, and right at the middle of it all was Michael.

"I can't tell you what I don't know," he moaned as Michael swam into focus again.

"I understand that, Doctor," Michael answered, this time, mercifully unaccompanied by the mental intrusion that had become more painful than the worst migraine he had ever suffered. "But I know that you were able to identify 'Gate addresses--"

"--I don't remember any of them--"

"--my communication codes--" Michael harried him.

"--Do you know how many elements even one of the most simple ciphers--" he moaned as he saw and felt Michael move even closer still. "Of course you do."

"And my research?"

"I can't tell you what I don't remember," he all but screamed as Michael's tone bore a great deal of menace once more.

"Then tell me what you do," he growled. "What do you remember?"

-remember- -remember- -remember-

A pain that was at once crushing and like a stabbing heat exploded around and through his mind. His stomach lurched and nausea gripped him. The room began to spin more quickly and he closed his eyes, only to see before him the spinning image of the screen, covered with Michael's data. The pain only increased, forcing him backward through the memory of it, making his burning blood run suddenly cold with the effort of blocking the intrusion and--

"Michael "

An almost gentle voice loosened the vice the half-Wraith was inside his head and McKay opened his eyes again.

"Teyla," Rodney gasped as he identified the blurry figure that stood just behind Michael. "You're alive!"

She knew Michael was aware of her arrival. She could feel the answering touch of his mind, and the flutter of movement within her as the child too sensed their connection. Michael's anger and frustration were as clear to her as well, but even so, she was surprised when he did not break from the interrogation until, standing behind him, she softly called his name.

"Teyla," She focused her attention on Michael even though Rodney gasped her name and continued in a surprised whisper, "You're alive!"

The vehemence with which Michael reacted to the simple statement almost made her take a backwards step, as he all but growled at Rodney. The rumbling hiss in the back of his throat was both a reminder of his heritage and of that which he had become at the hands of the Atlantis expedition. In the same moment that she heard McKay's resulting cry of pain; she felt Michael's crushing grip on the scientist's mind increasing, the echo of Michael's fury at the insinuations in McKay's statement rolling, wavelike, over his synapses.

Teyla's stomach turned full circle inside her. Her breath became shallow and moisture gathered behind her eyes in recognition, not for the first time, of Michael's emotional investment in all that he did.

"Michael," she called to him again, this time reaching for him with a hand that held a slight tremor, " please..."

He turned quickly, releasing McKay who, with hardly a whimper, fell back against the bed, barely conscious. As Michael turned he caught the wrist of her still outstretched hand, his fingers closing over the fabric of her sleeve.

"What's this?" he asked almost softly.

"What is what?" She pulled just slightly against his gently restraining grasp. He did not let go. Instead he ran the back of his free hand slowly along the side of her own, beside her little finger where it trembled still.

The touch was almost imperceptible, but for the whisper of heat that blossomed outward from it. The air caught against her frozen diaphragm and she found herself looking up into the darkness of the concern in his eyes. She dare not breathe, or could not and was uncertain which as his mind touched hers more strongly

A promise of strength and health - concern and a lingering anger at the thought of harm to her with an intensity that was almost sensual.

She felt her heart beating low in her body, everywhere sensitive to each atom of her being.

"I was concerned for what your continued interrogation might do to Doctor McKay," she stammered, even knowing that through their connection, the partial lie was pointless. She could not understand the sudden strength of her emotion and it was unsettling, frightening.

Michael tilted his head to one side and regarded her. Curiosity, and something else she could not quite place, softened the frown that had been etched on his face. She tugged again on his grasp as he continued to hold her wrist, but was unable to free herself even from his light restraint. She was unable to dismiss the feeling that he was playing with her and yet knew, from somewhere deep and hidden inside of herself, that he was not. Was it this she fought, as she tried to free herself?

"I think you understand far better than you allow yourself to believe, Teyla." His soft but serious words, and his use of her name, sent a shiver through her. She drew in a deep and shuddering breath at the thought and forced herself to stillness. He tilted his head from one side to the other. "From the first time we met, even before we came to blows--"

"You remember that?" she could not help the surprise from showing in her voice in the way she looked at him for just a moment seeing not the hybrid he had become, but the Wraith he had once been.

He let out a long, slow breath, his eyes burning into hers and she was unable to look away. She felt her colour rise, and swallowed.

"Over time," he confirmed, "I have come to remember."

"I, it... It changes nothing, Michael," she told him, and even to her own ears the conviction of her words was lacking.

"No?" he answered with an amused questioning tone. His eyes flicked down for a moment before returning to rest in hers. Slowly, almost not daring to see, she looked down, to find that he no longer held her wrist and yet, the fingers of her own hand rested almost quiescent along his arm.

Trying to appear casual, she began to slide her hand away, willing away the trembling she felt beginning again. Michael quickly closed his fingers before hers could graze the palm of his hand.

She blinked at him, feeling the echo of his reticence to touch, to save her from himself, burn along the connection they shared perhaps more deeply in that moment than at any time that they had shared together. Again her stomach and her rapidly beating heart exchanged their places in her small frame. She took in a hurried breath.

"Michael, you cannot--" she began, though the words were unnecessary. She knew; felt that he anticipated her words.

"That is not the only reason, Teyla." he told her almost hesitantly, almost more softly than he had ever spoken to her. "I can still be dangerous to you."

She felt his concern strengthen, a hint of the same pressing fear that she had felt surrounded some part of him, in the deep places of his mind, where he would not normally allow her ingress. Curious, she pushed, expecting in that moment he would shut her out and push her away as he had always done before.

Memory - a long and darkened hallway and a doorway ahead. Guards with covered faces and a chamber an important place...

She looked up at him, her gaze lost in the golden stare he fixed on her. He took a step closer, and slowly began to move around behind her, to move from between where she stood and the bed that held McKay. A part of her knew she should help the doctor, tend to him, but so great a chance to understand a part of Michael she had never seen could not be allowed to pass her by, not when she knew, from Michael's own understanding, that Rodney was not in any immediate danger.

A darkened chamber... the only light a swirling mass of color from above pulsing to a heartbeat a burning a hunger

She turned her head to follow his movement, to keep him with her view. She should have turned when he came around her shoulder and she could no longer see him, but could almost still feel him there behind her... close. In spite of every sense of danger within her, and the painful echo of the same from Michael she pushed still further, pushing against him now that he was aware of just what she was doing.

Weakness within strength... a dizzying need... overwhelming...

Her breathing became shallower and she began to feel light headed. She closed her eyes against the fluid spin of the room before her. The blue light of the walls pressed inwards. She reached out toward the bed to steady herself, but it was too far away. Her head fell back

Denial... pain...

He was there, behind her. His arm came around her, beneath her own outstretched arm and wrapped around her body, pressed against her shoulder to hold her to him as he stepped closer still to balance her weight. She could feel his breath against the side of her head; his heat against her spine...

And a mental barrier... strong. but he was tiring weakening

-Teyla don't! No!- -Teyla don't!- Teyla-

A presence... anger... cold fury.

...Michael... ...Michael...

=I will find you=

"Michael!" she called out to him in panic at the malevolence which flooded into her. It was raw and angry violence incarnate. It gripped every part of her, threatening to crush her and at the same time tear her into atoms. She felt the movement of her child become as frantic as her breath, and unaware entirely of what she was doing she clutched at his supporting arm, at the same time fighting to be free of him, fighting his grasp. "Why!"

"Don't," he told her and moved to cup her face in his other hand, keep her head against his shoulder. "Teyla, stop. Let go."

She felt him take in the deepest of breaths, felt the heat of it as he exhaled, long and slow. The pain she felt began to soften, to recede... the trashing of the child within her slowed, and the vice around her lungs, stopping her own breath loosened. She took in a deep breath and as the panic lessened she stopped struggling.

"Why is she doing this?" the words came out as little more than a breathless whisper as the warmth of Michael's hand came away from her cheek. Seeking a moment's solace she did not lift her head from his shoulder, but turned it against his chest and found some small measure of comfort in his rapid, but slowing heartbeat.

"She is dangerous," his voice rumbled in his chest. "She will stop at nothing, Teyla. Don't try to find her and connect with her."

Taking another breath she started to turn in his supportive embrace, to look up at him.

"But Michael, why? What does she want with you?" she asked.

The edges of a wry smile twitched at his lips, and the smallest of breathy, humourless laughs escaped him. But he tilted his head to look at her, and in his eyes she thought she saw the echo of pain, regret. When he raised his hand toward her cheek she froze, uncertain, very unsettled by what had just happened. She barely felt the softest of touches as he brushed back her hair from her cheek with the back of his hand.

"What do any of them want?" he said, blinking. "She knows of the threat I pose to her, and all of the Wraith." He blinked again, and let his hand fall away, as if suddenly becoming aware. His voice became clipped once more, and his gaze dropped momentarily to take in the curve of her belly. "She seeks to undo my work."

Suddenly, Teyla felt her fear replaced by rising anger. The soft expression she had fixed on him hardened and she stepped backwards, away from him until she collided with the bed on which the doctor lay, slowly becoming more conscious again.

"And so because of what you have done to me, my child and I will be hunted by the Wraith." she found herself tearful in her anger and had to try hard to block out the hurt that entered his eyes at her tone and her actions. She would have said more, but then Rodney moaned, and she went to the doctor's side. Michael did not try to stop her, but followed her, staying close as though to remain as a protection.

"You should consider perhaps that he is telling you the truth. That he knows and remembers nothing," she snapped.

"You know I have seen that he does," he countered.

She felt him turn to watch her as she crossed the room to fill a bowl with cool water, and bring it, with a cloth, back to Rodney's side. She was certain that he could tell, and felt his possessiveness rise around her again, that her hand shook dreadfully as she wet the cloth and gently mopped the doctor's brow, and cheeks. She had been shaken by so many things in the last few minutes, felt many emotions mixed up inside her, that she fought to concentrate on even so simple a task.

"Teyla," Rodney moaned.

"It is all right, Doctor McKay," she said to him softly, her voice cracked slightly as she spoke and, wetting the cloth again, she repeated the mopping of his brow, focussing on the mundane to try and steady herself, before settling the cold wet cloth against his head. "I am here."

After a moment she turned again to face Michael, and then glanced beyond him to the immobile figure on the other bed. This one was shrouded in a kind of cloth-like film, and around the bed, equipment hummed and Wraith text scrolled across a screen. She asked, "What of Major Lorne?"

"I have done everything possible," he told her. "There is nothing more I can do for him."

She drew her gaze back to Michael, who tilted his head again to regard her, to show her the truth and sincerity of what he had told her. She found that she did not at all doubt him. "And what will you do with Doctor McKay? I cannot believe that you went to the trouble of tending his injuries only to kill him."

"He will not be harmed. You have my word," he told her softly, and then a little more forcefully added, "So long as he tells me what I want to know."

"All right," Sheppard almost crooned, carefully maneuvering the Jumper through the many Darts that were flying, like sentries, around the Hive ships. "Let's see what we can find."

"Colonel," Zelenka said nervously, "I really think it is not a good idea to get so close to these things. Even cloaked there is no guarantee that they will not detect our scanning them and find us out."

"I know, I know," he said, far more light heartedly than he felt, "But the closer we get the more likely it is that we'll be able to find out which of these ships has Rodney and the Major and the success of my plan depends on knowing which of these ships to target once the Daedalus gets within range."

"So you said the last time, Colonel Sheppard," Zelenka nodded, "Just--"

"You're nervous I get it." Sheppard glanced over at him. "Relax. I've done this a hundred times. Scanning for transceivers..." he frowned. "Oh crap!"

"Oh my God, what is it!" Zelenka almost jumped out of his seat, and began looking out of every side of the forward screen.

"It's what I was afraid of," Sheppard said, and even though it was serious, he had to try to contain the chuckle at Zelenka's panic. "There's no sign of them on either of the ships. That can only mean--"

"That Michael has them," Radek finished his sentence, and added, "I'll thank you not to do that again. Do you think it's funny, to scare me like that, hmm?"

"Radek, I'm sorry," he said, and truly meant it. He slowly banked the Jumper and threaded his way out of the furthest reaches of the Darts' web around the Hives, before heading toward the rendezvous coordinates, where the Daedalus would exit hyperspace. "It does complicate matters though."

"Why?" the scientist wanted to know, "I do not see how it is any different than before."

"Because what I have planned, Michael will already have thought of," he answered with a solemn sigh.

This time she was waiting for him as he entered her chamber. She was agitated pacing.

=He is near I can feel him=

~Neither my scans, nor those of your own Hive detect anything~

She came at him then, her blade tipped fingers raised and quivering in barely held tension before his face. He took a breath and held his ground, aware that if she had stopped on her own then still she valued the contribution he could bring to their alliance.

"Do you dare to contradict me?" she hissed, "You have too much consorted with the humans."

"I will ensure that we scan the area again," he gave her a little bow, only then did she lower her hand. She walked around him again. He felt her looking him up and down, and when she was once more standing in front of him, became almost mesmerised by the way she swayed her head from one side to the other as she regarded him.

Finally she straightened and let out a hissing breath, her mind pushing at his again searching. He opened his mind to her, rather than endure the pressure of it, except for one small place in his memory even as he assured her that he would tell her anything. She sought to know the progress on his research.

~It would be easier, if I were to have a subject on which to experiment~

She growled long and deep in the back of her throat pulling back her mind from his, but even so he caught a glimpse of her thoughts and even though it took a great deal to unsettle him after all he had been through, he trembled at them.

Alicia Vega looked up at the sound of footsteps, expecting another of the hybrid soldiers bringing her the things she had asked for. She started to rise, and cross to the bars to receive them, but stopped when she saw that she was mistaken.

"I trust that my soldiers have treated you with courtesy," Michael said firmly in a clipped voice. The voice was deep, with but barely a hint of the two toned echo she had heard of Wraith voices. She had seen the archive tapes Atlantis kept on this particular Wraith, or Wraith-Human hybrid, she reminded herself. She was more than a little taken aback at how changed he was. How unlike the images she had seen from the security footage of his last visit to the city of the Ancients. It was a difference that disturbed her in how similar and yet utterly alien he looked to her.

When he tilted his head in query she realised he was still waiting for an answer, and stammered, "They've been most cordial, yes."

"I'm told you've asked for clothing, and for bathing facilities to be brought to you," he said. So they did report everything to him.

"Yes, in accordance with articles twenty seven and twenty nine of the Geneva Con--"

"I am fully aware of your Articles of War, Alicia Vega, Captain, 502011972," he said in an equally clipped voice, though she thought, somewhat with irritation. He waved his hand in front of a panel in the cell door, and the web spiralled outward to form a doorway, to allow him to stand before her with nothing between them. Instinct made her take a step back as he stepped inside. "But what makes you believe they carry any weight in the Pegasus Galaxy?"

"You provided me with food. Article Twenty si--"

"Did I?" he tilted his head again and took a step forward. She backed up another step. She was trying to be strong, but each time he spoke, he chipped away at her confidence piece by piece. She felt entirely foolish when, in the next moment, two of his soldiers entered the cell behind him.

One of them carried a large bowl, and a jug which was steaming slightly in the chill air of the ship. The other held folded linen, a blanket and a set of civilian clothing. They put them down on one of the benches at the side of the cell and left without a word.

Michael did not move. "The things that you asked for," he said.

Vega stood staring at him. She took a breath and, with as much bluster as she could, snapped, "What, you're going to stand there and watch?"

He took another step forward and ignoring her completely he said. "You have something that belongs to me."

"No, I..." she took another step back. "I don't think so."

"I will ask you one more time," his jaw tightened and he took another step toward her.

"I don't know what you're talking about?"

He moved more quickly than she expected, closing the rest of the distance between them. She backed up until she was pressed against the bulkhead wall, and still he came on.

"Don't play games with me, Captain!" he growled. She tried to dodge sideways as he reached for her, but his hand slammed against the bulkhead, cutting off her escape. "The memory storage unit from my computer, where is it?"

"Doc... Doctor McKay... he--" she stuttered, turning her face away from his still outstretched arm that was braced against the wall beside her.

"I have already spoken with Doctor McKay," he leaned closer and spoke in a low and vicious tone, "and he has more than adequately convinced me that just before my Dart took you aboard; before the Wraith fired on what was left of the rubble, you were the one that grabbed him and took it from his hand."

"I..." she started, but before she could voice another word of the lie she was about to tell, she felt his hand close in her hair and a moment later he pulled her head back, painfully, until she looked up into his eyes. Terrified she started to reach for his hand with her own that was not pinned to her side by his nearness. She struggled to free herself, but he slapped her hand away, and then caught her wrist to pin her to the bulkhead.

"Wrong choice, Captain," he told her, towering over her, appearing massive, deadly. "Let's not make this any more unpleasant that it needs to be."

Her imagination began to weave images of hideous experiments, vivid and lurid impressions of pain and suffering; of what would be once he was done with her; finished with and left to live with what was, instead of made to die. Her knees weakened and she pressed backwards, ignoring the pain as the movement pulled at her roots, as far away from him as she could get.

"Shirt," she barely managed to force the words from her lips. "In my shirt."

Still holding her by the hair he released her other arm, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on her face. She had the fleeting thought, as she unfastened the buttons at the top of the garment and slipped her hand inside, that he was at least allowing her some small shred of dignity. The thought offered her little comfort.

As quickly as her near paralyzed muscles would allow she reached inside her shirt and plucked the memory module from her undergarment. She held it out toward him.

Slowly he unwound his fingers from her hair as he took the component from her trembling hand. Then without another word to her, he turned and started to the door.

"Wait," she called after him, "What what are you going to do to me?"

He paused in the doorway and looked back at her over his shoulder. The cold amusement in his eyes withered what was left of her spirit.

"It is already done," he told her.

"Colonel Caldwell," Sheppard sighed as he stepped onto the battle bridge of the Daedalus. He'd wanted to be involved in the execution of his plan, but while he was more than capable of flying a Puddle Jumper in his current state, flying an F302 in a combat situation was an entirely different matter. He would need both hands and a sharp mind to pull off the maneuvers necessary, and frankly there was a full platoon of marines inside his head beating a military tattoo.

"Colonel Sheppard, you're taking one hell of a risk with our people's lives," Caldwell said.

"Yes sir, but I don't see any other way. Our people on the ground are overrun by Wraith ground troops. Darts are beaming in new forces the minute we start to clear them and we can't get to the 'Gate to get the wounded out." Sheppard spoke quickly as Daedalus came closer to the Hives, under cloak, and running silent.

"Even so..." Caldwell tried to interrupt.

Sheppard shook his head, "Due respect, Sir," he said, "the only way to draw those Darts away from our people is to attack the Hives and even with support from the Daedalus and all the 302s she carries, we don't have that kind of firepower."

"And you think the best way of supplementing our firepower is by setting Michael and the Wraith at each other's throats."

"Yes, Sir,"

"Even knowing that's exactly what Michael will expect."

"Yes, Sir"

Caldwell sighed and shook his head. "I sure as hell hope you know what you're doing."

John Sheppard turned and looked out through the main view screen at the sight of the two Wraith Hives and their supporting armada. "So do I," he said under his breath. "So do I."

#stargate atlantis #sga #angst #kidnapping #canon typical violence #drama #hybrids #pregnancy #slow burn #michael #teyla #harm's way

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