Atlantis Fic - View From An Occupation
Title: View From An Occupation
Author: Chensuu
Category Slash
Rating: NC-17
Characters: John Sheppard, Rodney McKay, later team and Carson Beckett
Disclaimer: John and Rodney don’t belong to me and I'm not making any profit.
Summary: AU. The Genii take over Atlantis in The Storm/The Eye and John and Rodney form a half-hazard, insane plan to take the city back that may end up destroying the both of them in the process
Warning:Violence, whumping; possible spoilers for season 1 - The Storm/The Eye
Word Count 48,667
Written for SGA BIG BANG!
Read it in chapters on my journal or in completion on the beautiful SGA BIG BANG story site with amazing video and artwork HERE
View From An Occupation
View From An Occupation
by Chensuu
Rodney admires the structure of the universe.
The fucked up, twisted in your face reality check that's been his life on Atlantis for the past three months shows no signs of abating, or improving, but oddly enough just keeps getting worse by leaps and bounds every time he takes a piss. Nothing works right, monsters want to kill him and three and a half weeks ago the Genii, the atomic bomb building contaminated bastards with the major attitude problems and Third Reich hats take over his city and turn him into a forced laborer. Rodney twists his mouth into a frown and forces himself to concentrate on the multi-colored wires on the panel in front of him. All things considered it could be worse. He could be Sheppard. They've made him a human punching bag.
"Hurry up McKay." He grunts at the strange timbre of the arrogant voice, odd because Kavanagh usually sounds like he's whining.
Rodney spares him a glance.
The plea to increase his speed means nothing. He works at his own pace without rushing. If he goes too fast he'll screw things up and wouldn't the sly fucker just love that. Rodney turns to his nemesis quietly and says, "Shut up. Just shut up will you? You're making me crazy and since you're basically illiterate when it comes to fixing this city I don't want to be pushed. Do you understand?" He pretends to consider a moment, hands him a scanner then says, "Maybe you're right. Activate this for me." One beat, then two, and a very wide smirk as the other scientist sputters. "Oh that's right. You can't."
Kavanagh bristles. He doesn't have the gene and is oh so very pissed about it right now because despite his ass kissing sycophantic tendencies, Rodney is still a way more valuable tool to Kolya in making repairs to Atlantis and giving the Genii control. "I'll tell the Commander that you're stalling."
Rodney tries to keep his temper in check by reminding himself that Kavanagh is below contempt but he can't help muttering, "Tell him I dipped your pigtails in ink while you're at it. Maybe Kolya will make me stay after school."
Kavanagh shakes his head in disgust but can't resist one final parting shot designed to hit Rodney where he lives, in his soul and heart and mind. "Maybe he won't punish you but I'm sure Sheppard will pay for it. Kolya loves to kick his sorry Air Force ass around every chance he gets." Kavanagh's smile is brutal. "I heard the Genii soldiers say Kolya had him screaming last night."
Rodney closes his eyes and waits until Kavanagh's footsteps scatter and takes a deep breath.
Sheppard, god, John.
He hasn't seen the Major in just over three days and the lack of knowledge at his friend's well-being is starting to take its toll. Rodney's a wreck inside, twitching and fighting with himself and doubting his sanity. He doesn't honestly think that Kolya will kill Sheppard, when hurting him and making him pay for defending his home is way too much fun but Rodney's learned that one never can tell when dealing with lunatics and Kolya is definitely in that category.
Rodney's not dumb. He knows that Kavanagh wants him to believe that Kolya is raping Sheppard. The thought sickens Rodney, makes him hollow and nervous and frantic in ways impossible to describe. If Kolya touches Sheppard, hurts him in that way, Rodney will kill him, tear him apart and make him pay for every nightmare he inflicts. The Major is pure, light, beauty...and he makes Rodney smile, makes him feel alive and wanted and happy. If Sheppard's been violated...
Oh fuck.
Rodney fidgets, clenches his fists tight and bites through his bottom lip until blood flows against his tongue. The thought of Sheppard, alone and hurt, used and torn is devastating and only the knowledge that Kavanagh is a big fat liar gives Rodney enough peace of mind to get back to work. If they're going to get their city back then Rodney has to keep his head in the here and now. He'll see Sheppard later, dammit, even if he has to make a couple of demands of his own.
The Genii commander keeps Sheppard in a cell and well guarded while Rodney is allowed to sleep in his own bed. Sheppard is beaten daily, allowed one meal a day and isn't permitted to wear shoes or a jacket as part of Kolya's plan to indoctrinate him, i.e., to make him pay. Rodney sneaks him food when he can but the Genii are vindictive monsters and if they catch him doing it they not only steal the food away, but they hold back John's next meal.
"McKay!"
Rodney jerks back with such force he knocks his knee on the inside of the console. It hurts like a bitch but he keeps silent. "Yes."
"Dr. Kavanagh says you're stalling."
Sora looks angry, or maybe she has PMS. One thing is for certain, she's got a chip on her shoulder the size of a puddle jumper and it's making her ornery as hell. Rodney vaguely remembers her father saying she's spoken for and wonders idly if she's sleeping with Ladon. Or maybe her fiancé was one of the men Sheppard killed.
Rodney swallows his pain. "Kavanagh says a lot of things. Most of which make no sense whatsoever."
It isn't hard to notice that Sora is hurting and confused. Rodney's been the victim of her stony glare and bad temper on more than one occasion. A swift slap to the back of his head or a rationing of his food withheld when she didn't think he was doing his 'complete and faithful' duty for the Genii. He's tired of all the rhetoric, all the poorly conceived planning and dictatorial overtaking that has made his city a shell of her former self. He hates the way freaking Genii stupidity has nearly destroyed Atlantis.
He murmurs, "Crap" and runs a hand across his face.
It's depressing the span of his hatred these days. To start Rodney hates Sora and the entire dumbass Genii army with a passion he never knew he possessed and he despises the way they think they're twenty times smarter than reality and history allow. And oh yes Rodney hates Kolya and the daily beating he inflicts upon Sheppard, sometimes with an erotically charged need that worries Rodney to death that the Genii Commander is going to start humping the Major's leg mid torture just to get off on more than the pain he inflicts and prove that bastard Kavanagh correct for once in his hopeless life.
He hates the way Kolya displays Sheppard like a toy, a possession of the Genii whose only focus is to take a punch and make the pretty gadgets in the city light up and play nice. These days are hardest on the Major because the outright desire to stick it to the Genii is almost always outweighed by a sense of duty to Atlantis and the burning need to get her working full speed once again.
When Rodney finally sees Sheppard four days after the occupation starts, he looks so thin and pale that Rodney gasps out loud. "My god, are you all right? Haven't they been feeding you?"
"Hey McKay," is the only answer he receives but weary hazel eyes tell Rodney how glad Sheppard is to see him. He touches the bruised face, feels edgy shudders through his fingertips and swallows hard when John kisses the soft skin of his palm with enough restrained passion to give him goose bumps.
"Hey yourself," Rodney responds and when the long, lean body collapses against him he takes a closer look. Sheppard's worn out and dirty like an over hugged rag doll with his dark hair plastered sweaty to his scalp. His uniform is tattered, he's unshaven and pale and his left eye is swollen shut, but to Rodney he's never looked more beautiful.
"Dr. McKay?" Sora's voice is cold and more than a little perturbed. It startles him out of his revelry like a punch to the gut. "You really need to concentrate here. I'd hate for you to have to skip the evening meal in order to work on getting these systems operational."
He thinks, "Back at you bitch!" with more than a measure of satisfaction and hurries over to her side.
Sora doesn't trust him so she's not entirely stupid but Rodney knows he and Sheppard won't be completely safe until their captors leave Atlantis. The near impossible trick of course is making them leave.
Kolya wants the city and believes by some divine Pegasus galaxy hierarchical right of passage that the Genii should be able to take up residence and live within her vaulted spires, free from all Wraith culling. Rodney wishes he could make the Commander understand that his dream is not happening now or ever because even if the gene therapy works on the Genii as it does on the Atlanteans, their scientists are nearly a hundred years back in the dark ages of science and lack the technical chutzpah to keep her running in the manner she deserves. Plus none of the Genii possess the natural gene like Sheppard so some systems just aren't going to work at all, period. Rodney considers. He doesn't think he'll mention this final item to Kolya or he'll just simply hang on to Sheppard and dig his roots in deeper, unless of course Kavanagh's already spilled it.
He winces hard and feels his face hurt. It's all so frustrating. Rodney is certain the city must hate the Genii too.
He's sketched the moment a hundred times, counting on Sora's inner turmoil to erupt. He and Sheppard form their haphazard plan during some rare alone time after the Genii take over the city nearly twenty-one days past and it's grown bit by bit in the meager time they've spent together since. Sure, it's a long shot at best, and they'll both probably die trying but it's all they have. He snickers to himself, silently comforted by the fact that some things never, ever seem to change.
"If I have to ask you one more time..." Sora's voice trails away leaving an unspoken threat in its wake.
"Yes, yes, yes, the systems. I'm on it."
It's all really quite simple. To save Atlantis, Sheppard has to leave it and then come back. Their entire hair brained scheme depends upon this happening. Of course Kolya's just not going to hand him the keys to the puddle jumper and make him promise to be home by midnight. They need to get to the mainland and bring back Teyla, Ford and Beckett. Together they just might stand a chance.
Sora is the key to getting out. She blames Teyla for her father's death on the Wraith Hive ship and she's never stopped wanting revenge, breathing it in like oxygen, waiting for the right time to exhale and choke on her life. The pain of not believing the truth has destroyed her, marked her, made her bitter and dangerous and while McKay is wary of her skills, he's not sympathetic and certainly not above using all available ammunition at his disposal if it means saving Sheppard's life and returning his people to the city.
It's a low blow to do what he's planning to do but hey, that's life and Atlantis didn't ask the Genii to pay them a surprise visit.
AaA
John thinks Kolya's pretty darn sure of himself to take up residence in what used to be Elizabeth Weir's office.
He's sitting at her desk and staring at her city through a haze of evening light while John kneels at his feet like a common lapdog. His knees hurt but it's not the worst the Commander has done to him so he keeps his face neutral and gazes out at the control room. The lights flicker once, then twice before shining out completely. Kolya slams a fist onto the desk so hard it rattles the window panes.
"Dammit!"
It's unnerving and stressful because the city's just not working and it pisses Kolya off enough to make John really feel the brunt of his anger. The truth is, despite McKay raising the shields in the knick of time, the tsunami still damaged many of the city's chief internal and external systems and without a ZPM to power them up and make repairs Atlantis is a sitting duck in a Wraith-pond.
"What is happening here?" Kolya's voice is calm, deceptive. He doesn't look at John.
"Light-bulb burned out?" John understands Kolya's question but he's not really in the mood for a long dark heart to heart with the man who's been torturing him for the past three weeks and is systematically destroying his home. He's tired and cranky and just to prove to the world that he's hungry too, John's stomach growls loudly enough to make even Kolya take notice.
"Miss another meal Sheppard?"
John winces. He hasn't eaten since yesterday afternoon but the Genii leader already knows this. It's just another element of the sick game they've been playing since the occupation began. He smiles lightly, "Right."
"Your people are not cooperating."
"If you mean Rodney, he's doing the best he can."
He wonders how Kolya can be such an idiot and narrows his eyes, staring with an expression John hopes looks as deadly as he feels.
"The rest of my people are not in this city."
That's because they're either slaves of the Genii or still bunking down with those bastard Manarians. John's not sure which is worse but it doesn't matter anyway because the Commander isn't talking. It's entertaining for him to hold everything over John's head and make him worry as much as possible about who's still alive and who's dead. The only people he's sure of are Rodney, Elizabeth, Ford, Teyla, Beckett and oh yes, Kavanagh. Rodney and Kavanagh are somewhere on Atlantis and Kolya pushed Weir through the gate back to the Genii home world before the tsunami struck. His remaining teammates and Beckett are still on the mainland.
Kolya laughs. "I don't think Dr. McKay and Dr. Kavanagh get along very well.
Again, no surprise there but John keeps mum on their past relationship. It should be enough for Kolya to know that Rodney and John both consider the lanky scientist a traitor for helping the Genii and nearly getting Rodney killed in the process. If Rodney had been electrocuted during the storm because of Kavanagh's idiocy John would have snapped his neck on the spot.
He gives Kolya points for gating the bastard over during the takeover but it sure as hell would have been a smarter move if Kavanagh knew the codes to take down the shield before John destroyed the second half of the Genii invading army. He cringes. The memory is still too rough and it hurts him in ways John refuses to consider. He'll mourn for the lives he's taken later, but right now while he's still fighting, John needs his mind clear. Later, when the siege is over, he'll replay the horror in his dreams.
Once in the city Kavanagh is more than happy to explain the situation on Atlantis and betray the hell out of everybody. He tells about the Ancient gene, the therapy, how some systems only activate for Sheppard, how they need a ZPM and so on and so on. But he explains more than just the systems. He gives the Genii a three hour long paranoid soliloquy on how things work at the station and offers his opinion that Weir is an incompetent glory hound, Teyla's a whore and Rodney's not nearly as smart as he wants everyone to believe. John swallows hard remembering Kolya's smirk when Kavanagh voiced his suspicions about him and Rodney.
"Did you hear me Sheppard?"
"Yeah, well, professional jealousy, Rodney's way smarter." This remark earns John a slap to the face so hard he falls backward and knocks his head on the hard flooring. When she comes back he'll have to talk to Elizabeth about carpeting. He drags himself back to his knees and breathes steadily. If this is how the evening is beginning, John's not sure he wants to be around when it ends.
"Maybe I should kill one of them...maybe then things will run smoother. But which man to kill."
John ignores the taunt, recognizes it as another aspect of Kolya's need to control him. He uses Rodney as a threat because he knows John doesn't give a shit about Kavanagh.
"I know who I'd choose." John closes his eyes and shakes. Hunger's making him dizzy and he's been kneeling for over two hours. His vision is starting to blur and his head is pounding from both dehydration and the hard impact of Kolya's right hand. He's tired and achy but Kolya won't let him sleep. Not much of a problem since John's been plagued by Wraith nightmares ever since his arrival in Atlantis, but still a little necessary because some rest will come in handy if he's going to survive long enough to clean house and toss the Genii out of his city on their collective overbearing asses. He yawns once and forces himself to stay calm, to look away from Kolya and imagine himself flying across the blue skies in a Jumper. It's so hard, really. John's never been a very patient man.
"I can see by your attitude Major that you don't take the Genii occupation of Atlantis seriously either."
Kolya's a fucking bastard and John wishes he were dead. He wants to point out that without the gate working there's just so much Rodney can do on his own. You can dial to leave, but you can't dial back in so the Manarians can't just loan them Zelenka. Until Rodney finds a way to fix the damn thing Kolya may be the one in charge of things, but theoretically they are all prisoners in the city.
He sighs wearily but he just can't stop himself, "You mean there are two of us?"
John knows he's in trouble when Kolya flashes him a cold smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes. He shudders. The day just keeps getting better and better.
Every morning at sunrise they drag him out of his cell and force John to kneel in the Gateroom to face Kolya's leather strap while one of the Genii reads a list of the names of all the soldiers killed in the siege. He waits for the strike. Sometimes the Commander breaks the skin, sometimes not, but the meaning is clear. One strike per day until the number totals sixty-five --the exact number of men John's killed minus the two marines the Genii shot down when they first gated through. When Kolya's punishment reaches its desired number he's informed John he'll start again from the beginning.
If anything Kolya is very thorough and rational in his thinking. The public display of bloodthirsty revenge serves two purposes. First, it's a real morale booster for his men at a time when most of them are terrified of the Wraith and wondering if invading Atlantis was a good idea or just another giant fuck-up on the part of their leaders and second, it's an outlet for Kolya to enact his personal revenge, for sins both real and imagined, on John's slowly weakening shoulders.
It's quite fascinating and more than a little disturbing for John to be the object of so much loathing. The catcalls begin the moment he's shoved to the ground. The Genii soldiers cheer through John's public whipping. Although it really warms his heart to be reviled by fifty or so incompetent soldiers and an odd number of dark-age scientists he can't find fault with their reasoning. Many of the Genii still on Atlantis had brothers, uncles or sons among the men he killed and John's not likely to be forgiven any time soon.
The beating and bloodshed establishes Nationalism and allows the gang mentality to flourish. And what the hell...if watching their Commander whip and beat the crap out of John erases the Genii's troubles for just a little while well then it's nice to know that something good has come of his suffering. Despite the pain it's all so frigging laughable. John bites the inside of his mouth and considers the dull ache building across his shoulder blades. He hasn't bled from the whip in at least two days so tomorrow morning's going to be a real bitch.
The lights come on and Kolya looks at him triumphantly until they flash off again a moment later. When he speaks his voice holds no amusement.
"What is McKay doing?"
The question takes John by surprise. He hasn't been allowed to see Rodney for the past three days as part of Kolya's curiously daft plan to restore Atlantis and claim it for the Genii without the continuing aid of the one person with the strongest gene in the city. He sighs inwardly. There's something very heartwarming about Genii arrogance. At least it gives John a small bit of hope.
His days consist of kneeling and sometimes eating, getting whipped in the morning and beaten in the evening, ogled by some of the Genii guards, spit upon by others and on very rare occasions being allowed to help Rodney initiate Ancient devices in the lab. He forces himself to sit still, to pay attention to details, to watch Rodney and wait for any signal or sign on when they can set their plan in motion. The scientist always looks tired, complete with dark circles under his eyes and a mile long frown across his tilted mouth but still John stares, happy to be in his company if only for a little while.
When Rodney meets his gaze John feels hopeless and tragic and loved. He's still not sure what this "thing" is between them but John knows that having Rodney's cock buried inside him feels better than anything ever has in his whole entire life and he wants a shot at feeling that amazing forever.
He needs Rodney as much as he needs to breathe, needs his humor and brilliance and scandalous disregard for manners and feelings and charm. It shocks John to realize that at this stage of the game he's fallen absolutely, completely in love with a man who hates flying and has no concept of the finer points of football. Still John hopes Rodney might love him in return and that's a great big something. Plus there's still a slight chance he likes Ferris Wheels and John plans on making damn sure he gets a chance to find out.
"I'll repeat myself once Major. What is McKay doing?" Kolya sounds angry and that never bodes well. John is used to his moods by now and wishes the crazy fuck would just knock him the hell out and be done with it. At least that way John will get a little sleep.
"I don't know." He tries to keep the weary edge out of his voice because Kolya enjoys it just one shade too much.
Kolya slams him, harder this time and shoves John's face against the floor clutching at his throat until he sees stars. "I think you do Major."
He presses harder and John gasps thinking for the first time that Kolya just might kill him and he'll never, ever see Rodney again.
"I think you and McKay are planning something drastic to try and save your city."
Your city...
John smirks once just for the hell of it and says, "You got it."
Kolya's paranoia is a thing of beauty on even the worst of days and John takes a moment to savor the taste. Little by little the Commander is cracking, realizing that taking the city isn't as easy as nuking a Wraith ship. Atlantis doesn't give up her secrets very easily. John fights down another smile.
"Rodney's rallying the troops."
His euphoria doesn't last long because Kolya's smashing his face twice in succession against the metal floor until John swallows blood and his head throbs. He's nauseous even without food in his stomach and manages to gurgle a small bit of watery vomit onto the tips of the Commander's fingers before having his face twisted roughly into the mess. Kolya curses and John sags back to the floor in a shuddering heap gasping hard and rubbing his cheek against the floor in a dazed effort to regain his breath and dignity. A swift kick to the ribs jars his bones so hard his teeth rattle and he heaves up a bit more but swallows most of it back down when Kolya pulls him roughly to his knees and eyes the vomit with thinly veiled disgust. He shakes John without mercy and tosses him aside.
John curls in on himself and breathes through the chills currently turning his body to ice. His toes are numb and his fingers are on their way to joining them. It's cold in his cell, so damn cold, and if John didn't know that the Genii were borderline imbeciles when it came to understanding Ancient technology he'd swear to god they made it colder for him on purpose, sucking every last drop of heat right out of the room to give him hypothermia.
The truth of course, is much easier to accept. His body is weakening from hunger, blood loss and a daily dose of Genii beatings. It's getting harder for John to stay warm, harder for his body to recover. Besides, Rodney told him that the some lower floors were partially underwater so obviously the cell is nearly arctic and that's part of the reason why he's so chilly. The thought is comforting. He's never had a reason to doubt his lover yet.
One heartbeat, then two, and when he dares a look the Commander is staring at him, through him, whatever the fuck John doesn't know and he hurts too much to care. It's an odd moment for both of them, silent and dangerous, becoming suddenly intimate when Kolya strokes John's hair. The gesture is surprising and powerful, designed to make John very aware that Kolya can still hurt him in many different ways. He swallows hard, nearly gagging on blood and vomit, and somehow manages to stay in place while every nerve in his body is revolted enough to scream for freedom. He closes his eyes sickened that Kolya's action hits the mark on his very first try. The Genii have been in Atlantis for three weeks and in all that time John's never felt quite so vulnerable.
"Tomorrow you'll help McKay get this city fixed. If I don't get some results I'll make him pay for it."
Two Genii soldiers appear out of nowhere and drag John to his feet. "Take him downstairs." Kolya voice carries down the hallway.
"Until morning Major Sheppard."
AaA
Rodney really wants to hurt Kavanagh in the worst possible way.
It's eight o'clock in the morning and three cups of coffee later the dumbass still hasn't bothered to show up for work. Great, wonderful, Kavanagh may be a moron but he's still better than all seven of the Genii scientists remaining on the station. Like them he's way too arrogant to think that Rodney's been messing around with the systems, doing only the bare minimum necessary to keep Sora off his back while simultaneously trying to figure out a way to screw the occupying army into thinking they have no choice but to get the hell out of the city. Rodney keeps him busy doing grunt work, testing minor systems the Genii want operational and that Atlantis needs running but ones that won't hurt their chances to get the city back. The Stargate he sabotages at every opportunity, hiding his fingerprints in places he hopes Kavanagh won't think to look, since he still hasn't figured out a way to fix it anyway.
The scientist, and Rodney uses that term lightly, views the Genii as a way out of his humdrum existence living in methodical mediocrity under McKay and even Zelenka. On Genii he'll be a hero of the people manufacturing bombs and weapons of mass destruction without a care in the world while the ignorant populace worships at his bespectacled feet. It's absolutely disgusting...it's...
"Huh." For a moment Rodney's flummoxed by the idea of Kavanagh being the smartest guy in the room but shrugs off the mental stigma by taking another drink of coffee.
Ladon Radim is the best of the Genii but he's so technologically uninformed that he makes Kavanagh look brilliant. He's also rather annoying. The way he sniffs around each console in the Gateroom like a puppy looking for a place to pee ranks rather highly on Rodney's scale of professional annoyance.
He stares at his steaming mug with defiance before pushing it away. He doesn't have to fight for every cup because thankfully the Genii have no taste at all for the brew and well, of course Kavanagh would be a tea drinker. Rodney pulls the coffee back and sighs content for the moment and slightly hopeful that Sora's convinced he's at the top of his game only when highly caffeinated.
Time to get on with it...
He brings up the gate schematics and stares. The Ancients really were a bunch of smarty pants bastards but Rodney can follow their lead enough to know that it's gonna be a bitch to make the Stargate work while some of the systems he needs access to are almost completely zapped. There may be a chance, one tiny opportunity and though that knowledge makes his heart sing a bit Rodney's not sharing his information with anybody except maybe Sheppard, when and if he sees John again. Thankfully Kavanagh's not bright enough to figure it out and even if by some miracle he does, only Rodney has the brains to fix stuff and allow people entrance to Atlantis.
He closes his eyes and prepares himself for another day of neglecting the city. Rodney misses the early days of the Genii occupation and the odd way the systems kept fluctuating back and forth with one console saying the sewage system worked while others say the shit will soon start to gather.
He laughs lightly and remembers one memorable occasion when Ladon takes six hours to release four Genii soldiers from the mess hall when the sensors lock it up tight after incorrectly reading the room as flooded. And another time when the showers run ice cold for three days straight while the temperature gauge reads a comfy sixty five degrees Fahrenheit. Ah, good times. It's a hoot to watch the Genii scientists go crazy, never figuring out what is behind the systems failures and double good laughs to see Kavanagh acting all freakish and moronic trying to solve it.
It's at this time, for Rodney, the seed of a plan begins to form.
He puts up with a lot of shit while the wheels of his brain churn away. For example, it's downright painful to watch Kavanagh fuddle through Rodney's clues to the solution, bossing around the Genii scientists, screaming at him, fixing an issue that's basically all sensor imagination. When everything starts running smoothly Kolya himself praises Kavanagh's dedication and allows him to choose his new quarters. Kavanagh of course, chooses Sheppard's old digs. This malicious display of power is not lost on Rodney and he's never let the Major know who's been sleeping in his bed.
"McKay!"
When Sora storms into the room in a thinly disguised fit of rage, red curls flying, with Kavanagh at her heels demanding to see his progress it's all Rodney can do not to laugh in her face and spout technical improbabilities.
Until he turns around and sees Sheppard being dragged in behind her.
God...he thinks...oh my god.
"Sheppard." Rodney can't believe how anguished he sounds, like he's been holding his breath for the past three days and is only now learning to breath again. The urge to touch is nearly unbearable.
"Rodney." Sheppard's smile is forced and his hands are cuffed behind his back. The bruises both new and old across his face and throat paint a very vivid picture. You'd have to be an ass not to know this man's been beaten. "You okay?"
Now that sounds like Sheppard. Always worried about everyone else even when he's the one being smashed to a pulp. The familiar drawl sounds shaky and he looks like death warmed over yet when Rodney peers into his wary hazel eyes there's a depth there he didn't expect to find, a calculating intensity that says maybe John's not as beaten as he'd like the Genii to believe.
"Major." Rodney tries hard not to gape but Sheppard's pale face, accentuated by a fine procession of freckles sprinkled endearingly across the bridge of his nose is just begging to be kissed. He's so thin, much thinner than Rodney remembers him being, and it's extraordinarily difficult to look at him, to reconcile the strong guy that Rodney loves with the beautiful wreck standing before him. And Christ is hurts so much too and Rodney's never been the type to put his pain aside for later but what the hell...it's not gonna help John now.
"So..." Rodney's stomach jumps. Time to get this show on the road... Kavanagh and Sheppard are together in the same room. Who the hell knows when he'll get the chance to put his borderline psycho plan of doom into motion again? "It's good to see you're still alive." Slowly, slowly, not too much drama…
He looks at Sora and frowns, somehow holds back the fury edging through his pores. "Kolya does understand the gene won't work if he's dead, right?"
Rodney is aware of the spectacular morning whipping the Genii Commander inflicts on Sheppard. Since it's now half past nine the Major has already been there done that. At the beginning he watched out of respect for his friend but stopped when the fiasco became too unbearable, the revulsion too real. He knows John detests being put on display, hates the attention and of course, hates the pain. It's common knowledge around the station that the Genii line up early to get the best possible spots for viewing.
"For Christ's sake McKay your boy-toy is fine." Kavanagh voice is laced with disgust. Rodney can't stand the sight of him. "Just get to work." He sulks away into a corner of the office and watches with a practiced eye.
If Kavanagh feels any guilt when he looks at Sheppard he doesn't let it show. He gestures for the Genii guard to sit Sheppard at the table next to McKay's desk but he doesn't mention anything about removing the handcuffs.
"Major Sheppard will be helping you today." Sora's smile is icy. "Commander Kolya expects results." She looks at Sheppard with contempt. "If you try anything you will be shot on sight."
Sheppard nods warily. "I'm probably gonna need my hands for this." He smiles and shrugs his shoulders with a very noticeable wince. His lean frame looks stiff, every movement spare and consequential. His T-shirt is torn in several places and his pale feet are bare. He's a ragamuffin, a dirty, sick, pathetic stunning ragamuffin. Rodney doesn't think he's ever loved anybody quite so much in his entire life.
"Oh come on." Kavanagh complaint packs an arrogant punch. "He only has to touch stuff. Attach them in front if you have too."
Sheppard's eyes narrow. Rodney aches for him. He knows the Major wants to break Kavanagh's neck. "Well?" he says, and his impatience is real.
Sora frowns. "Take them off him."
Kavanagh's on her in a heartbeat. "Do you think that's wise? He's military."
"And what are they, chopped liver?" Rodney gestures to the Genii and grabs Sheppard's hands when the soldier removes the bindings. He stares. The trademark black wristband is nowhere to be seen. Sheppard's bony wrists are chapped and battered and scabbed over with dried blood...my god Rodney thinks...where they always this fragile? "Well, isn't that lovely. I'm so glad to see you're keeping him in line."
Sheppard squeezes his fingers gently and it's all Rodney can do not to gasp. He's so starved for touch, so crazed with need for this remarkable man and yet so unable to have him or talk to him with Sora so close that Rodney wishes he could put a bubble around them so the Genii can't hear just so he can listen to the Major tell him that everything is going to be all right. If he says it, Rodney will believe it without a doubt since for three months he's been saving up all his blind faith for Sheppard's unrelenting optimism.
"I'm fine Rodney." Sheppard's eyes beg him to understand. To let Rodney know that he just wants to get down to the business at hand without being the focus of any more attention.
He drops Sheppard's hands and watches them fall gracefully to his waist. Rodney wants to reach out and stroke the stubble free cheek and trace his fingers across John's ghostly pale skin. It's been three weeks and two days since he last kissed John and nearly a week since they last shared a conversation.
Memories flash...holding Sheppard in his arms after sex, the two of them sweaty and jumbled on a bed that Rodney can barely fit on when he's alone, and sharing silent kisses and caresses. He recalls the way John's eyes looked, both grateful and surprised, as if Rodney fucking his brains out was something close to amazing, and the remembrance burns because he never had a chance to tell John how good it was for him too, and how very much he wants a chance to do it again and again.
Kolya is a real bitch when it comes to fraternization. He makes sure they are rarely alone and when they need to be together, there's always a guard or two around Sheppard to make sure he doesn't wreak some kind of havoc. On a good day the Major can take whatever the Genii throw at him, but what with the sporadic feedings and constant beatings, Sheppard's not exactly up to par.
Today they work for two hours straight initializing some arrangements to full status and trying desperately to bring others up to at least half-mast. It's a tiring job to try and sabotage some of your successes while also attempting to fix those important to undermining the Genii while under Kavanagh's watchful and paranoid eye but Rodney manages just fine, because, well, simply put he's a hell of a lot smarter. But it's also near impossible to work from scratch and that's kind of what they're doing since most of the systems where working when they stepped through the gate into the Pegasus galaxy many scattered months ago. Rodney's seeing some of this stuff for the very first time.
He waits for a few minutes after Sora leaves before stretching and reaching for his empty cup of coffee. Across the table John is staring at him, waiting, wanting, his anxiety a living, breathing thing. Rodney clears his throat, takes a deep breath and says, "Remember the coffee Teyla used to make?"
Sheppard's looks at him as if he's lost his mind. After all, coffee, come on, what the fuck?
But just by mentioning Teyla he's caught Kavanagh's eye. The spectacled menace has a crush on Sora and he's well aware of his intended's hatred towards the Athosian and how she blames him for her father's demise at the hands of the Wraith. If Kavanagh thinks Teyla's on the mainland alive and well...oh what wouldn't sweet Sora do for that information. She'd almost have to take a jumper, in secret probably, since Kolya would never be dumb enough to let Sheppard leave the city and oh yes isn't he the only one able to fly in a straight line? "Those beans on the mainland would rival Starbucks."
Come on John, I sound like a lunatic, please play along....
"I wonder if you can get a franchise license all the way out here." Sheppard catches on. His teasing drawl is familiar. God, how much Rodney missed the sound.
He notices Kavanagh trying hard not to be obvious, the superficial freak. "When this is over maybe Teyla can bring some back from the mainland..." When Kavanagh's ears perk up like a jackrabbit Rodney knows he's been heard.
"McKay!" Sheppard's voice blasts across the lab and Rodney actually jumps even though that's exactly the reaction he wants to elicit. "Do you have any idea what covert means?"
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. All right, Telya's not on the mainland sipping coconut juice she's languishing with the Manarians just like everybody else. It really doesn't fucking matter where anyone is anyway because we are so never getting this city working again and we'll probably all get killed by the Wraith in the next drive by eating. If we somehow beat the odds and survive we'd be better off pledging allegiance to the Genii flag of superiority like Kavanagh here and become Demigods in the world of science." He pauses. "Or at least I will. Kavanagh's an idiot and you they'll probably just hang."
"Great Rodney...thanks a lot." Sheppard's smile doesn't reach his eyes but that's not surprising. There's a heck of a lot of lives riding on the success of their subterfuge.
It's not common knowledge that Teyla is still on the mainland. Sheppard knows of course, but Rodney only finds out when he first sees the Major a week after the Genii take over the city. It makes him happy to realize that the remaining members of his team are free but it worries him as to why they never flew the jumper back to Atlantis to save his hide when, hello, that would have been a very nice thing for them to do. Of course, maybe, just maybe, Ford, Teyla and Beckett aren't alive at all. There's every possibility that they died when the tsunami surge flashed across the mainland. Sheppard thinks they're breathing. He believes they lifted the jumper up in time and were on their way to the city when the bad weather forced them to return to the mainland. It's all such a jumbled mess, but really, when was anything on Atlantis actually easy?
"Just get back to work." Kavanagh's eyes are hiding something. He thinks he's smart enough to fool them both. "You're both a bunch of touchy-feely lunatics."
Rodney considers letting him think he's getting away with it but Kavanagh lost whatever millimeter of professional respect Rodney held for him when he turned traitor to Atlantis. Plus, did he just say 'touchy-feely?'
"For the love of god, you're gonna run back and tell Sora everything, aren't you? You'll only make her crazy. Kolya will never let Sheppard fly to the mainland and pick up refugees - especially Atlantean refugees."
He looks to Sheppard for help in a fake display of camaraderie trying desperately to appear pathetic so Kavanagh will continue to play into his hands. "You'll get them all killed!"
"No one's going to get anyone killed..." Apparently Sheppard's a better actor than Rodney imagined because good lord are those tears in his eyes? "...Ford, Teyla and Beckett are already dead. If they were alive and breathing they would have found a way to bring the Jumper back to Atlantis."
Rodney nods like a maniac. "What he said."
"I think it's important the Commander knows about the possibility." Kavanagh tries innocently. "They may need supplies on the mainland. We'd be doing them a favor."
Yeah, great one pal, Rodney thinks, we both know you're going to tell Sora first and Kolya will find out when someone sends him a memo. It's no secret she wants revenge upon Teyla too badly to let anything stop her from being the one to stick the knife through her throat, and that includes Kolya.
"Don't do something stupid...again." Sheppard, it seems, is the master of the deadly voice. Rodney hopes he never has to hear it turned upon himself. He moves toward Kavanagh and the scientist backs away. Sheppard's hands are clenched into fists so tight they make his knuckles appear three shades paler than the rest of him.
"Look who you're talking to Major. Kavanagh wouldn't recognize loyalty if it jumped up and nuked his ass. He doesn't care what happens to any of us. He'll do what he has to so he can stay alive long enough to get into Sora's pants." Rodney stares at Kavanagh coldly. "And frankly she'd have to be one hard up bitch to let you anywhere near her."
"Forget what a woman feels like McKay?"
The other scientist's taunts are meaningless. Rodney hasn't wanted a woman in three lifetimes. Why the hell would anyone want female companionship when they're having sex with Sheppard? Sheppard for god's sake! The hottest thing on legs in two galaxies and he decides he wants Rodney McKay. Despite the direness of their situation, the thought is still enough to make his groin start to tingle.
"Just shut the fuck up Kavanagh," Sheppard growls with more than a hint of threat.
"Enjoy sucking Kolya's cock Major?"
Sheppard doesn't reply but looks more menacing than ever and when he moves it's so lightning fast that Rodney doesn't realize he's decked Kavanagh until the guards have Sheppard shoved up against the wall and the spineless whiner is clutching his cheek and cursing while he stumbles to his feet. Rodney takes a breather to cherish the moment before the omnipotent worry starts to set in.
"You fucking bastard!" Kavanagh slaps Sheppard hard enough across the face to split his bottom lip open but the Major merely smiles. He's calm again, controlled, but good lord that punch must have felt wonderful.
"Next time, I'll kill you." Sheppard's smile fades. "You're a traitor Kavanagh and you had it coming."
"I'm a traitor? I suppose that's a better than being a used up whore." Kavanagh smirks and moves away and Rodney can't help but snicker through his rage when the smug bastard utters the famous last words of all madmen, "You'll pay for that I promise." He brushes himself off and tells the guards, "Let him alone but cuff him. Kolya will be upset if they don't get more finished today."
The guards reattach the cuffs to Sheppard's wrists before Kavanagh leaves, presumably to tell Sora the exciting news of Teyla's where-a-bouts, and Rodney decides that touchy-feely isn't really that bad a phrase when it's applied to the scruffy man flopped onto the chair in front of him. When the guards move to cover the door he smoothes Sheppard's tousled hair out of his eyes and dabs the blood on his lip away with a tissue.
"I'm glad you restrained yourself."
Sheppard's laugh is beautiful and genuine and lights up his face in a way that Rodney's wanted to see for the past dreary month. "She won't be able to resist going for Teyla."
Rodney grins. "I hope you remember how to fly a jumper."
"I haven't you know." Sheppard begins warily his eyes searching and just a tad bit lost.
"What?"
"I haven't sucked Kolya's cock."
Rodney swallows down the fear that's been building for weeks, the terror navigated to fruition by Kavanagh's endless taunting combined with the crazy vivid nightmares of his own imagination. He closes his eyes briefly and responds, "God John."
"He taunts me sometimes, the bastard, but he won't let the guards lay a hand on me that way either."
Sheppard leans closer until their foreheads touch Athosian style. His breath on Rodney's face is humid and comforting, his deep hazel eyes sad. It only takes a moment to kiss him so Rodney complies, a quick brush of mouth on mouth enhanced to a higher degree of brilliance by the delightful tip of Sheppard's tongue sliding inside to trace patterns across Rodney's palate.
They kiss lightly for a while, soft sounds made desperate, but the moment ends too soon. They pull apart and Sheppard lays his head on Rodney's shoulder with a sigh, exhaustion finally taking its toll and making his eyes droop shut. The guards don't care as long as there's no violence and besides, they're wary of this man who's killed so many Genii brothers in the blink of an eye. This man the city dotes on like a lover.
"Rest John..." Rodney murmurs against the soft spiky head. "I've got enough fake fix-ups to fool Kolya for a while."
Sheppard nuzzles his neck in response before complying and Rodney sits still for a very long time and prays silently to a god he's not sure he believes in to keep them safe and alive for just a few days longer. He strokes Sheppard's hair and sighs. They're in for one hell of a ride.
AaA
"Do you understand me now Major?"
Acastus Kolya stands facing away from John, bound and bloodied and kneeling before him on a metal floor in a dark Atlantean cell. "You are not in control here. You do not give the orders. You and Atlantis belong to me. You are a slave of the Genii people. You are trash...you...." His voice trails off and he closes his eyes trying to sound strong as his voice wavers.
This weakness is John's first clue.
In an instant he's sure that Atlantis' new commander is going bonkers. Kolya is desperate to diminish the hatred deep inside his soul that's eating him alive from the inside out. It's destroying him and the Commander knows it. His bloodlust, once unquenchable, its need silenced only through John's never-ending agony, no longer satisfies his pain at the loss of his only child. That Kolya hates him is no longer news in the ever-shrinking city. But the way he goes about showing his hatred definitely has people talking.
He watches the Commander twirl his wooden fighting stick and waits.
"You are a murderer." He grabs John's face in his hands and stares. "Surely you realize that you must pay for your war-crimes against the Genii people?"
John blinks once and turns away only to have his face roughly squeezed in Kolya's stronger grip.
He's fully aware that what's coming up next is going to hurt like hell and if events unfold at the same pace they usually do this time of day, he knows Kolya's going to make it as bad as he can possibly make it.
Shudders rip through him when Kolya squeezes tighter, unable to contain his rage, his thumb presses into John's swollen left eye while John struggles against his binds. He's close, oh so very close to begging, 'Please.' His eyes, god dammit, not his eyes...oh shit...oh shit...god no, fuck...not his eyes. John whimpers and moans as the pain increases. It's a burning pain that rips through his nerve endings and spirals his terror into overdrive. And the sound it makes...fuck...the squishy wet slurping sound causes his stomach to roll over and his head to spin. He pulls his face away but can't escape the Commander's determined grip.
"No..." John mutters. "God..."
Just when he's sure that Kolya is going to gouge out his eye and he'll never fly again, the Commander relents and stares at John with an expression that's disturbing.
When their eyes meet for a moment John isn't afraid anymore, in fact, he's mildly sympathetic toward his enemy and wow, isn't that just weird. Kolya is an idiot and a fool but he loves his people as much as John loves his own, though he's trying to save them in a completely desperate and asinine way. He attempts negotiating again because heck, it would be nice to think he's learned a thing or two from Elizabeth.
"Our people aren't at war Kolya. We aren't enemies." John tries... he tries so hard to get the point across but one look tells him Kolya isn't buying. Still, maybe that's a good thing because some words just need to be said. "Or at least we weren't enemies until you brought your half-assed forces through the gate and killed our people!"
He prepares himself for the swing and isn't disappointed when Kolya knocks the stick against his back with enough force to knock him forward. Blood flies, skin splatters, but John doesn't utter a sound.
AaA
"How long did you plan on keeping this a secret?" Sora's temper is on the rise and Rodney knows he better watch his words because, well, she's downright scary when she's like this.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Look, ask Kavanagh if you don't believe me. I'm not half as smart as I say I am…"
The punch to the gut is unexpected and his entire body spasms in pain. "What the hell was that for?" Rodney moves back warily. He knows what she's pissed over but he has to play his cards just right.
"Teyla Emmagan is on the mainland."
"Oh, that." Rodney breathes in hard and exhales quickly. "Kavanagh told you, right?" He continues on despite her protests. "Look, he's wrong. She's dead. If she were alive she would have come back to help us take the city."
"She has no loyalty. She killed my father." Sora tosses her curls and moves closer. "I despise her more with each passing day." She pauses to take a breath and when she speaks again her tone is malicious. "I want her to die."
"What, so you can brag about doing it the way she does at every opportunity?"
For a moment she's confused, and Rodney waits, counting the seconds until reality dawns.
"She brags about murdering my father?"
"I wouldn't say brag exactly, more like boast maybe?" God help him he's not the best liar by far but there's a hell of lot riding on the outcome of this conversation. "In all fairness he did kill a captive of the Wraith. And according to Teyla the man was begging for help and your father just took his life."
"That is a lie!" She's furious now and Rodney really hopes she doesn't decide to hit him again while he's still reeling from the first punch.
"He screamed, 'help me please' and was reaching out for aid and Tyrus just shot him."
"Stop it!"
"She told our new trading partner, the Pillions all about it and informed them the Genii can't be trusted. That your father was a Wraith sympathizer..."
"She lies! My father was a man of honor. Teyla killed him to save herself."
"Teyla wouldn't do that." Finally, a truth, this he can do.
"You will fly me to the mainland to retrieve Teyla and bring her back to face our justice."
"What? No! Are you crazy? I can't fly a jumper. Sheppard is the only pilot we have." He pauses, brings on the sarcasm. "Oh, yes, before you inquire, lessons were scheduled to start the week after you invaded the city." Rodney scoffs. "Once again the Genii prove correct the famed stories of their near fatal timing."
Sora considers his words carefully. Sheppard is Kolya's prize. Getting him off world is not going to be easy, and besides, if he escaped the Genii would have nothing to do for fun. "Perhaps the Commander..."
"Right, like he cares about your family honor. Kolya knows Teyla isn't with the Manarians but he doesn't care. She means something to you because you consider her a murderer. To him she's just an Athosian who's probably screwing Sheppard."
"Enough!" Sora's smirk is deadly. "I need to think about this carefully but be aware Doctor, by the ancestors I will have my revenge and if going to the mainland is the only way then I will find a way to do it."
Rodney doesn't realize he's holding his breath until Sora leaves and he collapses on the chair by his desk and exhales. He rubs a hand across his face and places his other hand on his stomach. Dammit it still hurts. He thinks of Sheppard suffering at Kolya's hands and then promptly stops thinking.
CONTINUE to part 2!
=end=
Author: Chensuu
Category Slash
Rating: NC-17
Characters: John Sheppard, Rodney McKay, later team and Carson Beckett
Disclaimer: John and Rodney don’t belong to me and I'm not making any profit.
Summary: AU. The Genii take over Atlantis in The Storm/The Eye and John and Rodney form a half-hazard, insane plan to take the city back that may end up destroying the both of them in the process
Warning:Violence, whumping; possible spoilers for season 1 - The Storm/The Eye
Word Count 48,667
Written for SGA BIG BANG!
Read it in chapters on my journal or in completion on the beautiful SGA BIG BANG story site with amazing video and artwork HERE
View From An Occupation
View From An Occupation
by Chensuu
Rodney admires the structure of the universe.
The fucked up, twisted in your face reality check that's been his life on Atlantis for the past three months shows no signs of abating, or improving, but oddly enough just keeps getting worse by leaps and bounds every time he takes a piss. Nothing works right, monsters want to kill him and three and a half weeks ago the Genii, the atomic bomb building contaminated bastards with the major attitude problems and Third Reich hats take over his city and turn him into a forced laborer. Rodney twists his mouth into a frown and forces himself to concentrate on the multi-colored wires on the panel in front of him. All things considered it could be worse. He could be Sheppard. They've made him a human punching bag.
"Hurry up McKay." He grunts at the strange timbre of the arrogant voice, odd because Kavanagh usually sounds like he's whining.
Rodney spares him a glance.
The plea to increase his speed means nothing. He works at his own pace without rushing. If he goes too fast he'll screw things up and wouldn't the sly fucker just love that. Rodney turns to his nemesis quietly and says, "Shut up. Just shut up will you? You're making me crazy and since you're basically illiterate when it comes to fixing this city I don't want to be pushed. Do you understand?" He pretends to consider a moment, hands him a scanner then says, "Maybe you're right. Activate this for me." One beat, then two, and a very wide smirk as the other scientist sputters. "Oh that's right. You can't."
Kavanagh bristles. He doesn't have the gene and is oh so very pissed about it right now because despite his ass kissing sycophantic tendencies, Rodney is still a way more valuable tool to Kolya in making repairs to Atlantis and giving the Genii control. "I'll tell the Commander that you're stalling."
Rodney tries to keep his temper in check by reminding himself that Kavanagh is below contempt but he can't help muttering, "Tell him I dipped your pigtails in ink while you're at it. Maybe Kolya will make me stay after school."
Kavanagh shakes his head in disgust but can't resist one final parting shot designed to hit Rodney where he lives, in his soul and heart and mind. "Maybe he won't punish you but I'm sure Sheppard will pay for it. Kolya loves to kick his sorry Air Force ass around every chance he gets." Kavanagh's smile is brutal. "I heard the Genii soldiers say Kolya had him screaming last night."
Rodney closes his eyes and waits until Kavanagh's footsteps scatter and takes a deep breath.
Sheppard, god, John.
He hasn't seen the Major in just over three days and the lack of knowledge at his friend's well-being is starting to take its toll. Rodney's a wreck inside, twitching and fighting with himself and doubting his sanity. He doesn't honestly think that Kolya will kill Sheppard, when hurting him and making him pay for defending his home is way too much fun but Rodney's learned that one never can tell when dealing with lunatics and Kolya is definitely in that category.
Rodney's not dumb. He knows that Kavanagh wants him to believe that Kolya is raping Sheppard. The thought sickens Rodney, makes him hollow and nervous and frantic in ways impossible to describe. If Kolya touches Sheppard, hurts him in that way, Rodney will kill him, tear him apart and make him pay for every nightmare he inflicts. The Major is pure, light, beauty...and he makes Rodney smile, makes him feel alive and wanted and happy. If Sheppard's been violated...
Oh fuck.
Rodney fidgets, clenches his fists tight and bites through his bottom lip until blood flows against his tongue. The thought of Sheppard, alone and hurt, used and torn is devastating and only the knowledge that Kavanagh is a big fat liar gives Rodney enough peace of mind to get back to work. If they're going to get their city back then Rodney has to keep his head in the here and now. He'll see Sheppard later, dammit, even if he has to make a couple of demands of his own.
The Genii commander keeps Sheppard in a cell and well guarded while Rodney is allowed to sleep in his own bed. Sheppard is beaten daily, allowed one meal a day and isn't permitted to wear shoes or a jacket as part of Kolya's plan to indoctrinate him, i.e., to make him pay. Rodney sneaks him food when he can but the Genii are vindictive monsters and if they catch him doing it they not only steal the food away, but they hold back John's next meal.
"McKay!"
Rodney jerks back with such force he knocks his knee on the inside of the console. It hurts like a bitch but he keeps silent. "Yes."
"Dr. Kavanagh says you're stalling."
Sora looks angry, or maybe she has PMS. One thing is for certain, she's got a chip on her shoulder the size of a puddle jumper and it's making her ornery as hell. Rodney vaguely remembers her father saying she's spoken for and wonders idly if she's sleeping with Ladon. Or maybe her fiancé was one of the men Sheppard killed.
Rodney swallows his pain. "Kavanagh says a lot of things. Most of which make no sense whatsoever."
It isn't hard to notice that Sora is hurting and confused. Rodney's been the victim of her stony glare and bad temper on more than one occasion. A swift slap to the back of his head or a rationing of his food withheld when she didn't think he was doing his 'complete and faithful' duty for the Genii. He's tired of all the rhetoric, all the poorly conceived planning and dictatorial overtaking that has made his city a shell of her former self. He hates the way freaking Genii stupidity has nearly destroyed Atlantis.
He murmurs, "Crap" and runs a hand across his face.
It's depressing the span of his hatred these days. To start Rodney hates Sora and the entire dumbass Genii army with a passion he never knew he possessed and he despises the way they think they're twenty times smarter than reality and history allow. And oh yes Rodney hates Kolya and the daily beating he inflicts upon Sheppard, sometimes with an erotically charged need that worries Rodney to death that the Genii Commander is going to start humping the Major's leg mid torture just to get off on more than the pain he inflicts and prove that bastard Kavanagh correct for once in his hopeless life.
He hates the way Kolya displays Sheppard like a toy, a possession of the Genii whose only focus is to take a punch and make the pretty gadgets in the city light up and play nice. These days are hardest on the Major because the outright desire to stick it to the Genii is almost always outweighed by a sense of duty to Atlantis and the burning need to get her working full speed once again.
When Rodney finally sees Sheppard four days after the occupation starts, he looks so thin and pale that Rodney gasps out loud. "My god, are you all right? Haven't they been feeding you?"
"Hey McKay," is the only answer he receives but weary hazel eyes tell Rodney how glad Sheppard is to see him. He touches the bruised face, feels edgy shudders through his fingertips and swallows hard when John kisses the soft skin of his palm with enough restrained passion to give him goose bumps.
"Hey yourself," Rodney responds and when the long, lean body collapses against him he takes a closer look. Sheppard's worn out and dirty like an over hugged rag doll with his dark hair plastered sweaty to his scalp. His uniform is tattered, he's unshaven and pale and his left eye is swollen shut, but to Rodney he's never looked more beautiful.
"Dr. McKay?" Sora's voice is cold and more than a little perturbed. It startles him out of his revelry like a punch to the gut. "You really need to concentrate here. I'd hate for you to have to skip the evening meal in order to work on getting these systems operational."
He thinks, "Back at you bitch!" with more than a measure of satisfaction and hurries over to her side.
Sora doesn't trust him so she's not entirely stupid but Rodney knows he and Sheppard won't be completely safe until their captors leave Atlantis. The near impossible trick of course is making them leave.
Kolya wants the city and believes by some divine Pegasus galaxy hierarchical right of passage that the Genii should be able to take up residence and live within her vaulted spires, free from all Wraith culling. Rodney wishes he could make the Commander understand that his dream is not happening now or ever because even if the gene therapy works on the Genii as it does on the Atlanteans, their scientists are nearly a hundred years back in the dark ages of science and lack the technical chutzpah to keep her running in the manner she deserves. Plus none of the Genii possess the natural gene like Sheppard so some systems just aren't going to work at all, period. Rodney considers. He doesn't think he'll mention this final item to Kolya or he'll just simply hang on to Sheppard and dig his roots in deeper, unless of course Kavanagh's already spilled it.
He winces hard and feels his face hurt. It's all so frustrating. Rodney is certain the city must hate the Genii too.
He's sketched the moment a hundred times, counting on Sora's inner turmoil to erupt. He and Sheppard form their haphazard plan during some rare alone time after the Genii take over the city nearly twenty-one days past and it's grown bit by bit in the meager time they've spent together since. Sure, it's a long shot at best, and they'll both probably die trying but it's all they have. He snickers to himself, silently comforted by the fact that some things never, ever seem to change.
"If I have to ask you one more time..." Sora's voice trails away leaving an unspoken threat in its wake.
"Yes, yes, yes, the systems. I'm on it."
It's all really quite simple. To save Atlantis, Sheppard has to leave it and then come back. Their entire hair brained scheme depends upon this happening. Of course Kolya's just not going to hand him the keys to the puddle jumper and make him promise to be home by midnight. They need to get to the mainland and bring back Teyla, Ford and Beckett. Together they just might stand a chance.
Sora is the key to getting out. She blames Teyla for her father's death on the Wraith Hive ship and she's never stopped wanting revenge, breathing it in like oxygen, waiting for the right time to exhale and choke on her life. The pain of not believing the truth has destroyed her, marked her, made her bitter and dangerous and while McKay is wary of her skills, he's not sympathetic and certainly not above using all available ammunition at his disposal if it means saving Sheppard's life and returning his people to the city.
It's a low blow to do what he's planning to do but hey, that's life and Atlantis didn't ask the Genii to pay them a surprise visit.
AaA
John thinks Kolya's pretty darn sure of himself to take up residence in what used to be Elizabeth Weir's office.
He's sitting at her desk and staring at her city through a haze of evening light while John kneels at his feet like a common lapdog. His knees hurt but it's not the worst the Commander has done to him so he keeps his face neutral and gazes out at the control room. The lights flicker once, then twice before shining out completely. Kolya slams a fist onto the desk so hard it rattles the window panes.
"Dammit!"
It's unnerving and stressful because the city's just not working and it pisses Kolya off enough to make John really feel the brunt of his anger. The truth is, despite McKay raising the shields in the knick of time, the tsunami still damaged many of the city's chief internal and external systems and without a ZPM to power them up and make repairs Atlantis is a sitting duck in a Wraith-pond.
"What is happening here?" Kolya's voice is calm, deceptive. He doesn't look at John.
"Light-bulb burned out?" John understands Kolya's question but he's not really in the mood for a long dark heart to heart with the man who's been torturing him for the past three weeks and is systematically destroying his home. He's tired and cranky and just to prove to the world that he's hungry too, John's stomach growls loudly enough to make even Kolya take notice.
"Miss another meal Sheppard?"
John winces. He hasn't eaten since yesterday afternoon but the Genii leader already knows this. It's just another element of the sick game they've been playing since the occupation began. He smiles lightly, "Right."
"Your people are not cooperating."
"If you mean Rodney, he's doing the best he can."
He wonders how Kolya can be such an idiot and narrows his eyes, staring with an expression John hopes looks as deadly as he feels.
"The rest of my people are not in this city."
That's because they're either slaves of the Genii or still bunking down with those bastard Manarians. John's not sure which is worse but it doesn't matter anyway because the Commander isn't talking. It's entertaining for him to hold everything over John's head and make him worry as much as possible about who's still alive and who's dead. The only people he's sure of are Rodney, Elizabeth, Ford, Teyla, Beckett and oh yes, Kavanagh. Rodney and Kavanagh are somewhere on Atlantis and Kolya pushed Weir through the gate back to the Genii home world before the tsunami struck. His remaining teammates and Beckett are still on the mainland.
Kolya laughs. "I don't think Dr. McKay and Dr. Kavanagh get along very well.
Again, no surprise there but John keeps mum on their past relationship. It should be enough for Kolya to know that Rodney and John both consider the lanky scientist a traitor for helping the Genii and nearly getting Rodney killed in the process. If Rodney had been electrocuted during the storm because of Kavanagh's idiocy John would have snapped his neck on the spot.
He gives Kolya points for gating the bastard over during the takeover but it sure as hell would have been a smarter move if Kavanagh knew the codes to take down the shield before John destroyed the second half of the Genii invading army. He cringes. The memory is still too rough and it hurts him in ways John refuses to consider. He'll mourn for the lives he's taken later, but right now while he's still fighting, John needs his mind clear. Later, when the siege is over, he'll replay the horror in his dreams.
Once in the city Kavanagh is more than happy to explain the situation on Atlantis and betray the hell out of everybody. He tells about the Ancient gene, the therapy, how some systems only activate for Sheppard, how they need a ZPM and so on and so on. But he explains more than just the systems. He gives the Genii a three hour long paranoid soliloquy on how things work at the station and offers his opinion that Weir is an incompetent glory hound, Teyla's a whore and Rodney's not nearly as smart as he wants everyone to believe. John swallows hard remembering Kolya's smirk when Kavanagh voiced his suspicions about him and Rodney.
"Did you hear me Sheppard?"
"Yeah, well, professional jealousy, Rodney's way smarter." This remark earns John a slap to the face so hard he falls backward and knocks his head on the hard flooring. When she comes back he'll have to talk to Elizabeth about carpeting. He drags himself back to his knees and breathes steadily. If this is how the evening is beginning, John's not sure he wants to be around when it ends.
"Maybe I should kill one of them...maybe then things will run smoother. But which man to kill."
John ignores the taunt, recognizes it as another aspect of Kolya's need to control him. He uses Rodney as a threat because he knows John doesn't give a shit about Kavanagh.
"I know who I'd choose." John closes his eyes and shakes. Hunger's making him dizzy and he's been kneeling for over two hours. His vision is starting to blur and his head is pounding from both dehydration and the hard impact of Kolya's right hand. He's tired and achy but Kolya won't let him sleep. Not much of a problem since John's been plagued by Wraith nightmares ever since his arrival in Atlantis, but still a little necessary because some rest will come in handy if he's going to survive long enough to clean house and toss the Genii out of his city on their collective overbearing asses. He yawns once and forces himself to stay calm, to look away from Kolya and imagine himself flying across the blue skies in a Jumper. It's so hard, really. John's never been a very patient man.
"I can see by your attitude Major that you don't take the Genii occupation of Atlantis seriously either."
Kolya's a fucking bastard and John wishes he were dead. He wants to point out that without the gate working there's just so much Rodney can do on his own. You can dial to leave, but you can't dial back in so the Manarians can't just loan them Zelenka. Until Rodney finds a way to fix the damn thing Kolya may be the one in charge of things, but theoretically they are all prisoners in the city.
He sighs wearily but he just can't stop himself, "You mean there are two of us?"
John knows he's in trouble when Kolya flashes him a cold smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes. He shudders. The day just keeps getting better and better.
Every morning at sunrise they drag him out of his cell and force John to kneel in the Gateroom to face Kolya's leather strap while one of the Genii reads a list of the names of all the soldiers killed in the siege. He waits for the strike. Sometimes the Commander breaks the skin, sometimes not, but the meaning is clear. One strike per day until the number totals sixty-five --the exact number of men John's killed minus the two marines the Genii shot down when they first gated through. When Kolya's punishment reaches its desired number he's informed John he'll start again from the beginning.
If anything Kolya is very thorough and rational in his thinking. The public display of bloodthirsty revenge serves two purposes. First, it's a real morale booster for his men at a time when most of them are terrified of the Wraith and wondering if invading Atlantis was a good idea or just another giant fuck-up on the part of their leaders and second, it's an outlet for Kolya to enact his personal revenge, for sins both real and imagined, on John's slowly weakening shoulders.
It's quite fascinating and more than a little disturbing for John to be the object of so much loathing. The catcalls begin the moment he's shoved to the ground. The Genii soldiers cheer through John's public whipping. Although it really warms his heart to be reviled by fifty or so incompetent soldiers and an odd number of dark-age scientists he can't find fault with their reasoning. Many of the Genii still on Atlantis had brothers, uncles or sons among the men he killed and John's not likely to be forgiven any time soon.
The beating and bloodshed establishes Nationalism and allows the gang mentality to flourish. And what the hell...if watching their Commander whip and beat the crap out of John erases the Genii's troubles for just a little while well then it's nice to know that something good has come of his suffering. Despite the pain it's all so frigging laughable. John bites the inside of his mouth and considers the dull ache building across his shoulder blades. He hasn't bled from the whip in at least two days so tomorrow morning's going to be a real bitch.
The lights come on and Kolya looks at him triumphantly until they flash off again a moment later. When he speaks his voice holds no amusement.
"What is McKay doing?"
The question takes John by surprise. He hasn't been allowed to see Rodney for the past three days as part of Kolya's curiously daft plan to restore Atlantis and claim it for the Genii without the continuing aid of the one person with the strongest gene in the city. He sighs inwardly. There's something very heartwarming about Genii arrogance. At least it gives John a small bit of hope.
His days consist of kneeling and sometimes eating, getting whipped in the morning and beaten in the evening, ogled by some of the Genii guards, spit upon by others and on very rare occasions being allowed to help Rodney initiate Ancient devices in the lab. He forces himself to sit still, to pay attention to details, to watch Rodney and wait for any signal or sign on when they can set their plan in motion. The scientist always looks tired, complete with dark circles under his eyes and a mile long frown across his tilted mouth but still John stares, happy to be in his company if only for a little while.
When Rodney meets his gaze John feels hopeless and tragic and loved. He's still not sure what this "thing" is between them but John knows that having Rodney's cock buried inside him feels better than anything ever has in his whole entire life and he wants a shot at feeling that amazing forever.
He needs Rodney as much as he needs to breathe, needs his humor and brilliance and scandalous disregard for manners and feelings and charm. It shocks John to realize that at this stage of the game he's fallen absolutely, completely in love with a man who hates flying and has no concept of the finer points of football. Still John hopes Rodney might love him in return and that's a great big something. Plus there's still a slight chance he likes Ferris Wheels and John plans on making damn sure he gets a chance to find out.
"I'll repeat myself once Major. What is McKay doing?" Kolya sounds angry and that never bodes well. John is used to his moods by now and wishes the crazy fuck would just knock him the hell out and be done with it. At least that way John will get a little sleep.
"I don't know." He tries to keep the weary edge out of his voice because Kolya enjoys it just one shade too much.
Kolya slams him, harder this time and shoves John's face against the floor clutching at his throat until he sees stars. "I think you do Major."
He presses harder and John gasps thinking for the first time that Kolya just might kill him and he'll never, ever see Rodney again.
"I think you and McKay are planning something drastic to try and save your city."
Your city...
John smirks once just for the hell of it and says, "You got it."
Kolya's paranoia is a thing of beauty on even the worst of days and John takes a moment to savor the taste. Little by little the Commander is cracking, realizing that taking the city isn't as easy as nuking a Wraith ship. Atlantis doesn't give up her secrets very easily. John fights down another smile.
"Rodney's rallying the troops."
His euphoria doesn't last long because Kolya's smashing his face twice in succession against the metal floor until John swallows blood and his head throbs. He's nauseous even without food in his stomach and manages to gurgle a small bit of watery vomit onto the tips of the Commander's fingers before having his face twisted roughly into the mess. Kolya curses and John sags back to the floor in a shuddering heap gasping hard and rubbing his cheek against the floor in a dazed effort to regain his breath and dignity. A swift kick to the ribs jars his bones so hard his teeth rattle and he heaves up a bit more but swallows most of it back down when Kolya pulls him roughly to his knees and eyes the vomit with thinly veiled disgust. He shakes John without mercy and tosses him aside.
John curls in on himself and breathes through the chills currently turning his body to ice. His toes are numb and his fingers are on their way to joining them. It's cold in his cell, so damn cold, and if John didn't know that the Genii were borderline imbeciles when it came to understanding Ancient technology he'd swear to god they made it colder for him on purpose, sucking every last drop of heat right out of the room to give him hypothermia.
The truth of course, is much easier to accept. His body is weakening from hunger, blood loss and a daily dose of Genii beatings. It's getting harder for John to stay warm, harder for his body to recover. Besides, Rodney told him that the some lower floors were partially underwater so obviously the cell is nearly arctic and that's part of the reason why he's so chilly. The thought is comforting. He's never had a reason to doubt his lover yet.
One heartbeat, then two, and when he dares a look the Commander is staring at him, through him, whatever the fuck John doesn't know and he hurts too much to care. It's an odd moment for both of them, silent and dangerous, becoming suddenly intimate when Kolya strokes John's hair. The gesture is surprising and powerful, designed to make John very aware that Kolya can still hurt him in many different ways. He swallows hard, nearly gagging on blood and vomit, and somehow manages to stay in place while every nerve in his body is revolted enough to scream for freedom. He closes his eyes sickened that Kolya's action hits the mark on his very first try. The Genii have been in Atlantis for three weeks and in all that time John's never felt quite so vulnerable.
"Tomorrow you'll help McKay get this city fixed. If I don't get some results I'll make him pay for it."
Two Genii soldiers appear out of nowhere and drag John to his feet. "Take him downstairs." Kolya voice carries down the hallway.
"Until morning Major Sheppard."
AaA
Rodney really wants to hurt Kavanagh in the worst possible way.
It's eight o'clock in the morning and three cups of coffee later the dumbass still hasn't bothered to show up for work. Great, wonderful, Kavanagh may be a moron but he's still better than all seven of the Genii scientists remaining on the station. Like them he's way too arrogant to think that Rodney's been messing around with the systems, doing only the bare minimum necessary to keep Sora off his back while simultaneously trying to figure out a way to screw the occupying army into thinking they have no choice but to get the hell out of the city. Rodney keeps him busy doing grunt work, testing minor systems the Genii want operational and that Atlantis needs running but ones that won't hurt their chances to get the city back. The Stargate he sabotages at every opportunity, hiding his fingerprints in places he hopes Kavanagh won't think to look, since he still hasn't figured out a way to fix it anyway.
The scientist, and Rodney uses that term lightly, views the Genii as a way out of his humdrum existence living in methodical mediocrity under McKay and even Zelenka. On Genii he'll be a hero of the people manufacturing bombs and weapons of mass destruction without a care in the world while the ignorant populace worships at his bespectacled feet. It's absolutely disgusting...it's...
"Huh." For a moment Rodney's flummoxed by the idea of Kavanagh being the smartest guy in the room but shrugs off the mental stigma by taking another drink of coffee.
Ladon Radim is the best of the Genii but he's so technologically uninformed that he makes Kavanagh look brilliant. He's also rather annoying. The way he sniffs around each console in the Gateroom like a puppy looking for a place to pee ranks rather highly on Rodney's scale of professional annoyance.
He stares at his steaming mug with defiance before pushing it away. He doesn't have to fight for every cup because thankfully the Genii have no taste at all for the brew and well, of course Kavanagh would be a tea drinker. Rodney pulls the coffee back and sighs content for the moment and slightly hopeful that Sora's convinced he's at the top of his game only when highly caffeinated.
Time to get on with it...
He brings up the gate schematics and stares. The Ancients really were a bunch of smarty pants bastards but Rodney can follow their lead enough to know that it's gonna be a bitch to make the Stargate work while some of the systems he needs access to are almost completely zapped. There may be a chance, one tiny opportunity and though that knowledge makes his heart sing a bit Rodney's not sharing his information with anybody except maybe Sheppard, when and if he sees John again. Thankfully Kavanagh's not bright enough to figure it out and even if by some miracle he does, only Rodney has the brains to fix stuff and allow people entrance to Atlantis.
He closes his eyes and prepares himself for another day of neglecting the city. Rodney misses the early days of the Genii occupation and the odd way the systems kept fluctuating back and forth with one console saying the sewage system worked while others say the shit will soon start to gather.
He laughs lightly and remembers one memorable occasion when Ladon takes six hours to release four Genii soldiers from the mess hall when the sensors lock it up tight after incorrectly reading the room as flooded. And another time when the showers run ice cold for three days straight while the temperature gauge reads a comfy sixty five degrees Fahrenheit. Ah, good times. It's a hoot to watch the Genii scientists go crazy, never figuring out what is behind the systems failures and double good laughs to see Kavanagh acting all freakish and moronic trying to solve it.
It's at this time, for Rodney, the seed of a plan begins to form.
He puts up with a lot of shit while the wheels of his brain churn away. For example, it's downright painful to watch Kavanagh fuddle through Rodney's clues to the solution, bossing around the Genii scientists, screaming at him, fixing an issue that's basically all sensor imagination. When everything starts running smoothly Kolya himself praises Kavanagh's dedication and allows him to choose his new quarters. Kavanagh of course, chooses Sheppard's old digs. This malicious display of power is not lost on Rodney and he's never let the Major know who's been sleeping in his bed.
"McKay!"
When Sora storms into the room in a thinly disguised fit of rage, red curls flying, with Kavanagh at her heels demanding to see his progress it's all Rodney can do not to laugh in her face and spout technical improbabilities.
Until he turns around and sees Sheppard being dragged in behind her.
God...he thinks...oh my god.
"Sheppard." Rodney can't believe how anguished he sounds, like he's been holding his breath for the past three days and is only now learning to breath again. The urge to touch is nearly unbearable.
"Rodney." Sheppard's smile is forced and his hands are cuffed behind his back. The bruises both new and old across his face and throat paint a very vivid picture. You'd have to be an ass not to know this man's been beaten. "You okay?"
Now that sounds like Sheppard. Always worried about everyone else even when he's the one being smashed to a pulp. The familiar drawl sounds shaky and he looks like death warmed over yet when Rodney peers into his wary hazel eyes there's a depth there he didn't expect to find, a calculating intensity that says maybe John's not as beaten as he'd like the Genii to believe.
"Major." Rodney tries hard not to gape but Sheppard's pale face, accentuated by a fine procession of freckles sprinkled endearingly across the bridge of his nose is just begging to be kissed. He's so thin, much thinner than Rodney remembers him being, and it's extraordinarily difficult to look at him, to reconcile the strong guy that Rodney loves with the beautiful wreck standing before him. And Christ is hurts so much too and Rodney's never been the type to put his pain aside for later but what the hell...it's not gonna help John now.
"So..." Rodney's stomach jumps. Time to get this show on the road... Kavanagh and Sheppard are together in the same room. Who the hell knows when he'll get the chance to put his borderline psycho plan of doom into motion again? "It's good to see you're still alive." Slowly, slowly, not too much drama…
He looks at Sora and frowns, somehow holds back the fury edging through his pores. "Kolya does understand the gene won't work if he's dead, right?"
Rodney is aware of the spectacular morning whipping the Genii Commander inflicts on Sheppard. Since it's now half past nine the Major has already been there done that. At the beginning he watched out of respect for his friend but stopped when the fiasco became too unbearable, the revulsion too real. He knows John detests being put on display, hates the attention and of course, hates the pain. It's common knowledge around the station that the Genii line up early to get the best possible spots for viewing.
"For Christ's sake McKay your boy-toy is fine." Kavanagh voice is laced with disgust. Rodney can't stand the sight of him. "Just get to work." He sulks away into a corner of the office and watches with a practiced eye.
If Kavanagh feels any guilt when he looks at Sheppard he doesn't let it show. He gestures for the Genii guard to sit Sheppard at the table next to McKay's desk but he doesn't mention anything about removing the handcuffs.
"Major Sheppard will be helping you today." Sora's smile is icy. "Commander Kolya expects results." She looks at Sheppard with contempt. "If you try anything you will be shot on sight."
Sheppard nods warily. "I'm probably gonna need my hands for this." He smiles and shrugs his shoulders with a very noticeable wince. His lean frame looks stiff, every movement spare and consequential. His T-shirt is torn in several places and his pale feet are bare. He's a ragamuffin, a dirty, sick, pathetic stunning ragamuffin. Rodney doesn't think he's ever loved anybody quite so much in his entire life.
"Oh come on." Kavanagh complaint packs an arrogant punch. "He only has to touch stuff. Attach them in front if you have too."
Sheppard's eyes narrow. Rodney aches for him. He knows the Major wants to break Kavanagh's neck. "Well?" he says, and his impatience is real.
Sora frowns. "Take them off him."
Kavanagh's on her in a heartbeat. "Do you think that's wise? He's military."
"And what are they, chopped liver?" Rodney gestures to the Genii and grabs Sheppard's hands when the soldier removes the bindings. He stares. The trademark black wristband is nowhere to be seen. Sheppard's bony wrists are chapped and battered and scabbed over with dried blood...my god Rodney thinks...where they always this fragile? "Well, isn't that lovely. I'm so glad to see you're keeping him in line."
Sheppard squeezes his fingers gently and it's all Rodney can do not to gasp. He's so starved for touch, so crazed with need for this remarkable man and yet so unable to have him or talk to him with Sora so close that Rodney wishes he could put a bubble around them so the Genii can't hear just so he can listen to the Major tell him that everything is going to be all right. If he says it, Rodney will believe it without a doubt since for three months he's been saving up all his blind faith for Sheppard's unrelenting optimism.
"I'm fine Rodney." Sheppard's eyes beg him to understand. To let Rodney know that he just wants to get down to the business at hand without being the focus of any more attention.
He drops Sheppard's hands and watches them fall gracefully to his waist. Rodney wants to reach out and stroke the stubble free cheek and trace his fingers across John's ghostly pale skin. It's been three weeks and two days since he last kissed John and nearly a week since they last shared a conversation.
Memories flash...holding Sheppard in his arms after sex, the two of them sweaty and jumbled on a bed that Rodney can barely fit on when he's alone, and sharing silent kisses and caresses. He recalls the way John's eyes looked, both grateful and surprised, as if Rodney fucking his brains out was something close to amazing, and the remembrance burns because he never had a chance to tell John how good it was for him too, and how very much he wants a chance to do it again and again.
Kolya is a real bitch when it comes to fraternization. He makes sure they are rarely alone and when they need to be together, there's always a guard or two around Sheppard to make sure he doesn't wreak some kind of havoc. On a good day the Major can take whatever the Genii throw at him, but what with the sporadic feedings and constant beatings, Sheppard's not exactly up to par.
Today they work for two hours straight initializing some arrangements to full status and trying desperately to bring others up to at least half-mast. It's a tiring job to try and sabotage some of your successes while also attempting to fix those important to undermining the Genii while under Kavanagh's watchful and paranoid eye but Rodney manages just fine, because, well, simply put he's a hell of a lot smarter. But it's also near impossible to work from scratch and that's kind of what they're doing since most of the systems where working when they stepped through the gate into the Pegasus galaxy many scattered months ago. Rodney's seeing some of this stuff for the very first time.
He waits for a few minutes after Sora leaves before stretching and reaching for his empty cup of coffee. Across the table John is staring at him, waiting, wanting, his anxiety a living, breathing thing. Rodney clears his throat, takes a deep breath and says, "Remember the coffee Teyla used to make?"
Sheppard's looks at him as if he's lost his mind. After all, coffee, come on, what the fuck?
But just by mentioning Teyla he's caught Kavanagh's eye. The spectacled menace has a crush on Sora and he's well aware of his intended's hatred towards the Athosian and how she blames him for her father's demise at the hands of the Wraith. If Kavanagh thinks Teyla's on the mainland alive and well...oh what wouldn't sweet Sora do for that information. She'd almost have to take a jumper, in secret probably, since Kolya would never be dumb enough to let Sheppard leave the city and oh yes isn't he the only one able to fly in a straight line? "Those beans on the mainland would rival Starbucks."
Come on John, I sound like a lunatic, please play along....
"I wonder if you can get a franchise license all the way out here." Sheppard catches on. His teasing drawl is familiar. God, how much Rodney missed the sound.
He notices Kavanagh trying hard not to be obvious, the superficial freak. "When this is over maybe Teyla can bring some back from the mainland..." When Kavanagh's ears perk up like a jackrabbit Rodney knows he's been heard.
"McKay!" Sheppard's voice blasts across the lab and Rodney actually jumps even though that's exactly the reaction he wants to elicit. "Do you have any idea what covert means?"
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. All right, Telya's not on the mainland sipping coconut juice she's languishing with the Manarians just like everybody else. It really doesn't fucking matter where anyone is anyway because we are so never getting this city working again and we'll probably all get killed by the Wraith in the next drive by eating. If we somehow beat the odds and survive we'd be better off pledging allegiance to the Genii flag of superiority like Kavanagh here and become Demigods in the world of science." He pauses. "Or at least I will. Kavanagh's an idiot and you they'll probably just hang."
"Great Rodney...thanks a lot." Sheppard's smile doesn't reach his eyes but that's not surprising. There's a heck of a lot of lives riding on the success of their subterfuge.
It's not common knowledge that Teyla is still on the mainland. Sheppard knows of course, but Rodney only finds out when he first sees the Major a week after the Genii take over the city. It makes him happy to realize that the remaining members of his team are free but it worries him as to why they never flew the jumper back to Atlantis to save his hide when, hello, that would have been a very nice thing for them to do. Of course, maybe, just maybe, Ford, Teyla and Beckett aren't alive at all. There's every possibility that they died when the tsunami surge flashed across the mainland. Sheppard thinks they're breathing. He believes they lifted the jumper up in time and were on their way to the city when the bad weather forced them to return to the mainland. It's all such a jumbled mess, but really, when was anything on Atlantis actually easy?
"Just get back to work." Kavanagh's eyes are hiding something. He thinks he's smart enough to fool them both. "You're both a bunch of touchy-feely lunatics."
Rodney considers letting him think he's getting away with it but Kavanagh lost whatever millimeter of professional respect Rodney held for him when he turned traitor to Atlantis. Plus, did he just say 'touchy-feely?'
"For the love of god, you're gonna run back and tell Sora everything, aren't you? You'll only make her crazy. Kolya will never let Sheppard fly to the mainland and pick up refugees - especially Atlantean refugees."
He looks to Sheppard for help in a fake display of camaraderie trying desperately to appear pathetic so Kavanagh will continue to play into his hands. "You'll get them all killed!"
"No one's going to get anyone killed..." Apparently Sheppard's a better actor than Rodney imagined because good lord are those tears in his eyes? "...Ford, Teyla and Beckett are already dead. If they were alive and breathing they would have found a way to bring the Jumper back to Atlantis."
Rodney nods like a maniac. "What he said."
"I think it's important the Commander knows about the possibility." Kavanagh tries innocently. "They may need supplies on the mainland. We'd be doing them a favor."
Yeah, great one pal, Rodney thinks, we both know you're going to tell Sora first and Kolya will find out when someone sends him a memo. It's no secret she wants revenge upon Teyla too badly to let anything stop her from being the one to stick the knife through her throat, and that includes Kolya.
"Don't do something stupid...again." Sheppard, it seems, is the master of the deadly voice. Rodney hopes he never has to hear it turned upon himself. He moves toward Kavanagh and the scientist backs away. Sheppard's hands are clenched into fists so tight they make his knuckles appear three shades paler than the rest of him.
"Look who you're talking to Major. Kavanagh wouldn't recognize loyalty if it jumped up and nuked his ass. He doesn't care what happens to any of us. He'll do what he has to so he can stay alive long enough to get into Sora's pants." Rodney stares at Kavanagh coldly. "And frankly she'd have to be one hard up bitch to let you anywhere near her."
"Forget what a woman feels like McKay?"
The other scientist's taunts are meaningless. Rodney hasn't wanted a woman in three lifetimes. Why the hell would anyone want female companionship when they're having sex with Sheppard? Sheppard for god's sake! The hottest thing on legs in two galaxies and he decides he wants Rodney McKay. Despite the direness of their situation, the thought is still enough to make his groin start to tingle.
"Just shut the fuck up Kavanagh," Sheppard growls with more than a hint of threat.
"Enjoy sucking Kolya's cock Major?"
Sheppard doesn't reply but looks more menacing than ever and when he moves it's so lightning fast that Rodney doesn't realize he's decked Kavanagh until the guards have Sheppard shoved up against the wall and the spineless whiner is clutching his cheek and cursing while he stumbles to his feet. Rodney takes a breather to cherish the moment before the omnipotent worry starts to set in.
"You fucking bastard!" Kavanagh slaps Sheppard hard enough across the face to split his bottom lip open but the Major merely smiles. He's calm again, controlled, but good lord that punch must have felt wonderful.
"Next time, I'll kill you." Sheppard's smile fades. "You're a traitor Kavanagh and you had it coming."
"I'm a traitor? I suppose that's a better than being a used up whore." Kavanagh smirks and moves away and Rodney can't help but snicker through his rage when the smug bastard utters the famous last words of all madmen, "You'll pay for that I promise." He brushes himself off and tells the guards, "Let him alone but cuff him. Kolya will be upset if they don't get more finished today."
The guards reattach the cuffs to Sheppard's wrists before Kavanagh leaves, presumably to tell Sora the exciting news of Teyla's where-a-bouts, and Rodney decides that touchy-feely isn't really that bad a phrase when it's applied to the scruffy man flopped onto the chair in front of him. When the guards move to cover the door he smoothes Sheppard's tousled hair out of his eyes and dabs the blood on his lip away with a tissue.
"I'm glad you restrained yourself."
Sheppard's laugh is beautiful and genuine and lights up his face in a way that Rodney's wanted to see for the past dreary month. "She won't be able to resist going for Teyla."
Rodney grins. "I hope you remember how to fly a jumper."
"I haven't you know." Sheppard begins warily his eyes searching and just a tad bit lost.
"What?"
"I haven't sucked Kolya's cock."
Rodney swallows down the fear that's been building for weeks, the terror navigated to fruition by Kavanagh's endless taunting combined with the crazy vivid nightmares of his own imagination. He closes his eyes briefly and responds, "God John."
"He taunts me sometimes, the bastard, but he won't let the guards lay a hand on me that way either."
Sheppard leans closer until their foreheads touch Athosian style. His breath on Rodney's face is humid and comforting, his deep hazel eyes sad. It only takes a moment to kiss him so Rodney complies, a quick brush of mouth on mouth enhanced to a higher degree of brilliance by the delightful tip of Sheppard's tongue sliding inside to trace patterns across Rodney's palate.
They kiss lightly for a while, soft sounds made desperate, but the moment ends too soon. They pull apart and Sheppard lays his head on Rodney's shoulder with a sigh, exhaustion finally taking its toll and making his eyes droop shut. The guards don't care as long as there's no violence and besides, they're wary of this man who's killed so many Genii brothers in the blink of an eye. This man the city dotes on like a lover.
"Rest John..." Rodney murmurs against the soft spiky head. "I've got enough fake fix-ups to fool Kolya for a while."
Sheppard nuzzles his neck in response before complying and Rodney sits still for a very long time and prays silently to a god he's not sure he believes in to keep them safe and alive for just a few days longer. He strokes Sheppard's hair and sighs. They're in for one hell of a ride.
AaA
"Do you understand me now Major?"
Acastus Kolya stands facing away from John, bound and bloodied and kneeling before him on a metal floor in a dark Atlantean cell. "You are not in control here. You do not give the orders. You and Atlantis belong to me. You are a slave of the Genii people. You are trash...you...." His voice trails off and he closes his eyes trying to sound strong as his voice wavers.
This weakness is John's first clue.
In an instant he's sure that Atlantis' new commander is going bonkers. Kolya is desperate to diminish the hatred deep inside his soul that's eating him alive from the inside out. It's destroying him and the Commander knows it. His bloodlust, once unquenchable, its need silenced only through John's never-ending agony, no longer satisfies his pain at the loss of his only child. That Kolya hates him is no longer news in the ever-shrinking city. But the way he goes about showing his hatred definitely has people talking.
He watches the Commander twirl his wooden fighting stick and waits.
"You are a murderer." He grabs John's face in his hands and stares. "Surely you realize that you must pay for your war-crimes against the Genii people?"
John blinks once and turns away only to have his face roughly squeezed in Kolya's stronger grip.
He's fully aware that what's coming up next is going to hurt like hell and if events unfold at the same pace they usually do this time of day, he knows Kolya's going to make it as bad as he can possibly make it.
Shudders rip through him when Kolya squeezes tighter, unable to contain his rage, his thumb presses into John's swollen left eye while John struggles against his binds. He's close, oh so very close to begging, 'Please.' His eyes, god dammit, not his eyes...oh shit...oh shit...god no, fuck...not his eyes. John whimpers and moans as the pain increases. It's a burning pain that rips through his nerve endings and spirals his terror into overdrive. And the sound it makes...fuck...the squishy wet slurping sound causes his stomach to roll over and his head to spin. He pulls his face away but can't escape the Commander's determined grip.
"No..." John mutters. "God..."
Just when he's sure that Kolya is going to gouge out his eye and he'll never fly again, the Commander relents and stares at John with an expression that's disturbing.
When their eyes meet for a moment John isn't afraid anymore, in fact, he's mildly sympathetic toward his enemy and wow, isn't that just weird. Kolya is an idiot and a fool but he loves his people as much as John loves his own, though he's trying to save them in a completely desperate and asinine way. He attempts negotiating again because heck, it would be nice to think he's learned a thing or two from Elizabeth.
"Our people aren't at war Kolya. We aren't enemies." John tries... he tries so hard to get the point across but one look tells him Kolya isn't buying. Still, maybe that's a good thing because some words just need to be said. "Or at least we weren't enemies until you brought your half-assed forces through the gate and killed our people!"
He prepares himself for the swing and isn't disappointed when Kolya knocks the stick against his back with enough force to knock him forward. Blood flies, skin splatters, but John doesn't utter a sound.
AaA
"How long did you plan on keeping this a secret?" Sora's temper is on the rise and Rodney knows he better watch his words because, well, she's downright scary when she's like this.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Look, ask Kavanagh if you don't believe me. I'm not half as smart as I say I am…"
The punch to the gut is unexpected and his entire body spasms in pain. "What the hell was that for?" Rodney moves back warily. He knows what she's pissed over but he has to play his cards just right.
"Teyla Emmagan is on the mainland."
"Oh, that." Rodney breathes in hard and exhales quickly. "Kavanagh told you, right?" He continues on despite her protests. "Look, he's wrong. She's dead. If she were alive she would have come back to help us take the city."
"She has no loyalty. She killed my father." Sora tosses her curls and moves closer. "I despise her more with each passing day." She pauses to take a breath and when she speaks again her tone is malicious. "I want her to die."
"What, so you can brag about doing it the way she does at every opportunity?"
For a moment she's confused, and Rodney waits, counting the seconds until reality dawns.
"She brags about murdering my father?"
"I wouldn't say brag exactly, more like boast maybe?" God help him he's not the best liar by far but there's a hell of lot riding on the outcome of this conversation. "In all fairness he did kill a captive of the Wraith. And according to Teyla the man was begging for help and your father just took his life."
"That is a lie!" She's furious now and Rodney really hopes she doesn't decide to hit him again while he's still reeling from the first punch.
"He screamed, 'help me please' and was reaching out for aid and Tyrus just shot him."
"Stop it!"
"She told our new trading partner, the Pillions all about it and informed them the Genii can't be trusted. That your father was a Wraith sympathizer..."
"She lies! My father was a man of honor. Teyla killed him to save herself."
"Teyla wouldn't do that." Finally, a truth, this he can do.
"You will fly me to the mainland to retrieve Teyla and bring her back to face our justice."
"What? No! Are you crazy? I can't fly a jumper. Sheppard is the only pilot we have." He pauses, brings on the sarcasm. "Oh, yes, before you inquire, lessons were scheduled to start the week after you invaded the city." Rodney scoffs. "Once again the Genii prove correct the famed stories of their near fatal timing."
Sora considers his words carefully. Sheppard is Kolya's prize. Getting him off world is not going to be easy, and besides, if he escaped the Genii would have nothing to do for fun. "Perhaps the Commander..."
"Right, like he cares about your family honor. Kolya knows Teyla isn't with the Manarians but he doesn't care. She means something to you because you consider her a murderer. To him she's just an Athosian who's probably screwing Sheppard."
"Enough!" Sora's smirk is deadly. "I need to think about this carefully but be aware Doctor, by the ancestors I will have my revenge and if going to the mainland is the only way then I will find a way to do it."
Rodney doesn't realize he's holding his breath until Sora leaves and he collapses on the chair by his desk and exhales. He rubs a hand across his face and places his other hand on his stomach. Dammit it still hurts. He thinks of Sheppard suffering at Kolya's hands and then promptly stops thinking.
CONTINUE to part 2!
=end=