A FORCE OF NATURE BY TO BE REVEALED [LFWS #4 ROUND 2]
Title:A Force of Nature
Author: To be revealed
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None
Genre(s): Humor
Character(s): McKay, Sheppard, Ronon, Teyla
Disclaimer: Stargate belongs to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., no infringements of any rights is intended.
Prompt for the Round: The fic must be centered around the known basic conflict of Man vs Nature.
A FORCE OF NATURE by TO BE REVEALED
The darkening cloud stretched to the horizon, swirling with mindless energy, rolling over the water and obscuring the mid day sun until the windows in Woolsey’s office were as black as the threatening sky. Outside, the surface of the once calm ocean roiled and foamed, churning the waters into a frothy brew more white than green as marine dwellers rose to feed. Rodney McKay pressed his nose to the glass in despair. Atlantis was not made to withstand this kind of assault. They had only been on New Lantea a fortnight and its unfamiliar hazards were only now beginning to manifest themselves. With a deep sigh he turned to the conference room. He had done everything he could to maximize the city’s filtration systems but despite his best efforts he could not keep this new threat at bay. There was no choice but to face the accusations of his teammates. Perhaps, the great Rodney McKay had finally met his match.
With his laptop tucked under his arm, and a cup of steaming coffee clenched in one hand, its open mouth protectively covered by his free hand, McKay entered the conference room. As he had expected, Sheppard leaned against the opposite wall, casually biting into a grey coated apple as though nothing were wrong. McKay grimaced at the thought. Teyla had procured a broom from maintenance and was busy sweeping the dead bodies off the conference table, the chairs, the floor and every other surface in the room. There was still a strangely silent, shifting cloud in the room that seemed to coalesce around his head as he entered.
“Go” he muttered fiercely, as if they would understand, and batted at the annoyance with his hand.
Sheppard grinned behind his apple, “So, Rodney, any luck revamping the air filtration system?”
Rodney glowered and shook his head negatively. “Where’s Ronon?”
Sheppard nodded to the window. “Outside.”
Rodney shuddered. “Outside? In that?”
“Yeah,” Sheppard nodded. “Said something about wanting to feel the ‘raw force of nature.’”
Rodney snorted. His thought was interrupted by Ronon’s entrance. Rodney took one look at him and grimaced. If he didn’t know better he would swear the man’s hair had taken on a life of its own. The surface seemed to shift and sway. Then Rodney realized with disgust that the Satedan’s dreads were absolutely covered with the “Damn bugs,” McKay muttered.
“More like midges,” Sheppard corrected.
“Midges?” Teyla asked setting her broom aside. She had obviously decided that her efforts were in vain because as fast as she swept more dead and dying bodies seemed to appear.
“Small flying insects that resemble mosquitoes,” Sheppard answered.
“Mosquitoes?” she asked again.
“Annoying, flying insects that breed on the water and sting,” McKay commented curling his lip in disgust. “They also seem to have a fondness for me, knowing I’m sure, that I’m allergic to their sting.”
“Never heard of anyone being allergic to mosquitoes.” Ronon mumbled under his breath, shaking his head to release a cloud of the offending insects.
“Midges don’t sting,” Sheppard said, “but they definitely breed. The adults live just long enough to do that and nothing else. Think of it, Rodney, 4,000 maturing larvae per square foot of surface water. Do you know how many adults there could be just in the immediate vicinity of Atlantis? One square mile equals 27 878 400 square feet, so there would be 111,513,600,000 larvae hatching in that square mile and there are 15 square miles of open water--“
“Enough,” Rodney interrupted Sheppard’s calculations. “That explains why they are in everything.”
“No, the fact that the air filtration system can’t keep up with them explains why they are in everything. But don’t worry, Rodney, they should be done breeding in a couple of weeks.”
“Weeks?”
“Yeah, two or three. “
“And since when have you become an expert in entomology?”
“We’ve been helping that new lady biologist collect samples,” Ronon chimed in. With those words he turned and gave McKay a huge grin.
McKay felt the blood drain from his face, as his stomach turned. The big man’s teeth were covered with black specks that could only be. He didn’t want to think about it. “Can we please change the subject,” He requested matter-of-factly. Placing his laptop on the bug speckled table, he sat wearily in a chair, took a huge gulp of his now tepid coffee, and almost immediately spewed the mouthful across the table, along with all of the midges that had settled on the surface of his unprotected drink. “I think I’m going to be sick,” he said as he tried vainly to wipe the remaining insects from his mouth. Without another word he made a beeline for the open door.
* * *
Sheppard slapped Ronon on the back. “Good move with the teeth. I’d have never thought of poppy seeds on my teeth. I thought just eating an apple covered with the little suckers would get to McKay.”
“His own coffee did him in,” Ronon chuckled.
Sheppard slapped the Satedan again and would have given a hoot of delight had he not heard the gentle tapping of a foot on the floor behind him. He turned to see Teyla, arms crossed on her chest, giving them both that look. The one that told volumes of how childish she thought their horseplay was. It also told him exactly what she expected.
Sheppard glanced at Ronon. “I guess we’d better go find Rodney and let him know we were just teasing.”
Ronon glanced at Teyla then nodded reluctantly.
“But first you’d better wipe those seeds off your teeth,” Sheppard suggested. “Don’t want to make Rodney any sicker.”
“Who said they were seeds?”
Author: To be revealed
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None
Genre(s): Humor
Character(s): McKay, Sheppard, Ronon, Teyla
Disclaimer: Stargate belongs to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., no infringements of any rights is intended.
Prompt for the Round: The fic must be centered around the known basic conflict of Man vs Nature.
A FORCE OF NATURE by TO BE REVEALED
The darkening cloud stretched to the horizon, swirling with mindless energy, rolling over the water and obscuring the mid day sun until the windows in Woolsey’s office were as black as the threatening sky. Outside, the surface of the once calm ocean roiled and foamed, churning the waters into a frothy brew more white than green as marine dwellers rose to feed. Rodney McKay pressed his nose to the glass in despair. Atlantis was not made to withstand this kind of assault. They had only been on New Lantea a fortnight and its unfamiliar hazards were only now beginning to manifest themselves. With a deep sigh he turned to the conference room. He had done everything he could to maximize the city’s filtration systems but despite his best efforts he could not keep this new threat at bay. There was no choice but to face the accusations of his teammates. Perhaps, the great Rodney McKay had finally met his match.
With his laptop tucked under his arm, and a cup of steaming coffee clenched in one hand, its open mouth protectively covered by his free hand, McKay entered the conference room. As he had expected, Sheppard leaned against the opposite wall, casually biting into a grey coated apple as though nothing were wrong. McKay grimaced at the thought. Teyla had procured a broom from maintenance and was busy sweeping the dead bodies off the conference table, the chairs, the floor and every other surface in the room. There was still a strangely silent, shifting cloud in the room that seemed to coalesce around his head as he entered.
“Go” he muttered fiercely, as if they would understand, and batted at the annoyance with his hand.
Sheppard grinned behind his apple, “So, Rodney, any luck revamping the air filtration system?”
Rodney glowered and shook his head negatively. “Where’s Ronon?”
Sheppard nodded to the window. “Outside.”
Rodney shuddered. “Outside? In that?”
“Yeah,” Sheppard nodded. “Said something about wanting to feel the ‘raw force of nature.’”
Rodney snorted. His thought was interrupted by Ronon’s entrance. Rodney took one look at him and grimaced. If he didn’t know better he would swear the man’s hair had taken on a life of its own. The surface seemed to shift and sway. Then Rodney realized with disgust that the Satedan’s dreads were absolutely covered with the “Damn bugs,” McKay muttered.
“More like midges,” Sheppard corrected.
“Midges?” Teyla asked setting her broom aside. She had obviously decided that her efforts were in vain because as fast as she swept more dead and dying bodies seemed to appear.
“Small flying insects that resemble mosquitoes,” Sheppard answered.
“Mosquitoes?” she asked again.
“Annoying, flying insects that breed on the water and sting,” McKay commented curling his lip in disgust. “They also seem to have a fondness for me, knowing I’m sure, that I’m allergic to their sting.”
“Never heard of anyone being allergic to mosquitoes.” Ronon mumbled under his breath, shaking his head to release a cloud of the offending insects.
“Midges don’t sting,” Sheppard said, “but they definitely breed. The adults live just long enough to do that and nothing else. Think of it, Rodney, 4,000 maturing larvae per square foot of surface water. Do you know how many adults there could be just in the immediate vicinity of Atlantis? One square mile equals 27 878 400 square feet, so there would be 111,513,600,000 larvae hatching in that square mile and there are 15 square miles of open water--“
“Enough,” Rodney interrupted Sheppard’s calculations. “That explains why they are in everything.”
“No, the fact that the air filtration system can’t keep up with them explains why they are in everything. But don’t worry, Rodney, they should be done breeding in a couple of weeks.”
“Weeks?”
“Yeah, two or three. “
“And since when have you become an expert in entomology?”
“We’ve been helping that new lady biologist collect samples,” Ronon chimed in. With those words he turned and gave McKay a huge grin.
McKay felt the blood drain from his face, as his stomach turned. The big man’s teeth were covered with black specks that could only be. He didn’t want to think about it. “Can we please change the subject,” He requested matter-of-factly. Placing his laptop on the bug speckled table, he sat wearily in a chair, took a huge gulp of his now tepid coffee, and almost immediately spewed the mouthful across the table, along with all of the midges that had settled on the surface of his unprotected drink. “I think I’m going to be sick,” he said as he tried vainly to wipe the remaining insects from his mouth. Without another word he made a beeline for the open door.
* * *
Sheppard slapped Ronon on the back. “Good move with the teeth. I’d have never thought of poppy seeds on my teeth. I thought just eating an apple covered with the little suckers would get to McKay.”
“His own coffee did him in,” Ronon chuckled.
Sheppard slapped the Satedan again and would have given a hoot of delight had he not heard the gentle tapping of a foot on the floor behind him. He turned to see Teyla, arms crossed on her chest, giving them both that look. The one that told volumes of how childish she thought their horseplay was. It also told him exactly what she expected.
Sheppard glanced at Ronon. “I guess we’d better go find Rodney and let him know we were just teasing.”
Ronon glanced at Teyla then nodded reluctantly.
“But first you’d better wipe those seeds off your teeth,” Sheppard suggested. “Don’t want to make Rodney any sicker.”
“Who said they were seeds?”