A Cry in the Dark (2/?)

Jul 21, 2007 20:55


Title: A Cry in the Dark
Chapter: 2/?
Author: sparxxa
Rating: PG/12
Notes: Thanks again to alfirin_kirinki for allowing me to use the names ‘Adam’ and ‘Jamie’ for Stackhouse and Markham. 
Calling Kagan (Phantoms) ‘Tim’ is my fault. I’m also to blame for: Technicians Chris Ellis and Craig Cullen, Lieutenants Keith Crosby and Seamus Lee, Corporal Robbi Barton and dead alien scientist Boysdanlmead…and if anyone knows how I named these guys that’s brilliant!

Spoilers for Season One episodes ‘Brotherhood’ and ‘Siege’

Set season three, a few weeks after ‘Phantoms’

First Chapter:     http://sparxxa.livejournal.com/33243.html#cutid1

Chapter Two.

Chuck sighed to himself as he surveyed the practically empty gate room. It was late and most of the inhabitants of Atlantis were tucked up on their beds, but not him. Oh, no. No he was working the practically dead ‘graveyard’ shift, having swapped shifts with one of the other technicians who hadn’t been feeling too well…he was definitely getting soft in his old age but the smile she’d given him had been worth it…

With the exception of the occasional graveyard shift Chuck loved his life on Atlantis. He was the one there to let out and back in again all the off-world teams and he was even becoming part of the mythology of Atlantis; all because of his surname.

The whole thing stemmed from the fact that hardly anyone actually knew his surname. Even the military personnel, who were infamous for calling everyone by their last names, called him ‘Chuck’ so it had become part of the mythology of the expedition that he had no surname. This, of course, had prompted Colonel Sheppard and Major Lorne to start up a competition of sorts to see who could work it out first. It had come to a point where the rest of Atlantis were taking bets on how long it would take them to come up with the right answer, and he’d even heard from Sergeant Kagan that the Colonel had persuaded Lieutenant Lee to keep a surname book for him on the Daedalus in an attempt to cheat. Neither Colonel Sheppard nor Major Lorne had come even close so far and only two people in Atlantis knew his last name and neither was saying a thing; it was good for morale after all.

His musing on the competition and the latest news from Doctor Zelenka, who was running the betting, was abruptly interrupted when the gate was suddenly activated.

He looked up with a frown, noting the confused looks of technician Chris Ellis and the marine on duty Lieutenant Keith Crosby, the only other two people in the control room, as the gate deactivated only moments later.

He was about to call Doctor Weir and Colonel Sheppard to alert them to the unscheduled gate activation when he noticed that in the time that the gate had been activated they’d been sent a radio transmission. Making certain that the transmission was secure and backed up he began to listen to it.

Suddenly he heard something that made him snap his head up to look at his colleague.

“Chris. Contact Doctor Weir and Colonel Sheppard. Get them up here now!”

*****************

It was about ten minutes before both Doctor Elizabeth Weir and Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard entered the control room, heading straight towards Chuck’s workstation.

“What’s going on Sergeant?” asked Weir as they approached.

“Unscheduled gate activation Ma’am. We received a radio transmission. It was a distress call.”

“From our off-world team?” asked Colonel Sheppard with a frown. Doctors McKay and Beckett, along with Sergeant Kagan and Corporal Barton, were currently off-world and not due back until the next day.

“No sir.” Chuck replied, shaking his head before pressing a button on his console to begin the play-back of the transmission.

“Atlantis…Atlantis I’m not sure if anyone is there or if anyone’s listening but, oh god, I hope you are…Please, please you’ve got to help me…My name is Sergeant James Markham USMC…I repeat, my name is Sergeant Jamie Markham…Help me…”

Chuck pressed pause on the transmission. Both Doctor Weir and Colonel Sheppard looked surprised.

“Markham?”

“But Sergeant Markham was killed two years ago…how is this possible?” demanded Weir.

Sheppard shrugged. “Some kind of trick?” he suggested.

“I don’t think so sir.” Chuck replied, pressing ‘play’ to resume the transmission.

“…I don’t know where I am or how I got here, so I hope you can trace this…I…you’ll want proof…that it’s me…Chuck! Chuck the gate technician keeps a puzzle book Velcro-ed under his console for quiet moments and…and whenever Corporal Robbi Barton is scared she hums ‘Calon Lan’…oh god, they’re coming…please you’ve got to help me... I…”

The transmission was cut off abruptly by the sound of explosions and then static. Doctor Weir looked between the two men.

“Sergeant?”

Reaching under his console Chuck removed the crossword puzzle book he had hidden under there, putting it on top of the desk.

“Only Doctor Grodin and Sergeant Markham knew about this. They were both on the night shift when I first stuck it under there.”

Doctor Weir nodded, sparing a thought for Doctor Peter Grodin who had been killed only a few weeks after Sergeant Markham, when the Wraith had destroyed the weapons outpost that he’d been trapped on.

“John?”

“What he said about Corporal Barton is true; she’s even started to teach people the words.”

“Are we willing to accept, at least at this point, that he is who he claims to be?” she asked.

“At least enough to investigate.” Sheppard answered.

“And were you able to trace the gate address?” she asked Chuck.

“Yes Ma’am.” Chuck replied

“Then Colonel I suggest you get a team together.”

He nodded “Right, I’ll grab Lorne, Ronon and Zelenka”

“Sir, you might want to take Sergeant Stackhouse with you.” Suggested Chuck; feeling a little uncomfortable at offering advice to the senior military leader of the expedition. “He and Sergeant Markham were good friends.”

Sheppard regarded the Canadian technician for a moment before nodding and heading out to find his team. “Ok. We leave in thirty minutes.”

Elizabeth patted Chuck on the shoulder before heading towards her office, leaving Chuck and Chris to organise everything ready for the team to leave.

**************

To say that John Sheppard was confused would be something of an understatement.

He and his team hadn’t been in Atlantis the day Markham had been killed; they’d been off-world trying unsuccessfully to acquire a ZPM for the city. Getting back from such a wasted mission to be told that two of his men had been shot out of the sky, their jumper destroyed, by the Wraith had been a bitter blow, and one that for a long time he hadn’t been able to stop dwelling on. He had wondered what would have happened if he had been there when the Wraith appeared over Atlantis and the jumpers were sent out. Maybe he would have been able to see the Wraith dart and destroy it before it could take out Markham and Smith, and thereby preventing all of the other problems that, that Wraith had caused in the city.

For Markham to be contacting them now, alive, after being believed to be dead for two years was just mind-boggling.

He’d decided against telling his team what the mission was until they were all assembled. The only thing he’d told them in explanation for waking them at such a ridiculously early hour was that it was an emergency and had asked Doctor Zelenka to bring one of the Life Signs Detectors with him.

Major Evan Lorne and Sergeant Adam Stackhouse were the first to meet him outside the gate room, followed by Ronon Dex who grunted something unintelligible at him as a greeting. A few minutes later Doctor Radek Zelenka hurried towards them, life signs detector in hand.

“My apologies, McKay put this away last, so that I nearly could not find it”

Sheppard nodded. “It’s ok Doc, we’re all here now”

“So are you going to tell us what this is all about now sir?” asked Lorne.

Sheppard looked to his second in command before looking around at the other three men that made up his team for this mission.

“We’ve received a transmission…a distress call. Thing is though, that it came from Sergeant James Markham.” He told them, gauging their reactions.

Lorne looked a little perplexed, but that was only to be expected as he hadn’t joined the expedition until after the siege; Zelenka looked surprised and muttered something in Czech; Ronon just asked “Who?”, but it was Stackhouse’s reaction, after Chuck’s comments, that he was watching in particular.

On the surface was his usual professional military mask, expressionless and emotionless; but in his eyes Sheppard could see pain and anger.

“Is that meant to be a joke sir?” Stackhouse asked quietly, his voice sounding a little strained.

Sheppard shook his head. “No joke.”

“But how?” questioned Zelenka.

“Not sure.” He replied, keeping his attention on Stackhouse who was staring back at him.

“Sir…” Stackhouse began, “I was there in one of the other jumpers when the Wraith blew his jumper to smithereens. He was killed right in-front of me… That was two years ago. Jamie is dead.”

Sheppard nodded, noting the way Stackhouse had said ‘Jamie’ rather than ‘Markham’. “I understand that Sergeant, but the person who contacted us offered proof, including something that according to Chuck only two other people in Atlantis knew…Markham being one and Doctor Grodin being the other.”

Zelenka murmured something in Czech again at the mention of the scientist that had been a close friend of his.

“So what’s the plan sir?” Lorne asked, breaking the slight tension that had descended on them.

“We go investigate. Find out whether it is Markham or not.” He informed them. “Shall we?”

No-one said a word but they all followed him in to the gate room where Chuck was getting ready to dial the gate, with Doctor Weir stood nearby.

“Good luck.” She called out to them as Chuck began to dial the gate address.

Sheppard nodded. “Thanks”

“Wormhole established” announced Chuck as the gate activated with a burst of light.

Looking to his team Sheppard nodded then led the way through the gate, not knowing who or what would be waiting on the other side.

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