Fic: Poyekhali (2/2)

Jun 03, 2011 00:00

Story info and warnings can be found in part 1.


Rodney had spent about twenty minutes in his silent staring contest with the nameless Party bureaucrat before there was a commotion in the hallway and a furious looking Colonel Sokolov burst inside.

Nameless Party bureaucrat jumped to his feet and started shouting at the Colonel, and the Colonel shouted right back. They were speaking far too quickly for Rodney to catch more than one word in twenty, but they were both clearly furious.

There was something being said about authority, and the Colonel ended up storming over to the bureaucrat’s desk, grabbing the telephone and viciously punching in the numbers. He announced himself to the other party, then handed the receiver over to the clearly nervous bureaucrat.

The Colonel loomed over him with arms crossed, face impassive as the bureaucrat started out in strident tones and gradually became meeker, mumbling a few words before suddenly falling all over himself to reassure the person on the other end of the phone that he understood, that he was only looking out for the State, that he would of course do exactly as instructed, yes, Comrade, thank you, Comrade.

Nameless bureaucrat gently hung up the phone, closing his eyes and visibly steeling himself to turn around and face the Colonel.

A few minutes later, Rodney was back in a car, sitting beside the Colonel and speeding back towards the base.

“You must not be late for your call with the Major,” Colonel Sokolov said.

“Right. Of course. I…” Rodney paused, bewildered. He didn’t want to jinx his sudden good fortune, and who knew what might await him after the call, but he had no idea what had just happened.

“Sometimes, the State is too…eager in its zeal to protect our citizens. He did not have the authority to retrieve you, but I was not on base at the time and my men did not understand this. We’ve had to deal with such unpleasantness among our own people from time to time, but as a guest of our government you were not meant to be subjected to such questions.”

“He didn’t ask any questions.”

“A complaint was made against you,” the Colonel explained, “and surely you understand that we must take these matters seriously for the good of the Soviet Union. But you are not one of our citizens, and your words and actions, I think, are not anti-Soviet. As it was explained to me, such debate is more…acceptable, among your scientists. There is less importance placed upon rank and seniority, yes? Doctor Zelenka has told me that he finds your arguments useful, not demeaning.”

Rodney kept silent, thinking.

“Please, you must report to your government everything is well. There is no need to worry them about this…misunderstanding.”

Rodney turned towards the Colonel, eyebrow raised. “And why would I do that?”

Sokolov sighed, leaning back further in his seat. “I have already placed a notation in Comrade Petrov’s file, he -”

“Petrov!” Rodney exclaimed. “That little -”

“Please, Doctor, as I said. I have spoken to Comrade Zelenka and agree with him that Petrov’s accusation came from jealousy, a foolish belief that you were attempting to sabotage the project. He will be punished. But we have looked favorably upon your visit with us, and wish for you to continue your work on this important project. For the common good.”

“Hmph,” Rodney huffed, wheels spinning. It looked like no one had discovered his extra-curricular activities, which was good, but it was likely that now everyone would be watching him even more closely, which was not. “Very well,” he conceded, “as long as Petrov is reassigned, I have been finding the research very interesting and wish to continue also.”

“Thank you, Comrade McKay.”

“Well,” he temporized, “there is one more thing. Last week, Radek discussed expanding this cooperative exchange with you, to bring several more scientists and possibly one of our military teams for cross-training.”

“And as I am sure you were informed, Comrade, that decision is not mine to make.”

“But you could recommend it, couldn’t you?”

Rodney couldn’t read the Colonel’s face and hoped that he hadn’t pushed too far.

“I can see the benefit of such an arrangement, but the stargate program is already quite busy. The Goa’uld…”

He stopped abruptly, and Rodney realized that the Colonel wasn’t going to share details with him, a foreigner who’d just caused a great deal of trouble and was resented by most of the scientists on his base.

“I am no diplomat,” Rodney said, startling a chuckle out of Sokolov. “But we all wish for Earth to be safe. Let us help.”

The Colonel said nothing more and they were soon back on base, Rodney escorted to the room where he would speak to John when he called in.

They always left him alone in the room, but Rodney had no illusions of privacy: his every word and gesture was monitored.

Rodney saw John’s unruly hair first, filling the monitor as the Major settled into his chair.

“Hey, McKay,” he greeted brightly.

Rodney smiled. “John.”

“So what’s the word from the frozen tundra? Dr. Zelenka throw you out of the lab, yet?”

Rodney gave a brief report on his progress since they last spoke, not mentioning his recent run-in with the Party in order to stay on Colonel Sokolov’s good side. John reciprocated with the goings-on back home, obviously keeping everything carefully edited.

Business over with, Rodney asked about his cats and the latest scuttlebutt regarding Lt. Ford’s attempts to woo Dr. Simpson, and John told him about the movie he’d seen over the weekend and the latest exploits of his favorite football team.

It was all coded, of course, which is why they’d decided on John as his liaison rather than someone higher up in the program - they’d always had a sort of verbal shorthand, and Rodney was easily able to tell John that tensions were running high here, that it was time to extend the offer of more personnel again, that the Soviets knew John had the gene, and that something really big and really secret was going on.

Rodney desperately wanted to tell John about the clandestine, and presumably doomed, mission to the Pegasus galaxy, as well as the fact that someone on the inside was plotting something against this base, but they didn’t really have words for something so specific. Rodney could only let him know that something was wrong, and secret, and that he really wanted John or O’Neill or whomever to get over here and help him out.

They wrapped up the call, John’s eyes and the tilt of his head offering reassurance to Rodney, a quiet acknowledgement of what they couldn’t say out loud: be careful, I miss you, I’ve got your back. And even though he was thousands of miles away, Rodney believed him.

*****

Rodney spent the next week completely unable to learn anything more. He had figured out the identity of one of the men he had seen - a Sergeant who, according to Zelenka, worked on the gate level - and had passed him a few times in corridors or the cafeteria. Though he tried to take note of who he was with, Rodney couldn’t exactly hang around to eavesdrop on their conversations. He was getting a bad feeling, though, and as the days went by he became more certain that something was going to happen, and soon.

The Soviets were always paranoid, afraid of being turned in by colleagues for saying the wrong thing, seeing traitors and spies around every corner, so most of the scientists kept quiet and their heads down. Even so, the general mood of the base was…off, somehow.

Rodney couldn’t really go to the Colonel with his concerns without revealing why he had them, and something like that could only end badly, especially since he lacked any sort of proof or even names of those involved. Rodney was seriously contemplating having a conversation with Zelenka, but he wasn’t quite sure where to start.

He was staring moodily at the papers in front of him, taking his red pen to Sasha’s recent work on wormhole stability, when someone cleared his throat behind him.

“Doctor McKay,” the young soldier said in incredibly slow and careful English, “you are wished to be seen by Colonel Sokolov. Please come with me now.”

Though he had come up with increasingly wild scenarios about what the Colonel might want during his trip to the man’s office, he hadn’t expected anything like what was before him: six Marines, two Air Force officers, and four scientists - but really, as grateful as he was at that moment, he only had eyes for John.

“Hey there, Doc. Miss us?”

Rodney snorted. “Still an overeager puppy I see, Ford,” he said, by which he meant hell, yes. “Major Sheppard, you didn’t mention a field trip when I spoke to you last.”

“Well, our General and your Colonel here agreed that we shouldn’t let you have all the fun. It seems we have some valuable skills to exchange, and since you’ve advocated so eloquently for more of your scientists, we just hopped on a plane and came over to help. We’re all on Earth’s side, after all.”

“Yes,” Rodney said with a cough, knowing it couldn’t possibly have been nearly that easy. “Quite.”

“Comrade McKay,” Sokolov said, “you are free to take your people to the cafeteria for refreshments and then they will be escorted to their rooms, as I am sure they are quite tired.” He turned to the Major, “The scientists may begin working tomorrow on the appropriate projects, but I am afraid that your men will be subject to some physical tests before their training program can be devised or any gate travel authorized.”

“Of course, Colonel,” Sheppard said, shaking hands with the other man. “Thank you.”

Dismissed, everyone filed out of the office, Rodney vibrating at the feel of John’s hand at the small of his back.

“I can’t believe you’re here!” he exclaimed.

“Glad to see you too, McKay,” John responded, grinning. “We’ve agreed to stay here for the next month, possibly leaving one of the gate teams behind and rotating another in for training. They haven’t really hammered out all the details for what to do with the scientists, yet, plus the Moscow conference is coming up soon. Everyone at the Mountain seems really amped up about it.”

“I’m sure. You won’t stay, will you?”

“Nah. I’m here more to oversee the training and approve all the little details…of course, I wouldn’t object to going through the gate a time or two. It’s been a while.”

“Adrenaline junkie,” Rodney teased, still inordinately pleased by their surprise appearance. “But really, you couldn’t have let me know?”

“No one was really sure until yesterday, and besides, you love surprises.”

“That is a bold faced lie and you know it.”

John shrugged. “Whatever. I’m famished, got anything besides borscht and cabbage around here?”

“Right this way, Major,” Rodney said with a flourish, moving towards the front of their group and greeting his colleagues along the way.

The cafeteria fell silent when they entered, then doubled its previous volume. Most of the Americans went straight for the food, but several were greeted by colleagues they had met at the London conference or, for a select few, when they had consulted here previously. It was actually rather refreshing to see his scientists interacting with their Soviet counterparts when there wasn’t the threat of painful death or world destruction looming over their heads; of course, there were also those who looked on the foreigners with nothing but suspicion, but Rodney was too happy at the moment to take note of who objected to their presence.

John excused himself from their table partway through the meal, asking for the bathroom. Rodney used the opportunity to escort him, receiving knowing glances from both Captain Lorne and Dr. Zelenka, who had joined them soon after they were seated.

After checking that no one else was inside, Rodney allowed himself one quick kiss before holding John tightly, tucking his face in John’s shoulder and whispering quickly.

“They’re watching. They always do. Hardly anyone has the gene - I think they’re working on a retrovirus, too. That’s probably why they let you come, to use yours. Something else is going on though, internally. Not good.”

“Any ideas?” John asked, voice muffled against the top of Rodney’s head.

“Don’t know. Also, they sent an expedition out, 60 people, about a decade ago...hardly anyone even knows about it. A lost Ancient city. Never heard back.”

John kissed him again, whispering against his lips. “Atlantis?”

Rodney jerk back, shocked. “How did -”

“Daniel found stuff.”

“Okay. First thing, we need to -”

The door banged open and they jumped apart, John going to the sink as two soldiers entered, laughing. Rodney tried to compose himself but knew he was flushed while John, of course, looked completely unaffected.

Rodney’s mind was spinning, trying to figure out how and when he’d be able to pass information safely. The Soviets would be expecting that, and he and John couldn’t air their relationship much more than they already had; only the plausible deniability of being in the bathroom had let them be alone together even that much.

They only made it a few feet down the corridor when the base alarms began blaring. One of the men who usually escorted Rodney was talking on his radio, heading towards them at a run. “Comrade McKay! Quickly, you must come - the Colonel needs you to come to the control room.”

“I’m coming, too,” John shouted over the blare of the klaxons.

The man only nodded, saying, “Follow me.”

They bypassed the elevators for the stairwell, heading down several levels. “What’s happening?” John asked as they went through a door and several corridors.

“I do not know - only that the Doctor was needed. There was a -” He halted at the sound of weapons fire. “Chyort!”

The three of them fell back to the closest office, the sergeant swiping them inside. He immediately got on the radio, Russian military shorthand that Rodney had no hope of following.

“The hell, McKay?” John asked.

“I told you there was something wrong, but I didn’t expect -”

“Radios have been compromised,” the Sergeant interrupted, looking tense. “It seems there are traitors among us.”

“Well don’t look at me!” Rodney exclaimed.

“No, no, Doctor, that is not what I meant. But getting to the control room is even more urgent now. Please. Major, here,” he said, passing John a handgun. “A sign of trust.”

“A sign of trust,” John echoed. “Where to?”

“In this situation, many corridors are sealed off. We must go back up one level before we can continue moving west.”

They slipped out cautiously, no sign of anyone else yet. They had crossed one section of the complex and were headed back down when they came across their first bodies. All three were Russian soldiers, but while two held AK-47s, the other had a Zat.

John gave Rodney his handgun and took two others for himself, along with a knife and some extra clips. The Sergeant checked the Zat, turning it over to check for markings. “This is not ours. There are Goa’uld on base.”

“Well, shit,” John said. “I’m not sure I needed this warm a welcome. Ready, Rodney?”

Rodney nodded.

“Quickly,” the Sergeant said. They ran.

*****

When Rodney opened his eyes and couldn’t see, he panicked. Finding out that he wasn’t blind, merely on the floor in a pitch black corridor filled with smoke from a recent explosion, was less than comforting.

“John,” he called out, choking. His head hurt, moving hurt - everything hurt - but he rolled over and started feeling around for the others.

They’d met up with a group of five people about half an hour ago, two soldiers and three scientists, and had been making their way steadily towards the control room when they met up with a Major that Rodney remembered seeing a time or two before. The Sergeant’s relief at being able to turn over authority to a senior officer was unmistakable, right up until the moment a few minutes later when the Major’s eyes flashed and everything went to hell.

The woman next to Rodney was dead, as was the man beside her. Further along he felt another leg, this one attached to a man who was unconscious but still alive. He could hear a few people groaning, and he called out again, “Sheppard!”

Rodney wrapped an arm around his ribs and struggled to his knees. “John!”

“Rodney?”

A moment later he collided with a John-shaped object. “Oh, thank God,” he said, even while hissing in pain.

“You okay?” John asked.

“I’m mobile. You?”

“Yeah. I’ve got two people, not so bad off - had them stay against the wall. One dead.”

“Two dead, one unconscious.”

“Okay,” John wheezed, “okay. We have to keep moving. Find some light, at least.”

“Right. This way, I think.”

“You think?”

“Well, I was recently tossed around by an explosion and since we’re ridiculously far underground, it’s a bit too dark to be sure.” Rodney coughed, sucking in a sharp breath at the pain in his chest. “Come on.”

They stumbled their way down the corridor, the two other survivors in tow. They eventually found an unlocked door and Rodney fumbled for the light switch, elated when it actually worked. Their two companions were scientists - Rodney’s Sergeant hadn’t survived. Rodney only knew one of the men, a linguist named Mikhail who’d mostly ignored Rodney; Mikhail tore off a strip of his shirt to bandage a wound on the other man’s arm, then held another piece to his own forehead.

They quickly ransacked the room for supplies, the scientists seemingly content to let the man with military experience - even if he was an American - take charge.

“Jackpot!” Rodney proclaimed, pulling several flashlights out of a drawer. “That’s one for me, one for the Major, and one for the two of you,” he said, handing them out. “What else have we got?”

“Not much,” John replied, “mostly office supplies. You still know where we’re going?”

“Of course,” Rodney said dismissively, then paused, brow furrowed, before snapping his fingers. “They were Goa’uld!”

“Yes?” John drawled. “We know that already.”

“No, no…just, follow me.”

“Okay guys, let’s move out.”

Rodney headed to the end of the corridor and turned left.

“Major,” the other scientist called, “this is not the way.”

“Rodney?” John asked.

“Can’t go that way yet, have to make a stop first. Trust me.” Not waiting for a reply, Rodney quickly led them to the lab with the Ancient artifacts. “Mikhail, do you have access to this lab?”

“Yes, Doctor, but I don’t see -”

“Just swipe your card, let’s go.”

The file boxes that had been so important to Rodney were no longer there, likely moved back to their secure location, but the shelves of Ancient gizmos were still there. John paused, probably feeling the activated objects through his freakishly strong ATA gene.

Rodney grabbed the detector off the shelf and handed it to John, not bothering to explain what it was. The man probably already knew as much as Rodney did - perhaps more.

“The Goa’uld show up as two lifesigns. Parasite and host. Not sure about Jaffa, but them we’ll know on sight.”

“We won’t get fooled again,” John said, determined.

“Comrade McKay,” interrupted the scientist Rodney didn’t know. “You should not have access to -”

John aimed his sidearm at the man and he stopped arguing, holding his hands up in surrender. John took a step closer, eyes narrowed, saying, “Your base has been invaded. It is under attack by the enemy. Many of your colleagues are now dead. If you want to take your chances alone, you are welcome to do that; if you want to stay here, you are welcome to do that as well. But Dr. McKay and I are going to the control room to try to save this base, and if you choose to come with us you will do as I say and keep quiet or I will ensure that you do so by force. Understand?”

For a moment no one breathed. Rodney figured he shouldn’t find an authoritative, threatening John as mind-numbingly attractive as he did, but then he also figured he probably had a concussion.

“Da. Yes, sir,” the scientist said meekly.

“Good,” John said, then turned to Mikhail. “What about you?”

“Of course I will help,” he answered.

“Well, alright then,” John said. “Looks like we get to test out your gizmo right off the bat, Rodney. Three lifesigns, headed our way.”

They turned out to be friendlies, and the deeper they got into the complex the more people they ran into. They were mostly scientists, and none of the soldiers were officers, so everyone seemed mostly content to provide their expertise but defer to John.

A tense moment came when John had to shoot a young Lieutenant who had a group of six with him, all soldiers, but an exchange of rapid-fire Russian between his soldiers and John’s own led to them lowering their rifles and sharing both intel and their weapons.

Almost immediately after that, another explosion echoed. It was in the opposite direction, but then a few minutes later gunfire and Zat weapons sounded nearby. John checked the detector: it was a large group, eleven lifesigns, but even as he watched eleven became ten and then nine.

“This way!” John dashed down the hallway, the soldiers soon outflanking him to take point. Rodney watched John’s men set up at the corner, waiting as the group - eight now, Rodney saw from over John’s shoulder - approached.

The first person to come into view was Lt. Ford, and Rodney gaped, disbelieving. Ford froze when he spotted the soldiers waiting, eyes darting from one to another, weapon raised. “Friend or foe?” He asked in his terrible Russian.

“Ford,” John called out, smirking as the Lieutenant’s eyes went wide. “Who else do you have with you?”

Aiden lowered his weapon and motioned to his group that it was safe. “It’s damn good to see you, sir.”

“You too, Lieutenant,” John said, eyes flicking to the detector’s display. “You have seven others with you?”

“Now how do you know that, sir?” Captain Lorne asked as he stepped into view, right arm in a makeshift sling.

“McKay got me a new toy. Very useful,” John replied, holding up the detector.

Rodney let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding in when he saw Ford and Lorne’s group: three of the Marines, Dr. Simpson, Zelenka, and a Soviet chemist were with them, but he couldn’t help asking, “Where are the others?”

“Not sure,” Lorne said. “We were all scattered early on, I just picked up Sgt. Bates and Dr. Simpson a few minutes ago after that last blast.”

Glancing at the motley crew of soldiers and scientists surrounding his CO, Lorne walked over to John for a quick, whispered conversation. John nodded, placing a hand on Lorne’s shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “Good job, Captain,” he said, then sought out his highest ranking Soviet soldier for a conference.

“What was that about?” Rodney asked, but Lorne just shook his head.

“Not now, McKay.”

After a short discussion, it was decided that their group was becoming too large and cumbersome - they’d been collecting people steadily, but now it was time to split up. Most of the group would head to the lower gateroom level where it should be easier to find a defensible position with the bonus of the armory and infirmary, if not already overrun.

John, Ford, Lt. Akunin, and (after a fierce whispered fight in which Rodney fought dirty) Rodney would try to get to the control room. John and Lorne picked a radio channel for the two of them to share, agreeing to radio silence unless absolutely necessary.

It only took about twenty more minutes to reach the control room, but a lot of fighting. Rodney ducked another staff weapon blast, profoundly grateful for the now-comforting retort of automatic weapons fire. When the last Jaffa fell, their little group still had to flee from the bomb said Jaffa had been setting to break inside.

The heavy blast doors were unharmed, scorch marks the only sign that an attempt had been made. Rodney pulled the broken front panel off the intercom, rewiring what had been damaged in the explosion. “Colonel Sokolov, are you in there?”

“I’m reading two lifesigns, Rodney.”

There was no response, but Rodney tried again. “Is anyone inside? Colonel?”

Lt. Akunin stepped up, repeating Rodney’s questions, but there was still nothing.

“Now what?” Ford asked.

John and the Soviet Lieutenant exchanged a look, but the other man shook his head. “There is no other way in, Major. That is the point.”

“And I suppose that the control for this door is inside.”

“Of course.”

“Of course, he says,” John muttered, mostly to himself, as he paced, “of course.”

Just then, the doors slid open. With a nod from John, Aiden took point, cautiously approaching the doorway. “We’re clear,” he called back as he stepped inside.

Everyone else quickly followed, Lt. Akunin reactivating the blast doors as soon as they were inside. Colonel Sokolov was slumped on the floor by the controls, battered and barely conscious. Rodney figured he had dragged himself over, a trail of blood reinforcing that belief.

The other man was on the far side of the room, unconscious.

Rodney sat down at the computers, trying to find out everything he could about their situation. The others assisted the Colonel, or attempted to, their offers of help ignored as the man struggled to speak.

“You must…evacuate. Everyone you can. I set…set the…self-destruct.”

“But Colonel!” Akunin exclaimed.

“The Goa’uld must not be allowed -” the Colonel broke off, coughing.

“They can’t get off this base,” John finished grimly.

The Colonel nodded. “Alpha site…overrun. Reinforcements came from…that address. I’ll dial. You go…there are -”

“Colonel, I will not leave you,” Akunin insisted. “We will take you with us, treat your wounds once we are offworld.”

“No time,” the Colonel said. “Need to…go. There are others?”

“There are other survivors, yes,” John said. “You know a safe address we can gate to?”

The Colonel coughed again, more weakly. “Zhenya, the supply rooms. Take…everything you can. All…all you…can carry. Throw it through the…everything you find. You need…”

“Yes, Colonel,” Akunin replied. “Of course.”

“Not long…go.”

Rodney stood, shutting open laptops and stacking them up. John looked up, puzzlement turning to understanding and he stood from his crouch beside the Colonel, shedding his jacket.

“In here,” he said as he turned it into a makeshift satchel, proving once again that Rodney loved more than his looks. “You too, Ford.”

Ford copied his CO’s actions, then began gathering as many tablets and drives and cables as he could fit.

They left quickly, the detector indicating no one nearby. “Lorne, sitrep,” John requested as they went.

“Holed up, sir. India, lima.”

“We are bravo, echo, whiskey.”

“Copy that, sir.”

John clicked off, then said, “okay, let’s hustle. Lt. Akunin, how close are these supplies to the gate?”

“The room next door - it’s an emergency supply: food, medical supplies, clothing, everything. All packed for transport.”

“Perfect. Weapons?”

“There’s a locked armory nearby. Where are they?”

“Infirmary.”

“Good,” he said. “We can pick up our people and then gather our supplies. This way.”

Rodney was exhausted, the aches of his body not helped by the near-run John had them travelling at, the computer equipment bulky and heavy. He wasn’t sure how much further he could go, but John turned back and smiled at him, concern in his eyes, and Rodney spurred himself onwards.

Lorne and company were ready to go when they arrived, simply joining in as their small group jogged past. The armory had already been raided but there was still a lot left; they took everything they could carry, loading items onto a few carts they found and continuing on.

There was a brief skirmish as they approached the gateroom, but the Marines lobbed a few of their newly acquired grenades and cleared the opposition away quickly.

Rodney put down his equipment, keeping it out of range of the gate, and headed off to the supply room, listening to John’s shouted instructions. There was soon a large pile of items by the gate, even a few shrink-wrapped pallets, and John signaled to Colonel Sokolov to begin dialing.

“As soon as the wormhole stabilizes, start getting the supplies through,” John shouted. “The Alpha site is not an option, so what we bring is what we have. Bates and Stackhouse, I want you through first - we don’t know what we’re walking into. Lt. Akunin?”

The Lieutenant repeated John’s instructions in Russian, adding two Soviet soldiers to the team heading through to scout.

The stargate lit up, spinning, and the first chevron locked.

“Civilians in the middle, soldiers bring up the rear. Everybody have a pack to carry? Bucket brigade for supplies, right here! As soon as you’re through, clear the path for those that follow.”

The second chevron locked, and the third, and the group scrambled into their backpacks, a few picking up other bags and boxes of supplies to pass and the others falling in line.

As the fifth chevron locked, Rodney glanced down at the detector John had handed over to him a while back. “Shit! We’ve got company coming,” he shouted, and a few of the soldiers ran to the open doorway. They lobbed two grenades and fired a few shots blindly around the corner, pulling in the last of the personnel gathering supplies and quickly shutting the blast doors behind them.

The seventh chevron locked but no wormhole formed. There was an audible cry of dismay from the group, but Rodney knew what that meant. “Goddamnit! John…John he’s dialing Atlantis. We can’t go through, they -”

“I don’t see that we have a choice, Rodney. We have about five minutes until the base implodes, and the path to the control room is cut off.”

The whole room seemed to vibrate and the lights flickered and died as the last chevron - the eighth - engaged. The wormhole burst outward and settled, and Rodney watched the first four of their people run through, lit only by the blue of the wormhole. The supplies were tossed after them, the carts and pallets pushed through and everything else carried as they moved as quickly as possible, people and supplies disappearing into the puddle.

“Go on through, Rodney, get to safety,” John said, still tossing bags.

“Like hell. I’m not going without you,” he replied.

“Alright, time’s up, everybody out!” John shouted, and the soldiers ran to the wormhole, heavily laden, Lorne bringing up the rear.

John grabbed Rodney’s hand, tugging him through.

They exited the wormhole in a large, high-ceilinged room, dark and quiet save for the sounds of their people stacking supplies to either side of the stargate. The light cast by their flashlights showed stairs and an upper level, several corridors leading off to who knew where. John quickly shrugged off his pack and Rodney followed suit, torn between wonder, terror, and bone-deep exhaustion.

The wormhole winked out behind them and John tapped at his radio. “Sgt. Bates, report.”

“Wherever we are, it’s huge, sir. No signs of life - it looks abandoned.”

“Alright, fall back for now. We need to regroup, tend to the wounded.” John turned to Rodney, “Any thoughts on getting us some light?”

“There are probably lights and generators in our supplies, but it will take a while to locate them and get set up.” Rodney spun around, looking. “Radek?”

“Here, Rodney.”

“Ah. A word?” Zelenka walked over to them and Rodney leaned in, pitching his voice low. “Did you know about the Atlantis project?”

“Atlantis like your shuttle or Atlantis like the lost city?”

Rodney gestured to the room around them. “What do you think?”

“You mean -”

“Never mind, obviously not.” Rodney sighed. “I don’t think anyone else who managed to escape was high enough up to know, so we’re completely on our own, here.”

“Well,” John said, stretching the word out. “Atlantis is an Ancient city, right? Maybe I can sweet-talk her into helping us out.”

“Major Sheppard,” Sgt. Bates said, appearing at John’s side, “there are some consoles and screens on the second level. Everything appears Ancient in design, sir. I’d suggest you start there.”

“Alright then, Rodney,” John said, clapping his hands together. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”

As soon as they hit the staircase, the steps lit under John’s feet.

“Wow,” he whispered. “Now that’s cool.”

Everything continued to light along his path, and when John swiped his hand over one of the consoles it activated, coming to life beneath his palm. He pressed his hand against it, concentrating, and suddenly the rest of the room was bathed in a soft light that gradually brightened.

“Sergeant,” John asked, “are all of the scouts back?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Okay, first up: head count. Then I want this room secured, a soldier in every doorway. We need time to patch everyone up and figure out a game plan. And send Lorne up here.”

“Yes, sir,” Bates said, already halfway down the stairs.

“Rodney, I’m going to let Lorne initialize these consoles for you - see if you can determine basic functionality, maybe find us a way to secure the gate.”

“On it.”

Lorne approached. “This is pretty incredible, sir.”

“Can you hear her?”

Lorne cocked his head, obviously trying to concentrate. “Don’t think so, sir.”

“It’s faint, just a whisper in the back of my head. She’s been sleeping a long time, and only just waking up, but there’s something important we have to do, soon. Help McKay get the controls up.”

Rodney kept one eye on John as Lorne activated the consoles for him, watching as the Major went from person to person, assigning tasks and getting reports, offering comfort and assistance.

“Hey, Rodney?” John called. “It’s that one.”

Rodney stared at the keys on the just-activated console, trying to decipher which crystal was ‘that one.’ With a shrug he pushed the one on the far right, pleased when an energy shield sprang to life across the gate. He deactivated it, not knowing how much power they had available to them, and made sure Lorne also knew which button to push.

Lorne activated a display screen, and Rodney was shocked to see some words scroll across in Cyrillic. He looked at the underside of the console where the inputs were and noticed a small tablet hooked up…so the Soviets had been here and left, it seemed. Abandoned Atlantis. But why?

John called them back down and told them to get checked by one of the two medical doctors. When everyone had settled in on the floor and snacks and water were distributed, he cleared his throat.

“First things first, is anyone in need of medical attention who hasn’t seen either Katya or Sergei? No? Okay. Sergeant Bates tells me that there are 47 of us here, here being the city of Atlantis. I know that our countries have our differences, and that our two stargate programs are very competitive, but there are 47 of us here and who knows what out there, and we need to work together.”

“This city, Atlantis, was designed by the Ancients. I know that recently, you discovered that there is a specific gene coded to Ancient technology, allowing it to be used only by certain people.”

A few people began muttering, but John quelled them with a look. “I know this because I am one of those people. Yes, we kept our knowledge of this gene secret. So did you. I also know that a number of years ago, the Soviet Union sent an expedition here, to Atlantis. Most of you don’t know this, as it was highly classified. As far as we know, the expedition never contacted Earth again. We don’t know why.”

“I know that this is going to be difficult, and that we’re going to struggle with everything from food to leadership, but I’m willing to work with you if you’re willing to work with me.”

“Thank you, Major,” Lt. Akunin said, moving to stand beside him. “I know that not all of us are happy with the perception that the Americans have taken charge, especially since it was our base and, as you have just said, our expedition that first came here. As the ranking Soviet officer, however, I am grateful that we have a skilled, knowledgeable senior officer here and I know that many of us owe you our lives directly, and that all of us owe you for what you have done to help save our country and our world from our common enemy.”

“Look,” John said, clearly - at least to Rodney’s eyes - embarrassed by the Lieutenant’s words, “everyone here is exhausted, both physically and emotionally. The Lieutenant and I are going to set up a watch schedule and then we’ll all bed down right here for now. Once everyone has gotten some rest we’ll take inventory of our supplies and start forming small teams to explore the building. Okay?”

Rodney settled in against a wall, staving off sleep until John laid down beside him.

*****

When he woke, John was sitting up, staring into the dark.

Rodney flopped his arm towards the other man. “John? What is it?”

“Not sure,” he replied, popping up on his feet. Rodney struggled up after him, trailing John as he wove around their sleeping comrades. He woke Lorne, crouching down to whisper with him.

Lorne got up, too, and the two of them spoke to the Soviet sergeant who was leading the watch. They gathered a few supplies - guns, flashlights, the detector - and motioned for Rodney to follow them down one of the corridors.

“Where are we going?” Rodney asked.

“I think we’re under water,” John replied.

“That doesn’t really answer my question.”

John flashed him a quick grin. “There’s no power left, that’s why it’s so hard to hear her. Everything is going to the shields holding the water back.”

“Holding the…oh, God,” Rodney said. “We’re going to drown?”

“Not if I bring us up to the surface first.”

“And how do you plan to do that, oh great and powerful gene-wonder?”

“Well,” John temporized, “if you’d just bear with me for one more minute…aha! Here we are.”

When Rodney stepped into the room John indicated, his jaw dropped. “My God. It’s a control chair.”

“Yup,” John said, grinning like a little boy.

He laid back in the chair and the world lit around him. After only a few moments Rodney could feel a slight tremor, then movement, smooth and swift like an elevator. There was a squawk from Lorne’s radio and he answered, reassuring the watch commander that all was well.

Rodney felt it when they breached the surface, light flooding the corridor behind them as Atlantis settled gently on the water and John’s smile lit the world.

Rodney helped tug him out of the chair and the three of them left the room, Atlantis leading her favored son to a balcony that overlooked the breathtaking scope of the city - larger and more beautiful than Rodney would have ever imagined, a sparkling jewel sitting on the sea.

He turned to John, grinning. “You did it.”

“We did it,” he answered, slinging an arm around Rodney’s shoulders and pressing a quick kiss against his lips. “Come on, let’s head back to the others. Today is a new day.”

!fic, author:mdime02, 2011

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