DISCLAIMER: I do not own this show, or these characters; I just borrow them.
Weathering the Storm
It was one of the few days that the emergency klaxon or a knock on the door did not wake up the leader of Atlantis since coming to the Pegasus galaxy. That should have been her first clue that something was going to go amiss; Dr. Weir determined what that something was when Major Sheppard called in from Jumper 1 to inform her that there was a storm coming to Atlantis. For John to sound as non-cynical as he did in that conversation was the clue that this storm was going to be bad.
While John was getting aerial views of the storm, Dr. Weir called in two scientists that would be able to help Atlantis prepare for the storm. Dr. Zelenka and Dr. McKay were prompt in coming to the briefing room when summoned; however, they were not as quick with ideas on how to save Atlantis. Like all brilliant scientists when a new situation arises, Drs. McKay and Zelenka started talking in technical terms about what was going on. A stern, "focus," from Dr. Weir brought them back to the meeting; however, the only plan that they came up with was that they would have a plan before the hurricane hit. Wonderful, Dr. Weir thought while she was walking back to her office. In the meantime, she decided to start plans to evacuate the Athosian settlement, and asked Major Sheppard to start looking into planets that would be willing to put up with the Athosians and the people from Atlantis. I hope the planet is friendly enough just incase we can't get back.
Major Sheppard and Lieutenant Ford came back with good news. The Manarian people decided that they would give hospitality to the entire population of Atlantis until the threat from the storm was over. Elizabeth breathed in a sigh of relief as one hurdle was dealt with. She watched as the Athosian people and some of the personnel from Atlantis started to go through the gate and was wondering what would happen to them if Atlantis was destroyed so that they could not return through the stargate. How will Earth know where to find us, and how with the Athosian people deal with losing their home for the second time in months? Elizabeth brought her thoughts back to the present situation and told herself not to borrow trouble before it happened.
The plan to save Atlantis did come before the storm hit, as Dr. McKay said. However the plan was not a foolproof one. Therefore Dr. Weir, Dr. McKay, and Major Sheppard were to stay behind to try and put the plan in action; a few military personnel also stayed behind to keep some of the major systems online and to guard the gate. The plan to save the city involved separating the four main grounding stations on Atlantis. This would cause the lightning to go through the unshielded parts of Atlantis and feed into the power supply for the shield. Hopefully this would save the majestic city.
The call came in that changed the day from bad to worse while Major Sheppard was going to separate the last grounding station. One of the guards radioed in to Dr. Weir that there was an attack on Manara and that there were injuries involved. Great, can this day get any worse, Dr. Weir thought as she and Rodney hurried to the gateroom. When the two of them arrived, Dr. Weir was reminded that no one should ask that loaded question.
"What the hell is going on?" Dr. Weir asked as she barreled into the gateroom. She noticed the guns pointed toward herself and Dr. McKay. She looked around for the guards that she left stationed here, and noticed that there were two bodies laying on the floor near the gate with a pool of blood underneath them both. Elizabeth could tell that they were both dead as she could not see their chests rise and fall in the tale-tell sign of life. If looks could kill, the man coming down the steps toward Rodney and her would have been long dead. This was not the first death that the leader of Atlantis has dealt with since coming to the Pegasus Galaxy; however, it hit the closest to home, literally. Dr. Weir was pissed off that these people had come into the one place that her people had felt safe in, and started to call home, and defiled all thoughts of safety even within these city walls. Her eyes blazed with these feelings, and Dr. Weir could tell that the man coming down the stairs enjoyed this show of emotion. Therefore Elizabeth put on a stoic mask as the man stood in front of her.
"Doctor Elizabeth Weir," Kolya stated as he noticed her facial expressions close off from the outside world. I will see those emotions again, he thought longingly as the person in front of him acknowledged that yes, she was Dr. Weir, and therefore the leader of Atlantis. Kolya learned that Dr. McKay was the other person standing in front of him when Sora came over and told her leader this. Commander Kolya did not like the rebellion that he was receiving from the people in front of him. Dr. Weir was not showing him her emotions, and Dr. McKay would not respond to his direct question of who he was. They will pay for their insubordination.
"You seem to know a lot about us. Who are you?" Dr. Weir asked once it was determined that the man in front of her was the leader of this incursion team. Rodney mentioned that they were the Genii.
"There's only one thing you need to know, Dr. Weir," Kolya stated. "As of right now, we are in control of Atlantis." He looked around the gateroom at the marvelous city, and walked out onto the balcony to look at the approaching storm that was the reason for the security of Atlantis being lax. He took a few deep breaths and walked back into the city and towards the leader of Atlantis. He noticed that his men were carrying the dead guardsmen out of the gateroom. Kolya looked over to Elizabeth expecting to see the sorrow of these deaths on her shoulders; however, her eyes showed him nothing other than the fact that she was watching as the men were being carted away. She is colder than I thought. She will pay. All good commanders should go before their men, and fight for them, and she sits there worried more about herself than her men.
Kolya came and walked around the two doctors. "Who are you?" Dr. Weir asked, trying to size up the situation. I'm a trained diplomat. I can deal with this. Elizabeth wondered about what was going on with her people on Manara, and hoped that they were okay. She knew that she had to keep the situation on Atlantis in check so that the refugees could come back. She hoped that they would all make it through this storm intact.
Kolya responded to the question he was asked, "Commander Acastus Kolya of the Genii. This Atlantis is extraordinary, more than I ever imagined." And so is it's leader he thought to himself.
"What have you done with the rest of my people?" she asked. While her voice hinted that this topic was of great importance to her, her face did not.
I'll definitely need to work on her, Kolya thought. He answered her question in the hopes to get some visual response. "I'm quite sure they have no idea we're even here."
"Then they're safe?" she asked letting Kolya see a glimpse of hope in her eyes. When he replied that yes, they were safe, he was rewarded even more with a brief smile before she closed her emotions off from him yet again.
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Later, Dr. Weir was escorted into her office, and she noticed Kolya sitting at her desk looking over various data that her team had collected since coming to the Pegasus galaxy. She stood in front of her desk, so this is what it feels like to be on the other side of the table she thought, before she directed her comments to the Commander of the Genii. She hoped he would listen to the reasons why the city should not be taken from her and the others from Earth. "Thank you for seeing me. This city was designed to be inhabited by the Ancients and their direct descendants and although, yes, while there is limited functionality for those who do not possess the Ancient gene, it is only those who have it who can revive the city to its true potential."
"And do you have this gene?" Kolya asked. He hoped that she would say yes; this would give him an excuse for why he should keep her alive. However, he knew with the train of thought that was swirling in his head about the person in front of him, that she would prefer death. He smirked to himself.
Elizabeth responded to his question, "No, but many of my team do. The Wraith are slowly waking. Soon this entire galaxy will be embroiled in a war the likes of which our generations have never seen."
"A war that you expedited," Kolya spit out harshly.
Dr. Weir wanted to let the Commander know that he and his people could still work together with those in Atlantis to defeat the Wraith, and that this situation that the Genii started when they seized Atlantis could be put in the past. "Disagreements like ours will no longer matter. The only thing of any consequence will be how prepared we are and what defense we are able to mount. Now, this city holds many secrets which will help us win that war, but only if my team are here to discover them. So, fine, take whatever you need for your people, but if you don't leave us this city you're only hurting yourselves in the long run."
Kolya could not believe that this woman who stood in front of him had the audacity to guilt trip him into leaving the people from Earth the city in order to `protect' his own people. "You believe your people, who are not even of this galaxy, are closer to the Ancients than we are? Your arrogance is astounding. We will take this city, we will mount a defense, and we will win, with or without your help, Doctor Weir." He threatened. Kolya stood from the chair and walked around the desk to stand in front of Dr. Weir.
Kolya decided that it was time to steer the conversation in another direction. "You seem to care more about your precious city, then about the lives of your men." He knew he was on a good line of questioning when Dr. Weirs eyes quickly shifted as she thought over what she had said and how her comments might have been perceived. That brief glimpse of emotion excites the Commander, this could be fun!, he thought before he went on with his thoughts. "I can tell you don't care about your men. You looked on as two of your dead officers were carted away and you didn't even grieve for them. You showed no remorse for the shortening of their lives'. What type of leader does that make you?"
Elizabeth knew that he was trying to push her buttons, and she was very close to letting her anger bubble over and exploding at the man in front of her; however, she knew this would only give him the satisfaction of getting her upset. Consequentially, she changed her gaze from the wall behind Kolya's head to glance straight in his eyes. While she hoped that this would throw off his questioning, she was sadly mistaken. She noticed his eyes change focus from looking at her, to looking off in the distance, and it did not take her long to figure out that he was looking at something that she would not be able to see even if she turned around.
His voice even seemed more distant than his thoughts when he spoke. "You mentioned earlier that we could take what we need. Does that offer still stand."
Doctor Weir was shocked by the quick change of pace that this conversation was leading to. Therefore when her brain finally comprehended the shift she stuttered out a shaky, "Yes. I'll go get the supplies you requested." She knew that it would be hard to adjust without the medical supplies, and the explosives, but they were easier to deal without than the lives of her people. She turned away from him, assuming that the conversation, as odd as it was, was over.
When Kolya heard the answer spill from Elizabeth's mouth he seemed to awaken from his inner thoughts. He noticed her turn and start to head toward her office door. Before she could get close enough to the door for it to open, Kolya was standing behind her with his right arm wrapped around her waist, and his left hand holding her forehead against his shoulder. Slowly Kolya drew his left index finger down Elizabeth's check while he replied, "I need more than what I originally came here for." He felt her pulse increase and her shudder of fear. He knew that she probably still had on the stoic mask. But he was exhilarated about getting this emotional response. Plus he knew that he would soon see many emotions crossing her face.
From the way Kolya had her in his grip it was fairly evident to her, what he was talking about. She quickly looked around her office trying to find the nearest object that could be used as a weapon. When this is over, I need to decorate more. She thought as she looked around her utilitarian office. She knew that she wouldn't go down without a fight though regardless of her lack of `weapons.' She remembered hearing a lecture on campus that you use what you have, and she felt lucky to be blessed with hands and knees with which to try to fight back.
When Dr. Weir shuddered at his touch, Kolya was shocked still with the desire to see pain and fear from Elizabeth. This gave her the chance she needed in which to twist out of his arms and to attempt to fight him off. As she twisted out of his arms to face Kolya, she stomped on his foot. Without taking the time to think about the fact that she was harming another individual, she had kneed him in the groin. He grimaced with the blows she threw at him, but was quickly able to push his discomfort in the background of his thought, and to fully go after Elizabeth. He pulled out his knife and lunged at her. Elizabeth tried to scratch his eyes when he came after her, and failed to notice the knife that Kolya branded. She felt the prickling, burning sensation in her right shoulder before she smelled the copper twang to the air, or saw the red blood flowing from the wound. Her brain seemed to freeze as she saw the knife embedded in her shoulder. This pause was all Kolya needed in order to pin her to the ground with his hand about her throat. "How will your people feel about following a leader that cannot protect herself or her men?" He whispered into her ear, and then he leaned forward a little more to nip at her earlobe. He sat up, and straddled her hips. He seemed to finally notice the knife still sticking out of her shoulder, and the steady stream of blood that the doctor was loosing. "Oh we can't have that, can we? If you loss too much more blood, you might black out and miss all the fun."
He bent back over the prone doctor and harshly planted his lips on hers. While he was kissing her, his left hand grasped the hilt of the blade, and he yanked it from it's hold. With a sickening slurping sound, the blade was removed; however this sound was muffled by the strangled whimper that was heard from Dr. Weir. When Elizabeth opened her mouth to try and cry out from the pain, Kolya took the chance to insert his tongue in her mouth. When he was finished with the kiss, he sat up and watched as Dr. Weir struggled to catch her breath, and to deal with the excruciating pain from her shoulder. Suck it up, she thought to herself mentally using a term she had heard one of the military using, if Rodney can deal with a knife wound, anybody can. She thought about the resident hypochondriac, and was amazed with how well he was fairing with all that was happening in the city.
Her thoughts where brought back to the situation at hand when she noticed the knife move toward her again. She tried to pull back from the blade, but as she was lying on the floor, there was nowhere to back away too. She closed her eyes in preparation for the worst. However, Elizabeth was shocked when the inevitable came without any pain. She heard ripping, felt the air hit her skin, and she knew what was coming.
Kolya cut down the front of the jacket and shirt that the doctor was wearing. Once it was cut completely down the front, he started to remove it from her. Once it was off, he started to tear her shirt into strips. Dr. Weir looked up at this new sound, and wondered what was going on. When Kolya noticed that she was watching him he replied, "I don't want you to miss out on any of the fun." Or me, he thought as he wanted as much time to watch the emotions play on her face. He knew that he would not get as much out of the situation if she would blackout and her face went slack. As a warrior, he was also skilled in first aid. Kolya helped Elizabeth sit up, and then he quickly and efficiently bound the wound with the strips of her old shirt.
Elizabeth sat still while he bound her wound, afraid that anything might set him off again. She was confused with his constant change in attitude, and was quickly trying to think of ways to use his shifting thoughts to her advantage. "We should get back to see how the plan is going to save the city, or else we will all loss out."
Kolya grinned as he realized what Elizabeth was trying to do. He clucked his tongue at her. "Nice try, but I haven't gotten everything that I came for yet." As he said this, his hands trailed down to the fasteners on her pants. He pushed her back down to the ground, and for the next 10 minutes, he was content with the emotions that he saw play out on the face in front of him.
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Sora came to the office door to inform Kolya that Major Sheppard was at the final grounding station. She saw as Kolya stood over Elizabeth and buttoned up his pants. She heard as he spat to the female below him "Females should not be allowed to lead. They are weak." Sora did not understand how Kolya could think that way. They had both seen many excellent fighters and warriors from either sex. Does he think this way about me she wondered?
Sora knew what had transpired in this room. It was obvious to see by the lack of dress from Dr. Weir. But regardless of what had happened to Elizabeth, Sora could see the fight still behind her eyes. I don't see how he can think she is weak as she still fights for herself and her people. Sora had a sickening revelation that many times a good leader has to make sacrifices for her people. She wondered what she might do in the same situation. I do not feel sorry for them, they awoke the Wraith and killed my father, she thought bitterly, bringing her thoughts back to the reason she was here in the first place.
A slight knock at the door drew Kolya's attention away from the glaringly figure of Dr. Weir. When Kolya was looking at Sora, she stated, "he's at the grounding station."
Kolya started to walk out the door, but when he reached Sora's side he seemed to remember about Dr. Weir. "Take her to her room to change, and then bring her back here. I might need something more from her later."
Sora heard the slip about how HE might need Dr. Weir later, and not that the team might need her. Was he losing his touch on the mission of this incursion? She wondered. "Yes sir" was her reply, as she knew better than to voice her thoughts out loud.
Sora watched as Kolya walked out of the room, and then turned to face Dr. Weir. Her belief that Elizabeth was one of the strongest women she knew was renewed when she saw that Elizabeth was already standing up with her pants fastened around her waist and her jacket in her hands. Sora noticed the white knuckled grasp Elizabeth had on the edge of her desk in order to prevent herself from falling back to the floor. Sora had many times been given the task of picking up those women who had been tortured in a similar fashion to Elizabeth; many times these women would be in hysterics and would have to be dragged away from the scene of the crime as they could not stand on their own. Sora watched as Dr. Weir struggled to get her right arm through her cut jacket. It was then that she noticed the red makeshift bandage around Dr. Weir's shoulder, and the darker red stain that was blossoming from the center of the cloth like a beautiful yet deadly flower.
Sora walked over to Elizabeth and held her hand out toward the jacket, "May I." She knew better than to try and touch the person in front of her, as she was not in the mood to be attacked, nor did she want to unnecessarily frighten Elizabeth. Elizabeth looked toward Sora and saw the sincerity behind her words, therefore she handed the torn jacket over to the person in front of her. Sora took the jacket and helped Elizabeth get her right arm in and then the left arm in the jacket; she then started leading them both out the door.
When Elizabeth got to the door, she clutched the two sides of the torn jacket closed and glanced around for Rodney. She saw him on the other side of the control room, and as his back was turned, she quickly darted through the nearest door to a hallway in order to prevent him from seeing what had happened to her.
On the way toward the door that Elizabeth had taken, Sora heard Kolya tell her comrades over the communication unit, "Use lethal force only if necessary."
She stopped in her track and turned towards her leader, "You told him he would be unharmed." She was having trouble grasping this man in front of her. He was going against his word, and harmed other human beings when it was not necessary. She thought back onto the deaths of the two men when the team first arrived in Atlantis, and to the actions her commander took against Dr. Weir; her thought whirled around about the situation at hand. As she was walking toward the door that Elizabeth had taken, she heard Kolya reply, "Let's hope he doesn't put up much of a fight."
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Elizabeth led the way down the corridors of Atlantis to her room. She thought for a brief moment about trying to run away, however she knew this would led to more trouble for Rodney, and she could not put another member of her team in danger like that. As she had the opportunity once again to talk one-on-one with Sora, Dr. Weir tried to explain Teyla's actions and that she was not responsible for the death of Sora's father. "I have known Teyla for awhile now. She is not the kind of person that would leave someone to die if it could be helped. She is a commendable officer who..."
Dr. Weir was cut off by a menacing "ENOUGH," from Sora. Elizabeth knew she had gone to far, however she felt she owed it to Teyla to try. The rest of the walk to her quarters was done in utter silence. The silence in the hall was eerie, as none of the usual hustle and bustle from the daily activities of those in Atlantis could be heard.
Elizabeth walked into her quarters and felt the presence of Sora behind her before she heard her door close. She turned to Sora and asked while gesturing toward the bathroom door, "May I have a few moments to clean up."
"You have five minutes," Sora said briskly, knowing that a longer delay would only cause problems with her commanding officer. She watched as Elizabeth went to her dresser and gathered up another full uniform before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door. When Sora heard the water turn on, she sat down on the edge of Dr. Weir's bed and contemplated all that had happened today. She was confused by the actions of her CO, and those of the people in Atlantis. Her own people were acting more like terrorists than she was seeing from the Atlantians. Sora thought of the leader in the next room, and how she was trying to protect her people even in the face of her own danger. She even tried to protect Teyla by speaking up for her. The thought of Teyla brought forward the thoughts of her father, and the anger she felt toward these people returned. I will have my revenge. She thought as the actions of those around her fell into the deep recessives of her mind.
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Elizabeth clutched the new uniform to her chest as she walked into the bathroom. She shut the door behind her, and turned the knob to lock the outside world behind her. She started running hot water in the sink in order to try and clean herself up a little. She felt so dirty, but she knew she did not have time for a shower. That could come later when she knew her people were safe.
Elizabeth felt the panic rise to her chest from what had happened mere minutes ago in her office. She collapsed onto the seat of the toilet and started to rock back and forth while the memories played out in her head. I don't have time for this, she thought to herself, and fought to pry her focus back to what was happening right this minute. I need to clean up, and get back to the control room before anything else happens to my people. She took a deep breath, and struggled to stand up. Once standing she was able to get out of her torn uniform. Luckily he only ripped my shirt, I only brought 3 pairs of uniform pants. She grinned at the odd directions her thoughts were taking her as she was struggling to deal with all that had happened to her.
Once she was undressed from the waist down, she was able to wash off the sweat and the smell of sex from her skin. She quickly got her pants on and sat back down on the toilet. She struggled to catch her breath, as the exertion to clean and change had taken it's toll on her bruised body. She looked down at her bra covered chest and marveled at the fact that Kolya had not cut that off her. `Rape is not about sex, but about power,' she remembered hearing a lecturer state. Elizabeth never really knew what that meant until now, as she realized that Kolya got off by the play of emotions on her face, and not on the act of sex itself. He wont get that satisfaction again, her eyes blazed as she made this promise to herself.
Dr. Weir pushed herself back to an upright position. She was glad that she did not have to change her bra, as the thought of trying to clasp the back of one with her injured shoulder brought the knowledge of the pain back to the forefront of her mind. Well that was one good thing about almost going into shock, she thought, I forgot about that wound without feeling the pain. She struggled through the pain in order to pull the red shirt over her head, while being careful not to jostle the bandage.
Once she was done getting her shirt on, she looked at herself in the mirror. She watched her facial expressions and put on the mask in order to not let Kolya have the satisfaction of seeing her in pain. Dr. Weir also mused how her mask would keep Rodney and others from finding out what had transpired in her office. There was not time for sympathy; they needed to get back to the task of saving Atlantis. That was all that mattered right now. With her mask in place, Elizabeth put her jacket on as carefully as possible; she then squared her shoulders, and grasped the handle of the door in order to face reality again. She was grateful for the few moments she had in which to get away from the harshness of what was going on in the city, but she knew she must get back.
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When Sora and Dr. Weir walked back into the control room, they could hear Sheppard's voice over the comm. berating Commander Kolya. They were drawn into the gist of the conversation when Kolya drew his pistol while stating, "I don't like even." He pointed the gun at Elizabeth, "Say good-bye to Dr. Weir."
Elizabeth tried to keep her mask in place, but is cracked slightly under the pressure, and Kolya was able to see the fear that danced across her eyes. He thought she was afraid for her own life, but she was mainly worried about what would happen to the city, and to her people if she was gone. You are not some miraculous savior, they will make do, she thought and pulled her mask back in place. "How is this going to help you get what you want?" Dr. Weir asked Kolya.
"Sheppard put you in this position not me," he replied while looking into her eyes for any slight glimpse of emotions. He almost wanted to pull the trigger just to see the look of pain on her face, and he remembered the pain he saw when he pulled the knife from her shoulder.
In the next second though, Elizabeth really feared for life; but not her own. Dr. McKay stepped between her and the gun. "You can't do this. This is crazy. You need her."
Sora took the opportunity to try and talk her leader out of what he was planning. "She's right! Commander." Sora hoped that her commander would do what was more important for the mission than for his own personal agenda.
McKay started stuttering that Kolya needed both of them alive in order to get the codes needed to activate the shield. He was winging it, and hoped that the man in front of him would not notice the slight sheen of perspiration that had started to cover his forehead as he struggled with the life and death situation he was literally standing in front of.
"Rodney... Rodney he gets it..." Elizabeth touched Rodney on the arm in order to bring him out of the babbling state that he had fallen into. I can't believe he did that for me.
When Kolya finally walked away, Rodney turned to Sora to thank her, "I appreciate..."
"You're an asset we need to complete this mission," but as Sora walked away, she wondered if that was the only reason for what she did.
Once Dr. Weir and Dr. McKay were alone, she faced Rodney and asked the questions she was dying to ask, "You stood in front of a gun for me..."
She did not get a chance to complete her thought as Rodney interrupted and reminded her that if they did not get the other grounding station separated that he might have only lengthened her life for a few hours. Dr. Weir closed her eyes and thought of all that had happened in the past few hours. Dr. McKay and been stabbed and interrogated, she had been raped, cut, and threatened with a gun, and two good men had lost their lives. She wondered how much more death and pain this storm would cause before it finally abated.
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Kolya wandered into Dr. Weir's office, glanced at the floor beside the desk, and marveled at the day he was having so far. He felt exhilarated by the thoughts of Elizabeth and the emotions he could provoke from her. Kolya realized that she was not as giving with her emotions after the incident earlier in her office, and he assumed that it was because he had broken the fearless leader. She was definitely not fearless earlier, he smirked to himself.
That thought about breaking the leader brought Kolya's thoughts back to Major Sheppard, and how he did not know if Dr. Weir was alive or not. He decided to contact the Major and clue him in to all that had happened. He picked up the radio and spoke forcibly to the annoying man on the other side of the transmission, "How's this for credibility? Weir is dead."
At the same moment, Dr. Weir was trying to sneak past her office door in order to talk to Sora again. She noticed the errant look that Sora gave her CO earlier, and was hoping to find some support to help her people. It was a long shot, Dr. Weir knew; however, she was willing to try anything to help her people. She mused over the idea of doing anything to help, but here she was sneaking past her own office door. Dr. Weir realized at that moment that there was a difference between doing anything to help, and outright stating `Here I am.'
She heard John reply slowly while pronouncing each word carefully, "I ... am... going... to ... kill... you." Elizabeth wanted to let Major Sheppard know that she was okay; however, she could not guarantee that the button was pressed on the radio Kolya had that would let the Major hear her. Dr. Weir also decided that it would be safer at the moment for all involved to let him think her dead. She hated to do it to him, but she knew that her still being alive was not set in stone like she would like. Everyone's life in Atlantis, including those of the Genii, was hanging on a thin thread that could be broken any moment by the encroaching storm.
Dr. Weir started to slip away when she heard Kolya's response, "Maybe...stay out of my way. Or McKay will join her." Elizabeth heard the radio click off and then shuddered when she heard Kolya state to no one in particular, "Dr. Weir is dead, but I still have work to do on Elizabeth."
The hell I am. Dr. Weir screamed internally. She wondered how her actions might have shown him that he had pushed her that far. Dr. Weir smiled to herself as she realized It doesn't matter what he thinks. I know better. I bet I can use this to my advantage. She hated playing the simpering scared female, but if it would get Kolya to believe she was weak, and not worth much military attention she would use it. She smiled more internally as her thoughts for how to manipulate Kolya started to form. She let her mind and her feet led her to Sora and to the plan of playing the weak female.
Dr. Weir never did get to talk to Sora, as Kolya came out of her office as she neared her target. Dr. Weir glanced toward Kolya. When he noticed her looking at him, she shifted her eyes to look at the floor, and hurried over to Dr. McKay's side. Playing simpering female take one, she thought to herself trying not to defy her chance and gaze hatefully straight at Kolya.
Dr. Weir heard the heavy footsteps of the Genii commander come toward her and Rodney. She shifted her stance to place Rodney between Kolya and herself. To Kolya it appeared as though Elizabeth did not want to be close to him at all, and he smirked at that knowledge. But to Dr. Weir, the shifting helped her see Kolya without having to shift her head much at all. She noticed the smirk on his face at the thought that he had won in breaking the leader of Atlantis.
"Come," Commander Kolya stated to the two members of Atlantis. He turned his gaze to look more at Dr. McKay and grabbed his right arm where he had been stabbed earlier. "You need to fix the final grounding station."
It took all the focus Dr. Weir had to not say or do anything too rash when she heard Rodney whimper in pain as Kolya gripped his arm. She wanted to rip the Genii commander apart limb by limb; however she knew that now was not the time to act. She bit the inside of her lip in order to prevent herself from saying something that would pull Kolya's thoughts back to the leader of Atlantis, and thereby knowing that he did not break her. She was glad to realize that the two males started to walk away when she noticed the taste of blood in her month. Dr. Weir kept her head down and followed the two like a beaten puppy all the way to grounding station 3.
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As the threesome walking out to view the damage to grounding station 3, they were drenched in mere seconds as the rain beat down on them. Elizabeth felt the freezing spray hit her full force; however, to her it was the closest thing she was going to get to a shower, and the washing away of the filth she felt that Kolya left behind when he touched her. She did not get much time to revel in the feeling of the grime being washed away as her attention was brought back to the two men standing next to her.
Elizabeth heard Rodney tell Commander Kolya that he could have the repairs made in 15 to 20 minutes. While Dr. Weir appreciated the speed and accuracy with which Dr. McKay normally did his work, she hoped that she would have a change to tell him to stall for more time. She knew that their importance was the only thing that was currently keeping them alive; once the repairs were made, she could not guarantee that the Genii would see enough worth in them to keep them alive. Elizabeth shuddered at the thought that Kolya might see enough reason to keep her alive. That's not important right now. I need to concentrate on saving the city and getting the people back here where they belong.
"Dr. Weir I need you to..." Rodney pulled her attention back to the grounding station and the pounding rain.
"Right of course," she leans closer to Rodney with the light so that he could see what he was doing. Personally Elizabeth was glad for a valid reason to get away from Kolya. The rain was helping her feel slightly cleaner; nevertheless, standing next to him for any length of time made her ill at ease.
Dr. Weir watched Rodney work, and glanced over occasionally to see if Commander Kolya was far enough away that she could talk. While he kept walking slightly away, she could not be sure that the wind would not carry her traitorous words to him. She finally got the change to talk privately to Dr. McKay when Sora called to tell him about the death of three more of the Genii raiders at the hands of Major Sheppard.
"Why did you tell him you could have this fixed in 15 to 20 minutes?" Dr. Weir nearly had to shout to be heard over the raging storm. She listened as Rodney replied that it was to keep Kolya from killing them. While he is a bright man in certain areas, he is certainly very dense in others. Dr. Weir forced herself to breath in and out before she replied, "I understand that. But once the shield is operational, we won't be very useful now will we?"
If there was a literal light bulb on top of Rodney's head, it would now be able to light up all of Atlantis. Dr. Weir watched as his eyes got bigger and he yelled at Elizabeth, "Why did you let me tell him I could fix it in 15 to 20..."
Like anyone has much control over what comes out of him mouth...or goes in it for that matter, Elizabeth thought about the brilliant scientist who acts like a vacuum cleaner whenever there is food around. Unless it has citrus, she thought wryly. Dr Weir shoved her thoughts away and responded to Dr. McKay that he needed to stall for more time, and hopefully they could give Major Sheppard a chance to take care of the remaining Genii.
That hope was dashed when they heard Kolya command Sora to call Chief Cowen to ask for reinforcements. To make matters worse, he smirked and turned to Doctors Weir and McKay stating, "If you're hoping Major Sheppard can diminish our numbers, you are mistaken."
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Back in the control room, Sora called in for reinforcements as she was commanded to do. While she waited for her comrades to dial in so that she could inform them of what was going on in the city, she was watching the dot on the screen that she knew to be Major Sheppard. All of the sudden the lights and many of the systems around her blinked off. She knew that her people might not look that technologically advanced, but she knew enough to know that she did not touch anything that would cause the reaction that she was seeing. Or not seeing, she thought sardonically. "What's he done now," she asked no one in general assuming that the Major was the cause the malfunctions that she and Laden were experiencing. She knew that her Commander was not going to be happy when she told him that the Major had cut power to the secondary systems, and therefore, the Genii had no way of tracking him.
As the primary systems were still on line, Laden was able to determine when Major Sheppard disabled another generator. Laden contacted his Commander, however, he need not have bothered as the area of the city that was blacked out from the second generator going off line included the area that grounding station 3 occupied. Therefore Kolya had first hand knowledge of the problems that Major Sheppard were causing for the Genii strike force.
Sora listened to Laden inform their Commander about the power outage while looking out the nearest window at the blackening sky that was made even more ominous without the lights from the control room to push back that darkness. She was getting worried as the storm was getting closer to Atlantis. She came to the grim realization that it was her duty to the Genii people as a whole to inform her CO that he might be overstepping the bounds of this mission. How to word this without my life being forfeit as a traitor she thought for a couple minutes before she contacted Kolya back with her well thought out words. "Commander, the storm is not slowing its pace. We have little time to get the shields activated...we should re-evaluate our goal. Perhaps..."
Sora was cut off by Kolya before she could go any farther with her voiced thoughts. "We still have move than enough time to complete our objectives."
Our objectives did not include taking the city, she thought bitterly. She was left with the instructions to guard the remaining generators when the reinforcements came through the stargate. She knew better than to say anything else on the subject, as her CO considered the subject dropped. Sora closed the link to her commanding officer, and mentally worked on calculating how the incoming Genii force could be used to guard the generators, and to find the equipment that the Genii so desperately needed. And then there was the added trouble of finding the Major now that the life sign detector was not working. With the size of Atlantis, she knew that with the reinforcements in team of twos, that it would take a great deal of time to find Major Sheppard. "How many should we expect?" she asked Laden hoping to determine how best to use the men before they stepped through the gate and looked to her for their assignment.
"A full company...60 or more," he gave her the figures that she needed, and then added to himself, "I don't know how we were expected to take a facility this size with any less?"
We weren't supposed to take the city, she thought to herself about the decision that Commander Kolya made for the entire Genii population when he got here. "It was supposed to be a raid to retrieve what was rightfully ours," she replied to Laden's voiced question. The silence fell around the two companions while they waited with batted breath for their friends to arrive. Sora was relieved when she saw the gate start to spin, and the blue lights blink on registering that someone was dialing in. She had the orders ready for the incoming men, so she decided to meet the incoming strike force at the gate and to give them their orders right away. She motioned to the two men standing near herself and Laden and commanded, "with me... come on." The two guards followed her to the gate in order to hear their new orders when the incoming men arrived.
Sora and the two men with her stepped toward the gate and watched as the first of the reinforcements started to come through. After 5 men came through the gate, Sora saw a simmering substance cover the gate, and then heard the horrific sounds of objects hitting the barrier. She was hit with a sickening sensation as she realized that her friends and comrades were dying in front of her. She glanced back toward the main control panel for the gate room to plead with Laden to undo whatever he might have accidentally done. "Shut it off Laden!" she shouted as she turned.
When she looked up, she did not see an apologetic Laden, but an irate major trying to protect his city. "Get him," she yelled to the men around her as she noticed Laden sprawled out on the floor besides the control panel, and she was momentarily relieved when she noticed that his chest was rising and falling with his breathing. However the lives of all the men that where cut short as they impacted the shield was bought back to the forefront of her mind when she heard another impact strike. She tried to contact her people on the planet to inform them of the danger facing those who stepped through the gate. "This is Sora. Stop sending the reinforcements. The stargate shield has been raised."
Sora rushed up toward the control panel as she tried to see if she could determine how to shut down the gate. She knew that she needed to inform her commander about what was going on, and she dreaded the explosive reaction that she knew this would cause. "Sheppard has raised the gate shield," Sora radioed over to Commander Kolya.
"Shut it down. Turn it off." Kolya bit back the command to Sora.
Sora glanced over the keys on the control panel and could not make any sense of them. "I don't know how," she tried to bring her emotions under control as the panic of not being able to help her colleagues tried to pull her into a pit of despair. "Laden is unconscious," she stated as a reason for why the shield could not be shut off from this end. Sora heard as her CO tried to determine how to shut down the gate from the two Atlantians that he had captive.
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Dr. Weir let a slight smile come to her face as she realized what Major Sheppard had done for them and the city as a whole. Without the full company that Commander Kolya was expecting, they still had a chance at fighting back and saving the city and returning their people where they belonged. She let he smile drop knowing that that show of emotions might enrage the commander, and he might do something to them in retaliation. She realized how enraged he could get when he turned to Rodney with hate in his eyes.
"Tell her the procedure!" Kolya bellowed to Dr. McKay. The commander knew that the two people near him had been listening in to the conversation. He saw this from the slight look of satisfaction that he saw in Elizabeth's face when she heard about what the Major had done. While in a different situation he longed to see her emotions, the current display enraged him almost as much as the death this was causing to his men. As the two in front of him knew what was going on, he did not need to waste time relaying the situation.
Rodney McKay also saw the emotions that played in Kolya's eyes, and this brought the safety of his life back into question. Well more so than just with the threat of the storm, the lightening strikes, the shield not working, oh and don't forget the infection that could start eating away at the gapping wound in my arm. That thought might have started him manically laughing if it wasn't for the fact that Commander Kolya was still coming towards his, and Rodney thought any sound other than a straight forward answer would push Kolya into doing something drastic. Therefore Rodney stated, "I don't know what he's done..."
Doctor McKay would have gone on with his excessive babbling if Kolya wouldn't have interrupted him with a curt, "TELL HER!"
"He must have entered his own personal command code." Rodney replied.
"What is it?" Kolya asked as he pushed Rodney against the edge of the balcony.
Rodney was afraid of just about everything in the world, and heights and death were two of his bigger fears. Well they are the only fears staring me in the face right this second, so maybe that's why they are coming to mind. If I make it through this situation, storms will have to be added to that list. His intellectual side kicked in as the fear of death was almost too much for Rodney to handle at the current time. "I don't know!" he bit back to Kolya, hoping that he might bring him back toward the safety of the center of the grounding station.
Dr. Weir watched as Kolya threatened Rodney. She saw the anger that was shown in Kolya's face and she feared what he might do since Rodney could not help in the present situation. She quickly closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself from what she was about to do. Elizabeth stepped toward the two men and grabbed hold of Commander Kolya's arm in an effort to pull him away from the petrified man hanging over the balcony railing. "Only Sheppard would know it!" she stated once she could form words over the lump in her throat that formed when she willingly touched the repulsive man in front of her.
"Trust me I'm not that brave. I would help you if I could," Rodney rambled on, trying to talk his way down from the precarious situation that he was in.
Kolya held Dr. McKay against the railing as he turned his face toward the figure that was gripping his arm. "You have command codes!"
Dr. Weir wished that she could help Kolya the way that he was looking for as to hopefully secure Rodney's life for the present moment; however she could not help him. She was getting ready to tell Kolya something similar to what Rodney told him when she heard Sora over the radio state, "It's no use. It's over. The gate has shut down...there are no more men coming."
Dr. Weir saw the look of grief win out over the anger on Kolya's face while he replied, "How many men made it?"
"5. 5 of 60." Sora answered in a deadpan voice.
Kolya's grief was short lived, and the anger once again raged toward the man in front of him. He pushed Rodney harder against the railing, to the point that Dr. McKay knew that he was going to be sporting a large bruise across his back if he survived this night. Rodney watched as Elizabeth gripped harder at his capturer, and fought for his life. The courage that he saw from his leader gave him the push that he needed to try and save his own life. "You still need me if you want this city! You still need the both of us."
Elizabeth was awed when Rodney stood up for himself, even more so than when he stood up for her when Kolya threatened her with his gun. She knew that it took a tremendous amount of strength to stand up to your fears. But while she saw this accomplishment in others around her, she was not able to see it in herself. She did not realize the amount of courage and strength it took for her to stand up to Kolya. Dr. Weir just saw it as a necessity to try and save a member of her team.
Dr. Weir had too much to deal with currently to ponder her situation for long and as Kolya walked off she glanced out toward the ominous black storm clouds. While she still feared for the city and its people, she was struck by a sense of calm that stemmed from the protection she felt when Rodney and she were left alone in the corner of the grounding station. She knew that the calm would not last. It was the proverbial calm before the storm. As Elizabeth watched the far off clouds swirling in the intense wind, she wondered what the next chapter of this situation would bring for her people and the marvelous city.
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As Kolya walked away from the two Atlantians, he radioed Sora to determine if his friend Athor's son made it through the gate. Idos was like his father in many ways one such way was that he was a brilliant soldier that Kolya himself had helped mold into the fighter he had become. "...Idos. Did he make it?"
"No sir."
At those two words a look of grief passed over Kolya's face. That look however was short lived to the anger that started to boil up at the idea of how he was to tell his friend that he was the cause of his son's death. No not me, Major Sheppard. The anger got more intense as he thought of the death of a good soldier... of many good soldiers. "Over sixty men killed!" Kolya stated in a voice that was more passionate than if he would have shouted it to the black clouds moving slowly across the sky.
"Defending his home and his people Commander... as we would," Sora stated. As the words spilled forth from her mouth, the realization that the Genii and the Atlantians were no different took a stronger foothold in her thoughts. Major Sheppard and the others from Atlantis were fighting for their lives, the lives of their comrades, and for their city. The Genii would do no less. She knew that she could not fault the Major for the deaths of those sixty men, as he was forced into that action by her hand, and that of her people. Her thoughts almost made her miss the question that her Commander asked next.
"When can more reinforcements be sent?"
Sora knew that Commander Kolya was not going to like her response yet again. She took a deep breath before stating, "it will take time...perhaps an hour." She hoped that time frame would appease him.
That hope was dashed when he barked back, "unacceptable."
Sora knew that she was stepping very close to the thin line before mutiny as she told the commander what she really thought. "Yes Commander, it is unacceptable, because by then we will be in the full force of the storm." And if we are still here then there will be more Genii deaths that do not need to occur, and will not benefit our people. Sora would have said more to her CO however she realized that the signal between them had been shut off.
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"Probably sooner," Rodney McKay voiced after Sora's comment about when the storm would arrive. A glare from Kolya sent McKay back to looking at the floor, mentally berating himself for letting his smart ass comments fly in the midst of life threatening situations like this one. It's a defense mechanism, he reminded himself before he could feel too bad about his comment. Anyways it is the truth. As Rodney was looking at his shoes, he missed the look that passed between Elizabeth and Kolya.
Kolya was trying to figure out what to do now. The Major had messed up all of his plans so far. Except for the ones made on the go, in certain offices, Kolya sneered and glanced toward Elizabeth. She happened to be looking at him at the precise moment trying to measure what he was thinking, and if she was going to have to fight for their lives to be spared yet again. Kolya's grin got wider as he saw her eyes on him, and how she responded to his glance. He knew how to get back at the Major, and to get the city, and it all centered on her. For a second his thoughts strayed to what he would do once the storm was over, and he had those three, the Major, Elizabeth, and the city, within his grasp. That will wait for later, but for now "Major Sheppard. I have a proposition for you."
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Dr. Weir knew that Kolya was angry at the Major for all the grief he had caused the Genii. She realized how angry he was when she had to literally pull the commander off Rodney. As she listened into his conversation with Sora, Elizabeth could tell that Kolya not only lost his soldiers, but also someone that he was close to on a more personal basis. If it was any other person, she would have felt sorry for the man in front of her that was grieving over the loss of good men. However as it was Kolya, it only made her fear his reaction even more. Dr. Weir tried to swallow that fear in order to study the Genii commander to watch out for how he might retaliate.
That fear stayed at bay only until Kolya glanced at her with a leer, and Elizabeth saw his eyes light up in a predatory fashion as he caught her looking at him. She quickly averted her eyes away from the creature in front of her and told herself to breath deeply to try and fight off the nausea that started to churn in her stomach as she saw the look in him eyes. She had seen that look before, and her mind started to play out the scene that happened afterward in her office. She clutched her knees to her chest, and the outside world started to fade away.
The wall that she was leaning against felt more like the smooth flooring that covered the floors in Atlantis. The rain pelting all over the tired leader started to feel like crawling fingertips across her skin. Her thoughts however were pulled away from her nightmare when she heard Major Sheppard exclaim through the radio, "Weir's alive," followed a few seconds later by, "Let me talk to her."
Elizabeth saw Kolya started to walk toward her. She flashed back briefly to him walking toward her in her office I've got to deal with this for my people, she thought as she straightened up to stand in front of Kolya and squared her shoulders, "Sheppard! We're both here!" she shouted over the storm.
Dr. Weir could hear the relief in the Major's voice as he replied, "It's good to hear you're voice."
"Yeah it's good to hear," she responded back. She heard Kolya go on to give Major Sheppard ten minutes to get the power back up for the grounding station, or she would die. Her thoughts played over the last few moments in her head. Dr. Weir hated that Kolya had seen her act so afraid. She started to put her stoic mask back up full force so that he would not see any reaction from her, but remembered that he was expecting to see her as a beaten puppy. This can still work out in our favor. I can't mess up now. These thoughts stirred her desire to help her people even more. She walked toward Rodney and sat down next to him to see how he was faring. He was the city's, and therefore it's peoples' best chance for survival. She had to stand behind him to support him through this burden.
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Rodney was still glancing down at his feet when Elizabeth came to sit next to him. "How are you doing Rodney?" she asked as she sitting down.
"Great!" he replied in such a fashion that Elizabeth knew something else was to follow. She was not let down when he continued, "How do you think I doing?! It's cold and wet. I'm going to catch my death out here. If the cold doesn't kill me, then the bacteria that is surely in the atmosphere is seeping into the gapping hole in my arm. It might need amputated when this is all over. And to top that off if I don't get something to eat soon I might go into hypoglycemic shock. That is if I'm not going into shock already from the blood loss. So I'm great, just great. How bout you?"
Elizabeth fought the desire to bite back at Rodney about how she really was. Let see. I've been raped in my office, there goes my safe haven, threatened with a gun, have a hole in my shoulder, and get to pretend as all is great to get this city back. So I'm great, just great. "Rodney!" she said sternly. Once she knew that he was looking at her she continued with her thoughts, "We will get through this. We must." Dr. Weir wished that she would have thought to grab a powerbar when she was in her bedroom. She knew that Rodney was not making up that part of how he was doing. "When the storm passes, you can have all the powerbars and MREs you want, ok?" She got what she was looking for as she saw a slight smile pass over Rodney's mouth. "And I'll personally make sure that there are no citrus products in the bunch, what do you think?" The smile got wider, and a small chuckle escaped through his parted lips.
"Do I have your word on that, the whole smorgasbord deal? Just need to make sure so the military guys don't get on my case about the food shortage again."
"Deal," Elizabeth said as they shook his hand on it. They both knew that it was made in jest as the food shortage was a big deal in the city currently. However that was a situation to deal with once the city was recovered, and then protected from the storm.
Silence crept back between the two and they stared out at the approaching storm. The silence gave both of them time to think about all had happened since the day started. Rodney's mind played over the infliction of the wound on his arm, and how he couldn't hold out to the pain. "I tried," he whispered to the swirling air about him. The only reason that Elizabeth heard his words was because they were sitting side-by-side trying to keep warm.
"What Rodney, what did you try to do?" Elizabeth asked. While she knew the answer to her question, she also knew that he needed to get his thoughts off his chest. She wished that she had someone with which she could talk to about her ordeal, but she knew her people came first. And anyway, her story would affect Dr. McKay's ability to do his work. Telling his story would help him, and as he would then protect the city, he was more important.
Rodney looked down at the wound in his right arm. "I tried to not mention the plan to protect the city from the storm, but I have a big mouth," his voice started to sound bitter with the anger he felt toward himself. More quietly he added more to himself than to Elizabeth, "I just wanted away from the pain. Why couldn't I be more like the John, or Aiden, they wouldn't have caved in so quickly. Neither would Teyla for that matter." His eye brows shifted together, and Elizabeth could see that his eyes held a few drops of moisture that were not there because of the rain.
If the situation was not as serious, Elizabeth might have made a comment about Rodney having a big mouth and devouring any food in sight. However, Dr. Weir took the route that she knew he needed to hear. "Rodney... Rodney, look at me." Once she was sure that his gaze was locked on her face, and not on the knife wound in his arm, she continued. "You did nothing wrong! If it wasn't for you, Kolya would not know that this station needs repair. And then where would we be." Elizabeth saw the pensive look on Rodney's face as he thought about the truth behind her words. "The city would have no chance. Our people would have no chance. Kolya needed to know. You did not let our people down. You did not let me down."
Elizabeth knew that she was getting through to Rodney when he stopped chewing on the bottom of his lip as he pondered over the situation. Therefore, she decided to go onto the other topic that Rodney brought up; his inability to withstand the pain of torture. "Both Major Sheppard and Lieutenant Ford are military," she saw Rodney start to open his mouth to make a comment so she quickly placed her right index finger over his mouth in order to signal him into silence so she could continue. "They have been trained how to deal with torture and interrogation." Elizabeth saw Rodney grimace when she mentioned the word torture, and knew that he did not want to acknowledge the harsh word as being the truth, just as she knew she would react if someone would mention to her that she was raped. "Teyla has spent her life dealing with the Wraith threat to her people, and how to protect them. We all do what we are good at. Don't beat yourself up for having a different path then your teammates." Trying to lighting up the situation Elizabeth added, "I mean really, can you see John in your shoes. Do you think that he would be able to pull brilliant technological ideas out of the air in order to protect the city time and time again?" Elizabeth let out a chuckle picturing the confused look that Major Sheppard got on his face every time Rodney went into on of his technobabble speeches. The grin on Rodney's face at least let her know that he was starting to picture what she was trying to convey to him.
Dr. Weir let the silence continue her debate with Dr. McKay. She could tell that he was mentally going over everything that she had said to him, and was weighing the truth of her words against what he logically could see. After a few minutes Elizabeth decided to continue her thoughts hoping to make Rodney feel that he was not alone in his grief and anger. "I know it is hard to deal with all that has happened today. But we must for all of Atlantis." The way Elizabeth said these words, Rodney knew that she was talking on a more personal level. He was about to ask her how she could possibly know what he was dealing with when the lights came back on. The thoughts of this conversation, and his desire to question Elizabeth slipped from his mind when he saw Kolya start to walk over to them. He knew that it was time to put his thoughts aside and deal with helping Dr. Weir save the city.
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Sora was walking down the corridor toward the generator room where her comrades had Major Sheppard in custody. She heard voices ahead of her. The first voice she heard was that of Major Sheppard. She grinned knowing that her people finally had him in custody, and that the killing of the Genii would now stop. That thought however was shattered when she heard another man respond to the Major; a man with a voice she did not know. Sora tried to melt into the shadows to determine what was going on. She heard Major Sheppard respond to the unknown man, and then heard a voice she would never forget say, "We should leave this area. More Genii will be on their way."
Sora saw red as she thought about Teyla Emmagan's role in her father's death. Sora watched as the foursome left the generator room, and she started to stealthily follow them. Her thoughts were so geared toward figuring out how to get to Teyla that she did not bother to check on her comrades that were down. Nor did she think about what problems the additional Atlantians would bring for her people, and their goals of procuring the city.
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Dr. Weir was holding the laptop so that Rodney could read the schematics for the control station. As he was fiddling around with the last wire he feared what might happen if he could not get the grounding station separated. Dr. McKay knew that he and Elizabeth were only a valuable commodity if they could do what they were commanded. While he knew that he was a genius, he also knew that he was a human prone to errors, even though he would never tell that to anyone. "If this doesn't work..."
"It will." Dr. Weir tried to reassure him that everything would work out fine.
"I'm just saying if it doesn't work..." he again tried to voice his feelings which revolved around the usual speech of `it's been great working for a wonderful and charming leader like yourself.'
He was not able to finish as Elizabeth cut him off again with a little more force, but still trying to sound comforting, "it will."
Rodney was never one that liked being cut off. He loved to hear his voice, and even more so in threatening environments as if to calm himself. While others wondered about that habit at it only seemed to annoy those around him, and therefore many times put him in more danger. "I'm sure it will work," Dr. McKay said in a flippant manner before adding, "but in the unlikely event that it doesn't..."
Dr. Weir was known for having infallible patience when dealing with just about any diplomatic mission you could think of. However in the midst of the freezing rain, a scientist that would not shut up about the doom that might befall them, and the shit she had already put up with on this lovely day in the Pegasus Galaxy she lost her cool. "Rodney! Please." Elizabeth could not deal with the thought of what might happen to them if things did not work out. She feared what failure might bring to them... to her.
She did not shout more than was needed to be heard over the storm, but Rodney could tell by the tone of her voice that she was on edge. He knew that any sane person would be when faced with the situation they were in; however he did not know that the day would get to Dr. Weir so much that she would let others see that by snapping at them. Dr. Weir had always shown herself to be a person in control of any situation, and the fact that she would drop her leader's mask for only an instant worried Rodney to the point he was stunned into silence. This momentous occasion was spent rearranging the final crystal into position. Dr. McKay breathed a sign of relief as the grounding structure separated and stated, "Oh thank god." One hurdle in saving the city down, only a few more to go, he thought. However the next few steps were going to be trickier with the Genii in the city. Rodney knew that he needed to remind Kolya about the rest of his plan before the commander tried to force it out of his with a sharp object. He felt a little more at ease with telling what the plan was as the city needed to be saved from this storm first, as Elizabeth had reminded him earlier. IF his plan worked, then the plan of trying to take back the city would be important, else it was a moot point.
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Kolya went back to the control room and the protection that that part of the city would give his men. He noticed that Sora was not present and was a little peeved that she had not contacted him in order to inform him how the capture of Major Sheppard was progressing. "Why haven't you responded?" he questioned angrily into his radio.
"She here," she whispered into her own radio so that the foursome that she was following would not hear her words.
"Who?"
"Teyla...she and two others have joined Sheppard." Sora was so intent in her desire to get to Teyla, that she did not even think how enraged this information would make her Commander.
More so, Commander Kolya was first and foremost angry that his soldier had not reported this fact when it first came to light. He brought up this insubordination by asking, "Why wasn't this reported sooner?" Kolya knew he would have time to punish her later, but now he needed to make sure that she was safe from the storm. "Fall back to the control room immediately."
"She's just out of my reach. If I am patient..."
"I gave you an order," Commander Kolya barked out letting Sora realize how she was straying out of the bounds that were in place for military personnel.
"She left my father for dead." Sora stated furiously. She almost did not reign in her emotions in time to lower her voice to the volume that it was. She wanted to yell it with all the air that could fill her lungs. She wanted Teyla to turn around and face her. She wanted revenge. But Sora knew that she must wait for a more opportune time. That time was coming soon she could feel it.
Kolya tried to make her see reason, "The storm is upon us. The city is no longer safe."
"I don't care," Sora realized as she said this that she did not care about her death as long as she got to see the life drain from Teyla Emmagan first. She could not understand how her commander had the right to order her from this task that she so desperately needed to see through. At least she risked only her life, unlike Kolya who in his desire to take the city was putting many Genii at risk. If he could go after his own vendetta, then who was he to deny her the same?
"Fall back," Commander Kolya ordered. He again tried to reason with her, "You have my word that your father will be avenged."
The command left no room for interpretation, but Sora could care less about the reprimand that she might receive from her commander. She desired revenge so much that her stomach churned with her contempt for the female walking only a few steps away. Kolya had mentioned that her father would be avenged, and that time was now at hand. "By me," she said as she turned off her radio.
She continued to following the foursome after she turned off the radio, and soon she saw her chance to get at Teyla. Sora watched as the group split up. Major Sheppard and the other soldier went one way while Teyla and the imbecile who could barely hold a weapon correctly hurried down the opposite corridor. Perfect, Sora thought as she followed her prey.
Teyla took the forward position, and left Dr. Beckett to watch their backs. This was the best course of action to take. The Genii would all be in the control room to stay safe from the storm once the shield was raised. Teyla did not take into account that one lone Genii soldier would be following the doctor and herself. They came to a storage room and Teyla took point to scout out the room to determine that no Genii were hiding in the shadows.
As Teyla stepped into the room and away from the doctor, Sora came up behind Carson and quickly and efficiently took him out of the scenario, by hitting him upside the head with her weapon. Sora knew that he would be no match for her as he talked more than watching his own back. However she wanted to take on Teyla alone, without the fear of the man trying to get in her way. Teyla heard Doctor Beckett crumple behind her, and turned to face Sora. Both trained their weapons on the woman in front of them. "Drop it," Sora commanded as she shifted the barrel of the gun toward the prone doctor. "I'll kill him." Sora knew that Teyla was a very commendable person and would not want to put others at risk when she could prevent it. At least when it involves her own friends and family, she thought bitterly. Teyla dropped the weapon as was expected. Sora looked at her own gun in her hands and determines that feeling Teyla's blood flow from her body would be a much more befitting death. She slid her weapon across the floor away from the two of them while stating calmly, "I would hate to have to kill you so quickly."
Teyla stepped farther in the room, trying to get Sora away from Carson. She glanced quickly over to him, and could see that he was still breathing as the floor by his mouth and nose would fog up every few seconds. Good, I can put all of my thoughts on apprehending Sora, but as she thought this, she also thought how hard it would be to have to battle a life long acquaintance and friend. "I have known you for most of your life, why are you doing this?" Teyla asked, hoping that she could get Sora to see reason.
That question sparked Sora's anger, as she wondered how someone she knew for so long could condemn her father to death, thereby making her an orphan. "You left him to die," Sora spat out as she pulled out a knife that was strapped to her waist.
Teyla remembered the situation that Sora was talking about. She watched her memories play out and saw Sora's father pull out his weapon. Tirus shot the person who was asking for her help, as he feared any rescue attempt would alert the Wraith. Instead, his own weapon fire alerted them to the intruders. Teyla hid behind a column and watched as Sora's father was gunned down by the Wraith. She wanted to go to him, but she knew that he was already dead as she saw where he was shot. Teyla knew she had to warn the others, and that warning outweighed the desire to bring back a dead corpse to his family; because if they didn't get out of the hive ship soon, there would be no going back at all.
Teyla pulled her thoughts back to the fight at hand. "Your father killed an innocent. He alerted the Wraith to our presence."
Sora thought about the father she knew. Teyla's remark went with the impulsive father from her memories. He would get it into his head to do something, and nothing would change his mind. Not even his daughter's pleas to not go hunt the beast that roamed the woods near the village, would sway him to keep away from possible danger if he saw fit. She could see her father doing something so detrimental, but as all children want to have faith in their parents Sora would not see reason to end this fight. She placed her anger back on the person in front of her. "And you escaped!" Sora stated. This was hard for her to fathom as she would fight to the death to try to protect someone that she had known for as long as Teyla had known her family.
"If I am to die by your hands Sora, I die knowing that there's nothing I could have done to have saved Tirus." Teyla could understand the hate and anger from the girl in front of her. She had felt the same anger when the Wraith took her own father. Teyla wanted to lash out at the world, but there was no one to blame for his death other than the Wraith. Halling helped her to see that fact, at the same time as he fought her, to let her release the pent up anger that she was carrying. Teyla could she herself in Sora's eyes, and knew that she needed to get the anger she felt out. If fighting her was the only way to help, Teyla knew she would be there for her as she was not there for Tirus.
Sora waived the knife through the air. The light glistened off the deadly object as Sora spoke, "This was my father's. It was handed down from his father."
Teyla reaches down to pull out her own knife as she realized that this fight would happen. "If you want to fight this way Sora... I will win." While Teyla had never seen Sora fight, she knew that the hatred was clouding her judgment, as smoke would cloud her eyes. In that type of situation, Teyla knew she had the upper hand. She remembered the fight she had with Halling. Even though she was a better fighter, he beat her in a minimal amount of time because she was fighting with her heart and not her head. Teyla knew that she would have to keep Sora busy until she could get through her clouded emotions, as Halling had down for her. "You will have avenged no one." Teyla knew that this would enrage Sora, and hoped to get her passed the fighting stage and into the emotional breakdown stage as was bound to happen sooner or later.
"We'll see," Sora got into a fighting stance, and quickly lunged at Teyla. The twosome parried the dodged each other. If anyone was watching the fight it almost looked as if the two were lock in a deadly, yet graceful dance. The dance continued, and Sora drew first blood as her knife grazed Teyla's arm as she tried to dodge the blow intended for her stomach.
The fight continued, and the graceful dance started to take on a more frenzied pace. If Major Sheppard would have been around to watch he would have commented that the cat fight would only be complete with a little more hair pulling and a pool of mud. The knives became a side weapon, as their fists and legs started to try to deal painful blows to the other.
The fight started to wind down as Teyla gets a hold of Sora and pushes her against the wall. Somewhere in the shuffle Teyla managed to procure Sora's knife, and she places it against her components throat to get her to hold still. Teyla could see that Sora was getting tired, and Teyla wanted this to end. But she knew the ending had to be Sora's choice, or she would never start to get over the hatred she felt for her. "This is not what your father would have wanted. Our people were destined to be allies"
Teyla's radio came to life as Major Sheppard sounding a bit desperate said, "Teyla and Beckett fall back to the control room." Teyla knew that their time was almost up, and if she was to try to save herself and Dr. Beckett she must go now.
"This...Must...End...Now." Teyla said enunciating each word, hoping that they got through the emotional fog in Sora's mind.
"Then end it," Sora said while moving her neck in such a way that Teyla could deliver the death blow more efficiently. Teyla would not give her the satisfaction of killing her. She had already seen too much death, and Teyla did not want another one to personally be on her conscience. Teyla decided that she would end it, but not in the way the Sora thought. She stepped away from Sora, dropped the weapon and hurried over to Carson.
Even though the force holding her against the wall was no longer there, Sora could not bring herself to move as she thought about what had just happened. Teyla, who Sora blamed for killing her father, did not kill his daughter when given the chance. She thought back on the times when she had met Teyla growing up. Sora remembered once telling her father that she saw Teyla as her older sister. They would keep each other company as they ran through the village tormenting the elders. Sora cracked a smile as she was brought back to the present by the sounds of a nearby struggle. When Sora looked toward the sound, she saw Teyla trying to drag a still unconscious doctor toward the control room. Sora hurried to catch up and as she neared the twosome she saw Teyla tense, as she wondered if she would have to protect the doctor. Sora held out her hands to show Teyla that she had no weapons, and went to the doctors other side. They each grabbed an arm and placed it over their shoulders and then walked together toward the gate room. Teyla and Sora both realized that there would be many hurdles ahead of them, but this current time of trying to kill the other was over. Granted Sora mused; if she did she Teyla like a sister, then another fight to the death might be probable in the future.
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Kolya finished talking to Sora on the radio and strode angrily toward his new second-in-command. As he was walking toward Laden he thought about the many soldiers this trip had cost him and his people, and Sora was now one of the casualties. According to the Genii ways, Sora was now seen as dead to the community as she disobeyed orders; for her own sake, Kolya hoped that he never saw her again. He hated losing a soldier and he blamed the Atlantians for all the upheaval they had caused the Genii people. As he thought about the deaths, he looked up and noticed the captives talking; however, he was not close enough to hear what they were discussing.
If Kolya could have heard the conversation, he would have heard Elizabeth inform Dr. McKay that he must stall for more time as the Major was still in the unprotected parts of the city. But as Kolya was clueless to the ruminations of the leader of Atlantis, he was not aware of the deception that played out between the two doctors when he bellowed to Rodney to activate the shield.
Rodney's mind flew as he tried to come up with a way to stall. "It's done. Dr. Weir I need to enter your codes now."
"Yes of course. 7 9 4 2 1," Elizabeth stated trusting that Rodney had something up his sleeve in the pursuit of saving the city and its current inhabitant.
"Yes?" Rodney asked hoping to get the last few numbers needed so that he could place the shield up to protect himself... and the city of course.
Dr. Weir said the other numbers clearly, "0 3 2 4 5."
Well she was no help, Rodney thought once he keyed all the numbers that were needed. Dr. McKay mused that his current thought hit him like a bolt of lightening; that is so not the right imagery to be having right now, as it just might come true, he wryly joked. "And the second sequence?"
Elizabeth glanced at Rodney as though he had sprouted a second head before the realization hit of what he was trying to accomplish. Feeling like she was playing the lottery, she randomly picked some numbers. However that plan did not take up nearly as much time as they needed to be sure that Major Sheppard was safely in the control room vicinity, and soon enough Kolya barked for the shield to be raised.
"I'm almost finished," Rodney said, trying to grasp at any excuse to procrastinate longer.
Laden spoke up from his console, "A massive wave is approaching from the west. Without the shields..." He left the rest up for the group to ponder over, as they all knew what the lack of shields would mean to them and the city.
"McKay!" Kolya shouted out in the hope of pushing Rodney into either bringing the shield on line, or to inform them if it would not work.
Rodney enlightened those around him that lightening was starting to strike the northern pier, and therefore he was going to turn the shield on. But when he said, "Now!" the group waiting for the safety of shield, but it never came. The others in the control room watched as he tried a few more times to get the shield on line, with no effect.
Despite the fact that Rodney looked like he was getting frustrated as his lack of progress, he was actually still trying to stall for time so that the John could get to safety. If Elizabeth would have looked closely at his movements, she would have noticed that Rodney was not even pushing the correct control that was needed to finalize the process to bring up the shield. Rodney thought that even if she was watching, she probably wouldn't know that he was pushing the wrong button; therefore, he felt safe in the knowledge that the Genii would not know either.
Kolya purposefully stomped over to Dr. McKay while demanding that the scientist explain what was going on.
"Look I told you this was a long shot from the beginning," Rodney stated while locking his gaze with Kolya's.
The next words out of Kolya's mouth were again directed at Dr. McKay, "You said this would work."
Rodney's acerbic wit responded before his sense of self-preservation could inform him to shut up as he responded, "I don't know if you noticed or not but I'm an extremely arrogant man who tends to think all of his plans will work." His voice of self-preservation yelled caution just a bit too late, and by the time that Rodney heard it he also saw a fist flying at him.
As the punch landed, Rodney heard Kolya say, "Idiot." Rodney mused that the voice in the back of his head was saying the same thing but with a bit less hatred.
Dr. Weir seeing the Genii lash out at one of her people could not help but confront him before the fear of him had time to register. "Hey this was a long shot at best. Why else would we evacuate the city? It was always our intention to dial out in case this didn't work." Dr. Weir paused and started to perceive how she could use this problem, to the benefit of the city and her people. While the city might not make it through the storm, she could at least guarantee to get back to her people and help them though this time of loss. If she could just get the Genii out of the city, then she and the rest in Atlantis could gate to Manara to inform the others what was going on, and the path that now lay before them. "Within minutes Atlantis will fail. You can leave and survive or you can go down with the city. You choose." She paused to let the realization of the city's emanate downfall sink into Kolya's head before she continued on this train of verbal assault. "Are you going to sacrifice the lives of all your men on the off chance that this city won't be completely destroyed?"
Dr. Weir could see Kolya ponder the situation for only a few moments before she heard him command his men to open the stargate and start the evacuation procedures. Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief as she internally danced a victory dance over the fact that they were leaving, and that she could then get to her people. "You're making the right decision," she said.
"You're coming with us. You'll both serve the Genii as payment for what you've done." Kolya stated before he started down the center stairs toward the stargate.
Elizabeth heard Rodney say something to Kolya as they were both grabbed by a Genii soldier, but all she could think about was how this was the second time that Kolya had twisted her words around to hurt her in the long run. Thinking of the first time he hurt her, Elizabeth knew what would happen once she was off world. She started to drag her feet and struggle against the man holding her in the hope that she could get away from the pain that would come if Kolya got a hold of her in his own territory.
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Major Sheppard and Lieutenant Ford were waiting for Teyla and Dr. Beckett to join them so that they could take out the remaining Genii in the city. John worried over the fact that neither Teyla or Carson had responded to his communications, but he knew that he had to save the city and the two captives before he could retrace his steps to determine what had happened to the others. Without the other two comrades, John ran various plans through his head to determine how to take back the control room; however all of his plans were destroyed once he saw Drs. Weir and McKay grabbed by two Genii and dragged toward the stargate.
Major Sheppard spoke to his Lieutenant, "Change of plan, you get McKay." They both rushed into the control room and started firing at any of the Genii that they could. Out of the corner of his eye, Major Sheppard saw that McKay was running for cover away from him Genii captor. However his eyes were glued on the situation in front of him. Commander Kolya had grabbed Elizabeth and was using her as a personal shield as he backed up toward the stargate and freedom. "You're not going anywhere. I will shoot you if you don't let her go."
"And risk hurting Dr. Weir?" Kolya said to the Major and then whispered something in Elizabeth's ear.
With the way Dr. Weir was struggling again Kolya, John had a clear shot of the Commander's right shoulder. "I'm not aiming at her," he said as he fired his weapon. He watched as Kolya dropped Elizabeth and fell backwards thorough the gate. As he rushed towards he fallen leader, he commanded Aiden to look for Teyla and Beckett and to make sure that all of the Genii were out of the city.
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The fear of being a prisoner of the Genii was slightly pushed to the side when Elizabeth's curiosity wanted to know where the shooting was coming from. She saw Major Sheppard and Lt. Ford firing at the Genii. She also saw Rodney running for cover once he was released. The relief that came from what she saw was short lived once she felt Kolya grab her from behind and start to drag her toward the stargate.
Elizabeth saw John aim at Kolya and heard them talking to each other, but her mind was buzzing against the thought that once she was on the Genii home world that there was no coming back. This realization was brought to the forefront when she heard Kolya whisper in her ear that while John wouldn't hurt her... he would. Dr. Weir's mind ran thorough all the reasons why she could not let him take her: her safety and sanity, but first and foremost the safety of her people was at stake.
Dr. Weir decided to give Kolya what he thought he already created as she thought playing simpering female take twenty. While she was unsure of what number she was up to, she knew that he would not get her so easily. Elizabeth went limp as though in fear of the person holding onto her as a human shield.
Kolya felt Elizabeth go weak in his arms, and he triumphed over the power he held over her. However that triumph was shattered once he realized that the dead weigh he was pulling was slowing his time to the gate. He also realized that as she sunk lower in his arms that he was not totally shielded from the Major in front on him. This realization came at the same time he heard the weapon in the Major's hands fire. He felt the pain in his shoulder, and as he fell through the event horizon of the stargate without Elizabeth he promised himself that he would get revenge.
Elizabeth heard the gun in front of her fire, and felt the air by her right cheek warm up as the bullet soared past her. She heard the impact of the bullet as it hit the muscle in his shoulder, and even heard the telltale crack when the bullet impacted bone on the way through his body. She felt the weight behind her leave, and she staggered to fall forward rather than be pulled backwards with the falling weight of the man who a moment ago was holding her in a death grip. She fell on the ground the same time she heard the sound of a person going through the event horizon of the wormhole. The comprehension of what might have happened to her slammed into her with the same force that the waves outside were bound to hit the city with. Elizabeth struggled to stand up on her shaking feet, or was that her whole body shaking, as Major Sheppard came over to her.
"Sorry about that. I had to ermm... are you okay?" John said the last part quietly so that she was the only one to hear it.
Elizabeth responded, "No," just as quietly, not because she did not want others to hear her, but because she was having trouble forming the words as the adrenaline rushed away from her and the events of the day tried to grasp her and pull her under them and suffocate her.
Sheppard noticed that Dr. Weir was going to go into shock as the danger from the day was wearing off. He knew that her response was natural and so he stated, "You will be. Come on." He grabbed her hand to make sure that she was okay walking, and the two of them rushed up the steps to the control console that Rodney was working at.
Once they were confronted with the problem of the city being hit with the storm again, John marveled at the fact that Dr. Weir was able to climb out of her thoughts and focus once again on helping her people. However he knew that her pushing the thoughts away would probably make dealing with them worst; they would try to bury her even more later if she pushed them away now. But like any good military leader, Major Sheppard knew that the people came first, and then the fall out could happen. John's thoughts were squashed as he heard Aiden and Rodney talking.
"Wait! What are you doing?" Aiden questioned as he heard Dr. McKay hurried typing.
Rodney replied in his patented smart-aleck tone, "I thought I'd activate the shield and save the day, you got something else in mind?"
Aiden could not believe that Rodney was going to turn on the shield when two of their friends and co-workers were still out in the city, "Teyla and Beckett are still out there." He hoped that Rodney just didn't realize this fact in the confusion of all that had happened throughout the day.
"Tracking system is down. There's a tsunami headed towards the city. In two and a half minutes they're dead," Rodney replied to Aiden.
John could not believe what he was hearing and he replied the smarted answer for the problem at hand, "Then give them two minutes."
The next two minutes were hell for those in the control room. Most of the problem came from fearing that their comrades would not make it to the control room in the allotted time; however, the other problem with the wait came from Dr. McKay. Rodney would not stop tapping his fingers along the keyboard as if to solidify in his mind the correct sequence of keys to push for the shield to come on line. But for those around him it was torture.
Aiden stood the tapping for as long as he could, but after a minute and a half he barked at Rodney, "shut up."
"I'm not talking," Rodney snapped back.
"You are now," Aiden replied snidely.
Rodney was about to open his mouth again to reason with Aiden when Elizabeth spoke up, "Enough."
The foursome did not think that anything could be worse than Rodney's tapping; however the silence started to strangle those in the room until Rodney spoke up, "There's no more time. Either we lose them or the city."
Elizabeth did not want to have to order the deaths of two of her people, but she knew it was her position to let Rodney go ahead with the key strokes that would kill anyone not within the safety of the control room. She always hated the saying that `the needs of the few outweigh the needs of the many'. She was always one that wanted to save and protect everybody. Dr. Weir started to open her mouth to give Rodney the command he needed when she saw Teyla and Sora enter the control room with Beckett being held up between the two of them. Elizabeth quickly shut her mouth to breathe a quick thank you to who ever was listening, and then stated, "Rodney Go!"
The people in the control room saw a huge wave heading toward the city, and they all wondered if the shield was going to work or not. Elizabeth spoke the question that everyone was thinking of, "What's happening?"
"It's working. It just needs to build up enough power for the shield generator to activate," Rodney replied.
Once the wave was almost on top of the city, Rodney activated the shield. The group watched as the wave hit the shield and passed over it forming an interesting water show as a dome of water ran over the city. To Elizabeth it looked like they were in the inside of a water fountain that sprayed water up and fell in the shape of a circle. "Nice work Rodney," she said as the awareness that the city was safe from both the Genii and the storm put a smile on her face.
"Did you ever doubt me?" Rodney questioned.
"Yes, several times." While it was the truth, Elizabeth could not wait for the reaction she knew would grace Rodney's face.
Seconds after her words hit Rodney, he looked crestfallen, "Oh." His brain pondered over this fact and he quickly came to the realization that she just wasn't as smart as he was, which was why she doubted him for even a split second. This thought helped him quickly forget the disappointment he felt at Dr. Weir's words, and he sat back in his chair and breathed out a sigh of relief that his plan worked; the city was safe all because of him. Well and a little from the others for getting rid of the Genii, but only a very little, he thought as he mentally patted himself on the back.
Elizabeth saw the eventual smile grace Rodney's face, and she walked toward the railing to glance at the stargate before the situation of trying to get the city back in shape for her people to come back, and the medical treatment of the few remaining in the city started. She glanced over her people to see Carson still half out of it, Rodney with the wound in his arm, and Teyla and Sora also looked a little worse for wear. Dr. Weir watched as John and Aiden started to check out Carson, and look over the wounded females. Therefore she turned to watch as the waves pummeled the shield, as her mind tried to soothe itself from the disastrous day.
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Elizabeth's rest and ruminations were short-lived as she heard Rodney ask if anyone had a candy bar, before she heard the sound of cloth rustle against the chair followed by the sound of an object impacting the floor. She turned around toward the sound, and saw Teyla and John rush over to help their fallen teammate. "I have some candy in my office," Elizabeth said before she could think about the fact that she did not want to set foot in there.
"Are you holding out on us and hogging all the candy?" John asked with a slight smile as he started checking Rodney's vitals.
"Many times what is in my desk becomes breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner, so I don't feel too guilty about `hogging' the candy as you put it." Elizabeth teased back, while mentally going over how she could put off going into her office. She thought of telling Teyla were the treats were, but as the members of SA1 were trained to deal with Rodney's medical problem, she knew that Teyla was needed here more than she was. She quickly thought about the rations that would be stored in the jumpers in case of an emergency flight, but realized that it would be quicker for her to get what was in her office. Time was of the essence with Rodney's hypoglycemic shock, and so she knew that she would have to face her fears, and her office, before she believed she was ready.
As Elizabeth squared her shoulders to face her office and her memories, she heard John chuckle and say, "It's a good thing that Carson can't hear you or he would be lecturing you about proper diet. Granted I might just tell him later, it will give him an excuse to stay awake and talking."
Elizabeth was grateful for the humor as she stepped into her office. Her eyes riveted to the red spot on the floor beside her desk. The images started attacking her, just as Kolya had attacked her earlier in the day. She saw the silver glint from the knife as in impacted her shoulder. If anyone was looking in at Elizabeth, they would have seen her backup until she backed into the wall on the right of the door. When she collided with the wall, Elizabeth felt the air leave her lungs as she was pushed to the floor by Kolya. Her breath started to come in gasps, as much from the pain in her shoulder as from the hands that were wrapped around her throat. The pain in her shoulder grew in intensity, and pulled her back to the present.
Elizabeth let her right arm hang limp to relieve the muscles that tried to work even though they were injured, and she pushed off the wall with her left hand. She followed the contours of the wall around to the back of the desk as she tried to avoid the main part of the floor. She opened up the bottom desk drawer and grabbed two chocolate bars before she quickly bolted out of the room, not bothering to look back in fear of being dragged back into her memories.
Once she hurried over to threesome near the computer station, her leader's mask was back in place; the only thing visibly out of place was the fact that she would not move her right arm. Dr. Weir handed the chocolate over to Teyla, as she was closest to Rodney. Teyla took the offered candy, and started to tear into the wrapper. Dr. Weir noticed that Rodney was still conscious, however he was very uncoordinated. Teyla did not even try to get Rodney to take the chocolate, but broke off small pieces and placed them in his mouth. Elizabeth watched the process and wondered how many time on a mission Teyla and the others had needed to put their knowledge of hypoglycemic shock procedures into practice.
Elizabeth was staring so intently, that she did not realize that Major Sheppard was watching her. He noticed that she handed Teyla the candy bar with her left hand. As he continued to observe her, he noticed that once her left hand was free of the chocolate, that she used that hand to cradle her right arm against her chest. As the military leader for the city and he hoped as Elizabeth's friend, John felt that it was his duty to fix the mess that was caused by the Genii incursion. "Are you okay Elizabeth?" he asked hoping that she might give a straight answer.
Elizabeth saw Teyla glance up briefly at her, before she went back to feeding Rodney to get his sugar levels back up to normal. "I'm fine. Just a few ache and pains. Nothing a nice hot shower can't cure," as Dr. Weir spoke she also moved her arm slightly to try to show the Major that it was nothing to be concurred with. The streaks of red hot pain that flared through her arm let her know that the move was a stupid one to make. However outwardly she was able to let the Major she only a slight grimace, rather then the shout of pain that she would have desired at the moment.
Sora spoke up from nearby, and Elizabeth jumped as she did not know the girl was near. "What about...," Sora started to ask about the blood that she had seen earlier soaking through the makeshift bandage that Kolya had constructed.
"...You. I don't know what to do with you yet, we should go talk." Dr. Weir interrupted to keep Sora from asking about her injuries in front of the others. Knowing that the jumper bay was safe from the lightening strikes around the city and that it would have medical supplies and rations, Elizabeth determined that she could get to talk privately while also getting a feel for how the newcomer would act. "Currently you can come help me get some supplies out of the jumper bay, and we'll talk about the future." Elizabeth wanted to get Sora away from her people so that she could swear her to secrecy about the situation at hand.
Dr. Weir started to walk away. She tried to swing her arms a little as she knew the others were watching her retreat; however the pain was too intense to keep the movement up. She assumed that Sora would follow her without being asked again, and the sound of following footsteps let her know that she was correct.
Major Sheppard watched his leader walk away, followed closely behind by Sora. John did not like watching Elizabeth go off along with a known enemy. He turned around from his seated position beside Rodney, and grasped the remaining chocolate away from Teyla's hands. "Follow them, and keep her safe," he instructed as he started to break off a bit of the candy. "If they notice you, mention you were retrieving the hunters."
Teyla nodded and efficiently moved to her feet before she hurriedly and quietly followed in Dr. Weir's footsteps.
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Dr. Weir walked into the jumper bay and heard the echo of two sets of footsteps. She walked until she was about twenty feet within the room before she turned to face Sora and the conversation that she had been mentally running through her head. She spoke quietly but firmly, "You do not repeat what happened in my office to anyone. Do you understand?"
Sora was close behind Elizabeth and almost ran into her before she could get her feet to stop her forward momentum. She looked in Dr. Weir's eyes, and knew that there was no room for argument, even if Sora thought she might need added medical attention. "I will keep silent as long as I think it's advantageous."
Sora was talking about her silence being advantageous to Elizabeth's health; however Dr. Weir did not hear it as such. "Oh it will be advantageous to you to stay silent, I promise you that," Dr. Weir did not make promises that she did not think she could keep, but she knew that she would keep that one. Before Sora could talk up and correct Dr. Weir's understanding of her words, Elizabeth changed the subject as she knew that all was said on the previous subject that needed to be. "So what should we do with you? Should we contact the Genii to release you back to them?" Dr. Weir noticed the panicked look on Sora's face when the change of subject became clear in her mind.
With wide eyes, Sora started to plead her case to the leader of Atlantis, "If you send me back I will be killed for my insubordination to my Commander. I would not follow his orders when he commanded that I leave Teyla and return to the control room."
Dr. Weir did not know of the situation that Sora was talking about, but she was appalled at the thought that they would kill their people over something that was so benign. "Okay, then I guess you'll stay here, but you have to promise me that you will not harm anyone here, especially Teyla. Is that clear?" Sora nodded her head that she understood, and once Dr. Weir saw her affirmation, she started walking toward the nearest jumper. Hearing Sora start walking again, she continued her train of thought, "I'm not sure what to do with you? I don't know if it would be safer for you and my people to confine you to a set of quarters, or if you might be able to be some use for the city. What do you think?" Elizabeth would have continued with more suggestions, but her mind started to get cloudy, and she had to concentrate to put one foot in front of the other to continue walking in a straight line to the jumper.
Elizabeth paused in her communication with the person that was following her, as the pain in her shoulder intensified to the point that she could not ignore it anymore. She felt the heat that seemed to eat at the wound, and felt the perspiration as it beaded on her forehead and started to drip down her face. She thought that her blurred vision came from the liquid falling down her face, and the tears that she knew were building up because of the pain. She closed her eyes, and reached up with her left hand in order to wipe away the hindrance to her vision. As she was moving her hand back to her side, she shook her head as if to further get her bearings as she continued to walk forward. As Dr. Weir opened her eyes, she realized that the quick movement of her head did not help the fuzzy feelings that she was starting to have. She did not have much time to berate herself for the movement however, as her vision started to tunnel in, and the blackness took her toward oblivion. She felt the relief from the pain, and did not even start to feel the pit of her stomach fall as she started to drop toward the hard jumper bay floor.
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Sora was about to reply to Dr. Weir when she realized that the person in front of her was struggling to remain walking and upright. She knew that Dr. Weir had been injured, and came to the realization that the events of the day were starting to catch up to her. She watched as the leader of Atlantis closed her eyes and shook her head as if to clear her thought and the hazy vision that Sora knew came with blood lose. Sora walked to the left side of Dr. Weir so that she could help her if the need arose. Out of the corner of her eye, Sora saw the dazed look that was in Dr. Weir's eyes once they opened again. She saw as Atlantis's leader blindly reached out in front of her to try and protect her self from the emanate fall. Sora grabbed for her and helped maneuver her to the floor so that she would not get injured farther. Knowing Major Sheppard from the events of the day, she knew that he would not hesitate to harm her if Dr. Weir came back injured from a fall.
Sora quickly assessed the injuries of the unconscious form in front of her. She knew about the shoulder wound as she had seen the blood on the makeshift bandage earlier; however, Sora knew that she needed determine if the other wounds delivered by her Commander needed medical attention. Sora touched the inside of Dr. Weir's upper thigh, and was relived that she did not feel the heat that would signify that she was bleeding. As that just determined that Dr. Weir was not bleeding currently, Sora raised her hand to her nose and sniffed for the tell-tale copper scent that came with blood. Once she determined that the prone figure was not bleeding from that injury, Sora moved her attention to the shoulder wound.
The jacket was carefully pulled away from the shoulder, and Sora maneuvered the left corner of the shirt away from the shoulder, so that she could she the bandage underneath. As she moved the corner down, she felt the warm stickiness on her fingers, and realized that Dr. Weir had either reopened the wound or had not stopped bleeding, Sora hoped for the former as the less blood loss the better. The shirt needed to be moved permanently away from the shoulder, and so Sora was about to try to remove Dr. Weir's jacket when she heard a hurried set of footprints come toward her. She looked up to watch as Teyla approach the downed pair. Sora could tell from the look on her old friend's face, that Teyla was worried about her fallen leader rather than angry at Sora thinking that she might have hurt the doctor. Sora realized with dread that Major Sheppard was not bound to be as lenient once he found out that Dr. Weir collapsed when talking with her.
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Teyla watched the two from a shadow near the jumper bay entrance. The cavernous jumper bay helped amplify and sent any sound in all directions. Therefore she was able to hear the conversation between her old friend and the leader of Atlantis. Her brow wrinkled in confusion as she wandered what it was that Dr. Weir commanded Sora to keep quiet about. Her ponderings were silenced as she heard the sound of footsteps retreating away from her, and she glanced out to find the next closest shadow from which to watch the two. As she was hurrying stealthily to her next hiding place she saw Elizabeth start to collapse, Sora reach out for her, and the subsequent fall from the added weight.
Teyla started to rush over to help, and watched as Sora started her initial assessment of Dr. Weir's injuries. She watched as Sora checked for blood from Dr. Weir. She wondered what wound could be that high on the inside of Elizabeth's thigh, and the horrible conclusion of the situation slammed into Teyla. The communication that had played out between Sora and Dr. Weir now made sense. Teyla paused in her rush to the two and thought about how this might affect Elizabeth in the future. To her people, rape was a worse crime than murder, as it murdered the soul in even the strongest of people. Teyla watched as Sora seemed satisfied that Elizabeth was not bleeding, and therefore did not require medical attention for the brutal treatment she received from Kolya. In Teyla's community, this type of condition was treated by the family members. The thought that Elizabeth did not have any family on which to rely, made Teyla vow to herself that she would help Dr. Weir get thought this and all the outcomes that it might bring.
The past came barreling into Teyla's mind, and she remembered a time when her dear friend Ariena was raped by a member of the village. The man was made mad from the death of his wife and children at the hands of the Wraith during the previous culling. Ariena's family and friends tried to help her through the ordeal, and the subsequent pregnancy in brought about. She watched her friend start to hide within herself as the awareness that she was carrying this unwanted child started to show. Tears started burning at Teyla's eyes, as she thought about the loss of her friend and the innocent child as a pregnant Ariena had wandered away from the village during the next Wraith attack. The family later found a note that mentioned she did not fear her life being sucked away at the hands of the Wraith, as her soul had already been taken from her. Teyla closed her eyes in memory of her friend, and when she opened them, she was back in the present to help her new friend and leader.
Teyla noticed that Sora was trying to get to a wound on the arm that Major Sheppard noticed Elizabeth cradling earlier. She hurried over to the two, not bothering to keep silent any longer, and noticed the bandage soaked with blood that was on Dr. Weir's shoulder. She got to work helping Sora remove the clothes that hindered them in treating the wound.
Sora looked up when Teyla reached her and saw the realization in her eyes of what had happened to Dr. Weir. "I know you were following us, and therefore you heard Dr. Weir's not-to-subtle request to keep her rape silent. Will you follow that request?" Sora asked before she let Teyla start to help her in checking Dr. Weir's shoulder wound.
Teyla nodded, knowing that she could try to get Elizabeth to open up to others in her own time, and knelt next to the pair to help out where she could. With Teyla's help, the jacket was easier to get off. Sora would lift Dr. Weir slightly off the ground, and Teyla would move the jacket out from under her. While they both hated moving the shoulder as they feared they might cause more bleeding, they knew it had to be done. Once the jacket was off, Teyla rushed over to the jumper that the twosome had been headed for, and grabbed out the first aid kit the resided there. She hurried back over to Elizabeth and handed Sora the scissors so that she could cut Dr. Weir's shirt away from the shoulder. Teyla radioed to John that Dr. Weir collapsed; while at the same time she watched as Sora left the remaining shirt in place to protect Elizabeth's modesty.
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John finished giving Rodney the remaining candy bar that he had taken from Teyla, and hoped that Rodney's sugar level was back to a safe range as there was no glucose meter nearby. He was about to go over and check on the doctor's condition when he heard Rodney start to fight against an unseen enemy. John knew that hypoglycemic shock would often make Rodney confused, and so he tried to quite his teammate. "Rodney, it's okay. You're safe now." Rodney did not seem to hear, but clutched at his right forearm and muttered that he would talk. "You don't need to talk Rodney. You're okay." As he said this, he noticed the jagged cut in his sleeve, and the red stain around it. "What did they do to you Rodney?" he asked not expecting a reply from the semi-conscious man in front of him.
John rushed across the control room to get the first aid kit that was hanging on the far wall. As he did so he questioned Beckett and Aiden to make sure that they were okay. Beckett glared at him like that was a stupid question to ask. At least John thought it was a glare. He wasn't positive that Beckett might not have been seeing double from the conk he received to the back of his head.
Aiden replied, "We are doing just fine, sir. We're just relaxing and I'm lapping up the silence for once." When Beckett turned his glare on Aiden, John realized that it was the same look that he received moments ago, and so breathed a sigh of relief that Carson wasn't as dazed as he could have been. Beckett did not try to gripe back to the man, and so John knew that he was not fairing as well as normal either though. He left Aiden to make sure that the doctor did not fall asleep, just in case he might have a concussion. As John was walking away he heard Aiden gentle tell the doc, "I was just kidding. But if you don't stay awake for me, I will fill the silence and it will not be pretty." John shook his head at the antics of his lieutenant even in the face of a disastrous day.
When Major Sheppard got back to Rodney, he noticed that Rodney had stopped rambling and was closer to the verge of being unconscious. John was grateful, as he did not want to hurt Rodney. Even if they did bicker all the time, they were still teammates and friends. Rodney loved to have someone to talk with that could understand and even match his wry sense of humor. As John got the scissors out and went to cut off the jacket and shirt from Rodney's forearm, he heard Rodney start to whimper. Not knowing if it was from the pain, or from the fear of being injured again, John keep whispering to Rodney is a low soothing voice that everything was okay.
Once the shirt was removed from the wound, he noticed the puncture wound that the Genii had brutally delivered to his friend. From the way the mark was, John could tell that it was caused by a knife, and that it was twisted in his arm to cause as much pain as possible. No wonder Rodney told them the plans to save the city, John thought. While he was military, and so had been trained to withstand torture, he knew that Rodney had not. He got out the antiseptic wipes and cringed as he started to wipe away the blood from the wound. Rodney tried to jerk away from the pain, and tears started to prickle John's eyes as he realized that he did not prevent his friends from getting hurt while he was out in the city playing commando. Rodney stilled, and therefore John knew that he had passed out, whether from the pain or from shock he did not know, but he was grateful for the ability to finish cleansing the wound without causing farther pain. He grabbed out the bottle of alcohol and poured it liberally into the wound to cleanse out any foreign dirt and debris. He patted the area with a clean gauze pad in order to remove any excess fluid, and was finishing placing a pressure bandage on his arm when he heard his radio crackle to life.
Teyla's voice sounded slightly panicked, "Major, Dr. Weir has collapsed."
John stood up and started to run toward the jumper bay. He noticed Aiden perk up from his position beside Carson, hoping to determine what was going on; however John did not have the time or the inclination to belie Aiden's fears. Aiden knew better than to follow though, as he had to keep Dr. Beckett awake. John heard Teyla saying more through the radio, but as his first thought was to get to Elizabeth, he could not make sense of the words that were bombarding him.
John rushed next to Teyla and saw Sora leaning over Dr. Weir. "What did you do to her?" he bellowed out his frustration and anger on the figure that was knelling in front of him.
Before Sora could speak up to try and defend herself to angered Major, Teyla spoke in her defense, "She did nothing other than prevent her from injuring herself further as she collapsed." She went on to inform him of Elizabeth's visible injuries, "Dr. Weir has a knife wound on her shoulder that is bleeding. I believe she collapse from blood lose and from the stress of the day."
Before she could say more, John was crouched down beside Dr. Weir's left side, "Does she have any other injuries?" As he asked this question, he placed one arm under her neck and the other arm under her legs and started to pick her up off the cold floor.
"No, the shoulder wound is it," Sora spoke up quickly before Teyla could respond. As the jacket was already removed, and the shirt was cut, John did not realize that neither were slit from the knife. Therefore he could not wonder when or why she took the time to change.
Major Sheppard looked over at Teyla to confirm Sora's words as he did not know what to think about her yet. Teyla remembered the conversation that Elizabeth and Sora had, and how Dr. Weir did not want others to know about what happened. Teyla fought her conscious about lying to her friend, but she had to respect Elizabeth's wishes. As it was not medically needed to be known, Teyla nodded her head and confirmed Sora's words to John.
John started to walk out toward the control room with his precious bundle secure in his arms. Without looking back he commanded the two remaining women, "Teyla, bring in the younger hunters. They are probably worried and wondering what is going on. Sora, help Teyla bring in blankets, more medical supplies, and rations." He left them to their tasks, and did not bother to check if they started to follow his orders or not.
Aiden and Carson watched as John carried Elizabeth back into the control room. John noticed that Dr. Beckett tried to get up to come help with the patient, but a dizzy spell and Aiden pulled him back to the floor. "Don't worry Doc," John said loud enough for the other two men to hear him, "I'll fix her up well enough for now." He knew that she was probably going to need surgery later, just as Rodney was. But even if they could get to the infirmary, he would not trust Dr. Beckett with a scalpel in his current situation.
John laid Elizabeth near Rodney, and the scattered first aid supplies. He started to untie the makeshift bandage that was made with tatters from her shirt. Once the bandage was removed, he noticed the depth of the wound and cringed in sympathy at the pain that must have caused her. As he was about to open the bottle of alcohol for the second time in as many minute, he noticed the Athosian hunters trail into the control room. Each were carrying an arm load of supplies, and right behind them came Teyla and Sora. John poured the alcohol on Elizabeth's wound, and was startled when he got a reaction as he thought she was unconscious. He quickly recovered and tried to hold her from hurting herself farther. "It's okay. I'm finished now. I'll be gentler from here on in. I promise." He said near tears, thinking about the pain that he was causing her.
Teyla watched as John tried to hold Elizabeth down to keep her from injuring herself further. She had a feeling that Dr. Weir was not struggling because of the pain in her shoulder, but because of fear. Teyla had seen this type of reaction before from her friend; therefore she rushed over to Elizabeth and started soothing her forehead and whispering softly, "You're okay. He can't hurt you anymore."
John felt sad that Teyla had to let Elizabeth know that he wouldn't hurt her again, but also was grateful to her as he noticed that Elizabeth started to calm down.
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Elizabeth felt the pain flare up in her shoulder and was pinned to the floor by Kolya as he got the upper hand. She struggled against the man holding her to the floor, but he was too strong. She felt the fear from what she knew he was going to do to her. However that added pain did not come. She felt a pressure on her forehead, and felt the soothing touch. She heard the quite voice that whispered comforting words. Kolya was not comforting, therefore it could not be Kolya holding her down, her mind reasoned even in the hazy state she was in.
The voice said that he wouldn't hurt her again, and she started to believe it. Her breathing started to get deeper as she felt herself fading into the void. I'm safe, her mind thought before she fell back into the blackness.
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Elizabeth stopped struggling with John and started to breath deeply as if in sleep. He took a deep breath and as gently as possible placed the pressure bandage over the gapping hole. He sat back against the nearest wall and watched as two of his friends lay either unconscious or asleep nearby. While he still felt bad that he could not have prevented the injuries, he felt slightly absolved knowing that he had done all he could to help them in the healing process.
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With Dr. Weir incapacitated the burden of leadership fell on Major John Sheppard. It was just one more reason that he wished Elizabeth was not lying on the floor of the control room. But for the most part he just hated the fact that she got hurt at all. With the storm still raging outside the city, there was not much to be done besides make sure those injured were treated, and that the non-injured kept themselves that way. John picked himself up off the floor and trudged slowly over to Aiden and Dr. Beckett. This action was two-fold: to help those that he could, and to get his mind off of those that he couldn't.
Once he had determined that Carson was feeling a little bit better, and that Aiden was doing all he could to keep the doctor awake. Major Sheppard walked over to Teyla and the other Athosians in order to determine what he could do to help out. He knew that saying in one place for too long would drive him insane; therefore even the most meaningless tasks would help calm him. And meaningless task they found, he thought wryly as he helped Teyla and the children drag various sleeping equipment down to the gate room floor. As he was walking down the stairs with an armful of pilfered sleeping equipment, a rouge sleeping bag started to wiggle lose of his grip. Luckily John was only a few steps away from the bottom, or he would have been added to the list of those injured. The sleeping back fell from his arm, and as John could not see his feet he did not notice the squishy object until his foot stepped on it. The change in traction caused John to tumble face-forward. The only thing saving him was the other sleeping equipment as it padded his fall; however the other sleeping bags and pillows did nothing to help his bruised pride.
The sound of chuckling, and then full out laughter reached his ears, and he turned to see the traitorous Teyla and a group of giggling children. Teyla hurried over to see if she could help and tried to curtail her bouts of laughter. "Major ...*snigger* ...are you okay?" Teyla asked. The tears in her eyes were a dead give away however, and as she offered her hand to help John up, he grabbed her and pulled her down into the array of bedding. This was what they needed, John thought. The laughter would do them all good; he just wished they weren't laughing at him. Oh well, he thought, we can't get everything. He let loose, and joined in the laughter.
The commotion brought Lieutenant Ford to the edge of the stairs, and as he looked over the railing he noticed a heap of bedding containing a downed John and Teyla. "Is everything okay down there?" Aiden asked with a questioning voice that betrayed his humor in the situation.
"Everything is fine, Aiden," Teyla shouted upward as she deftly stood up. Rather than offer her hand to help John up, she leaned over him and grabbed the blanket that was under him. As she stood back up she tugged at the blanket; John was flipped over and his face landed in a nearby pillow.
John quickly sat up, and when he noticed Teyla start to turn around to look back at him he was ready for his payback.
Teyla started to turn back to glance at the Major, wanting to see the confused look that she knew would be gracing his face. She did not get a chance to see John at all. The only thing she did see was a pillow flying straight toward her before it slammed into her face.
Aiden who was still watching from above was graced with Sora's presence as she came over to see what was going on. Aiden spoke down to John as he heard Sora's laughter beside him, "Sir, I don't think that was such a good idea."
"Why not?" John said while turning around to glance up at his second-in-command. That turn was his downfall, and he felt an impact to the back of his head. John quickly turned around to see an Athosian ready to fight. However her fighting sticks were replaced with a pillow. "Oh we want to fight do we," John said as he stood up and grabbed the closest pillow he could find. The Athosian teenagers watched in amazement as the two adults started to act as rowdy toddlers.
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Twelve minutes later the three children and the two not-so adults were finished placing the bedding in a reasonable fashion. John was glad that the pillows were not made with feathers as he did not want to have to sweep up the mess that would have resulted from the brutal pillow fight between himself and Teyla. He watched the caring look on Teyla face as she helped the teenagers settle down for a much needed rest. Once the hunters were comfortably lying down, John and Teyla walked back up the stairs, away from the humor, and back toward the horror of the day.
Sora was still standing near the railing when John and Teyla reached the top. They could both see the envious glance that she shown down on the trio, and the fun that the group had earlier. Teyla moved off to join Sora, while Major Sheppard went to join Aiden and the doctor. They were settled back on the far wall and holding a conversation. John could tell from the laughing after they would glance at him that they were talking about him
John settled down next to Aiden and Carson, and after asking how everything was, he leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. He did not open them until he heard a yelp from Sora, followed by an indignant, "That hurt!"
Teyla and Sora were across the room with the contents of a first-aid kit sprawled between them. He noticed the alcohol bottle in Teyla's hand, and an almost gleeful look from the yelp that she caused. "Well if you would clean and bandage your own wound that would not have happened." Teyla replied back.
"Well if you wouldn't have cut me where I cannot reach to bandage it, then it would have been no problem."
"Well if you would not have started the fight in the first place, we wouldn't be worried about bandages now would we?"
"Well if you..." Sora was at a lost on how to continue as she was still trying to put the blame she felt about her father's death were it belonged, and away from Teyla.
John started to chuckle to himself and turned to the others near him to see if either Aiden or Carson were picturing the scene from Disney's The Beauty and the Beast.
Aiden laughed, "I'm surprised that you've watched a Disney movie. Let alone watched one so many times that you have a whole scene memorized."
"My cousin made me watch it whenever I was around. It was her favorite." John replied.
"She can out fight a grown man who has had military training. That is sad. Very sad, John," Aiden replied. He and the doctor both sniggered at the man in front on them who was starting to turn a perplexing shade of pink.
"She had these huge green eyes and a bottom lip that would start to quiver if you would even think about saying no. I doubt you would have been able to say no either. And beside it was the only way I could get to her to like me."
"She bribed you. That is too funny." Aiden teased.
"It wasn't that. I just had to remind her how the movie ended because she thought..." he mumbled the next few words so that his comrades could not hear him and make fun of him even more.
"What was that?" Dr. Beckett spoke up for the first time throughout this conversation. "He is making the injured party start to wonder if he is having hearing problems as a result of the blow to his head." Carson snidely directed to Aiden.
"I said," he said loud enough so that Sora and Teyla turned their attention toward the three men. He quieted down when he noticed the others staring and continued, "I had to remind her that the beast turned out to be nice at the end." He paused but continued before anyone could ask him why, hoping that the jumbled words would not make scene, "she thoughtIwasthebeast."
"She thought you were the beast," Aiden chuckle got louder. He fought his laughter in order to get the next thought out of his mind and into words. But as the image it brought to mind was so amusing, he could only gasp out his question between breathes "Did she ever try to... do your hair like they did to him when they were getting him ready for dinner?... You know ...the one with the curls." John's complexion turning bright red was the only answer that the two men needed, and they started a full out belly laugh.
Dr. Beckett was the first one to stop laughing, as the sound was making the pounding in his skull worse. He thought about the funny scene that the previous image conjured in him head, and chuckled. At the same time he wondered how Aiden knew about that scene. "How did you know about that scene in the movie? Unless you had also watched it."
Aiden stopped laughing, and glared at the doctor. He was starting to regret the fact that Carson was staying lucid and talking again. With the embarrassment that was showing on John's face, he would not have come to the realization if it wasn't for the doctor's question. "Yeah, how did you know about that scene, huh?" John asked. The redness in John's checks seemed to be leaving at the same rate that it was appearing on Aiden's.
The minor bantering continued for the next hour or so, and was brought to a halt when a sliver of sunlight started to peek through the storm clouds. John knew that this was only the calm from the eye of the storm, which would be followed by another intense waiting period before storm finally abated. John stood up and walked over to the computer console that Dr. McKay was lying next to.
He punched in the buttons that were needed to dial the up Manara. Once the connection was made, he radioed over to the MALP that he knew would still be stationed near the gate. It was placed there so that the orders could be relayed to signal if and when it was safe to return to the city; however John had other ideas about how this transmission was to play out. "This is Major Sheppard. Come in."
The static responded back for only a few seconds before the crackle of the radio signaled use on the other end. "This is Lieutenant Winters. What can I do for you Major," a young boyish voice responded.
"I need to speak with Sergeant Bates on a secure channel," John commanded, as he did not want to panic those off world about a situation that they could do nothing about.
This time the pause lasted for a few minutes before the tell-tale voice of the Sergeant came through. "The line is secure. What's the status of the city," he asked hoping that the damage was kept to a minimum.
"The shield came on line, but there is still going to be some damage. But that isn't why I'm contacting you." He took a deep breath as he continued to plan out his next statement, "I need you to organize a party to come back when the storm is over consisting of military, and several of the medical staff. We have some injuries here. We need to get these people help, and we also need to check out the city to determine if it is structurally safe for the rest of the expedition to return or not"
"Request to bring back an injured Athosian with us, sir?" Bates asked.
"How were they injured?" Sheppard asked knowing that Bates would only request to bring an additional person back if their injury was not just superficial.
"He got drunk and fell onto a sharp object. The wound has bled quite a bit. The doctor here thinks that he could use a blood transfusion to be on the safe side." He went on with the story of the ramblings of the drunken injured man. "Granted the mixture of the booze and blood lose went straight to his head. He kept going on about his life being threatened and being forced to open the gate to Atlantis. We checked out the gate though and asked around, and it was determined that the gate was only activated by a group that the Manarian government trades with."
"So that was how they got in here." John stated to those in the control room. He remembered the time when Cowen mentioned that the Genii were once a part of a large federation of planets. At the time he did not think that those other worlds were still in contact with them, but it made sense seeing that the Genii came from Manara and their tracks were covered up. "Shit," he said as he smacked the edge of the control panel. Those around him looked up, but he did not give them his attention as he still needed to let Bates know what was going on. He needed to know that they could not trust the Mararian people as far as they could throw them, and John knew that his anger would help propel them for a very far distance. He pushed the button to connect back to Sergeant Bates, "No, he was telling the truth. Bring him back with you. I'd like to talk to him once he's stable. Most of the injuries here were caused by the infiltration of a Genii attack force." Major Sheppard informed the Sergeant.
"I'm really sorry, sir. Those we talked to did not seem duplicitous. We'll keep a sharp eye out for any odd movements from the government or their `trading partners'." Bates paused as a sickening realization came to him as he realized why Dr. Weir would not be the one contacting him, "How badly was Dr. Weir injured?"
John was touched at how well those from the expedition knew the actions of their leader. "She has a stab wound to her shoulder. She collapsed earlier from the loss of blood and the exertion from the day's events." Major Sheppard decided to explain the rest of the injuries so that the medical team would know what they were dealing with. "Dr. McKay was also stabbed in him arm, and went into hypoglycemic shock. Dr. Beckett possibly has a concussion, and others have various bumps and bruises." John did not want to go into details yet about their Genii `guest'.
"I'll let the medical team know what they need to prepare for, and I'll also prep my men. Is there anything else that I need to know, sir?" Bates asked.
"I think that's about it," John said marveling at the fact that the days events were just condensed into a five minute conversation. "I'll radio when the storm is completely over. Major Sheppard out." John clicked off the radio, shut down the gate, and looked out the nearest window. He sneered at the sunshine as he knew what it hid. It reminded him of the people from Manara. While he did coerce them into their help, he did not image for one minute that they would cause the amount of pain and destruction that they did. They were simple farmers for God's sake, but behind that helpful exterior lay a dark and sinister interior; the same with the Genii. The next time Teyla mentioned that she wanted to introduce them to a simple farming community, he would be ready he thought cynically.
It was as if John's thought controlled the weather. His darkening mood, both at the Manarian people and at himself for not seeing their deceit, mirrored the darkening sky. John would have continued to watch the fury that the darkening sky brought with it; however his awareness was brought back to the control room as he tried to distinguish the new sound that he was hearing.
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The pain in her shoulder was one of the first things that Dr. Weir felt as she started to come to, lying on a hard floor was the second. A jolt of fear coursed through Elizabeth as she remembered what happened to her the last time she was in this similar position; however the fuzziness in her mind kept the memories from grasping her totally and dragging her back into her personal pit of hell. She mentally opened up all of her senses to determine the threat that might still surround her. A faint moaning was heard, and it took only a few moments for Elizabeth to realize that the sound she was hearing was being issued from her own scratchy throat.
The initial fear from lying on the cold hard floor started to fade as Elizabeth took notice of the creature comforts surrounding her. There was a soft squishy object under her head, and a slight heaviness and warmth covered her from her chin to her toes. She heard the sounds of familiar voices around her, and heard the gentle snores of a nearby comrade. Regardless of knowing that she was surrounded by friends, Elizabeth did not want to be lying prone on the floor. Therefore, she worked to open her protesting eyes, and struggled to get into a better position. Whether an upright position was better for her physically or not, she could have cared less.
As Elizabeth struggled to reposition herself with only her left arm and legs, she noticed John and Teyla hurry over to her. They must have also heard me, damn. Elizabeth thought to herself.
"You should lie back down and rest, Elizabeth," John said as he squatted down next to her and placed his right hand on Dr. Weir's left shoulder in order to try and push her back to the floor and to prevent her upward motion. "Your shoulder wound was very severe, and you've lost a great deal of blood. I think you should just take it easy until the doctor gets here from Manara."
The few inches that Elizabeth had pushed herself off the floor were diminishing as John tried to get her to lie back down, and the distance that was not minimized by John, was minimized as Elizabeth's left arm went limp with fatigue. When John mentioned her shoulder injury, the fear started to come back. But this time the fear was from what others might know of the atrocities that had happened in her office. She started to fight even harder to sit up.
Teyla watched the fear flicker across Dr. Weir's face, and realized that there was a bigger reason that Elizabeth wanted to sit up other than the fact that the floor was hard and uncomfortable. Therefore despite Major Sheppard's wishes, Teyla went to Dr. Weir's side in order to help her sit up.
As Teyla knelt on the floor and helped pull Elizabeth into an upright position, their eyes met. The sorrow and compassion hidden behind Teyla's eyes clued Dr. Weir into the fact that Teyla knew what had happened to her. Her eye's darted to John's face to see it he also knew. His eyes spoke of kindness and helpfulness toward her, but lacked the hate and anger that she knew would be blazing beneath the surface if he knew.
John quirked his eyebrows at Elizabeth as she was glaring at him in such an odd way; to cover up her glare for being anything other than just looking in his direction, and to prevent him from trying to get her to lay back down, she mentioned to him, "my shoulder should be elevated to prevent more blood lose."
"She's got you there," Dr. Beckett stated chuckling.
Dr. Weir glanced down the wall that she was leaning on, and noticed the jovial faces of Carson and Aiden as they glanced her way. They were also in too good of a mood to know what had happened only earlier in the day. While she was grateful that her secret was still safe for the most part, she also wondered how those around her were clueless to what had happened. She was dirty and ashamed, and noting was as it was earlier; however they still acted as though everything was the same. How do they not notice the difference in me, if nothing else. `EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT!' she wanted to yell to them... to the world.
Elizabeth felt movement to her left, and heard the soft shifting of clothing as a person came to rest next to her. Dr. Weir started to recoil from the nearness of another person when she felt her hand being grasped in order to keep her stationary. She looked down at her hand and noticed that it was entwined with a small tanned hand. She felt and saw the movement of the other hand grasping her own. Elizabeth looked up to the face of the hand's owner, and noticed Teyla smiling an understanding smile toward her. Dr. Weir let a small smile grace her face in gratitude of the friendship that was staring her in the face, and also for the understanding that Teyla now shouldered with her. Not everything is different, Elizabeth started to realized. She still had friends around, and she was still the leader of this expedition. She promised herself that she would not let the horrors of the day change what she was. Her promise was made as her eyes started to droop closed.
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Sleep claimed Dr. Weir. She did not notice as Teyla's hand gently moved her head to rest upon her shoulder. She did not notice the gate activation bringing forth the selected military and medical personnel. She did not wake up as John reached down and gently picked her up for the trip to the infirmary, or the surgery that waited her there. In fact the next time consciousness graced her was twenty one hours later.
Elizabeth again noticed that she was lying down; however this time it was against the softer and warmer infirmary mattress than against the cold, hard floor. She no longer felt the searing pain from her shoulder, and the fuzziness of her thoughts let her know that this was due to some heavy duty painkillers. She thought about snuggling back up into the bed and letting her mind float between dreams and drugged wanderings; this would definitely insure that she would not have to wake up fully and face the truths that she knew would be present in the harshly lit infirmary. However the promise she made early in the day started to nag at the back of her consciousness; the voice kept getting louder, trying to force her to wake up and do what she needed for the people of Atlantis.
`Alright I'm up,' Dr. Weir stated to the nagging sensation, however all that came out of her mouth was a slight moan that informed those around her that she was awake.
Teyla and John were both waiting for Elizabeth to wake up; however their reasoning for doing so were far from the same. Teyla wanted to make sure that there was a friendly face around when she woke up, one who knew what had happened to the doctor and would be able to help where others would not. John said that he wanted to talk to Dr. Weir about what to do with the city and the people still on Manara as he hated the politics that went into running the city. Give me a gun any day, he thought over what he was seeing that Elizabeth had to go through on a daily basis. Teyla could tell from the way John jumped up to check on Elizabeth at her slight vocalization was far from just wanting help running the city as he stated. She could see the worry in his eyes, and had heard his ranting for the last few hours about what he would do if he ever saw Kolya again. The anger that burned in his eyes as he threatened the man was nothing compared to what Teyla knew she would be seeing if he knew the truth; however that truth was Elizabeth's, and hers to do with as she pleased. Teyla would just need to let the other women know that she would be there for her; therefore she stepped up behind Major Sheppard to insure that she was also in her leader's line of sight as Elizabeth's eyes started to twitch open.
The hazy feeling from the drugs and the desire to curl up and sleep fought Elizabeth as she tried to get her eyes to open. She finally found the strength to pry them open into slit, but she had to close them quickly as the lighting tried to burn through her cornea. She heard some shifting next to her and a female voice say quietly that the light was blocked. Elizabeth again fought to open her eyes, and found that it was not as difficult to do so this time around. She blinked a few times to get her bearing of where she was, and realized that the light was indeed blocked as Teyla stood in its path. A smile came to Teyla's face as she noticed Dr. Weir staring at her. She had opened her mouth to say something when the man next to her diverted Elizabeth's attention with words of his own.
"So how are you feeling? Do you need some water?" John asked as he picked up the nearby pitcher in order to pour some water into a small glass with a straw sticking out of it. Before Elizabeth fully comprehended the first question, John continued, "Do you want to sit up?" He helped her to sit up, and placed the straw at her lips so that she could take her first thirst quenching sip.
"I'm feeling better," Elizabeth crocked out. She did not look over toward Teyla as she said this, as she was sure that her eyes would betray her. But she really was feeling better physically. The drugs were keeping the pain at bay, and the sling was preventing her from moving her arm in a way that would cause more pain.
The two near Dr. Weir knew that even if she was dying, she would not want to let others know for fear of worrying them. Therefore a silence descended on the group as they did not know what other small talk would be acceptable. For as the sun was starting to peak out of the clouds and brighten up the city, no one wanted to bring up the topic of weather.
"I thought I heard noise in here," a petite female doctor said as she rounded the corner before the trio could find another line of conversation in order to break the silence.
"So doc, how's the patient?" John asked her as she picked up the notes at the end of the bed and studied them.
"Hello, the patient is right here," Dr. Weir grumbled.
"I'd say she going to make a fine recovery," Dr. Copper stated as she tried to hide her smile behind her hand as she reached up to grab her stethoscope.
As the doctor leaned over the bed railing to listen to her heartbeat, Elizabeth asked, "How's Rodney, and Dr. Beckett?"
"Shhh" the doctor stated, and the next few moments of silence seemed to drag on for Elizabeth. Finally the doctor pulled away from her patient and started to fill the leader of Atlantis in on how her people were doing. "Knowing that you would want to be informed of their progress, both doctors asked me to let you know how they were, or you know I would be stating patient confidentiality." Seeing a slight nod from the doctor in front of her, Dr. Copper continued, "Dr. Beckett had a slight concussion. He is being watched for the night. Rodney was stitched up and was given an IV to get his blood sugar levels back to normal. He should be fine in no time; however, he insists that he is catching pneumonia from being out in the cold rain for so long. But other than a few sneezes I think the rain has had no effect. And knowing Dr. McKay as well as any other doctor here," she paused musing over the hypochondriac that graced these walls more often than anyone would desire, she chuckled as she finished her thought "the sneezes are probably allergy related."
The foursome shared a much needed chuckle before the question of the hour came up, "So when can I get out of here?" Dr. Weir asked. She hoped to be able to get back to work as soon as possible so that she could get this city and it's people back to the normal everyday activities.
"I would like to keep you for another 48 hours, however I doubt that will be fair to the medical staff here," Dr. Copper stated. "Rest for the next 24 hours and I'll see what I can do." Before Dr. Weir could start to complain about either length of time, the doctor walked away to check on the other patients in the infirmary.
Dr. Weir watched as the doctor passed from sight, and then she turned her gaze back toward Major Sheppard and asked, "How is the city fairing?"
John started to explain how a few military personnel and engineers were going over the main areas of the city in order to determine the structural stability of those areas so that the people on Manara to come home safely. It was briefly mentioned how the Genii learned to get into the city, and Dr. Weir could see the pained look on Teyla's face when she was reminded that an Athosian was injured and as a result betrayed the people of Atlantis. There was no time to dwell on this point for too long as John went on to ask what Elizabeth thought should be done with Sora. This lead to a heated debate between Teyla and John over whether she should be seen as a prisoner or a victim of circumstances. The two turned from their argument to see what Dr. Weir thought and noticed that her head was starting to tilt toward her shoulder, and her eyes kept trying to close for a much needed rest. The quiet alerted Dr. Weir, and she jerked her head back to its upright position, but the damage was already done. Teyla and John had both noticed that she was tired. Despite her protests to keep talking about the city, they helped her to lie back down.
Thinking that the sole reason Dr. Weir wanted to stay awake was to work, Major Sheppard mentioned that the city would be able to welcome its citizens back no sooner than 24 hours later. While Dr. Weir wanted to see her people home safely, and to get the city back to its original splendor, the main thought on her mind was the hope that she was so tired and drugged that the memories would stay at bay.
************************************************************************
Dr. Weir assumed that luck was on her side as she recalled no dreams what-so-ever when she awoke. She was also doing much better, therefore the doctors decided to let her out in order to watch her people come home. However this stipulation came about only after Elizabeth promised to go to her quarters and rest once everyone was back safely. Therefore Dr. Weir stood on the balcony overlooking the stargate and watched as her people came home. She saw the worried looks on a few faces, as they wondered what damage they were coming home to. However they did not know of most of the damage that took place in their absence. Earlier in the infirmary, a semi-lucid Dr. Weir informed those around that she did not want to add to the worries of those coming back. Therefore the information about the Genii infiltration of the city, and the injuries of the city's remaining few personnel were to be kept at a need to know basic. Dr. Weir was still struggling over what they would tell anyone who wondered why a Genii inhabitant was now in the city for an undetermined length of time. But that would be determined in the future. Currently Elizabeth just wanted to revel in the safety of those coming home.
John observed the leader of Atlantis as she watched the few stragglers come in through the stargate. He noticed that she had a slight grin on her face, and he knew it mirrored his own feelings over the safety of those from Atlantis and the mainland as they returned home safely. He wondered over to Dr. Weir in order to talk to her first as the military leader of Atlantis, and then as a friend. "What do you want to do with her?"
Dr. Weir did not need to ask who John was talking about. He had already made his view on the Genii female clear when he had visited her in the infirmary mere hours ago. "Oh I don't know yet. We'll keep her locked up for the time being." She hoped that this would appease his fear over what Sora might do. "Maybe releasing her to the Genii will help ease tension," she stated. But regardless of easing tension between the Genii and the Atlantians, she knew that she would have trouble if the situation arose. While signing the death warrant of Sora would not hurt as much as her choice earlier in the day about saving Teyla and Carson or the city. Regardless, friend or foe, Elizabeth knew that she would have trouble knowing she was the ultimate cause of anyone's death.
John would have liked a better answer, but he knew that not all situations had a perfect solution. That was one of the reasons that he liked math so much. There was always an answer in math, and a logical one at that. Well, you do as long as the math doesn't get to complex, he thought to himself "You're extremely optimistic you know that?" However he did drop the situation, knowing that an answer to everyone's liking would not be solved while standing here.
"You think so?" Elizabeth questioned as she thought about how her optimism of people hurt her throughout the day. Twice she had been optimistic of saving her people from Kolya, and twice he had thrown that optimism in her face and hurt her even more. She started to regret that she was optimistic, as it only seemed to lead to pain. But as she watched the last few groups start to come through the stargate, she realized that her optimism kept her fighting, for herself, her people, and her city. She listened slightly to the conversation that John was having with Rodney, who had walked up when she wasn't paying attention.
John noticed Dr. McKay coming toward him and Elizabeth. He also noticed a crude bandage that Rodney had wrapped around his arm. "What is that for?" John questioned with his eyebrows raised toward the ceiling. "Are you going for sympathy from the female population? Or are you afraid your arm might fall off despite the numerous sutures Dr. Copper placed in your arm?" John chuckled as he mentally made a note of another odd antic from Rodney in which to make fun of him with in the future.
"HaHa," Rodney sarcastically chuckled back at John, as he started to give lame reason. "It started to bleed again, and I thought this would help." He said knowing that John could see through his weak attempt at an excuse.
"You just didn't want to go to the infirmary, in case Nurse Bell noticed you. Afraid of commitment are we?" John asked.
"She does not want commitment, she wants to jump me. And with her build she would probably kill me, or at least injure me. And then what would you all do during the next emergency?" Rodney said as he thought about Nurse Bell. She had a physique that looked like she would have done well as a body builder.
"Well we would all be a little saner, and there is always Dr. Zelenka," John joked back. He noticed the nurse's lustful gaze on Rodney after one of their many post-mission physicals, and had been making fun of Rodney ever since. John wondered if she enjoyed giving Rodney shots even more now as he had brushed off a blatant come on line about a month ago. John smiled his patented smile as Rodney glared at him.
At the talk of injuries, John looked over to glance at Elizabeth. He noticed that she was not wearing the sling that the doctor had given her in order to keep her shoulder immobile, and he asked her about it.
"It's in the conference room," she stated as thoughts about her struggles to re-enter her office in order to place it in there. "I didn't want those returning to worry over what was over and done with. They still haven't learned about the Genii penetrating the city," she cringed at her choice of words, "and I don't want them to if it can be helped." She knew that the military men would need to learn about another possible threat to the city, but the numerous civilians could be spared the detailed.
John let her explanation stand, and the threesome continued to watch the last few people come through the gate. Dr. Weir continued to wonder about whether everything would turn out okay, from the Genii incident, and the storm that ravaged the city and the mainland; however her fears were soon relieved. The minute Dr. Weir knew for sure that Atlantis and its people would be ok was when Rodney joked about food, and Major Sheppard asked how far into advance you could book vacation leave. Elizabeth watched as the rest of her people came home through the Stargate, and marveled at how well they had weathered the storm, both figuratively and literally. However she knew it was going to take a long time to get everything back to the way it was before the hurricane and the Genii.
Weathering the Storm von Wolfdream
Story Bemerkung:
updates posted regularly (usually on fanfiction.net)-- while be Weir/ Shep eventually
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