Fic: What If 2/2
Feb. 6th, 2008 10:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wildcat88Ronon Dex
Ronon ran until he thought his heart would burst. He was so close to the Ring of the Ancestors. The Wraith had fallen for the trap he’d set, and he could almost taste freedom, at least as much freedom as he would ever get. No matter how hard he’d tried, he couldn’t reach the cursed tracking device in his back. He knew they’d catch him one day, but he was going to kill as many of them as possible before then.
He slammed into the dialing pedestal and immediately punched in the first address he could remember. He checked over his shoulder; all clear. The ring blossomed to life, and he dashed through.
As soon as he hit the ground on the other side, he scurried to the dialer and input another seven symbols. He hurried through only to pause as he reached the new world. He had arrived at early dawn in the middle of a small, simple village. Few of the townspeople were stirring yet, but he still crept in the shadows as he searched for scraps. Rummaging through the pile of rubbish in one alleyway, he found a cast-off shirt that might fit but no food. He ducked down the next alley and smiled as the aroma of cooked meat greeted him.
Ronon wolfed down the discards of someone’s evening meal. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. He typically had a day before they located him, but he intended to be gone long before he could endanger these people. The small piles that littered the back alley yielded several hunks of bread, some moldy cheese that could be salvaged with a few quick slices of one of his knives, and some almost-rotten fruit. He stuffed as much as he could in the pockets of his longcoat and eased through the shadows to the edge of town.
Once he was clear of the settlement, he set out to find water. He knew the village would be close to a source, and as he stilled his breathing and listened, he was rewarded with a gurgle to his right. He moved silently through the underbrush of the forest that surrounded the town and found a pristine stream. Kneeling at the edge, he took a small sip, shivering at the cool refreshment it brought.
Dex removed the three water containers he carried and filled them then walked downstream until he found a spot he liked. It was on a small rise, affording him a clear view upstream with a strategically placed boulder that hid him from sight. He stripped and stepped into the water to wash off the paste he’d applied to protect his skin from the sunrays on the last planet. Once he had rinsed off and put on a fresh set of clothes, he scoured the shirt and pants he had been wearing and spread them on the boulder along with his longcoat, out of view from the banks of the stream.
After an hour a small group of women arrived bringing buckets and baskets of laundry. They talked and laughed as they hauled fresh water and cleaned their clothing, never once looking in his direction. He held perfectly still as two small children chased each other from their mother’s skirts to his boulder and back. He was used to being invisible and could sit for hours without moving a muscle. Eventually the group finished their chores and headed back to town.
Ronon withdrew all eight of his knives along with his whet stone, his garrote, three throwing spikes and his blaster. He pulled the energy crystal, checking the charge and cleaning the chamber, then methodically sharpened each knife and throwing spike and examined the garrote for weak spots. He returned all his weapons to their proper place, ate a couple of pieces of fruit along with some bread and cheese, and lay down for a nap. He never slept well and only an hour or two at most.
He would normally try to kill some game, but he didn’t want to risk getting too far from the ring. The scrap of paper with addresses had offered its last place of refuge several days ago. Searching his memory for any world he had not been to yet, he sagged in relief as one came to mind. Losara. He wouldn’t stay, but he could get a new list of worlds to try. The bartender of his favorite drinking establishment knew every place in the galaxy as far as Ronon could remember.
As was his norm, he awoke an hour later. He put on his coat, repacked his still damp clothing and eased himself to the ground. Moving silently through the woods to the edge of town, he waited until all was still for the midday meal. He stayed in the shadows, slipping down the same alleys as before, finding a few more scraps which he ate rapidly as he crouched in a doorway. Whoever lived in this home was a poor cook, but it was filling.
Ronon Dex made his way to the Ancestral Ring without incident and dialed the coordinates of Losara, leaving without anyone ever knowing he’d been there.
Music and raucous laughter greeted him as he exited the ring to late night. This world had not improved since his last visit over a decade earlier, and he grinned at the memory. He had been wild in his younger days, before Melena, before knowing the truth about Kel, before the Wraith had stolen his life. His smile faded at the thought, and he wondered again if anyone on Sateda had survived. He had considered dialing its address and stepping through so many times, but his need to protect his homeworld overrode his need to know. He could never endanger his people with his presence.
His feet followed the remembered path to the bar, and he entered, immediately searching for Trilk. Spotting the bartender, he made his way toward him, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. His size was usually in his favor, but it did cause people to notice him. Trilk looked up as Ronon took a seat at the bar.
“Can I help you?”
“Yes. I need information.”
“I see. What kind of information?”
“Ring addresses for uninhabited worlds.”
The man’s brow creased as he considered Dex’s words. “Uninhabited, you say. Why would a man want to go to an uninhabited world?”
Ronon kept his expression neutral. “I have my reasons. I heard you appreciated a good trade.”
Trilk looked amused. “And you have something good to trade?
“Perhaps.”
“How many addresses do you need?”
“As many as you have.”
The bartender looked suspicious. “Are you being hunted, son?”
Dex bit back his temper. “Will you help me or not?”
“Hmm. What do I get in return?”
Ronon pulled a knife and handed it to Trilk.
The weapon was finely honed with perfect balance and an intricately carved hilt. Ronon had found it on the culled world where he’d found his blaster and throwing spikes. He hated to part with it, but he needed the addresses more than the blade.
The Losaran smiled. “This will do nicely.” He found paper and a writing utensil and listed the symbols for fourteen worlds. “These worlds are either completely devoid of human life or close to it. But be careful, friend. They are uninhabited for a reason. The first one is an ice planet. Nothing lives there for very long. Now, can I get you anything else?”
The Satedans stomach growled loudly at that moment, and he grimaced in embarrassment. “No.”
Trilk eyed him intently. “Have we met before?”
“Once, a long time ago.”
As Ronon rose to leave, the bartender placed a hand on his arm. “Wait. I believe the knife is enough to cover the information I gave you plus the price of a hot meal and a room for the night.”
Dex wavered as his whole body salivated at the thought. One night. The last time he had spent the night in a town next to the ring had ended disastrously. But he would only be here a few short hours.
He nodded his acceptance and took his seat as a young girl scampered to bring his food. A plate heaped with local vegetables, roasted meat and a thick slice of warm bread was placed in front of him along with a tall glass of Losaran ale. He forced himself to eat slowly, to savor each bite. To his surprise, he was brought a second plate when he finished the first. Unused to kindness, he swallowed his pride and accepted it gratefully.
He felt sated for the first time in seven years. Trilk smiled at him and showed him to a small but clean room with fresh linens on the bed.
“The bath is two doors down on your left. Is there anything else I can get you?”
Ronon drew a shaky breath. “No. You’ve done more than enough. Thank you for everything.”
The bartender gazed at him sadly. “Rest for tonight. You are safe here.”
Dex stood uncertainly, trying to decide what to do next. He appreciated Trilk’s words but knew he would never be safe again. The bed was inviting, but he needed a real bath first. He walked down the hall to the room and was happy to find indoor plumbing that included hot water. He hadn’t had a hot bath in years. Keeping his blaster within reach and praying fervently that the Wraith hadn’t located him yet, he eased his aching body into the water.
He scrubbed until he took skin off, ridding himself of the stench of fear and death and destruction and war. Laying his head against the rim of the tub, he let a bit of tension drain from him. He knew it wouldn’t last, that he would have just a few hours of relief before the running began again. He considered giving up, had considered it many times in the past. But as before, Melena’s face came to mind. Closing his eyes against the image of the flames engulfing her, he allowed the rage to build, fueling his resolve to fight to his last breath.
After the water cooled, he climbed from the bath, dressed, and returned to his room. Again keeping his weapons nearby, he lay down on the bed, briefly wondering if he could sleep on something so soft after all these years.
The answer must have been yes since the sun was suddenly shining brightly in his face. He sat up in panic. How long had he been asleep? It must have been hours. He hurriedly gathered his belongings and raced from the room. No one was behind the bar so he mentally thanked Trilk again and ran for the ring. He dialed the first set of symbols on his new list and strode through without looking back. He would never set foot on Losara again.
The cold on this new world was unimaginable. The wind burnt his face with its force, howling around him, stealing his breath. This could be a problem. The white of the ice was blinding, and he staggered forward into knee deep snow. Hopefully the Wraith would have difficulty tracking him here.
He explored the surrounding area, finding a series of caves to protect him from the wind. Trilk had been right about the lack of life – not a single plant. No wood for a fire, no food to eat. He couldn’t stay here.
Ronon sat in the silence, staring at the lists of address and wondering how long it would be before they located him, before they finally killed him. He knew they would eventually. He couldn’t run forever.
Rodney McKay
Rodney fluctuated between awe and irritation as he watched the gateship disappear through the event horizon. A month’s worth of work gone in a flash. He doubted he’d ever see the ship or that sexy blonde again. How insane did you have to be to step through a wormhole to another planet?
“Dr. McKay?”
Hammond’s voice pulled him from his mental musings. “I can’t believe that worked. Of course, all of my work just flew out of here. You realize we’ll never see that ship again, right?”
“One thing at a time, Doctor. We appreciate all of your efforts over the past several weeks-”
“You can’t seriously be kicking me out. There’s too much still to be done! I could spend the rest of my life studying the stargate alone. How can you-”
“If you’ll let me finish. We appreciate your hard work, and we know there’s a lot more to do. Why don’t you take a couple of days off to rest and relax? That gate isn’t going anywhere, and I need you in top form to explain how it functions and where else we can go.”
“Oh. Well, of course you do. I should get started now, though.”
“Two days, Dr. McKay. Forty-eight hours. I don’t want to see or hear you before then.”
“Yes, well, OK, if you’re sure….”
“I’m sure.”
Hammond went upstairs, and Rodney took a last glance at the stargate before making his way to the lab. It was a small space, cluttered with text books, computers, white boards, and candy wrappers. Grabbing his jacket and keys, he started out the door but turned back to get the stack of files from his desk. Even if he never got to study the gateship again, he had a stargate to understand, and he needed more minions to assist him. He was sure no one would meet his standards, but he’d take what he could get for now. Hopping in his beat-up decade-old Honda Civic, he headed home.
His apartment was tiny by choice. He was rarely there, and he certainly never entertained. A maidservice came weekly so he didn’t live in complete filth, and his cat was always glad to see him even if she didn’t show it. His life totally revolved around his research.
Dumping the files on the sofa, he plopped down and flipped through the first few – incompetent fools who wouldn’t know a wormhole from a quasar. The next one had potential, and he perused it a little more carefully.
“Zelenka, Radek, PhD. Professor of Theoretical Physics at Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. Studied at blah, blah, blah. Published…. Good…. Married to Nadezda Zelenka, expecting first child.”
Rodney snorted in disgust and tossed the file in the reject pile. He needed someone that could focus solely on research, be at his beck and call, not running home to the wife and the snotty-nosed brats.
The beginnings of hunger pains rumbled through his stomach, and he rummaged through his refrigerator, his eyes watering at the stench of whatever had died inside. Other than that, he found a mostly empty pitcher of lemonade, a jar of mustard, a bottle of ketchup, and a piece of fruit – brown, wrinkled and completely unidentifiable. The pantry was bare as well, even the cat food was gone. He sighed as he crumpled the reminder he’d stuck on the coffee pot last week. Damn. He couldn’t think on an empty stomach.
Driving to his favorite corner store, McKay purchased a few items, adding a bag of cat treats on impulse, and climbed back in his car to retrace his path home. He was six blocks away when the vehicle rolled to a stop and died. Staring in dismay at the gas gauge, he remembered the other thing he was supposed to do. He hit the steering wheel in frustration. For a genius, he could be a real idiot sometimes.
He got out and turned in a circle, trying to recall where the closest gas station was. He walked to the end of the block and across the cross street to the end of the next block, berating himself the entire time. Spotting the station, he stepped into the crosswalk.
He never saw the truck coming.
OoOoOoOoO
Jeannie Miller stood in the intensive care unit of the United States Air Force Academy hospital staring at the body of the man they said was her brother. The missing years weren’t the cause of her confusion; two and a half years wasn’t long enough for her to forget what he looked like, but between the swelling, the bandages, the monitors, and the IV lines, she struggled to recognize anything that resembled a human.
Gauze swathed most of his head, and the bits of his face she could see were black and blue. She’d forgotten of the number of broken bones he had, but she remembered the most important one. According to witness reports, he had stepped directly into traffic. The truck had no chance of stopping, and Meredith had been tossed at least five meters. He had so many life-threatening injuries that the doctors were amazed he had survived. And now she had a decision to make.
She squinted at him, trying to find some semblance of her brother. Jeannie held the hand that was least damaged and listened to the hiss of the ventilator. The physicians had been blunt with her. His skull was more than fractured; massive head trauma had resulted in brain death. He would never regain consciousness.
She turned his arm slightly to inspect the inner area near his elbow and choked when she found what she was looking for. As a child, Meredith had been overzealous with a new chemistry set and almost lost an arm in the explosion. She traced the long, jagged scar until it disappeared under a bandage.
“How did it come to this, Mer?”
An Air Force major – Lark, Lord, Lorne, something like that – had appeared on her doorstep to deliver the news. She hadn’t even known Meredith was working for the American government. After informing her of the accident, he helped arrange her transportation to Colorado, and when she arrived, she was given copies of Mer’s papers, including his living will. She had known what it would say – no machines – but she read it carefully anyway. As next of kin, she still had to give permission, and she wasn’t sure she could.
They hadn’t been close, even as children, but when she’d chosen a family over a career, he’d gone ballistic. They hadn’t spoken since, and she suddenly realized that now they never would. She stroked the back of his hand with hers as she thought of all the wasted time and opportunities, of what would never be. There would be no reconciliation between them; he would never know Madison or get married or have his own kids or really live.
“You don’t have to decide today, Mrs. Miller.”
She started at the doctor’s voice. Jeannie laid Meredith’s hand down, smoothing it flat, and turned to the neurosurgeon.
“You’re sure there’s no chance.” It wasn’t a question, not really, but she needed to hear it one more time.
The physician shook his head sadly. “We’ve monitored Dr. McKay’s vitals very carefully. His EEG has been flat-line for the past three days. He shows no response to pain and has no cranial nerve reflexes. I’m very sorry.”
Jeannie swallowed thickly and nodded. Regardless of their estrangement, she knew he wouldn’t want this. Some men were all heart, but Meredith Rodney McKay was all brain. “I’ll sign.”
With an unsteady hand, she scribbled her name at the bottom of the forms, including the one for organ donation and bid a silent goodbye as they rolled his gurney to the operating room. Feeling numb, she stared blindly at the bedless space, drifting in a world of what-might-have-been.
“Mrs. Miller?”
A bald man she had met briefly upon arriving stood next to her. “I’m sorry. General….”
“Hammond, ma’am, and it’s quite all right. I wanted to extend my deepest sympathies. Dr. McKay was a brilliant scientist, and his loss will be felt by all.” The officer smiled gently. “Is there anything we can do for you, anyone we can call?”
“No, thank you. I’ll, um, well, is it all right for me to take his body home? Do I need permission?”
“No. Make whatever arrangements you deem necessary. The Air Force will take him home for you.”
“I appreciate that. Thank you again.”
“If you ever need anything, please let me know.” With a nod, he was gone.
A brilliant scientist. Not a good man but a brilliant scientist. Mer in a nut shell. He had spent his life in a lab, shut away from the world and other people. He wouldn’t be missed; his loss would be felt, and she had no doubt that the scientific world would be a little less bright without him. She wondered just how much would go undiscovered without Meredith’s drive and curiosity to search it out.
Walking outside, she phoned Kaleb, needing to hear his voice. He whispered words of comfort and promised that he and Madi would be on the next flight out. Taking a seat on a bench, she tried to decide what to do next. Call a funeral home, she guessed. There were no friends or other relatives to notify. She had been given his PDA and cell phone, finding numbers for every take-out place in town but not one for another human. Even her. Dropping her head in her hands, she grieved for all that had been lost.
“Oh, Mer. It wasn’t supposed to end this way.”
Epilogue
Another low moan and a ragged gasp snapped Weir back to reality. Pained blue eyes blinked slowly at her then narrowed in rage. “Get away!” McKay growled as the heart monitor began to beep wildly.
“Easy, Rodney. You’re home.” She gently squeezed his arm, carefully avoiding the IVs and monitor leads.
His brows drew together in confusion, and he took a stuttering breath. “Elizabeth?”
“Yes, it’s me. How are you feeling?”
“Hurts.” He shuddered slightly as he shifted. “Team?”
“All here. Lorne found you and brought you back. Carson says they’ll be fine though it will take a while before everyone’s a hundred percent.” She smiled as the muscles under her hand relaxed, and the monitor beeps returned to a normal rhythm. “Tell me that I should see the other guys.”
The corner of his mouth quirked upward for a brief second before his breathing hitched and he winced in pain.
“I’ll get Beckett to give you something.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the nurse said softly. “Dr. McKay will need to wait another half hour for his next dosage of pain meds. Taking them too close together could compromise his respiratory system.”
Weir nodded and turned to him in sympathy. “Sorry, Rodney.”
He huffed in irritation. “Damn voodoo.”
“Do you want to talk about what happened?”
A shadow crossed his face as his gaze flickered to his teammates. “No. Not yet.”
“It’s all right. We’ll talk about it later. Go back to sleep.”
“Can’t,” he moaned. “Tell me something. Anything. Just keep me entertained for the next thirty minutes.”
Pulling up a chair, she contemplated the request and the man. “Did you get a chance to read any of the SGC mission reports when we were back on Earth?”
He snorted. “Please. Who had time? I brought the data files with me, though. I’ll get to them eventually. Why?”
“Do you remember the other me telling us Janis took his time travel research with him?”
Understanding flooded his face, and a mixture of curiosity and hope replaced a bit of the pain in his eyes. “Are you telling me….”
“SG-1 found a jumper with a time machine in the back, and apparently they used it. It seems they found a jar in a dig near Giza….”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-02-07 06:14 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-02-07 08:03 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-02-07 11:11 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-02-08 03:24 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-02-08 03:19 pm (UTC)I'll leave Sheppard's happiness (or lack thereof) to your imagination.
Thanks for reading and commenting!
What If - story
Date: 2008-02-08 11:07 pm (UTC)Love, max
Re: What If - story
Date: 2008-02-09 04:50 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-05-05 07:00 pm (UTC)And hammond, oh i miss him. Landry hates Atlatnis, I swear. :D
(no subject)
Date: 2008-05-05 09:39 pm (UTC)Thanks again for reading and commenting!