While the strange glow still surrounded them, others from Nabu's group, children and adults alike, began to pull back the hoods they wore. Some were deformed, others normal-whatever that word meant anymore-but all of them drew gasps from the villagers, who slowly started to recognize the children they had abandoned to the storms.
In the few seconds that passed before Teyla reappeared with the ZPM cradled in her arms, the terrible truth of their misconceptions froze the cliff-dwellers into inaction. Nabu took the ZPM from Teyla and moved to a grid on the wall, which Rodney had seen during his first visit but hadn't been able to identify while the lab was unpowered. Having placed the ZPM into the grid, Nabu went to the computer and entered a series of commands.
"Power to the matrix is increasing "" Radek immediately glanced up from another terminal he had been monitoring.
The bright aura surrounding Turpi and the others began to fade and shrink, until it was once again focused on her alone. As they were released from the light, her people staggered a little, recovering from the strain. When the light at last had gone completely, Turpi crumpled to the floor.
Running to her, Rodney pulled up short, hesitating. Turpi gathered her robes with feeble hands, attempting to cover herself. "Don't see me this way," she begged, her voice sounding weak even inside his mind. "Remember me as you first saw me, in your dreams."
The memory of Nabu's words struck him. Turpi had already given too much of herself to heal him. In a terrible flash of understanding, he knew that channeling her people's powers had quenched her life. Turpi was dying.
"No!" Clinging to hope, he spun around to Nabu but found only a wrenching sorrow in the other man's eyes. Behind him, Ronon wore an expression of disgust. Jarred, Rodney looked around at his teammates, and then the villagers. Each concealed his or her reaction to varying degrees, but all of their gazes held some combination of pity and revulsion.
Somehow that sealed it. Rodney fell to his knees and gathered Turpi in his arms. "Don't you dare look at her like that!" he shouted at the others. "What gives you the right`? You have no idea... God, can't you see her mind? Can't you see how beautiful she is?"
Even as he sensed her joy at his declaration, he also felt her trying to make him understand. She was dying, and nothing either of them might do would change that.
His eyes burned with tears as he lifted his head to glare at Vend. "You have no idea," he repeated fiercely, accusing all of them, even his friends. "She's a better person than any of us. Even after everything you've seen these people do, you still think of them as rejects. How cold-blooded are you?"
Teyla opened her mouth to speak, but Rodney turned away to look down at Turpi, hearing only her faltering voice. "Please... remember what you feel, not what you see."
He closed his eyes, both because she wished it and because the tears were threatening to overtake him. "This is what I'll remember," he vowed, pressing her soft, misshapen fingers to his cheek.
"I love you." Her words faded, and her body went limp in his arms.
Holding her close, Rodney was paralyzed by loss and shame. In spite of his tirade, he couldn't fault his teammates or even Vend for their reactions when he'd held those same preconceptions himself. Actually, that wasn't true. He did blame them, and he blamed himself right along with them. Knowing as he did what it felt like to be rejected, how could he have judged her, even for a second?
Throughout the room, many of the cliff-dwellers were discovering their lost children. Seeing families reunite all around him, Vend still looked fearful and, to Rodney's way of thinking, sickeningly ignorant. "These wretched creatures should not hold such power," he protested, turning to accuse Nabu. "It was you who denied us the Ancestors' plans for this world. You stole our birthright!"
Nabu rounded on him, tears streaming down his scarred face. "And you have blinded yourself so completely that you no longer recognize the child of your loins!" His hand shook as he pointed at Turpi. "You cast her out into the desert when she was but a baby. Born already understanding who and what she was, she begged you to keep her, promising never to harm you. But your closed mind would not hear her! And yet she loved you to this day. Turpi, and many of our people, would have survived the poison that the waters would have released. Still, she chose to sacrifice herself to save you and the future of this world." He stabbed a finger at the other man's chest.
Vend inhaled sharply, comprehension dawning at last.
His gaze moving from Nabu to Vene to Rodney, Sheppard finally found his voice. "I, uh, think maybe we'd better leave these people to their reunions and get that machine back to Atlantis."
Rodney couldn't find the energy to care about any of it. He eased Turpi's body to the floor with exquisite care. Kneeling on the ground with his arms wrapped around her, he let his head sink to her chest, utterly lost inside.
onon kept a close eye on both Vend and Nabu, not fully trusting either of them just yet. He could see that the villagers were beginning to recognize and welcome the others into their midst, but he didn't understand how they'd been driven apart in the first place. Cast out into the sandstorms? Were they serious?
Regardless of McKay's tirade, Ronon had not looked on Turpi in revulsion but with compassion. Like Teyla, the more he'd learned about the Ancestors, the more he came to believe that they hadn't been the benefactors that most people thought them to be.
Half expecting one of the cliff-dwellers to make a move, Ronon was caught off-guard when a bright light once more flooded the room. He squinted against the glare and found the source: the woman in McKay's arms. This time, however, the light was different, concentrating solely around her. As he watched, Turpi's body faded from existence, leaving nothing but clothes behind. The light glided upwards, disembodied, but with solid looking filaments reaching out and gently touching McKay's face.
Ronon had seen that light before. When Sheppard had been stuck in the time dilation field months earlier, the people who'd taken him in had vanished the same way, transformed into energy. Ascension, his teammates had called it. He'd heard accounts of it from a dozen worlds; even his own planet had tales about a state of existence that the Ancestors had striven for above all else. As a soldier, he hadn't paid much heed to spiritual matters, but by all accounts, it was quite a feat to achieve. Good for her.
The villagers appeared to recognize what was happening as well, watching with expressions of wonder, even awe. Some fell to their knees in supplication, while others staggered back. Whatever indignation Vend had possessed was gone in an instant, and he now gaped openly. The sadness on Nabu's face eased with a small smile, one that Ronon read as an acknowledgement of something richly deserved. Sometimes, it seemed, the universe played fair.
The coil of light hovered in front of McKay for a moment and then rose slowly. Its tendrils reached out to embrace Nabu and Vend, and everyone present, before vanishing from sight. Ronon figured that meant the show was over. These people were safe, so now it was Atlantis's turn.
He checked on Sheppard and found that his team leader had surreptitiously braced himself against the wall, his features taut. "Beckett's drugs wore off, huh?" Ronon asked.
"Pretty much." Collecting himself, the Colonel spent a moment focusing on the act of standing upright. Then, concentrating on each step, he went to McKay and dropped a hand onto the man's shoulder. "C'mon, Rodney. Time to save the day back home."
Turpi's robe still lay in McKay's loose grasp. He stared straight ahead, dazed and unresponsive.
Zelenka tried next. "Rodney, we must go now. Atlantis needs our help."
Something in that statement must have gotten through, because McKay nodded dumbly.
Offering him a hand up from the floor, Nabu said, "I will accompany you to Atlantis."
"Please." Vend took a step forward, his voice subdued. "I... I don't understand. We did not know. How could we have known? The records of the Ancestors were clear!"
There were a lot of things that Ronon might have said to that, but he'd long since lear
ned that saying much of anything was a waste of time once people had set their minds in a certain direction. Nabu looked like he wanted to snap back the obvious reply, but instead said, "This world was but one more in many experiments that the Ancestors undertook."
Vend looked like a man whose faith had been severely shaken. Not unexpectedly, he still clung to past truths. "What poison do you speak of? Can we not continue Polrusso's transformation once all... considerations have been addressed?"
"No." McKay shook his head, raw grief unashamedly written across his features. "You're going to...have to wait." His voice broke, and he cleared his throat before continuing in a shaky tone. "The terraforming program here was set up exactly as your records show, but with a compound that was deliberately introduced in order to imbue you with immunity against the Wraith. Ancient-like abilities are a bonus side effect. You'll need to let the program run until-" He rubbed a sleeved arm across his eyes, clearing away the tears but not the anguish, and glanced at Nabu. "Until Nabu shuts it down."
Sounds of dismay erupted from the cliff-dwellers. "But how long must we wait?" asked one of the other Elders.
"Several more generations," replied Nabu.
Ronon stared at him. Generations, huh? Zelenka had said something about Nabu being part Ancient.
Cutting off Vene's disenchanted protest with a sharp swipe of his hand, McKay continued. "And you need to understand that it's these people, your children, who will inherit the new world you've been waiting for. The abilities they're developing are the future of this planet, possibly even this galaxy. If you want your civilization to survive, you'd better stop rejecting every child that looks different or acts outside the socially accepted norm." The normal bite in his tone was subdued, but emphatic nonetheless.
"And what are we to do when their madness endangers us all?" Vene's question was honest, the earlier condemnation gone.
"That won't be a problem." Rodney took a deep, steadying breath, clearly battling to recover his composure. "Nabu's people know how to control their abilities. They've been teaching each other for generations, and it'll be a lot easier for them to keep doing so if they don't have to hide from you or run around saving the kids you toss out like damaged goods." Despite the waver in his voice, there was also a clear challenge. Ronon could see that the emotional shutters were already slamming into place. An understandable tactic.
Teyla spoke up. "I do not believe anyone will be forced to hide any longer, Rodney." She inclined her head toward the villagers, many of them embracing their estranged children. "No one who saw what has happened this day will be able to return to the old ways."
"No," Shira called, her face damp with tears. She was clinging to a young man who, if appearances were anything to go by, was her son. "Never again shall we be forced to tear out our hearts." Her determined look was directed at Vene.
"Colonel." Lome was standing near Jumper Two's rear hatch. "Are we good to go?"
"Yeah, I'd say so. We're running against the clock here." Taking a step toward the door, Sheppard staggered. Ronon watched him struggle to regain his balance and decided right then that they would ride back with Lorne, even if he had to drag Sheppard by his boots. If Atlantis survived, somebody could come pick up Jumper One later, but he'd rather crawl through the 'gate than allow the injured pilot to attempt to fly again.
Apparently he wasn't the only one who'd noticed. Nabu stepped forward, studying the Colonel. "You are hurt."
Sheppard blinked at him, clearly primed to deny it. "I-"
Nabu reached out and grasped his arms. The effect was immediate. Sheppard's body tensed, his eyes sliding shut. Reflexively, Ronon started forward, reaching for his weapon, but then he stopped himself. Every gut instinct he'd ever depended on told him that Nabu wasn't going to hurt the Colonel.
Sheppard's knees buckled, but the larger man's grip held him upright. After a few moments, he opened his eyes and straightened. "What... What did you do?"
Releasing him, Nabu was dismissive. "It was a small thing."
"Not to me, it wasn't." The pinched, pained look had disappeared, replaced by one of shock and wonder. "You- Do you have any idea what you've just given back to me?"
"Your hearing, and your equilibrium."
Sheppard shook his head, searching for the right words. "My life," he corrected quietly.
While Zelenka joined Lorne in Jumper Two, Ronon and the rest of the group made their way to the other jumpers parked haphazardly outside. Sergeant Witner immediately moved up the ramp into Jumper Four to begin the dialing sequence.
Starting to follow him, Teyla seemed to reconsider. "I will travel with Jumper One, Sergeant." She rejoined the team and turned to Nabu with knowing eyes. "You healed Colonel Sheppard easily," she said. "Why is it that you do not heal the others, or repair your own scars?"
Ronon glanced back at the people who had followed them out of the lab, so many of them physically disabled or deformed in some way. Nabu shook his head. "My abilities are limited. Turpi was the greatest healer among us. But the cost to her was.... great." He cast a shadowed smile in McKay's direction, but the scientist appeared too wrapped up in his sorrow to take notice. "She could restore any living thing that had been damaged by injury or disease, by directing the cellular structure to return to the pattern that was set at birth. But she could not change a pre-existent structure. Hence, she could not amend a physical deformity-except her own. Turpi held the power to transform herself into the most beautiful creature of your dreams. Yet she would not."
"Why not?" said Sheppard, walking up the hatch of Jumper One.
Entering the jumper alongside Nabu, Ronon watched through the windshield as the vortex of the 'gate shot out, then stabilized. The Polrusson's gaze moved across the interior of the unfamiliar machine, but he did not reply.
Surprisingly, McKay was the one to respond. He sat down heavily, not looking at any of them as he answered. "Because she loved the children too much to set herself apart from them."
Teyla's expression was uncertain. "I do not understand."
Ronon silently agreed.
Nabu looked down at McKay. "Perhaps not. But he does."
Jumper Five's return with the first ZPM had obviously extended Atlantis's lifeline. When Jumpers One, Two and Four emerged from the 'gate, it was to a deserted control room. Still, some minimal equipment was operating, and the ceiling retracted as usual to allow them into the jumper bay.
John put Jumper One in its customary parking place and shut it down, then ushered his group out into the bay. His foot had just hit the deck when the entire room rolled. Narrowly avoiding a faceplant, he glanced around at the others to make sure he hadn't been the only one to feel it. Figures. I get my balance back and the city starts wobbling for real.
Teyla's brow furrowed and she shared a look with Ronon. "I hope there is still time."
Only seconds passed before the doors opened to admit Elizabeth. Her gaze took in the group as a whole, quickly coming to rest on their chief scientist. "Rodney, thank God," she said, relief written openly on her face. "Are you all right?" She grasped the edge of a jumper to maintain her balance when the floor beneath them pitched again, this time in the opposite direction. Definitely not a good sign.
Rodney's mumbled "Debatably" was almost inaudible under the noise from the storm outside.
When Elizabeth's focus shifted to John, something hardened. Inwardly wincing, he prepared himself for the fallout that was sure to come as soon as all this was over. He'd taken a risk, and he'd known from the start that he'd have to live with the consequences.
"And you?" she asked neutrally.
"I'm fine. Thanks to our visitor here." John gestured. "Doctor Elizabeth Weir, meet Nabu."
Her eyebrows shot up at the name, and she examined his face closely. "Not a Wraith, then?"
"Not so much."
"I have knowledge of the exogenesis machine that Ea used here." Nabu held out the second machine. "I can program this to counteract its effects."
&nb
sp; The mention of Ea's name told John that Nabu had been fully briefed by Rodney. When the tall Polrusson had produced the machine back inside the lab, John had assumed that either his vertigo or Beckett's drugs had been messing with his vision. But now he was sure that there was something weird about the silvery-gray cylinder. The surface was textured like a knobby piece of wood, the knots of which held recessed pieces of. . luminous amber, maybe? Whatever the stuff was, it seemed to slip in and out of focus.
When Rodney, who was still clearly not firing on all cylinders, reached out to touch it, Nabu held up a cautioning hand. "The device has been shielded. However, it does not draw its temporal energy from this dimension, and so it is not entirely set within our time frame. You may experience extreme disorientation when handling it."
That declaration seemed to jolt Rodney out of his reverie. His head snapped up. "It employs a temporal field? Of course! Janus helped Atlas develop it-which would explain how it effects change at such a vastly accelerated rate"
Elizabeth's smile was as close to impatient as John had ever seen. "This all sounds fascinating, gentlemen, but we're under something of a time limit here. Perhaps you'd care to discuss it after the current situation has been rectified?"
Her statement hauled Rodney entirely back into scientist mode. He led them out of the bay with a brisk stride, babbling about temporal distortion fields and quantum states, or maybe it was strings. If his rapid-fire delivery was even more manic than usual, well, John could deal with whatever coping strategy Rodney employed to keep himself going. It didn't take a genius to recognize that anything capable of cracking Rodney McKay's shell must have been a profound experience.
Nabu nodded politely, his eyes taking in everything as he fol lowed close behind. John understood how he felt. Even rocking back and forth like a rowboat, Atlantis far exceeded the lab on Polrusso in terms of sheer scale and sophistication.
On the way downstairs, Elizabeth said to John, "Except for the volunteer crew working to get Daedalus ready, we've evacuated everyone to the Alpha site." The city lunged again, and she fell heavily against him. "Sorry," she muttered, then sent him an odd look when he steadied her. "Carson said... Never mind. Your inner ear really is all right?"
Exogenesis Page 27
