AN: Another long wait, I know. You can blame that on the Holiday Season. It has its ups and downs... Anyway, here is the eighth and final chapter. Lasted longer than I expected, but here it is none the less.

I want to thank everyone who read and review, and most of all Stealth Dragon for being an amazing beta and improving each and every chapter so much. THANKS!!

No more chit-chat. Read and enjoy :)

He was pulled suddenly from the magical world between consciousness and sleep by a female voice calling his name. He inwardly cursed himself for forgetting to remove the comm set before lying down, but was too satisfied with his current position to even reach up and take it out now. He figured they would leave him alone eventually.

He had been in his own quarters for at least two hours. Or maybe it was more, he didn't really know. He just remembered being kicked out of the infirmary by Beckett after sitting with the asleep - surprise, surprise - colonel for countless hours. Beckett had insisted on him getting some sleep himself, and while at first Rodney had laughed at the notion of getting sleep, when he actually laid down, it wasn't as hard as he thought.

"Rodney," the voice persisted, once again making him more aware of his surroundings than he wanted to be.

He couldn't see why they were bothering him. They were always nagging him about getting more sleep, and when he actually could, they would wake him up. And the truth was, he hadn't been able to sleep well for over a week. Even when Sheppard's heart had been forced to beat again and was technically sleeping a few days ago, Rodney still couldn't get any real sleep. He guessed he could now because Sheppard had woken up, even if only for a short amount of time, and Rodney felt as though he could relax, some.

"Rodney, its Elizabeth. Just, come down to the infirmary when you get up, please."

Rodney considered these words, who said them, and what they meant. First of all, if Elizabeth was calling him, it was probably important. But on the other hand, she held no kind of anxiety or worry in her tone that was usually there in dire situations. And, finally, she had said to come 'when he woke up,' which suggested the situation wasn't bad enough to require his assistance right away.

However, she was calling him from the infirmary. Which meant Beckett would be there, as well as Sheppard. And since it had been Beckett who had forced Rodney to go to sleep in the first place, why would the doctor allow anyone to wake Rodney up now? And what other reason would they need him in the infirmary if it wasn't something to do with Sheppard?

"Rodney," a new voice called, one that Rodney recognized, but didn't expect to hear. "I promise you I will let you sleep for weeks if you want it, but I've got to get this damn thing off and they won't let anyone else do it," Sheppard spoke, sounding annoyed and maybe even slightly desperate. Either way, it caused Rodney to bolt up, forgetting his previous hopes of sleep.

"Look, you don't even have to come down, just tell Weir that you'll let some of your people do it. Hell, I'll even take Rossom or Dulane," he added, making it blatantly clear to Rodney that the man was desperate.

Rodney was now completely out of his bed and getting ready to head to the infirmary. Sheppard still sounded very tired, but he was awake and giving orders. Well, he wasn't really ordering Rodney to do anything, but there was no way Rodney was going to ignore his pleas for help. Besides, he wouldn't dare let anyone else turn the device off, especially not Rossom or Dulane.

"See, what I don't understand is why you have to wake up right when I finally get some sleep," Rodney replied into the earpiece.

There was a pause from the other side and he knew that Sheppard was considering his words carefully. "I know, Rodney. I'm sorry," he said, quiet and sincere, making Rodney feel bad for bringing it up. "But I'll give you my dessert for a month."

Sheppard stopped suddenly and a buzzing sound filled Rodney's head, then cut off completely.

"Sheppard?" He asked, expecting to hear the hot-headed flyboy to reply, but he didn't. "Sheppard?"

"Rodney?" Another female voice called. "It is Teyla. It appears the Colonel does not truly plan on forfeiting his desserts for month," she said incredulously, though Rodney could hear a faint smile in her tone.

Rodney let an exasperated sigh escape before responding. "Yeah? Well, I could have told you that one." He tucked the device tighter under his arm and continued quietly towards infirmary. The things he did for people…

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Everything felt blissfully warm to him. He could tell right away he was not in his own bed, but he also didn't feel the need to question much further. The bed wasn't amazingly comfortable, but none of the beds on Atlantis really were. And frankly, after spending as many nights sleeping on sand as he did on his tour in the Middle East, he preferred less comfortable mattresses.

The one thing that did bother him, however, was the bright lights. He had always hated trying to sleep with lights shining in his eyes. So wherever he was, he probably hadn't put himself there.

And, slowly but surely, other sensory details began to present themselves to him. He felt like he was surrounded by people and noises, but they were all trying to be silent. His mouth was horribly dry and then there was the smell. The disgustingly sanitary smell. And as the smell registered in his brain, he knew exactly where he was.

He tried to open one eye, but the lights caused it to close. He tried again, this time squinting and blinking against the lights until his eyes were more adjusted. He realized that there was no one directly beside him, but he could see two familiar figures a couple feet away from the foot of his bed.

"He's fine, love. I'm expecting him to wake up any time now," a thick Scottish brogue assured someone. As John's focus cleared, he could see the unmistakable outline of Teyla standing with Beckett.

"Good call, doc," another voice rumbled to his left, causing John to flinch slightly. He turned his head to see a blur with thick dreadlocks smiling back at him. Soon after, he was surrounded by two other people.

"Good to see you awake again, Colonel," Beckett greeted jovially. "How ya feeling?"

John sighed and considered the question. "Good," he finally answered, but was then rapidly overtaken by a sudden and intense jolt of electricity.

The world disappeared for those few moments while the electricity flowed through his body. When it finally subsided, his surroundings returned very slowly. When he finally regained his ability to focus, he saw faces hovering over his own, their gazes full of worry.

Why had he forgotten about the shocks? It wasn't like he hadn't had practice with trying to censor his words and keep them as black and white as possible. Either way, he had forgot about his current situation, and had suffered greatly for it. In fact, he didn't remember the lying shocks taking such a toll on him before.

"Colonel," a soft voice broke through his world of haze. "Are you alright? John?"

He focused his attention now on Teyla, who's voice was so very soothing, and attempted to smile.

"I guess… I guess I should'n answer that," John answered, still attempting to hold his grin.

The fact of the mater was, he felt as good as possible. No, he wasn't a hundred percent, but when taking the last few days into consideration, he was doing pretty damn well.

He seemed to have convinced Teyla enough, though, because her previous look of apprehension had been replaced with something closer to relief.
"I see the last system hasn't been turned off," John continued.

"No," Beckett responded as he did something with one of the machines surrounding John. "I wanted to wait until you were awake, now we just need Dr. McKay, and we'll be doing good."

"Well, I'm awake," John said, but suddenly lost focus once more as electricity sprouted through his body. Being completely unprepared this time, the agony seemed to last even longer. However, when the shocks ended, he forced himself to refocus quicker.

"What the hell was that?!" John shouted angrily through heavy breathing. There was no possible way that had been a lie. None. He was awake because… well he was awake. Unless he was actually asleep and was simply dreaming it all up, which was possible, maybe.

And now, on top of the horrible feeling of aftershock, he wasn't entirely sure what he was seeing was actually real. He let his eyes wander across the room and noticed that the looks on everyone's faces mirrored his own uncertainty.

"I just notified Dr. Weir, she'll be down here soon," Beckett said, coming closer to John's bed.

"Why Elizabeth?" He asked, deciding to go along with everything, even if there was a possibility it wasn't real.

"She wanted to know if anything came up, and I'm going to consider this 'something'," Beckett answered.

"What about Dr. McKay?" Teyla asked. "Shouldn't he be down here as well? Or can we just have another scientist complete the task?"

"No, I would prefer Rodney to do it," Elizabeth said, announcing her presence.

"That was fast," Ronon commented.

Elizabeth nodded then looked around. "Yes, I was near the infirmary when I got the call. What happened?"

"Well, I'm not sure yet, but it looks like there is something not quite right with the device. It just shocked him for something that was clearly not a lie, and all the other systems are off. That's it so far, but I don't really want to test the idea."

Elizabeth seemed to think about this new turn of events. "What do you think about turning it off?" she asked, turning to Beckett. "If there is something wrong with the device now, you don't think turning it off will cause any extra problems, do you?"

Beckett shrugged, looking lost and upset. "Not really the question for me, I'm afraid. I don't know enough about the device to make that call."

"Then get McKay down here," Ronon said simply, and it didn't sound like a suggestion.

"No," John said, tiredly lifting his hand into the air. "Let him sleep if he's able to." But even as the words escaped from his mouth, another batch of electricity rattled its way through him. This time, however, he did not regain his focus until some time later.

"We need McKay down here," someone said quietly, though John was too out of it to really tell who. And this time, he didn't disagree with them. He hated the thought of waking McKay up because of him, but all this shocking was really taking its toll on him. And it scared him how odd he felt after every shock.

"Right," he heard Elizabeth say, then turned to see her tap her earpiece. "Rodney."

The was a moment of silence, no one said anything, just watched and or listened.

Elizabeth sighed and tried again. "Rodney."

Again, they waited in silence. John felt himself grow anxious. He really wanted this all to be over and done with.

"Rodney, it's Elizabeth. Just, come down to the infirmary when you get up, please." She looked upset about coming to that conclusion, but defended her reasoning. "If he's not down here in ten minutes, I'll go get him myself."

That worked for John, he decided. As long as it was turned off soon, it didn't matter if it was now, or thirty minutes from now. He would just stay quiet until then.

He allowed his mind to wander to pass the time, but as he got deeper into his thoughts, he felt himself overtaken by another shock. He wished he could say he was getting used to it, but in all honestly, he was sure he never would. It was one of the worst feelings and only got worse each time.

When the shocks ended, John looked up and saw everyone else staring at him horror-struck. Without thinking, John looked to his bedside table where he remembered see a comm set, and grabbed it.

"Rodney," he called, knowing that all eyes were on him, questioning his actions but not daring to stop him either. "I promise you I will let you sleep for weeks if you want it, but I've got to get this damn thing off and they won't let anyone else do it."

Surprisingly, he managed to get all of that out without a single jolt and decided to continue quickly in hopes of avoiding the electricity all together. But he still didn't feel quite right begging Rodney to come help him. It was apparent the man was either dead asleep or otherwise busy. John knew that and it made him feel guilty about what he was doing. But he really did need Rodney's help.

"Look, you don't even have to come down, just tell Weir that you'll let some of your people do it. Hell, I'll even take Rossom or Dulane," he said, looking to Weir who nodded in return.

After hearing nothing, John decided to leave it alone. It wasn't worth begging McKay. Then he heard someone activate the communicator from the other end, and was relieved to hear McKay's whiny voice.

"See, what I don't understand is why you have to wake up right when I finally get some sleep."

John closed his eyes and sighed. He knew Rodney had had a horrible week as well, and John knew Rodney well enough to know that the scientist hadn't gotten much sleep either.

"I know, Rodney. I'm sorry. But I'll give you my dessert for a month" But just as the words fell out of his mouth, he felt more electricity pulsate though his body. He lost focus, and found it extremely hard to pull himself back this time. He was vaguely aware of Teyla saying something, but it didn't really register.

--------------------

Rodney rounded the corner into the infirmary and saw the gang all there. All, of course, standing over Sheppard's bed but watching Rodney. He didn't take the time to greet any of them, just held onto the device even tighter and walked over to Sheppard's bed.

For a man he just had a conversation with, however brief, the Colonel really did seem out of it. His eyes were opened, but unseeing, and his breathing was irregular and slightly raspy. He didn't look too bad, all things considered, but he didn't look good either. But, the dazed state eventually passed until Sheppard seemed to focus on Rodney, now.

"It just shocked him for no reason, Rodney," he heard Beckett say. "Either you didn't turn off all the systems, or the device is… messing up."

Thoughts streamed through Rodney's head, considering all possibilities. He came to realize that it all made a fair amount of sense. All of the research he conducted while Sheppard was sleeping and all the theories he had about the device were proving to be true. But, first thing was first: Get the device off Sheppard.

"It needs to come off," Rodney spoke to no one in particular.

"It won't hurt him?" Elizabeth asked suddenly, her tone housing fear.

"I don't think so," Rodney replied as he prepared the device. "Look, I can't be a hundred percent sure, but I do know it will be way worse if we leave it on."

No one else spoke up after that. They all knew what needed to be done. And while the situation was not nearly as dire as before, they all felt an overwhelming anxiety over the fact that, in a few moments, the whole ordeal would be over. No more device, no more electricity. Now they could only hope it would all end happily, and Rodney felt fairly confident it would.

He stepped closer to Sheppard, who had remained perfectly quiet, and looked him in the eye. Sheppard had never been one to wear his emotions on his sleeves, but Rodney had known him long enough to know where the soldier's feelings were visible: His eyes. And right now, they looked worried, scared, angry, relieved, and confused. Maybe some others, but that's all Rodney picked up on.

Rodney placed his hand on Sheppard's shoulder, prepared to attach his part of the device to the part on Sheppard's shoulder, but stopped as a thought crossed his mind.

"You ready?" Rodney asked Sheppard quietly. He felt it was important to ask because he knew Sheppard liked to feel in control, at least partly. And lately, everyone had been talking about him as though he wasn't even there.

Sheppard seemed to appreciate the sentiment, and smiled wearily. "Yeah."

But then something happened. Without any kind of warning, Rodney lost all sense of where and who he was, but was painfully aware of the fact that his limbs were shaking and seizing. And then, as suddenly as it began, the feeling was gone and he was left standing unsteadily in the infirmary surrounded by his team plus Carson and Elizabeth.

When he finally realized he had just been shocked, he looked down at Sheppard who once again seemed very dazed, but after a few seconds, looked up at Rodney and offered a lopsided grin.

"Welcome to my world," he slurred.

Rodney narrowed his eyes at Sheppard. He knew the colonel had no intentions of shocking Rodney as well, but it didn't help his nerves. It did, however, give him a little more insight into what Sheppard was going through, which further motivated him to attach the device to Sheppard's head, and press the button without further question.

There was a blinding white light signifying that it was working, then it cut off. Rodney stared down at Sheppard for a while, trying to determine if everything was alright. Beckett was then at his patient's side, checking his vitals or whatever those medical people called it.

"Did it work?" Ronon asked, causing Rodney to jump. The guy was always so quiet that, despite his enormous stature, one could sometimes forget he was even there. Up until he spoke with that deep, echoing voice.

"Well how should I know?" Rodney fired back. "Tell a lie, Sheppard." It seemed to be the most logical test.

Once again, Rodney looked to Sheppard's eyes to determine how he felt, and all he could see was apprehension. He stayed still for a moment as he seemed to consider what to say and its possible ramifications.

"Canadian football is the best sport ever," he said finally. Rodney rolled his eyes and turned away. He couldn't be a regular human being, could he? But, nothing happened to him. A smile crept onto his face now, but not onto Rodney's.

"That doesn't prove anything," Rodney interjected. "You might really think that."

Sheppard said nothing, but his raised eyebrows and amused look displayed all that the man might have said.

"All I'm saying is, you should do something more black and white. Like your name," Rodney suggested. Sheppard sat for a moment, staring back at Rodney. And soon, a mischievous smile formed on his face.

"Ok," he agreed. "My name is Meredith."

Rodney rolled his eyes again, but with a bit more attitude this time. He was never going to live that name down. Once again, nothing happened to the annoying colonel. And despite being made fun of, Rodney couldn't help feeling relieved that is was all finally over.

"That is very good news," Teyla said cheerfully. "You did very well, Rodney."

There was a murmur of agreement that Rodney felt he could live with.

"Yes, you did very well, Rodney. But I would like to know more about this device," Elizabeth said, cutting her eyes at the discarded device. "It just doesn't seem like something the Ancients would invest in."

And, suddenly, Rodney was reminded of all the research he had done on the device and was glad the subject was brought up.

"I felt the same way," he replied. "Which is why I wanted to do more research. Of course, the Ancients had some intense weaponry, but this device, and the others that were discovered with it, all seemed to be a bit… savage for the Ancients' normal style."

"It was a time of war, Rodney. You sometimes take liberties," Sheppard suggested tiredly, his head now resting against the pillows as Beckett toyed with the IV in his hand.

"Exactly," Rodney agreed. "I considered that as well, but when I took a closer look at the other devices, I saw something. They were all very similar. Same ideas, same wiring, same everything. And while it was all undoubtedly Ancient style, there was something not quite right with them all. There were errors with all of them. Small mistakes. Mistakes that an Ancient science team would never make."

"You're contradicting yourself, Rodney," Beckett called from the other side of Sheppard's bed.

Rodney huffed at the statement. "Well, if you would let me finish," he shot back. "They were mistakes a team wouldn't make, but ones that a single person alone would," he stated, a sense of accomplishment in his tone. He could see everyone slowly starting to catch on and felt himself swell with pride.

"What I'm thinking is, during the war, some guy had the idea to use devices such as this to interrogate their prisoners. He may have even made some for… other purposes. But anyway," Rodney continued, catching himself. "I think he was just experimenting with them, and making them on his own, never really knowing if they would actually be used on people or not."

"Well, that would make sense," Elizabeth said silently. "Like you said, John, wars make people reconsider situations, and while the Ancients as a whole would never resort to measures such as those, individuals might have. Sounds good, Rodney."

Rodney nodded, relieved that his theory was accepted.

"Right, well, I think its time everyone left for a little while. I can see someone has sleepy eyes," Beckett said, eying Sheppard who frowned back in return. "And I would like to run a few more tests now that it's all said and done. You lot can come back after lunch.

Rodney heard Sheppard sighed, then saw him roll his eyes, and felt a very small amount of remorse for him. But it faded rather quickly. Rodney hung back and allowed everyone else to leave after squeezing Sheppard's shoulder or something mushy like that.

"Well, I guess I owe you a thank you," Sheppard said as he yawned.

"Oh no, no, no, no. You're not getting off that easy," Rodney replied, waving his finger in the air. "I get to sleep whenever I want to, and you have to give me your desserts for a month."

Sheppard chuckled at this. "Ah, but my fingers were crossed."

"Doesn't matter," Rodney stated simply. "You woke me up, so there."

"Ok, and how about I attach the damn thing to your head and accidentally drop it. What then?"

Rodney thought about this. He could continue the bickering, but he was still tired.

"You wouldn't dare," he said quietly.

Sheppard merely grinned back.

"Fine, for two weeks then," Rodney negotiated.

"Fine," Sheppard agreed, though if the device was still on, Rodney was sure it would have shocked Sheppard.

"Fine," Rodney echoed before turning to leave. He decided that, despite the obvious advantages of having that sort of device attached to Sheppard, he preferred the Colonel without it. And just before he got too far away, he heard Sheppard say "Thank you, Rodney," and smiled to himself, but pretended like he didn't hear it.

As Rodney made his way back to his quarters, he couldn't help but curse storms and Ancient devices and stupid scientists that had made his week a living hell. But, in the end, they did make his life more exciting, and to say he didn't appreciate that once and a while would be a lie. Frankly, he had had enough lying to last him a lifetime.