Title: The Lost

Author: Illman

Disclaimer: It's not my sandbox, I just play in it.

Rating: PG-13

Catergory: gen, h/c, crossover, adventure

Spoilers: none

Summary: The Doctor wants to show Rose the real Atlantis only to find out that a group of 21st century humans have taken up residence there. Odd things have been happening on Atlantis and, naturally, the Doctor decides to investigate.

oOo

Miko Kusanagi shivered. She wrapped her arms around her torso, hoping to conserve warmth and keep out the chilly wind. It was as if the temperature had been deliberately lowered in an effort to make the North Tower even more bleak and dreary.

The tall spire had nothing of the light colours and smooth architecture of the rest of Atlantis. The walls were black, the floor panels were metal, but they had lost their shine and looked corroded. That was odd, Miko thought, because the rest of Atlantis looked like ten millennia had gone by in the blink of an eye.

She paused to catch her breath before tackling the next flight of stairs and checked her scanner for the elusive energy readings that had started to come from the Tower for the first time a few weeks ago.

The scanner still showed a strong electromagnetic field, but it failed to pin a location on it. It was as if the field, or whatever was generating it, kept moving.

Miko reached the top of the last stairwell. A heavy black door was barring her way into the Lantean observatory. She checked her scanner again and confirmed that the energy field was behind the black door. Casting a look out through one of the slit-like windows, Miko felt her stomach lurch at the sight of the City, looking very tiny surrounded by a boundless ocean. She took a deep breath and reached for the door panel.

The metal felt cold as ice under her finger. She pressed the release switch hard and the door unlocked with a soft hiss. Still, Miko had to lean against the door with all her weight to get it to open even an inch. Suddenly the door gave and Miko stumbled into the observatory, tumbling head first into darkness.

oOo

Miko was confused. She felt sick and her head hurt as if a metal band was wrapped around it tightly. At first she didn't even know where she was. Only when she clambered to her feet and looked around, she realized that she had to be in the Lantean observatory. Foreign optical instruments, including something resembling a giant telescope, dominated the room. Through the windows, Miko could see Atlantis down below with the sun already low on the horizon. She couldn't remember how she had gotten to the top of the North Tower. The only thing she could recall was getting up in the morning after what had been more like a nap than real sleep. She remembered feeling dizzy and sick. She was wondering whether she was coming down with something, as she felt bile rising in her throat. She swallowed hard and braced herself on the window sill and closed her eyes.

Her radio crackled to life. "Dr. Kusanagi, please respond."

"Yes, this is Dr. Kusanagi." Miko couldn't quite keep her voice from shaking.

"Thank God, we couldn't reach you for three hours. Nobody knew where to find you. Where are you?" Radek's concerned voice came over the radio.

"The North Tower, I think."

"The North Tower? What are you doing at the North Tower?"

"I'm not sure," Miko answered even while she realized how stupid she must sound.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm not sure," Miko repeated.

"I think you should go see Dr. Beckett. Should I call him?"

"No, I'll be fine." Miko shook her head to clear the cobwebs. She couldn't afford to get sick; Atlantis needed each and every one of them.

TBC