The Long Way Home

Chapter Twenty: Underground

I'm surrounded by liars everywhere I turn,
I'm surrounded by impostors everywhere I turn,
I'm surrounded by identity crisis everywhere I turn,
Am I the only one to notice?

Gavin McGraw – I Don't Wanna Be

They had been in the underground facility for two minutes and already Cass despised it. Her heart was thudding against her ribs so hard it was constricting her breathing. She could feel her head spinning just a little from her shallow breathing as she exhaled deeply trying to get a handle on herself once more. The ranks were closed around her, the others were sensing her distress and were subtly forming a shield between her and the threat.

She needed to get a grip, she couldn't allow being in this place to twist her up the way it was. That made her a distraction to the others and that was something they couldn't afford in a possibly hostile situation.

It had started off as routine offworld visit to arrange a trade for food supplies as they were running low back on Atlantis. The Genii were supposed to be a peaceful people that had initially reminded Cass of the self sufficient Amish communities back on Earth. Teyla and the Athosians had dealt with the the hapless farmers time after time over the years and the Atlantians were hoping to establish a similar relationship.

That was until John and Rodney had stumbled upon the Genii's secret underground bunker. Teyla, Ford and herself had been led at gunpoint to an interrogation room in order to join the others. As it turned out the Genii were a lot more technologically advanced than anyone could have anticipated.

After the discussion of nuclear technology Cowen, the leader of the Genii had decided he wanted to show them something, Cass's guess was whatever it was, was attached to the conversation he had had with Rodney regarding nuclear fusion. They were now being escorted through a narrow corridor fixed with heavy set, metal doors that made Cass feel even more claustrophobic than usual. Places like this brought back a lot of memories for Cass, things that she would rather forget.

The walls were close together and restrictive, she was very aware that there was a substantial amount of ground between them and the surface. The lights were little more than a bulb attached to a wire used to illuminate the darker hallways.

It was a completely different situation to the previous one she had been in although it was still a precarious one. There was a musty earth smell that she associated with her time back in The Cave and it was here too seeping from the walls around the group, intoxicating her with it's pungent odour.

She wasn't the only one that noticed it, she had seen Rodney wrinkling his nose as they progressed deeper into the bunker. Cowen was still talking, Cass didn't understand the meaning behind his words. She was fuzzy on any science that moved beyond her field of expertise. What Cowen and Rodney were talking about went far beyond her reach of understanding.

"You do realize that long term exposure to these levels of radiation are dangerous?" Rodney told Cowen, as his forehead wrinkled into a frown at the readings coming from the Life Signs Detector.

"Our scientists tell me otherwise." Cowen responded drolly as he continued to meander at his steady , slow pace at the head of their procession.

"Well their wrong." Rodney stated flatly, clearly trying not to exasperate the situation but rather attempting to make Cowen aware of the dangers.

"Are we in danger now?" John questioned, tilting his head towards Rodney in search of answer.

Wonderful, Cass thought raising her eyes skyward. If the Genii didn't put a bullet in their brains, the radiation would probably melt their insides.