Lips pinched in barely controlled anger, Dr Weir continued, “Lisera ran away from him and tried to take refuge in the city. Faced with starvation, she returned to find her mother had been taken by the Wraith. The Chosen have apparently made it clear that they will protect only those who truly believe in Dalera — which Lisera’s mother had not. Lisera left the Citadel and has been living in the forest near the ocean ever since. So the Chosen’s system isn’t functioning as well as it may have seemed.”
Dr Weir pulled a tissue from a box she’d placed on the table. “Did any of you see anything outside the marketplace?”
“I believe,” McKay said, sitting back with his arms folded, “the term ‘mortal danger’ was bandied about, so no.”
Apologizing, Dr Weir blew her nose. “Still, leaders generally aren’t as important in a society as they’d like to think they are. What about their bureaucracy?”
“We didn’t get much of a feel for their infrastructure,” replied the Major. “We need to take a look around the place.”
McKay was practically preening. If the issue at hand had been any less grim, Aiden suspected that they would have been treated to some kind of victory dance. “If anyone would care to recall my varied and eloquent comments throughout the mission, warning of precisely this circumstance, I’ll be accepting apologies in the form of coffee rations.”
“You’ve made your point,” Sheppard muttered, turning his chair to face Dr Weir. “So what’s the game plan for our next visit? Offering the Dalerans better transportation won’t fix the corruption that’s probably running wild.”
“For right now, caution is the operative word. We don’t fully know what we’re dealing with yet.”
Without forethought, Aiden spoke up. “Ma’am, what about Lisera? We can’t just take her back and leave her there.”
Dr Weir’s expression made him apprehensive even before she answered. “As much as I despise the situation, we can’t afford to take in any more refugees. I’m sure we can work out something so that Lisera won’t be left to fend for herself. Perhaps Kesun would accept payment of some sort to make sure she’s taken care of until she can walk again.”
His protest would have been impassioned, but McKay’s was faster and, for better or worse, sharper. “That strategy could be compared to upgrading her steerage ticket on the Titanic.”
Before McKay could add anything, the leader of the Atlantis expedition captured them all with an iron-willed gaze that was undiminished by her cold. Aiden hadn’t known what to make of Dr Elizabeth Weir at first. But back when she’d led Stargate Command he’d learned that, while her standard demeanor was gracious, she had the capacity for nearly limitless resolve. “Understand me,” she said, her words deliberate. “I have been in more refugee camps than I can count, and each time I’ve wished that I could save every person there. Major, Lieutenant, I know you’ve had similar experiences. There’s always an exception, one child that you become personally involved with on some level, one you feel you have to find a way to save. But you’ve been trained to recognize that choices have to be made.”
Aiden glanced across the table at the Major and saw that his assessment reluctantly matched Dr Weir’s. That, and his own admittedly limited experience in such situations, didn’t make it any easier to stomach.
“Right now,” she continued, “the best thing that we can do to help these people, and all of the people in this galaxy, is to find a way to defeat the Wraith. As much as it tears us up, we have to accept our limitations and do the best we can within them. We’re hard pressed just keeping ourselves alive here, and if the Wraith are coming, Lisera will be in as much danger on Atlantis as on her home world.”
It was a painfully rational standpoint. McKay breezed past it without missing a beat. “Which brings us back around to the original argument, because the only thing that has any chance of protecting the Dalerans from the Wraith in the short term is the gene therapy.”
“And how will that help restore their society?” Teyla asked pointedly.
The scientist swiveled his seat toward her. “Now I’m getting whiplash. Are we in favor of the laissez faire approach, or aren’t we?”
“We’re still weighing options, Rodney, so have some patience.” Dr Weir brushed her hair back with a weary hand. “The social implications are not the only potential consequences here.”
The doors slid open to admit Dr Beckett, who hovered in the back rather than take a seat at the table. “Carson, your timing’s impeccable,” McKay greeted him brusquely. “Elizabeth was just about to raise a concern that the gene therapy might pose some kind of health hazard to the Dalerans.”
That seemed like a big leap to Aiden, but Dr Weir gave a slight nod of admission. “Isn’t it possible that their biology might differ from ours in some minor respect?”
“Aye, but right now it’s not the differences that trouble me so much as the similarities.” Beckett twisted a pen in his hands, looking uncertain. “I’ve run a number of tests on Lisera, both for the purposes of treating her and of learning whatever we can about the other inhabitants of this galaxy. The results were a bit of shock, to say the least, but it’s been confirmed. Lisera has the ATA gene.”
The energy in the room abruptly changed, as five heads swung toward the doctor. Their collective shock reigned in silence until Sheppard leaned forward. “Okay, I’ll be the one to say it. What the—?”
“How is that possible?” Dr Weir demanded.
“The ATA gene, although rare, exists in the human population on Earth, doubtless for the same reasons.” Beckett pulled out a chair and sat at the table. “As I understand it, there were times throughout Daleran history when children born with the gene were put to death, along with their mothers.”
Nodding in comprehension, Dr Weir said, “Parents would then have gone to great lengths to avoid having their children tested, until a culture of fear became ingrained in the entire population.”
Sheppard shook his head. “If there are enough others out there with the gene, they’ve got a perfectly capable defense against the Wraith hiding in plain sight. Unbelievable.”
“What do we do now?” Aiden had to ask.
“We test them. As many as possible.” McKay cut off Teyla’s objection before she could respond to Dr Weir’s immediate look of doubt. “Their society is unsustainable without ATA-capable people, and the only way to bring those with the gene to light is to test them. You can continue to shake your head at me, but only if futility is your thing, because I can assure you that I’m very practiced at tuning out misguided opposition.”
“And if there are only a handful of others besides Lisera?” Dr Weir asked.
“Then gene therapy is still an option.” That statement came from Beckett, not McKay, and caught the rest of the group off-guard. “I realize that we’re not comfortable with the idea of forcing change on these people,” he added, pouring himself a glass of water. “But if it comes down to a choice between defying their beliefs and leaving them as victims of a corrupted oligarchy and eventual prey for the Wraith, I’m afraid I have to agree with Rodney.”
“Try not to sound so enthusiastic about that,” McKay muttered.
“You know, this could work for us,” the Major commented thoughtfully. When both women pinioned him with stares, he raised his hands in surrender. “Hey, none of this was my brilliant idea. And I’m not suggesting we dive right into the gene therapy. All I’m saying is that Lisera being a Chosen might be useful in changing some attitudes. She’s been brainwashed into thinking she’s responsible for the Wraith. The simple fact that she’s been to Atlantis should undermine that and simultaneously elevate her position. It might give Kesun an edge to convince everyone to convert.”
McKay’s eyes grew huge. “So you’d just use her to continue propagating this insanity?”
“Tone down the indignation, would you?” Sheppard glared at him. “I’m trying to back you up, if you hadn’t noticed.”