Stargate New Seasons ~ Atlantis ~ Reclamation ~ Season 6 RPG

[puddlejumperOZ]

<Atlantis Base - East Pier>

{Lt. Colonel John Sheppard NPC}


He had stood there for some time, watching his friends with amusement, every now and then glancing out over the cold seas and choppy waves, these guys were nuts he thought as he pulled his jacket up higher, he made a noise in his throat just loud enough to be heard over the whistling wind. "So are you all gonna stay out here and freeze to death, or join me for some of Cooky's hot soup and crackers?"

[Ryn]

<Atlantis Base, East Pier>

Teyla looked up at the sound of the new, familiar voice. John! She smiled warmly at him. "Hot soup sounds wonderful, John. I believe it would be better if we continued our talk inside." She had not noticed before just how chilly it was and hurried to stand inside.

[Isolde]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Jennifer Keller} -{Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor} - {Todd} - {Dr. Carson Beckett}

"Of course, Anne." Reluctant to tear herself from the options the new variables suggested, Jennifer reached into her kit, and fished around in the bottom of it to pull out a USB stick. "I kinda thought these would come in handy." She gave a wry grin to Carson, almost an apology, as she loaded the small storage device. "I've been looking over your work recently, to see if there was anything we might have missed."

Typing her access code into the computer, Keller opened up the relevant files, and perused them carefully. It was a fascinating experiment, but it still sent her into a spin of ethics that usually ended with her biting her own ass. Aware of the interest directed at her screen from the other parties at the terminals, she was suddenly self-conscious, as reams of her additional notes and observations from many simulations showed up on the screen in vivid pink. Such scrutiny from three extraordinary minds made her uncomfortable, and she shifted under Todd's regard, in particular.

"Impressive, Dr. Keller," he murmured, a modicum of respect in the deep tones.

[marilynrose]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor} - {Jennifer Keller} - {Todd} - {Dr. Carson Beckett}

Fascinated Anne leaned in closer, the research though pushing the boundries of medical science, not to mention ethics, was still no less glorious to her inquisitive mind. Sitting back straight, Anne cross linked the data to her terminal and began running permutations and another round of simulations. Then it hit her full in the face, excitedly she hugged Todd next to her. "Protein binders." She exclaimed. "The human DNA strands unwind because the Iratus ones are cancelling out the natural binders. Here." She showed them and began a short discourse on something she worked on not so long ago.

"There is a class of multivalent protein binders was designed to overcome the limitations of low-affinity therapeutic antibodies. These binders, termed "collabodies," use a triplex-forming collagen-like peptide to drive the trimerization of a heterologous target-binding domain. Different forms of collabody, consisting of the human single-chain variable fragment, fused to either the N or C terminus of the collagen-like peptide scaffold 10, were stably expressed as soluble secretory proteins in mammalian cells." She took a breath and plowed on.

"The collabody consisting of scFv fused to the N terminus of collagen scaffold is present as a homotrimer, whereas it exhibited a mixture of trimer and interchain disulfide-bonded hexamer when cysteine residues were introduced and flanked the scaffold. The collagenous motif in collabody is prolyl-hydroxylated, with remarkable thermal and serum stabilities. The collabody erb_scFv-Col bound to the extracellular domain of epidermal growth factor receptor with a binding strength 20- and 1000-fold stronger than the bivalent and monovalent counterparts, respectively. The trimeric collagen scaffold does not compromise the functionality of the binding moieties of parental immunoglobulin G; therefore, it could be applied to fuse other protein molecules to acquire significantly improved targeting-binding strengths. We can produce a multivalent protein binder using a self-trimerizing collagen-like peptide scaffold." She finally released her grasp on poor Todd.

sorry Isy and Atlantis I got a little carried away

[puddlejumperOZ]

<Atlantis Base, East Pier>

Teyla looked up at the sound of the new, familiar voice. John! She smiled warmly at him. "Hot soup sounds wonderful, John. I believe it would be better if we continued our talk inside." She had not noticed before just how chilly it was and hurried to stand inside.

<Atlantis Base - East Pier>
{Lt. Colonel John Sheppard NPC}

"C'mon Teyla, Chewie. The eggheads can freeze out here all day if they like. But I guess you can't expect much from a Canadian and a Czeck when it comes to the cold. Teyla my old CO sent a package for us as well, DVD's, football DVD's." John grinned wide and then led them inside and headed for the mess hall, via the first transporter they came to.

[Atlantis4Life]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Dr. Carson Beckett} - {Todd} - {Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor} - {Jennifer Keller}


Carson had a growing feeling of dislike for Todd as the minutes went by. There was a time when he felt compassion for the Wraith species, but that time had passed long ago. To keep from interacting with the Todd as he asked for Sheppard and then McKay, Carson decided to continue to scan the data that Keller had uploaded while he was at a workstation with her and Dr. MacGregor. Then, vaguely, he heard the Wraith use his name. It took a moment for the question to register as Carson was brought back into the discussion.

“Yes,” Carson said as he looked toward the creature, but not at it. He could feel his patience waning. This is going to be a long day, he thought to himself as he turned his attention to the data again. A moment later, the additional terminals and computers arrived for use, and Carson got up and watched as Todd uploaded the data from the USB stick to the other 2 computers. He then took a seat next to Dr. MacGregor after the two ladies settled themselves in. He was glad that Todd was couched between them. The farther away, the better.

Carson listened to Todd and Dr. MacGregor’s exchange with interest as he looked on thoughtfully. When Dr. MacGregor asked him about isolating the fragments of Wraith and Human pairings from the Iratus DNA, he felt like she had read his mind as he was just thinking about that. “Well, it’s tricky but it can be done...” Carson furrowed his brow, deep in thought as Dr. MacGregor asked Jennifer for the files on Michael. He looked up as he started to elaborate on his answer when his eyes caught those of Jennifer. He gave a small nod and smiled back as if to say that it was alright, and that he understood that this was a necessary part of their work.

He regretted his experiments on Michael, and all of the havoc that this one creature had reeked on the galaxy. It seemed like every time the retrovirus was tested on Wraith, it ended up having an undesired and unplanned effect on humans. First, there was Elia who took an incomplete form of the retrovirus and then infected Sheppard, nearly changing him forever. Then, there was Michael who exacted his revenge by turning the tables and making Carson the test subject and prisoner, as well as the Athosians that were made into slaves, and the galaxy that had been terrorized by him... This was Dr. Beckett’s chance to try to get it right this time. He was determined not to see this effort fail. Carson pressed on and elaborated.

“Isolating the Human DNA is not that difficult because it’s recessive just like the Iratus DNA is recessive. As we all know, the Iratus DNA is more prevalent, and what this will mean is that the process won't be forgiving - not even a bit. However, the Wraith DNA, which is a much stronger hybrid compound of the other two, is the dominant DNA structure. One mistake there and we’ll see structural problems in core DNA sequencing. Since the DNA and RNA are both found in the nucleus, there’s always the possibility of bleed through RNA damage that could cause an impedance to the necessary amount of genetic information that is transmitted.” Carson took a deep breath. “It’ll be a balancing act, but it can be done.”

By this time, Dr. Keller had the files up on the computer and Carson began to read over her additional notes. Most of these observations were not new to him as he had the misfortune of being forced to continue experimenting with the retrovirus as well as the Hoffan virus during the nearly 2 years that he was held captive, but there were a few things that were new to him because Michael kept a tight watch over his work, and only allowed him to go so far before taking over for himself and switching Carson over to a new task.

He heard Todd’s compliment to Dr. Keller and echoed the sentiment. “Yes, it is. This is very thorough Jennifer. It‘s nice to know that you‘re as detailed as I am.”

As Anne cross-linked the data to her terminal, Carson followed suit. As he began working on the data, he heard Dr. MacGregor’s moment of eureka and smiled. “Of course! It makes perfect sense that stronger bonds are needed for the human DNA to stay in tact since it’s the weakest form in the overall structure, but the missing part was how. Still, there’s the issue of manipulating the Collabodies to only target the Human DNA and pass over the Wraith and the Iratus DNA. Since the natural protein binders for the Iratus DNA already have a propensity to cancel out the natural binders for the Human DNA strands, it’s imperative that we get this right. If we don't, then we could end up with a situation where the weakest DNA structure is destroyed, and the strongest is made even stronger. There is no margin for error.

"Now the Human DNA, once fortified by the Collabodies will be fine, but it’s the interim that I am concerned about. While the fortification is in progress, the Iratus DNA will still have the advantage in its attempt to cancel out the protein binders of the Human DNA. If the Iratus DNA is able to cancel out the natural binders of the Human DNA faster than the Collabodies are able to fortify the Human DNA, then we’ll still have to deal with the same problem. The only benefit will be that the cancellation will occur at a slower rate, and thus give the subject more time before the structural integrity of the Human DNA fails. The subject might live since the Human DNA is the weakest of the three. If this is the case, then the Collabodies that were intended for the Human binders may be able to adhere to the Wraith DNA because of its Human properties. If this happens after the subject survives the collapse of its Human DNA structure, then we might end up with something akin a what a Neanderthal would be in comparison to regular Humans - only this is the Wraith we are talking about. And the possibilty for defects would be high because we would be administering the treatment to an adult Wraith. My guess is that it would probably look like what I’d call a primitive Wraith with more pronounced Iratus bug features - and perhaps even stronger powers with the need to feed still fully in-tact!” Carson could see the way he felt about this reflected on Jennifer and Anne’s faces.

“I think that this may provide some additional insight into how Michael created those creatures that Sheppard and the team encountered on the planet where the Taranans were massacred by them - him,” he said bitterly. “In fact, I’m sure of it. The process, on a genetic level, must have been the same. Teyla had it in her mission report that Michael told her the process by which he created them. He used to take pregnant Iratus bugs and let them feed on humans. The bug would lay its egg while the human DNA was still fresh in its, and therefore the egg's, system. The Human DNA would have its natural protein binders stripped away, or cancelled, by the Iratus DNA's lecherous qualities and for its own benefit. It's a case of survival of the fitest. But the Human DNA would still be there in its base form, and therefore incorporated into the developing embryo. I'm thinking that this would have been the stage in development where Michael made his manipulations, as it would have been the optimum time to do so...”

He took a deep breath and stiffly shook his head like he could shake the thought of it out of his mind. He continued as he tried to ignore the peaked interest of the pale green foe that sat patiently between the two women. The look of amusement written on Todd’s face was hardly inconspicuous. It irritated Carson because he knew that look all too well, and it never meant anything good...

“Like I said, it’s a balancing act, and we can’t afford any mistakes. By the time we’re ready to test this on a Wraith, it needs to work perfectly - or else...”

@Marilynrose

Spoiler:

I hope I did okay. I tried to keep up with you. Let me know if I didn't do something right for the game because I don't know how much liberty I'm allowed to take with the story we're telling... Thanks. Oh, and you did great. You're a tough act to follow!

[Isolde]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Jennifer Keller} - {Todd} -{Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor} - {Dr. Carson Beckett}

"Add in chemotherapy?" Jennifer said, and began tapping at her console, as another idea occurred to her. "We could use nanites to deliver the therapy, really target it, so it's a magic bullet." Enthusiasm sped up her adjustments, and she said emphatically, "We need Rodney to work on the nanite programming, because it's delicate work."

"I believe," Todd growled, still recovering from the unexpected hug with a human, "I will be of assistance to Dr. McKay as I have some experience in that particular area." He cast a look over the smaller woman to his right, and murmured, faint censure in the words, "Dr. MacGregor... Anne, whilst I... ah... value your enthusiasm, notification of physical contact would be appreciated." Green-gold eyes fastened on the screen again, and he addressed Jennifer. "The toxicity will remain high, and while I'm certain you have no problem with the number of Wraith this could kill, I am unwilling to deliver it to my people unless it is further refined."

"We can refine it if you don't steal it," Jennifer said sharply, reminding Todd that the therapy he'd taken had been less than finished.

A sharp grin broke across Todd's features, and he looked a Keller as he shrugged. "Ah, Jenni-fer, you still hold a grudge against me for that?" A throaty chuckle followed, and he added, "It did result in much needed data and the deaths of many Wraith. I would think you'd term it a success." Aware of the Scot sitting away from him, Todd purred, "Iratus DNA is dominant, as you know, Dr. Beckett, but in the redundant, the junk DNA, you will find there are indications of much greater similarity in our genome than you suspected. I feel certain it is something we could work with to help tailor the retrovirus even better."

Spoiler:

Woah, info dump much, MR... And A4L, hell's bells, man...! LMAO

[Atlantis4Life]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Dr. Carson Beckett} - {Jennifer Keller} - {Todd} - {Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor}

“Those things...” Carson said to Keller’s suggestion of nanites. Nanites could be a pain to deal with, but they were useful and often times necessary. “They will do the trick.”

[Isolde]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Jennifer Keller} -{Todd} - {Dr. Carson Beckett} - {Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor}

Jennifer threw a sweet smile over to Carson, but could see how troubled he was by the presence of Todd. The Wraith had really managed to rub him up the wrong way, and Todd knew it, of that she was certain. Being an arrogant SOB came with the territory, but she dealt with another arrogant SOB all the time - Todd was no different to Rodney in some respects, though he did seem to have age on his side, and the ability to see both sides of the coin. When he chose to, and if he chose to.

"Thanks, Carson," she said. "I knew you would see the benefit of this straight away."

Todd swung round on his stool to gaze at the human, and slanted his head to the side as he observed him; his earlier words had had the desired effect, but he recognised brilliance in any species. Even human. "Dr. Beckett, I understand your reluctance to have anything further to do with Wraith, but this will profit the human race, will it not?"

[Atlantis4Life]

@Isolde

Spoiler:

Did I do something wrong? I have a post in mind to put up, but I want to get your feedback first since you're used to doing this. The reason why I have the Wraith DNA as the Dominant DNA is because from the little I know about genetics, whatever has both/all tends to be dominant/stronger. Like when conception is the case. Women are X-X and men are X-Y, and since men have both X and Y, they tend to be considered the stronger sex - although there are many women that can totally kick any guy's butt! Also, the same thing goes for eye color. Blue, green, etc., are recessive genes while brown is dominant because it incorporates all colors... So my thinking is that the Wraith DNA came into existence millions of years ago when some Iratus bug fed on a human/ancient at the right time and somehow the egg incorported the Human DNA. The Wraith DNA came about as a mutated combination of some of the best genetic aspects of both DNA forms, and then it evolved into the Wraith. However, both DNA forms are still present in their natural (recessive) states in each Wraith.

That's what I was thinking off of the top of my head when I wrote my long post about it for Beckett. But, we should probably work out how this works for the story. IDK, what do you think? Should I change my post?

[Ryn]

<Atlantis Base - East Pier>
{Lt. Colonel John Sheppard NPC}

"C'mon Teyla, Chewie. The eggheads can freeze out here all day if they like. But I guess you can't expect much from a Canadian and a Czeck when it comes to the cold. Teyla my old CO sent a package for us as well, DVD's, football DVD's." John grinned wide and then led them inside and headed for the mess hall, via the first transporter they came to.

(( ^ Much better, thank you! ))


<<Atlantis Base, East pier --> Mess hall >>


{Teyla}


Football dvd's? Oh. Gosh. 'No, please no'. She mentally groaned. But outwardly, Teyla just smiled and nodded. Time spent with friends was what she focused on, what they actually were doing, wasn't as important.

The mess was a quick ride away. Instantly they headed toward the food line.

"So, um. Do you have any more leads, John? About the empty settlements, I mean. Dr Zelenka suggested we should head back to Baku?"

As she spoke Teyla smiled at the SF in thanks for her soup, then her attention went back to John and Ronon.

[puddlejumperOZ]

<<Atlantis Base, Mess hall >>

{Lt Col John Sheppard}+ {RononNPC}

John looked at his steaming soup and broke pieces of warm toast into it, Ronon was mimicking his actions, whether to be funny or because it seemed the right thing. "Well I'm figuring if we head back there, it's possible there's soemthing we missed. We'll need Rodney and his gizmo's of course." He took a large mouthful of the broth and swore quitely. Mildy surprised that it was actually hot this time. "This soup is really quite good this time." He glanced and smiled at Teyla.

"Yeah." Ronon said with a dribble on his chin.

"Yeah what Chewie? The soup is good or we head back to Baku?"

"Both."

[Atlantis4Life]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Dr. Carson Beckett} - {Jennifer Keller} -{Todd} - {Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor}

Spoiler:

Thanks Isolde! You've got some great ideas about the science! Marilyn, we decided that the Wraith DNA made more sense as the core DNA structure (especially when you consider the retrovirus). Please send us a PM and let us know what you want to see happen too.

Dr. Beckett‘s smile back at Jennifer didn‘t last long before a deep, raspy voice cut in. Carson listened and knew what Todd was doing. He knew he wanted him to say it - again. He wanted the correction. He wanted to remind Carson of his trials and particularly of his errors. “Yes,” said Carson. He hesitated to use his name in the same way that Anne hesitated to call Todd a “friend,” but he understood the need for pleasantries and manners. Michael hadn’t taken that away from him...

“...Todd. The Iratus DNA is dominant to the Human DNA, but not the Wraith DNA. The Wraith DNA is dominant to both. I understand this as well as you. And just to be clear here, I know what you’re doing.“ Todd opened his mouth to speak, but Carson cut in with a tone of defiance in his voice. “You’ve been over my notes on Elia. Initially the retrovirus had the opposite effect than was planned, and Elia began to devolve into ... something. At the time it was very unfortunate, but it helped me with my research. And our research is why you don’t need to feed on us right now.”

Carson could sense Dr. MacGregor shift uncomfortably in the seat next to him. Dr. Keller looked down for a moment. He could understand their discomfort. After all, they were sitting right next to the thing. He had to let Todd know that he wasn’t going to be pushed around - least of all by a Wraith - not after what he’d been through.

Still, he knew that Todd had his own story. He remembered when Sheppard told him about how Todd gave him his youth back when he didn’t have to, but even that didn’t override Carson’s understanding of Ronon now. He finally understood what it meant to want to see an entire species extinct for the benefit and survival of your own. Was there ever going to be a way to co-exist with the Wraith? Even the thought seemed unfathomable - laughable. At one point in time he’d hoped for it, but now... Nothing was as simple as he wanted it to be, not even his resentment.

Carson finally noticed the fixed stare of the Wraith observing him. He plainly stared back into the black and green-gold eyes that seemed to understand something about resentment, about torture and being held captive... Todd began to speak.

[Isolde]

<Atlantis>-<Brig>

{Todd} - {Dr. Carson Beckett} - {Jennifer Keller} - {Captain/Dr. Anne MacGregor}

"Dr. Beckett," the Wraith rumbled, "if you are aware of what I'm doing, then you will assist me in this experiment." Todd looked weary, for a moment every scrap of arrogance seemed to bleed from him, and a sigh fluttered into the atmosphere. "The samples you have are old, so I suggest you take new ones from me." A flash of humour lit his eyes, and he added, "That is, unless you have any other captured Wraith, of course."

Jennifer looked up, met the amused regard of Todd, and twisted her fingers in her lap. "It would be useful to have new samples, Carson."

"But not too much, hmm?" Todd cautioned, as he rolled his sleeve up again. "I'm not convinced the injection has been entirely successful - " and he gazed at MacGregor, who was now returning the look earnestly - "as I feel quite... odd."

"What do you mean...?" Anne began to say, and leapt from her stool as Todd slumped sideways to the floor. "Dammit, get those SF's back in here, Jennifer."

The Wraith had hit the floor with a thud, and lay crumpled, his skin shining, damp with perspiration. As Keller ran to the door to get assistance, Anne knelt beside the big alien, and checked his pulse.

@ A4L

Spoiler:

Cool.

[puddlejumperOZ]

<<Atlantis Base, Mess hall >> to Brig> [Coms]


{Lt Col John Sheppard}

"Teyla, Chewie, get your gear together when you've finished. I'm going to get the doctors and Mckay. We're headin on back to Baku." John stood and started for the control room, he clicked his coms.

"Jennifer, grab your gear and bring Todd, Carson and Captain MacGregor with you, tactical gear, we're heading back to Baku."

And again on another link. "Mckay, get your butt up to the Gate Room asap, bring Zelenka if you need him."