Incurable

A.N.: Hi folks! So here I am with my first Stargate fanfic ever (the first of the three Stargate projects I am currently working on). This one is about one of my favourite Atlantis characters, Lorne, and not to forget: The Wraith. The idea for this fanfic came to me when I listened to Marilyn Manson's "Coma (White)".

Anyway, I don't want to bother you all with long speeches. Have fun reading it and please leave a review if you liked it (or if you found anything that has to be corrected).

DISCLAIMER: Lorne and all other characters of SGA do not belong to me, yet I own Hyde, Martins, Dekura and Hatari and of course the idea for this story. If their are any similarities to already existing characters or storylines, then it was not my intention to steal anything.

I – The Deeper Darkness

The wormhole shut close behind them, leaving his team on the planet with only a few lights for companion. The sky was clouded completely, though he had already forgotten what it had looked like. He had only had a few seconds between his arrival and the one of his team to take a look around, when the wormhole still spared some light.

He had seen buildings - or rather yet – ruins of what must once have been a powerful city. He had also been able to take a short look at the M.A.L.P. they had sent through the gate. To put it the nice way: It was a mess. Sighing, Lorne activated the flashlight on his weapon just in case and gestured to his team. "Alright, we don't know what we have here and we barely have light supply except for those darn lights. Dekura, you are coming with me, Martins and Hyde, you are going south. Five minutes then you all come back here and we go back to Atlantis for report. Encounter anything strange and you're coming back immediately. Got that?"

"Yes, sir." His three comrades replied before starting with their search for any life signs on this dusty, dark planet. Taking a deep breath, the young Japanese stepped next to her major. "So, what do you think what killed all the people here?"

"I don't know." Lorne replied flatly, as he felt the temperatures fall quickly. Whatever it had been, he did not want to be there when it came back. He did not want to say it aloud, but basically this planet and its darkness scared the hell out of him.

- - -

In the opposite direction, Hyde and Martins kept going through the destroyed alleys, talking to each other to chase away the silence. For Martins, same as for Dekura, it was the first off-world mission and Hyde knew what it was like to be stuck with that feeling of helplessness and fear.

"There really is nothing to worry about, Martins." The young Scot tried to calm his friend down. He glanced at his watch briefly. "Hey, look! It's just another minute. Then, we are heading back to Atlantis, get ourselves some coffee and-" He stopped abruptly, holding his right hand up to keep Martins from going on. Carefully, he stepped closer to the figure lying in the shadows in front of him. He didn't know whether it was caution or fear that made his hand tremble as he turned the body around. "Oh my good Lord!"

Martins saw the skin of the freshly fed on wraith corpse glimmer in a weird shade of white and copper in the small light, before Hyde sank to the ground, shot. A sound he had never heard filled the air. But he had heard stories about it. He had heard enough to know that he had to run. Grabbing for his radio, he rushed back to the gate. "Major Lorne!" He shouted out of breath. "Enemy contact south of the gate. Heading back to-" From the blackness in front of him, the face of a Wraith appeared in the dim light.

- - -

"Go! Go and dial the gate!" Lorne shouted at Dekura, as the radio contact broke. "Dial the gate and head back to Atlantis! Tell them to raise the shield right after you! I will go get the others." She ran through the debris, trying not to stumble out of panic. This was her first off-world mission, darn it! It was not supposed to be like that. Far away in the south, Lorne could hear the sound of Wraith darts. They covered the same distance they had taken before in barely a minute. Once at the gate, panic kept vaporizing what was left of Dekura's sanity, when she dialled the gate with her petite hands and accidentally hit the wrong button. Frustration had merely arisen from her subconscious before the first blast hit the spot beside her. Panicking, she slammed her fists on the damn machine. "Major!"

Lorne turned back around right on his heels. How stupid could he have been to split his team, forcing him to be stuck between two amateurs who needed his help? Frowning, he decided to head back to the gate. The screams died off before he reached it. Taking a last deep breath, he stepped next to the ring.

The face of his team member was nothing more than a distorted mix of horror and death in the darkness. By what he knew about the Wraith, the one standing next to her corpse would probably be quite hard to kill now. To his left and right, he could hear hissed breath and pawing feet, not to mention the Wraith dart sounds that seemed to come from everywhere now. So this was it. Here he was on some godforsaken planet with his people dead and Lord knew how many Wraith waiting to feed on him.

He aimed quickly as the Wraith that had just killed Dekura turned to go for him. He wasted a whole magazine on bringing that thing down to the ground and half another one to finally kill it. From the shadows, the pawing came nearer. Keeping the gun ready in his right hand, he went to dial for Atlantis before all was gone for good, but it was hard to focus when death was so close. Even though it wasn't the first time he faced it. He had just activated the third symbol when a rough hand grazed his left arm and another one reached for his right one. Screaming in rage, he turned to the right and fired.

The water boiled quietly in the cooking pot, while she went for the meat. It had been a long time since she had last stood there cooking for more than one person, yet there she was, trying to create something that could bring him back onto his own two feet.

- - -

She let the knife sink down to the table for the moment and left the kitchen. He still lay as she had left him and somehow, the sight made her smile.

She glanced back into the kitchen and decided that it was not yet time to go all red alert on the cooking. Carefully, she strolled over to him and roamed his body again.

He had put up quite a fight against all those Wraith and it had clearly cost him. Erasing the smile, she gently traced the long, bloody scar that stretched along his right forearm.

He shot up from his sleep almost too quickly for her to evade. But only almost. She was on her feet and away from his bedside within a second. The look on his face told her that he was – above many other things – confused and in pain. Careful not to hurt him, she stepped closer again, knelt down and pushed him back into the pillows.

"It's alright. It's alright. You are safe here. I'm not going to hurt you."

Lorne glanced at the girl next to him, back at the ceiling, his own body and back at her. A little smile curved her thin lips and her green eyes sparkled with what seemed to be concern and – good Lord help him – some type of amusement.

"You are quite badly wounded." Her voice reached his ear in a choir of thunder, though he could see due to the moves of her lips that she was whispering. "I am preparing something to eat for… the two of us." She added hesitating after a glance at the spot to his left. "It will help you regain some of your strength. Just lay still. Everything will be alright." She patted his hand in a tender caress, then turned to leave again. She had almost reached the kitchen door again when she heard him whisper.

"Martins…"

"They drew almost all of his life power." She explained, not at all surprised that he glared at the spot she had looked at in shock. His comrade. "I can't do anything for him. He will not make it. I'm sorry."

- - -

Her words kept echoing through his head, even as Lorne tried to push them aside. Badly wounded… Everything alright… Drew… Will not make it… How the hell was everything going to be alright? "Martins…" He whispered once again, but mentally scolded himself for making such a lot of noise. To his surprise, the young soldier opened his eyes slowly and tilted his head to look to where the familiar voice came from. "Major…"

The old, thin voice caused Lorne to flinch. No way in hell could this be the young man he had taken into his team only a week ago.

"Found… a fed on Wraith…" Martins continued between coughs. Clearly, drawing all those years from him had left permanent damage. He looked, sounded and felt pretty much like an 80-year-old. "Hyde's dead…"

"Don't!" Lorne interrupted, suddenly feeling like he had to do something. Anything. "Stop talking, Martins. Save your strength till we get back to Atlantis."

A sleepy smile flashed on the soldier's face before his eyes closed. "Was… honour… being… your team."

The girl came back into the room again, this time holding a tray with two dishes on it. When she noticed the look on his face, her smile faded. "I am sorry." She mentioned glumly. Having placed the tray next to him, she went to cover the face of his dead comrade with a blanket. "They had taken way too much from him. None of us could have done anything. Neither you, nor I. The only thing you can do now is live to keep at least the memory of him alive."

He knew what she was aiming at and somehow, even here in this Wraith contaminated place he was willing to keep at least himself alive. And above all, THIS place didn't even look that bad.

It was the first time he was actually able to take a closer look at his surroundings without being in severe pain. He was lying on the ground with dozens of cosy blankets under and two of them above him. The room was all painted in a warm copper-like colour. Numerous candles of different colours as well as two tapestries decorated the walls. It looked – in the widest sense – cosy.

"That's my living area." She explained as she noticed his searching look. "I usually spend my time reading or eating in here. Normally, I don't have any visitors, so… well… sorry you have to sleep on the floor." Smiling, she took the spoons she had brought, raised his head and helped him drink the soup she had prepared. The hot fluid felt like liquid gold on his tongue and he decided to leave it to speechless relaxing for a moment. Satisfied, she went for her own dish.

"So… who are you?" He questioned, making the pain between his ribs get worse again. "And what do you among all those Wraith?"

"I am not AMONG them." She corrected and he could have sworn he had seen both a pouting child and a heart-stabbing bitterness in those green eyes for a moment. "My name is Hatari. I've been stuck on this stupid planet for five years now." Noticing the demand for sound sleep in his eyes, she packed everything together and stood up again. "I found you when you were as good as dead. Like it or not. you are now stuck here with me. I'm going to treat you. And now you need rest. Close your eyes and sleep. If you need anything, just call for me. I'm right in the next room." Smiling just a little, she went for the kitchen. "See you tomorrow."