SEVEN

Jen screamed as the beast slammed her into the ground, and braced herself for the tearing of flesh as it was surly about to eat her alive.

The teeth never came.

Her body strained to breath against the crush of weight from the foul smelling creature as it lay half across her body, smothering her.

She could hear Ronon screaming with rage. Calling her name.

But she couldn't answer. Couldn't quite catch her breath yet. Teeth so close she could almost feel them against the underside of her jaw. The head lay motionless on her shoulder. Eyes dead. Weight crushing her into the bone covered ground.

Dear God she'd actually killed it?

Wetness seeped through her clothes and pressed against her skin as the creature's blood drained out, covering her in its disgusting fluid. She struggled to move – to slide out from underneath its upper body, using the slickness formed from the massive wound in the beast's underbelly. The sickening sound of her chest passing across the gaping wound nearly made her throw up. She gagged against the smell and dragged her body free.

"Damn it, Jennifer!" Ronon cried out. "Answer me! Jennifer!"

"Ronon." She whispered, pressing the back of her hand against her mouth. The taste of copper hit her tongue and she gagged against the bile filling the back of her throat. Her hands were covered in blood.

"Are you okay? Are you okay!"

She nodded, staring down at the mess of blood staining her clothes. She looked at the dead beast, the size of its head. The teeth. Then at the gun she still gripped in her right hand.

"Answer me!" Ronon growled. "I can't see you!"

Jen's mind finally staggered back into reality and she stepped forward, stumbling towards him.

Ronon could see her now – the light from the moons glowing off the dark wetness that covered her body. So much blood.

"Jennifer! Answer me! Are you injured?"

He could see the stark whiteness of her eyes as she stepped out of the shadows to the space in front of him. She dropped to her knees, placing her hands on either side of his face, ignoring the sharp pain in her broken fingers.

"Are you… are you okay?" She whispered, her eyes locked on his.

He shook his head, breaking away from her hands. "You're covered in blood."

Jen stared at her hands and quickly rose to her feet, staggering back. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"That's not what I meant!" He growled. "Is it yours? Is any of it yours? Are you hurt?"

Jen shook her head, ripping at the jacket, pulling and tugging it off, trying to wipe at the blood on her hands but only succeeding in smearing it more. "It's not mine. I… it bled all over me."

The blood had soaked right through the jacket. Her shirt was just as disgusting. Just as sticky. She was used to blood on her hands, on her clothes, it was an occupational hazard – but something about this blood was making her nauseous.

"It's dead?"

She nodded, her head still lowered.

"Jennifer."

She looked up, silhouetted by the light of the trio of moon's and he knew she was staring at him, but he couldn't see her face.

"Get me down."

She nodded. Twice. Then suddenly shook her head as if to clear away the confusion and stepped towards the wooden pillar where one of the chains was anchored. She tugged and pulled but it wouldn't move. Wouldn't budge.

"Shoot it."

"What?" She gasped and spun around, facing the dead beast.

"The chain. Shoot the chain. With the gun."

"The chain? Oh. Yes. Okay."

Retrieving his gun from where she'd dropped it next to his knees, she stepped back and raised it, not sure where she was supposed to be aiming and deciding to just go for the joint of the ring and the post. This time she braced her feet, but the blast of energy still knocked her tired body to the ground.

The ring exploded and the chain snapped.

With the release of his right arm, Ronon's body sagged heavily onto the rocks and bone, his left arm hanging in the air.

This time Jen stayed on her knees as she fired at the other ring. She missed, but the effect was just as effective. The post exploded and Ronon dropped completely onto his back.

Jen knew what they'd done to him. Knew the drug left him unable to move. But it would only last for a few more hours before it started to wear off.

She crawled over, reaching for him, then hesitating as she saw the coating on her hands. He rolled his head to look up at her.

"I'm sorry. I have nothing to clean this off with."

He shook his head. "The blood doesn't bother me."

"It bothers me." Her voice cracked.

"You're a doctor." He commented, giving her a topic she could find comfort in.

"Yeah, well, I'm not used to being bled on by Cujo." She whispered, straightening his limbs so his legs and arms weren't so harshly bent.

"Cujo?"

Jen crawled around his head, shoving pieces of bone away. Sitting down, she shimmied closer, lifting his head and sliding her mostly clean left hip underneath him like a pillow.

"Jennifer." He rolled his head but she knew he'd be unable to move away.

"Quiet." She ordered. "Just relax. The drug should wear off in a couple of hours. When daylight comes and you can move again, it'll be your turn."

"My turn?"

"The villagers are going to come back." She reminded him. "I just killed their god. I don't think they're going to be very happy with me."

She lay down on the ground, the icy feel of the rocks reminding her that she was still alive. That he was still alive. Her right hand dropped to his shoulder, fingertips lightly touching the pulse point in his neck. The strong beat of his heart lulling her into silence as she stared up at the moons, now high in the night sky. The adrenaline from beast's attack and the exhaustion from running up the side of a mini-mountain finally caught up to her. She closed her eyes.

"Talk to me." He requested, although Jen wasn't sure if it was a request so much as an order. She snorted.

"About what?"

"How did you get up here?"

"I ran."

"You ran."

"Gee thanks."

"For what?"

"Yes, I ran. I know, I know. I may not be able to fight off an angry hoard, or run even remotely as fast as you, but I can run, you know."

"What did you do to your hand?"

Jen held her left hand up to the moonlight, the drying blood flaking across her knuckles. She'd probably broken her middle finger and her ring finger, but without an x-ray she couldn't be sure. She'd used a couple blades of long grass to tie the two fingers against her index finger. "Tripped. Of course. Smashed my fingers on some rocks."

"You okay?"

"I'll live." She almost smiled at her own joke. "You?"

"I can move my thumb."

"Show me." She turned her head and watched him wiggle his left thumb. "Good for you." She patted him on the shoulder.

The silence stretched as they both lay lost in thought.

"Who's Randy Greenwood?"

"What?" Jen's strangled gasp echoed and she struggled to sit up. She stared down into his face, his head lying in her lap. "How did you… how did you hear…?"

"You left your radio on."

Her hand immediately went to her ear. Then she looked over at the dead carcass of the giant beast. Her earpiece was gone and the only place it could be was under it. "Oh." She hesitated. "What else did you hear?"

"Everything."

"Everything." She repeated, her eyes shifting away from his with heated embarrassment. She tried to remember what she'd been talking about while she'd tried to find him. She usually talked to herself when she was nervous, or concentrating. She couldn't think of what she might have said, but she did recall bitching about Randy Greenwood. And… other things. Including crying. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize I'd left it on. I…"

"You talked to me." He said softly, drawing his eyes back to his. "This drug. Made me want to stop. To just give up and let it come. But you talked to me. You kept me going."

"Oh."

"Thank you."

"You're… you're welcome."

Jen lay back down, and this time the ground felt cold and lumpy. The wet blood soaking her clothes gave her a chill and she shivered. "How long until the villagers return?" She tried to change the subject.

"Dawn."

"Then what?"

"Then we either wait for Sheppard, or we blast our way down the mountain."

Jen laughed, making his head bobble. She crossed her arms over her chest and shivered again.

"You're cold."

"Yeah well, it might be almost summer during the day, but these rocks are damn cold at night."

"Stand up. Keep moving. Keep warm."

"I will. I'm just too tired to move right now."

"Doc." He growled.

"Ronon." She growled back.

He sighed.

She smiled.

Ronon lay with his head against her hips, feeling the subtle motion as she breathed, and the occasional shiver as the cold bit into her. She'd returned her hand to his shoulder, her fingers cool against his neck. He knew she was feeling for his heartbeat, and welcomed the touch.

Together, they lay and waited for dawn.