"Over the Edge"
by Space-Age Scribe
Characters: Team, especially Sheppard, Ronon, Teyla and Carson Beckett
Disclaimer: I use these fine characters without the slightest intention of infringement.
Spoilers: Tag to 3x09 'Phantoms'
Summary: The device had been disabled and the Daedalus was on its way. The mission was over, and now the survivors could limp home to recover. But for John Sheppard, the problems caused by the Wraith device back on the planet were just beginning.
Author's Note: Yay! John and Teyla are back in the infirmary. That still doesn't mean that everything is okay.
SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA
Lorne and Ronon had once again taken their seats in the waiting room, flanked by Elizabeth and Radek. Everyone looked drop-dead tired, having been up much of the night tracking the wayward colonel, but they all refused to rest until their friends were once again settled.
The medical team had been able to manage Teyla's pain and quickly return her to the infirmary, but Col. Sheppard had been a different matter. He had panicked and become combative, convinced that they were hostiles. Ronon had stunned him, which had earned him a telling-off from Elizabeth while they waited. Ronon had merely shrugged off the tirade. Secretly, Lorne thought the Satedan had done the right thing. Sheppard obviously was confused and wasn't about to be talked down.
Throughout all of the excitement, Rodney had remained deeply asleep in the infirmary, his condition stable.
A nurse came out and they quietly walked together to a room at the back of the infirmary. Two guards were posted outside the door but stood to the side, out of sight of the room's occupants.
"They're both sleeping now," the nurse reported softly. "It looks like they escaped any further injury except for some cuts on the colonel's feet from walking barefoot. We're keeping an eye on those because there was standing water in the area. Otherwise, they're no worse for wear."
"Is it wise to have Teyla in the same room as Col. Sheppard?" Elizabeth asked quietly.
"Given that Col. Sheppard's actions have been in defence of Teyla, we thought that proximity to her might keep him calm if he awakens in a confused state again," the nurse answered.
Elizabeth was not comfortable with the arrangement, but she knew that Teyla would choose to be at his side had she been awake.
"Right," she said, trying to stifle a yawn. "It's time to get back to work."
Seeing Ronon as she turned to walk out, she narrowed her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be in bed?"
Ronon shrugged, then cringed slightly when a Scottish voice rang out behind him: "Aye, he is."
The former runner turned around slightly sheepishly and was quickly relieved of his gun and dragged by the arm toward an empty bed in the main part of the infirmary. Elizabeth certainly had no desire to be in Ronon's shoes at that moment as she heard Carson start in on him with, "What's this I hear about you stunning the colonel? Are ya daft?"
The closing infirmary doors smothered Ronon's reply. Relieved that everyone seemed to be doing better for the moment, she headed toward the control room. If nothing else, perhaps dealing with the Satedan would help Carson move on from yesterday's mission.
SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA
John's return to consciousness left him wanting to surrender to the blackness once more. His head ached so much that he was pretty sure even his hair hurt. His throat was dry and he could feel sharp pains all over his body. With great effort and a small involuntary groan, he managed to pry his eyes open.
His surroundings seemed familiar, yet he wasn't sure if that was good or bad. Uncomfortable, he tried to shift position only to notice that his arms were restrained to the sides of the bed.
He reacted, tugging both arms with all his might, but the soft white restraints stayed tight. Why was he restrained? Where was he? He had to get out.
Panic swept over him. He was vaguely aware of alarms going off nearby and medical personnel running into the room and calling his name, but his focus remained on the cuffs restraining his arms.
Hands pushed him back down on the bed, but he continued to writhe in an attempt to escape. His chest was tightening and his head began to swirl with the lack of oxygen as people shouted over his head.
Suddenly, a warm hand lay softly on his arm. John's attention was drawn away from his struggles, focused on the feminine hand that stood out against his pale skin. He looked up at its owner. His head was still swimming, but he knew the exotic woman before him. She was safety and comfort. Her soothing voice spoke his name.
"Teyla," he whispered. Somehow, above all of the commotion around him, she heard him and beamed.
Suddenly all of the activity around his bed faded away and he felt his heart return to a normal rhythm. If Teyla was here and safe, then things must be all right.
Slowly John felt himself slipping back toward sleep.
SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA ~ SGA
Teyla felt herself guided backward into a chair as she watched John fall into a peaceful slumber, helped along by a sedative that had been quickly administered. It had been heart-breaking to witness him wake in such distress. Thankfully, a quick-thinking marine orderly had lifted her out of bed to stand beside John. She had felt beyond relief when John recognized her. Immediately his struggles had ceased and his heart rate had begun to slow, much to the relief of the medical staff standing around his bed.
"Ma'am, we need to get you back into bed," the orderly said, standing behind her.
Teyla was torn: she was exhausted, but she knew that she would soon end up back in this chair. John had a head injury, and obviously was partially reliving a traumatic experience from his past. Somehow, her presence seemed to be his only link to reality. It was going to be up to her to see him through his angst until he was once more back in the present.
"John needs his rest," she told the orderly firmly. "If I will end up here again, I should save my strength and stay in this chair until I am needed again."
The orderly was about to argue when a deep voice rumbled, "Take the bed to her."
Both turned to where Ronon stood in the doorway wearing scrubs. He had been left unattended during the chaos in John's room and took it upon himself to check in on his friends.
Knowing how stubborn all members of Sheppard's team were, the orderly finally shrugged in defeat and unlocked the wheels of Teyla's bed while Ronon guided the other end with one hand. Both men helped Teyla hobble around and sit up on the bed.
She stifled a groan as she shifted to get more comfortable. Noticing that John's arms were still restrained, she turned to Carson, who had just entered the room in search of Ronon, ready to launch into another diatribe aimed at the Satedan.
"We need to remove John's restraints," she told the doctor immediately, biting her lip to avoid laughing as Ronon's relief at his narrow escape became evident on his face. Turning back toward John and becoming serious once again, she said, "I believe his panic was due to being unable to move his arms."
Carson looked thoughtful, then shook his head. "No, it's best for now to keep him from running off again."
But Teyla had seen the terror surface in his eyes when John had looked down and realized that he could not move his arms freely. That was what had caused his panicked reaction. There must have been a point in John's past when he had been similarly restrained, and things had not gone well for him. Teyla could not see that look in her friend's eyes again.
"Carson, please!" she begged. "He was peaceful until he realized that he was restrained."
Carson was a skilled doctor and valued his ability to separate friendship from medicine on this base, but Teyla's pleas tore at his heart. Maybe she was right. Besides, there were people here to stop the colonel if he became out-of-control once again.
With a sigh, Carson slowly undid the straps, inwardly wincing at the red marks on John's wrists despite the padding. He had struggled hard. Carson just hoped he was making the right decision.
John began to mutter in his sleep, tossing his head from side to side. Rolling onto her side, Teyla stuck her IV-free hand through the bars separating their beds to rest it on John's arm. Instantly he quieted down, and in moments both patients were deeply asleep.
Seeing Ronon pull up a chair, Carson made a show of disapproval but was secretly glad that someone was there to watch over the teammates. John's injuries were troubling, but all they could do now was wait for him to return to them.
TBC