John woke with a pounding headache, struggling to clear his vision as the cell lurched violently around him.

"You shouldn't move-"

Elizabeth appeared in his line of sight and he winced, letting his head fall back to the ground. It was a bad idea, sending the room into another turbulent spin and he blinked repeatedly trying to focus on something other than the pain. In particular, what had taken place while he was unconscious. The fact he didn't know how much time had passed made him uneasy and once the nausea became manageable, he forced his gaze back to her in concern, "what happened, are you okay?"

She frowned in confusion, finding it strange he was so worried about her when he'd been the one beaten within an inch of his life. It was an act she couldn't assimilate with the Genii and she was becoming more and more at ease with the prospect of being on his side and not theirs. "I'm fine, what about you?" she questioned, placing the focus back on his injuries, "where does it hurt the most?"

John stifled a bitter laugh, biting down on his lip as the action sent a wave of pain throughout his body, "yeah... everywhere pretty much hurts equally-" he watched her pale and immediately felt guilty. Sure he had taken a few hard hits from Aldran but he'd certainly wasn't the first time he'd been beaten up.

Sucking in a deep breath, he forced himself to sit up right. "Look Elizabeth, this is nothing..." he shifted, eventually finding a semi-comfortable position resting against the wall, "trust me I've had worse... a few days in the infirmary and I'll be good as new."

She wasn't convinced but sensing her concern was only making things awkward, she raised an eyebrow trying to make light of the situation, "so, have you always been this stubborn?" It earned her an amused smirk and she settled beside him, trying to relax as much as posible under the miserable circumstances.

"You think I'm bad?" He rolled his head back, recalling her own stuborness, "once you got so pissed off with me, I wasn't allowed on missions for nearly a month. I tried every thing I could think of, even did half your reports, you wouldn't budge."

Despite the punishment, there was no animosity behind his tone and she let a small smile grace her lips, "well, I'm sure you were deserving of the treatment."

He coughed slightly, trying to ease the pressure in his chest, "...I did have a hand in blowing up an entire solar system." He conceded, though still silently maintaining it was entirely McKay's fault. "Actually, now I think about it... you're probably going to want to forget that time complete-" a sharp pain twisted in his side and he grimaced, letting out a hiss as it spread upwards.

Elizabeth felt her heart clench in fear as he writhed, trying to escape the burning sensation, "John-" she grasped his shoulder as gently as possible, "look at me, I'm right here. Come on stay with me."

He nodded, drawing comfort from her voice as it began to decrease.

"Okay," he breathed in slowly, "I'm okay."

Her fingers remained lightly on his jacket, not quite ready to break the contact. The sense of unease was familiar to her and while she couldn't quite pinpoint specifics, she knew with absolute certainty it wasn't the first time she'd found herself in a state of worry over the man.

He was unconscious, medics performing CPR.

She shook the flash free, both disturbed and unsettled by the image but a sense of how dangerous their work was hung loosely in the back of her mind, "you really weren't kidding when you said you've had worse." It came out as a statment not a question and she recoiled, subconsciouly putting distance back between them.

"Don't worry," he tried to reassure her, "not all our missions are total wipe outs. Every now and then we get something good out of one-"

"Taranis?" The word slipped from her mouth before she had time to consider it's meaning.

John knew exactly what it meant.

"Yeah, that's where we found the Orion. How did you-" he faltered at the sound of approaching footsteps and let out a low sigh, "great, here we go again." The clunking came to a halt and he noticed the distinct lack of guards this time round.

"Both of you will come with us."

John bit down thoughtfully on his lower lip. He wouldn't be able to get far fighting them but he still had the vile of sedative in his pocket and if Elizabeth could handle the other two... "Okay, but I'm gonna need some help here-"

"Wait." Elizabeth stood up approaching the men, "he's in not condition to-"

John flinched as the first guard caught the side of her face with his gun and shot the man a steely glare, "hey, back off!"

Elizabeth straightened, wincing at the sharp sting across her temple. Clearly given the lack of security detail Aldran didn't consider her much of a threat but he it was on his insistence that she keep up her military training. One she could take, possibly two...

She cast a sideways glance towards John and noticed his slightly raised eyebrow.

He had a plan.

"Like I said-" John stole his gaze away from Elizabeth, returning it to the three men, "I'm going to need a hand." He had to admit, reading a tactical move from Elizabeth wasn't something he was accustomed to but reading her in general, that was a skill he had down to an art.

He knew exactly what she'd been thinking and he slipped his hand covertly into his pocket, waiting until two of the guards hauled him up then with lightning speed he whipped out the vile of sedative, removing the plastic cap and stabbing the man on his left.

Elizabeth reacted in sync, taking town the guard in front of her with a swift kick and using his weapon the shoot the third.

It was over in a matter of seconds.

"Nice."

John lent heavily against the wall with a smirk and she flushed, a little uneasy at how in tune they were. "We should get moving," she reached down, grabbing a second stunner and handing it to him before sliding under his arm for support. It was going to be slow moving but at least she knew a few unconventional ways out of the complex.

Clenching his jaw, John tried to ignore the pain burning in his side as they manoeuvred out of the cell, "it wont take Aldran long to figure out we're missing."

She nodded, checking to make sure it was clear before leading them out, "if we take the lower levels it should some buy us some time." The complex consisted of five levels, housing various designated areas but the basement connected up to a system of tunnels that wormed their way outside.

Provided they didn't get lost, it was a viable escape route.

"What about the roof, could we climb down from up there?" John suggested, looking for as many alternatives as possible. Usually he was a 'blast out the front door' kind of guy but being injured meant they would have to try for inconspicuous instead.

"Yes, but why would we-" she stopped, realising what he was getting at. The roof was the last place Aldran would expect them to leave from, boosting their chances of getting away undetected considerably. The only problem was climbing wouldn't be an easy feat in John's condition. "There should be enough grip but manoeuvring might be difficult."

"I can manage." He offered a tight smile, keeping his weight against her to reserve strength.

Once they reached the top he was going to need it.

Elizabeth led them through the complex, moving as quickly as possible around various bends until they reached a junction in the corridor. "That's it, there-" she pointed across to a heavy metal door and released her hold, leaving him propped against the wall while she focused on the security pad.

Her fingers danced over the keys, frowning when the input button beeped in rejection.

"Elizabeth," John kept his voice hushed as he called out to her, "what's the hold up?"

"My codes not working," she threw back over her shoulder, feeling a wave of deflation. Without the code they had little chance of breaching any of the exits, let alone gaining rooftop access. "Aldran must have implemented his own into the security system I can't-"

"I've got it." John cut her off, glancing around nervously. From his vantage point he couldn't see much but there were no detectable sounds of movement and he momentarily pushed the concern aside, "try... thirty-two, six, eighty-four, seven, seven, two, forty-two, sixty-three, seven, four..."

The door whooshed open and she breathed a sigh of relief turning to question him, "how did you-" the sentence caught as an arm latched around her throat and she dug her nails in trying to loosen the pressure.

Aldran ignored her attempt to squirm free, standing tall as he eyed John arrogantly, "yes Colonel I'm curious, how did you gain access to my code?"

John tensed, berating himself for not heeding his instincts. The Genii commander had lunged from one of the left corridors encased by darkness, giving neither he or Elizabeth any time to react but none of that mattered now. "I've got a good memory-" he pushed off the wall, clutching his gun tightly.

All he needed was one clear shot.

"I wouldn't..." Aldran sensed the movement raising his own weapon against Elizabeth's temple, "I can assure you, I'm a lot quicker than my father."

"Well hopefully, it won't come to that." John reluctantly titled his hands in loose surrender. The last thing he wanted to do was antagonise the man but he still needed a way to free Elizabeth. "Look, we both know how much you like beating the crap out of me. Let her go, we can find a nice little room somewhere... just the two of us."

Aldran smirked at the suggestion. While inflicting more physical abuse on the man was appealing, it wasn't nearly as satisfying as the current mental torture he was inflicting. "Actually Sheppard, I don't intend on causing you more harm. In fact, in a few moments I'll be more than happy to let you walk right out of here."

The glint in his eye sent John's stomach hurtling straight to the floor. Aldran was a military man, born and bred by his father to be a strategist. There was no doubt he knew exactly how to exploit his enemies vulnerability and this instance was no exception.

Elizabeth was his weakness.

She always had been. Originally he'd chalked it up as a necessary protection, she was the leader of Atlantis it had been his job to keep her safe but somewhere along the road he'd reached a point where his desire to protect her had come dangerously close to negating all else. It was one of the reasons he'd been adamant about not reviving the Replicator's in her body. Because he knew if she'd become a threat, if he'd had to choose between her and Atlantis... he might make the wrong decision. Those fears had been confirmed in the hallway of the Replicator city. If Ronon hadn't been there, if he'd hesitated for even a second longer then they wouldn't be here now, standing in the exact same boat; he mused, the irony not lost on him.

Once again he was falling victim to the emotions that had laid dormant for so many years and he locked eye's with Elizabeth, conveying forced reassurance to keep both her and himself calm, "you don't have to do this."

Aldran tightened his grip feeling an increasing wave of frustration, "not good enough Colonel." He wanted more, in the very least recognition of his fathers wrongful death and he was growing impatient. "I feel an expression of remorse isn't really that much to ask."

"You've got to be kidding me-" he breathed out, instantly regretting the comment as Aldran's trigger finger twitched in annoyance. "All right! I'm sorry..." he admitted honestly, "I'm sorry I had to shoot him, I'm sorry I ever met him! But nothing I say here is going to change what happened."

"Well, at least that's something we can agree on." Aldran released the safety catch on his weapon, moving the barrel down along Elizabeth's jaw.

She barely flinched at the contact, maintaining her vice like grip on his arm and he felt a slither of remorse at taking her life. He'd always been impressed by her strength -more so because she had no previous memories of character to refer to- but even so, he'd never allowed his mind to stray far from relevant fact; she was a means to an end, nothing more. "I hope you don't take any of this personally Elizabeth,I truly did find your company favourable."

"If you hurt her-" John's breath latched painfully in his throat, letting the warning hang. He had no leverage, nothing to bargain with and out of sheer desperation he let his defences fall back. He wasn't above begging, not when the stakes were so high. "I can get you supplies, weapons, anything you want! Just let her go, please... "

Elizabeth tensed, overcome by a sudden wave of deja vu.

Cold.

It was raining.

John screaming against the wind.

Kolya, I'll give you a ship... I'll fly it out of here for you myself!

She snapped from the trance as Aldran's grip tightened around her throat. He was squeezing, forcing the oxygen from her lungs and she fought futilely against a rush of panic as John's protests became further and further away. This was it. The darkness was engulfing her and in a few seconds-

A sudden burst knocked her to the ground and she coughed violently, trying to increase the flow of air as a large weight crushed down against her ribs. Twisting painfully, she managed to prise herself from beneath Aldran's body pushing herself up through a wave of dizziness.

"Elizabeth!"

She backed away from the two men on the ground, startled at John's immediate presence by her side and out of instinct she tuned into his arms.

He winced, ignoring the pain as he drew her away from where Ronon was landing blows into the Genii commander. Under normal circumstances he might have issued a warning, told the large Satedan warrior to ease up but right now he couldn't care less.

"Are you okay," his voice was low, still thick with emotion as he pulled back slightly, "Elizabeth?"

She shook her head, still reeling from the ordeal but a familiar response pushed at her lips, "I will be."

"John!"

Teyla's voice accompanied the sound of dense footsteps and he glanced up as she and McKay slowed their jog, breathing heavily from the exertion. "You are injured." She surveyed him with concern, pushing the worry aside at his sharp nod. "Lorne is holding the gate but we must hurry, more Genii are on their way."

"Ronon lets go!" He ignored the curious looks as Elizabeth shifted to support his weight, "Teyla take point, Rodney our sixes-" the scientist looked like he was about to protest until John fixed him with a stern glare, "now McKay!" He understood they were all apprehensive about bringing Elizabeth back but he didn't have the answers, much less an explanation.

All they needed to know -all he knew himself- was that she wasn't a threat.

For now, that would have to be enough.