Chapter 25

Rodney lay flat on his back on the floor of Akalus' office, recovering from the merciless beating he'd endured for his insolence. His head thumped in time with his pounding heartbeat, his vision phasing in and out as he struggled to stay conscious.

'Did you really think you could stop me?' the armoured man demanded, standing over him, casting his long shadow over Rodney's motionless form.

Rodney groaned, but didn't reply. He figured it was a rhetorical question anyway.

Akalus bent down and caught him by the hair, lifting his head up off the hard floor. 'Answer me!' he demanded

Okay, so not rhetorical then. Rodney held his tongue, determined to admit to nothing. This interrogation had been going on for some time now – at a rough estimate, at least a couple of hours. He'd maintained his silence throughout, albeit punctuated with a few cries and groans, and he wasn't about to break now. Sheppard would have been so proud of him. He hadn't screamed like a girl or fainted once. That had to be a record for him. His occasional spars with Ronon, although few and far between, had apparently paid off.

Frustrated, Akalus allowed Rodney's head to drop to the floor again, cracking the back of his skull against the hard surface. Once upon a time that would have been worth a protest, but considering his whole body was engulfed in agony, it was hardly worth a mention, at least no more than a whimper.

'How did you get into my files? How much do you know? Were you deliberately trying to get into my personal files, or was it just by chance you found yourself there?' Akalus demanded…again. Like a broken record, repeating over and over…

The sharp contact of a boot in his ribs brought Rodney back to his senses despite his brain's best efforts to shut him down. He rolled his eyes in Akalus' direction, but once again refused to give him an answer. His jaw hurt so much he doubted he could speak if he wanted to. It was definitely cracked, possibly broken. It was going to be months before he could eat solids again at least. Not that he got anything other than that sloppy frogspawn crap in this place anyway. What he wouldn't give for a pepperoni pizza right now…or an ice-cream sundae with extra whipped cream and sprinkles considering his probably, ever so likely broken jaw issue. Anything other than that insipid, slimy mulch they served up here.

'You try my patience,' Akalus growled, tearing at Rodney's hair again. 'You're only human, so ultimately dispensable.'

'And you think that frightens me?' McKay croaked, finally breaking his silence. To be honest, he only said that because he was pretty much certain Akalus needed him. He wouldn't have dared say it if he didn't…and maybe also because he didn't think it was possible to hurt any more than he already did. Every new torture just blended into his general malaise now. He hadn't thought he could bear the kind of beating he'd been put through, but hey,

'It should,' he told him, pulling his head up further, until Rodney was on his knees before him. 'Because there are many ways in which to die in Phylacos, all of them more horrible than your pitifully unimaginative mind can conjure.'

Akalus released him with a push. Then, unexpectedly, a change came over him. Without being able to see his face, Rodney couldn't fully interpret the change until Akalus actually turned and offered his hand to him to help him to his feet.

'You humans are such brave creatures,' he whispered. 'I never cease to be amazed by you. You make your futile little stands believing you have something worth fighting for. Peace, dignity, friendships, freedom…empty, hollow beliefs that amount to nothing in the entirety of this existence you pass through so fleetingly.'

Rodney begrudgingly admitted to himself that Akalus' words were rather poetic as far as threats went. 'W…Well,' he stammered, with a determined jut of his jaw. 'Those things may not be important to you, but they're –'

'— Facile and insignificant in comparison to the horrors humankind has inflicted on this universe,' Akalus interjected. He leaned his face in close to Rodney's, so he was nose to nose with his reflection in Akalus' visor. 'You realise resisting me is pointless because I have all the control here? I can crush you out of existence, or make your life so painful you'll wish I had.'

'Facile or not, you obviously need me alive or you'd have killed me already,' McKay charged through clenched teeth, wondering where the hell that death-wish of an accusation had come from. He wasn't really the brave and challenging type; this was more Ronon and Sheppard's thing. But he knew what he was saying was true, and he clung to that belief now as the room began to tremble around him, a sure sign that Akalus was ready to explode.

The door to the office opened and Hakkar stepped inside. He gave only the slightest pause on seeing McKay sprawled out on the floor before continuing to enter the room. He had the sense, however, to wait until invited to speak rather than interrupting his master.

Eventually, Akalus turned to face the Kheprian guard. 'This had better be good, Hakkar. Can't you see I'm busy?'

The Kheprian seemed unshaken by his insinuated threat. 'I think you will want to stop for this news, Master,' he replied. The missing human has returned.'

oooOOOooo

Under Mehra's direction, she and Ronon carried Teyla onto the balcony area of the hangar and lowered her gently to the floor, both of them left breathless by the effort.

Mehra hunched down into the corner where she'd hidden while watching the Reliquiae strip the flesh from some unfortunate human's bones and waited for the pain to pass. A wave of sadness came over her as she thought of Sheppard again. She couldn't feel happy for him, even though Geeja had told her he was still alive. Even if that were true, which she seriously doubted, somewhere those unholy beasts were holding him against his will, and he hadn't wanted to go with them. When they got out of here, discovering Sheppard's fate had to be their next priority. He might not have become their next course yet, and could possibly still be alive as Geeja insisted, but something told her it was only a matter of time before his usefulness as sustenance outweighed their other needs.

She and Ronon managed to prop Teyla into a sitting position, leaning her head back against the wall for support. She was still out cold, and hadn't shown even the slightest sign that she was coming out of it. It was an added complication they could do without, but it wasn't as if they could just leave her there. They would simply have to wait it out and take the opportunity to rest to give them the strength to press on.

'What should we do now?' Ronon asked.

Mehra was surprised to hear him ask for her advice. She'd expected him to be ready to fight their way out of there one Kheprian at a time. But she could see real fatigue in his drawn face, the dark purple rings around his eyes seeming to deepen there in the shadows. 'For now, we just sit tight and wait for Teyla to wake up. We can't go any further trying to carry her – neither of us is strong enough.'

Ronon nodded his agreement while at the same time looking like he wanted to punch a wall in sheer frustration. She suspected he hated playing this waiting game just as much as she did, but they had little choice, all things considered. It was pretty much all she could do not to puke right now. Her shoulders throbbed and bled out through the lab tunic they'd stolen from the Birajans. She'd shut the pain out long enough to help move Teyla, sheer stubbornness keeping her going, but now she needed to rest. The pain was too much to ignore any longer. Once Teyla was awake, they could move on without any more strain on her injuries. And they would be able to move more quickly too, which had to be a win-win.

Teyla suddenly groaned and shifted slightly in her sleep. Ronon stroked her cheek, his eyes fixed intently on her face. Mehra felt like a third wheel, imposing on their friendship like this, but she didn't exactly have anywhere else to go. She looked out over the balcony to give Ronon as much privacy as she could while he looked after Teyla and made her comfortable.

Down at ground level, she heard the tell-tale screeches of Kheprians approaching, their raised voices growing steadily louder as they entered through a doorway beneath them. Hearing the disturbance, she and Ronon instinctively ducked down, pulling Teyla a little further into the corner where Ronon practically wrapped himself around their unconscious companion so he could shield her. Mehra's natural sense of curiosity, however, forced her to take another look to see what was causing the excitement below them. Something had the Kheprians decidedly riled, and anything that pissed them off this much had to be a good thing.

There were half a dozen Kheprians entering, two of them dragging a struggling human along with them. At first there were so many guards crowded around him that she couldn't see anything more than an occasional flash of dark clothing…then dark hair. A queasy flip of hopefulness leapt in her stomach, and a thought she hadn't dared to think demanded to be heard. Was it really him? Had he really survived?

The guards threw the human to the floor in the middle of the room, and forced him to remain on his knees before them. They squeaked and screeched orders to each other, none of which made any sense to her, as she tried to see between their legs to get a good view of the man who was causing them so much consternation.

Only after a few more minutes screeching, prodding and shoving did they back off and give the human in their midst some room to breathe.

Sheppard sat back on his heels, looking around at his captors. Other than a scrape on his left cheekbone he seemed mostly unharmed. The Reliquiae really hadn't tried to eat him after all. He'd been cleaned up and his complexion was several shades healthier than when she'd last seen him. If he hadn't been so thin she'd have described him as back to his old self again.

'Holy crap! It is! It's Sheppard!' she whispered, unable to keep the crazy grin she wore from spreading across her face.

Ronon was immediately beside her, and then he was grinning too. This was the first time he'd laid eyes on Sheppard for six months. Mehra was glad he hadn't seen him before he'd been taken. It was better for him to see his friend this way. A desperately sick Sheppard might have made him do something rash.

The sense of guilt she'd carried for the past few days lifted off her almost instantly. She hadn't let Sheppard die. He really had survived. And he looked so different. So well – although completely outnumbered by Kheprian bully boys right now. Her protective instincts stirred. She wanted to get down there and kick some Kheprian butt, but she had to tell herself there was nothing effective she could do for him at this moment. Better to wait for another and more realistic opportunity to show itself.

Beside her, Ronon had also settled into tense contemplation, but he too stayed concealed. They needed to maintain what little advantage their freedom gave them. Sheppard just had to hang on a while longer until they could get to him.

oooOOOooo

Sheppard thought about trying to get back to his feet, but a restraining claw on his shoulder made him reconsider. Perhaps kneeling wasn't such a bad idea. He'd walked a fair distance in desert heat – he supposed he could use the rest.

The Kheprians were in a state of great agitation around him. Goronak had told him the Kheprians didn't work willingly for Akalus, but that really wasn't the vibe he was getting from them. They seemed unnaturally pleased that their master's prize had returned. Why would they care if they weren't on his side? That didn't fit with Goronak's story at all.

He wondered about talking to them, trying to find out if there was any leeway in their devotion to their illustrious, power-crazed leader, but he wasn't sure he dared. They'd already scuffed him up a bit just bringing him into the compound. If they didn't like his suggestions of insurrection, things could go south real quick.

He looked up at the one standing closest to him, trying to decide whether to speak to him or keep quiet. The guard saw him raise his head and swung back his club like upper right pincer, ready to lash out at him. Sheppard flinched, closing his eyes and waiting for the blow…that never came.

When he dared to open his eyes, he saw Wanless standing over him, tightly gripping the arm that had been about to strike him. He said nothing, just held the other Kheprian's arm to prevent him from striking Sheppard. Eventually, as the other Kheprian relaxed his stance, Wanless let go of him and the guard backed away, subservient before his superior officer. Sheppard looked up at Wanless' masked face, wondering what the creature was thinking. It was odd that he'd stepped in to help him after all the previous animosity between them. Could Goronak be right after all.

'Thanks,' he ventured, figuring it couldn't hurt.

The three-armed Kheprian snorted and looked away as the ground began to tremble beneath them.

Sheppard knew what that meant.

Akalus was coming.

Wanless grabbed hold of Sheppard's head and pressed it down, forcing him low. At first, he thought it was a punishment, but then he realised that, with no idea he could understand his language, this was the only way the huge brute could quickly explain that he should bow his head. He stopped resisting the pressure and did just that, keeping his head low as the ground shook in time with Akalus' approaching footsteps. Happy with his compliance, Wanless removed the pressure he'd been applying and moved aside.

Eventually, Sheppard saw a set of boots come to a standstill in front of him.

The silence that followed crushed the air out of his lungs. Sheppard stayed low, not wanting any trouble that might leave him incapable of carrying out his mission. Eventually though, he couldn't take the silence any longer, and slowly lifted his head to look up at his captor.

Akalus loomed over him without speaking, but his anger was clear from the continual rumbling in the floor where Sheppard knelt. He knew Akalus wouldn't kill him, but he was sure he could inflict a lot of pain before he'd finished with him, then have him patched up in the lab so he could start all over again. The Birajans here were good at that kind of thing.

'Where have you been, Human?' Akalus finally asked.

'I was in a rebel camp. They stole me from the Reliquiae and held on to me while they figured out what they should do next. When they decided to kill me, I escaped and came back here. I didn't know where else to go.'

Akalus squatted down in front of him examining his newly replicated clothes, and stroking his gloved fingers down his three-day-old stubble. 'The Reliquiae treated you well, I see.'

'Hardly,' he muttered, regretting it as Akalus grabbed his chin, the metal plates of his gloves digging into his flesh.

'Then, you prefer your treatment here? You wish to go back to your cell?'

'I don't have much of a choice. The Reliquiae want to hook me on enzyme so I'm a slave to them, or I go back to my cell and I'm a prisoner to you. So, I figured coming back here was my best option since at least no one here wants to eat me.'

'You shouldn't be so ungrateful,' Akalus growled, releasing his grip on him. 'The Reliquiae have done you a favour, Human. They saved your life when it had all but abandoned you.'

'I know,' he said meekly. 'Doesn't mean I have to like it.'

Akalus took a couple of steps back and regarded him silently, apparently mulling his response over. Apparently Sheppard hadn't been as convincing as he'd hoped to be, because Akalus eventually pulled himself up to his full and considerable height and asked, 'So, why are you really here?'

The ground beneath Sheppard trembled more forcefully, sending tremors through his whole body. It felt like even nature responded to Akalus' commands. 'I told you, I didn't know where else to go,' he repeated, shrinking back from him as the vibrations increased.

Akalus stepped in closer again, bending over him until his visor almost touched the tip of Sheppard's nose. 'You lie,' he said simply.

'Wha -'

'I said, you lie,' he growled again.

'Why…why would I lie about this?'

'Because you are hiding something from me.'

Oh, crap! Sheppard thought. How does he know? Then he realised he was reading him somehow…reading him like the Wraith could. He had to close down his mind to him before he accessed the truth.

'You have learned of your purpose here in Gragoffa,' Akalus charged, already through his initial barriers.

'What purpose? To make money for you? I already knew that.'

A backhand fro Akalus' armoured hand left his ears ringing. 'You know that isn't what I mean.'

Sheppard wiggled his jaw to make sure it was still in place after the heavy blow. 'Then, I've got no idea -'

Akalus held up his hand, and Sheppard found he instantly had no voice. 'No more of your lies,' he ordered. 'If you know who I am, as I suspect you do, you will understand that lying to me is pointless. I see and know everything.'

He pressed his hand to Sheppard's chest. A weird sensation filled him, like his blood was bubbling and rushing through his veins far too quickly. Looking down at the back of his hands, he saw all his veins suddenly standing proud, forcing their way to the surface of his skin. What the hell was he doing to him?

'The universe is so much more than we can see and touch. We are surrounded by energy – it penetrates us, and moves through us –'

Was this guy seriously going Star Wars on him? Sheppard felt a wave of pain throughout his body as his veins bulged still more. It felt as though they would rupture, but Akalus didn't relent. He held him at that point of agony for far longer than was fair or necessary. Eventually, he got the result he wanted, and Sheppard cried out for him to stop.

Akalus withdrew his hand, leaving Sheppard frightened and shaken. That had been by far the worst pain he'd experienced in his life, and his life had been pretty crap of late.

'I control that energy, Human. And while I control it, you cannot hope to defeat me.'

Sheppard took a few minutes to regain his breath, before growling, 'We'll see about that, you sad old Vader wannabe.'

If he hadn't been so shocked and angry, he would have realised that such a disrespectful retort, even if the reference was lost on Akalus, was bound to land him in more trouble. Akalus slapped him hard across the face again, leaving his cheek stinging and the metallic taste of blood on his tongue. It felt like he'd been hit with a shovel. He half-expected to open his eyes to a circle of cartoon birds twittering around his head.

'You will not talk to me that way.'

Sheppard just glared, earning himself a second slap. Vision swimming and ears ringing, he forced himself to look away, bowing his head again. Maybe attitude wasn't the right way to go. He really did need to stay conscious and mobile to distribute the explosives.

The ground, which had begun to quake with tremendous power along with Akalus' rising temper, now steadied again to a slight tremble. 'That's better, Human,' Akalus' synthesised voice purred. 'Know your place and everything will be much easier for you. Work with me, not against me, and your remaining time can be peaceful.'

In fact, Sheppard was beginning to understand his place very well. Akalus might be strong and perceptive, but he was also arrogant, and that was a weakness he could exploit. He blanked his mind, put up an imaginary wall around his thoughts, and hoped he could keep him out. Shutting him down, he tried desperately to think of nothing – to empty his mind of any trace of the plan.

Eventually, Akalus appeared to accept there was nothing more to his return than self-preservation.

'Take him to my chamber, Hakkar,' he said, turning and walking away. 'I'll talk to him there.'

Acting quickly before Wanless could grab hold of him and haul him from the room, Sheppard dislodged one of the patches from his arm. It fell to the floor, instantly camouflaged.

oooOOOooo

Mehra watched Wanless grasp Sheppard roughly by the arms and drag him out through the doorway. He offered little resistance, obviously understanding it would be both futile and painful. Only now did she realise how fast her heart was pounding, her joy at seeing Sheppard alive and apparently well sending it into overdrive. She lowered herself back down to her haunches beside Teyla just in time to see her eyes strain open.

Ronon quickly clamped a huge hand over her mouth, gesturing with a finger to his lips, that she should be quiet. As he gradually removed his hand, Teyla held her peace, looking around in complete bewilderment.

Mehra gently touched her arm. 'Teyla? You okay?'

Teyla looked puzzled. 'Sergeant Mehra? How did you get here?'

Mehra sighed, exchanging an anxious glance with Ronon. 'The bug guys kidnapped me. We talked about this before. Don't you remember?'

The confusion reflected in Teyla's expression just deepened.

'You feel all right?' Mehra asked again.

Teyla looked at her, clearly still dazed. 'Yes, I think so. But where are we? How did we get here?' she whispered.

Mehra wasn't sure where to start her explanation. It was clear that whatever those scientists had done to Teyla had caused some short-term amnesia, so much so that Mehra wondered if she remembered anything at all. 'Do remember anything about where you are?'

'Of course,' she said, frowning at both Mehra and Ronon as if wondering why they were treating her like an idiot. 'We are in Phylacos. But why am I no longer in the mines?' her gaze drifted to the growing spots of blood on the front of Mehra's jacket. 'You are hurt. I should take a look at your injuries.'

Mehra hushed her. 'I don't have time to explain everything right now, or for you to look at any injuries. I'm good to go,' she said, looking to Ronon to take the lead.

'You sure you're okay?' he asked Teyla again, as if the answer she'd given Mehra wasn't enough to convince him.

She did have a distinctly "spacey" look about her, Mehra conceded, but stoned or not they had to get moving.

'How did I get out of the mines?' Teyla asked again, leaving Ronon rolling his eyes and looking even more wary. 'Where are we now?' She definitely had some time missing, they just had to hope it came back, or she could hold it together well enough not to hinder them.

Mehra took over the conversation again. 'We're on a balcony overlooking the hangar where they brought you in six months ago,' she said. 'We're hiding out here until we get an opportunity to make a break for it.'

'Oh, I see,' Teyla nodded, looking troubled.

'Is something wrong, Teyla?'

'Apart from all this?' she asked, with a wry smile.

Mehra couldn't help but smile, too. 'Yeah, we're in deep crap, all right. But we're gonna to get you outta here, I promise.' Then, she felt a pang of regret as she remembered Sheppard's warning about making promises she had no way of keeping. But she meant to keep this one…she just hadn't quite worked out the finer details yet.

Teyla frowned as if in discomfort, then lifted her top a little to see the red scar on her abdomen. 'Have I undergone surgery?'

'Not surgery exactly. Sheppard said the scientists here take samples for genetic experimentation.'

'John. He is here? You saw him?' her face literally lit up with delight, just as it had the first time she'd found out about him.

Mehra sighed and swiped a hand down over her face. 'Yeah, he's here. We talked about that earlier, too.'

From the corner of her eye she saw Ronon shaking his head, his dreadlocks swaying with the movement. He was worried for Teyla, but he wasn't saying as much.

Teyla looked confused, and clearly wanted her to explain further, but this wasn't the time. Mehra's gaze travelled back down to ground level, and the doorway she'd watched Sheppard leave through. She'd intended to look for Rodney before they made their bid for freedom, and now there was someone else in Phylacos she couldn't leave without. Things were becoming steadily more complicated. She hadn't thought it would be easy, but locating two people in a place as vast as this before the guards discovered them would be verging on impossible.

'So…how we gonna play this?' Ronon asked in his usual no-nonsense way. It warmed her heart to hear this place hadn't taken that directness out of him.

Again, Mehra felt a little out of her depth, more used to taking orders than giving them. But one thing she knew instinctively was that Teyla wasn't up to speed yet, and that made her a liability in terms of carrying out a search. 'First things first, I want you two to sit here and wait for me to get back,' she announced.

'Why? Where are you going?' Ronon asked, as she headed for the door and slipped the key card into the control.

'We need to find McKay and Sheppard,' she answered. 'Moving around in a group risks drawing attention. If I go alone, I can stay hidden.'

'You're hurt. I should go,' he grunted.

'Teyla trusts you. She needs you here,' Mehra insisted. 'I can do this.'

With that, she left, acutely aware of Ronon's burning frustration as she left them both behind.

A/N: I know, I know! I'm late again and I am very sorry! My son was going away on a residential trip and washing and packing for him took longer than I anticipated. But here's the update at last. And next week I should have things back to normal. Thanks for your patience, and thanks to everyone leaving reviews. I'll reply individually to those of you who have an account as soon as I can. :)