Chapter Fifty Four

And faster than you can follow me
From this lonely place

And farther than you can find me
I'm leaving
Yeah, I'm leaving today

Midnight Hour – Running Away

The trail leading down to the cave where Ronon Dex had made a shelter was dense with vegetation and Cass had found herself struggling to remain on her feet as she stumbled through the dense overgrowth with the portable surgery attached to her. John had managed to steady her a few times but it was still tough going even with his help. At the very edge of the trail she had handed John her firearm at Ronon's request over the radio before he left her with kiss on the forehead and the promise that he would be watching.

That seemed to set the niggling onset of anxiety twisting at her stomach at ease just a little. Knowing that John was keeping an eye on her made her feel just that tiny bit better at the situation she was walking into. She was stepping into the lion's den and as Cass strode into the clearing, dragging the metal case with her she realized that it was a bigger lion than she had originally anticipated.

Ronon Dex was well over six foot tall and he towered over Cass like tree as stopped dead at the sight of him. For a moment the two of them stood apart staring at each other as they studied one another intently. His vibrant green eyes were evaluating her as she knew he had many of the other soldiers. He was studying her for strengths and weaknesses. Cass straightened her spine and tipped up her chin in order to appear more authoritative and controlled than she felt inside.

His long dreadlocks fell midway down his back and had been pushed away from his face as he reviewed her with a stoic expression she couldn't read. There was no tightening in his impressive muscles, no aggression on his features and Cass felt herself relax a little at that fact he either didn't view her as a threat or feel the need to attack. There was no denying that the man must have a lot of skill and power behind him if he had been avoiding the Wraith for a prolonged amount of time.

Teyla was sitting on a rock just beyond the huge man, a grim smile upon her features as she rose to her feet before coming to stand just behind Ronon who hadn't moved a muscle since Cass had stepped into the clearing.

"Hi." Cass greeted, breaking the silence as she pulled the case further into the clearing. "I don't really make house calls but I'm guessing caves don't really count."

She cast a glance at the cave as she spoke, suppressing the shudder than ran through her bones at the sense memory. Different planet, different galaxy. She was sure that this case was a perfectly nice place to take shelter.

"What's in the case Doc?" Ronon asked her as he stepped back and tipped the gun she had just noticed was in his large hand towards Teyla.

His voice was a low rumble, like thunder before a storm and it suited his seemly surly demeanour. Cass clenched her teeth together for a second, annoyed at the fact she had let her initial impression of this man fool her into forgetting about his weapon.

"Surgical implements. Diagnostic tools, various drugs and antibiotics. You know doctor stuff." Cass answered calmly as she drew to a halt and gauged his reaction patiently.

"What?" Ronan questioned looking to Teyla for guidance.

He seemed to draw some reassurance from the other woman despite the fact he was clearly holding her prisoner. Cass tilted her hand slightly watching with curiosity. The grip on Teyla's arm didn't seem to be painful, just sturdy enough to keep her in place and the other woman didn't look alarmed or frightened instead she looked back at Ronon with an empathy Cass had barely seen before. Something had happened in the time that they were left along together, there was understanding between these two people. Maybe they had bonded over the atrocities the Wraith had caused over the centuries. Cass didn't know but seeing Teyla's reaction to the taller man set her own fears at ease, she would remain watchful but if the other woman deemed him safe for now then Cass could work with that.

"Ronon meet Doctor Cassandra Pierce. Doctor Pierce, Ronon." Teyla introduced the two of them cordially.

"I'd say it's nice to meet you but under the circumstances..." Cass drifted off realizing that this sounded rude considering how polite Teyla's greeting had been.

"I understand you have some sort of a transmitter in your back?" she said flicking back to business.

Ronon nodded his agreement, his lips pursing firmly together as she tugged the case into the enclosed area of the clearing. There was a spate of rock there that reminded her of a table and she thought that would probably be the perfect place to set up, it would also put Ronon exactly in John's line of fire if things got out of control.

"Have a seat." Cass said gesturing at the rock where Teyla had been sitting. "And take off your shirt and I'll have a look."

Ronon kept his gun trained on Teyla as he settled himself into the rock and raised his eyes upwards to the Athosian woman as she stood over him.

"A little help?" he requested gruffly indicating to the leather tactical vest he was wearing, along with his shirt and chest holster for a dangerous looking sword that glinted at them.

The gun remained on Teyla as both women helped to remove the items of clothing with a clinical efficiently until Ronon was sitting topless between them. Teyla's eyes widened at the five pointed scar on the man's chest just underneath this leather necklace. He was in excellent shape and well sculptured, he was a fighter, she could see that from his muscle definition and riveted skin. Ronon lowered his gaze in shame as Teyla took in the sight of him. This was a necessity, a chance at freedom for him after seven long years of being on the run. This was a possibility of returning home so he could live and heal amongst his people. He told himself these things as the flush crept up along his cheeks, he didn't want these women to feel sorry for him.

The Doctor's fingertips brushed his skin lightly as she moved his dreadlocks out of the way to gain access to the incision point. He felt his entire body constrict at the warmth of her flesh on his. It had been a long time since he'd interacted with another human being, even longer since he'd felt the comfort of a human touch.

There was nothing sexual about his reaction, the Doctor simply wasn't his type but there was something to be said for the rush of feelings that returned being surrounded in the presence of others. His world had been devoid and silent for so long it had almost startled him when the Colonel Sheppard had began to chatter at him back in the cave. The other military man was conversational and even if it was a tactic in order to get Ronon to set him free Ronon had been relieved to hear it. He had been alone for so long he had almost forgotten what the sound of a human voice could feel like.

Even in the small amount of time he spent with Teyla had been beneficial. Actually having a conversation with someone was a past time he used to enjoy and listening to her voice and answering her questions on his own personal situation had made him feel alive again instead of the animal he had felt that he was becoming.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you." Cass said soothingly as she set the dreadlocks over the curve of Ronon's stiff shoulders.

Her sapphire eyes landed on the vivid red hieroglyph of scars that were hacked into his flesh just inside the curve of his taunt shoulder blades.

"Jesus." she breathed unable to stop herself. "You tried to cut it out yourself didn't you?"

"Yea I tried once with a mirror but I couldn't quite reach." Ronon stated in a monotone voice. "Most of it's from two doctors."

"Butchers more like." Cass snorted as her delicate fingers traced the ridges of the scars as she struggled to find the exact point of the incision.

Ronon liked the Doctor he decided, almost as much as he liked Teyla. Teyla wasn't afraid of him the way the Doctor had been, she had treated him like a person in their brief time together and he could sense that the Doctor was coming into the same line of thinking since he wasn't exemplifying any threatening impulses towards her. If he got the slightest hint that something was amiss he wouldn't be afraid to bargain with the two women's lives.

Cass made a "hm" noise before the left side of her mouth twisted up in a grimace. The noise was a distraction, a welcome one. He hated the apprehension of waiting for something to cut into his skin. He heard her moving behind him and glanced over his shoulder in order to her removing a little box and a minute scanner from the silver brief case.

"Is that Ancestor Technology?" Ronon asked with fleeting interest.

"Uh huh." Cass responded as she flicked on the machine. "Can you hold still for a sec?"

Ronon complied with her request as she ran the scanner along the incision point and back up again pinpointing the location of the transmitter with the detector.

"It looks like I've got it." she said quietly, setting the life signs detector down on the dusty floor along side her. "I'm going to need you to out the weapon on the ground and lie down."

"Not a chance." Ronon rumbled defiantly.

"I've located the transmitter in the soft tissue next to the second thoracic vertebrate." Cass told him, her hands on her hips.

"Good" Ronan said flatly. "Cut it out."

"I don't think that's such a great idea with you sitting up." Cass explained to Ronon as calmly as she could. "I'll need to give you some anaesthetic to make you sleep while I remove it."

"No your not." he stated flatly.

"Stop being so stubborn." Cass snapped. "I'm trying to help you."

"Ronon." Teyla said using her calm and reasonable manner as she stepped between the two of them. "You need to trust us."

"I do." The Runner informed her pointing his weapon directly at her face. "That's why she's here and your still alive. Now get to work Doc."

This was the first show of hostility that Cass had witnessed and she knew from the deathly serious tone of his voice that he meant every single word of what he said. She was under no illusions that they were friends now because she was doing this. The outburst made Cass even wearier of the hulking man, it also made her rethink her course of action.

"I really do not think this is a good idea, I am going to be cutting very close to your spinal column if you flinch..." she warned Ronon, wagging her finger to empathise her point.

"I won't flinch." Ronon told her with absolute resolution.

"Fine." Cass muttered snapping on her latex gloves. "Brace yourself because this is gonna hurt like a bitch."

Cass tore open an antiseptic wipe and spread it across the bare flesh in order to minimise infection. Teyla took the tool tray and hovered beside Ronon in order to aid Cass. She hoped that her presence brought Ronon some comfort if he wouldn't take the pain killers. He wasn't a bad man, he was merely desperate. He had suffered for a very long time at the hands of the Wraith, being constantly hunted, tracked and dogged was no way for one to live.

The scalpel was already in Cass's hand as she spoke.

"Here it comes." she warned him pressing the blade gently against his flesh.

The pain must have been excruciating, she could hear Ronan's grunts getting louder as she cut even deeper into his flesh. Cass used the forceps to force aside the muscle, hearing the large man whimper as she did so.

"I know, I know." she said in a kind soothing voice. "We're almost there."

She picked up the tweezers as the green light flashed periodically from inside the wound. She dig the tweezers inside the open gash trying as hard as she could not to inflict any more damage upon Ronan. The small piece of black alien tech was nestled amongst the cartilage. Cass grasped it tightly, tugging it out with as much dexterity as possible.

"I think I've got it." she said, withdrawing a bloody piece of metal with wires attached.

Cass dropped it onto the ground and used the heel of her boot to crush it under foot. The loud crack was audible through the clearing as she ground it a few more times making sure the receiver was well and truly broken. Ronon began to waver from side to side, Cass managed to grab him under the arms to slow his descent to the floor but it didn't help much considering the man weighted twice as much as she did. Teyla was already crouched by her side as the two of them rolled Ronon onto his side and into the recovery position.

"I think he must have fainted from the pain." Cass told the other woman as she checked the large man's pulse and ensured he was still breathing.

Cass rose to her feet and made the 'O.K' sign with her fingers at the bushes that overlooked the clearing. John's untidy head bobbed up from the dense undergrowth as she gestured for him to come join them.


Hey guys, apologies on the late chapter! I was exhausted last night when I got home from work so I wasn't up for doing anything more than sleeping!

Shippo: lol I love the moments Ford and Rodney spend together because their so adverse to each other, it completely makes me laugh with the way they behave esp considering how unstable Ford is! Thanks for the review.

Brn: I love Lorne too, I couldn't avoid having Lorne in this story. He is far too awesome! Lol Cass knows there's military John and her John and the two of them are mutually exclusive. I think military John just treats her like one of the team, where normal John's like MY WIFE! I do love possessive John! Thankies for such a wonderful review.

Lan: lol for just Ronon or all six foot four men with dreads? lol Well I sincerely hope you enjoyed this chapter missy! Thankies for the review!