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Chapter 4: Into the wilderness.
Snap, Crackle, Crunch…. Snap, Crackle Crunch….
That was the first sound John heard as he came to awareness, and if he was going to be honest with himself it was annoying. He was warm and comfortable, so what was with the irritating noise? As he became more cognizant, he realised that his bed was hard, and it wasn't as warm as he thought it was. By this time, he suspected that he wasn't in bed, but lying on sandy ground. Slowly opening his eyes, he realised that he was on the floor of a sandy cave and that was the moment it all came back to him – Timus was gone. The noise continued and instantly he was on high alert. He knew that it wasn't Timus because even at his noisiest Timus wouldn't make that much noise on approach. So, it was obvious that someone was approaching the cave and he had every intention of being ready.
His entire body was tense by the time someone entered the cave, and it wasn't Timus – much to his chagrin. Standing at the entrance to his cave was the biggest man he'd ever seen; he was even bigger than Jatel – at least the biggest man he could ever remember seeing. His eyes opened wide as the man lunged toward him with a knife, but before the giant had a chance to touch him, he pulled out Timus' gun and shot the man. Luckily, he fell backwards and didn't end up falling on top of him because he was sure that the man would have crushed him and given the situation he was in, that would be bad.
Taking a deep breath, he double-checked to see if the man were dead, he never liked killing anyone, but the last thing he needed was this man reporting back to Jatel and telling him where he was – not that he could stay in the cave for much longer.
His knee was still stiff and swollen and he still couldn't remember much about his life before he'd ended up here. One thing he did know for sure was that Timus hadn't returned and for the moment he was on his own.
Standing up he limped over to the cave entrance and saw that the sun was just beginning to peep over the horizon, there was a fine mist in the air, and it was cold. Somehow, he had slept on and off for the entire night. The fire had burned down so it was incredibly cold, and he decided that he would have to pull the giant's coat off of him to give him some extra warmth.
Timus had left yesterday morning to go and see what Jatel and his friends were up to. By late afternoon when his friend hadn't shown John was beginning to worry and when Timus hadn't returned by evening, he was beginning to freak out.
The last thing Timus had said to him before he left was, 'if I don't return don't come looking for me. Follow the path over the mountain and on the other side, you'll find an old settlement, set up house there for the winter. Because that is where I'll be heading as soon as I get the chance.' Part of him wanted to stay by the gate and wait for rescue – from whom, he didn't know, but he was still convinced that someone was looking for him.
He knew that he should follow his friend's advice, but without Timus, he wondered if he would make it by himself. His knee was no better than it had been yesterday, even after spending the day resting. His head still hurt as well. But he knew that if he stayed here others would come looking for him and they wouldn't hesitate to kill him to get to his supplies. Not that there was much, all he'd been left with was two canteens of water, – which he'd already emptied and had to fill up at the river – a survival blanket some rope and a small tent. There had been a few weird protein bars in the rucksack as well, but they didn't last him long.
Not knowing where Timus had disappeared to was driving him crazy and he had a strong desire to go and look for him, but if Timus had been captured by Jatel and his gang there was nothing he could do about it in his condition. Perhaps he would try and have a look for him before he headed up the mountain.
The first thing he needed to do before he left was to try and get the giant's coat off him. The weather was cold, and it was only going to get colder as he tried to get over the mountain. Timus had told him that it would probably take two to three days depending on how much ground was covered each day – knowing his luck and the condition his knee was in it would probably take longer.
It took him another half an hour to get the giant's coat off him, put the fire out and pack his supplies. While he had been packing, he'd decided that he would spend a few hours searching for Timus and if he didn't find him by midday, he would head over the mountain.
oOo
Teyla had no idea how long she'd been asleep, but she was convinced that it wasn't long enough. She had been happily dosing when an argument started nearby, and she wished that whoever it was would stop. As she slowly became more aware, she realised that she was sitting up with her head resting on a table. Why am I not in bed was her first thought, followed by; perhaps I should open my eyes to find out what is going on.
When she finally managed to open her eyes, she found that she was in Rodney's lab, and it was then she remembered going to the scientist's lab with Ronon the night before. The theory was, that they could all offer some moral support to one another. Apparently, that wasn't working right now as Ronon, and Rodney were in the middle of a heated debate.
She had no idea what the time was, but she knew that arguing with each other wasn't going to find John any quicker.
"I told you it's like trying to find a needle in a very large haystack!" Rodney ranted.
"I don't care we have to find him, so you are the person most likely to be able to find him!" Ronon shouted in reply.
Taking a deep sigh, she tried to put a stop to it, "Rodney, Ronon, please do not argue, this will not help John!?"
They both stopped shouting, much to her relief. Sometimes it was like being on a team with a bunch of children when she was dealing with Rodney, Ronon and John, but she loved them dearly and she couldn't imagine her life without them. That thought alone brought tears to her eyes because one member of her team was missing, and she still wondered if she would ever see him again.
In an instant, Rodney and Ronon's arms were across her shoulders trying to offer her comfort. She appreciated the effort because she knew how hard it was for both men to express their emotions.
"Are you alright?" Rodney stammered, in his own awkward way.
Taking a deep breath and wiping her eyes, she tried to maintain control as she answered him, "I am as upset about John as you are, but I do know that fighting amongst ourselves will not find him. If sifting through the database is not helping perhaps, we should come up with another idea."
"Like what?" Rodney asked looking confused.
"She means that we need to go off-world and start asking some of our contacts," Ronon began, "and by contacts I don't mean Atlantis' contacts I mean Teyla's and mine."
"Do you think Woolsey will allow it?" Rodney asked and Teyla could sense to worry in his voice.
She looked at him with a determined look on her face, "I am sure that Mr Woolsey will not mind. He has not told the SGC what is happening as yet so now is a good time to be searching for him."
"Well in that case perhaps we should go and get some breakfast before my hypoglycaemia starts acting up, "Rodney suggested standing to his feet
Rather than suggest that Rodney didn't really have hypoglycaemia and it was just an excuse to eat, Teyla put her arm through his and gently lead him out of the lab towards the mess hall.
Looking at the clock on the wall in Rodney's lab she realised that it was 0900 hours and although it was later than she would normally start her day, she decided that she'd had nowhere near as much sleep as she'd like.
oOo
The sun was high in the sky by the time John decided to head up the mountain. He'd spent most of the morning looking for Timus and there was no sign of him. Jatel and his men were combing the woods in search of him and on more than one occasion John had almost been caught by them.
For the last hour, he'd been hiding behind a rocky outcrop keeping an eye on the gang by the gate, but in that time, he'd seen nothing to indicate that these men had captured Timus. He'd checked the hills and the small canyon near the cave he'd stayed in the night before and there was no trace of the big man. He only hoped that his new friend would turn up alive in the near future.
His knee was stiff and sore, and his head was pounding by this time, but he knew that he should probably begin the trek over the mountain that afternoon. Hopefully Timus would follow soon – otherwise he had no idea how he'd manage on his own, since he was still in pain and missing most of his memories.
So it was with a heavy heart that he picked up his backpack and the stout stick he'd been using as a walking stick and began his trek up the steep mountain path.
Although the sun was out, it was still extremely cold, and he was glad of the coat he'd taken of the dead giant – despite the smell. He figured that the sun would go down within four hours, so he may as well walk for three and then find a place to set up camp. There were nuts and berries in his pockets that he'd collected that morning and he had two full canteens of water, so that would have to suffice for now. He would try and hunt for some meat in the morning since he'd eaten well at breakfast.
The longer he walked the steeper the path became, the more his knee hurt. He'd put some of the herbs Timus had been using on his knee before he'd set out that morning, he'd also taken some of the herbs that Timus had been giving him to ease the pain. That was hours ago, and he knew that he'd probably have to stop and take some soon, but not before he set up camp for the night. There was too much ground to cover before nightfall to take the time to stop. He had vague memories of hiking in mountains by himself, he had no idea where he'd been and why he'd been out hiking alone, but a memory surfaced of arguing with a tall balding man, which caused a shooting pain behind his eyes. He felt himself falling to his knees, so he put his hands out to try and protect his face and injured knee as he fell to the floor and the last thing he heard and felt before he lost consciousness was the snap of his wrist as it hit a sharp rock before he fell on it.
oOo
After a large breakfast, Ronon was ready to head off-world. Woolsey had given him permission to seek out his own contacts to see if they could offer any information on where Sheppard may be. Woolsey had even suggested that he use whatever resources that he may need in his search.
Today it would just be Teyla accompanying him as Rodney had decided to stay in his lab and continue to search the data base for anything he could find. Lorne had offered to come with them as had numerous other Marines – a testament to how much Sheppard was liked and respected among his men. In the end, Ronon had decided that he didn't want to spook his contacts so he and Teyla would go alone.
He arrived at the stargate at 1100 hours Atlantis time and within a few minutes, Teyla was alongside him. Turning to Amelia in the gate room, he signalled for her to dial the gate and then turned to Woolsey who was standing on the balcony outside his office. He had no idea why, but Woolsey always seemed to stand at that exact point every time a team went through the gate.
"You have a go," Woolsey told him with a nod of his head.
Nodding in reply, he turned to face the gate, just as the wormhole sprang to life.
"Are you ready to go?" He asked Teyla taking her hand.
When she nodded, they stepped through the wormhole together, hoping that today was the day that they would find out some information on John Sheppard's whereabouts. Sure, he'd only been gone a few days, but the fact that he had no idea where his friend was frustrated the hell out of him, and he knew that he wouldn't rest until he found him alive and well.
When he exited the stargate and stepped onto the Planet Gildaria, his face was hit by icy, pelting rain. The wind was howling through the trees surrounding the gate and the path ahead of them was muddy. His first thought was that perhaps they should head back, but then he knew that he would never forgive himself if these people had information that could lead him to Sheppard. What would happen to Sheppard if he delayed the mission? No, they needed to find him as soon as possible because the longer it took to find him the more chance there was that his friend may not make it.
Turning to Teyla he saw determination in her eyes, so he hoped that she was thinking the same thing he was, "shall we continue!?" He shouted above the ferocious wind and pelting rain.
"Yes!" She shouted," but we had better be quick because I believe that the weather is getting worse!"
Rather than reply, he retook her hand and headed down the muddy path towards the Gildarian settlement. The Satedans had traded with these people many years ago before Sateda had been destroyed by the Wraith, but when Atlantis had approached them about trade the Gildarians had refused and told them never to come to their planet again. Ronon had approached their leaders a short time after and they had agreed to keep in contact with him. When Ronon had asked them why they did not wish to trade with the Atlanteans they had stated that they feared by doing so it would bring the wrath of the Wraith down upon them. He had tried to tell them that the Atlanteans could help in the fight against the wraith, but they had refused to listen. He also knew that if the Gildarians needed help from Atlantis that they would get it and they wouldn't even have to ask. That was what the people of Atlantis did, they helped people and gave them hope in their fight against the wraith and John Sheppard believed in helping others most of all. That is why he didn't deserve to be banished to some rock just because some woman's home planet had been destroyed by the wraith.
The storm continued to rage as they walked on in silence. The settlement was normally only a five-minute walk from the gate, but given the weather conditions, it seemed to be taking much longer. Unfortunately, that left him with way too much time to think and when he had too much time to think, he began to grow angry.
He was relieved when they approached the settlement a few minutes later, but instantly he knew that something was wrong. The place seemed to be deserted and although there was a storm raging, he would have expected to see a few people around. There was no light in any of the windows and as he looked beyond the houses towards the fields where the crops should have been, he soon realised that they had been decimated – burnt to the ground. He was sure that if he explored the settlement, he would come across the remains of some of the villagers and shuddered at the thought.
Although he wanted to explore more, the wind was becoming stronger, the rain was turning to sleet, the visibility was low, and he knew that he needed to get inside before nightfall.
Sighing he turned to face Teyla, "we should seek shelter for the night!" He shouted above the storm.
Teyla merely nodded her head at him, and they both raced to the nearest cabin. Once inside he wasted no time in turning on his flashlight to try and light the darkening room. Luckily, there were still a few candles lying around and because they always carried matches in their tac vests it was easy enough to light up the room in no time – the candles provided a small amount of warmth as well.
The first thing he did when the room was lit up was to pull the shutters down because although he suspected that the wraith were long gone, they could turn up at any time.
Two wooden chairs and a table stood in the centre of the room and off to the side were two overstuffed armchairs. The room was made of wood and there was a homemade rug on the floor by the hearth. A pile of wood was next to the fire and Ronon wondered whether it would be a good idea to light a fire. There were two rooms off to the side and at a quick glance he guessed that they were bedrooms.
Although they had set foot on the planet an hour ago, it was as black as night outside the cabin and knowing how short the days were on this planet, they would probably need to spend the night here.
Once he was sure that the place was secure, he sat in one of the overstuffed armchairs and he was happy when Teyla immediately sat in the other one.
"So how long ago do you think this happened?" Teyla asked him and he didn't miss the worried look on her face.
"Probably a week or two. Do you sense any wraith presence now?"
"No, I believe they are long gone."
Ronon noticed that Teyla was shivering for the first time since they'd arrived – which wasn't surprising as both of their clothes were soaking wet.
"I think I'll light a fire and if we move the armchairs close, perhaps we can get dry before this storm lets up."
"But Ronon, what if it doesn't let up in a hurry?"
He had no idea what to say to that because surely the storm couldn't last forever, so he just shrugged his shoulders, stood up and began to build the fire.
Half an hour later when they had a roaring fire, he sat back in the overstuffed armchair and realised that Teyla was almost asleep. It was probably better that they both slept in the same room and in the main room was as good a place as any.
As much as he wanted to go to sleep, he decided that he should probably keep watch, just to make sure that no one came and bothered them during the night. He knew that he was probably being paranoid, but he owed it to Sheppard to keep an eye on Teyla. Although Teyla and Sheppard had never expressed their feelings for one another, everyone knew that their feelings ran deeper than friendship. He just hoped that they'd get a chance to be together.
"Do you think that there are any Gildarians still alive?" Teyla asked in a soft voice.
"There are some caves near here, so as soon as we're able I suggest we go back to Atlantis and get them to send though a search team and a jumper, so that we can go and look for them."
"I hope that there are survivors." Teyla replied sleepily.
"So do I," he mumbled to himself, "so do I."
Settling back into the overstuffed armchair, he kept an eye on the fire – and Teyla. He knew exactly when she fell asleep as her breathing became a little heavier even though it evened out. Sighing he closed his eyes thinking that it probably wouldn't hurt to close them for a while – it had been a long day after all.
oOo
A voice whispered to him through the darkness, "John, John is that you?"
Straining his eyes through the darkness, he saw no one. He was about to call out when the soft silky voice spoke again.
"Do not worry John, we are coming for you. You just need to hold on a little longer."
The face of an angel appeared in front of him, and she had the most gorgeous brown eyes and copper skin, her hair was the colour of chestnuts, and her figure was small and Petit. He had no idea who this was and why she was talking to him, but he really hoped that she had come to rescue him from the darkness he was trapped in….
"Sheppard, Sheppard, wake up?"
This voice was loud and annoying, not soft, and gentle like the angel's voice. He wished whoever it was would go away and then hopefully, he'd hear the angel again. No such luck however because the voice was persistent.
"Sheppard, you have to wake up now?"
Slowly he opened his eyes, and he was disappointed and relieved at the same time to find that Timus was looking down at him.
As he became more aware, he soon realised that not only was his right knee throbbing and head aching, but his left wrist was also screaming at him. To make matters worse it was dark and cold. The moon was a tiny slither in the sky, so it didn't look as if they would get much light anytime soon.
"What happened," he whispered.
"It's a long story and I will tell you all about it as soon as I get you into the cave I've found near here."
He nodded at his big friend, "sure buddy, but you're going to have to help me up."
As Timus grabbed his right hand, he noticed that his left wrist was bent at an odd angle and it made him feel sick.
Timus had barely grabbed his hand when he fell to the ground and started to retch, he hadn't eaten since breakfast so there wasn't much left in his stomach, but he continued to retch long after his meagre stomach contents had been expelled.
He felt a hand rubbing tiny circles on his back and it reminded him of someone. Someone who always rubbed his back when he was sick – perhaps more than one person. He waited for the intense pain to start behind his eyes like it did every other time he remembered something, but this time it didn't – much to his relief.
A voice cut through the haze he was experiencing, "come on Sheppard, let's get you out of the cold?"
"Sure," he mumbled and let Timus help him to his feet again.
It took them ten minutes to get to the cave that was only five hundred metres away. Even though Timus was holding him up, he kept falling over. When they finally reached the cave Timus sat him against the wall and set about lighting a fire.
Twenty minutes later Timus had a roaring fire going and for the first time since John had woken up, he felt warm.
"Okay, Sheppard let me have a look at your arm?"
"Not before you tell me where you've been?"
"Let me have a look at your arm first Sheppard and then I'll tell you everything."
There was a pleading look in Timus' eyes, so perhaps his friend was right and his arm needed attention, so he nodded at his friend and retreated into himself, hoping to block out some of the pain he was experiencing.
Timus said something to him, but he was too groggy and in too much pain to realise what his friend had said until he felt Timus' hands on his broken wrist. The pain was excruciating, and it wasn't long before he saw black dots dancing in front of his eyes, gritting his teeth he tried to breathe through the pain as the edge of his vision began to grey. The darkness was encroaching on him yet again and this time he was more than happy to let it claim him.
oOo
Teyla was in a dark place and all around her were trees and rocks. There was wind whistling through the trees and up ahead she saw a dark shape lying on the ground. She decided that she needed to find out what it was, so she started to walk toward it. As she got closer, she realised that it was a person, and she was fairly sure that it was John.
"John, John is that you?"
The man opened his eyes and looked in her direction, but for some reason, he looked straight through her.
She felt the need to offer comfort to this man especially if it was John, "do not worry John, we are coming for you. You just need to hold on a little longer."
Suddenly the man was gone, and she was left in the darkness alone wondering if she'd imagined what she had just seen…
She awoke with a start, only to find that she was still in the cabin on the Gildarian home-world, the fire was still burning and Ronon was still awake and staring at her.
"Are you alright Teyla?"
"No, I am not. John is all alone and in great pain. I do not know how I know this, but we need to get to him as soon as possible."
"Did you have a bad dream?" Ronon asked her tenderly.
"Yes…perhaps that is all it was." She told him, but she was far from convinced.
Closing her eyes, she tried to get the image of John alone and injured out of her head. She really felt as if she had connected with him somehow, and he was close by and in need of help.
TBC…