Chapter Fourteen: Awaking to your worse nightmare


He awoke to pain.

Nothing but searing pain!

His every nerve was screaming. His entire body was on fire.

He opened his eyes and instantly regretted it. The light about him stabbed deeply into his aching eyes, and pierced into the very back of his head like a burning needle. After closing his eyes for several moments, he tried again but slowly, letting his eyes readjust to the room lighting.

Immediately, he recognized the ceiling, he was back on Moya. Or more accurately, one of Moya's holding cells. After a while, he remembered being ambushed on the planet below.

"Ah," John moaned, realizing that he was a prisoner on his own ship. "This day just gets better and better."

The aches and pains were slowly diminishing, so he tried to move, working his muscles into action. He rolled onto his side and froze in fright. Not but a few feet from him was Aeryn Sun, her skin was dead pale white. It was like reliving a nightmare all over again, the day she died on the frozen planet, drowning in that icy lake.

"Aeryn!"

In that one moment, John forgot everything. He crawled towards her, ignoring the screaming protest of his aching and abused muscles. Inch by inch, he crawled to her side, to check her, feeling her pulse and was relieved to find that Aeryn was alive but her vitals were weak and her skin was ice cold.

"Aeryn, can you hear me?" John said, gently touching her face and held it her hand. She was so cold. "Tell me that you're okay. Aeryn, please talk to me. Aeryn!"

She remained perfectly still, unresponsive. Aeryn's white skin colour terrified John, it made her look like a corpse. He knew too little about Sebacean biology and he cursed himself for not knowing more. John had to get her help, he had to.

He stumbled to the cell door, still on weak legs and shouted. "Hey! There's a person who medical attention here! HEY!"

No one answered and John was borderline freaking out when he saw movement in the cell across the corridor from him. D'Argo came into view, peering at him through his cell door.

"John," D'Argo groaned, feeling like complete dren. "Are you okay?"

"Aeryn is in here with me and she's in terrible shape," John was frantic. "Where are Jool and the others?"

"I don't know." D'Argo shook his head, trying to regain some of his strength. "We were ambushed as soon as we got to the spaceport, I was hit by some sort of a blue energy beam and I blacked out in pain. Where's Sheba?"

"I don't know, I saw her be hit by these Sebacean looking goons firing the same sort of energy beams that you just described before I was knocked out by one myself."

Just then, they both heard Jool's voice weakly calling from a cell next to them down the corridor.

"John... D'Argo?"

"Jool, are you okay?" John called back to her. "Is anyone with you?"

"I've been better... and Rygel is here with me. What happened?" Jool said, clinging to the cell door, trying to peer out to see John.

"We were attacked by Storm Troopers. Is Rygel okay?"

"He's snoring."

"Aeryn's not, her pulse is weak and she's white as a ghost." John said quickly. "What's wrong with her?"

Jool thought for a moment, still gathering her thoughts. "I can't tell unless I can examine her but it sounds like system shock. If she was hit by the same beams as we were, it could have severely affected her metabolic system, maybe even affecting the function of her vital organs."

John looked back to Aeryn, who remained pale as a corpse.

"What can we do?" He shouted, wishing he had the strength to break the cell doors down and get Aeryn help.

"Nothing much but keep her warm." Jool said. "Her body function may return to normal on its own, but not if she keeps loosing warmth."

"If that doesn't work?"

Jool didn't want to answer that question. "Keep her warm, John!"

John obeyed and hurried back to Aeryn's side. Gently lifting her up in his arms, he carried her to the wall vent where warm air flowed into the room. He laid her down in front of the vent and removed his jacket and covered her with it. He settled down next to Aeryn, placing an arm under her head to keep her comfortable and much as he dared too, pressed his body up against hers. John still couldn't believe how cold she was to the touch. Her Sebacean system was always unusual, especially being a cold blooded species. Heat which would only be uncomfortable to a Human was quite fatal to them.

Holding Aeryn close to his body, John stared at her and realized that the way things were between them at the moment, if she should suddenly regain consciousness, the former Peacekeeper would probably break both of his arms. Considering the alternative, John decided would gladly trade his arms and BOTH legs just to see her up and about.

"Don't die on me, Sunshine," John whispered to her. "You're a fighter, you can beat this."

***

Sheba awoke with an awful headache with every muscle in her body protesting at the slightest movement. She felt like her arms were in an awkward position and she tried to move them. But Sheba soon found them to be painfully bonded. A metal rod ran against her back with her elbows looped behind it and her wrists tied across her chest. To make matters worse, she was on her knees with two aliens holding either end of the rod, keeping her in place. Standing before her was another alien dressed in gold armor, and as he looked at her, there was only pitiless cruelty to be found in his eyes.

"Hey..." Sheba smiled sarcastically . "If you're looking for date, you could do much better than little old me."

The man in gold armor glared at her and to Sheba's interest, his eyes glowed before nodding to the unseen third alien standing directly behind the Colonial Warrior. He jabbed a pain stick he held into her back. Sheba screamed in agony as she felt her body seemingly catching fire. It lasted only a second but it didn't feel that way with the intense pain she just endured.

"I am Apophis," The man in the gold armor said as Sheba gasped in agony. She noticed that his voice sounded inhuman, it resonated from him as if he were a machine. "And you and the others are my prisoners."

"Is that supposed to impress me?" Sheba hissed. "Your bloodthirsty threats, glowing eyes, funny voice and your goon squad here!"

Apophis nodded to the Jaffa behind her again and he jabbed the pain stick into her for a second time. Sheba screamed loudly as he held against her for a little longer. She tried to move away but the two Jaffas on either side held her in place on the floor.

"I am a Goa'uld, and a powerful System Lord and your new Master!" Apophis announced when Sheba stopped screaming. "And I hold your life and the lives of your shipmates in my hands." Apophis smiled mirthlessly "And as for impressing you, if the list you gave isn't enough...then the pain stick will do as well."

Sheba was already sweating from the pain and heat that the pain stick was inflicting on her. It felt like it was burning her insides. Sucking in another breath, she looked up to him.

"And I take it that you want to ask me some questions?"

"We know who you are." Apophis moved closer to her. "We found your fighter in this vessel's hangar and the insignia on it matches the one on your uniform. Where is your fleet?"

Try as she might, Sheba couldn't help but to laugh aloud. It was the best news she'd heard all day. "They got away from you, didn't they? Adama was too smart for you, wasn't he!"

Apophis grew angry. "I will ask you again Human. Where is your fleet?"

Sheba smiled, surprisingly not afraid. Apophis told her all she needed to know, the fleet was safe and whatever happened to her no longer mattered.

"Well, since you put it that way, FRACK YOU!"

"Hasshak!" Apophis shouted as the Jaffa again plunged the pain stick into Sheba back once again. The Colonial warrior screamed but she held onto one thought through the searing agony. The fleet got away!

All that mattered that she would gladly give her life as a Colonial warrior doing her duty to protect the Galactica and the fleet.