Strange Bedfellows
A/N: Yay! 300 reviews (go Belisse, #300)! I feel so happy, until of course I actually read the ones threatening my life, lol. Stop yelling at me:) I didn't want to keep you waiting five days til the next chapter, so here it is. But a warning: the next one may take a little longer because I have sort of a writer's block. I have to be VERY careful how I write it.
I think this story will end at chapter 23, but it's still tentative.
Chapter 20: Small Victories
The pain was excruciating, like nothing he had ever experienced before. It radiated from his chest, a thousand knives being thrust into his heart, down through his torso, out to his extremities, and into his head. No tissue, no organ, no bone could escape it; each one felt the crushing weight of the Wraith's hand as it sucked the life from John's body. It was if his body was going to collapse in on itself, implode into one heap of an empty shell.
He had screamed throughout the entire episode as his attempts to stifle any sort of reaction were immediately overcome by an agonizing, draining sensation. The first to go was his sight as his vision grayed around the edges. Then it was his voice as the scream became lodged in his throat. Finally, it was the air. His lungs were being pressed upon so hard that no oxygen could reach them. He was suffocating.
After what seemed like an eternity, Tiny pulled his hand away. Each fingertip was coated in blood which the Wraith looked at hungrily. A matching handprint could be seen on John's chest. Even in his prisoner's weakened condition, he had tasted his defiance, and it had been a delicacy.
As soon as the creature had removed its hand, John's eyes rolled back and he collapsed forward. He hit the floor hard, sending his ribs into spasms of pain. Instinctively, he sucked in a lungful of air, shocked by the fact he was able to do so. Why am I still alive? A violent eruption of coughs interrupted his thoughts as he lied on the floor and attempted to regain control of his breathing. He noticed he coughed up blood this time. Not good….
Tiny walked in slow circles around the man on the floor. "I have taken one day from your life, Major Sheppard. Tell me what it is we wish to know or I will take them all, one by one."
One day? John thought, surprised. Surely that much torture and agony translated into more than one day. He had thought for certain he had bought the farm that time.
The Wraith could see his captive was not about to cooperate and moved on to a new tactic. He approached John, who was now barely conscious and gasping for breath like air was some sort of precious, scarce treasure. After checking the halls and seeing no one was present but Number Two, Tiny knelt down next to the prone prisoner and spoke in quiet tones.
"You must believe by now that we are nothing but the partners of the Klaan people. In fact, I am sure you have gotten the impression that we Wraith are subordinate to Hergon and his men."
John thought about that for a second. It was true; ever since he had been here, it was the humans who had been in control, giving orders to the Wraith and making them do most of the grunt work.
"But I can sense you are smarter than that," Tiny said with a grin. "You must see by now that this partnership is about to fail."
John cast him a questioning look through his half-closed eyelids. He had to fight just to stay awake. If he slipped into unconsciousness, he fknew he wouldn't be waking up.
"Do not look so shocked, Major. We have known for some time the humans are planning a rebellion. We can see it in their eyes; we can sense it. But that does not matter. Once we gain access to your city, will kill all the Klaans and feast upon both their and your people. Then we will lay siege to their village, gathering our strength before traveling to Earth where we will have an endless food supply. It had been our plan from the beginning."
Noticing the look of disgust on John's face, Tiny added, "You did not think this was a sincere alliance, did you?"
Apparently not, John thought bitterly. He should have known the most callous race in the universe would have no need and no tolerance for an alliance. It was simply not in their nature. First, it was the Klaans who were going to do the backstabbing. Now, the Wraith were up to a little deceit of their own. Boy, is Hergon in for a surprise. He could honestly say, however, that he felt no remorse for what was going to happen to the man.
This entire situation was too complicated for John to sort out at the moment. He couldn't even stay awake without putting up a fight. What have I gotten myself into?
Shit, Ford thought as he eyed the oncoming party of both Wraith and Klaans. There were nine of them and nine of the enemy -a statistic Aiden would gladly take any other day considering their superior firepower. But given the fact that six of those nine were Wraith, Wraith that were damn hard to kill… well, his life just got a whole hell of a lot more complicated.
Aiden's group's only choice was to move forward, but their path was currently being blocked the advancing adversaries. They'd be upon the Atlanteans in several seconds. "Fire!" the lieutenant ordered to his team. It wasn't his original plan; they were supposed to slip in and out without being seen. Now, they had just given away their position to the entire outpost.
All nine members of the squad simultaneously opened fire in a well coordinated attack. Depressing the trigger as far as it would go, Lieutenant Ford took aim at the lead Wraith, downing it in less than ten seconds. Soon after, however, it rose to its feet, alive and ready to confront its attacker.
Rodney was quite content with dealing with the humans for now. And while he was no expert marksman by any means, he did hold his own, hitting two of the Klaans before the third was smart enough to take cover. At least once these guys go down, they stay down.
Teyla opened fire with a full flurry of bursts from her P-90, not caring who she hit. Wraith or Klaan, they were both just as treacherous in her mind. With a little help from Ford, they were finally able to bring down one Wraith for good.
It was slow going for the rest of the team. As soon as they dropped a Wraith, another had healed and risen to wage war. Stunners were fired, forcing the team to temporarily duck behind outcroppings, but they used the time to reload their weapons. In several seconds, they were ready to go once more.
The battled raged on for a good fifteen minutes before it was over. The six Wraith and three Klaans were dead, and miraculously no one from Atlantis was injured - although McKay was about to have a cardiac arrest.
"Someone will have heard that," Ford informed the others. "We need to move, now."
They group sprinted forward silently for one hundred meters or so, passing several hallways, before a scream stopped them dead in their tracks. It was human, and Ford guessed it was the major. Just listening to it sent chills down his spine; it was the most horrifying thing he had ever heard.
"Can you tell where it's coming from?" he asked no one in particular.
"No, sir," Stackhouse answered. "The acoustics are really bad in here. Any sound just bounces of the walls."
Great, Ford thought. The one thing he knew, though, was they needed to act now. Picking a direction at random, he took a step forward before Teyla forced him back into hiding. The others followed suit. This time, ten Wraith marched directly toward them. There was no mistaking the purpose and hostility in their step; this group would not be caught unawares as the other had. They knew their foe was there and their single purpose was to destroy them.
"There are ten of them: five groups of two," McKay notified the team, studying his life signs detector. "And, oh yeah… they look pissed."
"Still no sign of the major?" asked Teyla, exasperated.
"Nope. Our friends here are the only life signs in the immediate area."
"All right, fire at will," Ford ordered the rest of his team before planting another C4 charge on the wall.
Just as before, theteam executed the same maneuvers as they had several minutes ago. Several of the Marines resorted to grenades, which they found kept the Wraith on the ground longer, but the species was too resilient. This group knew what to expect; they had learned from the others' mistakes. After five whole minutes of trading fire, the Atlanteans had only managed to kill two of the ten Wraith.
Ford slammed himself against the wall, safe for the moment. He popped another magazine into his machine gun and was about to rejoin the fight when movement from behind their position caught his eye. There, emerging from the nearest hallway were five more Wraith. And like their comrades, they were armed with Stunners, but unlike their comrades, they also had the Wraith equivalent of grenades.
Oh, shit… "Be advised! There are five more Wraith on our six; there are five more Wraith on our six! Stay sharp, people!" Ford informed his team. He hoped none of them saw his eyes go wide with fear as one of the newest Wraith threw a grenade directly at them. He hoped none of them noticed his breathing stop as it landed five feet in front of him.
Elizabeth paced nervously in the rear compartment of the Puddle Jumper. It was a bad habit of hers she developed in college, and despite the dozens of international negotiations under her belt, she still could not seem to break herself of it. She had also closed the bulkhead door, blocking any view she had of the outpost. She did not even want to look at the terrifying structure of which she had so many horrifying memories.
Aiden and his team had been gone for forty minutes now, and still they had seen no sign of John. What was taking them so long? Had the Klaans moved him to another location? Was he even still alive? Elizabeth immediately dismissed the thought from her mind. No, that doesn't make any sense. Aren't you supposed to feel something when something happens to someone you care about? Aren't you supposed to just know?
A burst of gunfire had suddenly cut across the radio waves, scaring Elizabeth half to death. She had listened fearfully as the Marines fought the first group of Wraith and Klaans. Then there had been the scream. Even over the radio, it was horrific, full of pain and anguish and agony. There was no doubt in her mind who it was, either.
As she was about to radio the lieutenant when a second firefight erupted. From what she could discern between the sound of the P-90s expelling rounds, the squad was trapped between two groups of Wraith and outnumbered. They were pinned down.
Elizabeth shut her ears to the cacophony of noise coming through her earpiece. It was all too much; she couldn't think. There was no way Ford's group of men would be able to find John - if he was still around to find - while they were stuck between twobloodthirsty enemies. There was nothing she could do about that. She could, however….
No, I can't. I can't go back in there.
Yes, you can, Elizabeth. You're stronger than that. As she mentally argued with herself, she recalled all those times in her career when she herself had beat the odds. When someone doubted her ortold her she couldn't do it, she did it, if only to prove them wrong. Granted, this situation was a little different than a political negotiation… but she supposed that didn't matter now. The same circumstances applied, and the same doubt she had only once again fueled her determination.
Looking at the handgun Ford had given her, Elizabeth thought about just how bad an idea this was. She grabbed an extra magazine for the 9 mil and shoved it in her thigh pocket. She wished she had a life signs detector, but since she didn't have the Ancient gene it wouldn't have done her any good anyway.
Steeling herself, Elizabeth opened the rear hatch before she was able to talk herself out of what she was about to do. Looking around first to make sure she had no unwanted visitors, she walked around to the front of the Jumper and stopped. There looming above her was the last place in the universe she wanted to go, but one place she needed to be.
With one last deep breath, Elizabeth began walking toward the entrance.
The grenade was so close Aiden could count the rings in the middle of the egg-shaped object. The orange light in the center began to blink faster and faster. He wasn't sure what that meant, but figured any blinking device on a weapon couldn't be good. If that grenade exploded, all nine members of his team would be blown to smithereens.
Without so much as a second thought, Lt. Ford ran directly at the explosive. After a three foot sprint, he slid himself baseball-style on the floor and kicked the grenade back toward the Wraith from who it had came.
Now that his momentum had stopped, the lieutenant lied out in the open on the ground. If not for Teyla and the other Marines providing cover fire, Ford would have surely caught the blast of a Wraith Stunner. In about two seconds, though,he would be exposed to the full force explosion.
Seeing Aiden stranded out in the open, McKay did the only thing he could think of: he lunged himself toward the Marine. Landing on his belly, Rodney grabbed Aiden's shoulders and pulled him back toward safety.
The charge flew through the air at the group of Wraith. They saw it but too late; as soon as it reached them, the timer ran out and it detonated, immediately knocking three of the five Wraith to the ground.
McKay and Ford ducked behind an outcropping just in time. Bits and pieces of shrapnel from the blast sailed past their heads. Collapsing to the floor from the exertion, Rodney shut his eyes and began panting heavily. Holy crap. Did I just do that?
Ford caught his breath. Eyeing McKay appreciatively, he had to admit he was pleasantly surprised at this new side of the scientist. He didn't think the man had it in him. The McKay he knew - or at least the McKay that had initially signed on for this expedition - would have never risked his neck for someone else. "Thanks," Ford said simply.
Rodney waved his hand dismissively. "Anytime," he managed between gasps while rolling his eyes. Remind me to never do that again. Oh boy, I need to get in shape.
While McKay worked on not passing out, Ford jumped to his feet and assessed the situation. The group of five Wraith to their rear had been narrowed down to two; Teyla had made sure the those that had been knocked down by the grenade didn't get back up.
Lieutenant Ford split his team, ordering most to direct their fire at the now seven Wraith to their front while three Marines focused on the two to their back.
The mêlée raged on. Slowly but surely, the Marines whittled their enemy's numbers down. The two Wraith to the rear were either more clever or simply had better reflexes than the other group, because while the latter had only three remaining members of its original ten after half an hour, the other cluster's two members continued to survive during the onslaught.
Just when Ford thought they were on the verge of victory, three new Wraith marched down the hallway in front of them to take the place of their fallen comrades. "Heads up, people," he warned, unable to keep the disappointment from his voice. "We've got three more Steves approaching from our twelve o'clock. That makes six plus the two behind us."
Oh yeah. This is going to be a long day.
John's eyes jerked open at the sound of a grenade exploding. He had been fighting the blackness that had been encroaching upon his consciousness for the past half hour. Several moments ago, he had thought he had heard the unmistakable sound of a P-90 being fired but had dismissed it as merely a hallucination of his fatigued mind. But there was no mistaking the definite sound of a grenade detonation. What the hell is going on out there?
The noise brought up the heads of both Tiny and Number Two, confusion registering on both their faces. The latter looked to his superior for an explanation, but the mammoth Wraith had none. "Go," he ordered. "Find Hergon and report back to me when you have discovered what is happening."
Wraith Number Two nodded and walked quickly down the hallway.
John heard the gunfire again. Definitely P-90s, he decided, but they were still too far away.
Tiny whipped around to face his prisoner, a look of pure rage on his face. "It seems your friends have a death wish of their own."
John smiled as he saw something he never would have thought he would have seen on a Wraith: sweat. Tiny was edgy, worried that he wouldn't get his information before time ran out. The creature may have put on a brave front, but deep down he knew his chance at a never-ending food supply was slowly slipping through his fingers. Tiny was becoming unhinged, unpredictable.
Suddenly, without warning, Tiny lunged his arm forward and encircled John's throat with his hand. He yanked him to his knees and began to squeeze.
"Tell me the access codes to the city!"
Elizabeth crept through the entrance to the outpost. The cold, dark, and stench of the place immediately caused her to stiffen. Her breathing quickened once more but her feet did not stop. Stay strong…. As soon as she entered the building, she immediately spotted the firefight several hundred yards ahead of her. The bodies of Wraith were scattered all over the floor. It looked like a World War had been fought.
Internal instincts took over and Elizabeth scrambled to the nearest wall for protection. Inching up the hallway and momentarily ducking behind obstacles along the wall, she made her way forward as quietly as possible. Her mind raced as she thought of where they would keep John. The interrogation room? The cell? Either way, she would have to get deeper into the outpost.
Elizabeth eyed the nearest intersecting corridor. It was in front of the current scuffle, so if she timed it right…. There was still the problem of getting across the hallway she was currently in without being seen. It was certainly dark enough, but the fact that her closest company was a pair of Wraith didn't do anything to calm her already frayed nerves.
She decided to make a mad dash for the corridor. Now or never…. Okay, on three. One, two, thr-
The sudden appearance of two individuals she never wanted to see again stopped her short. Out from the very corridor she was about to enter came Number Two and Hergon. As soon as they had stepped out onto the floor, Ford and several other Marines took aim at the Wraith, deeming him the more dangerous threat of the two.
What happened next shocked Elizabeth. Number Two grabbed Hergon by the neck and used the human's body as a shield, having to duck slightly behind the shorter man's stature. Up until now, Elizabeth had thought Number Two, like the rest of the Wraith, was loyal to the Klaan commander. Obviously, she had been wrong. There was more to this 'alliance' than met they eye.
Hergon himself was equally as shocked. He struggled against his captor, his face registering both confusion and anger at his partner's treachery. Number Two, however, held fast, not letting go of his human armor. Hergon noticed that none of the Wraith looked surprised at all. It was at that moment he realized his fate had been sealed from the moment he had entered into this agreement with the Wraith. The player himself had been played.
The battle was temporarily put on pause as this new detail unfolded; the silence was deafening compared to the racket of only moments ago. Aiden, confused but not deterred, continued to keep his sight aimed at the pair.
"If you shoot, human," Wraith Number Two shouted, his words echoing in the large structure, "one of your own dies!" The creature continued to drag his hostage across the floor to the pair of Wraith closest to him, where he could be armed with a Stunner.
Hergon smiled. He remembered this one, Lieutenant Ford. He was loyal, inexperienced, and Hergon guessed not too confident without his CO there to tell him what to do. There was no way he was going to die by the hands of this man.
Lieutenant Ford's weapon never wavered. Hergon was one of their own, a fellow human. If he killed him, what made him any different than the very enemy he was fighting? But he was also a monster, a monster just as evil as the Wraith. No, he was worse. While the Wraith killed only for food, this man had done so out of sheer malevolence and savagery. He had sold out his own kind. Ford had seen with his own eyes what he had done to Dr. Weir, had heard with his own ears what was being done to his own CO, and could only imagine what other torture this man had inflicted upon not only his two friends but upon other humans as well.
Looking the man he hated most right now directly in the eye, Ford pressed on the trigger of his P-90 twice. The bullets found their mark in the chest of the Klaan commander. They entered the lung, just as Ford had planned, and started Hergon on his way to a slow and painful death. Soon, blood would begin filling the organ, drowning the man in his own body's fluid. Aiden couldn't think of a better death for the hateful bastard.
Hergon dropped away to the floor, a look of disbelief in his eyes. Number Two's expression mirrored the commander's, but it was soon wiped clean as two more bullets entered the Wraith's head. Teyla didn't think her shots would have killed the creature, but it was a start.
Soon the battle began again.
Elizabeth watched the scene unfold before her eyes. It was certainly an odd incident, but she didn't have time to ponder it now. Using the recently revived firefight as a distraction, she sprinted across the hallway and into the corridor.
After cautiously walking several hundred feet, she realized she had absolutely no idea where she was. All the passageways looked the same to her. Fear began to well up inside her. What if she didn't find him in time? What if they found her first?
Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the door to the interrogation room. Elizabeth listened intently. There were no sounds coming from behind the door, but she had to be sure. Raising her Beretta in her shaking hands, she threw open the door. Empty.
Dammit. Okay, the cell. Which is where…? There. A hallway she recognized, one she had unfortunately traveled one too many times. She remembered it more or less led directly to the cell, with one last right-hand turn at the end
Another scream interrupted her thoughts. This one was more muffled and was cut off, ending abruptly. It was preceded by a voice, Elizabeth guessed Wraith, who had shouted something, something about a code. It had definitely been a demand.
Throwing caution to the wind, Elizabeth ran straight for the cell, not bothering to duck behind outcroppings for protection. She needed to get there and get there fast. Ignoring the pain from her knee which had once again flared up, she covered the distance in a minute and a half. It had felt like hours to her.
One last corner before she reached the cell. Slowing her pace to a walk, she stopped before rounding the bend, afraid of what she might find. Lifting her 9 mil once more, the once gun-shy diplomat straightened her arms and prepared herself for what was next.
The darkness was going to make this all the harder. Don't shoot at what you can't see, don't shoot at what you can't see, don't shoot at what you can't see…. At least she had remembered that much from her basic weaponry class.
With one last deep breath, she spun around the corner and gasped at the horrific scene in front of her. There, facing her direction, was John. He was on his knees and appeared to be teetering on the verge of unconsciousness - or at least Elizabeth hoped it was unconsciousness and not something worse. His eyes were foggy and unfocused, and overall he looked awful. Elizabeth didn't know how this man had made it this far alive.
The only thing keeping John upright was the Wraith she recognized as Tiny. His back was to her as he held John tightly by the neck, so tightly in fact that John's face was turning blue from the lack of oxygen. His bound hands, scrawny in comparison to the Wraith's, were around Tiny's in a frail attempt to push the creature away. With each passing second, Elizabeth noticed John's motions became less frequent and his body more limp.
"What is the code to lower Atlantis's shield?" the Wraith demanded.
John remained quiet. He didn't even know if he could answer if he wanted to; the grip around his neck was so strong.
Tiny hissed at the major's insolence. "You have made a great mistake, Major Sheppard." He pulled back his hand once more and prepared to drain John of his life - all of it this time.
Without wasting another second, Elizabeth emptied the contents of the magazine into the back of Tiny's skull. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten rounds fired from close distance, and ten rounds hitting their mark. Into each shot, Elizabeth poured every ounce of rage, every feeling of hatred she had for the creature and what he had done to John.
The Wraith, however, was only stunned by the attack. He turned around, more angered than hurt, to face his aggressor.
Elizabeth saw Tiny turn toward her. Oh, shit, she thought as she frantically fished for her spare magazine in her pockets. Where is it, where is it…. Her fingers finally found the metal object she was looking for and hurriedly ripped it out of her thigh pocket and popped it into her gun. Remembering to cock the weapon, she took aim and fired again. Just as before, she emptied all ten rounds into the Wraith's head, this time at even a closer range.
It managed to stop Tiny in his tracks. The look of anger on his face slowly transformed into puzzlement, but he remained standing.
Elizabeth began to slowly back away. This Wraith just wasn't dying for some reason. She had emptied twenty rounds into his skull and still it was alive. Remembering Carson's theory on how the Wraith's healing capability is directly proportional to how recently its fed, she looked at John's chest. There was a giant, hand-shaped marking on his chest from which small trickles of blood flowed. Oh, Jesus... Suddenly Elizabeth wished there were a few more bullets left in her gun for Tiny.
The Wraith began to sway slightly, stopping Elizabeth's retreat. Then ever-so-slowly, Tiny toppled over to the floor, dead.
Now with the threat gone, she rushed immediately to John's side. With nothing to hold him up, however, he began to fall.
John had seen the Wraith go down, although why had been a mystery to him. As the Wraith fell, a figure came into view. Someone had a gun pointed directly at where the Tiny had just been. A woman. Someone familiar. Eliz… Elizabeth?
Not able to keep the darkness at bay any loner, he succumbed to it. He was too tired to fight it any longer. As the blackness began to creep in and pull him under, he fell. He fell slowly and felt himself hitting the ground, but John kept plummeting. The last thing he remembered seeing was the woman rushing toward him with a panicked expression on her face as he fell into a deep, dark abyss.
TBC
You didn't really think I would make John old, did you?Imho, he looks fine the way he is, lol.
Yay!Tiny and Hergon are dead! Everyone do a happy dance.
