AN:Out of Phase! Nice to see you popping your head in. I've got to say, that was the main problem I worried about with the fic, not sure if Shelly did, but that people would see it and think 'nah' and not give it a shot, but it's nice to know that some doubters have tried it on for size and enjoyed it, so that's great to hear!
And all of you peoples calling us evil...ha! I warned you, so I'm absolved of all evilness...
NOT THE DADDY...part 16
Pregnancy clock: 5 months, 2 weeks
John was pretty sure he had never been so miserable in his life. He was all alone in a small structure that reminded him of a crate. A big crate, but a crate none the less. Luckily there was a window and a pot in the corner because he couldn't stop puking. Or rather, heaving. Since nobody would give him anything, not even water, John had nothing in his stomach to puke up anymore. Not that it mattered. He was trapped in a vicious cycle, brought on by severe dehydration. Even if he did have water to drink, he'd only puke it up immediately.
So he lay, curled up in one corner, arms wrapped protectively around his non existent - swollen - belly. His entire body was one giant ache. Head and back and belly. His throat burned from heaving, his ribs even felt sore. His wounded shoulder throbbed and his appendix scar alternated between burning and stabbing him with pain. Never in his life had John wished he was safely ensconced in the infirmary than he did right now. Not even when he had been suffering from appendicitis.
After a time his stomach gave up trying to come up through his mouth and John curled up as tightly as he could, closed his eyes, and prayed for oblivion.
OoO
"This is bad...really bad," Rodney muttered, as he paced the confines of their tent-like structure. "Weir won't send anyone until morning and Sheppard will be dead by then. This is really REALLY bad."
"Shut up!" Ronon hissed, moving to block Rodney's way.
Rodney slammed into Ronon, glared at him, stepped around and continued pacing and muttering.
Ronon flexed his fingers, curling them as if miming wrapping them around McKay's throat.
Teyla watched for a moment then called out to the guard. When he moved to face her she said, "I must speak with the Seer. Please ask if she will grant me an audience."
"She won't," stated the guard, letting his eyes rove over Teyla's form.
"She might," Teyla insisted, ignoring his gawking. "Please ask her. Tell her it is very important. Tell her that innocent lives are at stake."
The guard snorted but moved to his companion and whispered with him for a moment. The companion moved off into the darkness.
Rodney moved to join Teyla at the opening. "What's your plan?" he asked, sounding desperate.
"I hope to explain the Colonel's...condition...to the Seer. Perhaps she will understand and accept it," Teyla replied.
"I doubt it," Rodney countered, forlornly.
Teyla glared at him, clearly exasperated. "Do you have a better idea?" she challenged.
Rodney shook his head, looking defeated. "I got nothing."
Just then the guard returned, looking surprised. "Come with me," he said, grabbing Teyla by the arm and hauling her out of the tent.
"Good luck!" Rodney called after her, then he turned to find Ronon watching him. Rodney slumped to the floor, a hand pressed to his aching head. "This is bad," he muttered.
Ronon said nothing, silently agreeing.
oOo
Teyla was surprised to have her request granted, and she was more surprised to find the Seer was a woman of her own age. "Thank you for speaking with me," Teyla said, as she was brought before her.
The Seer nodded. "Sit and speak freely."
"I wish to explain to you about my friend. Sheppard." Teyla sat cross-legged on a flat cushion, then she locked eyes with the other woman. "There is no demon inside him."
"Lathos and Roma both felt the demon move inside him," countered the Seer.
Teyla shook her head. "Have you ever traded with the Eradians?" she asked.
The Seer looked thoughtful then shook her head. "No. Why do you ask?"
"They are a unique people," Teyla replied, then she explained about the bonding and about what happened to Sheppard and Dreya. Teyla told the Seer everything that had happened with Sheppard, talking until she was hoarse. Talking until the light of dawn filled the tent. The Seer said nothing, but soon left her to fear the worst.
OoO
John heard someone calling his name and he opened his eyes to see an unfamiliar face hovering over him. A young woman with dark hair and pale eyes. She touched his face with one hand then slid the other under his shirt, laying her palm flat against his abdomen. Right on cue Junior gave a kick. John let his eyes drift closed as he pondered whether or not today was a good day to die. To his surprise the Seer woman rose to her feet, exited the crate, and exclaimed loudly,
"The one called Sheppard is demon free!"
A stunned silence met her words, then a roar that shook the very earth.
John was confused but he was too sick to figure out what the hell was going on. When strong hands gripped him and pulled him to his feet, he didn't fight or protest in any way. Right this very moment he didn't care what happened to him.
OoO
"It's dawn," Rodney stated, unnecessarily. And at that very moment the guard entered. Rodney moved to glare at him. "Where is Sheppard?"
"Gone."
Rodney felt himself grow pale and he swayed on his feet and would have fallen had a strong hand, Ronon's hand, not caught him.
Ronon glared at the guard. "Where is Teyla?"
"Gone with him." The guard was smirking.
"You will regret what you have done," Ronon growled, and then he shoved Rodney aside to launch himself at the guard.
Rodney managed to crawl out of harms way, at least at first. But a dozen other guards joined in the fray and, eventually, Ronon went down. Rodney didn't have any weapons to help Ronon with and he felt sick from his head injury, so he was easily subdued. As he was dragged off behind an unconscious Ronon, Rodney realized he didn't much care what happened to him now. Sheppard and Teyla were dead, and even his genius mind found that concept hard to process.
OoO
John felt softness under his head and cool wetness against his lips.
"Drink," said a soft voice. An unfamiliar voice. John peeled his eyes open to see a strange woman holding a wooden cup to his lips. He lifted a hand and, clumsily, pushed the cup away.
Suddenly Teyla was there, smiling at him. "It is juice, Colonel," she said softly. "It will make you feel better. Please drink." She took the cup and held it for him.
John trusted Teyla so he took a sip and it tasted wonderful. A few more sips and the ache in his temples eased a bit. "What...what happened? I'm not dead. Am I?" He gazed about and realized he was in a tent, but a nice tent, rather lavishly decorated. And he was lying on soft furs with pillows piled around him and warm blankets over him.
"You are very much alive," Teyla promised. "The Seer spared your life."
"Don't take this the wrong way but...why?" John felt the baby kick and he rubbed his stomach, absently. Only to realize that a dozen pair of eyes were watching him. They were not alone. The tent was filled with women of various ages. From as old as Roma to as young as what appeared to be about 18.
Teyla reached out and took his hand, patting it gently. "I explained to the Seer about your condition, and the bond with Dreya. The women are willing to help us. But it will not be easy to get away."
That wasn't news to John. "What about Rodney and Ronon? Where are they?"
"I have bad news," Teyla confessed. "The Seer told me they believed we were dead and Ronon tried to attack the guards so he was knocked out and he and Rodney were moved to another camp. They are to be hunted and killed come nightfall. So we must move quickly."
"Hunted?" John was stuck on that word. "What do you mean...hunted?"
Teyla sighed. "From my understanding it is much like what the wraith did to Ronon. They hunt for the challenge of it."
Now that John understood, he felt anger well up from deep inside him. Like hell anyone was going to hunt his team members...his friends...hunt them like animals and kill them. He pushed aside the pile of blankets and tried to stand up. He was getting used to feeling like he had a pregnant belly, even a small one, but he couldn't convince his body that he was still fully male so his movements were awkward. Add in the weakness from being dehydrated and all the puking, John wobbled and nearly fell. Teyla and two other women grabbed him and eased him back down, holding him there all too easily. "We have to save Ronon and McKay!" John protested, glaring at Teyla. He figured she would understand but she was holding him fast.
"We will save them," Teyla said, quietly. "But you must rest and regain your strength. The Seer will help us, as I said. As will all the other women. They have a plan, Colonel."
"Oh." That surprised John enough that he stopped struggling and relaxed against the cushions. "What plan?"
Teyla reached for the glass of juice and held it out to him. "Drink a bit more as I explain."
John realized it was pretty much an order and that she expected him to obey it. He sighed a bit but took the cup and sipped at the juice. "I'm drinking...explain." He tried to let her know, by the tone of his voice, that he expected to be obeyed as well.
"The women want control of this world. They are willing to share leadership with the others instead of trying to control Baltar." Teyla shifted the blankets back over John as she continued. "It will not be easy but there are key men who, if taken out of commission, will leave it open for the Seer to take command. Then we will be able to rescue Ronon and Dr. McKay and return home."
"Do they have weapons?" John queried. He gave the cup back to Teyla, resisting the urge to close his eyes. He was still one big giant ache and more tired than he could ever remember being. However, he was NOT really pregnant and he was still the head of his team and he was NOT going to lay here and let Teyla and the other women rescue his team. So not happening.
The Seer moved to kneel on his other side, holding up a crossbow. "We have weapons. The darts are filled with something that will knock out the men, but there are only two of us who can use the weapon efficiently."
John ignored the glare in Teyla's eyes, sitting up and reaching for the crossbow. "I can use one," he said, as he fingered the craftsmanship. Better made than he would have expected. "I took archery in high school, I even competed. I like longbows better but crossbows are easy enough." He gave the explanation because Teyla was giving him an odd look now.
"You must rest," Teyla said firmly. "I will handle this."
"Can you fire a crossbow?" John shot back, almost belligerently.
Teyla made a face and shook her head. "No."
Trying not to appear smug, John smiled at her. "There you go then. You need me."
"Then you must rest first," Teyla insisted, taking the crossbow from him and handing it back to the seer.
"Fine...I'll rest a bit then we'll work out the details of the rescue. Deal?" John figured he would have sounded more authoritative if he hadn't been forced to stifle a huge yawn.
Teyla smiled and smoothed her fingertips over his forehead. "I will wake you when it is time."
John gripped her wrist, fighting against the fog of sleep that was enveloping him. "Promise?"
"I promise."
"Okay." John knew that Teyla would keep her word, so he let himself drift into darkness.
oOo
The plan was as good as it could get, all things considered. John woke up feeling sick and achy, but he sucked down more juice, managed something that resembled soggy toast, then got up and worked out a plan of action with Teyla, the Seer and the other women.
The trek to the other encampment took a lot out of John and he agreed with Teyla to stay out of any hand to hand combat. He would leave that to her. He took his position behind a rock fall and put a dart in his crossbow. There were two guards in front of what would be the tent where Ronon and Rodney were being held. John took aim and fired. He got them both.
That was when all hell broke loose.
The night sky darkened quickly and panic broke out among the men. But, they had better weapons, and they started firing up at the rock fall and the other areas where the Seer and one of the other women were firing darts at them. John wished he had his P90, but he didn't so he continued firing the darts. Only now it was getting hard to see and he was firing blind and he knew this was all going to hell. The worst of it being that Teyla was somewhere in the mess of angry men and he had images of her being captured, or slain, or worse. Images that incited him to get up and head down into the camp.
Halfway there he was blinded by a flash of light and a loud zap. Eyes still spotty, he heard heavy firepower and John's stomach picked that moment to protest. He found himself on his knees, heaving. By the time he had recovered enough to lift his head, there was silence. Even as John stumbled to his feet, Teyla was there with Beckett tagging behind her. "What? How?" John asked, even as he let himself be pushed back down to the ground.
"Apparently Dr. Weir got worried," Teyla explained. She sent Major Lorne to find us and their arrival was timely."
"Rodney and Ronon?" John asked, trying to ignore Beckett's poking and prodding.
Teyla's smile covered her face. "Bruised and a bit battered, but they are fine. They are waiting for us in the jumper."
John felt relief wash over him in a wave so strong it carried him into darkness.
THE END...of part 16