Sacrifice
Chapter 5
John paced the cell relentlessly, part of him knowing that he was using up valuable energy, another part of him needing the release. Rodney had been gone at least six hours, and with each passing minute, his fear that the scientist wouldn't survive this ordeal increased.
He froze as the iron door rattled once more, then ran over as it swung open. Worner strode in, a guard behind him brandishing the stun weapon. John paused, his eyes searching behind the men for McKay, but the scientist was no where in sight.
"Where's McKay?" he demanded. Worner merely smiled, his eyes gleaming.
"Dr. McKay is proving to be much more…..resilient than I thought possible," he purred. His hands were encased in black leather gloves, and John watched him tug them off, finger by finger.
"Yeah, well, he's full of surprises," John replied. Worner's use of 'is' rather than 'was' reassured him that Rodney still lived. Still, he needed to escape, to get the scientist to medical help as soon as possible.
"You two are….close?" Worner asked. John eyed the man warily, unsure of how to answer.
"We have our moments," John said. His eyes darted to the open door, and he made a slight movement towards it. Immediately, the guard raised his weapon.
Not wanting to re-experience the pain of the blast, John gave a half-grimace and shrugged.
"Come. I wish you to see something," Worner said. He nodded at the guard, who produced a set of handcuffs. He roughly cuffed the Colonel's hands in front, then poked him in the back with the barrel of the gun. Sighing, John sauntered out of the cell, his eyes circling the hallway. Behind him, the door closed with a bang and a click.
They walked down the long corridor, hewn out of the same rock as the cells. John saw no other doors other than the one he had left behind, and a similar iron door before him. As he approached it, he could hear the screaming again. His heart froze; it was McKay. He paused, waiting for the door to open, then was shoved into a room.
In the room, which resembled a police interrogation room, was a large window, and a man standing before it. As John focused his gaze through the window, he could see another man outside, slowly circling around someone. McKay.
Rodney was tied to some kind of scaffolding device, both hands tied over his head, his arms straining as they supported his weight. His shirt was torn and filthy, soaked with sweat and patches of blood. He spun slowly back and forth, with only his toes sweeping the floor. As he rotated towards John, the Colonel could see his back was cut, the skin torn, apparently by a whip.
"STOP!" Sheppard roared, his horror at Rodney's condition reflected in his voice.
Rodney made no move that he heard John; rather, his head remained sagging forward on to his chest, the only movement his flinches and cries of pain as the whip cut yet again into his back.
John saw red; he turned and lunged towards the guard, murder in his eyes. The guard brought the gun up and rammed it into his stomach, forcing all the air from Sheppard's lungs. He dropped like a stone, his cuffed hands grabbing at his midsection, stars circling his vision. Vaguely, he could hear the crack of the whip and Rodney's cry of pain as he was lashed once more.
"Colonel Sheppard, I did not bring you here to cause chaos. I thought you needed to hear something." He nodded at the guard, who grabbed John's arm and yanked him to his feet. Still bent over in pain, John managed to glare at Worner.
"I am going to kill you," he promised through clenched teeth. Worner only chuckled, then pressed John against the window.
"Dr. McKay cannot see or hear us," he said. He rapped on the window, and the interrogator placed the whip down. He went to Rodney, lifting his head.
McKay's blue eyes fluttered open, and he panted, blood trickling from his mouth.
"Dr. McKay, what is your relationship with Colonel Sheppard?" the man asked. Rodney remained silent, his eyes blinking as sweat blinded him. The man leaned in and elbowed Rodney in the ribs, and the scientist cried out. John fought wildly against the guard holding him to the glass, but his efforts were useless.
"I asked you a question. What is your relationship with Colonel Sheppard?" John stared as Rodney tried to smile, his body swaying back and forth slightly as his toes slid out from under him.
"Pain in his ass," Rodney wheezed out, and John had to suppress a smile of his own. Boy, wasn't that the truth. Worner's gaze swung from John, then out the window to McKay, his eyes narrowing.
"So, you consider Colonel Sheppard nothing more than another soldier?" the man asked, and John saw Rodney go still. His blue eyes shut, and his crooked mouth tightened.
"Why...you..want...know…'bout…Sheppard..again?" Rodney spat out, and the man hit him in the chest again, causing Rodney to gasp. More blood spilled from his mouth, and John felt his body go cold.
"Leave him alone! Goddammit Worner! You're killing him," John yelled. Worner nodded.
"Yes, I am, Colonel Sheppard. That is what I do." His words sounded dead, no regret or remorse, just cold truth.
"Dr. McKay, only I ask the questions. Or have you forgotten?" The interrogator leered at Rodney, who shook his head. "Now, answer me. Is Colonel Sheppard no more than another soldier to you?"
Rodney remained silent for a long moment. John waited, not knowing how the scientist was supposed to answer. Finally, Rodney raised his head.
"No. More than…soldier. Friend." Rodney replied painfully. John steeled himself for the emotion that coursed through him. He had always known that Rodney considered him a friend, but the word had never left the physicist's lips. Ever. They carefully avoided any such conversation, only revealing the depth of their feelings by their actions.
"I see. So, you would protect your friend, wouldn't you, Dr. McKay?" John eyes widened in horror as he realized where this was leading, and he banged against the window. The interrogator looked up, confused, but then John was yanked away from the glass, the butt of the gun in the small of his back.
Rodney took no notice of the noise on the glass. Through the fog of pain and exhaustion his ever-working brain processed the question. Protect Sheppard? Yes, of course he would protect him. After all, Sheppard had saved his sorry ass more times than he could count. And there was no reason the both of them had to die. For that's what was happening, wasn't it? He was dying. His body couldn't take much more of this torture, and, really, he wasn't going to tell them anything. So, eventually, they would kill him. And if he died protecting John, well, then, so be it. At least he would finally get to be the hero.
"Yes. Protect…Sheppard," Rodney wheezed. The interrogator smiled, then raised his fist. With one sharp blow, he punched Rodney in the ribs, watching as the scientist folded, his head falling forward as he lapsed into unconsciousness.
John let out a pained moan, fighting the anguish. As from a great distance, he heard Worner's cold voice.
"Dr. McKay has valiantly protected you for the last four days, Colonel. I wonder if you would do the same for him. Take him back to his cell." John was wrenched backward, the guard grabbing him by his cuffed hands. His last sight was of McKay, unconscious and bleeding, hanging from the scaffold like a sacrifice.
TBC