Sorry for not updating earlier, my grandma is over and I can't very well ignore her. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. It will explain a lot of confusing things. Enjoy! (I hope!)

P.S. Thankies to my sister, Alaena Night! (Pssst! She is writing an Stargate Atlantis fic, go review it and poke her to write more!)

Teyla breathed in deeply as she sat up, looking around the cave. It was completely dark. She could see nothing except for the light outline of another body. John had come back. Breathing a sigh of relief, she carefully made her way over to John, leaning down beside him. His breathing was heavy and delayed, like he was breathing in water. Pressing her fingers to his neck, she checked his pulse as Dr. Beckett had taught her to. It was fast and rapid, not normal at all. Turning his head around, Teyla placed it in her lap, touching his forehead to see if he had a fever. He was slightly warm, but Teyla chose not to worry about it.

Trying to see through the thick blanket of darkness that had settled over them, Teyla started reaching around for their bags. When she finally laid her hands on one of them, Teyla dragged the bag over to her. She couldn't see a thing. The fear of giving John the wrong antibiotics made Teyla put the bag away, positioning John so he would be more comfortable throughout the night. Teyla leaned up against the wall, John's head still resting in her lap.

He must have done something to help her,because the last thing she remembered was falling to the floor, her vision blacking out. Now, she felt better than she had the whole time that she had been on this god-forsaken planet.

Sighing and closing her eyes, she finally fell back to sleep.

Teylaawoke once again to darkness. As she sat up slowly, not wanting to bother John, she listened hard to try and find out what had awoken her. There. She heard it again. It was the sound of footsteps on soft ground. As Teyla strained to hear more over the falling rain, the sounds came closer. It couldn't be Ronon, they were too soft. No, this was the sound of a small creature or a small child. But what child would be walking outside in the middle of the night with the creatures?

Teyla removed John's head from her lap, gently sitting him on the ground as she walked to the opening of the cave to investigate. She could see little, the only light shining through the trees from the moon. It was full, but it still only shone a small portion of it's light through the trees.

Teyla knew it was risky, but she jumped from the door of the cave, her feet landing softly into the mud. She bent down, hiding herself behind a large clump of bushes. The footsteps kept getting closer, and as they did, Teyla became more and more sure that it was not a small animal, but a child. She was getting soaked by the rain. Standing up, she had began walking back when she heard something. Snapping her head around, she tried to see through the thick rain and brush. She didn't see something, but she could feel someone looking at her. Taking a deep breath in, she stood up straight, letting it out slowly to calm her nerves. She couldn't get jumpy, not now.

Behind her ...

Teyla spun on her heel, grabbing the person around the neck, and firmly but gently held them tight.

"No! Lemme go!"

Teyla struggled to see the child through the falling rain.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Nickolai. Who are you?" He spun around in her arms, wrenching himself from her grip.

"I am Teyla. Come, where it is dry." Teyla took the little boy by the hand and led him into the cave. John was still sleeping, curled into a ball in the corner. The boy jumped inside, sloshing around. The cave was on the small side, but it fit the three of them well. Teyla smiled at Nickolai as he sat on the ground, wrapping his arms around himself and shivering. He was soaked to the bone. Sitting down beside him, she grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders, but did not turn it on.

"Thanks," he said.

"You are welcome."

Teyla then began to shuffle through the wood she had set aside to dry, wanting something to light up the cave and to keep them warm. Finding enough dry, she put them in a pile and used some of the matches in the bag to start the fire. Soon, a light flame lit up the cave, casting an eerie glow on their faces. Teyla turned back to Nickolai to get a better look. He looked to be about seven, maybe eight. His hair was such a dark brown; almost black, in deep contrast to his ice blue eyes. He had an average build of a child his age, but he looked a little to slim. He was wearing a torn top and shorts; his feet were bare.

"Who is that?" Nickolai asked, pointing a shaky finger at John.

"That is my friend, John." Teyla answered, walking over to him and placing her hand on his forehead. His fever seemed to be gone. "Can I ask you something, Nickolai?"

"Sure, I guess." He shrugged, curling deeper into blanket.

"Why were you out in the rain? Do you not know how dangerous it is?" Teyla said, sitting down beside John and placing a wet rag on his forehead.

"They don't hurt me because they know me," Nickolai said simply, shifting uncomfortably.

"Know you?" Teyla asked, surprised.

"I grew up with them. They were my friends."

Teyla was surprised, but Nickolai didn't speak anymore. Teyla gave him some food to eat and let him sleep. She tried to follow his example and get some rest, but sleep wouldn't come again. She spent hours, watching the ceiling and thinking over what the boy had said. What did he mean? Friends? When she thought of friends, another question came to her mind. Was Nickolai a friend?

The next morning, Teyla awoke to find the sun high in the sky. She mush have fallen asleep after all. Sitting up, she found John in the same position as before. Nicoli was sleeping against the wall, the blanket wrapped tightly around his small body. His hair was hanging limply over his face. It was a bit on the long side, and hung over his eyes. Standing to her feet, Teyla walked over to him, bending down and smiling. He seemed oddly peaceful in his sleep.

"Teyla?" He slowly opened his blue eyes, looking around. He propped himself up in his hands, the blanket sliding off of him.

"Good morning, Nickolai, how do you feel?" Teyla asked, smiling as he sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm good."

"Do you have somewhere you need to go? Your mother or father?" Teyla asked, handing Nickolai a canteen of water. He took it, turning upside down and drinking most of the water.

"Nope. I don't have a mother. And my father left a few years ago when he messed up."

"Messed up?"

"He was making my friends and he messed up, made them bad. Now they hurt people." He said sadly, sighing and looking away. He looked as though he was taking great effort not to cry. Teyla placed a hand on his shoulder, turning him back to her.

"Nickolai, I need to know what you mean. Is there a way we can fight these ... friends?"

"Nope. Daddy made them that way. He wanted them to be big, bad and not kill-able. We wanted them for the war, but they turned on us and killed us instead. Everyone but me died." He cried freely now, tears slipping down his dirty face. Teyla pulled him into a hug, brushing back his hair. Finally, his tears stopped.

"Can you tell me the whole story?" Teyla asked gently, still rubbing the child's back. He nodded, wiping more tears away.

"It was about a year ago. My daddy was working on completing the Ha'trock for war. We wanted something else to help us fight, because millions and millions of us were dying each year. So my daddy wanted to make something that no one would care if it died, and also gave us a better chance. He made me a little one, too, to be my friend because I didn't have any friends. One day, while he was completing the final tests and ... " Nickolai seemed to struggle with a few words before continuing, "genetic alterations, when he mixed the wrong chemicals and made the Ha'trock bad.They turned on us and started killing us instead."

Nickolai took a deep breath, and then continued.

"Some of us, my daddy and my baby brother, hid in the caves. But we had to go out for food and stuff. One day, my daddy was just outside of the cave when the Ha'trock attacked him. My baby brother was killed that day, too, but I lived because they wouldn't hurt me. The little one that my daddy made for me made sure none of the others hurt me. I been alone since then."

"The Ha'trock are the creatures?" Teyla asked. Nickolai nodded, looking at the ground. "Why do they only come out when it rains, and at night?" Teyla inquired.

"The started only coming out during the night because the mistake that made them bad also made it so they couldn't live in the sunlight. So they only came out at night. After that, the moon even started hurting them. Now, they only come out in the rain because it protects them from the light." Nickolai explained. Teyla moved closer, taking the little boy in her lap. He sniffled, wiping his hand across his nose.

"How do you know?" Teyla asked gently, brushing her fingers through Nickolai's hair like her father used to do to her when she was scared.

"I can hear them. They are in my head sometimes. They think, like we do, but they don't talk. It hurts sometimes, when it is too strong, but most of the time it is OK," Nickolai said, tapping the side of his head with his pointer finger and his middle one. He then turned to Teyla, smiling. "Do you have anymore of that brown stuff?"

Teyla smiled, pulling out another chocolate bar.

"Here you go. But we only have a little. And don't eat it all, John is going to want some when he wakes up." She whispered the last part, as though it were a secret. Nickolai smiled, too, laughing a little. Even though he seemed all right, Teyla could see the years of pain and loss behind the mask he put up. Suddenly, a voice pulled them both from their thoughts.

"Could I have some chocolate?"

Teyla spun around, coming face to face with John. He was awake, but he didn't look to good. He was pale, and his eyes seemed empty. Teyla carefully removed Nickolai from her lap, laying him on the blanket and walking over to John.

"It is good to see you awake, John."

"It's good to be awake. Now, about that chocolate..."

Well, there you have it. I hope that cleared a few things up, and I can stop calling the creatures creatures! (Gasp!) They have a name! Anyway, please drop your thoughts by!

PLEASE REVIEW!