Silent Sacrifice – Chapter 5
He was aware of the pain in his head and ribs within seconds of opening his eyes. Groaning, he rolled over onto his back and looked up. He had no idea how long he'd been out, but judging from the height of the sun in the sky, it had been a while. He knew he had to get up and get back to the cave. Rodney and Ronon had been alone for hours.
Leaning on his left arm, he pushed himself into a sitting position and waited on the dizziness to pass. He swallowed hard as his stomach grumbled and rolled. He realized he had no idea when he'd last eaten and he knew that, even though he was conserving for Ronon and Rodney, he needed to eat something to keep his strength up. Taking the power bar he'd brought with him out of his pocket, he tore the end of the wrapper open. Unfortunately, the second he smell hit him, his stomach began to revolt.
He closed his eyes and sat for a moment, willing his stomach to settle. After a sip of water, he thought he was game for another try. This time he just quickly bit off a corner without smelling it and began to chew, but he had to swallow quickly to keep from gagging. What was wrong with him? Looking forlornly at the bar in his hand, he knew if he ate any more he'd just bring it back up and he was getting really tired of that. His throat already felt raw from all the retching he'd done. Sighing, he rewrapped the bar and put it back in his pocket. He could try again later.
Stumbling to his feet, he weaved drunkenly for the first few steps until he got his balance under control. He stopped and looked around, almost panicking for a minute as he realized he wasn't sure which direction to go.
"Think, Sheppard, just stop a minute and think." And that's what he did. He forced himself to remain calm as he replayed his morning trek through his mind. Looking around, he slowly began to recognize landmarks. He adjusted his direction and headed for the cave, worried his team mates had needed him and he hadn't been there.
Adrenalin overcame exhaustion and hunger, getting him back relatively quickly. He was relieved to hear them talking as he covered the last few feet to the cave.
"Where were you? We were getting worried," said Rodney almost as soon as he set foot in the cave.
"Sorry, I was looking around for more berries and lost track of the time," he lied, setting the pack down at the edge of the cave. "You guys okay? I didn't mean to stay gone that long." He noted that both men were looking pale and worn.
"Gotta pee," said Ronon matter-of-factly.
John wasn't surprised and headed over to help the big guy up. He was a little dismayed to discover Ronon felt warm again as he helped him out of the cave. As soon as Ronon's needs were taken care of and he was back in the cave, John helped Rodney do the same.
"Okay, guys, what's next, bandage change or food?" John looked up from the supplies to his team mates.
"Food," said Rodney. "I'm starved."
John smiled, figuring that was a good sign, more like the old Rodney.
"I could eat," said Ronon.
John gave them each an MRE and a bottle of water, and then split the remaining berries between them. He decided he'd go for more berries when he had finished changing their bandages. Settling down with a bottle of water, he watched them eat.
"Where's yours?" asked Rodney, frowning at him critically. "And don't tell me you already ate."
John shrugged his shoulders and then immediately regretted it. "I can't help it that I already ate."
"What, that measly power bar? That's not eating."
"Lay off, Rodney, I'm not hungry," John snapped. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall of the cave. His head throbbed and his ribs ached and he was afraid if he moved he'd vomit again. He silently willed Elizabeth to know they were in trouble and send help.
By the time they finished eating, John's stomach had settled and his headache was better. He picked up the waste and then set about cleaning their wounds and changing the dressings. The experience was not a pleasant experience for either man. Rodney and Ronon took turns grimacing as their cuts were cleaned and the antibacterial ointment John found in the med kit was liberally applied.
After changing their bandages, John got Rodney and Ronon settled for the afternoon. Ronon's fever seemed to be creeping up again and he wanted to be ready if it kept going, so he'd decided to haul the large container to the river again for water.
"You can't go out again," said Ronon. "You're exhausted and you're not looking too good. We have enough food and water to last until tomorrow."
John picked up his pack with the empty water bottles and the bag for the berries. "I need to go today. I'm afraid we don't have enough water to last. I'll be fine." Making sure they had the supplies they'd need close enough to reach, he headed out to get the travois, which had held up better than he had expected.
It was almost dark by the time he returned and he was so tired, he could barely stand. Looking up at the steep incline, he grabbed the now full water bottles and headed up the hill. He was almost halfway up when he lost his footing, sliding and rolling back to the bottom. Lying there in a daze, he concentrated on the pain in his ribs and side, letting it swing him back to consciousness. Finally finding a bit of energy, he pushed himself up to a sitting position and leaned back against the rock he was next to. He sat panting for several seconds, letting his heart slow enough it no longer pounded in his ears.
As his mind began to clear, he realized his side felt a little wet. Lifting his shirt, he saw that he had scraped all the skin off his already bruised side and it was slowly oozing blood. He let his shirt drop back down and his head fall back against the rock. They were already running short on bandages. He sat there for a few minutes, just resting and thinking.
Finally deciding he had to get back up to the cave and check on his friends, he managed to get to his feet. Taking his water bottle out, he poured a little in the palm of his hand and splashed it up on his bleeding side. He managed to wash most of the blood off and get it fairly cleaned up. The abrasions weren't deep, just broad and painful. He rinsed his shirt out and pulled it back down, noticing it stung where it contacted the raw flesh underneath. Satisfied, he picked the water bottles back up and climbed the hill again, this time with more success.
Walking in the cave, he found both men dozing. He quietly lay the bottles down and went back for the berries. Once he had those in the cave, he collected some wood and made a pile near where he had been building the fire at night. By that time, they were beginning to stir. A quick check showed that his whole shirt was wet with sweat and there was no evidence of his fall. He was relieved; thinking the last thing he needed to do was worry them any more than they already were.
"Hey, sleepyheads, how are you doing?" He tried to sound light, but he was afraid it didn't come off that way.
"How long have you been back?" asked Rodney, yawning and scratching at the edge of the bandage around his head.
"Not very long. I have water and berries. Looks like you get dessert tonight. Do you guys need a potty break before dinner?"
Ronon was still struggling to sit up, so John walked over and helped the Satedan. "I'm good," he said.
John put his hand across the man's forehead. "I think your fever is still creeping up. When was the last time you had any Tylenol?"
"We ran out," said Rodney.
"Oh crap,"said John, moving back across the cave to go through the packs of materials he had gathered up. He was digging through the third one when he found a bottle of ibuprofen. "Yes!" he called. He dumped two out and gave them to Ronon. He turned to Rodney, but the scientists waved him away.
"I'm okay. Save them for Ronon."
John wasn't sure what to do. He knew Rodney was hurting, but he also knew that it was the last bottle of anything to help fight Ronon's fever. He had to admit he was impressed that Rodney was willing to save them for the former runner. "Let me know if you change your mind," he said softly, nodded to acknowledge what Rodney was doing.
"How about that dinner you promised us?" Rodney said, unusually uncomfortable with the attention.
"Coming right up," he said. Since they had eaten an MRE earlier, he gave them each a power bar for supper, along with a large helping of berries. He saw them both looking at him as he began working on the fire for the night. "I ate before you guys got up. I was hungry after walking all day." He was rather amazed at how easy the lie was becoming. The truth was, he wasn't hungry and that scared him. Every time he thought he might be hungry and got near food, it almost gagged him. Even if they had a bountiful feast laid out before them, he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep anything down. He tried not to think about it as he got the fire started. Plenty of time to worry about his digestive problems after they were rescued and safely in Atlantis.
The next several days were much the same. John would go after water and berries every other day. Off days were spent looking for something else to eat and searching for any more lost supplies that they could use. He gathered wood every night for their fire. Ronon's fever went up and down, with John having to cool him off with a water bath twice more. Rodney became a little more mobile as time went on, with his back giving him less pain. As long as John helped him up and down, he could walk outside to pee for himself, and for that he was very grateful. He wasn't well enough to attempt the hill, however, so he stayed at the cave with Ronon when John went on his little jaunts.
At the one week mark, John looked over their stock of supplies and sighed. They only had a couple of MREs and a small handful of power bars left. He was going to have to find more than just berries for them to eat. Besides which, the berry supply was dwindling due to their large consumption of the fruits. He hated that because it was about the only thing he could keep down. He had discovered he could eat one or two at a time three or four times a day. It wasn't much, but maybe it would keep him from collapsing before the rescue team found them.
"They aren't coming, are they?" The despair in Rodney's voice hurt like someone had punched him.
"Yes, Rodney, they are. I promise you they are looking for us. You have to remember that we've only been overdue a few days and they had three planets to check. They should be here soon though. You can't give up."
"Sheppard's right," said Ronon. "They will come for us."
"Look," said John. "I know they'll be here eventually and I hope it's soon, but the fact is that we're almost out of food. I'm going back to where we lost the jumper and see if there's any way to get to it. If not, I'm going to look for another food source. The berry supply is just about gone and we can't depend on it any more."
Ronon and Rodney exchanged a look and then glanced back at John. "I don't think you should do that," said Rodney quietly. "No offense, Colonel, but you look like crap and you haven't walked a straight line in two days. I think maybe you took a harder knock on the head than you let on."
John smiled as he continued to put food and water out where they could get to it. "Well, thanks for the concern, McKay, but it doesn't change anything. We are still almost out of food and we still don't know how long til we're rescued and I'm still the only one that is mobile." Finishing with his task, he leaned back on his heels and looked at Rodney, smirk firmly in place. "Any questions, oh genius one?"
"No . . . smartass."
Ronon chuckled as John got up and grabbed his pack, slinging it over his shoulder. "Need anything else before I go?"
"No, we're good," said Ronon as he grinned at Rodney sulking against the wall.
"Okay, be good boys and I'll be back later, hopefully with something to eat." John left the cave and began hiking in the direction of the crashed jumper.
oOo
Elizabeth hurried out of her office.
"It's Major Lorne, ma'am," said the tech on duty.
Elizabeth touched her radio. "Major Lorne, this is Dr. Weir. Have you found anything?" She held her breath as her stomach did flip-flops and she chewed on her lower lip. Even before she heard all the words, the dejection in the man's voice told her the answer.
"No ma'am, not a thing. It's like they just vanished. We've been over all three planets. We found people on the second one and they said they hadn't seen them. We looked around just in case they were not quite as friendly as they seemed, but we saw no evidence that the colonel's team had been there. Do you want us to start again?"
Elizabeth closed her eyes, trying to hide the burning disappointment. "Could you have missed them?"
She could almost hear Lorne sigh before he replied. "It's possible. Ma'am . . . it's also possible, if they had problems, they could have crashed on one of the other planets."
"Could they have survived on one of the other planets?" she asked hopefully.
"Not for this long. The conditions are too extreme on the other planets, ranging from no atmosphere to toxic atmosphere to scorching heat."
Elizabeth thought for a second. "How are you fixed for supplies?"
"We're running low on just about everything."
"Okay," she said firmly, having quickly come up with a plan. "Return to Atlantis to restock. We can get a replacement crew so your team can get some rest and I'll check with Dr. Zelenka to see if any of the other jumpers are ready. Then we'll check out the planets one more time. If we still don't have any luck . . . we'll check the uninhabitable ones."
"Can I make one change?"
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes uncertainly. "That depends on what it is, Major."
"My team wants to continue with the search ma'am. We don't need replacements."
Elizabeth smiled at the loyalty of John's men. "Your request is granted, Major Lorne, on the condition that you add one person to your crew." She looked over at Teyla, who had come out of the office to join her and nodded.
"Tell Teyla we'd be glad to have her aboard," replied Lorne, having no doubt who Weir was talking about. "We're inbound with an ETA of thirty minutes."
"Atlantis out," said Elizabeth. She sighed as she turned to Teyla. "I should have shut this adventure down the minute John called it boy's week out. I better not find him parked on some oddball moon teaching Ronon to play football." They shared a smile, but both were wishing that was exactly what they'd find.
oOo
John leaned out, trying to see down the hill, but the curve of the land combined with the dense underbrush made it impossible. Several small trees had been knocked down, evidence of the jumper's recent descent through the area. The hill dropped off so steeply about twenty feet away that he knew he would never be able to climb down to it. If he had rope he could have repelled, but he didn't. He studied the area, hoping he could see another way down, but it was futile. He would have to walk for hours to get to a place he could safely make the trip to the bottom of the hill and he didn't have that kind of time or energy. Taking one last look down the hill, something caught his eye.
He hadn't even seen them at first, having been so intent on finding the jumper. Scattered up and down the first part of the incline were several MREs. There was a tiny ledge just before the drop-off twenty feet down and a pack of supplies lay precariously balanced against a bush. He stood and looked at the steep hillside, judging the angle of the slope and the possible hand holds. Normally this wouldn't have even slowed him down, but he knew he was weak and subject to black-outs right now, not to mention his bruised and abraded ribcage. He thought about the dwindling food supply and the people depending on him to keep them alive until help arrived. He finally decided if he was careful, he could do it.
John took the water bottles out of his pack and set them on the ground. He made sure the top was open enough he could shove the MREs inside and slung it over his shoulder. Finding the best path to take to go straight down to the pack while picking up the MREs on the way, he began climbing down. At first he held onto small tree trunks and rocks and used some of the rocks as footholds. He picked up four MREs and a power bar off the side of the hill, stuffing them carefully into the pack while still maintaining his hold on the side of the incline.
When he got close to the fifth MRE, he found there were no secure places to put either his hands or his feet to get him closer to the meal. He leaned over to his right, stretching out as far as he could. Just as his finger touched the edge of the package, the rock providing his toehold broke loose under his weight and sent him sliding down the hill. He frantically grabbed at the rocks and saplings that were further bruising his stomach and chest and slapping him in the face as he quickly skidded down toward the edge of the cliff. He made one last grab as he felt himself go over the edge and realized at the last second he had grabbed the strap on the pack he had seen from above. He silently apologized to Rodney and Ronon for his foolishness.
TBC