SILENT SACRIFICE...part 7

"Elizabeth!" John screamed her name as he watched her slip underwater. He was on the catwalk and he couldn't reach her. He was half tempted to dive in until he sensed a presence behind him. He turned to see Athar's glowy form. But that was not the name he thought of her by. "Chaya!" He was glad to see her. "Atlantis is sinking again. You have to help us! Tell me what to do!"

"There is nothing to be done, John," Chaya said softly, one hand reaching out to him.

He couldn't accept that. "Then why are you here?"

She moved closer, glowing more brightly now. "I have come for you."

"Come for me?" He didn't understand. Nor did he have time to figure it out. Everyone in Atlantis was dying. Everyone he cared about was sinking beneath the cold waves.

"It is time for you to join us," Chaya whispered. "Come, John. Take my hand and be with me."

But John backed away from her. "No," he whispered, then he was shouting, "NO! If you can't save all of us then I'll die with them!" He made to dive over the railing but a flash of white light blinded him and he stumbled and then warmth was wrapped around him and John blinked hard and when he could see again he realized he was being pulled away from Atlantis. He watched the city sink beneath the water, until there was nothing left but a ripple. He closed his eyes and screamed.

"Sheppard!"

John jolted awake at the sound of his name, his throat tight as he choked on a scream. He remembered the dream and it left him shaken and sick and he half crawled, half stumbled to the cave entrance, barely making it outside before he was retching. He heaved until he was dizzy and gasping as pain throbbed in his skull and his ribs screamed in agony. He didn't know how long it took before he could sit up and breathe properly again.

Then suddenly Rodney was there, moaning as he sat beside him. "Hey, you okay?"

"Been better," John replied, his throat feeling raw and burned. A water bottle appeared and he took it gratefully, sucking down small mouthfuls that offered relief.

"Must have been one hell of a dream," Rodney said.

John rubbed at his eyes, willing the ache in his head to ease. Willing his nausea to disappear as well, but it looked like he wasn't going to get his wish today. After a moment he said, "I've had worse." Biting back a moan, John made it to his feet. He stared down at Rodney's pale face, seeing sweat shining on his skin. "How's your back?" he asked, guessing the cause of Rodney's agony.

Looking piteous, Rodney replied, "Horrible. I don't think I can get up right now and I really have to pee."

"I'll help you," John replied, automatically. He was already moving to get Rodney's arm slung over his shoulder and it was only then that he realized there were bandages on his forearms.

"I cleaned and wrapped them while you were sleeping," Rodney replied, apparently having noticed John's reaction.

John felt grateful and uneasy. "Thanks," he said, before gritting his teeth and hauling Rodney to his feet. But as he got them both outside he realized he must have really been out of it for Rodney to be able to do that without him noticing. And that was not a good sign. He would have to try and be more alert in the future. Rodney and Ronon were depending on him to keep them alive and well until help came. John just hoped that the rescue team would arrive soon.

They did their business outside then went in and John got Rodney settled and handed over some ibuprofen.

"You should take some too," Rodney stated. "With all the cuts and stuff, it might help in case you get an infection."

"I'll take some later if I need them," John replied. He knew he needed to save what little they had left for his companions. He then turned his attention to Ronon. "Let's get you outside, big guy," John said. "Then I'm going to head out on another water run."

Ronon did what he could to help get to his feet, but he was still resting rather heavily on John as he spoke. "We have enough water for now, Sheppard. You need to rest today."

John opened his mouth to argue the fact, only he knew they would both catch him out in a lie. He was exhausted and barely able to stay on his feet. He did need to rest a bit if he was going to be of any use to them. So he nodded as he hauled Ronon out of the cave. "You win. I'll rest today."

Once Ronon had taken care of nature, John got him back inside and checked for fever. He felt fairly cool today but John still gave him some Tylenol. Then he got both Ronon and Rodney breakfast, mentally calculating when he'd have to replenish their food supply again. Wouldn't hurt to get more tomorrow along with the water.

"You need to eat something, Sheppard," Rodney spoke up, when John moved to settle himself in the corner.

"I'll eat later," John promised, the lie coming out smoothly. He would try a bit of the carrot things later, when his stomach was more settled. It was still a bit twisted up in knots after the apple-grape thing. "I'm gonna catch a few z's," he announced. "Wake me if you need me." And with that he closed his eyes and drifted off into a restless slumber.

He woke up at lunch time, or there about, and he was surprised to realize he hadn't dreamed this time. Pain spasmed throughout his body, but John ignored it as he pushed himself to his feet. He checked on his companions, discovering both of them had dozed off as well. Ronon felt warm again and John woke him to take some Tylenol, then he hauled him up and outside for a bathroom break. Rodney was next and John gave him Tylenol too. Rodney was trying to be brave and insist he didn't need it and that his back was fine now, but John could see the pain he was in so he insisted on the pills. Then he got Rodney outside, but it was a long trek because Rodney was leaning on John quite heavily.

By the time they got back, John felt wiped out again. He practically crawled around delivering food and water to his charges, and he took a bite of the carrot thing under their watchful gaze. Unfortunately, his stomach recoiled and John set the food aside.

"You need to eat that," Rodney told him, from where he sat eating his MRE.

"Stomach is still off," John replied. "I'll try again later." He then changed the subject matter. "Maybe we'll have a new shipment of movies to watch when we get back," he said.

Rodney snorted. "You're just hoping for the latest Harry Potter film, that Goblet something thing."

John grinned. "Goblet of Fire," he supplied. "And yep, I can't wait to see it. The book was great."

"Did you ever finish reading War and Peace?" Rodney queried.

"Nope. Never found the time," John replied.

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Yet you found time to read the latest Harry Potter book," he reminded him.

John shrugged, then winced, feeling the pull of pain over his entire body. "Harry Potter is an easier read," he stated, then he looked over at Ronon. "So what movie have you liked best so far?" he asked.

"Star Wars," Ronon replied without hesitation. "Although that Spiderman one was interesting."

"There are other choices besides Sci Fi movies," Rodney interjected.

Sheppard made a face then grinned. "Like what?" he prompted.

Rodney wouldn't look at him as he muttered, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."

"I love that movie!" John enthused. "I haven't seen it in years."

"We should watch it when we get back, all of us," Rodney said. "I could use the laugh."

John couldn't have agreed more. "We'll get Teyla and Elizabeth and Beckett too," he said.

Ronon snorted this time. "You mean as soon as Beckett lets us out of the infirmary."

"There is that," John allowed. He was tired of the hours he had racked up in that place, but he knew it would be unavoidable for them, yet again. So far Ronon had spent the least time there.

"Batman versus Superman?" Rodney suddenly interjected.

John didn't hesitate. "Batman."

Ronon was grinning. "Superman."

"Rodney?" John prompted.

"Batman," Rodney replied.

John was intrigued. "Why Batman?" He knew his own reasons. The man wasn't superhuman, he was just a guy doing extraordinary things and that's how John felt about himself, most of the time. Well, particularly since coming to Atlantis.

Rodney looked embarrassed but after a moment he muttered, "He has all the cool gadgets."

That made John laugh, but not for long, the sound in his ears and the motion of his chest made his head and body ache abominably. He could feel both Rodney and Ronon watching him closely, too closely, so he had to distract them again. "Favorite American Idol." They had watched up to season 4 on DVD. Teyla, in particular, had enjoyed the show and John thought it would be cool to take her to Earth some day. She'd pass an audition without even trying and give Kelly Clarkson a run for her money.

"Fanta..Fan...the dark one," Ronon replied.

"Fantasia," Rodney responded. "She was okay. "I thought Bo Bice should have won during his season."

John was surprised by that. Rodney was always a wonder, keeping him guessing about how his big scary mind worked. Which John rather enjoyed. "I liked Kelly Clarkson the best," he said, after Rodney reminded him he hadn't named his favorite.

Ronon was nodding. "On my world we would call her Eshru. Gifted one," he explained.

"You have another language?" Rodney asked, looking surprised and curious.

"Of course." Ronon looked amused and a bit offended. "The word of the old ones. My father taught it to me before he died."

John was curious to know more. "How did your father die?" he queried.

Ronon's expression tightened and his eyes grew dark. "Culling. I became the man of my family that day," he said softly.

"You had siblings?" Rodney asked. Then explained when Ronon looked confused. "A brother or sister."

"A younger sister." Ronon scrubbed a hand over his face, leaving behind a streak of dirt to blend in with the others. "They disappeared when I was sixteen summers. I joined the military because they traveled and I thought maybe I could find them."

John could feel Ronon's sadness as he prompted, "Did you?"

Ronon shook his head. "No. And now that Sateda is destroyed, I never will."

"I'm sorry." John meant it. He knew how it felt to lose family. Not that he would ever talk about it, which he knew Ronon at least would understand.

"Can't change the past," Ronon replied. "No sense in dwelling on it."

Rodney looked strangely upset by those words, but then he turned to John and said, "Do you speak any other languages?"

John decided it wouldn't hurt to answer this one. "French."

"Really?" Rodney didn't sound convinced. "Say something."

"Don't want too." John decided he could have a bit of fun teasing Rodney. Which they continued with for about twenty minutes, with Ronon tossing comments in here and there, until John gave in and, in fluent French, told Rodney who had taken his coffee stash and why. It was obvious the scientist didn't understand him, which was a relief. Radek would be pissed if he thought John had given him up. Not that he ever would. Zelenka was a good guy, and sometimes they hung out in the jumper Bay while the Czech instructed John on how to repair the jumpers. A little secret they kept from McKay, just so John could spring his knowledge on him some day. He just hoped he would get that chance.

After a time Rodney announced he was still hungry and John got him a powerbar. He then checked on Ronon's temp, which felt like it was normal again. John then made another attempt at eating the carrot thing, just to get Rodney off his back. After that he settled back in for another nap, this time sleeping straight through until dinner. He dreamed again but the images were fractured and nothing unsettled him enough to wake him up.

The first thing John did was reach for a bottle of water. Once he had slaked his thirst he checked on his companions. Rodney was dozing but Ronon was awake. John knew he was keeping watch over them as best he could. Moving slowly, he got to his feet and tried to work out the stiffness. His ever present headache was making itself known, and his stomach was still feeling queasy. He thought maybe he was hungry this time, instead of sick. But another bite of the carrot proved him wrong. So he put it aside and went to Ronon. "Need to pee?" he asked.

Ronon nodded and they went to work getting him onto his feet and out of the cave. Rodney was awake by the time they got back, so John got him out too. Once back inside he gave them supper then headed out to collect wood for the night fire. He tried eating again, to no avail, but he lied to Rodney saying he had munched on a power bar while collecting wood. Rodney seemed to buy it for now. A look at Ronon and John knew the Satedan realized his lie, but he let it slide and that was all John cared about.

After supper was done, Ronon regaled them with tales of Sateda and Rodney numbed them with stories about his college days. As the sky darkened, John got them back out for another bathroom break, not realizing until he had them both back inside and settled in for the night that he hadn't gone to the bathroom himself since morning. He went back out to go, but little came out and he wondered if he should be worried about that. He decided it was low on his list of things to be concerned about.

Before heading back inside, John looked up into the sky. "Come on guys," he whispered. "Come find us."

OoO

Lorne scanned the area below him both with the Jumper's scanner and his own eyes. They were doing a more intense ground search this time. But they were only one planet down with four more to go. He only hoped that Sheppard and his team could afford to wait to be found.

THE END...of part 7