The next morning, John woke up freezing and aching everywhere. The siren made his ears ring and he struggled to sit up, rubbing his face. All around him, men got out of their beds, hurrying outside. John's muscles were protesting against the abuse from the previous day. He turned to look for Carson and saw that he managed to sleep through the deafening siren. John grabbed Carson by the shoulder, and shook him.
"Carson, wake up. We have to hurry or there won't be any food left." At first Carson didn't react, but when John shook him more forcefully, he finally opened his eyes.
"Major...?"
"It's just John these days. Are you okay!
Carson frowned. "I feel like I got my head bashed in."
John helped him to sit up. He didn't say anything, but Carson's body seemed awfully hot. He was worried that his friend was running a fever.
"Can you get up?" John asked Carson, seeing that they were the last ones left in their barrack.
"I assume this is a rhetorical question?" Carson shot back, and made to swing his legs over the side of the cot. He tried to get up, but his legs wouldn't take the weight. Only with John's support, Carson was able to stand. Carson hadn't complained, but John could see the sweat on the other man's forehead and felt the rapid breaths Carson was taking, after the effort of getting up.
"Come on. Maybe there is some yummy oatmeal left for us." John encouraged Carson as they made their way towards the door of the barrack.
It was a stunningly beautiful morning in the Ristia Mountain Camp, but none if its inhabitant had eyes for it.
A cue of prisoners was waiting at a water pump for an opportunity to wash themselves. Showers were a rare opportunity, usually, a water pump and a bucket had to suffice. Most of the prisoner had already collected their breakfast, so the cue at the kitchen tent was small. John would have spared Carson the effort of standing in line, but they only way they'd get two portion's, was if two people stood in line.
Still, they only scored small, slightly burned pieces of oil dunked bread. It tasted of ash, but it was food.
John sat down next to Carson against the wall of one of the barracks. While John chewed his breakfast, he considered his options. Carson wasn't doing too well. He had to get him help. He wouldn't last long in the crystal mines.
oOo
John swung his pick against the rock for what felt like the thousandth time. The work was so much harder than the day before, now that his muscles were sore. Carson was hardly able to stay on his feet, much less swing a pick against a wall of solid rock. So far, they had been lucky and no guard had shown up in their section of the tunnel. Their foot chains were hooked into rings in the wall, making an escape impossible. John had considered, trying to free the ring from the wall. But he would still be chained to nineteen other prisoners.
When John heard footsteps echoing from the distance, he nudge against Carson, who was sitting down, leaning against the wall.
"Carson, get up, a guard is coming."
"Mmm." Carson mumbled, but got to his feet.
The footsteps came closer.
"Just try to pretend like you are working." John whispered to Carson.
The footsteps approached them and then stopped.
"What have you two been doing all day?" A voice asked behind John. John turned to see one of the guards inspecting the bucket with the crystals he had mined so far. Having given half of them to Carson, he didn't have much to show for half a day's work.
"You work like women twice your age." The guard sneered. "What is with you?" he turned to Carson.
"You look strong. but you can hardly stand. The likes of you wouldn't even be able to earn your own keep."
"He's ill." John defended Carson. "He needs a doctor."
"He doesn't need a doctor." The guard laughed. "He is an iliatinsin. They don't last long, they never do."
"Iliatinsin?"
"You are really not from this world, are you? He is addicted to iliatin. Now he can't live without it."
John's heart sank.
oOo
Radek ran. When the last Wraith transport beam had only missing him by mere feet, he had gotten up and started to run. He wasn't sure that he was running in the right direction, but any direction that got him away from the Wraith was the right direction in his mind. The uneven ground made his going difficult and he nearly fell several times. It was still raining, making the ground muddy and slippery. He could still hear to the Darts overhead. Another transport beam swept the ground near Radek. The forest had been thinning and the terrain had gotten rockier. Radek had lost all sense of time, the only thing he knew was that he couldn't keep on running forever.
Radek nearly plunged down a good hundred feet when the forest ended in a sudden cliff. Radek froze at the sight of the structure at the bottom of the cliff. The dark grey structure looked almost organic in the way it sprawled out with tentacle like arms. Before his eyes, a Dart rose from the installation. He was looking down on a Wraith base. He glanced down on his scanner and began to frantically punch buttons. Energy readings, life signs, nothing showed on his scanner. The Wraith had to somehow shield their base from his scans while it remained visible.
A noise behind him startled Radek. He whirled around. Somewhere between the tress something was moving. Radek reached for the gun Sergeant Bates had insisted he carry. He had never fired a gun at a living being before, he had only practised at the range and unfortunately, he was not a good shot at all. He hands were trembling as he held the gun ready. He didn't dare to turn on the flashlight, because, while it might help him make out who was sneaking around between the trees, it would also give away his position. Assuming that hadn't happened already.
Radek scanned the tree line. He could swear he had seen something move, but he couldn't hear anything. He wished he had his glasses. The life signs detector was coming up empty, but after it had failed to give him a read on the Wraith stronghold, Radek wasn't sure whether the Wraith had found a way to evade the scanner or the scanner had been damaged in the fall.
There it was again. A rustling noise close by. Like someone was walking through the underbrush. Radek squinted at the distance. The rain had lightened, but it didn't make it any easier to see. The noise of the Darts was coming back in his direction. The light of the transport beams was lighting up the forest in the distance. The noise of the Darts was drowning out all other sounds, and when Radek saw them it was already too late to run. A group of three Wraith on floor had emerged from the forest. Time seemed to have slowed down as they were closing in on him, cutting of all routes of escape. Radek instinctively backed away as the Wraith came closer. He remembered his gun and started firing at one of them, but he just smiled and kept coming at him. Radek took another step back, and stepped into nothing as he fell of the edge of the cliff.
oOo
Elizabeth closed Rodney's file. He had left precise instructions for the case of his death. The decision to declare Rodney officially dead had not come easy, but it was the only reasonable thing to do when she looked at the facts. He wasn't coming back. The sooner she reassigned his position in the science team, the sooner they could back to normal operation. She hated to think of Rodney as replaceable and in many ways he wasn't. His genius was unique, even amongst the many brilliant mind of the expedition. But they had to look towards the future and every day counted in the fight against the Wraith. Among the documents that Rodney had left on file were extensive notes on his work and also recommendations for a new head of the science department. He strongly recommended Dr. Zelenka for the post. Elizabeth now regretted having sent Zelenka on the mission with Bates. In the light of the developments, there was the distinct possibility that the team was lost and she would have yet to appoint another scientist as chief of the science department. As for Rodney's notes on his work on the Ancient database and various artefacts, she had only sifted through the numerous pages. Someone from the science department would have to sight the notes. Elizabeth had already called for Drs. Kavanaugh and Jamison to take care of the task at hand. She was awaiting them every minute. Dr. Biro had contacted her and let her know that she was still assessing Major Sheppard and would let her know as soon as she had all the test results.
When Kavanaugh and Jamison arrived, they looked tense and tired. Elizabeth knew the strain the science team was under without McKay and Zelenka.
"Please sit down. I have to talk to you both. I'm afraid the occasion isn't a pleasant one. Dr. McKay was killed in action on his last mission. I'm going to make the official announcement later today."
Both scientists nodded.
"Dr. McKay left extensive notes on his work. I want you to go through them and see if any projects should be pursued further. Dr. Kavanaugh, you are in charge of assigning them to the rest of the staff. I realize that the science is short staffed at the moment. I want you to prioritize any ongoing research and put those projects on hold that don't have an application related to protection of Atlantis. I'm going to trust your judgment in this matter.
"But..." Dr. Kavanaugh started to protest.
"I realize that we came here to explore, but the reality is that we have limited resource and that the Wraith are a threat to our very survival. We need to prioritize our research the same we set prioritize when choosing planets for our missions."
"Who is going to be in charge of the science department?" Dr. Jamison asked.
"I'm putting you both in charged and I expect you to work as a team."
There was a rap on the door.
"Yes?"
It was Dr. Grodin.
"Dr. Weir. It's Halling. He is back from Athos."
oOo
"My people don't have the advances of your healers." Teyla said, her face turned towards Carson. "We don't have the means to prolong life."
"You don't have to decide now." Carson said, taking her hand in his. "There is still time."
Carson heard footsteps behind him. He turned out and saw Elizabeth approaching.
"I thought I told you to go back to bed." She pointed out.
"Dr. Weir?" Teyla asked.
"Yes, Teyla, it's me." Elizabeth approached the bed. "I have good news. Halling just came back. He managed to evade the Wraith on Athos. He brought back the plant. Dr. Muir is working on the cure right now. She estimates that it will be ready in about six hours. You are going to be fine, Teyla." Elizabeth reassured her.
Teyla smiled briefly, and then she frowned.
"What about the others that went to Athos?"
"We haven't heard from them yet. But I don't want you worrying about them now. Just hang on a little longer."
TBC