Love the reviews, guys. Now it's time to turn up the heat.
The Wrong Place at the Wrong Time – Chapter 3
Something was touching his shoulder, gently rubbing it. John snapped his eyes open and tried to reach up to his shoulder, but the pain in his ribs and shoulders quickly halted his motion with a groan.
"John, take it easy. Don't try to move."
"What the . . . " He blinked a couple of times to clear the fog and looked up to see Nick leaning over him. "Wow, you look like crap." He figured that was an understatement. Dried blood was smeared across Nick's face, a reminder of the bloody nose and lip he'd acquired during their interrogation. Bruises were beginning to make an appearance, including a black eye that was swelled half shut.
Nick snorted. "So, have you looked in a mirror lately? I doubt either of us get asked to the prom anytime soon."
"You already have a date, remember? Or will she be mad about all this?"
Nick ran a hand through his hair. "Oh, yeah. I was under strict orders to come back unharmed and I think it's too late for that. What really scares me is Beckett, though. He told me to bring us both back in one piece."
"A little late for that. I think I'm currently in about three pieces. If it'll make you feel any better, I'll be in hot water with both him and Elizabeth."
They sat in silence for a few seconds. "You realize we're screwed with or without a rescue, don't you?" asked Nick.
John nodded. "I think I still prefer the Atlantis version. Not so much blood."
"Definitely less blood. By the way, how do you feel?"
John sighed. "Like a jumper landed on me."
"As near as I can tell, you have several cracked ribs and a couple may be broken. I don't think there's internal bleeding, at least not yet. We'd better keep an eye on that though."
"So, you've been playing doctor while I was out. Very sneaky."
"You make it sound so dirty," said Nick, frowning as if he'd eaten something sour.
John started trying to sit up, but Nick pushed him back down. "You need to stay put and keep the pressure off your ribs."
"And who's playing doctor for you?"
"I'm fine, just a little bruised. I think you took the worst of it."
Sheppard frowned and eyed him critically. "Are you sure? It looked to me like they were hitting you about as hard as they were hitting me."
"Maybe so, but I didn't go a round with the Enforcer before the side party started. I'm all right, just a little sore. And thanks . . . for trying to get them to leave me alone. I really wish you wouldn't do that though. This is no more your fault than it is mine."
"No, but my job is to protect you, and if I can, that's what I'm going to do. I just don't happen to be doing a very good job at the moment. Besides," he smiled. "I think I heard you yelling at him to leave me alone, if I'm not mistaken."
The door wrenched open, startling them both. The same four goons came in and jerked them to their feet. John was so dizzy the first few steps that he almost passed back out. They took them back to the same room and shackled their arms over their heads again.
"Man, and I was just starting to get the feeling back in my hands," moaned John.
The Enforcer walked up to stand in front of them, smiling as he looked John over and then Nick. "I see the boys got you properly warmed up. Maybe we can make some progress now." He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked very much like a set of brass knuckles.
"Oh my god, you have got to be kidding," mumbled John. "This just gets better and better."
The Enforcer cocked an eyebrow at him. "Good, I'm glad you are enjoying my little party. Why don't we let you get things started for the evening by telling me why you killed the Chancellor."
John leaned his head against his arm and sighed loudly. "So, I guess this means you didn't get a battery for that hearing aide like I suggested, huh?"
Nick winced, wondering how John could keep popping wisecracks. Not only was he too afraid to think of anything to say, he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to get himself to say it anyway. John was practically asking for trouble when they were already in heaps of it. He was beginning to wish he had a gag.
The Enforcer lunged forward as he plowed his meaty arm and brass-knuckles endowed hand into John's midriff. He quickly pulled back and punched John several times. John's legs had given way at the first punch and his body began to spin, so every blow landed in a different place – the front, then the side, then the back, then the other side. John continued to spin with the momentum from the blows long after the Enforcer had stopped hitting him.
Nick wasn't sure if he was conscious or not since he was still spinning in a circle and his head was bowed, his chin on his chest.
"John, are you okay?"
John didn't answer, but the Enforcer stepped over to stand in front of Nick. "Perhaps you would like to explain what you are really doing on our planet? What did you hope to gain?"
Nick just looked at the man and his fear suddenly became manageable. The man was going to beat him and nothing would stop him. They would either be rescued soon or they would die at his hands, of that he was certain. He briefly wished he'd told Kelly he loved her one more time before stepping through the gate, because he was afraid he would never see her again. But he took comfort in the fact that she loved him, and she knew that he loved her. He looked over at John, hanging from the shackles as he tried to pull his head up and focus in on the world around him. Drawing strength from John's courage, he glared at the Enforcer; he knew he could do this.
Nick stood up a little straighter. "There's really no use in me answering you with same answers we've already given. You don't care that we are telling the truth, so why don't you just do what you're going to do and get it over with."
The Enforcer smiled. "You know, you're starting to sound like him." He motioned towards Sheppard with his head. "That's not a good thing."
Nick returned the man's smile. "I beg to differ. I think you just paid me a compliment."
"Maybe I can change your mind." The Enforcer punched Nick in much the same way he had punched John in the abdomen, continuing his assault as Nick spun and weaved. He was pretty sure he had never felt explosions of pain like the ones raining down on him now. He was having a hard time drawing a breath when someone threw a bucket of cold water on him, causing him to gasp desperately for air. He pushed himself to his feet as he furiously sucked in a deep breath. Clearing his head and shivering from the wet cold, he looked over to John, who stood, wet and shivering, with his head resting against his up stretched arm.
"Are we having fun yet?" John asked weakly.
Nick closed his eyes a second. "Oh, yeah. Having a blast." He opened them to see the Enforcer standing next to the table where he had put his gloves during their first encounter. He picked up a stick about two feet long with a handle at one end and a nasty looking thing with four prongs at the other. He glanced at Sheppard to find him looking his direction with an expression that said this was not going to be good.
"This is my favorite toy. Are you familiar with the neurodisrupter?"
"No," said Sheppard. "Don't think we've been introduced."
The Enforcer's smile got bigger, if that was possible. "Oh, good. By all means, let me explain. It interacts with your neural pathways to paralyze you, while causing severe muscle contractions and stimulating multiple pain receptors. I've been told that it is very painful for several hours. It renders you quite incapable of movement, but not exactly unconscious, at least not for a while. So Colonel Sheppard, would you like to tell me what you are doing on this planet or would you like a more personal introduction?"
John looked at the stick with fear and dread as he licked his lips and tried to prepare for the inevitable. He knew it didn't matter what he said, the Enforcer was dying to poke someone with his toy and here was John, all trussed up like a chicken . . . or maybe hanging meat. "Go to hell."
"As you wish."
Nick was beginning to understand what John was doing, but it didn't make it any easier to watch. They were going to torture them just for the sake of doing it and there wasn't anything the two men could do about it. John was being a smart-aleck partly as an outlet for his frustration and partly to attract as much attention to himself as possible, sparing Nick some of the pain. He wanted to slap him and hug him at the same time.
The Enforcer pushed the stick forward, burying the four half-inch prongs in John's belly while pressing the trigger mechanism in the handle. John gave one quick yelp before his body began to convulse violently as he hung by his arms.
"Take him down! He's going to hurt himself like that, take him down!" yelled Nick. He couldn't look and yet he couldn't look away. John's body continued to jerk even after the Enforcer pulled the stick back, leaving four trails of blood running down his abdomen and soaking into the waist of his pants. Nick had seen people have convulsions, but never while hanging like that and it shook him to the core. "Please take him down, please."
The Enforcer nodded to the men standing against the wall and two of them moved forward, releasing John's arms so that he fell to the ground with a thud. His body continued to jerk and spasm, although not as violently as before. To Nick's surprise, the men then released him. He immediately went to John's side, trying to straighten John's crumpled form out while nursing his own aching ribs.
"I'll give you some time to tend to him and think about what you need to tell me in the next session. If I don't hear what I need to hear, you will both be treated to the disrupter next time and there will be no one to tend to either of you. Think about that doctor. Take them back to their cell."
Once again they were hauled to their feet and back to their cell, where the door was opened and they were literally thrown in. Nick crawled over to John and tried to make him comfortable. Looking down, he saw that John's eyes were open a slit, but he had no control of his body. His limbs periodically shook with tremors, reminding him of the way spider legs jerk after you squish the life out of them. Uncontrolled muscle spasms.
"John, I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I'm here. Just hang on." He remembered what the Enforcer had said about pain receptors and he watched John's eyes, looking for signs that he was in pain. He didn't much like what he saw.
The instant the prongs from the stick jabbed into his stomach, John decided he must be in hell. Somewhere along the way, he died and went to hell and he just hadn't realized it until now. He was pretty sure he'd never felt pain like that. Maybe the iratus bug for the first few minutes after it attached, but even that wasn't this intense. He could feel his body jerking, out of control, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. It was like his brain and his muscles were no longer connected. If he could speak, he would have begged them to shoot him.
Now that they were back in the cell, the jerking was not quite so bad, but the pain had never really let up. He wanted to scream and pull his hair, or maybe bash his head against the wall, but he couldn't move. He couldn't even blink. His vision had shrunk to a long, narrow tunnel with the doctor peeking at him from the other end. He wanted to tell him how bad it hurt, which made no sense since he couldn't do anything to help at the moment.
He wouldn't have been able to explain the pain anyway. There were flashes of pain in a dozen places at once, cycling again and again. Some were like being cut and some like being burned and some like part of him was just exploding. Slicing pain shot intermittently through his head, temple to temple and then front to back, ending by sliding down his spinal cord and shooting out into his limbs. Every jerk and spasm served to intensify whatever pain was present at the moment.
He was aware of motion that seemed to increase the pain for a few seconds and then it stopped. Nick had placed his head in his lap, trying to make him more comfortable. The cold was beginning to seep in with the pain and he wished he had his shirt and jacket. Mostly he just wished the team would come for them. Carson and the infirmary and some really good pains meds were looking mighty fine about now. If only he could just pass out because this was maddening.
oOo
Elizabeth Weir stepped out of her office at the sound of the gate alarm. "Who is it?" she asked as she walked into the gateroom with Rodney McKay hobbling along on crutches behind her.
"Just a second . . . Teyla's IDC coming through."
Elizabeth's eyebrows shot up. "Lower the shield."
"What are they doing back already? They've only been gone a little over an hour," said Rodney. "They barely had time to walk to the town and walk back."
They watched as Teyla and Ronon emerged from the wormhole, both their expressions and movements displaying anger and anxiety. When they spotted Elizabeth and Rodney, they immediately hurried up the stairs.
"You weren't gone very long," said Elizabeth. "Is there a problem?"
"Yes, Dr. Weir, there is a big problem. The Chancellor died before we could return with the medical supplies and the people are very upset. They have taken Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Strauhan prisoner." Teyla's expression mirrored her concern.
Elizabeth sighed heavily. Why was there always a problem? She hit her radio button. "Dr. Beckett, this is Dr. Weir. You're needed in the conference room immediately. We have a problem."
"Aye, I'll be right there." Elizabeth was pretty sure she heard him mutter something about bloody fools before he turned his radio off.
oOo
"Nick?"
Nick's head jerked up, his eyes trying to focus quickly on the surroundings. "What?" He looked around and, after a few seconds, remembered where he was. He looked down at John, his head in Nick's lap as Nick sat propped up against the wall. He shivered, realizing how cold he was and how asleep his butt was. They could have at least returned their shirts.
"John? Was that you?" John's eyes were more open now than they had been earlier and they looked a little more focused.
"Yeah . . . need to . . . sit up."
Nick carefully slid out from under him and helped him sit up against the wall. John's movements were sluggish, weak, and uncoordinated, but at least he was moving and talking. "How do you feel?" He watched John's eyes to try and determine how much pain he was in.
"Been . . . better . . . really hurt." John hated this. He still didn't have good control and it was almost impossible just to form words and get them out. He could still feel remnant muscle spasms and flashes of pain every few minutes and he watched as his right hand twitched for several seconds.
Nick saw it too. "It hasn't gone completely away, has it?"
"No." Sheppard grimaced and closed his eyes a second.
"John, is it getting worse?"
"No . . . had a thought . . . think when . . . he jabbed me . . . " He shook his head and looked away.
Nick frowned, worried about what was bothering him so much. "What is it? Just tell me."
"Nothin'."
"Something is bothering you. Look, I'm your doctor. If you don't want me to tell anyone, I won't. But you have to tell me what's going on so I can help you."
John closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. "No . . . not sure . . . and you can't help."
"Okay, you're not sure. What are you not sure about?"
John was silent for several seconds, prompting Nick to wonder if he had dozed off. And then, his voice shaking, he answered him. "May have . . . wet my pants."
Nick sat with his mouth open for a few seconds before laughing out loud. John's eyes flashed open and he frowned, shocked that his friend would laugh at him when he had told him something so humiliating.
"I'm sorry, that's it? That's what you're afraid of? They're hauling us down there and beating the snot out of us and stabbing you with the mother of all cattle prods and you're worried you may have wet your pants when all your nerves and muscles got turned to jello? John, who cares? Have you looked at us lately? Have you smelled us lately? We stink my dear man, plain and simple. Between the dirt and the sweat and the blood, how would anyone notice?"
John just stared at Nick for several seconds like he was in shock, and then slowly a grin spread across his face and he began to laugh. The two men laughed for several minutes until tears wet their cheeks. The pain and the humiliation and the frustration fed the hysterical emotional release until they could barely breathe and they lay back against the stone floor, exhausted.
"Think we're losing it," said Sheppard when they had rested long enough for their breathing to slow to normal.
"Nope, already lost it," said Nick.
They lay in silence for several more seconds until both men heard and felt the footsteps of the Enforcer's men returning for them. Simultaneously they raised their head from the floor a few inches and looked at one another.
"So, when exactly can we expect this rescue, because I'm thinking now would be good," said Nick as his stomach began to knot and tighten.
"No idea," replied John. "But I hope it's soon. I'm not sure I can do that again."
The door to the cell banged open and both men jumped. They were definitely in the wrong place this time.
TBC
