And now the conclusion ...
This chapter is dedicated to the cast of Stargate Atlantis for giving us wonderful characters to work with.
A special thanks to San Antonio Rose and jennytork for their help with this story, as well as a shout out to Var Devonshire and BMick for their support.
Enjoy ...
Six days.
For six days, John and his people had been eating berries and squirrels. For six days, they had been exchanging shots with the enemy. For five days, they'd had ammo.
Using up the last of their bullets was a problem, but not as big of one as they originally thought. Since the villagers continued to fire dozens of arrows at them a day, they had an almost endless supply to shoot back. Ronon just touched up the tips and Teyla fashioned a few bows with various materials she found lying around. Nickols surprised them all when he revealed himself to be an avid bow-hunter back on Earth. Who knew John had such Merry Men in their group?
The one person who didn't know the true state of their weapons was Rodney. If he thought he needed to sacrifice himself when they had extra clips and extra rations, what would he do now? The chocolate and powerbars they had used to supplement his meals were gone. It was only a matter of time before he figured out their ammo situation. Hopefully by then the Deadalus would be here. Hopefully this nightmare would soon be over.
The cracks in the walls glowed with dawn on day seven. One week since they arrived on this planet. Three days before any hope of rescue reaching them. John got to his feet and grabbed a handful of berries for his breakfast. Even that abundant supply was starting to dwindle and they would need to be careful to make sure they didn't run out of everything. Munching on his food, he crossed to room to Ronon's position.
"How's it look out there?" John asked.
"Quiet," the Satedan answered. "Some movement, but I haven't seen the archers yet."
"Keep me posted."
"We have a problem," Rodney said, limping over to them.
"Leg bothering you?" John asked, visually checking the white gauze for any bleed-through.
"Of course it's bothering me," he grumbled. "I got shot by an arrow - again!"
"Who hasn't?" Ronon questioned, eyes fixed on the crack.
It was true though. With around a hundred arrows being fired into the complex everyday, odds were some of them were bound to hit the mark. Everyone had taken at least one hit, some more than one, and it was a miracle that they had all survived this long. John absentmindedly touched the gauze at his upper arm where he had been hit on day five, same day as McKay. It had been a really rough week.
"What's the problem?" the Colonel asked, bringing attention back to the matter at hand.
"I just charged the back-up cartridge for Ronon's blaster," Rodney reported.
"Thanks," the Satedan muttered, returning the item to his belt.
"Don't thank me yet. It's only at 80% and the laptop battery I have been using to charge it and the other is dead," he said grimly. "When that and the one in your gun are empty, that's it."
John let out a sigh of frustration. Ronon's gun was their best line of defense and they had been relying on it more and more. He didn't know how much power was in the current cartridge, but he couldn't imagine it was enough to cover several days - even with the backup. Now was not a good time to be out of bullets.
"That really is it, isn't it?" Rodney questioned. "We're screwed."
"We're not screwed," John assured him. "We only have to hold out a few more days for the Daedalus to get here."
The scientist looked less than convinced, turning toward the door. He better not be thinking what John thought he was thinking. He hadn't tried to give himself up since their heart to heart in the hallway, but that didn't mean the idea had been forgotten.
"Rodney …" John warned.
He never got a chance to respond. With only a shout from Ronon as a warning, the next volley of arrows came at them. While the Satedan fired back, John grabbed Rodney and pulled him away from the door. He made it about three steps before he was hit. Now, he had been hit a couple times already, but not so close to his neck. The pain was immense and for a moment he couldn't breath. It wasn't until he heard Rodney calling his name that he realized he was on the ground.
"Don't move, John," Teyla instructed.
"Wasn't planning on it," he grunted. "Anyone else hit?"
"Not this time," she replied. "The arrow went through your shoulder. It may have hit your collarbone."
"Great."
John felt her cut the end of the arrow and carefully roll him over. Rodney tucked one of their jackets under his head and knelled at his side. The Colonel tried to silently reassure him, but he could see the wheels turning in his friend's head. He was seconds away from pulling something really stupid. He grabbed his friend's arm in an attempt to keep him down.
"Don't … you … dare," John gritted out.
"John, you're not gonna make it another day without help," Rodney argued. "Maybe I can trade for-"
"No," his voice was strengthened by Ronon's.
"Do you want him to die?!" Rodney snapped, glaring at the Satedan - who now had a firm grasp on his arm. "It's our only chance."
The door rattled as the enemy hammered it from the other side. Those able bodied enough to shoot arrows through the cracks tried, but the angle made it hard to be effective. Ronon tossed his blaster to Lorne who was able to drive back the latest charge - for now.
"Let me go," the scientist urged. "If I'm not in here anymore, you might be able to-"
"Rodney," John grunted. "At this point, there won't be any deals."
"He's right," Lorne agreed. "We've killed too many of their people. Even if you did give yourself up, they would just kill us all out of spite."
The Colonel watched as the reality of the situation sank in and his friend knelled at his side. It was obvious that the guy had no more hope. John squeezed his arm, trying to pass on some of his. They had come too far to give up now.
"The Daedalus will come," he repeated his week-long mantra. "We'll get out of this."
The pounding returned with a vengeance. The locals must have made a battering ram. Lorne went back to the crack by the door, but they had managed to block it from the other side. He fired a few shots, but the barrier the locals had erected held. Here's hoping that door was as strong.
John could only lay there helpless as he people got into formation around him. He squeezed Rodney's arm again as the rhythmic pounding continued. The door had to hold. They'd come too far. Was it all for nothing? A loud crack sounded as the door began to split apart and the world turned white.
"Colonel!" called a familiar Scottish brogue. "Get me a gurney, quick!"
John could only blink into the well lit space, so different than the darkened ruins. People were shouting and running around. Men and women in green flight suits stood aside for medics swarming over his people.
The Daedalus?
"Never mind my leg!" Rodney's voice shouted over the others. "How are you here?!"
"We were able to increase the speed and output of the hyperdrive," Dr. Zelenka added, somehow appearing in the crowd.
"I told you!" a certain Sergeant crowed.
"Nickols!" Lorne warned.
"I found your notes on your desk," he continued, addressing his colleague. "I'm afraid we couldn't implement them exactly, and we'll have to make some repairs before heading back to Atlantis, but we got here as soon as we could."
"Your timing couldn't have been better," John said with a grin.
"Couldn't-" Rodney sputtered. "How about if they got here an hour ago, before you got shot?!"
"How about you have this conversation in the infirmary and stop bleeding on my bridge," Caldwell suggested, his tone obviously masking his relief.
"Agreed," Carson stated. "Let's go."
John was moved to a gurney while airmen and nurses helped the rest of the injured to the infirmary. The trip was a blur and the next thing the Colonel knew he was waking up on a bed, the arrow replaced by the foggy feeling of drugs. It took a minute to remember what had happened, and another to realize that sitting up was a very bad idea.
"Hold it right there," Carson scolded. "Don't you be ruining all my hard work."
"Sure thing," John grunted, settling back against the bed and trying for a visual check without the added mobility.
"They're all fine," Carson said with a smile. "You were the worst off of the lot."
That was a strangely comforting thought, despite the fact he was half immobilized by slings and bandages. From where he was laying he could see Rodney to his right, sound asleep, and the rest of his team in the beds to his left. Ronon was also catching up on some much needed sleep, but Teyla gave him a smile.
"It is good to see you awake, John."
"It's good to be awake," he replied. "At least I think it is … Has anyone explained what happened yet?"
"I think I can help with that," Zelenka offered, once again appearing nearby.
Of course he might have always been there, but John was still trying to focus. He was able to understand that Atlantis discovered that they were cut off after only a couple of hours. The Coalition had learned that some of the survivors of Santhal had been informed of Rodney's involvement with the Replacators - thanks to a now former member of the Coalition Council with a chip on her shoulder. Just as he suspected, Woolsey had contacted the Daedalus immediately and turned them around. What they had not expected was Zelenka and Carson gating to the Milky Way, the former to improve the engines and the later to be on hand for the rescue. Not that he was complaining.
"I knew the Daedalus could go faster," Nickols muttered from his bed.
"You know because I told you," Rodney shot back.
A few voices yelled at the two to shut up, most prominently Lorne and Ronon. The rest of the story was more technical as Rodney and Zelenka discussed the strain on the hyperdrive and how to get it repaired. Carson was far more interested in their story, namely if there was anything to add to his medical report. Unfortunately, John was still a little foggy.
"McKay, did we get shot on day four or five?"
"Five," he replied. "You almost broke your foot on day four."
"You both got concussions on day one," Ronon offered.
"Right, the day you got shot in the leg," John remembered.
"Don't forget all the squirrel bites." Lorne chimed in.
"Is it relevant that Nickols got himself sick eating too many berries?" Coughlin wondered.
"I did not!" the Sergeant protested.
"Oh, forget it," Carson snapped. "I'm doing full body scans on all of you as soon as we get back."
That worked. John settled back against the blankets, allowing the medication to pull him under, soothed by the sounds of his people around. The Daedalus had come, everyone made it out, and it looked like he was going to get some time off. What a perfect ending to a less than perfect week.
What do you think of the ending? Was it what you expected?
Comments and suggestions are always welcome (and I have been known to write chapters/stories based on reviews).
Until next time, thank you for reading. :)