A/N:
Thank you very much for your kind reviews so far. I am terribly sorry for taking so long to update but I'll reward your patience with uploading two chapters at once.
Shukran to my twin TCB 0.5 for the beta!

BTW, should anyone consider my little fic worth saving to their harddrive, please feel free to do so as long as you don't erase my name or copyright.

Enjoy!

II

John Sheppard was pacing, always striding a dozen of steps in one direction, turning on his heel and striding a dozen of steps in the opposite direction. He behaved like a caged cheetah. Sitting on one of the infirmary chairs in the waiting area with his legs outstretched, Ronon shot him a dangerous look, silently renewing the threat which had Rodney caused to sit down just moments ago. Of course Dex felt every bit as anxious as the other two men but their impatient behaviour pulled at his nerves, even more than the uncertainty and this seemingly endless waiting. Feeling the imminent peril of being knocked out by the Satedan if he didn't stop, John sighed heavily and perched on the seat between Ronon and Rodney. With a concerned expression he still tried to make sense of what little Dr Gitano and some resolute young marine had told them.

The clearing-up team had discovered Carson in a clothes locker in that very corridor, only a few feet away from the explosion… The doors of the locker had been bent out of shape from both the impact and the heat. In order to recover its content and see whether it was still in working order, they had opened the doors forcefully. What the startled men had found inside had taken their breath away. Within the compartment closest to the explosion the unconscious form of their CMO had sat crouched on the floor, his back against the sidewall, arms and legs resting against the locker's back and door. The pitiful sight and the stench of burnt flesh and fabric as well as molten plastic almost made the men nauseous. None of them suspected the doctor was still alive, believing they had at last come across the body which they had not been able to locate until now.

Sergeant Meagre had stepped forward, volunteering for the thankless task of retrieving the body from the locker. Briefly closing his eyes he had readied himself, hesitating once again before he had reached out for the motionless form… and jumped back with a surprised gasp. "Im- p…possible…", he had stammered white as a sheet. At his touch the presumed dead CMO had felt hot and let out the faintest of groans.

"Medical emergency in corridor 4b, infirmary floor! Hurry!" The others had gazed at him in total shock as the meaning of his words had sunk in.

When the doctors had arrived, they had been expecting anything but what they were presented with. Wide-eyed and unbelieving they had stared at their boss lying in the locker. It had taken a moment before they had busied themselves with assessing Carson's condition, administering drugs and providing him with infusions. Upon reaching the trauma room, the attending physicians quickly perceived that Beckett had suffered severe burns and was running a high fever but wasn't in immediate danger. Therefore the acting chief medic had decided to first inform Dr Weir of their discovery and call in Dr Cole to assist him in the more thorough analysis of his patient's condition. Adding to their complete astonishment, Carson had regained consciousness and appeared relatively lucid by the time Dr Gitano had called for Elizabeth and the others to come to the infirmary. So the Columbian doctor had reluctantly agreed to let Beckett have his way and surprise his friends himself.

Now John, Rodney and Ronon were impatiently waiting for the results of the examination, shifting in their seats, longing to hear something more definite than the vague answers Dr Gitano had given them. It's been more than one hour since they had been banned from the intensive care area, yet it felt like years. Why in all good heavens did time have to crawl by at snail's pace when you were desperately waiting for something?!

About half an hour ago, Teyla had dozed off and was gently put into her bed by Ronon. Elizabeth had, despite her urge to stay, gone to resume her duties as the expedition leader, knowing she had to contact earth and notify the others who were still waiting at the memorial. The prospect of all the paperwork alone gave her a tension headache but one she gladly embraced. Actually, it seemed a small prize for the life of a dear friend.

xXxXx

Another half-hour passed without any news. Sheppard had begun pacing once more, unable to keep still. In fact, he hadn't managed to sit for more than five minutes before getting up again. He needed to do something, anything. Claiming the same rights as John, Rodney had without hesitation joined the colonel in walking up and down the small room. Ronon had long given up trying to confine them to their seats, realizing this was an exercise in futility. 'At least', the Satedan dryly reflected, 'McKay had stopped babbling.' They all were very aware of the fact that Rodney worked his mouth a mile a minute to deal with the tension of a given situation but for his team mates his speed-talk attacks were unbearable, especially now. So Ronon wasn't surprised at all when John had seconded his threat to shoot Rodney with his blaster, even leaving it open to the shocked scientist whether he would bother to set it to stun first. McKay had looked hurt and started to gesture wildly with his hands, another typical reaction, but he had shut up.

A deep growl emitted from Ronon's throat to express his disapproval to the pacing, which considerably added to his own nervousness. At that moment Dr Cole entered, looking exhausted and worried. The trio wheeled around to face her, concerned and plainly afraid of what they might hear. She forced a reassuring smile, lack of conviction obvious in her eyes.

They followed the young physician across the infirmary towards Beckett's office, every single step increasing their unease. John couldn't help but think of the proverbial lamb led to the slaughter; only this time none of them walking down the quiet floor was the one whose life was at stake. 'How fitting… she already claims his office for her own…' Rodney brushed away the unsettling thought. Defeat was close but not yet at hand.

Once inside, Dr Cole shut the door, taking her time as she moved, clearly grateful for the short delay. When she faced the three men again, whose expressions ranged between mad with worry, impatient and quizzical, she knew there was no way to hold back the answers any longer. The answers they had desperately waited for, the answers they needed, the answers they deserved.

She sighed, hesitating once more before she finally spoke. "Dr Beckett is stable… for now." The last part of her statement almost lost in the understandable relief.

John released the breath he didn't even know he was holding, noticing with a grin that beside him Rodney and Ronon also exhaled audibly. 'So far for the good news', Sheppard added silently, preparing himself for the bad part, which he knew was about to come. The doctor had been far too serious and cheerless to not having a hard blow in store. As usual, McKay had also sensed the adversative nature of Dr Cole's words.

"But…?" Rodney prompted.

She sighed deeply. "Okay, no more beating about the bush." Another pause, another sigh. This was hard on her as well. "Dr Beckett has suffered some very serious burns, mainly on his back, his left arm and leg, in fact everywhere he came in contact with the hot metal of the locker. These are third degree. Because of the heat that was trapped within the compartment, every part of his body that was not covered with clothes, such as his face, neck and arm, suffered from minor burns, first and second degree. His respiratory tract was also affected detrimentally when he inhaled the heat, making it difficult for him to breathe." She paused for an instant, carefully eying Dr McKay, who had gone paler with every word.

"Maybe you want to take a seat before I continue", the physician offered to no one in particular. Even Sheppard and Ronon welcomed the pause to collect themselves. They all sat down except for Dr Cole, who remained standing.

"Dr Beckett has lost a huge amount of fluid and runs a high fever from the poisoning of his system. But there are also symptoms of poisoning probably caused by inhaling the gas emitted from the molten plastic coat hangers."

"How so?", the Satedan interrupted.

"How so what?" Dr Cole asked back.

Ronon straightened on his chair. "Well, you told us something about poisoning his system. Why? What is poisoning his system?"

"Look", the doctor began, "roughly 23 percent of his body suffered from burns of various degrees." She ignored the sharp breath Rodney took in. "To counter the heat, the body floods the affected parts with fluid. This fluid contains lots of protein, which eventually breaks down into its poisonous components, these are spread across the whole body by the blood, causing a dangerous poisoning of the entire system. In serious cases this leads to renal failure, respiratory as well as cardiac arrest and ultimately death. In order to compensate the loss of fluid and to counter the poisoning, which causes the multi-organ failure, one must provide the patient with as much IV solution as possible. And then there is also the high risk of infections to the wounds. These are the reasons why so many patients with severe burns die eventually, even if they survive the immediate effects. So, except for tending to the burns and pain management, there is nothing much a doctor can do but wait."

"And what about Carson? How bad is it?" John brought them back on topic, his stomach cramping at what he had just heard.

"As I said", Dr Cole's voice broke. She swallowed hard and then went on. "About 23 percent of his body are burned. Some of his wounds are already showing signs of infection, which, to be honest, is not surprising. After all he spent two whole days in that locker with his burns untended. Actually, I still marvel at the fact that he was able to survive that long without medical attention. It's nothing short of a wonder he didn't die immediately of the shock! And then, despite the loss of fluid, pulling through for another two days… Well gentlemen, if you ever wanted to witness a miracle happen, here is one."

"Yeah", Rodney muttered, admiration mixing with worry, "he may not look it but our good doc is as tough as they come!"

"What about these 23 percent you keep mentioning?" Ronon wanted to have an answer, NOW!

"Right. 23 percent means… depending on the person, his general constitution, everything above 15 to 20 percent is life-threatening. Dr Beckett's condition will deteriorate considerably in the next few days before it hopefully improves. It is serious, he is not out of the woods yet and won't be for some time. But if no complications occur, I think he should make it." There it was again, the forced smile that couldn't convince them.

"Does he know?" McKay's soft voice was hardly above a whisper. He was pretty sure he knew the answer already but couldn't help asking anyway.

Dr Cole was no longer able to hold their questioning gaze and looked down to the floor as she replied just as softly. "I wish he didn't." A long pause followed before the lump in her throat allowed her to speak again. "He is in great pain but lucid. I mean I didn't read his chart to him but he is too good a doctor to not know. In fact he's the damn best physician I ever met. Dr Beckett certainly doesn't know all the details but he is well aware of his condition and what lies ahead of him. No doubt, sometimes knowing all too well is a curse!"

A heavy silence spread in the small office. The three men needed some time to take in the information and its implications.

"Can we see him?"

The young doctor wanted to decline the request. Their CMO definitely needed to rest right now and gather all his remaining strength for the days to come. But knowing her boss would be overjoyed to see his friends, and looking at the stern faces, laden with concern, she hesitated and finally gave in. "Alright then, but only two of you, and only for a few minutes. I mean it."

"I'll tell Dr Weir and the others", Ronon volunteered, leaving the room while speaking.

When Dr Cole turned to leave as well, John and Rodney immediately wanted to join her but she raised a hand, stopping them in their track. "Wait. Not so fast, Colonel, Doctor. First I'll go check whether or not he is in any condition to receive visitors. Come back in half an hour and I'll let you to him if he is fit enough." With that she marched out of Carson's office, leaving the two men at a loss.

Rodney looked wide-eyed at John, having no clue what he could do during that time. 'Well, I could always get something to eat. Really, I'm starving.' "Am headed for the mess hall. See you in 30 minutes", he called to his perplexed friend while rushing out.

After McKay had left, Sheppard tried to come up with something he could do. Eating was out of the question, the mere thought of inflicting food upon his unsteady stomach was hideous.

To be continued…