Pain. That's what brought John back to consciousness and the moment he opened his eyes he wished he could slide back into darkness. It didn't hurt there. Now that he was awake, it felt like everything hurt. Even his hair. Stifling a groan, John tried to sit up only to realize his wrists were bound behind his back. He pulled on them but succeeded only in chafing his skin. Whoever had tied him up knew what they were doing.
"You're awake!"
The voice was sharp and familiar. John turned his head, wincing as pain stabbed through his skull, and found himself staring up at Teyla. She looked angry and anxious and when she moved to kneel in front of him, John found himself flinching away. But he couldn't move far enough, fast enough, and strong fingers gripped his face.
Teyla scowled at him. "I should have known it was you all along!" she snarled.
"What are you talking about?" John countered, because she really wasn't making any kind of sense. Slowly he managed to shift up so that he was slumped against the wall.
"You're a betrayer!" Teyla's fingers bit into his skin hard enough to bruise. "I blame myself for being fooled by your charm and your pretty face."
John felt offended and he wasn't exactly sure why. But he was relieved when Teyla released him and stood up, starting to pace. "Betrayer of what?" he prompted. "Teyla...what's going on? Where are we and why am I tied up?" John was all kinds of confused at this point.
Teyla stopped pacing to glare at him. "You thought you could seduce me...that through me you could control my people. But I will not allow that to happen! I will kill you first!" And with that she was on her knees, knife in hand, the blade pressed to his throat before he could react.
"Teyla..." John whispered, and he was pretty much afraid to even swallow because he could feel the sharp edge of the blade prickling his skin. "I haven't...I wouldn't betray you."
"LIAR!" The blade pressed harder.
John felt warm wetness trickle down his throat. She had made him bleed. It hit John that Teyla was serious. She intended to kill him. And he was helpless to stop her. He tried to ease his head back but the wall was behind him and Teyla had one hand fisted in his hair. He gasped as the blade bit in deeper...
"TEYLA!" Roared a voice from behind her
The pressure eased and John sucked in a lungful of air before managing to focus on the scene before him. Teyla had risen to confront Ronon. John wondered how the hell Ronon had found them. He didn't even recognize the room they were in. Not that John was going to complain. He just wanted out of here. He managed to maneuver himself up to his knees just as Teyla launched herself at Ronon. The Satedan blocked her and in a heartbeat had her disarmed and unconscious. As John watched, Ronon laid Teyla gently on the floor. "Good timing," John whispered, because it hurt to talk.
Ronon looked grim as he nodded, then went to work on cutting the ropes that bound John. "I followed her, she had to drag you here. But I lost her for a time."
"Thanks for the rescue." John rubbed his freed wrists then lifted a hand to his neck. They came away red. Then Ronon was holding out a square of cloth and John pressed it to the wound. He accepted Ronon's hand up but had to lock his knees to remain standing. "I don't know what happened to her. It's like she went nuts."
"I feel what she feels," Ronon stated.
That got John's attention. "What? What do you mean?"
Ronon turned to look at Teyla's inert form. "We dream of red mists. Reality is slipping away from us. Something happened in the Ruins."
"I know." John felt both relieved and terrified. "Ronon...do you think you'll lose control the way Teyla did? Become violent?"
"Probably." He moved to pick Teyla up. "You need to call security and lock us up." Ronon held out Teyla's radio earpiece.
John took it and contacted Beckett first thing, then he called Major Lorne, who had recovered rather quickly and didn't seem to be feeling any ill effects from the ruins, the way John and his team had. Or...were. Ronon headed out to meet the others and John stumbled after him. His head was pounding, his neck was still bleeding and it took all of his concentration to put one foot in front of the other. Then, suddenly, Beckett was there just as John started to slide away into darkness.
The darkness brightened to gray, then it shaded into red and John reached out for it, wanting the coolness to wrap around him. But there were voices buzzing around him, preventing him from slipping away. And hands that poked and prodded him and anger washed over him. He lashed out, wanting to silence the voices, only to find more hands on him, then a stinging pain in his shoulder and everything faded away.
He came awake to the memory of the fist connecting with his face and John sat up, feeling the burn of pain in his muscles, the stab of it in his skull. His stomach twisted into knots and he couldn't catch enough breath to give warning before his stomach heaved. He was a bit surprised when a basin appeared under his chin and John gripped it as he puked until it felt as if his insides were going to come out. Then a soft voice was urging him to lie back and John pretty much just slumped against the pillows. He closed his eyes as he tried to breathe through the pain in his head, then there was damp coolness brushing over his face and forehead and the pain ebbed enough that he could open his eyes.
Carson was eyeing him with concern. "How are you feeling, Colonel?"
"Like shit," John croaked, and he was grateful when Beckett handed him a cup of green tinted water. John knew what it was and he rinsed the sour taste from his mouth before accepting another cup of ice chips. He sucked one into his mouth and blissed out for a moment while it melted. And during that time the memory of what had happened came rushing back. "Teyla?"
"She's fine...sort of." Carson winced then sighed. "Are you feeling up to chatting for a moment?"
John considered nodding but since that would cause more pain he settled for whispering," Sure." He watched Beckett pull up a chair and settle in. During that time John noticed he had an IV taped to the back of his left hand and he held it up to show Beckett. "What's this for?"
Carson patted the arm and lowered it back to the bed. "For various reasons, Colonel. Just let it do its thing."
"Okay." John didn't have the energy to argue the point. "What happened to Teyla?"
"Let's start with what happened to you," Carson countered. "I know you're feeling pretty crappy right now."
John snorted at that. Beckett was the king of understatement. He lifted his free hand to his face and probed his cheekbone. Teyla had one hell of a punch, but he knew that wasn't enough to keep him down for as long as he had been out. "What did she do to me?"
Carson scrubbed a hand over his face, looking utterly weary, before replying. "She drugged you. She gave you a sedative to keep you compliant while she dragged you around Atlantis, then she pumped a stimulant in you to neutralize it. That's why you feel so sick."
"Where did she get them?" John was stunned at what she'd done but he was more concerned by where she'd gotten the drugs.
"She stole them from the med cabinet," Carson replied. "One of my nurses had just informed me the drugs were missing when we got your radio call. So at least I had some idea of what was wrong with you."
John nodded, regretted it when pain stabbed in his temples, then asked, "Where is Teyla?" He had scooped the infirmary area he could see and she wasn't there.
Carson shifted in his chair, looking uncomfortable. "She's in the brig. Ronon too."
"What?" John almost shot off the bed and wasn't that the dumbest thing he'd done in a while. He folded over in agony and had to will his stomach to settle down. He felt Beckett's hands on his shoulders trying to ease him back, then there was a cool hand on his forehead and words that were meant to soothe him. But it seemed like an eternity passed before the pain eased and John was able to breathe again. He was panting slightly as he tried to shift himself into a comfortable position.
"You need to keep still, Colonel," Carson chided, softly.
John wasn't going to argue with him. Not this time. He felt like crap. After a time his stomach settled down, the ache in his skull eased to something bearable and he risked opening his mouth to ask a question. "Why are Ronon and Teyla in the brig?"
Carson looked agitated for a moment. He jumped up and paced around the chair, finally shoving it back as he moved to the side of the bed. "I guess the best way to explain it is that they're slipping into madness. They've both become violent, and you've experienced - first hand - what Teyla is capable of. But it's escalated to the point where they're hurting themselves and I've had to sedate them to keep them at all lucid."
"Why is this happening?" John was stunned and confused and he was irritated at the fact that he felt so shitty. It made it hard for him to concentrate and focus properly.
"I wish I knew." Carson heaved a sigh and ran a shaky hand over his face. "It's affecting me too. I have two guards stationed with stunners to take me down if I lose it." He pointed to the doorway.
John glanced over and was surprised that he hadn't noticed them earlier. They were his men. "This...what's happening...it has to do with the planet...the ruins." John knew it for a fact. "Ronon told me he had dreams about the mist."
Carson nodded. "I've had them too."
"We have to go back to the Ruins." John was adamant about that to the point where he tried to slide out of bed. Only to have pain spike in his head, his stomach twist into knots that threatened to expel themselves through his mouth and the next thing he knew hands were on him, trying to soothe him. Then something liquid cool was spreading through his veins and John slid into darkness.
He felt better but lethargic when he managed to peel his eyes open again. To John's surprise, Rodney was sitting with him. "Hey..." John croaked out.
Rodney looked up from his laptop. "You're awake!" He looked surprised. He got up, placing the laptop on the chair, and moved over to the bed.
"Can't get one past you," John countered, but it hurt to talk. "Can I have some water?"
"Oh...sure." Rodney grabbed the glass and steadied it for him. "Better?" he asked after John had taken a few sips.
John nodded, carefully. "Where's Beckett?"
Rodney winced. "Locked up with Ronon and Teyla. He's still holding it together, barely...but it's taking its toll on him. However, I have some news for you. Zelenka and Dr. Weir actually figured it out..."
John wasn't listening. Rodney's words were nothing but white noise in his ears that eventually faded away. This was wrong...all wrong. He wasn't supposed to be here. He was trapped and alone and he had to get back home. He peered into the darkness that surrounded him, feeling lost. He didn't know the way out but he had to find it. He had to get back."
"Colonel!" Rodney looked panicked as he gripped John by the shoulders and tried to keep him in bed. "A little help here!" He called out.
"NO!" John lashed out at the hands that held him. He would not let them bind him again. He would not let them probe his mind. It hurt too much and left him feeling empty. He had to escape.
Rodney held on tight but keeping John down wasn't easy. A guard appeared to help him, along with Dr. Manning. They got John back on the bed.
Dr. Manning studied the Colonel. "We have to put him in restraints. I can't risk sedating him right now."
"This is bad." Rodney said, as he tightened his grip on John's Shoulder.
"I know." Dr. Manning nodded to a nurse who stepped up and put John's wrists in restraints, which made him struggle harder. "You can release him," Manning instructed.
Rodney stepped back but winced as he watched John pull at the restraints. His movements were hard and vicious and already the skin on his wrists was abraded. "He's going to do more damage to himself!" Rodney hissed. "You have to give him something."
Manning shook his head "It's not a good idea. Look...try talking to him."
"What am I supposed to say?" Rodney looked panicked.
"Anything!" Manning pushed him towards the bed.
Rodney took a deep breath and leaned in over John, finally gripping his shoulders. "Colonel! Can you hear me? It's McKay!"
John recognized the voice and went still. He could still feel the others but they had drifted back. Rodney. Rodney was here. But it was so dark and he couldn't see him. He needed to see him. "Help me...help me!" he whispered.
"I...um...sure, I can do that." Rodney turned a scared face to Manning, who waved at him to keep talking. "What...what do you want me to do?"
"Get me...get me out of here," John whispered. "Please. Before they come back."
Rodney froze. "Before who comes back?"
John shifted, feeling hot flashes of pain. He caught his breath, fearing that the others were find him again. Find him and hide and no one would know where to look for him. They would forget him. "Please..." John whispered. "Take me home."
"I will," Rodney promised, his expression bleak. "Just…hang on, Colonel. I'm coming for you. Just...rest. Okay?"
"Hurry…" John replied, then he let himself drift into the darkness because he was no longer alone.