Chapter 9 – Flowers and Blood.

They continued on the path toward the Gate and Chase paused, fishing a pocket torch out of her jacket and switching it on. Rodney leapt forward and knocked it out of her hand before scrambling to the ground to pick it up and switch it off.

'Are you nuts? A light in the middle of the dark dark forest where there are evil carnivorous animals? Are you looking to be a midnight snack?' He asked nastily. In the shadows of the night, he could see her put her hands on her hips, and knew, even though he could not see, that she was giving him a disapproving look.

'McKay, look behind you.' She said simply.

'Why?' He squeaked, horrified. 'Is it one of those things?'

Chase made a frustrated sound and brushed past him. 'No. It's the flower I was talking about; I've been able to smell it for the last minute or so. I think its lair must be in here somewhere.'

Rodney paused. 'Good. Very good. This would be the point where we radio Sheppard, right…?' He asked hopefully.

'Troy doesn't have time to wait for Sheppard to come all the way over here. Let's go.' She said quietly.

Rodney froze. 'Is he really that far away?' He said pitifully.

Chase rolled her eyes in the darkness and began to jog gently through the forest, Rodney keeping close to her.

'How will we find our way back?' He said uncertainly. 'I mean, do you have a compass, or a, one of those transmitter thingies?'

'We have the stars McKay, and they'll do fine.' Chase replied swiftly, picking up the pace. 'I'm sure Radik said something about caves near the Gate, or at least some sort of rock structure.' She muttered.

'Whoa, hold on a second! The stars? We're not sea captains navigating with celestial bodies-' He said harshly.

'No, we're two astrophysicist's navigating with celestial bodies.' Chase corrected him.

'Oh, well, yeah…' Rodney reluctantly fell silent.

The forest was dark and it made him unbelievably nervous. Every tree looked like a figure waiting to attack. Rodney yelped as he stumbled over something. Chase turned and quickly stopped him from falling flat on his face.

'You alright?'

'Yeah…this was a bad idea.' He whimpered. 'We can't fight this thing.'

'Bit late to be saying that now, Rodney.' She started jogging again. Chase felt fear, but it was flooded with concern for Troy. He was a good man, and a friend. She had come to know him rather well onboard the Daedalus, and knew him well enough to know that he didn't deserve this fate. 'The trees are thinning.' She whispered.

'What? Is that a good thing?' Rodney asked.

The trees were indeed further apart, and there was grass on the ground and not dirt. White flowers surrounded them and the smell made their heads ache. Chase paused as they jogged into a small clearing. A stream sat to the right rushing soothingly whilst the stars shone onto the long grass. Further to the left was the beginning of caves – or more likely large rocks set at an odd angle. Chase frowned. The formation was odd, but it was not something she could debate with herself now. She slowly moved along the tree line, keeping her eyes on the caves.

'You better hope there aren't any snakes in this long grass, because I'm betting your bare ankles look pretty appetising.' Rodney warned her.

'Yes thank you Rodney.' She said angrily.

'Just saying-' He retorted.

'Well say something useful.' She scolded. 'Like why you are such a bastard to me.'

Rodney fell silent, loathing her in the dark. Chase looked over her shoulder.

'Well?'

'Well what?'

'Why don't you like me?'

Rodney scoffed. 'I don't not like you, I just…can't stand you is all.'

'Oh thank you, I feel so much better now.' She said nastily.

'Well, what am I supposed to say?' He snapped.

'The truth.' She said pointedly. 'You knew I was coming and you decided to hate me before I even spoke a word to you.' She paused. 'Why?'

'Isn't there a better time and place to discuss this?' He snapped.

'Now is as good a time as any, McKay.' She said venomously.

Rodney hesitated. He had a reason. A damn good reason – one which he would have thought she knew very well, and the fact that she had the audacity to poke fun at him just made him as mad as hell. He was about to respond with his merciless honesty when Chase tripped and fell to the floor with a muffled crash, the grass and flowers breaking her fall. Rodney reached down to help her up.

'Quick! There really could be snakes in here.' He helped her into a kneeling position. 'What exactly did you fall over anyway?' He looked to the ground and saw only dark grass. Chase shook her head, nursing a small scratch on her cheek.

'It was soft.' She commented, her hand searched the ground.

'Snakes.' Rodney chimed.

'Should fear me.' Chase barked.

She wrinkled her nose. 'Has it been raining?'

Rodney laughed at the stupid question. 'No. Why?'

'The ground is damp…' She paused and picked up an oddly shaped object from the ground. McKay immediately saw her hand start shaking as she fumbled to snatch the torch from his pocket. She switched it on and she and McKay both yelped. The object dropped to the floor and she immediately shone the light on it.

A severed hand with a thin wreath tattoo sat on the ground surrounded by blood. Chase looked at her hands and her legs and saw them covered in the red, sticky substance.

'Oh god.' Rodney groaned.

'Troy.' She whispered. 'We have to find him.' She moved toward the rocks, leaving the cover of the trees.

'What?' He snatched her back. 'Hello!? Severed hand! Sitting right there! He is dead!'

'Maybe not!' She exclaimed. 'Maybe it hasn't eaten him, maybe it injured him and he's being saved for later, or he got away-' She said desperately.

'Wishful thinking, and usually I'm all for hope of escaping death – sort of – but right now, it's not a possibility for Troy.' He said forcefully. 'There's too much blood.'

Chase felt his panicked hands gripping her arms tightly and knew that he was right. She hated him for being right, and hated this planet for killing Troy.

Suddenly a scratching sound caught their attention and they both looked toward the rock formation with wide eyes. A lumbering form slunk out into the starlight and growled. They dropped to the ground and switched off the light.

'We so need to get out of here.' Rodney said desperately.

'No need to tell me twice.' She breathed in agreement. She nodded to the tree line and whispered for him to be low and quick. She snatched the radio from her coat pocket and flipped the switch. 'Uh, John? Sheppard this is Chase.' She whispered. The radio crackled.

'Yeah, what's your status?' It said wearily. Usually Sheppard's voice would have made her tingle, but right now it made her panic because it was so loud. No! Oh god! It'll hear us!

'Sssh!' Rodney said crazily.

'Yeah, uh, be quiet please.' She said quickly, trying to be polite. 'McKay and I sort of snuck out to find Troy and are somewhere near the Gate-'

'You did what?' His voice roared.

'Shut up! Shut up!' She said desperately, nervously glancing back at the creature. 'Scold me later! Listen, we found him – or a piece of him, he's dead. And the thing is very close by so be quiet.' She growled. 'We're heading back now.'

'Hold on a second.'

John signalled for Teyla and Ronan to stop and wait. He stayed low and leant against a tree. 'That's not possible.'

The radio crackled. 'What do you mean?'

'Ronan is tracking this thing right now and we are no where near the Gate.' He informed them quietly.

Chase glanced nervously at Rodney as he took the radio from her. 'Sheppard, we found a hand, okay, an actual human hand and it led us to the creature that killed it – uh, him. You must be tracking another one.'

John raised his eyebrows and sighed. 'Another – there's another one?'

'There could be hundreds in the area! We have no clue.' The scientists stated, and then stopped as Chase slapped him hard in the chest. 'Ow!'

'Rodney!' She said urgently, pointing at the rock formation.

The beast was no longer there.

Rodney whimpered. 'Not good. Uh, Sheppard we gotta go-'

Chase slapped a hand on his mouth and froze. Rodney became aware of the large presence to their right. They tried their best to sink into the grass without being seen as it sniffed the ground where they had been moments ago and nudged something. Rodney retched as it picked up the hand by the fingers and started crunching. Chase nodded for them to move.

Rodney made no objection. His limbs felt heavy and clumsy from the jogging, and from the fear. He heard Chase gently moving behind him as they crept on all fours. God I hope there are no snakes…it would just make this experience complete.

They made the tree line and partially stood, slinking behind a large bush. The creature seemed to follow uncertainly, as though it had a shaky radar. They moved again, further along the bushes until they were pressed against a large rock. Trapped. Like rats! Like tiny, disgusting, disease-carrying rodents! Rodney looked frantically for an exit when Chase tapped him sharply on the arm; he followed her fearful gaze to the other side of their bush as the figure rose and moved closer.

John was about to ask them what was going on when he heard Chase whisper 'Blood…Rodney, it can smell the blood.' She sounded frightened. John felt a knot tie in his stomach, and then he felt a chaotic panic as he heard shots fired and then a scuffle.

'Christina!' He yelled down the radio. It crackled and did not respond. He gave Teyla and Ronan a grim look and then ran toward the Star Gate.

Teyla fell in her haste to follow and was helped up by Ronan before they sped on. She felt a pain in her hand and knew that it was bleeding, but her concern for Rodney and Chris was far greater than the pain.

'I can't believe you shot it!' Rodney screamed as they raced through the forest.

'It gave us an exit didn't it?!' She screamed back defensively.

They hopped past the trees, swinging around them, running as fast as they possibly could.

'I think shooting it only made it mad!' Rodney said desperately.

'What gives you that idea?' She replied and screamed as the beast drew nearer. 'Hurry!'

It was fast, but the trees stopped it from going to its full speed, for which she was thankful. It wasn't as skilled at dodging which gave them a little distance – but not much.

'Next time, don't shoot the angry, man-eating animal – okay? Especially when we've only got these ridiculously small guns!' Rodney screeched.

'And just let it eat us? Thanks, McKay, but I'd rather not be a meal!' She scolded him and hung back slightly to grab his arm and make him move faster.

John ran with only a vague sense of direction, whipping past the trees in the dead of the night, hoping that he would reach them in time. He could hear Teyla and Ronan pounding after him, and felt the urge to move faster.

'Sheppard!' Ronan bellowed. 'We're being hunted!' Teyla did a double take feeling an immediate guilt as she put two and two together.

'My hand was cut! It is tracking the scent of my blood!' Teyla called, glancing at her hand as they ran.

John groaned and glanced back. There was a figure loping beside them, large and four legged. Oh crap, we don't have time for this.

'Keep moving!'

'Should we not deal with this one first?' Teyla asked, casting the creature a wicked glare as it drew closer to her side. She kept her distance with the trees in between, but she knew that it was aiming for her, the smell of her blood reeling it in.

Ronan drew his weapon and fired a few shots, the red blasting through the night, invading the silence of the darkness. He crossed behind Teyla and ran to her other side, putting himself between her and the creature. It snarled, long fangs glinting in the starlight.

John looked back once more and knew that it had to be dealt with otherwise either Teyla or Ronan could be hurt, and he couldn't have that, not now. He growled low in his throat and came to a sudden stop, raising his weapon and firing bullets into the beast as it continued to run. Bark and leaves flew into the air as the bullets punched into them; the beast slowed and stumbled, crashing to the floor with a pitiful squeal.

Ronan and Teyla arrived at his side and stared at the beast lying on the ground. He gave them a look and continued running.

Teyla raised an eyebrow at Ronan. 'I believe he is angry.'

Ronan cocked his head. 'So am I. Its kill was mine.' He said sulkily.

Teyla gave him a look of disapproval and followed John, Ronan just behind. They had only gone a few steps when the Athosian sensed a presence – not Wraith, no, that would make the whole ordeal complete. But it was something very menacing in its intentions. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Ronan, and further behind in the depths of the forest she saw figures – many figures, tearing across the ground toward them.

Ronan seeing her expression of disbelief looked behind also and growled his frustration. 'More!'

John shook his head. 'What?!'

'Many more!' Teyla called. If possible, through their exhaustion and fear, they ran harder.

Chase stumbled onto the path and halted Rodney to steer him in the direction of the forest on the other side. They swung into the trees and turned, waiting only a moment to see the beast tear out into the open, sniffing the air to find its quarry. It turned its ugly snout to the ground and began to follow the scent of blood.

Chase pushed him to move along the trees, away from the camp. Rodney moved, but seriously didn't want to. 'I can't…run…anymore. I can't…' He puffed. Chris had to admit that he looked pretty green, and that she wasn't feeling brilliant herself. 'Where…we going…?'

'Away.' She whispered.

'Maybe you should take your clothes off?' Rodney suggested. Chase threw him a dirty look. 'So it can't follow, the scent, you know what I mean…'

Chase had a sudden idea and threw her coat off, bounding into the forest a little way and then chucking it as far as it would go, bounding back and then forcing Rodney to jog. He stumbled, and the stitch in her side wasn't helping. 'It could give us some time.'

Rodney looked down at her suddenly and gaped. Her little strappy top and shorts were all she wore with her trainers, and her blonde unkempt hair hung loose around her shoulders. 'Rodney.' She scolded. 'Would you pay attention? Death, mayhem, any of it ringing a bell?'

Rodney nodded his head frustratedly. 'Believe me I'm paying attention.' He took off his own coat to reveal a long sleeved pyjama and thrust it at her. 'Here, cover yourself up – it's distracting.' He snapped. Chase took the coat and slipped it on. She squealed as the pocket vibrated and Rodney leapt into the air. 'God! What!?'

Chase took his arm and kept him moving.

'Why would you scream like that! You gave me a heart attack, I actually think my heart stopped – do you know how dangerous that is?' He said viciously.

Chase pulled an object out of her pocket. It crackled. 'Colonel Sheppard, please respond?'

Rodney did a double take. 'That's Elizabeth.'

Chase flipped the switch. 'Doctor Weir, this is Chase. We have a situation, those animals came back. Troy is dead-'

'What-?' The voice was disbelieving.

'McKay and I are-' Chase began before Rodney snatched the radio from her hands.

'We're in trouble! We're being hunted! We need you to send some soldiers with some really big weapons because we are out of ammo and Sheppard is on the other side of the camp doing god knows what!' He roared. Chase slapped him and urged him to keep moving.

The radio crackled. 'Weir…this is Sheppard.' John was out of breath. 'Uh…back up would be good right about now. All teams retreat to the Gate, we are leaving.' His voice was strained. 'Let's move people.'

'Understood. I'll send help.' Weir called.

The radio crackled and fell silent. Rodney blew a sigh of relief. 'Oh thank god.'

'We're not out of the woods yet – no pun intended.' Chase breathed.

They ran with a renewed hope toward the Gate. Minutes later, they heard the roar of the wormhole as it opened, could see the shining puddle through the trees – they tore out into the open just as four soldiers marched down the steps, weapons raised.

'Major Davies!' Rodney called. One of the soldiers jogged down to meet them.

He was about to greet them when his weapon flew up and he roared at them to get down. Chase grabbed Rodney's arm and pulled him to the ground as four P90's ripped through the night and the howl of a dieing beast sounded.

Chase and Rodney looked over their shoulder to see the creature only a few feet away, lying still on the ground. Rodney rolled onto his back and started breathing hard. 'Oh god. Again, with the near death…not fair. Home, sleep and eat – not moving for a month.' Chase shook her head and then placed it on the cold ground.

'You alright ma'am?' Davies offered a hand and she took it shakily. He eyed her long legs covered in blood. She nodded.

'Not mine.' She breathed.

'I'm okay, by the way.' Rodney pointed an arm to the sky. 'Thanks for asking.'

'Where's Colonel Sheppard?' The Major asked.

'Coming. They all are. They were scouting the area of the camp; they must have gone pretty far.' She informed him.

'They'll be fine – big strapping soldiers with big weapons…they'll be fine.' Rodney said lazily. Chase frowned.

'Radik and Griffen aren't strapping soldiers.' She reached for her radio with worry and flipped the switch. 'Radik, Griffen, this is Chase, do you copy?'

She paused. There was no response. 'Radik, are you there?' Still no response. She turned to the group. 'Something's wrong. We have to go find them.'

Rodney sat bolt upright. 'What? No we don't! They're probably too busy running to hear the radio, that's all.'

'You really want to assume that? Especially after what happened to Troy?' Chase frowned at him. She looked up at the Major. He nodded and turned to his team.

'Secure the Gate.' He ordered and turned to Chase. 'Lead me to the camp.'

They were about to go when McKay stood shakily and surged forward with a stumble. 'Wait! I'm coming too.'

'Rodney…' Chase began.

'They are my men…I'm coming.' He said defiantly, his chin jutting out.

Chase nodded with a tired expression and grabbed his arm. They started what seemed the long journey back to the camp.

John, Ronan and Teyla tore into the camp and did not stop running. John turned to them. 'Head back to the Gate.' He ran to the main tent.

'John!' Teyla called. They lingered for a moment before running after him.

Ronan saw something to his right, figures in the corner of his eye and he swiftly aimed his weapon at them.

'Ronan!'

It was Chase.

He frowned. 'What are you doing-?'

'-here?' Sheppard turned back.

'Radik and Griffen weren't responding.' She breathed.

'Colonel, we have the Gate secured sir.' The Major informed him.

'What is going on?' Radik ducked out of the tent with Griffen close behind.

'What? They're here? What was the point in running all that way?' Rodney whined, putting his hands on his knees.

'My god, are you alright?' Radik asked seriously.

Sheppard followed his gaze to Chase's blood stained legs. 'Not mine.' She repeated with a guilty look. 'Why didn't you respond?' She pointed to the radio in his hand.

'We have heard nothing.' He replied with a frown.

Sheppard marched forward, plucked the radio from his hand and flipped the switch. 'That's because it was turned off.'

'Oh.' Radik said sheepishly, he and Griffen giving the group apologetic looks.

'Okay.' John sighed. 'Everyone to the Gate, we're about to have lots of company.'

'No kidding, we shot three of those things on the way over here.' Rodney breathed, and then paused at the frown the Major gave him. 'He..he shot three of those things…'

'There are many more on the way.' Teyla told him urgently. 'We must leave now.'

John nodded. 'Go. Major, get them to the Gate!' He jogged to the main tent.

Chase and Rodney glanced at each other before following, knowing exactly what he would do. Major Davies physically moved Zalenka and Griffen but had no luck in shifting Teyla or Ronan.

'Ma'am, it's time to go.' He ordered. Teyla

'I'll be right behind you.' John called before ducking into the main tent, Chase and Rodney close behind.

Teyla didn't believe it, but Sheppard was stubborn, so there was no changing his mind. Ronan raised his eyebrows. Reluctantly, they left the camp area and headed for the Gate.

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