A/N: (Beams at the wonderful reviews) Glad that you're liking it so far, hope I can keep up to your standards.
snow6835: The over all plot line will be the same but as for anything else I guess we'll just have to wait and see (I say we because I don't know myself yet, muses can be tricky like that sometimes).
Stargatecrazy: I doubt that there will be any, but we'll see.
Everyone else thanks for the reviews, keep 'em coming (puts on big huge puppy dog eyes).
Oh yeah, I know I totally jacked a line from BSG, but I just love the line so much I don't know why. All credit goes to whoever came up with the line first.
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Once again regaining consciousness the first thing John became aware of was that he was no longer lying on the hard ground but something softer, not a whole lot softer but still softer. Suddenly feeling like there was someone watching him John bolted upright reaching for his sidearm which wasn't there.
"Easy stranger," a hand on his shoulder had John jerking away ready to defend himself, remembering the brief conversation he'd heard earlier.
John felt the hand move away as he turned to look at who had spoken. The man was nothing overly special, he had short dirty brown hair, he was of average height, he looked as if he hadn't had a decent shower in a while and the obvious uniform that he wore looked like it'd seen better days.
"You're lucky to be alive, stranger." The man continued ignoring John's reaction. "My men that found you showed me your ship's crash sight." He paused a moment. "I'm sorry about the loss of your companions." He spoke like a man who knew all to well what it was like to lose people.
"So I take it you're the one in charge?" John questioned as he swung his legs over the edge of the cot like thing he was lying on.
"Of course, forgive my lack of manners. When you have been in the killing fields as long as I have, manners have a habit of being tossed aside." The man moved to sit on a chair across the room. "I am Commodore Braxton commander of the 2nd infantry of the Delran Protectors."
"Colonel John Sheppard." John replied not giving any hint as to where he'd come from. He didn't know this man and had no intention of endangering Atlantis. Running a hand through his hair he winced slightly when he hit a particularly sensitive spot on the back of his head.
"I apologize if the Protectors that found you caused anymore damage. I'm afraid they were unsure of what to make of you, we have never encountered anyone with the level of technology that you posses that was not Ishtan."
"Ishtan?"
"You truly are a stranger to these lands if you do not know the Ishtan beasts." Braxton stood and moved to a small cabinet where he pulled out two glasses and a bottle of clear liquid. He poured the glasses and handed one to John, before retaking his seat. "It's not much, but in times of war one must learn to do without."
Carefully John took a tentative sip only to find that it was just water. "I came through the Stargate…" He paused at the confused look on Braxton's face. "Big round thing looks like water shoots out of it when activated…"
"The Ancestral Ring, yes I know of it. Though few Delran's in these ages have ever visited it since it resides in Ishtan lands. Why would you come here though, surely with a ship like the one you had you could have gone anywhere?"
"My people and I, we're explores, that's what my men and I were doing when we came under fire."
"Yes the Ishtan beasts are ruthless when it comes to control of the skies."
"Yeah anyways I really need to be getting back." John set his glass aside and stood up. "When I fail to check in with my superiors they're going to send more people after me. I don't want what happened the first time to happen again."
"I understand but I'm afraid I can't help you." Braxton stood as well. "My men and I have been ordered to meet up with the 8th infantry, that's a two day hike from here, we leave at first light. You're welcome to join us, I'm sure once we reach the 8th infantry they'll know of away to help you. Of all of the Delran infantries they are the only ones who have been as far into Ishtan lands as the Ancestral Ring and returned to tell the tale."
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't wait two days. I have to get back to the gate now. How far is it from here, would I be able to make it there on foot?"
"It would not be wise to venture these lands alone and on foot. Not only are the Ishtan beasts about everywhere but you would have several of the traps to deal with as well."
"Traps?"
"Yes both sides have laid all kinds of hidden traps along the borders between our lands to aid in keeping the others out."
John hated the situation he was in, but couldn't see anyway around it. He was on an alien world in unfamiliar territory, unarmed, and he had no idea which direction the gate was in. "Then I guess I have no choice but to take you up on your offer."
John just hoped like hell that where ever this 8th infantry was that it wasn't out of radio distance from the gate, otherwise Elizabeth would be forced to send a second Jumper and risk losing a second team.
"A wise choice, now come it will soon be time to dine then sleep. A long two days ahead awaits us." Braxton ushered John out of the tent into the open air, before being called away leaving John to find his way around the camp on his own. The place was a blur of motion as soldiers both healthy and wounded moved about in an almost frantic pace stuffing their belongings into bags, breaking down tents, or just trying to move about without getting in the way.
"Here it's not much, but…" A voice John recognized as being the higher pitched one he'd heard before turned to see a young man with blonde hair and a uniform in simailar condition to Braxton's holding a wooden bowl out to him. The kid couldn't have been more than twenty.
"Thanks, I'm sure it's great." John took the bowl as he found an out of the way place to sit down.
"They call me Grady." The young man sat next to John and started eating from his own bowl.
"John," John returned the introduction.
"You should learn to stop being so friendly, Grady." A voice John recognized as being the one that had wanted to kill him earlier spoke. Glancing up John spotted a young man with black hair and an even rattier looking uniform plopping down across from them. He looked to be the same age as Grady maybe a little younger.
"Ignore him," Grady huffed. "Jaden wouldn't know how to make a friend if his life depended on it."
"It's not that I don't know how, it's that I choose not to." Jaden shrugged as he started in on his own meal, "hurts a lot less to watch a stranger die than it does a friend."
John's graze snapped up to look at Jaden, spoon frozen half way to his mouth. If he didn't know any better John could have sworn he was looking at himself ten years younger right after Mitch and Dex had just been killed outside of Khabour when their chopper took an R.P.G. while trying to make a med-evac. After that he'd sworn to himself that he would never get close to anybody ever again and he hadn't until he'd come to Atlantis.
He hadn't even realized it was happening at first, but before he knew Elizabeth, Rodney, Teyla, Carson, Ronon, and even Ford for the short time he'd been with them, had managed to worm their way past all of the walls he'd spent years putting up to the point where he couldn't image life with out them. John felt pity that a kid who hadn't even really had the chance to live his life was already so bitter and had no idea what he was missing out on.
"Out their in the wilds did you face any?" Grady questioned, snapping John out of his thoughts.
"Face any what?" John lowered his spoon back into the bowl and set it aside, not all that hungry anymore.
"Any of the beasts."
"No I didn't." John shook his head. "I passed out not long after making it out of my ship. Don't know how long I was out before you guys found me and brought me here."
"Don't feel bad Grady hasn't faced them yet either, have you Grady?" Jaden made it sound like an insult to never have faced the enemy.
"I am ashamed to say no I haven't. This is my first tour of the killing fields." Grady seemed to pull in on himself a bit.
"Don't worry Grady your time will soon come. How many will you send to the depths of the underworld?"
"As many as I'm able," Grady squared his shoulders in confidence.
"Me, I'll send one for every family member killed by those beasts and then two more for good measure. True or not, my allies?" Jaden addressed other's who had gathered around to eat their own evening meals.
"So say we all," various voices spoke up agreeing with their comrade.
"So say we all," Jaden nodded before returning to his food.
"These Ishtans why do you call them beasts?" John questioned Grady since Jaden seemed to be ignoring them now.
"It's told they all wear the same horrid face. Their flesh is gnarled and blistery, like that of a rotting corpse." Grady tried to hide the shudder that ran threw him. "And who but a beast would leave the bodies of our dead down turned, denying them the passage into paradise that they so rightly earned?"
"Sometimes people say terrible things about their enemies to make them seem worse than they really are. There might be some young Ishtan soldier out there who's more afraid of you than you are of him."
"Those beasts weren't afraid to burn my village to ashes, nor scared of slaughtering my kin while they slept." Grady's voice went ice cold and his gaze hardened.
"I'm sorry," John didn't know what else to say. It was hard losing people you cared about and nothing anyone said could change that fact. A silence fell between the two.
"Have you ever killed another?" Grady broke the silence not long after.
"It's the worst thing I've ever had to do." And it was too, John didn't enjoy killing he hated it, but sometimes it was a necessary evil to protect the ones you cared about.
"Then the enemies you killed weren't nearly as beastly as the Ishtan."
"You'd be surprised." The wraith came to John's mind first, followed by Kolya.
"To the Ishtan we are less than nothing. They flame our homes, take our lands, and make playthings of our mothers and sisters. If you were a Delran you'd crave to drive them from this world just as I do."
"Probably. But on my world we try to find other ways to resolve differences. Peaceful solutions, negotiations. Granted that doesn't always work, but we at least try before going into all out war."
"Enough talk, finish your meals then off to bed with you. We have an early morning ahead of us." Braxton appeared ushering his men off to bed much like a father would his children. He stopped in front of where John and Grady sat, "Grady tomorrow you will instruct Sheppard in the use of Delran weaponry."
"Hold on a minute this isn't my war. I'm not planning on shooting anybody." John protested. "I just want to get back home."
"And an honorable goal that is, but if we encounter the Ishtans they won't care who you are, they will just as likely kill you than look at you. You will defend yourself or you will be slaughtered, it is your choice."
"Right…," John's day just kept getting better and better.