Chapter 2
The sun had changed angles when Rodney blinked his eyes open next. Pain burned up and down his spine and he groaned. Green and brown swam in front of his vision and Rodney closed his eyes to the sickening lurch, afraid his was going to empty his stomach on the ground. Something was lying across his hips and legs and he pushed at it. Roughness scraped at his clothing and Rodney grunted as he managed to kick away the large tree branch covering him. He carefully squinted around and blinked at the broad leaf plants around him. He was obviously not on Atlantis. Rodney licked dry lips and spoke softly, "John?"
He bit his lip as no answer came to him. "John" he called again a little louder. This caused him to cough, which started his head banging. He groaned and lowered his head to the cool soil. Where was everyone? "Teyla? Ronon?" Rodney stayed still and listened for a response. Silence flowed over him. He squeezed his eyes shut. He appeared to be alone, something Rodney knew that his teammates would not do willingly if there was danger. And they had proven there was indeed danger on this planet.
Rodney sniffled and went about the process of pushing himself to his knees. Everything hurt, especially his head, but nothing erupted into white hot pain so Rodney thought he couldn't be too badly injured. Not that this meant he didn't want medical attention right now, thank you very much. Or any attention for that matter. "John? Guys?"
A big scaly shape evolved in front of him and Rodney gasped in fear before he realized he was looking at something very much dead. Three somethings very much dead, in fact. Two of the dinosaurs that had attacked them before were riddled with small holes, John and Teyla's P90s, while the third had a single big hole through its middle, obviously from Ronon's unique blaster. Rodney blinked around the area. He saw Teyla's pack, torn and discarded, but of his teammates he saw no sign. Not even, and Rodney gulped at this thought, bodies.
"John? Teyla? Ronon?" Rodney called again. Something made a sound off to his right and Rodney started. A small grey and white monkey like creature cooed at him from the grass. It had triangle ears, like a cat, and a large puffy tail. It turned its head to the side and looked at Rodney curiously with purple eyes. "Um, hello." It cooed at him again and began to groom its tail. "Thanks," said Rodney sourly and began the chore of standing up.
Rodney leaned against the tree and panted, trying to settle his rolling stomach. He touched the back of his head and grimaced at the sting. The tips of his fingers came back red. "Great," Rodney muttered. He reached up and felt for his radio and sighed. It was gone. He looked dispassionately around the ground for a second. "Yeah, no way."
He looked around at the dead dinosaurs, seeing that this planet's version of flies had already begun to gather. He winked his nose and carefully edged his way onto the path. Rodney wobbled around the large bodies, looking off into the forest. "John? Teyla? Ronon?" The not-monkey cooed at him again. Rodney sighed and looked despairingly up and down the path, not able to remember which way was to the gate and which was back to the ruins. He was all turned around and the sun had changed position. "Guys?" Rodney called again.
A loud crash in the forest startled him and Rodney wrapped his arms around himself. He was alone, on an alien planet with what amounted to monsters and he didn't even know if his friends were even alive. Maybe they had been eaten while he had lain hidden in the shrubbery. Rodney's heart squeezed and he headed off down the path at a trot.
Every once and a while a sound echoed through the forest of something large moving, causing Rodney's heart to pound with fear. When he stepped out of the forest into the bright clearing of the ruins he sighed. He was hoping for the gate so he could call Atlantis and get some of those reinforcements that John had spoken of. "John? Teyla? Ronon?" he called.
A loud crash sounded to his right and Rodney screamed, falling to his butt as something low and tank like moved out of the trees and began to lumber across the clearing. He watched with wide eyes as the large creature ambled away, trailing branches and leaves from its huge mossy shell. Some of the leaves were disappearing into the thing's broad mouth. An herbivore then. Rodney crawled quickly forward to crouch behind a wall, trying to remain calm. He would need to head back the other way, past the dead dinosaurs, and to the gate. He needed help. Rodney sucked in a big breath and called as loud as he could. "John! Teyla! Ronon!"
He listened in the silence and then frowned. Was that a response? That far off noise he thought he just heard? He nearly jumped out of his skin when the little not-monkey he had seen before started screaming nearby. He hadn't noticed that it had followed him. The not-monkey suddenly raced up a broken pillar and was jumping excitedly up and down on top. "That can't be good," muttered Rodney. He squinted into the distance, swearing he saw movement. Several small black shapes were moving swiftly in his direction and the not-monkey was going nuts. "Yeah, not good!"
Rodney took a running jump at one of the taller walls, feeling muscles protest loudly, and yanked himself on top, kicking his leg up and over like he had been taught. He knelt on top of the wall and looked up to see the little shapes become smaller versions of the dinosaurs they had already met. They jumped at Rodney, snapping bird like beaks at him and scrambling at the wall with their back feet, but the wall was too high. The not-monkey quieted on top of its pillar and Rodney looked over at it. "Thanks," he muttered. The creature began to groom its tail again.
Rodney sighed at the jumping dinosaurs and then over at the path that lead to the gate. There were about twenty little reptiles around him and Rodney knew he'd never succeed in hitting even half of them with his handgun, even if he could unjam it. Rodney slid the M9 from his holster and glared at the casing trapped in the slide. He grabbed the slide and shook the gun, hoping to dislodge the casing. He then did something he would probably be yelled at for later, and thumped the gun against the rock. The casing popped out and fell to the ground. The little reptiles jumped on it and there was a squabble before they realized the gold colored bullet wasn't edible and left it.
Rodney frowned, the first dinosaur had been the size of a large dog and these little guys reminded him of yappy little toy poodles. They were probably scavengers. Rodney hoped that they got bored soon and left, he wasn't fancying a night on top of the wall. The tiny lizards suddenly all looking in one direction, toward the forest, and started to call in high pitched meeping sounds that made Rodney's head hurt. As one they all turned and raced away across the clearing, like a flock of birds. Rodney was confused until he heard a loud crash from the forest and from out of the trees ran one of the dinosaurs that had attacked them on the trail. It might even be the one that had walked right over him.
The dinosaur was running flat out and calling shrilly. Another shape appeared from the trees and turned sharply, running parallel along the forest edge. Rodney grinned and began to wave. "Ronon! Ronon, over here!" Rodney saw the ex-runner begin to wave frantically at him, making 'get down' motions. Not one to argue with one of the people there to protect him, Rodney shuffled around on his stomach in readiness to slip off the wall. He then blinked as the rocks sort of shook for a moment and a living building lumbered out of the trees. Rodney froze in shock as the huge dinosaur lunged for the smaller dinosaur that had first emerged. Blood flew and Rodney gulped, thinking faintly that he used to like T-Rexes, before something grabbed his waist and yanked him off the wall.
Rodney yelped and landed in Ronon's lap. The other man was panting and had scratches along both cheeks. "Are you okay?" asked Rodney in astonishment. Loud crunching sounds came from the other side of the wall.
Ronon scowled. "I do not like dinosaurs."
"I don't like anything that tries to eat me either, so that's understandable." Rodney pushed himself from Ronon's lap.
The ex-runner ran his eyes over the scientist and frowned. "Are you okay? Why haven't you answered your radio? Sheppard is having a cow."
Rodney frowned and reached back to gently touch his head. "Please stop picking up slang from the Marines. It's annoying. I lost my radio when I fell. I think a tree branch hit me. I'm pretty sure a lot of my brain cells have died as a result!" He scowled at Ronon's smirk. "My brain cells are very important, Ronon! They keep the city you live in floating!"
"You're fine." Ronon rolled his eyes and leaned around the wall to look out into the clearing.
Rodney didn't want to look. He could still hear the crunching. He didn't need that particular picture in his head. "Where are the others? What happened?" Rodney asked.
"We were separated when more of those big dinosaurs showed up. I was running from one of the big dinosaurs when a bigger dinosaur started chasing the big dinosaur. Then I was running from both the big dinosaur and the bigger dinosaur," replied Ronon. Rodney was very sad that he understood all that. The scientist was about to ask another question when Ronon suddenly sighed and tapped at his ear. Oh, right. The radios. "I've found him," said Ronon. The ex-runner paused. "He looks fine. Bleeding from the head." Ronon then winced and pulled the radio from his ear, handing it to Rodney. "Here, you deal with him."
Rodney could already hear John's tinny voice shouting up from the radio. He put the device in his ear and winced too. "Colonel...John, I'm...John, shut up!"
That seemed to derail John's rants about bleeding. When Ronon had said Rodney was bleeding from the head John thought his heart skipped a beat. "Rodney? Are you alright? Where are you?" In another part of the forest, John ghosted to another tree and looked around suspiciously. He could feel eyes on him and he had the sinking feeling that he just looked like a good snack to anything on this planet.
"I got bashed in the head by a tree branch along side the trail when those big dinosaurs attacked us! When I woke up you three were gone! Of course I'm not alright! I'm bleeding from a head wound! Valuable brain cells could have been lost! I need medical attention before I fall into a coma or have a seizure or something!" exclaimed Rodney.
"You're fine." Rodney complaining loudly was a Rodney in okay shape, in John's book. Rodney scowled at thin air. "Where are you?" repeated John.
"At the ruins. A T-Rex is eating one of the dinosaurs that attacked us," answered Rodney. A very loud crunch sounded and Rodney flinched.
"Is that what that noise is? I thought maybe you were eating potato chips or something."
"Not funny at the moment." Rodney's gaze jerked toward a black shape that was scuttling through the rocks toward them. "Is that you?" asked Rodney nervously. Ronon turned around from watching the dinosaur in the clearing at his tone.
"Is that me what?"
"Is that you crawling toward us in the ruins?"
"No. I'm nowhere near the ruins. What going on?" John heard the whine of Ronon's gun powering up and frowned from the tree he was hiding behind in the forest, defiantly not in the ruins. That probably was not good. "Guys?
"Ronon, John says that's not him," muttered Rodney. They were both staring at the black shape zigzagging toward them.
"I can see that," replied Ronon, his gun tracking it.
"Guys? What's going on?" demanded John. He began to pick up speed toward the ruins, his running steps jarring his wounded arm.
"I'm in Hell, that's what's going on. There is something coming toward us through the ruins," said Rodney. He hugged his knees and made himself the smaller target next to Ronon. "What is it?" he hissed.
Ronon lowered his gun and sighed. "It's Teyla."
Just like that the mass of brown and black evolved into his teammate hurrying toward them at a low crouch. "Teyla!" gasped Rodney as she reached them and sagged against the wall. "Oh my god! Are you okay?"
The area around her shoulders was covered in blood and on either side of her neck were long shallow cuts. Teyla nodded tiredly. "It is not as bad as it looks. The cuts are not deep and have already stopped bleeding. I shall be fine."
Rodney pulled some bandages from his vest anyway and Teyla allowed him to fuss with the cuts on her neck. "I swear. All of you are as brainless as rocks when it comes to your safety. You three think you're indestructible!" Teyla gave him a small smile as Rodney applied the bandage.
"We can't stay here," said Ronon. He glanced around the wall again. "It looks like meal time is almost over and when the large dinosaur leaves there will be scavengers."
"They're nasty buggers. They look like upright birds." Ronon and Teyla gave Rodney a curious look and he tapped the groves in the wall they were hiding behind meaningfully. "Let's just say we've been introduced."
Ronon shifted up on his toes. "Let's head back to the other side of the ruins, put some distance between us and the carcass. Then we need to find Sheppard and head back for the gate." Ronon began to move forward and the other two fell into position behind him.
Rodney scuttled dutifully behind Ronon, even though he knew this was going to kill his back. The three of them flinched and froze as the large T-Rex like dinosaur roared suddenly. Ronon peeked over a rock and scowled before continuing forward. He almost shot John when the other man rushed out of the trees to their left and began to sprint across the ruins. "John!" cried Rodney.
"Move!" yelled John, jumping a wall and running as fast as he could. Ronon and Teyla hauled Rodney up and began to race in the same direction. Rodney felt a hand slide over his elbow and glanced back at John as they ran. A minute later excited yipping filled the air and Rodney looked behind them to see a pack of dog like animals stream from the forest. Ronon slowed to come up behind the others and started to shoot back at the perusing dogs. The large T-Rex like dinosaur made a deep rumbling noise as it became interested in the commotion in the ruins. It took a few thudding steps forward. About then the dogs noticed the presence of the dinosaur and began to bark loudly, breaking off their attack on the humans and scattering. The dinosaur lunged forward and a dog was snapped up with a cry.
The team threw themselves through the door of the building they had been in that morning and landed in a heap. Some black beetle like things swarmed from the carcass of the smaller reptile they had killed and disappeared into the rubble of the collapsed wall. Ronon and Teyla rolled off to the side. Rodney wiggled himself off of John, who was on the bottom of the heap by virtue of having arrived in the building first. John grunted. "Ow."
Rodney lay on his side, not really feeling like sitting up. His head was swimming again. "Are you okay?" he asked to John's ear.
"Nugh." John dragged his arms up and put his palms on the floor. Inch by inch he pushed himself up to his knees. A bruise darkened the left side of his face and his bottom lip was split. John spat sand off to the side and opened red eyes. "I regret to inform everyone that we shall not be watching Jurassic Park. Ever." Rodney chuckled and John focused on him. "Shit, Rodney. You're really a mess!" John reached forward and slid a warm hand around the back of Rodney's neck, tilting his head to look at the mess of blood and dirt.
Rodney hissed. "Don't touch it! It hurt enough as it is!" The floor did an unhappy little dance in front of his nose and Rodney slammed his eyes shut with a groan.
"Hold still!" snapped John, placing a bandage over it. "Geez, that tree branch must have really clonked you on the head." He peeked under the bandage. "I don't think it cracked your skull." Rodney felt bright pain bloom in his head and nausea rolled his stomach. He gagged, flailing his hand up to grab John's vest, and emptied his stomach on the floor. John cursed and wrapped an arm around his waist as Rodney shook.
After a moment Rodney lay panting and in pain on John's lap. "I hate you so much," he muttered at John's knees. He thought he had to imagine the caress to his temple. Someone muttered at him soothingly and Rodney felt himself relax. A cool wet cloth ran around his face and wiped off his mouth. His head pounded mercilessly and all Rodney wanted to do was be very, very still.