Remember, Never to Forget---41
Trazdia looked toward the door as it opened and Suduko entered. He smiled and motioned toward a table in the back before grabbing two bottles of his specially brewed ale and joining his friend.
"Thank you, My Friend," Suduko said and drank half the cold beer before wiping his mouth and glancing around the room. Several of Trazdia's men were seated nearby, but Corbone wasn't one of them.
"What brings you here today?"
"Where is Corbone?"
"He is visiting his sister," Trazdia answered, not bothering to hide the distaste he felt. "That's the story he gave Proust, but we know he is at Domitar's residence."
"Does he have any idea you know of his traitorous acts?"
"No, we are simply feeding him enough so that he thinks he is a trusted member of our team," Trazdia answered.
"I have some questions for him."
"I'm guessing they're about Shazzia's whereabouts?"
"Yes."
"Will he live through these questions?"
"Perhaps, but that remains to be seen. There are some questions he might not answer willingly."
"Corbone is a coward and he will break easily," Trazdia offered. "Where do you want him?"
"Bring him to my home tonight. Shariel and Kudrone are there and I am sure they will be very interested in hearing what Corbone has to say," Suduko said and finished the drink before standing and wiping his mouth.
"I will bring him to you and perhaps I will help with the questioning since he is a traitor to all of us."
"Thank you, Trazdia, my door is always open for you," Suduko said and left the tavern.
SGASGASGASGASGA
John Sheppard sat alone in his quarters and silently prayed the trembling would stop. He'd fallen asleep soon after convincing the others that he was tired and would see them after he got some sleep. He'd awoken from a nightmare so violent that he'd nearly screamed in pain as he tried to twist away from the razor sharp talons of Shazzia's creatures.
John breathed through tightly clenched teeth and fought the nausea churning through his gut. He reached for the pitcher of juice on the table and quickly poured it into a glass before drinking the ice cold liquid. He knew he hadn't slept long because the ice wasn't completely melted.
Sheppard stood and paced the confines of his quarters and knew it would be a long time before he could sleep again. He knew he could go see Beckett and get something to help him sleep, but that was something he shied away from. He sat on the edge of his bed and looked at the rumpled clothing he'd worn earlier and reached for them. It didn't take long to get dressed and he opened the door, relieved to find the corridor empty.
John winced as he moved into the hallway, but he didn't let that deter him. He wanted to see what it was about Atlantis that seemed to call to him. He needed to feel the city without anyone around and with most people asleep it felt right for him to be out here. Sheppard walked toward the transporter they'd used earlier and hoped he could remember how to use it or this journey of soul searching would be very short lived.
Once inside John touched the console and hoped his memory of his last trip wasn't as foggy as the rest of his memory was. The journey was instantaneous and he opened his eyes to find himself close to the top of the city. He took a deep breath and slowly made his way toward the outer balcony.
The scene was even more breathtaking than it was on his last trek up here and he smiled as the soft breeze brought the scent of the ocean rising over the city. He walked to the edge and leaned heavily on the railing, closing his eyes as several images flashed across his mind. He heard laughter, screaming, crying all at the same time, sprinkled through with a laser show that ended with the destruction of several parts of Atlantis.
John's hands gripped the rail so tightly his knuckles turned white and his body trembled as he fought to open his eyes. When he did he felt moisture sliding down his cheeks and hastily wiped it away as if someone might see it as a sign of weakness. He had no idea how long he stood there, staring up at the star speckled sky, silently praying that his memory of this beautiful place would come back to him.
"Sheppard."
John jumped at the familiar voice so close to him, but hid it before turning to face the newcomer. "What are you doing here, Ronon?"
"Looking for you," Ronon answered and leaned backward against the rail. "Figured I'd find you here."
"This place…there's something about it."
"It's nice."
"Yes, it is," John agreed and turned back to see the glint of the moon on the ocean.
"You come here a lot."
"Do I…did I?" John corrected.
"Yeah…showed me how to play golf."
"So I was told," John said.
"You don't remember telling me how to hit the ball?"
"Not really," John answered and frowned as something tugged at his memory. "Seem to remember you didn't need me to show you. That ball probably hasn't landed yet."
Ronon smiled at his friend and silently hoped his memory would return before the IOA decided to make good on their threat of replacing Sheppard as the military commander of Atlantis. If that happened, Ronon wasn't sure he'd stick around.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Food," Ronon lied.
"Think there's anything in the Mess Hall?"
"Guess we could find out," Ronon said and felt some of the emptiness he'd felt since finding Sheppard at Hawk's compound leaving. Somehow this simple talk with the man he'd come to respect above all others renewed his hope that John's memories would return.
"Thanks, Ronon."
"For what?" the Satedan asked curiously, frowning when he saw a noticeable limp when Sheppard walked. He knew Beckett was worried about the old injury and silently vowed to speak with him about it.
"For not running in the other direction when you found me."
"Wouldn't do that to a friend."
"Same," Sheppard said simply and grew quiet as they left the highest balcony in search of a meal.
SGASGASGASGASGA
Suduko watched as Trazdia and Proust accompanied Corbone toward his home. He silently studied Corbone's face, but saw nothing that told him the traitor had any idea why he was here.
"Suduko, it is good to see you again," Corbone said with a slight grin. "Trazdia said you have something you want me to do."
"I do, Corbone, but not here where anyone could be watching and listening," Suduko said and motioned for the others to follow him around the house. They reached the smaller building and he held the door while the others entered and finally closed the door on the outside world.
"So, tell me what you want of me, Suduko," Corbone said.
"Where is she?" Suduko asked, the color of his eyes darkening as he glared at the man standing between Trazdia and Proust.
"Who?" Corbone asked, weary of the look on Suduko's face.
"Shazzia," Suduko spat.
"How would I know where that bitch is, Suduko?"
"You have been working for her and Domitar for many cycles, Corbone…"
"No, Trazdia, I have never worked for them. They are trait…"
"Traitors, Corbone?" Trazdia snapped.
"Yes, yes they are…"
"And so are you," Suduko snapped, striking out with his fist before the other man had a chance to react. He caught Corbone on the jaw with enough force to make him stagger backward against the wall. "I want to know where she is, Corbone, and I will find out if it means I have to peel the skin of your body an inch at a time."
"N…no…" Corbone stammered as Trazdia flipped Suduko a knife that was caught in the bigger man's left arm. "Please, Suduko, I don't know where she is…"
"I don't believe you!" Suduko said and made a show of twirling the blade before motioning for Trazdia and Proust to hold their prisoner.
"Please…I don't…I didn't do anything!" Corbone cried.
"Then tell me how Shazzia has known things that were only meant for our ears. Things like times and dates and coordinates…false ones, but of course you did not know that at the time. I'm sure Shazzia would be angered if she knew you were the cause of her losing several of her shipments," Suduko said.
"Corbone, Suduko is very skilled with that knife and it would be much easier on you if you told him what he wants to know," Trazdia snapped.
"I don't know!" Corbone screamed as Suduko proved just how skilled he was by stripping a thin layer of skin from his forearm. The pain was more of a burning sensation as blood slowly flowed from the wound.
"Tell me where Shazzia is!" Suduko ordered and placed the tip of the knife on the man's right arm.
"I don't…"
"You better change your story, Corbone," Proust warned as the knife once more stripped a two inch layer of skin.
"Proust! You know me…"
"Yes, I do, and I found it hard to believe you would betray us, but Suduko and Trazdia had the proof. You turned your back on our friendship and now I do the same. Tell us what we want to know and maybe Suduko won't skin you alive!"
"No…"
Suduko wiped the blade on Corbone's shirt before cutting through the fabric of his shirt and revealed the sweat soaked chest beneath. He put the tip of the blade against the man's left nipples and pressed until a pearl drop of blood formed and slid down his chest.
"No!"
"Tell me what I want to know!"
"I can't…she'll kill me!"
"She is not here, but I am!" Suduko snapped and made a thin cut across the man's heaving chest.
Corbone struggled to break free of the men holding him, but Trazdia and Proust were strong and held tight as Suduko continued to use his knife like an expert. He screamed when he felt the blade slide across his chest and knew he could not take much more as blood mingled with sweat and he fought to breathe past the nausea churning in his gut.
"Perhaps you could carve the word traitor on his chest, Suduko," Proust suggested.
"Enough…please, I'll tell you every thing I know."
"Starting with where Shazzia is and what her plans are," Suduko ordered.
"I do not know where she is…"
"Then I guess we should get on with this…"
"No, Suduko, please just listen to me. She…Shazzia had been hiding with Domitar while he tries to find her a ship. She wants to go back to space and find more slaves. She wants to take back the men she says belongs to her."
"No one belongs to her!" Suduko spat and made a cut on the man's abdomen that left him shivering with anger.
"Does she have a ship yet?" Proust asked.
"I don't know…please, I have answered your questions…I told you everything I know!"
"What should we do with him?" Trazdia asked.
"We can not let him go because he will go straight to Domitar!" Proust warned.
"No, we can not," Suduko readily agreed and then smiled. "I believe it is in our best interests to turn him over to Shariel and Kudrone."
"What would that do?" Trazdia asked.
"Shariel will make sure he is imprisoned until such time as it is safe to set him free. She is no longer a 'slaver', but she does have resources that we do not."
"Will she help us?" Proust asked.
"She and Kudrone are my guests and I am sure she will be only too glad to take care of Corbone for us," Suduko offered. "Trazdia, perhaps you should have someone covering Domitar's place at all time. At least until we find out if Domitar has found a new ship for Shazzia."
"I'm sure Shariel will take good care of Corbone until we find Shazzia," Trazdia agreed and dragged the shaking prisoner through the door.
SGASGASGASGASGA
Carson Beckett looked up from the file he'd been working on. Ronon had been by earlier and spoken to him about Sheppard and he knew the Satedan was worried about his friend. Atlantis' CMO smiled at the pale man standing in the doorway. He stood up and motioned for the Colonel to enter and nodded toward the empty chair, watching as the man moved and knew Dex had been right about the limp. "Good morning, John, how did you sleep last night?"
"Not very well, Doc," John answered, finding it impossible to lie to the Scotsman.
"Nightmares?"
"You could call them that," John told him tiredly.
"I could give you something to help you sleep."
"No, thanks anyway, Doc, but I'd rather not right now."
"Have you spoken to Dr. Heitmeyer?"
"Only when she came to see me here, but I do have an appointment with her tomorrow."
"I'm sure she'll be more than happy to see you before then if you tell her," Beckett offered.
"I know, Doc, but right now talking is not something I want to do. I need to find out who I am before I can fix the nightmares."
"I understand, but you won't be doing yourself any good if you don't sleep. Are you eating?"
"Yes, Ronon can attest to that," John said with a sheepish grin.
"Ronon, now why does that not surprise me. That man can put away more than an entire soup kitchen on a busy day. Tell me what happened?"
"I couldn't sleep last night so I took a walk and wound up in what's supposed to be my favorite spot...least that's what they tell me."
"The top balcony?"
"Yes," John answered. "Ronon found me there…we talked some and ended up in the mess hall. Did you know that the meatloaf is not so bad when it's re-heated?"
"Yes, well, I'll take your word for it."
"So, why'd you want to see me so early?"
"I know you just got out of the infirmary yesterday, but there are a couple of things we need to fix."
"Like what?" John asked softly.
"That mark on your chest is a simple procedure, but your leg."
"My leg?"
"Yes, sometime during your captivity your femur was broken and from the x-rays I'd say it was a bad one."
"Can you fix it?"
"Yes, I can, but it will mean re-breaking it and putting you in a cast for four to six weeks."
"Damn, Doc, can it wait?"
"It can, but the sooner we get it fixed the better," Beckett answered.
"When?"
"Dr. Shelby and I…"
"Dr. Shelby?"
"Wanda Shelby. She's a newcomer to Atlantis and her specialty is orthopedics. I asked her to look over your file and she said she'd like to speak with you as soon as possible."
"Doc, I know you're right and I want my leg fixed, but Shazzia and Hawk are out there and right now is not the time for me to be down."
"John, they can't get to you on Atlantis," Beckett vowed.
"I know, but I need to stay on my feet until I remember everything, Doc," John told him, closing his eyes as and moaning softly as he swallowed several times in an effort to relieve the pain stabbing through his skull. He felt Beckett's hand on his shoulder, heard his voice speaking to him, but nothing could deter the memories washing over him.
John found it hard to breathe as he felt something wrap around his neck and knifing pain through his neck. He knew it wasn't real; it was either a nightmare or something that had happened in his past, but that didn't make it any easier to deal with. He could hear familiar voices speaking, but did not know if they were talking directly to him or whether they were part of the waking nightmare he was locked in.
The pain changed, but was just as intense as his body was rocked in the chair and a snarling creature pressed its hand against his chest. He tried again to draw air into his lungs as the mirror image of his life being sucked from his body took what little air he had in his lungs from him.
Again it seemed as if the scene shifted and a screaming creature shoved him to the ground. He knew it was female and a name escaped his convulsing throat.
"Ellia…"
"John, listen to me…"
John tried to make sense of the voice so close, but the words were not reaching him as he felt something bite into his arm. The pain was instantaneous and he tried to shove her away, but she was strong, stronger than he thought possible as a flash of light crossed his field of vision and the scene changed once more.
The trees faded and were quickly replaced by the sensation of shark talons touching his face and gliding down his cheek. He thought he heard the word 'kneel' and resisted the command with every bone in his body. A face, pale in complexion, with long strands of white hair stared at him, and dark obsidian eyes that flashed with the promise of a slow death.
TBC