NON REVERSABLE EFFECTS
CH15
I wish that I could have prepared myself better, that I had adrenaline left in my system that could help me bypass the complete pain that I was in. I thought that I was ready for this type of excretion, but maybe I didn't fully understand the seriousness of my injuries. The blood loss that I had suffered, the concussion that I had, and how really fucked up my ankle really was.
I was really hot, and each and every cut that was on my body was on fire and it felt as if the were pulsating. Daniel was basically carrying me up the steps, and I knew that infection was probably starting to set in right about now. And I knew that fever had to be too, because I kept feeling something brush the back of my legs and I knew that the sleeves weren't long enough to do that. My teeth were sharp and pointed, biting into my gums and lips. My ears felt itchy and hot, and my vision was halfway between normal and able to see the scents coming from SG-1.
That flight of stairs put me over the edge and I collapsed, just barely making it to the platform and taking Daniel down with me. My stomach was tight and constricted; it felt like it was full of lead and crushed into a ball. I retched, there was nothing left in my stomach, and all that came up was bile and flam. As it turned out, blood too. It speckled my lips, and flecks of it ended up on the floor with the bile.
I gasped, my arms wobbling like crazy. I collapsed on my side on the cold floor, my arms not able to support my weight anymore. My eyes were glossed and half lidded.
"Shit!" Daniel cursed, kneeling down beside me. "Nick?" the back of his hand laid against me cheek and I gave a sigh. "He's running a high fever."
Sam gave a sniff, the air around me smelled slightly sour. "I think infection is starting to set in." she said, her voice full of worry.
"This isn't good." Daniel hissed needlessly under his breath. "He should have gotten medical attention, like yesterday."
"We can't do anything here." Mitchell pointed out.
Daniel nodded and looked at Teal'c. "Do you think you can carry him the rest of the way, Teal'c?"
Teal'c gave a nod, handing his P90 to Daniel, and with his expression grave he bent down and carefully took me in his arms.
"Be careful." Daniel cautioned, Teal'c gave him a look in return as he stood back up, holding me bridal style. But he couldn't help it as I groaned and my head lulled on Teal'c's shoulder. "He has a concussion, and be careful of the wound on the back of his neck, it looks pretty bad."
Teal'c gave a slight nod this time, understanding where Daniel was coming from. "I will do as you suggest." I could his voice rumble through his chest.
"His ankle looks pretty messed-up too." Mitchell pointed out.
Daniel looked at it and paled—I knew that by now it was probably more than just a twist, and swollen bigger than a grapefruit. "I think that he injured when he got captured."
"We have to go." Carter interrupted. "The longer we stay here, the worse the Nick's going to get."
The threat of my life must have drilled some sense into Daniel worry-crazed mind, and kicked everyone else into action. On the platform, there was a steel door—again it was much like a volt door and like the arena doors. With the help of Carter, she and Daniel pulled it open. Slowly sunlight leaked in and we knew that this was the way out, and all we had to do was find the gate. The stair that we had just up, led me to believe that the compound that we had been held in was underground.
I knew that in the back of my mind I knew that figuring that out wasn't a great accomplishment, but my fevered one begged to differ. The forest was ahead of us now, and I wasn't sure which direction SG-1 decided to take. If it were me, I would have headed straight—it was probably the best bet. But what did I know? My view consisted of Teal'c's shoulder and neck, and a tiny slice of what I figured might have been sky—but I couldn't really tell because I had to close my eyes, the motion causing my stomach to roll.
We finally made it to the gate without any delay. To me it actually made it in a short period of time, but it was probably longer than that—SG-1 was out of breath. The MALP was still at the stargate and once we got there, Carter went to the DHD and started to Earth. Mitchell kept an eye out for any trouble and Daniel came over to where Teal'c still held me to the side.
"Nick?" Daniel called me softly, his hand running through my sweat soaked hair. I moaned at the touch, not able to open my eyes. "Just hang in there, we're almost back home."
"He is very ill." Teal'c intones softy too. "He is not as he once was."
There was a pause before Daniel spoke again. "Whoever took us did something him. When he got the collar off, he tore something out of his neck and now it's like he stuck halfway in between."
I was confused as to what the hell they were talking about and before more could be said, the gate was activated.
"We're good to go!" Carter called after she finished typing SG-1's code into the GDO. "This is Colonel Carter, we're gonna need a medical team." she spoke into the radio on the MALP.
Mitchell went through the gate first, then Colonel Carter with the MALP, fallowed by Teal'c and me then lastly Daniel. The reentry from the gate left me gasping for air—it was like when a big gust of wind blows in your face, and you literally can't breathe for like three seconds. Their boots clanked on the ramp and there was a whole lot of noise that I could have gone without.
I had held on to consciousness this long and the instant that Teal's laid me on the gurney and a whole lot of hands were touching, I let go of that threat. The bright lights that had seemed to shine through my closed lid, now faded into blackness.