She couldn't take it anymore. The silence was deafening, the loneliness crushing and the hallucinations from lack of food and water were only getting worse. Gary watched, waited, wondered - she couldn't last much longer surely? He'd removed all stimuli from the room and left her stuck in that chair to wallow in her own self pity. Pity; like she of all people deserved it. Tegan had long since lost her voice, her throat was far too hoarse to speak and her brain was too scrambled to think of a coherent sentence. The hallucinations were the best and worst things that happened to her these days. They offered such bliss and comfort but when they disappeared they left behind such pain and anguish...it was crushing to awaken to the dreadful reality she was still stuck in. Her heavy eyes watched another one now, watched Rodney and John bicker over which was better; Superman or Batman? A delerious smile twitched at her lips but she didn't have the energy to really smile, she didn't have the energy to do anything really. Her body ached horribly and there was a dull pounding in her temples. Her numb limbs were tingling from the lack of blood flow to them. Gary watched from behind the oberservation window as she sat there, her head hung and her breathing shallow; no, no Tegan James didn't deserve to die like this. Gary sighed and climbed to his feet, walking out of the room to collect the one thing he would need to finally finish this. The glock that he hadn't touched in almost thirteen years came out of it's case, one last bullet still lieing in the barrel just waiting to be fired.
Tegan didn't notice him dragging her from the chair, only registering the pain that popped in her elbow and the deep rooted ache that intensified all over her body - she was lost in her own delerious fantasies. In her world, despite the pain she was in she was happy. John was with her here, and Rodney and Ronon and Teyla. Kanaan and Torren had joined them today on the beach and he was so happy, gurgling and laughing as he kicked the salty water. John was keeping her warm, holding her close and looking after her. She was safe here on this beach, with these people she was content and could live with the pain as long as they were around; Tegan was oblivious to anything other than her fantasy. Her mind had created a safe place, a happy place, a place where she could escape from her shattered body and be free. As Gary dragged her along, unaware of Tegan's complete ignorance to the situation she was in, she subconciously snuffed out that little flame of hope.
John's Point of View:
We were decked out in full combat gear: black cargo pants; black combat boots; black leather jacket; black t-shirts and a tac vest each. Ronon had of course opted for the no tac vest option and had just holstered his stun gun and a few knives on his person, but me and Teyla were dressed up at least. There were no badges on our arms this time because nothing we did tonight could lead back to the SGC. Nothing. Slipping a glock into my thigh holster I hooked up my P-90 and loaded a clip into it, slipping some extra ammunition in various pockets on my vest. Rodney watched us silently in the corner, looking frustrated that he couldn't come with us. Not with his sprained wrist anyway. Rodney hadn't been happy to hear that but had been convinced by Teyla to stay behind and monitor us from the Daedalus without hating me for the rest of my life. Nobody spoke because there was nothing to say, either we came home with her or we didn't; the thought that we wouldn't was sickening. The tension was tangeable and my whole body was rigid with it, the nervous flutters in my stomach making me feel nauseous as we headed towards the lab we'd been given for this evenings raid. Ronon had set his gun to the highest setting and I took comfort from the knowledge that Gary Murdale wouldn't live to hurt her again after tonight.
Rodney gave us a nod from the asgard console he was working at, letting us know that he was ready to beam us down. Clearing my throat, I turned to adress Teyla and Ronon,
"Alright we know what we have to do. We storm the place from three different angles and do a quick search, shoot anyone who gets in our way...if we don't find anything the first time around we search more thoroughly for clues." I ordered. Teyla and Ronon both nodded at me,
"We'll find her." he promised me. "I feel it." His confidence gave me some and I nodded back, inhaling deeply before raising my P-90 and looking at Rodney,
"Beam us down." I instructed.
"Good luck." he grumbled, moving the crystals around as the room disappeared in a swirl of white light. When my eyes refocused I was in Sweden. Darkness enveloped the landscape but I could still make out the house ahead of us - red wood with white trimmings around the edge that looked rickety and faded and small. It stood in a clearing surrounded by tall swaying grass and a ring of coniferous pine trees. Beyond the house were towering, snow capped mountains that enveloped a glistening black lake, the light of the full moon shimmering on the surface.
It all looked so calm, so peaceful. Not for much longer. Bringing my hand up to my ear I tapped my radio once,
"Everybody in postion?" I asked quietly.
"Yes John." Teyla replied, her calm voice helping me to relax and clear my mind.
"Here Sheppard." Ronon grunted. Nodding once to myself I brought up the binoculars and looked at the house, clicking on the night vision and scouting out the area. There was nothing moving. No people about or animals, nothing.
"Alright, move in." I ordered, running in a half crouch towards the house with my P-90 raised. Ronon had gone around the back and Teyla quickly joined me on the front porch. She stood beside the door as my heart began to race, the adrenaline surging through my veins as I aimed my P-90 at the door and gave her a nod. She swung it open and I burst in, sweeping the corners of the room with my flashlight beam and moving to the left. The house was small with only three ground floor rooms and two upstairs ones. There was no furniture, no lights...it didn't look as if anybody had been here in years. The rooms were dusty and bare, full of rotting wood and peeling paintwork. "This is impossible." I muttered under my breath. There was no way this was happening, not when we were so close! Teyla joined us in the largest of the three downstairs rooms. "There's nothing here." I said quietly.
My frustration began to boil over into rage and I lashed out at the fireplace, my foot cracking and splintering the wood. Where else was I supposed to look goddamit!
"Let's look again." Teyla suggested, "It took us two attempts to find the laptop, remember?" her optimism was beginning to get tiring now and I was losing all hope. My stomach dropped and my heart twisted painfully in my chest. She had to be here, she had to be!
"Sheppard!" Ronon called. I became aware that I was on my own suddenly and tried o shrug of the familiar weight of hopelessness. I was tire of false hope by now. Swallowing past the lump in my throat I walked towards the sound of his voice and found him by the stairs, tracing a flashlight beam over the woodwork to reveal faint cracks. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" he wondered.
"No." I said tiredly. Truthfully I wasn't thinking at all. I was working on gut feeling and adrenaline alone. My palms were sweaty and my nerves already shot so I jumped when he kicked in the wood. He had kicked open a door under the stairs and revealed very modern looking concrete steps that lead down to what I assumed was a cellar of some sorts. Teyla came running in when she heard the noise and with a few quick hand signals I was leading them down the steps, feeling the temperature drop dramatically and making me shiver.
There was no dust about, suggesting it had seen activity recently. There was a switch on the side of the corridor and I flipped it, blinking and shielding my eyes from the bright fluroscent light that flickered on; in the background there was the groan of a generator working somewhere. Following the rumbling noise down the concrete tunnel we came to a metal door. Pressing my shoulder into the wall beside it I reached for the handle, watching the others take their positions before I threw open the door. Ronon grunted and lowered his gun, walking straight in and kicking something as he passed. We all crammed into a tiny room, seeing a small wooden chair and a desk pressed against the right wall below a darkened window. There was another room beyond the window though and as we flicked one of three switches on the desk a light flickered on inside. My stomach twisted horribly - this had been the place alright. The metal table and chair had been bolted to the floor and I guessed her feet had been shackled to the chair legs, most likely by those metal cuffs. Projector screens hung on the walls and I wondered what kind of pyschological torture she'd been forced to endure. Blood had dried on the floor in ugly rust coloured patches and something small and white sat in one of them...I assumed it was a tooth.
Trying to force back the bile rising in my throat I shared a look with Teyla and Ronon. Teyla's expression had hardened in an effort to hide her feelings but her brown eyes had steeled; she was angry and disgusted with what we were seeing. Ronon huffed slightly, picking up his gun again and storming out of the room. Slowly, we followed him. Tegan had been here, she'd been here and she'd slipped through my fingers again. My chest was aching, my heart twisting and stomach writhing. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to scream. I wanted to pace. I just needed to do something. Exiting the house I took in a deep breath, inhaling the crisp air and allowing it to clear my head a bit.
"Sheppard?" Rodney's voice was in my ear calling my name urgently, and I rubbed my forehead tiredly as I answered him. "Sheppard there's two other life signs with you. They surfaced just a few minutes ago by the lake, something in that house was blocking your transmitter signals. and made it impossible for me to get ahold of you." he informed me. Nodding my head I thanked him and quickly relayed that information to the others, splitting us up and heading for the lake behind the house. It was still a fair distance away but if I squinted I could make out two figures in the darkness; one was standing but the other was on it's knees.
My heart skipped a beat, my breath hitching in my throat as I sped up, moving quietly across the landscape until I was flat on my stomach in the long grass - barely twelve meters from the scene. The moonlight gave everything a shimmering, dream like feel but it was definitely her. I didn't let my eyes linger on her because I knew if I did I wouldn't be able to focus long enough to take him down. Finally, I got my first glimpse of Gary Murdale. He was tall, possibly six foot four or so with platinum blonde hair pulled back into a messy looking ponytail - his skin was so pale it looked translucent in the moonlight. He was built like an ox, all buff muscles and black ink stretching up his arms in almost tribal like patterns. His voice was silky and persuasive and it made my blood boil as I signalled for my team to stay down,
"You recognise this don't you Tegan? It's been in the videos, your nightmares, your history." he was almost sneering at her and I clenched my fist as I took aim, carefully lining up my shot so that the bullet would pass right through his head; just like he had done to her farther. "The bullet's been in here for almost thirteen years." he chuckled gruffly, "You dodged a bullet for thirteen years! You know, I think that's a guiness world record." shaking his head ruefully he laughed, a boisterous and cold laugh that made my toes curl.
I was about to take the shot when he moved, circling her like a predator would circle his prey and I groaned quietly, having to take my aim again and track him as he moved to ensure I wouldn't miss. There was an almost strangled noise from her, like she was trying to laugh but didn't have the strength and she fell onto her back when he kicked her shoulder. Gary just crouched beside her, once again messing up my shot and I hissed slightly in annoyance. "You see this lake?" he gestured behind him and stood up before I could refocus on him and I grit my teeth, feeling my irritation flare. So what if I shot him in the leg first and had to shoot him again? He deserved it. "This is where I buried my children, and you'll join them soon enough at the bottom of the lake. No one will ever find you, no one will care to look. You will die alone and unloved Tegan James, just like your blessed farther did." he spat.
"Wrong." I growled, letting my finger pull the trigger. Teyla and Ronon popped up, aiming at him as they stalked closer with expressions of cold fury while I ran straight towards Tegan. She looked even more of a mess than I had imagined and I couldn't help but flinch. It was Teyla's P-90 going off that made me turn around. Dropping to one knee I prepared to fire again as Murdale landed a hard punch across her jaw.
Calling Teyla's name, I distracted him long enough to put a bullet in him just as I promised, but the bastard had had to move hadn't he? My bullet went straight through his shoulder blade and though he fell back it didn't stop him getting back up and throwing a charging Ronon away from him. Murdale was a mess of bullet holes and blood, but still he crept closer towards me. I froze, shock and fear paralysing me for a moment. This guy should not be moving still! A tug on my thigh had me looking down and I jumped when Tegan fired the shot, head snapping up to look at Murdale. Blood blossomed from his ribs and he went down to his knees, struggling for air as he shakily pulled his own gun around. Before he had chance to fire one last haphazard shot I lined up my own, and this time my bullet blew out his brain matter. A soft thump behind me let me know Tegan had collapsed back to the floor, and as Teyla was attended to by Ronon I turned my attention to her, feeling my heart race. Tegan's face was a mess of black and blue, dried blood matting her greasy hair and her grey eyes were unfocused and doe like, nothing like they usually were. Her body was crumpled on the floor, her clothes dirty and stained with sweat and blood; the remnants of yellowish vomit crusted along the neckline of her tanktop and disgust rippled through me. Her elbow sat at an unnatural angle and her skin was red raw and blisted on her hands, like something out of a horror movie. How could he have done this too her.
Discarding my P-90 beside me I knelt beside her, gently touching her cold cheek and murmuring her name. My throat felt thick and tears were brimming in my eyes as Rodney frantically called my name in my ear. Wiping my eyes forcefully I called her name, watching her grey eyes focus on me for a brief second before they returned to looking at the sky, blinking slowly and looking uninterested.
"Tegan, talk to me Tegan." I said forcefully. She merely blinked in response. Panic began to set in as I tried and failed to get a response one more time. "Tegan I'm going to pick you up okay so Rodney can get a lock on us. You're going to be okay now alright? You're going to be alright." I murmered, carefully scooping her up and watching the agony blaze in her eyes. I must have looked as pale as I felt because Teyla watched me concernedly.
"Hey Tiny." Ronon grunted, but he got no response either.
"Rodney, Rodney beam us straight to the infirmary." I ordered, voice strained with tension and anxiety. Rodney did just that and before I could blink I was surrounded by nurses and doctors who cursed and took her out of my numb arms. Teyla gently touched my arms as Ronon went to meet Rodney but I shook her off, feeling angry and tired and physically sick. I had to sit on the floor before I fell and Teyla pulled me to her, letting me rest my head against her shoulder. "He took her from us." I said thickly, "He still managed to take her from us."
"No John, no, Tegan is still in there...she just needs our help to resurface." Teyla murmered. I wanted to believe her, so so badly...but as incredible as she was, even Tegan had her limits. Gary Murdale had pushed her far past them and maybe pushed Tegan herself out of my reach.