Atlantis Fic - Last Man episode Tag
Last Man episode tag
I kind of saw things differently...spoilers within.
I wrote this episode tag as a kind of "what if" after reading all the squee surrounding Rodney's hook-up with Keller and my general shock at the aspect of the story that presented Rodney as only taking desperate action to bring John home once he realized Keller would die.
As I see it John was lucky that Keller DIED. But what if Keller didn't die...what would Rodney do without the catalyst of Keller's death to spurn him into action?
Despite what the "powers that be" think, Last Man wasn't all about Rodney. John was there too.
This is not a happy story. All mistakes are mine.
Last Man episode tag
John's been waiting for nearly three days now. Empty days. Long days. Days where he swears to Christ he can hear the gate powering up so clearly in his mind that he rushes to the control room to wait for Rodney to walk through and order him to gather up his things and come home.
But the Gate never lights up. There's not an ounce of power in this entire city.
John stands there now, watching, shirtless, arms at his side, swallowing hard at the inactive Gate, waiting for his team to find him or maybe just send through a message. An explanation of what the hell happened, of where John is and why the ocean is gone, dried up to look like every image of hell he ever learned about in Sunday School. A message to wait and hold on and we're going to get you. A message to calm his rapid uncontrollable heartbeat and allow him just a little ray of hope. A message like the one Rodney never sent when he was trapped on Teer's planet.
"Good one John, they'll get here when they get here..."
John knows he's dehydrated and slowly starving too. It's hard not to with one flask of water in 120 degree heat but he forces himself to move just a bit each day while his flashlight holds out and search for food and water left behind by whatever people abandoned this city. But he doesn't find much of anything useful at all.
The first day there he sees a raspberry swirl power bar tossed in the back of an old lab and stares at it hard enough to almost see the truth until tears John can ill afford to lose cloud his vision and his heart tightens just a tiny little bit, suddenly gripped by an overwhelming fear. He puts the bar in his pocket and continues the search.
And sure John's afraid. Very fucking afraid. More afraid then he's ever been in his whole entire life. Afraid of being alone forever. Afraid of dying without ever knowing why or where he is. Afraid that no one's coming...no one's looking...no one cares enough about him to...
Fuck but that's not right.
John knows people care about him. People love him. He has friends and god dammit he's not going to despair this time. Rodney will figure this problem out just like he always does and will find a way to bring him home. Rodney will save the day, hallelujah, Hail Mary, and stop John from dying in this fucking desert wasteland and mummifying like a goddamned husk in the Gateroom.
"Fuck...!"
He rubs his eyes, shudders, sways a little and flops on the floor.
It's been difficult. The confusion, the self pity and the anger John can't quite seem to get under control but he fights it off as best he can and waits for his team.
Everything in this city looks the same as Atlantis, but not, and the orange glow is just plain freaky. John's stopped laying on the balcony because it hurts to much to remember the sky and the way the Puddlejumpers respond to his touch, taking him higher and higher into the cosmos.
He swallows again, and thinks about taking a sip from his canteen but holds back for just a little bit, pushing himself despite the thirst.
"Another ten minutes..." He has to make the water last.
John gets up, walks slowly to the Gate and touches it with his eyes closed. He loves Atlantis, but this isn't Atlantis, this can't be Atlantis, please god, please god, please god, please.
Atlantis is light and ocean and music in John's mind. Atlantis is people and voices and smells and sounds. This city, whatever the hell this city is, is dead and empty, a shell of something that may once have been, but it's not his city...it's not his home.
John takes the raspberry swirl power bar out of his pocket and allows himself a glance. Allows his mind to wander over all the possibilities he's tried not to think about all day. All the truths that can break him if he thinks about them too deeply.
Then he puts it back, hides the power bar away in his pocket and remembers his team, his friends, his family.
John remembers Teyla, his first friend in Pegasus with her amazing smile and strength and kind generous heart, and then curiously of the son she carries. He wonders what she'll name him and what he'll look like when he's grown. Probably beautiful like his mother. And then the dark thoughts enter like they always do. Did they save her? Is Teyla even alive somewhere in another universe...or this one? And the baby...did Michael...
It's too damn hard so he moves on to Ronon and waits for the memories to play. Ronon, more loyal to John than he sometimes thinks he deserves with his crazy hair and hatred of the Wraith so deep it scalds his soul yet doesn't burn his spirit. John didn't expect this friendship, and easy going camaraderie they share and because of that he cherishes it deeply and knows that he can count on Ronon for anything, to always have his back in even the most dangerous situations and of course to kick his ass around the gym every time they spar.
And Rodney...
John closes his eyes and waits for the pain to pass. His friend, his partner in crime, his brother. Rodney with his manic mobile mouth and brilliant mind. Rodney, whom John beats at chess and golf on a regular basis.
"Please..."
Rodney who's going to save him god dammit and come through the gate and take him home and get him the best steak the cafeteria has to offer.
"Please..."
Rodney who's probably bitching and complaining and driving everyone on Atlantis crazy right about now, worried out of his mind about John and working with Carter to find a way, any damn way to make things right.
"I need to find Teyla Rodney...I need to settle stuff with Dave..."
Rodney, smart ass sarcastic Rodney, who saved John from Kolya's clutches and Larin's insanity and, but no, that's not right, John saved himself those times. John figured stuff out on his own.
"I can't do it this time buddy..." John starts to shake. "I could really use your help here."
Rodney who is probably dialing up the gate right now or finding a way, any fucking brilliant way, to figure this shit out and keep John from starving and dying alone, scared and burning and oh sweet jesus fuck no, stop it right the fuck now!
"God dammit Rodney please!"
John looks at the Gate and sobs and struggles to get his breathing under control.
Someone will come. All he has to do is wait.
End.
I kind of saw things differently...spoilers within.
I wrote this episode tag as a kind of "what if" after reading all the squee surrounding Rodney's hook-up with Keller and my general shock at the aspect of the story that presented Rodney as only taking desperate action to bring John home once he realized Keller would die.
As I see it John was lucky that Keller DIED. But what if Keller didn't die...what would Rodney do without the catalyst of Keller's death to spurn him into action?
Despite what the "powers that be" think, Last Man wasn't all about Rodney. John was there too.
This is not a happy story. All mistakes are mine.
Last Man episode tag
John's been waiting for nearly three days now. Empty days. Long days. Days where he swears to Christ he can hear the gate powering up so clearly in his mind that he rushes to the control room to wait for Rodney to walk through and order him to gather up his things and come home.
But the Gate never lights up. There's not an ounce of power in this entire city.
John stands there now, watching, shirtless, arms at his side, swallowing hard at the inactive Gate, waiting for his team to find him or maybe just send through a message. An explanation of what the hell happened, of where John is and why the ocean is gone, dried up to look like every image of hell he ever learned about in Sunday School. A message to wait and hold on and we're going to get you. A message to calm his rapid uncontrollable heartbeat and allow him just a little ray of hope. A message like the one Rodney never sent when he was trapped on Teer's planet.
"Good one John, they'll get here when they get here..."
John knows he's dehydrated and slowly starving too. It's hard not to with one flask of water in 120 degree heat but he forces himself to move just a bit each day while his flashlight holds out and search for food and water left behind by whatever people abandoned this city. But he doesn't find much of anything useful at all.
The first day there he sees a raspberry swirl power bar tossed in the back of an old lab and stares at it hard enough to almost see the truth until tears John can ill afford to lose cloud his vision and his heart tightens just a tiny little bit, suddenly gripped by an overwhelming fear. He puts the bar in his pocket and continues the search.
And sure John's afraid. Very fucking afraid. More afraid then he's ever been in his whole entire life. Afraid of being alone forever. Afraid of dying without ever knowing why or where he is. Afraid that no one's coming...no one's looking...no one cares enough about him to...
Fuck but that's not right.
John knows people care about him. People love him. He has friends and god dammit he's not going to despair this time. Rodney will figure this problem out just like he always does and will find a way to bring him home. Rodney will save the day, hallelujah, Hail Mary, and stop John from dying in this fucking desert wasteland and mummifying like a goddamned husk in the Gateroom.
"Fuck...!"
He rubs his eyes, shudders, sways a little and flops on the floor.
It's been difficult. The confusion, the self pity and the anger John can't quite seem to get under control but he fights it off as best he can and waits for his team.
Everything in this city looks the same as Atlantis, but not, and the orange glow is just plain freaky. John's stopped laying on the balcony because it hurts to much to remember the sky and the way the Puddlejumpers respond to his touch, taking him higher and higher into the cosmos.
He swallows again, and thinks about taking a sip from his canteen but holds back for just a little bit, pushing himself despite the thirst.
"Another ten minutes..." He has to make the water last.
John gets up, walks slowly to the Gate and touches it with his eyes closed. He loves Atlantis, but this isn't Atlantis, this can't be Atlantis, please god, please god, please god, please.
Atlantis is light and ocean and music in John's mind. Atlantis is people and voices and smells and sounds. This city, whatever the hell this city is, is dead and empty, a shell of something that may once have been, but it's not his city...it's not his home.
John takes the raspberry swirl power bar out of his pocket and allows himself a glance. Allows his mind to wander over all the possibilities he's tried not to think about all day. All the truths that can break him if he thinks about them too deeply.
Then he puts it back, hides the power bar away in his pocket and remembers his team, his friends, his family.
John remembers Teyla, his first friend in Pegasus with her amazing smile and strength and kind generous heart, and then curiously of the son she carries. He wonders what she'll name him and what he'll look like when he's grown. Probably beautiful like his mother. And then the dark thoughts enter like they always do. Did they save her? Is Teyla even alive somewhere in another universe...or this one? And the baby...did Michael...
It's too damn hard so he moves on to Ronon and waits for the memories to play. Ronon, more loyal to John than he sometimes thinks he deserves with his crazy hair and hatred of the Wraith so deep it scalds his soul yet doesn't burn his spirit. John didn't expect this friendship, and easy going camaraderie they share and because of that he cherishes it deeply and knows that he can count on Ronon for anything, to always have his back in even the most dangerous situations and of course to kick his ass around the gym every time they spar.
And Rodney...
John closes his eyes and waits for the pain to pass. His friend, his partner in crime, his brother. Rodney with his manic mobile mouth and brilliant mind. Rodney, whom John beats at chess and golf on a regular basis.
"Please..."
Rodney who's going to save him god dammit and come through the gate and take him home and get him the best steak the cafeteria has to offer.
"Please..."
Rodney who's probably bitching and complaining and driving everyone on Atlantis crazy right about now, worried out of his mind about John and working with Carter to find a way, any damn way to make things right.
"I need to find Teyla Rodney...I need to settle stuff with Dave..."
Rodney, smart ass sarcastic Rodney, who saved John from Kolya's clutches and Larin's insanity and, but no, that's not right, John saved himself those times. John figured stuff out on his own.
"I can't do it this time buddy..." John starts to shake. "I could really use your help here."
Rodney who is probably dialing up the gate right now or finding a way, any fucking brilliant way, to figure this shit out and keep John from starving and dying alone, scared and burning and oh sweet jesus fuck no, stop it right the fuck now!
"God dammit Rodney please!"
John looks at the Gate and sobs and struggles to get his breathing under control.
Someone will come. All he has to do is wait.
End.