SGA: FIC: New Angels of Promise (Lorne/Zelenka, PG-13)
Happy Valentine's Day. I bring you angst with a semi-happy ending.
Title: New Angels of Promise
Author: mapsandlegends
Rating: PG-13/Teen
Pairing: Lorne/Zelenka
Summary: Time is infinite, heavy and ponderous, weighing him down as he waits and waits.
Warning: Hurt/Comfort, aka ANGST. But with a fairly happy ending.
Author's Note: Written from a prompt by gblvr. Any Radek fan worth her salt should know that "ano" means "yes" in Czech. Semi-betaed, any mistakes, let me know. Also, I really seem to be enjoying present tense these days. Hope that works for you. The title is from Mr. Bowie's song of the same name.
Disclaimer: Want to own them, sadly don't.
Trapped. Radek is trapped, pinned in place by debris from the explosion, one leg skewered by what amounts to a piece of Ancient rebar. His leg alternates between burning, slashing pain and cold, icy needles pricking against his nerve endings. He wants to give in to the blackness creeping around the edges of his consciousness, but knows that would be a bad idea.
Radek is alone in his burnt-out lab because he'd wanted to work without interruption, free of Rodney's bluster, away from his underlings and their plague of insipid questions. And now that Radek finally has all the time in the world to think, free from distraction, he can't. All of his concentration is being used to block out the pain in his chest and leg.
He can't reach anything, can't move. He would call out, beg for help, scream with pain, but he can't get enough air to do more than moan helplessly in frustration.
"Radek! Radek, can you hear me?"
He can. He can hear Evan, though the force of impact knocked his earpiece loose. It's laying on the floor, two inches and half a world away. He hopes Evan can hear him when he tries to speak.
"Evan," Radek whispers as loudly as he can, voice rough and unsteady.
"Radek, God, are you okay?"
"Alive. For now."
"Just hang on, we're working on getting you out."
"Will try. Hurts." Radek shuts his eyes, gathering strength to speak again. "Evan...thank you...for everything."
"Radek, shit, don't do this to me, do not. You're gonna be fine, I promise." Evan's voice is firm, unwavering, and Radek feels a little warmer even though his rational mind tells him that such promises cannot always be kept.
"Do you also promise...a rematch? You are...spectacularly bad at chess...but I will take pity on you."
"Anything you want."
"With same prize?"
Radek can hear Evan's low, slow breath even from so far away. Evan sounds nervous, but his soft, "Yeah." is all that Radek needs to hear.
"Good."
Radek can hear them, now. There are sharp sounds of metal being sheared away, the countless small plinks and pings that the Ancient alloy gives off as the rescue team cuts through locked doors.
Time is infinite, heavy and ponderous, weighing him down as he waits and waits. Radek has almost given up when he sees blurred silhouettes moving swiftly towards him in the darkness. He doesn't know who, or how many, and he closes his eyes against tears of relief and gratitude.
He feels the warmth of hands on his cold face, knows the medical team is readying him for transport to the infirmary. He tries to ignore their short bursts of conversation, words like "entry wound" and "blood loss" pushed to the back of his mind. He wants, instead, to pay attention to the comfort of soft skin warm against his bristled cheek.
"This is going a little too far just to get my attention, don't you think?"
He opens his eyes to see Evan kneeling over him, their faces only inches apart.
"God, Radek, you scared the hell out of me. You can't..." and now Evan's voice trembles, "You can't, you just can't."
Radek tries to nod, to let Evan know he understands what Evan can't say. Which is a mistake, as it only serves to further his brain's notion that it should feel free to move about the cabin. He decides that speech may be a better use of his mind rather than tumbling it around inside his skull like a rock in need of smoothing.
"We both know I am superior at chess. I would like my prize now rather than later, I think."
He looks at Evan, cataloging his beauty, fixing Evan's pale blue eyes in his memory.
Evan doesn't hesitate, he just kisses Radek softly, sweetly, soundly, until Radek can almost forget where he is, what has happened. Evan kisses him again, gently, thumbs grazing Radek's jaw, and Radek can only lie there and let him do it.
From the corner of his eye, Radek sees Rodney and Colonel Sheppard turn away, giving him privacy and allowing him his solace as they stand guard over this tenuous, fragile moment. He has never loved them more than he does now. The medical team ignores anything not relevant to their work, and for that, Radek is thankful. If he survives this ordeal, he does not want to be alone here in the brutal wilds of Pegasus.
Radek's eyes close against his will, though he's just awake enough to feel the jolt as he's moved onto a stretcher. Then drugs, pain, and exhaustion pull him down, down into darkness.
The infirmary is blinding and bright when Radek wakes. He doesn't mind, though, because it means he is alive, and if not well, he is well enough.
Radek feels vulnerable without his glasses, which were a casualty of the explosion in his lab. He finds no humor in the fact that they somehow survived both explosion and impact, only to have frames bent and lenses shattered under Colonel Sheppard's bootheels. He will never complain, though, because one pair of eyeglasses is a small price to pay for his life.
It's not entirely unfitting that the blur in Radek's vision causes everyone he sees to be softly haloed with light. He isn't religious, but he thinks his friends still may be the most unlikely of angels, unaware of their bravery and strength until it's needed. He spares a thought to wonder if Rodney would rant and curse if he knew Radek was picturing him as a tiny, round-faced cherub right at this very moment.
Radek's leg still hurts, and it will require weeks of physical therapy once the muscles have healed. But of all the possible side-effects of his injuries, he's managed to avoid the worst: no broken bones, no nerve damage, no paralysis - and he isn't quite sure how he managed that. Radek is lucky, in this at least, and he knows it.
The second time Radek wakes, after strange and fitful dreams, he's instantly aware that he isn't alone. Evan is sitting in a visitor's chair, head tilted back in sleep, knees pressed awkwardly together, arms crossed over his chest. Radek watches him sleep, unwilling to wake him even if it would make Radek feel better.
Evan's head falls forward and when it snaps back up, he's awake and eyeing Radek blearily. They just stare at one another for a few minutes, a tense silence settling over them. Before Radek can parse what's happening, Evan is standing and walking towards him. Radek's breath catches at the fierce look on Evan's face.
"I just wanted to make sure you know that you don't have to go out and get yourself hurt just so that I'll kiss you. In fact, I never want to do this again, you got that?"
Evan clutches at Radek's shoulders, kissing him again and again until Radek is willing to promise him anything, everything, even when he knows it's possible those promises cannot be kept.
"Ano, ano, Evan, yes, yes."
THE END
Title: New Angels of Promise
Author: mapsandlegends
Rating: PG-13/Teen
Pairing: Lorne/Zelenka
Summary: Time is infinite, heavy and ponderous, weighing him down as he waits and waits.
Warning: Hurt/Comfort, aka ANGST. But with a fairly happy ending.
Author's Note: Written from a prompt by gblvr. Any Radek fan worth her salt should know that "ano" means "yes" in Czech. Semi-betaed, any mistakes, let me know. Also, I really seem to be enjoying present tense these days. Hope that works for you. The title is from Mr. Bowie's song of the same name.
Disclaimer: Want to own them, sadly don't.
Trapped. Radek is trapped, pinned in place by debris from the explosion, one leg skewered by what amounts to a piece of Ancient rebar. His leg alternates between burning, slashing pain and cold, icy needles pricking against his nerve endings. He wants to give in to the blackness creeping around the edges of his consciousness, but knows that would be a bad idea.
Radek is alone in his burnt-out lab because he'd wanted to work without interruption, free of Rodney's bluster, away from his underlings and their plague of insipid questions. And now that Radek finally has all the time in the world to think, free from distraction, he can't. All of his concentration is being used to block out the pain in his chest and leg.
He can't reach anything, can't move. He would call out, beg for help, scream with pain, but he can't get enough air to do more than moan helplessly in frustration.
"Radek! Radek, can you hear me?"
He can. He can hear Evan, though the force of impact knocked his earpiece loose. It's laying on the floor, two inches and half a world away. He hopes Evan can hear him when he tries to speak.
"Evan," Radek whispers as loudly as he can, voice rough and unsteady.
"Radek, God, are you okay?"
"Alive. For now."
"Just hang on, we're working on getting you out."
"Will try. Hurts." Radek shuts his eyes, gathering strength to speak again. "Evan...thank you...for everything."
"Radek, shit, don't do this to me, do not. You're gonna be fine, I promise." Evan's voice is firm, unwavering, and Radek feels a little warmer even though his rational mind tells him that such promises cannot always be kept.
"Do you also promise...a rematch? You are...spectacularly bad at chess...but I will take pity on you."
"Anything you want."
"With same prize?"
Radek can hear Evan's low, slow breath even from so far away. Evan sounds nervous, but his soft, "Yeah." is all that Radek needs to hear.
"Good."
Radek can hear them, now. There are sharp sounds of metal being sheared away, the countless small plinks and pings that the Ancient alloy gives off as the rescue team cuts through locked doors.
Time is infinite, heavy and ponderous, weighing him down as he waits and waits. Radek has almost given up when he sees blurred silhouettes moving swiftly towards him in the darkness. He doesn't know who, or how many, and he closes his eyes against tears of relief and gratitude.
He feels the warmth of hands on his cold face, knows the medical team is readying him for transport to the infirmary. He tries to ignore their short bursts of conversation, words like "entry wound" and "blood loss" pushed to the back of his mind. He wants, instead, to pay attention to the comfort of soft skin warm against his bristled cheek.
"This is going a little too far just to get my attention, don't you think?"
He opens his eyes to see Evan kneeling over him, their faces only inches apart.
"God, Radek, you scared the hell out of me. You can't..." and now Evan's voice trembles, "You can't, you just can't."
Radek tries to nod, to let Evan know he understands what Evan can't say. Which is a mistake, as it only serves to further his brain's notion that it should feel free to move about the cabin. He decides that speech may be a better use of his mind rather than tumbling it around inside his skull like a rock in need of smoothing.
"We both know I am superior at chess. I would like my prize now rather than later, I think."
He looks at Evan, cataloging his beauty, fixing Evan's pale blue eyes in his memory.
Evan doesn't hesitate, he just kisses Radek softly, sweetly, soundly, until Radek can almost forget where he is, what has happened. Evan kisses him again, gently, thumbs grazing Radek's jaw, and Radek can only lie there and let him do it.
From the corner of his eye, Radek sees Rodney and Colonel Sheppard turn away, giving him privacy and allowing him his solace as they stand guard over this tenuous, fragile moment. He has never loved them more than he does now. The medical team ignores anything not relevant to their work, and for that, Radek is thankful. If he survives this ordeal, he does not want to be alone here in the brutal wilds of Pegasus.
Radek's eyes close against his will, though he's just awake enough to feel the jolt as he's moved onto a stretcher. Then drugs, pain, and exhaustion pull him down, down into darkness.
The infirmary is blinding and bright when Radek wakes. He doesn't mind, though, because it means he is alive, and if not well, he is well enough.
Radek feels vulnerable without his glasses, which were a casualty of the explosion in his lab. He finds no humor in the fact that they somehow survived both explosion and impact, only to have frames bent and lenses shattered under Colonel Sheppard's bootheels. He will never complain, though, because one pair of eyeglasses is a small price to pay for his life.
It's not entirely unfitting that the blur in Radek's vision causes everyone he sees to be softly haloed with light. He isn't religious, but he thinks his friends still may be the most unlikely of angels, unaware of their bravery and strength until it's needed. He spares a thought to wonder if Rodney would rant and curse if he knew Radek was picturing him as a tiny, round-faced cherub right at this very moment.
Radek's leg still hurts, and it will require weeks of physical therapy once the muscles have healed. But of all the possible side-effects of his injuries, he's managed to avoid the worst: no broken bones, no nerve damage, no paralysis - and he isn't quite sure how he managed that. Radek is lucky, in this at least, and he knows it.
The second time Radek wakes, after strange and fitful dreams, he's instantly aware that he isn't alone. Evan is sitting in a visitor's chair, head tilted back in sleep, knees pressed awkwardly together, arms crossed over his chest. Radek watches him sleep, unwilling to wake him even if it would make Radek feel better.
Evan's head falls forward and when it snaps back up, he's awake and eyeing Radek blearily. They just stare at one another for a few minutes, a tense silence settling over them. Before Radek can parse what's happening, Evan is standing and walking towards him. Radek's breath catches at the fierce look on Evan's face.
"I just wanted to make sure you know that you don't have to go out and get yourself hurt just so that I'll kiss you. In fact, I never want to do this again, you got that?"
Evan clutches at Radek's shoulders, kissing him again and again until Radek is willing to promise him anything, everything, even when he knows it's possible those promises cannot be kept.
"Ano, ano, Evan, yes, yes."
THE END