For obsessed1o1 by seramercury
Challenge: Fall H/C Fic Exchange
Title: Sheppard's Not So Good Trip Off World
Author: seramercury
Rating: PG-13
Word count or Size:
Characters: Sheppard (H/C), Team
Genre: Hurt/Comfort; Friendship, Angst
Disclamer: Property of MGM and others who aren't me... unfortunately.
Spoilers: None.
Summary: Sheppard drunk story resulting in whump.
For: obsessed1o1.
Rodney stared at his friend worriedly. He wasn't sure what happened but it seemed as though John was showing signs of alcohol poisoning. He knew for a fact that John Sheppard never drank anything alcoholic during negotiations since that whole mess with the Genii. The Colonel just wanted to keep his head clear in case something went south.
And south this mission did go. Here Rodney was in a cave with Ronon and Teyla keeping watch for Wraith while his friend was seemingly dying of possible alcohol poisoning. Damn the Wraith and their uncanny ability to end up wherever they were!
Rodney reached out to check John's pulse again. Even though he could tell his friend was breathing by the slow hitch of his chest, it made him less nervous when he could feel the slow rhythm of John's heart beat.
"Um, don't suppose there's any sign of the Wraith letting up any time soon?" Rodney asked.
Teyla turned to face him, an expression of worry mirroring his. "Unfortunately not, Rodney," she replied. "How is John?"
"Still breathing, but I don't know for how much longer. I'm no physician, but from what I can tell he has alcohol poisoning."
"Sheppard doesn't drink alcohol on missions."
Rodney glared at Ronon. "Yes, thank you, I know that. I mean it could be anything but the fact that I smell alcohol on him makes he believe he's had some."
"Let us not worry about how or why at the moment," Teyla replied. "We must concentrate on keeping him safe and avoiding detection from the Wraith. We can sort out the rest later."
Rodney nodded as he stared at the still form of his friend and tried to think of how they got into this mess in the first place...
"Come on, Rodney," John said. "It won't hurt for us to join them for dinner especially if we want to make good with these people."
Rodney wasn't so sure. "Are you serious? These people outweigh us in more ways than one. More technology, more fat..."
"So what're you afraid of, McKay?"
"Being blown up or being sat on," came Rodney's snarky reply.
Teyla shared an amused expression with John. "Rodney we will not be here long. After all, Dr. Weir expects us back in two hours. I believe it would be wise to take them up on their offer. We do not want them to think we are rude."
"No, of course not," he muttered.
At one point during the dinner, which was about 10 minutes before they were going to be leaving, John was asked by the council leader's son, Brione, if he wanted to check out one of their ships.
John readily accepted and that was the last time Rodney saw him until the Wraith arrived and began culling the world.
The team was having trouble contacting John via the radio. They headed to the hanger where John was supposed to have gone with Brione. Upon arrival they found everyone gone. Everyone that is, except for the heap in the corner of the room.
John moaned as Teyla attempted to turn him on his back. "John?"
Rodney immediately noted his bloodshot eyes and the confused expression in them. "What happened?"
"Where are they?" John asked, sitting up.
Ronon looked around. "Who?"
"Wraith. They were here. Brione and the others are they...?"
John went to stand up and Rodney and Teyla had to catch him from falling over. To Rodney, he seemed really drunk. "Take it easy, Sheppard," he said.
"They fed off them," was his quiet response as he stared beyond them.
When Rodney turned around, he wished he hadn't. True he'd seen plenty of carnage by the Wraith, but that never made it any easier to stomach. He looked back at John, whose face was white as a sheet and Rodney realized what was going through his friend's mind, his time with Kolya's Wraith.
"Let's get out of here!" Rodney exclaimed.
Rodney shook his head as a moan from John brought him back to reality. "Sheppard?" he said.
John blinked, looking up at his friend. The last thing he remembered was watching the Wraith... Just thinking about it made him shudder as his own experience came to the forefront.
"Sheppard!" Rodney said again.
"Don't shout," John replied, barely above a whisper. Rodney's voice was making his headache 100 times worse. He never wanted a hangover again. Just how he got one to begin with, he wasn't sure.
John attempted a few deep breaths, but his lungs were not cooperating. And it didn't seem as if his heart was either. He looked up at Rodney with a nervous expression on his face. He was usually pretty good in these situations, but this was not how he pictured his last hours.
Rodney nearly broke down when he saw how nervous John was. His skin was tinged with blue and his breathing seemed more labored than it had earlier. Rodney knew he had to reassure his friend.
"You're gonna be fine," he said, patting his friend's shoulder. "The Wraith'll be gone soon and Ronon and Teyla will help you to the Gate where Carson will help you get better."
A loud bang echoed through the cave. "Rodney!" Teyla exclaimed, "Is Colonel Sheppard well enough to move?"
"Are you kidding me?!"
"McKay!"
Rodney reached down to help John to his feet, not having much luck as the movement suddenly caused John to expel whatever he ate for dinner. "That is just unsanitary! Is a little help too much to ask for?"
"Ronon."
He nodded, moving out of the cave as Teyla went over to help Rodney. "John," she said, handing him her canteen. "John, are you all right?"
Once John regained his equilibrium, he nodded. "Yeah, for now, but I don't know..." he squeezed his eyes shut as memories assaulted him from his capture by Kolya. John tried to get away, but he couldn't.
Rodney was about to say something, anything to calm him down when a bright red light enveloped John. "You idiot!" he cried out. "Why'd you stun him for? Who knows what kind of effect that'll have on him!"
"Rodney, you need to take a deep breath," Teyla said. "John needs our help to get him back to Atlantis and right now the Wraith know where we are!"
With a grunt, Ronon lifted John onto his shoulder as Teyla handed Rodney the Colonel's P-90. "I'm sorry... I'm just not good at this sort of thing, you should know that by now."
"It's all right, Rodney. Just stay beside me and we will get through this."
Rodney really wasn't sure where people got their optimism from. Sure, he'd love to have it himself, but right now he didn't see it.
***********
Almost an hour later the Wraith practically had them pinned down in dense undergrowth and Sheppard had awoken in fright screaming about the Wraith who sucked the life out of him. It took Rodney almost 20 minutes to reassure him that he was all right.
In that time, Teyla had nearly been captured by a Wraith, sporting a nasty bruise on her left cheek and Ronon had a numb arm from a stunner blast. He was thankfully unscathed.
He was staring at John again. His friend was in some sort of stupor now and it was really freaking him out. Rodney blinked and looked up when Teyla placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Rodney, we must go now!"
Rodney nodded as Teyla helped him lift John. "Hey, Sheppard," he said. "We gotta go, buddy. We got Wraith on our asses. Come on!"
"Wraith," he gasped out. "Don't let them get me, Rodney. Scared."
"Hey me too!" Rodney replied, ignoring the fact that his friend actually admitted to being scared.
***********
Elizabeth headed up to the control room. Her flagship team was two hours overdue and any attempt made to dial the gate had been unsuccessful. She tapped her radio when it beeped.
"Major Lorne, is your team ready?"
"Yes, Ma'am!" he replied, seated in Jumper 2.
She nodded. "Good. Let's hope we get a connection this time around. Chuck, dial the 'gate." Elizabeth wanted to jump for joy when it activated. "Colonel Sheppard, this is Weir, please respond."
Elizabeth repeated her request and finally, after ten long minutes, Rodney's voice came over. He sounded out of breath and his voice was shaking. "Elizabeth! We need a Jumper over here yesterday! We've got Wraith all over, Teyla and Sheppard are unconscious and Ronon ran off trying to draw them away from us."
"Understood, Rodney. We're sending two Jumpers your way."
"Shit!"
"Rodney!" When he didn't respond, she looked at Chuck. "What happened?"
"We lost his comm signal," Chuck replied as the second Jumper went through and the wormhole disengaged.
"Godspeed," she whispered.
An hour went by and the gate remained silent. Elizabeth had begun to pace in her office and no one would bother her until those Jumpers came through that event horizon.
Just when she thought they would never return, the gate activated. "It's Major Lorne's IDC," he told her when she came into the room.
"Good. Have a medical team standing by in the Jumper Bay. I'm heading down there myself."
She arrived just as the med team and the two Jumpers landed. "No, Rodney, careful, hold him steady!"
Elizabeth peered into the Jumper and found Rodney helping Carson with John, who was having a seizure. Just when she thought she was going to have a heart attack, he stopped and everyone was breathing a sigh of relief.
Carson and his team quickly transferred John onto one of the gurneys and he ran with them, shouting orders about blood tests and different kinds of scans.
"Rodney?" Elizabeth said, moving towards him. She nodded at Lorne as he walked by. "Rodney."
He blinked. "What? Oh hey, sorry."
"Are you all right?"
"Think so. I have a sprained wrist I think, but nothing too bad."
Now Elizabeth was really worried. Rodney was downplaying his injuries so besides the seizure, whatever happened to John wasn't good. "Can you tell me what happened?" she asked, helping him to his feet.
Rodney explained the dinner then the disappearing Colonel. He told Elizabeth of the experience in the cave and running through the woods. "Sheppard was mobile after awhile but I don't know how much of him was all there. He kept freaking out about the Wraith coming after him. Kept talking about Kolya's Wraith."
"God," she breathed. "Are Ronon and Teyla all right?"
"Depends on whose definition. According to Ronon he's fine but I'm not sure what happened since I was focusing on Sheppard. Teyla, I know for a fact, was hit by booby trap the Wraith set. She was scouting ahead for us. We found her unconscious and that's when Ronon ran off and you called."
Elizabeth nodded as the pair entered the infirmary. "And then you..."
"I swore and we lost communication. Yeah. Sheppard ran away as another explosion went off. When I caught up to him, he wasn't... wasn't breathing. I had to do CPR. When he finally came to he was back in his confused state and luckily, that's when the cavalry arrived."
Dr. Cole walked over to them. "Dr. McKay, Carson asked me to check you over."
"I'm fine, but okay."
Elizabeth crossed her arms and watched in silence as Rodney headed to one of the infirmary beds where Dr. Cole pulled a privacy curtain around them. She stood in the middle of the infirmary, worry etched on her face.
That's where Carson found her an hour later. According to one of his nurses, she hadn't moved from that spot since she brought Rodney in. "Elizabeth," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Carson. How's John?"
"He's holding his own and Rodney was right, it was alcohol poisoning. I could smell it on him the minute we found them."
Elizabeth's eyebrows crinkled in confusion. "But he doesn't drink alcohol when he's off world."
"Aye," Carson replied with a nod. "That he doesn't, but Colonel Sheppard isn't as confused as he was earlier so he remembered a bit of what happened. He said that a young man by the name of Brione is responsible. He and his friends beat the crap out of him and forced him to drink the alcohol. His levels are two points higher than the legal limit!"
"Oh my God. All of that plus the Wraith arriving and culling the planet," Elizabeth gasped out.
Carson nodded again. "Right now we're carefully monitoring him and giving him oxygen therapy. We'll also administer fluids through an IV to prevent dehydration. As long as that helps to flush out the alcohol, we won't have to perform dialysis."
************
John squeezed his eyes shut as pain radiated through his skull. He had the mother of all headaches right now. He took a deep breath as his stomach rolled. Determining not to be sick, John tried to think of something... anything besides that.
Unfortunately the first thing he thought of was a Wraith's hand coming towards his chest. John screamed. He didn't even know how loud until he opened his eyes to see the worried expressions of Carson and Rodney.
"Sheppard!" Rodney said. "Are you all right?"
John blinked away the tears that had formed without him noticing. "Yeah... I mean... no, I'm not."
"I'll get something to help you sleep," Carson replied, rushing to fill the order.
"You wanna talk about it?"
"Not really."
Rodney sighed but instead of leaving John alone, he moved closer. His friend eyed him curiously. "You may not want to talk now, but maybe later. I think if you get it off of your chest, you'll feel better."
"Since when did you get your PhD in psychiatry?" John asked.
"I took some classes," he admitted. "Besides, what better way to get through something then to talk with a friend."
John took a deep breath as Carson returned. He hated feeling the way he did not to mention admitting to it. "Mind if I sleep a bit first? This headache isn't going away anytime soon."
"Sure. I'll be right here in case, well you know..."
"Thanks, Rodney," John replied as he drifted to sleep.
An hour had passed since John fell asleep. Rodney sat silently watching the rise and fall of his friend's chest. He still couldn't believe they almost lost him again. Again. That's the way it was since they arrived in Pegasus.
True death occurred in the Milky Way but Rodney hadn't known real friendship then. He hadn't known John Sheppard yet. He had pretty much been a loner on Earth not counting his colleagues and the fact that he had been stuck in Russia because of said colleagues was another story.
Rodney glance down at his wrist when it began to throb in pain. He should really find Carson to get some Tylenol or something. He didn't want to leave John alone, though.
He was lucky enough that a nurse came by so he asked her and she said she would be back in a minute. That minute became seconds because suddenly John was screaming again and she came running back with Carson in tow.
Rodney rushed to John's side and tried to get his attention. Instead, the Colonel grabbed Rodney's sprained wrist and squeezed hard. "Sheppard!" he exclaimed, worry overshadowing any physical pain. "John, snap out of it!"
John woke up in seated position, breathing heavily. After regaining his senses, he looked around. "Sorry," he muttered, lowering his head.
"It's all right," Carson said. "Just take it easy now, you're safe."
Rodney sank into his chair as the adrenaline ebbed and he finally began to feel the pain of his injury. "Um... Carson?"
"Aye, of course Rodney. Donna, could you get Rodney some Tylenol, please?"
She nodded. "Of course, Dr. Beckett."
Once she was gone John put two and two together. "Sorry about that, Rodney."
"It wasn't your fault," he replied. "Besides, I had just asked for something when you woke up screaming. Seriously, though, you okay?"
"I just keep remembering what those guys did to me and the sounds of their screams when the Wraith... It just reminded me of when it happened to me."
Carson and Rodney stared at one another. They could only imagine what it had been like. "Why don't you tell us what happened, Colonel?" Carson asked.
John nodded. "Brione and his friends took me to the hanger to show me the newest ship their people had built..."
"Here she is," Brione said.
John didn't turn in time to avoid the blow from behind. He staggered but didn't fall over. "Why the hell did you do that?" he exclaimed.
"Your people think you're so superior to us," Brione said as his friends took a hold of John's arms. "We beg to differ. We're the superior race."
Before John could reply, Brione slammed his fist into his stomach. The three men laughed as the one he called Bob reached for a bottle of something. "Thirsty?"
John immediately recognized it as a bottle of the local moonshine. Counselor Nichols said it's the strongest liquor on their planet. It seemed as though Brione thought their guest should have some.
"Enjoy, Colonel," Brione said sarcastically as Bob held his mouth open and the drink was poured down his throat.
The liquor tasted absolutely horrible and burned going down. John tried to spit it out but Bob just squeezed his nose shut. He felt sick to his stomach and just when he thought the liquor was going to make a return appearance a loud explosion reverberated through the city.
John was unceremoniously dropped to the floor. He wasn't sure which way was up but he could hear darts outside and knew he had to move. However the movement was too much and his stomach was starting to rebel against him.
Before he could even attempt to move, three Wraith entered. Brione and his buddies tried to run but they didn't make it once they were hit with stunner blasts. John was just grateful he was lying just on the side of the ship.
He clenched his hands in fists as the Wraith sucked the life out of the three men. Although he wanted to beat the crap out of them, they didn't deserve to be victims of the Wraith...
"You guys came about five minutes later," John finished. He was shaking but it wasn't from the cold. Carson handed him a cup of water. "Thanks."
"You were pretty much out of it when we found you and you smelled like a distillery. I was wondering what you had been up to." He paused. "That is until we saw Brione and the others."
Carson quietly observed his friend. John's face was pale and the shaking finally seemed to have ceased. His heart rate was a bit elevated but going down. "Colonel?"
"Yeah, Carson. I feel much better. Tired, but good."
He smiled. "Good. Do you want to try and rest without sleeping aids then?"
John nodded. "I think so."
"Very well. Rodney, not too much longer then."
Rodney gave the physician a look as he walked away. "So, really?"
"Could you, um... stay here even after I fall asleep?" John asked. I'll leave a note for Carson saying it was all right in case he tries to kick you out."
"Sure," Rodney replied with a smile.
John returned the smile as he accepted the pen and paper from Rodney to jot a quick note for Carson. Once he settled down on the bed, he closed his eyes. "Thanks, Rodney," he said, drifting off into a peaceful slumber.
Title: Sheppard's Not So Good Trip Off World
Author: seramercury
Rating: PG-13
Word count or Size:
Characters: Sheppard (H/C), Team
Genre: Hurt/Comfort; Friendship, Angst
Disclamer: Property of MGM and others who aren't me... unfortunately.
Spoilers: None.
Summary: Sheppard drunk story resulting in whump.
For: obsessed1o1.
Rodney stared at his friend worriedly. He wasn't sure what happened but it seemed as though John was showing signs of alcohol poisoning. He knew for a fact that John Sheppard never drank anything alcoholic during negotiations since that whole mess with the Genii. The Colonel just wanted to keep his head clear in case something went south.
And south this mission did go. Here Rodney was in a cave with Ronon and Teyla keeping watch for Wraith while his friend was seemingly dying of possible alcohol poisoning. Damn the Wraith and their uncanny ability to end up wherever they were!
Rodney reached out to check John's pulse again. Even though he could tell his friend was breathing by the slow hitch of his chest, it made him less nervous when he could feel the slow rhythm of John's heart beat.
"Um, don't suppose there's any sign of the Wraith letting up any time soon?" Rodney asked.
Teyla turned to face him, an expression of worry mirroring his. "Unfortunately not, Rodney," she replied. "How is John?"
"Still breathing, but I don't know for how much longer. I'm no physician, but from what I can tell he has alcohol poisoning."
"Sheppard doesn't drink alcohol on missions."
Rodney glared at Ronon. "Yes, thank you, I know that. I mean it could be anything but the fact that I smell alcohol on him makes he believe he's had some."
"Let us not worry about how or why at the moment," Teyla replied. "We must concentrate on keeping him safe and avoiding detection from the Wraith. We can sort out the rest later."
Rodney nodded as he stared at the still form of his friend and tried to think of how they got into this mess in the first place...
"Come on, Rodney," John said. "It won't hurt for us to join them for dinner especially if we want to make good with these people."
Rodney wasn't so sure. "Are you serious? These people outweigh us in more ways than one. More technology, more fat..."
"So what're you afraid of, McKay?"
"Being blown up or being sat on," came Rodney's snarky reply.
Teyla shared an amused expression with John. "Rodney we will not be here long. After all, Dr. Weir expects us back in two hours. I believe it would be wise to take them up on their offer. We do not want them to think we are rude."
"No, of course not," he muttered.
At one point during the dinner, which was about 10 minutes before they were going to be leaving, John was asked by the council leader's son, Brione, if he wanted to check out one of their ships.
John readily accepted and that was the last time Rodney saw him until the Wraith arrived and began culling the world.
The team was having trouble contacting John via the radio. They headed to the hanger where John was supposed to have gone with Brione. Upon arrival they found everyone gone. Everyone that is, except for the heap in the corner of the room.
John moaned as Teyla attempted to turn him on his back. "John?"
Rodney immediately noted his bloodshot eyes and the confused expression in them. "What happened?"
"Where are they?" John asked, sitting up.
Ronon looked around. "Who?"
"Wraith. They were here. Brione and the others are they...?"
John went to stand up and Rodney and Teyla had to catch him from falling over. To Rodney, he seemed really drunk. "Take it easy, Sheppard," he said.
"They fed off them," was his quiet response as he stared beyond them.
When Rodney turned around, he wished he hadn't. True he'd seen plenty of carnage by the Wraith, but that never made it any easier to stomach. He looked back at John, whose face was white as a sheet and Rodney realized what was going through his friend's mind, his time with Kolya's Wraith.
"Let's get out of here!" Rodney exclaimed.
Rodney shook his head as a moan from John brought him back to reality. "Sheppard?" he said.
John blinked, looking up at his friend. The last thing he remembered was watching the Wraith... Just thinking about it made him shudder as his own experience came to the forefront.
"Sheppard!" Rodney said again.
"Don't shout," John replied, barely above a whisper. Rodney's voice was making his headache 100 times worse. He never wanted a hangover again. Just how he got one to begin with, he wasn't sure.
John attempted a few deep breaths, but his lungs were not cooperating. And it didn't seem as if his heart was either. He looked up at Rodney with a nervous expression on his face. He was usually pretty good in these situations, but this was not how he pictured his last hours.
Rodney nearly broke down when he saw how nervous John was. His skin was tinged with blue and his breathing seemed more labored than it had earlier. Rodney knew he had to reassure his friend.
"You're gonna be fine," he said, patting his friend's shoulder. "The Wraith'll be gone soon and Ronon and Teyla will help you to the Gate where Carson will help you get better."
A loud bang echoed through the cave. "Rodney!" Teyla exclaimed, "Is Colonel Sheppard well enough to move?"
"Are you kidding me?!"
"McKay!"
Rodney reached down to help John to his feet, not having much luck as the movement suddenly caused John to expel whatever he ate for dinner. "That is just unsanitary! Is a little help too much to ask for?"
"Ronon."
He nodded, moving out of the cave as Teyla went over to help Rodney. "John," she said, handing him her canteen. "John, are you all right?"
Once John regained his equilibrium, he nodded. "Yeah, for now, but I don't know..." he squeezed his eyes shut as memories assaulted him from his capture by Kolya. John tried to get away, but he couldn't.
Rodney was about to say something, anything to calm him down when a bright red light enveloped John. "You idiot!" he cried out. "Why'd you stun him for? Who knows what kind of effect that'll have on him!"
"Rodney, you need to take a deep breath," Teyla said. "John needs our help to get him back to Atlantis and right now the Wraith know where we are!"
With a grunt, Ronon lifted John onto his shoulder as Teyla handed Rodney the Colonel's P-90. "I'm sorry... I'm just not good at this sort of thing, you should know that by now."
"It's all right, Rodney. Just stay beside me and we will get through this."
Rodney really wasn't sure where people got their optimism from. Sure, he'd love to have it himself, but right now he didn't see it.
***********
Almost an hour later the Wraith practically had them pinned down in dense undergrowth and Sheppard had awoken in fright screaming about the Wraith who sucked the life out of him. It took Rodney almost 20 minutes to reassure him that he was all right.
In that time, Teyla had nearly been captured by a Wraith, sporting a nasty bruise on her left cheek and Ronon had a numb arm from a stunner blast. He was thankfully unscathed.
He was staring at John again. His friend was in some sort of stupor now and it was really freaking him out. Rodney blinked and looked up when Teyla placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Rodney, we must go now!"
Rodney nodded as Teyla helped him lift John. "Hey, Sheppard," he said. "We gotta go, buddy. We got Wraith on our asses. Come on!"
"Wraith," he gasped out. "Don't let them get me, Rodney. Scared."
"Hey me too!" Rodney replied, ignoring the fact that his friend actually admitted to being scared.
***********
Elizabeth headed up to the control room. Her flagship team was two hours overdue and any attempt made to dial the gate had been unsuccessful. She tapped her radio when it beeped.
"Major Lorne, is your team ready?"
"Yes, Ma'am!" he replied, seated in Jumper 2.
She nodded. "Good. Let's hope we get a connection this time around. Chuck, dial the 'gate." Elizabeth wanted to jump for joy when it activated. "Colonel Sheppard, this is Weir, please respond."
Elizabeth repeated her request and finally, after ten long minutes, Rodney's voice came over. He sounded out of breath and his voice was shaking. "Elizabeth! We need a Jumper over here yesterday! We've got Wraith all over, Teyla and Sheppard are unconscious and Ronon ran off trying to draw them away from us."
"Understood, Rodney. We're sending two Jumpers your way."
"Shit!"
"Rodney!" When he didn't respond, she looked at Chuck. "What happened?"
"We lost his comm signal," Chuck replied as the second Jumper went through and the wormhole disengaged.
"Godspeed," she whispered.
An hour went by and the gate remained silent. Elizabeth had begun to pace in her office and no one would bother her until those Jumpers came through that event horizon.
Just when she thought they would never return, the gate activated. "It's Major Lorne's IDC," he told her when she came into the room.
"Good. Have a medical team standing by in the Jumper Bay. I'm heading down there myself."
She arrived just as the med team and the two Jumpers landed. "No, Rodney, careful, hold him steady!"
Elizabeth peered into the Jumper and found Rodney helping Carson with John, who was having a seizure. Just when she thought she was going to have a heart attack, he stopped and everyone was breathing a sigh of relief.
Carson and his team quickly transferred John onto one of the gurneys and he ran with them, shouting orders about blood tests and different kinds of scans.
"Rodney?" Elizabeth said, moving towards him. She nodded at Lorne as he walked by. "Rodney."
He blinked. "What? Oh hey, sorry."
"Are you all right?"
"Think so. I have a sprained wrist I think, but nothing too bad."
Now Elizabeth was really worried. Rodney was downplaying his injuries so besides the seizure, whatever happened to John wasn't good. "Can you tell me what happened?" she asked, helping him to his feet.
Rodney explained the dinner then the disappearing Colonel. He told Elizabeth of the experience in the cave and running through the woods. "Sheppard was mobile after awhile but I don't know how much of him was all there. He kept freaking out about the Wraith coming after him. Kept talking about Kolya's Wraith."
"God," she breathed. "Are Ronon and Teyla all right?"
"Depends on whose definition. According to Ronon he's fine but I'm not sure what happened since I was focusing on Sheppard. Teyla, I know for a fact, was hit by booby trap the Wraith set. She was scouting ahead for us. We found her unconscious and that's when Ronon ran off and you called."
Elizabeth nodded as the pair entered the infirmary. "And then you..."
"I swore and we lost communication. Yeah. Sheppard ran away as another explosion went off. When I caught up to him, he wasn't... wasn't breathing. I had to do CPR. When he finally came to he was back in his confused state and luckily, that's when the cavalry arrived."
Dr. Cole walked over to them. "Dr. McKay, Carson asked me to check you over."
"I'm fine, but okay."
Elizabeth crossed her arms and watched in silence as Rodney headed to one of the infirmary beds where Dr. Cole pulled a privacy curtain around them. She stood in the middle of the infirmary, worry etched on her face.
That's where Carson found her an hour later. According to one of his nurses, she hadn't moved from that spot since she brought Rodney in. "Elizabeth," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Carson. How's John?"
"He's holding his own and Rodney was right, it was alcohol poisoning. I could smell it on him the minute we found them."
Elizabeth's eyebrows crinkled in confusion. "But he doesn't drink alcohol when he's off world."
"Aye," Carson replied with a nod. "That he doesn't, but Colonel Sheppard isn't as confused as he was earlier so he remembered a bit of what happened. He said that a young man by the name of Brione is responsible. He and his friends beat the crap out of him and forced him to drink the alcohol. His levels are two points higher than the legal limit!"
"Oh my God. All of that plus the Wraith arriving and culling the planet," Elizabeth gasped out.
Carson nodded again. "Right now we're carefully monitoring him and giving him oxygen therapy. We'll also administer fluids through an IV to prevent dehydration. As long as that helps to flush out the alcohol, we won't have to perform dialysis."
************
John squeezed his eyes shut as pain radiated through his skull. He had the mother of all headaches right now. He took a deep breath as his stomach rolled. Determining not to be sick, John tried to think of something... anything besides that.
Unfortunately the first thing he thought of was a Wraith's hand coming towards his chest. John screamed. He didn't even know how loud until he opened his eyes to see the worried expressions of Carson and Rodney.
"Sheppard!" Rodney said. "Are you all right?"
John blinked away the tears that had formed without him noticing. "Yeah... I mean... no, I'm not."
"I'll get something to help you sleep," Carson replied, rushing to fill the order.
"You wanna talk about it?"
"Not really."
Rodney sighed but instead of leaving John alone, he moved closer. His friend eyed him curiously. "You may not want to talk now, but maybe later. I think if you get it off of your chest, you'll feel better."
"Since when did you get your PhD in psychiatry?" John asked.
"I took some classes," he admitted. "Besides, what better way to get through something then to talk with a friend."
John took a deep breath as Carson returned. He hated feeling the way he did not to mention admitting to it. "Mind if I sleep a bit first? This headache isn't going away anytime soon."
"Sure. I'll be right here in case, well you know..."
"Thanks, Rodney," John replied as he drifted to sleep.
An hour had passed since John fell asleep. Rodney sat silently watching the rise and fall of his friend's chest. He still couldn't believe they almost lost him again. Again. That's the way it was since they arrived in Pegasus.
True death occurred in the Milky Way but Rodney hadn't known real friendship then. He hadn't known John Sheppard yet. He had pretty much been a loner on Earth not counting his colleagues and the fact that he had been stuck in Russia because of said colleagues was another story.
Rodney glance down at his wrist when it began to throb in pain. He should really find Carson to get some Tylenol or something. He didn't want to leave John alone, though.
He was lucky enough that a nurse came by so he asked her and she said she would be back in a minute. That minute became seconds because suddenly John was screaming again and she came running back with Carson in tow.
Rodney rushed to John's side and tried to get his attention. Instead, the Colonel grabbed Rodney's sprained wrist and squeezed hard. "Sheppard!" he exclaimed, worry overshadowing any physical pain. "John, snap out of it!"
John woke up in seated position, breathing heavily. After regaining his senses, he looked around. "Sorry," he muttered, lowering his head.
"It's all right," Carson said. "Just take it easy now, you're safe."
Rodney sank into his chair as the adrenaline ebbed and he finally began to feel the pain of his injury. "Um... Carson?"
"Aye, of course Rodney. Donna, could you get Rodney some Tylenol, please?"
She nodded. "Of course, Dr. Beckett."
Once she was gone John put two and two together. "Sorry about that, Rodney."
"It wasn't your fault," he replied. "Besides, I had just asked for something when you woke up screaming. Seriously, though, you okay?"
"I just keep remembering what those guys did to me and the sounds of their screams when the Wraith... It just reminded me of when it happened to me."
Carson and Rodney stared at one another. They could only imagine what it had been like. "Why don't you tell us what happened, Colonel?" Carson asked.
John nodded. "Brione and his friends took me to the hanger to show me the newest ship their people had built..."
"Here she is," Brione said.
John didn't turn in time to avoid the blow from behind. He staggered but didn't fall over. "Why the hell did you do that?" he exclaimed.
"Your people think you're so superior to us," Brione said as his friends took a hold of John's arms. "We beg to differ. We're the superior race."
Before John could reply, Brione slammed his fist into his stomach. The three men laughed as the one he called Bob reached for a bottle of something. "Thirsty?"
John immediately recognized it as a bottle of the local moonshine. Counselor Nichols said it's the strongest liquor on their planet. It seemed as though Brione thought their guest should have some.
"Enjoy, Colonel," Brione said sarcastically as Bob held his mouth open and the drink was poured down his throat.
The liquor tasted absolutely horrible and burned going down. John tried to spit it out but Bob just squeezed his nose shut. He felt sick to his stomach and just when he thought the liquor was going to make a return appearance a loud explosion reverberated through the city.
John was unceremoniously dropped to the floor. He wasn't sure which way was up but he could hear darts outside and knew he had to move. However the movement was too much and his stomach was starting to rebel against him.
Before he could even attempt to move, three Wraith entered. Brione and his buddies tried to run but they didn't make it once they were hit with stunner blasts. John was just grateful he was lying just on the side of the ship.
He clenched his hands in fists as the Wraith sucked the life out of the three men. Although he wanted to beat the crap out of them, they didn't deserve to be victims of the Wraith...
"You guys came about five minutes later," John finished. He was shaking but it wasn't from the cold. Carson handed him a cup of water. "Thanks."
"You were pretty much out of it when we found you and you smelled like a distillery. I was wondering what you had been up to." He paused. "That is until we saw Brione and the others."
Carson quietly observed his friend. John's face was pale and the shaking finally seemed to have ceased. His heart rate was a bit elevated but going down. "Colonel?"
"Yeah, Carson. I feel much better. Tired, but good."
He smiled. "Good. Do you want to try and rest without sleeping aids then?"
John nodded. "I think so."
"Very well. Rodney, not too much longer then."
Rodney gave the physician a look as he walked away. "So, really?"
"Could you, um... stay here even after I fall asleep?" John asked. I'll leave a note for Carson saying it was all right in case he tries to kick you out."
"Sure," Rodney replied with a smile.
John returned the smile as he accepted the pen and paper from Rodney to jot a quick note for Carson. Once he settled down on the bed, he closed his eyes. "Thanks, Rodney," he said, drifting off into a peaceful slumber.