Fic - Hope of Prey (1/2)
Title: Hope of Prey
Words: 4838
Pairing: Carson/John
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Misbegotten, Common Ground
Summary: " They were dumped on a planet, and Michael explained to Carson that he would be followed everywhere he went."
Author's Notes: Many thanks to marf_the_river and thefannishwaldo for the beta help.
This was written for the beckettsheppard Requestathon, for the prompt: "John as healer or Carson as rescuer (but not an AU), long term seperation from Atlantis, outdoor survival, hurt/comfort (either one)"
Carson was walking towards the two-storey house, head bowed and hands clenched in fists. His uniform was discoloured, the sleeves of his jacket torn in several places. It was obvious that he hated what he was about to do, and John knew that better than anyone else.
A tall man came out of the house and Carson talked to him for a few minutes. The man thought about what he said and then nodded.
Carson returned to him, explaining in a low voice, "There's a timber mill just outside the town. He said that if we help them the rest of the day, we can sleep in the mill tonight."
John nodded, picking up the little bag that held all their belongings. He followed Carson towards the mill where they would be earning the night's bed and hoped they'd be lucky this time.
~~~***~~~***~~~
John woke up and saw Carson staring out the window, despair etched on his features. He got up and saw the town's buildings on fire, and people running in and out, trying to save some of their things. "We should go and help," John said, looking at Carson expectantly.
"Aye." Carson looked around the room one more time and went outside, heading for the nearest building.
The town's people were panicked, not knowing where the fire had started or what they should do first. It took all of John's power of persuasion to make them move away from the burning buildings, explaining that their possessions weren't worth the risk. Carson was trying to get the children away from the buildings and their parents, ignoring their cries.
John shook his head, knowing that Carson was doing the only useful thing in this situation. Soon enough, the only ones left in the village would be the children, Carson and himself.
A loud wail resounded through the town, covering all other noises, and was quickly followed by a loud scream, "The Wraith! It's the Wraith!"
The darts started flying above the village and John couldn't help thinking that the Wraith had outdone themselves this time. The men and women were running desperately, some of them trying to find their children, others trying to find their spouse, and all asking if the way to the ring was clear.
The feeding began shortly afterwards and the screams of those who were fed on were louder than ever. John tried to convince the people to hurry to the gate, but they were panicked, uncoordinated.
~~~***~~~***~~~
Thirty minutes: that's all it took for the Wraith to kill everyone in the village.
John opened his eyes when a small hand touched his face. A young girl was standing in front of him, tears in her eyes. "You should come," she said, pointing towards of the few buildings that were still standing.
He took the girl's hand and let her lead him there. About twenty kids, from three to fifteen, were gathered around Carson, listening to him. "We need to get you to the village you-" He stopped when he saw John, and turning towards him, explained, "There's a village to the south, about two hour's walk, and I thought it would be best if they went there."
"Sure, we could take you there and help you settle in," John said to the kids, sitting down next to Carson.
The younger children smiled, probably not fully understanding what had just happened. Carson had kept them away and most of them hadn't seen any of the feeding. But some of the older kids weren't so ready to follow Carson's advice. When Carson got up, one of them said, "You're grown ups, why aren't you dead?"
Carson stopped, looking down. John could think of a few things to answer to that, but Carson never wanted to lie.
"You knew they were coming," the same boy said accusingly.
"They would have left if they had known," a girl said, looking at the boy with a reproaching glare.
"Not if they knew they wouldn't be touched," the boy answered, studying Carson's face. "You knew this was going to happen. It's your fault they're all dead!"
"No, it's not his fault," John said, getting up. "It's the Wraith's fault."
"Would they have come if you hadn't been here?" the boy asked, looking straight into Carson's eyes.
"No," he admitted, looking down again.
"You knew you'd bring the Wraith, but you came here anyway," the boy accused, angry.
"It… we hoped we'd be able to leave soon enough, we thought they'd come later and-" Carson tried to explain, but stopped when all the children moved away from him, with angry and accusatory glares. "Please, let us help you get to the other village and we'll -"
"You'll leave now," the boy said, "you've done enough; we don't need any more of your help."
Carson wanted to say something, but John stopped him, gently squeezing his right shoulder. "I think we should leave." Carson looked at him and nodded slowly, unconvinced.
They walked away from the smoking village in silence, Carson a few steps behind John. "You know it wasn't your fault," John said stopping to wait for Carson. He didn't say anything, walking on as if he didn't even hear the words.
~~~***~~~***~~~
Carson dialled the gate and John waited in front of the stargate for him to come from the DHD. "How do we know we're not dialling an orbiting gate?" he asked, studying the blue puddle curiously.
"There's some security protocol in the DHD, so orbiting gates can lock only from jumpers or Atlantis… and probably the other Ancient outposts and cities," Carson explained looking at him. "Or so Rodney said once."
"Suppose we'll have to wait and see," John said smiling, before stepping through.
The scenery on the other side was one of the most unfriendly he had seen since coming to the Pegasus galaxy: plain land as far as he could see, with a few bushes and some trees with no leaves left, scattered across the land. The ground was covered with a strange-looking sand.
Carson crouched near the gate and took a bit of the sand, "Salt," he announced, getting up. "There's no way anything could grow here."
John pointed towards the bushes and received a glare from Carson, "Crops, John, I meant crops."
"So… another uninhabited planet."
"Probably," Carson said, putting down the bag. He opened it, taking out a small knife and a piece of bread. It was hard for John to tell how Carson always managed to set aside some food, but he did, and John was thankful for it.
Cutting the bread, Carson said, "We could cut some branches from one of the trees, I have a bit of dried meat and we could roast it a little for the next meal."
John sat down and accepted his piece of bread, eating it quietly. It was the worst bread he had ever eaten, but all things considered, he was happy to have it. The last thing Carson needed was to hear him complain about the food.
Carson sighed, rubbing absently at the back of his neck. He ate less than half of his piece of bread and it was small to begin with. Over the past few months, Carson had lost a lot of weight and John had tried to convince him to eat more. Carson usually agreed verbally, but ate just the same.
"What are we going to do now?" John asked, finishing his bread.
"We should move away from the gate, so we're not so close and in plain sight if they come," Carson answered, closing the bag carefully. He had changed a lot since they were captured by the Wraith. John remembered waking up in one of the cells on the hive ship, alone, with an awful headache that suggested he had been stunned.
Carson was returned to the cell a few hours later, unconscious. John had been too afraid to do anything, afraid that he might hurt his lover more, so he waited. Carson woke up with a loud groan and John was immediately by his side, helping him get into a sitting position. There was confusion on the Scot's face, quickly followed by horror as his hand felt at the back of his neck. John moved his shirt a bit and saw a fresh cut mark, about three inches long.
"Tracking device," Carson mumbled and closed his eyes, leaning against the wall.
A few hours later, they were dumped on a planet, and Michael explained to Carson that he would be followed everywhere he went. Michael then approached John and all he could feel was pain as Michael fed on him for a few seconds. He fell to the ground, gasping for air as Carson kneeled by his side, holding him. "And if we don't have anyone to feed on, we'll feed on him," the wraith said, warningly. That was Carson's punishment: he had to choose who would die, some strangers or his lover.
That was how their life as runners had started, and with each new planet, Carson's guilt got deeper and the pain of everything weighed heavier on him. Carson had changed a lot, taking more and more of the responsibility on his shoulders, taking charge. John had allowed him to, hoping it would help him cope with the situation, and it did… a bit.
Ever since meeting Ronon, John had wondered how he had managed to survive and how his life had been. Seeing Carson and how this changed him, he wondered what sort of man Ronon had been before being a runner.
They settled for the night under a tree that was dead, but still stood. Sadly, John reflected on just how much they were like it, moving, without being alive.
~~~***~~~***~~~
A soft nudge woke him in the middle of the night. Carson was standing next to him, looking towards the gate.
"They're here," Carson said, not taking his eyes away from the gate. "Three wraiths, they headed to the left."
As far as they could tell, the wraiths weren't told exactly where the two of them were. It was their way of making the hunt more interesting. For Carson and John, it was their only chance of getting away. Sometimes, they managed to do so, avoiding the wraith and taking them away from the villages.
They ran towards the gate, Carson easily keeping up the pace with him. He stopped at the DHD, hurriedly dialling another planet. They stepped through just when the wraiths were returning to the gate, realizing they'd lost them.
~~~***~~~***~~~
The next planet was obviously inhabited. There was a nice brick road leading from the gate into a forest.
"It could be yellow," John said, walking down from the stone pedestal on which the gate was.
Carson smiled briefly and John wondered if it was more for his sake than from true, honest amusement.
The forest seemed to be an orchard, with strange-looking fruits growing in the trees. He would have suggested picking a few, but Carson wouldn't have allowed it. He never took food if he didn't have the local's permission. It was the least he could do.
They reached the town soon and John was relieved to see most of the buildings were made of stone-like bricks. This one wouldn't burn like the last one did.
A young woman stopped in front of them, smiling broadly. "Welcome, visitors. I will take you to our mayor," she said, looking at John.
He nodded. "Thank you, we were heading that way."
The town hall was a nice building, obviously meant to impress visitors. It had a big wooden door, inscribed with some strange characters and compared to the town's small houses, the three-storey building looked huge. They walked in, led by the woman. John figured this was a fifteenth century society, better developed than most they'd seen so far.
They stopped in the council hall and waited patiently until a middle-aged man came in, followed by a younger one. "Welcome, visitors. I am mayor Marth. How may we assist you?" the older man asked.
"We were hoping we could work here, help with something and in return sleep in your village this night," Carson said.
The mayor turned towards the younger man and whispered something, then said, "We'll see if we can find something, but in the meantime, please wait here." Carson nodded, unfazed by the way in which the younger man rushed out of the room.
"We walked through an orchard coming here," John started, watching the door carefully.
"Yes, it is one of the fruits we trade with other planets, it is very nourishing," the mayor answered, and John remembered how that was the magic word in all trade negotiations. Whenever the natives said that, Teyla smiled and nodded thoughtfully. He wondered if the Atlanteans were eating this 'very nourishing' fruit.
The door opened and the young man walked in, followed by an old man who studied him and Carson and then nodded. "Yes, they are the Wraith bringers."
Before they had the chance to say anything, four guards walked in, two stopping on his sides and the other two on Carson's. They pushed them, forcing them to bend and rest their heads on the table. He felt his shirt being pulled and the back of his neck exposed.
"He doesn't have it," the guard to his right said, letting go.
"This one does," the guard holding Carson said and looked expectantly at the mayor. The older man nodded and the two guards took Carson out of the room, with no difficulty.
John tried to get up, but his assigned guards stopped him, holding him down on the chair. "You have to let us go! We have no… we'll go and never return here!" he protested.
"I'm not going to question your reasons for coming here, although you should have warned us when you first set foot in our town," the mayor answered coldly. "You will be allowed to leave the planet through the ring."
"And him? You have to -"
"Take him to the gate and wait until his companion is returned," the mayor ordered. John was dragged outside, unable to fight the guards.
He waited by the DHD for about an hour, knowing very well that these people could do anything they wanted with both of them.
Judging by what he saw and the things he knew from Ronon, there weren't many runners, the Wraith choosing them carefully. These people knew they were runners, knew what their life was and their reaction was strange, both sympathetic and hating.
The guards allowed him to take as many fruits as he could keep in his bag. He was eating one when the guards brought Carson back, hands tied behind him.
When they got next to John, they untied Carson and he started rubbing them, trying to get the blood flowing normally again.
"You okay?" John asked, looking at him for any sign of injury.
Carson just nodded and dialled the gate, then stepped through without looking back. When John got through, Carson was already a few meters away, hurriedly walking towards the forest that was surrounding the gate.
"Hey! Wait up! They're not coming after us," John called after him.
"I need to get to water," Carson said without looking at him or slowing down.
A few minutes later, he crouched over a small spring, taking water in his cupped hands and pouring it over his neck.
"What did they do to you?" John asked, crouching to his right.
Carson frowned, staring at the water. He took his vest off and then took more water, splashing it on his neck, on the left side.
John moved to his other side, to see what he was doing and froze as he saw the black tattoo on his neck.
"It's like Ronon's, isn't it?" Carson asked, looking at him with a strange fear in his eyes.
John nodded, a lot of things finally falling into place.
"We'll never be accepted anywhere," Carson said, but they both knew he meant 'the wraith will kill you'.
"Let's take care of this," John said, touching his tattoo. Carson hissed, drawing back a little. "Sorry," John apologized, pouring water over it. "How did they do it?"
"I'd rather not remember."
"Will you be okay, were they…. I don't know… careful?"
Carson looked at him thoughtfully. "They used some needles and I don't know how much they worried about sterilization. I could use some antibiotics, but we've got none of that," Carson said.
"What can we do then?"
"There's little we can do. I'll sleep a wee bit, and we'll see how it is when I wake up. Is that alright?"
"Of course," John said, leaning on a tree trunk nearby. "Come here."
Carson leaned on his right shoulder, closing his eyes. "Just a wee bit."
~~~***~~~***~~~
An hour later, John tried to wake him up and give him some fruits to eat, but Carson just grumbled in his sleep and turned away from him.
Two hours later, John felt Carson getting warmer and saw that his skin was covered in sweat. More than a month ago, John had cut his right arm and Carson had given him something to hold the infection down, but the root he had used for the tea was hard to find and they had none of it left.
Without it, Carson's chances of getting better before the night came were slim. He had no other choice than help Carson be as comfortable as possible and hope the wraiths were not going to come this night.
He washed some of the super nutrient fruits and when Carson finally woke up just before dawn, he made the doctor eat some of it. John noticed worriedly that Carson wasn't coherent and the fever hadn't abated.
As soon as Carson went back to sleep, John started the fire, covering Carson with their only blanket. It was the first time Carson was sick or incapacitated since they had left Atlantis and he was frightened. Until now, John never realised just how much he relied on Carson. The Scot had taken all responsibility on his shoulders and in time, John had allowed more and more of it. He was supposed to be the one to protect the civilians, but at some point Carson Beckett, MD, stopped being a civilian and became a runner.
~~~***~~~***~~~
The gate activated a few hours after it got dark and three wraiths got to their little camp quickly.
Before John had the chance to say anything, one of them kicked Carson in the stomach with his foot. Carson moaned, but didn't wake up.
"He is sick," the wraith announced.
"Yeah, I could have told you that," John said walking between the wraiths and Carson. "The locals on the last planet tattooed him," he explained, crouching.
The wraiths seemed to consider the situation for a few moments, then decided, "You have this night and the next. After that, the hunting will continue."
They left without another word and John arranged the blanket around Carson. "We made it. Just get better."
~*~
Carson woke up around noon and rubbed his eyes, looking around him. "I remember it being evening… I think," he said, finally.
"It was, and then night came, and then morning, and that's how we got here," John said, smiling. Seeing the confusion on Carson's face, he sobered up, explaining, "You were feverish, and I didn't know what to do. I made sure you ate something and that you wouldn't catch a cold."
"Are you okay?" Carson asked, examining him from head to toe.
"Sure, I'm not the one who was tattooed by those people using God knows what methods… well, you know, but you -"
"Worse things have happened," Carson said sharply. "They didn't come?"
"Oh, they came," John answered, opening the bag and taking out a fruit. "They tried to wake you up, but you just groaned at them , so they concluded were sick." John took his knife and sliced the fruit, taking a bit for himself and giving the rest to Carson. "I've had some this morning, you should eat while we still have some."
Carson accepted it and started eating. "Did they say anything?"
"They said we have tonight, too, and then it starts again."
Carson shook his head. "I never thought I'd talk to a Wraith like this."
"Oh, you don't know how much fun Steve was. Our conversations were…"
"One sided?" Carson asked, glaring at him. "When Michael suggested that alliance, we - Radek and I - explained the retrovirus deployment method to one of their scientists. It was strange, unnerving, but not as bad as some of my exams were," Carson smiled bitterly. "I've been wondering why he didn't kill me."
"He wanted to 'punish' you. Remember what he said?" John asked, not sure that he liked the flow of the conversation.
"Aye, but... When I saw it was Michael who captured us, I expected to die. I thought he was going to kill you first, then kill me."
John thought about it for a moment. Michael was partly human now, he had lived as a human and he would always have that in him. But Michael knew other things, as well. "When you were on that planet, when he found out about the bomb…"
Carson bowed his head. They had never talked about that, there were just signs, suggestions. John had been 'questioned' by a queen, so he knew quite well what it was like. He supposed Michael had added something to his probing, since it was a more personal affair, but he never pushed Carson to talk about it.
"That's how he knew about us," Carson admitted.
"Maybe he knew how you felt about Ronon and his life as a runner…" John said, giving Carson a way out of the conversation, if he wanted to drop the subject.
Apparently, he did, because he went to the spring and splashed water on his face without saying anything. John studied the surrounding forest, "maybe if we walk a bit downstream, we'll be able to take a swim, wash a bit…"
Carson smiled and got up, taking the bag. "Aye, that would be good."
The rest of the day went on peacefully, and John could pretend they were on a holiday, just the two of them, enjoying themselves. Then evening came, and they had to go to another planet, because they needed food.
Words: 4838
Pairing: Carson/John
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Misbegotten, Common Ground
Summary: " They were dumped on a planet, and Michael explained to Carson that he would be followed everywhere he went."
Author's Notes: Many thanks to marf_the_river and thefannishwaldo for the beta help.
This was written for the beckettsheppard Requestathon, for the prompt: "John as healer or Carson as rescuer (but not an AU), long term seperation from Atlantis, outdoor survival, hurt/comfort (either one)"
Carson was walking towards the two-storey house, head bowed and hands clenched in fists. His uniform was discoloured, the sleeves of his jacket torn in several places. It was obvious that he hated what he was about to do, and John knew that better than anyone else.
A tall man came out of the house and Carson talked to him for a few minutes. The man thought about what he said and then nodded.
Carson returned to him, explaining in a low voice, "There's a timber mill just outside the town. He said that if we help them the rest of the day, we can sleep in the mill tonight."
John nodded, picking up the little bag that held all their belongings. He followed Carson towards the mill where they would be earning the night's bed and hoped they'd be lucky this time.
~~~***~~~***~~~
John woke up and saw Carson staring out the window, despair etched on his features. He got up and saw the town's buildings on fire, and people running in and out, trying to save some of their things. "We should go and help," John said, looking at Carson expectantly.
"Aye." Carson looked around the room one more time and went outside, heading for the nearest building.
The town's people were panicked, not knowing where the fire had started or what they should do first. It took all of John's power of persuasion to make them move away from the burning buildings, explaining that their possessions weren't worth the risk. Carson was trying to get the children away from the buildings and their parents, ignoring their cries.
John shook his head, knowing that Carson was doing the only useful thing in this situation. Soon enough, the only ones left in the village would be the children, Carson and himself.
A loud wail resounded through the town, covering all other noises, and was quickly followed by a loud scream, "The Wraith! It's the Wraith!"
The darts started flying above the village and John couldn't help thinking that the Wraith had outdone themselves this time. The men and women were running desperately, some of them trying to find their children, others trying to find their spouse, and all asking if the way to the ring was clear.
The feeding began shortly afterwards and the screams of those who were fed on were louder than ever. John tried to convince the people to hurry to the gate, but they were panicked, uncoordinated.
~~~***~~~***~~~
Thirty minutes: that's all it took for the Wraith to kill everyone in the village.
John opened his eyes when a small hand touched his face. A young girl was standing in front of him, tears in her eyes. "You should come," she said, pointing towards of the few buildings that were still standing.
He took the girl's hand and let her lead him there. About twenty kids, from three to fifteen, were gathered around Carson, listening to him. "We need to get you to the village you-" He stopped when he saw John, and turning towards him, explained, "There's a village to the south, about two hour's walk, and I thought it would be best if they went there."
"Sure, we could take you there and help you settle in," John said to the kids, sitting down next to Carson.
The younger children smiled, probably not fully understanding what had just happened. Carson had kept them away and most of them hadn't seen any of the feeding. But some of the older kids weren't so ready to follow Carson's advice. When Carson got up, one of them said, "You're grown ups, why aren't you dead?"
Carson stopped, looking down. John could think of a few things to answer to that, but Carson never wanted to lie.
"You knew they were coming," the same boy said accusingly.
"They would have left if they had known," a girl said, looking at the boy with a reproaching glare.
"Not if they knew they wouldn't be touched," the boy answered, studying Carson's face. "You knew this was going to happen. It's your fault they're all dead!"
"No, it's not his fault," John said, getting up. "It's the Wraith's fault."
"Would they have come if you hadn't been here?" the boy asked, looking straight into Carson's eyes.
"No," he admitted, looking down again.
"You knew you'd bring the Wraith, but you came here anyway," the boy accused, angry.
"It… we hoped we'd be able to leave soon enough, we thought they'd come later and-" Carson tried to explain, but stopped when all the children moved away from him, with angry and accusatory glares. "Please, let us help you get to the other village and we'll -"
"You'll leave now," the boy said, "you've done enough; we don't need any more of your help."
Carson wanted to say something, but John stopped him, gently squeezing his right shoulder. "I think we should leave." Carson looked at him and nodded slowly, unconvinced.
They walked away from the smoking village in silence, Carson a few steps behind John. "You know it wasn't your fault," John said stopping to wait for Carson. He didn't say anything, walking on as if he didn't even hear the words.
~~~***~~~***~~~
Carson dialled the gate and John waited in front of the stargate for him to come from the DHD. "How do we know we're not dialling an orbiting gate?" he asked, studying the blue puddle curiously.
"There's some security protocol in the DHD, so orbiting gates can lock only from jumpers or Atlantis… and probably the other Ancient outposts and cities," Carson explained looking at him. "Or so Rodney said once."
"Suppose we'll have to wait and see," John said smiling, before stepping through.
The scenery on the other side was one of the most unfriendly he had seen since coming to the Pegasus galaxy: plain land as far as he could see, with a few bushes and some trees with no leaves left, scattered across the land. The ground was covered with a strange-looking sand.
Carson crouched near the gate and took a bit of the sand, "Salt," he announced, getting up. "There's no way anything could grow here."
John pointed towards the bushes and received a glare from Carson, "Crops, John, I meant crops."
"So… another uninhabited planet."
"Probably," Carson said, putting down the bag. He opened it, taking out a small knife and a piece of bread. It was hard for John to tell how Carson always managed to set aside some food, but he did, and John was thankful for it.
Cutting the bread, Carson said, "We could cut some branches from one of the trees, I have a bit of dried meat and we could roast it a little for the next meal."
John sat down and accepted his piece of bread, eating it quietly. It was the worst bread he had ever eaten, but all things considered, he was happy to have it. The last thing Carson needed was to hear him complain about the food.
Carson sighed, rubbing absently at the back of his neck. He ate less than half of his piece of bread and it was small to begin with. Over the past few months, Carson had lost a lot of weight and John had tried to convince him to eat more. Carson usually agreed verbally, but ate just the same.
"What are we going to do now?" John asked, finishing his bread.
"We should move away from the gate, so we're not so close and in plain sight if they come," Carson answered, closing the bag carefully. He had changed a lot since they were captured by the Wraith. John remembered waking up in one of the cells on the hive ship, alone, with an awful headache that suggested he had been stunned.
Carson was returned to the cell a few hours later, unconscious. John had been too afraid to do anything, afraid that he might hurt his lover more, so he waited. Carson woke up with a loud groan and John was immediately by his side, helping him get into a sitting position. There was confusion on the Scot's face, quickly followed by horror as his hand felt at the back of his neck. John moved his shirt a bit and saw a fresh cut mark, about three inches long.
"Tracking device," Carson mumbled and closed his eyes, leaning against the wall.
A few hours later, they were dumped on a planet, and Michael explained to Carson that he would be followed everywhere he went. Michael then approached John and all he could feel was pain as Michael fed on him for a few seconds. He fell to the ground, gasping for air as Carson kneeled by his side, holding him. "And if we don't have anyone to feed on, we'll feed on him," the wraith said, warningly. That was Carson's punishment: he had to choose who would die, some strangers or his lover.
That was how their life as runners had started, and with each new planet, Carson's guilt got deeper and the pain of everything weighed heavier on him. Carson had changed a lot, taking more and more of the responsibility on his shoulders, taking charge. John had allowed him to, hoping it would help him cope with the situation, and it did… a bit.
Ever since meeting Ronon, John had wondered how he had managed to survive and how his life had been. Seeing Carson and how this changed him, he wondered what sort of man Ronon had been before being a runner.
They settled for the night under a tree that was dead, but still stood. Sadly, John reflected on just how much they were like it, moving, without being alive.
~~~***~~~***~~~
A soft nudge woke him in the middle of the night. Carson was standing next to him, looking towards the gate.
"They're here," Carson said, not taking his eyes away from the gate. "Three wraiths, they headed to the left."
As far as they could tell, the wraiths weren't told exactly where the two of them were. It was their way of making the hunt more interesting. For Carson and John, it was their only chance of getting away. Sometimes, they managed to do so, avoiding the wraith and taking them away from the villages.
They ran towards the gate, Carson easily keeping up the pace with him. He stopped at the DHD, hurriedly dialling another planet. They stepped through just when the wraiths were returning to the gate, realizing they'd lost them.
~~~***~~~***~~~
The next planet was obviously inhabited. There was a nice brick road leading from the gate into a forest.
"It could be yellow," John said, walking down from the stone pedestal on which the gate was.
Carson smiled briefly and John wondered if it was more for his sake than from true, honest amusement.
The forest seemed to be an orchard, with strange-looking fruits growing in the trees. He would have suggested picking a few, but Carson wouldn't have allowed it. He never took food if he didn't have the local's permission. It was the least he could do.
They reached the town soon and John was relieved to see most of the buildings were made of stone-like bricks. This one wouldn't burn like the last one did.
A young woman stopped in front of them, smiling broadly. "Welcome, visitors. I will take you to our mayor," she said, looking at John.
He nodded. "Thank you, we were heading that way."
The town hall was a nice building, obviously meant to impress visitors. It had a big wooden door, inscribed with some strange characters and compared to the town's small houses, the three-storey building looked huge. They walked in, led by the woman. John figured this was a fifteenth century society, better developed than most they'd seen so far.
They stopped in the council hall and waited patiently until a middle-aged man came in, followed by a younger one. "Welcome, visitors. I am mayor Marth. How may we assist you?" the older man asked.
"We were hoping we could work here, help with something and in return sleep in your village this night," Carson said.
The mayor turned towards the younger man and whispered something, then said, "We'll see if we can find something, but in the meantime, please wait here." Carson nodded, unfazed by the way in which the younger man rushed out of the room.
"We walked through an orchard coming here," John started, watching the door carefully.
"Yes, it is one of the fruits we trade with other planets, it is very nourishing," the mayor answered, and John remembered how that was the magic word in all trade negotiations. Whenever the natives said that, Teyla smiled and nodded thoughtfully. He wondered if the Atlanteans were eating this 'very nourishing' fruit.
The door opened and the young man walked in, followed by an old man who studied him and Carson and then nodded. "Yes, they are the Wraith bringers."
Before they had the chance to say anything, four guards walked in, two stopping on his sides and the other two on Carson's. They pushed them, forcing them to bend and rest their heads on the table. He felt his shirt being pulled and the back of his neck exposed.
"He doesn't have it," the guard to his right said, letting go.
"This one does," the guard holding Carson said and looked expectantly at the mayor. The older man nodded and the two guards took Carson out of the room, with no difficulty.
John tried to get up, but his assigned guards stopped him, holding him down on the chair. "You have to let us go! We have no… we'll go and never return here!" he protested.
"I'm not going to question your reasons for coming here, although you should have warned us when you first set foot in our town," the mayor answered coldly. "You will be allowed to leave the planet through the ring."
"And him? You have to -"
"Take him to the gate and wait until his companion is returned," the mayor ordered. John was dragged outside, unable to fight the guards.
He waited by the DHD for about an hour, knowing very well that these people could do anything they wanted with both of them.
Judging by what he saw and the things he knew from Ronon, there weren't many runners, the Wraith choosing them carefully. These people knew they were runners, knew what their life was and their reaction was strange, both sympathetic and hating.
The guards allowed him to take as many fruits as he could keep in his bag. He was eating one when the guards brought Carson back, hands tied behind him.
When they got next to John, they untied Carson and he started rubbing them, trying to get the blood flowing normally again.
"You okay?" John asked, looking at him for any sign of injury.
Carson just nodded and dialled the gate, then stepped through without looking back. When John got through, Carson was already a few meters away, hurriedly walking towards the forest that was surrounding the gate.
"Hey! Wait up! They're not coming after us," John called after him.
"I need to get to water," Carson said without looking at him or slowing down.
A few minutes later, he crouched over a small spring, taking water in his cupped hands and pouring it over his neck.
"What did they do to you?" John asked, crouching to his right.
Carson frowned, staring at the water. He took his vest off and then took more water, splashing it on his neck, on the left side.
John moved to his other side, to see what he was doing and froze as he saw the black tattoo on his neck.
"It's like Ronon's, isn't it?" Carson asked, looking at him with a strange fear in his eyes.
John nodded, a lot of things finally falling into place.
"We'll never be accepted anywhere," Carson said, but they both knew he meant 'the wraith will kill you'.
"Let's take care of this," John said, touching his tattoo. Carson hissed, drawing back a little. "Sorry," John apologized, pouring water over it. "How did they do it?"
"I'd rather not remember."
"Will you be okay, were they…. I don't know… careful?"
Carson looked at him thoughtfully. "They used some needles and I don't know how much they worried about sterilization. I could use some antibiotics, but we've got none of that," Carson said.
"What can we do then?"
"There's little we can do. I'll sleep a wee bit, and we'll see how it is when I wake up. Is that alright?"
"Of course," John said, leaning on a tree trunk nearby. "Come here."
Carson leaned on his right shoulder, closing his eyes. "Just a wee bit."
~~~***~~~***~~~
An hour later, John tried to wake him up and give him some fruits to eat, but Carson just grumbled in his sleep and turned away from him.
Two hours later, John felt Carson getting warmer and saw that his skin was covered in sweat. More than a month ago, John had cut his right arm and Carson had given him something to hold the infection down, but the root he had used for the tea was hard to find and they had none of it left.
Without it, Carson's chances of getting better before the night came were slim. He had no other choice than help Carson be as comfortable as possible and hope the wraiths were not going to come this night.
He washed some of the super nutrient fruits and when Carson finally woke up just before dawn, he made the doctor eat some of it. John noticed worriedly that Carson wasn't coherent and the fever hadn't abated.
As soon as Carson went back to sleep, John started the fire, covering Carson with their only blanket. It was the first time Carson was sick or incapacitated since they had left Atlantis and he was frightened. Until now, John never realised just how much he relied on Carson. The Scot had taken all responsibility on his shoulders and in time, John had allowed more and more of it. He was supposed to be the one to protect the civilians, but at some point Carson Beckett, MD, stopped being a civilian and became a runner.
~~~***~~~***~~~
The gate activated a few hours after it got dark and three wraiths got to their little camp quickly.
Before John had the chance to say anything, one of them kicked Carson in the stomach with his foot. Carson moaned, but didn't wake up.
"He is sick," the wraith announced.
"Yeah, I could have told you that," John said walking between the wraiths and Carson. "The locals on the last planet tattooed him," he explained, crouching.
The wraiths seemed to consider the situation for a few moments, then decided, "You have this night and the next. After that, the hunting will continue."
They left without another word and John arranged the blanket around Carson. "We made it. Just get better."
~*~
Carson woke up around noon and rubbed his eyes, looking around him. "I remember it being evening… I think," he said, finally.
"It was, and then night came, and then morning, and that's how we got here," John said, smiling. Seeing the confusion on Carson's face, he sobered up, explaining, "You were feverish, and I didn't know what to do. I made sure you ate something and that you wouldn't catch a cold."
"Are you okay?" Carson asked, examining him from head to toe.
"Sure, I'm not the one who was tattooed by those people using God knows what methods… well, you know, but you -"
"Worse things have happened," Carson said sharply. "They didn't come?"
"Oh, they came," John answered, opening the bag and taking out a fruit. "They tried to wake you up, but you just groaned at them , so they concluded were sick." John took his knife and sliced the fruit, taking a bit for himself and giving the rest to Carson. "I've had some this morning, you should eat while we still have some."
Carson accepted it and started eating. "Did they say anything?"
"They said we have tonight, too, and then it starts again."
Carson shook his head. "I never thought I'd talk to a Wraith like this."
"Oh, you don't know how much fun Steve was. Our conversations were…"
"One sided?" Carson asked, glaring at him. "When Michael suggested that alliance, we - Radek and I - explained the retrovirus deployment method to one of their scientists. It was strange, unnerving, but not as bad as some of my exams were," Carson smiled bitterly. "I've been wondering why he didn't kill me."
"He wanted to 'punish' you. Remember what he said?" John asked, not sure that he liked the flow of the conversation.
"Aye, but... When I saw it was Michael who captured us, I expected to die. I thought he was going to kill you first, then kill me."
John thought about it for a moment. Michael was partly human now, he had lived as a human and he would always have that in him. But Michael knew other things, as well. "When you were on that planet, when he found out about the bomb…"
Carson bowed his head. They had never talked about that, there were just signs, suggestions. John had been 'questioned' by a queen, so he knew quite well what it was like. He supposed Michael had added something to his probing, since it was a more personal affair, but he never pushed Carson to talk about it.
"That's how he knew about us," Carson admitted.
"Maybe he knew how you felt about Ronon and his life as a runner…" John said, giving Carson a way out of the conversation, if he wanted to drop the subject.
Apparently, he did, because he went to the spring and splashed water on his face without saying anything. John studied the surrounding forest, "maybe if we walk a bit downstream, we'll be able to take a swim, wash a bit…"
Carson smiled and got up, taking the bag. "Aye, that would be good."
The rest of the day went on peacefully, and John could pretend they were on a holiday, just the two of them, enjoying themselves. Then evening came, and they had to go to another planet, because they needed food.