Author's Chapter Notes: Thanks again to Oparu for beta'ing--and here's chapter 4, only a month later! *cringe* Sorry. But now that I have an open period in school, I can type it then instead of doing my homework. Um. I mean, type during my free time. Yeah.
"Are you insane? We can't go out there!"
Rodney's protest went unnoticed for a while. John was busy trying to think his way out of this situation--so far he hadn't come up with anything.
"We do not have a choice, Rodney. You have seen what their weapons can do," Teyla tried to tell him, gesturing faintly to Elizabeth's injury.
"I don't care! We're better off making a run for it! What're they going to do to us?" he asked no one in particular, panicking.
"Shut up, Rodney," John said, annoyed. He gingerly touched his hair and was amazed when it broke off in his fingers. "Huh."
The voice came again from the grass, saying the same phrase as before. After a pause, more words were added, and Elizabeth translated them in a strained voice. "Come out or we'll open fire."
"Sheppard, listen to me!" Rodney said in vain. "We'll just-"
"Not now, McKay! We don't have a choice!" With that, John stood up slowly; his P-90 draped over his chest. "Okay, okay, we're coming out."
Rodney looked as if he were about to say something, but he shook his head and followed suit. Teyla soon joined them, holding a hunched-over Elizabeth up. Ronon was the last to comply, still holding his gun in his hand.
"Ronon-put that away," John hissed out of the corner of his mouth. "Drop it. Something."
"Or what? They'll shoot me?" he responded, staring at the invisible forms in the grass.
"Yes, they will," Elizabeth told him, looking up at his face. "That's what they're saying."
He looked at her before finally deciding to drop the weapon. "Fine. But they aren't taking me."
"We haven't said anything about kidnapping," John whispered as the figures, clothed in black, exited their hiding spots. Behind them, there were a dozen more hidden in the foliage. "See, Rodney? We wouldn't have made it anyway. They'd have sniped us off long before any of us made it to the 'gate."
"Oh, and I suppose you knew that all along, didn't you? That's why you-hey!" Rodney shrieked as one of the shooters grabbed his wrists and bound them together. "Ow!"
Ronon glared at his captor, barely suppressing the urge to knock him out. The figure picked up his weapon with obvious interest before aiming at a tree and firing. The tree now sported a clean hole in the trunk, and the man nodded in satisfaction and pocketed the gun. John and Teyla's P-90s were similarly taken. Their pistols were left on the ground.
Teyla and John succumbed with a minimum of struggle, and Elizabeth couldn't fight back if she wanted to. She couldn't even stand up straight, and she staggered as they pushed her forward.
"Where are we going? Why are you taking us?" Rodney jabbered, rambling. "What happened to the Aldorans? Why-oh." Ronon's gun was suddenly in his side, held by one of the black-cloaked figures. "Uh, never mind."
John looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and saw Elizabeth struggling to keep up. Her captor obviously felt no remorse; he continuously hit her if she fell. "Hey-" John started, but barely got a word out before three guns were being pointed at him. He echoed Rodney's words. "Uh, never mind."
But he still watched her, wincing with every strike.
Ten minutes later, when they had reached the Stargate, the men began to talk to them. "Which talk Ancient?"
Elizabeth raised her head. "I do," she said with resolve.
The men looked at her and then back at the team. Elizabeth could understand their next sentence, but it wasn't being directed at her.
"Is she the only one?"
The rest of the team just looked confused. The leader seemed satisfied, and nodded. Elizabeth watched, horrified, as they began to shoot the team with their own weapons. She screamed as the leader grabbed her from behind, but it was stifled as he clapped a hand over her mouth. The echoes of the Earth weapons coupled with the crack of bullet hitting bone made her sick. He dragged her to the DHD, ordered his men to dial, and sneered in her ear.
She saw the team through blurred eyes, and all she saw was blood.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
She blinked away the tears. She couldn't afford them. Not right now.
Elizabeth had come through the 'gate with her captors, held tightly by the leader. She wasn't sure what they were going to do to her, but she could bet it wasn't going to be good.
They exited on a fairly normal planet. She looked around, trying to find something that might tell her where she was--she had seen the 'gate symbols, but it didn't really do her much good since she was certain the rest of the team hadn't. Even if they had, they were all dead, so what good would it do?
She was rushed along so hurriedly she couldn't concentrate on her surroundings. The man's hand had moved down to around her neck, and he had acquired a knife sometime--yes, it must've been from her vest. It was pressing painfully against her neck but not enough to draw blood. Her back still hurt enormously, but the morphine Rodney had given her was helping immensely. It didn't completely erase the pain, but it dulled it enough to make it tolerable.
They stopped at a rather innocuous-looking warehouse, and from the outside, it looked perfectly fine. She expected a more foreboding interior, but it seemed to be merely an abandoned storage facility. Then the man holding her ordered the men to do something--what was it? Get? Fetch?
Her answer came when the straw was brushed away to reveal a weapons rack. It would've gone unnoticed by any passerby, and even someone looking for it would've had to search extensively. It contained more of the guns they had shot her with, as well as weapons she didn't recognize. They appeared to be basically the same as the ones they had, but slightly more complex. She figured that meant it was more damaging.
The guns traveled down something like an assembly line, with inspection and pocketing. The leader sneered at her as she watched them being unloaded. He was handed the most complicated weapon, and she could only assume it was a sign of authority. They seemed awfully violence-oriented.
They hadn't spoken since they'd stepped on the planet. She wasn't about to break the silence, because the knife around her neck effectively suppressed any questions she was going to ask. He pushed her forward without saying a word. She complied, but went as slowly as possible, trying to convince her captors she couldn't move on account of her back. She didn't have to fake most of the pain; wincing came naturally.
Strangely enough, they were walking back to the Stargate. Elizabeth wanted to ask dearly if this planet was simply a pit stop, but she never would have the cheek to do so. John would've said it in a heartbeat, but she had no desire to get injured any more than she was already.
As they reached the 'gate, one of the men began to dial another address. The leader saw her looking at the symbols and swiftly hit her on the head with the knife hilt. Her world turned black and she could no longer feel the man's hands dragging her through the wormhole.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Dun dun dun. Read and review, por favor! (I'm in Spanish mode today. No puedo hablar en ingles en la clase de espanol, entonces hablo en espanol todos hora de todos dia. Tambien, cuando hablo en espanol personas son muy confudidas (sp?). Si. I can obviously pass for a Spanish speaker.)
Rodney's protest went unnoticed for a while. John was busy trying to think his way out of this situation--so far he hadn't come up with anything.
"We do not have a choice, Rodney. You have seen what their weapons can do," Teyla tried to tell him, gesturing faintly to Elizabeth's injury.
"I don't care! We're better off making a run for it! What're they going to do to us?" he asked no one in particular, panicking.
"Shut up, Rodney," John said, annoyed. He gingerly touched his hair and was amazed when it broke off in his fingers. "Huh."
The voice came again from the grass, saying the same phrase as before. After a pause, more words were added, and Elizabeth translated them in a strained voice. "Come out or we'll open fire."
"Sheppard, listen to me!" Rodney said in vain. "We'll just-"
"Not now, McKay! We don't have a choice!" With that, John stood up slowly; his P-90 draped over his chest. "Okay, okay, we're coming out."
Rodney looked as if he were about to say something, but he shook his head and followed suit. Teyla soon joined them, holding a hunched-over Elizabeth up. Ronon was the last to comply, still holding his gun in his hand.
"Ronon-put that away," John hissed out of the corner of his mouth. "Drop it. Something."
"Or what? They'll shoot me?" he responded, staring at the invisible forms in the grass.
"Yes, they will," Elizabeth told him, looking up at his face. "That's what they're saying."
He looked at her before finally deciding to drop the weapon. "Fine. But they aren't taking me."
"We haven't said anything about kidnapping," John whispered as the figures, clothed in black, exited their hiding spots. Behind them, there were a dozen more hidden in the foliage. "See, Rodney? We wouldn't have made it anyway. They'd have sniped us off long before any of us made it to the 'gate."
"Oh, and I suppose you knew that all along, didn't you? That's why you-hey!" Rodney shrieked as one of the shooters grabbed his wrists and bound them together. "Ow!"
Ronon glared at his captor, barely suppressing the urge to knock him out. The figure picked up his weapon with obvious interest before aiming at a tree and firing. The tree now sported a clean hole in the trunk, and the man nodded in satisfaction and pocketed the gun. John and Teyla's P-90s were similarly taken. Their pistols were left on the ground.
Teyla and John succumbed with a minimum of struggle, and Elizabeth couldn't fight back if she wanted to. She couldn't even stand up straight, and she staggered as they pushed her forward.
"Where are we going? Why are you taking us?" Rodney jabbered, rambling. "What happened to the Aldorans? Why-oh." Ronon's gun was suddenly in his side, held by one of the black-cloaked figures. "Uh, never mind."
John looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and saw Elizabeth struggling to keep up. Her captor obviously felt no remorse; he continuously hit her if she fell. "Hey-" John started, but barely got a word out before three guns were being pointed at him. He echoed Rodney's words. "Uh, never mind."
But he still watched her, wincing with every strike.
Ten minutes later, when they had reached the Stargate, the men began to talk to them. "Which talk Ancient?"
Elizabeth raised her head. "I do," she said with resolve.
The men looked at her and then back at the team. Elizabeth could understand their next sentence, but it wasn't being directed at her.
"Is she the only one?"
The rest of the team just looked confused. The leader seemed satisfied, and nodded. Elizabeth watched, horrified, as they began to shoot the team with their own weapons. She screamed as the leader grabbed her from behind, but it was stifled as he clapped a hand over her mouth. The echoes of the Earth weapons coupled with the crack of bullet hitting bone made her sick. He dragged her to the DHD, ordered his men to dial, and sneered in her ear.
She saw the team through blurred eyes, and all she saw was blood.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
She blinked away the tears. She couldn't afford them. Not right now.
Elizabeth had come through the 'gate with her captors, held tightly by the leader. She wasn't sure what they were going to do to her, but she could bet it wasn't going to be good.
They exited on a fairly normal planet. She looked around, trying to find something that might tell her where she was--she had seen the 'gate symbols, but it didn't really do her much good since she was certain the rest of the team hadn't. Even if they had, they were all dead, so what good would it do?
She was rushed along so hurriedly she couldn't concentrate on her surroundings. The man's hand had moved down to around her neck, and he had acquired a knife sometime--yes, it must've been from her vest. It was pressing painfully against her neck but not enough to draw blood. Her back still hurt enormously, but the morphine Rodney had given her was helping immensely. It didn't completely erase the pain, but it dulled it enough to make it tolerable.
They stopped at a rather innocuous-looking warehouse, and from the outside, it looked perfectly fine. She expected a more foreboding interior, but it seemed to be merely an abandoned storage facility. Then the man holding her ordered the men to do something--what was it? Get? Fetch?
Her answer came when the straw was brushed away to reveal a weapons rack. It would've gone unnoticed by any passerby, and even someone looking for it would've had to search extensively. It contained more of the guns they had shot her with, as well as weapons she didn't recognize. They appeared to be basically the same as the ones they had, but slightly more complex. She figured that meant it was more damaging.
The guns traveled down something like an assembly line, with inspection and pocketing. The leader sneered at her as she watched them being unloaded. He was handed the most complicated weapon, and she could only assume it was a sign of authority. They seemed awfully violence-oriented.
They hadn't spoken since they'd stepped on the planet. She wasn't about to break the silence, because the knife around her neck effectively suppressed any questions she was going to ask. He pushed her forward without saying a word. She complied, but went as slowly as possible, trying to convince her captors she couldn't move on account of her back. She didn't have to fake most of the pain; wincing came naturally.
Strangely enough, they were walking back to the Stargate. Elizabeth wanted to ask dearly if this planet was simply a pit stop, but she never would have the cheek to do so. John would've said it in a heartbeat, but she had no desire to get injured any more than she was already.
As they reached the 'gate, one of the men began to dial another address. The leader saw her looking at the symbols and swiftly hit her on the head with the knife hilt. Her world turned black and she could no longer feel the man's hands dragging her through the wormhole.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Dun dun dun. Read and review, por favor! (I'm in Spanish mode today. No puedo hablar en ingles en la clase de espanol, entonces hablo en espanol todos hora de todos dia. Tambien, cuando hablo en espanol personas son muy confudidas (sp?). Si. I can obviously pass for a Spanish speaker.)