Descent
By ForkOfDoom/Thisissirius

Remains Un-Beta’d, so if anyone wants the job, just let me know : D Unless you haven’t already noticed, I have tense problems, so any help there would also be appreciated!

"I broke my hand." John didn't look up from his tray, not even when Teyla and Ronon sat down opposite him. His lip curled into a smile, both self-deprecating and amused all at once. "Carson says it's not a bad break, but I'm grounded until further notice." He should have expected that, but having watched the veiled anger and not a little surprise behind Elizabeth's eyes as she had re-enforced the order, made the situation all the more real. He hadn't punched Laden, and he had hoped she would give him points for that. Obviously not.

Teyla reached across the table for his hand, and at the last moment she hesitated, wondering if it was physical touch that he needed right now. John didn't even know himself. Her fingers brushed his, and her smile was warm and inviting. It wasn't her that spoke, however, and John had almost forgotten that Ronon was sitting beside the Athosian woman. "We'll get McKay back, Sheppard."

Something deep and harsh rumbled in John's chest at the thought of Rodney; something he'd been hoping to avoid, and his gaze fell back to the table, his fingers were twitching against the palm of Teyla's hand. "Yeah." It was a non-committal noise, and he knew that Teyla and Ronon, knowing him the best bar Rodney, would see right through it.

"You must have faith, John. Rodney is strong." Teyla was only doing what she thought he needed, but it made John dare; even if only for a moment, to believe that she was telling the truth. He sucked in a breath, not used to doing this, but he had opened up to Teyla once before, and he knew that he owed it to them; and to Rodney, to tell them the truth.

"Rodney is- I don't know how to - he saved me." He didn't know if they understood or not, but had to keep his gaze on the table for fear that they would read the truth in his eyes. When neither of them made a noise at all, and the silence stretched on for far too long, he looked up. Teyla was smiling, eyes thoughtful and Ronon was as inscrutable as ever.

"We understand, John." For a moment, he wondered if they really did, but Teyla continued to hold his gaze, and even Ronon's mouth was starting to twitch at the corner, and John knew that he would never have to tell them. It felt almost right to be with them, and to have them know the deepest and most precious secret his heart possessed. Almost, because without Rodney the lightness and deep friendship between them was frayed; incomplete.

---

Rodney groaned as he was half shoved into the cell and felt the metal clang shut behind him. It was only when he was sure that the Genii were gone, that he allowed the groan to leave his lips and he slid to the floor, crawling into the corner, and wishing for all the world that he had just run faster back on M-whatever the hell. His hands were shaking, and he pressed them against the floor, the cold flagstones a slight shock to his system, but he ignored it when, finally he allowed the pain from the lashes to assault his senses.

The whimper that left his lips sounded way to loud even to his own ears, and a sob tore from his throat, ripping at the skin of his throat and he wondered how much more of that he could take. He'd made no sense and was unashamedly proud of his actions, but for one thing, he had been teetering on the bridge of losing his mind.

Home. His Team. John.

So that was three things, but Rodney wasn't willing to fight with himself on this one, and let the thought of Atlantis, sitting in the mess with his team - his friends - and the looks John would throw him when he thought he wasn't looking, wash over him. He should be holding out better than this; should have more hope that they would come for him, but Rodney had never had as much faith in never leave a man behind as John had, and even hope that John would tear the Pegasus Galaxy apart looking for him, wasn't enough to keep despair from blurring the edges of his vision.

He stretched out along the cell, back exposed to the cool air in the enclosed space, and he sucked in each breath slowly, wondering how long this pain was going to last, if Carson could fix it, and why the hell Kolya couldn't just leave him alone.

He'd almost forgotten he had a cellmate, until the voice once more punctuated the quiet of Rodney’s musings.

"You are quieter." Rodney wanted to snap something snarky, clever, but he could barely find the strength to push himself up onto his elbows.

"Torture does that. To you." The sentence was in half, and he winced as he tried to look at the adjoining cell. "Who are you, anyway, and why haven't they tortured you yet?"

The reply was almost immediate, and had an edge to it that Rodney recognized, and couldn't place. "They torture me every day, slowly, and not unlike you. You are in pain."

Rodney didn't even bother to answer that one. He just moved back down, stretching out and closing his eyes slowly. He had three hours - three hours of blissful nothing, and then the cold lash of a whip that would sear his skin, and he would be alone again. Left alone, and wondering where John was, and why he wasn’t coming. But for now, Rodney could pretend - almost - that he was back home, surrounded by his friends.

---

The conference room was hot and close, and even though he tried to pay attention, John's focus was elsewhere. He couldn't help wondering just how much pain Rodney was in right now, how he must be feeling. Maybe he felt abandoned, and John hoped more than anything that he didn't. He had to know John would come for him. Had to.

Forcing himself to pay attention to the conversation in the room, he found his gaze immediately pulled to Ladon.

"Of course you would only see him as the monster who tried to take Atlantis from you." His tone put Sheppard on edge, and that he could talk so freely and easily about a man who had come into their home, killed his men and tried to kill Elizabeth; Rodney, had John growling under his breath.

"He killed several of our people and -"

Teyla spoke over him, and he knew better than to glare at her, for all that he wanted to anyway. "He would have killed Doctor Weir as well." Elizabeth, to her credit, was trying to keep the meeting on a peaceful tone; all parties happy, but John couldn't care less if they offended Ladon or not; he just wanted Rodney back, and he was going to get him if he had to tear Ladon apart to do it. If he had to send Ladon through the gate, to Kolya, to do it.

Right now that wasn't an option, and he was forced to listen to Ladon's pitiful attempts at appeasing the Lanteans, and Elizabeth's attempts to get the best of all options, without harming the alliance between Atlantis and the Genii, and without breaking America's policy to not negotiate with terrorists.

"I won’t make excuses for his actions or mine during the failed Atlantis mission. We were soldiers under Cowen’s orders. But that failure shattered Kolya’s stature among the Genii and forced him from Cowen’s inner circle." John sat forward, but was silenced by a hand on his shoulder. Ronon was like a dark shadow in the corner of his vision, and John conceded for the moment. Let Elizabeth and Ladon fight this one out, and they would get to saving Rodney faster.

"Yet you managed to stay." Elizabeth’s tone was dripping with something akin to contempt, and for the first time John saw her as someone torn; between a friend, and between keeping an ally with the most potential to be of help against the Wraith.

John watched the resulting exchange with next to no interest, until something Ladon said lodged itself in his brain and he leaned forward again, this time ignoring the hand on his shoulder. "Kolya thinks that you took his rightful place as leader of the Genii people."

Ladon looked surprised that he had figured it out, but nodded slowly. John was slowly letting it come together in his head. Ladon had taken Kolya’s place, and now Kolya wanted what Ladon had; his position. But it still didn't change the fact that someone from Ladon's inner circle had taken the codes and given them to Kolya.

"Sounds like you're the traitor here." John could echo Ronon's words, but when he spoke it was a plan barely forming in his mind.

"Zelenka informs me that we have a list of planets where recent Genii activity has been documented." He paused, and looked at Ladon. "But we’d have a much higher margin of success if Ladon would be willing to point out firm locations of Genii safe houses and shelters – maybe even hidden Wraith-infested torture chambers." He raised an eyebrow pointedly in Ladon's direction and saw the Genii stiffen.

"I'm not sure-"

Ronon moved from his position behind Sheppard to stand behind Ladon and the Genii seemed to rethink his decision. A slow nod in John's direction, but he wasn't satisfied. "If the location you give us is not where they are keeping Rodney, I will not hesitate to punch you. And this time, I won't deflect it." He managed to keep from looking at Elizabeth as he left the room, and headed for - anywhere.

---

Nick Lorne stared at Colonel Sheppard and wondered why he'd been called there. He knew it had something to do with Rodney McKay and his rescue. Word had spread quickly through Atlantis, and Lorne had immediately wished he could have been able to help - still did, and he shifted on his feet. As if drawn back into the room by Lorne's shift, Sheppard raised his eyes. "Major, I need your help."

Now that was a surprise. Lorne didn't try and keep it from his face and Sheppard's lip twitched in amusement. "I'm grounded." Lorne managed not to wince, but he could sense the frustration from his CO. His eyes were immediately drawn to the Colonel's strapped hand and he knew how much it must have taken for Sheppard to be able to deflect his punch. Nick could only imagine the rage Sheppard must be feeling to have a friend - his best friend - be at the mercy of a killer, and to be as helpless as he was. "We're assembling a list of planets, and if there's a match we're sending a strike team." Sheppard met his eyes slowly. "I want you to be on it."

Nick was speechless - happy to know that Sheppard trusted him - but he couldn't thin of what to say beyond; "Sir-"

The Colonel raised a hand and Lorne wisely kept his mouth shut. "I trust you to go on this mission and not screw up." He took a deep breath. "You're the only other person - military wise - who I would trust to bring Rodney back." The amount of trust and hope in Sheppard's eyes made Lorne feel sick for a moment, and he wanted Sheppard to fight Doctor Weir on this. Wanted him to scream at her until she gave in and let him go regardless of his broken hand, because to have the possibility of having to come back and tell this man that he failed -

Lorne didn't think he could do that.

---

Rodney's eyes opened slowly, and it took him more time than he would have liked to wake up. Whips striking skin and pain had been filling what little snatches of sleep he'd managed to claim; which, in the almost two hours it must have been since the first session, hadn't been many. He groaned and the wait was the worst. Knowing that in a little under an hour he was going to be back in that room, whip slamming into skin with his friends forced to watch, made his heart pound a little faster.

"You are awake." The same words, repeated every time Rodney woke up. At first, he had found it creepy that he was being watched; studied, but like everything else about this situation, in time it had faded to a dull ache in his consciousness.

Rodney made a non-committal grunt and sat up, slow as to not put pressure on his back. He'd been trying to puzzle out where he knew the familiar - was it a lilt? - to his fellow prisoners voice, but his concentration kept drifting and it was more than just a minor annoyance. Rodney didn't have this trouble concentrating.

Not normally.

---

Teyla stood beside Ronon, as Lorne gave his men whatever motivation they needed for going through the gate, and to rescue Rodney with little to no casualties. John was standing on the balcony behind and to the left of them and she didn't need to see him to know that he was watching them. Major Lorne seemed to be steeling himself for this rescue, and she could sympathize with him. To be burdened with the task of rescuing someone Sheppard held dear was weighing on him for all to see.

Ronon had his gun slung over his shoulder, and Teyla could understand his want to be gone already. Rodney was in serious danger, and it was up to them to rescue him from it. Her eyes still burned; sometimes, and she would never admit it; with the image of the whip laying into Rodney's skin like it was nothing. She had never witnessed torture as a means to an end before this day and she wondered how Kolya could be so heartless as to use an innocent man to gain something as meaningless as the command of his people. As long as they all worked together against the Wraith, what did it matter who led them?

The fact that it was Rodney he was using as an instrument in his plans was all the motivation Teyla needed to want him captured. She would never admit to wanting anyone dead, not until she could admit it to herself.

---

Elizabeth watched in silence as Lorne led the team through the gate, Ronon and Teyla throwing one last look at John before they stepped through the gate, and into what she hoped was the complex that would hold Rodney. Out on the balcony overlooking the Gate Room, John's good hand, knuckles white, was clenching the rail hard. His eyes hadn't left the event horizon until Teyla disappeared into the 'gate and onto a mission that she knew he had wanted to lead.

He hadn't even pleaded with her, and she had been surprised. She expected him to have fought her; to tell her he wanted to go on this mission, or else, and she was slightly worried that he hadn't. Sometimes she wished she could see what he was thinking, then maybe she could give him the help his whole body was screaming out for. With Ronon and Teyla gone, she could see the loneliness surround him like a blanket.

Her only comfort was that he would be with Rodney soon, and even that comfort was hollow in the face of everything they had faced so far. In the face of everything Rodney would be (or wouldn't be) when he stepped through the 'gate.

---

"Doctor McKay." The voice was fuzzy and just out of his reach, but if Rodney tried he could almost recognize the tone. He raised his head to the bars of the cell, and the outline of Kolya's face, hard and pinched, was gazing at him with something akin to compassion. It made Rodney feel sick, and he just wanted to curl into the back of the cell and stay there, but his back would scream in agony at the smallest movement. He had learnt from the minute he had been tossed into the cell, that sitting still was the best course of action for the welts that adorned his skin. Shirtless and cold Rodney had allowed his mind to wonder, the sound of the sea hard in his ears and he longed for the view of Atlantis from his room.

He'd never expected to miss his home that much. But then, he hadn't been parted from her with the threat of loneliness before, either. Death, sure. But never loneliness and pain and Rodney wished that the pinched look in Kolya's eyes would cause him pain. "What?"

He managed to snap the word, and he clenched his hands into fists. He just wanted to go home. It was only one - one! - session into the torture, and the signs of him cracking up were already beginning to show.

"It's time." The words rang with finality and Rodney half-stumbled to his feet, holding back the wince. Two guards raised their weapons as Rodney approached the doors and he snorted with amusement. That they still saw him as a threat had to be the most absurd thing he could think of right now. He followed Kolya; only with a mild thought of why the Genii had come himself to get Rodney; but then he was distracted with thoughts of escape.

He'd tried to put it off, knowing that the failure of anyone's attempt to rescue him, would only make him feel more hollow, alone, and he didn't want that. He had tried, unsuccessfully, to not think about Sheppard, but every action he made; every silence he kept, made him wonder what Sheppard would have done in the same situation, whether Sheppard would have attempted escape yet or not.

With a deep breath, he kept his eyes on the back of Kolya's neck, thoughts of John painful and warming all at once. It hurt. Maybe worse then the marks on his back; marring his skin and his soul.

---

"You were wrong!" John was speaking before he had even entered the room, and both Ladon and Elizabeth looked up. They had received the same transmission from Lorne that he had, and Elizabeth hastened to control the situation before it escalated.

"John-"

"No." His abrupt tone shocked her, but she stopped. "You're Intel was wrong, Ladon. There was nothing there. Nothing." And if Elizabeth had thought John dangerous any day before now she had been wrong.

Ladon was doing his best to ignore the expression on Sheppard's face, but his words were almost uncertain. "Well, then, the only way for me to help is to return to my world."

"No. You contact your people from here." Elizabeth wasn't going to let him go.

"Do you think I don't know the real reason you're keeping me here?"

Ladon's tone was grating on even Elizabeth's nerves, but John took a threatening step forward and lifted an arm, almost waving it in Ladon's face. "The real reason you're still here is because I haven't decided to hand you over to Kolya yet! But rest assured, I am seriously considering it!"

That was a right he didn't have. "Colonel Sheppard!" Elizabeth's tone cracked through the room like a whip, and Sheppard looked at her, betrayed, but silent. She turned to Radim. "You are head of state. It is my own country's policy to never yield to terrorists. Those are the reasons you are still here, Mr. Radim. If it was simply my choice-"

"I understand-"

She smiled, an edge to it. "Good. I want you to look at out lists of planets again. See if there's anything you may have overlooked.

Ladon nodded, and Sheppard was starting to calm down. Maybe they were making some progress after all.

---

Rodney was once again strapped to the chair, and he lowered his head, trying to compose himself before he had to face Kolya again. He did so with as much defiance as he could muster, voice strong and angry. "I thought you said this wasn't personal."

Kolya shrugged lightly, but there was no smile this time. "The truth is I would have settled for Colonel Sheppard, but unfortunately it was you they left to go through the gate last."

Rodney could see the logic in that, and with a flash of guilt, he wished it had been John. He would have been better at this than him - could have escaped by now. "They're never going to make the trade. Why don't you just finish this?" He didn't want to die, but he'd been assaulted by thoughts of his team suffering - maybe dying all in the name of rescuing him.

"You'd prefer I storm Atlantis and take Ladon by force?" No, that hadn't been what Rodney had in mind - but if it worked for Kolya... But it hadn't last time, had it? Kolya didn't wait for him to reply. "Ladon is mine, one way or another. Protecting him is a waste of my time." He paused, and flashed a feral smile. "And more pain for you than you'd like, I'm sure."

Rodney bit back on an Earth curse that would have even Sheppard looking at him in admiration for even knowing and sighed. "What did he do to you?"

"He took what was rightfully mine."

Rodney could understand that. Many men and women had died back on Earth because someone had taken something that was rightfully mine. The bloodshed was unnecessary and Rodney knew it was now - and not just because it was his life.

---

"Unscheduled offworld activation." Elizabeth wasn't looking forward to this transmission. She had spent too much time in the last ten minutes, just pacing her room, her hands shaking even as she had tried to stop them. Ladon had joined her not long ago, having searched the list of planets and come up short. They were running out of options. He had remained silent, and it was starting to fray her patience, feeling herself one step short of doing what John had managed to keep himself from doing, and punching the Genii in the face. Part of her was glad that John had managed to channel his rage, even if that had meant him breaking his hand. It wasn't that she wanted her Military Commander out of action, but she had seen the signs of his inevitable breaking. He had mercy; he had granted it on many an occasion, but Elizabeth was concerned that he had none to spare the Genii in this case.

The capture of Rodney McKay had put the relationship that existed between SGA-1 on the edge of a knife, and as dangerous as the team was on a normal day, with one if it's members held at ransom; and with torture on the agenda, she wondered just how long it was going to be before one of them snapped; maybe all three.

Of them all, John had started to break, and she had seen the look in his eyes when he was watching Rodney; flayed and silent. With a sigh, she turned as Ronon and Teyla entered the control room, Sheppard behind and to their left. He kept his gaze from meeting hers, and she mistook it for shame, until she saw the rage burning behind his eyes. His gaze settled on Ladon, and Elizabeth took a half-step forward, afraid that she would have to avert yet another attempt to hit the Genii.

Ronon's back straightened, and Teyla laid a restraining hand on John's arm, and Elizabeth was surprised to see John back down, but his eyes lost none of their fire. She wished that she could see at least some remorse in his eyes, he had to know that he was potentially dragging this out, but she saw nothing but rage and determination; a determination to rescue Rodney and make Kolya pay; of this she was sure.

She knew she had to stop it, even if she wished herself to put a bullet through Kolya's head.

"Doctor Weir? We're receiving a transmission." The words seemed to ring through the silent Control Room like a shout, and Chuck hadn't even been able to meet her eyes when he'd delivered it. With a tilt of her head, he accepted her command and the screen once more showed Kolya's face, shining with sweat and anger pinching his cheeks.

Maybe Rodney was making this hard for him, but from the forlorn figure she could just make out behind the Genii, she knew that wasn't so.

"Doctor Weir. It has been three hours."

"Where is Doctor McKay?" She had asked the question even before Kolya had finished speaking.

"I'm pleased to see you are wasting no time. So neither will I." Kolya's eyes were hard this time; cold, and she felt something run up her back. Something was different about this, and she wasn't going to like it.

Kolya was moving, and she could see Rodney, pain evident on his face. His eyes remained on the floor, not once meeting anyone’s in the Control Room. "Ladon Radim. Will you turn him over in exchange for Doctor McKay?"

She felt everyone's gaze on her, and her eyes flickered to John's. His were the only one's not looking at her. They were burning a hole in the screen, straight at Rodney and something like an invisible hand squeezed her heart at the expression on his face and she knew. It made it all the more harder to shake her head. "No."

"I can only conclude that you doubt my sincerity."

John visibly deflated, and it was like so much hope breaking that Elizabeth was forced to look back at the screen - and what she could see threatened to drop her to her knees. This time it was no Genii with a whip that was coming through the door. "Kolya, no!"

John took a step toward the screen, face angry and words were falling from his mouth that Elizabeth wished he would stop. "I could have left you to rot down in that hole, Kolya! Don't do this!" It was almost a plead, but the anger and pure hatred underlying the words made even Elizabeth shiver.

Kolya just looked at her. "The choice is yours Doctor Weir. Do we have an arrangement?" She couldn't answer him, her attention on the - Wraith - behind him and she could see the moment Rodney realised what was going on. He looked up and the scream that rips at the gag across his mouth made even Ronon look away. John hung his head, hands shaking by his sides.

"Very well." Kolya too her silence the wrong way, but by the time she could think enough to try and stop him, the Wraith is given the opportunity to feed, and his hand was on Rodney's chest, sucking.

And the life drained from Rodney's eyes.

TBC