FIC: Dog Tags - Chapter 3
Oct. 4th, 2007 07:47 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
x_erikah_xDOG TAGS
By ErikaHK
Title: Dog Tags
Chapter: 3/9
Word count: ~1.460
Rating: PG13 (some language and graphic violent scenes)
Characters: mainly John Sheppard, but also features some Rodney McKay near the end, with appearances of Evan Lorne, Ronon Dex, Teyla Emmagan and Elizabeth Weir.
Genre: Drama, Angst, H/C, Gen
Spoilers: for Sunday and Phantoms
Disclaimer: Stargate and all related characters are the property of MGM Television Entertainment. Not done for profit, just for fun.
Summary: After a team fails to return from a mission, Sheppard goes to find out why and ends up alone lost on an unknown planet with no means to return home. Shep Whump. Set in Season 3 somewhere after Sunday.
Thanks lauriel01 for the beta!
I’m really very sorry for the delay, Lauriel had internet problems for a few days.
…
Chapter 3
Day 2
The following morning crept up slowly. He had little sleep over the cold night and he still chilled with the slightly cold breeze that invaded the cave through the entrance. He remained at his huddled position for a long time before he decided to stretch his body.
John yawned and rubbed his face to take the sluggish feeling away. He peeked outside and found the sun shining shyly from behind the mountain range far into the horizon beyond the hill where he stood. The day appeared inviting with no clouds visible in the sky. He entered back inside the cave and gathered his stuff after a brief breakfast eating another half power bar. He pointlessly tried to ignore the spikes of pain from his broken tooth that had only grown worse since his last meal. Now every time he drank the cold water from the rain caused a sharp pain that dug through the inside of the broken piece and worked its way down the root. It took several seconds before the pain subsided. He made a mental note to seek Dr. Reinhardt once he got back home.
When he headed back outside the temperature was already a few degrees higher and the sun heated his shivering body. His frown disappeared and he started back down the hill.
He stepped carefully on the slippery stone, still a little wet from all the rain of the previous day. He trusted the rocky wall to his left to keep his balance, which had improved considerably from when he had hit his head. His memory was still very fuzzy, but he felt slightly more confident today. He reached the tree line, observing intently for any clues that would trigger his memory into finding out the way back towards the stargate. He listened to the sounds of the jungle, but even that sounded alien.
When he had made it into the cave he was working fully on automatic, without paying too much attention to his surroundings, solely looking for the means to survive the rainy night. Now that he had to go back he felt unsure about the correct heading. He knew that his survival instincts would have told him the most logical course of action, so what he had to do was similar to reverse engineering.
He remembered the device being in a clearing. He turned and headed up once more. Glancing behind from time to time, he tried to spot any open space in between the trees. He mentally calculated how long it would have taken for him to reach the cave from the stargate, but had little success in coming up with a straight number through the haziness that night.
He got to a high enough place and climbed the sharp rock that cut through the hard ground and looked over the edge of a cliff. As he reached the top he took in a few deep breaths and shook the dirt from his hands. He looked down and was surprised to find that the length that he ascended wasn’t as long as he had thought, taking in consideration how tired he felt afterwards. The badly slept night was taking its toll, as his muscles ached slightly and his head throbbed at a steady pace. He wiped the sprinkle of sweat that came down his brow and removed his jacket. It was nearly
John dropped to the ground on the edge of the cliff, taking off and using his binoculars to sweep the forest below him. He took his time, examining every centimeter of green tops, until a bright light from the ‘gate’s metal structure reflected the sun on the lens of the binoculars. He smiled briefly. John memorized the direction he had to follow and laid out an invisible path, following it with the lens. When he was satisfied he put them back in his pocket and started on his way down.
…
His trek to the stargate was uneventful. He walked with weapon drawn, listening to all the odd sounds of animals, birds and insects, but fortunately none of these crossed his path. There was no trail laid out to follow, but the way was simple enough. John was guided by the moving sun and followed a single direction until the grassy clearing appeared before him. It was approximately
He stepped back when he felt something caught under the sole of his boot. A broken crystal lay in pieces in the grass. He pursed his lips and knelt observing below the blue dome. Numerous other pieces were broken and burned and the wiring was melted together with other structures. Even not being an expert on ancient technology he knew that the DHD was beyond repair. He got up and ran a hand through his hair. Dammit! He sighed loudly and closed his eyes.
“Good work, John!” He shouted in frustration. “You should feel lucky for not stepping through a damn space ‘gate, you moron!”
Of all the worlds he could have gone and this had to be the one. The one planet with a broken DHD. He remembered Rodney saying that without the device there was no way to dial out manually like it was possible in the Milky Way, and that the Pegasus stargates were different. So now here he stood, lost on some forgotten planet in another galaxy.
He was left with only one option. Survive until rescue.
“They will come. They always do.” He turned on his heels and headed to the forest.
He looked for a spiked piece of wood. When he found it, he walked back to the clearing and stuck it on the ground in front of the ‘gate. John then removed his wristband and put it on the wooden pole. It was a good enough sign to tell anyone looking for him that he was alive, and subtle enough not to attract attention if anyone else came, which he highly doubted noting the abandoned state of the DHD. After that was done he moved to the next task of his list.
He needed to find water and food. Looking down from the high cliff he didn’t see any river or water source in the jungle, but there could be springs in the mountains. It should be easy to find food on the forest and he had his knife to gather and his nine mil to hunt. He checked his ammunition and moved inside the woods looking for an easy prey.
Only a few minutes later he saw a small mammal coming out of a hole on the ground. It was a squirrel-like rodent the size of a rabbit, but had cat-like ears and yellowish fur. Silently he aimed his weapon and fired. The sound echoed in the forest and birds flew. He hit right on target. So, there will be roasted… whatever this is for dinner. He picked up his prize and went back to his cave.
On his way back he also collected some branches for a fire, set them down on the far end of the cave and went back down to collect more wood for stocking in case of another storm. After a few trips he was confident he had enough fuel to last a couple of days without replenishing. Sweating and tired, he settled down in the cave, drinking water from the canteen and wincing with the toothache. He rested for a minute before walking out again, disregarding burning legs and arms, the increasing headache, dizziness and the general tiredness from the sleepless night. He still had to explore the mountains.
He followed the rocky wall upwards, carefully choosing his way. The last thing he needed was to get lost. Just to make sure, he made an arrow marking on the stone with his knife, indicating the cave. He counted his turns and finally reached the top of the hill. It overlooked the valley bellow with enough distance for him to spot the stream of water he was looking for. The river was just on the other side of the hill, coming down the mountain range to the foot of the hill and into the jungle, flowing onward far beyond sight. He looked to the sky. It was close to dusk. John decided to leave it for the next day and turned around to get back before night settled.
…
TBC…
