Mallory opened his eyes cautiously unsure of what to expect, he quickly jumped to his feet as he saw he was surrounded by darkness. It was then he realised there had been no discomfort when he had miraculously jumped to his feet. Looking down he saw no wounds, no blood. He was dressed in his usual immaculate suit.

What is this? Is this death?

A sudden whimpering sound stole his attention in a flash, his eyes darted over to the source of the disturbance and frowned as he saw a body quivering a fair distance away. Mallory started to walk towards the sudden apparition when another figure appeared above the first holding a rather nasty looking knife.

"No, please don't!"

Gareth almost fell over in shock when he heard the words, he'd recognise that voice anywhere. It was Q. Mallory put on a burst of speed as he saw the knife arcing down towards his friend, no matter how fast he willed his legs to move Q still looked as out of reach as he had when he set off.

"Q!" Mallory screamed as the knife found it's target and was buried deeply into the quartermaster's chest.

The hand holding the knife disappeared right before M's eyes along with the body of the man holding it, not before he saw the sneering face of John looking up at him.

I killed him, I know I did…

Q's gasps brought Mallory's attention back to his hurting friend, finally Q was getting close and within seconds M was at his side, skidding to a halt and almost slipping in all the blood pooling around Q's body. Mallory found the ugly wound and swiftly used his suit jacket to stem the messy wound, it was no use the blood came right through the material as though it wasn't even there.

"Q hold on." M cried desperately as he felt tears prick his vision, how could he let this happen to Q? He was supposed to protect him.

Q started choking on his blood and Mallory flinched as the quartermaster's flailing limbs continually smashed into his arms. Eventually Q managed to grip M's arms and with great effort lifted his head from the ground.

"You said you'd protect me…"

Mallory stared into his friend's petrified eyes as he truly felt lost for words. M couldn't help but flinch at the accusation he saw in Q's face before it grew slack. Mallory watched silently as Q's head thumped back down to the ground with a thud. As he sat shocked at his dead friend's side Mallory couldn't tear his gaze away from Q's lifeless eyes, unmoving, never seeing again.

Gareth felt anger like he never had and started screaming at the sky, yelling and crying to anyone who would listen, never letting go of Q's lifeless body as he shook with emotion.

"Henry just wake up!" He howled over and over again until his throat was raw.

His vision started to grey and when he next looked down Q was gone, not dragged away just gone. The body had disappeared, the blood vanished, the only sign of the thing ever happened were the tears streaking down his face. Gareth began to panic as he looked for the body of his friend, just as a bright white light erupted in front of his face.

Mallory shot upright in shock breathing heavily, gulping in the air greedily as though he'd been starved of oxygen. His eyes shot open in a desperate attempt to work out what the hell was going on. That's when he felt the pain.

"Arrrghhh." He cried out involuntarily as he slammed his eyes tightly shut immediately, his surroundings had been far too bright and was already causing the most horrendous agony in his head.

Mallory weakly struggled as he felt strong but gentle hands on his chest guiding him back down; well he resisted until he realised he was struggling to breathe and that soon became a priority.

"Easy M, it's Bond."

The tone was familiar and even in his confused state Mallory decided to trust the as yet unidentified person, the words made him feel safe so he rolled with it. He felt sharp pains from his chest as he managed one shuddering breath after another, careful to start with small amounts. It didn't help when he kept breaking out into wheezing coughing fits and he felt his lungs burn as he forced air in and out of them.

"I'll fetch the Doctor." Another voice, not Bond, before rapid footsteps strode away.

"Breathe M, just breathe." Bond instructed gently as he gripped his hand.

Mallory decided the plan was sound, he wanted to focus on getting his breath back without sending shooting pain's through his chest each time. It felt incredibly sore so he imagined he'd not been wrong when he'd guessed a few broken ribs. He clung to Bond's grip tightly as his breathing finally eased and his chest stopped feeling so tight; he then realised what must have happened and almost kicked himself for it.

Stupidly he had been caught up in a nightmare and must have woken up panicked, he had probably strained the majority of his stitches and broken bones pulling that stunt. Of course he was assuming that had been a nightmare and he wasn't simply reliving Q's death. Q wasn't dead was he? No, Mallory was certain Bond had gotten to him in the cell.

No matter how hard he tried to wish away the images he couldn't get the sight of Q's lifeless eyes out of his mind; he had to see for himself that the quartermaster was alright. Slowly this time, he flickered open his eyes squinting slightly as his sight adjusted to the differed light levels. The pounding in his head was still causing some distress but not enough to abandon his quest.

He finally managed to focus on the figure sitting next to him and eventually made out the familiar blue eyes and blond hair, it was Bond. He ignored the concerned look and shifted his sight to the agent's left in search for the quartermaster. He spied another bed next to his and after Bond shifts obligingly, he finally found the person he had been looking for, Q.

The poor kid was swaddled into bandages and still looked pale but the heart monitor was beeping away steadily and Mallory could see the rise and fall of the young man's chest. Q was alive. Gareth felt tremendously guilty as he observed the state of the quartermaster, his only solace was that Q appeared to be sleeping peacefully and pain-free. Mallory sighed deeply with relief as he simply watched Q breathing for a few moments, his nightmare had been just that.

He remembered Bond was in the room when he felt his hand being untangled from someone else's, he looked shocked at the marks he had left on the agent's hand. Mallory obviously hadn't realised how hard he was squeezing his agent's hand.

Bond only smiled and waved off the concerned look, shaking some life back into the hand. "Don't worry sir, I've had worse."

That smirk, god he had missed that smirk. M would never admit it to 007, he was already unmanageable the last thing he wanted to do was encourage the man. But there was something so comforting about the smile, something that Mallory clung too as it reminded him of MI6, of normalcy. He felt tears threaten to appear but just about managed to choke them back, the turn of events was embarrassingly becoming a bit much for him.

Bond's scrutinising stare wouldn't have missed the action but thankfully the agent remained silent, there was no judgement in the familiar eyes. They both started to the other end of the room as a door swung open and a familiar Doctor walked in, it was then that M properly took in his surroundings and realised they were in the medical wing of MI6 and that he and Q were the only patients.

Mallory sat silently as the Doctor picked up a clipboard and began a series of brief tests, including shining a pen light into his eyes which really didn't help the pounding headache he had. Mercifully the checks were short and after the Doctor explained the majority of his ailments he instructed that Mallory was recovering well, and he was to continue resting with no stress or strain. Funnily enough the last part of the delivery was spoken directly to Bond who smiled easily and leaned back in his chair innocently. Mallory snorted inwardly at the image.

The Doctor jotted a few more things down on his clipboard before setting off at a brisk pace to the exit, Mallory recognised a busy man when he saw one and was grateful that the Doctor had other places to be. He hated being poked and prodded.

Mallory tried to ask Bond what happened back in the cell when he annoyingly started coughing again, he imagined the water-boarding was to blame for the rattling and unreliable lungs.

"Do you want a drink?" Bond asks gently.

M managed a small nod, thankful that Bond was astute enough to realise his needs. His throat felt raw from coughing and was becoming more painful with each attack.

Bond returned with a glass of water and a straw; even under M's withering gaze continued to push the straw towards M's mouth unperturbed. It was annoying actually, he could usually send men scurrying in fear with that look but never Bond. It was one of the many reasons he respected the agent so much even though the man could drive him to madness, he respected someone who stood up to people without fear.

The cool water soothed Mallory's raw throat and he lapped it up greedily at first, water had never felt so good. The cup was withdrawn as he finished and whilst Bond replaced the water, M took a good look at himself.

He winced as he stared down and realised he looked a lot like Q, covered in bandages, gauze strips and plasters. At least there wasn't any blood in sight. He even had thick bandages wrapped round both of his wrists and frowned at the sight before he realised they did sting, he guessed he mangled up his wrists pretty badly when he had thrashed against the zip ties. He obviously hadn't noticed the plastic biting into his skin at the time but then to be fair he did have other things on his mind.

After a quick internal scan he realised the main aches were coming from his chest, lungs and his heart. Everywhere else just felt numb or a faint stinging sensation. All in all he must have been on a lot of medication to feel so little.

"You know you were shouting his name?" Bond asked quietly, interrupting Mallory's thoughts. M glanced up to see the agent nodding his to Q indicating the subject of his question.

Gareth felt a blush creeping over his cheeks and he felt embarrassed; he had never imagined he was having the nightmares out loud? How much had he said?

"Bad dreams."

There was no reproach in Bond's features, he just nodded understandingly without judgement. M also saw a flash of pity cross the agent's features which was strange, it was not an emotion 007 ever really displayed.

Mallory's thoughts returned to the reason he had tried to talk in the first place. The last thing he remembered in the cell was feeling his chest tighten and his heart aching, had it been a heart attack? "What happened?"

"When your heart was restarted the first time, the idiots didn't keep a close enough eye on you. Your heart was beating out of rhythm causing it to beat far too slowly, you became bradycardic quickly and loss consciousness from the lack of oxygen."

Mallory nodded slowly as he associated the symptoms he felt at the end with oxygen deprivation, he had felt so light headed. A sudden thought crossed his mind as he remembered slipping away.

"Did I die?"

Bond smiled, the kind that didn't reach his eyes. "Technically yes, but obviously you're not dead now."

M snorted at the very characteristically 'Bond' answer. "Obviously."

Silence hung between the pair as Mallory struggled as a particularly nasty wave of nausea passed through him, he rode it out gritting his teeth as the feeling made his head pound faster. "How long were we there for?"

He looked at Bond and watched the agent shift uncomfortably, another thing he has never seen 007 do. He could see remorse and regret shining back at him from the agent's piercing eyes. "82 hours."

M blinked in shock. "It felt like weeks…" He stopped abruptly as another coughing fit took over, aching his ribs again in the process. Each time it happened it was getting quicker to recover but each cough left residual pain in his chest and it was building.

Bond looked uncharacteristically guilty as he watched silently through his friend's pain. "I'm sorry we didn't find you sooner."

When he had recovered Mallory looked sadly over at Q and remembered the moments before Bond had stormed in. "You found us just in time 007."

After seeing Bond's quizzical expression, M explained. "Just before you stormed in… I was ready to tell them everything. I had even started my sentence when you blew the place up."

M squeezed shut his eyes tightly against the pain of the memory, of the anguish he felt for Q. "Q had reached his limits, he was pleading but they didn't listen. They were going to drown him over and over again James, I couldn't let them do that to him." He whispered, tears glistening in his eyes as he stared at Q's sleeping face.

Mallory observed Bond's fists tighten as he heard the horrific threat, no doubt the agent had already guessed the majority of what the pair had been through from their injuries and all the equipment in the room. But hearing it made it real and frightening.

"The man you killed, he was going to do that to Q?" Bond finally managed to breathe out, unable to contain his fury as his grip tightened on the bed rail.

"Yes." Mallory whispered.

"Then you didn't kill him slowly enough." Mallory had never seen Bond look so angry, it was truly terrifying. Is this what his enemies must see? The rage and madness swirling in those depths.

Q whimpered. Mallory and Bond immediately looked towards the quartermaster, anger forgotten in a heartbeat. Bond stroked the young man's hair and whispered into his ear until Q's peaceful sleep returned. He was obviously having a nightmare. M almost felt embarrassed at witnessing the intimate scene, like he shouldn't be watching.

"Has he woken up before?" M asked finally when Q looked peaceful again and Bond had calmed down.

"Once." The agent sighed heavily. "He was having a particularly bad nightmare and he wouldn't stop thrashing, the doctors thought he was going to hurt himself. I managed to bring him round, he was only conscious for a few minutes though."

Mallory was glad that Bond was around for Q, he realised the exact same thing had happened when he'd resurfaced in the throes of a nightmare. They made quite a pair.

"He was worried about you." Bond started chuckling then, and appeared to be on the same wavelength as Mallory. "In fact the two of you acted identically when you first woke up."

M smiled warmly at the thought, Q was a very caring person. One of his better qualities. His grin faded and so did Bond's as the seriousness of the situation sobered their moods, Q and he may be healing well physically but mentally was a whole other matter. He and Q were already suffering from effects, who knew how long it would take to get over the memories? Would they ever? From Mallory's experience he knew the answer already, they would never get over it completely. All they could do was try to lock the harrowing experiences away.

Mallory's gaze didn't miss Bond holding Q's hand gently. "He's going to need you James."

James glanced up surprised at the use of his first name and his eyes softened.

"You're both going to need me Gareth. Don't think you're handling this alone, none of us will let you."

"Us?" Mallory asked confused and oddly touched.

Bond indicated to all the cards at the foot of his bed that he hadn't even noticed, he couldn't count the number but they were all clearly get well soon cards. Mallory felt himself welling up at the sentiment, he did work with some great people.

Without waring he felt his eyes drooping as another dose of morphine worked it's way into his system, numbing the aches and burns. Just as he was about to doze off he remembered something important, something Bond needed to know urgently.

"Bond I need to tell you something…" Annoyingly he ended up coughing again and his chest ached under the attack, he was just so damn tired…

James was suddenly in his view pressing gently down on his chest, apparently he was trying to rise. The agent could clearly see how exhausted he was and that he was valiantly fighting a losing battle against the drugs. "It can wait M, you need to rest."

M threw Bond a serious look, imploring him to listen and understand the urgency in his tone. "This can't wait James."

He could see the inner battle Bond was fighting as he spied the agent's hand reaching out towards a needle. For one heart-stopping moment he actually thought Bond was just going to knock him out with a sedative, he certainly wouldn't put it past him. Something changed Bond's mind though, stayed his hand. Probably the seriousness in Mallory's expression.

He took his chance before Bond reconsidered. "They weren't working alone. They had an employer, no meetings or names though, communication was all done over the internet."

Bond's surprised face meant he had been right to fight the sedative, this was fresh intel. James suddenly looked grave as he thought through the implications, they hadn't caught the real guys behind the threat. This wasn't over.

Bond seemed to come to an inner conclusion and Mallory noticed him switch to 'agent' mode in an instant. "Q branch are stripping apart all the tech as we speak, they'll find out who this employer is and we'll stop them." The last was an obvious threat, Bond was pissed at these guys and M felt sorry for anyone Bond got his hands on.

Mallory felt himself drifting again and almost allowed it as Bond gently pushed him down into his pillows, he wasn't done yet though. "One more thing…" He managed barely.

Bond leaned in close as M whispered. "There's a mole in MI6, that's how they took us, how they knew about the project, knew Q's real name…"

James mouth hung agape as his mind registered what he'd just been told, completely shocked just as M and Q had been. "Are you sure?"

Mallory could only manage a single nod but it was enough to get the message through, he watched Bond's face harden. The agent's burning eyes screamed bloody murder. A traitor had done this, one of their own. It hurt Mallory to think about it too.

He could feel himself slipping deeper into the darkness so he gripped Bond's hand urgently to keep him grounded for a few more seconds. He needed to tell Bond one more important thing. It was vital, if they got this wrong they could all end up dead. "Trust nobody outside of this room."

Bond nodded acceptingly, understanding the need for secrecy. The traitor could be anyone and telling others could only put them in danger. Until they knew more everyone was a suspect.

Mallory finally drifted off seconds later, exhaustion and drugs finally winning the battle. He allowed himself to tumble into the comfort of the dark, now that he had told Bond what had been weighing on his mind. He trusted 007 to keep Q safe from danger until they could get back on their feet and root out the mole whoever he or she was, that was enough for M.

James Bond leaned back in his chair heavily, carefully extracting his hand from M's surprisingly strong grip. He felt shell-shocked, the turn of events changed everything. He had thought this nightmare was over, it turned out it was far from it. As he watched over Q and M he vowed to never let either man out of his sight, the traitor was still loose and undiscovered in MI6 and there was still a powerful, well-funded employer out there that would stop at nothing to get the pair in their grips again. Nothing could make him leave their bedsides now, no-one.

Bond seethed silently as his anger for the mysterious traitor grew, looking at Q's bandaged body only made it increase faster. How dare anyone betray Q and M like this? They were going to pay, and they would pay dearly. The agent withdrew his pistol loaded a bullet into the chamber and rested the weapon on his knee, he was taking no chances. Not with their lives.

Bond continued his silent vigil completely oblivious to the person watching the camera feed of the medical wing, the person had clearly seen enough and closed the terminal down discretely before returning to work amongst the bustle of MI6 employees.