Part 15

Jack watched Daniel pick at his food for the fourth day in a row and sighed.

"I know it's not the greatest delicacy in the world, Daniel, but you gotta eat it anyway."

Blinking, Daniel looked up with a tired smile.

"I'm just not hungry, Jack."

"Like you weren't hungry yesterday and the day before ?"

Jack crossed his arms, glaring at his friend on the hospital bed. Daniel continued making circles with his vegetables, twirling the spoon in his fingers. Daniel shrugged and then winced.

"Back still hurting ?" Jack asked casually, watching Daniel's expression.

Something flitted across Daniel's face.

"Um...yeah..."

He sighed, putting down the utensil, pushed away the table extension from over him and leaned back into the pillows.

"Daniel."

"Later," Daniel mumbled.

He rubbed his eyes wearily, dropping his hands immediately so his fingers wouldn't brush across the wounds along his temples. Jack noticed this but didn't say a word.

"How... how're the others doing ?" Daniel asked carefully.

Jack paused, remembering checking on Tesh and Smith earlier.

"Good. They're recovering." He thought back to Sanders, undergoing physical therapy. "Sanders is in rehab right now."

"Oh."

Nodding towards Daniel, Jack continued.

"You could use a go at the gym, too." He didn't like the way the gown on his friend looked big and baggy. Fingers, already slender before, now looked skeletal. Jack's study drifted up to the face and his jaw clenched as he realized that the cheekbones had now become gaunt. "Or... you could go see them. They've been asking about you."

"Maybe later." Daniel picked at the material of his blanket that was covering his legs. Aside from his fingers, Daniel was very still, as if glued to the bed.

The older man watched this for a bit, feeling very much that he wanted to leave the room but he knew if he left, it was just going to be harder to come back in again.

"I said I don't want to talk to him," Jack snapped back at Sara.

His wife flinched but held her ground. She watched her husband pace the living room back and forth, hands restlessly going from his hair to his pockets.

"Well, you can't keep up like this either." Sara kept her voice calm, hiding her shaking hands by pretending to wipe them on the dishrag. "Every night you're not sle-"

"I said no." Jack's voice dropped dangerously. Sara actually stepped back a bit and he realized with shock that it was because of him.

"Damn." He walked over to her, grabbed the hands he saw hiding behind the soft cloth and squeezed them gently. "I'm sorry." He could feel the trembling in her hands within his.

"Will you at least talk to him?" Sara whispered. "Doctor Kl-"

Jack dropped her hands quickly and backed away.

"I don't need a shrink to tell me how I feel !"

"He's just there to listen. He's a military psychiatrist so you don't have to worry about-"

"I said no." Jack walked over to the cabinet where he knew familiar bottles were quietly waiting for him.

"You're going to talk to that instead ?" Sara's voice held a bitter tone.

"I'm fine, Sara."

"Fine when you have a bottle."

Jack stared at the glass doors, into the compartments where the bottles were.

"Just let me deal with this in my own way. It'll pass."

He opened the door, the hinges creaking so loud that he almost didn't hear Sara leave the room.

"Jack ?" Daniel poked at his arm tentatively, eyes staring at him worriedly.

Shaking himself out of his daze, mentally cursing himself for the indulgence, Jack grinned.

"Sorry. Not trying to say you're boring company here."

"Shouldn't there be... stuff for you to do ?"

Jack shrugged.

"We're on standby for the time being, Daniel."

"Oh."

Jack looked away for a moment, focussing on the IV still attached to Daniel.

"I... want to ask you... about what happened..."

He could hear the bed shift as Daniel stiffened. Jack refused to turn around. If he did, he would see the same frightened look on his friend's face, the minute shivering and the pale hands that were twisting the covers. If he saw that again, Jack was going to drop the questions and do the same routine - smile, pat the hand, say never mind, drop the subject.

"W-what..." Daniel swallowed, staring at the back of Jack's head before dropping his gaze to his lap. "I don't remember anything, Jack."

"I could show you SG-5's report, Daniel," Jack offered quietly. "Sanders doesn't remember much, but he did recall most of his surveillance before they att-"

"No." Daniel's voice cracked. "I think I have a pretty good idea from this," he waved towards his own bandaged wrists, nodding behind him towards his back. "Of what h-happened to me. I don't think... I don't want to know any more."

"I don't think you can stop yourself from remembering, Daniel." God knows I tried.

"I'm not," Daniel murmured, his eyes on his lap.

"But you're not trying," Jack forced himself to say. "Daniel, you can't just-"

"I'm not doing anything here !" Daniel's voice rose in panic. "I just d-don't remember ! I'm not doing this on purpose ! Why do you think I'm doing this on purpose ?"

"I'm not saying that you are-"

"I just don't remember, Jack !" Daniel's hands yanked at the blanket's edge as his words picked up speed. "I just don't. I tried, but I can't get anything. There's nothing there to retrieve and I-"

Jack grabbed Daniel's hands to still them. The young man froze. Jack leaned forward until he was looking directly into his friend's eyes.

"No one is blaming you for not remembering. No one."

"I-I just don't..." Daniel turned his eyes pleadingly towards Jack. He pulled his hands away from the older man's grip. "I just don't. Okay ?" Daniel turned slightly on his side. He leaned back into the pillows.

Jack understood the stiff posture.

"Tired ?"

"Yes," Daniel answered softly. "I want to sleep."

No you don't, because each time you do, you end up either screaming for me or for anyone to come help you and then you're up the rest of the night or until Doc gives you something to sleep.

"Okay," Jack said quietly. "Get some sleep. I'll be right here."

"You don't have to," the voice floated from over Daniel's shoulder.

"I know."

"You could go." Daniel's voice went lower and lower. "You don't have to baby-sit me."

"I know and I'm not."

"I'm fine, Jack."

Jack smiled sadly at his own words being flung back at him, oddly realizing this was how his family had felt.

"I know, Danny."

"I'm...f-fine..." Daniel's voice cracked.

"Get some sleep." Jack pulled the covers up to Daniel's shoulders. The man tensed at first, but then slowly relaxed. "I'll be here when you wake up."

Daniel nodded, still not turning around. After a while, Jack could see his breathing slow to sleep and was getting ready to settle down in the cot Fraiser had set up for him for a nap.

"T-thanks, Ja'k," Daniel murmured sleepily.

Jack patted Daniel's arm, looking sadly at the hunched up posture under the covers and whispered, "It's okay, Danny. Get some sleep."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Jacob Carter wearily pinched the bridge of his nose. His stomach churned at the smells of blood and decay but he took another step in. P7J973 looked innocent enough, but Tery'ka had detected the entrance to the underground complex hours later, beyond the surrounding forest.

He just didn't expect to find what was inside.

The hallway was dotted with doors leading to dark cramped cells that reeked of dying occupants inside. But not all of them.

Just five.

"Five," Jacob murmured. "God damn it. So it's true."

"She broke them after all," Tery'ka said unsympathetically.

"We don't know that. We are a pretty stubborn race."

"And she is a stubborn power hungry monster."

Jacob looked around at the cell he was standing in, his nostrils flaring at the stench. He could see spots of dried blood in one corner and it made him turn away.

"I've found the chamber," Tery'ka said flatly. It was devoid of any feeling and Jacob was having trouble believing that he was one of the good guys.

"Where is it ?" He followed the To'kra leader down the hallway, then to the left until it opened up to a massive room. He skidded to a halt at the entrance. "My God."

Tery'ka nodded.

"Here is where she turned them."

The shackles hung rusty red on the ceiling, telling silently of its prisoners, swinging slightly in the damp, humid air. The torches stood at each corner unlit. Jacob lit some and the room was bathed in light. As soon as it was, the man wished he hadn't lit the torches at all.

Discarded whips with stuff clinging to them that Jacob suspected was flesh, lay on the ground, dropped in the haste of escape. Irons, broken and stained, were on a pile shoved in one of the corners. Rats ran rampant around the room, unconcerned about the visitors, squealing, snarling at each other. But what got to Jacob the most was the smell.

The smell of blood.

People had cried in here.

Jacob didn't smell the tears that might have been shed but the scent of blood that lingered in the air told him all about them.

"She broke them after all," Tery'ka repeated. He bent down and picked up a broken cup. Sniffing it cautiously, his eyes flashed and the host Ry'thoth emerged. In a softer voice, one filled with compassion, Ry'thoth handed the cup over to Jacob.

"I smell nimertha. She was here after all."

Jacob took it and took a whiff, grimacing as the smell they taught him to look out for was recognized.

"Damn."

"We have to find them, seek the one out and use him to find her." Ry'thoth paused. "She has the device. With it, the nimertha could stay invisible and return at the time she requested."

"I don't like it." Jacob shook his head. "I don't like using them as bait and-"

"She will make use of the device," Ry'thoth reminded Jacob. "Or worse... sell it to the highest bidder in exchange for an army."

"I thought you guys destroyed all of them after news of Ra was killed !" Jacob snapped.

"She might have obtained his favor and gift before his death."

"She was away when it happened," Jacob murmured. The realization of it darkened his eyes. "Damn. There's no other way, then."

"She must be found."

Jacob looked around and was about to check the time when he realized that he no longer wore a watch. Habits, he thought ruefully.

"Let me get the GTO and we'll notify them."

"We can't."

"Why the hell not ?" Jacob demanded.

"Even when the nimertha does take over, the memory will still be there. If the one were aware that his identity was in danger, we may never catch him in time or follow him to her. We have to find some way to go there without alarming the one."

"Damn. We can't just go there and say we were passing through ! We have to give them something !"

Eyes glowed briefly and Tery'ka was back.

"Shall we go ?"

Part 16

They were coming again.

He gasped as he fell to the floor. Fighting, struggling, he fought the hands that were on him, barely enough air drawn in to scream. Kicking, twisting, he tried to escape. One hand trapped his wrist and he cried out in alarm, twisting away, trying to burrow into the walls of his cell, to hide in the shadows-

"Daniel !"

No ! Stay away from me ! No !

"Daniel !"

Have to hide ! Have to hide !

"God damn it, Daniel ! Wake up !"

Jack ?

Opening his eyes, Daniel saw black cloth and olive green fabric, rubbing against his cheek. Focusing, he soon realized that his head was on Jack's lap.

"You awake ?" Jack asked gruffly, still shaken.

He had dozed off briefly when he heard a strangled cry out. He got up and found that Daniel had fell to the floor, instantly curling up to a tight ball, huddling against the wall by his bed. The young man fought his every attempt to get him up and back on the bed, whimpering as hands touched him. So Jack pulled Daniel closer, head cushioned by his lap, and he shook his shoulders, shouting his name.

"Ja'k?" Daniel whispered, head turning a bit until he saw the chiseled features of the colonel. Eyes still blurry, they looked dazed as he tried to concentrate on the flicking image before him. "What happened?"

"Bad dream." Jack said shortly. He looked up and shook his head at the sight of Doctor Fraiser by the door. The doctor, seeing that Daniel was calm now, pursed her lips but said nothing as she slipped back and closed the door quietly.

Click.

Daniel shuddered as he heard the door closed. Jack placed a hand on his forehead, smoothing back the damp strands of sandy colored hair.

"It's okay. It's just the door." Jack paused. "How about getting up? Floor's cold."

Daniel curled tighter within himself, arms wrapped around himself, violently shaking his head. Jack sighed, patting his shoulder.

"You'll sleep better on the bed, Danny."

"No..." Daniel whimpered, his mind still lost in the darkness that surrounded him. "They'll see me..."

"Who?"

"I...I don't know..." Daniel's voice broke into a soft sob. Jack brushed a hand against his hair, carefully avoiding the red scabs along the sides of his temples.

"Okay. Okay. We'll stay right here then, okay?"

Daniel nodded, his eyes already fluttering close.

"I mean, what the hell, I wasn't thinking about standing anytime soon, right?" Jack joked lightly.

Daniel didn't laugh. He just sighed deeply, turning slightly so his face was facing away from Jack, but from the older man's angle; he could see the tears glistening just under the lashes.

Jack cupped Daniel's cheek with his hand, turning the young man slightly so the head wouldn't roll off his lap. He winced as he felt the needles of legs too long at one position begin. Shrugging, Jack reached behind and grabbed the discarded blanket. He draped it carefully over Daniel, tucking it under his legs and over his feet, still bandaged to protect them from his burns.

Shifting, Daniel opened his eyes again and stiffened.

"Shh...it's okay. It's just me."

"Dark..."

"Your eyes are still sensitive to light. You hadn't been exposed to day-"

Daniel's lower lip trembled as he rubbed his face into the blankets, his cheek scraping against Jack's thigh.

"Dark..."

Jack eyed the light switch, inches away from his fingers.

"I'll turn them on. Hang on."

He shuffled slightly, carefully of the bundle on his lap, but suddenly Daniel tensed, his hands frantically flung out in panic.

"Sh...I'm not going anywhere. I'm just turning on the lights. See?" The room brightened a little to prove his point. "Better?"

Daniel's eyes squinted. "Dark..."

Jack turned the dimmer on brighter. "How's that?"

Sighing, Daniel nodded. Jack breathed a sigh of relief. He settled back into position, his back against the side of the bed, and rested his hand on top of Daniel's head. Chills ran up his spine as he recalled a similar situation.

"They're coming." He said dully, the script too stale for him to inject some hope into it. Nevertheless, the words eased the lines of pain on the younger man's face and he curled to his side, head still on his lap and went to sleep.

And for each and every day, he said the same lines, said the same lies, until that young man died.

Jack angrily wiped his sleeve against his eyes, cursing himself silently. Damn it! He's not dying here! He just had a bad dream!

Daniel stirred slightly, mumbling something under his breath. Jack stroked the clammy forehead, frowning at how cold it felt. The young man sighed, shifting a bit, curling tighter with the blankets wrapped around himself like a shield.

Too tired to try and carry him back up the bed and reluctant to have anyone come in and startling Daniel, Jack laid his head back on the edge of the mattress and tried to sleep. But it was hard because he knew tomorrow; he was going to have to ask Daniel the same questions again.

++++++++++++++++++++

"Janet?" Sam whispered as the doctor closed the door quietly. "How's Daniel? I heard-"

"He's okay." Fraiser peered through the window, seeing the top of Jack's head against the bed edge. "He had a bad dream."

"About what happened?" Sam asked hesitantly. Janet nodded.

"I would assume so." Janet sighed in frustration. "I can't get close enough to Daniel to find out for sure."

"I'm sure he'll help Daniel out with it." Sam was referring to Jack.

Janet pursed her lips, not remarking to that.

"What?"

"Nothing." Janet just said. It really isn't any of my business.

"Janet."

"I just think..." Janet crossing her arms, walking away from the room. "Daniel's not going to open up even to Jack."

"He just doesn't remember." Sam protested. "I'm sure once he remembers-"

"He doesn't want to remember, Sam." Janet said abruptly. "There's a big difference between can't and won't."

"I'm sure Jack-"

"I'm not." Janet said abruptly. Sam stopped, staring at her in shock. "Look. There's obviously something going on here that we don't know about." She looked at the Captain tiredly. "Jack...the Colonel doesn't really look motivated or too anxious to get Daniel's memory going here." She sighed again. It seemed like she was doing that a lot. "I can understand the need to protect Daniel, to shield him. God knows I had my moments like that each time I walk into that room, but..." Janet glanced back down the hallway to where Daniel and Jack were. "Coddling him, telling him that it's okay when it's not, letting him drift into some corner of his mind will not help him!"

"Daniel trusts him, Janet." Sam said softly. "I know the Colonel is not going to just sit by and let Daniel bury this all away. He's not going to violate that trust by doing that. He's always push Daniel hard for his own good. I'm sure he'll do the same this time. He...Daniel just needs to recover first. That's all."

Fraiser looked resigned. "I hope so, Sam. Otherwise I'm really going to hate myself if I have to force myself to keep Jack out of this." She walked away, leaving Sam to mull over her words.

Part 17

"I'm really sorry, Terry," Tesh murmured, watching as Anderson rubbed his shoulder ruefully. The sergeant waved the apology off.

"Hell, I get worse from tripping over Booker's mess," Anderson joked as he eyed General Hammond, who smiled briefly. He murmured goodbye to Tesh, before returning to his guarding post outside the isolation room.

"Son, I know this is hard. But-" General Hammond started just as Doctor Warner entered the room to join him.

"You want to know what I remember, sir," Tesh interrupted, meaning no disrespect. General Hammond nodded.

"You've read Smith's report ?"

"Yes sir. I agree with what Smith said. It helped fill in some... gaps for me, sir." Tesh paused; something flitted across his eyes. "Helped me remember some more too, sir."

"Hang in there, man," Smith whispered from his position on the floor as the guards took Tesh away. The soldier heard the door slam shut on his comrades before he was half dragged down the hall.

Even with eyes that were swollen, barely open, Tesh could still make out the room he always passed, the one with the shackles, similar to the room he was always taken to. But for some reason, this room always drew his attention. As the guards took him down the hallway, the room drew his eye once more.

A lone figure, standing by the doorway, laughed as he spoke in Go'uald. Tesh could hear a softer voice, liquid smooth, answering him back. As he was brought closer to the room, he heard Doctor Jackson moan and he was half tempted to call out to the man but remembered the last time - all it had got him and Jackson was extra lashes on their backs.

It infuriated him that they were kept separate from Jackson. He hadn't seen the young scientist since they had first arrived through the Stargate. Even Sanders and Stone, who were kept apart from him and Smith for a while, were brought to the same cell a few days later...

"That's right." Tesh stopped, his voice dull. "You said it was only three days."

General Hammond nodded. Doctor Warner, who was in the room, asked quietly if Tesh needed to rest. The soldier shook his head.

"Let me... finish while it's still in my head... before it gets jumbled up again."

General Hammond and Doctor Warner looked at each other worriedly.

He saw the white hair on the man's head, almost glowing under the sparing light before he turned around and Tesh saw his eyes glow. Then the guards turned the corner and Tesh couldn't see them any more. As they fastened the irons on his wrists once more, one of the guards roughly tilted his head back and a foul smelling liquid in a dirty cup was poured down his throat.

"Next thing I knew," Tesh went on, his eyes glazing over with memory, "it was over and the guards dragged me out again."

Groaning as cuts on his feet scraped along the slimy floor, Tesh barely saw the room until they were practically standing right next to it. The guards stopped and Tesh fuzzily wondered if they were back at his cell again.

Instead, he saw two guards emerging out of the chamber, guarding a slender woman who was leaving the room. She paused, turning back. A man, hidden in the shadows, came out with Doctor Jackson limp in his arms. Tesh moaned softly when he saw the vacant eyes of the scientist, staring at nothing, his chest unmoving...

"Wait a minute," Warner interrupted. "Jackson was dead ?" He glanced over to Hammond with concern.

"I thought he was," Tesh murmured. "But then when I woke up here, Sergeant Anderson told me that Doctor Jackson was alive."

"Be careful with him," she cautioned as the man readjusted his grip on the still form.

The other man bowed his head slightly. When he lifted his head again, Tesh saw who it was.

Colonel Jack O'Neill.

"What ?" General Hammond exclaimed, nearly dropping the recorder that was taping this. "You saw Colonel O'Neill ?"

"Yes sir... or at least... I thought it was Colonel O'Neill." Tesh frowned. "The moment I saw him here, I thought he was the guy I saw before, but then it turned out to be him... or someone who looked like him." The soldier looked abashed. "And all I could think off was that the bastard deserved to die. It kept going in my head, over and over again."

"This liquid," Warner interrupted, "that the guards gave you... was it a hallucinogen ?"

"Beats the hell out of me." Tesh shrugged. "Each time they forced us to drink that shit, I blanked out, which was probably good." The soldier fingered the scars on his arms. "Remembered the pain when I woke, it probably would have been a hell of a lot worse had I been... awake to feel it coming." Tesh looked at himself again. "Damn... if I didn't know better, I should have been dead long ago."

"We think the hidden drug found in all your bodies release a hallucinogen in your body and a charge to revive you after death," Warner explained. "Apparently, it also serves as a healing process, speeding up the normal rate of recovery."

"Well... whatever it was..." Tesh frowned. "Must have done a number on my head, 'cause I could have sworn that was the Colonel over there. I can almost still hear it."

"What ?" Hammond asked.

The soldier's voice turned cold.

"That Colonel O'Neill must die."

Part 18

"Ja'k..." Daniel whispered between cracked lips, trying very hard not to move so the chains wouldn't dig deeper into his wrists.

Jack stood there, staring stoically back at him.

"Help me... please..."

Silent, Jack just watched as the guards came over to Daniel with the bucket of water. Daniel cringed, hissing as iron bit into flesh, as he tried to avoid the steaming water.

"Ja'k..." Daniel pleaded again before the water hit.

Hot water met blood and Daniel screamed, arching his back as pain racked his body once more, twisting as wounds ignited with shock. Jack just stood there watching, as soft laughter floated around the room. It actually sounded louder than Daniel's screams.

"Do you not hate him ?" the voice taunted. "Do you not wish to make him suffer as you suffer now ?"

Daniel gasped, his body trembling from the strain. He could hear his heart hammering against his chest, slowing with each breath he struggled to take.

"Do you not wish to kill him ?" the voice grew colder. It stepped closer, into the lone spotlight in front of him. Jack stood just at the edge of the darkness, watching silently as the slim figure approached Daniel. Jack did nothing as the person reached out and caressed his cheek.

"N-no..." Daniel mumbled. "You're dead..."

"Perhaps... maybe this is all a dream. You would like that, wouldn't you ?"

"P-please..."

"He stands there and does nothing," the voice hissed as a smile curled on its beautiful face. "Do you not hate him for that ? He betrays you !"

"N-no !" Daniel screamed as he felt the whip again.

"Believe me."

Fingers on his hair now, stroking the head as if he were a child.

"Believe what my voice is telling you. He is not your friend. You feel hatred for him."

"N-no." Another lash.

"You wish to kill him"

"L-lies..." Another.

The fingers curled into a fist, yanking hard at his hair, pulling at his wounds, jerking his head back until he saw the ceiling draped with cobwebs.

"What I tell you are not lies."

Daniel tried shaking his head in denial but only felt the grip grow harder until spots danced before his eyes.

Thump thump.

Daniel's heart was so loud now. It thundered in his ears.

"Yes or no ?"

Thump thump.

"Yes or no ?"

Thump...

The voice was by his ear now.

"It will be yes, my sweet. We will have our vengeance."

Daniel felt himself fading and he hoped desperately for death to come before he answered, but the guards lashed out again and he heard himself beg and say-

Yes.

He said yes.

Thu...

Daniel jerked awake, screaming.

Jack sat up straighter, as a flailing hand caught him in the jaw. He tried to get Daniel to calm down but the young man had rolled off his lap and onto the ground, shivering as he tried to wrap his arms around his own body.

"Daniel !" Jack grabbed his friend roughly by the arms, wincing as a bandaged foot kicked him in his side. He came up behind Daniel, pulling the man to his chest, his arms wrapped around Daniel's arms, pining them to his side, trapping the young man efficiently in his grasp.

Daniel wailed as he tried to break free, still lost in whatever nightmare his mind had conjured up, his head thrashing left and right in denial. Jack just whispered into Daniel's ear over and over again, hoping his words would reach him. They didn't. Somehow, Daniel twisted free and Jack tripped over legs as he struggled to grab him again. Just then, the door flew open before Jack could yell out a warning not to let Daniel escape.

Sam stood there, mouth opened in shock as she saw Jack grab Daniel once more, dropping to the floor, arms tight around his flailing body to keep it still. She didn't hesitate to rush over then, adding her own flow of soft words, hoping to reach her friend. Sam blinked away the hot tears that threatened to spill as she watched Daniel jerk away from her touch.

"Daniel..." Jack murmured, one hand on Daniel's forehead, hoping his touch would bring him out like it had the last time. Daniel sobbed silently, too exhausted to fight any more, boneless against Jack's grip around his chest.

The three sat there, on the floor, only their heavy breathing indicating that any of them were alive. Jack looked exhausted as he leaned back against the bed, arms still restraining his friend around the chest. Sam was the one with the hand on Daniel's forehead now and she murmured to him as she stroked in soothing circles. After a while, Daniel seemed to blink, looking around disorientated, then moaning when he realized it was only a dream.

"Ja'k ?" Daniel called out hoarsely and he felt the arms around him loosen.

"Yeah," Jack replied tiredly.

"Dream ?"

"Yeah."

Sam moved her hand down to Daniel's arm now.

"We're here, Daniel. It's going to be okay."

She glanced over at Jack - she felt worried when she saw his narrowed eyes and set jaw and she wondered about Janet's words. Sam had dismissed them immediately. She knew the colonel would do the right thing.

Right ?

Daniel's body sagged a little and Jack's arm tightened around him to support him this time. He shifted slightly, shivering as the cold floor finally struck him.

"I... died..." Daniel gasped softly and he began to pull away from his two friends. "I... oh my God... I died..."

"Daniel, it was just a bad dream. You didn't die," Jack said but let go of Daniel anyway. He watched as the young man shuffled to the bed, clinging to the metal frame as he shivered. "Why don't you let us help you back up on the bed ?"

"I died, Ja'k," Daniel repeated, refusing to move. "I... God... after I said y-yes... I... died..." The trembling increased and Daniel clutched onto the frame with a wild desperation. "I couldn't.."

"Daniel !" Jack said sharply. The young man's head whipped up, his eyes wide. Jack looked Daniel right in the eye. "It was only a dream. Okay ?"

"Sir, he might have been-"

"It was only a dream," Daniel repeated dully, his shoulders dropping a bit.

"Come on," Jack said softly, ignoring the stares from Carter. "Let's get you back up on the bed here. Okay ?"

"...'Kay."

With Sam's help, the two got Daniel to his feet. The anthropologist swayed slightly, his hand tight around Jack and Sam's forearms. Weaving like grass in the wind, Daniel slowly reached the bed before he paused.

"They're not going to find you, Daniel." Jack understood Daniel's hesitation. "It's okay. You need your rest here. Carter's going to stay with you for a while, okay ?"

Sam recovered from her surprise and just nodded.

"I'll be right here, Daniel."

She smiled at Daniel as they eased him down onto the bed. She said nothing as Jack carefully draped the blanket over Daniel's legs, covering the bandaged feet, before drawing it up to Daniel's chest. The young man looked at Jack anxiously while the colonel did this.

"Where are you going ?" Daniel blurted out. Then realizing how that sounded, Daniel ducked his head, "Sorry. I didn't mean to... I... I'm okay... there's no need for you to stay and..."

Jack dropped a hand on Daniel's shoulder, shaking it until he lifted his head again.

"I'll be back, Danny. I just have to get something... done first."

Daniel looked like he was going to say again that Jack didn't have to, but the trembling of his fingers as he clutched the edge of his covers betrayed him and Daniel just nodded numbly. Jack paused and it looked as though he was going to change his mind when he sat down at the edge of the bed.

"I'll wait until you fall asleep, Danny."

"Don't know... why..." Daniel murmured, blinking rapidly as he struggled to stay awake. "Feel... so scared... Ja'k... I..."

"It's okay." Jack took hold of his wrist, absently rubbing the inside of it and waited until Daniel's eyes fluttered closed. He watched Daniel's breathing even out before he dropped the hand he was holding.

"Sir ?"

"I'll be back, Carter," Jack responded tiredly. "Gotta go talk to someone here."

He got up from the bed. The bed shifted a little and Daniel stirred uneasily. Sam, seeing that Jack wasn't going to do anything, reached out and brushed back Daniel's hair with her fingers.

"Sir-" Carter started, but when she turned around, Jack was gone.

Part 19

It happened when they left the underground complex.

Jacob paused at the crest of the ridge, taking a deep breath of the fruity scent of the breeze, in an attempt to cleanse the stench of the dark tunnels inside the hidden structure. He eyed the calm landscape, the ruins of a village down below.

Looks can be deceiving, he thought, remembering the vile mixture of smells. He turned to his companion to ask something when he heard a low whine just behind the ridge. Between two distant valleys, a Go'uald death glider rose like a predator out of hiding, screaming as it soared towards their direction.

They barely had time to even look for cover when it swooped down and started firing. Twin rows of dirt shot up with them standing in between. The two men didn't try to turn around and fire at the craft, their only intent to reach the edge of the forest that surrounded the village and the only thing that stood in their way of the Stargate. Jacob cursed as he pulled the other To'kra down behind some trees.

"I thought you said this planet was deserted !" Jacob shouted above the din of his comrade firing his weapon at the death glider. The To'kra cursed when the blast didn't even faze the craft.

"We must have missed another complex here !" Tery'ka replied. He flinched as a tree exploded a few feet away, sending splinters of wood flying in all directions.

"Why the hell are they even still sticking around here ? The SG teams must have come through here to get their comrades already. Why take the risk of being discovered ?"

Tery'ka shook his head.

"I do not know." He stiffened when he heard another glider in the distance, joining forces. "We can not stay here."

"Big news !" Jacob said sarcastically as he eyed the edge of the forest. "Look, we better split up and try and outrun those things ! Just head for the Stargate and get to General George Hammond. Tell him about the nimertha ! You have the code ?" He shoved the device that was given to the To'kra in case they needed to reach the Tau'ri into Tery'ka's hand.

"Yes." He looked at Jacob with a slight frown.

"Good. I got mine, too. Look, if they get you, destroy that thing otherwise-"

"Understood." Tery'ka's eyes glowed briefly and Ry'thoth emerged. "Good luck, Jacob. Safe passage, Selmac."

Jacob's eyes glowed and Selmac responded with a brief smile.

"Thank you, Ry'thoth. Now hurry. The Tau'ri must be warned about this ! Either one of us must try and reach the Tau'ri."

Nodding, Ry'thoth counted to three and then ran as fast as he could, darting in between trees. Selmac followed the man's tracks before the glowing eyes dulled and Jacob returned.

"Good luck," the former general murmured. He looked down at his To'kra clothing, grimacing. "What I wouldn't give for a kevlar vest and a bazooka right now." He scowled at the death gliders, which were splitting up. One followed Tery'ka and the other circled the forest, seeking him out.

"Okay, kids, let's see if you can out smart an Air Force General," Jacob smirked as he slipped into the forest, using the shadows to conceal himself. Zigzagging, making a deliberate trail away from the Stargate, Jacob hoped that if there were any ground forces, they wouldn't realize his plan. He could hear the distant hum of weapons firing and he could only hope that Ry'thoth or Tery'ka, he could never figure out what to call them, was about to escape unharmed.

Jacob dropped down a ditch, carved from a small trickling stream and followed the flow of water away from the Stargate. He could hear the glider above him, shrieking its displeasure when it couldn't find him under the cover of the trees. He smirked again.

"Not so great now, huh ?" Jacob chuckled. He froze, however, when he heard the familiar whine of Stargate rings being activated, just beyond his cover, in the clearing where the village was.

Jacob's face darkened.

"Shit." Reinforcements. "This isn't good." He darted away from the sound, his hearing picking up the sounds of Jaafa crashing through the underbrush.

One thing about these guys, Jacob thought as he picked up his pace, no longer concerned with stealth, these guys don't know the meaning of subtle. The guards were loud, even from afar and Jacob could easily track their movements behind him, turning where he could avoid them.

He didn't realize that he was being herded like cattle.

Skidding to a halt, Jacob gaped at the precipice below his feet, a yawning drop below him, a huge river crashing against the rough walls. He turned around, about to head the other way when he saw the Jaafa bursting through the bushes, staff weapons aimed right at him.

Scowling, the man stood there. He couldn't hear the death gliders anymore. Hopefully that meant either Tery'ka escaped or that they didn't know he had another To'kra with him.

The guards pointed the opened weapons steadily, the heads blossoming and sparking with deadly charge. Jacob counted five. That was five too many.

"I am honored the To'kra have made an appearance here for my audience," a deceptively soft voice said from behind. The guards stepped aside, making way for their leader, shadowed within a soft red cloak. Their leader made no move to remove the cloak, but Jacob already knew who it was.

Jacob grunted, unimpressed.

"I'm not here to be the welcoming committee."

"Where are the others ?" the leader asked.

"There are no others."

The leader tilted its head, studying him.

"You are lying."

Jacob shrugged.

"Not my fault if you're so distrusting."

"You will tell." The voice was confident.

"With your nimertha ?"

The voice grew hard and Jacob could see eyes flashing from inside the hood.

"How did you know about the nimertha ?"

Grinning, Jacob just shrugged again.

"I also know about what you took from Ra."

Soft laughter from the leader as a hand waved casually, dismissing the piece of information.

"It does not matter." An order was snapped to the guards, and one of them stepped forward, closer to Jacob. The general automatically took a step back, his heel in line with the edge of the cliff.

The leader laughed again.

"Your tongue is as sharp as another Tau'ri I know, but like him, you will be dead."

"Don't feel like being dead yet," Jacob quipped.

"You will tell me everything about the To'kra," the voice continued, unperturbed.

Jacob smiled, his eyes dark as he made his decision.

"I don't think so." He spun around abruptly. As he heard the staff weapons begin to hum, he jumped.

Sorry, kid, Jacob thought briefly of his daughter Sam. A hot piercing pain burned his shoulder blade before he plunged to the rushing rapids below. The second he hit the water, darkness took him as swiftly as the waves did and he barely had time to give a silent prayer in hopes that his comrade was able to reach his friends in time.

Part 20

Jack stood in front of the glass window in the conference room, his arms crossed, his face scowling at the Stargate below.

The colonel's dress uniform jacket lay draped over one of the chairs, the metal buttons gleaming under the dim lighting.

Teal'c paused before coming in, uncertain of what kind of welcome he would receive for his intrusion. The man had been short, his words clipped as he passed through the crowds when the memorial service was over. It was only by chance, glancing up at the observation booth above, that Teal'c had realized where O'Neill had gone. As he had seen many do, he knocked on the door first.

"O'Neill."

Jack grunted a greeting, his eyes still on the Stargate. He said nothing as Teal'c walked up beside him, then stood by his side. The Jaafa observed the last of the soldiers, as they were removing the podium and the stands where the flagpoles had been inserted. The flower petals from the wreath that O'Neill and Captain Carter had sent through the Stargate were swept away from the top of the ramp.

Some of the soldiers, still in their dark blue uniforms, were lingering below, talking in soft voices as they watched the cleanup. Despite the activity, the embarkation room below was unusually quiet, the mood sober. It was a familiar atmosphere that Teal'c understood. It was universal perhaps, in all cultures.

The time after a funeral.

"Daniel Jackson would have been honored by the words you have said, O'Neill." Teal'c said, remembering the speech the colonel had given, simple in its text, yet the Jaafa had felt every single word.

He watched O'Neill as he sighed, running a hand through his hair. The Jaafa wondered if the team leader could still hear Daniel Jackson screaming for help as he was burning, as he did.

"Would have had his jaw on the floor if he had heard me," Jack muttered. "Never really said any of those things in front of him." Turning a bit, Jack gave the Jaafa a sidelong glance. "Isn't that strange of us... humans ? To never say a kind word about someone until they're gone ?"

"Daniel Jackson knew," Teal'c said positively. "He knew you were always... concerned for his welfare."

Jack sighed softly, straightening out his shoulders tiredly, only for them to slump again. The colonel looked at Teal'c for a moment and the Jaafa caught a glimpse of tired brown eyes before they turned back to the Stargate below.

"I wish I had said something before." Jack paused. "Up there... during the eulogy, all I could remember was how many times I snapped at him, yelled at him, ignored him..." He rubbed his face tiredly. "Damn it."

"Daniel Jackson knew," Teal'c repeated.

"I wish I could be so certain." The colonel stepped away from the window. "But I'll never know now, will I ?" He waved a hand angrily towards the Stargate. "Because that... thing... took away my chance to know for sure and just left me with more questions than I care to think about."

With that, Jack grabbed his jacket from the chair with a sharp jerk, sending the furniture spinning on its axis, rushed past Teal'c, and headed out the door.

Teal'c eyed the doorway his friend had departed through, then looked back at the Stargate. His face was unreadable as he turned away. Teal'c needed to get ready for this... wake... Captain Carter had told him about.

Eyeing the familiar scene before him, Teal'c said nothing as he joined Jack at the window, once more standing in front of the glass, watching the activity in the Stargate room below.

Jack didn't acknowledge the newcomer, nor did he move aside to make room. He stood there, arms crossing his chest, staring at the Stargate with bitterness on his face. Teal'c just stood there, needing no words himself, and understanding the colonel's need for quiet. He could see the tension in the human's shoulders, the jaw clenched in internal anger and he suspected some of the anger was not directed solely at the Stargate.

It was also at himself.

In the beginning, when he was still testing the waters, trying to learn about his new human comrades, Teal'c had been puzzled by the concern O'Neill had shown towards Daniel Jackson. Teal'c had to admit that the scholar was more vulnerable, with his lack of training or experience in combat and of the harsh cruelties of war, but the Jaafa had also come to realize that Daniel Jackson's lack of a heart hardened by battle and death was also his strength.

But sometimes, even now, after all this time together as a team, it was easy to forget that.

The Jaafa could almost see the weight of burden the colonel took on himself for allowing Daniel Jackson to be a part of SG-1. Teal'c suspected that O'Neill wasn't even aware of shouldering the responsibility, acting automatically in putting Daniel Jackson within the circle of his protection.

It was something he had found himself doing as well. Any debt, any guilt, that might have been a starting point for him, making him start watching where the human scholar walked, had evolved into an instinct to protect.

And yet O'Neill still would not share his burden.

So Teal'c just stood there, by O'Neill, watching the Stargate below in the dim light.

"He shouldn't be going through that thing."

Teal'c made no comment, although he did raise an eyebrow at those words.

"And yet he goes through every single time and return each time a bit... different." Jack sighed, still not turning around, as he watched the crew do their routine radiation checks, unaware of the dark eyes studying them from above.

"It was Daniel Jackson's choice." Teal'c had to say something. "He went through the Stargate willingly. For his wife..." The Jaafa paused. It was his fault that Daniel had to go through the Stargate. He was the one who had taken her away from Daniel. "If the blame needs to be laid with someone, it should be with m-"

"Don't even start that again, Teal'c." Jack turned away from the window and paced around the conference table, his hands in his pockets. "Daniel never blamed you and neither do I." The man paused, looking back at the window where Teal'c still stood. "I'm just wondering... if his choosing to do this was really worth it."

"Worth... it ?"

Jack's eyes narrowed, his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Worth his soul."

"You grieve for something which is not lost," Teal'c commented boldly. The colonel darted a surprised look towards his friend. "Daniel Jackson is strong. He has a spirit that had fought the false gods many times before. I have... faith."

A small smile appeared on Jack's lips.

"You have eloquence, Teal'c." The Jaafa bowed his head slightly, acknowledging the compliment. The colonel ran a hand through his hair, stilling when it reached the back of his neck. Jack rubbed at the nape wearily.

"Let's hope his... spirit will take him through this, Teal'c," Jack said softly.

"You will help him through this, O'Neill. I have faith in this as well."

"You're the only one," Jack muttered, missing the raised eyebrow from the Jaafa, about to turn away from the window when movement on the table caught his eye.

The glasses and the pitcher, always filled with water, began to shake slightly, a sign no one would have noticed had Jack not filled a glass with water just minutes ago. Now that lone glass, away from the tray, began to shake slightly, the water inside jumping in reaction to minute vibrations coming from the activation of the Stargate. The colonel whipped his head back towards the Stargate in time to see the first chevron lock.

"Unauthorized travelers !" the PA system boomed as the alarms began to wail.

Without another word, Jack dashed out with Teal'c hot on his heels. Rushing past the soldiers who were running towards C block to the embarkation room, Jack headed straight for the technician up in the observation booth.

"Who's coming through ?" General Hammond demanded, coming from behind Jack. The general mentally ran through a schedule. No one was due back yet.

"I'm getting a special code, sir," the technician nervously reported, his eyes darting left and right, reading the codes in the computer screen. "It's the code assigned to the To'kra-"

"Open the iris," Hammond ordered, exchanging a concerned look with Jack and Teal'c. "Where's the signal originating from ?"

The technician yelped as the destination show up on the monitor.

"P7J973 !"

"What ?" Jack exclaimed, his eyes glued to the Stargate as the sixth chevron lit up.

Before anyone could comment, the iris blossomed open, revealing the sparkling event horizon of the active Stargate. A few seconds later, a man dressed in To'kra costume, stumbled out of the Stargate, his right hand clutching his left shoulder. He fell to his knees, a device tumbling out of numb hands.

"Close the iris ! Get a medical team down there !" General Hammond demanded as he followed Jack and Teal'c down to the embarkation room.

Soldiers, with their rifles still trained on the man, made way for the three to approach. The To'kra looked up, revealing the wizened features of a man with long gray hair tied back. His eyes glowed briefly which made the men tense, but Hammond shook his head. The soldiers stepped back, their guns still on the newcomer.

"You are... General Hammond ?"

"Yes." Hammond paused as he heard the medical team arriving through the bulkhead doors. "And you are-?"

"Tery'ka of Menkos... of the To'kra council." Tery'ka got up shakily, waving a hand at the medics. "I do not need assistance. I will heal quickly enough."

Jack exchanged a surprised look with Hammond.

"Isn't it a great risk to travel by yourself ? And why were you at P7J-"

"There is no time," Tery'ka interrupted. "I am sorry, but I need to speak with you about what had happened on that planet. It is of the utmost urgency."

That got everyone's attention.

Before Hammond could herd everyone to the briefing room, Tery'ka continued.

"I must speak with those who were there on that planet." Tery'ka pulled out a small cylinder like a container from within the folds of his tunic. "I must speak with those who were poisoned with the nimertha."

Part 21

Sam jumped when she heard the sirens and glanced at Daniel with concern. The noise didn't wake the young man, who was still deep in slumber. She chewed her lower lip, drawn by the alarms - worried that they meant bad news, yet reluctant to leave Daniel's side.

Unbidden, her thoughts turned to Jack. She glanced behind her, half expecting the colonel to be standing there, ready to continue his vigil by Daniel's bedside, but to her surprise, he wasn't there.

Ironic,, Sam thought as she leaned into her seat, unconsciously mirroring Jack's attempts to get comfortable, I try to get him to leave, to take a break and then I spend my time wondering why he's not here any more. The Major sighed.

Why did this happen ? It was supposed to be a routine mission.

"Colonel." Sam's ashen face appeared at the doorway of the locker room. She stood there, hands behind her back, shoulders straight.

Jack waved his hand impatiently in her direction as he tied his bootlaces.

"Carter, I'll be out in a minute, okay ? For crying out loud, us guys need the locker room too sometimes." He didn't look up, otherwise he would have noticed the way she was fidgeting by the door.

"Sir."

The voice sounded so... stunned, so breathless, that Jack looked up then, at the stark white face of his Major. His hands stilled, the ends of his laces dangling from his fingers.

"What is it?" Jack got up from the bench, his face serious as he realized that Sam was here for something more important than taking her turn in the locker room.

"We... were expecting SG-5 and Daniel to be returning within the hour, so when we heard the alarms announcing incoming travelers, we assumed..."

Jack nodded, not wanting to interrupt.

"When we didn't receive the code, General Hammond got worried and told us to override the iris and open it... in case... in case there were injuries and they couldn't get a code through the wormhole."

"Happens all the time." Jack knew that. "That's why we got the security detail waiting by the Stargate in case it isn't our people." His eyes widened as he realized something. "What ? There were injuries ?" The colonel was about to push past Carter, to head towards the infirmary. "Is Daniel- ?"

Sam looked as though she wanted to cry, but military training kept her face composed, although her lower lip trembled a bit.

"SG-5 didn't return through the Stargate... Something was... tossed back through the 'Gate, sir."

She pulled her hands from behind her back and showed Jack what she was clutching. An olive green hat, spotted with rusty red stains. Jack realized with dismay that the stains were blood, noticing too how the floppy brim was crumpled, the hat torn at one side, the string that dangled from one edge was frayed....

"No..." Jack breathed, his words barely audible, but the Major heard the shock underlying them.

It was Daniel's hat.

Sam shook her head, as if clearing it of the memories, unwilling to remember the long wait before they were finally sent off to find them.

It had taken all her resolve to not start demanding that the technicians punch in the coordinates for the planet, all her patience to sit through the briefing with General Hammond, and through the tedious procedure of sending another probe through to make sure it wasn't a trap.

When the Stargate first burst into sparkling light, to let the MALP probe through, she was half tempted, military protocol be damned, to rush through along with the probe to find her friend. When she had glanced over to Jack and Teal'c, she realized that they were thinking the same way.

Then the search finally began.

Johnson put up a hand, halting his team. He eyed the sky with a frown, glancing over to her and her team.

"Getting dark. Think we should make camp, Colonel ?" Johnson left it as a question, knowing full well that it was too dark to continue any further, but also knowing by the set jaw O'Neill was sporting that the man might disagree if Johnson made it a statement.

She watched as Jack looked around with a scowl. She could understand how he felt. It was only hours since they had gone through the Stargate to P7J973 and already the sky was darkening for nightfall.

"Damn it," Jack muttered low, but she and Teal'c heard it clearly. They looked at each other worriedly as the colonel started barking orders to make camp.

Camp was set up quickly enough. Energy that had been set aside for the search was now focussed completely on the task of making a base. Sam got the meals going before anyone asked, just grateful to have something to do. Every so often though, she would look up and see the colonel standing by the edge of camp, looking out at the surrounding forest. His back was rigid, his shoulders stiff, and he barely acknowledged when Teal'c came up to him and softly informed him that dinner was ready.

At first she feared that the colonel was going to refuse but he silently went over to the center fire, accepted the metal cup with barely a grunt and sat down by his tent.

"How you folks doing ?" Johnson asked, sitting down on one side of the log next to her. His dark face was serious as he accepted his MRE.

"Great," Sam answered automatically, wincing as she realized that it sounded like something the colonel would say. She looked up at Johnson, about to apologize but by the understanding look on the SG-3 leader's face, she knew there was no need.

Just then, Jack plunked down his cup on the ground and went into his tent. He muttered something about taking the next watch, since Teal'c had volunteered to take first watch already. Then with a zip of the tent, the man shut everyone else out.

"I half expected him to demand that we keep on going," Johnson muttered.

Sam said nothing, but silently agreed.

After a few awkward words, Johnson realized that she wasn't in any mood to talk either. He bid her good night, gave a small smile and rejoined his men.

She could see Anderson and Tomes glancing over to Jack's tent occasionally. Sighing, she wondered if she should try and talk with the colonel, but his posture since the start of the mission basically screamed for everyone to back off and she was too tired, too worried to try at this point.

The only one who could talk to him now, the only one he would listen to, was missing.

Once we find Daniel, it'll be okay, Sam thought as she extinguished the fire and went to bed, hoping daylight would come soon so the search could continue.

Sam shuddered as she recalled how the structure looked when Teal'c finally found it, miles away from the village Daniel was planning to study. It took them three days before they found tracks, fresh footsteps marring the otherwise pristine wilderness. Following them, they found the stone archway half submerged in the swamp that edged along one side of the forest.

SG-3 split up, Anderson and Booker on one side, Johnson and Tomes on the other. At Jack's nod, Sam and Teal'c crept inside the arched doorway, barely visible behind the twisted net of tree branches and vines. Jack followed quickly after, checking behind him to make sure that SG-3 was following and no one else.

The first three guards were easy.

Too easy.

With a brief exchange of fire, the guards fell to the ground, with not even a cry from them. Sam had watched the colonel walk over to them, checking them out by nudging them with the butt of his rifle. Then he whistled softly, signaling all clear, and gone down the hallway.

After a few minutes, and a few more small battles, they found their missing comrades.

Johnson reported quietly that all of SG-5 was accounted for. All that remained, the only person left to find, was the one making Jack pace the hallways with a look of smouldering rage and barely hidden concern - Daniel.

And she found him.

"This one," she said softly, peering through the small cell window, catching sight of a shadow cast from the lights that hung just outside the window opposite the door.

She could barely make out a huddled form, pressed against the corner of the cell, silent, not reacting to the sounds of the door bolt sliding open. She tried the door, relieved that it hadn't rusted shut from the green slime that caked the locks. Jack was hovering so close to her, she thought the colonel was going to kick the door down had it been rusted closed.

As soon as the door swung open, Jack marched right in, ready to take his friend away from here. Then he skidded to a halt.

"Oh my God." The colonel's voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. He stared at the curled up form, the way he was shivering uncontrollably, at the blue eyes staring at him without recognition.

Sam remembered swallowing. She could feel Teal'c standing behind her, keeping an eye out for any guards. She dropped to her knees and joined Jack in trying to gain hold of Daniel, who had revived a little. The young man jerked back from their hands, his own arms wrapped around himself protectively. Jack grabbed him by the shoulders and got an elbow rammed into his stomach.

"Damn it... hold him still... he..."

"We have to hurry," Sam murmured, wishing they had the time to be gentle, but they didn't dare risk getting caught by whoever it was responsible for this. They couldn't risk leaving Daniel here again.

"I know but we have to calm him down first before we could... ow !" Jack reeled back as a scraped fist connected with his chin. She grabbed the colonel anxiously by the arm. Freed, Daniel shuffled away from her. She felt her eyes water at the sight.

Daniel feared them.

The colonel rubbed his jaw, shaking his head at Teal'c when the warrior looked like he was going to step inside to assist them.

"Damn it !"

"Are you alright ?"

"Got me good, but I'm all right. Hold him still, Captain. Let me try."

Sam slipped her hands around Daniel's shoulders and was shocked to feel bony joints beneath dirty fatigues. She wanted so much to just wrap her arms around him and weep, for the pain her friend must have gone through, for the time it had taken to find them, but now was not the time or the place.

Easing him against the wall was difficult - Daniel was constantly trying to kick them, punch them, all the while making frightened sounds, which came hissing out of cracked, dry lips. Despite the alarming condition he was in, Sam was glad to see that Daniel must have been fighting his tormentors the same way.

If only Daniel could see that they weren't his enemy.

The scientist cried out, almost lurching forward into her arms as soon as his back met the wall. Jack cursed, pulling Sam's arms away from Daniel's shoulders without a word of apology. As her hands dropped from the man's back, Sam brushed against the torn shirt. She lifted her hand up to her face and was dismayed to see her palm slick with blood.

"Damn, his back is pretty bad. Lean him against me, I'll see if I can carry him." Jack came closer, one hand pushing Daniel's head down until it rested in the hollow of his shoulder.

Teal'c couldn't keep silent.

"I can carry-"

"No, we need you to help give us cover, or we'll never get out of here. I'll... I'll do it." The colonel bowed his head, almost to the point where his chin was resting on top of the blood-matted fair hair. Then he looked up and Sam saw the determination in his eyes as he slipped his arms under Daniel's knees and around his shoulders. With a slight lift, Jack cradled Daniel in his arms. As he stood, the older man paused, grunting.

"Sir ?"

"Nothing... I just realized..." Jack looked down at Daniel, his jaw set and she could have sworn she saw a muscle in his jaw twitch. "He lost weight. He's a lot lighter than I thought. Those bastar-"

"Sir."

Jack sighed, turning around slightly, back towards the door - there he found worried faces peering into the cell. SG-3. He tensed, turning Daniel slightly away, as if to protect him from prying eyes. Daniel whimpered, moving restlessly in Jack's grasp.

The colonel, despite all his self-control, couldn't stop the tremor in his voice as he dropped his head near Daniel's face, whispering softly to the young man.

"Shh... It's okay. It's over. We're taking you home."

Sam looked at the face, remembering the wild eyes focussed on her when they first came in and knew.

It wasn't over. It was only just beginning.