I never thought I would have to see this place again, Jack thought as he eyed the hanging chains.
He grimaced as he heard Teal'c haul the last of the bodies away. They had come into a land of chaos, the guards they had killed were still there for them to find. Any rage Jack had felt when he first busted in here was gone - the sight of the bodies left him with a bad taste in his mouth.
The cell reeked of decay and sweat, it's stone walls barely muffling the sounds of the screaming and begging of the other cellmates.
Stop it, Jack told himself sternly. Focus here, damn you. The colonel rubbed his eyes and stared hard around the room once more.
"O'Neill." Teal'c entered the large chamber. "I have put them in one of the empty cells."
The colonel nodded. He flicked on his radio. "Carter, how're things going on your side?"
"Okay, sir. Smith and Tesh are checking out the cells right now." Carter paused. "But I don't see anything that would indicate another complex or... if they have my..." She didn't finish.
Jack looked at the radio sympathetically, understanding what Carter was going through. "We'll find him, Major."
"Thank you, sir." And the radio fell silent.
"O'Neill."
Turning around, Jack saw a frown on the Jaafa's face. "What is it ?"
"This smell." Teal'c waved a hand across the room. "It is quite familiar."
Jack darkened. He knew the smell too. The iron-tainted stench was evident even before they had entered the room.
"It's the smell of pain, Teal'c."
The Jaafa shook his head. "No, there is something else, O'Neill."
How Teal'c could even ignore the horrific scent long enough to find another Jack would never know. All he could smell was the blood and sweat that seemed to linger even after so long a time.
"Nimertha," Teal'c said suddenly.
Jack turned sharply towards him. "You can smell it here ?" The Jaafa nodded.
"It is very strong. There was once a large quantity here."
"Daniel and the others," Jack murmured. He pounded a fist into his other hand. "Dammit ! We don't really know what they were trying to do here !"
"To kill you," Teal'c reminded Jack, as if he was mentioning a forgotten appointment.
Jack grinned crookedly. "Not that I'm not flattered or anything, but surely there must have been other reasons besides that. I mean, whoever did this must have known that such an attempt would be difficult."
"They were tricked into believing you had failed them," Teal'c said, recalling the reports, the testimonies from the soldiers once they had woken up.
"By whom ?"
Teal'c had no answer to that one.
"You have many enemies, Colonel O'Neill," Tery'ka said, emerging from the back of the room. Jack jumped.
"Shit ! Where the hell did you come from ?" Jack barked, lowering his rifle. The Tok'ra did not even blink at the sight of the weapon drawn on him.
"There are many tunnels here that we have yet to uncover."
Jack glared at Tery'ka. "Did you find any sign of-"
"No." The To'kra looked over his shoulder, back to the newly revealed passage. "I have not seen this one before."
"Great," Jack muttered. "We'd better check out this tunnel you popped out of. Carter's got the east wing covered."
"This way," Tery'ka said, turning back quickly towards the tunnel he had come from.
Jack cursed as the Tok'ra disappeared from his sight too quickly and hurried to catch him up. That nagging feeling he had earlier was now screaming in his ears as he went further and further into the darkness with Teal'c in tow.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Tesh spat out the remaining liquid with a grimace. "I've tasted rations better than this shit, John."
Stone shrugged, wincing as his shoulder protested. "They're feeding us. Obviously they want us alive."
"But I guess no one said anything about the condition we have to be in," Smith muttered, massaging his forearm where he had tied part of his shirt to stop the bleeding.
Sanders groaned as he sat up with Stone's help. "Smith ? Tesh ?"
"Here, sir."
"Over here."
"Where's Jackson ?" Sanders glanced around the dim, cramped cell they were now occupying, his brown eyes turning black with concern.
"I saw him earlier, in the chamber," Smith murmured.
Tesh scowled as he eyed the hallways through the small cell window. "They must have him in another room, sir. He hasn't been with us at all."
"I don't think they even placed him in a cell," Stone said as he rubbed his leg tiredly, trying to force some circulation back into it. "They've been using us to get to him."
The others nodded.
Tesh abruptly banged his fist on the ground.
"Dammit !"
"Easy, lieutenant," Sanders muttered as he tried to get up. He waved off Smith's offer to help. The Major perked up when he heard footsteps.
"Sir." As he spoke, Stone pulled out a metal rod from his sleeve.
Sanders was surprised. "Where the hell did you get that ?"
"When they were busy with their... hospitality, sir." Stone grinned dryly. "When I fell down, I felt one of those under my leg and grabbed it before they could haul me out of there."
"You never lost consciousness ?" Tesh asked, back against the door as he eyed the window. Silently, he held up two fingers, then pointed to the left of the door.
"No. Why ?"
"I always wake up back here," Smith said, looking over at Stone, with a puzzled expression.
"Same here," Sanders muttered as he slipped over to the other side of the door. He mouthed "How far ?" to Tesh.
"Lost consciousness each time," Tesh said as he pointed five fingers, indicating five meters. The others tensed.
"So I have a higher threshold for pain ?" Stone remarked dryly. "Lucky me." He crouched down low, behind Tesh's knees, readying the thin metallic rod.
"Would explain why you always do better than me in the physical," Smith joked as he kneeled down next to him. He eyed the rod and realized that there was blood on it already. He looked away. Sanders placed a finger over his lips and the men fell silent.
At the sound of the bar sliding across, the door moving to swing open, SG-5 leaned back into the shadows.
A guard exclaimed something in his language when the four prone forms he had expected to find on the floor were gone. But, as he turned around to alert the others, Stone lashed out with the bar, catching him in the vulnerable spot behind the knees. The guard fell backwards, which brought the attention of the other, who whipped his staff weapon forward, the head blossoming open with crackling sparks.
Before it could fire Sanders, on the other side, taking advantage of the confusion, grabbed it just below the head and yanked hard, giving enough momentum for the guard to lurch forward so Stone could slam the rod down behind the guard's neck.
Smith and Tesh grabbed the staff weapons immediately as Stone stripped the fallen guards of their armor, tossing them into a dark corner at the back of the cell. Sanders peered down the hallway and noted that no one else was coming down to their cell. He nodded to the others as he caught the staff weapon. Stone nodded as he found long daggers that were sheathed in the guards' metallic boots. He passed one to Tesh, keeping the other for himself.
"No zats ?" Stone asked surprised, remembering the blast he took when he was with Jackson.
"No," Smith reported as he grabbed the staff weapon. "All clear, sir."
"Stone, you and Tesh, get Jackson. Smith, follow me. Come on." Sanders darted out of the cell fast, hissing for the others to go. Smith closed the door behind them. Hopefully at first glance, it would like them on the ground if the room were glanced at briefly.
"Sir !" Tesh shouted a warning just as he caught the sight of a guard turning the corner behind Sanders.
The Major whipped around and saw the staff weapon spark to life. Tesh shouted, pulling out the dagger and sent it sailing down the hallway. It met its target in the guard's chest, the sharp tip slicing through the metal chain armor like paper. The Jaafa barely made a sound as he fell forward to the ground.
"I owe you a beer," Sanders said as he limped over to the guard, tossing his man the staff weapon.
"Don't drink," Tesh said shortly, looking down to the other end of the hallway worriedly. He hadn't heard from Smith and Stone for a while. "Sir, should we-"
A blast from the distance rocked the hallway, throwing the men off balance. As Tesh looked up, he saw Smith running bellowing towards them, Stone nowhere to be found. But the soldier couldn't understand what his comrade was saying as the whine of staff weapons grew louder. Sanders, pinned to the corner, fired his confiscated weapon down the passage.
"Where's Stone ? Where's Doctor Jackson ?" Sanders roared above the din.
"He got in to that chamber when I got cut off, sir !" Smith said as soon as he reached them.
"You and Tesh get them out here," Sanders said as he fired off a shot above the guards and noted with grim satisfaction that the stones up there caved in. He could hear the strangled, choked off cries of the enemy.
Smith nodded and staggered off with Tesh to the end of the hallway. All aches and agonies seem to have fled with the arrival of the adrenaline rush of battle. He spurred on until he reached the doorway of the chamber. He thought he saw a shadow down one end of the room but when he got to the center of the room and looked again, it wasn't there so he thought he was mistaken.
"John !" Tesh hauled the man up. Stone groaned and feebly tried to help the process, only to fall back down on his knees again. "What the hell happened ?"
"Got Jackson out of them chains." He pointed to the slumped figure on the floor. "But someone came from behind me and-" Stone groaned, moving a hand to the back of his head.
"Doctor Jackson," Smith whispered anxiously, sitting the limp figure up. Jackson moaned softly but didn't awaken at his name. "Damn, he's too far gone. We're gonna have to carry him-"
"There will be no need, Tau'ri." The three soldiers whipped around and froze. Sanders stood there, fury on his face as he was forced to raise his hands, the staff weapon on his back prodding him to go inside. "Drop your weapons or your comrade will perish."
There was really no choice. Three weapons dropped to the floor with a resounding clang.
"We escaped," Smith said abruptly, as he stood in the cell in which they had once been held.
Carter blinked. "What ?"
Tesh nodded as he glanced around the room, his eyes drifting over to a spot by the door. "I think I know what you're talking about. I remember... standing over there... we managed to get out and..."
"Doctor Jackson," Smith said.
"What about him ?" The Major asked anxiously.
"We got him out of his chains but they stopped us before we could get out."
"Damn," Tesh muttered.
"Wait." Smith looked up again, snapping his fingers. "When I got to the chamber, Stone... he had gone to get Jackson but we found him half dazed."
"He collapsed ?"
Tesh shook his head. "No. He said someone came from behind him, but I didn't see anyone else there-"
"I did," Stone interrupted. "Or... at least, I thought I did, but when I got closer, all it was there was a damn wall."
"Secret passage ?" Carter suggested. The two soldiers looked at each other.
"Could be..." Smith chewed his lower lip. "That could be it."
"I better let the colonel know about this," Carter said, whipping out her radio once more. Glancing around the cell, trying to ignore the smells that stubbornly clung to the place, she suppressed a shudder. "Colonel O'Neill, this is Carter." The radio crackled once.
She looked at the others worriedly. "Sir ? Can you read me ?" Nothing but silence.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Johnson grimaced as the sky turned slightly sea green, a sight that was unusually nice, but also acted as a reminder that they weren't back home on Earth. It made nightfall a bit disconcerting.
"Sir." Anderson jogged up to him, from behind one cluster of trees. "It's been eight hours. Should we do the radio check as planned ?"
The CO nodded at the reminder and pulled out his radio. Colonel O'Neill had reported in four hours ago and as determined, they were due for a report back any time now.
"Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3, radio your ten." The radio was silent.
"Tomes, is our antenna up ?" Johnson asked.
The soldier looked up with surprise. "Yes, sir."
"Sir-" Anderson started worriedly but Johnson lifted a hand up stopping them.
"They could be busy at the moment and can't respond," Johnson muttered as he tried again. "SG-1, anyone please respond."
Nothing.
"Damn," Johnson muttered as he looked at his men with a frown. Booker and Tomes was already standing up expectantly, waiting for orders. Johnson gave it one more try. "SG-1, this is SG-3, what is your status ?"
"Major Johnson."
The soldiers, as one, turned around with their weapons up. The trees rustled, revealing that someone was there.
"Show yourself !" Johnson barked as he motioned his men to stay behind the trees.
Tery'ka emerged from the shadows, standing there stiffly.
"Tery'ka-" Johnson frowned. "What the hell ? What are you doing here ? Where's Colonel O'Neill and the rest of his team ?"
"Your radios would no longer work inside," Tery'ka said as he handed over one of the radios. "Perhaps something inside the complex is preventing contact."
"Where's Colonel O'Neill ?" Johnson repeated.
"He accidentally tripped one of their defense mechanisms and disappeared. Your Jaafa Teal'c tried to grab your comrade but was pulled in as well."
"What ?" Anderson blurted out.
"Why are you here then ?" Johnson asked, suspiciously.
"Your Major Carter stayed behind to try and find the entrance way. She asked that I return to try and talk to Doctor Jackson once more."
The team looked at each other.
"We have our orders to stay here and guard the Stargate for their return," Johnson said slowly. Tery'ka shook his head.
"Smith and Tesh said only Doctor Jackson would know the way in to find Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c. They recall the guards taking him there many times."
"Sir-" Booker began, as he exchanged a look with Anderson. "One of us could accompany him back home and get Jackson."
Johnson nodded, but his face looked like he didn't like the idea one bit.
"Fine. Anderson, you go with Tery'ka and report to General Hammond. We have no choice but to stay here. There's not enough men to risk the chance of splitting into two teams."
Anderson nodded as he retrieved his GDO. The To'kra stood there waiting.
"Have you guys found General Carter ?" Johnson asked as they started heading back for the Stargate.
"There was no sign of him. I fear the worst may have happened to him." With that, Tery'ka's eyes glowed. "We will return shortly with Doctor Jackson and with his help, we will discover their fates." He then bowed his head slightly and left with Anderson.
The rest of SG-3 watched as Anderson punched in the coordinates. The Stargate flashed once, let them through and blinked out.
"Why don't I feel very reassured about that ?" Johnson muttered as he turned away once more. He glanced over to Tomes. "Try again."
"Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3. Do you read me ? Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3, what is your status ?"
---------------------------
Janet understood why Daniel went down to his office instead of staying in his room.
You would try and find a place to hide too, if they kept coming in here with this kind of news.
The doctor blinked as General Hammond stood, in Daniel's office, telling them about Jack. She glanced over to the young man. Daniel just sat there, having woken when the alarms sounded at Tery'ka's return. He had woken with a jerk, lurching back away from Janet when he realized he was leaning on her.
Now he sat backwards on his chair, listening to General Hammond tell him about Tery'ka's return and the news he carried, while clutching white knuckled at the back of his chair, his eyes shadowed. Only Daniel knew what was going on in his mind. Janet couldn't read his face. It looked as though it was carved from stone, the eyes hidden and dark, the lips a thin line in the face.
It looked like Jack.
"Doctor Jackson ?" Hammond called again softly.
"I... I have to go back." The voice was dull, emotionless. "He's right. I'm probably the only one who knows where Jack and Teal'c may be."
"You could just tell us and we'll-"
Daniel gave a funny laugh, not looking at the General. "That would be the easy way, wouldn't it ?"
"Daniel-" Janet leaned forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. The young man shrugged it off.
"I don't remember, sir," the scientist said quietly. "If I did... if I did, I would have told you sooner. This wouldn't have happened-"
"Daniel..." the doctor tried to interrupt before he could continue but Daniel waved a hand sharply towards her.
"This shouldn't have happened !" Daniel got to his feet. "They wouldn't have been wandering around if I..."
Daniel stopped. The General and the doctor exchanged a concerned look. With a sigh, Jackson looked up at Hammond, his hands absently brushing back invisible lint from his robe.
"Permission to go through the Stargate, General Hammond."
++++++++++++++++++++++
Carter stared at the chamber in disbelief. The place looked exactly the same as when she had left the colonel and the others there earlier. The torches were still lit, casting dancing shadows on dingy stone walls. The chains were still swaying slightly from a breeze coming from somewhere. The three walls were still slimy looking, the ground still filthy. Only one difference.
It was empty. No one was there.
"Where's Colonel O'Neill ?" Smith muttered as he looked around uneasily. Tesh grunted, stating that he didn't know. He veered away from the all too familiar chains on the walls, making a face at the smell once more.
Sam turned to the Lieutenant. "Where did you see this tunnel ?"
"I'm not even sure." Smith hesitated, his eyes studying the chamber warily.
"Try !" The Major demanded. She sighed when she realized how sharp that must have sounded. "Please. What do you remember ?"
Smith crossed his arms, lowering his head as he concentrated. The corner of his mouth twitched as a memory flitted through his mind. He stood there silently, ignoring everything around him as he tried to recall. Suddenly, he looked up, zeroing in on the end of the room.
"There." The man trotted over to the wall on the far corner, all the way to the back of the chamber. He stopped in front of the wall and snorted, frustrated. "Damn."
"I don't see anything to open, Smith," Tesh murmured as he brushed his hand across the cold surface.
Sam banged at the wall with the butt of her rifle. Then she tried again, striking another part. When the sound was deeper, she turned to Smith and Tesh. The two nodded. There was definitely another passage behind the wall.
"Blow it ?" Tesh suggested as Carter frowned.
"I don't know if it's going to bring the whole place down or not." She looked uneasily at the ceiling and looked back down quickly as her eyes caught a glimpse of the chains above their heads.
"How about a good zat ?" Smith grinned, pulling out the tri-folded weapon issued for the team. Carter grinned in response.
"Be my guest," she quipped as she and Tesh backed away. Smith gave a thumbs up, took a step back himself and aimed.
With one shot, the sparks danced around the wall, travelling in an odd shape, seeping through the outlines of a doorway they couldn't see. Then Smith fired another shot and paused, watching the energy discharge dance around the edges once more.
"Good for you, Tom," Tesh said wryly, wondering why his friend had stopped. "It's now dead."
Smith glared at his comrade but said nothing as he fired the third shot. The wall flashed once and was gone.
"Ladies first ?" Smith said with a grin, waving towards the open entrance. Smiling back, Sam gave a salute before entering.
++++++++++++++++++++++
You know what to do.
Daniel paused, unsure if that was himself or another voice he had yet to identify. He stared at the empty locker, his hands still on the zipper of his flak jacket.
"What am I doing ?" he muttered as he sat down on the bench. He rubbed his hands on his pants, his palms scratching against the straps of his sidearm holster. Looking at the empty holster, Daniel made a mental reminder to himself that he needed to go and get whatever they were going to issue him. His usual sidearm that Jack had issued him since the beginning was back in the armory after he was rescued from....
Daniel stopped, frowning at himself when he realized that he had stopped getting ready. He could almost hear his watch ticking the time away, time where Jack and Teal'c were waiting for him.
Waiting. Like he had, wondering if they were going to find him, ever....
"Stop it," he hissed to himself as he felt his hands tremble.
Daniel clenched his fists tightly, trying to stop the shakes but it seemed to only make his entire body to shudder instead, the tremors moving from his hands to wrists, making its way down to his knees until it actually began to hurt. He sat on his hands, rocking himself as he waited for the shakes to pass. His shoulders shook as they hunched over, dropping his head close to his chest.
"Just... stop it... not now... please... not now..."
He was so scared.
And he didn't know why.
Yes you do, a little voice told him. You've been through a very difficult experience and merely reacting to it. It's perfectly normal.
Daniel snorted to himself. It sounded so reasonable when he thought about it, but if said out loud, he knew what the translation of that would be.
Coward.
It wasn't normal. He was supposed to get past this, get back to the team who had been so incredibly patient with him. They were all waiting for him. Now. And later.
"It'll get better," Daniel whispered, still rocking himself back and forth. "It'll get better. Just go there, get them back and move on. Just don't think about it right now. Later. Later."
"Doctor Jackson ?" Anderson's voice was muffled, as it travelled through the locker room door. For some reason, the sergeant didn't enter the locker room, preferring to stay outside, perhaps to give him some privacy. A thoughtful gesture really, but it made Daniel flush with anger for some reason.
"C-coming," Daniel managed to grind out, hating how his voice cracked. He steeled his jaw, stood up and flexed his hands, grateful to see the clean bandages covered the angry scars on his wrists and forearms. He rolled down his sleeves, hiding them and momentarily felt better when he no longer saw the white edges of the gauze.
"Hurry up. Hurry up," he muttered to himself like a mantra, feeling time running away from him.
Daniel sat down again to reach his bootlaces, tying them as fast as he could. There was no time. He couldn't dawdle here. To his dismay, his fingers were clumsy, tangling the laces into horrible knots. He gritted his teeth and untied them.
"Doctor Jackson ?"
"In a minute." Daniel had to stop himself from shouting. He took a deep breath, wondering why he was so upset. Anderson was only rushing him because there was no time.
No time. Remember that. You have to retu...
The hand stroke his cheek, warm breath tickling his cheek as the leader came closer.
"Remember. Return to me and do as I command."
Daniel turned his head away from the voice but he couldn't shut the voice out. More and more the smooth words seem to fill his mind, tightening his chest and willing his muscles to move even when he thought he no longer had the strength to do so.
Eyes were glowing so close to his face that he thought the fire inside those orbs would leap out and burn him. They eyed him with a hungry look, the hands wandering down to his throat, caressing the skin exposed through the torn shirt.
"Return to me when I call."
Daniel jerked up, gasping as he fell against the lockers in his shock. The metal surfaces clanged loudly.
"Doctor Jackson ?" Anderson's voice sounded closer now.
"Coming," he grated out, as he got up, clutching the locker door for support. Not now. Later. Figure it out later. They're waiting for you. She's waiting for you.
That last thought did not even register with Daniel as he slammed the locker door too loudly and went outside to join Anderson.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Janet eyed the three men going down the hallway to the embarkation room, moving like some sort of grim procession. She stood at one end of the hall, watching them approach. She watched Daniel in particular, noting his slow steps, but was relieved to see that there was no discomfort from the movement.
The doctor was half tempted to pull Jackson off the mission, but there was too much at stake. Three men, including O'Neill who was probably the only one who could reach the sullen looking man before her, were trapped on that planet. And it pained her to realize that Daniel was the only one, in all probability, who might be able to get them out.
She wondered when had life become so cruel.
Sergeant Anderson was walking very fast, but then he looked back at the men behind him and slowed a little. Janet knew, however, it wasn't for Tery'ka's benefit.
Daniel was silent as he put on his helmet, shuffling along behind the other two. She noted that he wasn't wearing his glasses and wondered briefly about that.
"Doctor Fraiser ?" Anderson stopped in front of her. "Is everything alright ?"
Janet blinked, suddenly realizing how odd it must look, the base doctor seeing them off on a mission. She smiled at them, but it felt forced as she shook her head in answer to Anderson's question.
"Just wanted to wish you good luck." She glanced over to Daniel, who was looking everywhere but in her direction. "Come back as soon as you can."
Anderson solemnly nodded and for a moment, it looked like he was going to salute the doctor but stopped midway. He entered the opening bulk doors, only to find General Hammond was there waiting.
"Just wanted to see you off, gentlemen," General Hammond said smoothly as the Stargate burst into sparkling light behind him.
"Thank you, sir."
Tery'ka acknowledged the words with a slight nod. Daniel looked up and managed a small smile, straightening up a bit as he did. He squared his shoulders as he nodded to the older man mutely. General Hammond's eyes seemed to soften a bit.
"Hurry back, gentlemen."
+++++++++++++++++++++
"Sir." Booker scrambled over to his CO, handing his binoculars. "Stargate's been activated." Tomes dropped down from the tree branch he was perched on, joining the other two.
Johnson took the binoculars and peered into it. He grunted in surprise when he saw three figures coming through the Stargate.
"I'll be damned," the man muttered.
"Sir ?"
"Jackson's with them."
Booker and Tomes looked at each other with surprise.
"Guess Tery'ka needed more than answers to a few questions," Johnson murmured as he whistled softly. He could see his man perk up at the signal.
Anderson from the distance, whistled back and picked up the pace. In a few minutes, he rejoined his team, meeting with the Tok'ra and Jackson crouched down with them in the brush.
"Doctor Jackson." Johnson studied the man with pursed lips, noting the pale face. "You okay there ?"
"Have you heard from Jack and the others ?" Daniel asked as he looked back towards the Stargate.
"Nothing." Johnson shook his head. "Been trying for the past two hours since Tery'ka headed back for the Stargate."
Daniel turned towards the Tok'ra. "Can you take me there ? B-back to that place ?"
Tery'ka nodded silently. Anderson darted his eyes between Daniel and Tery'ka.
"Sir, should I-"
Johnson nodded. "Accompany them back there. I want you to radio me as soon as you get word. Got it ?"
Anderson nodded as he took another rifle. He hesitated, wondering if he should offer it to Jackson, but to his surprise, the man took it without protest. Instead, he slung the strap over his shoulder and got up. Johnson raised an eyebrow at the sight but said nothing.
"I'm giving you five, Anderson. You see nothing, you haul ass out of there, with Doctor Jackson."
"We can't just leave them there and-" Daniel angrily protested.
"Five hours." Johnson stood up. "Until I hear from Colonel O'Neill himself, I'm in charge of this mission. When I say five hours, I mean five hours. Is that clear ?"
Daniel turned around abruptly on his heel and started walking.
"Watch him," Johnson mouthed silently to Anderson. The sergeant nodded and went after them, waving to his bunkmate Booker as he murmured good luck to him.
++++++++++++++++++++++
"No answer." Jack snorted in disgust, banging his radio against his thigh. "Any sign of Tery'ka, Teal'c ?"
"None," the Jaafa replied flatly.
"Don't know how we lost him back there," Jack grumbled as he waved his flashlight back and forth. He had turned around and suddenly found the Tok'ra who was trailing behind before, had been gone. Worried, Jack backtracked and found the two tunnels they had passed were blocked off.
Jack gnashed his teeth, glaring at the monotonous walls, trying to see if there was anything different about them. They all looked the same, however. Dark, black and slimy.
And I thought seeing trees on every planet was bad.
"You see anything, Teal'c ?" Jack murmured as he tapped the stones with the butt of his rifle.
"I do not." Teal'c circled the column that stood in the middle of the tunnel. "O'Neill."
"What ?"
"This pillar contains vibrations." Placing his palm flat on the surface, Teal'c nodded when he detected the small waves of shock running through stone.
"I don't hear anything." Jack frowned as he tapped the stone. It didn't sound any different from the other walls. "What do you think it is ?"
"An engine of some kind."
"Goa'uld ?" the colonel asked, eyeing the column warily. He motioned Teal'c to back away from it.
"Perhaps."
Jack swore softly when he heard a low-pitched whine growing from under their feet. He couldn't tell where it was coming from specifically but apparently, Teal'c knew what it was.
"O'Neill !" the Jaafa shouted, grabbing him roughly by the arm. With a quick yank, Jack found himself pulled back. Stumbling back, Jack didn't need to ask Teal'c about his reasons when he saw three rings rise up from the ground. One by one, they hovered on top of each other, the light shining up like a huge beam.
Someone was coming.
"Back that way !" Jack hissed as they backtracked their steps, ducking into a corner, trying to blend with the shadows there.
The light streamed upward and slowly, five figures materialized. Jack felt his breath slam against his ribs when he saw the slight figure standing arrogantly in the middle of the circle of guards. The light from the beam had not faded yet and it gleamed on the amber jewel covering her smooth white belly, the gold bracelets that wrapped around her arms like coiled snakes. As the last of the beam's energy faded, Jack got a good look at the glowing eyes.
Hathor.
-------------------------
Jack was beginning to think he was going to need some sort of warranty. Something that would read "All deaths are non-refundable and not returnable. Once dead, stays dead." He scowled.
If only it was that easy.
Obviously, Hathor was a lot harder to get rid of than he thought.
The colonel could still feel the cold from the cryogenic chamber seeping into his skin, into his joints as he tightened his hold around Hathor's neck, thinking how nice it would be to hear it snap.
She screamed, twisting in his iron grip. Carter was crumpled senseless from her ribbon device, lying at her feet. He tightened his grip around the Goa'uld.
She was fighting furiously and it took all he had left to not let go despite his numb limbs. His strength was spurred by the memories of what she had done, what she had put them through. The idea that she had placed one of her Goa'uld larvaeinside of him made his insides twist and his arm tightened further.
"We will destroy you for this !"
"We," Jack snarled harshly as he dragged her kicking and screaming to the pit of smoking cryogenic liquid, "would just like you to go away !"
With strength Jack didn't even know he had left, the colonel gave a hard push at the Goa'uld Queen that nearly toppled him over the railing too. Jack shoved Hathor over, into the steamy water. He knew Hathor would freeze in the absolute zero temperatures of the liquid that she had placed them in before, in those damn claustrophobic tubes.
But he hoped that she would burn in hell.
"Jaafa kree !" Hathor commanded, her eyes glowing as she scanned the area. Jack and Teal'c tensed, pressing their backs further against the walls.
There's that yoo hoo thing again, Jack thought, remembering how Daniel had explained the meaning of the word "kree". He....
Daniel.
She had had him here, in her clutches. For three goddamn days. Every one of those scars, every bruise, every nightmare, was because of her.
It took all of Jack's restraint to not rush out there and empty every single bullet he had in his rifle into her body.
"Thekla yiu Tok'ra net shouik !" Hathor waved her hand towards a wall, revealing the gem nestled in her palm. The ribbon device flashed once and the wall rose up like a panel, revealing another tunnel.
Jack stiffened at the only word he understood - Tok'ra. Did she mean General Carter ? Or maybe the missing Tery'ka ? He glanced over at Teal'c, hiding in an alcove opposite of him.
The Jaafa's eyes were dark, the darkest the colonel had ever seen and he knew. He knew that murder was on his comrade's mind. Jack understood it completely and wished he could indulge in that sin for now, to even the odds, to avenge. But he needed to stay alive.
There was someone waiting for him back home. Someone he needed to help.
A soft chime caught Hathor's attention and Jack turned back to the group they were hiding from. The Queen smiled as she slipped her hand within the folds of her robe, pulling out a palm sized clear globe. The crystal warmed with the contact of her flesh, fogging up into a milky white sphere. Jack couldn't see what was showing in this globe, but Hathor seemed to be displeased with the image it revealed.
"Shkare Tau'ri !" Hathor hissed towards the crystal in her hand.
A voice, surprisingly loud considering the source it was coming from, boomed out in his defense.
"Tau'ri nyet Jackson thelk shamre Hathor."
Jack didn't understand the conversation, but his eyes darkened at the mention of the name Jackson. Why was he mentioned ? Daniel wasn't here. The colonel looked over towards Teal'c, wishing he could dare ask the Jaafa for a translation, but judging by the frown, the fists clenching the staff weapon, Jack doubted that he would enjoy the answer very much.
Hathor seemed to be content with the report and she smiled. The smile itself was not at all pleasing - instead, it sent shivers up and down Jack's spine.
"Thel skaha O'Neill," Hathor whispered, caressing the globe now as the smoke cleared from it. She laughed softly as she pocketed the sphere once more. With a wave of her hand, she motioned her guards to follow her out into the newly revealed tunnel. Moments later, Jack and Teal'c were left alone again.
Jack emerged from his hiding place, glancing in the direction Hathor had gone, scowling after her, wishing he could follow. But his anger alone would not be enough to go against one Goa'uld Queen and her five Jaafa guards.
"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice was low, but the apprehension was clear in his voice.
"You understood what she was saying, Teal'c ?" Jack asked needlessly. "I didn't get a good look at who she was talking to. Did you ?"
"I did not, but I heard enough to understand what she was talking about." The Jaafa's voice deepened with barely suppressed anger. "Someone has informed her that Daniel Jackson is here."
"What ?" the colonel hissed. "Daniel's here ? How the hell did that happen ?"
Teal'c shook his head. "The man who serves her did not say. All was mentioned that the Tok'ra needed to be found and Daniel Jackson was here." He paused.
The colonel eyed Teal'c carefully. "What ? Is there something else ?" Jack stopped. He remembered hearing his name mentioned. "Is it about me ?"
Nodding, Teal'c continued. "Hathor commanded that you were to be brought back alive."
Jack frowned. "Well, at least she didn't want me dead." The colonel paused, grimacing as he concluded. "But somehow, that doesn't make me feel any better."
"We must warn Daniel Jackson."
"Then find out what the hell is going on here..." Jack muttered as he readjusted his hold on his weapon. **Daniel, you'd better be okay.** He nodded curtly towards the Jaafa and the two proceeded through the newly opened tunnel in hopes of beating Hathor to their teammate.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Doctor Fraiser stopped and rubbed her eyes wearily. Frowning at what she saw, she walked over to the infirmary bed, her hands on her hips.
"Major Sanders, you should be in bed."
"I feel fine," the man said stubbornly, shifting in his chair as he looked over to Stone. "Heard Smith and Tesh went back to that place." The large man's lips curled into a disapproving frown. "I also heard Doctor Jackson went back."
"Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c appeared to have been caught in some tunnel and unable to find a way out. Doctor Jackson's there to find the best possible route-"
"I thought they said he didn't remember anything," Sanders muttered as he sat there stubbornly by his comrade's side.
Janet sighed.
Why do all COs seem so sure that they are immune to exhaustion and just plant themselves on the nearest chair they can find ?
"He still doesn't... not really... but your men said that Daniel was the only one who would remember-"
"I'm sorry, Doc," Sanders interrupted. "I just don't see how's that possible if my men don't remember that much themselves." He shrugged. "I read the reports."
"The trip back must have jogged their memory," Janet suggested and Sanders made a face.
"Lucky them." He paused. "You could have sent me back too, you know. Maybe I-"
"Unlike them, who had the nimertha to heal their wounds, you have to do it the old fashioned way," Janet said gently.
Sanders began to protest, but froze when he heard Stone groan. Janet immediately turned her attentions to her other patient.
"Stone ?" Sanders leaned forward. "Hey."
"H-hey..."
"Don't talk," the doctor ordered as she pulled out her stethoscope, her eyes glued to the monitors for readings.
"Too l-late..." Stone weakly quipped as he turned to Sanders. "Sir ? So we got out okay ?"
"What ?" Sanders' brow furrowed.
"The escape... I don't remember much... last I recall... you told me to get Jackson out..."
The Major frowned. "I'm afraid I don't remember much of that mission, Stone."
"Saw Jackson... as soon as I got into that damn room..." Stone groaned as he felt his wounds twinge. Janet came forward anxiously but he shook his head. "I'm okay..."
Sanders told him in a quiet voice. "Colonel O'Neill and SG-3 were sent back on retrieval to get-"
"General Carter," Stone finished it for his CO. Sanders started in surprise.
"How-"
"I... I remember most of the stuff... I think... that stuff they kept feeding me didn't work... sometimes... can hear what they're saying... when t-they think I was out... she said something about the zat gun..." Stone blinked his eyes sleepily. "And saw her talking with that other Go'uald a lot. Doctor Jackson one time called him Jack. I guess... that shit makes you think stuff that's not there, sir."
"Just call me Tim, John," Sanders said gruffly. "I'm in no mood for salutes right now."
"John..." Janet's voice was gentle. "What other Go'uald ?"
"Don't know... long gray hair... tied back... kinda old..." Stone looked around again. "Where's the others ? And Jackson ? H-he okay ?"
"Jackson went back with Smith and Tesh. They were needed back on that planet to find a way to help Colonel O'Neill-"
"W-wait..." Stone struggled to sit up until the doctor stopped him.
"Damn it, John. Stay put !" The Major's words stilled him when Janet's hands couldn't. "Calm down !"
"N-no... you don't understand..." Stone said weakly.
"We know about Smith and Tesh being programmed to kill Colonel O'Neill," Janet interrupted, trying to put him at ease. "But the poison is gone from their systems-"
"No good. Saw that... device.... placed on his face..." Stone was wheezing now. "I think... that shit was a diversion... she used that device to make him believe what she says... he's going to kill Colonel O'Neill anyway... and the others..."
"Who ?" Sanders demanded, leaning closer to his friend. He hovered over Stone as Janet tried to calm him down. "John. Who ?"
The soldier whispered the name to Sanders before succumbing to his fatigue. As Sanders backed away, his face was pale and he swallowed hard.
"Major ?" Janet asked, worriedly.
"Call..." Sanders swallowed again. He looked shaken. "Call them back."
"Major ?"
"Get them back over here... before it's too late."
+++++++++++++++++++++
Return to me.
"Doctor Jackson ?"
It's so hot here.
Daniel looked up at the mid-day sun, realizing that it had reached the half mark of the thirty-hour day. In a few more hours the other sun would rise to its highest point and then it would be nightfall in seven hours.
Return to me.
He had to find them. He had to find her.
Return to me.
It was getting harder and harder to think.
Remember what you said you would do.
Stop it. Stop this right now, Jackson. You have to pull yourself together. Stop thinking about it.
There wasn't enough time.
Daniel blearily looked up, realizing that they were almost there.
For some reason, he was very cold now. Daniel pulled his jacket closer with one hand, trying to seal in the heat. Why was he cold ? It must be over eighty degrees out here right now.
"Doctor Jackson ?"
A hand tapped him on the shoulder. Startled, Daniel whipped his hands out, almost knocking into Anderson. The Sergeant looked surprised but managed to sidestep the blow, drawing up his hands to show that he was no threat.
"Hey, easy. It's just me, Jackson." Anderson waved his hands around.
Daniel blinked, opening his mouth to make an apology. "Uh..." He turned quickly around instead, at a lost for words.
The soldier glanced back at Tery'ka, who was silently trailing behind them, his eyes glued to Jackson's back. He frowned a little, wondering why the alien was lagging behind. At times he was even stopping by trees, explaining that he was tired. The Sergeant puzzled over the claim. He had thought the worm inside them was supposed to make them stronger but apparently he had thought wrong. Anderson, turning back towards Jackson, decided to become the shrink of the group. Shrugging, he trotted closer to the scientist.
"No big deal. It's okay, Doc," Anderson whispered, eyes constantly tracking the path, making sure that there was nobody else following them. "I can understand why you would feel uneasy. I mean, considering-"
Daniel stopped in his tracks, turning around suddenly. Anderson stopped mid-sentence, his eyes wide with puzzlement.
"I'm sorry," Daniel grated out, "but I really really don't feel like talking about this right now."
Anderson looked abashed. "Hey, sor-"
"Fine," the young man said shortly and faced forward again.
Just keep going, Daniel thought to himself. It'll be over soon.
The soldier shrugged again and slowed down a bit to let the Tok'ra catch up. He turned around, about to ask the man if they were close to the place when he skidded to a halt.
"Where's Tery'ka ?" Anderson asked abruptly, whipping around when he realized that the Tok'ra was no longer trailing behind them. Daniel stopped too, looking around. It was only him and Anderson. There was nothing else but the trees that towered over him, nearly blocking the view of a burnt village some distance away.
Burnt ? I can smell the smoke from here. Who would burn a village that... Daniel froze. The village.
The words were disjointed, as if newer sentences were written over the old. Daniel noticed the faint outline of washed off words and wondered why they would do such a thing.
The village. It... the writing... wasn't done by them... fake...
Daniel shook his head, a headache beginning to build behind his eyes, the pressure pushing outwards from inside. It was beginning to throb, making him stumble a step. Anderson turned back to the scientist.
"Doc ? You ok-"
A low whine stopped whatever he was going to say. Daniel started, looking frantically about as the sound seemed to come from behind them. It was a sound he had heard before. A sound that-
"Doctor Jackson !" Anderson shouted as he ran towards him.
Dazed, Daniel wondered why it was so bright all of a sudden, the light hurting his eyes. He looked towards Anderson, who was heading towards him as fast as he could. The soldier was yelling something but Daniel couldn't understand it. Something flew past his eyes, startling him - he looked down and gaped at the black ring that circled his feet. Before he could open his mouth, the light grew brighter, the sound more high pitched.
And everything vanished.
++++++++++++++++++++++
"Major Carter," Stone whispered, pointing to the shadows on the walls from the distance. The torches that lined the tunnels, cast long eerie shadows that looked like hungry specters hiding in wait. The ones a few feet away, however, flickered. Carter swore when she realized someone was coming.
She had figured when she first entered here, that it was possible someone was lying in wait, but after countless turns, with each new tunnel turning out to be empty, she had thought perhaps she was wrong.
I hate it when I'm right about something like this, Carter thought as she signaled for everyone to find a place to hide.
Smith and Tesh dashed across to a passage perpendicular to hers. The Major ducked behind a column, giving it a wary eye as she briefly wondered why there were such pillars standing in the middle of the tunnels every so often. A footfall, barely a shuffle, was heard.
Stiffening, Carter motioned to the others to keep quiet, as she drew her weapon close to her own body with one hand, the other slipping down her thigh at reachable distance of her hunting knife. She eyed the walls, gauging the shadows that approached, mentally calculating how soon before they came to where they were hiding.
Three
Two
One
Now
Just as she turned to face them, she felt a strong arm wrap around her. Carter heard her rifle drop to the floor with a clatter as a large hand covered her mouth. As she struggled, she felt rather than heard Smith and Tesh come out of hiding. But to her dismay, they didn't make a move to help her. Instead, Smith just glared at her captor.
"Took you long enough."
------------------------------------------------------
Anderson stared at the empty spot where Jackson had stood before. He skidded to a halt right at the rings as soon as he saw the first one appeared under Doctor Jackson's feet, but the beam whisked the scientist away too fast for him to do anything more than watch. Staggering a step back, he noticed that the tip of one of his boots was sliced off. He had come that close.
"Damn," the Sergeant muttered as he whipped out his radio. His CO was not going to happy with this turn of events. Hell, he wasn't feeling very overjoyed about this himself right about now.
"Major," Anderson spoke into the radio.
"What is it, Anderson ?" Johnson responded almost immediately. "You there already ?"
"Eh... not exactly, sir. We-" The soldier dropped his radio when he felt an arm snake around his throat, tightening almost immediately. The black device clattered to the ground but remained intact. Anderson could hear Johnson yelling into the radio as another voice, a dual voice, whispered harshly in his ears.
"Whose side are you on, Tau'ri ?"
++++++++++++++++++++++
The light disappeared. Now, there was only darkness.
Daniel blinked, his headache fading to a dull throb behind his eyes. He wondered if he had been dreaming and shifted a bit to grab his blanket that must have been kicked aside...
He couldn't move.
His eyes flew open in alarm when he realized that his arms and legs refused to move in any direction. Jerking to break free from whatever it was that held him, Daniel felt heavy metal coiled around his wrists and ankles.
No, this can't be happening again ! It's just a dream. I just have to wake up from this right now...
"Do not move, Doctor Jackson."
A firm voice followed by a strong grip on his shoulder, filtered through his haze. He looked up red eyed, wondering why it was so dark here, why couldn't he see who was in front of him. Then he realized that there was something over his eyes, tinting everything into a haze of gold. His vision cleared and he could make out a circle of shadows hovering over him, the center shadow a slight one who approached with the gleam of the jewels in her dress highlighting the hungry sneer on her red lips.
No.
"You have returned to us, Beloved." A soft voice took over, hands stroking his cheek like before. Her hands wandered down again, caressing him as she did before, as she commanded him to obey her and him unable to fight the order.
No !
Daniel twisted in his grip, not caring if his flesh tore under the sharp edges of the metal cuffs. He couldn't stay here. He couldn't !
Suddenly... the chains were gone.
Without the support of his bonds, Daniel dropped to his knees, hands slamming down to the damp floor, lacking the strength to hold his weight. Gasping, Daniel struggled to get up. He refused to kneel in front of her.
A hand on his head stilled him. It was not a strong touch, more like a caress, but its touch was electric. He suddenly couldn't find the strength to move. The strength to tear the device off his face before the pain began anew once more.
"Remember."
Hathor's voice was hot in his ear, her hand cupping his chin, tilting his face upward. Daniel twisted his head away, but something slammed into his back, the hiss of a staff weapon activating.
"Jaafa kree !" Hathor hissed and Daniel imagined that her eyes were probably glowing. He suppressed a shiver. He felt the device shifted on his face and he moved his hands up to try and tear it off of him.
"You remember how it felt ?" Hathor laughed softly as she easily swatted his hands away from it. "You remember how you begged for me to make it stop ? How you made your promise to us to make it go away?"
Daniel bit down on his own tongue, to stave off the responding whimper. But Hathor knew and she laughed again.
"It is time," she whispered. "Time to do what you promised us."
++++++++++++++++++++++
Not bothering to wonder about what Smith said, she elbowed her attacker in the ribs with one swift move. The hand moved a bit but it was not fast enough for the Major so she bit it. She heard a muffled curse and froze.
"Colonel ?"
"Geez, Carter. What's with you and biting anyway ?" Jack hissed. He waved his injured hand with a grumble, shooting a puzzled look towards Smith. "And what do you mean we took long enough ?"
Smith shrugged. "We lost contact with you two. Went looking and didn't find you guys. Figured you would show up sooner or later, but-" The Lieutenant grinned dryly. "I guess it was later."
"Sir, where's Tery'ka ?" Carter interrupted, realizing that the To'kra was not behind her CO. Jack scowled.
"Lost him somewhere in these tunnels. He found this one and we went for a preliminary check when he pulled a Houdini on us." Jack eyed the various tunnels and the column that stood in the center of the crossroads. "Teal'c ?"
The Jaafa nodded. "I hear it in here also, O'Neill."
Jack swore softly. "Watch your steps, kids." He nodded towards the pillar. "Apparently, this thing is mechanical. We just saw it bring up some Stargate rings."
Eyes wide with surprise, Sam brushed her hand across the surface. "I don't feel any vibrations or anything, sir."
"I didn't either, Carter, but we saw the rings bring up..." Jack paused. "We saw Hathor transported to here..."
"What ?" Tesh exclaimed before Smith shushed him. They didn't know if sound carried very far in this network of passageways. "Wait a minute, I thought she was..."
"Dead," Jack finished grimly. "That's what I thought too."
"Sir." Sam's hands flexed as she realized what it meant. "Daniel was with her the whole time ? She was..."
"Carter, I think it's pretty much spelled out for me already !" Jack snapped at her. Carter looked surprised and the group fell to an awkward silence. Sighing, Jack eyed the tunnels. "Daniel's here," Jack continued curtly. "And someone told her."
"He came back ?" Sam breathed. "Sir..."
"We have to assume she's got your dad and maybe Tery'ka already. We have to beat her to Daniel." The colonel eyed Smith and Tesh. "Anything coming back on where she might be holding Carter and Tery'ka ?"
"Nothing, Colonel," Tesh said glumly as Smith shook his head. Tesh suddenly perked up when he realized something. "Wait a minute. If Doctor Jackson is here, he needed to have gone through the Stargate to get here. How could Johnson..."
"We need to ask him," Jack muttered, pulling out his radio.
"Our radios don't work, sir," Carter reminded him.
Jack scowled as he remembered. "We don't have time for this. Teal'c, do you think you can track Hathor down through all this ?"
The Jaafa considered this for a moment. "Yes." He didn't doubt it for a second. Not because he was confident about finding Daniel, but because he had to.
Jack eyed Carter. "Which direction did you come from ?" Wordlessly, the Major pointed to the tunnel behind her. The Colonel nodded.
"Okay, that leaves that direction out. And we came from that one," Jack waved towards the left tunnel behind Teal'c. "That leaves us with two tunnels left." The older man chewed thoughtfully at the prospects. "Carter, you take the left one and I'll take the right. Teal'c, you're with me. Smith and Tesh, you follow Major Carter. Got that ?"
"Should we split up, sir ?" Carter spoke up, not really out of disrespect, but more out of reluctance. The idea of approaching Hathor without enough manpower was not one of her most wanted things to do on her list.
"I don't think we have much a choice now, Major," Jack pointed out grimly. "She knows Daniel's here and obviously she's eager to get her claws back into him again." **Over my dead body.** "We can't waste time trying one tunnel only having to backtrack when it turns out to be the wrong one."
Pausing, Jack tossed over a couple of grenades he had clipped to his belt. Tesh caught them neatly without question.
"You see them, General Carter, Tery'ka, or Daniel, grab them, bomb them and get the hell out of there. Watch for those pillars. They may be transportation rings. Don't get caught in them. And no looking for the rest of the team."
"But..." Tesh protested as he handed the explosives to Carter.
Jack looked at the soldier sternly. "No waiting for the other guy. Better some get out than risk the whole team. Got it ?"
Sam jumped in before Tesh could argue the point, giving him a warning look. "Understood, sir. And vice versa."
"Yeah." The colonel didn't look pleased with the thought, but agreed anyway. "Main concern is search and rescue." And to find Daniel. With that, he turned towards the tunnel he chose, Teal'c nodding a silent farewell to the others for him.
Carter stared at their departing backs for a moment, before motioning the others to follow her. Smith went after her, hand on his weapon. Tesh stopped for a moment, frowning at his surroundings, disturbed to find himself noticing the minor cracks on stone. He rubbed his eyes wearily. There was something. Something-
"Tesh ?" Carter called out softly when she realized that he had stopped.
Nodding apologetically, the soldier dropped his hands and went hurrying after them.
++++++++++++++++++++++
He could hear the words, hear them talking as they hurried down the tunnels, their voices low to avoid detection.
But they no longer made sense.
He couldn't understand the words any more.
Couldn't understand what they were saying.
All he could do was follow them down the tunnels, memories of pain returning to him like vicious snarling beasts snapping at his heels. He hurried his pace before they realized he was slowing. He had to hurry, before the pain began again.
They were looking for him. Searching the darkness.
So was he.
But... but... he couldn't remember why.
No... he remembered.
That was why he had the gun, right ?
He had to hurry.
Find him. Kill him. And then the pain will stop, just like she said.
Find him.
Kill him.
Chanting this, his feet picked up the pace before the female could turn around and call his name again.
++++++++++++++++++++++
The tunnels seemed to never end. Jack was beginning to wish that he had marked the walls in the beginning but knew that it wouldn't have been wise. Anyone would have been able to see the signals and know that someone else was here.
"O'Neill," Teal'c whispered low, one strong hand on his shoulder to tell him that he heard something.
Without asking, the colonel followed him down a right turn. He could see down the end of the passageway, a dim light. A room perhaps.
The whine that trickled out to their ears, told him that someone else had arrived. But Jack couldn't make out the low buzz of voices coming from that direction.
Suddenly, two Jaafa guards came out from that end of the hall, moving further and further away from Jack's position as they stopped in front of a wall. Touching the surface, the wall slide open and the outside light came through.
An exit.
That was all fine and dandy to Jack, but he wasn't about to leave until he found what he was looking for.
Laughter sang out into the halls, laughter that didn't belong in such a dark place and Jack knew.
Daniel was in there.
Hang on, Jack thought as he crept along the wall, towards the doorway where the laughter was coming from.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Sam froze when she heard the laughter.
Narrowing her eyes, trying to see in the dark, she saw the faint patch of light shining from a door to her far left. She could see the shadows of its occupants pacing about. Flexing her hand over the handle of her weapon, she pressed herself flat against the wall. Smith and Tesh mimicked her, stealthily tracing the wall towards the room. Making her way closer and closer to the lit doorway, she was almost out in the open when two guards exited the room and made some sort of motion towards the wall. Carter watched it slide open, revealing the lush greenery of outside. Turning her head, she saw by Smith and Tesh's faces that they saw it too.
Grimly, she motioned to them with five fingers, silently telling them on her count, to rush in at her signal. The two nodded, Tesh slipping a finger through the loop to release the pin on the grenade at the word go. Smith gripped the zat gun and gave her an okay sign.
Reaching the doorway, Carter slid down to the floor, pulling out a rod with a small mirror attached to it. She eased it over to the edge of the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tesh and Smith standing ready behind her. There was no way they could get to the other side without them noticing.
The tiny reflective surface revealed two guards surrounding Tery'ka, another two standing a few feet away at the center. The Tok'ra appeared to be unharmed, standing stiffly as if at attention. She nearly dropped the mirror when she saw the leader of the guards, circling a kneeling figure like a wolf approaching its prey.
Hathor.
And Daniel.
Carter closed her eyes briefly. She knew the colonel had told her that the Goa'uld Queen was still alive, but it was still a shock to see her there and it hurt to see her friend in her clutches for what seemed to be the second time. She looked into the mirror again and noted that her father was not among them.
She didn't know if that was good or bad.
Hang on, Daniel, Sam thought. We're right here. She's not going to have you this time.
Then again, she shouldn't have had Daniel at all.
"We are so glad you have returned to us, Beloved," Hathor said, the pleasure clear in her double voice, the eyes glowing eerily brighter in the dark. Carter had to stop herself from screaming at her when she saw Hathor lean forward and kissed him on the lips. Daniel didn't move but Hathor must have seen something in his face because she laughed.
"It is already too late."
You bet it is, Carter said when she nodded towards the others. She mouthed the word five and counted down.
Five. Tesh and Smith shuffled closer to the doorway.
Four. Carter lifted her own zat gun out of her holster now, not wanting to take the chance of hitting Daniel or Tery'ka with the rifle.
Three. Hathor backed away for some reason.
Two. Carter caught a glimpse of O'Neill on the other side of the tunnel, still a few feet away. He saw her fingers counting down and only nodded as he and Teal'c crept closer.
One.
And the dark suddenly filled with light.
---------------------------
Jack reached the doorway just as Carter rushed in, assigning himself as cover with a quick nod of his head towards the Major. The low pitched sounds of the zat guns told him that the guards were being dealt with and he rushed into the room, his eyes searching frantically for one person.
There.
Daniel was pushed to the ground by Tery'ka, the To'kra whispering something to the scientist's ear as he slipped a gun to him, shielding the scientist with his own body. Jack tried to reach the pair but the fighting that went on blocked his way.
Hathor hissed as one shot from a stray zat gun passed closely by her. Jaafa guards surrounded her with fierce loyalty. She could do nothing as the woman warrior grabbed her Beloved up from the floor, shouted something to her men and raced out the room. Hathor's eyes shone as she recognized the woman to be Carter, yet another thorn on her side.
"Jaafa ! Yhou klem nyet ha ! Jaafa !" Hathor screamed as she saw both Daniel and Tery'ka being taken away from the room, half her guards senseless at her feet. She lifted her hand up, exposing the ribbon device, about to aim at Carter's back as they fled towards the open exit to the outside when she saw him.
Standing there, shouting as he shoved away her last remaining guard.
Pulling at one Tau'ri as he caught sight of more coming in through the rings of her Stargate, materializing as the rings shot up from the ground. He stood there, totally oblivious to her attention, totally unaware of her plan as he barked orders to the others.
O'Neill.
The one who should have been her First Prime.
The one who killed her.
She whispered the word like it was a scorned lover's name, her lips thinned as she recalled his betrayal. Even now, her host body's flesh still shiver from the painstaking cold that it suffered when O'Neill pushed her into the pit.
"We," the Tau'ri O'Neill said harshly into her ear even as she screamed her outrage, "would just like you to go away !" And with a push from his hands, she fell into the smoke and ice.
Flailing out with her hands, she clawed the ridges that lined the pit, dangling above the liquid, hidden in the frigid steam. She could hear O'Neill and the Carter woman talking. The traitorous Tok'ra spy crawling away from her presumed death site. Hathor seethed as she tried to pull up but her limbs lost all enhanced strength and she dropped so quickly, she barely registered it fast enough to scream.
Pain.
For the first time in centuries, she felt pain. A coldness that felt hot on fragile muscles. Even when she was in the Tau'ri's base long ago, the flames rising in the water as bullets were fired towards her, there was no pain.
Here, there was pain.
She could feel her control slipping away, her grip on her host's will for many years, snapping like fragile rope as the cold cracked her skin like brittle paper. Now she screamed.
So this was what it felt like to be mortal.
To not be a god.
She did not like it.
Her host awakened instantly with the cold and it rebelled against her power even as it reeled back in horror that the freedom gained was too brief to savor.
Now her host screamed.
Then it became dark. It was an uncomfortable one, unlike the soothing darkness within the confines of her golden sarcophagus. It howled of eternity, of weakness, of vulnerability.
Until....
He came and drained the liquid, almost immediately after the Tau'ri left. It had felt like forever to Hathor, but in reality it had only been seconds. The liquid left her skin and exposed her to the air, began forming droplets all over her like gems.
She couldn't move.
She was dying. Even the fast healing powers of the Go'uald larvae could not withstand such frigid temperatures.
Hathor, Queen of the Gods, eternal Goddess was dying.
This could not be. It was not possible, it was inconceivable even, that a god could die.
"Be still," a deep voice commanded as a warm beam, which she recognized was a healing hand device, swept over her. "This will ease your pain until I can get you to the Cha'apai."
"My ship." Her once smooth voice was cracking like an old woman's, her hair breaking apart unevenly, the shafts cracking from the cold. The strands thawed and she could feel the blunt ends of her once luminous hair scratching her neck and face.
"I will take you there."
Eyes regained sight and Hathor saw a man, dressed in a dark tunic, hair pulled back, staring intently at her. Despite the fact he had rescued her, she felt outraged that he dared set his eyes on her now, in this condition.
"Look away !" Hathor hissed, regaining some of her strength as the healing device rejuvenated numb limbs. She shoved the wailing voice of her host to the back of her mind. She would have to start all over again to regain complete command of this body when she returned to the sarcophagus.
To her surprise, the man complied, turning away from the sight of her vulnerability.
Hathor got up. To her disgust, she found herself trembling, her skin blotted with dark ugly bruises where the veins had exploded underneath her skin from the cold.
"Who are you ?" She mustered as much of her voice as possible.
"A spy for Apophis."
"He is dead," Hathor gloated, remembering that piece of information from the Tau'ri she had captured, when he had believed himself to have woken up at SGC in the future.
"I know. Now I wish to be yours." The man stood up, bowing his head in a sign of obedience. "Give me power and I will give you what you wish the most."
Hathor's eyes gleamed as she waved her ribbon device above her. A door slid open behind the false monitors near the cryogenic tube, revealing a staircase leading down to her secret chamber. She allowed the man to take her by the elbow for support.
"What is it that you want the most, my Queen ?"
Hathor smiled again as they reached the door. Her eyes burned with the memory of one face. The one responsible for showing her a glimpse of her mortality.
"Vengeance."
Hathor blinked, frowning at herself for the temporary lapse. Even now, her host rebelled against her. She had not spent enough time in the sarcophagus. She had to limit her time, giving it to someone else. But she would return to its healing embrace soon.
After this.
O'Neill turned a little and looked startled to see her watching him intently. His rifle rose as if to fire at her, but the guards that were just arriving surrounded her protectively. She heard Apophis' former First Prime shouting at him and he slipped out of the room, to the exit.
The guards cursed and were about to give chase when Hathor lifted a hand, halting them, motioning only three to follow them. Puzzled, the other Jaafa didn't argue, milling about the room confused.
"It shall all come to be," Hathor breathed and her skin tingled again, this time with anticipation. Soon, she would have her revenge and her Beloved would rejoin her.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Sam latched onto Daniel's wrist, too rushed to give apology for any pain caused by her tight grasp over bandaged skin. Hauling him up, she half pulled him out of the room, out through the exit she had seen before, dodging the battle around her. Already, she could hear Tesh and Smith behind her, shouting for Colonel O'Neill.
She had her orders. So why was she slowing down ?
Pulling her friend closer to her, Carter stared anxiously at the doorway. In seconds, it exploded with escaping people running at top speed out of the place. It was then that she realized there were no walls. The place they just escaped from was the mountain itself, one of the distance grassy slopes beyond the original complex she had surveyed when they first came to find SG-5 and Daniel.
They were a great distance away from the Stargate and freedom. Too great a distance.
She saw O'Neill coming out, his hands now filled with a staff weapon since he had lost his rifle during the fight. He whipped around abruptly and tossed a grenade through the door after yanking the pin out with his teeth.
"Heads up !" he bellowed as he tossed the explosive in. The guards who had followed, shouted as they realized what it was that rolled to their feet. The explosion destroyed the exit and Carter no longer saw her pursuers. He looked up and caught Carter with Daniel straining to seek him out from the chaos.
"Get the hell out of there !" Jack bellowed, anger coloring his words as he wondered furiously why she was still standing there. "We're okay here ! Rendezvous back at the Stargate ! Try and contact Johnson !"
Carter was about to shout back that they should go together, when the rubble covering the exit disintegrated with a short staff weapon blast.
No time to regroup now, she pulled Daniel along with her, Tesh and Smith directly behind her. A quick glance behind her and she saw her team split up with Teal'c, Jack, and Tery'ka heading in the other direction.
Muttering a silent prayer for her comrades, she jumped into a ditch, her men following, and they tracked the stream in hopes of escape.
++++++++++++++++++++++
It was so loud.
The screaming, the shouting.
He wanted to clamp his ears shut, to block out the noise...
Block out.... her.
As his legs pumped underneath him, carrying him away from her, the voice grew louder and louder, almost as if she was running alongside him.
Kill.
He had to kill.
Only then would the pain go away.
Her words screamed at him while his heart thumped wildly until, finally, he vaguely heard someone calling for a halt.
++++++++++++++++++++++
"Don't see them no more." Smith panted as they stopped by the riverbank. He swallowed as he got a good look at the white water roaring below a few feet away. "Ah crap."
Carter whipped her head around, trying to see what best possible path there would be to head back for the Stargate. She took out her tracking device and turned it on. The signal came almost instantly from the radio transmitter left by the Stargate, a precaution they always took. She groaned as she realized that their destination was a lot farther than she had first calculated.
"What the hell is that ?" Tesh hissed as he kneeled down towards the still silent Daniel, who Sam had sat down on the ground. The young man was breathing harshly from the run, arms on the ground to support the weight. Tesh fingered the metallic band around his face. "Looks like some sort of... visor or something."
Carter turned sharply towards them. Guiltily, she remembered seeing that thing on her friend's face back there, but the heat of battle left her no time to check. And now, after being on the run for so long, it had slipped her mind.
"Let me see," she murmured, handing her rifle over to Smith. The Lieutenant stood over them, keeping watch, but he occasionally glanced back with a worried eye. Daniel weakly reached out and found her hand.
"S-Sam ?"
"It's okay," she said softly, noting that she could see his eyes through the piece. "Can you see me here ?"
Daniel nodded. He reached towards his face, feebly trying to pull it off. Sam stopped him.
"Wait, let me make sure its okay to..." She gasped as a spark leaped from the ends of the device that were wrapped behind his head and snapped at her fingertips. The jolt raced up her arm. Daniel groaned, slumping forward.
"Major." Tesh surged forward to catch Daniel before he could fall on his face. Smith leaned forward anxiously. "You alright ?"
Nodding, Carter stared at the device as it serenely dropped to Daniel's lap as if on its own accord.
"I must have released it somehow. Daniel ?" She touched her friend's shoulder briefly. "You okay ?"
Daniel tried to sit up straighter. "O-okay..." He looked up with a weak smile. "Headache though." He paused, his eyes darting around. "Where's Jack ?"
"We got separated back there," Tesh muttered as he got up, dusting off the dirt from his fatigues.
"We're meeting up at the Stargate, Daniel," Sam reassured her friend. "We're just resting here a bit before we continue."
"Thirsty..." Daniel mumbled, looking a little embarrassed at admitting it.
Sam smiled. "I'll fill the canteen. Smith. You and Tesh okay with watching our backs ?"
"What I do best," Smith quipped, lifting his rifle with a grin.
"I thought it was burning the rations," Tesh retorted but continued to walk along the edge of the clearing, keeping an eye out for Jaafa guards.
"Ha ha," Smith grumbled as Sam shook her head. She clapped Daniel's shoulder briefly before heading for the river with her canteen. She leaned forward a bit, careful to not go too close to the fast running water and let the river trickle into the open mouth of her container.
Wondering briefly if she should try radio the colonel now to check on them, she didn't see the device on Daniel's lap beginning to glow. She also didn't see eyes turning towards the light like a moth to fire.
What she did see though when she was done filling her canteen, was the gun. Sam looked up, about to declared her task done and froze when she saw the gun in his hands. The gun trembled along with the hand, but its meaning was still clear enough for her. Suddenly the pieces made sense to her. And she no longer had a question in her mind about the entire mission. So she lifted her hands up in surrender.
But she didn't have a chance.
No time for any pleas.
He fired.
Spinning from the impact, Sam staggered back, barely feeling the other bullet hit her high in the chest and felt her boots slip, depositing into the churning river behind her. The water shrieked in her ears, nearly blocking out the shouting and the last two shots. Her last view, her last thought, before her eyes blurred, was Daniel, on his knees, and she was drifting too far away to help him.
++++++++++++++++++++++
He heard the shots. They were loud, loud enough to make his feet skid to a halt, stopping Teal'c and Tery'ka in their tracks. The Tok'ra said nothing as Jack looked about, wondering where the shots came from.
"O'Neill." Teal'c pointed towards the east, off the trail towards the Stargate.
The man nodded, agreeing with Teal'c's assessment. He fingered his radio with a scowl. He didn't dare risk using it to contact Carter. God knows if they were still being pursued.
"Come on," he whispered to Tery'ka as he followed Teal'c towards the source of the sound.
The three reached a clearing minutes later when Teal'c halted. The sounds of a river could be heard close by. Jack pulled Tery'ka down to the shadowy line of bushes. The Jaafa hid behind a tree and silently pointed to the clearing just a few feet ahead.
Two men in the familiar SGC fatigues were on the ground face down. Jack couldn't tell who they were, but the sight of the uniforms made his throat tighten. He silently handed his staff weapon over to Tery'ka, motioning the To'kra to keep an eye out for their pursuers and went over, half crouched to where Teal'c was.
Even from there, Jack still couldn't see who they were and he gritted his teeth. He whistled softly, hoping maybe they were just playing possum but none of them replied.
"Cover me," he whispered to Teal'c as he took the zat gun from the Jaafa. The alien nodded, steadying his staff weapon.
Taking a deep breath, Jack went over quickly to the two men. Tugging at the helmets, he exposed the heads and checked their pulses. Sighing in relief when he found two regular beats, he turned to tell Teal'c to tell him who they were when he heard the snap and hiss of a staff weapon firing.
With an abrupt sound, the shot hit Teal'c on the side, the Jaafa having spun around at the first sound. Teal'c crumbled to the ground silent. Jack shot up in alarm, his arm out with his zat gun towards the shooter when he saw who it was.
Tery'ka.
"You !" the colonel hissed as he saw the Tok'ra's face twist into a sneer.
The Tok'ra said nothing, slipping back into the shadows. Jack was about to go check on Teal'c before giving chase when he heard a twig snap on the other direction.
"Who's there ?" Jack barked, aiming his weapon towards the newest intruder.
Tree branches parted, revealing the olive green uniform and Jack lowered his weapon.
"You." This time, the words were said with relief. "What the hell happened here ? And where's..."
Click.
Jack froze when he saw the gleaming black pistol in the newcomer's hands.
"No," Jack said softly, his eyes glued to the gun in disbelief.
It had been a trap all along.
When Colonel Jack O'Neill had first taken up this mission, he'd had a bad feeling about the place. Something about the whole thing that gave him a chill in the bones that he knew had nothing to do with the cold. But the urgency for the success of this mission superceded his instincts and he had gone blindly through the Stargate with the rest of his team.
Now staring at the business end of a gun, Jack decided that he should listen to his instincts more often. The colonel tried to step forward, tried to talk, but the gun swung towards him and all Jack could do was helplessly watched as the hammer cocked into the barrel.
"You don't want to do this," Jack said softly, eyes glued to the face rather than the gun. The colonel wanted to tell him to lower his gun, that everything was going to be all right.
But he never had a chance.
The shot rang throughout the forest, it's vibrations echoing, the sound shattering it's natural silence. Strange white birds took flight, suddenly filling the dark emerald sky with their startled calls. -----------------------------
© November 15, 1999 The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.