by
TITLE : Beyond
AUTHOR : Jaclyn Horrod
EMAIL : jhorrod@hotmail.com
CATEGORY: Action, Drama
SPOILERS : Set in Season 4 - spoilers for Into The Fire, Shades of Grey,
Thor's Chariot.
SEASON / SEQUEL : Season 4. If you
haven't read Jaclyn's stories : Sacrifices, The Rescue and Deception's Kiss,
Interactions, Inquisitions, you might want to read
them first. Continues in Sedition.
RATING : 15 / Mature.
CONTENT WARNINGS : Mature subject matter, cussing (what do you expect from
Jack O'Neill?!)
SUMMARY : O'Neill, freed from his liaison with Heru'Ur and Hathor, is hoping
to return to his duties as team leader of SG-1. But as he relives some of
the memories with Jackson, he realises the ultimate goal of his ruthless and
cunning former ally. Now it's a race against time - can he and SG-1
prevent disaster?
STATUS : Complete.
ARCHIVE : Rabelais, Heliopolis.
DISCLAIMER : Stargate SG-1 and its characters belong to MGM, Gekko Film Corp and
Double Secret Productions. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment
purposes and no money exchanged hands. No copyright or trademark infringement was
intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
AUTHOR'S NOTES : I would like to thank my extraordinary beta-reader, Rach,
whose constant encouragement and assistance is so greatly appreciated. I
could not have continued to write without her support.
FEEDBACK : Most definitely!
| On this page, you can go straight to : | Or jump to the other sections : | |||
| Part 1.1 | Part 1.4 | Part 1.7 | Part 1.10 | Go direct to Part Two |
| Part 1.2 | Part 1.5 | Part 1.8 | Part 1.11 | Go direct to Part Three |
| Part 1.3 | Part 1.6 | Part 1.9 | Go direct to Part Four |
|
| Go direct to Part Five |
||||
Daniel
Jackson stared at the bookshelf in his lab, sure that he'd placed them in order,
but the missing book on Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs seemed to suggest
otherwise. "Ok, it has to be
here," he said aloud, turning, looking over toward his workstation.
"And it's over there!" he sighed.
Grabbing the volume that best illustrated the symbols, he placed it on
top of the pile he'd already assembled. Switching
off his computer as an afterthought, he collected his books.
He felt a sense of relief that finally they would be able to resume their
work. He wanted to ensure that he had everything he needed for the briefing.
It
had been a while, three excruciating weeks of inactivity, following O'Neill's
safe return from his harrowing personal battle with the Goa'uld, Ptah. He'd
sensed a change in his friend, Jack had become a little more withdrawn and
easily agitated after the prolonged tests and debriefs.
Daniel
had spent those three weeks trying to be there for his best friend, attempting
to engage O'Neill in conversation at every opportunity, and standing firmly in
his friend's corner during the resultant interrogations. He'd come to the conclusion that his determination to ensure
that he shielded his colleague from too much scrutiny, had ultimately succeeded
in frustrating the SGC and NID personnel assigned to the case, and that in turn
had only served to prolong proceedings. Yet even knowing this, he had refused to
allow O'Neill to be put through it, without having the presence of what he had
called an independent, and someone who had knowledge of the entire incident from
start to finish.
But
now, at last, O'Neill was freed, cleared to resume active duty. P3R 854 slated
as their next destination; descendants of Earth inhabited the planet. Not
surprisingly, having learnt that this race, like the people of Abydos, traced
back to Ancient Egypt, Daniel had requested that SG1 be given the follow up
assignment. Fully anticipating an objection from O'Neill, who hated
research missions with a passion, he'd geared himself up for the inevitable
argument, and had been pleasantly surprised when none came.
SG15's
earlier forays had been successful, establishing a dialogue. Unlike the
Abydonians though, this race had advanced to a far more technologically and
cultural level, and appeared willing to share these technologies for small
considerations of agriculture and medicines.
He
was late for the briefing, his usual chaotic disorganised self. Round a corner
too quickly and dropping his books as he rushed through the SGC. A
soldier leant down in front of him to assist in their retrieval. As she stood
she smiled at the errant archaeologist, Daniel returned the favour.
"Hi,
I'm, um, late!" he told her, his eyes widening slightly at seeing a woman,
and a fairly beautiful one at that. "Sorry."
"Hello
late. I'm Paula, interesting name you've got there!" she quipped, having
checked his status first; a wrong address to a superior would have been highly
inappropriate.
Daniel
looked a little embarrassed, his cheeks flushed, which added further to that
sudden feeling of self-consciousness. "Ah,
no it's Daniel actually, Daniel Jackson," the archaeologist stammered, a
smile that was more forced than natural.
"Nice
to meet you Daniel," Lieutenant Paula Reece greeted.
"So,
um, I haven't seen you around here before, are you new?" he asked.
Jack
O'Neill appeared then, the soldier snapping to attention. A salute. "Daniel,
what are you doing?" he asked, looking at the woman who had quite clearly
distracted his colleague, his eyes measuring her statuesque figure, inclining
his head to the right to get a better view. "At ease Lieutenant."
"I'm,
I was on my way..." Daniel told him, glancing back at Paula, still
attempting to maintain some semblance of dignity.
"Sweet!
We don't exactly have all day," Jack intoned. "So, when you've
finished socialising, how about dropping by the briefing?"
Jackson's
piercing expression brought a smile to O'Neill's face, furious that his
colleague had merely added to his earlier embarrassment. "Yes,
why don't we both go," he stated coldly at O'Neill. "It was nice
meeting you Paula," he added as he began to advance, now side by side with
a beaming O'Neill, who flicked a look back to the Lieutenant.
"Bye
Paula!" he called out, the tone in his voice styled to effectively compound
Jackson's farewell.
"That's
not funny!" Daniel snapped.
"What?"
Jack's innocent expression used to perfect effect with his retort.
"Is
it your mission in life to embarrass me?" Jackson demanded, juggling once
more with the clutch of books balanced precariously in his arms.
O'Neill
managed to rescue the situation, before the entire selection was once more
deposited on the ground.
"Daniel,
did you ever consider just transferring all this stuff," almost acrimonious
in its delivery, "to a laptop?"
"Um,
no actually. Are you volunteering to help?" Jackson asked, turning away and
proceeding toward the briefing room.
O'Neill
looking after him incredulously, one of the books slipping from his grasp.
He looked down at it in disgust, kicking it along the floor. Jackson
reappeared around the corner.
"So?"
O'Neill spat, collecting the book and following his colleague.
****************
General
Hammond sat in his office. He'd expected the call hours ago, but felt a sense of
relief when it finally came. His granddaughter had had an emergency appendectomy
during the night; his first instinct to rush to the hospital had been put on
hold. He'd wanted to take leave on
compassionate grounds, but he felt it was his duty to be there for his
personnel.
Six
teams were currently off world, the reactivation to duty of his first team - SG1
was probably what had really spelt the end of his personal considerations.
Jack
O'Neill had been through a lot; to see him finally back in the fold had been a
great relief. He, like Jackson, was
concerned with how introspective his most senior officer had become.
A
mission, like the one proposed by Jackson to P3R 854, seemed the ideal way to
ease the colonel back into action. Although knowing this to be a safe call, he
also knew Jack O'Neill's strong dislike for what amounted to a cultural mission.
He'd
been as surprised as Jackson when the colonel hadn't objected, so out of
character did Hammond believe this to be, that it had bothered him enough not to
ask for leave. That only served to tear him between the two, loyalty to his
family, and to his command, which in turn, simply added fuel to his concerns.
Suggestions
of counselling had been brushed off without consideration. In fact, any attempts
made to ask after his welfare had been so emphatically blanked, that Hammond had
actually given orders not to ask!
He
saw the two men enter the briefing room out of the corner of his eye. Looking at
his watch, he stood, straightening his jacket for some unfathomable reason, and
checking his tie.
"Dr.
Jackson," he announced, as he entered the room, "pleased you could
join us!"
Daniel
looked at the general dubiously, his eyes averting toward O'Neill who merely
grinned at the archaeologist inanely.
"I'm
sorry General Hammond, I lost a book, which I actually..."
"Yeah!
I think he gets the point Daniel," Jack intervened. "Shall we get on
with the briefing?"
Jackson's
sweeping hand, gesturing at his friend to go ahead.
"Thank
you!" Jack whispered.
"Dr.
Jackson?" Hammond enquired, as Daniel sat down, arranging his books.
Daniel
regarded Hammond, "General?"
"Daniel,
for crying out loud, give the damn briefing!" Jack vociferated, shaking his
head. "Yoi!"
Carter
concealed a smile under her hand, looking across at Teal'c, the Jaffa too
enjoying the reformation of the team, and the seemingly light-hearted banter
that would inevitably ensue.
The
events of those few days, when all believed they had lost the colonel for good,
had given Teal'c time to reflect. He
felt nothing but admiration for O'Neill, more so now than ever. The colonel's
ability to survive, and perhaps grow stronger from the experience, seemed to
elevate the already exulted impression he had for him.
A
new assignment finally made the team feel like a team. He couldn't put it any
better in his mind than that.
*****************
Jacob
Carter had returned to Vorash with Freya's body. The appeal to the council to
procure a sarcophagus had been heeded. There
was much that this new breed of Goa'uld could tell them, once revived. Jacob
fully intended to share that information with the SGC.
With
the backing of Perseus, the high councillor, the attitude toward their allies
would now be one of complete compliance. Both he and Martouf had protested
strongly enough to finally be granted this sanction.
The
body of the former Tok'ra, now host to Ptah, had been placed in the sarcophagus.
Martouf had elected to stand guard, along with two other Tok'ra, whilst the
regeneration took place. Although
it might herald, for the Tok'ra, some advancement in obtaining the knowledge of
the latest Goa'uld technology, Martouf harboured serious reticence about having
such a creature in their midst, his own cynicism the reason he had chosen the
task of interrogation.
This
in turn had left Jacob free to liase with Hammond on their progress.
He intended his latest visit to Earth to coincide with the reinstatement
of SG1 - once deployed he and Hammond could take a much-deserved break. They'd
planned on playing a round or two of golf, before the weather turned too nasty.
Martouf
entered Jacob's quarters, surprising the Tok'ra host.
It was close to midnight on Vorash, Jacob immediately knowing that
something was amiss.
"The
creature has revived," Martouf told him, concern etched into his features.
"You
look a little worried Martouf, something wrong?" he asked.
"Colonel
O'Neill was correct, the creature is completely undetectable. It also claims
that Heru'ur has used advanced cloning techniques to create an entire army of
the species," Martouf imparted, "apparently with the express intention
of infiltrating Earth's defences!"
Jacob
considered the statement. "And it could be spinning a yarn," he
intoned, using phrases that Martouf, over the past couple of years, had become
all too familiar with. A
concentrated expression crossed Jacob's face. "I wonder if Colonel O'Neill
is now sensitive to this symbiote, in a similar way as we are to the
Goa'uld?" he mused.
"Jacob,
Colonel O'Neill is perhaps the only person who, having possessed such a
symbiote, might have the ability to detect them. However, given his experiences,
perhaps it would be far more prudent to leave such a suggestion until a much
later date!"
"I
agree," Jacob concurred, closing the book he'd been reading, "I'd
better talk to Ptah, I'm figuring on being away for at least a week, it can't
hurt to take something back to Earth with me!"
***************
"So
in conclusion, I'm thinking that the medical benefits here might, given that
none of us are particularly qualified," he added with reticence, obviously
building up to something, "be worth considering having Dr. Fraiser
along?" Daniel offered.
Jack
nodded. "Sounds like an idea sir," he agreed. "Old doc Fraiser
could probably use a change of scenery!"
Hammond
smiled at the colonel. "I'll take that under advisement Jack!" he
said.
"Thank
you sir!"
Daniel
smiled to himself. He still didn't quite believe that Jack had managed to free
himself from such a formidable foe and could still make those kinds of quips. It
only served to make his respect for his friend grow.
"Um,
Jack?"
"Daniel?"
"We've
got some time, can I have a word?"
O'Neill
smiled. "Sure. Sir, are we done here?"
Hammond
nodded. "You ship out at zero eight hundred hours tomorrow morning Colonel,
dismissed!"
"Thank
you sir, we'll try not to be late!" Jack intoned, his first glance a
pointed one to Jackson, then smiling across at Carter and Teal'c. "Well
kids, have fun, see you tomorrow!"
*****************
Daniel
followed Jack along the hallways, the colonel's stride lengthening, a wicked
smile etched into his features as he heard Jackson shuffling to keep up with
him.
"You're
doing that on purpose aren't you?" Jackson stated, a wry smile to himself,
he knew the colonel well enough to know his sense of humour would border on such
behaviour.
"Seeing
how fast you can move Daniel, you've been out of the loop for a while, consider
it your physical training for all that cultural study!" Jack teased.
"You're
in a very relaxed mood," Jackson pointed out, once the colonel had tired of
making him chase to keep up. "Anything I should know about?"
"I
just don't want to harp on about the past Daniel," he retorted, "it's
getting a little old if you know what I mean?"
"Yes,
I can understand that...so, how about a beer at my place?" Daniel asked.
Jack
looked at him, a smile. "Sure, why not," he paused then, a quizzical
expression, questioning his friend. "Tell me the old stuff is not the
urgent and pressing thing we needed to discuss?"
"Well,
some of it," Jackson said quickly. "But um, no there was something
else that I wanted to discuss with you, um, actually!"
"Daniel,
you sound suspiciously like someone who's fudging here!" Jack charged, his
askant expression making Jackson slightly uncomfortable.
Jackson's
rueful smile was empty of humour. "We need to do this Jack," he told
his friend, the tone of his voice imploring. "I need to do this."
"Yeah
okay," Jack agreed, taking a moment to look at the surprised expression of
his colleague at his agreement, before heading off once more toward the locker
room. "I thought you didn't like beer?" he said, turning and allowing
Jackson to enter first.
"I
er, don't, but well...it was an invitation!" Jackson replied.
******************
Janet
smiled at Sam as she entered her lab. "Hey!" she greeted, allowing
Carter to look curiously at the computer image Janet had enhanced, showing Jack
O'Neill's latest brain scans.
"Janet,"
Sam replied, "any changes on those?"
"No,
the colonel's still showing signs of those elevated waves, the activity is
incredible," Janet told her.
"Yeah,
I know, so are the tests going well?" Sam asked.
"He's
not very responsive. I think to be honest, he's had enough of being poked and
prodded by the NID people the Pentagon sent over," Janet told her,
"he's been pretty understanding for the most part though,"
"Good,
well then I guess you'd appreciate a break too, right?" Sam stated, a smile
crossing her face now. "How do
you feel about joining SG1 on our next mission?"
Janet
looked surprised. "Really?"
"Uh
huh, I just spoke to General Hammond," Sam replied.
"Thank
you!" Janet's smile beaming across her features.
"It
wasn't me. Daniel suggested it in the briefing and Colonel O'Neill approved
it!" Sam told her.
Janet
looked even more surprised. "They did? Finally!" she exclaimed.
"I
take it you're interested then?"
"Are
you kidding, I've been hoping to get off of this base since I joined!"
Janet's tone was excited now. "It's like working in a candy store and not
being able to eat the candy!"
Sam
laughed. "Wow! I never realised you felt that way," she remarked, a
wicked grin crossing her features then. "Wonder if you'll still be so
enthusiastic after Colonel
Janet
laughed. "Ouch!"
********************
Daniel
pushed the door open, reaching for the light, leading O'Neill inside. Two bags
of shopping nestled in the Colonel's arms, a pained expression on his face.
"I
guess you don't shop?" Daniel suggested.
"I
shop Daniel, I just don't spend three hours about it!" O'Neill responded,
emphasising the time aspect of his comment.
"Well,
it's difficult," Daniel stated. "I never know what I want!"
"Yeah
I noticed," the colonel said dryly, following Jackson into the kitchen and
dumping the bags on the kitchen table.
"Beer
right?" Daniel enquired, beginning to rifle through the bags and deposit
stuff on the tops.
O'Neill
stared in disbelief at the archaeologist's lack of organisation, leaning against
the doorframe, a bemused expression masking his handsome features. Finally, he
was unable to take it anymore, his arms gesticulating wildly. "Okay,
stop!" he snapped, moving forward. "Right now. Ah… Daniel!" An
almost fatherly reproach.
"What?"
the archaeologist asked innocently.
"You're
gonna put all this stuff away right?" Jack enquired, stating what he knew
to be the obvious, yet feeling compelled to point out the fact to Jackson.
"Ah,
yes, I am?" Still bewildered.
"Then
why are you getting the damn stuff out of the bags, putting it on the damn
tops?" O'Neill's impatience showing, as he took things away from Jackson
and began to open cupboards, finding the right place to tuck them away.
"Just to put them away?"
"Um,
well, I was actually looking for the beer!" Daniel remarked, watching
O'Neill sweep the items from the top and put them neatly away.
"Which
you got out first, and put on the top," Jack's bemusement underlined with
narrowing eyes.
"Oh,"
Jackson acknowledged, a smile sweeping his face. "Yes I did, thank
you!"
O'Neill's
eyebrows shot up, shaking his head in disbelief. "Are you nervous or
something?" he asked, cracking open a bottle of beer and taking a long
draught.
Daniel
looked down, away from the intrusive glare so intensely scrutinising him.
"No!"
"Well
you're not exactly acting like someone who knows what the hell they're
doing!" Jack insisted.
"I
guess, maybe I'm a little nervous," he admitted, a smile crossing his eyes,
"although I don't even know why? Which, as you can imagine, is a little
disconcerting."
"Daniel,
I'm not a Goa'uld, stop acting like I'm gonna bite your head off or
something," his tone slightly sardonic.
"I
know you're not a Goa'uld, Jack," Jackson stated, looking away from his
colleague then, deciding that honesty might suffice. "It's just...it's hard to know how to start the
conversation."
"Oh
for crying out loud!" Jack intoned. "Just relax, play some music or
something?"
"Yes,
um, good idea!" Daniel announced. "Although, I don't exactly have
anything classical," he mused, as if this particular admission in itself
might disappoint his guest.
Jack
closed his eyes, shaking his head once more. "Whatever," he dismissed.
"Just put away the groceries and do something a little less unsettling will
you?"
Left
alone in the kitchen, Daniel looked hopelessly lost. "Why do I feel like
I'm on a date?" he berated.
Jack
browsed the books in Daniel's collection, cringing at the content of the long
library style shelves. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. "Geek central!"
"So,"
Daniel announced, a glass of wine clasped firmly in his hand.
"So,"
Jack echoed, wandering over and collapsing on an armchair.
"Is
this where we do the question and answer?" Daniel enquired, a nervous
chuckle.
Jack
considered the question, taking a sip of his beer. "What's on your mind
Daniel?" he asked, never one to avoid an issue.
"Well,
to be honest, you!" Jackson replied dubiously.
"Me?"
Jack sounded surprised, although he shouldn't have been. Daniel had made his
intentions very clear when they'd been back at the base. "Something you
needed to say I thought?"
"Well,
yes, but," he stopped then, looking frankly at O'Neill, "can I be
honest? I mean completely honest?"
Jack
took another long draught from the bottle of beer he clutched in his right hand.
"Thank
you!" A smile slowly crept across his face. "I guess, it's a little
personal.... or maybe just that I sense you really don't want to talk about
it...but um, Nurti?"
"Oh
here we go," Jack complained, eyes risen upward, moving uncomfortably in
his seat. "Daniel, we did
this, I told you how I felt!"
"No,
you really didn't," Daniel insisted, a smile crossing his face. "I
guess it's part of that brilliant mask you hide behind, the one that you think I
can't see through!" Jackson sipped his wine thoughtfully. "I just
didn't see it before,"
"See
what?" Jack's tone higher, agitated.
"I
see what you're really hiding," Daniel stated.
"The front...it's impressive Jack, I mean, you do it so well. But
your eyes tell a whole other story, they give you away.... that little glint of
amusement you use to hide behind?" Daniel continued. "Like, I'm
mocking you and I'm made out of cast iron, or um, Naquadah would probably be
more appropriate!"
Jack
shook his head, a frown furrowing his brow, knocking back more beer, and then
allowing a smile to permeate his eyes.
"Daniel,
please! I wasn't hiding.... I was, telling you the truth," he remonstrated,
"and since when did you become an authority on my feelings?"
"Since
you pretend not to have any I guess!" Jackson asserted, inclining his wine
glass toward the colonel. "And, right there, see that's the look...'the I'm
oblivious to this' look, you don't even know you're doing it do you?"
Daniel wondered aloud.
"Okay,
look!" O'Neill sat forward now, the signal that he intended to become
defensive.
"Ah,
Jack?" Daniel demanded, tone deeper, more assertive. "You're
bullshitting! Can we please just not go through the whole façade of
personalities you conjure up to hide how you really feel? Because I'm not as
practised as you are, and that, um, bitter stuff you throw up? The insults? The
put-downs? I don't take them as well as you, I'm just not, well, you know me
well enough by now to know that!"
O'Neill's
expression was one of sheer bemusement. "Um, right...I think I might have
got some of that?" he offered, another façade, a smile.
Daniel
smiled back at him, shaking his head. "Dense mode won't work either!"
he said.
"What?
What, do you want Daniel?" Jack demanded, slightly angered now at this
unending assault.
"I
want to be what I am Jack, your friend! And you can brush everyone else off,
that's fine by me, I know you well enough to know how hard it is to penetrate
through that thick skull of yours, but not me, okay?" Jackson vociferated,
leaning forward like O'Neill, prepared to meet his challenge. "Not when I, um...I see it!
You might as well have a neon sign on your head pointing down...mortally,
emotionally wounded!"
O'Neill
frowned then looking away from Jackson. "Do
we really have to do this all over again?" he asked, his piercing glare
meant to stare down his opponent, instead it merely showed the wounds with more
clarity.
"Can
I ask you something else?" Daniel persisted.
"Yeah
why not, I'm learning so much about me here!" Jack mused sarcastically,
standing up. "I gather another beer isn't out of the question, whilst you
do your impression of shrink is it?"
"No,
go ahead. I'm fine, by the way!" Jackson's tone intentionally meant to
alert the colonel to his lack of manners.
"Wonderful!
Want some more wine?" O'Neill snapped. "Or were you being deliberately
subtle?"
"No,
I'd like some, thanks!" Jackson replied, holding the glass out, making
O'Neill return to collect it.
"Shoulda
just brought the damn bottle," he complained under his breath, disappearing
into the kitchen.
Daniel
took a deep breath. "This is going really well," he sighed.
Jack
returned, carrying as many bottles of beer as he could manage, and another glass
of wine for Jackson.
"You'd
better stop at two, I don't want to be cleaning up after you!" he
commented.
"There's
another intriguing Jack O'Neill character!
Mister drag up the past!" Daniel retorted.
"I'm
just making a light hearted remark," he insisted.
"You
really don't give me any credit at all do you?" Daniel asked him, obviously
hurt by this latest attempt by O'Neill to avoid the subject.
"Daniel,
look!" A heavy sigh. "I give you plenty of credit, I respect you....
probably a lot more than you realise...." his hand gesturing, the bottle
swinging from his fingers. "But, we've been here.... am I hurt? Yeah! What
else?" he demanded.
"Jack,
I want to help!" Jackson replied, as honestly as he could, the concern he
felt now clearly illustrated on his face. "Please don't shut me out, it's
really hard to take!"
The
genuine look of hurt and anguish in Daniel's eyes seemed to tear through the
cavalier, tough exterior that Jack wore like a coat of armour.
He hated himself for bringing his friend to his knees before confessing,
letting go, giving in to the torment that plagued him night and day.
He
couldn't sleep, the horror of having lain with a Goa'uld, the humiliation of
being forced to do so stung him numb. When
he closed his eyes, he could still hear the snake, feel the soft embrace, she
felt like a woman, yet he was unable to see that part, the part he saw brought a
deep sense of revulsion to every fibre of his being.
He
looked across at Daniel and saw the fear. Maybe the archaeologist was right,
maybe if he didn't beat his fists against a wall and drop into a sobbing mass,
he was cheating himself...but then, it wasn't in his nature to cry about
misfortune.... he simply didn't know how to.
"Daniel,
I appreciate what you're trying to do, I really just can't do this!" His
tone was slightly stressed, clipped.
"You
mean you won't?" Daniel sounded hurt.
"No,"
Jack looked surprised that his colleague would doubt his word. "I mean
Can't!
"Jack,
you can, you're doing it now.... I know it's difficult to reach inside and
wrench your heart out.... but you have to," Daniel implored.
"Why!"
Jack's whole being seemed to cry out in a language that Daniel could suddenly
understand. "Why do I have to?"
He
stared at the colonel. "You just did," he told him.
O'Neill
stared back, unsure of what his friend was telling him. "I just did
what?"
A
heavy sigh from Jackson, searching to put it into words.
"I guess you just said it all," he offered. "Said it in
the easiest possible way,"
It
was a weak reply, yet seeing his friend so compromised with his own inability to
communicate emotions, left him empty of the resolve he'd had. Everything had not gone according to his plans.
Daniel mused silently, yep! You work it all out in your mind and the
whole thing falls apart at the merest obstacle!
"That's
supposed to mean something?" Jack's voice a little terse, his eyes lowered
away from Daniel's.
"Um,
well, actually," the archaeologist struggled. "Um."
"Nope!"
Jack concluded. "I didn't think you knew what I meant, any better than I
did." A smile. "I'm probably gonna drink a whole bunch of these!"
he told Daniel, raising the already half consumed bottle of beer. "Care to
get drunk?"
"Would
it help?" Daniel asked honestly, the rueful regard adorning his face
becoming one of anticipation.
Jack
looked away, considering that question, lifting his head enough to show the
almost bedevilled smile that heralded his response.
"I'm
so gonna regret this in the morning!" he sighed, as he pushed the door
leading to the kitchen open. He
leant back out. "Ah, would you like something to eat?" he asked.
"Nope,
liquid's just fine!" Jack replied.
Daniel
disappeared into the haven of the kitchen once more, shaking his head silently,
frustrated by his lack of candour.
"You
know, Daniel, you make more sense when you're talking to yourself," he
said, a droll monotone to his voice.
"Well,
I probably get more answers too!" Daniel retorted, a blasé affectation on
his face.
"That's
cute!" Jack told him, reaching past Jackson and scooping up a packet of
potato chips he felt sure must have been purchased for his consumption, he
wondered then, curiously, if the archaeologist might have conceded defeat,
feeling slightly ashamed at himself for being so evasive and awkward.
"Cute?"
Daniel repeated, watching O'Neill lumber back into the lounge. "Cute?"
He
followed, slowly, the wine clutched in his right hand. O'Neill now sprawled out
along the couch. "I'll put some music on, it'll at least fill in the long
silences!" he intoned, picking up the remote control and switching on the
stereo, strains of U2 filling the room.
O'Neill
looked across at him, nodding. "Good choice," he agreed, emptying
another bottle of beer. "So?"
he asked. "You wanna know how I feel?"
Daniel
lifted his glass, seating in the recliner that O'Neill had abandoned for the
comfort of the couch.
Jack
contemplated that remark - already having consumed three or more beers, he'd
lost count. He wondered if he was
going to be able to drag up everything, the fact that he'd even consider sharing
the darkest thoughts he had harboured since the whole nightmare had begun to
send waves of panic through his mind.
Where
to start?
"You
really wanna know hah?" he enquired once more of his friend, attempting to
bridge the uneasy silence between them, Jackson’s intense regard merely
serving to make him feel even more guarded.
"Um,
hello?" Daniel's intonation precise.
Jack
felt surprisingly sober, too sober to shovel out endless emotions he neither
wanted to feel, or profess to feeling. He had come to realise, without ever
truly embracing the fact, that he had little choice. Regarding Daniel Jackson
now, whose demeanour practically demanded his deference, he felt compelled to
unlock the doors that barred the way. He didn't believe in souls, nothing so
seemingly pure could ever reside in the darkness he felt. Yet he was about to
bear what could possibly be thus described.
"You're
sure?" he asked, one last attempt to free himself, and possibly spare
Jackson the unleashing of those restraints.
Daniel
sipped his wine, inclining his head to nod toward his friend.
An
ironic smile. No quarter given, none would be taken.
"So
you wanna know about Nurti right?" Jack sighed. "How I feel about
that?"
"Jack?"
Daniel looked at his friend patiently. "Just take your time, you really
need to do this, that whole bravado soldier act, it's not working for you,"
"Hey!
It's worked pretty well up to now," Jack countered.
Jackson
looked flustered. "Um, right up to the point where you're falling apart on
the inside."
"Throw
something?" O'Neill mused, a sorrow creeping into those soft brown eyes.
"Might
make you feel better?" Jackson responded.
"Or
you?" Jack intoned. "Is that where you're going with this Daniel? Is
it you or me that needs to forgive?"
Jackson looked surprised, slowly shaking his head. "I really don't know," he replied.
Daniel
glanced at his watch, and did a double take. He was drinking wine at noon,
something he'd never done in his life before, he smiled wryly, that thought
perhaps ironic since nothing he did anymore could be construed as normal.
"You're
quiet," Daniel offered, watching the constantly altering expressions
crossing
"Thinking
Daniel, thinking!" O'Neill intoned, looking ruefully at Jackson, a grimace
descending on his face, painfully aware that his silence was creating a tension
between them.
"About?"
"Whether
I really wanna do this?" Jack imparted honestly, although the perplexed
expression began to border on bemusement. "Where to start, where the hell
you think it's going? The meaning of life, and why they always put sweet 'n' low
in the damn hotel rooms!"
Jackson
sighed heavily, pushing his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose. "The
um, meaning of life and sweet and low aside, I think you need to get it off your
chest actually," Jackson argued. "Reach inside Jack."
"Get
what off my chest?" It was a question O'Neill had posed to himself many
times in the last hour. "I don't see how whining about this is gonna make
me feel any better?"
"What
you're bottling up inside," Daniel asserted. He was beginning to lose
patience with O'Neill's persistent attempts to avoid confessing those feelings
that he felt was making the colonel dangerously introspective. "Come on
Jack, I know you're feeling something, why are you so scared?"
"Daniel,
god! Don't you think I just want to forget about this?" Jack remonstrated,
anger clouding his handsome features. "The whole bringing it up thing, it
just makes me wanna...." His voice trailed off.
"What?"
Daniel asked quickly, seeing the pain that swept across his eyes however much
he'd tried to mask it with anger.
"I
can't do this!" Jack yelled, his features tense and strained, the beer
bottle smashed down on the coffee table.
"Can't
or won't?" Daniel demanded. "Come on Jack, give yourself, and the rest
of us a break here, we see what this thing is doing to you. It tears us all
apart. Are we supposed to pretend
we don't care? Is that it?"
There
was anger and resentment in Daniel's tone then that made O'Neill regard him with
a deeper sense of understanding, he'd never really considered that before. Were
his moods, his reactions altered? Or maybe they perceived it, it had to be
affecting everyone, he just couldn't see how.
"I'm
angry!" he snapped, the bitterness etched into his face clearly now,
muscles twitching, taunt, sardonic scorn poured into those words. "And
apparently selfish!"
"Yes,
I can see that," Daniel replied. "Angry would be the first focal point
for you, selfish? I never said that Jack, I just said that if you're in pain, so
are we.... we care!"
"Excuse
me if I don't go all dewy-eyed here Daniel, but why should the way you feel
affect me? I'm just doing what I have to, to get by," O'Neill argued
"Ah,
here we go!" Daniel snapped. "Don't you ever get tired of that
persona?"
"What
persona?" O'Neill retorted sharply. "Is it too much to ask that you
let me be myself without trying to put me into some damn category you can deal
with?"
"So
what are we going to do Jack? Pretend it didn't happen, pretend you're not lying
about how you feel?" Daniel asked. "Please just tell me and I can play
it your way!"
"I
want to be angry Daniel, can you handle that?" Jack enquired, his tone
stressed, anguished. He regarded Jackson now, the anger building inside him,
looking at the archaeologist's expectant expression.
No reply.
"You
want me to break down Daniel, does that help?" His eyes filled with tears
now, but not from pain, this wasn't a man about to concede to that weakness. He
felt stronger suddenly, able to look Jackson straight in the face, with the
tears that perfectly illustrated his frustration and anger rolling unhindered
down his cheeks.
Jackson
leant forward, his hands reaching out, almost as if to his friend, the same
frustrations burning inside him. "Yes, if it helps. God, Jack, why won't
you realise? You put all these barriers in the way of everyone, even yourself.
It's almost like you can't function unless you're emotionally cut off from the
rest of the world!" Daniel snapped, anger flaring his nostrils, his eyes
intense and demanding. "You're not an island Jack, no-one is!"
"No
Daniel, that isn't me. It's kinda sounding more like you!" Jack's tone
quieter now, less penetrating. "Why should I give into something because
you're perceiving it exists, tell me that?"
Daniel
paused then, the resentment turning to consideration.
"Is that what you think it is?" Sombre, restrained. "That
I need something from you? No, that's not it Jack, it's what you need...let it
go.... please?"
O'Neill
nodded, almost grudgingly admitting that to them both. "That's what it is
Daniel, pure and simple. I can't do the psyche evaluation thing; it just doesn't
work for me. I didn’t want to do things," he lamented, eyebrows raised.
"Tough! That's life, that's the damn job isn't it?"
Jackson's
attention unwavering. "Is it? Is that what the military teaches you?"
he enquired with disdain, evidence of his distrust of that particular
institution. "No emotions, no feelings, just a machine Jack? Come on!"
"It's
called self-preservation Daniel, you pick it up," Jack replied, collecting
the beer bottle from the coffee table and taking a long draught, "yes, I
admit, I had to do some pretty awful things, maybe they'll stick in my throat
for the rest of my life, but we're both in one piece right?"
"Yes,
we're physically in one piece. I'm just a little more concerned with the
emotional trauma you're going through," he retorted, "I'm just worried
that you're in denial, that you'll allow all that pain and frustration to build
inside you to the point where you can't control it anymore.... is that so
wrong?"
Jack
regarded him, shaking his head. He
didn't want to go where they were going, that wasn't how he did things.
"I'm just a little more pragmatic than you are, that's all. Whatever you
think you're seeing, believe me, you're not!" he insisted.
Daniel
looked vexed, he hadn't wanted to make his friend so angry, but he knew more
than O'Neill could ever realise, maybe it was time for that, if he brought it
out into the open, how could Jack deny it existed?
"I'm
not?" Daniel retorted, "Jack you're...okay, remember the other
night?" A pause, second thoughts, should he tell Jack that, disarm him....
could he?
"The
other night?" Jack enquired, the curiosity tinged with a reticence.
"I
came over to your place, we played chess, watched that old war movie?"
Jackson reminded him.
"Yeah,
so?"
"Jack,
I could hear you, you were having nightmares," Daniel intoned, his face
covered with angst. "You were screaming for someone to help you...."
He stopped then, watching O'Neill's eyes lower away from his. "I stood
outside your room for over an hour Jack, wondering if I should wake you up...or
just let you fight through it,"
Jack's
expression contorted. "Nightmares?" he said slowly, a deep breath.
He remembered then, waking up in a cold sweat, terrified about something
he couldn't remember, but he did remember that he couldn't get away from what
was happening to him, that terrified him more than he was willing to ever admit.
"Having
them a lot?" Daniel asked, cautiously optimistic now that his friend could
see why he'd been so insistent on dragging him, albeit reluctantly, toward an
admission of sorts.
"Yeah,"
Jack conceded. "I've been pretty restless I guess.
Sorry if I woke you,"
"Why?
Jack don't be sorry," Daniel said softly, "just tell me you can't deal
with how this makes you feel, and just talk to me whenever you need to, I'm not
going to think any less of you for having feelings!"
O'Neill
shook his head. "Daniel, that's not what bothers me, you don't bother
me," he remarked. "It's what I think that counts, and right now I'm
thinking I ought to be done with this, forgetting it," he opined,
"instead of allowing it to rule my life."
"You
can't handle that can you?" Jackson asked, an affectionate smile crossing
his face. "You have to be in charge, that's so military!"
"Hey!
What can I tell you," Jack's tone lightening up, "I'm a controlled
kinda guy!"
"Yeah,
I think I got that!" Daniel agreed. "So?"
O'Neill
smiled. "So, that helped," His tone was bordering on sarcasm. "We
should probably do this more often right? The yelling thing?"
Jackson's
pensive regard offered no buffer for his humour. "Or we could do the
ignoring, I'm not hearing what I want to, so let's not give Jack the
satisfaction of just dropping it... thing?" he conceded.
"Actually,
you know what?" Daniel said suddenly, his tone even. "You're right, I
don't know what I expected you to say.... I guess I wanted to be a friend and
help you through this," he continued, standing and walking across the room
away from O'Neill, "which, is really, um, stupid as all I appear to have
achieved is to piss you off even more, and resolve nothing!"
Jack
smiled to himself then. "Daniel you did fine," he said. "I feel
better, honestly!"
Jackson
turned round, nodding. "Yes, um, thank you for saying it. I'm probably the
one who needed to talk about this more than you did.... Mister Incapacitated!"
he admitted.
O'Neill
sat back into the comfort of the sofa, waiting. Perhaps he should have
recognised it earlier. Daniel had an irritating habit of avoiding the subject,
taking a diversion around the galaxy of his thoughts before ever realising what
point he was trying to make. Yet
Jack found that almost ironic, the rhetoric, the engagement. He'd almost
forgotten the routine, a smile. "Daniel, I guess we're here right? Let's
have it," he entreated.
"Okay,
now this is..."
"Odd?
I should have realised a while ago this wasn't about me. Sorry," Jack told
him. "So go on, you've got a lot of that...stuff to get through
right?"
Daniel
looked ruefully at the colonel. "Well I see your powers of observation are
still intact!" he said, making his way slowly back to his seat, getting
comfortable with another glass of wine. "Well, I guess we've been here
before," he remarked. "Oh boy, where to start?"
"At
the beginning?" Jack prompted, a wry smile. "Kinda a good place don't
ya think?"
Daniel
thought hard.............
The
planet had left him feeling odd, almost spaced out initially. The thought of
being trapped in the lair of a Goa'uld who had openly shown her hatred of the
human race was unnerving...learning of her intentions, had left him feeling
confused...horrified.
"I
guess it started with knowing what you'd be forced to do..." Daniel told
him, a sympathetic expression on his face now.
"Angry?"
Jack asked, reaching for a fresh bottle of beer, and consigning the discarded
lid with a flick of his right hand towards Daniel's waste paper bin behind the
archaeologist. A smile crossing his handsome features, fists clenched in a
gesture of triumph as it hit the target.
"I
guess," Jackson agreed. "It was almost surreal, I knew what I felt,
and it bothered me."
"Yeah,"
Jack remarked, an ironic regard. " It bothered me too!"
The
images played back in Daniel's mind, the feelings.............
The
room was empty, just the inanimate objects of the Goa'uld decorating it.
Feelings
crept eerily around, for some reason Rothman had come into his mind. The death
of his friend never given time to sink in, a clear image of Rothman haunting
him.
"I
thought about Robert," he admitted then, looking directly at O'Neill his
eyes reflecting the guilt he felt.
"Rothman?
Why?" Jack asked, his own careful reasoning having gifted him with the
ability to deal with that particular incident.
He had acted out of self-preservation, both his own life and that of his
team depended on those very actions. He
knew he'd find the strength to forgive taking the archaeologist's life, however
much he'd regretted having to do so.
"Oh,
just being alone I guess, having all that time," Daniel surmised. "If
anyone should have been dead there, it ought to have been me right?"
O'Neill
shook his head. "You wanna take responsibility for Rothman? Daniel, that
was the damn Goa'uld, no choice!"
"I
know, I know...” he said quickly, dismissively. "It just dawned on me
that I'm the one who gets dragged off by an Unas, and Robert dies..."
"Yeah,
well there you go!" Jack intoned.
"I'm
not used to people dying, which is kind of an odd thing to say," Jackson
told him.
Jack
shook his head; being in the military hadn't exactly given him immunity either,
but he could see how Jackson would think so.
"Jack?"
Uncertainty permeated Jackson's voice, his eyes meeting O'Neill's then,
searching, wanting to know, to understand. "What was it like?"
"What?
Killing someone? Killing Rothman?" Jack enquired, genuinely surprised that
Daniel
shook his head, a deep breath. "No, being possessed by a Goa'uld!"
O'Neill
felt the wrench in his gut when that question struck home, the colour drained
from his face. A stoic appearance now adorned his features.
"It
was," he closed his eyes, "intrusive, frustrating, confusing mostly,
like being caught in a small space with someone you can't stand being so damn
confined too."
"I..."
Daniel began. "It's just..."
"Sha're?"
Jack ventured, understanding almost immediately what had inspired that
particular enquiry, empathy with his friend's deep sense of loss.
Daniel
looked wistfully at the colonel. "Yes," he confirmed. "I guess
you're uniquely qualified now to know how she must have felt."
O'Neill
thought about it, remembering the horror of being silenced. The screaming that
had ravaged his mind.
"I
had defences Daniel, a place I could hide from it," O'Neill spoke slowly,
deliberately. "But the pain," he winced, the intensity of the recall
sending the image of that pain into his eyes. "I couldn't find anywhere to
hide from that."
"Pain?"
Jackson probed, almost wishing he'd not led the conversation to a point where he
would feel so wretched.
"Oh
yeah, when it got tired of trying to argue with me. Whoa! It's like nothing I've
ever felt before, nowhere to hide from that. For what it's worth, I doubt Sha're
would have given her snake the same problems I did!" he concluded, an
intense feeling of pity and remorse sweeping over him.
"I
guess not," Daniel hoped, more than believed.
"Hey!
We about done with recriminations one on one?" Jack asked.
"Yeah,
I guess. I still have a thousand questions I want answers to though!"
Daniel confessed.
"Kinda
thought you might, fascinating?" Jack enquired.
Daniel
considered that for a moment. "Exactly!" he retorted.
"I
got that impression, the thousands of things that must have been going through
your mind right?" Jack imparted. "I have a few, like, that at no point
did you consider staying at the SGC when I sent you back?"
"Nope,
not for a second," Daniel's answer decisive. "I know you too well,
that's what you wanted!"
Both
men smiled. "Weren't about to do that then hah?" Jack intoned. "I
mean, why break the damn habit of a lifetime just to save your own ass."
"I
did doubt you, for about a second I guess. That was kind of weird," Daniel
admitted.
"Hey,
I doubted myself. Got a little too hung up with all that power there, Heru'ur's
offer was pretty tempting," Jack confessed.
Jackson
regarded him with intrigue, it had been the first time O'Neill had openly
admitted to near-seduction by the power offered to him.
"Destroying
Apophis?" he asked.
"Yeah,
and being that close to having the power to defend Earth," Jack told him.
"It was almost everything we've been working for."
"Yes,
I guess I can see how that might influence you," Daniel agreed. "How
long were you, um, infected?"
O'Neill
shrugged. "With the snake?" he asked, realising that's exactly what
Jackson meant, continuing without needing him to confirm it. "That's the
one thing I don't know Daniel, I couldn't tell you when he decided to give me my
own snake, or why the damn thing took so long to show itself!"
"It
does seem a little odd though, he kept his word on everything else."
Jack's
eyes closed.............
Heru'ur
stood beside him, the controls turned over. He felt a deep sense of power, of
self-possession. "This is pretty impressive," O'Neill said.
"Our
ships are far in advance of those of Apophis, those that you so easily
destroyed!" he told the colonel.
"Really?
How so?" Jack asked.
"You
expect so much Tau'ri, for so little in return," Heru'ur stated.
"Perhaps one concession would be all it might take for me to offer such
knowledge."
"One
concession?" the colonel questioned. "What might that be?"
"Agree
to join our forces in the battle with Apophis, this knowledge would be yours,
you would command your own armies, your own ships," Heru'ur offered.
That
offer was tempting, kicking Apophis' ass, finally wiping out the one Goa'uld who
had taken so much from him personally, was almost too good an opportunity to
pass up.
"Okay,"
he agreed, nodding confidently. "I can do that, one battle,"
.................
Daniel
looked a little concerned, watching his friend suddenly drift off, recognising
so well that glassy tint to the eyes that had befallen him earlier.
............
"We have developed many weapons, O'Neill," Heru'ur told him, as
they walked toward the Pel'tac once more.
"And
these weapons can do what?" he asked.
"They
are undetectable, biological, we use them to infect our enemies. Once
infiltrated we are able to trace them, whether they are concealed.... such
weapons would be of great use against spies," the Goa'uld told him,
confidently.
"Biological?"
Jack intrigued by the lack of concern Heru'ur showed in giving him such
information.
"Perhaps
you would prefer to rest now?" Heru'ur told him.
He
felt a little weak, almost drained. The
compartment he'd been taken too was stranger than any he'd been in before, yet
he hadn't even considered it might contain anything nefarious.
"Yeah,
you're right. I'm a little beat,” he agreed, his eyes focusing in different
areas of the quarters he'd been taken too, always cautious.
"There
is much for us to do O'Neill," Heru'ur told him.
..........."Dammit!"
Jack exclaimed.
Daniel
renewed his regard. "What?"
"It
had to be before we came back to Nurti's planet, it had to be!" Jack told
him.
"Are
you sure?" Jackson's tone excited now, probing, "I mean if you knew
when it was, maybe we'd stand a better chance of detecting them in the
future."
"I
can Daniel," Jack imparted, a scorn filling his eyes. "I know exactly
what it feels like. We'd better get back to the SGC... I think the Tok'ra are
gonna be in trouble!"
"What?
Why?" Daniel's eyebrows shot
up, the surprise of that particular assertion causing an immediate response.
O'Neill
was already on his feet. "You capable of driving?" he asked, looking
decidedly unsteady on his feet. "I think I'm kinda over the limit!"
"Um,"
Daniel looked back at the half empty bottle of wine. "I think so," he
conceded. "Jack, why are the Tok'ra in trouble?"
The
front door was already held aloft, waiting for Jackson, who was fumbling with
his coat, pulling on his shoes.
"Heru'ur
can find that thing no matter where it is!" he snapped.
"What?
How?" This new information buzzing around in Jackson's head, hardly gained
access to, before even more was foisted upon him.
"Just
trust me Daniel, I know what it is now," Shaking his head, kicking himself
for being so slow to realise, "That thing wasn't meant to control me, it
wasn't meant to develop that quickly. I'm… just drive!" Jack snapped.
Daniel
stood by the jeep, perplexed, wanting to understand what he was being told, and
exactly how his friend had come across this knowledge.
***************
Teal'c
looked at the screen. "These readings would indicate that perhaps this
planet has a high rate of Naqadah, it makes little sense then, that the Goa'uld
would abandon such a place."
Carter
nodded. "My point exactly, and if they haven't abandoned the place..."
"It
means they will return, perhaps SG15 did not ask the correct questions?" he
mused.
"Or
we're being led into a trap, a Goa'uld tactic?" Carter asked.
"Indeed
Major Carter, you might be right," Teal'c confirmed. "This planet is
close to the domains controlled by Chronos."
Carter
looked reflectively at the Jaffa. "Well it isn't sounding quite as good as
we'd previously thought Teal'c, and that's for sure!"
"Indeed!"
he agreed once more. "I can only wonder at why these samples have taken so
long to be sent to you?"
"I
don't know, they were mislabelled or something, it just seems so odd!" Sam
told him, frustrated in the knowledge that once more the team would be grounded
pending a suitable mission, acutely aware at why Hammond had selected this one
for O'Neill's return.
Teal'c
considered her words, offering no opinion on the matter, sensing, as Sam did
that something was clearly amiss.
"Well,"
she said, "guess I'll go take these findings to General Hammond, see what
he thinks!"
Teal'c
bowed his head low, indicating that he was not about to follow.
Sam
looked at him curiously for a moment, and then departed. She found him difficult
to read, so detached; his emotions were never evident and so laconic she didn't
even know what his favourite pastime might be. She knew he tended to go into a
state of Kel-No-Reem once a day, but found it hard to accept that this was all
he did.
She
grinned unconsciously as she made her way through the corridors, as different
ideas flooded her mind; the one suggesting he played Nintendo à la O'Neill
firmly dismissed.
***************
Daniel
looked helplessly at Jack as the police sirens sounded behind them.
"What
did you do?" Jack enquired looking slightly irritated.
"I
think I ran a stop sign." Jackson replied hesitantly.
"Oh
Daniel! God, I trusted you!" the colonel spat. "All right, leave them
to me, I'll deal with this!"
"Um,
no!" Daniel replied emphatically. "I was driving, and you'll only make
it worse."
"What?
Worse than running a stop sign?" Jack enquired incredulous now.
"Afternoon
Officer," Daniel greeted.
"You
realise you ran a stop sign back there?" the officer told him.
"I,
um, did I?" Daniel asked innocently.
"You
didn't see the sign?" the officer implied.
"No,
I, um, I saw it, but I felt sure I stopped, um, paused," Daniel replied.
"Can
I see your licence?" the cop asked.
"Well,
I," Daniel fumbled through his jacket, finally finding his wallet, hearing
O'Neill's groans in the background not helping him to find it any quicker.
"Here it is," he said with a sense of relief.
"Are
you checking the damn printing on that thing?" O'Neill challenged, as the
officer spent what he considered to be a ridiculous amount of time looking at
Jackson's driver’s licence.
Daniel
cringed visibly. "Ignore him, he's in the military!" he said quickly.
The
police officer nodded sympathetically towards Jackson. "Yeah, we know who
he is!" he told the archaeologist.
"Why
am I not surprised?" Daniel remarked, looking at Jack with disdain.
"Damn
civvy yahoo, jumped up...."O'Neill was complaining, albeit in a tone so low
even Jackson had trouble making out quite what he was saying.
"Is
this your jeep?" the officer asked Jackson.
That
was the last straw for O'Neill. "Are you just plain dumb?" he snapped.
"You can see it's a damn USAF jeep, now stop wasting my damn time, or maybe
you want to explain to the powers that be why I'm late testing a new
aircraft?"
"Well,
perhaps if you get some manners Colonel, and learn to button that lip of
yours?" the officer snapped back.
Daniel
sensing he was about to be cited, possibly due to his colleague's behaviour,
held his head in his hands.
"This
isn't an Air Force road, in case you didn't notice Colonel," the officer
continued.
"You
know, I'll tell you what, send me another ticket if it makes you happy, I really
don't have time for this. Daniel, drive, and that's an order!" Jack
snapped.
"Jack?"
Daniel protested.
"Sir,
I'd advise you not to do as ordered," the police officer warned.
Jackson,
sitting in between these two, looked completely disinterested.
"Daniel,
perhaps you've forgotten the little matter of General Carter, but I don't intend
getting my ass chewed out because this clown likes busting Air Force personnel,
now dammit I'm ordering you to drive!" Jack vociferated.
Daniel
shrugged. He realised that he was in the middle of a personal vendetta these
particular police officers might have with O'Neill, since they knew the colonel
well enough to know his rank.
"Sorry,"
Daniel told the police officer, as the engine roared into life. "He's the
boss!"
"Finally!"
Jack remonstrated, askant toward Jackson. "And next time, just don't
stop,"
"Jack,
the civilian police do have jurisdiction here, and if I get a damn fine you're
paying it!"
"Fine,
like that's all we've got to worry about right now, or did you forget the not so
small fact that even now, Heru'ur's ships are probably on their way to
Vorash?"
"Oh,
great!" Daniel snapped. "I wondered when we were going to get back to
that!"
"Three
glasses of wine," O'Neill chided, "ran a stop sign!"
Daniel,
shook his head, he wasn't going to get into a sniping match with O'Neill, no
matter how hard the colonel pushed him, he'd stay calm, he had to, his driving
wasn't exactly textbook, and being distracted by O'Neill would only make matters
worse.
"Jack
how can you be sure?" he asked, his mind now refocused on the colonel's
very definite assertions that Heru'ur would have used the creature specifically
to get to the
"I
just know, damn snake's smart, I'll give him that," the colonel remarked.
"Biological weapon my ass!"
"What?"
Jackson demanded, struggling to keep pace with the colonel's inferences.
"He
said they'd got a biological weapon Daniel, one that he could find anywhere, and
that was right about the time when I'm thinking I got the old roommate!"
Jack told him, looking across at the archaeologist's troubled expression.
"Jack
if you're right?" Daniel's underlining that concern.
"Yeah,
I know Daniel," Jack replied. "I know!"
****************
Heru'ur
looked at his first prime. "You are sure?" he demanded.
"Yes
my lord, the signal was received from one of our motherships a while ago. The
planet is in the Phedra quadrant."
"Very
well, contact our fleet," Heru'ur ordered. "We may have discovered the
Tok'ra home world!"
"Just
as you planned my lord!"
Heru'ur
looked pleased with himself, he had succeeded where most others had failed.
He placed his hand on the control console of the vessel, this fight he would lead!
Jack
stepped inside the elevator at level 11 of the SGC, reaching it without further
inquisition from his friend. Jackson had been very quiet, his thoughts kept to
himself. Although normally that might bother O'Neill, he was glad of it, since
it gave him far more time to consider the recollections, the flashbacks, and
Heru'ur's assertion that his 'new' weapon would easily infiltrate his enemies.
If he'd felt any sense of doubt, it had been swept away, everything seemed much
clearer now. His mind had almost
been imprinted, but he was remembering those images, almost as if finally having
found them he'd unlocked a door that refused to close. Each recollection more
acute than the last, the distinct feeling of dizziness, then wanting, almost
desperately, needing to sleep, but there was no recall of pain, nothing that
actually alerted him to Ptah's invasion of his body.
He
felt angry, a rage simmering within his mind at his own stupidity, how could he
have ever trusted a Goa'uld?
"So,
you want to explain exactly how you know?" Daniel enquired, finally
breaking the silence between them.
"I
had a flashback, I guess, and peculiar as it sounds - I'm pretty certain I
wasn't the damn target for this thing!" Jack imparted. "Daniel, before
you say anything, whatever Heru'ur did, or the damn snake did to hide stuff he'd
told me, it's coming back, like a repeat of an old movie, playing out in my
head."
"What
are you saying? Heru'ur anticipated you'd have the thing removed by the
Tok'ra?" Daniel asked, amazed by this revelation. "How could he
know?"
O'Neill
frowned, his eyes shifting from Jackson to the illuminated countdown, which
indicated that they were three floors from their destination.
"Oh
he knew," Jack intoned. "We're like a book to him Daniel, he knew
exactly what we'd do... I just don't think he realised that this stuff the
Ancients downloaded into my head would unblock their damn technology and figure
it out!" Jack told him, leading Jackson from the elevator toward Hammond's
office.
"Jack,
if what you're saying is right," Jackson retorted, trying to keep pace with
O'Neill's extended gait, "we're going to have to find a way to screen for
this new symbiote, or they'll overrun Earth, as well as the Tok'ra,"
O'Neill
shook his head. "Not gonna happen Danny boy!" he snapped. "Not on
my watch!"
*************
"I'm
not sure sir, maybe it's worth a try?" Carter replied, turning quickly as
the door burst open.
O'Neill
and Jackson entered, without the courtesy of knocking. "Sir, forgive the intrusion, but we've got reason to
believe the Goa'uld...."
"Ptah,"
Daniel assisted.
"Yeah,
um, we think it's a plant!" Jack told him, a nod of thanks toward Jackson.
Carter
looked confused, from Jackson to O'Neill. "Colonel?"
"Carter,
sir, don't ask me how I know... " O'Neill emphasised. "I just
know." The deep frown began to mask his face, illustrating his concern.
"Sir, we've got to warn the Tok'ra, and I mean right now!"
Daniel
nodded. "For what it's worth General, I agree with Jack, he hasn't been
wrong so far!" He looked at O'Neill then. "Jack you um, might want to
get some coffee," he whispered.
"Sir?"
Jack enquired, waiting on the General's answer.
Hammond
looked from O'Neill to Jackson. "Your assertion is based on what exactly
Colonel?" he asked.
O'Neill
sighed heavily, trying not to exhale too much toward the general, Jackson was
right, he smelt akin to a brewery right now. "General, we don't have time
for me to try and explain this sir, just put it down to good old fashion
Ancients know how," he replied.
"All
right Colonel, have your team geared up and ready to go in 30 minutes,"
Hammond ordered. "And Colonel, take a shower and get some coffee!"
Jack
looked dubiously toward the general, a nod. "Yes sir!"
Turning
immediately, he was out of the door first, Jackson following.
Carter looked at Hammond.
"Sir,
if the Goa'uld do attack...perhaps we should consider some back up?" she
asked.
"Good
idea Major, I'll assign SG3 and SG2, you'd better get ready," he advised.
Carter
nodded. "I just hope the Colonel's wrong about this sir," she opined,
her father now very much in her thoughts.
"So
do I Major!" Hammond replied.
**************
Jack
finished strapping on the webbing, slinging his handgun into the holster. The
sense of urgency he felt almost overwhelming, the cold-water shower he'd taken
helping him gain some clarity, although the black coffee was practically
untouched sitting on the bench beside him, as he rushed to get himself ready.
"Colonel
O'Neill?" Teal'c enquired. "You are certain of the intent of this
Goa'uld?"
Like
Jackson, the Jaffa had little reason to doubt the colonel's word, but felt
intrigued by the certainty O'Neill projected, fascinated with the knowledge his
colleague possessed.
Teal'c
knew, from his own experiences, that the Goa'uld rarely shared such information;
indeed, their very survival had been maintained with disinformation and myth.
"Teal'c,
don't ask me how I know, I just.... know!" Jack replied emphatically,
grabbing the coffee and drinking it down. "God this stuff is... urgh!"
Daniel
stopped lacing his boots, a smile crossing his features at O'Neill's expression.
"Maybe
the Ancients had empathic abilities, I mean we know the aliens on PJ5 909 were
able to tap into the Colonel's mind!"
"Seng'olians,"
Jack said a matter of fact tone, looking at the second cup of coffee he'd
procured from the machine in Jackson's lab with disgust.
"What?"
Daniel enquired, surprised that O'Neill had responded.
"That's
the name of the race on PJ5-909 Daniel," the colonel told him, shaking his
head and consuming the second cup with two large gulps. "Have you thought
of a cappuccino machine?"
Jackson
looked quizzically toward O'Neill now. "Um, no." Distracted by the
coffee thought for a second, waving his hands at O'Neill. "Hold on, you
said you couldn't remember anything from that encounter?" he probed,
confused by the colonel's very definite assertion.
Jack
O'Neill looked slightly bemused now, standing bolt upright. "What are you
talking about Daniel?" he asked.
"On
PJ5-909, after we'd met the aliens the second time," the archaeologist
explained, "you said you couldn't remember anything, names, what was said,
what they did, right?"
"Oh
that," Jack responded, lifting his M90. "No, I pretty much remembered
it all Daniel, I just, um, lied." Exiting the room as he did so.
Daniel
looked at Teal'c, aghast, indignant. "You did?"
"Daniel
Jackson, what are the Seng'olians?" Teal'c enquired.
Daniel
shook his head. "We really don't have time for this, but um, when we get
back, that's something I intend to ask Jack!"
Teal'c
raised an eyebrow. "If you insist, Daniel Jackson. Perhaps Colonel O'Neill
will be more forthcoming with many things when we return," he suggested.
The
archaeologist looked searchingly into the eyes of the Jaffa, who betrayed little
as usual. "Maybe there's really nothing more to know," he retorted,
almost protectively. "I don't think Jack's entirely comfortable with these
flashbacks either!"
He
led the Jaffa from the locker room then, taking a deep breath. Everything he
thought he knew was now being challenged. The
certainty with which O'Neill had confessed, almost bragged about knowing,
keeping a secret, made him feel a little uneasy.
He didn't like the doubt that had begun to creep into his mind, but then
again, that had been a while ago.
Jackson
shook his head, obviously the colonel had reasons, but it still gnawed at him a
little, they were supposed to be friends, leaving it out of the report he could
understand, well.... not entirely, but for that he must have had a darn good
reason, but to keep it from him, that really stuck in his throat!
Although the thought that O'Neill might have withheld anything else
hadn’t even crossed his mind, as Teal'c seemed to infer it should.
****************
Jack
nodded at Makepeace as the three teams assembled in the embarkation room.
"I
heard that," Makepeace replied, a wry smile etched into his features.
"To be honest, I've been spoiling for a fight with Heru'ur and his lackeys.
It's about time we got some damn retribution!"
O'Neill,
askant in his expression, regarded Makepeace with cynicism. "Robert, you
don't ever wanna go head to head with that damn snake," he opined.
"There isn't another Goa'uld out there that even comes close to this
snake!"
Hammond's
voice interrupted their exchange, booming out over the tannoys. "Colonel
O'Neill, Colonel Makepeace, the Tok'ra are ready for you to embark, good
luck!"
"Sounds
like he's got you all turned around Jack?" Makepeace remarked.
Jack
O'Neill paused, looking over his shoulder as the rest of his team assembled
behind him, a frown at Makepeace.
"I
just know what I'm dealing with here Makepeace!" he snapped, beginning to
track up the ramp toward the event horizon. "Trust me!"
"Wish
I did," Makepeace lamented quietly.
****************
Martouf
greeted them on the other side. "Colonel O'Neill?" his tone
inquisitive, his eyes drawn to the three heavily armed teams that followed
O'Neill through.
"Hey
Marty, all quiet?" Jack asked.
"Yes,
of course." His eyes averting once more to the SGC personnel that now
poured through the gate. "Why have you brought so many people
Colonel?" His confusion was obvious.
"Can
we get underground? I feel a little exposed out here!" Jack admitted,
looking around nervously, he could almost feel a sense of impending attack.
Martouf
gestured for the colonel to lead off, walking side by side with the SGC man.
"Exposed
Colonel?" the Tok'ra enquired.
"Marty,
I think we've given your location away," Jack confessed, sounding
perplexed. "Didn't Hammond tell you that?"
"I
do not understand Colonel O'Neill, how could you have?" Martouf sounded
slightly concerned by what he was hearing. "And no, General Hammond did not
explain the reason for your visit!"
"The
snake, Marty! I think it was intended for you, not me." O'Neill
didn't know any other way to say it, the feeling of impending attack welling up
into a need for urgency. "Don't ask," Jack said, before Martouf could.
"I just know!"
"We
must inform the High Council immediately. You are sure?" Martouf
questioned.
"Yep!"
Jack retorted.
Daniel
caught up to them. "So, um, Martouf, anything from Ptah?" he enquired.
"Nothing,
Dr. Jackson, although we have had little time to interrogate him,"
The
rings enveloped the three men as they paused.
Makepeace
followed on, Teal'c and Carter beside him. "All quiet so far, maybe Jack's
wrong," he surmised.
"I
hope so sir, but he seemed pretty certain," Carter replied.
"You
know, I'd feel a whole lot better about this if Jack hadn't spent so much time
with the damn Goa'uld...it's giving me doubts!" he opined.
"With
all due respect sir, the same could be said about you!" Carter told him.
"Really
Major, why?" he asked, seeming not in the least offended by her
observation.
"Well,
up until our recent mission to P9Q 287 you were considered a hostile yourself
sir," she replied.
Makepeace
smiled. "That's a fair point Major, a fair damn point," he laughed.
"Yeah, maybe I am being a little too judgmental here, hah?"
"It's
understandable sir, particularly given what happened after the Colonel
returned," Carter remarked.
"Colonel
Makepeace, if you have doubts surrounding Colonel O'Neill perhaps you would be
better to voice those now!" Teal'c told him. "And to O'Neill's
face?"
"Teal'c,
I don't have doubts. It's just something Jack said back in the embarkation
room," the colonel admitted.
"Sir?"
Carter enquired. The group were near to the rings, watching Coburn's group
disappear into the Tok'ra base.
"It's
nothing, he just seemed to think we were ill-equipped to deal with
Heru'ur!"
"In
this Colonel O'Neill is correct!" Teal'c said emphatically. "We are
indeed poorly equipped for such an undertaking.
The
rings enveloped them then, appearing within the Tok'ra stronghold.
"Yeah,
I came to that conclusion too!" Makepeace confirmed.
The
Jaffa bowed his head, his arm extended to prompt the Colonel to go first.
******************
"You're
sure Jack?" Jacob asked, Aldwyn standing beside him.
"Jacob,
like I said, Heru'ur told me they'd developed a weapon, a biological weapon to
infiltrate their enemies, spies," Jack replied. "I just have a sense,
a recognition, maybe from the damn snake I shared my head with, that this was
his mission!"
"We'd
better start evacuation," Aldwyn advised. "I will tell the high
council."
"Yes,"
Selmak agreed, "if Heru'ur has learned of our location he will not hesitate
to send an army. Martouf, we must
dispose of the Goa'uld!"
Martouf
nodded. "I will see to it," he acknowledged.
"We
thank you for this information Colonel O'Neill, we will take it from here,"
Selmak told O'Neill, and the group that now stood around him.
"Listen,
Jacob...um, Selmak," he corrected in mid-flow. "I've got an idea that
you're not gonna be able to get this whole base moved in time."
"You
are correct Colonel, many of our operatives are currently on assignment and can
not be contacted," Selmak stressed. "It is imperative that we move as
many as we can now, and destroy the complex to prevent the Goa'uld learning of
the technologies we now possess."
"Look,
the old disappearing tunnels is gonna take some time right? So why not ship as
much as you can to Earth now, and we'll lay explosives?" Jack offered.
"What
about the Tel'tacs? Can't you get some of your people out with those now?"
"We
can, but you and your people would be far safer returning to Earth,
immediately!" Selmak insisted.
"Look,
if you lose control of the Stargate you're pretty much cut off right?" Jack
told the Tok'ra. "We'll get back there and try to hold it, but it's pretty
out in the open so it’s not exactly gonna be easy!"
Makepeace
nodded at O'Neill the moment the colonel indicated that he wanted his teams to
return and attempt to hold the gate!
"Robert,
establish a wormhole back to Earth, if you need to bow out do it! Carter,
Daniel, go with Makepeace. Teal'c and I will remain, see if we can help
here," he ordered.
"This
isn't a good idea Jack!" Daniel argued. "What if you get caught down
here?"
The
rings activated behind them, a Tok'ra scout hurriedly exited them and headed
towards the group. "Goa'uld
motherships approach!" he shouted.
"Makepeace,
move now! Daniel, do as you're damn well told, go!" Jack snapped, his
Makepeace
was already heading back for the rings with his team, SG2 behind them.
"Jack?"
Daniel implored.
"Jacob,
most of the council are aboard the Tel'tac, they insist that you join
them," Aldwyn told the Tok'ra host.
"Very
well," Jacob acknowledged. "Jack, take all of your people and go, you
can't do anything here!"
Martouf's
untimely appearance stopped the colonel from doing exactly as ordered.
"Dammit!"
O'Neill exclaimed, heading into the Tok'ra tunnels, Teal'c and Daniel in
pursuit.
Jacob
looked at Martouf, who immediately turned and followed the SGC personnel.
***************
Makepeace
and his team double-timed it back to the gate. "Coburn, establish a damn
wormhole, we're gonna need some SAMs, hurry up!"
"Sir,
it's too open here, we'll never defend this!" Carter argued.
"We'll
give it our best shot Major, do you see Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c
anywhere...." his voice trailed off. "Where the hell is Dr.
Jackson?"
"He
stayed with the colonel, sir, we have to go through!" Sam insisted.
"Maybe
not Major, I've got an idea," Makepeace stated.
"Major
Coburn, belay my last," Makepeace ordered. "Send through two of your
team, one of them can bring back the SAMs. Once the missiles are here, tell
General Hammond we'll establish a wormhole, get him to close the iris, we'll
maintain the wormhole for as long as we can this end.... hopefully the Goa'uld
will think it's of Tok'ra origin and send their people through," Makepeace
spoke quickly, looking around assessing their position.
"Yes
sir!" Coburn responded, understanding the intention of the colonel
immediately.
"We'll
take cover in those rocks over there. Major Carter, how do we keep that wormhole
established?" Makepeace continued.
"I'll
set the MALP to project a radio frequency from this end sir, that should enable
us to maintain the wormhole for at least 38 minutes," she replied.
"Good.
Major Coburn, set up claymores around those rocks. I want all access and egress
points covered. How much time do you think we have?" Makepeace asked.
"No
way of knowing sir, it depends where the scouts picked up the motherships, and
how long it took them to relay that information," Carter told him.
"Then
we'd better move like we have a purpose!" the Colonel snapped.
*****************
"Colonel,
I believe Ptah will attempt to escape the complex," Martouf imparted.
"This is a unique facility, we have three escape methods."
"Sweet!
Which way is he likely to go?" O'Neill demanded, checking his M90 was
locked and loaded, ready to fire.
"I
am unsure, perhaps if we were to split up we would be more successful in our
attempts to locate him?" Martouf suggested.
"Alright.
Teal'c, you and Marty go that way, Daniel, you're with me, let’s go!"
Jack instructed.
"O'Neill?"
Teal'c called out as the colonel made off.
Jack
looked around at him, knowing what he asked. "Kill it!" he spat.
Teal'c
nodded, his attention now on Martouf. "You do not have a weapon?" he
noted.
"They
are not generally necessary," Martouf explained.
Teal'c
handed him a Zat gun, his staff weapon clutched firmly in his right hand.
*************
Carter
took cover with Makepeace. "It's set up sir, as soon as you're ready!"
she told him.
"Well
done Major, can we signal O'Neill?" Makepeace enquired.
Carter
shook her head. "No sir, the signal won't penetrate the structure without
something to magnify it," she told him.
"Okay,
we'll have to hope he'll come out of there soon, in the meantime we'd better
hope those SAMs get here, and enable us enough time to re-establish the worm
hole before the damn Goa'uld arrive," he commented.
"Hope
it works sir," Carter told him.
"So
do I Major, or we just lost a significant number of SGC personnel into enemy
hands!" Makepeace intoned.
****************
Jack
led Daniel through the Tok'ra tunnels. "You
um, don't suppose it has a weapon do you?" Daniel asked nervously, his eyes
flicking back and forth.
"Well
I don't know Daniel, hard to escape without one don't ya think?" Jack
replied.
He
couldn't sense the creature, yet with all the confusion and surrounding noise
that didn't exactly surprise him. Daniel's
trepidation also filled his mind, cutting sharply into his own thoughts; he
turned and looked at the archaeologist.
"You
okay? You seem a little nervous," he remarked.
Jackson
nodded, a deep breath, exhaled quickly. "Goa'uld in tunnel hunting isn't
exactly one of my favourite hobbies, but I'm coping," he replied.
Jack
raised his eyebrows. "It is kinda confined," he admitted.
"Kind
of," Jackson repeated. "Ptah's pretty strong too,"
"Yeah,
I know, but I don't exactly intend to wrestle with it Daniel, thought I might
shoot it," O'Neill retorted, a grimace creeping quickly onto his
concentrated expression.
"Yes,
um, why didn't I think of that?" Daniel remarked sarcastically, taking a
leaf out of O'Neill's well-thumbed pocket book.
"You're
gonna shoot it?".
"Well,
if I have to yes," Daniel replied, he sounded almost surprised that the
colonel would question his intentions.
"Is
that like you shot Nurti, ya mean?" O'Neill scoffed, seeing the sudden
reticence in Jackson's eyes. "Yeah, right! Let me do the damn shooting
okay?"
Daniel
looked heavenwards, rolling his eyes. Disgruntled at the inference, sure he'd
been perhaps a little hesitant, but that was, he argued quietly, different!
A look of sudden realisation crossing his face, O'Neill was right, he was
probably no more capable of pulling the trigger now, than he had been then.
"Okay,
um, sure, you shoot it," he agreed.
"Great,
thank you! Let's just hope we find it soon hah, it's getting damn crowded down
here," he complained, as more Tok'ra rushed by them.
"Hard
to see, she, um, he couldn't have gotten past us could he?" Daniel asked.
"Not
in that outfit," Jack said a wicked glint in those soft brown eyes.
"I'd definitely have noticed that!"
Jackson
cringed, the instant image of the scantily clad Tok'ra that was formerly Anise,
hadn't exactly escaped his attention either.
*************
The
wormhole exploded outwards, back onto Vorash. Makepeace and Carter exchanged
glances.
"Hope
that's ours sir," she commented.
"Yeah!
All units stand by, this could be friendly or hostiles," he snapped into
his radio. The well used military tone overtaking the colonel's voice.
Lt.
Mike Hamilton and Major Kyle Kelly, leading a four-man team, came through the
Stargate, carrying the munitions Makepeace had requested.
"Sierra
Golf one one niner, this is Sierra Golf three niner, we are positioned to the
left of you, repeat to your left, head for this location over," Makepeace
ordered.
"Phew!"
Sam said, smiling in relief at Makepeace.
"I'll
second that phew Major, and raise you a thank God for that!" he intoned,
offering a similar gesture back, even if his smile resembled a grimace.
***************
Teal'c
was cautious; he'd faced this creature before and knew the strength it
possessed. Constantly avoiding the Tok'ra who were fleeing in all directions was
also a distraction. Finally, as they moved deeper into the escape tunnel, the
passers-by diminished until only he and Martouf were wending their way toward
the exit.
"We
could have been fooled, Ptah may try to infiltrate the Tok'ra who have already
left in the Tel'tac!" Martouf told him.
"Would
this go unnoticed?" Teal'c enquired.
"I
am unsure, perhaps our time would be better served checking for potential
deception?" he suggested.
Teal'c
regarded him, considering the logic. It would be inconceivable that the Tok'ra
already aboard would not be checking, and yet his own knowledge of the Goa'uld
made him aware that just such a tactic would be employed.
"Indeed,
it would be likely," he concurred.
The
two men retraced their steps, bound for the rings once more.
***************
The
tunnel finally opened up into a rock formation, leading out onto the planet.
O'Neill carefully scrutinised their surroundings before venturing out, both men
were strung tight, the tension almost electric, nervous energy pumping through
their veins, adrenalin surging like a drug.
"We
should probably go back," Daniel suggested to O'Neill, cautiously looking
around the barren desert, the rock formations beside him adding to the
nervousness he felt, anything could be concealed. "I mean, why would Ptah
go out here?"
O'Neill
looked around at the archaeologist, his eyes narrowing.
"Since
Heru'ur can track him anywhere Daniel, he'd just need to hold up and wait,"
the colonel imparted. Now able to
sense the presence of the creature, looking around sharply, alert. "He's
here…somewhere."
"Um,
yes, but we're rather a long way from the Stargate Jack, if the Goa'uld attack
now we're going to be cut off!" Daniel insisted. "And as much as I'd
love to explore out here, we're a little isolated."
"You
made the choice to stay with me Daniel, quit whining!" Jack snapped, a
frown crossing his brow. "That thing is one of a kind Daniel, Heru'ur
hasn't had a chance to perfect it yet...we have to destroy it!"
Jackson
sighed heavily. "There you go again!" His hands shot up in
frustration. "Jack, how do you know that?" he demanded. "Like the
Seng'olians, I mean that was a little cagey?"
The
colonel's near perfect scowl glared at the archaeologist then. "Need to
know Daniel, and we really don't have time to talk about this!" O'Neill
snapped.
"Yes,
I know, so when exactly were you going to talk about it?" Daniel persisted,
O'Neill
shrugged, his eyes searching the rocks around him, trying to clear his thoughts.
Ptah was close, he knew it, could sense it.
"Probably never!" He sounded a little vague almost distant.
"And will you shut up with the damn whining already!"
"Fine!
But, um, we're still out in the open here," Daniel objected. "And I
wasn't whining, I was just making a point!"
"Which
is whining, now just do me a favour and shut up will ya.... I can't think with
you whittering on in my head and my damn ears!" Jack spat, his eyes meeting
Jackson's fiercely to underline the point.
"Fine, I'll whitter over here," Daniel remarked, rounding a cluster of rocks, and coming face to face with two Horus guards, his eyes widening, jaw dropping. "Um, Jack?"
"Here
they come!" Carter yelled, as three death gliders broke through the cloud
above their position.
"Hold
fire, we don't want to alert them to our position unless we absolutely have
to,"
Makepeace
kept his eyes fixed on the craft as they swept over him once more.
"You're
probably right Major," the colonel agreed. "Let's hope they didn't
eyeball us!"
Coburn,
armed with a surface to air missile, felt his heart pounding in his chest. He
focused hard. "Steady Jimmy, steady!" he told himself, scanning his
men to check their status, before once more holding vigil with the skies.
Makepeace
looked to his right, the huge point of the Haa'tak breaking through the clouds.
"What
the hell?" he gasped, looking around at Carter.
"I
think that's a Haa'tak sir, a transport vessel. I guess they're about to deploy
the Horus guards," she ventured.
"Great!
Death gliders, Horus guards, and where the hell is O'Neill?" Makepeace
snapped, his own nervous energy beginning to build up inside him, an ironic
smile crossing his features. "Be careful what you wish for!" he
remarked to himself.
"Hopefully
the colonel and Daniel are somewhere safe," Carter retorted, with a
measured look at Makepeace.
"Yeah,"
the colonel said, the niggling doubts creeping once more into his mind,
uninvited, yet there all the same. "Let's hope!"
******************
"Oh
crap!" O'Neill exhaled the words, as much as he spoke them.
The
Horus guards lifted their weapons, about to fire.
Jack O'Neill raised his hands as his colleague had done.
"Jaffa,
kree! Noc, shel s'ree, Heru'ur," he spat.
A
pause from both guards, uncertain, a Tau'ri claiming to be a friend to their
lord, Jack hoped this might buy them some time.
"Jack?"
Daniel's tone was a little hesitant.
"Yeah?"
"Um,
friend of Heru'ur?" he asked, his eyes daring to leave the Horus guards to
fall upon the colonel.
"Got
any better ideas?" O'Neill enquired, a lopsided grimace forming quickly.
"Run with ‘em!"
Jackson
shook his head, the irony hung in the air around him. "Well this is a
switch," he noted. "I've missed these guys!" An attempt at
levity.
"Ya
think?" O'Neill's voice monotone, droll in it's delivery, his gaze
remaining sharply focused on the two Horus guards.
"Well,
I'm just a little concerned here Jack, and wondering exactly what we do
now?" Daniel snapped.
"Daniel,"
O'Neill's voice still monotonic. "I can read thoughts, your thoughts, not
crystal balls!" he responded slowly, deliberately. "I guess we get to
die, or spend some wonderful vacation time at camp snake!" His tone was now
most definitely more derisive.
Jackson
sighed, a resigned protracted sigh. "With witty and sarcastic narrative
supplied by our very own resident smart ass!"
O'Neill
shook his head. "Something like that," he replied curtly.
"Tau'ri
noc s'ree Heru'ur!" One of the Horus guards argued.
"Not
camp snake?" Daniel remarked, understanding the dialect better than
O'Neill. "Vale meus amicus, I guess?" he added, a vague smile pursing
his lips.
"Yeah,
right!" Jack replied. "Spiritus, ego odiumis hec pars!"
"Me
too," Daniel agreed, understanding the basis of the comment.
The
Staff weapons exploded, the charges expelled, both men closed their eyes,
waiting for the inevitable pain, for the end.
Jack
flinched, a curious look crossing his features when it failed to materialise,
opening one eye to peer at the guards. Instead
he recognised Heru'ur, the Goa'uld's personal attack shield raised in their
defence, preventing the blasts from striking either man.
Jackson
too now stared in disbelief as the Goa'uld lowered the shield and began barking
something at the two Horus guards, who bowed their heads, their staff weapons
pulled back, brought down to their sides.
Heru'ur
turned slowly to face them. "O'Neill."
"Yeah!"
No hint of greeting or pleasure in the retort. "Small galaxy hah?"
"I
had not expected to have you in my power again so soon," the Goa'uld system
lord remarked, seemingly as surprised as the SGC man he addressed.
"Well,
you know, heard you were in the neighbourhood, thought I'd look you up!"
Jack replied, lacing his voice with the old O'Neill sarcasm that had served him
so well in the past.
Heru'ur's
arrogant, almost begrudging smile surprised Jackson, who was still to recover
from the shock of once more having his life saved by the Goa'uld whom he
despised and loathed with every ounce of his being.
"You
are trying to save the Tok'ra?" Heru'ur asked, moving closer to O'Neill.
"Something
like that," Jack replied. “Listen, whilst all this catching up is
fun," Lowering his hands from the now aching position above his shoulders.
"I don't suppose you're about to overlook the fact you saw us are
you?"
"You
will lead me to them O'Neill," Heru'ur told him, sneering at the colonel,
"or you will die!"
"Not
really down with that dying thing right now," Jack confessed, a glance
across at Jackson who was watching him closely and wondering. "But as much
as I'd like to do that whole staying alive thing, well sorry, that's just not
gonna happen!"
The
Goa'uld lifted his head, looking down on the colonel with scorn. "As
impressive as your foolishness must appear to you, I have little time," he
told O'Neill, raising his left hand, the ribbon device beginning to glow
ominously.
"Guess
who gets this?" Daniel remarked without humour, a heavy sigh coursing his
lips. A look of resignation once more crept onto his face.
"Your
friend's life means little to me O'Neill, how much does it mean to you?"
Heru'ur challenged.
The
beam surged at Jackson, bringing him immediately to his knees. Jack looked on in horror and disgust, his finger sliding
across the M90 slowly, his eyes fixed on Heru'ur for a moment, and then flitting
across to Jackson.
Daniel
felt the intense pain, seeing the intention of the Goa'uld clearly. It didn't
serve his purpose to kill Jackson, since Heru'ur understood that without him,
any leverage he might have over O'Neill would be lost. He wanted to communicate
that to O'Neill, to tell him not to give in, but he was unable to cut loose from
the grip forged within the powerful mind of his adversary. Daniel stared up into
the face of Heru'ur, almost able to see, yet partially blinded by the agonizing
relentless hatred he perceived.
Jack
breathed in slowly, calming himself. He knew that Heru'ur would have to react
fast to prevent a barrage of bullets from tearing into him; his gut reaction
would protect him.
Why
did he care? A pause then, one that
he had no time to take, but he took it all the same, almost wracked with doubt.
Back then, his mind racing, he also had to consider the guards, and he knew he
had to do this quicker than he was, Jackson wouldn't be very mobile, his eyes
flicked nervously back and forth, finally he raised the weapon, the bullets
unleashed, tearing into the Goa'uld's thighs, forcing him to bring up the
shield, releasing Jackson from the grip of the hand device.
He
thought he'd aimed higher, seeing Heru'ur's shock before once more being
addressed with the fury, heralded with the glowing eyes narrowing, evil.
O'Neill
moved around in front of Jackson, the M90 spitting rapid fire toward the Horus
guards, ducking down behind the protection of the Goa'uld shield, dragging
Daniel back, behind the safety of the rocks that had led them from the tunnels.
"You
okay?" he asked. "Because we really have to move."
Daniel
seemed out of it, Jack cursed under his breath, grabbed Jackson's arm and
dragged him up, throwing him over his shoulder in that single motion. He'd have
to risk the caves, the tunnels.... knowing that their destruction had already
begun; the crystals disintegrating the base as they collapsed inward, preventing
the Goa'uld from learning of Tok'ra secrets.
Some
way down the tunnel, this fear was confirmed, he paused, a moment’s
indecision; he'd have to go back.
"Jack,
I think I can walk now," Daniel told him.
"Um,"
O'Neill exhaled hard, as much from the effort of carrying his friend, as from
the confusion of what to do next. "Running's a better idea," he told
him as he allowed the archaeologist to gain his balance, moving aside.
Jackson
looked horrified. "Oh my God!" he gasped.
Both
men turned, making their way back from the tunnel, O'Neill hoisting the M90
aloft ready to open fire.
****************
Teal'c
and Martouf were now aboard the Tel'tac, which when cloaked, gave the Tok'ra a
secure hiding place, having been unable to leave the planet before the ships of
Heru'ur had arrived. The two men searched among the Tok'ra. Jacob assisted them.
"It
would appear our theory was incorrect," Teal'c slanted.
Martouf
nodded at the Jaffa. "We must remain here, although we are cloaked, to
leave the vessel would reveal its position," he said.
"Colonel
O'Neill and Dr. Jackson?" Jacob asked.
"Remained
in the tunnels, searching for Ptah," Martouf told him.
Jacob
looked at Teal'c. "They know the drill, if they followed one of the escape
tunnels they'll be fine," he offered, fearing that even that eventuality
would only mean they risked capture.
"Then
we are as trapped as they," Teal'c stated. "Since we are unable to
leave here whilst the Goa'uld remain!"
"Yes,"
Martouf confirmed. "We must hope they will see this attempt has failed, and
return to their home world."
"Before
you ask Teal'c don't! We have no idea how long, we've never exactly had to stick
around before!" Jacob said.
Teal'c
regarded Jacob with his usual non-committal expression, his eyebrow raised
suddenly.
"Since
we are unable to leave, should we not be using our time here more
constructively?" Martouf suggested.
"Indeed,"
Teal'c agreed. "Perhaps we might start with any knowledge you have obtained
from Ptah!"
Jacob
and Martouf looked at one another, Carter raising his eyebrows. A nod.
****************
"Okay,
so where did they go?" Makepeace asked. "That damn Gate is about to
shutdown."
"The
Tok'ra tunnels?" Coburn
suggested.
"Not
likely," Carter interceded. "The Goa'uld know better than anyone, that
once the
"Tracking,"
Makepeace snapped, a look of reticence crossing his features. "I'll guess
the entire planet, which means we're not getting out of here anytime soon!"
Two
gliders descended close to the Stargate. Carter
and Makepeace looked heavenwards.
"Swell!"
the Colonel spat. "Major Coburn, tell me they landed right on the
claymores?"
"Negative
sir, either side!" Coburn responded.
"Major
Carter, send a transmission through to General Hammond. Let him know our status
before the damn Gate disengages!" Makepeace ordered, a heavy sigh. "I
guess we're gonna be here for a while."
"Sir,
with no way of knowing how long the Goa'uld are going to hold up here, shouldn't
we be thinking of a contingency plan?" Carter asked, preparing to send the
signal through to the SGC.
"Major,
I'm working on that, I'll get back to you!" Makepeace responded, with a
frown. "I'm not exactly sated with ideas right now!"
"Yes
sir," she acknowledged. "Sierra Golf One Niner, to Sierra Golf
Command, over."
****************
Jack
crept stealthily toward the exit, bent low, crouching, finally halting their
progress with a closed hand above his head, indicating to Jackson, without
needing to say it, that they were going to remain in that position.
"Well,
I don't see anyone," Daniel commented. "Which is a good thing
right?"
O'Neill
considered the question. "Could be, or they could just be waiting on us to
come out. Either way, old snake boy is gonna need the sarcophagus, and he's not
gonna be so damn restrained the next time he catches us!" Jack surmised.
"Um,
why?" Daniel asked, confused, his mind completely overwhelmed by the ribbon
device had meant he'd been unable to see exactly what transpired. "What
exactly happened?"
"I
shot him," the colonel replied glibly.
Daniel
looked surprised, eyebrows furrowing inward. "Oh, well, no I um, guess not
then," he concurred.
Jack
O'Neill felt uncomfortably unnerved then, turning and regarding Jackson with
disdain. "Exactly, how the hell do you think we got away?" he
questioned.
Daniel
looked reticent now, searching for an appropriate answer. "I um, well, I..."
"Yeah,
thanks!" Jack snapped. "Remind me to remind you that you're supposed
to trust me?" Shaking his head now, contempt etched into his features.
A
heavy sigh from Jackson. "Look, I'm sorry okay? God, it was just a
question!" he remarked, attempting to elude the colonel's steely gaze.
"A
loaded one," the colonel snapped. "And don't look at me with that
doleful expression either."
"Oh,
I'm sorry... again! Maybe I should just get your list of expressions I can or
can't wear on my face now too?"
"Will
you can it, for crying out loud!" Jack vociferated. "In case it
escaped your attention, Dr. Jackson, we're not exactly out of the damn...woods
yet, so just..."
"Shut
up?" Daniel intoned, a look of resignation sweeping his features.
"Yes, I can do that!"
O'Neill
groaned inwardly. "Oh here we go," he snapped, a grimace. "Does
it ever cross your mind just to help for a damn change instead of
bitching?"
Daniel's
eyebrows shot toward his hairline. "I'm... excuse me?"
"Daniel,
look!" His tone was sharp, eyes burning angrily. "We've got two damn
Goa'ulds out there, neither of which is gonna be particularly happy to see
us...add to that the thousands of damn Horus guards, I'd say we've got a little
more to think about here than arguing at this point, wouldn't you?"
Jackson
sighed, a nod. "So..."
"Yeah,
let's just concentrate on getting our asses out of this one shall we?" Jack
suggested, lifting up once more to scan the exit point. "Alright, we can't
stay here, we're gonna have to find out if we've got a welcoming committee out
there, stay close.... if we…" A pause, O'Neill bit his lip, tearing the
skin from it, almost petulantly. "If we get caught, just drop the gun and
surrender, okay?"
"Yeah,
okay," Daniel agreed. "I'm so hoping that doesn't happen!" he
added, doubting the statement even before he allowed it to pass.
"Well
on the grand scale of how to piss off a Goa'uld, I think we've peaked!"
Jack told him. "Ready?"
Daniel
nodded, following the colonel hesitantly. Jack stopped suddenly as Carter's
voice filled his head.
"Yes
sir, we're pretty much pinned down, but we're still concealed. The Goa'uld have
no idea we're here," she was saying.
Jack's
hand shot up, before Jackson could speak, the archaeologist immediately
responding, crouching low and listening.
"Sierra
Golf Three Niner, this is Sierra Golf One Niner acknowledge over," he said.
"Sierra
Golf One Niner, this is Sierra Golf Three Niner, receiving over," Carter
acknowledged.
"Yeah,
we're um, pinned down at the exit of one of the Tok'ra tunnels, what's your
location over?" O'Neill asked.
Makepeace
shook his head slowly. "Could be compromised," he warned.
Carter
nodded, she didn't like it but the colonel was right.
"Unable
to confirm, sir," she answered.
Daniel
looked at Jack's expression, the disconsolate look told him all he needed to
know. He looked away, cursing inwardly, feeling resentment toward Carter, toward
himself for doubting.
"Yeah,
received, O'Neill out!" His voice dejected, he fixed his gaze on the rocks
ahead. "Guess we're on our own!" he told Daniel.
"I
um, guess so," Daniel responded, voice saturated in empathy.
****************
Carter
looked dolefully at Makepeace, whose own expression mirrored something similar.
"Can't
risk it Sam," he offered, although those words felt woefully inadequate to
him, sounding too much like an excuse to alleviate his own guilt at having to
spurn a friend.
"I
know sir," she admitted. "Didn't sound too good though."
"Yeah,
I'd know just how he felt...I guess it must seem pretty lonely right now!"
Carter
nodded. "But if he's not compromised..." she said, needing to add
anything else seemed superfluous.
"Jack's
probably the one person I'd wanna know was out there Major," Makepeace
agreed.
A
smile between them then, Coburn nodded to himself, then silence.
*****************
The
wormhole disengaged. General Hammond stared at the dormant gate. His heart felt
heavy, he'd need to write a report. He hoped there would be a conclusion, or
perhaps an addendum to that report.
"Keep
me informed Sergeant," he said as he turned to make what seemed a long
journey back to his office.
"Yes
sir," Sergeant Davis replied, watching the general climb the stairwell,
sharing the dismay he knew his commanding officer felt, yet clinging, as he knew
the general probably did too, to the hope that once again, the SGC personnel
would return safely.
"Sergeant?"
Hammond called back.
The
technician immediately swung back around. "Sir?"
"Better
get Major Davis here too, he'll need to apprise the Pentagon of these new
developments," Hammond instructed.
"Yes,
sir... um, sir?"
"Sergeant?"
"Can
I get you some coffee sir?" he asked.
"Thank
you Sergeant," Hammond conceded, a smile as he continued that climb.
*****************
"Alright!"
Jack announced decisively. "When the odds are stacked against you, and the
chips are down, there's just about one thing left to do!"
Daniel
regarded the colonel, intrigued, wondering how he would turn a seemingly
impossible situation into something positive.
"Okay,
I'm listening," he said.
"The
unexpected," O'Neill suggested, looking at Jackson's expectant expression
and wondering if the archaeologist thought he had some miracle to work. "We
need to do the one thing the Goa'uld wouldn't expect us to do,"
Jackson
looked confused, wondering where this particular line of thought might be
leading.
"Yeah,
which would be what?" he asked cautiously.
"They
expect we're trapped."
A
look of amazement crossing Jackson's features now, his eyes rolling around his
head.
"And
they'd be, um, right?" he offered with some irony, yet mixed with a sense
of hope.
"There's
one way out of here, that way," O'Neill continued, pointing inevitably
toward the exit. "So I'm thinking that we toss a couple of grenades at
whoever's waiting out there, and make a run for it," he concluded.
"Um,
to?" Daniel enquired sceptically.
"I
don't know Daniel, if we stay here we're kinda limited don't ya think?"
O'Neill intoned.
"And
if we go busting out of here like Butch and Sundance we're probably going to end
up just like them..." Jackson observed.
"Daniel,
we've got to do something, in case you missed it, we're not exactly gonna have
SGC personnel flocking to assist us!"
"So
what Jack? No one believes in you,
let's go get ourselves killed, or worse...become hosts?" Daniel snapped.
O'Neill's
features contorted, anger filling his eyes. "No Daniel, this
isn't...."
Jackson
moved forward, "Oh it isn't?" he snapped. "Listen Jack, I'm
sorry, sorry you had to hear that, but it's common sense."
"Common
sense?" Jack spat. "Yeah right! Like this would have happened before,
before..."
"Okay,
I agree. What would you do in their position? Give away your location?"
Daniel demanded.
Jack
looked dejected, morose now. "Always gonna be under suspicion, a
threat," he snarled, "a risk. Why the hell did Hammond let me even
come?"
Jackson
thought quickly, seeing the signs. "Because he believes in you Jack, I
believe in you or I wouldn't be here now." There was a gentleness about his
tone and his demeanour. "Getting us killed, or captured isn't exactly going
to help is it?"
O'Neill
shook his head, the saturnine expression that sat so resolutely on his face
betraying him as adamantly as if he'd spoken the words.
"Jack?"
Daniel probed. "It's fear, I should have.... I’m such an idiot! I didn't
even see it, I thought it was the other stuff...the Goa'uld, Nurti, I was so
wrong, wasn't I?" he coaxed, as carefully as he knew how.
"Fear?"
Jack replied, almost as if the very word offended.
"You
were afraid no one would trust you, that's the fear isn't it?" Daniel
asked, once more relying heavily upon the compassion he felt.
"No,"
Jack retorted churlishly.
"Okay,
so your lugubrious mood is what? You forgot to let the dog out? The Bears
lost?" Daniel chided, sensing that kid gloves would merely serve to make
the colonel more evasive than he'd already been.
"Daniel,
will you just stop!" Jack insisted, his tone remained level,
un-confrontational.
"No
Jack I can't," he sighed. "My life, as short as it might turn out to
be at the moment, is in your hands.... I can't afford to let you drop out now
Jack, I need to know you're thinking about getting us out of this, instead of
wrestling with ambivalence."
The
emphatic regard that crossed Daniel's features seemed to engage O'Neill's mind.
"Okay,
you made your point! Lugubrious?" O'Neill asked, his expression bordering
toward a smile. "You couldn't just say, forlorn?"
Daniel
shrugged. "It fitted," he said. "So, new plan?"
O'Neill's
eyes searched the exit once more. "I say we toss a couple of grenades at
whoever’s out there, and try to find a better location! Or at least make it
closer to the Stargate," he imparted.
Daniel
looked heavenwards. "And that's the new plan?" he asked, with disdain.
"Yep!"
"Sounds
suspiciously like the old one to me?" he intoned.
"That's
because it's the best plan, the only plan I've got," Jack conceded,
checking his M90 and beginning to unstrap the grenades from the pouches on his
webbing.
"Did
I mention I didn't particularly like this plan?" Daniel enquired dubiously.
"Yeah,
I got that," Jack responded, looking at the archaeologist quizzically.
"Got a better one?"
Jackson
considered that for a moment, his features contorting into cession. "Um,
well, no, but I'm sure if we thought about it for long enough..."
"The
Snake will get impatient and come in looking for us," Jack asserted.
Jackson
nodded. "Yeah, I guess so," he agreed.
"Sierra
Golf Three Niner, this is Sierra Golf One Niner, over," Jack said into the
radio.
"Go
ahead," Makepeace responded.
"We're
sitting ducks here, we're gonna attempt a jail break.... since we don't know
your location, and we're unlikely to actually make it, I'd kinda like to thank
you all for your support, O'Neill out!" His tone level, yet permeated with
contempt.
*************
Carter
looked at Makepeace, the colonel shrugged. "Well I guess he's not exactly a
happy little soldier at the moment," he opined.
"Sir,
we should do something?" Carter insisted, her face draining of colour at
the cynical tone in O'Neill's voice.
"What
exactly would that be Major? We move, we'll give away our presence, and our only
hope of getting control over the Stargate," Makepeace told her.
"But..."
Carter began.
"Major,
but nothing, no argument. If I could send Colonel O'Neill and Dr. Jackson any
help, hell I'd go myself," he said with a heavy sigh. "If Jack manages
to get out, we're probably the only hope he, and any of us have of getting back
through that damn gate!"
Carter
looked hopeless once more, knowing the colonel was right but torn with the
desire to help. She'd been the one who had given O'Neill that feeling he now so
obviously harboured, and it cut deeper than anything she'd known.
Even if it was right, justified, the military thing to do, she didn't
like it.
"We
should think about re-taking that Gate soon sir, if...when Colonel O'Neill and
Dr. Jackson evade the Goa'uld, we're probably going to be in a battle," she
asserted.
"Yes
Major, I know that.... if Jack manages to get out they're gonna fortify the
Stargate, which isn't an option. Major Coburn, get on the radio and tell Colonel
O'Neill our location and our intention to coordinate his attack with our own,
maybe we'll be able to drag the Goa'uld in two directions," Makepeace
conceded, looking at Carter.
"Yes
sir, Sierra Golf One Niner, this is Sierra Golf Two Niner, over," Coburn
began.
**************
Daniel
paused. "Jack, are you reading this?" he asked.
"What?"
"Jack
turn on your damn radio!" Daniel snapped, shaking his head at the petulance
his colleague had displayed in switching it off in the first place.
The
radio now on, O'Neill heard Coburn's second attempt to contact him.
"Sierra
Golf Two Niner, we are receiving, over," he responded, pulling a face at
Jackson, whose eyes narrowed back at him.
"Colonel
O'Neill, sir, we are going to coordinate your strike with securing a doorway,
over."
"Yeah,
I read you Coburn, we um, have no idea of our location or proximity to your
position, we'll be making our way blind, we'll need a homing beacon, over,"
"Yes
sir, just follow the noise!" Coburn retorted.
"Yeah,
received, time 07:47 set for 08:00 hours, O'Neill out," the colonel
snapped.
"We
didn't exactly go that far," Daniel remarked. "I mean how far did we
go?"
Jack
shook his head. "Stargate's about two clicks from here, I estimate South
West," he replied, "but since I didn't exactly set my compass when we
came through I could be leading us to the local drive thru!" he added, a
wry smile crossing his eyes.
"Great,
so um what's on?" Daniel quipped, a smile at O'Neill, sensing that the
colonel, although not showing it, felt somehow ingratiated at being shown a
level of trust by his colleagues.
"Ah,
a little action number, full of running, explosives, and a lot of
shooting," he offered, taking his lead from Jackson's levity.
"Well,
that'll make a change from the usual explosives, shooting and running,"
Daniel agreed.
"Bad
guys don't get any better," Jack intoned.
"Bad
guys never do, so um, I guess you want these too?" Daniel asked, holding
the three grenades he'd successfully retrieved from his belt.
"Might
come in handy, how's your throwing?"
"It's
not bad actually," Daniel replied. "I mean, I couldn't have played
professionally or anything, but I had quite a pitch in little league!"
"Sweet,
so you pull the pin, keep your finger on the lever until you're ready to toss
it,"
"Um,
yes I know, pin, lever," Daniel repeated. "Okay, so are we going to do
this?"
"It's
not 08:00 yet Indiana!" Jack quipped, shaking his head, a smile crossing
his face as that image sprung easily to mind.
"Hmm,"
Daniel observed, a pondering expression crossing his face. "I've never
really thought about it like that."
"Oh
please!" Jack intoned. "I was kidding,"
"I
wasn't!" Daniel retorted. "I'm in the moment now, ready for
action!" A grin crossed his face then.
Jack's
eyes met the top of the cave, a wry smile settling on his face. "Great!
Where's your whip Indy?"
*****************
Makepeace
slung one of the three missile launchers over his shoulder. "Well it's
hardly surface to air," he remarked, "but I think it'll make a
dent!"
Carter
nodded. "Yes sir, it will," she concurred. "Ready with the
claymores sir,"
"Alright,
Collins, you've got the count, let me know when we're ready for the get
go,"
The
replies from the two other SG teams barked back. The colonel braced himself, his
finger hovering over the launch, concentration on the target total.
"Somebody
make sure they've got our six," he snapped. "Don't want my ass bit if
I can help it,"
Carter
smiled to herself, for all her previous experience with marines, Makepeace,
although completely the soldier, had the same element of command acumen shared
by O'Neill.
"Launch!"
Collins exclaimed. The missiles
immediately left their cradles, tearing through the air with deadly accuracy,
striking the unprotected gliders, the explosions littering the air with debris.
The
claymores exploded one by one as the Jaffa assigned to protect the gate
scattered like a flock of birds.
*********************
Jack
heard the explosions, nodding to Jackson to let go with the grenades.
The archaeologist pulled the pin, holding the grenade in his hand for a
split second, before throwing it as far as he could, instinctively ducking as
the explosion deafened.
"Let's
go," O'Neill ordered, launching himself forward, his M90 readied, the dust
that permeated the air affording them some cover. Tearing through the opening
out into the unknown, the two men raced forward.
Two
Horus guards had been taken out; O'Neill could see them clearly, quickly
rounding his M90 on another. Jackson fired his handgun, the clip emptied into
another Jaffa, who seemed to almost stumble into the battle.
O'Neill's
attention was drawn by two more approaching Horus guards, he threw a furtive
glance back toward Jackson, who had resorted to using his Zat gun, before
engaging the enemy once more.
Daniel
couldn't see any more, having despatched quite effectively the threat from his
side, he turned to see O'Neill in a fire fight with six Jaffa, almost pinned
down, too exposed. In a fit of panic, he reached for the remaining grenade,
pulling the pin, tossing it toward the hostiles, ducking low.
Jack
felt the blast strike, throwing him back, and the pain ripping into his left
side. The collision with the hard ground jolting his body, his hand
instinctively reaching for the perceived wound, grasping at his side he felt the
heat, the blood.
"Oh
crap!" he gasped, his head feeling dizzy, empty.
"Jack?"
Daniel yelled, racing over to his colleague, crashing to his knees beside him.
The
wound was open, burnt, blood coursing out. Jack's hand was grasping at it.
"Oh my God!" Daniel exclaimed. "Ah, Sam, Makepeace, if any of you
can hear me, I need help here, please...Jack's been hit," he stammered into
his radio.
The
Jaffa surrounded the two men, their staff weapons held aloft, ready to destroy
their enemy.
"Jaffa
kree!" A Horus guard commanded, his uniform differing from that of his
charges.
Daniel
looked up. "He's gonna die without help," he implored.
The
helmet of the Horus guard opened, and disappeared. Nefir, Heru'ur's first prime,
stood looking down at the two men.
"Bring
him aboard Heru'ur's mothership," he told the guards.
Daniel
felt relieved, followed almost immediately with an overwhelming sense of dread.
Once more they had fallen victim to Heru'ur, and given their earlier actions,
Daniel wondered exactly how this might affect the Goa'uld's formerly lenient
attitude.
Two
Jaffa carried O'Neill toward the rings, Jackson, his hands held aloft, followed
slowly, watching his friend disappear into the haze, transported back onto a
Goa'uld mothership. He lowered his eyes, a heavy sigh. "Once more unto the
breach!" he said softly.
"Daniel,
come in." Sam's voice over his radio, as the rings once more returned them
to the lair of their fiercest enemy.
"Daniel,
please respond?" Carter's tone was almost hysterical, as she repeatedly
implored the archaeologist to answer. Twenty-five minutes, she looked at her
watch, her eyes wild, filled with dread, the silence resonating around her mind
as those pleas became more desperate, unanswered.
Makepeace
looked apprehensively at her, shaking his head, he knew, something told him
after that near panic stricken cry for help from Jackson, that something had
gone wrong. But he waited that side of the Gate for Carter and Coburn, showing
his support, to both of his apparently shell-shocked charges, who refused to
concede that O'Neill and Jackson might be lost to them for good.
Makepeace
was a realist, but he didn't attempt to obscure that he too had elected to stay,
driven equally as much by the forlorn hope, that perhaps in the melee of
explosions and escape, it was technology that failed.
30
minutes...he looked down at his watch; he knew what he had to say, biting hard
on his bottom lip to summon the words.
"They've
been captured Major, possibly even dead," his tone even, no real
conviction, saying, yet alone thinking, those words left a cold and empty
feeling in his mind. Carter's fierce regard burned into him, no recourse in
Coburn's attentive stare.
The
colonel shook his head, "I know, I know..." His hand held aloft.
"But we have to be realistic here, we can't wait any longer," he
insisted. "We've got to go!"
His
expression, like Carter's, bore angst, emotions he found hard to control,
falling back on the rank, on the soldier, pragmatic and self-assured outwardly
perhaps. Inwardly he wanted, like his colleagues, to tear off, forget reason;
search until there was conclusive proof.
Sam
took one last furtive glance into the horizon. "Sir?"
"Major?"
Immediately alert, his tone lifted.
Carter
shook her head. Her hands dropped to her sides, shoulders hunched, dejected, she
shuffled toward the gate, slowly, painfully trying to figure out what could
possibly prevent Daniel from responding, she didn't like the answer.
Makepeace
felt sorry for her, without knowing where O'Neill and Jackson were, to even
attempt a rescue could put his entire team in jeopardy, something Makepeace
wasn't prepared to do. Even if he would willingly sacrifice himself, and knowing
the rest of the team felt the same, it would never be sanctioned by Hammond, or
his superiors.
He
stepped through the gate beside the despondent Major, a comforting hand placed
on her shoulders.
*****************
Teal'c
watched with interest as the forces of Heru'ur withdrew from the planet, he had
never known the Goa'uld to leave a planet unmolested, as they clearly appeared
to have done so with Vorash.
"Well
that was short and sweet," Jacob noted. "We'll be able to relocate
fairly smoothly now, thanks to you and Colonel O'Neill!"
Teal'c
bowed his head, he held this particular Tok'ra in high regard. The host himself
was a source of fascination to the Jaffa, retaining all the facets of his
character, whilst embracing the knowledge and wisdom of the symbiote.
"Indeed,
I should also return to the SGC Jacob Carter," he stated.
"Yeah,
everyone will probably be wondering what happened to you," Jacob agreed.
"I
must confess, I am suspicious of the manner in which he has left," Martouf
told them. "The Goa'uld do not generally give up so easily."
Selmak
regarded his colleague. "Without destroying the planet?" he asked,
cautious in his address. "Maybe they just came for the symbiote?"
"It
is possible," Lantesh responded, "but very unlikely, especially since
they have left the planet unmolested."
"Yes,
I agree, we were either very fortunate, or perhaps there was another
agenda?"
"Heru'ur
is unique amongst the Goa'uld is he not?" Teal'c enquired.
Both
Tok'ra operatives regarded the Jaffa with curiosity. "How so?" Jacob
asked suddenly.
"It
is not usually Goa'uld policy to show such lenience with the Tau'ri, yet O'Neill
was treated almost as an equal," Teal'c told them.
"It
is likely that this was part of his plan, Teal'c, to lower the colonel's guard.
However, I do agree that his behaviour is most unnerving, since he could
simply have forced O'Neill into being a host, or revealing the secrets of the
Tau'ri," Martouf speculated.
"From
his description of events, I find that very hard to believe," Teal'c
responded. "Colonel O'Neill is not easily deceived, nor would Heru'ur
underestimate him in such a manner."
"Heru'ur
underestimate the colonel?" Jacob asked, curious now as to why the Jaffa
would make such a statement.
"Indeed,
from both Daniel Jackson, and O'Neill, Heru'ur appeared to regard him as an
equal, I too find this hard to believe!" the Jaffa intoned.
Jacob
and Martouf exchanged glances. "Maybe the Colonel was wrong?" Jacob
said, attempting to clarify the thought to himself. "Maybe Heru'ur believed
he'd find Jack here, still with the symbiote, and came to retrieve both?"
"Colonel
O'Neill was very specific Jacob Carter, the image that he recalled was directed
toward undermining or destroying the Tok'ra. He also believed that the symbiote
was not intended to control the host," Teal'c argued.
Martouf
smiled. "Teal'c, it is possible that perhaps the symbiote Ptah's attempts
to control Colonel O'Neill were premature, however that it were not intended to
take control of the host at some point? I am sorry Teal'c, the Goa'uld would
never introduce such a characteristic into their gene pool, it would be self
defeating," he asserted, the smile maintained almost as an apology for
questioning the Jaffa's theory.
Teal'c
bowed his head. "Then I must take my leave."
"We'll
take you closer to the gate," Jacob offered. "Just in case!"
Teal'c
bowed once more. "Thank you, Jacob Carter," he acknowledged.
*****************
Daniel
sat alone in the holding cell, his knees drawn into his chest, arms wrapped
tightly around them in an almost unconscious need for comfort. A million
thoughts were running through his mind, he felt wretched. His eyes were drawn to
the blood staining his hands. Jack's blood... the flashback it brought, searing
his mind viciously.
It
had been over four hours, as far as he could remember, from the last look at his
watch, still no one came. Perhaps it was the silence, the emptiness, and a
despair of defeat. He blamed himself; his actions had led to their capture,
foolishly attempting to save his friend, and possibly killing him in the
process.
If
ever there was a time when Daniel Jackson felt out of place, confused, and alone
it was now.
A
deep breath, difficult to draw in the air, his emotions so extreme it almost
felt as if the very breath he sucked was being restrained.
Attempting to focus, to maintain an air of calm, in a place where he knew
that calm would be the prelude to a storm.
They
would revive Jack, after all, he'd reasoned, why else would Nefir have taken the
trouble to bring them both? But what would Heru'ur want this time?
Drawing
himself up tightly into a ball, his chin rested on his knees. What would Jack
do? He'd make a sarcastic remark, brush it off, deal with it.... but this wasn't
Jack, this, he reminded himself, was most assuredly Daniel.
His
breath escaped his lips quickly, I'm in shock, he thought, I must be in
shock...why else would everything seem so numb, so cold?
"I
really must get a grip," he sighed, his arms releasing his knees.
His hands swept across his face, remembering that last exchange, finally
realising what had hung over O'Neill like a dark cloud...how could he have been
so blind? O'Neill had been through so much, how could he ever think that
something like Nurti, like the Goa'uld, however disparaging to his personal
esteem, could injure him as the loss of trust he seemed to perceive from his
team had so evidently done...and why would he?
Had
it been something he, Daniel, had done or said?
He
tried to remember the exchanges, no, clearly he'd been supportive throughout....
it couldn't be down to him, perhaps, a nod now; perhaps it was Jack, being Jack?
Mirroring his own feelings, channelling those feelings into a perception of
distrust...had to be!
"Now
I'm losing my mind," he commented. "I must be crazy,"
They'd
faced this situation before, yet it didn't feel old, just more menacing, more of
a threat, the reality of ever seeing Earth again struck him suddenly, no way
out!
The
cell door opened, Daniel immediately stood, waiting. Nefir stepped inside, a
tray containing food, how should he act now, should he ask after his colleague's
welfare?
"Your
friend, O'Neill," Nefir told him. "He will rise again."
Daniel
looked surprised. "Um, thank you," he replied, his voice a little
hoarse. "When can I see him?"
"He
will be brought here soon, once the sarcophagus completes his healing. You are
hurt?" the Jaffa enquired, seeing the blood on his hands.
Daniel
lifted them unconsciously. "No, ah, this isn't my blood," he
responded, still a little unsure of himself, confused by the approach. "So
I guess we're, um, prisoners again?"
Nefir
did not respond, turning and leaving the archaeologist alone once more with his
thoughts.
***************
"Look!
We've done the whole be nice thing, and I got a Snake for my trouble.... kinda
puts the whole trusting thing out of the window don't ya think?" Jack
retorted.
Heru'ur
looked away. Turning back, his eyes glowed, and anger permeated his tone.
"You
dare to question me?" he spat, the menace in his voice adding to the affect
of those candescent eyes.
"Yeah,
I dare! You don't get it do you?" Jack remonstrated, he didn't care to play
the reasonable game; it was becoming too frustrating, too tiresome. "I'm
not some damn tool for you to use, so you can cut the nice crap and get on with
the torture, ‘cause right about now I don't give a damn!"
Heru'ur
laughed then. "Torture?" he remarked. "I do not intend to torture
you O'Neill, I saved your life for two reasons."
"Oh
here we go, another little time bomb for the Tok'ra?" Jack snapped, his
eyes narrowing, considering the Goa'uld’s sudden change of tact. "Or
maybe it's Earth now right?" He faced Heru'ur now with a measured anger,
calculated. "You'll excuse me if I'm not grateful, or doing the kneeling
thing, but I'm getting sick of this crap!"
The
Goa'uld moved forward, his hand rose in anger, the beam from the hand device
striking O'Neill, throwing him back, the force minimal.
Heru'ur
swept forward, looking down at the colonel. "I do not have time for your
churlish remarks, nor do I care for your trust, the war just became bigger
O'Neill, and now you are at the very centre of it!"
Jack
shook himself, the shock of the jolt caused by the hand device, although
limited, still enough to knock the breath from his lungs.
"Yeah
thanks! I needed that," he intoned bitterly, looking up at the furious
expression of his antagonist. "So, didn't take you long to revert nicely
back to type then, pleased to meet you!" The words containing the sardonic
lilt that O'Neill often pervaded upon those with whom he had little patience.
Heru'ur
looked bored. "You forget our pact O'Neill," he charged.
"No,
I think you forgot that one first, giving me my own snake kinda broke your
word!" Jack snapped. "Who, by the way, totally blew your damn master
plan!"
"You,
were the master plan, O'Neill," Heru'ur told him, the arrogant regard
emphatic.
"What?"
Surprise, confusion. "Alright,
what in the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"You
will rest now," Heru'ur asserted. "There is time enough for
this."
"Now
just hold on for one second," Jack demanded, getting up, albeit slowly
since his ribs now ached from the impact of the ribbon device. "You're
telling me you saved my ass to help you? Well that's just not gonna
happen," he insisted, a grimace crossing his handsome features. "Even
if you zap me with that again, forget it!"
Heru'ur
regarded him. "Yes," he replied, a simple confirmation that infuriated
the Goa'uld, realising that O'Neill could not be lied to, or led. "Ptah was
intended to learn more of your knowledge!"
"Excuse
me?" Jack asked, approaching the Goa'uld cautiously.
"Your
knowledge, the Ancients!" Heru'ur told him.
Jack
took a deep breath. "You know about that?" he asked, cursing under his
breath.
"This
is why Ptah could not defeat you O'Neill, I had to be sure. Such information can
be misleading, since it came from Zipacna!" the Goa'uld stated. "Now I
am sure, you will serve a far more purposeful role!"
Jack
looked vexed suddenly. "And you didn't ask, you just decided to put a damn
snake in my head?" His mind was racing, what could the Goa'uld do that
would unleash the knowledge he possessed, panicking at the thought of how much
danger that knowledge could mean for Earth.
"Would
you have parted with such knowledge?" Heru'ur's question genuinely put.
"Er,
no!" Jack told him, with a shrug. "Still didn't get it though
hah!" Maybe, he didn't have
the technology, the symbiote had failed?
"Which
has caused the problem with Ptah," Heru'ur explained little, his words
offered no insight into that statement.
"Hey,
he's your problem, I'm not helping you with squat!" O'Neill's response was
terse, his eyes now meeting Heru'ur's, challenging the Goa'uld.
"Perhaps
you will reconsider, unless your life means so little to you?" Heru'ur
replied, meeting the challenge.
"Hey!
Take it, the doing deals thing isn't gonna happen," Jack vociferated.
"Trust me, it's not gonna happen," he repeated, his voice trailing off
as he noted the confident glare the Goa'uld sent back at him.
"Then,
it shall be the life of Daniel Jackson you bargain with," he said smugly.
O'Neill's
eyes closed tight, a heavy sigh. "Daniel." Almost a whisper.
"Okay." Protracted. "That's kinda a little different, where is
he? Or were you expecting me to take that on trust too?"
"I
will have him brought here O'Neill, I do not ask for your trust, it is of little
consequence to me whether you trust me or not, you will retrieve Ptah, or your
friend will become a host," Heru'ur told him, confident that this would
ensure the Tau'ri's acquiescence.
"Just
Ptah right? No more snakes, no more deceit, no more damn lies?" Jack asked,
even knowing that he had little hope of securing an honest response. That
threat, the life of his best friend, was perhaps the only thing that might make
him acquiesce.
"As
you say O'Neill, you are unwilling to share the knowledge, the most advanced
Goa'uld technology has been unable to prise this information from you," the
Goa'uld replied. "But, now Ptah has a new agenda, the destruction of your
world!"
O'Neill
stared at the system lord. "Am I supposed to buy that?" he asked,
shaking his head.
"Since
Ptah can not establish a stronghold amongst the Goa'uld, he will seek to conquer
the Tau'ri, a far easier task!" Heru'ur intoned. "You have little time
to decide O'Neill."
Jack
cringed openly. "Sweet! You screwed up?" he commented wryly. "And
I've got to pull your ass out of the fire, or what? The Asgaard?" he asked.
Heru'ur
nodded. "Yes, the Asgaard O'Neill, the Goa'uld have no wish to face such a
foe on their terms," the Goa'uld admitted.
"Yeah,
I could see how that would kinda make you think twice, so I do the, find the
snake thing, and in return?" Jack asked.
"You
will go free, without compromise," Heru'ur responded.
Jack
considered the proposition for a moment, he didn't believe it, but it would buy
him the time necessary to find another way out of this new mess. "Okay,
you've got another deal, don't break this one... or you'll find out just how
pissed off I can get!"
"You
are bold O'Neill, brave, it is perhaps one of the greatest assets of the
Tau'ri," the Goa'uld told him.
"Yeah,
also one of our weaknesses, I know," Jack replied. "Daniel?"
**************
Teal'c
looked from one to the other, the briefing room his first point of contact with
his colleagues since his return. "It is likely then, that they have fallen
victim to Heru’ur."
"I
don't know Teal'c, the last communication wasn't encouraging," Makepeace
told him.
The
briefing room fell silent. "Great!" Major Davis opined. "So we
lost the colonel to the Goa'uld again?"
"And
Dr. Jackson," Makepeace added, he still wasn't exactly sure how he felt
about Davis, seeing him more as a politician than a soldier.
"We
have to focus here," Hammond instructed. "Teal'c can you think of any
reason that Heru'ur might want to keep Colonel O'Neill and Dr. Jackson
alive?" he asked.
Teal'c
considered the question. "I can think of only one, General Hammond,"
he said. "Colonel O'Neill's knowledge has been discovered."
Carter
looked mortified. "If that's the case then he's going to try everything in
his power to obtain that knowledge. Sir, we've got to contact the Tok'ra, or the
Asgaard," she asserted.
Hammond
looked across at Major Davis. "I think Major Carter may just have a point,
the information the colonel possesses might give the Goa'uld the edge over the
Asgaard, over any of our allies!"
Davis
considered the point, his expression blackened by that sudden fear that seemed
to be shared amongst all those within room.
"Perhaps
this will also be our greatest advantage," Teal'c pointed out.
Hammond
looked intrigued. "How so
Teal'c?"
"The
Goa'uld Ptah was unable to obtain this knowledge, therefore it would be
anticipated that such knowledge could not be tricked or forced from
O'Neill," he stated. "Heru'ur might attempt to gain his trust, to
alter his perception."
"Think
that's possible?" Major Davis asked then, slightly concerned.
"Anything
is possible Major Davis, Stockholm syndrome," Colonel Makepeace offered.
"But I just can't see Jack buying it!"
"I
hope you're right sir," Carter said. "Colonel O'Neill wasn't exactly
given an easy time here, and our actions couldn't have helped much either, we
didn't exactly show him much trust sir!"
"Major,
we did what we had to do, Jack knows that," Makepeace argued.
"No
sir, I don't think he does," she asserted. "I mean considering
everything he's been through, this mission wasn't exactly supposed to be his
first one back, was it? Who knows how it might affect his mind, it's like déjà
vu - if Heru’ur has captured him, and the Goa'uld knows he's got some form of
Ancients database in his head? There's no way of telling what they'll do to try
and access it!" She looked down at the table, a heavy sigh. "And then
there's Daniel!"
"Holding
Dr. Jackson's life to ransom to get Colonel O'Neill to comply you mean?"
Major Davis enquired.
"Yes,
it's what Nurti did. Heru'ur knows the colonel well enough to know that's his
greatest weakness," Carter replied.
"But
surely not to that extent? I mean he was special ops right? He knows the
score!" Davis insisted.
Carter
shrugged. "Daniel's been the one person who’s been with him throughout
Paul, who knows?"
Hammond
shook his head, he felt like he'd let O'Neill and Jackson down. But this wasn't
the time to give up hope on either man, not without a fight.
"Major,
I want you to contact the Tok'ra, we need some help securing our people,"
he ordered, a frown etched on his face. "I don't think for one minute that
either Colonel O'Neill or Dr. Jackson can be influenced by Heru'ur into
switching sides, I expect the same loyalty from the rest of you!"
Colonel
Makepeace nodded. "Yes sir," he agreed, an askant glance at Major
Davis. "I heard that!"
*****************
Daniel
shook his head. "Jack none of this is making much sense," he insisted.
"Ptah has no armies, no allies, how is he a threat to Earth exactly?"
"Well,
our snake buddy wasn't exactly specific about that," Jack responded.
"I'm kinda thinking we're not really getting all the information!"
Daniel
sighed deeply. "So we're back in um, snake town, with no way of getting out
of this, except the latest offer from Heru'ur?
Who, unless you've forgotten, didn't prove to be exactly reliable last
time?" he stated, clearly vexed.
"Look,
I'm not buying it either," Jack replied, "but we're kinda choice less
here Daniel, which is getting irritatingly familiar don't ya think?"
Daniel
shook his head. "So, you have to find Ptah? Which gets us a free return
ticket and, oh my favourite part, no torture, or Goa'ulds?" The cynicism in
his tone was apparent. " Why am I finding this just a little hard to
believe?"
O'Neill
grinned at the archaeologist then. "Has a nice ring to it though, don't ya
think?"
"Oh,
um, great ring, just not so sure on the whole Goa'uld nice and trustworthy
part,"
O'Neill
shrugged, the same fears had entered his mind. He knew he couldn't trust Heru'ur
anymore; the snake had an agenda that he wasn't sure he fully understood. But
once again he was forced by events that had left him with little choice.
The uncomfortable feeling of Daniel's life being in his hands plagued his
thoughts.
He
felt that the Ancients knowledge, which he'd always seen as a curse, was the
very thing that had the power to save them.
It had saved him from Ptah, enabled him to prevent the Goa'uld from
taking control of his mind, and possibly betraying the SGC and Earth to their
deadliest enemy.
"So
I'm thinking we should probably push old Heru'ur into giving us some more
information, right?" Jack suggested, standing up. "What do you
think?"
Jackson
considered the proposition. "Um, why not. Jack?" he asked.
"What?"
O'Neill paused.
"Sorry
about the grenade," Jackson said, a grimace sweeping his features.
He
followed O'Neill then from their quarters. The Horus guards outside making no
attempt to prevent them from leaving.
"Ah,
Daniel?" O'Neill's features curiously active. "Follow my lead
okay..." his voice trailed off.
"I
am." Daniel pointed out, obviously unsure of what his colleague meant.
"No,
I mean literally, it's not gonna look good, know what I mean?" Jack
asserted.
"Um,
I think so...do you think he's going to buy that?" Jackson responded,
realising that the colonel was probably about to switch sides, from the
inference, and the tone in his voice.
"Are
you kidding? I have no idea, but if you just protest a little, it might
help!" Jack told him.
Daniel's
eyes rolled heavenwards. "I hate it when you have a plan," he
complained.
"Hey!
I'm not exactly sure it's a plan, it might backfire.... and it might take a
while too, you okay with that?" O'Neill asked.
"I
think I trust you," he replied, a smile sweeping over his face.
"You
do?" Jack sounded surprised.
"Implicitly,
actually." Daniel told him, a regard for his colleague sweeping his
features that underlined the reply.
Jack
looked at the archaeologist, pausing outside the Pel'tac. "Sweet, that makes one of us," he replied, a smile
sweeping his face. "This is probably a really bad plan," he whispered,
glancing back at Jackson over his shoulder, eyebrows raised.
"Oh
boy!" Jackson gasped, getting that uncomfortable feeling he got when Jack
O'Neill offered that evil regard. "I'm so not going to like this!"
"O'Neill,"
Heru'ur said, as the colonel entered the Pel'tac, followed closely by Daniel.
"Alright,
look, I've been doing some thinking on this thing," Jack began, approaching
the Goa'uld.
"Jack,
I really don't think you should do this," Daniel interrupted, almost as if
the colonel's wildly gesticulating arms had cued him in.
O'Neill
spun around, his features contorting angrily toward his colleague.
"Daniel, shut up, I don't want to hear it. Do yourself a favour and
for once in your life just shut up!" he snapped, scowling at Jackson.
Heru'ur
looked intrigued, standing, moving toward the colonel. "Thinking?" he
asked, Jackson's
efforts appeared to pay instantly; clearly there was conflict between the two
men.
"Yeah,
you know, between you and the SGC, I don't really know who to trust," Jack
imparted. "And to be honest here, this whole damn thing is getting just a
little clichéd for my liking. Good
guys, bad guys, it's getting harder to tell you folk apart," he stated.
"So I'm thinking that maybe I've been a little too hasty!" Another
scowl at Jackson.
"Your
world is finally becoming clear to you?" Heru'ur enquired, unsure of the
intentions of this volatile human.
Jack
threw his arms in the air, drawing closer to the Goa'uld. "All of it, all
of this," he intoned, "just isn't making sense!" His eyes were
intense, a little wild. Heru'ur was becoming more intrigued.
"Jack
look, please...." Jackson spoke, almost as if on cue, the colonel spun
around to address him.
"Daniel,
I'm sorry... but what is there to go back for?" The question hung in the
air for a moment, the two men glaring at each other.
"Another three weeks of being reminded just how much I'm loathed,
mistrusted? You heard what Carter said back on Vorash, ‘we can't give our
location.’ Why? Because I'm not damn well trusted that's why!" he
snapped. "They think I'm in league with the Goa'uld, fine, maybe I should
be, odds of surviving are a damn cite better."
The
Goa'uld studied the irate colonel, wanting to believe his words, arrogant enough
to feel that the power he held had possibly mesmerised this stubborn Tau'ri, who
possessed more secrets than any other, secrets that would surely bring him the
ultimate power. Yet he felt cautious too, knowing only too well that such power
would be difficult to attain.
Daniel
shook his head. "Jack you can't mean this, it's...." The archaeologist
did his best to look distressed, uncomfortable, his eyes imploringly regarding
the colonel, hands held out in front of him as he attempted to convey the right
attitude.
"What,
disloyal? Oh come on, Daniel, wake up. You think they're gonna believe we just
happened to get captured again?" A pause, regarding the archaeologist with
what appeared now to be very genuine dismay. "Think they'll believe we led
Heru'ur right to the Tok'ra by accident?" O'Neill sounded angry, his face
tense, emotional. "We're gonna be lab rats if we go back, and frankly I'm
sick of the interference from the damn NID, the politicians and the do-gooders
who don't know what we're up against here!"
"I
think you're losing your perspective here Jack, so it took them some time to
come around, it doesn't mean you can just give up, on them, on Earth,"
Jackson insisted, his face masked with doubt. "We can explain this Jack,
it's not too late...please?"
"Please?
They gave up on me Daniel, and you too! Unless you forgot, that last
transmission effectively got us both caught again. They weren't willing to help
us Daniel because they thought we were leading them into a trap, for crying out
loud, what's it gonna take to make you understand?" Jack implored. "We
can't go back, not to stand for court martial because they think we're
traitors."
Daniel
stared at the angry, tense features of his colleague. "I can't go along
with this Jack, and I won't," he told O'Neill, shaking his head. "I
just wish there was some way I could change your mind. Think about what you're
saying!"
Jack
moved toward Daniel, taking him firmly by the shoulders. "Oh I've thought
about it Danny boy! Wake up, we've got zero choice here, I need your help, you
know that," he asserted. "I've given it a lot of thought, and it just
doesn't make any sense to keep fighting against a superior enemy, for a
Government that doesn't give a damn!"
There
was so much anger, so much conviction in his voice, in his words, that Daniel
stood and stared momentarily. It crossed his mind that the anger, the resentment
was real... but not the intention, however convincing those words sounded, he
knew Jack too well to believe any of what he said.
"Jack
you're angry, I understand that... but you can't just turn your back here,"
he implored moving closer to his colleague, feeling his own resolve, reacting as
much to the pain that he perceived as being the channel O'Neill used to give
credence to his words. "It's just not the right thing to do, to trust a
Goa'uld!"
"I
can't? Come on Daniel, when is it enough? At least I know where I stand here,
right?" Jack remonstrated. Anger
emanated from every pore in his body, right up to his vehement, unyielding gaze,
one that easily held Jackson's attention completely.
"This
is crazy!" Daniel retorted, tearing his eyes away. "You're insane
Jack, I'm not listening to this!" He shook his head. "You're hurt, I
understand that, but you can't just turn your back on Earth, on the SGC. What
about Sam? Teal'c?"
"Daniel,
I've made up my mind," O'Neill replied, with a heavy sigh. "Just try
to understand we don't have a choice! We’re choice less, out of options"
Heru'ur
moved forward. "O'Neill, I would speak privately with you!" he said.
"Jack?"
"Daniel,
just... think about it, okay?" Jack asked, glancing at Heru'ur.
"What?" he asked, almost as if he hadn't heard the Goa'uld.
"Come
with me, O'Neill," he repeated.
"Sure,"
Jack conceded, looking back at Jackson, aware that the Goa'uld could no longer
see his face. He smiled.
Jackson
stared, his eyes vacuous. He nodded slowly. "I'll think about it Jack, but
I don't think I'm gonna change my mind," he replied, a sadness prevailing
in his voice.
***************
Heru'ur
led O'Neill to his quarters. "Your words are impressive," he told the
colonel once they were inside. "But you expect me to believe that you could
so easily change your mind?"
"Realistic,"
Jack conceded, "and no, I don't expect a damn thing from you, or anyone
else, time to look after number one!"
"You
will have much to prove, before I will trust you," the Goa'uld asserted.
"Hey,
right now I don't care what you believe! I'm not exactly giving a damn what
anyone thinks," Jack intoned. "It's not about what I believe anymore,
it's about what I feel. There's just nothing to go back for!"
"Your
race refused to believe you a victim of events?" Heru'ur enquired, sitting
on that impressive throne-like seat, which stood central in his chambers.
"Oh
I'd say being locked up and interrogated for the best part of three weeks was
pretty much evidence enough of that, wouldn't you?" Jack insisted.
"Then giving me the Tok'ra mission, first assignment back. It was as if
they knew, you know?"
"Perhaps,"
Heru'ur said. "I am not a fool O'Neill, I will need proof of your wish to
truly join me."
"Proof?"
Jack replied. Hands raised, he shrugged. "Sorry, fresh out of that
today, I've just got me, and all this stuff in my head. Tell me if you're not
interested?"
"Kill
Daniel Jackson," the Goa'uld challenged, watching O'Neill closely.
The
colonel did not falter. "You know what, I'd love to get rid of that noose
around my neck, it's his damn fault I ended up with Nurti in the first
place," he intoned, a hapless expression deliberately foisted to his face.
"But therein we have a problem, see Daniel's the only one who can decipher
the mess that the Ancients put in here," he continued, with enough
conviction to sound genuine, his hand tapping his head. "I kill Daniel,
I've got nothing to offer you in return for all those things I want!"
"Daniel
is refusing to join you O'Neill, we have linguists, people who could
assist,"
"Yeah
sweet, except it's taken Daniel two years to work this out to the level he's at,
how long do you wanna wait? Myself, I'd kinda like to crack on with it, so,
leave Jackson to me." An emphatic statement, given weight by the
unrelenting confidence in his eyes. "I can talk him around, he trusts me...
besides, I think given the choice, death or collusion, he's gonna opt to stay
alive, don't ya think?"
Heru'ur
nodded. "Perhaps," he opined, giving due consideration to the
arguments presented to him. "We shall deal with Ptah first. I will give you
time, O'Neill, to bring Daniel Jackson over to our way of thinking... once Ptah
is dealt with, it will be that time!"
"Yeah
look, you weren't exactly specific on the details, and I'm thinking you're still
having a hard time trusting me here, so let me bottom line it for you!"
O'Neill insisted, looking directly into the eyes of his nemesis. "I don't
exactly like this idea any more than you do, not really that keen on the whole
snake in the head deal, but face it, we're kinda stuck with each other right?
You want Ptah, the knowledge of the Ancients, and I want out of serving a damn
country that won't ever thank me for getting myself killed in the line of
duty." There was a fire in his eyes that the Goa'uld recognised. "I've
had it with that crap, so let's just kill the damn snake, and work on the
Ancients knowledge. Hey who knows,
maybe eventually I'll stop caring about Earth and we'll deal with them
too!"
Heru'ur
nodded. "And for your obedience?" he asked.
O'Neill
shook his head, hands crossing over each other rapidly, making it clear that he
wasn't about to acquiesce. "I'm
not talking obedience, I'm talking alliance," he responded emphatically.
"We team up, take down the system lords, and Apophis... then we'll deal
with the Asgard, and the Tollan, and anyone else that gets in the way!"
Heru'ur
regarded the colonel with cynicism. "We shall see O'Neill, exactly where
this will take us."
"So,
we got a deal right?" Jack asked. "’Cause
if you're having second thoughts here, I'm kinda wanting to know right
now!" His grasp of the Goa'uld politics and greed learnt over many such
encounters, yet he also had something else now too - the knowledge, albeit
limited, of Ptah. He wasn't sure
how far he could push it, but there was only one way to find out, and that was
to push hard.
"What
do you ask?" Heru'ur enquired.
"There's
a couple of planets, Daniel will know the co-ordinates...I'll start with them,
an army, Nurti's will do for now, and I get final say over whether we dispose of
Daniel, or make him a host." He shrugged at his nemesis. "Think you
can live with that, you've got yourself an alliance."
Heru'ur
stood, his eyes glowing fiercely at the colonel. "Are these planets in the
control of the Goa'uld?" he demanded.
"Nope,
they're places the Goa'uld can't go, Seng'olia and Kheb, so do we have a
deal?" Jack pushed harder now, sounding more confident, meeting the glare
of the Goa'uld, unwavering in his determination.
Heru'ur
considered it. "An army, that will remain at my disposal?" he asked,
impressed with qualities he believed he had seen in O'Neill previously, which
were now more emphatically on display.
Jack
smiled confidently at the Goa'uld. "Hey,
that's kinda what ally means right? Besides, once we've kicked the system lords
into the next galaxy, I figure your armies are gonna be pretty impressive,"
he insisted.
"Your
lust for power is considerable O'Neill," the Goa'uld system lord
acknowledged.
"Oh,
and one more thing. This is kinda of personal," Jack stated, his eyes once
more locked into Heru'ur's condescending leer.
"I want Colonel Stuart, Ahetep, the damn
Heru'ur
bowed his head slowly. "We have an alliance O'Neill, but remember this,
deceive me, and you will be destroyed...your knowledge does not grant you
immunity from my wrath!" he warned.
"No
argument from me," Jack responded, maintaining his eye contact with the
Goa'uld. A wry smile crossed his face. "We'll make a good team...I can feel
it!"
****************
Jacob
Carter frowned. "I believe we still have operatives within Heru'ur's midst,
once we're able to get anything you can count on us passing that information to
you," he told Hammond.
The
two men were alone in the General's office; Hammond acknowledged the statement
with a nod. "I want Jack, and Dr. Jackson out as soon as we can Jacob, I
think we owe it to them both!" he asserted, allowing his feelings to show
momentarily. "Jack must feel pretty let down about now, I don't want the
enemy taking advantage of that fact. It's personal," he added. "Very
personal!"
"I
understand George, in a way I feel like it's my fault for allowing this to
happen in the first place. I should have known this would get out of hand, I
just didn't see any of the other system lords involving themselves to the extent
that Heru'ur chose to, and his affect on Colonel O'Neill seemed to be pretty
profound!" Jacob confessed.
Hammond
looked intrigued, a quizzical expression adorning his round face. "What do
you mean profound?" he enquired.
"Well
let's just say, that Teal'c was right," the Tok'ra operative stated, vexed
by the notion. "Heru'ur has
never been like the other system lords, his MO is a little different, he's a
soldier, like Jack. I guess they had something in common, added to the fact that
Heru'ur was responsible for saving Jack's life on several occasions."
"Jacob,
Jack O'Neill's loyalty to this command has never been in question, not by me.
Whatever bond he may have formed with a Goa'uld won't change his focus, he'll
kill him when the time comes, I'd bet my life on that!" Hammond snapped
angrily.
"I'm
not questioning Jack's loyalty George, I'm just saying his attitude is a little
different!" Jacob responded. "As far as I'm concerned, I'd put my life
in Colonel O'Neill's hands any time, he's got nothing to prove to me!"
***************
"So?"
Daniel asked, once the two men were again alone.
Jack
shrugged and took a deep breath, sitting on the small chair closest to the door.
"He's
not convinced, but we don't need convinced. We just need a window of opportunity
here, pure and simple," he responded. "We've got an alliance, of
sorts, I threw a few things in to get his attention."
"And
this was the crux of the little private chat?" Jackson enquired, sitting
down to face his colleague.
"Yeah,
pretty much. Did want some proof though, wants me to kill you," Jack told
him.
"Um,
what?" Daniel looked sceptically at his friend. "Great!"
"I
had it covered, I just told him the truth, told him I can't figure out the
Ancients download without you," he explained a smile crossing his face.
"Did tell him the idea wasn't exactly without appeal though!"
"Which
makes me feel so much better," Jackson intoned. "So I'm supposed to do
what exactly?"
Jack
sighed heavily. "I need you to keep doing what you've been doing Daniel,
and that's resisting everything I do, look, I know you've never really done
undercover before, but it's kinda like acting," he imparted.
"You
want me to argue with you? Oppose everything you do to get me to join
right?"
"Nope,
and look at it this way, you can attack me as much as you want and call
it…"
"Undercover!"
Daniel concluded, with a smile of approval. "I can handle that."
"Good,
cause you're gonna have to do something else too," Jack told him, his
features blackening.
Daniel
looked dubiously at his friend now, sensing he wasn't going to like it.
"And, that would be?"
"You're
going to have to betray me Daniel," Jack told him. "Sell me out."
"Why?"
Daniel looked confused, concerned by the danger he perceived in what O'Neill was
asking him to do.
"Because
it's the only way I can think of keeping you alive, that's why," O'Neill
told him.
"Jack
this is crazy," Daniel objected.
"Look
it's not ideal I know, but it's all I've got... when nothing else works you
switch, you throw the enemy off. Once we've found the damn snake, he's gonna
want to start seeing some results from the information I've got in my
head," O'Neill asserted, his eyes fixed on Jackson. "You want him
getting hold of that? Because it's just not gonna happen, and that means one
thing Daniel, the only leverage he thinks he has."
Daniel
shook his head. He understood the implications. "So exactly how long do we
have?" he asked, resignation adorning his features.
"I
don't know," Jack replied. "Until we find the damn snake and destroy
it, and since it's kind of around on one of these ships… not too long I'd
guess."
Daniel
looked away, trying to sort through the information. "Great! So unless you
get one of those, um, I don't have a plan faces, we're going with the, I wish
you didn't have a plan, um, thing?"
"Ah,
yeah, something like that," O'Neill agreed. "I really wish I had
something else Daniel, but right now, it's all I can come up with!" he
insisted. "But if Thor just happens along, what can I tell you..." His
voice trailed off then, his eyes distant.
"What?"
Daniel asked.
"These
guys can get in touch with the Asgaard right?" Jack said. "We have to
find that frequency Daniel, if we can find Thor, we're out of here."
"Um,
Jack, how are we going to get hold of their communications technology?"
Daniel asked hesitantly. "And it's not exactly like we even know how it
works?"
"Well
I don't know, I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Jack
told him.
"I'm
confident you can figure it out!"
"Oh
good, for a minute there I thought it was going to be easy!" Daniel replied
sarcastically, taking his glasses off and polishing the lenses on his t-shirt.
O'Neill
frowned at him. "Sweet, well let me know when you come up with
something," A scowl crossed his features and he looked Jackson up and down
"Dr. Jones, and we'll ditch the damn plan in favour of one of those
brilliant ones you always come up with!" he spat.
Daniel
looked heavenwards. "You know Jack, sometimes you can be a little
irritating," he complained, "touchy, and damn right rude!" He smiled then. "Rude being of course the preferred
language!"
"Whilst
you of course, remain the paragon of reasonable discussion," Jack snapped
back quickly.
"Okay,"
Daniel intoned, "so let's do the arguing thing later... um, it's not like
we need the practise!"
An
ironic nod from O'Neill.
Jackson
looked at him curiously then. "What did you ask for in return for this
alliance, exactly?"
"An
army, a couple of planets, the usual stuff, and Stuart!" Jack told him
glibly, the last part of that sentence given extra weight.
"Um,
great, your very own planets, why?" Daniel enquired, a little startled by
the information.
"One
because both planets are pretty damn Goa'uld proof, and two I can't make out to
be some disgruntled ex-Tau'ri loving geek without making damn demands!"
O'Neill snapped. "It's gotta seem like I got seduced with the idea of
power, he'll buy that a lot easier!"
"Which
planets? I mean, he's not buying Cimmeria right?"
"Nope,
I asked for Kheb and Seng'olia...pretty much covers our asses if we can get to
either one," Jack imparted.
"Okay,
good um, thinking, I guess," Daniel conceded, his eyebrows drawing down.
"It
happens."
**************
"God
this is all my fault!" Carter opined.
Major James Coburn was shaking his head, sitting opposite the
astrophysicist in the commissary.
"That's
not true Sam, you couldn't break protocol...and what could we have done
anyway?" he asked, slowly stirring his coffee.
"Look,
I should never have allowed the team to be broken up in the first place,"
she insisted picking at her food with a fork, having little intention of
actually eating it. "The colonel and Daniel, have done this already, I
should have realised where this was going..."
Coburn
stared at her, doleful eyes searching her face.
"What?"
she asked, looking back quizzically.
"I'm
just wondering where it's got psychic tattooed?" Coburn enquired.
"Come
on Jimmy, you know what I'm saying, who knows what was going on in his mind, I
mean, Makepeace could be right?" Carter insisted. "First they get
caught up with Nurti, then Heru'ur, and then the colonel has the Goa'uld
invading his mind literally! Who knows how it's affected him?"
"What
are you saying Sam?" Coburn asked, confused by the inference.
"I'm
saying we don't know if he's alive or dead...either of them, and that's probably
down to our poor judgement. We let them down, didn't give either of the enough
time to deal with what they'd been through. I know Colonel O'Neill's resilient,
but god, isn't that asking just a little too much?"
"Major?"
It was Makepeace who spoke, pulling out a chair at their table. Both
subordinates acknowledged his presence. "Everything you say is true, maybe
Jack and Dr. Jackson shouldn't have been sent on that particular mission, with
that particular enemy. But it's done, you can't undo it and kicking yourself in
the ass isn't gonna change one damn thing."
"I
know sir, I'm just," Sam replied, the frustration and emotion showing on
her face, she looked tired too, the stress effecting her a little more than she
realised.
"Letting
off steam? Yeah, we could all use a little of that right now, but I'll tell you
what I think, if you're interested?" Makepeace asked her.
"Sir?"
"I
think Jack's probably thinking the same damn thing, only I don't think he'll be
kicking himself in the ass too much on account of the fact that he's probably
figuring out a way to get out of the damn situation," the colonel told her.
"And something else Major, for the record, you excelled out there, you did
the tough things you had to do to secure the safety of the team...Jack and
Daniel not withstanding. I know
responding to that call was probably one of the hardest things you've ever been
asked to do, but you handled it, and you didn't give up. Stop kicking yourself
and take some credit, I know Jack would say the same damn thing if he was
here!"
Carter
looked a little surprised by the glowing appraisal offered by Makepeace, a smile
given in return. "Thank you sir," she replied. "I'm just sick of
sitting around here on my butt."
Makepeace
stood up, looking down at her. "So do something useful Major, go find out
if the Tok'ra have anything new to tell us, I saw your father go into General
Hammond's office a while back, maybe we caught a break hah?"
Carter
nodded. "Thank you sir, I'll go do that," she responded, standing like
her superior officer, looking a little more relaxed and positive.
"Don't
mention it Major," Makepeace told her, heading off toward the exit of the
commissary, a glance back. "Give your dad my regards," he added.
*****************
Jack
was flanked by Nefir, both men armed. The Jaffa carried a staff weapon, the
impressive helmet on his armour closed, giving the already exaggerated height of
the Jaffa an almost god-like, statuesque appearance.
"So
we're just gonna take a look around right?" Jack enquired, finding Nefir a
little too laconic for his liking.
"You
will recognise this Goa'uld on sight my lord?" Nefir enquired, without
attempting to answer the colonel's question.
"Yep,
you can't exactly miss her!" Jack said, a moment's reminiscence of that
kiss creeping into his thoughts. "But then again, I guess Ptah could have
easily jumped hosts right?"
"Yes
my lord, this creature will indeed prove a worthy foe!" Nefir told him.
"Since you are the only one who will be able to sense his presence."
O'Neill
nodded, his eyes sweeping the various slaves and Jaffa who passed them, he was
impressed with how much Nefir appeared to know too; this Jaffa was clearly
trusted by his master.
"Sweet,
but ah, wouldn't it make more sense for me to hang around old Heru'ur?"
"Heru'ur
wishes us to check the ship, we shall do as our lord wishes!" Nefir stated.
"Okay...let's
um, sweep!" Jack retorted.
**************
Daniel
flicked through one of the tablets he'd been given to occupy him by Nekhbet,
Heru'ur's closest aid. The tablet
contained the entire dialect written in its original form; Jackson was
fascinated with the contents.
"So
um, why exactly are you giving this to me?" he asked.
"Heru'ur
requires that you teach this to your lord," Nekhbet told him. "I, in
turn, will assist you with words, phrases and meanings that you do not
comprehend."
"Why?"
Daniel questioned, a chuckle to himself then. "Um, Jack's not gonna speak
in Goa'uld, you really have to know him."
Nekhbet
leant forward, too close for Jackson's comfort. "We do not question the
will of our god, we simply abide by it!"
"Yes,
I'll um, right!" Daniel responded. "Teach Jack the um, dialect."
"Should
you need my help, send one of the guards to summon me," Nekhbet told him,
turning and leaving the room.
"Guards,"
Daniel muttered. "Um, great, Jack gets the run of the place and I get
guards!" He looked down once more at the tablet, his fascination for the
dialect immediately overwhelming any doubts he harboured for this latest brush
with the Goa'uld...this he concluded might be more of a learning curve than
their last escapade.
Deeply
engrossed in the tablet, Daniel didn't see Freya enter his chambers. The Goa'uld
slowly moved around to face him.
"Daniel?"
It was Freya's voice.
Jackson
looked up abruptly. "Um, oh my. What are you doing here? You know Jack's
looking for you right?"
"The
Goa'uld left me Daniel, you have to help me," Freya begged, she looked
lost, afraid. "Is Colonel O'Neill in league with the Goa'uld?" she
demanded, suddenly shocked at the words that seemed to take an age to register.
Daniel
thought quickly, this could so easily be a trap. "Um, yes!" A heavy
sigh. "He's a little upset with the world right now, and I can't seem to
talk him out of it...maybe..."
"Then
he must be killed," Freya replied, her words shocking the archaeologist,
"Daniel, we can't let the Goa'uld get that information, I expect he's
willing to deal it in return for his life?"
Daniel
looked at her, surprised at this sudden change of tact. "Well, I wouldn't
go that far... besides, what makes you think I haven't?" he asked.
Freya
regarded him with fear suddenly. "Daniel, please...help me?" she
implored, her eyes filling with tears. "Without Anise to guide me, I am
lost."
Daniel
looked wretched suddenly, his heart tormented by her helplessness.
He turned sharply as he saw Jack enter the room, his M90 grasped firmly
in both hands aimed at Freya.
"Jack,
no!" he shouted.
Daniel
stood up, moving between the barrel of O'Neill's M90 and Freya, using his body
to shield her. His eyes fearful, uncertain, he looked from O'Neill to Freya,
swallowing hard.
"Jack
you can't," he implored. "She says she's not Ptah!"
O'Neill's
regard now toward the archaeologist. Narrowing
eyes, cynical, taking a step forward.
"Oh
really? Guess if the snake says so!" he napped. "Don't mind if I take
a closer look though right?" Keeping
the gun trained on the trembling woman, he took several more ominous steps
forward, disdain on his face for a woman whom he had little regard.
The
former Tok'ra host dared not move, in that instant she felt sure that O'Neill
might squeeze the trigger, take revenge against her for Anise's actions, she
could almost read that in his eyes, that steely gaze instantly showing how he
felt, the loathing seemed to penetrate her senses.
"Colonel,
I can assure you," she insisted, her voice quivering with fear, "that
the Goa'uld is most definitely not in here." O'Neill's proximity to her
forcing her to step back away from the muzzle of the weapon, her eyes locked
into his, head shaking side to side slowly, as if she anticipated his intent.
O'Neill
couldn't sense the Goa'uld, but he could sense Heru'ur, feel his eyes burning
into him, judging his every move.
"Yeah,
she's clean, of a snake anyway," he spat, turning and looking toward
Daniel, ensuring that his eye line did not perceive the presence of the Goa'uld
system lord.
"I
told you that," Jackson retorted, moving closer to Freya protectively.
"Looks
to me, Danny boy, like you just got yourself a play thing!" His callous
expression intentionally directed toward the former Tok'ra host, watching her
fear and hatred grow.
"Jack,
for God's sake!" Daniel groaned, feeling that his colleague was taking the
act a little too seriously. "Was that really necessary?"
O'Neill's
face filled with fury now, rounding on Jackson fiercely. "Was what really
necessary Daniel?" he spat. “Don’t tell me she’s not your type?"
His tone was loathing, his posture aggressive, his eyes mocked the archaeologist
now. "Pushing your luck here a little, eh Danny boy?"
Jackson
looked equally infuriated, lunging at O'Neill who side stepped his attempted
punch easily, shoving the archaeologist neatly in the back, allowing that
momentum to send him crashing to the feet of Heru'ur, looking up at the sneering
system lord.
"Kel
shak, Heru'ur," he greeted, his amusement almost smug in it's expression,
resting on his hands smartly on the M90. "Ah, we seem to have lost the damn
snake, don't suppose you happened to see it slither by?"
"Kree
shak shel, O'Neill, I see you are making your presence felt!" he replied,
looking down at Jackson, a smirk at the archaeologist. "Come, leave these
Tau'ri slaves to their mortal sorrows, we have many plans to make!"
"Yeahsureyabetcha,"
Jack retorted, looking back at Jackson, who was indignantly dusting off his
clothes. "Don't keep disappointing me Danny boy, it might start to piss me
off, and you really don't wanna do that!" he spat at Jackson. The
intentional mockery in his voice meant to further illustrate his position to
both Freya and Heru'ur, another glance at the former Tok'ra host as he left.
Daniel
scowled after him, Freya immediately coming to his side.
"Why?"
she asked. "Why has he sided with the Goa'uld?"
The
archaeologist shrugged. "I think the whole Earth treatment thing pissed him
off, and I guess Anise didn't exactly help either!" he stated, reminding
Freya of her own involvement with O'Neill's apparent defection, placing his
hands on her arms. "Are you cold?" he asked, concerned by her
appearance.
She
shook her head.
"But,
he seems so different," she said, clearly still very shocked by O'Neill's
behaviour, "almost as if he
were possessed by a Goa'uld?" Her eyes wondering. "So cold."
Daniel
studied her, a warm smile crossing his face. "No um, he's definitely just
Jack, and I know it's hard to understand, but he's changed, I guess I can't
blame him either..." His voice trailed off, sorrow crossing his brow,
looking suddenly pensive.
"Daniel?"
Freya asked. "You are sure. There can be no mistake?"
"Oh
yes, I'm sure," Jackson responded. "He's been losing faith in Earth,
and the SGC for a long time. I guess, on reflection I should have seen this
coming." He moved around and sat back where he'd previously been studying
the Goa'uld dialect. "The whole Nurti thing, then becoming a host, I guess
that was a catalyst, it just pushed him over the edge," he opined.
"I
am sorry. My own part in this
couldn't have helped," she sighed. "I feel it's partly my fault."
Jackson
regarded her for a moment, shaking his head. "Not really," he replied
sensing her regret as much as hearing it. "Just came at a bad time."
"What
about you?" she asked, sitting opposite him.
Daniel
considered that, closing his eyes and looking for a response. "I'm just
hoping I can change his mind, get through to him.” A heavy sigh. “Although
I'm not exactly holding my breath there. Jack can be a little stubborn..."
A wry smile crossed his lips. "It could be worse, I guess."
Freya
shook her head. "How so could it be worse Dr. Jackson?" she asked.
"We are at the mercy of the Goa'uld and your friend, do you have any idea
of where we are?
Jackson
smiled. "Um, I know what you meant, and no, Jack's new buddies aren't
exactly keeping me informed here...um, well it could be a lot worse. Heru'ur's a
Goa'uld yes, but so far he seems to be listening to Jack, which mean's I'm
alive!" he intoned. He regarded her now, searchingly.
"So when did the Goa'uld jump hosts?"
"A
day or so ago, I've been wandering around this ship, trying to find the glider
bays," she told him, her eyes meeting his. "I don't suppose?"
"Ah,
no, and I doubt we'd be allowed to wander around quite so freely now that you've
been identified either!" Daniel told her, trying to keep himself in check,
not wanting to share too much with her, yet feeling a measure of sorrow for her
plight. "I'm not permitted to leave this chamber without the Horus guards
escorting me."
Freya
shrugged. "Then we are truly trapped," she remarked, fear entering
into her voice. "Without hope."
Daniel's eyes closed, a smile crossing his features. "Sounds familiar," he remarked.
The
Pel'tac in Heru'ur's ships differed greatly from the one O'Neill had previously
seen, when on Klo'rel's ship three years earlier.
The same golden hieroglyphs decorated the walls, yet the console that
controlled the enormous vessel was in an arc, stretching across the width of the
desk.
Jack
sat up on the console, positioning himself close to the Goa'uld, listening with
interest to the plans of the system lord. They were bold, but too aggressive,
leaving his armies open for counterattack. Jack's expression, the slow constant
nodding told the Goa'uld that he harboured reservations. Finally the Goa'uld
broke track, regarding the colonel.
"I
have given some thought to your demands," he told him, standing and leaving
his throne-like seat, walking toward the colonel, leaning on the console beside
him. "The armies I empower to you will need to be larger than those of
Nurti. If we are to defeat the system lords, we must first strike against
Nefertum, and the minor system lords, these armies will be added to your
command."
"Sweet!
Then we go after Apophis right?" Jack asked, his appetite for the
destruction of his long time nemesis matched that of Heru'ur. "But your
plans are flawed!"
"How
so? Our armies will be matched, equal in strength and number...we must have
something else, O'Neill, something that only the Ancients can give us, an
advantage!" the Goa'uld told him. "Then we will defeat his armies and
kill him." A smile swept his supercilious features.
Jack
jumped down from the console. "You don't need the Ancients for that, you
just need to know the weaknesses of your enemy, and the strengths of your own
forces," he intoned.
"Our
way of battle has always prevailed, only with the power of they who built the
O'Neill
shook his head. "Hate to contradict ya, but if we're gonna move against the
system lords we really have to knock them off one by one, don't ya think? My
armies take Nefertum, whilst yours deal with Chronos?" he suggested.
"Divide and conquer, right?"
Heru'ur
looked intrigued. "It is possible, if we coordinated such a strike, that
this plan might work," he agreed. "First, though we must deal with
Ptah!"
"Alright,
here's my thinking on this one," Jack told him, standing beside the Goa'uld
now, leaning his arms on the console. The two men looked at each other. "Ptah's
got this high opinion of himself, first he's kinda loyal to you, but then he
changed. Maybe that's gonna be an advantage, I'm thinking he's gonna come for
you!"
Heru'ur's
features contorted. "He would never dare, such a plan would be
foolish," he snarled.
"Which
is why it might work!" Jack insisted, a glance across at the Goa'uld.
"He's gonna figure you can't detect him, there are thousands of slaves on
this ship right? Hosts? It's perfect, something you'd never consider!" He
stared at the Goa'uld, an expression of certainty adorning his face. "Come
on, you'd be a fool if you didn't protect yourself," Jack concluded.
"Such
an attack would be folly," the Goa'uld system lord maintained, clearly
angry at this perceived challenge to his superiority. "He would not
dare!"
Jack
laughed, shaking his head. "Hey! He's a snake, you remember that ultimate
power thing comes with the job," he intoned. "Come on Heru, you know
better than that... figure it out, what would you do in his place?" he
asserted. "It's transparent!" He paused then, looking at the indignant
Goa'uld. "Alright, maybe to me. But the fact that you think you're
invincible is the very reason he'd come after you, take you out, he owns this
place!"
Heru'ur's
sharp regard made Jack feel uneasy. But the sudden look of realisation that
seemed to dominate that intense stare told him such unease was inappropriate.
"You
are wise O'Neill, I shall be ready for such an assault," he responded.
"Um,
look, no offence, and I'm sure your Jaffa are the best a deity can buy,"
Jack remarked, somewhat tongue in cheek, a grimace spreading across his
features. "But I've got a lot invested in you staying alive, so..."
Heru'ur
nodded, instantly recognising O'Neill's intent. "Yes, I agree, you should
remain with me, since it is you who will be able to detect this presence.
However," he replied, "I know what might bring him to us more
readily."
O'Neill's
eyebrows shot up, intrigued. "Okay, what's that?" he enquired.
"You
will suit up as a Jaffa. Ptah will not recognise your presence, and will be more
likely to attempt such an attack," the Goa'uld told him.
Jack
looked apprehensively at Heru'ur then. "Yeah listen, I've worn one of them
things, and they're just not very comfortable, if you get my drift?"
"You
will adorn the uniform of a Jaffa O'Neill, and you will stand at guard. Your
loyalty now is essential to our alliance!" Heru'ur demanded.
Jack
stood up, shaking his head. "Okay...if it makes ya think he'll show his
hand early, I guess I can suffer a bit of damn discomfort for a while...but
let's not get used to me in that garb, I'm kinda partial to casual
clothing!" he said, a wistful smile crossing his lips.
Heru'ur
returned the smile, his approval of O'Neill's humour evident. "You amuse
me," he retorted, as if to underline that regard.
"Yeah,
I kinda crack myself up too... so the um, uniform?" he asked, that familiar
grimace sweeping across his face.
"Nefir
will see that you are properly attired," Heru'ur stated. He watched the
colonel and his first prime make their way toward the exit. "O'Neill?"
Jack
turned, looking quizzically toward the Goa'uld. "Yeah?" he asked.
"Your
loyalty, is... appreciated!" Heru'ur stated.
Jack
nodded, an intense regard toward his nemesis. "Thanks, back at ya!" he
said, with such conviction that it caught him by surprise. He shrugged at the
Goa'uld.
On
balance, the attitude of Heru'ur had thrown him more times than he cared to
admit. Whether he liked the feeling
or not, this particular Goa'uld had saved his life twice, and even though he had
deceived the colonel, using the Goa'uld Ptah, and the loathing he felt of that
particular incident, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was beholden for the
escape, and his life, and that of Daniel Jackson, who, would probably not
approve of his attempts to save Heru'ur from Ptah, since it would undoubtedly
place the Goa'uld in a much more powerful position.
Nefir
took O'Neill to his own quarters. One of his Jaffa brought in the impressive
Horus guard attire.
"You
are brave my lord," the Jaffa told him, as the colonel slipped into the
uniform.
"Um,
yeah, stupid actually comes to mind, but thanks!" Jack responded, a smile
of irony sweeping his face.
"Your
loyalty to Heru'ur is a show of respect that should be followed by all
Jaffa!" he continued. "Your courage and wisdom should henceforth be
written into Jaffa history."
"Okay,
just stop right there!" O'Neill insisted, very uncomfortable with the
praise the Jaffa was heaping on him. "Look, I owe Heru'ur my life, we have
an… alliance, but this doesn't exactly make me a god!"
The
Colonel's intense gaze made the Jaffa look away, unable to meet his integrity.
"Something
wrong?" Jack asked, reading the expression Nefir now wore uneasily on his
face as meaning more than just the obvious nod of approval.
"No
my lord...it's just..." Nefir responded, his speech broken, doubt invading
his thoughts as he spoke.
"You
kinda like having your gods all in one place right?" Jack stated, with a
rueful smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to shatter your illusions, it's just
kinda odd that anyone would think of me as...well you know?"
Nefir
bowed. "My lord Heru'ur considers you as a fine warrior, cunning and wily,
this is enough for me to believe that you are a god," he opined.
Jack's
eyebrows rose slowly as he absorbed the information. "Really? Cool!"
he replied, finally ensconced in the uniform of the Horus guard. "So Nefir,
how'd you work the head part... exactly?" he asked.
****************
Colonel
Makepeace checked his M90 once more; he'd already oiled and cleaned the weapon
twice since returning to the SGC, but he want to be ready. He needed to know
that his time was well spent.
Teal'c
observed him, intrigued by his meticulous attention to detail.
"Colonel
Makepeace?" he asked. "This ritual with your weapon. It is an Earth
custom?"
Makepeace
regarded the Jaffa, his head inclining slightly to the right, an amusement swept
over his rugged features.
"Um,
well, not an earth custom exactly, it's more of a..." Makepeace began.
"I guess it's more a, soldier thing!"
"I
see, you are bored?" Teal'c enquired.
Makepeace
leant on the reassembled M90, regarding the Jaffa.
"Bored?"
he asked. "I'd say it's more like nervous energy."
"You
wish to perhaps do battle with Heru'ur?" the Jaffa enquired, his own
feelings and thoughts very much in that vein.
"Teal'c,
what can I tell you?" Makepeace replied. "I'm a soldier, I prefer to
be doing battle, period. All this waiting around just makes me itchy!"
"I
am sure Dr. Fraiser would be able to assist you with this problem!" Teal'c
informed.
Makepeace
grinned. "Um, no, that's not what I meant...it's like..." He regarded
the very quizzical expression adorning the Jaffa's face. "It's a figure of
speech."
Teal'c's
right eyebrow raised, he nodded. "I see," he said. "Eager?"
"Yeah,
that kind of sums it up!" Makepeace agreed. "So what do you
think?"
"I
am unsure, it is without doubt a very strange situation, we are both unable to
assist, nor do we know if such assistance is required," Teal'c responded.
"Yeah,
I kind of get the feeling we might be in a little over our heads here!" he
concurred. "Since we don't exactly have the firepower to deal with a
Goa'uld of that magnitude."
"Heru'ur
is indeed a great warrior, a conqueror. Yet he seems remarkably unpredictable
when it comes to Colonel O'Neill. It is very strange indeed!"
The
colonel stopped cleaning the weapon, nodding to himself thoughtfully. He looked
up into the face of the Jaffa.
"So,
what do you think about that?" Makepeace asked. "I mean, you know the
Goa'uld better than anyone, why is Heru'ur making an exception for Jack?"
Teal'c
considered the question. "I am unsure, yet the Asgaard have the same regard
for O'Neill, perhaps it is borne from this?" the Jaffa theorised.
Makepeace
nodded. "You know, you could have something there!" he agreed.
***************
Daniel
had attempted to sleep several times, his thoughts preventing him from doing so.
He kept going over the scenarios in his mind, how they would escape. Jack had
given them options, but would Heru'ur allow the colonel out of his sight for the
amount of time required to get safely to Seng'olia or Kheb? He doubted it... and
then there was the attitude, the concessions, which O'Neill seemed willing to
make.
No!
Emphatic, the Jack O'Neill he knew would never turn so easily against his
principles. The doubt he felt so intensely was borne out of his own inability to
handle the events that had come to pass over the last two months.
He
moved around restlessly, wondering what O'Neill had been occupied with that had
kept him away for so long. The
conversations with Freya, whilst interesting had failed to distract him from his
concern.
The
former Tok'ra host had imparted much of her knowledge of Anise, and the Tok'ra,
yet she had been unable to recall her time as host to Ptah, and although
fascinated by this revelation, he couldn't help but then be drawn back to
O'Neill, and his own understanding of the situation.
He
took a deep breath, punching the cushions that made poor substitutes for
pillows, listening to the near silence, trying to guess at what, or who made any
sounds he detected. Then nothing, as finally he drifted into sleep.
Heru'ur
had been insistent on O'Neill's spending most of the night close by. The colonel
acceded to his wishes.
The
two men had spent the first part of the evening on various topics but now, as
the time went on, the conversation had intensified.
"So
you're kinda looking to take out all the opposition?" Jack asked, still
suited uncomfortably in the Horus guard uniform.
"There
is time enough for such a domain," the Goa'uld responded, his interest
peaked. "You see this as folly?"
"Well,
if you're asking me I think it's kinda ambitious!" Jack commented,
shrugging, watching the expression on the face of his host. "But, then
again, it's not like you've exactly gotta worry about controlling an army
capable of ruling that number of planets right?"
"We,
O'Neill. Our alliance will be the bond that seals the destiny of the
Universe," Heru'ur told him.
Jack
looked at the Goa'uld, a searching expression. "You're offering me half of
the universe?" he asked, a bemused tone permeating his voice.
"I
offer much more! The power that lies within your mind, together with the power
of a god," the Goa'uld told him. "I wonder that you could find
more?"
O'Neill
smiled. "Well, that's kinda a lot. I guess I didn't set my sights high
enough right?" he stated. "Maybe the odd galaxy, or two!"
"You
will learn, in time, to appreciate the power of the Goa'uld, O'Neill!"
Heru'ur opined, a stoic expression now residing on his face. “Our reign within
the realm of this universe is still, even now, in it’s infancy, once we have
conquered the system lords, we shall show this child our true might!”
"I
guess, it's all pretty new right now...I'm still trying to figure out where I
fit in...." he replied honestly.
"Your
loyalty and vigilance are proof," Heru'ur stated. "I would sleep now,
you will return to your quarters."
Jack
stood up, he didn't particularly want to spend too much 'down time' with an
enemy he may have to kill, such familiarity, however vague, created an emotional
turmoil that he had experienced before. Heru'ur
already had a hold on him, saving his life bound him to the Goa'uld
inextricably, but he knew, reasoned, that the time might come when he would be
forced to supersede his own thoughts, and act.
The
helmet closed around his head, as he turned to depart. "You know, these are
pretty cool, I could get used to wearing this!" he told his host. “I’ll
see you in the morning!”
Heru'ur
smiled as the colonel left. His distrust still firmly ensconced, yet despite
this, he liked the Tau'ri; he was thoughtful, a soldier through and through.
This quality alone could be the measure of such an alliance, yet he also
possessed a knowledge that he could see, would ascend him beyond the reach of
his enemies, such an alliance would have to be nurtured.
Daniel Jackson was a big problem, one that he might have to dispose of. Ultimately he wanted the total loyalty of O'Neill, if this meant turning Jackson into a host, he was prepared to risk it, but first he would use guile, O'Neill believed him fooled.... O'Neill was wrong.
Jack sat on his bed, a heavy sigh,
considering the conversation he'd had with Heru'ur, the connotations of what the
Goa'uld had said. He felt tired, the whole process of espionage taking its
toll. Heru'ur was difficult to read, he was sure the Goa'uld didn't trust him,
and yet he seemed to be forthright with knowledge that could be harmful. He
tried hard to focus; still the whole distrust thing enveloped him again.
He knew the drill, he'd been through it a hundred times on special ops,
yet it seemed to be a constant thorn in his side, the doubt, the bitter and
uncomfortable feeling it left.
A Horus guard appeared in his quarters then, bowing before him. "My lord, forgive the intrusion, but the woman, Freya, wishes to speak with you," he announced.
"Yeah, alright, show her in," Jack
sighed. "But don't go away, okay!" he insisted, the memories of their
last encounter still firmly imprinted on his mind. He sat down as she entered, a
look of surprise on her face at his attire.
"So?" he demanded, civility not
being foremost in his mind, back in the act.
"I am sorry," she told him. "I
know the hour is late, but I had to talk to you...to apologise for Anise's
actions."
"Oh really?" Jack snapped, guarded.
"Well, she kind of did me a favour actually." A frown settled on his
face.
"I assure you Colonel, she had only the
best intentions," Freya told him, wandering closer to him.
"Just forget it with the little girl
lost act, okay?" Jack insisted. "I'm fresh out of caring. Is that it?
The apology?" he asked.
Freya looked slightly pathetic, no longer
possessing the arrogance of her symbiote. "You're so different
Jack," she said. "So cold and aloof!"
"Hey! I wised up, why don't you?"
O'Neill spat, his regard intense. "Now if we've done with the sorry part,
I'm kinda thinking I'd like to get some sleep!"
"Yes, sleep," Freya sighed, her
eyes becoming softer suddenly, "Perhaps you would...?"
"Nope, not interested," he replied
sharply, scowling heavily now. She tried the whole seduction thing on him
before, after accusing him and Carter of being Za'tarc's.
Almost got his brain fried into the process.
"I see, then there is nothing left for
me to say. Your mind is made up," she agreed.
"Yep!" the colonel retorted.
"Had my mind made up about you a long time ago, comes from experience, or
d'you forget the armbands, the deception over Teal'c's Jaffa priestess, and the
almost frying my brain with your little device.
You've got a lot to answer for lady!"
She was almost close enough to touch him now,
looking into his eyes. "What we could have shared," she opined,
"would have been inspiring."
Jack laughed. "God, you really have a
high opinion of yourself don't you?" he goaded. "And sharing stuff
wasn't exactly in your vocabulary up until now!"
"That I could make you happy? I am sure
of it!" she responded emphatically.
"Um, now see, that would involve me
actually desiring you, right? And since I find the whole idea abhorrent I guess
not hah!" A smirk etched into his features.
"I don't think you found our kiss so
abhorrent Colonel," Freya insisted, drawing ever closer.
"Alright!" Jack snapped loudly, his
hand rising, palm toward her. "Stop right there!"
The Horus guard entered the room once more,
his Zat gun clasped in his hand.
"My lord?" he asked.
"Yeah, could you escort the... lady back
to her own room," Jack instructed.
As those words left his mouth, Freya lunged
toward him, a knife held firmly in her hand.
The Jaffa paused, her proximity to the colonel making a Zat discharge dangerous.
Jack sidestepped the attack, reaching out and grasping her wrist, spinning her round to control her. The jolt of her body, stiffening against his as the knife plunged into her stomach. Freya’s eyes widened. O’Neill’s closed. Her body became limp in his arms. He hadn’t done it, he knew his grasp had been tight, but his hands had restrained her, he exhaled slowly. The struggle had ended quickly, the warm feeling of her blood on his hand sent an immediate ripple of recognition to O'Neill. He’d known that feeling before, the close and intense sensation of taking out the enemy in close quarters combat; he’d done it a dozen times. But this was different, he lowered her down gently, torn between asking for help and maintaining the disguise.
A sudden calm came over him. She'd attacked
him with the intention of killing him, that made no sense, it was anger at
rejection... it had to be. He looked up at the Jaffa, who seemed relieved the
matter had been swiftly dealt with.
"My lord, shall I remove her?" he
asked.
Jack stared down at this dying woman, her
gaze intense as she looked up into his eyes, only then did she see the horror,
the regret, and the alarm that now manifested itself. He could feel her
breathing becoming shallow, her body relaxing in his arms knowing what this
meant; he couldn't feel remorse, just sadness.
"You give me peace," she said
softly.
Jack looked up at the Jaffa, still unable to
decide whether to ask for help, or demand it.
"The sarcophagus?" he asked
finally, his tone assertive. "Where is it?"
"In the chambers close to the Pel'tac my
lord," the guard answered. Nefir
appeared at his shoulder then.
"My lord?" he said, trying to take
in the scene.
Jack looked down at Freya, her eyes were
closed, and she looked peaceful. He considered asking for her life, but he
wondered how could he save her now? He decided then, his feelings getting the
better of him. "We need her alive," he snapped, allowing her body to
fall from his arms to the floor. "Revive her!"
Nefir bowed, gesturing for the Jaffa beside
him to do as instructed. "I am sorry my lord," he told O'Neill.
"This will not happen again."
O'Neill stood up slowly, his anger venting
through his eyes. "See that it doesn't," he snarled. He turned his
back then quickly, hiding the sorrow he felt, sadness he knew would be evident,
even to a Jaffa. "Get out of
here!" he snapped. "I need some sleep!"
"Yes my lord!" Nefir answered
immediately, backing out of the room.
Jack sat down, his heart heavy. That made it twice, twice he had killed Freya, the thing that perplexed, that ate at him the most, is whether he felt something more than just sorrow, whether it meant anything to him at all. He done many things in his life, things that ordinarily might have taken their toll, the darkness that prevailed in his spirit was a constant companion, had he finally found away to be comfortable?
"Frankly George it's very
disturbing!" Jacob told him, the frown covering his gaunt features adding
weight to the comment.
Hammond shook his head, his elbows resting
now on his desk, leaning forward. "Am I going to want to hear this?"
he asked.
"Well, we have a sketchy report, nothing
firm," Jacob stressed. "That either Colonel
The General nodded, scepticism now masking
his face. "We've heard this before Jacob, I'm not buying it!" Hammond
insisted. "Jack O'Neill would never sell out his principles... not for any
reason, and I’m damn sure never for personal gain!"
The Tok’ra USAF liaison nodded slowly, a
sombre regard toward his long time friend. "George, ordinarily I’d agree.
But we have to consider that, whether we like it or not, Colonel O'Neill may now
be totally under the influence of the Goa'uld. I’m not saying it’s of his
own volition, far from it. It's
something we may have to accept. Some of the Tok'ra believe that the Goa'uld may
have had some other device planted on the Colonel, which is how they located him
so easily; this whole symbiote thing could have been a set-up. I know
George," Jacob said, preventing Hammond from interrupting him. "But we
have to face the fact that the Goa'uld have techniques at their disposal that we
haven't even heard of, now if that's the case...."
"Jacob, if that’s the case I’m
wondering just what do the Tok'ra intend to do about helping us get my people
back?" Hammond snapped.
"Because right now, Jacob..."
The tapping on the door made Hammond cut his
intended reprimand short. "Come in," he snapped, still smarting over
Jacob's comments.
Sam entered looking apprehensively toward her
father. "Thank you sir. Dad, news?" she asked immediately.
"Not so far, Major," Hammond
responded immediately, a deliberate attempt to prevent what he saw as a taint on
O'Neill's character.
"Oh, I was hoping we'd know something by
now," she sighed, almost wistfully, her resolve snapping back in place
then, eyes burning into her father. “So?”
Jacob looked sympathetic. "Sam, it's
only been a couple of days... we'll hear something soon enough, I'm sure of
it," Jacob's attempt to consol his daughter falling on a muted response.
"Dad, we've been waiting for two days,
and the Tok'ra have nothing?" she remonstrated, throwing her hands up in
frustration. "We don't know if they're alive or dead... at least give us
that!"
"They're both alive and well, Major. Now
if that’s all? You're
dismissed," Hammond told her, the hard unrelenting stare he fixed her with
underlining that order.
"Yes sir, Dad," she acknowledged,
closing the door behind her. Major Coburn was waiting in the hall.
"Anything?" he asked.
Carter shook her head. "Well, they’re
alive.” A troubled look crossed her furrowing brow. “But something's up,
they're just not telling me," she surmised. "You could have cut the
atmosphere in there with a knife!"
Coburn shrugged. "Alive's good. Not sure
about the atmosphere issue, that sounds a little disturbing!"
Carter led the Major down the hall, away from
Hammond's office. "I know," she replied. "There's something, I
can feel it, I just wish I knew what it was?"
*************
Daniel was studying the Goa'uld tablet when
O'Neill finally put in an appearance. He
put the object down immediately, looking at the colonel, expecting some
explanation.
"Jack, where have you been?" he
asked, when the explanation he’d hope for didn’t come.
"Around," the colonel retorted,
looking at Jackson with his usual disdain. "So you gonna sit on this ship
all day, or are you coming down to the planet?"
Jackson looked surprised. "Um...what
planet?"
"Well, Heru'ur calls it home, so I
guess, it's his?" Jack quipped. "And it beats the hell out of being
stuck on this thing, so you coming, or are we gonna do the twenty questions
thing here?"
Daniel nodded, suddenly realising that
O'Neill was decked out in a similar uniform to that of Heru'ur.
"Um, okay, what's with the armour?" he enquired, the enquiry
almost tentative in delivery.
"Oh, the armour," O'Neill repeated.
"Well, it's a little disguise to throw Ptah off the trail, kinda cool don't
ya think?"
Jackson's eyes rolled heavenwards. "It's
a little obvious," he retorted.
The helmet suddenly enclosed the colonel's
face. "Ya think?" he spat. "I thought I blended in well actually,
let's go Tau'ri slave!"
"Great, you look like him, and now
you're beginning to sound like him too,” Jackson opined. “Picking up anymore
of those cute Goa'uld mannerisms?" the archaeologist remarked. "Oh
wait," he turned, retrieving the tablet. "I have to teach you the
lingo too, your friend insists!"
"Oh for crying out loud, that's all I
need!" Jack complained, the sound of his voice distorted somewhat by the
helmet that enclosed his face, which immediately opened again, revealing the
childish delight on the face of the colonel. "Whoa, cool!" he
remarked. "So, exactly when did you get this piece of information?"
"Nekhbet brought it in yesterday, he um,
well I don't have a choice," the archaeologist told him.
"There's that word again!" Jack
snapped. "I'll speak to Heru'ur, on the planet... which is where he is, and
where we're going, and Daniel? Forget everything I said, I need you to stop
objecting, it's gotten complicated."
Jackson looked baffled by that remark,
approaching the colonel. "Um, and it wasn't to start with? Jack, what's
going on?" his tone filled with apprehension.
Jack leant closer to him. "Look. Freya
tried to kill me last night, and I, she, well I killed her," he said,
unable to find a more delicate annunciation.
Daniel looked horrified. "What? How
could you? She wasn't a Goa'uld Jack, my God! Are you sure?"
Jack's sardonic regard of his friend left
Daniel in little doubt. "Am I sure she tried to kill me? Yeah, the knife
was a bit of a giveaway Daniel, didn't leave me in much doubt if you know what I
mean...." he replied. "But, relax, Nefir took her to a
sarcophagus."
"Oh well that's okay then, you can just
kill her indiscriminately and bring her back to life a couple of more times, I
doubt she'll mind!" Jackson retorted sarcastically. "Look Jack."
"No Daniel, you look...I'm doing
everything I know here to keep us alive, again!" his voice almost a
whisper. "I had no choice, she came at me.” When those words didn’t
seem convincing enough, the colonel moved closer to Jackson, the grimace on his
features broadening. “I had a damn Horus guard watching my every move, so
don't take the moral high ground with me!"
Daniel shrugged. "So what exactly are
you telling me here?" he demanded, his face still bore the disdain he felt.
"That the new Jack O'Neill, 'life saver' has the right to kill to protect
the charade?"
The colonel stared at him speechless, a feint
smile forming on his lips, scorn in his eyes. "It's called survival, what
one does to stay alive...I don't have time for this sentimental crap, so just
deal with it!" O'Neill's scathing expression matched by an acerbic tone.
"Or do I need to remind you who got us into this mess in the first
place?" he charged. "Now, we're going down to the planet where you can
do the guilty, tortured routine as much as you like... I'm not apologising for
keeping us alive."
The helmet closed once more and O'Neill
turned, leaving Jackson standing indignantly in the middle of the room.
"Jaffa, kree!" he spat as he walked
past the Horus guard. "Bring the Tau'ri to the surface."
Jackson frowned heavily. “Tau’ri?” he
repeated in a lowly tone.
The Horus guards bowed their heads low as the
colonel walked past them. Leaving them to retrieve Daniel, he made his way to
the exit. With the ship now close to Heru'ur's magnificent palace, the journey
was a short one.
The Horus guards all snapped to attention as
he passed by them, the long hallway that led to Heru'ur's chambers was covered
quickly, the helmet once more folding away, revealing his identity, as he
entered.
"Kel shak, Heru'ur," he greeted;
the intentional use of the Goa’uld dialect a deliberate embrace of his
enemy’s customs, acknowledging Nefir with a nod.
"Kree shak shel, O'Neill," the
Goa'uld responded.
"Okay, look," Jack began. "I
say we find the damn snake right now, and then we get started on the system
lords. I've had enough of this waiting around thing, I'm not that good at
it!"
Heru'ur observed him curiously, sensing
something frustrated the colonel, that feeling making him uncomfortable.
"Something vexes you?" he enquired, standing and moving toward his
ally.
"Oh yeah, you got that right," Jack
retorted, knowing that this inactivity wasn't getting them any closer to his
finding a way back to the SGC. "Doing nothing has a habit of vexing me.
Sitting around waiting for Ptah to make his move isn't getting us anywhere, so
here's the plan, we have everyone from your ships brought in here, one by one,
and I'll find the greasy assed son of a bitch and nail him!"
The anger in his words, in his eyes,
impressed Heru'ur. He nodded slowly, thoughtfully. Turning toward Nefir he
barked orders at him in Goa'uld, a dialect that O'Neill had no comprehension of,
but he understood the meaning.
"As you wish," Heru'ur remarked,
now returning his attention to O'Neill.
Jack regarded the system lord, a smile
enveloping his face. "Listen, I'm thinking he's going to realise what's
going on here, so a little caution?
Heru'ur returned the smile, a wicked glint to
those glowing eyes. He stood alongside the colonel, something in his hand
offered up for O'Neill's inspection.
"What's this?" Jack asked taking
the device.
"A personal protection shield. Place it
on your left hand, and activate it," Heru'ur instructed.
O'Neill looked suitably impressed. He took
the device and placed it, as instructed, on his left hand. It closed around his
wrist, two sharp stabs of pain travelling up his arm.
"Whoa, ouch!" he exclaimed, looking
at Heru’ur, questioningly. “Is it supposed to do that?”
"It will pass," the Goa'uld told
him. "Activate with this," he continued, raising his own hand and
showing the colonel the device he wore.
"Okay," Jack agreed, still wincing
from the dull ache that traced the length of his arm. Touching the glowing
crystal, the shield formed around him instantly. His eyes widening as he beheld
the effect.
"That's cool!" he intoned.
"Thanks, what about one of those hand devices?"
"You would not be able to operate such a
device O'Neill, the Ancients have resisted our more destructive
technology," Heru'ur imparted.
"Um, so how come this works?" Jack
asked, holding his left hand up and indicating the shield device. "See, my
understanding of the Ancients is a little better than yours, you can't exactly
access anything technologically, but since the information is in my head...hey,
let's give it a try hah?"
Heru'ur considered the point, a good one.
"Your blending with Ptah, might give you the ability to use such a weapon,
its control however is not as simple. The device you wear now acts with the
energy of the body, from impulses sent by the nerves, the ribbon device is
operated via the neural pathways of your brain."
Jack looked at the Goa'uld without
understanding an inkling of what he'd explained, his eyes narrowing, a grimace
sweeping across those handsome features. "Well maybe we could just try it
and see right?" he insisted.
Heru'ur turned to his first prime.
"Summon Nekhbet with a device," he instructed. "Have it brought
to the Oasis."
Nefir did as asked immediately. "We will
delay the search until you have mastered the device O'Neill," Heru'ur told
him. "It will be of interest to see how much of the knowledge of your
symbiote you retain!"
"Sweet," Jack remarked. He followed
Heru'ur from the vast chambers, out into the gardens that surrounded the palace,
a short walk to a large oasis-like area, exotic plants growing around a crystal
clear pool of water, large enough to swim in, it’s banks lined with flowers.
The two men stood in silence, looking at the
peaceful surroundings. O'Neill impressed with it's beauty. "Nice," he
said finally.
Heru'ur regarded him. "You are surprised
that we too enjoy that which is aesthetic?" he enquired.
Jack looked bemused, almost aghast at the
comment. "Well, it kinda implies humanity," he responded, "that
you guys haven't exactly shown a leaning toward."
"The Goa'uld are many things O'Neill,
over the passage of time we have become as fixated with beauty and culture as
are the Tau'ri, you are misguided to perceive us simply as conquerors." he
lectured, his hand sweeping up and indicating a solitary, breath taking bird,
it's long colourful feathers resembling a bird of paradise. "This species
is extinct on your planet, yet thrives here. Your race has eradicated many of
the creatures whose existence predates your own, yet you judge us?"
Jack's eyebrows slowly ascended toward the
heavens. "Alright, they're just animals, we're talking people here, we
don't do that, not to people," he argued.
Heru'ur chuckled to himself. "It is
written in your history, or did you think that the Goa'uld had no knowledge of
the Tau'ri's past? Hosts brought from Earth thousands of year ago testify to the
constant battle of evolution, as it is with the Goa'uld."
O'Neill was suddenly confounded. "Okay,
we'll just skip the history lesson and go right to the practical one here shall
we?"
Heru'ur's amusement was obvious now. "As
you wish," he replied, taking the hand device from Nekhbet. "Place
this on your right hand," he instructed O'Neill, watching as the colonel
did so, leaning his head back, and regarding O'Neill critically. "Clear
your mind of thoughts, and focus on that rock over there."
Jack looked toward the rock the Goa'uld
indicated. Raising his right hand, his eyes fixed toward the object.
"Okay, and?" he asked.
"Crush it!" Heru'ur told him.
"Focus your mind on this thought and let the power of your thoughts flow
through the device."
As he spoke, the hand device glowed, the
power surging from O'Neill's mind, the crystal's focusing that energy, causing
the rock to explode.
"Whoa!" O'Neill exclaimed.
Heru'ur shook his head slowly.
"Impressive, uncontrolled, but impressive!" he remarked.
"So, that's it, just a little bad
feeling and bam?" Jack asked, his voice slightly higher in pitch at the
excitement this new toy gave him.
Nekhbet looked reticent. "My lord, such
power is..."
"Silence!" Heru'ur spat, his eyes
glowing furiously toward the lesser Goa'uld. "O'Neill, you will need to
control the force, this device can easily render you exhausted. The small stones
you have created, use the energy to move them." he directed, his expression
now calm toward O'Neill once more.
Jack looked across at him with an ambivalent
regard. He felt a sense of calm assurance washing over him; Heru'ur's trust
appearing to be gradually increasing. His eyes closed, he lifted his hand once
more, picturing the stones in his mind raising them from the ground, they
hovered in the air, still.... not even a slight movement one way or the other.
Heru'ur looked on, fascinated, watching
O'Neill's face. No Goa'uld had ever controlled the device so fluently. The
ambiguous expression that had adorned O'Neill's features gone, replaced with a
repose that he found remarkable. He could almost sense the power that emanated
from the mind of his new ally, it's raw magnetism overwhelming ‑ he felt
suddenly entranced by it, comprehending it's significance.
In O'Neill, he had found a worthy ally, a
being who possessed both the qualities of natural ability to channel his
strengths, and the resilience, he, himself held.
"Very impressive," he opined.
"You require no further edification, we shall deal with Ptah
immediately!"
The stones fell instantly. O'Neill glanced at
the Goa'uld. "Sounds like a mission to me," he intoned. "I'd like
to try out my new toys!"
***************
Daniel had been taken to the quarters
allocated to him by Nefir, alone, he had begun to decipher the Goa'uld dialect
once more. The language was fairly basic to him, he'd learned so much from
previous encounters, and from its similarity to Ancient Egyptian, that it barely
held his attention.
His mind apt to straying, he considered the
implications of O'Neill's last address. Perhaps he had been too judgmental,
perceiving an innocent woman to have been wronged didn't exactly add up. She'd
attacked him, he said, and then nothing was clear. Had he deliberately killed
her, cold hearted? That didn't make sense either; the O'Neill embodiment of
survival perhaps better explained his reaction.
Jackson felt angry at that moment, the
frustration, and the pure torment of being powerless to act.
Whatever O'Neill had planned, he felt excluded.
Why? Sprung into his thoughts time after time, like a petulant child.
Nothing made sense anymore, not that this particular revelation was exactly a
new feeling, but the very nature of how they had come to be embroiled in the
depths of their worst enemy perplexed him.
Heru'ur had located them so easily, and yet
was unable to detect anyone else, did he even care if the Tok'ra were
annihilated, or that half of the SGC were on Vorash? He paused then; none of
them were really the targets, were they? It had to be O'Neill, the Goa'uld
realised once Ptah had been defeated, that O'Neill had something more to offer,
the Ancients secrets perhaps.
His features contorted wildly as he brought
each possibility to mind, but that one resounding fact made more sense than
anything else. A grimace swept his face. Heru'ur's intention had always been to
secure the colonel, and obtain the very wisdom that O'Neill now bartered with.
But there was something else too, he could have punished the colonel,
killed his friend, refused to allow him the privileges he now enjoyed, worn him
down, but he didn't, despite O'Neill's actions in freeing them both from his
initial assault on Vorash, he had reacted with a different tactic, held out the
hand of friendship. That thought sickened Jackson to the core, decimating his
patience.
"Dammit Jack," he said aloud.
"What's happening here?"
**************
The commissary seemed to be the focal point
of the small social gatherings that any member of the SGC, especially those
closest to Daniel Jackson and Jack O'Neill allowed themselves. It seemed any
form of relaxation or enjoyment was very decidedly off topic. There was almost a
collective grieving for a loss they all perceived, yet none dared to share
openly.
Colonel Makepeace and Teal'c seemed to spend
a great deal of time discussing ideas and tactics, sharing information from
their respective pasts. The two
men, now joined by Major Davis, Major Coburn and Sam Carter, were deep into a
rescue idea.
"If the Tok'ra could get their
position," Makepeace contended, now addressing all those who had joined
them. "I figure we could mount a surprise attack, get them out before the
Goa'uld know what's hit them. It's never gonna be expected, we'd have the
element of surprise!"
"Such a plan could work, however without
first knowing how heavily guarded Daniel
Jackson and Colonel O'Neill are, it would be
extremely dangerous," Teal'c replied. "Most Goa'uld controlled worlds
would not be easily accessed through the Stargate."
"Not to mention foolhardy... sir,"
Major Davis offered, remembering Makepeace outranked him at the last minute.
"Well, I guess you Pentagon types just
sit around pushing pencils all day Major, so you'd best leave the planning to
real soldiers." The intentionally condescending tone directed well enough,
to force Davis to raise his hands in acquiescence.
"No, Major Davis is right, sir, if
Heru'ur has taken the Colonel and Daniel back to his home planet, it would be
like attacking a heavily fortified position with plastic bullets, we need to
come up with something a little more covert!" Carter argued. "If we
could contact the Asgaard I'm sure they'd help!"
"Since Jack's the only one who seems to
have that particular talent Sam, I figure we're gonna have to get them back
under our own steam," he opined. He looked across at Teal'c then. "Do
you know the coordinates to Heru'ur's planet?"
Teal'c considered the question. "Indeed,
all Jaffa who served Apophis were taught those symbols, it was one of the
planets we were to attack," he explained. "However, I would not advise
attempting to access this planet, Heru'ur is a great warrior. He rarely loses
battles of this nature," the Jaffa concluded.
"Okay, we can do covert!" Makepeace
offered. "Get the Tok'ra to take us to the planet on one of their cargo
vessels, and infiltrate the guards... locate Jack and Dr. Jackson and get them
out from the inside."
"That sounds more workable sir, but if
we can't infiltrate the Horus guards, we'd be sitting ducks if they sent gliders
or motherships after the Tel'tac." Carter stated.
"Can't see us out running those for
sure," Coburn agreed. "But I'd be willing to give it a try!"
Makepeace sighed heavily. "Look Teal'c
infiltrated them well enough, even managed to get aboard a mothership if I
remember correctly, so it's sounding like our best option so far!" he
intoned. "I'm getting a little sick of sitting around here with a black
cloud hanging over the place, it's time we went out there and showed the damn
Goa'uld we mean business!"
Major Paul Davis could see the logic in that statement, he felt the same
way.
"Maybe, but it's all we've got, unless
the Tok'ra get off their asses and do something a little more pro-active,"
Makepeace commented, looking at Carter with a wry smile. "Nothing
personal," he added. "I meant in general."
"I am in agreement with Colonel
Makepeace," Teal'c stated. "The longer we delay, the less likely it
will be that such a plan could be successful."
"Alright, all in favour?" Makepeace
asked.
Teal'c bowed his head. "I am," he
declared.
"Me too sir," Carter agreed.
"You can count me in," Coburn
added.
Major Davis looked at the expectant faces that now directed their
attention on him.
Makepeace reclined back in his chair, his
arms stretching out, hands meeting behind his head. "Right!" he said
emphatically. "Let's go mount the first assault shall we?"
The entire group stood as one, chairs
scraping back, they headed for level 28.
*************
Concealed within the guise of the Horus
guard, O'Neill ensured that every person brought before Heru'ur was sent close
enough to him, to allow his sensitivity of the creature to detect it's presence.
Three hours had passed, and he ached from standing as sentry to the Goa'uld
system lord, who sat king-like upon his golden throne. He was about to concede
to his discomfort when finally, a male servant was placed in front of Heru'ur,
the immediate sense of the parasite swept over him. Something else too, this
servant wore sleeves long enough to conceal weapons.
Sloppy, O'Neill thought, a knife would easily penetrate the system
lord’s shield.
He waited, quiescent, listening to Heru'ur's
aid Nekhbet question Amal, the servants given name, about his movements. The
servant finally acted, feeling he was close enough to make his move; a long
knife wielded at Heru'ur, who was slow to react, Nekhbet too almost frozen to
the spot.
O'Neill's riposte instant, no thought for the
host crossed his mind, his hand raised, the power of his hatred for that
particular symbiote tortuous, sent through the hand device like a rocket,
throwing the creature back, almost tearing him in half.
Heru'ur watched almost transfixed, as O'Neill
strode toward the prone figure of his attacker, the hand device brought to bear
once more crushing the skull of the host, the symbiote pulverized with it, the
glowing eyes became dull, the blood flowing from the incredible wounds his anger
had inflicted, O'Neill stared down, indifferent, turning to regard the Goa'uld,
the helmet of his uniform receding.
"One less snake to worry about
hah!" he said callously, noting the look of shock in Nekhbet's eyes.
"You know?" He sneered toward him. "You were kinda late in making
a move there." He gestured toward the disfigured body of Ptah's host.
"Better get that cleaned up, if you can manage a movement anytime
soon."
Heru'ur turned his attention to his aid.
"Do it!" he snapped, standing and following O'Neill from the chamber.
Nekhbet scowled, barking orders at the
surrounding Jaffa. He didn't like this, the thought of being replaced by a
Tau'ri slave almost sending him into a rage. He would have to do something, yet
such an attack, at that which his master had shown great approval for, would
need to be planned carefully.
The woman would be ideal, but he had learned
of her easy despatch, perhaps suitably armed, she might prove more useful. The
archaeologist too might prove to be expendable in his new endeavour to rid
himself of this dangerous new foe.
***********
Heru'ur caught up to O'Neill almost at the
colonel's quarters. "You have done well O'Neill, once more proving your
loyalty," he told him.
"Yeah, well slate’s clean, time to
move on. Apophis?" Jack asked as the two men entered his room, a large
spacious and well-furnished apartment, affording its occupant every amenity.
"We must first strengthen our
armies," Heru'ur insisted. "Such a battle will be fought across the
galaxy, Apophis now controls many planets!"
"Sweet, so we take them one by one. I
think it's time to get tough right, show him we mean business, so here's an
idea. We align our forces with the system lords, take him out and then deal with
Chronos and his forces afterwards, he'd never expect it!" Jack asserted.
"So I figure I'm gonna need to know how this thing works, who’s where,
what forces they have, that kinda thing."
Heru'ur regarded him with a hint of suspicion
entering his mind, which he allowed to permeate into concern. "Your haste
is intriguing O'Neill, what can be gained with such tenacity?"
Jack looked at the Goa'uld, adroit in tone
and mannerism. The confidence he felt radiated toward Heru'ur, almost
intoxicating.
"The element of surprise," he
announced. "Works every time, hit them hard and fast. It's the only way to
ensure victory, split Apophis’ forces down the middle. We can handle one half,
let Chronos and the other system lords take on the rest, then we turn our
forces, combined with the ones we'll gain from defeating Apophis, against the
system lords. It's pretty bold, but it's effective!"
Jack collapsed down on the large mound of
cushions in front of his host. Heru'ur chose the more dignified seating,
perching opposite his ally, with a nod of approval.
"Such a combative strategy has never
before been employed, you are perhaps right, it would surely create confusion
amongst the armies of Apophis to divide them, should this battle be swift, then
engaging Chronos, whilst he still fought Apophis would surely secure a
victory!" he concurred.
Jack smiled. "Kill two snakes with one
stone," he remarked.
"I will ensure the information is
correct, O'Neill, and have it brought to you, eat!" he declared. "You
have earned it."
O'Neill stretched out. "You know, I'm
kinda tired right now, maybe I'll just sleep it off," he suggested.
"And, er, watch your back!"
Heru'ur's attention returned on him, as he
had intended. "There is a meaning to this?" the Goa'uld enquired.
"Let's just say I think someone's got
ideas above his station, and isn't too thrilled about sharing!" O'Neill
intentionally cryptic response engendered the seed of doubt in the system
lord’s mind. His eyes seemed to wander slightly as he considered the
connotations of who might be culpable in such traitorous behaviour.
"Your words would incline toward your
own safety O'Neill," he retorted. "But are well ruminated."
"Yeah, thanks, I know who I'm
watching," the colonel insisted. "Doubt you'll have a hard time
working it out either!"
Heru'ur closed the door after himself,
pausing. "Jaffa Kree!" he barked.
*************
Hammond joined the team around the briefing
table; he sensed the angst, the desire in his people, wondering what they would
bring before him.
"Off world activation," the tannoys
announced, enhanced by the alarms that instantly activated.
"Now what!" Hammond snapped,
adjourning immediately to head toward the control room. Carter, and Makepeace
were already descending ahead of him.
Teal'c raised his eyebrows toward Major
Davis. "It will no doubt be the Tok'ra!" he assessed.
"Well, if it's Thor I won't
complain!" Davis responded.
"It is not in fact Thor," Teal'c
argued. "If it were Thor, the SGC would be losing it's power and the iris
would open without command!"
Major Davis looked toward the Jaffa
quizzically. "Teal'c it was just wishful thinking!" he told him.
"Nevertheless, inaccurate!" Teal'c
insisted.
"You really have been hanging around
Colonel O'Neill too much," Davis opined quietly, as he followed the Jaffa
to the control room.
"It's the Tok'ra sir, receiving Tok'ra
IDC," Lieutenant Simmons told him.
"Open the Iris Lieutenant," Hammond
instructed.
All eyes fixed on the wormhole, as Martouf
and another Tok'ra operative stepped through. Carter left the control room,
followed by Teal'c.
"Martouf?" Carter asked.
"Major Carter, Teal'c, allow me to
introduce you to Pallas. Until a few hours ago, Pallas was in the service of
Heru'ur, one of the many spies we have within his ranks."
Teal'c bowed his head, whilst Carter made the
appropriate noises, leading the two men to the control room.
"Martouf, you have news for us?"
Hammond asked.
"Yes, Pallas brought the information to
us immediately, we felt it important that you should hear it from him,"
Martouf explained.
Hammond led the party back to the briefing
room. "Pallas, you saw Colonel O'Neill and Daniel Jackson?" Carter
asked.
"Indeed I did, Colonel O'Neill now wears
the apparel of Heru'ur, denoting his status, gold in colour," Pallas began.
"What status?" Makepeace demanded.
"He has assumed the mantle of ally and
comrade to Heru'ur. He has taken command of Nurti's armies, and they plan to
attack Apophis and the system lords. It is daring, but the plan will work,
Heru'ur's spies within the armies of the system lords and Apophis are many.
Their information has revealed weaknesses, which Colonel O'Neill has shown to be
exploitable," Pallas told them.
The SGC personnel fell silent, looking from
one to the other.
"That doesn't mean that Jack's gone over
to the other side!" Makepeace insisted.
"With your permission Colonel, there is
more," Martouf imparted, his tone and expression dire.