Ravages
Ravages
by Debbie Louise Gough
TITLE: Ravages
AUTHOR: Debbie Louise Gough
EMAIL: littlemissarty@hotmail.com
CATEGORY: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Holiday, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Series, Smarm
PAIRING: Daniel/Sam
SPOILERS: season three- especially cotg, fiad, pov
SEASON / SEQUEL: 3; sequel to Innocent Dreams, Darkest Memories, For Faith in Friends
RATING: PG-13
CONTENT WARNINGS: adult themes, angst, language, male/female relationship, minor character death, sexual situations, violence
SUMMARY: SG-1, 7 and 9 take a well needed vacation- until it all goes wrong when strange weather patterns set in and Sam, Daniel and Nyan are stranded in an ice cave.
STATUS: Complete
ARCHIVE: Heliopolis
DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. We have written this story for entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the authors. Not to be archived without permission of the authors.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: i'm baaaaaaaaaack. this is the last in this series, and although i have a *few* ideas up my sleeve it could be a while b4 i actually do nething with them- what with exams, etc...*sigh*
feedback: please sir, one more...oops, wrong sitch lol ( yes please tho)
Prologue:
Steven Strattenburg stood impatiently, his hand curled around the slim black telephone receiver, in a lobby in the midst of Siberia. His grey-white hair had been trimmed; clipped back to a military approved length, and he wore a well-fitting black jump-suit, and baseball cap. A slim pistol weighed heavily in his back pocket, along with the mysterious Touchstone Maybourne had presented him with those long months ago in the hell-hole he had been imprisoned in. He had been shipped off to Siberia a few weeks after he had been freed- the SGC were still searching him for crimes against humanity, for his part in the viral experiment, and was still waiting for the go-ahead to go through the Gate, and sabotage the Tollan home-world.
" I'm sorry?" he asked now in disbelief, his voice coming out as a suppressed roar of anger, " What exactly do you mean, 'the mission'sscrubbed'?" A couple by the elevator shot him a covert disdainful glance, as his voice rose another notch.
" Like I said sir," the Major on the other end said carefully, his voice clear, angry and bitter. " Makepeace and Maybourne have been found out. There's no mission to Tollana."
Steven twisted, so that his back faced the couple, and hissed angrily down the end of the telephone, " What the hell am I meant to do with the Touchstone?"
He could almost picture the young Major's shrug, as he retorted, " I don't know sir. My suggestion is, you destroy it, and quickly, before Makepeace blabs, and reveals you as one of Maybourne's contacts. At least that way, if they go looking for you, they won't have any evidence to incriminate you."
Steven thought for a moment, then cast his mind back to some large, beautiful lakes, deep and full of fish and garbage, and murmured, " Thank you Major. I know just the place."
Two weeks later
" It doesn't really matter...sometimes we run for cover
I'm always on the outside
Keep it to myself
You never seem to wonder
how much you make me suffer
I'm speaking from the inside
Keep it to myself."
That's it. The last bag packed; the last shirt folded and pushed into the bottom of my canvas suitcase. Sam still essentially disagrees with where I'm returning to; but she can understand my argument at the same time- that's what makes her so damn good, so great...and it's also what makes it harder to leave her apartment.
I've been staying in her spare bedroom in between missions for several good reasons- I needed a minder to make sure I didn't do any more damage to my shoulder (Janet said she was sick of seeing me in the Infirmary), and unlike Jack, she isn't rude, and doesn't force me or coerce me or use reverse psychology to make me change the channel. Another good point about Sam; she doesn't mother-hen either. Damn, I shouldn't be thinking of the good points- she doesn't like you, remember wonder-boy? She made it pretty darn clear when Jack was stuck on Edora. She nearly worked herself to death to save him, and even admitted to Janet that she 'missed him'. Wonder if it had been reversed- me stuck on Edora instead of Jack, she would feel the same way...dammit, stop thinking like that! It's over, done with. In fact, it was over before it even began. You're team-mates for God's sake.
I'm straying from the point again. Anyway, we found out a while ago- about three weeks after Jack was marooned on Edora- that Steven's fee to get out of the hell-hole he was staying in had been mysteriously paid, freeing him. As for the man himself, no-one knows where he is; he could be working for Maybourne for all we know. No-one really wanted me to return to my apartment when we first heard the news- after all, the last time he was free, he hunted me down twice- the first time to kidnap me, the second to kill me. They always said bad luck comes in threes. They never said it grew worse with each turn.
As it is, that last mission was the last straw- I found the harcesis child. And lost him, just as abruptly as I had found him. I can't really deal with people right now, or Sam's probing questions- especially when I know she secretly loves Jack, and not...well, hell, not me- so I'm returning to the Base, and staying in my office. We finally got rid of those refugees- found another planet for them, thank god. If they had stayed any longer, the General would have found his office flooded with resignations or transferrals. If I'm lucky, well, I might be sent on another mission with another team. It would probably at least ease the tension between SG-1 right now if I'm gone for a short while.
A personal extract from the Journals of Doctor Daniel Jackson
" You're out of the Island, into the Highway
You pass the places where you might have turned
You never did no less, but you still hide away
From the anger of angels who won't return
He's everything you want, he's everything you need
He's everything inside of you that you wish you could be
He says all the right things at exactly the right time
But he means nothing to you and you don't know why."
He's detaching himself from us- in fact, not to use a clich, but right now, Daniel is as cold as ice. I thought we had something- something evolving from our friendship. I guess I was wrong- or I was right, and Daniel's a commitment phobic- but no, that doesn't make sense. He married Sha're quite happily, and spent over three years searching for her- only for her to die in his arms. Face it Major, the problem is you. He just doesn't like you.
Daniel's been staying in the spare bedroom of my apartment for the past four and a half months, in between missions. It was mainly because Steven had been freed from jail by some absolute idiot, and let's face it; it was pretty damn likely that he'd come after Daniel again. It seems to be the only thing that drives him, keeps him alive. It's pretty creepy. But I also think it's because Daniel wanted company. With the Colonel stranded on Edora, Daniel began to crumble in on himself, locking himself away in his office for long periods of time, translating anything to do with the Goa'uld to help the Colonel. It was him that suggested the idea of the particle accelerator to me, one evening when he was drunk ( the Colonel's method of squeezing information from him is worryingly good when he's depressed). It was Daniel's reaction to the Colonel's absence, that drove me to work to the brink of collapse. Daniel's suffered enough in the past three years- he didn't deserve to have his suffering prolonged, dammit. And yes, I did admit to Janet that I missed the Colonel, but only because any soldier would miss their commanding officer. I missed his leadership, sarcasm ( even though it probably might have helped land Daniel in the Infirmary a few times) and more importantly, his ability to be Daniel's rock, his foundation when times were low. I just can't do that. I don't know Daniel well enough for that. I wish I did though. He's my best friend- more than my best friend, but I don't even know his favorite color.
And once again, I'm straying from the issue.
Daniel's sitting on the bed- staring down at his suitcase. It's pitiful really- just large enough to contain everything he owns- which, believe me, wouldn't even be enough to fill a cupboard. I've just decided- I'm going to make a promise. A real promise. I'm going to find out what's wrong with him, why he's detaching himself, and I'm going to right everything that went wrong. Daniel once, when he was completely, utterly drunk, and slightly feverish, when I was smoothing his back whilst he threw up in my toilet basin, called me 'his angel'. Well it's about time his angel moved her ass and found out what the hell is wrong with him, instead of simpering over why he doesn't love her.
A personal extract from the Journal of Doctor/Major Samantha Carter
Part One: Problems
Doctor Daniel Jackson scrubbed a hand through his long dark blonde hair, and shot a covert look towards his team-mates Jack O'Neill, Samantha Carter, and Teal'c. Secretly, he was pleased they were a team again- only recently, Jack had undertaken an undercover mission to weed out a traitor to the facility. He had retired, and when Daniel had visited him, had snapped that their friendship had no foundation, and Daniel was a fool for ever thinking so.
Daniel looked to the floor suddenly, a crimson flush creeping over his cheeks. Even though the comment had been made to convince Maybourne that Jack had really gone 'dark side' on them, it still stung. More than any other of Jack's insults aimed at him in the past four years.
What if he was right? What if I am some crackpot fool who's been rejected by the outside community, and have fooled myself into thinking our friendship ever had foundation? Oh God, what if he was right?
" Daniel, you okay?" Sam asked gently, her voice concerned, breaking through his thoughts. Daniel glanced up at her, and realized for the first time his eyes had an uncomfortable sting to them.
" I'm fine," he stiffly said. " Just tired."
Blue-silver light rippled over his face, catching the shine from his over-bright eyes, and abruptly, he crouched to the floor, his long tender fingers latching onto the laces from his boots, twisting and curling them into a tight knot. SG-1 were going on a short twenty-four hour mission to P8J-899, a planet randomly picked from Sam's Cold Dial Out Program.
Of course you are,his mind silently taunted him,you've been kept awake at night, for the past week, thinking about Jack and Sam. About how they have two realities backing their relationship up.
Sam frowned, her eyebrows arched, her blue eyes wide with concern. Daniel's automatic response to any question asked of him lately, had been 'fine'. He was always 'fine'- even if he'd been tortured, or had been captured by a Goa'uld and drowned, he wasfine.
Sure you're fine Daniel. And I have green hair, and speak like a Nox.
" Carter, Jackson," Jack snapped irritably from behind them, " will you two make a move on? The Stargate won't stay open forever!"
Daniel stiffened again at the unfamiliar title, and hastily, before Jack noticed, he swiped a hand at his eyes, re-adjusted his straps, and strode forward, towards the metal ramp. Hollowly, he noticed his boots were clanging noisily against the metal ramp, and Jack was glaring at him.
Guess that answers my question then; our friendship really doesn't have any foundations.
He paused in front of the wormhole as Sam stepped through, her lithe body disappearing through the solid blue wall, and sadly stared after her.
Why am I here? A few years ago I thought I was here to find Sha're, but she's dead now. A few months ago it was to find the boy. But now he's gone to another plane of existence. So why am I still here?
He touched the rippling gel-like liquid, and smiled gently as a small ripple burst from where it was. When he had first opened the Gate, he had had a similar reaction, and had actually fondled the liquid before stepping through.
At least back then I had a purpose- I needed a job or I faced living on the streets.
Jack behind him made an annoyed noise, and hissed angrily, " Get a move in Daniel!" Daniel opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off as a lean, strong hand suddenly pressed itself between his shoulder blades, andshoved.
Too surprised, he fell through the Stargate, into the epicenter of the icy blue, violent, spinning wormhole. He was falling, and simultaneusly being jerked back up again, and thrust against the icy sides. He wanted to yell, but instead his throat constricted painfully. Not that it mattered much- the rushing of blood to his and everyone else's ears would have blocked out the screams.
He fell ungracefully, from the top of the wormhole, and yelling in surprise, anger and fear, he crashed to the ground, rolling painfully down the steps, and landing face first. Sam, standing patiently by the DHD whirled around in surprise, her jaw dropping as her eyes fell on Daniel, struggling to push his shaking body off from the sodden earth. Vaguely, he noted his shoulder ached, and blood was slowly trickling from his nose and the corner of his mouth. He ignored her offer of help, brushing away her extended hand, instead, forcing himself to his feet, and shakily staggering to the DHD, leaning against it.
" What the hell did you do that for Jack?!" he exploded, his words coming out as an animalistic snarl, as Jack, swiftly followed by Teal'c calmly, and gracefully, stepped through the center of the Stargate, and descended down the stone steps to where Daniel and Sam stood. Daniel was now nursing his swollen, cut lip, and glaring fiercely at the man he had once considered his friend. Jack's dark brown eyes ran over his face, tracking the thin rivulet of coppery blood, and coolly, avoiding Daniel's embittered question, he turned to Sam, and said;
" The med-kit's in your pack. Give him a couple of paracetamol or something, and a tissue for his lip."
Sam, her eyes narrowed in confusion, reached for her pack, digging in it for the small plastic box. She halted as Daniel shot her a venomous glare, and pushed himself away from the DHD, away from her, and limped unsteadily over to Jack. The Colonel watched him in odd distaste, and calling over the younger man, he said to Carter, " I meant today Carter!"
" No Jack." Daniel interrupted him, his eyes dark and full of fury, " I don't need any medical attention. I would like to know, however, why you pushed me through the wormhole, causing me to injure myself." Jack shot him a tired look, and sighed.
" You were standing by the wormhole, and was in my way. The General was getting annoyed, I was getting annoyed, Teal'c was-"
" I was not becoming agitated O'Neill," the large Jaffa automatically corrected. He was watching the exchange between the two with growing alarm, his golden tattoo creased neatly into two, the serpent a squiggly line.
"Fine. Me and the General were becoming annoyed. I pushed you to hurry you up. I'm sorry if I injured you, but it's your own fault for being so damn slow!"
A hurt statement crossed Daniel's eyes, and Sam inwardly cursed. She'd seen that statement before, when Daniel had returned to her apartment, shortly after the Colonel had retired. Instantly, Daniel schooled his features, and replaced the hurt with cold anger.
" Of course! Let's blame it on the civilian!" Daniel limped forward, inching dangerously close to the Colonel, " What's your problem Jack? Why is everything my fault?"
" I didn't say it was Daniel," Jack calmly stated, his handing balling into a fist. " I merely said it was your own fault that you got injured today. If you blame yourself for anything else, that's your problem." He glanced to his watch, and then looked up at the sky. " Carter, go and collect your thingamajigs with Daniel. We only have a few hours of daylight left, and that looks suspiciously like a storm gathering." His eyes flitted towards the sky, where fat, purple gray clouds were gather ominously, blocking the large ball of fire hanging in the sky. Sam, Daniel and Teal'c followed his gaze; Sam looking faintly worried, her eyebrows knitting together.
There shouldn't be any storms though,she inwardly thought,the MALP said the next one wouldn't be for another five days.
But, as Jack had said on the mission to PJX-759, the MALP needed a good swift kick.
The first rain drop fell two hours into her study, and her worry returning swiftly, Sam glanced back up at the sky, and was surprised to find that the sun was barely visible through the black clouds. She tore her sapphire eyes away from the clouds to glance at Daniel; the younger man had been silent since his brief argument with Jack, but now, as they brushed past a large patch of mulberry bushes, his eyes brightened excitedly. A second later, she found out why.
" Oh my God, Sam this is amazing." He seemed to have forgotten how he was shutting out Sam, and turned to her with a grin, pointing at a tall monolith in the center of the clearing. Strange symbols littered it, and already, the younger man was racing forward to have a look. Worried thoughts flitting through her mind, reminding her of what had happened last time, Sam caught the sleeve of his jacket, and roughly pulled him back.
" Sam, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Daniel cried, anger and hurt etched into his smooth, creamy features. Sam shot him an apologetic smile.
" Sorry Daniel," she breathlessly began, " But last time you rushed to read some foreign text you were turned into a chi-"
She never had a chance to finish her sentence; a simultaneous rumble of thunder from above and a rumble of protest of the earth beneath her interrupted her. She only had a chance to catch his worried gaze, and then the ground collapsed beneath the two. Briefly, through the rush of air and blood through her ears, she heard Daniel yell in pain as he crashed against harsh rocks, dimly aware her own yells of pain mingled and merged with his.
Rain, icy cold, crashed against their skin as they crashed to a halt at the bottom, and Daniel bit his lip, pulling a face, pain etched clearly into bright blue eyes. Clutching her arm- bruised and bleeding- she bit her own lip, grinding her teeth together, and slowly inched over to where he half lay. He was clutching his ankle, and grimacing, his teeth ground together.
" Daniel, are you okay?" she asked tentatively, inwardly chastising her stupidity.
Does that look like a man who's okay to you?
" No," Daniel pointedly said, grinding each individual word and letter out, his words laced with agony, " I think I've broken my ankle, and my shoulders bleeding."
Alarmed, Sam crouched next to him; his ankle was bent at a sickeningly odd angle, swollen, and an angry red, purple bruising beginning to show. Her alarm growing, she lifted her eyes and glanced at his shoulder.
Oh shit!
Daniel's previous wound, previously healed, had been torn open by a sharp rock, and blood was flowing sluggishly from it, dripping to the floor to form a gruesome, lethal pattern. Daniel suddenly moaned in agony, the color slowly leeching from his face, and dropped his head to his chest, swear words muffled by the movement.
Fumbling, Sam tugged out her radio, and frantically tapped at the button, her eyes solely focussed on Daniel and his injuries.
"Colonel O'Neill, this is Major Carter. We have a problem. I repeat, we have a problem."
A long time ago, I would have hated Daniel. In fact, I would probably have been one of those guys to beat him up in the street; he would have reminded me too much of Charlie. Not anymore. Somehow, the geek wormed his way into my heart, and I stopped freezing people out. The suicidal wish to throw myself into suicidal missions slowly faded away, and I found something better to do with my life after Sarah left; I would sit on my roof, look through my telescope, and see if I could pinpoint the planet Daniel was now living on. It was my salvation; I knew at that time I probably would never see him again, and even though I didn't know him all that well, that thought kind of stung. Now, it's Daniel freezing people out, Daniel locking away his emotions, and volunteering for those suicidal missions. Well nearly; I doubt uninhabited planets counts as suicidal yet. But it hurts so godamn much to see him hurting, to know I can't do squat about it. It sickens me to know what that bastard, Strattenburg did to him, first as a kid, then as an adult. I lied when I told him our friendship has no foundations; I had to, to save his life. Maybourne was waiting nearby, and would have quite happily disposed of Daniel with a single bullet if Daniel gave any hint, any notion to cottoning on to my behavior. But the problem was, it's cost me too damned much. Not just me either; Carter too. Yeah, I see it in her eyes. She cares for him a little too much than the military like.
Daniel's pushing us away, and I'm not sure how long I can try and get him back, before I begin to push him away too.
A personal extract from the diary of Colonel Jack O'Neill.
Jack cast his mind back to the words he had written in his Journal a few short months ago. Crap; he'd done what he'd dreaded- he'd began to push Daniel away too. Bitterly, he scrubbed his hand through his gray hair- he'd gone one step too far by pushing Daniel through the Gate like that. He was damn lucky he hadn't injured the archaeologist to the extent they had to dial back home.
God Daniel I'm sorry...
" O'Neill!" Teal'c's warning boom jerked Jack out of his embittered thoughts, and abruptly, the Colonel swore as fat, icy cold rain splashed against his jacket, and dove under the shelter of a nearby tree.
" Thank you for the warning Teal'c," he cried sarcastically, as the fat drops soon turned into a downpour, followed by a heavy boom.
Whoa...that was not ahealthysound...
" You are welcome O'Neill," Teal'c responded neutrally, his dark brown eyes, as ever unfathomable, his eyebrows arched. " However, I did not call you to warn you of the weather. Major Carter has tried to contact your radio."
He pointed to the small black radio clutched tightly in Jack's fist, and surprised, Jack turned to gaze at it. A small, red light was flicking angrily, and had it not been for the loud, angry thunder, he would have heard the faint beeps it uttered as a warning. Hesitantly, he jabbed the button, and instantly, the radio sprung to life.
"..O'Neill? Colonel O'Neill! This is Major Carter! Please respond!"
Carter's voice was worried, tinged with panic even, and in the background, Jack could just make out murmured protests of Daniel.
Shit.
" Carter, calm down. I'm here. What's the problem?" He grabbed the radio, yelling into it to be heard above the angry storm.
"...earth gave way...sir...Daniel's injured sir...both got cuts and bruises..." her voice crackled down the other end, only revealing half of what she had been attempting to say. Bitterly, Jack cursed- 'injured' spoke for itself. Daniel would be paying another visit to the infirmary, along with Carter if he was unlucky.
" I'm on my way Carter." He shortly replied, cutting off the stream of information. Glancing up at Teal'c he hollowly added, " Daniel and Carter are injured. Mission's scrubbed."
SGC, earth
Tentatively, Doctor Janet Fraisier rapped her curled knuckles against the heavy wooden door, wincing at the bundle of individual reports and assessments bundled under her arm. Her brown eyes widened unconsciously with nervousness as the door swung open to reveal the portly General.
" Sir," she greeted him dutifully, her gaze downcast as she took the leather seat, and handed him the reports. The General took them, leafing through the thin parchments slowly.
" Are these the assessments from Doctor Mackenzie?" he asked in a low voice, as he paused mid-way, glancing down at one report, labelled 'Doctor Jackson'.
" Yes sir." Janet replied quietly, her eyes fixated on the floor below. The General straightened his shoulders, and let out a heavy sigh.
" Then we have a problem," he murmured, " I agree with his and your report on SG-1 Doctor Fraisier- they are disbanding, and lately, the arguments between Colonel O'Neill and Doctor Jackson have grown more...disturbing."
Janet glanced down at her hands guiltily, and feeling a sudden need to justify her friends reactions, she added in a small voice; " Yes sir, but in light of what's happened lately...Doctor Jackson being turned into a child, that epidemic, then that whole business with Enlil, not to mention Colonel O'Neill's apparent betrayal of the SGC...I guess what I'm trying to say sir, is that they've been through a lot lately. More than anyone should have to go through."
" What are you suggesting Doctor?" Hammond asked lightly, leaning forward, his blue eyes somber. " They're my best team, and I simply can't afford to lose them to silly squabbles and tension."
Janet met his eyes; her doe brown locking with his sky blue eyes, crinkled and creased with age.
" I know the others haven't been much of a success sir..." she began hesitantly. The General placed a palm on the table, and wearily said with a smile;
" Spit it out Doctor."
" They need a holiday sir." She finished. " And soon, or they'll fall apart."
Sam tensed as another crack of thunder crashed overhead, striking a nearby tree. The weather, since she had contacted the Colonel, had grown steadily more violent as each second passed, and Daniel was shivering miserably, his clothes and skin saturated by the rain.
Oh this is getting ridiculous...we're sitting ducks for the thunder here...
" Daniel," she called softly, tentatively, " I know you've broken your ankle-" she grimaced as he turned pain-filled blue eyes to her, his lips sucked in to suppress his whimpers, "-but we need to get out of here soon. I have no idea how long the Colonel will be..."
" So you want me to try and climb out of here?" Daniel asked, his tone skeptical and injured, as if she had insulted him. With his good arm- the one that wasn't bleeding, but was just bruised, he gestured around him, at the slick jutting rocks, and the rain-water dripping from their edges. " No offense Sam, but are youcrazy?"
Overhead, another streak of lightening jabbed angrily at them, across the sky, striking a nearby rock, showering them with dust as it crumbled. Daniel glanced up at it, shocked.
" This storm's pretty violent Daniel," Sam yelled over the thunderous booms, "...and we're sitting ducks down here. I'll help you." Sheets of water, as cold as ice, smashed against them, slashing against their skin, in a futile, aggressive act. Unintentionally, Sam shivered, smiling feebly at Daniel in an attempt to reassure him. He was in pain, she could tell. In a way, he always had been in pain; physical or mental, it didn't matter, except for the fact that he was hurt.
Daniel jumped as a rock came crashing down next to his useless ankle, and shakily, he pushed himself up from the floor with his good arm, resting against the wall. Grateful, Sam reached forward, and wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him close to her. Wincing Daniel leant heavily on his left ankle, tearing his eyes away from his crushed right ankle.
" Okay?" Sam asked, concern laced in-between her words, as they limped forward slowly as a unit, towards the steep slope, jutting rocks and slippery mud. Swear words on the tip of his tongue that would shock even the blonde Major, Daniel opted for nodding tersely, grinding his teeth together.
Liar,his mind taunted him,you'll never be okay...never.
Slowly, they reached the first rock, and Daniel bit back a yelp of pain as his foot slipped, forcing him to use his useless, crushed foot. Sam caught his taut, pained statement, and the blood trickling from his swollen, cut lip, and winced in sympathy.
" Sorry, sorry," she whispered to him, tightening her grip. She glanced up at the sky, and the slope. " Not far to go Daniel."
They worked like that; slowly moving to the top of the slope, Daniel cursing and whimpering, tears of pain slowly leaking from the corners of his eyes, and Sam, her voice choked with her own tears, whispering 'sorry, sorry' back, and tightening her grip on him, until it became painful. When they eventually reached the top, Daniel's legs gave way as he shakily crawled away from the hole, gasping like a fish, waiting for the waves of agony to recede.
Since when did a broken ankle hurt so much?He dimly thought as the pain began to slowly creep away.
Sam's voice, muffled, called to him in alarm, as a black tunnel began to close in on him. She was calling his name, and lightly tapping his cheek. Her voice was joined by others; two male voices, one extremely deep and formal, and briefly, he wondered if he was hallucinating.
"Daniel!"
The voices were drifting away, and the pain was cruelly returning. His eyes flickered briefly, then the pain too much, the black tunnel completed it's job, and Daniel passed out; his limbs relaxing, his face pressing against the wet soil, no longer aware of his three worried team-mates, calling to him in desperation.
" Daniel, dammit!" Jack, worry tingeing his voice, called across the grassy plains, as he stumbled through the mulberry bushes, barely noticing the thorns digging across his skin, drawing precious blood. He could just make out Carter and Daniel through the misty sleets of rain, Carter crouching next to Daniel, who lay on the ground, his chest heaving as he desperately drew in air. Sam glanced up in surprise of hearing her commanding officer's voice, her eyebrows knitted with worry.
" Sir, he has a broken ankle, and his old shoulder wound's been re-opened-" she broke off her explanations as a low moan escaped from the younger man's parched lips, and his head, which he had been lifting, dropped back to the soggy ground. " Daniel!"
It did no good; he'd passed out from the pain.
Jack swore loudly, and motioned to Teal'c behind him.
" Teal'c, carry Daniel! We're going home,now. This mission's scrubbed." The Jaffa moved towards the unconscious scientist, and gracefully, effortlessly, lifted him from the ground, draping him over his massive, well-muscled shoulders. Daniel's head lolled against his chest, his hair falling in wild, long blonde spikes. Sam, limping slightly, stared after him worriedly, as Jack shot the hole an impressive glance.
" You fell through that?" he asked in a disbelieving tone, "Ouch."
" Yes sir," Sam agreed wearily, as they followed the Jaffa, matching his long, determined strides with their own, frantic ones. "Ouch."
It was the klaxons, shrieking throughout the Base with their ghostly wails that disturbed their meeting, and Janet glanced sharply at the General as he hastily shuffled the assessments, shoving them into a nearby drawer.
" No-one's due back, Doctor," he confirmed, " You better make your way to the Gate room- it could be a medical emergency."
Janet shot the General a scathing look.
" If this is SG-1, it's bound to be." She shortly said, as she followed him from his grand office, into the Control panel, and down the metal stairs to vast Gate room. The iris hissed open, and blue light, beautiful and unearthly, spilled from the Gate, lighting their faces, and clothes. Janet's jaw jutted out in determination, as she waited patiently for the human-shaped shadows to appear. A few seconds later, the massive form of Teal'c stepped through the Stargate, an unconscious Daniel slung over his back.
Why am I not surprised?Janet thought cynically, as Sam and Jack stumbled through the Stargate after him. Sam's face was bruised and scratched, much like Daniel's, and all four were saturated.
" SG-1, you were gone only for a few hours," Hammond, directly behind Janet, snapped, his voiced tinged with annoyance. " What happened?"
Sam, her face ashen and streaked with tears, limped forward, clutching her arm.
" The earth caved in sir," she breathlessly replied. " Teal'c and the Colonel were looking for a place to set-up camp."
Janet frowned as Teal'c gently lowered Daniel's prone form onto the metal gurney, as she caught site of his face, marred with bruises, and shooting a backward glance at the General, she said in a low voice, so that SG-1 wouldn't hear, " Sir, they've already began to fall apart. They need a vacation."
Several hours later, and Daniel, grimacing in pain as he swallowed the meager handful of pills, sat slouched in a wheelchair, his broken ankle propped, a cast already wrapped around it, on the foot rest, a bitter scowl marring his face, as he stared in disbelief at the General.
" A vacation?" he repeated, disbelieving, " I'm sorry sir, but I'd really rather not..."
" Doctor Jackson, you have no choice in the matter," the General snapped back, placing both of his palms flat on the table as he stood to glare at the assembled team. Sam's wrist had been sprained in the fall, and was now swathed in bandages, a single plaster marring her face, where she had cut her cheek. Like Daniel, an impressive array of blue-black bruises were beginning to show, dotting over her arms, face, chest and back. Jack, sat, his back ramrod straight, his hair for once, messy and damp, wearing civilian clothes- the only dry clothes available. Teal'c sat next to him, one eyebrow arched, his face poker straight. " Recently, your team has been assessed by Doctor Mackenzie, as all teams are. It brought to light some serious issues- such as your increasing lack of team-work, amongst things. Doctor Fraisier and myself have been discussing this issue, and we both decided a vacation with SG-7 and 9, Nyan, and Doctor Fraisier, and her daughter, Cassandra, would help in giving you all time to relax, and think about this team's problems." His voice softened as his eyes rested on Daniel's haunted blue eyes, and his crushed ankle, and he gently added, " Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, Doctor Jackson and Teal'c, you know I don't like to take favorites, but you are this Base's first line of defense and the best godamn team around- I'm afraid I can't and I won't let you fall apart as you have been lately."
There was an embarrassed silence, as Jack stared at his hands, a small smile touching his lips, and Sam and Daniel both stared uncomfortably at the floor. Teal'c, although he said nothing and did nothing, looked faintly pleased, a gentle glow lighting his golden-brown skin.
Finally, Jack broke the tension with a lopsided grin, as he gazed around at the team, his eyes finally resting on Daniel.
" Well," he concluded, " they always said the third time was the charm. Let's put that theory to the test, huh kids?"
Part two: Revelations
Daniel stared morosely at his small, canvas suitcase, packed with the bare essentials- boxers, socks, trainers (he wore his issue boots), shorts, tee-shirts and one pair of jeans that were embarrassingly baggy on him. He doubted he would need the latter; the three teams, the Doctor, his assistant Nyan and Cassandra, were being sent to Siberia, to an old, disused army barrack, to enjoy the scenery, and unfortunately, the large lakes ('so suitable for fishing' Jack had gleefully said when the General had first told them). Whereas in the winter months, it might have chilly, with summer close by, it was reportedly pleasantly mild.
We weren't falling apart,he defended himself inwardly,we were just having some teething problems. All teams have them.
" Doctor Jackson? Major Carter?"
Daniel and Sam had been called to the General's office only a few minutes earlier, whilst the other teams shoveled their own bags into the back of an army van. Sam was looking distinctly worried, her mouth puckered into a frown, her eyebrows knitted together in worry. She wore a cream tank top, and loose jeans, sunglasses nestled in her short pale blonde hair, and Daniel blushed as he glanced down at his khaki colored trousers, his white tee-shirt, and his grotty, issue flak jacket and leather boots.
" Yes sir?" Sam queried, chewing her lip thoughtfully.
" No need to worry Major," the General reassured her lightly, " just a confirmation of facts I need from you two." Daniel, puzzled, tore his gaze from his muddy boots, and glanced up at the General, as he motioned to the two to sit.
" Recently, several personnel have noticed a...a growingbondbetween you two." He looked sternly down at them from where he stood, reminding Daniel of his old professor, who had kicked Daniel out of college when his theories had grown too wild for the man's liking. Daniel could still remember his parting sneer, echoing hollowly in his mind; 'you're just like your grandfather- your parents would have been ashamed.'
" Bond, General?" he asked dully, shooting Sam a covert glance. " We're just team-mates sir. Nothing else, is that's what you're implying." He bitterly thought of Sam's eagerness to rescue Jack from Edora, how his hopes had been crushed so pitifully. " We're not that stupid."
The last words were spat out, a little more bitterly than he had intended, and abruptly he lowered his eyes to his hands, staring at them in avid fascination, and then glancing over to his crutches. He had point blank refused to use a wheelchair, so rather reluctantly, Janet had ordered a pair of crutches for him; strong, metallic ones that wouldn't be easily broken.
He never caught Sam's hurt statement, or the light in her blue eyes fading to a dull, bitter glaze, or the faint frown puckering the General's forehead. There was an awkward silence before the General finally said, " Well, just as long as you're careful."
" There isn't anything going on between us sir," Daniel ground out as respectfully as he could. Was the General trying to rub it in that Sam was Jack's territory, and he never stood a chance against her? Sam dropped her gaze, as tears began to sting her eyes, to her lap and her folded hands.
" Well in that case I apologize." The General quietly murmured. As Daniel, leaning heavily on his crutches, and Sam, looking quietly down at the floor stood, and turned to leave, he added quietly, under his breath, " Have a good holiday Doctor Jackson, Major Carter. And make it anuneventfulone."
Mid-day, somewhere over the Atlantic ocean
Daniel, the small overhead lights catching the top of his head, bringing a golden hue to his dark blonde hair, glanced out of the small cockpit window, and grimaced as the world disappeared beneath a flurry of dark gray clouds.
Next to him sat Sam, and next to her sat Nyan, talking animatedly to the blonde Major, as he shot awed looks to the disappearing landscape.
What happened to the weather?Daniel thought in dismay, as in the distance a streak of white-hot light tore through the velvety black sky.It was sunny when we left!
Assuming his watch had the correct time on it, it was just mid-afternoon, and instead of a midnight dark sky, and black storm clouds, he should have been greeted by a cornflower blue sky, fluffy white clouds and a golden ball of fire.
Another crack of thunder and lightening issued, shaking the fragile body of the plane. Several passengers, including Cassandra, and (though he blushed immediately after it had torn from his throat) Nyan, yelled with fear as they were rocked violently in their seats. Daniel, too tired and sad to care, merely closed his eyes, and swallowed with difficulty. A pair of good friends of his had been killed in an airplane crash.
" It's okay Nyan," he heard Sam's muffled voice reassure the worried young archaeologist, " it's just a storm- we're quite safe up here."
Are we?Daniel skeptically retorted inwardly. Immediately, his thoughts churned back to the missing Steven, and his capabilities.Are we ever safe?
The plane rocked again in rhythm to the strong winds buffeting it across the sky, and the shrieking lightening, and in alarm, Daniel's eyes flickered open, his hands instinctively gripping the arm rest, his knuckles turning white. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Sam shoot him a worried smile, as she reached over to pat his arm.
" I'm okay," he whispered, a grimace of pain etching across his face as the plane shook again, and his crutches slammed against his cast ankle. " Just a few friends of mine were killed in a plane crash once." This he added in a low voice, not wishing Nyan or Cassandra, sitting behind him, to hear. Sam's face puckered in sympathy, and she opened her mouth to reply. Daniel cut her off by dropping his eyelids, and murmuring sadly;
" It's okay Sam, I'm just tired. I think I'll catch some shut-eye- you know, to shut out the storm."
Sam shot Nyan and Daniel a small smile, as she slipped from her seat, holding her breath. Daniel, despite the storm, slept, his face boyishly young, and pale in the dim lighting, his mouth hanging open gently, his eyes moving rapidly beneath his eyelids, indicating he was dreaming.
I wonder what about?She mused with a smile, as she slipped past the alien, Nyan. He wasn't so much as an alien- like them, he was human, but he came from another planet altogether; one that the team had accidentally stumbled upon as a result of her Cold Dial-out Program. His superiors, military officers, had first injected them, and then trapped them in an electrical cage, accusing them of being Optrican spies. She shivered suddenly as she remembered how Daniel, after the first day of questioning, had been shocked in the nape of his neck, half-stunning him, and then dragged roughly away, from the tent, away from the team, as she and Jack had looked on in shock. Trapped behind the cages, they hadn't been able to do anything but yell insult after insult at the militia, as Daniel was dragged away from 'safety'. Teal'c himself had been blinded, but had escaped, when they had been first captured. Now that she thought about it, thinking back to his haunted blue eyes when they had been taken to him, he had probably been tortured for whatever it was that the man in charge had wanted to know.
Nyan also slept, listening contentedly to her tape-player, his head lolling against his shoulder, his face just as young as Daniel's, his mouth twisted into a contented smile.
But why shouldn't he be happy? We've taken him from a war-zone situation, and have provided him with a home, a job and friends.
" Hey, Sam." Janet called softly, as Sam pulled the curtain leading to the queue for the toilets. The blonde Major stared at the petite, brunette Major in surprise.
" Janet, hi." She responded, pulling the curtain shut. She glanced around her, and smiled faintly. It was just her and Janet; which meant they could talk. " Where's Cass?"
Janet grinned ruefully, her brown eyes twinkling. " Sleeping, and using Captain Johnson's shoulder as a pillow."
Sam arched an eyebrow, and grinned herself. " That was sweet of him. I didn't think him to be the soft-hearted type."
Janet's grin grew- " He doesn't know yet. He's asleep himself." She leant forward, and whispered, " Do you know, I've treated him for four years, and up until now, I never even knew hesnored?" She made a disgusted noise. " Loudly too. That's why I'm here. I couldn't stand the noise any longer- I don't how Cassandra can sleep with it." Sam grinned, a snort of laughter tearing through her throat.
" Nyan and Daniel are asleep too- though they're pretty silent." She admitted, flinging one arm out automatically as the plane lurched. Frowning, she added, "It's nearly summer Janet, and it's mid-day. Shouldn't the weather be a little less...turbulent?"
" I was thinking that too," Janet sighed, " especially as last time we suffered unusual weather, NID had stolen the Touchstone." She made a face as the plane lurched again, and softly added, " but then this could easily be accounted as the Greenhouse effect, seeing as last time we contacted that race, their Touchstone was fine and heavily guarded."
The plane lurched, and outside the storm raged on. Inside the plane, in a queue for the toilet, neither Major noticed the faint flurry of snow that was beginning to float softly down to the ocean.
Her arm wrapped tightly around his waist once more, and Daniel fought back a grimace of pain as Sam gently helped him hop down each step, his crutches banging noisily on each step- Janet was struggling to hold them with her own bags- and the icy wind buffeted against his cold body. Unfortunately, the airplane had been fitted with air conditioning, in preparation for boiling hot summer.
" God it's cold," Sam shivered as she hugged her slim, lithe body, her teeth chattering as fat snow balls melted on her thin clothing. " Why is it some cold?"
Daniel leaning heavily against her, suddenly took his crutches off from Janet, and moved away from her, unintentionally causing her to shiver even more. He blinked furiously as sheets of rain slammed against him, and snow-flakes drifting in between the droplets stuck to his golden eyelashes. His face was furrowed in confusion, as he limped alongside Janet, Sam, Cassandra and Nyan to join the two waiting teams, Jack, and Teal'c, who stood stiffly in the cold weather, looking quite comfortable. The only indication of the Jaffa's hidden discomfort was the frown creasing his face.
" Don't know," he replied softly, his voice barely audible above the howling winds. " I mean, it's summer! It shouldn't be like this!" He suddenly seemed to notice Sam's constant shivering, and a soft 'oh' escaping his lips, he leant heavily on his good ankle, and shrugged off his heavy flak jacket, and held it out to the blonde Major. Sam blinked in surprise, and looked over to Janet, and Cassandra who were shivering profusely. Janet caught her eye, and called over the howling winds;
" It's okay Sam, I'm just getting our coats out!" She nodded to a bag she was crouching over, and tugged out a thick, heavy jacket, and handed it to Cassandra. Nyan was already shrugging on his own thick heavy issue SGC jacket, so feeling faintly guilty, Sam took Daniel's jacket, and shrugged it on. It was baggy on her slim frame, and smiling gratefully, she swiftly buttoned it up, inhaling Daniel's sweet, vanilla scent- the scent, she realized, not of after-shave lotion, but the unique smell of a human individual.
" Thanks Daniel," she murmured, flinching inwardly, wishing she had refused it when Daniel shivered, and limped onwards, to the assembled group.
" What the hell is wrong with the weather?" Jack groused bitterly to the younger man, " I thought you said the weather was nice!" The members of the other teams- with the exception of Johnson who looked as if he was too exhausted to make a complaint- echoed his bitter complaint, with their own grumbles.
" It is," Daniel snapped back, "usually. And don't complain to me Jack, I didn't choose the place." He shot Jack a venomous glare with these words- he had learnt from Nyan on the plane, when a particular violent jerk had awoken him, that Jack had made the suggestion to go Siberia in the first place.
" Doctor Jackson, Colonel O'Neill, right now, I don't care whether this weather is meant to be nice or not," Janet voiced everyone's thoughts as she broke the tension, her voice cutting through it like a knife through butter, " what I do care about is I am cold, and so is everyone else. Let's make it to the barracks first, before we start arguing about the weather."
She was eyeing her bag menacingly, and realization suddenly dawned on Sam as Daniel cringed, and looked to the floor. She had brought along a pack of sedatives, morphine, and who knew what else.
Good thinking Janet,Sam thought in surprise as Jack glared at the floor as well,though I just hope we don't have to use them.
*
The Earth weather is pretty unusual- Daniel reassured me when we re-grouped inside the military vans, that even this is rare for them. In fact, it should be warm. It's nowhere near it; it snows outside, and the weather makes it difficult for the pi- sorry, drivers ( even now I can not help but think of them as pilots rather than 'drivers')- to see. Once already we have had to stop abruptly to avoid an accident- though this did not bode well for Daniel. The movement threw him to the floor, and he nearly fainted with the pain. I believe Doctor Fraisier has administered some form of medicine to relieve the pain.
Taken from the Journals of Nyan
The time on Daniel's watch now read six o'clock, and instead of a blistering blue warm sky, the large group, through what they could make out through the sheets of snow, were greeted by a silky black sky. "It is as if it were night, rather than day," Teal'c had commented stoically when Janet had given Daniel some morphine , voicing all their concerns.
" This is ridiculous!" Sam cried as the vehicle jerked to a stop again, throwing Daniel, herself, Cassandra and Captain Johnson to the floor. Daniel let out a harsh whimper of pain; he'd landed on his crushed ankle. Janet stared at him worriedly as Sam and Johnson helped him back to his seat, despite his miserable protests of "What's the point? I'll only be thrown back down again."
" He's going to cause further damage to his ankle if he falls down again like that," she muttered under her breath to a shaken Sam, as she sunk gratefully onto a leather seat. Under Daniel's flak jacket, she was shivering- as were most of the occupants; already they had broken into a supply of emergency thermal blankets, which were now tightly wrapped around the coldest of the group- Cassandra, Daniel and Nyan.
" That's what I'm worried about," Sam whispered back, her face ashen and grim. With wide, worried blue eyes, she twisted to face Janet, her breath coming out in misty clouds. " Janet, what's going on? This isn't the result of Global warning. This is something different altogether."
Her teeth chattered noisily, drowning out the wailing winds outside, and Janet opened her mouth to respond, when she was cut off by a worried call.
" We've busted a wheel." It was Major Wilson who was designated driver, along with Jack, who had planned to take over when the younger officer began to show signs of exhaustion. Janet could make out Jack's muffled swearing through the slim metal walls, and shot a concerned, covert glance around the van. Daniel, his broken ankle stretched out, his crutches resting by his thigh, was huddled next to Cassandra, Johnson and Lieutenant Hayes from SG-7. His face was ashen gray, drawing attention to his astonishingly bright blue eyes, as he chewed on his lower lip.
They couldn't stay like this, in this kind of weather, in one metal van.
She swung her gaze to the end of the van- it was roomy, holding the three teams, the scientist, Doctor and Cassandra easily, but it wasn't suitable for sleeping in.
Especially when you have a broken ankle, and are feeling pretty bruised and beaten,she added silently, as she gazed reproachfully at Sam and Daniel. Even now, their faces were bruised from their fall.
" Dammit!" Jack emerged through a small metal door from the front section, and gazed worriedly at the three teams, his gaze resting on Daniel's, Cassandra's and Johnson's huddled forms. He scrubbed his short hair, and scowled heavily.
This is supposed to be a vacation for crying out loud! For once, can't the Powers That Be, give us a godamn break?!
" Right." Closing his dark brown eyes in concentration, he chewed his lip thoughtfully.
You know this place better than anyone else O'Neill. Now think; you won't make it to the Barracks with a busted tire, so there has to be somewhere else-
His thoughts were interrupted by Wilson's tentative call from the driving seat.
" Sir? There appears to be an abandoned factory or warehouse up ahead. It's probably a five minute's walk away."
A smile of approval lit Jack's aging face, as he inwardly praised the officer for his quick thinking and keen eye. Janet, catching the smile, sighed in relief. Shelter...
" Good work Wilson," Jack called back to the officer, approval clear in his voice, " Shelter. That means heating of some sort- we could always start a fire if there isn't any- and a telephone. We'll need to telephone Hammond, and find out just what the Hell is going on- Siberia may be cold, but it's never this cold." He glanced over to Cassandra, and softly added, " I'll carry Cass. Teal'c, you can carry the emergency supplies. Carter, Nyan, you help Daniel. Johnson, Janet, Hayes, help Wilson. The rest, follow me."
Slowly, steadily, the group stumbled from the van, Daniel leaning heavily on his crutches, the emergency blanket draped around his shoulders. Sam and Nyan hurried after him, Sam wrapping a supporting arm around one of his shoulders, and Nyan around the other. Through the heavy sheets of snow, Daniel blinked owlishly at them.
" You don't have to go through this alone Daniel," Sam softly reminded him. When Cassandra had first been found on the abandoned planet Hanka, he had comforted her, and had softly added at one point, 'I guess what I'm trying to say Sam is you don' have to go through this alone.' Reminded of this, the younger man faintly smiled, and limped forward with the added support, his feet sinking into the snow, chilling his frozen skin.
The building was closer now; a fuzzy gray blur surrounded by a flurry of snow, pitted against the black sky.
This is wrong,Daniel struggled against the harsh wind, stumbling in the snow- Sam's grip tightened automatically,it shouldn't be this cold. No place on Earth should be this cold in summer. What's going on?
Jack, holding Cassandra, glanced back at them, and shouted something indistinguishable at the huddled group, his face furrowed with worry. Teal'c, Janet and the others were staring back at them, and shouting too, words that were carried away by the wind, the snow, and the storm. Finally, a fragmented instruction was hurled at their frozen ears;
" Guys, hurry up! Don't know how...weather's getting worse...hurry up..."
Guiltily, Daniel forced his aching legs forward, urged on by the yell and the support from Sam and Nyan. They were getting closer now- the group were coming into focus, their faces relieved...then all Hell broke out. Lightening streaked angrily across the sky, it's yellow glow dancing over the snow-flakes, so that they glittered.
How can their be lightening in a blizzard in summer?None of it made sense any longer.
Then two things happened at once- there was a deep, ominous rumble from above and below, and Jack's eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open as screams, snatched away by the wind, tore from his throat. There was a frantic rush as Daniel flung his crutches to the ground, and with Sam and Nyan's help, began to hop forwards as quickly as his legs would go. He didn't understand what was going on; he didn't need to- whatever it was it was bad.
We're going to make it, we're going to make it...
A tidal wave, white and icy, slammed into him, breaking Sam and Nyan's firm grip on him, dragging him backwards. Snow, icy and blistering, rushed like rampaging bulls past him, filling his mouth, covering him. The world was a chaotic blur of white, and everything hurt unlike anything he had ever felt before in his short life. He was screaming- hoarsely- but his screams were muffled against the tidal wave of snow. It was useless- so hopelessly useless...
As his body, battered and blistered already, was brutally slammed against something solid, and sharp, causing an explosion of black, black pain in a white icy world, he suddenly realized what Jack had been screaming at them- 'Avalanche!'
An avalanche on a summer's day...
His lungs burning, starved of oxygen- the sudden cold had overwhelmed him, leaving him gasping like a fish as the snow had dragged him backwards, burying him, and his body screaming in pain, he allowed the wave of approaching darkness to carry him away from the world of icy white snow, unaware that Jack, SG-7 and 9 were screaming his name, unaware that Cassandra had awoken and had shook herself from Jack's hold; his eyes slid shut, the snow settling over them, his face upturned to the black, sultry sky as he passed out.
" Avalanche!It's a fucking Avalanche!" Jack screamed at Daniel, Sam and Nyan, his eyes wide with horror- they couldn't see the icy white tidal wave hurtling at breakneck speed towards them. The ground rumbled beneath them, and above them, as the wave greedily sped past them, towards the three unsuspecting victims- SG-7 and 9 were howling at the trio, waving at them, panic driving them on, and Teal'c had halted- turning slowly, horror reflected even in his impassive face. As if time had slowed down just to torment Jack, the Colonel, numb with panic and horror, watched as Daniel flung his crutches to the ground, brutal understanding evident in his face, and Sam and Nyan tightening their bruising grips on his waist. They were running- sprinting- the snow already covering the ground dragging their bodies backwards. And then it hit them. An statement of pure horror crossed Daniel's face, mingled with pain, as the wave slammed into him, and momentarily, his body hurtled through the air, before being claimed back by the passing wave. Sam and Nyan were snatched seconds after Daniel, and they tumbled backwards, disappearing under the wave, horror and pain evident in their own faces as well.
" No!Godamn it, no! Daniel! Carter! Nyan!" Jack was briefly aware that his own voice, choked with fear, clashed against the combined voices of SG-9, 7, Janet, Cassandra, who had sometime torn herself from his grip, and Teal'c, who was bellowing in his native Chulakian language. The white wave crashed past them, literally swallowing the van. For a brief moment, Jack thought he saw a fatigue clad leg slam into it, and another scream tore through his throat. "DANIEL!"
He surged forward- the white wave was settling now, it's three victims swallowed by it's power- and stumbled, crashing to his knees in the snow. Janet bent down, and grabbed him by the lapels of his shirt, dragging the struggling Colonel back.
" Sir!" she snapped against the howling winds, " The warehouse might have some supplies. In any case, we need to get the others in there- there might be a second avalanche."
" I don't care about a second avalanche right now," Jack hollowly replied. He paused, closed his eyes, as a memory of the tidal wave slamming into Daniel's already battered body flashed by. A phrase sprung to mind;used and abused.
He opened his dark brown eyes, vaguely noting that snowflakes mingled with his eyelashes, sticking to his eyes. " But the warehouse will have supplies. You're right there Janet. It also might have a telephone to call a local hospital."
With sheer willpower, he struggled forward, to the small gray building. Teal'c, he noted, had already yanked the rusty door open, and his mind set on that one memory of the avalanche claiming Daniel, he scrambled, his legs exhausted, his mind numb, into the building. Cassandra, wrapped in an emergency blanket, stumbled after him, and crashed to her knees, sobbing hysterically, followed by a grim SG-7, determined SG-9 and an extremely worried Janet Fraisier.
" Alright- Johnson, stay here-"
The door that Teal'c had opened cut him off with an explosive boom, as it slammed shut, shaking the very walls with it's force. The floor quaked beneath them, as Jack whirled around, his face disbelieving.
" What the hell?!" he blurted, as thunderous noises hammered against the door, denting the frame. Cassandra was whimpering, cowering against Teal'c's massive frame, and Janet's face was leeched of color as she turned to face him.
" It's the second avalanche sir," she softly said, as the hammering died away. " It's shut us in."
Unlike Daniel, Sam caught Jack's panicked scream the first time round, at the same time she caught site of the massive tidal wave of ice and snow hurtling towards them. Panic coursing through her veins, she dragged Daniel forward, almost screaming in frustration as the knee-deep snow slowed them down. They would never make it!
Then the wave was horrifyingly close, and Daniel was hurtling past her- spirited away by the wave- yells tearing from his throat. She had the chance to shoot him a brief, stunned glance, before the wave slammed into her, sweeping her from her feet. She was stumbling, being violently hurled from side to side by the wave, her body numbing with cold at the same time.
I'm going to die.
She was finding it difficult to breathe- the snow had pressed in on her, sealing little oxygen, and it's coldness had surprised her.
I'm going to die.
Then it was as if the world was falling beneath her- the snow was pressing against her, pushing her downwards. Someone else slammed into her, and suddenly, she was freed of the violent tidal wave of ice, and she was falling downwards, downwards...her voice returned as her shrieks tore through the air, mingling with a young male's, then she landed, her head slamming into cold, hard rock. Black dots danced before her as another body thudded besides her, before everything faded to blessed darkness. Next to her, in the dark, icy cave, safe from the avalanche, Nyan slammed into an icy cold rock, and slumped to the ground, blood trickling from his forehead, unconscious.
SGC, General Hammond's office;
General Hammond sat comfortably in his soft leather seat, sighing as he caught site of the pile of official reports from SG-2, 4 and 12. All three teams had been sent to P7X-989 for various differing reasons- the main one being that the planet was a gold-mine for Naquada- the Stargate element. Unfortunately, they had run into several problems- the natives on the planet thought the Naquada to be sacred, and was to be touched only by their God, Enlil, who had left their planet only three seasons ago.
" He's a persistent bastard sir,"Feretti had apologetically said as he limped from the wormhole, " and he seems to have more control over different worlds than we originally thought."
And now, thanks to Enlil's devoted slaves, all three teams were lying in the Royal Airforce Institution, in the outskirts of Colorado, recovering from various minor injuries. Hammond would have preferred to let them stay in the Infirmary, but Nurse Carol seemed bogged down by SG-6 as it were; it would be inanely cruel to send her another three teams to cope with.
The sudden trilling of the red telephone caught him by surprise, and he whirled away from the pile of reports, frowning at the telephone.
" Hammond," he finally answered with a long sigh.
" Sorry sir, I know you're very busy right now, but...do you have a television?" a slightly breathless, and frantic voice of Sargent Walter Harriman cried down the other end of the telephone. In the background, the General could make out the faint crackling noises of people shuffling papers, and scientists murmuring excitedly. His face creasing into a frown, he reached forward, and snatched a slim black remote from the far corners of his desk, his portly finger wavering on the On/Off button.
" Yes Sargent, I do. Care to explain what's going on?"
" I'm sorry sir, you have to see this for yourself. Turn to Channel seven- the news is on." Puzzled, the General complied, depressing the button, and changing the pre-set channel to seven. A brightly colored image of a slim, weather woman leapt out from the screen. She looked slightly perturbed, and was talking about some unusually cold weather.
"...and in Siberia, they're experiencing the coldest summer ever, with heavy storms and blizzards."
The General froze, and stared at the screen. As if sensing this, Harriman continued, his voice tinged with worry.
" Exactly sir. It's summer."
Is it possible...?
" Sargent," he said slowly, his heart hammering wildly beneath his rib-cage, " is it possible that before we shut their operation down, NID were able to extract the Touchstone?"
Please no...
" Negative sir," Harriman softly replied as the news reporters dithered on, " We were recently in contact with those people, and they reported that since that event, no strangers have come to their planet, and the Touchstone remained undisturbed."
" Then what the hell is it?" The General demanded uneasily, as the camera on the screen panned out to reveal entire buildings buried under snow. " Because it sure as hell isn't caused by Global warming!" The vein in his temple was throbbing, as he sarcastically added the last phrase.
" I don't sir," Harriman calmly responded- he was one of the only few who could withstand the General's temper, having had the experience of it at least once a week, " but that isn't the only reason I called sir."
" It wasn't." It was more of a statement of disbelief than a question, as Hammond stared down at the red telephone.
" No, sir," Harriman continued apologetically, " it wasn't. I also telephoned, because isn't SG-1, 7, 9, Doctor Fraisier, Nyan and Cassandra in Siberia?" The General froze in horror at the question.
" Yes," he slowly answered, fear pounding through his blood, " yes they are."
His entire body felt as if it were on fire- slowly, shivering uncontrollably, Daniel rose back to consciousness, his entire body screaming in protest and icy pain. His face felt numb- too cold to feel the icy wind slamming cruelly against it, and for brief seconds, he lay there, buried to the chest in snow, gasping like a fish out of water.
Cold, so cold.
He had never been this cold in his entire life; it felt as if his entire body had been bathed in icy fire, and his crushed ankle screamed in agony.
Too cold...have to find Sam, Nyan and shelter...
His thoughts, fragmented and incomprehensible, were ground out, word by word, syllable by syllable, letter by letter, as he desperately, uselessly, tried to push himself out from the home-made ice-coffin. His arms, numb, were weak, battered and bruised- at some-time they had been bleeding as well- blood stained the snow surrounding him, and lay, frozen, on his arm. Finally, after an eternity, he was able to push the mound of snow away from him, and off his legs.
Oh shit. Shit, shit, shit.
Since he had awoken, he had been vaguely aware that the leg attached to the crushed ankle throbbed in excruciating pain, and now, as the world looped sickeningly quickly around him, he understood why. The avalanche had slammed him into a solid, frozen dark green vehicle-the van, he faintly thought- and his leg was oddly twisted, blood staining his torn pant legs, the skin below, bruised, blistered, and bloody. His leg had been crushed in the avalanche, when it had slammed into the van.
Bile rising through his throat, he dragged his aching, numb body away from the snow, and twisted, heaving pitifully. The sight of the injury had enhanced the pain, until it was unbearable, and the young man moaned in feverish agony- his body too weak to allow him to even scream.
Next to him were his crutches, bent, and useless, half-buried in the snow, and tears of frustration streamed down his face, freezing instantly.
Dammit, I don't want to die...I have to find shelter, Sam and Nyan...there has to be something to support my leg!
Pointedly ignoring the crushed, bloody leg, he swept his eyes across the icy white plains, for anything...absolutely anything...
Wait...what was that?
He shifted his gaze back to his left, and let out a faint crow of triumph. Half buried in the snow, were the remains of a tree branch, snapped in half by either the avalanche or the storm. It looked sturdy, and strong, but more importantly, it could be used as a crutch or a splint for his leg.
Biting his lip, not noticing that he split it, causing hot copper blood to spill, and freeze, he grabbed one side of the van, now dented and useless, and pulled himself up from the ground, panting as excruciating, icy-hot pain stormed through his body, centering around his leg and ankle. His feet sinking into the icy snow, he moved forward, dragging his useless, mangled leg and ankle in the snow, towards the branch.
So close...so close...
" Yes!" he cried triumphantly, breathing harshly as his bruised, frost-bitten fingers curled around the branch, tugging it from the snow. Relief replacing the pain, he leant heavily on the crutch, cautiously testing it in the snow.
It worked- he was able to limp forward, using the crutch as his second leg.
The wind, icy and malevolent slammed into him, howling in fury when he refused to stumble. Closing his eyes, Daniel limped forward, freezing, and in agony.
I have to make it...I have to make it...I can't die...
As the wind continued to howl, and the blizzard died to an innocent flurry of snow, Daniel, his body screaming in pain, limped forward slowly, seeking shelter that had long since been buried.
Her head hurt- a lot more than when Hathor had sent her flying across the locker rooms into an adjacent wall, or when Rygar had shot her with a zatnickitel, causing her to slam her head into the side of her electrified cage...blinking away tears of pain, Sam struggled to open her eyes.
She was lying, sprawled, in an icy cave, minute tremors of exhaustion and cold running through her bruised body. Tentatively, she bought one swollen, red hand to the back of her head, and winced when she found a sticky patch of copper blood.
Great. Possible concussion. Just what I need.
Twisting to her right, she gave a start at the person sprawled unconscious next to her; Nyan. Dragging her frozen, exhausted body into a sitting position, she inched herself closer to him. He was, she was relieved to see, still wrapped in the emergency blanket from the van, although now it was entangled with his bruised and battered- she winced as she caught site of his broken wrist- body.
" Nyan?" she called softly, hopefully. When he didn't respond, she raised her voice, so that it was close to a scream. "Nyan!"
The young foreign scientist jerked into consciousness, shivering and twisted his head to face the source behind the voice.
" Major Carter," he softly cried in relief. He shot the cave a surprised, worried look. " Where are we? And what happened?"
" Avalanche Nyan. You can call me Sam by the way." Nyan shot her a puzzled look at the word 'avalanche', and inwardly she cursed herself; of course- the climate of Belodosia had been warm- very much like that of a desert. They probably didn't even know what an avalanche was, despite their similarities in technology. " Uh, an avalanche- it's where a build up of snow kind of collapses- like a rock-fall, only with snow."
" Oh," Nyan shivered, and then swept the cave once more, his gaze both confused and worried. " Sam, I have two questions. The first is, how did we get in here? The second, where is Daniel?"
Sam frowned, and her face fell. Daniel. He was the only one out of the trio who was missing-and he's probably lying, buried in the snow, dead,her mind sneered at her.Or maybe he's lying wounded in a cave like we are...
" I don't know where Daniel is Nyan," she softly admitted, tears glazing her eyes. Painfully, she pushed her hands- torn and bloody- against the cold wall, wincing at it's icy temperature, and forced herself to stand up. Her legs, fear and amazement that she had survived an avalanche weakening them, shook, but remained steady. Carefully, she pulled Nyan to his feet with his good arm; he was cradling his broken wrist, and trying to look as if the pain didn't bother him.
" But I think I know how we got in here," she continued, as she raised a bruised arm, clad in Daniel's jacket, and pointed to a mound of snow in the corner. Light, pale and bleak, belonging to the moon-we must have been out for ages- shone down as a single fat shaft, lighting the small snowflakes that drifted lazily to the floor. " That's the entrance- this must be an underground natural cave or something. And look-" she added excitedly, as her eyes caught site of a ledge behind the mound, " there's a ledge. We can climb out of here, and see if we can find help to find Daniel."
Nyan looked doubtfully at the ledge, and then at his broken wrist.
" I am not sure whether I can climb it with this injury," he solemnly said, casting the ledge another doubtful look. Sam inwardly groaned- she had forgotten his injury.
" But you can," he continued, shivering underneath the emergency blanket. " Sam, you go, find help for Daniel. I'll wait here." When she opened her mouth to protest, he interjected sensibly, " I'd be safer here."
Actually I was going to say, I've got a concussion, I'm not sure if I can either, but never mind.Sam silently murmured, mentally scowling.We should have stayed in America- gone to Disneyland or something. But no, the Colonel wanted to come to Siberia. 'Great place for fishing!' he said, ' and good this time of year too!' he said. Good my ass.
" Well...I guess we don't have much choice," she murmured more to herself than to Nyan, and slowly, carefully, limped over to the ledge- her legs were still dangerously shaky. Concentrating on the ledge in front of her, she climbed over the mound, and latched onto a jutting rock.
Remember, if you can pull yourself and a wounded man out of a hole in a storm, you can pull yourself out of a cave during a blizzard.
Silently, she repeated the mantra in her mind, as her hand, sore as it began to thaw out, curled around the rock, and pulled her right knee up, to press her foot on a lower rock to support herself. Another rock, another small ledge for her feet. The moonlight was growing brighter, and a small wave of triumph washed over her, spoilt only by the fact that the weather should have been scorching hot instead of freezing.
" Samantha!" Nyan's call of warning came a fraction of a second too late; the ledge her foot had been resting on crumbled beneath her weight- it was only ice- and Sam, yelling in surprise, plummeted to the mound below. Hot pain exploded as she slammed into an icy rock hidden by the snow, and she tumbled down the slope to the ground below. Nyan, trembling and cold was waiting anxiously, calling her name.
Just like Antarctica,she thought dizzily through the pain. Back when she had been stuck with the Colonel in an ice cave, she had climbed to the surface, to see if she could catch site of any villagers, or natives, oranything.The place had been an ice field, and disappointed, she had twisted to climb back down, and had promptly slipped, and tumbled over the jutting ice rocks, back to the ice-covered floor below.
" Dammit!" she yelled, as she pressed her hands against the floor, pushing herself up from the ground. Her legs folded beneath her as she attempted to stand- her ankle felt as if it were on fire- and she crashed to her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Dammit!"
Humiliated, she allowed Nyan to help her to her feet, leaning on him heavily, uttering apologies as he flinched when she swore heavily.
I guess neither of us can-
She broke off her thoughts as she caught site of something- someone, rather- who a few months ago had been alive and safely in jail. Someone she prayed, having seen photographs, that she would never have to meet. Her tumble back to the ground had dislodged a mound of snow, and cracked the ice encasing what she had originally thought to be a rock, revealing a dead corpse.
As she crashed to her knees, retching violently, she thought back to her earlier held conservation with Jack and the others;
" Janet, what's going on? This isn't the result of Global warning. This is something different altogether."
"We'll need to telephone Hammond, and find out just what the Hell is going on- Siberia may be cold, but it's never this cold."
She had found the answer; the reason for the cold weather. Lying in front of her, swollen, frozen and very, very dead, was Steven Strattenburg, and tightly gripped in his swollen, frozen dead hands, was what looked suspiciously like a Touchstone.
" Dammit!" Over three hours had passed since the second avalanche, and still Jack pounded at the heavy, dented metal door, roaring at the top of his lungs. His voice was choked, as he sank back onto his knees, silent, angry sobs shaking his body. Cassandra cowered in between Teal'c and Johnson, her pale, frightened face streaked with tears.
" Colonel- Jack," Janet caught his attention as she placed a hand on his shaking shoulder. " Wilson found a some telephones- most were just office ones, but he found a mobile telephone as well. He says it still works."
" So what?" Jack hollowly snarled rubbing his sore, bloodied knuckles, " what are you suggesting? We telephone the authorities and tell them very nicely 'excuse us, but we're stuck in a warehouse, and our friends have possibly been killed by an avalanche?' They'll be concerned for their own people Major, not for a group of American soldiers." He glanced up when no-one responded, and scowled heavily. Cassandra was sobbing silently, pressing herself against Teal'c, her shoulders shaking. Wilson, Pavorritti, Rothman, Granger ( there had been two Lieutenant Grangers in the SGC- unrelated though), Johnson, Pewter, Ford, Harsely, and Doctor Fraisier were staring down at the floor. He was surprised to find tears were glistening in Fraisier's, and Sarah Harsely, a new recruit to SG-9 eyes. Only Teal'c, his tattoo creased in two, his face marred with a deep-set scowl, dared to scowl at him.
" You shall cease this attack O'Neill," he rumbled disapprovingly, scowling at the one man who had changed him from a mindless killing machine, to an honest Jaffa, " it is not their fault."
Jack paled as what he had just snarled filtered back to his brain, and drew his knees to his chest, tears beginning to track their way down his cheek, and through gray stubble. Jack O'Neill, a full grown man, rarely cried in front of people, unless he had good reason to.
Trapped in a warehouse, with two of your best friends and another man missing in an avalanche warrantees as a good reason to cry I guess,he bitterly mused.
" Oh God, I'm sorry," he murmured. " I'm so sorry."
There was a tense, uncomfortable silence, before Janet, her voice barely above a whisper, croaked, " Quite understandable Colonel. What I was going to suggest, was, we telephone the General. He can pull a few strings, and help us. I was also going to suggest we form some teams- one group to try and break the windows or the door, and find a way out, and another group to search this building for more equipment." She glanced down at his bloody knuckles, cleared her throat, and added, " and since you seemed so determined sir, to break down the door on your own, I thought you could be in the first team."
Cold, too cold...cold...
The wind, icy and furious, raged as it slammed into his body, often causing him to sway, and occasionally stumble and land on his knees. Those occasions resulted in a pain-filled howl echoing across the plains- often, Daniel would land on his mangled, crushed leg, which despite the benefit of it now numbing due to extreme blood loss and shock ( though he wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing), would still send fiery waves of icy pain shooting up his thigh, calf, knee and ankle.
Blindly limping through the snow, leaning on his wooden crutch heavily, Daniel continued onwards, his face pulled taut as he bit back another howl of pain. Everything hurt, and the world looped sickeningly around him, dimming at the edges.
I can't continue like this,he dimly thought, vaguely noticing how his body shook so badly from cold that he had lost his firm steady grip on the crutch,I can't- physically and mentally...
A faint tremor beneath him caught his attention, and he bit his lip, his thoughts scattering like butterflies on a summer's day.
Please no, not anot-
The icy ground caved in beneath him, and shocked, Daniel only had a chance to yell in surprise as he fell, tumbling through air, away from the buffeting winds, his body slamming into rocks on the journey down. The world passed in a chaotic, multi-colored blur, then darkened, dimming at the edges as his head slammed into a sharp rock- there was a sharp crack, an explosion of pain, then nothing.
Daniel, unconscious, tumbled to the ground, rolling to a halt in front of the corpse of Steven Strattenburg, and a surprised Sam and Nyan.
Sam, huddled next to Nyan, stared at the small, round spherical object that she held tightly- after she had rediscovered her composure, she had limped back to his body, pointedly avoiding the blank, dull, flattened eyes, and had prised the object from his stiff fingers. It was stuck, she realized faintly. Stuck on an unusual symbol she had never seen before in her life.
If it's stuck, then I might be able to free it- presuming I find the symbol for 'normal' weather.
Above her, there was muffled rumbling, and alarmed, she and Nyan moved back, the emergency blanket still draped around their shoulders. A second later, ice and earth gave way violently, as a frozen stick pushed through the icy ground. There was a surprised yell, and then a body crashed through the hole, slamming into jutting rocks. As it rolled to a halt at the foot of the mound of snow, the person's legs horribly twisted and mangled, blood trickling from a gash at the base of the skull, Sam suddenly realized she was staring at the unconscious form of Daniel.
" Daniel!" she cried in surprise, at the same time as Nyan, and surged forward, dragging her sprained ankle with her. She crashed to her knees besides him, tears of both worry and joy pouring unbidden from her eyes.
He's alive! Thank God, he's alive!
She swiped at the tears, and swallowed hard- now was most definitely not the time to fall apart with grief and happiness- and turned to Nyan.
"He's broken his leg. Nyan- there's a wooden stick he was using on the ground behind me. Pass it over- I need to see if I can make a splint for his leg with it." Obediently, Nyan bent down and retrieved the object, pausing only to frown.
" Samantha," he began slowly, glancing at Steven's corpse, " will you not need tape or bandages of some kind to bind it to his leg?"
Sam cursed loudly. " Dammit! I forgot I'm not off-world, and Janet has the med-kit." She sat back, leaning on her good ankle, and scrubbed her soaking wet blonde hair in frustration.
" Only, I was thinking that Strattenburg's corpse seems to have a bag attached to it. Might there not be some food and bandages inside?"
Sam blinked in surprise at the young man's ingenuity-like Daniel, he made a formidable soldier.
But of course, he helped Teal'c hide from the Bedrosians the first time round...
" Yes," she dizzily replied, " yes there would be."
Nyan reached past her, and the prone form of Daniel, and turning Steven's swollen corpse over, carefully making sure he was glancing at the wall, he pried away the small, canvas backpack, and grimaced. Mostly, with the exception of the zip, it was soggy and frozen over. He glanced at Daniel, and firmly locked his jaw.
Now is not the time to be fussy Nyan,he silently reminded himself,not when Daniel- the man who essentially took you through the ring to heaven- needs your help.
Holding the bag down with his knees, he bought a trembling hand to the zipper, his broken one resting on his thigh, andpulled. Back on Bedrosia, they had had the policy of never dishonoring the dead by pillaging through their personal items- a policy that was often contradicted by Rygar, when he searched through the corpses of honest, decent men for evidence of 'Optricanity'.
The zipper gave way, and the bag fell open, revealing small plastic, brightly colored bags of crisps, a plastic box filled with bandages and a number of different pills and ointments, some matches, and a notebook. He frowned, bemused, at the crisps, and pulled out the box, frantically prying it's half-frozen lid away from the box, spilling it's contents onto the floor, beside Sam. The young Major glanced up, and smiled briefly, gratefully, as she took a length of the material, and tightly, bound the straight branch to Daniel's crushed leg, grimacing at the blood leaking from it.
" It's all I can do," she offered in explanation, feeling the need to justify her actions, as she sat back a few minutes later. The splint wasn't quite as good as the one she had used on the Colonel in Antarctica, but back then, she hadn't been suffering from a severe concussion, and the world hadn't continually looped around her. Nyan shot her another puzzled glance-there is much to be learnt about these Tauri, he silently decided.
" He would appreciate your attempt greatly," Nyan added after a moments pause. He thought back to a few weeks ago, when he had first arrived on the Tauri home-world, thinking of the tension he had witnessed between the two scientists, and Daniel's explanation of it;
" Daniel, why is it you and Major Carter find it hard to co-operate? From what Sargent Harriman has told me, you two used to work very well together." Nyan was extremely puzzled, as he watched Daniel gulp down his fifth mug of steaming coffee, with trembling fingers. The young scientist turned astonishingly bright blue eyes to Nyan and frowned, pushing up the rim of his glasses unconsciously.
" I'm not sure Nyan," he said slowly, as if taking time to think of a lie- Nyan had seen this before, with Optrican spies who were being interrogated, and didn't want to die. " I guess we're just not as good friends as we used to be."
Nyan snorted. " Daniel Jackson, that is a lie, and you know it. You are still good friends, but something drives a wedge between the two of you."
Daniel arched his eyebrows, and interlaced his fingers, supporting his chin on them.
" A wedge huh?" he finally, softly said, glancing at the floor. " I guess...well, Sam's in love with the Colonel. I like- I love her really- and it hurts, because she doesn't think of me in that way. I'm being bitter."
At the time, Nyan had been just as puzzled at this response, as he was now. There had been little to suggest that Sam loved Jack O'Neill, other than the fact in two alternate realities they had been engaged, and she had almost worked herself to death to bring the Colonel home from Edora- 'as every subordinate officer would', he had pointed out to the stubborn archaeologist.
" Samantha," he asked softly, his voice hushed, as he cast his gaze to rest on Daniel, and the young Major, who now shivered violently, pulling Daniel's jacket in tightly. " Do you love Daniel?"
Sam glanced up at him, startled.
" Sorry?" she spluttered in surprise, her eyes widening. " Nyan, are you...you trying to say something?"
" No," Nyan replied, his eyes as wide as hers, " but I was curious to why there is such a deep line of tension between the two of you." Sam's shoulders slumped in relief, and a bitter chuckle rose up from her chest.
" Yeah." She softly said, " yeah I am. But Daniel isn't. He's being detaching himself from the entire team, especially me since the Colonel was stranded on Edora- which is kind of a good indication that he doesn't love me back."
" Oh." Nyan looked to the ground. For once, he didn't know what to say.
" He is feverish Father," Sha're's voice, anxious and tinged with fear floated down to Daniel, as he lay sweating, in a fever induced dream.
" I know good daughter," Kasuf sadly murmured, his gentle hand stroking Daniel's brow. Or was that Sha're's? Struggling to understand, Daniel tried to fight against the wave pinning him down, leaving him useless, and unconscious. " But we cannot open the Chaa'pai. Daniel said we must not."
" Father, Danyel is dying! He does not understand what he says!"
He was cold- that was what bought him out of the fever, and awoke him. Blinking, Daniel forced his frozen eyelids open, struggling to breathe. Pain, hot compared to the rest of his icy body, stabbed like knives through his head, and up and down his leg and ankle. Confused, Daniel struggled to sit up, moans erupting from his mouth when it caused even more pain.
Where am I ?He thought in confusion as he glanced around the icy cave.No place on Abydos is this cold! No-where! The whole place is a desert!
" Daniel?" an American voice, soft and worried, called his name. It was female. Daniel blinked, and swung his gaze to the left. Two figures- one female, one male, sat there, staring at him. The female had a mop of short, pale blonde hair, a pale face, and bright blue eyes, and the male was healthily tanned, with short dark brown hair and dark eyes.
" Daniel?" the female asked again, her voice more insistent. Daniel blinked, hoping to clear his vision.
" Where's Sha're?" he finally croaked, " and where in Ra's name am I? Abydos isn't this cold!"
" Abydos- what's he talking about?" the male whispered to the woman, his face creased in confusion. If he was looking for answers from her, he was disappointed- the woman looked just as confused as Daniel felt.
" Daniel? Do you know who we are?" she asked hopefully, inching closer. Daniel frowned, racking his mind.
" No," he softly whispered. " I don't. Did Sha're open the Gate again and send me through?" He glanced around him. " Although if she did, this doesn't explain this place."
The woman gaped at him, and scrubbed her hands through her hair.
" Crap," she finally whispered. " Daniel, it's me, Sam. Major/Doctor Samantha Carter, of SG-1? And this is Nyan- the young man we bought back with us from Bedrosia?" For a moment, all Daniel could do was blink at her.
" SG-1?" He asked, " What the Hell is that? And where's Bedrosia? Is that another planet?"
His head was aching, and in pain, he gripped it with his hands, trying to massage the pain away. He was surprised when sticky copper blood was attached to his finger-tips when he bought them back. Sam tracked his fingers with a piercing blue gaze, and swore vehemently, causing both him and the man named Nyan to start in surprise.
" So you don't remember the last four years at all?" she finally asked him, her voice incredulous. When he shook his mop of dark blonde hair, she swore again, and turned to Nyan. " Nyan, he has amnesia."
Major Wilson, with trembling hands, stared excitedly at the mobile phone in his hands- it was working; they had just made a test call to the Colonel's house, just in case it wasn't. His answering machine had answered.
" Is this good?" Cassandra was wrapped tightly with two blankets, over her thick coat, and was leaning against a rusty old heater, that for the moment, was working quite well. She turned large sleepy eyes up to the Major has he crouched down next to her, drawing her into an one-armed bear hug.
" Yes- very. This means we can contact the General."
He frowned for a moment as Cassandra shuddered, her teeth chattering.
" You okay Cass?" he lightly asked, rubbing the back of her arms. Cassandra's blue eyes were half-open, half-closed, her lips beginning to turn a nasty shade of blue.
" I'm cold," she whispered, her breath coming out in small misty puffs of air. "I'm cold and tired."
I hope she isn't going to get hypothermia,Wilson inwardly fretted, as she shivered and closed her eyes. A shudder ran through his own body, and just as silently, he amended,I hope none of us get hypothermia.
" Sir," Pavorritti was staring at him hopefully, and Wilson jerked from his stupor, shaking himself mentally- phone the General first, worry about hypothermia later.
" You have the number?" he asked his friend, as he rubbed his hands furiously together.
Damn it's cold!
" Yes sir."
Wilson gently took the small slip of paper from Pavorritti's hands gratefully, between numb, half-frozen fingers. Scrawled carefully, was General Hammond's office number. Wilson grinned wryly to himself, and rubbed his arms absently as he glanced up at Pavorritti.
" Well here goes," he murmured, pleading to anyone who would listen, inwardly. With half-frozen fingers, he carefully tapped the number into the foreign telephone, and held it to his numb, red ears. The telephone was trilling faintly.
Now all we have to do is wait for the General to pick up.
Over a hundred miles away, the telephone in General George Hammond's large, vast office, trilled expectantly. George, standing by his office door, snapping orders at a nearby Sargent, shot a surprised look towards it, hope flooding his features. Only a few hours earlier, they had received word that neither SG-1, 7, 9, Doctor Fraisier, Nyan or Cassandra had made it to the Base. The retired General running it had in fact snorted derisively when Hammond had rung.
" In this weather they'll be lucky if they make it anywhere at all," he had laughed, wind howling around the building. The throwaway comment had done little to reassure the portly General's fragile nerves.
" Sir, they might have arrived," Sargent Harriman, seeming to sense the General's grandfatherly concern for his favored team, glanced past him, at the telephone, still shrieking, screaming at the man to lift it from it's hook.
" It isn't likely Sargent," Hammond sighed, as he moved away from the door, back into his office, " if what General Haussen says is anything to go by."
He lifted the telephone from the hook, with an annoyed, expectant, " Hammond,"
At first, he could only hear the wild crackling of static, and then howling winds, and briefly wondered if Haussen had telephoned him back- but then a voice, young, worried, and exhausted broke through the crackling static.
" Sir! If you can hear me, it's Major Wilson of SG-7!" Wilson's voice died away, briefly replaced by more howling, shrieking winds, and then came storming back, the line clear of static, as the Major continued. " We've been hit by an avalanche sir! Doctor Jackson, Major Carter and Nyan are missing, and everyone else including myself, are trapped in an abandoned warehouse, a few miles from the airport. Something very strange is going on sir- it's snowing, and thundering at the same time, and it'ssummer, and to be frank, not to sound like a wuss sir, I'm a littleworried."
For once in his life, Hammond was overjoyed to hear a Marine officer, shrieking down a faulty cable line. His joy of having found the missing teams was dampened though, by the fact Daniel, Nyan and Samantha Carter were missing- possibly dead.
Dear lord, what will I tell Jacob if they are? He was growing fond of Daniel too...
" Relax Major I can hear you," he called loudly back, unsure if the Major could hear him, " if you can hear me, continue with what you were doing- I'll try and pull some strings and send some 'Copter's on a search and rescue."
He replaced the telephone, his face ashen, as he turned to the Sargent.
" Your orders have been changed Sargent," he faintly said, wiping his brow, " recall SG-12, they'll be needed in search and rescue- I believe Lieutenant Durkheim is rather experienced in that field of expertise. See if you can contact the Tok'ra as well- Jacob deserves to know that his daughter is missing."
" What about you sir?" the Sargent asked worried- only a few hours earlier, Hammond had been threatening to fly over to Siberia to learn the fate of SG-1himself.
A dark, bitter look washed over the elder man's gentle blue eyes as his lips thinned, and his eyes narrowed. The General smoothed the front of his uniform, and with a resigned sigh, returned to his desk.
" Me? I'm going to see if I can pull some favors in. SG-1 and the others are in trouble- more trouble than they've ever been in before, I suspect."
" Run that by me again," Daniel quietly said, incredulous, one hand resting lightly on the base of his skull, holding a bandage there to stem the blood flow. Not that it mattered- where the blood hadn't dried, it had frozen instead. His crushed, mangled limbs screamed in agony, demanding attention, and he longed to move- unfortunately, to do so would result in unbelievable agony. He knew; he had tried it half an hour ago, and had nearly fainted with the pain.
" Sha're and Kasuf unburied the Gate and sent me through, only because of some alien device, something went wrong, and now I'm stuck here with you two?2 he continued, finishing with a suspicious frown. " Where's Sha're? Why didn't she come through?"
A memory flashed to Sam's mind of Daniel sprawled next to Sha're, the tell-tale mark of a ribbon device burn beginning to appear on his forehead. His wife had lain next to him, dead, a gaping hole through her abdomen.
" She did," Sam lied between gritted teeth, " but she's back at the Base, waiting for you." She felt bad lying to Daniel, but somehow, she doubted he'd react too well if she casually remarked, 'oh by the way, your wife was taken as a host, raped, and then killed by your friend, Teal'c. Gee don't you lead a nice life?' As it was, she was worried enough- the younger man's face was leeched of color, exhaustion and pain creeping into his features. As well as this, there was the matter of Steven's corpse lying behind him- all Daniel had to do was twist around to greet the swollen, frozen body of the man from his nightmares.
Though if he doesn't do that, he'll know something's odd when it begins to smell...
Nyan was glancing at the blonde Major oddly- like everyone else on Base, he knew the true tale to Jackson's place on the Base- and discreetly, she mouthed to him, 'we need to gain his trust'.
A ripple of pain washed over Daniel, and he shuddered unconsciously.
" Right," he muttered, his voice still doubting, but trust beginning to creep in, replacing it.
His body ached, and he was so tired...so...his eyelids drooped, and the younger man felt his limbs sagged. All he had to do was close his eyes...
" Daniel?" The woman named Sam's voice broke through, sharp, and automatically he jerked, sending whispers of fiery pain lancing down his crushed mangled leg. She was crouching by him now, placing a palm on his forehead, and frowning. He blinked at her- time was slowing down and distorting madly. " He has a fever...we need to move him away from here..."
She was glancing worriedly behind him, at whatever it was that was propping him up, as she made that last comment.
Wait...this never happened...something was wrong, and Daniel was having difficulty thinking; his head ached dully, and his leg screamed in agony. A tunnel of darkness was closing in on him, suffocating him...this isn't how it happened...I recovered from the fever...we were going to celebrate...what's going on?
The sudden realization, the snatch of memory was like a bucket of icy cold water, sending adrenaline coursing through his veins. Something was very, very wrong. His eyes flickered open- they had closed when Sam had remarked he had a fever- and he stared at the blonde Major, scrutinizing her. Her forehead was furrowed into a frown, and she was staring, transfixed at something behind him, her face paling. She looked vaguely nauseous.
" Daniel, we're going to move you now..." she murmured faintly into his ear. Daniel, ignoring this, and the pain lancing through his dying body, twisted his neck...and froze, fear, nausea and anger crashing over him all at once.
Oh Christ, oh Christ, oh Christ...it's Steven.
Steven's eyes were glazed, his body bloated, half-frozen. He was obviously dead; staring vacantly at the small of Daniel's back. At that moment as the world rushed at him in a chaotic blur, blood pounding furiously in his ears, Daniel knew everything Sam had told him was a lie...he had never been sent through the Gate delirious with fever...Sha're wasn't waiting in Colorado for him...
I have to get away from here...
Tears stinging his eyes, he pushed himself from the ground, the excruciating pain buried beneath his mass of worries, and confusion. Bile was rising up his throat, threatening to escape, and frantically he half-stumbled, half-hopped away from Sam, Nyan and the corpse, his eyes wild and frantic.
" Who are you?" he snapped, his eyes fixated on Steven's swollen, frozen body. Oh God- he'd been lying againstthat...
Tears were glistening in Sam's eyes, and she was mumbling incoherently, limping over to him- her ankle was damaged he noted vaguely- stretching her arms out to him. Confused, afraid, hysterical and delirious with pain, Daniel flinched away from her.
" Please Daniel...you'll hurt yourself even more...you have to lie down..." Sam pleaded with him, tears pouring down her cheeks.
" Who are you?" Daniel repeated, his voice cracking. What if they were...friends...of Steven? What if they had been sent by Steven, or worse yet, were coming to avenge his death?
" Major Samantha Carter," Sam repeated, stretching towards him. Her face was pale, her statement worried. Daniel, flinching away from her again, swayed dangerously, as the world began to loop sickeningly around him. " Daniel, God, I'm so sorry...we lied...we lied..."
" No shit!" Daniel hurled back, pressing himself against an icy cold wall, barely noticing the sharp rocks were scraping against his skin.
" You have amnesia Daniel! We needed your trust!" Sam cried. Daniel's legs were buckling, folding beneath him, as he slid painfully down the wall, glaring feebly up at her.
" You might as well kill me now," he mumbled tearfully, " save yourself the fight."
" We do not wish to fight you Daniel Jackson," Nyan jutted in, his tone pleading, as he too, inched over to the younger man. "We are your friends."
" Friends who I have no memory of!"
Sam crouched down next to him, her bright blue eyes glazed and tearful. Carefully, tactfully, she moved to face him, blocking his view of Steven's corpse.
" Please Daniel...who else would know Steven was your foster father...or about Mary and Elizabeth, the two officers who helped you when you were nine years old?" She tried, hope fluttering in her chest. She was cold, she was exhausted, but right now, Daniel was of utmost importance- and she needed his trust. Daniel, at her words, paled even further, and looked as if he might empty the pitiful contents of his stomach there and then.
" How do you know that?" he asked in a low deadly voice. Relieved, Sam brushed a lock of his dark blonde hair from his eyes. He did not flinch this time.
" Because I knowyouDaniel," she whispered, " I've known you for four years."
Daniel stared at her, the confusion returning. The world was dimming at the edges, and exhaustion hung over him, until his very bones ached, begging for rest. If she was who she said she was, he could trust her...he could sleep, in the knowledge he might not open his eyes again. Her lips- the shape of a rose-bud- were moving, words spilling silently from them, and he allowed his eyelids to droop, and the darkness to return, as he retreated to the very depths of his soul to contemplate what the woman had told him.
Jack, his hands numb, his body aching with the ice-cold exhaustion seeping into his limbs, stared at the broken window, a conflicting range of triumph and frustration running through his veins. For the past hour and a half he had been working solidly with Johnson, hammering at the half-frozen double glazed window with weary limbs. And now it had cracked, allowing blistering cold winds to howl victoriously around the empty warehouse.
" Yes!" Johnson cried triumphantly as another piece of thick glass gave way, falling into the plush snow below. They were at least one story up- the door had refused to budge mainly, as Janet had pointed out when she found Jack, half-sprawled with exhaustion on the cold floor, because snow was packed against it, sealing it in. The Captain shivered suddenly as the wind rushed at him, and his breath coming out as thick, cloudy air, he tightly pulled a ragged old blanket around his shoulders, still grinning.
" Don't get too triumphant Captain," Jack warned tiredly- his eyes were bloodshot, his lean body constantly shivering, " Someone has to get down there...and that is one hell of a long drop- if they can't find a way to open the door from that side, they'll either freeze to death, or die from internal injuries..."
Johnson's face blanched as he uneasily glanced back at the drop from the window- Jack, as usual, was right. Anyone attempting to leave the building would easily break their legs and a couple of ribs, despite the icy, soft bedding of snow to cushion them.
" O'Neill," Teal'c's booming voice interrupted the two officers, and they twisted in surprise. He and SG-9 stood behind the two, and with the exception of the huge Jaffa, looked exhausted. Their faces were red, blistered, their lips tinged blue with cold. They had remained on the ground floor, attempting to break open the back door. From the looks of it, they hadn't been very successful.
" Perhaps I should be the one. I will have a greater resistence to the cold, and if I injure myself, my symbiote will heal my injuries more quickly." The Jaffa continued.
For a moment, Jack stared at his friend in silent shock, inwardly contemplating their options.
We'll probably freeze to death in here anyway...what difference does it make if Teal'c doesn't make it? Or if he does, at least we'll know whether Daniel, Carter and Nyan are still alive. Hell, if they are, they might have the answer to this!
Teal'c was gravely watching him, his eyes dark and solemn, as he waited for Jack's answer.
" Sure. Go ahead Teal'c. Jump ship," Jack finally muttered weakly. He was too tired, and too godamned cold to argue with the large, well-built Jaffa. Johnson shot him a sharp look, biting back the severe 'sir!' on the tip of his tongue. As Teal'c, dressed in a thick, old jacket that had obviously once belonged to a worker in the factory moved past Jack, to the broken window, the Colonel turned to the Captain, a plaintive statement on his face. " It won't make a godamned difference Johnson," he sighed, " Teal'c could easily squish me. Besides, he stands a better chance at finding them."
But I have one last request...
As Teal'c tensed himself, and placed one leg out of the window, Jack twisted to him, his eyes glittering with a combination of weariness, sadness and anger. " Teal'c- one thing. Before you go and kill yourself looking for Daniel, you have to dig out the snow, to get to the door, y'hear? It would be safer and more practical to look for the others as a team."
" O'Neill-"
" No. You're not superman Teal'c. Hell, you come close, but you're not him." Jack closed his eyes briefly, and inhaled cold air, sharply, " Teal'c I want to be with you when we find Daniel, okay? I have a lot to tell him."
A muscle in the ex-First Prime's jaw flickered, and an unfathomable emotion flitted across his dark eyes, as he lifted his other leg, thrusting it out the window, so that he was supporting himself only with his well-muscled, strong arms.
" As you wish O'Neill."
Then he let go of the sill, and allowed his massive body to drop the ten-foot drop.
"Thisis how they controlled it! It took us fifteen years and three supercomputers to MacGyver a control system for the Gate on Earth!" Doctor Daniel Jackson didn't know what had startled him more- Jack's return, or the pretty blonde scientist standing by the DHD, her eyes bright with excitement as she ran slim, long fingers over each symbol.
" Captain..." Jack cried warningly, as Daniel shot her a puzzled look, and Sha're frowned.
" Look howsmallit is!" Daniel almost expected to hear the blonde Captain add, 'and howcuteit is', as he turned to his friend, his statement askance. The only other female he had known to be so excited about the DHD had been Sha're- and that was mainly because it was the only route to send Daniel home, to save his life when he had contracted the Miner's Fever. It was unnerving to see another woman so excited about it- unnerving in a good way.
"Captain!" This time, the woman heard Jack's voice- like a whip cracking through the warm heavy air- and a guilty statement dancing over her features, she strode past Jack, struck out her hand, and grinned.
" Doctor Jackson, I presume. I'm Doctor Samantha Carter."
Memories sluggishly flickering before him, Daniel slowly began to rise to consciousness, his leg screaming once more in pain, hot pain stabbing like knives through the base of his skull. He could remember so damn much- Sha're, only it wasn't Sha're, throwing him half-way across a room with only a flicker of her hand, the Nox, when they had first found Cassandra...he could remember too much, yet not enough at the same time. Moaning in protest, he cracked swollen, frozen eyes, forcing them open, and started in surprise. Captain-Major, he corrected himself inwardly, remembering their earlier conservation- Carter lay next to him, shivering constantly, a faint marring her smooth creamy face.
Oh, Sam is going to think I'm such an ass, freaking out like that,Daniel inwardly chastised himself. He glanced to his left, at the young man named Nyan. He still couldn't remember how they had met- in fact, his last memory was of returning home after SG-1 had arrived to rescue him from Nem, a walking, talking ( and this had been Jack's description of him, not his) goldfish.
As Sam suddenly groaned, and shifted in her sleep, Daniel's attention was caught by the small, dark globe she tightly clutched in her hand.
I guess I passed out...he theorized, and then squinted at the meager blanket covering all three of them- it was an emergency blanket, similar to the one Sam had wrapped Cassandra in when the girl had fallen into a coma- ...and they tried to offer some body heat to keep me alive.
Shivering suddenly, he grimaced as a sudden wave of severe pain, like icy-hot knives, crashed over him, centering more specifically around his crushed leg and ankle. A whimper, pained and exhausted escaped from his tightly pressed lips, as he concentrated on keeping his stomach and newly-found consciousness.
And to think I'd hoped that the ice would numb me...
His whimper obviously disturbed Sam, as the blonde Major suddenly roused, and blinked rapidly, and hoarsely croaked, "Daniel?" Her tone was sleepy, worried, and shook with the icy coldness that seeped into all their bones, gripping their very souls.
" I'm here. I think my memories are coming back." He hoarsely croaked back. One of her arms was wrapped tightly around his waist, drawing the two into a hug- under normal circumstances, Daniel would have blushed. But then, normal circumstances didn't dictate that they should be trapped in a cave, freezing to death.
Sam blinked owlishly at him, surprise creeping into her features as she pushed herself from the floor, and inched herself closer to the younger man- the orb, Daniel noted, was still gripped tightly between raw, red fingers.
" Oh my God, Daniel," she breathed. She scrambled closer to him, and the archaeologist was surprised to see tears in her eyes. " I- we were afraid you would die during the night."
Daniel looked to the frozen floor, and gave a bittersweet smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
" Nice to see I still have the same run of luck four years after I first joined the program," he sardonically muttered, prizing a chuckle from Sam. He glanced over to the orb in her hands curiously, and arching an eyebrow added, " What's that? I think I've seen something like that before."
Sam blinked rapidly for a second in surprise, and then carefully, softly, handed it to him. Daniel, cold, exhausted and in pain, stared at it for a moment, slumped- the globe itself glowed, icy clouds billowing inside it; a beautiful, enchanting site. Then as his bright blue eyes moved over from the actual globe to the stand it rested on, and the symbols decorating it, he let out a soft exclamation of surprise and triumph.
" I haven't seen the globe before, per se," he stressed, his long, bruised fingers running over each symbol, " but Sam- Major- these symbols- the scratchings- they're Mesoamerican. Individually, they represent four-wind, four-rain, four-water." Sam looked over at him oddly, so blushing faintly, he elaborated, " They were, um, well, dynasties I guess. Four-wind was the second creation, where Quetzalcoatl ruled the world. It came to an end when Tezcatlipoca took his revenge- Quetzalcoatl had knocked him into the water, thus ending his previous rein- and destroyed the world with hurricane winds. The third creation was four-rain, and was dominated by fire, and the main fire God, Tlaloc. It was destroyed by fiery rain sent by Quetzalcoatl. The fourth creation, four-water, was ruled by Chalchiuhtlicue, the water-goddess. This creation ended when the earth was engulfed by a flood." A wave of weariness, and desolation for his confusion crashed over him, and briefly, Daniel closed his eyes, and prayed that the world would stop spinning. In the muffled background, he could hear Sam asking him a question.
It took her several tries before he realized what it was.
" Daniel, what was the first creation?"
She was looking at the globe oddly now, a gleam of excitement visible in her eyes.
" Four-jaguar," Daniel wearily replied. " It was the time when giants walked the earth." The gleam vanished, as Sam looked at the floor in disappointment.
" So, nothing to do with the weather then," she murmured- more to herself than anyone else.
Nothing to do with the weather...
Swallowing back a whimper of pain- the ice momentarily having numbed it, it had now returned full-force, stabbing like hot knives in the base of his skull. The world was blurring at the edges, and it was a struggle for Daniel to remain upright, let alone conscious.
" Sam," he began faintly, slowly, the faintest of ideas sparking to life in the back of his mind, " what is it? The device I mean."
Sam, massaging a sore kink in the back of her neck ( not that it helped much- her hands were numb, and bright red and useless ), looked up at him, frowning faintly. Behind Daniel, Nyan murmured restlessly in his sleep.
" I forgot you still have amnesia," she murmured to herself. " It's what we call a Touchstone. We came upon one a few years back, when NID stole one. It wreaked havoc both on our planet, and the one they stole it from- though that was mainly because the entire geological structure and system of that planet depended on it."
A Touchstone...wreaked havoc...
Faint glimmerings of his past studies, when he had been a student were slowly bubbling to the surface.Let's face it,he wagered silently,the Goa'uld wouldn't just steal from the Ancient Egyptians...they would have stolen mythology from other cultures too...in one swift strike, it came to him. Excitement flooding through his very epicenter, dulling the pain once again, he screwed up his face in concentration.Guess that device Nem used on me helped me recall more than just my memories of Ancient Babylon...Except over three years had passed since then; three long, momentous years that had changed him as a whole. All of which he couldn't remember.
"Sam, what if the Goa'uld found some form of technology, and experimented, to use as some kind of weapon? They've done it in the past; Teal'c told us that when we found the Nox." Sam, startled, glanced up at him, the gleam slowly, but steadily returning. Her eyes shone, screaming,what are you suggesting Daniel?
He knew his suggestion wouldn't disappoint.
" Yes, they would. Cassandra for one..." Sam agreed amicably with him, casting her mind darkly back to when Nurri'ti had used Cassandra as a weapon, hoping to destroy their Stargate with a gargantuan nuclear reaction. For a tense, silent moment, Daniel stared at her in utter confusion.
Of course, if he can only remember up to a certain point in his life, he may not even know who Cassandra is...
As soon as she had thought that, he shook himself mentally, and continued, his voice growing with excitement.
" The story goes that all the Gods, when they worked together on the fifth creation, found stability- or a mixture. Earth like weather I guess, really. The myth I suppose was meant to describe the different stages Earth went through, but Sam, what if the Goa'uld were able to make one? A weapon that could alter the weather to extreme conditions." Sam's eyes widened at the thought, and as one unit, they glanced at the globe in Daniel's hands. " And if it fell into the wrong hands...Mesoamerican is a difficult language to read. They could have been trying to do some good, and only wreaked havoc."
A dark thought flitted across Sam's mind as she thought of whom she had found the device on: Steven.I seriously doubt that there could be any good done where he's involved...
She shook herself to the present, silently reminding herself that there were more important matters at hand.
" So, what you're saying," she slowly began, the faintest of smiles lighting her face, " is, you might know how to change the device, and get our weather back to normal."
Daniel looked flustered at the suggestion, the grimace of pain stretched across his ghastly white features, serving only to enhance his fluster. " Yes, and no," he lamely amended. " I'm presuming if the myth itself is some instruction manual into operating the device, then to change the damage it's done we'd have to move all the symbols together."
" Like chevrons on the Stargate," Sam theorized.
Daniel, nodding, tried to pull the symbols of four-jaguar and four-rain into place, with the other two. They remained obstinately where they were, his frozen fingers too feeble to make much difference.
" Just one problem," he sighed, waving it in the air, " I don't know how to move the symbols into place."
Teal'c landed softly in the snow, elegantly, his boots sinking heavily into the icy white frozen gunk. The wind howled angrily around him, whipping his clothes, and instinctively, he curled one arm around his abdomen, protecting the symbiote that rested there. As much as he hated the lavae, he also appreciated the fact it kept him alive, and left him more resilient to harsh conditions such as the ones they were currently experiencing. He glanced up to the window, where Jack leant out, watching him with grave concern.
" Teal'c!" the Colonel yelled down to him, his voice barely audible above the howls and shrieks of the wind. " Are you okay?"
" I am O'Neill," the Jaffa called back up, then glanced uncomfortably around him at the field of snow. It covered simply everything- no tree, building or vehicle had survived the avalanche's wrath.
Which does not bode well for Daniel Jackson, Major Carter and Nyan...the Jaffa darkly thought, as his black eyes rested on the spot where all teams had last seen the three people. By now, he and everyone else knew, there was little chance that the three were alive. They would have been suffocated in the snow, or would have frozen to death in the blistering winds. It was only for Jack's sake that they kept the flame of hope burning in their hearts; kept hoping that the three had somehow miraculously survived, and were sheltering somewhere.
Stumbling ungracefully in the snow, he moved closer to the wall to be heard more easily.
" I do, however, require a shovel of some kind to unbury the snow barricading the door."
Jack's dry laugh, tinged with exhaustion, worry and pain, floated down to the large Jaffa, along with the words; " Hold on there a second Teal'c...and stand back."
Expectantly, Teal'c stared up at the window, pressing himself against the ice covered wall. A second later, a deadly sharp shovel and pickaxe came sailing from the window, embedding themselves into the hard-packed snow.
" Thank you O'Neill."
Jack's face re-appeared at the window again- this time it was creased with worry.
" You're welcome Teal'c. I'm going downstairs with the others- the heating is playing up, and Cassandra's getting hypothermia, but I'll be back every hour, okay? Good luck."
He disappeared from the window, and Teal'c waited for one brief second, before moving over to where shovel lay. His muscles straining, he pulled, and finally freed it from the icy snow's grasp.
I must 'pace myself' if I am to succeed.
It would be a long, tedious night.
Samantha Carter leant against the wall, shivering but not noticing it. Oddly enough, she didn't feel cold anymore; though her body still trembled and ached as if she were. In her hands was the Touchstone, or the Mesoamerican Myth as Daniel had titled it.
" Maybourne, you're an idiot every day of the week! Why can't you take one day off?!"
She could remember hurling that particular insult at the weasel of a Colonel, and now as she half-leant against the wall, wished she had kneed him in the groin for good measure. Sneaking a glance at Daniel, she sighed, her breath coming out as icy puffs of air. He had long since fallen back into a delirious, fevered sleep, moaning Sha're's, and on the odd occasion, her own name. She wanted to look at his crushed leg- but suspected that if she did, all she would find would be the red angry streaks of an infection setting in.
Damnit. We have the answer. Now why the hell won't you budge?
She had been twisting and turning- or at least making a very feeble attempt of trying- the dial for over an hour, desperately trying to force the symbols for four-rain and four-jaguar into place. But nothing would work; it would simply not shift.
God, what were you thinking Strattenburg? That you'd make sure Daniel died for once and for all? You idiot!
In the corner, Steven's body had defrosted fully, the full packets of crisps, and bottles of pills strewn by it- with little appetites, no-one wanted to touch the food of a dead bastard. It had now since begun to smell, it's strong pungent smell, wafting and hovering unpleasantly around the threesome. Gritting her teeth, she wrinkled her nose, trying to ignore it, and gripped the side of the globe, trying once again to shift the two last symbols.
Oh come on!
Tears of frustration were slipping down her cheeks, small, pathetic angry noises mewling their way from her mouth.
" Major Carter?" Nyan, his throat clogged with exhaustion, was leaning weakly on his good arm, his eyes half-open, his statement one of puzzlement. Swiping her tears hesitantly from her creamy face, she smiled at him, the smile not quite reaching her eyes.
" We've discovered how to reverse the weather," she shortly told him, " problem is, the device won't budge."
" Perhaps the device was not meant for this planet." Nyan suggested sleepily, his body trembling in both exhaustion and coldness. When Sam arched her eyebrows in surprise, he elaborated in a typical Daniel-esque style; " I once read the reports on your studies of the Touchstone. That was made to keep that planet's weather in system, but caused chaos when it was bought to Earth. But once it had been taken from your planet, the geological problems reversed themselves immediately."
" Nyan, what are you suggesting?" Sam asked bluntly. Her mind felt as if thick cotton wool had replaced it, fogging her thoughts. The young scientist, with difficulty, inhaled sharply and continued.
" Perhaps if you were to destroy it, rather than mend it...it might reverse the weather systems. And certainly, it would be no loss." His voice was struggling, faltering where it grew weak, and briefly, Nyan closed his eyes in rest.
Sam looked doubtfully down at the globe in her hands.
It couldn't be that simple...could it?
She looked over at Daniel- asleep and slipping away from them all- and then at Nyan, growing weaker by the second.
If I don't try, we'll all be dead anyway...
Her body ached with weariness, her eyelids drooping, softly urging her to just fall asleep, and never wake up again. But she was so young, and she had so much to do...so many people to meet and love.
Or rather, one person to forgive and love,she inwardly chastised herself, sneaking another glance over to Daniel.
It won't hurt to try...
Her strength beginning to fail, the sluggish whisper of death beginning to seep in, she pulled back her arm, and violently flung the globe far away from her, away from Daniel, away from Nyan. Time slowing sickeningly quickly, she watched in wide-eyed fascination as the globe flew towards a nearby wall. For a moment, as it struck it, she thought she'd been too weak- that all it had done was bounce from the wall to the floor. Then there was the beautiful sound of glass shattering, a strange, odd bright glow, a rushing of wind and a warm wave washing over her...then exhaustion, and hypothermia carrying her into blissful unawareness, nothing.
Judging by the past few days, the sky should have been silky black, with faint stars dotting it. But as a shaft of white gold light struck the uneven pit of snow, catching the metal of the shovel, Teal'c glanced up, one eyebrow arched in surprise.
Shivering unconsciously, he yelled up to the window- now seemingly higher up because of the progress he had made; " O'Neill!"
His voice echoed around him, hollow, but at the same time, a pit of power. There was a pause, muted shuffling, and then Jack's face, ashen, and tinged with blue appeared, his dark eyes concerned. He glanced wordlessly at Teal'c, and the pit the large Jaffa had dug- then he raised his dark eyes to the bright cloudless sky, and his jaw dropped.
" It would appear the blizzard is over O'Neill," Teal'c prompted hopefully. His body ached with un-merciless cold, his limbs tiring, the sluggish whisper of death toying with him. If he did not dig open the door, then he would soon collapse and freeze to death.
But if the blizzard is indeed over, there may be hope yet- the snow would melt.
" Yes! Teal'c-" Jack's eyes flickered back to the Jaffa as he tore his gaze from the large orange fireball in the sky, and its faint ghost, the moon, " I'm going downstairs- the sun will melt the snow, and we'll be able to open this godamned door. Just hang on."
Jack pushed his freezing, dying body from the window, and spared a sympathetic glance at Johnson, slumped, half-asleep against the wall. For hours they had worked tirelessly on the door, only admitting defeat when slowly, the members of the different teams had collapsed with both exhaustion and hypothermia. Most of the soldiers were huddled in a group around Cassandra and Janet- the petite Doctor had succumbed to sleep and hypothermia shortly after Pavorritti of SG-7 had.
But I'm going to need all the help I can get...
Grimacing, he crouched by the man, and flicked numb, half-frozen fingers against Johnson's face. The man murmured, but made no effort to move. Jack sighed- he hated pulling rank- he really did- but if Johnson refused to wake...
"Captain Johnson! Stand to attention!"
The large man stirred, his eyelids flickering, his hand, numb and useless, moving to his forehead in a half-hearted salute. He shot Jack a dirty look when he realized who it was.
" I'm not under your command," he sleepily grumbled, shifting his body so that he crouched on his knees.
" I'm still a superior officer, and I'm second-in-command to the Base, need I add... anyway, get your butt into gear- the sun's-a-coming, and we need to help the T-man by working on that door again." The words were like a bucket of ice cold water on a summer's day, and Johnson jerked to full consciousness, pushing himself off the floor.
" What? But last time I checked there was a full blizzard out there..."
Jack ushered the junior officer down the metal stairway, his feet thumping against the side, making a hollow, metallic sound. " I know," he called after him, " maybe Carter, Daniel and Nyan are alive, and have found out what the problem was.I don't care- all I care is the snow is gone, and the sun's out." He leapt from the last two steps, landing gracefully on two frozen feet, wincing when his knees creaked painfully. Outside, he could just make out the muffled, faint sounds of Teal'c shoveling the snow- each gap between the next muffled 'thump' growing longer by the second.
We're dying out here...Jack realized hollowly,I wonder if this is how Daniel felt over the past year? That he was dying and couldn't do a damn thing to stop it?
He glanced back to the huddled soldiers- some their eyes closed, their breathing hollow and harsh. He knew of at least one soldier who wouldn't make the night, and half wondered if he was included in the elite group. Cassandra had fallen asleep over a day ago, and hadn't woken up, Janet's tears frozen on her pale, pale cheeks. Janet herself was latched onto Cassandra, clinging tightly to the young teenager, an emergency blanket wrapped tightly around their shivering bodies. He silently wondered whether those two would make the night, and shook away the thought violently.
When did I become so pessimistic?He inwardly wondered as he latched onto the nearest pick-axe, raising it in the air to swing over his shoulder,and so bitter? I didn't even notice. I'm going to have to book myself an one-to-one session with Mackenzie when this is all over...assuming I survive.
Hollowly, the pick-axe swung through the air, chiming against the metal door, latching onto the dent, and Jack, shivering, closed his eyes to block the images of Cassandra, Janet, and everyone else, slowly freezing to death, because of him.
Because I had to be a jack-ass and suggest Siberia, for the fishing.
General Hammond sat in his office, a deep scowl marring his face, as he stonily glared at the man smugly sitting, his legs crossed, opposite him. Behind him, their eyes burning into the back of the said-man's head, were two Marine officers.
For both our protection- from my temper.
" Colonel Maybourne," Hammond ground out through gritted teeth, " what do I have to do to make you understand the severity of the situation you have caused?"
The rogue Colonel only smiled smugly, his face all to reminiscent of a weasel.
" Assuming, General, that I am responsible for whatever you called me in for." He pointed out, his voice nasal, his pearly white teeth glistening under the dim lighting. Under the desk, Hammond's beefy hand curled into a fist, and his face reddened angrily.
" Colonel, I have three teams, two off-world refugees, and my Chief Medical Officer stranded in Siberia, in the middle of a blizzard, in the middle of summer! Now, forgive me if I'm wrong, but last time I checked, this kind of stunt is all too reminiscent of NID- more importantly,yourbranch of NID."
Maybourne paled under the lighting, and the heavy glare; and a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, spoiling his navy-blue dress uniform. Nevertheless, he smiled nervously, and wringing his hands, quietly stated, " I'm not sure I like what you're implying here General."
" Have you stolen or created your own brand of a Touchstone, Colonel?"
Maybourne remained silent.
" Colonel, answer the question, and that is an order!" Hammond barked viciously, slamming the palms of his hands onto the wooden desk. A vein in his temple was throbbing, his heart beating angrily against his chest. It was incidents like these that resulted in Janet Fraisier fussing over his blood-pressure. Maybourne looked to the floor now, and very, very quietly replied;
" Yes sir we did. We created our own brand of the Touchstone, so that it was like a weapon. It was copied from Goa'uld blueprints, so in all retrospect, sir, it is a Goa'uld device." He looked to his hands, and his voice no louder than a whisper, added, " a very dangerous Goa'uld device."
" And what was it doing in Siberia Colonel?" Hammond continued in a dangerous voice. The vein was throbbing angrily; a dull roar in his ears. If it were possible, the Colonel paled even further. Hammond had called him in shortly after Wilson's phone call, suspecting that NID were behind the mysterious weather.
And sadly, I was right.
" Our main operative, Steven Strattenburg was sent there to hide from the SGC, sir. He was meant to meet another NID operative, who would take and destroy the technology, but he never turned up."
For a moment, there was stunned silence, then, his face crimson, lips taut, his words ground out in a low guttural growl, he snarled; " Steven Strattenburg? Youidiot. Do you have any idea of what Strattenburg has done to my staff over the past year? It's no wonder you never found him! He was probably trying to find a way of hurting Doctor Jacksoneven more so!" The two Marines were glancing apprehensively at the General and the Colonel, and Hammond added nastily, "Take him out of my sight! When this is over, I'll have a word with the President himself about demotions for a certain Colonel."
The two Marines, in unison, latched tightly onto Maybournes chunky arms, and scowling, the General waited until he had been frog-marched out from his office, before he reached forward, and latched onto the thin red telephone. Just before Maybourne had been frog-marched into his office, he had been speaking to his friend, General Haussen, and had had to put the man on hold...
Time to pull in some favors...
" Hello Fredrick," he spoke softly into the telephone, " I believe, before I was interrupted, we were discussing the possibility of sending a Helicopter to search for my missing teams?"
His voice crackling over the phone, Haussen responded amicably, in pigeon English; " Ja, ja. You said that they were in a warehouse, ja? There is only one warehouse that is close to the airport. The weather is getting better George- we can send the helicopter and your search-and-rescue tomorrow if we are lucky."
George expelled a relieved rush of air.
" That's great Fredrick. Thank you. I'll be catching an airplane tomorrow, so you can tell me personally what the result of the search is..."
And whether I have to contact Jacob over his daughter...
" No, Sha're no. You have to...urgh...fight it."
Pain. His body ached with red, fiery pain, as the shaft of golden-red light deepened, homing in on his forehead. Behind the blinding light, he could just make out Ammunet, her lips twisting into a cruel smirk. Occasionally, the cold statement in her eyes would flicker, replaced by a panicked statement belonging to his wife, Sha're.
" Sha're, no!"
He was dimly aware of the grip of his gun loosening, the pain intensifying. Oh God, it hurt! It hurt so much- as if his entire body was melting, inside out. The gun dropped to the floor, and a tear of both pain and frustration slipped down his cheek. He was going to die by his wife's hand.
Wait, no- what was that? There was a sudden hiss of a staff weapon, and the red-golden beam was broken, and dimly, in the background, he heard Sha're- or maybe Ammunet- shriek, as she thudded heavily to the floor. His own body, weakened to the edge of death, crumpled, his face crashing into the soft ground. Time passed slowly, and his voice distorted, he heard himself foggily saying to Teal'c, " You did the right thing Teal'c," as he inched himself closer to his wife's dying body. Tears were coursing his cheeks, and two more pairs of feet thudded into the pavilion, as he whispered to Sha're, "I love you." Jack was cursing, and Sam her voice choked, cried;
" Oh my God."
Then Daniel simply let the world fall away as he fainted, his heart broken.
Something was wrong- something was lapping roughly against his frozen body, soaking the splint, and chilling him even further. Daniel jerked awake to find himself tangled amongst Sam and Nyan, his face, turned on its side, pressed into the water. Surprised, he let out a hiss of pain, and pushed himself away. Sam was curled up beside him, shivering, the emergency blanket soaked.
What's going on?
Tears were pouring down his cheeks once more- but this time, they weren't freezing over on his cheeks- this time they were pouring steadily to the ground, as more memories assaulted him- of finding the boy, of meeting Nyan- unconsciously, he shot Nyan a curious stare...Shaking his head, he limped forward, leaning against the wall for support, and looped his arms around Sam' and Nyan's limp bodies, praying that they were still alive; that they hadn't died whilst he had slept.
In the corner, he could just make out the blurred outline of Steven, floating, face-first, a pungent smell wafting from him, and a wave of bile began to rise up through his throat.
No, not now.
Even in his concussed, frozen state, he could see Sam, Nyan and himself were in deep trouble- dirty, gray water was gushing in at a steady rate, and with exhaustion holding them prisoner, there was the danger of falling asleep and drowning. His broken leg was aching dully, as the water steadily rose, seeping into his clothes, until it encased his broken leg. His heart was thudding in panic- he didn't understand what was going on, and Sam and Nyan still showed no sign of waking up.
" Sam," he called desperately in the Major's ear, " Sam, please wake up. Please!" The blonde Major merely moaned in pain, and weakly struggled in his grip, before sinking back into a deep state of unconsciousness. Angrily, Daniel cursed, "Damn!" Like water lapping against the sand, the excruciating agony was returning and receding from his crushed leg, and with difficulty, he glanced down- and grimaced. The wound was swollen, seeping pus. He wouldn't be able to limp on it, let alone walk. Which meant he would have to swim...
" Okay Sam, Nyan, we're just going for a nice, long swim." He muttered, more to himself, desperate to hear anything but the silence in the icy cold cavern. Tightening his grip, he kicked against the water with his one good leg, dragging both Sam and Nyan by the collars of their jackets, heading towards the ledge hidden behind Steven's corpse. He swallowed back the urge to retch as he waded past Steven's body, and briefly, panicked when dead, glazed eyes stared at him.
He's alive! He isn't dead!Daniel shook himself, trembling with fear.Jackson get a grip on yourself!
He nearly let out a sob of relief when his hip bone crashed against the side of the ledge, ignoring the fiery pain that exploded from within. " Thank God!" he cried, and, with increasing difficulty, rolled Nyan's body onto the side. The younger man rolled, slowing to a halt as he came into contact with the far wall. Next came Sam- and she too, rolled limply, slumping against Nyan, her hand outstretched, a faint, pitiful moan escaping from her lips. For a brief moment, her eyelids fluttered- then she sank back into the welcoming arms of her dreams. Daniel, his arms now aching with the effort it had cost him to drag their bodies through the half-frozen water, valiantly tried to pull himself up. For a cruel, brief moment, he thought he had- but then his elbows slipped, and his body sunk through the water. Panicking, he kicked both his broken foot and his good foot, ignoring the pain it caused, and resurfaced, his hands flailing, reaching for the surface-anything.
They found Sam's outstretched hand.
Holding onto it tightly, he chuckled hollowly- his laugh a cross between a hysterical giggle and a gurgle. He was too weak- he would never be able to pull himself up.
" Well Sam," he murmured to the unconscious woman. " I wouldn't say that dying in a cave is my first choice for death, but lets face it, I've run away from the Grim Reaper long enough. " He paused, and knowing she would never really hear the next statement, he continued, " I never really got to tell you this Sam, but I wanted to apologize- I was mad at you because I thought you were in love with Jack. I guess you are, really. But I wanted to let you know that I love you. I love you with my heart and soul, and I wish I had told you sooner, instead of having to tell you when I'm about to die." An idea sparked in the hollows of his mind, and using his spare hand, he fumbled in the pockets of his trousers, and flashed a bittersweet triumphant smile as they came into contact with something metal. His dog-tags. "Here. You take these. I always lost them anyway." The darkness was returning, softly whispering his name, pulling him away, as he pressed them into the palm of her hand, curling her fingers around the thin chain. In her sleep she moaned, and Daniel allowed a tear to roll down his pale, pale cheek.
Guess this time it's for real...
His eyes slid shut; his hand slipping from Sam's grasp, as he slowly sunk beneath the surface, unaware of the weak, pitiful mewls of 'Daniel!' or the hand grasping underwater for him.
" Something's wrong Dad," Sam muttered as she glanced at her surroundings- she stood in the middle of an open grass field, surrounded by poppies, and brightly colored flowers. In the sky, hovered three suns, and their respective ghosts- the Moons. " For starters, where are we?"
" Kalashe." Her father replied, inhaling softly. " Isn't it beautiful Sammy?"
Sam stared at her father oddly. " You haven't called me that since Mom died."
Her father either didn't hear her, or refused to answer, instead glancing up to the largest of the three suns. " You see that sun there- that's Semora. They name the suns here Sammy- they name each sun, each star and each grain of sand."
" That's nice Dad," Sam pressed on- why did her voice sound so hollow, so metallic?- " But why are we here?"
" Sam!" Another voice broke the silence, and stunned Sam twisted around- Daniel stood there helplessly, his leg and ankle still swathed in bandages- only this time, they were soaked in water. " Sam, please wake up. Please!"
" Wait a minute Daniel," her father interrupted, " There's something I have to tell her..."
Sam looked back to her father in confusion. Tell her what? What did her father possibly have to tell her? Gravely, he lowered his eyes, and dipped his head. When he looked back at her, they glowed, and he spoke in a metallic, dual voice.
" Follow your heart Samantha," Selmac murmured, " or you'll lose what you need the most."
"...I love you with my heart and soul..." Daniel's voice was a faint whisper, weakening, a shadow hovering over him.
No!
"No!"Sam jerked awake, mumbling in protest, as Daniel's hand slipped from her own. Her fingers were curled oddly around a thin metal chain, and groaning in pain, she brought it closer to her face- and froze. It was Daniel's dog-tags- water still dripping from them.
"Daniel?" she called softly, her voice warbling, echoing around the hollow of the cave. Water, as dark as Hell, gushed from the hole in the roof, slowly filling the cave like a tap would with a sink. "Daniel!"
A brief flash of deep gold caught her panicked gaze, and biting back a whimper of pain, she crawled to the edge of the ledge, the cold, damp rock scraping against her red, raw, blistered frozen skin. " Oh my God, Daniel!" His face was just visible beneath the surface of the dark water, his hair swirling around his ashen white face, his eyes closed as he slowly sunk to the pit of the cave. A whimper- not of pain, but of fear and horror- tore through Sam's throat, and without even pausing to think, she dove forward, her hand outstretched, plunging into the water, latching onto the lapels of his tee-shirt.
" Come on Daniel- help me. Don't die!" she sobbed, her shoulders heaving. With failing strength she tugged at his tee-shirt, slowly pulling him back to the surface. His head bobbed on the surface, as his body broke through, and she let out another sob of relief. " I've got you..."
Please Daniel...please, just hold on...she chanted silently.
Daniel was still unconscious, his face waxen, blood from his crushed leg, clouding the water. Inwardly, she repeated the chant, like a mantra. With her other arm, she looped it around his waist, and panting with the effort, hauled him up. He crumpled bonelessly on top of her, water dribbling from the corner of his mouth. With trembling fingers, she ignored the dull aching pain, and reached for the pulse point in his neck. There was a tense pause, as for a brief moment, she panicked, thinking she was too late...then... "Oh thank God, you're still here!"
Still here, but not for much longer,she reproachfully added- his skin was like ice, slick with icy cold water, and red raw streaks of an infection crept up the side of his leg and ankle.God, I have to get you warm...
With a strangled cry, she pushed Daniel off her body, so that he lay next to Nyan. There wasn't enough room for the three of them, so Sam inched herself over to Daniel, and blushing at the thought, she draped herself over him, clinging to his sodden chest, pressing her body against his.
"...I love you with my heat and soul..."Those soft words had been part of her dream, hadn't they? They hadn't been real. She glanced down at his ashen face, and full lips, and realized she didn't care. She was dying, Daniel was dying- hell, even Nyan was dying. Whether Daniel's words had been real or not, no longer mattered to her- the fact was, he had still said he loved her, even if it was just in her dreams. With one trembling, raw, blistered finger, she traced the curve of his full lips, of his jaw, cheekbone, and then the smooth firm muscles of his chest. Pulling her finger away, she touched her own lips. She didn't have the strength to reach forward and actually kiss him, so decided to improvise.
She pressed her finger back against his lips, and closed her eyes. She was so tired- all she had to do was to succumb to the darkness, and all the pain, all the anger and all the adventures would cease- she would die, with Daniel by her side. As the wave of darkness lapped against her, stealing her flagging strength, she whispered hoarsely into Daniel's ear; " I love you Daniel. It doesn't matter if you don't feel the same way...what matters is, I love you unlike anything I've loved before. I'm sorry..."
Her body sagged, her arm stretched across his chest, her finger still pressed to his lips, as her eyes closed.
She knew she wouldn't open them again.
It was night-fall when the door gave way- the snow that had previously barricaded it, had now melted. Jack, too exhausted to even whoop with joy, simply tugged it open, wincing when it grated against the stone floor.
" Teal'c?" he called weakly, hope flickering in the hollow of his chest. Outside, the majority of the snow had melted into a gray slush, and bright, white spots dotted the purple velvet sky. The moon hung solemnly, glowing brightly, casting its silver glow across the green fields, giving Jack his first view of the place they had stopped at. Trees- traditional evergreen firs- surrounded them, the only break from their imposing stance, the road they had entered the surroundings by. In the distance, he could make out the blurred shape of the van, twisted and crushed horribly by the avalanche, lying on its side. He swallowed with difficulty- if the avalanche could do that to an army truck, what the hell could it do with three human beings?
" I am here O'Neill." Teal'c's voice was weak, as he staggered into the warehouse- Jack grimaced as he caught site of his bloodied hands. The Jaffa was shivering, and automatically, the Colonel pushed him towards the group of soldiers huddled in the corner by the radiator.
" Sir, what are you thinking of doing?" Sarah Harseley's voice broke through his reverie as O'Neill stumbled away from the group, tugging on his thick jacket, forcing thin, useless gloves they had found in the storage compartment of the warehouse. Her ashen face was taut with concern, as she hugged her thin body self-consciously.
" What do you think?" Jack asked bitterly, as he weakly picked up the pick-axe he had used with Johnson to break open the door. Johnson himself had crumpled to the floor over an hour ago, finally succumbing to his exhaustion- Jack had been forced to drag his body over to the group of people. " I'm going to find Daniel, Carter and Nyan."
Sarah, wincing, latched onto the lapels of his jacket, pulling him back.
" Alone? Sir, it's dark out there, and you'd be alone."
" Well, that lot are hardly in condition to travel, are they?" Jack retorted, trying to pull his arm away from the woman. He was surprised when he couldn't even move it.
" And neither are you sir," Sarah gently reminded him, tugging him over to the group. " Sir, with all due respect, there isn't anything you can do for them- not in this condition. We can search tomorrow, when we can see where we're going."
Jack, his face crumpling in disappointment, bitterly allowed himself to be lead over to the group. His knees, protesting, gave way, as he half-collapsed against Janet Fraisier. He barely noticed when an emergency blanket was draped over his shoulders, or when Sarah moved away, crawling back into her place amongst the sleeping soldiers- with the exception of Teal'c, who had put himself into a condition of Kel'no'reem.
...search for them tomorrow...tomorrow...
His last thought, as sleep claimed the Colonel, was,you hold out Carter, Danny, Nyan, y'hear?
"Jack!"
A voice, soft and disembodied was disturbing him- exhausted and cold, Jack snorted, and tried to turn over- except someone was blocking him, as another person grasped his shoulders, shaking him into semi-consciousness.
" Colonel, sir!"
Grouchily, he cracked open half-frozen eyes, and blinked in confusion. Doctor Fraisier and Cassandra were peering down at him in confusion. Janet was scowling. Jack jerked himself into full consciousness, cursing himself. He had pushed himself to the brink of exhaustion, and hadn't even noticed when the first shafts of warm daylight had inched forward with long tapering fingers.
" Considering what you did Colonel," Janet was saying in annoyance, " I would be well within my rights to sedate you until we can figure a way out of here." She glanced out of the warehouse, to where both SG-7 and 9 had gathered, and Jack blinked as he realized he had been moved closer to the door- to allow fresh air to bring him into consciousness. " But considering the dire situation Sam, Daniel and Nyan are in, I won't. We need you, sir."
Wincing, Jack pulled himself from the ground, and stood on shaky legs. He was still tired, but felt oddly refreshed as well, worry for his friends, fuelling his adrenaline. Wilson broke away from SG-7, moving closer to him.
" General Hammond called why you were unconscious sir," he told him, " A helicopter's been sent with SG-12. They should be arriving in a few hours time."
That old son of a gun...he came through for us...
Jack smiled wanly, and lifting a pick-axe from the stony floor, he left the warehouse, half-supported by Janet. Several pairs of eyes turned to face him expectantly, and briefly he noted the gray circles of exhaustion marking the soldiers faces. Cassandra shuffled past him, and clung stubbornly to Teal'c. At the arch of his eyebrow, she jutted out her jaw petulantly, and announced, " I'm coming too. I want to help find Sam and Daniel."
His military mind taking over, he nodded.
" Okay, Cassandra, Fraisier, Teal'c, and SG-9, you're with me. SG-7, I want you to move into an open space where the Copter's most likely to see you, and hail them down." He rubbed his hands- despite the warmth now filtering into the area, he was still cold. His eyes darkened momentarily, as he darkly added; " We want to find them alive people."
The sky was a pale cornflower blue, marking the late morning. Cassandra, her long mousy brown hair tucked into her coat, shivered, and stumbled forward.They had been searching for hours- but there were so many places to search. They had already passed the crushed van- Jack, Janet and SG-9 had paled when they spotted a patch of dried blood staining the chipped metal-, and were now venturing further away from the warehouse.
Please Uncle Daniel, please Sam...please be okay...
She gave a sudden shriek as the earth suddenly collapsed beneath her, her hands darting forward, clawing at the side. She was all too aware of her body swinging perilously beneath her, and her grip loosening...
"Cassandra!" the joint voices of Jack and Janet caused her to raise wide, fearful blue-gray eyes. They were moving closer, stumbling over to her. They would never reach her in time though...
" Cassandra Fraisier, do not worry. I have you secured." Teal'c's rich voice boomed in her ear, as strong hands placed themselves around her waist, lifting her from the crevasse. Her heart beating wildly, she clung to the Jaffa, her eyes wide with terror. Janet was ashen, and had a trembling placed over her mouth. She was shooting Cassandra looks of wild concern- but at the same time, she wasn't looking at her- she was looking behind her...
Shaking, Cassandra twisted her head around. The earth had opened to reveal a deep crevasse- a dark pool of water- Cassandra leant closer- and the bodies of Sam, Daniel and Nyan entangled together. They were so pale that it was difficult to tell if they were alive or not.
" Johnson!" Jack barked shakily, ushering the Captain over. " Do you have any rope? We've found them." His face pale, Johnson shook his head.
" No si-"
They were interrupted by several things at once- the wild beating of metallic wings against the wind, Wilson's sudden yell of joy, and another familiar voice, projected by a loudspeaker;
" SG-1, 7 and 9 this General Hammond. Stay back- I repeat stay back. We are preparing to land."
Jack, despite the situation, gave a whoop of joy; they were saved.
Her entire body ached, and the disembodied fragments of conservation echoed painfully in her mind.
" They'll be okay Nyan...we found you just in time..."
" Thank you Doctor Fraisier..."
Groaning in the effort it cost her, Sam forced her eyes open, and blinked in surprise. Above her, was a bleak gray ceiling, and underneath her, a soft white mattress. Janet, her eyes exhausted, dressed in an Infirmary gown, with a dressing gown on top, hurried over to her. Her hair, Sam noted with faint amusement, was mussed with sleep.
" Janet," she murmured in recognition. Janet grinned, tears glistening in her eyes.
" What happened?"
" We were locked in the warehouse- that's why myself, SG-7, 9, Colonel O'Neill and Cassie are in hospital as well- and we managed to contact the General. A few days later, the snow melted, we conducted a search and found you guys. God you scared me Sam- both you and Daniel stopped breathing at one point- you've been in a drug-induced coma for nearly an entire week." The Doctor paused to swallow back a sob, and smiled feebly at her friend. Weakly, Sam glanced down at herself- she was swathed in bandages- of course, the blisters caused by the ice- and her ankle was propped up in the air. " Of course, I should be asking you the same thing. Did you three find out what the problem was?"
Sam inched herself tentatively up the bed, and scrubbed her ashen face with a pale, trembling hand, noting the I.V running from the back of it. Peering between her fingers, she nodded mutely.
" I, ah, we found Steven Strattenburg's body in the cave. He had a Touchstone on him- a Touchstone that was permanently stuck on a symbol. We figured that was what was creating the bad weather, and destroyed it." She inhaled sharply, and glanced to her left. Next to her bed, was Daniel, unconscious, swathed in bandages much like herself, his leg encased in a cast, hanging in the air. A bandage was wrapped around his head, where he had hit himself. He was pale- and looked fragile. Janet caught her concerned gaze, and softly supplied;
" He's going to be fine Sam. He's go a severe concussion, broken leg and ankle, but he's going to be fine. He's just sedated at the moment."
Sam nodded dumbly, and then frowned as she gazed around the room- Cassie was curled up, asleep in her hospital gown, in a nearby chair, on Captian Johnson's lap- who Sam noted with a vague smile, was also asleep. Most of the other team members lay asleep, or reading in their prospective beds. Everyone except Teal'c and Jack were there.
" Janet," she mumbled sleepily, " Where are the Colonel and Teal'c?"
" Talking to General Hammond-" Janet smiled gently when Sam's face registered her surprise, "- he came with SG-12 to rescue us. They should be back in a few minutes though."
There was moments silence, disturbed only by the twin beeping of her own, and Daniel's heart monitor, and then, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes, Sam looked up to Janet.
" Wha- what happened to Steven's body?" she finally asked, sneaking a glance to Daniel's slackened form. Janet's face blanched, and she sighed heavily. She remembered finding the body shortly after the dying bodies of her friends had been lifted from the cave- it had been bloated, a sickly white and had stunk. It hadn't been hard to miss.
" One of the Doctors did an autopsy Sam. He had a heart attack, from what I can tell, several months ago, but was preserved in ice- you were at the epicenter of the bad weather." She glanced over to Daniel as well, her face blanching even more so. " It's going to be hard Sam. You'll all need counseling...it just doesn't seem fair that everything bad happens to your team." The young Doctor was babbling, and finally, she stopped speaking, and stared at the floor.
" But you should know Sam, we'll be there every step of the way."
Daniel's body ached all over, but in his state of semi-awareness, he was glad to find that the fiery red pain that had lanced through his crushed leg, ankle and head, had faded to a dull roar.
Is this death? It's kind of disappointing...
Someone was holding his hand, gently stroking it, and speaking- not to him- but someone else in the world outside his bubble of unconsciousness. Daniel suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to wake up- he wanted to live, dammit, he wanted to open his eyes and tell Sam to her face he loved her...
He didn't even know until it had happened, that his eyes had opened, into thin slits. A blurry face with creamy, bruised and scratched skin, untidy pale blonde hair, and bright blue eyes stared down at him, a smile spreading across her face.
Looks like I'll get my chance...
" Sam?" he finally settled for, his voice clogged with sleep, coming out as a mere croak. Sam grinned exhaustedly. She was, Daniel noted, swathed in bandages, an emergency blanket draped over her shoulders to keep her warm.
" Yeah," she whispered back. " You saved me Daniel. You saved me, and when you slipped back under the water, I woke up and realized what you had done." Tears suddenly glazed her eyes, and she bit her lip, continuing in a hoarse voice, "You shouldn't have done it Daniel. God, I was so scared when I dragged you back up. I thought you were dead."
Daniel chuckled hollowly, and smiled feebly up at her.
" I had to Sam. I couldn't let you and Nyan die. Not when you have a chance with Jack." He froze at the same time as Sam, a crimson flush dancing across his cheeks.
Did I just say that?
Sam snorted suddenly, her eyes widening in disbelief.
" You thought I was in love with the Colonel?" she asked in vague disbelief. Another chuckle ripped through her throat- both bitter and amused. " God Daniel, I couldn't go near military men ever again after Jonas. What the hell gave you that idea?"
Daniel smiled feebly at his own stupidity, and in an attempt to justify himself, he feebly mumbled; " You had two realities backing you up...and your face when the alternate Sam kissed him..."
" I was just shocked Daniel. I hadn't expected anything like that. And Daniel, I don't care about the other two realities. What makes them different is different things happened- I never married Jonas for example." She paused for a breath of air, and smiled suddenly, her cheeks dimpling. " Daniel the only reality I care about isthisone."
Daniel was both shocked, and deliriously happy- as his blue eyes widened, and his fingers curled protectively around Sam's hand.
" Good," he finally weakly said, " because Sam I have to tell you something."
The young Major's heart lurched expectantly, and unconsciously, she tightened her grip on his hand.
Oh God, he really doesn't love me...
" Sam, I may not be totally over Sha're, but I love you. I love you with my heart and soul."
...I love you with my heart and soul...
Sam stared at him, shocked, as he continued breathlessly.
" And I know that was really inapp-" Sam cut him off with a wave of her hand.
" Daniel, don't. I love you. I don't love Jack, Martouf, Nareem or anyone else. I loveyou, you dumb asshole."
And I always have,she silently finished.
Epilogue:
" You have always been a thorn in their side, but to me you're my shining light.."
Both Sam and I have been taken off duty for a little while- me to recover from my broken leg and ankle, her to recover from her sprained ankle. It also allowed her to look after me for the time that we were off. It feels weird, knowing over a year ago, I hadn't even realized I was in love with her, even when I had a vague notion we were close when I was turned into a child... I've moved into her apartment from the time being- I don't think I'll ever go back to my old one. We're taking it slowly though- I'm staying in the spare room- we both know the risks, and right now, I value our friendship and love too much to throw it away with a quick fling.
For lack of a better word though, we've been dating for several months. Jacob seems quite proud, and even Selmac beams happily when she/he sees us together.
And as Jack told me shortly after I left the hospital;
" We have our entire future ahead of us. Who needs to rush?"
Taken from the personal extract of Doctor Daniel Jackson's diary.
The End.
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