Title: Old Debts 5:
Nothing’s Permanent
Author: MajelB
E-Mail: majelitab@lycos.com
Status: WIP
Category:
action/adventure, h/c, angst, drama
Spoilers: Fair Game,
Tok’ra, very minor ones for The Nox, Solitudes, and Hathor
Season: 3, after FIAD, but
before A Hundred Days
Series: Old Debts
Rating: PG-13
Content Warnings:
language, character death
Summary: So, there were a couple of snags in the escape plan…
“Ah, shit! Goddamn son
of a—Teal’c! Here, take the Zat.” Jack handed Teal’c the weapon and
waved him over to the cover of the pillar he had been hiding behind, ignoring
his concerned expression. “I’ll be fine, just fire the damn gun!” Teal’c
nodded ever so slightly and began firing down the corridor at the advancing
Jaffa.
Jack took a moment to
examine his wound. No matter how many times he was hurt, it never got any easier
for him. He really didn’t like pain, but unfortunately, the Goa’uld
did. Hence the oh so imaginative design of the staff weapon.
The burn really wasn’t
that bad. Sure, there was a tiny, really small… kinda big hole in his
stomach. Nothing to worry about though. He’d had worse. Right? ‘Course
you have, Jack. You’ll be fine. Just ignore the gray blotches swimming around
in front of you, Jack. They’re not really there. Hey, you’ve lost more blood
than that lots of times, just don’t think about it. Don’t think about it
Jack, you’re not done here, yet…
“Colonel!” Hey,
when’d you get here, Carter? She was kneeling beside him, trying to peel
his hands away from his wound so she could get a better look at the damage.
***“Mind if I have a
look, Sir?”
“At what?”
“Well, let’s just
say you were wounded… Wow! That’s a miracle!”
“Crunches.”
***
A miracle. He could really
use one right now.
“Sir? How’re you
doing?” Carter asked, trying valiantly to hide a cringe when she saw the full
extent of Jack’s injury. She covered it with what Jack knew to be one very
fake smile.
“How do ya’ think?”
He grunted, painfully. She looked around at the battle going on around them. Her
eyes darted uncertainly before refocusing on him again. That damned patronizing
smile was back.
“Want me to put a splint
on it, Sir?”
He almost laughed, though
it came out a little more choked than he would have liked. Damn blood. “Very
funny, Carter.” A genuine smile lit her face for a split second.
“No giggling, Sir.” He
grunted a chuckle, resulting in a slight trickle of blood materializing on his
lip. Okay, this is bad. This is very, very bad. Hey, he’d died before,
knew what it felt like. It felt remarkably like he did now, actually. This is
very bad…
“Sir?” Carter again.
What was she doing, yelling across the Grand Canyon? How the hell did she get so
far away so damn fast? He could barely hear her…
*
*
*
*
Shit! “Colonel?
Colonel! Jack, c’mon, stay with me! Dammit, Colonel, I am not taking
you home in a box, now open your eyes, Airman! Shit. Teal’c, I-,” And
suddenly, the corridor went dead silent. Sam looked around again, looked to
Teal’c, who appeared as puzzled as she was.
Sam then looked to Daniel,
who had crouched on the floor next to the wall where she had left him. The look
on his face mirrored her own horror as he stared at the Colonel’s limp body.
She was so stupid! Daniel had been right. She never should have suggested
that they go back into the compound. They should have just taken their chances
in the forest. This never would have happened if she hadn’t been such an idiot…
“Major Carter, what is
O’Neill’s condition?”
She blinked hard in
disbelief as she pulled her fingers away from his neck. She didn’t think her
mouth could form the words…
“Sam?”
“He’s dead,” she
replied, finally, her voice devoid of emotion. He DIED protecting us.
Neither man said a word.
What could they say? In the last two days, they had watched two of their closest
friends die. Two… Dammit! Why didn’t I think?!
Sam’s expression changed
in an instant from one of fear and grief to one of hope. She began to loop her
arms under the Colonel’s, preparing to drag his body to—
“Sam! What are you doing?”
Sam stopped for a second and waited for Daniel to cross the hall. Sam sighed,
overwhelmed by the adrenaline now coursing through her. She had to hurry. There
wasn’t much time.
“Daniel, would you just think
for one second?” He gave her a blank stare, startled momentarily by the
unusual sharpness of her tongue. She hadn’t meant to be so cold, but her
impatience had manifested itself without really consulting her first. She tried
to calm down and start again.
“Daniel, why do you
think I’m here?” Daniel’s jaw dropped in sudden realization.
“Sarcophagus?”
“Yes, Daniel.” He ran
a hand through his hair in a very O’Neill-esque maneuver, glancing down the
hall at where the Jaffa had been, concerned by their sudden vanishing act. Sam
started situating the Colonel for travel again.
“Um, Sam?”
“What, Daniel?” She
snapped. Man, her arm hurt!
“Don’t you think
it’ll be guarded?”
“Maybe,” she replied,
without looking up from her task.
“Oh. Well… just making
sure you knew, is all.” She gave him a weak smile as a thank-you for dropping
his concerns.
“Teal’c,” Sam said,
“Take Daniel and keep heading for the armory. Get what you can, and we’ll
try to meet you there. If… if we’re not there in 30 minutes, we probably
won’t get there at all, and you need to take this,” she pulled the Tok’ra
remote device from her pocket, “And get to the throne room. Press the orange
crystal to activate the panel and take the tunnel all the way to the ‘Gate.”
Teal’c nodded his
agreement with her plan and handed her the Zat. “You may need this more than
I, Major Carter.”
“Thanks, Teal’c.”
She took the weapon and handed him the knife. “Here. At least you’ll have
something.”
“Um, Sam-,” Sam lifted
her head, face positively exuding exasperation. Daniel wasn’t stupid enough to
miss it.
“Good luck. Bring him
back to us, Sam.” She smiled.
“Yeah, you too. Be
careful.” Sam watched as half her team turned and ran down the corridor, then
she looked back down at her prone charge.
“C’mon, Colonel.
We’re off to see the wizard.”
Sam couldn’t decide
which was worse—the eerie silence of the corridor, or the fact that she had
taken to talking to the cooling corpse of her CO—using his stupid Wizard of
Oz clichés, no less…
*
*
*
*
It was quiet. Too quiet,
thought Daniel, as he closely followed the big, dark blob he knew to be Teal’c.
“We are very close, now,
Daniel Jackson. Remain as near to me as possible,” Teal’c whispered. Daniel
nodded. Teal’c was poking his head around a corner, looking at what Daniel
assumed to be the entrance to the armory. A smaller dark blob attached to his
friend began waving. Daniel caught the signal and followed closely when Teal’c
started to move again. They cautiously approached the closed door.
“Remain here until I
return. There are most likely Jaffa inside. I will attempt to take them by
surprise.” Daniel nodded again in reply. Teal’c bowed his head ever so
slightly and touched a button on the panel beside the door, causing it to slide
silently open. Daniel began holding his breath as Teal’c slipped through the
doorway.
After a very quiet and
tense few seconds, Daniel heard the sounds of a scuffle followed by the sound of
a Zat discharging. Daniel jumped, startled by it, and prepared himself for the
worst, tensing as he heard footsteps approaching the doorway. He sucked in an
unsteady breath, hoping to God that it was Teal’c.
“Daniel Jackson.” Oh,
thank God! Teal’c wasn’t whispering, but speaking in a normal tone.
“Teal’c? Are you
okay?” Daniel replied, peeking his head through the open door. He was greeted
by the sight of two Jaffa lying motionless on the ground. There was a pool of
blood growing around one and the other was just… lying there. Must be the
one he Zatted.
“I am, Daniel
Jackson.”
Daniel walked into the
room and looked around, searching for any signs of their confiscated gear.
“Any luck finding a GDO
or any of our other stuff?” he asked Teal’c, who shook his head slightly in
reply.
“I have not yet had the
opportunity to search.” Daniel’s eyes darted back toward the door, a frown
crossing his face.
“Well, let’s get that
door closed and start looking, shall we?”
*
*
*
*
Jeez, Daniel. You’re
really on a roll, Sam thought as she
observed the two guards standing watch outside the sarcophagus room. Daniel had
been right again.
Sam had laid the Colonel
down against the wall behind a pylon several yards away so she could creep
forward and gauge the situation a little better. She was still having trouble
getting over the recent lack of force in the ‘attempt’ to recapture the
team. With our luck, they’ll all be sitting out by the ‘Gate waiting to
shoot us when we get there. Sam did her best to shrug off the uneasy feeling
in the pit of her stomach and concentrate on the task at hand.
She crept slowly and
quietly down the corridor, drawing her Zat. Two quick shots, Sam. That’s
all you need to do. Fire, aim, fire.
Sam stopped as soon as she
knew she was in range and hid herself behind a pylon. The guard’s weren’t
paying any attention to her end of the corridor, and she used their oversight
against them. She looked over at them, bringing her Zat up to fire, and pulled
the trigger. One of the Jaffa fell, writhing, to the floor. The other reacted to
the attack instantly, bringing his staff weapon to bear. He didn’t have the
chance to fire, though, as she deftly pulled the trigger once again. He joined
his counterpart on the ground.
Checking the hallway
behind her, she turned and ran back to where she had left the Colonel. She knelt
down and got a good grip on his body and continued dragging him to their
destination.
As soon as we get back,
Sir, you need to go on a diet. She
hauled him as quickly as she could to the room’s entrance, touched a few
buttons on the keypad beside the door, and sighed in relief as it slid open. The
room was empty, save the life-giving piece of technology. She pulled the Colonel
inside and made sure the door closed behind her.
A few more steps and they
were there. Sam opened the sarcophagus and sighed deeply. Okay, this is going
to be hard. Favoring her injured appendage, Sam rallied her strength and,
quite ungracefully, managed to pull the Colonel up and into the device. She
waited the few seconds until its ‘hatch’ closed over him, before collapsing
onto the floor, leaning against the embossed gold of the machine, to catch her
breath.
*
*
*
*
There was noise all around him. Lots and lots of very loud noise. And light. Little streaks of lightning bursting everywhere. Too many and too close. The damn Zat was too slow. There were a bunch of Jaffa down the corridor and it didn’t seem like he was able to hit a single God-forsaken one.
Teal’c, Carter, and
Daniel were there. He could see them out of the corner of his eye. Somewhere in
his mind, he was able to marvel at the detail he could see in their faces, even
though he was barely paying attention to them. He was entirely focused on firing
his Zat, on protecting those faces that could always tell him so much with
merely a glance…
Dammit! They were just
too far away. He and his team were outnumbered, but he kept firing as though his
life depended on it. Hell, his life did depend on it!
He let his mind wander
for just a second as he began to consider escape routes, when one of those
little streaks of lightning came flying at him.
He saw it. Heard it.
Knew exactly where it was going to hit. He knew all of this in one blinding
split second of epiphany. Unfortunately, it only took a split second for the
bolt to sear into him—
“Holy shit!”
Jack sat up like a shot, blinked a couple of times, then ran his hand over the
skin of his belly, just to make sure there wasn’t a hole there like there had
been in his rather vivid dream. He got the distinct impression that wherever he
was, he shouldn’t be there.
He turned his head,
looking around the dimly lit room, searching for some clue as to what had
happened. He didn’t usually wake up feeling so… disoriented.
He’d been lying down, he
was in something, and his hand brushed some raised gold… Son of a—
Faster than he thought
possible, considering that just a few minutes ago he had been dead, Jack
climbed over the side of the sarcophagus and jumped down, preparing to sprint
toward the door a short distance away. He was actually about as panicked as he
ever had been.
He felt a small, but
strong hand grip his bare shoulder from behind and, acting on instinct alone,
spun around and swung his fist indiscriminately at his assailant. Just before
impact, he saw a blonde head duck out of the way, and suddenly, there was a hand
on his other shoulder too. Carter held fast as he figured out what was going on,
and waited patiently for the recognition that would finally grace his features.
“Carter? What the
hell…” He moved his hands to her upper arms, needing to make sure she was
real. She winced when he touched her wound, but didn’t pull away.
“Yeah, glad to see you
too, Colonel,” she said with a hint of sarcasm. He grimaced, remembering that
he had just taken a swing at her.
“Yeah, uh, sorry about
that…”
“Don’t worry about it.
You okay?”
“Uh, yeah. I guess
so,” Jack responded, taking another look at his gut for confirmation. “Uh…
how long was I…”
“About half an hour, I
think. The sarcophagus took a little longer than I thought it would.”
“Where’s Teal’c and
Daniel?” Jack asked, looking around the room again, expecting to find them.
“I sent them ahead to
the armory. Told them to give us 30 minutes, then head to the throne room with
the remote. They should be there by now,” Carter answered.
“Well, then. Let’s go
join the party, shall we?”
*
*
*
*
“We have arrived,”
Teal’c commented, gradually coming to a halt near a large double door.
“So, uh, what then? We
just go in shooting? Shouldn’t we wait for Jack and Sam?” Teal’c observed
the younger man standing next to him for a moment as he considered his answer.
Daniel Jackson stood awkwardly against the wall, weighed down by two P-90’s
slung over his shoulders and the Zat’nik’atel hanging from his waistband.
His eyes were earnestly searching Teal’c’s for the answer he so desperately
wanted to hear- and that Teal’c desperately wanted to give. That they would
not be leaving their friends behind.
Teal’c released an
uncharacteristic sigh. They had been fortunate. In fact, their equipment had
been stored in a locked section of the compound’s armory. All of it. It had
not been difficult for the two men to obtain their weapons and GDO’s, but the
operation had taken long enough to where, upon its completion, they had expected
to see Major Carter and O’Neill walk in at any moment. They did not arrive and
after several long moments of waiting, they had shouldered what they could and
taken their leave.
“Major Carter’s orders
were clear, Daniel Jackson.”
Daniel’s eyes jerked to
the door and then back to Teal’c. “You’re not saying we should leave them
behind, are you?” he asked incredulously. Teal’c was certain the man
intended to make him feel guilty with the slow, deliberate tone of his voice.
“I am not. I am
suggesting that we enter the room and assure that our escape route is clear. We
will then wait for Major Carter and O’Neill to arrive.”
“What if they don’t
arrive?” Daniel asked quietly, voice barely audible, even for Teal’c.
“Major Carter will
succeed in reviving O’Neill, Daniel Jackson, and they will find their way
here. They are very capable warriors and will not fail.”
“I hope you’re
right…” Daniel mumbled as he moved to the other side of the doorway. He gave
Teal’c a nod, signaling his readiness to move into the room as he drew his
Zat’nik’atel and shoved the rifles behind him. Teal’c nodded back,
gripping his staff weapon in one hand, and fingering the panel beside the door
with the other. It slid open.
Teal’c poked his head
cautiously around the doorframe and looked inside. He could not see anyone. He
turned to Daniel Jackson and signaled him to follow as Teal’c entered the
room, weapon still at the ready. The room was, in fact, empty. Teal’c lowered
his staff and looked to his companion as he began to walk casually over to his
location in the middle of the room.
“So what now?”
“Now, we wait.”
Teal’c had just begun to
pull the Tok’ra remote from his pocket when the large doors behind him began
to slide open once again. Daniel Jackson tensed beside him and both men
simultaneously drew their weapons. The tip of a Zat’nik’atel became visible
in the doorway and Teal’c aimed his staff. A hand soon came into view as well.
Followed by an arm, and finally a silver-crowned head. O’Neill.
Teal’c lowered his
staff, infinitely relieved to see his friend. O’Neill’s eyes scanned the
room and stopped when they met Teal’c’s gaze. He lowered the
Zat’nik’atel and turned back to the hall. When he finally walked into the
throne room, Major Carter was following, barely two steps behind, constantly
looking over her shoulder. The doors slid shut behind them.
“O’Neill. I am pleased
to see you are well.” Teal’c bowed his head slightly and O’Neill smiled
back, though it quickly faded.
“Uh, yeah. Thanks buddy.
Look, it’s great to see you guys and stuff, too, but there was a patrol
following us pretty close. D’ya think we could get out of here? Now?”
Teal’c responded by handing Major Carter the Tok’ra remote. She got the hint and strode to the wall behind the throne and opened the panel. O’Neill nodded to her and, with another look back at the doorway, she crawled into the dark space. The three men were not far behind and Teal'c saw the panel close behind him just as the room’s double doors opened.
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