Grabbing Jack eagerly by the arm, he led them inside what appeared to be a small cave mouth, concealed by the back of a sand dune. Once inside, it was immediately obvious that it was not a natural cave. Hidden lights flickered on as they crossed the threshold, coming from somewhere behind the walls. The weird blue light cast no shadow, but caused a script of some kind to appear on a pedestal in the center of the room. The pedestal was about one meter high, circular in shape. The script resemble the Egyptian Demotic, but had a number of Greek characters in it, which seemed to both confuse and delight Daniel, who was excitedly filming every square inch of it. He reached out almost reverently to touch the pedestal, and jumped back when the top of it slid open silently, to reveal a carved stone container.
The same script on the pedestal was engraved on the stone. Daniel reached out to touch the stone, but Jack stopped him,
"Daniel," The Colonel put a rising note at the end of Daniel's name, the warning clearly evident in his voice.
"Do you think that's a good idea? They might object to you touching one of their holy things." He got no farther before the ground began to shake violently. Daniel lost his footing and fell to the floor, his head hitting it with a thump. The video camera dropped to the floor as well, still recording.
Jack saw the stone bouncing it's way across the top of the pedestal and tried to reach it before it fell. He dove for it as it reached the edge. His fingers grazed it's surface an instant before it connected with the floor, cracking along the middle and revealing a hollow core. Nobody noticed the flicker of shadow that crossed from the stone box to Jack an instant before the lights died.
The shaking subsided and Jack stood up groggily, bleeding from a small scalp wound caused by a falling rock. He flicked his torch on and swept the beam around the cave floor. The beam fell on Sam, her still form laying in the corner. Jack dragged himself over there as fast as he could, fearing the worst. Rolling her over, he cupped her face in his hands as he shook her gently.
"Sam," worry etched his face as he waited for a response.
"Sam, wake up." She groaned as her eyes flickered open, meeting his brown ones. Jack brushed a stray wisp of hair from her face as he said,
"You OK?" Sam smiled and nodded, wincing as she remembered her sore skull. Seeing the sudden flash of concern on her CO's face, she said,
"Really sir, I'm OK…the Air Force may have a lot of things wrong, but they do know how to make a helmet." She reached up under the helmet and touched a sore spot. Wincing again, she continued,
"I'll have a bump, apart from that, there's nothing wrong." Jack helped her slowly to her feet, sweeping the torch beam once more around the room. Seeing the as yet unmoved form that was SG-1's whipping boy, Jack leant Carter against the wall and went to see how Daniel was.
Kneeling down next to Jackson, Jack felt the large, silent Teal'c approach from behind. Jack looked up at him and said,
"Well, I think Danny's gonna need Doc Frasier's help with this one. Better get him back to base ASAP." His face as expressionless as ever, the Jaff'a replied,
"I agree O'Neill. Daniel Jackson must be returned immediately." Never even showing a flicker on his face, Teal'c bent down and picked the fallen archaeologist up effortlessly. With Jack helping the still-groggy Major, and Teal'c carrying the unconscious archaeologist, they left the cave and returned to the Gate.
Jack punched in Earth's coordinates while Sam sent the G.D.O through. Teal'c stepped through the event horizon first, Jack holding his arm out for Sam, saying,
"Ladies first…" Sam smiled at his slightly mocking tone and went through. Jack paused before entering. He turned and looked back the way they had come, a brief wave of nausea washing over him. Just for an instant, before he moved into the activated wormhole, hid eyes pulsed an ugly, glowing red…
"We need a medic down here!!!" Jack's bellow echoed around the 'Gate room as the wormhole disengaged behind him. He turned to face one of the doors as a medical crew came in at the double. They had taken to being on standby whenever SG-1 was on a mission, since they usually came back either followed by angry Jaff'a, looking like they had gone ten rounds Mike Tyson, or both.
They placed Daniel on a gurney with practiced efficiency, one of them checking his pupils before he was even laid down. Jack sent Carter with the doctors as they left, heading for the sick bay. He turned to glance up at the control room, where General Hammond stood, the concern for his best team evident even from that distance.
The General picked up a microphone, speaking into it.
"Colonel O'Neill, debriefing in thirty, if you're up to it." Jack threw him a weary salute as he and Teal'c headed off to the sick bay for the routine post-mission checkup., pausing only to dump their packs.
Jack sat on the clean, white sheets of one of the beds in the sick bay, complaining loudly.
"Ow! Doctor, do you have to do that?" His expression of petulant irritation caused Janet to smile inwardly. Outside, however, she remained stern. She picked up a needle, flicking the tip with one fingernail before pushing it into Jack's arm slowly.
"Colonel O'Neill," she said, "You know as well as I do that we all need to go through these tests. Now sit still or I'll se that you come in here tomorrow as well for some more." Sighing, Jack decided that getting in a final comment wasn't worth the risk.
Janet withdrew the syringe, now filled with Jack's blood. She placed it on a tray next to her and picked up a penlight. Turning it on, she flicked the beam into the Colonel's eyes. Jack felt a small wave of nausea wash through him as the light hit his eyes. Janet frowned as Jack's irises started expanding and contracting wildly. Seeing her the look on her face, Jack asked,
"What? What's wrong?" Janet turned the penlight off and reached for another instrument, saying,
"Well Colonel, you seem to be having some difficulties with your eyes. I'm going to have to keep you in here overnight for observation." She glanced back at him. Before he could voice what was on his mind, she answered for him,
"And yes, I'm sure about that, no arguments." She handed him a tasteless green surgical gown and ushered him over to a bed, drawing the curtains closed to give him some privacy while he changed. As Jack emerged, Teal'c asked,
"Doctor Frasier, how are Major Carter and Daniel Jackson?" Janet wheeled a tray full of glistening surgical tools away while she answered,
"Well, the Major has a mild concussion, and a lump or two. Dr. Jackson, on the other hand, will be in here for at least another two days. He has some concussion, a sprained wrist, and a cracked rib." Feeling more than slightly stupid in the gown, Jack said,
"Well, looks like ol' Danny has stayed true to form then. Is he awake yet?" Janet held the door open for them as they left, saying,
"Yes he is Colonel. You know where his room is?" Jack turned, a half-amused expression on his face.
"The usual?"
"You got it. 316a, where he always is." Jack headed off towards Daniel's room, complaining to Teal'c about the surgical gown as he went.
The door opened suddenly, Jack and Teal'c moving quickly over to Daniel's bedside.
"How are ya Danny?" Daniel's eyes flickered open. When he saw who it was, he answered,
"Not much worse than usual, Jack." He paused, thinking for a moment.
"Did you remember the camcorder?"
"Yes Daniel, we still have your rocks on tape." Seeing Daniel draw breath to utter the standard reply, Jack said,
"And yes, Daniel, I know they're called 'artifacts', but we can wait until you're better before we argue about that." He looked up as Sam opened the door, a bandage around her head, making her hair stick up crazily. A mixed look of sardonic humor and concern crossed Jack's face as he said,
"How's the head, Major?" Sam gave him a half smile as she moved over to the bedside, saying,
"Feels like I've been out all night drinking." Her eyes noted the surgical gown Jack was wearing, before she said,
"What did Janet have to say to you?" Sighing, Jack rolled his eyes as he answered,
"Something about my pupils not being right. So I'm stuck in here overnight for 'observation', which means being a pincushion , I guess." A teasing smile settled on Sam's lips as she said,
"Aw, my poor little Colonel." Jack raised his eyebrows. He had seen the flicker of concern in here eyes just before she covered it up.
*She's learning some of my tricks now…Who'd have thought she could hide so well behind sarcasm?* She saw his surprise, her unspoken reply hanging in the air between them.
*I had a good teacher.* Daniel, aware that something had just happened, but unsure what it was, looked at their faces. Seeing the slightly vague, distant expression, his irrepressible curiosity coming out. Before he could say something about it, they both seemed to shake themselves back to earth. Jack reached out and affectionately ruffled Daniel's hair, saying,
"Well, Daniel, since you're all right, I guess I'd better be getting some sleep." Sam glanced at her watch in surprise. Realizing that it was 10:30 already, she stood up as well.
"G'night Daniel. Sleep well." Sam turned to face Teal'c. The big Jaffa had not moved since he had entered the room, still standing at the side of the bed, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Teal'c, are you going to get some sleep tonight?" Teal'c glanced at the now-sleeping form in the bed. Raising his eyes once more to the blonde Major, he said,
"I will remain, Major Carter." His sole concession to spending the night by the bedside was to pull up a chair and sit down. Sam smiled to herself as she left the room. As she was closing the door, she heard Teal'c deep voice saying softly
"Daniel Jackson, I would appreciate it if you would not do this so often. I was very concerned." Sam shut the door with a faint click.
Jack leaned against the wall, feeling a wave of sickness wash across him. So intent was he on not throwing up, he was unprepared for the attack that came from inside his head. He didn't even have time to react before everything was covered in a red haze and he felt his control of his body suspended. Hearing a faint click behind him, he saw himself raise his hand to his forehead, rubbing at the temples.
"Are you all right sir?" Sam's voice sounded worried.
*No Carter, I'm just fine! I'm stuck in my body, and I have no control over it. Things are just peachy!* Somehow, this thought never got to his mouth. What came out was
"I'm fine Major. Goodnight." Startled at his abrupt reply, Sam stared as Jack turned and headed off down the corridor to his quarters. She had gone another ten paces before she realized that he was still wearing his surgical gown.
"Sir? Colonel? Are you in there?" Sam knocked on the door to Jack's quarters. She had hurried to them as soon as she remembered that he was supposed to be in observation tonight. She turned the door handle slightly and began to open the door. It had moved only a few centimeters before it was slammed closed so hard that it rattled Sam's teeth. She froze as she heard the Colonel's voice come from inside.
"Leave me, now!" The voice was undoubtedly Jack's, but somehow different. It was harder, harsher than normal, and so cold that it gave her shivers down her spine. There was a slight distortion of the vowels that reminded her chillingly of the Goa'uld. Wasting no more time, she spun around, heading off to the infirmary as fast as she could go.
Janet was cleaning up her desk, preparing to go home when she glanced at the bed in the observation room.
*Why isn't the Colonel in here yet?* She thought. She got no further before the door was slammed open, admitting the puffing, red cheeked form of Sam.
"Sam! What are you doing in here?" Janet's startled exclamation caused Sam to raise her head, managing to pant out
"Come quick! Jack something wrong." She gasped for breath as Janet handed her a glass of water.
"Slow down Sam. Take some deep breaths. There now…what's happened to the Colonel?" Sam took a gulp of water before she settled herself, saying,
"There's something wrong with him. He had a headache when he left Daniel's room, and went to his room. I knew that he should be in here tonight, so I went to his room to tell him, in case he had forgotten. He slammed the door in my face, and told me to leave." Janet's eyebrows shot up so high that they were almost lost in her fringe.
"Why would he do that?"
"I have no idea, Janet, but he sounded sorta like a Goa'uld, only different." Janet whipped around and saw the fear in Sam's eyes.
"Let's go, Sam."
"Where?"
"The weapons cupboard, where else?" They ran to the ordinance section, removing some heave duty tranquilizer guns, loading them as they ran to Jack's quarters.
They paused a few meters from Jack's door, Sam holding up her hand for Janet to stop. The doctor looked at Sam, frowning, wondering why they had stopped.
"Janet, we need a plan. If we just burst in there, someone's gonna get hurt." Janet saw Sam's eyes fill with worry.
"We'll only use as much force as is necessary Sam. What do you suggest?" Carter only paused for a second before saying
"I won't say anything. I'll open the door and move around him. You wait out here until I say 'what the hell has gotten into you', the you come in, and shoot him. Sound good to you?"
"Best plan we're going to get on short notice. Let's do it." They moved quietly over to the door. Sam slowly reached her hand out. Swiftly, she opened the door and stepped into the room. Jack stood with his back to the door, whipping around as soon as he heard it open. A feral grin locked itself onto his face as he saw who it was.
"I warned you once, Samantha I told you to get out." He started walking slowly, menacingly towards her, his hands outstretched. His voice sounded like nails being dragged across a blackboard, and his eyes had a faint reddish cast to them. The glow intensified as he slowed down, his outstretched arms shaking as he fought the creature inside him. With a shudder, his eyes went an inky black.
"I'm going to enjoy this. Hurting you will hurt him even more." Sam edged her way around him, keeping close to the walls, the tranquilizer gun tucked in the small of her back.
"Oh? I thought you were supposed to be in observation tonight sir." Beads of sweat broke out on her forehead as she continued her slow movement around the room. Jack's hollow, black eyes glinted in the dim light.
"Since you insist, I think I'll head down there when I'm done here. I have some unfinished business to attend to in there." Sam noted that the door was now directly behind Jack. Raising her voice slightly, she said,
"Jack, what the hell's gotten into you?" Sam kept talking as she saw Janet's figure step into the doorway, using her voice to cover the doctor's footsteps. You'd think you were a Goa'uld the way you're acting." Janet raised the gun and fired, hitting Jack next to the spine. He spun around, preparing to attack the doctor, when Sam pulled out her gun as well. It took a further tow shots to bring him down, the black film draining from his eyes as he hit the floor.
Jack opened his eyes and groaned, trying to turn over. He tugged harder, wondering why he couldn't move more than a few inches. Glancing at his wrists, he saw that they were tied tightly to the sides of the bed. A quick attempt at moving his legs told him that they were bound just as tightly. Janet's worried face came into focus above him, saying,
"How are you, Colonel?" Her words sounded to Jack like they came from a long way off, and he felt like he was wearing ear-muffs. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus his thoughts. Speaking around a tongue that felt like it was the size of a potato, he said
"Wh't h'ppn'd?" He felt someone stroking his hand with their fingers. Rolling his head slowly, he saw a very worried Sam, absently running her thumbs across the back of his hand. He threw her a small smile as Janet said
"What was the last thing you remember, Colonel?" Jack frowned, thinking. At last, his voice clearer, he said
"Talking to Daniel. I checked my watch, and then…nothing, 'til now." He looked at the doctor for a few seconds before continuing,
"And why am I tied up like a Christmas turkey?" Janet sighed to herself.
*Well, I never expected this job to be easy. They didn't teach you how to deal with this at med school, but who counted on something like this even existing?* Checking his pulse, she said,
"Apparently, you've been possessed by something, probably from P9J-863. It took you over, and you tried to attack the Major." Jack's eyes flew around, looking at Sam. Before he could say anything, she said
"It's ok, Colonel, I'm fine."
"Anyway," Janet continued, "we managed to bring you down with some tranquilizers, and we've been keeping you sedated since then. You've been out for the whole night." She checked his pulse before holding a glass of water up to his lips for him to sip. She said,
"You had us all worried, Colonel." She left the room to tell Daniel and Teal'c what had happened, leaving Sam and Jack alone. Jack looked anxiously at Sam.
"You sure I didn't…" Sam quickly cut him off, saying,
""Honestly, sir, I'm perfectly fine." Jack gave her a grateful smile before closing his eyes slowly.
"I'm sorry Carter," he whispered, on the edge of sleep again. "I'm sorry for what I was going to do." Sam brushed some hair from his forehead, her fingers lingering slightly longer than was necessary.
"Sleep well, Jack." She took Jack's hand in her own, linking her fingers with his, before she closed her own eyes, succumbing quickly to sleep.
"Daniel," Janet's voice was loud and firm as she stood above the stricken archaeologist, her hands on her hips.
"You are not going back to P9J-863, no matter what. You are staying in that bed until I say you can get out of it, understood?" She glared fiercely at him. Daniel held her steely glare for a few seconds before giving up. Waving his hands around, he gesticulated as he said,
"Well, what am I supposed to do then? Just lay around all day while my best friend's being held hostage in his own body by an alien?" Janet sighed.
*This isn't going to be easy…* "Daniel, you can do whatever you want to help Colonel O'Neill, as long as you don't get out of this bed, for any reason, do I make myself clear?" Daniel rolled his eyes.
Yes Doctor." He thought for a split second, his eyes lighting up. "Can you bring a T.V in here? and my camcorder?" Janet grinned at his enthusiasm, answering,
"Yes, Daniel, we can. Just don't over do it." She left the room, telling an orderly to organize Daniel's T.V as she went.
Daniel watched the tape from the camcorder again, searching for some hint as to how Jack had been possessed. He saw his hands stretch out, reaching for the stone box. The image went all shaky as the camcorder dropped to the floor. He heard the crash as the box hit the floor, shattering open. He only just caught the slight black flicker that crossed the screen before Jack rolled to his feet. Rewinding the machine, Daniel played it again slower. Again, the box broke. From the shards, a black shadow emerged, like a genie from a lamp. Daniel slowed the VCR even further. Frame by frame, he watched as the shadow seemed to sniff the air for a fraction of a second, before diving at Jack. Entering his open mouth, it disappeared, Jack's eyes flashing an ugly red, fading almost before it was noticed.
Daniel excitedly reached over to the panel of instruments at the bedside, thumping the emergency button. Seconds later, Janet rushed into the room, followed by two more doctors. Seeing that Daniel was not in any immediate danger, Janet sent the other doctors to check on Jack. Frowning at the linguist who was practically bouncing off the roof, she said,
"What's the matter Daniel?" He pointed to the T.V screen excitedly.
"Look at this Janet…" He rewound a few frames and let it play in slow motion. Janet's jaw almost hit the floor when she saw the thing enter the Colonel. Grinning, Daniel said
"I think we've found our alien!" Shaking her head to clear away the shock, Janet asked,
"Well, now we've found it, how do we get it out of him?" Daniel frowned, scratching his had with his uninjured hand.
"Can you bring me some paper and a pen? And some coffee?" Already, he had rewound the tape to the point where it showed the interior of the cave. His eyes were scanning the inscriptions on the pedestal. Janet grinned and went to find Daniel some coffee.
Sam looked up, her face tired and hollow. Janet walked into the room, a tight grin on her face. The grin faded as she took in Sam's haggard appearance.
"Sam, have you left his side since we brought him in?" Rubbing the sleep from her eyes with her free hand, Sam shook her head. Janet sighed again. Rolling her eyes, she said
"Sam, am I going to have to order you to get some rest and a shower?" Sam's head jerked down to look at Jack, who had opened his eyes and muttered
"She's right, Sam, you need rest." He looked at Janet, wondering what she was doing in there again. Seeing the question on his lips, Janet answered.
"Well, Colonel, it seems like Daniel has discovered what you've got in you." She paused as both of them gave her their full attention, a rare occurrence when both of them were in the same room together.
"He watched the video tape that he shot back on P9J-863. Something that looks like a shadow of some kind came out of that stone box when it hit the ground." Jack looked puzzled for a second before his eyes rolled back into his head. He shuddered for an instant, his eyes coming back to their normal position. The red glow pulsed again, fading to the terrible blackness they possessed before they brought him into the infirmary.
"Supplicate, servos!" He jerked his arms furiously, trying to get free. Sam pulled her hand away quickly, looking at Janet. The doctor checked the tubes and dials surrounding the struggling man. She pressed a button, allowing more sedative to flow into the drip attached to Jack's arm. His eyes darted around the room, glaring angrily at the doctor.
"Ego Dominus Umbras sum. Supplicate!" His struggling subsided slightly as the sedative began to take effect. Janet didn't even need Sam to ask the question. She answered, a frown forming.
"It seems that he's becoming immune to the sedatives…I've upped the dosage, but I can't keep on increasing it indefinitely." Jack raised his head once more, obviously fighting the drugs.
"You have not beaten me! I can kill your friend at a moment's notice!" A grin crossed Jack's tormented face as the heart monitor next to the bed emitted the long, drawn out beep that signaled a heart failure. Instantly, four medics rushed into the room, wheeling the portable defibrillator with them. Janet picked up the paddles and smeared some clear gel on them, rubbing them together. She pulled the sheet down from around Jack's chin and placed the paddles on his chest.
"Let's give him 250 Joules" There was a rising whine as the machine charged up, before Janet said
"Clear!" A jolt ran through Jack's body, causing Sam to flinch in sympathy. Janet checked the monitor.
"Try it again at 350." Again, Jack's body convulsed as the current hit him. This time, a steady beep beep from the machine signaled the all clear. Placing the paddles back with the be-fib machine, Janet quickly checked all Jack's vitals. Seeing that everything was steady, she turned to the medics, saying,
"Let's get him into the ICU. I want him on a heart-lung machine ASAP. Let's stop this happening again, people." As the bed was wheeled out, Janet placed a comforting arm around Sam's shoulders. She saw the tears that Sam was bravely trying to hold back. She drew a handkerchief out of her sleeve and handed it to her.
"It's ok, Sam, it won't happen again." Janet said, rubbing up and down Sam's back with her hand as the Major wiped her eyes.
"We'll fix him up."
