Offworld

by DreamWvr73

Colonel O'Neill and his team have to take along an unexpected guest on a routine mission.

General George Hammond typed away on his laptop when a knock came to his door. He turned towards it, closing the computer. "Come."

The grey door opened and Colonel O'Neill came in, dressed in medium blue pants and a black t-shirt. "You sent for me sir?"

"Yes I did Colonel, have a seat."

Jack closed the door and sat down in the chair in front of the general's desk. "Is something wrong sir?"

Hammond leaned back in his chair. "Colonel, the reason I sent for you is because we've got a small situation."

He looked puzzled, tightening his lips a little. "We do?"

The chair sat forward again and Hammond folded his hands in front of him. "Jack, when Lieutenant MacKenzie broke her ankle, she and the rest of the medical staff were only a few days away from their combat duty recertification."

Jack nodded. "Yes sir, but her ankle is almost healed now."

"Yes I know, but she still missed her chance for recertification." Hammond got up and walked around his desk, sitting on the edge of it. "Because of the upcoming negotiations with the Tok'ra, most of the SG teams won't be available to help her get re-certified, except one."

The answer, as plain as day hit the colonel, who leaned forward wiping his hand down his face. "She has to go with SG-1 to P2B552, doesn't she?"

"I'm afraid so."

Jack sat up, nodding. "Don't worry sir, despite the fact she's my fiancée doesn't give her any kind of special privileges or treatment."

"I know that Colonel, I'm sure the lieutenant will do well."

"I better let her know what's going on."

"Dismissed." Hammond gave him a nod and watched as the colonel got up and left the room.

Gillian still walked on her crutches. Her ankle felt better but she wasn't about to try walking on it until her doctor gave her the okay. She stood by a microscope, leaning over and peering through the eyepieces. Her white coat draped over the chair, leaving her in her light blue uniform shirt and dark blue pants.

"Lieutenant?"

Doctor Frasier came in; the petite woman in her white coat, her reddish hair put up in a French twist. "How's it going in here?"

The nurse practitioner pulled back from the eyepiece. "Fine, did you need anything?"

Janet smiled. "Actually I'm here to give you some good news. I spoke to Doctor Travis and he said that I can take some pictures of your ankle and if everything looks good I can cut your cast off."

Gillian's eyes widened a little. "Really? That's great! I'm so tired of this thing." She turned off the microscope and picked her crutches up tucking them under her arms.

"Come on, let's get you to X-ray." Janet put a hand on her back as the young woman made her way to the door.

Jack walked into the infirmary, his eyebrows up as he saw his fiancée sitting on a bed. Out of uniform, she now had on a grey Air Force t-shirt and matching shorts.

Janet and an orderly were standing on either side of her and the tall man dressed in white bent down and carefully lifted Gillian's leg, setting it on a metal stool.

"Hi… what's going on?"

Gillian smiled when she saw her fiancé. "I'm getting my cast off."

"Oh! Already?" Jack sat down beside her and folded his hands in front of him.

The orderly bent down and stuck his fingers in the slit. He gave a pull and the two ends cracked open like an eggshell.  He carefully took the now demolished cast from around the lieutenant's foot.

"There we go."

Gillian sighed looking down at her pale, slightly hairy ankle; a side effect of being covered up for four weeks.

"Oh that feels so much better."

The orderly disappeared, taking the cast with him.

Janet took her goggles off. "Okay, that's the easy part. Can you move it?"

"I think so." Gillian moved her ankle from side to side and flexed it.

"Good, now I want you to get up and try to walk on it." She glanced at Jack. "Can you help Colonel?"

"Of course." Jack got up and stood in front of Gillian, holding out his hands. "Come on, time to get up."

Gillian placed her hands in Jack's and took a deep breath. "Okay."

Janet stood back. "Don't put any weight on it just yet; let Colonel O'Neill pull you up."

"All right." Gillian gave her fiancé a smile.

Jack stepped back and gripped the red haired woman's hands pulling her off of the bed. She stood on one leg and glanced at Janet. "Can I try it now?"

"Okay, go ahead."

Gillian put her foot down and stood, her weight on both legs. She looked down at her ankle. "Well it feels okay."

"Try walking; just remember its normal for there to be a little weakness at first."

Jack kept a hold of her left hand as he walked around her and got a good grip on her elbow. "Ready?"

"I think so."

They stepped together and Jack stood still, letting go of his fiancée. Gillian swallowed hard as she started walking around on her own. She sighed as she turned around and faced the only two people in the infirmary. "Well, I think it works."

"It'd say it does." Janet gave her a smile. "Just don't go run any marathons or anything." She patted Gillian on the shoulder as she left the infirmary.

Gillian went back over to Jack and hugged him. "Feels so good to be out of that cast!"

"I know the feeling, believe me." He pulled back giving her a quick kiss, his face growing serious. "We need to talk."

"Uh oh…I know that look." Gillian ran her hand down his chest. "What's wrong?"

Jack sighed. "Your broken ankle kept you from getting recertified in combat duty."

"Yeah I know, Janet told me all about the fun she and the nurses had with SG-3." Gillian creased her brow. "I have to go to with SG-3 on a mission?"

"No, SG-3 and the other teams will be involved with the Tok'ra."

"So who am I going to be with to get my certification?"

The colonel tilted his head to one side. "I'll give you one guess."

His fiancée's eyes grew wide. "SG-1? But that means that you'll be my…commanding officer."

"I know what it means; I also know we don't have a choice. Without that certification you can't take on hazardous duty and it means you can't work in this mountain." Jack touched her face gently. "We're going to P2B552 on a simple reconnaissance. It shouldn't be any big deal and as long as you do as I say, it'll be quick and painless."

Gillian nodded. "I know, we'll be colonel and lieutenant. Our personal relationship will be left back on Earth."

"Exactly."

"So when do we leave?"

Jack touched her nose with his. "At the end of the week."

His fiancée sighed. "Three days huh, well that's not a lot of time."

"No, its not." The tip of her nose got kissed. "I still have to tell Sam, Teal'c and Daniel that you'll be coming with us."

Gillian checked her watch. "It's quitting time Jack, why don't we just go home and we can tell SG-1 at the mission briefing." She smiled, planting tiny kisses on Jack's lips. "Now that my ankle is fine, I want to properly thank you for taking such good care of me."

"Oh I like the sound of that." Jack rubbed himself against her, snaking down her body before coming back up; his groin rubbing against hers with determination. "Just how grateful are you?"

The young woman groaned, feeling his pubic bone grinding against hers along with something else. "Let's go home and I'll show you."

Jack nodded, his hands roaming up and down her back. "All right, let me grab my keys and we'll go." He kissed her hard before reluctantly letting go and leaving the infirmary.

As soon as they got in the house they were all over each other, kissing so hard and fast they were barely aware of the still open front door. Jack kicked it closed as he grabbed his fiancée under her arms and lifted her, setting her across his right shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Jack! Put me down!" Gillian laughed as she teetered over her fiancé's back, feeling his arm slung across her waist.

Jack headed straight for the bedroom, not saying one word as he opened the door and went over to the bed.

Gillian found herself flung off Jack's shoulder and onto the mattress, bouncing once. She propped herself on her elbows and smiled at the man towering over her curling her finger at him.

"Right this way Colonel."

He bent down and untied off his boots and slipped off his jacket, dropping it on the floor. He climbed up the bed, eyeing his fiancée with a heated gaze that made the young woman swallow hard; Jack had the look of a stalking beast as he crawled over her. He dropped down onto her, his mouth crushing hers as they both pulled and pushed their way out of their clothes.

Jack kicked his boxers off and slid his knee between Gillian's, opening them up.

The young woman wrapped her arms around him rubbing her body against his, almost frantic with desire. "Please Baby, I want you."

He nodded his head, giving her a soft tender kiss as he pushed fully into her, a deep sigh escaping his lips.

Gillian whimpered as her legs wrapped around his back, finally being able to now that her cast had been taken off.

Jack closed his eyes, relishing in the feel of the woman lying beneath him; soft, beautiful, and more importantly, his. He could feel the wild beating of her heart against his and the warmth of her body only spurred him on.

Gillian held him close, her hands sliding down his back clutching the skin as her body buzzed with pleasure. The rest of the world disappeared, melted away leaving only the two of them.  She tensed suddenly, her legs squeezing Jack as a combination of a sob and moan came out of her mouth; her fingernails grazed across his shoulder blades.

Jack gasped and slammed hard into her, his body shaking as a wave of pleasure rolled down his spine. He opened his eyes and looked down at Gillian seeing her wide eyed expression. He dropped his head and kissed her, pressing his forehead to hers as his breathing calmed down.

The young woman smiled. "Jack?"

"Yeah?" He sighed as he pressed his face against the side of her neck.

Gillian's hands slid up his back to stroke his hair. "Did I thank you properly for taking care of me?"

"Yeah, but you didn't have to."

Jack gave his fiancée another kiss and he rolled off of her and pulled her against his chest. A deeply contented sigh came out of him as he stroked her back.

"So where's Jack?" Daniel poured himself a cup of coffee in a white mug and added a spoonful of sugar as he pulled out the leather chair and sat down.

Daniel, Sam and Teal'c were in the briefing room, the pre-mission briefing about to begin in a few minutes and still no sign of the colonel.

Sam looked over a white folder and closed it, setting it back down on the table.

"I haven't seen him."

"Let's go people." Hammond came into the room, taking his place at the head of the table. He sat down with a sigh and looked around. "Where's Colonel O'Neill?"

Teal'c sat beside Daniel; he turned his head slowly to acknowledge the general's question. "We do not know General Hammond, perhaps he is delayed preparing for our mission."

Jack suddenly rushed in the room, followed by Gillian.

"Sorry I'm late." He turned around and cleared his throat at the young woman wearing the same uniform everyone had on, a black t-shirt with olive drab pants and jacket.

"Have a seat Lieutenant." Jack stared at her, the look in his eyes reminding her of the talk they had about how things had to be on this mission.

Gillian gave him a nod. "Yes sir." She crossed the room and pulled out the chair beside Sam and sat down. All eyes were on her and she tried to ignore their stares.

Hammond cleared his throat. "Dr. Jackson, would you like to begin?"

Daniel pushed his coffee mug aside and opened the folder in front of him and stood up.

"Yes sir." He looked down at the paper and licked his lips. "As you all know we're going to P2B552, preliminary data from the probe indicates jungle terrain."

The computer monitor on the rolling cart got pushed closer to the table and Daniel picked up the black remote and aimed it at the screen. "Now as you can see it's a typical jungle, lots of trees, heavy foliage, etc." The screen depicted what Daniel talked about, nothing but a sea of green leaves and tall trees as far as the eyes could see in every direction.

"But when the UAV did a fly by it took pictures of this." Daniel clicked on the remote and another picture came on the screen.  What looked like a demolished building appeared on the monitor, there were light grey bricks scattered everywhere. Each room could be clearly seen, some of the walls more deteriorated then others looking like a group of grey squares slapped together.

"As you can see, these are ruins; they appear to be Aztec in origin."

Jack creased his brow. "So we're going to play Indiana Jones?"

Sam smirked, trying not to laugh. "The UAV didn't pick up any signs of life, or any structures other than these ruins."

Gillian leaned forward a little. "So Colonel O'Neill is correct?"

Daniel clicked the screen off. "Right, should be pretty simple."

Teal'c sat across from Gillian; he looked at her raising an eyebrow. "Are you coming with us Lieutenant MacKenzie?"

Sam and Daniel both shifted their gaze to the nurse practitioner. He sat back down in his chair and pushed up his glasses.

"Are you?"

Gillian started to open her mouth when Jack spoke up. "Actually I have to talk to you all about that after the debriefing ends."

Hammond stood up. "As far as I'm concerned Colonel the debriefing is over. You and your team have a go; prepare to ship out in one hour." He gave the people gathered around the redwood table a nod.

"Dismissed."

The general left the room as Jack stood up.

"Okay kids, to answer Daniel's question yes, Lieutenant MacKenzie will be going with us." He glanced at each member of his team. "As you all know she was in a car accident that took place right before her combat duty certification. Her injury prevented her from going with the rest of the medical staff and due to a time limit and the Tok'ra she has no other choice but to go with us."

Jack checked his watch. "You heard what the general said we ship out in one hour. So let's get ready to go."

"Yes sir, see you in the gate room." Sam got out of her chair and pushed it back in. "Uhh Gillian, do you need help getting ready?"

Gillian grinned as she stood up. "Considering I have no idea where anything is, yes thank you."

"Come on, I'll show you." Sam had a smile on her face as the two women left.

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Is it me or does Sam seem pretty happy about not being the only girl on this mission?"

Jack sat sidesaddle on the edge of the table, folding his hands in his lap.

"It's not you Daniel." He turned and looked at Daniel and Teal'c. "Come on boys, let's go."

Gillian slung her P90 over her shoulder and adjusted it against her side.  She ran her hand down her black vest and zipped it up. She looked down at the vest and touched her sidearm and knife.

"Wow you guys carry a lot."

"Yeah I know, but you get used to it." Sam patted her on the back as they stood in front of the blast door. She pulled her card key from her pocket and slid it down the lock.
Gillian and Sam stepped through the sliding metal door, and saw the three men waiting for them at the bottom of the ramp. Jack gave her a small approving smile.

"Ready to ship out Lieutenant?"

"Yes sir, ready as I'll ever be." She had a green boonie on her head and she pulled it off to rest on the back of her neck.

"Chevron seven locked."

Everyone turned towards the gate to see the vortex whoosh out towards them before snapping back into the wormhole.

"SG-1 you have a go, see you in 48 hours."

Jack faced the control room and smiled. "Yes sir." He glanced at his team. "Let's move out kids."

Teal'c and Daniel stepped onto the ramp followed by Sam and Gillian.

The two men slipped through the puddle but Gillian stopped right in front of it. She reached out and touched the water, expecting it to be wet but then surprised when it wasn't.

Sam smiled at her amazement. "Neat huh?"

"Yeah, I haven't been this close to it in a long time."

Jack stood behind her. "Just step into it Lieutenant, it's a piece of cake, remember?"

Gillian turned around and looked at him, swallowing hard. She saw the trust in his eyes and nodded.

"Yes sir." She pulled her boonie back on her head and looked at Sam. "Shall we Major?"

Sam nodded. "Let's go."

The two women hopped through the puddle at the same time, followed by Jack.

Gillian found herself rolling down a set of stone steps, ending up flat on her back looking up at her teammates. Her heart thumped madly in her chest and her whole body tingled from her trip through the gate.

"Wow! Incredible!"

Daniel and Teal'c took a hold of each one of her arms and helped her up.

"You okay Gillian?" Daniel asked, seeing her wide eyes. She looked like a kid who just went on her first roller coaster ride.

"Yeah Daniel, I'm okay. Thank you." Gillian brushed off her uniform as she looked around.

The gate sat literally in the middle of the jungle, the clearing carved out of the thick leaves and trees. The air felt heavy and clammy, the high moisture content evident.

"All right kids, let's get comfy here." Jack took his backpack off and set it beside him as he unzipped his vest and took his jacket off. He tied it securely to his backpack and slipped his vest over his black t-shirt.

"Ahh, that's better." He put his pack back on, slipped his sunglasses over his eyes and walked down the steps.

Gillian also took her jacket off, stuffing it into a compartment on her pack before returning it across her shoulders. The lack of jacket did make her feel cooler but she could still feel the sweat starting to break out all over her body from the humidity.

Sam took her yellow probe out of her pack and turned it on, waving the wand back and forth. "Temperature 94 degrees, humidity, 100%." She walked around a little taking readings as she looked up at the tall trees that hovered over them.

Teal'c stood beside Daniel, his dark eyes roaming the wilderness terrain all around them. "It feels very wrong here O'Neill."

Jack walked over to him, his hands on his hips as he scanned the foliage. "Wrong? Can you elaborate a little?"

"I cannot, but something is out there." Teal'c's grip on his staff weapon tightened.

"Well that's good enough for me, Daniel which direction are those ruins?"

Daniel reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper and opened it. "Uhhh according to the UAV we have to go due east."

"East." Jack picked up his gun from where it dangled against his hip, keeping his eyes focused directly on the area right in front of them. "Let's move out kids."

"Yes sir." Sam put her scanner away and put her backpack on. She checked her P90 and held it firmly in her hands as they started walking.

Gillian wiped her brow as she did the same, holding the large gun close to her chest. She walked beside her commanding officer scanning the foliage.

Jack pulled off his sunglasses, seeing how tense and stiff the young woman seemed. "It's all right Lieutenant, take it easy."

She turned towards him, nodding. "Yes sir."

Teal'c moved farther ahead of everyone else, using his staff weapon to brush back the long leaves. "There is a trail here; perhaps it leads to the ruins."

Jack slung his gun over his shoulder and took his knife out, using it as a machete to make tromping through the brush a little easier.

"Damn! Where's a weed eater when you need one?" He whacked off a few heavy leaves and dropped them to the ground.

Sam pulled her knife out, chopping as she walked. "Does make things more difficult doesn't it?"

A leaf slapped Jack right in the face, spreading across his cheeks like a hand. He gave an annoyed sigh as he brushed it away and cut it down.

"Oh just a tad. Makes me wish I had a can of napalm handy." He kept walking and another branch hit him in the stomach. Jack hunched over a little and slowly turned his head to look at the archaeologist.

"Daniel these ruins better be worth getting smacked by leaves and all the sweat that's settling in the crack of my--"

Teal'c suddenly stopped, raising his hand as everyone took defensive positions, their guns at the ready.

"What? What is it Teal'c?"  Jack sheathed his knife and grabbed his P90, raising it.

The Jaffa said nothing, only slowly looked around. "My symbiote has become agitated."

"Junior's picking up something?"

"Yes."

Gillian shifted her gun to her shoulder and went over to Teal'c. She touched her hand to his stomach gently. "The only things that can agitate a Goa'uld are the Reetou and other Goa'uld."   

Teal'c shook his head. "I do not believe it is a Reetou."

Jack lowered the P90. "So it's another Goa'uld? Junior's picking up what? A brother or sister?" He peered over is shoulder at Carter. "I thought this planet's pretty much deserted."

The blond woman shrugged.  "Not necessarily sir, just because the UAV didn't pick up any life signs doesn't mean there's no life here."

The Jaffa raised his head, his face taking on a calm expression. "It has stopped."

A loud shrill scream cut through the air, sending a shiver down the spine of all who heard it.

Gillian's eyes grew round. "What was that?"

Both of Daniel's eyebrows went up. "That scream sounded like it came from the direction of the ruins."

Jack sighed, shouldering his weapon. "I don't like this, let's just hurry up and get there."

The team reached the ruins a few hours later; exactly as the UAV photos had shown. The structure, indeed Aztec in origin, had many fragments of pottery and tools lying among the smashed walls and scattered bricks.  

Daniel filmed each room carefully, his excitement evident from the sparkling of his blue eyes.

There were many distinct carvings on some of them and he took great pains to write down all the information he could. Between his notes and footage, he would have his work cut out for him.

Gillian had been told to check out the north side of the ruins, she gripped her gun tightly as she slowly and carefully looked around for any sign of recent activity.

Nothing…just the sound of her own heart beating hard in her chest and her breathing.

The blazing sun did little to take away the eeriness of the ruins and the scream played over and over in her mind. The sound was heart stopping and her imagination as to what may have caused it only heightened her paranoia.

A large broken wall stood directly in front of her and she kicked a few bricks aside as she skirted it.

The walls of the room were covered with drawings of various scenes from Aztec life.

Gillian stepped further in; gazing over every inch of the small room. She passed what looked like a broken altar when she suddenly stumbled on something.

Gillian recovered her footing and whipping around, she saw what made her stumble and her eyes grew wide. A body lay just under the altar.

It appeared to be a young woman lying on her side, arm extended out; her long black hair spread out on the ground. Multicolored embroidery decorated the small white skirt around her waist and on the ties around her back.

Gillian slung her gun over her shoulder and crouched down, touching the young woman on the shoulder and rolling her onto her back.

"Oh my God."

A large gaping wound as clear as day lay in the center of her chest; blood soaked through her white cotton bikini top and pooled around her on the ground.

Gillian touched her radio and pressed the mike. "Colonel, come in."

"Go ahead Lieutenant."

The young woman appeared to be in her early twenties; attractive with high cheekbones and full lips, her dark eyes were open and glazed over with death.

"You better come to the north room, I've found something."

"We'll be right there."

Jack pulled his sunglasses off as he looked at the body. "Well this would explain the scream we heard." He saw her chest wound and glanced up at the nurse practitioner.

"Knife wound?"

"Yes sir, a big one."

Daniel crouched down and checked out the young woman's clothes. "Definitely Aztec, a sacrifice probably to Quetzalcoatl."

"Who?" Jack creased his brow. "What's that name again?"

"Quetzalcoatl, a serpent god of the Aztecs."

Gillian's eyes grew wide. "Serpent God? As in a Goa'uld?"

"Well… I didn't really think about it like that but yeah." Daniel stood up and went over to the walls, pulling his boonie off of his head.  "I guess the Goa'uld didn't just use Egyptian gods for power and intimidation." A faded drawing on the wall of a feathered serpent got Daniel's attention.

"See this is him."

"Oh terrific." Jack straightened up. "So you're telling me that they killed that girl for this Koala bear guy but he's really a Goa'uld?"

"Doesn't that look like a Goa'uld? And Teal'c's symbiote seems to be picking up the presence of one."

Jack took a closer look at the drawing. "Well it sure is ugly enough." He pressed the button on his radio. "Carter?"

"Here sir, did you find anything?"

"Yeah we found a body, looks like a human sacrifice. Daniel says we're dealing a Goa'uld posing as an Aztec god. Meet us here as soon as you can, we're going to send a message through to Hammond and see what he wants us to do."

"Right sir, see you soon."

Jack let go of the radio and reached behind him, pulling a folded up shovel off his pack. "We should bury her, it's the least we can do."

Daniel nodded as he pulled his backpack off and got his shovel out. "Right, let's find a nice place for her to rest."

"So who is this Aztec God?" Sam and Gillian were carefully putting the major's sensors away, winding up the wires.

"Quetzalcoatl." Daniel and Teal'c finished packing and he went over to lend a hand to the girls.

"Well there's not a whole lot known about him actually. There are some legends that say he is the Mesoamerican version of Jesus Christ with light skin and blond hair, later on his own people forced him to leave. But then there are also stories that claim he had a King for his father and his mother abandoned him by putting him in a basket that she threw into a river. Some stories say he discouraged human sacrifice, while others say he didn't."

Gillian shook her head as she rolled up more wiring. "With so many different stories how is anyone supposed to know the truth?"

Jack slipped on his backpack over his shoulders. "Well that body we buried tells me which story is true."

Teal'c got ready faster than anyone else, his pack firmly on his back. He had a wide stance, his staff weapon in his hands. "I have never heard of this Goa'uld, perhaps he is not a powerful one among the System Lords."

Sam stood up, holding her pack in her hands. "Maybe, or maybe not."

Gillian set her pack across her shoulders. "His power or lack thereof is immaterial, the fact is he's a Goa'uld, lord knows how many serve him and there's just the five of us. The minute they know we're here we'll be in serious trouble."

"Which is exactly why we're going to contact General Hammond." Jack adjusted his cap and slipped his sunglasses on. "We need to advise him about the current situation and see what he wants us to do." He looked at Daniel, Teal'c and Gillian. "We'll be right back, you three stay here and continue packing everything up."

Gillian nodded as she stood up. "Yes sir, we'll be here waiting."

"Yeah go ahead; I'm not in a hurry to leave anyway." Daniel had his camera, peering through the eyepiece as he shot more footage of the broken walls and weathered drawings. Gillian joined him, gazing at all the unique pictures of typical Aztec life.

Teal'c watched them and wandered over to where the colonel and major stood. "Are you sure you do not wish me to accompany you O'Neill?"

"No, you stay here Teal'c." He glanced casually at Gillian before meeting the Jaffa's eyes. "We'll be all right."

Teal'c gave the colonel a nod. "I will wait here then."

Carter put her cap on her head and pulled the bill down a little. "Ready to go sir."

"All right, let's go." 

Jack and Sam walked off, heading towards the clearing and the gate.

"All right Major, dial it up."

Jack held is P90 in his hands, scanning the jungle all around them. His Special Op instincts kicked up and he pulled his sunglasses off studying the gently bobbing leaves with an experienced, trained eye. Something about this area made him feel uneasy and he hated that feeling.

"Want to step on it Carter?"

"Yes sir." Sam pressed the seven keys, the gate coming to life in front of her; each chevron lighting up in sequence with a slight click.  She put her hand on the dome; fingers splayed over it as the weight of her palm sunk it down and activated the gate.

Jack tucked his P90 at his side and pulled his vest closer to his mouth, pressing the button on his radio.

"General Hammond this is SG-1, do you copy over?" He let go of the mike and waited for a response. "Come on…"

Sam watched him seeing the way he flexed his fingers, an obvious sign of his impatience.

"It does take several seconds for the transmission to travel through the wormhole sir."

"Yeah I know." Jack rubbed his fingers across his eyes. "I'm just not what you would call a patient guy."

Carter smirked a little, nodding. "I never would have guessed sir."

Jack tilted his head, giving the major a sideways glance. He started to open his mouth when static came over his radio.

"This is Hammond SG-1, you're timing is perfect Colonel. We just got word from the Tok'ra; Jacob needs Major Carter to gate to the Tok'ra home world right away."

"She's on her way sir."  Jack sighed as he let go of his radio. "You heard him Carter, you better go."

"Yes sir." Sam nodded as she stepped up the stone steps and walked through the wormhole.

The colonel watched her leave and pressed his radio mike once more. "In the meantime sir we have a bit of a situation here."

"Standby Colonel."

The wormhole disengaged and Jack took his cap off his head and ran his fingers through his hair before slipping the green covering back on. The chevrons started lighting back up and he put his hands on his hips as the center chevron lit up and the vortex reached out towards him before snapping back into the wormhole.

"Colonel O'Neill this is Hammond, Major Carter informed me of the situation. I'll leave the mission and it's completion to your discretion."

Jack licked his lips and pressed them together. "Understood sir, we'll be careful."

"Copy that Colonel, Hammond out."

The wormhole burst, cutting off all further communication with Earth.

"I'm on my way kids." Jack spoke into his radio as he put his sunglasses back on and headed for to the ruins.

Gillian walked around, looking over all the Aztec drawings and carvings carefully. She reached out and touched them, feeling the smooth stones under her fingers and the intricate designs that must have taken a long time and hard work. She shook her head, amazed at the craftsmanship.

"Neat, aren't they?" She started, whipping around to see Daniel behind her a small smile on his face.

"Yeah they are." Gillian faced the carvings again.

"I didn't know you had an interest in archaeology Gillian." Daniel walked around her, moving aside the bits of cement and broken wall with the toe of his boot.

"Well, it's just a little hobby. I'm not an expert like you are." She faced him, resting her fists on her hips.

"And what does Jack say about your hobby?"  Daniel saw the way the young woman glared at him and he pushed up his glasses. "I know you're supposed to be thinking of him as your commanding officer but you don't have to do that with me."

Gillian sighed, flipping her boonie off her head. "I appreciate that Daniel; it's been a lot harder than I thought to pretend that there's nothing between us."

"Oh I can just imagine." He closed his camera and tucked it into his pocket. "Although I do have to ask you one thing."

"Sure."

The archaeologist looked around; making sure Teal'c wasn't in the immediate vicinity. The Jaffa stood a short distance away and Daniel leaned closer to the young woman. "Just between you and me, is Jack …uh." He licked his lips and wiped his hand down his mouth. "Is Jack like this at home too?"

Gillian's eyebrows went up in understanding and she bit her lip against a giggle. "You mean is he as big a pain in the ass at home as he is in the mountain?"

"Yeah, although not in that exact context."

They both started laughing and Gillian shook her head, clearing her throat.

"Believe it or not Daniel, he's not this way at home." A smile came to Gillian's lips. "Jack might occasionally seem like the devil in olive drab but he's really not."

"Someone mention me?" Jack stepped up the small hill onto the broken platform, a small smile on his face.

"Uhh…no." Daniel and Gillian looked at each other.

"We were just finishing up sir."

"Right, so where's Sam?" Daniel bent down and picked up a silver case.

"The Tok'ra need her for something so she gated home."  Jack reached behind his back and took a canteen off the back of his vest. He unscrewed the cap and had a drink of water, sighing as he offered it to Gillian.

"Drink Lieutenant?"

The word had barely left his mouth when the ground beneath them started shaking.

Gillian gasped, unable to keep her footing as she fell to the ground.

"Get down! Cover up!" Jack dropped to the ground as well curling up protectively, his arms covering his head.

Daniel lost his balance and fell on his back hard, his wind temporarily knocked out of him as he rolled down the small hill and ending up beside Teal'c.

A loud cracking and crumbling noise echoed all around the curled up couple, the already tattered remains of the ruin walls began to sway back and forth like reeds in the wind. Two of the walls stood directly over Jack.

Gillian's heart raced within her, she had never been so scared in all her life. The ground seemed to roll and quiver beneath them and it felt like an eternity when really only a few seconds had passed. A loud slam rang out behind her causing her to gasp, too terrified to turn over and see what had happened.

At last the quake stopped, the shaking gradually dying away. Gillian moved her arms from her head and lifted it.

"Colonel, are you okay?" Her back turned towards him, she rolled over and saw a huge slab of stone where he had been.

"Oh God! Jack!" She got up fast and scrambled over to stone wall, trying to assess where her fiancé might be. The age of the wall and the weather had made it somewhat brittle. The impact had made it crumble, except for one large, six foot wide piece that sat directly on top of the colonel.

"Daniel! Teal'c! I need your help!" Her fingers curled under the edge of it as she tried to get a good grip on it.

"Where is Colonel O'Neill?" Teal'c stood beside her, watching. He had an arm around Daniel, the archaeologist looking a little stunned from his trip down the hill.

"Where's Jack?" Daniel took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm okay Teal'c, thanks."

"He's under this wall! Help me get them off of him!"

Daniel quickly sank to his knees beside Gillian, getting his fingers under the edge. "Teal'c your staff weapon! We can use it as a lever!"

The Jaffa knelt down, laying his staff down. "I will lift it up, slide the weapon under it."

"I'll do it!" Gillian swallowed hard; her knees had the consistency of gelatin as she stood beside Teal'c and picked up the long sturdy stick. "Ready?"

 "On the count of three Daniel Jackson." Teal'c raised his head.

Daniel nodded. "All right, one, two…three!" The two men lifted as hard as they could, the bottom of the wall rising about four inches off the ground.

Gillian crouched down, slipping the end of the staff weapon under it. "All right, it's under."

The wall carefully lowered back to the ground and Teal'c stood up. "I will raise it, when it is high enough drag Colonel O'Neill out from beneath it."

Gillian nodded her heart racing within her. A thousand images of what lay underneath that stone began to play over in her mind. It weighed a ton and the thought of what it could do to the human body; especially the one she had grown quite fond of made a rush of panic flow through her.

"Just raise it up Teal'c!" She heard herself say, the sentence sounding like a plea.

Daniel put his arm around her shoulders, not saying a word.

Teal'c moved around the staff and picked up a medium size boulder. He crouched down and curled his fingers around the staff, lifting it up. "Daniel Jackson, slide the boulder underneath."

The archaeologist did as his friend asked; placing the boulder in what he guessed was the center of the staff, stepping back. Teal'c lowered the staff across it, the weapon now sticking up at an almost 90 degree angle.

"Together we must do this."

Daniel nodded as he joined his friend; both men placed their hands on the butt end of the makeshift lever and began to push down on it.

Gillian watched the bottom of the wall, it began to rise and she fumbled for the flashlight on her vest and with shaking fingers, managed to turn it on.  The wall now stood almost six inches up and the beam of her flashlight shined on a bent elbow.

"Jack!" She crouched down and dropped her flashlight, sliding partially underneath it. She reached out and managed to snag part of Jack's black t-shirt. "I got you Jack; you're going to be okay." Her fingers crawled up the shirt, trying to find something to latch onto.  They moved up his neck and grabbed onto his vest.

Gillian started backing out, using every ounce of strength she had to pull Jack with her.

"Gillian MacKenzie, you must hurry." Teal'c's voice sounded strained, the corded muscles on the Jaffa's neck stood out.

Daniel's face resembled a cherry, his cheeks a deep shade of red. "We can't hold it Gillian! Hurry!"

The young woman slipped out from underneath the wall, she had Jack out with her and slid him a few feet away. "He's clear! Let it go!"

The two men lowered the wall back down and pulled the staff weapon free.

Gillian unzipped Jack's vest, pulling it off his shoulders and setting it aside. Jack's face was covered with blood and dust. She wiped his face and touched his neck, feeling the strong thudding of his heart against her fingertips.

"Is he okay?" Daniel crouched down beside her, touching her hand.

"He's alive and he's breathing. He was on his side when the earthquake struck, that might have saved his life in more ways than just one." She rolled him carefully on his right side, seeing how odd his arm looked. She reached out and probed his shoulder, gritting her teeth.

"He's got a dislocated shoulder; looks like it took the full brunt of the falling wall."

The side of Jack's head oozed blood, it lolled against his shoulder, the nurse practitioner touched it gently. "He might have a mild concussion." She rolled him onto his back. "Daniel can I borrow your flashlight?"

"Sure." Daniel took it off his vest and handed it to her.

"Let's see for sure." Gillian turned it on, carefully lifted Jack's eyelids and shined the light in his eyes. The pupils didn't respond properly.  "Damn it."

"How severe are his injuries?" Teal'c knelt down on the other side of Jack, gazing down at his injured team leader.

"He's got a concussion and a dislocated shoulder, but considering a wall fell on him he's pretty lucky."

Gillian handed Daniel back his flashlight. "All right, let's sit him up."

Daniel slid his arms under Jack's and carefully sat him up, letting the unconscious man lean against him. "You're going to pop his shoulder back in?"

Teal'c lifted his head. "I will be the one."

Daniel's blue eyes grew wide. "You? Are you sure? Have you done it before?"

"Teal'c has been through many battles, he knows all about field medicine. I'd do it myself but Teal'c's a lot stronger than me, I don't know if I would have enough strength to pop the bone back in place." Gillian lifted Jack's head, letting it rest against Daniel's shoulder. She took a hold of Jack's left wrist and carefully extended his arm.

"All right Teal'c, use those muscles of yours." Gillian swallowed hard. "Give it a good hard yank."

The Jaffa nodded as he took Jack's hand in his, the two men looking as if they were about to arm wrestle.  He took a deep breath and glanced at Daniel. "Hold him firmly Daniel Jackson; I must do this in one motion."

"Sure I'll just give Jack a hug; if he were awake he'd slug me." Daniel sighed, locking his arms around Jack's waist. "I've got him."

Gillian sighed, reaching out to stroke Jack's hair. She looked at Teal'c and gave him a nod.

"Do it."

Teal'c took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he flexed his bicep once and jerked Jack forward. A loud, squelchy POP rang out and it made Daniel wrinkle his nose.

"Oh I'm so glad he's unconscious right now."

"As am I Daniel Jackson, doing that undoubtedly caused him great pain."

"Yeah but the pain of it being out of place is worse then putting it back in Teal'c." Gillian helped Daniel ease Jack back on the ground. "Where's the first-aid kit?"

"It's over here." Daniel stood up, brushing off his pants as began to search through the pile of gear.

Gillian looked down at her unconscious fiancé. "We need to get Jack home."

He found the kit and handed it to her. "That'd probably be the best idea."

Gillian opened it and took out a small bottle of alcohol, wetting a few squares of gauze as she pressed it to the side of Jack's head. "I don't know if that wall did anything else to him, the way he curled up might have prevented internal injuries but I can't tell for sure."

Daniel nodded as he stood over her. "You do realize that with Sam gone, you're in charge of SG-1?"

"Yeah Daniel I know." She used another piece of gauze and water from her canteen to clean off Jack's face, touching it gently with her fingers. "I'm a poor substitute for him though."

A whimper came out of Jack, his head moving slightly to one side. His fingers wiggled a little and Gillian reached down and touched them. "He's coming around."

Teal'c and Daniel sat down around him, watching him come back. "Think he's going to be in pain?"

"Maybe a little, his shoulder will probably be sore." Gillian gave Jack's hand a gentle squeeze. "Jack? Can you hear me?"

His eyelids slowly raised, a pair of dark confused eyes focused on the young woman's face. "Gillian?"

"Yeah, it's me." She sighed in relief, stroking his cheek. "How do you feel?"

Jack looked around, seeing Daniel and Teal'c beside him. "Planet?"

Daniel nodded. "Right Jack, we got caught in an earthquake. Do you remember?"

He raised his hand and touched the side of his head, wincing at the pain as he felt the gauze pressed against his skin. "Some…I think something fell on me."

"That would be a wall." Gillian moved his hand away from his head. "You're lucky; you almost ended up being squashed flat as a pancake."

Daniel pushed up his glasses, a small smile coming to his lips. "Don't you mean a flapjack?"

Gillian's mouth formed a perfect circle and she covered it with her hand trying not to laugh. It was the calm, matter-of-fact demeanor in which Daniel had said it that made her almost giggle.

Jack narrowed his eyes at the archaeologist. "That's it; say something smart while I'm too weak to do anything about it." He raised his left hand and hissed through his teeth as he did so. "Ow…okay that hurts."

"Your shoulder had to be popped back into place Jack." She touched his arm and lowered it back down. "We need to get you home to make sure that wall didn't do more than pop out your shoulder and give you a concussion."

"No need for fuss Lieutenant, I'm fine." He started to sit up when a wave of dizziness made him almost fall backwards. Teal'c quick reflexes prevented him from being horizontal once again.

"It appears that you are not fine O'Neill, perhaps we should do as Lieutenant MacKenzie requests."

"No arguments Colonel, I outrank you when it comes to medical matters." Gillian stood up, pulling Daniel to his feet. "We're going to gate home right now."

Jack didn't look very happy as Teal'c got him up and put one arm around his waist. The Jaffa slung Jack's good arm across his broad shoulders. "Can you walk O'Neill?"

"Yeah Teal'c, I'm okay." He rubbed his hand across his eyes. He didn't feel too good, the world spun around him and it made his knees feel like rubber.

Gillian could tell right away that he wasn't as fine as he claimed. He didn't argue about gating home and that at least made her feel better about having to pull rank on him.

"Come on, we better go." She picked up Jack's vest and slung it over her shoulder.

"Oh no."

Gillian, Teal'c, Daniel and Jack stood around the broken remains of the dial home device. It lay on its side, covered with many long heavy branches. They cleared it off, and Daniel and Gillian managed to stand it back up.

Jack sighed, shaking his head. "Terrific, broken DHD."

The dome had been smashed along with at least half of the keys; they lay scattered all over the ground at the team's feet. 

Gillian set Jack's vest down and peeked in the hole the dome used to be in and shook her head. "Wow those branches did a real job on this thing."

Daniel crouched down and picked up some of the keys. "So much for gating home." He spotted the key with the Earth symbol and picked it up. "And with no power we can't exactly dial home manually."

"Not without one of Carter's reactors, not that we can get a message to Hammond to get one." Jack groaned covering his eyes; just the simple act of walking made his head spin.

Daniel pushed his glasses up. "When are we supposed to check in with Hammond again?"

Jack checked his watch. "In a few hours."

Gillian took her backpack off and set it down. "We have to find a place to lay low until then, someplace not too far from the gate so we can contact Hammond."

Daniel pulled the map out of his pocket and looked it over. "There's another small structure."

Everyone turned to look at Daniel.

Both of Jack's eyebrows went up. "There is? Where?"

The archaeologist continued. "According to the map there's another stone structure not too far from here, that'd be someplace we can hide out."

Gillian nodded. "We can make camp there."

The team followed the trail to the end, coming to a structure that seemed even more dilapidated then the ruins they had first encountered. It had four walls and part of a roof, but Daniel hadn't mentioned the condition of the structure. The stones were weathered and overgrown with moss and thick vines that hung along the roof like a curtain.

Jack still walked with Teal'c; he looked over the little building carefully. "Uhh considering what happened at the ruins, I don't think we should stay here."

Gillian looked around, surveying the area. "Oh yeah, one good shake and this place is coming down." She walked down the steps to a flat area, covered with thick grass. She raised her head seeing how the trees sort of closed in.

"How about right here? It's nice and level and has some protection."

"Yeah this seems like a nice place to camp." Daniel joined her on the grass, his arms crossing over his chest. "What do you want us to do?"

Teal'c helped Jack down the steps and the young woman helped the Jaffa sit him down. She touched the side of his head gently. "Think the two of you can handle bringing our equipment here?"

Daniel shook his head. "Shouldn't be a problem, right Teal'c?"

"I do not see one. We will return shortly." The two men left, leaving Jack and Gillian alone.

"Come on Jack, why don't you lay down and rest?" Gillian touched his shoulders, trying to get him to lie back on the cool grass.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Jack felt lightheaded and woozy; he rubbed his eyes several times trying to fight the strong urge he had to go to sleep.

"Why not?"  Her fingers traced down his cheek, noticing how pale he looked.

"If I lay down I might not get back up."

Gillian tucked her legs under her and patted her lap. "You need to rest, you'll feel better."

Jack looked at her legs, knowing from experience how comfortable they were. "I thought concussion victims weren't supposed to sleep."

"That's an old wives tale." She gave her fiancé a smile. "I'll keep an eye on you. As long as I wake you up every couple of hours and see how alert you are, you can sleep."  He looked a little reluctant but then finally caved in and stretched out, his head coming to rest gently on top of her right thigh.

"Ohh God everything's spinning." Jack covered his eyes with his hand.

"I know, it'll be all right."  Gillian stroked his forehead and hair gently.

He uncovered his eyes and looked up at her. "You know you're not supposed to be doing this. You're team leader now and this is big time fraternization."

"I don't see anyone here to point that out, it's just the two of us Jack. Now stop talking and go to sleep."

Jack stared up at her, his dark eyes weary and glassy.

"Is that an order?" The small hints of a smile pulled on the corners of his mouth.

"Yes it is." She bent down and gave his lips a tiny kiss. "Good night Colonel."

He didn't argue any further, just closed his eyes and fell into an exhausted sleep.

Gillian yawned, rubbing her hands over her face. She sat on a rock in the center of the tents; her P90 pointed downwards between her feet.  The jungle had an eerie quietness; nothing but the moon up above, a chorus of chirping crickets and the cool fragrant air. The area had a spookiness to it, the heavy foliage and tall trees seemed to close in all around like a giant hand.

She sighed, looking around at the waving leaves; they were shiny from the sudden drop in temperature.

The wind suddenly kicked up, blowing through her hair as she checked the time --half past ten; time to check on Jack. 

She stood up, shouldering her gun as she went over to Jack's tent and crouched down, parted the flaps and slipped inside.

In the moonlight she could see his reclining form; Jack slept on his side on top of a sleeping bag.

Gillian set her P90 down and crawled around him touching his face.

"Jack?" She gave his cheek a pat. "Come on Jack wake up."

He stirred, mumbling something as his eyes slowly opened. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm just checking on you." She gave him a smile as she stroked his cheek. "I need you to tell me who you are, where you are and what happened to you." He groaned and started to drift off to sleep, Gillian shook his shoulder. "Name! Rank! Right now Mister!"

Jack started awake, shaking his head a little. "O'Neill, Jonathan Caleb. Colonel, US Air Force."

Gillian nodded. "Where are you?"

He rubbed his eyes yawning. "P2B552."

"Good and what happened to you?"

"Got creamed by a wall."  He lifted his head to look at his fiancé. "Anything else you want to know?"

Gillian shook her head. "No, you go back to sleep. But I'll have to do this again in another couple of hours to make sure that wall didn't do worse than just give you a concussion, okay?"

"Okay." He put his head back down and yawned again, rubbing his hands over his face. "Everyone asleep?"

"Yeah, I'm keeping watch. I don't think I could sleep right now even if I tried." Gillian sat down, tucking her legs underneath her. She checked her watch. "Well I better get back out there." She started to get up, rising to her knees.

"Can I have a kiss before you go?" The tone of his voice had a singsong to it, the question holding a lot more meaning than the obvious expression of affection. He didn't want just a kiss he wanted reassurances too.

Gillian stretched out beside him, their noses touching as she stared directly into his face.

"You're going to be all right Jack and don't worry about the Goa'uld. I'll take care of everything and get you out of here. I promise." She closed her eyes and brushed her lips against his, the kiss small yet gentle and sweet as her mouth moved against his.  Gillian broke it, touching her forehead to his.

"Go back to sleep, okay?"

"Okay." Jack closed his eyes, a satisfied sigh coming out of him.

The temporary team leader gave her patient another kiss, feeling him start to relax against her lips. She got up and smoothed his hair away from his forehead before crawling out of the tent.

The wind still blew through the trees and with it came a low murmur that sounded like a group of voices. It made Gillian's heart jump in her chest.  She wasn't the only one that heard the noise; Teal'c came out of his tent followed by Daniel from his, the archaeologist rubbing his eyes as he slips his glasses on.

"What is that?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it." Gillian swallowed hard as she scanned the jungle around them. "Something's definitely out there."

A group of men suddenly came through the leaves, surrounding the three people. They went into defense mode Gillian grabbing her P90 and raising it, pulling back the hammer with shaking fingers. A rush of adrenaline flowed through her as she stared at the number of men around her and the team.

Daniel saw her and put his hands on her gun, lowering it.

"Gillian, I suggest you put the gun down. These guys really out number us and the last thing we want to do is make them angry."

She stared into Daniel's wide blue eyes. She thought about what Jack might do and trusting Daniel came to her mind almost immediately. Jack would trust Daniel. 

"All right." She let Daniel take her gun from her and lay it down at her feet.  

The men had elaborate headdresses on made of bright blue and green feathers decorated with jade and gold along the band.

The man that appeared to be the leader of the warriors wore a deep maroon red cape with multicolored squares along the edges of it, carrying a large knife. He scowled deeply, his dark eyes focusing on the team.

The warrior chief began speaking, his tone a hostile one.

"Daniel? Can you understand what he's saying?"

Daniel walked around Gillian. "He's speaking Nahuatl, that's the Aztec language." He licked his lips and wiped his hand down his mouth. "He said his name is Pochotl, he's the warrior chief and his God wishes to see all of us."

Gillian studied the brightly dressed man. "Ask him why."

Daniel cleared his throat. "Pochotl, can you tell us why your God wishes to see us?"

Pochotl raised his head slightly. "To see who it was that came through the God's circle."

Gillian and Teal'c watched the little exchange, curious as to the words spoken and what they meant.

Daniel turned away from him switching back to English as he addressed his friends.  "Pochotl says that his God wants to see who came through the gate."

Gillian glanced over her shoulder at the tent Jack slept in. "Daniel, you and Teal'c go with them. I'm going to wait and see if Hammond contacts us and I don't want to be any farther away from the gate. Jack can stay here with me; I have to keep an eye on him. Can you translate all that?"

"Sure, I'll tell him." Daniel spoke to Pochotl once more, translating what Gillian had said to him.

Teal'c nodded. "I do believe that is the best course of action to take. I will return later and help you bring Colonel O'Neill to the village."

"Thank you Teal'c." Gillian gave him a nod.

Pochotl turned around and said a few words to the warriors that accompanied him. They all parted and he pointed towards the east, the direction of the village. Daniel and Teal'c gathered up some of the equipment and followed the men.

Daniel and Teal'c had been taken to a small building; the walls made of a mud plaster and topped with a bright green thatch roof.  The hut consisted of a circle of rocks for a fire, a large clay pot of water in the corner and a few baskets filled with food. On the floor were a few tan woven mats for socializing.

A pair of small rooms were directly in front of them a thin, dark blanket hung near each doorway to give them privacy.

Daniel saw the two rooms. "Okay Teal'c you take the room on the right, I'll take the room on the left."

The Jaffa nodded as he set the equipment down at his feet.

"We are perfectly safe here Daniel Jackson, if not we would already have met our demise."

"That's a real comfort Teal'c, thanks."

"You are welcome. Good night Daniel Jackson."  Teal'c walked into his room, brushing the blanket over the door.

Daniel sighed; his arms crossed over his chest as he went into the other room. It contained a mat on the dirt floor and a small bowl beside it, obviously the Aztec version of a chamber pot.

"Cozy."

He crouched down and sat on the mat, looking around for a brief moment before taking off his glasses and lying down.  Daniel curled up on his side and closed his eyes hoping the morning would come quickly as he finally fell into a light doze.

"SG-1 this is Hammond, come in."

"Colonel O'Neill this is Hammond do you read me over?"

Gillian woke with a start at the sound of her radio and sat up fast, pressing the mike button.

"General Hammond, this is Lieutenant MacKenzie, I read you over."

"Lieutenant MacKenzie, where's Colonel O'Neill?"

She looked down at Jack sleeping peacefully and touched his forehead. The bright light of morning coming through the open tent flap caught her attention.  

"He's here sir, I've taken over command of the team in his place."

"For what reason Lieutenant?"

The young woman sighed, wiping her hand across her eyes. "Sir the situation is this; an earthquake destroyed the DHD and injured Colonel O'Neill. He has a dislocated shoulder and a concussion. He's fine sir but we need you to send a MALP through with one of Major Carter's Naqahdah reactors so we can dial the gate manually and come home."

"And the Goa'uld?"

"Right now sir Teal'c and Daniel are meeting with him. Colonel O'Neill and I remained here so I could monitor his condition and wait for you to contact us."

"Understood Lieutenant, the MALP will be sent through with a reactor shortly. Check in if the situation changes, Hammond out."

"Yes sir, SG-1 out."

"Hammond?" Jack lifted his head seeing his fiancée sitting up. "You talked to Hammond?"

"Yeah, I told him what's going on. He's sending a reactor through with the MALP." She stretched back out beside him and touched his face. "How are you feeling?"

Jack scooted closer to her, hugging her to him. "A little better, I could really go for some food."

Gillian leaned against his chest. "I think we've got some MRE's out with the equipment. How does that sound?"

"I must be hungry because they actually sound good."

This made the lieutenant snicker. "Oh no, you're worse than I thought."

"Daniel and Teal'c?" Jack kissed her hair, stroking it with his fingers.

"They're meeting with Quetzalcoatl. As soon as we get the reactor I'm going to join them at the village. I don't think this Goa'uld is going to harm them, he could have taken us out any time he wanted to if that was his intention."

"Well he wants something, we'll find out eventually."

The early morning sun shone overhead as Daniel and Teal'c walked through the primeval forest. The humidity seemed to climb even higher, making Daniel feel instantly sweat drenched and sticky.  

The warriors and Pochotl surrounded them leading them down a narrow dirt road; the cumbersome brush having been cut back out of the way.

"I can't believe how hot it is already and the sun barely came up." Daniel's boonie rested on the back of his neck but despite his uncovered head, his glasses steamed up. "It's like walking through a sauna." He glanced over his shoulder at his teammate. Teal'c wasn't sweaty; he showed absolutely no sign of discomfort.

"Doesn't the heat bother you?"

"It does not. This weather is much like the weather on Chulak during the time you call summer."

The road led to a meadow carpeted with bright green grass and high trees that created a canopy, dropping the temperature within.

"Nice, at last some shade." Daniel raised his head, seeing the branches that blocked out the harsh rays of the sun.

A dilapidated platform built with round stones sat in the center of the lush pasture.  A smaller building stood at the top of a dozen narrow looking steps.

Pochotl moved to the head of the caravan raising one muscled arm and pointing to the building. "Quetzalcoatl waits for you there."

Daniel saw where the warrior pointed. "That's where Quetzalcoatl is, that little temple." He looked over his shoulder at the warriors seeing their stoic faces beginning to grow impatient.

"We better get going Teal'c."

They made it to the bottom of the steps and the warriors immediately dropped to one knee, heads bowed their long hair cascading forward to hang in a thick black curtain.

Pochotl did the same casting a commanding eye at Daniel.

Daniel raised his eyebrow, clearing his throat. "Okay…I think we're supposed to kneel down too." He pulled his sunglasses off.

Teal'c remained standing, a less than agreeable look on his face. "I do not believe we should kneel; he is a God to these people not to us."

"Well it'd be a way to show respect Teal'c."

The Jaffa still stood. "I will not bow down to any Goa'uld."

"All right, have it your way." Daniel rose to his feet.

The wind started to kick up, blowing Daniel's hair back. A low murmur started up again and they looked around trying to find the source.

The voices seemed to be coming from the small building at the top of the stairs and the two men watched as a figure emerged out of the doorway.

Quetzalcoatl walked out slowly with cat-like grace to the edge of the stairs. He looked down at them with deep chestnut eyes; the expression on his handsome face one of pride and silent dignity.

His flawless skin shone in the low sunlight and had the coloring of coffee with cream; it displayed the definition of each muscle that lay underneath it. He had broad shoulders, a smooth sculpted chest that tapered off to a narrow flat stomach; a bright red loincloth hugged his waist sitting low on his lean hips.

The wind blew his straight black hair away from his face, the thick locks like a cape behind him.

"Who are you?" The deep voice coming from him had not one hint of Goa'uld and this took everyone by surprise.

Daniel cleared his throat, taking one step forward.

"My name is Doctor Daniel Jackson; we're explorers from a planet called Earth."

"I am Quetzalcoatl." His dark eyes flashed for a moment. "And you are SG-1 of the Tau'rii." His voice changed into the all too familiar baritone of a Goa'uld symbiote.

Daniel's blue eyes grew wide. "You've heard of us?"

Quetzalcoatl raised his head as he began walking down the steps; the sandals on his feet tapping against the stones as he did so. "Of course, you are at the top of the System Lords death list." He made it to their level and turned to look at Teal'c. "As is the traitor. You once served Apophis and destroyed two of his mother ships."

Teal'c's raised his head, his stoic expression deepening. "I now serve to fight the System Lords and all Goa'uld."

Daniel licked his lips, wiping his hand down his mouth. "But we came here in peace only to explore this planet hoping to find technology that we can use to fight the Goa'uld."

Quetzalcoatl stood in front of Daniel. "We have much to discuss but not now; first you will bring the rest of your friends here. You all will freshen up and then we will speak." He smiled clapping his hands together, getting the attention of the kneeling men behind them.

"Help them in any way you can, they are my guests treat them as such."

Pochotl got on his feet fast, bowing. "As you command My God." He barked at the men and they all scrambled around a bit before surrounding Daniel and Teal'c.

Quetzalcoatl stretched out his arm. "My warriors will see to your comfort. When the sun is high in the sky we will dine in this place."

Daniel and Teal'c walked off and the archaeologist looked over his shoulder at Quetzalcoatl. Something about him peaked Daniel's interest; he wasn't like other Goa'uld but exactly what he wanted still remained a mystery.  

Gillian carried the large silver briefcase that contained the Naqahdah reactor back to the camp site and set it down outside Jack's tent. She crouched down and crawled into the tent seeing him sitting up and eating. He had an open pouch and dug his fork into it.

"I got it Jack, I got the reactor."

"That's good, now at least we'll have a way to get home." He had another bite of turkey fillet and set his entrée down, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Are you okay?" Gillian saw the pained look on his face and reached behind him to rub his neck.

"Just a headache." Jack dipped his head low for a moment.

"Is that all you feel? No nausea or anything?"

"No, just a little weak and dizzy."

"That's common with a concussion Jack." She stroked his hair gently. "But you'll be going home soon."

"Gillian! Jack!"

"That sounds like Daniel." Gillian slipped back out of the tent, seeing the two men coming towards her.

"The reactor?" Daniel sounded a little winded as he pulled his sunglasses off.

"Right over there." She motioned to Jack's tent.

"How is Colonel O'Neill?" Teal'c stood on the other side of her.

"He's better, not great but better." Her gaze bounced between the two men. "We need to send him home."

"We've helped Sam hook the reactor up before, shouldn't be a problem."  Daniel went over and picked up the silver case. "We'll radio you when the gate is open."

Gillian had her arms around Jack as they walked together up the stone steps towards the glittering puddle of the open wormhole. Jack leaned heavily against her but that only made her tighten her grip on his t-shirt, she wasn't about to let him fall.

"Janet and her orderlies are waiting; they're going to take good care of you."

"Yeah I know, but my favorite doctor won't be there." He gave her a weak smile but it faded. "You be careful, all right?"

"I will." Gillian faced Jack and pressed her hand to his cheek. "You just get better and don't give Janet a hard time about bed rest, okay?"

"This time I don't think I'll have a problem with it." Jack bent his head and gave her a kiss. "See you soon." He turned towards the wormhole and stepped through it, disappearing as the water rippled.

Gillian sighed as she turned away, walking down the steps.  "How did it go with Quetzalcoatl?"

"He wants us to bring you back to the village, he said at noon we'll meet with him. I'm assuming that's when he'll tell us what he wants." Daniel crouched down and flipped off the reactor.

"All right, let's pack everything up and head for the village."

The noonday soon shone blazingly overhead, the trees created plenty of shade and a breeze kicked up blowing cool air all around making the temperature a little more tolerable.

 A few large colorful blankets served as a table and every kind of fruit imaginable lay on top of them along with a few roast rabbits, ears of roasted corn and sweet potatoes. A round woven basket contained a high stack of tortillas.

Quetzalcoatl sat before this impressive display; he smiled at the approach of his guests and waved his warriors away.  The dark haired men sat on the ground, his smile widening when as he saw the woman with them.  

Gillian saw the gorgeous man sitting before her and swallowed hard, trying to keep her face passive.  A difficult task to accomplish when he rose to his feet to meet her; the way he moved reminded her of a tiger, powerful, steady and sure. His coal black eyes were almost hypnotizing.

Daniel cleared his throat as he walked around her.  "Lieutenant Gillian MacKenzie is our team leader." He glanced at her briefly. "This is Quetzalcoatl."

She gave him a respectful nod of her head.  "A pleasure to meet you."

Quetzalcoatl's gaze traveled up and down her body. "Such a beauty, tales have been told of Tau'rii women. I see now why their race is preferred as hosts." His hand reached out to touch Gillian's hair.

"With hair painted like the sunset and eyes the color of spice."

Gillian tried to steady her shaking legs. "Thank you."

The dark haired man smiled, he placed his hand on Gillian's cheek and glided down the curve of her face. "Beautiful. How I would worship you in my arms if you belonged to me."

Gillian didn't know what to say, she could feel the blood rushing to her face.

Quetzalcoatl turned away from her and once more took his seat.  "Come, join me." 

The team leader sat down to Quetzalcoatl's left, eyeing the vast luncheon display.

Daniel took the right side, tucking his legs under him. "Wow, all of this is for us?"

Quetzalcoatl watched them; he reached out and picked up a brown and red clay pitcher by its handle.

"Come, let us drink and talk of many things."

Matching glasses skirted the table and everyone picked one up.

He filled his own glass first and drank from it, putting to rest any questions they might have had about it being safe to drink.

"Lieutenant?"

A pair of dark eyes glanced at Daniel; the archaeologist gave her a barely visible nod, assuring her that it should be all right.

"Yes." Gillian handed her glass to the god and watched him as he filled it with water. The pitcher then passed to Daniel, who filled his cup before handing it to Teal'c.

Daniel took a small sip, the water sweet and surprisingly cool.  He lowered his glass and cleared his throat.

"What did you want to talk to us about?"

"You felt the ground shake beneath you, did you not?" Quetzalcoatl picked up a tortilla and pulled a hunk of meat off of one of the roasted rabbits, wrapping the meat up and taking a bite.

"Yes we did, it injured one of our team and broke the device we use to control the circle." Gillian locked eyes with Daniel. He gave her a nod.

"Yes I know. That is why I am glad you are here." Quetzalcoatl gazed at each team member. "The tremors come more frequently; this planet is no longer safe. You can help us escape from this planet. In exchange I will give you all of the knowledge I possess of the Goa'uld."

Teal'c passed the pitcher over the blanket to Gillian, who set it down. He suspected something about this Goa'uld and decided to voice his opinion.

"You do this to get take your revenge upon the System Lords that banished you, do you not?"

Quetzalcoatl's lips tightened as he slightly raised his head. "You are correct Jaffa. My banishment was long ago and here I have remained."

Gillian had a sip from her cup. "Who banished you?"

A pair of dark eyes focused on the red haired woman. "Ra."

"Why?"

"Isis." He looked away from the young woman, his handsome face softening into a forlorn expression.

Daniel nodded his head slowly, knowing all too well the pain of a lost love. "What happened?"

"I loved her, we were going to rule together but Ra did not approve of us. He banished me for loving his daughter and said he would make me suffer a thousand fold for touching her. Isis died a short time later at the hands of Apophis."

"Why haven't you used the gate to get out of this place?"

Quetzalcoatl shook his head, his face growing serious. "I cannot abandon my people. Without me there would be no one to look out for them and protect them."

Gillian picked up an orange and began peeling it. "We can find another place for you and your people to go."

The dark haired man raised his head, his expression one of pride and dignity. "That is what I wish. I will do anything to help my people."

The silver cases of equipment lay scattered on the ground as Daniel, Gillian and Teal'c took samples of the soil and various plants.

Gillian squatted down, picking up some of the glass vials and raised it to the sun, looking at it. "Quetzalcoatl said he's willing to give us the lowdown on the Goa'uld. Do you think he's really sincere about that? Or could this be some sort of trick?"

Daniel shrugged his shoulders, about a yard away from the team leader. He dug in the dirt, scooping soil into a bag. "I don't know-- he genuinely seems to want to help his people."

The ground underneath their feet suddenly starting shaking, causing the three people to lose their balance and fall. The trees overhead rained leaves and small branches down on top of them, burying the team in a blanket of green. Everyone covered their heads, curling up into little balls waiting for the trembling to cease.

They didn't have to wait long, the shaking suddenly stopped.

Gillian moved a huge leaf off her head and sat up slowly. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah, just great." Daniel had tree branches on top of him and he brushed off his jacket as he got up and shook out his hair.

"Does that not answer your question Lieutenant MacKenzie?" Teal'c had dirt and leaves all over him. He rose to his feet. "Major Carter brought her scanner with her, did she not?"

"I think she did Teal'c, it should be in one of these cases."

Teal'c searched the one beside Daniel and pulled out Sam's yellow sensor. It had a wand sensor hooked to it and he pulled it off and stuck it in the ground.

"You ever used that before Teal'c?" Gillian stood with her hands on her hips over the Jaffa's shoulder.

"I have assisted Major Carter many times with readings." He turned it on watching the digital displays on the scanner.

"So what does it say?" Daniel also stood behind Teal'c, curious as to what the readings would be.

"We have a problem." He straightened up, pulling the wand out of the ground. "According to the readings, the core of this planet is unstable. It will most likely reach critical in the next few days.

Gillian's dark eyes widened. "That's what's causing the earthquakes?" She sighed, wiping her hand down her face. "Oh terrific. We better tell Hammond what's going on."

"What is the situation Lieutenant?"

Gillian stood in front of the open wormhole and pressed her mike button.

"The core of this planet is unstable General; we have 72 hours max before this planet is one giant fireball. This Goa'uld Quetzalcoatl says that if we relocate him and his people he'll divulge all the knowledge he has of his fellow System Lords."

"He's willing to tell us everything?"

"Yes sir, he was banished by Ra ages ago and sent here." Gillian sat down on the edge of the step, rubbing her eyes.

"All right Lieutenant, give us a few hours to set up temporary quarters and start the evacuation."

"Understood sir." Gillian glanced at her watch. "We'll start the evacuation at 1600 hours, SG-1 out."

The event horizon disappeared and the young woman stood up. "You heard him guys, we've got three hours to get Quetzalcoatl and his people ready to go."

In the blink of an eye the team and Quetzalcoatl were back in the grassy meadow. The dark haired man stood at the top of the temple steps, addressing his people. The large group of dark eyed, dark haired people watched him with a combination of awe and wonder as he started to speak.

Daniel, Gillian and Teal'c stood a respectful distance behind him, not wanting to interfere.

"What's he saying Daniel?" Gillian leaned towards the archaeologist; he flanked her right side while Teal'c took the left.

Daniel crossed his arms over his chest. "He's telling them all about us and how we're going to help them."

"I counted 100 villagers."

"As did I Lieutenant MacKenzie, finding shelter for all of them will be difficult." Teal'c put his hands behind his back, gazing over the group of people just below them.

"Hammond said that they would have everything ready when 1600 came and we could start the evacuation." She checked her watch. "Which is in one hour."

Quetzalcoatl turned around and waved at them. "Come, my people wish to see their saviors."

"Uhh, well." Gillian glanced at Daniel who nodded.
"It may make things go much easier with the relocation if we just go along with it."

The three of them reluctantly walked to the edge of the platform, looking down at all of the gathered natives. They all dropped to their knees in reverence, bowing their heads.

"We're not gods." Daniel turned to look at Quetzalcoatl, the dark haired man shrugging.

"If that's what it takes for them to do as you ask, let them think that. I told them you had power over the circle and I always told them only gods can control it."

Gillian gazed out over them and shook her head. "Do they understand what's going to happen?"

"I have explained it. They will bring only that which they hold sacred with them."

Daniel pushed up his glasses and wiped his hand down his mouth. The way the natives gazed upon him and his friends made him feel very uncomfortable. "Good, the less the better."

Teal'c stepped forward to address the god. "We must begin in the evacuation soon; prepare your people for it."

Quetzalcoatl raised his hands; the assembled crowd once more focusing their attention on their god.

"My children, the hour draws near for us to leave this place. Go now and prepare; when you are ready go to the circle and wait for us there." He lowered his hands and everyone fled in different directions.

Gillian crouched near the reactor, flipping on the switch that sent a rush of power to the gate. The chevrons lit up, the center wheel unlocked and the two men began turning it. The reactor sat at the foot of the steps, a little off to the side on the flattest, most level area she could find.

A power cord had been attached to each chevron that would deliver another jolt of power to them, locking the address into place.  Behind the three busy people, a crowd had gathered. They were the first group of natives ready to go through the gate to Earth, and they watched the two men and one woman with fascination as they entered each individual coordinate.

The two men moved out of the way and Daniel turned around and waved at Gillian. "Hit it Gill."

She flipped another switch and the point of origin locked into place, the wormhole engaged sending a murmur of awe and wonder through the crowd.

Quetzalcoatl stepped forward; a maroon cloak decorated with fancy gold embroidery along the edges of it hugged him around his neck; on his head he wore a small gold and jade headdress that resembled a crown. "Many others come, but some are ready to depart now."

Gillian lifted her hand and counted them. "Okay the best way to do this would be to go in groups." She looked at Daniel. "Tell them all to come up the stone steps."

Daniel licked his lips and translated, his hands mimicking his words. The first group of people slowly marched up the steps and stood in front of the shimmering pool.

"Good." Gillian stood among them. "Okay, all of you are going to step through at the same time; that way you can all go at once."

"Now how do I translate that?" Daniel put his hands on his hips.

"Just tell them to step through together, that's all."

Quetzalcoatl helped Daniel translate and he stood right there as his people all moved through the shimmering water together. The wormhole disengaged and the young woman sighed.

"Okay guys let's do it again." She spotted another group coming and Daniel and Teal'c climbed up the steps to dial once more.

Daniel sat at the top of the stone steps and groaned as yet another group of villagers made their appearance. Tired and hot, the last thing he wanted to do was dial that center wheel that seemed like it weighed a 100 pounds. He took off his glasses, putting them on top of his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I'm going to have arms like yours at this rate Teal'c by the time we go home." He rubbed his upper arms a little, they were sore from dialing.

Teal'c sat beside him, his legs tucked under him. "Your discomfort and fatigue are for a good cause Daniel Jackson."

"Yeah I know." Daniel sighed as he fixed his glasses. "I just hope we're doing the right thing both for ourselves and Quetzalcoatl."

Gillian sat down on the lower step, gazing up at both men. "I think we are, we haven't been dishonest with Quetzalcoatl in any way. He set the conditions for the relocation, not us." She pulled some chocolate covered cookies from her pants pocket and handed them each one along with her canteen of water. "Here, this should give you some energy. This should be the last group, I've been keeping track."

"God I hope so, we've been doing this for a while now." Daniel sighed as he unwrapped the cookie and sunk his teeth into it, the sweetness of it flooding his mouth.

"We're almost done." Gillian stood up. "Any time you're ready." She walked down the steps and went back over to where the reactor sat.

Daniel sighed, tucking the cookie wrapper into his pocket. "Okay Teal'c last time."  The two men stood on the left side of the gate and gripped the edge and pulled, the center ring slowly moving with a distinct grinding sound.

Gillian flipped up the switch, a humming sound signaling that another boost had been given to the gate. The lit chevron on the upper left corner of the gate flexing once as it engaged.

"Chevron 5 locked!"

The young woman sighed as she watched the two men began moving the wheel in the other direction. A noise caught her attention and she stood up and looked around, the air suddenly growing still.

She raised her head and her brow creased in curiosity as she watched a large flock of birds suddenly took off in a frantic flight.

"What the hell?"

Gillian's gaze dropped to her friends, watching Daniel and Teal'c move the wheel together. She started to open her mouth when a low vibration slid under her feet, like a jolt of electricity. The ground shifted and rolled causing the crowd of people to gasp collectively, their murmurs of concern ringing out.  

It felt like an explosion had happened, deep beneath the ground and with it came deep heavy cracks, the kind that ran straight to the core. The shaking so hard and violent that even the massiveness of the Naqahdah hewn gate wasn't spared. The dark grey ring seemed to waver forwards and backwards as if the ground it sat on had the consistency of Jell-O.

Gillian lost her footing, slamming backwards onto the ground, nearly falling on top of the reactor. A large deep crack appeared close to her and the heat of molten rock emerged from it in waves.  She managed to get her breath back and sit up, seeing everyone else had also hit the deck.

"Daniel! Teal'c! We need to get the gate open!" She tried to get to her feet but the incredible tremors only made her go back down.

Daniel reached out and grabbed the gate, using it for leverage as he got to his feet. "Six is ready! Power it up!"

Gillian fumbled with the switch before finally turning it on and watched as the chevron opened, flexed and locked. "One more to go!"

Quetzalcoatl managed to crawl over to where Gillian was. "It is the end, we must go!"

"I know! We're working on it!"

Another loud cracking rang out and with it came a groaning as one of the tall trees over them came crashing down behind them. The branches slammed together like a closing hand, its leaves flying in all directions like confetti raining down.

The brutal jarring only went on and the stone steps around the gate began to crumble, causing the ring to begin to lean backwards as huge pieces of concrete began falling from the base.

Teal'c gripped the gate firmly, trying to keep it still. The symbol for this planet was right under the chevron at the top of the gate. "The point of origin is ready Lieutenant MacKenzie!"

Daniel held the wheel in place. "Hit the switch!" He squeezed his eyes shut as his fingers curled around the sharp metal ring. He could feel it starting to slip. "It's going to fall Gillian!"

The young woman's fingers touched the seventh switch, watching as her two teammates trying to keep the gate vertical. "I can't activate it with you there! Just let it fall and get out of the way or the vortex will vaporize you both!"

Daniel and Teal'c stood across from one another, each man holding one side of the gate. "She is right Daniel Jackson, we must let it go."

He nodded, licking his lips as he faced the gate and peeked over the side, looking for a nice soft place to land. "On the count of three!" He glanced over his shoulder at Gillian. "One! Two! Three!"

Daniel and Teal'c released the gate, diving off the disintegrating stone steps just as Gillian activated the last switch.

The locking chevron forced the heavy ring to waver once more before tipping backwards at the same time the vortex activated, the water arching to look like a clear half rainbow. The remains of the steps broke away from it as it thudded heavily against the ground, the weight of the falling circle digging a groove into it.

"Teal'c? Daniel? Are you okay?"

Teal'c sat on the left side of the gate, Daniel on the right, both men sat up, looking at the now open wormhole.

"I am fine Lieutenant MacKenzie." Teal'c got up and stood near the edge of the gate. "We must leave this place before it is too late." He looked out at the many cracks in the ground and the heat waves emanating from them, some of the trees and foliage had caught on fire.

Dirt spotted Daniel's cheeks as he rose to his feet. "Come on, let's go!" He went over to Quetzalcoatl and helped the god get up. "Tell your people to go, jump into the gate as if it were the river."

The dark haired man nodded as he called out to his people and the two men started pulling them to their feet, herding them to the horizontal gate.

Daniel ran with them and gave those reluctant a tiny shove into the rippling water. "Sorry, you'll be fine trust me." He gritted his teeth, hating to do it but at the same time they had no time for explanations and reassurances.

Gillian watched as the last Aztec closed his eyes and jumped into the pool. "Quetzalcoatl, the last of your people is now on the other side. Go ahead and go." She gave him a smile. "And remember what we talked about, all right?

Quetzalcoatl nodded his head as climbed up onto the ring.  "I will do what I have to for my people and so will your leader." He stepped out on the edge and closed his eyes jumping into the water.

Teal'c picked up his staff weapon from where he laid it down. "Are we not ready to go Lieutenant MacKenzie?"

"Yeah Teal'c go ahead, I'm just going to unhook the reactor and pack it up. There should be enough reserved power to keep the gate open."

The Jaffa gave the team leader a nod as he gripped his staff weapon tightly, hunched down a little and simply fell face first into the wormhole.

Gillian turned away from the gate and began unhooking the wires, she didn't bother to roll them up they were expendable, the reactor wasn't. "Go ahead Daniel, I'll be right there." 

Daniel cleared his throat. "No that's okay, I'll wait."

Gillian gently set the reactor into its case and closed it, a loud thumping got her attention and she turned around only to see Daniel wasn't there but a large tree was, lying diagonally across the gate.

"Daniel!" She closed the suitcase and grabbed it, running over to the tree and crouching down as she brushed aside the leaves trying to find her friend. "Daniel!"

From what she could tell the tree covered him; she sat down on the ground and leaned against the gate, putting her boots against the trunk. The muscles in her legs flexed as she pushed the thin tree, shifting it over. She looked down and saw Daniel buried beneath the long leafy branches, they covered him like a bright green blanket.

"Daniel?" She brushed the foliage aside and grabbed the front of his t-shirt sitting him up. "Come on, we're getting out of here." Her arms encircled his waist as she heaved him away from the tree, kicking it aside and sitting on the edge of the circle. Daniel's head rested against her shoulder and she touched his hair.

"I've got you." Gillian still had the suitcase in her hands as she swung her legs around, dipping them into the wormhole. Her grip around Daniel's middle tightened, pressing him against her.  

"We're just going to let gravity do its thing here."

The young woman closed her eyes and leaned forward; the combined weight of her, the suitcase and Daniel let her fall straight into the energy pool.

Dressed in a blue hospital gown and lying back in the bed, Jack had his eyes closed. The only patient in the infirmary, he enjoyed the peace and quiet; it gave him a chance to rest. He felt something brush his cheek and expecting it to be Janet, he opened his eyes.

The dark orbs widened when he saw the smiling face of his fiancée.  She looked a little haggard, her black t-shirt smudged with green grass stains and dirt. A few stray smudges were on her face and neck; her pony tail now had stray hairs coming out of it that she kept tucking behind her ears.

"Hey." He licked his lips and pressed them together. "Heard you had some excitement."

Gillian sat on the edge of the bed; reaching down to take his hand, mindful of his IV. "You did huh from whom?"

"Janet, she said you and Daniel did a belly flop onto the ramp."

The young woman nodded. "Yeah he got in the way of a falling tree but he's going to be okay. Just a bump on the head, that's it."

"Well at least now he can't tease me about being flattened by a wall." Jack sighed, giving her hand a squeeze.  "Teal'c told me what happened with the Goa'uld."

"Quetzalcoatl's talking to Hammond and a few others right now, including the Tok'ra. His people are making themselves at home in the multi purpose room and the gym." Gillian looked around the infirmary, seeing that she and the colonel were the only two people in there. She leaned forward and rested her head on his chest, sighing at how warm and wonderful he felt.

"How about you? Are you okay?"  

Jack touched her head, his fingers in her hair. "Yeah, sore shoulder, sore head. Nothing some R & R and some TLC won't take care of."

Gillian raised her head, pressing a kiss to his lips before touching her forehead to his. "I owe you anyway from my car accident." She pulled back and looked down at herself. "But first I think I'll go take a shower. I'll be right back." She gave Jack another quick kiss as she left the infirmary.

"How's our guest Colonel?" Hammond turned towards his office door as his subordinate came in, closing it behind him.

"Fine sir, just fine." Jack tucked his hands into the pockets of his blue jumpsuit. "He doesn't seem to be suffering that's for sure."

The general leaned back in his chair, a small smile on his face. "I've noticed he seems to be quite popular with the female members of this base."

A small scowl spread across his lips. "Oh yeah, the lock on the holding area door is going to burn out at this rate."

Hammond shook his head. "Remind you of something Colonel?"

"Well now that you mention it, Quetzalcoatl does have that Hathor-like quality too him, minus the breath of course."

"Yes but I don't think any of the women on this base are doing things against their will." Hammond motioned to the chair in front of him. "Have a seat Colonel."

"Thank you sir." Jack sat down, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "Still, despite the fact he's an element of distraction; the stuff he's telling us is unbelievable and it'll come in handy.  There are a few things we don't know yet, like how it was that he knew all about us and the two mother ships."

"Think he'll ever tell us?"

"Maybe, or we'll figure it out on our own." Jack cleared his throat. "I think we made the right call making a deal with him."

"I agree Colonel, SG-1 really came through on this one and a lot of people are happy."

Jack sat back in his chair, folding his hands in front of him. "And they deserve the credit; they've always worked well as a team."

"You're included in the credit Colonel. After all, SG-1 is your team."

"No sir, I had very little to do with it." Jack licked his lips, pressing them together. "Lieutenant MacKenzie took over command of the team when I was injured and she was the one that negotiated with the Goa'uld and brought him to Earth."

Hammond sighed, leaning forward against the desk. "I realize that and I'm going to recommend that she get a Special Commendation for this mission."

A knock stopped the conversation and Hammond focused his attention on the door. "That should be her now." He stood up and the colonel followed him.

The grey door opened and the young woman stepped into the room, her bright white coat flashing as she gave the general a salute. "Lieutenant Gillian MacKenzie reporting as ordered sir."

Hammond returned the salute. "At ease Lieutenant, have a seat." He sat back down and watched as the nurse practitioner sat down. "Lieutenant, I asked you to come here so that I may tell you myself that I'm recommending you to the Pentagon for a Special Commendation for the mission to P2B552." A small proud smile came to his face as he watched the lieutenant's drop.

"But sir…I don't think that's a good idea." Her face darkened in a blush and she tried very hard to ignore her burning cheeks. "I didn't do anything special, what was done we did as a team."

Jack cleared his throat getting her attention. "That's not true Lieutenant, you took charge of the team and took care of me. And after you sent me home you managed to negotiate with the Goa'uld and get him and his people off a dangerous, unstable planet when it was melting down."

Hammond nodded. "And managed to save Doctor Jackson as well."

Gillian felt her face begin to glow again as she glanced at both men. "I didn't do anything that someone else wouldn't have done for me in the same situation, sirs."

"Be that as it may Lieutenant you deserve this recognition and if I'm not mistaken it should put you well over the points to make Captain."

"Captain?" The thought of being captain thrilled her but she wasn't all that comfortable with the attention. "I still feel that it was a team effort."

"So take us out to dinner." Jack blurted out and the young woman turned to smile at him. "I think that's a great idea sir."

"So do I Lieutenant." Hammond gave her a nod. "Both of you are dismissed."

Gillian gave the general a salute as she turned around and left.

"Have a good weekend sir, see you Monday morning." Jack said to his commanding officer as he followed the lieutenant out of the office and closed the door behind him.

"So where are we going?" Daniel slipped his arms through his brown leather jacket and adjusted it down his chest over his white button down shirt and blue jeans.

Sam stood beside him and shrugged. She had on her black leather jacket, a blue turtleneck and black jeans. "Gillian said any restaurant we wanted to go."

Teal'c appeared behind them; the Jaffa in a pair of khaki pants, a grey sweater and a tan blazer over it. On top of his head he wore a beige fedora to hide his emblem. "It is our decision is it not?"

Gillian and Jack met up with them; the nurse practitioner wore a lilac colored knit shirt and blue jeans. Her hair had been taken out of the tight bun and it went down her back.

"Did you decide where you want to eat? It's on me."

"We'll figure it out in the elevator." Jack stuck his hand in his black jeans and pulled out his card key, opening the doors.  He had on a dark grey sweater and his black jacket over it, his dark eyes shining as he looked at his fiancée and stepped in behind her in the elevator.

"Anywhere we want, right?" Daniel turned sideways to talk to his teammates. "How about the Wrangler? Good steaks, good beer, great desserts."

"High prices." Sam raised an eyebrow. "Don't want Gillian to have to rob a bank to feed us."

Gillian shook her head. "Hey I said anywhere and that's what it means." She smiled at all of them. "I wouldn't be getting this commendation or my promotion to captain if not for all of you. The least I can do is treat you to a decent meal so if you want to go to the Wrangler than that's where we'll go."

The elevator dinged, the doors parted and they all stepped out of it.  Everyone signed out at the small grey security station and headed down a long corridor towards the other elevator that would take them to the surface.

Jack reached down and took Gillian's hand, giving it a little squeeze getting her attention.

Gillian felt it and looked up at him, seeing the proud expression flashing in his cinnamon eyes. They said a lot more to her than words could.

"Thanks Jack, that means a lot to me."

He didn't say one word, simply brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. "Let's go eat Captain."

Jack gave her a wink and slung his arm across her waist as they walked.