"Daniel! What's taking so long? Dial it up!" Colonel O'Neill shouted at his teammate before training his P-90 on another Jaffa and letting off a single shot. His opponent crashed to the ground and was out of the action even as O'Neill swept his weapon to the left and took up aim at another of the enemy.
Daniel Jackson was ducked down behind the DHD now as O'Neill, Major Carter, and Teal'c provided cover fire. Carter was beside him, peering over the DHD as she swept her P-90 fire in a wide sweep along the tree line where most of the Jaffa seemed to be concentrated. Both O'Neill and Teal'c were currently using a large stone monument, shaped more like a regular boulder than anything according to O'Neill, and while Teal'c fired over the top, O'Neill crouched low to the ground, firing around it.
"It won't lock!" Daniel shouted back over the radio. "I dialed Earth but the seventh chevron won't engage."
O'Neill had to focus on his next couple shots as a pair of Jaffa tried to sweep around and take them from behind. Once the threat was eliminated he ducked behind the boulder, braced his back against it, and toggled the radio near his left shoulder. "Is it broken?"
"I don't know. It wouldn't engage. Sam says the problem may not even be on our end."
O'Neill analyzed the situation even as he turned to fire off a few more rounds, ducking back once the clip ran out. He quickly and efficiently replaced it before contacting Daniel again. "Dial the Alpha Site. SG-8 was due back about now, Earth's 'Gate must be busy. Carter, Teal'c, on my mark, lay down cover fire. Three, two, one."
In the next instant Teal'c and O'Neill both stood up from behind their shield to draw the attention their way, firing off a continuous stream of bullets and staff blasts at the enemy. Carter positioned herself between Daniel and the Jaffa, covering him so he could punch in the coordinates for the Alpha Site.
The screams cut through the air as a death glider flew by overhead, sending a rain of fire down near O'Neill and Teal'c's position. The shockwave of the blast knocked them to the ground, O'Neill thrown out from behind his cover and open to the ground assault, but Teal'c was hurled forward into the stone, his head striking solidly against the rock.
"Colonel! Teal'c!" Carter screamed as the wormhole engaged and the event horizon stabilized within the Stargate.
Recovering from the shock of impact, O'Neill scurried back to the relative safety of the boulder just as a staff blast struck the ground where his head had just been moments ago. Teal'c shook his bleeding head groggily, focusing his gaze on O'Neill to make sure he was alright before turning towards Carter and Daniel to check their status. He looked up, prompting O'Neill to do likewise, as the death glider returned for another pass.
"Go! Carter, Daniel, get out of here!" O'Neill ordered. "We're right behind you!" He grabbed Teal'c by the arm to help him to his feet and they stood simultaneously to lay down cover fire for their teammates to escape. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Carter hesitate in front of the wormhole, waiting for them, firing off a few more rounds. "Carter, go!" He shouted as he saw the trajectory of the death glider headed straight for the Stargate. She disappeared into the wormhole just seconds before a strafing fire swept along the ground in front of the DHD and then…
"Oh, crap."
The wormhole disengaged as the smoke and dust cleared, revealing the burnt out remains of the now useless DHD.
"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice cut through the cacophony of staff blasts, death gliders, and frying DHD.
"I see it. We're not getting home that way, Buddy."
"They will send reinforcements."
"By the time they get to Earth for authorization it will be too late." He took out another Jaffa creeping around on their position.
"I will not surrender."
"Of course not. We can hold them off as long as possible, but we're seriously outnumbered and we've lost our easy way out. We may have to run for it, hide and wait and hope Hammond authorizes a rescue mission. But with the DHD out of commission…" He didn't have to finish the thought. Without a working DHD, the risk of getting caught in a firefight and not being able to dial out quickly was too high.
"A tactical retreat." Teal'c suggested, understanding there was no other choice.
O'Neill glanced at the wound on Teal'c's forehead, the blood flowing freely down the side of his face. Any other man, and he'd ask about it, but this was Teal'c. Teal'c would be fine. "It's our best chance."
He noticed that the number of staff blasts shot at them had diminished significantly, there may not be all that many Jaffa left to fight here. However, without the DHD to dial out and no other available power source for a manual dial, they couldn't escape through the 'Gate. They'd have to hold their position indefinitely until reinforcements arrived, from either side.
He peered around the rock to try to get a count on the enemy and pulled back just in time as a blast struck the side of the rock, sending shards and fragments flying. He felt the sting as they struck the sleeve of his jacket but knew it would only result in minor bruises, if anything. "I count eleven." He informed Teal'c as he pulled out a grenade from his belt. "There's a group at twelve o'clock, when this baby goes off we hightail it out of here. Got it?"
Teal'c merely nodded and adjusted his grip on the staff weapon.
O'Neill used his teeth to pull out the pin of the grenade, bracing himself on his haunches to jump up in a hurry and run. He counted it off, then released the grenade in a high arc, directly toward the center of the Jaffa attack.
A moment later the explosion was followed by anguished screams, and O'Neill and Teal'c both leapt to their feet, taking advantage of the temporary confusion and moving backwards steadily, heading for the cover of trees.
As they stepped into the brush at the edge of the forest Teal'c suddenly let out a startled grunt and crashed to the ground. O'Neill didn't have to take a look at his fallen teammate to know that he'd been hit from behind by a well-placed staff blast. He swung around, P-90 already tracking down the pair of Jaffa that had circled around and come up from behind. A hail of bullets and that threat was eliminated.
He dropped to a crouch beside Teal'c, kneeling over him protectively, as he dropped the expended P-90, letting it fall against his chest. He grabbed Teal'c's zat as well as his own, firing determinedly with precision of both hands at the approaching Jaffa as they moved in on his position over his fallen teammate.
It all came down to a half dozen Jaffa. With fierce resolve he dropped the zat in his right hand and removed the last grenade from his belt, again removing the pin with his teeth and spitting it out as he continued firing the zat in his left hand. They were close, too close, but there was no other option. He let it fly, watched it arc straight on target, saw it hit the ground, then he threw himself over Teal'c's body to help protect him from the blast.
He could feel Teal'c's chest rise and fall beneath him, but aside from that, there was nothing else. The sounds of the battle were gone, and it took him a moment to realize that the shockwave must have affected his hearing so he was, hopefully only temporarily, deaf. He rolled off of Teal'c quickly, a shower of dust and debris falling off him, and brought the zat up, already searching for survivors. He spun around, looking for any movement at all, no longer able to rely on his hearing for advance warning.
It seemed clear.
He knelt beside Teal'c again, and checked his pulse and breathing, glad to feel the signs of life in his warrior friend. He reached around to check for the injury that had caused him to fall in the first place and his hand came back with blood after touching Teal'c's back. He stepped over him, still looking around for any threats, and studied the damage. A direct staff blast hit to the middle of the back. Very close to the spine.
He was sure he cursed, but no sound reached his ears. An injury like this to a human would undoubtedly cause permanent damage, possibly paralysis. Even with Junior he wasn't sure how Teal'c would cope. He knew he shouldn't move him, he would probably just cause more damage, but it was likely the Jaffa would send someone by to check on the outcome of the battle. They couldn't stay here, so close to the 'Gate.
Teal'c seemed to be unconscious, which was probably for the best considering the severity of the injury. All of SG-1 had ditched their gear once the battle started, so he didn't have much with which to treat Teal'c's wounds. He took another glance around, hoping that all of the other wounded Jaffa would also remain unconscious but he knew they wouldn't stay down forever.
He splashed some water over the wound to get the dirt out that had showered over them both from the explosion and did what he could to stop the bleeding. He checked the pulse again, just to be sure, and was relieved to find it steady and strong. He pulled off his vest and removed his jacket, placing it over Teal'c's back and tucking it into place so it would stay on and provide padding against anything that might touch it. Afterwards, he put his vest back on.
He did another survey of the battlefield, automatically checking his P-90 to make sure it was ready for use again. He checked his sidearm then gathered up both zats. He straightened up and took several deep, steadying breaths, still running on the adrenaline high, knowing that he was going to need it in order to get through the next part of his plan: carrying Teal'c to safety.
Teal'c was a very large man built of solid muscle. O'Neill was tall, lean, and muscular, but he hadn't succeeded nearly 30 years in the service because of his physical strength. Besides that, he had two bad knees and was pushing 50, he had the gray hair to prove it. So the idea of lifting and carrying an unconscious man of Teal'c's weight and stature would have seemed impossible and…well, stupid if he didn't have the adrenaline high pumping through his veins. Dragging him along the ground wasn't an option, yet, since the Jaffa would be able to follow their trail too easily. If he carried him, the enemy would have to have a tracker with them, which might slow them down a little.
He was sure he grunted, he knew he gasped in pain, and he might well have yelled his bloody head off, but he didn't hear anything. His legs and back burned with the effort of standing upright with the heavy burden slung across his shoulders, and he could only hope that he hadn't done more damage to the injury by moving his body.
He swaggered, he stumbled, he nearly fell to his knees as he crashed through the underbrush deeper into the forest. Teal'c's back was exposed to the branches above, but hopefully the second jacket provided sufficient protection. His knees ached and he was sure his spine might snap in two but he pushed on, further away from the battle site, away from the Stargate, looking for someplace safe to wait for Hammond to contact them.
Which would be pointless if he didn't get his hearing back or Teal'c didn't wake up soon. He couldn't hear the radio, he wouldn't be able to communicate with Hammond on any serious level. He wouldn't even know if Hammond had tried to contact them.
This was looking very bad. Very bad indeed.
TBC