Part I
Tittle: Any Given Moment
Author: KaraMeL
Email: Kristine_sci@hotmail.com
Summary: A horrible secret is revealed about Area 51. When Jack is injured, SG-1 must uncover it.
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: This story belongs to MGM and all the other companies/cooperations that own Stargate. So, initially the characters don't belong to me. Darn.
Authors note: I guess I should really edit my work... make it easier for the eyes... Enjoy ;)
Things happen with a purpose. Nothing happens by accident. Then why was that nagging feeling still at the back of the one time brilliant archeologist Daniel Jackson? He felt uneasy for some reason, as if something was going to happen, and he wasn't quiet in sync with the world to figure it out. What could he base his theories on? A feeling? An instinct. Although he had felt, and trusted, this feeling of self-doubt, he chose to ignore it. A simple gesture that would, in fact eliminate all the worries that scrolled across his head like a screen saver. A stuck screen saver. The thoughts were a part of his mind. They were him; they defined him, and most of all he believed in them. Then why did he not voice them out loud? He sighed mentally. Aware of his two other teammates rummaging through their lockers too. Teal'c, his stony expression remained passive and un-breaking. The nagging in his mind softened. Like a child who had received their wish. Teal'c would protect them, as he always did, and none to the least would he settle for less. The expression on Teal'c's face hinted that he was also a million light years away, mentally reviewing all what he had learned in the short, but well prepared de-briefing by Carter. They would leave tomorrow, in military terms '0800 hours.' It wasn't going to be 'just one of those days'. It was going to be as unusual as it came with the job. A curse and a bang startled him. Slightly, any ways. He turned. Teal'c didn't flinch. He resumed his business as if nothing had occurred in the five seconds a loud crash had rebirverated through the room. Daniel turned. It was ironic that he was the only one that would be surprised by this... mishap. The sight that greeted his eyes was humorous in a way. The cursing Jack on the floor didn't think so. He glared at the pile of papers, garbage, and keepsakes that littered the floor in front of him. He glanced up at Daniel and back at the lump of garbage.
"I get it from you." The simple statement was enough for Daniel to smile. The Colonel would blame the common cold on him if he could. Jack was the only one that braved danger with a knife between his teeth and a sarcastic comment on his tongue. He never ceased to amaze Daniel with all the remarks he could pull out of the air at the time of danger. Then again he was surprised that the Air Force would keep such a man like him on its pay-role, considering it's no-nonsense attitude towards outsiders and civilian personnel. He could still feel the wrathful glances towards him like a knife in his back with his confrontations with military officials on base. He would disregard them as jealousy. Daniel sighed mentally; the slight patronizing frown plastered on his face a cover up on his true feelings. Jack grumbled and kicked an old box accidentally with his foot. The box slid and opened, spilling its contents on the already littered floor. Jack swore. Daniel swore he could hear Teal'c's eyebrow's rising. Daniel looked back at the Jaffa who had not indicated any change in his usual routine. Daniel glanced back at Jack, who was hurriedly stuffing his things back into the box. Jack seemed oddly embarrassed and Daniel reached over and snatched up one of the items that had tumbled from the old box. It was a picture. Jack made a vain attempt to grab it and Daniel lurched back to escape his clutches.
"Give it back Daniel." Jack didn't seem very threatening, more pleading than anything. Daniel was tempted to give it back, but he wanted to see what Jack was hiding from him. He turned over the photo. It wasn't really a photo per say; it was slightly blurry and was shakily focused. It was of Area 51. Daniel stared at it for a second and he gaped up at Jack. Then at Teal'c who had started to stare at them when the room had suddenly gotten silent. Jack sat back, as if dejected. Daniel grabbed the box and flipped through the photos. They were of creatures, both familiar and unfamiliar. Daniel blinked. There were things here that were never meant to be on earth. There was also a row of cells and alien beings of all sorts stared out, their faces gaunt and bony. Daniel put down the photos. What were they? Where had Jack gotten them? Teal'c had by now also bent over and stared at the grisly photos before him. Daniel could feel the confusement radiating from the man beside him. But he also sensed Jack was watching his reaction. As he looked up, he was surprised to see the Colonel white-faced and twitching. He snatched the photos and tossed them into a duffel bag. The rest of the junk lay on the floor. Jack grabbed his things, shoved them back and to say the least ran from the room, bumping into an astonished Carter. She glanced at the disappearing figure, then at the two men who were still sitting awkwardly on their knees.
"What was that all about?" She asked, her eyes still on the lone figure stalking down the hallway. Daniel shook his head. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it.
"I don't know." He shrugged to punctuate his words. "But I'm going to find out." He jumped from his knees to his feet and grabbed his coat. Jack had a bit more then a disappearing act to explain.
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"Jack! Jack, wait up!" Daniel puffed angrily. He had been chasing Jack over almost the entire SGC. Jack, if he had heard him, was ignoring him. Cursing and closing his eyes, Daniel gathered his strength once more and with a burst of speed caught the tail of Jack's clothes. He then slammed to a dead halt and Jack was too. He stumbled and almost tripped. He looked back at Daniel with contempt, as he tried vainly to catch his breath.
"What do you want Danny." He asked, not even the slightest bit out of breath himself. Daniel looked up and coughed.
"Well," he started. "You can start with the little disappearing act then explain the photos." Jack flickered his eyes around him, as if to verify that they were alone. In that stretch of silence nothing could be heard. It unnerved Daniel. Jack looked back at him then gestured with a nod of head to come with him. Daniel blinked slowly, this was pretty unexpected. Jack finally focused on Daniel fully.
"Okay, come on Daniel. We're going to go to my house." Jack's complexion was almost normal, and his eyes weren't flickering about any more. Daniel wondered what the pictures and the nervous looks were about. It seemed as if Jack was hiding something, something really awful. Daniel jumped into the front seat of Jack's jeep while Jack calmly walked around the back end, opened the door and sat down, breathing deeply. Daniel cast his friend a look and watched as Jack inserted the key and they pulled out of the parking lot. All the time Daniel had the most awful feeling that they were being watched.
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The weathered fingers released their hold on the tattered blinds. A match flared and a cigarette flamed then smoked. The carrier of this foreign light inhaled deeply, his eyes watching the back end of the truck that had sped away from the facility. Slowly, he took the age old hand set and flipped a switch; his eyes still on the disappearing truck.
"Alpha Charlie, this is Eagle bird. He's on the move, unidentified passenger going up route five. Proceed with caution." There was a hiss of static then a voice crackled through on the same frequency.
"Okay Eagle bird. Proceeding with caution. Will await instructions at focal point." The weathered hand put down the radio and put out his cigarette. The butt flared for a minute and then burned out.
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Jack's eyes flickered again, looking nervously at the review mirror. Daniel followed his example and peered behind them. There, they could see a truck following them. Jack swore and slammed his foot on the gas. They weren't going to get him without a fight. Tires squealed as Jack threw a hairpin turn, crashing into the underbrush and effectively disappearing into the dense forest. Daniel was about to take a piece of Jack and yell when Jack reached over and roughly cupped his mouth closed with his palm.
"Sorry Danny," he hissed, "just shut up for a second then I promise I'll talk." Jack ducked slightly and as the twilight of the forest started to fade he could hear voices.
"They disappeared sir."
"What do you mean disappeared? We were right behind them." The was a clang of metal as some thing slammed down.
"I don't know sir."
"'I don't know sir' doesn't cut it. Now I have to go to the boss and explain that the guy I was tracking has mysteriously disappeared." There was a sigh then the man muttered unintelligently under his breath. Jack closed his eyes, hearing the car start up then whine as it drove away. Daniel shivered minutely, more because of the nearness of these... these... people than the cold. Jack finally released Daniel's mouth and started up his engine again. Jack pulled out of the underbrush and they headed for the city.
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There was a hiss of static as the boss contemplated Alpha's words. Alpha blinked rapidly, flickering his gaze to the still radio and his people gathered around the radio, listening. Finally the voice returned.
"Okay, I'll give you some leads. There's either O'Neill's house or the other guys apartment." Alpha looked over to his troops.
"If I may sir, he pause momentarily, "Who is this 'other guy'?" There was the crackle of static, but Alpha could clearly hear the other man's voice.
"Doctor Daniel Jackson."
"No shit." The voice on Alpha's right made him look up sharply. The bearer of the voice shrugged sheepishly.
"Sorry sir. I know him." Alpha's eyebrows twitched and he returned his attention to the radio.
"Thank you Eagle bird. We'll be flying the coop." Alpha turned off his radio and turned to delta bravo, the person who had spoken. "Well, spit it out."
"He's had a lot of odd theories, managed to get himself kicked out of the academic world for them." Around them, there was a slight shuffle, as if laughter creased the group.
"And what about these theories?" Delta shifted slightly, her eyes darting between the platoons
"Well sir, alien life. Stuff about the pyramids." There was an intake of breath and Delta nervously flickered her eyes around.
" What's your connection with this 'Jackson' guy?" Delta shifted, her hair loosing out of her braid falling across her face.
"He used to be my friend sir." There was an audible silence in the group. They knew that she had meant to say 'boy-friend' Delta shifted her eyes downwards and Alpha looked over her to the rest of the team.
"And this is what we'll make use off. Come on men! Delta, you're in the cab. I want to know everything and anything about this guy." Delta rose and for a second she felt remorse, why was she going to hurt him? Then, with a vengeance she erased his face from her memory. That was all he was now, a memory and she twitched her lip into a grimace. Memories had nothing to do with the present.
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Daniel opened the door to the rusty old fridge; his nose and feet backpedaling as the smell almost bowled him over.
"Jesus Murphy, what died in here." He was, of course, referring to his own cleaning habits. The fridge was pretty much neglected and the food inside was growing... literally. Daniel pinched his nose, ready to take the growing yogurt and unidentifiable meat plate into the garbage, then thought better of it. Who knew when he was going to toss out the garbage? Daniel sighed and gingerly took out a beer, from Jack's last visit, and then decided to pour himself a cup of coffee. By the look in Jack's eyes, he was going to need it. Daniel rummaged for a minute, searching for some sort of cup that was washed and that resembled something clean There was nothing, so he opted for the half crusted cup, still filled with chips of the last coffee he had. Smelling the inside, he shrugged and poured himself the coffee. Coffee was coffee, even with five-day grime. Daniel carted his cup and Jack's beer over to the living room, where Jack sat, absently clutching his duffel bag as if it were his own life. Daniel swung the beer teasingly in his face and Jack finally snapped out of his reverie. Daniel took a seat across from him and stared at his friend chugging down the beer. Obviously this was getting nowhere.
"Okay Jack. What's with the pictures, secrecy and wonderful car rides? Why are people following you and why do you have pictures of Alien species hidden in your duffel bag?" Jack grunted, still nursing his beer, his eyes had a faraway look as if he could see right through Daniel.
"Hellooo.... Jack?" Jack blinked, finally focusing his attention on Daniel.
"Huh?" Daniel was about to re-say everything he had just asked before Jack put up his hand.
"I know. Don't worry about it. You'll know. I never wanted you to, but you will." Daniel was confused. His usually calm and poised friend, sarcasm included, was sitting there, lecturing him about the two choices of knowing and not knowing. Everything was so confusing; the only thing on Daniel's mind was questions. The only thing he would ever have would be questions. Questions were the very thing that made up life, ethical and forbidding. And all Daniel had were questions. As Daniel was thinking about his role in life and the fabric of the universe, Jack had put his beer down, opened the duffel bags and taken the pictures out. Daniel reached out and took a stack, flipping through them, grimacing at the bone-thin bodies, the distressed eyes and the small children that dominated frame after frame. Daniel chewed on his lip, his vision blurring as he realized the implications of this... this... discovery. Daniel flipped through another set of pictures and closed his eyes. Who would do such horrible things to innocent creatures?
The same people who would do this to human beings." Damn. He must have said that out loud. Jack was looking at Daniel with a peculiar expression on his face. It reminded him oddly of the same expression that he had had when Daniel had asked him about his wife. Daniel winced inwardly and threw the remaining pictures in his hand on the table. The spread, a growing freak show of grotesque abuse inflicted on alien species. Daniel flickered his gaze upwards.
"You still haven't answered 'who'" Jack blinked, hallowing his expression.
"Anyone come to mind?" Daniel tilted his head, not quite understanding Jack's question, then he looked down at a single picture, where a man could be seen and he recoiled. It was Maybourne.
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Jack sighed for the umpteenth time. Carter and Teal'c had come, viewed the pictures and had the almost identical expressions Daniel had showed. Except for Teal'c. He had remained impassive. The only thing left was to actually show the General and call the president. Jack had a strange feeling that they were running out of time. Making a decision, Jack grabbed the pictures and tossed them into the bag he had been carrying. Daniel had stopped talking and looked at his friend
"Okay, we've got to go." Sam and Teal'c looked up in surprise.
"Where to?"
"The General of course. Where did you think we were going? Washington?" Daniel smiled slightly and followed Jack as he started for the door. "We'll have to avoid suspicion. Carter, you and Teal'c head for the base after us. Me and Daniel will go the back way. Remember, be conspicuous." Sam arched an eyebrow.
"Okay sir. Come on Teal'c. We'll take the interstate." Daniel nervously flickered his gaze side to side. Jack noticed he was probably more uptight about this that the rest of the team. Jack smiled slightly.
"Come on Daniel. We'll be going to the base. No one there is going to hurt us." Daniel frowned.
"How do you know?" Jack shrugged and grabbed his jacket, heading for his jeep.
"Just a feeling." Daniel shrugged and took his coat as well. As soon as they reached the parking lot, Daniel breathed a sigh of relief. So far so good. Jack pulled open his door and tossed the photos to Daniel.
"Keep 'em safe." Daniel nodded. Taking another deep breath he hopped into the passenger seat. Jack started the engine and they rode off. Daniel remained tight-lipped throughout the ride, wondering what punishment the president would bestow on Maybourne, if ever that slimy solider was not under any ones protection. Daniel flicked his gaze back to Jack. There were so many questions he still had, but they could wait until they got back to base. Daniel's gaze flicked back to the road. The trees and moss-covered logs seemed to pass by faster and faster. Suddenly, a stop sign flashed past.
"Hey Jack. I know we were in a hurry, but breaking the law isn't the best way." Daniel shifted his attention to Jack.
"If I only wished." Daniel realized in horror that Jack was pumping the brake. "Oh crap" Jack said. Somebody must've cut our line." The jeep sped through the road and Daniel grabbed the dashboard. The dirt road was a tad bit bumpier than he liked it to be and he closed his eyes. This wasn't a great way to go. Beside him, Jack grunted as he tried to steer the out of control car. Daniel could see the speed barometer rising. 100mph, 120mph... Daniel squeezed his eyes shut as the road thinned and a large jutting peninsula stretched out beneath them.
"Okay Daniel. Don't panic. I'm sure we're going to stop somewhere..." Jack paled and Daniel swung his head. A cliff. Daniel laughed slightly. Oh, this was going to be so horrible. Jack made a move to shut off the engine and Daniel slapped his hand away. He knew an explosive device when he saw one. Jack swore and stepped on the brake again.
"Shit!" Daniel blinked rapidly at the fast approaching cliff.
"Well, at least we went up in a blaze of glory." The car teetered and veered off the cliff, the wheels sticking rock after rock, throwing pieces of metal in all directions. Then finally, with a crash, the vehicle stopped with a jarring thud. Nothing moved.
Where were they? Sam wiped her sweating hands on the side of her pants. This wasn't good. She cast a stray look in Teal'c direction. The Jaffa was as impassive as ever. Sam rechecked the tunnel again, pausing as a military vehicle momentarily blocked her view. They were an hour late. It didn't take that long to get here. Making a decision, Sam grabbed the keys off of the table she had thrown them on and grabbed her car. She'd be damned if they hadn't run aground in some trouble.
Teal'c let his brows furrow in the slightest bit of worry. It wasn't like Colonel O'Neill and Daniel Jackson to be away without saying something. Teal'c looked over at Sam again. Lines of worry creased her forehead as well, and Teal'c felt compelled to tell her that her worry might affect her ability to drive. They had circled the back roads of the facility with no apparent luck. Suddenly, the phone on the dashboard rang. Sam almost lost control of the wheel before slamming on the brakes.
"Hello?" Teal'c shot a look in Sam's direction. Once again, he was tempted to tell her panicking was not going to solve any problems, but he wisely kept his mouth shut.
"Yeah, Okay, where did you say they were? Alright. I'll be there in about..." Sam checked her watch and swore silently. "Twenty minutes. Okay. Alright. Thank you sir." She shut off the phone and swung the car into reverse.
"Did you obtain information from where Colonel O'Neill and Daniel Jackson are?" Sam looked at Teal'c.
"Yeah, you could say that. They're in the hospital. Apparently they were run off the road." Teal'c raised an eyebrow. Humans were a very peculiar race.
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As soon as Daniel Jackson awoke, the first thing he did was shoot up straight in the hospital bed and look around him, the yell of terror still stuck in the back of his throat. The nurse who had been at the door almost screeched in terror herself. Daniel looked around wildly, noting two things. One, he wasn't in the jeep any more, and two, he was alive. The poor woman at the door stepped into the room, holding placating hands in front of her.
"It's okay Mr. Jackson. Doctor Fields is going to be here in a minute. Don't move a muscle/. You'll upset the needle." Daniel flickered his gaze in between the painful needle dug into his vein and the clearly frightened woman in front of him. He coughed slightly and cleared his throat.
"Where and why am I?" Obviously, not everything was coming out as he was trying to word them.
"Well, where, is here, in Mercy Hospital. Why, well, as far as I know, you took a long drive off a short cliff." Daniel relaxed slightly. This woman reminded him of Jack. Always sarcastic and ready to ease... Jack!
"Where's my friend? He was in the car with me... Do you know where he is?" The woman took a step back. Daniel tried to calm himself. He imagined that panicking and scaring the woman half to death was not really going to get him answers.
"He's here." After a moments hesitation she added, "In the hospital. He got out of surgery an hour ago. You were the lucky one. He had some internal bleeding and a couple broken ribs. He's still sleeping, but he won't be going any where for a while." Daniel surveyed all his joints, feeling only slight twinges.
"What about me." The Nurse handed him a cup filled with water and dutifully handed him two pills. One bright green and the second an Amherst type color, filled with gel.
"Doctor's orders," she gestured to the pills. "You... well, couple bruises and a concussion. Like I said. Very lucky. I heard you guys fell a long way." Daniel was in no mood for talking and surveyed the room, looking for the top half of his clothes. Thankfully, they had left his pants on. His shirt was an entirely different story.
"Do I have to stay?" The nurse fiddled with her nametag and nervously shook her head.
"But you have to wait until Dr. Fields comes. He has to check you out. This isn't one of those new fangled hospitals where the patient decides. Daniel blinked slightly. This woman oddly reminded him of somebody he had met a long time ago. Her slight accent made it hard to identify her origins. Daniel shook his head slightly.
"When is this doctor supposed to be here?" The woman shrugged.
"I work here. I'm not a psychic." Daniel closed his eyes, so not to let the woman see him roll his eyes.
"Well, don't worry Doctor Jackson, you'll be out of here as soon as your friends arrive." Daniel looked towards the door, where a slim-built man stood, leafing through what looked like his file. Daniel's mouth quirked when the man finally dropped the folder from his face.
"What an interesting file you have. Do you consider yourself accident prone or is it a natural occurrence?" Daniel shrugged. The nurse nervously flickered her gaze between both men. "You can leave Cynthia, I'm sure I'll be able to handle the young man. Daniel followed the nurse's path to the door until the doctor disrupted his field of view. As the doctor began to make notes Daniel sighed slightly.
"Which one of my friends are coming?" Daniel didn't mean to sound rude. It just came out that way.
"Well, somebody named Teal'c and what sounded like a woman who called herself Sam. I suppose you know them or are you naturally suspicious? Alright Doctor Jackson, you are fit to go. Make sure you sign out and don't scare any more of my nurses." Daniel nodded sheepishly, but before the Doctor left, he snagged his coat.
"Do you know where I can find Jack O'Neill?" the doctor furrowed his brow.
"Jack? We have a Jonathan in room 202." Daniel neared slapped himself. Of course Jack would be Jonathan. Jack never called himself that. Oh well.
"Thank you Dr. Fields." The doctor waved over his shoulder, already studying his next patient's chart. Daniel grabbed his shirt and coat from the closet and put on his shirt, carefully keeping the Doctor's order to stop scaring the nurses. Heaven knows what the nurses would think about a half-naked man running down the hall. Daniel winced slightly as he looked into a nearby mirror. Half of his face was covered with a livid bruise and Daniel could feel the many he probably supported on various parts of his body. Daniel threw his coat onto his shoulders and walked down the corridor, trying to walk and fasten his watch on his wrist at the same time. Finally the hall narrowed and the room that the Doctor had said Jack was in neared. Daniel took in a deep breath, hoping that it wasn't going to be too bad. The door opened and Daniel peeked in. Swathed in a bandage and a ventilator strapped to his face made Jack look frailer than his forty something years. Daniel edged slowly towards the bed and his expression fell. What kind of person would do this? Daniel grabbed a seat and tugged it to the side of Jack's bed. He was sure Sam and Teal'c would wander in this direction, and when they did, he wanted some answers. Daniel let his head drop to his hands which adorned the metal rails. Either that, or he was going to fall asleep.
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Sam sighed and looked at her watch. The nurse had been gone for almost five minutes. How long did it take to obtain a room number? Finally the nurse ambled over
"Yes," she finally answered n a nasal voice. "One Jonathan O'Neill admitted for serious injuries. He's in room 202. Your other friend should be there too. " Sam gritted her teeth.
"Thank you very much." No wonder she hated hospitals.
"Why are you angry at the nurse Major Carter? Has she done something to upset you?" Sam sighed. There was no use in explaining the hassles of everyday life to Teal'c. He was just clueless.
"I'm not 'angry' Teal'c. I'm... well, I'm mad. I find out Maybourne's doing the devil's work and torturing innocent alien species, I find out that as soon as I get back to base my friends are missing, then find out the wind up in a hospital with no apparent reason. What isn't wrong with that picture?" Teal'c looked at her thoughtfully and raised an eyebrow.
"The Tau'ri are a very complicated race." Sam sighed again and waved her hand in the direction where Daniel and the Colonel would be.
"Yeah Teal'c, that about slices it up." Another confused eyebrow met the other. Sam closed her eyes and sighed again. She was getting a horrible headache.
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"Daniel... hello... Daniel? Are you awake? Daniel?" Daniel stirred and turned over. Sam frowned. What she wouldn't do for a cup of coffee right now. Outside, three men were talking; Sam walked up to them and grabbed the coffee cup out of one of the man's hand. She was in no mood to mess with anybody. "Daniel!" she hissed. Wake up. She thrust the coffee cup under his nose, heartened by the snort and movement. Sam smiled apologetically at the man who stood bewildered at the door and shrugged. "He sleeps like a log. Only coffee will get him moving." The man looked at his friends and down at the coffee cup she was holding.
"That's alright. He can keep it now." Sam looked at Teal'c who shrugged as well. Sam placed the coffee on the bed table and seated herself directly across from Daniel. Looking the younger man in the face. It took a couple slaps, but finally the younger man stirred to full wakefulness.
"Hi Sam... Uh... Teal'c, whoever you are..." He blinked a couple times and smattered a fist at his glass-covered eyes. Sam waited patiently until Daniel realized where he was, why he was there and the two figures towering over him... either that or he had double vision. His second analogy was correct. Teal'c in fact was towering over him, a baseball cap both covering his bald head and the gold tattoo that he sported on his forehead. Sam sat across from him, he eyes filled with regret, her attention being chased by her concern for both the men.
"Hi Daniel. How are you doing." Sam leant over, her elbows resting on the starch white sheets, her eyes wide and filled with sadness. Obviously this was hitting her harder than he thought.
"Pretty good considering I fell off a cliff. Jack said the lines were cut... I mean brake lines. We couldn't get control... Jack swerved and we went off the cliff... I woke up here... The said I had a concussion and bruises... Jack would probably say that I have too hard of a head to be getting concussions... Any ways, Jack had some internal bleeding. They said he had a couple cracked ribs too... or broken... I forget. How long have I been here? Where's the coffee?" Sam blinked. This man talked like somebody out of an action. Too much information, too much questions.
"The coffee is over there. I liberated it from a man walking past. He didn't seem too happy when I tried to get it back. I'll get you some more later. Okay Daniel. Do you remember what happened to the pictures? Where did they go?" Daniel wracked his brain for a moment the shot straight up. Teal'c stepping in, wary that Daniel might fall and hurt himself. Instead, Daniel spun around in a pace.
"The bag... well, it's gone. I have no idea... I mean, I had it in the car... I can ask... I don't know what happened... I was kind of unconscious. Maybe I should've painted a sign on my face that said 'bag found with this unconscious person should be returned with him'" Daniel stopped and took a long deep breath.
"How's Jack?" Sam threw a puzzled glance in Daniel's direction. This man was a one way radio.
"Jack is doing just fine. Now if you'd all shut up, Jack could get some sleep." Sam swiveled her head to the new voice, startled to find Jack, a little pale but looking better, looking at them, a pinched expression dominating his face. "For crying out loud Carter. You could out yell a vacuum. Daniel, you look like you need a couple nights of uncaffeinated sleep." Daniel gaze jack a withering glance.
"I suppose you're alright. Your humor's intact." Jack shrugged, wincing as something pulled. Sam made a reach for the call button, but was stopped halfway.
"Don't." Sam retracted her hand and sat back into her chair. Jack breathed a sigh of what sounded like relief, but it was too short for the three of them to actually register it. "Thank you. The last thing I need is nurses prodding and poking me. I have enough of that from Fraiser." He let his gaze slip between the three of them. "You can stop string now. I'm not a parasite." He looked directly at Daniel. "Something tells me, the few minutes you grabbed on my bed, drooling like a baby didn't do you much good." Daniel shrugged.
"Go look in the mirror." Jack smiled slightly.
"I want you guys to go back to the wreck. Find the pictures, show Hammond. They supposedly contacted the SGC. You need to find them... go!" Sam nodded and headed for the door. Obviously, Sam listened to orders in and out of the base. "Daniel. Get your butt moving. Teal'c, I need to talk to you." Daniel shrugged; taking a longing look at the cold coffee that sat on the table then followed Sam. A moment later, Teal'c followed. Daniel turned curiously to the former first prime.
"What did he say?" Teal'c, with the absolute most serious look faced the corridor and stonily marched foreword.
"I am not at liberty to reveal the information Colonel O'Neill gave to me." Daniel arched an eyebrow.
"I'm sure you could tell us." Teal'c stared foreword.
"Colonel O'Neill specifically requested that I wait until we reached our vehicle until I said any thing." Daniel sighed. Once a Jaffa's mind was made up, there was no changing it. Daniel stalked down the corridor, following Sam's bland head.
"Sam, wait up." She stopped only for a minute.
"What?" Daniel shrugged, wincing as the movement pulled on his bruises.
"Do I need a valid explanation every time I want you to wait up." Daniel scowled silently. "I suppose we should head through the back roads we took coming to the base. There's a turn off that goes directly to the place we... uh... crashed." Sam turned her head over her shoulder, making sure that he was really okay.
"Tell you what, you and Teal'c head to the car, I'll get a cup of coffee. We'll go double." Daniel's face lit up and he positively bounced towards Sam's car. Teal'c followed at his normal pace. Sam shook her head and dug her hand into her pocket, counting out the money needed to buy the coffee. A minute later, Daniel came back into the Cafe. Sam looked at him, confused.
"Uh... Sam. I think you should come for a second." Sam smiled slightly in amusement.
"You just can't wait for your coffee can you?" Daniel blinked and tugged on her shirt. Puzzled, she followed him to the car, where Teal'c had one hand poised on the door handle of her jeep. Sam squinted.
"We have a problem." Sam ignored Daniel for a minute and peered into the car. There, attached to the door handle on the driver's side was a carefully set up switch trip, activated when the door was opened and pulled back. It didn't look too complicated. Pretty crude but by the plastic explosives stacked up in perfect synchronization, it looked pretty lethal. Sam closed her eyes for a moment, slowly sliding the small backpack of her shoulders and rummaging through it until she found small nail scissors. Daniel backed up a step; Sam could see the thin sheen of sweat on the top of his lip. If he was nervous, he did a great job at hiding it.
"Okay Teal'c. I'm going to ask you to not let go of that door handle or else we will be bloody fragments on the area surrounding this car. Now, it's not connected to the passenger seat, so I'll just climb in there." Sam carefully seated herself on the seat, taking a deep breath and then turning towards the device. "Ha, great. Trigger switch. That kills the danger to me. There isn't any fail safe devices, so I assume that's good news."
"Sam... uh... I don't mean to break your concentration, but do you know what you're doing?" Sam turned towards Daniel who stared at her with wide eyes.
"Daniel. Of course. I'm a whiz when it comes to bombs... of course I've never touched a live one... I studied them in Basic training." Sam could hear Daniel choke on his breath.
"Studied them? Shouldn't we call a bomb squad or something? I mean, you're probably very good as this disarming thing, but personally, I don't want to be a pile of mutilated body parts in a parking lot. Come on! Look at that! Unstable formation, plastic bomb, three wire timer!" Sam slowly turned towards Daniel.
"What are you talking about? You know what this is?" Daniel shrugged.
"I studied them... I was fascinated with them as a kid." Sam looked at him strangely. Daniel shrugged. "You were an odd kid Daniel. Besides the point, what wire are you betting on?" Daniel closed his eyes.
"Don't ask for my opinion... Disarm it!" Sam looked at him, Daniel desperately looked at Teal'c who was as still as a stone. "The red one. It's always the red one." Sam looked at the blue, red and black wire configuration. She looked at Daniel and then at Teal'c.
"Okay". She held the Nail scissors over the wire and snipped. Daniel squeezed his eyes shut.
"Oh Thank you heaven." Sam looked sharply at Daniel while dismembering the bomb. She tossed the separated sticks in the back seat, making sure the trigger switch was disconnected before she motioned for Teal'c to open the door.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I was fighting between the black and red, and I remember that program which was on TV, about the many bombs, well, they always cut the red wire." Sam looked at him incredulously.
"You mean, you based your answer on a TV program?" Sam looked at Daniel and looked ready to strangle him. Daniel shrugged and hopped into the back seat.
"You never said anything about that." Sam closed her eyes and put her hands on her eyes, rubbing away the fatigue and headache. Daniel Jackson was going to kill them one day. Sam looked at Teal'c and tossed him the keys. Daniel put his arms on the seat backing in front of him. "So, what did Jack tell you?" Teal'c started the car and Sam let her head rest back.
"Colonel O'Neill advised my to 'throw you a towel' and tie you to the seat. He insisted that I make sure that you get some sleep." Daniel shrank back.
"Well, you know Jack. He's the kind of person who'll just say these things for no apparent reason." Teal'c looked at Sam and she nodded.
"Sleep." Pointing to the back seat, Daniel obediently sat and leant on the seat, feigning sleep. Opening his eyes a crack he swore that he would get Jack back if it were that last thing he was going to do.
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Sam shielded her eyes against the sun, looking over the quiet lake before registering the broken heap that used to be Jack's car. Behind her, Daniel and Teal'c got out of the car.
"Wow. That's pretty bad. Jack's going to have hell with the insurance company." Sam narrowed her eyes against the sun and turned in Daniel's direction. He shrugged and kicked his foot at the sparse grass. Sam walked in the direction of the car, wary of the twisted pieces of metal that were strew across the beach. As soon as high tide came, this beach would probably become flooded. The car wouldn't stand a chance. From the looks of it, it was a write off any way.
"There seemed to be considerable movement in this area Major Carter." Sam blinked and looked at the Jaffa.
"It was a rescue operation. Of course there was movement." Daniel kicked at the same, shuffling and walking at the same time. He looked up to see Sam staring at him. "What? What did I do." Sam closed her eyes, rubbing the bridge of her nose. The sooner they got the pictures, the sooner they got out of there. Daniel took the lead, picking his way through the debris and reaching into the car, looking for the bag.
"Where were you sitting... uh... holding the bag." Sam looked around, oddly perturbed by the quiet.
"Passenger side. I wasn't holding it, I was gripping it." Sam smiled slightly at Daniel's wayward attempt to pass off as 'funny'. "Well, It was between me and Jack, so my guess is that it's... Ah ha! Found it." Daniel turned to face them and Sam's eyes widened.
"Daniel! Look out!" She jumped, pushing him into the sand. A moment later, three shots tore up the ground in which Daniel was standing on less than a few seconds ago. Sam and Daniel crawled for the cover of the car, wide shots ripping the remains of the car. Daniel squeezed his eyes shut, silently praying under his breath.
"Please say you have a plan... theory... anything?" Daniel sorted through the bag, making sure that the pictures were still there. Daniel shot a look into the area where Teal'c had been standing. "Uh, Sam, where's Teal'c?" Sam shrugged and risked a look around the jeep's front fender.
"I noticed the same thing. He's probably trying to get the guy."
"You mean, you hope he is." Sam shrugged again, risking yet another look before turning back to Daniel
"Yeah, I'm hoping." Suddenly, a shout from the top of the ridge made both heads cautiously look over the jeep to see Teal'c waving from a spot in the brush.
"Major Carter, Daniel Jackson, the man has fled. I will attempt to follow him." Sam waved her hand in a negative motion. Daniel put his back against the vehicle again, breathing a short sigh of relief before getting up, and heading for Sam's car. Sam followed as well, looking across the beach.
"That was pretty risky. I think he knew that we were going to come back. I don't understand why he didn't take the pictures and leave."
"I have ascertained information which will lead up to an interesting answer Major Carter. This man was not interested in the pictures. He was interested in us." Sam threw a look over her shoulder, smiled slightly at Teal'c, but loosing it quickly when she read the paper in Teal'c's hand.
"Wanted," she began, "Dead or Alive. Daniel Jackson, Samantha Carter and a man with a golden tattoo on his forehead using the name Teal'c. Are wanted in connection with the death of over a dozen people. One million dollar reward." Daniel raised his eyebrows and whistled through his teeth.
"Wow. I'm actually worth something and I can't turn myself in." Sam looked at him.
"Shut up. Head back to town Teal'c. Let's find a phone. Something tells me Cheyenne Mountain isn't going to be an option." She looked at the beach again and back at her companions. "We can't go back to your place or mine. They'll be there. I have a hunch that somebody want's us bad enough to kill us." They were fugitives. Wonderful.
Go to: Part II
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Febuary 8, 2000