From the moment Jack fell paralyzed, he knew it was going to be bad. It wasn't until he saw the lid on that damn jar lift up that he knew he was totally screwed. The one thing he feared above all else happened. He'd been taken as a host by the Goa'uld.
The pain as it slid into the back of his neck was excruciating. Jack could feel the snake in his mind, poking around like a burglar ransacking a home. Random flashes of memory flitted through his mind, some too quickly for him to recognize, as it plundered through his life. He heard snippets of songs, voices, animal sounds and other noises that passed too quickly to identify. Faces of friends and family whipped by from childhood, from the early days of his career, from the SGC. It was like standing in the middle of a whirlwind of memories.
Jack still had all of his senses. He could still feel everything his body did even though it was no longer under his direction. He could feel himself get up off of the floor by the pedestal. He could feel his boots hitting the stones as the Goa'uld walked him back to the main chamber. And, God help him, he could feel every second of what it had done to Daniel. Never had he felt so powerless.
On the walk from the ziggurat to the stargate, Jack had been able to make headway in his struggle. If he concentrated very hard, he could impede its movements slightly, but he couldn't initiate any movements of his own. That wasn't enough to stop it, though. All he could do was watch as the snake dragged Daniel off to some other equally deserted planet.
Now here they were on Planet Where The Hell Are We Going. The Goa'uld was pacing back and forth on the gate platform. As it moved restlessly, Jack tried to get as much information on his surroundings as he could. From this vantage point, Jack could see the gate was in a small clearing in the woods. Tall grasses and scraggly bushes filled the clearing. A jumbled line of rough stones led into the trees. Jack caught a glimpse of Daniel on his knees in the grass, puking. Daniel's glasses were missing and there was a piece of grass stuck to the blood on his swollen face. Jack didn't have time to see any more as the Goa'uld swung around and paced the other way.
Suddenly, superimposed on his view of the overgrown weeds and bushes was a vision of a tidy lawn bisected by a well built road of paved stone. Confused at first, Jack quickly realized he had just seen something from the Goa'uld's memory. It was unexpected. He didn't think he could see anything the snake didn't want him to. But that brief memory was accompanied by feelings of surprise and dismay. Maybe that surprise had loosened the Goa'uld's grip on Jack. He tried again to wrest control.
"There is no point in fighting me."
Jack was startled. It was weird to hear someone talk to him inside his own head. It seemed no different than any other conversation except that he could feel its emotions as it spoke. Maybe he could keep it busy talking. "Oh yeah? It's just a matter of time until I get it all back."
"Boast all you wish, Tau'ri," it sneered, "but better men than you have also failed."
"You'll get nothing from me but trouble," promised Jack, "so you might as well give up now. Besides, this body's a fixer upper. Check out the knees if you don't believe me. You'd be better off back in your box."
"Oh, but you are wrong, Tau'ri. I have already gained much from you. This body is easily healed and it is only part of what you have given me."
Jack could feel the snake's smug satisfaction. Whatever it was going to tell him, he knew he wasn't going to like it.
"It is from you that I learned of Daniel Jackson's value to the System Lords. And it is thanks to your training that I was able to capture him. He will make a fine gift to buy my way back into power."
Jack swore to himself. "If you want a hostage, take me. There's a price on my head that'll make it worth your while."
The Goa'uld chuckled. "You misunderstand. I am taking Daniel Jackson in addition to yourself. With such an offering as the two of you I shall regain my rightful status immediately."
As it spoke, Jack could feel its longing for power and revenge. A chaotic rush of images flowed over him. They made no sense at first. Then he understood that he was seeing its memories. He knew what it had done, who it had been. He even knew its name.
"Sesmu? What kind of a name is Sesmu?" taunted Jack. "Sounds like the answer to 'What does the cow say?'. I guess all the good names were already taken."
"I see you have heard of me" replied Sesmu, ignoring the jibe. "My name is still spoken despite my long absence."
"Sorry, Cowsays. Never heard of you at all. You're not even a blip on the radar screen."
"How else would you know of the Great God Sesmu?"
"You told me. I got it right out of your thoughts. And 'great god'? Laying it on a bit thick aren't you? From what I saw it was more like Sesmu the Small and the Meek. "
"Impossible! I have not allowed you to access my mind."
"Impossible? Let's recap, shall we?" Jack was at his snarky best. "As the very minor God of Wine under Ra you were supposed to pay him tribute by sending all the good stuff his way. Eventually, you started sending him the cheap stuff and selling off the good stuff. Ra found out and had you stuffed in that jar. Right before he closed the lid he whispered to you, said you were lucky he hadn't put you through one of your own wine presses. No one heard that but you. Now you just want to regain the status you had before you got greedy."
"How can you know this?" Sesmu's tone was one of disbelief, but Jack could feel the underlying fear.
"Told ya. I got it straight from your own snaky little brain. By the way, that whole 'getting in good with Ra' thing you have planned? Not gonna work. Ra's dead. We killed him."
Astonished, Sesmu came to a halt on the platform. Apparently, it had not been able to access all of Jack's memories.
"That price on our heads is strictly from the System Lords. But if you want to collect you better hurry. We've taken out a few of them, too."
"This cannot be! You lie!" Jack could tell the Goa'uld was utterly shaken. "You shall be punished for this falsehood!"
"It's the truth all right. And nothing you can do will shut me up." Jack tried to project his memories of the deaths of Ra, Apophis, Hathor, Seth, Heru'ur and other Goa'uld as well as memories of every time he suffered at the hands of the Jaffa or even his fellow man.
Sesmu was silent for a moment. "So. Ra is indeed dead and you truly are willing to suffer and die for your people if necessary." Sesmu turned on the platform and walked over to stand next to Daniel who was still kneeling in the grass. "Let us see if you care what happens to your friend."
Jack could feel his foot pull back then Sesmu kicked Daniel hard between the legs. Daniel screamed and fell over. Jack thought Daniel may have passed out, but he wasn't sure, because Sesmu wasn't looking at him anymore. Jack hated not being able to choose what to look at.
"Every time you defy me, it is he who will suffer." Sesmu knelt down next to Daniel and Jack could see that he had definitely passed out. "Consider that before you dare speak again."
Jack fumed in silence as Sesmu used the unconscious man's belt to tie his hands behind his back. "There is a chamber hidden deep within my palace which should still await me, despite the passage of time. I will array myself as befits a god then seek out the System Lords with my offering." Sesmu hoisted Daniel onto one shoulder began marching down the ruined road.
~#~
Samantha Carter crouched down near the bottom of the pedestal. It was the only thing in the small room. The walls and floor were of cut stones, like the rest of the temple. However, unlike the rest of the temple, the walls were plain. The only decoration was on the base of the pedestal itself and on the urn that had once been displayed on top of it. Briefly she wondered if the lack of adornment itself had held some significance for the people of this planet. Too bad there were no indigenous people left to ask. The urn, now empty, was back at the lab being analyzed by Dr. Bill Lee. The pedestal was the same color as the stone, but seen up close, it was obviously made from a different material. She held the scanner in her left hand and fought the urge to keep her right hand on the butt of her Beretta – just in case.
"Major Carter, are you sure that's safe?"
Carter flicked a glance over at the young Marine in the doorway. He was about her height and build with dark hair, dark eyes, and soft skin that looked like he'd never had to shave. Good Lord, she thought, he doesn't look like he's old enough to graduate high school, much less travel off-world. He fiddled nervously with his weapon. She couldn't blame him. She felt nervous too, but she hoped she was better at hiding it.
"That's what you're here for," she said. "But don't worry. The only thing the scans are showing is a residual power source."
"But what if it's hidden? What if the scans are wrong or – "
"Corporal!" She spoke sharply to get his attention, and then used her best 'confident' voice. "The scans are functioning properly. There's nothing hidden. There are no other Goa'uld here.
He swallowed then visibly pulled himself together. "Yes, Ma'am!". He nodded at her and adjusted his grip on the P-90.
Carter turned her attention back to the pedestal and checked the readout on the scanner. There was definitely something there. She ran her right hand slowly over the markings on the base by the floor. She examined that section thoroughly then shifted to the right and repeated her actions. She fell into a rhythm as she searched – scan, feel, shift; scan, feel, shift. She finally found what she was looking for three-quarters of the way around on the left side of the base. She couldn't help thinking that if she had gone to the left when she first started instead of the right, she would have saved herself a good twenty minutes of painstaking work. Oh, well. At least she had found it. Let's see, press this and this at the same time, then twist this and voila!
With a slight hum, the pedestal rose up like a periscope, growing three feet taller. The crystal-based mechanism that had been hidden in the section of pedestal below the floor was now completely exposed. Carter smiled in satisfaction. Time to really get to work.
~#~
Daniel's head was pounding. He was being jostled, and there was something hard poking him in the abdomen. Every jolt made his arms hurt, his head hurt, and his ribs hurt. His crotch felt like someone had set it on fire and then stomped out the flames. What the hell was going on? And what was with the jostling? Was he on a train? Slung across a pack mule? He opened his eyes. Oh. He opened his eye. The right one seemed to be swollen almost shut. He couldn't see much, but most of what he could see was olive drab. Flashes of black moved in and out of his field of vision and it took him a moment to recognize that those were boots. It took another minute to remember everything that had happened right up to the damn Goa'uld kicking him where no man ever wants to be kicked. Now, he was draped over the Goa'uld's shoulder as it was striding down the uneven remains of a road, surrounded by forest.
The Goa'uld came to a halt. It shrugged and dumped Daniel off of its shoulder. Daniel tried to catch himself before he realized his hands were tied behind his back. He landed in a painful heap on the broken remnants of the road. The Goa'uld stared down at him. One booted foot poked him in the chest. It grunted at him, but didn't say anything. Daniel noticed that the right side of the body still wasn't working quite right, either. He really hoped that meant that Jack was in there somewhere, fighting like hell for control.
Another grunt and the toe of the boot poked him in the side, right over his cracked ribs. Guessing that was his signal to walk, Daniel shifted around, trying to get into a position where he could rise without using his hands. Apparently he wasn't fast enough for the Goa'uld. Casually, it flicked out its foot and pushed his hip, sending him sprawling again. He started to wiggle into position again when the Goa'uld reached out with its left hand, grabbed his arm, hauled him upright, and started walking.
~#~
Once more, Dr. Babbington flipped through the journal lying on the desk in front of him. The pages made a snapping sound as he vented his frustration on the book. The notes were written in English, Goa'uld, and a smattering of other languages. It had taken most of the linguists, several dictionaries and one Marine who happened to speak Dutch to translate everything. Apparently Dr. Jackson wasn't fussy about what language he used when he took notes. The sloppy writing and abbreviated words were a hurried attempt to capture the bare bones of a thought as it flashed through his mind, to be fleshed out in lavish detail later when time allowed. Dr. Jackson never had that time. Babbington abruptly shoved the journal away. He hadn't come up with anything new in the last couple of hours. Maybe, he thought uneasily, maybe he would have to play the video again.
In all the hours Babbington had been at this he had only watched the recording one time. As he filmed the temple walls, Daniel commented on the scene in front of him as usual. Babbington took notes as he listened to the off-the-cuff narration. Nobody had warned him that the attack had been recorded.
The suddenness and ferocity of the assault, the sounds of flesh hitting flesh, the blood, and Daniel's cries of pain made Babbington sick to his stomach. What gave him chills was the absolute silence from O'Neill as he attacked his friend with unrelenting brutality.
Horrified, Babbington had fumbled at the DVD player for long seconds, eyes averted, trying to ignore the sounds coming from the speaker, before finally shutting the machine off. He sat for a minute until the shaking and nausea subsided, then pulled out Daniel's pre-mission report and working journal and went to work. Now, hours later, it was time to admit he couldn't go any further without seeing the video again. Making sure the disc was cued up to start at the very beginning, as far from the violence as it could get, he hit play.
~#~
Daniel staggered as his foot hit a rock. At least, he thought it was a rock. He might have stumbled for no reason. Everything hurt so much it was difficult to walk and they had been walking for what seemed like hours. The throbbing pain in his head and groin flared up with every step. If he could just get the pain under control, maybe he could think again.
A sudden shove between his shoulder blades sent him staggering again. This time, he lost his footing. With his hands bound behind him there was no way to regain his balance. His knees thumped to the ground first, then his chest. He turned his head to the side trying desperately not to smash his face. The impact knocked the wind out of him and sent a huge burst of pain all throughout his body. He thought he might pass out but then the pain subsided a bit. The same hand that had shoved him now roughly gripped the back of his jacket and hauled him upright.
"You know," Daniel panted, trying to catch his breath, "if you're in a hurry we'll probably get to wherever we're going a lot faster if you quit pushing me down."
~#~
"It's a time lock!"
Carter had barely stepped through the wormhole onto the ramp at the SGC when she started speaking. General Hammond and Teal'c, waiting for her at the bottom, both raised their eyebrows.
"A time lock?" asked Hammond. "The temple?"
Carter handed her weapon to the waiting airman. The gate room was loud with the metallic clomping of booted feet on the ramp. She moved to one side as the rest of the off-world team came through the gate behind her. They turned in their weapons and headed for the infirmary for the standard post-mission exam. Carter would join them after she finished briefing the General.
"The pedestal. It's a time lock." Carter said. "It was set to keep that Goa'uld inside for a certain time and then unlock. It was probably used as a punishment. Anyway, the Goa'uld was imprisoned for several thousand years. After that time, the pedestal was programmed to release the Goa'uld when the first viable candidate came by. Part of the mechanism released what I think was some kind of immobilizing gas. The canister was empty, but hopefully there will be enough residue for us to study. Once immobilized the victim would be unable to resist or defend themselves in any way while the urn opened and the Goa'uld took over."
There was a pause while they each visualized what must have happened to Jack. Hammond paled and swore under his breath. Carter could see the muscles in Teal'c's jaw shift as he clenched his teeth. She realized she was doing the same. She felt her eyes start to water and pushed the feeling aside. This was not the time indulge in her emotions. If she couldn't stay detached then she wouldn't be able to help her friends.
Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she continued. "If my calculations are correct, that time would have been up a few hundred years ago. Now, Daniel" her voice cracked slightly when she said his name, "Daniel said that the area had been abandoned for about a thousand years."
Hammond nodded. "That's right. Dr. Jackson said that in the briefing, though he did say that was a very rough estimate based on the rate of plant overgrowth and deterioration of the area surrounding the temple."
"Right." She took a deep breath. "I think that the area became deserted long before the lock opened. This means that there was nobody to trigger the release until we arrived. That room was one giant trap and the Colonel was the one to get caught."
"If what you are saying is so, then it could have been anyone of us to have the misfortune to activate the system." Teal'c frowned. "Had O'Neill not been the one to check the interior rooms, then it would most likely have been Daniel Jackson now enslaved as host."
Hammond looked grim. "I don't know which scenario is worse." He paused for a moment. "Major Carter, after you visit the infirmary I'd like you to check in on Dr. Lee and see what he's been able to learn about the urn. Teal'c, I'd like you to check in with Dr. Babbington. Perhaps you can help him determine just which Goa'uld we're dealing with."
"Yes, Sir."
"Indeed I shall, General Hammond."
The small group split up. Hammond watched as Carter strode quickly down the corridor, with Teal'c half a pace behind her. He hoped to God his people could figure this out. Losing either Colonel O'Neill or Dr. Jackson to the Goa'uld would be bad enough. But to lose both...it would tear up the remaining members of SG-1. Hell, it would tear up the SGC itself. To be stripped of Dr. Jackson's brilliance and O'Neill's military expertise would be devastating. To also have their knowledge in the hands of the enemy could be a fatal blow. On a personal level, he couldn't stand to think of how much the two men must be suffering and so far he hadn't been able to do a damn thing to help them. Hammond walked to his office and for the first time he felt very old.
~#~
Mental warfare was far more exhausting than Jack expected. Yet, each time he was forced to rest he always started back up again as soon as he could. He still couldn't do anything more than stop the Goa'uld from having full movement of the right side, but he took pleasure from the fact that it was annoying Sesmu. That alone gave him the energy to continue.
"This is pointless!" snapped Sesmu. "You cannot gain control."
"Watch me."
"This body is now mine. Accept your fate."
"Sorry, Sesame. This body is occupado. No vacancy. No room at the inn. There's only one per customer and I'm the customer." Jack could feel his hold growing weak again. Each time he made headway he found that he had to rest sooner and that it took longer before he was ready to try again.
"Need I remind you that if you defy me, your friend will suffer?" As he had several times before to punish Jack, Sesmu pushed Daniel forcefully in the back. Daniel fell hard, narrowly avoiding bashing his face on the ground.
"Stop it! He's no use to you. You don't need him. He's just slowing you down. Let him go!"
The Goa'uld grabbed the back of Daniel's jacket and roughly pulled him to his feet. Winded and obviously hurting, Daniel spoke through clenched teeth. "You know, if you're in a hurry we'll probably get to wherever we're going a lot faster if you quit pushing me down."
If he could have, Jack would have laughed out loud. Way to go, Daniel, he thought proudly. Show the snake what you've got!
"Insolence!" Sesmu was furious. Jack could feel it trying to speak and focused his will on keeping his mouth shut. Briefly, he wondered what it must look like to Daniel when Jack and the Goa'uld fought over possession of Jack's body. So far, Jack had been able to keep the Goa'uld from saying anything out loud. Too bad he didn't have enough control to speak for himself.
Daniel spoke again keeping his tone low and soothing, "Look, I think it's obvious that whatever you're looking for it isn't there anymore. Why don't we go back to the stargate? We have friends that can help you. Maybe even find you a willing host."
Not being able to speak only fueled Sesmu's rage. It raised a hand to strike Daniel, who flinched and stepped back to avoid the blow. Sesmu followed, trying again to hit him. Even hampered as he was with his injuries and his bound hands, Daniel managed to evade the Goa'uld at first. Daniel turned away from Sesmu, hunching one shoulder and ducking his head, trying to protect his face. Sesmu was so focused on hurting Daniel that Jack was able to gain control of his right hand. While Sesmu grabbed at Daniel with the left hand, Jack was able to loosen Daniel's bindings with his right hand. Sesmu satisfied himself with shaking Daniel and knocking him to the ground again.
Jack could feel the Goa'uld's anger ebb. As it ebbed, so did Jack's control of his hand. The bad news was Jack was right back to being barely able to hamper Sesmu's movement. The good news was the Goa'uld hadn't noticed what Jack had done. Loosening the bindings wasn't much but it was a start. Maybe Jack could get control again. If not, at least Daniel had a better chance of getting away now than he had before. Jack might well end his days stuck in his own worst hell, but he consoled himself with the thought that Daniel might not share his fate.
Knifepoint 2: JourneyPage 9 of 9by Catsmeow
