Author's Note: Special thanks to Maddy Lake Deep for all your encouragement and gentle prodding to finally get this story off my laptop and onto the net! I couldn't have done it without you and your great editing. Everyone, please R&R, if you like it, I will continue!
Disclaimer: I don't own 'em, but I sure love 'em!
Several yards down, Daniel came to a dead end. "No! This can't be it!" he cried out desperately, fighting off another wave of dizziness. Daniel stretched his hand out over the surface of the wall searching for any hidden levers.
Pressing and pulling on the rugged surface of the wall he suddenly realized he was drenched in sweat. He also hadn't noticed that the air was much thinner now that he was further back in the cavern.
Dropping to his knees, he was only dimly aware of strong arms cradling him and guiding him gently to the ground as his world completely blacked out.
The Weeping God
By Atlantagate
Chapter 2
"NOW!", the colonel cried to his second-in-command. Carter obeyed instantly setting off the C4 charges they left buried out of sight at their last position. The Jaffa warriors, completely caught unaware by the explosions were hurled into the air.
The remaining three warriors turned tail and retreated downhill back toward the Stargate. No doubt to get reinforcements. SG1 had to act quickly to make their position more defendable before the enemy returned.
A frustrated Jack O'Neill looked around, searching for the missing archaeologist.
"Daniel! Where are you?" Jack growled under his breath.
Teal'c tried to raise him on the radio to no avail.
"He can't be out of range, sir," noted Sam. "We're only about a quarter mile from the gate, if that. You can even see the top of it from here. There aren't enough trees to be causing interference. Either our signals are being blocked, which may be likely given the fact that the Jaffa are here. Or ..," she hesitated.
"Or?" O'Neill repeated expectantly.
"Or he is unable to respond," Teal'c finished.
O'Neill sighed deeply and lifted his baseball cap to scrub his fingers through his short gray hair. After a moment he came to a decision. "All right, let's take advantage of the time we have before those goons show up again. Teal'c take the perimeter. Set as many charges as you can between us and the Jaffa. Carter, check and organize our remaining supplies. It's gonna be a long night if it comes to that. I'm gonna take a look around, see what else is here."
"What about Daniel, sir." she asked, her eyes wide and questioning.
O'Neill's brown eyes locked on hers. "We'll find him. Keep trying to raise him on the radio," He said softly. His tone was even but firm. We will find you Daniel, just hang tight.
The temple itself had seen better days. From down below looking up from the plateau it looked very much like a heap of crumpled ruins. "Rocks" as O'Neill put it. But from up close and personal he could see that the actual structure of the temple was much more massive.
It jutted out further back than it was wide giving the appearance of a smaller building. It looked like only the front of the building had began to suffer ruin. In many ways it reminded Jack of pictures of old Greek buildings he had seen in Daniel's books. But in other ways it reminded him of something else – but try as he might he couldn't quite place it. It would come to him.
Some of the stone walls had intricate carvings, others were completely smooth. It was starkly devoid of any kind of pictographs. Jack liked pictures. Pictures he could relate to. Who would spend their time reading something if there weren't any good pictures to go with it?
Daniel would have considered this heaven. No wonder he was so eager to get started with his survey. He could just see him now eagerly jumping from one carving to the next trying to compare it to others he had seen in the temple, looking for a common point of reference.
If the linguist had been here he could have told them by now the history of the people who built this temple; what foods they ate, what gods they worshipped. But Daniel wasn't here. And, fascinating as the temple was, they were now being chased by nasty bad guys. Right now O'Neill needed to find Daniel and get them all home in one piece.
That thought echoing in his mind, Jack set off for the far end of the temple at a quick jog. He needed to find out what lay beyond the temple and if it was a viable solution to their getting back to the gate.
The temple ended abruptly into the hillside. It seemed to have been built several yards into the hill and the remainder of it jutted out the side of the hill. Behind it a sheer wall ascending about 200 yards straight up ending all thoughts of escaping that way. Both sides of the temple were dotted with treacherously loose rocks and boulders. A steep rock face was on either side. They were trapped.
Back at the entrance with Carter and Teal'c, O'Neill broke the bad news.
"Ok, help me out here folks. Best guess as to exactly how Daniel got off this rock – 'cause if there's another way outta here I want to know about it."
"Well sir," Carter started, glancing back and forth from O'Neill to Teal'c. "There aren't any signs of a fight occurring here while we were down on the plateau, if that's what you're wondering. I mean there are no staff blast marks or blood--"
"Carter!" O'Neill growled low in a tone that told her not to even go there. "What are you saying that he's still here somewhere?"
"Well, yes sir!" Carter was insistent.
"Major, there is no where else he could be. I've searched the entire temple grounds and he isn't here. So my guess is that somehow he made it to the gate."
"I disagree, O'Neill," Teal'c intoned. At the colonel's questioning gaze he continued.
"Whatever transpired here caught Daniel Jackson unaware," reasoned Teal'c, "Otherwise he would not have left his spectacles behind. Many times I have heard Daniel Jackson say that he is as blind as a nocturnal winged rodent without them."
Jack thought about this for a moment, "Nah," he admitted, "I don't suppose he would. Ok, Carter, show me exactly where you found those 'spectacles' of Daniel's."
Daniel's eyes fluttered open. He was confused and his head hurt. The last thing he remembered was being in the tunnel when suddenly it got very hard to stay upright. He did remember feeling hot, but now he was cool, almost chilly. And it was very bright. Had he managed to get out somehow?
Raising his head slightly he suddenly remembered his injured shoulder. Clutching at it with his good right hand he realized that it didn't hurt so badly now. In fact, he was able to move it now with just a little soreness.
"Are you well, now?" Daniel jumped, startled by the voice so near him. He hadn't heard anyone approach.
"Do not be afraid. I will not harm you. I have been attempting to heal your injuries, but it would seem I have only made minimal progress."
"That's ok - - thank you. My name is Daniel Jackson. I'm here with my friends. We're peaceful explorers. You're the man from the tunnel, aren't you?" Daniel paused waiting for the man to reply.
It was indeed the man from the tunnel that Daniel encountered before. Only he was obviously alive and breathing, not a statue as the archaeologist had earlier assumed.
They were in a room, apparently on the other side of the wall Daniel had been trying to get through before he collapsed. Instead of stone walls however, the walls were smooth with glyphs and pictographs here and there. The floor was definitely made of some kind of manufactured material not rock.
Daniel's eyes widened as he realized that the room was filled with technologically advanced equipment. No doubt the man had tried to use some of it on him to heal his injuries.
The two men stared at each other. The man said nothing but continued to regard Daniel with a critical eye. "You are weak, you need nourishment," he finally said.
Memories of Nem came unbidden into Daniel's mind and the 'nourishment' he was offered in the underwater palace. "Umm, that's ok. I'm fine," Daniel managed to say. "Can you help me get back to my friends? We were separated when I fell down here. They're in trouble. We were under attack by some Jaffa and - -"
"Jaffa! My enemies have found me then! Quickly we must hurry! Come!" Without another word the man abruptly turned and exited the room leaving Daniel to follow.
"How far do you think it is down there Teal'c?" O'Neill and the others were standing at the entrance to the trap door that Daniel had fallen through. Peering down they half expected to see Daniel pop out from the darkness with an innocent "Oh, hi guys".
"Several feet at least, O'Neill," Teal'c said.
Narrow stone steps were visible descending below the ground level before disappearing into the pitch black below. Decay was clearly evident as debris from crumbled steps could be seen littering the stairway.
Carter was the first to voice her thoughts. "God, I hope he didn't fall down these stairs. Its pretty steep and the last several feet are broken off." Sam paused. "Let me go first, sir. I'm lighter than the two of you and it should hold my weight with no problem. I can guide you once I'm down at the bottom."
"Ok, Carter, but first secure a line from you to Teal'c. I don't want to lose you, too." A beat later he added, "Just in case there a sudden drop, or something…" Jack's voice trailed off. Feeling his face suddenly flush he made himself busy trying Daniel on the radio again. O'Neill's reaction was not missed by Teal'c who made a mental note to ask his human friend about it later.
Sam was too busy hiding her own reddening countenance to notice Jack's. As Jack watched her work out of the corner of his eye he thought about what an exceptional woman his 2IC was. He was proud to have her as his Major and he had unwavering faith is her abilities.
Many of those skills were developed through Air Force conditioning. Other natural abilities were simply honed by the military training. Such was the case with her. Carter was an experienced hiker and climber; a natural athlete. He was confident she could handle this with ease.
"I'm ready, Colonel" Sam called from her position at the doorway.
"Ok, go for it."
Taking a deep breath Sam proceeded cautiously down the stairs.
Standing up was a huge mistake. Daniel realized that only after he found himself on the floor struggling to hold onto what was left of his breakfast that morning. Nausea and dizziness washed over him in waves as if he was seasick. I must have hit my head harder than I thought. Probably have a slight concussion. Is there any such thing as a slight concussion or am I slightly concussed.
"Whoa, I'm not making any sense." Daniel muttered to himself. "And now I'm talking to myself. Not a good sign."
Daniel gazed in what he thought was the direction that the stranger went. Everything was a little blurry without his glasses. "Another one bites the dust." he thought wryly as he wondered for the umpteenth time why he hadn't thought to include an extra pair of glasses in his pack. Slowly he stood up and stumbled toward the open doorway.
What he saw next jolted him. The room he was now in very much resembled the control room of a Goa'uld mothership.
And they weren't alone. The 'stranger' was talking in hushed tones to another equally well-muscled man dressed in a similar manner. Several others, men and women, passed by busy at their work, whatever that was. Daniel was stunned. The others ignored him obviously perceiving him as a non-threat. Taking a shaky step forward Daniel managed to sink down into a seat at one of several brilliantly lit control panels.
The stranger approached him now. A concerned look on his expressive face. "You not well. I had hoped our technology would help to make you whole again."
"My arm is much better, thank you. Its just my head..I, uh, I just need a minute to get my bearings. What is this place? Do your people live underground to avoid the Goa'uld? Is that why you built this place?"
"You ask many questions. Sit here and rest awhile. I am needed elsewhere. I will send someone to check on you soon."
"Wait! Please, I need your help! My friends – as far as I know they are still battling the Jaffa on the surface. Can you help them? We're peaceful explorers – we don't mean you any harm. We only wish to offer you our hand of friendship in an alliance against the Goa'uld. If I can get back to the Stargate - - ,"
"We will talk of this later. The Stargate is now guarded by my enemy. You will not be able to leave. I will tell my sentinels to look out for your friends. We will help them if we can."
After he had gone, Daniel slipped off his pack and rummaged through it. His headache was getting worse now in spite of his hosts efforts. "Four Tylenol should do it for now," he thought, mentally calculating how long it would be before he ran out of tablets.
Digging out his field journal, the archaeologist began to write a detailed description of what had happened up to this point. Not only would it help keep his mind off his missing teammates but maybe it would help him make sense of the strange things he had seen.
Try as he might, it was getting more and more difficult for the young man to concentrate through the dull ache behind his eyes. Finally, putting down his journal he allowed himself to think of his friends. He was alone - again. And the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach was back. He never told anyone about it mostly because there usually wasn't any one to tell. It had started happening when his parents died and it came back every time he was forced to pack his bags and move to a new foster home.
It was a sick feeling of dread. Dread of being left alone and not knowing what the future held. Dread that he would never find a permanent home with parents that loved and cared for him. Then later it became a dread that he would never be reunited with Sha're. The feeling was almost a constant companion. He had pretty much gotten used to it.
Until Jack took him in and showed him that he had a permanent place and a family with SG-1.
Now that he was a part of the SGC – now that they were all his family – he rarely felt those dark emotions. Sure they came up occasionally whenever he dared to think back on those years of growing up alone or in some nightmare that taunted him from time to time.
But he hadn't expected it to show up at this moment, not in the middle of a mission.
His mind kept flashing back to the last time he had seen his team - - fighting for their very lives. Daniel put his head down on the console and waited for the stranger to return, praying that his team had somehow gotten to safety.
"Well this is the proverbial fork in the road." O'Neill said dryly.
Jack, Carter and Teal'c were standing at the bottom of the cavern below the temple. In front of them they were faced with several man-made tunnels. It was impossible to determine which one the wayward archaeologist had taken.
They had found the blister packs from the pills Daniel had taken. He had definitely been down here. "Injured most likely, O'Neill thought. "Otherwise he wouldn't have needed the painkillers."
"Okay, let's split up. Everybody take a tunnel." Jack waved a hand indicating the passageways. "Report every fifteen minutes. Let's move out."
Jack welcomed the chance to be alone with his thoughts as he checked out the left-most tunnel. He knew that Carter and Teal'c were both anxious to find their friend. And he hoped that they couldn't see just how worried he was for Daniel.
More than worried, Jack was scared to death. Daniel was his responsibility and once again he managed to lose the archaeologist who was also his best friend.
"I swear when this is over Daniel, I'm never letting you outta my sight!" Jack mumbled under his breath. His mind slipped back to Abydos when Daniel had unhesitatingly stepped between Jack and a staff blast even though he barely knew Jack more than a few days. Later when Daniel came back to earth after Sha're was taken and Daniel had no where to go, they had spent a lot of spent a lot of time in the wee hours of the morning talking.
Jack had been trying to help Daniel deal with the loss of his wife and get on with his life. But later the older man realized that Daniel had really been the one to help him get back on track with his own life. Daniel's enthusiasm and optimism were contagious and even though he tried not to let on much, Jack admired the linguist a great deal.
As he proceeded through the passageway lost in thought, Jack didn't hear the soft footsteps behind him until it was too late.
To Be Continued?
Your feedback is appreciated. Constructive criticism is always welcome.